October 30: Dear Ruby


Ruby was the MVP in her class at school this week, so she got to share all about herself. Her little "All About Me Tee" turned out so cute, and her favorite song is "Let It Go," of course. She will also be Elsa for Halloween tomorrow. Elsa's her favorite princess because she loves her dress. She also chose the best "subjects" in school as her favorite, too. :)

Parents get to send in a letter that the teacher reads to them during class, and this is what we sent:


Dear Ruby,

“It’s a girl!” They told us. We were excited it was true.
Five days late, couldn’t wait to finally get to meet you.

Our little girl, a precious jewel, you were so very tiny.
Head held high, big black eyes, open wide and shiny.

Scrawny chicken legs, only six pounds and some change
Though the smallest of our babes, our lives you rearranged.

With two little ones now at home, life was very full.
Needs to meet, tears to dry, and momma felt the pull.

I soaked up all the moments and memories of those days
I loved to watch you grow and be with you always.

Squishy cheeks, the sweetest smile, loved her momma so
Screamed, cried and clawed the help when momma had to go!

That too did pass; you got big and did things on your own
You’d say, “Ruby do by Ruby self,” seeming oh so grown.

Before my eyes a girl appeared who resembled a lot of me
She loves long hair and Starbucks and shopping to a T.

You have the sweetest spirit, the most caring little heart
You love your baby sister, music class, friends and art.

We see you work so hard to please, to do all things well
Please know, no matter what, we’ll always think you’re swell.

There’s nothing you could do or say or even think about
That could make us love you any less, of that there is no doubt.

We’re so very proud of you, our sweet and precious girl.
You’re smart and kind and brave, with a fashionable twirl.

God will do great things through you, this we know for sure.
We are blessed to walk beside you through life’s adventures.

We love you more then words or hugs could ever say,
And we thank God we get to keep you for another day.

Love Mom and Dad




If you remember right around this time last year there was a Dear Clayton post. Time flies.


October 28: She'll Be Coming 'Round the Mountain


They were cracking up after school today singing, "She'll Be Coming 'Round the Mountain." 

What was so funny, you ask? 

Because it's not reeeeallly that funny of a song… Good point.

But if you change the lyrics to things like, "She'll be glued to the toilet when she comes! SHE'LL BE GLUED TO THE TOILET WHEN SHE COOOOOMMMES!!" And belt it out in your very best hillbilly voice, it's pretty freakin' hysterical. Especially when you're 7 and have an audience.

I may or not have been laughing, too, and contributing my own delinquent verses, like "she'll be pooping on the potty when she comes…" #motheroftheyear

And "the kids be driven' mommy crazy when they home!!! THE KIDS BE DRIVEN MOMMY CRAZY WHEN THEY HOME!!!!"

#citytalk. It gets the best of all of us from time to time. We be all cray cray up in here. ;)



October 24: Grace to Parent One More Day


Today was a gorgeous day to walk around at the Zoo. The leaves sprinkled the paths like confetti with colors of orange, red, yellow, and brown. The shade was quite chilly, but the sun made up for it with it's penetrating warmth. Vultures basked in the golden rays and and zebras swished the last of the buzzing insects away with their tufty tails.

And I was frustrated.

Just mildly. It simmered subtly below the surface, as it seems to many days when the children are home from school.

I wish it wasn't there. Some days I don't even notice it's there until after lunch, but then it rears it's sneaky head when the children refuse to lay down for a nap and cut into "my time." Other days it's present before my feet even hit the floor in the morning, because I can hear little hands getting into the sugar and sprinkles and ice cream downstairs. Frustration is acutely aware that they're not allowed to do that.

Deep down, frustration is there because I'm scared. I'm afraid that even though I tell him 1,000,000 times that "sugar is not breakfast," he will never learn. I'm afraid that I will spend a better part of my lifetime correcting and disciplining and encouraging and teaching and nothing will come of it. That I'll say "stay off of that" and "don't climb on that" and "don't you dare ever jump in there with the lions  again" and they will never really get it.

That I'll just spin my wheels until I'm exhausted and blue in the face. Or until there's blue all over the carpet because the dog stepped in the artwork and tracked his very blue feet step by little furry step all around the house.

And some days I do. Spin my wheels, that is.

I want someone to just tell me that it's worth it. That all the words, all the disciplining, all the painful, agonizing repetition will pay off. Someday. Preferably sooner then later.

That when we go to the zoo, someday, I won't have to tell the children not to jump on this and climb on that and stay away from the wild animals. Especially the ones that could eat them.

But I suppose it's not just them. I'm still figuring it out, too. I'm still doing it wrong, learning from my mistakes, and doing better next time. Sometimes. Although I know that I need grace, I often struggle to extend it to the kids. I feel they should know better by now. I'm sick of telling them. I hate that parenting can seem like a black hole--most days I pour out my everything, only for it to be sucked into a bottomless vortex, never to be seen again.

We didn't fail! We just discovered another way of doing it wrong. Plus, this is the closest I've come to [getting it right].  Annedroid

It would be nice if we were just "transformed" and didn't have to wade through the messy process of failure. But in the living lies the learning, and failure begets wisdom. I guess most of life is about discovering all the ways of doing it wrong, and by God's grace, eventually getting it right.

Once we realize that all we are, all we have, and all we're able to do is by His grace and His grace alone, it becomes much easier to give some of that amazing grace away. Grace to parent one more day.


October 22: #NailedIt: How to Treat Adrenal Fatigue, A Mother's Perspective

Nailed it. 


I read this article today about Adrenal Fatigue. I don't know why I continue to click on and read such articles. I must have a death-by-health-anxiety wish or something.

Apparently most people have some degree of adrenal fatigue, which is ultimately caused by stress. So to cure the fatigue, you need to deal with the stress. Here's what the article suggested:


1. Go to bed at the same time every night (preferably before 10 pm) and get 8 hours of sleep.
I probably fell asleep around midnight and my alarm went off before 7am, as usual. Maybe if I let Common Core help me with math I could somehow get that to equal 8 hours.
2. Learn to say NO when you have reached your limit. 
I say NO a million times a day, often in conjunction with "I've had ENOUGH!", thus signifying that I've indeed reached my limit. I don't find that it helps.
3. Do something relaxing every day (warm bath, walk in the park, etc.). 
Naptime. Nuff said. Check.
4. Don’t over-exercise. If you’re fatigued after your workout, you might want to scale down. 
I'd like you to introduce you to my Jillian Michaels workout DVD. We have a complicated relationship. I got it about two years ago in January when I decided I needed to start working out. It remained in a drawer with the cellophane wrapper intact for about a year. I then decided I really should start working out, so I took the wrapper off. Now another year has passed, and although I've never actually even watched the DVD, let alone exercised to it, the disc is somehow missing. Maybe my wobbly bits and I will finally start working out when I find it. Yep, I'm sure we will.
5. Eat a protein-rich breakfast before 10 am. 
Pepperoni and sausage at 10:32am. Check.
6. Consume fruit with a source of protein (nuts or nut butters). 
I heard fruit and butter. Apple crisp = consuming fruit with butter. Check.
7. Avoid alcohol, sugar, gluten and dairy (toxic and inflammatory foods).
The only way I can drink this sweet nectar of sanity is to add the aforementioned sugar and dairy, so they will have to pry it from my cold, dead fingers when I die of adrenal failure. If that's a thing. Please also refer to exhibits 5 and 6.
8. Consider supplementation (adaptogenic herbs, B vitamins).
When I cleaned off my nightstand earlier this week, I brushed a rather thick coat of dust off my bottle of vitamins. But the wine glass? Not a speck. Take that #7.


So as you can see, I'm a rockstar at dealing with stress. #NailedIt

It's a good thing I don't actually suffer from adrenal fatigue. Or do I…


*yawn*


Then again, I think everything I suffer from can be summed up in one word: MOTHERHOOD.



P.S. I bet you're totally yawning right now. It's ok. That actually means you're not a serial killer, which is a good thing. The less serial killers that read my blog, the better, you know? But have you ever considered that you might suffer from adrenal fatigue? I hear that there's a list of things you can do to better manage your stress…