Little Girls, Modesty and Barbie

Hello friends!

It was a wonderful long weekend around here….lots of doing nothing, some appliance shopping, and some movie watching.  (We took the kids to see Kung Fu Panda at our new favorite movie spot, the Sister’s Movie house-so fun there!  The movie was great too, we all loved it.)

But, now here’s something I’ve been wanting to tell you about for a while.  I actually sat down to post about it and ended up saying something totally different.  That’s okay, I think sometimes other words need to be said.

I’ve been crocheting for awhile now, I’m not super fabulous at it but I can stitch a straight line and read a pattern.  I had been browsing our library’s books on crochet, looking for different things to try when I found Crochet for Barbie.  I was intrigued and snatched it up.

I was interested in this book for two reasons.  First off, I wanted to try something new.  But there’s more, I’ve been feeling a bit appalled about Barbie’s wardrobe lately.  If you have little girls and have seen what kind of outfits are available for Barbie then you know what I mean.  Short skirts, short shorts, tight tops, low cut tops, shoes I’d be embarrassed to wear to church.  And on and it goes.  I have always wondered how on earth I could teach my girls about modesty when their toys don’t even seem to care.  So I grabbed the book and got to stitching.

And here’s my confession:  for some reason this was really hard.  I couldn’t get the stitches right, the hook was so tiny it was difficult to work with.  And with those tiny little stitches the whole thing took a long time.  I nearly gave up and returned to book back to the library out of frustration.  But something made me stop.  I guess I had a mom moment when I thought of my parents and how determined they were to raise me right.  They didn’t give up teaching me what I needed to know, even when it was hard.  When I wanted to wear those trendy short shorts and low cut tops they stood up for modesty and said no.  When I was being a stinker as a teenager they were steadfast in their love and guidance for me.

This Barbie project became for me a picture of motherhood.  I need to be determined and dedicated, I need to strive to teach my girls the value of modesty and a good name.  I continued on and finished one skirt and one shirt.  And now, one trashy Barbie outfit has been discarded.  That makes me happy.  I don’t want to take fun toys away from kids just because I don’t agree with them.  I want my kids to see the lesson in them. 

There was a big lesson for me in this.  Not to give up, to always being willing to stand up for the values we believe in and to look for the lesson in everything.

I’ve learned some, my girls have learned some, and Barbie is on her way to a new wardrobe-one stitch at a time.

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And on an unrelated note, I was over the moon at all your wonderful comments on my first wiww post.  They made my day, really they did.  Thank you.  It was fun to play along and post, I don’t know that I’ll get to linking up every week but I do know that I’m more conscious of what I wear .  I’ve been taking a little more time to look a bit more presentable and a bit less like I’ve just come in from the gym. 

WIWW-my first time

Hey everyone! I thought I’d play along this week with Lindsay and WIWW. Lately my laundry is indicating that I wear too many running and yoga clothes. I think that needs to change, don’t you? My poor husband, looking at me in stinky running clothes all the time. Especially when I have a closet full of great clothes that I love.

So with that said, here goes!

Friday: I know, I know, YOGA clothes-again. Friday is usually home day and chore day and yoga day. Oh, and laundry day too; which is why the apron and the basket. I wear an apron for the pockets to hold the clothespins. I did a put a dress on at the end of the day, hoping to catch a few good pictures of the kids and me.

yoga top: REI

yoga pants: My mom’s closet-love me some hand me downs!

dress for photos: Ross, two years ago

Sunday: Church day

skirt: my friend’s closet, love those hand me downs

cardi: Target

grey shirt: thrift store find

necklace: Lisa Leonard

Tuesday was errand day with the kids.

top: Eddie Bauer outlet

tank: Target long and lean

capri’s: ??? I know I picked them up at our local Fred Meyer

necklace: my own creation

Thanks for coming by!

hello family day

Hello little newborn calf.  You are so tiny and cute!  The girls wanted to get out, climb the fence, and pet you.  But then we saw how big your mama is and we advised them against that.

Hello favorite candy store and three kids with money burning holes in their pockets.  We were there for  a long time while they decided what to buy.  A really long time.  I guess that’s where that phrase came from.

Hello walk in the park. 

Hello laughing family.  I don’t know what they were laughing at, but I love this picture so.

Hello happy us. 

Check out the uncropped version, hello whiney kiddo.

Hello beautiful home for sale on Mirror Pond.   

And hello dinner time and three cases of the whinies.  Really.  After we bought them candy.  After we played at the park.  Ugh.

But, thankfully all it takes to cure the whinies is the sight of the camera.  Hilarity ensued and peace was restored.

And there you have it, proof that even when we try really hard to make things fun for our kids they are still very likely to whine or be ungrateful.  Our job as parents are to steer them to a better place, help them shift their perspective and remind them of how much they really have.  Because they have a really good life.

Linking up with Heather @ Life Made Lovely

Beauty on a Friday

Today was one of those days, a good kind of day.  Glorious spring and warm weather have finally arrived.  We cancelled school in honor of the beauty of it all.

So we did our chores and washed up the linens.

I bribed the kids into a little photo shoot.  And realized I’m so grateful for an 8 year old boy who can catch a shot like this.

We took full advantage of our new clothesline. 

And I’ll be falling into bed on line dried sheets very soon.  I can’t wait.

The kids used those silly straws, tonight it was for a special drink and sandwiches while we watched the Cosby’s on netflix.  I love that show, love it. 

Ice cream cones rounded out the night and caused everyone to agree that it was indeed a beautiful day.

Sometimes we look for beauty in the grand things of life; mountain vistas, roaring oceans, new born babies.  Sometimes we forget that beauty can be found right where are, if we stop long enough to notice it.

What beauty did you notice today?

on empty…..

We were running on fumes, the needle on empty, cruising along and  ondering whether we would make it home or not.  This is where my husband and I found ourselves a few years ago, heading up the highway on our way home from dropping our kids off with my parents.  In one of those rare, child free road trips we talked and talked and talked.  We talked so much that we hardly noticed our desperate need for gas, or the fact that we had just passed the last station for many miles.  Once we realized I began to worry.  He remained optimistic.  I was biting my nails.  He was laughing.  I was frantically looking through the owner’s manual to see how many miles we had once the gas light when on.  He was saying, “what’s the worst that can happen?” 

Lately, my life has left me feeling like I’m running on empty.  I’m feeling a bid dried out, and desperately looking for a fill up station.  We are almost finished with our school year and I’m finding myself at a burned out place.  The last few weeks of school are typically tough for us.  But I know that the end is near and so I just keep plugging away, waiting for the end to come.

As I’m frantically looking for the end, I realize that I’m missing the joy before me.  It’s oddly reminiscent of that road trip.  That trip that almost killed the fun of the journey.  By the time I had stopped biting my nails, my husband had reassured me that everything would be okay.  That I didn’t need to be so uptight.  And he was right.  We made it to the next station just fine.  But even better than that, we enjoyed ourselves on the way there. 

The reminder to enjoy the process is all around me.  It is found in a beautiful sunny day, when the forecast was originally for rain.  I can see it in the anticipation in my kids’ eyes as they dig in the garden.  Life unfolds unexpectedly all around me, whether I notice or not.  I can’t stop the hours from running out but I can stop to appreciate them as they slip by.  I am surrounded by three eager, if not spunky and rambunctious students.  Three lives who are looking to me to set the pace and the tone of these last few weeks of our school year.  If we are going to make it to the end and finish well, it will mostly depend on my attitude along the way.

This past Monday we founds moments of bliss on this journey.  We painted rocks on the front porch, we walked the dogs, we rode our bikes.  And we even got our lessons done.  And when I stop listen, in the midst of all that I can the gentle whisper, “I am in all things and I hold all things together.”  He holds my beginnings as well as my endings; but even better, he holds my middles.  When I’m running on empty, he holds all things together.  When I’ve got nothing left to give, he holds all things together.  When I am relishing the journey, it is because he is holding all things together.

I sat down today to tell you all about Barbie's and modesty and little girls, but a different story bubbled up.  I remembered how I need to rely more on God holding all things together for me.  My job isn’t to hold it all together, who can do that anyway?  My job is to trust the great holder.  That is the only way I can get through the tough days on this journey called life.  I’m finding peace on my journey because I do not journey alone.  I guess I needed to remind myself of that.  Maybe you needed reminding too.

for when you’re overwhelmed

It’s been rough around here.

Tough days, tired parents, whiney kids do not make for happy houses.

You know those kind of overwhelming, I cannot bear to have to do one more thing, spank one more booty, clean one more dish kind of days? Those have been my days lately. And let me tell ya, my friends, they have left me weary. Bone weary, no matter how much sleep I get.

But my mother’s day was wonderful, it really was. I was spoiled in grand fashion.

I had coffee served to me in bed.

I had lovely gifts and hand made cards.

Zac took all three kids to church with him (he has to leave and get there super early) so I could get ready alone, in peace. (cue the hallelujah chorus)

We went to lunch and had the most wonderful fish tacos, at my most favorite fish taco place. It really was a good day.

But Monday always comes, doesn’t it?

The plate of a mom can get really full, really fast. I homeschool my kids and that alone is a giant undertaking. I have three kids, that is a giant thing as well. And then there’s life, things needing my attention, bills to pay, weeds to pull, and appliances to replace. (We just discovered that one on Monday, and I’m convinced we about nearly avoided a house fire when the dryer suddenly turned freakishly hot, like so hot I could barely touch the clothes to get them out. But that’s another story for another day.)

All of that to say that Wednesday I felt done before I even began. I got up early to pound out 5 miles and finish off the upper body workout I didn’t finish the day before. That gave me a later start on everything else and a frantic feeling as I considered the things I needed to do today, including schooling the kids. I was feeling worn thin. My attitude was all wonky and my perspective was wrong. That led to a grumpy mom and therefore, grumpy kids.

And as I was scurrying and worrying I slowly realized that I had barely considered God’s perspective on the day. In that moment I was gently reminded that I can find rest in the middle of my life right now. For whatever it is that I am chasing, whatever I am feeling behind on, whatever there is to do, however insufficient I feel, however pressed for time I feel I am; there is an answer. The answer is that God alone is the one who can give true rest, if I come to him.

Sometimes I think that I need to actually get away to find rest, that getting a break means changing my location. In reality, that’s really hard to do and the things I want to get away from are always still there when I come back. I need to remember the words of Jesus, spoken in Matthew 11:

"Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you'll recover your life. I'll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won't lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you'll learn to live freely and lightly."

I can find rest when I come to God, no matter what else is going on around me. Real rest really isn’t a place, it’s a frame of mind and it is found in God’s presence.

I stopped in that moment and invited to rest giver into my day. And something interesting happened, my stress melted and in that moment I felt renewed. That feeling has stuck with me. It’s easy to forget, isn’t it? I work myself into a self imposed tizzy over things but what I really need to do is come to Jesus, first.

Lesson learned and apologies given to my family, I was ready to take on the day. Was it stress free? Nope. It had it’s moments, but it was still good. I’ve got the one who gives rest, no matter what is going on, to thank for that.

tha muthahood

my favorite line: “I wear apple bottom jeans cause I sat on the core.”

hope all of you, whether you’re a mom or not, have a wonderful mother’s day.  I’m pretty sure we can all agree that we wouldn’t be the people we are today if it weren’t for our moms or other mom figures in our lives!

the happenings

these are the crazy straws that I grabbed for the kids at the check stand.  they were absolutely thrilled and I was reminded that saying yes to a dollar purchase is really important.  I don’t know why my first instinct is to always say no.  I need to change that.

this is the little pillow that I found the other day.

this is the little girl and her cool outfit, so cute that I wanted to parade her around town and visit all the little downtown shops.  can you blame me?

this is the pile of granny squares that I have made, all 40 of them.  I have a long way to go.

this is me after a wonderful, gloriously warm afternoon run yesterday.  and you can’t see them, but my pink shoulders are the reminder that it’s sunscreen season.  this is also the longest my hair has been in years, I think I like it but I’m anxious to get it past the stage it’s in now-messy at the back of my neck all the time.

these are mini figures that I find standing around here and there.  my son told me last night that they were not for playing with, just for looking at.  okay-aren’t they toys?

these are the babies that regularly take naps on the couch and require my assistance for about 15 wardrobe changes a day.

this is one of the new pots I got, a whole brand new set.  after 11 years using the old set I think we might have been a bit overdue.  I love them.

and these are the pet shops that litter the floor, they seem to multiply overnight.

this is the boy who has a jar full of crickets, thankfully those do not multiply at night.

this is a dad who has sat attentively with the boy at every soccer game this season.  they watch and chat and bond and I am so very grateful for a husband who is also a hands on dad.

this is my life right now and I love it.

sun yellow, you’re my new favorite

Even though it’s been spring for a while now, the weather in these parts has been telling us otherwise.  I never realized that the region we live in really only has two seasons, winter and summer.  This is something I did not know until I moved here, thankfully I like it here anyway and plan on staying a long, long time.

But…what I’m really trying to say is that we finally have had some spring like weather sandwiched between snowy/rainy/windy days. 

Wednesday was one of those recent warmish days, so I decided to bust out the Krylon and get to work.

I took a bunch of frames and covered them all in wonderfully, cheery, Sun Yellow.  I must say I love the results.

I had few of these frames in our little guest bath downstairs, they were black and kind of blah.

(Does anyone else find it funny to call this little room a “bathroom” even though there is clearly no bath in it?  How about powder room?  I guess that sounds better than toilet room, right?)

Anyway, this what it looked like before, in a tiny little room that is incredibly difficult to photograph.  I have to say that Sun Yellow really livens things up, dontcha think?

linking up with Heather @ Life Made Lovely