A New Definition of Grace

God's Grace = Not freaking out or, better yet, not even really caring that your two year old stuck a spatula full of Crisco and brown sugar in the (unplugged) toaster. 
It was time for a new one, anyway. The toaster..not the kid.

A Few of My Favorite Things

The cast of the Sound of Music was on Oprah today.  I love The Sound of Music. Really. A lot.  I had the good fortune to study in Europe during my sophomore year in college and in my travels, I made sure to go to Salzburg to take the 4 hour Sound of Music tour.  Yep, 4 hours. I could have gone four more, but Wolfgang, our tour guide, said we were done.  At any rate, since I've had My Favorite Things in my head for most of today, I thought I'd list a few of my most recent favorite things.....

Wild Things: The Art of Nurturing Boys by Stephan James and David Thomas
        I generally don't like parenting books because I usually feel guilty about all the stuff I haven't done after I finish reading them, but this one is great and guilt free.

Bad Mother by Ayelet Waldman
       WARNING. The author of this book is as Blue as I am Red. Despite our glaring political and, in some cases, moral differences, I found this collection of essays about motherhood really funny and insightful. Pay close attention to the one entitled "Rocketship." It's one of the most profoundly honest accounts of an abortion I've read from either side of the issue.

www.frugalfunfortune.com
        Super helpful site for saving money on groceries, especially if you shop at Publix.

Netflix
        This has revolutionized our TV viewing. We don't have cable, so getting a ton of cable shows and movies that we can all watch whenever we like for $8.99 a month is pretty much fabulous.

Tie T-Shirts For My Boys
         I got ours on ETSY.com, but I'm sure you could make them if you were crafty enough.

Body Shapers
        Wish I didn't need them, but thankfully they make them!

When the dog bites, when the bee stings, when I'm feeling sad. I simply remember my favorite things and then I don't feel so bad!!

An Open Letter to Pixar

Dear Pixar,
Thank you for creating movies that my children are happy to watch more times than is probably healthy and do not make my brain melt by their shear stupidity.  As a result of your excellent animation, I have been able to clean the kitchen, have uninterrupted phone conversations, shower (possibly even shave my legs), and, occasionally, share a quiet moment with my husband. As a token of my appreciation, I will continue to purchase some of the endless stream of merchandise you produce. 

Most Sincerely,
the MOB

As You Go....

This fall has been ridiculously busy for us.  Much more so than normal.  As a result, I am finding it tough to fit in all the things I want and, more importantly, need to do to feel like a mildly successful mom.  Sure, laundry gets done (maybe not put away right away), kids are fed (Apple Jacks are ok for dinner, right?), and the house is picked up (so thankful for whoever invented the Swiffer!), but what about the spiritual lives of the three charges God has given me?  The idea of any kind of structured or even regular devotion times with the boys seems daunting at best and, on most days, impossible. On one of my commutes from Samuel's school last week, however, God impressed on me the practicality of His Word when it comes to the busyness of daily life.  In Deuteronomy 6, God sums up the importance of all the laws and commandments He has just laid out for the children of Israel, "Hear, O Israel! The LORD is our God, the LORD alone. And you must love the LORD you God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your strength. (NLT)" Then, He tells them how they are to impress this upon their kids.  v. 7-8 "Repeat them [the commands] again and again to your children. Talk about them when you are at home and when you are away on a journey, when you are lying down and when you are getting up again."  That's what got me.  The Word of God can be impressed wherever you are. Singing in the van, giving baths, playing outside, reading at night, and bedtime lullabies are just some of the ways and places I've had the opportunity to impart God's Word to my boys.   I'm not sure how it started, but my oldest two have "their" bedtime songs that must be sung before the bedtime ritual can be completed.  Samuel's is "I Love You, Lord" and Micah's is "Jesus, Name Above All Names."  For as tired as I am when I come to that part of the night,  nothing is better than hearing my two year old say the names of God as he falls asleep. God was so gracious and gentle to remind me that day in my van that I didn't need to make the time to cultivate their hearts, I just needed to take advantage of the time I was given already.  It's not a revolutionary thought, but it was one I needed as I went....

That's My Kind of Salad

While enjoying his after school snack of Vanilla Wafers, Samuel sat and studied the box.  After a few minutes examining the picture and recipe for banana pudding on the side, he exclaimed: "Mom! You can make a salad out of it!"  Yes, my son, you can.

My Chair

Over six years ago, my mother in law graciously offered to purchase a chair for me to use as a nursing chair once her first grandchild arrived. We spent the better part of weekend scouring Ft. Worth furniture and baby stores looking for just the right chair that would look nice, feel comfy and provide the right amount of arm support for its intended purpose.  I wanted something that looked like it came out of a Pottery Barn Kids catalogue and Aaron wanted something that he could fit into.  (Surprisingly enough, most rockers are not built with 6 ft.+ fathers in mind.)  Eventually, we found it.  It was blue, over stuffed and remarkably comfortable.  It arrived a couple months before Samuel did and has been with us ever since.  What makes it so great, though, isn't that it can make a Sunday football nap perfection or the fact that it can hold as many kids as we pile into it. Its great because it has been a silent witness to the many days and nights spent nursing babies, holding wounded toddlers, and reading with sleepy preschoolers.  Its been the backdrop for every birthday, Mother's or Father's Day and "welcome baby!" picture and, for the last couple of seasons, has been Aaron's official 24 viewing spot. 
Eventually, it will be replaced for something that matches with the other furniture or is in better shape, but, for now, its mine and I love it. 

 Aaron reading to Samuel his first day home.

At Least They Were Sharing....

Manners are very important in our house. The importance of "please"and "thank you" are reiterated constantly to those among the children who can speak, so when I heard the following conversation between the oldest two, I quickly went to positively affirm their outstanding choices....
           S: "Can I have some, please?"
           M: "Yep."
           S: "Thank you, Micah."
           M: "'Come. ("You're welcome" for those of you who do not speak two year old.)"
What I didn't realize until I rounded the corner, was that the conversation about a baggie full of Golden Grahams was playing out in the bathroom, while, how shall put this delicately, Samuel was "using the facilities."  I wasn't sure if I should praise their "table manners" or point out that eating while using the bathroom was perhaps not the cleanest option.  I opted for both, although I don't think it came across very seriously as I was giggling the whole time.  Oh well, at least they were using their manners and sharing.

We Read (or write) to Know We are Not Alone

I've thought about starting a blog for some time, but felt like the world really didn't need one more blog, especially one without a singular purpose. I'm not fighting a deadly illness, undertaking a monumental task, or even taking a once in a lifetime vacation. In fact, there is very little about my life that is unique or unusual. I'm just living life. Sometimes that, however, is what makes reading some one's story (or blog) interesting.  Just knowing that someone else is doing, or has done (or will do) what you are doing at this particular stage of life makes the day go that much better because you know you aren't doing it alone.  So in the end, I went for it. After all, I'm just needy enough to want the world to know my thoughts and just narcissistic enough to think the world needs to know them! This, then, is my life as a Mom Of Boys.