Maybe so!

Today on the way home in the car #1 had a few of his famous theological questions. At first they made me giggle. Then I began to wonder if he was speaking the truth!?

#1: I wonder about the wind. How can you feel something but not see it? Where exactly is IT? I think it is neat though. I really think the wind must be God's breath. He holds the world in the palm of His hand, right?

R-E-S-P-E-C-T

I have postponed a new entry because I don't know how to express my current state of mind politely. So here goes: LIFE IS OVERWHELMING ME! Goodness, I could list the sixty things that are going on under this little roof right now, but I doubt anyone is without her own list.

In rare moments of clarity, I have been thinking about respect and my husband. I have been reading a book that I would not necessarily recommend about marriage. It is called The Fruit of Her Hands by Nancy Wilson. The writer is very reformed in doctrine. I agree with the basic principles of the book, but I don't like her tone at all. Instead of writing from the perspective of a fellow sinner and life-long learner, she seems to write quite critically. I rarely trust authors that write from this viewpoint. If you can't see your own depravity and need for grace, please don't dole out advice. I will probably not trust it! Her husband wrote the forward for the book and said that "She has been writing on marriage and family for a number of years, and in reading her I have never had to wonder at hypocrisy. There has been none." Wow! One has to wonder how that could be true! I would NEVER want my husband to speak those words of me, no matter how flattering! I almost quit reading the book right then and there before I even got to chapter one, but I decided to move forward.

Basically, even though I haven't necessarily enjoyed the tone of the book, God is revealing truths that I need to hear. I realize that I am disrespectful in small, subtle ways mostly with parenting and housekeeping. For example, my husband left early for work this morning. I got up around six to get a shower and have a quiet time before the kids awoke. Suddenly fifteen minutes into my routine, I hear #3 crying. I get flustered and call him. "What am I going to do? I HAVE to get a shower and have my quiet time!" He says, "Just let her cry, sweetie. Turn off the monitor and finish getting dressed." I hang up and pause. Should I listen? I called for his opinion. Should I listen? I think about her crying up there and I realize I need at least 20 more minutes to finish getting dressed. That's a long time to ignore her. I start to walk up the steps. After all, he's not a mom. He just doesn't understand. I stop myself. I realize I am being disrespectful. He gave me advice. I need his help. I decide to trust that He has the ability to give God-given advice...even about the kids. I do what he suggests. #3 falls back asleep and the day is saved.

I realize my husband can't always be the hero. I realize that he will not always be right and many times God will impart wisdom through me as well. But I am honoring God by respecting his opinion, particularly when I ask for it! The Bible commands us to respect our husbands. (Ephesians 5) It must be important. It must be a marriage builder. The book says, "God designed your husband to need respect, and He commanded you to be the principal source of it." I agree.

I'm enjoying praying and asking God what respect looks like in my marriage. I look forward to seeing Him lead us to even greater intimacy and love for one another. More later when I can think straight!

My girl's monthly update

The baby turned 8 months old this week. She has learned so much this past month. Her stranger anxiety is at an all time high (she particularly winces at men with facial hair). She has learned to wave, give high five and clap. She claps all the time. She has learned to eat many foods by scooping them up in her chubby little fingers. (I can't believe she is beginning to eat without my help! Just a month and a half ago she was solely having breast milk!) She half crawls and half scoots still. Now that she has figured out how to get from belly to bottom she can sometimes pull up on things. She is looking with interest at the steps...ut-oh! She is getting a little hair and cutting her 9th tooth. She can roll the ball back and forth. She loves to swing in the baby swings at the park. She is adorable to me.

My hero

I had the honor of hearing my husband deliver the commencement speech at a high school graduation last week. His speech was amazing. After leaving a very successful consulting company to start his own company and pursue his dreams, he has much passion about listening to the Lord, stepping out in faith, and dreaming big. He also knows first hand the enslavement of fear. He spoke on these things and delivered the most inspiring message to these young, bright eyed kids.

As I stood in the back of the room (with two wiggly boys and a baby bouncing on my hip) I was overwhelmed with pride. Literally, bubbling over. It felt like my husband was the president of the United States or a movie star on the red carpet. I looked around for a minute as my chest swelled. "This is MY man!", I thought. I felt so humbled and undeserving. Then I looked down at my boys and prayed and hoped that they will grow up with his faith, determination, and warmth. God has been so gracious in giving him wisdom, intelligence and an attractive quality that makes him impossible not to like. I stepped out of myself for a minute, in disbelief that this man chose me! He is a prize. I am so proud of him! My prayer for him is that God would continue to captivate his heart and draw him in. My husband, my hero.

Library Picks for the week

As promised, 5 more books that we love:

1. We're Going on a Bear Hunt
by Michael Rosen and Helen Oxenbury
*Please find this book and read it with your kids! It's so much fun!

2. I Believe in Jesus: Leading Your Child to Christ
by:John MacArthur & Pam Rossi
*When your children come to you with a desire to become a Christian, this book is a beautiful, consise way to express the gospel to them. I used this book with both of my boys when they prayed to receive Christ.

3. Henry and Mudge series
by: Cynthia Rylant
*Cute adventures about a boy and his dog. Young readers can speed through the

series.

4.Gigi, God's Little Princess
by: Sheila Walsh
*If you have a girl, please please please get her the Gigi books! #3 was given the ballerina one by my best friend the day she was baptized. The first time I read it I cried! I loved ballet growing up and the book just captures the essence of little girl-ness. A must buy for the home library!

5.Zin, Zin, Zin A Violin
by:Lloyd Moss
*Clever poetic book about the instruments in the orchestra. Love it!

Mother's day

I am finally posting about my special day. This year was very meaningful and special for me. I am basking in the delight of having two little boys that play so well together and love having each other to pal around with AND having my very own daughter.

I have been thinking about my girl and her great grandmother that she is named for a lot this Mother's day. My grandmother was everything that I want my daughter to be. She was a gifted gardener, cook , seamstress, decorator, hostess, and much more. She was loving, strong, patient, and compassionate. She would have her children and grandchildren over for a big Sunday meal most weeks. On those days, the fine china, nice linens, and beautiful serving bowls would adorn her dining room. She would wear a beautiful dress, high heals, red lipstick and pearls. She lived in an old, beautiful white house with 12 foot ceilings. Her dining room seemed enormous to me as a child. Her food was delicious, her table was always beautiful with fresh flowers from her yard, and her house always smelled so good.

The boys woke me up with flowers...

On other days, she would have on her old tennis shoes with holes, dirt under her fingernails, and her hair combed back away from her sweaty face. She knew how to work hard and having a lovely, inviting home took a lot of her energy. She raised two children alone, due to the untimely death of her husband. But even though she did not have the support of a husband, all of the neighbors and cousins always flocked to her house where they were welcomed. What a lady! She volunteered at the local hospital and never learned to drive. She mostly walked everywhere.

and breakfast in bed...

My favorite memories with my Nana are: sleeping on the balcony that was settled outside of her bedroom on a mattress under the stars, making homemade lemonade with mint from her garden, having tea parties together among the branches of her big fig tree out back, baking cookies together, learning how to french braid my hair sitting at her bedroom vanity, learning to sew at her antique sewing machine, and so much more!

and this print!

I am beaming with humility and awe that not only do I have a daughter with whom I hope to share similar memories, but she has the honor of carrying her beautiful name.

"Everything in moderation."

Whoever coined that term had a lot of wisdom! I am finding in my life right now that nothing is being done in moderation. I am on again, off again. Hot or cold. Present or absent. I am thinking of my time with the Lord, in particular, but not exclusively. Why is it that I lack consistency, motivation, desire? Could it be sleep deprivation? Are there idols in my heart? I plan to get down to the business of searching my heart and devoting much time to prayer over the next week asking the Lord to "make His paths straight". I am reminded of the quote on my frig and a verse:

"Only by a conscious and continuing nurture of his inner life can any man avoid the tradegy of killing the thing he loves. The man who supposes that he has not the time to pray or to reflect because the social tasks are so numerous and urgent will soon find that he has become fundamentally unproductive because he has separated his life from its roots." Elton Trueblood

"Do not conform any longer to the patterns of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is- his good, pleasing, and perfect will." Romans 12:2

*Pictured above are my latest bargains. A consignment home store just opened down the road. My new salad serving set (was still in original wrapping)...$7. The two Parisian prints will fit nicely in a corner in my dining room and thankfully I like the current frames...$6.

Our reading list for the week

We read at our house, we read a lot. Not because I am a genius parent or because I am trying to create a genius child. But mainly because my oldest son loves to read more than anyone on the planet. So I thought that each week I might post our 5 or so favorite reads from the week. If you happen to be going to the library or want to purchase a book for your home collection and you need a suggestion, I am sure we will always have plenty of them. Happy reading!

1.Doctor DeSoto Goes to Africa by William Steig

This is the cutest book about a little mouse dentist that goes to Africa to help an ailing elephant. The advanced vocabulary in the book is beautifully woven into a simple plot.

2.Little Bear's Visit by Else Holmelund Minarik

I absolutely love the Little Bear collection. We bought two or three of these books at a consignment sale for our home library. I hope to find the rest soon. If your child is 6 or older he can read these books to you! Sweet, easy lessons from the sweetest little family in the woods!

3.The Secret Birthday Message by Eric Carle

I thought I knew about every Eric Carle book until we found this one. It is so cute and simple. The art is fun and rich, like all of his books. And there is an underlying theme of puzzles and shapes in the book. My six and four year old were equally amused.

4.Nate the Great series by Marjorie Weinman Sharmat

We checked out practically the entire series this trip to the library. This series involves Nate, an elementary aged boy, who solves all of the neighborhood mysteries. (the missing cat, the coded letter, etc.) It's great fun to tag along with Nate and put on our detective hats. Every little boy loves a little mysterious adventure!

5.The Seven Silly Eaters by Mary Ann HobermanThis book is hands down my favorite picture book in the library! Poor Mrs. Peterman goes from patient to frazzled as she has one, two, three...seven picky eaters. It is a rhyming book with the most adorable pictures and plot. It ends with the children baking their Mommy a birthday cake and slicing it up on a picnic table outside of their little, quaint lake house. Somehow, my entire family can relate to a character or two in this book. We used to own the book, but the pages were turned so much that the spine wore out and the pages fell out of the book. A must read!

Terrible and lovely surprises

After 48 hours of complete bed rest, I am slowly joining the land of the living. I went to bed on Friday night feeling a little weird. I woke up Saturday morning, and SURPRISE I had a high fever, aches, chills, and sore throat and head. The diagnosis was a "yucky" case of strep throat. I always forget just how awful it is to be sick! Thankfully, my mom arrived on Sunday to help!

Thank you, dear friend, for the package! It was a great surprise this afternoon, and we all had to go ahead and see the bikini on the baby. I could kiss every little dimple and roll. We love the bibs and outfit, too.

I was tagged...

by Morning Song to write seven random facts or habits about myself. Here goes:
1. I love my label maker. An organized closet or pantry with everything labelled makes me feel very happy. 2.I had a 7 pound cyst (the size of a basketball) on my ovaries. It was detected when I was having x-rays in the ER after a car accident. I was fifteen. I remeber wondering why I was tipping the scales at 125 (I am 5'7".). Oh, to have those teenage problems again!

3. Despite the 7 pound ovarian cyst, I have gotten pregnant three times either the first time we tried or while using birth control. Aren't God's ways wonderful and mysterious?

4.Creating art whether in the form of oil painting, dancing, sewing, listening to good music, decorating, gardening, or simply wrapping a gift is very fulfilling to me. I love that God gives us the potential to reflect His glory and beauty through the arts. 5.I've kissed the Blarney stone in Ireland. Legend says it will give anyone who kisses it the gift of eloquence. In retrospect as a mommy now, I have to wonder how many lips touched that thing?

6.I hate to fly or be on boats. I would never desire to go on a cruise, and would refuse to unless I was trapped into it or someone gave me a trip as a gift or surprise. I am a land-lover.

7.I set goals for myself every day. I am at a place in my life where I don't really care if we detour or re-route our day and none of the goals are met. I love a good adventure. But I try to live very purposefully.

My quiet time

I was reading Sarah's blog and then Beth Moore's blog on personal Bible study. They were commenting on special places where they meet with the Lord in their quiet times. I am so very thankful for God's timing in using their posts. I have not been as disciplined in my quiet times in the past couple of weeks as I would like. Kinda funny how God works. I also just read an email asking me and a few other women to pray about a theme verse and topic for the women's ministry events for next year. The themes suggested were joy and desire for God. One of the verses suggested was, "As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God. My soul thirst for God, for the living God. "Ps 42:1 and "My soul yearns for you in the night, my spirit within me earnestly seeks you. For when your judgements are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world learn righteousness. Isa 26:9
I pray that God will send His Spirit fresh and alive in my heart so that I can faithfully draw near to Him again in my time alone with Him. He is so gracious and patient! So here are my two favorite spots to spend in the Word and prayer. One spot is indoors and one is outdoors.

These are all three the same deck area from different angles.

Becoming more like Jesus

Knawed to the bone!

My #1 was the second pickiest eater in the world (second only to his little brother). My mom told me more times than I could count, "Don't worry! He'll outgrow it!" Well, honestly, I never once believed her. His Daddy and I were often times embarrassed of his finicky ways, as if it was a sign of disrespect or ungratefulness. Well, praise be to God, he has come completely through the picky phase! I mean completely. He began to get better about eating around four years old and we have relished in his increasing appetite ever since! Look at him now! It does a momma's heart good to see him knawing at that chicken bone just like the imaginary cave man. Go #1!

He is growing up by leaps and bounds. In the car yesterday he said, "Momma, I have a question." For those of you who do not know him personally, this special phrase means hang on, I am about to ask you a doozy of a question. Here's how the conversation went:

#1:Why can't I be like God?

Me: There's only one true God, sweetie.

#1:I just really wish I could be more like Him!

Me:What do you mean?

#1:I wish I wouldn't sin.

Me:Is there something you need to confess to me?

#1:No, I just hate my sin.

Me: I can't think of anything that honors God more than hating your sin. Just keep talking to Jesus, read his word, trust Him. I can already see that He is changing you because you hate your sin so much. I can tell you really love Jesus.

#1: I do, Momma! And I don't care for spankings either!

7 Months Old

My little darling is now 7 months old! Once again, I'll give family and friends an update on what she has learned this month. (Sorry to bore most of you!)

She is finally eating baby food regularly. She also likes rice, toast and baked potatoes.

She learned to scoot on her belly, using her feet to propel her forward. She can move around the room and her crib this way.

She rocks back and forth on all fours and wants to crawl so badly!

She sits well and can get on to her tummy and almost back on to her bottom.

She has pulled up twice in her crib to standing! Yikes!

She babbles a lot. DADADAD, JAJAJAJA, LULULULULU

She cut her third and fourth teeth, now two on top and two on bottom.

She gives kisses and conks heads.

She grunts and groans when she is hungry or bored instead of crying. She wants to talk!

She things baby sign language is a riot.

She hates Baby Einstein, but loves to watch the Star Wars Lego Playstation game.

She is finally sleeping consistently through the night, or at least until 5:30.

She finally doubled her birth weight, 16 1/2 pounds!