My Babies Can Read

Every morning, my girls watch a segment from the instructional DVD set, "My Baby Can Read." So far, it seems to be working. Well, at least for me anyways. Did you know there are two kinds of elephants? African elephants and Asian elephants? Or did you know how to correctly spell "hippopotamus" before I typed it for you? Come on, tell the truth. Hippopotamus is a really hard word to spell. I still don't really understand why it is one of the first words they teach babies on this DVD. But what do I know anyways?

There is a lot that I don't know.

There is one thing that I do know and that is that I don't know much at all. That used to be really hard to admit. I have always been the person that "knew it all." Or at least I pretended to be. This Blog has really challenged me to be honest with God, myself and all of you about this very thing. How freeing it has been. You understand what it means when I say, "this inspired a BLOG post, right?" What that really means is either, "I have realized a weakness inside myself, I have had a bad moment or that I have been faced with a difficult situation. I have learned something new. So what does that say about me posting 2-3 times per week these days? (Haha)

A Peek at this Week's Posts.

So this week's posts will be all about what I am currently learning.
Learning to Fall.
Learning to Laugh.
Learning to Bake Pumpkin Bread.



TRUTH: 

"Babies love to learn new things, 

because of the joy that learning brings. 

Learning is so much fun, 

I hope I'm learning when I'm a hundred and one."-My Baby Can Read DVD

DARE: Don't stop learning, even when you're a hundred and one.

Pumpkin Patch

Since BJ had this past Monday off from work we decided to take the girls to the pumpkin patch. I had been looking forward to the girls' first pumpkin patch experience all week long. We got up early like we normally do, made breakfast, got the girls dressed and we were off! I didn't even need a cup of coffee to wake me up, I was so excited. The girls looked super cute in their skinny jeans and over sized hair bows. This day was going to be perfect! So I thought.

This is what I had in mind.

We didn't plan to just go to any ole' pumpkin patch. We found a cute little farm about 25 miles away. Which in LA means it's going to take you awhile to get there. This farm has a Harvest Festival where they serve homemade lemonade, churros, fresh fruits, delicious food and more. They have a petting zoo, merry go round, and even a trian. This place has the works. I looked online to make sure that the "Harvest Festival" was going on throughout the week. According to the online information, it was. I knew this day was going to be perfect. We charged our camera the night before so would be ready to capture all the priceless moments at the pumpkin patch. I imagined us strolling through the farm, drinking our lemonade and spending the afternoon together. We would buy a basket of fresh fruit and let the girls eat from it.

This is what actually happened.

We got the girls out of the car and into their stroller. I pulled out the Flip Camera and began to record this wonderful day we were going to have. As we walked up to the Farm we noticed something. There wasn't anyone there. We knew it would be a lot less crowded on a Monday morning, but this place was pretty desolate. We weren't too concerned and continued on. It was already a pretty warm day in southern California and we were ready for a fresh cup of iced lemonade. We followed the signs to the lemonade stand and realized that it was closed. So we decided we would grab a bottled water and a churro. That stand was closed too. The whole place was closed down, Except for a small stand selling bottled water and miniature cans of soda. Not my idea of an amazing experience at the farm.

How I reacted.

Let's just come back another day! This is a waste of time! Yes, those were my exact words to my husband. I was so upset. This whole day I had planned was ruined. Yes, ruined. Nothing was turning out the way I had imagined it would. There was no petting zoo, kids had to be at least 2 years old to ride the train, and there wasn't anything to eat except some old kettle corm popcorn they had bagged up to sell. We started making our way to the car and as we were loading the girls back into their car seats my husband BJ said something that put me in my place.

It's what you make of it.

"This moment right now, this experience, is what you decide to make of it. Just because it hasn't worked out perfectly doesn't mean this day can't be perfect." Wow! This couldn't be more true. Why did this day have to be counted as a wash? Why had I allowed a few things that didn't go my way effect my attitude?  My girls unfortunately aren't going to remember their first pumpkin patch experience except for the pictures we take and the stories we tell. I didn't want the stories I would eventually share to be of how mommy was so dissapointed we decided to leave. Instead I wanted the story to be of a perfect day we spent at the pumpkin patch. Ok, maybe more like an hour we spent at the pumpkin patch. But you get what I'm saying. It really wasn't about the lemonade or the petting zoo. It was about the memories we made together. And that's exactly what we did. We bought a bottled water and took the girls around the farm taking pictures. It turned out to be so much fun!

When life gives you lemons, make lemonade.

How many times do we miss the sweetest, most memorable moments because we are too busy being upset? There will always be things that don't turn out the way we imagined or planned for, but it is what we do with those moments that count. It's an attitude shift. You have heard the saying, "when you are given lemons make lemonade." I wish someone would have given me lemons that day, because I sure would have made us all lemonade. As cliche as it is, it's great advice. I need to not take things so seriously. I've found that it is ok to expect great things but not to plan out every last detail. Whether I go on a date with my husband or take my kids to the pumpkin patch. A perfect experience is what I determine is perfect.


Are you like me? Have you put too much expectation on an experience, a friend, or a spouse? Or maybe you haven't expected too much, but what you are experiencing it is hard to see the glass half full? I know I have spent too many days seeing things from the wrong perspective. I have allowed what didn't happen or hasn't happened effect what could have happened. If you forget to pay the light bill and they turn off the power on your anniversary, instead of making one another feel guilty, light a few candles and make it romantic (true story). If you realize you spent more than you should have and you have a few days before pay day, instead of getting frustrated, find creative dishes you can make using only the ingredients and food you have in your house (another true story). When you can't find the cable to upload your "pumpkin patch" experience to your computer so you can add it to your BLOG, instead of not posting the BLOG, post it without pictures and re-post it with pictures the next day (another true story, just happened right now).



TRUTH: " People are always blaming their circumstances for what they are. I don't believe in circumstances. The people who get on in this world are the people who get up and look for the circumstances they want and if they can't find them, make them." - George Bernard Shaw


DARE: See life from a cup half full perspective and treat yourself to some freshly squeezed lemonade.

SECOND CHANCE MOM

Hey friends!

I am so very excited about today's post. I have had the amazing opportunity to be a guest blogger on "People of The Second Chance website." Click on the link below and go check it out! Would love to read your responses on the POTSC website.




SECOND CHANCE MOM

Out of Reach

Never mind "Keeping up with the Kardashians", life is extremely busy just keeping up with the Johnson girls. We are 9 1/2 months old and we spend our days crawling, standing, attempting to walk, playing with Daddy's iPad and currently chewing on our doggie's bone. We are everywhere and in everything! Life has gone to another level. It is so much fun seeing life through their eyes and as exhausting as it can be, I truly love this season of being a mommy.

Kennedi and Brooklyn are their daddy's girls. They love iPads, iPhones, lap tops and anything media. The other day as we were playing, Kennedi noticed mommy's lap top which was of course a whole lot more exciting then her pretend cell phone. (yes they know the difference) As she reached for it, I moved it just slightly out of reach. For the next few minutes I watched as she tried everything in her power to get to my lap top. I attempted to distract her with something else and before I knew it, she had moved on and was unpacking her diaper bag.


For your protection.

A moment like this happens just about every five minutes, whether I am drying their wet hands from splashing in the dog's water bowl, pulling them out from the cupboards or moving things out of their reach.  I am not trying to be a mean mommy to my love bugs when I do, but in actuality I am being a good one. Kennedi wasn't reaching for my lap top in hopes to send out a few e mails and post a few status updates. She wanted to take my lap top and put it in her mouth. I move things out of reach not to punish them but to protect them.

I'm a lot like my daughters. There are things that I want so desperately but God has moved them just slightly out of reach for my protection. Not because He is a mean God and doesn't want me to have certain things, but it's because He loves me and knows that I don't quite know what to do with them yet. Maybe for you it is a husband or a wife you are believing God to bring you. You know that he or she is out there but right now God has moved that relationship out of reach. Maybe it's a promotion at your job that you want desperately but for some reason it just hasn't landed in your hands quite yet. Whatever "it" might be, God has strategically placed "it" just outside your reach for a reason. Not to punish you but to protect you.


When my girls understand that cell phones are for talking and bones are for dogs I will no longer have to keep those things out of their reach. But until then this place is baby proof.




TRUTH: For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. - Jeremiah 29:11


DARE: Trust God when He moves something out of reach. 

 

Drawing the Line

These past 10 days have been nothing short of crazy, funny and frustrating at times. I think just about every day I experienced something "BLOG worthy." So let me fill you in on my life for the past week and half.

Here goes CRAZY.
BJ, Kennedi, Brooklyn, our dog Graham and myself moved out of a two bedroom loft and into a one bedroom apartment. Good thing we don't have a pet fish because it would have had a permanent residence in the bathroom toilet.


Here goes FUNNY.
We were eating lunch after church last Sunday and we smelled something. The question wasn't if what we smelled was a poopy diaper, but was which baby was responsible. So I did what every mom has done and I did the good ole "diaper check." If you're a mom, you know what I'm talking about. As I pulled the diaper away to take a peak, I realized that the poop I smelled was at the top of her diaper and now was on my hand. Yep, I had lots of baby poop on my hand! I started cracking up. I went to the bathroom with baby in hand and my best friend Alyssa followed closely behind with the diaper bag. As I was washing my hands I asked, "Is this tweetable?" Her response, "It is now."

Here goes FRUSTRATING.
These past few weeks have been challenging in every way you can imagine. We have been confused, unsure and just plain ole frustrated as we have been trying to navigate through this thing called life. As most of you know my life has involved a lot of risk. BJ and I have packed up our things several times and moved to where God has asked us to go. Some moves were 3,000 miles in distance and this past trek across America, we brought along our twin baby girls. I have DARED many of you to take leaps of faith, to trust God with the impossible and to see Him fulfill His promises. I have seen God perform miracle after miracle in my life and in your life so why have these past few weeks been so challenging?

I decided to draw the line. 

"God, I have done what you have asked me to do. I have sacrificed. I have been obedient. What else do you expect from me? I'm drawing the line." These were my exact words to God a week ago as I sat on the stairs of my half empty apartment. In that moment, what God was asking me to do, I wasn't willing to. What he was asking me to sacrifice, I wasn't willing to sacrifice. I was drawing the line. Even more so, I was thinking about quitting this whole thing and began entertaining ideas of a normal life. Shouldn't we be settled into a nice little home with a white picket fence, drive two cars and a have a pet gold fish by now? Maybe we should. But is that what I really want? Is normal what I really dream of having? There is a great scene in the movie "Soul Surfer" where Bethany's mom makes a statement to her that hasn't left me.

"Normal is so overrated."
 

I don't want normal. But sometimes my current situation or the obstacle I am facing makes normal seem more exciting than it really is. BJ and I have been on a long journey just like you and we have dreams inside of us that we can not wait to see come to pass, but the journey to getting there is going to cost us everything. On the other side of the place we draw the line is often the place where God leads us to. It is in that place He hides himself and in that place we find His blessings. I was talking to one of my dear friends just this week and we were filling each other in on the latest and the greatest and even the not so greatest. She told me, "Sarah if you had normal you would hate it." I believe her. Nothing about my life has been normal and I pray that it never does. I pray yours never does either. 

It takes courage.

When we say no to a normal life we embrace a courageous life. It will take courage to face adversity head on and dare to believe that what God has placed in your heart will happen. It will take courage to stand against the "dream haters" (the people who think you are absolutely irresponsible and crazy) and not see your situation from their perspective but instead see it from His perspective. It will take courage when you feel like you have nothing left to give, nothing left to do and just stand. 

What miracle have you been tempted to quit believing for? What dream have you considered giving up on? Where are you drawing the line?

TRUTH: "Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:8-9(NLT)

DARE: Erase the line you have drawn in the sand. Forget normal. Take on courage.

 

My life is GREAT!

When I was young, my younger brother and I would pray with my dad before bed. We would each get a chance to thank God for things. We often would start listing off everything in sight. We would thank God for the trees, the clouds, the rain, the sun, the birds, etc. I think we hoped the longer the list the longer we didn't have to go to bed. And although that might have been true, I do believe we had a great perspective about this life we live.

For the past week I have been taking a morning stroll down to a local coffee shop. I buy my cup of Joe, find my favorite place to sit and reflect. It has been quite relaxing and something that I have truly looked forward to every morning. 

This morning was no different. I bought my coffee (ok,ok and an apple crunch muffin too, but who is taking notes?) and sat down in my favorite little place. Instead of writing in my journal I decided to read my past entries. I read of bad days and good days. I read of frustrations and of miracles. Every worry or doubt seemed to have worked itself out in the pages to come. Tears streamed down my face as I realized everything I have ever worried about God had come through for me. Over and over again. 


I starred at the blank pages yet to be written in and decided to write down all the things I am thankful for. It became a long list as I began to write down everything and anything I laid my eyes on. My girls' smiles, my eyesight to see the beauty of the world, the air I breath, the birds in the air, were just a few that made the list. 

The things I woke up thinking/worrying about no longer seemed so significant. It was a perspective shift I so desperately needed. I know it is not easy took look past our current situations, so I think it's important we look back and take account of all that we have overcome. In the end, you will find just how great your life really is. 






TRUTH:  “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?

 “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin.  Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?' For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.                                                                                             

                                                                                                                                 MATTHEW 6:25-34

DARE: Write a list of things that you are grateful for and see just how great your life really is.

Hold on Baby

My girls are 8 months old! I can not believe how quickly time is flying. It feels like it was just yesterday that we brought these two little babies home from the hospital. I am absolutely head over heels, in love with Kennedi and Brooklyn! They are my world and there is nothing, absolutely nothing that I wouldn't do for them. 

I love being a mommy and so thankful I can stay home with them. We have so much fun throughout the day! Whether it’s watching "My Baby Can Read", trying new foods, reading our books, playing in our saucer or just snuggling on the couch. People are always asking me if it is crazy taking care of two babies, but honestly, I don't know any different. My mind has always and is always thinking in twos. And even though I have learned to empty the dishwasher, fold laundry, read a book, drink coffee all while holding them both in my arms (lol) there are times when I have to put them down for second. 

The other day I needed to change both of their diapers before feeding them and laying them down for a nap. I changed Kennedi and laid her on the bed while I changed Brooklyn. Well, Kennedi was very hungry and thought that right after her diaper change she was going to eat. So when I laid her down she started crying. I tried my best to hurry and while I was changing Brooklyn I kept saying, "Hold on Baby, Mommy is going to feed you." Unfortunately, she didn't understand what I was saying to her and just became more frustrated. Those minutes I'm sure felt like a lifetime for her as she laid on the bed thinking she wasn't going to be fed. 

I'm a lot like my daughter Kennedi. I often find myself frustrated when I'm not where I used to be, but not where I want to be. I kick and scream in confusion while the Lord is saying, "Hold on Baby, Daddy has something great for you if you will just hold on." 

Maybe you are there today. Maybe you are confused and unsure about why God has you where He has you. I challenge you to just hold on. We must endure transitions and the "in- betweens" in order to get to where God ultimately has for us. He didn't bring you this far to leave you. He knows what He is doing. Just hold on.

TRUTH: We can make our plans,
      but the Lord determines our steps. Proverbs 16:9

DARE: Hold on.