the minivan voorsts.

ahh, politics.

if you know me at all, you know i am highly involved in politics. or not.

in fact, if i ran into rush limbaugh in hyvee (or, more realistically for me, aldi. or more realistically for rush, some d.c. area republicans-only store, so probably fareway) i would have no idea it who i was talking to and would probably ask for a price check on store-brand tortilla chips.

however, the following quote was posted by laura on her blog, and i had a good laugh.

The healthcare bill will be written by a man who doesn’t understand it (John Conyers), passed by a Congress who hasn’t read it, signed by a President who smokes, funded by a man who cheated on his taxes, and overseen by an obese Surgeon General. What could go wrong?—Rush Limbaugh

hahaha, oh rush. you do have a sense of humor. i should call you rush limLAUGH. only in print though, because it wouldn't make as much sense to hear it as it would to read it.

simplifying

i've gotten the urge to simplify our lives. first undertaking: atticus' toys. seriously, he has so many toys, and yet his favorite things to play with are a plastic cup, a blush applicator, my hairbrush, HIS hairbrush, a highlighter (with the lid jammed on TIGHTLY- don't worry), a piece of cardboard, an old magazine, an old CD, a wooden spoon and a canning ring.

so why all the fancy toys?

i tried to go through his toy basket and keep only high quality things that he would likely play with...the only problem is that I'M attached to a lot of them. i would find myself thinking things like, "he's never liked this toy, but i got it as a shower gift" or "even though he's never shown any interest in this one, maybe the next kid would like it." um, i'm apparently more attached to his toys than he is.

so i'm working on an experiment. i cleared out half of his toys and put them in a bag (out of sight, out of mind). in a couple days, i'm going to go through and clear out half of what's left. if there are specific things in the bag that i find myself missing or truly regretting getting rid of, i will retrieve only those things. in a couple weeks, i will sell or donate the remaining toys. i think it's better to keep our house uncluttered and allow someone else to potentially get use out of these things than to keep them around out of sentimentality.

obviously, i'm not getting rid of everything, or even all purely sentimental items. just trying to foster an attitude of thankfulness for the things we DO have rather than an attitude of stress because of all the things we've accumulated but don't want to manage, take care of, or keep organized.

atticus' toy basket AFTER clearing out half of what was in it!

next project: my clothing...yikes. if i find myself far too attached to atticus' toys, this one will be hard.

what i've been given and why

the whole point of life is to glorify the lord. it doesn't matter what you put your mind, your energy, your resources, your time, your passion or your relationships into, they will only have eternal value when used for the purpose of god's glory.

toward this purpose, the lord has lovingly given each person a unique set of skills, circumstances, passions, and people with which to work. call these 'talents' from the parable (talents shouldn't just refer to those things you're good at, but all the resources god has given you to use for his glory).

so i've been thinking about the talents god has given me. i know that, as a wife and mom, my main outlet for ministry is my family. the lord has entrusted me with my husband and my child (and any other children we might be blessed with), and my main responsibilities in this are to help and encourage my husband and to raise children to know and love the lord. all my energies should be directed with these goals at the heart.

i feel that perhaps my largest resource in this is my interest in learning...well, everything. i like to call it 'varied interests,' although todd can testify that i can be pretty ADD in my 'kicks' of the moment. there's always something new and interesting that i'm reading about or trying my hand at...some stuff sticks, and some efforts last around 30 seconds.

so i think i need to identify what my interests are, which ones are worth pursuing, and how i can use them specifically to benefit (first) my family and (second) others.

maybe more to come when i can narrow down my list of "pursuable" interests.

my newest 'thing'

CHECK IT OUT!!! isn't it awesome?!!

you mean you don't know what it is?! well, other than being a testament to the fact that i truly am a renaissance wife, i don't know what it is either. i taught myself to crochet yesterday, using a book that i would never recommend for pattern purposes, unless you want to know how to crochet a tassled ipod-holder rope belt. yes, it was in there. and it was one of the classier items.

anyway, considering that i'm not skilled enough yet to crochet the aforementioned belt, i fashioned this little trinket yesterday. still trying to figure out what it is....

perhaps the love child of elton john and martha stewart?

or maybe a scarf for the top half of my wrist for when it gets cold? (but only the top half, the bottom half can suck it up, it's not that cold out.)

any other suggestions? let's put it to a vote.

so random.

right now, as i write this, atticus is sticking his hands down my pants. motherhood is glamorous. it would be even more glamorous if i had this little treasure.

lauren chorpening, blog more.

confessions of not-the-greatest mom in the whole world.

last night atticus was playing while i was baking bread. the dough was rising, and i forgot that the oven was preheating. he has lately figured out how to open drawers and cupboards, so he crawled over to the oven to open the drawer under the oven door. apparently there's a piece of metal across the inside of the drawer that gets really hot, and he got his hand stuck in between the drawer and the metal. i felt so horrible...his hand got all blistered and he screamed for probably 20 minutes straight...i don't blame him.

i'm so sorry, little buddy.

laundry basket sled

go figure.

as soon as i posted the last blog, atticus started waking up at 6:30, napping inconsistently and started being REALLY grouchy throughout the day. oh, babies.

the new normal

oh my word, i am loving our days! about 2 months ago, atticus really settled in to a pretty predictable daily schedule, (as well as started sleeping through the night consistently) and my life has been a bed of roses since.

well, pretty much.

this is what an ideal average day looks like:

7:30: wake up, feed atticus, misc. morning routine.
8:30: go on walk, memorize scripture.
9:30-11:00: atticus naps, i read my bible, shower, pick up the house, etc.
11:00: atticus eats a snack, random play time.
12:00: atticus eats lunch, random play time, run errands.
2:00-3:30: atticus naps; i read, research, or relax.
4:00: atticus eats, i start getting the kitchen ready to make dinner
5:30: todd and i eat, hang out as a family
8:00: atticus eats and goes to bed
8:00-10:00: todd and i hang out together

awesome. i love having a predictable schedule, especially staying home. your days can get all jumbled together and you don't know which end is up sometimes.

on top of a daily routine, we also have a predictable week:

monday: grocery shopping (every other week), cleaning, hospitality
tuesday: SABBATH!!
wednesday: bible study (every other week) OR library; special projects
thursday: yoga, shane and rita (jehovah's witnesses) come over, family night
friday: laundry, plan menu/shopping trips (if nec.), organize coupons, lisagrace comes over, garage sales
saturday: garage sales, church, out to eat OR super simple meal
sunday: misc. ministry, connection group

not that all of that gets done every week, but it's nice to have a goal. i'm working hardest on streamlining our days, especially cleaning/grocery shopping days. cleaning is going well (i have gotten to the point where i can clean both bathrooms in 12 minutes total) but since i only make one major shopping trip per month, and one supplementary (milk/produce) trip, the first trip takes a LOT of time...working on that.

anyway, not that anyone cares, i just am feeling really good about FINALLY getting to settle into a sense of normality!!!