a rich and glorious tidbit

I came across a verse this morning which really struck me.  Lately I feel like I fail to get everything done that I need to accomplish, remember everything I need to remember, be the kind of mother I wish to be, grow in ways I see that I need to grow…

But then I read Ephesians 1:18 where Paul says:

I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can understand the confident hope He has given to those He called – His holy people who are His rich and glorious inheritance.

I -–my lowly self-- am a “rich and glorious inheritance” to -–God???  Is it just me, or does that seem messed up?  And also, He has given us “confident hope.”  He has already done it.  Here, Paul prays that we could understand that.  So we are a rich and glorious inheritance to God who has already given us a confident hope in Him.  Seems pretty weird.

But I know that it is not messed up.  It is the amazing grace He has given us. 

Romans 8:30 says:

…having chosen [His people] He called them to come to Him. And having called them, he gave them right standing with himself.  And having given them right standing, he gave them His glory.

He chose us.  He called us.  He made us holy.  He gave us his glory.

So what’s left for us to do?

Get everything right?

Get everything accomplished?

Be supermom?

Know and remember every single need of every person we meet?

Meet every single person’s needs?

Grow and excel in every possible way?

No.  Just accept His gifts.  Accept the glory He bestows on lowly us.  Accept Jesus and walk with Him and He will do the rest.  He will help you to do the things He needs you to accomplish, meet needs He needs you to meet, and grow in ways He needs you to grow for His kingdom.

I see that it’s not about me and what I can do at all.  At least not on my own.

Because let’s face it… God is smart – He knows that if it were any harder, if He didn’t do all the heavy lifting for us, well… we would fail.

 

Thank you Jesus for making the way!  Amen!

bike ride \ keepin’ it real

 

I picked up my camera the other day to walk with the kids while they took a nice, serene bike ride down our peaceful road. 

They are so funny together.  I think they are comparing their bikes in the shot above.  It is a constant game of “anything you can do I can do better”.

     

For some reason Mark is into tipping his helmet back (probably because it is more dangerous) and putting the strap over his chin.  It might have something to do with a superhero.

Susie wanted me to take a picture of her doing one of her “wheelies”…

We had fun in the sunshine.  Peaceful and serene.  Kids laughing and playing.  Good times…

 

Well except the part where Susie forgot to turn and went straight into the four strand barbed wire fence.  Thankfully, she rolled down the little hill into the fence and her front tire gently rested on it, keeping her little self away from the barbs.  Phew!  That was a close one.

I was trying to get her and her bike out of the little ditch and away from said barbs, and explaining, “I guess we shouldn’t have been riding next to this dangerous fence!  Let’s get out of here and go find another place to ride—“

Then came the part where my crash-loving son apparently decided to ride straight into the barbed wire fence, too, just to see if he could handle it or some other boyish reason like that.  He ended up hanging from his legs stuck on his bike and from his arms stuck on the fence, with a barb in his armpit and three big scratches all around one side of his rib cage.  Of course I rushed over to hold his body weight off the barbs with my left arm, while trying to untangle the barbs from his shirt with my right arm, all the while the camera dangling around my neck hit him repeatedly in the head.  I finally had to rip his shirt to free him, while looking around nervously to see if anyone had seen this little predicament or if his excessively loud blood curdling screams had drawn anyone out of the safety of their homes to see whether someone was being mauled by a mountain lion.  I told him he could walk his bike home and take it easy, to which he replied, “No.”  He mounted his bike and rode straight home without another word.  And then he was fine.  Until I cleaned his wounds.  Then repeat the “blood curdling screams” part – right in my ear.

CPS has not contacted me (yet).  I am still expecting a call for the “Mom of the Year” nomination… though it has not yet come.  My little guy admitted later that it was a “bad idea”. 

 

Keepin’ it real, folks.  The End.

d.i.y. hair conditioner

 

I’m dropping in for a quick and random crazy beauty tip.  Quick and random and crazy are pretty normal for me, but beauty tip???  …that’s a new one!!

D.I.Y. hair conditioner.  Actually its more like a super-conditioner.

Four simple ingredients:

Stir together one tablespoon each of honey, olive oil, mayonnaise and one egg yolk.

Get yourself ready to take a shower.  You won’t want to get this stuff on your clothes, so take them off or put on clothes you don’t care about. 

Apply the magic mixture to your hair from the ponytail down, especially on the tips.  I have long hair so I twist it up in a bun and secure it to my noggin.  Allow it to do it’s magic for fifteen minutes.  Be patient.  I was impatient last time and trust me, the patience definitely helps get the full benefit.

After the full fifteen minutes, hop in the shower, rinse, shampoo and condition as usual. 

Bata-bing, bata-boom!

The result is super soft, silky hair. 

A friend showed me this and I have used it a few times since.  Great results.  Give it a try!