Counting blessings one by one

Little Efate off Port Vila Nov 2012

Having a mid year EOFY reflection & thanksgiving party! Having started a new job recently and about to embark on our first family medical missions trip am so deeply grateful for the way new year's goals have become realities and it's only half way through the year. At the beginning of 2013, I had 3 main goals for year;

1. To work closer to home
2. To earn more
3. To be able to take my four on a family missions trip (holiday with a purpose)

I am in awe of God and how timing, circumstances and the right opportunities collide. Many would think this is simply coincidence or the law of attraction. I choose to acknowledge the Author of life with aligning the right circumstances at the right time. This gives me great comfort. To know that we can trust our destinies into loving hands and a holy heart rather than rely on fate or ourselves to make it happen.

Yes I did look & apply for other jobs. I do believe God works with us in our goals and dreams. It's a partnership. We do our bit and He does His. However the first 3 I didn't get. I didn't give up, but did wonder whether it was not the right time......

Then the recruitment company rang and asked me to apply for my current job. Even when I went for the second interview I wasn't convinced it was for me. Yet 5 weeks in now am so, so grateful. This job is an answer to my desire & prayers to be home more for my four. I am able to work & develop resources from home when not out at sites conducting education. I am home more and earn more. Deeply grateful.

We are taking off this Friday to Vanuatu along with a team of others to help lay the foundations of a medical clinic in Mangalilu north Efate Island, conduct women's health workshops, work in schools & youth groups. Despite the minor set back of EQ having been sick, he is now well enough to travel. Being EQ's last year of school it was important to me that we go, it had to be this year! I had a sense of urgency about it, as potentially our last opportunity to go altogether. Once he leaves school, gets his own job and has a different timetable to us, he may not have the same opportunity.

As a parent I want to instill eternity into the hearts of my children. For them to see, appreciate & learn from other cultures and hopefully be more grateful for what they have at home. To see those who have so little yet are so content. To have a serving holiday rather than just serving self. To find the great joy in giving out to humanity not just taking or indulging.

If you aren't a big goal setter, can I encourage you to dream a little, dream a lot. And surrender your goals, dreams, desires to the Author of Life, who loves to work with us and meet us where we are at. He's not Santa Claus waiting to give us a BMW, but if we set goals that are mindful of others, I believe we all can see our goals become realities.

Cherishing God in the little & big things of our lives

Cherishing the willingness of my four to serve others on their holidays

Cherishing joy in the journey of life

Joie de Vie

life is like a dance, live the moments

It's a crisp, autumn morn, time to wake up slowly, drink my morning pot of tea without rushing, soak in glorious sunshine and unashamedly be in my PJs at 9am! While others have run marathons, cycled 100klm, done 2 loads of washing or got the family ready for church already, today is a designated go slow day for me, a silent, home retreat. Time to breathe and blog!

I am thinking of my beautiful four, who they are and who they are becoming. Praying for them as is my daily habit. Thinking of what they have taught me in recent weeks, the art of cherishing them makes me a better person. Am forever grateful that I can be their Mum.

EQ teaches me to 'chill Mum' - he is my stress-o-meter! His barometer and thermometer is set on high for intuition and emotional cues. When he senses heat and humidity rising, he is onto it straight away. His candid comments often help me take a step back, ditch intensity and relax. He entertains us all with his acoustic guitar strums day in and night out. From the initial 'why me' rage in May when diagnosed with glandular fever & hepatitis to acceptance and healing, the month of June has seen him improve out of sight. Vanuatu here we come. Blogworthy is that he cleaned his room, instead of a spring clean he had a 'winter clean', the first time in about 6 months! Finally, we can see the floor!

DW {Deep Waters} is forever the profound one. Reminding me that maturity not only comes with age, but also depth of personality and perspective. He is so stable and secure. DW teaches me to relish time on my own as he does. He recently paid me in cash for his mobile phone bill without being asked, proving he really is becoming a young man, responsible and self-directed. I have watched him study his heart & mind out this past month, preparing for exams and end of term assignments and have been so impressed with his diligence and determination. With his 16th birthday this month and L's under his belt this week now comes the ultimate test of mother-son relationship, teaching him how to drive!

Thoughtful Princess is  'au naturelle' and 'joie de vie' personified {translation; natural and joyful}. The above photo reminds me of both my girls and of the uninhibited joy that children, particularly young ones have and how they can remind us to 'not get stuffy' and just 'have a go'! Thoughtful Princess is exactly like that! Shopping with her yesterday I commented on some shoes, she quickly said, "Mum they're typical for someone of your age to like" - shifting me from the out of date and old category to what is modern! Love it! Love it that our children keep us current and in the moment! Forever exploring new frontiers. Thoughtful Princess is always like this. Her infectious love of life spills over to all. She is always fun to be around {except @ 7am in the morning! A night owl not an early bird}. She teaches me to embrace the moment.

Little Miss Sunshine our budding ballerina teaches me about discipline and organisability {if there is such a word}. She is so disciplined with her dance, her school work, her time, her life. She too had a pyjama day last Sunday, enjoying being in bed till midday, reading and 'flopping' - it was so nice to see her 'be still' after her frantic schedule of school, dance, homework, study & assignments. She has been working hard on her first solo performance and though filled with nerves admire her ability to overcome performance anxiety and dare greatly.

Cherishing the individuality of my four

Cherishing my primary role as mum

Cherishing who they are & what they teach me 

Friday night @ our house

Dinner by Thoughtful Princess & by candlelight

Muffin is curled up next to me on the couch, DW is practising his Fuga II on piano after finishing a 4hr shift at work, EQ is also working after a 4 week break thanks to glandular fever, Thoughtful Princess our spiritual, social butterfly is @ Upper Room, a weekly prayer gathering & Sunshine is stretching in her bedroom a nightly ritual she has before going to bed. Something a kin to self torture as she practises the splits in varied positions and HOLDs the position for minutes on end. This she times with her iPod all the while reading as she stretches!

Family life feels somewhat normal & stable again after much-a-do about everything. With one thing & another, it has been a pretty intense couple of months, as my absence from blogging has shown. Endings & new beginnings has been a big part of it all. Finishing a beloved job after 8 years and starting a new one has taken more energy than I anticipated. It's nice to have time, space & inspiration, though very ordinary, to write.

Dinner tonight was prepared by Thoughtful Princess, her speciality, salami pork meatballs {minus the salami}. We lit every candle we could find in the house to set an ambience as a 'girls only' time. Both boys were working. EQ back to it after having time off to recover from glandular fever with hepatitis. He is doing much better. So grateful for all who have prayed and sent well wishes. Though he has missed too much of school to sit exams this term, his teachers have been incredibly supportive and understanding.

Grateful. Content. Happy.

Have a good long weekend everyone xo

Cherish ordinary things that make life rich & full 

Cherish the way our children make art with their lives

Cherish simple joys

Longing

What do you long for?

A new iPhone, a new car, a bigger house, a better job, dreams to come true, less stress, less conflict, deeper connection with your spouse & children, for a partner, to travel, to make a difference, depression to dissipate, to see a paediatric hospice in Qld, for no terrorism, world peace, your Mum's chemo to be finished? We all long for something, either physical things, superficial and or in deeper spaces, the psychosocial, spiritual level.

The intensity often depends on perceived need or expectation.

Walking today acutely aware of longings bubbling deep within. Nothing that can be 'instantly gratified', rather long term dreams & desires that need to be surrendered and worked towards. Also acutely grateful for current blessings that sustain and satisfy. I often feel like life is one big paradox. Of being content with the here and now, yet always striving towards a better tomorrow not just for my own family, but for others also.

I think longings if listened to reveal much about who we are. Deep inner longings and desires if attended too can lead us to a new adventures, relationships, challenges and rewards. The key is to not be afraid. Or feel the fear and do it anyway as Susan Jeffers in her book would encourage. To explore longings that linger because they are there for a reason. If they are ignored they come to nag us sometime, somewhere else in life......

Helping our children explore their longings/dreams/desires is healthy and needful too. I have blogged about this before, how we as parents want our children to aim for the stars yet be rooted in reality too. Help them reach their full potential yet help them make mistakes courageously too. To risk, to fail, to succeed and to dare greatly. Again the paradox, the tension of life.

My spiritual director has written much on longing and the journey of desire, finding the greater desire. This maybe a bit intense for some, but has helped me immeasurably understand the nature of longing, what to do with it when at times it can be completely overwhelming and how to guide my children in their desires too.

The invitation is for us all to find the Divine in our longings. Physical things only momentarily satisfy. Deeper yearnings for peace, contentment, purpose, love, connection, satisfy to the very depths of our soul, our beings. The mystics of old assert that our desires, our wants, our longings our outward and inward searching when uncovered, expressed and recognised lead us to the Divine at the core.

Augustine wraps it up so beautifully, "our hearts are restless until they rest in you, O God". 

Cherishing longings for what they teach us

Cherishing desires for good and not for bad

Cherishing the invitation to seek the deeper things of life

Stress sharks & calm cookies

The dynamics of family life are totally priceless. Sometimes frenetic. Sometimes chilled. Sometimes somewhere in between. Thoughtful Princess who errs on the more chilled side of life has come up with the expression, stress shark and calm cookies (with actions to match) when things are getting revved up at our place!

If she senses tension mounting, she'll do the action and point out there's a stress shark looming! Reminding us to be calm cookies. How beautiful. Insightful. An internal warning system a la family style. From cinnamon bun philosophy to stress sharks & calm cookies, our family works hard at maintaining peace & equilibrium.

Even DW picked up on it at the dinner table one night recently. Sensing some potential tension rising over a particular topic, he spontaneously blurted out, stress shark, stress shark.....

Just the mention of it ignites laughter & relieves tension. It's healthy, it's fun. It's the beauty & joy of positive family dynamics. Children learn vital socialisation skills simply by being a part of a family unit.

Hate to admit it, but it is usually me that's the stress shark. Thankfully 3 out of our 4 are calm cookies by nature. They must get it from their Dad! So the ratio 3:2 balances on the right side, being relaxed rather than stressed.

So very thankful for my children's perspectives on life, they often seem even more mature than mine! Am often, often delighted as a mum, when I learn from them. Relieved that we don't have to be perfect as parents. Humility is accepting that they teach us too and being willing to admit when we are wrong.

Grateful also for other friends in life who calm the stormy seas in me, by their attitudes, perspectives, presence, prayers and even just the sound of their voice.......

What does your family do to balance each other?

Cherishing family dynamics

Cherishing friends

Cherishing the balance we bring each other

Freckle Beauty

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freckle

Our little Sunshine has a face full of delightful freckles. So does DW. I find genetics fascinating. Why in one family one or two get freckles and the others don't, when they fade, why brown eyes over blue, green & in between! I know there are DNA reasons for all of this, and according to wikipedia freckles are related to the presence of melanocortin-1 receptor MC1R gene variant and are affected by exposure to sunlight, however wanted to share freckle beauty with you, not the science behind it.

A long time ago little Miss Sunshine made the delightful comment that she liked her face! I wrote a blog about it, inner-beauty last year. As a parent this was so heartening to hear. In our image obsessed culture, it is wonderful when our own children can have healthy self-esteem, be content with who they are and what they are given.

This week Sunshine made the comment she liked her freckles! Again as a mum was thrilled to hear this. I LOVE her freckles too.  Freckle beauty is natural beauty.

DW once randomly licked Sunshine's face, saying he wanted to see what her freckles tasted like! A spontaneous act that sent us all into fits of laughter, a story that will be retold in our family for years to come! Remember when.......

A short blog, a little light & fluffy with no deep & meaning point, simply to encourage us as parents to nurture healthy self- esteem and natural beauty within our children and teens.

Cherishing natural beauty

Cherishing healthy self-esteem

Cherishing moments to encourage this in our families

Cinnamon bun philosophy

There is nothing quite like the smell of cinnamon buns cooking! In our home these are one of our ultimate family favourites. They may not look perfectly symmetrical like a baker's but they taste homey, healthy and yummy.

We make the dough for the buns in our bread machine, which is easy but somewhat time consuming. You literally throw all the ingredients in et voila out comes the dough. It's then kneaded, rolled out, sprinkled with cinnamon sugar, rolled up, cut into 12 slices, placed on the tray and left to rise again. So they are not something you can whip up in 30mins. The whole process takes about 3 hours.

Because of the time involved they are not something we usually make during the week - however if I am ever working from home or have an ADO, my four will ask if cinnamon buns can be made otherwise they are a weekend or holiday special. The word 'cinnamon buns' has even been a code word with a secret meaning for other things in our family, that's how iconic they are to us!

It was a morning this week, being on school holidays, I had put the ingredients into the bread machine early to do its thing and then gave the girls instructions on how to roll out, sprinkle, rise, bake etc as I would not have time to do it before going to work.

However it turned out I got delayed and did end up being home when the girls were rolling out the dough. They seemed to be fussing unnecessarily about extra flour etc and instead of being cool about it & letting them work it out for themselves, I came in & took over! Wrong move!

Instead of lovingly rolling out, cutting up, it became a clinical procedure, something to get done in a hurry before I rushed out the door! I was thinking of the enormous day ahead at work and not focusing on what was happening in the moment.

"Relax Mum, they're just cinnamon buns.......", Thoughtful Princess intuitively piped into reality. I was in too much of a hurry to stop if that makes sense, so finished the job, kissed the girls goodbye & raced out the door.

About 5 klm down the road, I burst out laughing! Laughed and laughed at what had just happened and of my daughter's candid comment. She was right! What on earth was I making such a deal about. I rang to thank her for being so delightful & apologise for taking over. They hadn't really been making a fuss, I had just perceived it as such because I was the one in a hurry, so inadvertently made an even greater fuss! A classic case of 'should have kept out of it & let them be'!

It got me thinking about my daughter's approach to life, she is very relaxed & chilled, calm under pressure {she gets this from her Dad} and of the contrast to myself and other members of our family. Again was ever so grateful for our different personalities and how we can learn from each others perspectives.

I learnt from my daughter again that morning - take the cinnamon bun approach to life.

It's way less stress! Seize the moment with laughter not pressure and relax, keep things in perspective, most things get done, it may not be when we originally thought, but they eventually do, may as well enjoy the journey then fret the small stuff!