My daily blog posts

So I decided a while ago that I was going to start blogging every day except for Sundays.
I have done so and not missed a single day.
However...I am going to change this just a little.
I will continue to blog every day- except for Saturdays and Sundays.
Monday through Friday is enough.
So this is my last Saturday post and I am writing this while Adam is driving us home from Connecticut!

It was a beautiful, God-centered ceremony.
So amazing to watch. It is so encouraging to see couples who choose to live their lives for Jesus!

And I got to see some of my sweet friends who I love so much!

I hope everyone has a God-honoring weekend!

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oh my aching back...literally.

something you may not know about me.
about 5 years ago i was diagnosed with degenerative disc disease.
it's pretty much a nightmare.

it is severe lower back pain - and sometimes hip pain - that pretty much debilitates you.
but actually...you have to just keep going because life doesn't really slow down just for you! ha!
it comes and goes at seemingly random times.

there is really nothing you can do about it.
ibuprofen is kind of a joke. it takes 6 of those bad boys to just get rid of my headaches.
and besides that, you don't really have an option except to just live with the pain.
you can't really stand, sit, lay or anything.
cool.

so last night when i went to bed, i felt it hurting a little bit.
i thought...oh boy. here we go. this could be bad.
i slept ok, and got up and started to get ready for my morning run with my dad.

and then i tried to go down the stairs.
ya.
about that.
not even close to happening.
i could barely walk. UGH! so frustrating!
and so that has been the rest of my day.
making meals, doing laundry, getting things done around the house all through the stabbing pain.
it does do my heart good to hear my sweet boys and my husband try and make my work load a little lighter, and to hear them pray for me.

and it's ok.
i can handle it.

i am thinking about what tomorrow looks like.

driving 3 1/2 hours to connecticut to go to my friend alicia's wedding.
not looking forward to the drive.
but so excited to be there on her special day.
and so excited to get to see all my peeps!
i can't even type it loud enough!
ang, tiff, deb, beth and mary.
oh, and they may just be the most talented photographers in the world. at least in the east coast. nbd.

so that is a little bit of what my day has been.
sometimes these little episodes last for a couple of weeks.
makes life exciting.
praying that this time it will only last a few days.
any other prayers from you would be greatly appreciatd!

oh, and if you see my hobbling around...don't make fun!

good night everyone.

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hardcore parenting

i am serious about parenting.
i mean. i don't joke around when it comes to raising my kids.
and that's saying something, because i pretty much joke around about everything.

today was one of those days that i was reminded of how thankful i am that i got up off the couch.
(that will make sense if you click on the link and check out my post from 2 years ago!)

adam and i and the boys were out shopping today and a lady in her 70's came up to me and adam and said...
i can not believe how good your boys are! they get along with each other, they are obedient...how in the world did you get them to act this way?

i said...well? we do everything by the Bible!
it teaches them how to treat others, how to love each other, and we couldn't do it without the Bible!
it was such an encouragement to hear from a random person, that our hard work has paid off!
and it is hard work!

sometimes i take for granted the fact that my boys get along.
because, for so long...i have just expected it!

i just want to encourage all of you moms out there...be a hardcore parent, baby!

don't let yourself slack off.
i mean, obviously you are going to have a bad day here and there.
but there should just be certain things that your kids expect.
certain behavior that they just come to know...if they do that behavior?
there will be a consequence.
it has to be that way!
don't just assume that they are going to grow out of whatever "stage" they are in right now.
they are going to grow.
but they will just grow harder to control.

i remember many years ago. long before i had even thought of marriage or parenting.
i saw a family with a couple of kids.
the mom was stressed out and tired.
she was not being consistent with discipline, and when the husband came home, she virtually threw the kids at them and said - you deal with them.

i remember thinking...that poor husband!
he has just walked in the door and he is already having to discipline his kids when he just wants to enjoy them!

listen to me: consistent discipline of your kids is a way to honor and respect your husband!

what a gift we can give our men when they can walk into the house after a long stressful day at work to a peaceful, fun, loving home!

today was a good reminder for me.
it was a reminder to keep working and keep fighting against my natural tendency of laziness when it comes to my parenting.

i hope it can be an encouragement to you as well to be a hardcore parent!









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preparing for tomorrow

i love this quote by john maxwell

i need to be inspired.
there are people who inspire me in many different areas in my life...
my parenting, my wife-ing (like that word?) my business, my ministry, my physical fitness, my spiritual walk...
and i want to spend my time with people who encourage me to grow
maxwell also said,

those closest to me will determine the level of my success

i am choosing very carefully who i am getting close to.

i want to dream bigger.
i have huge dreams for the porch.
i mean huge.
i am excited for the things that i have already started planning.
they aren't just little insignificant events.
they could be life-changing events for many people.
i have a notebook filled to the brim with ideas, dreams, goals...
and this week?
they are going further than ink in a notebook.
they are being talked out, planned out, worked out, done.

and i can't be more excited!!

one thing we are doing is a free oil change for single moms in our town.
it had been a dream of mine to do this for years.

another thing we are planning is a compassion in action weekend.
we are looking to partner with all kinds of people, organizations and businesses to actively show love to those in need.

there is so much more, but i don't want to give too much away yet.
just keep your eyes on our website.
and our facebook page.
and if you are a dreamer too? let's be friends!

i am not sitting back.
i am moving forward.
always moving forward.

how are you living your life today?
what are you preparing for tomorrow?
huge things, i hope!

don't let anything hold you back!




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a little perspective...

sometimes i can get so busy and consumed with my life.

even if my life involves serving other people...it's still a part of my life.

and sometimes when i do that, i take for granted the fact that i have so much.

i have been working on my yard a lot the last couple of days.

raking, weeding, mowing, mulching.

i really love yard work, but there were times that i was hot and sweaty, and sick of seeing dandelions!

but.

while i had to work through this to make my yard look nice...

some people in oklahoma were looking through this just to find their yard.

and this morning when i had to look in this room to find my son's clothes

some parents were looking through this to try and find their children!

it can just blow your mind when you stop to think about it.

while i am complaining about having to clean the toilet, some people would give anything to have their bathroom back.

while i am complaining about having to load the dishwasher yet again with bowls and plates from my boys, some people would give anything just to have their little boys alive to feed.

life is short.

you have no guarantee of tomorrow.

none of us do.

what are you doing with your today?

don't let yourself even hang around with negative, complaining friends.

spend time with your family.

let the dishes sit in the sink and go hug your kids.

put down the candy crush and go write an email telling someone how much they mean to you.

live every second like it was your last.

and pray for the people who have lost so much in oklahoma.

it helps to have a little perspective.

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because writing LOL makes everything ok

you know some people feel that way, right?!?

it's like they will text something totally mean, and then be all...

LOL 

or 

ROTFL

or

haha

or 

semi-colon/parenthesis.

maybe you're the one who does it!

did you know that the Bible actually talks about that?

well, it doesn't actually say lol...at least in any version that i've read...ha!

but it says 

"just as damaging as a madman shooting a deadly weapon

is someone who lies to a friend and then says, "i was only joking" (proverbs 26:18-19)

i love finding more and more how the Bible covers every topic you could ever imagine.

i have to admit, i am a very sarcastic person, and i have found myself kidding around many times and then saying only joking after.

but i have to remember that if i get in the habit of doing that too often, people are going to start wondering if maybe what i'm saying is not a joke at all!

it's just food for thought.

sometimes when you say something mean, or something that is not true...

a simple lol is not going to cut it.

maybe just don't say it at all.

 

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my super cool vintage ladder

i love when i can use a "prop" that i didn't even mean to use.
my boys were looking in the upstairs of our barn and saw an old ladder up there.
they have been into climbing the trees out back lately, and they begged me to take down the ladder and put it up against the tree.
because i'm such a nice mom (haha) i took it down for them.
turns out, i love it as a prop!
who woulda thought, right?

anyways...here is my sweet little niece.
and my super cool vintage ladder

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