lack of follow-thru? maybe.

i've been thinking about all the goals i set. educational ones for the kids, fitness ones for me, all sorts of lovely deadlines and rules. and i put it on here for all to see. and then what happens? i don't follow through and then i never update you because i don't want to see in black and white print that i don't meet goals or follow through with awesome plans.
so i thought i'd take a moment and update you...0n the plans i can actually remember making.
project 31:17
remember that one? the fitness goals? making healthier choices and getting more fit? if buying a box of russell stover's chocolates for myself and eating 85% of them in one day is a success, then i deserve a trophy. i totally fell off the wagon after the hubs got home from india this summer and have not looked back. sorry. i love dr. pepper and chocolate and relaxation more than smaller jeans and less flabby arms. (nice mental picture, huh)
educational stuff and chores for kids
remember that schedule i made for educational things to do with the kids? i actually still use it. not every day, but on slower days we sit down and do whatever is on the list. and the chore chart? we still use that, too. we've even started getting the kids to help set the table at night and they like it! victory!
so if you evaluate this closely, you'll see that two goals have gone well and one has gone poorly. i'd say that's a raging success! but i'll still refrain from writing self-help books and blogs about how to get more organized. don't you worry.

and to follow up on the gabe gabs segment:
earlier this year, after a horrible night of restless children and poor sleep, i got myself out of bed because i'm awesome and woke up my child to get ready for school. he whined, he complained, he grunted, and then he said, "mom, i'm tired," and i said, "well honey i'm tired too, but it's time to get up," and then he said, "mom, you're not as tired as i am." --he is lucky i didn't kick him. but i love him, so i will keep my feet to myself. that, and he was on the top bunk, and my high-kick isn't as good as it used to be.
**disclaimer: i don't kick children.

sickies

you may have noticed that i have changed my blogging name. my northern irish friends used to call me maggie may (one also called me ducky, but that's not quite the image i'm going for). i told my friend leanna i couldn't just change my blogging name after 2 years of blogging and she said, "sure you can!" -so here's to being a rebel. i always wanted to be irish. truth be told, i go by margaret...and i've NEVER ever had a nickname. i always wanted one. but none ever stuck. my dad was a firm believer in calling a kid what their name was, and i wasn't one to argue. i started blogging under the name marge as a joke. i always hated that nickname and thought it'd be amusing. but it's time for a change. so here we go. the rantings and ravings of maggie may. bring it.

we are sick again. i'm doing ok. but 3 of the 4 kids have ear infections. antibiotics all around, people.

we have planned our summer...that is, if we stay healthy. and i'm not gonna lie, i'm pretty excited about it. a family trip, a day out with extended family, a girl's weekend, and a trip with my kids, sis, and mom to visit my brother's family in kentucky. you might say to yourself, "who plans their summer in january?" --a mom who's stuck in a house full of sick kids for months at a time, that's who.

take your echinacea, your vitamin c, and wash your hands, people. it's a war zone out there.

women of prayer

so today a friend shared a link on her facebook page. it was to this beautiful blog that is artistically crafted with imagery and i enjoyed it so much i thought i'd share. it talks about making your home a house of prayer. i realize over and over again that i am lazy in the area of prayer. i want to seize my role as a woman of prayer who diligently seeks God's wisdom and who prays for God's will to be accomplished in the lives of my loved ones. awhile back, someone told me about a great idea they had done for their husband. they took 31 godly traits (1 for each day of the month) that they loved about their husband and wrote them down with the Bible verse alongside it. they not only gave it to their husband but also prayed over the trait of the day each day. i copy good ideas, so i did that for my husband for our 6th anniversary. i love that i can support and encourage my husband through prayer. that same someone gave me a booklet when we got gabriel called "praying for the next generation" by sally michael. i just found it today while i was unpacking boxes (yep, lived here 1o months and still not unpacked). after reading the blog from today and then unpacking that box, where i also found my 1938 copy of the cokesbury hymnal, i thought i'd follow through with a bit of what i'd read on the blog. i set up a small area in my living room to be a place where my family can come together and read the Word of God and praise Him and pray for one another and our community. although i usually start things off with a bang and then fizzle out after a short while, i am prayerfully hoping that i can be a consistent prayer warrior for my family and friends. please visit the blog and share with me ideas you've used to disciple your children, pray for them or your spouse, or how you do family worship time. may God use us as instruments of influence in the lives of our families and those around us.

you know all those beautiful pictures online of lovely rooms that go together wonderfully? those are staged. surprised? --so these pictures are real and not staged and therefore not picture perfect. enjoy! a few rooms in our house are finished. it's pretty thrilling. here's asher's room. the painting is one of the ones by my friend stephanie cherry mentioned a few posts ago.
this is his play corner. i need to find something to hang on this wall, but that'll wait awhile.

these pictures are from an old book of my cousin's. i framed them and now we have a transportation room for him!

asher's bed

--so we've painted. and by "we" i mean we hired a guy because can you imagine us doing it ourselves... four boys covered in paint and carrying it all through the house? above is elijah's room. it's green (haven) and tan (softer tan). i love it. his was the first room that was finished.

the colors are darker in person.

these are the new plates i bought at pier one and love with all my heart. my friend merrick gave me the plate racks. the mirror is from kirklands. our dining room is now finished except for curtains.


this is our new tablecloth. one wall in our kitchen is deep blue. this tablecloth brings it out beautifully.

i bought these pillows last week and they are so comfortable to lounge on. again, blue.

and although i don't have pictures yet, my parents brought me my grandmother's antique sewing machine and a friend gave me the antique wardrobe but we still need to put it together. so stay tuned for that.

i am finally feeling that it's cozy here. come
on over and i'll make some cookies. mmm.

halleluyer, it's done!

today was a big day. our house painting...done! bam! take that!

the whole house now looks warm and inviting and wonderful instead of like a white, dull, blank slate where every fingerprint shows up.

the pic above also includes my beautiful teapot that i bought for $2.50. it's lovely. and i don't drink tea, so it's like glasses that make people look cool and intelligent even though they see just fine. poser.

so to commemorate the end of this long project of painting, we had fajitas and sang together at the table. oh yeah, that's how we roll. our family of 6 sits around the table and jams out to pink, ben folds, tom petty, you name it. and the best part? asher has started doing the robot. what goes better with a painted house, fajitas, and tom petty? the robot.

i'm gonna start charging lessons for coolness. --because if there's one thing my kiddos are, it's cool. send your kids to me and for 10$ they'll come back super cool. and gangsta. can't go wrong with cool and gangsta.

i'm here to help. you're welcome.

my friends, the cherry family, are working to refurbish a very old house. they call it gomer's house and it's already being used to minister to the community as well as anyone around who needs a safe, encouraging, restful place. you can read more about the cherry family and their adventures here. stephanie decided to start selling some paintings for $20 each to raise money for gomer's house. you can custom order them to be whatever color and say whatever text you like. the one above is judah's. i really dig the lion. judah is a lion of a kid. see, i had this idea. each of our children's names mean something. gabriel:strong man of God, judah: praise, elijah: the Lord is my salvation, asher: blessed/happy. we prayed these things over our boys.-- that they would be strong men of God who praise Him, recognize that true and lasting salvation only come from Him, and know they are blessed to be one of His children. so why not order a painting for each child that uses a verse that reflects what their name means? i gotta say...i LOVE the paintings with all my heart. they are exactly what i wanted.

the painting below is mine. my friend ordered it for me for Christmas. don't you love it? i love the idea of scripture hanging all over my home. and i love helping to support my friends in their ministry! so go ahead, look at her website, and order a painting if you like! i think she's sold about 700 in 6 weeks. yep. she's a pretty big deal. get one before she gets famous and they start costing thousands of dollars ;)