A Dream Come True

Last night I dusted off my dress shoes, unburied my jewelry box, mixed up my separated-because-it-hasn't-been-used-in-so-long custom blended foundation, pulled out an almost forgotten dress, and went on a date with my husband!  This wasn't just any date, though.  He took me to see the Broadway musical The Lion King!!!  (Can you tell I'm excited?!)

When I found out several months ago that The Lion King was coming to Des Moines, I began secretly hoping that my husband would surprise me with tickets.  I never asked him if we could go.  He knew from numerous past conversations how badly I've always wanted to see The Lion King; and the awesome husband that he is, I knew that he would grant my desire if it was at all possible.

Well, he didn't let me down!  And neither did the show!  It. was. AMAZING!  The set, the costumes, the mind-blowing talent... I was absolutely enthralled by every part of it.  As I watched the show, taking in every detail, I had to keep reminding myself that I was really there.  I felt totally privileged to be in the presence of such extremely gifted people, and I was thankful to God for the opportunity to enjoy the talents that He has given them.  It was an experience like nothing I've ever had.

All dressed up with somewhere to go!

My Christmas gift from my wonderful husband!

What a night!

Getting Practical... Again

I find that the toughest things are sometimes done best on a whim.

While I was nursing the babies this morning, I said to Abel without much premeditated thought, "Abel, do you think we should get rid of some of your toys?"  Much to my surprise, he answered, "Yeah, we have way too many toys.  Here, I'll start making a pile of toys to get rid of."  And as his little pile began to grow, so did my motivation.

It's been almost a year ago that I determined the need to get practical with the amount of stuff (i.e. clothes and toys) we are hanging on to.  Unfortunately, my resolve wasn't strong enough at the time; I ended up reorganizing toys instead of minimizing them, recognizing the fact that someday I would have to face the growing toy problem.

So, thanks to my whim and Abel's inspiration, today was that day!  We are officially getting rid of three larger toys and two diaper boxes full of smaller toys!  In fact, if I would have let him--and I probably should have--Abel would have parted ways with even more than that.  Perhaps that will be for another day....

The Assembly Line

We started baby cereal yesterday!  I haven't felt that Isabel and Elliana were ready for solids until the last week or so.  At 7 1/2 months of age, they are a little older than most babies who are just starting cereal, but I really wanted to keep them as babies for as long as possible to wait until the time seemed right.  They hadn't started sitting up on their own very well until just recently, and they had been acting quite satisfied with breast milk alone (except for the days when I failed to drink enough water to produce well...); so we waited.

Isabel and Elliana got their new space-saver high chairs over the weekend, and feeling like the time was finally right, we put them to use right away.  I have to admit, the first time feeding two babies was a little trickier than feeding just one.  After nursing, I rounded up two bibs and two spoons and two cups of water (all coordinating, of course :-)) and put the girls in their two new matching seats.  As I mixed up the cereal, Isabel and Elliana, as if they knew what was coming, began getting a bit impatient.  I hurried to my seat in front of the highchairs and presented Isabel with her first bite.  As the spoon neared her reach, she grabbed hold of it and shoved it into her mouth.  Then, putting one spoon down and picking up the other, I scooped up Elliana's first bite.  Before the spoon was even heading in her direction, she opened her mouth as wide as could be and waited.  I continued going back and forth between them, giving each girl two bites at a time.  With each taste, both girls seemed to want the next bite even more than the last; and they began objecting to the 5-8 seconds they would have to wait in between turns.  I was going as fast as I could, trying to keep all things equal and both girls happy.  There was no waiting or talking or playing in between bites--I had a job to do!

Isabel got full first and was ready to get down and get a diaper change.  Elliana, still hungry, waited not so patiently while I carried Isabel into the living room to play with some toys (the diaper change would have to wait).  Back in the kitchen, I continued to feed Elliana until she, too, was finally full, and got her down only to discover that Isabel wasn't the only one now in need of a diaper change.  I carried Elliana to the changing table, and immediately after getting her taken care of, I scooped up Isabel to do the same for her.  As I finished with Isabel and looked at my two full, clean, contented babies, I paused for a moment and let out a sigh as I said to my husband, "I feel like a one-woman assembly line!" :-)

Taking Heed

Last night I prayed a scary prayer: Lord, empty me of myself.

I've seen this past week that the beginning of the new year has given me a chance to refocus. I have felt for a while now that I've been in a bit of a dry spell, spiritually speaking; but with this new beginning has come new mercies ("It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is Thy faithfulness." Lamentations 3:22-23 KJV) and renewed desire: desire to be in the Word, desire to pray, and desire to grow.

As I have been spending more time in the Word and in prayer--and even doing a good deed here and there--I have recognized in myself a dangerous attitude of pride creeping up. Do you know the feeling? I stayed up late to read my Bible and pray instead of going to bed. I'm feeling pretty good about myself.... I really helped that person out. Now others are going to think pretty highly of me.... Pretty ugly thoughts, huh?!

So, last night I said to God, "God, this is a scary thing to pray, but... empty me of myself." And then He brought an old song to my mind.

It's all about You, Jesus.
And all this is for You, for Your glory and Your fame.
It's not about me....

It's not about me. Without Him, I am nothing and can do nothing. It is only because of Him that I can pray and that I can thirst for His word and that I can desire to know Him more. It is only because of Him that I can love and that I can serve and that I can grow.

1 Corinthians 10:12 says, "Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed that he does not fall." Today, I am taking heed.

It Finally Clicked!

I'm not sure how it happened, but it finally did.  Amariah is potty trained!  A few days ago she finally started telling me when she needed to go to the bathroom--before it was too late.

It's been a long road getting to this point.  I first started setting Amariah on the toilet around 1 year of age.  You wouldn't think potty training should span a 1 1/2 year period; apparently, she wasn't ready and I wasn't committed.  (Although, to give myself a bit of a break, part of that time I simply wasn't able to commit--I was pregnant with twins, and then I had twins!) :-)  My lack of commitment led to a lot of inconsistency, and her lack of interest led to a lot of frustration (which led to more inconsistency...).  I tried a wide gamut of approaches: from discipline to reward and from encouragement to threats, nothing I did seemed to work.

A couple months ago I finally started telling people, "She is potty trained (i.e. I have done the training).  Now she just has to decide to do it."  Things weren't looking very promising, and then suddenly... something clicked!  And boy, am I and the budget and the washing machine glad!

Just Another Day

Isn't it neat how we parents grow as our family grows?  I remember looking at large families before having children of my own and thinking, How on earth do they manage?!  And then when I became a slightly overwhelmed mother of one, I realized what a wonderful thing it was that I didn't have to become a mother of several all at once--I would have a chance to grow along with my family, one baby (or two!) at a time.

I never could have foreseen my husband and myself doing what we did today.  In sub-zero weather, we (along with what must have been the rest of the Des Moines populous :-)) ventured out for our monthly trip to Costco with two toddlers and two infants in tow.  I wonder if it was apparent to our fellow shoppers why we were buying in bulk.... :-)

One of the best things about having four children under four years of age (two of them being infants) is that Travis and I really have to work as a team.  When Abel and Amariah both announced they needed to go to the bathroom about halfway through the trip, all six of us had to make our way to the front of the store.  While Travis manned the cart full of merchandise and the stroller full of babies, I took Abel and Amariah into the extremely busy women's restroom.  Seeing that there was no way three people in winter coats were going to fit in one stall, I sent Abel in one by himself and went into another with Amariah.  Although it was a little nerve racking, Abel was very obedient and stayed put and we made it out okay... minus one of Amariah's barrettes which somehow managed to fall into the toilet as she was peering over it to admire her work. :-)

Another of the best things about having four children under four years of age is that all kinds of people go out of their way to get a peek at our children and to make their comments.  Many people want to tell us about the twins in their own family.  Others want to ask how old they are.  Some want to let us know that we must be crazy to have four young children.  And a few want to share in our joy and acknowledge that we are blessed. My favorite of these encounters today was with an older woman.  Seeing the double stroller, she approached to get a look at the babies and to ask how old they are.  After proceeding to express how glad she was that she isn't me, she realized that there were two more children standing beside the stroller who also belong to me and said as she walked away, "Okay, you do deserve a reward."

Four years ago, I probably would have agreed with her.  But today, this blessed mother of four would say that it's just another day.

A New Beginning

I like new beginnings--a chance to look back and a chance to start over.  I wish I had it so together that I didn't need a fresh start--that I was so perfect I could just keep doing exactly what I'm doing and be fine; but even the most devoted Christian and the most noble wife and the most loving mother falls short of perfect.  Even though I know I'll never be perfect this side of heaven, it is still the desire of my heart to try.  The Christian/wife/mother who finds herself no longer trying finds herself in a dangerous place.  After all, every relationship--be it your relationship with God, your spouse, or your children--requires effort.  And I guess that's where the need for a new beginning--a fresh start--comes in.

My husband asked me this morning, "So if you could change jobs for the new year, would you?"  My answer, of course, was no--I love being a stay-at-home mom.  But who hasn't had days where you'd be tempted to say yes?... Yes, I want out of these circumstances.... Yes, I am tired of trying....

Sometimes it gets hard to keep putting forth the effort that a healthy relationship requires.  It's hard to set aside purposeful time to spend with God.  It's hard to selflessly give your energies (or what's left of them) to your husband at the end of a long day.  It's hard to put work aside in the interest of spending quality time with your children.  It's hard to love.  It's hard to serve.  It's hard to_____.... And because it's hard--and because I'm human--I fail.

I fail, but I don't give up.

I never officially "make" New Year's resolutions, but I like September's idea of choosing a theme for the new year--an area in which I need growth and in which I will strive to better meet God's standard.  Thinking back over the past year, it seems like maybe the Lord has been showing me that the area I need growth in is my relationships--especially my relationship with Him, with my husband, and with my children.  I'm not exactly sure what this process of growth will require of me, but I am sure that it will be a process and that it will be hard.

As I stand at this new beginning, I praise God that His Word will be a light unto my path and that His mercies will be new every morning!