More May

 So  I was just writing about sending Cae off for his  first day of Kindergarten and Caleb to 3rd grade.... and now the school year is coming to a close. It never ceases to amaze me just how MUCH they change as I look back. While the year seemed to whiz by us,  their first day of school seems like quite a while ago... haircuts and all!

Caleb tackled multiplication, fractions, long division and subject matter in science and social studies that I don't think I even knew about till 6th grade. I still am taken back when Cae nonchalantly reads everything in site, as I remember " Oh yeah he can read now!" And honestly I've been amazed by the artwork he brings home. I wish I could bottle his excitement for  learning for his middle and high school years!









And little Colt ... well we are still working on potty training ( yes he is over 3 years old). But at least we got rid of the pacifier and graduated to sharing brothers' room and sleeping in a twin bed. I have cherished just the 2 of us spending each day in his 3 year old world, while big brothers were at school. As tag along for all  brothers' school and soccer activities, I joke he's " our mascot". But in reality he's already big man on East Side Elementary campus. Strutting down the halls all the boys are giving him " high fives" and girls are hugging him, " He's soooo cute!"

We are finishing the year out strong with Field Days, school Marathon , Zoo and Aquarium field trips, Strawberry picking, end-of-year class parties and picnics, school art shows, end-of-season soccer games and celebrations, tournaments and awards. And oh yeah  in the midst of it all  I even squeezed in a Girls' Beach Trip  thanks to Shawn ( and Nonna) who took on our boys' May madness for a few days...best Mother's Day gift ever!
It's not even the end of May yet...I seem to look forward to summer more and more each year!

H.E.A.R.T

So Caleb was beaming after soccer practice about a month ago when I picked him up. Players are selected by the coaches from Academy to take home  the "H.E.A.R.T." jersey for showing honesty, effort, attitude, respect and tenacity. The player gets to sign the jersey and wear it for few days.   He was especially proud this time because it was the 2nd time this year he had received it and  was playing up with older boys during practice when they acknowledged him.

 Honestly he was just as excited about the jersey than  when I've seen him win a game or get a goal. Nothing compares to moments like these as a mom when I see the boys not just succeed but thrive.  Knowing you are largely responsible for cultivating your child's idea of success can be a daunting task.   We walk the tight rope in life early of performance and praise with grades, winning, losing and being accepted by others.  Yet at the end of the day  all I want more than anything for them to know is,  it's not what we do but who we are that brings us the most joy and fulfillment and will carry us the farthest.

" For the Lord does not see as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart." 1 Samuel 16:7

It wasn't by chance this was the first verse I ever had Caleb memorize and  write over and over when he was about 4-5 years old. And it's moments like these when I realize  the weight of these words and how crucial they will be to his life. So for now I may leave the job of cultivating success to the world and  pray for God to show me the job of cultivating hearts.

14 Challenge

Our Spring Break trip to Tybee Island a month ago was a fresh reminder of what I had read recently on the importance of creating "Sabbath Spaces" in our life and home.

" Remember the Sabbath ( Shabbat-stopping, cessation) day, to keep it holy." Exodus 20:8

" God was requiring His people to do something exactly opposite from what they had grown used to doing ( for almost 400 years!). Instead of endlessly working , one day after another, engaging in every demanded activity,they were to stop- purposefully carve out time to be still and enjoy Him- to celebrate a time of rest, rejuvenation, and spiritual focus that would perpetuate their experience of freedom, not just in theory but practical terms. In other words, the Sabbath principle was the total reverse of the slavery they had already experienced in Egypt and a protection against sliding into another form of bondage." The Resolution for Women by Priscilla Shrier.




Our chains of bondage may not take the form of the Israelites years ago when God gave this commandment. But our family of 5 is often held captive by the ever increasing daily demands and hectic schedules of suburban life in 2012. But what a gift He gives us to keep us from sliding into bondage of all forms- REST!

How can I turn crowded spaces into Sabbath- breath taking- spaces? While our family may not be able to escape to the shore weekly, how can I bring this coastal calm into our lives daily?

Shrier suggest a " 14 Challenge". Historically, Sabbath was 1 day out 7 , the equivalent of 14% of our week. She asks you to look at your family's lifestyle, your calendar and even your closet spaces( clean out!) ! Where can you carve out 14 % in your home and life to stop, rest and escape activity, schedules and routines?


As an artist, it may not surprise you... math is not my strength. Nor do numbers really speak to me or motivate me in any way. So whether or not I hit " 14 % " I will never know. But I am ever more so convicted to create these spaces as a woman, to have them in my marriage and teach them to my boys so that our home and lives continually express His grace and freedom.