Wednesday, April 9, 2008

Run-On and On and On...

I've stumbled across some new blogs lately, and a few mentioned their dislike for bad grammar. *gasp* I immediately hoped they never stumble across my blog! Now I have a new complex. My grammar is very bad...I am fully aware of it. I am particularly prone to using run-on sentences. Actually, more like excessively prone to using them. The title of my blog should probably have been My Life as a Run-On Sentence.

I decided to look up the definition of a run-on sentence: a sentence containing two or more clauses not connected by the correct conjunction or punctuation. OR blah blah blah, blah blah blah :)

Here is my justification for bad sentences: I want my "voice" to be heard in my writing, I want it to sound like me. For those of you who know me, in real life, you know that when I talk, it's ONE BIG run-on sentence. So...in order for me to keep it real, I am forced to continually commit to using run-on's. It is for your benefit...really.

For those who can fully appreciate and appropriately use the English language, God bless you...for the rest of you, who can no longer remember (or care) about clauses and conjunctions, write on sister...write on :)

Tuesday, April 8, 2008

Resisting

I am realizing that there are areas in my spiritual walk that I am resisting God. Certain areas that I see Him wanting to change, and feel Him changing, and my gut instinct is to resist Him and flee back to what is comfortable.


I am about a quarter through Breaking Free. I'm usually a speedy reader...but this one I need to really let sink in. When I read a book, I always need my own copy because I like to underline sentences that stick out to me, so that later on I can skim back through and find what I'm looking for (you should see what my Bible looks like) Anyways, needless to say, much of this book is underlined already! It's amazing how well it fits in with the Seeking Him study...maybe too well :)

Here's some of what I'm learning so far...
  • Changing my behavior & thoughts is HARD. And not fun...at all. I want a quick fix. And yet the deeper I get into this study, the more I realize how far I have left to go! I want God to do it for me...I want to just magically love difficult people...instead, God gives me opportunities to follow His instructions and love them. *God has said to me: Too bad little lady...I have a better way, keep on following Me and you'll see it*
  • Pride...it is a problem. It may be at the root of all problems. I sort of had my own definition of pride: Anyone who thinks they're better than someone else, or believes they don't need anyone else. Somewhere along the way, I adopted that definition...probably to convince myself that since I don't see myself as "better" then I obviously do not have an issue with pride. Wrong definition. SO WRONG. Seriously, any person who thinks they don't have an issue with pride is likely the very person with a HUGE pride problem!
  • Pride = Self. That's what I'm learning. At the root of all the areas that need changing, self is the problem. I am learning to humble myself, because I do not want God to do it for me :) On a side note: humbling myself is something I have to do constantly. CONSTANTLY.

There's more...so much more..but for now, the main thing is that I do not want to resist God changing me! And I'm looking ahead, longingly, for the day when changing seems easier...or there is less changing to be done! I know it will be worth it!

- A new blog friend has a wonderful post on longings...it spoke to my heart because it just "fits" with all this stuff I'm learning. She has a great way with words and God's truth!

I Said I Would...

Here goes. I may have mentioned something in this post about sharing preggo pics. I am a woman of my word...even when my word, this time, is probably a really bad idea.

It all started when my beautiful friend, Shell, who's having her first baby, said she felt huge. HA!...Oh Shell....this ones for you, hope it makes you feel better :)
This is me 3 weeks before Noah was born (2001)...THIS is huge.

Notice the black from head to toe...who was I kidding?!? Not even black could slim that baby body down!

And here is why it was totally worth it...Absolutely Priceless!

Monday, April 7, 2008

Before and After

Today I had somewhere to go where I actually got to put on heels, trouser pants, and my trench coat...as opposed to the usual jeans and ballet flats. As I was heading out of our tiny town, I stopped by our gas station (like I do every day) to buy some treats :) As I was paying for my coffee, bag of Starburst and Skittles, the cashier said to me, "You look like Tom Cruise's wife...what's her name again?" At that moment, I wanted to jump over the counter and give her a great big bear hug! How sweet! How kind! How lovely of her! How vain of me, I know :) But she did make my day with her kind words! We decided it was the haircut...(which I had seriously copied, by the way.)

This is Tom's wife, Katie Holmes...totally copying me :)
So, when I got home this afternoon I had to dig out my before & after pics from this summer when I cut my hair to copy Katie...because, honestly, who doesn't like some before & after shots!?!
Here goes.... Before: (I shouldn't have smiled...I should have looked miserably pathetic like they do in real before & after shots...what was I thinking!?!)
and the back...
and after



So there's been some slight changes since this summer cut...you can check here if you're not already completely bored :) If you've got some before & after shots, you better let me know!!

Count Me In

I've mentioned before, that I just so happen to kinda like the band Leeland.
Just a little bit, HA! I had to share this video with you...I not only love this song, but the video just cracks me up! I'm so gonna get me some yellow shorts, tube socks, and red sweatshirt to wear while I'm running around my tiny town at 6 AM!

It makes me think of the verse Nehemiah 8:10 "...the joy of the Lord is your strength."

Count Me In!




Sunday, April 6, 2008

Weird Without Church

After Jake's 3rd night of misery, I knew this morning I needed to make the trip to Urgent Care. He just looked miserable...oh, how it just rips my heart out! It seems my children prefer to get really sick during non-office hours...I am really thankful for Urgent Care! He's a trooper, and it ended up just being an ear infection, which was really the best of all the options it could be...because it's not contagious and medicine can fix it! *sigh of relief*
After Urgent Care, Jake & I had 40 minutes before the pharmacy opened, so we headed to Wal-Mart to get a few groceries. It was the strangest feeling, being in Wal-Mart, when I should have been in Sunday School! We ended up getting home about 20 minutes into the church service, so Jake and I snuck into our house so he could go back to sleep. We weren't actually sneaking...but when you live next to the church, and everyone is there but you...it feels like sneaking :)
Sundays are never the same for me, when I miss church. It's hard to explain...I think it's because I so need it...that time, set apart, to worship Him, with other believers. On days like today, I realize how often I take it for granted. I'm hoping that after a dose of antibiotics and some rest, we will be able to catch the evening service!

Saturday, April 5, 2008

Things That Break...

I'm a "lamp" person. I can't explain it, but I have something against over-head lighting...I love the ambiance of lamps. I also have three boys...so almost every single lamp in our house has been taped back together with electrical tape (more than once.) The tape works great...the lamp shades...not so much. No matter how much I try to bend them back into shape, they're really never quite the same after the fall. In this pic, they were playing "spies." In their ever sneaky attempt to clobber quietly out of the office, they took my desk lamp with them. As you can see from their faces...they've done this before! It's okay...its all part of life with boys :)
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