Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Mindya Business...
Right out of the gate, Jeremy had a paper due for his masters degree. We thought his college days were behind him and now he was rusty at cranking out term papers. So, to be helpful, I read over his first paper just to give it a second pair of eyes. Before I knew it, I was rewriting the paper myself and researching his books to 'help' him make a good grade on the first paper. On the second paper, I started to do the same thing... figuring that at the end of this two-year journey I would probably have an honorary masters degree. But, I was feeling stress over getting it done since I had an overload of my own work to complete. He was stressed because the way we worded things was different and he wasn't sure he would be able to defend his work if I was really the one doing it.
When I went to bed that night... I told God, "I feel so stressed. Please help me get all that I need to get done." And I felt like he answered me very simply, "If you want to get your stuff done without being stressed, then mindya business!" Apparently, God watched the same Fresh Prince episode. Nevertheless, He gave it to me straight. I had my hand in something that it had no business being in and because of that, I was feeling stressed. I was also creating tension between Jeremy and I. So, the next morning... I apologized to Jeremy and vowed to stay out of his masters degree other than to be a listening ear when he needed it. And low and behold, the boy has pulled straight A's the whole time without me lifting my pinkie finger. He has been able to experience success in his degree that he may never have felt if I would have continued to mettle.
Minding your own business is one BIG way you can simplify your life. This is not to say that we shouldn't be compassionate towards others and help when there is a need. But, so many times, we get involved in things that we have NO business being a part of. In addition to that, we want to be in the know about issues that don't concern us. Have you ever spent time conniving... trying to figure out all the details to one big, juicy piece of gossip... only to wish you wouldn't have gotten in the middle of it later? If you're feeling stressed today, is it possible that there is an area in your life where you need to Mindya Business?
And let me testify to this... minding your own business is FREEDOM!!! Every now in then, I hear a tidbit about something and wonder what the WHOLE story is. But, I tell myself- Mindya Business and I feel immediate freedom in not ALWAYS needing to know everything. Not to mention, I ask myself... What can you stay out of today? And it feels so good to not take on problems that don't belong to me. In 1 Corinthians 2:2 AMP Paul says "For I resolved to know nothing (to be acquainted with nothing, to make a display of the knowledge of nothing, and to be conscience of nothing) among you except Jesus Christ (the Messiah) and him crucified." Paul was minding his own business and his only business was Christ.
I am a stay at home mom, I work from home and my day has plenty of business of its own. I am sure yours does too. So, if life is feeling frantic for you, simplify your life and Mindya Business!!!
Sunday, August 21, 2011
J is for Jadin... K is for Kindergarten...
Almost 6 years ago, Kindergarten seemed a world away...
I have been nothing but confident when thinking about his first day of school only because he seems made for it. Just as 'J' and 'K' are next to each other in the alphabet... Jadin and Kindergarten naturally go together. He is excited to make new friends, go to P.E. and do all the things that Kindergartners do.
What's that I smell... Is it the return of routine??? Our family operates like a well oiled machine when we are submerged in a schedule. Not to say that we can't vacation. We vacay well! But in the in-between times, we as parents do everything we can to avoid the "I'm Bored's."
But almost as fast as the pictures scrolled, Kindergarten was upon us.
I have been nothing but confident when thinking about his first day of school only because he seems made for it. Just as 'J' and 'K' are next to each other in the alphabet... Jadin and Kindergarten naturally go together. He is excited to make new friends, go to P.E. and do all the things that Kindergartners do.
After orientation... I am not going to lie, I was unsure about the whole thing. But, I decided that it would be best to trust that God has Jadin's best interest at heart. And believe it or not... my personal preferences will not always match God's will and destiny for Jadin. Talk about stepping out in faith. Kindergarten will be a blast for Jadin- as it should be. But for me... it will be a test of trust. Trusting that although I am Jadin's mom and love him soooo much, God loves him more. That is hard for me to fathom but it's truth.
As for today and dropping him off... I wondered if I would visit the Boo-Hoo-Booth for Kindergarten parents in tears. But after a 1/2 mile walk in the Florida Heat from my parking spot, the only tears coming out of me were beads of sweat!!! Jadin and I were too out of breath to feel any emotions!
After dropping Brody off, Jadin off, shopping at Publix for BOGO's, shopping at Walmart for all the rest, unloading groceries for 20 minutes, changing diapers, doing laundry, packing lunches for tomorrow, making dinner for tonight, lunch for today, picking Brody up from preschool and now blogging before I pick Jadin up from his 1st day of Kindergarten (a 40 minute line, I hear)- this taxi driver is under paid!!! And we get to do it all over again tomorrow!
Welcome to Kindergarten!!!
Sunday, August 14, 2011
"It's a Boy..." And the Room Looks at Me...
It may be cliche to say now that the news is out... but I knew the morning of my ultrasound that I was going to be faced with a test. A test to see how I handled the news that a 4th boy would be joining us in a few short months. My reaction to the realization that I was destined to remain the only girl in our household was key. No pink bows. No tea parties. No shopping buddy. This was the gulp I was going to have to gracefully swallow.
My track record in reactions is less than stellar. It doesn't take away from the fact that I love each and every boy in my house down to their toes... but it's no secret that I have always desired to have a girl. And as far as 'trying' for a girl... we haven't 'tried' for any of them... we have... what we like to call: fertility overdrive. So, the only plausible conclusion I can come to is that God has chosen each and every boy for us because they have a great and mighty destiny to live out. And we are blessed with the pleasure of being a part of who they become.
Anyway... getting back to the morning of the ultrasound... God had given me every possible sign that it was a boy. I had three dreams that I told my husband about before finding out anything. I dreamt that I had an ultrasound and when I looked at the screen, I saw that it was a boy before the nurse could say anything. My second dream was that I went to change my newborn's diaper and when I opened the diaper I said... "Oh my word, it's a boy!" My last dream stuck with me the most... I dreamt that I was speaking to a large crowd and I said, "I want to bring up the 4 most handsome men you have ever seen." And my four grown sons walked on the stage and I'm not gonna lie- they were STUDS!!!
So, when the ultrasound tech said... "Oh yeah, it's a boy," this was my chance to pass the test. I smiled and thought of each and every sweet little-man face I had waiting on me at home and knew it was going to be alright. I left the office feeling really good and met all my men for lunch to tell them the news. They were all a bit disappointed, but my cheerful attitude was rubbing off quickly. I think my husband was baffled as to why I was not crying like a basket case. But after lunch, round 2 of the testing began. You see, Satan does not relent easily. He wanted nothing more than to see me fail and throw one big pity party.
Our plan was to go to Target to buy the new baby a going-home outfit no matter what the news. The store has a section with some pink, some green and some blue outfits perfect for newborns. However, for whatever reason, the store had the whole aisle covered in pink outfits. No blue in sight. I thought, that's okay. I'll just go to the baby section and see what they have. I found a few boy items but nothing suitable for a newborn. And then all of a sudden, I did a 360- and I felt like I was surrounded by nothing but pink clothes. I couldn't find anything for my new little man and discouragement rushed in. My eyes filled up with tears. Here I was trying to be Ms. Positive and my breakdown was about to happen in the middle of Target.
I could hear Satan laughing at me... "You wanted a girl, but you didn't get it.... again!!! Hahaha" Hot tears started to stream down my face. He was right. I did really want to buy one of every pink item in sight. And then I thought... "What would kick the devil in the teeth right now more than anything else???" So.... out loud.... in the middle of Target.... I began to sing, "I will bless the Lord at all times. He's good!" And within seconds- Satan was forced to flee. What came rushing in after that was encouragement. A new outlook. And an "Ata girl" from my Maker.
Joyce Meyer once described God's reaction to her disappointment as this, "Every disappointment is an opportunity for reappointment." I think we can gather that disappoint WILL come. You will FEEL emotions. But your adaption to change is what is most important. When you don't get your way, how quickly will you adjust to reality? Psalm 18:30 says, "As for God, His way is perfect." My name wasn't inserted in that verse. Your name is not anywhere in that verse. All that is required is surrender on our part. We have to know that God works EVERYTHING out for our good!!! (Romans 8:28) So, after disappointment... Look Up! And know that He is good!!!
My track record in reactions is less than stellar. It doesn't take away from the fact that I love each and every boy in my house down to their toes... but it's no secret that I have always desired to have a girl. And as far as 'trying' for a girl... we haven't 'tried' for any of them... we have... what we like to call: fertility overdrive. So, the only plausible conclusion I can come to is that God has chosen each and every boy for us because they have a great and mighty destiny to live out. And we are blessed with the pleasure of being a part of who they become.
Anyway... getting back to the morning of the ultrasound... God had given me every possible sign that it was a boy. I had three dreams that I told my husband about before finding out anything. I dreamt that I had an ultrasound and when I looked at the screen, I saw that it was a boy before the nurse could say anything. My second dream was that I went to change my newborn's diaper and when I opened the diaper I said... "Oh my word, it's a boy!" My last dream stuck with me the most... I dreamt that I was speaking to a large crowd and I said, "I want to bring up the 4 most handsome men you have ever seen." And my four grown sons walked on the stage and I'm not gonna lie- they were STUDS!!!
So, when the ultrasound tech said... "Oh yeah, it's a boy," this was my chance to pass the test. I smiled and thought of each and every sweet little-man face I had waiting on me at home and knew it was going to be alright. I left the office feeling really good and met all my men for lunch to tell them the news. They were all a bit disappointed, but my cheerful attitude was rubbing off quickly. I think my husband was baffled as to why I was not crying like a basket case. But after lunch, round 2 of the testing began. You see, Satan does not relent easily. He wanted nothing more than to see me fail and throw one big pity party.
Our plan was to go to Target to buy the new baby a going-home outfit no matter what the news. The store has a section with some pink, some green and some blue outfits perfect for newborns. However, for whatever reason, the store had the whole aisle covered in pink outfits. No blue in sight. I thought, that's okay. I'll just go to the baby section and see what they have. I found a few boy items but nothing suitable for a newborn. And then all of a sudden, I did a 360- and I felt like I was surrounded by nothing but pink clothes. I couldn't find anything for my new little man and discouragement rushed in. My eyes filled up with tears. Here I was trying to be Ms. Positive and my breakdown was about to happen in the middle of Target.
I could hear Satan laughing at me... "You wanted a girl, but you didn't get it.... again!!! Hahaha" Hot tears started to stream down my face. He was right. I did really want to buy one of every pink item in sight. And then I thought... "What would kick the devil in the teeth right now more than anything else???" So.... out loud.... in the middle of Target.... I began to sing, "I will bless the Lord at all times. He's good!" And within seconds- Satan was forced to flee. What came rushing in after that was encouragement. A new outlook. And an "Ata girl" from my Maker.
Joyce Meyer once described God's reaction to her disappointment as this, "Every disappointment is an opportunity for reappointment." I think we can gather that disappoint WILL come. You will FEEL emotions. But your adaption to change is what is most important. When you don't get your way, how quickly will you adjust to reality? Psalm 18:30 says, "As for God, His way is perfect." My name wasn't inserted in that verse. Your name is not anywhere in that verse. All that is required is surrender on our part. We have to know that God works EVERYTHING out for our good!!! (Romans 8:28) So, after disappointment... Look Up! And know that He is good!!!
Monday, August 8, 2011
Return of Routine...
What's that I smell... Is it the return of routine??? Our family operates like a well oiled machine when we are submerged in a schedule. Not to say that we can't vacation. We vacay well! But in the in-between times, we as parents do everything we can to avoid the "I'm Bored's."
And in our household, no matter how many things we plan, the second the activity is over... I hear "I'm bored." "I don't want to go home.... home is boring." Ai-Yai-Yai... like fingernails on my chalkboard!!! I could say.... Go outside and play. And in 15 mins, the sweatiest boys in the universe emerge begging for water and Air Conditioner. Summer is HOT and difficult when you can't exist in ongoing vacations. So, this is one Mommy that will not shed a tear about the return of routine!!!
Our routine got kicked off this morning with Brody starting preschool!!! He hopped out of bed this morning like a jack rabbit and said "I start school today!!!" Yes you do buddy. And with who I will argue as the BEST preschool teacher known to man! Ms. Donna is full of energy and super animated and I couldn't wait to get another one of my boys back in her class. Her craftiness puts me to shame and I have saved each and everything Jadin made in her class two years ago. So, to say I have her on a bit of pedestal is an understatement.
Here's to wishing Brody a great year of preschool with the best teacher a Mommy could ask for!!!
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