Miniature People Prayers

I must admit I have a love-hate relationship with putting my kids to bed.  

After the whole bath, toothbrush, "Get-in-here-and-don't-make-me-say-it-again" routine, I kind of lose my nicey-nicey-ness.

There's an internal Mommy-dialogue going on inside my brain. I teeter-totter between cherishing these fleeting, precious moments and trying to maintain my composure and not scream "Be still and hush-up because Mommy is mentally ready to shut off for the day!"

But, even in my frustration, there is one thing that seems to make time stand still and make all my icky feelings go away.

When my kids pray.

After singing our little Bible songs, (and Peanut closes Jesus loves me with "the Bible tells me soap") my boys say their prayers. 

Well, Opie says his prayers. Peanut has not wanted to say prayers for a while. 

He used to do the "God Our Father" prayer-song at dinner. But once he hit the ripe old age of two, he took a vow of silence in the prayer department.

The past week, however, He has started praying again. And they are the typical sweet prayers that most kids pray. He prays for everything and I mean, everything.

Opie always liked praying, but he was more of a routine prayer. He prayed for the same things every night and never got much into the "Thank you for the sky, trees, butterflies, etc" kind of mantra. But that is his personality. He is still my careful, thoughtful little man.

Opie. 8 years old. March 2013

Peanut, on the other hand, is a loose canon. The opposite of Opie. 

Peanut. Talking to himself. And having a grand time doing so. March 2013

I must say, though, I do enjoy hearing his prayers. He is so perceptive and his prayers change daily, reflecting on moments that made an impression on him. That is amazing to me. He covers his eyes with his chubby little hands, and with a small hushed voice he prays. 

Here are my favorites since he returned to his holy dialogue:

Saturday, after having chicken for dinner and watching my husband filet a live fish Opie caught, this was his prayer:

"Tank you God for chicken, chicken wegs, dat fish, and gettin' to see dat fish's mowf (mouth)."

Wednesday, after playing in the woods at a new friend's house, he prayed this:

"Tank you for my brudder, for pway-doh, sticks, acorns and Kyleigh's house." 

And tonight, his prayer reflected the book on body parts we read before naptime:

"Tank you for dis day, and eyes, and ears, and head, and elbows, and knees, and toes, and body, and wegs, and mowf, and buttcheeks..."

Buttcheeks? That was not in our book. But, hey, ain't it great to be thankful for it all?!?!

One thing's for certain. The days are long with small children. But, moments like prayer at bedtime with my munchkins make it all worthwhile. 

And I am well aware that one day I would pay any amount of money just to have one more night with chubby little hands and a red-head giggling at his baby brother's prayers.

Thank you, God, for my boys. For using them to teach me that laughter is great. To be thankful for it all. To see You throughout the day. And that life is short. Help me to be still and soak. this. IN. 

November 2012

Spring 2012. Central Park. NYC.

Roseline's for a Delicious Farm Breakfast. March 2013.

At the Pet Store. Begging for a bunny since it was Easter. March 2013.

My Final Post. Well, Not Really.

Can I be brutally honest?

I've hit a rough patch on this journey of finding myself.

Life as a wife with a traveling husband, a toddler and an active eight year-old is proving to be a lot. I have two upcoming women's Bible studies (one of which I am leading), a speaking engagement (of which I am stoked about!), and Opie just started Fall Baseball. Throw in sewing lessons, church work and writing a blog and it's a wonder I'm not in a padded room wearing a snug white jacket. 

Case in point: 

Today, as I was leaving for Opie's baseball practice, I drove to our mailbox to pick up the mail. (You have to drive around to the back of our house to an adjacent street.) As I was driving home from Opie's practice, it hit me. I never got the mail. I had driven to the mailbox, done a complete one-eighty and had never even given the mail a second thought.  

Yes. It is time for a mental breakdown break.

I love this blog. It's such a joy to write to you about life and my craziness. But, lately, it's become too much. My marriage and my role as a Mommy have been suffering. And my relationship with the One who gives me the strength to endure all of the craziness has gotten shuffled around. This can't be.

Today, I got on my knees for the first time in a long time. Oh, I pray all of the time. But, it'd been a while since I had physically kneeled to pray. There is something so powerful in that. I simply asked God to help me be still. 

                                                                                                                                                               www.freedigitalimages.net

So, I am taking a break. 

To be still.

To listen.

To reflect.

To be healed and changed.

To play with my boys and mentally be there in that moment.

To live a day without blogging about it.

To do away with my Pin-security. 

To put the kids to bed, without hurrying. 

To snuggle with my husband instead of sitting next to him with a computer in my lap. (Do you know how thrilled he will be to hear this?)

You see ladies, it is not possible to have it all. To do one thing, we must give up something else. 

Every day we make choices on what we do with our time. Those choices reveal what our heart desires.
Is it money? Fame? Popularity? Am I trying to prove something to others? To myself? 

The truth is, I already know I am deeply loved. By my Creator. By my family. My husband. My children. And it is that love that keeps me going. Striving. To constantly be asking, "Lord, change me. Into the person You want me to be. For You. For them. For me." 

This isn't good-bye. This is just 'you won't be seeing as much of me for a while'. I will have to post occasional stories of my crazy antics (just to make you laugh), deep thoughts I have to put into words and whatever amazing things come my way. I even have a gorgeous jewelry give-away to do. (So, you know I won't be going too far!)

But, I must live my life in the season I am given. And right now, this is the Oh-my-word-how-can-I-manage-all-of-this-insanity-without-looking-like-a-trainwreck Season. 

Now, don't lose any sleep tonight. (okay, I flatter myself) You ain't heard the last of me yet. I'm just gonna limit my writing to when I can actually do it without sacrificing my kiddos, my marriage, and my sanity. 

It's a thin thread, people. A thin thread. :)



PS. Thanks for all of your support, comments and love. It is why I do this. I can't wait to see what God has in store, so when I return full-force, oh, the stories we will share!