are we listening?

i just spotted a smear of grape jelly on my desk, which means that one of my little ones was eating, probably what was jelly toast, at my desk:) ah to be a kid again, in one ear and out the other.....

nowadays we can't afford to let information slip our minds. as adults we are called to be more responsible than that... but what happens when your brain doesn't work anymore.... like mine? i forget things all the time. you need something from the grocery store, so go write it down. but i'm nice and comfy on this chair right now, i won't forget, i'll write it down later. do you remember? hardly ever.... don't forget to bless and lock up the house before bed. what do you do? you usually don't remember until you are nice and cozy in bed. don't you dare forget your used plastic and paper bags for shopping at aldi's! almost every time it's the same thing: i pull into the parking lot at aldi's, make a fist, pound the wheel, and scream "son of a gun!" that's exactly what happens EVERY TIME i forget my bags. most of the time lying in bed i can't even remember what i did that day to perform a proper examination of conscience.
ah, ok. this is where the light bulb goes off. i suppose these are all good reminders of humility. we're only human and need to rely on God's constant support and grace. we need to cooperate. we're certainly not perfect, and this is very apparent in the way things so easily slip our minds (wait, when was the last time you got a bath? didn't you already eat supper? where did my cigarette go? did i put it out? or did i even light one up at all?) we are teeny weeny, and God is so big. so many times He has sent my angel to wake me up if i haven't set the alarm. i'm sure He even sends me reminders so that i don't forget those bags before i leave for aldi's. but am i listening? are WE listening? probably not as much as we should be. we must be humble and realize we can't do everything on our own. we can't do ANYTHING on our own, if you think about it. i wouldn't even be existing right now if it wasn't for the Big Man upstairs. we must constantly continue to cooperate with God's goodness. if we are not cooperating, we are not open to receive. yes, we are only human, but if we always used that excuse how would we ever become saints? in other words, yes we are only human, but are we cooperating? are we listening? are we meeting God half way? yes He can drop the graces right into our laps, but unless we pick them up and use them, there's no one to blame but ourselves. God does not shove His awesomeness down our throats. 'oh, but i'm only human, God understands.' umm, nuh uh. we're not only human, we are CHRISTIAN human, who God has set apart. He expects more from us. in the end God knows our intentions and how hard we tried to live our lives out for Him. cooperation is key. so, shhh, lets go listen.

third sunday of easter luke 24:35-48

have faith! believe! don't be a doubting thomas! may jesus' peace be with us all! have a blessed sunday everyone!

rain rain go away....

even though God's rain is beautiful, and it serves a very good and necessary purpose, it's just one of those things that i wish would happen only when you're sleeping. maybe i have just been so excited over the past couple of days with the extremely beautiful weather, being able to go outside without a dumpy sweatshirt on, not having to slip and slide all over the road because of ice, etc.... when you remember what spring feels like you never want it to leave:(.
and maybe i am a little sad that my kitty ran away and she is probably somewhere trying to hide from the rain. she might be scared, hungry, cold and wet. even though i complain about her alot, and i am sick of her peeing and poohing on my carpet, and scratching up my furniture and carpet, i still love her. and i miss her. but i hope that if she doesn't come back that God at least finds her a home where she will be taken care of. some place where they can get her declawed and fixed.

i wish i had time today to bake cookies. but i don't.

i really should clean before my house becomes super messy but i don't have time for that either.

it's really dreary outside and i don't think it's fair for weather to be able to affect moods.
a roadtrip sounds really fun, doesn't it?
i would really love a dark chocolate mocha coffee drink yuuuuum.
i recently started a compost heap, but was advised against it because of the probable attraction of raccoons and rats...ewww. maybe when i get my own house, if ever.
and somebody told me that you have a boyfriend who looks like a girlfriend that i had in february of last year.......
my mind is completely empty now. i have nothing cool to write about. i have to go get ready and get the children ready and try to ignore the dreariness of the day.....
but it's good to know that even in dreariness God is still good!
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen!

spiritual direction from children? who would have thought?

i just came across this.... and how true it is!! what a beautiful reminder! thank You God for reminders!:) nightynight....

Children as Spiritual Directors

April 23rd, 2009 by Patrice Fagnant-MacArthur

Over five years ago, I nervously went to an open house at a local center for spiritual direction with my two and a half year old in tow (mercifully, I was able to leave the 10 month old at home!). I knew little about spiritual direction at that point other than what I read in books. Unfortunately, spiritual direction isn’t one of those things that can be explained easily in writing — it truly needs to be experienced to be fully appreciated. Still, I knew that I was at a point in my life where I needed help. All the people I met at that open house were very kind and I soon started meeting with a very helpful spiritual director and have continued that practice on a regular basis. It has been a great blessing to my life. When I went to that open house, however, I can remember someone saying to me, “You have children! You already have spiritual directors!”

At the time, I couldn’t appreciate the wisdom of that statement. After all, my children were still very small. I loved them so much, but mostly, they left me exhausted. My struggle with adjusting to motherhood was one of the primary reasons I was seeking a spiritual director. I was at a loss as to what God wanted from me. Thankfully, my spiritual director was able to help me sort it all out. In the intervening years, however, I have come to appreciate all the ways my children are helping to direct my spiritual journey.

As any mother will tell you, children have a way of bringing out all your weaknesses. Somehow, they just know how to push all the wrong buttons. Reminded of one’s failings on a daily basis, there can be really no question of what one needs to work on. Thankfully, children also give their mothers plenty of opportunities to work on those weaknesses. Every day is a new challenge!

Children can also be a mirror sharper in focus than any other. It is one thing to see your faults in yourself. It is a whole different perspective to see your faults in your children. Either through genetics or upbringing, or a combination thereof, our children often suffer from the same issues we do. In helping them to work through their challenges, God also helps us to work through our own.

Parenting also helps us to recover from our own childhood and make peace with our own family of origin. I haven’t met a person yet who escaped from childhood unscathed. Growing up is hard and painful. We tend to blame our parents for much of that pain, sometimes with good reason, sometimes just because they are easy targets. Parenting one’s own children provides a whole new perspective on those relationships. At least in my case, I know that realizing how hard parenting is helped me to forgive my parents for all the mistakes that I had felt they made. There is something incredibly humbling about knowing that, even though I get up every day and try to do my best, my children will feel that I made huge errors in their upbringing. It also encourages me to beg for God’s help. If there was ever a time when I needed God, this is it. God made my children. He is only one with the instruction manual.

Children do help determine the course of our spiritual development in ways that I couldn’t even have imagined years ago. I’m sure, as my children continue to grow into adulthood, God has many more lessons to teach me through them, even as I am helping them navigate their own paths. We will continue to travel on our spiritual journeys together.

Patrice Fagnant-MacArthur has a Master of Arts degree in Applied Theology from Elms College, and is editor of SpiritualWoman.net. She is also the author of Letters to Mary from a Young Mother (2004).

happiness...

a happy husband makes a happy wife.

i was reminded of that today:)

thank You, God!

so today, i was at todd's parents house, hanging out, having a great time and everything. the guys put up the volley ball net and i was all excited. i walked out the door, deciding i wanted to join in on the game. it was like one of those movie moments in life, you know?, where the moment is perfect and you're just having a swell ol' time. so i started skipping out to the spot that i was going to play (i'm pretty sure i was walking, but like i said it felt like one of those movie moments, so everything was in slow-mo and whatnot...) and all of a sudden a stinkin' MOSQUITO FLEW INTO MY EYE.
gross.



anyway.... it was a beautiful day today!! thank God for His awesomeness! it was the perfect day. even though i am stuck wearing this dark green sweater, it still was not too hot for me:) only in the car though.... that was a little too warm for me... but it's all good. windows are cool. because they roll down....
for dinner we ate brats and some sort of cheesy hash browns..... soooo delicious!
you know, this morning i was sitting on the computer, with my tall fan faced towards the back of my head so it could dry my newly washed hair, and i was thinking that there was one plus to me losing everything, including the quick convenience of my blow dryer, that was in my luggage on the way home from las vegas: it forces me to be more patient. silly thought i know, but if you think about it, i could usually dry my hair in a matter of minutes. now it takes me about half an hour, and after that, my hair still isn't completely dry. i have to sit patiently at the computer, or wherever, to wait for my hair to just look decent. i don't really know why i brought this up.... maybe because i don't really have anything else to say. but whatever, it was a great day and i am happy. and now i must go because my husband wants to watch a movie and i must go to him and help him make a decision before he picks a movie that we both regret..... nightynight....

waiting, waiting

Wait for the Lord; Be strong, and let your heart take courage; Yes, wait for the Lord. Psalm 27:14


my first post in my new blog! so as you can tell by my title, i'm just waiting, like the rest of you. but i figured as long as i wait, it wouldn't hurt to write about some things that happen along life's path. like today, for instance, lexi was so proud that she could open a can of fake spaghetti-os that you get from aldi, you know what kind i mean?(i would never eat them but whatev lol) i let her use the can opener and she was so excited. i don't know how she did it because i can barely do it, but just seeing how big and grown up my children are getting is exciting and scary all rolled into one. every day they learn something new, something that makes them grow up a smidgen. :( aww man.
well since this is my first post it's going to be lame... sorry. i'll write again when i have time and an interesting story to share.....