The Ones about Jules Life {Randomness} Archives - Page 32 of 33

Do you have Twins!?!

August 14, 2011 by Jules Leave a Comment

Question I often get are, "Umm, Are they...twins?" "How far apart are they?" "Wow, do you want me to take you to the parking lot, shoot you and put you out of your misery?" (or a variation of that one). The most recent comments not made directly to me but abut me, "She must have twins or something?" (at my yard sale while looking through clothes) or "She was in her last time I was here." (at Wal-Mart with my cart full of my 3 blessings).

Yes! I know they are close in age comparatively speaking. No, we're not the Duggar's (whom I greatly respect); we only have 3 (right now, hehe). Yes, we know what causes 'that'. No, we don't need help because we are not in misery. I can't wait get triplet questions when J is Izzies' size next year.

I just wanted to take the opportunity to tell the story of how God decided to bless us with 3 eternal souls to disciple and bless our lives:

Here’s the story of an OCD lady
With her husband and 8 years of baby plans
All of them were spaced, just like she wanted
The youngest in k'tans

Then that lady had a girl named Maggie
Who was busy for 18 months alone
They were 2 girls waiting for a brother
When Izzie came along

Till the one when the lady told the fellow
And they knew it was much more than a hunch,
That their boy would come just a year later
That’s the way God made us all the baby bunch!
The baby bunch.
That’s the way God made us all the baby bunch!
The baby bunch

Matt and I have always wanted at least 4 children and we also hope to be blessed enough to adopt some day. When engaged, our arrogant plan was to have a baby, wait 2 years, have a baby, wait 4 years, have a baby and wait 2 years to finish off our adorable little, perfectly space family. We had Magdalene in the summer of 2008 and I had a hard time with swelling during the pregnancy so we decided to try for #2 a little early than previously planned. Isabella came in January 2010. When she was just 4 months old, after a family move to a new home, town, and job we were surprised to discover God had decided moving up the time line was what was best for our lives and Benjamin arrived in January 2011, 2 days before Iz turned 1. Crazy, I know! But "The Lord declares" in Jeremiah 29:11 (NIV), "I know the plans I have for you, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." And what a future He has in store for us!

What game plan did you have where God threw an audible?

Filed Under: Parenting, The Ones about Jules Life {Randomness} Tagged With: 3 under 3, are they twins, blessings, Duggar's, God's plan, Jeremiah 29:11, OCD, the baby bunch

Annoyance

August 12, 2011 by Jules Leave a Comment

As parents, we often get annoyed with our children! They disturb our ideals. We teach them the same lessons over and over again. They selfishly expect us to jump to their every beck-n-call. They keep making messes.

How often do you think our children get annoyed with us? We disturb their play for bed time. We try to teach the same lessons with no creativity and expect results. We selfishly expect them to transition smoothly from one activity to another at our beck-n-call or selfishly leave them in their beds fussing rather than moving with love to their beck-n-call. We run around cleaning up messes instead of enjoying the fun of creating them with our children. Annoyed, frustrated, confused with our inconsistency.

How often do you think GOD gets annoyed with us, His children? ...that's right, He's the perfect parent. The perfect example. He is always on His toes with creative nurturing, transitions with ease, jumps at our beck-n-call with joy, and extend grace every moment of our lives.

Be encouraged today. Have some perspective, add some joy to your step, and give a little grace.

Filed Under: Parenting, The Ones about Jules Life {Randomness} Tagged With: annoyed, beck-n-call, frustrated, grace, joy

“Go back to your own country, Rhubarbarian!”

August 4, 2011 by Jules 2 Comments

"Go back to your own country, Rhubarbarian!" -Veggie Tales Duck & the Great Pie War (The Story of Ruth and Naomi)

Buy it Here

When is the last time you were truly "odd for God"? I mean really. Not just the standard American version of a Christian, but truly ODD!

Where I wanna be...
Not participating in gossip even if that means I will be limited to simple conversation with...my kids.
Submitting to my husband even when it makes no sense to others.
Discipline my children strictly even if that means being considered a tyrant.
Not be concerned with my appearance even when that means not tanning my pastey legs, not wearing make-up (or wearing it modestly) even when I have pimple outbreaks and regularly splotchy skin, and using modesty when dressing even when it's out of style, 'unattractive', mundane, or 'homely'.
*Toughest* Not caring if I lose 'friends' by speaking the truth over our lives (those who call themselves Christians) about convictions the Bible has led me to; ie Gossip, Submission, Disciplining Children, Modesty, etc.

Where are you in this journey? What "odd" situations has God called you to live in that I have yet to list?
Are you a typical American Dream with a Christian twist or are you Odd for God?
Do you fit in nicely in the Bible belt or are you calling out pharisees along side Jesus in the awkwardness?
Are we worshiping God, the creator, or Religion, the creation?

~~~

Praying I'm being Odd for God. I wanna stick out and be asked to "Go back to {my own country}" since I'm not of this world.

Filed Under: The Ones about Jules Life {Randomness}

Ultimate FAIL

June 24, 2011 by Jules 7 Comments

Photo Credit

This week has been tough! As many of you may already know, ~~my husband~~, ~~my sanity~~, ~~my confidant~~, my literal other half, has been gone to Super Summer AR for the past 8 days and will finally be home tomorrow afternoon. It's times like these...ugg, when you're squeeeeezed, that your true self oozes out. No energy to "pull it together" or even fake it.

Several conversations with my best friends during this weeks ooze-fest have led me to post my ultimate fail!

Some conversation included a discussion about all the amazing blogs by Christian women I've been reading as well as the bible study I'm in at my church. Awe: The inspiration. The goals. The challenges. The utter disappointment in myself, as a wife, mom, and manager of my home.

Another set of conversations included major venting! Confessions rolled out of my mouth:

"I can't do this anymore! I cried, no, blubbered in my childs room before trying to make my way down stairs to appear unshaken in the eyes of my in-laws. I ignored the crying baby. I snatched up my daughter. I am not engaged with my children. I yell at my children to stop yelling. I lost a piece to my camera that makes it work. I let my kids watch way more than 2 hours a day of TV this week. I just want to hide in my pantry eating cookies. (true story) I love my babes and know God has chosen me to be their 'primary care giver' but I just don't want to today. I ate an entire box of oatmeal cream pies. I am out of Dr Pepper because I've been drinking way more than I should, especially while nursing. I spanked my child and told her we don't hit. My child (3) used the old-school phrase "none ya!" and I am the one she got it from. I can't find peace."

All the while the taunting thoughts, "I want to bottle what she has and bring her amazingness into my home. How does ______ do it?!?"

There it was. The very things I have been using to try to be who God wants me to be dug me deeper into Satan's lie- She has it all together. I was comparing myself to someone else. Wither the comparison is to exalt or belittle, it's wrong. Where another women is in her walk with Christ should have no barring on my relationship with Christ. My friend gently reminded me that "no one has it all together and they just aren't sharing those rough I-wanna-hide-in-the-pantry-eatting-all-the-cookies-in-peace days."

Though I have confessed this list of faults I want to you know that my ULTIMATE FAIL has been leading people, you, to believe I have it all together. Do you ever secretly desire to be that women that people ask, "GIRL, how DO you do it?" I do. I hide all kinds of faults and failures because of this pride built up inside me. I never again want to feel that desire to lead people to believe I have it all together.

Because I don't!

That's just it- GOD does it. Any and Every positive thing about my life is by the grace of God, not because I'm anywhere close to put together.

"My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." 2 Cor. 12:9

Sorry for leading any of you to believe I have it all figured out! I'm sorry if you ever ask yourself, "How does she do it?!?" New commitment: to exposing my weaknesses! Lets be real with one another.

"Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weakness, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in my weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For When I am weak, then I am strong." 2 Cor. 12:9-10

I am worn out!
I suffer a thorn!
I am undisciplined!

As I am writing this:

I keep flinching every time my stinky dog bangs against the siding on the front porch thinking...I don't know what, is coming to get me. I am fearful.

I am eating my 3-year-olds birthday cookies with a tub of frosting. -Sorry Nanna! Undisciplined.

Where are you on this journey of needing peer approval? Yours may not be the generic, "how does she do it". Do you struggle in with specific aspects of how someone else is pulling something off better?

Leave a comment so that we may "boast all the more gladly about [our] weakness[es], so that Christ's power may rest on [us]" and so we may encourage one another!

Filed Under: The Ones about Jules Life {Randomness} Tagged With: boast, confession, cookies, delight, dog, failures, faults, God, grace, julie rothacher, lie, power, satan, sorry, strong, tough, true, ugg, ultimate fail, weakness

(In)courage

June 19, 2011 by Jules Leave a Comment

"“Where two or more get together in My name I’m there too,” promised Jesus.

And I don’t think cyberspace is excluded." - incourage.me

One of the blog sites I love to ready almost daily is incourage. Today, their post was How can we pray for you? Amazing! As Christian's in blogging communities, shouldn't we be offering this opportunity more often?!? Thank you women of incourage for challenging me today as well as giving me the chance to seek partnership in praying for my thorns!

~~~

Many of you already know how you can be praying for me and my family this week but just incase you don't, this is our request at the moment:

This week my husband and I are struggling through making 2 out of what God has made one. No, we are not getting divorce! My hubby is a youth pastor and is away at summer camp for a little over a week leaving me in my failed attempt at being a single parent. I do have great loving support and help but it’s just not the same as having your literal other half there for that steady routine and irreplaceable hugs at the end of the day.
My 3 babes are all under 3, the oldest will be 3 Wednesday during camp, the next is almost 1.5 year old, and the youngest is 5 month old. At this age they almost all require, desire 1 on 1 time (at least at some point during the day). We made an hour and 1/2 trip today to see him for Father's Day and will again for Maggie's birthday. TOUGH all the way around!
I’m assuming most of you reading this totally understand what kinds of stresses come with this situation and know how to pray for me (probably better than I do myself).
Thanks for this opportunity to share this request and in advance for lifting me and my family up to The Father on Father’s Day!

~~~

Leave your prayer request as a comment. Before you do, please take a moment to read, pray for, and respond to the prayer request before yours. Let’s love on each other, friends.