Stuck On You

A few days ago, I was talking with Clara about God's unending love for us. Sometimes it's so hard to grasp, even as adults, just how wide and deep and unfathomable His love for us really is.
Like anyone else, she was struggling with the idea that she could come before Him with all of her thoughts - the good, the bad and the ugly. We talked about how far away God casts those sins after we've been forgiven - as far as the East is from the West. I told her that there was nothing that she could ever do that was unforgiveable, and nothing that could separate her from His love. I explained, word by word, that "neither life nor death, angels or principalities, things present nor things to come or powers, nor height or depth, or any other created thing, would be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus, our Lord."  (to read about that for yourself, go to Romans 8:38-39)
I finished explaining those verses, and wondered if she "got it", and if I had explained it to her in a way that would really make sense to a 9 year old. She stared off for a minute.
And then she smiled, and said, "So, it's like I'm stuck to Him!"
I smiled.
Stuck to God. How perfect.
I think God smiled, too.

All In a Day's Work

It all started when I left the house last night to meet my friend for coffee. After an hour of chit chat, I hopped in the car to head home.  Glancing at the clock, I noticed that it was only 7:30.

7:30 means stores are still open for an hour and a half  I'll still make it home to help put all the kids to bed. Much to my dismay, right at that very second, I passed a Steinmart. So,  I did what any reasonable woman would do. I cut across a lane of traffic, and did a u-turn into the Steinmart parking lot.

I walked in, breathed the scent of new clothes, and started wandering. First, I found an amazing belted trench coat with brown zebra stripes. The arms were too short. Drat. 

Then all of a sudden, I heard voices singing, and lights were shining down and guiding me towards racks full of jeans. (I think it was divine intervention. But there is a slight chance it was just the radio and overhead lighting.) ANYway.

It was my lucky night. I scored 3 pairs of Seven jeans! I quicky drove home to tell my husband how much money I had just saved him!

Fast forward to this morning. John was not cooperating. He didn't want to eat. I still managed to get three kids off to three different schools at three different times. (I just said three, three times.) I had people to see, places to go, wearing my new jeans of course.

After running out of Target with some new silver ballet flats, ($6!!!!!!!!!) I went to pick John up. They told me that he was complaining of a tummy ache all morning. So I made it better by taking him to Chick-Fil-A. We met a friends, he played, ate, and drank a very large cookies and cream milkshake. On our way home, he started crying and saying his tummy hurt again. I may or may not have said something that sounded like "I told you not to drink that entire milkshake."  The crying got louder, and I realized that he was probably about to throw up. And I remembered that he was wearing a brand new, white Ralph Lauren shirt  felt really bad for him.

So again, I did what I knew I must do. I swerved across another lane of traffic, and onto a side street. Throwing the car in park, I jumped out of my seat, grabbed him, and turned him away from me with only one arm. Is it bad that I was thinking about not wanting puke on my new jeans as he vomited into some poor, unsuspecting person's yard?

I'm proud to say that there is no vomit in my car, I saved his shirt, and my jeans stayed clean. All in a day's work.

What I Learned - Come and Find Me!

Joining in (a little late!) with  What I Learned This Week at Jo-Lynne's

WELL. 
What I learned this week is this:  Every other Thursday, I will be blogging over here, at Chic Critique! 

Woo hoo! I'm so excited! Please find me there, and leave me some bloggy comment love!

What have YOU learned this week?

In Which I Attempt to Describe Myself...

This weekend, I had to write a short bio about myself. Not just any bio, but one specifically related to fashion and beauty products.

I thought all the way back to childhood days, and laughed at all the memories. I mean, how often do you ever sit and think about how to explain yourself to others?

It got me thinking. (scary....) If had to actually write my entire boigraphy, or even just a shortened version, how in the world would I describe myself??
I could list all the things that I do...
"Bathe, dress, apply makeup. Pray. Make breakfasts, lunches and dinners. Shop. Check homework. Pray. Eat chocolate. Shop. Drink tea. Talk on the phone. Shop."

Or, a description of my likes and dislikes....
"Loves lavender. Hates vanilla candles and bath products. Loves a good bargain, pulling tags off new clothes, and cute boots that don't hurt her feet. Dislikes mushrooms and red wine. Likes watching The Office. Hates when people chew with their mouth open. Loves the sound of her kids laugher, and the feel of a good neck massage."

Maybe describing all the things I don't do would clue people in to the real me....
"Does not scrapbook. Does not even print out pictures for the scrapbook that she does not make. Does not always do dishes, or consistenly keep up with laundry. Does not get her money's worth from her gym membership. Does not buy only organic foods. Does not always send field trip permission slips in on time. Does not care if her toddler occasionally drinks Coke from a sippee cup."

Or my appearance?
"Crazy head of blonde curly hair. Blue eyes. Freckles. Two wrinkle lines on her forehead. Not the same size as when she graduated high school. Would never be caught dead in mom-jeans. Or a turtleneck. Or sneakers if she is not working out."

I have no idea how many of these things my friends know about me and see in me. In reality, none of that stuff really matters, does it? (well, except for the mom-jeans part. I need people to remember that I never cracked under pressure.....)

I think I'll spend a few minutes pondering what it is I want to be remembered for. But in the meantime, how would you describe yourself???

Boomerang

I have a lot of sayings that I use with my kids.
Some are funny, and some are serious.
For instance, I get teased a lot by my family for always saying to my kids, "You are responsible for your own fun!" And years ago when the girls were really little, we'd tell them that it was "time for their butts to go to bed." It eventually got shortened to "It's Time For Your Butt!" And to this day, they know what it means!

Some things end up getting said more often to one particular child. In my middle child's case, we have some issues with obedience. Somehow, after 9 years, she still sees obedience as being optional. (But don't we all, sometimes?)
I'm sure she doesn't like hearing it, but my saying to her has become this: "Your job is immediate obedience!" And I have to say it all. the. stinkin'. time.

A few days ago, I may have lost my cool. (Maybe just a little bit.) I heard myself asking her, in exasperation, "WHAT DON'T YOU UNDERSTAND ABOUT IMMEDIATE OBEDIENCE??? WHAT IS SO HARD ABOUT THAT???"

And suddenly, it hit me like a ton of bricks. My question had been flung out to my daughter, but it came hurling back toward me. I heard God asking me, "How do YOU feel about immediate obedience?"

WELL.

You see, sometimes that might be a teensy problem. Or sometimes a big one.

Here's a big shocker: I don't always obey. And if I do, I can't honestly say that it's always immediate.

Here I've been, flustered at my 9 year old's lack of comprehension about obeying immediately. And here I am, 35 years old, expecting it from her but not giving it to my holy God.

I'm trying to imagine what my life would be like if I took my own advice. Immediate Obedience. Every. Single. Time.

I am SO THANKFUL that His mercies are new every morning...... Great is Your faithfulness Lord, Unto me.