Not Mine, but His

I never used to think getting up at the crack of dawn would be considered relaxing, but now I do.  I was telling my bff cousin last night...all has changed...which is why I hardly get to blog anymore. Before, I had my own little "me time" routine....I woke up, worked out, read my Bible, drank my coffee, put in some laundry, had a shower....Then, RM, would come down, we would chat together, more coffee...then, slowly the kids would come down and the day would officially start.  Now...I'm up, still early, but no time to exercise (now I have to wait until the kids are gone to work), no time to read the Bible or blog...I have to quickly whip up some lunches for 3 people, quickly whip up some breakfasts, and then rush them out the door.  I would normally have a chance to write after all this, but not with the computer being in use all the time for my son's course....  The only way for me to get all that I used to get done is to get up even earlier which has been hard as the days are so full I'm needing the extra hour of sleep!  Who knew that full-time summer jobs would add so much activity to my mornings!?

I can't begin to catch up on all that I've wanted to blog about.  I'll just start with mentioning a couple of summer blessings.  These are blessings that will not seem huge, but to me have already added so much to our summer.  First....about a year ago my sons were exposed to ripsticks.  These are basically skateboards.  My son, who was only 5 at the time, is incredibly adept at these things.  My older son, who was 9, then, was also very adept.  A friend ended up leaving them at the house by accident for a week and in that week my kids became even more adept and they wanted to have one for themselves. Wasn't going to happen.  We are still tight and making up for two years of financial drought.  It wasn't a priority.  They got all computer savvy and started looking on-line for deals.  They found a few that were within 45 minutes....ok....we'd think about it.  Meanwhile, my mom heard my son mentioning these ripsticks and texted my nephew knowing he and his brother had a couple that they used to use....were they done with them?  These aren't cheap.  I didn't want to assume that my nephews would just give them away...

Months passed, nearly a year.  The ripstick fad faded and was mostly forgotten.  I had thought of maybe surprising my son for his birthday in June and buying a used one on-line, but that was assuming there would still be a good deal.  Then, a few weeks ago, my sister, out-of-the-blue, asked if she could come by...with not, one, but her two ripsticks.  Had my nephew mentioned that text to her so many months ago and had she just noticed they weren't being used anymore?.....who knows.  All I know is that she pulled up into our driveway with two ripsticks (just one around here would be ridiculous, but I would have been happy with one!)  My sons went nuts.  This is the funny part though...we have only a small pad of concrete on our whole 47 acres to even use the ripstick.  So guess where they started practicing....around the kitchen table....in the house....especially when it was still cold and rainy!  Dumpy farmhouses are good for something!  Now, if we want to use them we go to a park or a gym and then it's super fun.  The boys are experts now in just a matter of a few weeks. We did stop and thank God.  We really did.  How is it that He even cares about little things like that? He knew I would probably never go and buy one, so He had it delivered to me, right to my door.  For free.  Such a great little "boy blessing".

I got a great Mommy blessing, too, recently.  Every year, I splurge and buy a few annuals for pots on the patio.  I would buy tons and tons if I could, I just love the way flowers make any area that is normally drab, suddenly become so beautiful.  Last year was my patio "makeover".  I found all sorts of old bushel apple containers, some old barrels, more wine crates, etc.  That made my normally unattractive entry way a little nicer.  This year, I found even more containers and started to hang things on the side of the house.  I kept my normal amount of annuals and left it at that.  However, I started to heavily hint to the kids, "If there are ever deals at the greenhouse, let me know!"  "No deals, Mom."  But then, one day, my son was at work and he was told to throw out all sorts of flowers that were considered "too tall" or "overgrown".  He sensed an opportunity and said, "Can I take them home?"  "Sure."  He filled up the back of the truck twice with flat after flat of begonias.  I had so many flowers I didn't even know where to plant them.  I had to go back to my stash of old containers and try to find some more.  Now, it looks like I'm planning a wedding.  At one point, the patio was so covered in flats of flowers we could hardly find a path to the door.  Oddly enough, they are in the same colour scheme as my wedding flowers so it does look like wedding decor, but I love it.  My patio has had yet another makeover and this one, too, was free.  Again, may be a small blessing, but I consider it huge!

Last but not least...we got word that our road is going to be resurfaced!  That is big news!  Many people who drive to my house have mentioned, "It's too bad about your road....."  It is so full of potholes it is dangerous for any car and makes it like an obstacle course as you weave around those things that took out my neighbour's wheel last year.  The damage was bad!  I figured it helped slow traffic down a little, so I never complained or called the town to fix it.  However, as for curb appeal, it wasn't helping our house value to have it in such bad shape.  We got the road info last week and to my shock and awe, it was resurfaced two days ago!  So far, just the gravel is on...sure hoping more is to come, but even if they stopped at just the gravel, it already looks better.  It, too, may seem like a small thing, but this is the best part....though we pay our taxes, it feels like it's free!  I feel like it is a massive improvement to our home without us having to do anything ourselves.  I really consider it a blessing as well.

I think what all of these things are telling me is that God can do what He wants to do and when He wants to do them.  He can bless us with big things or small things.  I find I can be the most discontent person, but then these blessings remind me I don't have to worry about a thing, what I will wear or what I will eat or even what toys my kids will have, what my house will look like or even my road. God knows everything I need and even the little things I want.  My kids are learning these lessons, too.

Oh, there's more....being Spring, there is lots of new life on the farm....we've got bunnies coming out of our ears, more kittens on the way, a new calf.  We're now hoping for puppies as well.  Our male collie seemed to miss the mark last time.  We learned yesterday (this is funny...), at the doggie fertility clinic (did you know those existed????) that collies have a hard time getting bred.  So with a little help from this clinic and another breeder we are now hoping that she will be pregnant as soon as this week which will mean puppies mid-summer, all going well.  The reason I share this is because it is another amazing life lesson for our kids, specifically for my son who bought the collie.  We bring everything before the Lord, even our dog's womb.  As we drove up to drop the female collie off at her new husband's kennel, my son just kept saying, "She's not my dog.  She's God's dog.  I'm just taking care of her." That statement was such a good reminder for me!  I'm not taking care of my kids, they're God's kids! He knows what they need more than I do.  If He thinks they need a new toy, He'll deliver it to their door, which He did.  It isn't my house, it's God's house.  If He thinks I need flowers, He'll deliver them to my door..and He did!  It's not my road, it's God's road.  I don't need to worry about the potholes.  God will take care of it...and now it's done.  God is in charge of everything.  I am merely the caretaker, managing the things He's given me.  I own none of it.  There is such a release, such freedom when I consider my kids, my home, all the things I try to control, as not mine, but His.