Stepping Stones

Today, we visited Antioch Park. It has been on my bucket list of things to do with the girls for sometime, so since the weather was cool, I had nothing better to do, and we had great friends to join in on the fun, we went. For awhile, the best part was these stepping stones across the pond...

That is, until Nora fell in! Suddenly it wasn't so fun anymore and the little girl with too much confidence suddenly had her feelings hurt. Thankfully she is a great swimmer and before I could react to the fact that she was indeed in the water, she was swimming her way back to the stones. Good thing because that water looked NASTY!!

No Good, Terrible, Horribly Awful Day

Yesterday might quite honestly be my worst parenting day ever. I was tired, my expectations of my children were high, and there was a lot that needed to be done. I had no patience. I know better than to act the way I did, but yet I still acted that way. As I sat in Nora's bedroom an hour earlier than her bedtime putting her to bed because I could take no more and telling her that "she needed to talk to God about how she acted today" it hit me. It wasn't her that needed to "talk to God" it was ME. I was the one placing unrealistic expectations on my four year old. It was me that expected her to do things that were more than any four year old should have to do. It was me being LAZY as a parent. It was ME that had failed.
But today, I feel guilt. I   feel guilt because I was so impatient, I was so unkind, I was so everything that my God asks me not to be. I was not a "good and faithful servant", nor did I "treat others the way I wanted to be treated". Why? I do not know. I struggle with this often. I want so badly to be the calm and collected Mama, yet I yell at my innocent children. I want so badly to have it all together, to not feel rushed, and to love every minute with my kiddos, but then I find myself finding ways to spend time away from them or to fill our lives with so much to do that I am forced to rush rush rush.  The reality of it all is I am not always patient, I am not always kind, I am not always perfect... and neither are my children. Instead, we are ALL a work in progress, forgiven of our mistakes by our never judging always faithful God. Now if I can just remember this, I can move on knowing that although yesterday was a no good, terrible, horribly awful day, TODAY is a new day with fresh new beginnings and I can CHOOSE to make it better!

Vacation Bible School

Watching Nora grow up is bittersweet. She is hitting an age where she is getting to do things I remember fondly doing as a child. This week, she spent her first week at Vacation Bible School with her friend, Nora Burke, at Nora Burke's school. The two of them have had a great time, and seeing my Nora come out of her shell, dance and sing her little heart out and show her love for God melts my heart. I loved everything church related as a kid, and my hope is that my kiddos can have as wonderful of an upbringing in our church as I did mine.

Take Me Out to the Ballgame

This week has been filled with nothing but good times. It all started off with a surprise "staycation" when my sister, Stacie came to town. We spent both Sunday and Monday with her family. Sunday we went to the zoo, Monday we went to Worlds of Fun. The trip to Worlds of Fun was a first for both girls. Fun was had, and we will definitely be going back. This evening we took advantage of some super awesome, best seats in the house, free Royals tickets and headed out to the ballgame. For as long as I can remember, Nora has LOVED going to the Royals games. Nothing has changed this year. In fact, despite the rain and getting a little wet, when we were taking advantage of nice, dry seats in the clubhouse, she was begging to go back out to the ballgame. The TV just wasn't working for her. Gotta love the girl and her dedication to the things she loves. Even if it is watching baseball games in the rain =0)