Thursday, January 07, 2010

Hello Again!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! Oh wait, it's already January 7. My bad.

We got home from Missouri late last night and my house is out of control. Everywhere I look there are presents, suitcases and laundry, laundry, laundry. There's a dying Christmas tree in the corner and no amount of whining is going to make it walk itself to the curb tomorrow morning.

But the most important thing is that we have groceries. Houston will be experiencing A BIG FREEZE OF DRAMA AND COLDNESS AND ICE this weekend and I have made sure that we have enough food to eat at home for the next four days. If we do that, it will be record breaking.

Also, when you return home after 12 days of being gone and your white bread is still quasi-soft and not moldy, it is both wonderful and disturbing.

I'll end with this. In the last few minutes of our 13-hour road trip yesterday, Curtis and I were feeling a bit delirious. It was almost midnight and the kids were asleep in the back seat. Jackson began to snore a little, which made us laugh. Then I imagined what his wife would think about his snoring one day. (I was pleasantly surprised on my honeymoon to find that Curtis doesn't snore.) That led me to think about how I haven't been very good about praying for Jackson's future wife. Suddenly I sensed the beginnings a panic attack. What if my children's future marital happiness depends on my ability to remember to pray for their spouses before they're even in elementary school?

I said, "Babe, we really need to be praying for Jackson's future wife."

Curtis looked at me with his head cocked to the side and one eye squinted and said, "Are you serious? We're just trying to survive his third year!"

And then I laughed so hard I snorted. Jackson must get it from me.

50 comments:

Sister Lynn said...

Glad you all are home safe! I was praying for your safe travel as I knew there was "weather" in the forecast.

Blessings in 2010!

Sister Lynn

Keri said...

And we thought it was stressful just getting them into the right preschool??

That is so funny, but I have often had the same thought......along with guilt over not having a weekly scripture for them to memorize, or turning more situations into life lessons....you know the drill!

Welcome home!

Marc and Charity said...

Hey! So glad you are back. That sounds like me- panic attack over praying something like that, or lack of praying. Glad you are safely home, it's cold here in Big D too.

Kelly said...

I've been praying for Harper's husband (not always but when I remember to) and so maybe I've prayed enough for her and Jackson and they will get married. She can deal with a little snoring! ha!

Kelly said...

And if they marry I promise not to give him monogrammed sweaters every Christmas. ha!

R said...

we have two girls (4 and 2), and i pray for their hubands all the time, but once we had a boy (7 mos.), oh my...praying for spouses has been kicked up way higher on the priority list! there's something about those little boys...

Maggie said...

OMGosh! You are too funny!

Can you believe our babies will be 1 soon? My little guy's bday is the same as Annabeth's!

Glad you had a wonderful holiday season and good luck getting back into the routine.

God bless!

Amanda said...

Amen, Curtis! I will remember the three's as the Year of Humility because I get a good dose of it every time I am in public with Camden,

And I can't believe you did 13 hours in one day. We drove eight hours. And I could barely form a single sentence by the time we hit Buckee's in Madisonville. Brutal!

Immeasurably More Mama said...

Oh, Amanda! This brought a smile to my face. :) I cannot tell you how many times I've started to panic and/or feel guilty when I realize I haven't been persistent in praying for Dillan's future wife. He turns two next month! Thank you, Curtis, for reminding me that I'm just trying to survive these early years. :)

Gran Jan said...

Amanda! I'm so glad you are home. Praying for our children's future mates is something that is near and dear to my heart... My boys are both married now, and I can say God hath blessed indeed!

I kept the words of this song posted on my fridge for YEARS as I prayed for my boys' future wives. (I think it came out when they were about Jackson's age.)

In fact I used it as background music at the Rehearsal Dinner with some precious baby photos of the bride and the groom.

Somewhere in the World
by Wayne Watson

Somewhere in the world today
A little girl will go out to play
All dressed up in mama's clothes
At least the way that I suppose it goes
Somewhere in the world tonight
Before she reaches to turn out the light
She'll be prayin' from a tender heart
A simple prayer that's a work of art

Chorus
And I don't even know her name
But I'm prayin' for her just the same
That the Lord will write His name upon her heart
'Cause somewhere in the course of this life
A little boy will need a godly wife
So hold on to Jesus, baby, wherever you are

Somewhere in the world out there
That little girl's learnin' how to care
She's pickin' up her mamas charms
Or maybe, swingin' 'round in her daddy's arms
Somewhere in the world to be
Though the future's not real clear to me
Their's could be a tender love
Grounded in eternal love above

Repeat Chorus

I love the line "cause somewhere in the course of his life, my little boy will need a godly wife..."

Youtube it and listen to the melody, it is a really pretty song!

You're such a sweetheart!
Love, Mrs. Jan

JottinMama said...

I am trying my hardest to survive year 3 with our little man, too. Everyone talks about the "terrible twos" but age 3?....Whew....it has been crazy! Good...and fun....but crazy.

LOL. Thanks for the laugh! Glad you made it home safely! Stay warm in all the ice!

Blessings,
Kate :)

Mary said...

Surviving the third year in my house too...I got a kick out of that!

Kelly said...

Oh, my gosh, thank you for the levity. I was working myself into a lather about praying for Will's future just this morning ("What if he suffers a debilitating injury at age 11 because I haven't been praying for him enough?!").

Sigh. Snort. Thank goodness God has a sense of humor, huh? Glad you're home safe and sound.

Rachel said...

welcome home!!!

I've had those moments of panic!! You are totally normal. =)

Deidre said...

Amanda, I have the same thoughts about my girls future husbands. (My girls are 8 and 4). When my oldest was just 4, I began praying for her future husband and the MOTHER that is raising him. Praying God would give her strength in her days, as she was probably just as worn out as me, and give her wisdom to raise up a godly husband for my precious girl. (See how I think?) Anyway, I pray that all the time which is weird I guess, but I believe God gets a kick out of it and HEARS ME!! I'm counting on it :)

Geezees Custom Canvas Art said...

Cute story....what i think is really funny is most of my family snort when they laugh, and it's adorable!

Marla Taviano said...

Oh, I've missed you! Welcome home! Our dead tree is still in the corner too, but at least the lights and ornaments are finally off.

My mom prayed for our spouses since before we were born. I've done it too but SO inconsistently. I started a prayer journal a few months ago (again) and listed it as a specific request so I'd remember.

Struggling right now with being an intentional mom and not putting my girlies on the back burner. :(

Kiki said...

That's funny. I snort when I laugh too. Sometimes. I shouldn't admit that out loud. Oh well.

barbara head said...

Oh, Amanda, you are such a breath of fresh air. I have missed you so much. I check your blog EVERY DAY!!!! I love hearing about your family.

Rhonda said...

Mine are elementary school and pre-school and I panic about that as well. When I remember, I pray for them during the boys nightly prayers...that God would protect her and keep her safe, that she would be raised in a loving home that knows Jesus and that they would both remian pure until their wedding day. When I remember...

Lauren said...

This post warmed my heart, snort and all.... just so sweet, haha!!! :)

Three Fold Cord said...

So glad to hear you are home. Looking forward to hearing your take on Passion '10 and a few days with your man :)

We just got back into the swing of things this week. We stayed with my parents for Christmas. After being home for three days straight I think all the suitcases are unloaded and all the clothes put away (don't ask me if they were all clean)

I pulled out The Power of a Praying Parent at the beginning of the year. Hoping to put some more hours into their future as well!

Anyway, Happy New Year! look forward to the roads He will have us all take.
Charlotte
ATL

Toknowhim said...

Welcome back... Glad you all made it home safely.

Wise words from your hubby too :)

Blessings... Kim

Mary H. said...

Welcome home!!! I've missed your writing!

I pray for my ten year old's future husband often. Sometimes I pray with her about it. She usually says, "Oh mom!" and then she will laugh really hard because it embarasses her.

Have fun doing laundry. We are snowed and iced in today in North Alabama. School was out yesterday and again today. So I am doing laundry, too!!

I just need to say this...Roll Tide!!!

Blessings from Mary

Patty said...

Glad you are home safe and made to the store before y'all get ice. WOW, what is going on, we have had more snow in the last month than we have had in a loooonnnggg time and Houston getting ice!! I am praying y'all get snow instead of ice so Jackson can play in the snow. :)
Happy New Year and Blessings for 2010!!!

katiegfromtennessee said...

Little Momma, you are back!:) K-town has already had our first dose of freezing ice and snow drama yesterday. I'm at home today, me and Baby Girl in utero, keeping it real. My man managed to drive his way into wk this am...you sound happy and refreshed from your vacation, even though you have lots of house stuff to do now. That is funny your conversation with Curtis!:) I think it's never too early to pray for your babies' spouses. I found out only about a year or two ago how many people my older sis had praying for me to come to know Christ at my church before I got saved. I was floored that that many strangers would care about me that much to pray for my salvation and very grateful that even one person cared! My eternal security was at stake! I'm so glad I'm one of His own:):)

Blessings to you Little Momma:)

katiegfromtennessee

Bobbie said...

I'm glad y'all are home safe and sound and the fact that you could drive in your driveway after 12 days, laughing and praying for your future DIL is fantastic.

New Year blessings!
Bobbie

Holly said...

Three IS a hard year, but there are moments of complete sweetness. And I think if you just pray for the now things, God will certainly honor the then things.

Glad you are home safe and sound!

Carey said...

i'm so glad you shared this. sometimes i feel like a bad mom because i'm not praying about everything i need to pray about for my girl! a deep breath and a good laugh always brings a fresh prospective!
thanks and enjoy the chilly weather!

Kelly @ Love Well said...

I pray for my kids future spouses. But quite honestly, right now I'm just trying to remember to pray for them on a consistent basis. Life with 3.5 young ones is a marathon, that's for sure.

And I feel the same way about bread that stays "fresh" after that long. It's creepy.

Karen L. said...

never too early to start....i've been praying for my kids' spouses since they were in my belly. but i've also been praying for my kids AS spouses. that part is just as important. i also pray for their future job/career and my future grandchildren!!!! crazy.

Karen L. said...

oh yeah, my husband didn't snore either....for years. he's 41 now and well, i'll just say that airway passages in the nose must age poorly because if i don't go to sleep first, then i'll never get to sleep!

Lisa said...

I just laughed out loud when I read Curtis' response, ONLY because I would have received the same from my precious husband. We are surviving our son's fifth year and I will encourage you by telling you it is easier than his third. (I have seen many common denominators between your Jackson and my Austin!)

I pray God's richest blessings for you and your family this year.

Missy said...

Welcome home! Be one with the laundry.

gg2002 said...

Amanada I am so glad to see you made it home safely - been praying for that. I'm sure Bibbe is glad to put her hands on those kids again!!! I'm sure I'm the oldest to post on this blog so I want to assure you that it does help to pray for your children's future spouse. I did this for my children and I would say that God gave them both perfect matched (and equally yoked) spouses!!!! If I could have gone out and interviewed everyone in the world I would have chosen the ones they both married. As a matter of fact my daughter married my good freind's son - my daughter and her husband have known each other since they were both 3 years old!!!Thank you Jesus.
So keep up the prayers but don't stress over forgetting you have plenty of time to get it right!!!

Love you and your family

GG2002
Judy Baggett

Tina said...

This cracks me up! I found your blog by way of fabkcreative & had already been following lpm's blog. i have a 3yr old boy & 1yr old girl, so i can usually relate to your posts.
anyway, just last night i had a panic attack about the same thing. in the same way i urgently reminded my husband the filters needed changing & crown molding needed dusting before i delivered my last baby!
you put it well. it feels, at times, that our prayers are responsible for this VERY important part of their future.
glad i saw this post on my Reader!

Beki said...

Too funny!!!!! I told my hubby that I had been praying off and on for our son's future wife and suggested we start praying for this together & he gave me the same look and similiar comment =)

Fran said...

HA! Totally understand...I think God can handle if it we miss an occassional prayer or thirty. ;)

Welcome home. You were missed, but thought of often!

Hugs,
Fran

CAROL LIVIN FOR GOD said...

Glad to know you all made it home safe I hope it is warm in Houston for the seista conference we are all getting excited. That was to funny about Jackson snoring.
Bet your mom is on cloud nine now that you all are back. I know she missed you all have you read her blog we had a good laugh the last few days. Your mom cracks me up.
Carol

Moose Mama said...

Though I never said those words about my girls to my husband...I think if I had ever said them, while he was driving, we very well could have driven off the road. His laughter, guffawing, snorting and knee slapping would do that.

Men just don't understand.

Welcome Home!

Melana

valerie said...

Welcome back....you've been missed.
Very cute post!

When my daughter was in kindergarten her teacher told me about a song called "Somewhere In The World" (I think the guy who wrote it and/or sings it is named Wayne Watson) and it's all about that person who is out there who will marry this little boy and girl. It's so sweet!
I really did start praying then (yes, kindergarten & my son was in 2nd grade). :)
Not that often, but at times as they were growing up and especially in their teen years I'd start thinking about that girl and guy out there and wonder if they were going through tough times and I really would pray for them and for their families.

Anyway, didn't mean to get all serious after your fun post. Just thought of that.
I know you're glad to be home.

I didn't know Houston got ice and bad weather.
Hope it's all gone by the weekend of the 22nd. when I visit Houston. :)

valerie said...

Right after I posted my comment I saw what Georgia Jan wrote. How neat to see the words to this song.
This was on a cd with pictures at my daughter's rehearsal dinner too. So very sweet!

Erin said...

i get those panic attack too at times! i try to pray for both of my boys future wives often, but it's hard to remember everything ha!

~ Laurie said...

There is a great book called "Preparing Him for the Other Woman" ~ about raising your son to be a husband and father some day...I loved that it had practical steps you can take even when they are 3 to teach them to be respectful to women, hard workers, etc.

Dionna said...

I've missed you! I love your thought processes on praying for Jackson's future wife. I've thought the same thing for my girls! I go through spurts where I pray often for their future spouses and then have droughts. What if they get a loser because I was negligent? I guess that is us playing God though isn't it?

JayCee said...

...when you return home after 12 days of being gone and your white bread is still quasi-soft and not moldy, it is both wonderful and disturbing......lol!!!

Unknown said...

So funny. But, it's never too early to pray.

Blessings~
Sheryl

Spicy Magnolia said...

Welcome home, Amanda! Great to hear from you and know you got home safely.

Your story is precious and made me smile. I would've said the same thing as you, and Matt would've responded just like Curtis. :) I'm thankful we have our fellas to keep us laughing. I think of Brennan's future spouse often...hoping and praying that day comes very, very slowly. :)

Anonymous said...

I missed reading your blog while you were gone! I'm glad you're back!

And PS: I am really sad about it, but I'm pretty sure my beautiful Facebook profile pic (taken by 365 photography) is marred by my ridiculous looking baby bangs...bummer.

Molly said...

I HEART <3 this post!