#6 "S" Around Here

Have done this in the past...haven't done it in a while. Helps me embrace the Ferris Bueller of "life moves pretty fast, if you don't stop and look around once in a while you might miss it"...in other words Selah. 

AIDAN

Listening |  To Pandora Kidz bop. To playlists that he makes. To a lot of Casting Crowns and finding his place as a teen with music and his faith. So super important. So understand that we need to support him in this.

Reading | Anything about basketball you can find. Information on the Internet, novels, SI for Kids (always). And books so fast I can't keep up. Trying to read The Maze Runner with you so we can watch the movie together after. This fall we read and watched The Giver and just this last weekend we watched Hoot after you got me the book for Christmas.

Building |A football stadium with your Legos and millions of Oyos that you have. Also old Legos that you have outgrown like Destiny's Bounty so you can sell it on Ebay. I think that is super cool that you are so resourceful.

Playing |  Xbox and hoops in the driveway. You play Minecraft and some Basketball game with Micah. Madden with Daddy and hoops with me. You have your thing with each of us and it is super cool that we have this together.

Practicing | Officially Tae-kwon-do (which you have no heart for and that is ok, it is good to do things out of your comfort zone), basketball, and writing at Writer's Workshop. Unofficially you are practicing how to be a compassionate brother, how to show patience and kindness, and a reminder of how to do easy talk. These are the things in life that you don't notice in the day to day but more when you step back and look I see so much growth. Like when Micah got hurt yesterday and you said you prayed for him all day.

MICAH

Listening |  To music really loud on your speaker that Grandma Betty got you for Christmas. You think you are pretty hot stuff.

Reading | Calvin and Hobbes. Calvin and Hobbes. And more Calvin and Hobbes. Every day this is your go to and you have a ton of them hidden in your bedsides to read. Every once in a while you throw in a Bernstein Bear or Diary of a Wimpy kid book.

 Reminding | Us to do the fun and thoughtful in life. Like putting notes in people's lunches or to jump on the trampoline even if it is cold out and I have too much to do.

Watching  |  Phineas and Ferb, Garfield, and other random movies that you find on Netflix. You love watching on your "laptop" (code for Kindle with a keyboard).

 Practicing | Both basketball and swimming. You surprised us with wanting to play basketball this winter and we told you that you still needed to do swimming. It is a lot but you are a trooper and eat on the run every Tuesday and Thursday.

JEREMY

Planning | For 2 new classes. For excellence. For knowing that it is a lot right now but it will pay off. This is the time where you have to push through in work and it is ok that it is a lot. You are planning the basement plan for the bathroom and the next bedroom. For when our You are looking ahead and I

Investing | In your health like a rockstar. You are getting up for the 5 am spinning class 3 times a week. Faithfully. I am so proud and glad you a going back to cycling. It has always been your thing.

Coaching| Aidan's basketball team. The team that has dominated and you have had to learn how to teach kid's sportsmanship. Totally awesome watching you from the sidelines.

Reading/Listening | To Dave Ramsey radio every morning. To books on leadership. Your communication book. Your Webdesign book. And USA Today for the news. And of course on how to fix the newest problem on the van (the power-steering pump). You are well-rounded and I appreciate/envy that.

Investing |  In our financial future, our boys, our marriage, and what matters. I always have and always will appreciate your example to us.

RACH

Planning | For homemade meals. For school instruction, for conferences, and PARCC testing. For the next day each night...making lunches, coffee, and packing clothes for going to the gym. Seriously spend a lot of time in the planning stage each week. Ready for the summer mode of getting to take a break from the daily intense planning stage.

Reflecting | On what to fill my time with. The moments in-between add up to a lot. Wanting to make sure I am using them for both body, mind, and spirit.

Making Space/Grace |  For leaving my clothes on the floor, my tests ungraded, and art. Art always is worth taking time for.

Listening | To less noise and more silence. To my boys as I tuck them in at night.

Remembering | That my life is a gift. A privilege. I get to live it each day. (And that I still really like having green hair.)

US

Watching | Parenthood end and actually feeling a loss. This was our show and our characters. Now we are doing That 70s show series. We finished up Frasier a while back. We always need to have a show that we are in the middle of.

Drinking | Tea, wine, and chocolate Almond milk. These are our things we do together and I love it.

Discussing |  The upcoming week. Who is picking up the kids, when we are working out, and when to "punt" and when to "throw the touchdown". Our summer plans. What car we should save for. How to finish the basement. And sometimes just with a glass of wine while sitting at the fireplace for hours.

#5 "S" 'Inconvenient but worth it'

 Been thinking a lot about this phrase in the last day. After reading this article about ditching the smart phone.    ( http://www.huffingtonpost.com/matt-frazier/in-defense-of-inconvenien_b_6693588.html )

Inconvenient but worth it.

 Because I think pretty much every since thing I think of can fall into that category.

Watching a movie with your kids when you have a ton to do.
Making a homemade meal instead of eating out.
Creating and grading a Unit Test that is standards based and reflects the whole of student's learning.
Shoveling the driveway.
Having kids.
Doing the laundry.
Being kind.
Getting up at 5 am to go the gym.
Going camping.
Living life deep.
 
Seriously this is the mantra of life. None of this life is convenient because I don't think that is what God created this life for. He created it to be a heck of lot more fun, more full, and filled with the rigamaroll that comes with all of the messy life we life every day.

I think I'm going to embrace this more than ever. I think I'm going to remember that the goal of life isn't to be a wimp and live in comfort. It's just like Dead Poet Society said, "live deep". Deep definitely isn't convenient, but it's worth it.

#4 S "Lego Pizza"

Ugh parenting. Ahh nothing like your boy telling you the story of what really happened to remind you to seek understanding before responding.

I see Micah walking down the hall to go to Aidan's room instead of being in his room.
I hear bickering.
I respond with telling them to both just go to bed.

Story goes...Micah overheard that Aidan was disappointed that he didn't get to go to pick a brick so he GAVE him the piece that Aidan wanted (a Lego Pizza). Micah then offers to help Aidan clean his room. Aidan then is grumpy that Micah is still in his room and gives him a face. Micah slaps Aidan and that's when mom overhears all the ruckus ASSUMING the worst of EVERYONE.

Ugh parenting. Ugh the reminder that we all long to be understood. Ugh the reality that we all make mistakes. Ugh the irony that when Micah had hoped to give Aidan a gift it turned into a messy, everybody is crabby at everybody situation. And the ugly reminder that even with the purest of hearts we can end slapping somebody...and then get 'busted' for being seen out of our room when we really are supposed to be getting ready for bed.

I needed that reminder today. I don't like these reminders but these are the ones that remind you of the importance of looking beyond what you SEE and what you HEAR to what is truth.

The truth is we all long to give our "Lego Pizzas" to others. The truth is we all screw up. The truth is God loves us what a deeper love than I remember sometimes. He loves ALL of us. He busts us all the time and yet draws us in and listens to us start out just like Micah did for me tonight when I went to lay with him in bed.

"So mom...the story is..."

Tell Him. He knows anyway. He just loves to have us draw near to Him.

#3 "S" Take it From Here...

I don't want to be intentional and reflective right now. I don't want to recognize the awesome parallels and lessons I learned from being a parent this weekend and being a child of God. I don't want to prepare for my week of teaching. I don't want to make meals and do laundry.

I want to be selfish. I want to make a campfire and drink beer. I want to sleep in and ignore responsibilities. I want to have my kids realize how much we sacrifice for them and have them. I want to go on a vacation and just be.

I think I just want grace. And I think I need to have it so I can give it. I think that we all long for that place of just going "The Lord is my Shepherd I shall not want. He leads me beside quiet waters he restores my soul." We want the promises that only our God can deliver on.

That is the cry that we all get. It doesn't matter if we are 2 or 22 or 102. It doesn't matter if we are a mama or a teacher. It doesn't matter if it is February or July. It just matters that we have that place we can go to and say, "I'm wiped. Can you take it from here?"

And so that's my Selah right now. That's how I am going to move from a place of wanting to get credit for all my hard work and what I have coming to me and instead rest in the promise that He is the restorer, not me. He is the One that gives grace. He is the One who created me for this exact moment with these exact needs. This doesn't come as a surprise to Him. The surprise is why I think I can do it without Him.

I can, it just looks a lot uglier. I am a lot more impatient. I want it to be all about me when I do it on my own. Interruptions are so frustrating.When I'm in that place I am not who I want to become. As I learned last year those moments can turn into days and into months and years. I want those moments to turn into something beautiful, not the ugly that I do on my own.

I want to welcome others in. I want to have calm waters. And I truly just want to trust in that peace. Not because everything around me has settled down but because I am being led by the One that can take it from here.

Take it from here. What sweet words to rest in.

#2 "S" Entrusted.

15 minutes till Micah's birthday party starts and after reading through my really old blog posts from years ago I found this is what I want to truly be investing in. Telling the stories of our lives rather than always spending my in-between time reading about other people's lives. Which is ironic I know because if anybody reads this they are reading about my life...all about balance. Right now I know I just am off balance, and so I am intentionally stopping to pause and look at the gifts that God has entrusted to me. Entrusted, such a great word as we take time to celebrate birthdays. Such a great reminder that our children are only with us for such a short time. We are entrusted with them and then we send them off. Entrusted is awesome and scary all at the same time.

So I want to remember from Aidan's 11th birthday party...

• How much fun they had making ice-cream cones at Sweet Tomatoes. 
• How we lost tons of the Nerf gun bullets at the park but had fun anyway.
• How when I went into the living room I found boy socks everywhere and realized my boy is just like all these other crazy boys.
• How Aidan took leadership in trying to help his friends go to sleep and not get in trouble.
• How they made a bracket for the Madden playoffs. So him and yet everybody loved it.
• How it is such a good thing we have a basketball hoop, a trampoline, and an x-box. I'm so glad that this what what they can get together and do. Buying this stuff is more than just having stuff.
• How much he fit in. 

I  love that he has friends that he can be with. Even if it's too much crazy and not enough sleep. It's about continuing to invest in what matters most even if it's Nerf guns, donuts, and keeping perspective.

And there's the doorbell.