Making Time For Quiet

It's SO Important!

As a Follower of Jesus.

As a Mama.

As a Wife.

Life can get so chaotic around us. 

Busy, busy busy with no end in sight!

I always have multiple projects on the go: piano lessons to prepare, Etsy orders to complete, 

dinners to cook, people to keep in touch with, errands to run... 

But making quiet time with a priority keeps me fuelled for everything else I do.

So it tops my list.

Earlier in Spring I shared my first devotional of the year by

She Reads Truth

I love She Reads Truth studies because the focus is on God's word, and not someone's interpretation or feeling about it. 

Lets be honest, my quiet time is limited, so I need to get the goods without a lot of other distractions.

Hebrews was my first study of the year. 

Yes, those are scribbles from my toddler.
After all this is real life!

So much focus on Jesus as my advocate - better than all others before and since.

So much encouragement on the power of faith in the example of others.

I finished Hebrews a few weeks back and began a new study.

It's a Journible.

I had been given this beautiful journal by a sweet friend in 

Washington and somewhere in our move it got lost in the shuffle of books.

I recently came across it and decided to make it my next quiet time Bible study.

Once again, the focus is scripture - Romans.

Writing the words out for better retention.

Studying and then journaling through the text.

So, let me encourage you...

We're always going to have things to keep us busy.

Making time for quiet and study is rewarding beyond the few minutes it takes. 

Fill your soul with truth and be encouraged in every aspect of your life.

It's so worth it!

Another Day, Another Room to Organize

Today I decided to go through our closet and downsize my wardrobe.

The house we're renting right now has a beautiful big walk in closet - 

something I've never had before.

But I'm quickly realizing that it can be easy to just let things pile up with so much space.

Here's what I started with.

The boys did a great job of entertaining themselves in my tub while I got to work.

It didn't take long and I had removed -

1 Hoodie

2 Dresses

3 Skirts

3 Tank Tops

1 Sweater

7 Shirts

4 Pairs of Shoes

and Various Pieces of Jewelry.

One coat also got pulled out to be sent to the dry cleaners so that I can wear it again.

A few items I will pass on to a friend and the rest will be donated. 

While I was cleaning out my closet, I came across a 

Little Golden Book that I had bought last time we were in Alabama.

Scuffy the Tugboat 

was one of my favourite books to read when we were visiting my grandparents house as kids.

Ryder was so excited to read a new story while he ate his lunch.

Win Win!

And that was all before I finally got to addressing the growing mound of 

clean laundry that has been accumulating in my room.

 You'd think we had 10 kids and not 2 with the amount of laundry we go through!

 But with few episodes of Pioneer Woman episodes to keep me company, I made my way through the mountain and my children will finally have some clean pyjamas to wear.

And then Ryder hit the jackpot when Daddy got home 

from work and offered to read his new story again.

I feel like it was a pretty successful day of catching up, tidying up, and decluttering my closet.

I know a few of you are joining me this week in organizing and cleaning house -

how did you do?

A Week of Purging

We're home and getting right back at it.

This week one of my goals is to do some serious decluttering and purging in a few different rooms.

I started in the office where we have a few too many book boxes stacked - 

boxes that haven't been opened since our move a year and a half ago!

First things first.

I tossed out 48 old magazines ranging from home decor, to running, to recipes.

So much information is online now. 

If I need a recipe, I can browse Pinterest or check out FoodNetwork.com

Ryder found an old pair of swim goggles in the process.

Before long I had a whole box emptied.
It helped that the sun came out and Ryder decided to go entertain himself in the backyard.
Love this little boy's imagination and ability to play on his own!

And then proceeded to fill it with all kinds of other odds and ends that can be donated or tossed -

our ugly Christmas sweaters, a few kitchen items, etc.

So, who else is in?
Who's going to join me in cleaning out and purging this week?!

What To Do When It Feels Like Your Kids Get In The Way Of Life:

Since getting back from our long weekend camping trip I've been feeling pretty sluggish and fighting to get up and get a lot accomplished in the mornings. On Friday I finally decided to go ahead and write down what I hoped to get done during my day.

What is it about a list that inspires and motivates to action? Must be a weird personality thing. Here's what I came up with: 

The list stuck to the counter in my kitchen so pardon all of the water marks. :)

While I did go ahead and plan out my day from early on - the baby was up at 5 and Ryder was up at 6 - somehow the kids didn't pick up on my get 'er done mentality. Haha! Just a few things to accomplish, seems pretty reasonable, right? Well, those things turned into many more...

1. Breakfast (nurse Lynden, change diaper, take Ryder to the potty, get everyone dressed)

2. Bike Ride (leave, return home to pump up tires, return home to leave Dixie who was terrorizing the neighborhood dogs, finally get home after our ride to find that Ryder has had an accident in the bike trailer - sigh..., another trip to the potty, laundry, get dressed)

3. Pull Weeds (nurse the baby, rescue Ryder's tricycle stuck on the rocks, coach Ryder on where and where NOT to throw rocks, hunt for lizards with Ryder and find a few other creatures instead)

Can you spy the camouflage creature?

4. Wash Dishes, Clean & Clear Counters (shower, make lunch, feed everyone lunch, put Ryder down for a nap, wash one dish, feed a bite of food to Lynden - yes, he's started solids!, wash one dish, wipe that last whole bite that is dribbling down his chin, wash one dish, feed Lynden a bite, etc.)

5. Fold Laundry (change yet another dirty diaper, nurse the baby, pour a 5th cup of coffee, scrub crayon off of the floor, find a full episode of The Pioneer Woman to watch - yes, this is relaxed as I get these days. :)

6. Deep Clean Master Bath (Set Ryder up with water and a snack to 'watch the thumper go boom boom' instead of being scared of the thunderstorm, What?! It's 6 already! Time to make dinner...)

Sometimes at the end of days like these I look back and wonder what I did all day. If you have kids at home, I'm sure you can relate!

As you can see, not so streamline as originally planned. But, at the end of the day, all of the important things got done and these two were just as happy as could be. 

I need to remind myself of this often, but for today, my consolation is this:

So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.

1 Corinthians 10:31

Days like this are not a write-off. 

They aren't treading water. 

They don't keep us from really living life. 

They are real life!

So, are you a Mama? 

Glorify God.

Are you single?

Glorify God.

Wherever you are, 

whatever you're doing, 

there - glorify God. 

Day 3 - This Time A Success!

After yesterday's unsuccessful attempt to get my laundry room in order, I decided to choose a much less difficult task to complete today. I need that feeling of success at the end of my day. With that in mind and also preparing to dog-sit for a couple of days, I chose Dixie's room to deep clean today.

If any of you need proof that we really truly live in a desert, here it is!

Floors were swept and mopped, food bowls dishwashed, shoes straightened, crate and bedding cleaned, nasty dog-nosed window wiped, etc. and we are back in business!

Much better!  Though I'm not sure why Dixie is looking at me like that. You think she'd be loving her new clean room and not looking all sheepish.

I even found a few minutes of time to plant my second raised vegetable garden box. This one should grow tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, squash, cantaloupe, and watermelons. My other box has shoots coming up nicely. Not exactly in nice neat rows though, thanks to the chickens and my dog that got in there one too many times.

If all else fails, at least we'll have some kale this year!

And since it's been a little while since I swamped you with photos of the boys, here are a few recent shots. Ryder is up early and begged to hold Baby Lynden - he loves his brother so much, I couldn't turn down the request.

This little fella is just all smiles these days. <3

Progress Counts for Something

It's Day 2 - time to get started on the laundry room. It's one of the smallest rooms in our house, but the work that gets done there is some of the most important, especially with mess-making kiddos. While I don't usually have a problem with getting loads washed and dried, they do tend to sit in the basket waiting to be folded - for much too long.  As you can see, today is no exception. And this is just since this weekend.

Up here, my ironing baskets haven't been touched in a few weeks, other than pulling out and ironing just what I needed on Sunday. It'll feel good to finally see a few empty baskets and be caught up for at least a day or two.  Also hanging, I have some dress shirts that I picked up at the cleaners well over a week ago. Time to put everything in it's place.

Well, the day got away from me just a little bit. I made it through getting my kids ready, dropped off, and to the dentist by 8am. Things went downhill from there, though I did spend a few hours on the on today's goal. 

Laundry Folded & Put Away

Headway Made on My Ironing

A few things you should know about this picture:

1. This isn't all of it. I finished 15 items before Braden said he was on his way home from work.

2. Half of the shirts are Ryder's.

3. Ryder still has more dress shirts in his closet.

4. Ryder's Mama might buy him too many dress shirts...

The long and the short of it is that I tried to get my laundry room spick and span today and didn't quite make it.  But progress is still rewarding, even if I was a little too ambitious. That's the beauty of motherhood. One additional load of laundry was required today because after Ryder tipped over my water bottle and spilled my glass of orange juice, he decided to throw his creature in the toilet. Really?!  Haha, life with a toddler!

Anyone out there going to join me today in catching up on laundry and/or deep cleaning your laundry room?

 In other news, in an attempt to come up with interesting and not terribly unhealthy lunch snacks, I tried a new granola bar recipe today.  The only thing I changed was adding a cup of peanuts (maybe next time I'll try peanut butter too) and they turned out great.

Goals For The Week

Our last week was a beautiful break from our Apperson norm. I had a friend in town and so set aside most of our usual routine in order to just take it easy and enjoy our company. Boy was it nice! I'm not sure who was on vacation, because we sure benefited from our sweet guest. She cleaned and swept, watched the boys while I went to the dentist a couple of times and then again a few evenings so that Braden and I could date. I enjoyed relaxing late mornings over endless mugs of steaming coffee and listening to another voice read Ryder his Richard Scarry and construction site books. Did I mention that she also baked up a storm? 

But now that we're back to just us, I need to get my act together again and get back to the things I set aside. In order to make each item on my to-do list seem a little more manageable, I've decided to tackle one room or area of my house each day in hopes that by the end of the week, my house will be back to operating at full capacity.  

Here's a little fun fact about me...  I don't get stressed very easily. In fact, I can't remember the last time I lost sleep for any reason other than a needy child. That's just how I roll. The one thing that causes me the most anxiety, however, a mess within sight. Am I the only one that has a hard time concentrating where there's work to be done all around me?

So here's my goal for the week. One project a day until all of the glaring chores have been taken tackled.

WILL YOU JOIN ME?

Day 1: Kitchen

Before - don't judge!

Until recently, our kitchen was getting out of hand in the messy department on weekends. We would just leave things out instead of putting them right away after using them. A couple of weeks ago, Braden really stepped up and helped me get on top of things and we decided to give a few minutes throughout our weekend days to clean as we went in the kitchen. Making it a team effort has really saved us a lot of time as well as made my Mondays a lot more enjoyable. 

But this weekend things got a little busy. On Saturday I was in Reno most of the day, dropping my friend off at the airport and running errands. That evening and then again early Sunday morning Braden and I were busy helping a friend with plans for a surprise party (what fun!) and so by the time church and the party were over and we'd made an impromptu trip to Reno to pick up a Craigslist find, the kitchen was once again a nightmare. 

After - deep sigh!

But, everything is once again in it's place and I'm feeling back on track - and much less stressed - already!

I would love to have you join me this week in getting on top of your housework as well - surely I'm not the only one that gets behind....

Let me know if you're on board, I'd love the mutual encouragement...and Happy Monday!

Back To The Gym

Last weekend I decided that it was high time for me to get back to the gym and in shape again. What could be a better start to the week? For the last month I've been walking around our neighbourhood with the kiddos and Dixie, but that's usually at a Ryder-pace.

I made the mistake of putting my Monday morning gym aspiration into words, never expecting that it would invoke Murphy's Law - I was up with Lynden three times that night, before getting up at 4:45 to  make coffee, breakfast, and lunch and see Braden out the door. Then Ryder was up before 7 with a VERY wet bed. Lynden followed suit requiring a few outfit changes. Hopefully our well holds up to all of the laundry and bathing happening here!

Needless to say, I was suddenly extremely lacking in motivation! During breakfast I gave myself a little pep-talk and drank LOTS of coffee in an attempt to work up my courage. I needed to run out to the post office and dry cleaners anyway, so why not try the gym too?

Whew, what a rude awakening! I climbed 1,000 steps and then ran/walked 2 miles - a far cry from my glorious running days. But Lynden slept sweetly, Ryder played quietly, and I caught up with one of my other Mommy friends.

I was able to make a hasty exit after realizing that Ryder was wet through AGAIN (the last set of diapers I ordered were duds and Amazon is sending replacements - 2 day shipping can't come fast enough!). Oh, and we ended up leaving Stingy (Ryder's favourite creature) in the play area. Sigh...

Happy Monday!

These two cuties make motherhood worth it all though - even on crazy Mondays.

Here's to hoping for a less exciting Tuesday...

Thoughts on Beginning a New Year

It's only 9pm and already I have the house to myself. Ryder usually goes down at 7 and Braden's fighting his sickness with additional rest as well. 

So here I am with my Sparkling Cherry Lime Izze (yum!) meditating on my day in general and considering this new year that has just begun. 

I'm not one to make new years resolutions. I have nothing against them, but I also tend to be a realist; meaning, if I didn't do something yesterday or the day before, I'm not naive enough to think that turning the page on a calendar is going to motivate me to change. I find that I am generally internally motivated. Don't get me wrong, I know that I should be constantly looking for areas in my life that I can improve and ways to grow, but January 1 doesn't seem to influence that very greatly.  

My thoughts tend to drift to the addition of a new family member and continuing to learn and love life here in Nevada. Only God knows what the coming year holds for us and that alone causes a certain amount of excitement and peace.

How about you?  Do you set goals for yourself? Does the start of a new year invoke a lot of reflection and motivation to change in the one to come?

In my reflection tonight, I would be remiss if I didn't share how I was incredibly encouraged at church this morning. After a few weeks away, it was refreshing to get back into our study in the book of Matthew.

A few applications that I took away from the message in our Matthew 13:31-32 text:

1. Don't be discouraged, God works through small beginnings.

2. Don't ever think that darkness is greater than light; as Christians, our influence in our families and beyond is stronger than that of unbelievers because light is more powerful than darkness.

3. Be a Spirit-filled, Spirit-controlled blessing to both believers and unbelievers, so that God can work through you.

Praise God for his word to instruct, encourage and motivate us. If I wasn't motivated by this new year, I certainly was by the teaching of God's word this morning.  Feeling blessed and thankful!

Jayne

Increased Awareness

Tuesday began just like any other morning, except that Braden didn't have to leave before the sun. To celebrate a more relaxed departure (0800) we enjoyed a sit-down breakfast of coffee, pumpkin waffles, and pumpkin yogurt. I've included the link to our new favourite Fall waffle recipe, because it's definitely a keeper (and VERY simple) and the yogurt was just a homemade concoction of plain yogurt, pumpkin puree, almond butter, honey, and pumpkin pie spice.  Mmmm....

Ryder enjoys licking the yogurt spatula!

What began as a lack of motivation (it just seemed like a lot of work to get myself and Ryder dressed, drive to the gym, work out, drive home, shower, etc.) instead inspired a great morning road run. They've been a little more difficult to fit in because of dropping temperatures, but Ryder bundled up and we were both happy to get some fresh air and save the time it would have taken to get out the door and to the gym on base.

Here's my little bundled boy. <3

While I was showering and getting ready for the day (story time at the library this morning), Ryder decided he would help himself to a snack from the pantry. As you can see, we're huge Annie's fans!

"Dixie Did It!" Isn't going to work this time...

Learning to clean up after his messes.

But none of those routine events could eclipse the highlight of our morning. Ryder was standing by the front door just waiting for me to lace up my running shoes, when he noticed a picture of Braden with his 3 siblings - taken probably at least 5 years ago - and said, "Daddy."  It happened again at lunch time while I was buckling him into his highchair. "Daddy" he said as he pointed to a small 4x6 of he and Braden taken the day Braden deployed last year. Then once more at nap time as I was tucking him into bed and arranging all his little creatures - "DADDY" he exclaimed and pointed to a canvas family photo I had made for the nursery while Braden was deployed.  <3

Ryder sees, "Daddy!"

It's obvious who the favourite is!  ;)  But even greater than that, it's so exciting to see Ryder making sense of the world around him and developing increased awareness of his surroundings.

The excitement of my child noticing evidence of his Daddy located all around the house made me stop and think (this is the time of year to be thankful, after all) about how well I take the time to notice evidences of my Heavenly Father all around me. God has blessed me and our little family in countless ways and I need to be looking for them and expressing praise and gratitude to Him for them.

Enjoying a reflective day of thankfulness,
Jayne :)