Back in the day when the boys were 2, 3, and 4 years old, it was a little rugged around our house. I was plagued by my inability to mother like I thought I should--you know, teaching my toddlers to use their manners, say thank you, and always obey. But since that rarely went as planned, I almost always opted to stay home and relish nap time rather than go anywhere. Occasionally we ventured to the grocery store where the boys, bit through the hot dog packages, chewed on a bag of chocolate … [Read more...]
Giving Thanks for Beautiful Things
A couple years ago my friend and fellow music-lover lent me a CD and introduced me to Gungor. If you've listened to Christian radio for five minutes in the past year, you've probably heard their song "Beautiful Things." If not, here are the lyrics and a link to the song. Listen. You'll like it. I brought the CD home, tossed the cover on the counter, and eagerly consumed their work. The title track was an immediate favorite. It's sung as a prayer: You make beautiful things, You make … [Read more...]
On Being Thankful When the Glass is Half-Empty
Winter 2010. Who is that masked man? Don't know for sure. One of my boys. Some might call me a “glass half-empty” kinda girl. And I can’t deny it. I am certainly bent in that direction. When a school activity theme dictates blue Jell-O for snack, I can’t really get excited. Know why? Because I’m too busy filing through my mental index of laundry cleaners to determine which one best removes blue Jell-O from white shirts. And when it snows in November it’s hard to think of … [Read more...]
Growing Gratitude and Generosity
The students were completing on a series of their own yearbook pages, a school scrapbook of sorts. There were pages detailing their likes and dislikes, goals and fears, handwriting samples and illustrations. And sprinkled throughout the pages were thought provoking questions like this one: What would you do with a million dollars? I know what I would have written when I was in fourth grade: “I’d buy a lifetime supply of K-Swiss shoes, 3,000 Cabbage Patch Kids, a Swatch Watch with 465 … [Read more...]