STIKE ONE

Part of the reason I blog is to share part of my soul, my insecurities, my feelings and my mistakes. Anyone who knows me knows I am perfect. NOT!More mistakes than anything, like today. Well today I moved into my old home. A place I have been trying to move away from for a long time but I gradually return there on a regular basis. Anyone who goes to EBC knows exactly what I am referring to. So I will keep it at that. Today I was so excited for my girl Karlie. She was to play in her first volleyball game. She has worked so hard. This summer she was one of the two girls to go to camp and she attends every practice. She even sacrificed a dance class to attend practice. She has come home with all her muscles hurting and she never once complained. I am so proud of her. She made sure she had everything she needed for the game and had it all ready to take with her this morning. So as the game started she waited in anticipation of playing but unfortunately it didn't come. The game passed and she sat on the bench in the seasons first scrimmage. I was the one who was upset that she didn't play because I will not be able to see her play hardly at all because the game schedule did not come out until it was too late. My heart was crushed. So I told a friend I was really mad and upset. I was being selfish, it was all about me me me!!!! As I thought it over I called my friends and apologized to them for being upset. Of course both of them said it was OK and that they understand. God gives us opportunities to prove ourselves to him. Today I failed and so I am sure there will be another time right around the corner. Let see if I strike out again. Hopefully I will seize the opportunity and grow because that is why we are given these trials.

I'm a Senior!

I'm a senior. Theses are words I have heard quite frequently in the last few weeks and school just started two weeks ago. I can so remember being there myself. Wanting the freedom that comes with being a senior or still needing help with some things but not wanting to ask. So as the parent how do I deal with this? I have to learn when to help and when not too. I can remember there was a time I helped with a certain situation and she didn't talk to me for a long time. If I was a bird this job would have been done a long time ago, six weeks and one push out of the nest and you are done. Good luck says the mama bird or does she look over the edge of the nest and think Oops! I should have given him one more flying lesson. The mama bird has no regrets like human moms do. We over analyze our mistakes. We try to raise our children opposite of how we were raised. If we were spanked as a child we swear we wont spank ours, if we were handed hammy downs then our children will have the very best or if we came from divorced parents we promise to make our marriage work for the kids. We read and read to learn how to become better parents. Believe me I have read tons of those books which none has help one iota(is that how you spell that). The best advice I have gotten is from The Book. We all know what book that is. The Bible. First, God always loves his children unconditionally day in and day out. Second, when he punishes us he means it and doesn't back down.Last, he lets us make our mistakes because that is the only way we are going to grow as Christians. As a mom I have to remind myself to be more like God on a daily basis which is such a hard thing to do.

A Bucket of Worms!

Both of my girls are unique in their own way. Taylor is more the girly girl type. She enjoys the beauty of dance and dressing up on occasion. Now Karlie is the more outdoors type. She enjoys the beauty of nature. She has always been excited about everything outdoors, from hunting to fishing. One of the fondest memories is when Karlie was probably about 6 or 7 years older. One afternoon after school I decided to stop and pick up a bucket of worms for her because she adores fishing. When I got home and told her she had a surprise in the car she was elated. Quickly she said "what?" When I told her what it was she ran outside and grabbed her fishing pole and headed to the pond. How simple it was to entertain her. We have gotten so far away from the simple things in life. Instead of spending 50 dollars at the movie lets watch a movie at home. Sit down at the dinner table and play a game of cards. Life has gotten to busy . God wants us to slow down and enjoy the simple pleasures of life and develop real relationships with family and friends. So I think this weekend its time to go fishing.

The Perfect Peach

So I went to my favorite place in the world yesterday to buy a few things,at Walmart. This is really not my favorite place especially on a Saturday. I made one little mistake. I never may mistakes I am perfect:( So not true). The mistake was that I went hungry. Everyone know the rule to going to the grocery store. Never go hungry because you will buy the store out. Trying to be healthy I headed over to the produce section. There they were, a bin of peaches. They were so pretty, in color,smell and feel.. I decide I would buy just a few with some other fruit. I managed to buy just what was on my list and headed out the door. I still had one more task on my schedule to do but I was starving. So I decided to eat one of the perfect peaches. It was so sour. Maybe it was just the first bite but the second was just the same. I finished it but I was so disappointed. All this made me think how things look so perfect from the outside and are nasty on the inside. I am guilty of looking at things from the outside and compare myself to them.. I tell my self they have more money, their family is much better than mine or they are just plain better than me. I try to set a good example for my girls because I want them to know they are as good as anyone else in this world. I have learned in life that everyone has insecurities about their own life. That took me a long time to learn. The one true fact is that we as humans should only compare ourselves to the one and only Jesus Christ. Was he not the PERFECT ONE?

RED BEANS ON FRIDAY?

I have the most wonderful husband in the world. Especially when it come to helping around the house. We take turns cooking and cleaning depending on each others work schedule. This last week has been a crazy week. School started, it was crazy at work and I hit my head after a fall. So Tim was so nice and cooked a lot this week. You never know what he is going to come up with. One time he could something so hot that I had to have five glasses of water to help it go down.
He loves to experiment with food. This week was no exception. One day we had spaghetti with Tony's and on Friday he cooked red beans. When he called me Friday morning he was so proud of his self, "guess what we are having for dinner?" No what "red beans." My response was" red beans on Friday". He asked "why cant we have red beans on Friday?" Quickly I said" that is a Mondays dish". A few co-workers heard our conversation and agreed with me. This all opened up a huge conversation about why do we eat red beans on Monday. It became a tradition for New Orleans women to cook these on Monday because that was the day they did their house cleaning and red beans would cook on the stove all day. You really do not have to fool with them that much. Put them on low and let them go . So all this made me think. We get caught up in so many traditions and the way things are suppose to be we miss out on so much stuff. For example our church just went from two worship services to one service. A big adjustment for some. The traditional worshipers are having to adjust to praise songs and the contemporary worshipers are having to adjust to hymns. For the most part it is going smoothly but there are a few members who have not. Each have gotten use to one way of worship and they are having a difficult time adjusting. What miss out when we harden out hearts to change? God likes change that is why life is so full of surprises. We do not grow when we become stagnant in our worship. As Christians he wants us to grow. So we need to be open to changes, weather it is a small change or a BIG CHANGE. You never know what God wants to show you. So yes I had red beans on Friday and they were good. Now I dont have to cook on Saturday because I have left overs.

I knew one day it would come but never this quickly. You see I have been blessed with the two greatest gifts ever. God blessed me with two beautiful daughters. The first is a fiesty, energetic, beautiful, smart and God loving girl. It seems just like yesterday when that little 5LB 10 oz preterm baby came in our lives. She came 5 weeks early and came out face first. Bruised and beat up she was determined to see where she was going. That is still her today, always looking for the next step ahead. She does not miss a beat. If you think you are going to surprise her you are definitely mistaken. As a matter of fact she dislikes surprises!! I always said she was my spirted child. When she belives in something there is no arguing with her. Her dad always tells her she was going to argue with Jesus when he comes back. So this little girl started her senior year today! Of course as a mom I am not ready for her to grow up all the way but I know it is a must. I am sure I will hear this statement more than once. "trust me mom I am a senior now." I did hear once today already: on the phone this morning. I want to protect her but I know I have to let her make her own decisions.

Now my second daughter keeps me laughing. She is the more laid back child. Karlie started life out that way too. Siitng in a breech position I had to have a c/s to go and get that 6lb and 8 oz. She is so full of life, loveable, friendly, caring, humorous, and flexable. From the get go she has always been the one to give of herself. From day one she had to go with the flow of the family because she is the baby. Karlies gentle spirit makes people love her even though she can talk you head off. She is little bit clumbsy but she gets that trait honestly.

So one graduates high school and the other eighth grade. As I watch them grow and worry about them I think how God must worry about us. He has given us life and done EVERYTHING for us and he has to let us make our own mistakes. He must have pain when we turn from him. What we do as patents on this earth is just a little taste of what he goes through on a daily basis Being a parent is probally the only way we as humans can understand unconditional love. That is why God allows us to have children. If we didnt we probablly would not understand it at all. I know I could not sacrifice my children for anyone else. Thank you God for your unconditional love.

Please Don't throw Me into the Brier Patch

I asked my oldest daughter if she would be so kind to help me create a blog spot and her comment was if "you don't know how then you don't deserve one" but my kind dear younger daughter quickly jumped to my aid. Both of them are the best girls ever. I am so proud of them! REALLY. For many years I have written my thoughts and ideas in a journal but I can type much faster. I know this is not making much sense because what I have said so far is nothing relating to the title.

I do get ideas from the strangest things that occur in my life. For example the other day I decided to remove the briers from my flower beds. A task that is n0t taken lightly. First I had to find my gloves. Of course the ones I found were not the right ones, the first brier I grabbed went right through the glove. So I had to find the right ones to protect my hands. So now I was ready for the challenge. So I started to pull them out. Some of them were so grounded, I had to grab them from the bottom and pull from the root. If not they would certainly grow back. Some of them would grab me back and wrap around me, leaving nasty little thorns in me. So all of this made me start to think. This entire world is just on BIG BRIER PATCH. It is filled with little thorns that get to you and stay if you let them. You have to eventually remove them or they will fester until you cant stand it anymore. They become your entire focus. You cant concentrate on anything else except that thorn. The only way to protect yourself on the thorns of life is to protect yourself. Just like putting on the gloves as you dig into the Brier patch you have to put the word of God in your heart to protect yourself from the thorns of life.