Grass is Grass

Since my friend Mary was here recently, I was reminded of a nugget of marital advice she once gave me. I'm sure you are familiar with the saying "the grass is always greener on the other side." Let's see how can I put this delicately? When considering having an affair or even getting a divorce you are still going to end up with grass! We are all imperfect creatures. So, we may as well stay married to our babies daddies and our babies mommies and make the most of our promises to each other. I just wonder how many people have remarried and woke up to the disappointing, "same song second verse" realization.

I know this notion must not sound very romantic. I am a rather practical person. However, I do think being married to the same person till death do us part is very romantic (This crush ain't going away, honey) Bottom line... Stay Faithful, Stay Married!!! To put it in a way my teenager would understand... "Keep your Love Locked Down."

(I had even thought about making bumper stickers that say "grass is grass" but changed my mind once it was pointed out that there is room for misinterpretation.)

Will You be having Soup or Salvation?

One of my favorite Bible Stories is found in Genesis 25, the story of Jacob and Esau, they were twins. Competitive from the time they exited the womb. One was hairy and one was smooth; one was a skillful hunter and the other a mama's boy. Esau was the first born and was given the birthright, the inheritance (ya know when daddy dies he gets everything and doesn't have to split a pea soup.)

Once when Jacob was cooking some stew, Esau came in from the open country, famished. He said to Jacob quick let me have that stew! I'm famished! Jacob replied (as any man would with his eye on the prize) "First sell me your birthright." "Look I am about to die," Esau said "what good is my birthright to me?".... He ate and drank, and then got up and left. So, for a bowl of soup Esau forfeited his inheritance!

That story always infuriated me. I mean who would give up their future security for a bowl of soup! Then it hit me, I was doing the very same thing. I realized this life is but a vapor, likened to a bowl of soup. Am I going to forfeit my eternal inheritance for this bowl of soup we call life. I want to live here on earth satisfied with the delayed gratification of heaven, an eternal satiation.

What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul?
Matt 16:26

"Meet Me in Montana"

Jason and Mary and their sweet dog Charlotte.
This past weekend some of our dear friends came all the way from TEXAS to see us. We go way back, all the way back to when I had just one little girl. We were neighbors in the student housing provided for medical school students. We carried our laundry to the washers and dryers together. (Brady would say if we had a really big house we'd have to carry our laundry that far anyway!) We would take turns cooking for each other's families. And of course babysit for each other as the subsequent babies came along. Then, after medical school they moved to North Carolina for residency and so did we (for a couple of years.) We celebrated many holidays together as friends become family when you are far from "home." Needless to say, they are very precious to us.

We had a wonderful time. The husbands and Charlotte hit some hard hunting three days in a row. They came home exhausted and content. Mary and I just hung around the house and caught up on the last six years we haven't been "neighbors." She is just as humble and sweet as she was the first day I met her. She is still encouraging me to be a better mother and wife. She and Jason loved on our kids and our kids loved on them. They even cooked for us, TWICE! If this sounded like a fun trip, Brady and I would like to extend the invitation to any of you dear sweet friends who would like to "Meet me in Montana." Don't worry we won't make you cook.

Is Blogging a thing of the past????

Okay, I've been debating for at least a few months (which in computer time is at least a decade) on whether or not I would join facebook. Why the big debate, you say? Well, I only have a little bit of computer time I knew my blog would suffer if I started spending time on facebook. Also, I am a little confused on the purpose of facebook. Is it just so you can see that all your old friends have become "old" friends? Or is it to see their adorable kids?

So, I did a little research on blogging vs. facebook. Blogging started in 1999 however, you could only add pictures in 2004. Alas...facebook began in 2004. It does seem to reason that facebook has replaced blogging. Brady thinks it is the lazy person's blog. If anyone is still out there in blog-land please feel free to leave your opinion.

If you are not out there then I shall find you on facebook, because I joined today!!!

Last Week on The Brady Bunch

Riley is The Academic Athlete at Washington Middle School.
Hallie was a Gnome in "Rumpelstiltskin"
Bailee was a Bee. In this play Rumpelstiltskin wanted Clara's Honey Bee Farm instead of her baby. I liked this version much better!
Jay gave me flowers! Riley took this pic and cut off the big dirty roots that were still attached. I loved those flowers!
Charlie played outside! It is hard to keep him in and even harder to get him to look at the camera! Our camera is fixed, Yea!!

Anger Management

Lately, I have been thinking about how we as humans deal with our anger. Since my boys are out into the world more and more I am beginning to see the need to help them learn how to appropriately deal with those frustrated and overwhelmed feelings that come out as anger.

Do we grow out of our temper tantrums or do we just change how they look? Do we become passive aggressive, calculating revenge, manipulating? Or do we stuff them down trying to ignore those feelings because they aren't Christ-like? In vain of course, because in the flesh it eventually finds a way out. Usually, when you really don't want it to and usually on the people you love the most. In an effort to avoid our adult temper tantrums people medicate their anger, try to drown it, or they might just eat it and everything else. In some of us anger fades into depression. Satan offers so many tempting choices for us to inappropriately deal with our anger. In your anger do not sin (Psalm 4:4 and Ephesians 4:26). Anger in itself is not a sin. We just need to deal with those God-given emotions in a God-glorifying manner.

I was thinking about my own anger issues and asked myself "What really gets me going?" "When do I loose my cool and why?" "Why do I get depressed?" Most of the time, it is when I feel controlled or when I can't control a situation. Simply put, things didn't go MY WAY. Which, go figure, are quite the same triggers for my boys. We want what we want. In the flesh, we are looking to please ourselves. The world sets us up to think we CAN have it our way. I don't want my children to fall into this trap. I so desire them to live a surrendered life. I know they have to see it in me first so, they will follow this blue print we are laying down in their little brains. It is a daily dying of self to accomplish this attainable goal.

The "good news" is... once I enter into a place where I realize I am not in control, ever! When I am reminded I am a servant of a sovereign God, a peace washes over me. His ways are not "my way," His ways are higher than mine. And I am glad I am not in control. I just need to ask Him to help me see things the way He see's them.

I hesitate to talk about our more personal struggles because I want to be a source of encouragement. Honestly, I think y'all probably get tired of hearing how great everything is. Everything isn't perfect it is just that I only seem to blog about the good, not the bad and the ugly. I feel like those of you checking in on us don't get the full picture. Just the carefully chosen cropped one.