The Father's Mother's Day Gift.

Mother's Day, the day that mothers get doted on, recognized, appreciated, and spot-lighted. Children say the sweetest things, do all the chores, and recognize all the sacrifices moms make. Unfortunately, I found myself having to steer the boat of "recognize me, honor me, celebrate me," and I found myself very frustrated and hurt. I knew this wasn't right but I knew this wasn't anyone's fault but my own. It's not even their fault for being princesses that don't know how to celebrate others because I do it so naturally they never have to. The problem was nowhere but in myself.  You know what though? That's my favorite type of problem. I know that my Daddy God will tell me the secrets of heaven and make me more like Him. During worship at church this frustrated and confused Mother's Day morning, I turned my eyes off myself and focused on the Lion of Judah. Let me tell you what I learned about myself when I turned my eyes off of me:

He is the Lion, the King of all kings, and I am a warrior princess, equipped to take enemy schemes and turn them into Kingdom victories. What a powerful place for a mama to stand! And, I'm not just raising other independent warrior princess lionesses; I am raising warrior princess lionesses to work as a unified force, in a pride, for the glory of the Lion King. Mmmmmmm. So good! Such a parenting strategy shift! What a nice gift; better than the Melting Pot's Brie and Bacon Fondue (which is saying something)! Thank you husband, for not cringing at the price tag of that Mother's Day gift. 

But that wasn't all He wanted to give me. He also showed me that I had been looking for accolades, recognition, and the gift of being known, from my kids. How frustrating is THAT?! What kid can actually recognize the gift of their mother until they themselves are a parent?! No forced art project from school will ever touch that place in my heart--and it shouldn't! The Father was offering for me to get my recognition, accolades, and known-ness as a mother, from Him rather than my kids. What a divine shift! It takes the frustration off my heart and the pressure off my kids and husband. I'm not even mad right now that instead of diamonds and bubble baths, I have a sink full of dirty dishes and a couple extra pounds from the fondue splurge. 

Mom's, that invitation is to you as well. Go have a quiet moment (even if it's with headphones at the kitchen sink full of dishes), and ask Father God what He wants to say about you as a Mother. I promise it's only kindness, adoration, and hope He wants to bring to this conversation. Be brave. Ask Him. Then go worship Him through your mothering! 

Memorial Day 2011

First off, we got to sleep in until 10 am (thank you Phineas and Ferb for entertaining the girls for that long)! Then we got all dressed and went go flag hunting. After explaining the significance of this holiday, we decided to take a drive to see how many flags we could count. Initially, we were disappointed in the lack of holiday spirit shown in our town. Only 40 flags. That is, until we found a Memorial Day memorial to fallen soldiers in Oregon. Touching. I got teary eyed standing there, remembering why my husband REALLY had the day off. It brought it close to home to see a picture of a friend of Chuck's from his hometown. I was proud to tell the girls that they come from a long legacy of soldiers (uncles, cousins, grandparents). Final Flag count: 170!!!

We spent HOURS exploring a park in town. I've been to this park before, but this time was especially fun because the girls got to explore and I got to see the park through their eyes.

Geese, ducks, osprey.

Art.

Science (Rebekah was worried about all the litter,

so she headed a clean-up initiative amongst the family). The park has a scale model of the solar system. Pluto was miles away, so we only got to the Sun, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Earth, and the moon. Someday, we'll have to take a bike ride to see the whole solar system...

Tree climbing.

Playing catch with Dad.

What a great day!

P.S. when exploring in the Willamette Valley, don't forget your allergy medicine. This results in a migraine that lays you out for the rest of the day :(

Explore. Dream. Discover.

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover"

~~Mark Twain

What things come to mind when you read this? What things are you keeping in the safe harbor?

20 years from now, I don't want to regret that I didn't take more time to kiss boo-boo's, make messy projects, play dress-up, listen to outlandish stories, make more forts, eat crazy foods at silly times, sing lullabies, paint fingernails, have tickle wars, go star-gazing, bike riding, or stop to smell the roses.

No one says to their grown children, "man, I wish I would have spent more time house-keeping." or, "I wish I would have stayed in bed longer/played on facebook/watched TV more." What is so important that I miss opportunities with my girls?!

• What is so difficult about stopping to hear Bekah explain to me the complexities of how the guinea pig is playing with his chewy toy?
• Why is it so difficult to pick up a hurt Maddy and just cradle her, sing to her, and make everything okay?
• Why is it so time consuming to get off the porch to give Izzy an underdog on the swing set?

Being more attentive to my children is something I want to be better at. Afterall, 20 years from

now, I want to be able to say that I did "Explore. Dream. Discover." at every opportunity with my kids! Plus, they are very entertaining and cute!

Seriously take a moment to consider how Twain's comment applies to you in this season of your life...

It's been a long time

I get a little more discouraged from blogging every time I read someone else's blog and it shows how much time elapsed between the current blog and the previous one. That timespan for me is becoming longer and longer. So, today, I determined that I would blog about my Easter of answered prayers. As I was uploading pictures from my camera, I decided I would build a bridge. Yes, you read that right. I amgoing to build a bridge first--a bridge of memories to span the time between my last blog post and my Easter of answered prayers.

• Rebekah trekked out into the unknown --leaving the comfort of Eugene Christian School, to begin homeschooling. That is a story of it's own and I'm sure I'll spend some time blogging about the blessing of home-school.
• Madeline has begun reading!
• Isabelle has become her own fashion designer.
• We have baked, crafted, and experimented to our heart's content!
• The girls and I spent a few nights at my mom's in her motor home on the beautiful Oregon coast.

• We've been on a family vacation to Arizona; road-tripping through California, visiting Great Grandma and Great Grandpa Sanders, staying with Oma and Opa, watching a Mariner's Spring Training game, and visiting the Grand Canyon.
• 
• Friends we have a plenty! We do gymnastics, library, tea parties, birthday parties, roller skating, and park hopping.
• 
• Chuck has gotten a promotion at work. He loves his job and we're so grateful for all of God's continued provisions!

That should just about bring you up to speed!

Dreams come true!

Imagine this: An eight passenger vehicle, filled to the brim with laughing kiddos. Eating snack, asking for the music to be louder, giggling about farts, and making paper airplanes to launch across the seats. That was my bliss for about 40 minutes today! When having children, this is what I always imagined. I've always wanted my house to be the place for friends and laughter. To have my kids prefer to bring their friends here, rather than always wanting to be away. I haven't quite arrived there yet, but the carpool today was just a taste of that dream come true!

Bekah also had a dream come true this week. She finished one of her timed math tests! The idea of being timed was just too much for her, but she's finally mastering the skill!