The Saturday 7

1. Every November, we try to do a "Thankful" activity with the girls. Usually we have some kind of tree and add a leaf to it every day with something that we're thankful for. In an effort to branch out (ha ha - pun) this year, I decided to try something different. Thanks to Pinterest, I came across the idea of "Thankfulness A-Z." For 25 (we're skipping x) days leading up to Thanksgiving, we're thinking of things we're thankful for that start with each letter of the alphabet. Some days it's been really hard (E, anyone? Eggs, elephants, exercise??), but other days we've had tons of ideas (B: babies, blankets, binkies, balls, etc.). It's been fun to see what the girls come up with. For F, Lucy said forgiveness. For H, she said hands. Haha. Lena pretty much just blurts out whatever she can think of that starts with that letter (butterflies, flying, kites). And we all try to come up with something that Levi would choose if he could (binkies, cars, ice cream). It's been a great conversation starter at dinner time.

2. We had Lucy's parent-teacher conference on Monday. She's doing great academically - meeting and surpassing expectations. And she's respectful to her teacher, but she apparently is somewhat solemn and non-participatory. I've decided that Lucy's anxiety manifests as indifference or even anger. Whereas Lena's anxiety is typical fear and trembling, Lucy scowls and frowns and refuses to participate. But that's no excuse for bad behavior. I so don't want to be one of those parents who writes off disobedience as, "Oh, she has anxiety." I don't know how to balance legitimate fear and appropriate behavior. This anxiety nonsense is so frustrating. And so my fault. Haha.

3. I went on a facebook fast this week. I honestly feel like it's become an idol in my life. I put it above my kids, my responsibilities, and my relationship with God. I was purposeful, this week, about doing my devotions in the morning instead of scrolling through facebook. And when I was bored and had down time during the day, I tried to read a chapter or two of the Bible on my phone instead of immediately clicking that facebook icon. I also deleted one of the games that was sucking up my time. Although I left Euchre - and really tried not to play it unless I truly had nothing else to do and my kids were sufficiently occupied with other things.

4. I was hoping a lack of facebook would help with my end of the week depression. It's like clockwork - it starts to come over me Thursday or Friday afternoon. This week, I was super productive. I did tons of cleaning, kept up on the laundry, even tackled a couple big projects (the kids' bedrooms - ugh). But by Friday at 11:00, my house was absolutely trashed. Levi had crushed cereal into the carpet, the girls left play-doh crumbs all over the table and floor, the dishes were overflowing, and toys covered every surface untouched by play-doh or cereal crumbs. I was feeling a little bit like this:

Or this:

But mostly, I was feeling like this:

Ultimately, God gave me the grace to get dressed, crank up some Christmas music, and bust out the broom. And when I was done cleaning, I realized it wasn't really that bad. And so worth it for a clean house. But I didn't make dinner that night. A girl can only handle so much productivity.

5. I did take one short break from my facebook fast to share the epic Kohl's deal that was going on yesterday. I wait for that deal all year - when you can combine a 30% off code with a $10 off $25 purchase. I'm not going to disclose how many orders I made, but suffice it to say that it was less than my sister! Hahaha. I might give my kids too many Christmas presents, but I don't go crazy in the spending department. I'm all about the deal shopping! Plus, I got necessities like onesies for Levi (I'm still squeezing him in 6 month onesies. Lol) and a new pair of yoga pants for myself, so I don't have to wear the same pair every day. #whitegirlchic

6. A few weeks ago at small group, we discussed a concept that I've never thought of, but has been such an encouragement to me. In the parable of the talents, each servant is given a different number of talents. Two of them do something with what they've been given, but one doesn't do anything. To those who got a return on their investment, the master declared, "Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much." As Christians, I think we all long to hear those words "well done, good and faithful servant" when we meet our master. But I've never truly considered the wording there. God isn't rewarding the men for their success. He's rewarding them for their faithfulness. One made more than the other, but they both did something. God doesn't expect me to be a perfect parent. He doesn't expect me to have a perfect success rate with my children. He only asks that I be faithful. That I keep trying, keep doing what I know is right, keep drilling the truth into their little heads (and mine). When Lena is laying on the floor whining incessantly, I want to throw in the towel and join her. But being faithful means I don't bemoan my lack of success, instead I get down on her level again and say "Stop whining," again, and punish her again when she doesn't obey. Being faithful means cleaning my house again, doing the laundry again, reading through the Bible again, begging God to help me and change me again. It's so liberating to know that I don't have to be perfect. I just have to be faithful.

7. Pictures