Gladitude Monday

Howdy! Time for my weekly dose of gladitude. I should have just enough time to complete this post since my children have both been sent to their rooms for being mean to each other. Ah, motherhood: it's all glamour.

10. Glad for the rainy Monday. Yes, yes...but even in Seattle, it gets summery, and though I'm not rip-roaring excited for the grey doldrums of winter to be upon me, I love the clean smell of the rain. I love the cozy feeling of just knowing my house is warm and my family is safe.

9. Glad for the pancake breakfast at church. And David is glad they allowed 2nds. :) We're volume eaters here, I guess.

8. However, I'm also glad that I had some eggs and sausage instead of filling up on pancakes and syrup. I'm embracing a healthier eating plan, and by God's grace alone, am doing okay.

7. Glad that sugar addictions do pass...Not sure when, but they do. :)

6. Glad for my sense of humor. Inappropriate as it sometimes is, it gets me through the day.

5. Glad for Michael Phelps and all the Olympians, no matter how they placed. But for Michael? Especially glad.

4. Glad that my kids will be in school and I'll be able to look at some volunteering opportunities. I hope to work a few hours for our church every one day, every other week. We'll see. Need to pray about it, but I'd love to do it if it works out.

3. Glad that Big and his luggage made it safely to Shanghai. NO, I'm not glad he's there, but if he has to be there, I'm thankful he's safe and that things are going well for him.

2. Glad I was able to walk 15 miles on Saturday (12.7 with my group and the rest with my dog, after the walk with them) with little ill effect by Sunday. Sure, I was hobbling a bit and had some hot spots--no blisters, thankfully--but by Sunday, I was walking like the old me and was pain free.

1. Glad that we put a premium on how we speak to each other in this house--even if it sucks when we have to sort it all out when we're mean to one another. We have our house rules posted --signed by all of us--in our kitchen. They're a bit old (4 years), and I'm not a parenting guru of any sort, but here's a look:

As members of this family, we agree to love and respect each other. We agree to abide by the following rules:

1. Respect each other's bodies, property and personal space.

• We won't hit, pinch or otherwise physically harm one another.
• We will knock before entering each other's rooms.
• We will ask for permission before touching or borrowing each other's items.
• We will ask for personal space or time alone politely (oh, am I a rule breaker here!)

2. Respect each other's feelings

• We will speak kindly to one another, the way we would like to be spoken to. (ack!)
• We won't tattle.
• We will try first to work out disputes with the person(s) involved before seeking help from Mom or Dad.

3. We will remember that kindness and love are more important than being right or getting our own way. (Oh, I'm killing myself, here!)

4. We know mistakes happen, and so we agree to apologize immediately and ask for forgiveness when we violate any of the above rules.

I shall leave you with this...it has nothing to do with this post, but I thought it was a gem. Perhaps you can relate...

"My wife and I like to carefully wrap and refrigerate our left overs before we throw them in the trash." :)

Okay...gotta go enforce the rules...sigh. Humility and grace and teaching really suck sometimes. I mean, when I have to extend them. :0)

Happy Monday. Soli Deo Gloria!