Egg Carton Owls and Other Thoughts

My favourite craft that the kids and I created during home school is the egg carton snowy owl. I might have enjoyed making these a little more then the kids. We used little sections of tissue paper to represent the feathers. The glue itself is instant entrainment for them. Sometimes I just don’t feel like doing crafts. For all the paint, tape, toilet rolls, markers, and mess that covers the dining room table, it may only amount to 10 minutes of activity. It’s exhausting. But my little ones love it! They get to stretch their creative muscles and make many choices. They get so much out of cutting and pasting bits and pieces together. We’ve moved on now to Science experiments. I mean I am about to willingly buy glitter, white vinegar, and food colouring all so my kids can make an exploding frothy potion go basically everywhere. This is a house keeping disaster. But to see my kiddos faces light up and know their minds are being blown as they learn a little about the world around them… It’s worth it.

Snowy Owls

I have a few other projects lined up this summer which includes clearing out the guest room, utility room, and my car. All of these tasks, if completed, will make my husband a very happy man. I don’t really relish organising things, but it needs to be done. These mundane things really do matter if you can make a loved one feel better. Especially now when the situation we are in is so uncertain. If I am struggling to smile, I’ve recently learned that making someone else smile makes all the difference. Bible teacher and writer, Joyce Meyer, says when you have a problem, “trust God and do good.” I think she is absolutely right. When I am tempted to wallow in my own troubles (and it is tempting to do so) I try to encourage someone else. I also ask for help. I ask my friends to pray with me. Neither of these things are easy to do, but the benefits are so worth it. Instantly, my focus is off of me. Now I’m free for God to show me how I can help someone else. Putting other people first is what it is all about and ironically, brings me joy too.

1 Thessalonians 5:11 “Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing.”