Church Responsibilities & Serving

16 months ago, Brian was in charge of A LOT of things for Harvest.  He served faithfully, week in and week out and God had sustained him through it all.  Recently, God had brought along people who committed to serve and help take those responsibilities which we are so thankful for:

• putting out the church's big (and heavy) sign at the bank every Saturday night and taking it down every Sunday afternoon --> Jeff took over
• putting out the church's smaller signs along Jermantown Rd every Sunday morning --> William took over
• setting up and tearing down for Intro to Harvest, order pizzas --> the Uenumas took over
• buying bread and juice, setting up and tearing down for communion --> the Swansons took over
• set up and tear down of the lobby --> Shannon rotated in so he can have off once a month
• putting away all ushering related items (offering bags, bibles and registers) --> Steph took over
• doing hallway security almost every Sunday which means he doesn't get to sit in the service --> Marcus and Joel stepped up to help
• and the big one is the church's finance that he does every Monday night (with stuff trickling in throughout the week) which he is happily handing over tonight --> Kristy took over
• God also sustain me with the kids as I get them ready every Sunday morning and especially those Sundays they were sick and we were homebound

The Lord amazes me as I got to witness His constant strength in our lives especially through the "burnt-out" days.  Not to mention a few Sundays when set up did not go as plan and we thought it was a close call.  But He came through nevertheless and it was all for His glory.
---------------------------------------------------   Rewind back the summer Brian and I met 12 years ago.  We were sitting by the clubhouse talking and I remember vividly about how Brian was conflicted of how he was going to use his engineering degree to serve God.  Not that he wanted to go into ministry or anything like that, but he felt like it was easier for those people to "serve" full time.  Well, here we are serving the Lord with the church plant and I just feel like that conversation has finally come full circle.

"Twittering" on Blog

Woke up to nothing on the ground, but schools already scheduled to close for today.  Not sure if I'll ever get use to this.

Just For Laughs

Gavin used to call Ethan "E" but now he calls him "Esh."  And the word "turtle" is universal for everything else he doesn't know how to say.

"Twittering" on Blog

These cat nap in the car needs to stop happening!  10 mins doesn't equal 2-1/2 hours.  Ugh!

On Being a Mamma

What a journey motherhood has been for me.  Not that I've arrived or anything, but this year more than others I felt the most confident with who I am as a mom.  Looking back, year one was about trying to survive and navigating my way through this thing called motherhood which completely took me by surprise and turned my life upside down.  Even though the perfect mom or super mom doesn't exist (or isn't even attainable), I made the attempt and failed miserably.  I wondered why no one else struggled and compared myself constantly.  Thank God Sara Husser came into my life, and in her transparency she told me motherhood is hard and that I was not alone.  She was literally my life saver!  Fast forward through year two, three and four and I continued to question myself.  Deep down I knew that no one could really answer those doubts that I had or let alone want to talk about it.  Do I like being a stay-at-home mom?   Do I even like being a mom?  If I could do it over, would I have kids?  

Then year five hit and God showed me the answers.  Living in the Midwest, practically EVERY woman I knew had dreamt of being a mom from like the age of 2.  That is what they're born to do/be and it's supposed to be the most fulfilling calling of their lives.  And who wouldn't want to stay home with their children?  Well, what happens when I don't fall in that category AT ALL.  Honestly, it was such a lonely time.  Then we moved here to the East Coast and the majority of the women are single, career driven and some married ones chose not to have kids.  *Gasp*  I didn't even know that was an option.  The carefree life without kids...oh the possibilities.  I won't lie, those thoughts have crept into my mind especially when I'm worn out to the max with the boys, in need of a date night and have no sitter to call.  But deep down though I knew that wasn't us either.  So now what?   

Side note: As I tried to figure all this out, it was also hard not to be able to relate with my mom as she had worked when I was growing up (as it was the culture in Thailand) and I had a nanny after school.  I don't feel like it affected me or her love for me.    

So ultimately, I knew I had to figure out for myself what works for our family...and me really.  Here are a few things:
-I really stopped aiming for perfection or trying to be super.  The person doesn't exist and if she does, she would probably fall over in exhaustion at the end of the day.  And that is not where I want to be.
-I stopped comparing.  Every family is different.  What you see is not always what it is.
-I take a 1/2 hour power nap everyday (without feeling guilty) knowing I'm in a better mood and it is what I need to get through the afternoon.       
-I start doing things I enjoy, like Zumba and other exercise classes.  Also trying to do things by myself and for myself.
-I found a MOPS group this year that is not only encouraging, but transparent with their struggles as well.
-A while back, I prayed for just one friend that I can be transparent with and God had answered that prayer.  Marie and I meet at least once a month for a playdate where we can connect and go deeper.

And through all these things, God brought me joy for my kids.  Yes, there are hard days and some weeks it feels like it'll never end.  I read on someone's blog about motherhood and thought this was right on.  She said, "the thing about being a mother is that it is the hardest, most stressful thing ever AND it is the most wonderful, life giving, and beautiful thing ever."  As of right now, I've come to embrace and surrender to my calling as a stay-at-home mom and my role as a mom.  Yes, I am a mom but I'm not just a mom.  And who knows, once the boys go to school I thought about finding a part time job somewhere.  The possibilities are endless.

Discovery of the Week

Gavin has figured out how to open door knobs, which frustrated big brother on many occasions especially when he's using the bathroom.

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Ethan never cease to amaze me with his constant desire to learn.  He loves teaching himself how to write and lately I have found him using the calculator to "crunch" numbers.  Haha.  Today he wanted to learn how to read and to my surprise, he was able to read something like 20 sight words like "and", "are" etc.  I guess he has been listening over and over again to this Jonah bible story on CD that my mom has given him and apparently has memorized it.

Thankfully school is resumed today after its closure yesterday due to extreme cold weather.  You should have seen him bawled after I told him.  He was so upset.  Don't remember anything like that in IA although waiting at the school bus stops here can be pretty dangerous with that low of a temp.  Anyway, Ethan was ready to learn, do crafts and all the fun things his teacher has for him.

House Update IV

We did NOT close by the end of the year as we had ultimately hoped and the drama continues daily...

• the first approval letter for Dec 27th came but by the time we received it, it was expired.  So they had to send it back to be rewritten for Jan 4th
• and apparently the seller's bank screwed up and processed the approval letter only to find out that the BPO (Broker's Price Opinion) had expired.  
• so now they have to order another BPO (which is similar to an appraisal) which take takes up to 10 business days to complete and up to another 10 business days to review
• now that the approval letter for Jan 4th has expired, they will have to rewrite another letter after the BPO has been reviewed
• we also found out that the HUD still needs to be approved 
• at the end of the year, our rate lock expired and our bank was able to extend it for a week for free.  Unfortunately, that expired today.
• just found out today that our loan officer was able to switch us to a different lender so we will be able to stay with the same interest rate and lock it for 30 days free of charge.  After that, not sure what.

So that's the latest update as of today.  But each day brings a new who-knows-what.  By now we have stopped freaking out every time we hear something else that has not gone right.  I guess we are in a good place because we literally cannot do anything about any of it.  We can't hurry it along.  We can't change the situation.  So ultimately all of it is in God's hands and in His timing.  I must say though that a few times lately, I just want to say forget it and walk away.  But unfortunately, there is nothing else on the horizon and the market is continuing to only go up.  So we wait...

Just for Laughs

Conversation on the way out of the house:

Me: Ethan can you put Kaika in his kennel?
Ethan: Do you not see me putting my coat on right now??
Me (Yes, my very own words coming back to me): Yes, Ethan.  After you're done. 

Mamma Wisdom of the Week

I found out (by accident) that classical music in the car makes my kids calm.  Who knew.

"Twittering" on Blog

After being with the kids almost 24/7 for three weeks straight, I was going stir crazy.  Took them to an indoor play area this morning and now everyone's happy...including me!