Growing in Life

I'm getting ready to fly out to Ohio to visit my cousins and I started thinking about all that has changed in my life since I saw them last, 1 1/2 years ago. At that time life was "OK" just average. It was summer and the girls were off school, nothing spectacular was going on in our lives. Spiritually, we weren't growing a lot and didn't even realize that we had become stagnant with both life and our walks with God. I was working "part time" for the church and seemed to be more caught up in all that had to be done there, rather than the more important things in life.

Wow...what a difference 1 1/2 years makes! I can hardly put into words how much our lives have improved since then. Back then, fun times consisted of an impromptu lunch with the girls at work or a special little day trip with the girls. Now each day is filled with joy even if I'm sitting home sick! Six months ago we took a HUGE leap of faith and followed God's call to leave the church we were at and move out onto the unknown path. That obedience has lead to the greatest joy for our family. We are at an AMAZING church, I mean truly AMAZING! I can't say it enough! The Holy Spirit is alive and active there and the church is experiencing an ongoing revival. We've talked with friends that have gone there for many years and they've said it's always been like that. I think the reason is that it's such a healthy church that is bringing new people to Christ EVERY Sunday. Not to mention that over just 3 weekends, nearly 1000 people have gone public with their faith and have been baptized. Pastor Jeff, an awesome Evangelist, speaks directly from scripture and consistently carries out whatever the Holy Spirit asks of Him. Although its a big church, I've never experienced such a great Christian community in my life. The church is filled with people who truly care about each other and advancing the Kingdom of God.

Because of this obedience to God, we no longer move through life like we're just going through the motions. Our hearts are now filled with the joy that God created us for. Our daughters are experiencing this too. It's so awesome to see them grow in Christ and experience the happiness that we are experiencing too. For the first time in their lives, especially K, the girls are in a community that they feel fully accepted, loved and cared for. They are intentional with spending time in praise to God and beginning to live with the joy that we've always prayed for them. I know for J and me, our relationship, which has always been strong, is now even stronger. Our friendships are stronger and life is just good!

I wonder if my cousins will notice. I wonder if they'll notice that for the first time in my life, I feel that I'm REALLY living with purpose. Many of my friends around me that are part of my "everyday life" have already told me that they see the changes. They've noticed that my face shines brighter and my spirit is content. I praise God for these changes in my ENTIRE family. God created us to live with joy and in relationship with Him. I believe we are living that purpose!

While Mom is Sick

I've been sick the last few days, which means the girls have been having to keep themselves busy with little help from me. In other words....a tornado has hit the house. Although they can be helpful and will do things I ask them to, they also know I have no energy, therefore, I don't check to see how well they've done the things I've asked them to do. Finally today I was feeling a little better, so I got up for a bit. I found their beds were made as I had asked, even if the sheets weren't neatly tucked and hanging down on the sides of their beds. I was able to walk through their rooms, which is nice and I could still see the carpet in the playroom. I guess I shouldn't complain. Overall, they've been very helpful. I couldn't help but remember back to a time when K was a toddler and M was an infant. I got really sick and could hardly get myself off the couch. John was working a lot (nothing's changed) and somehow I had to find a way to care for them. I believe meals consisted of cheerios spread across their little picnic table (and lots of them in hopes it would cover snacks and their next meal) along with several sippy cups and bottles lined up in a row with different drinks in them so I wouldn't have to keep getting up to fill them. They are older now and have proved to me that they can take good care of themselves. They've managed to take showers, brush their teeth, make their own meals and keep themselves entertained as long as I played a few video and board games with them here and there. As much as I miss the days of babies and toddlers, I love that we can hold somewhat intellectual conversations and they can provide for their basic needs. Life is good!

Blackberry Pain

I joined the world of advanced technology today. John was upgrading his Blackberry and it came with a free one, so I got one too. It's the new Blackberry Storm with a touchscreen. It is the most complicated piece of equipment I've ever used! Here are some of the phrases said by John and myself as we've played with our phones, "Shoot!" "That's not what I wanted to do." "Yikes!" "What the heck?" "Nooooooooo!" "&#)*!#%^*&)(!@$" We will see if this lasts. At the same time, we added yet a 4th phone into the family. We already had 1 phone for the girls to share when we drop them off somewhere and for after school. Now that their schedules are busier than busy and they don't go to all of the same activities, we've now experienced the need for them to each have a phone. So, as J and I were cursing our new phones as we tried to figure them out, the girls were texting each other and having a great time. At least they were having fun! Maybe I should go back to my first cell phone ever. It may have been the size of a shoe and had no special features, but it sure was easy to use!

Happy Birthday to Former Presidents

The three day weekend was much appreciated in our house. John didn't get the holiday off from work, but it just so happens that he has Monday's off this month. Since it was raining with thunderstorms, our plans of taking the girls and dogs on a nice hike were quickly abandoned. Instead, we all enjoyed a nice day around the house. The girls and I continued to work on a puzzle that we started on Friday after school because of the rain. I got laundry done and John changed the oil in the Expedition. I finally used my Wii Points that I got for Christmas and downloaded the old Mario Bros. game to play on Wii. It's been more than a decade since I last "saved the princess" so I imagine I will be spending way too much time neglecting things that need to get done to once again master the game. John noticed I still raise my arms up into the air as I make Mario jump, however now I can raise them even higher since there's no pestering cord to limit my movement. I also painted the girls fingernails and put little gems on them. They were thrilled! I'll add a picture later. I was told I'm "the best mom ever." Wow, with all the things I've done with and for my daughters, all I really needed to do was paint their nails to get the official title! But, by far, the highlight of the day was spent on the new Inversion Table that J's doctor prescribed for his spine. Its one of those devices that you lock your feet into and turn upside down. I have to admit, it does take all the pressure off your spine. We will see if it actually makes a difference for J (still, I think his major source of pain is that big piece of titanium in his neck!). As for the girls, this is the greatest acrobatic equipment we have in the house. They have had a blast on it all day. I will have to post pictures of that too. All in all, it was a great Monday holiday. So, happy birthday to Presidents Lincoln and Washington!

Girl Scout Cookies for Sale!

Well I never thought I'd see the day! As the first round of Girl Scout Cookie Sales comes to a close, Kiley is working the phone to call all those last minute
people that want to place orders. Now an 11 year old calling people to ask them to buy cookies might not seem like much to you, but if you know K's personality, you know that she has come a LONG way! This is our shy little girl that wouldn't even look people in the face, especially if it was someone that was "seasoned" (AKA "old") and of the male species (and if you were male and old....just forget about it). At least we have these moments to reflect on when someone sticks out their hand to K to shake and she puts her head down and curls into us, and remember that she has grown A LOT. We still haven't reached the "crazy for boys" stage, but that is fine with us! It's hard enough for a young girl in upper elementary school to figure out friends, drama, moodiness and the ever changing body without having boys added to the picture too. Kiley, you make us proud!

There was another event this weekend that the girls find worthy of mentioning and that is Thumper's 4th birthday. I actually think the girls were more excited about Thumper's birthday than mine just a couple of days before! Let's just say that "Happy Birthday Thumper" were the first words out of their mouths in the morning on the cat's birthday and "Happy Birthday Mom" wasn't said until just before "what's for breakfast?" It does make J and I happy just to see them finding joy in the little things in life, like the cat's birthday. In honor of Thumper, a very off beat tune of "Happy Birthday to You" was sung and presents of little yarn balls filled with catnip and tuna treats were enjoyed by Thumper and the other pets too.

Talent Show & Birthday Celebration

The annual Sumner Talent Show took place on Jan. 28th and this year Makenna was old enough to participate. K and M decided to perform together. A long and serious debate was had on what talent to perform...piano duet, recorder duet or K on the piano and M on the recorder. The final decision was a recorder duet. The girls never cease to amaze us as they continue to step out of their comfort zone and get up in front of a crowd. The result: a perfect recorder duet. They didn't miss a single note and played perfectly together. What a greatly needed confidence booster for both of them, not to mention very proud parents!


Yet another birthday has come and gone for me on Feb. 5th. As usual, I was perfectly content to just let the day go by like any other day. However, my friends and family just won't allow that. I started the day forcing, yes forcing, my bff, Janet, to take a 5 mile hike with my on the Wilderness Trail in Claremont. It took a lot of coaxing and begging to keep her from turning around. Yes, Janet, I'm publicly humiliating you! :) I enjoyed a perfect evening of fire in the fireplace, Juan Pollo for dinner and a piece of carrot cake (my favorite). John got me just what I wanted, a navigation system for the car (no more excuses for getting lost) and the girls, well......they know me well.
They got me a "wand" that puts out a ray of light that kills germs, dust mites, mold, etc. It even came with a travel wand. Since I'm such a germ phobe, my family pictures me wandering the house looking like some kind of Star Wars character "degerming" the house. John's just glad he won't be with me on the plane
in a couple weeks as I break out the wand to degerm my seat and tray. The best part of it all though was that the girls wrapped the present in drawing paper and decorated it themselves.

Looking up to Mrs. Moore

By the title, you might think I'm the Mrs. Moore I'm referring to. Nope, it's Beth Moore, an incredibly gifted teacher and writer of Bible Studies for women. I'm currently working through my third study by Beth and it's called "Daniel." Let me just say, this is the best one by far. God has gifted her in so many ways and she couldn't be more humble about it! I am doing this study at our new church, CCV. I feel like the Bible Study was chosen just for me. In reality, I know that is exactly how the Holy Spirit works. I'm sure you could talk to every woman in that room and nearly all of them would think it was chosen just for them. The Holy Spirit speaks to each of us differently and makes the study relevant to each of us in different ways. If anyone needs an example of how I know that God is really speaking to me, then this is it! When we left our former church 5 months ago, we had no doubt that God called us to go. Like I've said before, He has given us confirmation that He ordained this at every twist and turn of this adventure. Every once in awhile, I would look back and think about the people I miss seeing regularly and want to say, "really God? Is this really what you wanted?" THEN, on the first day of Bible Study, on the very first page of the book, there were the words, "Sometimes the enemy wants us to go back to the places that God has called us away from." It was at that moment, more than a month ago, that I quit questioning! I see CLEARLY that God had something so magnificent for us that I couldn't have ever imagined how He was about to bless my family and oh how the enemy wanted to stop it! CCV is an unbelievable church with the most dynamic senior pastor I've ever heard (in fact, I think only Christ alone could beat him out). The same is true for the associate pastors and staff. Beth's study on Daniel has solidified in me that God is always in control, even when it appears that He isn't. God will use whatever He has to in order to direct us to walk in obedience with Him. Between the blessings of our new church and God's voice through Beth Moore, I'm in the happiest place in my life EVER! Had I listened to that voice of the enemy, I wouldn't be growing in Christ, in spirit and joy like I am right now. Without me even being aware of it, seemingly good things were eating me alive. They were cluttering my life and keeping me at a distance from God. As Beth said, we must always be on guard for that which isn't healthy, even in small doses. Some things need to be permanently removed, sometimes they are habits, jobs, material things or people, even Christian people. Thank you Jesus for using Beth Moore to open my eyes to Your will for my life!

There seems to be a teenager in the house...

I've known since the birth of my daughters that some day there was going to be a lot of drama in the house once the hormones started, but I didn't think it would start at age 11! What is with Kiley's new attitude? She is so dramatic and we never know if we're going to get Happy Kiley or Moody Kiley. The only good part of it is that if Moody Kiley makes an appearance, we know that a little while later she'll be back to Happy Kiley. Just this evening she was all up in arms about what to wear to school tomorrow. Jeans were out of the question. There was no negotiating, she will only wear them on Wednesdays (where did that come from). After 20 minutes of arguing, we finally agreed on some sparkly jeans that "don't feel like jeans" but look like something Hannah Montana would wear. She made sure that she let me know that she still wasn't happy about it though. About 10 minutes later she came running up to me to give me a big hug and say she loves me. Ah....suddenly the argument over the jeans doesn't seem too bad, but how does her mood change so quickly? The scary part is that this is just the beginning! Not only that, it will be multiplied by 2! Lord help us all... I can hear my mother now, "It's payback time!"