Imperfect Living

Monday, February 13, 2012

Little Helper!

We were in the thick of Valentine making this weekend & I can't wait to share the cute ones we did this year, but this is too cute not to blog. Since winter has finally arrived here in the Carolinas (albeit after the trees decided to started budding) we have had a nice roaring fire going for most of the weekend. Our wood rack outside the back door had dwindled to literally sticks, so Jeff went out to the barn to bring more wood up to the house. I stayed home from church yesterday morning with Drew because we were both feeling a little under the weather, but after lunch the sun was bright & Drew was most eager to get outside. I was cleaning up the dishes when I glanced out the window. The sight outside had me running to get my camera, I even left the water on at the sink!

It took me a minute to grab the camera, so they were almost to the barn by the time I could snap this, but there goes Drew with his little red wheelbarrow following behind Jeff with his big one.

I knew it would take them a few minutes to load up their carts, so I went back to the sink, but kept my camera close at hand. When I saw them head back up, I was ready to snap away!

Daddy & his little helper

Jeff waiting for Drew to catch up a bit...Drew doesn't go anywhere fast!

Heart melting at this point!!

Slow & steady! (Actually it was a bit like watching a bumble bee with a wheel barrow! Drew didn't exactly take a straight path!)

Made it!

Time to unload!

Now for the fun part...riding back down to the barn for the second load!!

Wheeeee!

See ya Mommy!

{Heart melting again}

You hear people talk a lot about not having a good example to follow growing-up...about proper respect, values, behavior, manners, kindness just not being modeled by parents or grown-ups.

It is sad that so much hurting today is the result of what was sown a generation ago. It is humbling to think of the immense influence we have on our children & the people they are becoming. (Now, I do believe that we all make our own choices in life & that not all 'problem' adults are the result of parenting mistakes. Conversely, I know that through God's grace bad patterns can be broken & replaced with good!)

I'm just so incredibly thankful to have a husband who follows Christ, who serves his family, who leads & encourages his children, & who models kindness, compassion, justice, hard work and love. He is involved & engaged in every aspect of parenting. And he realizes that our children are watching, they are following!

Even when they lag behind a bit, they keep him in sight & hurry to catch up! And he is there waiting, ready to lend a hand or offer advice & instruction.

{Here Mommy, more wood to keep the fire going!}

Hear, O sons, a father's instruction,

and be attentive, that you may gain insight,

for I give you good precepts;

do not forsake my teaching...

Hear, my son, and accept my words,

that the years of your life may be many.

I have taught you the way of wisdom;

I have led you in the paths of uprightness.

When you walk, your step will not be hampered,

and if you run, you will not stumble...

My son, be attentive to my words;

incline your ear to my sayings.

Let them not escape from your sight;

keep them within your heart.

For they are life to those who find them,

and healing to all their flesh.

Keep your heart with all vigilance,

for from it flow the springs of life.

Put away from you crooked speech,

and put devious talk far from you.

Let your eyes look directly forward,

and your gaze be straight before you.

Ponder the path of your feet;

then all your ways will be sure.

Do not swerve to the right or to the left;

turn your foot away from evil.

Proverbs 4:1-2, 10-12, 20-27

Monday, February 6, 2012

Little slice of life

I see the cat peer around the corner of the garage, so I know that the door into the house stands wide open. At least it's only 47 out. Or so the car tells me. It is cozy & quiet in here where Lucy is napping & I'm enjoying a moment of calm before entering the after-school chaos inside the house. Drew is puttering around in & out of the garage "fixing" things & raiding his daddy's work bench.

Oh, there goes the cat back inside. Not much to see out here, I suppose. Now Drew is licking a baseball & I can see a wet spot on the back of his pant leg. He wanted to wear training underpants today. Potty training is not going well. He can go in the potty, but generally chooses not to. He can keep his diaper dry for long stretches, but tells me in a matter of fact voice, "Mommy, it's too hard," when I suggest sitting on the little potty. This from a boy who I discovered today knows his right from his left!

I jump, now Darcy is banging on my car door. I push the button & the window goes down...2 guesses, but you only need one..."Mom, can I have something to eat??" I ask what she wants & cereal it is, so I say okay. I get a quick status update on the state of things inside & decide I can stay put a few more minutes. Besides, I am watching Drew & it is so warm & cozy here.

Drew updates me on the status of his car repairs, "Mom, I fixed my car with Daddy's hammer. And with his triangle." And so he did. And he goes back & forth between his car & the tool bench talking to himself the whole time. Good thing we have a nearly endless supply of wood pieces. I'm not sure exactly what they are fixing, but the pile on the car keeps growing.

Darcy is back again. Bowl of cereal finished & a good report that Jack has started his homework. He didn't get to watch the Super Bowl last night, so it is on the docket for the afternoon if he gets his work finished quickly & with no complaints. He is actually pretty good at that, especially with football as a motivator!

Inside, I know there are folders waiting to be signed, Sophie will need to read to me, and Drew still has that wet spot needing to be changed. Then laundry to fold & put away, and dinner to be started.
Oh, now here's Jack wanting me to check his geometry problems in math...reflection, rotation & translation. And he tells me he's going to work ahead to finish the all the homework in this unit (he enjoys geometry just like his mama.) After a few minutes, he wants to get in the car to work, so I know the gig is up. I convince him to go inside to finish his work for tomorrow, so he can watch the game.

Almost immediately Darcy comes out screaming because she says Jack hit her because she was sitting where he wanted to sit. Yes, the gig is definitely up. Lucy is awake from the crying, but at least she's content.

It was nice while it lasted...back to reality!

(And this is who greeted me in the kitchen...Sophie-Fixit-Man! Complete with taped on brown moustache & beard!)

Friday, January 27, 2012

Blog Anything

I am tired & I am fighting a cold/cough. I am frustrated that I have not written a blog post in 25 days & have pretty much stunk it up at keeping that lovely list of "resolutions" that I last wrote about (25 days ago!) I have thought of countless clever blog titles & things that I'd like to post. I have spent many hours at the computer editing photos & trying to update my blog header. (I love the new Mac my hubby so wonderfully surprised me with at Christmas, but I realized that we have not purchased any software for it, so I can't do simple Word documents & such right now.) I have a busy, fun day tomorrow volunteering at the kids' school, so I really need to get to bed now...but as each day passes by, the thought of getting back into blogging, of catching up on everything, well it gets more & more overwhelming.
So here I am, outside the window, boom box held high singing In Your Eyes and hoping this time I can make it work...that I can stick with it!
One of these days I'll get my header updated (or I could just be really early for next Christmas, ha!!) One of these days, I am going to post pictures from our Christmas, not because you want to see them at this point, but because I want to post them.
So there, I blogged something, anything! Nope, it's not pretty & it's definitely not perfect...I just hope you all get the Say Anything reference & no one thinks I'm actually standing outside a window somewhere. ;-)

Oh, and because Say Anything makes me think of great love stories, here is a real life one for you...my dear & wonderful in-laws celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary last week!

Isn't this wedding photo beautiful!

God has blessed their marriage in many ways, including 3 children & 8 grandchildren...but the real blessing is the wonderful example they have set for all of us!

Happy Golden Anniversary Pop & Nana!

We love you & are so thankful for all you do for us!
(I will share more photos from our celebration dinner when I get back into a better blogging routine!)

Sunday, January 1, 2012

Where to begin?

It's a brand new year & we had wonderful holidays, but honestly I still feel like my mind is somewhere back, oh, mid-September...how has all this time elapsed so quickly?? I get tired of hearing myself say how behind I am on blogging, so I know you all must be sick of it...but it's true, I am behind, waaaaay behind. And I know that I don't have to blog, nor do I have a schedule that I must adhere to, but I enjoy blogging & it is my way of capturing for posterity just a little bit of what our life is like now. ~~I think~~ I know I will want to remember these days, both special holidays & plain-jane days...so I do like to keep up with everything here & that is why I am often having to catch-up. And right now, I am not sure where to start...there is still Jack's birthday party post from the start of December waiting to be finished...and the annual ladies Christmas Tea, assorted Christmas parties, programs, parades, concerts & more, my annual Christmas Cookie Exchange, Christmas outings, oh, and Christmas itself with multiple family gatherings & much joy! December truly was a fantastic, fun & faith-filled month!
But for now, I will start with today, January 1, 2012. a new year, a fresh start! And I promise (myself) that I will get to all of those other posts very soon! (And also update the blog header!) I look forward to sharing all those special events with you & reliving them as I look at the photos & write about the memories. And I am not generally one to make a lot of New Year's resolutions, but this year I do have a few...(definitely not listed in order of importance!)
-I would like to blog at least twice a week, every week...but extend myself grace when I don't.
-I would like to spend more time playing games & reading books with my kids.
-I would like to be more intentional in my time with God...reading more of His word & spending more time in prayer listening.
-I would like to start planning our dinner menu weekly...or at the very least have a plan for dinner each night before 5:00pm!
-I would like to entertain friends in our home more often...and invite new friends over who we would like to get to know better...and release myself from the pressure of having to do things "big"...just simple get-togethers, low-key & fun!
-I would like to exercise purposefully 2-3 times a week...just doing something...walking (definitely not running!), jumping on the trampoline, squats, lunges, crunches...I'm being super honest here, but anything would be more than I have been doing (unless you count, chasing kids, carrying kids, going up & down stairs, & squatting to pick up toys all day long!)
-I would like to be more available to help others when they need something & to be used where God wants me to serve.
-I would like to be more disciplined in when I go to bed (I'm saying this at 1:45 am) & when I get up.
-I would like to live my life so that others can see where my priorities lie...God first, then husband, kids, church/family/friends.

Well, I guess that is a lot of things! Hmmmm, maybe this is why I generally do not do resolutions...oh well, let's see how things go!

And since I said I would start with today...here are some family photos we took today. My brother, Pete, generally only visits once a year for a couple of weeks at Christmastime. The kids spend the whole year looking forward to his time here, and this year was no exception. They have enjoyed every minute spent with Uncle Pete! My parents & Pete came over this afternoon so that we could attempt to get a family photo for the first time in many years...The kids were actually fairly cooperative, but out of 100 photos, these are the best...and still there is generally someone moving, not looking or making a funny face in each one...but that is life & that's what I want to remember!

Darcy all sweet & snuggly on our new couch (thanks to a little Christmas $$)

Jeff (the most awesome husband!!) spent most of Friday & all day Saturday purchasing, loading, unloading & assembling the new couch & entertainment console. We love IKEA furniture, but it did involve 1,037 boxes & a whole lot of parts!

But we have wanted a couch in our living room for so long & already it is a loved, much used space! We look forward to much snuggling by the fire the winter!