Entering the Next Chapter

Oh how often I find myself in conversation with my daughter and she tries to soften the blow by lying. I am not sure if she is trying to deceive me or trying to deceive herself. The way she does this is not by completely disregarding the claims made against her. No, she instead will change her wording to make it sound less terrible.  I have so many examples but a few are as follows. Stating she "borrowed" something, instead of stole it.  Stating that she was "joking" about something, instead of lying about it.  Stating that she didn't push the person "too hard" or claim things as accidents. Why does she do this?  I think there are two main reason that she does this. Firstly, she does it because she is afraid of the reaction and the punishment she will receive. Secondly, I think she does it because of her pride. She doesn't want to classify herself with her friends negative actions.  What do I do in response? I state things as ...

Dear VBS, I have enjoyed spending the week with you. I love all the kids I had a chance to teach and loved the cool crafts I had a chance to create. I am also so glad that you are finished. I am exhausted and need another 51 weeks off until I see you again.  Dear Daughters, Mommy loves you so so much. I really need you both to sleep in tomorrow morning. I would prefer that you all sleep in till noon but I will accept ten or eleven in the morning. I am so lucky to have you girls.  Dear Hubby, Please don't wake me when you come home. You will be the most awesome hubby in the world if you would sleep on the couch and take care of the baby in the morning.  Dear Homeschooling project, I will read over your curriculum more tomorrow. I also plan to clean out a room in the basement and set up the classroom.  Dear Money, You aren't very nice to me. You aren't there when I need or want you and you are always burning holes in my pockets.  Dear Hea...

So many people ask, " If prayer is supposed to be so good then why are there people who have been raped, why are there kids who have been molested, why do people die, why does "God" allow children to get terminally ill and die, etc? "  I remember wondering the same thing many years ago. It is a very tough thing to watch a child in pain from an illness or from another persons actions.  I wanted to respond from my personal beliefs as a Christian. I am not expecting anyone else to agree with what I say but I am just giving my stand point and my beliefs.  To the first part of the question, the part about rape and molestation, God gives us free will. The same free will that allows one person to choose whether or not to even believe in God is the same free will that allows a person to choose whether or not to sin. We can't expect God to give free will for things we want and not for others. There are still laws in place to correct things and God will lash...

Recently, I have been a little put off and bothered by Christians that put on a huge facade and are really just weak hypocritical  people that are hiding behind a curtain.  Often we don't see how real and true people are until they are faced with a situation that they would have to react to. It is in their reaction that we find the true state of their heart. Jesus encountered this and had an amazing love and grace for them. I just want to shake them and shout, "what's wrong with you."  I so hope that I am never seen as one of these kind of women. I mess up and I try to be honest about it. Those times when I do act hypocritical, please confront me.  I know that those people need to be shown God's love and grace just as much as everyone else, but have so much overwhelming frustration and confusion by them. This week I saw many women as they truly are. Women that I had assumed were godly women just by their involvement in church and based on what they p...

Since I was up anyway, I decided to write a prompt from Mama Kat's writer's workshop.. The 6 best things about being an adult... 1. Not having to wait and eat all my dinner before eating my dessert. I once sat with my daughter at the table for dinner and I began to eat my dessert. She told me that I was supposed to wait until after I finished all my food. I said, "No dear, You have to eat dinner first. I did my time." She continued to tell me how unfair life was so I told her, "It ends up fair in the end. When you are grown up and a mommy you can eat dessert while your kids eat their dinners." She was pleased with my explanation.  I had told a friend of mine and she thought it was unfair of me to do this... I had to remind her of all the times the kids eat the lollipops, ice-cream, and other treats while we are left watching them.  2. Messy room... While I try to keep the living room straightened, I say try because it seems to be impossi...

Describe your family dynamic of your childhood vs. your family dynamic now. When i was a child my whole family dynamic was so different from now. I was extremely close to my dad. I hated my mom. I followed my brothers around and wanted to hang out with their friends.  Now, my mom is one of my best friends. My dad and I are close but we are in that phase where he is going from just my dad to being more of a friend. I also barely see or speak to my brothers even though we all live within twenty minutes of each other.  If speaking about my husband we are very much our roles as we were in childhood. He was the oldest son and I was the baby girl. Sometimes he will act like the older brother by not letting me play the video game and trying to do it for me. Then I will fall into my little sister personality and get mad. I will get very competative and when all else fails I will threaten to tell one of the moms. It happens so fast and so naturally that when we realize that we ar...

List your top 3 hobbies and why you love them. Writing blogs... I find that it is a great way for me to process situations and it challenges me to find God in all situations. I seek His word and I end up transforming as the words flow onto the screen. I have alway loved to write, but I stopped years ago when I could not handle the pain that came from physically writing.  Watching Children... I don't know if many would considering babysitting a hobby... but when I look at the facts it is something I love to do and often don't get paid for. I have been blessed in being able to generate a small amount of income but even if I weren't able to I would still do it.  I like creating things... I don't like using a method or a structured process. I just kind of like making things up and seeing what comes of it. I have made cloth diapers, duct tape purses and wallets, and other random things. I find it relaxing.