Letting go of expectations....

Today was just one of those days.  A day where everything seemed like an uphill battle. 

It started out seemingly normal, except for some mild crankiness from our oldest.  Crankiness turned into whining (Oh! How I deplore whining!).  Whining into crying.  Crying into rudeness, talking back, and a general mean-spirit.  This resulted in Josiah spending much of the morning sitting in the corner, sulking, and waiting for his heart to change.  All this before Daddy whisked out the door for a full day of meetings. 

Alas, the heart did change, though the sulkiness somehow remained.  Expectation #1:  A true heart change results in a happy, easy to care for child.  WRONG!  While Josiah did repent for his bad attitude, his sulkiness remained.  Thankfully, in this moment during the day, I did indeed listen to the prompting of the Holy Spirit.  I asked.  I dug.  I nudged.  And I finally uncovered what his little spirit was wrestling with.  He missed his Grandma & Granddaddy from North Carolina.  He had to say goodbye to them on Sunday as we traveled back to NY.  And to him, saying goodbye meant "I'll never see you again." 

Its moments like this today where God is teaching me a valuable lesson.  My life isn't about my agenda.  It isn't about my expectations.  It isn't really about me at all.  But its about learning to live sacrificially.  Learning to love sacrificially.  Did I have other plans for this morning?  YOU BET!  Did I really want to deal with a difficult child most of the day?  DEFINITELY NOT!  Do I like being inconvenienced?  ABSOLUTELY NOT!  But it's not about me.  It's not about living for myself, but demonstrating God's love to my children.  So here's to letting go of my own expectations.  Letting go of my own ideas on how the day should go (which can often be unrealistic).  Letting go of what I think is the necessary agenda, and letting God's agenda play out instead. 

Abby, Jojo, and Granddaddy

Abby & Grandma

 

Jojo and his two cousins, Shaina & Lea

So long October, hello November

Wow, has it really been over a month since we last posted?  Much has happened in that short period of time.  October always proves to be one of the busiest months of the year for us.  Two birthdays in our immediate family (Josiah turned 4, Bryan turned 36), 3 birthdays in our extended family (Mama Scott, Lisha-Bryan's sister, and Joshua-our nephew), 5 doctor appointments scheduled for just this month for our family, and then of course, Hurricane Sandy. 

This has by far been one of the most memorable Octobers for us in years--and that is probably the case for most in the Northeast.  Seeing the devastation from Hurricane Sandy has been heartbreaking.  We've seen Josiah even respond to the weight of this storm & its aftermath.  And we are so thankful that in the midst of it all, God is our hope forever and always; He is the rock that makes all our footings firm!

October also represents a milestone for me in that my first baby..... really isn't a baby anymore.  Josiah IS officially, officially a big boy.  Not only is his independence growing day by day, but in 10 months he will begin kindergarten.  Wow.  Makes me treasure my days at home with him all the more.

Well, finally our birthday post to our sweet son Josiah!  Josiah, you continue to amaze us everyday with your generous heart, your fierce competitive spirit, and your love for games, knowledge, and fun.  Happy birthday (well, on October 11th) to our baby boy!

As part of his birthday celebration, Josiah and I went to Eleni's Bakery--a nut-free bakery in NYC!  Josiah LOVED these fancy cookies from the Upper East Side.  Delish!

  

One of our close college friends spent the day with us on Josiah's birthday!  He loved all the extra attention from Christine--and the awesome dinosaurs! We love you Christine!

 And of course, Grandma Kim wanted to make sure we got Abby her own gift as well--a baby doll stroller! (and its a good thing we did!  As we found out on Bryan's birthday, Abigail threw a fierce fit when she was not allowed to open Bryan's gift!)

 Josiah excited to receive his lego sets from Mommy & Daddy.

 

 Big boy put together his ambulance with very little help from me! Way to go!

 Preparing for Josiah's birthday party a couple of days later.

 Our sweet guy with his German Chocolate birthday cake! YUM!

His birthday buddies--Aiden & Samuel.

Thanks to all our family and friends for making Josiah feel so loved & blessed during his birthday week!

Well, so long for now...and happy election day!