Praise & Glory

But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification and redemption: That, according as it is written, He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord. -1 Cor. 1:30-31

I started reading in Corinthians this morning. So long have I lingered in Romans, seeking to fully understand different truths. How silly of me! I should have known that I would get stuck in a rut when I abandon the iterative process which holds me in good stead. I'm sure it will sink in more the next time I get there. Wow! What clarity on a Monday morning. There must be hope for me :-)

Last week I told Deborah that I thought she had great potential as a pianist; I explained to her that this was why she would have piano lessons instead of gymnastics next year. To my surprize and delight, she has been on the piano every day! And when I give her a little lesson, she practices and practices!

I guess I shouldn't be surprized. I'm the same way. When I feel that others are praising my abilities, I tend to be much more energetic about practicing skills, aren't you? And there is nothing more disheartening than ridiculed, criticised or ignored. I much prefer constructive criticism (ie praise, correct, praise).

Food for thought: Could it be that God is motivated by our praise and glory? Could it be that we limit His activity by leaving Him out of our conversation; out of our praising and glorying?

Speaking of praise, I have been greatly remiss in not telling how wonderfully proud I am of my brother-in-law and niece, who have graduated from high school this last month. Benjamin received 2 special awards for art and computers and Jessica was on just about every single list in the program, graduating with honors. She has a $6000 scholarship to attend her first two years of college and she says her first year will be a breeze, for she is taking simple things like calculus and chemistry :-0 And Benjamin has gone and gotten a job at Kohls, so I have lost my gardener :-). Go Ben!

On Simplicity in the Home

During our trip to Iowa, we finished reading "On the Shores of Silver Lake" by Laura Ingalls Wilder. I was struck, as I usually am when reading one of her books, by the simplicity of their lifestyle. A one room home and extremely limited possessions makes for easy maintenance and cleaning, I'm sure ;-) Now granted, I'm sure that the Ingalls family needed more time for other things, such as gardening and preserving meats and churning butter. Yet you usually find them singing by the fire in the evenings, enjoying each other. I don't know about you, but managing the things in my life can tend to suck me away from my family if I'm not careful.

Recently during a quick clean of our house, I realized that the decluttering step was taking far longer than I liked. In fact, by the end of the day, there were still rooms which needed to be decluttered! I realized that part of this was due to lack of discipline and build up, and it was partially due to having TOO MUCH STUFF! Now, I've visited houses which have significantly more "stuff" than we do; however, I believe with all of my heart that "stuff" can so easily distract from the important things in life. Especially those who are easily distracted, like myself.

So, when Nathan directed me to do major decluttering for the upcoming church garage sale, I was naturally delighted, if a bit short on time. But I did what I could and I am happy to report that our house is several boxes lighter - and so is my heart! There is still more to be done, but I feel I've learned a few important lessons:

1. If you don't use it - give it away! The juicer in our cupboard was difficult to part with (it was a gift from my dear sister!), but we just don't use it, and there it sat, taking up space. Now someone else can use it, and if I ever need to start "juicing" I'm sure the Lord will provide us with a marvelous juicer:-)

2. If you have a lot of space, that doesn't mean you have to fill it up. It's ok to have empty cupboards and counters - especially when full ones make you insane! This is a major lesson for me, because I simply don't have a lot of time (echo that a millionfold homeschoolers!). I've realized that something can't be cleaned thoroughly or quickly if it is covered or filled with stuff. It needs to be stored or given away. Period!

3. Always have a box or space designated for giving away (or selling or storing or fixing). For me, this is half the battle. When I have something in my hand, it's important to sort it right then, otherwise it may end up increasing my clutter and this is bad bad bad for me!

4. Allow limited toys in the kids rooms. A child will develop confidence if they can easily pick up their room, but stuff everywhere tends to overwhelm a child. It is not fair of a parent to allow a huge buildup of clutter in a child's room and then give the dreaded command "clean your room!"

As with everything I am sure there is a balance involved. It is a challenge to always do the most important thing. Rarely is the most important thing housework when I need to tie strings with my kids, but after a weekend of festivities, our household has a hard time functioning properly without being cleaned up again. However, there are times when I need to ignore clutter or dirty things in order to focus on schooling or devotions or just spending time with the children or my husband. Perfection should be much strived for, but it's ok if it remains elusive ;-)

May Madness

Well, we are almost at the end of what must surely have been the busiest month of the year for us. The last weekend of April we traveled to Iowa to visit my parents and siblings. When we returned we celebrated Nathan's birthday on the 2nd, and then began preparations for David's birthday party the following week. We enjoyed a brief visit with Aunt Veronica and Grandma. How wonderful it was for Veronica to take the kids out and play soccer and watch the kids play in the sand for hours on end! Then there was Joshua's 3rd birthday to enjoy on the tenth of May, and David's birthday party on the 13th (is anyone sick of cake yet?). We rolled right into the week before our camping trip and all of this, combined with school and "regular" chores was enough to take my breath away! We camped for two days on Lake Murphysboro and it was so beautiful and "relaxing" that I can't wait to go back. Now it is Tuesday and we are about to have more company for Ben's graduation. I am traveling to Iowa for a brief visit to see my niece Jessica graduate with honors on Friday night, and will return in time to attend Jeana & Jonathan's reception at the Ranch from 2-4 PM. Ben graduates on Sunday, and on Monday, May 29th, we will celebrate our 13th wedding anniversary:-)

I hate to blog about being busy, but I just wanted to let everyone know I am still alive! I'll blog more in June:-)

An Ahhhhhhh Moment...

I feel like I must be glowing from the inside out! My very first massage was a marvelous experience :-). A massage therapist from our church gifted me with a massage for myself and Jonathan. And Jackie, I have to say thank you from my head to my toes!

This was the perfect occasion for videos, and I set up the children to watch some great educational programs downstairs. Jackie brought in her mobile massage table with the donut shaped face pillow inserted at the end. First we massaged Jonathan with lotion, and then put him in the swing with some Baby Mozart playing on the stereo. Then I lay down on my tummy, put my face in the donut and settled down to the most relaxing hour of my life! Honey, can we spring for a massage every once in a while?

Preparing...
This weekend we are traveling back to Iowa to visit my family and our friends back home. I haven't seen my mother in over 2 years! We are staying at a hotel with a pool and the kids are so excited about the water slide which my friend tells me is soooooo fun :-).

We actually finished most of our cleaning this week (it's Thursday too - who says you can't change?). Tomorrow I just need to finish up the packing. How nice it will be to see everyone!

A Glimpse of Heaven

This may sound silly, but for me it was one of those moments you could just curl up inside of and stay awhile :-). I was reading this verse in my Bible:

"And the bow shall be in the cloud; and I will look upon it, that I may remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is upon the earth." -Genesis 9:16

And it occurred to me that everytime I am looking at a rainbow, my Heavenly Father is gazing at that same rainbow! That sense of togetherness with God, which sometimes eludes me, suddenly took form. I don't think I will ever look at a rainbow in quite the same way. :-)

Update

Almost 6 weeks old....
The baby is getting bigger! I keep telling everyone: "his diapers are tight :-)" Indeed his newborn swaddlers were definitely tight. Now we have him in size one. Last night he slept until 3am and then guzzled his milk so fast that he spit up all over me (a first!). Then he immediately wanted to nurse again :-). He is definitely showing signs of jaundice, which is unusual because I thought this was supposed to show up earlier on. It is quite disconcerting to find that the whites of your baby's eyes are tinged yellow. Frequent nursing is supposed to help. If only I can keep myself awake (big yawn!). One of these days I'm going to take control of my blog and make it cool like everyone elses. I'm sure there must be a yawning emoticon out there somewhere...

On a practical note....
We are finally getting back into our everchanging routines. I am trying out Candy's cleaning schedule, and so far I really like it :-). Today we clean the bathrooms and the kids do their own laundry - yay! We have been continuing to use the Robinson Curriculum and I have taken to having the kids do a math worksheet as part of their morning routine (before breakfast). David writes an essay everyday, and he is writing all about George Washington right now (from Josephine Pollards "Life of George Washington").

I am so excited! Today we are going to order blinds for our dining room and the kids bedrooms. :-) It has been a major problem in the dining room at mealtimes because of the glare of the setting sun in the evenings. And the kids rooms get soooo hot on summer afternoons, making naptimes difficult. I can't wait to put them up!

Hope

"Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost." -Romans 15:13

This scripture has blessed my life, and been an anchor for my soul this past year. It's the only one that I know of that combines the essential ingredients of joy, peace, faith and hope. I have prayed it often for myself and others. Knowing that "hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost!" (Romans 5:5) Hope properly anchored, that is :-).

This morning I am

SO THANKFUL

for the Word of God! Lord, may it permeate my life today. Increase my faith I pray.