Sometimes

Sometimes Ainsley doesn't like to take naps. Sometimes she doesn't like to eat either. Sometimes she loves bananas and sometimes she doesn't. Sometimes she thinks I'm the best and sometimes she gives me the stink eye. Sometimes we "sing" and dance to Brooke Fraser in the car and sometimes she wails at me until I turn the music down. Sometimes she likes to cuddle and sometimes she's an independent lady. Sometimes she prefers Daddy but sometimes she prefers ME!

Sometimes her random, unpredictable, change within a moment demeanor is challenging. Sometimes, like this time, it's one of my absolute favorite things about being her Mama.

One predictable Ainsley fact? She always prefers Daddy in the morning. Lucky guy!

The circus is coming to town

An invasion is coming. Doom is imminent. Husbands, hide your wives and children- a Halloween street fair is parking outside your door! Tomorrow night, our downtown is hosting a party called, I kid you not, ZOMBIE FEST. Apparently, zombies will be roaming the town while a massive beer truck parks itself literally right in front of our apartment. According to the signs, the festival is expected to draw 3000-5000 people, all dressed to impress. Yikes! Our weekend is shaping up to be interesting to say the least!

My little family of three

picture by Allison McKelvey

Ainsley and her belly button

Some children have a beloved blankie. Others, like my nieces, cherish their pacifiers. My daughter, however, has a deep, loyal devotion to her belly button. When in distress, Ainsley's fingers go to the mouth and to the button. A faithful friend her belly button is turning out to be. Whenever I put her in a onesie, she desperately scrapes at the fabric to get to the button, usually resulting in much weeping. Is it wrong that I find the whole episode quite adorable?

Messy Motherhood.

Today Ainsley threw up on me. ALL over me. I have a gag reflex that works overtime and I was covered in throw up. I set down my daughter and tried to clean myself up. Suddenly, she started laughing, saying "Mommy, Mommy, Mommy" and shakily walked towards me, arms outstretched. I knelt down and received several messy hugs and kisses.
Worth it, don't you think?

Too early for much of anything

I have this distinct memory from my childhood. I remember many mornings of waking up and tip-toeing downstairs to get a glass of water and then seeing my dad at the kitchen table with all the lights off but one, staring at his Bible. I can't count how many mornings I would sit back out of sight and watch my dad spending time with the Lord. I also can't count how many of those mornings I ended up being the last one ready and receiving the frustration of my siblings for my tardiness. Watching my dad, I was taken by that earnestness he showed and couldn't comprehend why anyone would willingly choose to get up earlier than they had to. He would wake up at 5:00am or sometimes even 4:00am, just to meet with the Lord.
Now I'm the one who gets up in the early hours of the morning to go to work. Each day, I hit my snooze once to give me 5 more minutes of blessed rest. I stumble to the coffee pot in desperation. Often cranky and bleary-eyed, I rush through my morning routine stopping only to kiss my daughter and husband goodbye. No quiet. No prayer. Just me in a rush.
My dad is in education, just like me. When I was growing up, he was a teacher, just like I am now. He had the same time schedule. He had kids to take to school with him. He had the same amount of sleep. And yet, I think he figured something out far sooner than I have. If I claim that God is the Lord of my heart, wouldn't He also be Lord of my morning? If I claim that God provides all that I need, wouldn't He sustain me without the extra 5 minutes of sleep or even coffee? If I claim that the joy of the Lord is my strength, is walking through my classroom doors all huffy-puffy honoring to Him?
So much to contemplate this early Wednesday morning.

Twenty-Nine

Today is my twenty-ninth birthday. I am officially in the last year of my twenties. My, oh my. Thankfully, the upside of birthdays is that opportunity to reflect on the past year- the blessings, the challenges, the lessons learned- and be thankful that I am no longer who I was a year ago and be hopeful that the Lord has more to do with me in the next.
So here is a list of the 28 lessons I learned (some more serious than others) in my twenty-eighth year. Here's to hoping the twenty-ninth will be as fruitful.
1. A good cuddle will solve most toddler issues.
2. If you use applesauce as a substitute for sugar, your finished product will be bland and chewy.
3. Singing as loud as possible in the car is not always pleasant for the little ears in the car seat behind you.
4. When you ask the Lord to reveal areas in your life that are not honoring to Him, He answers. Quickly. 
5. A weekly game night spices up your life IMMENSELY. 
6. Marriage just gets better and better. 
7. A meal at The Girl and the Goat will be a sweet memory not soon forgotten, especially if that meal is accompanied by great friends. 
8. If you meet a friend at Caribou every Thursday for a month, you start to get free coffee. 
9. Even though green beans may be your daughter's favorite food today, they may also be her least favorite food tomorrow. 
10. Excellent shoes make any plain outfit special. 
11. Weekly date nights are a must for parental survival. 
12. Every reader should read The Help. It's that brilliant. Then go see the movie and marvel at Viola Davis. 
13. Going on vacation with close friends will be the highlight of your summer. I'm hoping the event will become an annual tradition. 
14. When playing Ticket to Ride, don't wait to take tickets until you've finished the ones you already have. If you do this, you will lose. 
15.  The truths in Psalm 139 never cease to humble. He searches and knows me....and still loves me. I just cannot comprehend. 
16. Shopping at a rummage sale is hit or miss, but when it's a hit, you never stop bragging about your purchase. Did I mention I found killer baby shoes for $1 this summer???
17. Even though you judged Kohls shoppers before you were married and had a limited budget, Kohls has a lot of great items to add to your house or wardrobe. 
18. When your husband wants to tell you all about the latest Apple conference, you listen. 
19. A book club is an excellent venue for discovering books you never would have noticed if someone hadn't picked them as that month's read. 
20. Eighth grade students LOVE to write about space travel. 
21. Risotto is an easy meal to throw together and a satisfying meal for husbands. 
22. Taking a picture with your extended family where all six babies/toddlers are smiling is impossible. 
23. A nap not cut short by a baby's cry is to be treasured. 
24. Always carry snacks in your purse. 
25. When a friend is grieving and you have no word to shed light on the darkness, a hug is a pretty good substitute. Being present works too. 
26. Banana bread is not as easy to master as everyone says it is. 
27. Husbands love when they come home from a long day of work and the kitchen is spotless. 
28. The lesson I relearn every year it seems- God is so good. He is faithful, steady, and so very good to me. 

Hello Weekend!

Welcome back, Friday
Feels too long since I've seen you
Relax, stay awhile.

Lunch Break Thankful Thursday

I am a worker bee this week. I am currently in my lunch break at the writing conference I've attended the past three days. I have listened, learned, contemplated, and marveled. I love conferences like this because I return to my classroom renewed.
To start off this Thankful Thursday list, I must say that I am so very thankful for the opportunity to grow as a teacher. I pray that I never feel satisfied with my performance in the classroom. I want to be better.
-I am also thankful today (and every day) for my Mama. She spent yesterday in Elgin watching Ainsley so I could attend the conference. Seriously???? This woman is too much. With Nana, Ainsley played "cupcakes," took a long bath, practiced her walking, watched "Martha Speaks," and hopefully missed her Mama.
-Joel and I are spending our week sipping on Alterra's Sulawesi roast. Yum.
-One of the teachers attending the conference with me is inspiring to me. This woman cannot stop talking about the Lord's work in her life. In every conversation we have had these past three days, she is practically bursting to tell me how much she loves Jesus and how salvation has transformed her life. I am so thankful for her and the influence she has had on my faith in such a short amount of time.

It's back to the seminar for me. Watch out, class; Mrs. Smith is returning to you armed with mini-lessons and rubrics!

Lions, tigers, and pigtails.

Joel took the day off from work on Thursday so we grabbed the lady and headed to the pumpkin farm. Goebberts Pumpkin Farm has a cute cafe, haunted house (which I would NEVER explore), an animal land, and pony rides. We had a ball. Also, I put Ainsley's hair in pigtails for the excursion. She was not a fan.

Fall in its finest

How should you spend a splendid fall day? By hanging out at the park with your top girl, of course!

No day at the park is complete without a coffee and snack for Mama (even though Ainsley snagged most of the snack for herself).

Moments...

Today when Ainsley had finished her dinner and was waiting for me to come rescue her from her highchair, she started singing a song. The lyrics are pretty sophisticated, but I think you would appreciate their poetry. The words were as followed: Mommy, Mommy, Mommy, Mommy, Mommy, Mommy. The Mommys ranged in intensity, getting louder as the ballad drew to a close. I ate it up...with her spoon.

Just a few more days...

When your husband works at a large, thriving church, you know getting into the marriage that there will be weeks where you are husbandless. Seasons come and go where the production ministry is in high demand and Joel and I are ships passing in the night...or really, in the early hours of morning. I would love to say that I always handle these crazy times with grace and support. Praise the Lord that His transforming love is changing me and that grace seems to flow easier than it used to in early marriage. One thing though that is always the same when weeks like these come around is how much I miss Joel. Our house is too quiet like everything is waiting for his return. Just a few more days and he'll be home.

Tonight I am baking cinnamon rolls as a sweet breakfast surprise for my phantom husband. Chalk up one more wife point for me!