Making time for the things I want to do

The past few days have kind of been filled with ups and down.  The weekend started out with a lot of ups-  Alia's first sleepover, a sweet Christ-centered wedding, and the girls getting to go with "Nana & Papa Schu"  to see Disney's Princesses on Ice.  Which was then followed on Sunday by Ethan scratching Karaline's eye with a toy crown, a 3 hour trip to redi-med, and having to put eye drops in a screaming child multiple times. There was a sweet moment in the midst of it-  Alia writing a sweet little note to Karaline while she was crying that simply said, "God is with you."  It was one of those special mommy moments that calms your heart and brings a smile to your face.  Yesterday afternoon, after putting more drops in my sweet little screaming child, and struggling to get her down for a nap which I knew she desperately needed, I was feeling drained and was definitely feeling like I NEEDED to get my quiet time/devotions in.  I had a list a mile long of of other things that needed done, the usual things-  laundry, sweeping, mopping, supper, etc.  But I knew if I didn't make time sit and spend time with God, my cup would just keep leaking.  So, I sat down to read my Bible.  I've been reading Revelation, along with Philippians which we are studying in Sunday School, and had such a great reminder.  I know there are people out there who believe that God doesn't exist, and that He doesn't speak to us, but I had such a great reminder yesterday of how wrong that is. 

Revelation 22:1  Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb.
Revelation 22:17  The Spirit and the bride say, ..."Come!" Whoever is thirsty, let him come; and whoever wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life. 
Philippians 3:12-14  Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.  Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it.  But one thing I do:  Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.

It was another reminder that I needed, to keep coming to Christ, and to forget about the mistakes I have made, the places I've fallen short, and just look ahead to Christ and do the best I can.  I'm sure many of you other moms out there can relate to being in "survival mode."  I feel like I'm going day-to-day.  I am typically able to get my normal things done-  until something "extra"  gets thrown in there, then I have to step back, re-think and re-adjust my plan.  I think part of why I've been so drained lately-  physically and spiritually is because of being in survival mode.  I haven't been making time for the things I want to do, because I'm afraid to throw "my system"  out of whack.  This, unfortunately, has included my quiet time.  So, my goal, in looking ahead, is to let go of some of the things on my "to-do list"...let some of THOSE things wait " 'til later" , and make time for more of the things I want to do.  Like devotions,  or playing a game of Candy Land with the girls...whatever it may be.  I'm anxious to see what God will be saying to me today!  What has God been saying to you lately??!!

The "When You Are's"

Last night I went to The Chapel for a womens conference where the author and speaker Angela Thomas was speaking.  Honestly, I had didn't know what she was going to speaking on, and am not sure that I had ever even heard of her, but I really felt like I needed a spiritual pick-me up and thought this would be great.  The worship time was great, and as soon as Angela started speaking, I knew she was good, and it was one of those times where you feel like she was speaking directly to me.  She gave her testimony of growing up in a Christian home, going to Bible college, doing everything she was "supposed"  to do to be a "good Christian girl," but 10 years ago found herself separated, divorced and the single mother of 4 young children.  She told of how she cried out to God, saying, "What are you going to do with me, a broken down God-girl," and "Do you still think I'm Beautiful" (the title of one of her books).  She also spoke about Matthew chapter 5-  the "Beattitudes"  and how growing up, she always read those verses "Blessed are the poor in spirit...Blessed are those who m ourn...Blessed are the meek...Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness..." and always felt that those were the "Gotta-Be's."   You "gotta-be"  poor in spirit, you "gotta-be" meek, etc.  And wondered how you can be all those things all the time.  Then in college, she started feeling like God was saying that they aren't "Gotta Be's,"  but "When you are's."   "When you are" poor in spirit...  come to ME (Christ) and I will and when you are hungry and thirsty, Come to Me, and I will give you living water.  She talked about her days as a single mom, and how she was normally patient and kind and tried to keep joy in the house, but how there were times that she might yell at them, "JUST GET IN THE CAR!"...  and how they would look at her, knowing that wasn't how she usually was, and how at some point she came to realize those were the cries of a spiritually empty woman.  That hit me pretty hard.  Lately, I've been struggling spiritually. My patience with the kids has been, well, lets say lacking lately.   On some level, I've known it was because I wasn't where I need be spiritually, but had trouble getting out of this rut.  It was in some ways, a slap in the face, but honestly, one that was needed.  I felt so challenged, so uplifted, and so encouraged.  She gave a demonstration of all those little things that can quickly drain your spiritual tank, and how we just have to take a drink of the "Jesus Water."  ...the water that gives eternal life, the water that will quench your thirst in a way that we can't even comprehend.  So, today, I've been taking a lot of drinks of that "Jesus Water."  When I feel a bit frustrated, or short on patience, I literally go get a cup of water, take a sip and say a prayer.  Last night coming home, the song "The Power of your Love"  kept going through my head.

"Lord, I come to you.  Let my heart be changed, renewed. 
Flowing from the grace that I found
In You
Lord I've come to know
The weakness I see in me
Will be stripped away
By the power of Your love
Hold me close
Let Your love surround me
Bring me near
Draw me to Your side
And as I wait
I'll rise up like the eagle
And I will soar with You
Your Spirit leads me on
By the power of Your love
Lord unveil my eyes
Let me see You face to face
The knowledge of Your love as You live
In me
Lord renew my mind
As Your will unfolds my life
In living every day
By the power of Your love

This one is dedicated to my Valentine

Wow, I'm realizing just how long it's been since I posted on here.  With the craziness of the holidays, Ethan's first birthday, sick kids and a wonderful trip that Rob and I were so blessed to take with his work to Jamaica, things have been pretty busy around here.  But I wanted to take some time now to wish my love, my best friend, and my husband a Happy Valentine's Day!  Rob has a special way of making me feel special and loved.  It's something that I am so thankful for.  In this stage of life, it's easy to get wrapped up in all of the things that have to get done, and taking care of the kids and work and everything else, but even in that craziness, he can give me a special hug or kiss that brightens my day or so many other little things that mean the world to me.  I hope you know how much those things mean to me, Rob, and how much YOU mean to me!  I am so thankful for you, and for your love.  At the risk of being cheesy, "You're all I need, My love, My Valentine!"
Happy Valentine's Day, Rob!  I love you!
SAS

Love Languages

It amazes me how from birth, or really even for me, even before our kids were born, it was very easy to tell the differences in each of our kids personalities.  They are all born with their own likes and dislikes, their own temperaments, and their own love languages.  For those who may not be familiar with what the love languages are, there are Five main love languages:  Words of Affirmation, Quality Time, Physical Touch, Acts of Service and Receiving Gifts.  Each of us has a main love language, and may also have a couple of secondary love languages.  Our Primary love language is the way that we want and need to be shown by others, and also the way that we tend to show love to others.  There are a couple of different books about the love languages.  It's something that Rob and I have tried to be aware of with each other.  My main love language is Physical touch, and we joke (well...half joke)  that my secondary one is a little bit of every other one!  :)  (Which is one of the reasons that Rob teases that I'm high-maintenance)  And Rob's main ones tend to be Words of Affirmation and Acts of service.  We try to make an effort to show love to each other in in the ways each of us wants and need to be shown.  Since having children, we've also tried to be aware of what each of their love languages are.  Even with as young as our children are, I feel like I can tell pretty easily what each of theirs is.  Alia, I believe is most certainly Words of Affirmation.  She is the one who is CONSTANTLY needing praise and approval.  Many days, I feel like half of my conversations with her go something like this:  "Mom, did I do good on this?"  or "Mom, Look at this!  Look what I did! How did I do?"  or  "Mom, look at my outfit.  Do I look pretty?  ....Really Pretty?  ....Really, Really Pretty???"  She needs a LOT of praise!!!    And Ethan, I am already pretty sure will be Physical Touch.  From the day he was born, if he was upset or tired or fussy at all, no matter what the reason, if you would lay your hand on him, or pick him up, snuggle him, hug him, etc...he would calm right down.  And he still does.  He LOVES to snuggle, and since my love language is also physical tough, and I also LOVE to snuggle, this makes me very happy!  :)  Lately, it has become very apparent that Karaline thrives on Quality Time!  She LOVES when she gets to go somewhere or do something alone with one of us.  She especially loves time alone with Rob.  It's SO sweet!  With Rob being a lot busier lately with Harvest and work, Karaline hasn't had as much one-on-one time with either of us.  So, tonight, Rob took her out for some "me and you"  time.  She was SO excited!  When Rob got home, we went outside to greet him, and she told him, "This is the BEST day EVER!"  Then, she ran back in to get her shoes, rushed back out by herself, climbed up in the truck and started getting buckled in.  When Rob when over to help her, she gave him a big, sweet hug.  And when they got home, she was beaming.  It can be a bit exhausting at times to make sure you are doing your best to show each person love in the way that they need to be shown it, but it is also so rewarding when you see in their faces that they know how much you love them! 

My Passport to India

It's not what it looks like to most of you-  I'm not planning any trips to India right now...not literally.  A couple of months ago, we got an email from Sonlight (the brand of curriculum we use,) saying that they were going to do a 5 week program called My Passport to India.  They have 2 videos a week, along with devotions, extra information about India and it's people.  So for 4 weeks now, we have been learning about India, and saving our extra change to donate to help send children from India to CBC's (Children's Bible Clubs).  It's  been a really fun learning experience for us.  The girls love learning about different people, places and cultures, and they love getting to help other people.  One of the things we learned was about the capital city of Mumbai.  It's supposed to be the richest city in the country of India, yet HALF of it's people live in slums!  One particular slum has ONE MILLION people living in a 1 square mile area!!!   One million people.  That just blows my mind!  We also learned about Hinduism, and how the vast majority of people in India are Hindus, how they believe there are millions of gods...statues, elephants, cows, etc.  Alia is such a tender-hearted little girl, and one day she wanted to write a letter to send to India.  She drew a picture on it, and wrote "Cow is not your Savior," and told me she wanted to mail it to the children over there.  I told her that was very sweet, but that they probably wouldn't be able to read it-  partly due to the illiteracy of the people in India, and partly because of the different language and alphabet that they use.  So, she then turned the paper over, and wrote the ABC's on the back, so they could learn the alphabet.  It's been a great opportunity for us.  The girls love getting to put any change they see laying around into our "India bank."  We have two more videos before the program is over, and I'll be a little sad when it's done.  If you want, feel free to check it out for yourselves.    http://www.mypassporttoindia.org/  

Character Training

Proverbs 22:6
Train up a child in the way he should go; and when he is old, he will not depart from it.


Like I said before, character must be something that God is wanting me to focus on right now!  I'm so excited about a new opportunity that I found out.  There is a lady from our homeschool group that found out about these "MATCH" kits.  They stand for "Mothers Actively Teaching Character in the Home."  Two women in Fort Wayne started making these kits for their own families, and it has turned into a ministry for them.  I have only briefly checked out their website   http://www.familyroomvalues.com/  but it looks like they have a great ideas for teaching good character to our children.  Each month they have a kit that focuses on a different character trait.  This month is manners, and there are a lot of different games and activities in the kits, along with a special family keepsake craft each month.  I'm so excited about this.  I haven't read through all of our materials yet, but already we've talked a lot about what things are good manners, what things aren't.  I can't tell you how many times at dinner tonight the girls would do or say something and ask, "is this good manners?"  It seems like everyone nowadays has gotten so relaxed with manners, including myself, so I'm really looking forward to focusing on this topic for the next month, and looking at the areas in my own life where my manners are lacking, and hopefully teaching our kids good manners along the way!  :)  I'm sure God is going to be revealing to me way more of my faults that I care to know!  ;)

Do you ever wonder if what you are doing matters??!!

I'll be honest, sometimes I wonder if my "job"  is important enough, if it matters, or if I should be doing "more."  It seems like society and the world do not place very much importance on being a stay-at-home mom.  By the world's standards, we are supposed to want something more.  We should want some high power, high paying job.  I have always wanted to be a mom, and when we were expecting Alia, we both knew that we wanted me to be able to stay home with her.  I'm not really sure though that I felt like God was calling me to stay at home, we just knew that for our family, we felt it was best.  As time has gone on, and as Karaline and Ethan have come into our family, I have realized more and more that God has most definitely called me to stay home with them.  I still have my days where I wonder if I'm doing enough, or if I should be doing more, but today is NOT one of those days.  Today, I had the privilege of talking with Alia and praying with her as she asked Jesus into her heart.  It was a moment that I will never forget, one that makes me realize more than ever just how important my job is.  Raising our children to love Christ is the most important thing I can ever imagine doing, and I am so thankful that I am able to be here with them for the big moments like these!!!