The Closet

I like to surround myself with little sayings and verses printed out to lift my spirit. I have some sort of little quote in just about every room of my house.

Except for my closet.

If I were to only post the picture above, the quote would read, "a place for everything, and everything in its place." I like to keep my shirts organized by color. (I learned that from my uber-organized hubby)

Then, if I were to show you this picture I should probably have this quote: "Pride goes before the fall." Because, even though a tie rack makes a great place to hang jewelry, I wouldn't be telling you the whole story.

I think the quote that needs to hang on the door of my closet should read: "A normally organized woman who keeps her entire house maintained lives here. But, she is a complex person that needs a place to call her own. The 24 square feet beyond this door are hers and hers alone. Enter at your own risk."

After all, honesty is the best policy...

This, unfortunately, is how the floor of my closet typically looks.

I know.

It's a contradiction from the upper half. Sigh.

I'm complex.

I also know that my mother is shaking her head and thinking that she taught me better. She did. Truly.

Recently, I have been convicted of said 24 square feet of madness. Not because of the typical "you should take better care of your things" reason. Rather, because I now need a sign to hang on my daughters' closets that reads:

The sins of the mother shall be passed on to her daughters.

Yesterday, we were frantically looking for shin guards, a missing Awana shirt, and a library book. Daughter A was in tears because she was leaving for soccer practice within 10 minutes. Daughter B found them in A's closet. I informed both girls that we were ALL cleaning out our closets tomorrow morning.

Daughter B decided to stay home with me while hubby did soccer duty. As soon as they left, Daughter B disappeared upstairs. I assumed she was enjoying a quiet moment to herself. 30 minutes later she came down the stairs and said with a playful grin, "I cleaned her closet for her."

Oh, precious, middle child, peacemaker of the family! What a task. What a gift of love and sacrifice!

What a gift to your mother, too. Even though she was feeling guilty for her own messy closet, you showed her that more important life lessons are still being learned.

So today I am sporting a new sign:

There are more important things in life than a clean closet

Sunday Rest

Always be humble, gentle, and patient,

accepting each other in love.

You are joined together in peace through

the Spirit so make every effort

to continue in this way.

Ephesians 4:2

All Smiles

I have a friend that is facing some difficult challenges. I encouraged her to focus on the things in her life that bring her joy. That's good medicine for all of us, isn't it? I'm not talking major miracles, just the small things in everyday life that trigger a smile.

This is our newest resident. He has created the most beautiful web in the window right next to my desk. I just noticed, as I was typing, that he is much skinnier today than he was a couple of days ago when I snapped this photo. He needs a tasty treat! I'm glad he likes the "bad" bugs. It makes me smile knowing there are less misquitos in my back yard because of him.

Speaking of tasty treats, my second favorite seasonal beverage is now available. If you're reading this from Lesotho Africa, or you happen to not be a coffee drinker you may not be aware that the Pumpkin Spice Lattes are back.

Here in NC, we have to pretend that it is fall, because actually, it is warm enough to do this:
And yes, this pint sized super hero makes me smile. Everyday.

All of these groceries for $14.87 really make me smile. I love triple coupons!!!

Do you have a kitchen gadget that you can't live without? I do:
I use my spoonulas from William Sonoma every single day. Not only are they practical, but they come in a variety of colors. I love variety!

One more thing that makes me smile .... my hubby keeps this collection in our detached garage:
Slight obsession, but that's okay. I don't have to look at it. =) Just in case you were wondering, his artistic talent was put to use here, too. (He drew and painted the sign)

He makes me smile, in so very many ways.

What is something that makes you smile today?

Perspective

It's funny how life can throw you a curve ball. Sometimes those curve balls turn out to be a home run. Other times it can be an embarrassing strike out. Sometimes we work ourselves up before we even get up to the plate, only to find the things we think are going to be difficult really aren't.

Our family just started our 9th week of homeschooling. I thought my kids would be sick of each other. Instead, they get along better than they ever have. I thought I would struggle with being at home all the time. I've become a hermit homebody and love it.

If you had told me two years ago that I would be doing what I'm doing I would have laughed in your face disagreed. It's funny how my perspective has changed. When I felt the tug to homeschool, I worried. I felt unsure, inadequate. I argued with God and boy did I have some good ammo: This will be my first year to have all three in school! Can you say... freedom?!

I need space. Alone time. Personal growth time. Some people like it. I need it. I feared losing my identity. I cherished the adult interaction I got while teaching preschool. I enjoyed having 2 days a week to clean, blog, cook, run errands, or veg out.
Even though I don't have as much time, energy, and brain cells to blog as I would like, my perspective on life has changed. I've seen myself become less self-centered over the last 9 weeks. And you know what? It feels pretty good. I realized that even though I'd love a quiet morning to meet a friend for coffee, the benefits of watching my daughter's confidence bloom is so everlastin' better. My perspective has changed. All that I feared is just a vapor. All those "needs" turned out to be "wants." I didn't lose my identity. I found peace. True, genuine, peace.

I'm not suggesting that you need to homeschool. Do not do it... Don't do it if you are not called.

I am simply suggesting that you listen to what the Lord might be calling you to do.

Don't be afraid of the curve ball. It might just turn out to be a home run.

Our first field trip... so fun!

Happy Fall!!

It's official! My favorite season of the year has arrived!

Apples, cinnamon, pumpkins, nutmeg,

hay rides, cider, crisp air, red, orange, browns,

gourds, leaves, crockpot dinners.

Jeans, sweatshirts, football games, harvest, wood fires.

Autumn

Sunday Rest

I pray that the God who gives hope will fill you

with much joy and peace while you trust in him.

Then your hope will overflow

by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Romans 15:13

The Princess

Once upon a time there was a princess. She loved to prance about in beautiful dresses, twirl in front of the mirror, and change her outfit on an hourly basis. If any type of royal event was discussed, her first question was, "what will I wear?"

Sometimes the constant clothing dilemmas annoyed her mother. Since the queen did not have a household staff to do her laundry, she often found herself quite frustrated at the amount of princess garments needing attention. The queen did, however, enjoy watching her princess take delight in all the fancies. Occasionally, the words "high maintenance" escaped the queen's lips as she considered what the future might hold for her darling beauty.

Never in a million years did she expect to find, posted to the princess' door the following note:

No fashion. Only bugs and mud.

The queen will not be holding court today. She is in mourning.

Finishing the Collection:: 12 years later

{I'm linking up with Kimba's DIY party today!!}

During our 2nd year of marriage, my hubby and I purchased our master bedroom suite. It was, and still is the biggest furniture purchase we've ever made. We decided that if we didn't buy it before we had kids, we probably never would. I'm a girl that tends to change her mind/style quite often. But even after all this time, I still love the set. The only problem was that we didn't buy the matching headboard, thinking it would be easy to "just find a headboard."

Twelve years later, we were still on the hunt. When we decided to paint our bedroom a few weeks ago, I mentioned that I really wanted a headboard. At first we talked about using an old door or some shutters, but we couldn't find "it" at the right price.

What do you do when you can't afford a new headboard? You make one out of scraps:

We looked around at the scraps left over from our front porch renovation, drew some plans, and my honey went to work.
This is the last of the tongue and groove that we used here, here, and here. Talk about stretching the dollar! One side of the wood is smooth (like on the dining room table) and the other side is beadboard.
It turned out beautiful! I am so proud of my man. He even painted it for me. We chose white so that we wouldn't have to try to match the stain of the rest of the furniture, and because it's what we had on hand.

Total cost: $0

Sunday Rest

Without faith no one can please God.

Anyone who comes to God must believe that He is real

and that he rewards those who truly want to find Him.

Hebrews 11:6

Mountains of Fun

We've been on the:

Hubby was thrilled about his first visit here:
It was a tender moment to share with him.;) He was a sport and let me peruse. I returned the favor at the gi-normous hunting store we visited next.

Our Labor Day weekend was stretched into a beautiful 4 day mini-cation here:

It has taken me 2 full days to get back into the swing of things because I keep dreaming of this:

We got our exercise on a nice long hike. With 11 people, we didn't even have to worry about bears. I am sure they were scared of us. Especially when the grown-ups broke out singing "Desperado" at full volume, which led to the great debate over which version is best, The Eagles or Karen Carpenter. Please discuss.

As I face my mountains of laundry and dirty bathrooms, I will ponder these sweet memories:
Have a beautiful day!

Happy Hour

So. I have a slight addiction. The cravings only happen during happy hour (2-4pm). Fortunately, that's when drinks are half price. Now that my kids are with me 24/7, it's a little tricky to sneak one in. But at $.59 apiece, I've learned that it is a cheap way to bribe/treat them when we have to run errands.
They even get to have a medium when mommy takes too long in Target. Yesterday, I had a craving for a root beer float, but my #1 favorite is CRANBERRY LIMEADE.

I'm thinking that there might just be a wee bit 'o sugar in a medium grape slush.
When we turned onto our street, I gladly let them get out of the car and dance their way home.

(Yes, "Dancing in the Street by Joanie Bartels was totally going through my head)

Not to be outdone by a mere slush run, I earned tons of cool-mom points by allowing them to camp out in the backyard ... on a school night.
What's your favorite "happy hour" pic-me-up?