Words Always Matter

What we say, even in passing, matters.  We are either making people feel like they matter...or we are not.  My 6yo son had me in tears yesterday.  He recounted something I said to him in passing.  And, I realized how important ALL of my words are.

He told me, "Remember yesterday when I got the cart for you and you said, "What would I do without you?"-that made me feel really good and special."

I meant it.  But, I did not think it mattered.  Boy was I wrong!

We were in Chicago this week on Tuesday, visiting the Museum of Contemporary Art with my sister and her girls.  Then, we went to a special lunch at LYFE (Love Your Food Everyday) Kitchen nearby (thankfully, they can accommodate all of our allergies!).  Since we were so close, we fed the meter again and I took the boys to Water Tower Place.  We went to Macy's first to look for a replacement gift for their dad; and, after they endured that, we went to...the Lego store!  Not only did they get to see all of the latest and greatest Lego sets; but, they were also asked if they wanted to make a polar bear to take home (free Legos!) and then they were given the Lego magazine and a Lego keychain (all for free...we got to play and did not have to buy anything!).

Then, as we had planned, before visiting my sister at home (and to eat dinner and wait out traffic before hitting the road), we went to get some things we needed and can often only get from Whole Foods.  We parked in the parking garage and were told we could grab a cart inside.  Well, I never saw the carts and looked all over near the entrance and could not find any.  Then, my son spotted them and pointed me in the right direction (right next to the escalator we had just taken down!).  And, I said, in gratitude, "What would I do without you?".  Unknowingly, I had just made his day.

He made my day when he told me about it. 

The sad part is that he was reminded of that good feeling because I had been using my words in anger just a moment before, likely making him feel not so good.  We had had a rough day with relationship building (disrespectfulness, disobedience, ingratitude) and homeschooling; and, in that moment, with my son's words to me, I realized I was not helping.  I was making it worse.  God was giving me a chance to be redeemed.  He used my son.  He often speaks to me through my children.  When I am at the end of my rope, when I need Him most.  Thank you, Lord.

All Mixed Up

So, last week, my one-year-old pulled the cord on our only laptop and sent it crashing to the ground, smashing it in on the side by the power cord.

I thought it was working until the end of the day...when it wasn't.

So, my husband took it to the computer guy the next morning and they thought it was as simple as replacing a part.  But, they had to order it and it would be between 3-5 days.  Okay.

So, I waited.

Patiently. 

Sort of.

I had a mix of relief (having an excuse for not being able to reply to email for awhile) and dread (ironically, because of the aforementioned emails piling up).  I like "unplugging" every once in awhile; but, it has to be totally planned (half-kidding).

And, then...THEN...the part did not work.  And, THEN, a simple act of curiosity by my son ended in a search for a new computer (my husband did that job!).  Exhale.  Nothing more to do...other than think of an appropriate punishment for a one-year-old (kidding!).

So Be It

Amen means, "so be it."  Speaking it at the end of a prayer, have you ever thought about it more?  Uttering it when you agree with the words someone else is speaking, have you realized how much weight it carries?  Amen!

We are saying, essentially, "Hey God, I know you've got this."  Amen.  We are saying, "I will accept whatever You have planned."  Amen.  We are saying, "I trust you."  Amen.  We are saying, with that ONE word, "It is all in Your hands, now."

Amen.

Psalm 46:10

We finally got in our "Family Fun Day" at the beach (for completing our month-of-no-electronics challenge).  But, really, we need more excuses to take these; somehow, a day at the beach makes us feel like we have been gone for three, five if it's the ocean.  We went up to Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, which is just 2 hours from us.  On the way home, we picked up some "clean" (freshly made, no allergens) carryout from a restaurant in Rockford.

So, while we were at the beach, my now 1-year-old fell asleep nursing (as he often does) and slept for a couple of hours in my arms, in the shade, with the wind blowing and sun, sky and sand all around.  While I was sitting there holding him (I really did try to put him down; but, I enjoy holding him when I can), I started to feel antsy, like I could not let this day go by.  I started feeling like I needed to "carpe diem" and have as much fun as possible and, and, and...

And, then I heard His voice, "Be still and know that I am God".

And, then I relaxed.  I felt better about just being still and watching my boys and husband enjoy the day.  And, I continued to enjoy holding my baby boy.

I had heard those words before.  The next day, I came across that very scripture (that I did not even know I knew) and knew that the Holy Spirit had been working on me that day.

Pee at the End of the Toilet Paper

Yes.  Sigh.  I was with a book group a few weeks ago, getting to know some ladies, reading the book, "Scary Close" together.  We had been talking about how everyone puts their best moments-their "highlight reel"-on social media.  So, I asked them if they wanted to hear how, that morning, as I went to the bathroom before coming to the host's home, I pondered that it (the bathroom) was the only room I had managed to get clean; but, for some reason, it was no longer clean.  There was, in fact a very messy sink and a puddle of toilet paper on the floor.  As I pulled up the toilet paper to use, I realized there was in fact, an ACTUAL puddle of pee at the end of the toilet paper.  Because we were on our way out the door, I just sighed. 

Everyone said, "YES!" those are the moments they wanted to hear about!

Such a moment is a perfect segue for a day like today, when I found myself still in my pajamas at, um, noon.  Not the relaxed, still in my jammies kind of day, either.  More like the frustrated-because- my-(almost)-1-year-old-is-NOT-sleeping-well-tried-to-take-a-shower-all-morning-or-at-least-put-on-my-contacts-not-sure-I-am-going-to-get-anything-done kind of day.  So, I cried.  Not a whimper.  A loud, ugly cry.  And, I called my husband with my loud ugly cry.  And, thankfully, he said, try to remember to pray first.  Exhale.  I love him.  I needed that for some reason.  I had been trying all morning to do the next right thing, because EVERYTHING was overwhelming!  But, I was NOT succeeding at all.  Did I pray?  I don't know.

But, prayer helps, if only because it gives me time to pause.  Give Him my worries, even for just seconds.  It helps.  Pray first.  Inhale.  Exhale.  The next right thing to do is apparently, to breathe.  To sigh is just to exhale.  I forgot to pray.  I forgot to breathe. 

Autoimmune Paleo

Well, our doctor did not say we were doing anything wrong with our elimination diet.  But, I had been feeling like something was still preventing us from healing from leaky gut syndrome.

So, I prayed about it.

Then, one day a couple of weeks ago, I was on Pinterest looking up a recipe for something and all over the screen were "autoimmune paleo" recipes.  It was enough to spark my curiosity.  So, I dug in to researching it. 

These ladies at, http://autoimmune-paleo.com/ have a really helpful blog with recipes and information.  And, I want to read her book, http://aiplifestyle.com/what-is-autoimmune-protocol-diet/.

I feel God led us to this way of eating (even if it is only temporary).  My boys and I are trying it for 1 month, possibly 2.  Then, we will start adding back foods to see if we have a reaction to them.

We were already known to be sensitive to many of the foods on this "diet" (I hate that word).  And, the other items we have to cut out (dairy and nuts and seeds and all starches and eggs) just make sense for healing our guts.

Day 4 into this and I am already feeling better.  Sorry if it is too much information, but, my hemorrhoids are MUCH improved.  Already.  If you have hemorrhoids, folks, cut out nuts and seeds so they can heal.  Totally makes sense.

We are enjoying many foods.  The hardest thing is to limit fruit.  Fructose from fruit is harder on our bodies than sugar (sucrose)...and, that goes for everyone, btw!

Will you pray for us as we continue our journey toward healing? 

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The Challenge Report

I am actually surprised to report that NO ONE--not my 6 year old, not my 9 year old--complained about not watching videos or doing any electronic entertainment for the entire month.  It is strange...and awesome...the power of "a challenge".  Did I mention that my husband and I did not watch videos all month either?  To be fair.

There were many times I was tempted to "treat" them with a video because they were doing so well.  But, I abstained; and, I believe we were all the better for it.

Some pretty cool things happened this month.  My kids sought me out--to tell me a story, to play with me, to tell me about their picture, to tell me what is funny in a book they are reading.  I loved overhearing their many conversations with each other about whatever they had cooked up in their imaginations.  I loved that they made time for their baby brother.  I loved that they did their chores without any reward (how many times have a said, "no electronics until your chores are done"?). I loved that they did not become obsessed with binge watching a show they like on Netflix (ugh).  I love that we did much more together than it seemed we had before (bike rides, games, walks).

So, I like (love!) all of those things.  I was feeling disconnected.  And, I feel we need to continue to nurture and build on our connection/s.  So...

It's hard to decide what to do now.  We have one day decided...on the first of August, the boys do not have to do chores before they watch a video (their one "free" day).  And, we decided 2 hours was a decent time so that they could watch a movie if they wanted. 

I don't know if we will subscribe to Netflix again.  I feel like it is less intentional...like we just mindlessly search for something to watch.  The boys weighed in at dinner regarding all of this.  We will likely just have 3 videos (or 2 hour slots) per week--one for the family, two on their own.  For tomorrow, we rented, "Annie" (the newest version).

Did I mention the reward?  More of what we love.  Each other!  We told them that we would have a family fun day and asked what that looks like.  They want to go to the beach; so, we are going to try to make that happen in the next couple of weeks.  We might also surprise them with a trip to the drive-in theatre (which they, nor I, have ever been!).  It depends on what's playing.  Or, a trip to recreate our wedding engagement at Navy Pier, with a picnic in the park and a ride on the Ferris Wheel.