thoughts & a giveaway

this morning as i was reading finley's assignment sheet, i read this note from his teacher:

"In Ecclesiastes, God's Word reminds us that there is a time for 'every event under heaven.' Some seasons of our lives can seem very long, but in hindsight, they are just the blink of an eye.  I pray God will help me to understand 'what time it is,' to focus my heart on the moment at hand, and to accept (and even embrace) that time with gratitude, rather than longing for another.  Enjoy this time with your young children!"

 that was so good for me to read.
i spend so much of january and february longing for spring and just dealing with winter.
i feel like i'm on hold.
i really don't want my emotions and happiness to be dependent on my circumstances.
i don't want to go into my days thinking, it's cold, i'm miserable.
yuck, that's a sissy way to live.
her note helped me to refocus and embrace this day to spend with my children.
i get the joy of teaching them, watching them learn & learning myself.
what a gift.

apparently we're supposed to get a bunch of snow in the middle of the night tonight which doesn't bode well for school & mother's day out tomorrow.
in an effort to choose joy, we went to walmart & stocked up on yummy food.
we also got avery a new pair of snow boots & coveralls for finley.
now each boy has snow boots & coveralls so they are ready to go.
and i am ready to go with my happy heart. :)

okay.....now on to the giveway! 35 points for you if you've stayed with me through all that!

CSN stores have offered up another gift certificate to my lovely readers! yay!!!

you could get a beautiful shower curtain like i did. . .

or these adorable salt & pepper shakers. . .

or you could put it towards something bigger like a swing set! 
i was checking around and they have awesome prices on their swing sets {like starting at $150!!} plus free shipping.
i love love love some free shipping.
anything that keeps me from dragging 3 kids through a store is a good thing.
especially on a large item like that.

okay, so here are the deets....

the prize is a $45 dollar gift certificate to be used at any of CSN's 200+online stores.

to enter:

*just leave me a comment and you're entered! 

*if you want an extra chance....

become a follower and leave a separate comment.

*and one more chance....

post about this giveaway on facebook or twitter & leave another separate comment.

so there you go, 3 chances to enter.
contest will close sunday night & winner announced monday.  :)

go team!!! Pin It