Proverbs 31:10

Did you know that Proverbs 31:10-31 is an acrostic? Each verse begins with a successive letter of the Hebrew alphabet. How neat is that. Acrostics are usually meant to be memorized. Emilee and I are going to work on memorizing this section of Scripture together.

NIV
¹⁰ A wife of noble character who can find?
She is worth far more than rubies.

NASB
¹⁰An excellent wife, who can find?
For her worth is far above jewels.

NLT
¹⁰ Who can find a virtuous and capable wife?
She is more precious than rubies.

KJ
¹⁰Who can find a virtuous woman? for her price is far above rubies.

Thoughts from Emilee and Mama:

We are precious to God. He loves us so much. As His daughters we are worth more than rubies or gold! A man who wants a godly wife may look for one that is pretty (takes care of her appearance), loving, kind, gentle, not lazy, a good housekeeper, loves children, is a good friend, and can cook. We both need to strive to be this woman. No woman is perfect but we can try hard to have these characteristics and skills. When we strive to be an excellent wife our husbands will cherish us in the same way God does; far above jewels.

Proverbs 31

Emilee and I have been reading God's Wisdom for Little Girls together. I've also been reading God's Wisdom for Little Boys with Jon as well. When I told Emilee that there was a whole section of scripture about how to be a Godly woman, her face lit up with joy and excitement. She and I are going to embark on a little Prov. 31 Woman study together to see what we can glean from it and how we can apply those virtues to each of our lives right now. I'll be sharing it here.

in a perfect world.....

I was a new young mom standing in the pediatrician's office concerned that things weren't going the way they were "supposed" to go with my baby to which the doctor replied, "In a perfect world, yes, you are right, but we don't live in a perfect world." There are no "supposed to"s with new babies and new mothers in the sense that they all do and act the same way.

I've had that phrase, "in a perfect world..." echoing in my mind ever since that day. Anytime I had concern about the development of one of my toddlers, illnesses I didn't know were coming my way, or life changes that I was unprepared for, I hear that pediatrician saying "in a perfect world...." No, we don't live in a perfect world.

So, why am I so surprised when life throws me a curve ball? Why, when a trial comes my way and life doesn't go according to MY plan do I act as if something strange is happening to me. It's not a perfect world so I shouldn't expect things to go the way they are "supposed to go"....whatever that is. What's normal anyway?

Realizing that the world is not perfect and that life is incredibly unpredictable, out of MY control, and lacking in "supposed to"s will help me to lower my false expectations. False expectations are something I've come to realize that we women are most susceptible to. False expectations let us down and leave us confused.

The only expectation I should have is that life is going to be hard and yet, if I let Him, God will hold me through it all. It reminds me of that song by Natalie Grant; Held. Whatever your storm is today, whatever was "supposed to" happen, whichever of your expectations are crumbling, whatever has you completely desperate.....remember that in an imperfect world, trials come and it reminds us of what it means to be held by God. This applies to every area of our lives; our marriages, our parenting, our friendships, our churches, etc.

Thanks Dr. Mendelson for opening my eyes to the fact that my expectations for a perfect world are unrealistic. I'm sure he didn't realize what an impact that one phrase made on me that day.

What is realistic? I have hope in a perfect God who holds me through every imperfection life has for me.

(Dr. Mendlelson was not only my firstborn's pediatrician but also mine. My firstborn is now 10 years old. )

Day Trip Bag

I have found through the years that it's handy to have a "day trip bag" always packed and ready to go. That way anytime my husband says "hey, let's (spontaneously) go do this or that right now!" I'm mostly ready to go. It's the common picture of the husband standing by the door, keys in hand while the wife is still "getting ready". Even if it's to throw necessary items into a bag, men hate waiting.....and I hate being under pressure to think of what we might need. A "day trip bag" solves a lot of this.

The bag we use is a hibiscus print tote that was from Hawaii. We naturally call it "the Hawaii bag". Keeping it already packed with items we might need to go out for just the day has saved time and sanity. I didn't start using a "day trip bag" until we were done with diaper bags and I felt like we still needed a diaper bag to hold all of our stuff for outings!

Our "day trip bag" actually goes with us just about everywhere....it's useful for:

• going to someone's house for dinner (I often have a few special toys in it to keep my kids occupied if there are no children there to play with)
• running errands (again, I keep some books in it that my kids are reading and snacks) to help get through shopping
  
• going to Grandma's house for the day (has anything they would need for over there)
• going to the zoo, museum, picnic, beach, lake, site seeing, road trips, short drives, etc.
• vacations
  
• concerts or performances
• on the airplane
  
• even took ours to church on Sundays when the kids were younger
• church picnic, potlucks, Bible study gatherings
• short meetings when my kids needed to be occupied for a few minutes (like signing loan paperwork, buying furniture or a car, etc.)
• doctor office visits
  
• and many more places
  

Some items that have worked well for our day trip bag are:

snacks (probably the most important item! no sooner am I somewhere with my kids and they are asking for a snack, I wish I had a snack to keep them quiet, or they need a snack because it's taken longer than I thought!)
sunblock
handy wipes
lip balm
sunglasses for the kids
hat for the kids
fresh hankies
small first-aid kit
bug spray
bottled water
camera
small toys
books
kid's sleeping blankies (if needed)
mittens
a pen

What is in our bag changes with the seasons and changes with the ages of our kids. I often clean it out and throw stuff back in. The best part is that my kids know the purpose of the Hawaii bag and so when we are getting ready to go somewhere they are old enough to think of something they might want or need and toss it in the bag as well. My husband also will throw his cap in there or his sandals for example.

Make life easier for yourself and put together a "day trip bag" that is ready to go by the door. With or without kids, this concept is a time saver.

Why is etiquette important?

Etiquette is the practice of putting others first before yourself. It's the act of denying self and giving others preference. Etiquette says "I care more about not offending you than I care about going about my own way." Etiquette acted out is manners. Manners are every day ways to act selflessly. Etiquette is the discipline by which we keep selfishness in check. It's a small way to sacrifice for others.

Christ was the best example of etiquette and manners.

updated post

I've updated this post since I have a sick one currently....

go camping

As I'm setting up a make-shift and temporary home for our family this week I was reflecting on all my years of camping. What does camping have to do with a temporary home? Everything. My situation at the moment could be incredibly stressful had I not grown up camping.

When you camp you learn the tricks of setting up a make-shift home. You learn to make do with what you have and not complain about what you don't have. Organizing a temporary kitchen with less than ideal storage is challenging but the creativity and skill that camping has developed in me helped me meet these challenges with ease.

A shoe box suddenly becomes a pantry storage box.

An old bookshelf becomes a make-shift pantry.

A toy rack stores paper goods.

Bedrooms are arranged for practicality instead of aesthetics.

Kitchen tools and gadgets are reduced to a minimum and find themselves being used for multiple purposes.

Camping has many more benefits than just this...like family bonding, team work, exploration, experiencing creation, hard work, living simply, and much more. I never realized till now though, what a practical influence it would have on my life until I was setting up a make-shift home for us this week. I can't think of many more activities that help mold us into well rounded people for life.