Sovereign

It’s been a rough couple of days here in our house.  Frustrations mounting, stress consuming, yada yada yada.  To add insult to injury (for lack of a better term)  yesterday my car died in the pick up line at Evan’s school.  Umm…frustrating and embarrassing.  The boys were in the backseat yelling, “mommy I gotta go potty! and mommy, I’m hungry!”  I was DONE! Thankfully my good pal Gretch came to the rescue again.  She pulled out some kind of starter thingy and we she hooked it up to the battery and we got the car started in two seconds.  Amazing!

Anyway, my point to that whole story was that this morning, Terrance suggested I use his truck so he could take the car and do whatever guys do to cars to fix them.  On our way to school, Ian said “Mommy I want to hear Sovereign God”.  I said something about not knowing where that CD was as I turned on the stereo and ….you guessed it….Sovereign God was playing on the CD player.  So I started it from the beginning and listened to Ian scream sing the words to the song.  Well, I decided to listen along and all I can say is, “Thank you, Ian for your request because mommy really needed to hear the words to that song!”

MAURETTE BROWN CLARK SOVEREIGN GOD LYRICS

There aren’t even words to describe just how great You are
In all Your majesty
You continually
Provide for me
There just isn’t anything that You can’t do
Lord I’ve seen Your work before
So I’ll trust you all the more
Because You are

You are the sovereign God
Bigger than all my problems
And every situation
There is nothing too hard
For the sovereign God

A wave of Your hand can command the seas to hold their peace
If you can handle the seas
Then I know that You can deal with all my needs
So I will put every situation
Into Your capable hands
I don’t have to know the plan
Because You are

You are the sovereign God
Bigger than all my problems
And every situation
There is nothing too hard
For the sovereign God

He is able to do exceedingly abundantly
Above all we ask or think
So take all your burdens and lay them at His feet
And watch Him meet the need
We have the victory
Because You are

You are the sovereign God
Bigger than all my problems
And every situation
There is nothing too hard
For the sovereign God
He is sovereign, He is
He is sovereign, He is
(repeat sequence 3 times, inverting each time up to one octave…)

You are the sovereign God
Bigger than all my problems
And every situation
There is nothing too hard
For the sovereign God

I love my hair: A father's tribute to his daughter

I came across this video on the Makes Me Wanna Holler Blog. It's a song that aired on Sesame Street at the beginning of this month. Check it out!

For more info on the history of the video click here.



For those who don't know. Black folks place a lot of emphasis on hair. It's one of the first things we notice about one another. It is like a symbol of class or lack thereof. These past few years there has been a shift to embracing the natural hair that God gave us. Whereas before, curly/kinky hair was definitely frowned upon. Straight hair has always been the goal: by any means necessary. My mom has been straigtening my hair since before I can remember. I've never worn my hair natural until I hit my 30's. Amazing huh?! My dad still frowns on my natural locs. He even told me "Next time I see you...please have something done to your hair" Good old dad! Loving my hair has been a long journey but it is healthier than it's ever been and I am no longer spending hours and tons of money in the beauty salon to make my hair do something that it was not meant to do.

One day little black girls will grow up knowing that their hair doesn't have to look like their blond, straight haired classmates in order for them to love it and themselves.

Natural Hair Goes Mainstream

Well mercy me! I was blog stalking surfing the web the other day and I came across this commercial about being above the influence. It's a commercial about not giving in to peer pressure and drugs. But I was soooo excited when she said: “So what if everyone is getting a relaxer; I’m going natural”!! A shout out to all the natural hair sistas out there... we're going mainstream!





Definitions (for those who are ebonically challenged):

Fashion Mag: a magazine devoted to the latest fashion
Checkin' me: the act of assessing someone or checking them out
Perm: More commonly known as a relaxer, a perm is a series of chemicals that African-American girls use on their hair to make it look less curly, rough, and thick. As a result, their hair becomes darker, straighter, thinner, softer, longer and smoother.
Ol' school: Anything that is from an earlier era and looked upon with high regard or respect. Can be used to refer to music, clothing, language, ideas, objects, etc. Typically, something that is highly regarded and sometimes the very thing that started it all.
Flip the Script: To do the unexpected. To deviate from the norm.

The Race

My boys love to visit their friends Harrison & Gavin and often beg to go to their house.  Their mommy, Greta, thinks it's because of her, but it's really the video games, movie room, arcade games and free flowing soda machine that they love. But hey... we'll let her keep thinking it's all about her! 

Anyway, the boys spent the other evening with their friends and Greta got some video footage of the boys racing in her backyard.  It is such a cute post that I wanted to share it with the faithful followers of my blog.

Click here to check it out!

Double Dribble

Evan is the kid in the orange jersey that starts out dribbling the ball...




Check out Evan in action! Please ignore the kid taking the ball from him at the end of the video while Evan watched! We're working with him! These things take time!

The Pistons

Basketball season is under way and here's a clip of Evan being introduced at his first game. (He's the second one to be introduced) Of all the sports Evan has participated in, basketball has been my favorite. It is fast paced so Evan doesn't have a chance to get too bored. He still needs to work on his skills though. It's kind of sad that he has a father that's a basketball coach, yet he is seriously lacking in the skills department.

We'll keep you posted on how the season goes!

The Princess & The Frog

I can't hide my excitement.  I've tried to reign it in a little bit seeing as though I am a mom of boys and all, but I'm so excited about the upcoming movie...The Princess and The Frog.  It is Walt Disney's very first movie with an African American Princess and I am stoked (is that a word that black folks even use).   I am glad because little black girls everywhere now have a princess they can really relate to.  I remember wanting to be Snow White and Sleeping Beauty and even Rapunzel.  I would wrap towels around my head and tuck it behind my ear so my 'hair' would be long and wavy. I know....I have issues.

I bet some of you are wondering why I'm so excited so I'd better explain.  My boys are one of only a handful of black kids in their Mother's Day Out.  They are the only ones in our Working Moms playgroup and most of the friends of mine who have kids that my boys play with are white.   For Pete's sake....Evan even thought he was white for the first 3 years of his life.  So anytime there is something out there for them to relate to that portrays being African American in a positive light....Hey, I'm all for it.  Maybe they will learn not to use words like stoked :-). Those who are in the majority never have to worry about this aspect of parenting (unless you move to a school, neighborhood, or church that is chock full of minorities)  Being a minority means that you are always aware that you are...different (for lack of a better word).  Don't get me started on trying to find other toys, books, and cartoons that have African American faces on them. 

At any rate, the Lofton's will be in line at the theaters on opening day December 11th.  Hope to see you there!

Brush Your Teeth!

The boys have toothbrushes that light up so the boys know exactly how long they are supposed to brush their teeth to ensure that they are clean. As a parent, I think it's a good little invention but the boys just like the blinking red light. Hey...whatever it takes!

Brush Your Teeth from Shanita Lofton on Vimeo.

Fort Worth Water Garden Video

Hey guys....I just learned how to work the video option on my camera and this is my debut. Make sure you pause the music at the bottom of the screen to be able to listen to the sound on the video. Don't mute your volume, just pause the music.


Water Gardens from Shanita Lofton on Vimeo.