Regaining a Lost Love

How did I get to this?

I remember, LONG AGO, when my main interest in life (other than Jesus, of course) was health. I remember loving my college courses, loving my major - Fitness/Wellness Management - pre-physical therapy.

I remember not WANTING french fries simply because I knew they were bad for me.

I had SUCH self control.

Funny thing is, it's still one of my main interests. I still read books no one else wants to read, subscribe to magazines about health and wellness, give advice to others and drink skim milk.

And yet, here I am. 20 pounds staring at me that didn't used to be here.

maybe more....

And I have to talk myself into exercising, even though I know it will make me feel better.

Now my bodily organs are telling me it's time to renew my interest. Specifically my gallbladder. What a gross name for an organ.

I think if I'm going to regain this former love I need to rename my exercise machine. I call it "The Machine". Sounds fun, huh?

Maybe - "Fit into your pre-baby Clothes Machine"

"Avoid gallbladder surgery Machine"

"Steve"

I love to exercise, really. The problem is when I take a break for a while (I broke my toe three weeks ago. PROBABLY could have started again two weeks ago....) I just don't want to go back. I see the beauty of laziness. Coffee in the chair with a good book.

But then I look down from that coffee and see the belly staring up at me that used to be a little more flat.

Maybe alot more flat.

And my gallbladder speaks to me "Come on, you WANT to keep me. You like me, I do good things for you. All you have to do is change a few things and we can still be friends...."

Do I listen? Or do I slap that punk in the face and tell him he's no friend of mine?

Time will tell.

Thanksgiving Family Togetherness

Mudpies. Leaves blowing. Perfect weather for a front porch afternoon.

Wait, it's a school day. Hmmmm.

You see, Thanksgiving came early to our family. The extended clan all got together last weekend for (one of) our yearly gluttonous holiday. We spent from last Friday to Tuesday at Mamaw's house, we and 17 other people. Mamaw's house is not large. Mamaw's house only has one bathroom. 11 of those 17 (21 including us....) are under 8. If you are in my general vicinity I probably asked you to pray for me before we left.

Mamaw said it well right before everyone else showed up on Friday - her exact quote was "There will be blood". (and there was, quite a bit - me included)

Saturday night my sister-in-law asked me "Do you want to go to Walmart?", to which I replied "Oh, do you need me to go to Walmart?".... and she smilingly said "No, but do you NEED to go to Walmart?" Apparently I was not hiding anything well.

Winner of the happiest baby ever award. Hubby held him alot, I dropped the word "vasectomy" alot.

Auntie brought all the kids silly string. Wasn't that nice....


Absolute glee on the nephew's faces. Not so much on the neices..




So, on Monday everyone but us went home. My family and Mamaw sat on the couch and watched two movies. Without speaking to each other.

Returning at 10:30 Tuesday night after a 4 1/2 hour drive that lasted 6 hours because of rain....

Wednesday I spent the day staring at the wall. Seriously.

Thursday I spent the day making up for all the things I should have done Wednesday while I was staring at the wall.

So, after all that, why do ONE day of school on a Friday when we could spend it sitting on the porch making mudpies?

And in one month..... we get to do it all again.

Housecleaning Madness

A different kind of recalculating today. Between a retreat over the weekend, sicknesses on Sunday and Halloween ALL day yesterday, our house....our house....Ohhhhhhh our house...

If I had less pride I would take pictures of all the rooms, just so you could see the level of my unease. I am one of those people who cannot think straight when everything is messy. I can't concentrate, can't communicate, can't sleep at night when it's THIS bad. I know people who are blissfully oblivious to the mess and I envy those people sometimes. My husband is this way, bless his heart.

I used to strive for perfection. I wanted every room "just so" and was not happy when someone moved the blanket that I put exactly THERE to look just right, who cares if the blanket is actually for keeping warm. But then I had children, or I got older, not sure which one mellowed me.....a little.

But today I am not mellow - I am frustrated. We just had a "CLEAN ALL THE THINGS!" day a few short days ago, and now THIS.

But, God has been teaching me about my homeschooling in this area. Am I genuinely preparing them for life if I am drilling spelling, reading, and math, but NOT expecting them to help out on the home team? I am an "it's easier if I just do it" mom. I know, that's terrible. We have charts, we have had chore schedules, rewards and consequences, but somehow when we moved into this house they never resumed. Today that ends. I'm tired. I need help and I will get it from the little people around me!

The only pictures I have to show is my sweet daughter's room. She is a designer, a planner, an artistic soul who cannot stop creating. We have rest time in the afternoon and she spends it quietly playing with her Polly Pockets, reading books and designing clothes for her dolls... and drawing....and sculpting with tin foil (her new favorite)....and making sculptures with her hangers....it's never ending. As a result...



last times "we" cleaned it I took a picture to remind her how great it could look if we kept it up.



How long do you think it lasted?

Sometimes I stand in her doorway and have sweaty/anxious flashes of what kind of wife she will be one day if I don't help her get this under control! I am the one God put in her life to teach her, and I don't feel like I've been doing a good job of it.

I had already decided that today we would set up some new rules, and clean their rooms, and then God helped me with it! Last night she took one of her little friends in her room to see her birds and she told me that her friend said "Man, your room is trashed". It embarrassed her, sweet thing, and now she WANTS to clean it! Thank you JESUS!

So, yet again I declare it CLEAN ALL THE THINGS day. And maybe this time it will stick..... here we go! Wait, maybe I should drink coffee first. Lots of coffee.