Busy, Busy, Busy..........

Good Morning Friends!

I have a busy schedule for the next few days, but I am looking forward to every minute of it!

My sister, Joanie, will arrive today. Joanie has spent the greater part of this year in the hospital with one of the boys, so she is coming alone for some rejuvenation therapy - FAMILY!

Last night I was able to help out my friend Theresa with the High Springs Girls Soccer Banquet set up. You all know I love doing that sort of stuff. Theresa was very appreciative and told me I was a life saver but I just simply said "no even better I am your friend". Theresa I love you and your friendship means the world to me, I am glad I was available to help you out! I will drop off the food around 5:45pm tonight!

Friday is an exciting time for our juniors and seniors of Santa Fe High - PROM!  I don't remember it being so costly when I was in school there, but times have changed and so has the cost of living in this day and time.  Allie got a very beautiful dress. We were going to get it altered but having that done professionally was like $100, just to take in the top of the dress a little, so I decided to do it myself.  It never dawned on me, until I was making the alterations, that for my Junior/Senior Prom, I also wore a pink satin dress, but mine was more of a southern bell style, without all the bling! Memories.......

I understand now why alterations can be so expensive with a dress like that and I cannot guarantee that some of that bling won't come off on the dance floor, but I hope not. Looking at the dress you would not think there was a whole lot to it, but it took me over an hour to steam iron it. I can't wait to see her all dolled up in it, she is really looking forward to it. Now I just have to remember to pick up Jackson's boutonniere.

Friday night, after prom pictures and so forth, while Allie is off to the prom, the rest of us will be doing Family game night. I hope all my siblings can be there, so we will all be in one place, at one time, plus my mom LOVES it! A little too much, she totally missed her calling, she should have been a photographer. By the time the evening is done we just want to take that camera and put it......well you get the picture. This will be nice for her to be in one place with all her kids on Mother's Day weekend. I love my family, they each bring a little something different to the mix. There are lessons we can learn from those differences, if we don't get too hung up in our own pride.  Let love grow.

Saturday, coffee and blueberry picking with my Soul Sister - Leah! I have really missed her since she started working, and I have missed our conversations over coffee. but thanks to modern day technology, we stay connected in other ways. Every once in a while I will pick up two coffees and take one to her at work just so we can still have a cup of coffee together. I think some of the ladies in the office may be a little jealous, maybe next time I will bring a few more.  Looking forward to some Leah time!

Sunday, well I have no plans. Larry works all day, Joanie will be leaving bright and early to head home, and I will be headed to church. After church maybe take a little nap and get ready for the week. Look I am a mother ever day of the week and if my kids only made me feel special one day of the year than that would make me a not so good mommy and their efforts pointless. With the weekend I have planned I will not be lacking in feeling loved so it's all good.

Happy Mother's Day Friends I hope it's full of warm and fuzzy love!

Parenting.......

Parenting is such a huge job, it is by far the most challenging job that I have ever had. I specifically call this a job because it is our job to raise them, love them, guide them, teach them, protect them, clothe them, etc., etc., etc..

As Christian parents, I believe the scope of parenting becomes an even greater challenge because when someone has caused pain to one of our children we have a tendency to throw up a wall around them,  with the greatest intentions of blocking any possibility of more pain, armor up an go to battle for them.  I know because I have done this many times, especially when my children were younger.

One of the things I have tried to instill in my children along the way is to always give grace, show mercy and be forgiving, because this is what we are called to do as Christians. That is not my 'knee jerk' reaction however when one of my kids come to me in pain. Like many of you I just want to hold them, ease the pain and do whatever I can to stop them from hurting at any cost. Sometimes the cost is to not give grace, show mercy or encourage a spirit of forgiveness, all of which brings about the healing that we, as parents, cannot give to our children.


There is no greater teacher, in this life, than pain, and no greater remedy for pain than grace, mercy and forgiveness. Sometimes, as parents, we have to let our children work through the pain, and encourage that they learn how to put up their own 'temporary' walls and take some time to process their pain, and most importantly to seek the Lord for healing and guidance and the strength to be in a place to give grace, show mercy and forgiveness because we ALL need to be given grace, shown mercy, and be forgiven.

I love my children, I have never experienced a greater love in this life than the love I have fore them. It is that love that encourages my heart to show them more than just my love, but to show them the love of our Heavenly Father, and the best way I can do that is to love them they way that He loves me, with hopes that they too will learn to love others the way He love us all. He gives grace when I don't deserve it, mercy when I do deserve punishment and then wraps me  up in His arms of love and forgiveness. I will never love them the way that God can and does, but I will never give up trying and hope someday they too will be able to love others as God does them.

Have a great week my friends.