Jefferson Memorial

I love November! The fall weather, smells of the holidays coming, family and friends; and this year, since I am in Colorado, I even got to enjoy the changing colors of the trees. I say "got to" because now it is snowing, and this Florida girl is super excited about that!

It also snowed last week, and I got to:

Build a super cool Snow-fort

Make a snowman with MaryBeth

and went sledding with the kiddos...

 I also managed to actually hit someone with a snowball, but I didn't get a picture of that... Yes, this has been a fantastic week! Aaaaaand it is snowing again, and the ground is all covered! Happiness!

Washington D.C.

This last week I had the awesome privilege of visiting some great friends and seeing Washington D.C. the weather was beautiful, and the city stunning! 

As we walked around I was amazed at the detail in each monument and how much symbolism and thought went into every thing. More to come on all of that later, but I wanted to share a few of my favorite shots/places. 

This is the WWII memorial, with the Washington monument in the back ground. Have I mentioned that D.C. is stunning?

The tomb of the unknown soldier. The whole visit to Arlington was sobering, it gave me a small picture of just how many people I have to thank for the life I live. Even though I don't know their name and they would never know mine, I could stand there and look at their tombstones because they had lived. All to often we take for granted the people we pass on the street, as I stood there I began to wonder how many of those people actually changed our lives, people I would never know by name.

The Library of Congress was probably my favorite place. It is stunning from floor to ceiling. I could have spent the entire day here, but there was to much to pack in. I did however get a library card, and got to see Jefferson's original contributions. Definitely an experience I hope to repeat someday. 

Saturdays...

I'm trying out several types of writing for a class I am taking... so I decided to use a few here. 

This morning I woke up to giggles and loud whispers: "shhh!", "Moooommm I can't find my shirt." I am staying with some friends and they have three kiddos. The youngest can't quite talk yet and her cheerful, "dah dah dat" joined in the happy murmurs of a great Saturday morning.

After stretching I grabbed some clothes and headed toward the bathroom, only to be stopped in the doorway of my room by little Faith, the 1yr old. She had a book in her hand and a smile on her face, how could I resist? So I sat on the floor and she promptly plopped into my lap. "Dat! heh, dah, ahh" She said, along with other gibberish, that had I been able to interpret would have probably told me a wonderful story. After about four pages she toddled off to find another adventure and I quickly go ready for the day, grabbed my keys, and with a cheery, "see you later!" headed off on my own adventure. 

There was a touch of mist in the air, but the sun was still shining, so I pulled back the sun roof cover, plugged in my iPod and settled in for a nice drive to meet up with some friends for brunch. Then, silence... hmm, that wasn't supposed to happen. I was supposed to be hearing Michael singing "Save the Last Dance", or "I Just haven't met You Yet", instead just the buzz of my adapter greeted my ears. My iPod was completely dead, and all I would have to accompany me was the very special voice coming from my Garmin. My one consolation was that it should be a short ride and I would be sipping a latte and chatting with my friends soon. 

Of course it didn't work out quite that way, but several "re-calculating" and "turn left, then turn left again", also known as a U-turn, later I finally pulled up into the parking lot of Panera. I hurried inside to greet my friends and apologize for being late then filled them in on the details of my rather special morning, which made the whole thing a great funny story rather than bad day. 

Laughing with friends while enjoying a caramel latte and a delicious strawberry-cream scone, and catching up on life, topped my morning off, like a cherry on top of an ice cream Sunday. It made me realize that it is the little things that make life happy and special: sleeping in, giggling kiddos, sunshine, funny stories and great friends. The kind of things Saturdays are made of.

Laying aside that which is behind...

"Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus." -the apostle Paul

I was talking to a friend this week and they pointed out that this verse says "forgetting what lies behind", it doesn't just say the hard things or the bad things. This made me think of several things:

• An athlete that focuses on a loss will not progress, but neither will one who can only think about or boast of a victory. They must lay aside both and concentrate on the coming race/game.
• We must learn from failures to correct our weaknesses but if we dwell on them we are likely to be defeated in our mind well before stepping back on the playing field.
• If you are looking at what is behind you, you are likely to run into something.
• In life if we focus on where we have been we will end up standing still or moving very slowly.
• If soldiers stoped fighting after winning a battle they would loose the war.
• Lastly, the turtle won the race by facing the finish line. ;)

Basically, this verse was a great reminder that I have a goal and I need to keep pushing toward it.

Change your Want-To

The other night I was listening to Beth Moore. She said several things that really hit home with me. I would like to share them, but don't want to have to try to directly quote her, so understand that several of the thoughts in this post will not be originally from me.

We usually do what we want to do, it it just a human thing to do. If we want to be able to change we need to change our want-to. We can give God obedience because we know it is the right thing to do, but when we want to do as God asks us it becomes part of who we are, thus easier.

I am not sure I am expressing it correctly, but when she was talking I thought of a conversation I had with a friend a few months ago: I told him that God says He will give us the desires of our heart, but that the more we love God the more His desires become our own. At the time I said I thought that was semi sneaky of God, but in taking a closer look at it I see a beautiful expression of God's love for us. He changes our "want-to" as we know Him better and delight in Him.

When we want to do a task it becomes a joy and not just a duty. There will be times when we obey because it is the right thing to do and that does please God, but I was challenged through Beth's talk to ask God to change my "want-to". Especially in the areas I struggle with, in the things that are hard.

I want to please God, and I want my heart's desires to reflect my love for Him. I want to "want-to" obey and please Him and to live life for Him because it is part of who I am, not just because it is good and right.

So my challenge to myself and to you is to ask God to change your want-to the next time you are struggling with something. Let His desires become your desires. 

All scripture is profitable for... reproof...

Recently I have been going through the process of deciding what the next step in life will be for me. I am sure you have been there before at some point, so you know it is a time of asking questions; trying to sort ideas, dreams, desires, goals and expectations. Life seemed to be heading one direction and I started making plans and allowed myself to get excited at the possibilities only to have God tell me no when I asked for clearer answers. 

To say I was disappointed would be significantly understating my emotions. I didn't understand what God was doing or why He seemed to allow me to walk down a path only to tell me to turn off it as soon as I started running. However, since there was nothing I could do about it I put it behind me and kept walking, looking for the next thing... or so I thought.

A couple of sundays ago I was sitting in church, partially listening and partially allowing my mind to wonder over plans and questions, when the Pastor asked if we had ever had God's plans differ from ours, or had God ever choose a path we would not have taken. As you can guess I thought to myself: "Oh yes! I know exactly what he's talking about."

Then  he spoke of  several examples in scripture of God asking people to do seemingly silly things, such as asking a tax collector to give up his comfortable life style to come follow Him. (I found it ironic that several of his examples had to do with life decisions) After giving examples of people's responses to God's direction in their life he asked if we accepted God's answers graciously. Were we willing to follow God's leading despite the cost, or direction, especially when it is not something we would have chosen.

Through these comments and the verses he pointed out God grabbed my attention completely, telling me I had not been gracious about His answers for me. Yes, I was 'doing the next thing' but my heart wasn't in it, and I was allowing myself to harbor a bad attitude while adopting a false sense of choosing the right thing. 

Verses such as: these people draw near to me with their lips but their hearts are far from me, and Love the Lord your God with all your heart... popped into my mind, followed by the verse: All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.

God wanted more than just outward compliance, He wanted me to trust Him with my heart. Though people might be fooled He wasn't... He wants me to be complete, thoroughly equipped for whatever He has next, but I need to let go first. To be honest about my emotions, not pretend to be happy about it all, but to acknowledge I was having a hard time with it, and to trust Him in the mist of my own confusion. 

I can't say I'm completely there. I know if I could see from God's perspective I would be happy about His decisions because they are ultimately for my own good... I am just glad He is patient with me till my heart gets there, and continues to work in my life in spite of my attitude. I am so glad we have a God that cares enough to reprove us when we need it, and one who cares enough to understand when we are confused. 

One of those days

For the past few years my family and I have attended "cow appreciation day" at Chick-fil-a. Basically, on this day anyone who goes to Chick-fil-a dressed like a cow receives a free meal; so of course we participate!

We usually go with my cousin and her family but this year I was kid-sitting/providing adult supervision for a family of 11 while their parents were out of town for their anniversary. So, my family and I decided I would bring the kids and meet them at the mall (the oldest works at the chick-fil-a there) that was brilliant idea number one...

The day dawned slightly overcast with a promise of rain... (feel free to insert your own sound effects, like an ominous piece of music, or a drum roll. )

After a quick breakfast we started attaching paper spots, and "painting" spots on faces with lots of cries of "I can't find a black shirt to wear", "have you seen my shoes", "where did the tape go?" we somehow managed to get spots on everyone and were finally ready to go.

Only then did I realize it wasn't just raining, it was pouring; pouring, and there was no umbrella to be found. Oh well a little water never hurt anyone, right? I'd just run to the van and pull it up nice and close to the porch.  Well, I got the running to the van part down, only to find it wouldn't start, the battery was dead; not even making a noise dead. What to do now??  First, call my mom and let her know what was going on so she and the girls didn't wonder where we were, then figure out if she can come take some of the kiddos in our van, because who wants to disappoint everyone, besides after all the work on the costumes we were going to go!

Right before mom arrives we discover another problem: the oldest boy had taken the only gate key to work with him, therefore we couldn't let the van in and we couldn't drive the truck out. Brilliant idea number three hit me about then and I had the boys find a wrench... Yup, I took the gate apart, guess all those times helping Dad payed off.

The only problem was I now had to get everyone loaded, drive the truck out and then put the gate back together before we could leave, shouldn't be to hard... Cept the truck's gear shift didn't read right so you had to count down the clicks and hope you got the correct one aaaand the pedals were nice and sensitive, I'm sure I looked pretty comical as I figured this all out. Thankfully we managed just fine and made it to the mall with no other major hiccups in our plans.

If you ever feel like you need a little extra attention, let me tell you, taking 10 kids into a mall dressed like cows is the way to go! Especially if they are wet albeit cute cows. They thought it was great and we all really enjoyed getting a meal of our choice with the tokens we received for all our hard work.

As we sat munching on our delicious food, I heard a loud crash. The sound of one of the boys glass jars, full of change, hitting the floor and shattering...

It seemed as if everyone wanted to contribute to making the day as memorable as possible, because not ten minutes after the glass and change was picked up a rather unpleasant aroma filled my senses; I will save you the icky details and just say the baby's diaper had exploded... and in the confusion of leaving the house we had forgotten the diaper bag. Thankfully there was a mother with a baby about the right age next to us and she let us have one of theirs, and the bathroom had a nice supply of free baby wipes.

The final craziness of the day was the dogs eating sandwiches we brought home and one my girls getting sick just before they got picked up to go home. (they had decided to stay and hang out for the evening) All in all it was an epically special day.

The day wasn't all craziness though, the kids and I had a blast and now we have great stories to tell! My family got to hang out with us for a while, and I got a few great pictures. Making the costumes was a great way to create lasting memories that will always bring a smile to my face.

It was just... one of those days

Steadfast Love/Loving Kindess

This year I got a new bible from a friend, an ESV and as I have read through the psalms I have been surprised at how much different wording can make some phrases stand out, and because of this have enjoyed rediscovering some great verses. 

One such phrase is "steadfast love", I have always read it as lovingkindness, which made sense but "steadfast love" grabbed my attention. 

Psalm 25

v4 Make me to know your ways,  O Lord; 

teach me your paths.

v5 Lead me in your truth and teach me, 

for you are the God of my salvation; 

for you I wait all the day long. 

v6 Remember your mercy,  

O Lord, and your steadfast love/loving kindness, 

for they have been from of old.

Psalm 36

v5 Your steadfast love/loving kindness, O Lord, extends to the heavens,

 your faithfulness to the clouds.

v6 How precious is your steadfast love/loving kindness, O God! 

The children of mankind take refuge in the shadow of your wings. 

v10 Oh, continue your steadfast love/loving kindness to those who know you, 

and your righteousness to the upright of heart!

Psalm 63

v3 Because your steadfast love/loving kindness is better than life,

 my lips will praise you. 

v4 So I will bless you as long as I live; 

in your name I will lift up my hands.

Psalm 103

v2 Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, 

bless his holy name!

v3 who forgives all your iniquity, 

who heals all your diseases, 

v4 who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you 

with steadfast love/loving kindness and mercy,

v5 who satisfies you with good 

so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's 

I have loved looking through these verses and been made happy at the reminder of God's love and kindness for us... I am so grateful for these verses and other similar ones that: remind me of the depth and width of God's love and mercy, filling me with joy and satisfaction; and cause me to sit back in awe of the beauty of who God is... 

Sunset

 

People

Throughout history, many great men were noted for great deeds and big dreams. However, not one of them truly stood solo, behind each great man/woman is an arsenal of ‘ordinary’ people who inspired their vision and pushed them to keep going. They had someone, or many some ones to keep them going…. These may never be noted or acclaimed but their sacrifice, forever imbedded in history, continues to shape tomorrow.

Whom are you influencing? You never know where they are going to end up in life... and even if none ever enters the small circle of "famous" they will influence those their life touches, making your influence spread farther than you can imagine. 

Daddy

Father - 

–noun

1.  a male parent.

2.  a father-in-law, stepfather, or adoptive father.

3.  any male ancestor, especially the founder of a race, family, or line

I don't think it is possible to define all that a dad is/all that he does in the life of his child... So I am just going to say that I thank God for giving me a dad who:

Spends time every day on his face before God

Followed God's leading and adopted 5 children

Is big enough to apologize when he is wrong

Was a fantastic playmate, taking time for tickle fights or sock wars when I was younger 

Taught me to ride a bike

Took me frog hunting during the rainy season

Never seemed to be to tired to give me a piggy-back ride

Works hard to provide for his family

Loves me even when I'm not what I should be

Will listen when I talk

Taught me how to drive a car

Laughs at my silly jokes
Spent hours helping me with Math

Gives the best hugs ever!

Is there when I need to be prayed for

and lots more... 

Of all the things my dad said growing up, a few will stay with me forever, and make me smile when I hear them: 

"whether you eat or drink, or what ever you do, do all to the glory of God"

"if it's not yours don't touch it"

"whatever a man sows that he will also reap"

"I love you"

"sometimes I don't agree with God; but I always know which of us is right"

These are just a few parts of the man I am privileged to call: Daddy

The Pile

THE PILE... It has lived in my room for the past year... ok, well, three-plus years. Every trip and adventure causes it to grow, and every spring cleaning shrinks it some. Well, I finally decided to evict it, and in the process found all sorts of treasures:

Great Quotes - Giving a speech is like throwing up, it is awful beforehand but then you feel better. - Rachel,    

Behold… Me.. – Sarah

Lots of notes, and letters - Reminders of the lesson I was learning/God was trying to teach me as well as life experiences and special moments that I sometimes forget.

Notes and cards - Reminding me that I am loved and there are people praying for me. As well as giving me some great laughs at our randomness.

Photos - Pictures truly are worth 1000 words; each brought back lots of memories, and made me miss my peoples. Yes, I am sappy that way :) 

Little gifts and mementos - basically these brought lots of smiles and grins to my face, just because... 

Random items of unknown origin - These are the items I wondered what possessed me to pick up, much less keep... Or items that have a special significance that I am sure would make everyone else wonder what possessed me to pick up, much less keep... like my special soap (ahem... Hannah) 

All these things, and more made the task of cleaning out the Pile a lot less daunting, in fact it made it a lot of fun!! It is super nice to be able to see my corner again, after getting rid of all the unnecessary papers and junk... Now I am looking forward to scrap-booking all of my rediscovered treasures... It's

 amazing how much happy memories can brighten one's day.

Memories are made in moments but last a life time... 

Home comming and Adoption

I love coming home from trips! There is something nice about being in my "own" space, and it is wonderful to hear "I missed you!" and to catch up on all that has been going on while I was away. This time was even more special because I got home just in time to attend the adoption of four great kiddos, by some family friends.

When I got to the courthouse I was greeted by "my kiddos" with a big group hug, and lots of I-missed-you-s . I have decided there is nothing quite as nice in the whole world as the love of a child freely given and exuberanty expressed! It made my day :)

 As the hearing began I couldn't help but grin at the kids: Daniel sat on his daddy's lap contentedly sucking his thumb, the other two little guys were asking why this or that and squirming as little boys do; Maria, the oldest of this group, kept trying to look everywhere at once, not wanting to miss anything. These kids are obviously already part of this family, and are content.

After listening to the guardian and social worker's recomendation for adoption the judge asked the parents if they understood that they were not taking responsibility just until the children were eighteen, but were adding them to their family permanantly, making a life long commitment. Each of them agreed and the judge signed the papers, making this family "official". (I should add, they also have more children in this family)

We topped the day off with an adoption party, complete with lots of great friends, games of tag, ultimate frisbee, a water slide for the kids, and cotton candy. Over all it was a fantastic way to start my time back home.

This reminded me of two things: first, of my own adoption and the commitment that my parents have given to me and my sibilings. I was only four at my adoption, so I don't remember the official event, but I live everyday with the blessings that came from my parents choosing us. We came with many problems and lots of fears; they chose to take us on, problems and all, and make us their own; their commitment didn't end when we turned eighteen, it is an on-going choice that will effect every day of our lives, and the lives of countless others.

The second thing the adoption reminded me of, as many of you have already guessed, is our sprirtual adoption into God's family. This adoption, such a beautiful gift of love, is for much more than just this life; it is for all of eternity. We come with all of our problems and are made joint heirs with Christ, with the full privilages of a child of the King of Kings...

If only we would live as these children now live: confidant in our parent's love, subject to their authority while secure in their provision and care... If we would only rest in our father's arms as little Daniel did and come to  Him readily with all of our questions, content, safe, confidant and secure as we readily lavish our love on Him.  What a life would then be ours.  

It is official, I love making pretty food that also taste amazing!

These are some pictures of some of the yummy food I got to help make for a Mother-daughter tea while I was in Colorado.

Pike's Peak... America the Beautiful

Near the top of my list of things to do in Colorado was to visit Pike's Peak. I was not aware that this was the place that inspired the writing of America the Beautiful, but after making it to the top I will never sing that song the same way. There are not words to describe the beauty and majesty so I am not going to try, instead I am going to share a few of my pictures... but even these aren't enough. You should go sometime.

 O beautiful for spacious skies, 

For amber waves of grain, 

For purple mountain majesties 

Above the fruited plain! 

America! America! 

God shed his grace on thee 

And crown thy good with brotherhood 

From sea to shining sea! 

The Value of a Pen...

I came to a startling conclusion on my way out to Colorado: 

A pen is one of the most valuable non-animated objects in my possession. 

As I packed for my three-month trip to Colorado, determined to have underweight luggage, I tried to think of every thing I could possibly need and then minimize what I was taking. I packed and repacked and eliminated then carefully put all like-items together and was quite pleased with myself when both my suitcases were approximately only 30lbs (Yes, you can give me an imaginary high-five for that ;) ) 

So off I went, decked out in my fun, new boots and a grin on my face, ready for my epic journey of learning and adventure! Picture with the family, Check; Hugs for everyone, check; luggage, check; laptop and journal, check; through security, check; sit and journal while waiting to board.... what!? No pen!! or Pencil, or marker, or any other writing utensil... No big deal, I'll just by one... or so I thought!

In the ten minutes before my plane boarded I looked everywhere, I even thought of asking a random stranger if they had an extra, but everywhere I looked people were on laptops or phones, or some other electronic form of communication/writing. No pens were to be seen... not even for purchase. 

I had a laptop, but I just wanted a pen... there is something nice about scribbling thoughts onto a page, and doodling in the margins of my journal. I love the sound of a pen or pencil gliding across a page: the soft strokes of thoughtful contemplation, or the loud hurried scratches and emphatic thud of an inspired writer who's fingers can't keep up with their mind. 

Pens allow me to do so many things:

Brain power as I chew on the end waiting for brilliance to come...  ;)

They fit behind my ear for ready access...

They make great hair holders...

They fit perfectly into a pocket or purse...

Special communication, such as letters and cards...

Doing Logic puzzles...

Finally, they are fantastic for journaling and sorting through plans and ideas!

There is more but you get the idea. Needless to say I boarded the plane pen-less, and had a very boring flight which thankfully was not to long. As soon as it ended, I disembarked with one mission in mind: find a pen! 

After looking in several shops I finally just went up and asked one of the clerks "can you Please tell me where I can buy a pen?" I am sure he thought me rather strange... but, he reached behind several odds and ends on the counter and pulled out a nice black pen. (how people were supposed to see them is beyond me) I grinned, asked how much is was, gulped, bought it anyway, and walked away, the proud owner of a three-dollar pen... 

In the end I decided it was well worth it because I got to journal during my second flight. I did, however, determine to always carry a pen with me :) especially when I am traveling. So next time you are packing don't forget your pen! It's a valuable companion :)