Wisdom from a child

           Carson came to me one day carrying a purse that I haven't used in a while. "Momma why do you have this purse? All of your stuff is in your other purse. What is this one for?" I said, "Well, sometimes I like to use a different one." Carson responded, "but you don't need another one!"
          Ha! This is pretty comical because I don't have nearly as many purses as some people I know. I'm just not one of those gals who changes purses to match every outfit.  I'm usually carrying a bag for Canton, a bag for Collin (he's potty training ), a carseat, plus dragging the kids along. I'm doing good to remember to grab my purse! My purses generally consist of one for summer and one for winter. Hey, I never claimed to be a fashionista!
          Back to my original thought, I have to admit Carson did make a good point. How many purses can I carry at one time? I come from a family of bargain hunters. Sometimes, I get so caught up with getting a good deal that I buy things I don't need. So I responded "I don't really need more than one, I just wanted to get another one." We continued this conversation a little longer and I used this opportunity to help him understand the difference between wants and needs.  I suggested that the next time he asks for a toy at the store maybe we should decide if he really needs it or just wants it. How come nobody ever told me kids were like a built in conscience?! I guess I need somebody to keep me straight :-)

Sweet Story

    Just read this article and felt like it was a good reminder of how we should treat our spouse. It's easy for me to mistreat Bart because he's around when I'm worn out, stressed out, or both, ha ha! I'm sure none of you are guilty of this :-)
http://www.thrivingfamily.com/Family/Faith/2011/couples-handle-with-care.aspx

Daddy

      When you wake up in the morning what's the first thing you think of? For me? All too often it's, "can I go back to sleep?!" Sunday morning Carson walked out of his room and the first thing he said was, "Does Daddy have to go to work today?" Wow! It brought tears to my eyes just thinking about how much he loves his Daddy and looked forward to spending time with him! After just a minute I was convicted! How many times is our Heavenly Father the first thing on our mind in the morning? Are we looking forward to spending time with Him? In Mark 10 the Bible talks about having a child like faith. I think this situation shows a perfect example of how much Carson looks up to Bart. We should treasure our Heavenly Father so much that He is the first thing on our mind and we are excited to spend time with Him! I'm so thankful for Carson and the Lord using him to remind me how blessed we are to have a Savior who loves us even when we don't respond to that love as we should!

MOPS

         In July when we visited some family in Michigan, my cousin Sarah mentioned being involved in a MOPS group. I had heard of MOPS (Mothers of Preschoolers) before but wasn't familiar with how the group worked or what was involved. After talking with Sarah I thought it sounded like something I might enjoy being involved in. After we came home I looked online and found that there is a MOPS group that meets at First Baptist Tupelo and thought I might look into it a little more.
       A couple of weeks passed and I noticed that Sarah had visited Nashville for a MOPS convention. She said she had been thinking it would be neat if she met someone from the Tupelo group to tell them about me. Low and behold she ended up near the Tupelo group in the lunch line one day. She talked to them and found out when they would be meeting. She let me know the date and said I should check it out. When I called to get further info. the lady I spoke with had been one of those who met Sarah. I thought it was so cool how God worked that out!
        All that to say, I attended my first MOPS meeting on Thursday last week. I have to say this was stepping out of my comfort zone a little bit because I didn't know anyone else who would be there. But I thought it would be good for the boys to be around different people and give all of us a chance to make new friends. I was so thankful none of the boys cried when I left them in their rooms. I wasn't quite as nervous as I thought I'd be. I discovered I knew a couple of people and met a few more. Overall, it was nice to get out and try something new! The ladies who help lead the group seem terrific and I look forward to being involved! Thanks, Sarah!
      

Toys

      Good Morning! Just came across this deal. It's a site sort of like Groupon if you're familiar with them, but mostly mom and kid related. A new deal that came available today is $30 worth of Melissa and Doug toys for $15. I think I might snag this one! There is a link below if you're interested!

http://www.8moms.com/referral/national/xAlnrO?dt=1313759597334

Encouragement

      As I'm sure you can tell, Money Saving Mom is one of my favorite blogs to read. So.... here is another great post from Crystal!

http://moneysavingmom.com/2011/08/uphill-is-the-hardest.html

Update

      So, it's been a while! I wasn't feeling very inspired there for a little bit but realized I don't always have to have something extremely profound to say. I could just give an update on what's been going on with us!
      While I have failed to heed my own advice on writing down goals. My sweet husband has his written down and has been on quite a roll doing the Couch to 5K program. I'm very proud of him and have been challenged by his motivation!
      We continue to truck along. I started a simple preschool curriculum with the big boys today. It went pretty well! Canton has started eating some baby food in the last week. I must share this little funny from Carson. As I was feeding Canton one day, he kept grabbing his bib and putting it in his mouth. I made a playful comment about him making a mess. Carson's response was, "Mama! He's a baby! That's what babies do!" It really cracked me up and reminded me how much the boys listen to us and remember things we say. Collin is still progressing with his potty training and it's nice not buying quite so many diapers!
     I did read another post about goals and thought I would pass it along! http://moneysavingmom.com/2011/08/10-goals-for-this-week.html
    

                                                     
                                                                     

I ran across this quote last week and I've been thinking about it ever since! How many of us actually believe that wishes come true? I would think the majority is no, this includes me. So if that is the case, why do I not have more goals set for myself and my family?
      It's confession time. I don't like to fail! Of course, who does?! It's easier not to write down my goals because then it doesn't seem as bad if I don't reach them! On the other hand it won't be as rewarding if they are reached!
      I guess the solution is to accept failure. Failure is normal!! I still need to convince myself of this. How do we expect ourselves to be perfect(or close) when most of us know Jesus is the ONLY perfect one, we are human, after all. I now suggest one of my Dad's favorite concepts, balance! A balance of attempting certain achievements but also not beating ourselves up if we don't get it right the first time. To quote the movie Finding Nemo, "just keep swimming!" Life is made up of good days and bad. Hopefully the good ones outweigh the bad! 
        "I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus" Philippians 3:14. Press on, in other words, keep swimming! It's a new school year, I think it's time that I write down some goals. How about you?

Some free time

       I had been waiting for this day for around two weeks. Here I was waving goodbye to Carson, Collin, and Bart loaded up with Bart's parents, Gene and Nancy. Off they went to Little Rock for a baseball game. Bart's fourth cousin (I think we figured this right) plays minor league baseball and they were playing in Little Rock. We decided it wouldn't be very enjoyable to keep Canton entertained during the game, so he and I stayed home.
      Wow! Almost 36 hours with only one child! I was so excited about some free time. Canton and I had a fun day, ran some errands, and he was peacefully rocked to sleep. But as the afternoon came along I wasn't sure what to do without the rest of our clan. I guess I never realized how totally my world revolves around my sweet boys. It's funny how they can completely wear me out or drive me crazy sometimes but when they were gone for less than two days I missed them so much!
     I posted the other day that I was hoping to read the book entitled Life, In Spite of Me. With all the free time I had while Bart and the big boys were gone I was able to finish the book. It was terrific!  It was an amazing story of a young girl who began struggling with depression after some traumatic things took place in her life. Her depression led to a suicide attempt which she survived only to be confined to a wheel chair. The story of her struggles and the way she came to know the Lord are so challenging. If you get the opportunity I would definitely suggest this book!
    Overall the weekend was great! I'm thankful that I got some free time but I was also very grateful to have the rest of my boys back!