Anti Poptart Mom Falls

 This morning, not one sausage was browned, not one pancake was flipped, not one slice of bread was toasted, not one biscuit was buttered, nor was a pot of grits cooked. I can't believe it, but this is the first morning since school started that I did not cook someone breakfast. Wow. It actually felt good and to top it off, I asked Firstborn if he could buy some milk or a pop tart at school. I'm ANTI-POP TART, so he probably wondered if I was sick.

It's actually a reason for this out of character morning...Firstborn got in extremely late from an out of town football game, which meant I had to wake up out of a deep sleep to pick him up when the team arrived back in town. Of course he was hungry and had to recap the game. He also got hurt during the game, so I donned the late shift, nurse maid hat - I was so sleepy.  When he finally got comfortable and went to bed, it was well after midnight.  Where is hubby during all this? Conveniently out of town.

Needless to say, wake up call came waaay to early and I wasn't feeling the kitchen kudos at all. The only kudo I received was one I gave myself.....If I don't take care of myself, no one else will.

You know what else I noticed this morning? Firstborn or Secondborn didn't attempt to cook for themselves and they know how to heat a skillet as well as I do.  Hmmm....that's another blog post.

Change the Channel

 The boys are out of school today and I THOUGHT I would be free from transporting Firstborn to school, but it turns out he has football practice early this morning. Good grief! I allowed myself a couple of minutes to sulk about not getting my way then set my mind on something more pleasant. Miss Flesh wanted me to complain about it a little longer and set my mind on the disgruntled channel. I’m about sick of Miss Flesh and her attempt to control me. We may not have limited access to the television remote control in our home, but we own the remote to our mindset. If a thought or situation is attempting to set your mind on an unpleasant channel, change the channel! There are a few good channels out there like joy, contentment, peace. The channel of thankfulness is always great.

We have a choice on what channel our mindset will be on, so why do we choose to entertain so much negative? Probably because it’s easier to just marinate on the mess than take the effort to change the channel. Well, for me and my mindset, we choose contentment and my desire is to keep my mind set on that channel all day. What about you? What channel are you choosing to set your mind on?

To Bathe or Not to Bathe?

 
An older woman and I were recently talking and she mentioned her granddaughter's cycle had arrived. Hooray! Yeah, right!  She was actually very excited about it, but I guess at 60 or 70 years old, you can be excited about Aunt Flo since you haven't seen her in years.

We continued talking about the challenges young girls face with their cycles and how they must deal with Aunt Flo for many years of their adult life. This older, wise woman also told me we shouldn't bathe during that time of the month. Hmmm...I've heard of older women saying they didn't wash their hair or go outside after bathing during that time of the month, but I've never heard of not bathing at all.  She really didn't have an explanation for it besides, "That's just what we use to do."


Some women flow extremely heavy and choose not to bathe; it's a choice.


I don't have girls (thank God), but for everyone with daughters, what do you think?

To bathe or not to bathe?  Leave your comment and possibly help the mothers out with young girls who will meet Aunt Flo soon!


Distractions


 While traveling on the highway yesterday, the above picture was my view. Beautiful trees and blue skies provided a very pleasant drive.  I couldn’t help but thank God for being God as I observed His amazing creation. As I continued driving, my wandering thoughts took me to several places in my life. The beautiful scenery was still present, yet I wasn’t noticing it. My mind was not on God’s amazing creation, but on my life – money, marriage, children, ideas, fast approaching holidays, things to do, etc…yuck.  Off and on, I would revisit the beautiful scenery, but only when my thoughts went back to God. Life is the same way. God’s beauty and goodness is always around me, yet my thoughts dictate my recognition of them. God doesn’t change, the beautiful scenery around me doesn’t change, but my thoughts do. I allowed the issues in my life to distract me from God. This life lesson while driving blew me away. I began praising God and thanking Him for reminding me to keep my mind on Him because when I do, my mindset is different, my wandering thoughts are in check, and my peace is perfect. Thank you, Jesus! It doesn’t matter what my money matters are, what mess is in my marriage, or what’s ahead on the winding highway (my day).  As long as I keep my mind on Him, everything is already alright. What can I do about anything anyway? Not a doggone thing! Today I will not marinate on mental mess, but meditate on God’s goodness.

Exhaling... Happy Monday ladies! Enjoy the scenery!

Attitude In The City

 Ooooweeee! This morning was attitude city in our home. After a peaceful time of quiet meditation and prayer and an early morning walk, I came home to.....uh.....well, let me just tell the story.

It really wasn't a big deal, but I was on such a joyful high until Secondborn woke up and tried to pour mud on my joy. Secondborn wakes up asking if he had time to wash a pair of shorts. Excuse me? Hubby was still home, so instead of using my breath, I told him to ask his father because I knew what the answer would be.  Not only did Secondborn get the big NO, he got a lecture. heehee

Secondborn then came in the kitchen and sat. Yes, he wakes in the morning and will SIT until I tell him to get up. I knew he was sitting to get on my nerves (upset about the shorts), so I let him sit, and sit, and sit. He could have sat until school started - I was determined to keep my joy! I immediately turned on some spiritual music to drown out his hum drums and sighs.....Lord, help me! 

He finally got up and I told him to come and eat, but he states he isn't hungry. This was another intentional joy killer because I HATE it when he doesn't eat breakfast and he knows how I feel about starting the day with breakfast. Instead of reacting and stirring up a parent/child debate, this smart mama recognized the joy killer and I let his stomach and brain reap the consequences of malnutrition. I told him not to call me when he got a headache or stomach ache. Grrrrrr

Time to walk out the door. Son, did you brush your teeth? He sighs and walks toward the bathroom as if I told him to go in the bathroom and pull his own teeth out without anesthesia. Good grief, boy! Why go to school and kill everyone with your halitosis?Sigh....

His teeth were brushed, he had on jeans instead of shorts, his stomach was empty, and he was ready for school. We prayed together as we always do, but after the prayer he asked to walk to the bus stop. I usually take him, but I let him walk and I drove up later to wait for the bus. I could tell he was still in a funky mood, so maybe he needed some time to clear his head before school. Everyone deserves time alone. 


I gave him time to get to the bus stop and guess what I see? Secondborn was running, playing, and LAUGHING while playing tag with the other boys. What the .......?   He obviously found his own joy since he couldn't steal and kill mine!

Hmmm...Secondborn will be an official teenager in less than six months, are these signs for preparation? Well, little does he know this Mama has already been through teenage initiation with Firstborn and I REFUSE to travel that road again. I WILL keep my joy!



Rescue Me!

If you follow the Momsweb Blog, you’ve read about Secondborn being bullied in middle school. It is a mother’s natural instinct to run to the rescue when a child is in trouble, but as our children grow older, rescuing isn’t always the answer.

Yesterday, I visited Mary, the mother of Jesus. After years of watching her son wrongfully accused and abused, she had to watch him bleed to death on the cross. Although, this visit was in my mind, it was real in my heart. I’m sure Mary wanted to rescue her son. Instead, she was forced to watch. There was a bigger plan that couldn’t be interrupted. The same goes for Secondborn - and every other child. Mothers want to protect our babies from the hard knocks of life, yet some of the knocks must be felt. I am in no way, comparing a child’s challenges to being crucified, but I am comparing how pain and suffering can produce power. There is always a bigger plan.

The ironic part of all this is that I call Secondborn the Jesus in our home because of his compassion, giving spirit, and servant attitude. Just as Jesus suffered, he must suffer also – we all must have our dose of suffering, yet would prefer being rescued. I initially wanted to visit Secondborn’s school, be the crazy mother I am, and beat bully’s butt. God suffocated my motherly instinct to run to the rescue. As it turns out, Secondborn will be able to help other children being bullied and be a voice for the many who have committed suicide because of bullying.  There is a bigger plan that can’t be interrupted. 

Is your child enrolled in the school of hard knocks? Are you using your motherly intuition to discern when to answer the knock and when not to?

Read more about Secondborn in our blog, Life in Middle School

Romans 8:18 (NLT)
Yet what we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory he will reveal to us later.

My Baby is Being Bullied

My baby boy was excited about going to public school. Little did he know what was ahead of him.

Visit our blog at Life in Middle School
www.bullysandmore.blogspot.com

 

Embarrassing Brown Bag




  “Mama, do you think you can buy me a black shirt?” “Can you buy the material for my project?” “Can I go to the dance?”  These are just a few recent requests of Firstborn. Yesterday he asked to go to the store to buy a drink for .75 cents, which was all the money he had. Since his summer job of cutting grass is over, a cash flow lesson was needed.  Instead of lecturing him about spending his last penny on something he didn’t need, I told him he needed to take his lunch to school one or two days this week to assist with the cash flow into his pocket. He chose not to buy the drink to avoid the embarrassing brown bag. Brown bags are obviously not cool. Cool or not, son you will be brown bagging it one day this week or you’ll be hungry! I didn’t want to go this route, but it was necessary. Later in the evening, I reminded him about his brown bag lunch and I received a very quiet, “Yes Ma’am.”  He’ll be okay, and this mama will make sure it’s one of the best brown bag lunches ever. It’ll be so good; he’ll want to take another one – maybe. I’m sure Firstborn’s purchase requests will continue and regardless if they are wants or needs, as long as he does his part, it’s okay.  As a mother, I have an obligation to not only provide the needs and wants of my children, but to teach them how these needs and wants are met, how to generate their own income, and how to cut back! Mothers should also set an example. Break out the brown bags!

II Thessalonians 3:10

… "If a man will not work, he shall not eat."

Teenage Attire

I'm so happy we didn't spend a bunch of money on school clothes for the boys because they have a closet full of clothes, but it seems like they wear the same clothes week after week. T-shirts and shorts, T-shirts and shorts.  Firstborn will at least mix it up a bit with some color and collared shirts, but Secondborn wears the same brown and green to school week, after week, after week. I told him his teachers were going to think he didn't have any clothes and take up a donation for him. 

I sure won't complain about this because at least they're doing their laundry. 
If you wanna wear it, you gotta wash it. If Mama washes it, she may hide it!
Hmmm...where is my brown shirt?