If you’re a new mother, you might not have had time to consider it.  With each passing day, though, the enormity of a mother’s responsibilities sinks in, and sooner or later you’ll wonder what would happen if you weren’t here tomorrow.

Maybe the thought will come out of a desire to leave, to get out of dodge, so to speak;  you just cannot take it any more.  You might relish the thought of others suddenly realizing how much you do, what hard work it is, while you live it up somewhere, anywhere else.  When and if you decided to come back, maybe you wouldn’t be taken for granted anymore.

Then again, maybe someone near and dear to your heart has died.  You can’t physically say anything to that person anymore, let alone give them a hug and a kiss.  Looking into the eyes of your babe and/or children, you realize just how brightly they shine.  Hopefully you realize how each moment with them deserves to be cherished.

Even still there are other reasons for contemplating your own mortality.  The truth is that we don’t live forever.  On a cellular level, we live and die every moment.  But perhaps you’ve discovered an illness, been in a nearly fatal accident or simply have to make out a will.  Do you feel your stomach twist, the tears sting?  The fact of our mortality is nothing to deny or run away from.  We accept it for what it is, nothing more, nothing less, and we live in each moment fully.  Ideally, anyway.

So, if tomorrow comes and I’m not here, my family can see my home and realize I was too busy with the kids to get the dusting done.  My husband can see how important it was for me to have my journal and numerous writing projects.  I don’t have anything physical for my friends to know how important they are to me.  I suppose that serves as a reminder to be sure to tell them how much I enjoy their company, their companionship on my journey.

Undoubtedly, without me the world will keep spinning, the kids will keep growing and the laundry will get done by someone eventually.  But I’m the only one who can offer sweet whispers of mother’s love to my children, and when I’m gone, that’s what I want them to remember.

For most of us, creative energy probably comes more sporadically than consistently.  From what I understand, though, the important thing is to make working creatively part of your daily round whether you feel like it or not.  As a writer it’s easier for me to journal and to blog.  It is harder for me, however, to make time to work on my fiction writing daily.  That’s where I need to step up on my self-discipline.  Whatever your talent, may you nurture it daily, for you, too, are an artist.

Last night I got a card-making burst of energy and finally made some thank you cards I’ve been meaning to.   Here’s one of them.  The center tag is on a large blank note card, folded in half, the inside of which has the written message.  All of it is hand-stamped.

Today also happens to be my in-laws’ 37th anniversary, so an anniversary card is coming up in the next half hour while sleeping child sleeps (hopefully).

If you’re already scoping out Father’s Day ideas, here are a couple of links:

• Lulu.com — you can publish a regular type book, whether written by you (your collection of love poems for the father of your children) or your kids (the million things we love about DAD) OR you can make a photo album especially for him, the grandfathers, uncles, etc.

• Tikatok.com — this is geared toward publishing kid’s creative endeavors.  It seems like a newer site, but it seems to have lots of great stuff.  My kids are really into comics right now and are excited to maybe publish their own.

Sometimes we need a little help in coming up with creative gifts, and I hope this adds to your probably already crafty list of options.

“Well, welcome to my world,” my mother-in-law was prone to say . . . at least until my oldest daughter said, “Nana, you always say that.”  Nana doesn’t say it as often anymore, though we know when the situation arises when she might.

As I was driving to pick my kids up from school yesterday, I thought of all of us on the road, each car filled with at least one person, each of us with our own stories, our dramas, each of us in our own little world.  I thought of me and my pain right now and the “welcome to my world” mantra.

But then there’s NPR’s continuing reporting on the earthquakes in China, and there’s a retired fellow in our community who has dedicated his life to peace and justice.  All of this is my world, too, right?  Even the other cars with their drivers and their stories — just because I don’t know the specifics, their energy is affecting my energy, too.

So I wonder if instead of saying “welcome to my world,” we should just greet each other with compassion, knowing that, yes, we understand each other’s suffering, that your suffering is mine, too, but that my love is your love, too.  Maybe we should reserve the welcome to the world for the newborn babe to whom we can sincerely say, “Welcome to our world,” and wonder at the gifts the babe brings to our lives.

We’re all in this together.  We all have gifts to share, and if we focus on one world instead of many little ego-filled ones, perhaps we’d all be better off.

Sometimes we just have to let our bodies heal, let ourselves rest.  I presume that whatever infection I have is a sign that I, too, need a few days’ rest.  So, I’ll go to the doctor and return home to sleep the rest of the day (as much as that’s possible with two little ones about!).

I hope your Memorial Day was full of family and remembrance and that today you make time for yourself, whether it is to craft or to rest.

Some days you just have to bask in life, in the little things, and truly give thanks for where you are right now.

A good dream, a quiet yet productive day, content and healthy kids . . . what more should I ask for? 

We have to say thanks for our blessings.  We have to send a surge of heart-felt energy for those who are suffering, whether they be on the other side of the world or right next door.  We have to send our positive energy out there so that it’s there for us, too, when we need it most.

It only takes a moment, a pause, and it does a world of good for yourself and others.

As I realize that I’ve had this blog up and going for about four months now,  I figure I can ask those of you who are regulars what you prefer best.  Answer for me, if you would be so kind, the following questions by posting a quick comment. I’d love to see something other than spam!

• What do you like most or would like to read more of?
• Anything you can do without?
• Constructive criticism in general?  (I promise I can take it.)

I sincerely appreciate your feedback.  I’m hoping this summer to do a personal design for the site, though I am fond of the gently rolling hills.    If you have thoughts, I’d love to hear them.  Don’t be offended if I don’t use them, though.

Blessings to you and yours, and have a beautiful weekend.

As I’m organizing, I love to use baskets.  They bring a lovely order to clutter.  I don’t mind a basket of stuff, so long as it’s all the same type of “stuff.”  Surely you know what I mean. 


The site TipNut.com has the link to jcarolinecreative.com for instructions for making your own fabric storage basket — not to mention all the other great info that is shared!  As I haven’t made the basket yet, I don’t have my own photo for you; the photo here is from jcaroline’s site.  However, this is definitely on my craft list, and I have plenty of fabric to use.  I think I even have some Superman fabric to make the boys some baskets of their own.  Now to get the stabilizer . . .

Check the sites out.  Some of that lemonade sounds mighty yummy, and I think many of us could find plenty to do/use at JCarolineCreative!  Enjoy!

Obsess: “to haunt or excessively preoccupy the mind of <was obsessed with the idea>

“

Organize: “1: to cause to develop an organic structure 2: to form into a coherent unity or functioning whole : integrate <trying to organize her thoughts> 3 a: to set up an administrative structure for b: to persuade to associate in an organization; especially : unionize 4: to arrange by systematic planning and united effort“
 
*Definitions from Merriam-Webster online.

The definitions speak for themselves.  As I move forward to bring a sense of order to my home (however slowly that may be), it’s important to remember that I’m bringing wholeness and unity to our home, not becoming attached to the idea or concept of having an organized, clutter-free home.

A little mindful organization can go a long way, don’t you think?
 

When we moved into this house, we were tickled to have 12 drawers in the kitchen.  Our last kitchen had one.  I even put my towels and cloth napkins in drawers . . . and our spices.  This works out quite nicely until you start buying more spices at the co-op in bulk in those little plastic bags, stuffing them into the drawer until there is no room for more, and bags are getting holes in them, leaking spices everywhere, leading to more bags and . . .

Enough’s enough.  We ordered six little metal tins to store the spices in, the perfect size to fit in the drawer.  Still left with lots of plastic bags, we ordered twelve more.  Just this morning (after shining my sink), I finally got around to labeling (thanks to my handy little Brother labeling machine) and filling the tins.  I even felt inspired to clear one of my towel drawers to make room for our dessert drawer, the one that has sprinkles, icing tubes, food coloring, extracts and such.

The other drawers aren’t quite as lovely as the one with the tins and room for more, but I figured we’d recycle the containers we already had, some of which have already been refilled with organic spices and herbs.

I feel better already.  It’s all about the baby steps.  And, yes, those are my baby’s legs.  She was helping, too.

Lest I let a Monday pass without a post, I figured I could at least be honest with my readers and admit to a day of feeling . . . blah.  A puking kid at 3am Saturday, an overnight camp-out Saturday night with half the family, and a late night Sunday resulted in one tired momma come Monday.  I should have known.

I’d like to file an insurance claim for the tornado that apparently went through my house, too!  Maybe they’d pay to have someone professional come in and get it all done in a day.  Every time I even thought of doing it myself, I got even more tired and just wanted to nurse and sleep . . . but mostly sleep.  Of course, the toddler didn’t want to sleep until after I got up from a short nap, taking over my cozy spot in the bed.

In an effort to find a quick fix, I did a little search online for home decluttering.  Again, The FlyLady crossed my path.  I might give it a try.  What have I got to lose, right?

I heard on the radio that going to bed before eleven means better rest, so I’ll give that a try, too.

Don’t worry, I’ll feel better tomorrow.  I wish you good energy, too.

It’s a sunny spring day here, and I am inspired to accomplish much, including making some honest commitments to do good for myself.  Along with eating well (which I am doing), I want to sincerely simplify my life.  Who doesn’t?

Chances are, you might share this characteristic with me — making things harder than they have to be.  Why do we do this?

So, as we strive to make every day simple and less complicated, let’s make note of our steps along the way.  Here are a few things I’ve done in the few months since starting this blog:

• More times for crafts/hobbies
• Increased environmental awareness
• Planning meals better

I keep saying I’m ready to clear out the clutter, but I have yet to make the giant leap.  I’m taking baby steps in that regard, I suppose.

Life is easy, right?

Live in the now, filled with compassion for yourself and others, with no attachments.

Like I’ve said before, it is definitely easier said than done.  It fails to mention the small stuff, right?  The bills, the errands, the cleaning.  But isn’t that part of the “now”?  And isn’t there a book about not sweating the small stuff and another about chopping wood, carrying water?

When I think about choices I’ve made in my life that seemingly complicate things, I daresay that these choices have also helped me.  Lessons come my way that illuminate my ways of thinking, my way of life.  Without the attention the “drama” brings, I may not have noticed my own patterns of behavior.

It’s finally Friday of what has been a particularly difficult week with the kids.  A friend of mine agreed that she, too, had a hard week but didn’t know if it was her or the kids.  Were my week and the kids really difficult, or did I make it so because I let my ego get in the way?  Did I get trapped somewhere not in the present, lose some compassion and get too attached to what I thought had to get done or be done?  Sounds to me like a sure recipe for a rough week.  I wish I would have thought of that on Monday.

So this weekend, go forth with awareness, love and non-attachment.  It’ll be a weekend.  That’s all we can promise.  May it be a simple one.

(photo from everystockphoto.com, by Henkster)