Have you ever felt so passionately about something but at the same time left to wonder if your way is the right way? Have you ever seen something that doesn’t make sense only to ask yourself if it is in God’s will? I will proclaim and proclaim that excellence and perfection in my Lord, my Father in Heaven, and my Jesus. However, His will is so very hard to see sometimes…..and there are days when I do not like to go through the refining fires because it might just prove that I am wrong and I simply do not have enough faith.
Archive for August, 2008
August 21, 2008
My list:
- Clean my car….well I kind of straightened it up and then the kids tornadoed their way through.
- Get the kid’s rooms “mommy clean”
- Go through thier clothes
- Take the big pile of “stuff” on my second floor to Hope Ministry
- Clean the house (at least twice)
- Get Kyle to his doctor appointment Tuesday (rescheduled)
- Go to the pool two times.
- Go to TWO school open houses
- Finish the cross-stitch (whatever)
- Go to meetings (probably just one of the two) (nope)
- Couple’s event at Okoboji Grill Sunday
- Church (no counting…yeah!)
- Races with the hubby
- Return movies we rented
I think I did pretty good myself. I also went grocery shopping, to the movies once, and did laundry once…doing it again today.
The kids went off to school this morning. When Steven left my husband said:
“Did our 7th grader just walk out the door?”
“yup”, I replied.
“Can you believe we have a 7th grader?” He asked.
No, I can’t. I can’t believe that at this time 12 years ago he was small enough to fit into my belly. I am amazed at where the time goes realizing that we are more than half-way through his years with us. I also can’t believe that my husband made any note of it. He usually doesn’t ponder those kinds of things. In fact, he is doing his countdown to when we can kick the kids out of the house. This little pondering moment he had was very impressive to me.
August 15, 2008
So in my friend’s blog, Just a Glimpse, she has made a list of things she would like to get done this week before she goes back to school. It made me think that maybe I should make a list of things I would like to get done before next Thursday:
- Clean my car
- Get the kid’s rooms “mommy clean”
- Go through thier clothes
- Take the big pile of “stuff” on my second floor to Hope Ministry
- Clean the house
- Get Kyle to his doctor appointment Tuesday
- Go to the pool two times.
- Go to TWO school open houses
- Finish the cross-stitch
- Go to meetings (probably just one of the two)
- Couple’s event at Okoboji Grill Sunday
- Church (no counting…yeah!)
- Races with the hubby
- Return movies we rented
I actually think this is do-able and not nearly as long as my friends’. The kids are going camping with thier grandparents starting tomorrow so I should be able to get lots of it done. However, I have found that when the kids aren’t around my motivation to do anything at all goes to the wayside. I do not need to finish my cross-stitch over the next week but I would like to finish it by the end of the month. I won’t be able to work on it once I start classes again. This is what I get for waiting all summer to finish what I started. I will post pictures when I am finished. It is very pretty.
Another problem I am having is with my little guy. He is ADHD and we are discovering that he has HUGE anxieties about doing new things or things that are not in his schedule. I have to send him kicking to a lot of things and it’s tiring but once he is there he usually enjoys himself. He really doesn’t want to go camping with his grandparents this weekend because he has had a tough time camping in the past but I really want to set him up for success. I talked to my mother-in-law about it and she is really wanting him to come and she has assured me that she will do everything she can to help him have a great time but that is no comfort to him. I am going to feel so bad if I send him with them and he is crying as he gets into the car. I would have no problem keeping him home with us this weekend but I also don’t want him to get used to throwing fits and getting his way. I have to keep the balance there and it is tough. You should have seen how hard it was to get him to go Trick-or-Treating last year and these are things that he should want to do! Camping with grandma and grandpa, sister and brother, and his cousins should be exciting for him and I know he is dreading it. Everything leading to him getting there is going to break my heart and when is it okay to give in?
August 9, 2008
I had a beautiful day. I went with my friends for a day at the “spa”. I got to laugh, giggle, relax, breath, sit in silence. tear up a bit, and laugh some more. Then I met my husband and kids at my parent’s house for a family get together. There I laughed some more, ate too much, and got to spend time with my mom, dad, sisters, nieces, kids, and hubby. THEN, we went bowling with the boys. Cheap night at the ally because of the fair and I lost miserably. I am an awful bowler. I topped off my evening talking to a long lost cousin and working on a special project.
So, now I go to bed with pretty toes and a still full belly, a smile on my face and a tired that brings me to my pillow with great joy. This was a beautiful day.
August 6, 2008
School is coming. I don’t know if my kids know whether they are excited to beging again or sad that the summer is so quickly coming to an end. The summer has flown by so fast. Days at the pool, with friends, at the library, or doing anything else seem to never stop. Now that school is two short weeks away I find myself wanting to cram as much as possible to end our time together, which has been beautiful.
So, you will find us at the pool, the fair, the Capital Building, the movies, friend’s houses, firework shows, and music festivals/concerts over the next two weeks. You will find me immersed in committe meetings and another special project when I am not playing tour guide to the kids over the next two weeks.
Then school will be here and the summer will seem like a whisper of memories that happened long ago but most definately not just recently. Why does time do that? This has been my favorite summer and I feel like it is being taken away from me. Do the kids know how much I truly enjoyed being with them this summer? Do they know how much thier laughter and spending time with them has meant to me?
I will be the first to admit that I enjoy watching the kids grow. I do not morn thier growth and I look forward to walking through this life with them and seeing thier adventures begin. Each stage of thier lives have brought me joy, even if it was through the annoying pain that comes with growth. I just pray, really pray, that I am taking care of these gifts that God has given me the way He had intended. I hope I am doing my job well. The time is just moving so quickly; more quickly it seems every year.
July 31, 2008
The water park was fun. I have discovered that i should never do that and then have to work the next day. But we got to laugh, play in the water, and hang out with friends and tonight marks the downward spiral to summer quickly drawing to a close. I am so happy that I took the summer off of school so I could enjoy the kids without the stress of meeting deadlines and such. I am happy I took this new job because I love what I am doing. I am actually sitting here needing to go to bed but feeling so peacefully blessed at the same time. I am chatting with my cousins who I haven’t seen for a while and excited to see him again soon. I am amazed at what a small world it is and how big and beautiful God is.
And then tomorrow is the 10th wedding anniversary. How can you explain or describe this kind of love; the kind I have for him? I don’t think I could. It is a feeling that is undescribable, if that is a word or if I used it right. Out of all the blessings in my life much of my joy comes from my husband. Again, I pause in my mind….although you can’t see it on paper….as I try to find words and they aren’t coming. I guess I truly am a morning writer
Smiles. Smiles are what will fill my mind as i think of this summer. The kids’ smiles, my husband’s smiles, my friend’s smiles, my family’s smiles, and more. Laughter, fun, games, water, sun, freedom, and humdity (had to throw that in). I am blessed.
July 28, 2008
God is so awesome! Here I am dreading going to the dentist in a little bit and bummed that I can’t take my iPod with me. See, I ran the sucker through the washing machine about a week ago. The computer would read it but I couldn’t get sound out of it when trying to plug in my ear phones. I am a complete iPod junky. Not only do I listen to a number of sermons and a great Bible study everyday but I also have a song library that, I believe, totally rocks the house! So, now moments before I go to the dentist I just check to see and beautiful music is filling my ears. I am so excited.
I am also excited because we are taking the kids to a waterpark in Waterloo in two days. None of us have been there and we are going with some of our best friends. Tonight we are probably going for a firetruck ride, tomorrow I may get a free spa treatment, and Friday we are heading over to the Capital with the kids….and we’ll probably throw a couple pool days in there if it would stop raining long enough. This weekend is my and hubby’s 10th wedding anniversary and I am sure we will do something boring like staying home and playing Rock Band…without the kids. LOL! Life is good.
July 16, 2008
I have amazing friends. I am sitting here setting somethings up and getting so excited because I love my friends that much! I went a very long time without any true girlfriends in my life. I had my oldest son three months after graduating from high school. When you start having babies and all your friends go away to college things can really change. Actually, looking back, I started drifting away from my high school friends long before that. But God has brought me so far from that point. Once I became a Christian Jesus seems to give me all the the things I didn’t think that I needed:
comfort
strength
unwavering love
eternity
and friends……
There is something about girlfriends that is so very hard to explain and I had truly forgotten what it was like. There is a love and incredible bond there. We laugh and we cry. We share crazy stories about our kids and our husbands. We encourage each other and push each other through. But best of all—the most AMAZING part of our friendship—we will be together for all eternity. We are more than friends, we are sisters, and we share the same goals, priorities,and morals. I am blessed.
July 24, 2008
I recently got to spend time with a very dear friend from high school. The first night she was here we dipped into the old year books and dyed our hair with an orange streak (there is a story there). As I was reading the notes people left in my yearbook I want to cringe sometimes because I remember who I was. Everytime I think on high school I am left feeling guilty and ashamed of the selfish and irresponsible person that I was. But then, aren’t all teenagers? Of course, I am convinced that I was the worst.
However, a friend reminded me of something: all that “stuff” shaped who I am today. Instead of focusing on all the bad I need to focus on how far God has brought me from that time and boy has He brought me far! I couldn’t be the wife, mother, sister, friend, or anything without God’s hands holding and molding me.
God is good.
July 15, 2008
I am ready for school to start again. Not for the kids but for me. I am starting to miss that structure and that drive. I talked with my academic counselor today and I am all signed up for classes: Intermediate Accounting III and Advance Excel….I am a little scared. However, I have big plans for the half of our summer. We have a visit to the movies, zoo, capital, and maybe a jump over to the Historical Building. The kids have been to the Historical Building before but they like it so it may be a go again. We are also going to the Lost Island for the first time, which should be a lot of fun. Throw a couple birthdays and an anniversary in the mix and I’ll be ready for them to go back to school.
Right before now I was doing some research for a friend while watching WipeOut with the kids. Funny show. This is our one TV night. Otherwise we wouldn’t be strapping ourselves to the house unless I felt like reading. After the show is over we are going to watch another movie. I don’t mind the quiet time today.
