Journey With Jen

This school year has gone by so fast.  As my kids get older, it seems to go faster.  Hoping at some point that time will once again slow down again.  The whole take time to smell the flowers kinda thing.  I have a yard full of irises, lilies, and peonies but not home very long to actually enjoy them. I am not going to complain though.  I wouldn't want it any other way... most of the time. I have a senior again this year.  (Proof that God does have a sense of humor!  Seriously, have a 8 month old and find out your pregnant again!  hahaha.... after the tears!!)  It's is different from Joey's senior year.  Joey's there was A LOT of tears because there was the lots of "lasts".   His last time marching in the stadium for the last performance on the football field.  His last play.  His last spring concert.  You get the picture.  I was dehydrated before graduation!!  Luke's has kind of been the quite senior year....

One of the facts of my life right now:  my kids are big.  That does come with some perks.  No fighting over what clothes to wear...most of the time.  No more Bob the Builder (Luke), Dora the Explorer(Faith), or Bear in the Big Blue House(Joey) playing loudly through the house.  Although, I didn't mind watching Sponge Bob.  There isn't anymore getting frantically shook at 5 am on Christmas morning.  Nor is there playing at the park and pushing swings.  okay....that seriously went to sad and depressing.  :( It is a part life that I am slowly accepting.  The good and the bad.  As my kids grow and change, it also changes me.  When my kids were small, teenagers seemed like they were from another planet and that stage of life really intimidated me.  I am on my third teenager now and I am like "bring it!"  Okay -- not everyday.  But there are some days I can say that!! :D  And being around 10 or more teenagers...

"Life with God is not immunity from difficulties, but Peace in difficulties."  --  C.S. Lewis Where would we be without the strength and comfort of God?  I honestly don't understand how the non-believers make it through life.  Our life can be hard at times:  kids, parents, relationships, financial, health...the list can go on and on.  And if this life is all that there is, why keep going? I did not grow up in church or in a family that prayed or even talked about God.  Did they believe in God? I am not sure.  I had friends that went to church but I never had a relationship with God myself.  For me, there was a very distinct line in my life: before God and after.  I grew up with abuse in my home.  There was always the big elephant in the middle of the room that no one dared mention.  I couldn't even tell my friends. There was little hope and I didn't understand why this happened to me.  Why is this my life? I had ...

As your kids grow up, you realize that somethings stay the same.  There will always be those certain jocks that seem to have it all.  There's those cheerleaders that will do anything to have others like them.  The weird ones that you kinda' ignore because you don't really know what to make of them. The kids that seem only to have the color black in their closet and try to sound very deep but end up sounding stupid.  (okay, maybe that was only in the 90's!)  And, of course, there are the mean girls.  I am not saying that guys cannot be mean, but girls - they can take it to another level.  As a mom with boys and a girl, I am thankful that I only have to go through this once! You guys that have multiple girls, God must have knew you could handle it! :)  The momma bear in me comes out and I am not very nice. The first mean girl for Faith was in elementary school and was actually a school counselors daughter.  Ironic, huh?  Too bad the mo...

Having three kids gives you PLENTY of opportunity to see how you've screwed up.  Especially as they have gotten older.  You just pray that your mess ups, have not truly messed them up.  That one day as an adult, my son is not laying on a couch spilling crap to a therapist about how messed up his childhood was. As dysfunctional as my childhood was, I am the "normal" one of my siblings.  It  took my getting to my breaking point at 19 or 20 years old and God meeting me where I was.  But that is another story.....  This time I want to talk about my friend down the street growing up. I had a friend down the street named Janice.  She was old enough to be my mom, but she truly was a friend. We made runs to Sonic for a Cherry Limeade and onion rings just to sit in her car and talk.  She made time for me even though I was stupid kid with way too many issues.  Yeah, she had plenty of issues of her own, but maybe that is what helped us bond....

Faith, 14 - Luke, 17 - Joey, 19 I cannot believe it's been two years since my last post.  But then again, in some ways I can.  Life tends to get away from us.  One day leads to another.  Soon enough a week has past.  Which turns into a month...then a year. I turn around and my kids are grown.  Last year was Joey's graduation.  I was dehydrated before graduation day even got here!  The last football game when the band played.  The last band concert.  Senior assembly.  It was one thing after another tugging on this Momma's heartstrings.  Now he is going to the community college full time and working part time.  He trying to reach his goal realizing that after high school isn't near as much as fun as you imagine. This year is Luke's graduation.  After all these years of IEP meetings, meeting with teachers, going above to administration downtown - basically being a pain in several people's butt -- it is coming to ...

You know who you can watch a movie and well, it was okay.  For example, the first time I watched Rat Race, I could barely get through it.  I thought it was terrible.  Now, with two teenage sons, I watched it with them and I hate to admit: it's funny.  I really laughed hard a few times.  That is what happened yesterday with Eat, Pray, Love.  Honestly, I still don't think it's one of my favorites or anything.  But it had a couple quotes that stuck with long after the movie.  So, I had to stick the movie in and fast forward to find the quotes I wanted.  That is one of the quotes.  Isn't it true?  In the times in our lives, when we reach the bottom of the pit...When we are left with nothing...God can mold us, God can use us, He can transform us.  He can take our lives and show His glory!  He can turn our lives into what we were meant to be.  Ruin can be a beautiful thing. But, this is my favorite quote from the movi...