I‘m so tired again this morning! I’m assuming that I’ll be in bed long before 2 a.m. tonight…we’ve spent this week staying up late to get our ministries off the ground.

I know that this isn’t good for my mind or body, but my hubby and I just get so excited over the thought of being able to help even one family. Thoughts dance through my head about the end result of all our efforts. I can hear the Lord whispering in my ear that this is the right road. My bags are packed, I’m in the car and it is running. I pray that the Lord will keep us traveling in the right direction and we will not be lost in distractions.

This morning, I am so thankful for a well ran Blue and Gold banquet. As usual, my dear friend, Sherri pulled it off without flaw. She was very quick to tell everyone in the room how glad she is that this will be her last banquet to plan (she has planned many banquets for our group). Sherri, if you ever read this, I know that it has been a lot of work. You have done very well and we all appreciate you and will miss you as your son grows our of our pack next year.

I’m also thankful for my two little cub scouts, who worked very hard to earn awards and their two older buddies/siblings. They all helped and worked together to finish their requirements and I loved the looks on the older children’s faces as they watched the younger guys getting their awards. You could tell that they also felt a sense of accomplishment over what their younger siblings had accomplished. They learned the power of time well invested. They learned that when they help out, although they may not be the ones recognized in front of people, the satisfaction over a job well done is acknowledgment in itself! It was a great night!

My morning praise report is over the Blackwell family who seems to be feeling better this morning. I know that they have really suffered with the flu this week. It was nice to know that they were on the mend.

Please continue to pray for the Greenlaw family. Kimberly’s Dad has some on-going issues with Cancer. Please pray for healing over his body and peace in Kimberly’s heart. I can’t imagine what she must be feeling.

Things I am learning (notice this one is in present tense!):

Even when you do not hear a two year old, they are always there.

Little two year old, strikes again.

This morning, sleepy and drained from the previous night of work, I stumbled into my restroom. My only real morning ritual. I am usually half awake and because it falls between wake up time and nursing my little person who is normally starving by this point, I am in a hurry.

That was all before I walked into my bathroom and saw my toilet completely stuffed with full rolls of toilet paper. Now, I did not see Benjamin actually do this, but come on, we all know who was behind this caper.

I hate now that I did not count to answer that age old question how many rolls does it take to stuff a toilet? But, I did not. I do know that there were at least 6 full rolls left in my bathroom last night.

The really scary part to this is, when I went into the restroom this morning at 2 before going to bed, the toilet was empty. I was awake this morning before my son so this tells me that he was roaming at some point in the night. Too old for baby gates and too big for a crib, it is time for some good old fashioned training. With this child, I have got my work cut out for me!!

Today’s scripture meditation is:

Nehemiah 4:14
After I looked things over, I stood up and said to the nobles, the officials and the rest of the people, “Don’t be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, who is great and awesome, and fight for your brothers, your sons and your daughters, your wives and your homes.”

Where are the men??

It seems that today, men are told that they should be sensitive, sweet and almost feminine. Today’s men struggle with what they are told they should be on the outside and what they know they should be on the inside.

The Bible is very clear about what men are and are not supposed to be. We might get into that on a different day but today I want to focus on one aspect: raising sons. Being raised as an only child, my limited exposure to little boys were in school and being around my cousins on occasion. I actually grew to think that little boys were quite nasty, and ill-mannered. I couldn’t understand how a boy could spend hours in the woods wandering around or be happy just sitting in a mud pit in the yard playing with army men. The very thought was repulsive.

Doesn’t God have a sense of humor? Do you believe that He has a sense of humor??

I’m now blessed with 5 boys. They love to wander around the woods, they love to sit in mud and play with army men. They love firefighters, and policemen and think astronauts rock!

Little boys are very neat to watch. If you watch them long enough you begin to see glimpses of a man. They love to be strong. They love to open doors for women and defend their sisters! They love to pretend they are cowboys and soldiers and knights of the round table. Even in more modern video games they become the hero, the one who rushes in and fights for victory!

As a Mom, I’m learning to appreciate what I see in my little boys each day. Playing knights and cowboys may seem like child’s play right now but it is preparing them for a bigger role. A role God ordained for them long before they were born.

To be a man.