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Company Girl Coffee 11.13

Thank you for your birthday well-wishes on Monday!  Ya'll made me feel loved.  I had a super-nice day: My man took me to Panera for lunch, and later made a steak dinner for me. He even made brownies, what a guy!  This weekend, I will get a rosebush for my present... Carefree Beauty, a glorious southern antique bloomer.

I then proceeded to get sick on Wednesday, and have been fighting some kind of cold/flu bug. I still feel yucky, and I never realized that daytime TV was so depressing.  I can't focus my eyes to read and can barely string two sentences together, but that's just the meds talking.

So other than turning 46 and feeling pretty darn happy to be alive (meds talking again) it's been a quiet week around here. :)

I'm going to be tuning in to Lifeway's Women's Ministry Leadership Forum today.  It is taking place in Nashville right now, and they have a great lineup of speakers.  Today, they are streaming the event live right here....and "our own" Priscilla Shirer will be speaking from 9:30-11:00.  Wanna join me?  It should be fabulous!

Say, what's been going on with YOU??  Link up for coffee and let's catch up!  If you don't blog, feel free to chat in the comments section.  Have you been a "fun girl?" yet?

Pillow Talk

Judging from the title of Today's Small Thing, you might think it was inspired by yesterday's fun festivities.

Au contraire.

As it happened, I came down with some kind of blechy bug as the day wore on, and was inspired to rest my stuffy head upon one of the 39 pillows in our house.  Thus, "pillow talk."

I don't think of myself as a "foofy throw pillow" person.  None of our pillows have designer tassels, big ruffles or coordinated piping, but I do concede that pillows have an important place in the home, both for comfort and design.

Basically, anything that sporks gets a thumbs-up from me.

The problem with pillows is that they only really look good if no one leans on, touches, rests upon, has fights with, makes forts with, sits on or in any otherwise uses them.  And while they can look really sharp when they're all lined up and organized, they tend to slump when no one is looking.

Today's Small Thing is to have a little talk with your pillows and get them to straighten up.  Those pretty ones for the bed that hide on the floor, instead of posing on the mattress, ought to get up there and do their job as eye candy.  The couch potatoes that take their positions for granted should take a punch to the stomach and a pat on the back to remind them that they've been loafing.  After all, they are there to make the Big Guy look good. Set the seat cushions down and reprimand them for jumping from their posts.  And the sleepy nighttime softies might get their feelings hurt if you don't plump them up, too.  They are so sensitive.

POINTS: 40 for simply straightening pillows around the house today.  Golly, that's easy.

All the Fun

Today's Small Thing is really simple, but might not be easy to pull off in one day.  You'll get through Sunday to work on this one.

It's this: Have fun with your man.  BE fun with him.

See, somewhere in the middle of organizing children and budgets and cleaning and committees, we find ourselves being more like our husband's mother than his cute 'n sexy wife.

I can already hear some of you grumbling.  I've gained weight!  We just lost a job!  My kids are sick!   Yes, those are all excellent reasons to be frumpy. To be glum. To snap at your man. 

And if I thought being the resident grump would help your situation, I'd encourage you to continue on.

But let me just share something I've learned along the way, and I'll bet a hundred dollars that you know this to be true too:  Men are just like boys.  They want to have fun!  And they secretly want their wives to be fun!

Ah, NOW with the protests.  Girls, you've got to stop this! 

If you only knew what my husband thinks is "fun!"  Yeah, I've got a good idea.

If you only knew that my man would throw all our money away on a boat!  Well, you don't have to be foolish with your fun.

If you only knew the stress we are under!  Been there, done that.

He's been such a knucklehead, I'm really mad at him.  And your point is.....?

So let's quantify "fun," and see if it will give you some hope:

Your husband's FAVORITE fun is only going to take about 14 minutes, so what's the big deal?  I mean, come on.

And it wouldn't kill you to sit and watch an action movie or a football game.

You could tease him like you used to, just for fun.

You could give him a break on his chore list and let him do something he'd enjoy doing instead.

You could flirt with him on the phone.

You could say sweet and silly things to him.

Play.  Wink.  Smile.  Nudge.  Be goofy.  Be attractive.  Lordy, put some makeup on!

Say, aren't we just encouraging manly irresponsibility?  Perhaps. 

But in the big scheme of things, a man who feels loved and has a little fun with his wife, is far more likely to shoulder his responsibilities gladly, than one who is beaten down and discouraged by her. 

And all joking aside, I DO realize that this Small Thing may seem like a Huge Impossible Thing for some of you.  I will ask you all to pray for each other, that we can simply lighten up in our marriages.  That we will find a way to have fun, BE fun together and enjoy each other.  If it's been a long, dry while since you've had any fun with your man, then just take a small step today.  Let bitterness go, and let fun pave the way to forgiveness.

POINTS: 50 for being a fun girl with your guy

BONUS: 20 for sharing....but keep it tasteful :)  You can leave a comment , blog, or link up for coffee on Friday.

Enjoy today's song by Paul Overstreet, "All the Fun!"

Toasty

Today's Small Thing reminded me of something that happened years ago. 

Lauren and Meghan started taking piano lessons when they turned seven, and they both did quite well.  One year, when Lauren was about 13, she made it to the regional finals at Baylor University.  But for some reason, she had a hard time focusing on practice and as the time came closer to the competition, she was still a bit under prepared.

I coaxed and encouraged, set timers and threatened in an effort to try and help her keep practicing.  One day she'd had enough.

"I've already practiced my piece!" she exasperated.  "What do you want me to do?  Play it OVER and OVER???"

Well, Lauren pulled it together and was pretty well prepared by the time we made the trip to Waco, Texas.  But walking into the grand auditorium and across the empty stage to the grand piano that loomed under the stage lights, I could see she was nervous.  Who wouldn't be?

Meghan (11 years old at the time) was sitting next to me and we clutched each other tightly as Lauren placed her hands on the keys for the opening chord of the Chopin waltz.  The two young pianists who had gone before her had played outstandingly, so the pressure was on.

She began. "Ta-Dum."

Unfortunately, she'd placed her hands on the wrong keys.

Before Lauren could collect herself to move her hands to the correct place and start over, little Meghan leaned in to me and whispered,

"Lauren's TOAST!"

Lauren managed to finish her piece with only a couple of wobbles, but it's hard to recover from such a start.  It was one of those life experiences that you learn from and grow as a person, and she's never forgotten it.

It's the TOAST part of that story which brings me today's Small Thing, which is to give your toaster a nice  cleaning.  Our brave little toaster works hard every day, as we are Toast People and love to eat toast.  Toast is the perfect breakfast complement, makes sandwiches seem more substantial, and provides the ideal night-night snack.  Crunchy, yet tender and comforting.

I always clean up the crumbs around the toaster, but only occasionally take the time to unplug it, open the little hatch at the bottom and shake it completely out.   A nice swab of the exterior will get him looking shiny and smart looking, just the way a toaster ought to be.

POINTS: 30 for this easy one.

My Birthday Song

I don't ever publicize my birthday, but I had to share this special song which was written and performed by my 4 year-old niece, Annie.  Thank you, Annie....you made my day!

Download Memo-2

My favorite lyrics are:

You are nice

Yes you are

Really nice I know it

You are nice

Yes yes you

Are really nice

Good Birthday

Gooooood.

And I want....all done, yeah.

To Kill A Mockingbird. Please.

For the past couple of years, we have been terrorized by a deranged Mockingbird. This bird wants nothing else in life but to come inside our house, probably to peck us to death.

"Crash," as we now call him, attempts to fly though the master bedroom windows from morning till night.  He sits on a nearby branch or on the window ledge, then lurches at the window, scratching it with his scratchy claws and flapping his wings against the pane.  And he does this over and over and over. It's unbelievably annoying.

But the worst part is the incessant pecking.

Oh, the pecking.  Peck.  Peckpeck. Peckpeckpeck.

Peck.

We wake to his crazed pecking, flapping and scratching every morning. Early. Before dawn.

We've tried scaring him away.  We've opened the blinds. Closed the blinds. We've thrown rocks at him.

"Why don't we open the window and catch him when he flies in?" our son suggested last year. "We could just wring his neck and be done with it!"

Horrified, yet oddly intrigued by such a thought, we decided that was probably too violent so we'd instead incorporate a "catch and release" program. My husband was going to let him in, catch him, then blindfold him and take him far, far away so he'd never find his way back.

But just as suddenly as Crash had appeared, he was gone from our window ledge.  We figured he was on his way to Mexico to abuse some unsuspecting hacienda down there. 

We breathed a sigh of relief. Crash's reign of terror seemed to have ended peacefully.

Until last week.

Once again, we were awakened by the pecking.  The flapping.  The scratching.

We laid there in disbelief.  By the third morning our disbelief had turned to white hot rage.

"That's it," my man said.

He strapped on his boots and headed out to the yard in his bathrobe.  His shadow fell across the grass and I could see he held his BB gun, just like when he hunted down his other nemesis, the squirrel cartel.  Hey man, you don't mess with a guy in boots and a bathrobe who's toting a BB gun.

Minutes later, he came back in with a satisfied smile.

"I can't say for sure if I got 'im," he said.  "But there was a puff of feathers and then he disappeared."

We went to sleep that night with the anticipation of a delicious Saturday sleep-in.  It was going to feel so good, and we deserved it.

6:45 am.

Peck. Peckpeck. Peckpeckpeck. Peck.

He's baaaaa-aaack.

And so the nightmare continues.

Today's Small Thing is to get rid of a pesky annoyance.  While we try and figure out how to rid ourselves of our deranged, feathered stalker, you can tackle something infinitely more fun.  How about: applying WD-40 to a squeaky hinge that's been bugging you for months now?  Or removing tags from pillows you've had for a year?  You could pull the blue painter's tape from July's paint project, or finally put on the drawer pulls that have been sitting there forever.  Hang the picture that's leaning up against the wall, tighten a leaky faucet, super glue that plate back together.

You know you've got stuff that's bugging you!  Just pick one and eliminate it today.

POINTS: 50, because it feels good to get rid of something pesky.

Note: no animals were harmed in the making of this true story, although we tried our best to do so.

Photos from the Week of Jonah

I posted "behind the scenes" photos of the Jonah taping over at Going Beyond.  There is an adorable dress featured in one of the photos, and also my chunky arms made it into another.  Argh. Besides that, the week was a huge and wonderful experience.

Don't forget to send in your Last Chance Photos for the company girl book!  Deadline is Sunday at midnight, CST.  Thank you to the girls who have submitted some already...there are some good ones in there!

Have a great weekend, everyone!

Company Girl Coffee 11.6

It's been a really great week of taping Priscilla Shirer's newest Bible Study, "Jonah."  Last night was the final night, and I hated to see it end!  The lessons have been simply amazing, and I have so much that I can apply to my life immediately.  The subtitle is "Navigating the Interrupted Life," and this study is my favorite one so far.

I'm a little late in getting this posted this morning, but I will add a couple of photos from the week later today.

Stop over and see my introduction on Priscilla's blog today!  Woo!

This is YOUR opportunity to link up and enjoy some Company Girl company!  Simply invite us over by linking your URL into the form below....then try and visit as many blogs as you can!

Excessive Tub Debris Citation

The Tub Police is patrolling your neighborhood and is issuing citations right and left!  There is so much Tub and Shower abuse happening, that a special task force has been formed to enforce a "No Clutter" Policy.  Please comply with code enforcement and clean up the debris in your tub area.

Thank you.

POINTS: 40 for complying with citation.  Please note that if your tub/shower area is already straightened up, you may receive today's points!

Talk Like a Norwegian

Many people imagine the mighty Vikings when they think of Norwegian people.  I'm not sure where those fierce warriors came from, but I think they might have actually been Italians. Anyway, by the time Norwegians began emigrating to America, a steady diet of plain, boiled potatoes had caused them to become a whole lot more bland.  And stoic.

You see, I was born into a solidly Norwegian family, whose roots go back to the very origins of stoicism. These people prize long-suffering like the crown jewel of character, which is why so many of them settled in sub-zero Minnesota and the dreary Northwest.  California would have been far outside their comfort zone.

Norwegians aren't known for their hot tempers.  They've learned to swallow hard and get along, a lesson painfully learned through years of being forced to eat lutefisk until they liked it.

A rip-roaring argument between two Norwegians might sound something like this:

"So then. That's the way you feel about it."

    (Long Pause)

"Ya.   Ya, it is."

    (cricket chirping)

"Well then."

(Longer pause)

"I guess there's no changin' your mind."

    (Clock ticking)

"Nope."

    (dogs barking in distance)

"OK then."

Boy, the fur was really flying there for a second.

I guess you can say one thing for these stout-hearted individuals.  They do know how to weigh their words.

James 1: 19 says, "Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry..."

Today's Small Thing is to measure your words.  Put another way, "think before you speak." Like the Norsemen of olde.

Rarely do I regret holding my tongue and taking a deep breath before speaking, especially in the middle of conflict.  The damage done by a few thoughtless words can be devastating, as most of us have experienced at one time or another.  As moms, wives, and friends, our lives are filled with opportunities to speak our words with kindness...but we often miss them because we are rushing ahead to make our point, thankyouverymuch.  A "vise voman" (Norwegian for "wise woman') will take a moment to weigh her words, and then speak kindly.

POINTS: 75...because pausing to measure your words isn't easy, but it's life-giving. Ask the Holy Spirit to help you today.