Pretty Please with a Cherry on Top!

"Pretty please with a cherry on top" is a phrase that we hear VERY often in our house. Today, it was Libby. She asked for us to please get a pool and also buy her a pink tail so she could learn to be a mermaid and go live in the sea.

Yep.

It is SOOOO incredibly hard to deny those big brown eyes anything and it is especially hard not to crack up at her when she is being serious!

BUT...that is not actually what I wanted to ask. My plea today is for me. I have dreams for this blog. Big dreams actually. I am not completely sure where God is going to take me with it or how far I will get but I know that right now, I am trying to be obedient and share my heart publicly.

On that note, I would love this blog to become a second source of income for our family. I AM NOT ASKING ANYONE FOR MONEY SO PLEASE KEEP READING.

It is important that I can gain readers. I know that there are currently 100 or more hits to this page every day which is great. What would REALLY help me out is if you could take one minute of your time and head over to my right hand column.

You can follow me on twitter, instagram, RSS feed, e-mail, google+ or "Like" the facebook page. The more you can do the better!

If you are already consistently reading, it will not change your life other than to give you a heads up that I have posted something.

Also, if there is ever anything that I write that you particularly like, you can always use one of the share buttons on the bottom of the post to share it with your friends.

Gaining known readers will help me to be able to reach out to advertisers and sponsors.

So...Pretty, pretty please with chocolate and whip cream and a cherry on top will you do this for me and for our family????

Also leaving comments below my posts is always a great thing. I love feedback!

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My Perfect Life: Part 2

If you haven't read My Perfect Life: Part 1, this is a continuation....sort of.
:
6:50 am:  The 2 year old starts knocking (loudly) on her door. One of us jumps out of bed as quickly as possible and tries to convince to her to back to sleep....because no one is allowed out of bed before 7!

Tom gets ready, makes himself a protein shake while I grab a shower and throw something clean on. All of the kids are up now because of course she woke the whole house. I quickly throw bowls of cereal and cups of juice in front of the 3 oldest while I make the baby a bottle and feed him.

8:30 am: Kids are arguing about wanting the same toy. Baby poops up his back (again) and requires a new outfit and a bath. The 2 year old won't let me out of sight and while I am not looking, the two oldest turn on the computer and start watching Netflix.

9:30am: I just finished the dishes (from this morning AND last night) and need to start doing school with the girls...oh no...the girls have been watching shows for an hour already! whoops!

11:00 am: We somehow managed to get through all of the necessary preschool and Kindergarten worksheets while the baby napped....but not without 4 timeouts and the 2 year old coloring all over the wall.

11:30 am: Feeling frantic, this is when I realize that I have not prayed yet or read any part of the bible. Maybe I can read something quick on the ipad. Then, I pray while I am preparing lunch. A lunch that no one wants to eat despite it being EXACTLY what they asked for!

1:00pm: 2 year old naptime...aka...Heaven. Force the 6 year old read to me for 15 minutes. It takes 30 minutes because of all of the fighting.

2:00 pm: The 4 year old forgets about her sister sleeping and goes into their bedroom for a toy. End Naptime. Grumpiness begins by all....including mommy.

3:00 pm: ooops...forgot to take the meat out for dinner. Maybe it will thaw quicker if I put it in water.

4:00 pm: Crazy time. Everybody needs mommy for no good reason at all. Dinner needs to be made but the baby needs to eat and we need to get the 6 year old ready for dance class. The 4 year old doesn't want to wear shoes and mommy just wants to lock herself in the bathroom for 5 minutes of peace and quiet. But this is when I realize that we were supposed to return the library books.

5:00 pm: Daddy comes home. Mommy runs away.

haha....ok, this is clearly an exaggeration (or maybe it isn't) of my day. Sometimes it feels like this though. I know so clearly how I want my day to go and yet, I don't always start my day with Jesus. If I did, it wouldn't necessarily mean that everything else went perfect, but it always helps.

It is having this image of what a perfect day is that makes me a feel like a failure. It is the pressure that I put on myself of what my life should look like that make it feel so impossible to be a great mom and wife.

But, it just isn't real. The real me is exactly the way that God made me. He made this life just for me. Despite the days that I feel crazy and completely unglued, I love it. I am so in love with my husband. I love my children more than I ever thought possible. I love homeschooling. I love planning. I love it. It is a mess...but it is my beautiful mess.

Maybe your life isn't as chaotic as mine...or maybe its worse. No matter the circumstance, let's try to encourage each other as mommies that we CAN do it. We can do it the way that God wants us to. We can give our days to Him and then do our best.

Philippians 4:13 says, "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me."

Tomorrow...when the knocking starts, I need to recite that verse and start my day by serving the Lord by serving my family. Join me, will you?

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My Perfect Life: Part 1

Every morning, I wake up and before I even open my eyes, I pray. "Lord, help me to be a woman for You today. Let me share my faith with anyone and everyone that I come in contact with and let me be the wife and mom that shows Christ in everything I do.

Then, I get out of bed,  get myself a cup of coffee and settle in for a good hour of quiet prayer time and bible reading. Thirty minutes of exhilarating exercise comes next, then I quickly take a shower (and shave my legs of course) and do my hair and make up, quietly of course, so as not to disturb my husband and children who are still sleeping.

A little while later, the husband and children awake to a hot breakfast on the table. I sit with the family and feed the baby. I'll eat my fruit and cottage cheese later.

Then the hubby heads out to work and the kids happily play while I do the dishes and clean the kitchen. We manage to get all of our homeschooling done as well as some time at the playground all before lunch.

My kids eat a perfectly balanced lunch with no complaining and then the babies settle in for naps while I spend time reading to my oldest two girls. Then, they help me with the laundry and go to back to playing while I scrub the bathrooms.

After naps, we have a healthy snack and I start dinner prep while the children have their 30 minutes of screen time...where of course, they all choose the same show to watch. PERFECT!

The hubs comes home to a hot meal on the table that tastes perfect and we all sit down and have a lovely conversation about our day.

After dinner, I do the dishes while the kids play with daddy. Then, we spend some time playing worship songs and singing together.

The kids get their baths and off to bed they go. Family devotions and then lights out. The hubby and I spend some time talking about our plans and then spend some good time reading and praying together before we turn in for the night.

The house is clean and peaceful and we all go to sleep with smiles on our faces.

The real title to this post should be, "Why I always feel like a failure", because it would be a BIG, FAT, SCARY, LIE to say that this is what happens on a daily basis...or ever for that matter. So wait for Part 2 of My Perfect Life to come in just a couple of days to find out reality!

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Five Minute Friday: Messenger

Today's Five Minute Friday word is: Messenger. This is a link up with Lisa-Jo. I will write for 5 minutes with no editing. Just five minutes of my thoughts.

Go:

When I first heard the word, "Messenger", it took me a minute to figure out what I thought. In fact, I almost skipped it altogether and just didn't write today.

And then it dawned on me. Messenger. This is what I am supposed to be. This is what God has called me to.

A messenger for Him. To spread the word of God. And once again, I almost shied away.

How often does God call us to something and we are too scared...too nervous...too afraid of what others might think and it keeps us from doing the most important thing that we can do. If we are truly loving those around us, than we should be sharing God's Word. 

I often think about how excited we get to share our good news with people. Engagements, pregnancies, jobs, graduations, birthdays, promotions, new homes...etc. We should be even more excited to share THE "Good News". 

So...join me today...be a messenger. 

STOP.

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The End of an Era

(Disclaimer: I forgot the real camera so I had to use my phone...not the best pictures)

Tom graduated this past Sunday (June 8th). He didn't want to walk in the graduation but I signed him up for it anyways. Hey....I filled out every last piece of paper work for him for the past five years so I figured he owed it to me. I think he is glad he did it too...because they had some awesome food at a reception after!

We will be married seven years this August. More than five of those years have been spent with him attending school part and full time as well as working full time for most of it. Keira was about 10 months old when he started and we have added THREE more children to our family. I brought Levi and he was an angel through the whole thing!

 To say that getting a Bachelors degree during this time was a challenge is an understatement. I am so proud of him, it is almost ridiculous!

Watching him walk across that stage was a symbol. The symbol of the end of an era.

Through it all....God sustained us.

He allowed our marriage to grow and flourish. I would be lying if I said that the stress never got to us, of course it did, but God prevailed and we were able to see it for what it was.

Stress. Not real problems, when you put it in perspective. Just hard times that we had to press on through.

Although it was hard work and perseverance from Tom, I do recognize that it was also a sacrifice on the part of me and our kids. The sacrifice of time. Time with a husband and time with a daddy.




But we knew our goal. We knew all along that this was what God wanted for us which He made abundantly clear to us several times. And we pressed on.

We made the best of what we had. Time and otherwise. And now, it is complete.

When I think back to five years ago when he just got started, it seemed like a lifetime away. It seemed impossible.

But with God. All things are possible.

Tom started his new job this week and it is wonderful. We are aware that in this world there are no promises and this too could be temporary but we know that God has a plan for us and it will be great!

If there is something that you feel God is leading you towards today, pray. And then go. Do it. You will be abundantly blessed by Him in whatever ways He wants to bless you.

This is the end of an era for us. It is also the beginning of a new one. And I am so excited to see what God brings our way next because friends....He NEVER leaves us. He NEVER forsakes us.

Follow Him and trust.

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The Power of His Love

I have recently been reminded that sometimes people can only see what they want to see in you. If someone wants to find fault with me, they will not have to look too far. And when someone looks deep into my soul, they will find a sinner. Because that is what I am. I am a sinner. A Sinner who is trying to love others and be as sinless as I can...which is impossible. It is a losing battle, but one that I need to fight daily. I am a sinner who cares deeply for my family. My Friends. My acquaintances. I am a sinner who longs to make everyone happy. I am sinner who loves Jesus. I love people. I want to do the best I can (though sometimes take on too much).  

I will never claim to be perfect. In fact, most days, I feel like a failure. I am a sinner who would never intentionally hurt anyone. I am a work in progess. I am God's work in progess. 

I am not a mind reader. I am a mother. A wife. A daughter. A Sister. A friend. 

A sinner.

I might not know God's plan for my tomorrow, but I know He has one. 

And I am not alone. You are a sinner too. (gasp!). But, friend. He has a plan for you too! People will come and go. Even people that you never thought would but He does not. Our Heavenly Father, was, is and is to come.

We sang this song at church this morning. It is older but the words have always been some of my favorite lyrics. After an exhausting weekend, I needed this today and God knew it. May you know the renewal of Jesus today. May you be led by the Spirit and find joy in each new morning.

The Power of Your Love, by Geoff Bullock

Lord I come to You, Let my heart be changed, renewed
Flowing from the grace that I've found in You

And Lord I've come to know the weaknesses 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
In 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

And Lord renew my mind as Your will unfolds in my life
In living every day by the power of Your love

Photo Credit

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