Entering the Next Chapter

Today was a day of attack and victory.  This morning even waking up seemed to be difficult. My body was physically worn down. My eyes felt like little weights sat upon my eye lids. My joints ached and made the sounds of an old wood floor, creaking and cracking with each small movement. My energy was on its last bit of battery. In general it was a difficult day to begin with.  Abbie seemed to be under a bit of attack as well. She was extremely emotional and was crying throughout the day. She had an indecisiveness about everything and filled the air with grumbles and complaints. In general she was just unpleased with life.  Elizabeth must have stolen the energy that I was missing because she, like the Energizer Bunny, kept going and going and going and going and going. She was getting into everything. A trail of mess followed her everywhere along with screeching sounds of annoyance. She must have called me hundreds of times when I was sitting right there with her in h...

Dear God,  I know that I usually end my letters with a note to you, but today I wanted to start with your letter because it is all I can think about. You are just so cool. I am always in awe of just how great and loving you are. Thank you. Thank you for blessing me with an amazing husband. Thank you for blessing me with two beautiful loving daughters. Thank you for this beautiful day. Thank you for answering my prayers little and big. Thank you for always comforting me and not letting me stay lost in my little world of stress and self-pity. Thank you for opening my eyes to all that you have done, are doing, and are about to do. Thank you for giving me an avenue that I can communicate my thoughts and feelings. Thank you for all the provisions you have made for me. Mostly, thank you for not giving up on me. There were so many times that I give up on myself and yet you were always right beside me.  Dear Elizabeth,  I think it is adorable that you are so ...

Dear Friday, Where did you come from? I guess it must have been Halloween that threw me off. Although it doesn't feel like a weekend... I am sure glad that you are here. Dear Manager Who is Interviewing Me At Noon, You make me nervous. I get that anxious and inadequate feeling when thinking about how the interview will go. I don't know why I am nervous. I am more than qualified and if I don't get the job I would honestly be ok with that. So, today I have decided to not allow you to scare me. The God in me is bigger than the job there, I will have to trust Him to provide. Dear Girls, I will miss you this weekend. I don't know how long it has been since I have been child free for a whole weekend... Anyway, I love you both and will be missing you.  BTW... I really don't mind if you get sugar highs at Grandma's house, so feel free to take all your candy with you... better her than me, better her than me. Dear Ibuprofen, Please work. Dear Kitchen, Tod...

Dear Friday, Thank you for bringing the Fall weather with you. Thank you for bringing pay day with you. Thank you for bringing my hubby with you. Dear Minty Gum, Thank you for keeping me from cramming handfuls of chips and popcorn in my mouth. You have saved me from so many calories and on top of that you make my breath minty fresh. I think I will keep you close by for a while. Dear School Year, I am so glad that we have finished first quarter and I still have my sanity... well at least most of it. Dear Girls, Thank you for being so well behaved and sweet. You are the best daughters in the world... not to mention the cutest... I might be a little biased though. :) Dear Hubby, I have missed you so much when you work nights, but I am glad that we get to have a date tomorrow and next week. Also, thank you for knowing me so well... and for watching the girls for me tonight. Dear Erika, I am so excited to go to see Les Miserables with you tonight. I am super excite...

Laying in bed I had the weight of my guilt, my inadequacies, my frustration, my disappointment, and my sadness sitting on my chest and making it difficult to breathe. The outward expression of my emotions resulted in a physical pain. What I was feeling was the darkness of defeat.  A few weeks ago, the financial strain in our home was overwhelming. Due to being a slow season, my husband's job had cut him down to ten hours a week. We knew that it wouldn't cover the bills and agreed that my husband had to look for another job. He found a full time night position that is located a little further away. I was nervous about him being gone every night and was worried that I wouldn't be able to keep the girls quiet during the day when he was sleeping. Due to his other job only needing him a couple hours a day he said he would keep both jobs. Before he even began his first day his day job became very busy and needs him to work not only full time, but a little overtime. He is...

Dear Friday,  Today feels like a lazy day. I can't believe you are already here and with you, you bring the end of August.  Dear Hubby,  I am so thankful that you are stepping up and getting a second job. I will miss the time we get together and fear that we will be passing ships in the night. I love you.  Dear Financial Struggles,  I don't think that you will ever go away, but at least you could back off a little bit. I am trying to give you to God but often find myself picking you back up, along with the anxiety you bring.  Dear Abbie,  We found out so much about you health that we didn't know, but don't let it cause you fear. God is in control. He made your body and He will protect it. I am so proud of how much you have been learning. I also love spending so much time with you and teaching you.  Dear Elizabeth,  Thank you for sleeping through the night last night. You have been so needy and jealous of your big sister but it wi...

Dear Friday,  This week has been amazing. I am glad you are here and feel like time will go much faster.  Dear Abbie,  I am so proud of you. You have done amazing at school this week. I had so much fun homeschooling. I don't know why I was so nervous. You are an amazing big sister. I love watching you cuddle with Elizabeth. She is so lucky to have you.  Dear Weather,  Wow... all I can say is thank you. It has been so much nicer outside. It gets warm but I can't complain about it. I was told that we were done with the triple digits.  Dear Sonlight Curriculum,  You are amazing. It is so complete and well organized. I am also glad that you discuss God in each subject.  Dear House,  I told you I would take care of you. I have kept you in order for a couple weeks now. I still need to attack the basement but still I am so proud to show you off now.  Dear Eb,  I think it is so sweet that you are starting ...

I wanted to start by saying that this was inspired by MooCow's Desserts ... It isn't a copy of what she made but I liked the idea of having a center piece and cupcakes. I am not sure how she made hers and even designed it differently but I do want to give her credit for making beautiful cakes and cupcakes.  Minnie Mouse Center Piece and cupcakes...  Things you need to make the Minnie mouse cake: Rice Krispies ingredients: Bag of marshmallows, butter, rice krispies cereal,  a large pot, and a greased spoon. Cupcake recipe: Box of cake mix, eggs, oil, water, cupcake pan, Cupcake paper, can of strawberry frosting, can of vanilla frosting.  Design recipe: Large greased bowl, parchment paper, fondant, marshmallows, rolling pin, black food coloring paint, black food coloring, new child's paint brushes, and cherry kool-aid (or red food coloring). I started by making the rice krispies and had a greased bowl ready to fill for the head. I also layer some ou...

Dear Friday,    I am so glad you are here again. When I see you, I feel like I have seen an old friend. I can let my hair down and relax. I can breath again and just enjoy the day. At the same time I realize our time together will not last forever. I have missed you. Sadly next time we see each other will be the end of summer. Today is a big day for us.  Dear Elizabeth,   Happy Birthday baby girl. I love you so much. One year ago today we got to meet you face to face. I am so proud of how much you are learning and how obedient you are becoming. Your personality is shining through. You are loving and yet so independent. I know that you think that you are five years old just because you have an amazing seven year old sister. I hope we can have a great day today. I love you so so much.   Dear Abbie,     I love you. I am so proud of what a wonderful big sister you are and have become. You are the best helper in the entire world. You help me with...

I don't think I have ever had writers block. I can usually come up with some sort of topic or idea to go off of. In marriage counseling one of our pastors gave us a writing exercise. When I heard his words I was immediately filled with joy. "Write a letter to God about your spouse. Your spouse will not read it. I will be the one reading both. Pour out your heart to God about the other person. God already knows all you are thinking and feeling so be honest." This sounded like a great exercise until he said, " I expect your letter to be more than ten pages." At that moment you could hear a pin drop, or more accurately both of our chins. Honestly, I don't think I have ten pages of stuff to write. Of course, I can rehash the past and things that have happened but even that wouldn't be honest, since I have already forgiven him for those things. When speaking to my hubby, we both freely admitted that ten pages seemed like a little much. I thought that even tw...