Five Minutes

OK Ladies,

It is confession time. I went to my homepage and saw nothing new on the MOPS blog and wondered who dropped the ball. Then I looked at the schedule and found that I dropped the ball. And now I must confess that I not only dropped the ball, but am looking blankly at the computer screen wondering what to talk about on this Mommy and Me Thursday.

Last night, Simon and I painted. For about five minutes he spread blue and red paint over five post cards. He discovered the difference between spreading and dotting the paint. He found the fun of accidentally dotting his mother and turned it into the fun of deliberately smearing his mother. After five minutes he was done; the trucks were calling him.

Typically, I don't think much of five minutes and had I known the amount of time he would spend on that activity I probably wouldn't have gotten out the stuff, honestly. I don't often use five minutes to connect waiting for more time. But last night was five minutes and it will be a forever memory.

I wonder what do you do with your five minutes to connect? Seriously, let us inspire and encourage one another. I need five minute ideas!

Silly Question Tuesday...

You are on vacation at the beach with three friends. (Kids free, quick over night trip to the beach! Very spontaneous!).. Your husband agreed to this and has the children and is TRYING to give you that 24 hour break. TRYING! You start getting texts. What are the first 3 texts you get from him:

Struggling With Attention

The Friday night I kept saying I was going to read my Bible, but I never did. Last night, I did read my Bible before bed and then fell asleep before I said my bed time prayers. Why? Well, the first night, I was "too busy" and the second night, I was "too tired". These are legitimate statements... I really had a lot to do! And I really had had a busy day yesterday, and I was tired!

Do you ever have that happen?

Wandering from Christ is not abnormal for Christians. So many times I’ve had (as they say) “Mountaintop experiences” that leave me feeling so close to the Lord that when I converse with him I can almost audibly hear his voice. And yet, I wander away time and time again.

It occurred to me 2 weeks ago how this must be common for even the most Christ-seeking Christian. We were singing the awesome hymn “Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing” and and as I read the words, I realized that people have struggled with this forever. A stanza says this:

O to grace how great a debtor
Daily I’m constrained to be!
Let Thy goodness, like a fetter,
Bind my wandering heart to Thee.
Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it,
Prone to leave the God I love;
Here’s my heart, O take and seal it,
Seal it for Thy courts above.

It’s human nature to be prone to wander. Old Dead Guys who wrote hymns from long ago did it… and I see it in my daily life. Why? When growing closer to the Lord is such an amazing feeling? When reading the Bible is such great stuff- such enriching guidelines for life, why stray from its focus? I don’t know, but I suppose that since Eve and Adam had their “I’m going to gain knowledge and wisdom” wandering at the beginning, we’ve been tugged like a rope back and forth. My will, thy will. My will, thy will.

I love Psalm 119. It really helps me to remember to remember His word and his promises. The whole Psalm is long- but it starts off in an amazing encouragement as to this struggle!

Psalm 1-8

Blessed are those whose ways are blameless, who walk according to the law of the LORD. Blessed are those who keep his statutes and seek him with all their heart— they do no wrong but follow his ways. You have laid down precepts that are to be fully obeyed. Oh, that my ways were steadfast in obeying your decrees! Then I would not be put to shame when I consider all your commands. I will praise you with an upright heart as I learn your righteous laws. I will obey your decrees; do not utterly forsake me.

Spring Regardless of the Chill

getting what we need for our garden fence

the nice young man who helped us

my brother-in-law who makes my sister so happy (the nice young man reminded me of him)

listening to Simon crow clukaddldooo

feeding cranky boys who will go to sleep when belly is full

the picture she colored for me

the way she asks her dad for baby chicks (not this year)

discussing ceiling fans and carpet with a very understanding man

checkmarks on the best to-do list I've made in a long time

knowing work builds character

going through new-to-us clothes

the Sermon on the Mount

taking things off my plate--another season perhaps?

the season's first rabbit after a squirrel at the birdfeeder

A smile is like time tickin slow...

Mommy & Me Thursday

It seems I have reached yet another turning point in my motherhood.
My children test on a whole other level.

My youngest being 5, my oldest being 6. I definetly feel like I am in some type of in between "twilight zone." I still have my preschooler and I have my "I know!- picture eyes rolling as this phrase is said.-" first-grader.

Time is flying by.

Ironically enough this "zone" seems to be less bumpy and some how, more enjoyable. I laugh with my kids, they are funny human beings. I cry with my kids, they are senstive human beings. I am in awe of my kids, they are smart human beings. Sometimes a little too smart.

Time is flying by.

But you know what I have noticed seems to slow it down. Smiling. Yep, smiling.
When I see my children smile it's almost like I freeze. I just stand there and admire their beautiful smile. The smile full of teeth and the smile missing many. It's not only the smile that captures me but it's the pure joy that beams from their eyes when they smile. I also make a concsious effort to cherish whatever is happening at that moment that is causing such joyful eyes and unforgettables smiles.

Yesterday Ethan and I had many of those moments. We ran errands in town. Ate and played at McDonalds. Hugged and tickled. Played. Cleaned. I got a few random I love you's! It was such a good day.

It seems that we play ping pong all week. No not the game with a ball. The game with our emotions. One day is a fantastic one. He is happy, cooperative, he listens!The next he is this combative child who wants to pull out every ounce of patience I claim to possess, and only after he acheives this, he then chooses to cooperate. And no ladies, this is not because I won the battle of wills, it is because he did. Yes, there are days they win. That's how it works in this game of ping pong. Sometimes you miss the ball, sometimes you mess up. Sometimes you may the wrong move. I think that's when the ref. is called in. You have to pray for Him to get your attention. You always have His, He just doesn't always have yours. Perhaps maybe we should pray daily before the games begin, so we know that He is always there to advise us.

I have also noticed in this "twilight zone" that I am actually getting through to my children on some things. Some things are still very confusing for them to understand and very confusing for me to explain. You know like this question I got just today. Went a little something like this:


It Brenna: "Mommy why is the sky blue?!"

Me: "Well the sky is blue because it is a reflection... ummm, no wait the water is blue because it is a reflecting off of the sky.Ummmm, the sky is blue because...(I quickly take this moment to seem distracted and GOOGLE - HOLY explanation! Geez!The sky is blue beacuse of some light, molecules and gases. Yep super easy to explain!)because...the sky is blue because that is the color God chose it to be!" really does make for more enjoyable living!

Just today Brenna changed the hand towel in the bathroom because it was wet. I know that seems simple, but to me that was so responsible of her.
When she saw my smile of approval and heard my words of affirmation, she beamed right back at me. I bet time froze for her too. See it works both ways.

Time is certainly flying by.

This is a fumbled kind of post, but I hope that you all understand how much I have been genuinely enjoying the company and the challenges that being a mother brings. It is such an enormous, difficult, rewarding thing that has in some ways, become such a part of our identity that we loose sight of it all together. Why we are mothers. What are purpose is.

You know, even in my loss at the EPP, I couldn't help but be amazed, almost proud of his determination. As difficult as strong willed children can be, that is part of who he is.

During that "game", time didn't stand still. It couldn't go by fast enough. However, later after we worked through what happened - we had a chat - and we were having a good day again, there were smiles and I love smiles.











"A smile is like time ticking slow"

Question!

The other day I was in WalMart waiting in line for the Pharmacy. My cart was in the way for an elderly lady who was wanting to look at some thermometers, and so I offered to move. She suggested that I reach one for her instead, and she based her choice on the price she could see from where she was. Our conversation went something like this:

Lady: "Hand me that pink one that costs $7, would you?"

Me: (in a fun but ornery voice) "Ma'am, I could get that one for you, but it's an ovulation charting thermometer... are you charting your basal temperature?"

Lady: "Ha ha, wouldn't that be something?"

Me: "Well, I don't want to be assumptive... maybe you're wanting to start a family!"

Lady: "Wow, could you imagine, and 85 year old woman? I could make money from that! How about that blue one over there?"

I went out on a limb to joke with this stranger, but she just seemed like the type who had a sense of humor. I'm glad I ran with it as we both had a chuckle and left each other smiling.

Have you had any fun/silly/interesting/bonding/ embarrassing or otherwise notable conversations with a stranger lately? If so, tell us what you said!

Kindhearted

"A kindhearted woman gains respect..." Proverbs 11:16a

This nugget of wisdom leaped off the page as I was reading my Bible one day during my years with little ones tugging at me. Like Sarah, who posted last week about "being something and someone", I had my moments of wondering if my skills and gifts were being fully used. When asked "Why, Mommy?" fifty times a day, one's mental abilities get a work out, but it can be downright draining. During this time, my husband was teaching at a Bible college and seminary, imparting wonderful knowledge to his very receptive students. Several of our women colleagues were also professors, many with their doctorates. At our mission gatherings I felt like Susie homemaker, the one who brought the muffins and didn't have much to add to the conversation.

As I read that being kind was a key to being respected, I felt tremendous relief. It was okay that I wasn't furthering my formal education (though being a mom has indeed given me lots of "smarts"!), it was okay that I was at home the majority of the time (though that certainly didn't mean I wasn't a working woman!), and it was okay that the people (even if they were very small people!) I was influencing were my own children! I knew that I could cultivate kindness in my life. There was absolutely no one that could take that away from me and I was determined to make that a high priority in my daily life.

I have been blessed with much inspiration in the area of kindness from my earliest days. My mom is one of the kindest people I know. She is a very smart and gifted woman but I benefited most from her kindness through each day. When I was eight and a half, Mom had a baby and it was the first time she had complications. The emergency c-section left her very weak and her body rejected the stitches. It was one of the most difficult times of my mom's life, though I was quite oblivious at that age! Mom wasn't able to come upstairs to tuck us in for at least six weeks. When she did, she found that my sisters and I didn't do well in the keeping your room clean department without some accountability. She looked at our room, sat down on the bed and cried! No screaming or yelling - just sadness over our mess! At that moment, my motivation for keeping my room clean spiked and I don't think she ever had to cry at the state of our bedroom again! Mom also spoke many encouraging, life giving words into my life even during the teen years when I became boy crazy and obnoxious. I put her to the test so many times but there was always kindness in her heart and on her tongue for me and all of my siblings.

Another woman who touched my life at a time when I needed lots of help was Linda, a friend from Ohio. Linda has a Ph.D. in some science - I can never remember which because she is more concerned about helping others than talking about her knowledge. When our daughter, Lisa, was ill and then in the weeks after Lisa's homegoing, Linda would take our boys out with her boys for visits to museums, to the swimming pool or playground. Paul and Peter were just ten and seven years at the time and I was tired in my grief and in trying to still be a good mom to my kids. The great thing wasn't just that Linda was giving me some time to rest, but that she was such a kindhearted person I knew my boys were also gaining from their time with her.

It's interesting that the very next verse in Proverbs 11 says, "A kind man benefits himself...". The NLT translates this: "Your own soul is nourished when you are kind..." I want to be kind because of how it benefits all around me, but what a great thing to know I am also nourishing my own soul. This is a thought to ponder, especially when I face a choice of being mean and vindictive OR kind. When that choice is difficult, I remind myself that kindness is one of the fruit of the Holy Spirit (Galatians 5:22,23) which means I can ask God to give me a fresh supply whenever I need it. I love that God is always willingly giving us what we need!

I still fall short of my own expectations in so many areas...that pile of clutter I just can't get through, the good intentions that never come to fruition, the times I try to be organized but drop the ball...through it all I continue to strive for those character qualities my kids will remember they saw in me. I hope kindness will be at the top of the list!

"And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus." Ephesians 2:6,7


~Joy Herman