The Debriefing

I just got home a while ago from the retreat with Lisa’s girls and all I can say is ‘Wow’.

I will never get over that through the fabulosity of the world wide web I was able to find a girlfriend who is eerily living a parallel life to mine. We have so much in common it’s just scary – but in a good way. We both have four kids, love Bible Study, hate fresh tomatoes but love salsa, have the same musical taste…the list goes on. I am so grateful God ordained our paths to cross for I know I’ve found a friend forever. (Cue Renaldo from AI…Rats, I can’t get that song out of my head!)

And the rest of the women? DOLLS – every single one of you! It’s only in Jesus that I would have the courage to spend the night with a group I’ve never met and yet come away feeling I have known you forever. I hope the feeling was mutual! Again, I thank you from the bottom of my heart for giving me the privilege of serving you this weekend. And now that I know a few of you come around here sometimes, I’d better start seeing some comments! :) Especially you, Ms. Pastor’s Wife Amy with the mad fire-building skillz. I LOVE meeting ministry wives and I had a great time laughing with you! And you, Leslie, my fellow mommy blogger. I can’t wait for pictures when the baby boom hits you two girls!

I also have to give kudos to my hubby who kept the house clean while I was gone. Typically, when the mom is away, the kiddos do tear the house down to the studs so it was quite refreshing to come home and find all as it should be. Luke is the most excellent dad and never begrudges my being gone and for this I will always be grateful. One of his peeves is for dads to talk about ‘babysitting’ their kids if the wife is gone. My favorite rant of his? “They are YOUR kids, too! You don’t BABYSIT your own kids”.

Oh how I love that man-o-mine.

There’s nothing more awesome than a great Girl Weekend but I also have to admit I’m always glad to get back to the fam. And apparently they are happy I’m home too if the amount of times the boys have sat on me and pooted is any indication. Be it ever so humble, there’s no smell like home.

However, and thankfully, The Girl has a different way of expressing how lost she was without me. I asked her if she missed me while I was gone and she said, “I kinda forgot you weren’t here.”

Family Circle called. They want to give me the “Mom of the Year” Award.

So anyhooty, I’m going to get in here and reconnect with my family and reintroduce myself to my daughter who forgot her mother in 24 hours flat.

Impact, people. We should all have so much.


I’m off….Have a rich Lord’s Day!

January 26, 2008 | Filed Under Gratitude, Women's Ministry | 20 Comments 

101 Damnations

Now before you go thinking that the Preacher’s Wife has commenced to cussin’, let me tell you the funniest thing.

A friend at church gave my daughter some computer games today and one of them was 101 D-a-l-m-a-t-i-A-n-s. When we got home, I heard daughter saying, “now where did that damnation one go? Mom!! What did you do with the 101 Damnations?”

Don’t get pious on me. You know you think it’s funny.

I normally don’t correct her adorable little mis-speaks but I figured I’d better enlighten her on this one. The thing is when I thought about it, if I had 101 dogs running all over my house I probably would be cussin’. Geesh. Can you even imagine? Who dreams up those Disney cartoons anyway? I would totally not have a problem with letting Cruella take a few off my hands – fur coat or not.

(Don’t email me, PETA people. Just kindasorta jokin, ‘kay?)

Speaking of the little daughter, she pulled a fast one on hubs today. I’ve shared with you the girl has serious clothing issues. Well, this morning I had gone to church to teach the elementary Bible classes we host once a week. Since I have to be there before 8 am, Luke stays home on those days until Girl wakes up. He then gets her ready and brings her to church a little later.

This morning, I had neglected to fold socks out of the enormous basketful that is still sitting in my laundry room (why am I blogging when I should be folding socks?). The hubby decides he isn’t digging through the basket forever to find a match so he grabs two that are somewhat similar. Now, he knows Girl isn’t going to go for the whole socks-don’t-match thing so while she is still half asleep, he hides her face under the blanket and hurries to put on her socks and boots.

Tonight he was laughingly sharing with me how he’d pulled a fast one on her and how incredibly proud he was of himself for doing it. He said, ‘ you gotta see this’ and yells, “GIRL, come in here a minute!” She ran into the room and lo and behold, she was wearing matching socks.

Ya’ll, according to her, once she woke up and got her bearings this morning she actually took her boots off to see what socks her dad had put on her feet. When she realized he’d unacceptably put mismatches on her, she got the pair out of her laundry basket she’d worn YESTERDAY and put them on instead. She put her boots back on and Luke never knew the difference. To which I say,

‘WHO’S YOUR DADDY NOW?’

Oh I am STILL rolling. I kept telling that man-o-mine he couldn’t pull one on The Girl and I think he is finally figuring it out. Somebody please tell me – if it’s like this when she is five, what the heck are we gonna do when she’s 15? Vicki, will you address this anywhere in your Five Conversations book? :)

Okay, so that’s my tale for the day. I’m off to bed early tonight so I can get some good sleep before I hit the road with my new girlfriends tomorrow. I would love your continued prayers for the retreat this weekend. I am completely ready for a God Show.

Cya soon!

January 25, 2008 | Filed Under Parenting or Lack Thereof | 22 Comments 

Are You Slumming?

Hello Girls!
I only have a minute to pop in and say hello as I am in the heat of preparing for a retreat with Lisa-Writes’ church this weekend. I am beside myself with anticipation over what God will do with all of us during this time we’ve set apart to meet with Him! I can’t wait to be face-to-face with this group of girls whom I’ve already met in the heavenlies through my petitions to God on their behalf. There is no one besides He and me who knows what a flake I can be but I rest in the fact that even though I can fail, He can not.
So, I came to tell you I have a confession to make. I’ve been holding out on you. I didn’t want to put this nugget out there because it’s almost like a spoiler of sorts, but I can hardly stand it any longer.

During my prep for this study, I have run across an idea, a thought rather, that has altered my perspective. I totally dig it when that happens. You won’t be shocked to learn it is from C.S. Lewis. Hear this excerpt from The Weight of Glory:

I don’t know about you, but I’m not satisfied with my crazy, running around life. Will you pray with me that I’ll recognize what a full measure of joy looks like? That my pursuits will be holy and that I will not stop until I have found that treasure in the field and spent everything I have to buy

it? I’ll pray this for you, too. Because you know what?

“If there lurks in most modern minds the notion that to desire our own good and earnestly to hope for the enjoyment of it as a bad thing I submit that this notion has crept in from Kant and the Stoics and is no part of the Christian faith. Indeed, if we consider the unblushing promises of reward and the staggering nature of the rewards promised in the Gospels, it would seem that Our Lord finds our desires not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased.”

 
And there it is. That little paragraph explains so much to me about our human condition and the things we chase after. Personally I have wasted so much time pursuing temporal things. Not being able to attain money or status or relationships is not the problem. The fact that Satan allows us to attain them is the problem. It’s like a tasty carrot dangling in front of our nose. We get a nibble and we want a little more. So we run harder and harder after a taste when we could have had a belly full. We are satisfied with the carrot when we could have had looked up and feasted endlessly on the apple tree. 
And I know I’m off on a tangent. Don’t get scared Lisa…I’ll try not to get all philosophical on you girls. However, I just can’t get the picture out of my mind of that child playing in the slums when the sea is waiting. Where is your satisfaction, girlfriend? Where is mine? Are we settling for far too little of an infinite God?

I’m over slumming.

Anybody up for a trip to the beach?

January 23, 2008 | Filed Under Devo's, Spiritually Speaking | 23 Comments 

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