Being a single mother.

It has been over a month since Michelle Obama stated that she felt like a single mother as she shoulders the majority of child rearing while our President maintains a very busy, 24/7 schedule. I myself would joke around with my friends during seminary that we were 'seminary widows' who carried most of the parenting responsibility while our husbands were completely focused on their heavy educational burden. Even when they were home, they were sequestered with their books and laptops writing papers and were uninvolved with parenting the children. But it wasn't real 'single parenthood' because if I called out for help, the man would quickly appear to pitch in.

I had a similar experience when my husband was deployed in 2007. I had to kiss hubby goodbye, sleep in a bed alone, mend all boo-boo's by myself, and move us half way across the country with only my sisters to pitch in. But again, I had help and my support chain was only a phone call or Skype conversation away.

Have you ever walked a mile in these shoes? Being a single mother is a hard role to play. But even I recognize that I have never been a true single mother. A single parent means no partner, no back up, often no familial help, and a painful loneliness at night often accompanied by exhaustion.

If you desire to learn about living as a single parent, or if you know a single parent and want to reach out in support of these folks, please stop over to my blogging buddies space, Single Mom in the South. She is fielding questions about the divorce process and she truly wants others to learn to empathise and support the single parents in your sphere. Please consider asking your own questions and seriously reach out to the single mothers around you. It was a very hard stretch in my life and I truly recognize it was more like 'playing one on TV'.

Click here to visit the single series

God may bless us as we learn to appreciate and empathize with each other.

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Happy Father's Day!

My kids have a good dad. Even though he loves that new car smell, he loves his kids more ;-)

He loves them, plays with them, teaches them, and always backs me up. But don't take my word for it:

"He works hard so we can have a good house. He loves me and takes care of me." (Danny)

"He cuddles me when I need it and he likes hugs" (Bekah)

"He's a great dad! He'll go fishing with me and he takes us to hotels with pools" (Josh) 

"He protects me from bad guys and bees" (JJ)

"He's nice guy" (Noah)

Honey, we thank you for all you do for our family! Thanks for being a great dad!!

He is our Father's Day tribute to you!

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The Cross You Bear

There are times in the Christian's walk when the cross we bear for Christ seems too heavy a burden to carry, even though it is a burden that must be carried if one is to be a disciple. (Luke 14:27) (1 Cor 1:18)

While Christ has promised that the burden of the cross will be a gain to us, there are moments when we want to cry out to Jesus for the burden to be lessened in some way. (Matt 24:13-14)

May I offer some perspective on the burden you carry? There may be a purpose for the burden in the end...

I can pray this because his divine power has bestowed on us everything necessary for life and godliness through the rich knowledge of the one who called us by his own glory and excellence. Through these things he has bestowed on us his precious and most magnificent promises, so that by means of what was promised you may become partakers of the divine nature, after escaping the worldly corruption that is produced by evil desire. 

For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith excellence, to excellence knowledge; to knowledge, self-control; to self-control, perseverance; to perseverance, godliness; to godliness, brotherly affection; to brotherly affection, unselfish love. For if these things are really yours  and are continually increasing, they will keep you from becoming ineffective and unproductive in your pursuit of knowing our Lord Jesus Christ more intimately. 

But concerning the one who lacks such things- he is blind. That is to say, he is nearsighted, since he has forgotten about the cleansing of his past sins. 

Therefore, brothers and sisters, make every effort to be sure of your calling and election. For by doing this you will never stumble into sin. For thus an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, will be richly provided for you. (2 Peter 1:3-11)

*I would love to give credit where credit is due. I do not know who put such effort into the graphics, but it was not me!!!

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Lemon Dill Sauce

I found a great recipe for some lemon dill sauce to go with our fish. It is fresh and very tasty! It goes well over halibut, salmon, and the crab cakes that I love!!

Again, I will remind you all that I give a recipe, but don't follow to the letter nor do I generally measure exactly while in the kitchen. I do apologize if this is unhelpful for you ;-)

You Need:
1 cup mayo (I prefer Duke's)
1/4 cup buttermilk (remember, you can always add more)
fresh dill
chopped green onion
lemon juice (start with 1 Tbsp, you can always add more)

I toss in a bowl the mayo first, then the buttermilk. Whip those together well. I prefer lots of green in my sauce, so I use half the pouch of dill found in the veggie section of the supermarket. I also grab 3-4 green onion and snip a whole bunch into the mayo mix with my kitchen shears. I squeeze the lemon juice into the mix and whip. At this point, depending on the taste preference, you can adjust the consistency with either more lemon juice or more buttermilk.

I let this chill in the fridge for hours before serving for a full flavor marriage to occur. Let everyone drizzle over their fish and serve beside home made cole slaw! Super yummy!!

Here is the link to my Maryland Blue Crab Cakes:

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FF: Every light is on.

Welcome to a sad and blue Friday Fragments. The house is quiet, the guests have gone, and I am blue :-( It makes me think of that old Trace Adkins song that is a fave between my bestie and me:


Would it help to know that currently in AK we only have dusk for about 5 hours a day??? It feels like every light in our house is on ALL THE TIME!!

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I just have the blues when the guests go :-( I drove my parents and middle sister to the airport Tuesday morning at 3am for their 5am flight. The next 2 days dragged by as I vegged and let the kiddos run amok. I just didn't feel like doing anything. My sweet hubby brought pizza home for supper that night because he knew I would be blue. Isn't that cool?? I hope I remembered to thank him...

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Have you ever been waiting for something that you are so excited about? Hubby has given me the amber light to move my blog to a self hosted space!!! I am so jazzed about it! The reason I don't have the green light is simply because we need to budget in the start up costs. But woohoo!!! I hope you all come along with me when I shuffle over :-)

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We are trying to patiently wait for the next chapter of our lives to begin. It may even be away from the military.... but only God knows what comes next. Military life has a unique struggle in that your life could change at any moment at the whim of Big Army. I am trying so hard not to be so focused on what could happen to us that I miss what is happening to us.

Side note: I miss the way you used to pin Pinterest things. I hate not being able to wrap the text around these new fangled widgets :-(

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I have to fight a jealous bug pretty badly these days. We have new neighbors next door, and THANKFULLY they didn't end up being the college crew that I was afraid of when they walked through. My kitchen window over the sink looks right out into their front yard. The new couple are DINK's (dual income, no kids) and the lady drives a very pretty mustang.  For your information, that is my dream car :-( So now, while doing dishes, I star at a pretty vehicle and secretly wonder when she will slide into the tree at our crazy, hilly, turn.

I know, very bad :-( I am working on it.

 

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I don't know if you guys managed to see this video, but it brought tears to my eyes. The loyalty of a dog is hard pressed to beat!

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Thankful.. well, sort of ;-)

Being thankful is a discipline. It is easy and usually 'safe' to dwell on the negatives of life. Happiness and joy are found when you look at the little blessings of the daily grind. Trust me, they are there ;-)


I have some bittersweet thanks today. I sit here at my computer very thankful to be alive and thankful that, for the moment, the house is sort of quiet with 40% of my children still asleep. But the bitter comes from the quiet after having a house full of guests. And because I love having people in my home, I dip into the blues in the aftermath of their leaving.

This is not all due to the military life style of always being away from family (though it also keeps me far from my loves ones). We were away from family for the 10 years we were doing higher education. I grew up in a close knit family. Sure the sisters fought and bickered. Hello, sisters! Even while feeling blue in a quiet house, there are many things to be thankful for today :-)

I am thankful for:

• a husband who brought in pizza so I didn't have to cook the night after taking my family to the airport


• for family that I love and miss. I recognize that there are many people who don't have family they love or desire to be around. I know I am blessed and I thank God for the heritage He has given me.

the whole clan

• I am also very thankful for these wonderful children who made this large gathering so pleasant! My older kids helped with cleaning up after meals and they also helped to herd the younger children.

• I am so thankful that my daughter never got an infection from her nasty cut. My Mother's Day ended with mom and me taking Bekah into the ER for 8 stitches after she caught some glass with her left foot. It was a rough one, for sure :-( She has a very low pain threshold.


• I am thankful for a husband who takes time to make big decisions. I used to be very annoyed with this process of thinking things over for a few weeks before making a big purchase/move. But lately, his careful thought processes have done well for us.


• I am also so thankful for a God who walks every step of this life with us. For being our guide and loving Father through all the storms and trials of life.

For God, our God, is our defender forever! He guides us. 

~Psalm 48:14

You guide me by your wise advice, and then you will lead me to a position of honor. Whom do I have in heaven but you? I desire no one but you on earth. My flesh and my heart may grow weak, but God always protects my heart and gives me stability. Yes, look! Those far from you die; you destroy everyone who is unfaithful to you. But as for me, God's presence is all I need. I have made the sovereign Lord my shelter, as I declare all the things you have done. ~ Psalm 73: 24-28

Guide me, oh thou great Jehovah!!!

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Rosetta Stone Sale

My kids have enjoyed learning Spanish through Rosetta Stone this year. Rosetta Stone is offering a sweet deal on their downloaded software, ending June 7th!!! Click on the image to grab this deal.

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