Obviously, that's not really my name.
Hi, I'm Lisa Renee', and welcome to my blog. I'm a Christian, Wife, Mother, Sister, Daughter, Niece and Friend who all too often gets overwhelmed and overbooked because at thirty something years old I still don't know how to say NO.
I am married, almost 13 years now, to the most wonderful gift God ever made for me: my husband, Mr. B. While you will often hear me grumble about being a PS3 widow I will have you know up front that he is my hero and he has put up with more mess from me then any man should be expected to endure. With a mostly quiet tongue, he has helped me overcome childhood trauma, family drama, and loss. We have faced financial disaster and near misses more then our selfish egos would like to admit. I can still remember laying in my bed in college wondering what it would be like to have someone next to me to keep me safe- forever. Now I know. Holding his hand is like having a talk with God; both remind me that everything is going to be okay.
We have three crazy daughters, and one 'peanut' due in June. DOODLEbug, TADERbug and Bubbagirl are our joys and the main source of headaches in our house. This many girls make for a whole new level of drama! (Mr. B appreciates all prayers for his survival through their teen years!)
On Blogging:
My first blog, Too Busy To Clean, started out as therapy. It progressed to a hobby and while I was hoping to build it into something niche-y, I became pregnant with Bubbagirl and it was ignored, a LOT. It's still there, and I still post there. It is more of our goofy, funny, weird stuff.
There were a couple of blogs in the meantime. Where I tried to focus a little more. One of them can be found on the "School the Early Years" link up top. I do not update it any more, but the archived posts are there. It titled "I'm not crazy, I'm homeschooling".
This blog, Chaos Appreciation, is my new beginning. I am finally coming to fully appreciate the career I have chosen. There was no wife/mother/teacher booth at career day but this is where I am meant to be. Understanding what a blessing it is to be a mom and be able to stay home with my children does NOT mean I don't ever have a bad day or a tough patch. This blog is about those challenges. It's about the different things I've tried, am trying, or am thinking of trying in order to bring just enough peace to the place for us to be able to enjoy the chaos of our 'big-to-us' family before they all grow up. You'll find examples of our real lives in the background of every picture; because I'm not going to clean up what is behind them just so you'll think I'm a super mom.
I am a super mom. Because my kids say I am. And because Mr. B says I am.
Got any qualifications?
Probably not any more than anyone else.
On being a Christian? God ain't finished with me yet... thank goodness.
On being a wife? Over a decades worth of experience.
On being a sibling? I have two half sisters, two half brothers and two step sisters.
On being a mother? Ages 8,5,1 and on3 the way.
On cooking and cleaning? At least once a week you can see most of my floors and well... no one here is starving.
On finance matters? *gulp* Bachelor's of Business Administration concentrating in Accounting... missed passing the CPA exam by a few points, never went back... served as Junior, Senior and Plant Accountant for two different wonderful companies...none of that really matters though. Just because I understand a balance sheet and can do my own taxes I'm still terrible with my own money. We've been through bankruptcy, credit counselling, and I've watched a Sheriff's Deputy serve my 3 year old with MY warrent in debt over a $35 late payment on my couch. I have a car that I can't afford that is only worth about 1/3 of what I owe, and it won't hold all of us once the baby is here. We have made some profoundly stupid mistakes... but we're learning, and it's that process, and all the honest moments in between, that I will be sharing with you.
So, thank you to each and every one who takes the time to read this or read my blog. Big hugs to those who follow or subscribe! I hope my stories, ideas, suggestions, and general sharing of knowledge (whatever that might be) is useful to you. Even if it's just to make you smile.
(I will be doing reviews of products that our family would put to use. Age appropriate, house cleaning, homeschooling, toys, etc. Information on those can be found on my disclosure link. If you have a product, ebook, etc. that you would like reviewed please feel free to email me at memrband3 at gmail dot com .)
