Photo Reflection:
My Daughter Emmalee
Photo Day 2 {Photo Reflection}
Keeping House with the Lord {January 1, 2010}
Today is the first day of the year 2010. It has been a fairly good day overall. I was able to sleep in thanks to my hunny. I ate dinner with family, right down to the collards and black-eyed peas. I thank Ms. Virginia for her wonderful meal.
I have also started on my resolutions.
- I have posted daily photo for my 365 days in Photos project.
- I have re-organized my photos on the laptop from last year.
- I have read my inspirational article for the day.
My inspirational article is from the Heart of the Matter online. Making Your Home a Haven was written by Jennifer Sikora, a loving, homeschooling mother of two. This article talks about housekeeping with the Lord’s help, by showing God’s love in each of your rooms, praying over the rooms and allowing the Lord to direct and live in them, as well as in you.
Housekeeping is a task I desperately dread. I am organizationally challenged. I am a procrastinator (there I admit it!). I would rather do anything, except clean and organize my house. I understand this is an inherited trait in my family but it is a trait that I am attempting to overcome.
Making Your Home a Haven has helped me to see that I should not be cleaning house for myself, or for my family but for the Lord. I should be allowing him to beautify my home and my life. These are the things I should be choosing to do for myself and my family to better their lives and home. God should shine throughout my life, not just in me but also in my home.
It is my goal, that by the end of 2010, my home will reflect my love for God and his immense LOVE for me and my family. I look forward to completing this goal and enjoying my time doing it.
1st Corinthians 10:31–Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.
Happy New Year’s Day – 2010 {Photo Reflection}
My first photo of 2010… Happy New Year’s to all!
New Year’s Resolution {New Years 2010}
Normally, I do not do New Year’s resolutions. I think they are over-rated and a waste of time. Most people never manage to do them or they make their goals so high that they are unachievable. However, after reading many a resolution from various friends this year, I have decided to give it a shot. I mean, after all, what can it hurt?
So what are my resolutions for this year?
My main resolution is to organize our home and lives. To get rid of the unnecessary and unwanted. To make neat, useful and beautiful those things we choose to live with. I want to stop living in a life of chaos and clutter and start living a normal, happy, ORGANIZED life. This will not be an easy task but it is something I have been wanting to do for a very long time!
My other resolution for this year is to create a better, well-rounded me. I want to work on myself, my attitude, my views. My plan in achieving this goal is to read once a day something inspiring, something educational, something that will make me stop and think about life and myself and how to make those things better. This one won’t be the easiest or the hardest resolution to manage but I think it will be very helpful and a lot of fun.
I am also commiting myself to complete a project this year of 365 days in Photographs. I think it will be fun to document our lives and our thoughts with this project. This will be a big commitment for me but I also think it is a manageable commitment.
I have a few goals for my kids and also have college to work on throughout this year that will keep me busy. I look forward to starting these things and doing my best at them as I enter 2010. With God’s helping guidance I know that I can complete them easily.
Happy New Year to all!!
Blessings {Epilepsy Awareness}
These thoughts have been weighing on my mind for quite some time now.
I have two daughters. Two beautiful little girls. Both blonde. Both with the most gorgeous smiles. The oldest has brown eyes, the youngest blue. Their personalities are a lot alike and yet oh so different. They love to sing… they love to play… they love to dance.
To other’s eyes they appear “normal”, and rightfully so. They are “normal” for the most part. They live what appears to be normal lives, they have normal laughs, they like the same things that every “normal” child likes. But they are far from “normal”. You see, both my precious daughters have been blessed with a disorder called Epilepsy.
“Blessed?”, you say. Yes, I call it blessed. There are far worse things they could have been burdened with. This is surely not the worst of things to have, but it is there none-the-less. It LOOMS over us daily. It can make the “normal” go into “chaotic” in seconds. We have no idea when this disorder will choose to strike. But still I say, it could be worse. This we can live with, this we can deal with.
Epilepsy is a disorder, not a disease. It can not be contracted, though it can be, as ours is, inherited. This disorder was passed to my little girls by me, passed to me by my mother and to her by her father. Someday it will possibly be passed onto my daughter’s own children, though I daily pray not. But if it is, we can deal with it, we can live with it.
How do we deal with this disorder? By keeping our environment controlled and staying on a routine. It’s important that both my girls get plenty of rest, that they eat a healthy meal three times daily and drink enough fluids. That they attempt to live a “normal” life. Pushing them beyond their limits is a no-no in our lives. Where your child may become whiny and unruly, mine can do the same, plus end up seizing. Keeping them calm, showing them love and “controlling” their life keeps their lives as “normal” as can be.
I have made them aware that they are “normal” yet they are “not normal” children. They know they have a disorder. They know to rest when they feel tired. To be quiet when someone is sleeping. Not to keep on going when their mind feels exhausted. They are aware of being careful not to fall, and especially not hitting their sweet heads. The things “normal” parents take for granted, I have to be sure my children are careful doing. My girls are ok with these things. They know this is the life God has chosen for them to lead.
I am proud of my daughters. Proud of the things they are overcoming daily. My oldest has been off her seizure medication for almost two years now. Her Epilepsy is controlled through routine and a safe enviroment, as well as plenty of rest. My youngest hasn’t had a seizure in months, though there is still plenty of seizure activity and her medication is still necessary to help her lead a “normal” life. Both of them are developmentally on track. Both of them are growing into the most beautiful little girls. Both of them are blessings in our families lives.
So you see, this is why I say Epilepsy, to us, is a blessing. It has helped us to look at the “un-normal”, to accept the burdens God gives. It has provided for us a life that without Epilepsy, would be completely “normal”. It could be so much worse! But this disorder we can deal with, we can LIVE with it. And we do, everyday.
Made It Through {Christmas 2009}
Well, we made it through Christmas and a birthday to boot. This year was exhausting, adjusting to new schedules and trying to keep the girls routine enough that they did not have any set-backs. In the end, everything turned out well.
The kids got out of school on December 18th and have been playing non-stop ever since. Things were pretty calm all week, until Thursday came. Christmas Eve. The kids were sooo excited. That night we had our Christmas party at a family friend’s house and we opened our gifts. The kids really enjoyed it but the late night and over-exciting day made Laycie very fussy. I think she was a little overwhelmed but she slept fairly good that night.
When we got home the kids and I finished cookies for Santa. We wrote him notes and set his cookies and milk out underneath our little tree. Then we went outside to throw out reindeer feed (oatmeal, crushed up cookies and hot cocoa). “This is to help the deer find our house,” Emmalee said.
After feeding the reindeer, we came in and read a few things on the computer.
The first was Selma Lagerlof’s The Holy Night. This is the story of a man (Joseph) in search of a heat source to keep his wife and babe (Mary and Jesus) warm. It tells how he was turned away continously and how he found one shepherd, which he amazed, that reluctantly agreed to help him. In the end, Joseph found heat and the shepherd’s eyes were opened to the Glory and Amazement of God’s world.
The second story we read was the famous editorial by Francis Pharcellus Church: Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus. This editorial was first published in “The Sun” newspaper as an answer to 8 year old Virginia’s question, “Is there a Santa Claus?”. After all, “Papa says, “If you see it in The Sun, it’s so.”” The editor goes on to answer, little Virginia’s question, stating that “Yes, there is a Santa Claus”, though he may not be seen, he lives in the heart of all. This is the joy of Christmas.
The third and last story of our night was ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas, A visit from Saint Nicolas by Clement Clark Moore. This cute little story tells of the thrill of Santa’s appearance, both physical and emotional, and brings joy to the heart of all who read it.
It was at this point of our night that Winston realized it was “late!” and decided we MUST head to bed. So that’s just what we did.
Christmas morning came with me waking the kids at 6:30 am. They were happy to see that Santa left them a wonderful note and some really great gifts. They did not get a lot, but they have really enjoyed what they have gotten. Winston got Transformers, a Tractor/Trailer car, some airplanes, a Scooby movie and two ds games. Emmalee got Barbie, Mulan Barbie, two ds games, a Scooby movie and a Littlest Pet Shop doctor’s kit thing. Laycie got a toy cell phone, a babydoll, linking rings, linking heads, and wooden blocks. They all got the traditional stocking and this year it even included some “coal” chocolate candy.
Around 11am, we went to Grami’s and opened gifts, then went to eat at 1pm at MaMaw’s to open more gifts. Afterwards, we all came home to nap, then got up again to eat leftovers before our day was through. The kids were pretty exhausted and so was Mommy.
On Saturday, (the day after Christmas) Winston and Emmalee went to visit their Dad. They enjoyed their time with him and they were able to see both their Great-Grandmothers, which I am thankful for.
Sunday, we rested, though we did go to MaMaw’s to eat Sunday dinner.
Monday was Winston’s 9th birthday. It seems like yesterday that I carried him in my tummy. I can hardly believe 9 years have gone so fast. He had a great day and was extremely patient. MaMaw made him a cake and everyone brought him presents. He got clothes to lounge in and a nice suit, some fun things, and a couple of DS games. He loved his homemade chocolate cake and his choice of pizza for dinner. After the party, everyone relaxed in the living room and watched Sinbad (the cartoon) on tv. It made for a really nice night.
So, here we are at today, Tuesday. Today we are cleaning house and relaxing after the busy, busy week before the kids have to go back to school next Monday. I have a lot to catch up with but it will all happen with time. At least we have great family memories to enjoy!
