Resolutions

“The best-laid plans of mice and men often go awry.”

Well-known Scottish poet Robert Burns really hit the nail on the head when he penned similar words in the eighteenth century which were adapted to this familiar saying.

My 2009 began with many resolutions which broke cleanly out of the gate only to fall away from the field before we even hit the first turn. I wonder if any other mom struggles as much as I do just to keep up with daily chores. It seems like as soon as I get things organized and on a schedule and am beginning to make progress with various projects I have waiting in the wings something happens to derail the progress I’ve made and knock me back again.

Nothing monumentally challenging has happened this year. I was slow to get back in the swing of things after the holidays. A had a couple bouts with teething. (Have I ever mentioned what a rotten teether she is?) I’ve had a week or two of being “in the dumps,” which always affects my productivity. We had to rush A to the ER and spend a night in the hospital. And, the three of us spent a whole week being sick with some sort of wretched bug.

Anyway, as you already know, I haven’t been able to get around to updating the blog until now. I had grand plans for the year. I even mapped out a very doable schedule, including days to update this blog and our family blog. Honestly, it wasn’t an unobtainable schedule at all. I just never got it going in full swing before I got knocked back the first time, and then I couldn’t seem to get it rolling again.

I decided that I needed to try a different approach to scheduling myself. Instead of simply listing what I want to accomplish on which days, I scheduled out my time each day. Of course, I realize this schedule will need to be flexible as things pop up all the time. I’m one week into using the new schedule, and already I’m much more productive. In fact, I’ve accomplished several tasks that I’ve been putting off for four months!

Since this is the first week I’ve used the schedule, I haven’t followed it exactly; especially since there were several household tasks that really got pushed aside due to our recent illnesses; so time that I would use to write or work on other projects was used instead to complete those chores.

I think, too, that this schedule may keep me on track better and help me avoid the pitfalls of watching too much of The Today Show or spending too much time on Facebook! I think I sometimes wallow around in the decision of what to do first so long that once I decide where to begin I’ve already wasted half the day or I bemoan the fact that I have too many “boring” responsibilities to take care of before I can get to the more fun items on the list.

Getting all my responsibilities handled and caring for A are, of course, my priorities; but, to keep myself sane, I need to continue some other activities as well, such as my writing. I have this blog and our family blog, but I also have several writing projects I’ve been wanting to do for years. There are several books I would like to write; plus, I’d love to write a short story or poem every now and then. That was one of my favorite things to do in school, and I really miss it. And, of course, I can’t forget the therapeutic nature of keeping up with a journal or two! Also, I’ve just been given the opportunity to do some freelance writing again. Now, that’s something I can really get on board with since I get paid for it!!

Also, I have my photography business which is not exactly booming, but is slowly growing. In addition to the portrait sessions and weddings and other events I have advertised for, I’d like to do more shooting for fun. I have a whole list of ideas of things I can shoot in my area in order to turn around and sell as framed, unframed and matted prints.

Another thing I miss from school is reading good literature and reacting to it, either orally in a group or through a written medium like an essay. I have recently started reading again--fiction, non-fiction, classics; fun books with stories I can get lost in and deeper books that make me question things and want to do more research. I started a book club, too; and we met for the first time a week and a half ago. It was so much fun to discuss a common book with other ladies.

Cooking and baking, researching and organizing household papers are some other things I enjoy. The only actual “project” I wrote on my list of resolutions to complete in 2009 is organizing all my recipes and developing some sort of system where I can find them. That way I may actually make all those tasty dishes I salivated over before tossing them in my folder with hundreds of others!

While my year didn’t start the way I’d hope, my heart and desire is in the right place anyway; and I hope to get things running a little more smoothly around here!

How do you keep yourself organized and on track? What are some projects you like to do or activities you like to keep up with that help you maintain your sanity? I’d love to hear from moms like me!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!

Well, I want my faithful readers to know that I haven't abandoned you--well, I guess I have; but not intentionally!!

I plan on getting back to blogging full steam ahead after the holidays!! I have a lot of ideas and am excited to get back to it. We've had a very busy fall with wonderful visits from family and a ton of activities with our church and other area groups. Add to that an extremely active potty-training 15-month-old who's been sick about three times and has been working hard on sprouting all four of her molars and you have an idea of how crazy my life's been!

We're looking forward to spending a few days back home with the family for Christmas and to having some awesome friends over for New Year's. Then, I'm hoping and praying for a little peace and quiet for at least a couple of months so we can finish this potty training stuff (at least the day-training part of it)!

I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas and a Happy New Year! I'm copying below some stuff we included in our family's Christmas newsletter. I hope you enjoy reading it as you think about the reason to celebrate Christ's birth!

LOOKING BACK OVER THE YEAR: 2008
As we sit here, thinking back over the past 12 months, we find ourselves remembering all the bad things: devastating hurricanes, tornadoes and earthquakes; countless casualties of war; untimely deaths, such as the loss of actor Heath Ledger; the brutal torture and murder of Christians throughout the world; the wavering economy; and soaring prices for daily necessities. But, we also have hope. This is not all there is to life. Tragedy is overwhelming and has the ability to weigh on us like a ton of bricks; but it doesn’t have the ability to take away eternity. In Christ, we have the promise of an eternity with Him in heaven; and we can know the certainty of that promise, especially in the face of a disaster that threatens to claim our life on this earth.

ETERNITY
This life is not the end. When we die we go either to heaven or to hell. All of us are sinful and evil by nature and deserve hell; however, God has provided a way to heaven through the death and resurrection of His Son, Jesus Christ. We can never do enough “good deeds” to work our way to heaven, but Christ paid the price for our sins when he suffered and died on the cross more than 2000 years ago. A believer’s life is not perfect and is difficult, but it is full of forgiveness for sins, the peace that passes understanding and the assurance of salvation and an eternity spent with the Maker of heaven and earth.

ACCEPT
We are sinners “...for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God….” Romans 3: 23

Death is the price “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 6:23

BELIEVE
It’s all of grace “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.” Ephesians 2: 8, 9

Christ paid it “For christ also suffered once for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive by the Spirit….” 1 Peter 3:18

CONFESS
We are secure “...that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.” Romans 10:9

Obey and grow “but you, O man of God, ...pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, gentleness. Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life….” I Timothy 6:11, 12a

We wish each of you a wonderful Christmas as we celebrate the birth of Jesus. Our prayer for you in 2009 is that you will accept Christ as your Savior and will know the peace that He brings or that your light will shine brighter for Him.

My Favorite Mom Links

I want to share my three favorite "mommy links" with you:
http://www.babiesandmomsradio.com/
http://www.mom4life.com/
http://blog.mom4life.com/

Around the time Allie was seven or eight months old, and I was at my lowest point; I discovered Babies and Moms Radio. I don't remember where I discovered them, but when I did I signed up for their podcasts. It took me a while to "get around" to listening to them. When I did, I suddenly felt like I wasn't alone in this whole "mom thing." These moms talked about real issues and activities they faced or did with their own children: teething woes and sign language with babies are the two topics that come to mind.

One of the topics stood out to me above the others, but I kept finding reasons not to listen to it. The title was "Postpartum Depression." Whenever I would glance over it I would have thoughts like: "I'm not depressed." "That's not a real thing." "Depression is a sign of weakness, and I'm not weak." "If I admit I'm depressed, I'll have to do something about it." "If I tell anyone I'm depressed, I'll have to go to a doctor; and he'll want me to get on some kind of drugs."

Well, I finally listened to it. I can't tell you what they said. I don't remember a single word. All I remember was thinking, "I'm not the only woman who struggles with these feelings?!?!?!?" A couple of the moms who host the show spoke of their own postpartum issues. That put a personal, real-life spin on it for me.

Listening to that podcast was the beginning of better times for me. Believe me, I still struggle--every day (sometimes, every minute); but at least I know now that I'm not alone.

I think the biggest frustration for me was looking around me at all these other moms who seemed to have no problem with everything. They seemed to have it all together. Not one of the many new mothers around me (I live in the "fertile" Triangle of North Carolina) talked about struggling with depression or hating being cooped up in a house all day with an often-screaming baby or resenting the physical torture you go through with delivery and breastfeeding, not to mention the extreme exhaustion from sleepless nights. NO ONE TALKED ABOUT IT; so I thought I must be the only one, and something must be wrong with me. I was obviously a terrible, unfit mother.

Anyway, the Babies and Moms Radio site led me to Mom4Life. A few brief moments of browsing at the online store had me hooked! They sell products by moms, for moms. Plus, they have free shipping AND 10 percent of every sale's proceeds goes to a pregnancy care center--now that's shopping I can get on board with (and not feel guilty)!

Soon after I discovered Mom4Life, I found Heather Ledeboer's blog. Heather is the site's owner, and one of the most remarkable, godly women I've had the privilege of "meeting" in cyberspace. Her third child, Sawyer, was born on May 10 of this year. Though his birth was beautiful and remarkable, Sawyer wasn't able to greet his family with the cry they had longed to hear. They learned a few days before he was born that his heart was no longer beating, just three weeks shy of his due date.

I have kept up with her blog posts as she has been candid and open for the whole world to see. She has shone with the love and peace of God with a faith that could only come from an almighty, sovereign Creator. Though she has cried and questioned the whys of this tragic loss; she has also rejoiced in people who have found hope through her words or comfort in their own times of loss or--and here's the best part--have come to know Jesus Christ as their personal Savior! Sawyer may have never drawn a breath outside the womb on this earth, but his life was not in vain.

Anyway, I wanted to share these awesome sites with you. If you plan on going back and reading Heather's blog from the beginning of the end of Sawyer's earthly life (and I hope you do), I would encourage you to grab a huge box of tissues! I've shed many a tear at my computer over her words through the past five months, but I wouldn't take any of them back.

I want to say a special thanks to Heather Ledeboer for taking the time to read this blog before I posted it and for allowing me to share a little bit of her story. You're such an inspiration, Heather!!