Date Night, Spring Time & Resolution

My sweet Lily, always the cuddler...loves her little giraffe (Addison's giraffe, but it's on loan to Lily I think!)

Yellow roses from my hubby to brighten up the house. My favorite:)

She's got an apple in one hand and dirt/rocks in the other. Eating them interchangeably I think...

She was being daddy's helper in the yard, loving every minute of it!

Our first picnic in the park around the corner from our house.

Soooo glad the weather has been getting nice and so is Addison!

Evidence of Spring...and all the work to be done out there!!

For Christmas Brad got us tickets to go see Bill Cosby...

so much fun and he's still got it at 75 years old! Funny as ever!

I just remembered as I was putting up these pictures, today is the last day of April.

New Month Resolution time!

April went well. I worked on tons of projects, and while there is still more to be done,

I feel like a huge chunk is done and honestly, the list doesn't end,

so no need to stress if everything isn't crossed off yet. I just keep adding to it anyway!

May...hmmm, I hadn't even thought about it yet.

Ok (5 minutes later:))...I think I got it.

After 3 years being married and two babies in that time, life around here is busy.

Some days, I am highly productive, but most are filled with feeding/diapering/holding a 5 month old,

and chasing an almost two-year-old.

I used to send Brad little notes I'd hide in his pocket, make his favorite muffins or other goodies for a surprise, and lots of little creative things just to show how much I love him.

I've gotten a little bit lazy about those things, so this month I want to be intentional and find/make time to do more of that. 

This will be a fun one!

Hope you're having a great week!

God bless!!

Learning As I Go

I remember many times before I had kids when I was so harsh in my thoughts toward other moms and their 'bratty, undisciplined children'.

I really, honest to God believed that 

When I have kids, they will never throw a tantrum or talk back.

They will be taught better and will always obey because I will have awesome parenting skills.

My kids will be sweet and well behaved even if they are 2 hours late for their nap and hungry.

Are you laughing at me? It's fine. Get it all out. I'm laughing with you.

I was SO naive.

Now I have an almost-two-year-old (2 in 2 months), and I realize that while parenting, discipline, environment, teaching, etc. all matter in how a child behaves,

ultimately kids are born with A MIND OF THEIR OWN. They develop personalities, and all the discipline in the world doesn't change personality.

And it doesn't change the fact that we are all born sinners. Anyone who has ever doubted that fact just needs to spend 5 minutes around a toddler.

They are cute, funny, huggable, lovable, adorable.....

and selfish, demanding, impatient, volatile, manipulative, and downright difficult sometimes.

Yet they are such a gift from God in the unmeasurable amount of joy they bring.

You love them and you, well, you just love them!

And if you can't beat 'em, join 'em!

Actually I'm being serious.

I've found that when Addison is being cranky and difficult, it's (usually) either because she's in need of a nap, or in need of her mama's attention.

So if she's not tired, I can usually get her out of her funk by dropping my own agenda and realizing that most likely whatever I was doing can wait.

If I get down on the ground and just play (like I said, join them!), usually all troubles melt away.

Just like that. It's hard sometimes...I fall into the trap of thinking all these other things are soooo important that they can't wait, but really they can. I'm the only one who will notice the list waiting.

The list is patient. My kiddos are important.

(Although I would just like to clarify:

I don't believe that they need my undivided attention every waking minute. I personally think that is unhealthy for kids and parents alike. That's just my opinion though!)

I'm learning to parent the heart, not just the behavior.

That's a saying I read in a book I think.

It stuck with me, and I've contemplated what that looks like for sometime now.

I find myself parenting the behavior way more often than the heart, but then justifying it by telling myself that when she's a little older, I'll work on parenting the heart more.

It's hard...I mean, just how do you parent the heart of a one-and-a-half-year-old?

I don't have the answers.

If you do, fill me in please.

The one thing I know that I know that I know is:

Showing Jesus to our kids through our daily life speaks volumes more than all the discipline and training in the world....

The way we act toward our spouse, the grocery store clerk, the stranger or the person in need.

The gentleness and patience and love we show when we have had it up to here.

The joy we have in our hearts. The thankfulness we have for material and immaterial things we have.

Letting our kids see us praying alone or with a friend. Praying with our kids, even for the little things like a scraped knee. Letting them see us in the Word daily spending time with our Father.

The amount of time we spend serving others. The list could go on.

Our kids just need to see Christ in us.

And that, is a high calling!

I for one am going to stop stressing about how embarrassing that tantrum at church was ("oh, what will the other ladies think of my mothering skills!?"),

or obsessing over her saying 'please' and 'thank you' after practically every, single thing (uh, guilty as charged), or feeling like a failure when she grabs a toy away from another kid instead of joyfully giving it to them--hello, she's one!

Yes, I will continue to teach and train her as the Bible clearly tells us to do,

but I want to be sure my focus is much more on setting the example.

Showing my babies Jesus. Walking out love in the little and the big things,

minute by minute,

day by day, consistently, not just when I'm feeling up to it or having a good day myself.

Parenting their hearts, because that's ultimately what lasts.

Not a Spirit of Fear

Saturday, 6 in the morning, my body wakes itself up.
No sleeping in for this mama, even though the baby isn't even up yet! Oh well. I get to watch the sun rise:) One of my favorite times of day.

I haven't posted in awhile...first, we didn't have internet for a few days.
Then, I wrote this big long heartfelt piece that I was totally moved to write one night,
and when I went back to edit and add a couple of verses at the end, I deleted the whole thing!
Then, yesterday, I had a few minutes where the girls naps actually overlapped,
so I started another post, got almost completely done with that, and somehow that one got deleted too!
Seriously.

Seeing how Lily will most likely wake up in a few minutes here, I'm attempting post #3 but I'm going to keep it super short...maybe this one will actually work!
And maybe just maybe the first one was mysteriously erased because I said too much.
Writing is cathartic for me, and in this case, I think writing was exactly what I needed, but not necessarily what I needed to put out on the web.
This time, I'll just do a quick recap of the very loooong post I originally wrote...

I saw a quote on Instagram a few days ago that hit me hard.
It probably won't seem earth-shattering to you, but for me, I struggle with fear, so I loved this:

Be determined that your 

LIFE

is not going to be ruled

by fear, but by

GOD'S WORD

It's funny, I am fearless in areas that I assume many people may have fear,

but completely irrational fears somehow creep their way in to my brain.

My husband and I want to do inner city ministry someday. He wants to teach in an inner city school.

This is probably something to be legitimately fearful about. Something you would have to seriously pray about. But it excites me.

However, I worry about car accidents, about terminal illness taking me or someone in my family.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not walking around 24/7 worried about these things.

I'll liken it to a sunny warm day. You're just right in the sun, enjoying it's heat after a long cold winter.

And every so often, a pesky little cloud rolls over the sun, chilling you for a few moments until it passes.

So it is with my mind and fear. It can be the greatest day, but from out of nowhere, a 'cloud' rolls over and dampens things for a moment.

I'll spare you the details of what my worries entail, but I worry about terrible things!

(Feel free to comment if you struggle with this...I usually feel like I'm the only one who worries needlessly)

Anyway, I'm tired of it, and I loved that quote...

I want not only my life, but my mind to be ruled by God's Word.

And his word says so much about worry and fear.

To mention just a couple of places it talks about this:

2 Timothy 1:7 says that

We are not given a spirit of timidity or fear, but of power, love and self-control.

And God actually says it as a command in Joshua 1:

Have I not commanded you?

Be strong and courageous.

Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged,

for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.

In Philippians 6, Paul tells us,
Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, through prayer and petition, and with thanksgiving, make your requests known to God, and the peace that passes understanding will guard your heart and mind in Christ Jesus.

There's so much more, but I'll end with Jesus' words from the Sermon on the Mount:
Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?
.....Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of it's own.

There you have it.
Stop worrying! (talking to myself...and you if you have any fears!)

Well Happy Saturday!
Hope it's a lovely weekend for you.

Lily Grace, 5 months old already. 

Sweetest little thing:)

Refreshed

Spring break has come and gone, just like that. The week flew by, and today we're back to normal routine...except that Brad works late Monday through Thursday this week.

No big deal, as I feel soooo refreshed after semi-vacation last week.

AND, we are going to see Bill Cosby on Friday while my parents watch both of the girls.

I can't tell you how excited I am for this. Brad got us tickets for one of my Christmas gifts, so I've been waiting 4 months. I'm a nerd I know, but I grew up with The Cosby Show,

have watched and loved reruns for years, and even own the first six seasons on DVD. I'm a Cosby lover. Can't wait! :)

Check out the blue sky (and note: none of us are wearing coats or hats!!!)

Easter couldn't have been a more perfect day, weather wise. Our family didn't make it to church (long story which I won't bother expounding on), which I was super bummed about, but we listened to the Easter sermon online from Mars Hill Church in Seattle, and it was wonderful and encouraging, as always.

Addison and her cousin got along so well. They basically ran around giggling at each other and trading baby dolls back and forth. I am loving this age (21 months). She couldn't be more fun or bring more laughter and joy to us than she already does!

My parents baby sat for us and we went on our first real date since Lily was born.

And we made it through an entire delicious dinner without talking about poopy diapers, or anything baby related for that matter! Much needed. Thanks mom and dad! Looking forward to another date this Friday...maybe we can make this a habit:)

I was super sad that our trip to Nashville got canceled (postponed till fall), and although I still wish we could have gone to see our family/friends, I am happy to say, the weather here was actually nicer than in TN. Shocking, considering they are well into spring. Last year when we were there, it was in the low 80's...this year, they were having snow and 50's, while we were enjoying walks by the river and trips to the park with plenty of sunshine! I couldn't have asked for better MT spring weather!

Yes, I gave Addison her first piece of candy. 

No, it will not become a regular thing,

and no, I didn't feel guilty about it!

Gee (my mom's name so far, coined by Addison) and Papa (my dad) both took a break from work to come play at the park with her and she was sooo happy. Makes me wish we lived a tad bit closer so we could make that happen more often. But I'm thankful for the times it does work out!

Ah, just look at that peaceful little face! What is it about a sleeping baby that makes you just melt?

We ended the break with a mass organizing/sorting/cleaning day yesterday, which always makes me feel better about life! I love going through and getting rid of/giving away stuff and I love getting things all neat and labeled in bins (kids clothes)...Brad thinks I'm type A. I think he is.

But I guess in this area, I'm guilty!

One last thing, I didn't post anything last week except for the farm pics,

and completely forgot the 1st of the month came and went and I never did my New Month Resolution for April...

March was to memorize more scripture, to be more intentional about meditating on God's word.

I did memorize a few, and actually have made a habit of taking my phone to bed with me and last thing before going to sleep, I look at a Bible verse and go to sleep with that on my mind.

Sometimes I'll do a particular one I'm trying to memorize,

other times I just look at the verse of the day on my Bible App.

What better way to end a day? 

April, here we go!

I definitely want to continue with the Bible memorizing...if all my other 'habits' I establish each month fall by the wayside, that one is most important to me!

So to add to that, this month I'm going to stay in the spirit of what I was just talking about...

ORGANIZING!!! 

Drawers, cabinets, papers, clothes, etc.

Also, I'm including a general 'getting ready for spring'.

This means yard work, window cleaning, garden planning, and getting my things in order for 

Farmer's Market! (more about that endeavor later!)

I've been in the midst of the 'Winter Blues' to put it mildly, and I'm ready to snap out of that!

This may sound weird, but I also feel the need for a de-cluttering of my mind.

(before you think I've gone crazy, let me explain)

I have a lot of irons in the fire, plus a lot of things God has been teaching me through trials,

and I haven't taken the time to journal any of this, 

which is how I process things.

Right now, I have a billion things floating around in my head, things I don't want to forget or let fade away. I have ideas I need to put to paper. I have some prioritizing and planning to do. 

So there you have it. I'm excited for this month.

I love what spring represents...new beginnings and fresh starts. Rebirth. Growth. Renewal.

And sunshine:)

The Farm



My little girl who is afraid of dogs, cats and bunnies, is strangely fearless of cows it turns out.

Part of my extended family owns a dairy (which is mainly where I grew up)

and we decided to take her to see the cows today.

Honestly, I expected her to freak out like she does around most animals, but she wasn't even timid!

She just laughed and did her excited dance and ran all over the farm.

So fun! I had to share...

 



 

This is spring break for Brad, so we are relaxing with family and enjoying the unseasonably warm weather here. We went on a real date last night, no babies, and it was lovely!:)

Not much time for blogging, just enjoying having my hubby around and spending lots of quality time together this week with our girls and my family.

Have a great week!!