Lights, Camera, SILENCE !!!! A behind the scenes look!

It's day 2! Did you take my challenge? Did those 5 minutes make a difference? Post a note of encouragement if you saw God work for you yesterday! Now let's get started in today's craziness.... let's set "the stage"
Ladies, do you think the men in your lives know what exactly happens in the few minutes(let's be honest... hours) before they walk in the door. Let's take yesterday for example, shall we? It's 5:08 and my husband is just around the corner. Mission: to let him walk into a serene house where dinner is cooking and kids are clean, quiet, and not killing each other! 5:13 and daddy walks in to a roast in the oven, rolls that are not even slightly tan yet, and kids outside playing! Mission accomplished! Now, let's back up a minute or two and see what it took to make this magic happen.
It's 4:15 and my son is home from school tired and grumpy about homework. My 4 year old "princess" is sitting in the corner having a meltdown over the fact that she can't have her zillionth cup of hot cocoa of the day! This is where it always gets fun... tired kids with nothing better to do than get each other all riled up!
The back pack thrown by the front door and the trail of My Little Pony toys up the stairs do not set the serene setting I am going for. "Morgan, come get your ponys and Will get your back pack before daddy gets home."
"But Mooooooooooooooom, I don't want to pick up my stuff! I am....." And the never ending list of excuses begin. None of which work on me at this point.
My rolls are cooking, my make up in non existent, and June Cleaver is no where to be found again today. But I still have time to set the stage for a GREAT homecoming. After threats of taking away toys, tv, and everything that makes life fun, I think I have this under control.
"Mom, Will took my little pony."
"Mom, Morgan took my backpack."
Ugh. T minus 11 minutes until daddy gets home. We can do this! I can do this!
So, I send the kids outside so they can escape the wrath of Mom, and I speed clean. Hubby walks through the door and says it looks great and he doesn't know how I do it everyday! Wow, is my rush for the illusion of calm really working? haha
What he doesn't see everyday is the work it takes for that 1st impression when he walks in the door. 5 minutes before he strolls in I hear the sobs from the playroom over simple everyday tings that HAVE to be done. Crushing a child's world over picking up a Hot wheels seems silly huh? So, each afternoon, as I try and remember how my mood effects all others in my family, I am going to work on really being CALM instead of just trying for it.
This brings us to todays challenge ladies. In your 5 minutes today, pray that God gives you the calm you need throughout your day. Admit to Him that little things can sometimes overwhelm you and you don't know why. Maybe take your 5 minutes today to change your clothes and put on a new shirt... and maybe, just maybe a bit of lip gloss to help you feel a little fixed up. Yes, we will be so bold as to actually HAVE calm instead of the illusion of it. Do any of my ramblings make sense today?
Those few minutes before the curtain goes up in the evening when daddy gets home, can be used to make YOU feel better. In doing that, and finding a calm center, you will pass it on to those in your home. Set the stage every night for a nice family dinner and time to ENJOY one another. It makes a world of difference if you set your stage the way you want! Lights, camera, ACTION!

Virgin voyage into blogging!

Good morning, all you stay at home moms out there! This is my 1st official post to all of the other sanity starved mom's out there. Do you ever feel that you are gradually slipping into the abyss of never ending laundry, cleaning, carpool, and soccer games? Well, then dive in and serve up a slice of great ideas for YOU today. No, it is not too much to ask for 5 whole minutes to sit down and do something constructive for yourself today.
On my maiden voyage into cyberspace, I will give you some info on my little corner of the world. I am a stay at home mom(SAHM) of a 7 year old boy, and a 4 year old girl. My husband and I have been married for almost 8 years now. I am in knee deep with the daily struggles of providing great care for my kids and still maintaining some sense of what makes ME tick... what a struggle. But enough about me today, there is plenty of time for the craziness I call normal life...Ha. (Note to self: look up definition of normal. It seems to change daily. lol. Inner dialogue is highly under appreciated these days)
Everyday, I wake up with grand dreams of being June Cleaver, but somewhere between cleaning up after little hands, figuring out where the electric bill money will come from this month, and getting a perfect meal on the table by 5:30... I end up more like June Cleaver strung out on caffeine with no make up and burnt rolls in the oven for dinner! I tend to call the burnt rolls "tan" in my house. For all of you that don't know, there are levels to the degree of burned your dinner is... tan is perfectly acceptable if you add ketchup!
So, today, my challenge for all of us is simple! Take 5 minutes today... just 5 minutes. Put the kids down for a nap or put in a video(yes TV is OK, no matter what anyone says) and spend 5 minutes praying for God to show you what He has in store for you. So many times in my life, I have prayed for specifics that I thought would make my life better. What I didn't "get" was that I was praying for the wrong things. Today, ask for God to show you blessings that you may not see and to let His will take over in your life. It is amazing what God can reveal to you if you just allow Him to work in your life.
Motherhood, marriage, maintaining a sense of SELF is a daily challenge for all of us these days. Make a pledge to yourself to let God take some of it. The time you save on worrying can free up special time to spend with your kids or husband. See what difference your 5 minutes make in your life today. Let's get through these crazy times together ladies. Like my little Superman up there... your strength to get through the rough patches will grow as your faith grows!