Hibernating While Trying to Keep the Peace

Not much going on here on the home front. It has been super cold this winter and barely have been able to get outside to play. We have tons of snow and can't even enjoy it. So, we've been hibernating. This kids and I literally only leave the house twice a week; Friday nights we go to Bible study and then we have church on Sundays, that's it. We do our grocery shopping on Fridays before our small group meets to save a trip into town. We live only twenty minutes from town, but it is starting to feel longer and longer.

Since we can't go outside we try to stay busy inside, but I have to admit it hasn't been easy. We have been getting on each others nerves; the long winter is having its affect. Josie found her boots for next year in the closet and has been wearing them constantly in the house. This is how she plays these days. 

Wyatt lost yet another tooth! I noticed Saturday it was barely hanging in there, but he refused to let me wiggle or tug at it. He wanted it to come out all on its own. And it did! We had a dentist appointment yesterday and he got a good report. He enjoyed telling the hygienist all about losing it.

Wyatt got a hold of my camera and took a few "selfies." This is one of them. "Arrrrr you looking at my missing teeth?"

Wyatt and Josie don't typically play well together. Sharing is always an issue. But I have been able to catch a few moments when there was peace between them. 

The new "thing" has been playing in the beanbag. We have all their stuffed animals inside to help conserve space in our small house, and it seems to be a lot of fun to climb inside. Wyatt keeps asking Nick and I to get in with them... Not going to happen!  {Notice Josie's foot?}

Spring is only a couple weeks away, and we are waiting patiently, sort of, in anticipation. We want to get outside! We are almost there, we'll keep hanging in there.

A Big First!

On our way to celebrate our nephews birthday we stopped off an hour into our trip for a quick bite to eat. We hadn't ate for long when Wyatt said his tooth was loose. When he showed us, we were stunned on how loose it actually was. He had said he didn't notice it was loose before and he hadn't bit anything wrong. He had a brief moment of excitement which quickly dissipated. Panic flashed over his face and as quickly as that came, fear washed over him. He started crying big tears as he tried to leave the restaurant, "I am leaving! I have to go!"

Of course we weren't near finished, but Nick left and went to the car with him to help him calm down. I stayed with Josie and just before we finished Daddy and Wyatt came back in with big smiles! While in the car Wyatt bawled and while his mouth was open from crying Nick was able to wiggle the tooth and ended up being able to pull it out easily. The crying stopped and all was well once again. {Apparently, I am told, that my first tooth loss experience was rather similar...}

Despite the drama surrounding this momentous occasion, we were so excited for Wyatt reaching yet another milestone in his growing-up. {And so were the older couple sitting at the table next to us at Wendy's!}

I will probably save this tooth since it is his first, but I'm not sure if we'll save them all. My mom saved all of mine and gave them to me later, but really, what am I supposed to do with them? 

We don't do the tooth-fairy, so we let him pick out a toy from the dollar store to mark the special occasion. He picked a Tonka die cast tanker truck to add to his Hot Wheel collection.

I have to say his loosing his tooth has done wonders for his attitude too. Since he is "growing up" we have taken the opportunity to make this a huge deal. "Growing up" means acting like a big boy should act. His behavior has seen a noticeable change for the better!

I still can't believe we are at the tooth losing stage already! Buckle up! Here we go! 

Big Day For Changes

Well, today is a big day for changes. While in the kids room tiding up a bit, Josie wanted in her crib. So I picked her up and put her in. She was having fun so I went into the bathroom to get stuff to put her hair up, when I came back in I found her straddling the crib rail. I wasn't completely surprised, but was wondering how easy it was for her and if I should be concerned. So, I waited to see if she'd do it again. It wasn't long and she did, with ease. So off came the front rail. 

Josie's face was priceless when she came into their room and saw how her bed changed. Of course Wyatt was excited if not more than she was.

Both of the kids love to talk on the phone. Wyatt is to the point now he'll just call up Nana and Papa all on his own. Josie will use anything she finds as a phone and walk around talking on it. The following photos mark a pretend conversation with I'm not sure who. I thought his expressions were funny.

Nap time went better than I expected. Josie got out of bed only a few times and now all is quiet. Bed time may be different. I guess we'll have to see.

She is getting to be such a big little girl! January 7th she surprised us with going in the potty for the first time! Repeatedly! The next day she did great as well. Then the novelty sort of wore off. So, we are taking a break and will try again in a week or two. She'll do it when she's ready.

P E A C E

I had a wonderful opportunity this last weekend to speak to a lovely group of girls. They were learning about the fruit of the spirit and I was asked to share a little about peace. I am really noticing God's leading in this area {working with teens} lately which has me very excited. I thought I would share with you a little of what I talked about. 

Peace.

“It does not mean to be in a place where there is no noise, trouble, or hard work. It means to be in the midst of those things and still be calm in your heart. “ –unknown  

Most people think of peace as the lack of conflict. Then you have world peace, which basically translates to a world free of war.  It is a more outward/outside us feeling of peace.The Bible talks more about an inward peace. It is a peacefulness that is actively affecting our life from the inside.  An inner peace.  When studying this, I found that there are four parts to peace.

Peace as an active role:

Psalm 34:14 Turn from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it.
Hebrews 12:14 Make every effort to live in peace with everyone and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord.

Having peace is something we need to actively pursue.  We need to do our best to get along with everybody. Throughout our day we will come into contact with different people, different situations. Don’t involve ourselves in petty arguments, create conflicts, and create drama.  If you really want peace, you shouldn’t create conflicts with others. Peace isn’t something you find once and that’s it you have it; you have to pursue it continually.

Don’t dwell on negativity. Surround yourself with positive people. It may be easier for some than others depending on your nature. I am naturally an optimistic person. I see the positive in things first. My husband on the other hand is naturally pessimistic. He sees the negative first. Doesn’t that mean he can’t be at peace? No, I think it will take more effort on his part to pursue it.

Peace that affects decisions:

Colossians 3: 12-15 Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.  And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.

Compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, patience, forgiveness, and love breed peace. When you are doing all those things you are being a peacemaker.  You are creating peace.

You may still have differences in opinions, but you can still put those differences aside and work together.  If you love each other you bring peace.  Love brings people together, hate drives them apart.

I suspect you have relationships that will have problems. You have friends, family, maybe boyfriends, and someday husbands. The problems that come up may not even have been caused by you.  It is how we handle them that matter.

All relationships take work. That is where the pursuit of peace is necessary as well as a continuous effort.  Forgive and love them by showing them compassion, be kind to them even when they are unkind and hurtful to you. Don’t think of yourself as better as them, but speak to them gently. {Don’t use harsh words.} Be patient, broken relationships take time to heal. Forgive them, and when you have opportunity show them love. If you do all the right things, you can be at peace with where you are. 

It can be hard sometimes when dealing with the heart.  Verse 15 says, “Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts…” The things that affect our relationships are usually the same things that affect our hearts. It is easy to let our heart decide how to handle a situation and act on our emotions, rather than letting peace guide our heart. When a conflict comes up, we need to ask ourselves, “How can I respond that would end this peacefully.”

Peace with contentment:               

Proverbs 14:30 A heart at peace gives life to the body, but envy rots the bones.

It is hard to have peace if you aren’t content with what you have, with who you are, and with what you do.  If you are constantly comparing yourself to someone else, wanting something more, you won’t ever have peace. You want that big house with the nice things with the big closet to hold all those trendy clothes and shoes that you see all those pretty models wearing right? Have you heard the saying, “Comparison is the thief of joy?” Comparison is also the thief of contentment, and contentment ,in a way, is being at peace with what you have.

If you’re not, you will always want more and nothing will satisfy you. Being content doesn't mean we have to stop having goals, or have great desires. But if we have those and aren't at peace with what we already have, then we won’t ever really have peace.

It doesn’t mean we won’t be without our share of problems.  We will certainly have those. We may struggle with finances, school, relationships and the like. But, if we have Christ in our life, we have the Holy Spirit to comfort us and guide us, and we can be at peace knowing that God is in control and He has a plan for us.

Peace with knowing God:

Philippians 4:5-7 Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

God is in control. Most of us here probably know this, but how many of us find ourselves taking over from time to time? It is especially easy when things are going good, to just say,” It’s okay, I got this!” When something good happens, it is probably not because we really did anything, it probably happened despite anything we did. God is working all around us.  Let go and let God.

How many of you ever worry? What do you worry about? It would be easy for me to find things to worry about. I have a husband, kids, a house with bills and one income! Not easy. In fact, too many times by the end of the week we find ourselves just scraping by. We have things break down on us all the time. We’ll just get something fixed and something else will break. Of course it will be the week we just happen to have some extra money. See God providing?

God tells us in Matthew 6:25-27 "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?

Worry, a lot of times, takes the form of fear.  Did you know “Fear not.” Is one of the most used phrases in the Bible?  Over a hundred times, God tells us to not be afraid. We spend so much time worrying about little things and big things when we can be at peace with God knowing he is in control. God takes care of His children, we don’t have to worry.  Even by worrying we are showing our lack of trust in God.

We can have peace with God in another way. By accepting Jesus as our Lord and Savior and asking for His forgiveness, we have peace knowing that we have been forgive. We find rest in Him who gives eternal life. We can live each day at peace knowing the things of this world will pass away. The struggles, the brokenness, the conflicts that we have to endure are not forever!  

If you still seem to be at odds with ourselves or with others, pray. Ask God to help you find peace in a situation. If you seek God’s will in everything you will be able to feel God’s peace about it.  Keep your thoughts and trust in God, and you can find peace in the midst of chaos. 

The days I pray first thing in the morning about my day ahead, asking God to equip me throughout the day to have the energy, mindset, and love a mom should have, those days go the smoothest. I am not tired, and even though we have slight hiccups, there is this feeling of ease. I know it isn't me. This is all happening despite me. They days I get busy and try to do it all myself, things go wrong, I get frustrated, and I feel overwhelmed.
 

Know that when you put your trust in Jesus, you will find peace in the midst of chaos. Psalm 46:10 says to "Be still, and know that I am God;" and we should. It reminds me of the Keep Calm Carry On posters. Keep calm and know God and know peace.

Progress Continues on the Homeschool Front

We are about 60 days into our lessons so far. We were going to continue through Christmas, but as good as our intentions were, we had too much going on to be consistent, so we ended up with a break.

It is starting to get pretty exciting! Wyatt is now learning to read! I wish I could relay the feeling of satisfaction that I have to you better because there is nothing else like it! To be the one to teach him how to read is just awesome!

We still have days that aren't as productive. Days when his heart isn't into it. Those kind of days are hit and miss anymore. Not as frequent as they used to be. I think it has been getting better because he is finally seeing results. He is realizing that what we have been working on is paying off with something better.

These are his cursive Y,y's we just started working on. I decided we would still do the cursive lessons, but we're not going to spend a lot of time on it. They can be frustrating, and he is a boy, so I'm not going to push it. He does do a great job when he's into it. 

He is reading sentences like this one below. We have only worked on short vowels and have had sight words "the" and "a" so far. He loves the word "the" because in our lesson it is called a rule breaker. For a boy, that is just so cool.

I even learned something new today. K goes with i and e, c goes with the other three, a o u. Hmmm... Don't think I ever knew that! 

I can't wait to see what the end of the year brings. It is so rewarding to be a part of this process. I would do it again in a heart beat!