God is AMAZING

I have been filled with so much joy today after reading a friend's blog this morning. I've been friends with Molly since preschool. We rarely talk anymore due to miles and circumstances, but she still holds a very special place in my heart. I wept uncontrollably two years ago, when she lost a baby girl to stillbirth. Today I cry tears of joy, as she shares that yesterday they found out she is having twin girls. I get chills as I type that! Seriously, how amazing is the God we serve?
http://mollypiper.com/2010/03/we-had-an-ultrasound-today-wanna-know-more-2/

Chasing Imperfection

My friend Mandy asked me to share some thoughts on perfection and how to let it go. You can read my post at her amazing blog. She is a beautiful writer, artist and chaser of God. If you have time for reading blogs, I suggest adding her's to you list!

Get Stackin'

Ethan was introduced to Sport Stacking by his phys ed teacher last year (If you've never seen anyone do it before, you should YouTube it...it's kinda nuts...this video is from Saturday of the Canadian record holder http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qvlowkEgX-c ). Since it was something that involved competition, he, of course, loved it. We looked all over for a set in stores, but didn't find any. We ended up going to the "official" World Sport Stacking Association website to order some...who knew such a thing existed!?!? Anyway, it's actually quite fun! Mark ended up ordering a big set for his phys ed classes, along with a timing mat. We found out there was a regional competition here in Ohio, so we decided to try it out for a family fun day. It turned out to be a really long day, but definitely a memory making one. They both ended up winning a handful of medals, trophies, and ribbons. Ethan broke a state record, but was beat by another little boy that was on a relay team with him. Karis was just tenths of a second off of the state record in her age group...she actually broke it in a warm-up, but they only count finals! We didn't really expect our quiet, reserved kiddos to do so well, but they loved it and it was really a growing experience for them.

Making my declaration

I'm making my "public" declaration...September 12th I'm running the Erie Half-Marathon. So, I have to do it now, right? ...crap...now I'm scared...

I've said for a long time that I'd like to run a marathon some day, and I still would, but there is no way I can invest the amount of time it would take to accomplish that goal right now. I'm having a hard enough time believing that I'm going to be okay with the amount of time it's going to take to prepare for a Half.

I love to run. I love the sense of accomplishment when I finish a few miles. I love how I feel when I'm in shape. I love having conversations with God while I'm pounding the pavement. I love feeling refreshed by the quiet.

But I'm so bad about spending time on myself! I rarely feel like I need time away and sometimes feel guilty when I take it. Seriously, I get out about once every two weeks without kids and it's to go grocery shopping. I go to a Bible Study once a month and about once every other month I might go out with some girlfriends for a couple hours, but that's about it. I don't get my hair or nails done, I don't soak in the bathtub, I don't have a TV show I watch every week, I hardly ever read anymore. I might get 20 minutes to read my Bible and journal on a good morning, and after the kids are in bed I'm grading my students' work.

I spend A LOT of time with my family, so why do I feel selfish for wanting to do this? I have a husband who is perfectly capable of taking care of the kids (sometimes I think he's better at it than me!) and enjoys opportunities to be with them on his own. I know plenty of moms, with 3-5 kids around the same age as mine are, who are training for half marathons and triathalons and I know, in my head, it's not bad to set this goal and go for it.

I just have problems letting go of the idea that since I asked to be a mom, I need to fully invest in that (especially in this season when our kids are young)...and that when I spend time on me, I'm being selfish. These years pass much too quickly. Before I know it they'll all be in school all day, and I'll have more than enough time for a goal like this. So, there are days where I have almost convinced myself that I should just wait.

But I can't. I need to do this this year. This is becoming an element in my process of learning to let go this year. I'm letting go of the idea that spending time on me = selfishness. This doesn't mean that my family is never going to see me anymore :O). It means that it's okay for me to set a goal and put in the time and work to accomplish it. I know there are probably plenty of people who probably think I'm crazy for choosing a half marathon to train myself in taking "me time", but for me, this is an investment in my mind, body, and soul.

The timing of the race is what is making this goal attainable and will make the letting go process less stressful. I've been asked to do several tris and halfs by friends, but I'm not willing to commit to them because of the timing. I picked Erie's half because it lets me do a majority of my training over the summer, while Mark is home, our obligations are limited, our schedule is pretty free, and I have a minimal amount of students. (The last couple weeks of the training plan might get a little hairy as Mark starts cross-country, the kids start soccer, and my students start their new school year, but I'll figure something out.)

I'm running a half-marathon.

Learning to Enjoy

I loved this email devotional from MOPS International today and wanted to share it. I don't know too many moms who don't struggle with this! I've been asking God for help on this one for a while now....and slowly, but surely, I feel like He's helping me get somewhere!

Come Enjoy Us
By Jeanne Rohrs

The other night my boys and I were sitting down to dinner as my husband entered the room. My three-year-old looked up and said, “Daddy, come enjoy us!”

I love puns, but this one stood out to me because it revealed the heart of my child.

I often miss out on enjoying my children as I herd them from one errand to another. Most of the time I join them but don’t enjoy them. Why aren’t those words synonyms for me as a mom?

Maybe it’s because no matter what I get done, there’s always more to do; more that I think I should have done; more that I think I should be. And there’s guilt over all that I have yet to do. That’s how it happens – my kids become roadblocks.

But when I stop keeping-up-with-the-Joneses and trying to be like June Cleaver, and I really look at my kids, I see their desire for me to enjoy them – to delight in them. It’s then that I ask myself if my agenda is really that important, and if the floor is really too dirty.

Lord, you delight in your children. You quiet them with your love and rejoice over them with singing. Give me your perspective. Help me to enjoy the gift that my kids are.

Life Lately

Ugh...I just can't seem to get on the ball. Not that I really think I need to be blogging everyday, but I thought maybe I'd be able to do once a week, at least! I'll have just a few minutes here and there throughout the day, so I wanted to work on a little tidbit update about what has been going on around here!

February came and went...as did my 31st birthday! I'm old. It feels kind of weird to be IN my 30's, but I'm enjoying it. I remember the days when 30 seemed so far off...I couldn't really picture what life would be like at "that" age. I'm so thankful God has given me another year spend with my sweet little family and accomplish more of what He has for me. I went out shopping on the night before my birthday, all by myself and enjoyed that. While I was out, Mark "snuck" out with the kids to Kroger to get a cake, which they made, decorated and hid in the kids' closet till the next morning! Very cute. And of course we ate some big pieces of chocolate cake for breakfast. They also got me some new workout videos that I've been hinting around at. We ended the day with a chocolate fondue session. Seriously...what could be better than starting and ending the first day of your 31st year with chocolate?

Ethan is testing this week for grade acceleration/advancement. Way back in January his teacher sent home a note in his report card suggesting that we move him to second grade. We knew he was doing well and feeling bored, but we were a bit surprised by that recommendation. After thinking, praying, and talking, we decided to move forward with testing and push for grade acceleration. This would put Ethan in second or possibly third grade for math and reading, while allowing him to stay in first grade with his current classmates. I know that if we were in a different school district with a later cut-off for starting kindergarten, Ethan could be in second grade this year, and after his first year of pre-K we briefly considered having him tested and sending him early. We really determined at that time it would probably be in Ethan's best interest (socially) to hold off. I'm still glad we did. Kids are growing up way faster than they need to these days...no need to rush him. So anyway, now, after weeks of snow days and 2 hour delays, we are halfway through another grading period and finally doing the testing. We are praying for God to put Ethan where he needs to be when all is said and done.

My parents gave me some birthday money to go buy a webcam for my computer. We have since been having fun "Skyping". Anytime something exciting happens the kids want to call Grammy and Papa on the computer. It's something that makes the miles seem a little shorter :O).

Karis started gymnastics last week. She has been begging to take classes for quite a while and gave up soccer and art classes so she could try it out. I had to take all four kids for her first class since Mark had parent-teacher conferences so I couldn't get any pictures, but she definitely has some areas where she is really strong and some where she will benefit a ton from the coaching. I'm excited for her to have her own thing that she can shine at and I'll take the camera on Thursday since I won't have the kids!

I took Karis and Natalie to see Disney on Ice in Columbus this past weekend. Karis saw the Princesses on Ice show a couple years ago with my mom and has asked when she'll be able to go again ever since. They had been looking forward to it for a month and had a great time. Seeing their faces light up was well worth the ridiculous cost of making the day fun!! (We were there really early, so the first pic is us making "silly" faces in the van :O))

Well, of course it has ended up taking me more than a day to get this post finished. Such is the story of my life...