Columbia's Corner

2011-10-20T13:34:00.003-04:00

As many of you know, Josh and I have moved to London, KY. Actually, we moved here in June. It has been an adjustment and so I haven't been blogging. But now that I am a stay-at-home mom I have a lot more time on my hands. So two days ago I decided there was no reason for me not to blog. So this is the first edition of Columbia's Corner, formerly known as the G-Force Connection.

Adjusting to being a stay-at-home has been a lot more difficult than I expected. Over the past several years I became accustomed to going 110% all the time and now my schedule feels empty. I do not enjoy many of the parts of being at home all the time--housework, laundry, etc. But this morning I came to the realization (through much prayer) that being a stay-at-home mom can/should be treated like a job.

When I worked, I had an ongoing to-do list and I felt productive when I was able to mark things off my list. So if I make a to-do list of my new "job" requirements perhaps the monotony will wear off and I can enjoy this new freedom.

That's the goal! We'll see what happens.

2011-04-02T22:44:00.003-04:00

Today was a monumental day. We took family pictures. Josh and I have not had pictures taken together since our engagement pictures in 2000. (Yes, almost 11 years ago!) We decided that now that our family is complete that we should have them done.

The problem is that when we started thinking about where to go, we remembered our experience getting pictures taken of Cinthia last year. Can you say stressful?? And that was just one kid...can you imagine 4 kids? No thank you! So we decided to do it ourselves. We started prepping the living room at 9:30 AM, then got the girls all dressed and ready, then took individual pictures, pictures of the girls together, pictures of Josh and I together, and the family. We finished 4 1/2 hours later. Exhausting!

Even though it took all day, I am very pleased with the results. Plus, I took the time to figure out how much it would cost us to get all these pictures from a studio. The savings definitely made it worth it--over $900, just for immediate family to get copies!!

Anyway, here is the family picture for you to see. If you want to see the other pics, you can visit Josh's Facebook.

New Baby, New Routine

2011-02-01T09:11:00.002-05:00

Every time I have a new baby I tend to forget just how much adjustment it takes. It's been fantastic having plenty of extra help from my family this month. I'm not sure I could have managed without them--in fact, I am positive that I couldn't.

Strangely enough, Joliana is not a difficult baby. She is quiet all the time. She grunts when hungry but doesn't cry about it. When she's cold (which is very often), she will whimper one or two times and then stop, even if she doesn't get warmed up. She is so laid back about everything that if whatever has her unhappy isn't taken care of immediately she just sighs once and is at peace again.

She is SOOOO unlike my other three. They were all criers and screamers until they were satisfied. If she will stay this way, I might make it through teenage years with four girls and most of my hair still intact. One can hope right!!

Chocolate

2010-09-24T16:41:00.003-04:00

I am seriously craving ridiculously dark chocolate. I am not sure why! They say when you are pregnant you should eat whatever it is you are craving because it indicates something that your body needs. I don't know what I am "deficient" in but I will gladly take the excuse to eat more chocolate.

Wouldn't it be wonderful if life worked that way? Your body would send you signals as to what you needed. You would never doubt if you were getting enough veggies or meat. You would never have to worry about whether or not you got enough sleep.

What if we took it even farther? What if our brain sent us signals about our to-do lists? What if our heart sent us signals about our attitude--before they got the best of us? What if our mouth sent us a signal before we said something we would regret? Wouldn't that be wonderful?

Oh....wait a minute. We do have signals about priorities, attitude, and speech. The Bible is very clear about all those areas of our life. We also have the Holy Spirit who is actively involved in the everyday pieces of our life--He gives us the "signals" but we have to choose to listen to them. So maybe, the tricky part is paying attention to the signals before we "step in it" and run through the yellow light.

Back to School

2010-08-13T14:02:00.002-04:00

It's back to school time! YIPPEE! The schedule of life goes back to "normal" and things become moderately predictable. You settle back into a routine. It's fantastic.

My little Emilia started Kindergarten last week and is in a combined class with 1st graders too. She is absolutely loving school BUT she absolutely is not loving the schedule. Getting up early, long day at school, homework, dinner, bath, bed. . .repeat. She seems so exhausted by 3 PM when she gets home from school.

A schedule is great, especially once you get adjusted to it. But that adjustment period can be rough and distressing. I encourage each of you as we get back into the "swing of things' to put God in your schedule. He will make things go so much smoother.

Dads and Daughters

2010-06-18T11:36:00.003-04:00

I have three beautiful daughters and an amazing husband! He is a fantastic father to our girls. I love to just watch them play. The girls love their dada!!

As they grow up, they grow closer to their daddy. Each day, they discover new ways to enjoy their daddy's company. Marissa's new favorite is reading books with him and Emilia likes to wrestle. Cinthia still does anything with him!!

When they called from grandma's house to talk, they wanted to talk to daddy, not mommy. You know what? I am okay with that because it is important for them to have a good relationship with daddy. He will help establish some standards and expectations for the man who will one day be a daddy to their kids.

DADDY, WE LOVE YOU!

Growing Up

2010-05-21T10:10:00.002-04:00

Today is an exciting day in our family. My little Emilia graduates from preschool! This should be a joyous day but it also carries a hint of sadness with it.

Today represents a great milestone in Emilia's life--she is growing up!! For her, that's great; for me, not so much. It's hard on a mom to watch her little girl grow up. It seems like only yesterday she was in a crib, wearing diapers, and needing me for everything. (I know what you're thinking--I've already been here once with Marissa. But it's completely different.)

Now she is finished with preschool and excited about starting Kindergarten. I am not ready for my little girl to grow up, but I guess it's inevitable. The only thing left to do is grin and bear it. . . and take LOTS of pictures.

Why is Thinking So Hard?

2010-05-14T12:53:00.002-04:00

Have you ever tried to brainstorm about something? It seems like the longer you think about it, the less you accomplish. I have been brainstorming for weeks now about this one idea and am getting absolutely nowhere. Normally, I ask my husband and he can break through the rusty gears and get them churning again.

But now, even his crazy off-the-wall suggestions aren't helping. So why does thinking have to be so hard? Wouldn't it be wonderful if all the great ideas we ever needed would just drop in our laps? Perhaps that is what heaven will be like. No thinking required!! Ahh, but we're not there yet.

So, while we have to toil and struggle to come up with fresh exciting ideas for ministry or family, perhaps we need to stop and take time to acknowledge the ultimate thinker. Not the statue, but the God who created our feeble minds. When we depend on Him for our ideas/brainstorming, he gives us ideas that are way beyond our own.

We have to put in the work, but God definitely steps in at the right time to finish the thought process. Isn't it wonderful that we don't have to find all our ideas on our own?

Imagine Life With No Clock

2010-04-30T13:42:00.002-04:00

Tick, Tock...the seconds drag by
Tick, Tock...the hours fly by

The constant ticking of the clock seems to drain us of the very excitement of life. Hurry up and get here. Wait now. Now get moving again. The clock says, "It's time. You're late. You're moving to slow."

I like the quote by William Faulkner: "Clocks slay time... time is dead as long as it is being clicked off by little wheels; only when the clock stops does time come to life."

I look forward to the day when the clock stops so that true life can begin. No, I am not talking about retirement or even vacations. I am talking about eternity.

My husband were talking in the car on the way to work one day and we were discussing things we looked forward to when we get to heaven. I decided the thing I anticipate most is life with no clock. No schedule, no tick-tock telling us what to do. A life of absolute peace and joy because we literally have "all the time in the world." I can't wait for that day to come.

But until it does, I pray I use the time I have wisely.

Missing My Little Munchkins

2010-04-20T13:51:00.002-04:00

My work tends to involve long hours and busy days. Though I only "work" Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday. . . oh and Sunday, it still feel like my time with my girls is limited. At Women of Joy this weekend, Steven Curtis Chapman talked about the loss of his little girl two years ago. He said that if he had known that 2 weeks after her birthday, he would no longer be able to see his little girl then he would have done things a lot differently.

If I knew that in 2 weeks I wouldn't be able to hug, kiss, cuddle, or play with my little munchkins, priorities would definitely change. I was away from my girls all weekend and am babysitting at someone's house for the first half of this week. Normally, when I am away from the girls for a few days I'm good but it seems like since the first of the year, my time with them is getting shorter and shorter.

Yes, I absolutely have days where my kids drive me crazy, but that doesn't change my love for them. Last week, my oldest was being exceptionally difficult. (I am convinced that the emotional roller coaster of the teenage years can begin EARLY!!) It seemed like every time I saw here, I was having to correct her for something. Even on Sunday, when I got home from the conference, I had already grounded her from talking. (Which, if you know Marissa at all, is possibly the worst discipline imaginable.)

In spite of all the little things that irk me or drive me nuts, I am more aware than ever that my little munchkins won't always be munchkins. Sooner than I want to admit, they will be gone--to college, married, out on their own.

It is so easy in the heat of the moment to wish that they would just "grow-up" but shame on me for not cherishing the moments. I hope that each moment: the good, the bad, and ugly, will be special because that don't last forever.

Capacity to Serve

2010-04-02T16:57:00.002-04:00

Today a group of volunteers gathered at the church to fill over 2,000 Easter Eggs with candy. (I am beyond thankful for what they did. Can you imagine how long it would take me to fill that many eggs by myself?) Anyway, the people who gathered are those who don't work--our Encore ministry. Many times we think of this group and wonder if there is still anywhere that they can serve and I say absolutely. They have a wonderful capacity to serve in the church.

But what amazed me the most today was my daughter, Emilia. My girls are with me at the church whenever I work unless they have school. None of my girls had school today so that meant all three of them were here. As I was setting up for the people to stuff the eggs, I was wondering, "What am I going to do with my girls while all this work gets done?" Normally, they play in the fellowship hall but that's where we filled the eggs. As the people started arriving I still hadn't figured out what to do with them. Marissa decided that she wanted to help fill eggs with them so the other two decided to follow her lead.

They started strong but after a little while one started playing more than filling. At first I tried to refocus them (which was hard, since I wasn't actually stuffing eggs). Then I gave up and just let them go--they weren't bothering anyone. I looked up shortly after that and realized that Emilia, who is 4, was still stuffing eggs. She had moved from the floor where I had put the girls and was standing at the table with the adults. Marissa and Cinthia were running around playing and asking Emilia to join them but she refused. She wanted to help!! And she did help, the whole time--over 3 hours of stuffing eggs.

How often do we look at people and say that they can't serve because. . . (fill in the blank--age, gender, personality, etc.)? How often do we look at ourselves and say I can't serve because . . .(fill in the blank--skill, health, ability, etc.)? If a 4-year old girl can fill Easter eggs for 3 hours alongside a 92-year old, then you have the capacity to serve.

Easter in Our Hearts

2010-03-26T11:25:00.003-04:00

I am so excited--Easter is almost here.

But why do I need to wait until Sunday, April 4 to celebrate what my Savior did for me? Is there a reason that we can only celebrate the resurrection of Christ in the spring?

Absolutely not!!! With Christ inside our hearts, we should remember his sacrifice daily, but sometimes (often times) we get in the routine of life and the miracle of Christ is forgotten. We know what He did for us and are thankful for it, but we don't live it out.

If we thought about what our lives would be like if Christ had not died for our sins; if we truly considered what our world would be like if He never came back to life, our perspective would be very different.

I think we would have the feeling, the excitement, and the celebration of Easter in our hearts everyday. So take the time to remember the sacrifice He made for YOU!

Vacation

2010-03-14T18:44:00.002-04:00

It's time for me take a little time off to rest, relax, and rejuvenate! I am looking forward to vacation because it means I will get to spend time with my family. I feel like I haven't seen my girls in forever. I know that I was only away from them overnight but it still feels like more.

You know how the week is at work before you go on vacation. You spend extra time trying to make sure everything can operate while you're away. You worry about every minute detail that you often take for granted that you do. You try to think of everyone in the church who needs to know that you are gone so that children's ministry can run smooth.

While you are in the midst of all that you start to wonder if vacation is really worth it. Is it really worth all the extra pressure and busyness to take a week off?? ABSOLUTELY!

It seems like a lot of work to take time off but it's necessary. I mean, look at God. He worked six days straight to create the world we live in. Then he rested! We are to follow God's example in everything--he took time off!

Maybe you don't have the option of taking a week off right now, but you do have the option of taking an evening off or a weekend off. It is not necessarily the quantity of time you take off, but rather the quality of time.

As I begin my vacation tomorrow, I am thrilled to say that there is only 2 things on my agenda--REST and FAMILY!!

BGMC

2010-03-09T12:19:00.000-05:00

BGMC: Boys and Girls Missionary Challenge! Teaching kids to PRAY, GIVE, GO! What an exciting privilege to share about Missions with children. This month is a special month for BGMC--it is March Missions Madness! A time for adults, youth, and children to work together to raise money for BGMC.

Each month, we discover a region, country, or ministry, but usually it's hard to help them relate to the people in that area. This month, we won't have a problem with that because we are talking about the Africa Oasis Project. Every child can imagine thirst and they know the importance of water. I am looking forward to Sunday as we do experiments with water and thirst.

You don't want to miss this exciting service!!

Survive or Thrive?

2010-03-03T11:43:00.000-05:00

The last week hasn't been the easiest one in my life but I have survived. It is my goal not only to survive but to THRIVE!! At first, there doesn't seem to be much difference between these two words. At the root, they both mean to live; to continue to exist. But when you look a little deeper at these words, they are very different. Survive means to simply go on living--kind of like "trudging." Thrive is to live life full of excitement and energy. To look forward to what's coming, even when you don't know what that might be, and know that you will succeed, you will be victorious. That is the kind of life I want to live!

However, most often in the last week, I simply felt like I was merely surviving. Even when I got up this morning, my prayer was not "Thank You, God, for this wonderful day!" Rather, it was "God, help me make it through another day." That prayer does not represent a life that is thriving, but surviving.

Then something happened that changed my perspective. As I was doing my Bible reading this morning in the sanctuary, I read some verses in Psalms that I have read or heard a thousand times (or more). In Psalm 46:1, it says, "God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble." That verse was amazingly comforting!! Then I continued to read. In verses 10-11 of the same chapter it says, "Be still and know that I am God. . . . The Lord Almighty is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress."

The one thing I need in order to thrive instead of survive is God. Sometimes when life beats us down and circumstances destroy our perspective, we forget that God is there--always. It is His power, His love in our lives that transforms us from SURVIVORS to THRIVERS!!

2010-02-17T11:50:00.000-05:00

Just finished setting up my new blog! Visit often to see exciting new updates about G-force.