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Hormones, Crafts & Snow {this week, in no particular order)

Firstly, the blah:

I’ve been having hot flashes lately {ugh!}.  And then I left the house in my slippers {yikes}.  For 6 hours {gasp}. 

I think I’m getting old.

I haven’t written anything of substance for the past few weeks.  There only seems time and mental energy for drivel.  Forgive me.  Contemplative and encouraging text will return soon, I promise.

I picked apart my husband and said things that did not have to be said, or pointed out, and then grieved when his spirit was clearly crushed.  Oh, me and my big mouth!

I’ve become incredibly good an sincere apologies since getting married and having children.

To add to my stellar list of accomplishments, I had two intense, and completely unexpected, super-poopy mom days this past week.  I was big on impatience, accomplished in the yelling department, and short on grace.  It was heart-breaking and exhausting.  They weren’t too partial to it either.  My husband kindly suggested that maybe my hormones were raging.  Thank you, dear.

I snuck a tiny piece of totally-not-worth-it cherry pie in my mouth when no one was looking, despite my insane commitment to boycott sugar until I turn 30 in June.  And the smell of coffee makes me want to cry.  Not pray.

{deep breath}

But enough of all that misery…life is good, God is faithful, and I’m a work in progress!

Here’s the fun stuff that’s been going on around here.

On Monday, I become a US Citizen and spent a glorious morning celebrating in Detroit with my precious man {and eating entirely too much}.

I was asked to speak at Youth Haven Ranch again for their Ladies Day, at the end of April.  It’ll be something along the lines of what I shared last time: Temple Care 101.  Have I told you how much I love public speaking?!?  So tickled.

On the loin-fruit front…

In spite of our eager anticipation of Spring, the entirely unexpected dumping of snow provided perfect body parts for our snow-child:

Snow kid Bean and snow kid

We had fun with toothpicks…and marshmallows!

007009017 marshmallow girl

And more toothpicks…with play dough and wiggly eyes…

Playdough peepsPlaydough bug & tulips 3-6 005Playdough bug & tulips 3-6 009Playdough bug & tulips 3-6 008Playdough bug & tulips 3-6 012      bug and playdoughPlaydough bug & tulips 3-6 010      Playdough bug & tulips 3-6 022

We broke out the egg-carton craft paraphernalia, made the customary caterpillar, and affectionately named it, “Spring-a-piller”…

springapiller

We made forts too large to capture on camera through the doorway, but just large enough to have a blast in…

Springapiller and Bean faces 018 Springapiller and Bean faces 004

…and adorned ourselves with other family-member’s accessories.

We also just signed our little lady up for preschool next Fall – talk about a whirlwind of emotions: delighted, terrified, guarded, reflective, excited, anxious.

Springapiller and Bean faces 014Springapiller and Bean faces 008Springapiller and Bean faces 016    

Apart from the days that so distinctly spotlighted my less redeeming qualities and squeezed many a tear from my eyeballs…a good time was had by all.

Moving along…we had a full band for the first time ever last night at worship practice and rocked out the gymnasium.  Who knew this terrified-to-play-in-public, can barely-carry-a-tune-in-a-bucket girl would so love being a part of a band!  I love my team!!

Oh, and I cooked up a storm this week {notice: I didn’t say “baked”}, making all sorts of favorites; homemade granola with my hubby, bobotie for my mum & dad, butter chicken for friends, and texas caviar just for the heck of it.  Tonight, we made magic in the kitchen…{sheesh, not that kind}…and tried something new: Thai Coconut Curry Chicken.  Recipe coming soon.  Allow me to just say this, “Holy Yum”!

Aaah, yes, LIFE. 

The good, the bad, the ugly…and the Redeemer.

It is well with my soul!

Related posts:

  1. All in a Week’s Whirl
  2. {My} Snow Babies
  3. The Week in ‘P’s
  4. Week One, Done
«
»

Complete nonsense, Crafts and Activities, Daily Life, Keepin' it Real, Motherhood, The Kiddos

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Simply Bloom exists to empower women to embrace their stories, live out their passion with purpose, and leave a legacy of love.
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Hello there! I'm Joy. Speaker, designer, author & coach, and creator of the #weROARproject. Welcome to Simply Bloom Co., where passion & purpose collide.

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What if grace has been waiting for you where perfe What if grace has been waiting for you
where perfection never could take you?

This week on Oh, Good Grief, we wrap up our exploration of the 9 Enneagram types, and how each one engages grief, with Type One: The Reformer.

We'll explore the gift of integrity, the burden of the inner critic, and the freedom that comes when we stop striving to earn what God has already given.

The Enneagram may reveal the stories we've believed to survive.
But only grace tells us who we've been all along.

🎧 Episode 038 is available wherever you listen to podcasts.
From the front, our little apple tree is living he From the front, our little apple tree is living her best life: laden with fruit and bursting with life.

But that’s only half the story.

Take a walk around the backside and you’ll see something entirely different: a large branch, nearly a third of the tree, black and barren. Clearly diseased. Clearly dead. Clearly in need of pruning.

And yet, every time I walk past it on our evening loop around the campground behind our house, it catches me off guard. I forget it’s even there.

Maybe because I prefer to look at the fruitful side.

And isn’t that a little like us?

We’re pretty comfortable displaying the beautiful parts: the wins, the answered prayers, the accomplishments, the parts of life that look healthy and fruitful.

The broken parts? The grief. The struggling relationships. The things we’ve neglected. The places where we’re tired or hurting or simply not okay?

Those we tend to tuck around the backside, hoping no one notices.

But here’s the thing: what we hide still needs tending.

We don’t have to be ashamed of the barren branches. We don’t have to pretend they aren’t there. And we certainly don’t have to wait until everything looks beautiful before we allow ourselves to be honest.

Maybe growth does look like good fruit.

And maybe sometimes it looks like finally walking around back, taking an honest look, and saying, That needs to go.

Pruning isn’t failure.
It’s making room for what’s still alive.

And if you’ve got a few dead branches of your own right now, take heart. You are not the barren branch. You are the whole tree. 🌿

#SimplyBloomCo
If you are a Nine, my prayer is that you would nev If you are a Nine, my prayer is that you would never lose your gift of bringing calm, compassion, and steadiness into a fractured world.

Those are beautiful reflections of the heart of Christ.

But may you also discover that your voice is not an interruption, your needs are not an inconvenience, and your presence is not optional. May you become the kind of peacemaker who tells the truth with love, receives love without shrinking, and lives fully awake to the life God has entrusted to you.

May you know, deep in your soul, that you don't have to disappear to belong.
What if the peace you've been protecting has come What if the peace you've been protecting
has come at the cost of your own presence?

This week on Oh, Good Grief, we're exploring Enneagram Nine: The Peacemaker.

Nines have an incredible gift for helping others feel safe, seen, and understood.
But somewhere along the way, many learned that staying connected meant staying quiet.

What if healing isn't about becoming louder?
What if it's about believing your voice already belongs in the room?

🎧 Episode 037 is available wherever you listen to podcasts.
Permission Granted. In case you needed someone t Permission Granted. 

In case you needed someone to tell you: yes, you should absolutely make the impromptu stop at the roadside farm stand and buy the $5 bouquet of flowers.

No, you do not need a reason.

No, you do not need to be buying them for someone else (although that is a perfectly lovely thing to do, too).

Buy them for yourself.
Put them in your kitchen.
Smile every time you walk past them. 🌸

And support your local flower growers and farm stands while you’re at it.

That is all.

You may now return to your regularly scheduled scrolling.
If you are an Eight, my prayer is that you would n If you are an Eight, my prayer is that you would
never lose your fierce love for justice, your courage,
or your willingness to protect those who cannot protect themselves. 

Those are holy gifts.

But may you also discover the freedom of being protected yourself.
May you find people with whom you no longer need armor. And may you know, deep in your bones, that the God who fights for you is inviting you to rest...
not because you're weak, but because you were never meant to carry every battle alone.
The year we moved into this house, a peach tree sp The year we moved into this house, a peach tree spoiled us thoroughly. It produced more peaches than we knew what to do with—cobbler, galette, crumble, smoothies, fruit leathers, and basket loads given away.

Our expectations for peach season were high.

Turns out, that tree was throwing itself a retirement party.
It died the following year.

We’ve since planted two more. The one that has always been unproductive surprised us this summer with these gorgeous, generous peaches. The healthy, established tree that usually produces? One. Single. Peach.

Fruit-bearing is an interesting thing.
Unpredictable. Relatively unmanageable.
Sometimes delicious and sometimes disappointing.

And maybe that’s why I love the reminder it offers:
performance isn’t always a good indicator
of what’s happening beneath the surface.

Take heart, dear one.

Some seasons, you’ll crush the to-do list,
accomplish the goals and have plenty to show for yourself.

Other seasons, you’ll simply keep showing up.
Quietly. Consistently. Faithfully.

And that is enough, too. 🌱
What if your greatest strength was never meant to What if your greatest strength
was never meant to become a hiding place?

This week on Oh, Good Grief, we're continuing in our Summer Enneagram Series by exploring the Type Eight: The Challenger.

Many Eights learned early that strength was safer than vulnerability.
But what if healing isn't about becoming less strong?

What if it's about discovering that courage
and tenderness were never meant to compete?

God isn't asking you to lay down your strength.
He's inviting you to lay down the armor you no longer need.

🎧 Episode 036 is available wherever you listen to podcasts.
If you identify with the Enneagram 7, my prayer fo If you identify with the Enneagram 7, my prayer
for you is that you would never lose your capacity
for wonder, laughter, creativity, and hope.

Those are sacred gifts.

But may you also discover the freedom of staying present
when life feels heavy. May you trust that joy does not disappear
when sorrow arrives. May you find that God is not only present
in the moments of celebration, but also in the quiet,
painful places you once tried to avoid.

The One who created your joy can also hold your grief.

You are loved.
Follow @SimplyBloomJoy

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