Randomness(Week #3 Post), March 2015

Hello again, Chaotics :)
Ahhh. Spring. It's great, isn't it? I love Spring.

This could be my backyard...if I actually enjoyed taking care of flowers. Which I don't. 

Thoughts of Spring begin when cabin fever sets in.
First, the list writing begins...first, I set my mind to something simple, like, "cleaning list" and it turns out into a mini book on all the people/things I forgot to do all Winter.

I had thoughts all Winter...didn't I?? 

Then I look up from all the papers and realize....everything is dirty. Maybe it's because I'm stuck inside the house more(writing all those list...), or maybe it's because the kids are in the house more(because they're tired of having to put on two or more layers because my mom brain is still not 100% convinced its Spring yet). Maybe it's seeing one too many "I'm sick!" posts on Facebook...or in the case of this year, I have had enough of our family being sick. Either way...suddenly, my house, in my eyes, looks like a pig pen and the Cleaning Hulk within comes out. I.must.clean.everything.
Thankfully for me, I'm not the only one who has this urge to clean. Online and locally, stores suddenly have cleaning displays, bold and colorful...and on sale! Stock up time, baby!!

Cleaning Bundle...a cute bucket....AND FREE SHIPPING?!? I'll take 5, please!!

Once the house is satisfactory, then it's time to move stuff around! Not that there's anything wrong with where everything is at now. It's just...well, I've been staring at it all Winter! It's so, well...WINTERY! It has to scream SPRING, for pete's sake! It must be moved around, in no random order, for no particular reason at all!! 

Feng Shui? *Pffffttt* Where's the fun in THAT?!

After moving anything and everything around for a bit, suddenly(i.e., when my whole body hurts, because I keep forgetting that couch/bed/dresser moving is not an Olympic sport that I need to train for...), I start to realize...oh my gosh, we haven't done homeschooling in weeks! Then I feel like an insignificant homeschooling mother.  Someone is going to randomly pop out of a bush and quiz my kids on all they know, and they're going to fail...miserably!!! I must DO something! I must obtain something...ANYTHING!!!....to justify all the time I spent killing their brain cells by making them  kindly requesting they watch tv while I clean assist me in all my cleaning and re-arranging adventures. 

Library card, you're about to earn your keep! 

Thankfully, while they are rolling their eyes and moaning  joyfully soaking up all the books and videos I borrowed, the curriculum catalogs have arrived! 

So much to chose from, so little time!!

And this year...the seed and chicken catalogs are coming! And the e-mails on free shipping offers/sales! Which means, this year, I HAVE to start a garden!  I have to get fertilizer, I have to get seeds...which plants are compatible with which? This calls for a gardening book, or five....WHOOT!!! 

Okay, maybe not "Whoot!"....

Then I remember...oh, wait!! I have all this stuff I forgot to do this Winter!! Like all the crafty things I had wanted to do with the kids to prevent them from getting cabin fever. Did I call all the people I had meant to, just to make sure they are still alive and well(or, at the very least, breathing??), write really thoughtful and sincere letters to all those that like that sort of thing...or at least send them a Christmas card by April? And sewing..why does EVERYTHING have holes in it all of a sudden?! And did we memorize the classical hymns I had wanted to memorize for, oh, I dunno...the past three or four years?

Crap. Did I idolize cleaning products? Did I take more joy in the children than the Lord? Were we "jamming too hard" in the car,  that we were annoying people instead of pointing them to Christ? Was I a "stumbling block" to my fellow Christian brothers by revealing too much skin at Wednesday night Bible study? When is the last time I cracked open my Bible, my devotional book, at home...?

And..*gasp!* Bible devotions...I mean, AM I EVEN A CHRISTIAN ANYMORE?! 

THAT'S IT!! I'M GRABBING THE EMERGENCY CHOCOLATE, EATING IT, LIGHTING A *few* CANDLES, AND GOING TO BED!!

Light all da candles! Say all versions of  da sinners prayer!!

(The next morning...)
*Deep breath* 

Okay. 

So...here we are. 

Me, my Bible, a devotional. A cup of coffee, the silence of a new day. 

I open my Bible...and take in the words. 

I read the devotional, look back to the Bible...and tears stream down my face. 

I am humbled. I am reminded. 

While these things are great...they are not eternal. 

These things are of importance to me...but they do not earn me "brownie points" with my Lord. 

God gives me, you, us...he gives us all 24 hours each day for a reason. Any more, and we'd run ourselves ragged. Any less, and we'd complain even more about not having enough. 

Yes, it's great to start the day with goals...but before our feet hit the ground, we should always check with him to ensure all our goals serve his purpose. 

Does this excuse me from my duties? Nope. 

...but, does it make me slow down, not seeing each thing as a thing to check off, but instead, something to do joyfully for the Lord? Absolutely. 

 

Okay, I'm better now. Thank you, Lord. 

Ahh. Spring. It's great, isn't it? I just love Spring. I simply can't wait for Spring. 

Wait...did I remember to shave my legs?!

Until Next Time,

Mama Jenn