offense

i have to thank my friend, kara, for a jog of my memory this weekend.  during the transitional months i forgot how to train my kiddos on the offense.  i've been running defense lately.  let me explain.  

our kids misbehave, we correct their behavior.  that sounds good, right?  

"allie, you need to use a gentler tone, please."  "caleb, let's have a more joyful attitude when i ask you to clean up your toys."  "riley, we are not going to pitch a fit at the grocery store.  please find your self control."

nothing wrong with any of those statements EXCEPT, if you are me, you are saying them on repeat... broken record status!!

i have found that the BEST and most rewarding way to train our kiddos is to work on these things offensively.  when nothing is going wrong and there is nothing to correct.... that's when you lay it on thick!

for instance...

with allie we have done role play before.  she'll be playing her littlest pet shop and i'll pop in and play alongside her.  as we are playing, i will pretend that one of the animals uses a harsh tone, his mommy/daddy corrects him, he responds well, and corrects his tone the next time.  almost every time she asks to do it too and she'll repeat the same scenario and thinks it's so fun.

with caleb we play alot of "what if" games.  driving is a great time to chat it up with your kids and get them thinking.  "what if it's time to go and you aren't done playing?"  "what if your friend pushes past you and beats you to the slide?"  "what if i ask you to pick up your toys and you just don't feel like it?" and i love to throw in silly ones to keep them interested.  "what if you are playing in the front yard and you step in dog poo?"  "what if you were on the sidewalk and the sprinklers turned on and soaked you?"  "what if lightening mcqueen drove up in our driveway?"

with riley we would drive to the grocery store and need absolutely NOTHING.  we were going just for training purposes.  that way if things got crazy.... no big deal... i could bale and not be frustrated.  but if things went well, i could be intentional about praising good behavior.  

all that to say... it's time to get back to training this way.  we have been playing defense far too long and this momma is TIRED!   i'm grateful that tomorrow starts a new week and we have a fresh focus to start it with! woohoo... bring it on monday!

and here are some random pics of what life with boys is like these days:

towers out of spices

lots of super heros

pirates are a must

and this was the day of tornado sirens and playing in the closet

cars, blocks, starwars, and balls

kids' bathroom

so i realize that the kids' bathroom is not the most exciting post, but it's what i have to work with right now. this is our friend, david, helping us out one night.  he was busy taking all the hardware off the walls and prepping this room for painting when i came in and expressed my desire to have the mirror removed.  

hee,hee 

please?

and down it came!

thanks daver!

as you can see... the mint green was a favored color in this home and before that... terracotta color!  as much as i like both of those colors - we decided to use the coastal villa (same as the boys' room) in here.

my precious friend alli (wife of said mirror remover, david) gave us a mirror that they weren't using to replace the one removed on a crazy impulse.  

it had more of an oriental flare that didn't seem to jive so, of course, i painted it.

here it is before:

afterwards, we had a grey bathroom with orange accents

down the road, we plan on staining the cabinets black like we did at our old house.  love how those turned out.  you can see those HERE.

now here is where my blog turns into reader participation... see that rather large section of floor and wall space?  my thought is to put in a bench with storage so that laundry can be thrown inside.  if you ever see a black bench with storage, let me know.  or else, my hubby is going to have another project and, believe me, he's had plenty. ;)

roll out your letter!

today is a great day.  the sun is shining. i had bible study.  my kids are a joy. 

and man,  oh man, don't i wish that was the norm.  

but the reality is that most days look much foggier than that.  and maybe you're one of my friends in the fog - the sun isn't shining quite so bright.  you just asked your child in your not so restrained voice (wink, wink) for the fifth time to stop ______________.  you fill in the blank. you aren't even sure where your bible is right now and even if you found it, it has been so long since you've read it that you wouldn't really know where to begin.  is that you?

i was reminded of the gloomier days by some of the ladies in my study today.  trying to get pregnant with no success.  finding out about uncertain health related issues.  trying to sell a house with no potential buyers.  dealing with ongoing health issues that make you sick everyday and interrupt normal life.  walking through menopause.  girls, the junk is out there!  and many times, we don't even know how to pray.  in which case, we throw up our hands and praise the LORD for the words of Romans 8:26 telling us not to worry, the Spirit himself prays on our behalf!  

as i sat in that circle today, i was thinking on some recent and not so recent days that seemed so clouded.  i clung to the ever so popular story of King Hezekiah in 2kings 18 and 19.  not familiar?... nor was i until a friend shared it with me as to shed a little light into my fog.  and so, i thought i would share as to spread that light for those that find themselves without words to pray and without light to see. i'm going to paraphrase, but i want to encourage you to read God's word for yourself.  he reveals different things to everyone! here goes-

• The Assyrian king is threatening Jerusalem
• The Assyrians are powerful and have "laid waste to many nations and destroyed their lands"
• The Assyrian officials are trying to discredit king Hezekiah.
• Hezekiah surrounded himself with trusted advisers
• Hezekiah received a letter from the Assyrians explaining what kind of devastation they were going to bring upon Jerusalem
• Hezekiah took the letter to the temple of the LORD and spread it out, praying that the LORD would hear, see, and deliver them.
• that very night 185,000 Assyrian soldiers dropped dead
• THE END

what?? crazy, amazing story.  is our God not incredible!?  so what is it, friends... what is written on your letter?  what can you not handle?  what is too hard?  what is too big?  we can't do it, but he has an answer! he has an outcome!  he has the solution!  i guarantee that king Hezekiah didn't see that one coming.  and i'm sure you couldn't even dream up the way he's going to answer your prayer... but he does have a rescue plan.  it might not be spelled out your way - but it does exist.  don't lose hope.  roll out your letter, surrender control, submit to HIS ways and watch for his light to shatter your darkest days!

boys room

the boys' room had three light blue walls and dark blue wall (not quite a navy).  not bad colors, but didn't go with everything we would be bringing in and that ceiling fan was mammoth!

BEFORE:

AFTER:

we painted the room coastal villa, took down that fan, and set up the bunk bed!

caleb has a spot for pictures and art. 

AND i love the plantation shutters. are you a fan? we have them throughout and i'm super dooper thankful! ;)

a little reading spot.  lance got these for a $1 a piece at a movie theater years ago.  he made a base for them and now they look like stadium seating in this sports themed room.

a baseball bat, framed Wrigley field, and i'd call this room DONE and DONE!

however, every parent knows that the best part of a kid's room is the organization.  it can be cute as can be, but if you're not organized... it won't stay cute. 

right?

those lockers are holding the small toys:

tubs in the bottom of the closet hold frequently requested toys (just in their reach... no assistance needed)

and tubs in the top of the closet hold BIG toys or things with a million pieces. so far this is working well and heaven knows (although it is silly) that i LOVE matching tubs. ;)

details of the master

my favorite piece in our bedroom is this side table.  rustic. teal blue. ahh. 

i LOVE it!

my sweet sister gave it to me and it makes me smile.

(i apparently need to do something about the cord that hangs down)

i also love that the room is big enough to have a quiet spot chair.  this chair was in my parents bedroom at one point and now ours.  early morning readings and snuggles with kids are going to be so cozy! i'm on the hunt for a small, round side table to sit just between the bed and the chair.

this is the dresser on the wall across from our bed. the mirror takes an already large room and makes it feel really spacious!

and for some reason this room has a little nook just as you walk in... it holds our tall dresser, a catch all basket, and a lamp.

 that's our space! a few little additions and we will be all set in it!

let's get started

so i told you that we painted all the rooms except one.  let me explain.  the before pictures are not horrible as with some houses that people flip.  however, lance and i LOVE warm colors and this house most definitely had all cool paint colors.  

and just in case you were wondering, this is one way that you paint an entire house in four days with kids...

paint can become entertainment. haha

let's start with the master bedroom.  this minty green color had to go!  ;)

BEFORE:

AFTER:

more details on this room later.  but here is a shot from the exact same spot.  we used chateau paint by behr. bye, bye minty green!

90 days later

we moved to the dallas area the last week in december and now, 90 days later, we have a house!  to say we were excited would be a HUGE understatement and to say that we are grateful would be even more of one.  we know that the purchase of this home did not come of our own accord.  many, many people gave graciously in many ways to make this dream come true and for that we can NEVER say enough thank yous!

the night we got the keys, we had "pizza and prayer" in the new house.  if i'm being totally honest... the kids were so wound up and hyper that it turned into "pizza and run through an empty house."  haha! our hearts were in the right place, LORD. ;)

here is the front... i have a feeling the shutters and door will get an update sometime in the future.

the tree swing was an addition lance made because everyone hangs out in their front yards and the neighbors had one too so... well, unless we wanted to keep asking them if the kids could swing... it was a must!

this is the view down our street and the path to pick A up from school.  we walk most days because it is oh, so close.

we are loving our home and our neighborhood.  the LORD totally provided (why do i ever doubt?).  i was so nervous to move to the "big city" and this area feels so small town. A's school has only two kindergarten classes!  i can't believe it, especially considering that we are about 8 minutes from 635.  the next few days i will be posting some before and after pics because we did paint every room but one.