cheetah babies diving into a mud swamp
penguin brothers karate chopping a polar bear
warriors saving their sister from a burning building
while the stories change, they all look like this:
and while wild boys were couch jumping...
i caught little lady getting into her favorite pastime...markers and paintbrushes.
she takes them in and out 1,000 times a day...and is sure to color on every scrap of paper (and finger) within reaching distance.
did i forget to mention we are moving??
it's finally official...we bought a small twin one block from where my brother and sister-in-love live.
i couldn't be more excited! i can literally see their house from our house!
perfection, i tell you.
if you know my brother and his wife, you'd want to live on the same block as them, too. think of the most beautiful and most generous people you know...the sweetest, funniest, cleverest, stylish, creative people. that's stephen and lauren. perfection i tell you. neighborhood perfection.
so i'm packing.
closing is in 2 weeks and since it's a foreclosure property, we have at least a month of rehab.
so i'm attempting to pack everything 1 month ahead of time so i can spend every spare second painting and helping clint fix up the new house.
oh, and in case you were wondering...packing with 3 kids running around?
it's horrible and distracting and annoying.
today i gave them markers and let them decorate the newly packed boxes with foster as my labeler. it was fun to see how much they love helping, even if their "help" makes more work.
the rest of the day was a wash. because we started couch jumping and i realized i forgot all about dishes and dinner and laundry and photographing the apt for our landlord.
and by photographing? i mean "shuffling clutter from one side of the room to the other" :)
we live on the right side.
the left side is occupied by the sweetest, most wonderful neighbors.
i have a secret plan to pack them inside one of my boxes. i love living life beside them!
i had the pleasure of snapping a few quick pics of them in the fall.
and their daughter, miss Gia?? she will forever live in infamy. the boys play in the backyard daily with this delight of a girl. they play princess and kings. flashlight tag and water guns. they play tag and eat freeze pops. my kids wait all day for Gia to come home from school.
clearly, she is awesome.
we all groan at the thought of packing and setting up house again. but we will. somehow, someway.
i'm trying to learn what God has for me during all of this.
at the moment, it's contentment.
our new house is small by the standard of homes in chester county, pa.
and if i constantly compare, i'll never see the beauty of contentment.
i'm letting go of my expectation that we have "arrived" when we have a huge dream house.
i'm letting go of wanting new furniture and the ability to buy new clothes.
i'm letting go of all of the many things i want to decorate with and create and spend money on.
i believe contentment is closely associated with living within our means.
for us, a small twin will allow us that freedom, amidst the sacrifice of the things i want.
and you know what?
contentment feels awesome.
it feels better than new stuff and the stress of wanting more.
and i'm also allowing myself grace, knowing it isn't easy to stop comparing
because let's be honest...we all compare
"she's a such better mom than i am..."
"their house is sooo beautiful!"
"i wish i had her body...long legs, long hair, perfect skin..."
"their family looks so perfect. i bet they never have dirty dishes piled a mile high in the sink."
"her kids are so well behaved. they must be perfect parents."
comparing is dangerous.
lethal.
devastating.
and i hate myself when i do it because it never leads to a positive thought process.
we each have such incredible, beautiful, creative qualities.
embracing what God has given me and letting thankfulness outshine my natural desire to whine...well, thankfulness makes my whole house lighter. we all smile more. i can hear my children's laughter echoing through the house because mommy isn't stressing over every little thing. and i can see clearly that being content is one of the keys to success in life. it's how God designed for us to live.
and that's the best thing about today.
I think if you asked anyone-- you would often be the mom that people look at and say, man I wish I was that cool. I do! Give yourself props for the awesome woman, wife, and mama that you are! And, I agree. Comparing is hard and it's hard to stop, but that twin? It sounds like perfection. It sounds like the perfect place for your family. I'm so excited for you. I think this will be the place where you find real contentment. I'm going to try a dose of that myself. Thanks for the reminder :)
ReplyDeleteYou MUST read this post today at one of my favorite decorating/DIY sites: http://www.thehandmadehome.net/2012/03/a-lesson-on-contentment/. There are so many quotes on there that you would LOVE -- one of my favorites, by Teddy Roosevelt: "Comparison is the thief of joy." And another one that's resonating with me..."small homes make tight families." Lovely, lovely post!
ReplyDeleteI'm so excited about your new place and to hear/see all about it. :) The place you've been in this year seems to have served you well and is a really, really cute home ;)
ReplyDeleteOh Angie, I love that you are always so candid. I struggle with the same things and have to give them over to the Lord daily. I pray that you have happy packing and everything goes smoothly.God Bless you friend. Love reading your posts. Your heart for the Lord and your family is so evident.
ReplyDeleteLove your heart sweetie!!!! Your thoughts are spot on!!! Hang in there girl! :)
ReplyDeleteAng, I appreciate u so much, and am so blessed to call u my friend. Your post screams my hearts' desires....being content, not wanting more, I struggle. Then comes conviction...look at what He's done for me(how could I ever want more???) and, your right...comparison is the thief and robber of all JOYS! One of my best friends who is an amazing photographer and blogger and gives amazing recipes just wrote a blog entry on this exact subject "fence grazing"...you'd really like it! Heres the link when u get a chance to read it..and, let me come over and help U pack, K?:)I'd love to!!! Here's the link:
ReplyDeleteooops, here it is!!! http://www.shortstopblog.com/2012/03/fence-grazing.html?showComment=1332400173319#c1169401918553992751
ReplyDeleteThank you for your perspective and reminder--things do go so much better when mommy doesn't stress about every little thing and there is an atmosphere of gratitude.
ReplyDeleteAnd you must be superwoman! I can't imagine packing up a house with 2 small children, let alone 3. ;) Love how you had them "help." I am just figuring that out and guess what? My two love to help me clean; Ori sprays the cleaner and Calla wipes everything "clean".
Loved all your pictures. :)
I love this...it's a very important message. When we first entered the adoption process and learned the amount we needed and what we had I felt sick over all the meaningless spending we had done throughout the years. Here was something so important and we had blown our resources on eating out, trying to keep up with the "Joneses," entertainment, etc. It ended up all working out but in that time I learned how useless all these material things and comfort were compared to our call to love and sacrifice. Still fighting the world's call to consume and consume but resisting more.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations on your new home and thanks for sharing this important message.
Perfect freaking post!! I was looking at your apartment and loving it and being jealous!! You are right, no reason to compare...leads no where good.
ReplyDeleteaw! moving is always bittersweet, at least to me. I always personify every house I've lived in and considered it a cared about "part" of my life, so I am always sad to go. Sounds like you guys had a wonderful set-up with the neighbors!! I'm sure you will all be sad to see each other go but how lovely that you'll be near family!
ReplyDeleteIncredibly well said Ange. Thanks for the reminder!! ;)
ReplyDeleteso excited your closing is coming up soo soon! Can't wait to come visit you in your new home. I'm working on the same thing with our little house, battling the thoughts of our peers in this large lavish houses. Just trying to learn to be content wherever I am! Love you!
ReplyDelete