Real Mom: Yada Yada

Here's the truth, peeps: I ditched you all for some good reads.

I only have time for one extra thing in my life.

It's either Facebook, blogging, reading, or...fill in the blank.

These past couple of weeks I chose reading...

this...

Who Do I Lean On?, Yada Yada House of Hope Series #3

Source

...and the rest of the books in this series.

This is book three in the Yada Yada House of Hope series.

Neta Jackson also wrote the Yada Yada series, a seven-book series about a women's prayer group.

I can not recommend these books enough, especially the Yada Yada series.

Still...sorry I abandoned you.

So, to catch you up a bit, here's what's been happening in my world.

Rewind all the way back to the first of November...

November 6th: Election Day

I stole an idea from a friend to teach my girls about voting; they got to vote for lunch candidates.

And the candidates were...

For Drink: milk, water, or juice

For Bread: toast or goldfish

For Fruit: strawberries, grapes, and/or banana

For Dairy: cheese or yogurt

Their candidates won!

Don't we all wish it was that easy?

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Sometime thereafter, I finally painted a picture for my guest room.

It is plain but, I hope, not depressing.

I seem to have a knack for grossly misrepresenting whatever beautiful vision I have in my head, be it a painting or a blog post.

My vision: a strong tree, like the oaks of righteousness in Isaiah 61.

Yes, that is "Isaiah 61" you (barely) see in the bottom right-hand corner.

And, yes, it's bare.

Because I'm not a real artist.

I'm a wanna-be.

Leaves are too difficult for me; a trunk is simple.

But if you want an artsy excuse, it's bare because even in the winter seasons of life, when things look like they are dead on the outside, there is life and beauty inside, just waiting to burst through.

When the roots run deep, like an oak's, even the longest winter can not steal away the life within.

And I'm a firm believer that in our walk with Jesus, we have seasons too.

Spring seasons bring fresh spiritual rain and summers bring long, warm days; it's then that our roots grow deeper.

Then we have the dry, thirsty days of fall, and the long, cold months of winter; it's then that we have to rely on those roots to draw up the waters from deep.

We hide His Word in our hearts, and the Word is watered, and our faith grows to sustain us during the drought and cold.

Leaves or no leaves, He calls us "oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of His splendor."

The spring buds of the oak tree are all the more glorious after a long, cold winter.

And I believe it's after our winters that we can bring Him the most glory.

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My man and I collected about 700-800 bricks recently.

It was humbling and gratifying work.

Humbling because we were out there in our scrappy work clothes digging through a rubbish pile of a demolished building like scavengers, while shoppers at the nearby dollar store cast us an occasional glance.
To be honest, I wanted to shout in defense, "We've got permission to do this!"

Yet, after we had them all piled on the trailer, and we were shaky and sweaty and tired, there was real satisfaction in finishing the first step of our patio expansion.

Hard work feels good.

And the anticipation of a larger patio space is invigorating, even if the reality of it is months away.

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My baby girl grew a little this month. She wrote her first letters: G and E.

And she drew her first smiley face.

She was proud of herself.

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The girls found their Easter eggs and baskets and decided a cold November evening was a great time to have an egg hunt.

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On the next cold day, I had a better idea: SPA DAY!

Complete with new 'dos, pedis and manis, make-up, a tray of yummy snacks, and hot chocolate.

Here are the results...

Baby girl wouldn't sit still!

Big girl un-did her 'do in less time than it took to 'do it!

Oh, yes we had candles...lots and lots of candles.

On the bookshelf, on the drawers, on the wardrobe...

Cheese, crackers, popcorn, dried fruit, and M&M's--some of our faves.

Obviously this spa's cleaning lady hadn't cleaned the mirrors in a while.

Fun times.

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The weekend before Thanksgiving our church had their annual Thanksgiving dinner.

The preschool choirs sang.

That's my big girl on the far left...

I have always LOVED to see the "bitty tiny" kids sing.

It's even better now that one of them is my bitty tiny kid.

Side note:

"Bitty tiny" is baby girl's description for super small things.

One of my other fave baby girl-isms:

"Pokey Nokey" for Pinocchio.

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That same weekend we also decorated for Christmas.

We usually do this Thanksgiving weekend, but since we were going to be in the mountains for Thanksgiving, we did it early.

This is the girls' nativity set.

It came with an ox and a donkey, but the girls add a few of their own animals.

Every day is a different day at this stable...

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My big girl must have enjoyed her spa day 'do more more than she let on, because a few days later I put baby girl down for nap and came out of the bedroom to find this...