Being a Mom

What it meant to be a mom today . . .

It meant dressing my 10 year old and helping him with every step of getting ready for school because he was having a rough morning, and then remembering to tell him I loved him and to have a good day as I pushed him out the door.

It meant listening to my 3 year old whine and cry for an hour because I didn't let him answer the phone call from the school district.  It also meant finally losing it and giving him a swift spank and putting him in his room till he calmed down.

It meant cleaning up trail mix off of the car track in the bedroom (where no food is supposed to be!) and noticing that all the M & Ms were gone.

It meant sorting 4 loads of laundry and only getting 2 loads done, and realizing it's okay, it's not going any where and I can do it tomorrow.

It meant 2 loads of dishes because I got a little behind during the weekend.

It meant finally getting around to fixing the Wii (penny found) because I wanted to do something to make the 10 year old happy when he got home from school.

It meant enjoying a round of Mario Cart just to make sure it worked.

It meant trying to open the broken DVD player to get the checker pieces out in hopes that it would work again to surprise the daughter happy, but not succeeding.

It meant going to the scary middle school to have a transition meeting with the resource teacher for my almost 6th grader and getting teary eyed once again as we discussed his strengths and weaknesses.

It meant feeling grateful for wonderful teachers who care about those kids that need a little more looking after so they don't get lost.

It meant stopping for the parade of Police cars and Firetrucks for the 3 year old to enjoy and getting to see a hometown celebrity just back from the Russian Olympics with a gold medal around her neck.  I waved, she waved, I gave her a thumbs up and she said thank you.  She looked happy.

It meant spending too long in the grocery store and being a little late picking up the kids from school, but not having to wait for any other cars in the pick up line.

It meant fighting with my 3 year old on where he was going to go to sleep.

It meant worrying that my 6 year old felt a little warm and being grateful his temperature was normal.

It meant all this and a million more things and I am grateful.

I saw God today as I was Mom.

Friendship

This afternoon I took a little Mommy break on the iPad and checked out Facebook.  I don't post too often, but I do like to keep up with friends and family.  I felt very blessed when I noticed that one of my bestest friends in the whole world was online and so I started to chat with her.  It was the best Mommy break.  I really needed it.  Especially with moving to a new town and not having close friends yet.  I spend the day with a whole lot of toddler.  So the excuse to check out for a few minutes and gab with a friend was just what I needed.

I saw God today on my iPad:)

A sense of belonging

Today was our 3rd Sunday in our new ward at church.  Starting to know a few more names and recognize a few more faces.  I am so grateful for all the friendly smiles, for meeting the sister-in-law of a good friend from our last ward, and for being able to watch Dave joke around with members of the ward.  I am grateful for the knowledge that anywhere I go I have a family.  They are my brothers and sisters and they welcome me with open arms if I will reach out to them.

I saw God today as I felt a sense of belonging to a new ward family.

Successes and Failures

This life is full of success and failure.  I was once counseled that the success or failure of my endeavors would be dependent upon my attitude.  This is a truth that I learn over and over again.  Today I saw both and I think I passed the attitude test:)

My success was tonight as I watched my 6 year old's excitement in reading on his own.  He is not one to want to sit still very long, so it took some doing to get him to the table, but the light in his eyes as he read a little book on his own was priceless.  I'm glad I didn't give up and let him keep on playing and just skip the reading when it was a challenge to get him started.  

My failure was dinner.  I get in ruts and really struggle with dinner preparation.  One of my problems is remembering to pre plan.  When dinner time rolls around and I start thinking "what should I make" I get stuck because a lot of what I have on hand requires prep time, which I no longer have.  Last night I came up with baked potato "chips" and hot dogs.  Tonight I decided on Raman Chicken Noodle Soup and drop baking powder biscuits.   The soup went over okay with 4 out of the 5, but the biscuits were a dismal failure. They turned out beautifully, all soft and flaky.  It just turns out that I am the only person in my family that likes them, even if they are smothered in strawberry freezer jam.  After everyone left the table, I sat there for a while having a pity party and eating biscuits, but then as I got up to clear the table I had another thought.  I am so grateful for the abundance and variety of food we have.  And I am very grateful that even if most of the batch gets thrown out, there is other food to feed my family.  

I saw God today in my emerging reader and a perfect batch up unwanted biscuits.

Gentle Promptings

I saw God today as I stood in the kitchen with my breakfast and had to decide, "do I go in my room and turn on the TV while I eat, or do I go sit at the table with my 3 year old"  even as I type this it seems a no brainer, but there are days and even moments when I just want to be selfish and not be a good mom.  But the thought (prompting) came to me.  "There is nothing you could learn on that tv show that is more important than the time spent with your 3 year old."  So I made the choice to walk to the table, and sit down, and eat as I listened to the chatter of a 3 year old and then after I finished eating, helped him eat, since he was more interested in talking than eating at the moment.  I made a choice, and it has made all the difference throughout the day.

Tender Mercies

I decided it was time to get back to a place in my life where I look for and recognize all the tender mercies that the Lord provides for me every day.  So this post is my first step toward that goal.  Knowing that this may not be read by anyone is okay with me.  This is for me.  

So today I see God in my life through the energy and excitement of my 3 year old.  He is ready to play and ready for adventure.  And with that being said, it is time to sign off, because he is hanging on my arm telling me he is ready to play Dora Memory.  He got it out and set it up all by himself:)  

My sparkling diamond

I just had one of those "ah ha" moments and needed to write it down. I was sitting at my computer and the sunlight hit my wedding ring and made little sparkles of light above me on my computer armoir. My first thought was "ah, how pretty," and then I moved my hand to make the sparkles dance. As I enjoyed this for a few seconds (it's amazing how sometimes our "ah ha" moments come in those few quiet seconds) I realized how blessed I am to have that ring and all it symbolizes.

I'm am so GRATEFUL for my husband, for his love, for the eternity that the ring symbolizes, for our family, for his secure job, for our home, for our safety, for our health, for our happiness (which is centered in Jesus Christ).

And all of these things combined (and many more) are my sparkling diamond.

I saw God today in the sunlight hitting my diamond:)