What I'm listening to now

Have you heard the christian singer: Lauren Daigle?  If you are not familiar with her, you need to look her up on youtube, or iTunes.  She is an amazing new singer, with such a unique sound.  It's the perfect sound to listen to as you sip on your cup of coffee or tea and ponder what God is teaching you in your bible study.   Her voice is young, edgy, and just a delight to listen to.  Check her out!!  My favorite song she sings is "Come Alive" (dry bones).  (She currently does not have many songs to download on android phones, but she does have a selection on iTunes).

Planners, Organization

How do you stay organized?  Do you use the calendar on your smart phone?  Do you use a hard copy planner where you fill in each day's activities, or do you use Cozi family calendar that emails everyone each day their activities, or do you use a combination of all the above?

I know the Cozi family calendar which you can access online, or download the app has been very helpful in communicating between all of us in our family orthodontist appts, and games, etc... However, I also feel like I got more done on a day to day basis when I kept a hard copy planner with a "To do" list.  In fact, in this digital age that we live in since our appointments can be managed and communicated so accurately through digital ways I have found that I have stopped keeping a "to do" list.  Which to my horror, when I slowed down and started to evaluate myself over the last 6 months I realized that I had kept appointments,  but other than that I had not really accomplished much of anything. (example: a craft project, a new recipe, etc...)  So I am going to keep my digital help, but I am also going to go back to my old fashion write it down on paper, and check it off "to do" list.

What do you do?

Back to School

Back to school time has arrived. I have no babies in elementary school anymore.  Everyone is in middle school and high school. What a fun, awkward, crazy stage of life that is.  My oldest, Kaylee is going to take her driving license test this week, pray for me!   The other daughters are finding out what they are interested in.  The middle still loves sports: volleyball & basketball.  Paige has decided to give up track this year, even though she given a medal in that sport last year, she just does not enjoy the Oklahoma weather.  My youngest daughter Grace has decided to join the Student Council this year, and is enjoying the freedom that comes with Middle School (they get to enjoy wearing flip flops since they do not have recess anymore.)

  I worry a little bit about Grace's adjustment to middle school since her grade in Elementary School has been graded by the Common Core grade standards of 1-4.  This will be her first experience of actually receiving grades A-F. I hope she finds this scoring a challenge and not frustrating, as well as I look forward to seeing paperwork graded in a manner that I not only understand, but rewards good work.  (The common core grading system never gave a 4, even if your student scored 100%, and a 2 was anything from a mid "b" to a mid "d"- which is a vast difference in my book!)

Oklahoma state has repelled the common core standards, however since most schools had already purchased the curriculum and had trained the teachers on this method.  I am unsure how the schools in our state will proceed. Will they teach it, but call it something else? Will they use a combination of curriculum? Will teachers start to give spelling test again in the elementary school? Will handwriting every bet taught again,besides print?  It will be interesting to watch and see.  Has your state kept the common core, and if so do you like it as a parent or educator?  I am fascinated and always interested in hearing and learning about others experience with the different education models and curriculum available.  

Working with people

I am completing a year of  returning to the work force after being a stay at home mom for almost 16 years.  Wow!  I was shocked at all the things I encountered, and the things that challenged me:

1.  Figuring out how to get around in the morning, getting dressed and makeup on, and arriving somewhere on time for myself.  Whew!  What a change!  I was used to just getting my girls ready and out the door, throwing on a top, a baseball hat, grabbing my sunglasses and putting on some lip gloss so that I had the "appearance" of being ready for the day, as I dropped my kids off at school.

2.  Obviously, my husband stepped up and we made adjustments to what fell under "my responsibilities" and what was on "his responsibility" list.  A Big change for both of us!

3.  Since I had been a stay at home mom for 16 years, listening to "Dora the Explorer" and Nick Jr, along with the Disney Channel, as well as attending church.  I was surprised and shocked at how many people out in the world use curse words sprinkled through out their conversation and don't even bat an eye at using them. Some of the word left my ears blushing! However, just like I was quick to notice the language my co-workers used, I was surprised at how quickly they realized that I did not use those words and would stop themselves from using it around me as they got to know me. (I think we forget that we are a witness for God, without preaching to others, but by just being around others.)

4. I have to admit my age is probably showing now, but I am surprised at how many people in their 20's are living together, without a commitment of marriage.

5.  The world can be a negative place. I have learned the power of the words we speak to others and the what we think on in our mind, and self talk.

I have become more aware of what the world is like, and the value system that my teens encounter on a daily basis.  As a stay at home mom, I had been insulated in a little bubble, I was just to busy raising babies to realize it.

That is some of what I have learned and a little how my life has changed in this last year.

Change

Change, it sounds like such a simple word.  Change sounds like fun, it sounds simple.  We went to the  store a month ago and bought some new tile to change our flooring in our dining room and kitchen.  Whew!  It has not been easy!

We had to cut the carpet out and the pad out of the dining room, roll it up and dispose of it.  (sounds much simpler than the muscle required to do that).  We then had to purchase a 10 pound sledge hammer that my husband would swing and break up the tile that we had in the kitchen.  A lot of work!  Then we would sweep up the broken pieces of tile and throw them away.  After that, we had to get a blade and scrape the glue off the floor (that had adhered the tile to the floor).  Whew!  It has taken about 3 weekends to do all this.  Of course, we are now in our 40's and we are trying to do this project and keep up with our life and schedules.  Kind of crazy.  Nothing about change is ever simple.

The simplest of change might end up involving things that you had never counted on it even effecting.  However, change can be a great thing.  It can move you forward, it can make things different, it can stretch you, it can give you the best stories to tell later on, make you laugh at the things that happen and solidify you as a couple and family.  Change it's not simple but it can be an unexpected gift.

Hope your life is full of changes.  I hope that you have a story to tell.  Without changes a story would be a pretty boring tale.

July Favorites!

Things that I am loving in July!

1.  Essie nail polish for my toesies in the color: Watermelon

2.  Happy Hour at Sonic, and their new slush: Lemon Berry (yum!)

3.  Fruit infused water in my fridge.

4.  I just read the book "War Brides" by Helen Bryan

5.  my favorite Instagram users this month:
      of course, Shereadstruth, Honey Holden, kristen Schumucker
(If you are looking for someone new to follow on IG check them out)

6.  listening to Ellie Holcomb, loving the songs: "The broken beautiful" and "As sure as the sun"

Hope that y'all have had a wonderful July! I can't wait to see what August brings!

My Favorite Podcast

What do you listen to?  I often listen to music, however Sometimes I just get tired of listening to music, it seems that all I hear is the same set of songs.  Other times, I feel that I need to be encouraged, or challenged by the word of God.  One of my favorite things to do is to listen to podcast.  If you have an apple product you can download podcast for free, through their podcast app, or if you have an android phone  you can download the app "podcast republic" and then download podcast through that app.

My favorite podcast are:

1.  Lifechurchtv (this is my church, however if I miss a service on the weekend I can listen to it sometime through out the week at my convince)

2.  Elevation Church, with pastor Steven Furtick (out of North Carolina)

3.  The City Church with Judah Smith (out of Seattle, WA)

I enjoy all three of the pastors listed above.  Podcast make it easy, and free to listen to other christian preachers teach about God's word.  Check them out, if you have not done so already!

Progress

I see quotes all the time on line,  that read things like
"Choose Progress over Perfection"

What does that Even mean?  What does that mean to you?  What does that mean to me?  

I am a woman who has been raised with Martha Stewart on TV telling me that I should assemble, cook, decorate, and entertain to such a high level that she can only accomplish with a staff.  Last I looked I looked I do not have a staff.  We have celebrities and models on the cover of magazines that have been airbrushed to perfection.  Real life is not airbrushed.  

Real life is messy!! It consists: of oversleeping, having cranky kids some days, multiple texts and phone calls, job expectations, the school wanting you to sign EVERY paperwork your kids has done for a school day, on time for practices, dinner made, and lunch made with "whole food" not full of yucky ingredients, while trying to stay calm, polite, looking good, working on your marriage, staying sexy for your spouse, raising responsible kids, focus on their heart trying to share your values and beliefs, the dog running out of the back yard,  the gas meter in your car running almost empty on the day that you are running late, and of course it's raining to!  In real life you get tired, you get sleepy, their are not enough minutes in the day for us to accomplish all the things that the media is busy trying to tell us that we should accomplish or be.  

SO I reject perfection.  It's not attainable.  It's not reality.  I choose to strive to simple progress.  The dictionary defines progress: as a movement toward a goal or to a further or higher stage.
So that is my focus, to move forward.  It sounds simple to all the bumps in the road happen, until something unexpected blindsides you, knocks you off your feet.  How do we accomplish perfection?  We don't.  WE CAN'T!  It is not realistic.  However, we can move forward, trusting God that He will use our best efforts to accomplish His will.  That our best efforts will be enough, because He is in control.  

So today, just make the effort of moving forward with me today.  Not striving for perfect, but moving forward.  Being better than you were yesterday.  Maybe letting the car in front of you in,  maybe taking a deep breath and being more kind to the person that really gets under your skin, taking time to pause and read the Bible, or focusing on just one bible verse today.  Then turning it all over to our God who is control and just keep moving.  

I hope that you find this encouraging!  You are not alone!  Being a women can be hard,  we are not perfect so please do not buy into the lie that anyone is but God.  Let's just strive to keep moving forward and being changed by His word and doing better than we did the day before. 

"Sleep is a daily reminder from God that we are not God"
                                                      -John Piper


What reminds you that you are not God?

   I find looking at the sky, seeing all those tiny stars at night, or during the day time watching all those fluffy, billow clouds float by reminds me, that I am not God.  I am not the creator of the world.  I could never just "speak" the world into being.  (some days I can not even "speak" my kids into action).

When I look at the sky it reminds me that I am small, and that there is a God who did just "speak" the world into being.  That He is in control, so I need not to panic, freak out, or try so hard to be in control.  God has got this.  I am in His hands.  I find that, is such a comforting thought.  I drink another drink of my coffee and set back, and take in the view and admire all that God has made.

I hope that something reminds you daily that you are not God!           

A new way to do biblestudy

I have not blogged in Forever.  I think Instagram may have killed my blog, or at least tried.  I wanted to write about a blog that has changed my life.   Have you heard of the website: "shereadstruth.com"  It is a website that offers different biblestudies for free.  It's unique that it allows several online communities to form.  One group follows them exclusively on-line and leave comments under each post, the other community follows along on Facebook, and the community that I belong to connects through Instagram.  We post pictures of our screen shot, or of our bible/notebook/coffee. We try to post everyday, it allows us to follow one another, pray for one another, and encourage one another.  I have found this such a supportive community especially with entering the work force again after being home for about 16 years.  I no longer had the time during the day to attend bible study and my kids were older and involved in school activities that were in the evening that I wanted to attend.

However, I needed the accountability that comes with doing a bible study with others.  This online community "Shereadstruth" met this need.  If you are on Instagram or on twitter look for the hashtag #shereadstruth.  They have also released this week an app in the Apple store for an app that would allow you to download the biblestudies and have access to it on your phone.

This site has kept me involved in reading and studying God's word, also with the ability to not have to buy a $20 biblestudy book each time.  If you have not checked it out, I would encourage you to do so.  Also, one of the things I enjoy about the online community is that it brings together women of all ages, in all stages of life: college girls, career oriented young woman, new moms, moms with their hands full, older moms, grandmothers.  It's a great way to connect with other believers.

How often do you get a check up

How are you doing?  It’s February and how often do you stop, pause and give yourself a check up?  Not a “medical” check up, even though those are important.  However, a life check up or evaluation of how you are doing in the following areas:

As a wife?

As a mother?

As a daughter?

As a friend?

As a christian?

Sharing your beliefs with others?

Loving difficult people?

How or what your doing with the time, God has given to you?

How do you evaluate yourself?  Do you ask others, or do a self examination of your life and choices? 

I have been thinking on this a lot lately, when I heard a pro football player talking about what he does in his off season, is that he evaluates himself in similar areas.  It got me to thinking when my off season is.  How often should I pause and look at how I am doing?  I know at work, we have a monthly meeting just checking on how we are doing, and if we are meeting our goals.  Shouldn’t my life require such scrutiny, and attention?  After all, I only get 1 time at this thing called life.  Should I not take it seriously and see how I am doing? I think so. I am unsure how I am going to proceed with this.  I may ask my kids and my spouse? And then take a look at where my money is being spent, and where my time and attention is given.  Then grade myself, sort of a report card for how I’m doing this year.

I will post my report card later this week.  I would love to hear how other ladies evaluate themselves or how often they pause and reflect.  Please share if you have any insights I would love to hear how anyone else does this!

Comments and opinions are encouraged and wanted!

Words: machine guns or building blocks

WORDS, They are so powerful.  They are as deadly as any weapon made by man.  They can stick in your mind like they were super glued there.  Yet as dangerous as WORDS can be they can also be encouraging, they can build you up, and motivate a country with them.


Yet, how often do we speak before we think?  To drive a car or own a gun you have to have a license.  I do support free speech.  However,  I think we don't stop and think of the weight our words will carry.  We don't pause enough to select with care the right words to say, we often just open our mouths & talk.

This week my heart has been heavy with careless words spoken to my daughter from another student.  The girl told my redheaded daughter "that she did not like gingers." As well, as calling her "fat cheeks".  Deep sigh.  I struggle with a heavy heart, praying taking it to God.  Trying to choose my words carefully when talking to my daughter about this matter. As well, who & what I say to the staff at my daughter's school.

This lesson, I seem to be reminded of every few years while raising daughter's.  We live in sometimes a cruel world, where words are often spoken and thrown at each other like darts.

I wonder if we would speak more carefully if we could visually see the marks our words inflict on another?  Hum, I think it might just make us pause.  I wonder why God made us this way?  Maybe he knew we would struggle with this so much, that the damage would be so great that our flesh simply could not handle such a thing.

2014: GRACE

  I started a few years back praying about a word that God had laid upon my heart to pray about, watch for,and listen to Him"about".  I have been so very surprised year, after year on what God has taught me regarding what seemed in January such a little word (that I really thought I knew all about or where He would lead me).  Well I come to this January older & maybe a little wiser.  I know now:
1.  I know nothing
2.  He may lead me anywhere
3.  I am so blessed to get to sit at His feet and spend time with Him daily.

DO YOU HAVE A WORD FOR 2014?