It's Friday...

We've been doing lots of fun things lately and just generally enjoying life. One thing that I've done well as a mom is not overscheduling things. I know if you have older kids you are probably laughing because my kids are so young that it shouldn't really be a problem yet anyway... but I know plenty of moms with young kids that put their kids in everything or just generally book up their calendar. There's no wiggle room for playdates and transition time. By creating a pretty open calendar, it allows us to accept invitations that come at the last minute and not stress about hurrying to places all the time. It works really well for us and while I know our calendar will get more complicated over the next few years, I want to be sure to not overcommit and make sure I build margin into my life. I don't consider my life busy, but rather I call it "full" and that's the way we like it.

One thing an open calendar has allowed me to do is act on service opportunities. I've really tried to be mindful of praying for ways to serve those around me. Because I have been given much, I too must give. Last week, I had several things pop into my head that I should for someone else. I'm not tooting my own horn because there are plenty of times that I am so caught up in my own life that I don't genuinely seek the chance to have God show me who might be in need. But when life allows for it, it's a really beautiful thing to be able to feel connected with the Spirit so that we can respond by doing His work.

Anyway, I felt like a person at church might need a visit, so I randomly dropped everything to go to her house. It turns out that she really needed some support that particular day. What a blessing and I'm so glad I responded to that small voice that prompted me to go.

I won't get into the other things,but later in the week my friend who was moving sent out an email saying they wanted to get rid of their couch for FREE. Friends, the couches we have had in our living room have served us well over the years. They've been EVERYWHERE! They were originally my parents' and they kindly passed them along to me after several years for my college apt. Then they had a brief stint (for storage purposes at an ex-boyfriend's house), then they went to the Poway house we lived in when we were first married. Then onto Utah, Michigan, our SD apt, and now Virginia. They had seen better days. Normal wear and tear plus a brutal beating from children... let's just say that the springs sticking out of the back of the couch through a rip that was now being used as a foot hold for the boys to leap over the back of the couch, were a hazard. I'd been wanting new couches for a while, but couldn't justify the purchase at the stage we are in. So when this sectional came available, I jumped on it! It is seriously so nice. I felt like it was a little blessing coming back to us, after being mindful of serving others all week. Or maybe it was just good timing:)
 
Not crawling yet but this guy is on the move rolling everywhere!

He is trying so hard to get in on the action.

Austin had his preschool fiesta at school, which is such a crackup this far from the border. The school goes all out and the kids have a blast! Senior Austin. He's really done well learning some Spanish this year.


In other exciting news... Parker lost his first tooth. He first discovered it was wiggly at Chick Fil A on a Friday and by Monda it was wiggly enough for him to just pull out. The tooth fairy brought him a dollar. He asked if he still needed to keep brushing that tooth????