a day of grace

I'd been working so hard lately, really trying to bless my family with socks, underwear, and pajamas always in their drawers, bathroom sinks and toilets always clean, a dusted-vacuumed-straightened living room, and wood floors free of long-standing crumbs.  My youngest had been playing with her sister more, and keeping herself occupied with beloved bathroom chores, like pottying and brushing teeth.  There was simply more time to devote to household chores, and just as that happened, God worked with me on living more sacrificially to bless my family.

If anyone noticed the cleanliness and orderliness of the house, they didn't say anything, except for Peter, who mentioned that the laundry containers were remaining relatively empty.  It's possible that only Peter shares my affirming-words love language, so I don't really expect compliments from my housemates.  My husband is not an especially appreciative man, but neither is he critical.  The worst kind of husband for me would have been a critical, sharp-tongued man.  I can count on one hand how many times my husband has criticized me in the last twelve years.  So, I feel loved enough by my fellow earthlings, and it helps knowing that God is pleased when I use my time unselfishly.

Right about the time we arrogant humans think we're pretty hot stuff--making progress and all--God mixes it up a bit.  Have you noticed that?

My two-year-old is now in the midst of a molar-teething frenzy.  She's getting more miserable by the day, as one second-year molar prepares to break through the gum.  The three other molars are all in different stages of readiness, below the gum.  I can't even take a shower without her crying uncontrollably.  She doesn't want me out of her sight for long, and she's back to waking quite frequently at night.

Further, although she still loves to brush her teeth, there's a lot less independent pottying going on.

And the house?

It's going downhill again, despite my stronghold on new routines.

The other night I actually had to leave the kitchen in a colossal mess over night, after overcooking a large chicken in the crockpot, because Beth woke up twenty minutes before the chicken was due to be done, and in settling her back down, I fell asleep for an hour. (Husband gets home very late most of the time.)

I jolted awake, smelling the chicken.  Rushing to the kitchen, I feared the worst.

Yes, that's right.  Dry, dry, dry.  The thing was actually boiling--on low!

Just as I finished separating the meat from the bone, and started some bone broth on the stove, Beth woke up again!

I gave up, people!  This was the third wake-up before midnight.  I put the meat in the fridge and decided to call it a night.  My face and teeth were already clean, thankfully.

This chicken and messy-kitchen fiasco occurred on the eve of my PMS ride, and that certainly didn't help my dejected frame of mind.  Frustration abounded as I went off to bed with my hurting sweetie.

It felt like the walls were crumbling down.  (I know...forgive the melodramatic in me right now.)

Powerless....that's how I felt.

Much of the last two years, I've felt powerless.

Life was getting a little saner on the homemaking front, and now this whole teething thing!  Suddenly, I couldn't even cook a chicken right!

Every person here, except for me, just loves meat....especially chicken. While I eat meat regularly, I've always been neutral to it.  Not so, my housemates.  They didn't notice a cleaner house, but dry, yucky chicken, they would notice.  And the kids would definitely say something about it.  "This chicken is terrible!", is what I expected to hear the next day.  Not even soup would revive it, I feared.

To top it all off, in my haste to leave the kitchen and quiet my fussy child, I put the gas burner on level 4 for my 24-hour broth.  I usually put it on level 2.

My husband woke at six in the morning, detected a really strong chicken odor, and went to investigate.  All the broth had boiled away!  What a waste of nine dollars, for a hormone and solution-free chicken!  It was pretty much worthless now, except that my husband loves chicken enough to eat it dry.

Don't you love that kind of man?

All this wordiness to say.......we don't live on our own merit.  If we're good at something, it's God.  If we're failing at something.....well, that's usually God too.

I guess I was getting prideful about having a clean house?  And getting too involved in keeping it that way, at the expense of time with my children?

Aren't you glad God tends our hearts so well?

I'm so grateful for his pruning ways!

My husband felt sorry for me the next morning.  He read my dejected heart and knew what the two culprits were.  While he couldn't do anything about my hormones, he did delay his work departure and amuse our teething toddler for an hour, while I set the kitchen to rights.

He got less sleep that night as a result of his later start.  But I felt cherished and understood, and that was priceless to both of us.

I managed to smile through my day, remembering his kindness.

It was God's grace.

But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me.
2 Corinthians 12:9

....so that your faith might not rest on men's wisdom, but on God's power.
1 Corinthians 2:5

Sock Puppet Tutorials

Multiple choice questions for you.  

1.  Why would I show you a picture of freshly laundered hats, mittens and scarves?

A.   I am pulling a Pioneer Woman move and offering a Cleaning-Out-My-Closet Giveaway.

B.   I wanted you to guess which items belong to which child.

C.   All the snow melted here, and these long-lost twenty pieces were found plastered to the soppy grass. 

Answer:  C  

The little people around here can't be bothered, apparently, to bring in their gear after romps in the snow.  This store of items accumulated outside over the last six weeks!

2.  Why would I show you a picture of this adorable, yet sadly mis-designed sock puppet Peter put together while I nursed Beth to sleep?

A.  My kids asked me to show it to you.

B.  I wanted to illustrate why we could be featured on the "Un-Crafty Crow".

C.  I spent forty-five minutes searching the Internet for directions on how to properly design a sock puppet.  Because I like you so much, I wanted to show you examples of both the proper and improper way to make yourself a child-delighting sock puppet.....just in case you're without a vehicle and in the house with four young kids, hours and days on end--meaning you're desperate for activities that don't involve them running through the house like wild hooligans.

Answer:  C

After my intensive study, I decided to follow this photo tutorial, involving a glue gun, an oval piece of cereal-box cardboard, and an oval piece of felt, to make a Kermit-the-Frog start for my children's awesome sock puppets. They get to do all the fun stuff--raiding my craft supply in the process!

Here are some decorating ideas and other tutorials:

The Lady from Sockholm sock puppet

Wikihow Make a Sock Puppet Video

Sock Puppets from Danielle's Place

If I, a very uncrafty mother, can do this, so can you!  It's a skill that will "bless the socks off" your kids for years to come!  Think of the possibilities! Puppetry, or any type of theatre, is a fun and very effective way to develop language skills in your children!  All ages will benefit.

Next week, we'll look at homemade puppet theatre possibilities!

a step backwards

My Peter is once again experiencing OCD symptoms while he reads.  As before, his brain is telling him he's skipping words.  In order to make that right, he repeats words and phrases about every other sentence, making reading a laborious chore, rather than a pleasure.  It's suddenly difficult to get him to read three chapters a day, whereas before he read two to three hours a day, depending on our event schedule.

He also suddenly tracks with his finger and reads aloud again--both of which he'd grown out of.  He tells me these things help him read all the words.  Despite my assurances that he's a great reader and no problems exist, he believes the voice in his head--at least while the book is in his hand.

Should this reading problem continue to arise, Peter will need OCD medication to get through college, if he chooses to obtain a degree.  The volume of required reading will simply be too much, if he has to plod along like a stuttering, beginning reader.

I'm wrestling with God over this, as I did last time.  It's so painful to witness. He's also washing his hands excessively again, making them chapped and prone to bleeding.  No new stresses have arisen here, so I can't attribute it to that.

I force myself to think of the Book of Job, when I'm plagued by the "Why, God?" question.  There is a purpose.  Maybe it's just the sin curse and nothing more, but that's too frustrating to consider.  I want to believe instead that something glorious awaits my son--as it did in Job's life.

After God's long talk with him, Job replied,

Job 42:2-6 "I know that you can do all things; no plan of yours can be thwarted.  You asked, 'Who is this that obscures my counsel without knowledge?' Surely I spoke of things I did not understand, things too wonderful for me to know. "You said, 'Listen now, and I will speak; I will question you, and you will answer me.'  My ears have heard of you but now my eyes have seen you.  Therefore I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes." 

How does it end for Job?  

Job 42:10-11 After Job had prayed for his friends, the Lord made him prosperous again and gave him twice as much as he had before.  All his brothers and sisters and everyone who had known him before came and ate with him in his house.  They comforted and consoled him over all the trouble the Lord had brought upon him, and each one gave him a piece of silver and a gold ring. 

Job 42:12-13 The Lord blessed the latter part of Job's life more than the first.  He had fourteen thousand sheep, six thousand camels, a thousand yoke of oxen and a thousand donkeys.  And he also had seven sons and three daughters.

 Job 42:16-17 After this, Job lived a hundred and forty years; he saw his children and their children to the fourth generation.  And so he died, old and full of years.

I don't have the benefit of God's presence or of his tongue-lashing.  But I do know He feels the same way about my arrogant questioning.  It's simply not acceptable for the created to question the Creator.  


And so I dwell on Job's latter life.

Maybe it's not likely Peter will have fourteen thousand sheep (although...he does want to be a farmer).  But there will be something.  I can count on that.


Some blessing awaits my precious son.

outside my window....inside my heart

Thought you might enjoy the show God put on here the past couple days. 

Our eyes have been peeled to the window, looking for birdie friends, or squirrel friends.......

.....and God said yes!

Our first feathered friend?  A chickadee!  And, oh how pretty!   He's enjoying our peanut-butter-and-seed covered pinecone.

The best investment for kids' art is simple watercolors.  Oh, how I love thee.  Far less mess and fuss.  I can say yes every time!  

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While I nursed Beth to sleep last night, the others painted some happiness.  

Wednesday Gratitude:


- 50 high-quality kids' garments found at the thrift store early this morning, for only $69.00!  I had my stamp card completely filled out and got 35% off!

- The colors God put on a chickadee.

- The tail talk that squirrels do.  Have you ever seen it in earnest?  Quite amazing!

- Trees full of squirrels

- My boys understand that though nature, we experience God.  My girls are learning it more every day.

- I came home with three large bags of clothes and my husband was just happy that the kids were happy.  He didn't ask about the cost.  He knows it would have been a small fortune from a retail store.

- The exclamations of delight around here lately, and the scientific note-taking Peter is engaged in, about bird and squirrel behaviours.

- Little girl squeals about pretty clothes.

- A 40-degree day today, and an expected 60-degree day later this week.

- Homeschooling

- Very few illnesses in the past nine months.  I have to wonder...is it because I started cooking from scratch, for the most part?  Whatever the reason, it's sure a blessing!  (The whole foods didn't help with ADHD, unfortunately.)

- I don't have my own car, but I do have a yard!

- Reminders from Him that I'm to bless my family and practice self-denial.  Therein will be my mothering legacy, if I'm faithful to the Holy Spirit's whispers.

- Yet still, knowing that His grace surrounds me.

- Reminders from Him that I'm to bless my husband, whether the trash gets taken out or not.  And should I mention the trash?  No.  Just love.  Just do love.  It's an endless series of actions, done to bless God, regardless of whether the receiver deserves the love action.  Did we deserve the cross, after all?

And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve what is excellent, and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.

—Philippians 1: 9-11

Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins.

—1 Peter 4:8 

We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brothers. Whoever does not love abides in death.

—1 John 3:14

Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us.

By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. By this is love perfected with us, so that we may have confidence for the day of judgment, because as he is so also are we in this world. There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love. We love because he first loved us. If anyone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen. And this commandment we have from him: whoever loves God must also love his brother.

—1 John 4:7-21 

new screen guidelines

A couple weeks ago my sister, who is going through teacher education courses, sent us a few learning websites her professor spoke about.  One of them, this math site, has created quite the obsession in my number lovin' Paul.  This intensive focus isn't a healthy thing, so I've set new guidelines for our family regarding screen time.

On Tuesday, Thursday, and Sunday, we won't turn on the computer at all, starting this morning.

I just wanted to tip you off, because I won't be able to return e-mails as timely, or write as often.

Good Tuesday to you!