I don’t know about anyone else, but I’ve always kind of liked Awards shows. Okay, I’ll admit it, I LOVE the Academy Awards!! Before I had children, I used to see all of the nominated films each year. I held Oscar viewing parties, I had my ballot filled out and ready to go. One year, I even made Oscar themed games and gave away Academy Award winning movies for prizes!! Yes, there is a little domestic diva who lies buried inside of me and pops her head out from time to time! This year, I only saw Up. But I saw it every day for two months straight, so that has to count for something!!

As I’m watching the drama unfold on the red carpet (a.k.a. people with little sense and too much money tripping over one another to congratulate themselves on making more money and staying upright in stiletto heels) I can’t help myself. I start to picture myself on that stage, standing tall in my classy, strapless, Vera Wang with well-defined biceps and triceps, holing the Oscar for best original screenplay, and launching into my acceptance speech. This year, it goes something like this…

First of all, I’d like to thank God– not for the Oscar, because I don’t think God cares whether or not I win an Oscar, but for the opportunity to live this beautiful, albeit sometimes messy life. God’s limitless grace and mercy, his faithfulness, his unfailing love and presence has kept me going through all of the ups and downs. I thank God, too for the opportunity to bring this story to all of you. It is so important that we, as human beings, work to ensure a better future for all of our children. That’s why this award means so much to me–it brings the story to even more people. And that is my way of making a difference.

To my family, thank you! My wonderful husband, Chris, who saw more in me than I ever saw in myself. Who pushed me, encouraged me, convicted me and supported me. I would never have become the woman God intended me to be without you.

To my parents, Clell and Linda–where do I start? You taught me how to dream, how to believe, how to hope, how to have faith. You worked to build a foundation of love for my life, and I have been so blessed by that love. I hope I can honor you in all that I do.

To my sister Libby, my friend, my compatriot, my co-conspirator. Thank you for your passion and your fire. You inspire me to fight for a better world.

To my in-laws Ken and Mikki, how blessed I am to be part of your family!! Thank you for your amazing love and grace.

To Mrs. Rife, the Queen of Everything, I know you’re smiling down from heaven right now. Your Princess has come a long way, and I thank you for pushing me in the right direction. You never stopped believing.

To my students, thank you for all the lessons along the way. You might never know this, but you are so much a part of who I am. I have loved all of you. Listen to me tonight–you have the power to succeed! Don’t let your life hold you back–press on!

And finally, my two sweet, beautiful boys. I thank God for entrusting you to us every day. You are the lights of my life. This is for you!!

Well, there it is. My Academy Awards Acceptance Speech. Of course, I would have been ushered off the stage by “Oscar Girl” before finishing the introduction, but I’d have a hard copy if anyone wanted to listen to the rest. So, how about you? What’s your Award Winning Speech? I’d love to hear!

Blessings and Peace,
Sara

Found this on the Girlfriends With A Purpose Site and thought it looked fun. Join in if you want!

Interview Questions:

1. What’s your favorite time of the day, and why?
When my boys go to bed–peace and quiet!!
2. If health wasn’t an issue, what food could you live off of?
Chocolate, cheese, bread, guacamole, chips, queso, enchiladas, chocolate
3. If you could have one wish granted (besides wishing for more wishes), what would it be?
That all children would know what it is like to be loved.
4. What’s one thing that you get teased about a lot?
My husband’s favorite quote for me is, “Well, this is another fine mess you’ve gotten me into!”
5. If you could choose one movie, book, or TV show to spend your life in, which would you pick? What type of character would you be?
Pride and Prejudice–probably one of Lizzie’s friends. I like Charlotte, but would never marry Mr. Collins–ugh!!
6. If you could have one talent that you don’t already have, what would it be?
Sewing
7.If money were no object, where would you go on vacation?
Mediterranean Cruise
8. If you were an awesome singer, which genre would you sing?
Total Broadway Diva–all the way 🙂
9. If you could have a $10,000 shopping spree to one store, what would it be?
Barnes and Noble–books don’t care if I go up a pant size!
10. If you could live in any point in time, when would it be?
1940’s–lots going on, pre-post-modernism, electricity, indoor plumbing
11. If every outfit in your wardrobe had to be one color, what would it be?
Pink!
12. If you were one of the seven dwarves, which one would you be?
(Doc, Grumpy, Sneezy, Sleepy, Bashful, Happy, or Dopey)
Happy
13. What’s the last album you listened to?
Entire Album? U2-No Line on the Horizon
14. What’s something we’d be surprised to know about you?
I went to seminary, got a Master’s Degree in Christian Education, and haven’t used it once!! But, I did meet my hubby, so I’m not bitter about paying yet another set of student loans. 🙂

Lately, my almost four year old has been wanting to dress himself for the day, and sometimes also his little brother. For the most part, I let him wear what he wants. We should teach our children at an early age to develop their identity and learn to express themselves…. blah, blah blah. Basically, I don’t want to deal with a fit. So if, like today, he wants to wear a pair of my socks to school, so be it. Did I mention that these particular socks were blue and white with black moose all over them? I know, Ralph Lauren would fall over dead if he saw them, but they were a gift from my parents’ trip to Yellowstone last fall and I think they’re pretty cute. Apparently, so does my son. The socks weren’t so bad in and of themselves–seriously– it was more the combination of blue, black, and white moose socks with a gray and orange track suit that put the outfit over the edge. Before I left him at preschool, I made absolutely sure the teachers knew Mama had nothing to do with the socks. As I was leaving the school, I thought of a button I need to have made to pin to the front of his shirt: I Dressed Myself Today 🙂

I know it’s vain of me, but I’ve always put a lot of thought and effort into dressing my boys. There’s a certain look I’ve tried to cultivate, and it does not include knee-high socks, gym shorts, and black dress shoes with a paper made “Indian” hat on the top of his head. Nor does it include wearing his little brother’s clothes, even though they were technically his clothes first. High water pants and a midriff t-shirt do not communicate, “I come from a respectable family”. Then there are the “character” outfits. I cannot tell you how proud my husband was when Garrett brought him a blanket and asked, “Daddy, can you make me a princess?”

Apparently, fashion sense is a genetic trait. Surprise, surprise that the woman with the orange pants (technically, they were salmon) she found for seven dollars on the sale rack of a “ritzy” downtown store has a son who loves wearing moose socks. God bless him, he really doesn’t stand a chance!

Blessings and Peace,
Sara

I have been a terrible mother lately. I mean, terrible with a capital T that rhymes with Z that stands for “out of Zoloft”! My boys have been a bit high maintenance lately. My 21 month old has discovered the art of fit throwing, to the extent that I almost threw him in the car and drove him to urgent care yesterday with the thought that I wouldn’t leave until the doctors there could give me some rational reason as to why my “little blessing” was acting like a demon child! Instead, I stuck a bottle in his mouth and he was perfectly happy after downing 10 ounces of milk. He went on to have some yogurt, lasagna, bread and a brownie then ended the evening throwing himself off of an empty diaper box onto my lap.

The sad truth of the matter is that my behavior during the fit throwing hasn’t been much better. Yesterday morning found me locked in the bathroom showering and praying with a mix of guilt and self-loathing for yelling at my little tykes and relief that I had about fifteen minutes of peace. When God cut the cloth for maternal nature, I was obviously nowhere in site. The thought did occur to me during this first episode of the day that if churches are serious about growing then this is the ad they should place in the paper: “2 Hours FREE Quality Childcare: Worship and Sunday School Attendance Required”. Worship attendance would explode, although, so would the heads of your nursery workers!

I wish I could say that it got better after that, but it didn’t. I’ve already detailed the hour long fit episode. I yelled at my boys several times, culminating at four in the morning when the little one was screaming again after being up every couple of hours because of a stuffy nose. My response was to yell back and then bite his Daddy’s head off so I could play the martyr. Not pretty, but Stephen did stop crying. and we slept in the recliner for a few more hours.

Needless to say, I hated myself this morning. The feelings around motherhood can be a vicious cycle. The second I lose my patience with my boys I feel guilty and think I’m taking them for granted. Then I think about how precious and short life is which leads me deeper down the spiral of guilt and I think, if something happened to one of them, I would never forgive myself. Then the self-loathing takes over, and I remind myself of what a terrible mother I am and think of all of the wonderful, nurturing moms out there who are so much better than me. I was remembering watching the movie The Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood several years ago before I had children. There’s a scene where the mom loses it after a terrible night dealing with kid stomach flu and leaves for three days. She drives to the beach, rents a motel room, and sleeps. I remember turning to my friend and saying, “Oh my gosh! That’s going to be me!” Fortunately, I haven’t run away yet. But the thought has been there, which doesn’t say much for my character.

Yet as I was praying and processing through all of these emotions this morning, God let me know that this cycle just has to stop. Because, if I keep hating myself, no one else is going to care much for me either. And God has a lot he wants me to do. The truth of the matter is, God entrusted these two boys to both my husband and I and it’s our job to do our best to mirror God’s love to them. But, they also need to understand that everyone makes mistakes. And while I don’t like losing my temper with them, it provides me with an opportunity to show them how to apologize, and it offers them the opportunity to show grace. Sometimes, you can’t get to the grace without the crazy. 🙂

Blessings and Peace,
Sara

I’ve been reading some stories lately of people who have had life-changing encounters with God. Stories of people who have taken leaps of faith and had God guide them into new adventures and ministries. Stories of people who have trusted, when the act of trusting seemed absurd, and have had God work wonderful things through them. It has made me feel that I want a word from God, not just a “word”, but a full-blown burning bush arrows marking the path WORD. I find myself asking, “Why doesn’t God do that in my life?”

The reality is, he has, and is, and will. God tends to be loudest with me when I’m being most stubborn. For instance, several years ago when I told God I was not moving and I was not living alone I found myself in seminary in Chicago in an apartment by myself. Doors opened, God pushed, I went. Similarly, I told God that I was never going back to classroom teaching again. Five years later a door opened, God prodded, and I went. It’s been the best professional experience of my life. God needed me here, and he knew I needed to be here.

Yet recently, I’ve been getting a nudging. Things have been put into my path that have made me wonder, “What is God up to?” I have to confess, I’m not a huge believer in “signs”. Let me qualify that statement. I believe that God speaks to us in many ways, shapes and forms. I have seen God put things in my path and open doors I didn’t even know existed. I have taken opportunities to follow God based on these doors opening and the prompting of the Holy Spirit. However, I also know that the devil is always trying to find ways to turn us off-track, and if we spend too much time looking for “signs” (just my humble opinion) he’s going to lead us the wrong way. The key, for me, is discernment through the Spirit, and that comes through prayer and study.

This brings me back to my original question, “What is God up to?” Heaven, literally, only knows, but I think the key is to be open to it, whatever it may be. In an age where we are constantly asked to make goals, assess those goals, make plans for reaching those goals (I have never had a job interview where someone has not asked the question, “Where do you see yourself five years from now?”) it’s hard to live in the present. Yet, that’s what we’re called to do. If I really want to know what God is up to, I need to look around. Chances are, the answer will be–a lot! Instead of thinking too much about what God wants from me five years from now, the better thoughts would be in how I can best serve God here, now. Guess I can’t put off that lesson planning anymore!!

Blessings and Peace,
Sara

I just finished, no wait, devoured a new book by Lisa McKay entitled, You Can Still Wear Cute Shoes. Check the link on my sidebar to peruse. It is a phenomenal book! She offers real-life, relevant advice to pastor’s wives, and even to pastor’s themselves. My husband is reading it now and getting some great stuff from it. If you are a pastor’s wife, you need to check it out. If you are not a pastor’s wife, you need to buy a copy and give it to your pastor’s wife as a gift. She will absolutely love you for it!

Lisa also has a wonderful website full of resources for pastor’s wives and laypeople alike. You can access it from a link on the sidebar. See what you think!

Now, if Lisa could just start her own syndicated talk show! 🙂

Blessings and Peace,
Sara

I think I’ve mentioned before that one of my Mom’s favorite sayings is: “The devil always works hardest on Sundays!” This was always the case at our house growing up. Chaos reigned, tempers flared, and my Dad usually stormed off to church without us so he wouldn’t be late for his Sunday School class. My Mom, Sis and I followed shortly, in not much better fashion.

This is still true today. As a pastor’s wife, I’m a single mom on Sunday mornings. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t begrudge it at all. I understand my husband needs to get into “the zone” before worship begins. And, I know at 12:30 he’ll be back to co-parenting with me. So, I have nothing to complain about. I’ve learned over the past several months to embrace the chaos on Sunday mornings rather than fight against it. Instead of rushing to early service so people can see me at both services and leaving my boys for three hours in the nursery which is too much for them, I let my boys take their time in the morning. Garrett piddles around till his little heart is content. It’s not that it’s easy, by any means, but not feeling the pressure to be “seen” all morning on Sunday has really helped.

That said, this Sunday was one of the craziest I remember, and it had nothing to do with the boys. The boys were up by 6:30, which meant we were ready to leave the house by 9:15. I spent fifteen minutes walking in circles through the house looking for the partner for my one black heel, finally locating it on the windowsill behind the sofa, a natural occurrence in our house. Shoes on, coats zipped, dogs kenneled, we began the journey.

About halfway to the church my oldest asked me, “Mama ,why do we have to go to church?” Hmmm… how to explain the importance of corporate worship to a three and a half year old? Anne Lamott has an absolutely beautiful piece on this in her book, Traveling Mercies. If you’ve never read it, you need to get it. It’s one of my most favorite pieces of Christian writing. I could write a whole blog on Anne Lamott’s work, but suffice it to say my little man was not interested in an essay. I summed it up by saying, “God loves us, so we go to church to tell God that we love him.” I think he would have preferred an answer that involved playing with Thomas the Train.

Upon arrival to church, we saw a police car sitting out front. Now, we don’t have any police officers in the congregation, so this got my attention. My first thought was that my husband had kidnapped another little girl–JUST KIDDING!! He did accidentally pick up a girl for our Wednesday after school program who wasn’t supposed to be there, and the police did show up to the church, but it wasn’t his fault and the parents said she does that sort of thing all the time. The real reason the police car was there was because a church member was experiencing chest pains. Pretty soon, the ambulance rolled in and my boys were just thrilled with that.

Chris gave up on preaching and led the congregation in a silent prayer time, running back and forth between the church member and the congregation. “Adapts Well To Change” is something that will never go on his resume! As God had it, there were three nurses, a physical therapist, and a nurse practitioner in attendance that morning, so the man was in good hands. In the end, tests revealed that it had been some sort of muscle spasm and had nothing to do with his heart. And even though service was disrupted, I think it became a pretty profound spiritual experience for those who were present. If anything, it brought this man and his family further into community with the congregation.

So in the end, the devil does work hardest on Sundays. Yet, the beautiful truth is, God works even harder. How comforting to remember in the midst of crazy Sundays!

Blessings and Peace,
Sara

Ugh. That’s about all I’ve got this morning. That and jeans that still are a bit too tight because I can’t seem to stop shoveling fatty foods into my mouth. It was a McDonald’s morning this morning, after a rice crispy treat with M&M’s. But, considering the fact that I was up at 3:30 A.M. and the fact that we need to make a Sam’s/Evil Empire run, it seemed to be the most appropriate thing to do.

I love my children, I really do. They’re each a unique little blessing from God. And I have high hopes for them. I pray every day that they will grow into Godly men. But, sometimes…. well, let’s just say that blessings can be mixed! 🙂 It’s my fault, really, that the youngest hasn’t been sleeping well lately. He’s a total “Mama’s Boy” and Mama has been gone overnight twice in the past three weeks. So, he’s a bit clingy. And I really don’t mind cuddling with him some at night, although I definitely prefer cuddling with my hubby, but I have to draw the line at being up, and I mean up at 3:30 A.M. Not only was the little stinker roarin and ready to go, he was bound and determined that Mama wasn’t going to sleep anymore either. At one point, the entire family was awake. That’s when Up went into the DVD player and Mama ran for the shower. I have to admit, it wasn’t hard shutting the door to Stephen’s cries of “Maaamaaa” as I left for work this morning. And, as is typical, once Mama is out of sight, she’s out of mind. He was quietly cuddling with Daddy by the time his brother and I pulled out of the garage.

Now, I’m a zombie, and I’m covering AP Lit for a fellow English teacher today. Heaven help us all!

Blessings and Peace,
Sara

Chris and I have a new favorite comedy–ABC’s Modern Family. It’s everything we love in a comedy–witty, quirky, sarcastic, and completely relate-able. I can’t tell you how many times we’ve looked at each other while watching the show and given each other the, “That’s so you!” look. It’s one of the few shows out there that actually makes me laugh out loud.

That said, the episode last night got me thinking a bit about the nature of romance. In the episode, one of the couples decided to “spice up” their celebration of Valentine’s Day by doing a bit of role playing. The wife had her husband meet her at the bar of a hotel and “pick her up”. The results were both disastrous and hilarious, which is why we watch the show, but it got me thinking about the ways in which people try to rekindle the romance in their relationships. Many relationship “experts” advocate the idea of couple’s engaging in role play to heighten the romance in their relationships. But, I have to confess, I don’t quite get it. If I wanted to be with someone else, then I would have married someone else. I love my husband and I can’t think of anything more romantic that being with him.

This is the man who still finds me attractive even though I’ve gained an extra 15 or so pounds. The man who walks past me in a room and brushes my arm, hand or back. The man who comes up behind me and gives me a hug for no reason at all while I’m doing dishes or pondering something in the kitchen. The man who tells our sons every day that he loves them. The man who spends his day off doing laundry–even folding it and putting it away! The man who sends me an e-mail saying, “I’m not sure I’ll be home for dinner but there’s a pot of chili on the stove for you and the boys.” The man who checks in with me every day to see how things are going and eats burritos or stir-fry at least once a week because those are the only two meals I really cook. The man who lets me fall asleep on the couch and then gently wakes me up for bed after cleaning up the kitchen, feeding the animals, and letting the dogs out. The man who finishes projects that I start and laughingly deals with “fine messes” I tend to make (like getting my car stuck in the snow in our front yard).

This is the man who watches Grey’s Anatomy with me because he knows I love it and who takes me to see the Twilight movies even after being told by colleagues that, “As the spiritual head of the household you should not allow your wife to watch those movies or read those books.” The man who laughs at statements like that and who treats me as a partner, an equal, an intelligent human being capable of making her own decisions about what she reads and watches.

This is the man I can trust to be completely honest with me, even if he has to tell me something I don’t really want to hear. The man who encourages me when I’m losing confidence in myself, who supports me in every decision I make, and who believes in me more than I believe in myself. This is the man who has voluntarily committed to spending the rest of his life with me, as big of a mess as I am, and raising our two boys in love and in Christ. The man who tries to follow God’s will in everything that he does and puts his family first, below God.

What can be more romantic than being with your true love–the person you are building a life with? No, I’m afraid I don’t get role playing. I think my hubby’s pretty amazing just the way he is!

Blessings and Peace,
Sara

I was putting together a soup for snack day at school this morning. As I was pouring the soup into the crock pot I realized that I had no idea how I was going to get it there without it covering the front seat of my car. You see, I teach in a town about twenty miles from where I live and there are several turns, curves and hills along the way. As I was standing in the kitchen staring at the crock pot, I had an idea. I pulled the Press N’ Seal out of a drawer and carefully wrapped it around the lid and top of the crock pot.

**Product Promo Moment–if you haven’t tried Glad’s Press N’ Seal, you need to e-mail the company and see if they’ll send you a trial roll. It’s amazing. I promise, you will never buy saran wrap again!

After finishing that, I decided to add an extra layer of protection with aluminum foil. As I was sealing the foil over the Press N’ Seal I realized, this is what God does for our hearts, although probably not with tin foil! When we give our hearts to God, he seals them with his love and grace so that no matter what happens, he is there. God protects and keeps our hearts for him so that with his seal around us, not even the gates of hell will prevail against us. We can stand firm and confident in the knowledge that the creator of the universe holds us in the palm of his hand!

Blessings and Peace,
Sara