Five Minute Friday - Change

Routine can be a mamma's best friend. Our children need it. They crave it. And so do we.

But sometimes, in our habitual routines, we get stuck in the little things. Taking the same route to work. Going to the same places for lunch. Listening to the same radio station. Talking to the same coworker.

The routine things can trap you and, before you realize it, the habits aren't so healthy anymore.

There came a point in my life where I realized this was true for my relationships. I am loyal - to a fault. Growing up with abandonment makes sticking by people a big deal for me. And I've kept people in my life that honestly weren't good for me. I had to change my perception of what loving someone really meant.

I had to change what I was doing and what I was hearing. Because what you hear changes everything. Being good at anything starts with listening. You can better love someone when you listen to what their actions are telling you they really need.

God made you to love and serve others in your own special way. There is a part of who God is that the world only gets to see through you. You can only live out that service when you drown out the noise around you and listen to your heart.

Just like tuning into a different radio station can change the mood of a morning. Turn on the positive. Love the person in your life who always complains or has drama from a distance and surround yourself with encouraging, uplifting people. Find that place where your heart is so fulfilled and the "music" is so right for the moment that you just can't help but sing at the top of your lungs!

Change what you hear and you'll change everything.

It's the best 5 minutes you'll spend today! 

Join us at Lisa-Jo's for 5 Minute Friday where we put write with reckless abandon!

What Isaac Left Behind

I've spent the past two days indoors with my kids, and my dogs, and my cat.  That's 48 hours, people... 2880 minutes... 172,800 seconds. Indoors - no going outside to play, a walk around the block, or a quick trip to the store. Just us... all 6 of us... in this 1400 sq ft space.

The Stinson Family... Trouble (yes, he is), Jonathan, Precious (not so much), Sophia, & Bear 

We watched Isaac with anticipation. Where was he going & when was he going to get there? The decisions to declare a state of emergency and close schools was made early on. This could potentially be really bad. And for many, unfortunately, it has been.

It is with tremendous thanks and gratitude that I fill you in on what Isaac brought to our home....

1. Lots of reading & snuggle time by lamp light.

"Splendid Spotted Snake" is one of our favorites. 

We still haven't figured out how the dots change colors!

2. Our favorite foods at any and all hours of the day.

Egg in a hole... a Stinson tradition eaten at 1:00am. Waffle House who?

3. A long-overdue day with Gordon Ramsay.

Yeah, I'm a reality TV junkie. And a sucker for blondes. Especially ones with an accent that can cook. There isn't anything I don't love about this guy! I own it.

4. A dress-up dance party!

Beyonce's version of "Single Ladies" doesn't hold a candle to Sophia! 

She's got the hip action and hair flip down!

5. Captain Crunch treats (way better than Rice Crispies!).

Regular Captain Crunch, Chocolate Captain Crunch & Marshmellow Cream... enough said.

6. Lessons in taking the animals out to relieve themselves in a hurry.

I wasn't quick enough to snap that!

7. Long talks about being nice to each other and finger pointing.

I couldn't get out of being lectured by Sophia to snap this either!

In all seriousness, I am so grateful that everyone I know and love did not sustain any damage (except for feeling "soggy" from all the rain). It is so easy to become complacent and forget just how quickly these marvelous storms can turn into a disaster at our door.

I heard it said from my favorite meteorologist (Alan Sealls, WKRG 5) that we are "misled by technology". In today's instant information culture, we just assume that everything can be accessed and forecated with the greatest of precision and accuracy. The truth is that it just isn't that easy when it comes to predicting the path of a hurricane.

It's a game of hurry up and wait. Hurry up - prepare yourself with necessities and get somewhere safe. Then wait it out. Just like we do with so many of life's other challenges.

Thank you, Lord, for your protection and favor for yet another day.

Gifts That Hurt

I am a word girl - no doubt about it.

Words can hurt and heal. They lift you up and tear you down.

Whoever said "Sticks and stones will break my bones, but words will never hurt me," has never been a teenage girl.

And there are some things that are hard to write and hard to say - even for someone who is blessed with the gift of words. That's what I have been struggling with all week.

I am in the middle of a fight. Even those closest to me don't know the extent of what I'm dealing with. I've been asked by legal council to document events & instances that are painful. And I just don't know if I can do it. I have never avoided a writing assignment like I have this one.

Once I put it down on paper then I have to acknowledge it and am responsible for doing something about it. When the pen meets the paper, then it becomes really, really, really real. That is so scary for me.

The process has been like cracking open a door just enough that I see what's inside and having all the junk spill out. The mess that I've tried to keep locked away and out of sight will soon be open for all to see.

It's ironic to me that the very thing God has blessed me with using to encourage others is also the thing that cuts to my soul. For weeks, I haven't understood how this is possible.

Finally today, my "Ah-Ha" moment has come. It's not my words that heal. The words are His. I'm just the vessel. The words of others get beside me because I put such heavy stock in their value.

The words used to hurt me aren't His words. The names and cruel things that have been said aren't who He says I am. So, why do I place value in the hateful spewings of another.

At the end of the day, what matters is who God says I am.... and He says I'm amazing! (and so are you)

Please keep me in your prayers. I have a long, bumpy road ahead.