Women Inspiring Me Today . . .

When I first started this blog, I did it for a variety of reasons, most of which were cloudy even for me. I love to write, I love my kids. It kind of seemed like a no-brainer and I really thought I might only have 2 readers, my mom and my sister. I'm so glad that's not the case because this blog has become an outlet for me to process many things that are happening in my life and I hope that in seeing how badly I sometimes handle stuff I might encourage another mom out there or make her laugh with the antics of my 3 unruly children. After all, I love to read other womens' blogs even more than I like to write my own. Maybe you do too.

The last couple of months have been eye-opening for me in many ways. I began couponing as kind of a test-case for myself to see if I could save us a few bucks. The blessings have been amazing. I have saved our family literally hundreds of dollars so far in ways I couldn't have imagined and I am still getting the hang of this thing. I had wanted to save some money from our grocery budget to give us more breathing room, but already I have found that it enables us as a family to give more to others in small ways. 'Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.' 2 Corinthians 9:7. When you are a good steward of the gifts God gives you, it becomes a very easy to give cheerfully. I always wanted to give more, but knew that providing for my family was just as important. I am starting to stockpile some key things that are costly on a monthly basis and this is freeing me up for bigger things. 'In the house of the wise are stores of choice food and oil, but a foolish man devours all he has.' Proverbs 21:20. For some reason, having extra deodorant and body wash on hand so that I can give it away when I want is really awesome. It may sound corny, but it's very true. And I am starting to see that all these little things are a ministry all their own.

Through my search for the best couponing sites and blogs, I have found some really amazing women. Women I have never, and probably will never, meet. Women who are inspiring me. Every day when I go through my coupon sites to look for good deals, I also look for new posts from these other blogs I have found. These are women who are using their blogs and their lives to help other women in small but significant ways. They are ministries in and of themselves. They are serving in ways that I couldn't have imagined. It's amazing to me how God uses everything to His purpose. Even the internet! Anyway, I thought you might like to check some of these out.

First, Women Living Well (www.womenlivingwell.org), by Courtney. This is the woman I mentioned recently in the Rachel Ray video clip. Courtney blogs on everything from homeschooling her children to honoring God in your marriage. The blog has no main focus other than loving God, so I never know what I am going to find when I open up her page, but I find that I am often inspired by just one comment she makes rather than the whole of her message. This has also been the source of many other blogs that I have found and enjoy. It might not be your cup of tea every day, but I guarantee that if you are looking for a little encouragement, you will find it here at some point.

Second, The Casabella Project (www.casabellaproject.com), by Myra. This blog makes me smile. I am not a crafty person by nature, but Myra makes me believe that I can be. She posts about cool, thrifty, do-it-yourself decorating. Even though I haven't found the nerve to try one of these projects yet, you can bet I will eventually. And even though one of her posts wasn't titled 'Spray paint your fireplace', some of her other posts DID inspire me to go through with that particular project I had been considering for a long time and had been nervous about. She also posts about improvements she is making in her own 1950's home and believe me, I can relate to the challenges she faces. If you are looking for inexpensive, but BEAUTIFUL, ways to brighten your home, I encourage you to check this site out.

Third, Smockity Frocks (www.smockityfrocks.com), by Connie. This site is not for the faint of heart. This woman is raising and homeschooling eight, yes I said 8, children. This is what she says 'I write here about everything from serving a risen Savior to serving mashed potatoes and gravy'. And she does. Not every post is for me. Today it was about substituting flax seed for eggs while baking which I am pretty sure I won't ever do. However, when she posts about potty training, I pay attention because the woman has 8 kids. Connie is part of a '4 moms' link up with 4 other homeschooling moms with large families. I have peeked in on the other blogs (I swear one of them has 10 kids and they sleep communally in 2 rooms, but I wasn't entirely sure I was reading that right). There are great tips in here about teaching your children everything from how to switch out a roll of toilet paper to how to bake bread from scratch, and some good tips for teaching reading to kids as well. It's a little out there, but when I get discouraged trying to figure out what to do with my 3 kids and 3 pets, I like to read how she handles 8 kids and a gaggle of pets, including a new batch of chicks that they are raising and I think maybe hoping to sell and use their own eggs. More than I would do, I know.

Fourth, Keeping the Kingdom First (www.kingdomfirstmom.com), by Alyssa. Now, as far as coupon info sites go, this is not the best. There are many, many sites that will post every single deal out there for you and this one is not it. What it is, however, is a great guide to living frugally so there are some posts about great deals, they are just usually duplicates of what are already out there. What you will find though is information about 'how' to coupon, tips for helping you get out of debt, and posts about honoring God in your marriage and in motherhood. She recently posted on modeling good Stewardship of your finances to your children, I loved it. Alyssa was once a single mom, like me, so I have a soft spot for her. She does a lot of posts (or has others guest-post) about do-it-yourself stuff you would never think of, such as face wash and laundry detergent. These can both save you money and de-chemical your home, which is what she is working towards. Anyway, I like it and you might too.

Fifth, Comfy in the Kitchen (comfynkitchen.blogspot.com), by Janelle. I just found this one through Courtney at Women Living Well, but I am super excited about it. This woman serves the Lord through food. First, she cooks a LOT of meals, from scratch. She delivers meals to multiple families on a regular basis, elderly in her church, etc. and always to new moms. Then she blogs about what she's making. Step by step instructions to make good, homecooked meals for the not-so-savvy-in-the-kitchen women. She's out to help the crazy mom with an infant on her hip and a toddler around her ankles and newly-wed women with no clue how to put green beans on the table that look like they didn't get poured out of a can and boiled down to soup. She never serves her family the leftovers either, they get the best of her as well. Now THAT's a ministry! I always say, I can't do much, but I can cook - this woman takes it to a whole new level. Loving this new find so much and totally gonna try the cream puff dessert and cheesy bread I found there this week. They look sooooo yummy.

And finally, The Meanest Mom (themeanestmom.blogspot.com), by Jana. Jana and her family recently relocated to Orlando, FL from I-don't-know-where, which is about when I caught up with her. I can't even remember how I found this site, but I am SOOOO glad I did. She and her husband have 4 children. The oldest 3 were born in the same calendar year - 2 of them twins, and then she had a 4th who is currently 2. This blog is hysterical. Jana has a way of telling a story in a very concise way (something I am very jealous of since I obviously stray to the wordy), and she has a very strong sense of sarcasm and irony. She obviously loves her kids a whole lot and through her witty, quick stories you get the sense that she is hiding her love of all things behind a dry irony, but it's effective. These posts are very quick reads, but so much fun. I urge you to check it out and laugh with me.

I also look forward to posts by some of my dear friends who blog, they always encourage me and inspire me. I wanted to show you though, some of the things that are currently inspiring me to be MORE. These women are blogging and ministering and serving the Lord in ways that I wouldn't have thought of and in a medium that most of us take for granted every day. They show me every day that God can use each of us, even in the tiniest of ways. I'm still in search of what God has given me for spiritual gifts. I'm still in search of what He wants from me every day in His purpose and plan for me. I hope He is going to use me, is using me, in ways that I can't even see right now.

I stumble through my posts, and I don't even know how to use all the tools here at my disposal. For example, I have no idea if the 'Link's that I put out here will work or show up on this post, but I hope you check out some of these sites anyway. Maybe they will inspire you too.

God Bless!

Morning Conversation with a 3 year old . . .

After Riley had been up about 20 minutes this morning, he came into my office and said 'Momma, I will really love some popcorn.' like he was 30, instead of 3.

'Popcorn? How about breakfast first?'

'Yes, I really love popcorn for breakfast'

'How about something healthy first?'

'Yes, popcorn is healthy'

'No, popcorn is not really healthy. Let's have some healthy breakfast first.'

'Yes, popcorn for breakfast. It's healthy. You got some popcorn!' (Big grocery shopping was on Sunday - I have everything.)

'Sweetie, I know I got popcorn. I don't mind you having popcorn for a snack, but you need to have something healthy first. How about a banana?'

'Okay, ONE bite of banana.'

'A whole banana'

'ONE bite of banana'

'One WHOLE banana'

Riley picks banana. I peel banana. I remind him to eat whole banana. He eats one bite and leaves the remainder on my bedroom floor and then tells me he has done this.

'Okay, I eat ONE bite of banana. Now, I will really love popcorn.'

'Five bites of banana, Riley'

'Noooo-hooo'

I put my foot down. I insist that no popcorn will be made until banana is eaten.

'Momma. I'm really, really mad. We are so mad at each other.'

'I'm sorry you are mad at me Riley. Let me know when you are done being mad at me and you are ready to eat something healthy.'

I make my way back to office and find empty banana peel. It has moved all by itself. Riley is currently pouting on living room floor. I suspect one of two dogs as banana eating culprit and discard peel.

I venture to kitchen to refill coffee. Riley has sensed correctly that I might be serious and is looking for his banana.

'Where is my banana?'

'It's gone. I think one of the dogs ate it.'

'Nooooo. Not fair. I want my banana in the floor.'

'When you leave food in the floor, the dogs eat it. I'm sorry. Would you like another banana?'

'No. I want MY banana.'

I start typing this blog and a few minutes later Riley ventures in.

'Momma, I don't want breakfast. I just want a nack.' Riley still calls it a nack instead of snack.

Snack can sometimes be code in our house for a healthy option.

'What kind of snack?'

'Popcorn!'

'Sorry sweetie, you need to have something healthy first. We don't eat popcorn for breakfast.'

Much pouting and whining ensues. I keep typing. It gets quiet.

'Momma! I want Shrek!' Said in an almost demanding way, since I wasn't taking his demands for popcorn seriously.

'Okay, I'll put Shrek on.' Riley chose another battle. One he could win. He's stopped asking for popcorn. In about 10 minutes, he'll be ready to eat again and will probably be more amenable to a healthy option. He might even forget all about popcorn, at least until lunch time.

Scooter just wandered out of his bedroom and came to ask me if we were having a party in my office.

'Mom, is Tyler here?'

'No. He's at school.'

'I thought he was eating breakfast. Was that Riley?'

'Yes.'

'What did you tell him 5 bites of?' Guess he was laying in bed listening for a while before getting up.

'A Banana. I told him he had to eat something healthy for breakfast before he had a snack.'

'What snack did he want?' Said with a suspicious air, like it might be something he wanted too and wanted to gauge my response.

'Popcorn'

Big, sly grin from Scooter.

'Popcorn? You can't have popcorn for breakfast!'

Makes sense to me and the four year old who likes popcorn when it's made, but never thinks to ask for it. Not to poor Riley who loves popcorn and would eat it all day.

Some days it's tough being the little guy who doesn't get to make any decisions.


God Bless You and Keep You Today!

Riley , the instigator and the conqueror . . .

I can't seem to find an hour these days to sit down and blog, which kind of makes me crazy since it has definitely become a mode for me to process over the past months, but things are so hectic. I worked at a sales conference last week: a spattering of hours over several days, checking people in and directing them to break out sessions and bathrooms, answering inane questions over and over again. I've tried to help out my in-laws with a move, major cleaning and a garage sale. Grocery shopping was way overdue! And in the mean time, I was still trying to process all the information that I am both gathering on my own and being bombarded with regarding the education meltdown and multiple issues facing our family at the moment. Add to the mix a sudden influx of hand-me-down furniture that is requiring yet another round of reorganization and the ever constant job of sorting and clipping coupons to keep me below the grocery budget and time is in short supply. And somewhere in all this mess, I actually found time to take the kids to the park and have a very overdue date night with my husband.

Shew! I had the best of intentions this morning to sit down and spend some serious time catching you up on almost everything before munchkins arose, but instead I spent almost an hour shopping for personalized stationery that is on special for FREE, yes free, today and tomorrow. Had to have it as I love that kind of thing and did I mention it was free?

The list is long today - I need to get busy planning Scooter & Tyler's birthday bash for the end of this month and despite getting bathrooms scrubbed yesterday and some very dusty surfaces cleaned, my floors are begging for a mop and hot water. But what I really want to do is just enjoy my kids, because they deserve it. We hit two little, but significant, milestones in the last 12 hours.

First, Scooter. Scooter takes changes very hard. He doesn't transition well in just about any circumstance. About a week and a half ago, we finally got Scooter and Riley their new beds (thanks to absolutely fabulous friend Mandy's help!) which are bunk beds. Originally, we were going to put Tyler up top and have the two younger kids safely on the ground, but Scooter insisted that he really wanted the top bunk. OK. Problem is - every time we switch a sleeping arrangement, Scooter takes a very long time to readjust and get back to wherever he was before on the spectrum of going to bed on his own and falling asleep without assistance. And it was a bunk bed! Riley has had an adjustment period too, but nothing like Scooter. He wanted to wake up in his bed, sleep there overnight, but not fall asleep in the bed. He would start there, make several trips out for kisses and sips of water and eventually would break down crying and end up drifting off in my bed or on the couch. Sigh.

I really estimated it could take a month or two to make this work. But, the night before last he decided to sleep with Riley on the bottom bunk. I had to sit with both of them while they fell asleep, but it was an accomplishment because it was the first time Scooter had fallen asleep in his own room in over a week. It looked like last night was going to be a repeat performance. I got an unexpected boost of help though, from Riley.

Riley loves the top bunk and has even mastered the art of turning around and planting his feet on the ladder without tumbling to the ground. He would play up there all day long if we let him. Since I really don't need to start taking something like Valium every hour to keep me calm though, we insist that someone be in the room with him when he decides to go up top. He knows the rule and obeys it consistently which is keeping me from having to remove the ladder during the day and put it up on the top bunk, thankfully.

He would sleep up there if he could though and on the second night the bed was in his room, he moaned repeatedly to his dad that he 'never ever got to sleep up there' like it was an injustice that had been occurring for all of his 3 short years on this earth. Actually, to save myself the time of explanation to him over and over again, I would probably let it happen if it wasn't for the fact that Riley is a night wanderer. The thought of him trying to find the ladder and get down in the dark of night with no one aware makes me cringe, so he's gonna wait a couple of years for that particular pleasure.

Riley thinks the chance is imminent though and he is also proving to be pretty determined in finding solutions to his ever-present littlest brother challenges. Last night when he was faced with the prospect of his brother cramming into his twin sized bed with him again, it occurred to him that if Scooter slept down, no one would be up. It was a definite 'Aha!' moment for Riley. He announced that he was going to sleep up there. He started climbing the ladder. Of course, Scott and I were not going to actually let this happen, but Scooter forgot that. Scooter thought his little brother was going to take his bed and that was not acceptable to him. Up he went. I offered to lay down with him if he would stay put and sleep there. He agreed. (I had tried this during the first couple of nights, but Scooter would abandon me and I have lost count of the times I hit my head on the ceiling.) I climbed the ladder and lay down. Twenty minutes later, with a few interruptions for potty breaks and searches for just the right stuffed sleeping buddy, Scooter fell asleep. In his new bed. Yay! That might not seem like such a big deal to some of you out there, but for Scooter to make that kind of a transition in under 2 weeks is a real accomplishment around here. Now I can work on him falling asleep without me up there, but this is a HUGE first step.

Our other little milestone was all Riley. After having already left my brood twice to run small errands we discovered just before bedtime that Riley was completely out of pull-ups. Riley is at the stage of potty training that he wears underwear all day, but a pull-up at night. When Scooter was at this stage, we eventually left him in underwear and had him sleep on an under-pad over his sheet so he could learn to get up if he needed, etc. Riley doesn't like to sleep on them and still wakes up with a wet pull-up almost every morning. I have been stalling on finding a solution for this conundrum even though I know I need to take care of it soon. So, pull-ups for the moment. Which we were out of. (I realize, yes, that if I was a bit more organized I would have already bought the things when grocery shopping or on my 2 errands last night. Oops, I'm not that organized.)

Bed time was late last night and I had already been out twice. I wasn't making a diaper run. This has happened before. Usually, we just double up on the underwear, try to slide an under-pad under Riley after he's asleep, and assume we will be changing sheets in the morning. I told Riley it would be really great if he didn't wet the bed. He said okay, but really, I wasn't expecting much. He wouldn't let me double up the underwear. I forgot about the under-pad. Extra laundry here we go.

Riley wandered into my office this morning mid shopping spree and I hugged and kissed him. Told him good morning. I turned back to my computer while he hunkered down with the cube puzzle he has been working relentlessly for the last 2 days. Then I remembered. Oh yeah - the underwear. 'Riley, do we need to change you?' 'No.' 'Are you wet sweetie? Remember, no pull-up?' 'No.' 'You're dry?' 'Yes.' 'Really? Let me see! You're dry!' 'Yes!' I wish you could here how Riley says 'yes' because it adds so much to this moment. He has this almost secretive smile and a proud lilt to his voice and he draws out the 's' like 'Yesssss'. He was dry, dry, dry. He ran off to the bathroom for a morning pee and I sat there beaming.

I beamed for a good 5 minutes. Then I realized that I was now going to have to figure out if he was really ready for the pull-up break or if this was a fluke thing. Time to stop procrastinating and finish this potty training thing once and for all, even if it means washing sheets every day for the next 2 months. Ahhhh, motherhood. Not for the faint of heart, or the squeamish.

Anyway, Riley was inadvertently responsible for 2 really great moments this week. Not to take away from Scooter's accomplishment - that was awesome, but it was spurred forward by Riley's adventurous spirit. Regardless, they both deserve some extra mommy time today and the floors might just have to wait to be mopped until Thursday.

Thanks and God Bless!