I live in a Christmas card. . .

I live in a Christmas card. I have been loving this weather. . . nothing, in my mind, is better than hanging out in my cozy home on a frozen snowy day. I can smell the coffee perking. The wood fire is warm and inviting. My children are playing or studying and snowflakes drift quietly down outside my window. I am often struck by the simplicity of my life. I love it that way. I am so blessed to be able to stay home with my family. We definitely make sacrifices for me to be able to do that but it is so worthwhile. There's nowhere I'd rather be.

So what about the days that I am crabby and discontent? Well, I'm working on that. Thankfulness is an art, and it takes sacrifice. So often I wish something were different about my life and it starts me down the road of complaining and "wishing." Then something really major (or sometimes really minor) catches me up short and reminds me to look around and take stock of my "haves" rather than my "have nots." I would love to have the discipline of the prophet Daniel in the Bible. Three times a day, like clockwork, he stopped whatever he was doing and gave thanks. He wasn't petitioning, he wasn't complaining, he was giving thanks! He wasn't giving thanks for a couple little things as a lead in to his list of requests. He was simply taking time out of his day to thank the Lord. Period. I want thanksgiving to be a normal, natural part of my life, like breathing. God is good, and He is patient with me. I'm catching on. . .

The Bathtub

I love my bathtub--now. I used to run there as a place to get away from the children. . . I love my children but when they were younger, I didn't get much time to myself. I would run hot, bubbly water and get my book and a drink and sink into Heaven, only to spend the next 45 minutes answering questions and solving fights through a closed bathroom door. I would eventually give up and emerge more frustrated than when I went in and wonder why I tried.
This is not the case now. . . My children are now capable of fighting and squabbling without me, so I run my water, sink in, and tune them out. :) Generally they are all still alive when I emerge, and I am a much nicer mama.

New Puppies!

We have 9 new Mastiff puppies. . . GORGEOUS litter. They are all fawn and all healthy. This is Breezy's first litter and she is such a great mama. I am so blessed. The whelping went unbelievably well. God's grace is so overwhelming. So much prayer goes into these births. . . health for the mama, health for the puppies, and most of all blessings on the new owners--that my life would be a testimony to whomever we meet. All praise be to God for his indescribable gifts.

Ahh, Bing!

I LOVE Christmastime. The music, mostly. I adore Andy Williams and Roger Whittaker, much to my childrens chagrin. I grew up with my dad dancing around the house singing and whistling to these guys--I think that's where I get much of my love for them. It's a nostalgic feeling more than musical appreciation, though I do really appreciate their music. In later years, I have come to enjoy Bing Crosby. I love a bass-baritone voice and he can sing to me anytime. :)
My children and I just watched Holiday Inn (1942) and White Christmas (1954). I think Holiday Inn is their new favorite movie. My eldest daughter will frequently say she's "in the mood for Christmas Bing" and on goes www.pandora.com's Swingin' Christmas station.
Now we have snow to go along with the festive feeling. . . all in all, life is good. No, life is extraordinary.

Oh, and I'm planning our Thanksgiving gathering in the midst of the Christmas music. My dad would just shake his head, so I probably won't mention it.

It's Morning!

I'm a morning person, through and through. My favorite morning routine lately is to get up at 6:30, start a load of laundry, put the coffee on, start a fire and sit in front of it to read and pray. Then it's outside to visit my horses and dogs. I like being outside in the still morning--no children awake, no tractors running. The rule at my house is absolute quiet until 8 am. . . when the children trickle out of their rooms, they come and say hello, give me a hug, and sit somewhere for awhile to wake up. By the time 8 am rolls around, we are all ready to start the day--we have eased into it, rather than being overtaken by it.
It hasn't always been this way for me. This new serenity is a welcome change that has happened over the last couple months. At first it was hard to drag myself out of bed. Now I wake up immediately, jealous for my quiet alone time. Amazing what happened when I started making time with HIM more important than my own comfort, lying in bed. :)

It's been a long time. . .

So I haven't written in almost two years. I've been thinking of writing again but didn't think anyone else would notice that I had been "away." Today, at an annual family get-together, someone mentioned my blog and it spurred me to get back on here.

Life is good as usual. . . though I've been struggling, I love my life. I am so blessed to be in the country, homeschooling my dear children and now riding my new horse!!

The more things change, the more they stay the same, so not much to report at this very moment. I enjoyed seeing Larry's family today, and visiting with people I don't see often. I am always struck by how different peoples' lives are from one another and how we all have such a different take and outlook. What is normal to somebody may be something for which I have no frame of reference and vice versa. It is interesting to visit with people and hear about their variation of "normal" and realize that there really is no such thing! :) To me, an average day is cooking, baking, laundry, cleaning, and teaching school to my children. To someone else, that is entirely foreign and maybe not at all appealing. I guess that's what makes the world go 'round and what makes conversation interesting.

Decompressing. . .

Here we are in 2009 already. Time flies faster the older I get. We had a wonderful holiday here, with lots of gatherings and celebrations. I was incredibly blessed to have my sister in law, Sylvia, here with us for 4 days. My wonderful nephew Clay came too, and was fun to have around. Clay can be a handful, but he's got a sweet heart and I love him dearly. As I sat down to write this, I was also checking out my cousin Monica's blog. She's in Afghanistan, in war, and I suddenly everything I had to say seemed inconsequential and small. So, at this moment, I will simply lift a prayer for Monica. . .
Dear Lord, you have your hand on all that is happening in Afghanistan and everywhere else in the world. There are so many suffering people who need clothing, shelter, food. . . what's so much more important is that they need YOU. Would you please minister to those people through Monica and keep her safe while doing so? Give her a special blessing as she pours herself out as an offering on the altar of YOUR love. It's all about You, God, and not at all about me or Monica or any person on earth. Remind me of that as I continue through this day.
Amen