The Big White Farmhouse

intentional living, little by little

{i want to remember} – 1/25/12

Sometimes life gets so busy that I forget to notice and appreciate the little things. Here are some of the things I am loving this week:

 I WANT TO REMEMBER… how adorable D is when he declares either of his brothers is his best friend.  This happens on nearly a daily basis.  The two most recent: “Mamma, J is my best friend because he kisses me.” and “M, you not my best friend anymore?” (they were having a spat)

I WANT TO REMEMBER… how sweet it is to watch the bond between baby J and his daddy.  They have had a special connection since he was a tiny newborn.  I can’t wait to see their relationship as he grows up.

I WANT TO REMEMBER… M and the crazy things he’s been saying lately.  At bedtime, my husband always prays “in thanksgiving for my family”.  M, in an attempt to one-up his father, tried this new prayer: “in Christmas for my family.”  I guess the holidays work interchangably.  🙂

I WANT TO REMEMBER… this amazing prayer prayed by Mother Teresa:

“Dear Jesus, help me to spread Thy fragrance everywhere I go. Flood my soul with Thy spirit and love. Penetrate and possess my whole being so utterly that all my life may only be a radiance of Thine. Shine through me and be so in me that every soul I come in contact with may feel Thy presence in my soul. Let them look up and see no longer me but only Jesus. Stay with me and then I shall begin to shine as you shine, so to shine as to be a light to others. Amen.” 

I am my little sister’s Confirmation sponsor and we are praying this daily until the big day.  I hope it’s as powerful a prayer to her as it is to me. 

{recording life} Making a Life List

Do you read Learn with Jenny?  She is an amazing woman with a powerful story…you must check her out!  I love her zest for life and her quest for intentional living.  She is starting a new series on her blog about creating a life list and that is right up my alley! (You know how much I love lists!) 

Part One is actually the preparation before you create your list.  She asks three questions: What do you value?  What excites you?  What are your inspirations?  Good things to think about, right?  Below are my answers.  I’d love to hear some of yours!

Values List
Jenny says: “These are the things that really matter to you. Simply, these are your beliefs and ideals that you hold as special.”

  • Family
  • Creating a welcoming and loving home atmosphere
  • Charitable giving/service and modeling that for my children
  • My Catholic faith and continually growing in faith
  • Recording my family’s stories for future generations
  • Creativity
  • Living intentionally

Excitables
According to Jenny, “These are the things that make you feel centered, grounded, yet alive. These are the simple acts that often bring out the best in yourself, serve to spark an active imagination, or put yourself in a healthy, energetic mindset to dream big.”

  • Laughter
  • Giving gifts
  • Being in the kitchen
  • Heart-to-heart conversations with family
  • Taking photographs
  • Working on my Project Life album
  • Reading
  • Sewing of any sort with my hands, not so much with a machine
  • Getting out of our everyday routine, even if it’s a day trip or small excursion

Inspiration
Jenny says: “What serves to inspire you? There are things all around you that help to influence you or inspire you everyday. These include people, events, blogs, magazines, music, concerts, life experiences, photography, etc.”

If you’re interested, Jenny has a free printable worksheet you can use.  I found that this was a really enlightening exercise and I am excited to work on my own life list in the coming weeks. 

{chit chat} Miscellany Monday: I’m All Over the Place Today

How was your weekend?  Ours was pretty low-key, but still went by too fast!  How does that always happen? Anyway, I’m all over the place this morning.  Care for a glimpse?

1. I spent a good portion of Saturday afternoon working on next week’s school.  Usually I like to stay three or four weeks ahead…oops!  We are reading Very Last First Time so we’ve got Inuits, arctic animals, and oceans on the learning schedule.  I’m hoping the boys are interested…if not, I’m declaring it Polar Bear week.

2. Came across this article and thought it was so true for all of you newer mammas out  there: To the Mother with only One Child .  A must read.

3. I think I’ve started something big.  Puzzle mania has hit the house!  The big boys will sit for almost an hour (an HOUR!) doing puzzles over and over again.  Can I just say how glorious the silence is?  My new tip for Mammas: puzzles.   

4. I was honored to be a part of this list on Grace’s blog last week.  I may or may not have put off doing a mountain of laundry to check out some of the girls. 🙂

5. I have home improvement on the brain in a big way lately.  Gearing up to repaint the walls and all of the molding in my living room…well hello crazy burst of energy!  Where did you come from? 

Miscellany Monday @lowercase letters

{kids craft} A Homemade Highway (using Painter’s Tape!)

The cotton balls are supposed to be snow.

This week in school, we are reading Katy and the Big Snow and learning all about how a city runs.  I found this idea on Pinterest months ago and thought it would be fun to do with boys.

OH. MY. WORD.  I truly underestimated the awesomeness of this little project.  If I hadn’t run out of painter’s tape, we would have had our roads spanning the entire kitchen floor.  The boys have played happily all week and it has been a life-saver when I’m trying to bake something or get dinner on the table!

This is a great idea for rainy days, winter days, even I’m-dying-for-a-break-from-these-kids days.  I did the majority of the taping, but I’m sure a child slightly older than my oldest can be left free to his own imagination.       

P.S. My husband thinks I would make a fine urban city planner.  Please take note of my amazing parking lot. 🙂

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