Only You

The other morning I was explaining to Braden that God has a plan for his life that only he can fulfill.  Something very special he is planning that only Braden can do.  How cool is that?  So our job is to seek His will for our life so we don't miss it.  He will use Braden's talents and abilities to do something to glorify God and further His kingdom.  To which Braden responds,

"Yeah, like no one else in the whole world can be our Mom, only you."

Oh, how those words from my eight year old resonated with my heart.  In a season of battling discontentment and doubting my place in God's plan, I'm told by a child that I'm exactly where I need to be at this moment.  Only I can be their Mom.

Thank you, Jesus, for using my B to minister to my heart.  Show me your plan for today and help me accept it.  Let me not be so farsighted that I miss the miracles around me right now.  Lord, help me to celebrate small gifts of this day. 

 

This is the day that the Lord has made. 

I will rejoice and be glad in it.  Psalms 118:24

 

Winning the Race

Ages four and five comes with a lot of firsts.  First sports team, first running race, first day of Kindergarten... Ty is enjoying a lot of firsts.  We signed he and B up for the Tiger Trot, a little race at B's school.  Ty will be starting at the same school in the fall, conquering Kindergarten (Henry Clay Elem, watch out!).  B has run a number of races, but this was Ty's first official race.  They both decided to enter the one mile race.  Ty, of course, did not enjoy wearing the bib number.  Too much like a vest or sticker.  We zipped his coat over it so he would forget about it.  It was chilly, but the boys were ready to roll. 

 

 

 

They both surprised the mess out of me.  They allowed the preschoolers a bit of a head and start and my Ty took off.  I had J follow him so WHEN he started to walk, he wouldn't be alone.  Well, I sure didn't need to worry about that.  He never stopped running, the whole way!  And smiling and loving the crowd cheering!

 

 

I watched him zoom by and then the older kids took off.  I waved B as he ran by and then settled in to wait.  After a very short while, I glanced down the street and saw the first runner coming back.  He was wearing a sweatshirt very similar to B's.  But then I saw the bright red Nikes and realized, THAT WAS MY BABY RUNNING LIKE CRAZY AND IN FIRST PLACE!!!!

 

 

He told us he thought he could win the one miler, but I had no idea he was that fast!  He flew past me as I started whooping and screaming, like any good mama would.  I was so proud of him!

 

Then in a much shorter time than I expected, here comes my Ty!  He was definitely in the top 15 finishers.  He beat a lot of kids a whole lot bigger than him.  Wow!  My boys can run!

 

 

Tyler asked immediately if he could do another race that day.  I said he could reenact it at Pops and Ve Ve's house and he said no, he needed a whole bunch of people there to cheer.

 

I can't wait to sign them up next year.  Whew!  How exciting!

 

 

Ty completely spent.

 

B completely awesome.

 

Soccer!

Saturday was Tyler's first soccer game.  Ever.  My Tyler.  I knew we were in store for a fun time when every time he ran on the field during practice he would let out a loud war cry, alerting everyone of his uncontained excitement and energy.  Oh how I love that boy.  He has passion for everything.  Whether it be a loose soccer ball on the field, or brandishing a sword to fight bad guys, or even just telling me who he's "gonna be" from his favorite show or movie.  When I think of my Tyler, "You Are My Sunshine" absolutely comes to mind.

 

He played hard.  He chased that ball down and wasn't intimidated or timid about getting into the pack.  He knew which goal he was going toward and he felt the disappointment when the other team scored.

 

 

"Mommy, I fell down a lot.  But I didn't give up."

 

Oh Ty, if you can just hold on to that lesson for the rest of your life, you will be wildly successful!  Little ones can teach us so very much!  Sometimes God reveals teachable moments with my kids, but other times he uses my kids to teach me! 

 

His favorite part of the whole affair, of course, was getting a snack at the end.

 

 

Love the Porta-John.  This is life as a boy mom on the field Saturday mornings.

 

After the game we went home and enjoyed the beautiful weather outside.  We made the boys stay out doors when they would have rather been watching TV or playing video games.  We are prepared for this battle this summer.  I have J on my side, so we will win. 

 

An impromptu water fight did break out and we celebrated with ices at the picnic table.  I got them both really good.  I trapped Braden against the fence and sprayed him right in the face with the hose.  Mean ole Mommy.  He executed an amazing spin move though, and got me good with a water bottle in the neck. 

 

I'm really hoping we will be at that picnic table a lot this summer.  Can't wait for picnic and fire pit season!