Friday:
Here are the kids all set up for family movie and pizza on Friday night. Gosh, Finn...throw me a photo bone every now and then, right? Haha.
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| Do you like Cora using 2 laundry pins for hair clips? |
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| Friday afternoon Layla was VERY concerned that we didn't have green cloths for all of the kids ready for the next day, so we went down to the basement and searched until we found something acceptable for each kid. While we were searching Layla ALSO found this fun PJ set that we hadn't pulled out this winter. Older cousin Anja wore it first, and boy was Layla impressed with the matching slippers. She decided to change into her PJs at 3:30 that afternoon, before doing her violin practice for me. The earlier they get changed, the more you know they love it. (Like how Cora wore her new swimsuit for 4 days running....haha). |
After family movie night there was STILL so much light outside, and the kids hadn't been outside much that day, so Jonas graciously took them 2 blocks away to our little sledding hill to burn off some energy. They were gone for a full hour, bless him. I'll see if I can grab some of his photos and post them here later.
Saturday:
It was 40 degrees here and sunny on Saturday! It felt like a major heat wave for us. I was driving with my windows down and everything. After ballet the kids spent what felt like 3 hours outside, jumping on the trampoline, and then they decorated the green cupcakes for dinner that night.
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| Layla found a $1 tablecloth at our grocery store, and $2 napkins, and insisted that our celebration NEEDED them. She was maybe right. |
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| Releasing the steam from the past 3 months... |
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Gosh I love this trampoline. 3 hours. They were basically in a big, safe, baby crib and having the time of their lives.
I love how it's 40 degrees and Finn is in a short sleeve shirt, and NO ONE is wearing any shoes. Minnesotans don't joke about weather, man.
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| Finn and Cora didn't *love* the frosting part, but boy were they into putting as many green things on top of a cupcake as it could hold. |
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| See how they are all wearing their appropriate green?? LAYLA got them all dressed this morning, to make sure we started off St. Patrick's Day on the right note. Love her. 8 years old and so stinkin' helpful. She is going to make my life so much easier when this baby is born, I'm certain. I vividly remember being 9 when my brother Eric was born...all of the pictures of me age 9-10 are with Eric on my hip. Love. |
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| Classic child-created cupcakes. This was before we brought out the big guns: sprinkles. I had to start rationing all the fake M&Ms for Cora and Finn so they didn't ALL end up on just 3 cupcakes, total. |
Saturday evening we had my whole (local) family over for a St. Patrick's Day dinner...it was so nice! We normally have dinner together every Sunday evening, but lots of those dinners have been canceled for the past 2 months due to working on the house, purging the house, getting the house cleaned to sell, etc. So it was nice to all be together again!
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| Jonas reading a book about St. Patrick to Layla |
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Layla is always so excited to perform her violin for anyone. Dear Lord, may she always be this excited about performing and never develop stage fright...
My sister Lauren looks very unimpressed, but I'm sure she was really having the time of her life. OR, this might have been Layla's 6th song. ;)
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| And here is Cora, finishing off the last few drops of a bear. Or, a "beard," as she calls it. As you can see, I, sadly, had no green clothes to wear. I had a green scarf, but Layla begged me if SHE could wear it, so that was that. I lost the Berube color-wearing-participation-rule-points for sure. |
Sunday:
Jonas lead worship again at church today, and it sounded pretty good for someone who had never lead worship up until 2 months ago! Nice job, Jonas!
Layla got to play at the Gustafson's house ALL afternoon, which is a dream come true for her extrovert self, and then we picked her up late afternoon and dropped all 3 kids off at the Horsman's house while Jonas and I finally got with the REST of the entire world and saw Black Panther. :) It was good! I'm glad to get one last movie in a theatre in before baby comes. It'll likely be at least a year before I go to a movie in theatres again, party because of baby, and partly because there are very few movies that tempt me to watch on the big screen. Nah. I'll just wait and watch most anything on my own couch, in my PJs, for a total of less than $6, thank you very much.
With your 4th kid that's what you call a Babymoon. And let me tell you, I LOVE being at THIS stage of life and parenting. :)
Lisa's soap box: the pet peeve of "self care."
(feel free to completely skip this. I just wanted to write it down.)
I ran across this little rebuttal again this weekend, (it's a response to all the self care stuff there is online lately), and I can't help but love it even more. Take a quick look at it...it's not even long enough to call an article. It's just a few paragraph.
https://thoughtcatalog.com/brianna-wiest/2017/11/this-is-what-self-care-really-means-because-its-not-all-salt-baths-and-chocolate-cake/
As you can already likely tell, the term self care drives me nuts. I've got a few reasons for this:
1. It just seems so trendy. So "Instagram culture." So hip and current. Sigh. *eyeroll* . There is just a big part of my personality that doesn't trust the hip and current part of our culture, right? :) I get this could just be me. I'm an ISTJ. Enneagram 1. It's likely I'm not gonna buy whatever you're selling...haha.
2. In general, it also comes across as very selfish. Do we truly need one more thing in our lives helping us to be about self? Maybe this really only applies to what I feel Christian culture *should* be better at, but is clearly not: dying to self. Not trendy. Not hip. Not fun. Not Instagram-worthy. But much more in line with the gospel and how Jesus lived out his life, I'm thinking. This could tie into point #3, though...
3. I don't think the people who talk about self care the most even get what it really IS. And this could likely be the biggest problem, in the end. 3/4 of that article linked above would get highlighted by me, and then loud "YES!" and "SERIOUSLY!" and "AMEN"s from me.
Self care is not about living however you want to live...which for many people I see is out of control: BUSY beyond belief. Constantly going going going. Uncomfortable with silence. Uncomfortable with stillness. Uncomfortable with saying no. Living beyond their means. Buying and consuming all the time, rather than eliminating and minimizing. Never satisfied: always wanting more from life, more from their spouse, more more more. Bigger houses. Better cars. Constant upgrades. The latest phone. Constantly needing DISTRACTIONS from the life they have allowed to happen. Only being happy when they are distracted or entertained away from their real lives. Out of control kids. I could go on and on.
Self care is about "building a life you don't regularly need to escape from." In whatever form your favorite escape may take.
I LOVE THAT. Yes! Preach! Amen! Yes, please! Build a life that is HEALTHY! Don't keep giving in to what *just feels fun* now at the sacrifice of both the now AND the future!! Stop being so busy. Say no. Do less. Live with less. Live in smaller houses. Get rid of things. Don't buy so much. Give away. Work LESS, to spend more time with the people who matter the most NOW. Do things that eliminate stress from your life. Don't try to make a Pinterest life. If you say "Busy!" every time someone asks you how you are, there's a big problem there. Don't think you need 3 luxury vacations a year to be happy. Learn contentment. Please, please...learn contentment. More is not better. Bigger is not better. My fellow Christians especially: let's look a teeny bit different from the vast and overpowering culture around us, right?? Even just a BIT?
(Now, granted, I fully know I'm talking to people like myself here...people in positions of true luxury. I'm a white, upper-middle-class stay at home mom in the USA. I get it. I'm RICH. I can afford to hold this line. If you're a single mom of 3 working lots of jobs just to keep your kids off the streets...well, I'm for sure not talking to you. I'd love to help brainstorm ways to make a good long-term plan to have that not be your whole life, and I still think some of these principles could apply to you to help in some ways, but this rant is NOT for you. This rant is for my people. The ones as wealthy and supported as I am, who are making silly life choices. )
The more Jonas and I lean into this way of thinking and living, the more I love it. Maybe there is an initial hard stage, when you have to unlearn some things our culture screams relentlessly, but man there is so much peace and rest in this way of living. You don't need self care this way...your entire LIFE is caring well for yourself, your spouse, your family, and your community...and it's not exhausting. It's delightful. It's freeing!
Here are some things I'm totally loving about our life right now:
1. Our house.
It's my dream house. It's 1,600 square feet, and it's perfect for us. Sure, I could think of a few things that might make it a little nicer...but let's be honest, it's basically perfect for us. I'm CONTENT with this house. If we never move again, I'll be delighted. If we eventually move into a smaller house, once the kids no longer need some of these rooms, I'll be even more happy. There is nothing that bigger could make better about this house. 1,600 square feet, and we're fully able to open up this house to people who need it...a young mom and her son in the past, my parents coming up soon, and I'm sure more people as the years go on. The size of your house should not determine your ability to serve with it. I'm blessed beyond measure by this house, and what it allows us to do, and who it allows us to serve.
2. Our schedule.
Our schedule is not full. We are not busy. We are not running around like crazy, from event to event, every night. We have peace. We have time together as a young family...and there is nothing more important to me, right now, than investing in these early years. This is where our riches are. We eat dinner together as a family every night. We read together for hours at a time, daily. I LOVE THIS! WE love this. And, because our schedule is not full, we have TIME. Time to say yes to the important things. When there is a need, we can always be there. When there is a relational issue somewhere, we can invest. We can be a part of the things that matter most because we have space, we have time, we have room in our lives and schedules for relationships.
3. School for our kids.
Right now, we're homeschooling. I do NOT think that homeschooling is right for every family. That's not what I'm saying at all. But I'm loving what it's done for our particular family. It has allowed me to buy back so much TIME for my kids, time to be spent on things that are more valuable than simple book work at this stage of their lives. They have time for music, hours and hours of play (together!!), learning to work, and sports...all while still feeling very un-busy and relaxed. It's a mini miracle. We're not rushing to do drop off and pick up daily. We're basically never rushing anywhere...haha! This particular school choice has created peace and rest for our family. What a blessing. It's also created a great way to individually address the academic needs of each child, but that's not even what I think is most important right now. The result of this school choice has been peace, time, freedom, and flexibility. So, for now, I'm very thankful for that.
I could go on, really, but I'm guessing you get the point by now.
I love my life. Right now. I'm content. I don't need more. I'm not wishing for the future. It's GOOD right now. I'm not stressed out. I'm not exhausted. I get enough sleep, for crying out loud (and I likely will even after baby is born, too...just a hunch). It's amazing.
And I'm also aware what a blessing it is to be able to write those words. Part of this is undeniably the grace of God.
But part of it is also very deliberate decisions that Jonas and I have made together, and individually. And it's paying off big time, for us, in ways that our current surrounding culture doesn't value at all, or at least doesn't value until it seems like it's too late...when your kids are grown up without you, and you haven't had the time to invest in real relationships, community, or church...and you're sitting there trying to make a bubble bath or spa visit or exotic vacation make up for the fact that life choices are what got you to that point.
Let's intentionally build lives that we don't need to escape from, friends. Doesn't that sound lovely? It is.
Remember that book I was raving about a while back? "Sabbath as resistance: Saying no to the culture of now" by Walter Brueggemann? I think about it all the time. Still. And it was only 80 pages long, folks. Anyone, in ANY stage of life, can read that book. Please. Get it and read it. The first few chapters may feel slow to you, but it's life-altering good stuff:
https://www.amazon.com/Sabbath-Resistance-Saying-Culture-Now/dp/0664239285/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1521433939&sr=8-2&keywords=sabbath+as+resistance+by+walter+brueggemann
Lisa's soap box: the pet peeve of "self care."
(feel free to completely skip this. I just wanted to write it down.)
I ran across this little rebuttal again this weekend, (it's a response to all the self care stuff there is online lately), and I can't help but love it even more. Take a quick look at it...it's not even long enough to call an article. It's just a few paragraph.
https://thoughtcatalog.com/brianna-wiest/2017/11/this-is-what-self-care-really-means-because-its-not-all-salt-baths-and-chocolate-cake/
As you can already likely tell, the term self care drives me nuts. I've got a few reasons for this:
1. It just seems so trendy. So "Instagram culture." So hip and current. Sigh. *eyeroll* . There is just a big part of my personality that doesn't trust the hip and current part of our culture, right? :) I get this could just be me. I'm an ISTJ. Enneagram 1. It's likely I'm not gonna buy whatever you're selling...haha.
2. In general, it also comes across as very selfish. Do we truly need one more thing in our lives helping us to be about self? Maybe this really only applies to what I feel Christian culture *should* be better at, but is clearly not: dying to self. Not trendy. Not hip. Not fun. Not Instagram-worthy. But much more in line with the gospel and how Jesus lived out his life, I'm thinking. This could tie into point #3, though...
3. I don't think the people who talk about self care the most even get what it really IS. And this could likely be the biggest problem, in the end. 3/4 of that article linked above would get highlighted by me, and then loud "YES!" and "SERIOUSLY!" and "AMEN"s from me.
Self care is not about living however you want to live...which for many people I see is out of control: BUSY beyond belief. Constantly going going going. Uncomfortable with silence. Uncomfortable with stillness. Uncomfortable with saying no. Living beyond their means. Buying and consuming all the time, rather than eliminating and minimizing. Never satisfied: always wanting more from life, more from their spouse, more more more. Bigger houses. Better cars. Constant upgrades. The latest phone. Constantly needing DISTRACTIONS from the life they have allowed to happen. Only being happy when they are distracted or entertained away from their real lives. Out of control kids. I could go on and on.
Self care is about "building a life you don't regularly need to escape from." In whatever form your favorite escape may take.
I LOVE THAT. Yes! Preach! Amen! Yes, please! Build a life that is HEALTHY! Don't keep giving in to what *just feels fun* now at the sacrifice of both the now AND the future!! Stop being so busy. Say no. Do less. Live with less. Live in smaller houses. Get rid of things. Don't buy so much. Give away. Work LESS, to spend more time with the people who matter the most NOW. Do things that eliminate stress from your life. Don't try to make a Pinterest life. If you say "Busy!" every time someone asks you how you are, there's a big problem there. Don't think you need 3 luxury vacations a year to be happy. Learn contentment. Please, please...learn contentment. More is not better. Bigger is not better. My fellow Christians especially: let's look a teeny bit different from the vast and overpowering culture around us, right?? Even just a BIT?
(Now, granted, I fully know I'm talking to people like myself here...people in positions of true luxury. I'm a white, upper-middle-class stay at home mom in the USA. I get it. I'm RICH. I can afford to hold this line. If you're a single mom of 3 working lots of jobs just to keep your kids off the streets...well, I'm for sure not talking to you. I'd love to help brainstorm ways to make a good long-term plan to have that not be your whole life, and I still think some of these principles could apply to you to help in some ways, but this rant is NOT for you. This rant is for my people. The ones as wealthy and supported as I am, who are making silly life choices. )
The more Jonas and I lean into this way of thinking and living, the more I love it. Maybe there is an initial hard stage, when you have to unlearn some things our culture screams relentlessly, but man there is so much peace and rest in this way of living. You don't need self care this way...your entire LIFE is caring well for yourself, your spouse, your family, and your community...and it's not exhausting. It's delightful. It's freeing!
Here are some things I'm totally loving about our life right now:
1. Our house.
It's my dream house. It's 1,600 square feet, and it's perfect for us. Sure, I could think of a few things that might make it a little nicer...but let's be honest, it's basically perfect for us. I'm CONTENT with this house. If we never move again, I'll be delighted. If we eventually move into a smaller house, once the kids no longer need some of these rooms, I'll be even more happy. There is nothing that bigger could make better about this house. 1,600 square feet, and we're fully able to open up this house to people who need it...a young mom and her son in the past, my parents coming up soon, and I'm sure more people as the years go on. The size of your house should not determine your ability to serve with it. I'm blessed beyond measure by this house, and what it allows us to do, and who it allows us to serve.
2. Our schedule.
Our schedule is not full. We are not busy. We are not running around like crazy, from event to event, every night. We have peace. We have time together as a young family...and there is nothing more important to me, right now, than investing in these early years. This is where our riches are. We eat dinner together as a family every night. We read together for hours at a time, daily. I LOVE THIS! WE love this. And, because our schedule is not full, we have TIME. Time to say yes to the important things. When there is a need, we can always be there. When there is a relational issue somewhere, we can invest. We can be a part of the things that matter most because we have space, we have time, we have room in our lives and schedules for relationships.
3. School for our kids.
Right now, we're homeschooling. I do NOT think that homeschooling is right for every family. That's not what I'm saying at all. But I'm loving what it's done for our particular family. It has allowed me to buy back so much TIME for my kids, time to be spent on things that are more valuable than simple book work at this stage of their lives. They have time for music, hours and hours of play (together!!), learning to work, and sports...all while still feeling very un-busy and relaxed. It's a mini miracle. We're not rushing to do drop off and pick up daily. We're basically never rushing anywhere...haha! This particular school choice has created peace and rest for our family. What a blessing. It's also created a great way to individually address the academic needs of each child, but that's not even what I think is most important right now. The result of this school choice has been peace, time, freedom, and flexibility. So, for now, I'm very thankful for that.
I could go on, really, but I'm guessing you get the point by now.
I love my life. Right now. I'm content. I don't need more. I'm not wishing for the future. It's GOOD right now. I'm not stressed out. I'm not exhausted. I get enough sleep, for crying out loud (and I likely will even after baby is born, too...just a hunch). It's amazing.
And I'm also aware what a blessing it is to be able to write those words. Part of this is undeniably the grace of God.
But part of it is also very deliberate decisions that Jonas and I have made together, and individually. And it's paying off big time, for us, in ways that our current surrounding culture doesn't value at all, or at least doesn't value until it seems like it's too late...when your kids are grown up without you, and you haven't had the time to invest in real relationships, community, or church...and you're sitting there trying to make a bubble bath or spa visit or exotic vacation make up for the fact that life choices are what got you to that point.
Let's intentionally build lives that we don't need to escape from, friends. Doesn't that sound lovely? It is.
Remember that book I was raving about a while back? "Sabbath as resistance: Saying no to the culture of now" by Walter Brueggemann? I think about it all the time. Still. And it was only 80 pages long, folks. Anyone, in ANY stage of life, can read that book. Please. Get it and read it. The first few chapters may feel slow to you, but it's life-altering good stuff:
https://www.amazon.com/Sabbath-Resistance-Saying-Culture-Now/dp/0664239285/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1521433939&sr=8-2&keywords=sabbath+as+resistance+by+walter+brueggemann
