In my inbox today

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from a friend – perfect timing:

 

“I am a man who has seen affliction, by the rod of his wrath. He has driven me away and made me walk in darkness rather than light; he has turned his hand against me again and again, all day long. He has made my skin grow old and broken my bones. He has surrounded me with bitterness and hardship. He has made me dwell in darkness like the dead. He has walled me in so I cannot escape; he has weighed me down with chains. Even when I call out or cry for help, he shuts out my prayer. He has barred my way with blocks of stone; he has made my paths crooked.” (Lamentations 3:1-10 NIV)

Jeremiah didn’t mince words. He told God exactly how he felt, and you know what? God is okay with that. He wants you to unload all your frustrations on him. Don’t unload them on your spouse, your kids, your boss or some online blog. Take it all to God, because he can handle it.

God can handle your anger, complaints and frustrations. He wants you to unload on him, because you need to get it all out. It’s cathartic. If you don’t, then here’s what will happen: As I like to say, “When I swallow my emotions and my anger, my stomach keeps score. When I swallow my fear and resentment, my back keeps score.” If you don’t talk things out, you’re going to take them out on your body.

So you need to get it out, and God can take whatever you’ve got. Go ahead, have a temper tantrum with him. God is your Heavenly Father and will still love you, just as a parent loves his or her child even when that child throws a fit.

You can’t see why God allows what he allows in your life, and God doesn’t owe you an explanation, because he’s God and you aren’t. But someday, and it might not be until you get to heaven, you’ll be able to look back and see the big plan. Until that day comes, keep taking your concerns to God.

A bit of this, a dash of that

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Today, it’s catch-up day on the blog….all those things I’ve been meaning to share but they aren’t enough for a full blog post:

  • Today Netflix released a new iPod/iPhone app to allow you to watch movies/tv shows from your instant queue! Love this! I almost can’t wait for the next time the boys take over the television! I’ll go find a comfy chair – maybe backyard on my swing? – and watch a bit of my old favorites!
  • Sweater Design Class.  Tonight is class #2 and I think I’m ready to set aside the sleeves but I’m a bit confused how to do that and what to do with the rest of the stitches so I’m definitely looking forward to this class! I hope to take some pictures tonight to share here – stay tuned!
  • Linde Lane Tea Room – I’m so blessed! Tomorrow, Ruth, Margaret & I are headed back for visit #2 and then, next week, I’m headed there with a friend who works with Hubs!  Yeah for me!!
  • I realized it wouldn’t hurt to bring a little organization to Sissy’s day.  So I did a quick search and was super happy to find http://www.letteroftheweek.com/ is still around.  This is a free curriculum for preschoolers that I used for J1 & J2 and loved.  (I wasn’t in a good place to do anything like this with J3 – poor J3, and me!)  Check it out if you too want some structure for your preschooler!
  • We now have all our curriculum for J2’s school year!  We are plugging away.  I am SO happy to have some help each week!  I hope when we have his IEP to ask for a bit more, some speech therapy for his Auditory Processing and possibly to have him retested.
  • We also finally have a weekly therapist for J2.  I hope she will help him recognize emotions in himself and others to help him in his interactions.
  • Jennifer S. shared about the Home Ec class she is using with her kids on her blog, For Such a Time As This, and it’s free! Definitely going to use this with my boys.  It’s written for girls, but I think it will work for them with just a bit of tweaking!  Check it out here:  http://www.futurechristianhomemakers.com/FCHLessonsIndex.html
  • Working out first thing in the morning is working great so far.  By the time I wake up enough to think I don’t want to do this, I’ve already been there for 25 min so I might as well finish! 😉
  • Downside is that it is really cutting into my work schedule.  So I’ll be working on that next.
  • J1 starts school in just about 1.5 weeks but we found out his teacher is still on maternity leave. :(  Please pray along with us that the substitute will be a good match for J1 and our family!
  • I’m attending a free webinar next week “Ten Stumbling Blocks to Writing” . I’m really looking forward to it.  Check out the link – there are other great webinars available for you!  Definitely an encouragement!

Guess that’s it!  Hope you enjoyed some of these links!

List of Little Things

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Lately I seem to be swimming in Little Things that bless me….

1)  My Mother’s Day Gardenia is going crazy with blooms! I just want to go lay in it! Maybe I’ll pick a blossom and wear it in my hair.

2)  A package was on my porch today!! It was a cookbook from Taste of Home – and included a CD of recipes just for celebrations!  I love it because (a) I forgot it was coming, (b) it cost be $4.98 and (c) there was a coupon in it for 1 yr of Taste of Home Magazine.  I love all publications from Reiman Publications….but I let them all lapse a few years ago! And now I get one for FREE!!!

3) Tomorrow my CSA box will arrive.  So that means today I will get an email from Deborah letting me know what will be in it!

4) New podcasts I’m enjoying:  Foster Podcast, Nuclearity, 2 Blind Squirrels.  Try them out and see what you think!

5) I’ve been talking to a couple of other homeschooling moms about our special needs kids…and today two more in our local homeschool group conveyed interest in joining us.  I’ve been praying about this for awhile and I’m super-excited about having more women to share about our special kids.

6) Tonight Hubs and I are going out to dinner with another couple! Do you know how rare this is for us?  But it will be the 2nd month in a row we get to get out and socialize! woo hoo!

7)  I picked up a neat book at the library today that I can’t wait to read.  It is called “Being Adopted: The lifelong search for self”  I can’t wait to get to it….so I’d better get to it!

Hope you are taking time to enjoy the Little Things!