Happy New Year!

I've been sitting here for a while, thinking and writing out my goals for 2009. I really hate new year's resolutions, because, let's face it. None of us really ever keeps them. (If you're the one that does, congratulations to you!)

I'm a list maker, so my "list" consists of things I really want to be more intentional about, the goals I want to pursue not just this year, but the ongoing things I want to be striving for in the years to come.

As I've sat reflecting on this past year, I'm realizing that God has been showing me so many insecurities in my heart...so many ways I struggle in my daily walk with Him. So many of the struggles I have center around my lack of willingness to trust Him...really trust Him.

This trust, or lack thereof, has such a huge impact on the major areas of my life where I desperately WANT to succeed. My marriage, parenting, finances and service to Him are four huge areas where I often lack trust, and these are the ones in which I desperately need to let go of my own self-sufficiency and instead cling tightly to His hand. After all, He alone can give me the victories in these areas!

So this year, as 2009 ends and 2010 begins, I am reflecting tonight on Proverbs 3:5-6:

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;

In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make your path straight.

It's Independence Day!

Jerry and I had the privilege of singing "The National Anthem" at a local festival last night.  We were asked back after we sang last year, and we were excited to have the opportunity again. 

We sang right before Eddie Money performed, and he did a little "meet and greet" beforehand. I can't say I've ever actually been a fan of his music, but it was nice that he was willing to take a photo with us.
After we sang, the boys had some fun on the attractions.  Caden was so cute to watch.  I just love seeing my boys smile!
The best $5 we spent all night....watching Cody jump and flip on the bungee bouncer thing (sorry, don't know the technical term for it!).  He had a blast!
And last, but definitely NOT least, a photo of the boys riding on the kiddie rollercoaster.  I absolutely adore this picture of them!  Look at the joy on those faces.  Too cute.

Happy Independence Day, everyone.  I'm so thankful for the freedom we have in the U.S.A.  God bless America and each of you.

Things I Love....

• Spring...watching the birds nest and feed their young, seeing the flowers in full bloom, watching my boys playing and enjoying the sunny days, dirty feet and all!
• Smelling the grills in the neighborhood cooking up all kinds of wonderful things.
• Open, airy windows
• Freshly cut grass
• Planting flowers and putting up our gazebo and the outdoor furniture
  
• Hearing our neighbor's dog tags jingling around through our open windows
• Knowing that those dog tags mean that our wonderful neighbors are probably sitting outside and that their deck is open for visitors
• The sounds of laughter as the neighborhood kids play together (yes, sometimes there is screaming and crying too!)
• Seeing my rosebushes budding (and almost in bloom!)
• Bike rides
• Early morning walks where I meet my new friends, the deer.
• The sound of the tinkly music from the ice cream truck (no, we've not bought from them...YET!)
• Enjoying the simple, lovely things that remind me spring is here to stay.
• Knowing tomorrow brings a parade and the reminder that we are so very privileged to live in the land of the free and the home of the brave thanks to the courageous men and women who serve our country. God bless the U.S.A!
  

Happy Memorial Day, everyone!

I Can TRY to Keep Them

I've read several blogs this week with posts dedicated to New Year's resolutions.  I read my sister's blog and she had me laughing at her resolutions so I thought I'd attempt my own version.  Here, in no particular order, are my Top Ten Resolutions for 2009.

1.  I will try to abide by the rules of the road, thus avoiding expensive fees and traffic school.  

2.  I will attempt to order something off the menu that I do not personally tweak to fit my (pickiness) tastes.

3.  I will be more easy going when my children want to play with floam, flarp, Mars Mud, Moon Sand, or any other gritty, slimy substance.  I will attempt to remember that they are boys and this is just something they MUST do to satisfy their inner boy.

4.  I will say thank you more often to my husband, who is currently doing all the laundry in the house and not complaining about it.  WHAT A GUY!!!

5.  I will read the Chronicles of Narnia to Cody this year.  And finish.

6.  I will try to guard my schedule more by exercising my "NO" muscle.  This is gonna be hard...

7.  In light of my Type-A personality, I will remember that Cody responds better to hands-on field trips more than filling up all the pages in his workbooks.  I will try to be more flexible and adjust accordingly when I see our lesson plans for the day aren't necessarily God's plans.  

8.  Like my sister, I will try not to cocoon myself in our comforter, thus leaving my hubby cold at night.  It must run in the family....

9.  I will watch an entire episode of Ultimate Fighter with my husband just because I know it would make him happy.

10.  I will bribe the dog with more treats and walks so that he learns to love me more.  

How about you?  What's your #1 resolution for 2009?

Santa, Football, and Fun

I know, I know.  I am totally absent from this blog.  I just can't seem to find a good amount of time to update.  But here's a quick one.  Christmas was a whirlwind!  The boys got to see Santa this year which was definitely a highlight for them.  He came to Nanna and Papa's house and we thoroughly enjoyed watching each grandchild sit on his knee (except for Caden).  He watched Santa from the ottoman but when bribed with a sucker, we managed to coax him onto his knee for a picture. Ah, you gotta love sugar!  (A big thank you to Nanna and Papa for a great time and for making us feel so welcome.)

Rehearsals are about to begin for the show I'm music directing, so I needed to get back to do some work on the score.  But today was a fun day as we rang in the new year with our neighbors and watched our Huskers win the Gator Bowl.  A win!  At a bowl game!!!  Hallelujah.

Right now, the boys are all sleeping even though it's 4:30 in the afternoon.  Our schedules are a mess lately, but I figure they all need the rest.  Everyone's much happier when rested, right?

I'm about to start cleaning up from our football extravaganza.  

And the win....did I mention it feels GREAT?  GO HUSKERS!

Happy New Year, everyone!  I wish you all a blessed 2009.

Gratitude

Today, I'm thankful.  My heart is filled with gratitude, not just because it's Thanksgiving, but because it seems more important than ever to be...well, thankful.

So, in honor of Thanksgiving, in no particular order, here is what I'm focusing on today.

• Freedom in Christ found in the gift of salvation.
• My loving husband (and best friend)
• Our immediate and extended families
• Friends
• Great neighbors
• A wonderful church where we can worship freely
• A warm, comfortable home
• Being able to spend quality time with my kids
• God's provision
• My husband's job and a steady stream of students each week
• The privilege of being a mom and watching my two precious boys grow
• The simple, everyday joys in life

May we all focus our eyes today on the Giver of all good gifts.  He has been so faithful to us.  

Happy Thanksgiving from our home to yours!

It's Beginning to Feel ALOT Like Springtime

I love to decorate for the seasons and various holidays. My favorites are fall and Christmas, and I have boxes and bins full of cute decorations that I enjoy putting out for my family to enjoy.

But spring. OH SPRING. It seemed you might never come.

And then it arrived in a flourish yesterday. The birds were so noisy. I suppose they were making plans for their spring and summer homes, talking amongst themselves, feeding like they hadn't eaten in months (ahem, little birds, I beg to differ), and entertaining all of us with their songs. My neighbor declared, "I saw a ROBIN today!" Despite the strep throat, Cody, Caden, Ozzie and I ventured outside and we blew bubbles, took a walk around the block, and played on the driveway (every other area was way too muddy and damp). By the time we arrived back home, I felt like I literally had "spring" in my step. None of us wanted to come inside.

Since Easter is in a little over ONE WEEK, I figured it was finally time to pull out my springtime decorations. I just couldn't do it when it was a mere 20 degrees outside and there was still a foot of snow on the ground! We still have quite a bit, but now you can see grass. Oh spring. How I love thee.

And now, a question for my bloggy friends. I need your creativity. I am having several neighborhood children over for egg decorating on Good Friday (their moms don't want to do it this year). Good Friday is usually a day that we remain somewhat somber as we reflect upon Christ's sacrifice, so it feels a little strange to be doing something celebratory like decorating eggs. Our schedule doesn't allow any other time to do it before Easter. So, this question is for you, my bloggy friends. Do you know of a way that I could incorporate the gospel into egg decorating for my kids and our neighborhood kids? I know about the resurrection eggs, but I wanted to try to do something that focused on the true meaning of Easter while we decorated the eggs. I'd love to hear your ideas. Thanks, everyone! Have a great weekend!

Feelin' Punk

A couple nights ago, I started coughing, and the cough turned into the "drip" which then proceeded to move into a cold, and then a fever, with body aches, and the feeling that the only cure for my ailments is to sleep. All day.

It seems an odd time for a cold or flu or whatever this thing is! I'd much rather be cooped up during the winter months than the week of Independence Day when the rest of the world is out having fun!

Okay, enough whining. Thank you for listening. And Happy 4th of July. I'll be hoping to join the rest of America soon.

Happy Father's Day

Wishing all you dads out there a blessed Father's Day!

To Jerry: Our boys are so incredibly blessed to have you for a father. Thank you for the love and grace you extend to them and to me. We love you!

In Celebration of Easter

This past week was a good one, full of reflection, a renewed appreciation for my sweet Jesus and His love for me, and a good time spent with our church family and friends. We normally go to visit my family in Indiana for Easter, but we felt that we would have been stretched a little too thin with all of our responsibilities at church. So, early in the week, we decided we should stay home.

It was a good thing too. When we arrived home from church, Jerry smelled gasoline outside the van and noticed a leak. When he put his hand underneath, it was definitely gasoline. Upon further inspection, he realized that it wasn't just an occasional drip. It was a consistent drip.

We had been invited to the home of some friends today for a meal after church. Now, I must preface this by saying that we don't know these people very well, but we'd been wanting to get to know them and felt it was a nice gesture to be invited to share a meal with them. We had called them prior to arriving to let them know what was going on and that we would be late as we switched cars and car seats and got changed and ready to go.

God is always so gracious to us and He continues to be faithful in every detail. Before we even arrived, these kind people called us back to say that they had an extra car sitting around that they weren't using at all and offered to let us borrow it this week until ours was fixed.

It may seem like a small thing, but at this season in our lives, this kind gesture was truly a gift from God. He is so good....all the time.

Here are a few highlights from our week and weekend. We hope you all had a blessed Easter as you celebrated with those you love and the One who loves you.

Our Easter cookies (thanks again, Diane!). I just love how the little duckies turned out.

Below: Cody singing in the kids choir at church this morning. What a treasure to see him sing, sign, and share the word of God through music. I was so amazed at how grown up and handsome he looked in his suit and the way he has grown in his faith.

Caden in his Easter "digs."

What a cutie! Happy Easter everyone!

It is Finished

Reflection

He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted. He was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.

~Isaiah 53:3-6

Passion Week

Yesterday at church, our pastor preached a great message about the Passion Week. It was so interesting to revisit this story that I so often take for granted. I never forget Christ's sacrifice, of course, because it is the pinnacle of the Christian faith. It's just that I don't always stop and concentrate on it. One of the things that struck me about my pastor's message was that he said that many of the people in the street waving palm branches and declaring Jesus "Lord and King" were the same people that just several days later were shouting, "Crucify Him!"

I already knew this, but it really made me think. How often do I declare Christ "Lord and King" of my heart and life and then turn around and do something completely UN-Christlike in my conduct, speech, or behavior? Even though we don't live in Jesus' day when he walked on the earth, I still betray Him, just like Judas did. I don't enjoy admitting this...I'd love for everyone reading to believe that I have it all together. But as I listened yesterday, I realized that I'm sometimes no better than those who where shouting to have Christ killed when I turn my back on Him and behave in a way that doesn't bring honor and glory to Him.

After all He did for me on the cross, it is my God-given responsibility to represent Christ in all I do and say. It is also my job as a Believer to share Christ with others. I also look at the passage in Matthew 16 differently after yesterday. Jesus is talking with the disciples asking them the question, "Who do people say the Son of Man is?" And the disciples began to reply with various things..."John the Baptist, Elijah, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets." And then Jesus asked them a very DIRECT question. He said,"Who do YOU say I am?" Peter was the one who answered, and he responded well. He said, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."

I believe Jesus asks us this question often. "Who do YOU say I am?"

Easter brings many unbelievers and luke-warm church goers through the front doors of your sanctuaries. They are all around you, every day. These people are often clinging to false doctrine and the notion that Jesus was simply a great teacher, a prophet, a nice man. The world has lulled them into a false sense of reality. They have no idea who He REALLY is and that He laid down His life because of the great love that He has for them.

Will YOU tell them? Will you be the one to share the good news? Will you put your faith on the frontlines and be bold when given the opportunity? Or will you be like one who betrayed Him, denying that you ever knew Him, whether in your conduct, or in your silence? Let us not be afraid to tell them the Truth.

Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this ALL men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another."

John 13:34-35