1-2-3-4-5-6

6 words. That's it. Xandra and Gotta Grow With It tagged me for this meme. A six word memoir. Cool, huh? Quite tough. Can't stop. Typing sentences. Like this. Oh well. Here goes.

"Significant. Yet, it's not about me."

Now you.

I Love This

"Be brave.
Be strong.
Don't give up.
Expect God to get here soon."

Psalm 31:24
The Message

Next Time I'll Just Skip the Poll

Wow.

You guys had a lot to say on the matter of my last post.

I wanted to address some of your comments and clarify a few things if I may.

Normally, I would try to work all of my thoughts together into something that flows using those clever little things called paragraphs, but I'm just not sure I have enough brain power to accomplish that this evening so bear with me as I address you in list form.

1) I appreciate what Abigail had to say about there being no condemnation in Christ. I hope that none of you felt that I was condemning myself or anyone else for not having an intentional "quiet time" each day. Especially those of you with itty bitty ones...a daily quiet time was not even on my radar a couple of years ago. Making to my next birthday with everyone alive? Yes. Daily quiet time? No. My youngest is almost four and I feel like I am just now coming out of the fog enough to attempt this. This has been a personal decision for me and I believe it is born out of conviction, not condemnation as I am desiring to draw closer to Him.

2) I tend toward perfectionism and will often do all or nothing. If I wasn't able to find the time to read ALL of the reading, EVERY day then I wouldn't do it at all. A big part of this victory for me has been a shift in my perspective. That is shifting from checking "time with God" off of a to-do list to spending time with God because I want to know Him better. That is what this is all about! Amen?

3) Thank you all so much for sharing your heart and your experiences in this matter. I loved having this "discussion" with all of you. I think that we are stronger as a body of believers when we can be honest and transparent with each other.

4) For those of you who asked for prayer in this area. I will pray for you!

5) And lastly, it appears I made a few of you feel guilt in regards to my poll. So sorry. Please know there is also no condemnation on Alana's blog for not participating in a poll.

I'm in the 19%

I'm trying to decide what to make of the results of my latest poll (over there to the left). Only a few of you responded and the majority of you who did respond said that you read the Bible and pray on most days. One person said they do so on occasion. And one person said that they never do.

There were only 11 replies total, so many of you chose not to respond at all.

I've decided to be painfully honest and tell you that this is an area I have always struggled in. Intentional "quiet times" have been sporadic at best for the majority of my life. Hopefully the 81% of you who have your act together and do so on most days won't disown me for that revelation.

As an effort to remedy that, in January I decided to read the Bible cover to cover chronologically (in a year) with a group of ladies over at Bev's blog. I agreed to do so hesitantly because I wasn't sure I would really be faithful to honor that commitment. I did well for awhile, but as we got into the readings in Leviticus and Numbers my resolve began to waver. I struggled to continue with the readings and I got further and further behind. At one point a few weeks ago I was ready to throw in the towel, either that or apply for an extension.

Was there a 2 or 3 year plan?

I left a comment at Bev's blog (in all seriousness) telling her that I was a Cover to Cover LOSER and might it be possible that I was so far behind I was actually first? Or something to that effect. And do you know what? She did not curse me or chastise me or even scold me. She was SO gracious and loving and kind and she told me to just jump in where they were reading at the time...instead of trying to catch up (duh...my word not hers), and that if nothing else I should read just two verses of the reading each day. I agreed to do that and I asked her to pray for me. And miracle of miracles, I have completed all the readings since then! Although if I'm being completely honest I did skim over the ones in 1 Chronicles...(sorry God, but UGH).

So. I say all this not to boast, but to praise God for this victory in my life!

"If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness."
2 Corinithians 11:30

And also to encourage. If you are still with me here at the end of this post...where are you at with this? I'd really be interested to know. Please share...leave a comment anonymously if needed or respond via email.

If you struggle in this area and would like prayer. I will pray for you. I mean that.

I say all this with the assumption that the majority of you reading this blog are Christians. However, if for some reason you are reading this post and you have no idea what I am talking about when I say quiet time or victory or Leviticus or Numbers. If for some reason you stumbled upon this post and you don't know Jesus, it would my honor to share Him with you. Just leave a comment or send an email and we'll talk.

One, Two, Three, Four...

"One, two, three, four
I declare a thumb war.
Five, six, seven, eight,
try to keep your thumb straight."

I heard this chant probably 100+ times on Monday as I chaperoned my first of what is sure to be many field trips. As we bounced along in a big yellow school bus, I realized that once again my life had come full circle. The last field trip I attended would have been one of my own. It is amazing how an experience like that can bring back feelings, tastes, smells, and memories one might have thought were long lost.

I can still remember the excitement of having my Mother accompany me on a class field trip. I felt so honored to have her as the leader of my 4 person group and especially "safe" with her there at arm's length.

On Monday I had the privilege of seeing that excitement reflected back to me in my own child's face. He melted my heart when his little voice said, "Sit by me, Mom! Sit by me!". Without hesitation, I sat down, gave him a squeeze and off we went on our little adventure.


After our one hour+ bus ride (an inordinate amount of time for thumb warring, I might add), we arrived at our destination...an old church which now houses a puppet and marionette show. The kids thoroughly enjoyed the show. There were lots and lots of giggles and Richie very generously shared two FULL kernels with me from his complimentary bag of popcorn.

After the show we ventured to the park to enjoy our brown bagged lunches. And had it not been a frigid 40 degrees at the time, I'm sure a picnic lunch at the park would have been just lovely. After all, there is nothing that says "lovely day for a picnic" like winter coats, gloves and a chewy granola bar turned CRUNCHY.

I think it goes without saying that we were all more than happy to return to the warmth of the puppet theater in order for the children to create a puppet of their own. (Ever wonder why...if it goes without saying...that I must still say it?). The puppet creations were all a big hit and I'm sure they suffered only minor injury as they were stuffed (glue still wet) by little hands into gallon sized Ziploc bags. See below for a picture of Richie's creation.


All that to say, a good time was had by all, and although I could do without hearing the thumb war chant again for quite some time, I wouldn't trade the day for anything.

An Unexplainable Gravitational Pull

Have you ever experienced an unexplainable gravitational pull toward this establishment when the special sign is flashing red? You know the sign that says...

HOT
DONUTS

NOW!!!

Did you know that if the sign is flashing and you stop and enter said establishment, they will give you a tasty Original Glazed donut for FREE?

And did you know that according to the website their donuts have 0 grams of trans fat? And come in a whole wheat version? Because word on the street is that if a donut has no tran fat and is whole wheat that makes it HEALTHY! So just throw in some fruit snacks (because they're made with fruit, you know) and you have yourselves a well balanced breakfast! Plus, you don't have to do anything strenuous like peeling an apple.

But seriously, I normally try to resist the gravitational pull of the flashing red sign, but one day a few weeks ago, I decided it would be a fun stop for me with my little guy, Will. Because after all they have that window for viewing the machines that make the donuts and I figured that along with being healthy, it would also be educational!

Turns out, this time with my youngest was not only healthy and educational, but very sweet for Mommy. No pun intended. Because honestly, what could be sweeter than this view from across the table?

A New Flip Flop Revolution?

Updated Below...

Have you guys seen these?

I must say I'm intrigued. Anyone tried them?

I venture to say we'd all wear them morning, noon, and night if they made our legs look like that!

Can I get an amen?

Of course, in my case that would mean my legs would have to grow about a foot and defy the laws of nature, but it's possible, right???

Yeah. This could be why I'm not allowed to watch infomercials.

What do you think B-town girls, should we raise next year's flip flop exchange limit to $50?

Edited to Add: Here's the official FitFlop website. And a review I found as well.

What's your IHC?

I'm currently staring at a load of whites that need to be folded. What is it about those whites that make me just want to throw my hands up in the air and give up? It's all those stinking socks, not literally, of course, they have been washed. I mean stinking as in annoying.

White socks are exponential.

There you have it. The profound thought of the day. And you heard it right here, folks.

It is one of those chores that really doesn't take that long, but somehow seems like a domestic version of Mount Everest. I've taken to calling them Irrational Hate Chores. Or IHC's. IHC's are bretheren to the itis's or itii...did we ever agree on a plural version?

I have many irrational hate chores, I'm ashamed to admit. Some are more pathetic than others. I'm thinking many of you might heartily agree that folding whites is a valid IHC, but I may be alone in the one I'm about to confess to you now.

Peeling apples.

I mean I HATE to peel apples for my children. It's terrible, I KNOW! And irrational...thus the designation Irrational Hate Chore. I will go to any lengths to avoid peeling an apple. Don't think I haven't considered driving through McDonald's to order some of their beautifully peeled and cut up apples. How much do you think they would charge for a lifetime supply? I've stooped as low as telling my children that there were no apples even when I was fairly confident we did have some. Forgive me, Jesus! And of course, if all else fails I can always pull the old "applesauce trick" out of my back pocket. It is MADE FROM APPLES, YOU KNOW!

Sigh.

Sad.

Sad.

Sad.

I could go on, but I think you guys have probably had enough of my true confessions for now.

Plus, I really do need to fold those socks.

Feel free to share your own IHC if you feel the need to get it off your chest. No judgement or condemnation here.

This is a safe place for you.