6/11/13 WORTH REPEATING

The only predictable thing about humans is their unpredictability.

~ Ted Burdett


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The whole point of Christianity is realizing that you will never be good enough on your own. It's not about following the rules, it's about realizing that no one can ever follow all the rules. That's why we need Jesus.

~ Leanne Brown


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Owning less is far more beneficial than organizing more.

~ Joshua Becker in Don't Just Declutter, De-own at Becoming Minimalist

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The best bridge between despair and hope is a good night's sleep.

~ E. Joseph Cossman


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There are people who say this to me:

“You should enjoy every moment now! They grow up so fast!”

I usually smile and give some sort of guffaw, but inside, I secretly want to hold those people under water. Just for a minute or so. Just until they panic a little.

If you have friends with small children — especially if your children are now teenagers or if they’re grown – please vow to me right now that you will never say this to them. Not because it’s not true, but because it really, really doesn't help.

We know it’s true that they grow up too fast. But feeling like I have to enjoy every moment doesn't feel like a gift, it feels like one more thing that is impossible to do, and right now, that list is way too long. Not every moment is enjoyable as a parent; it wasn't for you, and it isn't for me. You just have obviously forgotten. I can forgive you for that. But if you tell me to enjoy every moment one more time, I will need to break up with you.

~ Steve Wiens in To the parents of small children: Let me be the one who says it out loud at The Actual Pastor (The whole post is great, and funny, so go read it.)

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MOVIES I WATCHED - JUNE 2013

I haven't actually watched all of these in June, but they're the ones I've seen since my last movie list.  A little humor, a little suspense, and a little inspiration make for a good movie list.

How to Eat Fried Worms
Library movie.  I watched this with the bigs for one of our movie nights and we all loved it.  Lessons in friendship and telling the truth, lots of laughter.

Wall-E
Library movie.  I thought I'd seen this before, but I hadn't.  Maybe I'd just seen snippets while Tim watched it, because it was all new to the kids and I during one of our movie nights.  Cute movie.  Generated a little discussion about the importance of doing things for yourself and not being sedentary.

Won't Back Down
Redbox freebie.  Tim and I both watched this one.  I realize it's fictional, but I the thing I liked most about it was seeing people who spent less time complaining about something they didn't like and more time investing their own time and energy to change it.

 

Touchback
Redbox freebie.   A good movie about not dwelling on the "what ifs" of the past and being grateful for what you have.  Tim and I both enjoyed it.

  

Wreck It Ralph

Redbox freebie.  The bigs and I watched this for one of our movie nights. If we have another kid, then I'm pretty sure we'll name it Swizzle Malarkey.  Just sounds cool, don't ya think?

The Impossible
Redbox freebie.  Tim and I started this two hour movie after he got back from class at 10:00 one night.  Late night, but a great movie.  It's a bit intense at times, but that's what you'd expect from a true story about a family caught in a tsunami.  If the big boys are interested, then we'll probably let them watch it.  

A BLESSING ON WHEELS

Last summer Naomi took the training wheels off her bike, which meant she was ready to move from the toddler bike to a regular one. We scoured Craigslist for a free one and I posted on a freebie exchange site at our church to see if anyone had a girl who had outgrown theirs, but to no avail. Summer was winding down, though, so I figured we'd just make do through the winter. Naomi was content and life moved on.

Then it was May and the weather was gorgeous, so I thought people may be going through their outdoor stuff and getting rid of outgrown bikes. I started checking Craigslist again and posted on the exchange site that I was looking for a 20-inch bike, preferably without movie/TV characters on it. I figured something would come along eventually.

And it did.

I received an e-mail on Tuesday from someone asking if my post on the exchange site was for Naomi. I said it was. They responded by asking if she had any color preferences. I told them I knew for a fact that they didn't have any little girl bikes at their house to hand down to her ... and that she loves pink. They wrote back and said we needed to contact them. Contact was made and Tim stopped by their house after his class got out that night. He moved something from their house to our car, drove home, then moved it from our car to our van.

Wednesday morning started off as usual with chores and breakfast. Then I stepped outside momentarily and moved something from our van to our driveway. I came back inside and told Naomi to count to thirty, then to meet me outside.

And she did.

She then proceeded to spend the whole day saying "I can't believe it!", reminding us of the cool purse to hold her things while she's riding, talking about kickstands and hand brakes, and giggling.

Someone felt like God wanted them to bless Naomi, so they went out and bought her the bike of her dreams. How cool is that?!

Striking her "try and look cool" pose with her new bike.

Giddy. Totally giddy.

Sitting on the new bike for the first time.

Sitting on the old bike for the last time.

It takes a little practice to get used to mounting and handling a larger bike and in our family that responsibility belongs to Tim, so they're leaving right this very minute to figure it out in a nearby parking lot. She's pretty excited!!

6/6/13 THANKFUL THURSDAY

I'm thankful for Benadryl.

What is something that you are thankful for?

GUEST POST: GIVEAWAY - NEPALI SCARF

THIS GIVEAWAY HAS ENDED

The following is a guest post from Simone Coster, a friend of mine.  I'm posting it simply because I think giveaways are fun and that the organization she works for sounds pretty awesome.  

As a mom of three young boys there isn't anything that could make my heart heavier than not being able to provide for my little guys.

Unfortunately, there are many moms in extreme poverty all around the world that aren’t able to. Some moms are left with the choice of giving their children away, selling them to try and earn money, or stay together and starve. Being part of sex slavery, sweat shops, or raising kids with disabilities alone. For example, Nepal is one of the poorest countries in the world with a 42% unemployment rate. Every year, approximately 10,000 girls from the ages of 9 to 16 are stolen, sold, or forced into brothels.

I am blessed to be part of a business called Trades of Hope. Trades of Hope offers these women a chance. With the help of Cooperatives, Organizations and Missionaries, women are getting out of sex slavery and supporting their families! They are given a chance to not only survive, but live a life filled with meaning and hope. They are able to work and make lovely items that are being sold, at their asking price, in the United States. They are able to provide food for their families, shelter, schooling, and medical care. Things that I have taken for granted many times.

Being a full time mom and being a Compassion Entrepreneur for Trades of Hope and work as I choose is amazing! I love helping my family and helping a mom across the world at the same time! What other careers give you that option?

I would love to offer a giveaway of one Nepali Aqua Scarf to one lucky winner! To enter, please do any of the following.  Each person may have up to three entries.

#1 Leave a comment on this blog.
#2 “Like” www.facebook.com/simonecostertradesofhope, then leave a comment here saying you did it.
#3 Leave a comment on the above Facebook page, then leave a comment here saying you did it.

The last day to enter is June 19th at 8pm. The winner will be chosen at random and announced by June 21st at 12pm.

For more information about hosting a home or online party or or about becoming a Compassion Entrepreneur and joining my team, please visit www.mytradesofhope.com/simonecoster.

BOOKS I FINISHED - MAY 2013

The Gospel in Ten Words, written by Paul Ellis

Kindle freebie.  Easy reading with lots of good stuff, plus a few things I'm not sure about.  I like that, though - some encouragement in things I know to be true and some challenges to my thinking.

Talk to the Hand: The Utter Bloody Rudeness of the World Today, or Six Good Reasons to Stay Home and Bolt the Door, written by Lynne Truss

I read another book by this author several years ago when I determined to get back in the habit of reading for fun, then blogged a couple weeks ago about a few books she's written for kids.  This particular book made some great points and had me cracking up multiple times.

p. 4, It does, however, have to be admitted that the outrage reflex ("Oh, that's so RUDE!") presents itself in most people at just about the same time as their elbow skin starts to give out.  Check your own elbow skin.  If it snaps back into position after bending, you probably should not be reading this book.  If, on the other hand, it just sits there in a puckered fashion, a bit rough and belligerent, then you can probably also name about twenty things right now, off the top of your head, that drive you nuts.

p. 14, Manners are based on an ideal of empathy, of imagining the impact of one's own actions on others.  They involve doing something for the sake of other people that is not obligatory and attracts no rewards.

p. 18, Basically, everyone else has bad manners; we have occasional bad moments.  Everyone else is rude; we are sometimes a bit preoccupied.

p. 24, Manners are about imagination, ultimately.  They are about imagining being the other person. 

p. 30, Criticism is treated (and reacted to) as simple aggression.  And this is very frightening.

HAVE A SEAT ... OR SIX

We had gorgeous weather a couple weeks ago with temps in the 80s, yet I managed to have a moment of discontent while hanging out in our backyard.  We're about to enter our second summer here and I really want something to sit on while outside.  Last summer we dug out camping chairs if we had guests over or when we wanted to sit on something with back support, but we didn't have any real lawn furniture.  No big deal, I realize.  Definitely a want, not a need.  Yet it would still be nice to have something to sit on this summer.

However,we have no income. No income means no purchasing of frivolous things. 

It's all good, though.  Life goes on.  And on.  And on. 

Until one day there was a post on a site I run for people at our church.  A post offering six free lawn chairs.  Six!  I didn't want to snag them before anyone else ever got a chance to see the offer, so I decided to just let the post sit for a bit and see if anyone claimed the chairs. 

No one did. 

And I made plans to pick them up.

Then my plans were thwarted.

But the chairs remained unclaimed.

So I made a new plan.

And there are now six chairs in my yard. 

 

Those chairs have already been put to good use today and I know they'll be enjoyed all summer.  I'm so thankful for the times when God blesses us with the fluff of life.  Like lawn chairs.