Happy Birthday Elias!

Today Elias is 6 years old. Unlike Bella, his looks have not changed much throughout the years.  Below I have put a picture from of every year of his life.

Just another Tuesday

Six years ago today I went in to the hospital to have my labor induced to deliver my first born, Elias.  It was also a Tuesday and the weather was very similar to today.  I worked a full day - too nervous to sit home and wait to go to the hospital.  I ate a peanut butter sandwich when I got home and I was so nervous, it stuck in my throat.  If I would have known that Elias would not arrive until Thursday night and that I wouldn't have a decent meal until Friday, I would have probably enjoyed that last meal a little more!  It was just another Tuesday to everyone else, one that most don't even remember, but for me it is still so vivid.  There were so many prayers offered for us and so many prayers answered.

Am I ready to do a Double McTwist 1260?

I am still working through the study of Hebrews and there was a portion that struck me with such poignancy that I wanted to share it.  The study was concentrating on Hebrews 10:19-39, specifically verse 23, which states, "Let us hold firmly to the hope that we have confessed, because we can trust God to do what He promised." 
There is an excerpt from Max Lucado's book "The Applause from Heaven" following the scripture reading:

Imagine that you are an ice skater in competition.  You are in first place with one more round to go.  If you perform well, the trophy is yours.  You are nervous, anxious, and frightened. 
Then, only minutes before your performance, your trainer rushes to you with the thrilling news: "You've already won!  The judges tabulated the scores, and the person in second place can't catch you.  You are too far ahead."
Upon hearing that news, how will you feel?  Exhilarated!
And how will you skate? Timidly? Cautiously?  Of course not.  How about courageously and confidently?  You bet you wll.  You will do your best because the prize is yours.  You will skate like a champion because that is what you are!  You will hear the applause of victory...
The point is clear: the truth will triumph.  The father of truth will win, and the followers of truth will be saved.

I hardly watched any of the Olympics, but I did catch the night that snowboarder Shaun White won the gold on the half pipe.  This was a real-life example of Max Lucado's allegory.  Shaun White had two chances to make his best run on the half pipe, but his first run was so good, that none of the other snow boarders could top his score.  He was notified that he won and he wouldn't have to even take a second run, but he did and it was amazing.  He didn't hold back at all and even attempted and landed the risky secret trick the "Double McTwist 1260" that he had been practicing, in case he needed it in the second run to trumph the other contenders.

I have to admit that I sometimes feel defeated in this world, when it seems like evil has its way with truth and goodness.  I can feel overwhelmed and unwilling to share the truth of God trimphantly, because I feel like I am the minority and it is so counter to the messages that surround me every day.  But I need to remember that God has already won the battle and I do not have to be timid.  He has awarded me victory with him and I do not need to be fearful about what the outcome may be.  I can run this race with perserverence and joy and dare to take some chances, because I know that God is already waiting for me at the winner's circle.  

Just need to share a few words...

I love words.  I love games.  I love word games.  I love my friends.  I love my church.  I love my friends from church.  I love word games with my friends from church.
That's all I have to say tonight.  : )

Let the sun shine in and greet it with a grin

I haven't blogged lately because I have been enjoying the sun and Spring weather.  I can't seem to take the time to sit at the computer long enough to write anything worth while.  I love Spring. The smell of earth is intoxicating and reminds me of my parents planting and preparing little buds for their nursery business each Spring when I was growing up.   Despite the rain that comes with Spring, there is so much promise.  It always seems like when I take in a breath, my lungs fill more deeply.  When I was a kid, the weather wasn't the only thing that gave cause for hope.  My parent's nursery business (0r as we called it "the greenhouse business") always gave us a little more wiggle room in the family budget and the work, which my dad loved, always brought a sense of contentment to him, which made our family time so much happier.  Some of my earliest, happiest memories are playing in the dirt, listening to my dad whistle while he worked, literally.  That man loves to whistle and the happier he is, the more extravagant his tunes become.

The change of seasons always brings the desire to clean out in me. So I have also been in a cleaning frenzy.   It feels as good to spray the grime out the garage and driveway, as it did to empty all my closets and reorganize them when the cooler weather forced me indoors last fall.  Bella has recently became obsessed with water and always wants to help me with any tasks that involve it.  Yesterday, while I was washing the van, both Elias and Bella came running outside in their swim suits and said they wanted to help.  I kept thinking that my neighbors, who are mostly elderly, were probably looking out their windows and shaking their heads at my lack of motherly responsibility.

I hope to be consistent with updating my blog throughout the summer, but I may have to take my typing to the porch to get it done.

Pictures from my memory card

We recently had Bella's hair cut because she and I had a difference of opinion about how tight her ponytails should be.  She thought they should be so tight that she began to have a bald spot at the back of her head.  If it loosened even a fraction of an inch, it was cause for a meltdown.  So at first I said I was going to cut it as a threat.  I try to avoid empty threats, so as the days of arguments continued, I started talking to her seriously about getting her hair cut - for both our sakes.  By the time we got it cut, she was actually excited about it and she sat incredibly well as the hairdresser cut off a few inches of her hair.

The first picture was taken on Valentine's day, two weeks before we cut her hair.  

On another note, Elias watched a movie and decided he was the main character from the movie and dressed accordingly for two days.  If you watch Disney, you may recognize Elias as Christopher Wilde from the movie Starstruck...But don't tell him that I told you, because he doesn't want the paparazzi to know his whereabouts.

For a while, Bella has been getting up several times a night and then she is tired and testy during the day.  A good friend said that maybe she was ready to give up her nap.  I knew she wasn't sleeping long during the day, but I honestly look forward to my quiet time in the afternoon, so I was holding on to nap time for her.  As a test, I began not requiring her to take a nap.  It has made a world of difference.  The first night she slept through the night, I woke up with that feeling I had after my kids finally slept through the night as newborns.  I was so surprised that it was morning and she hadn't come to our room the entire night.  She is also less testy during the day, because she gets more quality sleep at night.  So even though I don't get the allotted quiet time that the nap had afforded me, I don't need it quite as much because I am not constantly dealing with cranky tantrums.  Some days, she can go all day without any sleep during the day, but more often than not, she still needs a little catnap.  So I now have her sit quietly and watch television in the afternoon and call it rest time.  She falls asleep most of the time.  The pictures below were taken on a day that she decided that she was not tired and didn't need to lay down while she watched t.v..  She lasted about 10 minutes before sleep overtook her.

10 things the snow has given me...

Since I have been frustrated and a little down about the weather, I was thinking this morning of all the positive things that has occurred because of the snowy weather.
1. I have saved money on gas and wear and tear on my vehicle.  I think I have only filled our 20 gallon tank 3 or 4 times since Christmas.
2. When I do get busy again and am not at home as much, I will not grumble that if I were home more the house would be cleaner.  The past month has proven that being home does not necessarily equate to clean house.
3. I have saved money on water and electric and laundry supplies.  Since we haven't been leaving the house, there have been many days that we stayed in our pjs or I let my kids dress in whatever crazy thing they wanted.
4. I was reminded that I can still be absent in my kids' lives even when I am home with them all day, if I don't choose to connect.
5. I appreciate my home even more.  One reason is that we are hardly ever really stuck in our house, since we live just a minute from the main road, and we are hardly ever without electric.
6. I have appreciated that I am a stay-at-home mom and can stay home when it is really bad and I don't have to worry about my pay getting cut if I don't show up for work.
7. I have improved my scrabble skills and can now beat the computer almost every time on my iTouch and my son has discovered the joy of listening to chapter books being read to him.
8. I was reminded how freeing having the ability to drive can be.  I forget how amazing it is that we manuever these 2 ton machines (give or take some weight, depending if you drive a hummer or a prius) , with just a little wheel and two pedals.
9. I got to do some hearty, stick-to-your-ribs cooking.  We had homemade chicken noodle soup, beef stew, steak and mashed potatoes, pot roast, and chili - just to name a few.  We have these things, just not so much of it all together.  Between my down-home cooking and my lack of gym visits, all my pants are just a bit too snug!
10. Even though we drove each other crazy at times, I am so blessed to have my kids to fill my days with love, laughter, tears, and even fighting.  The time I got to spend with them is time I was able to invest into their hearts and minds.  I am also blessed to have a husband who braved the roads to get to work, get groceries, and to get us where we needed to go and then relieved me when he got home.  Also, for listening over and over when I told him how crazy I was getting from not leaving the house.

Most of all, God has shown me his power through a little crystallized drop of precipitation.  It has stopped people in the midst of busy lives and even collapsed buildings.  It reminds me of when Elijah is on the mountaintop and he thinks God will be in the wind, the earthquake, or the fire, but he speaks to him in a whisper.  Have you ever went outside at night after a snow storm has ended and no cars or people are out.  All you can see is a sparkling white blanket and your frosty breath?  In those moments it feels like the breath of God is blowing on my face and rushing through my senses.

The pictures on this post were taken in my hometown, where they have received over 20 feet of snow this winter.  There have been at least 3 businesses with collapsed roofs and they have had to call the national guard in to assist in snow removal.  They have received up to 3 feet of snow in one night on more than one occasion.  If you would like to view the entire album, you can visit the link below.
SNOW February 2010

Job 37:1-12 (NLT)

 ¹ “My heart pounds as I think of this.
     It trembles within me.
 ² Listen carefully to the thunder of God’s voice
      as it rolls from his mouth.
 ³ It rolls across the heavens,
      and his lightning flashes in every direction.
 ⁴ Then comes the roaring of the thunder—
      the tremendous voice of his majesty.
      He does not restrain it when he speaks.
 ⁵ God’s voice is glorious in the thunder.
      We can’t even imagine the greatness of his power.
 ⁶ “He directs the snow to fall on the earth
      and tells the rain to pour down.
 ⁷ Then everyone stops working
      so they can watch his power.

 ⁸ The wild animals take cover
      and stay inside their dens.
 ⁹ The stormy wind comes from its chamber,
      and the driving winds bring the cold.
 ¹⁰ God’s breath sends the ice,
      freezing wide expanses of water.
 ¹¹ He loads the clouds with moisture,
      and they flash with his lightning.
 ¹² The clouds churn about at his direction.
      They do whatever he commands throughout the earth.