The Comparison Trap

We just finished up a series at church that has blown me away.

The Comparison Trap by Andy Stanley.

It has wrecked me fantastically. I am applying this to my life every time I turn around!

My mom told me a couple of months ago, "You've got to stop comparing yourself to everyone else!" I just laughed her off. Now I realize the truth in her words. Why are moms (almost) always right?!?! {You see how I threw that "almost" in there? That's because I'm a mom, too, so they can't always be right! But my mom is always right.}

Here are some points from the message that I thought worthy to take note of - meaning I actually took notes...on my iPhone, of course. No one uses pen and paper anymore, right? ;)

Proverbs 14:30

A heart at peace gives life to the body,
but envy rots the bones.

Ecclesiastes 4:6

Better one handful with tranquillity
than two handfuls with toil
and chasing after the wind.

There's no win in comparison.

Awareness drives our discontent.

You're fine because you're mine.

Questions asked that I'm still pondering:
*Who or what am I going to use as my reference point to tell me I'm okay?
*Who is your mirror?
*Are you allowing what other people have to keep you from enjoying what you already have?
*Do you enjoy your children?
*Who would you secretly enjoy seeing fail?
*Are you chasing the wind?

Be sure to check out the series. You'll be glad you did. I know I am.

Charleston

What a difference a week can make, considering the snow we got yesterday! 

David and I went to Charleston last weekend for a nice romantic getaway. We stayed at The Inn at Middleton Place. What a beautiful place to stay! The weather was gorgeous (see above) and Middleton Place was spectacular. Between the beautiful grounds and gardens (they claim to have the oldest gardens in America) and the great city of Charleston, we didn't lack for things to do. I wish we could have spent a whole week there! 

The trees were absolutely gorgeous...and huge!

The camellias were in bloom. Gorgeous red, pink and white blossoms were everywhere. Amazing to see these beautiful colors in the middle of winter!
And the Spanish moss...oh, the Spanish moss! It's so southern! And pretty. :)

There were tons of wildlife wandering the grounds. We saw peacocks and peahens, guineas, sheep (maybe not so wild, I guess), swans, and bunnies. Though we didn't do any horseback riding (that's not David's thing) they do have them on the grounds. 

This swan swam right over and posed for a picture.

Snow!

David, Becky and I went to Les Miserables today - it was fantastic!
At intermission, we looked out the grand windows of the Blumenthal at the beautiful sunshine streaming through.
About an hour later, when the musical was over, this is what we walked out to:

And when we got home, this is what we got to do:

My little marshmallow puff :)

Cool dude snowman

I made snow cream, the best snow cream I've ever had. Here's the recipe I used:

8 cups of snow

1 can of sweetened condensed milk

1t of vanilla

Mix together

I added about 3 or four more cups of snow to dilute it a bit and make it somewhat less soupy. It was delicious!

Now that I think about it, I'm pretty sure Xander had snow cream and hot chocolate for dinner tonight! Oh well!

What a fun, and totally unexpected, way to end our day!

Happy Valentime's Day!

I love that my boy calls it Valentime's Day. How cute is he?
And my sweet girl...already carrying her purse. Of course, so is my son. :) I knew he'd want one, too, which is why I got him one.
Below is a video that Daddy took this morning as the kids opened their Valentine's Day presents. I wasn't able to be there since I leave for work before they wake up. David has to work late tonight, so it'll just be the kids and I hanging out this evening. I'm so glad he thought to take a video so I could see my sweet kiddos.
Xander has been so excited about this holiday! I really don't know why except that they've been talking about it all month at school and they had a party today.



David met me for lunch. With roses. And treats. He's so wonderful. That was the best lunch date I've had in a long time.

I love that man.

I've got the three best Valentines any woman could ask for. :)

Here are some Valentine's Day fun pics...

This was posted on facebook by the library. Cute, huh?

I saw this on fb and it made me laugh. If you watch Big Bang Theory, I hope you'll smile too.

 

These pics are of the trees right outside ImaginOn. I can't believe they're blooming! They're so beautiful in all their pink glory, especially on Valentine's Day. I just hope it doesn't get too cold and they don't last. But for today, they're gorgeous. :)

 

Happy Valentime's Day, y'all!

Run

This is my advice to you today.

Or tomorrow since it's way too late and your brain's already figured it out for the day.

 

 

 

 

 

Dad, Karen, David and I ran in the Popsicle 5k last Saturday in Mocksville. It was super-cold (about 19F) but a lot of fun! I hope David and I are able to enjoy more races with Dad and Karen in the future. Maybe we can convince my sister and my ex-track-star bro-in-law to join us next time. :)

 

Xander's already planning to be part of the Shamrock Run.

They have a Tots Trot with his name on it. :)

I'm still trying to decide if I want to attempt the 10k or stick with the 5k.

I'll let you know what I decide.

 

And since I'm linking up with "Thankful Thursdays" I want to say that I'm incredibly thankful for my family who encourages me to be healthy, the ones who cheer from the sidelines and the ones who join in the race with me. I also want to say how thankful I am for my health and the opportunities I have to improve it. I really do enjoy running. :)

Help me remember that, k?

father/son, mother/daughter bonding time

David and Xander went to a Bobcats game last month. Oh boy, did they have a great time!
Xander talks about the basketball games for days (sometimes weeks) after he goes. He insists on wearing his Bobcats T-shirt every day for a couple of weeks after the game (luckily he has more than one now).

I love that he and David get to do this together. Before Xander was old enough to go David used to take me. I think he still sometimes wishes he could take me, but I'm fine with this arrangement. I'm not overly excited about basketball (read: I don't like basketball at all, though I did enjoy the quality time spent with my husband) so I'm happy that Xander gets to go with his Daddy. Not only does Xander love sports of all kinds (his favorites being basketball, soccer and baseball) but he also gets to spend some quality, one-on-one time with his Dad.

Amelia Jayne and I had a fun time at home, too. She slept and I cleaned. Then we played outside for awhile since it was so pretty that day. Here are pictures from the day.



A little Jason's Deli treat before the game.

With Sir Purr - the Panthers mascot

I think this is the hockey team's mascot. I don't know his name.

If I don't get ice cream, I'll just lick this slide!

Teething just a bit, hence the drool. :)

Finding clover