Christmas 2010

Besides that Caleb and I got step throat Christmas was good this year. It was great to hear what gift folks are going to give Jesus this year and what they are thankful to the Lord for from this past year. God's provision in each person's life was amazing. So much to be thankful for! James 1:17--
Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.

Jeb got a 4-wheeler and I don't know who was happier Daddy or Jeb. It brought J so much joy to ride with his son. They were both smiling much of our time together outside! Caleb is content since he got a tractor from Nana Mac and Papa D to ride. He rides out through the pasture like his Power Wheels are gasoline engines. It is funny to watch him. We had a great steak dinner and family time Christmas Eve at Nana Mac's and lots of presents were opened and exchanged. Caleb loved his tractor and his tools, including a welder. Later at my family's Christmas he got even more tools and his own air compressor and that made him proud! Jeb is loving his Wii and Jonas is also enjoying hunting games with Jeb on the Wii. I am reliving my childhood playing Super Mario Brothers. We had fun with all the cousins riding dirt bikes and 4 -wheelers and with our neighbors and family ATV's we were rolling to the tune of about 8 ATV's/dirt bikes out and about. It looked like Moto-cross around here. The snow was as extra-special blessing this year and Jeb proudly reported that he did his first doughnut on the four-wheeler --yikes. It is crazy to have so many kids around, but it is also so much fun. Every year there is less fighting and more fun! The little girls are such a sweet addition to our family the past few years!

I have included an old pic of my dad in this blog, so that for the record folks can see that Jeb looks just like the man. Amazing.

Going to try to trust God for even more in 2011. It seems like each year I say that and I do better letting go in one area while holding more tightly to another. This world is so crazy and uncertain and runs so differently than how a believer should live that each day is another day to wage the war of trusting God instead of leaning on myself. Every day is a struggle to trust God for our finances, to fight greed/materialism, to give of our time/money/talents/comfort/convince to bless others, to do the tough work of parenting/discipline, to make healthy choices for me and my family, to be a wife that blesses my husband, to be patient and wait on God, to be self-controlled, to keep priorities straight...I could go on and on...
Psalm 13:5
But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation.
Psalm 37:5-6
Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him and he will do this: 6 He will make your righteousness shine like the dawn, the justice of your cause like the noonday sun.
Psalm 56:3
When I am afraid, I will trust in you.
Psalm 62:8
Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out your hearts to him, for God is our refuge.

I am one chapter short of finishing the book Radical by David Platt. If you want a book that completely revolutionizes how you think about your faith, what it means to be a "christian", your finances, your time, your church--READ THIS BOOK. It is by far the most convicting book I have ever read. It has really challenged me to re-vamp some things, but also encouraged me in some areas. I HIGHLY recommend it if you are ready for some serious reckoning with God.

Thoughts from the Purpose of Christmas and of course other random thoughts

THE PURPOSE OF CHRISTMAS…

Have you ever read the entire Serenity Prayer? …I don’t think I had….

God, Grant me the serenity To accept the things I cannot change ; The courage, to change the things I can; And the wisdom, to know the difference. Living one day at a time; Enjoying one moment at a time; Accepting hardships as the pathway to peace; Taking, as He did, this sinful world As it is, not as I would have it; Trusting that He will make all things right If I surrender to His Will; So that I may be reasonably happy in this life And supremely happy with Him Forever and ever in the next.
Reinhold Niebuhr


THOUGHTS ON THE RICK WARREN BOOK (The Purpose of Christmas) I’VE READ THIS MONTH THAT REALLY MOVED ME…
What are you most thankful to God for this year?
What gift will you give Jesus for his birthday?

--Am I devoting my life to living for significance? Everyone lives life at three levels: survival, success, and significance.

--justified means “just as if I never sinned” WOW!

--Salvation means FREEDOM—God did not intend for us to live independently of him and try to “work things out” on our own…He allows us problems so that we can depend on him…

“actually he had the solution to your problem in mind long before you even knew it was a problem. He’s been waiting for you to stop trying and start trusting.”

--The more your pray, the less you panic.

--The more your worship, the less you worry. ..which reminds me of when I asked the kids at Thanksgiving how we can be thankful to God and Jeb's answer: "worship" --yes, Foothills Community Church, worship!

--Blessed are the peacemakers--peace has to be MADE...you can love it, need it, want it, be peaceable...but to be a peacemaker that involves WORK.

--forgiving and trusting are two different things: forgiveness should be instant and unconditional while building back trust takes a long time and much work...

Salvation is freedom from the expectations of others—“The fear of human opinion disables.”

Love liberates. GOD'S WORD® Translation (©1995)
No fear exists where his love is. Rather, perfect love gets rid of fear, because fear involves punishment. The person who lives in fear doesn't have perfect love.
When Jesus met people his first words were usually…”what do you want me to do for you?”

Christmas should be a CELEBRATION!! Your capacity for enjoyment is evidence of God’s love for you …The Bible says that God “richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment.”

New International Version (©1984)
Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment.

Gotta love the Message version of the scripture...
Galatians 5:19 (The Message)

19-21 " It is obvious what kind of life develops out of trying to get your own way all the time: repetitive, loveless, cheap sex; a stinking accumulation of mental and emotional garbage; frenzied and joyless grabs for happiness; trinket gods; magic-show religion; paranoid loneliness; cutthroat competition; all-consuming-yet-never-satisfied wants; a brutal temper; an impotence to love or be loved; divided homes and divided lives; small-minded and lopsided pursuits; the vicious habit of depersonalizing everyone into a rival; uncontrolled and uncontrollable addictions; ugly parodies of community. I could go on.

This isn't the first time I have warned you, you know. If you use your freedom this way, you will not inherit God's kingdom."

In other news:

Caleb is eating that toothpaste in his bathroom...disgusting...I told him it would hurt his tummy and he replied, "it's nice."

Then, while I was sweeping the kitchen just now he told me that he wanted some "pencils that you can eat."...took me a minute...pretzels.


We had a blast caroling with friends. Caleb ran up front and center for most houses and looked just adorable standing there and attempting to sing. Made my heart so happy!

When Santa arrived the kids were spellbound. Seeing their faces as he handed out the gifts was toooooo cute!

Caleb was recently wrapped up in a blanket in our living room when he announced ...."look I am baby Jesus!"

We also had a fun cook out with friends recently...the men/cavemen enjoyed making fire with sticks (notice Caleb was right in the thick of it), the gals enjoyed chatting and laughing, we all enjoyed smores, and all the kids enjoyed wrestling and wii-ing when the weather outside was too "frightful"!

Thanksgiving Adventure

We love to get outdoors and make a memories hiking, biking, discovering new places, and finding waterfalls each season. We also went out to celebrate the day that J asked me to marry him! I am so very THANKFUL that he did! There has not been a day in eleven years when I have regret my decision to say yes. We had a good day at this lake-side state park with a fish hatchery and fishing ponds for kids.

October Happenings...

Jeb's soccer team won the county tournament! It was super fun to watch him hustling out there for his team! He was so proud and so excited to really have a reason to sing "We are the Champions" from the movie Chicken Little! This boy is turning six soon and his brain is FOCUSED on sports! All he wants to do these days is bounce, throw, or kick a ball of some sort.

We recently had a great visit with family and cousins! We had b-day parties and farm fun of course.

We also had fun with lots of friends at a local playground and eating some BBQ. As always, Cay enjoys his time with "Saucy" as he calls him.

Daddy has done some grading to create more flat land where there is none and so in doing that he has created a "mountain" that the boys like climbing and playing on. It is the muddiest thing EVER, but they love it!


The day Jeb did not have school this past week we had SIX boys here. We had so much fun playing soccer as a family. The boys also made a play-doh stellar-looking spaghetti with meatballs! What a blessed memory to be home with them and play and not be working.Thank you God.

The pics of Rhi and Cay with the worms is just so funny I had to include it.

The pic of Jill and Cay in the pool is something that made me grieve summer-yes, I am already grieving the loss of 90 degree temps folks!