Wordless Wednesday

Blessings, Serra

The Gentleness Challenge

   Good Morning, I hope this new day finds you in good spirits.  Yesterday I mentioned that for the new  year I am going to be a more gentle mother to my children.  I hate to admit this, but I am very quick to anger and I yell a lot.  Sadly it doesn't take much to make the mean mommy come out.  And as soon as the ugly and hateful words are said, I immediately feel terribly guilty and want to crawl under a rock.  Most of the time I can feel it about to explode yet I do nothing it to prevent it.  It's definitely the #1 thing I hate about myself. 

   Our children are gifts from GOD and how dare I treat my sweet babies like this...  I can't remember the first time I 'lost it'.  But I'm sure it was over something silly or trivial.  My kids have done the normal, naughty things like draw and write on the walls, hit each other, call each other names, etc...  I can honestly say that I have truly wonderful kids and they have never deserved to witness my anger. 

  I am sharing this with you because I am linking up with http://www.womenlivingwell.org/ and joining the Gentleness Challenge.  During the month of January we are humbly embarking 'on a Gentleness Challenge for mommy’s everywhere who struggle with raising their voices to their children, scowling, speaking in rapid fire foolish words or lecturing in anger.' 

   Please visit www.womenlivingwell.org and read the first post.  Grab the button and link it to your blog and please share the challenge with your mommy friends.  As Courtney has written, 'Let’s focus this January on dealing gently with our children. Touch them gently, use their names gently, use your words gently, slow down and be loving, kind, and gracious.'



Lord, give me the eyes to see you in my children,
your heart to love them and your gentleness to help them grow.

Give me your wisdom to guide them,
and your strength when I need to let them go.
Amen

Blessings, Serra

Happy New Year!!

   Hello Everyone... I apologize for the lack of posts since October, but it got chaotic quick with all the holidays and birthdays.  My oldest is 9!!  How'd that happen??  Hope the holidays were wonderful for you.
   I don't know about you but I am glad 2011 is over.  Even though we were blessed with our 'surprise' baby, Zachary, the past year was very stressful and full of tears, strife and quite a test to my patience and faith.  Our financial situation changed drastically and I don't see an end in sight anytime soon.  But I'm trying to be hopeful that everything will work out one way or another.  It's been another reminder to myself that I don't have as much control as I'd like to think I do and that I need to 'let go and let GOD'. 
   That being said, I'm not going to make resolutions for 2012.  I'm going to get back to the old Serra and be who I was always meant to be.  A faithful daughter of Christ, a loving and patient wife and mother and the creative and crafty woman I've always been.  I'm going to give myself the 'me time' I've always deserved, give my husband the wife/ husband time he deserves and to my children, the gentle and kind mother they deserve.  We as mothers and wives shouldn't have to try at these, they should be second nature. 
  2012 started off just fine.  The baby has been sick so I had to stay home with him.  The hubs took the 2 oldest girls to Sunday School & he taught the 3rd grade class.  The rest of the day was spent as a family, just hanging out, playing games and enjoying each other's company.  Today the kids & I went to an indoor play area and they ran themselves slap-out playing for 2 1/2 hours.  Tomorrow will be spent cleaning the bedrooms and playroom, making room for their new stuff and rehoming long ignored older toys and lovies. 
   I have a feeling this is going to be a year of change, maybe good, maybe not.  But I need to be prepared and know that God is always with me.  May this year be full of wonderful blessings to you.

~Serra

They grow too fast

 Yesterday my baby boy, Zachary, turned 4 months old.  He's my 5th child so you'd think I'd know what to expect.  Everything felt brand new, even childbirth. The only things I feel like I'm a pro at are breastfeeding and how to function on very little, sometimes no, sleep.  But I wouldn't trade any of it for anything, I absolutely LOVE being a mom. 

Zachary 10 days old

Zachary today

 Zachary is cooing, rolling over and is just the smiliest little boy.  We are so blessed to have him.

'Yet she will be saved through childbearing—if they continue in faith and love and holiness, with self-control.' -1 Timothy 2:15     

~Serra

   Happy Monday!!  Did everyone have a fun weekend? We sure did. We spent some time with some very special friends, ate A LOT of great food and watched some scary movies. 
  On the menu was chili and homemade chicken noodle soup, cornbread and pumpkin cornbread and multiple appetizers and finger foods.  I made the pumpkin cornbread and I think it was a hit.  I got the recipe from here http://sugarcooking.blogspot.com/2011/08/pumpkin-cornbread.html
  

As my kids have gotten older, I've found I can experiment more with different foods and 99% of the time, they'll eat it. If they don't eat all of it, they'll at least try it.  Even my husband has been more willing to try new recipes.  Is your family open to new and different recipes or do you find yourself cooking the same recipes each week?  Are you looking for new ideas? I highly recommend Pinterest and Allrecipes.com .   I have a dare for my readers, find a new recipe, make it and post about it here.  Good Luck and Happy Cooking!!!

'And he humbled you and let you hunger and fed you with manna, which you did not know, nor did your fathers know, that he might make you know that man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord'  Deuteronomy 8:3     

~Serra

It's been rough around here the last few months and today is a particularly bad day. I'm having trouble putting together a good post, so I thought I'd share some of the things I tell myself when I am feeling overwhelmed.

God never gives us more than we can handle -from my mother

But Jesus looked at them and said, "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible." -Matthew 19:26

But they who wait upon the Lord will get new strength. They will rise up with wings like eagles. They will run and not get tired. They will walk and not become weak. -Isaiah 40:31

And at the end of the day, I remind myself that things could be worse. I could have a child with a terminal illness, our house could be damaged by a natural disaster or I could lose my faith. In the book of Matthew, Jesus tells us "Because of the littleness of your faith; for truly I say to you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible to you."

Always remember, when you feel you can go no further, God is there to pick you up and carry you. You are never alone.

Blessings, Serra

Gratituesday

  Please forgive me for not posting. Zachary became ill over the weekend & was diagnosed with bronchiolitis. Bronchiolitis can be caused by RSV ( Respiratory syncytial virus ), which he was tested for and thankfully was negative.  He's on an oral version of Albuterol, and it makes him VERY grumpy, which equals very little sleep for him and myself. 
   And even after all this, I realize I have things to be grateful for: of course my family, but also for a wonderful pediatrician whom my children LOVE and who always takes the extra time to talk with me, for scientists who create medications to help heal our children and for a loving God who blessed these doctors and scientists with knowledge to help others.
   Probably one of the worst things about being a mom is the helplessness you feel when you have a sick baby or child and after giving them all the medications you can, all you can do is love on them and nothing seems to work.  I'm grateful for a God that gives me the strength and endurance to deal with sick children, to remain patient when I think I'm going to lose it, to function on no sleep and to do it all with a loving heart. 
   What are you grateful for? Please visit Heavenly Homemakers to see the stories of others.





'More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope'  Romans 5:3-4

~Serra