Mother’s Day

I had a great Mother’s Day, complete with 3 meals, none of which I had to cook!

See all the Cracker Barrel to go products above? Proof that nothing was cooked! My brother, his girl friend, my mom, and my family all ate an early dinner at my house. I tried not to get overly anxious about the amount of plastic that we threw away from the to go containers, but that also meant no dishes to be washed, just a few glasses and forks.

The boys were overly excited to celebrate me. In fact, a few days earlier, Daniel told me in a hushed tone, “Momma, I have something very important to tell you.” He seemed upset, so I gently asked him what was wrong. He replied, “I picked you flowers for Mother’s Day and hid them under my bed so you wouldn’t find them but they just shrunk all the way up and I had to throw them away.” Bless his heart!

I *did* still get flowers, those pretty roses surrounded by Cracker Barrel goodness. I also got some jewelry, the lovely necklace I am wearing in my pictures with the boys above, which I requested to have and Thomas had to hunt down for me. I was truly surprised he found it. I also got a bracelet, compliments of Daniel. It was bangle made out of paper, complete with a hand drawn heart on top (I think you can see it in the pics above, not yet on my wrist). I actually wore it to church too :O).

At church, we took a family photo, which is a gift given to the congregation. I have not seen mine yet, but I have low hopes. Wesley turned shy and sad when we walked into the door, and I think he might have been cradling my right breast with his hand, definitely cuddling it with his cheek, as we took the photo. Maybe, just maybe, one turned out ok. The kids also filled out a sheet about me in their Sunday School classes. Wesley said I was 15 years old and that my favorite foods were bacon and spaghetti. I do not necessarily like spaghetti, and although I do like bacon, I wouldn’t say it was my favorite. Those are HIS favorites. Daniel said I made “chocolate pie” the best, which is what he calls our gooey, sugar filled, stick of butter, absolutely yummy fudge pie. I can see how that one is a winner.

It was a great day.

Wordless Wednesday: Strawberry Patch

Invented Spelling

Oh let me tell you, invented spelling blesses my heart. Always has, always will. When literacy is emerging, seeing a child take hold of language and just write it how it sounds does this teacher of writing much good. But this Momma’s heart? Well, there are no accurate words for how impacting it is to me. I cherish all the attempts to convey thoughts and feelings. My type A first born can often find it hard to “just guess” when it comes to writing, but when he goes for it, without inhibition, I melt. For those of your that don’t speak this language, I will translate:

“I hope you have a great day Mom and I love you and Dad. From Daniel”

Incredible.

I get little nuggets of blessings like this from Daniel frequently, but this little letter from yesterday really sticks with me, for obvious reasons.I’ll keep it forever.

Well, I will keep it forever for those obvious reasons……and the fact we have phallic noses. That will make anyone chuckle, at least a little.

Insta Friday

Enjoy a few pictures from the past few weeks, all of which have been previously posted to Instagram. It is fun to look at life via snapshots.

“Take the Day Off”

Recently I listened to a sermon from Gateway Church that I think many of us need to hear. Most all of the sermons form this pastor are amazing and well spoken, raw and challenging, basic yet engaging. I highly recommend that you download some podcasts or watch some videos while you are folding laundry, commuting, or what not. You will not regret it! I feel like the past 8 months that I have been consistently listening to these sermons twice a week I have learned much and grown, felt challenged, in how I operate in my faith.

This particular sermon spoke to me in a strong way, and in the month since hearing it, I have been consistently Sabbathing on Fridays, all day. I try not to log into any emails, get overly stressed about any dishes, or grade any papers. I just live and enjoy life. Sabbath is hard to find when your husband works every Saturday for the past 9 months and going to church, at this stage of my life with small kids, never really equals relaxing, and Sunday afternoons just feel like moments to get everything together for the next week. I instruct for a brick and mortar college two days a week, but, as a means of helping my husband attending school to pursue a dream, I also teach on-line classes, which have a way of creeping into all days of the week due to their accessibility.

We’re in a tough phase, and often we have both felt forgotten by those closest to us as we have walked through what is undoubtedly the hardest year of our lives, together or apart. From the failed house sale and abandoning tenants, to the kicked you out landlord, to the miscarriage, to a brand new business, to new incomes, to starting kindergarten, to starting grad school, to hospital rotations, we both feel like at times we can’t breathe or catch up or manage our new lives. We are only surviving because our God is so good and my mom is so amazing. Without those two, you could have dug our graves back February before last when all these things were forced our way.

At what felt like a breaking point in stress, God gave me this sermon, for when the pastor, Robert Morris, uttered the words, it was the start of December of 2012. I listed to it at the start of April 2013, almost exactly 4 months later. I just clicked the next sermon on my downloads and prayed to God simultaneously that it would be a blessing—and boy did he bless.

So, I’ve been meaning to clue you into it. Cause mommas always have laundry, and husbands always have jobs, and teachers always have papers, and students always have tests, and ___fill in your blank here____. It happens and will continue to happen. But you need to grab your Sabbath before one is claimed for you!

Click on the ink below and invest 30 minutes into getting some amazing lessons………and then begin to Sabbath!

Take the Day Off: Gateway Church, 12/1/12, by Robert Morris