motivating the Monday

FYI Friday--finding ways to make the devil flee

At my wits' end this morning--from an overwhelming, head-spinning week and another to come next week, I could only think about a quote from Martin Luther, that one of our pastors at church shared with us. . .

"I am strongly persuaded that after theology there is no art that can be placed on a level with music; for besides theology, music is the only art capable of affording peace and joy of the heart . . . the devil flees before the sound of music almost as much as before the Word of God.” ---Martin Luther

 And so I turned to my playlist on our computer, to make that devil flee, and cranked up the volume on this song . . .




Oh, how I love music! And, praise and worship music is such a great way to focus on our Lord and worship Him, which truly does, put my heart right where it needs to be! I also love the conversation that it started with Chuckles. . ."Mommy, that's not true. God's love can't just keep going, forEVER!" And even after hundreds of times of telling him the opposite, (because, really, it's just so hard for all of us to imagine that the Lord's love is never-ending--especially when we get caught up in the whirlwind of this life), I was able to share with him again, that it IS true! Our God's love never fails, it never gives up, it never runs out on us! Praise be to God!

Chuckles is 5!

Our sweet little Chuckles! How can you be 5? So little, yet all heart and emotions, and you've such a desire to be big! In fact, you truly are growing up. Even if you are smaller in stature, and even if you have the cutest little voice and adorable way of pronouncing words, your mind and heart keep growing! We love it, Charlie! You may be our best communicator, explaining things until everyone understands each other--what a blessing you are!

Your desired theme for your birthday party this year was Angry Birds, much to my dismay. Why did I not want you to want that? Oh, because it's all grown-upish and I just didn't like the angry part about it. I don't play it, you only know it from Mimi and Grandpa's phones, but you've assured me that the Angry Birds aren't bad--they are just trying to destroy (hmmm) the bad piggies! Ha! Sometimes as a Mommy I want to hold onto control and shelter you from things, but I think letting this go isn't a bad thing, because really, it just isn't something bad in the whole scheme of life and in turn it helps me stay current! ;)

So Charlie, we went with it! You chose an Angry Bird Star Wars themed cake (our cake lady is awesome) and Angry Bird Space decorations.

 

We played a game with paddles and balloons pretending to be Angry Birds and piggies, and we used little discs and balls to knock down Angry piggies too!

Aunt Mary came to party too!

It was a different party for us, your first to have mostly school friends as opposed to family friends---which one day we hope to be the same! This is your first year at this school, so we're just getting to know everyone.You had fun and we are thankful! Thankful for your little buddies celebrating with you and just all around 100% thankful for who you are!

 

And, as per tradition, we had our first snapshot in the morning pic, which I lamented about on Luke's last birthday---isn't quite the first shot anymore, now that you get up and get dressed on your own, without us coming in to wake you! But here it is--your Daddy got up early to go out and surprise you with donuts from our fave donut place! Hooray! You had balloons too and were off to school! But since it was a half day for you, we got to celebrate by going to your favorite bookstore AND have lunch together AND you chose dinner at Five Guys--a fave for sure! Afterwards it was home for more cake and presents---which included a climbing rope (one of your biggest desires (let's forget the trampoline for now) and a new bike helmet--Angry Birds of course, a blue light saber and other fun things from your grandparents and aunt and uncle like golf clubs and Star Wars costumes and more Angry Bird toys!

It was a special day, because you are special Charlie!  Our Chuckles, our cuddlebug, fierce and loving, funny and caring, our 2nd little boy and a such an amazing blessing to us! We love you, Charlie, with all of our hearts! Our prayer for you always, is that you will grow up truly knowing and loving the Lord and shining his light to others. May this year be your best year yet! Happy 5th Birthday!!

motivating the Monday--preparing

Our family has been watching a Mommy or Daddy bird spruce up a pre-existing nest that is in our carport for a few weeks now. We have even climbed on top of my SUV to see if there were any eggs, but there weren't. We still kept our eyes on birds flying in and out of the nest and the boys questioned what they were doing.

Sure enough though, at some point, there were eggs and just yesterday we heard some frantic tweeting and chirping! We looked up and saw 3 baby beaks reaching up looking for food! Mommy bird had just flown off, maybe because we scared her, but maybe in search of food.

It started me thinking about how we, as parents-to-be (and no, I'm not a parent-to-be, but a very-content-with-our-numbers-Mommy), spend all kinds of time preparing for our little ones to arrive. We have 9 months to prepare our hearts and minds and 9 months to get a nursery ready, buy baby items necessary for sustaining life (half of which never get used) and often we also find ourselves nesting. Nesting. I think that's what these parent-to-be birds were doing. They fluffed up their nests and waited for their little arrivals. It's not just human nature to prepare, but God's creatures do this too. But often though, once animals are born, they have only a few years with their parents before they are on their own, and some species never even know their parents. They have no one teaching them how to go about life. (I could give you specifics on this, but my 7 year old isn't around to ask right now.) This is not the way humans were designed though. Babies couldn't thrive and survive without someone taking care of them. They are dependent on caregivers for a quite a bit, like teaching them how to take care of themselves and what their purpose in life is!

Right now, I feel like I have a nest of baby birds chirping away daily! From, "Mommy! May I please have some milk! I need some milk!" to "Mommy! I can't get my shoes on." From, "Uggh, this won't work, will you help me?" to "Mommy, will you open this?" I have a bunch of littles who need me constantly. Some days I struggle with that. I imagine most parents do at some point. It's hard to get one little thing done without the "Mommy!" chiming in. But other days, when the Lord blesses me with perspective, I think about what an awesome responsibility and blessing this is! We have the privilege of raising 4 boys to learn to take care of themselves and point their hearts to the Lord before they fly out of our nests to do the same thing. Today, I'm thinking and praying about what that looks like over the next 11 years before our first leaves our nest to who knows when our last will. What are you doing to ready your littles to leave your nest? The time is now!

counting blessings

It's been a doozy of a week, hasn't it? For our family, in our world, it's been non-stop with a birthday, a small surgery, an eye injury, non-stop rushing around, some kind of event at school for all 3 of our littles who go to school, the invasion of allergies, meetings for this and that, and fumes trailing us from pure exhaustion!

Then there's Boston and West. I can't imagine the week people in those communities are having. I know that we all have our own rough weeks and we shouldn't compare. To us, something may seem like an ocean to cross without a boat, while someone else may see that ocean as an easy task to tackle. To us, someone else's current situation may not seem like a crisis to us, yet that person may be gasping for air. But, Boston and West.

Just feeling the need to count some blessings like the old hymn says. . .

Count your blessings, name them one by one;
Count your blessings, see what God hath done;
Count your blessings, name them one by one,

Count your many blessings, see what God hath done!

In this doozy of a week, some of the blessings I am thankful for. . .

--our little Chuckles and the 5 years of joy we've had with him

--a successful surgery for one of Baby Way's ears

--Baby Way's sweet demeanor and smiley self throughout the day

--our marriage conference at church

--sweet friends we've spent time with

--my hubby, who just keeps on serving and loving me

--doctors who've instilled confidence in us

--friends who have checked in on us

--grace from Charlie's teacher

--my Biffer and Kevin, who love our wild family and don't seem phased by us (in front of us) :)

--the giggles from Miles being pushed on his swing

--the way Luke held my hand while we walked in the parking lot as he shared his day with me

--a friend who served us in need on a moment's notice

--our (Way's) OT who is a breath of fresh air and truly enjoys working with our angel

--our Sunday night church service

If you're lucky enough to be at the beach, you're lucky enough!

A month has come and gone since we've been to the beach and I'm just now posting! I must say that it was cold almost everyday we were there. Like cold! We had one day that made it to 66 and was sunny and we soaked it up!! But, like they say, "If you're lucky enough to be at the beach, you're lucky enough!" Indeed!!

Because of the aforementioned cold weather, most mornings were not conducive to braving the beach. The mornings were in the 40's and with the sea air, it felt colder. So, we bundled up and ventured out from the condo! We went to Baytowne and Seaside and had a blast! In Baytowne, we let the boys choose an activity they wanted to do. No surprise that Charlie chose the ginormous trampoline, as did Miles, while Luke chose to brave the zipline!

Don't worry, Baby Way's not ready for that just yet! Our morning at Seaside was fun too! We took in the view and ate some YUMM-O shrimp at the Shrimp Shack--a little dive, high prices, yummy food and great views!

 

But though that was fun, it wasn't why we went to Destin! We wanted to be together, as a family, and hang out on the beach!! So, we did--bundled up on most days, we played our little hearts out! Frisbee, tag (lots of tag), paddle ball, hole digging, exploring, walks, seashell finding, wave chasing, very little book reading and more playing tag!

 

 

Baby Way stay mainly bundled up and protected, but he ventured out some, especially on the warmest day. He didn't like the paparazzi at first, but he came around. . .

It was his first time on the beach, so we made sure it was documented. Umm, like that wouldn't have happened!

We truly had a wonderful time and we all want to go back. Now. Right now!

 Happy Spring Break 2013! We love you, Destin! Until next time!

Dear (future) Daughters in Law. . .

Dear (future) Daughters in Law,

If you ever have children, (and I pray you do, because oh my, what a blessing they are) I'm certain that at some point you'll wonder if you will ever get out and about with them--especially if you have multiple children. Well, I can tell you, that as scared as you may be, you will get out and it will be just fine! I'm not promising you that everyone will be all smiles and perfectly mannered, or that your stroller will fold up perfectly and fit perfectly in your car, or that you won't forget your wallet in your car after you have already filled your grocery cart with food surrounding your littles, or that you won't have to leave a store because of bad attitudes, or that you won't continue on your trek through the store with bad attitudes ensuing, or that you won't have diaper explosions, etc. BUT, I am here to give you hope that before you take that trip with your newest little, when you are worried about how everything works when you venture out of the house, it can be done! Hooray!

#1 way to ensure a successful first outing =  Call in the Reinforcements

I remember my first outing with baby Luke. I took him to Babies R Us--a huge accomplishment! I was terrified! So, what did I do? I called a friend. I had my friend, Jennifer, meet me with her newest little one (her second) in the parking lot. I had no idea how to use my stroller, and my friend was there to help!

(can't find a digital copy of the stroller/parking lot pic, but you can bet I took one--it's in Luke's first year scrapbook! Here's one of the little friends a month later!)

#2 way to ensure a successful outing = Pack prepared

Your newest one is likely to be asleep or perhaps the easiest one with you. OR, perhaps your newest one is the fussiest and most unpredictable. Trust me on this, if you have a stocked diaper bag or purse, you can make it through most scenarios! It seemed when I ventured out with all in tow, no matter what stage, 1 + a new baby, or 2 + a new baby and even 3+ a new baby, I tried to leave the house prepared. Always bring snacks for the bigger littles! This was tougher for me to learn (because I was so rigid in the beginning=no one should eat unless it was a meal time, only healthy snacks, etc.). However, it's amazing how a little baggy of pretzels or pack of peanut butter and crackers can save the day. You never know when you will have a car problem, or that line in the store took forever, or you run into a friend, who convinces you to stop at the park for "just a bit" (which never ends up being "just a bit" if you are like me) or you just can't make it from carpool line to home in enough time (4 minutes) because someone is going to DIE if they don't eat NOW (my current situation--ask me which one of your husbands this was one day! Oh, who am I kidding? I'll forget before you are a reality---it is Chuckles! Whichever of you marry him, make sure to keep him well-fed)!

#3 way to ensure a successful outing = don't panic if it's not a successful outing

You can call for reinforcements and plan away, but honestly, sometimes it's not a guarantee for perfection. At that point, pray for wisdom and patience and do your best not to melt! Then, once you get home, you can consider it a successful outing--if everyone made it home alive! :)

And what inspired this letter to you? Well, I just managed to take all 4 of my children to the zoo for the first time! We've been to church, the grocery, Target, friends, etc., but this was a feat! New-ish stroller and all by myself (adult-wise) we threw caution to lunch and naptime, flew by the seat of our pants and had an AWESOME time! 

I stopped a random stranger to document our fun! Baby Way's first trip to the zoo as well! Love the zoo SO much, but I love my boys even more! And, (future) daughters in law, I'm praying for you already!