Staycation Day 2

Tuesday I was well enough for Laney and me to have our date. She had been wanting us to spend some girlie time together, and I thought it was a great idea. We decided what we were going to do - as many of our favorite things as we could fit into one day!

 We started off by having lunch which ended lunch with a giant piece of chocolate cake. That was good. She had been wanting to see "Ramona and Beezus," and luckily we found a movie theater that was still playing it. I was excited about the movie since I loved Beverly Cleary books when I was her age, and it was a perfect thing to do together. I actually loved the movie, maybe even more than she did! I am also a tad obsessed with getting my hair cut like Aunt Bea:

Anyway, the movie was good, and I actually can't wait to see it again. I'm really glad there's an appropriate movie for a girl Laney's age that she liked. That's getting harder and harder. Although, there was kissing, and I said to her after, "*Ahem* Now you know we don't kiss boys, right...?" She said, "Right."

Whew.

There was a red carpet just for us! Okay, not really, but we pretended that it was for us.

Then we went to the bookstore. I told her she could choose one small treat, and bless her heart, she couldn't decide between a journal and a letter writing set. (The apple didn't fall far from the tree...) She choose the letter writing set, and I snuck in a little stuffed animal that I saw her looking at. I'm so glad that she's still into stuffed animals that I was happy to get her one! (She's carried it around with her almost constantly since then too. *sniff*)

We wanted to go to our other favorite store, the thrift store, but we had to head home. The boys had gone to the science center all day, which I was thrilled with, since it counted as a field trip for the 6 year old. And it was free. More good stuff!

I really loved my date with my girl. I'm still wrestling through my thoughts on her sudden growth spurt into a mini pre-teen, so it was good to spend time with her and see that she's really still the same girl - just one who's trying to figure out what comes next.  She still talks to me (constantly, in fact) and that makes my heart very happy. I hope it always stays that way.

So day two was really great. A happy day!

Staycation Day 1

I know that I tend towards the "epic length" as far as blog posts are concerned. I try to shorten them. Really, I do. I just can't. With that in mind, though, I thought I'd blog out our fabulous staycation last week one day at a time. That way you also get something to look forward to every day. (I'm kidding.)

Monday morning I realized I was sick. I went off to the doctor, got meds and spent the rest of the day in bed.

People kept telling me they were sorry I was sick. Hm. Let's break this down.

I went to the doctor and got to sit, in perfect silence, and read a book while I waited. I really like my doctor, too and we always have lots to chat about. So that was good.

Then I got to take my prescriptions to Target (I mean, who else has a pharmacy in this huge city?) and I had to wonder around while they filled them.  By myself. In Target. Nice.

I went home and crawled in bed, where I stayed all day, watching episodes of "Househunters International."

Hubby took the kids bowling too, so did I mention that I was in bed in a quiet house for hours, napping and watching television?

Then they all came home and washed my van.

Then they cooked dinner. Without me. All by themselves. (Except for the little one, who came upstairs crying, saying, "Daddy told me to 'get out of the kitchen...' " which made me seriously laugh a lot, since I say that every. night. when I'm cooking dinner.)

Then hubs cleaned up the kitchen while I ate dinner on the sofa and then went back to bed.

I kept getting all these sweet texts and emails, telling me "so sorry you're sick..." and I had the good grace to at least feel guilty. I was sick, but man, I was also having a vacation!!!! 

And my husband was so glad to actually be home, and see the kids, that he didn't mind either.

I'd say it was a win/win situation. Everybody was happy!

And my meds worked well. I was better by Tuesday! :)

My little bowlers:

He was literally saying, "Yeeeeesssssss..." I can hear him!

So that was Monday!

Recipe

This is one of my favorite "quick and easy" dinners. It's not all that healthy, but I've tweaked it to make it a little better.

And of course it involved my Crock Pot. I have an unnatural affection for my Crock Pot. It makes my life so much easier. I hope the lead accusations aren't true. If they are, then we might be in trouble. :)

Anyway, the recipe is called Italian Crock Pot Chicken

Here's the orgininal recipe:

4-6 boneless skinless chicken breasts

1 block cream cheese

1 stick of butter

1 can cream of chicken soup

1 packet of Italian dressing seasonings (in the salad dressing section)

Throw it all in the crock pot and cook on high for 4-6 hours. Take out the chicken, shred it and add it back to the slow cooker. Cook some spaghetti, drain and  add that to the slow cooker. Stir and let sit for just a few minutes. 

So good.

Here's how I made it tonight so that it's not "heart attack in a Crock Pot."

2 chicken breasts (still fed the whole family with just two breasts)

1 block of reduced fat cream cheese

1 can organic cream of mushroom soup

1/2 stick of butter

1 packet Italian dressing

1 box whole wheat spaghetti

You only need to cook it for about 4 hours since there's not so much chicken. I also cook a lot of broccoli to have as a side dish. The kids love this too.

I'd take a picture of it, but it's all gone!

School - Week 2

Week Two - Done. 

Whew. 

It was good, really. We are starting to think about getting used to the schedule. I thought we only needed two weeks to adjust, but as a sweet friend pointed out yesterday, a month is a little more of realistic goal for said adjustment. 

Okay. 

So in two more weeks, we'll be used to school. 

That's good to know. 

Laney is doing okay in school. This last week was crazy with her, though. I'm really starting to see that pre-teen girl start to sneak through. I've been praying over this for a while now, so I'm not too worried, but it is weird. 

Okay, fine,  I admit I cried when I uploaded this picture.

I'm good with her getting older. Really, I am. I look forward to having teenagers. (Don't snort or roll your eyes at me.) I like all these big kid stages. It's just hitting me that the hard days of them being little are really over. I'm weak with thankfulness that God carried me through all those hard days. Now I'm begging Him to help me be a good mom to a pre-teen girl. It's a huge responsibility, and I'm sensing that it's even more of a requirement that I stay right with Christ so that I can be the mom she needs me to be. It's so weird, that they seem to not age forever, and then all of a sudden.... BAM. They are in the next stage of life. Weird.

I so remember this stage of life, and I really want to guide her through it with her eyes on Christ. Lord, please help me do that. 

When thunderstorms thwarted our swimming plans, we met friends at the Flight Museum to end the week. It was free, and that was a great time to go! We had a great time, and hopefully learned a lot, since I'm counting it as a field trip!

Jude very literally said, "Man, I wish I had a bathtub big enough for THIS!" I love that kid.

This was special to me, since I blogged not too long ago about my great-grandmother going to work during WWII. It made me realize how completely easy our lives are in SO many ways. We are oh so weak compared to that generation. They were tough. They lived through so much.

They had some really cool exhibits.

This was my kids' favorite part of the day. *rolling eyes* They don't get lunches packed for them much, so I tried to make it all "field-tripy" and pack lunches for them to eat on the road. Zane made me add superhero stuff to his bag. That's a sideways bat on the left, Superman in the middle, and a spider web on the right. My artistic skills are lacking, let me tell you. :) Jude's are Lego's. That made him happy.

Family worship. This picture just made me happy. Zane is blurry because he's swaying to the music.

Speaking of Zane, prior to this year, he would have gotten the "#1 most difficult aspect to homeschooling" award. 

Oh the stories I could tell. 

I don't know if it's because he (finally) turned 4 or what it is, but this year, he has been amazing. He will sit in the floor and play with Lego's for the longest time while we are doing school. I don't think there's been one day when he played Wii, which honestly, is the only reason we survived last year. I'm so very thankful. God took care of us through all that hard, hard stuff, and now things are easier. I don't take that for granted either. I'll never forget how much God carried me through things where I literally thought, "I just can't do this." He is so faithful. 

This is a Leggo creation he made all by himself. He looks proud, doesn't he? Ha. That stinker. I adore him. 

So that was week two. God is good. :)

Back to School!

This blog has been so very heavy for a while. For a time, I hated to have a post without pictures. Now it seems like it's a heavy, long winded, rambling clutter of thoughts that have been thought already, and without pictures to boot.

Well, if that sentence didn't just sum up what I was trying to say. Gracious.

This post will be short(er) and have pictures. That makes me happy. 

I know it was time for school to start, and I really think I was ready. I have never prayed over a school year like this one. We made it through the week! I didn't get up on time, not once. We didn't start school on time, not once. We had sickness too. But God was faithful, and week 1 is over.

I had to suppress the urge to sigh with relief after that first week was done. It's a "Whew, glad that's over..." kind of sigh. Then an "OH WAIT! I have to do that week 35 more times!!!!" moment follows. That's overwhelming. Help me, Lord, to keep my head down and look at what is directly in front of me. If I look too far ahead, I lose it. 

I've also had this conversation several times with friends here lately. I know without a doubt that God has called me to this, along with some other things too. It's not enough that He called me to do this; I know that He's equipped me to do this, ( Now the God of peace, who brought up from the dead the great Shepherd of the sheep through the blood of the eternal covenant, even Jesus our Lord, equip you in every good thing to do His will, working in us that which is pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen. Hebrews 13:20-21 ) but it also seems like He makes it as hard as possible. 

Does that make sense? 

This is the image that I get in my head every time I have this conversation:

 

That's me, pulling my airplane. 


God says, "Hey, you're going to home school."

I say, "Okay!"

He says, "Okay! There you go!" 

*Exit stage left.*

I stand there wondering what just happened. 

So I do. I home school.

But, let's make it harder. Let's pile on twenty things that make it harder. 

Okay.

God?

And then it feels like that picture. I'm pulling my airplane.

But doesn't everyone feel this way? In whatever God calls you to, doesn't it sometime feel like you're pulling your airplane? With no help from Him? 

Why does He make it so hard?

I don't have all the answers but this verse rings in my head: Faithful is He who calls you, and He also will bring it to pass. (1 Thess. 5:24)

I know Paul wasn't talking about home schooling, but I'm claiming this verse anyway.

I'm claiming it for all the things that He's called me to that seem huge and impossible. 

He is faithful, and He is doing in me and getting me ready for far more than my feeble mind can imagine. 

And probably you too.

So there you go. Not too long, and has pictures.

Do you like me? Check "yes" or "no"

I already hate this post. I don't want to write it. It's been rolling around in my head for so long, though, I'm going to bite the bullet and get this sucker out. 

A couple of weeks ago, I had a strange altercation with a friend. It ended rather badly, and my first thought was, "Huh. Guess she doesn't want to be friends anymore." I was talking to my husband, and I relayed the story to him. He responded, "Instead of thinking you aren't friends anymore, how about thinking she was just having a bad day. How about trying grace and mercy?"

Mental note: Girlfriends are for sympathy, husbands are for fixing things. Think after almost 15 years I would have figured this out? I was whiny, wounded and hurt. I wanted petting, but you know what? I got what I needed instead of what I wanted.

So now, the overthinker had two things to ponder. 

1. Why did I care so much that someone wanted to end a friendship? Why am I so afraid of someone not liking me?

2. Where was my grace and mercy?

*sigh*

I know full well that there are people that don't like me. I've had altercations before. I'm not afraid of conflict, actually. I'm usually rattled after the fact, but I'm thankful for the spitfire that God has created in me after years of being too shy or afraid to confront someone. :) I don't relish the conflict, but I am sure as heck not afraid of it. (Unless it's going to be damaging in some way.) So conflict and it's resolution is fine.

Someone not liking me is not fine. And I get it. There are things about me that are totally unlikeable. I'm loud. I talk a lot and usually quickly. I'm stubborn, brash and passionate about what I believe, and loud about that. I've been told that I'm intimidating and make people defensive. That's just the short list. 

So what's not to like?

Still, it bothers me to think that someone has an issue with me, or simply doesn't like me. And I wrestled with why I care so much. I know I shouldn't. I know who I am in Christ. I know what He's transforming me to be. I know that He's eliminating all the bad in me to make me more like Him. I know He's given me good qualities. I try to maximize them through Him.  I know that being filled with the Spirit and staying in the Word are ways that He flows through me more, beating down the bad that I really am. 

So why do I care when someone doesn't like me?

I really couldn't find an answer.

Until. 

My daughter went to a spend the night party with several girls. She came home the next day, and during our conversation about the party, she blurted out, "Mom, one of the girls was mean to me. She didn't like me!" 

We talked about it, and it did seem, based on the little girl's actions, that she really didn't like my girl. And I could see it all reflected on her face. Then it hit me. That's why it mattered to her. And to me.

It hurts. 

So that was it. That's what happens when someone doesn't like you. It hurts. Whether you are my ancient age or whether you are 8, it hurts. 

Well, that cleared things up. 

I got over it. Honestly, I don't care if people like me. As my precious fellow overthinker pointed out during on of our "processing out loud" conversations about this, it's preposterous to think that everyone you meet will like you. It's even narcissistic to want everyone to.

Furthermore, if I'm walking in obedience to Christ with my eyes on Him, isn't it probable that I'm not going to be liked by everyone? Didn't Jesus kind of talk about that. A lot? 

Yep.

Okay.

I'm feeling better. Who cares. Really. I can say that now. I'm not saying that the next time I find a new person that doesn't like me, and I'm sure it won't be long even, that it won't take me a moment to re-process and remind myself of all of this. 

And I don't want to come off as having a pity party. I am blessed SO far beyond measure with the super amazing and incredible girls who love Christ and push me to be more like Him. They truly love me, all my faults included, and tell me so often. 

That makes all this even more ridiculous.

I told you I didn't want to type all this out. 

Now that I had that taken care of, back to my husband.

Where was my grace and mercy? Why was I so quick to cut something off instead of extending grace. And mercy?

Huh.

There's tons and tons to this, and you can keep reading, because I'm SO not going to type it all out here. 

I did ponder this, though. A lot.

I had a book in my shelf that I hadn't ever read. It was on grace. I pulled it out and dove in, just trying to get some sort of grip on some of this.

I didn't get very far in the book. You know what the author said? He asked if I wanted a definition of grace. He said instead of offering that, he was going to show me what it was instead of defining it. 

I just closed the book. That was all I needed. I don't need to examine what grace it. I just need to show it. 

That may not have made any sense. 

It did to me, though. 

I want to finish reading that book, but more importantly, I want to demonstrate the same grace extended to me, by God, and not because it's intrinsic to me in some situation. I want to be intentional about how I extend grace in situations where everything in me really just wants to walk away. That's hard, for me anyway.

My sweet friend also pointed out that I favor justice.

A more precise comment is that I'm obsessed with justice.

How ironic, since I'm shown no justice for all my sins. Only grace. And mercy. 

I guess that's it. 

I'm okay if you don't like me. I'd prefer that you still be kind, but if you're not, that's okay too. That's between you and God. I'll show grace. I'll be grace. 

And I sure hope you'll do the same for me. 

(I'm also sure that an opportunity for me to demonstrate this will be right around the corner. Please pray I put into practice what I've learned. Thank you.)

Of all things...

I spent my rockin' Saturday night organizing curricula and listening to old sermons. (Whoa, that is such a geeky think to admit.) I got done with a stage of organizing, so I was set to steam clean some carpet, since the offending carpet destroyers were in bed. I was about to get up, when I thought to go ahead and load the kids' cds that have their scripture memory verses on the computer. I couldn't find the new cd for Laney, and after searching, I finally found in in a plastic bag with some other things. I popped the cd into the computer and pulled out the other items from the bag to see what they were.

There was an envelope, and on the outside it said, "A gift for you, Mom." And here's where I snorted. It said, "Please open in a quiet time and place."

Yea, I snorted. I mean, my kids are in bed, but only a few minutes ago did Laney stop coming downstairs to tell me "something." I do get quiet time in the mornings and at night, in the vein of complete honesty, but finding an envelope meant for a  homeschooling mother that said to read it in quiet and peach was just to ironic to me. 

Anyway.

I opened the envelope fully expecting to find something really cheesy. Because you know, I'm a cynic like that. 

And here's what I found - A note that said this:

"Dear Mom,

{Blah, blah, some stuff you don't care about, ie. how great Sonlight is.}

As I think of what you will learn together-not only from the books and the academics, but, far more, from the relationships you will deepen one with another-my heart wells up with joy. What a difference your sacrifice and commitment will make in your children's lives... and through them, I pray, in the lives of many, many others... possibly to the ends of the earth!

While in the Holy Land a few years ago, John and I made the acquaintance of a Christian shop keeping family in Bethlehem. We purchased one of the Jerusalem Cross pendents. Made of stering silver and blue opal, and crafted by Bethlehem Christian friends of the shop keepers, I thought it might serve as a fitting "token of appreciation" for you... and an encouragement to you to persevere in your often unrecognized labors.

Sincerely, Sauta


PS. The rich heritage of the Jerusalem Cross dates back to the fourth century. The four small crosses represent the four Gospels spreading to the four corners of the earth, and the large center cross represents Jerusalem, the city where Christianity began. 

I pray the shape of this cross will remind you of the foundations of your faith - geographically, of course, but far more, historically, since the Cross, itself, stands for the ultimate sacrifice Jesus made in our behalf. Beyond this, however, when the blue jewels sparkle in the sunlight, I pray you might remember that you play an astonishingly valuable role in spreading God's Kingdom as you invest in your children - the next generation. "
  
(Bold and italics theirs)

Oh. my. gosh. 


I just sobbed. I don't know why, exactly. Maybe it was the week we had. :) Maybe it was being without my kids all afternoon and realizing that I really could NOT wait to see them, and hug them. Maybe it was the time I spent praying over the upcoming year. Maybe it was the stress I was feeling, again, about what a mammoth job this is, and wondering why God would entrust me with such a ginormous job. 

I just cried. I took off my other cross and slipped this one onto the chain I wear around my neck. And as silly as it sounds, every time I touch this cross, I'll think of this sweet note, written not to me, but written by someone who really does understand why I home school. By someone who gets how hard it is, but gets WHY I do it. 


And stamped on the back of the cross is the word "Jerusalem," which reminded me of my commitment made a while ago, to God, to pray for this HIS people. I don't pray for them like I said I would. This will help.


Oh my. My Lord is so sweet and so gracious to bless and encourage me with some completely serendipitous treasure found on my bookshelf. He is so involved with each and every intricate detail of my life. This fact ushers me into such sweet worship with a God that I simply don't even have words to describe my feelings for.