My Friday

Last Friday was great!  This Friday... not so exciting.  I decided to tackle my linen closet.  I am embarrassed to show this to you but, it's reality.  So, here it is: 

Top of closet - Before

Bottom of closet - Before

I look at these pictures and think, "How on earth do I let things get like this?!"  I don't know the answer.  I just know it's awful.  I'd like to think I'm not alone and everyone's closet looks like this... please don't tell me otherwise.  Let me live in ignorant bliss.  

I emptied everything out of the closet and threw it on my bed.  I weeded through the piles of junk.  I threw away so many expired over-the-counter medications and sunblocks.  That was easy since I don't use that stuff anymore.  I made a pile of sheets and towels to donate. There are four of us living in this house, not forty.  It's hard to get rid of things.  I often live with the "just in case I need this" mentality.  It helps to ask yourself, "When was the last time I used this?" as you're going through your stuff.  Most of the stuff I forgot I had.  Others I hadn't used in years.  All I had to do was look at the before photos and it was enough to motivate me to donate things.  

After much sorting, here is the end result: 

Closet - After

I have SO much space left!  I put the First-Aid container in the middle of the closet so my kids could reach it.  Now, if I could only get them to put things back, I'd be a happy mom!  

I'm thinking about painting my closet.  It's SO drab.  Although, with the long list of other household projects hanging over my head, this will most likely never happen.  I have many more things to organize, but I'm happy to have at least one thing crossed off.

What kind of household projects do you have going on?  

Thanks for stopping by,

  

  

Dreams

I had a dream about my brother last night. Actually, it was this morning because it woke me up at 6 a.m. I know I must have been crying in my sleep because I woke up with puffy eyes and a stuffy nose. I hate dreams like that... the ones that stay with you and disorient you for the rest of the day. 

My brother, Brian, is in heaven now. In December of 2007 he was diagnosed with Stage 4 Melanoma. He died in July of 2007 at the age of 26. It's amazing how much you regret, how much you wish you could turn back the clock and take in every moment, every word, every minute spent together. 

I'm thankful for the time I got to spend with Brian. He was my baby brother, the one I carried around on my hip until he got too heavy for me to pick up. And I was his big sister, the one he called when he needed advice. I'll miss him until the day I die. But I know I'll see him in heaven one day. Until that day, I will live his example of God's love and mercy. His desire was for people to know Christ. His funeral was packed, standing room only, and several people received God into their hearts that day. I knew then that he accomplished what he always wanted.  He left this earth with a full life and a full heart.   

Prayer

I woke up at 3 a.m. with a feeling like I just had to pray. Pray for my family. Pray for my friends. Pray for my church. So I did. I prayed until I fell asleep again at 4 a.m. Then, I woke up at 6 a.m. with the nudging feeling that I needed to pray some more. So I did. I prayed for my family. I prayed for my friends. I prayed for my church. I don't know exactly what I needed to pray for, so I covered all of the bases. I prayed for safety. I prayed for growth. I prayed for protection. I prayed for joy, strength, peace, change. 

I've heard people say, "Is it really important that we pray? It's not like we can change God's mind and He already knows what's going to happen." My response to that is, yes! God does know what's going to happen. He knows the choices we will make. He knows the outcome of our choices. He knows everything about us. But prayer is not about changing God's mind or getting what we want. It's about focusing our hearts on Him. When we take time to pray, we are standing in the gap for our friends, our family, our church. We are seeking God. We are making our requests known to Him. We may pray for 5 minutes, we may pray for hours. The outcome may be the same as it was always intended to be, but WE are changed. Spending time in prayer changes our focus. It becomes outward instead of inward. You cannot spend hours in prayer and not be changed. 

Have you ever heard the phrase, "Garbage in, garbage out"? It means, whatever you spend your time watching, listening to, or engaging in, will come out. If it's dirty, nasty stuff, that's what will come out of you. Your thoughts will be dark and hopeless. If it's good and pure, goodness will flow out. Your thoughts will be hopeful and peaceful. So, as we spend time in prayer and reading the Word, that goodness will flow out of us. God's love will flow out of us. Our trust will grow as we rely fully on the Lord. 

Does this make sense? Prayer is powerful and effective. We shouldn't try to live without it. One of the best things about it is that there's no special formula. You don't have to say certain words or be at a certain level of maturity (phew). It's simple and takes on many forms. 

I could talk about prayer for hours. Instead of boring you to death, I want to pass along some resources. Sometimes it's hard to know what to pray for. One of the things that has helped me tremendously is Stormie Omartian's books on the praying series:

Power of a Praying Woman

Power of a Praying Wife

Power of a Praying Parent

I specifically use these three on a daily basis. They really help guide my prayers and cover topics I would never think to pray about. Even if you don't like scripted prayers, like my husband, the prayers are so powerful, you find yourself agreeing and praying along boldly with each one. They also have all three books rolled into one.  She has SO many books on prayer.  These are just a few.  

Here are three more resources that I just started digging in to:

The Prayer that Changes Everything 
Partners in Prayer
Understanding the Purpose and Power of Prayer

I'd like to hear some of your thoughts on prayer.  Do you have a resource that you use?  Do you have a specific place or time of day to pray?

Thanks for stopping by,

Oh, Happy Day!

Here are some of the reasons I am HaPpY today: 

• it's Friday

• i spent the morning in bed reading books with my girls

• emma asked me to do a side ponytail in her hair. She's 8. It's 2011 :: I had memories of when I was 8 in the 80's. *sigh* sweet side ponytail memories

• i went to Target

• in honor of the side ponytail, I made my kids listen to 80's music on the way to Target

• i bought really cute magnets :: i love magnets

• i had a Venti Iced Chai

• i opened my windows for the first time in 5 months

• i have a sink full of dishes and i don't care

• i'm making sloppy joes for dinner :: first time in years

• my taxes are almost done

• i'm wearing my new necklace

• i'm planning a Tangled party that we're having when it comes out on video  ::  love that movie  ::  i say i'm having it for my girls, but really it's for me

• i started a new book :: i love it

• i've been singing this song all day

• jesus loves me

Did you have a great Friday?  Why or why not?  


Have a great weekend! 

Oils

Hi, All. It's Thursday, as if you didn't know, but the great thing about this Thursday is that it's 65 degrees here in Ohio! That is great news for us. We've had months of snow and ice. It was time for a good thaw. Unfortunately, I didn't realize it was 65 degrees until I stepped outside at 2:45 this afternoon. But, I have a few more hours until the sun goes down and the temperature becomes chilly once again. 

I'm sure you didn't stop by to read about the weather in Ohio. I'm rushing off to a meeting for the Children's Ministry Program at our church. But, I wanted to share my new adventure with you - doTERRA Essential Oils. They have changed my life! Click here to read a little about them. It took a lot of restraint not to write 10 pages about these amazing oils. Even if you're not into essential oils, read it anyway. There are a few interesting things about what the government allows us to put on our bodies. 

Thanks for stopping by,

Hang in there...

I'm working on changing the design of my blog, so if it looks weird and disorderly, hang on!  I'll have it up and running soon.  

I'm using Shabby Blogs.  Adorable!  Check 'em out!  

what is your favorite blog background site?  I'm open to suggestions...

Heather 


P.S.  Sorry about all the colors.  I've been stuck in the house for 3 days with a sick kiddo.  I'm going a little cRaZy... 

My Valentine's Gift

I shared with you the other day that my vacuum broke and joked about getting a vacuum for Valentine's Day.  I can tell you, we did not. Instead, we went out to the movies, dinner, and stopped by Anthropologie to look around.  I almost bought this cup because I have a thing for coffee and tea cups and I love the color: 

It's $10 and comes in 4 different colors. Love it!

It was a much needed date and so much fun!  My husband is a great guy.  He's so much fun to be with and makes me laugh like no one else. I'm blessed. 

But, that's not why I'm writing.  I just wanted to show you what Hubby got for me.  I forgot that I told him about this necklace I wanted.  I did tell him a while ago, after all.  So, I was very surprised when I received it. Here's what it looks like:  

I LOVE this necklace!  It's from The Rusted Chain.  

I've ordered several things from this shop, including this necklace: 

I've ordered gifts for friends and family from this shop and will continue to do so.  All of the jewelry that I wear has to have a purpose.  I think I only have one necklace that I have just because it matches a shirt I own. Everything else has a story or a sentimental meaning to it.  These necklaces make a statement and share my faith.  Love 'em!

So, I just felt the need to tell you that I did not get a vacuum for Valentine's Day (oh, darn) and to invite you over if you want to come and vacuum my house.  

What did you do for Valentine's Day?  Did you get a gift?  

Blessings,

Heather 

LoVe

Happy Valentine's Day!  Some of you may not celebrate Valentine's Day, thinking it's just a Hallmark Holiday.  I felt that way for a while.  But now, in the midst of marriage and motherhood, I am grateful that there is a "holiday" that forces me to slow down and intentionally show love.  I said to my husband yesterday that we need to show love for one another more throughout the year.  We get so busy that our marriage gets put on the back burner.  We know our spouses will be there, so we'll just nurture that relationship when we have time and energy.  Then, before you know it, so much time has passed that you don't even know how to relate to one another as husband and wife.  

So, in order to be more intentional with showing love for my husband, I'm going to start doing things for him throughout the week.  My husband is an easy man to please, that's what makes it so much worse that I haven't been doing the little things for him.  He's so laid back that I think I let things go even more because of that.  He doesn't really say much unless something's gotten way out of hand (ie. he's on the verge of recycling underwear because the laundry isn't done.  I wish I were joking here.  Sad.)  Here are a few of the things I'm going to do for him: 

• Pack his lunch
• Put his clothes away after I do laundry (sometimes it sits in the basket for a week)
• Surprise him with a Starbuck's coffee that I've picked up on the way home from an outing
• Give him a foot rub (ick.. not my favorite, but he LOVES it)
• Offer to get him something to drink or eat if I'm in the kitchen and he's not

These are simple things.  Most of them are things I should already be doing.  The first thing I'm going to do though, before any of the things listed above, is pray.  God created us.  He knows what we need.  I'm going to ask God to show me what my husband needs. 

I was reminded of this Bible verse this morning: 

"LOVE is patient, LOVE is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.  It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. LOVE does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.  LOVE never fails."    

1 Corinthians 13:4-8 

I think it would be a good idea to pick this verse apart and examine how we're doing with each key phrase.  This is always a hard task.  Not many people I know like self-reflection.  But, if we want to honor God with our marriages and relationships, we need to be willing to look at it all.  I started getting hives just underlining the words.  I know I fall short in many of these areas but, I know that I can accomplish these things through God's grace.  

I love this verse because it speaks about the way we love, but it's also about how God loves us.  Amazing.  

How will you be celebrating Valentine's Day?  How do you intentionally show love to your spouse?  

Blessings and LOVE, 

Heather   

I think I'm Gonna Cry Now

I'm sitting here at my computer looking around me.  What do I see? Dust.  Crumbs.  Cereal.  Papers.  I'm reviewing my to-do list in my head, calculating the time it will take me to complete it, and fighting the temptation to rip up the list, sit on the couch, and watch a movie while eating ice cream right out of the carton.  

Let me explain how this all started.  It was last Thursday evening, to be exact.  I was at a friend's house, all my cookbooks and recipes in tow. We were going to have dinner together and do some meal planning so our families could eat.  I left a frozen pizza at home for my hubby and kids to eat (I know, not gourmet but they like it.)  I'm about to sit down to eat and my cell phone rings.  

I hear my husband say, "Our oven isn't preheating."  I couldn't possibly have heard him right.  I LOVE my oven.  It's nothing spectacular, but it's mine and I have bonded with it.  I say, "What?"  Much to my dismay, he repeats himself, louder this time, mistaking my "What?" response as the inability to hear him instead of disbelief and grief over what I'm hearing.  "OUR OVEN IS NOT PREHEATING!"   I take him through all of my oven repair expertise (um, yeah) and realize that he has done everything I can think of to get it working.  I sigh and say, "I guess you can try and use the toaster oven."  Thinking I've come up with a good solution, I'm about to hang up.  I hear him say, "I already tried that. The toaster oven isn't working either."  *sigh*  This has got to be a weird dream where all of my appliances plot against me and stop working.  I suggest sandwiches and hang up before he can tell me the refrigerator has died too.

Can I tell you about what happened earlier that day?  I get to work, ready to tackle my long list of things to do.  I push power on my computer... nothing happens.  "No, no, no, this can't be happening!  I just saved a document on there that took my two and a half hours to create!" I push the power button again, while praying.  Nothing.  I get down on the floor, pull the tower out of the desk and start unplugging, counting, re-plugging, and push the power button.  Nothing.  I lay my hands on the computer, start praying for healing (desperation, my friends).  Nothing.  After more praying and some controlled breathing, I give up and say goodbye to the computer, as it's hauled out of the office to Best Buy for repair.  I continue to pray.

Today, finally getting around to cleaning my house that desperately needs cleaning, I turn my vacuum on and start pushing it around. Nothing is sucking up.  "No.  Not you too."  I open the door and adjust the bag - yes, a bag. It's old.  I close the door and push power.  Still nothing.  I try the detachable arm.  Nope.  I skip the controlled breathing and prayer and leave the vacuum in the middle of my bedroom to text my husband and tell him the good news.  I know he'll be as happy as I am.   

I have a feeling that Hubby and I will be going shopping for vacuums for Valentine's Day.   

I am not a researcher of household items.  I like to start with what people I know are using.  SO, what kind of vacuum do you use, and would you recommend it for my Valentine's Day gift?  

Your Frazzled Friend,

Heather

Oh yeah, I have a blog...

Every time I look at the name of my blog, I laugh.  I guess it's understood that I don't have discipline and that's why it's in quotes in the title, but come on!  The last time I blogged was in November!!  I don't even know if any of you are around to read what I'm writing at this moment.  On the off chance that you are, I want to write you this short note.  

I have had a lot going on over the holiday season.  So much that I can't tell you all about it now but, I will give you a list of things I will soon be writing about: 

1. Thanksgiving (only 3 months late)

2. Christmas

3. Essential Oils (my new adventure!  Can't wait to share!)

4. Discipline (or lack of)

5. My stove biting the dust

6. My toaster oven biting the dust the same day 

7. Homemade heating pads

8. Tween life

9. My basement...

You know, as I'm writing this list I'm thinking that maybe I shouldn't be writing this list.  It may actually deter you from returning to my blog. But, I guess I am who I am... love me or leave me... I do, however, hope you choose love.  

I must run.  My kids are getting off the bus and I have a bunch of stuff to do... hence the reason for my lack of blogging lately... busy schedule!

Thanks for stopping by, 

Heather