Is it Spring Yet?

Oh, this weather!  I had all the windows in my house open today...in February!  It has me itchin' to start a garden.  I'm making big plans for my garden this year ( I think Adam's a little nervous about the amount of work that could be involved).  I just can't wait to get started.  Now, by the end of the summer, I'm going to be so tired of that garden that I'll likely be ready to set fire to it!  I'm like that when the seasons change.  I look forward to specific moments that happen every year and then by the end of the season...I'm done with it. 

Why yes, that is my garden, and that is me working ever so hard in it. 

Oh, wait.  No. No, that's not me and that garden's too green to be mine.  Nevermind.

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Every fall I can't wait to get a fire going in our woodstove.  There's just something about the warmth of a fire on a fall day.  It's wonderful.  Right now though, I'm sick of it.  I'm sick of the dirt that comes in the house with the wood.  Sick of the ashes that I'm constantly sweeping/vacuuming up.  Sick of filling up the humidifiers. Sick of the boxes that pile up next to the stove (because they're helpful in starting a fire so we can't throw any of them away...unless I sneak them into the trash).  I'm just sick of it!  (And I am now done complaining about the cheap source of heat that helps keep our electric bill down)

Each season has its moments that I look forward too, and I'm always ready for the next one (except winter, winter I could do without).  I think God really knew what He was doing when He created these season things.  Seriously though, I'm grateful that I have a God who created seasons for reasons so much bigger than me, but at the same time, knew that I would look forward to them with such anticipation.  And that's the way I see it.  I'm not trying to be all egotistical, like, "Look at me!  God made the seasons just for me because I'm that important and I get bored with the same weather all the time!"  I'm just saying that it's amazing to me that my God cares so much that he would create in me a desire to see the seasons change.  How miserable would it be to only like one season?  I would be unhappy with the weather roughly 75% of the time.  I believe that He loves me so much, that He wants me to be happy and would think of me and create such a simple desire, because  He is that awesome (that's right...I said awesome) that He thinks of each and every single one of us individually and wants us to be happy.  So much so, that in creating us, He takes into account even simple things, like the comfort a warm fire brings on a cold day or how good it feels to grow something on your own.

I could still do without winter though.  But, without winter, how would I appreciate how much I love the rest of the seasons?

I'm so not a girly girl....but really I kind of am.

I have never thought of myself as being a girly girl.  I don't get into make-up and hair.  My closet is full of worn-out clothes.  I only shop when I HAVE to (I think this is mainly because I don't have a clue when it comes to fashion so I get stressed out and just grab the first thing that fits and looks okay).  Now, I know these things are not what necessarily make up a girly-girl, but in my mind it is what keeps me from being that girl.  I don't want you to think that I think that it's bad to be a girly-girl.  I have wished many times that I could be more like this, but it's just not me.

So, I've embraced that I'm not girly.  But, here's the thing, sometimes I really am.  Like last week when I had to go to the wood shed.  We ran out of firewood and the temperature was supposed to drop so I had to go down to the wood shed for some more.  Now, I really don't like the wood shed.  It is like the local hangout for snakes, mice, spiders and bugs, so I really try to avoid it whenever possible.  This time of year isn't too big of a deal.  It's too cold for snakes, bugs and most spiders, and the mice are pretty rare because of Kat (our cat).  I still don't like it though. 

This is where the creepy-crawlies live.  (Just to be clear, I'm not talking about the cuties in the picture!)

So here I am, all alone in the wood shed, loading up the truck.  Everytime I pick up a piece of wood, I expect some rabid mouse to attack me or a flesh eating bug to crawl up my coat sleeve.  It's crazy, really it is, but I'm doing a quick inspection of every piece.  I get all the firewood that I'm going to for this trip and move on to the kindling.  As I bend down to pick some up, I feel something moving in my hair.  And this, ladies and gentlemen, is where the girly-girl comes out.  I start dancing around that wood shed like a mad woman, because as you know that's the best way to get an unknown creature off of you.  I'm shaking my head back and forth and doing whatever else I could think of trying to get this thing off of me.  I'm sure it's some kind of huge, hairy, cold-loving mutant spider that is going to take my life.  Then I freeze, because I've realized it wasn't a man-eating spider at all, it was just my hair.  A piece of hair had fell down from my ponytail.  I proceeded to do what anyone would do in this situation...look around and make sure nobody saw my little freak out.  I don't know who I was expecting to see.  Adam was at work and the girls were sleeping.  I can only imagine what would have happened if there had been someone there.  Now that would have been a freak-out.

So there you have it.  My name is Sarah, and I'm a girly-girl.

Here's a little randomness from the past couple of weeks...

So a couple weeks back I posted about trying to get things done around here.  I have been working on it.  Really, I have.

First thing I did was create a binder of sorts.  I know, I know, this is so geeky (my sister makes fun of me and calls me "The Binder Queen") but I love to create my binders and couldn't resist.  I made a section for each area of the house I want to work on and then listed the things I want to do in each area.  I organized it by areas I want to work on first. 

First on my list was my office area.  This is actually just a corner in my kitchen.  We used to have a whole room for our office, a desk and a file cabinet and everything.  Then we had Eva and the toys started to multiply, so the office became a playroom.  Then we had Aubrey and the playroom became Aubrey's room.  The toys are starting to take over the house again and it's driving me crazy! 

This was the state of my office area before:

Seriously, I'm going to fire our maid. 

This is what it looked like after:

I really don't like these counter tops.

Really don't like these counter tops.

I think my favorite part is my pin board.  I just cut a piece of cork board to fit the cabinet and wrapped it in some fabric (actually an old skirt that never fit me right).  I have been able to keep the area looking decent for longer than two days, and that is an accomplishment. 

Next on my list is finishing Eva's room.  I bought some wall decals a while back that I need to put up.  I also need to fix the tree that we painted when I was pregnant with Eva.  There's just something...not right...about the branches.  I'll post a picture later and you'll see what I'm talking about. 

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Some things to remember:

How Eva dances to make Aubrey laugh.  This always gets a good belly laugh from Aubrey.  I love that Eva wants to make her happy, and that Aubrey finds such joy in her sister. 

Aubrey has some great facial expressions right now.  I think my favorite is when she lowers her chin and kind of looks at you through the top of her head.  She looks so mean, but all you have to do is make the same face and she smiles.  It's all a game with this one.  I've tried to get a picture of it, but when I bring out the camera all she does is say, "EEEEEESE!"

Eva hugging Bro. Bill during Children's Church.  All the kids were sitting up front and all of a sudden Eva stands up and starts walking around.  I'm thinking, "Oh no, where is she going?!"  She walked straight to Bro. Bill, gave him a big hug, and sat back down.  It was sweet. 

How Aubrey holds her "babies" and rocks them.  All babies/stuffed animals/music playing glow worms or sea horses go to her shoulder and she rocks them side to side.  Well, until the music stops or she loses interest and then she throws them to the floor. 

I love that Eva says sparkles instead of sprinkles.  Ex:  "Oh, that cookie has pretty sparkles!  That's my favorite."

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Valentine's Day was last week and the hubby and I decided not to do anything for each other this year.  Or so I thought. 

I never know what time he will be leaving work, so when he called me on his way home, I figured he was just getting off work.  The stinker went to the store after work to pick something up.  I couldn't get angry, because not only did he get something for me but he got something for all of his girls. 

Eva and Aubrey got these pillows

and they love them.  Eva insisted on taking hers to bed that night and then carried it around with her half of the next day. 

I'm not a big fan of Valentine gifts, at least for myself.  A lot of that has to do with the fact that I'm cheap.  I don't like to think of our money going to something I don't need when there are other things that it could be used for.  He knows this and he did good.  I've been talking about trying to drink tea instead of coffee and evidently he has been listening.  He brought me home a bag full of different kinds of tea to try.  It was a perfect gift. 

I love that he thought of us all on his own.  I do believe he's a keeper. 

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And that's the end of my randomness for today, because I'm sick of this post and I'm sure you are too. 

   

Goodbye For Now Dear Friend

I started going to a new church a little while back and I have to say, I'm really liking it.  Everyone is always so friendly and they are wonderful to the girls.  They have a nursery which is so nice because I can actually listen to the service.  I can't begin to explain how welcomed I feel everytime I'm there. I've lived here for almost five years and that church has been five minutes down the road the whole time. I've drove past it so many times and thought, "I should go there this Sunday." So many times. For some reason, it took me this long to go, but I'm glad and so very grateful that I finally did. 

There was a service tonight for Ash Wednesday.  Since it was in the evening and there wasn't any kind of nursery, the girls stayed home with Daddy while Momma went to church.  I haven't observed Lent in a long time.  For the past couple years I've felt that I've been led to, but kind of ignored the feeling.  How horrible is that?  How many times have I asked Him to speak to me, to show me what He would have me do, and when He does I ignored it, because of my own silly issues.  Thankfully, He's forgiving and doesn't give up on me.  Lent has been on my mind for a couple weeks now and this year I'm going to listen.  So, starting tomorrow, no TV for me.  At least, not until Easter.  This is big for me.  I really like watching TV.  Like, A LOT.  It's kind of like reading a book, where I just get caught up in the story and forget about what I should be doing (not as good as a book, but same concept).  It's like a friend, who lives in my living room, and does whatever I tell it to.  Oh, dear friend, what will I do without you? 

I'm really going to miss it but isn't that the point.  Self-examination, repentance, prayer, fasting, self-denial.  It is too easy for me to sit down in front of the TV when I have other things that need to be done.  How can I find time for this week's episode of Grey's, but I was just too busy to spend time in the Bible?  Priorities.  Mine are off.  They need to be corrected.

He sacrificed so much for me, I think I can turn off the TV. 

Don't Forget

Eva,

I don't remember much from my childhood.  I really have a horrible memory.  It used to bother me that I have lost so many moments, because I can't remember them.  I'm getting over it though.

What I am afraid of, is forgetting YOUR childhood.  I can already see it happening.  You will be three in April and there are already things that have happened in your first few years that I won't remember.  The big things I'm sure I'll remember, but the little things, the moments that may not seem much to someone else are the moments I'm afraid I will lose.  See, these are the moments that bring me such joy.  They're the moments that you teach me. 

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I don't want to forget the story you told me this morning about Bob and Cake (the squirrels who live in the tree outside your window), which involved a box they made that had a picture of two toes on it. You know, they made that box just because they like to play in it?  I don't want to forget how much you love these animals that you've only seen from a distance.  I don't want to forget how every once in awhile, out of nowhere, you'll ask what Bob and Cake are doing.  I don't want to forget how big your imagination and your heart are.

I don't want to forget how much you love your sister.  How everytime I lay her down for a nap, you have to give her a kiss, and you get upset with me if I lay her down before you get to.  How, if she's upset, you tilt your head to the side and ask her, "What's wrong baby?" and pat her head or rub her back to try to calm her down. 

I dont' want to forget how smart you are.  You really amaze me EVERYDAY with the things that you do and say.  I don't want to forget the sound of your voice singing, "Jesus Loves Me."  Or how when someone tells you you're pretty, you say, "Yeah." like, I know I am.

I don't want to forget how much you love your daddy.  How your eyes light up when he gets home from work and how you only want him to tuck you in at night. 

I don't want to forget.

I don't want to forget the moment this morning when you brushed my hair back and put your hands on my face and simply said, "You're gorgeous."  I don't want to forget how I was having a rough morning, and those words in your sweet little voice brought up so much emotion, that I was unable to speak for fear that my tears would spill out.  I don't want to forget how a few moments later you said, "Momma, your breaf is yucky." (Darn coffee breath)

I don't want to forget how smart, funny, kind, beautiful (inside and out), honest, imaginative and compassionate you are.  But more importantly, I don't want you to forget.  I want you to grow into a woman who knows she's smart, funny, kind, beautiful, honest, imaginative and compassionate.  I want you to remember how much you love your daddy.  And I really want you to remember how much Jesus loves you.

  

I love you always,
Momma

p.s. I have a video of you singing, but couldn't get the sound to work.  Daddy will work on that later ;) Daddy fixed it!

I'm Planning On...

"I'm planning on..."

I have found myself saying this to my husband so many times that I really don't think he believes it anymore.  I'm planning on painting the bathrooms.  I'm planning on becoming a super couponer (after multiple failed attempts I have realized this will never happen).  I'm planning on organizing the office space, the pantry, and every single closet we have.  I'm planning on eating right, exercising, and just overall adopting a healthier lifestyle.  I'm planning on going to church EVERY Sunday.  I'm planning on getting the laundry done today, getting groceries tomorrow, and calling the bank about that awesome deal they have on refinancing right now.  My "planning on" list goes on and on.  It seriously never ends, because I can always think of something to add to it.  The massiveness of this list overwhelms me at times.  Especially right now. This time of year is really hard on me.  I, like so many, deal with Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD - isn't that funny, cause that's the way you feel when it hits you really hard).   Basically, sunshine/spring,summer and most of fall = happy Sarah, and cloudy days/the dreariness that is winter = unmotivated, moody, sometimes sad, and often in her pajamas Sarah.  All of that isn't what this post is about though.

I need to get my crap together, get it organized around here.  I told my mother-in-law at the beginning of the year that my word for 2012 is, "simplify" and I meant it.  I really want to weed out the unnecessary things that seem to just weigh me down even more.  The clutter, the junk.  I was all ready to go at the beginning of the year.  First thing first, I needed to get all my crafty stuff (which multiplied out of control during Christmas) out of my dining room, pantry, and daughter's closet and into one spot.  And I did. But that's all I've done.

Now, to the point of this post.  I'm planning on taking it room by room. (Did you catch that? I'm planning on...)  I would like to sit down and figure out everything we want done in each area, and finishing that area before moving to the next.  That word "finishing" that's the key to this mess, I believe.  I think that's why I feel so overwhelmed a lot of the time.  I LOVE starting a project, not so much finishing it.  I understand it's a very common trait among us middle children.  Anywho, I start, don't finish and then I'm left with this chaos because I've started something new on top of whatever is left from the last thing. 

My homework assignment to myself:  Start a "Planning On" Project binder and distinguish the different areas that need work in and around my home. 
Note about assignment: Do NOT move onto another project before finishing this binder. 

Okay, wish me luck.  I will post back here when I have finished my assignment.  At least, I'm planning on it.