The "Saturday" 7
I was busy all day yesterday, didn't get home 'til midnight, and never had a chance to pen the Saturday 7. Better late than never, right?
1. Lena had her first field trip this week. She's actually been on this field trip before, because she tagged along when Lucy did the same thing a few years ago, but Lena didn't remember much about it. For their fall field trip, her class got to go to the apple orchard. We got to pick apples and pumpkins, eat donuts, sip cider, and enjoy the crisp, cool, fall weather . . . . actually, that last part was a lie. It was 90 degrees! When we went with Lucy, I wore a cute sweater, scarf, knee-high boots, and mittens. This year, we wore tank tops, shorts, and sunscreen. It was so hot. But the kids had a blast and we all survived.
2. I fell off the wagon a little bit with my diet this week. I had Dr Pepper on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. And I haven't been eating super great. Am I supposed to feel hungry? Is that just par for the course with dieting? I'm not doing anything restrictive. I'm eating all my food groups and aiming for 1500-1800 calories a day. I don't exercise at all, so that should be plenty. But my stomach literally growls throughout the day!
3. Levi had his ENT appointment this week. I'm a terrible mom and can't remember exactly how many ear infections he's had. (Don't they keep records of that at the doctor's office? Why do they always ask me?) But at his 18 month appointment, his doctor said he's had enough that it's time to start thinking about tubes. So we drove 40 minutes to the ENT, waited for 1.5 hours (!), saw the doctor for 3 minutes and learned that Levi is "right on the cusp" of needing tubes. He could probably benefit from them, but he might not really need them. So we get to go back in 6 weeks to re-evaluate!
4. I have Bible Study on Monday nights so Justin's home with the kids. When I asked him later that night how the kids were, he said, "Good. They're just so needy, though. As soon as I sit down, someone needs a drink. And then a diaper change. And then help with something." I wanted to scream, "Welcome to my world!!!" Lol. So when I saw an article on facebook with this title, I jumped on it: Dear Mom Burdened with Endless Needs. I've written recently about how I struggle with being selfless and meeting my kids' incessant needs with kindness and joy, so this was a timely read for me. She draws on the story of Moses in the wilderness crying out to God about all the needs of the people. Moses says, "Did I conceive all these people? Did I give them birth?" He was overwhelmed by their needs. But this was my favorite part:
I also found a couple more amazing posts while I was reading the above blog article. Check out 4 Ways to Stop Feeling Defeated by a Mom Fail and Dear Mom Who Suffers with Anxiety.
5. I've struggled with depression a lot lately. You know what makes it even more depressing? I can't pinpoint what's causing it! Usually, I know what triggers it, but this past week or two it's been less obvious. I'm just lethargic and irritable and angry. Maybe it's prolonged Dr Pepper withdrawals . . .
6. Confession. I had a tiny bit of baby fever this week. I've been telling people that I'm leaning toward being done. I love the idea of my kids being more self-sufficient and moving on from this stage of total dependency. But I was looking for something in my old blog entries and started reading my pregnancy posts and birth stories . . . I was in so much horrendous pain! My depression was off the charts! Why would I want to do that to myself again??!!
. . . Because of the excitement of watching that test turn pink, the anticipation of finding out the sex, the feeling of that first kick, choosing a name, telling the other kids that they're going to be big siblings, counting down the days 'til delivery, the terror and thrill of realizing "this is it," as you rush to the hospital.
And then this . . .
My great niece is due any day (secretly hoping she'll hold out 9 days to be my birthday buddy!), so hopefully she'll fill my longing a little . . . and not inflame it. Haha.
7. Pictures
1. Lena had her first field trip this week. She's actually been on this field trip before, because she tagged along when Lucy did the same thing a few years ago, but Lena didn't remember much about it. For their fall field trip, her class got to go to the apple orchard. We got to pick apples and pumpkins, eat donuts, sip cider, and enjoy the crisp, cool, fall weather . . . . actually, that last part was a lie. It was 90 degrees! When we went with Lucy, I wore a cute sweater, scarf, knee-high boots, and mittens. This year, we wore tank tops, shorts, and sunscreen. It was so hot. But the kids had a blast and we all survived.
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| That cow licked Levi seconds after I snapped the pic. Haha. |
3. Levi had his ENT appointment this week. I'm a terrible mom and can't remember exactly how many ear infections he's had. (Don't they keep records of that at the doctor's office? Why do they always ask me?) But at his 18 month appointment, his doctor said he's had enough that it's time to start thinking about tubes. So we drove 40 minutes to the ENT, waited for 1.5 hours (!), saw the doctor for 3 minutes and learned that Levi is "right on the cusp" of needing tubes. He could probably benefit from them, but he might not really need them. So we get to go back in 6 weeks to re-evaluate!
4. I have Bible Study on Monday nights so Justin's home with the kids. When I asked him later that night how the kids were, he said, "Good. They're just so needy, though. As soon as I sit down, someone needs a drink. And then a diaper change. And then help with something." I wanted to scream, "Welcome to my world!!!" Lol. So when I saw an article on facebook with this title, I jumped on it: Dear Mom Burdened with Endless Needs. I've written recently about how I struggle with being selfless and meeting my kids' incessant needs with kindness and joy, so this was a timely read for me. She draws on the story of Moses in the wilderness crying out to God about all the needs of the people. Moses says, "Did I conceive all these people? Did I give them birth?" He was overwhelmed by their needs. But this was my favorite part:
I love that. I am hard on myself. I feel like a failure when I get to the end of my rope. I feel like I should be serving my children happily and not kicking and screaming like a two year old. I hate myself for not rising above my selfishness. And I project those feelings onto God as well. I feel like he's looking down on me shaking his head and saying, "Seriously? It is not that big of a deal. Get a grip and quit your whining." And maybe it's not fair to compare my 3 kids with Moses's millions, but I think that God's character is the same across the board. He has compassion. He wants me to cry out to him, to rely on him, to mature in him and derive my strength from him. I still don't know what that looks like practically, but I think it's something he's going to keep reminding me of, so hopefully I'll figure it out soon!!I too, have felt like I alone am not able to do this task I’ve been called to. I’ve felt annoyance and frustration towards the ones that I did “conceive and give birth to”.God could have told Moses in that moment, when he was doing some wailing himself, to stop being so dramatic. He could have told him to quit pitying himself.But He didn’t. He had compassion on him.
I also found a couple more amazing posts while I was reading the above blog article. Check out 4 Ways to Stop Feeling Defeated by a Mom Fail and Dear Mom Who Suffers with Anxiety.
5. I've struggled with depression a lot lately. You know what makes it even more depressing? I can't pinpoint what's causing it! Usually, I know what triggers it, but this past week or two it's been less obvious. I'm just lethargic and irritable and angry. Maybe it's prolonged Dr Pepper withdrawals . . .
6. Confession. I had a tiny bit of baby fever this week. I've been telling people that I'm leaning toward being done. I love the idea of my kids being more self-sufficient and moving on from this stage of total dependency. But I was looking for something in my old blog entries and started reading my pregnancy posts and birth stories . . . I was in so much horrendous pain! My depression was off the charts! Why would I want to do that to myself again??!!
. . . Because of the excitement of watching that test turn pink, the anticipation of finding out the sex, the feeling of that first kick, choosing a name, telling the other kids that they're going to be big siblings, counting down the days 'til delivery, the terror and thrill of realizing "this is it," as you rush to the hospital.
And then this . . .
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| Can I really never do this again??? |
7. Pictures
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| Levi found the Barbie car this week. He's in love. |
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| Little Miss Flexible |
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| Sunday afternoon snuggles with Grandpa |
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