do EVERYTHING....

I prayed for these gifts that the Lord has given me. And with these precious gifts come dirty diapers, messy houses, short tempers, stacks of dishes, piles of laundry, and so much more.

As I showered this morning, I felt the Lord speak this to my heart- Do everything as unto the Lord. I don’t complain about changing diapers, they don’t bother me. But do I rejoice when I change them? I know you may be thinking I am going way to far here, but hear me out. God has given me a reason to rejoice while cleaning up the mess, the stink, the laundry. Because the reason I have those things is my children and family, my gifts from God. They are what I prayed for, hoped for, cried for. I know there are MANY people who would give anything to have these dirty diapers, the little butts to wipe. They would give anything to have their houses christened with chaos. They would rejoice in the laundry to do, the dishes to clean. Because all those things are a result of my family. If I didn’t have them, then I wouldn’t have the mess. (Ok, for those of you who know me, yes, I would have a mess. But it would be a different type of mess and that’s not the point.)

And so, I hear deep in my heart- Do EVERYTHING as unto the Lord. And so I will try. I will thank the Lord each time I change a diaper. I will praise him when I am up for middle of the night feedings. I will smile and not groan when I hear “I have to go potty!!“ at the most inconvenient of times. I will rejoice (oh my) when I attack those dishes and all that laundry.

Because as strange as it sounds it is a praise offering to Him. Because he has blessed me above and beyond.

And I praise him for that.

conviction

My son is sick. And whiney. And sick.

He is sick and acting out. And I am tired. I have a standard for him- he cannot act out, throw fits, or be mean just because he is sick and doesn’t feel good. Yes there is grace for our children when they don’t feel good and we should try to understand them, but I can’t let him use this as a golden ticket to get his own way and rule the world.

This is where he learns self control.

This is where he learns that he is cherished, yes. That he is my treasure, yes. That I thank God for him many times a day, yes. But he is NOT the center of the world.

If he doesn’t learn these lessons now, when they are easier to learn, and involve so much LESS pain than to learn them later in life, how will he become a responsible adult? How will he walk through life without alienating people? How will he be a good steward of what God has blessed him with? How will he be a walking example of Christ?

It hurts my heart to discipline him. It breaks my heart when I make him cry. But it is my responsibility. He was entrusted to me to teach and raise. I do him and my Lord a disservice if I let him get away with selfish behavior. My son has a gentle and tender heart, full of goodness and love. It shines from his eyes. It comes out in his words. But he also has a WILL. He wants to do what HE wants to do. I must help him keep that beautiful heart uncluttered, and not let it become buried in sin and acts of selfishness. He must obey. He must submit his will to mine. In doing this he learns to submit his will to God. It’s amazing that that is the lesson he is learning now, at the age of 2 years and 10 months, and he doesn’t even know it. And I often forget it!
I hold a standard for him. And here’s the kicker- DO I ALSO HOLD THAT STANDARD FOR MYSELF???

Do I allow myself to be mean or short with others when I am sick, tired, or just out of sorts? Do I allow myself to get away with selfishness? Do I sin by reacting to my son instead of acting like the adult and being the adult?

Oh the responsibility!

How can I possible maintain a standard for him if I don’t model it for him? If I let myself get away with things because “I’m the parent”?

And oh my how that dominoes. What other standards do I hold for him that I don’t hold for myself?

Oh dear.

Fabric

First off I must confess that these are not the best of pictures, and I couldn't take any time to edit them, so they are really just fresh out of my camera. But I wanted to share some of the fabrics I have that I haven't made anything with yet, but are available for orders.

This first one is so cute, large flowers layered over chandelier sketchings- Below are some great fall fabrics. A 60's style floral with pink, brown, blue, and a few other colors- great for blankets, onesies, and burp cloths. Next is a green and brown stripe with limes- adorable for baby boys items. I have actually used it for a beautiful boys blanket that I need to photograph. Then I have a pink, brown, green and blue stripe for girls blankets or burp cloths, and perhaps some onesie designs. Finally I have a pink fabric with chandeliers sketched on it. It coordinates with the one above, and you can see the one above just a smidge here.
Here is a closer look at the chandelier and the stripe-
And finally, a headband I made for my daughter! I made it specifically for our vacation and then I FORGOT it!!! Oh the agony. This is also available for purchase for $12. It features a soft headband, a adorable fabric flower, and a sparkly button to top it off!
Stay tuned, more to come now that we are back from vacation!

Special order, Zoo, and Crazyness!

What a week! (I am now finishing this post I started 2 weeks ago...so what a month!) I had a special order (Thanks Amy!) and think it came out great! Hers is a peek at it-
I went to the park with my kiddos- don't you love my Dear Son's shirt?!? We got it at Pikes Place Market a bit ago. It's not made by Starbucks. =)

Here is my sweet boy and me in the background, my mom took this photo and it is so wonderful-

I have really been enjoying creating my designs. I have many orders flooding in as news about my new business gets out. I try to balance my time with my kiddos (6 months old and almost 3), cleaning my house, and cooking dinner. I don't get the second two things done very well, but at least I attempt it! Soon I will post pictures about our vacation we just got back from...

a glimpse into the studio

Here is a small bit of what I have been doing. Don't you just love my chandelier? Sigh. I adore it.

Hawaiian Style Onesie

Pink Toile Blanket