Insanity

We have been visiting a new church now for a while and this past Sunday really had a great sermon that hit home.  I just wanted to share some notes from the service because it is fall, school had started and we are seemingly living in “Insanity”.

Lately, my personal prayer requests have included a plea for help organizing.  Organizing my life, time, house, kids, closets—and all ‘things to do’.  It is really about priorities.  The last six months or so (who  am I kidding, it is really like the last 2 to 3 years!), this subject has been in the forefront of my mind.  I struggle daily with what comes first, keeping on track, and …oh…what did I forget now?  As a parent, we all struggle with this in some way.  We are balancing life with kids.  We are in charge of these little beings and they bring a whole set of items to the table we must address and organize.

Last Spring, I finally admitted to myself I have been doing too much in all of these places outside the home.  Now, most of my volunteer work is good stuff and contributes to the family, etc.  BUT when you take on too many of these things, you leave very little room for your core-your family, and possibly your spiritual life.  I vowed last spring it was time to back off here and there and re-focus.

This brings me back to last Sunday.  The sermon was a part of a series called, “Insanity”.  The title for Sunday was called, Help!  Not just help, but HELP ME!!!  The interesting thing Rev. Rufus Smith said that really GRABBED me was this:  Do you have enough margin-or space- for crisis? If you do not, you are too busy!  We all will face crisis.  We just will.  If you do not allow margin for this, you are setting yourself up for insanity.  So I sat there with my mouth open.  I might as well have been sitting on the front row with a giant spotlight on me.   Rufus could have just said, “And Tracey Simpson, yes you…I am talking to you.”

I have not been giving myself space.  Space for error and recovery.  Space for quiet time to catch up.  Space for organizing my life in little bits.  MORE space for my spiritual walk.  You know how when you are very active for a long time…  When you are exercising for over an hour, or you have a long day with your kids walking around, going to sports events, etc.?  If you do this over and over without recovery you set yourself up for feeling bad.  Your body is fatigued?  You may become ill.  This is what I am seeing with my busyness.

I need to take some hints from my dog - take a break...

 

I won’t go over the whole session of notes but I want to highlight a verse. 

Romans 8:26 says, “In the same way the Spirit also helps our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.”  Where I am weak, He is strong.  Thank goodness I am not left to deal with all of my problems by myself, nor am I alone when I pray.  Even when I don’t know what to say, He is there to help me along.  What a blessing.  It is like a second-chance when you pray.  “I don’t know what to say Lord,” or “I can’t put it into words, Lord,”—these thoughts are helped along. 

I have attached the notes from the service.  Pardon my handwriting, please!  One really neat thing to also focus on is the section on Enjoying Peace.  Love that.

Have a great week.  I hope to blog a little more frequently as I get re-focused.  I have some projects I want to put up soon!

With Joy! --Tracey

These ARE Days...

Today is the last day of 5^th grade for my Walker.  I am not sure he really understands this is a big step and it has some finality to it.  I wrote him a letter last night and gave it to him!  I just wrote about what it means and why I get so weepy.  Part of it goes like this..

“I seem to cry a lot about it because it is very emotional for me.  I just can’t believe you are so grown up!  You were such a small dude just a few years back and needed me for everything.  As much as I want you to learn to do things for yourself, it is hard as a mom when I look up and I am not needed anymore—especially for hugs and lunches and visits!”

I also told him to enjoy every minute of today and look around and take it in.  I explained in the Bible God tells us our job is to “train up a child the way he should go…” and part of that job is to let go a little every year.  Kids are on loan to us from above!  I gave him the letter and tucked him in with tears and hugs.

In my prayer time earlier, I did pray prayers of praise.  “Praise for endings and new beginnings!  Thank you Thank you!!!”  I am trying to be so grateful and take in these moments.

So before I just weep and weep til there is nothing left I will wrap this up for today.  I will sign off with words from a song that hit me like a Mack truck last week.  I just think of all my kids and how they change.  I really think of Walker as he will be such a big kid next fall.  The song is ‘These Are Days’ by 10,000 Maniacs.  If you have not listened to it, or listened to it lately, do (you can go to Spotify and listen to the whole song free).  It is great and moving and lovely…

These are the days
These are days you’ll remember
Never before and never since, I promise
Will the whole world be warm as this
And as you feel it,
You’ll know it’s true
That you are blessed and lucky
It’s true that you
Are touched by something
That will grow and bloom in you

These are days that you’ll remember
When May is rushing over you
With desire to be part of the miracles
You see in every hour
You’ll know it’s true
That you are blessed and lucky
It’s true that you are touched
By something that will grow and bloom in you

These are days
These are the days you might fill
With laughter until you break
These days you might feel
A shaft of light
Make its way across your face
And when you do
Then you’ll know how it was meant to be
See the signs and know their meaning
It's true
Then you’ll know how it was meant to be
Hear the signs and know they’re speaking
To you, to you

Have a blessed day and enjoy those kids you have!  You are blessed and lucky!

-Tracey

A Painted Dresser-- ' I ' Am The Work In Progress!

“I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well!” – Psalm 139:14 NIV

These are the words that comfort me when I:  a) feel stupid, b) feel awkward or c) feel disorganized and incomplete.  Well, I am still incomplete in the sense that God is still working on me.  That being said, lately it seems that choice “c” is the front runner.

Like many women, I struggle with balancing things in life.  You have to juggle so many things when you are a wife or mother or both!  I don’t work outside the home for a ‘paid’ job at this point so kudos to the ladies that do that and still get tons of balancing done!!!  I sure don’t know how you do it.  We all have our struggles, no matter how put-together we may seem.  After all, no one is perfect.


One of my struggles is completing tasks that are long in duration while continuing with all of my other life duties.  I yearn to be creative and try to make things as an outlet for that.  I love the process and love to have a finished project.  Usually, I have a finished product and it sits nestled in a huge mess of a household.  I am trying to find that balance of keeping up with everything else while creating!!! 

Enter my first real project in months and months.  A dresser for my girls’ room.  I found this dresser at an estate sale in November.  It was the last hours of the sale and I scored it for a really good deal.  Of course, it was right before Thanksgiving break so it sat in my garage until last week.  My garage is a whole project for another day….or week.   Thank goodness, I had the sense to think about what was coming up and made no plan to touch it until after Christmas Break. 

Here is the before picture:

I have become addicted to Pinterest; it is one web that suits me well.  I can think of any project that has been looming in the back of my brain and search for ideas.  This site turned me onto a product called, ‘chalk paint’.  It is designed to be used on furniture, and it is very easy to distress.  Then through that, I learned about waxing a painted piece.  Let me tell you I did A LOT of research.


I picked out a minty green color a few shades lighter than the small area rug in girls’ room.  I decided to paint it a few coats and do a white-wash on the hand-painted flower panels on the dresser front.  The paint looked white at first but it was a true pale green with two coats.  Here is a picture of one coat on:

(The beauty of the chalk paint is you do not need to prime.  I also read that the brush strokes will fade a bit as it dries.  Keep in mind, this is not a finish is you want an ultra-smooth look. Spray paint may be better for that!)

I used a small sander and then used a paste wax.  I was surprised by the finish—I really liked it.  So here is the final result…I do think I kinda like it!

(My girls' room is still WIP-Work In Progress.  I will hopefully get the walls 'done' and arranged soon!  See, always a project.)

My next project is my old coffee table.  We shall see how that turns out.  I can always paint over it.  Now, I think I have laundry to do.  I have a kitchen towel a friend gave me (thanks Mel) and I love the quote:   “A clean house is a sign of a wasted life”.  Well, maybe not a TOTAL waste but if my house was clean all the time, I would not have any projects!!! 


-- Tracey

It’s Like a Box of Chocolates—You Never Know What You Are Gonna Get.

Spray paint metallic silver, on street, house, mailbox and play jeep.

Take a ballpoint pen and write his name on the back of the headrest in my car.

Put clear tape all over the bathroom toilet ad write ‘button labels’ on them with a Sharpie.

Use a Sharpie and write on his hand-painted corkboard.

Stuff a half-eaten bag of popcorn in the bottom of his closet (inside a backpack)

And the classic, swallow a dime—I think twice, in his younger days.

 I am in the process of reading a book called, “What’s He Really Thinking?” by Paula Rinehart.  It is a book by a Christian Author that gives you a peek into a Man’s psyche, how they think, why they do what they do, and what they struggle with.   I have been married for over 15 years to a wonderful man and I also have a son.  When considering this book I thought, “Why not?”

The book is very interesting and I host a small group of women in my home every few weeks to discuss a chapter in the book.  We all seem to bring something to the discussion of either an epiphany or a fun story.  It has been amazing to read what Rinehart unfolds from her days as a counselor and how she explains how God intended a man to work.  Then she throws in the role of a woman.  I love what she says, “We are better able to love what we understand.  And loving and being loved is the main way we reflect the glory of God.”

This brings me to my oldest child, my son Walker.  This book does give me some insight on my little man.  The statements at the beginning of this post are just some of his shenanigans.  One of the first things Rinehart says in her book confirms what I was thinking but could not verbalize:

Why do they do things?  Because they can…

Well, I just love that.  As annoying as it can be, it is how he is made.  Now, don’t get me wrong.  I get uber frustrated with my little man.  We do butt heads….often.  I love that child with a love that I could not understand before he came.  It is a love that reflects Our Father’s love for us, as imperfect as we are.  How creative God must be that he gave us children that are not exact copies of us! 

So our challenge as parents is to guide our kids and teach our kids.  We are commanded to do so (Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it. Prov. 22:6)!  I do feel like my work is cut out for me.  I keep thinking, “God, you must have something really special in store if I survive parenting them!”   Truth is, we all have our challenges, our trials, our problems.  Our job is how we handle and persevere through them.  We were not promised an easy life, but help with it. 

With our children, everyday seems to bring something new.  All three have totally different personalities.  That is so weird when you really think about it.  You would think two out of three would be similar.  But no, distinct differences.  Nothing is boring at our house.  Always something stirring….somewhere.  It may be a project, it may be some sibling drama, it may be a sneaky child, it may be laughter-soon-to-be-fighting sounds.  The list goes on.

Today is a special day, because we have it.  Today is Walker’s 11^th birthday.  He is my own little Honey Badger…he just wants to do what he wants to do when he wants to do it.  Walker is full of life, full of funnies, full of ideas….full of all sorts of sounds and sound-effects.   He is Walker.  He marches to his own beat, and I love that.  I love him.  He does make us laugh.  Walker brings something new to the table all the time.  I know that Forrest Gump was talking about life in his famous line but I like to think he was talking about my little man….

“….It’s like a box of chocolates….you never know what you’re gonna get.”