Category: God Stuff

Jul 27

Imperfect Progress

I’m in a bible study called Unglued, based on a book by Lysa TerKeurst, recommended by a friend and then later organized by my best of friends. It’s a great book, though the bible study format isn’t one I have liked very much. Regardless, last night I did my homework and I wrote a prayer.

Father, please keep my focus on You by reminding me to surrender first, then ask for heightened spiritual senses to see and hear You throughout the day. Jesus, please help me to be gentle and humble in heart, and be my Counselor.

Today I was different. It wasn’t an active choice, I just realized partially through the morning that I wasn’t handling things my normal way. I’m a yeller for sure. Last night, the obvious notion that yelling never resolves or deescalates a situation really hit home to me. And so I walked differently today. I remembered that The Little One is just a 2 year old, and when I expect behavior beyond that, it’s not HER that begins the meltdown, it’s ME. I can see the buildup; small things that snowball until there’s a verifiable meltdown, and then chaos. And it happens daily.

That isn’t it, y’all. You have to click here to read the rest!

Jul 20

Right Now…

There are some posts I have coming in the pipeline, ones that aren’t done yet, ones about actual home improvement that are humorous, or about being lackadaisical in general, or, my favorite, Year Two of Bringing The Oldest One to Camp. Right now, though, I’ve had a rough couple of days. And it’s no secret that I strongly believe in God. I also believe that He speaks to me through songs. I joke that He controls my iPod shuffle. Yesterday morning, I had never heard this song before; as of the last 24 hours, it has “randomly” come on three times. The first time it came on, I was impatiently waiting on news. The second time it came on, I’d gotten the news, and it devastated me, I just didn’t understand. I didn’t understand how this could be His plan for me; it seemed so clear, the timing so perfect. I just sat and cried; from frustration, from sadness, in mourning of my own plans. And now, in the midst of a serious talk with Hubbin, it came on again. So I don’t know where you are, but in case you’re in that place, here it is:

That isn’t it, y’all. You have to click here to read the rest!

Jun 07

The Oldest One

So here’s what you don’t know – my daughter, The Oldest One, is getting baptized on Sunday. She’s been asking for a while, but I have continually said no. How can she grasp something at nine years old that took me twenty-nine years to learn? And sometimes I still don’t really “get it”.

The Oldest One was an old soul at birth. She kept me in line from day one. Becoming a mother didn’t come naturally to me, and God blessed me so much with this child. She was a difficult baby, but has been a wonderful child since. We struggled during the 3’s, but any parent will tell you that’s the hardest of the toddler years.

Strong willed but obedient, she’s a people pleaser and a caretaker. She reminds me of school deadlines; she learned early that she needed to. I remember picking her up at daycare and her looking at me sadly and saying “You forgot to send money again for Melody Makers. I didn’t get to go.”

That isn’t it, y’all. You have to click here to read the rest!

Apr 26

The Church of First Responders

No bones about it, last weekend was the hardest weekend of my little family’s life. The marriage retreat was designed to bring us closer, and it did, but it wasn’t all surface stuff. It forced us to dig deep into the junk, the stuff that had desperately tried to come to the light that had been pushed down.

On Tuesday, I watched the Boston bombings and saw that very familiar site; the police, firefighters, and good Samaritans running toward the carnage, the danger, the chaos, to help in any way that they could. It didn’t matter if they had training, or experience, they wanted to help on any way that they could.

I thought back at our marriage retreat, and that night that all the junk came to the surface.

I’ll tell you, before joining our church, I was not keen on Christians. I didn’t trust them, because they are gossipy and fake. And while I felt that way before, that’s totally not the experience we’ve had there. It is all laid out on the table, junk, screw-ups, sins. It’s all out, it’s all real.

That isn’t it, y’all. You have to click here to read the rest!

Apr 20

We’re Back!

So we had the marriage retreat and it was wonderful and hard and exhausting and invigorating, all at the same time. Here we are en route:

There were a ton of things said that weekend, but most of it isn’t for y’all. Here are some highlights, though:

The problem with a cult is that you don’t find out you’re in one until the last day.

There’s a place for flannel nightgowns, ladies. The fireplace.

Funnies aside, this has been a super long, stressful week with lots of changes. We started this class very happy with each other and our marriage, but this retreat forced us even closer; closer than we’ve ever been. Closer than either of us realized was even possible.

I am genuinely the luckiest woman alive. I feel sorry for y’all, because I can tell you without doubt that your husbands are not as good as mine. Not sorry enough to give him to y’all, though. He’s all mine.

That isn’t it, y’all. You have to click here to read the rest!

Apr 09

This Weekend!

Hubbin and I met when The Oldest One was 2, so we never had that honeymoon period. We’ve never been on a trip without kids (we actually don’t vacation much and are trying to change that). In fact, we married on a Saturday, and Sunday evening I left on a business trip with my boss at the time (female), and Hubbin left to go back to West Virginia, which is where he worked for fourteen long months, part before we married and part after.

Funny side story, since my boss and I were both females, when we traveled, we roomed together. Sunday, when we were checking into the hotel, the front desk manager remarked on my wedding ring and said “Wow, that really is a stunning ring!”, to which I replied “Thanks!! I just got married yesterday!”

It wasn’t until later that I realized she probably was taken off guard at the two chicks checking into a room together the day after my wedding. Perhaps if it had been a business trip to California, maybe we’d have gotten a free bottle of champagne or something, but alas, we were also in West Virginia, so instead we got wide eyes and a “Ahhhh….uh, congratulations.”

That isn’t it, y’all. You have to click here to read the rest!