Twister

This is our dog Chief...he likes to play Twister. Ok, not really,  but anything I lay on the floor he thinks is fair game to lay on. Since he was my first baby I'm gonna cut him some slack.

He is 100% awesome!

Only 2 more days to enter this giveaway!

Impatience

Who told me things would be done on my schedule?

Who told me I was entitled to have circumstances the way I think they should be?

When did I become so impatient?

The truth is I think I have always been a bit this way.

When I was in high school I just wanted to start college. When I was in college I just wanted to get married, and once I was married I just wanted to have kids. So impatient! Never fully appreciating or enjoying where God had me for that season. I would be lying if I said it didn't make me a little sad.

Now that I'm a momma {and somehow that makes me want to stop time altogether} I find this trait trickeling into other areas of my life.  There are several situations going on right now that I continue to try and fit into MY own will. Into MY own plan.

What I need to do is wait...be patient.

N waiting for his brother & sister to come home from school reminded me of this.

I am still confident of this; I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.   
Psalm 27:13-14

His will , His timing is always better than mine and so I will wait on Him. I will try to set aside my sense of entitlement and pride in order to seek his guidance. I will remember there is nothing I have which He has not given me.

Kinda Proud of Myself

So Emily is one of my heroes for reminding me to get in front of the camera with my kiddos, my hubby and anyone else who wants to stand next to me. So I was kinda proud of myself when I stumbled upon these pictures with J that must be about 3 years old. Look at me! Embracing the camera before I even knew what that was! {insert me taking a bow}

Only a few days left to enter the giveaway, don't miss out!

Yes, I Talk to Myself

Yes, I talk to myself, but I blame it all on the Bubble Guppies...

Have you met the Bubble Guppies?

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It's a lovely little educational show that N loves to watch.  This is where I start to worry about myself.  As I was in my bathroom "putting my face on" N was laying in my bed watching the show. In this very riveting episode the Bubble Guppies {who as you can see are mermaids, or merpeople, whatever} were traveling to the moon and the conversation with myself went a little something like this...

Bubble Guppies: "We are on a very important mission to the moon"

Me: "How are they going to the moon? They are mermaids, they can't go to the moon."

Bubble Guppies:"We will need these flashlights for our trip"

Me: "You're gonna need more than a flashlight, you can't breathe out of water long enough to get to the moon"

Bubble Guppies: "Be careful, because there is moon shark and he steals all the flashlights!"

Me: "I'm sure the moon shark is only stealing the flashlights because he is scared of the dark."

By the time I'm done with my face and on to my hair the Bubble Guppies have made a very important discovery...

Bubble Guppies: "Oh, I see! The moon shark is scared of the dark!"

Me: "I KNEW IT!"

And trust me, there was no shortage of pride in the fact that I had figured it out early.  This may mean it's time for some adult conversation, or at least a show with a more mature story line.

And because I can't post without a picture, here's one for ya. This is what N looks like when his last balloon pops. Poor little guy.

And lastly, my friend Casey is doing a giveaway from my shop. Go check it out and while you're there take a looksy at her paintings. She is an amazing artist.

My Eyes Will Light Up For Them

It's always on my mind...am I a good Mom? Am I pointing my children toward God, am I showing them a servant's heart? Am I setting an example of what a loving and diligent wife looks like? Am I loving them well?

The truth is I can only do any of these things by the power of the Holy Spirit. In my own flesh I am too selfish to truly love my children well.  I am too tired or have too many things to do. I am humbled by the responsibility of caring for these beautiful little souls and I want their hearts to be filled. I want them to know without a doubt that they have a heavenly Father who always fulfills His promises. But I also want them to know that they have two parents here that love them with every fiber of their being.  That we've got their back and they are the most wonderful gift God could have blessed us with.

I think of the story of the prodigal son.

"But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him." Luke 15:20

I have this vision of a father hugging his son with tears of joy in his eyes. The same as I imagine it will be when I see Jesus in heaven. And then I think of my own children and what they really need...

They need my eyes to light up when they enter a room.  They need to know that my day just got a little better because they are part of it.  When J shows me the roly poly she found or W wants to tell me a new fact he read about Ronald Reagan, I will make sure they know how amazing I think it is.  When N jumps off the swing and C crawls across the floor to me I will make sure they know how proud I am of them.

God gave my hubby and I these beautiful children to steward on His behalf and as long as we have breath they will know that they have two people who think they are magnificent.  I will begin each day praying that I can love them as Jesus loves me.

Don't forget to enter my Naptime Diaries giveaway here!

It's Your Lucky Day!

Today is your lucky day because...

It's a giveaway!!!

I'm so excited about this {can you tell by all the exclamation marks I'm using?}. If you don't already know Jessi from Naptime Diaries you will soon see why I instantly loved her.

 I found her through FaithBlogs during a difficult time for her beautiful daughter Glory. Her reliance on and faith in Jesus was such an inspiration to me and I visit her blog every day.  

But wait...it gets even better{do I sound like Billy Mays yet?}...she has opened her very own shop and I get to give one of you lucky ladies some scripture to put in your home.

Here are a couple of pieces I've got my eye on.

And now a little about the lovely momma behind these prints.

Tell us a little about yourself.

 I'm Jessi. I am really deeply in love with and recklessly reliant on Jesus. I'm a wife and a mom and I'm not the best at either but do both only by an intense amount of faith. When I'm not playing with my three sweet Irish triplets or loving on my handsome husband, I'd like to be writing, talking with my sister, drinking coffee, blogging, running, dancing to Beyonce, reading about clean eating, encouraging other women, cooking, vintage shopping, or painting my nails. Preferably I'd like to do all of those at once. Also, i really like Call Me Blessed.

 What made you open your shop?

 I constantly had post-its, torn notebook papers, dry-erase boards, chalkboards, and sometimes my own hands covered in scripture around my house. As a stay at home mom (and just as a regular person), I found I needed to be reading it constantly to speak truth and life into my heart and my children's as wells. I combined that with my desire to decorate my own home as inexpensively as possible and my desire to encourage and bless other women. I find nothing sweeter than the idea that I get to play a small role in a another person being encouraged by God's Word as they live their normal days while brightening their room at the same time! 

What inspires you to create your pieces?

 Usually the scripture/passage/quote itself. I'll start praying about a piece of scripture or a quote, praying it for myself or someone else and colors just start popping up! If something feels soft and vulnerable, I'll use softer lines. A more bold "Word", I'm more likely to use stronger colors or shapes. 

What are some things that bring you joy?

 MMMMMMMM. Early mornings, my husband's smile, when my kids are laughing their heads off, my hand on the outside of my Bible, vintage dresses, dancing like a dorky mom, sweet potatoes, worship, and coffee. 

Can you see why I wish she would move in next door so I could go over every morning and have coffee with her?

Leave  a comment for any of these, c'mon, be an overachiever and do them all.

1. Visit Jessi's shop and let me know what your in love with.

2. Follow "Call Me Blessed"

3. Follow "Naptime Diaries"

4. Follow me on twitter

5. Tweet or blog about this giveaway

The winner will be announced  on May 2.

Good Luck!

Saturday Snapshot - Ummmm That's Creepy

This is what I found during naptime...

Creepy right?  But he's just so cute!

Have a blessed Easter. Make sure you come visit me on Monday, I've got something exciting going on!

On My Heart - Resurrection Sunday

The sacrifice of my Saviour is on my heart this week as I'm sure it is for many of you.  My daughter brought this project home from school and I loved the visual it gave to the things I've been feeling as we approach Good Friday & Easter.

Each of these eggs represent an event beginning with Palm Sunday and ending on Easter Sunday.  I loved going through these with J and listening as she explained each egg and why these events were so important. What a blessing.  The two that moved me the most were {as I like to call them} eggs 7 & 12.

This egg represents the 3 stakes that were driven into Jesus' hands and feet.  I always feel the weight of sin very heavy on Good Friday. I become more aware of the ways in which I mock Him and turn my face from Him.  This year I am thinking through how I can be more conscious of these things throughout the year.

Carrying his own cross, he went out to the place of the Skull(Golgotha). Here they crucified him, and with him two others-one on each side and Jesus in the middle. Pilate had a notice prepared and fastened to the cross. It read: Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews. Many of the Jews read this sign, for the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city, and the sign was written in Aramaic, Latin and Greek. The chief priests of the Jews protested to Pilate, "Do not write 'The King of the Jews', but that this man claimed to be the king of the Jews" Pilate answered, "What I have written, I have written."  John 19:17-22

It never ceases to take my breath away that Jesus died for ME. To pay the debt for MY sin.

This egg represents the empty tomb. The hope of Easter.  It reminds me that my hope and faith lie in the one true son of God who rose from the dead and waits to rejoice with me in heaven. 

The angel said to the woman, "Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples: 'He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.' Now I have told you." Matthew 28:5-7

I hope you all have a wonderful Easter with friends and family remembering what was done for YOU on the cross.

HAPPY RESURRECTION SUNDAY!

My Boys

Here are my boys, they are such a gift.  One is thoughtful and intellectual, the other is rambunctious and inquisitive. I'll let you guess which is which. I love them with all my heart and they make me laugh everyday!

My hubby was kind enough to take these for me.

And then we saw a huge bug on the wall, so...photo shoot over.

Go "Embrace the Camera", your kids will thank you for it.

A Peak at My Day

Well, I have been sick for two day {yes, on Easter break!What?!} so we have been hunkered down in the house.  Here is just a taste of what has been going on...

1. J loves to paint her own nails! Apparently I don't use enough nail polish or bling. If you want something done right, you have to do it yourself.

2. Even though I've been sick, I'm basically surviving in this.{maybe that's why I'm not getting better}

3. A sweet reminder that I am living in a construction zone, drywall dusted little footprints everywhere.

4. My big boy is so relaxed during his break he fell asleep in the middle of the day. What a life!

Happy Tuesday!

My Work Space & Some New Cards

This is my work space...I know total chaos! Somehow I work better that way. I always see these beautiful clean craft spaces on other blogs but I'm just keepin it real people.

 In all the rubble I did notice my gorgeous ring that my friend Norma made. I am truly in love with this ring so I thought I would share it. 

In all the mess I did manage to make some new cards.  This is such a therapeutic activity for me, aahhhh. 

A little handmade goodness always makes life lovely!

On a side note... do you think I should get this eye looked at?

Saturday Snapshot - Stickers

What else would you do with a sheet full of stickers?!

I love that my kids are so goofy.

Have a great weekend friends!

Friday Favorites-Bathroom Decorating

My job today is to pick out a bath & shower fixture for the kid's bathroom but I think I've spent most of my day on Pinterest. I'm squeezing any positive thing I can out of this house flood and decorating is one of them! I have 2 bathrooms to do and here is some of what I love...

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The hubby is a stickler for counter space so I'm not sure he will go for any of these but it's worth a shot.

Here is the fixture I think I've decided on for the kid's bathroom. What do ya think? yay or nay?

Moen

What are some of your favorite things?