Multitude Monday

Life is just flying by right now.  Maybe it’s the warm air.  Maybe it’s the happy toddlers.  Maybe it’s just crazy spring.

But we’re loving it!  Soaking every moment up to the fullest like the thirsty earth with the afternoon thunderstorms.

I can’t express to you how blessed we all feel right now.

#3112-3130 gifts that I’m stealing a precious moment to type down on a gorgeous early morning.

• Garden green and growing in the backyard
• Sunflowers coming up in the girls sunflower fort
• 4 year old wildflower mix sprouting in a clearing in the front yard
• visit from Ken and Jen and Gary
• Aeralind claiming Kent as hers
• Gary teaching Bronwyn to fist bump
• Bronwyn laughing hysterically while fist bumping and pottying
• B grabbing some stranger’s behind in the restaurant
• Resume forwarded at a local college
• Aeralind squealing “All done!” when she finished eating and hopping down from her chair and running frantically down the aisle at the restaurant
• Kent chasing after her laughing
• Answered prayers for Jen
• Laughing at Derek in church
• The crazy what this relationship formed
• Skype hide and seek with Aunt Kay Kay (whose name sounds like Aunt Cupcake from the girls!)
• Dad pretend eating a banana on Skpe
• An afternoon of rest
• Faces of fear changing into excited faces saying “God’s jumping! each time it thunders.
• Sedryn not eating until 7-8:30 most of this week

My husband upgraded/rebuilt our computer which means I had to wait a few days here to get PSE9 up and running again!  So just posting a quick list of thanks from last week today.

My brain’s too crazy to add more text… working on a different text piece for ‘real life’ right now 🙂

Here’s 3087-3111 gifts that God has given me for you to savor with me.

• Crazy days all blending together
• The powerful prayers of my LBS group
• Strong boy rolling over
• Karen
• Vacuuming with Karen
• Girls new crushes on Ben and Jay
• Another interview/another denial/ more opportunity for walking by faith
• Aerie saying “I read Hickory Dickory Dock!”
• Bronwyn jumping over the sunflower fort ditch I was digging
• Realization that my sweet toddlers are turning into little girls
• the right attitude of grace held on a night with little sleep and the following day
• loosing my temper over lost shoes
• the girls accepting my humble apology
• spa night
• ladies laughing at my quirkiness
• loving on the Score kids through a field day
• Girls that was somewhat tough to deal with saying “This was the best sport day ever.”
• Boy Score kids rolling over my meager classroom management skills
• Tutors laughing as I scrap everything and let the boys run wild
• Late night birthday call to dad
• Easy dinner
• Running outside in a downpour to remove diapers from the line. 
• Smiley face in the bar of soap
• Derek upgrading/rebuilding the computer 
• Getting PSE up and running again! 

Conditioner, papers, toys, a camera, and dishes littler the counter.  Baby boy plays in his Pack N Play- his own little kitchen island. The floors are growing leftovers from the meals of hungry toddlers. The microwave defrosts something for dinner with it’s loud drone.

It’s like my life threw up all over the place.

I whip cream cream cheese and I remember my old dreams.  Dreams to write, to mentor, to create, to photograph.

I woke last night from a dream about bananas costing $0.37 and I nearly jumped right into my car.  My dreams, too, seem to have shrunk.

I make lunches. I change diapers. I make dinners. I read stories. I fumble along at serving the husband.  I trip in anger over a small defiant body.  I rage like a volcano.  I repent.  And, then, start all over again.

I rarely hear thank you.  I rarely hear honest encouragement.  I rarely have someone challenge me to grow.

Then it sears me, hotter than the jalapenos I’m stuffing.  Searing truth in a voice.

When did it all become about me?

Isn’t the mission bigger?

And I turn.

I let the PJ clad toddlers lick the cream cheese of the beaters.

I smile at the boy in the Pack n Play

I pack up outgrown dresses and verses and drive across town to encourage a friend.

A new season begins.  One of experimenting with how to live out the gospel.

How to say thank you with movement.

Moving toward the heart of God.

Moving toward those quiet dreams of heaven.

Counting more Gifts He gives to help me move closer to Him. (3081-3086)

• Singing “O I love my chubby baby.” to the tune of “Come Thou Font of Every Blessing”
• Laughing at the MASSIVE baby blowout all over my skirt, couch, and baby
• Cloud dough play for hours
• Petal snow on the deck
• Derek giving me a much needed day off on Saturday afternoon
• Projects coming together

The temptation arises again this week: the one to complain.
The one to say that these good gifts (no matter how disguised) aren’t enough.
That Jesus and His sacrifice isn’t enough.

The facts are simple:
Sick feverish baby boy.
Snotty sick toddler girls.
Little sleep.
Tummy bug crashing through all females in the house.
Almost no sleep that night.
Mastitis.

It was a hard week.
But hard weeks are good gifts.
Why?
Because they bring me to my knees.
The shove me off my throne of control.
They show me my weakness.
They keep me humble.
They reinforce that He is enough.
He is the only thing I need.

He is Enough.

#3059-3079 Gifts Proclaiming that He is Enough

• Toddlers saying “ribbit ribbit!”
• Running into Karen at Hobby Lobby & Jay calling the girls friends
• Karen and I laughing with our eyes as an older lady told our kids not to touch harmless things
• Girls cuddling and reading with me for an hour while sick
• Carrying boy upstairs in his laundry basket

 

• Walking out of Target at 10pm with a case of diapers haphazardly balanced on my head
• The glorious rainbow covered full moon
• Hearing the song “Come Thou Font of Every Blessing. after 2 nights where my longest stretch of sleep was 1.5 hours and I’m tempted to complain (O to Grace! how great a debtor!)
• Repentance
•  Julia on FB chat helping me see the depth of my own sin
• Vomit bug only lasting 12 hours
• Hero husband self-sacrificially thanking care of 3 vomiting women all hours of the night.
• Girls, daddy, and I all falling asleep in our bed after the girls climbing in to “wake-up”
• Sedryn boy sleeping late to make our early morning family nap after sickness possible.
• Already having Pedialyte and yummy homemade no sugar applesauce on hand
• Joy in giving so Dixie could go serve in Ecador
• Ruthie dropping carpet cleaner off in the midst of the vomit bug
• Afternoon in the pool with the girls
• Sedryn lying contently in his carseat next to the lifeguards
• Both girls shedding “turtle” and “crab” willingly to practice swimming
• Derek willingly staying home when I woke to a fever and mastitis
• Boy with lost pacifier found sucking on his crib rail

Goggusmos.
(Pronounced Gog-goose-moss)
Say it aloud with gusto a few times.
Now sort of grunt it under your breath.
Isn’t it a beautiful word?
It’s Greek.  It’s an onomatopoeia.
What do you think it means?
It’s in the following verse:

Do all things without grumbling or disputing…  Phil. 2:14

Yep: it’s the word grumbling, complaining, and murmuring.
It’s one of the things I’m trying to let go of this year. 
And, honestly, I’m not doing so well in my own strength.  But isn’t that how it always is?  His grace made perfect in my weakness?

Saying thank you stops some grumbling and it’s the one tool He’s given me right now to combat the constant stream of complaint.

3039-3058 of One Thousand Gifts I count.

“Goldfish Jumping Out of the Bowl”

• Davina
• Sweet tired Brownyn at Shepherding Group snuggles
• Boy rolling over on the table top to show off to my MOPS discussion group
• Warm weather
• Perfect bird coasters
• Writing on my door posts
• Putting scripture promises on my wall
• Learning more about how to lead and discipline my children
• Quietness of naptime
• Aeralind’s sweet voice saying “Mommy!” telling me she was awake and wanted to be snuggled
• Parent on Purpose Workshops
• Representing God to our Children class
• Hearing Jeff talk about representing God’s Justice
• Realizing that A & B are expressing in concrete terms that they understand justice when they are shouting “Sissy! Spank!” when sissy does something in disobedience/defiance.  Such a perspective shift for me to know that they’re understanding Justice 🙂
• Talking about “Missions” t-shirts for our Shepherding Group with Karen
• Talking in real conversations with the girls
• Crayons
• Laughing with Derek about the girls combined artwork which we’ve titled “Goldfish jumping out of the bowl”
• Derek spontaneously mulching the yard and getting rid of the yucky box woods
• Pan of best ever brownies that Derek made from scratch