Friday, November 5, 2010

Time-Where are you?

A thought crossed my mind today as I stumbled upon (I try to pretend it doesn't exist) the over flowing laundry basket, dirty dishes in the sink, and stack of unpacked boxes. Why does it seem I accomplished more in a day when I worked full time away from the house than it does now that I'm home all day?

The Lord has really been pressing it upon me to get a grip on my time mngt skills or lack thereof. I've been praying, hoping, yearning for years to be at home more and that desire became even stronger after Elias' arrival. I'm now home more often except for the 3-4 five hour shifts I work at the bookstore.

So why do I squander the gift of time God has given me? Why do I often feel pulled in a million different directions wanting to complete a long list of tasks but NOTHING really ever gets done? Why do I find it so easy to shew my kids away and say "In a minute" just so I can get one more seemingly important task done but always feel guilty and unfulfilled? Some of you may be thinking, ADHD which I'm not entirely ruling out, but I know it goes much deeper than that.

So I plan to continue seeking God's Word about how to best use my time and will continually ask for His guidance in putting HIS priorities for me first. In the meantime, I would looove to hear what you all do to keep yourself on track throughout the day and feel free to share your struggles too. I think we could all use the encouragement and to know we're not alone.

Until next time, blessings to you!

Friday, October 22, 2010

I'm back and it's only been over a year!

SURPRISE!!!! I'm back into the blogosphere! I never really left though. I'd read some of my favorite blogs, subscribe to them, check the few comments I received, etc.

I guess after the birth of Elias (15 months ago) I realized what was really important. I worked full time, had a husband unemployed and needed my encouragement and time, a nine year old son, a new baby, church functions and most importantly time with Jesus, my Lord and Savior! I simply did not have the time for blogging. All of the fore-mentioned people or things needed my attention more.

So I got into a routine or the closest resemblance to one and one day went right after the other. Here's a brief overview of our life the past 15 months.

My older son completed third grade and adjusted to well to being a big brother. Elias and I after much trial and error came to a manageable nursing routine even while I worked 40+ hours. My husband remained patient and was humbled by the lack of secure employment. He did what he could handling a few odd jobs and such until the Lord provided him a job at the Dept of Homeland Security in D.C. He worked there away from home for a few months but he was able to fly home and totally surprise me (he's lucky I didn't have a weapon or I would have thought he was an intruder) for our 5th anniversary! However, God in His sovereignty (and maybe a few of my desperate pleas in prayer to NOT live in DC) the Lord redirected David to a job in North Florida working for the Airforce.

David worked at the Air Force Base for three months while I was still home working full time, tending to the kids as we awaited the selling of our home. Just as it was when my husband was away in D.C. the kids and I went into survival mode and we managed. Was my bathroom always clean? Was my kitchen floor crumb free at any given time? Did I ever see the bottom of the laundry basket? The answer is NO, NO and NO!

Like any parent who must do what you have to for your kids and family as a whole I learned to re prioritize my time and just as I did after Elias' birth took another evaluation of the important things. I didn't always have great days and some days, I'll just be honest, I wanted to rip my husband's head off for not being there helping me. He was doing what he thought best for our family and I didn't always trust in his leadership. I did have times though where I prevailed over the temptation to bitter and let stress reign and my husband and I learned a lot about one another!

All in all the past 15 months have been a total roller coaster of good and bad but God had a plan and purpose for each single day however it turned out.

The house still remains unsold but, again with God and His divine plan, He provided me a part-time job at a Christian bookstore here in Florida. This allowed us to cut out over $600 a month of childcare and made it possible for the kids and I to move down here 3 weeks ago.

I love being a part-time SAHM and delight in all the blessings the Lord has given our family. I have learned sooo much over the past 15 months about my mental and physical capabilities but most importantly about the ability of the Lord. His ability to protect, bless and pour out His grace! We have an amazing Heavenly Father don't we?

So gals I look forward to seeing you again on here and for the time being will remain a Simple Midwest Mom but just relocated, lol!


So that's a real