So....

So....Obviously the move threw me for a loop. If you didn't know, we moved to Metairie (about 30 minutes from where we lived before). I love it, love it, love it. I'm only 10 minutes or less away from Target and cute local grocery stores! Of course that is a double edged sword if you know what I mean. We painted the whole house and by that I mean the WHOLE house. Every room and its matching closet. The bathrooms, the laundry room, the hallway, the kitchen. We started attending a new church, trying to meet new people. The boys started yet another new school right down the street. Can I say I love the bus service! All of this newness, though wonderful, has been a lot for me at once. Thank God for His Word, books, family and Jesus that will get us all through!
My heart feels like it's in a place of vulnerability and tenderness. I feel like I'm walking on shaky ground. Will this next step I take cause me to stand strong or crumble and fall? I learned about God's grace in a new way. I always thought of God's grace as the umpf that was gonna help me get through a struggling season of life. Instead, the actual struggle may very well be His grace to expose and free me from my bondage to ME. My dependance on myself. Struggles bring you to the end of yourself, making you realize that your identity, meaning, purpose, and inner sense of well being was in you or in something/someone else.
If you asked me who/what do I trust in, I'd give you a quick "Jesus!" answer. But over the last couple of weeks I've realized my hope for happiness has been in things. God puts us in struggling circumstances we never would have designed for ourselves. Those circumstances cause us to give up, let go, and look for something sustainable to depend on - Jesus.

Psalm 69:1-2
Save me, O God, for the floodwaters are up to my neck. Deeper and deeper I sink into the mire; I can't find a foothold to stand on. I am in deep water and the floods overwhelm me.

Psalm 28:7
The Lord is my strength, my shield from every danger. I trust in him with all my heart. He helps me, and my heart is filled with joy. I burst out in songs of thanksgiving.

A Good Mom

My "mom life" has been difficult lately. I remember when I was newly married. I not only had a new husband, but I had a new house in a new city, attended a new church with all new people. Ten years later, I have found myself back in that similar situation, only this time not as scary. I'm in a new house, now with 4 children, 2 of them going to a new school, in a new neighborhood, and a new church trying to make new friends. I thought that sending 2 of my 4 kids to school was going to be a breeze at home, providing ample time to get settled in. It turns out that the two that stay home with me happen to be my "clingy" ones who demand my attention all day long. So while I'm trying to answer their calls, I've got a huge list of "to do's" floating around in my head, which has made me a little edgy (more like a lot edgy).
Sitting down to play with my kids has always been a struggle for me so this morning during the baby's nap, I decided to ask my 4-year old what makes a good mom:
1. She sweeps the floor
2. She makes stuff for us and others
3. She shares her stuff
4. She invites other kids over to play
While I'm sure each kid would have a different list, that's pretty simple. I know I still need to work on playing with them more, but I wonder if the "good mom list" in our heads is unnecessarily overwhelming us. Being a mom isn't easy. Being a good mom is even harder.

Captain Mazie!

This is what she likes to play with. She is not interested in dolls at all. She'd rather play with a toy lion or bear while she growls at it. She is a good mixture of spunky and sweet.

Hurricane Isaac

We decided to go to Houston for the hurricane and God opened up a family's heart for us to stay with them. We didn't see a drop of rain. We had a great time as a family while we were there and experienced minor wind damage to our house. Aaron came back early to clean out our fridge and he wiped us out! We have slowly begun refilling it and are doing fine.