No rush here!

Jakob turned two in May, and it was like he woke up that morning and just knew that things were supposed to change. He has learned to throw fits, say "no", "now", "stop", "quit"...the list could go on and on. We are weaving our way through the weeds and learning how to discipline in love. My friend, Emily, shared a thought from a book she and her husband read with their two boys that went something like this, "You teach your children to obey you, so that that will obey God." It hit me...hard. So, I have been trying to be more definite on Jakob's boundaries this week and not excusing him from understanding because of his age. Anyway, all that said, Jakob started to show signs of being ready to start the potty conversation a few months ago. He was taking off his diaper as soon as it was dirty, going to the same corner in our house to do his business, and calling out "mommy/daddy potty" everytime we closed the bathroom door! So, we bought a potty chair and began trying to introduce things. We quickly learned that we have no clue how to potty train and that the actual act of going in the toilet freaked our sweet little boy out! Case in point:

So, after I took this memorable picture, we decided that we would back off and just keep talking about the potty when the opportunity presented itself, but nothing else! Well, last Monday, Jared was taking a shower, and Jakob walked into the bathroom. I could hear them talking as Jared showered, and I just listened thinking how sweet of a moment it was that they were having 'man-time' after mowing the lawn. It got quiet though, and Jared called me to come into the bathroom but to enter quietly. I turned the corner and was greeted by this scene: Jakob was sitting on the toilet, lid completely closed, diaper on, juice in hand. He put up his hand in a 'stop in the name of love' fashion, and said, "Whoa, mommy. I'm just thinkin' 'bout it." Jared and I laughed so hard. So, we celebrated that we were at least thinking about it again...no rush here!

God sold a cow...

I have often heard people in times of great financial struggle say something along the lines of, "Well, if the Lord owns the cattle on a thousand hills, I need him to sell a cow right about now." Well, as many of you know, Jared and I have needed God to sell a cow for a while now. We are into the second year of a three year plan to get out of revolving debt. The journey into that plan was long, hard, and glad to be forgotten. BUT, in this process, we have learned a ton about contentment, perseverance, and our Father's faithful provision through our unfaithful deeds. Okay, all that said, living with no credit cards has been quite difficult in a world of increased prices and immediate payment. Case in point...our A/C broke a few months ago. We are still in our first year of home warranty, so we called and had a temporary fix performed by a company that we will NEVER call again! So, after they took our 60 bucks and did not fix our A/C, we went a different, LONG route to getting a brand new unit. Well, as you can imagine, the price tag associated with a brand new A/C is humongous, and we didn't have five thousand or so dollars lying around waiting to be spent! So, we began to pray for a miracle. Faithful friends prayed with us and BEHOLD!...we have a new A/C that has a million and one deals worked on it by my husband with the warranty people. But, in the end...they paid for over half of it! After a very successful garage sale on Saturday and the IRS stimulus rebate thingy, its done! So, I say this to remind you that our God does indeed own the cattle on a thousand hills, and yes, He will sell one for you on occasion...He just may choose to sell it during your garage sale!

Here is Jakob feeding some cows at Kenny's Korral week before last...maybe these are the ones that paid for the A/C?!

Staying on Task!

Well, I have been given the gift of a child-free week in order to have my garage sale this weekend. We met my parents yesterday in Amarillo for Jakob to spend the next week with them in Oklahoma. If he were here with me, he would continue to return things to their "spot," while I'm trying to give them a new place in someone else's home! When Jakob started unpacking things I had gathered from closets saying, "Put it back, Mommy!" I was quite proud that maybe we are teaching him to pick up after himself! However, one afternoon of 're-cleaning' out closets was enough for me! Time for reinforcements! Jakob is reaching a place, though, of being very aware of his surroundings and struggling to leave Jared and me...just ask our blessed toddler room volunteers at church! Its like peeling screaming leaches off of me every Sunday morning! So, I was prepared, nay hoping, that he would have a similar response when we left him with my parents. He loves them so much...but it was going to be a whole week for crying out loud! Act like you're going to miss me! This is how it went...

Me: Give me kisses, buddy! I'm gonna miss you so much!

Jakob: No kisses, Mommy...bye.

That was it...no tears, no screaming...just bye. Ouch! I finally forced myself upon him for a goodbye kiss that was greeted by his sweet hand pushing my face away while exclaiming, "Stop, Mommy!" We'll see if I keep any of his toys free from the garage sale gods! bwahahahahaha!!! (that's my evil laugh in case you couldn't tell!) Here's to organization!

Confessions of an habitual slob!

Well, as to Teri's prodding, I am going to bare my soul with you all...the deepest, darkest regions of my life. Hello, my name is Carla, and I am a slob. I hate putting small pieces of paper in the trash. I despise putting laundry up after I have washed and folded it. (I'm not kidding...I don't mind doing it, sorting it, and folding it. I just HATE putting it where it belongs!) I have a talent for looking past the faults and flaws of my home...such as piles of laundry, stacks of mail, and finger-printed glass. They say admission is the toughest part, right? WRONG!!!

One of my goals this summer, however, is to completely organize our new home. I have to start by completing the unpacking process that began when we moved in here in late October. Obviously, I've been over-looking things for quite some time! Anyway...I scheduled a garage sale for 10 days from now to help kick me in the pants on this clutter-free journey I've signed up for. I have done pretty well so far...cleaned out all of my kitchen cabinets, the hall closet, completey over-hauled Jakob's room (there is a whole other blog attached to that) and worked on the hall bathroom. Woo Hoo! Look at me go! Then, there is our bedroom. (Insert doom and despair music here!) The place in our home that should be our santuary, our love nest, our escape...instead, it is our dumping ground, our last resort, and the thorn in my side! I will not go into great detail because I would be too ashamed, but just know, its like Jared and I never graduated from high school in there! Really, we should be grounded from playing with our friends until it has been cleaned! So, out of conviction from the Holy Spirit to serve my husband (and per his polite request to get rid of Mount Towels) I began work in there this morning. I had just reached that place of utter frustration with myself...you know, when you make promises to never let it get this bad again...when I heard Jakob start to sing. He has just started this beautful gift of singing, but he won't do it if he thinks you are listening. So, I kept busy while listening intently and trying to treasure every last sweet note. Here are the words that soared on his melody and totally ruined my state of mind:

To the 'tune' of The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything"

"Pirate...don't do an-ting...

Stay home...lay 'round...

LIKE MOMMY!!!"

I died...right then and there! He noticed that I chose to play just three or four (or six) games of dominoes while eating my bagel this morning before starting my task! It was as though God Himself was using the words of my prophetic two-year old to remind me of God's description of a woman of noble character found in Proverbs 31. The New Living Translation puts it like this:

15 She gets up before dawn to prepare breakfast for her household

and plan the day’s work for her servant girls.

So here are my thoughts for the day: first, I will strive to keep God's word fresh in my heart as I try to graciously tend the needs and duties of my home this day. Second, and maybe most importantly, where are my servant girls, Lord? I would so readily prepare their day's work for them if they would only ever show up for work!

So, here we go...

I am usually so not into blogging or diarying or whatever else this is called. I don't even know who on earth would want to see this, but none-the-less, here I am. I am hoping to use this as a checkup for me...a place to share my family with those who love us, and a place to share my heart with what God is teaching it. Today, I am on my continual journey of contentment. Our a/c has 'gone out' and is requiring an ungodly amount of money to fix. I am learning that sub-70 degree temperatures in the dead of summer are not a necessity of life...a luxury, but certainly not necessary. Jared and I learn every summer during his time at Gene Messer just how blessed we are during the rest of the year with our family-oriented schedule. I miss him terribly during the days of summer. I love his passion for taking care of our family. Bottom line, I just love my husband...and his heart.