She Laughed

Today my 5 year old tossed an orange juice cup my way and it turns out the cup was half full.

The juice covered me in a shower.

I laughed.

He laughed.

We all laughed and we laughed hard.

When did I turn this corner? The corner of not stressing over cleaning up another mess and instead having eyes to see the humor of it all?

The beauty of the last 3 weeks is filtering into every area of my life.  We have good food to eat.  My home is not perfect, nor is it perfectly clean, but it is sparkling one area at a time.  My kitchen floor has been sticky for two days, but it is waiting.  It is waiting because I've been working on some other things.  Productive things. 

I'm not spending valuable time on the telephone or computer when I need to be working with my children and around my home.  There is a direction to our days and I see it.  I see it.  There is purpose.  I was wandering aimlessly in a land of chaos.  God is setting my feet on new courses.

Saying No.

Saying no to myself.  No I won't run to Bath and Body Works today because my Wall-flowers are empty.  It will wait until Thursday, and then I will evaluate if that still needs to be a priority.

Saying Yes.

Saying yes to change.  Tonight for example, my husband has asked me to work on taxes.  I thought really long and hard about going out to eat and spending time browsing the rows of Hobby Lobby instead.  The thought of a cold, dark Wednesday night spent in the warmth of a restaurant where I was not the chef nor was I the dish washer.  That was a nice thought.  Wednesday night is when that sounds the best.  Followed by Friday night, Saturday night and Sunday after church.  Oh yes, I'd eat out all the time if we could.  But what about finding a little contentment in the mundane.

What about going home, whipping up some grilled cheese sandwiches made with Sharp Cheddar and going in the office when we're done with our simple dinner.  What about turning on the lamps, lighting a candle, turning on Kari Jobe, inviting my boys to come in to talk with me while I work?  That is the road that leads to fulfillment.

As I sit here my heart is full.  It is full because I made the choice.

The choice to deny myself.

The choice to honor a request my husband asked of me.

The choice to tackle a little paper work even when that is literally the very last thing I'd naturally enjoy doing.

The choice to create beauty in the moment.

Office Day

Welcome to Wednesday which is code for Office Day.  Today is a day for you to organize and plan your menu for the week.  I went to a class a couple of weeks ago and this little menu planning tool is the biggest thing I took off and ran with.  Such a simple little change in how I did my grocery list has made a huge impact on my planning and cooking.  In the olden days, you know, about 5 weeks ago, I was making a grocery list and after the store it stayed crumpled in my purse.  Then when it came time to cook I had no idea what I had meal ingredients for.

This is a very high tech system so please pay attention.  Take a piece of paper, a ruler (if you are OCD) and a crayon or pencil.  Draw a line down the center of the paper.  Divide the left side into 6 squares.  Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Sat/Sun.  Get your calender.  Look at your week.  If you have plans Tuesday night write it on the bottom of Tuesdays square.  Do this for each evening activity you have.  Next, write in the dinner's you want for each night.  Use the right side of the page to list your things you need from the store.

When you get home from the store, hang your menu on the side of your fridge.  Now you know what you have the fixin's for.  I have found that we mix it up.  I may feel like Pizza Spaghetti Casserole and Salad on Thursday instead of Friday.  That's OK.  The Menu Nazi's will not show up at your door.

Keep a running Wal-Mart list on the fridge so you can quickly jot down what you need to get.  Keep the next week's blank menu behind this week's so if you run out of a staple like sugar you can jot it down.

Menu planning is the biggest thing to do today as you start out.  We'll talk about more things to do in Office Day next week.  (a little sneak peak: Thursday is errand day, the day to go to the grocery store for the week)