Keep on keepin' up

I keep waiting for things to slow down.  It's definitely a busy season for our family but I'm realizing more and more that life is just busy.  There's always something to do.  Somewhere to go.  What that also means is that every time I'm doing something, something else isn't getting done.  It gets easy to see the glass as half full or get overwhelmed.

"I'll never get it all done."
Nope.  You won't.

"There just isn't enough time."
Nope.  There isn't.

I find myself saying "I can't wait...." (fill in the blank).  I can't wait for summer.  I can't wait until the month runs out before the money.  I can't wait until the girls can do more chores *(ok THAT one I really can't wait for!!).

I'm learning that today won't wait.  All I can do is keep on keepin' up.
I'm learning to embrace the now.  My girls won't ever be this age again.  Ever.
I'm learning maybe I CAN wait.
God is in today.  He placed me for the here and now.  And where He is, is holy ground.
My circumstances today are holy ground.

"Worrying does not empty tomorrow of it's troubles; it empties today of it's strength."

Fast, and not so fast.

The past 30+ have been a challenge for me.  Our pastor did a series on "fasting" and after some prayerful consideration, I decided to give up all social media.  I also fasted an occasional meal, but that's not what this post is about.

To be honest, when I first decided to fast, I wasn't sure I would make it.  I crave social interaction.  Most days that interaction comes in the online version.  I don't like to feel "out of the loop." Then I started to wonder if folks would even notice I wasn't around.  Of course that made me feel even more anxious! 

"How in the world will my friends function without me?!"

It won't surprise you that life went on.  I didn't log on.  My friends survived without me.  I got on without them.  A few emailed me and said "I miss you" (which, let's face it, made me feel SO good!).  The first few days weren't "hard" but I did find myself picking up my cell phone to check facebook and having to remind myself not to do it.  It was hard to not click on the bookmarks while I was working on the computer.  But after a few days I didn't even think about it.  Then, an odd sense of relief set in.  I didn't feel like I had to "keep up."  

It did help that we had a busy month.  We had Brian's parents visit for a week and had a wonderful time! Then, we had a few days before our good friends from Philly came to visit.  The day before our friends arrived, I started teaching again.  It's a fast track course at the community college with a new textbook so I have to spend almost as much time in preparation as I do actually teaching.  

Now, the real purpose of fasting is to draw closer to God.  So, you are supposed to use the time that you "would be doing something" (like eating or being on facebook) to spend time with the Lord.  For me, my time on facebook and blogger were never large chunks of time.  They were small snippets here and there.  I actually felt a bit guilty because I wasn't being super spiritual and spending hours in prayer.  But our pastor spoke on that EXACT thing during the fasting month.  He said, "God doesn't want you to cram it all in.  He wants you....throughout the day." So that's what I did.  I prayed each time I thought about checking facebook or twitter or blogging.  The oddest thing happened.  I stopped thinking about facebook and twitter and blogging and started just conversing with God throughout my day.  I created a new habit, and I love it.  

I realized that without social media I wasn't just sitting and twiddling my thumbs.  I NEVER had extra time.  My day just got filled up with other things.  I even wondered at a few points, "How in the world did I have time for all the social media before?" I realized that we MAKE time for the things that matter.

People say they don't have time to read a devotional.  They don't have time to read to their children.  They don't have time to exercise.  They don't have time to meal plan.  They don't have time to pray.

Make time.

Even though we were busy, January felt like it would NEVER end.  I even told someone at church on January 30th, "well, back in January..." and she looked at me with a puzzled expression.  Then she said, "Isn't it still January?"  Sigh.  Yes, January was long and by the end of the month it felt like it should be March.

My class is only 8 weeks long but feels like I've already been teaching for 8 weeks.

We all got colds but the girls recovered super fast.  I think my crazy schedule made mine linger so it wasn't so fast for me.

I think all 3 girls grew at least a few inches since Christmas. They're growing so fast.

I hit my goal weight finally! (praise God!) It felt like it would never happen.  I almost got hit by a truck while running last week. He wasn't going fast, but I was.  :)

A week after being here, Brian's mom went to the hospital with a nagging cough and shortness of breath.  She was diagnosed with uterine cancer that has spread to her lungs.  It seems like it hit so fast.  She already went through one surgery and will begin chemo in about 4 weeks.  The treatments won't be fast, but we're praying they are effective.  Your prayers are appreciated.

We are thankful for our family.  I'm thankful for a month of perspective and prayer.  I'm thankful to be back online :D

I'm thankful for these three blessings:

I heart the faces of 2010

It's been a while since I entered a challenge at I Heart Faces, but I thought this week would be fun. 

I love each and every little face in our house, but this picture just melts me.  

This photo is SOOC (straight out of the camera) and I wouldn't dare touch it.  

Her eyes really are that blue (and her face really is that sweet).  

Hop on over to Iheartfaces.com and see some other "favorite faces" from the past year.
Don't forget to vote. :)

Holly-Days!

This lil' old blog has been quiet for a while.  But that just means we've been having lots of fun! Well, mostly.  Brian had surgery three days before Christmas but he's recovering well and already back to work.

The girls had a fantastic Christmas and now we are working to put things away (toys, laundry, Christmas decorations, etc.).  I haven't run in WAY too long and I'm starting to feel the effects, so I'm starting that back up again soon too! I don't know what it is about post-Christmas, but it always makes me want to purge, organize, clean, and decorate.  You can bet there will be plenty of that going on here as well.  Meanwhile we're enjoying the rain (and we've had plenty!!) and just staying inside.

I've been trying to jot down a few of the funny things the girls have said so I can revive the Friday Funnies, (look for a new year's edition soon)!

I can tell you all we've been up to, but I know you'd much rather see it!

 Reagan's classroom Christmas party:

 Mom's birthday a few days before Christmas (and a delicious chocolate cake made by my sis-in-law):

Walking "Christmas Card Lane" (and a rare family pic):

Delivering cookies to daddy's office:

Reagan and my nephew Dylan (best buddies). He was teaching her all about something called a "Nintendo DS" :)

 Christmas Eve at my mom and dad's house:

Christmas morning at our house. The girls all got a giant dollhouse to share.  Love Reagan's face (and the fact that she's throwing paper in her baby sister's face). :)

 Reagan REALLY wanted a globe for Christmas (something that's easy to find for cheap in August.  In December, not so much).  Thank you Craigslist!!

Skylar with her new Princess bike (complete with a baby seat on back)!

Skylar and Bailey wearing the slings that Reagan made for them!

Mom opening the quilt I made.  She's going to hate this picture, but I just love it!

The girls playing with their new dollhouse:

Matching Christmas jammies!

Our tree on Christmas night.  We have some crazy LED lights!

 

We hope your Christmas was blessed and your home is filled with warm memories! We are gearing up for a busy January (with every week/weekend already booked!), my return to teaching, and squeezing in some playtime too! :) 

Happy New Year!!

Holiday Happenings

You know it's been a while when my own husband says "you certainly aren't updating the blog very much." I know....I sound like a broken record.  We've been busy.  I've always said that I would not let the blog be a stressful thing for me, so when things get busy, it's the first thing to go.  So, here's a brief update of our holiday happenings!

A family picture taken on Thanksgiving at my brother and sister in laws house.

The next day was Brian's birthday so we took him out to dinner (and ice cream)!

Then, the Christmas festivities started! We picked out a tree...

Our dental office had a Christmas festival with a petting zoo so the girls had a blast petting the 3 week old baby pig.  

The girls decorated the tree...

This picture just makes me smile.  Bailey dressed herself and asked me to take a picture :)

I hope you are enjoying the Christmas season as much as we are!! Reagan's last day of school before break is today so we're looking forward to 3 weeks of making cookies, watching movies, looking at lights, and staying in our pjs! 

Little Mamas

Today I'm linking up with my dear friend Liz! She has a countdown to Christmas and if you need any ideas for Christmas crafts, go check it out.



The girls have been so sweet this year when it comes to gifts.  They have asked if they could give gifts to their sisters for Christmas.  I love that they want to give and they aren't just thinking of their own lists.  Reagan really really wanted to sew something so I found a pattern for something that she could do pretty easily (and that her sisters would love).

Both Bailey and Skylar adore their baby dolls.  They tote them everywhere.  Literally, everywhere.  I've used scarves in the past to tie their babies to them so they can "wear" them like I did when they were babies.  But, nothing beats a "real" sling for a baby doll!

One yard of fabric makes TWO slings.  Plus, Reagan and I had them cranked out in less than 30 minutes (and for less than 5 dollars).

Start by cutting your one yard of fabric in half lengthwise.  That leaves about 18 inches in width (for me, the fabric was 55 inches wide so my length was 55 inches by 18 inches).  If your girls are littler, you can trim it a bit more, but I wanted a larger sling. I've heard you can also measure your child from hip to shoulder and then double it and add 2 inches.  That's too much math for me.  I just winged it.

Then, just hem both long edges.

You may also want to iron your fabric unless your allergic to ironing like I am.

After both long edges are hemmed,
Fold it in half with wrong side facing out.

Sew a curve on the OPEN end. Then trim. You can see how this is an exact science, right? My curve was lopsided so I actually sewed it again and made it a little less curvy.  That seemed to work better.

Fold it right side out and then in half and you're ready to go!

Hope you enjoy making a baby sling for your little mamas!

(for littler girls, you can make the fabric closer to 12 inches in width and probably 40 inches or less in length.  you can also line it with another fabric to make it heavier.  the options are endless.)

Here's your sign

Tonight Skylar said, "You know what I would love to do more than anything tonight? I want to have the fireplace on, put a blanket on the floor, put a Christmas movie on, and drink hot chocolate.  With whipped cream.  Peppermint whipped cream."

We're raising that girl right.