Bob's

Sometimes, the leopard-loving, soul-searching, civilization-craving girl inside of me...just wants to scream. But then the crumb-catching, tot-toting, modest mother in me hushes her up.

Usually.

But not last night.

No Mam.

It's safe to say...I lost it a little yesterday. The kids and I have been having lots of "togetherness" lately. Which is wonderful....I LOVE staying home with my children and wouldn't trade it for anything. But after a while......

a Mama needs a moment.

So I had another Bob Evans night.

Whenever I need to get-away....that has to be the restaurant of choice. We live in a tiny town. It's either a bar or Bob's. My husband prefers for me to frequent the latter.

As I walked in...an elderly lady was giving me this strange look. Almost like she was scolding me. "Weird", I thought. But then I realized what it was. You see....my darling daughter is still drinking breast milk. And it had been a while since I pumped. (She wasn't a real enthusiastic breast feeder...so now I pump. I feel like Kate the Cow.) I can leave the house with a normal looking chest....and by the time I'm on my way back home I look like I have implants. It's crazy. So when I put my shirt on before I left - I was revealing nothing. But by the time I made it to Bob Evans.....I was revealing everything. Sorry lady....I'm a milk machine. I think I will put my V-neck shirts away for a while.

Other than that...the evening was blissful. U2 was playing over the speaker. I thought that was a bit peculiar for a Bob Evan's....its more of a bluegrass kinda place....but I was happy about it. I decided that God had them play U2 just for my listening enjoyment.

 I ordered a very healthy meal: grilled chicken, with garden veggies, and a baked potato. And....I ate the baked potato dry. I felt so disciplined. I even ordered water instead of sweet tea. That is almost a sin for a southern girl. But then......

Yeah. I ordered dessert. Apple pie. Not only did I order apple pie...I ordered it with ice cream and caramel sauce. Yes, I did. And after that....I ate the whole thing. And I'm here to tell you....it was worth it :)

After I scarfed down my dessert - I sat there and read for a while. It was so pleasant.

I went home with a rejuvenated brain, a full belly.....and VERY full boobs.

Thank you, Bob Evans. I'm sure it won't be long until you see me again. But next time...I think I might wear a turtle neck :)

Be Encouraged

Oh Friends :)

I have sooooo many things I'd like to blog about! Soooooo many! Things about the kids, book reviews, recipes, recent adventures.... But for tonight - I'm gonna leave you with some neat quotes I've come across lately. Enjoy, Sweet Ones. And have a wonderful week!

"Fear never wrote a symphony or poem, negotiated a peace treaty, or cured a disease. Fear never pulled a family out of poverty or a country out of bigotry. Fear never saved a marriage or a business. Courage did that. Faith did that. People who refused to consult or cower to their timidities did that. But fear itself? Fear herds us into a prison and slams the doors. 

Wouldn't it be great to walk out?" - from Fearless by Max Lucado (p.5)

"God, I want to see You.

 God, I want to hear You

 God, I want to know You.

 So that I can follow hard after You every day." 

- from Becoming More Than A Good Bible Study Girl by Lysa Terkeurst (p.26)

"No person, possession, profession, or position ever fills the cup of a wounded, empty heart." - from Becoming More Than A Good Bible Study Girl by Lysa Terkeurst (p.30)

"Sometimes more can be learned from the passages of Scripture we ignore than those we underline." - from Money, Possessions, and Eternity by Randy Alcorn (p.9)

I'm There......Finally

And then there's Jesus.

Friends, since January 1st I've been reading through a Chronological Bible. This means that for the past 9 months - yes 9 MONTHS - I have been reading the Old Testament. Yep. I just now hit The New. And honestly, it took a toll on me.

For example, a couple of weeks ago my husband and I were having a conversation about some things that made us kinda sad - things like past sins and such. And these are the words that came out of my mouth:

"I feel like dressing in burlap and throwing ashes over my head." (Burlap and ashes are mentioned more than a few times in the OT.)


My husband looked at me like I was crazy and said, "Babe, have you read anything from the NEW Testament lately?........... Maybe you should."

(LOL. It was way funnier in person.)

Anyhow, I'm there. I've made it. There He is. Praise the Lord - Hallalujuah!!!! I'm in the New Testament...and so is Jesus.

While it was super difficult to read through the whole entire Old Testament writings - and while I didn't understand a lot of it - and while some of it made me mad and confused and bewildered - and while it made me want to dress in burlap and grab some ashes at times - I'm glad I did it. Why? Because it makes Jesus even bigger. It reminds me just how much we need Him. It makes Him even more refreshing. It makes His light even brighter. And it makes the cross just that much more amazing.

One of my favorite passages so far is John 1:51. In this verse, Jesus calls himself "the stairway between heaven and earth." Don't you just love that? After being in the Old Testament for sooooo long - I can't even begin to tell you how empowering it is to read the words of Jesus. I love how it's drawing me in.

So from now until the end of the year - I'll be in the New Testament - where The Savior is. 

Picture it this way : Remember in elementary school...when everyone would sit on the floor "Indian style" at the teacher's feet - as she read a story or taught a lesson? That's me. Over the next few months I'll be sitting at The Teacher's feet - soaking in every word. No burlap or ashes needed :)

Cleaning Corners

I'm sitting here looking at a spider web that's draped across the corner of my ceiling. Gross, I know.

One would think that I would just grab the broom and knock it down. But I haven't. Embarrassed as I am to admit this - it's been there for a few days. And all I do is look at it and think..."I should really get that spider web out of here" and then I just .....................don't.

Funny how that happens.

I want to do what is good, but I don't. I don't want to do what is wrong, but I do it anyway. (Romans 7: 19)

Kinda reminds me of some things I've been hashing out lately. Things that have been hangin' out in my life for a while that need some broom action. It's crazy how I can identify issues in my life that need some tending - only to let them sit there. Which of course, is never a good thing.

So this week....I'm cleaning up a few cob-webbed corners. The one's in my home - and the one's in my heart.

Grabbing my broom and my Bible,
Kate :)

Looking Up

"Lord, help me with THIS."

That's the prayer I uttered as I rocked my newborn in her room a few days ago.

Sometimes, when I sit and think about it - the responsibilities I have as a mother and a wife are overwhelming, and yes...even a little scary. I mean, think about it. You have little people depending on you for their every need. You are their example. You are their guide. You. It's all you. And you better have it somewhat together sister, or they will feel the effects of it.

Talk about pressure.

And then there is the whole wifey thing. You are their partner. Their go-to girl. Their prayer warrior. Their love. Their encourager. Their support. It's a tall order, ain't it girls? A wonderful one - but hefty, nonetheless!

So as I sat their in the silence of my daughter's nursery - with to-do lists, worries, doubts, and concerns in mind - my newborn rested comfortably on my shoulder - completely unaware. Every few minutes she would sleepily look up at me with her big blue eyes - almost as if she was just making sure I was still there - then she would drift confidently back to sleep. Watching her breath so sweetly and rest so peacefully in my arms - I couldn't help but want to feel that way myself. I couldn't help but look up and say - "Lord, help."

From erasing the doubts and questions that all too often crowd out my faith - to erasing the blue marker that is now scribbled all over my back window. I need help with it all.

But more than anything...

"Lord...help me to know that You are holding me...watching me breath..watching me drift in and out of my day - watching me look up - just to see if You are still there. Help me to confidently close my eyes - and KNOW that You are. Because just knowing that - will help me out with it all."

Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord will personally go ahead of you. He will be with you; he will never fail you nor abandon you." Deuteronomy 31:8

My Blog

I feel like a bad blogger.

As I'm going about each day - I think of a zillion topics for blog posts. But since I'm usually smack dab in the middle of either changing a diaper or cleaning up messes - the neat little blog post ideas I come up with don't ever come to fruition.

I want so badly to be a happenin' blogger babe who regularly writes and who visits other happenin' blogger babe's blogs to see what they are up to. I'm gonna commit to it. I am. Just as soon as I get more than 3 hours of sleep a night - I plan on being a mighty fine and faithful blog lady.

Until then....I'm gonna leave you with some wise words that have encouraged me over the last few weeks. Enjoy them. I'll be back here in the next few days to post again. Thanks for sticking with me :)

"Sometimes we must stop praying for God's work and start doing His work."

"Complacency is a far more dangerous attitude than outrage." - Naomi Littlebear Morena"

"Blessed are those that give without remembering and take without forgetting." - Elizabeth Bibesco

"Hold yourself responsible for a higher standard than anyone expects of you. Never excuse yourself." - Henry Ward Beecher

Have a lovely week, friends :)

Encouraged

Oh my goodness.

I stumbled upon a gem of a website today.

www.incourage.me - It's a lovely little spot launched my Hallmark's DaySpring division. You should check it out.

The sweet ladies over at incourage are asking bloggers to write about what encourages them. This is right up my allie, y'all.

I wish we were plopped down on a comfy couch - iced tea in hand - talking about what encourages us.... face to face. Oh I'd love that. But since we are all scattered about the country - discussing encouragement on the old blog sounds like a good plan B.....

I'm super encouraged by witnessing people do crazy-awesome things with their lives. Things that make a difference. Things that other people have never done because it was considered too difficult. Things that force the doer to overcome obstacles and beat the odds. Things that would be virtually impossible without faith, tenacity, and endurance. Witnessing others using the talents God gave them to the fullest - is pretty inspiring. Seeing people make things happen really gives me the urge to do the same. When we choose to improve ourselves - no matter how small the change is - we are also choosing to improve those around us. And THAT is powerful.

Other encouragers?

Sunshine. Sports. Reading the autobiographies and stories of successful people. Blogs and my bloggy friends. My husband's college football manuel. Watermelon. My Mom's workout plan. Psalm 119. Warm weather. Spending time with girlfriends. Budding flowers in Spring. My son's laughter. Quotes. MeeMaw's prayers over the phone. My husband. Getting sweet greeting cards in the mail from Maw Maw Jan. My Dad's life story. Philanthropy. Music. Testimonies. Trips to Texas. Traveling. Dancing. And hugs...lots of them :)

What encourages YOU? What makes you feel alive? What gets you inspired? Do tell friends, do tell!