This is a great video that spoke to my heart on several different levels. Not just education...

May you be blessed with the words and the heart of Josh Harris.

I am needing to see some tangible progress. Something with a beginning and an end. Something that I can say 'Now that is better'. So much of what I do is a process and never really a completed project. I need to see that, so today I started two new projects and continued working on a third with the help of my kiddos (I knew they would be good for something someday).

First project: Rip the carpet out of the basement. Emma and Eli worked at ripping glued down carpet most of the afternoon. They got a good chunk of it done and will continue working on it tomorrow.

Project TWO: Take all the wallpaper out of my bathroom. This has needed to be done for sometime and now is the time to move. I spent the afternoon on this project, will continue tomorrow scraping. I am also replacing the trim boards and painting the ceiling.

Project THREE: The garden. I finished planting the seeds and plants this morning and Evie and Eden helped by weeding this morning. Hopefully this will mean lots of veggies this summer!

Ron has been working on removing old windows in the basement one at a time. He has finished three and has two more to go. YeaHoo!

Having an old house, there is always something to do. Something to fix. Something to paint. This summer I have a list of things I am going to be working on. I would really like to get all these things done this summer, but we will just have to see.

*Painting and redecorating the downstairs bathroom.

*Painting and getting a room downstairs ready for Eden.

*Re-painting Evie's room and getting it ready for Ella to move in to share.

*Painting the downstairs.

*Finishing the floor downstairs.

Hopefully next fall we can work on finishing the upstairs living room....

EDIT/UPDATE:

Oh, my goodness....what was I thinking? What was supposed to be a simple re-wallpaper the bathroom is now a mini-remodel. This list was supposed to be projects I could complete myself without the help of my hubby.

New window, counter and sink...and painting the exsisting cabinet along with replacing hardware. This was not what I had planned, but it is necessary. I am sure when it is completed I will be glad....but right now....Oh my

If I was brave I would post before and after pictures. But right now it is just too scary! Keep your eye on the prize...eye on the prize...

This is amazingly awesome. It is a little long but worth it.

>Jamie tagged me to play a bloggy game...so here goes.
1. What were you doing 10 years ago? 10 years ago I had 3 kiddos ages 4, 1 and 3 months. That seems like an eternity ago.
2. What are 5 things on your "To Do" list?
1. Mop the floors
2. Meet with Tricia
3. Go to the grocery store
4. Make dinner
5. Enjoy the quiet house!
3. What are 5 snacks you enjoy?1. White Chocolate
2. Dark Chocolate
3. Homemade popcorn with butter & salt (like Jamie and Carol)
4. Cookies (big, fresh and soft)
5. Cherry Lime slush or Coke slurpee
4. Name some things you would do if you were a millionaire.If I had a million dollars I would:
· Pay off any debt
· Finish remodeling our house by hiring a contractor
· Go on vacation to somewhere hot and sunny with the family
· Adopt again
· Go somewhere exotic with my husband
· Go on a mission trip to Africa or China taking all the kids
5.Name some places where you have lived.
Baker City Oregon, Kennewick, and Richland
6. Name some bad habits you have.Biting my nails, and the rest I don't want y'all to know ;o)
7. Name some jobs you have had.
Retail clothes and shoes, optical assistant, office assistant, preschool teacher.
8. Name those whom you are tagging.No one...I am a party pooper

Jamie has had me thinking and smiling all morning about songs from highschool. This song totally reminded me of not only my senior year but probably what was on my mind all the time in highschool ;o)

So, what song comes to mind when you think of your highschool exeperience? Post it on your blog and leave a comment. I love looking at stuff like this! I so wanted to be Whitney Houston. The hair! The makeup! The voice!

Parenting was so much easier when a simple 'no' was enough. No explanations. No reasoning. Just 'no'. 'No' to whatever I didn't want.

"No, I don't like that shirt. No, I don't like those shorts. No, I don't like that band. No, I don't like that color." Of course I was careful how those 'no's' came out, but still the answer was 'no'.

I am finding that our 14 year old has a mind of her own. In that mind she has thoughts, opinions, and preferences. Hmmm...who knew?

We are not experiencing any rebellion or anything like that. She just has different likes and dislikes than mine and her daddy. Music, books, etc.

So God is teaching me to say 'yes'. Yes to her personality. Allowing her to become her own person. The individual that He created her to be. It is scary and at the same time a whole lota fun! She is such a great girl and it really brings a whole new dimension to our relationship. I know that she is just trying to figure out who she wants to be. Somethings are non-negotiable, but there is a whole lot that just doesn't matter in the grand scheme of things.

PS-I wanted to post a picture of Emma with the nose ring sticker that she thought was so much fun. ;o)

Pain as a friend

Angelina Jolie has a tattoo that says in another language 'that which does not kill me, makes me stronger'. In the book You Matter More than You Think Dr. Parrott states:

'Ultimately, the pain we carry in our hearts is the grinding stone that
shapes us to love. It sharpens our capacity to be tender with another's wounds
and to empathize without judgement.'

She goes on to say:

'It takes the sharp edges of our personalities and slowly smooths them into
a person who can be tender with another's wounds.' And then finally 'Because of pain, you make a difference. Pain will give you permission to
walk into places you've never dreamed you'd enter, and it can change your
relationships like no other else. Pain, your personal grinding stone, has a
purpose whenever it is used to make a difference.'

We try so hard to avoid pain in any form don't we? None of us would choose to endure pain, yet it is there for a reason. For our good. To make us stronger, better women. To help us better love others and eachother.

Pain comes in lots of forms though, doesn't it? Harsh words. Dreams delayed or maybe deferred. Cross country moves, growing teenagers, children's health issues, marital strife, aging parents or grandparents (or maybe just aging), personal health issues, financial complications. The pain you experience, even if it is the same problem, will not be the same pain for me. How we experience pain will effects us each individually. Hopefully however we process the pain it will cause us to become more like Christ. More loving, merciful, graceful, patient, kind, self-controlled, joyful, and faithful. So many turn, even if it is just for a time or season, to be bitter, sharp, cold, curt, or judgmental. I certainly have done this. But I want my first response to be better.

When I get squeezed from the pain of life I want what comes out to be good. I am afraid what in reality does come out a lot of the time is the realization of my own sin nature. The nasty selfish, self pitying part. It seems I am not so unlike my children. I need the pain of life to teach me lasting lessons. The rod of discipline before I turn from myself. The Bible says

'The Lord disciplines those He loves'

and much of the time that discipline takes the form of some kind of pain. But I need it. So I guess pain really can be a friend.