The Table is Spread

I'm sitting at my kitchen table, eating breakfast. It's covered. I usually clear it off at night to start a new day, but have been fighting a cold and left it as is last night. It often makes me feel stressed to see it this way, but today it makes me smile :).

I see a plastic balance we used to measure and compare things yesterday. All the items have been added by someone to create balance. There are pebbles, cheerios, paperclips, beans, marbles, and macaroni noodles divided between sides.

 I smile.

It is sitting on top of the newest fad in art in our home. Tracing with sharpie dots on clear plastic an image. These are Bryton's attempts from last night while he patiently sat through Gavyn's pack meeting. 

I smile.

There are multiple workbooks, notebooks, reading books, coloring pages from history, pens, pencils, crayon boxes, etc. It means learning was happening here yesterday. 

I smile.

Gavyn's Bear book is opened, he has one more achievement before he has earned his Bear. His goal is to have it done by the Blue and Gold Banquet in a month. He received his long-anticipated multi-function Knife last night from selling popcorn. It has been his focus for weeks! 

I smile.

There are little random items, that always seem to appear; a hairbrush, a plastic tooth with a real lost tooth inside, masking tape from the aforementioned art project, some lingering Valentines cards. We live and grow each day. 

I smile.

Then there's a sweet surprise, a beautiful hand-made Birthday card I received from a precious friend yesterday. It's been more than seven years since we've been together and yet she remembered and acted! (Thanks, Tanya). 

I smile.

The Book of Mormon was just laid down on top of the pile, Makayla was finishing her reading before breakefast and laid it there on her way to the kitchen. It's an anchor, it keeps us grounded and founded.

I smile.

Now, I guess, I had better get it cleared off so we can start again. I hope to remember to SMILE today when the chaos is happening, remembering WHY we do this every day.

Russ Family Top Ten Moments of the Year

10. Seaworld Passes for the Year made a SPLASH of fun as we enjoyed rides and marine animals
9. Completing a full year of homeschooling finally :) and now having everyone at home learning together, progressing and participating in fun co-ops with friends.
8. Improving times of health for Mom and Dad, days and weeks that we are strong outweigh the ones when we are weak
7.  Animal adventures with raccoons, bears, bobcats, chickens, a new rabbit (Miss Lily), chameleons (Polio and Jade), Blake the Snake (a red-tailed boa) and Whiplash the snapping turtle. We have our own ever expanding zoo here.
6. Growing healthy kids getting to participate in Scouts (We have a Bear & Tiger in our home), dance (Makayla gets to be an angel in the Nutcracker this Christmas, her first time), archery, swim lessons, and soccer. It was our first year to experience the Collier County Fair, we came home with three blue ribbon kids and 1st place Showmanship in Poultry, we is true country folk now!
5. Family visits in North Carolina and here in Naples with some of the Shields side; Daytona Beach and Thanksgiving with the Russ side. We are so blessed to have such a wonderful big family.
4. Birthdays Celebrated: Makayla -10, Gavyn - 9, Bryton - 6, Cayd - 4, and Bryan and Amanda - one year older ;0. I cherish the chances to celebrate LIFE. It is so precious and each year we get to spend together is a gift!
3. Our trip to Washington DC and its incredible museums, monuments, Ford Theater, Arlington and the DC temple are never to be forgotten. Our love for our country and our forefathers was enriched. We walked on sacred ground.
2. Gospel moments and chances to serve have stretched and enriched our lives. Watching and feeling the Lord's hand in ours and our children's lives, guiding us, teaching us and lifting us is a priceless and JOY-ful thing.
1. Each day is a Moment, to find joy in the simple, everyday messes and laughter. The blessing of learning, cleaning, loving, and living. May we all find more of these MOMENTS each day of this coming year!

"Live slowly and simply, so that you have the time and space to love deeply and well. Hold your children close, as often as possible. 

Look deeply into their eyes, 

speak words of life, love and acceptance, into, and over them. 

Make it your single aim, to be their very best friend on earth. 

You will in such a very short time be repaid a thousand-fold.

 Read to them, 

draw with them, 

make play dough, 

take walks, 

have picnics, 

make ice cream, 

tossle their hair, 

rub their backs, 

sit beside them, 

kiss them,

  kiss them, as you hold them tenderly, close--throughout every single day. 

Love them.
Nothing will be so precious to you as that love, making it's way in and through, and so sweetly right around back, to you. 

God's ways are beyond our comprehension, always best, and beautiful. 

Let Him love all, through you, but especially the most priceless treasure you possess--your gifts. 

Your tender, impressionable, irreplaceable, sweet children."

- Jewels

Cute Insight

Gavyn was loading the dishwasher as I cleaned off the dishes. Out of the blue his asks:

"Mom, when you were a little girl did you like to sneak around and act like a spy and hide so people didn't know you were there and listen to what they were saying? Huh, did you?"

"Well, No actually. Why, Gavyn? Do you like to sneak around, acting like a spy and listen to people talking?"

"YEAH!!!" (said with a big smile)

Guess, we better be careful what we are saying :)

Grateful for Strawberries

I was cutting the tops off of some strawberries to freeze before we leave for the weekend. Strawberries remind me of Nanna. When we lived next door to her and Papa, they had a garden in the back of our yard. I have wonderful memories of that garden, but mostly of the strawberry patch in the corner. There were black plastic bags and dead leaves and underneath it all were the most delicious strawberries. I remember eating them in her kitchen and declaring for years there after that strawberries were definitely my favorite fruit. The ones from the store never tasted quite as sweet as hers. Sometime in elementary school we had a fundraiser, we sold little figurines of a little strawberry girl. 

 

 

Nanna was always the first and surest sale. She bought one and told me I was her strawberry girl. I hope her little strawberry girl bell is still at her house and I can bring it here and remember her. I always think of Nanna when strawberries are around :).

The Oak Tree Poem

We heard this recently at our Stake Conference. It was beautiful and I don't want to forget it.

 

The Oak Tree

by Johnny Ray Ryder Jr.

A mighty wind blew night and day.

It stole the Oak Tree's leaves away.

Then snapped its boughs

and pulled its bark

until the Oak was tired and stark.

But still the Oak Tree held its ground

while other trees fell all around.

The weary wind gave up and spoke,

"How can you still be standing Oak?"

The Oak Tree said, I know that you

can break each branch of mine in two,

carry every leaf away,

shake my limbs and make me sway.

But I have roots stretched in the earth,

growing stronger since my birth.

You'll never touch them, for you see

they are the deepest part of me.

Until today, I wasn't sure

of just how much I could endure.

But now I've found with thanks to you,

I'm stronger than I ever knew.

What I Did Today

Sometimes I get to the end of the day and am like WOW, I wish I had made a To Do List so I could look back and see what all I get to mark off today :). (Did I mention I love lists?)

* I made cereal for Bryton and Oatmeal for Cayd
* Picked out Bryton's clothes for school, warm ones and helped him get dressed down to shoes
* Had family scriptures and prayer before Bryton left and he didn't miss the bus :)
* Picked out clothes for the other kids that were "Valentiney"
* Made two ham sandwiches and one PB and honey cut into triangles and baggied
* Packed apples, found a bag of goldfish, almonds, juice boxes, water and my crackers to take
* Helped children get their clothes to change into for gymnastics into another bag
* Gathered school work to do in between Nursing home and gymnastics
* Made my own rice cake, PB, and almond milk breakfast and read scriptures while I ate
* Helped children to remember to get dressed to shoes, do their own scriptures and prayers, and brush their teeth and comb hair and finish their math for the day by saying it at least 20 times
* Got myself dressed with hair and makeup, took meds
* Printed off addresses to Nursing Home and Gymnastics, then grabbed Bryan's GPS anyway
* Out the door at 9:05 with computer, lunches, school work, and change of clothes
* Ran back for jackets because we were in the 50's and everyone was freezing
* Drove to Nursing Home while talking about the residents we'd meet, practicing singing songs we did not know "Jesus Loves Me" and "I've Got the Joy"
* Had a wonderful time at the Nursing home singing twice to the residents, watching the kids hand out Valentines, visit, smile and serve lovingly. Gavyn was asking the men if they were Veterans and they almost all were, Makayla was observant for ways to serve and found many. It was a wonderful experience for us all. We made some new friends in the homeschooling group as well.
* Got new friend's contact info
* Sat in the car and did school work - watched a science video, did Book of Mormon phonics, Language Arts lessons, ate our lunch, helped little boys go to the bathroom
* Got confused by the GPS and was 10 minutes late to Gymnastics
* Visited with other homeschool Mom's and finally planned our first little co-op meeting
* Rushed to get Bryton from school, listened to Story Hour My Heritage Series about Alexander Graham Bell and sent Daddy instead.
* Unloaded the car and actually got the bags emptied and put away
* Rested  for a while and read some Family Fun
* Made Dinner - Stir Fry with Letuce wraps, and leftover turkey soup for those who wouldn't like the stir fry
* Helped Makayla look for a new bunny on my computer
* Got the mail and filed it
* Helped Bryton clear and set the table
* Ate Dinner and made Pillsbury cinnamon rolls for FHE dessert
* Sang the little boys choice for songs : "I've got the Joy" twice
* Read a story about service from the Friend
* All worked on finishing Valentine's for tomorrow's party - 80 + Valentine's made!

* Got medicine for our sweet Gavyn who had a headache
* Read "Knuffle Bunny" to the kids
* Prayer and kisses to all kiddos
* Finished loading the dishwasher where Dad had started and washed the rest of the dishes
* Made Mom and Dad's Valentine's for the kids, put in pink envelopes with a bunch of M&M's
* Used the leftover felt fortune cookies for each of the kids to get one, set it all out on the kitchen bar with their Valentine's for each other

* Straightened up the table for in the morning
* Brushed teeth, took out contacts and took meds
* BLOG
Now shower and Sleep so we can start afresh

Can I just say and YELL from the roof tops how thrilled and grateful and joyful I am that the Lord has blessed me with the strength to DO!!!