Romans 8:28 says: And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.

In my life, this means that no matter what my circumstances look like, God is in complete control and He will make sure that whatever happens, in the end, I will benefit from it.

When two of my sons lie about me to their father and criticize everything my youngest son does;

When my husband and I have an argument and barely speak for more than 4 days;

When I’m so sick of it all that I don’t even know how what to do or say next;

GOD IS WORKING IT OUT FOR ME.

If I didn’t have faith in God and in His Word, I probably would be 302′d right about now.

But I pray.

And I wait.

Because not only is God working it out for me, He is using every little thing to teach me and shape me more and more into the image of Jesus Christ.

It’s not fun. It’s not pleasant. But I understand.

And I trust Him to guide me.  I would be lost without Him.

In March of 1998, I had breast reduction surgery. There’s no need to go into too much detail about the reasons why – I’ll just tell you that the doctor removed 3 POUNDS from each one.

Pick your mouth up off of the floor.

Let’s move on, because my breasts are not the point of the story.

Right before Mother’s Day that year, my mom and I were doing our weekly shopping (back before I had children and could afford it) trips. I was excited because I could wear things that wouldn’t have been possible before. My mom and I both liked the same dress. She wasn’t going to get it, because it was not our practice to dress alike. We don’t usually agree on style. She’s more of a girly-girl than I am. She likes skirts; I like pants. She likes lace, flowers, etc.; I SO do not!

But on this particular day, we agreed. So I told her that she need not give up the dress because I liked it too. I suggested that we both get them and wear them for Mother’s Day. I must admit that she was not exactly jumping at the idea, but she warmed up to it and she agreed.

That was THIRTEEN YEARS AGO. *Due to the great hard drive crash of 2009, no images of previous years exist.*

Ya’ll have no idea of the monster I have created.

EVERY year, when spring comes, she arms herself with catalogs or we must go out to the mall to find our Mother’s Day outfits.

EVERY YEAR.

I’m not complaining. I just want you to grasp how serious this is for Momma. Sometimes a store or catalog won’t have the outfit we like in both of our sizes, or we’re having a tough time agreeing on what to get. I usually say something like, “We don’t HAVE to dress alike this year.” Her response?

“YES, WE DO!“

This year, we got out outfits from Ashley Stewart.  It seemed like we weren’t going to find ANYTHING that we could both get, but we managed to do it.  You’re looking at the result.

My mom and I are so different physically, but other than that, we’re very similar. On Mother’s Day, we celebrate that.  My momma is the best! I know everybody says that…and you know what? They’re right, because when I say my momma is the best, I mean that she’s the best mom for ME.  She is so much a part of who I am today.  She taught me how to be independent and strong; to have faith in God and to serve Him; to stand up for myself and those I love; and she’s a shining example of how to be a good wife and mother.

I hope we have many more years to celebrate Mother’s Day and continue the tradition we created.

Last week, we had our first warm, no coat needed day.  As soon as I got home, I dropped my things in the house, got my camera, and went outside to meet the boys.  It was a beautiful day and I thought I could get some great shots.

The twins had other plans. They wouldn’t cooperate, so I dismissed them and took a few shots of Sweet Pea.   He went inside, and I followed him. I was about to relax until dinner was ready (I LOVE MY HUSBAND!), but Sweet Pea said, “Mommy, aren’t we gonna go back outside?”

He wanted to take more pictures!  I was excited!

We were outside for about an hour, and Sweet Pea was SO cooperative.  I even put the camera strap around his neck and let him take some pictures.

This is one of my favorite shots that day:

*sigh*

If you’d like to see the rest, see the Flickr set:  http://www.flickr.com/photos/rikkilyn/sets/72157626174110487/

I’ma see if Sweet Pea can get some modeling work. LOL!

We noticed a little while ago that the twins were squinting all of the time. Last weekend, they joined me in the FourEyes Club. I don’t feel so alone anymore.  TJ and SweetPea pretty much have perfect vision, so they are excluded from membership.  Above is Thing One.  His vision is the worst of the two. I think he’s happy that he can finally see!

Here’s Thing Two in his glasses. Maybe I’ll be able to tell them apart better from the difference in the frames. I do pretty well, but sometimes I mess up!

The only thing now is that I have to keep making them KEEP the glasses on. They’ve never had glasses before, so they don’t understand that it’s not an OPTIONAL thing. I told them, unless you’re roughhousing or sleeping, keep’em on your face! I know it will take some getting used to, however. I was about their age when I started my family’s chapter of the FourEyes Club.

It only gets worse.  I had my eye exam last week, and I got new contacts. Yay for me. Problem is, I’m close to forty, so small print is doing me in. It’s a shame to have contacts and then have to wear reading glasses too. I haven’t gotten them yet, but I have my eye on a pair of pink ones….so I’ll post pics when I do!

Gettin’ old sucks.

{mrsday}