February | 2013 | itsawonderfilledlife

Archive for February, 2013

“Nothing Tastes as Good as Skinny Feels”

Posted in Guest Post, WONDER, tagged dangerous words, Diane Owens, Health, it's a new day, Just a few things to ponder, Kate Moss, overall health, super size, supermodel, weight, what defines me? on February 17, 2013| Leave a Comment »

cropped-life-inspirational-advice-watch-me-people-favim-com-5658391 Today’s guest post is by a lady named Diane Owens, and her blog is called “It’s a New Day … a Journey of Health and Wellness.”

Diane spent the first year of blog writing asking a question each day for 365 days. I had been captivated by that concept, and have become a regular reader since. This year, as he blog name would indicate, she is focusing on improving her overall health.

The post I am featuring today, Just a Few Things to Ponder, is about her success so far. The part that captivated me is a Kate Moss (supermodel) quote that we have probably all heard, “nothing tastes as good as skinny feels.”

I admit, I have heard it and read it, and only felt the guilt of those words … on my abs., my thighs, etc. Diane, though, had the insight to see those words as dangerous.

As a ‘lifer’ in regards to trying to attain, maintain, and re-attain a healthier body, as well as being a mother, and one who works in a high school, I fully understand the struggle of health and weight. I fully understand the difficulty of living in a ‘Super Size’ world with waif’s on the cover of every grocery store magazine.

Diane has to come the realization that, “I now know that my body does not define me….it is simply my home that needs to be nourished properly….so I am able to live a long life and accomplish all of those other things that DO define me.” May we all come to this realization!

Check her post out! She even ends off with a few questions … good questions for us all!

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Bad Noises and Bad Smells

Posted in WONDER, tagged Aging, bad noises, bad smells, Beast, farting, flatulence, gas, humor, keep beating, Marriage, Valentine's Day on February 15, 2013| 2 Comments »

My beast is a delightful creature (just don’t ask my hubby about her), and she delights and entertains the kids and I regularly.

images Something that has been happening more frequently as she gets older (hum, reminds me of someone else in the house who is getting older and having the same issue) is gas … flatulence … farting.

This has been shocking to our delicate, female, beasty … as well as to us.

For some members of the family this is great, because now that she is participating in this bodily function more frequently, it is more feasible to blame her when she didn’t create the aroma wafting around the room … if you know what I mean (“who did that”? would be responded to with “the dog”).

Not that long ago the beast was snoring near me, while I sat weaving a tale for my blog (snoring is also something new and more frequent as she is getting older). All of a sudden a familiar noise broke the silence … and it did not come from me! Immediately the beast awoke, head up, looking at me with that trying to blame someone else for your own sins, kinda look. When I returned her stare with ‘the look’ she then sniffed her lower extremities, causing a shocked look to appear on her furry face! She immediately got up and ran up the stairs as though fleeing from a killer. Seconds later, I had personal understanding of what she was running from!

We have not changed her food or her routine, and she just got a clean bill of health from the veterinarian. The only other excuse left is that she is aging, her digestive process is slowing down.

And that is aging, isn’t it? It is not just the slowing down of the digestive process either. Our reflexes slow, our eyesight changes, the elastic nature of our skin does not spring back into place, the healing process slows, memory slows (or, as I like to think of it, our memory takes mini holidays). The only thing that does not slow down is the rate of hair growth on my legs!

Our hearts slow down too.

In our 20’s, our heart can beat up to 180 and 200 beats per minute. But at 80, it is more like 145 beats per minute. Although our heart is the engine of our bodies, most of the reasons it slows as we age are related to the heart responding to the the slowdown, misuse, poor health of other body systems and parts. If our diet is too high in fat, we might get buildup in our arteries, forcing our heart to work harder to push the blood through the more narrow passages.

As yesterday was Valentine’s Day, there are many happy hearts. But some hearts are a little heavier than happier, maybe some awaken today to feeling like the heartbeat of love has slowed to a snails pace.

Keep beating! The process of maturing in marriage can be as stinky as a dog’s farts! But, the heart is the engine of marriage, and if it feels as though you are just responding to the slowdown in your relationship, remember it is still your responsibility, your job, to keep beating.

Bad noises and bad smells, that is the reality of real marriage … can we choose to keep beating even when the air is rancid? Or, like my beast, will the smell drive you away?

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Three Reasons to Stay Married

Posted in Marriage, WONDER, tagged 1 Peter 5:10, child of God, chris august, dreamy, Love, Marriage, mother heart, old and gray, restore, romantic side, stay together, three reasons to stay married, Valentine's Day on February 14, 2013| Leave a Comment »

Happy Valentines Day! images-2

The day of love, love, love …

Let’s face it, for many it not a day of love, but of regrets, loneliness, and broken marriages.

I’m gonna be really honest in saying that I have had those Valentine’s Days too (who hasn’t?), and hubby has probably had even more than me!

We have treated each other poorly. We have disrespected, mistrusted, lied, not forgiven, yelled at, ignored, punished and mistreated each other … over and over, and over again. So, why do we stay together? Good question!

I cannot speak for hubby (and really, he is safer if he just lets me speak for him), but I think that there are three reasons.

The first is from my romantic, dreamy side …

We have talked, ever since we were dating and just started talking about marriage, about our vision of both being old and gray (well, hubby, not me) and sitting in rocking chairs on a porch, hand in hand, watching the sunset together. I am not sure exactly why but that vision has stuck for me. When things are good in our relationship, or when things really suck royally, that vision comes to my mind … and reminds me of the end goal.

The second is from my mother heart …

I remember hearing an interview with Kathie Gifford years ago, when there was great publicity over a sexual indiscretion committed by her husband, and she quoted what her counselor had said to her, after a ‘poor me’ monologue, “he looked at me, and said, Kathie — and now this is two years after — “If you can’t forgive your husband, forgive your children’s father.”” Although I do not believe that that rational applies to all circumstances, it is a line that has haunted me, when things are going good in our relationship, or when things really suck royally, and a vision of our three kids comes to my mind … and reminds me of the goal of modeling commitment for our kids that will encourage them if they too marry.

The third is from the part of me that recognizes I am a child of God …

Marriage is hard work. I cannot imagine the marriage of two people without desiring at least once to call it quits. That said, twenty-three years in the wedded trenches have convinced me that seeing how God can restore us after a season of wanting to throw in the towel, makes our marriage even better. I would not ever choose to go through those rough times, but going through them, and coming out the other side is a most miraculous picture of what God can do with two extremely flawed, extremely selfish individuals. I am convinced that 1 Peter 5:10 is all about marriage:

“And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ,
after you have suffered a little while,
will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.”

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Undercover Boss

Posted in WONDER, tagged Atticus Finch, boss, climp into his skin, employee, harper lee, point of view, Reality TV, Students, teacher, Television, to kill a mockingbird, Undercover Boss, work experience, working side by side on February 13, 2013| Leave a Comment »

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Although I am not a television junkie, there is one show that I love to take the time to sit and take it in. That is the ‘reality’ program “Undercover Boss”.

As a skeptic, I recognize that it is a television program, and it is, therefore, at least somewhat scripted. That said, I love the premise of an owner of a company doing the work of the peons in his company. It provides an opportunity to live out the words of Atticus Finch in “To Kill a Mockingbird” (Harper Lee),

“You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view – until you climb into his skin and walk around in it.”

I like that!

4f9e4a96bd48c9c55051d941f58006e2 Often I think of “Undercover Boss” when I take a student out on their Work Experience blocks.

The opportunity of this course is that students who are not particularly strong academically, yet who do not ‘fit’ in an apprenticeship program, can participate in a variety of work experiences to provide exposure to different types of work, workplaces, and to build their resumes.

I love facilitating this task!

In my role as facilitator of this course, I get to work alongside of my student, in their appointed work experience placements. In this, I get to be their not-so-undercover boss.

b1f93450af5b928c39f87951bd6b2b0f Like the bosses on the television program, I get to know so much more about my student by working with them than I ever do working in a classroom or across a desk. In a retail store, a greenhouse, a pet shelter, etc. my student opens up their thoughts, their heart, their life to me, knowing that I have nowhere else to go, and nothing else to do. In these instances I get to be that allusive fly on the wall.

It is here, in these work experiences, that I get to do what I am not paid to do … “climb into his/her skin and walk around in it.”

And, like the bosses on the television program, knowing the heart and experiences of my ’employee’ (student) means that I also have the opportunity to feed into their life in practical ways … at the very least (hum, maybe greatest) of which is knowing what to pray when I bring their needs to God.

Without working alongside of the students, I would not have opportunity to know them, and to feed into their lives.

Without working alongside of them, I would not have opportunity to teach them through modeling the way to do things … whether it is how to fill a pot with dirt or a pie crust with fruit filling … or how to fill a heart with gratitude for the little things in life.

Working side-by-side … that is the best way to teach … and in doing so, like the bosses on T.V., the ‘boss’ gets to learn something from the employee/student too.

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Where’s Your Treasure?

Posted in FAMILY, WONDER, tagged Intentional, love of money, matthew 6:21, Money, need meeting, self-focused, there your heart will be also, time, time spent, To Do List, treasure, where your treasure is, Where's Your Treasure? on February 12, 2013| 2 Comments »

“For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”
Matthew 6:21 has great meaning for me, but it has been haunting me lately.

I fully understand that whatever we treasure is what holds our hearts, but what is the ‘treasure’ that this verse refers to?

191cd71c32b32d23ffe64781368f6800 The treasures in my life will be different from yours, but we all have them.

Often it is said that if we look to where we spend our money, we will see where our priorities, our treasure, is located. Our spending is so darn … clean these days. We do not give to the church from what is in our pockets (perhaps because there is nothing in our pockets), we place a written (post-dated) cheque or it is automatically withdrawn. We do not give to the poor, a representative send us information on how they help the poor, and request that we ‘support’ them in their meeting of the needs of those with less. We do not give gifts that bless individuals with love and appreciation, we hand over a plastic card, so that they might purchase whatever their hearts desire (I am not saying that I do not like gift cards, in case anyone thinks differently … after all my birthday is coming … but, I digress).

I think though, that I have been haunted by this verse lately, not in the context of my money being my treasure, but my time.

I made a conscious effort to note how I spent my time on a recent Saturday.

6:30-9:30am – writing and researching (with a little laundry thrown in there)
9:30-10:30am – tidying, making a ‘to do’ list
10:30-11:00am – ablutions (one needs to be clean)
11:00-12:00 – errands
12:00-1:00pm – taxiing kids and friends
1:00-4:00pm – thrift store shopping with daughter and her friend
4:00-5:00pm – more taxiing of kid and friend
5:00-7:30pm – baking
7:30-8:00pm – dinner with hubby and son
8:00-9:30pm – making frame for bathroom mirror
9:30-10:00pm – writing blog post for next day
10:00-12:00 – chatting with hubby, playing mindless game to prepare me for sleep
12:00 – lights out

And that was my day!

Now in there were a few short conversations with my other kids, texting with friends, and bathroom breaks as well.

This day was a good one, in my economy of time, as I got to invest in one child significantly, and accomplished both things that needed to be done as well as things I wanted to do, for my own well being.

But, what it reminded me, is that choosing how to spend my time means making intentional decisions to prioritize well. Had I not intentionally offered my time to my daughter and her friend, I would have chosen to spend my time more self-focused!

I ALWAYS choose to spend my time self-focused!

The only way to change that is to be intentional about how I spend my time.

I need to plan.

I need to think ahead.

I need to meet the needs of my loved ones by giving my time to them, in ways that they desire, not necessarily the ways I desire.

If I am to say, with any measure of authenticity, that my family is my treasure, then I need to choose wisely how I spend my time.

I challenge you to record how you spend your time today, or, better yet, yesterday when you didn’t have this to remind you of your treasure.

Just sayin’.

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Caretakers of the Created

Posted in WONDER, tagged caretakers, caretakers of the created, Creation, Downton Abbey, farmer, feed our bellies, Genesis 1:27-31, Paul Harvey, raise animals, Robert Crawley, rule over the earth, Stewardship, Superbowl, to the farmer in all of us, work the land on February 11, 2013| 2 Comments »

Although he died four years ago this month, the immortal story-telling of Paul Harvey lived on recently in the form of the Superbowl advertisement above.

Paul Harvey (according to Wikepedia) first shared his writing of “So God Made a Farmer” at a Future Farmers of America convention in 1975. It really is a beautiful tribute to those who work the land, and raise the beasts that are part of our physical sustenance. And the people who put the images together for the ad, created a beautiful montage of farmers, farming and the land.

After watching the ad, I went to Genesis to read the Biblical foundation for not just the responsibility of farmers for our Earth … the land … the beasts, but also the responsibility of all humankind for the same.

“God spoke:
“Let us make human beings in our image,
make them reflecting our nature
So they can be responsible for the fish in the sea,
the birds in the air, the cattle,
And, yes, Earth itself,
and every animal that moves on the face of Earth.”
God created human beings;
he created them godlike,
Reflecting God’s nature.
He created them male and female.
God blessed them:
“Prosper! Reproduce! Fill Earth! Take charge!
Be responsible for fish in the sea and birds in the air,
for every living thing that moves on the face of Earth.”

Then God said, “I’ve given you
every sort of seed-bearing plant on Earth
And every kind of fruit-bearing tree,
given them to you for food.
To all animals and all birds,
everything that moves and breathes,
I give whatever grows out of the ground for food.”
And there it was.

God looked over everything he had made;
it was so good, so very good!
It was evening, it was morning—
Day Six.”
Genesis 1:27-31

I have heard and seen so much information lately about ethical farming, genetically altered seeds, and cruelty to animals, that I could almost start to think ill of the farming/agricultural industry. Certainly, for the good of ourselves, and the Earth itself, we need to have our eyes opened to such realities that do occur.

But, we also have to remember the people, the individuals, that we know, who raise animals, and plants, who work the land, and feed our bellies. I can say that the farmers of beasts, plants and land that I know are honorable, valuable and responsible in the fulfillment of their tasks.

Although farmers work the land, raise and care for living beasts each and every day, it is a calling given from Creator of man to all created man.

While watching the PBS series, “Downton Abbey,” I was reminded of that human responsibility (perhaps even stewardship) in the words of patriarch Robert Crawley:

“my fortune is the work of others who labored to build a great dynasty,
do I have the right to destroy their work or impoverish that dynasty?
I am a custodian my dear, not an owner.
I must strive to be worthy of the task I’ve been set.”

And the account in Genesis would indicate that we all need to strive to be worthy of the caretaker task that has been set before us. It truly is a message given:

“To the farmer in all of us.”

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No Words

Posted in Guest Post, WONDER, tagged guest post, humor, Russell Deasley, the very best top 10 of anything and everything on February 10, 2013| Leave a Comment »

a-picture-is-worth-a-thousand-words-3 Some days there simply is no reason for words.

“Sometimes one creates a dynamic impression by saying something, and sometimes one creates as significant an impression by remaining silent.”
Dalai Lama

“Silences make the real conversations between friends. Not the saying but the never needing to say is what counts.”
Margaret Lee Runbeck

“Half the world is composed of people who have something to say and can’t, and the other half who have nothing to say and keep on saying it.”
Robert Frost

“Preach the Gospel at all times and when necessary use words.”
Francis of Assisi

“A picture is worth a thousand words”

The guest post today is truly one of few words, and the only blog that I open every single day!

Russell Deasley is the creator of The very best top 10 of Anything and Everything and I want to encourage you to click on it!

I use this blogger’s creativity whenever a student I am working with is in need of a brain break, a diversion or simply a laugh. Mr. Deasley does use words, in his description of each image that he has included in his Top 10 of the day.

I could tell you more, but it is simply something that one needs to see for oneself.

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Beauty By Papa

Posted in Guest Post, WONDER, tagged Beauty, chelsearadtke19, common experience, guest post, Inner Beauty, living to be beautiful, outer beauty, smile on February 8, 2013| Leave a Comment »

531f61671f39c112deed15b9810d962c I do not remember being introduced to my guest post writer today, but I was just recently introduced to her writing by her mother.

My familiarity with this young lady started years ago. I have watched her grow up, and through my friendship with her mom, I have laughed at stories of her childhood, and prayed for her with things have gotten tough (aka. the happenings of life and living).

This young woman is beautiful, from the inside out! I have been cheered up by her generous, contagious, freely-given smile.

Recently her mom mentioned her blog, and I went to her site and was drawn in to her story weaving.

The post that captured me most was Living to be Beautiful. In this post Chelsea tells of a girl, in fairy tale style, describing her desperation to be beautiful.

Is is worth a read, as she tells the thoughts and feelings not just of her fictional character, but also of most women, at some point in our lives. It is in her writing from her own experiences and feelings that Chelsea writes most beautifully.

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Growing Up a PK

Posted in WONDER, tagged Benefits, Disney Pixar, elderly, Friends, Friendship, Growing up PK, Honor, Memories, pastors kids, PK, Respect, retired, Up, visiting seniors on February 7, 2013| 2 Comments »

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It was not until I was dating my hubby that I discovered what a PK (Pastor’s Kid) was. Now there are three under our roof.

I have written before of some of the struggles of growing up PK (PK’s), but all is not negative of this experience! There are sweet benefits too.

One of the sweetest benefits for our kids is that they learn, from a very young age, how to communicate with people of all ages. They have spent time in homes with younger children, peers, and no children. They have gone to homes that are ‘child-proofed’ and those that have crystal candy dishes and lace doilies.

The best education our children have received from this life our family lives, is from being with those who are older … retired … elderly.

They have learned (although, like all of us, sometimes forget) to speak so that those with hearing problems can hear what they say. They know to make eye contact when being spoken to.

Most important, in this exposure to those much older than them, is that they see them as individuals to honor, respect and treat well.

One day, years ago, hubby took our preschool son to work with him. As the work day progressed hubby got a call about someone in hospital, and he had to go … alone. He was desperate for child care, and dared to call a lady who lived across the street from the church to see if she would mind our boy. She was elated to be asked! An hour after dropping our son off at her home, hubby returned to find the two of them playing on the floor with cars, complete with car noises. This boy of three or four playing with his new best friend, in her late eighties!

Our eldest has been taken out to lunch, taught how to bake special cakes, and given art lessons by sweet-hearted women who have invested their time and gifts into her life.

Our younger daughter has sleep-overs with one of her best friends (in her eighties), and has a gentleman (in the same age range) whose house she biked to (and made cookies for) on his birthday, to celebrate with he and his wife. 02b820d10639ee5a4b27ac1c3b030f0c

Our son, although thirteen, knows how to hold a conversation with the lady (same age range) who refers to him as her boyfriend. And he can smile genuinely when she calls him that.

They have done more senior visits than some pastors. They have learned to eat off of handed-down china (this being more stressful for me than for them). They have played games, shared jokes … shared their lives, with these beautiful seniors. Our children have had the opportunity to see these elder members of the community not as old people, but as fellow human beings, with worth, meaning and so much to contribute.

To some, spending time with a senior might, as Russell from the Disney Pixar movie “Up” said, “might sound boring, but I think the boring stuff is the stuff I remember the most.” And I think our kids will look back, and see the beautiful education on being human this PK experience has provided for them.

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Gods Gifts

Posted in WONDER, tagged 1 Corinthians 13:12, closed handed, hindsight, open handed, sovereign, Sovereignty on February 6, 2013| Leave a Comment »

images Sovereign is a word that Christians use in relation to God.

When a Christian says that God is sovereign, what we are saying is that we abdicate our control to Him, not just because He holds the position of a sovereign (king), but because we believe that His perspective is broader, bigger than our own and that He will only allow that which will benefit us, that which will be good for us.

That does not mean that we always receive all gifts from God with open hands. There are times that the gifts God gives are not what we wanted. They might disappoint, they might reduce the quality of our life, they might even hurt to the point of tears.

The person who has just been diagnosed with a terminal disease.
The person who has just lost their job.
The person whose spouse has said they no longer love them.
The person who is separated from someone they love.

I heard the story of a woman who was celebrating the birthday of her son. She was sharing with me how, when she was enroute to the hospital, if God had said to her, “I’ve decided that I will give you a healthy son, and he will be born with a disability affecting him physically and cognitively” she would not have opened her hands to receive that gift, but might have tried to negotiate with God. Yet, now, a dozen years after her son was born she cannot imagine all that she and her family would have missed out on without this gift, potentially received with a closed hand. She now can see that the gift God gave was good (although she does still mourn the difficulties for her son).

Hindsight does that, it gives us a better picture of our life, it is a picture that we do not see until it has past. God, though, sees the picture even before we are born. He sees our lives, and how they interact with others, in their whole entirety. When He gives us His gifts, He knows how they will be used to bring good to us … in the end.

How often are we handed gifts from God and we close our hands in receiving them? Or even turn our backs on them? We do this because we only see this very moment. We do not see the gift from a perspective of hindsight.

We can be certain of God’s care for those of us who are his subjects because He has proven to us that He loved us in sacrificing His only Son, for our good, future and life.

God is sovereign.

“We don’t yet see things clearly.
We’re squinting in a fog, peering through a mist.
But it won’t be long before the weather clears and the sun shines bright!
We’ll see it all then, see it all as clearly as God sees us, knowing him directly just as he knows us!”
1 Corinthians 13:12

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