What it means to be a blessing

After I shared this article on Facebook this morning, my friend Shannon made a comment that gave me some good insight into how to be an encouragement to moms and anyone else who may be feeling slightly more burdened than blessed.

The article talks about motherhood as a high calling--which I wholeheartedly agree with. Being a mom is one of the most challenging and important responsibilities a woman can have. But it is challenging. So I'm told. :) Shannon made the comment that she hadn't ever really thought of motherhood as a high calling but had heard several people say that children are a blessing. I had never thought of those as two sides of the same coin before. I think, particularly in Christian circles, we can all have a tendency to write off the challenges and the hard work of investing in family--whether that family is a spouse, kids, parents, siblings, or whomever--with the one dimensional comment, "But they're such a blessing." Yes, that is true, but it's also true that our greatest blessings and privileges require WORK. Are children still a blessing when you haven't had a full night's sleep or talked to another adult in weeks? Is a spouse still a blessing when his/her dirty dishes are strewn all over the kitchen for the fifth time that week despite your pleas for him/her to put them in the dishwasher? (I'm the one guilty of that offense more often than not, by the way.) Of course they are still blessings.

Let's be wary of not listening. Let's be wary of those one dimensional comments. Yes, mothers, your children are blessings. But that doesn't mean that they should or will make you smile 24 hours a day. Do you know a mom who could use a little extra encouragement today? Let her know it's okay if she's feeling more burdened than blessed. And help share the load. Then you will both be blessed. :)

*This post dedicated to the three beautiful mamas from church who welcomed or will be welcoming their precious babies this week!

Hi, neglected friends

There are really only a few things I have to tell you about life lately:

1. I have become unbearably lazy and incapable of doing anything productive with my free time (outside of business work and house work). Thus, the lack of posting. I am halfway joking. Well, maybe only a quarter. I really do end up zoning out in front of the computer when I don't know what else to do, and it really is getting on my nerves. I need motivation. And maybe a hobby.

2. My parents came to visit last week. They brought us a digital SLR camera as a gift for our birthdays! Someday, that will become a new hobby. Right now it is new and overwhelming. But now that I know what SLR even is, I might even learn a thing or two about camera settings or even more fancy-schmancy things like aperture or shutter speed. Here, see a picture I have yet to (attempt to) edit. This is from the Outer Banks, where we spent a couple days with my parents. It was great to get away!

3. I just got back from a short trip to NJ where Justin was attending a class for work. I didn't fly up to meet him until the middle of the week, but it was quite a nice short little getaway, made even nicer by getting to visit with the lovely Ms. Beth Ann and her hubby as they are only about a month away from meeting their first baby boy.

It almost wasn't such a nice trip, though, because you see, I have this irrational fear of arriving anywhere too early, especially when I'm by myself. And I'm also incapable of packing unless it is the last minute, bordering on running late. These two facts combined mean that as I arrived at the airport's long-term parking lot, I was anxious to grab the first available shuttle. Which means that when I saw the shuttle arriving as I was unloading my bags, I decided to make a run for it. Which means that I was thinking to myself, "I feel like I've forgotten something. But I have all my bags, the sunshade is up, and the car is locked." So off I ran after the shuttle. Well, I "ran" as best I could in my sparkly loose fitting (in other words, falling off my feet) flip flops. I was probably ten feet behind the shuttle when it took off to the next station, which I could see down the deserted road. I was going to let it be, but it paused there even though no one was waiting, so I took off once again...and missed it again. But the third stop was also in sight and I had closed in, so I tried once more. This time it seemed like the shuttle driver saw me coming, and it's a good thing too, because when I was about 5 feet behind him, my shoe fell off completely and I stood there like a fumbling idiot for what seemed like a small eternity. I finally got on the shuttle to what appeared to be repressed snickers from the few passengers and workers on the bus. Ah, I just love showcasing my idiocy to total strangers.

It was only after I started to settle in a bit and but my keys in my purse that it hit me. I had left my cell phone in the car. So I had no way to contact Justin or Beth Ann, who was supposed to be picking me up at a train station...assuming everything went smoothly on her end and mine. Anyway, to sum up this rambling story, it all worked out in the end. I finally managed to reach Justin on a phone in the USO, God bless 'em, and Justin left a message with Beth Ann for me. And here we are. Safe and sound back in NC with a phone that wasn't even fried from baking in a hot car for three days. Just how did any of us function before cell phones anyway? Not that I'm functioning so hot these days. Haha.

4. I'm looking forward to co-hosting a bridal shower this weekend! We're going to honor our triathlon-competing architect friend with original games including a domestic triathlon and a competition to see who comes closest to building the bride and groom's dream house. It's going to be epic.

Hope you are all well, friends.