hey PLU’s….

10 minutes on a blanket with no instructions will yield the following…. and because of it i am feeling the fullness swell in my soul….

sheer laughter

delight

lack of responsibility

full abandon that comes from peace

all things that i think of when i see the smiles…

i am content….not because of what God has given me but what he has done…..i have been redeemed

sometimes i can be worried about small things….like the list that kept me awake last night….worried about perfection on some things that just won’t ever be completely ironed out…..pertaining to work or always being caught up….and looking the part of a well-organized mom….well….

but my kids don’t worry like that….their worries certainly are important but they take life for what it is….and don’t worry about the future…..

but when this world doesn’t allow perfection or what we perceive is perfect…

there is laughter and joy anyway….and grace abounds here

and we do the best we can….

with spray painted hair, tattoos, Saturday clothes and all…..in what could have been a whole lot more perfect photoshoot….we did the best we could with the time we had….and made the most of it….

this one little moment in time could’ve been perfect….we could have changed our clothes, taken baths…..but we choose to except those same imperfections that i worried so much about….and move on…. and as a result the memories will be priceless

i can’t help but apply this throughout my days….

they were happy just how they were, imperfect but happy

all of my love to my people….

ok PLU’s (people like us)

i am just going to start from today and pretend i have been here documenting my children, the businesses, family happenings, and what has been on my heart….(warning completely unrelated pictures and even some children that i love but don’t belong to me!)

while i love filling you all in…although it does seem a bit weird in the blog world that we post so much here but i guess it is just the nature of how we do things… i will say i feel alot more connected to what i remember like i have said many times before, reflection is a big part, and i just love reading what other people write so i feel compelled to contribute in some way, right?  kindof like if  SOME people didn’t put status updates on facebook no one would have a newsfeed to read…hmmm….i’ve always wondered that….

another reason?  kinda a long explanation….but i guess this wordpress thing has unlimited characters….i had the chance to attend a dotmom conference at the last minute for the day a few weeks ago….got to reunite with some college friends for a time, corporate worship was amazing, the speakers were great (pretty much blogger moms or moms that have written books- ha) …..and it was a wonderful time of renewal….

for once…it was an encouragement and didn’t feel so much like an admonishment or an attempt to help me thrive in my current stage of  life……i am finally in a good place and the conference helped to me solidify that in my brain and heart…..  usually i would admit that i felt overwelmed by their advice and guilty for whatever portion i was not able to handle…..but this time i was grateful for the resting place that God has offered in between the hard parts of small children, the throws of life, and the years that i know are coming…..

i know that God offers us a variety of resting places in our life and i am depending on the Holy Spirit to allow me to see those places for what they are….a break, a God-given reprieve…..i am encouraged….

i did feel particularly convicted though on a whole ‘nother level…..from a business standpoint i used to blog more often…i had more than 300 posts put up in about 2 years or so and i journaled often and documented in a much better way….i can remember the pictures i took with attention to the seasons and while i have taken most of the pictures that i usually would the content has not been here.

i have to be careful in my life to stay on task, on schedule, meet deadlines, and yet seem as though i have nothing to do but sit with my children….i try so incredibly hard to keep my mind’s tasks to myself and not to display them on my emotions and body language….i will say it is hard at times, so blogging is the easiest to drop.

i realized at the conference though, that God has given me a wonderful platform.  There is a reason why the Holy Spirit put the name “Blessed Be the Name” on my heart and mind and i have learned to listen intently for his voice.  I felt ever so convicted that i was working so hard that i had neglected my platform- HIS platform in my life. it is so easy to become consumed with the business aspect and let the optional parts slide….blogging that is…. there is not a deadline on this one….the catalog and another looming photoshoot- another thing altogether….

i will share with you boldly how good God is in person ….i will share with those in my meetings what God does through me in the life of  my businesses, i give HIM the glory for how ill-equipped i am to do my job (seriously)….but unless i put it here i am not doing the best i can..

if we are friends on facebook or you are a hostess for BBTN, you know that we have something wonderful brewing….we are in the planning, negotiating, and grinding through the hard stages of what God has written on my heart.  I believe that God goes before us and prompts us if we are listening to do things that only He can do through us…..  in these stages my job is to trust the Lord & move forward watching intently for Him to show me His plans….as he has done already….more to come…. i can’t wait to show you the evidence of God’s hands on the newest adventure in the life of my job…

until next time….

all of my love to my people….

hello PLU’s….

a great deal of clarity is coming this week through the start of school…. everything from physically feeling the weight of how much i love my kids & family to physically and emotionally needing to take a breath.

it has been 8 1/2 years since i really took a breath i think….the kids are both in school (required by the state of Alabama- which is a big difference from mother’s day out) and the weight of so many thinks is dissipating a little more each day….

it is a new season once again and i am grateful and blessed.

the past few years have been a journey of sorts and not an easy one by any stretch.  i am pretty sure that God did not intend our lives to be “journey free”…otherwise i don’t think we would need to be refined by fire…right?

so this morning i didn’t cry as my youngest wrapped her arms around my neck because i know without a doubt she is in the hands of God Almighty and it is just time for this new season.  for many years i have put myself on the very end of whatever list i had going….while there was a period of exercise a few years ago (that totally paid off) it was guilt-ridden and arduous to say the least…early mornings and very little preparation for foods that i needed to be eating….simply not what i would consider a long-term plan.  this new season gives more room for my determination for everyone in my family to be well-rounded, balanced, and in a good place.  i have been keeping a sprint pace in what should be a marathon run….and i am tired….and ready for a new pace.

i listed to need to breathe this morning on my walk through the neighborhood this morning and it added even a little more clarity.  i need to be just as healthy as my kids….their reaction to being thrust into a new year & new situations with a great deal of ease should be the mindset that i have through a healthy relationship with the tasks of my days.  they did well…they were ready…..but sometimes i wonder if i am ready for my day?

over the years the stresses that have come with being a working mom have been certainly been task related mostly-when there is more to do in one day than possible…but lots of that has been emotional too.  maybe it is just in my mind but a heavy weight of the controversial “working mom” has weighed heavily on my mind and that chapter is officially closed. i think part of it is that there are so many judgements being made about what is “good” and what is “neglectful”….hmmm….and i am so very grateful that my heart has yielded to what God has to say as opposed to others because i might have just missed it….

working has been a good thing & my pace has been ok….a wonderful thing …and i hope that every mom is able to drop or give the burden of working to the cross if it is one that you feel inclined to carry…it is just too heavy and completely unnecessary to carry…since this is my blog it is also my opinion….

my laundry is done….my house is clean….my life is organized….and my family is at peace daily….and i work now during school hours….

i have to say that i have zero regrets….it may not be how i was brought up and it may be different than most of my friends but it is what i feel called to do…called…i know that that is where the controversy lies but i know through Proverbs 31 that God intends moms to be highly sensitive to his plans for our very lists…..and be effective for the sake of the gospel no matter what….

please do not post here (said so sweetly)….”i don’t know how you do what you do”….”or great job my laundry is not done”….because everyone has their list of things that they do and it simply cannot be compared from mom-to-mom….

so all of that to say…i am so grateful to rest in God’s plan & the season that i am entering….

i am enthusiastic about the journey that just started yesterday and cannot wait to reap the benefits of taking a breath

i will raise my face and my hands to the heavens to simply yield to God’s desires for my family’s lives no matter if it includes being a working mom or serving in a different way….and take a breath

i am grateful…

all of my love to my people…you are so dear!