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14 Comments» Continue ReadingYesterday was a bit of a disaster. It was the kind of day that made me think I believed in putting my kids in front of TV for hours and hours. It was the kind of day that made me frustrated to have five noisy boys who play loud and argue louder. It was the kind of day that started with good intentions and ended with much repentance. I could blame it on the kitchen remodel. Because yes, it is still total chaos around here. I could blame it on the first day of Christmas break. Doesn’t it seem like first day of break is always a bit weird? I could blame it on the pressure of being completely behind and unprepared for Christmas. Nope, not one present wrapped under the tree. I could blame it on the pregnancy hormones. Is it normal that I’m responding to stress with crying […]
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» Continue ReadingWe took a walk down by the river a few weeks ago… …there’s nothing like the sound of crushed leaves beneath your feet paired with the cool autumn air. Everyone is off discovering something beyond the monotony of his everyday life… …gazing further than what can usually be seen from within the walls of your house… …and we discover these guys… …who seem to be sitting still and going nowhere… …but in reality, have already shed their infant shells… …and taken flight in their matured wings. Did you know that the cicada takes up to 17 years, nestled beneath the shelter of the soil, before it emerges ready to try out it’s adult wings? Be patient, Mama. This is but a short while…preparing them to shed that insufficient shell and take flight. What they will become is being molded day by day, hidden away in the safety of yours […]
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» Continue ReadingI have been long influenced and encouraged by the motherhood-mentoring heart of Sally Clarkson. My heart for homeschooling was largely shaped by the book she co-wrote with her husband, Clay: Educating the WholeHearted Child, and Sally’s The Mission of Motherhood: Touching Your Child’s Heart for Eternity gave me a sweet perspective for all that I can impart to my children through home and heart. I met Sally at Allume in October. I immediately felt a kindred connection visiting with her. I was so honored when she asked me to join her team at Mom Heart, a site “where any mom can come to be encouraged, equipped, and enabled as a mother after God’s heart.” I’m excited to share that I will be a monthly contributor at Mom Heart. In addition, I will be attending my first Mom Heart conference in Denver in January. Wanna join me? I’d love to meet you if you plan […]
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» Continue ReadingWe say we believe that God is sovereign and God is good. We say that we believe He always does what is best for our lives. And yet, we don’t always respond to life’s circumstances with absolute trust, submission, and peace in our loving God. I know I don’t. In fact, I can recall the past six ultrasounds accompanying the last six pregnancies. The first ended in miscarriage and the subsequent ones revealed little boys added to our family. Each time I trusted in God’s plan, but each time I inwardly struggled through tears and disappointment in not getting to welcome a little girl in our lives. I even wrote a psalm about the disappointment last time with Number 5. I share this to give Him glory…to praise Him for transforming my heart. Not only was I not prepared for this pregnancy, I couldn’t imagine the Lord entrusting me with […]
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» Continue ReadingOur family rarely gets sick. I’m so thankful– because in a family of 7, you’d think we would be sick all the time! However, when one of us falls ill, especially with a stomach bug, our entire family often goes down HARD. You may recall that week before and after the birth of Number 5. As a result, there is a bit of fear among the older boys when the beginnings of a virus starts making its way through our family. I can see it in their faces. I sense it in their questions. They are worrying. And, how can I blame them…as one lies in bed, waiting for the other’s tummy trouble on the bottom bunk to take its toll and rush his brother to the restroom. What is a boy to do but to worry about catching the virus, about the sleeplessness, the pain, the canceling of fun […]
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» Continue Reading“It’s all gonna burn someday.” Troy reminded me, as we assessed the damage to our Ethan Allen dining table. “I know, Babe…I just didn’t expect it to burn so soon.” I said with a weary smile. Our mischievous curious almost-four-year old did what was right in his own eyes yesterday afternoon. He uncapped a dry erase marker and lit it on fire with a cozy candle in the middle of my dining tablescape. Did you know that dry erase markers are super flammable? Are you surprised? He was evidently surprised too, since he quickly dropped the enflamed marker onto the ash veneered table and watched it burn until Number 1 came to the rescue. Melted plastic, charred ink, and a destroyed finish awaited me as I came running. Though none of his brothers had actually seen him do the deed, it seemed evident who the culprit was. Number 5, the baby, had an […]
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» Continue ReadingI want to create a new normal for my family, day by day. I invite you to join me…in leaving the past behind and building up what is ahead… *Have a wonderful weekend, friends! If you’d like GraceLaced posts to come to your inbox, I invite you to subscribe here. If you are blessed by this post, please consider sharing it!
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» Continue ReadingI get to regularly comfort and console people who freak out on my behalf. …the folks who practically faint when they hear I have five BOYS and would go back for round 6. Then, there are the ever-sweet people who pronounce me a saint, a mother who has a “special” crown waiting for me in heaven, as consolation for such a tough but honorable mission in motherhood. I have a couple of thoughts about that. It’s not that I don’t appreciate the empathy for the work in raising boys. I do. And, yes, it’s a lot of work. It’s not that there haven’t been sacrifices that we’ve made in order to raise a large family. There have. It’s not that different dynamics don’t exist in a family like ours that may not be present in a family of boys and girls. There are. But, here’s what I always come back […]
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» Continue ReadingThere are many ways to make 37 years count. Today, I’d like these to be what my life counts for the most: 1. Christ is ALL; nothing else compares. 2. You are loved by a holy Creator. 3. Perfection is unattainable. Progression is. 4. Of all my worldly possessions, I love your dad most. 5. You and your brothers are a very close second. 6. Stuff is not as important as people. 7. Put your trust in God alone. Nothing and no one else is worthy. 8. Learn to play an instrument. You will be so glad you did someday. 9. Learn to love music without words. 10. Famous people are still just people. 11. It’s never too late to say I’m sorry. 12. Allow yourself to cry, but tell yourself to rejoice. 13. God’s Word is your comfort, your shield and defense. 14. Invest in your siblings. They will […]
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» Continue ReadingSeveral weeks ago, we had an opportunity to make a last-minute trip to Colorado Springs to meet up with my parents who were going to be visiting. Driving 7 hours each way over the course of a weekend was more than worth it for the chance to reunite my parents with my family and my brother’s family…all in one place, at the same time…for a total of 24 hours. We were so blessed and excited to all be together, we really could’ve done nothing at all but sit around and chat and we would have been happy. But no, we did not sit around. At the top of the list was a family dim sum lunch. Don’t know what it is? You really must find out. It’s like afternoon tea and tapas combined. It IS my love language. It’s Chinese culture in a meal: hot tea, small morsels of intricate […]
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» Continue ReadingI haven’t been feeling quite myself lately. I’m sure it’s due in part to the constant nausea and sleepiness. But, I think it’s also the reality of a surprise pregnancy finally settling in. Now that the amusement of our shock is wearing off, faith in God’s sovereignty is being called into action. Fear and faith are inextricably connected. I think it is in anyone’s life, but I know it to be so in my own. My greatest opportunity for faith is at the point of my greatest fear. I always desire unwavering faith without the pressing temptation to fear, but it just doesn’t work that way. Instead, it is God’s delight to show His power over my anxieties, to display His sovereignty over my disbelief, and to bolster me in the face of my paralyzing fears. I was thinking about Mary, the mother of Jesus, today. I was thinking on […]
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» Continue ReadingI regularly receive letters from women who are weary–from moms who are disappointed with themselves, wives who are striving for more, and women who are longing for greater joy. I read every letter, and I usually respond to each one if possible. So often, my response to these letters remind me of the very truths I need to hear, myself. Has that happened to you? It’s when you instruct your child in something, and realize later, that you are the one who needed to heed that very instruction. This blog, in many ways, is that outpouring of truth that the Lord is molding in me, sometimes in personally challenging ways. You see, the words and thoughts dearest to our hearts are usually the areas of greatest pruning and stretching in our own lives. When I write about motherhood and trust in Jesus, it is not because I feel strong in […]
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Hello, friend...I'm Ruth. Welcome to GraceLaced, where you will find my imperfect, but grace-filled musings on the Gospel, motherhood, crafting, art, domesticity, cooking, and the often-times overlooked joys of finding grace in the everyday of life. Read my full profile here.
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- Tiffany commented on Parenting In Weakness
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