This kid decided the “spankin’ spatula” would be the perfect mystery item to stump her friends at school, arguing, “It’s usually used for bakin’, but we use it for spankin’.” Please visit me if I end up in jail. 
Upon seeing her lunch slush fund depleting exponentially…
Me: <Ginger2>, you know the rule is that you can only have ice cream snacks on Fridays IF you’ve done all your homework and have been good at home. We have talked about this.
<Ginger2>: It’s my brain’s fault. When I hear the lady say, “It’s time for a snack if you are allowed,” my brain tells my body, “Get up and go get a snack!”
There is a nutty rule in my family that you cannot walk on a carpet that has fresh vacuum lines on it. I was teaching Emma the forgotten art of vacuuming from one corner of her room and working it all the way out the door. During the lesson she walked across my fresh lines; I stopped and pointed out, “Emma, did you see what you just did?” Clueless, she looked at me and said, “I walked on the carpet??” Incredulously, I said, “Um, yeah?!” She still doesn’t get it.
Family meeting topic: Self-control and manners at the dinner table. #indesperateneedofredwine
A little humor goes a long way in this house.
There is nothing quite like the fresh start to a new year, crisp new goals and plans and being told by a two-yr-old that you have bad breath this morning. Happy New Year!
Instead, clothe yourself with the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ. And don’t let yourself think about ways to indulge your evil desires. (Romans 13:14 NLT)
And here was my hectic mid-week day…
6:00 AM Quiet time and throw load of laundry in washer
7:30 AM Get dressed
8:00 AM Get kids dressed and ready for their day, feed them light cereal to go
9:00 AM Weigh-in at Weight Watchers
9:30 AM Mtg with Andy Rainey and Jennifer at Coffee, Beans, and Brew
11:10 AM Drop kids off at Kidz Zone at YMCA (but first change Ryan’s poopy diaper)
11:20 AM Swim for 20 min.
11:40 AM Get dressed, pick up kids
12:00 PM Get home, feed kids, attempt Beth Moore’s video
12:30 PM Neighbor kid arrives for carpool to school
12:35 PM Drive kids to Preschool
1:00 PM Arrive home, put babies down, throw clothes in dryer, start another load of laundry, find new hiding spot for Clyde the Elf, make self lunch
1:15 PM Start Recruiting work for the Garrow Company, Time Warner guy comes to fix our DVR
3:15 PM Naps End, Work ends, switch out laundry, Workout on Elliptical for 20 mins (watching Steven Furtick)
3:40 PM Emma gets home from school, shower, feed everyone snack, attempt Beth Moore’s video
4:00 PM Prepare dinner (listening to Matt Chandler)
5:00 PM Serve dinner and clean up dishes
6:00 PM Move Clyde the Elf, dry hair, and put on makeup
6:15 PM Head to LifeGroup
9:00 PM Put kids to bed, attempt Beth Moore’s video but cannot keep my eyes open
10:00 PM CRASH
—
This was my day last Wednesday. And what a day it was! When I compare my days from my life pre-LPV, I cringe at all the free time I spent in front of the television! If I had to plan a defense, I could find a way to support that much of my day was spent serving: serving my family, my church, my community… but not much was spent serving God. What I realized today was how little of my time was spent WITH God. Yes, I can listen to podcasts and watch missed LPV messages, but very little of my day was spent in quiet with God. In fact, maybe God got a half hour of my hour and a half allotment in the morning.
A few weeks back, Andy Ransdell suggested that in all we do, God should be the focus. I find this a helpful reminder when I have to give myself a lecture before sitting behind the desk and recruiting/working when the rest of the house is quiet. I have realized when God is the focus, I am more efficient and productive in recruiting… and now I need to learn to apply that same standard to the remaining pieces of my day. I want to “clothe myself with the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ” in all I do. This day was more chaotic and stressful than it needed to be. If anything, the chaos I added just took away from the peace I could have had if I had settled in some time with God.
What does that look like for you? Do you create more chaos in your life than necessary? What do you think God would advise if he looked at your calendar?
Ginger2 asked for a snack. I gave her the option– fruit snacks or goldfish. She chose fruit snacks which she quickly stuffed (all of them) in her mouth. When I told her I didn’t think that was a good idea, she spit them out and put them on a napkin. A few minutes later, she said she was hungry, so I reintroduced her to her wet fruit snacks. After I told her she needed to eat them in the kitchen, she spit at me in anger. I asked her if she just spit at me, and she nodded her head. I pointed to her time-out spot, and she calmly reached her hand up to the table, grabbed a wet fruit snack, stuffed it into her mouth and then went into time out. That kid cracks me up!
The thing is, I might have lost my mind in frustration, but at the very last minute, God gave me His humor, enough to keep me in check and offer me a chuckle. Are there other maddening moments in our day where we can decipher the irony and humor just in time to take us off the course of anger or frustration? I mean, the kid was hungry, and what fun is time-out when your stomach is growling?
Sprinkles of Ginger 