All is Grace…Think About That

Today I really want to encourage all of you who are feeling worn out. You know what I mean? You know who you are…

I walked down stairs today after the lovely children went to school. That is my favorite part of the day about half the week (right after all the people leave). “Praise the Lawd”, I thought to myself. Then I passed the laundry room and saw it was tidy and empty of dirty laundry. i couldn’t believe it, I was like, “Sweet Jesus, thank you for Jeremy, I mean I don’t even know why I complain about that perfect man.” Then I kept walking just long enough to see the guest bedroom, the one no one ever really goes in, and there it was….. just all piled up on the bed..24 thousand loads of clean, wrinkly laundry. Dang it!

Are you like me, tired, totally drained of energy, laughs (real or fake).

Do you feel like you don’t have anymore good ideas, much less the energy to make them happen. I get it, truly I do…the day never ends……. whether you are a stay at home wonder mom or like me, stay at home but try to work out of my home, or, you do work outside the home….We all have this invisible balance thing that is so unbelievably hard to keep in check.

I have learned a few things over the years and I’m hoping that maybe they can help you in some way.

It starts with you recognizing that you can’t do it all on your own. It is okay to need some help or a break or a time out, whatever. It’s okay to let Dad or someone you love and trust help you out. On a side note, if you don’t trust your husband to be with the kids..that is a whole other blog post, girl.

Talking it out helps me so much… Yeah, sometimes I feel better if I can just process my frustrations out loud with my girlfriend or my Mom, sister, or husband ( if he’s in the, let’s talk it out kind of mood..it’s tricky) T
There is nothing better than talking to your best friend and knowing you can tell her anything at all, and that she will literally help you find the good in it, the reason to be grateful and a way to get that rest you so desperately need. Be wise about who you share to and with. There really is power in our words. You need to talk with someone who will encourage you, not make you feel worse.

What do you love? If there is something you love to do, like paint, craft, hike, anything that is reasonable,try and do it for yourself every now and then. It helps to relax you. I love to go out to eat and anyone who really knows me, knows this. It makes me feel like I’m part of the outside world again. Plus that fact that I love food in general, but especially the kind I didm”t cook myself. So, sometimes the hubs will say, “Hey Momma, it looks and sounds like you need to go out to lunch with Sue or something.” Trust me, when he throws that out there, all you here next is the door shutting as I quickly leave.

Try this on for size. What about if you thought of someone else,that YOU could help? I KNOW right?Even though YOU, need the help, there are always folks around us that are in need as well.
Sometimes, if you help some else, it kind of shifts everything around and your life starts to look a whole lot easier/better. More blessed than it did before. Just a thought,from experience though, it works 100% of the time.

How about falling on your knees and crying out to Jesus? To some of you, that sounds perfectly normal. To some others, this is where I start to sound really crazy.
What about this? If you don’t believe he is real, how about crying that out? You know, just simply telling the truth and asking Him to show you if he’s real. My thought is that maybe, just maybe,you might notice somethings you haven’t noticed before. I feel like you might get more of an answer than you think. Chew on that a while.

While those things all work and help. My biggest battle, always,no matter what, is in my mind. How about you?
I have to deliberately put truth, good thoughts, reminders of who I truly am in my head each and every day. Otherwise, very quickly, I will drop my basket, and by that I mean, totally freak out. That can look different depending on the circumstances. Sometimes it looks like, me being a total Ass to everyone. Other times I just get depressed, cry, mope. And girls, It ain’t pretty, if you know what I mean.
Let’s do ourselves and those that we love a favor. Let’s pay attention to ourselves. How about we take a moment to love us…
You matter so very much…What you do matters, your story matters…

You are making a difference and you have a purpose. Even if it looks different than you had planned. Today is miracle to be grateful for, no matter how many bad things have happened. Not to quote Pit Bull, (the music mogul and rapper) but I can’t help it..He says that any day you have that is spent above ground is a good day. Yep, you can’t argue with that truth. (and yes, I did just quote Pit Bull…)

I am learning so much these days about Grace…It is just for free to us….there is no formula, man…Just, be grateful for it..be honest…forgive yourself..and know that you are not expected to be perfect.

This is one of my favorite verses of all…Matthew 11:28-30 the Message “Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on Religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me and watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of Grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn how to live freely and lightly.” That’s a promise from Jesus to all of us who choose to believe him.

Trust me when I say that, I’m still here,and Jesus is the only reason. THE ONLY reason. He says he keeps his promises and I believe him, after all, he has never let me down.

Beauty is everywhere…you are beauty…

ALL is GRACE….Love you sisters!

You Are Not Alone….If You Think You May Be Screwing This Whole Thing Up

All I can say right now, is Thank you sweet Lord for this precious puppy.  He really makes you feel better if you are having a hard day, I mean, just look at him.

Earlier, while I was staring at him, telling him how sweet and perfect he is and how I loved him the most of all the people, I had a few thoughts…

Are there days when you feel like you just aren’t  getting it right?

I have been really hard on myself as a parent lately.  I think we all can be hard on ourselves and no matter how hard we try, we aren’t raising perfection.  No matter how hard we try to intercept trouble our kids still get hurt and life will make its mark. This makes me feel so frustrated at times.  I want to protect them from danger, accidents, and life…but you know what, we can’t do that. and that really sucks!

So,  Noah fell on his face at school last friday. I know, it makes me sick to my stomach to even think about it.  He can be very unsteady on his feet and has a wobbly gate when he walks anyway.  Just as he was getting off the bus he started puking…oh no! I thought, is this a concussion? Jeremy and I got him all cleaned up, his face looked horrible, swollen etc.

Jeremy said, you know, this could just be a virus….Okay, now…this is how my mind works.. in my head I already went to the worst case scenario….like a seizure, traumatic brain injury…. and for goodness sakes, he sure doesn’t need to add that to the list of things he has to deal with….I was in such a tizzy, I couldn’t  do anything, I was paralyzed…I watched Noah for the next five hours and he seemed okay. I should have taken him to the ER, but….Here’s the truth…I was filled to overflowing with dread. I can’t even go into how hard it is to take him to the ER, but all you who are mom’s out there know that to take ANYONE to the ER is real, real not fun , and can/does take hours usually.  So bottom line we decided no to go.

Noah is okay, it took a few days but the doctor checked him out and he’s gonna be fine.

My point?  That we all makes mistakes as parents and as people…yes, I should have gone to the ER and I learned something that day.  I also, can forgive myself and know I’m still the right person for the job of raising my two boys.  I don’t have to listen to the voice that is critical and wants me to feel shameful.  All is GRACE.

I just want to encourage all you out there who are trying really hard, but you misstep every now and then.  Just keep going, you really are doing a great job. not a perfect job…but who wants to be around that person??  The people that look like they are doing it all perfect are big fat liars…because nobody is doing this life perfect.   What matters is that you show up..you stay in the moment, let your family see that you are real.

Today I sat with a special friend and we talked and loved on my sweet puppy together…I loved hearing her encouraging words.  You are not alone, God see’s you and he is there with you.

If you need him, I encourage you to call out his name…if you need a good cry, feel free to do what I do, lay on the floor with carpet up your nose and cry out to HIM. I always find him there, waiting to give me love and peace.  So will you.

I hope you know that you are very loved! I hope you know that you are doing a great job! Keep going…….