Memorable Moments

When I first tried keeping a blog a few years ago, I thought maybe I'd update more often when I had something more interesting to write about. Surely, I though, once I have children, I'll have plenty of inspiration for funny stories and deep thoughts. Ha. Maybe I do have good sources for those things, but I certainly don't think about setting aside time to write about them! The truth is, being a mom is a pretty big job. I'm actually giving a devotion for a friend's baby shower (who is expecting twins!) this weekend, so I've been thinking a lot about just how big of a job being a mom is and what God has to say about it. The one big conclusion I've come to is that God wants me to glorify Him in this job, just like He is calling all of us to bring Him glory in whatever we do (I Corinthians 10:31). Two major ways I can do that are by relying on Him for help and strength every moment of every day (because I REALLY need it!) and serving my family the way God calls all of us to be servants, following the example of Jesus and using the power He gives us. Serving others all day long is not my natural inclination. Sure, I'll serve happily for a portion of the day, but, seriously? All day long? Wow. Now, that's asking a lot. That's why it's such a good thing that God gives us the power to change once we follow Him. Because we're not naturally good at most of the things He wants us to do or be like. II Corinthians 5:15 says, "...and He died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for Him who for their sake died and was raised." So I'm learning a lot lately about not living for myself, even though I still want to live for myself in many moments of the day! God is helping me.

So, it is a big job being a mom, but there are lots of memorable moments that make me smile throughout these long days of taking care of toddlers (and now another newborn!). Like...

...when Grace and Cara (the twins, who are not yet two), see letters in books or on the road and spontaneously burst into singing the alphabet song in unison.

...when Grace prays and always begins her prayers with, "Thank you [for] Mama..."

...when I say to Elanor, "I'm so pleased with you!" and she responds with, "You're welcome!"

...when Elanor says, "I've got some corns!" and holds up acorns (get it, a corn?)

...when Grace and Cara come over to Josiah and lovingly pat his head and say repeatedly, "Baby 'Siah!"

...when my children want me to rock them every. single. night. and never grow tired of it.

...when my husband lets me sleep in a little, and I am awakened by little voices calling for me and little feet running into my room. "Mommy! Wake up?"

...when Elanor asks if she can hold her sister and reads a book to her.

...when the twins both want to hold Josiah at the same time and yell, "Hold it, hold it!"

...when Josiah sleeps in my arms or looks up at me and smiles.

Not every day is smooth or beautiful in how it unfolds. In fact, I often end up in tears at some point during the day. But every day holds these memorable moments and, more amazingly, just enough grace from a loving God to get through with what we all need.

Another List...Because I like 'Em! :)

I keep seeing these "random lists" on blogs (and I actually stole this one from Laurel), and it reminds me of those emails that used to go around with very similar lists, telling you to fill it out and send it on to all of your friends. 

So, all of my friends in the blogger world, here you go!

1. Full Name: Charity Ruth Mann
2. What time did you get up this morning? 6:35
3. What was the last film you saw at the cinema? The Hobbit, part 2 (I tried to see Frozen, but the theater was closed...even though it said there was a showing online...long, sad story)
4. If you could live anywhere in the world where would it be? This is a toughie. I do love living in Manhattan, but part of my heart is still in Australia...and a piece or two is in Indiana. I'd mostly like to live wherever my husband and daughter are living. :) 
5. What did you have for breakfast? Okay, now THIS was actually fun! I wanted to make baked oatmeal but wanted something with a little more excitement. So I found this: cinnamon roll baked oatmeal. Yum!
6. What foods do you dislike? Olives 
7. Where would you visit if you had the chance? Always Australia (to see family and friends) and I'd also like to go to Scotland and Ireland (to learn about church history and meet people I have church connections to...and to see how lovely it really is!) 
8. Favorite time of day? 3:30 a.m. (ish) 
9. Where were you born? In a mid-wifery in Pittsburgh, PA
10. What is your favorite sport to watch? Does figure skating count? 
11. Favorite pastime/hobby: Does eating ice cream count? Or going on coffee dates? :)
12. Are you a morning person or a night person? Hmm...mostly not a morning person, but also not a terrible late-night person (I do like to stay up late, but I don't like to suffer the consequences the next morning). A middle-of-the-day person? 
13. Do you have any pets? Nope 
14. Are you a cat or dog person? Not a huge cat OR dog person...though I'm allergic to cats, so I'd probably pick dog (maybe someday, Elanor!) 
15. Favorite Flower? Roses
16. Favorite ice cream? Peanut butter cookie dough
17. Favorite fast food restaurant? Either Wendy's or Taco Bell (I think I'd have to go with Wendy's since they serve ice cream!) 
18. Broccoli? Yum!
19. What are you listening to right now? Elanor wimpering whilst sitting beside her daddy and trying to read herself a book
20. What is your favorite color? Blue!
21. What is your favorite vegetable? This is a hard one...Can I say salad? 
22. Obsessions? Umm...ice cream? (Maybe not an obsession, really)
23. How many siblings? three brothers, two sisters, and two sisters-in-law
24.What was the last thing you ate? Chocolate chip cookie and vanilla frozen yogurt 
25. Favorite sport (to play)? Ultimate Frisbee
26. Summer or Winter? I like both and am glad I don't have to just choose one!
27. Favorite day of the week? Thursday - family day! 
28.Coke or Pepsi? Coke
29. Taco or Pizza? Pizza! Especially homemade. 
30. Favorite singers? Right now? JJ Heller and Andrew Peterson

31. Quote I love: "The goodbye is worth it because it means you got to say hello." (Jono Blakston, my friend in Australia) This is a hard but necessary truth to remember! 

The Little Things

I always love my students' lists on their blogs, so I'd like to make my own list about little things I'm thankful for this morning:

1. My little baby Elanor, asleep in her jogging stroller
2. The ability I have to jog with her (slow as it may be!)
3. The fact that my laundry is 3/4 of the way completed
4. The kindness of my friend to loan me her car since ours is not working (it's kind of a long story...)
5. The encouragement I got from reading my sister's blog.
6. The beautiful, sun-shiny day
7. The pancakes we had this morning (even if they were egg-less and a little...um...rumpled)
8. My husband's job that he enjoys
9. Living so close to my husband's job so he can walk or ride his bike
10. My job as a teacher
11. My students who make me want to teach
12. The ability to call or Skype my family, even as we are on opposite sides of the world
13. The not-too-big-and-not-to-small-ness of Manhattan, Kansas
14. Our little home, in all its quirks and imperfections
15. The possibility of getting a new home in the not-too-distant future
16. That God has already decided exactly where we will live (see Acts 17:26)
17. That God is patient and forgiving
18. That God has given us everything that we need for life and godliness in His Word and His Spirit
19. The way my husband shows me the power of the gospel by loving and forgiving me when I am unlovely
20. An encouraged, motivated perspective on the rest of my day

What little things are YOU thankful for today?

                                                                 My birthday hike at Konza Prairie

"You haven't updated in over a year!"

My sister gently reminded me of this recently. I do admit that I have sadly neglected my blog this year! I kept thinking I would update when life became more exciting - like when I had my baby. Then, surely, I would have more exciting things to write about!

Well, now my baby is officially six months old, and I have yet to write a single post about her. Or about anything else, for that matter!

I often begin reading my students' blogs and get a sudden inspirational urge to write on my own. But do you know what happens? I keep reading their blogs, enter grades, and, by the time I am done, I am feeling too tired to work up the creative energy to post anything!

So. Here I am. Posting!

Today is an exciting day because it is our "Family Day." Every Thursday, we set the evening aside to spend time together as a family. That means no working on productive things and no making plans with other people. Well, it's not always as "exciting" as it may initially sound. Sometimes we go grocery shopping (but even that is more fun when we're all together! And it's especially fun when we bring home fun treats - like peanut butter pretzel ice cream!). And recently, our "Family Day" activities have included house hunting! This afternoon, we are going to look at another house - a house that we've been very interested in but haven't been able to actually go see until today. I can get myself all worked up about this house, trying to imagine our family into it, using all my emotional energy getting my heart set on something actually happening in our house hunt! But, as my husband recently reminded me, this may be the only time we ever actually do house hunting, so we might as well enjoy it! And, more importantly, I need to remember that God is in control, He is good, He promises to provide for His people, and He cares even about these little details in our lives! Doesn't He remind us that He cares even about grass, flowers, and sparrows? How much more will He delight to provide to those who belong to Him through Jesus? He also tells us not to put our treasure on earth - "for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also" (Matthew 6:21).

So. No matter what this house-hunting entails tonight, I am praying that God will help us to be content, to trust Him, and to enjoy our time together as a family. And those are all things He cares about!

In "baby news," Elanor is learning to sit up by herself, which is just adorable. She is very interactive and talkative, too. I was talking to her Grandma Mann today (my mother-in-law) and telling her I hope that Elanor is the perfect combination of me and Garrett; I hope that she will be outgoing and talkative but also smart, focused, and submissive to authority! I know, of course, she won't be perfect (because, as Garrett reminds people, she's related to us!). I do pray regularly that she will love Jesus and be submissive to Him. And it would be a great blessing if she had a soft heart towards us as her parents, as well!

I'm nearly out of time and a little amazed at how much I could write in such a short time. It may not be the most creative of posts, but it is, indeed, a post!

There you are, dear sister, and any others who may choose to read!

(And here's a little photo of my sweet girl with her sweet auntie in Australia!)

Remembering

I'm listening to the rain falling all around my quiet house. I woke up several times last night and heard it, sometimes a gentle patter on the ground, other times a loud clatter against our windows. I remember missing the rain a lot when I lived in Australia. I wanted to see a thunder storm, to remember what it was like to have pouring rain and booming thunder and blinding lightning.

As people keep reminding me, we need this rain! After such a dry summer last year, this is a welcome blessing to the beginning of Spring. There is also something peaceful about it, especially from the indoor perspective of my warm little house. And it makes me think, too, of how God refreshes our dry souls when we need it.

I was reading Psalm 143 yesterday. There are so many beautiful words of praise, prayer, and promise.

"I remember the days of old;
    I meditate on all that you have done;
    I ponder the work of your hands.
⁶ I stretch out my hands to you;
    my soul thirsts for you like a parched land."
[verses 5-6]

One of the ways God gives us refreshment for our souls is through remembering what He has done in the past--ways He has encouraged us, helped us, given us faith and hope, turned us from sin or despair. It's so easy to go from day to day, thinking of life as "normal" or even "mundane." But how rich it becomes when we look from the perspective of the past, seeing how God has taught us and grown us and directed us to bring us to this point. 

So, think a little bit. Remember. And be refreshed in your soul. 

Sisterly Adventures

I have once again been inspired by my students' blogs to revive my own with a new post!

The exciting event of the last two weeks has been my sister, Tamara's, visit from Australia. She arrived last Monday night and is staying until Saturday morning, when she flies out of Kansas City to meet our brother, Allen, and his wife, Eleni, in Chicago. I am not looking forward to her leaving, as she has been so much fun and such a help to have around!

Our adventures started with a road trip to Colorado Springs last Tuesday through Friday. We stayed with my husband's aunt and uncle and their family, the Milroys, where we were welcomed as if we had always belonged to them. My sister-in-law, Olivia, is currently working in Colorado Springs and living with them, so we had a nice time catching up with her, too. Tamara wanted to go snowboarding, so we spend Wednesday at Monarch Mountain with Olivia and the two youngest boys in the Milroy family. Though the twisty two-hour trip up the mountain was a bit rough for some of us, we all had a lovely day, with them out on the slopes and me acting as the "lodge mom," reading, grading papers, and chatting with those who came in for breaks. Thursday, I stayed at the Milroy's house while Tamara went with Uncle Craig and the two boys to another mountain for a full day of snowboarding and skiing. I got to catch up with one of my friends from Indiana and see her new house, which I thoroughly enjoyed. Our trip was pretty short, as we traveled back Friday morning. But I was glad to get home to my husband and to be done driving at the end of the day!

That evening, we went to see bull riding at K-State. Tamara and I had never been to anything like it, and I must admit it was a lot more entertaining than I'd first imagined! I did get startled every time the raging bull came out, trying everything in its power to dismount the rider on its back. There were some scary calls and also humorous moments. I am glad I didn't personally know any of the riders because I was afraid enough for them knowing they were only strangers! I think you have to be a bit crazy to pursue the bull-riding hobby!

Saturday was a more leisurely day, with a long breakfast, a short jog with Tamara, and an afternoon hike at Konza Prairie to watch the sun set over the beautiful hills. We also had an Australia Day celebration, which included ANZAC biscuits, Tim-Tams, and Milo. We sang the Australian National Anthem and watched a video of my family and some Australian friends singing at our church International Conference this past summer. It definitely warmed my heart to remember my old home in Australia!

It was great to have Tamara at church with us on Sunday, and she spent Saturday and Sunday nights with our pastor and his wife, who visited Australia a couple years ago on a missions trip and got to know my family well.

This week, Tamara got to come to see me teach and has shopped, cooked, and cleaned with me. We have both had work to do, so there has been some productivity but also some interruptions with laughter or mini-adventures to clear our heads and help us get re-focused. Tonight, we are having a sushi party with people from church, and Friday we plan to do some shopping with my pastor's wife. The week will be over too soon, and Tamara will be off on other sibling adventures, but I'm thankful for the time she took to spend with me here in Manhattan!

Holidays!

I am sorry to admit how sadly I have been neglecting my blog! Garrett and I just got back on Monday from our 10-day holiday in Indiana. It was wonderful to see family and friends there, to spend time having DnMs (deep and meaningful conversations), playing in the snow, and attending two weddings. I was the matron of honor in one wedding, and it felt strange to not be around for most of the wedding preparations. We got to help out quite a bit the day before the wedding, though, and we also spend a long time helping clean up. Garrett and I were happy to help because we were thinking about how after our wedding, we simply left and let everyone else clean up the mess late into the night!

Some of the highlights of the couple of weeks included the following:

• Seeing my brothers, sisters-in-law, and niece for the first time since our wedding
• Having breakfast with Garrett's sister and brother-in-law before they headed to Kansas for the Mann family Christmas
• The Indiana blizzard that yielded about 7 inches of snow, which we all went out and attempted to play ultimate frisbee in! Felicity, my one-year-old niece, got uncomfortable in the cold very quickly, so our game didn't last long...and running through the snow was rather hard work, too!
• Staying up late talking to our old pastor and associate pastor and their wives
• Driving for 20 hours with Garrett, talking, reading "Jane Eyre" aloud, and enjoying the beautiful snowy scenery around us
• Spending two nights in a cabin at Tuttle Creek back in Manhattan over New Years, taking a long walk with Garrett in the beautiful snow and spending a lot of time praying and talking about the Lord and what He has for us right now
• Making a whirl-wind trip to Kansas City the day after we were finally home, just to watch the K-State football game with Garrett's family and see the Indiana siblings one more time

Yes, it's been a wonderful couple of weeks, and now it's back to "reality." Honestly, though, the Lord has been helping me have a lot of peace and contentment about "normal life." He is helping me to find my place here in Manhattan, giving me good things to do, providing deepening new relationships with people, and giving much spiritual refreshment after our holiday time. And with those, and many other blessings, I am very thankfully looking forward to 2013!