Thankful for the gift of life

 Today, on my birthday, I am thinking about life. Life with all its joy and heartache. And over and over, I am overwhelmed with thankfulness. 
 So, here is a shout-out to some of those who have helped shape me, loved me, and shown me the grace of God.
 First, my parents. I am so thankful to you both, mom and dad! Yesterday one of my older children told me I needed to have another baby. I proceeded to explain that I am still trying to lose baby weight, and still feeling tired most of the time, and hence, that was not in the plans right now. Jared just looked at me a bit confused and said, "So? That just means you've had lots of children and that you work hard." His logic didn't change my mind on my weight goals, but it did give me some things to ponder. Sacrifice. The constant giving up of self to love and serve those in our care. I am so thankful for the countless sacrifices you have made on my behalf! Mom, thank you especially for the physical sacrifice of carrying me, of bearing pain to give me life. Dad, I treasure the memory of kneeling with you, of you leading me in prayer to the heart of the Father. Thank you for leading me to eternal life. 
  Friends. I have been blessed with wonderful friends. Friends who have walked along beside me, and held me up when I was weak. Friends willing to challenge me, to speak truth to me, friends who have loved me even when I haven't been lovable. I have lost friendships and mourn them. Been wounded by friends. Hidden myself from friends, not willing to risk getting hurt again. I have been led back to trust and risk with friends. Been taught that the most important thing in life is this gift of relationship. I am thankful especially for my sisters who have been faithful friends to me. And for my very best friend:
 My husband. The man who sees me, all my flaws, all my quirks, all my brokenness, and loves me any way. The one who looks beyond those things to the work of God in my heart. The one who chose me to share life with him. I can't even begin to express how precious you are to me, Chad. Marrying you is the best decision I ever made. God has used marriage to cleanse, to purify and mature both of our hearts. That process has been difficult and at times extremely painful, but I wouldn't trade it for anything. You are the one my heart adores!  
Jesus. My Lord. The Relentless Pursuer of my heart. I am so thankful for His love and gentleness that melt the walls and defenses I have built around my heart, freeing me to love and be loved, to experience forgiveness and to enter relationship with Him and others. God has truly blessed me. Woven all throughout my life are glimpses of Him. His protection. His incredible love to me. Even the heartaches bear His image; in them too, He was holding me, drawing me, leading me to Himself. 

Overwhelmed by Mercy

Jesus, I feel so overwhelmed by your mercy.

So amazed that You would invite me into relationship simply for the joy of being my friend.

That each day You meet me, offering vulnerability, asking me only to trust .

I find it so hard to leave behind my striving and to simply accept Your love.

And yet, in grace You keep inviting me, drawing me.

Asking me to let go of me and  to allow You to meet my needs.

Thank You Jesus for mercy and grace.

Thank You for pursuing me, for wanting me. 

Thank You for a love that melts my defenses.

For my Sunday School Class

 "How I  praise God, the Father of my Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed me with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because I belong to Christ. Long ago, even before He made the world, God loved me and chose me in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. His unchanging plan has always been to adopt me into his own family by bringing me to himself through Jesus Christ. And this gave him great pleasure. So I praise God for the wonderful kindness he has poured out on me 
because I belong to his dearly loved Son. He is so rich in kindness that He purchased my freedom through the blood of his Son, and my sins are forgiven. He has showered his kindness on me, along with all wisdom and understanding."-Ephesians 1:3-8 (NLT)

"... I have the free gift of being accepted by God, even though I am guilty of many sins..." -Romans 5:16 (NLT)

Sugar and Spice

Alaia decided she wanted cake.

Mommy decided to let her try her hand at mixing one.

 Dumping

Mixing

This takes a lot of concentration.

Looking good

Wonder what it feels like?

 Tastes good too.

Yes, I like this!

 She ran upstairs to tell daddy she was making him 

 cake as soon as she was done mixing.

 We had one very proud little girl, one very happy daddy and five siblings who eagerly helped eat every crumb!

Catching up

  
 Chad surprised me with a birthday party last night. And I have to admit I was truly surprised. The kids must be growing up because they didn't drop a single hint. Grandma Dorothy had volunteered to keep the children overnight so Chad and I planned a date. In the rush to get the kids out the door they forgot one of their bags and needed us to bring it to them. Chad and I had a wonderful meal at Cafe Lalibela and then went to drop off the bag. I was shocked to find a party waiting for me. And even more shocked to open my gifts and find this darling little notebook that I am now happily typing away on. I never thought I'd be so excited about an electronic device. It's going to be quite difficult to keep to my rule of no computer until school is done!

 Really looking forward to Thanksgiving next week! And then Christmas! I've already begun my Christmas season planning and today hit a couple of stores for garlands and craft supplies. I can't wait to decorate and get Christmas in the air with lots of baking.  


 But that's not to overlook the fact that we are in the middle of a mini remodel. We had great excitement a couple months ago when we walked in our front door and discovered our floors covered in several inches of water. Did I say excitement? I think it was more like despair. Whatever it was, after working frantically for over an hour to remove the water, all we could do was look at each other and laugh. Oh, I forgot to mention that this was during our first week of school. Yeah, excitement is never ending around here. Anyway. We had to tear out most of our flooring and are now in the process of picking out and installing new flooring. And, dear husband that he is, Chad is also painting my cabinets for me before we do the actual install.

 Now, some of you may know that my cabinets are actually pretty new. And some of you may be tempted to judge me for the statement above. Don't. Just love me. And hope I don't live to regret this decision. I love white cabinets. I practically drool when I see white kitchens. I thought I would like hickory too, but it just isn't white. I was all set to live with my choice though, until my sweet and patient husband talked me out of it. Alright. I admit it didn't take much. And yes, I do know how incredibly blessed I am. 

 So, that said, our holiday season is going to be packed full. But that's what makes life so much fun!

 We were in Ohio for about 2 weeks the beginning of this month. Spending time with family and attending a John Reiger conference. Really enjoyed both although I was miserably sick most of the time. Big thanks to Keith and Emmy, Matt and Carmen, Aunt Jean and Aunt Betty, Gary and Teresa for sharing your homes and food with us. We love you guys!!   
 

Marriage Retreat

We spent last weekend in Prescott with a group of amazing people. We enjoyed cool weather, starry night skies, late nights and laughter, and most importantly the sharing of our hearts with God and each other.

 Thanks to all of you for the great time!

Nakedness and the Holiness of God

                           http://sermons2.redeemer.com/sermons/nakedness-holiness-god
                       There is a glitch in this recording and it repeats itself so begin at 26:22.

      This is for our Sunday School Class. Just in case you wanted to reference it before next week.