As for Me

Since this blog is not just about decorating a house, which will come someday, I thought I'd share a bit of what has been going on with me lately, decorating my life, if you will.  The following things have put an extra spring in my step, a twinkle in my eye, and a pitter-patter in my heart, on top of the pitter-patters my beautiful son and husband give me!

Faith
When we moved to Wisconsin, we joined a small church.  It was very weird for me, having grown up in a large church that grew to a relative mega-church (as much of a mega-church as you can have in a town of less than 100,000 people in the county).  But the people were loving, and Hubbs liked the worship style and Bible study.  We didn't really have any real problems until our son was born.  We had discussed this small church's relaxed nursery before the baby came along, and decided we couldn't put him in there unless some changes were made.  No changes were made, requests for discussion of changes were ignored.  And one or both of us have had to sit out of worship services for over a year now keeping our little one distracted and quiet elsewhere in the building since he refuses to sit through a service quietly with toys...or sit at all since he wants to run laps around the sanctuary during singing too! 

About 5 months ago, we started attending a different church in town for their early Sunday service before going to our normal church's later service.  At the larger church, we were able to put our son into the secure, baby-friendly nursery so that both of us could worship together; the worship style and sermons were more on par with what I was needing to hear each week in my Christian walk.

And that, along with some daily e-mail devotions I subscribe to really started impacting my faith in a good way.  I found myself becoming a more patient mom as my son is growing into toddlerhood, which tries a parent's patience!  I find myself praying more (not just for selfish pleas), and I find myself being kinder and trying to see people through God's eyes. 


Relaxation
For years, I have used Ponds cleansing cloths to remove make-up and/or just wash my face in the evening before bed.  I've tried store-brands which weren't as soft or relaxing nor as effective at cleansing my skin.  I've tried Ponds' various kinds, such as exfoliating cloths, at the recommendation of a make-up artist friend.  But that also negated any relaxation aspect.  Last week, at Target, I saw Ponds had once-again changed their cloths.  They claim to still have the classic cloths, but Target was sold out.  My options were Energizing (which I LOVE the scent of), but they were exfoliating, so I nixed that choice.  The other option was Relaxing, scented like Chamomille and White Tea.  Taking a warm bath before bed, combing my wet hair to keep me cool as I sleep, and washing my face with those scented cloths....I really have been more relaxed this week....though it may also have something to do with the previous topic as well!

O My Family
I follow several Mommy Blogs, most of whom are written by women I "met" on message boards during my pregnancy.  Their blogs are my sanity seeing other moms struggle with parenting issues, kids growing up, milestones to aim for, etc.  And one of them met up with another blogger at a conference and linked the new blog to her own in a post.  O My Family is written by an amazing Christian mom with a great sense of humor, and she has really been encouragement to me since I began reading her posts.  Her blog always puts a smile on my face and helps me put into practice the Christianity I know I should be living, both for my God and my family!

Clothes
Maybe it's the 15 lbs. I am still clinging to from my pregnancy weight, maybe it's the fact that I'm home now and don't have "work wear" to dress me up as a change from my jeans-and-tees "weekend wear" that I can wear every day now, and the fact that I'm the only mom at playgroups always dressed like a college student...but I'm desperate for a new wardrobe.  Being a SAHM with a grad-student husband, the budget doesn't allow for wardrobe-re-stocking, but the hubbs has been more than generous in tolerating my piece-meal shopping when I get a good discount.  I've collected a few new cardigans, allowing me to wear tanks and cardigans with pants and skirts....I even wore a dress this week and felt super-cute! 

What has been decorating your life lately??