Five Things Friday: the Hope edition

On My Heart: Moms. Being a mom. Being a mom to daughters. Being a mom to teenager daughters. It's so hard. Obviously we've not been promised a life of ease but wow. Some days, I grit my teeth until my head aches and channel my disappointment into cleaning rather than spew out the angry words that are running through my head. I pray. I clean. I fume. I clean. I pray that God will use the moments that I allow them a little slack in the line, so to speak, for them to make their own decisions. And I pray that when they don't make the decision I wanted them to make, that I wouldn't hold onto the disappointment. Just like learning a newborn's cries and weaning a demanding toddler, parenting teens is a process of mistakes and grace and moving on.

On My Mind: Honestly? New curriculum. We switched math programs this week for the two older girls. It was a process (that word again!) but I think it will be worth it. I'm looking ahead to fall already and thinking through my options. Even though Addie won't turn 5 until Oct. 1, she is totally ready to start school. I'm thinking over all the fabulous phonics and kindergarten curriculum I never had the chance to use with the others. If you could recommend any phonics curriculum, what would it be? I would love something fun, thorough and pretty all-inclusive.

On My iPhone: Pinterest. I've reinstalled the black hole of distraction! What am I doing?! I don't know. So far, it hasn't been that bad. I'm loving Spotify and a bit more freedom in choosing what I want to listen to.

On My DVR: We had a bunch of free movie channels this past weekend, so we took the opportunity to record a bunch of movies we haven't seen. The Butler, 12 Years A Slave, Captain Phillips, Moms' Night Out ... and others I can't remember. It will take us forever to work through all of them but it's nice to have so many movies to choose from.

On My List: I'm anxiously awaiting the arrival of a pre-release copy of Hope For The Weary Mom and am looking forward to sharing my thoughts with you (although I know it's good already!); our church starts it's Upward basketball season this weekend - there are some excited girls in this house!; another edition of My Favorite Things and I think this one might be surprising!