Laughter & tender mercies

For as long as I can remember I have absolutely hated to be laughed at. Even in good fun or silly teasing. I still cringe when my parents or brothers bring up embarrassing things that happened nearly 20 years ago. Or when I mis-speak and the kids giggle--it just rubs me wrong. I can't explain it, and I don't like it, but there it is. Stephen always laughs at himself (as do the rest of us), and the kids laugh at themselves (usually). But for some reason I have a really hard time laughing at me.

So today I said something like, "Bring it in to the computer" when I meant to say, "bring the computer to the table". And the kids giggled, because Mommy did something silly. I totally expected to feel annoyed, but you know what? I laughed! And I meant it! I wasn't bothered by it at all!

I justly attribute that little tender mercy to the Lord softening my heart. These last few weeks I have made a concerted effort to roll out of bed and land on my knees--before I get babies up, before I check my phone, before I ever get on my feet--and say a meaningful prayer. For as long as I can remember I haven't missed my night-time prayer, but for some reason the personal morning prayer has remained elusive. But not any more. I've also made sure that I read my scriptures as part of my morning activities. If I can't get to it because I sleep in too long, I'm sure to do it at breakfast (which usually leads to the older kids pulling out their scriptures, too--not a bad gig!). And doing the little things really makes a difference in my life--and consequently in the lives of my family and in the atmosphere of my home.

I'm so grateful for the big blessings I receive when I do the little things.

Random snippets of my life

George (the she-gerbil) escaped again. This makes the 9th time. And Nancy has gotten out twice now (if you count this very moment). Guess where I found George this morning? If you guessed under my bed at 5 a.m., you would be right. Oh, how I hated to tell Stephen! He kind of hates the gerbils anyhow, but still the wonderful, wonderful man caught her--twice, since I dropped her when he handed her off. Oops.

You want to know what else? The lady at the pet store today told me I was lucky that she went under my bed and not out to the garage. Lucky?? A rodent is under my bed and I am lucky?!?! 

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While sitting in the car with the babies while the older kids were in ballet the other day (big breath--that was a long introduction!), I realized that a part of me will miss car seats in a few years. It is nice to put the little ones somewhere and know that they can't get away.

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My dream house is going to have some white board walls. Then it will always be okay to draw on the walls. Doesn't that sound fun?

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Church callings aren't always about who will do the best job--sometimes they are about what a certain person needs to grow. We have the opportunity to let others learn on our time--just as we are learning on theirs. That thought helps me be a little kinder and more understanding, to my kids and to others around me.

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This last Monday was kind of a horrible day. The kind that makes me want to move to Australia. Someone was whining all day long. And I was grumpy and rushed and kept hurrying the kids from thing to thing. Tuesday was as good as Monday was bad. I'm pretty sure me getting up early and reading my scriptures and praying had something to do with it. I think the babies were as whiny as ever, but I was so much better equipped to handle it.

Also, we didn't go anywhere. It was wonderful. I had time to have bad, good and great moments with my kids--not just the bad hurry-get-in-the-car-I-TOLD-YOU-10-MINUTES-AGO-TO-GET-READY moments of rushed days. Wednesday, Thursday & Friday were also pretty awesome. Sometimes I need to scale back our activities so we can just be home together. And read my scriptures. And pray.

QOTD--Lincoln

Lincoln has taken to answering "Yes, Sir!" when I ask him things. For example,

Me: "Lincoln, do you want a quesadilla for lunch?"

Lincoln: "Yes, SIR!"

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Me: "It's time to clean up!"

Lincoln: "Yes, SIR!"

He's also picked up a bad habit of mine...when he sees something extraordinary or out of place, he says,

"What the heck?"