A New Hobby

What's the difference between a "craft" and  a "hobby?"  I guess maybe a hobby is not neccessarily a craft, huh?  Like bird watching or coin  collecting.  A person isn't always crafty in their hobby.  But, a craft is always a hobby, don't you think?  Something we want to spend time at.  Why else do we subject ourselves to unbreakable knots and goopy glue and glittered skin and inked fingers and needle pricks?  Anyway...

I've started to teach myself crochet.  And I LOVE it!  I remember spending time with my grandma, in the summertime probably, sitting beside her and learning the basic crochet stitch(es).  I honestly don't remember what I learned specifically.  But I do remember, now that I'm at it again, I liked how the yarn felt between my fingers.  And I like being able to twist the crochet hook in and out and make it grab the yarn in just the right way.  It's soothing.  Two of my three boyos, by the way, have asked to learn.  So I sat down with Bud and  JoJo, on separate occasions, and patiently taught them how to hold the yarn and the hook, and then to make a single crochet stitch.  They tried, and tried again - and succeeded and failed - and tried again.   And then they said, "OK, I'm done."  So much for that!  I'm so glad they asked to learn, though.  Maybe one of them will pick it up again.  Although I'm guessing not.


So here's what I'm working on currently.  This is probably my fourth attempt at this particular dishcloth.  Just can't quite understand all the lingo in the pattern directions yet...but I'm getting there!  I call my friend Amy and whine in frustration.  She laughs at me and talks me through it. 







And look at this yarn!  It's gorgeous, trust me.  The richness of the colors does not come through on the photo.  But I just love it.  I picked it out because it looks so beautiful with my new wool coat.  I was successful at making two scarves as Christmas gifts this year, so I decided to make one for myself, too. 

 

The incredibly simple pattern I'm using makes it knobby and bulky.  So warm and cozy, I just love it!

 

 

Any new crafts or hobbies you are picking up this year?  Or maybe just a promise to yourself to do more of one you already find enjoyment in?  Let's encourage one another to continue in our hobbies.  They bring us such enjoyment, contentment, peace and a sense of accomplishment.  Not to mention the joy and love they can bring to others when we share the finished products.

 

 

 

 

Tomorrow

Yes, tomorrow.  Tomorrow is when I'll start.  Tomorrow, when things aren't so crazy.  Tomorrow, when I have a quieter day.  Tomorrow, when the kids are napping and the laundry is done.  Tomorrow...

Just curious...have you started a gratitude journal?  Have you started paying attention to the good gifts in your life?  Or are your intentions for beginning that "new project" scheduled for....tomorrow?  If you are making time to read blogs, may I challenge you to stop.  Right now.  Go find an odd, currently unused notebook (we all have them lying around, don't we?) and a pen and stick them under your pillow.  That's it.  Then you can come back to your blogging.

The life we live does not stop.  Just like the To-Do list is never finished, life rarely gives us a breather.  I don't know about you, but a common phrase running through my head is, "I really should be doing..."  There is always something I feel like I should be doing other than the fun thing I'd rather be doing.   I really should wipe down the baseboards, iron those clothes, scrub that bathroom floor, get Bud started on that school project.  What I want to do is spend some time scrapping, or decorating for fall, or practicing my crocheting.  But there's no time!  I'll have to put those off until, yes, you guessed it...tomorrow! 

In reality, what is the harm in delaying the scrubbing of the floor an hour while I bring out ceramic pumpkins and silk leaves?  Am I not making a home for my family?  What do I want my children to remember of their childhood?  A clean home with an unhappy mom, or a warm, inviting home (slightly less clean) with a warm, inviting mom?  It's about recognizing the things that make me happy and spending some time at them.  Then the dull To-Do list isn't so bad.  Like Mary Poppins sings, "Just a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down!"

Gratitude for yesterday:
a bird with its fluffed out feathers sitting in the lilac bush outside my kitchen window
the smell of ginger cookies baking
the smiles of my boyos as they eat those cookies
Classical Christmas music
watching Bud do his math with ease and confidence
hot coffee with half and half

What's on your list?

 

Of Grace and Gratitude

The first phrase that came to mind when I sat down to write this was, "have an attitude of gratitude!"  That, and "remember to count your blessings!"  While both of these could be helpful in reminding us to be thankful, they make me cringe ever so slightly, like hearing fingernails on a chalkboard.  Those phrases come across, to me, as requiring a joy-filled heart even to start.  Or at least causing a, "By golly, nothings ever going to get me down again!" reaction once the attitude has been changed and the blessings have been counted.  You see, I'm slightly pessimistic.  Add that to my struggles with depression and I quite often find it hard to believe that my joy-filled heart will remain so for long.  That's life in this sinful world.  Sorrows come.  But the Lord is a gracious and loving Lord who has, in reality, filled our lives with every good and perfect thing.  It's just hard to see all that abundance in our own lives.  It's easy to see it in other people's lives.  Ever notice that?  The grass is always greener...

So, let's start a Gratitude Journal!  Let's stop looking out at everyone else's seemingly perfect lives and let's look down and see the gracious gifts we have right at our own feet.  Let's reflect at the end of each day and make a conscious effort to acknowledge the bits of happiness we experienced during the day.  My Gratitude Journal is a small spiral notebook I picked up at Target or some such place.  I keep it in a drawer by my bed along with a pen.  And, when I remember, I write down the things that made me smile that day; the things that brought me joy.  I write down things like "Mouse's giggle", or "Creamy coffee on the patio, listening to the birds sing", or "a drive in the fall colors."  Some days there doesn't seem there's much to write so I write the basics.  Our health, my hubby, the dog, food on the table.  Doesn't really matter what gets written.  It doesn't have to be anything poetic, either!  Just get into the habit of acknowledging the good.  Eventually, we'll begin to see good in everything we have.  And the more we see good in what we have, the less we will look elsewhere for what we think we need.  God is good.  And so is everything He gives to us.

Gratitude is the heart's memory.

                  -  French proverb

 

 

Authentic Self

Some more thoughts on the authentic self.

"What is this sadness we cannot name?  Here is a question that deserves a loving meditation.  Perhaps the heart of our melancholy is that we miss the woman we were meant to be.  We miss our authentic selves."      -      Breathnach

When I was a little girl I listened to music and stories on my little record player constantly!

 

I just loved that thing.  I would set up tea parties with my dolls and we'd sing the afternoon away.  I loved books, coloring and crafts, baking cookies with mom, Christmas and pretty shoes.  I think I had a pretty good sense of my authentic self.  I knew what made me happy and I did those things.  When I was in high school, I started on the path of losing that authentic self.  Don't you think all girls do?  The struggles to fit in, to look good, to read the right magazines, see the right movies, hang with the right kids.  Our morals, our ideas, our opinions, our voice all get challenged.  It can be so hard to hold on to ones authentic self.  This is where the parenting role comes in so strongly.  This is another topic altogether, isn't it?  But I hope you see my point.  Losing your sense of authentic self can begin early.  And I think from then on it comes in and out of focus, sometimes more easily recognized than others. 

 

"What is missing from many of our days is a true sense that we are enjoying the lives we are living.  It is difficult to experience moments of happiness if we are not aware of what it is we genuinely love.  We must learn to savor small, authentic moments that bring us contentment."   -   Breathnach

 

 

What are the small, authentic moments that bring YOU contentment? 

 

- trying a new recipe?

- slowly arranging a bouquet in order to appreciate the colors and fragrances?

- planning a spring garden in the February?

- sipping coffee in the sun?

 

Spend some quiet moments thinking of the things that bring you contentment.  You'll begin to recognize your authentic self.  It's so fun to do!

 

"Let us consider our personal preferences and learn how to recognize, then embrace, moments of happiness that are uniquely our own."      -   Breathnach

 

 

 

Discovering Simplicity

The thought of living a simple life has been on my mind, and on my heart, for several years now.  And it seems it's been on other people's minds for a lot longer than that, according to Thoreau.  What I've been pondering so heavily the past days, though, is what does it mean to simplify?  We all read blogs and most of us have discovered Pinterest, so the ideas for simplifying are out there.  Hundreds of ideas exist for simplifying and organizing your life, everything from the baby's diapers to the influx of papers at the start of school.  And so many beautiful ways to do it all, too!  The choices and the ideas are endless and can be overwhelming. 

But while I can take someone's idea on storing pots and pans more efficiently, I cannot take someone's simple life and make it mine.  I think that has been my stumbling block.  Searching and searching for simplicity when in actuality it's been within my grasp all along.  Someone else's simple life would not fit my family; it would not fit in the home we have made.  I think finding the simple life is all about a person's vocation(s). 

I am a wife, a mother, a homemaker, a crafter, a teacher, a musician, a writer, a band mom, a scout mom.  The list could go one.  And each of these vocations keep me plenty busy, so living simply is not about being less busy, but about being busy with your own life.  Not the life someone else wants you to live.  Not the life you think you should be living, but the life you have been given.  Does being reminded of this truth make my days happier, easier, less stressful?  Not necessarily, but it is easier to see purpose in what I do.  And that makes a world of difference.

Yet, I think there is still more to living simply.  I shared a treasure of a book a while ago written by Sarah Ban Breathnach.  Since then I have found a daybook written by her which I have also found interesting and helpful.  It's called Simple Abundance and while she is a bit paganistic for me, she does a wonderful job at encouraging us to find simple pleasures for ourselves.  She encourages the reader to dream, spend time in quiet reflection, craft and create a little each day, begin a gratitude journal - which I'll share on Monday - and so much more. 

You see, living simply is not about cutting out all outside activities, nor is it about quitting your most hated household chores.  It's about working at your vocation and finding the joy within it.  All we have is a gift of God.  That means my very life is a gift.  A gift!  Something to cause me happiness and to grow me into a better person.  I tell my boyos that sometimes we have to do things we don't like.  That means sometimes I just have to spend some time ironing!  I just have to!  Like it or not.  But I can also spend some of my day cutting paper for cards and scrapbooking.  Love cutting paper!  Crazy, huh?  But that is part of who I am. 

So, my hope is that as I go through more of my ponderings of a simple life, and as I blog about it, you will share your discoveries of your own simple life.  Maybe we can simplify together.  Encourage one another to live as our authentic selves.  The women/mothers/wives/friends we have been created to be. 

 

"Though we accomplish much of what we set out to do, we sense that something is missing in our lives and - fruitlessly - search "out there" for the answers.  What's often wrong is that we are disconnected from an authentic sense of self."                

                                                                                                  -Emily Hancock


  

An Assignment

The other day I gathered and scattered various objects on our table.

lids of two different sizes

It was SO very hot...again...and the boyos were getting cranky.  Or was it me?  When four people are couped up in a small space for days on end because it's just too hot to be outside...EVERYONE can get cranky.  True?  This scattering of objects was an attempt to waylay the Crankies.

A catapult made by Bud

Once all the objects had been gathered and scattered, I gave the boyos some simple instructions.  "Invent games!"

Angry Bird and a pig

"Using some, or all, of the items on the table see how many different games you can come up with."

Dixie Cups

It did NOT go as I had planned.  I had PLANNED to get them started and then let them go.  I would get some semi-quiet to read for a bit.  Nope.  There is no semi-quiet when you put three boys together and ask them to cooperate while inventing games.

Various tape lines

 

There was a lot of arguing, a little crying, a bit of yelling, a lot of stomping...and eventually some game playing!  They did it!  They came up with three different games - all of which involved things flying off the table. 

I must admit, for a while I did not think they'd finish the assignment.  I thought  I'd be sending them to their separate corners to cool off.  I thought my wonderful idea was going up in smoke!  A bit dramatic, yes, but I was terribly frustrated.  My idea was not coming to fruition.  But when the whole ordeal was over - when they boys had finished their fun - I realized something.  They had to work through the problem solving aspect of this assignment in their own way.  They each came up with a game.  They each got a chance to explain their game.  They each got a chance to play their game with their brothers.  Was that my goal for them?  Yes.  Did they accomplish it the way I had imagined?  Heck no!  Ah well.  You know what they say:

"The best laid plans of mice and "MOMS" oft' go awry."

Hm.

Maybe the Rolling Stones lesson is a better fit here.  I did not get what I wanted, but I got what I needed!

A Conversation

"But I can't forgive," you say.  "The hurt is too real, too strong.

How can I forgive when the hurt is still there?"

If I forgive, am I not condoing the misdeed?  Am I not saying, what you chose was right?  When in reality, the choice was painful for me and for others?"

If I forgive, I feel walked on once again.  Taken for granted once again.  Less important than everything else."

If I forgive, I make myself vulnerable to being hurt again.  I lose this stone wall being built around my heart.  I lose the coldness in my soul."



My dear, dear friend.  You have just hit upon the very benefits of forgiving.  The stones begin to crumble.  The cold is replaced by the warmth of love.  Forgiving is seldom easy.  Welcome to living a life with Christ, who forgives you so that you may forgive others.

A New View

Kind of a cool picture, isn't it?  Goggle "change of perspective" and you get all kinds of interesting photos.  I like this one too, although it kind of scares me.

I was having a conversation with a friend several years ago, about how much we dislike certain household chores.  For her, it was laundry.  For me, ironing.  She had come across the notion of simply changing the way we look at our chores, the way we view them.  For example, we may not have servants to help us as in the days of Jane Austen (ahhh...).  No maid, no cook, no maidservant.  But we do have washing machines and dryers, dishwashers, electric irons, even bread machines!  So as my friend dreaded having to do laundry for her family of 5 several times a week, she decided to change her perspective.  She decided to look on that washing machine and that dryer as her servants.  All she had to do was toss in the load and some soap, push a button, crank a knob and she was done!  The hard work of actually cleaning the clothes was left up to her servant.  Not a bad deal, huh?

Now as far as ironing goes, I think I have it tougher.  (Pity me, please?)  I still have to do the work of smoothing out that blasted shirt and ironing out those little curves and wrinkles...oh, how I dislike it.  BUT.  If I challenge myself to change my perspective, I begin to see that all I need to do is plug in my iron and set it to the desired temperature.  Thank God I don't have to mess with one that needed to be heated on the stove.  I'm sure I would have burned a hole in each one of Hubby's shirts.  Oh can you imagine the mess?  And the attentiveness it required!  Nope, not for me.  After thinking on this, I look a little more lovingly on my electric iron.  Not much, but a little. 

And then there is the simple fact of showing our family how important they are to us; how much we love them.  We can use our household servants to help us be better servants to our loved ones.  I like this quote by Mary Engelbreit:

"If you don't like something, change it; if you can't change it, change the way you think about it."

Craft room update

Hi!  Got your coffee?  I've got mine.  Let's chat about my room, hmm? 

I'm making progress!  I love being able to say that.  "Progress is being made."  "Things are progressing nicely."  They all sound good.  I can see my tables again.  Woo hoo!  The floor now, that's another story...

Here's what I did.  I grabbed 3 laundry baskets from the basement and, in my queenly fashion, dubbed them:

1. "You don't belong here" = item belongs in another room of the house
2. "You do belong here" = item stays in my room
3. "You are leaving my house, one way or another."  = it's being donated to Goodwill or given to a friend or thrown out!

Then I started pulling everything off the tables and shelves.  EVERYTHING went into one of those 3 baskets.  I really enjoyed tossing things into the baskets.  I really did!  Especially the two on the ends (you don't belong here and you are leaving my house).  I didn't have to think about where the item did belong or what it's fate would be, I just tossed it.  Decisions to be made later.  Love that!  The basket that was the fullest was the You Do Belong Here basket.  In fact, it was spilling out onto the floor. And most of it is still there!  Yep, I've got my work cut out for me.

 Once my tables were cleaned, I started moving things back in.  I thought a lot about how I like to work, what I want the room to look like.  I don't spend that much time thinking about myself and how I like to do things.  So I pushed myself to do that and was able to make some decisions about how to store and display my supplies.   As I went along I realized some more storage type things would be needed.  A power cord for my Cricut, heat tool, glue gun, light and other possible crafting necesseties.  A tension rod for storing ribbons on.  I'm going to try using it vertically by threading the ribbon spools on and installing it between the shelves.  Not sure it'll work but I'll give it a try.  Another 12x12 set of drawers for storing papers and page protectors. 

I have more decisions to make today and I better get to it.  I'll try to get new pics up, too, once there is something good to share.  But first on my list is to empty at least one basket.  I started laundry earlier and I only have one basket to work with right now.  Yikes!

Learning as I go

I believe this title might apply to any number of aspects in my life.

But today it applies to this blog!  Sheesh... 

For some reason I've been having trouble with comments.  And I thank those of you who have brought it to my attention.  I'm sure I saved the wrong setting somewhere along the line.  Thank goodness for Google and it's ability to interpret "help! the settings on my blog are all screwed up and no one can comment and I don't know how to fix it!"  Well now it's fixed.

Comment away!  But please keep them kind.  :)