Women Are A Tough And Hardy Lot

Grandmothers and Mothers.

Daughters and Sisters.

Aunts and Cousins.

Step moms and Foster moms.

Women, we are a tough and hardy lot. Yes, we are. There is nothing in this world like a mother’s fierce and protective love along side a gentle and nurturing nature. These women live through joy and pain. Proud moments and heartaches. So many things make up a mother.

Mother’s know and understand what it is to scream in pain and joy at the exact same time. When that wet bundle of love is laid on the chest, nothing is ever the same. It can’t be. The heart has changed. That new baby has made it so…

Nursing and staying up late. Strained peas, diapers, and potty training. The first day of kindergarten. Bedtimes and homework. Sports moms and recitals. Holding hands and holding hearts. Advice and wisdom. Yelling and forgiveness. The stink eye and the “you’d better move it!”. Kisses and hugs and I love you’s. Blessings and behaviors. Tears and smiles. Wiggly toes and wiggly bottoms. Hand prints and car keys. First loves and heartbreak. Listening and loving no matter what. The years go by so very quickly.

These women, oh my…..they are something else.

Now, don’t get me wrong. Daddy’s are important, most vital. They are both needed and wanted, and loved, but their roles are different. A mother can try, but she can’t fill a father’s role, not really. Nor can Daddy take the place of Mommy. It just isn’t the same.

This day I celebrate the mom’s. Mom’s you do make a real difference. Don’t forget that.

You gave life, and in turn changed your own life in the process.

 

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I’m Blaming Hormones…Because I Can

For those of you that read my blog regularly, you know that yesterday was the pits for me. I’m happy to say, today has been much better. I really need to credit my husband. Now, he probably would not fully appreciate my undying affection splayed out all over the internet…but, that is not going to stop me. After all, day in and day out we hear all the hard, gritty stuff of life and the good stuff doesn’t get talked about as much. Today I am going to counter balance yesterday’s grumpy moodiness with today’s happier, more uplifting note.

First things first. I love my husband. I really do. He’s not perfect, because Lord knows if he were, he would not be with me! I am not perfect, not even close. My husband does balance me. I was swimming around in my moody muck last night, threatening sack cloth and ashes, and loud wailing. It was not pretty. He smiled at me and said something to the effect of “it’s not that bad”. I momentarily thought of throwing a flip flop at him….but, I chose the higher moral ground and decided that assault by flip flop is NOT what a loving wife would do. So, instead I listened to him. He remained calm during my emotional thunderstorm. It made me love him even more. Then he said, “I think we need to go out”. I agreed. We had a nice dinner and an even better conversation. Nothing like Mexican food to calm the inner beast, or the psychotic wife. Just saying.

He could have reacted differently to my bad mood. I wouldn’t have blamed him. Well…..okay, I might have blamed him because that was the frame of mind I was in, but he ignored the mess he married and made the choice to love me despite my flaws. He is really good that way and I sure do appreciate that about him.

Now, there will be days when I get to return the favor…. days when he is having it rough. We all ride this roller coaster of life with its ups and downs, and we are no exception. My mom always used to say, “Just remember, this too shall pass.” I think my husband and my mom must have been cut from the same cloth…..and lucky them, they both get to deal with me:)

Seriously, I’m not that horrible. Most of the time.

I’m blaming hormones…because I’m a woman, and I can.                                                   

⁹ Two are better than one,
    because they have a good return for their labor:
¹⁰ If either of them falls down,
    one can help the other up.
But pity anyone who falls
    and has no one to help them up.
¹¹ Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm.
    But how can one keep warm alone?
¹² Though one may be overpowered,
    two can defend themselves.
A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.   —Ecclesiastes 4

 

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Thankful For This Day

Thankful for this day.

It is a gift.

Even, if it is a Monday.

Even, if it is raining.

Even if I’m not at my perfect weight,

I’m having a bad hair day,

or I don’t complete today’s to do list.

It is still good…because God is good. He is good all the time, even when I don’t understand.

A friend’s sister, who recently went to the doctor for a “routine” procedure, was instead told the doctor had found that she had aggressive cancer, and barring a miracle she might not live out the month. Aggressive chemotherapy to try and shrink the mass. Praying for that miracle. My heart aches for her, and her family.

*****************************************************************

What would I see as a gift, if I knew I only had 30 days left to unwrap those things?

* raindrops on the window pane

* a cold wet, dog nose

* hugs from my children

* kissing my husband

* the softness of my favorite pillow

* the warm glow, and sweet smell of a burning candle

* the smell of a freshly mowed lawn

* warm, just laid, eggs

* emails from friends and family

* a new bottle of pretty pink glitter nail polish

* faces, I’d memorize those faces

* the Word, worn and read….notes taken, passages underlined

* the sweetness of chocolate, peanut butter ice cream…my favorite

* knowing my Heavenly Father in a very real and personal way

 

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Friendship

1. Write for 5 minutes flat – no editing, no over thinking, no backtracking

2. Link back here and invite others to join in.

3. Please visit the person who linked up before you & encourage them in their comments.

OK, are you ready? Give me your best five minutes on:

::

Friend…

*******************************************************************************************

Besties and BFF’s

She just “gets” me

Anytime phone calls and “I got your back”

Secrets and sharing moments

Walking together and running into the future

Road trips to here, there, everywhere and no where in particular

Toasts, and cheers and celebrations

Emails and messages

Sweatpants and no make-up and bad hair days

Tears and fights and “I can’t believe you did that!”

Laughter, lots of laughter and camaraderie

Acting like women, but giggling like girls

Silliness and seriousness all in the same face

Bridesmaids, pregnancy, and the growing up years.

Sharing stories, and gaining confidence

Memories that will forever remain

Distance doesn’t matter, and it is easy to take up where you left off

Copying recipes and finding the perfect flea market

Asking opinions and then saying, “You’re crazy!”

Holding a hand, wiping the tears and mending a heart

Just being there and not saying a word…because you don’t have to…

Sharing a life and baring your soul

This is………being a friend.

Friendship, one of God’s greatest gifts.

Proverbs 17:17
A friend loves at all times…

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Good Morning Sunshine!

It’s Monday.

Good hair day, Monday.

Clean clothes ’cause I did the laundry, Monday.

Living room needs dusted, Monday.

I hate dust because it never goes away, Monday.

I’m still on my diet, Monday.

The “I don’t know what in the world we will have for dinner tonight”, Monday.

My chicks keep escaping and pooping on the floor before I realize it, Monday.

The I’ve got a couple more weeks of babysitting the chicks before they go outside, Monday.

My bushes are starting to bud, Monday.

It’s sunny, Monday and springtime, Monday and so in love with my husband, Monday.

I was pondering yesterday…how much I have to do over the next couple of months.

The thoughts of it all, piles up in my brain, weighing heavy.

Sigh.

Life can just we whirlwind crazy sometimes, can’t it?

Sometimes the spin gives me a headache.

Time to get off the merry-go-round…

slow down…

and  just say thank you.

****************************************************************************

Today I am thankful…really thankful…

* Cool springtime mornings that feel good on my skin

* Streaming sunshine

* Sparkling dew on the new blades of grass

* Budding bushes that just scream Springtime is here!

* Chirping chicks

* My husband, my best friend, my confidant

* Safety for my children

* The last few weeks until summer break

* Plans to travel

* Stories to hear

* Finishing my grad class

* Getting a good grade

* Learning new things

* God who created all things

* Christ who deserves all my thank you’s

It really is all good, because all good things come from Him.

Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. James 1:17  NIV

 

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Going Home

The Gypsy Mama

1. Write for 5 minutes flat – no editing, no over thinking, no backtracking.
2. Link back here and invite others to join in.
3. And then absolutely, no ifs, ands or buts about it, you need to visit the person who linked up before you & encourage them in their comments. Seriously. That is, like, the rule. And the fun. And the heart of this community..

Oh and Ahem, if you would take pity and turn off comment verification, it would make leaving some love on your post that much easier for folks!

OK, are you ready? Please give us your best five minutes on:::

Home…

***********************************************************************************

Home.

The word, to many, means family and friends because…

home is where they love you.

No matter how old, or how far away, one can always go home…

even if it is only in his/her memories.

Today on this five minute Friday I’ve decided to share some of my pictures.

Pictures of home.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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This Mom Of Mine

 

Five Minute Friday with Lisa-Jo at Tales from a Gypsy Mama.

Today’s your turn. What did your mama do that makes her your mama? Let’s unpack those memories today.

Where is your memory buried?

In just five minutes. Tell me all about what your mama did that made her yours…

*****************************************************************************

Elementary school pictures with crooked bangs, cut by a mother who with “just one more snip” thought she could straighten them out. I look back at my pictures and have to smile. My mom was good at fixing things and making me feel better. ( I was high fashion style before it was even in style:)

My mom, worried that my neck was swollen…taking me to the doctor to find out why. Holding my teenage hand, when I was scared. Telling me that thyroid disease was going to be taken care of with some medicine.

She took care of me during my bout with mono my senior year, helped get me to and from my job at the Dry Cleaners, was a huge help when filling out applications for college, sat through Lyric theater performances, encouraged me in my goal to graduate with a degree in Special Education. She went with me through the winding mountains of east Tennessee to help me move to the little town that held the first school I ever taught at.

Laughter, tears, joy, pain. Uphill battles and marathon races. Arguments and big, fat, honkin’ mistakes. Lots and lots of memories. My mom is strong and brave and smart and I know this about her. She stepped out and changed her life when it wasn’t easy. She figured things out as she went. She taught my younger sister and I that we could do anything. We were smart and strong and beautiful. She endowed me with a healthy self confidence that as I look back over the years– has served me well. She always made me feel special and loved, and is there anything better than that?

There are always times though, no matter how confident, that I need encouragement. My mom has been and still is my biggest encourager. Her cards, letters, and emails always seem to come just when I need them the most. Her words make me feel better.

Encouragement, it is her gift really.

She is a gift.

And I love her, this mom of mine.

 

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This One Life

I’m really still a kid at heart. And I like snow days…

The phone rang a little before six this morning. School delayed…an hour later, cancelled.

This teacher is happy, and so is this mom. It doesn’t mean that I don’t have plenty to do around here, it just means I can do it at my own pace.

Today that means, slower.

I hear the television playing in the living room, and the washer filling with water in the laundry room. The hum of the refrigerator is quietly playing in the background, of a house filled with daily noise.

I need to do laundry, feed the animals, work on my blog, start my new online class on autism, prepare for Bible study, read…and make some chocolate chip cookies.

But, I stop and take time to look out the window.

The gray-white sky melts into the snow-white ground. Only sharp and boney limbs of barren trees reach into the wind. Some say winter is harsh, and cold and they wish for warmer weather.

I, on the other hand, choose to see the beauty in this season. The other night the snow shown like silver glitter in the moonlight. It was breathtaking, really. The gray clouds are immense as they scud across the sky. The cold wind is harsh, that is true, but it makes my cheeks rosy and alive.

Winter is a time of waiting. Slowing down.

And don’t we all go through winters in our lives?

Without the cold, how can I appreciate the warm? In not too many weeks the snow will be completely gone, and the spring mud will take its place.

Life will be resurrected in the green of new grass, crops planted in straight lines, bulbs bursting forth through wet ground…stretching towards the sun.

And don’t we all need that? To stretch towards The Son?

To enjoy and appreciate this one life we have been given?

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Snowing Again

The Gypsy Mama

1. Write for 5 minutes flat – no editing, no over thinking, no backtracking.
2. Link back here and invite others to join in.
3. And then absolutely, no ifs, ands or buts about it, you need to visit the person who linked up before you & encourage them in their comments. Seriously. That is, like, the rule. And the fun. And the heart of this community..

Oh and Ahem, if you would take pity and turn off comment verification, it would make leaving some love on your post that much easier for folks!

OK, are you ready? Please give us your best five minutes on:::

Again…

*******************************************************

It’s snowing again.

White, fluffy flakes floating down to the earth.

Winter is here, and I can feel it give birth….

to crisp, cold air. Drifting snow…

and bundling up, with no place to go.

Blankets of white fold into the ground

The hush of snow, a quiet sound.

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Time To Get Rid Of The Junk

 

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***************************************

Today at Faith Barista Jam, we are discussing the word, clutter. When I first saw that word, I wondered what I would write about? The past week or two we’ve been getting back “into” the Thursday Jam sessions.

Clutter is almost always seen as negative. It makes me think of stacks of papers, scattered books, empty coffee cups, and junk mail. Stacks of dirty dishes, piles of shoes at the door, and wet towels on the bathroom floor. Clutter….sigh. It can drive me nuts.

Cluttered minds, cluttered lives. Much like the junk mail laying on the kitchen counter…junk thoughts can also clutter our minds. Thoughts that keep us from what is important.

Negative thoughts that pile up, much like the overflowing inbox full of junk.

“I’m so stupid! How could I have let this happen?”

“Oh, great. I’m sure I’ll get the Mom of the Year award for this.”

“I could never do that. I’d just fail. Again.”

“If only I were thinner, prettier, smarter….”

“I used to want to do that…but, now it is too late. I’ve waited too long.”

“I’m such a klutz.”

“God, are you really sure about this? Maybe this is a mistake?”

If clutter is not sorted through…it can become overwhelming. Debilitating. Excruciating.

Clutter is not God’s plan for His children.

It is not His desire for us to be filled with junk. His plan for us is better.

His plan is perfect and right.

Always.

Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.  Philippians 4:8 NIV

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