Picture Time

Since the girls both reached age milestones recently my mom and I took the girls to have their picture taken. We went to Portrait Innovations in Collierville. I highly recommend this place. They took 123 pictures. They listen to the things I like and don't like. They let us do a wardrobe change and were very patient with me while I chose the 4 pictures I liked best. (I had some serious panic going on by the end of it, thank goodness my mother was there.) It's a great deal. They even have a package for $9.95. If I knew that I would have the strength to just get one pose and only pay that small price, I'd take them every month. Instead I go about every 3 or 4 months. We will probably go back in June when Daily is 18 months. I did decide to have my picture taken with them. I'm not crazy about it, but I know I'll be glad I did it.

I grew up with a mom who treasured pictures. I honestly don't know if she's ever thrown one away. I am a bit of a pack rat because of her. I recently went through a box of pictures she had collected from the house. I did throw some away, only because I had so many of the people in them already. It didn't make sense to keep them.

I always told myself that I'd keep all the pictures of ex-boyfriends and old friends, love letters and pass around notes, ticket stubs and clippings. I wanted something concrete to show my children. I never felt like I had enough of that from my parents. I never felt like I knew their younger selves well enough. Maybe we're not supposed to know our adolescent parents. Maybe we'd be a little afraid of what our 20-something folks would look like. I'm sure we'd be surprised. I'm sure my parents didn't always have that confident air they have now. Still it would've been nice to see a glimpse of them, more than what a studio picture can tell. So that's why I keep those things in a big box beneath my bed. Sure I go back and read some of those old love letters, it makes me laugh. But hopefully it will impact my girls in a different way. Maybe they'll understand me better. Or gain a perspective on what life could be like or will become. Then again, maybe it's foolish thinking. My children may never ask to see those things. They may not care about what their mother was like at that age. And to be honest, I may be a little sad if they don't.

I do believe the past can help us grasp the future.

And I wonder what technologies will be around in the next 5 years to help me capture my girls. We bought a video camera right after Daily was born. I do love having those moments. I haven't gotten the whole transfer to DVD down perfectly yet, but I'm working on it.

Hopefully, my children will cherish these things. Not everyone has the same sense of nostalgia. But if I pass something along to Remle and Daily, I hope it is the sense that I cared enough to capture their memorable moments. Even if some are only in my heart.

Cradle-Roll

Many of you have seen my Facebook statuses lately. A friend and I are hard at work to start a cradle-roll at church. If you didn't grow up in the Church of Christ like I did, then you may have no idea what a cradle-roll is. Well simply put, it's a Bible class for babies. Why they just don't call it "baby Bible class," is beyond me.
I'm really excited about this opportunity.

When I first visited Friendship Church of Christ, I was overwhelmed with not only how friendly everyone was but also how much my 2 year old, Remle, was learning in her class. Not only did the church offer regular Bible class with activities such as singing and crafts, but also provided a Jr. Bibleland during worship. I love it. I drop her off at the beginning of class and don't see her again until worship is over. And all week long we talk about Bible class. And each Wednesday, she's excited to go back to class.
The first Sunday that we visited, there was someone in the nursery to watch my then 10 month old, Daily. She was the only baby in there. And from that day forward I took her with me to class and worship. I didn't see a need for a person to miss out on worship for one baby. Now Daily is almost 13 months and is difficult to handle during class and worship. Another mother of an 8 month old girl is having the same problem.
As of March, the church will have 4 children under the age of 18months. It just seemed like a natural thing to do. So I went to the source.
My grandmother taught cradle-roll for 30 years. What a legacy! My mother taught cradle-roll for many years also. I have big shoes to fill. My mom has helped me with the bones of the program. She taught me the basic curriculum and gave me a list of necessary supplies to get started.
Monday I ordered the table for the class. And Thursday I will be working in the nursery trying to decorate and organize what I can.
I'm typically a "it needs to happen yesterday" person. I'm the least patient with myself. It seems like it has been forever that we've been working on this. But I think that's because it has become a real need in our congregation.
I've been all over 2 different counties looking for what I need. As I was racking up at a local dollar store, the cashier asked me if the stuff was for a daycare. I replied that no it was for a baby Bible class. She looked at me quizzically and said "You're going to teach babies about God?" It was a powerful moment for me.

Both of my girls were winter babies and I didn't take them out much before 3 months for fear of them catching cold. But I recently read a blog of an acquaintance who had documented her daughter's first visit to church. In the picture documenting this blessed event, the little girl was already able to stand on her own! How important I believe it is for our children to be exposed to Jesus Christ as early as possible.

If you still are not convinced that babies need a Bible class or are even capable of learning, I urge you to check out this article about a church in Texas.
http://www.childrensministry.com/ArticlePrint.asp?ID=1763
If you still are not sure, bring your baby to the class in a few weeks. Even if you don't leave with a clearer understanding of who our Savior is, I'm sure your little one will have a great understanding of how wonderful the cradle-roll class is.



Luke 18:16 (The Message)
15-17People brought babies to Jesus, hoping he might touch them. When the disciples saw it, they shooed them off. Jesus called them back. "Let these children alone. Don't get between them and me. These children are the kingdom's pride and joy. Mark this: Unless you accept God's kingdom in the simplicity of a child, you'll never get in."

Resolution

res⋅o⋅lu⋅tion 
a resolve or determination: to make a firm resolution to do something.

the act of resolving or determining upon an action or course of action, method, procedure, etc.

the mental state or quality of being resolved or resolute; firmness of purpose.

So I'm sure by now you've made yours. Maybe you don't. Ok, you're a rebel. But are you really? It's difficult for me to believe people when they say that they don't make New Year's resolutions. I remember being a small child and overhearing my dad tell a family friend a few of his resolutions. I was in awe. I don't really know why except maybe then I thought he had nothing he really needed to change about himself. But I think change is healthy and good and sometimes fun. And yet, change almost always scares the hell out of me.

That being said, I have resolved to post on a more regular basis. I looked at my blog tonight and realized it has been quite sometime since I last shared my thoughts. Almost 4 months! So much has happened in that time that I feel I should catch you up to date. After all, my life is quite entertaining.

My sister and I bought my mother a cruise for her 50th birthday. We leave in April. We are really excited and are desperate to get into our cruise worthy bodies. Drastic measures must be taken, but I'm up for the challenge.

I found out that my closest friend is pregnant. She is going to be, and in all fairness already is, an amazing mother. Congratulations!

I started selling Avon. I haven't done as well as I had hoped, but I haven't been trying as hard as I should either. I signed up right around Thanksgiving, so I let myself kind of learn the ropes during the holidays. Time to get serious now. If you are interested you can go to www.youravon.com/bmattice

I spent 4 glorious days with my sister at her home in Auburn, AL during Thanksgiving. We made all the food from scratch. She made the turkey and dressing. It was delicious. It was stressful and fun. I was surprised and elated when she agreed to get up at 3:30 in the morning on Black Friday to go shopping. That was my first Black Friday experience. It was so much fun. I hope it is a new tradition with us.

I celebrated Remle's 2nd birthday with a Sesame Street party. My mother, sister and I made the 3 tier cake. I will probably never do that again. It was absolute insanity. I also learned that some people have very loose opinions about how to behave at a child's birthday party. Evidently some mothers feel it is perfectly fine for their child to rip open the birthday girl's gifts before she has even laid a hand on them. I think she should open her gifts after everyone has gone home. My mother thinks this is rude. I have decided that the gifts our guests brought can be opened during the party and the family gifts can be opened in a calmer setting. Who knew there would be such drama?

I attended the funeral of my closest friend's grandfather. I felt such pain for her. I still do.

I made it through the 1st Christmas without my papaw. I will surely dedicate several future posts to my grandparents. It was excruciatingly painful and I found it difficult to enjoy Remle and Daily's day.

I placed membership at a new congregation. Friendship Church of Christ is an amazing church and I encourage all of you to visit. http://www.fscoc.org/

I made friends with a girl at my new church home. She is a stay at home mom of a 7 month old girl and a 4 year old boy. We try to get together once a week or so. She has helped me with the loneliness.

I rang in the New Year with the Riverkings. A family from church went to the game with me and then stayed with the girls while I went out for awhile. Honestly, I wish I had stayed home and celebrated with them. Y'all are a fun bunch! Thanks a million.

I made several resolutions. (more on those in the future)

I found that I am very busy now. The girls of course are as wild as ever. They are constantly tackling each other and narrowly missing a sharp object here and there. I try to balance time with them and housework. I find myself letting the housework slip a little. It's a losing battle, but I'm enjoying the time I spend just playing with the girls.

In this last week, with the help of several people, I have started to put together a cradle roll, or Bible class for the infants at church. I'm really excited about this. I hope this is a successful contribution I am making. I love being involved.

I have a friend who recently had a baby boy (recent as in like 3 months ago.) She also has 2 older children and a full time job and a husband. She still manages to keep up with her blog. And her body looks like she never suffered the trials of birthing a baby. She is one of my inspirations.

So while I'm sure I've left some stuff out, it's a good synopsis of what I have been doing with my time. I love this outlet I have. I know that I would be able to resolve some things going on in this head of mine if I used it more often.

So prepare to hear about the changes I'm making. I can't promise you that they will all be entertaining or enlightening. But I can promise that they will be honest.

above-board, authentic, bona fide*, conscientious, decent, direct, equitable, ethical, fair, fair and square, forthright, frank, genuine, high-minded*, honorable, impartial, ingenuous, just, law-abiding, lay it on the line, like it is, no lie, on the level*, on the up and up, open, outright, plain, proper, real, reliable, reputable, scrupulous, sincere, straight, straightforward, true, true blue, trustworthy, trusty, undisguised, unfeigned, upfront, upright, veracious, virtuous, what you see is what you get

So now you know at least one of my resolutions. To be more honest with myself.

What have you resolved to do?