You owe me a pop

This is what precious looks like...when it's napping in your arms.

If you've been following this blog for any amount of time, you've probably noticed that parenting has been a catch and release battle over here. I get on a routine/method/thiswayisgoingtowork high and then when lifegetsbusy/Babywon'ttaketoit/itdoesn'twork I crash a little. Don't get me wrong, being a Momma in general has been incredible! I love each and every {though perhaps not every minute of the} day! But I have had to let go of some of my preferences for the sake of baby's greater good i.e. trying to force him into routines that he wasn't ready for.

So, after just over six months, I felt like we were ready for some change. I found myself, both of us really, just floating around during the day, holding him during all of his naps, and just basically not feeling...steady...or purposeful. {It should be noted here that I am aware that this is the preferred method of absolutely awesome people, and in no way am I trying to suggest that routine is for everybody - just definitely for us. I knew you'd understand} Since he's a big(ger) boy now, I finally got my wish and implemented a little structure into our day. Because, besides the fact that I'm a person who craves order, I felt it was really good for him too. To have a general peace in his little baby mind that he will eat again, he will sleep again, there's no need to get out of control because he knows {in a very primitive baby way} that his needs will be met right around the same time everyday. Plus, with him napping like a big boy in his crib, I can get more of my work done while he sleeps, leaving me more undivided attention for him while he is awake.

And guess what - it worked like {almost} clockwork! For a grand total of 3 days. On that third day, in a conversation with a {completely wonderful} friend of mine, I made that stereotypical mistake of celebrating this little victory. Then, when the next day, Baby woke up at a different time of the morning, didn't nap as long as usual, needed to be held to nap at all in the afternoon, there was a tempting little, nasty thought in the back of my mind. I jinxed it.

And then the Truth smacked me and my little superstitious self right in the face. Really? You now have some kind of cosmic power to alter reality? You, a little human being, have charted the course of this day simply by sharing, and being excited about, your story? Riiiight.

And then it just snowballed. Because I realized that not only did I have no part in the day that didn't go as planned - I had very little to do with the days that did! True, I charted and upheld and trained and basically did my part, but it was only by the grace of God, blessing those efforts, that anything came of them at all. Silly Lucy.

There are no such things as jinxes. There are simply days that don't go in the same nice order that all the other days do. There are stuffy noses and new teeth, and sometimes there are days when a fella just needs to be cuddled by his Momma. And you know what, it was basically awesome, in it's own snugly way.

So this morning, I challenge us all to free ourselves from "worldly wisdom," and rest in the amazing sovereignty of our Sweet Lord. Isn't he amazing?!? Whew, so incredibly glad for {yet another} reminder that I am not in control. Maybe I'll get it...someday.

Autumn Cleaning?

The "Goodbye, have a nice life!" Pile

I don't know if it's just a case of "great minds" or what, but I seem to be stumbling on a lot of lovely lady bloggers who are currently along journeys to simplify their lives. Whether that means getting rid of excess clothing, letting go of overcomplications in their lives, or even pressure to blog, many of us seem to be "cleansing" right now. I know I am. Maybe it's the change of seasons?

Out of apparently nowhere, I went on a bit of a tangent around my house. We'll call it "The Great Purge." Don't get me wrong, I've gotten rid of things before, and I even occasionally purged, but there always seemed to be some kind of invisible line that said, "This far you may go, but no further!" which robbed me of real, dramatic freedom from my things. I introduced myself to the line, its name is "Good." It also goes by, "But I miiiight use it someday!"

See, the truth is, it's not that I have too much stuff in a general or realative sense. In fact, when I told my sister I was getting rid of stuff, she said she was actually surprised I had enough stuff to get rid of anything, ha. It's true, I'm still a bit of a newlywed, and H and I are still collecting the things that fill a home. But I guess what I realized is that I've allowed things to come into our home to fill those spaces just to fill those spaces, instead of because I actually love them! And, before we get all worked up about "loving stuff," the love I'm talking about is {obviously?} not the same "love" I hold for God, or my husband, or my baby, etc,etc. I'm just talking about an enjoyment. A happiness in looking around your home and being satisfied with the things you see. Make sense so far?

Anyway, when I looked around I saw a lot of "good" and "but I might use it eventually" that was crowding out the "love" and "I actually use right now." Most of it was stuff I just had to have at the time or things I thought I loved. It's actually a little shameful how many things I decided to part with that I actually registered for and received as wedding gifts. Sheesh. I also seem to be "collecting" furniture. And when I say furniture, I really just mean castoff things that "have character" i.e. things that have lived thier lives and probably deserve to retire. And, there are a few things with true potential, too. The thing is, I'm finding I have a "someday" problem. "Someday when we're in a bigger house, I'll need it" seems to be my mental refrain these days, and that's just not fair. Sure, we plan on ending up someplace else. But right now, we live here. So unless I want H to turn me into "Hoarders" and end up on television, I need to learn to let go and live in the house that I actually live in.....and maybe he'll reward me by buying me a quirky, overstuffed office chair when we do move to our someday house, haha.

So, all this is to say that come this Saturday, I am having my first ever very own yard sale! I've participated before, but never had one in my very own yard, so I'm very excited! It seems like the perfect end to a journey of comfy minimalism and self discovery.Okay, maybe not the end....maybe just a pit stop.