What If This Is It?

Way back, when hubs and I first got married (way, WAY back), we had really big plans.  What new couple doesn't, right?  We knew exactly where we were headed in the future, we felt God's calling on us and we were headed down that path, full steam ahead.  Confident in God's will and our willing hearts.

We knew God had called us to be missionaries, and we knew He was going to use us in a big way.


We did everything right:  schooling, experience, training.  All of it.  We had confirmation after confirmation of God's will in our lives.  We dotted all the i's and crossed every t.  It was only a matter of time.

And yet we found ourselves, 12 years later, a stay at home mom to four little girls and a retail manager.

Huh?

What happened?  Where did we go wrong?  Did we misunderstand God's will?


This was the question I asked over and over and over again for years.  As each door slammed in our faces and we slipped further still from our supposed "calling".  I harbored bitterness and anger.  Jealous of ones who fulfilled their dreams in front of our eyes, while we toiled away, in the in between time.  I felt abandoned, forgotten by God.  I struggled with the day to day reality of our life - each inconvenience created by hubs' decidedly secular job deepened the chasm that was growing between us.  I was being selfish, but I didn't see it that way.  I wanted what I wanted for our lives.  What I thought God wanted.


I was headed down a path of distrust and despair...


Until the day we received the biggest blow to our remaining thread of hope.  I love how God works that way.  Waiting until there is no hope, so that He can be our only hope.  Looking back on this moment, I know that if it had occurred at any other time, it would have been too easy to point to other things as the reason for my breakthrough.  My logic, or hubs' determination, or our sheer will to survive.  Anything could have claimed that glory.  But God waited to move until we had nothing left.  Because when there is no hope and yet you still have peace that passes understanding, you know where that came from.

It was that day, with wounds still fresh and stinging that God spoke to me clearly.


"What if this is it?"


What God?

"What if this is what I have planned for you?"


You mean this life?  The one we're currently slaves to?

"Yes.  What if this is it?  Could you be content in that?  In ME?"


But what about our calling?  We were so sure...

"Can you be content?"


But what about hubs?  He's worked so hard, poured years of his life into this calling...

"Will you be content?"


Will I be content?


Anyone CAN be content.  That's an ability each and every person on this earth possesses.  But, the choice, the WILL to be content, that's a different story.

I realized in that blinding moment that I was missing out on God's greatest gift in my life:  my life.

I had been so busy, certain of our path and frustrated at the detours, that I failed to see God's hand in the twisting road.  I was missing opportunities to fulfill God's calling in our life that very day, so determined to fit God into the little box I had created for our lives.  I was creating a pseudo-contentment in my life (and failing miserably), rather than turning to the One who could bring true, fulfilled contentment.

My life was changed in that instant.


When I was growing up, seeking God's will for your life was a hot topic.  Especially in college, when many life-altering decisions are made.  Should I date this guy? Is it God's will?  Should I go on this mission trip?  Is it God's will?  Should I change my major?  Is it God's will?


On the whole, I don't think it's a bad question to ask.  However, without realizing it, I allowed that question to be the Main Thing.  Searching for God's elusive will in my life.  And when hubs and I
"found it", because I had searched for it in that way, like it was a thing to be obtained, I mentally left very little wiggle room for God to do His work.

I had unknowingly reduced God to the size of what my mind could imagine.


In that moment when God broke through my smallness and showed me his immeasurable greatness, I realized that it's not really about seeking God's will for my life.  My life is about seeking God.  Because when I step outside of my little box, and allow his fullness to infiltrate every part of my being; when I draw close to him out of love and devotion and awe rather than what He's going to do for me; when I seek Him and leave the rest; that's where true contentment lies.  That's where I find the fulfillment of His will in my life.  That's when I become fully useable by Him.

I am still a stay at home mom to four little girls.  Hubs is still a retail manager.  And we know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that we are right where we need to be.  Because we are seeking Him, not "the call" we once felt was so important.  The rest will fall into place.  Maybe the way we once imagined.  But most likely not, because God has big plans.

What if this is it?

Bring it on.

Oh How Pinteresting!

We all know about my obsession with Pinterest.

So let's get down to business, shall we?

Here are some of the latests things I've pinned on my boards.  You can click the Pinterest banner to the right to see all the other goodies I've found.  I love followers and I love to follow back!  The more you're connected, the more deliciousness you will discover!

Mama Shall Have a Retreat

Everyone who loves builder grade mirrors, raise their hands!  Yeah... I thought so.  What a brilliant fix, right?  I LOVE the shelving in the middle.  And the moulding at the top is such a nice touch.

From hometalk.com

Mama Shall Have Style

I am forever on the search for great mother's jewelry.  I'm not a huge necklace person, I tend to gravitate towards bracelets instead, but this caught my eye.  I really like the inscribed message and the setting of the stones.

From etsy.com

Mama Shall Have Babies... Lots of Babies

I am loving these upcycled dressers!  I'm really regretting getting rid of our old one now.  What a perfect idea for hanging dress up clothes or doll clothes.  So easy too, even a non DIYer like myself could pull this off.  I like the IKEA mirror on the side too.

From 4.bp.blogspot.com

 Mama Shall Have Parties

With four girls, we have serious birthday planning to do through out the year.  I love how simple this decoration is.  And CHEAP!  Dollar store hula hoop and crepe paper and you're set!  This may or may not be making an appearance at shindig for a certain soon to be 3 year old very soon!

From housingaforest.com

Mama Shall Have Organization

Sigh.  Organization is a unicorn for me I think.  BUT, if it were to exist, it probably would in this form. I love how uniform and simple these canisters are.  MUCH better than my current system of clothes pinning shut the brown sugar bag and stuffing it between the peanut butter and a bag of rice.

From justpleasedaspunch.blogspot.com

Mama Shall Eat Well

For an avocado lover, these look divine.  Avocado and cream cheese wrapped in a puff pastry and baked?  Come to mama.

From loveveggiesandyoga.com

Mama Shall Celebrate

I'm loving all the inspiration (ha!) that Pinterest is providing for holidays.  How adorable are these little Valentine's?  I've already got the idea and supplies for our Valentine's this year (thank you Pinterest), but I'm definitely keeping these in mind for the future!

From thirtyhandmadedays.com

I'm linking up today with the Vintage Apple.  Come join in the fun!  Grab a button and link up!

Happy Pinteresting!!

IKEA Spice Racks As Bookshelves - Things I Learned

As you saw in the pics of my girls' redecorated room last week, we put Pinterest to good use by taking someone's brilliant idea of using IKEA spice racks as bookshelves.

I had been wanting a wall shelf of some sort for the girls' books, because up until this point we have used a standard bookshelf and the books always looked like this:

Ok wait.  Actually they never looked like that.  Clearly I cleaned before taking this picture.

ANYWAY.  Bottom line, I was sick and tired of books being haphazardly thrown every which way in that bookshelf and longed for the on the wall version like they sell at Pottery Barn Kids and Land of Nod.

But who has $400 for a bookshelf right?

Enter the brilliance of Pinterest and IKEA.  I had found my answer.

So.  Now what?  Well, it was a labor of love getting those little spice racks from this:

to this:

Here are a few tips and ideas I picked up along the way.

1.  Each spice rack requires assembly with little to no instruction, which I understand is the norm for IKEA.  Fortunately, these were pretty much a no brainer, even for a non DIYer like myself.  Mobilize your troops and get to work.  Most of it is pretty simple, even for the littlest of fingers.

2.  Proper DIYers would probably have painted every part first, before assembly.  I was too impatient and I'm happy to report you cannot tell that these were painted after the fact at all.  I also did not bother putting any sort of lacquer or poly on these, nor did I sand them.  So far the paint has held up well to the wear and tear.  If you want a more polished finish you might add this step, but I didn't find it necessary.  I just slapped regular old room paint (the same paint we used on the furniture) on the racks with those cheapy foam craft brushes you can get at Hobby Lobby.  It took 2-3 coats.  2 for the shelves, 1 for my fingers.

3.  If you notice in that picture with Princess #4 putting in the shims, the racks come with standard wall hanging pieces already attached.  Hubs and I knew that books would be heavier than spices (obviously) so we knew regular old nails wouldn't work.  We bought drywall anchors like the ones below.  Now here's the big tip:  THESE DO NOT WORK.  After 4 racks fell under the weight of the books, stripping the hole in the wall in the process, we trekked back to Home Depot and picked up the hardcore metal butterfly anchors.  I didn't get a pic of them, unfortunately, but you will need them.  Especially if you're going to be housing heavy board books.

4.  Make sure you do your measurements and mark exactly where you want your racks to hang - ALL of them, before drilling your first hole.  This was difficult for us since we were hanging so many and trying to keep them centered and evenly spaced.  One thing we didn't consider too carefully was how high we were going.  My little princesses can't reach the top books without a step stool, which I would have rather prevented had I paid better attention.

Overall I'm really pleased with how this project turned out.  Like I mentioned before, the paint has held up well, as have the racks themselves.  Since using the metal butterfly anchors we haven't had any fall off the wall.  They don't hold quite as many books as I was thinking they would and I would actually like to add a few more to an adjacent wall, should I ever work up the energy to take this on again.  In all we used 13 racks.  We hung 9 on the main "book wall".

Then we also put two on the wall by Princess #1 and Princess #2's beds, just so they'd have some space that's reserved just for their own books.

Hopefully, if you're considering trying this anytime soon, these lessons I learned will help you out some.  I'd love to see pics of your completed project, so when you're done be sure to let me know!

Leave It To Hubs

Today so did not go the way I had planned.   I'll spare you the sordid details and instead just say one word:

Lice.

Uh huh.

*sob* *sob* *sob*

But before I was so RUDELY interrupted from my mindless Saturday morning perusing of Pinterest, I actually got a little crafty.

I'm sure if you have one eye and spend any time on the internet, you've noticed that subway art is all the rage these days.  I love it when I stumble upon freebies given away by some blogger with a golden heart. It makes my life so much easier.

But sometimes I can't find what I'm looking for downloadable for free.  And it's cool that people want to make money.  But I'm cheap.  So I decided to try my hand at making one myself.

My very favorite quote is by Victor Hugo, of the Les Miserables fame.  I have yet to see any subway art made using that particular quote.  AND, I have a blank space on my bathroom wall right above my toilet. So in my mind, I was going to make my own subway art, frame it and voila - free wall decoration.

OK, so are you ready to see it?

Ok.  Not as great as some of the ones I've seen on Pinterest, but not bad either right?  I was pretty darn pleased with myself.

So tonight, after dealing with the aforementioned hell on earth lice, I eagerly showed hubs my creation.

He read it through silently, while I described where I intended to hang it on the wall.  Then he repeated outloud:

"'Laboriously accomplished your daily task....'  you're putting this above the toilet?  The TOILET?"

BOYS.  *shaking head*


My dear friends, I do hope that you A) never ever have to deal with lice and B) have a boy in your house to keep things lively.  And keep you from placing quotes above the toilet that might be construed inappropriately.


PS.  In the dawn of fresh light I feel compelled to add that this whole blog post was possible last night because hubs demanded I sit at the computer and play around while he vacuumed all the carpets and furniture for me.  He's really a gem, that one.  

Comparisons: Four, Five, Six Months

It's been awhile since I pulled out my sister comparison collages, so I thought I'd share a few more, just for fun.

I think it's funnier to compare my hairstyles here.  These pictures were taken at each of the girls' dedication services.  3 states, 4 cities, 4 churches, 4 pastors.  We've been blessed with such wonderful church families, and I'm grateful that we had the opportunity to dedicate each daughter to the Lord. 

4 months old - in the neglect-a-saucer.  Loved that thing.  So much we had to replace it by the time #3 came around.

5 months - ah the age of drool, and spit bubbles.  

6 months - aaaaaand...  we're sitting up!  I love this tripod baby stage.  And what's with all the serious looks?  Must be tough work.

I compared newborn photos up through 3 months of age earlier this past year, if you want to check those out.  And as always, if you do a comparison post, I'd love to see!  Link back to this post and let me know!