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10 Bright Stars
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| Posted: Nov 28 2008 at 2:50pm | IP Logged
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Hi ladies,
As someone who as made the Total Consecration and is trying to live it out, I still cannot switch gears from doing my daily duty from an "the end justifies the means" perspective to a, "For God Alone" perspective. Let me explain. It used to be that I could get up, clean the house etc. and the end result...the clean house....was the reward and the incentive. Now, I clean, cook, do school, laundry...all of it NEVER over, all of it, NEVER DONE...all of it....not giving back a sense of satisfaction when I can say, "If I spend 4 hours cleaning the kitchen, it will LOOK clean when I am finished." I can spend a lot of time preparing meals, putting it on the table, the kids come in and attack it and it goes all over the place it seems, and once we all get it cleaned up, I absolutely dread having to go through all that again, and the kitchen doesn't even seem clean since we have to use it so often since we are all home all day with 8 children. I have gotten to the point where I hate being in the kitchen since it is endless work. We haven't even started talking about the walls that have magic marker or pencil on them, the laundry that is endless, the bathrooms which need cleaning every day, and all the things to do with school. I have started to feel somewhat discouraged and depressed about the measure of this task. I can "see" that this thinking is incorrect, but I feel SO tired and discouraged and I keep wanting to "fix it" so things will go back to being manageable.
The other day, I walked into the kitchen, and most likely due to a lack of sleep, exclaimed outloud, "Why, please God tell me WHY I should do all this again today?" Sort of joking, I asked my 7 year old daughter this: "Mary, maybe you know. Why should Mommy do all of this today? Just tell me whatever pops into your head, since you probably know better than me at this point. (meaning: obviously I must be failing, maybe a 7 year old has a better perspective.) Well, my 9 year old son was in the next room and heard me and said, "Mommy, what does Yahweh mean?" I about fell over! Is THAT the word that popped into his head? I never even say God's name in that way in our house. So, of course! OF COURSE! I should do it all for God. I intellectaully KNOW this, but I cannot put it into practice and gain a sense of peace and perspective about my enormous task at hand. I get very discouraged by disorder, and it is all around me. I feel disorganized with school this year, discouraged in general. How can I live out my vocation "for God alone" when I feel as if I need some positive feedback from the tasks. (i.e accomplishment and order)? What first steps am I missing?
I say my daily consecration prayer, and I do truly see a difference in my life since saying that particular prayer. (I use the one Elizabeth Foss posted on her blog that Pope John Paul II made up. Just love it!)
Anyway, I feel as if I am in a truck stuck in the mud with the wheels just spinning! I am going nowhere and have developed a resentful, bad attitude about my domestic vocation. Any advice to get this truck moving again??? I told one of my friends the other day that I was praying about all of this and pictured me in a plane, spiraling down in the sky, with a book or something trying to figure out "how to do this" while all the kids were in the back of the plane "waiting" for me to get it right. Well, maybe there isn't a "right way" and it is just going to be TREMENDOUSLY difficult, and I have to "just do it" each moment since the kids future depends on it!! &n bsp;
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Kim married to Bob (22y)
Mom of 11 blessings:
Bobby 19, David 17, Noah 14,
Mary 12, Gracie 10,
Isabelle and Sophia 8,
Gabrielle 6,
William Anthony 4, Joseph 3 and Luisa Marie - born in M
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RamFam
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| Posted: Dec 01 2008 at 8:36pm | IP Logged
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Eight Wonders wrote:
| "Mommy, what does Yahweh mean?" |
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While reading this I had to glance at the person posting it to ensure I hadn't posted it in my sleep. I have no idea how to help you obviously, but I came across this prayer, probably the day you posted this:
To St. Joseph, Model of Workers
Glorious St. Joseph, model of all who are devoted to labor, obtain for me the grace to work in the spirit of penance for the expiation of my many sins and to work conscientiously, placing the love of duty above my inclinations.
Help me to work with gratitude and joy, considering it an honor to employ and develop by labor the gifts received from God. Aid me to work with order, peace, moderation and patience, without ever shrinking from weariness and trials. Help me to work, above all, with purity of intention and with detachment from self, keeping unceasingly before my eyes not only death but also the account I must give of time lost, of talents wasted, of good omitted, and of vain complacency in success, so harmful to the work of God. All for Jesus, all through Mary, all after your example, O holy patriarch, St. Joseph! This will be my motto in life and in death. Amen.
-St. Pius X
Now off to wash those dishes...
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Leah
RamFaminNOVA
Tom ^i^, Kyle (my Marine), Adeline '00, Wyatt '05, Isaac '07 Philip '08,Michael '10, and John Xavier Feb '13
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teachingmyown
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Kim, I have been thinking about this post since you posted it the other night. I really relate and find myself in the same mindset so often. I am listening for other replies while I try to formulate my thoughts on this subject.
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In Christ,
Molly
wife to Court & mom to ds '91, dd '96, ds '97, dds '99, '01, '03, '06, and dss '07 and 01/20/11
Remembering Today
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SuzanneG
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Wow, Kim. I have JUST been thinking about this over the weekend and actually had a semi-decent conversation with my dh about it this afternoon, and then HERE YOU ARE with the same conversation!
Looking forward to others input. I'll try to get my thoughts together.....
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Suzanne in ID
Wife to Pete
Mom of 7 (Girls - 14, 12, 11, 9, 7 and Boys - 4, 1)
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Bridget
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Let me try here. I haven't done the Total Consecration, but I think i understand what your struggle is.
I like house work and cooking, really I do. But I still get overwhelmed by disorder and have many 'spinning my wheels' days. There are lots of practical helps that really do help, menu planing, decluttering (ruthlessly) but no matter what you do, disorder still happens regularly because that is the nature of a house full of children.
When it's all spiraling out of control I have to remember that a clean, orderly house and good math scores are not the goal. I have to detach from those ideas. It's awfully nice along the way, but the goal is holiness. The house, this time, the children, they are all God's. My job is return them to Him as well as I can. He knows what a mess children make of things. His have been at it since the beginning of the world.
Jesus had chaos and disorder around Him. Mother Teresa did too. The great contemplatives don't SEEM as if they are doing anything great, they look stuck in the mud, but we know quite well how much they help the world.
The kitchen may be a mess but if you can teach a child to kindly get his sibling a drink and set the table for dinner, you are teaching the child to serve. That will go farther towards holiness than a clean kitchen.
Kim, also a practical point in sympathy, you have a heavy concentration of littles at the bottom and boys at the top. Not that boys can't help (mine can and do) but the quality of their help is often different from girls. Your not doing anything wrong, it's just kind of what it is right now.
Here is my (not so brilliant) three point plan.
1. train the children to help
2. keep plugging away
3. try to detach from order as the primary goal, replace it with holiness, the opportunities in all the little things are endless.
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God Bless,
Bridget, happily married to Kevin, mom to 8 on earth and a small army in heaven
Our Magnum Opus
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teachingmyown
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| Posted: Dec 02 2008 at 11:37am | IP Logged
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For me, it is the training part that is so hard. I have some children who seem hopelessly incompetent when it comes to cleaning,really. I live with a house full of people, including dh, who think if the floor is picked up and vacuumed, the house is clean. I have flighty little girls who can't stay on task for five minutes. Finally, I have an almost 1 yr old who seems to need me constantly.
I do *know* that our family's growth in holiness is my first priority, but that doesn't help in those moments Kim is talking about.
I love Bridget's point about Jesus and the saints being surrounded by chaos. It is something to meditate upon when I find myself in the thick of it.
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In Christ,
Molly
wife to Court & mom to ds '91, dd '96, ds '97, dds '99, '01, '03, '06, and dss '07 and 01/20/11
Remembering Today
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10 Bright Stars
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Thanks everyone.  All very good thoughts to ponder.
I think you have a good point, Bridget. I have to see what will matter in the long run and not what is right in front of my face (messes) as far as: clean kitchen vs. training the kids to help. And, helping them learn to cook and making sure they feel welcome in there too  Also, being glad that I have a table full of children. I know I should see this, but it is sometimes so hard to keep things in perspective. Perhaps the problem comes in when I think that I CAN or COULD have it clean and still do the "other part" well "if only" I could "do a better job". Perhaps, as you mentioned, this is par for the course in a house with several small children, and big boys who don't see the mess I keep complaining about to save their lives! I isn't possible to do both well so I have to choose the "better portion" like Mary (vs. Martha) and trust that in doing so, I am doing God's will in that moment.
Another interesting thing that made me think today was a paragraph in my 8th grade son's "Faith and Life" religion text. (Chapter 15 The Life of Virtue) It was stating "the other moral virtues" after defining the cardinal virtues etc. Anyway, they defined the virtue of Diligence as:
" Diligence is the virtue opposed to sloth. This virtue enables us to do our work and carry out our religious duties-whatever they may be-with devotion and dedication. It stems from the virtue of prudence, for we see that hard work at our given tasks is the right way to act."
WOW! Isn't that applicable to this discussion? It really hit home with me. I always sort of thought of slothfulness as 1. in a sense, laziness, and 2. yes, mainly spiritual laziness. But this definition of the opposite virtue as diligence really made sense to me! On those days when I want to give up, want to ask "why?" since the task is unending, tiring and often immediately erased like one of those Magna-doodle toys ; I have to think that I am doing it FOR GOD and FOR MY FAMILY as perfectly as I can do it at that moment because......"it is the right way to act." And, I carry it out with devotion and dedication specifically.
This makes me personally picture the nurse in the military hospital helping patient after patient; tirelessly. The mother, swabbing the fevered brow all night of the sickly child. I picture all those heoric things, the out-of the ordinary moments when a mother-figure is called to duty and performs in a heroic manner, but maybe it is JUST as heroic to not LOSE IT! when your child spills her milk...again, or your kids get in a fight....again....or no one notices dinnner....again, and you are just content and don't look for SOMETHING BACK from what you are doing. You don't look for applause or attention. You are just little and hidden and do "IT" for God, and even then, you don't want anything in return, but you do it because it is "the best thing to do" for lack of a better adjective. And, if we think about the Blessed Mother, she is never doing something to get something out of it for herself, even if it was something as simple as order. Anyway, this agrees with your #2 assesment Bridget, the "keep plugging away" point.
#3 I could use some further thoughts on this. Yes, order can become less important and replace it with holiness. So, you mean in each activity, try to figure out a moment to teach, model or just use Christ-like behavior?? Then, we have to battle our human weaknesses, put on patience, bear with wrongs, model how they should behave towards each other by behaving that way with them...Is this what you sort of mean?
I love saint stories Molly, (you mentioned them living in chaos too.) and I have always drawn much inspiration from reading them. In fact, I try to read these types of stories to the kids daily since I notice they make you see the world differently. If this person was able to cast off the cares of the world in such a heroic way, then maybe I can too, maybe I SHOULD too.
Thank you for the prayer, Leah! That is lovely and I just love St. Joseph. As an aside, I was born on his feast day!!! I always assume that is why I am Catholic today since I was blessed to be born on that day.
I would love to hear what you all think about this though as far as application of all this in everyday life.
Can't wait to hear what you came up with Suzanne! And, sometimes husbands have a better perspective on this since they aren't in the trenches in the same way we are with homeschooling each day. (Although they have their share of trenches.)
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Kim married to Bob (22y)
Mom of 11 blessings:
Bobby 19, David 17, Noah 14,
Mary 12, Gracie 10,
Isabelle and Sophia 8,
Gabrielle 6,
William Anthony 4, Joseph 3 and Luisa Marie - born in M
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Helen
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Kim, I was watching Fr. Coropi's video on the Catechism of the Catholic Church. In his talk on prayer and humility, he mentioned that Our Lady often helps us to feel like we're just not up to par in our daily life to help us to pray better.
Fr. Corapi quoted St. Teresa of Avila. He had the quote on the screen as he read it aloud. I wrote the quote down for you:
"What I have come to understand that this whole ground word of prayer is based on humility and that the more a soul lowers itself in prayer the more God raises it up. I don't recall His ever having granted me one of the very notable favors of which I shall speak of later if not at a time where I was brought to nothing at the sight of my wretchedness. The foundation of the entire edifice is humility."
The beauty of Total Consecration is that it gives us many Quo Vadis moments -- many opportunities to go where we wouldn't go without the loving lead of Our Mother. Being open to life, also takes us places that we wouldn't have chosen. These are the moments that turn us into saints.
Once at the Franciscan Friary (Franciscans of the Immaculate) I mentioned (complained) that I was so far beyond my natural abilities. The Friar congratulated me saying this was the time of great grace.
Continue to be of good cheer! I'll pray for you.
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Ave Maria!
Mom to 5 girls and 3 boys
Mary Vitamin & Castle of the Immaculate
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CrunchyMom
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Eight Wonders wrote:
| WOW! Isn't that applicable to this discussion? It really hit home with me. I always sort of thought of slothfulness as 1. in a sense, laziness, and 2. yes, mainly spiritual laziness. But this definition of the opposite virtue as diligence really made sense to me! On those days when I want to give up, want to ask "why?" since the task is unending, tiring and often immediately erased like one of those Magna-doodle toys ; I have to think that I am doing it FOR GOD and FOR MY FAMILY as perfectly as I can do it at that moment because......"it is the right way to act." And, I carry it out with devotion and dedication specifically. ; |
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Well, sloth is huge for me, and my spiritual director told me that he had read recently about its connection to the theological virtue of Hope. Upon further pondering, I found that to be so true for me. Many times, my lack of diligence comes from my looking at the task at hand and saying, "Its impossible, so why bother?" The same with prayer and spirituality. Often, it is feeling that I just can't do it. Which, this is in essence, the sin of despair.
Praying for the virtue of hope has helped me through times like you describe, and I really need to get on the ball again because it I feel the slothful attitude creeping in a bit, and it comes so stealthily under the guise of not-so-bad. Well, I guess that is how all sin is.
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Lindsay
Five Boys(6/04) (6/06) (9/08)(3/11),(7/13), and 1 girl (5/16)
My Symphony
[URL=http://mysymphonygarden.blogspot.com/]Lost in the Cosmos[/UR
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mariB
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Dear Kim,
I read your post and it is EXACTLY how I feel so many times. (Although I only have 5 kids. My youngest being 5.)
This, I believe, is the bit of suffering a homeschooling mother must go through...a sacrifice of sorts. I, too, am surrounded by chaos many times. Someone may look in though and NOT think it chaotic. I am a perfectionist and that is the part of me that I have had to let die within me a little more.
The kitchen in our house is constantly messy. I clean it then my husband cooks a late breakfast around 9 a.m. (He works next door and doesn't go until 10 am) Then my teenagers cook snacks. Etc.. I just don't like messy kitchens!
So, I feel your "pain." I offer these things to the Lord. I pray and a new thing I have started doing is looking at the "chaos" from a different angle.
I look and say to myself, Hmmm...my husband is cooking a really healthy meal for himself." " The children are really independent that is good!"
Regarding the messes. I am "a do EVERYTHING" type of gal. I have to work really hard to stop that perfectionism in me and to stop trying to do everything!
My new slogan around the house is: "We are a family. Let's work TOGETHER!"
I realize I can do ALL for God and so can my children!
This job as a homeschooling mother is a difficult one at times but with so much beauty wrapped within it. It is true...the job is never done. I try to listen to other wise women. my mother said the best years of her life was when we were home. she misses all that she did for us. I love listening to her joy when she reflects.
One of our boys is going to be 17. I don't want him to grow up. When I look at life from the perspective of it will not last forever (the children being little and at home) it really helps me to enjoy these moments together.
I have no solutions really. I wish I did. But maybe perspective? I try to pick a few things that need to get done around the house that otherwise, if not done, would drive me crazy. One of them is vacuuming.(Dog fur drives me crazy.) And another is a quick clean-up which everyone can put a few things away. Things all over the place is really overwhelming for me.
I have my good and bad days just to let you know. Days when I feel all warm and fuzzy and days when I feel resentful. Reflecting on it now, I much prefer the days when I embrace the mess!
Thank you for posting on the Total Consecration to Mary. I have made the Total Consecration in the past and now I feel I need to again!
blessings and hugs,
marianne
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marib-Mother to 22ds,21ds,18ds,15dd,11dd and wife to an amazing man for 23 years
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10 Bright Stars
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Marianne,
THanks so much for the encouraging post! I think it is perfectionism too. I get very frustrated with things being off and I notice EVERY little dent in the wall, pencil mark on the wall, food under the table etc. and all of it combined sort of creates an internal implosion after awhile! One mess, or one messy room I could handle but all of being destroyed at once is crazy. I had to laugh yesterday; I swept. Then, I swept again, and then again and I finally stopped doing it and had to laugh that I could spend the whole day sweeping!
I do try to change perspective, and that is an excellent point. A: This is their home too, not just mine. B. And yes, they are all growing so fast and one day, when I fix it up again it will stay that way, and then I will be stuck with just myself and a perfectly clean house! I may just go crazy at that point. My Mom sort of did! She got so bored after we all left and it really took some adjusting on her part to figure out what to do with her life "post-children". I thought about that the other day as I was touch-up painting a wall and I thought, "It will seem so final once you fix something or clean something and it stays that way. that will feel so empty and I felt very sad and sort of freaked out thinking about the finality of that time and that there will be no getting back this time and I will KICK myself for all the silly things I got all worked up about. So, I can see where having evidence of life can be looked at as a blessing and not something to resent if I can just get the right perspective, and pray to keep it that way.
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Kim married to Bob (22y)
Mom of 11 blessings:
Bobby 19, David 17, Noah 14,
Mary 12, Gracie 10,
Isabelle and Sophia 8,
Gabrielle 6,
William Anthony 4, Joseph 3 and Luisa Marie - born in M
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Gloria JMJ
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Kim,
I know I'm late to this post, but I just wanted to say thank you for posting it. I will be having my 8th soon and have 4 boys at the top, oldest 12. I also have an unending mess, but the thing is, that my dh is more sensitive to it than I, and I lack the dilligence to keep up with it with the added aspect of not seeing the mess like he does .
Anyway, this posting has really brought this subject into perspective. One thing that helps me is I give the big ones a room to clean every day. They don't do it like I do, but it helps when I can't get to it, and they are in seperate rooms so they dont argue for the 10 minutes that they are doing it  .
Thanks again, Gloria
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Helen
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Gloria JMJ wrote:
| Anyway, this posting has really brought this subject into perspective. |
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Me too Gloria!
The connection between laziness and hopelessness was very helpful to me. Being so busy with the children, I hadn't reflected on laziness. I've been busier in the important areas since this thread.
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Ave Maria!
Mom to 5 girls and 3 boys
Mary Vitamin & Castle of the Immaculate
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Cheryl
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Kim, I thank you for posting this too. I have only 5 and I've recently hired a cleaning lady. If I keep up with my routines, the house doesn't get too out of control now. I know I should be grateful, but Monday I was despairing about homeschooling. Just blaming homeschooling, I guess. I felt like I was spinning my wheels. I wondered how can people do this long term. My dh and I have been talking about sending ds 10 to school next year. (Monday I wanted to send them all. Like right away.) I've thought that the boys might be better educated at school. I've wished that I had more time to spend with the girls. I've wondered if I'm trying to do too much. Am I too selfish? Perfectionism is definitely a problem for me.
I know that I would be more peaceful if I would accept the things that I cannot change, but I'm feeling confused about what those things are exactly. I mean I could send them to school, but does God want me to keep plugging away?
I'm sorry if I went off on a tangent here. I guess I was feeling like the neverending tasks and wanting to give up are somehow related.
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Cheryl
Wife to Bob ('97)
Mom to Matthew 13, Joseph 11, Sarah 10, Rachel 6, Hannah almost 4 and Mary 1
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10 Bright Stars
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Thanks for revisiting this everyone! Today, as I walked upstairs, again mind you...this keeps happening with the carrots which is a whole other post on another post ..I came upstairs from the classroom to a path of rye bread and several large carrots lying hither and yon! I couldn't FIND an entire loaf of bread, except for the strewn pieces on the floor. My twins, aged 3, KEEP getting into food while I am downstairs with the older kids. I usually have one of my middle children "watch and play" with them and they freely go upstairs to the main living area or to the basement where we are. But, I am never quite sure what they are getting into lately. Mainly food!
Anyway, I was looking at the VERY messy kitchen, family room, library and thought about that game where you pile up the little wooden pieces, and then people try to pull one out at a time and not let it fall. (I forget the name of the game right now.) I thought that is sort of the way my house is. I feel as if one little thing can make the whole system fall to pieces! There is no underlying order.
Anyway, as I was making lunch, one of my twins was sitting on the countertop watching me cook. I just looked at how little she was, and how cute. I thought about how this little girl, this little person in this moment would soon be gone...forever!!! She will still exisit and be a joy in my life as she gets older and our relationship changes and grows with time, but THIS little adorable 3 year old girl will soon be gone with the sands of time. That made my heart ache SO MUCH! I have felt that way about all the kids. When they have a birthday I am often struck by this fact, or when I look back at baby pictures and can never hold that little one again. Motherhood is so lovely and yet so painful, isn't it?
Anyway, my point in all this is that I determined to try to prioritize the TRULY important. What will I regret? What do I not want to miss? I just sort of ignored the kitchen, swept up the bread (again) and just grabbed my little Isabelle and sang her a song and danced with her. I just held her tight RIGHT NOW and tried to experience her lovliness in that little moment of time, ignoring the neccesary but really, the unimportant when I get down to it, "messes" that surrounded me. I think perfectionism can rob us of the real truth and beauty around us...our children, our SHORT and blessed time with them. Our greatest treasures are absolutely free, but fleeting.
I think for the perfectionists in the bunch (me being a huge one of them) we should force ourselves to dwell on the important things. To prioritize since everything CAN't be first. We can't do everything well. We can only do a few things well, and that is all God is asking of us.
On a side note, I had a really difficult Advent. I freak out about Christmas every year. HOW will we do Christmas? What gifts will we get the kids? What activities should I do, could I do? I try to control it ALL! It never goes well and I always end up super depressed over Christmas. This year I tried to abandon myself to God. I asked HIM to plan Christmas. Anyway, the funny thing is, after I gave it to God, I savored EVERY little unexpected thing that came my way. My husband and I argue (can you imagine) over what type of tree to get EVERY YEAR. It's true!!!! Anyway, this year, he brought home a 16 foot tall tree from his brother's woods. It was gorgeous! He decorated it with homemade ornaments he made for the kids to paint, and he made beautiful paper snowflakes to adorn it. Totally unexpected and lovely. My sister made us a brunch and brought it over. I found numerous "treasures" at the thrift store that were brand new that I was able to stretch our tight budget with and give the kids a nice Christmas. Once I let go, God was given the room within which TO ACT. I never give Him a chance, no room, no time to act. In fact, my husband sort of joked with me, but it is SO accurate, that if the Holy Family came a-knockin' on our door at Christmas, there would not usually be any room in our inn (the inn of our hearts) for the Christ Child either so busily was I trying to pull off some magical experience for everyone that I missed the whole point.
So, perhaps this lesson, that was a VERY intense lesson for me this Christmas, can be applied for everyday life. I can try to live every day with GOD as my source of strength, not my own efforts. I can give HIM room to act in my day, my moment to moment. I can do my best for Him alone, but realizing it won't be perfect and to savor and soak up the gifts I miss with my busyness. I am a Martha type, not a Mary! Although a very slothful Martha! I have to choose the better portion, each moment, with each choice. Each choice is either for God or against God, don't you think? My gift this Christmas was a clear picture of myself and this great fault of mine. It was a painful snapshot of myself, but I realized that it was a grace and a gift from God. A gift to change my way of thinking, to see the world the way it should be seen instead of the way I try to make it through my warped perceptions.
The tasks will be never-ending. But, if we stop focusing on the end result of the tasks (order, perfection, lovely home, well-run homeschool etc.) and LIVE in the moment, doing our best, but in a Mary-like fashion as opposed to a Martha-like fashion, we can offer our very lives, every action, every breath really, even if WE dont' see the results - FOR GOD ALONE! And our families will be loved more and have a much happier mama in the process! We will have NO REGRETS. We will have "fought the good fight-and won". Because really, we can't stop! We are in a stream, a current if you will, and if we stop rowing, the whole canoe or boat with the whole family in it WILL be moving in some direction, towards God or away from God. So, we can never stop rowing, never stop trying. It is when we are at our weakest moments that HE is the strongest! Those are good things to remind ourselves of when we want to throw in the towel!!!
__________________
Kim married to Bob (22y)
Mom of 11 blessings:
Bobby 19, David 17, Noah 14,
Mary 12, Gracie 10,
Isabelle and Sophia 8,
Gabrielle 6,
William Anthony 4, Joseph 3 and Luisa Marie - born in M
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Gloria JMJ
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| Posted: Jan 15 2009 at 3:32pm | IP Logged
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Cheryl wrote:
I mean I could send them to school, but does God want me to keep plugging away?
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Cheryl,
I think that when the going gets tough, that is a sign that we are on the right path and The Lord is just giving us our trials to remind us how much we need His help. School could creat more problems instead of solving any.
God bless, Gloria
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Gloria JMJ
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Eight Wonders wrote:
Anyway, this year, he brought home a 16 foot tall tree from his brother's woods. It was gorgeous! He decorated it with homemade ornaments he made for the kids to paint, and he made beautiful paper snowflakes to adorn it. Totally unexpected and lovely. My sister made us a brunch and brought it over. I found numerous "treasures" at the thrift store that were brand new that I was able to stretch our tight budget with and give the kids a nice Christmas. Once I let go, God was given the room within which TO ACT.
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It sounds like you had a LOVELY time this year!
Gloria
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mariB
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O.K. I was doing lots of things for God...have had a series of meltdowns...life is a little overwhelming. I've lost my "perspective" that I advised above  ...Praying for all home schooling and ALL mothers here. This is a challeging task! Help me Lord to get back to doing ALL for you...
__________________
marib-Mother to 22ds,21ds,18ds,15dd,11dd and wife to an amazing man for 23 years
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gwendyt
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Kim - I know awhile back you had posted on similar issues, and I just wanted you to know that since then, I have been praying daily to St. Zita for you, me, and all those of us who struggle with these things. May her intercession continue to help us move forward and grow in holiness - let's keep trying!
__________________
Wendy
Married to DH Joe 18 yrs., 8 beautiful children - 2 girls, 6 boys (14,12,9,7,5,3,1,newbie born 3/1/2010)
A Little of This, A Little of That
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10 Bright Stars
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Wendy,
Thank you, Wendy. That is so kind of you to remember me and all of us who are stuggling with this in your prayers. I will pray for you too and I really appreciate knowing that.
__________________
Kim married to Bob (22y)
Mom of 11 blessings:
Bobby 19, David 17, Noah 14,
Mary 12, Gracie 10,
Isabelle and Sophia 8,
Gabrielle 6,
William Anthony 4, Joseph 3 and Luisa Marie - born in M
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4Real Forums : Hidden Treasure
Topic: Doing IT all for God
