A Few Words on Recharging

Last night Mr. Three and I formally celebrated our 8 year anniversary-

and it was wonderful!

Dinner and a movie.

So us.

It's refreshing to spend time just me and him these days.

As a wife and mom how quickly I forget that we need that time to recharge.

To recharge us.

To recharge our feelings, thoughts, spirits, and hearts with each other.

To be able to finish a simple thought, or even a sentence without being interrupted!

To let the other person know how much they mean to us, that there's no place we'd rather be than exactly where we are.

That we thank God everyday for that person being in our lives.

And you know what?

Today I woke up feeling rejuvanted!

I wasn't snipping at the kids or anyone the moment my feet hit the floor.

I appreciated everyone and everything a little more.

Finding joy in everything seemed a little easier today.

How was your weekend?

My Best Friend

"Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.  It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.  Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.  It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres."

Today marks 8 years since Mr. Three and I starting dating

{Swoon}

8 years of  life, loss, growth, happiness, sadness, snuggles, heartaches, and accomplishments.  

It hasn't always been easy but there is no one else I'd rather be on this road with.
I know He put us on this path together for a reason.

No one else can lift me up quite like he can.

No one can make me smile or laugh like him.

No one makes me as comfortable as he does.

No one gives me as much confidence as he does.
Here's to 8 years down and 80 to go!

"The one I laugh with, live for, dream with love."

A Recipe, or Not

A whole lot of nothing has been going on here lately.

Zero. Zilch. Nada.

So in order to not leave you hanging today and in an attempt to have something to post I will leave you with a first here on this blog.

{Drum roll please...}

A RECIPE.

Or lack thereof, ha!

I really really need to improve on my cooking skills so if you have any feel free to comment/email away!

treslittlebirds3 at {gmail}.com

This recipe is super.dooper easy
Like 3 steps easy!
If you are like me and love camping, summer, fires, spending time outdoors with your family and those delicious treats that go along with camping {ahem} SMORE'S then this recipe is for you!
Sometimes I get the hankering- yes I just used that old dusty word on you- for a smore's in September, or February, or really any month!
So here's my recipe:

SMORE'S:

Ingredients:
Graham crackers, chocolate, and marshmallows
or of course whatever it is that you like to top your smore's with!

Directions: 
Preheat oven to 400 and bake for 7 minutes.

Take out and top with other 1/2 of graham cracker.

See I told you-easy peasy!

Voila!  Instant, scrumptious smore's all from the comfort of your house :)

Enjoy!

Mean Girls

Everybody has had that moment in their life where they have been put down.

By a friend, neighbor, stranger, whoever.

I know I certainly have, and it does not feel good.

Sometimes the pain is intentional-sometimes not.

I think as woman we especially feel vulnerable when these sort of comments are thrown our way.

Just like when we were in high school and there were the "mean girls" 

there are mean girls after high school too.

As the M&M's in the commercial say when they see Santa for the first time, "He does exist!"

They really do exist, the mean girls.

Maybe for you they come in a different form.

But  have no doubt-they are there.

You know them...

The people that laugh at other's expense.

The ones that seem to go out of their way to hurt or harm others.

The ones who purposely put others down just so they can get ahead.

After 27 years I still can't explain why.

And I don't know if I'll ever have the answer.

I don't know why other people feel the need to make others feel badly.

I was taught to treat everyone equally.

I was taught that you should treat others how you wish to be treated.

I was taught that you need to think before acting.

The same goes with speaking.

Our tongues are a viscous weapon.

In fact, this is still a lesson I am learning today and it is not always an easy one.

This topic has been heavy on my heart lately so I turned where I knew I would find answers,

 or at least for the moment I would find comfort. 

I decided to sit down with Him.

I {prayed} and {listened}.

Do you know where he pointed me?

Psalms 1-7.

I kid you not!

I could not have made this stuff up!

Those few passages are all about evil-doers, and people who seek to harm others.

He tells us not to follow the wicked ways of the sinners, rather delight in the Lord.

Stay close to Him, He will provide for us, he will make us grow and strengthen us the way no other can.

There will always be those who wish us harm, who want to see us fail.

But do you want to hear some great news?

He is for us!

Praise God! Alleluia!  I don't think there is any better news!

If He is for us, no one can be against us!

Psalm 3: 7-8 "Arise, Lord!  Deliver me, my God!  Strike all my enemies on the jaw; break the teeth of the wicked.  From the Lord comes deliverance. "

How great is our God?!

He will take care of our enemies.

Some call it Karma, I know better... 

I know it is Him sheltering, protecting, and taking care of us believers.

We need to pray for the Lord to lead us away from those who are purposely malicious to us.

To shield us from their harm.

And believe me, he will!

Psalm 5: 8-10 "Lead me, Lord, in your righteousness because of my enemies- make your way straight before me.  Not a word from their mouth can be trusted; their heart if filled with malice.  Their throat is an open grave; with their tongues they tell lies.  Declare them guilt, O God!  Let their intrigues be their downfall."

Today I pray for myself and all of those who have fell victim to the "mean girls" for Him to lead me, to make His way straight before me.

I want to live like Him. 

I want to live for Him.

I want to know where I stand, and who I stand for.  

To keep me on His path, to not stray, and retaliate when wickedness is cast my way. 

 I pray for the strength to lean into Him rather than into the wicked, mean spirited.

Just Call Me...

Oh hi there friends!
So I had a whole other post ready to go today but decided the timing just wan't right soooo
Instead of posting another serious blog today I thought
Why not have some fun?!
 It always feels great to have some fun!!
So without further ado enjoy a fun post!!

Notice the title on this post?
Just call me...
Well that's because today instead of going by my name I'm answering to any/all of the following:

Super Saver Sally

Frugal Fran

Prudent Polly

Thrifty Momma

Super Mom

Awesome Mom

Coupon Queen
or

Amazing Wife.
Seriously, take your pick!
Why you ask?
Because I purchased $211 worth of clothing from Children's Place for  $31!!!!

Yes, you heard that right

$211 worth of brand new, brand name clothing for $31!

Okay, I'll stop doing cartwheels in my living room now...

and giving myself pats on the back ;)

But seriously, how amazing?!

Today marks 2 months from the day of my Stroke on July 24

which also means 2 months out of work.

Our income has been cut nearly in half.
2 months of so many "I still can'ts..."

But I know, He always provides.

He will not let us go without.
I know to be still.
That everything will come in His timing.
This was just another one of those times where I walked out of the store smiling because He knew exactly what we needed, when we needed it.
Oh how good He is!

I've been trying to be as frugal as possible in every area of our spending and this was just the
 icing on the cake!  

{Now if only I could make that happen for my clothes}

When we got home I made Mr. Three take a picture of me with the receipt because it was just hysterical how long it was!
Seriously...it's taller.than.me!

So, enjoy said picture below and have a happy Monday :)

Be Still

I'm sure you know about my story, if not you can read all about it here.
Well today I received some not-so-happy news from my Occupational Therapist.
I'm moving along quite nicely in physical therapy and occupational therapy.
Next up is driving.
I haven't driven since the morning of July 24.
Before I can be cleared for driving I have to pass their pre-driving evaluation and then take the road test at the DMV.
That's right.
The same road test I once took as a high school senior, on the verge of turning 18 I have to take...again!
{Bummer}
So today when Mr. Three picked me up from OT I got into the car with my head hanging low.
Immediately he knew something was bothering me.
Finally I broke down.
I told him the news I had just gotten.
That he would be driving me around for a much longer time than I anticipated.
That getting myself back to driving wasn't going to be as easy as I thought.
That it would require me to pass test after test {and hopefully pass said tests}.
That the guilt I was having for not being able to do what I once was would be hanging around for a while longer.
That he would continue to have to work 6 days a week.
That none of the driving tests/examines/etc are covered by insurance and we would have to pay out of pocket  moving forward.
{Bummer}
After looking at him with tears in my eyes because I have already been out of work for almost 2 months he said to me, "We'll be okay."
He told me this will be more time off that I get to enjoy with him and our Little 3's :)
I love that he always find the joy in every situation.
I would never have expected this process to be so emotional.
But it has been.
One day can hold so many ups and downs, highs and lows.
I feel like an emotionally unstable pregnant lady {no offense, I've been there 3x's}
 The  frustration and feelings of defeat have been the worst part.
When we become Momma's we strap on that invisible Momma cape that makes us feel like we can conquer the world and nothing can hold us down.
After all did anything hold down our Momma's?
This momma is being held down- and I don't like it!
In fact I remember being in ICU the day after my stroke and thinking to myself, "Oh I'll be back to work in two weeks.  I won't be needing this disability paperwork for only missing two weeks of work."
Ha, little did I know...
But as frustrating as this whole process has been, especially when I feel like I am about to turn a corner and then am blindsided by a road block I know this too shall pass.
I know I have my husband, my family, and my faith.
I know there is a reason for all things.
That He has a plan already worked out for us, all of us.
I know that this is a drop in the bucket compared to what I am really here to accomplish.
Instead if saying {BUMMER} I'm saying {BE STILL}.

"Be Still and know that I am God." Psalm 46:10

I'm telling myself that He knows my plans.
Oh, does He know them!
I am telling myself to BE STILL through the hard times...
and to remember to lean into Him during these times.
I know this hasn't been the easiest road, but I know at the end of this long, winding, dark, scary road it will all be worth it. 

{source}

{source unknown}

I Believe

Sometimes we need to sit down and figure out who we are, where we come from, and what we believe in.  

Thanks to a new friend at Living in Yellow here is my list of I believe's! 

I believe:

Listening to the sound of waves is the best form of therapy.

I believe in the Lord.

I believe that family is one of the strongest bonds you can have.

I believe that as we get older the quality of friendships means more than the quantity of friendships we have.

I believe that tomorrow is never promised.

I believe that everyone deserves a second chance.

I believe in first impressions.

I believe in the working mother.

I believe the past is in your past for a reason-leave it there.

I believe sand between my toes is better than any pedicure I could ever pay for.

I believe in spending as much time outside as possible.

I believe every road block we have exists for a reason, and it is our job to push through said road block.

I believe in helping others.

I believe in taking time for yourself.

I believe in Pumpkin Spice Coffee and infinity scarfs.

I believe in as much social interaction, clubs, and activities for our children as possible.

I believe in breastfeeding.

I believe in an unlimited date plan-too bad AT&T doesn't feel the same!

I believe in schedules and routine.

I believe in accepting help from others.

I believe in serving others.

I believe in quiet time.

I believe in living debt-free.

I believe in ordering pizza on Friday's.

I believe in man/golf/football/baseball time for guys just as much as I believe in mani/pedi/hair/coffee time for girls.

I believe in a great hoagie.

I believe in breakfast for dinner.

I believe in coupons, groupons, and saving as much money as possible!

I believe in having emergency savings.

I believe in teaching our children to serve, help, give and be respectful.

I believe in people watching.

I believe in trying new styles of clothes & makeup.

I believe in enjoying a glass of vino with my husband.

I believe in open communication.

What do you believe in?

Coming together

Since school has begun hubby and I now have 6 hours with just one child...5 days a week.

Did you hear me?
In case you didn't let me repeat myself, {ahem}

5 days a week we only have 1 little guy from 9-3 :) :)

That means we've got a lot of time on our hands.
Sure we take the occasional family nap but we've also been doing

A LOT of shopping.
And doing things around the house we've been meaning to do for-EVER!

Lately we've been doing a lot of re-decorating to our house.

I mean we've only lived here for 5+ years,

so yah I think it's about time!

Little by little things are really starting to come together.

Here are a few of our recent re-do's.
 and if you remember this post about our kids room here is the final product too!
{I still can't believe I showed you that messy, messy room!}

Friendship

On our journey of life friendships come and go.

I find that as we get older, we get married, and have babies our friendships have more meaning.

They have more depth to them.

I'm realizing at this point in my life that I am wanting, and needing friendships that consist of 

quality rather than quantity.

I no longer have the desire to be the popular girl, have the most friends, or be accepted by everyone.

And believe me this is a huge feat for me!

I know who I am and what I stand for.

And hey it only took 27 years, right?!

I'm not looking for a best friend.

That's why I married my husband, Mr. Three :)

{Like the new nickname?}

These days I want friends who exemplify the same qualities I do.
I want them to have the {near-same} morals and standards for their children that I have for mine.
I want them to walk with and be believe in the Lord.
I want them to be two way streets and feel as though they are always looking out for my best interest,
and vice versa.
I want to know that we are both fully committed to the friendship and won't withhold anything or judge one another.
Friendships didn't always used to be this way.
In fact they used to be easy ;)

I'll let you all in on a little big secret

Something funny happens when you have kids...

your friends seem to fall off the face of the earth.

For me this was a gradual change.

One friend here, one friend there. 

I don't care how many people don't want to admit to it...it happens!

Perhaps it's because you have an all new set of priorities....

your priorities change to focus on this adorable new life you have created 

while your old friends are still focusing on themselves.

The reservations at the newest restaurant in town, what days they are going to the beach, and what guy they are waiting on to call them back.

You're suddenly consumed by night time feedings, # of poopy diapers, a sleep schedule {or just getting sleep in general!}, and fitting into your pre-pregnancy jeans!

Friendships change after you have children.

Sometimes for the better, sometimes not.

It's the friendships that get lost a long the way that hurt the most.

Maybe you've lost a friend or two recently because of expanding your family...

maybe because of something else...

maybe you lost a friend and your not even sure why.

Friendships just like any other relationships take work.

The real ones do anyway.

I'm talking about hard, dedicated work.

Blood, sweat, and tears.

From both sides.

When a friendship becomes one sided, or too much work

 one must step back to 

{think} and {pray}

where they want the relationship to go.

Is each person growing because of this friendship?

What do they want to gain from this relationship?

A life-long sister?

Someone they call each year to say Happy Birthday?

A future God-parent of their child?

Then there are the friendships that have become toxic.

Has this friendship somehow, someway become harmful to both or one person?

Are the feelings you are having mutual and able to be worked out

or is it past that point?

How do you know when to hold on and when to let go?

I want to share something with you.

 Today I ended a friendship of 7 years {off and on}.

Why?

This friend and I have been down this road many, many times of reevaluating our relationship.

We both brought our issues to the table,

like adults 

{probably for the first time}

and kept everything respectable.

There were calm reactions to unintentionally hurt feelings from both of us.

There was the understanding of miscommunication and how we could communicate better next time.

There was talk about moving forward .

There were displays of raw emotion, and apologies.

It seemed like we were on the right path to repair.

Like we were one stitch away from a new friendship.

But at the end of the day I was  no longer feeling fulfilled by this relationship.

The relationship had become more of a burden than a benefit.

It was bringing a heaviness to my heart,

and left me empty.

After praying over this friendship for weeks,

asking Him to show me the right way,

searching through my heart and soul for reasons to keep this friendship afloat

I just couldn't anymore.

I couldn't let this keep bringing me down.

I was tired of the sadness, the emptiness.

I always knew the friendship we would have today would never be the same as what we used to have and I was okay with that.

At least I thought I was okay with that 

because I thought we would be able to get close to what we used to have...

If  we both worked really really hard and gave it our all we could get very close to where we used to be...

but it turns out that we couldn't.

No matter how hard we tried.

You can't fit a square into a circle.

This new friendship wasn't working for either of us.

I couldn't hold onto the feelings of jealousy, animosity, and hurt.

I didn't like the heaviness this friendship had on me.

It was slowly turning me into someone I didn't want to be.

It wasn't fair for either of us.

It was time to let those feelings go.

Time to let her go.

And  I did.

There were no hurt feelings, no mean words exchanged.

Just a mutual understanding that this relationship was no longer working for both of us.

It was sad that something that used to once mean so much to me is now gone, 

probably forever.

Even though I have said goodbye to this friend I wish her a lifetime of happiness.

I will continue to pray for her everyday.

I pray that she finds peace and happiness in her life-for her own contentment.

I pray that she finds the healing she has been looking for for a long long time.

I pray that she finds Him to fulfill her, and not anybody or anything else.

I pray that she doesn't settle, because she is so much better than that.

There will always be a tiny scar on my heart with her name on it and I will look back on our time together and smile.

{source unknown}

Sunday

This weekend was spent 

trying new recipes, 

delighting in old ones, 

first day's of Sunday School, 

enjoying our church family,

 a leaking ceiling, 

a repairman,

a new big boy car seat,

 and a family dinner at our new table :)

How was your weekend?

Versatile Blogger Award, Woot Woot!!

Hey there!

Wanna hear some fabulous news?

B over at Feeling Bloggy nominated me for the Versatile Blogger Award!!!!!

How awesome & sweet is that?!

Way awesome & way sweet!

I am beyond thrilled...

so thanks B :)

I know this is a small victory in the grande scheme of things in the blogging world, but hey you gotta start somewhere right?!

Okay so here's how this award thingy works:

First head over and show some love to B at Feeling Bloggy for nominating yours truly!

Okay now that you've seen B's blog 

{and probably fallen in love with her fashion and writing style}

listen up!

 because in order to accept this award I have tell you 

7 facts about myself.

Let's face it that is so not.hard!

I love you guys and love sharing my life with you.

So without further ado here we go...

1. I can be either the worlds most productive person or the worlds laziest person!  
I might take an entire weekend and clean every single inch of the house or not clean for two weeks!  It depends on my mood.

2. I slept with a handmade baby blanket my grandmother made for me until I was 21 {no judging allowed!}

3. As long as its not 20 below zero outside I absolutely love the outdoors!  I could sit outside soaking up the sun, listening to the birds while reading a good book every.single.day of my life.

4. I have a slight coffee addiction. 

 Like 5 or 6 cups a day {but who's counting?}especially when there are seasonal favors like pumpkin spice in the fall :)

5. I want to adopt a child.  

This has been on my heart for many years and the more I develop my Christianity the heavier these messages have been tugging at my heart.  

Little signs and feeling here and there, giving me hope!

I haven't figured out all of the details yet but I know one day  we're destined to make our family bigger.

6. I tend to over use exclamation points!  

Sometimes I find myself writing a post and while I proof reading it I imagine a fellow reader thinking to themselves, "Jeeze sounds like this gal's all jacked up on Mountain Dew"...which I can't stand BTW :)  

I try to scale back on them as much as possible, I really do, but sometimes I'm just a happy, peppy, full of life person.

What can I say?!!!!!!!

7.  I also have a slight obsession with vacuuming.  

As in I will vaccuum our house at the mere sight of a speck of a crumb and I absolutely love the noise the vaccuum makes while it's sucking up things from the floor!  

Weird I know!

 but I love hearing our house actually being cleaned

 {if that makes any sense?!}

 Vacuuming is probably my favorite part of "cleaning" our house.  

I also have a slight obsession with brushing my teeth- but that's for another post!

Well thanks for listening and hanging in there with me!

I hope you all learned something new about me, and feel free to comment at the bottom with a fact {or 2} about yourself too :)

Here are my nominations:

1.  Lily White

2. The Duty Family

and for the award rules:
1. nominate up to 15 fellow bloggers who are relatively new to blogging.
2. let the nominated bloggers know that they have been nominated for this award.
3. share 7 random facts about yourself.
4. thank the blogger who has nominated you in a blog post back to their link.
5. add the Versatile Blogger Award picture to your post.

I stand up for my Grandmother

Today's post is going to be a little heavy on the heart.

Okay, maybe I lied.

It's going to be a lot heavy on the heart...

especially mine.

Inspired by Brie over at Sophistifunk today I am sharing my story about standing up to cancer.

This is the story of my grandmother.

Like any other grandmom she had the sweetest, most gentle, kind soul.

She never asked for anything, needed anything, or wanted anything.

She was always doing for others, rather than herself.

She never raised her voice, always had cookies and Tastycakes at her house, and was always there for us. 

In fact she played a huge part in raising me, and walked me down the aisle at our wedding.

A year and a half after losing my grandfather we found out my grandmother had a tumor in her brain and more in her lungs.

This was in June.

She went through all of the radiation treatments her doctors instructed, and of course being the proud woman she has always been known to be, decided to cut her hair extremely short for when it began falling out...

which eventually it did.

As summer became fall and fall turned to winter the doctors realized the radiation wasn't doing much for her.

She was already in frail health and the cold of the winter wasn't helping.

She was sent home and started receiving in-home care from physical therapy and occupational therapy to keep her mind and body as sharp as possible.

Shortly after she started hospice care.

Hospice is a nice word for "keeping someone as comfortable as possible until their homecoming."

Grandmom's homecoming was on February 15, 2010.

Cancer took away one of the most solid, influential people in my life.

Am I mad?

Darn right I am!

Am I sad?

Beyond words.

Do I miss her and wish she was never taken from us?

Every.single.day.

So as I sit here with tears welled up in my eyes because I know my children won't be able to experience my grandmother like I did I pray that no one ever has to go through what she had to.

I pray that one day there is a cure for all cancer.

I pray that you too will stand up to Cancer.

Side Braid

A few weeks ago my hair became that length where a girl needs to make the decision

to keep growing it

 or cut it.

My first thought was to cut it.

Then I began seeing all of these cute hairstyles and thought to myself...

if I don't cut it I could totally try them!

And that is what I have been doing.

Most days being a 20 something- momma of three-who doesn't have very much time to focus on my outer beauty makes it hard to figure out what my sense of style is.

So far even doing the smallest something to my hair {ahem} the side braid gives it that extra little umph, and that is enough for this momma!

Plus, this is a hairstyle that is manageable on pretty much any hair you wake up with :)

Come follow me via Instagram 

{threelittlebirdsblog}

New New New!

Remember that makeover I promised last week?

Well it's HERE!!

What do you think?!!

I am absolutely head over heels in love with it.

I think the colors, style, and font depicts my personality amazingly!

Thanks to a Saucy blogger friend of mine I contacted Laura at Howdy Girl and she was able to make my vision a reality...

and sometimes that's not the easiest with me!

I mean she hit the nail on the head, and was so polite, kind, and more than willing to explain a few things along the way to me :)

In fact, I kinda felt spoiled!

So thank you Aunie and Laura for re-vamping this little blog of mine, and making it a more enjoyable, colorful, full of life place to come!

Now do me a quick favor.

Look to your right...see those two super cute buttons?

 I am officially ready to start button swapping! 

I'd love to swap with ya!

Feel free to shoot me an email here and we can work out all the details :)

Thanks!

Where were you?

"Where were you when the world stopped turning on that September day?
Were you in the yard with your wife and children
Or working on some stage in L.A.?
Did you stand there in shock at the sight of that black smoke
Risin' against that blue sky?
Did you shout out in anger, in fear for your neighbor
Or did you just sit down and cry?"

-Alan Jackson

September 11, 2001.

11 years ago.

I know exactly where I was.

11th grade honors English class, and sitting next to my best friend Danielle.

I will never forget.

I even remember what I was wearing.

Jeans and a short sleeve dark blue & light blue striped shirt.

An announcement came over the loud speaker from our Principal.

 The World Trade Center in NYC had just been hit.
They didn't have any other details.

The lesson came to a halt as our teacher took a small grey radio out of the closet and turned it on.

 We all gathered around and just sat there.

Listening...
 and wondering,
why?

Why would someone do this to America?
Our America.

Our country.

Why would somebody want to hurt and kill all those innocent people?

Who would want to do that?

Before class had ended there was second announcement from our principal.

The second World Trade Center was hit.

Again?

Another one?

I remember feeling completely vulnerable.

There were bad people out there who wanted to take our country down and so far they had succeeded.

What's next?

I started thinking of all the major cities in the United States.

Chicago. Miami. San Francisco. Phoenix. Philadelphia.

Philadelphia.

Half my family lives in Philadelphia!

Were they okay? 

Were they safe?

 Were they worried?

What was going through their heads?

Oh how my heart ached for my family.


11 years later I will never forget. 
11 years ago bad people did bad things to our country.
Plain and simple.
This was the first time I ever experienced heartache, pain, and being this vulnerable.
There were so many unknowns in the days, weeks, and months following this attack.
Were we protected?
Was it going to happen again?
Who and why did this to us?

Everyday I am so thankful for our freedom. 
I am thankful that we have people willing to fight and protect us.
Everyday.
We live by an Aviation Tech center so there are always military planes flying over.
When I see them it brings me right back to 9/11/01.
They are protecting us and they have a family too.
A thank you for making the commitment of putting themselves at risk to protect our lives.
Seeing a person in uniform these days has taken on a deeper meaning as well.
I'm overcome with a sense of gratitude. 
Hearing the stories of fathers, mothers, brothers, and sisters being reunited with their loved ones has a special place in my heart.
 My husband's uncle was in Iraq for his 1 year tour.
His other uncle worked in Manhattan the day the WTC was attacked and had to walk all the way home.
He went to school with children who became orphans that day because one or both parents worked in the WTC.
So this has really hit home for us.

So now, 11 years later, when we look back at this day it takes on a whole new meaning.  
We lived through this but our children will live to learn about it.
This is now in their history books at school.  
Just as we learned about the battle at Gettysburg, World War II, and Pearl Harbor they will be learning about September 2011.
I'm sure they will come home from school today telling us about the bad people, the brave people, and the people who lost their lives.
I think it's important that we remember, and educate our children about these days in America's history.
Where were you when the world stopped turning?

Schedules

Are you a scheduler?  

I am.

Do you like routine?

I do.

I wasn't so much sans kids, I was more of a fly by the seat of my pants kinda gal.

However with 3 kids there is just no way around scheduling.

 I love love love schedules....

and routine!

Honestly, I think my kids like it too.

They seem to do best when they know what's next, or what to expect rather than just waking up and being able to do whatever they want when they want.

Our unscheduled days seem to bring the most chaos, tears, and bring out the worst from every one.of.us.

Don't get me wrong I can handle spur of the moment events, I'm just not a big fan!

I like routine.

I like to have an yummy & nutritious afternoon snack ready for my kids when they come through the door after school.

I like our bath, book, and bed routine we've stuck with since our oldest was 2 :)

This is just what works for our family.

What works your yours?

P.S. Enjoy this cute little cartoon I found that I think is just HIL-AR-IOUS!

{Source}

You're gonna miss this

Your gonna miss this.

That's what my husband said to me as I gave him a not-so-nice look after he made an annoying noise while swallowing his drink.
I made my husband feel horrible all because he swallowed too loudly.  Seriously?!
I've never been a fan of bodily noises {of any kind} but I tend to take this out the worst on my husband.
After he said that, time stopped.  I felt like I got sucker punched in the stomach.

This happens frequently in our house.

Little things my husband does that irk me.

Dirty looks given to him in return.

If I'm being completely honest, these are real things that happen in our house.
It's not always glitz, glamour, and rosy cheeks!
I'm not always perfect.

Does this happen with your significant other?  

I'm sure there are little things your s/o does that make you crazy too.

Maybe he never drinks a full glass of anything that is poured, or puts his dishes in the dishwasher.

Or leaves an empty roll of toilet paper...all the time.

Maybe he snores too loudly at night?

Whatever the case is why does it irk us?
Why do we let little things like this eat at us?
I promise this is going somwhere just hang in there with me through this post.
I promise it'll be worth it.

My husband has never said those 4 words to me before, "You're gonna miss this."

Tonight it really hit home for me.

Wow!  One day I will miss this!

There will be a day when he won't be around and I'll be eating by myself in complete silence because he is not there to make his little noises.

There will be a day when he's not around to leave balled up dirty socks around the house.

The day will come when ESPN isn't on our tv's 24/7.

All of those annoying acts will only be a memory...
and that my friends is scary...like take my breath away scary.
Can't even fathom that day in time scary, and instant tears scary.

Today these things bother me.

Today they are a nuisance.

Something that I cannot stand.

But one day I am gonna miss them.

One day, if it's just me by myself, I will miss him.

Everything about him.
His smell, his clothes, his face, his child-like smiles, his feet, his touch, his kind soul, his deep brown eyes.

Even the noises he made that I was once not too happy about...

and the balled up dirty socks around the house.

Tonight I learned something. 

This stopped me in my tracks.

It was like coming face to face with an 18 wheeler at 70 mph.

I don't want that.

I don't want to remember being nasty to my husband because of little noises he makes, or habits he has that make me cringe.

Who cares?

Is it really that big of a deal?

No.

I realize this is something I need to work on.

I need to be thankful that my husband is here for another dinner with me, that he walked through the door after working and driving home at 3am, that he is always willing and ready to change a dirty diaper, or take the kids to the grocery store with him.
Or that he can tell when this momma needs a morning to sleep in, or just a few minutes to myself.

I know I'm becoming long-winded and your probably wondering where I am going with all of this!

Titus 3:2 says

 "to speak evil of no one, to avoid quarreling, to be gentle, and to show perfect courtsey toward all people."

This is something that we are called to do.

To be gentle, to show courtesy towards others, especially our husbands.

Do something for me-today.

The next time when someone does something that bothers you think to yourself:
One day I'm gonna miss this.

Remember that we are called to be gentle, always. Not sometimes.  Always.

See if that changes your perspective on things, because I know it changed mine.

P.S. Thanks for hanging in there with me through this loooooong post!