Just a BlinkProof Time Flies

Proverbs 31:20

²⁰ She opens her arms to the poor
and extends her hands to the needy.

Inspired by an upcoming service project at my MOPS group, I gathered items for midwife supply kits for an organization called Global Health Ministries (GHM).

GHM sends medical supplies to undeveloped areas of the World.  Look at the list below for the contents of a midwife kit which are used for the birth of a child.

ONE MIDWIFE KIT contains:
(Please use new or clean used items in good condition)

• 2 cord ties: 8″  heavy white knit/crochet cotton (used to tie umbilical cord)
• 1 razor blade (single-edge, safety-wrapped), may be purchased at a home improvement store
• 1 regular size bath towel
• 1 36″ square muslin or sheeting
• 1 wash cloth (thin)
• 1 bath size bar Ivory soap
• 1 newborn stocking cap (keep hand-knit ones very small)
• 1 small cotton-blend or flannel shirt (to waist only as the babies do not wear diapers)
• 1 receiving blanket
• 1 pair plastic or latex gloves (clean, not sterile), NO kitchen gloves

After seeing the list item White Cotton String (used to tie umbilical cord), I was compelled to donate to such a cause!

Imagine being a new Mom thankful for the simple razor blade, used to cut your baby’s cord, because you have no other sharp, clean tool. Wow!

I said a prayer of hope, for all the little ones and their mamas, that will use the items I prepared. My heart leaped for joy as I pictured slobbery newborns wrapped in the comfort of flannel and snuggled by their caregivers.

Ryan and Molly got in on the chance to open their arms to the poor. They loved picking out the items for the “little babies from Madagascar”. Leah and Claire helped by donating their preemie hats and a few bottomless tees.

Love,

Jess

Consider making mid-wife kits for GHM!

Climber

So we have a little climber on our hands. Tables, toy boxes, baby gates, rocking chairs! You name it, Molly will climb it. I caught her on the table one day with her hand literally in the cookie jar. She is very strong not to mention strong willed even at 16 months.

I gleaned a touching lesson from authors and speakers, Jim and Lynne Jackson as they presented some insightful information at one of my MOPS meetings last year. They suggested that parents try to see the goodness in their child’s current personality “challenge”.

i.e. If you have an older child always tattling or telling the others how naughty they were the parent would try to see strengths of honesty and justice.

So my dear Molly what strengths can I pray for?

How about an adventurous spirit, willingness to learn and sense of determination!

Okay, but for now…Get OFF the table!!

Bible, Book of Genesis, Chapter 49, Verse 22

“Joseph is a fruitful vine, a fruitful vine near a spring, whose branches climb over a wall.”

Family Pumpkin – Construction Paper Style

We decorated one pumpkin with a family member’s portrait on each side. This was a lot more fun than making Ry stick his hands in goo from innards which he hates. I guess he gets that from Neat Pete because certainly I have never been shy around a good mess.

Have a BOO-tiful evening! We will be begging for calories we don’t need aka trick-or-treating as the following:

• The Tooth Fairy Princess – Me
• Iron Man – Neat Pete
• My Knight in Shining Armor – Ry Guy
• Lil’ Pumpkin – Lil’ Miss

We have already played at a Costume Fun ‘N’ Run for MOPS, handed out candy at Neat Pete’s office and spread festive cheer at Gramma GG’s temporary nursing home. Thank goodness we all had a rest this afternoon!

Off to a pizza party!

The Simplicity Project (TSP) is big. What I am finding is that TSP is not made up of one big idea or plan. It is, however, made up of a lot of little ideas, attitudes, and of course projects. I haven’t dumped out every toy in hopes of restructuring the whole house in one day…yet.

I did what every good perfectionist procrastinator does – crafts! I have so much do to it seems a bit daunting and the results so incredibly faraway. So, I gave myself permission to get a little thing done. It is only a teaspoon of completion in a lake full of life goals but the reward of completing a project that was over one year old is priceless.

I made the blue photo frame on the left at a Mother of Preschoolers (MOPS) meeting four years ago for my son Ryan. When Molly came along, I purchased a second blank frame from the MOPS leftover craft cupboard with intentions of making a similar frame for my darling daughter. Now she is already 15 months old!

Ryan as a newborn. Molly at 12 months.

Both frames are just paper mache-type cardboard and are cheaper than cheap, but I think they look pretty cute with the personalization.

3 Teaspoon Project Nuggets

1. Limits If it can be done in 1/2 hour – do it, but only once in a while. It is too easy for me to start digging out crafts and seasonal decorations and never stop! The goal is to simplify my life, not layer it so badly I can’t see where I am going.

2. Satisfaction This should be fun. Hey if organizing, planning, and simplifying get me tied up in knots of regret and dissatisfaction they are not working. It felt really good to get a little thing done. Insert pat on back here.

3. The Lily Effect There is a story of a crabby, messy hermit that one day receives a lily in a vase from a neighbor. The messy decides to clear off his table to set the lily on. He washes the table then stops to clean off the chairs so he can sit by the flower. Pretty soon he cleans the whole house and starts doing maintenance work. Somewhere along the way he changes his heart and opens his home to his neighborhood. Doing one small thing can change your outlook on the entirety of a project or idea.