I forgot to take care of mommy

I thought I would share with you one of my latest solutions to one of my silliest realities of being a mommy.
If you are a mommy, then you will know exactly what I am talking about when I say that I, on a daily basis, forget to take care of my own most basic needs and goals for my life and well-being.
So, I made myself a check-list.
You know, the kind that you make for your kids... but this one is for mommy.
It sits on my fridge, and I thought you would get a kick out of it:

......And so, veteran moms.
I ask you.
Will I ever get my brain back, or is it gone for good?

The Fruit Crown

I couldn't resist sharing these pictures.

The boys are tickled with themselves.

They are wearing the Fruit Crown. Whenever I catch one of them displaying a Fruit of the Spirit, they get to wear the crown.

It is fun to see them trying to outdo each other with kindness and other sweetness :)

"but the fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control." {Galatians 5:22-23}

Looks can be deceiving

Don't things look like they are just going swimmingly at The OWL Academy today??
Such attentive and diligent little ones?

Well.
Looks can be deceiving.

What we actually had was A LOT of this:

And we sure did talk about THIS a lot:

Mommy even had a time out today.
I slammed the door to the school room and sat in the bathroom and counted to 30.

Then.
I thanked the Lord.
It went kinda like this:

"Lord, please help me to not scream at my kids.

They are driving me CRAZY. Give me patience.

{insert very deep sigh}

And thank you, Lord, that I can teach my kids.

That it is their Mommy, who loves them SO Much, who is frustrated with them. Instead of someone, who does not love them, who is frustrated.

Thank you. That I can pull up my boot-straps, take a deep breath, and continue to teach them with the highest expectations. That I care SO MUCH, and that I know what their best work can be.  That I will continue to expect their best and wait patiently for it.

May I accept that frustration is a part of learning, and NEVER say, "Oh, well." May I never say, "They probably just can't do it. Let's just move on and hope it comes later."

Thank you, Lord, that I am their teacher and their mother. I love them more than words can express.

Give me Your patience."

and.
While it was certainly not our best homeschool day,
it was still a good day.
A day with my precious kids.

One

As a mom, I always feel that there is more to be done.

more I could be doing.

more I should be doing.

My lists need lists.

I try to prioritize... to map out my time so that I do not squander away any of my minutes.

and yet so much is left undone.

and then there is my ministry....

the things that God would have me doing.

and what would that be, pray-tell?

am I the only mom who finds the sheer service to her children to be all-encompassing of every last ounce of energy? Funny how when I look around, people seem to be getting so much more done than I...

serving so many others....

So, I keep taking my inadequacy before our Lord.

and lately, he keeps whispering to me:

"one.

just one."

One person at a time.

One conversation at a time.

One encouragement at a time.

One hug at a time.

One investment.

One life.

I cannot see the forrest for the trees. There are so many things I should do. So many ways I should serve. So much more I should give. So many lives I could be helping. I could do better. I could be doing more. I could do more..................

and yet,

the word and the voice does not go away:

God whispers, "one."

Must Have: Toilet Training in Less than a Day

So, it is true:

this Must Have is not for everyone....

BUT, if you have potty training age children, this book/method is a Must Have in my humble opinion. {wink}

Toilet Training in Less Than a Day WORKS! {click on the link to read more about the method}:

The method was originally created to train special-needs adults who were diaper-dependent.

My mom used this method in the 70's to train her first-born, who is developmentally and mildly physically disabled {also known as my wonderful sister, Cheryl}. She subsequently trained me and Tammy and even my cousin Evan... in less than a day.

Well, as of yesterday, I have now officially used the method to train my two kiddos! It is official: Christian graduated from daytime diapers yesterday!! {Woohoo}

So, here is the gist (although I definitely recommend getting the book to fill in the gaps and keep you on track):

• You start by having your child teach a wetting doll how to go pee on the potty:

• You pump your kid full of sugary juices {that you usually don't give them. treat-factor}.
• You also emphasize that "wet pants are bad." You also remind the child that they are not bad, but wet pants are bad. This is an ESSENTIAL part of the training, and what I think really makes it work
• You make a list with your child of all their favorite people who wear big-kid-pants and keep them dry.
• You practice running back and forth to the potty and teach your child how to quickly pull their pants up and down

• You ask your child non-stop, "Do you have dry pants?" and if the answer is yes, you reward them with a treat. I gave Christian one dried Cranberry for every yes.
• You head to the potty quickly on regular intervals. Tell them of their huge reward that they will get when they pee in the potty {Christians is tractor fruit gummies. Caleb was M&M's or holding Daddy's Drill}.
• Don't forget to keep pumping them FULL of juice. My kids definitely both got sick of this part, but I continued to stick the straw in their mouths {lovingly, of course, but firmly}.
• When your child invariably wets themself {Christian and Caleb only had one big wet}, you have to remind them that wet pants are bad, none of their folks on their list have wet pants, and that they are good and dry pants are good. Then, you have them practice running to the potty back and forth several times.

• You do need to devote an entire day to this task. No excursions. No phone-calls. And, if you have a challenging child, it would be best with no sibling.

Potty training.

Check.

Rescuing Leftovers again

The Muffin Tin idea has been a fantastic way for me to clear out dinner leftovers!

Here is a plate of a whole-lotta random reheated leftovers:

Add muffin tins, and Voila! Sure does not feel like leftovers:

Included in this week's tins: cucumber sticks in ranch, string cheese, sweet potato fries with ketchup, grapes, brautwurst and corn, and tater tots.
Leftovers: Gone. Mom and Kids = Happy.

Muffin Tins made lunch easier

Muffin Tin Meals.

So, I jumped onto this bandwagon for many good reasons:

1. I knew the kids would think it was fun, fun, fun!
2. it was a cure for the food-boredom of late
3. it a GREAT way to use up bitty leftovers. No waste!
4. it was an awesome way to keep their meals balanced.

Here it is! My first Muffin Tin Monday:

(tins contain: cheetos and pretzel goldfish, cherry tomatoes, red grapes, confetti corn, protein pancakes, and buttered egg noodles)

Here are the satisfied customers:

Yummm. Our favorite Protein pancakes (leftover). I really need to do a post about these bad boys:

I cannot believe that I am admitting to feeding Cheetos to my children. But. I hate wasting food, -and besides, Cheetos taste awesome, okay???- and we got a bag of them in the most precious hotel-welcome-bag at my sister's wedding - and the kids do love them, of course...

Clearly I have guilt over the Cheetos, because none of you really cared to hear all of that.

leftover Confetti corn: (frozen corn, nuked, then added to a skillet of EVOO, chopped onion, pepper, and tomatoes. Salt, pepper, butter, and a splash of cayenne and Old Bay seasoning)

leftover egg noodles, reheated and buttered:

The kids absolutely loved their first muffin tin experience, and have since been asking for it again. I think this may be a keeper.

Happy Mother's Day 2010

Happy Mother's Day to all of my Blog Friends who are enjoying this wild and precious ride called motherhood.

Your Mother Is Always With You...
Author: Unknown

Your mother is always with you...
She's the whisper of the leaves
as you walk down the street.
She's the smell of bleach
in your freshly laundered socks.
She's the cool hand on your brow
when you're not well.
Your mother lives inside your laughter.
She's crystallized in every tear drop.
She's the place you came from,
your first home...
She's the map you follow
with every step that you take.
She's your first love
and your first heart break...
and nothing on earth can separate you.
Not time, Not space...
Not even death...
will ever separate you
from your mother...
You carry her inside of you...

You Know You're A Mom When.....Still Life.

This used to be the Still Life scenes around my former, pre-children home:

Lovely. Breakable. Untouched bliss.

But, you know you are a mom when...

This is your latest Still Life scene:

Apparently my son has a friend.

He is a watermelon.

He named him Caleb.

And in the photo above, he is taking a nap.

Of course he is.

I just love that Watermelon Still Life. Who needs boring. old. breakable. perfection. when you can have belly laughter?????

Oh, won't you join in on the Mr. Linky fun? Any lovely 'Still Life's around your home... like a mountain of stinky socks, or a lego sculpture?? Oh, please do share!

...And it does not have to be a still life, mommies. Just let us know what, in your life-home-and-crazies, reminds you that You Know You are A Mom!

You Know You're A Mom When...... this is your ambiance during a bubblebath.

Won't you join me for: You Know You're A Mom When....

Attach your own crazy-snippet-of-life-as-a-mommy by using Mr.Linky below!

And without further ado:
You Know You're A Mom When.... this is your ambiance during a bubblebath:

Oh. I can't wait to hear about your day... and see those cute faces!!

Don't forget to link to your post below... and on your post, link back to me!

"You know you're a mom when...": Snot on Velvet

Here it is!

Welcome to the very first "You know you're a mom when..."

I hope you will join me, friends!!!! Add your name to Mr. Linky below, with your very own!

I can't wait to hear about the insanity in your house, too!!

You know you are a mom when....

There is snot on your velvet sofa: Gee. I wonder how it got there??

Can't wait to hear your stories, and/or see your pictures!

If there is no Mr. Linky here, then, that means I am an Html failure. Someone. Please help me. I promise you, I read all of the instructions, and did JUST what they said. Promise.