Small Child Wisdom...

Life can be busy...crazy...non-stop.

It call also be routine...monotonous.

This is usually when it seems like I'm wearing blinders. I'm only looking ahead at what's next.

The schedule.

Then...I hear some amazing little words from my baby girl.

Regardless of my schedule, routine, responsibilities...the end of my school day culminates in my being able to go and pick up the small child from preschool.

The photo above is a welcome sign that hangs just inside the doorway.

Sarala saw it and said "Look...Sarala and Daddy!"

I smiled, laughed...melted...and was reminded about the things that are truly important.

My guess is that it's the hair.

It has to be!

It's insane how much I let the routine...monotony of my day...affect my outlook on things.

I don't stop to look around here...take in the things around me.

This is where my daughter teaches me quite often...to stop...look around...and laugh, enjoy, smile...and ultimately...BE.

I'm so busy THINKING or DOING that I miss out on what's right in front of me...BEING.

So...what has reminded you lately to slow down, take a breath, and BE?

Trust...

Proverbs 3:5

Can God speak through ESPN?

I'm not saying anything either way...but....

I saw this tattooed on the arm of a basketball player for Oklahoma State University tonight.

For some reason it stuck out.

Trust in the LORD with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding.

At least...that's what I think I saw...pretty sure it's what I saw.

I don't know the context...don't know if that is even what was actually on the arm, but it sure looked like Proverbs 3:5.

After doing a Google search of the player's name...looking at images...I couldn't come to any sort of conclusion as to whether or not that is what the tattoo is.

It sure stuck out though....

I am currently trying to figure out how to go about doing something that I feel like I need to do.

I know that the above statement isn't the best sentence nor does it make a whole lot of sense...but as I head into these next couple days...talk to some people...hopefully I can let you in on what I'm thinking.

So...until then...I guess I'll do what Proverbs 3:5 says.

How about that for some confirmation...especially during a basketball game...where I wasn't fully engaged because I was thinking about the possibilities.

No more worry.

Act B...act!

"Take my cake-cake...!"

Sarala is always singing.

I would love for her to do something with music...not that I'm partial or anything. We've got all sorts of instruments around the house here...she seems to like the piano...although she has been talking about the violin. I love it.

Usually she sings things she's heard a lot of...but then she'll occasionally put her own spin on it...or she'll come up with something on her own.

Up until December 6th, the date of The Hope Endeavor's first show (which is the band I'm in), I listened to our set-list over and over. Three of the songs have really stuck with her: Collective Soul's Shine, Lincoln Brewster's Everybody Praise the Lord, and Jeremy Camp's Take My Life. If you click on the song titles...you'll be redirected to YouTube (some shameless self promotion).

Anyway, Sarala has been going around singing these songs, along with others.
Yesterday she was singing Take My Life, but substituted her own lyrics. Her lyrics went...Take my cake-cake, take my chocolate milk, take my life!

Now...cake-cake is cupcake. If you know Sarala, you are aware that cake-cake and chocolate milk are two things that are very important to her. If you ask her who she's singing to, her reply..."Jesus."

I love her heart. I love the story surrounding her. I love that God has such a handprint in how she was born...healed...how she came to live with us...the amazing blessings she has given us. We are always discussing how Jesus took care of her when she was in the hospital...then she'll completely rock our worlds when she says something like "Jesus is holding my hand Daddy", like she did one morning on our way to school.


My hope and prayer is that she'll never lose this as she grows older.

Are there any reminders in your life of God's grace? Faithfulness? Salvation?

Lala's Hat....

Crystal's dad saw this from the kitchen table. This is a hat that Sarala made at the STL Art Fair this past summer. Awesome hat.

Do you see anything unusual on the hat?

I actually had a better picture of this, but...accidentally deleted it off the camera before I downloaded the pics to my computer...so....

Acknowledge...Part 2

I find it amusing...and sad at the same time...that my last post was about procrastination...and lo...no post since then.

So...here we go.

Procrastination hasn't stifled my efforts concerning my usual responsibilities...school things, grading papers...which it usually does...but it has affected the posting to my blog.

It is all of 7 degrees outside...we've been out of school the past two days...all the reason I need to continue procrastinating. Right?

I figure...it's time to get back to a routine of contributing to the blog.

Since my last post...something awesome has occurred.

Sarala is now Sarala...according to her insurance card. She still went by her birth name whenever we visited any sort of doctor or pharmacy...even though the adoption has been final since April 2007. The speed of the paperwork has been incredibly slow. Everything concerning Sarala now says Sarala...which is pretty awesome. Another God-thing.

So...I leave you with this.

Has God blown your mind lately...and if so...how?

Acknowledge...

My day is filled with choices. Should I do this now...later? How should I go about this?

I believe there may be a word for this.

Procrastination.

I admit it...I am a full-fledged Procrastinator.

I guess it all started when I was in elementary. I distinctly remember waiting 'till the last minute to work on this research binder thing I had to do in sixth grade. I got it in.

Then it continued...spiraled into middle school and high school. I remember spending one whole Sunday...the day before it was due...working on a research paper. We had to have resources and everything. It ended up being multiple pages. I got it done.

Then...came college. I guess that is when I first acknowledged that yes...I am a procrastinator.

Then...I did something crazy. I embraced it. That's right...embraced...accepted...worked it into how I roll.

I decided that worrying about it was doing me nothing but harm...anxiety. I just figured that I would get it done. For some reason it's hard for me to focus on something if it's a long way off.

My rule now is...Don't work on anything until after dark...until after Sarala has gone to bed.

This way I'm focused...it may take me up to midnight or so...but it gets done and I'm happy with what's produced.

Is this the best way to do things? I would say...no. Probably not. It works for me though.

I am trying to break the habit though. I have short chunks of my day that are free to do whatever it is I need to do to get ready for my day. I have been getting much better about using that time to be productive.

So...I bid you farewell for now...to go and tackle paper-grading. To be productive.

Are you a procrastinator? How do you work?

Just some thoughts on a brisk December Tuesday.

Hello Again!

You are looking at the picture of a young lady.

It's amazing.

I know I'm partial since she is my daughter, but her story...the story God has set in motion around her...has been incredible. Little Rudolph here came up with the nose and antler idea on her own, which I though was pretty awesome.

Tonight we had a chance to look back at some old pictures...Sarala pictures. She came to live with us in March of 2007. She was 6 months old and very much a baby. She is no longer that baby. It's awesome and sad at the same time.

Crystal and I have been thinking about what may be in store for us in the future. It's both exciting and scary at the same time. We had a visit from some friends that are on their own God-adventure. This has sparked some thought into what our future may hold...what God may be preparing us for. My prayer is that I will be obedient to whatever God has lined out for us. I guess...not only that I will be obedient, but not scared to follow. He has been faithful...and has blessed us beyond what we could have dreamed or imagined.

As we approach another new year...what are your dreams? Are they God-sized dreams?

I'll leave you with one of ours. We're currently praying about adoption. We've always talked about adopting from China...so...as we approach the ripe ol' age of 30...we're revisiting this and looking at some other options. Hmmm....

An Acrostic for the Day...

You will find this picture on my coffee cup.

It makes me laugh every time I look at it. Why...because it's awesome!

Think back to when you were in school.

Back in the day...the dizzle.

Did you every have to make an acrostic poem using your name?

I currently teach second grade, have for a couple years now...and haven't done this.

If you're not familiar with what I'm talking about...take your first name, write it vertically, and use each letter to start a word that describes yourself.

For example:

Well Dressed
Awesome
Dude
Excellent

Granted...three of my words sound like they may come from the script of Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure...there you go.

Your turn...which means I will probably put some more thought into this and hopefully I can come up with something quite awesome...excellent...dude!

Be...

"Abandon your plans of escape & BE where you are. Plant gardens, live & live well. Breathe deeply. Be present, be now." -Kyle Lake, 10/30/05

These are some marvelous, yet simple, words.

Be.

Many of us spend our moments in our past or the future.

I'm guilty of this.

There are times when I'm with the small child and I should be just enjoying...being together...being.

Instead I've wasted incredible father-daughter time because I'm thinking about something that has either happened or something that may or will happen.

So profound...be present, be now.


I leave you with this quote...read it again...take it for what it is:

"Abandon your plans of escape & BE where you are. Plant gardens, live & live well. Breathe deeply. Be present, be now." -Kyle Lake, 10/30/05

Rhythm...

How often do you find yourself...watching something off the DVR like The Office...chewing on some ice from Sonic...blogging...at 12:37 in the AM?

Crystal is now brewing up some hot tea...getting settled in to finishing catching up on The Office.

I know you may be thinking...how awesome is this...how can I achieve this lifestyle...what do I need to do in order to find myself doing these things?

Well...it's pretty easy.

Just do it.

It doesn't have to include these things...you could find yourself doing projects that involve the aesthetics of the home...playing Wii...watching a movie...discussing the latest SNL short (have to give my props to the ground)...whatever.

As this posts...I will more than likely be sleeping, or should be anyway...in preparation for the new week of school.

We had a short respite...something that rocked the rhythm of everyday...humdrum...the routine.

Though it was due to illness, it was quite amazing...the timing...the rest acquired during these last few days.

Essentially we did these things, not in any particular order:

Movies.

Games.

Late nights.

Meals with friends.

Cleaning.

Reading.

Sleeping.

Trick-or-Treating.

Not leaving the house unless it was absolutely necessary.

Now...these are only a handful of the things accomplished during our impromptu break.

Also...you could find yourself doing any number of these things at any given time (except for Trick-or-Treating...it'd probably be best to leave that one for around Halloween...but, I'll leave that up to you).

What I'm trying to say with all this is that we settled into a easy, flowin' rhythm. Time doesn't necessarily have to dictate...rule us.

Life goes by way too fast to be preoccupied with time.

I'm not condoning the irresponsible wasting of time...a practice I've also been known to have some skillz in...but...to use our time wisely so that there is time in our day for our families...friends...things we like.

I need to remind myself of this since I'm just about to enter a new season of life...as a girls MS basketball coach.

It's amazing what one year absent from the coaching world will do...it's been awesome...what I needed, but now I find myself in the stages of mental preparation.

I leave you with this:

Enjoy...be.