Hope everyone enjoyed the long weekend. We didn’t have much going on around here and, actually, it was a nice change of pace. Mariana was fighting off a cold, so we basically laid low and had family time at home. The girls had a play date yesterday with a friend’s kids and they had a blast!! Her daughter is in Macey’s class and her son is also in kindergarten, like Mariana, so it was perfect. I need to be better about planning play dates for the girls because they LOVE them and it’s always fun to have friends play over here.

I think y’all should check out Three Little Pixies on Etsy. Liz has some amazing and beautiful hand-made keepsakes, y’all. I’m angling to win this “You are My Sunshine” necklace on her Facebook page. When Macey was a tiny baby (wasn’t that just yesterday?), I used to try to sing “You Are My Sunshine” to her and I would choke up and cry. I just love that sweet song and it took me quite awhile to be able to sing it to her without being a sniffling mess. (Note: I’m not getting any contest entries by posting this here, but I did post on FB, Pinterest and Twitter to enter the contest. I just so happen to adore her creations, so I wanted to share the link.)

Not much else going on today. It’s somewhat of a dreary day here,  but at least it’s not frigid or snowing, so…no complaints from me.

Have a great remainder of this Tuesday, y’all…
Kelly

Now, on to today’s blog post. Natural consequences.

Mickey and I have been working on teaching the girls about natural consequences. We believe that this is a good method of teaching valuable life lessons – when taught within reason, of course. For instance, we are teaching them that if they don’t eat what they have for meals, they will probably be pretty hungry when the next meal rolls around again. This teaches a few things, actually. One, Mama is not a short-order cook and this is not Waffle House. If you don’t eat what I’m serving, well, you’re going to have to wait until the next meal to see if you like that one better. We’re also teaching the girls how blessed they are to have three good meals (not to mention snacks) per day. This seems to be working well because although neither of our daughters are what I would label as “adventurous eaters”, they will definitely try what we are having at mealtimes. To be honest, I don’t cook much of anything that is extravagant anyway. So, when I prepare a meal, I expect them at try it and I always make things that I truly believe our whole family will like. If they choose not to eat much of it, then they know that they won’t get anything until it’s time to eat again. To me, that’s a good natural consequence. They certainly won’t starve, right? It’s all about keeping things within reason. We wouldn’t turn them loose into a crowded parking lot in some ridiculous effort to teach them the natural consequence of THAT, but we will certainly use natural consequences when appropriate.

As simplistic as this seems, as I was thinking recently about natural consequences, it occurred to me that God lets us operate on natural consequences as well. The choices we make that are of this world warrant us the rewards or consequences of the world. If we choose to do that which is right and faithful, the reward is our’s. If we choose to deviate from the path of faithfulness, we suffer the consequences. Pretty simple, right? I think that on the surface, it seems simple, but, like anything with faith, it goes far deeper. Because God allows us free will, we have these choices to make and we aren’t always going to make the right ones. Try as we might, we are all bound to fail in our humanness. It just happens. Just like we do with our children, God allows us to experience natural consequences in life so that we might learn and grow. However, while we are training our children to eventually be independent of us, God is always calling us to drawer nearer to Him and depend more fully on Him. Even when we fail Him, God is always faithful to us. It’s out of love for us that He allows us to make choices and give us opportunities to learn and grow from the choices we make.

Using natural consequences as a parenting tool is a model that we feel will benefit our girls in many ways. We want to instill an anchor of faith for them so that as they grow and make choices in their lives, they are equipped to make faithful decisions for themselves. This won’t always be the case, but as long as we have taught them well, they will have a faith basis on which to grow and learn. So, while it starts with something as simple as choosing to eat a meal and be thankful for it, hopefully this will bloom into life lessons that carry them through with faith.

Blessings,
Kelly

Direct your children onto the right path,
and when they are older, they will not leave it.

Proverbs 22:6

“ I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Matthew 28:20 NASB

Today, I was listening to Hillsong United’s Aftermath CD. (Side note: if you don’t have it, get it. It’s amazing.) The song Aftermath was on and I heard certain parts of it with new clarity today.  The whole song is powerful to me, but the part that really struck a chord with me today were the lyrics “And, I know you’re with me. Yes, I know you’re with me here…” 

Who else out there is like me and knows in your heart that God is truly always with us, but, yet, we don’t really stop to think about that throughout our days? God is as present as the very air we breathe and sometimes, I shamefully admit, I don’t embrace His presence as constant. When times are hard, I’m known to rely on His presence more. Our family went through some mighty struggles in September of last year with the loss of my step-dad, my step-mom starting chemo and my granddaddy having major heart surgery. I can say with absolute conviction that especially during those times I relied greatly on the presence of God for sustaining grace and strength. But, why is it during those times when I embrace Him the most? I am not so foolish as to think that I don’t need Him every second of every day. So, why then, do I often live without acknowledging His presence in my every day life? I’m ashamed to admit that I go through this, but, frankly, I do. Instead of acting like God is right with me with every breath I take, I tend to fall into the needing of Him in tragedy rather than seeking His guidance in every day. And, that’s a staggering realization that I know I need to work through because I know for certain that God desires a relationship with me just as He desires a personal relationship with all that are His. This relationship shouldn’t be one-sided or one where I call out to Him only when I am faced with trials and burdens. I should walk with Him daily, so that His presence shines through me and into all that I do.

My desire is to have a closer and more personal relationship with my Savior. I am always a believer, but just believing isn’t living out the calling God has for my life. He has set me apart and that’s how I know I should live. I can only do that through close connection with Him. If I find that I am not feeling as connected with God, it is always me that has moved. God is faithful, steadfast and true. He is unchanging and everlasting. While I am humanly flawed, I know He’s patient and that I’m always a work in progress.

While it seems simple to say that I know God is with me daily, my prayer and goal is that I would live this out in my life. He’s not just the God of comfort, but also the God of guidance and truth. I can only achieve my full purpose in life through His grace and I can only do that through connection with Him. I’m thankful that I’ve been convicted, yet again, of how to better live for Him and through Him.

Amen.

I decided that this year I’d rather set goals for myself that to come up with a list of resolutions. I thought that 12 goals for 2012 would be attainable, but challenging in all the right ways. As I started to think about these goals, I thought it would be really cool to come up with goals that challenged me and helped me grow as a person in three ways – mind, body and spirit. So, here’s my list:

Mind

• Read more - I absolutely love to read and I always have.  Lately, I haven’t done as much reading as I like to and I’d like that to change in 2012. I won’t set a number for myself, but I will definitely make sure I read more. There are classics I’d like to read in addition to more recent books. I can’t wait!  I’d like to share book reviews on the blog as well.
• Photography – I have really gotten away from having a camera in my hands like I used to and I miss it. Photography is something I enjoy, but a variety of things have pulled me away from doing much with it the last several months. I’ll remedy that in 2012.
• Back to School – I started taking online classes in 2010 and finished two semesters (with three As and one B). This school year I have taken time off from my own classes to focus on being PTA co-president at the girls’ school in addition to other commitments. So, this will come later in this calendar year, but I will get back in school again for myself.
• Blog More Often – It goes without saying that this little blog got neglected for far too long. I’ll work on that in 2012.

Body

• Improve overall fitness-  I’d like to drop a few pounds, sure, but rather than focusing on any numbers, I really just want to focus on the big picture of better fitness. This means getting to the Y more, running more, etc.
• Try new fitness classes – I really REALLY like going to Zumba. It is so much fun! So, I want to do that more regularly, but I’d also like to try some other classes and find another one or two to do regularly. Spin has always intimidated me for some reason, so it’s on my list to try. Might as well go for it, right?
• Run a Half Marathon – Right now, the plan is to sign up for the Country Music Half Marathon in Nashville. I’m pretty sure that’s the one I want to be my first half, but we’ll see. At some point this year, I definitely want to run a half, so training has to start STAT.
• Keep my fingernails in good shape – This seems like a simple thing, but let me say that habits are HARD to break. I’ve always been a nervous nail-biter and it’s a habit I detest. Gross. I have grown my nails out many times, but when they start to break I give up. Well, they are growing out again now and I plan to get semi regular manicures to keep them up and looking nice.

Spirit

• Read my Bible daily – I know that being in the Word is one of the best things I can do for my faith walk. I shamefully admit that too many days go past without me picking up the Bible. So, I plan to read my Bible daily. I have also purchased One Year Daily Insights (co-authored by our awesome pastor, Ike Reighard) and I think that will be a wonderful daily read in addition to my Bible.
• Maintain a Family Thankfulness Journal – We want to teach our girls to find things to be thankful for each day. We are blessed beyond measure, even on days when things don’t go quite right, and it will be a nice reminder to think of something each day that we can all offer thanks for.
• Be a Giving Family – We want to be the kind of family that finds ways to give whether it’s through our time, talents or finances. There are many ways to do this and I want us to explore ways to give through this year. One idea off the top of my head is instead of birthday presents from friends at the girls’ parties, we can collect books and toys for the children’s hospitals in our area. We are also praying about becoming a foster family. There are many ways to give and we want to live that out.
• Volunteer Through Our Church – I have been wanting to volunteer in the church nursery for ages and due to various circumstances, I haven’t gotten to…yet. But, I will. Our church is very active in our community and I want us to find ways, individually, and as a family to work through the church to connect and get to work.

So, those are my 12 goals for this year. I definitely thing some challenges are presented, but I feel up to the challenge. I can only see how attaining these goals will work to the good in my life. I’ll post and update on progress and such.

Here’s to a great 2012…
Kelly

I have recently taking up running. I should say right off the bat that prior to late February of this year, I have never really been a runner.  I made feeble attempts at Couch to 5K in the past, but I never stayed with it then. I had literally never run a mile straight.  Actually, I can’t recall a time when I ever ran any distance at all. Running just wasn’t my thing. I used to tease and say “I’m not running if nothing is chasing me.” I meant it. I had no interest in running.  Oh, I knew it was fantastic exercise, but I was just sure it wasn’t for me. After all, my lungs didn’t like to cooperate with running and I could always work out in other ways, right? The excuses were plentiful and mostly legit.

I can’t say exactly what inspired me because, frankly, I don’t know WHY, but I told Mickey in late February that if he found a 5k for me in April that I would train and run it. He took me at my word and found a local 5k for me. The date? April 2nd. When I first told him I’d run an April race, I was thinking late April, naturally. But, no…he found one the very first Saturday of the month.  I knew I had to make good on my word, so I got to work.

I knew I wanted to go use the “Couch to 5k” training program, but I wanted it to be more interactive. So, I purchased the Interval Run app for my iPhone. This app has a few training programs,  C25K being one of them. Mickey has an arm band for iPhone, so I was able to wear my iPhone and play the app at the same time.  This is an excellent app, in my opinion. I could play my own music playlist in the background and run the app over it. The app would break in and tell me when to walk/run at each interval. That way I didn’t have to keep up with time on a watch – I could just focus on running. The app also keeps a record of runs.  I highly recommend it!

When I first started training, it was HARD. As in, running for one minute straight was extremely difficult. I dreaded when I would have to run two minutes straight and then MORE. I didn’t look forward to the early training runs at all, but I kept plugging away at them.  My friend Curi ran with me for my second training run and I know she had to think that I was a total wimp, but, to her credit,  she pushed me and didn’t let me stop. Due to crazy schedules, I wasn’t able to run with her again for a couple of weeks and in that time she could definitely see marked improvement with my running. By that point, I was up to five minutes in a row. FIVE minutes. Woah. Okay, that seems silly now, but back then it seemed pretty incredible. When I was able to break five minutes, I somehow knew I could go all the way with the training.

At this point, I’m due for a confessional. I dropped the C25k program about mid-way through. It’s a great program and I was doing well on it. However, I just felt ready to push for more.  I got on the treadmill at the Y one day and ran a nice easy mile and a half. It wasn’t fast nor strenuous, but I did it! I was so proud! I knew then that I could start pushing for more distance. So, I did. Curi and I went out to the Chattahoochee River one Friday for me to attempt two miles. This was a first for me because I had only run the mile and a half on the treadmill earlier in the week and I surely had not run any distance outside. But, we went and I was determined. Guess what?! I did it!! Curi was so encouraging along the way and I made it!! This was just over three weeks before my first 5k, so it really bolstered my confidence that I’d be able to tackle the whole 5k prior to race day. WOO HOO!! (Note: It’s not advisable to rush training.  This blog is the abridged version of my training story. I took it easy and made sure I could do this without stress. C25K is an excellent program and I can’t recommend it highly enough. This is my own opinion, not paid for it.)

I won’t candy-coat anything, I still didn’t enjoy running while in the process, but I was all about the “runner’s high”/energy burst afterward. For that matter, I’m still mostly that way. I don’t exactly love pounding the pavement, but I am all about the accomplishment and energy. I can definitely tell that my fitness level has increased a great deal already. I am just amazed.

Back to my training story. Mickey and I went back out to the river two Fridays before the race. I wanted to push for three miles. Well, more accurately, he thought I could push for three and I decided to go for it. It was not at all easy, admittedly, but I made it! I did three miles for the very first time on Friday, March 18th!! It wasn’t quite the 3.1 mile 5k distance, but I was darn close and I was SUPER happy with my progress!! I was also completely amazed at how far I had come in a few short weeks.  Running a minute straight had been a challenge when I started and with training I was able to finally put three miles under my shoes. Amazing!! Mickey and I decided to run the race course the week prior to my first 5k. So, on Friday, March 25th, we set out to run the course. We had driven it and I knew it was hilly, so I was a little bit intimidated. I am all about pacing myself and Mickey is gracious enough to pace with me, so we set out on the course on Friday morning and I ran the whole thing! My time just over 42 minutes. Not speedy, but I wasn’t going for speed – I was going for completion. SUCCESS!!!

I have heard people talk about having “bad runs” and I felt very fortunate in my early training that I hadn’t had a really bad run yet. Hard ones, sure, but no BAD ones. That changed the Wednesday just before race. I set out to run a 2.5 mile loop near our house and I just bombed. I wound up walking quite a bit of it. It was just bad. I couldn’t get into the run physically nor mentally. Ugh. So, my first bad run was officially under me at that point.

Saturday, April 2nd was race day. Mickey and I were running it together and my friend Melody had signed up too. My first race. Several friends had told me that the adrenaline on race day is pretty amazing and that it would carry me. All I can say is — YES, they were correct. Lining up at the start line was pretty exciting. I knew I had to reign myself in and not just take off based on surging adrenaline, so that’s what I did. Mickey stayed with me and we ran a nice smooth pace the whole race. Melody was ahead of us, but we could see her the whole time.  My official time was just over 39 minutes. I had shaved off THREE minutes from my time the week prior. WOW!!! I knew then that I was hooked. I had accomplished my two race goals – run the whole time and don’t finish last. I had literally gone from the couch to a 5k in a few short weeks. Amazing!!

Mickey and I have a goal now to run one 5k per month. We have been scouring Run Georgia‘s website to find races in our general area. There are great ones happening all over Georgia, and especially the metro area, so it’s easy to find ones to run together. We weren’t planning to run another 5k in April, but some of our Sunday School friends invited us to join them at a race last weekend and we did that one too. The course was nice and flat, beside the river, and I turned in a time of 36:53 officially. My time was better than my previous best. Sweet!! Now we are looking for other races to run each month. Exciting!

Mickey entered us into the lottery to try to get Peachtree Road Race numbers and WE GOT IN! Both of us!! So, now I am officially training for a 10k. The Peachtree is a famous Atlanta 10k that takes place every July 4th. I used to say people were crazy to get out and run in that Georgia heat, but it looks like I’m joining their ranks now. No one ever said I wasn’t crazy, did they?! I’m looking forward to that huge race. I know already that I won’t be racing for time, but more for the experience.

My journey into running has been a success story. I’m not exaggerating when I say I never thought I’d be a runner. I never really had any interest in it, honestly. Mickey has been a runner for years and years,  but I never thought I would be too.  I’m still not at the point where I “love” it, but I’m enjoying it more all the time. I’m also incredibly proud of my accomplishments. I am just in awe at how God created this body to respond in strength. When things get tough during a run, I remember Philippians 4:13 – “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” AND Hebrews 12:1 – “let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.” These really inspire me and push me to keep going. It also helps to have great music in my ear.

If you’ve ever thought about running, but didn’t think you could do it, I encourage you to try. The first few weeks are tough, I’ll admit that, but it’s worth it.  Don’t give up. Give the Couch to 5k program a shot. Try the Interval Run app if you want something a little more interactive. If I can do this, anyone can. I’m convinced.

Blessings,

Kelly

I won’t even attempt to cover all the ground I’ve missed since the last blog update. That would take way too long. What I will do is recount the last 21 days because that has been how long it’s been since I was on Facebook or Twitter. Our pastor called our church into a 21-day fast, so my fast was social media (FB and Twitter) and also Target. Yes, Target. What can I say — I like that place entirely too much. The fast ended today with communion, so I figured that getting my blog back on track was a good way to reenter into social media.

Here’s just a bit of what went on over the last 21-days — in no particular order:

• I saw the beautiful execution of “Celebration of the Arts” day at Macey’s school come to fruition. Since we didn’t have a chair for this event, I took it on and had some amazing help from our wonderful principal and also some fantastic volunteers. The big day was Friday, April 1st and it could not have gone any better.  It was a full day of artistic immersion for our students and I am thrilled that it went so well.
• I ran my first 5k! I told Mickey back in February that if he’d find a 5k for me in April, I’d train and run it. Now, here’s a confession – prior to this, I was not a runner. As in, when I started the “Couch to 5k” training, it was all I could do to run one minute straight. Seriously. But, I did it. I stuck with the training and I ran my very first 5k on Saturday, April 2nd. I had two goals – run the whole thing and don’t finish last.  I accomplished both!! Eight days prior to the race, I ran the course in 42 minutes and change. On race day, I ran it in 39 minutes and change. A good three minutes better than the week before. WOO HOO! I have to say, that accomplishment felt great! (Look for a post soon on how I got into running. I think that’s a story worth posting.)
• Prior to Celebration and the race, our family (with the lucky exception of Mickey) dealt with a wretched stomach virus. Mariana first, then me and then Macey. It was bad and I’ll spare details. Macey got it the worst and actually wound up needing IV fluids and anti-nausea meds at the ER. Fortunately, we all made a good rebound and Mickey never caught it. Thank you, God, for healing!
• We spent a wonderful week at the beach for spring break. Okay, I’ll admit — I wish it had been a touch warmer, but it was still a beautiful week. Any time at the beach is good time.
• I continued to plug away at my two online college classes. I’m working on my degree in Early Childhood Education – after all these years. I’m only taking online courses and not many at a time, but I’ll get there. This semester hasn’t been great. I have one class I really like and one I really don’t.  I’m also crazy busy these days, so it’s been more of a struggle to focus on school. Let’s just say that I’ll be glad when this semester is done and I just want to get out of the one class and stay out.
• We are dog-sitting for Misty, the cutest dog EVER. She belongs to a dear friend who had to travel unexpectedly and has been a most gracious house guest. I think Misty has even managed to convince Mickey that having a dog isn’t such a bad thing. Hmmmmm. We’ll see how that pans out, I guess.
• I ran my second 5k this past weekend. I didn’t think I’d do one again so soon, but some of our Sunday School friends mentioned a race they were doing and encouraged us to join them. So, we did. It was a cool morning, but not cold.  Great running conditions.  I turned in a time of 36:53 officially (36:43 by Mickey’s watch since we were 10 seconds off the starting line) which is better than my previous best.  It helps that the course was flat. When we got to the 3mile marker and I could see the clock at the finish line, I broke into a sprint to get in under 37 minutes. It worked.
• Mickey and I went to the “Emotional Traffic” tour concert last night with our friends Ali and Chase. It was awesome! We saw The Band Perry, Luke Bryan and Tim McGraw. Luke Bryan is from my hometown and was in the same grade with my brother in school, so it is great to see him chasing his dream and being so successful. Tim, as always, put on a great show!! We are now looking forward to the Kenny Chesney “Goin’ Coastal” tour on May 20th.

I guess that’s a pretty good recap. More has gone on, of course, but I don’t want to get too long-winded or boring.

I’ll post again soon. Hold me to it. Call me out if I don’t. Better yet, make me run an extra half mile for every day I miss. Wait. No, let’s not be extreme.  ;)

Blessings,

Kelly

Isn’t she pretty? I have never had a red vehicle prior to this one. I should admit that when we were initially starting to look, I didn’t think I wanted a red one. Figures that it’s the one I wound up with, right? But, actually, I’m loving it. It’s a nice red. It’s not blaring, but is nice and fun. And, hey, you can definitely pick it out in a parking lot.

Our poor old van was getting on up in years and miles and since we do a lot of traveling, we knew it was time to take the plunge and trade it in. I have to admit, it was somewhat bittersweet. We got our van a couple of months before Mariana was born. Prior to that, I had been driving what was my dream vehicle at the time – a taupe colored Jeep Grand Cherokee. Man, I loved that Jeep. I had always wanted one and we found a honey of a deal on a used one when we moved back from Alabama. But, with an almost three year old and a baby on the way, a mini van made more sense at that time. So, when the Jeep started to have issue after issue, we knew it was time to trade.  We found our van at CarMax and made the trade. I  will say with all honesty that going from the Jeep to the Windstar was a great move for us. The ease of getting the girls in and out of the van was incredible. Having two auto sliding doors? LOVED it! Everything about the van fit just right for having two little ones. And, for right at four years I was a mini van mama even though I never imagined that I would be one.

Of late, the van had started to show signs of her age. We knew that we were approaching the “now or almost never” stage for trading because we wanted to make sure that at least some value was preserved in the van. So, we’ve been watching rebates/cash incentives and finally contacted our favorite “Ford guy” late last week. He called yesterday to say that he had an Explorer for us, so we took our sweet old van in for a trade. Like I said, it was bittersweet. That was our first family-of-four vehicle. We brought Mariana home in that van. It was time for it to go, but the memories were sweet.  We went and picked up our new truck yesterday and we all love it. The girls think it’s great. It’s so nice to drive also. I love that it’s roomy, but it doesn’t feel like I’m driving a tank. I’m so happy and feel so blessed to have this new vehicle and can’t wait to make many fun memories along the miles.

~Kelly

Spring is taking its sweet time in gracing us with its permanent presence. The last few days have been chilly. I know I keep saying this, but I am SOOOO ready for warm weather to get here and stay. We are leaving for the beach three weeks from today and I keep holding out hope that it’ll be nice and warm by that time, at least. We are ready to soak up some sun, play in the sand and just have a really relaxing vacation at the beach. I cannot wait!!

Hope everyone has a great day. Rise and shine and give God the glory.

(*I know it’s not officially spring yet, but I’m done with winter, so for me it’s SPRING. )

In other news, our church’s HUGE consignment sale takes place this weekend. I always look forward to this sale. It’s held twice a year and I participate both as a seller and a buyer. Mickey and I are going up to the church later this morning to drop off the clothes I have ready for the sale. I enjoy getting money back, especially after shopping, but I have to admit that hanging and tagging clothes is NOT my favorite thing ever. At least it’s done. YAY! I will shop the pre-sale this evening and I can hardly wait. So much fun! Via this sale, our church receives 30% of all sales to go towards missions and I just love that. It makes me feel good knowing I can get some money back AND contribute to missions. What a great sale!!

Happy Thursday,

Kelly

I am not normally so “weather fixated”, but it’s been a cold winter by Georgia standards and this Southern girl is more than ready for some good ole sunshine. Today it’s cold (again) and we have rain and snow mixed. Mickey is bummed because our forecast originally called for up to 4″ of snow, but now we are maybe going to get a dusting or possibly an inch of snow. That’s nothing as far as he is concerned. As far as I am concerned, it’s more than enough. Brrrr. I just may hibernate today. It sounds so appealing, actually. I woke up at 1am and was awake for at least two and a half hours last night, so I’m tired and crawling back in bed to hibernate this cold day away sounds pretty good right about now. I won’t do that, but I just may sneak in a nap sometime today.

In other news, it’s “spring” picture day at Macey’s school. Oh, the irony of this crazy weather. Spring pictures in long sleeves – go figure. She looks adorable, I must admit.

I have to give a shout-out to Southern Savers because after hearing Jenny speak the other night, I’ve been back on the coupon wagon. I saved a LOT at Publix yesterday, so I am geeked up on coupon love again. Woo hoo!!

Off to do something productive around here. I think.

Happy Tuesday,
Kelly