We are Super Heros

See, I am not one of those feminist, women empowerment, alpha female type girls. I actually get a little annoyed with those "women-rule-the-world" songs on the radio. And, if you've ever read my blog, you know that I am very self-deprecating and that I know that I am far from perfect. But, I'd like to take a step away from the norm and use this post to give props to all the working moms of multiple children who take their multiple roles in life very seriously and strive to do the best that they can in every one of those roles.

When I sit and reflect on all the hats I wear, I get overwhelmed (which is why I don't do this often). I compared myself to a super hero and realized that super heros really do not live up to the term "super hero." I mean seriously, they have super human powers with which to defeat a bad guy. Anybody could do that.

Here is what my version of a super hero looks like: a working mom in a cute super hero costume, holding her cell phone to her ear with her shoulder on a business call, while changing her baby's poopy diaper, using one of her legs to separate her two pre-schoolers from fighting, while flirtatiously smiling at her husband across the room. In the background is a calendar with all the million ministry events, birthday parties, showers, school performances, doctor's appointments etc. all occurring on the same day. Does this picture, give you anxiety? If it does, then you are probably a man. If you are a working mommy, you are probably high-fiving the computer screen, because this is totally you!

You realize that at this stage in your life, you are never NOT multi-tasking. At every moment of every day, you are doing multiple things at same time. So, let's raise our mugs of extra-caffeintated coffee and say to each other GOOD JOB SUPER WOMEN! You're holding up the fort and doing a great job! Call on God daily to give you that super human strength to love Him, love your husband, love your children, love His people, and to do your job with excellence. Let's not be so overwhelmed that we miss the precious moments and forget to be present in the "now."

To the true super heros out there: YOU ROCK!

Sometimes You Just Have to Laugh

The past two days I have found myself laughing at inappropriate times. Because I am brutally honest, I am just going to come out and say that raising 3 children this close together in age means that I experience daily moments of torture. You know, moments of two kids yelling at the top of their lungs at each other in the backseat of my car while the baby cries out of fear that he may inadvertently get a blow to the face that is actually meant for a pre-schooler? Or, the moments when all I want to do is get the dishwasher loaded, but instead I have to run to the rescue of the baby who has finagled his way onto his knees in the highchair and is about to tip over while a preschooler is yelling from the toilet, "MOOOOOOOM, I'M ALL DONE!," and the other preschooler is simultaneously whining about a toy that he can't find and he is sure that he needs it right this second or the world will end. Those are daily occurrences in my household and I am almost positive that I will NOT miss those moments all though women older than I, swear that I will.

Anyways, back to my point. I have discovered a coping mechanism to help me and my children make it out alive during these torturous moments. That mechanism? LAUGH!

Example #1: I am used to being totally embarrassed at church by little Miss Maia Belle. But, I don't usually laugh when she embarrasses me. Yesterday, I did...and it actually made me feel better. We were at church after making the rounds of picking up all the whiny hungry kids. We were getting ready to take the kids to the car when Maia pulled Noah's hair because he did not do something how she wanted or when she wanted him to do it (this type of abuse is common for Noah from his sister). But, this time, instead of whining about it and telling on her, he decided to take matters into his own hands. He turned and grabbed 2 healthy handfuls of her hair and yanked as hard as he could. I am sure that the passers-by were appalled by my reaction because, I turned around so that my children could not see my face and I burst out laughing...quietly of course. When I gained composure and went to talk to Noah about how his reaction was not acceptable and to Maia about why it was equally unacceptable for her to hurt her brother, Noah's determined, and unapologetic face amused me so much so that it took every ounce of my being to keep a straight face. Sometimes it feels like 70% of my day is spent breaking up fights and correcting my children and apparently I feel the need to laugh in order to not go crazy.

Example #2: After running errands with all three energy-filled children and going out to lunch. Ricky and I were eagerly anticipating getting home and getting the kids to bed. We had broken up countless fights, fed the baby wayyy too many snacks just to keep him quiet, and had used our stern voices so much that our throats hurt. So, once we got the kids in their seats and headed home. We were hoping for them to wind down and maybe even fall asleep in the car. Instead, our preschoolers decided to get in a yelling match in the backseat while Malakai screamed his little head off because the poor thing has to sit right in the middle of the two crazy kids. Ricky and I looked at each other as if to say, "It's your turn to yell at them." As soon as our eyes met, we began to laugh uncontrollably. We laughed and laughed and laughed until I thought my bladder would explode. The best part of the whole episode was that our kids all quieted down because they could not figure out what was so funny.

The moral of the story is...when you feel as though your kids might drive you to jump off a cliff, LAUGH!

Malakai 9 months

This little guy is so much fun! He is 9 months old and has such a fun personality. We think that he is going to be our most adventurous child. He is such a fast army crawler and whenever we turn our heads for just a second, he ends up under a table, behind a chair or in between furniture.

He has had consistent ear infections for about 5 months now and we are in the process of taking him to a specialist to see about taking the next step. He has been on every kind of antibiotic on the market!

He is so happy in spite of the pain in his ears. He says bye bye and waves, he loves to point to the sky and say "bah" for birds. He claps his hands and gives kisses. He prefers table food to baby food and will rarely even open his mouth for baby food! He enjoys his big sister very much as she takes care of him a lot. Almost every morning I find her in his crib with him because "he was crying."

My little Malakai Kade loves his mommy so much and prefers to be held by only her. I love my little guy and am trying to soak up every second with him because this baby stage is gone in the blink of an eye.

You Know You're a Bad Driver When...

Maia: Mommy, are you supposed to park on the lines or in between the lines?

Me: In between the lines.

Maia: How come you always park crooked on the lines? That's not how you are supposed to do it.

Me: Yeah, Mommy is just not a very good driver.

Maia: But, daddy always parks in between the lines. How come you don't?

Me:...

I'd just like to say now, that I was not in the driver's seat today when we acquired the big dent in the front of our truck. A certain someone who "always parks in between the lines" turned into the garage wall instead of into the garage! HA!

2011

2011 was a good year. It was a year full of challenges and wonderful blessings all at the same time. It was also year of growth.

I continued with my Good Morning Girls email group which has kept me accountable to spending time daily with the Lord and has sharpened me continuously as iron sharpens iron.

Early in the year, my honey surprised me with the best birthday present ever: three of my dearest friends taking me out to dinner!

Then in April, our newest addition Malakai Kade made his entrance into the world.

This is where my first big challenge came in the form of intense post-partum depression. God was faithful as He always is and rescued me by way of 2 Samuel 22.

We've formed new friendships this year for which I am ever so grateful. One of the families were gracious enough to invite us with them on vacation this Summer!

Then, our close friends blessed us with a trip to Hawaii where Ricky and I got to spend some much needed quality time together.

God called us out to stop only serving ourselves and to be Kingdom-minded and start serving Him! We began to lead a table at our marriage ministry at church and have been beyond blessed by this opportunity to serve Jesus.

We have also been convicted in the area of serving "the least of these," which we had not been doing prior to this year. We were blessed to serve as a family in Adopt-a-Block and in our food pantry ministry and have committed to being more servant oriented in the new year.

We have had our share of challenges in the parenting department as you may have read about in my blogs. Navigating through those has been quite humbling and educational! I've had my share of ugly mommy moments where all I wanted to do was sell my children to the highest bidder, and eat a hot meal for once, and only worry about getting myself ready in the morning, and sleep in, and go the bathroom in peace! It amazes me how God loves me through those ugly moments.

This year has found me stepping out of my comfort zone in many ways in my job and in using my talents. I have learned that I am called to obedience and that I can do all things through Christ alone.

2012 is going to be exciting, I just know it! It holds some unknowns for my family as far as our living situation goes and I am having to just trust in the Lord. It's a year that also holds potential for big things!

I am making it my goal this year to love like Jesus and to just practice obedience and rid myself of selfishness. It sounds impossible,but it is worth striving for.

My verse for this year is Hebrews 10:24 Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works.

Happy New Year

My High Horse has Gone Missing

Before I had kids, I knew that my kids would be little angels. I knew this because I knew exactly how I'd parent them. My children would never throw tantrums in public or disrespect me. They would always be polite, kind, and obedient because I would be the perfect mom.
Never in my worst of nightmares did I see myself being at a big church event with my daughter throwing an Exorcist-worthy-tantrum. Surely, I would die before I'd be THAT mom walking her child through the crowds of people while her child writhes and screams and attempts to bite her mother. I would NEVER allow my child to scream until she was blue in the face and nearly passes out in a public place. Not me! I would be the mom with the kids who walked in a cloud of light because they came straight from Heaven...HA HA HA!
I can't even write that while keeping a straight face. It's humorous now to think that I thought that way back then. To think that I supposed I could maintain any shred of dignity is laughable.
Why? Because when you're Maia Belle's mommy, humiliation is the name of the game. There is no room for pride when your child throws the king of all temper tantrums at a big church event (my place of employment). There is no place for dignity when you walk through crowds of people you know while your writhing screaming child is attempting to bite you only after your table of friends watched your daughter scream until she was blue in the face.
My lofty hopes of maintaining my pride and dignity while being a mom are long gone. They have been replaced with a heaping serving of humility by means of humiliation. It's obvious that I needed to come off my high horse, but little did I know that I also needed to be stomped six feet under ground as well. I would venture to say that I will never have a problem with pride or narcissism, my daughter will make sure of it!


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Third-Child-Hazards

Hi! I'm Malakai Kade Murray...why are you laughing? See, this is why I am writing this blog. I want everyone to know why being a third child is hazardous to your health.

Exhibit A. Every time I have this pacifier in my mouth, people laugh at me, and I just can't figure out why. I think my parents want me to have a complex.

Exhibit B. Instead of coming to rescue me from eating a leaf which could potentially give me a stomach ache or make me choke, my parents take a picture of me, eating said leaf.

Exhibit C. I've got some older siblings who are just slightly older than me and can't really handle my weight, but my crazy parents will do anything for a picture of them and I together so they ask my siblings to hold me which means my insides get smooshed, my shirt gets shoved up into my face, I can't see because the sun is in my eyes (my mom says that is the best lighting) and my belly is showing for everyone to see. Seriously, mom? So embarrassing.

(Mom finally comes to my rescue after I start crying and I nearly get dropped too early by my sister).

Exhibit D. These are the crazy people who raise me! Don't they just look like they could be hazardous to my health?! It's amazing that I am still alive to write this post after all the third-child-hazards I've survived!