Adventure in Motherhood

Today Sweet Girl was playing her piano while I mixed up some banana bread. Once it went in the oven I went to get her out of her highchair only to step in some water. Wait, that's not water! That is pee that leaked out of her diaper, down her highchair and into a puddle on the floor! You'd think it had been days since I changed her but it had been maybe an hour. . .
To top it off I was so proud that I had finally done a thorough cleaning (spending time hand-scrubbing) of the kitchen floor earlier in the morning. This isn't the first time we've had a pee puddle on our kitchen floor. How does that happen?! To anyone who may visit us, don't worry I did a good antibacterial cleaning again!

Do you look in the mirror?

I always thought that even as a mom I would do my hair and makeup each day like I used to and at least try to keep up with what is fashionable. Now I laugh as I question if I even look in the mirror every day. Yesterday I was proud of myself because I took the time to throw on some makeup even though my hair just went in a ponytail. However as I'm about to leave to take our girl to the doctor I just happened to catch a glimpse of myself in the bathroom mirror. I almost walked out the door with her sweet potato lunch all down the front of my shirt. Thankfully, I was able to change my shirt and not be embarrassed with a big mess on myself in public. Once I got to the doctor I realized that she had her lunch all over her shirt too! Oh well! My, how things have changed. I can't remember the last time I spent more than 15 minutes getting ready when in the past it would have been at least an hour! I don't think I'm the only one that has experienced this change though. :)

Thankful

I'm so thankful for the beautiful weather this week. I don't think I've seen triple digits on the thermostat all week! It has been so nice to be able to go outside without feeling like you might melt. I am also thankful for the generosity and kindness of my sister's friend who gave us their jogging stroller. I had been hoping for an easier way to walk, jog or go to the park with Sophia. I am starting to run and it's so nice to have the option to take Sophia with me. The jogging stroller is such a blessing for me and Sophia because she loves being outside too (as you can tell by the big smile on her face)!

Miss Talkative

Sweet Pea has been very "talkative" lately. I think she gets it from her father. :) She will get on a roll with non-stop vocalizations and it is so cute. . .except sometimes it's in church or other quiet settings. I got some of it on video. This was less than what she sometimes does but she gets distracted by the camera. I have to pretend I'm not using the camera (thus, the excellent filming). Please pay no attention to the oatmeal and juice on her face and the not-yet-combed hair. :)

Fun times

Our sweet girl has been very busy this month. During a trip to see Grandpa and Grandma and friends she got to go to the Brookfield Zoo and swing at the park. She loves to be outside. You can see by the smile on her face how she enjoys swings! How far we've come from the tears a couple years ago when we first tried a swing! She also got to ride a carousel at a friend's birthday party. She has mixed feelings about carousels but overall she seemed to enjoy it. We'll keep you posted on more summer fun!

All I Need Is. . .

I just started reading a book called All I Need Is Jesus and A Good Pair of Jeans. I've just read the intro and the first chapter but wanted to share a couple of bits from it. It seemed a good fit for how I was feeling and thought it might relate to some of you also. . .
"We need a whole lot of Jesus. Because there is this woman that we long to be and then there is the woman that we actually are. Right here. Right now. The woman who struggles but longs to be more. The woman who is empty who longs to be full. The dissatisfied woman who longs to be content. The woman who longs to be overflowing with goodness and peace and have her impulse spending under control. And the only thing that can bridge the gap between these two women is buckets of grace. Unending grace. And the only person who embodies this grace is Jesus."

I know many times it is tiring to try to be a supergirl(like the author talks about). My prayer today is to let go of who I am not and be thankful for being God's child, saved by grace.

I'll try to update as I read more of the book but if you want to check it out yourself the author is Susanna Foth Aughtmon.

Pay It Forward, Pass It On

I was running errands and saw Starbucks. I've been trying not to spend money on extras but that $1.43 remaining on my gift card was just burning a hole in my pocket. The excitement of getting a special coffee treat already had me cheery but then (even though I was fully capable of getting the door on my own) the lady walking in held it open for me. Generally people are very kind and hold the door when I am pushing our Sweet Girl but to just hold it for me was nice. So I in return held it open for the next girl (younger and fully capable of holding the door also). I just feel like the little gestures or kind thoughts can mean so much and make some one's bad day better or good day even better. On my way to the van I saw an older women looking very stylish in a navy, red and white sundress. I told her I liked her dress and could tell it brightened her day to receive this compliment (even though I wasn't looking so stylish myself). I felt like skipping the rest of the way to the van(no, I didn't actually skip - this time) with the sun shining down on me and a big smile on my face like I was in a Disney movie or on the Truman Show. This sequence of events was well worth the $2 I spent in addition to my gift card on that iced mocha latte.

Somewhere along the way I felt like I had lost what I call my "Iowa Friendliness". Slowly but surely I feel like I'm learning to be friendlier to cashiers or just random people and not be weirded out by strangers that start up conversations with me.

Pass on some friendliness today!