A Real Housewife of Wilsonville

With Mother's Day coming up, this probably isn't the best time to be writing this post but, this is a part of motherhood too... its not all lollipops and fruit snacks.  I spent the better part of my evening last night in tears struggling to find some solutions to create more peace and balance for my family.  Tears=passion not, weakness.

I wish I could be more of a Claire Huxtable but, I fit more into the Lucille Ball category (red hair and all).

I want to know how to fold laundry with my toes because my hands are occupied with homework help and dishes while coordinating my social calendar because my children are involved in multiple sports and after-school activities without forgetting to grocery shop, meal plan, and cook three meals a day (all healthy meals of course, pffftt).  And let's not forget to brush up on my refereeing skills because the many fights my loving children will have with each other will out number the gold fish cracker crumbs stuffed into the seats of my swagger wagon. Meanwhile, keeping up-to-date on the newest fashion trends and must-have Mom gadgets all with a smile on my face and keeping the dog from eating my shoe (#dexterno).  Oh yes, and let's not forget to exercise so that I can find the energy to keep my house as tidy as possible so when Better Homes and Gardens calls to confirm my photo shoot, I will be ready.
[insert eye rolling here]

Being a Mom is hard and I'm wondering why nobody ever talks about that at baby showers or the whole 9 months you are growing a child?  No one tells you that your sweet, adorable, angel of a baby might   someday scream at you with rage in their eyes and say "you are the worst parent in the world, I hate you!" and you are supposed to ignore the emotional punch to the gut because you are the adult afterall.

No amount of advice, child-rearing books, or girlfriend chats could have prepared me for the incredibly demanding job of being a Mom; this situation is a "throw her in the pool and hope she can swim" kind of scenario.  White picket fences?  No way.  More like "sharpie art" on the new couch.

Being a Mom is absolutely, without a doubt, not for the faint of heart.
BUT.  (you knew that was coming, right?)
Here are a few things I am learning through all of this chaos...

One.  I adore my children. Like seriously looooove them. The word love and all its meanings does not adequately envelop what I feel for my kids.  Yes, they drive me crazy at times and hurt my feelings on occasion but, I would do it over and over and over again a million times.  I am God's Nanny for these three blessings and I am so thankful for the job.
Two.  I owe my Mom a million apologies and I am so thankful she didn't ship me off to Neverland because I totally deserved it.  Thank you, Mum.
Three. I don't believe in that phrase "God only gives us what we can handle" and here's why... if God only gave us what we could handle, we wouldn't need Him and I. Need. Jesus.  I need him like I need air.

This weekend, I will reflect on my role as a Mom and ask myself what Leslie Knope asked the members of Pawnee recently,
"Am I better than I was a year ago?"
That is all I can do, improve on who I am and what I've been given.  I have to cut the crap of trying to be Carol Brady or June Cleaver and embrace my Lucy-ness.

I also get to honor my incredible Mom who has been an amazing example of grace, humor, love, generosity, and sweetness all rolled into one.  And, my Mother-in-law who has adopted me as her own, loves me endlessly, and continues to teach me so many things.

I also want to say the following:
To my husband.  Thank you for doing this parenting thing with me.  You are the mac to my cheese (yay!  cheese!)  And thanks for the late night froyo to clear up the tears last night.
To my Mama girlfriends.  You keep me sane with our Starbucks chats, our mani/pedi dates, our clearance rack shopping, watching my kids, scheduling playdates, bus stop walks and more.  You are my village (you know who you are) and I adore you.  May your Mother's Day be full of blessings.
To the Mommies By Heart.  For some of you, this holiday hurts.  Its a reminder of the months of negative pregnancy tests and heartache you feel longing for a child.  To you, I say thank you.  Thank you for smiling and listening genuinely to the stories of my kids, for asking about their well-being, and loving on my Babies.  You play a huge role in my life by reminding me that Motherhood is to be treasured and that I too once longed to be a Mama.  I can only pray, cry and hope alongside you until you celebrate your first Mother's Day.

Happy Mothers Day.

(who came up with this holiday anyway? I'd like to send them a Hallmark card.)

ps, Writing is such good therapy.

The Pledge of Allegience

Photo Credit: National Geographic, Pam Spaulding

There was a bill brought before the Oregon House of Representatives this week.  The vote would require all school classrooms to display an American Flag and provide a time to recite the pledge once a day.  In the words of John Davis (my Representative):

Great bill, but sad we have come to the point of requiring a law to honor our country, history, and heritage. We proudly recite the pledge each day when we start floor session, and I love the fact we pay respect each day!

I completely agree.  I remember standing to my feet every morning, the teacher would lift the flag off of its perch and nominate one student to hold it while the rest of us respectfully covered our hearts with our right hand.  I remember how I would say that Pledge of Allegiance with great pride and all seriousness.  As a little girl, this was how I could show my country honor.  There was a reverence in those few seconds of reciting the Pledge of Allegiance that has stuck with me into adulthood.  Losing respect for the symbols that represent our country, translates into losing respect for "the Republic for which it stands".

I was reminded of this video that shows Red Skeleton describing the Pledge of Allegiance from his childhood:

I haven't heard how the vote turned out but, I absolutely want my kids to respect the flag and have pride in their country.

How to support your husband in 1 easy step!

This morning, I prayed something bold.  My request was that my husband would love the Lord more than his family, more than me.

LUKE 10: 27
Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind
MATTHEW 22:37Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. 
DEUTERONOMY 6:5
Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.
MARK 12:30Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.

When something is repeated multiple times, I listen.  In one simple act of obedience, love and support, we can pray this over our husbands.  That's it, just pray for your husband (or husband to be).  Pray that your husbands heart would be captured to love the Lord with all his soul, strength, and mind.

I want my husband to deeply know God more than anything else on earth.
I want my husband to find strength in the supernatural power of our God.
I want my husband to seek wisdom from the Almighty who has seen and heard it all from the beginning of time.
I want my husband to know the character of God and to strive to be more like Christ.

When my husband takes on the character of Christ, whoa Baby.  My Man is the sexiest thing on earth.  Go ahead, shout Amen, Lady Friends!  There is nothing more attractive to me than when my husband displays Godly character.

I challenge you Girlfriends, pray over your husbands daily.  Let me repeat... every single day, pray for your husband.  They fight battles we will never understand as women.  Our husbands have been established as the leaders of our home (Ephesians 5:22-33) and we need to come alongside of them to support them as best we can.

I understand some of you reading this may not have a strong marriage.  You may be at the end of your rope and ready to call it quits.  Take on my challenge.  Begin to pray over your husband, over your marriage.

There also may be someone reading this who has not yet met her Prince Charming.  You can still be praying over him!  (God knows exactly who he is, where he is and when you two will meet!  How exciting is that?)

I came across this great way to pray for your husband "from head to toe", by Sharon Jaynes:

Dear Lord, today I pray for my husband, from head to toe.

• His Head –That he will look to You as Lord of his life. (1 Corinthians 11:13)

• His Mind – That he will have the mind of Christ and think as the Holy Spirit would lead him and not the flesh. (1 Corinthians 2:16)

• His Eyes –That You will keep his eyes from temptation and that he will turn his eyes from sin. (Matthew 6:13, Mark 9:47)

• His Ears – That he will hear Your still small voice instructing him. (1 Kings 19:12, Psalm 32:8)

• His Mouth – That his words will be pleasing to You. (Proverbs 19:14)

• His Neck –That he will humble himself before You and be strong, courageous, and careful to do everything written in Your Word so that he will be prosperous and successful. (James 4:10, Joshua 1:8-9)

• His Heart-That he will love and trust You with his whole heart. (Deuteronomy 6:5;  Proverbs 3:5)

• His Arms-That You will be his strength. (Psalm 73:26)

• His Hands-That he will enjoy the work of his hands and see it as a gift from You. (Ecclesiastes 3:13, 5:19)

• His Ring Finger – That he will be true to our marriage vows and that our love will never wane. (Proverb 3:3; Malachi 2:16)

• His Legs – That he will stand firm in his faith and not waver. (Psalm 62:6)

• His feet – That You will order his steps and that he will walk in Your truth. (Proverbs 4:25, Psalm 26:3)

Who will join me in lifting up our husbands in prayer?  One simple step, prayer.  Would you please comment below if you will join me in this challenge?  I would love to pray over you and your marriage.

Lets watch God do His impossible things...

Ducktape Pinwheel Bow :: Tutorial

My daughter is starting her next volleyball season and I wanted to make a hair bow for her and her teammates.  Normally, I would just buy a bunch of bows from the fabulous Bliss Baby Designs but she's on a maternity leave and I couldn't ask her to make them for me on such short notice.  I headed to Michael's to gather ideas and supplies, searched the internet for some inspiration and came up with a Ducktape Pinwheel Bow:

I always love finding easy projects and thought I'd share a step-by-step tutorial so you can make your own hair bows.  This seriously only took about 5-10 minutes per bow(depending on how many interruptions you get!)  I made 9 of them for her teammates and can't wait to see them on the girls!  Okay, let's get to the tutorial.

SUPPLIES:

1 roll of Ducktape (1.88 x 10 yards)
1 roll white satin ribbon (4" x 10 yards)
scissors
glue gun/sticks
optional: jewelry wire (26 gauge)
optional: hairclips

Notes:

• I made 10 bows with the roll of Ducktape and ribbon and have plenty leftover for more!
• The jewelry wire I had on hand and isn't necessary but, helps with assembly.
• You can substitute the satin ribbon with any kind of fabric or ribbon.  I choose the 4" wide satin white because of cost and I could fit two strips of tape.

STEP 1:
You will need to measure out approximately 27" of the ribbon and the tape.

I rolled out the ribbon first and then applied the tape to the very edge of the ribbon.  Be sure you stick the tape to the back of the ribbon (aka, the non-shiny side).

Plug in your hot glue gun so its ready to go when you need it!

STEP 2:
Once you have stuck the tape on, you can see how there is plenty of space to add another strip of tape to the other side.

After you have stuck down the tape and smoothed it out, grab your scissors.  Cut along the inside edge to get your strip for the bow.

No need to worry about the ribbon frays because the tape will keep it from shredding.

Repeat this step for the remainder ribbon if you are making more than one hair bow.

STEP 3:
Trim the edge of your strip at angles or diagonal (your preference here).  I did angles because I like the look!

Fold the ribbon like so (see photo)

STEP 4:
Pinch the folds together to start forming your bow.  This takes a little work to shape the pleats of the bow to your liking.  You'll get it, just work with it a bit.

STEP 5 (optional):
I had some jewelry wire laying around so I used it to secure the pinch.  Totally not necessary but, it is helpful so you can use both hands to wrap the ribbon for the next step.

STEP 6:
Cut a strip of ribbon approximately 7" and tie a knot in the center.

PS, I wish I would have gotten a larger ribbon with a pattern for this center part but, I ran out of time.  The other option is you could make a 7" strip of the tape/ribbon combo like in Step 1 to use for the center.

STEP 7:

(Front view of ribbon on bow)

Place a dot of your hot glue on the front center of the bow and place the knot of ribbon on top.  Flip the bow over.

Using another dot of glue, criss-cross the ribbon over the back of the bow and secure with glue.  Let it dry.

STEP 8:
Place the hair clip on the back side of the bow and secure with hot glue.

STEP 9:
I criss-crossed the ribbon over the underside of the clip and secured with more hot glue.

Trim the extra length of ribbon and your done!

Doesn't that look adorable?  Let me know if you try creating your own Ducktape Pinwheel Bow.


Oh yes, I forgot to include the hair clips in the supply photo so here they are (also found at Michaels!)

Choosing Thankfulness.

As I sit at Les Schwab waiting for my tire to be fixed, I had some time to be thankful. Mostly, thankful that I can find peace and hope in the knowledge of Who rules the world. Thankful that I don't know everything but, my Lord does.  Thankful for His mercy dumped out onto us so freely and abundantly.  And thankful that He will bring justice and judgement for the evil acts that happened yesterday in Boston.  My heart can not hold the pain and sadness I see in this world and I am thankful that I don't have to.  It would be very, very easy for me to complain, be angry, and vent my frustrations (I fight my human nature to do so). Instead, I focus on the following words and make some choices. Choices to not be anxious or fearful, to be thankful, and talk to God about everything.

"Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God."