Girl Interrupted....

I'm a girl who likes to be in control of her situation. Please try to hold yourself together it's... shocking I know! Lately however, it seems that every time I make plans they are interrupted. Why is this? It's not that my plans aren't valid or important. They aren't going to harm anyone. They just don't come to pass.



It is difficult to give up my control. It makes me feel vulnerable and at risk. What if I don't get to do the things that I feel are so important? What if my goals are never attained? What will I do? How will I cope? Will my life be forever marred by the day that my shopping plans got changed or by the fact that we didn't finish an algebra lesson? Will I live a life of regret because the fish bowl was left with a ring of scum around it?



These plans that I make are all important to me, but are they really the most important plans? The only thing that's going to suffer by my blocked goals is possibly the fish! What I really need to be asking myself is what plans does God want me to make. How would He have me use my time? Is the time that I am going to spend shopping going to interfere with time I should be using for Him?



I have been studying Paul recently. Talk about your blocked plans. Here was a man that shopped when he wanted, never missed an algebra lesson, and had an impeccably clean fish bowl. He was well educated, held a highly respected position, had an abundance of "frequent donkey miles", and still found the time to persecute and stone Christians.



God obviously had better plans!



When Paul's life was interrupted on the road to Damascus, his plans and perspective changed. He went from making his own plans to giving his all for the plans of the Lord! How convicting!



I am hoping that God doesn't feel the need to strike me blind on the road! (especially since i would be driving) My prayer is that whatever plans He may have for me, that I would be a willing participant, that I would not be aggravated that they interfere with my clean fish bowl. We so often wander through our lives concerned about such petty things. It's time that I got focused on the eternal!

Give Me Liberty!....

This morning, as I reflected on the election results, I was tempted to be discouraged. I also thought for a moment that I should pack up my family and move to Antarctica for the next four years.
However, when I really think about what happened yesterday, I have nothing to do except count my blessings.
I was born into a free country!
I was able to drive my own car from my own house whenever I wanted yesterday and stand in line to vote for whomever I choose!
I was able to homeschool my children!
I was able to go to my sister's birthday party without anyone questioning my motives!
I was able to sleep soundly in my bed. No one knocked on my door and threatened my family because of my beliefs!
Praise God!
Was the man who was elected my choice? No. Does that mean that I should not be thankful? No.
I am extremely thankful that our new president will be a man who was elected by the people of this nation.
I am extremely thankful that this man was not appointed for me, or is in this position because of his military threats and power.
Right now, as I am sitting in my cushy home typing these words, there are millions of people throughout the world that are suffering at the hands of their leaders. They have no say in their government. The choices they make in their everday lives are closely monitored and dictated for them. They risk their lives and those of their families if they do not conform to the mandates of the people in power over them.
Today, as a proud American, I am counting my blessings! Freedom is worth far more than my opinion!

Remember Me?....

Hello? tap, tap, tap Anybody in there? I know I've been gone for almost a month, but please tell me you didn't forget me!
Quite honestly over the last few weeks I have been trying to decide what to do about this here blog. I enjoy telling the whole entire internet all about our lives, but it seems that lately I've had nothing to say. Don't get me wrong, it's not like things haven't been happening around here. We've had school, and rabbit raising, and Brian finally getting back to a normal work schedule. We've even had Josh learning how to swim "star wars style". One million points to the person who can figure out what that means.
For all five of you who are my loyal blog readers, I want to say thanks for hangin' in there. To the rest of you...I want to say whateva!
I'm going to keep the blog going for now. I might not be posting on a regular basis, but I don't want to give it up just yet.
So keep checking in, and hopefully I'll see ya soon!

Quick Post Cause I've Got No Time....

Well we are back from a week at the beach! It was wonderful, refreshing and fun!! Of course now that we are home we have to get back to the daily grind. UGH!

This week should be busy. We need to get back into school, clean the house, and tomorrow we are going to pick up our killer rabbits.

Hopefully I will have some vacation and bunny pics to share in the next couple days. Until then...SEE YA!

No Words....

Because this happened last night, I will now fling myself from the peak of Rocky Top!

Flopsy, Mopsy and That Really Big One With No Name....

We are venturing into a new realm around here. The kids have decided to take up 4H. I am actually very excited about this, mostly because I've always dreamed of having a farm. However, we do not live on a farm. We live in a nicely manicured subdivision. This obviously limits our choices for animal projects.

My children are very resourceful however, and were able to come up with the perfect animal project for the suburban family. Rabbits. You know, those sweet little cuddly balls of fluff that are just so cute? Yes rabbits. I agreed that this was the perfect plan (envisioning dwarf bunnies). So the kids began researching types of rabbits and their care. They finally decided on a breed.

FLEMISH GIANTS!

Did you get the GIANT part of that? These rabbits will grow to be larger than my dog. They can reach 28 pounds...you know, just a little lighter than me. They require a large cage of course, that will have to be built. They also require more food and more cleanup. This information has not deterred the rabbit olympic hopefuls. They are going for the gold in this rabbit project.




Incidentally, I have no idea who the guy in the picture is, but he obviously runs some kind of Flemish Giant Army. Do you see the size of that thing? Are you feeling my pain?...

As we have looked at picture after picture of the very large specimens, I have been pondering some things in my heart. Kind of like when Mary was pregnant with Jesus, but not. Anyhoo...

First, do giant rabbits like people for dinner? If these rabbits are almost the size of me, will they see me as a tasty snack?

Second, isn't the word rabbit awfully close to rabid? Hmmm....

And lastly, this is where you come in my dear internets, what do you name a GIANT rabbit? Cottontail and Freckles don't really seem appropriate. Killer and Demon would seem more fitting.

All this to say, we want some help naming our FLEMISH GIANTS. So leave me a comment and give us your suggestions! Some names we've considered are SUR short for Sport Utility Rabbit, GOLIATH which just implies LARGE, and PEE WEE cause it's funny.

We will be getting these precious pets within the next few weeks, and want to be prepared. So enlighten us with your knowledge, blow us away with your creativity, give us a rabbit name by golly!

And if you never hear from me again....you will find the leftovers in the hutch......

To Sing What They Could Sing....

Yesterday was one of those days where I needed to be trapped in the car for several hours with antsy children. Thank goodness for the DVD player! But alas you can only watch so many movies and I was tired of them arguing over the remote, so I suggested another activity.

My children have always been very creative and usually have no problem coming up with something to do.

I was not surprised that within a few minutes they had formed a plan that would make me want to throw myself out the window into oncoming interstate traffic.

"Let's practice Christmas songs", I heard from the backseat. Why O why didn't I bring more movies? UGH!!

I guess when you are 6 and 8 it's very important to practice Christmas songs in August, that way you won't be rusty come December.

So after several rounds of Jingle Bells, Deck the Halls, and a very interesting version of Silent Night, I thought they were finished. But....then what to my listening ears should I hear....the suggestion of another song.

"Mom, how's that one go? You know Jesus Went Over the Mountain?" Josh asked in all seriousness.

To which I replied "what in the blazes are you talking about?"! I didn't remember that song from past Christmases. Josh however was insistent that it was his very favorite and he learned it in church.

Then it hit me. He was referring to Go Tell it on the Mountain! Of course!

It's a good thing Mary and Joseph didn't have to carry Jesus over the mountain. They might have run into that pesky bear!