I Should Be Folding Laundry features a blog carnival called “You Capture”.

This week’s theme is “QUIET”.

I shut my eyes and thought about when the last time I was able to capture quiet. This past weekend my mom took the kids. Sean and I hadn’t been without the kids for more than 24 hours since our last Vegas trip. It was surreal. No commotion in the house. In fact, the house remained clean. The usual busyness was gone, it was weird. Unfortunately, I didn’t get to capture it. The kids came home, the house was turned upside down – life returned to usual.

With 2 (almost 3!) kids, quiet is 9:30 pm when everyone goes to bed. The last time we were able to experience "quiet" as a family was this:

We were in Fredricksburg, TX – in the heart of the hill country enjoying no agenda on our "Random Roadtrip" vacation last year.

Along the drive, we noticed a sign – "Cross Mountain". We turned, parked and decided to head up the hill to see what "Cross Mountain" was.

The kids are 4 and 6. Hiking with them is always fun, yelling:

"STAY ON THE TRAIL. DON’T TOUCH THAT, IT’s POISON OAK! NO, THAT ISN’T A SNAKE."

We finally made it up to find a cross adorning the hill. We had a 360 view of the hill country in all of it’s magnitude and glory. The kids even captured the quiet. We sat on big rocks, viewed the cross against the blue Texas sky and took it all in. It was so beautiful, it was spiritual. On the hill top someone had left rock art behind:

I heart quiet, especially when I am with my family. Nothing beats stopping life for a few minutes and taking it all in.

"Breathe Molly!"

That’s what i’ve been saying to myself the last few hours…. Well…. that and…

"SORRY MOMMY ISN’T FEELING WELL, PLEASE CALM DOWN."

The soon is approaching and reality is setting in. The room we’ve been prepping for the last several months will have a person living in it. The family will have a new little room mate – who doesn’t sleep, is constantly hungry and wants attention. But I just know he’ll be so darn cute that stuff won’t matter. The pain endured will fade. The jealous moments of the other kids will pass. The large family I’ve always dreamed of becomes a reality.

As our 4 become 5 – I have to thank God for the blessings that we have. The home we live in. The friends and family that surround and support us. The grace and unconditional love that He gives us. And I have to remember these moments – as they all pass too quickly.

The Unknown. (cue the DUN. DUN. DUN. music)

Does that scare you?

I love embracing the unknown. What’s next and what’s new is what keeps life fresh and ever-changing.

Good things happen. Bad things happen. It’s all life. It’s just how you embrace it.

Hold on tight.
Trust God.
It’s all good.

Yes, it’s that simple.

You block your dream when you allow your fear to grow bigger than your faith.

— Mary Manin Morrissey

Monday morning was one to cry over, literally. I had broken my toe Sunday night, hoping it was a minor jam – only for it to continue to swell and exhert PAIN. I woke up, attempted to dress and crawled to the top of the stairs and just cried. The 2 weeks prior had been full of mommy chaos, in addition to this baby growing in my belly. Week 1, E, our 4-year old was sick. Week 2, Z, our 6-year old had the flu. The weekend was full of Sean being sick, me having false labor pains and then Sunday the TOE break. At this point – it’s around 8 am, and as I sit upstairs weeping there is a knock at our door.

Sadly, we barely know our neighbors. We’ve lived here for 8 years, and have tried to be friendly. We waive, some neighbors wave back. We say hi, but with the lifestyle of both of us working and our kids in childcare – we’re not present enough to establish good relationships. Our neighborhood is nice, but it ain’t no Leave It To Beaver – hood.

Sean answers the door – I admit. I wanted to scream DO NOT ANSWER IT. I’m glad he did. At the door stood our neighbor who lives across the street holding her baby boy panicked as she is locked herself out of the house – with the car running (I knew I didn’t need a remote start!). It’s freezing cold, she has no phone – she just wants to make a call.

She looks up from the foyer to see me sitting there pathetic. I make a lame attempt to cover up reality, say hi to the kiddo as I am sure he is like WHY IS THAT LADY CRAWLING AROUND, do her feet not work? I crawl back to my bedroom and then panic sets in. Laundry is EVERYWHERE. Before the toe break the nigth before – the family watching the USA vs. Canada hockey game (way to go USA!) and doing laundry before my foot rammed into the ottoman. This neighbor – who sadly I know her kid’s name but for the life of me CANNOT remember her name – is downstairs in the living room surrounded by our mess. She’s never needed anything, she is in need. It’s cold outside. She has a baby and is in a panic – and I am sitting here worrying about how I appear.

OH SNAP. It’s like God took his hand and gave me a little reality smack. It was as if I could hear him saying "MOLLY, you are 36 weeks pregnant. You have a broken toe. You work full-time. You are a Mom. Your house if lived in. This neighbor and her child are iin need. Get over yourself, this is REAL LIFE and you are by no means a REAL HOUSEWIFE OF FRISCO TEXAS with a fake life, money flowing in to pay for everying and there are no tv cameras present."

Thank you God for that reminder. There are too many things that I need to worry about then to be perfect. I must accept my flaws and my inability to do laundry and maintain a clean house. My mom once told me that my Grandma said before she passed "I don’t want to be remembered for having a clean house." While I don’t care to be remembered for a dirty house – I do agree. There is much more to what God has in store for me and my family than cleaning and worrying about image.

Psalm 31:1-2 – The Message

I run to you, God; I run for dear life. Don’t let me down! 
Take me seriously this time! 
Get down on my level and listen, 
and please—no procrastination! 
Your granite cave a hiding place, 
your high cliff aerie a place of safety. 

We started attending a "new to us" church a year and a half ago. We’ve met new friends, grown spirtually and are very happy with all that it has to offer.

In conversation with a family member – Sean was asked, "What’s the difference between this church and the last?"

Sean’s answer:

"While the other church is great and serves its purpose – the focus of the other church is on showing you how God can help you. Our new church is more biblically based and focused on how you can help the world.".

AH-HA! This is so true and something I’ve never thought about in regards to what has attracted me so much to this church’s message, but there it is. Their focus is on bridges – OUTWARD not inward, whether it be in the community, in the church, or in other countries. The messages aren’t focused on how God can make you better by doing so for you, but how God can make you better by doing for others.

The other thing I love and have had a hard time with other churches is the amount of grace that is shown to each and all. Our family’s views are a little (okay, sometimes a LOT) more liberal than that of a typical Texas Christian (smile, Jesus said LOVE – not judge). The church isn’t focused on these topics of typical debate. We don’t feel judged by past mistakes or by our beliefs. There isn’t a political sway – nor a "YOU SHALL BURN IN THE FIRES OF HELL" message..

This week’s sermon is on aspiring to do more for the better good of the world. How much out of your comfort zone will you go to better the world? While we all aren’t Mother Theresa, what is our line and what can and will we do to make the world a better place?

I love the idea of – what can I do bigger than myself?
Do I have a life answer to this question? No, but what I want to do is figure out NOW at this point in my life what can I do to make a difference in the world that we live. So here’s my challenge to myself in 2010.

How am I going to help the bigger world, the community we live in, the church we attend and our home change for the better? I haven’t figured it all out yet. But 2010 – I want my storyto be about a greater change that is more than me.

And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased. – Hebrews 13:16

What one thing can you do to make a change in the world that you live?