Goggusmos

Goggusmos.
(Pronounced Gog-goose-moss)
Say it aloud with gusto a few times.
Now sort of grunt it under your breath.
Isn't it a beautiful word?
It's Greek.  It's an onomatopoeia.
What do you think it means?
It's in the following verse:

Do all things without grumbling or disputing...  Phil. 2:14

Yep: it's the word grumbling, complaining, and murmuring.
It's one of the things I'm trying to let go of this year. 
And, honestly, I'm not doing so well in my own strength.  But isn't that how it always is?  His grace made perfect in my weakness?

Saying thank you stops some grumbling and it's the one tool He's given me right now to combat the constant stream of complaint.

3039-3058 of One Thousand Gifts I count.

"Goldfish Jumping Out of the Bowl"

• Davina
• Sweet tired Brownyn at Shepherding Group snuggles
• Boy rolling over on the table top to show off to my MOPS discussion group
• Warm weather
• Perfect bird coasters
• Writing on my door posts
• Putting scripture promises on my wall
• Learning more about how to lead and discipline my children
• Quietness of naptime
• Aeralind's sweet voice saying "Mommy!" telling me she was awake and wanted to be snuggled
• Parent on Purpose Workshops
• Representing God to our Children class
• Hearing Jeff talk about representing God's Justice
• Realizing that A & B are expressing in concrete terms that they understand justice when they are shouting "Sissy! Spank!" when sissy does something in disobedience/defiance.  Such a perspective shift for me to know that they're understanding Justice :)
• Talking about "Missions" t-shirts for our Shepherding Group with Karen
• Talking in real conversations with the girls
• Crayons
• Laughing with Derek about the girls combined artwork which we've titled "Goldfish jumping out of the bowl"
• Derek spontaneously mulching the yard and getting rid of the yucky box woods
• Pan of best ever brownies that Derek made from scratch

Home-Life Project 52: Week 9

I'm nailing focus better... and sometimes awake enough to nail composition as well.  This week was especially hard physically... but the images are very very dear.

Toddler Activity of the Week: Lentils

Dumped these lentils in these great tins (Thanks, Chelsea!) awhile back along with some bowls, spoons, and measuring cups. We love this type of sensory play. There's some chickpeas and popped popcorn added in for spice. They asked for a baking tray to spread them all out on. Aeralind loves learning to sweep them off the table and onto her hand or into her bowl. Bronwyn and Mommy just love the stress relief of running our fingers through the whole mess.

Joy Eclipsed

Sometimes joy is eclipsed by pain.

You know those days?
Baby up howling in pain you can't fix.
Toddler throwing defiant tantrums.
Husband and wife short with one another.
Sleeplessness.
Busyness.

I've had a week or two of these things.

Hard eucharisteo.

That baby in pain?  How blessed I am to have him screaming in my arms.
That defiant toddler (or two)?  They're shrieking in frustration means their breathing.
That husband?  He loves me: despite my sin.
That sleeplessness: It's probably temporary.
That busyness: March's calendar looks blissfully empty.

And in the middle of those string of days: a perfect day.
2000 yards swam in a pool.
an hour or so serving Aunt Ruthie at the church.
Chalk in the back yard.
Good long coinciding naps.
An uneventful trip to the library (which is a big deal in this house).
Dinner spent as secret shoppers at the delicious family style Cade's Dinner House.
The evening spent laughing and relating to other moms in my MOPs group

I couldn't ask for more.  I'm blessed beyond measure... even if I never stop to measure it.

Measuring out 3014-3038 gifts He keeps giving.

• Fun in a pot full of lentils
• Perfect sliver of shade across Sedryn's face
• weather warm enough to romp outside
• 4 day with no pee accidents
• Tara coming over to watch my girls for Sedryn's 4 month appointment
• How much fun the kiddos had romping in the yard
• Precious 1 on 1 time with the boy
• him eating it up
• Perfect Thursday
• Helping Ruthie take down tables
• Laughing at the vacuum scared girls
• Loooong nap for 3 exhausted littles
• Some 1 on 1 time with Aeralind drawing and chatting while B slept long
• A library success
• Yummy food at Cades
• Best pot roast ever
• Fish hating Bronwyn pulling catfish off the family style plate every time we turned around
• Derek taking all three home while I went to MOPs mom's night out
• Talking with Jessica, Joni, and Mandy
• Laughter
• Fun morning at Becky's
• Having Sedryn freak out before I went to bed this time
• Isolating the cause of the insane pain scream: eggs
• Derek and girls leaving me and Sedryn to snuggle
• Strength given for each day despite being on the brink of exhaustion

Home-Life Project 52: Week 8

Toddler Activity of the Week: Potty Training

Spent a lot of last week with two kiddos sitting in the hall while Bronwyn did this.  Lots of reading.  Lots of pictures drawn on the Doodle Pad (and I still haven't mastered drawing an owl that the girls don't erase immediately!!!).  Lots of chocolate chip rewards.

I just can't get over this kid.  It's been four days since she's had a pee accident.  Poop is still rough... but that's okay. She's even started being dry at the end of naps! And she'll use a potty anywhere: the museum, Hobby Lobby, Church, Chick-fil-a.  Anywhere!

I've never been so proud of her for deciding to do something and letting nothing get in her way.  And, of course, she's eating up the praise! Love her!

And while we use the rest of the disposable diapers we already had for Sedryn, I feel sort of liberated and the very few cloth diapers I've had to wash every 3 days (with a few gross panties thrown in too).  Life with just one in diapers (when Aeralind is ready) is going to be great!

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I'm beyond exhausted today, so I don't have much to say.

Well, besides isn't that squirrel eating one of our compost bagels the funniest thing ever? Bird watching Derek calls these bagels (free day old bread that we don't always go through fast enough)our "hawk feeder"? Get it? Yeah... we're nerds around here...

#2999-3013 gift poured out like running water this week. (3000?! How did that happen?)

• Sleeping til 4:30 before Sedryn woke for the first time in weeks
• Showing the girls Moonbeam's 'gift' of a dead mouse
• Girls taking my face in their tiny hands and turning it to glory at the Carolina wren on their homemade feeders.
• Little boy falling into a daytime routine
• Hearing little voices ask for a "smooch"
• Sedryn  asleep with his legs on top of a pillow
• Learking that Sedryn likes to sleep with a pillow on his chest
• Being born in a video era
• Sharing hand-me-down blessings
• Play-doh
• Bronwyn walking around in my socks
• Aeralind dancing and rolling her hands in a parking lot
• Sedryn finding his squealing voice
• The way Aeralind says "Yesss" with a lisp
• Bronwyn using her strong will for good: potty training herself!!!