What I Didn't Think I Planted

Yesterday, I spent a good bit of time harvesting our tomatoes, realizing that the next few baskets will probably be the last of the season. This is the group I harvested yesterday. I harvested them from the front of the house, right underneath our schoolroom window. The thing is, I never planted them there. We planted tomatoes and peppers in the back of the house. The huge plant in the front was not intended.


So, as I filled my plastic gladware container, I laughed and talked to the the Lord. "Lord, I didn't even intend for there to be fruit here!" He reminded me that this happens in life very often.

I was thinking of my good buddy George Bailey. (I have a strange kinship with this Capra character and the Lord lets me learn things from his fictional existence.) George was in the building and loan business because he believed that everyone deserved a good, sturdy home. He thought the business was his business, but didn't realize that by moving forward with what he believed, he was making friends and followers. His harvest wasn't in the business, but in the people.


He didn't really intend for that to happen, but when he needed it, and when he least expected it, what he sowed sustained him. George was working hard to grow a harvest in one thing, and didn't realize that by sowing seed in one harvest, he would reap a bigger one in one that he had never intended.

We just never know how we impact eternity. The small part we play, the little things we do each day are big. If just one person living by his convictions can change a town, what could happen if hundreds of people live by their convictions? What could they do? They could turn the world upside down.

"I [Paul] started preaching this life changing message, this radical turn to God, and everything it meant in everyday life--right here in Damascas, went on to Jerusalem, and the surrounding countryside, and from there to the whole world." Acts 26:20

Wordless Wednesday: Potty Training

For more pictures that are worth a thousands words, go to Wordless Wednesday.

Fall

Every window in my home is open. The air conditioners are turned off. We're wearing jeans and t-shirts. It's quiet outside. I love fall. It's a calming, familiar love of mine. I used to adore fall because it was when school started. I loved the smell of new books, the look of newly sharpened pencils and the promise of all those blank pages in the notebooks.

The last bit of August, when I was shopping in Target, I smiled as I was surrounded by moms with back to school lists. It was like a scavenger hunt. One mom would shriek to another mom, "Where do you find the crayola #4 thingamagig? Mrs. Third Grade teacher said Little Johnny must have them for the first day of school!"

"They're sold out here, but they have them at Walmart!" the other mom yelled. Before you knew it, the first mom grabbed her three kids, her scavenger hunting list, her wits and started running to the car.

Moving away from the school supplies, I turned down the aisle to look at the sheets that were on sale, only to be face to face with a wall of college students looking for, what seemed like anything that could be used as fluorescent decoration for their dorms. I was surprised to see that moms still had lists and students were still following them around trying to put items into the shopping cart that weren't on that list from their university. I guess things don't really change from pre-school to college...not really, anyway.

I still love the thought of those books, pencils and all that paper. I love fall.

Tim Hawkins is Hilarious

On facebook this morning, I saw that my friend Comfy Denim liked this song, so I gave it a listen and laughed. :) I think you'd like it, so, if you need a good laugh, go ahead and watch it.

Hello, Cupcake

I was so excited the other day when the library e-mailed me to say that the book I ordered was in. Yes, I get excited about books. However, this book wasn't the kind that I'd read a few pages of, then realize that I don't actually have time to read the book and feel guilty every time I pass the book only to have my husband say something like, "Why don't you just return the book before you start incurring late charges." Nope. This one was a picture book. Filled with lovely pictures of cupcakes!

I'm a pretty creative person, but my creativity only really goes as far as my mind. I'm not very skilled. Many of you know how cool it is that my husband can make pretty much anything using computers, wood, plastic, etc. He's MacGyver. So, to pair us together was a great thought of God's. I have the big ideas and Not-So-Classic has the follow through. But today was going to be different because it was a bout food and I am the food preparer here. I love to cook and bake and sometimes, it actually comes out looking like the thing that was in my head.

So, you can imagine my excitement when I reserved a book that was made for people like me. It promised that I could make things without any fancy-schmancy tools and that the projects could be easy. Sign me up...and incidentally, when you sign me up, that means you sign everybody else up around me.

Scarlett made the cupcakes...with a little "help" from Bubba. See, here, she was saying, "Help! Bubba!"

Here are the pictures of what Scarlett and I made with the help of Oreos and a ziplock bag.

Not too shabby for our first attempt! Now, the important question: Bubba, how do they taste?

Back to Our Regularly Scheduled Classic Mama

That is the key, isn't it? Being regularly scheduled? I must admit that my schedule has not afforded me time for blogging.

I just wanted to remind everyone that I am quite alive and quite busy enjoying this amazing life that God has given me. Our days are packed with Scarlett's schooling, Bubba's playtime, meals with dear friends, and occasions for ministry. I love it.

Right now, Scarlett and I are having the best year ever cyber-schooling. It all happened because this year I decided to have no expectations. Not low expectations, because I could never have them for either of my children; however, no expectations has lightened this usually perfectionistic home school marm into one that is much more even tempered and accepting.

I have no expectations of...

1. Finishing school with Scarlett each day. It makes for a more enjoyable journey. It also alleviates the stress caused by trying to get everything done. Who can learn that way anyway?

2. Scarlett getting perfect grades. Yeah. I said it. Out loud. The kid tries her best, so why should I beat her up when she misses the mark? She does enough of that by herself. I want to be the one who reminds her that it's okay to fail, that it doesn't make her any less of a smart cookie.

3. Bubba being quiet. In fact, we've come to enjoy the Bubba outburst of the day. That kid is such a card. He's the perfect mix of Mommy and Daddy with a little something extra thrown in there just for kicks.
4. That housework will get finished today. This year, I vowed to do very little housework during the school day. If I'm not with Scarlett, then I'm with Bubba. I'm here to be with them, not to be the maid. Things will get clean in the evening and on the weekends.

By dropping all of these expectations, I have experienced a freedom that previously alluded me. Joy pervades in my heart and let's face it, when Mama's happy, everyone's happy. ;)