The Gift of an Ordinary Day

jumping for joy because the garden is ready to plant

mama working in the garden

crawling to daddy

big brothers helping little sister walk

watching the garden get plowed

eating a popsicle for the first time

running through the meadow

wrestling with daddy after dinner

I was at the library this week and the title of this book caught my eye "Ordinary Days...Family Life in a Farmhouse". That sounded like my life so I picked it up. It is written by a mennonite woman with six kids living on a farm in Oregon. Although there were differences in our lives I was blessed by the book. She used humor and everyday stories from her life to show how we can appreciate the oridinary days of mothering. I read almost the entire book in one afternoon while sitting in the leather chair sipping iced tea (NOT an ordinary day!). The last paragraph of the book says this,

"I have a new awareness of the preciousnes of the people I love. Too often, I realized, I had taken my family for granted and complained that my life wasn't exciting. Now I began to understand theat even the most ordinary moments are treasures, priceless and fragile...

I thank God for the incredible gift of an ordinary day."

Amen. Here's to enjoying the ordinary days of life and thanking God for all the gifts He has blessed me with!

Happy Memorial Day!

Parenting 101

*me and the kids eating out of the cool whip container*

Last week I started to re-read this parenting book a friend had given me. It was really ministering to me and I was thinking how good it would be to hear this guy talk in person. A few days later I saw my friend who told me this guy was speaking at her church! So last night Mark and I drove to Harrisburg to hear Danny Silk speak on "Loving Your Kids on Purpose". It was so good! I sat there and laughed and cried and left so encouraged and challenged.

This morning I was talking to the kids about Mark and I going back to the conference again tonight and Moses exclaimed "Didn't they talk about everything in one night!" I just laughed. I feel like so much of parenting right now is what God is doing in ME versus me teaching the kids anything but I guess that's why you can't learn it all in ONE night.

So then Moses went on to say he thought a good parent was"one who does not yell." (ouch). Sarah thought i was a good parent but could be giving her more candy and other things she likes (interesting). The point being, I feel like I have so much to learn right now and i am seeing some patterns that i have established already that i do not like and sometimes the stuff that comes out of me is not pretty. I am looking forward to going back tonight and hearing more but recognizing I can't get it all in ONE night and God is full of grace and patience and as He works these things in me...hopefully I can pass them onto my kids!

the graduate...

Miss Sarah is officially a preschool graduate. Last Friday was her last day of school and her graduation ceremony. Preschool was a great experience for her and she really blossomed and grew over the past year.

This week has been difficult with the transition but i am learning that transition or change of season is always hard for her. I am looking forward to not having to run around so much in the mornings and anticipating a fun summer with the kids. Sarah will be in kindergarten next year which seems to hit home how fast they really do grow up. I will have two kids in school-how is that possible!

Here are a few shots of her graduation! Enjoy!

Sarah and her teacher, Miss Jen, a little teary eyed! Sarah really loved her teachers!

Sarah on stage doing her beauty queen wave to me!

Sarah and her two favorite friends from preschool, Eli and Brinn, doing a song and dance!

free falling...

I never really thought of myself as a fearful person until I became a mother...


I have now found myself at times lying awake at night wondering these crazy "what-ifs" or being totally irrational in my worry. I know it is because now I have MORE to lose but there is a place of PEACE i can find in trusting God and not giving into fear and worry.
Mark has quoted this saying to me that goes something like this "Most of the things we worry about in life are never going to happen and the things that do won't change with worry."
The point being worry is pointless...

God has really put his finger on this in my life. I see how even my mothering is based at times on fear not really what is healthy or good for my kids. I want to be able to give my kids freedom to be a kid and to make mistakes and to be who they are created to be. To be able to do so i need to let go and free fall into God's grace and trust He loves my kids far more than I can imagine. It is a proccess and I know i have so much more to learn but I really want to get this in my heart.

So here's to trust. Here's to free falling.

Have a great Monday.