Good Deeds

Every now and then one of my kids has an exceptionally good day. Kaleb chose to shine last Monday, Feb. 7th. I made myself write down his good deeds since they kept piling up. What a gift to his mommy!

• Pulling into the garage after school, Kaleb noticed I had a full load of groceries in the van. He made many trips (unasked) to help me carry everything inside. He did it cheerfully.
• Inside, he began unpacking the bags and had fun putting the groceries away. I was stunned!
• After snack time he did his homework without complaining.
• He practiced his piano without being reminded and again, did so cheerfully.
• I needed the doggy do-do cleaned up in the yard--the dreaded chore among our boys. I told all 3 kids I'd pay them $1 for each scoopful they picked up. (the scooper is pretty big) Guess who took me up on my offer with a smile? Kaleb! His brothers made themselves scarce.
• Before going out to a banquet with my handsome husband that evening, Kaleb looked at me and said, "You look very nice Mommy."

I felt continually blessed by Kaleb all afternoon that day, and as I typed this out I realized something else. It was his attitude that made all the difference. I completely understand what God means when he says he loves a cheerful giver. If I'd asked Kaleb to do all of those things for me, and if he'd grumbled and complained about doing it, he would obey out of duty and obligation. The jobs would be complete, but would there be any love in that? No. I would feel weary and drained after listening to constant complaining and whining. I'd also feel unappreciated, not to mention unloved.

At the end of the day, I loved all 3 of my boys just as much as I did when they woke up that morning. I didn't love one of them more than the other one. But which one did I want to bless? Which one made my mother-heart skip a beat? Kaleb of course. This is not a new revelation to me. But to experience it as a parent helps make it very real in an eternal perspective. God doesn't say he loves only a cheerful giver. His love is there unconditionally. But he must love it when we do things for him with a cheerful heart. It means so very much to me as a mother, so it must mean infinitely more to him as our God!


Mom's night at Awana means I have 3 pretty pink carnations. :)

 To wrap this post up, I have a few funnies and one oops! At Mom's night last Wednesday, Aaron's class was asked to share what they love about their moms. Some kids said their moms are pretty, they play with them, things like that. What did Aaron share? "I love my mom because she plays a cd for me at bedtime." Well, that was easy! Forget all the millions of ways I love that boy. All he needs from me is a cd at bedtime. :)


Aaron's using "the force" to control his humidifier. :)

Last Tuesday I heard a local dj tell of his drive to work. Bottom line--his car was smarter than he was, and wouldn't let him drive above 50mph until he put more air in his tire. I heard this on my way to the library and laughed at the thought of a car being "smarter" than it's driver. Well. Being zero degrees, I decided to leave my van running while I dropped my books in the outdoor book drop. Quick as a wink I dropped off my books and ran back to my driver's door. The door was locked. My van decided I was announcing to all would-be car thieves that it was there for the taking and proceeded to show me who was smarter. Hmm. A running van with all 4 doors locked. With my purse and cell phone inside. The nice librarian let me use the phone to call my husband. Praying he'd answer, I called him. God must have had pity on me for Derek actually had time to drive home, pick up our extra key, and drive to the library to rescue me. 20 minutes later and he would've been in an all-day training session unable to help me. As it was, he didn't have time for lunch because he chose to be my hero. True love! I will never pass judgement on a radio dj again. :)

Finally, we rented the movie "Secretariat" last weekend. Very good movie! Taking place in the early 1970's, the main character wore lots of tweed skirts and blouses. Nothing revealing by any means. She portrayed a married mother of 4, and of course owned the most magnificent race horse, Secretariat. Aaron looked at her in one scene and said, "Those pushy things are low." Let me translate: "pushy things" are "breasts." HAHAHAHAHA!!! :)

Where it all began...

When I think of Valentine's Day, I think of a park in Ohio. Derek and I spent 4 Valentine's Days in Ohio, and I'm pretty sure this park was involved with each one. The leaves were not green of course, but we'd bundle up and walk through the trails anyway. One year Derek was sick on Feb. 14th and he met me near my dorm with a single long stem red rose. We might not have visited our park that day, but we still walked together. And he wonders why I love to go on walks with him so much today. :) 
Happy Valentine's Day to my forever valentine. :) And to my first valentines, my mom and dad. I love you so very much! I am very blessed!

Work & Play

I didn't know what a router was until I married Derek. Now our 11 year old son is using one! This past weekend Derek and Braylen built some shelves. When we gave Braylen his own room last summer, I mentioned that I'd like some shelves on the wall. Derek and I both agreed that's a good winter project. Now that they're completed, Braylen has plenty of space to display what's important to him. I thought he'd use some of his shelf space for books, since that would free up two dresser drawers. Nope! Maybe that will come later. :)

Braylen had some "help" painting his shelves. I feel blessed to have a husband who not only uses his talents to build a few shelves, but teaches Braylen how to do the same. It would have been easier to do it himself, but how much more meaningful to let Braylen have his own hands-on experience. Thank you so much Derek! :) You are teaching our boys what they need to know so they can do these kinds of things in their own homes someday.

Aaron is not only playing Star Wars wii these days, but he and Kaleb are also playing Star Wars together. They use their imaginations (and Star Wars toys) to create hours of play time. How fitting that one of our favorite Super Bowl commercials was the VW Darth Vader. Thanks Dad for giving us a heads-up on that one! :)

Last night Derek and I had the chance to get out of the house to attend a banquet in our town. It might not be anybody's idea of a fun date, but it sure helped boost my spirits! We visited with friends and family, enjoyed food I didn't have to prepare, and our kids were safe at home with a babysitter. I see that as a fun date indeed!

Today I had one of those "oops" moments. But that's for another post. :)

We Dig Winter

As January turned into February, winter reminded us it wasn't ready to leave just yet. Derek and I laughed at the advertisement in the paper last night reminding us to have our lawnmower serviced soon. Yeah right! While I'm a big fan of summer, I actually don't mind the winter. I think it can be fun. That must be why I live in a place where we get to experience all four seasons.

This lastest round of winter weather has been too much for our kids to be outside in. But Ginger the snowdog can handle it. :) She went into a digging frenzy in this snow drift recently. I thought there must be something delicious trapped beneath all that snow--she was working so hard! It made us laugh as we watched from the comfort of our warm house. Right now she's basking in the sun, so don't feel sorry for her out in the cold. She's taken over our kitchen with her big clumsy self. :)

Aaron loves our fireplace. Derek took this picture today before leaving for work. What a treat to start school 2 hours late. Also in this picture is evidence of our newest endeavor. We are enrolled in  "Financial Peace University" by Dave Ramsey. I have feared this class for years, and yet, I crave financial peace. Who doesn't? How can our income cover all of our needs, present and future, and still leave money left over for things like vacations and Christmas? How can we give more? Those are my questions that I hope to find answers for. I find it funny (ha ha) that at the same time we're in this study I'm also in a women's group at church studying "Lord, Change My Attitude." In the first two weeks the focus has been on replacing a complaining attitude with a grateful attitude. A perfect way to make sure I don't complain about all the hard things we're doing in Dave Ramsey's study. Ouch! Talk about getting hit from both sides! :)
To close this post I'm just going to list random things our kids are doing right now. It's my way of making sure I don't forget even the little things about today. :)

• They listen to "Hank the Cowdog" stories every day.
• They play basketball in Braylen's room and it sounds like a war zone in our house.
• Aaron always asks me what color his yogurt will be after he mixes the colors together. "What does pink and purple make? What does pink and yellow make? What does blue and pink make?"
• They shout at each other with a sound I can't reproduce in the written word. They are not fighting when they do this. I think they are communicating like cave men.
• They're playing Star Wars on the wii again.
• Most days I feel overwhelmed with the amount of homework Kaleb has--both written and online. And he's only in 3rd grade!
• Aaron gives us kisses, butterfly kisses, and eye kisses at bedtime. An eye kiss is when he presses his winking eye against my cheek.
• Braylen asked Derek a hard question the other day, but we're happy he's comfortable enough to ask questions like that.
• Aaron loves homemade banana milkshakes, and I'm happy to make them for him. A few extra calories can only help that boy. :)