Saturday, January 7, 2012

A great day!

Today has been a really great day.  (OK, with the exception of balancing the checkbook and paying bills this afternoon, but even that made me grateful that there is enough money to pay those bills!)

First, I got to operate the Fort Smith Trolley!
My husband operates the trolley for a few hours 2-3 Saturdays a month, so today when I drove up, he asked if I wanted to give it a try.  "Sure!" I said nervously.  He's a great instructor and I didn't crash into a single thing.  :)

The Trolley thing came about as a way for David and Nathan to spend more time together, and it has been WONDERFUL for both of them.  Their relationship has never been better.  In fact, my brother wrote this post about it, and I'd love it if you would check that out.  (He also just has a generally great blog that I would recommend following.)

Since the boys have their thing with the trolley, Megan and I have developed our own thing.  We go to eat sushi at the local Japanese restaurant.  Megan calls it "squooshy" which she eats with "fork chops."  :)  I just love watching my 3-year-old eat sushi!

David and I have A LOT to learn about parenting, but we are trying to be intentional about spending one-on-one time with our children, getting to know them as individuals.  I read two great posts this week that I would also recommend:
50 Rules for Dads of Daughters
25 Rules for Mothers of Sons (I'm glad there were fewer rules for Moms, since I'm such a rule-follower by nature.  Ha!)

So how was your day?

Sunday, January 1, 2012

Today

Ah, the start of a new year!  A time of retrospection.  A time of projection.  A time of big plans for the future.

I had considered writing a post about my New Years' Resolutions/Goals/Aspirations, and I may still do that in the next few days.  But instead I'm going to include a poem that my kids and I are going to begin memorizing this week.  It's about today.  It's about not letting dreams of the future or regrets of the past keep you from living today.  Appropriate, no?

Now by Adelaide Anne Procter

Rise! for the day is passing,
And you lie dreaming on;
The others have buckled their armour,
And forth to the fight are gone:
A place in the ranks awaits you,
Each man has some part to play;
The Past and the Future are nothing,
In the face of the stern To-day.

Rise from your dreams of the Future --
Of gaining some hard-fought field;
Of storming some airy fortress,
Or bidding some giant yield;
Your Future has deeds of glory,
Of honour (God grant it may!)
But your arm will never be stronger,
Or the need so great as To-day.

Rise! if the Past detains you,
Her sunshine and storms forget;
No chains so unworthy to hold you
As those of a vain regret:
Sad or bright, she is lifeless ever,
Cast her phantom arms away,
Nor look back, save to learn the lesson
Of a nobler strife To-day.

Rise! for the day is passing:
The sound that you scarcely hear
Is the enemy marching to battle --
Arise! for the foe is here!
Stay not to sharpen your weapons,
Or the hour will strike at last,
When, from dreams of a coming battle,
You may wake to find it past!

Don't you just love that?  I need to find some way to make that play on my alarm.  I think it would be hard to hit the snooze after hearing that.  :)

I think it's Biblical, too.  (No, not from the Bible itself, but in keeping with it's precepts.)  Yes, God is the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end.  But He told Moses that His name is I AM.  Today.  Right now.  He is.  Let's learn from Him today.
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