So Much To Say...So Little Time

Let's just say that it's been a tough couple of days and I'm short on time to resume blogging. So I'll give you the shortened version. We had a great weekend. The Huskers won by a point, but the game was fun and we were so glad to be there. You have to experience a game in person to understand what I mean, but it's awesome to feel the spirit of Game Day. (Thanks again, mom, for the tickets!) I love the Huskers and think a trip back "home" will be in order every fall from here on out. There's lots more to tell, but maybe I'll save it for a different day. I'm so tired tonight!

Grandma and the boys did great while we were gone, and it was really nice for Jerry and I to spend time together. Sixteen hours in a car will allow you lots of time to catch up on your talking. We truly didn't listen to much music....we just did lots of talking. I loved that.

I got really, really ansy to get home by about the last two hours of the trip. Knowing we were within a stone's throw of our boys caused me to say (many times), "ARE WE THERE YET?" I was so, so excited to get home to them. It was a sweet reunion...until Caden fell down the stairs of our front porch and scared us all half to death. Cody immediately grabbed his friend that was there and started praying that he would be alright, and God answered his prayers! Yes, in Grandma's hands he was fine all weekend long, but fifteen minutes after my arrival back home, my son topples down cement stairs. Go figure.

I want to close by saying that I may not be blogging as much as I'd like in the coming weeks. My schedule is so full this fall, and I've been really trying to prioritize the way I feel God would want me to. Often, that puts blogging at the VERY bottom of the list, and I'll check in with you all as often as I can. I apologize, in advance, if I don't visit/comment very often. I just need to step away for a while until there's a window of time that I can justify sitting at the computer!

Until then, I wish you all a great week!

And We're Off to HUSKERLAND!

If I'm MIA for a couple days, it's because I've gone to see my Huskers play Ball State this weekend. I really hope they win. But it's not all about the winning. That Sea of Red is just something you have to experience for yourself!

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend, and I'll be back soon with pictures and tales to tell.

Goooooooo, HUSKERS!

Wordless Wednesday

CHOO-CHOO!

Organization 101

If you were to step into my house right this minute, you'd see the following things:

The refrigerator would be covered with lists. Snack list, sharing list, phone list, to do list, shopping list, weekly list, progress chart including a list of things for Cody like "practice violin" "memorize Awana verse" "help with dishes" "help pick up toys" and "feed Ozzie."

The desk in our office is covered with lists...weekly to do list, just updated today, a pile of things to go through, a list of women from my moms in touch group and a list of things I want to share with them in my next email, and my beloved Franklin Covey planner without whom I'd be lost.

In my living room, right by the front door, is a wall organizer with hooks for keys and pockets for mail and such. I keep coupons there and bills to be paid, gift cards we can still use, and other items. There's also a basket a.k.a. "catch all" for more mail, keys, phones, cameras, ipods and anything else that needs a "home."

And as I sit here thinking about it all, I wonder, are my priorities in check? When I make these lists do they reflect who I am serving? What is important today and for WHOM am I doing it?

Am I serving God or man? Am I serving my family or am I catering more to the needs of those outside these walls than the ones right inside them?

And it got me thinking about something I wanted to share with any busy, frazzled moms out there. And please don't feel judged, because seriously, I'm preaching to myself right here because I simply need the reminder.

Here's the deal. There are so many things out there for us to do that are good things. They might even be selfless acts of kindness or ways you might be serving another with your time, talent, and energy. But I must challenge you. Are you putting what should be first....FIRST? Are you prioritizing well? Are you taking care of another while the laundry at your house and dishes in the sink are piling up? Are you running so much that your little ones aren't getting quality naps, just ones in the car? Sorry, those don't count! When you walk in the door, are you frazzled, so much in fact that it's just easier to go get fast food for your family instead of making them a healthy meal at home? I'm not saying you can't be available to help others, but do you have balance about it?

Again, this is about ME but I am sharing it because I hear you all talk about this stuff all the time. And we all know it leads to BURN-OUT. DEFEAT. FEELINGS OF FAILURE. This is not what God wants for us...this much I know! Can I get an "AMEN?!"

Let me encourage you: A very wise woman at my church (and my mother on more than one occasion) said to me, "Loved one, there are so many good and noble things for you to do out there! It's wonderful that you are wanting to do those things. But this is not your time. This is not your season! Before you choose to engage in that thing...that activity that would just be "so good" for someone else, ask God if it's what HE would consider best. If it takes you away from your family for a significant amount of time, it's not best. If it means you aren't accomplishing much on the home front, but are out there serving everyone else, then it's NOT best.

Now is the time, here at the beginning of the school year to really be mindful of our priorities, myself included. It's not that we can't help others. But this is a season of life that calls us home. And oh what a precious home it is when mama's happy, "cuz when mama aint happy..."

Say it girls.

GO BIG RED!

You're going to get really tired of me talking about Husker football, but it's in my blood and I just gotta!

Tonight the Huskers play ***USC and I'm having people over to eat chili and watch the game. They aren't allowed in unless they're wearing red. No, I'm not kidding.

I wanted to show you where I'll be next weekend for the Ball State game. I CAN'T WAIT! There is nothing like that "sea" of red. And nothing better than a stadium full of Nebraska football fans.

Go Big Red!

***Edited to add: The Huskers lost. Final score: Huskers - 31, USC - 49.

And our sweet neighbors did arrive in red, with the Nebraska logo attached to their red shirts!

You Know Autumn Has Arrived When...

• You've begun digging out your sweaters.
• The thought of caramel apples and visits to the pumpkin farm have left you positively giddy.
• You're fall decor is out and up and suddenly the passage of summer isn't such a bad thing after all.
• Your children are excited as they anticipate dressing up for Halloween.
• You are craving soups, stews, and chili.
• The bees are buzzing.
• You thank God that you live in such a beautiful part of the world where the seasons change, and with it, you are in awe of the Artist who paints it all.
• The top of your to do list begins with "buy mums today."
• There's a slight chill in the air and you wonder how long it will be before you turn your heat on (and watch your gas bills escalate!).
• You can't wait to make Autumn sugar cookies and have even gone out to buy new sprinkles and cutters even though you have plenty!
• You've begun planning music for the Christmas services.
• The football season has started and you throw a party everytime a Huskers game is televised!

Now it's your turn: What do you LOVE about the fall?

In Times Like These...

God is our refuge and strength,

an ever-present help in trouble.

Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way

and the mountains fall into the sea,

though its waters roar and foam

and the mountains quake with their surging.

There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,

the holy place where the Most High dwells.

God is within her, she will not fall;

God will help her at break of day.

Nations are in uproar, kingdoms fall;

he lifts his voice, the earth melts.

The Lord Almighty is with us:

The God of Jacob is our fortress.

Come and see the works of the Lord,

the desolations he has brought on the earth.

He makes wars cease to the ends of the earth;

he breaks the bow and shatters the spear,

he burns the shields with fire.

Be still, and know that I am God;

I will be exalted among the natioins,

I will be exalted in the earth.

The Lord Almighty is with us;

the God of Jacob is our fortress.

~Psalm 46

Lord, please protect our soldiers still fighting to protect our freedom.

Bring comfort to those who grieve the loss of a loved one.

God, remind us that each new day is a gift from You.

Help us to trust in You, to find our refuge in You.

Let us never take our precious lives and freedoms for granted.

In Jesus' Name, Amen.

I Agree with Steph

Steph over at Adventures in Babywearing has a very thought provoking post on her Chicago Moms blog and as I read it, the same thoughts ran through my mind. What causes us to be in such a hurry? Would it be such a bad thing for us to slow down (or maybe even plan ahead) so that we're not constantly in a state of panic and in such a huge hurry to get wherever it is we're needing to go?

A couple of tragic events happened within our own church body just this past week that really caused me to stop, hug my children extra tight, and remember that life is so fleeting. In one case, a fellow mom and friend lost her nephew who was only two months old. The baby was at daycare napping, and when one of the workers went in to check on him, he wasn't breathing and could not be revived. In another case, a friend's in-laws came to visit their family this past week and on their way home were in a horrible car accident that killed her father-in-law. They had come to town to meet my friend's new baby.

We don't understand why these things happen, and yet for me, they serve as a constant reminder that life is so fleeting, so short...a mere breath.

I need not remind you what tomorrow is. As the years have passed since 9/11, maybe we've forgotten. Perhaps we've taken our own lives for granted. Every day is truly a gift.

How will you choose to live it?

Because I Know That I am Your #1 Source For All Things Nebraska Football

HUSKERS: 20

WAKE FOREST: 17

Where Do They Get This Stuff???

While reading devotions and bedtime stories tonight, Cody tells me he's made friends with a boy in his class.

Curious as to what kind of a kid this is, I say, "Is he good for your teacher?"

"Oh yes. But he has had to move his clip a couple times."

(The kids have a red-yellow-green light system. When you've been warned, you move your name clip from green to yellow.)

"Has he ever had to move his clip to yellow?"

"Yeah."

"How about red?"

"Uh....no. Only one boy in our class has ever gotten to red."

"Have you ever had to move your clip?"

"No!"

"Good." (Huge sigh of relief.)

"I don't ever want my clip to be moved to red. That would make me step on over to the BAAAAAD side."

Seriously. Where does he get this stuff?!

Never Underestimate the Power of Prayer

I had mentioned in a previous post that I was starting a Moms in Touch group here in my town. One of my friends agreed to join me and we extended the invitation as we felt led to some other moms we knew.

This morning was our first meeting, and for a moment I wondered if anyone would come. Several of the people I was expecting were not able to make it at the last minute, but I had truly felt in my heart and spirit that God would bring five women this morning. I just KNEW He would.

After I had a short go-round of playing the "oh me of little faith" game, I decided to get on my knees and start praying. I prayed for five, and I also prayed there would be some faces I didn't expect to see.

And there were five of us this morning, two who hadn't even responded that they were coming, and one who is my new neighbor (and a fellow Believer!). I had been praying for a Christian neighbor to move into the house that sat vacant for a long time. And this morning, there she was!

Oh yes, God is the God of answered prayer. Every woman that came this morning had burdens on her heart, and together we prayed, cried, and shared what God was doing in our lives. I am so thankful for the opportunity we had to gather and to pray and to encourage one another. It was a very special time! And I can't wait until next week....

The Faces of Love

My Boys....Oh how I love 'em!

Happy Tuesday, everyone! I hope you're smiling as much as they are!