Today I am Thankful for...

I have a friend that posts some of the things she is thankful for in her life every week.

I hope she won't mind that I am going to join her on a weekly journey of gratitude.

(Thanks for the inspiration Deanna.)

...my husband. He is an amazing man. I have had to work some extra (and odd) hours lately and he has been the one to take care of the kids in the evenings. After a 12 hour work day (that started at 3:00 a.m.), it can't be easy to try and deal with 4 children-their needs, their dinner, homework, and bedtime routine. I love him so much, I am so blessed.

...my soon to be born nephew. While I am, admittedly so, overly anxious for his arrival, I am thankful that every day he remains in his mommy, he is growing stronger and will be more prepared for this "outside" world. I look forward to holding him, but until then I am thankful that for now he is safe and warm.

...my job. I know that in this time in our country it is hard to find a good job, with good benefits, and I have both. Plus the benefit of being able to pray and study the Bible at work. I have a great group of people that I get to work with and while the work we do is not always easy and can easily become burdensome for those hurting, we are blessed. We get to offer TRUE life and hope to those who walk through our doors.

...the beginning of spring. There are green buds on some vines just outside my office window. They just arrived this week. I have also noticed that the trees are taking on a reddish and greenish tint (depending on the type) that shows they are getting ready to bud and show their true colors. I love the colors of spring.

Before and After

I got a haircut this afternoon. I also got my contacts reordered so I am no longer constantly wearing my glasses. Though I did upgrade my glasses to transition lenses and should receive them in about a week. Here is the before and after pictures.

"I don't know."

Aaron and I have been working with the boys to not use "I don't know" as an answer to questions we ask them. We often will tell them that "I don't know is not an answer it is an excuse." Sometimes this works and sometimes it doesn't. We have come to accept that this will be an ongoing issue and challenge.

However, the stakes have just been raised...

Emma came walking into the kitchen last night and she was without her diaper. I asked her where it was, she pointed to the living room. I asked her why she took it off, and she said "I don't know."

AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

The changing of seasons

I love spring. I love the fact that in just a few days it will officially be spring.

Here in Indiana, Sunday was a beautiful day. I actually spent the afternoon cleaning. There is something about opening the windows and getting some fresh clean air circulating through the house that just gets me excited. It is also a great time to reorganize and purge. And it was absolutely the best background music to hear the birds singing.

I am thrilled that the next few days are supposed to be warmer and much more like spring than winter. YEA!!!

I was thinking about how our lives are like seasons. We often have to walk through the dead of winter where life can be overwhelming, depressing, and harsh. But the glorious truth is that at the end of winter, new life emerges and spring arrives. I am enjoying this spring time in my soul. God has granted me such a gift in coinciding the coming of the season of spring with the renewal and strengthening of my soul. It is such a great reminder of who HE is and how much HE loves me.

Emma makes us laugh

These are some recent pictures of Emma.

She was just practicing her makeup techniques.

Here are some recent videos. She loves to "help" daddy when he is playing the Wii. She also loves to sing. And finally she has a new saying, "Howdy Matey". But more than anything she loves that she is on the camera.

The Strong Willed Child

Aaron and I have always known that we didn't stand a chance having a child who is compliant and content to do what they are asked. We knew, based upon our personalities, that we would probably have varying degrees of "The Strong Willed Child." Last night proved once again that even at the tender little age of 2, our daughter probably has the strongest will of all of the kids.

For some reason, she was really fighting going to sleep last night. Actually she asked to go to bed and so we put her in bed and she stayed there for about 30-45 minutes and then got back up. So we put her back in bed. We also went to bed at this time (or so we thought). This was the beginning of her getting out of bed and coming to our room. We tried putting the gate up at her door, which she barrelled through (and scared us as it crashed to the floor); we tried ignoring her, which she didn't seem to mind. At one point she actually fell asleep standing up next to our bed with her head on the mattress. I thought maybe if I ignored her and acted like I was asleep she would take herself back to her room. No such luck.

She stayed in bed a little longer after falling asleep standing up, but eventually she tried to "escape" again. She knocked the gate down again, but this time it must have taken all of her energy because she fell asleep on the floor next to it. I put her back in bed and she began to scream so we went downstairs, laid down on the couch and she fell asleep. I did too. After a little bit I woke up and put her in bed and this time she stayed in bed until morning.

She just could not give in to sleep in her bed and she was determined to sleep with mommy for at least a few minutes. In the middle of the night I will definitely lose the battle of the wills. I value my time in my bed too much. :-)

I have to share...

My mom sent me the following story yesterday and it is so amazing that I just have to share it:

Malachi 3:3 says: He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver.

This verse puzzled some women in a Bible study and they wondered what this statement meant about the character and nature of God.
One of the women offered to find out the process of refining silver and get back to the group at their next Bible Study.
That week, the woman called a silversmith and made an appointment to watch him at work. She didn't mention anything about the reason for her interest beyond her curiosity about the process of refining Silver.
As she watched the silversmith, he held a piece of silver over the fire and let it heat up. He explained that in refining silver, one needed to hold the silver in the middle of the fire where the flames were hottest as to burn away all the impurities.
The woman thought about God holding us in such a hot spot; then she thought again about the verse that says: 'He sits as a refiner and purifier of silver.'
She asked the silversmith if it was true that he had to sit there in front of the fire the whole time the silver was being refined.

The man answered that yes, he not only had to sit there holding the silver, but he had to keep his eyes on the silver the entire time it was in the fire. If the silver was left a moment too long in the flames, it would be destroyed.
The woman was silent for a moment. Then she asked the silversmith, 'How do you know when the silver is fully refined?'
He smiled at her and answered, 'Oh, that's easy -- when I see my image in it.'

If today you are feeling the heat of the fire, remember that God has his eye on you and will keep watching you until He sees His image in you.

Isn't that so cool?! I began to think about the journey I have been on with God over the past year. I have asked Him many times "Why?", "Show me just a glimpse of your purpose in this.","I don't understand." I had asked God a number of years ago to not reveal certain issues to me unless it could bring Him glory. He has now walked me straight into those issues and then seemed to have been silent as to the purpose. As I thought about the story and verse above as well as my situation, along with my heart's desire to be like Christ, I realized "What greater glory could I see in this situation, than a relfection of God in me?" I may not be out of the fire yet, but I know that His eyes are always intently upon me and that His desire is purity and refinement so that it is clear His relfection can be seen.