Technology at its Finest

The real meaning of my blog is to prove that if I can mother two toddlers, anyone can. Here is a case in point:

Yesterday was a very unusually slow day. We had nothing planned, nowhere to go, and the kids were their usual selves. However, it was unusually quiet...you know, fewer phone calls than normal, very quiet with visitors, etc. I somehow missed Nathan's call that he was coming home for lunch...again, that was unusual, too. But, it was almost 5 p.m. before I realized the source of the strangeness.

You see, my parents blessed us with a wonderful gift at Christmastime of a new phone. We were in DESPERATE need of one (ours had this aweful buzz on it constantly). In fact, it was over and above what we needed to meet every need we had...built-in answering machine, four handsets (one for every level of the house AND the garage), great caller-id...I mean, the works.

So, after missing a call that should have forwarded from my cell phone to the house, my concern grew. I glanced at the handset on the charger in the kitchen looking for answers, only to find that one of the handsets was "in use." My thoughts went, "Hmm...that's funny, being as that I am on my cell phone. I wonder which one it is?!?" I quickly ended my conversation to start the great hunt. I found three of the four handsets with the sinking realization that one of my blessed children had turned on handset #2 (yes, they are numbered) and hid it somewhere in the house.

I remembered something about Naomi playing with one in the basement, you know, the office (the one that is REALLY not clean). I started the hunt there to no avail. For two hours, I searched high and low, refrigerator and freezer, only to come up empty-handed. As bedtime fast approached, I feared the worst. Just when I gave up all hope, Jonathan tried jumping off the furniture right into my tirade of punishment, when, to our surprise, the jump loosed the functioning handset and brought it out of hiding.

Needless to say, Jonathan received no punishment, the phone was on for 8 hours 50 minutes and 5 seconds, and turning it off revealed a still-full battery. Praise God for serendipitous moments that only He can arrange, the sense of humor to laugh it off, and a cell phone to check messages in the meantime!!!

A Day in the Life.....

The Little Bit...and Then Some

So, like any mother of two toddlers, I feel completely overwhelmed and frazzled most days. I struggle to keep up with daily chores. I agonize over getting organized. The list is long and distinguished. Some days, it feels so consuming that it takes a small pep talk to get going in the morning.

That is....that is how life was last week. And as many weeks as I can remember before that. I finally broke the cycle and am proud to say the grass IS greener on the other side.

Some may ask, "So what made the change? What caused such a big difference?" My answer is the little bit and then some philosophy. I'm sure that I've heard this principle before, but I finally got it last week. You see, I got tired of wallowing in the things that weren't getting done, so I did what I could to change it. Instead of getting frustrated that the dishes weren't getting done without a dishwasher and the house hadn't been cleaned in two weeks, I asked for a little help and paid someone to come watch the kids.

A paradigm shift occurred by putting a little skin in the game, and it felt GREAT. But then, I was awake that night worried about the mere days it might take to have it all crumble again. My paradigm philosophy answered back to my fear by quickly interjecting that it simply didn't have to continue that way. All I had to do was focus my worry time and a few minutes a day (the here and there moments that present themselves when the dishwasher delivery man is twenty minutes late, when the kids sleep an extra 15 minutes, when I can raise myself out of bed thirty minutes early and avoid the pity party, etc.) and apply it to MAINTAINING a small sense of order on the important things.

It was a miracle in the making. My house is clean one week later. The kids are happy. My husband is happy (he finds me glad he's home, not happy that it is HIS turn with the kids). So, I now find myself with a little more time that is not dedicated to reinventing the wheel design for my life. Instead, I choose to dedicate the extra time saved to doing the "and then some" of life. You know, picking one drawer a day to reorganize or one drawer of clothes to reclaim in the kids' rooms. I've given myself permission to not declare victory over the house in a day, but I've committed to not losing the ground I win.

I'll keep you posted!

"With this in mind, we constantly pray for you, that our God may count you worthy of his calling, and that by his power he may fulfill every good purpose of yours and every act prompted by your faith." 2 Thessalonians 1:11

I thought I raised them better....

I believe that Wal-Mart is a necessary evil to a fallen world. In fact, the word loathe only begins to describe the anamocity I feel toward the retailer who does today what they try to do everyday ("...take over the world!" for those of you deprived of an Animaniacs education). So, I had to muster up all the strength I had within me to try to take on the void of Wal-Mart with TWO toddlers in tow and NO reinforcements, only to discover what I always discover....they don't have what I came to buy. In fact, the conversation went just like this:

Me: (dragging my toddlers with hands touching EVERYTHING in sight) Please stay clear of the two stockers in the aisle, guys. There isn't much room for us to squeeze by.
Stocker: (oblivious to the world around her, not only doesn't move, but also refuses to make eye contact in the event I actually have a question)
Me: Excuse me, but I can't seem to find what I came here to buy. I am looking for some toilet targets to help with my potty-training toddler. Where could I find them?
Stocker: (obviously does not have kids, because there was no angst, remorse, or pity in her eyes that I am AGAIN trying to potty train my son. eyes roll across her face to take her attention off of her ever important work) We do not carry those. (quickly, she turns back to the pressing work in front of her of stacking the 100th package of diapers into the rack)
Me: Okay, guys. They don't have the only thing that we drove thirty minutes to buy. Maybe we can find some stickers to bribe you with. Follow me, please. (using every form of personal restraint I have not to go off on this emotionally-void woman. it really wasn't her fault that the largest retailer in the WORLD NEVER carries what I need!!!!!!)
Checker: (as we walk up to the register with severely over-price stickers) Did you find everything you were looking for?
Me: (trying unsuccessfully to keep all octopus limbs in the cart) No, actually I didn't.
Checker: (shocked by an actual answer)Oh...well...um...your total will be $8.15.
Me: For stickers?
Checker: Yes, ma'am. (hoping that I would just pay and leave already) Thank you and have a great day.
Me: Thanks, but it would be a better day if I had toilet targets. (muttering under my breath as I hearded my two toddlers toward the parking lot)

So, imagine my disdane when my son (bless his little heart) states on the way out, "Mommy...that's Waw-Mart. I wuv Waw-Mart, Mommy. I just wuv it." There was no time to waste in informing him of the blood-sucking nature of Wal-Mart. There was no reasoning to him that Wal-Mart might actually look similar to hell...long aisles of crap that you don't need at prices that are slightly cut to make them look like a deal, but is still $8.15 that would make more money at 12% interest in an IRA. He simply has bought into the incredible marketing scheme of falling prices and coming out most times with the next toy that will bring his life meaning and happiness. I really thought that I raised my children better. I suppose there is still time.

"The thief has come to steal, kill, and destroy, but I have come to give them life..." John 10:10

Next Up....Turning Three!

This is the cake I made for Jonathan's birthday. The directions said 2 hours to decorate, but it was definately three for me. I got the idea off of a fun website (I'll have to find it and post it later). Jonathan got to have three of his friends over, and then one of Naomi's best friends came over with her brother. We had train cake and plates, train whistles, conductor hats, and kalidescopes. A little organized chaos, but Jonathan still talks about it. Later that day, he got to help me frost his cupcakes to take to Bible study for the kids at group. I'm very glad birthdays only come once a year and that the kids spread their's out well.

What my life looks like...

you should zoom in on this and see how much fun they had in the mud

The kids in their matching Puggles shirts (after Sun night church)

The kids Christmas present after Nathan and I put it together.


Jonathan and his friend Tanner at their first movie "The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything"

Meme

So, I got tagged with this so long ago, but I am only now getting around to posting six quirky things about me. One of the most notable reasons for the delay is that...well...there are so many strange nuances to me that it is nearly impossible to limit them. Here is my feeble attempt.
1. I am HORRIBLE about getting pictures of my kids developed. I have several on my camera currently that I continually lack time to download to the computer. So, I am that terrible mother who has no pictures of her children hanging in the house.
2. I like to read books as quickly as possible. I think that books view this as a survival mechanism in their existence in our house. I just completed an adult book (you know the kind with 300 pages) in two days, because I knew I'd never get the chance again. If it takes longer than a week, I might as well not bother.
3. I hate Valentine's Day. I really do not observe it as a national holiday. I think that it is ridiculous to force the people in our lives to pretend like they like us any more than usual for twenty-four hours. Come on....you could buy someone roses every month for a year for what they price-gouge you for in the store on February 14th. My husband needs no reminder from Congress that he loves me and he should remind me of that as often as possible. That is some fabulous marketing. The list of unreal holidays is long and distinguished.
4. I am fascinated by people. Probably to a fault. If I had my chance, I would shrink myself and crawl around in people's brains to figure out how they work and what makes them tick. This leads to my insatiable desire to understand why people are the way they are. It is also probably why I have a new best friend every 23 days.
5. I think that I am way too busy to ever accomplish the things in life that I think would be truly fun. I would love to learn how to play the violin. I would love to learn how to really play the guitar rather than fiddle with one. I think it would be neat to own a flower shop. I would like to be able to decorate really elaborate cakes. I want to converse comfortably in another language. And, I want to travel all around the world...on a regular basis. If only there were time for all that and more!
6. I don't like candy. Don't get me wrong, I believe that dessert and sugar are a very important part of my diet, but I don't like hard candy. This includes, but is not limited to, skittles, hard candy, suckers, pixie sticks, jolly ranchers, jaw breakers, those horrific disk things, candy hearts (with exception to the sweet tart ones), and pretty much anything else lacking in caramel or chocolate. This may seem like a double standard, but why waste the time on candy when you have cake, ice cream, cookies, pastries, and many other tasty desserts that are much more worthy of the calorie intake.

While that list is not nearly exhaustive, it is a start. I will remind Matthew that he is behind the times on his tag. I will let you all know that Nathan really won't get a blog anytime soon. If any of you wishes to comment and add to the list, by all means you are entitled.