Accomplishment!

Today has been a good day. I woke up at 5:30 (almost as early as I've planned), spent time with Jesus, made school lunches and breakfast, took my vitamins, finished today's chores plus extra and I even had the energy and positive attitude to go grocery shopping! That seems like it shouldn't be a big deal but it's huge for me. I don't like leaving the house if I don't have to in winter. So I feel productive, joyful, relieved, at peace. There are still a few hours left but if something were to take me away from my routine I wouldn't dispair. I must remember how good it feels to bless my husband and children by giving them a clean and organized home. No joke, it feels amazing.

Acclimating

Today is Day One of my resolution to glorify God in my life. I woke up three hours late and am on the computer instead of finishing my chores so I'm right on track. The good thing is that I don't feel like I've failed already or that I've bitten off more than I can chew. I just know that these changes start with me and it's not going to be easy. It'll be fulfilling and satisfying, but it will be work. I didn't give up first thing this morning, I just checked my chart and started ticking off the chores as they worked in the timeframe that I have. I might have to rearrange or skip a couple things today but I'm working toward my daily goal and I have tomorrow to do it all over again. Each day is new and fresh, filled with grace and mercy. I wake up each day a sinner and am received as blameless. Starting the day knowing that gives me the joy and determination to continue to seek Him every chance I get. Phew!

2012

I want something different for this year. I want a fresh anointing, confidence in my purpose here, joy in the morning. I look back on 2011 and I'm disappointed. Where did I glorify God? When did I follow His call? How did I show His love? I can't answer any of these questions and I'm sick about it. No wonder I've felt like I've been walking in a fog, struggling to tread through the chaos that has been my life these last twelve months.
Well not this year. I feel 2011 showed me who I can be without God at the center of my life. I never want to live a year like that again. A year of emptiness and confusion, of struggling. This year will show who I am in Christ Jesus, a daughter of the King, giving glory to the Lord in all things. This is a year of repentance and humility, compassion and grace, love and joy through all that this season brings. Like my kids say every morning in school, I will not waste this day, for this day will never come again.

I don't get it

I just found out that a friend of mine committed suicide. I found out through Facebook. The joys of social networking... I'm reading the posts on his page of his friends saying they hope he's found peace and they hope things are better where he's going now and I'm just torn apart by it. There aren't words to describe how devastated I am because what peace can be found outside of the Lord? None. I say this from experience. There is no peace apart from God. Have we lost another precious soul to the lie that it will be easier if you end it all? IT'S A LIE! Why can't we get there in time? Why can't there always be someone to shake the Brents in their darkest hour and say "There's a better way." I rest in knowing that I don't know everything, that His thoughts and ways are not ours. I can't say for certain what God has planned in our day of judgement and I can hope that His grace and mercy will go beyond what we all could hope for. I will rest in that because I'm tired of being torn apart by this. I hate you, Satan. I really do.

Bestseller?

I found some nuggets of gold while scrolling through my twitter page. Allow me to share.

A7
"There is antibodies and germ."
"Mmm, smell my face."

C7
game: name a part of the body
"Thorax!"
In reference to crawfish: "Remember when we when crotch fishing?"

M7
"It's like I married a soap opera."

Sheesh...

Some C7 quotes.

"I'm a kid, mom. T-O-Y, kid."

"Do you remember on red robinhood?"

"Dear ____, I'm sorry I gave you a wedgie. It was fun."

If this blog were mandatory...

I'd be fired. I love how I update this about every 2-3 years. Last I checked in, I had two kids, was coming to terms with my new status as a non-smoker and was really upset about winter. Now I have three kids, am still coping with my non-smoker status (which I probably always will. Is it a relationship that takes half as long to recover? So 2 years down, 6 more to go..) still hate the winter, but no longer have to meet in Davenport since Brian moved to Phoenix a few weeks ago. Thank goodness because I don't like driving in the snow with an infant. Brian seems to be happy down there so far. All that sun doesn't hurt, I'm sure. The kids Skype with him a couple times a week so he can read The Hobbit.

We have a baby, by the way. I know I mentioned that, but I should probably elaborate. He's amazing, he's almost 4 months and he's named after a hard-core biblical God Lover. His name is G7. He's 1/4 thai. It's awesome. I love him super bad and I'm so happy he's in my life. I want to hold him all the time but then nothing gets done around the house. It wouldn't matter anyway because I've totally lost my short term memory and have turned into a bumbling ditz. It's awful. Seriously, I can't stand it. I feel like I'm getting Alzheimer's. But if this what I must endure to have G7 in my life, so be it.

It snowed today. It looked beautiful but that wore off after an hour of shoveling at 7am. I was really tired an hour ago but now I'm awake again and if I can't fall asleep I will go insane tomorrow. I have to start learning how to function with 3 kids now. I haven't mastered it yet and it's driving me nutz. Thank goodness M7 is perfect because I'm about as crazy as you can get right now and he's handling it very well. Thank you, Jesus for my perfect asian.

Night night.