Hedgehog hair revisited..

Some of you think I'm joking when I say "hedgehog hair".

And some of you are just plain jealous. Admit it. You want to be a hedgehog too.

So, here is my no-fail formula.

First of all, pray for naturally curly hair with a proper amount of frizz.

Get a layered haircut that will assure that your top hairs will be just as tall as the long hairs are wide.

Wash your hair at night. Make sure to go to bed with your hair wet to ensure the highest "puff and patoinggg factor"

Sleep peacefully, but roll around quite a bit to stir the action.

Wake up.

Don't touch a thing!!

See the resemblance? The utter resemblance? (These are actually borrowed from Betz White's site. She sells patterns to make them and all..)

If you have an isight camera, take a picture. The coolness of it will soon wear off, and you'll be looking like every other normal creature out there. So booooooorrrrrrring!

And the people at my church are just not into this look, so I got out the flat iron. Yes, this picture was taken about an hour after the first one. And the cute blue top? $1.00, baby.

No, I'm not pregnant. whatever. When I said, "baby" I was just trying to be cool. But I guess it's not cool if you look pregnant (and you're not) and then you say, "baby"..

Anyway, what are you doing on this final day of February/ first day of March to make your home sing? (Other than holding a yellow pear, wearing a blue sweater and saying "baby" like you're cool or something?) Join us at Moms the Word.

Information overload

In old days, like before the internet, information passed a lot slower from person to person.

If you had a joke or a story to tell, someone would have to "tell it" to you. You could decide right then and there if you liked it or didn't. You also could decide whether or not this bit of information was worthy to be passed on.

Consider a joke from the third grade. One child tells you, and then you tell someone else. Three weeks later, the joke has made full circle and is back at you. And that was in a small town with a small school.

For other types of information, you needed a book or a magazine. Of course, there was T.V.

The authoritative "written word" was something that only high brow people had access to, since they actually had to WANT to find it.

My point? The credibility of the information was close to the source. If it had an authoritative "feel" to it, it probably was written by an expert of some sort. My generation (40ish) and older is somehow brainwashed to trust authoritative sounding things.

The younger generations are instinctively rebellious towards this or cautiously suspicious. In a sense, they (the younger people) are smarter than us. They are trained skeptics, and we didn't train them to be that way. Why is that? Growing up on the internet and email forwards, scams, unstable government and shifting economy has trained them. They grew up in spite of our naivete-our diet of JFK speeches and hopeful America of progress and success. We trusted everything. They trust nothing.

Speaking of trusting everything, it brings me to the impetus for writing this high brow post: email forwards--again. (not again!) Yes, you need to hear it again. Well, not you, specifically. But someone out there needs this, so you can share it.

We need to be discerning. Anything that says, "forward this to your friends" is an email forward. Let's consider this logically.

1) If it has to tell you to forward this to your friends, do you think you can trust it? If it is really that good, wouldn't you just do this normally? Why then, do THEY want you to forward it?

2)Authoritative sounding forwards that start with "Dr. such and so says.." There are a million doctors out there, but unless it is a doctor I KNOW, like my favorite family physician, Dr. Woodman, I really don't care what Dr. such and so says. My favorite Dr. Woodman hides behind his desk when he sees me coming because I question everything he says and ask him to site sources, dates, etc. for anything he says. (Oh yeah, I do that) Even Dr. Woodman is put to the test and not trusted implicitly.

3) SNOPES.COM can verify anything for you. This week I just got on snopes and put it "drinking cold water after a meal causes cancer?" It said: FALSE. It was so easy peasy. Anyone can do it.

In Summary, let me reiterate:

1) Everything that comes in an authoritative written form is not authoritative or even true.

2) EMAIL forwards are not a good source of reliable information.

3) People who are older are more prone to believe these things because of the way we grew up. Your kids really are smarter than you if you are 40 or older.

4) I think I'll wait another 3 months before going on this rant again.

Blitz-it Friday #37

Be still my heart--the first blitz-link up of the year. I think I've significantly prepped you guys by the blitzing video I made. My mother told me it was funny. I fail to see the humor. This is plain old HARD WORK. Nothing funny. Except Hud and Than constantly playing with the blue ball instead of working.

Well, I was trying to think what were some of the things in the house that were bogging me down. One of those things was my closet. I have scored enough jackpots at the thrift stores to have a bulging closet. I get overwhelmed pretty easily, but I also have too many things!

BEFORE: this is clothing mish mosh. Empty hangers jammed in with stuff.

Piles of laundry on the floor and papers/ books everywhere. This is stressful in my book!!

This is bedroom mish mosh also. Note the clothes over the step-stool thingy in the back corner..

So, I ripped right into it--taking all of the clothes out of the closet from the hanging things and lower shelf.

I proceeded to sort through a mountain of things. Since I do this often, there was only a small bag of things to actually get rid of. Some of the things just went to the other closet.

The papers and other things got an exit. (Everything in the hallway were things that landed in the bedroom without permission!)

Done! Dusted, vacuumed, put things away---great feeling.

Color coordinated closet--my favorite way of organizing..

Bonus! I always "find" something when I clean. This sleeveless dress I bought at a thrift store two weeks ago for $1.49. I happen to find the belted jacket shirt in my cleaning. Wow! Looks like I have a "new" spring outfit! Can you believe how well the colors match?

So, let's get moving, my little organizing mommies. If you do not have a blog, tell us in the comments what you are doing!

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

If you are new to blitzing, here are some other links on the topic:

Basically, blitzing is forcing ourselves to focus for a set period of time on hands-on tasks.

Read about the: one hour blitz and staying focused.

Also, blitzing with kids is a blast if you are an airchair general.

Glad you could join us! Now you have MANY choices about using the blitz. You are welcome to do/ try any or all of them.... and so many photos to choose from!

And for you guys who like to move slowly, try plodding.

What to get rid of?

Jackie of JL Yarnworks who knits fabulously gorgeous things just watched the other video: indecisive box. Jackie writes (my paraphrase) "I want the in between stages. Like how do you decide what to get rid of or what to keep?" In other words, what goes into the decision making process?

My daughter was looking over my shoulder when I was reading her comment, and she said,

"Mom, that's easy. You are not sentimental about stuff"

That sounds so cold. It's true though.

Stuff is stuff. Even expensive stuff is just stuff.

If you look at Jackie's blog, you'll see some beautiful stuff. Maybe everything in her home is that beautiful, you know? I'd probably have a hard time getting rid of beautiful stuff also.

I think if I did not have the Lord Jesus and know that all of heaven was going to be filled with beautiful stuff, I'd clutch on to every last little thing this world had to offer.

It takes guts. It takes courage. It takes a hard headed woman to get rid of her college text books because they remind her she was once smart (and respected for it).

It takes fortitude to get rid of those size 6 pants and the tutu that she wore when she was 16 because it reminds her that she was once tiny and youthful and tutu-wearing.

It takes faith to embrace the present day and let the past go.

What you save says more about you than what you don't save. Get rid of the things that are no longer "you" today. right now.

Take pictures and write a poem about the items that are special. See if that will do instead of keeping the item.

Hope this helps.

Time to get cleaning!

I know how everyone said they liked videos--especially videos that play everything fast!! Since I've been whining about my messy home, I thought we would give you a taste of the family blitz. Our goal was 15 minutes; it actually took 20. We got the living room and kitchen done and helpers were in the kitchen doing their chores also!

How about a link-up on Thursday? Can you guys get ready to link up your blitzing for Thursday night/ Friday? This should give you a little time to prepare!

Total hubby sweetness..

Oh just skip this if you don't like mush (Becky O).

And yes, this is G rated. G for good and God, which is the only thing that makes a hubby sweet.

Yesterday, we had a mini Bible conference at the chapel. So, for us, that involves not only Sunday but Saturday as well. As you know, I've been struggling with basic home upkeep this week. After 6 weeks of robotics and eating dinner at 8:30 each night, I'm ready for some semblance of family order and not waking up to dinner dishes every morning.

And you can tell I'm down when I say things like this, "Oh, I'm so glad that the out-of-town preacher and his family didn't stay here this time.."

DH: "Why is that?"

Me: "Because this place is a mess, and their home is so clean. "

DH: "So, what's wrong with our house?"

Me: "We've been married for 19 years and you haven't noticed that this place is (often) a mess?"

DH: "It looks fine to me. I can hardly think of a home where the Lord has used more than this one. If this is the way it looks, then, that is fine."

Me: (tearing up) I love that man.

And my daughter, Joanna, 15, says, "Mommy, why would we care about what they think anyway? It's not like they have to move in. We're the ones who live here."

The voice of reason and compassion. I hope Joanna keeps that great attitude. Maybe when she grows up, she'll forget that she's supposed to impress others. Oh, to have such an uncluttered mind and heart! And I hope that whoever marries that young lady will have the same attitude as her father does.

Being spoiled with love beyond belief is what is making me sing this week. It's only possible with Christ! Thank you, Lord for loving me, despite these weaknesses!

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

For those of you who do not know, my daughter, Joanna, who was interviewed by the news this weekend, also writes a little blog of her own. Both her brother, Jamie, and I linked to the news clip, but she did not! She also has her own ETSY shop. I think her prices are very reasonable also. Almost every day I wear something she has made! And it's not because I'm being nice. LOL.

For more making your home sing, visit MOMs the Word.

Oh, those unsocialized kids of mine!

Last night, at the Robotics Open House, 23 News showed up. When they were looking for a student to interview, Jamie (our son who has been in this for four years, team captain for most of it and now the head student designer) was pushed to the front of the pack. Despite the fact that our unsocialized home-schoolers are the only homeschooled kids on the team, both Jamie and Joanna were interviewed by the news crew. Joanna is the team captain this year. So, guess whose interview made the news?

You'll have to click here to find out for yourself.

My mess is a desk..

I just got off the phone with my dear hubby. I could tell he was overwhelmed and hungry. I can't do much about the hungry part, since he's at work. But I could make him smile a little and encourage him to eat. (The men in this family need to be told to eat. It's a strange situation, but that's what we do here)

Anyway, I asked him, "So, what seems to be the main problem?"

He said, "My mess is a desk!" knowing that it would get me laughing.

And I said, "Oh yeah? Well, my mess is a house!"

So, we chuckled at our mutual state of overwhelm. I'm so glad that neither of us finds it our role in this life to "exhort" each other about this kind of stuff. Consequences are all either of us needs to get moving.

I told him I had two goals for today: get the laundry done and make dinner. What are the chances of these getting done?

And he said, "Are you going to the robotics open house tonight at 6:30? and Did you know you are signed up to make lunch for the robotics team tomorrow?"

On second thought, maybe I should just not make dinner. No! I think I'll make it on principle. A family needs dinner, even if it's 8:30 or 9:00 p.m.--which has been the dinner hour for most of the robotics season.

And then he adds, "I wasn't really sure which of the piles of laundry on the floor of the bedroom were clean.."

I say, "That should be worked out by tonight, or I could go out and buy even MORE underwear.."

So, that's the state of things here. The good news is that we have already:

blitzed the livingroom, part of the kitchen, and put two loads in the washer. The moose roast is out of the freezer, ready to go into the crockpot for our midnight family meal, and I'm even dressed! So, I'll eat a little lunch and keep the laundry going. The robotics team will have to have Mostaccoli from Logli, though.

What about you guys? Anybody else ready to sandblast the house rather than clean it again?

Oh, but it looks so nice when you're done. One more time.. One more time for Jesus.

Small fish

You know the feeling you get when you finally get the kitchen sink clean? About once a week, I blitz the kitchen. I kick out all of the humans from my "work space" and I get organized. Yes, I set the timer, and meet goals--high goals--like "put dishes in dishwasher" and "sweep floor".

And the timer rings, and I am suddenly a "big fish" in my small pond. And let's face it. Being a big fish in the home is huge. And we all know that's an illusion. No sooner have we reached big fish-dom, and the next meal needs to be made, a spill needs to be cleaned up or a child has pooped on the carpeting.. or whatever. But for that moment, that little moment in time, you are a big fish.

But lately, my pond has gotten bigger. We've been out of the house more--interacting with even more outsiders. I've been pushing my fitness level more, adding new workouts here and there. Today, I took advantage of a friend's offer to take a pilates class at a local health club.

"Small fish" I told myself as I drove there. At the Y, I'm a medium sized fish, being one of the only pilates teachers to have the certifications that I have. But at this health club, everybody is: fit, healthy, strong, thin, and qualified. And yet, if I want to get better, I need to push myself and train with the big fish.

Do you guys do that? Do you push yourselves to be with those who are a lot better than you.. whether it's homeschooling, homemaking, fitness, or ?? It's hard to be around the experts and relax and be the beginner for a while.

As I was contemplating my size as a small fish, I remembered the Lord Jesus is the ultimate in small fish, when he came to earth in all humility. He wasn't a small fish out of circumstances. He did it by choice. That's a good thought to end on right there. For our sakes, he became poor. That we, through his poverty, might be big, rich fish.

These are my excuses...

I'm going to make a bunch of excuses about where I've been and what I've been doing, but the truth is--that I have been watching the Olympics. I enjoy every swoop and dive of the skaters, every bounce and jump of the skiers, every crash (of every sport) and the drama behind their lives. I grieve for the ones who fall, don't make it, or get injured. I am saddened by the death of the Georgian luge runner who lost his life.

I have been trying all week to summarize my thoughts about the Olympics, but I think I'll just say something funny. I have just recently found my new hairdo role model.

I'm going to have to work pretty hard to get my hedgehog updo to look that cool.

So, other than plunking in front of the TV for a few hours each night, what else is going on around here?

Well, remember how I said that God likes variety? After our adventures at the flea market on Saturday, we arrived home and launched into some ironing to prepare for the next day's adventures at the Itasca country club. We visited a church in West Chicago and headed out to Itasca for a gathering of Air Force academy "nominees" and their families put on by the parents association.

Yes, there really is a Northern Illinois parents' association for parents whose children are attending the Air Force Academy. It was a fancy brunch, and there were many presentations about the academy and cadet life. It was very informative and interesting.

Because my husband is a USAFA grad ('87), academy life is not something our family needs an education on. This military talk has been floating around our family for as long as it has been in existence. But other families...

Oh the dad sitting to my left... God bless him. His son is determined to do this, and he is just hoping against hope that the acceptance into Stanford will come any day and change his mind, since his acceptance into Purdue and U of Michigan didn't.. There is no changing the kid's mind.

No kid goes to USAFA because their parents want him to, nor does he turn down an appointment because his parents don't want him to. It's this fierce independence that actually is part of the prototype of who makes it and who doesn't.

So, where do we fit into all of this? Well, Jamie has not received an appointment yet. We are waiting, hopeful and in faith, that God will provide what is best for Jamie. Only God knows the future and what he needs to be molded best into who God wants him to be. After attending the brunch, I have a peace about him attending USAFA. I can really see how God could use this to shape him. I also know that the competition is fierce, and we should not expect anything.

Jamie seems to be fine about things. He finished the application process and got right on to the next day's business. I, on the other hand, breathed a huge sigh of relief. The application process has taken our family over a year! Even if he does not get accepted, I will be prepared for whatever the remaining four children want to do after high school. Can it possibly be worse than this? His final PT test was last Friday. The last of the recommendations came in, and the final two essays were written, edited several times and submitted online.

All of the hoopla of planning a high school graduation/ party will soon begin. I'm already brainstorming ideas about it. If he does get the appointment, he will be leaving (for good) on June 30th. Graduation for us is May 15th. I just ordered the cap, gown and tassle yesterday.

I submitted a baby photo for the yearbook.

In the meantime, I have no clean underwear. (you had to know that) And I think I will toodle out and buy some, since it doesn't look like I'll have much time to do laundry for the rest of the school year. Let's see... the next time I'm available for laundry is.. Friday. Can you say.. busy?

and my heart broke..

Just for kicks, I thought I'd give you another peek into the craziness of my "life". You can laugh if you want to, or you can cry, but it's all the same to me. God is in my life, and he knows I need "variety" in my service to him.

The morning came too fast. We were up watching the Olympics last night, taking in the diversity of this great land they call Canada through the Opening Ceremonies. It went late for us, and somehow, I imagined myself sleeping in on Saturday.

Saturday, however, was upon us. Will was stirring a huge vat of oatmeal, trying to get our older four children out of bed, eating and out the door. The three middles had music, like they do on almost every Saturday. The oldest would drive them and head over to Robotics.

I had to get my head together. We were scheduled for the "Gospel Booth" at 9:00, and it was already after 8:00. Will woke up the sleepy "who" child, sleeping on the floor, hair and body sprawled out like a spilled box of spaghetti. How do I gather this up? I can hardly get myself going. Thankfully, Will stepped in with the food-enticement. The problem is neither she nor I find food appealing in the "wee" hours of the morning like 8:15, for example.

Nevertheless, we pulled it together and got the booth and set up. The Alpine Flea Market is a unique place. Without the smells, the sounds, and rough-raggedness, it just wouldn't be same "armpit" that I remember it to be. And yet, there's something lovable about it also. I would have to work pretty hard to get in with the motorcycle gang/ homeless, hung over crowd that frequents this place, but now, all we have to do is pay a little money and set up a booth. How fun is that?

So, we do it. At first, you have to train your limbs to go through the motions. Now, set up this table. Now the chairs. Put out the Gospel literature on the tables. Set up some crafts. Get out the Bible, and sit. and wait. and pray.

I never have to worry about chasing people into the aisles. They come. God draws them in. We just sit there and smile. I pray a simple prayer.

Dear God, Is there anyone here who doesn't know you who is ready to know you. Bring them to us. Let us love them in your way. Don't let us waste time with who just want to distract us. You bring them in, and we are willing. Amen

And they come. Today, a young gal came. I won't give the details or her real name, but only 18 and severely violated. A mess. Just ripe for Jesus, and yet almost too confused to take him in.

She sat and did crafts with me. We talked a little. We made little cards with heart stickers. Will had to leave to get our kids, but I couldn't leave her. I'll call her "Melissa" but that is not her real name. The next couple came in to work, and then the next. I still couldn't leave her. I forgot to ask Will for money, and I didn't have my purse. It was beyond lunch time. Jason gave me the $20.00 bill that he had in his wallet.

I asked Melissa if she wanted to go with me to Taco Johns, right across the way. We sat in the restaurant and talked. We bought a ton of food. There was extras for her to give to her grandma. I'm counting transfats, and the number has reached oblivion. And I wonder what she must think of me--being worried about the food. If her life could be "so perfect" as to only be concerned about food! I listened to her, and my heart broke.

We returned to the booth and grabbed a few of Jason's kids to walk around with. We bought a few cheap little toys for the kids. I bought Melissa a pink unicorn. Since her incident, she has become a child again. I watched Melissa become a five year old and dive into the toy barrel with the little girls. My heart broke.

Melissa took me around to other booths. She grew up here. This armpit of a place is her home. The regulars give the regulars a better deal on their "merchandise". Could it possibly be cheaper than it already is? A lady told me her story of her husband leaving her after 20 years, and just now receiving the child support check. Selling her wares in this market is her only income. I spent $3. 00 there. My heart broke.

I had one dollar left. I wanted to give it to Dennis. Dennis had the booth kitty-corner from us, and he gave us a ton of supplies for kids to make crafts. He was so generous that I just wanted to buy some things from him, just to be friendly. Of course, he managed to "out give" me in his generosity and gave me far more than $1.00 worth of stuff. I could hardly imagine having so little and yet being so generous. These people (typically) have no one and nothing, but they have each other. each other.. sounds almost like a church.

It's a church without Jesus. And many of them like it that way, so we don't bother them.

But for those who want him, we are there, with our breaking hearts.

Now I can rest..

All of the struggles of the first 10 years of motherhood can be summarized by the thoughts expressed this post: Fear and Grace, by Mrs. Parunak of Pursuing Titus 2.

If you are not a regular reader of her blog, she writes on "high brow" things all the time that relate to Christian women.

My undisciplined mind, my lack of faith, my inability to see beyond the end of my nose were constant struggles at the beginning of my faith walk/ journey into mommy/wife-dom.

If we could wrap our heads around this, can you just imagine how "organized" we'd be?

Why I'm no different than a millionaire..

I think about these things. If I were a millionaire, what EXACTLY would I do differently?

I probably would not stop

--being a stay at home mom, especially if my kids are the ages that they are

--being a wife to the greatest, handsomest, 45 year old

--homeschooling, in the same way that I do it

--teaching pilates at the Y for min wage and teaching at Hamilton Sundstrand for donation only

--teaching at Hallstrom (perhaps I would make everything free?)

--buying my clothes at second hand stores, since I do this for more reasons than just saving money.

--having people over for dinner after chapel on Sunday

--cooking for my family.. (since home-cooked food is not only cheap, it's nutritious. I also enjoy cooking)

-- attending our "farm chapel" as I call it. Money does not affect where we fellowship.

--living in the same house. Yes, I actually like it here. The exception would be if my husband wanted to take an apartment in downtown Chicago and be a self-supporting missionary there. In which case, I would probably keep the house, since I can not imagine living in the city "full time"

--encouraging our kids to try for scholarships, since this is just a smart decision.

--giving to the Lord, just different amounts.

So, what would I do differently?

Realistically, some things would have to change. Like, I probably would buy a fuel-efficient car, or put money aside for one. Right now all the cars are working, even the donated one. So, I would just wait for one of them to break, which is, by the way, what we are doing even without the million dollars.

I have been saving for what seems like a few years to replace the floor in my house. I'd just go out and buy it.

And I'm not even sure I can think of anything else that I would even do or buy. It's a strange but wonderful feeling that becoming a millionaire would only bring me a hardwood floor and ?? And when you phrase it that way, why even try? Why work so many hours--just for money? or stuff?

If I were hungry, or cold, or without shelter, I'd be working for money. If you get right down to it, money buys: food, clothing, warmth, and shelter or the means to acquire those things (transportation). Everything that money buys is just a variation on those themes.

Food can be anywhere from gruel to fois gras.

Clothing can be anything from a burlap sac to Sax Fifth Avenue.

Warmth can be anything from a Potbelly stove to a vacation in Hawaii.

And shelter can be a cave to a sprawling mansion.

And transportation? our working feet to a Mercedes Benz.

Where money gets complicated is when we attempt to buy things that are not purchaseable:

happiness, success, health, acceptance, security, respect, love, worth, creativity, imagination, friends, and pleasure.

If we could just wrap our heads around this, we would have all the money we need. We'll probably have too much, and we'll need to share it.

And guess what? Nobody has died from a lack of a hardwood floor. So, really I AM a millionaire.

What inspires you?

I've recently been randomly selected in winning a blog giveaway at 60 piggies. Nicole Owens writes a fun blog with photography and crafts/ sewing. I just love looking at her pictures!! So, I can choose a word/ date/ phrase and random charms for a necklace. I think she would be more than happy to sell you one on her etsy shop also. (And she did not even ask me to advertise)

So, what should I put on it? Right now, my head hurts. In the big gas tank of life, I am on "E".

I think I'm coming down with a cold--big surprise after all of the craziness this weekend.

Today was a "snow day" for our homeschool co-op. It's all my fault. I prayed for a snowday. God gave me a snowday. I did 2 basic things today: put away the clean laundry and make dinner. I also read a few chapters in a book: Bruchko. It's about a young man who goes to the mission field without a mission board at age 19. Fascinating so far.

I'm trying to decide if I should do some ironing or just surf the net or maybe just stare out into space.

Send help. Send chocolate. My brain is on hold. I think I'll watch a mindless video with the kids.

The wheels are turning..

I woke up this morning full of anatomical terminology swimming in my head and crashing in the waves of application.

"erector spinnae" "psoas" "cuel" were calling out my names, and then I was trying desperately to remember not only where the muscle was but what is needed to activate it, or stretch it or relax it.. What to "fire up" or not to and when...

It was only 6:00 a.m. and I could (almost) hear the sound of the fan going on from the "hard drive" spinning. Only the hard drive was my mind, and the fan was just leftover caffeine from the day before.

My muscles were twitching--not from overuse--just because they were trying to find themselves in my mind.

I had this wonderful feeling that I had done something. something great. I had learned so much of the beautiful human body that God has created. I have learned that there is so many ways to really help people just by applying principles of exercise in the right way, and NOW I think I understand it. (a little)

And just like my counseling class was a big gestalt, for me personally, of putting the theories of biblical principles and how the mind works together into a workable form, the principles of this pilates training put anatomical philosophy and practical exercises together in that same level of usefulness.

So, if January was my month for learning about counseling, and February for taking on anatomy, what will March hold? Let's see. The inner self, check. The body, check.

I say this tongue and cheek, but on some days it would be easier to be schizophrenic.

"Today I'm going to be... counselor" or "Today I think I'll be a blitzing homemaker.."

"Today I'd like to be a creative person.." or "How about an exercising teacher?" "do I hear standup comic?"

I'm not trying to boast, so please understand. I'm not focused, and I like so many things. The only thing I focus on is the thing I'm working on at the time. When I'm done, I move on. And I wonder, what is the LORD doing here? Is there going to be a phase of my life where I take one of these passions forward a little more than one of them? Is something going to become a little more center-stage as I move into my empty nest years? (Obviously, right now is not the time)

Will I continue to be A.D.D. about "life"? As much as I like it, since everything is still a "hobby" rather than much of a "job", I still wonder how easy it appears for some people to "specialize" so naturally. While I probably won't know the answers to these questions for a while, and I don't expect any of my readers to have any great suggestions, I do wonder these things.

And I wonder how I am going to unearth a path from the side of my bed to the bathroom, since everything I wore this weekend went into a pile. The laundry needs to be done, and there's a layer of grunge on everything. (And yes, we had guests for lunch, today) I know. I know.. I'm a glutton for humbling experiences. I managed to blitz on a Sunday morning to literally "sanitize" the kitchen. Thankfully I had a meal made and frozen that went directly into the crockpot. So this is what makes my home sing. My craziness. My thinking outloud on the computer for the whole cotton-pickin world to see. And that's just the way it is.

Pilates Teaching: what I think..

So, I have just completed my first day of Physical Mind Pilates training. It was fabulous, exhausting, and humbling all rolled into one short 10 hour day. And tomorrow we are going to do it all again. One of our assignments for tomorrow is to assess what we bring to the table, so to speak, in the pilates arena. What kind of teacher are we? and why? What do we like about it? etc.

So, if you can bear it, I'm going to do my rough draft thinking here.. (Oh, the abuse my blog readers have to face...)

I think the most valuable skill I bring to the pilates classroom is interpersonal skills. I like people. I remember the funny things people say or do. I remember their names, and their kids' names. I genuinely have fun with my "people" when I'm teaching.

I like George. George is 75 and loves to exercise, even though his wife won't come with him.

I like Margot. Margot has a lot of birds at her house, and her son has married an older woman.

I like Michelle. Michelle's daughter is Ursula. Michelle is runner and hangs out with her sister in law during Thanksgiving, since the men go hunting together.

I like Deanna. Deanna would rather have coffee and chat than exercise, but she comes to pilates anyway. Her husband is a Luthier--that means he can make a guitar from scratch.

Interpersonal skills are not enough to teach an exercise class, especially something as difficult as pilates. I have a basic understanding of body and form from my many years of dance training. I have a good understanding of proper form, and I can generally communicate what I do know, well.

Some times I feel that my basic understanding of the form of an exercise is improperly understood, therefore communicated incorrectly and not properly executed. I have a pretty technical mind in the vocabulary of body movements, but I still feel like I am a beginner in these areas. This, in a sense, has improved greatly since the onset of my teaching in 2007.

Probably my greatest weakness is my own ability to perform the exercises correctly. Although, I do find it encouraging that I can demonstrate a "rough copy" of what the exercise is to look like and through cueing and corrections, my students will out-perform me, almost every time. In this sense, I do not feel the students are getting short-changed by having me as a teacher.

And why do I teach pilates? In the very big picture of things, I believe God is behind this. He wants me to help people in this way. When God is in something, he provides the resources to do the job well. I had not planned to get more pilates training. I could only dream that the excellent teacher "Charlotte" that my friend Emily told me was "the best" would be here in Rockford offering training, AND that the Lord would provide the funds at just the right time for me to go.

In the very smaller, more practical aspect of things, I enjoy exercising/ doing pilates and teaching people things. I love leading a class. I'm in "my element" when I'm directing a group. Sometimes I tell jokes or stories during class. Let's just say that the speaking part is the easy part, OK? (except when I tell them they are weak and skinny... but that doesn't happen every day)

I like working with people who are new to exercise. It's really fun to see the progress in people. One of my students told me that the recommendations that I gave her during a mat class helped her so much that she was able to avoid back surgery. That was really wonderful!!

So, those are just some of the reasons/ thoughts about pilates teaching for me at this stage of my life..

Driven to be kinda-good..

It just so happens that a local health club, Peak Fitness, is hosting a pilates training class this weekend. It's the Physical Mind Institute/also known as "the Method". Pilates training is never cheap. Even the most basic levels are $40o.00. Even though I've been teaching mat pilates since 2007, I still look forward to learning new things! And yes, I was able to scrape together the funds for the class.

Most pilates teachers make money-- a lot of money. I'm just in a place right now that I can't be at the commitment level to actually make money in anything whether it's blogging, pilates teaching, or English teaching. Basically, all of these creative outlets are just that--creative outlets.

Half of me says: "Girl! If you just focus on ONE thing, you could do well in it! You could have your own studio. You could train others and help people.. etc."

And then the other half says, "At what price?" It not only costs money but TIME to do WELL in anything.

And what's wrong with just being an organizing mommy?

I can be kinda good in just a few things and eliminate the expectations from the outside world.

When a person pursues goals with enough passion to be really good at them, they risk the possibility of being mediocre in the things that really matter. Which, by the way, is a constant internal battle going on in my head.

I'm such a driven person that I have a really hard time accepting "kind of good" in anything--whether it's blogging, pilates training, cooking, sewing/ designing, or organizing. Do you guys get that way? And I see it in other people's lives through their blogs. They have to be "fantastic" at blogging. or cooking. or whatever. And why?

I think I know why. Being a simple homemaker and mommy is a hard job, with very few rewards and perks. I know I've been there. In fact, I'm still there. It was worse though.

I think the hardest time of my life was when the older four were: 7, 5, 3, and 1. The older kids needed school. The laundry needed doing, and the meals needed cooking. The one year old needed nursing, and the mommy needed sleeping. And yet, even though I was a wimp and cried and complained most of the time during those years, I lived through it. I can't say that anyone has asked me to write a training manual for mothers surviving those years, but I did make it through.

I can hardly believe that was over 10 years ago. And to think that I had a mini-meltdown yesterday because I felt like the years went too fast, and I hardly remember what happened. Through panic-striken fear, a nagging question haunted me: "Did I spend ENOUGH time with my kids?"

And the Lord reminded me that I really didn't do anything else other than spend time with my kids. It really wasn't physically possible to spend any more time with them than I did.

And that was the only thought that gave me peace.

Yes, Lord. I will be kinda-good in everything else, so I can be a really good mommy and wife.

Thanks for reminding me.

The indecisive box..

For some reason, your homemaking "personal trainer" decided to do a video.

It's all about sorting through clutter, which is something we all need to do once in a while.