i'm invisible

my sister posted this on our family blog and i loved it. thanks gretch for sharing! i really needed to read this. i hope you, especially you moms, enjoy it.

I'm Invisible
It all began to make sense, the blank stares, the lack of response, the way one of the kids will walk into the room while I'm on the phone and ask to be taken to the store. Inside I'm thinking, 'Can't you see I'm on the phone?' Obviously not; no one can see if I'm on the phone, or cooking, or sweeping the floor, or even standing on my head in the corner, because no one can see me at all. I'm invisible. The invisible Mom. Some days I am only a pair of hands, nothing more: Can you fix this? Can you tie this? Can you open this? Some days I'm not a pair of hands; I'm not even a human being. I'm a clock to ask, 'What time is it?' I'm a satellite guide to answer, 'What number is the Disney Channel?' I'm a car to order, 'Right around 5:30, please.' I was certain that these were the hands that once held books and the eyes that studied history and the mind that graduated summa cum laude - but now they had disappeared into the peanut butter, never to be seen again. She's going, she's going, she's gone! One night, a group of us were having dinner, celebrating the return of a friend from England. Janice had just gotten back from a fabulous trip, and she was going on and on about the hotel she stayed in. I was sitting there, looking around at the others all put together so well. It was hard not to compare and feel sorry for myself as I looked down at my out-of-style dress; it was the only thing I could find that was clean. My unwashed hair was pulled up in a hair clip and I was afraid I could actually smell peanut butter in it. I was feeling pretty pathetic, when Janice turned to me with a beautifully wrapped package, and said, 'I brought you this.' It was a book on the great cathedrals of Europe. I wasn't exactly sure why she'd given it to me until I read her inscription: 'To Charlotte, with admiration for the greatness of what you are building when no one sees.' In the days ahead I would read - no, devour - the book. And I would discover what would become for me, four life-changing truths, after which I could pattern my work: No one can say who built the great cathedrals - we have no record of their names. These builders gave their whole lives for a work they would never see finished. They made great sacrifices and expected no credit. The passion of their building was fueled by their faith that the eyes of God saw everything. A legendary story in the book told of a rich man who came to visit the cathedral while it was being built, and he saw a workman carving a tiny bird on the inside of a beam. He was puzzled and asked the man, 'Why are you spending so much time carving that bird into a beam that will be covered by the roof? No one will ever see it.' And the workman replied, 'Because God sees.' I closed the book, feeling the missing piece fall into place. It was almost as if I heard God whispering to me, 'I see you, Charlotte. I see the sacrifices you make every day, even when no one around you does. No act of kindness you've done, no sequin you've sewn on, no cupcake you've baked, is too small for me to notice and smile over. You are building a great cathedral, but you can't see right now what it will become.' At times, my invisibility feels like an affliction. But it is not a disease that is erasing my life. It is the cure for the disease of my own self-centeredness. It is the antidote to my strong, stubborn pride. I keep the right perspective when I see myself as a great builder. As one of the people who show up at a job that they will never see finished, to work on something that their name will never be on. The writer of the book went so far as to say that no cathedrals could ever be built in our lifetime because there are so few people willing to sacrifice to that degree. When I really think about it, I don't want my son to tell the friend he's bringing home from college for Thanksgiving, 'My Mom gets up at 4 in the morning and bakes homemade pies, and then she hand bastes a turkey for three hours and presses all the linens for the table.' That would mean I'd built a shrine or a monument to myself. I just want him to want to come home. And then, if there is anything more to say to his friend, to add, 'You're gonna love it there.' As mothers, we are building great cathedrals. We cannot be seen if we're doing it right. And one day, it is very possible that the world will marvel, not only at what we have built, but at the beauty that has been added to the world by the sacrifices of invisible women.

man i wish i would have found this sooner!

holiday party excuse generator
this is too funny & oh how i wish i would have found it sooner! just kidding, well just a little. maybe someone out there will find it useful. lol! i know my husband will love this. merry christmas!
*click on the link, holiday party excuse generator.

reindeer facts

i received this email from a friend of mine. i love it!

According to the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, while both male and female reindeer grow antlers in the summer each year, male reindeer drop their antlers at the beginning of winter, usually late November to mid-December. Female reindeer retain their antlers till after they give birth in the spring. Therefore, according to EVERY historical rendition depicting Santa's reindeer, EVERY single one of them, from Rudolph to Blitzen, had to be a girl. We should've known... ONLY women would be able to drag an old fat guy in a red velvet suit all around the world in one night and not get lost.

our weekend

yes that's right, 2 posts in 1 day. trying to make up for no posts for 11 days! sorry life's been crazy busy.

baylie's dance company, jds, does a christmas party for all the team girls. it was so cute! it's dinner & dancing for them & their prince. bay & i had so much fun shopping for her "fancy" dress & all the accessories. she was in heaven! i loved helping her get ready. she & her prince, her dad, looked great. she couldn't have been happier that her dad got to go. the parking isn't that great when you have a ton of people so i said i would drop them off & pick them up. bay was so cute & wanted todd, her date, to sit in the back with her. they had a lot of fun & made some good memories. (i will post more pictures of this later)

i made christmas treats for the first time this year. can you believe that? i made drizzled chocolate pretzels & chocolate & peanut butter rice crispy treat squares. i actually had a lot of fun doing it except i don't like the mess when i'm done. i guess that's why i usually do treats from the store. lol!

i just got done playing candy land with baylie, haven't played that in years! she won twice in a row & wanted to play again so that i could win. sweet huh? that's just how she is. she is always thinking about others & trying to make them happy, especially her brother, i love it!

smotherhood

do you ever feel like your smothering your children because you're scared? that's me. it makes me sad that we live in a day & age where you have to be on guard all the time & that you can never be too safe. i seriously worry all the time about everything. for instance today, bay wasn't feeling good so tyson went to church with my neighbor. she had to leave early for work so i said i would pick the boys up. as i was driving to our church i was worrying about tyson running into the parking lot to me & what if a car didn't see him & hit him. am i crazy? i was thinking that would be one of the worst things ever, seeing your child hurt right before your eyes. i worry about him on field trips, especially going into bathrooms where i can't protect him. he came home one day & said that the guy that helps in the lunch room touched him on the head while he was going to the bathroom. oh my i started worrying about adults at school in the bathrooms. my sister recently sent me an article about this horrible thing that happened to 4 sisters, little girls, while at church waiting for their mom. i hate that i can't protect my children all of the time. i don't know how to not worry so much. if you have any helpful tips or suggestions i would appreciate them. btw, happy holidays!

lame blogger

that's me, sorry for those of you that like to read this. i believe the total number of people is probably about 5! it's been hard finding time to post. i need to download the pictures i've been taking, i have some fun ones. just wanted to let you know we're alive and hopefully i will have something fun to post shortly, with pictures! :0) merry christmas everyone!!!


recent happenings:
*purchased our fabulous christmas tree, i love it! thanks to my sweet husband for putting the lights on...the way i like them...each branch wrapped...crazy i know! fyi, it's still not decorated. yikes!

*working on our christmas cards. this is the first year i have created our "picture card"...simple and clean is the theme. i think they're cute though.

*sunday i delivered our neighbor gifts, wow that's early for me.

*almost all of our christmas presents have been purchased, wrapping is another story. lol!

*sick kids, that's no fun. i think our sweet b is on the mends.

*christmas parties.

*lots of playing in the snow, the kids that is. they are waiting for the next storm.

are you ready?

for snow that is? i'm not really, but it does make it feel more like christmas. i don't know if it's snowed in your neck of the woods, but it began here yesterday. today it hasn't let up. there are a couple of things i don't like about the snow:
*when it gets dirty & then it's grey, i prefer the pretty white stuff!
*it's hard to keep your car clean especially when it's black, although the rest of the time i love having a black car.
*crazy drivers in the snow & all the accidents. some days it takes forever to get to work!
other than that i love the snow. if i could have it my way, and really should it be any other way, i would have snow just on the grass for the month of december & i would love the mountains to have nice snow from november thru march for a wonderful ski season. lol!

i am loving all the christmas lights! it makes me so happy to see all the lights & listening to so much christmas music! at this time of year there is no other type of music for me. there are more houses in our neighborhood with lights on than ever before. it's so pretty! i took the kids to drive through layton's lights on sunday. we went through twice. if you've never been it's worth the drive, unless you're amy or gretchen, both out of state. we usually go at least once a week to see the lights.

oh another item worth mentioning...i have cooked for 3 nights in a row & will be cooking again tonight! my family has been loving it. it's really not that bad when you plan for it. ha ha! who knew that i had it in me? let's hope this streak doesn't end.