Time Flies

I'm a stinky blogger.  No, I don't need new deodorant; I stink at this blog thing.  :)

I haven't posted since October.  That means I didn't put anything about Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year, etc. on here.  Whoops.

Here's my excuse:  I'm busy!  We are all busy, and I really do like my little blog, so I need to spend more time on it.  I think I shall!

Today, however, I'm going to tell you about my weight-loss group at church.  It's awesome!  I heard Lysa Terkeurst on Focus on the Family talking about her book Made to Crave.  God spoke right directly to my heart and said, "You're going to do this at church.  There's going to be a group.  It's a need."  So I said right back, "Uh, seriously, God?  Really?  You know my schedule.  You know what my life is like right now!  Do I have to remind You that I have 18 hours in school and three children?  God, really now.  I'll do this in Summer when I have more time, m'kay?"

So we started our group on February 6th.  (God can be a little... well... insistent.) It is a great time of fellowship and sharing struggles and giving each other ideas and strength and blessing each other with our presence.  I firmly believe that.  We are all blessed by the presence of the others there.  I know I am.

How Do You Love You?

This is an excerpt from what I wrote in my journal earlier.  I thought I'd open up the topic to my friends to get some other perspectives.

I'm not doing enough for myself.

I'm burning out.  Everyone says that the Scripture where Jesus says to love your neighbor as yourself means that you have to love yourself too.  But what if you don't?  What if thinking you're supposed to love yourself just seems selfish?

I should be paying attention to myself more- my health, my weight, my studies, my appearance... everything.  I'm sure, honestly, that it would translate into a happier house for my men.  I mean, I'm sure if I felt better about me, I'd have more energy and willpower to keep a cleaner, more comfortable house.  I'd cook more.  We'd be better financially.  There are so many things I'd like to change, but it all starts with feeling better about me.  So where do I start?

Simon's Ears

Simon has to be at the hospital in less than an hour for ear tube surgery.  Our ENT said that his ears, both of them, are 100% full of fluid.  He says that my sweet boy has to be in some real pain.  That combined with the fact that he has had three ear infections in less than two months has led us to today.  It's no big deal.  Parker had three sets plus tonsils and adenoids removed, his thyroglossal duct cyst and hyoid bone removed, and Jackson had his tonsils and adenoids removed, so as far as surgeries go, this one isn't stressing Momma out in the least.  Maybe I should be more concerned than I am.  (Insert Momma Guilt here.)  I guess by the time you get to the sixth surgery on the third kid you get some perspective about when to worry and when not to worry.  He'll feel better after this one, so I'm kind of looking forward to it actually!  Plus, if he has less infection, he'll have less fever, which leads to less possibility of seizures.  I'm ALL for that!

Gotta get ready now and then get little big man up.  New and improved eardrums coming up!  :-D

The Straw that Broke the Momma's Back

(This picture is of an 8-month-old Simon's pitiful face.  I thought it appropriate.)

Too much has been happening to even blog about it all.  I'm running around like a crazy person.  I have to remind myself to breathe at times.

Brief Synopsis...
Too little sleep.  Dropped two classes but still full time.  Sick Jackson.  Sick Parker.  Really sick Simon.  Febrile seizure.  Sick Simon (again).  Fleas in my house refusing to die!  Wade in revival.  School.  Church.  Grandmother passed away; played piano and sang at the funeral.  Trips to Tennessee and back.  Math test.  Papers to write.  Multiple doctor appointments for all three kids.  Back pain.  Headaches.  Sinus crap.  Parker's leg cramps.  Playing piano for another revival.  Simon getting ear tubes.  Exams coming up.  Cleaning house.  Never ending laundry.  Too fat for clothes in my closet so trying to lose weight.

So what was the straw that broke the momma's back you ask?  Tripping and falling in my hallway.  I fell and cried.  And I cried.  And I cried.  I just sat there in my hall and cried until I couldn't cry any more.  Wade thought I was really hurt or something and kept trying to help me up.  Finally I managed to croak, "I don't wanna get up," and then he understood and let me cry without trying to fix it.  I love him.  :)

I'm blessed.

Yesterday was Homecoming at our church.  Wade preached a message on the prodigal son, and then we had a wonderful time of plain ol' fellowship.  We had a HUGE potluck with more food than I have ever seen before laid out on four big tables.  Then we all went outside to play!  We had horseshoes, cornhole boards, dominoes, and lots of things for the kids to do.  God blessed us with a beautiful, perfect day.  After the playing, we had homemade ice cream - banana, chocolate, vanilla, and peach!  OH MY GOODNESS was it good!

The point of all this is, I'm blessed!  God has plunked me down right in the middle of a congregation of wonderful and amazing people.  I had no idea when Wade took the pastorate at Old Zion that God would be creating relationships closer than blood with the people there.  Two of my children were born into that church, and the oldest was only five months old when we started.  They know and love the people there like they are their own relatives.  And I guess they are family - the family of God.

I know there will come a day when God tells Wade that his time at Old Zion is over, and that He has another church who needs Wade's amazing gifts.  When that happens I'll be so sad.  I try not to think about it much, and I hope it's far, far into the future.  (I'd like it if Wade retired from O.Z.!) 

Overall, though, today I'm just feeling really blessed.  That saying, "Too blessed to be stressed," comes to mind since my whole life has been the Indianapolis 500 lately.  The stress will kick in a little later today, but right now, it's nice to just feel God touching my spirit and saying, "Daughter, I'm here- even in your storm."  Blessed... what a sweet feeling.

AAAAAAHHHHHHH!

Life is insane right now.  I have 18 hours this semester.  I have 18 hours, three children, and a pastor husband.  18 hours was a LOT when it was just me and my cat!

There are so many things I need to post on here, but I have ZERO time.  Like right now, I'm in the computer lab at school, not sitting in front of my computer at home with a cup of coffee with hazelnut creamer.  Oh, to sit at home and relax!

Here's one worth remembering though...

Parker and Jackson preach to each other all the time.  Parker was "preaching" the other day and said, "IF YOU'RE NOT SAVED, YOU'RE GOING TO HELL! AND (pointing to imaginary parishioners) THAT'S YOU AND YOU AND YOU AND YOU!!!"

As funny as he is, Jackson is equally sweet.  I fell down the stairs recently (a whole 'nother blog post in itself), and seeing my bruise, Jackson went to the refrigerator, got a piece of ice, wrapped it in a napkin, and put it gently on my arm, "To make the bruise not so bad, Momma."

And as sweet as Jackson is and as funny as Parker is, Simon is just...well... Simon.  He's PRECIOUS, sweet, smart, cuddly, and BOY does that baby have a temper!  Like I said about the stairs thing, that's a whole 'nother blog post in itself! 

Back to work....  Gotta read and write papers. 

I can do this.  I can do this.  I can do this. 

Nah, he's not greedy.

What Parker just said:

"Momma, for Christmas, I want every kind of toy there is.  Yep, every kind they have in the whole entire world."


Good gracious, that kid!