Redeeming the Time

I I read a blog post recently by Patty over at babynumber10,  entitled "The Little Moments" that just hasn't let me go. Patty is a stay at home mom to 11 kids(!) and baby number 10 has down syndrome.  She chronicles some of their daily life on instagram as well as her blog.  This particular post is nothing earth shattering, she just reminds us there are little moments in our day we can redeem and use to be productive.   It is just practical, and maybe even for some blatantly obvious, but for ADD people (like me), it challenged me to think.  To think about how I spend my time going throughout my morning and to rewire my natural tendency. 

For those who don't understand what it is like to live in an ADD brain let me fill you in somewhat.  We spend a lot of our time feeling overwhelmed.  Overwhelmed by what all there is to do, and feeling like there is no clear direction in which to do it.  This in turn leads to avoiding issues, like getting the mail because you don't want to have to deal with sorting and paying out all the bills from your daughter's birth (by the way don't do this, it leads to a VERY full mail box and a grumpy mail man).  I do little things like this every day, avoiding them because when I think of everything that needs to get done all together and the time it is going to take me to do all of those things I freak out a little in my head.

Now I know all of you rational, sane, organized people are sitting there thinking "if she would just do it when she first thinks about it, she could avoid this problem" to which I would tell you you're absolutely right.  I know this, deep down I really do, and I desire to change which is why I think this post struck a cord with me and hasn't left.  Here is an excerpt from her post.

Keepers of the home have a lot on their collective plates - and if we were to enter that noble profession, Mrs. Smith forewarned us, we should continually be looking for opportunities to seize the "little minutes" of our day.

What are "little minutes", you say ??

Glad you asked.

Little minutes are the moments in between the big minutes ... that make up our days.

If big minutes are the chunks of time we spend each day devoted to the big tasks : washing the dishes, folding the laundry, cooking dinner, mopping floors .... then little minutes are the moments we have in-between these things : straightening a bookshelf as we return a book to its place, grabbing all the pencils in the junk drawer and securing them with a rubber band as we answer a phone call, wiping the spots off the mirror with a paper towel as we brush our teeth - so many little ways to redeem the time.

Mrs. Smith taught us that there were untold little minutes in every day - and if we paid attention and made room for them, they would be one of our greatest keys to success in the art of homemaking.

So now for the past few weeks I will randomly hear my own version of a mantra as I tell myself to "redeem the time" and try to do those little things when I actually see they need doing.  Redeeming the time comes in the tasks of hanging up clothes when I am putting away all other laundry, wiping window seals in the dining room at least once a week while I am wiping the table down, taking items back to the appropriate rooms, etc.  

So often as a homemaker I feel like I am running in place and falling further and further behind.  This job has made me realize I can't do everything, my house may not ever look "pinterest worthy" or the way I would choose for it to, I mean come on, we live here.  However, in the middle of the love, and chaos, the big moments, and skinned knees, there are ways to attempt to stay on top of stuff and make our home an enjoyable place to be for everyone.  

All About Owen



I know we did some "Read about Reid" posts in the past and now I think little Owen needs a turn.  I couldn't think of anything clever to title it with an "O" so I am open to suggestions if anyone has one.  Anyway, back to the reason for this post, to tell you what we know so far about our sweet boy in just these two short weeks.

 

 

Owen in his "Rock and Play"! We love this thing!

1.  I prayed long and hard the whole pregnancy that Owen would be a good eater and sleeper, and he those were answered.  He is a CHAMPION sleeper, something I am so thankful for.  He will eat and fall right back to sleep at night.  He is a decent eater, not as avid of one as his brother was (who would eat until he threw up), he usually eats really good off of one side, and then decides its not much worth it on the other side and will get fed up and just spit the milk out. 

 

2.  He doesn't seem to have the extremely sensitive gag reflex his brother does.  He still spits up and gets the hiccups when we lay him flat after he eats, but nothing like what Reid did!  

 



Best Daddy around!

3.  He is a strong little boy, already practicing holding his head up.

 

4.  As of now he appears more laid back and easy going than Reid was.  Of course this could be attributed to the fact he was born 5 days earlier than Reid was (17 days before his due date).  He stays awake right after 2 or so feedings, but just can't handle waking up after the others.  I am expecting this to change though.  

 

 

 

5.  He doesn't really ever cry (yet).  Like his brother (and even more so) grunting is his love language, and he will sit there about 20 minutes before a feeding at night and grunt and get worked up for eating.

 

 

6.  He hates a sponge bath!  Though I have yet to meet a baby who really likes it. 

 

7.  He is my snuggle bunny.  He loves to be up close to you, and enjoys falling asleep tight in your arms.  I am totally ok with this, as Reid much more prefered to be out and looking around at everything.  

 

 



9.  He is a "red man" and will turn beet red at times!  Kyndall told me he looks like Bob the tomatoe off of veggie tales when this happens!

10.  We went to his 2 week appointment at the doctor and according to Dr. Hudson, he "looks awesome"!  He is 8lbs 2 oz, and in the 54th percentile for his length!  So grateful for  my hubby's tall genes! 

11.  Nursing is going SSSSOOOO much better this time around.  I think I am in a much better place mentally, more ready for this baby, and I had really prayed it up.  I just remember hating breastfeeding with Reid and giving him a bottle when he was like 3 days old!  Not so with this little man, already two weeks old and no bottle yet.  I am so dreading giving him one too.  I think this is probably because in my head I associate him having a bottle with me going back to work, and that is something I just don't want to even think about/prepare for. 

Of course, life is still going on in different areas than just this little guy, namely in the life of one very good big brother!  I am not going to lie and say it wasn't an adjustment/ still is one, but Reid has been an awesome big brother!  He is my big helper, throwing away diapers, putting clothes in the hamper, "obey mommy and daddy" on a regular basis, and just loves Owen to pieces.  He gives him sweet sugars, and tells me when he needs his paci (which in his mind is often lol), and can't wait for him to really play with him. 



Trying to tire this boy out by writing "R-E-I-D"

 

What has been difficult is getting his schedule coordinated, and tiring Reid out when I am exhausted myself.  Reid has at times not napped (he will just stay in his bed and talk the entire time) and that makes for rough nights.  I swear he knows when Mark isn't going to be home because that is the day he does it.  We are working through it.  The mornings are the hardest when I know I have to get up and get Reid up so he will nap, even though I am dog tired! 

He ate all his lunch so he got a "pea-butter 'poon" for dessert (peanut butter spoon for those not fluent in Reid)

All in all I am so thankful to have two precious boys!  They are gifts from God and I wouldn't change them for the world.  I pray I can continue to be the mom God has called me to be with two and that I would enjoy these years mothering in the trenches, because I know that even though the days are long, the years are short, and I don't want to totally wish them away!



 



Do Everything

God is just funny awesome sometimes.  Even in the little areas of our life, He just chooses to show us His love, and that He is very involved in our lives, yes, even the life of a stay at home mom.  Yesterday the hubby and I went on a crossover trip where we took the 6th going into 7th grade students who are going into the youth group to a water park.  This water park is called Splash Kingdom, and it encourages it's patrons to first Seek the Kingdom using Matthew 6:33 in it's advertisements.  They play Christian radio throughout the park all day long.  It is a small park with a great family atmosphere.  So much so we even let the kids go around in pairs or more if they wanted.  All in all a great trip.

Back to my story.  We were on the way back, listening to KLOVE, the local christian radio station when I heard the lyrics to a song come up and then the artist start talking about them over the song.  I was trying to listen to Mark, listen to the lyrics over the artist, and all the time thinking, he is singing about my life!  I never caught the name of the song, but I knew it was Steven Curtis Chapman.  I said I would look it up later.  As soon as we got home, we picked up the baby, showered, and headed across the street for a prayer meeting and fellowship with some friends.  It was a great time, something I am so thankful to God for.  Once that was over, Reid and I headed to the youth building to go get Mark, who had left the get together early to go practice praise band for the next day, and found him, along with my brother, playing in there.  Adam was downloading some songs from his computer to a jump drive for Mark to download.  I took it from him, then once we were finally home and had the baby in bed, I decided to upload them to my laptop.  One of the CD of songs that was on there was Steven Curtis Chapman's new CD Re:created.  And wouldn't you know the first song on there was the one I had heard earlier!!!!  It is called "Do Everything" and I fell in love right away.  Here is the first part of the lyrics.  Doesn't the first part just sound like the life of a stay at home mom?

You’re picking up toys on the living room floor
for the 15th time today
Matching up socks and sweeping up lost
Cheerios that got away
You put a baby on your hip and color on your lips
and head out the door
And while I may not know you I bet I know you
Wonder sometimes does it matter at all
We’ll let me remind you it all matters just as long as you

Do everything you do to the glory of the One who made you
Cause He made you to do
Every little thing that you do to bring a smile to His face
And tell the story of grace
With every move that you make
And every little thing you do

It was such a good reminder and such wonderful way for God to speak straight to my heart, that yes what I am doing matters.  Yes following His will for my life and staying at home matters to Him, it matters in eternity, I am making a difference even if it is just sweeping up the Cheerios that got away.  It also helps me to keep right attitude as do stay at home, that I am supposed to do everything as if working for Him and not for men (and wouldn't you know that is also what I read this morning in my quiet time in Col 3:23).  

All in all it has been a great week for me.  I have been working on not keeping tally and finding joy in doing things for my family.  It has been my prayer and God has been so faithful to provide.  It isn't an overnight thing, it has been a process, but it's wonderful.  

Here is the whole song if you want to read it.  You can also go here to listen to it, and here to hear the story behind the song.

You’re picking up toys on the living room floor
for the 15th time today
Matching up socks and sweeping up lost
Cheerios that got away
You put a baby on your hip and color on your lips
and head out the door
And while I may not know you I bet I know you
Wonder sometimes does it matter at all
We’ll let me remind you it all matters just as long as you

Do everything you do to the glory of the One who made you
Cause He made you to do
Every little thing that you do to bring a smile to His face
And tell the story of grace
With every move that you make
And every little thing you do

OOoh ooooh oooooh

Maybe you’re that guy with the suit and tie
Maybe your shirt says your name
You may be hooking up mergers, cooking up burgers
But at the end of the day

Little stuff big stuff in between stuff
God sees it all the same
And while I may not know you I bet I know you
Wonder sometimes does it matter at all
We’ll let me remind you it all matters just as long as you do

Everything you do to the glory of the One who made you
Cause He made you
To do every little thing that you do to bring a smile to His face
And tell the story of grace with every move that you make
And every little thing that you do

Well maybe you’re sitting in math class
Maybe anekatips on a mission in the Congo
Maybe you’re working at the office
Singing along with the radio
Maybe you’re dining at a five star
Or feeding orphans in Myanmar
Anywhere and everywhere you are
Whatever you do it all matters
So do what you do and don’t ever forget
to do

Everything you do to the glory of the One who made you
Cause He made you to do
Every little thing that you do to bring a smile to His face
And tell the story of grace as you do
Everything you do to the glory of the One who made you
Cause He made you to do
Every little thing that you do to bring a smile to His face
And tell the story of grace with every move that you make
And every little thing that you do

Ooh oooooh
Every little thing you do

I Like This Article

I was reading another blog and the author had tagged this article.  I went and read it and thought how true it was.  I am not an advocate for having huge families, nor am I against it.  I think it is something you pray over.  However, this article was very convicting about the place children hold in our society and about the place they hold in our hearts.  I hope you take the time to hop on over and read a little bit.

A Day In The Life

Hello dear Readers!  Hope you are all having a glorious week!  I just wanted to give you a little update, tomorrow morning at 7:00 A.M. Mark and I are departing to go on a mission trup to Chicago.  We are going to participate in a organization called World Changers.  Basically we are going to do construction work all week.  We leave tomorrow (Saturday July 9th) and return the next Sunday evening.  Needless to say, blogging will be sparse at best.  Not to leave you hanging, I have decided to leave you with a parting post about a day in the life of Reid.

A typical day starts out much the same way.  We wake up in the morning.  Right now I am still working on getting his body clock set.  Some days he wakes up at 6:30 ready to go, but this Mama is not!  If we can make it to 7:30 or 8, I call it a good day!  Typically we are up between 6:30 and 8, with the first event being breakfast.  I have been making him cereal every morning, but about the past week or so I have been giving him a half a banana followed by a 6 ounce bottle.

Yes usually every morning he is in just a diaper!  I love it!

I love the fact that he is able to hold his bottle by himself now!  Makes my life about 10 times easier!  

Because of this new found trick, it left me able to do what I do best, play on the internet!  I have discovered Pintrest, and LOVE IT!  Lydia, you should definitely investigate it!  

While I am being the good housewife and cleaning away finishing up my online duties Reid generally crawls around and plays.  He is pulling up on EVERYTHING, and getting up and down by himself.  I tried to help him sit back down from the coffee table the other day, but he shook me off (literally) and then proceeded to use the next 2 minutes to succeed at the task by himself.  I think we have a Mr. Independent!  

He is a lightening fast crawler and loves to be able to go where he wants to go!  This is also good practice at learning the words "No, No,"  "Come Here, " and "Mommy will spank you if you______."  Of course by spank we mean swat his hand, but you get the picture.  

After his crawl around play time I put him in his exersaucer so I am able to get tasks done without worrying about where he is/ what he is getting into.  This usually ensures a good 20 minutes or so of uninterrupted  time in which I work lightening fast.  Sometimes it is longer and on those days I get much done!  

After a while he will want out so I set him out and we play or read for a little bit.  I know it is time for our morning nap when I sit him down and he starts crying because of it.  This is usually between 10-11.  The boy has been trying to phase out one nap, but he needs both!  Generally he is down for around an hour and half.  I then again turn into the cleaning woman and begin to do my chores (unless by chance there is an excellent book series or two I am reading lol).  I have not been following my note card system because our days are so crazy in the summer, but plan to start up again when we return.  

Once he is up it is usually around lunch time (depending on the exact time he went down).  Daddy has come home and is eating lunch with us, so he gets to see the Reid-Man then.  We have been trying all kinds of new stuff this past week for our meals, different fruits and meats are some of the faves.  However today we did sweet potatoes by Gerber followed by a bottle because we were in a hurry.  

He loves sweet potatoes!

This day also happened to be the day he turned 9 months old!  I cannot believe how big he has gotten in such a short time!  He is turning into more of a big boy toddler then my little baby!  It makes me sad!  However I am so loving this stage in life he is at right now, it is the most fun!  I'm sure I will be saying that for years, but for the time being it is the honest truth.  

Since it was his 9 month birthday, we of course had to take our pictures!  After pictures we were planning on going swimming so I went ahead and took the pictures in his swim outfit A) because it was close to the 4th of July, and B) because it is just so adorable!  He did rather well, and is quite the ham!

Of course being 9 months old comes with it's own tricks and scares!  He has figured out how to blow air out of his nose and thinks it is hilarious!  He also loves to attempt crawling off the rocker while we are taking pictures when he has had enough!  Mom doesn't like this new trick very much!  

We then headed over to my aunt and uncle's house to go swimming with my cousin Ty.  Ty is part of the youth group here where Mark is the youth minister.  Luckily part of Mark's job is to hang out with students, so after Ty helped him mow the church lawn that morning he went to his house to help him finish chores and then to take a little dip in their pool.  He even let me lay out for a minute, until Reid got fussy and needed to go take another nap.  

Gotta lather this white boy up!

Isn't it beautiful!  I could stay here forever! 

"Uncle" Cousin Ty

Daddy with our floaty!

Practicing our moves from swim lessons!

By this time it is 3 in the afternoon.  We go home and sneak another nap in for an hour and a half or so while I fix dinner or reheat leftovers.  Dad makes it home and we eat our dinner.  This night was actually kind of fun and different.  Usually Reid eats before us and then crawls around while we eat.  However, our schedules meshed to where we were all eating together at the same time!  Woohoo!  We ate chopped beef sandwhiches (which he loved, along with the potato salad and beans!), but I forgot to get a picture!  I have some with my phone I will upload later.  Because of the new experience of table foods, combined with feeding himself good gooey, saucy, yummy foods, Reid was a mess!  So at 6 when we finished dinner we took him straight to the bath!  This is slightly earlier than usual.  Typically bath time is what kicks off our bed time routine at 7.  Daddy is the bath giver and the best one!

The Sapphire ring on the right is my birthday present from Daddy and Reid!  Isn't it gorgeous?

You can kind of see all the chopped beef on his face.

We then dress him for bed, read a bible story, and give him a bowl of cereal followed by a bottle that he falls asleep to.  By the end of the day he is out like a light, especially after swimming!

So there you have it, a semi- typical summer day for us!  Stay tuned, there will be more to come!  However, I have officially stayed up until 12:15 when I  have to get up at 6 and finish any last minute packing and loading for the trip tomorrow. 

Struggling with Self-Image

Today’s post is going to be just a little bit different.  It’s about something that has been on my mind for the past 18 months (since I got pregnant), and lately has just been on my heart.  It is the ever dreaded issue of self-image.  This is something that I know millions of girls and women all over the world struggle with to some degree, something that I have really been dealing with myself since my pregnancy and the birth of my precious baby boy, something I am having to place t in God’s hands.

With it being summer the issue of my self-image is more promenant than ever, I mean hello, it is swimsuit season.  And while I do not don a bikini or anything such as that, it is hard not to start giving yourself the once over, and for me, noticing you shortcomings.  Especially after having a baby. . .

Maybe I should start kind of at the beginning.  I have always been a short, scrawny kid, like didn’t break 100 pounds until high school short and scrawny.  That was just me though, part of who I was, and I was ok with it, I really was naive and didn’t know any different.  By the end of high school though I had put on some weight, nothing of magnitude, but I was at my heaviest.  That all changed when I went to college.  I went to college and instead of gaining the freshman 15, I lost it.   Then I decided to transfer to East Texas Baptist University the next year.  On move in day I caught a summer cold from my mom, and never really got well (let’s face it, I wasn’t sleeping enough to get entirely back on my feet.  I mean do you really sleep well when you live 24/7 with your best friends?) As a result I lost 15 more pounds give or take a few.  I know what you’re thinking, that is unhealthy.  Believe me I had the weight to lose, and I was back to a healthy weight range.

Now fast forward, through the wedding, and the first year and a half of marriage and not a whole lot changes.  I am happy, satisfied, and active.  Throughout college and high school God really protected my heart when it came to the issue of body image.  I by no means had the perfect body, but like I said, I didn’t know enough to care.  However, when I got pregnant unexpectedly with our little man, the body image monster hit me full force.  Perhaps it was because the pregnancy was a surprise, or the concept of my body was going to change, or the fear of "will I ever get my old body back" that I was okay with having, either way, the devil took this issue in my mind and began to run with it.

As a result, I didn’t really like pregnancy that much.  I actually had one of the best pregnancies ever, I wasn’t sick, Reid was active, but at the same time, calm,he came early, his labor and delivery were quick (although NOT painless), I mean I really had it great, and I thank God for that blessing.  However, coping with the changes my body was going through was tough.  You see, I always thought I would be this cute little petite pregnant woman, with the baby bump showing up in all the right places (nice and low and cute), and I would just be precious.  This was NOT the case.  at week 8 I started wearing a pair of maternity jeans because I was SSSOO bloated.  When I did start showing he was “riding high” so I wasn’t even the cute pregnant girl that I thought I would be.  In my mind I felt like people couldn’t tell that I was pregnant, they were all just thinking that I didn’t take care of myself and “let myself go” (bear with me, I promise the rant will be over here in a second). They say “hindsight is 20/20″ and I can now see it was the enemy coming to steal my joy, and boy did I ever let him.  I look back on it and am now upset at how I felt, even though the feelings were genuine, I just remember the fact that I couldn’t wait to have him and go back to the way things were.

This would not be case.  While I only gained the recommended amount of weight for this pregnancy, I didn’t have the easiest of times losing it.  At all.  I lost 12 pounds from the birth, but it was SLOW GOING after that.  So slow.  I cried many a night (and day) to my hubby and my mother about how the weight just wouldn’t come off, how everyone else’s weight had just magically seemed to disappear after 4 months, and mine was just sticking around.  What were they doing different?  Was I doomed?  (Ok, so I am a little dramatic).  Little did I know I had so much to learn.

The weight finally did start slowly coming off, but it wasn’t until I stopped breast feeding that I began to make real progress.  Once I stopped I could exercise without fear of losing my supply and I wasn’t nearly as hungry (all breastfeeding mama’s know what I am talking about!  You feel like a boy, you eat so much!) as I was before.  I have also now recently taken up running with one of the girl’s from our youth group and her sister.  It has been good, to just get out of the house and have some interaction as well as to begin to exercise my body.  There is a definite difference in my thinking when I exercise as opposed to when I do not.  I am now 4-5 pounds away from my pre-pregnancy weight, and am excited about this.  It has taken 8 long months, but I am hoping by month 9 to be done with the weight loss.  I will have to maintain, but not have to concentrate on losing.

So basically this is a post for me, to see where I am at, and to see how far I have to go.  I am working on finding myself in the Lord, seeing me as He does, knowing He creates beautiful things because He is a beautiful creator.  I know I am not the only person with this struggle, there are many others.  It is a constant battle I believe I will always have to face now that I am older.  However, I know Who I am created after and I know Who my Creator is, and that gives me great hope and joy.  My God doesn’t create junk, therefore I am not junk, I am beautiful, a princess, the daughter of a King.  Thank you Lord for saving me, and from saving me from myself.

Thankful. . .

Today I was driving.  That is it.  Just driving.  All alone, a rarity in my life now that I am a Mama.  No, there was no babbling baby, no radio, no husband singing slightly under his breath.  It was just me.  And it was good.  Here is why.

About a month ago my husband and I leant one of our cars (we have two) to a family in our church who had run into some bad luck with both of their cars.  They were waiting to be worked on in the shop and since the church where my hubby works is right across the street, we could spare a car for a couple of weeks.  Our Ford Taurus found a new home for a time being.  However, one day while they were driving it, it just quit working…

This was not good news for either party.  We brought the car up to my grandfather’s shop.  Luckily this man is one of the best mechanics this world has ever seen.  Seriously.  Most of the time you can just turn the car on, he will listen to it, and have a pretty good idea on what the problem is (and is right more than he is wrong).  This has saved countless thousands of dollars for my family as well as other families in our community.  He is a servant, a God fearing man, and a prayer warrior, a wonderful example.

This past week my husband and Papaw have been working on our poor Taurus.  My husband knows absolutely nothing about cars. Zero. Luckily Papaw is a patient man and a willing teacher.  He took the Hubs under his wing and allowed him to help in this project.  They had to take the transmission out, which took a while, and sent my husband home looking like a grease monkey the first day.  After this there was the ordering of a part (a Tork converter I believe) that they hoped would be able to fix the transmission instead of having to replace it.

Which brings me to today, when these two men go back to working on the car, and my husband the grease monkey reappears.  However, before they start their work day, my grandfather says to the Hubs, let’s pray because I am not real sure if this will work, it is a gamble.  So they pray for their day, their families, and that God would allow this $200 part to fix the problem instead of a $700 new transmission.  Guess what, at the end of the day, it did.

The best part though was getting the text message from my grease monkey honey saying he was done for the day.  When I asked how the car was he simply replied, “Working, praise God.”  Immediately I was so thankful for a husband who would work all day long on something and without a second thought give God the glory for it.  I was so thankful to have a husband who is unashamed to love the Lord.  I was so thankful to have a husband who would talk this way to me, and lead me to do the same by example.  I was just so grateful for this man, not another, that he is the one I get to spend the rest of my life with.

So on my solitary drive home, I thanked God.  Intensely thanked Him for the blessing of my husband.  Of a God-fearing/loving, praying grandfather.  Of the fact I get to be married to this guy for however long God sees fit.  I am blessed beyond measure to be his wife.  I prayed also for our marriage, for a strengthening of our relationship, for his stamina in being a leader not only at our church but at home, for his own spiritual life.  THis was such a sweet time with the Lord, one I am grateful for.  I am thankful for a God who listens, who hears, who blesses.  Thank you Father for quiet rides alone on a long stretch of highway when this mother needed it.

Mission FIND A HOBBY!

So I have been watching my little man that is supposed to be napping in his crib on the video monitor.  He has been scooting all around his crib, getting up on all fours and rocking, and looking around, basically everything but falling back to sleep.  In fact mere moments ago I looked and he was completely turned around, up on all fours, with this blanket over his head.  Geez Louise, what is a mom to do?  Seriously any suggestions would be great.  He is getting to be more mobile, which might mean more defiance, which in turn means parenting is really about to kick in for Mark and me.

I think I have also hit a turning point in another area, I decided I need to blog more.  While this is an obvious thing, I know it is something I will either look back and be grateful that I took the time to get it all down or look back and say "I wish I could have remembered this" or "why didn't I ever chronicle that?"  I have not been in the habit of becoming a consistent blogger and I know I need to be, especially if I want more people reading this then just my family.  It is going to take time and effort to transform the blog into what I want it to be, sometimes this may not be what I exactly want to spend my time on, but I know it will be worth it in the long haul.  My preliminary goal is to blog at least twice a week to start with.  While this may not sound like a stretch to many of you, it does to me, because let's face it, I don't believe that my life is really that exciting.  However, there needs to be something I can talk about on a semi daily basis, so in order to make that happen I must make sure I am doing SOMETHING.

This brings me to my next issue, mission FIND A HOBBY.  You might remember me asking for suggestions in one of my previous posts (that I cannot seem to find for the life of me!) and I did get a few.  However I think I have a few things in my head that I might be willing to try out.  I want to learn to do something productive/creative but for this very uncreative gal it is going to be a struggle.  I have a list of things I would like to learn how to do but at the top (a.k.a. the things I am going to give a go at first) are sewing/embroidery and scrapbooking.  Not at the same time though!  How am I going to do this you ask.  Well my Noni has just about everything under the sun including an embroidery machine that she no longer remembers how to use.  I am hoping to get the instructions and teach myself.  We will see.  It would be nice to make some more personalized shirts, burp rags, and other things for Reid as well as other babies.  I am hoping this will be easy(ish) to do since the machine does most of the thinking for you!  As far as the scrapbooking goes, my mother, grandmother, and aunt are all avid "scrappers" who have many tools and paper and all at their disposal that I believe they will let me try.  I have been told you don't have to be completely creative to be a scrapbook queen, you just have to be able to copy a picture out of a magazine, and this girl can copy like nobody's business :-)

The thing with me is that I want to be good at something right away.  I desperately want to be one of those people that something awesome just comes naturally do and I am able to do it, and do it very well. However, this is not me.  No, I am a determined person who is a hard worker.  Most things don't come completely natural to me.  While I might have some ability at many things I have to work hard to become one of the better players.  I just pray I am able to stick something out and not become discouraged and quit!