Gratitude

“Wake up happy heart!” We need to challenge our toddler with that often. If I were honest, I should remind my grumpy heart as well. I really wish that life did not get in the way of life. Our family is large, and I love it. By definition though, largeness brings busyness. Busyness often breeds grumpiness, at least for me.

School began this week. My teacherness (is that a word?) is too excited for new books, new ideas, and, well, a new year. My kids were ready to start simply because they want to finish. I can live with that. Our three newest blessings stir the pot of learning a bit. Our challenge is to keep little hands busy in a good way, little mouths fed, and loud mouths quiet enough to think. I wonder if that is even a possibility. We will find out, I guess.

Wednesday night means no soccer, but youth group for the big girls. They enjoy the challenge their youth pastor brings weekly in addition to the fun times they can spend with their friends. I get to enjoy a few minutes of relative peace. My tea tastes good tonight, and my computer battery is charged, but I look forward to the kids being in bed so I can sit on the couch and cuddle with my sweetie.

My heart is happy.

• Little ones were bathed right after dinner with no incident
• Cool breezes broke the oppressive summer heat
• My little man worked AHEAD on his math today
• My sweetie’s case for tomorrow is almost settled which means he doesn’t have to travel as far as planned
• My littlest girl was fever free all day for the first time in a week
• My dishwasher runs faithfully three times a day
• I love to teach
• My princess’s chocolate birthday party is soon approaching (more on that later)
• The baby has the cutest clothes
• I am losing, but my sweetie likes to play Scrabble with me
• It rained, but we enjoyed a baseball game with my parents and brother along with his family
• My husband’s assistant soccer coach is our friend and pastor
• My sweetie took the time to challenge someone from God’s Word about his marriage and his role in saving it
• Earthquakes and hurricanes are not out of the circle of God’s knowledge or control

Changes

They changed so much. We all changed. I changed. Change is a good thing. In the frantic moments leading to the first time I laid eyes on my new little ones, I never once thought twice. I knew my life would never be the same no matter how long they would stay. One year ago, I was enjoying the four awesome kids in my home. Today, I am reminded how awesome my kids still are and how wonderful it is to have added three more children to our home.

He played with his trains tonight. He smiled. He went to bed calmly after a song and a prayer with covers tucked under his chin and around his toes.

She smiled and sang a song. She hugged her baby and shared her stories in toddler tones. She still takes a bottle, but that is OK with me.

The newborn’s piercing eyes followed my voice and smirked as he sat propped on Princess’s lap for a nighttime bottle. He may surpass his sister’s weight shortly despite their difference of twenty months.

My big kids are still kids, yet they are learning big things. They are doing big things.

Life changes every day. New developments occur weekly. I look forward to the day when the judge declares that these little ones are forever part of our family.

God’s perfect plan permeates with purpose. I thank God that His changes in our life are not random.

Gratitude

Some of my days flew while others dragged. I miss my big kids who are away making more camping memories with their Grandma and Grandpa. Their days are going quickly to be sure, filled with hikes, bike rides, campground adventures, s’mores, and sister nights under the stars in the bed of a pickup.

Back home, I mothered three children under 2 1/2 , one of whom is only one month old, another who is beginning to potty train, and another who is fighting a virus which brings a high fever. Not much else was done in my home. My sweet husband reminded me that spending time with our children is plenty enough. He even planned and cooked dinner all week.

The bookstore is my second home. Knowing that I needed my own space after a particularly draining day, he sent me out for a few hours while he held down the fort. I worked on 2^nd grade lesson plans, surfed for some school research, and enjoyed my 1 ½ cups of Earl Grey tea. I packed my bag and planned to head home, until I looked out the window and saw the cats and dogs falling from the sky along with bolts of lighting and cracks of thunder. I chose the Oreo dessert and camped out for a little while longer.

I have so much to be thankful for even in the midst of a storm on a difficult day.

• A husband who cooks
• Lysol wipes
• Netflix
• Texting that keeps me connected with my kids
• Early bed times for little ones
• Exciting high school curriculum
• Unmade beds
• Dry basements
• Children’s Tylenol
• Pull-ups
• Soduko on my iTouch

Love Notes

The little orange line hung too comfortably for too long at the bottom of the gas gauge. Before I headed out for the last time to retrieve Angel from camp, I thought it wise to make a stop at the gas station. I waited as the attendant finished filling the tank, for as you know, this Jersey girl doesn’t pump gas. She walked up after a few minutes and handed me a little piece of paper through the window. Her smile couldn’t be helped as she stated, “The gentleman in the car behind you asked me to hand this to you.” You will just have to guess what the handwritten note said, but I smiled too.

This was no mystery man, but my sweet husband. We were traveling together with bikes on the back of the van so he and Angel could enjoy a 20+ mile bike ride back home, stopping half way to pick up his car. I may have known who sent the note, but I am blessed with a husband who shares an element of mystery and surprise in our marriage.

The attendant returned when the tank was filled. She still smiled. I think we made her day to see two people still madly in love, passing love notes in the gas station.

Even after twenty-one years, my sweetie still romances me.

Gratitude

I am taking time to focus on some things that made a positive difference in my day.

• Good walking shoes
• Baby coos in my baby sling
• Sharing with my kids a new perspective of the difference between clean and dirty
• Animal shapes in the clouds
• Running clothes in the laundry
• Plastic bugs
• Hand painted trash turned into treasure
• Illustrated stories of princesses and knights
• Anticipation of quiet time
• Sibling bike rides
• Shaded side walks
• Open calendar for today
• Praises of the Psalms

Princess

She turns fourteen this month. I am enjoying the privilege of watching her grow and develop into an amazing young lady who is preparing her life to impact her world. My princess has passion – passion for her writing, her art, her friends, her Lord, and her family.

Last week she spent hours taking part in an on-line writing conference geared specifically for teen girls. Hours passed without a care. She delved even deeper into the short story that has held her attention for months now. She challenged herself to be better, to take it up a notch, to take a risk. In the end, she was rewarded with a free line-by-line critique of her work by a published author whose blog Princess follows faithfully. My mom bias is evident and legitimate, but truthfully, her writing wows me.

This year Princess decided to opt out of soccer and focus on her art. She loves her classes and enters her own little space in her own little world for an hour and a half each week. She has tried many mediums, but her favorite is acrylic. She hopes to take this area of her life up a notch as well and has been investigating art shows, displays, and contests in which she can take part.

These two areas form an invisible, yet movable boundary defining Princess at this point in her life. We work on balance. We stress opportunities to ministry with our gifts. She gets it. I love what God poured into her life. She is beautiful, and her words and paint express an additional beauty that pleases God I am sure.

Anxiety and insecurity creep in slyly as she enters high school this year. Art and writing are judged subjectively, and sometimes those opinions hurt. High school girls share opinions that hurt as well. Honestly, I am thankful that her time in the classroom is limited. God is molding her, shaping her, adding detail to His masterpiece, sometimes erasing things that need to be corrected. He has promised both her and me that He will never leave her, even when life becomes uncomfortable.

I feel like this piece is too random. Princess is far from that. She is uniquely created by a sovereign God who knows how her passions will be used for him.

Check out the blog that she designed. If you scroll through her posts, you will find examples of both her writing and her art. Her passions are obvious. You will be blessed, as I am, by her.