Pure Sweetness

My blog is such a tattletale.  

It's the first to tell when I have become busy...too busy to blog.

I try not to let my life--my family's life--become too busy.

In fact, I have the word "Simplify" above my calendar as a reminder to not become too busy.

It reminds me of what my mom used to do.  She would tape a notecard with the word "NO" above the telephone as a reminder not to say "YES" to everything she was asked to do. The funny thing is, I remember her standing there, talking on the telephone, with her hand covering the "NO" card and saying, "Sure!  I'll do it."

You know...we are busy.

But it's a good kind of busy. 

I love this time of my life very much.

I love the endless activity that comes with teenagers 

and young children.

I love falling into bed at night completely exhausted. 

I also love this reminder...this command...from Scripture. 

Likewise, teach the older women to be reverent in the way they live, not to be slanderers or addicted to much wine, but to teach what is good. Then they can urge the younger women to love their husbands and children, to be self-controlled and pure, to be busy at home, to be kind, and to be subject to their husbands, so that no one will malign the word of God.  (Titus 2:3-5)

So, enough about where I've been and why.

Now...let me tell you about this little bundle of pure sweetness!

I refilled my bird feeder last weekend and have found 

this little guy out there several times a day.

He still has his baby bird fluff!

What I love about him is that he sits there and eats--

totally unafraid.

Usually, when the birds hear me at the sink inside this window, they scatter.

But not this one!

He just sits there and keeps on eating.

I just love him!

I will be sad when he loses his fluff and becomes more wary of me and my noise.

Even Charlie, with her noisy puppy-doggedness, doesn't scare this little one away.

Speaking of Charlie...I hear her moving around in her crate.
I think that it's time to put her outside.

And it's time to go shake William.  He has an orthodontist appointment today.  Then it's off to Walmart, back home to finish up our schoolwork for the week, and then out to clean up the yard a bit.  Our homeschool group's youth group is coming over for an afternoon of recreation between our yard and our neighbor's yard (what a blessing to have them as neighbors, fellow homeschoolers--and in the same support group!).

Enjoying the pure sweetness of baby bird fluff...and the busyness of my life,

From the Archives: "L"

(In my defense, I think that I should add that at the time of the writing of this post, I was in my seventh month of pregnancy.  I contend that I had a good excuse.  You'll understand as you read on...)

From February 20, 2008...

I loved the comments that I received on my last entry! One of the great things about blogging is to be able to "say" the things that I'm thinking--and then to find out that I'm not the only one thinking those things!

And thank you, Happy Homes, for your latest blog entry! Along with the strong dislike I have for cooking is an even stronger sense of guilt. I worry all the time about our health and about the message I'm sending to the kids--especially when they catch me with my hand in the Peanut M&M bag. (Chocolate is easier to get off your hands than Cheetos!)

You want to talk guilt? One of our favorite TV shows to sit down and watch is "The Biggest Loser." We've followed this show through several different seasons in our family life. One season, we used it as a motivational tool. We would watch it and get good ideas on how to take care of ourselves. It would motivate us to eat healthier and to exercise. This season? Let me share with you the "conversation" that Joshua and I had last night at 7:56 PM.

Me: Hey, Joshy, let's go watch "The Biggest Loser!"
Joshua: "Eat ice cream?"

O.K., so this season we're using "The Biggest Loser" soley for its entertainment purposes. We've even been known to say, "What's our 'Biggest Loser' snack tonight?" At the beginning of the season, the guilt quotient is almost non-existent. But later in the season--as the contestants begin losing the big numbers--the guilt quotient gets pretty high. That's where it was last night. We didn't eat ice cream--but only because we had just eaten Papa Murphy's pizza. All right--and because we didn't have any in the freezer.

Go ahead, put your right hand up there close to your forehead in gun formation and give me the Big L sign. I deserve it.

Enjoying ice cream and Peanut M&M's and brownies and pizza and...

Back to What I Love...

Philippians 3:13
"Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead..."

I just might be taking this out of context, but I am going to consider Paul's words as I blog from now on.

I get so hung up on backtracking and catching up on all the things that I haven't blogged on, that I just put my computer and pictures aside until a "better time."

Someday...at that "better time"...I will catch up on all the birthdays, special events, and memorable moments that I haven't recorded.

Guess what.
You already know what I'm going to say.

A "better time" never comes.
And...as I look ahead, I see so many more opportunities to record special memories on my blog.
Now I'm in a real pickle.
Do I go back and try to catch up, or do I take a deep breath and continue forward.

This is not a new dilemma.
It is one that rears its ugly head every so often.
Life is full, and I don't always leave time for quiet reflection.

I'm going to start making that time again...with no room for guilt.

I know I've said this all before.
Let's see how far I get this time. :)

So...
for today I'm going to share with you some of life's simple pleasures.
A few quiet things that I'm thankful for.


Sweet music played by a sweet girl...



My wild and carefree May second rosebush...



Together time...



Cheesy smiles...



Fuzzy bunnies...



Peas and Cheese...



Hard work on a hot day...



Teamwork...



Someone to hold hands with...




Joyfully,

My Brain

Ah...the dilemma of a blogger.
Either she has nothing at all to blog about...
or she has many, many topics to blog about--all which need quite a bit of development in order to publish.

I started this blogging journey fearing the first. I kept telling my blogging friend, Nicky, that I would never have enough to blog about.

It has been quite the opposite. I have several "starts" to blog posts sitting in my word processor, just waiting to be developed into real, live posts. They will sit there for a couple of months until they are no longer relevant. Then I'll go in and hit the old delete button.

I used to have a notebook that I carried around that Carrie called "Mom's brain." I had everything written down in that notebook. If a thought was swirling around in my head keeping me from going to sleep, I would write it in my notebook. All of my "to do" lists were kept in that notebook--and yes, I had several "to do" lists going at one time. Prayer promises were written in there. Blog ideas. Menus. Funny things the kids said. Books I wanted to read. Bible verses to memorize. Ideas for homeschool units. It was this unorganized mess of how I felt my brain would look if you could take a picture of it.


But! Once written in the notebook, I could erase it from my brain! I no longer had to think about all of those bits and pieces, I could just read them in the notebook, do them, and cross them off. The best day ever was when an entire page got crossed off and I could rip that page out of the notebook!

The problem with the notebook and why it no longer exists?
It became my boss.
And a pretty nasty boss at that.
"My Brain" would tell me what to do and robotically, I would do it.
And with the all-or-none personality that I have, if it was on the list, by gum, I was going to get that puppy crossed off if it had me crazy doing it...which sometimes it did.

Work was in that notebook.
Responsibilities in which results could be seen when they were accomplished.

But what about reading with Josh?
Playing a game with William?
Chat-time with Carrie?
Cuddling with Matthew?
Planning and dreaming with Paul?

Nope.
My list trumped them all.
It was my task-master.
And I was missing out on all the fun.

So, I no longer have a "brain."
Sometimes I long to have it back.
Occasionally, I do use it, but not to the extent that I used it before.
Most of the time I do things without consulting my "brain" at all.

And...do I miss my brain?
Yes.
Sometimes.
When I'm standing in the middle of the kitchen wondering what I should be doing next...even as a pile of laundry a mile high is sitting in the bathroom and the dishes are making the kitchen stink.
When I can't go to sleep because this one thing that I MUST get done tomorrow keeps at me with its incessant pecking.
When I forget...forget what great idea I had this morning for a lesson...forget where that great Bible verse on forgiveness is located...forget what's for supper...

That's when I break into song..."If I Only Had a Brain!"

Am I any better at reading with Josh or playing games with William or chatting with Carrie or cuddling with Matthew or dreaming with Paul?
My guilt-ridden conscience would shout a resounding, "NO!"
But deep-down, I think I am.

I don't really think that throwing out my "brain" made me any better at spending time doing the things that REALLY matter. In fact, that old notebook was probably what helped me to see that I need to be more purposeful in the time I spend with the ones I love.

So maybe, just maybe, I could have my notebook back?
Reclaim my "brain?"

Maybe then today's blog post would have been about what I originally thought about writing...being a Titus 2 woman...instead of turning into a post about my "brain."

I'll go start that post on being a Titus 2 woman now...
and maybe you'll see it...or maybe it will get deleted in a month or two.

So Sad

My camera is broken.
I have to take it to a repair shop...very soon!
How am I ever going to blog without it?!

Until my camera is up and running again, here is a picture that was taken before the unfortunate event...taken by Joshua.



This is Joshua.



How did my camera get broken? What was the unfortunate event?

Live and learn.

Mommies shouldn't leave their cameras where they can be knocked off the table by their camera-loving 3-year olds.

It really wasn't his fault. It was mine.
He actually did take some pretty good pictures before knocking it off the table.

And maybe this will encourage me to do some catch-up blogging.

So, until my camera visits the camera doctor, here are some "lost episodes" and blogs without pictures...also known as...well, blogs without pictures. Not creative enough? How about "What's Inside My Head?"

So, are you ready to know what I'm thinking about?
Tune in.

Tiding Over...

I've missed getting on here the last couple of days.

I've had things to blog about, but I left my camera at Grandma's house on Christmas Eve.

That's right. No camera at our house on Christmas morning.

But that's O.K. We were able to live more "in the moment" rather than worrying about getting those "just right" pictures. If you love taking pictures, you probably know what I mean.

So, until I get some pictures transferred onto my computer, here is one of my favorite "My Three Sons" moments from this past week...




Matty has already learned what it means to pick on your brother.



"Hi Buddy!"




"I love you!"




Sorry. I have nothing else.
I can't even think of a cute label for the last picture.
Brain freeze, you might call it.
Or holiday overload.
Mmmm. Sounds like an ice cream flavor. Maybe fudge and sugar cookie chunks?

Quick Update...

It's been such a long time since I've gone blogging.



I've been sick. Yucky stomach virus sick. I can't remember a time when I've felt this bad. I'm left with occasional stomach cramping and no energy. It's been over a week now, and I still can't--or really want to--eat real food. Not even coffee in the morning.

So sad.

But I didn't get on here to have a pity party for myself.

I got on here to let you know that I really am still alive. If I haven't called you back (Stickers!) or commented on your blog lately, I am sorry.

And with the holiday season just around the corner, I'm afraid that I won't be improving much in that area.

Plus this laptop with no mouse is not helping matters.

Maybe Santa will bring me a mouse for Christmas?