Determination IS > Motivation

Lately, my motivation has been lacking. Blame it on the weather, blame it on pregnancy, blame it on laziness - the end result is the same. I'm not motivated to do more than the very absolute least amount possible. The "I want to do" list was getting longer and longer in my head, but the "I accomplished" list was growing pretty dank and stagnant.

So in an effort to actually get up and get things done, I gave up on motivation. Yep, traded that good for nothing long absent "friend" in for a newer model - determination. And wow what we have accomplished in the past two days!

With determination and a WRITTEN list, I have managed to clean the house, climb and conquer the laundry mountain, take the dry cleaning in, get our taxes done, mop the floors, organize the office, complete the grocery shopping, get a bunch of work done, play with Levi, and lots of other smaller miscellaneous tasks. All within the past two days.

Now, I know there are those of you that are probably thinking "that's what I do in a single day, what's she bragging about?!" And to you I say - "Congratulations! You are way more determined, ambitious and motivated than I am! Wanna come hang out at my house next?"

Yes, there still are things on my to-do list (bake bread, figure out dinner, re-make the beds I've stripped), but I fear that determination has decided that since it's late afternoon on a Friday, he is done helping me for the week. I'll muddle through the bed making (after all, we have to have sheets to sleep on tonight) and I'll eventually figure out dinner, but the rest of my list and whatever else I manage to think of that needs to be done will have to wait until next week. I mean, really, it's not procrastination if it's not immediately needed, right?

And besides, Levi is awake from his nap and there are Nerf guns to be played with!

Want to Make God Laugh at You? Make Your Own Plans.

Life is not fair. I learned this early on. No real experiences come to mind, but I do remember whining "it's not fair!" many times to my mom only to hear "Life isn't fair." And as much as it irritated me then, she was (and still is) right. If you think life is fair - you must have figured out some secret that I have yet to learn. In my experience, the minute I start to think life is fair or that I have all my plans laid out perfectly - Someone Else tends to laugh at me.

Just when I thought that we were going to have a good, stress free year, Someone laughed big time.

• We found out we're expecting baby #2 - a blessing and an answer to prayer for sure, but now what? Will it be an easy pregnancy? How will delivery go this time around? Will Levi adjust to someone else being held in Mommy's arms? Will I be able to split my time between the wee ones without one feeling a loss? And the questions go on and on. 
• Next, Brian is faced with job issues. He still has a job, but it's different now. He's not happy in his job. I can't find the words to tell him it will all be okay. Now though, after several days of tension and frustration, he's come to grips with it all and seems excited about looking around for whatever new opportunities are in store for us. 
• Then there's the financial stress. We make it all work now, but how will that change with a potential new job and baby?
• And then we have the weather stress. This morning we slid down our driveway. All 140 feet of it. Like a slip 'n slide we used to play on as kids. Thankfully, Brian did some magic steering, the angels did some pushing and God put the snow bank and gravel in just the right place. (Now that's teamwork!) Needless to say, I am oh so very ready for spring to get here.

And that's a brief glimpse of what our year has been like so far. Nothing overly exciting individually, but combine it all together and it turns into a small ball of stress. :)

But it's just reminded me (once again) that life isn't fair. It's not supposed to be. Life is a learning, adjusting, changing, growing process. And just when we start to get comfortable, God reminds us of that. Think your life is easy? Maybe you aren't challenging yourself. Think you have your plans set for the week, month, year? Just wait - your chance at making God laugh is coming!