Dec. 28, 2008 - Chicken Invaders
I have a weakness. It's a computer game called Chicken Invaders. A couple years back when my little bro was here for a visit, he got all of us hooked - except my husband, Darin. He thinks it's a silly game. But that didn't stop him from getting it for ME for Christmas this year. Oyve. What I think Darin has forgotten is that we have had this game in our possession before, and I puposefully deleted it from all the computers in the house. I just had to. I was addicted. If there was any sort of lull in the day - no matter how long or short - I always ended up drifting over to the computer to play for a bit. So I nipped the problem in the bud and deleted it. Game Over, man.
But now it's back. I think I'm old enough to handle the challenge of the addiction now. We don't allow computer games during the week. Only during the weekends, with a time limit. I'm not allowing myself to pull out the "I'm the mommy, I can play whenever I want" routine. No playing during the week applies to me, too!
I'm a member of a Charlotte Mason yahoogroup. Really, I'm a huge lurker, but at least I'm an active lurker - I read and digest every conversation. So good. Everyone is chatting about "Habit" right now. One of the ladies wrote in today, and I just have to share with you a snippet of what she wrote because it spoke to me about all the good habits I'm trying to instill in my kids, and beat into myself in an attempt at proving that an old dawg can learn new tricks. Here goes:
________________________________________________________________
Quoting CM:
“It is necessary that the mother be always on the alert to nip in the bud the bad habit her children may be in the act of picking up from servants or from other children." (inserting my own commentary here. I cannot let the servants-thing pass without a sigh! SIGH)
How often do I hear "Why can't I? So-and-so does it!" Trying to be the child's ally and not just saying "Because I said so!" is challenging and really gets my brain working. When I take time and work with the child to find solutions, there is less friction and my mind does not persist in the same ruts and feel so tired of covering the same road.
Again, quoting CM:
"Tact, watchfulness, and persistence are the qualities she must cultivate in herself; and, with these, she will be astonished at the readiness with which the child picks up the new habit. "
Without tact, I'm a nag.
Without watchfulness, I'm inconsistent.
Without persistence, I'm weak.
________________________________________________________________________________
So good. Consistency is the key. Persistence is the only way to stay consistent. Asking God for passion for the job He's given me is the only way I can stay persistent. The ONLY way. Outside of God's inspiration, the only things I want to do is read, take naps and keep a perfectly clean house. Inside God's will - that passion He's placed in my heart - I want to "lay down my life" (John 15:13)for my husband and children.
Now that I have a handle on that Chicken Invaders has no hold over me. ;-)
• 1 Comments • Post A Comment! • Permanent Link
Dec. 7, 2008 - John Williams Tribute
• 1 Comments • Post A Comment! • Permanent Link
Nov. 26, 2008 - Created for Work
No unwelcome tasks become any the less unwelcome by putting them off till tomorrow. It is only when they are behind us and done, that we begin to find that there is a sweetness to be tasted afterwards, and that the remembrance of unwelcome duties unhesitatingly done is welcome and pleasant. Accomplished, they are full of blessing, and there is a smile on their faces as they leave us. Undone, they stand threatening and disturbing our tranquility, and hindering our communion with God. If there be lying before you any bit of work from which you shrink, go straight up to it, and do it at once. The only way to get rid of it is to do it. – Alexander MacLaren [1826-1910], Scottish preacher)
Not to mention that our children are watching us every moment. They see the tasks we leave undone so we can go sit at the computer, or read a book, or.....
I mentioned to a close friend that I am constantly busy at home and the first thing off her tongue was that I needed to make time for myself. It made me sad to hear that. More than anything, I need to be encouraged to be more diligent. We were created for work, and I believe our work can be enjoyable - down to the poopiest diaper - if only we would approach it with the appropriate attitude. I struggle in this area! God is faithful, though. I constantly pray that He will give me the vision He has for my life as a mom and wife, and He keeps feeding me the passion I need to keep on keepin' on.
One of my biggest struggles is mending. Darin has too many shirts that need buttons replaced!
• 0 Comments • Post A Comment! • Permanent Link
Oct. 15, 2008 - Getting Organized
I love being organized. Helps me feel semi-in control and on top of things.
The last time I remember feeling semi-in control and on top of things was probably when we had only two kids. Seems the third started a whirlwind that hasn't stopped yet.
Since we welcomed our fifth into the world, it seems that most days I'm running from one fire to another around here. I'll say to myself. "As soon as I finish feeding Sophia, I'm going to read Henry that book." Then Lydia will need help with her Math. Then I realize it's time to fix lunch, then I say, "As soon as lunch is over, I will read Henry that book." Then we eat lunch, then Henry has a stinky diaper, then Ben and Jack have taken the horseplay too far and someone has hurt feelings, then Lydia can't fit all the dishes in the dishwasher, so I go help her work it out, then Sophia gets into the cabinet with the plates and pulls them over and scares herself, so I go love on her till she feels better......and on and on and on. This running here and there leaves me little time to THINK. Doesn't that sound silly?
But it's true. My creative juices are as slow as molasses these days, so I'm turning to Emilie Barnes for inspiration. I came across a copy of her Creative Home Organizer. Emilie is a woman after my own heart. She has a chapter for each section of our lives that is likely to need organizing. She's got General Organization, Food Preparation, The Kitchen, Storage, Cleaning, The Garage, The Laundry, The Automobile, Finaces, Time Savings, Raising Children, Good Health, Sewing and Crafts, Plants and the Garden, Beauty, Moving, Our Wardrobe, Safety. In each chapter, Emilie has used bullet points to list her tips. LOVE bullet points. It's very satisfying to me to be able to read her short, 2 -3 sentence point and decide if I need to tackle that particular tip.
I've started off with the General Organization chapter. I made a list of the items that I feel I need to accomplish around here. Of course that list is currently in limbo somewhere, so now I've decided to make another list and post it here where I can't lose it. ;-) When I finish this list, I will move to the next chapter and so on until I've finished the book and then probably will need to start at the beginning again. No, no, no.....surely not! ;-)
Here's my list of things to do:
1) Provide yourself with a notebook - either loose-leaf or spiral-bound, and small enough to carry around with you. This notebook will become your "master list" - a single continuous list that replaces all the small slips of paper you're probably used to. Use the notebook to keep track of all errands, things to do or buy, and general notes to yourself about anything that will require action.
I started this, but like I wrote, I can't seem to find that blasted little thing. So I guess an addendum to this task would be to find a place to keep it so that little hands have no access to it. This notebook is replacing that "mental list of things to do" that I keep telling everyone about. ;-)
2) Keep a daily "to do" list. Make up a new one each morning and include tasks you specifically hope to accomplish - deadlines and appointments, as well as items from your master list. Give each task a priority number - 1, 2, 3. Do all the 1's first.
I've been working off that "mental list." Thing about that is that sometimes that list gets 'misplaced' as I'm running around putting out fires. Then when I remember it's usually too late to do what needed to be done. I hope having something written down keeps me more focused. Of course, since I lost my little notebook with this written in it, I totally forgot about doing this until now.
3) Buy a plastic bin for the coat closet and in it, put gloves, scarves, winter hats and other small but important items.
I've kept these things in my bottom dresser drawer but have always hated that. I've bought the bin, and just need to make the transfer. This will be a good thing because I will have to get rid of some VHS tapes to make room for the bin. Woohoo! So long, Lion King. LoL
4) Set up an emergency shelf out of reach of small children. Equip it with flashlights, candles, matches, a first-aid kit, and an index card with emergency phone numbers.
I have all this stuff, but it's scattered throughout the house. Time to bring it together! Something I want to add to the list is an address book. The only address book I have now is on my computer.
5) Emilie writes, "I have kept a mini-notebook for several years which I call 'The Lord Provides.' In it I've listed everything that has been given to us as gifts and from whom. Also listed are things we have found and items donated to us. It's beautiful to see how the Lord leads others to meet our needs and desires."
6) Make sure you have copies of all birth, and marriage certificates.
I need to get the kid's birth certificates!
• 4 Comments • Post A Comment! • Permanent Link
Sep. 12, 2008 - Dallas Meets Tropical Storm Ike
Here we are, in landlocked Dallas, preparing for a TROPICAL STORM! Hurricane Ike is coming our way and will retain enough of its strength to be a tropical storm by the time it hits North Texas. I've never lived by the ocean (still don't!) and have never dealt with 50 mile an hour winds before. Along with gathering batteries, candles, water and food, I have this absurd urge to clean my house from top to bottom. I want it spotless. Is that the way to greet a tropical storm? ;-)
Say a prayer for all of us here in Texas who are not used to dealing with this kind of stuff! Last night Lydia and I went to Target to stock up, and we noticed no one else seemed to be doing the same thing. I chatted with a pal of mine last night, and she had no clue that we should even be preparing for anything! All the news is so focused on Houston (God BLESS them!) that I'm afraid that by the time the storm is upon us, many people are going to be without things they need. So please do say a prayer for us, and I will be back here after the storm!
• 5 Comments • Post A Comment! • Permanent Link
Aug. 17, 2008 - A Habit
I'm a huge reader and also love listening to sermons on my iPod. Because I read and listen to so much, I sometimes....well, pretty much most of the time, forget where I've heard/read a good piece of info. The latest thing that is running through my head is, "If you have to brag about something you've done, then you obviously don't do it enough." Ouch! ;-) I THINK I read this in Stepping Heavenward.
So I've really started listening to myself and have found that like a kitty with a dead mole, I bring my finished chores to my husband for him to praise me. And it's always the ones that I'm constantly behind on. Like laundry. Every time I get two or three loads done in one day, I let my husband know. And like a good husband, he says, "Woohoo!"
So I'm trying to break this habit of pointing out the times that I do something that I should have been doing all along. Really, bragging about my finished projects at all. It's my goal to do my job and let that be the end. It's hard cause I like to get a pat on the back, but then I remember Solomon's wise words,
"When pride comes, then comes shame;
But with the humble is wisdom." Proverbs 11:2
• 0 Comments • Post A Comment! • Permanent Link
May. 23, 2008 - Ironing Board
I have a fascination for ironing. There's something so soul-satisfying in ironing. I even iron t-shirts. Is that insane? Everyone's clothes get ironed. From our 5 month old's things all the way up to Daddy. I can't bring myself to not do it and since the birth of our 5th, you would think I would chill a little and give up my ironing fixation, but I just can't do it. Maybe after a 6th??????? ;-) So in honor of my love affair with the ironing board.....comedian Brian Regan.
• 5 Comments • Post A Comment! • Permanent Link
May. 22, 2008 - Stepping Heavenward
From Stepping Heavenward by E. Prentiss:
"I may as well finish this as it is begun," I said to myself. Arid stitches flew from my needle like sparks of fire. Little Ernest came and begged for a story, but I put him off. Then Una wanted to sit in my lap, but I told her I was too busy. In the course of an hour the influence of the fresh air and Ernest's talk had nearly lost their power over me; my thread kept breaking, the children leaned on and tired me, the baby woke up and cried, and I got all out of patience."
"...I have had to go back sewing as furiously as ever. And with the sewing the old pain in the side has come back, and the sharp, quick speech that I hate, and that Earnest hates, and that everybody hates. I groan, being burdened, and am almost weary of my life. And my prayers are all mixed up with worldy thoughts and cares. I am appalled at all the things that have got to be done before winter, and am tempted to cut short my devotions in order to have more time to accomplish what I must accomplish."
"When {the kid's} noise became intolerable, I proposed to read to them; of course they made ten times as much clamor of pleasure and of course they leaned on me, ground their elbows into my lap, and tired me all out. As I sat with this precious little group about me, Ernest opened the door, looked in, gravely and without a word, and instantly disappeared. I felt uneasy and asked him, this evening, why he looked so. Was I indulging the children too much, or what was it? He took me into his arms and said: 'My precious wife, why will you torment yourself with such fancies? My very heart was yearning over you at that moment...and I was asking myself why God had given me such a wife, and my children such a mother.' "
"Home again, and full of the thousand cares that follow the summer and precede the winter. But let mothers and wives fret as they will, they enjoy these labors of love, and would feel lost without them. For what amount of leisure, ease and comfort would I exchange husband and children and this busy home?"
• 1 Comments • Post A Comment! • Permanent Link
May. 17, 2008 - Uses for Breastmilk
Second Daughter has had a runny, goopy eye for the last week. It wasn't red, just goopy, so I was keeping an eye on it until Thursday night when it started getting red. I was able to get her into the doctor on Friday morning. No infection, but just to be on the safe side, our doctor told me to put some drops of breast milk in her eye. I had never heard of this before, but I'm doing it and am anxiously awaiting the final outcome. I got curious and decided to go online and look for the alternative uses that breastmilk has. Here's what I found - very interesting stuff!
UPDATE 5/18: It's working! Her eye is so much better after only 24 hours. :-)
Did you think that Breastmilk is only for feeding baby? As breastmilk is “clean” and has anti-bacterial & healing properties, have you considered other great uses for it?
Here are some that you can try! [Note: Suitable for babies & children, and even adults!]
Eye infections / Conjuctivitis ("Pink Eye"): Squirt into the eye. Do this as frequently as possible until healed. If the baby/child doesn’t allow you to squirt breastmilk into his eye, then do it while they are sleeping. Squirt around the crease of closed eyes, then gently lift the lids to allow the breastmilk to seep into the eye.
Sore/cracked nipples: Rub into nipples after feedings and air dry.
Scratches/Scrapes/Cuts: Squirt & clean wound first with the breastmilk; then apply some more on wound and air dry. This is really great when on outings where no ready water supply is available. If the cut is on the lips or mouth area, healing will be especially easy for a breastfeeding baby or child. Just the simple act of nursing the child not only calms the child from the pain of the injury, but the breastmilk that must pass the wound during nursing will close the cut rather quickly.
Mosquito bites / Ant bites: Squirt on bite and rub in. Helps to stop the itching.
Ear infections: Squirt or pour into sore ear
Acne / Eczema / Diaper rash: Wash skin with water, then apply breastmilk all over. Air Dry.
Facial Cleanser: Apply breastmilk on face & wipe clean. Great even for removing eye-makeup!
Sore throats/Mouth Sores: A baby/child that is still breastfeeding can benefit by directly nursing. If not, drinking a cup of expressed breastmilk will help. It certainly helped when my then 19-month-old son had mouth sores from a bout of Hand, Foot & Mouth disease. His mouth was too sore to nurse directly from the breast, but drinking expressed breastmilk from a cup helped heal the sores in a day.
Stuffy noses: Squirt into nose and suction or squeeze out as you would with saline.
Eye puffiness and redness: Express breastmilk and pour over eyes. Does as good of job, if not better, than tea bags!
Breast cancer: Recent studies suggests that just the simple and natural act of breastfeeding can benefit mom as well by providing protection against breast cancer.
Tooth decay: Scientist have tried to grow bacteria in breastmilk and have been unsuccessful!
Cold sores/Fever blisters: Express a small amount of breastmilk onto clean finger and apply immediately to cold sore. Ends pain and helps speed the healing process.
Chicken pox: Use as you would Calamine Lotion or some other ointment.
Leg ulcers: Someone has claimed of hearing about a breastfeeding mother putting breastmilk on an elderly relative's unhealing leg ulcers, it cleared them up too. I don't know how long it took.
Chapped lips/skin: Express a small amount onto fingers and wipe over lips or skin. Do not rub it in...leave a little wet. (This feels great on my chapped lips and it normally only takes a day or two to clear!)
• 5 Comments • Post A Comment! • Permanent Link
Apr. 29, 2008 - A Big Littles Mama Hug
While reading blogs, there are times when I have come across a poor mama who is worn out with the toddlers and she'll say something like, "with a 2 year old, and a 4-month old, I am barely keeping up!" I would snort a little to myself and think, "just wait till you have a few more! THEN you can be REALLY justified in thinking that life is hard." Youch. You would think I could have just a little more sympathy than that, but you know how it is.....we all forget, when we think we will remember everything about raising kids - especially the hard times.
Well.
I remember the hard times now! On Sunday evenings I am left home alone (eeeeek!) with our littles. They are 2 years old and 4 months old. ;-) I'll tell ya what...I don't know how I got through the older three's preschool years. These two littles keep me moving and shaking. I'm used to having First Son, First Daughter and Second Son around to say, "Can you do blah-be-de-blah for me while I do so-and-so?" Or, "Can you take Third Son outside to play while I fix dinner?" In other words, I am a spoiled rotten mother of littles. So to all you moms of littles who have no olders to help you out, GOD BLESS YOU. From now on, you have ALL my sympathy and if I could reach out to you through the web, a BIG HUG!
• 2 Comments • Post A Comment! • Permanent Link
.gif)
