Clean

This is just a simple request for the bodies that live in this house (this includes me).
After I've picked up the house and made sure that everything is sparkly and clean please don't make food or eat for at least 1 hour. Please. Pretty please. So, I can enjoy the loveliness and the clean smell. The smell of onions and potatoes cooking usually smells great, however, when I see all my hard work being washed down the kitchen sink I really want to cry. That could be the onions, but I doubt it. Request over...thanks for listening! Ciao~

White is not my favorite color right now!

When my hubby left this morning at 5:00 it was raining. This made me very happy because they were saying it would snow! Thinking "we fooled them" I sat down and had my quiet time, drank my coffee and was completely oblivious to the fact that IT WAS STARTING TO SNOW! So, when I looked up and saw white stuff falling from the sky I wanted to cry. Seriously, lump in the throat, tear in my eye, sniffing....waaahhhh! However, I have to say that it does look kind of pretty!
Just thought I would share my "moment" with you since I'm sure you had the same reaction!
Be back later...(hopefully!)

April Fools Day

For all of you who love to play practical jokes on other people or just enjoy torturing them for no reason, this is your lucky day! The one day out of the year set aside just for you.
In the spirit of practical jokes I am giving you this link to have tons of fun with! I can tell you that I've already picked out the perfect "prank" to play on my unsuspecting coworkers when I go in for a meeting. What a day to have a meeting too! They will never expect it and I can't wait to see their faces! (insert evil chuckle)

A few pictures from this morning

At 7:00 this morning, this little ray of sunshine decided

to pop out and say "good morning"

Followed by this bundle of joy!
This was during breakfast.
(I really do wash my children's faces before bed!)

Of course, I started my day with this...mmm mmm good!

These were part of our breakfast this morning!
Tasty!

Psalm 118:24 " This is the day which the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it"

Bubble fun

We were having some fun this weekend blowing "bubbles" with the stuff that doesn't pop. Boy does it stink though. My head hurt after blowing up my 87th bubble. The kids loved it though, so that was good!

This one came out better than I expected only because I don't have the right
camera for these kind of "creative" shots. One day I'll have my dream camera!

Caleb was doing great blowing them up. He started this one all by himself.

This shot was perfect! I was trying to catch her as she tossed it up and
I took it at just the right moment!

I have more pictures to add from Easter and others of the kids playing outside today, but I'll add those later. Right now I'm going to go make myself a cup of tea and sit down before I go to bed!

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

One of the things I love about having your quiet time with God in the morning, before the start of your day, is it puts everything into perspective. The house is quiet, the kids are sleeping, you have your cup of coffee (or tea) and you pray that God directs your reading to what He knows you need.

"Ask and you shall receive"

But beware...it may not be what YOU thought you needed to read! (Funny how that works)

So, this morning I pulled up this devotional from February 5th. It was titled "Respect". Amazingly enough, it's was about the exact thing I've been working on and praying about for a long time! What a powerful reminder that we need to obey God's command to respect our husbands! We may not think they deserve it, but that isn't our call. We are to obey and only after we obey will we see a "miracle".

That is such a difficult thing to remember in the heat of the moment. I struggle with it every day and am constantly learning to "adorn" myself "with a meek and quiet spirit" (1 Peter 3:3-6). I'm much better than I was so that is a good thing (I just hope my hubby thinks so too!)

Anyway, I encourage you to read the devotional that I linked above, as well as going through the archives. I'm going to go reheat my coffee now!

Have a happy Wednesday!

Some of my favorite kid moments...

I've been thinking of this a lot today! What are my favorite times with them? What will be their favorite times with me? Am I making memories with them or will all they remember of me is that I cleaned the house a lot? So, I thought I would put into words just a few things that come to mind right now.

Singing to my children

Rocking Caleb just before I lay him down

Singing to Afton as I tuck her into bed

Know that a mama's hugs and kisses make everything all better

Little arms wrapped around my neck as they hug and kiss me

Watching Afton mash bananas for banana bread (she thought that was great!)

Listening to my children giggle as they play together

Loving the fact that Afton is all princess, but also loves to play in the mud

Building trains & bridges out of blocks and realizing that we need a TON more so I can build them a city too!

Listening to Caleb sing along with me and Afton

Listening to Afton's prayers at night & thanking God for my two, beautiful blessings

Making forts with the couch cushions

Afton's adventurous spirit

Caleb's gentle spirit

The way they both are concerned when they accidentally hurt you (and the hugs & kisses you get after!)

I know there are so many more, but those are just a few of the things I was thinking about tonight!

I am so blessed to be the mama to two wonderful, amazing children! I am learning every day not to take a moment for granted. The day will come when I will miss all the childish things they do! I want to keep every beautiful moment in my memory...forever!

Psalm 127:3a "Behold, children are a gift of the Lord..."

This is dedicated to my husband *tee hee*

I turned on the TV at just the right time this morning!!
Technically this needs no introduction...just watch this and you'll understand! Good thing I saw this commercial before I tried the same thing...that would have been embarrassing!

(Darn fish! He can get up at the crack of dawn to sit in a boat, on the water, for hours & not catch a thing, but he can't get up just a little earlier to have a cup of coffee with me! What's up with that?!?!?! Love ya, honey!)

True beauty

I always make sure that my children know they are beautiful and perfect just the way God made them. I tell Afton and Miya all the time that they are so pretty and that she doesn't need makeup to change the way she looks. I want my children to grow up and be happy and content with how God created them. That's not to say that Afton won't put on mascara or eyeliner, but I want her to know that "less is more". With that being said you can watch this. It's a UK commercial sponsored by Dove, The Campaign for Real Beauty, and the Dove Self Esteem Fund. It's a "montage" of commercials that our children see everyday, but put together is quite disturbing.
Make sure your children know that God created them in His image, therefore they are perfect the way they are. They do not need surgery, implants, injections, pills, diets or drinks to make them "perfect".

(I wrote this geared towards my daughters, but I tell Caleb all the time what a handsome boy he is!)

Good Friday

Today, thousands of years ago, Jesus died on the cross for us! It's hard not to think of today as "Friday" "almost the weekend"or "just another day", but instead it is a day to remember that Jesus gave His life for us so that we would have the privilege of going to Heaven when we die. I was listening to this song earlier this morning and how fitting that God put it in front of me at exactly the right moment, Good Friday!

Yesterday I read this devotional from In Touch with Charles Stanley. This truly makes you think about what we take for granted every day...Jesus' sacrifice, our salvation and the weight of sin Jesus had to bear. God had to turn His back on his one and only Son because He could not look upon sin! I can't imagine how that must have hurt Father and Son. (Actually, I can only relate on a human, motherly level). Jesus was willing to take on everyone's sin and God's wrath because He loved us. How can I not praise and worship Him?

So, instead of thinking of today as just another day of the week, take time to reflect on the gift we have been given because Jesus became the ultimate sacrifice thousands of years ago! ....And remember, He may have died on Friday, but he ROSE AGAIN on Sunday!! How awesome is that?!?!?!!!

(I included the devotional below just in case you didn't click on the link!)

In Touch Daily Devotional
by Dr. Charles Stanley

---

March 20, 2008 -- The Lord's Other Cup -- Mark 14:32-36

Paintings of the Lord's Table show one cup and one platter. The cup represents the blood Jesus shed to save us from sin. And the platter holds bread symbolizing His body, which was broken for us. What we don't see is the second cup that Jesus drank alone-- one that made our salvation possible.

The phrase "drink from this cup" refers to a person's willingness to take part in an act. Jesus knew that He had come to earth for the purpose of dying for sin--in other words, this mission was His "cup." While praying in Gethsemane, our Savior asked that this cup pass from Him if possible; however, He would willingly submit to His Father's will.

Some people assume Jesus was asking to avoid the excruciating physical suffering of crucifixion. But even more difficult for Him to face were two spiritual agonies He knew He must undergo. First, our Savior would bear the world's transgressions, actually becoming sin on our behalf (2 Corinthians 5:21) and dying so that its power over our lives could be destroyed. The sinless One would know the weight, guilt, and sorrow of the incalculable wrongs committed throughout all time. But more than just experiencing the ugliness of sin, He would bear the Father's full wrath for all human iniquity. And second, because holy God cannot look upon sin, Jesus would be separated from His Father for the only time since eternity past, and He would have to bear this unthinkable burden alone.

Jesus drank from the cup of suffering, sin-bearing, and separation so that we can share in the cup of salvation.

Snore...zzzzz

Caleb was too cute this morning when I went in to get him out of bed! I walked over to his crib just in time to hear..."snore....zzzz...snore...zzzz"! It was so funny! He was pretending to be asleep! Then he started giggling....

Even funnier!!

Even funnier than "In the MotherHood" is this post!! Seriously, laughed until I couldn't see anymore thanks to the tears streaming down my face!

For fun

Apparently I can't nap between 12 - 2...something about not be able to fall asleep?! It's really not fair since I need to catch up on the sleep I lost last night. So, since I took time off of work to nap, and couldn't, I nursed my headache (because lack of sleep makes me feel hungover) and decided to do something for myself. That would be sitting on the couch with my laptop and doing nothing constructive. While "blog stalking", or should I say "blog admiring", I came across this blog. As I was reading through some of her previous posts she had a link to this site. (Just to give you a heads up, they use some off color language and suggestive humor, not extreme profanity though, otherwise I wouldn't link it) It had me cracking up!!! It's "In the Motherhood" and I've seen one or two ads for it, but didn't think anything of it, but today I watched all the episodes!! This was definitely a good find on my un-constructive day off! Not the nap I wanted to take, but laughter is always the best medicine, right? Anyway, check it out if you have a second! I'm going to go eat some chocolate chip cookies right now and take two aspirin.

A day off

I am taking the day off of work today to relax and maybe take a nap! My kids were up every hour last night (they alternated) so that means Mama didn't get nearly enough sleep! Plus, I've been up since 4:30am. I'm not one for calling in, so every once in a while I can justify it.
So, the only thing I have to do, aside from the normal stuff, is make cookies with the kids! We'll probably start those in a few minutes so they can be baked in time to eat and then it's lunch (if they have an appetite after the cookies!) and nap time for everyone!! Yay...a nap...I NEVER get one of those!!

Big day for Caleb!

Just a quick post to say that Caleb went potty IN the potty for the first time!!!! YAY!! I figure that now is the best time to potty train him since he wants to, but also because I'm home. I can let him run around without a diaper and that seems to work better than with a diaper!! Happy day today!!

Quote of the Day

"When I buy cookies I eat just four and throw the rest away. But first I spray them with Raid so I won't dig them out of the garbage later. Be careful, though, because that Raid really doesn't taste that bad." ~Janette Barber

Why, do you ask, did I choose this quote for today? Because apparently that is what I need to do in order to stay away from the junk food! This past week has been horrible as far as my eating habits. Don't get me wrong I've eaten some good food, but I've eaten a LOT more bad food (at least more than normal for me).

For example, Thursday, would you like to see what I demolished...in an hour!?!

(This was taken after the first bar was eaten ~ this is the second bar)

I think I ate the second one the next day. I shared it with Afton so it really wasn't that bad, right?!

Well, that was all well and good until I went to the store last night. I was doing great until I walked past the blue and eggshell wrapping & the music started playing! (Get it...Symphony...music!)

Needless to say, that gigantic candy bar didn't have a chance. It's sitting in my cupboard right now waiting to be eaten at the perfect time. Is 7:45am too early?

Talking back to God

I love how sensitive Afton is to people around her and how they are feeling. If someone is sad, she will hug them. If someone mentions how thirsty they are, she will go get them a drink. She does this all on her own without being asked. Tonight, during our nite nite prayers, she mentioned she was worried about Miya so she was very specific in how she prayed for Miya.

"Please help Miya not to be scared, and if she does get scared...talk to God, Mymy!...and please talk back to her God, OK? In Jesus name we pray, amen"

I just love how she prays! She is so grown up sometimes in what she says and how she expresses herself, but so wonderfully 4 at the same time.

We are like silver

"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"

How amazing is that? Seriously?! When I read that last week it really amazed me that God puts the right things in front of my eyes at the exact moment that I need to read it! What a comfort to know that no matter what we are going through, the difficulties and challenges we face, the hurt we experience, the trials we go through and the testing we endure God is always with us. He is with us in the midst of all of it! He will never leave us, nor forsake us.

Remember this verse over the next week...anytime you need strength call out to God & ask Him!

Psalm 46:1 "God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble."

Hmmmm...

When I started this blog I thought I would be able to post a LOT more often! Posting once a month is not being a good blogger! In my defense I have to say that February was officially the worst month ever. Not only did I get really sick (which doesn't happen very often), but my son was sick and my hubby got pneumonia! So, three out of the 4 weeks in the very short month of February were spent with me confined to my home taking care of people. March has to be better!

At least I have some good news...Mike accepted a new job! Already I can see the difference in his attitude. He seems so much more relaxed! The only problem is that he went back to his second (night) job this week! So I enjoyed the "relaxed hubby" while I could! Now we just have to adjust to this new schedule and routine.

More good news is that my amazing best friend is back home from her short, but very exciting road trip. I can tell you that my week just wasn't the same with her gone! I'm so glad she went and was able to visit with her friend from college because it's so nice to catch up! However, a week without talking to her was excruciating! I have to say that she made up for it with the stories of her run in's! I haven't laughed that hard in an entire week!

I really don't have much more to say tonight. My pillow is calling my name and the alarm will be going off much to early in the morning! I'll do my best to be a better blogger, but I can't make any promises!