Growth

My pastor touched on something not too long ago that got me thinking about my life. In essence, he said that with growth comes complications and sometimes pain, but that the growth is still worth it. I thought about this statement until I came to the undeniable conclusion that this is so true in every aspect of our lives. A quick example: all parents want their children to grow, but watching them do so is bittersweet and sometimes hard. (Of course, the real pain comes when kids hit the teenage years, but I've yet to learn about that.)

Even though all parents know that growth is a natural and essential part of life, it is still painful to watch at times. When my kids first learned to walk, we were so excited, but then they got their first skinned knees and my heart leapt. Or what about this heart clencher: your child makes a friend for the first time, and that friend ends up letting your little one down. How do you teach them to grow through that situation into forgiveness. Especially when you may not feel very much like forgiving that kid yourself?

Our little family has experienced growth in many ways over the last few years. Obviously we've had growth in family numbers, with our newest addition, Saige. --I wouldn't trade any of my kids for anything in the world, but I'll be darned if they don't make my life a heck of a lot more difficult. As we add more little ones to our family we experience less sleep and alone time, but more joy and fulfillment then our lives would ever have had if we didn't have them. (Lydia is currently singing her abc's very loudly and kicking me in the back. Concentrating is increasingly difficult.)

Then there is growth in my new business. I love being a real estate agent. And, I've really been challenged to get out of my comfort zone and form relationships with people while asking for referrals for them to buy or sell real estate with me. It is uncomfortable, but, so good! I've already made so many relationships with people that I normally wouldn't have. It's not because these people aren't great! It's because I sometimes tend to be more of a people watcher than a conversation starter. I get a little shy.

So, those are some of the areas me and my family have grown in lately. It's not to mention growing spiritually, sending my eldest kid to kindergarten, or trying to shrink my post baby size (which is the opposite of growing...). How have you grown lately?
I'd love to have your comments below.

P.S. Growth give me writer's block. Sorry I haven't been on here in a while. It's my goal to get back on top of blogging.

P.S.S. What keeps me going while growing? Please see the picture below:

School, Hair cuts and Birthday Party Pictures

Julia has adapted to going to school 5 days a week pretty well. She seems to obey her teacher pretty well, and she is making friends. My heart still breaks a little every day that she gets on the bus; I don't know if that will ever go away.
About a week and a half ago, I met Julia at school for lunch. She was so excited to see me, which I loved, and we had a great time. I got to meet some of her classmates, and she got to eat the cafeteria pizza. She has been begging to eat the cafeteria pizza. (Yuck.) As I sat there at the lunch table with her, and she fluttered around to say "hi" to all of her friends and teachers, I felt something I haven't felt very often lately. I felt shy. I was shy in my daughter's kindergarten class' cafeteria? Why? Was it just because I was at school? Will I always feel insecure just by being in a school cafeteria? I'm as perplexed as you probably are. I made myself engage in conversation with the Julia's teachers and classmates despite my feelings, but I don't know if I'll ever understand.
Last Thursday I got to go back up to the school again. I helped with the science lab where the kiddos learned about their 4 senses. All of the students got to taste: bitter unsweetened chocolate, a salty pretzel, a sugar cube, and a piece of lemon. I had such a great time with those kids! I wasn't shy at all! The experience reminded me of why I used to want to become a teacher. It was fun to watch the kids learn. Kindergartners are the best.
So, do you want to see something crazy?

Julia's hair before haircut

(Okay...my caption button stopped working...the above is Lydia's hair before she got her hair cut.)
Julia and Lydia both got 5 inches of hair cut off last week. The crazy thing is that you can hardly even tell that it was cut.

 

This is the after picture. Sometimes I just can't keep them from being completely goofy.

 

 

This is my beautiful baby Saige at a birthday party for the big girls.

 

This is Julia and Lydia at their sweet friend's sweet and sassy birthday party! What fun!

 

This is what's happening with the Stewart's! What's happening with you?

Thanks for reading, Amber