The Year of Hope

Do you all participate in "One Little Word"?? I honestly didn't even know this was a thing until recently, although my husband, girls and I have been doing this for several years now.

We have declared 2016 to be "The Year of Hope".

I'm excited to share more with you all in the coming weeks and months as to just what this word means to our family.

In the meantime I painted this cute little sign and thought how fun this would be to offer at a really low price for all of you fine friends of mine. It's available now here in my Etsy shop.

 

I can't wait to hear what word your family chooses to think about this year. As noted previously, I'm not really "fully open" for custom orders until the end of January, but I consider this a "soft opening" for a very simple yet important word for each of you.

 

If you need the link again: here it is! Mama Hess Painting's Etsy Shop!!

Shop Announcement and some Recent Custom orders

Friends, there are so many joys I have with this adventure of working from home, doing something I absolutely love. However, the one struggle I am facing recently is the skill in walking away from work. My workspace is in our "eat-in kitchen" (cough, cough).... okay, and slowly spreads to the homeschool room, the living room, the garage, and the office. And usually there is a stack of signs lining the entryway of our house waiting to be picked up. And often lining my server (turned paint cabinet). And you just never know when you might find one drying on one of the bar stools, or on a humid day you might find one (or three) lying on the living room floor under the ceiling fan.

I normally take a scheduled break immediately following Christmas. However, this year I am feeling the need to have a break a little sooner than that. Last year back to school time was a slower time for me, so I chose these dates to attempt to more naturally coincide with that time of year.

****** The last date to order so that your sign will be able to be made and shipped/picked up will be Friday, August 28, 11:59 pm. After that my shop will reopen on Saturday, September 12. If you need your sign before those dates or in the next week after I reopen please order early. Thank you all so much for understanding!!!******

AND NOW! The fun!

 Customized Mark 10:9 with first names and wedding date. Shown in black and white. Sign measures approximately 12"x24".

 Custom phrase done on pallet wood. Shown in bridgeport gray wash and charcoal lettering. Sign measures approximately 16"x20".

 Custom phrase. Background is distressed black over dark walnut stain with cream lettering. Measures approximately 17"x24".

 Custom stamped baby onesie.

 Custom phrase for above a girl's double bed. Shown in black, white, and pops of coral blush. Sign measures approximately 36"x12".

 Custom verses for a Texas wedding. Mark 10:8 and Mark 10:9 done in coordinating fonts and colors. Shown in Cabernet stain and magnolia white lettering. Signs measure 12"x18".

 Custom phrase for an Etsy customer. Shown in gp purple and magnolia white lettering. This little sweetie measures about 9.5"x12".

I hope you all enjoyed looking at these as much as I liked making them! Thank you all for you continual support. It's a fun journey!

Comparison

Three weeks ago I found while scrolling through Instagram this Theodore Roosevelt quote shared by @goldenpaisleyshop .

Comparison is the thief of joy. Doesn't that sound like it should be in the book of Proverbs?

Those of you who follow me on Facebook or have purchased a sign from me in the past year will know that I stamp all of my work with a stamp made for me by 2Impress which reads:

I think it is nearly impossible not to compare. I find myself constantly looking at the art of other people and think "I could NEVER do that!". And yet here is an artist, GoldenPaisleyShop who does beautiful work that I admire, and even she falls into this trap of comparison.

This past weekend I had the opportunity to be a vendor at a beautiful outdoor market. Nearly all the vendors had some sort of signs. And it was so easy to find myself judging the work of others and constantly comparing myself to these other artists. Most of the vendors were selling painted furniture, and even hearing the chatter amongst other vendors each one had a little insecurity about their own work when compared with all these other vendors.

So how do we get past it? I think just being aware of how easily our joy is stolen as a result of comparison is a good place to start. Since it's something I've been thinking about for the past three weeks it was a little easier for me to try not to compare my work with the others around me at this event. I was able to celebrate over each item sold for myself and each vendor at the event. Because the reality is, these women put a lot of time into their work. And each piece was beautiful in it's own way. And my style might not be the right style for everyone, and that's okay!

Friends, don't let comparison steal your joy. Nice words, Teddy R. Nice words.

Looking Back

I have a terrible memory. Seriously, ask my kids. They are constantly reminding me of things I said I would do, but forgot. And if I'm half asleep when talking to you, psshhh, forget it. I probably won't recall ever having a conversation with you.

My poor memory skills are probably why I love blogging so much. If it is written down then it must have actually happened (even if I can't remember it clearly). I also love to journal out those raw emotions. I am often embarrassed by what I write when emotional, but it is so healing in the moment to get them out in a safe place, and later to look back on them.

Monday mornings I give my two oldest girls a spelling pre-test. It is good for them to see growth in short-term way. It's hard for adults to see how they are growing in the moment, how much more challenging must it be for our 6 and 7 year old children? For the past two or three weeks Abbey (age 6) has gotten all of her spelling words right on the pre-test. Whenever this happens I "reward" them by not having them take the test on Friday. This Monday morning, however, Abbey missed one word. To say the girl was upset would be an understatement. Mind you, these are words that she has not studied, and she does not have access to the list ahead of time that she could peek at it. She was distraught over this one little word she missed (I told you she is a perfectionist).

To encourage her little heart I reminded her of how hard even the simplest words were for her in the beginning of the year. She grabbed her language arts binder (that is such a pain for me to put together, but man, today I was glad I did), and flipped to the very beginning. And she laughed. And laughed. And laughed. Oh, what joy that brought to my heart. She looked back to the beginning of the school year. The word was "are", she spelled it "R" on her pre-test, week 1 of the school year. And she laughed! It was very real to her, and showed her just how far she has come this year. I could have cried.

Yes, I'm teaching spelling, but I like to think it is so much more than that. I'm teaching these girls the value of looking back on life. We don't stay back there, we move forward. Yet there is value in looking back. To take a peek at what life was like less than a year ago is important.

Just the other night my dear husband and I were looking back. He had gone through times of self-doubt, of not knowing where he was going, what he wanted to do, where he wanted to go in life. And he prayed and prayed and prayed for direction, never feeling like he was going anywhere or being led. As we talked through the decisions he made he realized just how much the Lord was leading him, guiding him, and setting him on a path. It didn't feel like it at the time, yet when he took a moment to look back, he realized how all these little pieces that didn't seem like much (quitting one job to take a pizza delivery job) all fit together and created this beautiful picture.

Sometimes looking back can be painful. I think of our foster son and daughter on a regular basis. I know I have learned a lot from that experience. However, it is still painful in many ways to look back on that time. I'm sure that someday (maybe not on this side of Heaven) I will see how those months fit into my mosaic to create something whole and beautiful. Certainly I am changed because of that experience.

Isaiah 61:3 (New Living Translation) To all who mourn in Israel, he will give a crown of beauty for ashes, a joyous blessing instead of mourning, festive praise instead of despair. In their righteousness, they will be like great oaks that the LORD has planted for his own glory.

Portions of this verse pop into my head from time to time, but I'm not sure that I ever noticed those last three words. The beauty for ashes, the joy instead of mourning, the praise instead of despair, it's for HIS OWN GLORY. Not for us. Not for me. For Him. Wow. 

I'm just letting that sink in.

I will leave you with this: Gungor "Beautiful Things". Hands down one of my favorite songs. 

I encourage you to take a few minutes today, sit, and think. The weather here has been beautiful. Grab a cup of tea or coffee, watch the kids play in the yard, and look back and realize the beautiful things He has done for HIS OWN GLORY in your life.

Mother's Day is on the Way

It's hard to believe that Mother's Day is right around the corner, I feel like we just celebrated Christmas!

Last year was a very busy time for me making signs that were sold through my Etsy store. I wanted to give you all some ideas for moms, and give you a gentle reminder of an order deadline. :)

MOTHER'S DAY ORDER DEADLINE - if you need your sign shipped, please order by Sunday, April 26, 2015!!! If you are local and want to pick up, please order by Tuesday, April 28, 2015. I'm currently at about a 7-10 day lead time, but I have some commitments coming up where I will not be able to work as much.

Not everything is listed in my Etsy store yet. I'm working on a small amount of inventory for us (yes, this includes me) last minute shoppers.

First up - this Jen Hatmaker quote has been my most popular sign on Etsy. At the time of this writing I have one ready-to-ship/ pick up listed in my Etsy store.

This exact sign is available here.

 If you want to customize this sign in your choice of colors, or look at a few other samples follow this link.

This sign for a laundry room/nursery is also available now.

You can find this one also listed in my Etsy Store.

This sign can be customized here.

Those two signs are currently what is trending in my Etsy Store. These makes great gifts for a husband to give to a wife. Ladies, the Etsy links seem to work well for men. Be sure to tell your husband what colors you like.

If you are shopping for YOUR mom, now that's a different story! I have a variety of signs specifically for Grandparents. The two I'm going to share with you have many different options, but none of these are listed in my Etsy Store. You may contact me on my Facebook Page : Mama Hess Painting.

Current prices for these signs are $30 (without clothespins) or $35 with clothespins. These signs are approximately 8"x24". You can customize colors and number of pins. Clothespins can be painted or stained to match your colors. I currently have two signs available.

1. Shown with a black background, cream "grandkids" and gray "make life grand". It currently does not have any pins attached but that can be done if you desire.

This sign is available now!

 2. Grandkids - Fearfully and Wonderfully Made. Shown stained "golden oak" with black lettering. This sign has twine securely attached for you to hang your clothespins from (this allows for more space and is flexible if the number of grandkids continues to grow!)

This sign is available NOW.

This sign can be customized without any pins, with pins attached directly to the sign, or with the twine.

THIS IS SOLD! This is to give you an example of what the sign looks with the clothespins attached.

Thank you all so much for your continued support of my little business! It's truly a joy!

**All PA sales are subject to a 6% sales tax. Prices are subject to change as time progresses. Please contact me via private message on my Facebook Page with any questions.**

A Day with Anne

Today I have a "Guest Blogger". This article was originally written for our church newsletter. The intent here is to give you a glimpse into our everyday, beautiful, messy life. From Anne's perspective. When written, back in September, Anne had just started first grade, and was 6 (almost 7) years old. **All photos are from the two weeks surrounding the date her article was written.**

A Day With Anne Hess

Friday, September 5, 2014

6:40 am – Wake up and come downstairs. Put on my rainboots and go outside with Daddy to feed our six chickens and check for eggs. Only one so far!

Our first egg - Aug, 2014

7:00 am – Read part of a horse book and play with the doll house with Maggie.

7:30 – Mommy wakes up and comes downstairs for coffee. I go upstairs to play with our little horses.

7:50- Breakfast. It's Abbey's day to choose – strawberry poptarts.

8:10 – Go upstairs, get dressed & brush teeth.

8:30 – Watch a movie. Abbey chooses Cinderella.

9:00 – School starts. (I am homeschooled and in first grade.) We do our morning routine – calendar, counting up and down to the date (5^th today), Pledge of Allegiance.

9:05 – Friday is Test day: Spelling test first, I got 8 out of 8!

9:15 – Math Test – I finish quickly so I take Caroline into the living room to play while Abbey finishes her test. I got 17 out of 17! This is the first math test I have ever had.

9:30 – Bible – we read 2 Timothy 3:14-18. I memorized Psalm 1:1-2 for the first two weeks of school. Abbey, Maggie, and I all take turns saying this out loud. Abbey and I work on our handwriting while we listen to Mommy read.

9:40 – History/Geography – locate India on the globe and map. Pray for Hindus. I like to pray for the children who are “untouchables”. We also read about mud huts and different types of houses.

10:00 – Recess outside while Mommy puts Carrie to nap. I play on our neighbor's swingset and chat with our neighbors.

Our neighbors let us play here whenever we want!

 10:15 – Language Arts – practice expression when reading aloud

10:30 – Science – Night Animals. I read our five pages out loud to my sisters. We then answer questions on a worksheet about what we read.

10:40 – Math: Today we are counting by 2s, doing tally marks, greater than/less than, tens and ones columns, and adding. I have two homework pages that I do quickly.

11:00 – RECESS!! Play outside, collect eggs (3!), play “loving family” with my sisters.

Acting out a story with toy animals.

 11:30 – I wake Caroline up and carry her downstairs for lunch (I have a sandwich, clementine, and sweet potato sticks).

{{Sidenote: This is a funny Anne quote during lunch. Anne, “I read in a book that having a pony is a dream for many, but a dream come true for few.” I said to her, “Are you going to be part of the many or the few?” Anne was quick to reply, “The few!” For those of you who don't know, Anne loves horses!}}

I just love being a big sister to this little sweetie!

12:00 – lunch is over. I like to wipe Carrie's face and then play peek-a-boo with her.

12:05 – Take a blanket into our woods for our read aloud time. (Homer Price today)

Our favorite spot to read.

12:40 – Come inside to play. It was too humid to enjoy playing outside. I read a chapter book called “The Worst/Best Christmas Pagaent Ever” to myself.

1:05- Mommy takes Caroline upstairs for nap. I keep reading.

1:25 – Rest time. Mommy reads to the three of us older girls for awhile.

1:50 – Mommy goes out of our room. I read my book quietly.

3:15 – Watch the rest of Cinderella.

4:00 – Rest time is over. I practice piano.

4:15 – Go outside and skip count by 2s. (Jumping every 2 numbers which are written in chalk.)

4:40 – Come inside. A storm is coming. I see my neighbor friend who just got home from school. My mom doesn't let me go outside because of the thunderstorm. I get angry and run to my room and slam the door and cry. I sit in my room awhile. To regain control I brush and braid my hair. But I am still angry. I argued with my mom and made a face at her so I had to be sent to my room.

5:15 – I spy some pretty clothes. I put them on and decide to act like a princess. I dress Abbey and Maggie up too. We all act like princesses. We help mommy crack the eggs for dinner.

5:40- DADDY IS HOME!!!

6:00 – Eat dinner – scrambled eggs, sausage and toast. We eat a lot of eggs these days.

6:40- Finish dinner. I quickly run outside to play with my neighbor. We play at his house all evening. We swing, dig in the dirt, and talk with the grown ups. 

Our neighbors love little Caroline.

7:50 – Time to go home. We get ready for bed.

8:15- Daddy reads to us from “Little Town on the Prairie.” I am very tired. After we all pray I fall right to sleep. 

****Hope you all enjoyed a little window into Anne's world.*****

Shouldn't You Be In School?

I'm often asked what made me decide to home school. It's sort of a long answer so I figured a blog post might be a good way to go with this one!

First off, a very brief note: I know and understand that home school is not for every family nor for every child. Every one is certainly able to choose for themselves what schooling option is best for your family. I hope that nothing I say comes across as judgmental or preachy - that is certainly not my intent.

Now that that's out of the way.....

"Shouldn't you be in school?" This question was posed to my oldest daughter (age 7) this week. She was outside playing in our little patch of woods behind our house. There was an older gentleman cutting wood just beyond our property line and he asked this question. Anne's quick response was, "I'm home schooled!"
 
Part of me cringed when she told me this, because I am acutely aware that we are different. I love people, and I want them to love me. I've always worked SO hard to win the approval of everybody; my parents, my peers, etc. That means I want to fit in.

Is this weird?

 I want to be like everyone else and do what everyone else is doing. I want to be the best at whatever it is I'm doing, and if I realize early on that I may not be the best (i.e. the three years I played saxophone and I did a victory dance when my little brother kicked the case and a key broke) I want to quit. Galatians 1:10 "Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ." {I professed Christ as my Savior just before my 19th birthday. I am learning to not allow my 'personality' to be an excuse for a lack what I know to be right.}

I never, ever in a million years would have thought I would be a home school mom. Nope. No way. Do you know why? Home school people and their kids are weird. Weird and different are synonyms. I don't like different, I don't like weird. Nope. Not doing it.

Anne reading "James and the Giant Peach" - age 5

You may want to be careful what you say.

I have a teaching degree from Millersville University, formerly known as "the teacher's college". After our oldest daughter was born and growing at an extremely rapid rate (does time speed up once you have children?), my mother-in-law wondered if I would consider home schooling. My immediate response was, "No." I didn't even want to think about it. No way. Not for me. Home school kids are weird.

Our celebration of 100 days of school - 2015

 Then a funny thing happened. The Lord began to work on my heart.

Girls working on their "Heart Journals" - 2015

 As I watched my girls grow (with a special focus on my oldest since she would be the one to go to school first) I noticed some interesting things about her behavior. First of all, she was very much like me. She is so very easily influenced by her peers. For example, when she was about three and a half years old we came home from the mom's group we attended weekly. Anne asked for a cracker at lunch. After providing her with the cracker, she began to chew it like a beaver, letting crumbs fall from her mouth all over her shirt, the floor, and the table. She laughed uproariously and sprayed cracker all over everything. (Can you picture this???) When asked what in the world she was doing she said a boy in her little class did that at snack time and everybody laughed and she really wanted to try it.

Anne reading a Highlights magazine to her sisters - summer 2013 (age 5 1/2)

This became nearly a weekly occurrence in our home. She would see another child do something (always something she knew she probably shouldn't do) and then she would come home and do it. Every. Week. And I thought, "My word! If this is what she does after being with other kids for 90 minutes, what will she act like when she is with them for a whole day?!"

Then something else happened. Anne started reading at age 4. (I didn't even know this was possible.) In my four years of college education and my miniscule time teaching before Anne was born, I had never taught any one how to read. It was a really awesome experience. I can't take credit for what happened next. She picked up her first little book and read it without help. Then our two foster children came into our lives and I no longer had the time to sit and work with her on a daily basis like I had been. About two month after she read that first book I was hurriedly trying to get dinner ready and juggle five children under age five (I don't recommend this). Anne offered to read to the kids for me. I thanked her and went about what I was doing. A few minutes later I peeked on the kids and she had them all lined up on the couch with her as she read aloud from Fantastic Mr. Fox by Roald Dahl. We had read it aloud together before so I assumed she was just retelling the story in her own words. Until I listened more closely. She was reading, with expression, a book on a second grade reading level.

Anne reading "Peter Pan"- age 5

It was at that point that I started to consider home school as a very real option for our family. None of my friends home school their children, so it was a really tough decision for us to make. The more I prayed about it the more clear it became that this is what I should do. If I had to give two main reasons why we chose to home school it would be these.

1. I want to have more influence in my children's lives than their peers. I want to build a firm foundation based on the truth of God's word before asking them to stand up to peer pressure on a daily basis. I want to be the one who talks to them about hard and controversial subjects. And trust me, we DO talk about them. I am not sheltering these kids so that they have no clue about the world. I would much rather them get facts from me than from their little seven-year-old friends.

A little hike to The Pinnacle in Holtwood, PA to see the frozen Susquehanna River: Winter 2015

2. The ability to meet their unique abilities. Teachers in public and private schools are amazing. We have a really awesome county where there are many many wonderful teachers. When Anne started Kindergarten she was reading at a sixth grade level. It did not make sense to me to put her in a class of children who are just learning to read. (Remember how Anne and I are alike? When something is easy our personality tends to get bored and then we get in trouble.) Currently Anne has about six weeks of first grade left. Her reading level is now at an 11th grade level. Although she reads at that level, she definitely doesn't comprehend fully all that she reads, and her pronunciations are sometimes a bit off on some of the larger words that aren't in our every day vocabulary. Our second daughter is a very different personality from Anne, but she is also very bright. She is five (normally Kindergarten age) and will complete first grade with Anne this year. Her reading level is approximately fourth-fifth grade. Our third daughter struggles with some of the things that came very easily to her older sisters. There are still four letters of the alphabet that, try as she might, she just cannot remember. But Maggie is by far the best storyteller and most creative of the three. I have every intention of encouraging her in those regards.

Anne read The Lord of the Rings series (all three books) in under a week. Winter 2015 - age 7

Abbey working hard on First grade math - 2015 - age 5

The close bonds these four girls have is worth it all!

Tea Party at Grandpa & Grandma's

Hard to believe these two are only 17 1/2 months apart.

Sister-friends

Sister-friends (Caroline LOVES little hats/ handkerchiefs on her head!)

 Whew. Did you make it through all that? I hope that answers some questions for you all! Please feel free to ask questions!

Slow Down

Thursday was quite the day for us. As many of you dear readers know, I'm a homeschooling Mama. I love it. I choose to be home bound most days of the week. However, Thursday I decided to be adventurous. I took all four girls to Sports Authority right around nap/rest time. I know, I'm a wild one. I like to live dangerous.

Caroline only wanted Anne at the store.

Soon after returning home from the aforementioned trip, our power went out. Kind of weird, since there didn't appear to be much wind. However, we live in southern Lancaster County, so it wasn't completely shocking. Last summer (or fall?) the same thing happened - there were random tree branches down on the power lines. I figured a similar thing happened.

Maggie looking for a poem for me to read to her.

Plans for Thursday dinner were leftovers. In the microwave. Which requires electricity. I called Trent at work. He says not to worry, the estimated time was 8 pm, and it's always on before that.

Trent gets home, still no electricity. I went for a run (remember that 2015 goal - run a 5k)... While running my phone battery dies (I think being out of the house in the afternoon plus having no electricity/wifi drained the battery really quickly). I get back from my run and Trent asks if I got his message... Um, No. My phone is dead. He had texted me to ask me to bring Burger King home for dinner. This resulted in a family trip to BK to eat INSIDE (seriously, you would have thought we were at a 5 star restaurant). The kids were awesome, and we all had so much fun!

For some reason I find this photo hilarious. Anne desperately wanted someone to come play outside with her.

We got home to a dark house, put the girls to bed, and then... What? What do you do when you have no phone, no wifi, no light. We read the Bible together with a headlamp for light and each caught up on a little reading. I had signs to paint but couldn't work on them. As I was praying two words came to my head. Slow. Down. I don't really consider myself a very busy person, mainly because I don't leave the house that often. However, as I sat in the dark thinking of all the things I "need" to do, I began to realize how hard it is for me to sit still. To just be still. To be in the presence of the Lord. I say that I want to do that, yet I don't make the time to do so.

Doodled this in the dark Thursday.

As I let those words roll around in my brain I thought of all the things I thought I should be doing {painting, dishes, cleaning, returning emails, replying to FB messages, checking my Etsy store, checking Instagram, thinking about the next day's school lesson, completing my homework for my Bible study, contemplating a discipline issue with a particular child, wondering if I was too hard on the kids today} and I made my brain just stop. Because how many times will I get a chance to really slow down like I was forced to do Thursday night.

Took some time to play a game Friday at school

Abbey really enjoyed her BK crown.

 I know that Sunday (or whatever day you take as your Sabbath) is supposed to be a day of rest. Yet for many of us Sundays are one of the hardest days of the week (hello - getting four girls and myself ready for church to leave by 8:40 am!?) and are far from restful (especially if you are involved in any form of ministry).

Enjoying our restful Sunday.

These two are the best of friends and playmates. (they are rushing inside to bandage up dolly who got a thorn scratch)

 This weekend I really focused myself on slowing down. On truly enjoying the every day, simple moments. Of letting go of what "needs" done, and allowing myself to cherish my sweethearts while they are still small(ish).

Watching toads emerge from hibernation

Toad watching

Here are some photos of us enjoying the moment

Anne flying her kite.

 A series of night time photos.

How do you slow down? What are some tricks you can share with me?