It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

If you've been following my blog at all, you know I am a bargain hunter (bordering on extreme cheapskate). 

Yes, I even sometimes do Christmas and birthday shopping for my son at thrift stores (hey, he just wants the toy! he doesn't care where it comes from! so why would I spend a fortune on it only to be selling it on eBay in a couple years when he doesn't want it anymore?). 

So when I found a coupon for $10 off $50 at ShopKo, my first thought was, "Hmm, I wonder if there's anything I need that I can get for a good deal at ShopKo?" 

Couldn't really think of anything, so I was about to throw it away, like I often do with these kind of coupons that make you spend a certain amount. 

(couponing tip: sometimes they are a good deal, sometimes they aren't if you would be buying something JUST to use the coupon. I always have to remember this one!)

Then I saw an ad online for Operation Christmas Child and I thought of all the shiny toys that I've seen around ShopKo at this time of year. That's when I decided to use the coupon to do a little Christmas shopping.

It's an American tradition... you walk through these department stores and listen to the Christmas music and look at all the nice new things (whether it's toys, clothes, food, whatever) and it just makes you feel happy! And it's even more fun when you are picking something out for someone else. Better than buying for yourself... buying something you know your loved ones will enjoy. The experience of "going Christmas shopping" is something I don't always get anymore since I do most of my Christmas shopping throughout the year at catalog parties, online shopping, or just picking up gifts as I come across them. 

But most of the world doesn't ever have that "Christmas shopping" experience. Parents in many other countries would love to walk through a store and pick out toys, clothes, and food for their children, but they can't. This past week I was excited to get a good deal on 10 pairs of new socks for my son. Many parents would love to be able to buy just one pair for their child.

So I decided I would use that ShopKo coupon to go pack a shoebox or two for Operation Christmas Child!

Now, if you are still reading this and have no idea what Operation Christmas Child is, here is a link to the website.
http://www.samaritanspurse.org/what-we-do/operation-christmas-child/

Time for a little background: 

I remember doing Operation Christmas Child a lot with our church when I was a kid. One year we got something like 80 boxes-- with only a few dedicated people packing them and a very small but giving congregation (this is a church of less than 40 individuals) collecting items throughout the year. 

As a teen, I even had the privilege of volunteering at a collection station one time, and I spent an entire day packing little boxes into big boxes... from churches and individuals all over several states. It was awesome to unload mini-vans that were stacked floor to ceiling with Christmas gifts for needy kids. If THAT doesn't get you in the Christmas spirit, I don't know what will! (Maybe a little snow. But since it was upstate New York in November, that was a given.)

So, finally to my "blog-story"! 
Here are the shoe boxes I packed:

I chose plastic shoe boxes because we don't buy shoes very often, so we didn't have any boxes lying around. Also, these ones I don't have to wrap, and they can be reused by the child. (But wrapped cardboard shoe boxes are really cool, too)

I got one of these books for each box. I don't know what makes this book "for boys" but it has nice pictures with the Bible stories, so since the child probably won't be able to read, he can at least enjoy the pictures. And probably someone will be able to read it to him at some point. I picked a board book because we're doing the boxes for little guys.

These are the toys I was most excited to put in. I wanted to pick a green tractor since that is Charlie's favorite toy (and his favorite color right now), and a rubber ducky, since he is also really into those. Racecars and airplanes are also things I thought Charlie would like. So now we can tell Charlie that there will be two little boys somewhere across the globe playing with the same kind of toys he has!

He doesn't really  understand what is going on this year. But he was still excited to "help" me pick out all the toys and pack the boxes. He especially loved holding the tractor and the dinosaur in the shopping cart.

I supplemented my ShopKo findings with some free samples of soap and toothpaste that I had collected over the year (I stuff all my free samples in a box till I need them... now I'm so glad I do!) and some extra stuff from the Dollar Tree. 

Dollar Tree is great for filling these boxes! Just don't buy all cheap stuff. You know that your kids break toys pretty much as soon as they open them... these kids will probably be much more careful because this may be their only present all year, but they are still kids.

I also put in one of our family pictures that will be going out in our Christmas cards, with an address label on the back. (Sometimes if you write a note, the kids may write a letter back to you! I doubt a 2-4 year old knows how to read or write, but maybe he will like the picture.)

This whole project was so much fun! 

I decided that if we are going to make this a family tradition, then I want to pick a kid who is close in age to our kid each year. Since the youngest age group is 2-4, we did two boxes for 2-4 year old boys.

Think about it like this... if you are buying socks for your kid, why not buy a pair for another kid? If your kid wants a stuffed giraffe (what kid wouldn't??), maybe another kid would appreciate that. 

Obviously this example can't go too far... I don't expect everyone to go buy groceries for another family every time they buy for their own. Although if you DID do this one time with your kids... what a lesson! 

And with small kids, it WOULDN'T be a good idea to let them pick out corresponding toys for themselves every time you fill a shoebox! But I just mean this could be a good way to let your kids "window shop" for gifts... they get the excitement of buying a toy they really like, while you explain to them how much another child will love playing with it.

As I'm writing this, I'm reading back and hoping it doesn't sound like I'm bragging. I was just pretty proud of our little box and I was excited to share about it with someone. Many of you probably already do boxes on your own or with your church. It's not a competition about how many boxes you pack... I just thought maybe this could give you ideas for your box next year (Depending on when you are reading this, I'm sorry to say there's not much time left to collect boxes for this year... collection week is November 18-25, 2013). If you have some other good ideas for what you put in your boxes, feel free to share!

But this is the main reason I am sharing this:

If no one had introduced me to this project years ago, I might not be passing it on to my family today. 

If my parents hadn't instilled in me the need to help others when I was young, I might not be so passionate about it today. 

One of the stories I heard ALL the time growing up was when my sister wanted a box of Apple Jacks but it was too expensive. As a family, no matter how little we had, we always gave to the food drives at church. You can imagine how surprised mom and dad were to find out that the food drive that year was FOR US. And right on top was a box of Apple Jacks.
Alot of people have a story like this. Here's another one:
http://video.samaritanspurse.org/player/?vid=FwcmpkZzobboBJqD4714Man4GEYnARDD&storyline=35&title=uncle-sis-favorite-christmas-memory

My parents always were (and still are) a huge example to me of giving to others. 

My in-laws are also some of the most giving people I know. 

I hope maybe I can inspire someone else to give, too.

But where should you give?

There are lots of charities that need help. Don't forget about the Philippines. (Samaritan's Purse is also calling for donations to help them right now. And there are probably many other Christian organizations doing the same.)

The reason I chose Operation Christmas Child is this: 

I just look at it as one small way I can begin to teach my son that kids around the world are just like him. Yes, they need people to provide for their physical needs, and I'm glad there are organizations that do that. But also, these kids love toys just like he does, they need love, and most of all, they need someone to tell them about Jesus. 

When you think about it, my son is just as spiritually lost right now as a little child in Africa. But the difference is... that child probably doesn't have a Christian family to share the gospel with him. And he definitely doesn't have a mom and dad who are able to buy him Christmas presents. If I can help his mom do those things for him-- or if I can be a part of that mom to him if he doesn't even have a mom-- why wouldn't I? 

I have no idea how many of these kids who receive a Christmas box will accept the gospel. I won't find that out till I meet some of them in Heaven. But the disciples probably never knew how many of the 5,000 decided to follow the Savior. All they did was hand out the bread and fish, and let the Savior do His work.

http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=John%206:1-14&version=NKJV

Christ IS doing His work around the world today. And this organization is one small part of that.

So I'm not going to spend my whole Christmas budget buying gifts for a kid who has more than he needs and plenty of people who shower him with love and presents. I know he can't understand this year, but like I said before, I want to make this a tradition for our family. Hopefully someday my kid(s) will love Christmas shopping as much as I do... not for themselves, but for others.

If you want to go fill your own shoebox, great*. If not, that's fine too. I'm just asking that everyone who reads this try to do SOMETHING. There are plenty of people with need whom you can be helping. Take some food to a food bank. Give to your church missions budget. Volunteer some time at a homeless shelter. Take a meal to a sick friend. Showing God's love doesn't have to be big... start small!

And not only at this time of year, but all the time. (Charities will have an influx of help in the next two months, so please don't forget about ways you can donate and volunteer during the rest of the year.) I know I personally could be giving more... of my time and my resources. I know most of my past (and future) blogposts about my life will reveal my inherent selfishness. And I know most of YOU reading this probably give of yourselves much more than I do. Thank you. Your reward is in Heaven if you are doing it for Christ.

I promise to get off my soapbox now, but if there ARE any of you who are still thinking that you just don't have enough to give, please go to this website to put things back in perspective.
http://www.globalrichlist.com/

Note: the above link is simply for the statistics. I don't know anything about the charity organization behind it, so I am not advertising for you to donate to them in particular

*If you pack a shoebox, remember that each box costs $7 for postage. If you pay this online, you can actually track where the box will go!
https://www.samaritanspurse.org/operation-christmas-child/follow-your-box-iframe/
Another online option is a $30 donation to have someone pack a box for you.
https://www.samaritanspurse.org/operation-christmas-child/buildonline/

Sorry this is so long. You deserve a medal for reaching the bottom of this post!

But you don't get one. You just get a...

Thanks for reading. 

(And Merry Christmas! Don't hate me because I am wishing you this when it is still November.)

Cheap Easy 1st Birthday Party

This is not a "How To Throw A Cheap Easy 1st Birthday Party" post... I'm sure there are plenty of those out there.
I'm sure you could think of even better ways to save money and to add fun details to your child's birthday party.

This is simply a post about how I did it.

And I'm sure I probably saved money in ways that you might not be able to (I chose a theme that I already had plenty of decorations for, and found several great deals along the way). In fact, maybe some of my "cost-cutting" strategies are things you would never do... (I am not above shopping at thrift stores and yard sales!) 

But I just wanted to share our experience in case this gives you a little inspiration. My goal is just to show that it is possible to have a fun 1st birthday party WITHOUT spending a lot of money or taking a lot of time in preparation.

1. Theme

My husband and I were "those weird people" who decided not to find out the gender of our child before he was born. So, about  year and 9 months ago, we had to choose a gender-neutral nursery theme. (Bonus saving money strategy-- now we can re-use all our baby things when we have more kids someday!) 

So the theme we chose was giraffes.

Why? Well, I have been collecting giraffes since I was a little kid, so I already had TONS of giraffe stuff. Also, there is a TON of cute giraffe baby stuff out there for both boys AND girls. It is a little bit more gender-neutral than just plain "jungle theme" (note: giraffes actually do not live in the jungle. just FYI.) although we still got a ton of jungle/monkey/zoo type items anyway, which worked perfectly since our child turned out to be a boy. And all that stuff can still can be used for a girl-- we'll just put a little pink in there. :-)

So, when choosing a theme for the birthday party, it was easy to know where to start! The baby shower had been animal themed, so why not make this party animal themed? 

Then... we found our venue, which I will talk about next.

2. Venue

Ok, so the venue actually kind of came BEFORE the party theme. 

Quite a few months before his birthday, I had been looking on the Milwaukee Zoo website to see when their "free days" are. My husband and I like going to zoos, and there are a lot of great free ones out there! (Around us, there is the Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago-- which we haven't been to yet because it is a bit of a drive... and the Henry Villas Zoo in Madison which we have been to several times since we moved to WI.) 

But I happened to know that the Milwaukee Zoo hosts several "family free days" each year (my husband and I had been to one before) so I was checking to see when they were in 2013 so we could maybe take our son when he got a bit older. 

Lo and behold, the fall free day was on the Saturday before his 1st birthday!

Perfect. 

Now we have a theme, and a venue. 

And I think a zoo is a perfect venue for a birthday party because: 

a) You don't have to plan much in the way of decorations

b) You don't have to plan ANY games or activities

c) It's something that adults AND kids/babies can enjoy (Isn't a 1st birthday party really about the adults anyway? I mean, I'm glad our son loved it, but he's not going to remember this day, so we might as well spend it doing something WE enjoy, too)

3. Invitations

This party was just kind of falling together for me. I didn't have a checklist of "How To Do A Birthday Party" because birthday parties weren't really a big deal for our family growing up. We did a couple (I remember at least one sleepover party for the girls' birthdays) but when you have 4 siblings and you live far away from your cousins... birthday parties are really just a "Mom makes a cake and gives presents after dinner" sort of thing. So that's kind of what I planned to do for our son's birthdays. 

BUT since we decided to go to the zoo, I thought it might be fun to invite some people. I already knew the grandparents wanted to come (unfortunately MY parents weren't able to make it, but my husband's parents came up) and we have a couple friends with young kids at church whom we like to do things with. So, I thought I should probably do some sort of invitations. 

Once I decided on the details, I made a couple invitations to hand out. 

Then, about a month before the party, I got a coupon for FREE invitations from Shutterfly (see one of my previous blog posts for that story) so I thought, "What the hey? Why not send some invitations to our family members who are far away?" Even though I knew they probably couldn't make it, it made ME happy to send them a cute little invitation. The grandparents loved it. :-)

(For privacy reasons, I took out the event and RSVP details)

4. Menu

Since we planned to do the zoo trip in the early afternoon, I wanted to provide lunch for our guests. I picked an easy picnic lunch menu that would be cheap, with little clean-up. Just deli sandwiches, chips, soda, and fruit salad. (For the fruit salad, I chose our son's 3 favorite fruits-- melon, raspberries, and bananas. He pigged out.)

I wanted to get Zoo Plates for the picnic, but Walmart was all out, so I settled on regular paper plates (that I already had) and Zoo Bowls for the fruit salad.

5. Cupcakes

I have ZERO cake decorating skills. I even attended a cupcake decorating workshop once and I still have no idea what I'm doing. So, again, I wanted something with easy clean-up and almost no prep work. I found an idea for "zoo cupcakes" on Pinterest that just have an animal cracker standing in a field of green sprinkles. (Okay, I can do that.) 

Made them with white cake and white icing so I didn't have to worry about staining any clothes. I had received a cupcake tree as a secret-Santa gift last Christmas, so I was glad to use it. Also, those animal print cupcake liners were just too cute. (Thank you, Walmart)

I have also seen a lot of little "cake banners" floating around on Pinterest, so I thought that would make a nice "zoo" sign. Planned to just use two wooden skewers and a piece of beading string, but my son took a longer nap that day, so I kept adding little beads and scrapbooking stickers that I had around. But all my embellishments made the banner a little too heavy to stick in the cupcakes, so I had to improvise. (Good thing I happen to own giraffe salt and pepper shakers!)

6. Party Favors

Are you getting the idea that I am just making this up as I go along? Good.

I wasn't really planning to do party favors (it's not like we were expecting a lot of guests, and I had told the guests on the invitations that we did not expect gifts... my son has more than he needs!) but then I happened to see the cutest little favor bags at a thrift store for 25 cents. They were new-- apparently the previous owner just didn't need the whole package-- and they had zoo animals wearing party hats!

So, I passed them by, telling myself I couldn't justify that kind of expense.

NOT.

They were obviously too cute so I had to get them. :-)

Now I just had to find a couple things to fill them! (That's what the Dollar Tree is for.)

I think I spent $2-3 on 5 party favors.

The little white bag is jungle animal fruit snacks. I didn't know from the package that the individual bags would be so plain, so I found some animal print stickers in my scrapbooking stuff to "pretty" them up a bit. Not every bag was the same, but they all had a couple cute little zoo themed items in them.

7. Decorations

Like I said before, we are going to the zoo, so I didn't need much. But, at the last minute, our plans changed a little. The weather was a little rainy in the morning and some of our guests couldn't make it to the zoo till a bit later, so we decided to do our picnic at the house and THEN go to the zoo (It worked out perfectly because it rained on the way up and the way back but was perfect weather while we were there. Which is wonderful for WI in November... the week before we had a snow flurry!)

So I "had" to decorate the house a little for our picnic. :-) Easy to do because most of what I own is giraffe themed. 

(note: I even served the drinks in giraffe glasses... I didn't think to take a picture of these because they are actually the glasses we use for dinner most nights at our house. Yep. We're a little different...)

My husband laughed at me as I was cutting out party hats for my son's toys the night before. 

Yes, my son's party guests are toys and a picture of himself. But come on... do you really know any one-year-olds whose best friends DON'T consist of themselves and a few stuffed animals??

Another last minute decoration decision... my old Junior Zookeeper vest from Zoo Camp back in the day. (Not something I expect most of you have lying around the house... but I did!)

Our dog's birthday had been a couple days before, so we had to add her to the fridge. The "crossword" look is because we didn't have enough h's, y's, and l's.

8. Party Day

Finally the day came! I turned on some toddler songs on Pandora, dressed our son in his most safari/zookeeper-like outfit and we had a great time. 

My husband picked up a helium balloon at the Dollar Tree that morning.

He had a blast at the zoo! There were plenty of places to crawl and get close to the animals, but it was also was very stroller friendly for mom-and-dad sanity.

Thanks for reading!

Ramblings About Credit Cards

http://www.stacymakescents.com/using-cash-instead-of-cards

I read the above blogpost today. I thought it was very insightful, and presented a great case for the argument of using "paper instead of plastic." But here is my (probably NOT as good) argument against that view.



I've heard a lot about using cash instead of credit (or debit) cards lately. I understand that it is much harder to part with cash. I also understand that you CAN'T spend more than you have with cash.

But I've just been wondering; what about rewards programs? I know that the credit card companies set up these programs to get you to spend more... THEY are really the ones making the money on people who can't control their spending.

But if you ARE the type of person who pays off your balance at the end of the month, then is it really a bad thing to have and use a credit card? We used to only use our card for emergencies... we put everything else on debit so it would cut out the middle man. But when I realized I could make a few hundred dollars a year by using the credit card instead, we started doing that. Now we use the credit card almost everywhere (except ALDI, which only takes cash or debit, or St. Vinnies, which only takes cash. I think the fact that two of the places we frequent most are a discount grocery and a thrift store show that we aren't exactly HUGE spenders...), and then just pay it off out of the checking account at the end of the month. Since we started using it more, I realized how fast the points can rack up... just on buying the purchases of daily life.

Now, I'm definitely not saying I am the most frugal person. I'm sure I could benefit from like a Dave Ramsey class or something. I definitely spend money on things I don't need. But I'm just saying that sometimes credit cards seem like a good thing.
Example #1: I have started buying diapers and sometimes other non-perishable groceries online because I find great deals. If I am going to buy disposable diapers anyway, and I have a $10 off coupon online, but then I went to the store to buy them with cash, I feel like I'd be losing that $10. (I know cloth diapering is MORE economical, but that's just not something I want to do since I have shared/pay laundry facilities right now)
Example #2: I have ALWAYS bought my husband's school books from Amazon or Half.com... why on earth would I pay 3x as much for books from the college bookstore? (Now, when I was in school, I didn't even buy books... just used the library. But he likes to build his theological library, and this is still cheaper than LOGOS.)
These are just a couple examples of things I couldn't do if we didn't have a credit card.

When it comes to the credit card rewards, I don't go for any of the gift cards and appliances and other stuff they have on the rewards redemption... I just go for straight cash back to pay the credit card balance (I usually redeem at about $100 or so). Is this really wrong?

I think trying to justify your purchases because of a rewards program or deal is foolish (Sure, I paid $80, but I "saved" $20 on this new coat because it was on sale! But did you NEED the coat? You could have saved the $80 you paid) but I don't think there's anything wrong with using a different method to buy the things you would already be purchasing in order to get a "reward."

I think handling money is more about setting up a system that works best for your family. For us, my husband is actually MORE likely to spend cash than to use a card, because he knows his wife balances the checkbook and sees every McDonalds run he makes. When he gets a bit of cash, on the other hand, I'll ask him for some of it in a week and he will have no idea where it went.

My husband and I run the risk, just like anyone does, of living beyond our means. I suppose this would be a trap that is much easier for us to fall into since we DO use credit cards. (Who knows? Maybe someday I will jump on the "all cash" bandwagon.) But my point here is that I think there also needs to be more education on how to WISELY use a credit card. Whether we like it or not, our kids are going to be using electronic money; instead of teaching them that it is a bottomless pit they should avoid, we need to teach them that it is a tool, and teach them to be smart with it.

Thanks for reading.



*Note: Above, I highlighted in RED the crucial point to making this work. You must pay off your balance on the credit card. If you carry a balance and pay interest, THAT is where it becomes unhealthy debt. My husband and I are not debt free (I think student loans are a "good debt") but we DO strive to be free of credit card debt, and so far have been able to accomplish this. I just wanted to clarify that.*

Ramblings About Mornings

Today I will address my thoughts on the question:

Is it a sin NOT to be a morning person?

Now, I realize this article will sound like I am on a high horse, and will definitely step on the toes of most people who read it. (It is stomping on the toes of the person who is writing it!)
This is not anything groundbreaking... I'm sure many people have said it before and much more eloquently than I can. As such, this is not meant to be a devotional or a sermon; these are just my thoughts along with a couple Scripture verses. But you may have a better argument AGAINST my view, so feel free to comment as such, or to just stop reading now.
Ok, here we go.

As I was laying in bed this morning listening to my 11 month old tell me in no uncertain terms from his crib that he is READY TO GET UP, I grumbled and sighed and thought, "Why me, Lord?"
So, I guess I started the day in prayer which means I'm off to a great start, right? (note: this is sarcasm.)

But, as I dragged myself out of bed, took care of my son, and then grumbling, made the coffee, the thought came to me: it's ok for me to be a little grumpy... I'm just "not a morning person"... right?

I don't know where this phrase came from, but it seems to me a little bit like an excuse. Mornings are something we all have to deal with. They are (for most of us) the start of the day, and whether your day has to start at dawn or noon (or anywhere in between), the point is that it has to start SOMEWHERE.

Note: I know a lot of people work night shifts or have other circumstances that cause "morning" for them to be at a different time of day. Probably most of this article would still apply to them, but for my purposes I mostly have actual "mornings" in mind here.

So, if morning is a part of life that we cannot escape, then the only difference I see between "morning people" and "non-morning people" is the attitude they employ to deal with it. Typically, a morning person embraces the time with a smile and a vigor to start the day, while a non-morning person will fall on the spectrum anywhere from being silent and reserved to being grumpy and lashing out at anyone in his/her way.

I realize that some people do seem to be "wired" to need more sleep (we see this even in infants) and that some people seem to be "wired" to need a slow transition from sleeping to wakefulness. We'll talk later about being understanding with these people.
But, if this is true that the issue of being a morning person is related to attitude, then I think I can safely say that it whether or not you are a morning person IS a heart issue, and that means, dare I say it, that being a non-morning person is actually a sin.



Ok, time for some Scripture. First, a little bit of defense for the non-morning person.

Proverbs 27:14 "He who blesses his friend with a loud voice, rising early in the morning,

It will be counted a curse to him."

As I said before, some people are just naturally wired to be able to wake up refreshed and ready to sing a musical number. Other people want to be quiet for a while and have a slow transition into the day. THIS is not a sinful attitude towards mornings. If your morning person friend comes up to you with a huge bear hug and a loud, bubbly "Good Morning!!", it is not necessarily sinful to ask them to tone it down for a bit, and maybe give you some space. (If you snap at them or coldly ignore them, however, is this really a Philippians 2:3-4 attitude? "Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself. Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others." Remember, just like you maybe can't help your predispositions toward mornings, neither can they.)

But none of us can deny that God DOES say quite a bit in His Word about the attitude that we should try to foster in regards toward mornings. 

Mornings should be a time of prayer:

Psalm 5:3 "My voice You shall hear in the morning, O Lord; 

In the morning I will direct it to You,

And I will look up."

Psalm 88:13 "But to You I have cried out, O Lord,

And in the morning my prayer comes before You."

Mornings should be a time of meditation:

Isaiah 50:4b "He awakens Me morning by morning,

He awakens My ear

To hear as the learned."

And, *cringe*, we even see that mornings should be a time for singing:

Psalm 90:14 "Satisfy us in the morning with your unfailing love, that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days."

Psalm 59:16 "But I will sing of Your power;

Yes, I will sing aloud of Your mercy in the morning;

For You have been my defense

And refuge in the day of my trouble."

Mornings (in some cases, EARLY mornings) should be a time for productivity:

Proverbs 31:15 "She also rises while it is yet night,

And provides food for her household,

And a portion for her maidservants." 

Note: I know this is a passage depicting a virtuous woman, but I think the attitude of provision for others even when it is a sacrifice for yourself is a biblical principle that can be applied to everyone. 

Proverbs 20:13 "Do not love sleep, lest you come to poverty;

Open your eyes, and you will be satisfied with bread."

These verses are mostly from the Psalms and Proverbs, so maybe you will be saying, "Sure, this is a good idea for David and Solomon, who were obviously morning people, but I can do all of those things later in the day. I just don't have the time in the morning to do my devotions, and I can still praise the Lord without singing in the morning!" I think that may be true... the importance of worship through Bible study, song, and prayer should not be regulated to a time of day. 

But... just think for a minute about your reasoning... before you excuse yourself from following the pattern in these verses, ask yourself what your reasons are. Are you putting off doing these things because you honestly need the sleep? That would probably be a valid reason... we know that God has designed our bodies to NEED rest. Psalm 127:2 "It is vain for you to rise up early, To sit up late, To eat the bread of sorrows; For so He gives His beloved sleep." 

Or are you shirking responsibilities because you WANT extra sleep? That was me this morning; I didn't go to sleep till after 11pm (which is late for me) because I always wait up at night till my husband gets home from work. This is an important time for us as a couple, and it is not something I feel I should give up, but taking care of my son when he wakes up in the morning is not something I can give up, either. These are my responsibilities to my family, and to say that I can't do them cheerfully because I'm "not a morning person" is sinful.

But, hey, I woke up and took care of the diaper... that counts, right? My husband has a t-shirt that says something like "I'm up an dressed, what more do you want?" We laugh at this, but this is the point where I might get a little controversial. (Up till now you're probably just going, "duh".) My thought this morning about being a non-morning person was...

Why do we as Christians excuse sinful behavior with the phrase "I'm just not a morning person."?

If you can truly NOT be a morning person, but still combat the sinful behaviors that often go along with it-- laziness (Proverbs 26:14) , grumpiness (Proverbs 16:32), shirking responsibilities (Proverbs 21:5), neglecting worship (see verses above), and overall disregard for the happiness of others (Philippians 2)-- then sure, maybe being a non-morning person is not sinful for you. But the truth is, when we use the phrase "he/she's not a morning person" we usually are referring to someone who DOES manifest at least some of these behaviors. 

Think about it like this. When a little kid asks "Dad, why is mom always so grumpy in the morning?" it is considered acceptable to say "Well, honey, she's just not a morning person. Try not to bother her for a couple hours."
But if that little kid asked "Dad, why does mom always throw thing at us when she gets angry?" we may report this woman for child abuse!

My point is, both attitudes are sinful. I feel that this issue is another life situation where we tend to minimize sin, or at the very least, create "levels" of sinfulness. ("Sure, he's never been a morning person. We never can talk to him till he's had his first cup of coffee. But that's just who he is. At least he doesn't beat his children.")

We do the same thing with children... we often excuse sin because of external circumstances. ("I know he is throwing a temper tantrum, but he didn't sleep well last night and he is cutting a new tooth.")

Don't get me wrong... I think we all have a responsibility to be understanding of others and recognize when they are having a hard time with something. You would hope that they would treat you with the same kindess when YOU are struggling! But just like tiredness and pain are a part of life, and you are not doing your child any favors if always excuse their sinful behavior when it has a "valid reason", so mornings are a part of life, and we are not doing each other any favors to say, "It's okay that you don't wake up and help with the kids. It's okay that when you do wake up you snap at your spouse and co-workers. It's okay that you procrastinate on your work until you've had enough coffee, or skip devotions because you didn't have enough time." Why are things like sluggishness, grumpiness, and procrastination viewed as "lesser sins"?

Something as small as one selfish, fleeting frown in the morning (that could break the heart of my eager child), is a sin for which my Savior's blood was shed.

So, if you categorize yourself as a "morning person", please try to be understanding of your loved ones who are trying to combat fleshly desires for sleep and self in this area.

And if you call yourself a "non-morning person", do some deep introspection to find out if this predisposition of yours is manifesting itself in any sinful attitudes or behaviors.

I hope that my husband is as patient with me as I try to be more Christlike in the mornings as I am trying to be with him. (And that our son learns to be patient with both of us.)

I know this is long and rambly, but if you've read any of my other posts, you know that's how I roll.

Thanks for reading.

Ramblings about Bugs

(Disclaimer: I don't know much about blog copyright laws, so I included the links where I found all these pictures so I don't get in trouble. They all came from Google image search, so I CANNOT vouch for any of the websites if you click on the links.)

Today's discussion--

Which is worse: A boxelder bug or a ladybug? 

Though I am not a fan of either of these household pests, I would argue that ladybugs are MORE EVIL than boxelder bugs. Read on to see my reasoning.

For those of you who are unfamiliar with these two types of beetles, here is what they look like:

Boxelder Bug
(http://www1.extension.umn.edu/garden/insects/find/boxelder-bugs/)

Ladybug
(http://www.shadesofgreensa.com/ladybugs.html)

And here is what they DO:

Boxelder bug swarm on windowsill
(http://www.wiscnews.com/news/local/article_1e5e5022-0ca3-11e2-8749-0019bb2963f4.html)

Ladybug swarm on windowsill
(http://www.cridx.com/blog.html)

 When I lived in PA, every fall and spring our home would be invaded by ladybugs, whose sole purpose was to infest everything from the light fixtures to tunafish sandwiches. They were a threat that was impossible to prevent, and almost impossible to eradicate.

After moving to WI, I found that the ladybugs were not quite as numerous, but they had a midwestern counterpart-- the boxelder bug-- who had the same agenda.

I don't know any actual statistics of these pest populations; I'm just reporting on MY experience, which was ladybugs in the East, boxelder bugs in the Midwest.

Either way, they are both gross. But which one is WORSE? I've already said that I think ladybugs are inherently evil. Here is my argument:

-----

Point number 1: When it comes to indoor bugs, I have a general dislike for bugs that can fly AND crawl. Flies are annoying, but at least they usually fly around, land for a bit, then fly away. Ants are gross, but at least they just crawl all over the place so you can step on them. BUT both ladybugs and boxelder bugs crawl AND fly, which is just unfair. So, they are evenly matched on this point.

-----

Point number 2: We have already seen that they both swarm. They like to get inside doorways and windowsills, crawl on your walls and ceilings, and then die in your stuff. Or fly around you as you try to run to your car. Again, evenly matched in awfulness.

Boxelder bugs
(http://www.buggslayer.com/)

Ladybugs
(http://www.mountainphotographer.com/ladybugs-black-seeds/)

-----

Point number 3: Both bugs stink. 

"Oh, you think I'm gross? Why don't you just kill me? HA! Now I am gross AND I stink. Even in my death I have defeated you." 

We're still at a tie.

-----

Point number 4: Boxelder bugs eat trees (which are generally considered good) and ladybugs eat aphids (which are generally considered bad). So this is one point in favor of boxelder bugs being worse than ladybugs.

-----

Point number 5: BUT, the close of my argument, and the reason that I think ladybugs are MORE EVIL than boxelder bugs is their DECEPTION.

For whatever reason, the ladybug has convinced humans that it is not only NOT a threat to our existence and American way of life, but that it is something to be PRAISED and viewed as *shudder* cute.

Ladybugs in childrens' literature
(http://www.amazon.com/Ten-Little-Ladybugs-Melanie-Gerth/dp/1581170912)

  

Ladybugs in party food
(http://www.brightideas.com/bright_idea.aspx?ID=27)

Ladybugs in wedding decor!
(http://www.merchantcircle.com/business/Classy.Baby.Diaper.Cakes.And.Gifts.318-218-6732/picture/view/2037483)

We even dress our young ones up as these vile creatures.
(http://goodcostumeideas.com/a-bugs-life/bugs-life-ladybug-costume.html)

Sure, even I have to admit, ladybugs in a nursery seems like it could be really cute...
(http://www.etsy.com/listing/101942210/ladybugs-nursery-wall-decal-ladybug-wall)

Until you realize that in reality, ladybugs in a nursery looks more like THIS
(http://www.cridx.com/blog.html)

 This is the reason why I think ladybugs are more evil than boxelder bugs. I mean, at least boxelder bugs are honest about their grossness. They don't put up a front. They don't try to infiltrate our society with cutesy decor. You never would see a children's clothing line named...

(http://www.thedabblingspeechie.com/2013/04/22/a-lady-bug-hunt-adventure-a-visit-from-eric-carle-and-some-lady-bug-absurdies/)

-----

 So, in conclusion, you can have your own opinions about these bugs. If you want to think ladybugs are cute, go ahead. But for me, I don't think I could ever let my baby wear something with a ladybug on it without thinking of this:

(http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/20/nyregion/20ladybugs.html?_r=0)

 Thanks for reading.