This Morning/Mourning…

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A crazy heat wave seems to have engulfed the midwest. I totally want to complain about how it’s such an inopportune time, but for such matters of weather there isn’t likely to be a great time, is there? School has been cancelled, for some, leaving several moms exasperated and taking to social media that their personal time is once again over run with Crayola markers and screaming, restless kids. What about their Pumpkin Spice Latte’s and unaccompanied hours, dreamed about, in the Target aisles? Oh I get it, minus the latte thing anyway, (because, for one, it’s not my flavor- and two, hello??? Heat Wave! Forget your latte and grab an iced tea!) I have to admit, however, it is a little gratifying to be home working while my high school senior is a few feet away, in her unicorn onesie, independently doing her own school. We begin the day with a tasty beverage or smoothie and just see how it unfolds. I really want to be intentional as these last days, with her home, tick away. I want to savor the moments, the laughter and the love. I’m not ready for them to be over, but that is not reason alone for me to wallow in the passing of time or my self sadness. I want her to be the very best she can be when that cap & tassel day comes.

Life has been extra heavy, within our family, for a while now. Marital issues, kid issues, financial issues, health issues, emotional issues, moving, moving again and then moving yet again. (for me personally there were a few other smaller “moves” tucked in there.) Do you have any idea what I’ve come to realize I hate above most things? Moving. When my beloved dog Paisley passed away a couple of weeks ago, leaving a part of my already bruised heart feeling absolutely decimated, I had to ask what else could happen… Unfortunately, a few days later Chw flew to Seattle to spend time with his dying father. (He also got to spend time with our son and his beautiful family, which I’m super jealous of, btw) Sadly, after a whirlwind road trip weekend (which left him totally exhausted), Chw’s dad passed away on Sunday. Suffice it to say, I am not asking “What else?” anymore… No. Bad, crappy and unjust things will come. I’m just going to sit here and cherish the minutes I discover, where peace, rest and joy will thrive. When those moments aren’t around, I’ll try my best to function in those things intentionally. The sun will always rise, and set again. This is our guarantee.

This morning I am up much earlier than normal. I am not sad about this, in fact I am grateful. In all of the chaos, I’ve fallen behind in my quiet time. (why is this always the thing I cut when time is short?) I was able to spend some good time this morning and now I am off to Target to peruse the aisles and grab a few necessities before my little unicorn-onesie clad student awakens to begin her day… No latte for me, but I will certainly be thinking of the mom’s out there suffering in inclement weather days and keep my fingers (and toes) crossed that this isn’t a sign of how the whole school year will go.

The post about Dreams and Goals… {a giveaway}

 

greaterMy youngest is a senior in high school, this year! That is insane and incomprehensible, honestly. There are so many things about this which I am not ready for. What really overwhelms me is that next year I won’t be school supply shopping for anyone at home.

My older daughter Amanda has two school aged step sons. I love having a reason to peruse the back-to-school stuff again. It’s so fun and I want to simply buy all of the things. Of course I do not, but I want to. Crisp paper, colored folders and the air cooling a bit all play together well creating my favorite season.

Back to Gen and her senior year though- The entire school year ahead feels like a challenge. It’s her senior year and she made the decision to finish high school online. She has goals that involve college and a career in marketing, but staying in a traditional school seemed to be taking her farther from these goals. She’s also a young seventeen year old so it is quite possible that those dreams may change a few times over the months that follow. I know that I am trying to keep my heart afloat and not stress too much over the two semesters ahead. If it matters, my dream for her is simply that she finish school in a way she is proud of and that whatever happens between now and that cap & tassle day is the stuff that confidence is made from. If you’ve read here for long, you’ll remember it’s been quite a difficult journey for my wee girl. She deserves the best, I pray every morning that she will find belief in that, for herself.

That is one of the things I really loved about Brandon Burlsworth’s story in the film Greater. He shows us the value of, not just the goals and dreams themselves, but of the hard work that goes into them. As a mom I have a lot that I can do to make this heart vision I have for her a reality…

I’m partnering with Grace Hill Media this week in anticipation of the theatrical release of the film Greater. We would love to hear what challenges, goals or dreams you have as this school year begins. One lucky winner will receive a $25 gift card to WalMart, perfect for those school supply needs! Deadline for entries is Saturday August 27th at midnight.

 

Hello, August…

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I’ve been back in Michigan for a little over two months and after moving, and moving, and sitting on the brink of moving again, I’m finally starting to find a normal feeling. Everything still feels fragile and a bit surreal, but I’m attempting to move forward-one foot in front of the other- and here’s my hopes for this month we call August.

Home~

upcycling a serving tray

Being inside less and outside more

downsizing to a capsule wardrobe

experimenting more with essential oils

 

Health~

get back to a good work-out routine

swim, swim, swim

yoga, at least once a week

bike rides

Savor~

quality time with my husband and kids (when possible)

me time

evening walks

reading, poolside

Connect~

counseling

handwritten letters

remembering birthdays

attending a book club

going on a photography adventure

Kitchen~

focussing on fresh & locally sourced meals

loads & loads of sun tea

grilled fish with fresh herbs

scones with lemon curd & Devonshire cream

homemade ice cream

Read~

Present Over Perfect

Kisses from Katie

Where’d you go, Bernadette

The Jesus Centered Life

Watching~

Season 7 of the Good Wife

Season 3 of Parks & Rec

Suicide Squad

Ben Hur

A thief called Comparison…

photo-1459664018906-085c36f472afThe other day Gen and I had the privilege of visiting someone’s home. They are new acquaintances and we were there for a casual little get-together. At seventeen, and dealing with so many major life things, it made sense that Gen was pretty quiet and filled with anxiety. After heading home though, she opened up about how beautiful their home was, (it really was of HGTV caliber) and how she felt stupid that we lived in an apartment.

Let me stop right there… We live in an apartment. If you’ve been reading here for a while, you wouldn’t really have caught on to that. In June our house sold to a really lovely younger couple and we are renting an overpriced but nice apartment. We have a beautiful poolside home complete with a fitness center, in the heart of everything. I am not feeling the least bit sorry about the lack of lawn care, no home repairs and no gigantic commutes… Seventeen year olds do not always get it though.

For her high school years, up until we separated at Thanksgiving, I was always hearing how the majority of her friends parents were divorced and how proud she was that we weren’t. Looking back over the years with her, I do believe that’s the only thing we had ever done right in her eyes and that is beyond tarnished and torn now. She hasn’t gone to school with the same kids since Kindergarten. We don’t, at 40 years old, have a big and beautiful home. We are not debt free. We do not take lavish family cruises. I think a lot of these unrealistic comparisons to which she holds her daddy and I against are due to the area we live in. This area is money. A lot of it. These kids are often known to blow wads of cash on drugs in the high school highway and then drive party after school in their Mercedes. So when she asks me to take her clothes shopping because she’s visiting a new youth group and so she needs new clothes to impress them, I want to feel empathy over this very unfair reality which her peers live in. Mostly though, I fall short. I roll my eyes internally and remind her that we are knee-deep in legal fees and medical debt and that she still needs a work uniform that I have to magically come up with.

But it goes beyond her. When someone asks what neighborhood you are in, and you explain the location and name of your apartment complex- there is an odd silence. For a beat or two the other person wonders if they heard you right, and then what is wrong with you…

What is wrong with me is that my journey is different. Apartments exist to live in, and I am not any lesser of a person for doing just that. They are not simply for foreigners and newlyweds. Granted, it was a gigantic challenge getting my kitchen to be a functioning on in the shoebox it fits into… But I’ll survive. Life’s not about my kitchen anyway.

I don’t want my daughter to feel shame over where we live. I don’t want her to be afraid to meet people, make friends and bring them over. More than that though, I don’t want her to be a snob. I don’t want her to be disappointed because we don’t fit the agenda of where 40-year-old parents should be. Is there a manual somewhere that says we should have a beautiful McMansion and a $12,000 vacation over the Holidays? If there is, I never got a copy and it’s probably too late to live the cookie cutter life now anyway. I love to help people. I love to touch lives. I love people in my home, and laughter and conversation and sharing… I love these things. I don’t care where I’m living, I will always love these things. And so I’ll just sit by and let Gen sort that all out. I’m very happy for the people I know with beautiful homes and more “successes.” My successes look different because I am different, and someday I hope Genny realize she is on her own journey and unless you pay a fee and/or choose it to be- it’s not a competition.

(also, if you haven’t entered my awesome giveaway yet, PLEASE do!)

House of cake…

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I live in a house and have been brought into a little family that is pretty amazing, minus the cat…

The wind blows, the sun rises and sets just as any other home. It isn’t perfect and it’s walls and shape remain hauntingly familiar… but it’s a home all the same. The bed can be warm, the conversation nurturing and well, the cat can be relied on for sneaky little cat-like things…

Outside of this house the world can be challenging and terrifying, dishonest and raw. The world can feel overwhelming and the people you love can be more so. Outside of this house is life, pulse beating and oxygen breathing life and it happens whether we venture out or stay wrapped in the sometimes warm bed to hide.

Today was hard, tears were had and gut-wrenching gave way to lessons. More lessons. Always, always learning. We kind of have to.

I’ve learned there are no guarantees; helping others does not mean they will line up when you have need; friendships are only ever a sum of the effort put into them, and even then they are nothing more than a word; marriage is far more emotional connection than legally binding document; adultery questions your worth though it is not an exact reflection of such; children hurt and their life-hurts are the worst of all evils, in this world; every single thing boils down to intention, effort and self discipline- only choosing the easy route leads to self-destruction…

Outside tonight the wind howls. Down the street my sweet friend is putting a baby to bed. ten miles away my sister worries as my niece is still missing. States away a seventeen year old goes to bed feeling disposable, unworthy and unloveable just as her momma always has. This is the worst of all realities, that and the fact that the one person who can fix it all doesn’t want to.

Here, inside this house that is also home, the wind echoes and the chill kisses my spine. The cat stalks, communicating his ownership. The one guarantee outside is that there is evil and greatness and it is up to me to choose which way to see- which way to live…

The one guarantee inside? There will always be cake…