Words

Everywhere I turn it seems that God is speaking to me about the words I say. From church I am hearing about the power of blessings and curses. From a parent class I am taking I am hearing how important it is to mold your child's heart while they are young. The words I say to my children do matter. Then tonight as I was flipping through the Bible I saw Hebrews 13:15 which says "Through Him. therefore, let us constantly and at all times offer up to God a sacrifice of praise, which is the fruit of lips that thankfully acknowledge and confess and glorify His name."

As I first read this verse I began to feel overwhelmed. Man, here we go again! I sometimes just get tired of saying positive things. It's hard not to lose your cool when you have one kid spilling her drink, one throwing his food on the floor and another saying "Mommy! Mommy!" It's hard to look up and say "You sure are great little people! I just love the way you keep me on my toes." No - everything in me wants to scream, call them some names and send them away to their rooms. Let's not even talk about how nice I want to be to the mail lady in my yard honking her horn non-stop after I have just gotten all the babies asleep. Being nice is not always easy. At times like these it is a sacrifice.

I am not always going to feel like speaking kind words. I am not always going to feel like praising God; but the great thing about this is that God understands. That's why in Hebrews it uses the word "sacrifice." Sometimes it's going to be hard and I am not going to be able to do it on my own. When I make the small sacrifices not to scream but instead to lift His name, He moves close to me and empowers me to be all I can be.

What to do on this rainy day?

Let's see what the Foster-Whiddon kids have to say...



You may want to hold your breath so you don't drown!



You may want to put your boots on because it's very ooky out there!



Or you may just want to stay inside and snuggle! (Holton's not so sure about that idea...)

Thoughts that have brought me peace

I am not just a mom. I am a partner with God in training up four amazing children that in the beginning and end ultimately belong to Him.

I am not a wife. I am a bride sent by God to support, encourage and enhance a groom's life.

I am not just a housekeeper but a peacemaker of my home.

I am not just a cook but a creator of what God has blessed us with.

Today is what I make it. As a mom I sometimes feel like I have the most mundane job of all. Between the routines, long days, and all the baby-talk, I sometimes lose my way. So I am so thankful for God stirring my heart. I need Him to help me see the pleasure and joy in trying to be the best mother, wife and friend I can be. Apart from Him my work is in vain. Today I want my job to count. To count for Him.

The Award of the Day...

...goes to me! That would be the "HAVE-YOU-LOST-YOUR-MIND-WHY-IN-THE-WORLD-WOULD-YOU-PUT-YOURSELF-THROUGH-SO-MUCH-TORTURE?" award.



How did this well-earned award come about? This past Monday I was put in the hospital for a severe sinus infection that I have been carrying around for months now. Nothing seems to help it get better. So I stayed there for two nights. I came home on Wednesday. Well, today I thought it would be a great idea to take the kids to town for an early lunch and some grocery shopping. What was meant to be a pleasant day turned into a nightmare - imagine that! I have been on so much medication that I kind of stay in a daze, but one of those medicines seems to make me turn into the Wicked Witch of the South! So our pleasant brunch together turned into me fussing over ketchup packs. Then our leisurely stroll through Wal-Mart with a 10 year old, three year old, one year old, one on the way and one heck of a sinus infection turned into a fight for mommy survival!

Halfway through the trip I thought "Hey... I will be nice. Why not stop and get the kids an Icey Coke and a cookie?" While I was purchasing this snack out of the goodness of my heart my children decided it was time to be very vocal and run around the store. I looked up at them to give them the "I-am-going-to -get-your-fanny" look which only worked for a split second. When I got back with their snacks the baby decides it would be fun to play ball with the cookies. The three year old thought running with her huge cup of Icey Coke would be fun till she crashed and Coke went everywhere. My ten year old must have been having a brain freeze because she just stood there and watched. So I had cookies flying, drinks spilling and a whole bunch of people staring. Ok... maybe just a few stares, but it felt like the whole store. I pulled myself together, gave all the children the angry-eyes and sat them down to finish their snack.

We made it through the rest of the trip with them minding half the time. At one point I lost my 10 year old and three year old. Actually, I knew where they were but they thought they lost me! We got the stare-down by one really nice lady that we were totally inconveniencing by even being in the store. Next time she sees us coming I am sure she will just go home. Well I could go on and on but I will stop here. I'm sure you can only image the things that took place in the checkout line! We made our way to the car and packed everyone up. I sat in my seat and presented myself with the "HAVE-YOU-LOST-YOUR-MIND-WHY-IN-THE-WORLD-WOULD-YOU-PUT-YOURSELF-THROUGH-SO-MUCH-TORTURE?" award.

She lost her tooth!!!!

What's working for me

Right now I am absolutely in love with my MP3 player. It has became a close friend late at night when the kids are all asleep being sweet and my husband is dreaming of his lovely bride. So what am I listening to at the wee hours of the night? That would be FREE downloads from Focus on the Family. FREE!!! This week I have been listening to Kevin Leman, the author of "Have A New Kid By Friday." His podcasts have been packed full of information and very helpful. This week I also listened to Ken Davis on how we are like sheep. Ken Davis is a Christian comedian and is too funny. At one point I laughed so hard that I woke up my very grumpy husband (oh... I meant my very kind husband that was very happy that I was so enjoying myself at 2:00 in the morning.) Anyway you can go to oneplace.com to get as many free podcasts as you want. I do encourage you to check these out. If you want to hear the ones by Kevin Leman you should head on over there. They only keep up for 30 days (I think).

As far as my food life is concerned, what's working for me right now is Johnsonville Smoked Turkey Sausage. I found these at Wal-Mart. They sell for 2 for $5.00. My kids love them, my husband loves them and they are so easy to cook up. I cook mine in a frying pan with a little water in the bottom of the pan. We eat them in hot-dog buns. We normally have baked beans and fruit for our sides. Very easy dinner, very happy family... and that works for me!

Shhh...It's a secret

So how good are you at keeping secrets? I am not so good at it. I normal feel the need to tell one person... which is normal my husband. The thought of knowing something that no one else knows creeps me out a little bit. So the secrect is out - I have a hard time keeping a secret!

The other day I went to check on my really quiet 3 year old who is normally very vocal. I found her lying in her bed. As soon as she saw me she started to whine. I said "Baby, what is wrong?" She looked up to with those big innocent eyes that did not look so innocent in that moment and she said "Shhh... it's a secret." Oh, a secret with a whine... this could not be good. My sweet little girl just keeps saying, "Shhh... it's a secret." It did not take me long to identify the SECRET! Her hand was covered in red paint and in the other hand was the evidence... a tube of red face paint. When she realized that I saw "the secret," she began to scream, "It's a secret!!!" I pick her up and took her to the bathroom and washed the mess away. I told her that we don't need to play with the paint because it will make a big mess. She laughed, gave me a hug and said, "Thank you!" The secrect was gone.

So we were safe from the paint and I went on to bed. On my way there God spoke to my heart about the secrects we try to keep from him and others. How plainly He sees our "secret," the sin we try to hide from him. How he longs for us to stop saying, "It's a secret it's mine." His word says that if we will confess our sin that he WILL forgive us. His word also says to go and share that secrect with someone you can trust. The devil would love nothing more than for you to stay in that creepy place of feeling all alone. There is much freedom in holding your hand up and saying, "Here it is God - help make me clean." He will gladly clean up the mess, encourage you and restore your joy.

So come on people - let's come clean from our secrets today.

( I encourage you to only share with Godly people that you can trust to protect you and point you in the right direction.)