Parent to Parent By Jodie Lynn
Moments for Mom By Elisabeth Corcoran
Ask A Twin Mommy By Cheryl Lage
Mothering By Heart By Cheri Fuller
Jelly Mom By Lisa Barker
Family Check-up By Sheila Wray Gregoire
Simplifying Motherhood By Trish Berg
Making the Most of Marriage By Paula Friedrichsen
Home is Where the Warmth Is...
April, 2007
By Trish Berg
I am not the kind of person who likes to be cold. In fact, I seek warmth and comfort at every turn. I can usually be found at the computer writing in my soft fleece sweat pants, oversized sweatshirt that reads “Go DAWGS,” and black fuzzy slippers on my feet. When winter hits, my favorite thing to do is to snuggle under a huge quilt while sipping hot tea watching the snow fall outside the window, thankful I am on the inside.
My desire to be comfortably warm began in my youth. I remember fighting the battle of the thermostat with my dad, sneaking around trying to turn it up just a few degrees or so. My dad got so frustrated with me that he even used a permanent marker to mark exactly where the dial SHOULD be set on the thermostat so no one (and by no one I mean me) could change it without him knowing it.
Now that I am a grown up, I still fight the thermostat wars…this time with my husband, Mike. I sneak around (tip toeing when I can) to try and quietly turn the thermostat up a degree or two.
The problem is, I’m just not a good sneak. Living in an old farmhouse, the floor usually creaks or Mike hears the furnace kick on and then shouts from across the house. “Trish, leave that thermostat alone!”
I can’t help it. I like to be warm and cozy.
So, this morning when I woke up and noticed that my feet felt like popsicles and my hands were blue, I was a bit concerned. I didn’t even want to venture out from under my blanket. So I wrapped it around myself and headed downstairs, teeth chattering and all. Mike was already on the phone with the gas guy, and suddenly I knew it would be a long day at the Berg house.
Living on a farm, we have gas on the farm, and sometimes, it can go out. But typically, we can get it back on before too long. This time, however, it went out and stayed out.
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At 5:30 in the morning, the kids tumbled out of bed and stumbled down the stairs shivering. It was only about 50 degrees in the house, and the temperature was dropping fast. I felt like a Ma from Little House on the Prairie in the episode when they were stuck in a blizzard in an abandoned cabin, all snuggling under quilts together while Pa started a fire to try and keep everybody warm.
Then I realized two things: One – We don’t have a fireplace. And two-I have been watching way too many episodes of Little House on the Prairie.
Mike and I decided to pack the kids in the minivan and head up the hill to my in-laws house. Ahhh….It felt wonderful when we walked into their warm kitchen. The kids settled in to watch Arthur, Hannah headed up for her shower, and I headed for the coffee pot to try and warm up from the inside out.
The older I get, the more willing I am to accept myself, flaws and all. I like to be warm. Except in the summertime when I like to be cool in the air conditioning. Basically, I like to be comfortable, whatever the weather outside.
But today, I’d settle for warm.
After a long morning, we are all back home, and the heat is back on. I have water on the stove for tea, and as soon as I am done writing this column, I am heading for the nearest quilt.
I guess sometimes we need to be reminded of our blessings. My freezing cold morning was a good lesson in appreciating the warmth of home, the blessings of family, and the fact that I don’t live in Walnut Grove.
Trish would love to hear from you at www.trishberg.com, or e-mail trishberg @ trishberg.com.
© Trish Berg, 2006-
Trish Berg is author to The Great American Supper Swap, and Rattled - Surviving Your Baby's First Year without Losing Your Cool! She has been a guest ABC World News Tonight, Midday Connection, and The Harvest Show.
She is an internationally known speaker for ministries such as MOPS, Hearts at Home, and in Australia on Parenting Seminars Online. She has written for Today's Christian Woman, MOMSense, CBN.com and P31 WOMAN.
For more information, check out www.TrishBerg.com
Read Trish's Simplifying Motherhood column at C'Moms