Tonight I did the anti-parenting thing: I messed with the kids' bedtime. I'm not super-dee-duper strict on their bedtimes, but they each have a time which they get sent upstairs to get ready for bed and then, well, go to bed. We are usually within 5-10 minutes of that time for each kiddo.
I sent Linc to bed first and then, once he was ready, I laid down next to him, just to hang out for a bit. Then I realized that Jayne's bedtime had passed me by so I texted her from upstairs (don't make fun of convenience, folks...) and then kept texting her funny gifs until she rolled her eyes and came upstairs. (I didn't see her roll her eyes but she did send me a gif asking me if I was crazy so I'm certain there was an eye roll in there somewhere.)
And then she came and laid down on the other side of me and we looked at old Instagram pics for about 40 minutes. And giggled our booties off. Like completely gone. No more bums. (I write some funny stuff on Instagram, people! The pictures might not always be the best, but the captions are hilarious... in my kids' opinion, anyway. I have not the slightest idea where that comes from, because I don't actually think I'm that funny... But if you want to see for yourself, my Instagram is @katcragin_writes. If you've read my sock saga on Instagram, then you know the hilarity that is my life with J and L. If you haven't read it, no big loss, I promise.)
So at this point, my kids' bedtimes had been long gone. Now granted, we homeschool, so flexibility is on our side. But typically, I still get them up at a decent hour because that's life: you still have to get up at a decent hour and be productive no matter what time you get to bed. (Preparing them for adulthood, I tell ya.)
I tucked them both in and let them go to sleep, 45-60 minutes later than usual. And I have no regrets. (I mean tomorrow morning might be different when I'm trying to rouse them from the depths of sleep, but currently: no regrets.)
Tonight, I prioritized things a little differently. I chose to reminisce with my kids, to giggle with them, and to hopefully create memories of "that one time Mom stayed up with us to look at funny pictures on Instagram." When they get older, I do want them to remember that we cared enough to try to get them ample sleep and give them a structured bedtime, for their own good. (It's the way we are wired around here.) But I also want them to remember the times when I was relaxed enough to enjoy our time together, bending the rules a bit to do so.
Now I don't know that there's a specific scripture that talks about letting your children stay up a little later than usual so that you can spend time giggling together (I'm pretty sure there isn't), but I do know that Jesus held children in a special place and in high regard. And he blessed them.
I think giggling with my children is blessing them.
I know it's a blessing for me!
KC
Thursday, November 15, 2018
Tuesday, November 13, 2018
good news, bad news
So good news: the flies are all dead.
Bad news: I'm freaking freezing!
I'm not a fan of the cold weather. I think I would be okay living in 80 degree weather for the rest of my life. I like the change of the seasons, but I can see them on the internet or by visiting places for short periods of time. It's not a necessity that I live somewhere that has a great show of colors in the fall, freezing temps in the winter, and rain, rain, rain in the spring. (Rain is a whole other post for another day...)
The temps dropped in a day around here, or so it seems. I'm pretty sure on Saturday it was still summer but on Sunday, it was suddenly winter. How that happened, I'm not sure. Global Warming, maybe? (Please note: this is, by no means, a political post about Global Warming. I know nothing about Global Warming, I'm not even sure I should be capitalizing it, because I have done absolutely no research on it. If that makes me ignorant, then so be it: I'm ignorant.)
So I walk around the house in pants and socks and slippers and a t-shirt under a sweatshirt, under another bigger, warmer sweatshirt. I don't even try to match any of my articles of clothing. If it keeps me warm, it is doing what it's required to do, whether it is plaid, striped, orange, or pink. (Fortunately for my boring self, a majority of my closet is some shade of black, white, or grey, so most everything matches anyway!)
The blankets are multiplying and yet I can't seem to find one that keeps me warm enough. They are appearing out of closets and baskets, off of couches and beds. They are piling up on little bodies and then left in places that are perfect for me to trip over. Perfect mounds of warmness, left in the middle of the hallway. Because where else would they go?! A closet? Back on the bed? That's dumb because they are just going to migrate back out into the hallway in a half hour...
And you know what sounds delicious? All the warm soups and breads and chowders and pasta dishes. And you know what I'm avoiding in my diet currently? Most soups, breads, chowders, and pasta dishes. So I'm going to have a cold, fresh salad instead: no croutons.
Getting out of bed in the morning is next to impossible when it's cold outside the bed. It's tough enough to do as it is, but add an element of chill and it's a battle of my wills. Actually, I'm not even sure if there's a battle. The little good angel on one shoulder is just as snug in the bed as the little bad angel... So if I'm late to anything during the cold winter days, I'll give you one guess as to why.
Negative Winter Nelly, I know it. I just don't care to be cold. It makes me a little grumpy and irritated!
But, let me tell you what winter also does for me: it helps me look for the good.
Looking for the good is something I have been trying my best to practice for many years. Once you start the habit of looking for the good, it's not that hard to find.
Winter lets me snuggle with my kiddos.
We sit together by my roaring fire when we do school work.
(It's not actually roaring; it puts out approximately 2 feet of warmth but we appreciate its effort.)
I get to wear my fuzzy slippers.
I also get to wear my boots. I love my boots!
And fun long socks and beanies and leg warmers. Yes. Leg warmers. Don't laugh. They're adorable!
The trees are actually quite pretty in our little town. Combinations of orange, yellow, and red.
This weather means Thanksgiving is near, followed closely by Christmas and I LOVE holiday traditions!
And best of all: the flies are dead.
All of them.
Dead.
Keep looking for the good, my friends.
Find those things to be thankful in the middle of the cold, even if it's just the lack of flies.
(Well... that is not a sentence I ever foresaw myself writing!)
KC
Bad news: I'm freaking freezing!
I'm not a fan of the cold weather. I think I would be okay living in 80 degree weather for the rest of my life. I like the change of the seasons, but I can see them on the internet or by visiting places for short periods of time. It's not a necessity that I live somewhere that has a great show of colors in the fall, freezing temps in the winter, and rain, rain, rain in the spring. (Rain is a whole other post for another day...)
The temps dropped in a day around here, or so it seems. I'm pretty sure on Saturday it was still summer but on Sunday, it was suddenly winter. How that happened, I'm not sure. Global Warming, maybe? (Please note: this is, by no means, a political post about Global Warming. I know nothing about Global Warming, I'm not even sure I should be capitalizing it, because I have done absolutely no research on it. If that makes me ignorant, then so be it: I'm ignorant.)
So I walk around the house in pants and socks and slippers and a t-shirt under a sweatshirt, under another bigger, warmer sweatshirt. I don't even try to match any of my articles of clothing. If it keeps me warm, it is doing what it's required to do, whether it is plaid, striped, orange, or pink. (Fortunately for my boring self, a majority of my closet is some shade of black, white, or grey, so most everything matches anyway!)
The blankets are multiplying and yet I can't seem to find one that keeps me warm enough. They are appearing out of closets and baskets, off of couches and beds. They are piling up on little bodies and then left in places that are perfect for me to trip over. Perfect mounds of warmness, left in the middle of the hallway. Because where else would they go?! A closet? Back on the bed? That's dumb because they are just going to migrate back out into the hallway in a half hour...
And you know what sounds delicious? All the warm soups and breads and chowders and pasta dishes. And you know what I'm avoiding in my diet currently? Most soups, breads, chowders, and pasta dishes. So I'm going to have a cold, fresh salad instead: no croutons.
Getting out of bed in the morning is next to impossible when it's cold outside the bed. It's tough enough to do as it is, but add an element of chill and it's a battle of my wills. Actually, I'm not even sure if there's a battle. The little good angel on one shoulder is just as snug in the bed as the little bad angel... So if I'm late to anything during the cold winter days, I'll give you one guess as to why.
Negative Winter Nelly, I know it. I just don't care to be cold. It makes me a little grumpy and irritated!
But, let me tell you what winter also does for me: it helps me look for the good.
Looking for the good is something I have been trying my best to practice for many years. Once you start the habit of looking for the good, it's not that hard to find.
Winter lets me snuggle with my kiddos.
We sit together by my roaring fire when we do school work.
(It's not actually roaring; it puts out approximately 2 feet of warmth but we appreciate its effort.)
I get to wear my fuzzy slippers.
I also get to wear my boots. I love my boots!
And fun long socks and beanies and leg warmers. Yes. Leg warmers. Don't laugh. They're adorable!
The trees are actually quite pretty in our little town. Combinations of orange, yellow, and red.
This weather means Thanksgiving is near, followed closely by Christmas and I LOVE holiday traditions!
And best of all: the flies are dead.
All of them.
Dead.
Keep looking for the good, my friends.
Find those things to be thankful in the middle of the cold, even if it's just the lack of flies.
(Well... that is not a sentence I ever foresaw myself writing!)
KC
Monday, November 12, 2018
the word
Ya know, I'm not really the type of person who picks out a word that defines me for the year. I haven't had a year of "rest" or a year of "hustle." I think so much happens in a year that it's hard for me to determine what kind of year it's going to be before it even starts. I mean a year ago my life went a completely different direction than I had planned out when I found out my mom had a large cancerous tumor that had to be removed, followed by chemo treatments that wiped her out completely. That'll change the course of the year for a gal. (Even more so for my mom, obviously!)
(And for those who aren't aware, she stopped the chemo at the end of last year and has been recovering this entire year, pushing herself to get stronger and make healthier choices for herself. She has an appointment in a week to see if that tumor decided to leave and never come back.)
This year was the same as all my other years: I didn't pick out a word. But there's one that keeps showing up frequently. It appears when I write. It appears in my home decor. It appears when I study scripture with my kids. It comes up in conversations with my friends. It shows up in pretty much all of my pastor's sermons. It has ALWAYS been present in my life, but this year it feels like God is flashing the word in bright letters right in front of my face everywhere I go.
KATHY: PAY ATTENTION THIS TIME!!
It's grace.
Undeserved favor.
I did not ever earn it.
I still cannot do anything to earn it.
I definitely do not deserve it. I stink at being good and perfect and righteous.
And here I sit, still bummed on myself and all my imperfectness, badness, and wrongness.
Seriously, you guys! Why is it so hard to grasp this concept?
I have theories.
I think we are surrounded by expectations and judgement in this world. We don't hand out enough grace ourselves. We don't receive enough grace from those around us. It's not practiced near enough. So it's not familiar and not easy to accept. Especially in a world that makes you try to earn everything!
And this is not just in the worldly world, the secular world, the non-Christian world. It's right here in front of our Christian noses. I'm not sure God even needs to judge us because we are doing a pretty good job of judging each other here. (I mean, He really does need to judge us: we stink at being judges because we are each pretty full of yuck and filth and He isn't at all, which makes Him much better at this whole judging thing.)
And we are fighting a constant battle with the devil who tells us that we have to be good and perfect enough in order to receive this gift of grace. Which he knows we never will be so that's just cruel. Mean old devil.
So for all those reasons, I put that word up in my home, and talk about it in conversations, and teach my children about it, and continue to learn about it from the Bible. Because I need constant reminding that my God is so loving that He gifted me this phenomenal grace despite me and my shortcomings.
Now what to do with that grace...
Keep making those bad choices over and over and over again?
I think of it like this: If I had a car that had a dent in it, another little ding in it wouldn't be that big of a deal, and if I ended up in a fender bender with my dented and dinged up car, I probably wouldn't get too upset and then if I lost a headlight or a fender, well, it's already a trash heap so whatever.
But if someone looked at that heap and traded me their brand new Maserati (I cannot help my love for expensive cars) for that pile of trash, I think I might take better care of that Maserati and drive with more caution and be more mindful of my driving choices because I am SO grateful for this amazing car that someone graciously gave me, even though I wasn't a good driver and didn't take good care of my heap beforehand!
(Is this making sense to anyone else whose brain likes things explained in pictures like mine does?)
So this gift of grace is our motivator. It inspires us to try harder to be better out of our gratitude to God who gave it to us. Are we going to do a perfect job at not sinning? HA! No, but you might find your attitude is adjusted when you truly understand what this grace means for your life. And you might also find yourself handing out that grace a little more freely than before you had received it. (You know, kinda like a "pay it forward" sort of deal.)
In order for us to be constantly reminded of this grace, maybe we should follow Paul's lead in his letters and greet one another with grace and peace every day.
"Grace and peace to you, Karen!"
"And grace and peace to you as well, Debbie!"
For some reason, I don't think that will catch on...
KC
(And for those who aren't aware, she stopped the chemo at the end of last year and has been recovering this entire year, pushing herself to get stronger and make healthier choices for herself. She has an appointment in a week to see if that tumor decided to leave and never come back.)
This year was the same as all my other years: I didn't pick out a word. But there's one that keeps showing up frequently. It appears when I write. It appears in my home decor. It appears when I study scripture with my kids. It comes up in conversations with my friends. It shows up in pretty much all of my pastor's sermons. It has ALWAYS been present in my life, but this year it feels like God is flashing the word in bright letters right in front of my face everywhere I go.
KATHY: PAY ATTENTION THIS TIME!!
It's grace.
Undeserved favor.
I did not ever earn it.
I still cannot do anything to earn it.
I definitely do not deserve it. I stink at being good and perfect and righteous.
And here I sit, still bummed on myself and all my imperfectness, badness, and wrongness.
Seriously, you guys! Why is it so hard to grasp this concept?
I have theories.
I think we are surrounded by expectations and judgement in this world. We don't hand out enough grace ourselves. We don't receive enough grace from those around us. It's not practiced near enough. So it's not familiar and not easy to accept. Especially in a world that makes you try to earn everything!
And this is not just in the worldly world, the secular world, the non-Christian world. It's right here in front of our Christian noses. I'm not sure God even needs to judge us because we are doing a pretty good job of judging each other here. (I mean, He really does need to judge us: we stink at being judges because we are each pretty full of yuck and filth and He isn't at all, which makes Him much better at this whole judging thing.)
And we are fighting a constant battle with the devil who tells us that we have to be good and perfect enough in order to receive this gift of grace. Which he knows we never will be so that's just cruel. Mean old devil.
So for all those reasons, I put that word up in my home, and talk about it in conversations, and teach my children about it, and continue to learn about it from the Bible. Because I need constant reminding that my God is so loving that He gifted me this phenomenal grace despite me and my shortcomings.
Now what to do with that grace...
Keep making those bad choices over and over and over again?
I think of it like this: If I had a car that had a dent in it, another little ding in it wouldn't be that big of a deal, and if I ended up in a fender bender with my dented and dinged up car, I probably wouldn't get too upset and then if I lost a headlight or a fender, well, it's already a trash heap so whatever.
But if someone looked at that heap and traded me their brand new Maserati (I cannot help my love for expensive cars) for that pile of trash, I think I might take better care of that Maserati and drive with more caution and be more mindful of my driving choices because I am SO grateful for this amazing car that someone graciously gave me, even though I wasn't a good driver and didn't take good care of my heap beforehand!
(Is this making sense to anyone else whose brain likes things explained in pictures like mine does?)
So this gift of grace is our motivator. It inspires us to try harder to be better out of our gratitude to God who gave it to us. Are we going to do a perfect job at not sinning? HA! No, but you might find your attitude is adjusted when you truly understand what this grace means for your life. And you might also find yourself handing out that grace a little more freely than before you had received it. (You know, kinda like a "pay it forward" sort of deal.)
In order for us to be constantly reminded of this grace, maybe we should follow Paul's lead in his letters and greet one another with grace and peace every day.
"Grace and peace to you, Karen!"
"And grace and peace to you as well, Debbie!"
For some reason, I don't think that will catch on...
KC
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