a weekend

A weekend can be so long and yet so short.  We had a youth winter retreat this weekend and I can honestly say it was an awesome (but exhausting) time. 

A lot of life was crammed into this weekend:

Friday included housework, schoolwork, and getting ready for a house full of teenage boys to spend the night.  It was a late night watching movies with some awesome kids and then enjoying some classic girl time, including some spa pampering.  Being married to a youth pastor sure makes life fun, especially on weekends like this.

Saturday started with breakfast for a lots of boys at our house (the girls stayed overnight somewhere else).  Then we met up for a trip up the mountain to tube the afternoon away.  So fun.  We finished the day with a great service, and awesome worship time.  Bottom line was it was fun, yet exhausting.  We got home to a child free house Saturday night and absolutely crashed. 

Sunday found me on the trail running instead of at church, and sleeping in instead of helping to get three kids out the door for church.  That was really nice.  The kids came home and we decided a family movie afternoon was the best idea ever.  Zac and I slept through the whole movie.  And then we were in bed, asleep by 9:30.  Aren’t we living the wild life!

If anything, this weekend is evidence to us that we still love youth ministry and honestly couldn’t see ourselves doing anything else.  This weekend is also evidence that we must be getting older.  A one night event hasn’t always had that affect on us.  But that’s okay.  I loved it, I love those kids, and I love being married to a man who makes this journey of ministry fun. 

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Moving on, can you believe it’s almost March?  And that spring is right around the corner?  That makes me really happy.  I love the snow, I really do.  But part of its appeal is that it’s temporary.  I know it will start warming up soon.  At least I’m hoping it will.  And it’s almost time to start planning for the garden.  That is a lovely thought.

And that makes me want some color in my house, I’ve got some plans this week for simple things that might brighten my house.  Don’t know if I’ll get to them or not, but they’re in my brain at least.

Here’s some fun ideas with color. 

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I love the pillows on this one, aren’t they fun?  I think that’s my favorite, what a happy mix of colors.

What about you?  Did you have a great weekend, are you ready for spring, do you crave color like I do? 

OK, I know that’s a lot of questions, I guess I’m chatty this Monday morning.  Hope you have a great new day and a great new week.

around the house (choosing to be okay with what there is)

I think I have magazine-itis.  

You know that feeling of dissatisfaction you get when looking through home magazines.? It can cause a seemingly normal gal (much like myself) to feel like what I have is not enough.  Not clean enough, not new enough, not trendy enough, just not enough.  It’s a nasty thing and it pulls me from what really matters in life to what is frivolous.  What is not lasting.  Bottom line is that it distracts me and costs me.  It costs my finances.  It costs my time.  It costs my emotions.  I mean, really, have you ever gone into a tizzy about your house and the stuff in it?  I know I have.

So today I had a bit of time home alone.  In the quiet I wandered around with the camera.  And looking back at the pictures I liked what I saw. 

I love the globes and the muscle man.  The butterflies are cut from scrapbook paper and are evidence that it doesn’t have to be fancy or expensive to look good.  I know we all know that, but sometimes I forget.

I love the mirrors and the bits of life that get reflected in them.

There’s a happy plant that reminds me that spring will eventually come, I just need to be patient.

Letters, one for each member of the family.  But looking at them I realize that they need some color.  What do you think?

And I know no magazine has granny squares like mine.  All 23 of them.  Not quite enough for a blanket, but we’re getting there.  Slowly. 

Wax paper hearts that I made with the girls catch the light and brighten up the kitchen.

Happy dishes, my dishes.  They are lovely, chips and all.

And if I were looking in a magazine I know I would not find my cute kid’s handprints.  Those are totally unique to us, and a memory of one night spent in the bathroom trying to get a one year old little girl to open her hand big enough to make a print.  We tried about 4 times, drying and repainting the blue over and over to get it.  I’m so glad we did. 

And I can say with 100 percent certainty that no other home has a cow made by my nearly 8 year old Levi.  Yes, I know it has red eyes.  Mad cow disease?  I don’t know, but I like her tan spot.

When I’m looking at magazine perfection it’s really easy to feel like what I have doesn’t measure up.  But then I remember that my house isn’t made for photo shoots.  I don’t have a team come in to clean and style the place. 

What I do have is better.  Yes, it’s messy and it’s not perfectly styled.  It’s a pile of stuff on the kitchen table.

Special toys and books left on the couch.

Boots piled by the door.  And don’t even get me started on the laundry and the legos.

It’s books set up as houses, creating a whole new world.

I have three rambunctious kids and one hairy dog and one really handsome husband.  We fill this house and make a wonderful life.  Sometimes I just need to remind myself of that.  It won’t ever be clean (at least for long) and it probably won’t have very much in the way of brand new furniture or accessories.  You know I don’t really want that anyway.  Well, I want the clean part.  What I really want is the reminder to be happy and at peace with what I have; with my own style and look, and my own messes on the floor. 

My house feels happy because of that. 

Do you ever suffer from magazine-itis?  What’s your cure?

Linking up with Heather at Blessed Little Nest today.

Snowerday, I mean Saturday

It’s snowing, again.  It’s that cold, tiny, icy snowflake kind of snow.  It’s windy too.  It makes me want to bake something, except that we have no flour or eggs.  I think I’m going to have to break down and grocery shop one of these days.  Why is that so hard to do sometimes?

But I did get to do some fun shopping yesterday.  Zac dropped me off at my favorite place.  Alone.  He gave me a budget and then drove away.  It was like Christmas morning.  Except I knew what I was getting.  I filled this bag with new running gear and few yoga things. 

Then he dropped me off at the shoe store.  I got new kicks.  They look great with my new pants.  I am one happy girl.  I did go over budget.  But he’s says I’m worth it.  And since I do this like never he said it’s okay.  I love him. 

I’ll try out the new stuff today, even though it’s snowing and nasty.  I’ll drive to the trail and take the dog and we’ll go.  Or at least we’ll try.  We might not last very long.  But that’s okay.

Then one little gal gets to get a haircut.  Unfortunately she got some gum in her hair.  She thinks she wants a bob.  We’ll see.  All I want is gum free. 

So I’m totally babbling, but that’s the day.  What are you up to this weekend?

2011 Reading List

The weather has been cold.  It’s been snowy and it makes me want to snuggle down under a blanket with a cup of tea and a good book.  It seems like a great time to post my book list for the year. 

Honey for a Child’s Heart by Gladys Hunt.  I just finished this one and loved it.  This is something that will spark a passion in you for reading to your children, and I love that it has an up to date book list broken down into ages and genres.  We are definitely marking lots of books in there to read aloud to the kids this year. 

The Core: Teaching Your Child the Foundations of Classical Education by Leigh A. Bortins

The well-educated mind : a guide to the classical education you never had by Susan Wise Bauer. (okay, I’m partway through this and I can tell I’ll be adding more challenging works to this list.  But I’ve challenged to read a bit more intellectually.  I’m up for that challenged.)

Don Quixote (first up from that last book I mentioned)

Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis

Dreams:  A Biblical Model for Interpretation

The Help by Kathryn Stockett

The Lord of the Rings (I don’t expect to get through the whole trilogy this year but I really want to at least start)

One Thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows

and I’m a little late to the party, but I’d like to start the Harry Potter series

Swiss Family Robinson

and I’m sure I’ll throw some fun books in there, just for entertainment purposes.  I usually grab these impulsively from the best seller /new release rack at the library.  Sometimes I’m horribly disappointed, sometimes I finish the book and want to kiss it it’s that good.  Love Walked In was one of those.  You should read it, it’s good. 

and of course The Bible.  Daily.  Often.  Repetitively.

Sometimes I hate that I don’t always have enough time to read for myself, for fun or for my own enrichment.  It’s frustrating actually.  But then I remember that life is made of seasons, and right now this is my season for sowing in the lives of my kids.  A large chunk of my reading will be reading with them, reading aloud with them and reading alongside them.  That’s okay because it is a season.  As they grow I won’t be reading to them as much, I might not even be homeschooling them.  I just don’t know.  I do know that someday they will be healthy, balanced, and independent adults.  Meaning they’ll be out of my house and building a life of their own.  I have a feeling my schedule will allow for more reading then.  For now I’m making a choice to be content with what reading time I have, even if it’s just ten minutes in bed before I fall asleep and the book hits me in the face.

I’ll take whatever I can get. 

So what are you reading right now?

Coffee on a Tuesday

If we were meeting for coffee today I’d be grateful you were willing to battle the nearly eight inches of fresh snow to get here. 

We’d chat and laugh and feel glad for something hot to warm our cold hands.

I’d tell you that I used to hate Valentine’s day.  But then I had kids and God gave me a new perspective on it.  Now we use the day to bless our kids and feed them too many sweets and love on them.  (of course we made time for romance too, cause we like that sort of thing)

I’d tell about how we hung twinkle lights in the kitchen and made heart shape pancakes for dinner and it was really fun.  After dinner we danced around the living room to old 8o’s ballads.  Then we took the kids to our favorite candy shop for dessert.

I’d share with you how lately I’ve been having a hard time balancing all of life.  Homeschooling and working from home, and personal time, and time with my husband, and running time all collide together leaving me feeling like sometimes I am walking a tightrope.  Without a net.  And then I’d remember that God promised his grace would be sufficient, he even said “as your days, so shall your strength be.” (Deut 33:25)  That’s encouraging to me.  And then I remember, even while we’re chatting that I don’t have to do it all.  There’s some freedom in that, isn’t there? 

And you know I’d be so happy for time sharing life with a friend.  That is a really nice thing. 

Joining Amy of Lucky Number 13 for virtual coffee today. 

Happiness and Love and Handmade Valentines

Monday’s we have what we consider homeschool lite.  We don’t really do lessons other than maybe some morning reading and stuff.  We use the day for home ec (housecleaning anyone?) or field trips or other fun things.  And that gives me a chance to get all the weekly necessities out of the way.  Like laundry or paying bills or long runs at the gym on the treadmill. 

(Does anyone else HATE treadmill running?  It was way too windy to be out running this morning, I am grateful for a gym to go sweat in.  But I’d rather sweat on the road without network news droning on and on in the background.) 

Anyway, this morning we decided to make Valentine’s cards for the kids to deliver today.  They worked and worked and colored and colored and stuck things and taped things.  Cayden even dressed her headband for the day.

I love seeing what they come up with.  They’re off now, out and about with Dad to deliver them.  I should be working right now….ahem.  The hazards of working from home is that all those distractions of home are still there.  Ahhh, I’ll get right to that work as soon I’m done here.  Promise.

Valentine’s day has always been about the whole family for us.  We do this because yesterday was Zac’s birthday.  We make the day all about him.  The kids decorated and made a banner.

And for the man who loves chocolate cake almost as much as he loves his wife, I made a cake.  What love and adoration he has for chocolate fudge cake with raspberry filling and chocolate buttercream. 

And we also love to get him little gifts to make him smile.  (Thanks Heather, for the idea!)

That’s love for us.  Tonight we’ll make a special dinner for the kids and take them out to our favorite candy store for a treat (thanks Mom and Dad!).  And all the while we remind them that God gave his love so that we can share love with others. 

Hope you’re all having an awesome Valentine’s!

Sharing with Blessed Little Nest.

just in case you were wondering….

The token jar still works.

I still love my Thursdays at home.

The mustache is gone.  And it was all a joke.  He had a beard, for keeping his cute face warm.  Then he shaved, but thought it would be funny to leave the ‘stache.  It was funny, we all agreed on that.  He left it for a few days and now’s he’s back to my clean shaven guy.  For the record I think he’s handsome either way, but there’s just something pretty nice about a freshly shaved husband grinning at you with that grin on his face.  I think you know what I mean.  He’s irresistible.  And he knows it.

Even though his mustache is gone, someone grew one (plus some more) by way of markers.  In case you were wondering, they are washable.

In case you were wondering, we don’t have any snow.  Not one flurry.  I know there are some of you who wish you were in my shoes, but I think just a few more snow days would be good.  It covers up the brown that occurs in our high desert.  About this time of year I’m tired of brown, I’ll take white or green.  Preferably white.

The school room still works, even when the students don’t want to cooperate.  Having a dedicated space is wonderful and I like that.

And I’m still working on going at my own pace, and planning for another half marathon (or two) this year. 

If you’ve  ever wondered, I still let them dress themselves.  And I still get funny looks when we’re out and about.  But that’s okay, their cuteness makes up for it.

And finally, I must confess I’m desperate for a date night.  It’s been too long, and the conversations between Zac and I have boiled down to necessities.  Like asking if he can pick up someone from somewhere, get a birthday present for someone else, come home and help with discipline.  Or anything else.  I know we’ve got other, better things to talk about.  I’m thinking we better send the kids to bed early (way early) tomorrow so we can have a pseudo date night at home. 

Now-how early is too early?

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and in other earth shattering news, I’m loving this print (found here):

and really, finally I love these chocolate bars. 

okay, that’s it-hope you’re having a great day!

laugh with me, not at me

so I went grocery shopping the other day.  that’s not unusual.  but what was unusual was what happened once I got home.  my son asked what was on my bottom.  I reached back to find a sticker.  one that says “ripe.  ready to eat.” 

really?  I knew it was from the avocados that I grabbed.  the ones I grabbed right when I walked in the door.  it was there the entire time.  sheesh.  even all alone in my kitchen I was red with embarrassment. 

my husband was all too happy to do the squeeze test to check for ripeness.  sorry, that might be t.m.i. 

have you ever embarrassed yourself like that?  I hope I’m not the only one.

 

sharing with Heather @ Blessed Little Nest, cause laughing at yourself is a good way to make life lovely

valentines ideas for the kids (or the kids at heart)

printable compliment card

crayon hearts

Valentine Confetti (cuz you need a snack during all your crafting)

Valentine play dough

countdown/love note holder-this is just an awesome idea for leaving notes to everyone in the family.  Even though it’s already the third it’s never to late to share with your family what you love about them.  We’re going to improvise and do our own little twist on this. 

Borax crystal hearts.  I don’t have a picture for this one, but think of those cool crystal snowflakes you might have seen.  We’ll be doing these soon, and I’ll post a picture of our creations. 

Now, I think we better get crafting, while listening to the love songs station on Pandora.  Silly?  Yes, but I like Faithfully by Journey.  Even if it makes of me think of silly middle school dances.  I’ll listen to it while cutting out wax paper hearts and eating candy and popcorn. 

Do you have any fun projects for Valentine’s Day?

Real Romance on Valentines Day (and it’s not what you think)

I used to hate Valentine’s day.  The rebel in me would dig in her heels and protest the thought of any day that is designed to make someone declare their love.  I’ve always thought that declarations of love should be an every day thing, not just reserved for one certain day on the calendar. 

As a child Valentine’s day was just fun.  All the treats and the special mailboxes we made in class, and then there was the party at school.  As a teenager Valentine’s was fun only if I happened to have a boyfriend, which I usually didn’t.  As a young adult I was apathetic toward it, and sometimes entertained the notion of wearing all black in protest of the whole thing. 

And then I got married.  And all my expectations of Valentine’s day changed. 

I imagined romance and flowers and candlelight.  I think I got a card.  Now, this is no attack on my husband.  For those of you who know me in real life, you know that I have the greatest gift of a man any woman could want for.  However, my man is ever practical and thinks that spending hard earned money on overpriced flowers seems a tad silly.  For the record, I agree.  But that doesn’t mean that I don’t want those sweet sentiments of love.  I used to feel slighted and unseen when my husband wouldn’t shower me with poetry and romantic things.  I used to think he didn’t really love me, or even know where to begin to meet my innermost needs as a woman.  And then I realized that I was focusing on the wrong things.  I was so busy wondering why he didn’t bring me flowers that I didn’t see him washing my car.  And I was consumed over the nerve of him to not leave me love notes when he was riding his bike to save our family gas money.  And I was grumbling so much over the lack of romance in our lives that I was completely clueless when he rearranged his schedule so that I could have an afternoon away from the rigors of motherhood. 

The point is that Valentine’s day can be pretty tough and it can unleash all sorts of emotions about our own unmet expectations.  It can cause a woman to think that her husband must not really care because he didn’t demonstrate it in a pretty red heart shaped package. 

No day is big enough to fill our unmet longings and needs, and for that matter, no man is big enough either.  It isn’t fair for me to place the heavy burden of loving me solely on my husband.  Because I was made for more.  I was made for an eternal relationship.  Deep inside of me there exists a place that can only find satisfaction and fulfillment from God.  No where else.  Not even my husband can fill that deep place, only God himself.  And for me to expect all of that of Zac is just not right. 

Valentine’s day can be magical if we can focus on who truly romances us.  Available to me is a love that is pure and holy and straight from the presence of God.  I am ever humbled over God’s great love and grace in my life, and his non stop pursuit of me leaves me undone.  He is the one who created romance because he knew that’s what would draw me to him. 

Because of that great love I have the ability to love others.  Because of that great love I can rest secure in my husband’s love, however he expresses it.  And because of that great love I strive to show the people in my life how I feel about them, every day.

My perspective on Valentine’s day has changed because of my perspective on God.  And that has shifted Valentine’s day from a pity party to a celebration. 

How’s this for romance?  Real life, three real kids and one sticking her tongue out at another.  Romantic, isn’t it?