making up for lost time
I'm not doing as well with this "blogging after having the 3rd baby" as I thought I would be. I also think I've decided that I don't agree with the 2nd baby being the hardest. For me, having a 3rd has definitely been more trying. I guess having the 2nd makes you learn how to multi-task, but I will probably always say "if you can have 3, you can do any number!"
By the time our busy days are over, the kids are bathed, put to bed, bathrooms and kitchen cleaned, all the clean laundry put away and then time spent with the husband... my brain just feels too fried to write anything worth reading on here. Believe me. You'd all feel punished rather than entertained.
We flew back into our normal routine this past week and I've decided that when nursing a 3 month old (which I've never done before) and taking care of 2 toddlers, I do not have as much energy as I used to. I've been forced to get myself on a better bedtime routine, not because I wanted to (even though it was a good change) but because when I wasn't getting at least 6 hours of sleep, I was doing things like offering people food to Kara, calling Jason "Mom", not noticing it until he pointed it out, leaving out key ingredients to the dinner recipe and more. Oh yes, life has been exciting around here.
Getting a good 6+ hours of sleep has helped immensely and I think its given me back some of my damaged brain cells. Or, what's left of them.
We started all of our Bible studies, classes and play dates, with the added out of town visit to see friends, some who we've not seen in years.
Jason and I (and Kara) are back to home fellowship on Tuesday nights and we're going through John MacArthur's study on the book of Matthew. There's always good discussion and prayer time, which I have to say, even though the book is excellent, the discussion and prayer time is what I mostly missed.
On Wednesday mornings the kids and I are back at CBS. We're still going through the book of Isaiah and its been heavy some weeks and joyful others. Isaiah is a book crammed full of mixed emotions. This is the first time I've really done an in depth study of Isaiah (and oddly enough, our Pastor has been preaching through it on Sunday mornings). I'm realizing there are many precious life lessons to take from even long and often tedious books like Isaiah. I've decided that I'm going to "tackle" 1&2 Chronicles in my personal devotions, because sadly, I think I often avoid those two books... and I have a feeling God will surprise me. :)
CBS has always been a study I've been very fond of. From the first day I went, I knew it would be something I'd never want to leave. I love the women I've met there (hey girls! you all know who you are!) I love getting to know the ladies and the time we have to share, encourage each other, laugh with each other and study God's Word together. We've had some Wednesday mornings where I'm literally dragging my tired body there, but after being there about 5 minutes, I'm thanking God for dragging me out of bed, putting me in the car and getting me there.
Jason and I are continuing our Thursday evening classes on Servant/Leadership training. We're in different classes (he's in a men's class and I'm in a women's class) and we go on alternating weeks, which works out well and doesn't require us using childcare. We started these classes through our church last year and have both really enjoyed them. I think I'm mostly enjoying going over the Doctrines of Grace; already knowing how awesome they are, but being reminded afresh at how blessed I am to be a joint heir in God's Kingdom. What a gift!
Friday mornings we're back at our Ladies' Bible study with our church. The kids have their class they go to (and love it!). We missed out on a lot of these activities when we were sick during the months of November/December and Ethan often asked "is today the day we go to Bible study??" He loves the friends he's made there and really enjoys the crafts, story time and play time. Rachel is just happy that she's reached the age to be in all her big brother's classes. :)
The book we're reading through is Kay Arther's book called Lord, I Need Grace to Make it Today and even though I've only ready the first 2 chapters, I can tell its going to be amazing. The title pretty much says it all.
Jason and I have recently had a lot of discussions about life; where we'd like to see ourselves at the end of 2009, areas that need change and growth in God's grace, goals we have for our kids, new ways we want to be of service in God's Kingdom, etc... One thing we keep coming back to is... thankfulness. We feel so blessed and so thankful. God has blessed us with more than we've ever asked of Him. With our small faith, we keep putting boundaries and limits on Him and He continues to show us that He will always surprise and out do our tiny imaginations. He's increasing our faith in Him and daily teaching us that without Him, nothing we do will be worth anything. With him, we're storing up valuable treasures in Heaven... and that's a beautiful thing.
If there is one thing God is already showing me in this new year, its that the journey of parenting is a road with many different surfaces. Sometimes smooth, sometimes bumpy, sometimes so rough, it feels like you're getting dizzy. I have days where I stop and ask God "am I doing anything right?!" Those days when I feel like English is my kid's second language, the word "no" must mean "yes! please continue doing whatever you want!" and when I decide that an almost 4 year old and a 2.5 year old need very little guidance and training, so I can be lazy and take a back seat view for the day. Yeah... those days. Two words that we're learning right now - consistency and love.
One thing that cannot go unmentioned is the blessing we have in the friendships we've made. God has given us an enormous amount of good, sweet friends. We enjoy our times of fellowship, the fun we have, the honesty and openness, the ability to be completely real without worrying, the good times of prayer, encouragement, building up and selfless love. Its such a reflection to me of Christ.
I feel like I'm always saying "life is crazy busy, but wonderful at the same time" and I'm gonna say it again, because its true. The days are usually packed full, but the evenings are typically quiet and calm. I love when the busy day ends, the dinner mess has been cleaned and we're goofing around the with the kids or hide-and-seek with them; watching them scream with delight and run when we come around the corner and say "boo!" and remembering how I used to get that feeling of excitement when I was little. Knowing it was just a game, but getting so into it, I would often forget.
Reading way too many books before bed, all the while saying "just one more" but getting so caught up in the stories that one more turns into 5 more, hearing Jason pray with them at night and hearing their sweet prayers before falling fast asleep. I love rocking Kara to sleep and telling her how beautiful she is and spending those quiet minutes alone with her before bed and then my favorite part... getting to actually hear a pin drop and looking my husband in his eyes (yes, actually making eye contact!) and hearing each other talk, with no interruptions. Getting to hear all about his day, what he's dealing with, what the next day looks like for him and then telling him all about mine; cute things the kids said, discussing issues we're having with the kids, areas where I feel like I'm failing (my poor husband!) discussing Bible study homework together, making each other laugh (at least we think we're funny, huh?!) and then....... sleep. I do like to sleep, but... I also think it might be overrated. :-)
This is a long post. I never mean for them to be so long, but I start writing and it just sort of flows out.
Since it seems difficult for me to get on here and write posts as often as I used to, I figure this will make up for my lack of posts in the recent days. I still (somehow) find time to glance through all your posts. I love what you all write about and seeing your pictures. Some of you may not know how encouraging your posts are to me. So much of the Internet is such a waist and can be a trap for young moms, but I think these blogs have been a real blessing for me.
Have a fantastic week! Can you beleive January is already half way over?!
By the time our busy days are over, the kids are bathed, put to bed, bathrooms and kitchen cleaned, all the clean laundry put away and then time spent with the husband... my brain just feels too fried to write anything worth reading on here. Believe me. You'd all feel punished rather than entertained.
We flew back into our normal routine this past week and I've decided that when nursing a 3 month old (which I've never done before) and taking care of 2 toddlers, I do not have as much energy as I used to. I've been forced to get myself on a better bedtime routine, not because I wanted to (even though it was a good change) but because when I wasn't getting at least 6 hours of sleep, I was doing things like offering people food to Kara, calling Jason "Mom", not noticing it until he pointed it out, leaving out key ingredients to the dinner recipe and more. Oh yes, life has been exciting around here.
Getting a good 6+ hours of sleep has helped immensely and I think its given me back some of my damaged brain cells. Or, what's left of them.
We started all of our Bible studies, classes and play dates, with the added out of town visit to see friends, some who we've not seen in years.
Jason and I (and Kara) are back to home fellowship on Tuesday nights and we're going through John MacArthur's study on the book of Matthew. There's always good discussion and prayer time, which I have to say, even though the book is excellent, the discussion and prayer time is what I mostly missed.
On Wednesday mornings the kids and I are back at CBS. We're still going through the book of Isaiah and its been heavy some weeks and joyful others. Isaiah is a book crammed full of mixed emotions. This is the first time I've really done an in depth study of Isaiah (and oddly enough, our Pastor has been preaching through it on Sunday mornings). I'm realizing there are many precious life lessons to take from even long and often tedious books like Isaiah. I've decided that I'm going to "tackle" 1&2 Chronicles in my personal devotions, because sadly, I think I often avoid those two books... and I have a feeling God will surprise me. :)
CBS has always been a study I've been very fond of. From the first day I went, I knew it would be something I'd never want to leave. I love the women I've met there (hey girls! you all know who you are!) I love getting to know the ladies and the time we have to share, encourage each other, laugh with each other and study God's Word together. We've had some Wednesday mornings where I'm literally dragging my tired body there, but after being there about 5 minutes, I'm thanking God for dragging me out of bed, putting me in the car and getting me there.
Jason and I are continuing our Thursday evening classes on Servant/Leadership training. We're in different classes (he's in a men's class and I'm in a women's class) and we go on alternating weeks, which works out well and doesn't require us using childcare. We started these classes through our church last year and have both really enjoyed them. I think I'm mostly enjoying going over the Doctrines of Grace; already knowing how awesome they are, but being reminded afresh at how blessed I am to be a joint heir in God's Kingdom. What a gift!
Friday mornings we're back at our Ladies' Bible study with our church. The kids have their class they go to (and love it!). We missed out on a lot of these activities when we were sick during the months of November/December and Ethan often asked "is today the day we go to Bible study??" He loves the friends he's made there and really enjoys the crafts, story time and play time. Rachel is just happy that she's reached the age to be in all her big brother's classes. :)
The book we're reading through is Kay Arther's book called Lord, I Need Grace to Make it Today and even though I've only ready the first 2 chapters, I can tell its going to be amazing. The title pretty much says it all.
Did I mention I'm teaching piano again? I took a 3 month break, mostly to adjust to life with 3 kids, but also to get through the holidays with minimal stress. I'm very happy to be starting that up again and actually took on 3 new students this year!
Did I mention I'm in a book club? Did I mention that though I've managed to read one of the 4+ books and that I have never gone to a group discussion meeting? Sad? Yes. In my defense its been due to a sick child or a completely ill family. Our current book is Christ the Lord: The Road to Cana by Anne Rice.
Did I mention I'm in a book club? Did I mention that though I've managed to read one of the 4+ books and that I have never gone to a group discussion meeting? Sad? Yes. In my defense its been due to a sick child or a completely ill family. Our current book is Christ the Lord: The Road to Cana by Anne Rice.
Most the girls in that club are friends of mine from CBS.
In the midst of all this, we've had fun taking several day trips to visit with friends, having lots of people over for food, fellowship, movie/game nights, and lets not forget our 24 Premiere party!! 2009 has been great so far!
In the midst of all this, we've had fun taking several day trips to visit with friends, having lots of people over for food, fellowship, movie/game nights, and lets not forget our 24 Premiere party!! 2009 has been great so far!
Jason and I have recently had a lot of discussions about life; where we'd like to see ourselves at the end of 2009, areas that need change and growth in God's grace, goals we have for our kids, new ways we want to be of service in God's Kingdom, etc... One thing we keep coming back to is... thankfulness. We feel so blessed and so thankful. God has blessed us with more than we've ever asked of Him. With our small faith, we keep putting boundaries and limits on Him and He continues to show us that He will always surprise and out do our tiny imaginations. He's increasing our faith in Him and daily teaching us that without Him, nothing we do will be worth anything. With him, we're storing up valuable treasures in Heaven... and that's a beautiful thing.
If there is one thing God is already showing me in this new year, its that the journey of parenting is a road with many different surfaces. Sometimes smooth, sometimes bumpy, sometimes so rough, it feels like you're getting dizzy. I have days where I stop and ask God "am I doing anything right?!" Those days when I feel like English is my kid's second language, the word "no" must mean "yes! please continue doing whatever you want!" and when I decide that an almost 4 year old and a 2.5 year old need very little guidance and training, so I can be lazy and take a back seat view for the day. Yeah... those days. Two words that we're learning right now - consistency and love.
One thing that cannot go unmentioned is the blessing we have in the friendships we've made. God has given us an enormous amount of good, sweet friends. We enjoy our times of fellowship, the fun we have, the honesty and openness, the ability to be completely real without worrying, the good times of prayer, encouragement, building up and selfless love. Its such a reflection to me of Christ.
I feel like I'm always saying "life is crazy busy, but wonderful at the same time" and I'm gonna say it again, because its true. The days are usually packed full, but the evenings are typically quiet and calm. I love when the busy day ends, the dinner mess has been cleaned and we're goofing around the with the kids or hide-and-seek with them; watching them scream with delight and run when we come around the corner and say "boo!" and remembering how I used to get that feeling of excitement when I was little. Knowing it was just a game, but getting so into it, I would often forget.
Reading way too many books before bed, all the while saying "just one more" but getting so caught up in the stories that one more turns into 5 more, hearing Jason pray with them at night and hearing their sweet prayers before falling fast asleep. I love rocking Kara to sleep and telling her how beautiful she is and spending those quiet minutes alone with her before bed and then my favorite part... getting to actually hear a pin drop and looking my husband in his eyes (yes, actually making eye contact!) and hearing each other talk, with no interruptions. Getting to hear all about his day, what he's dealing with, what the next day looks like for him and then telling him all about mine; cute things the kids said, discussing issues we're having with the kids, areas where I feel like I'm failing (my poor husband!) discussing Bible study homework together, making each other laugh (at least we think we're funny, huh?!) and then....... sleep. I do like to sleep, but... I also think it might be overrated. :-)
This is a long post. I never mean for them to be so long, but I start writing and it just sort of flows out.
Since it seems difficult for me to get on here and write posts as often as I used to, I figure this will make up for my lack of posts in the recent days. I still (somehow) find time to glance through all your posts. I love what you all write about and seeing your pictures. Some of you may not know how encouraging your posts are to me. So much of the Internet is such a waist and can be a trap for young moms, but I think these blogs have been a real blessing for me.
Have a fantastic week! Can you beleive January is already half way over?!
Comments
Also, thanks for sharing the name of that Kay Arthur book, I hope to read it ... although I have a few to get through first.
I'm looking forward to that time of life, but enjoying this one, knowing it won't last forever. :)
Jenn... its always encouraging for me to hear from other moms going through the same things I'm going through, so when I hesitate to write such detailed blogs, I remember that and go for it. :)