Yes, I am flawed...

photo by Kari McGrath

"I don’t open my eyes…. To my dust and my smudges and my grime and my love-smeared mess. Why can’t I remember…the state of my space doesn’t reflect the state of my soul...I don’t have to have smudgeless windows and empty laundry baskets and gleamy toilet bowls! I don’t have to have a perfect life, all problems solved! ......I simply need have a grateful heart to give Him glory.." (A.V) (whole blog post here)

Anxiety

photo by Kari McGrath

This was taken from the Girl Talk blog.....

* When I am anxious about some risky new venture or meeting, I battle unbelief with the promise: “Fear not for I am with you, be not dismayed for I am your God; I will help you, I will strengthen you, I will uphold you with my victorious right hand” (Isaiah 41:10).

* When I am anxious about my ministry being useless and empty, I fight unbelief with the promise, “So shall my word that goes forth from my mouth; it will not come back to me empty but accomplish that which I purpose, and prosper in the thing for which I sent it” (Isaiah 55:11).

* When I am anxious about being too weak to do my work, I battle unbelief with the promise of Christ, “My grace is sufficient for you, my power is made perfect in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9), and “As your days so shall your strength be” (Deuteronomy 33:25).

* When I am anxious about decisions I have to make about the future, I battle unbelief with the promise, “I will instruct you and teach you the way you should go; I will counsel you with my eye upon you” (Psalm 32:8).

* When I am anxious about facing opponents, I battle unbelief with the promise, “If God is for us who can be against us!” (Romans 8:31).

* When I am anxious about being sick, I battle unbelief with the promise that “tribulation works patience, and patience approvedness, and approvedness hope, and hope does not make us ashamed” (Romans 5:3–5).

* When I am anxious about getting old, I battle unbelief with the promise, “Even to your old age I am he, and to gray hairs I will carry you. I have made, and I will bear; I will carry and will save” (Isaiah 46:4).

* When I am anxious about dying, I battle unbelief with the promise that “none of us lives to himself and none of us dies to himself; if we live we live to the Lord and if we die we die to the Lord. So whether we live or die we are the Lord’s. For to this end Christ died and rose again: that he might be Lord both of the dead and the living” (Romans 14:9–11).

* When I am anxious that I may make shipwreck of faith and fall away from God, I battle unbelief with the promise, “He who began a good work in you will complete it unto the day of Christ” (Philippians 1:6). “He who calls you is faithful. He will do it” (1 Thessalonians 5:23). “He is able for all time to save those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them” (Hebrews 7:25).

A Thousand Gifts continued....

photo by Kari McGrath

101. our family that joined us this weekend to celebrate Shane and Myra's birthdays

102. Myra's greatful heart

103. Lizzie's hugs

104. Nehemiah's kisses

105. Pastor Nate's ordination today...such a sweet time at church

106. a husband to hold me when I cry (even when a Colt's game is on!)

107. a mother who loves the Lord and continues to speak wisdom to me

108. the greatest dad in the word and for his being alive 62 years today (even though he is not my dad by blood, he's the best!)

109. Cassie's smile, which always lights up a room

110. plenty of food in the pantry, when I know so many are hungry tonight

111. snuggle time on the couch with Lizzie

112. God's grace and kindess, to point out my sin, but not leave me stuck there

113. Jama coming to visit me this past week..what a dear, sweet, old friend (she's not old, just our friendship)

114. humility I see in our church staff

115. gluten free mac and cheese...Sara's recipe of course! comfort food!

116. rainy, overcast days...my favorite (for a short time, at least!)

117. hot coffee and yummy creamer

118. Julie H., my friend and kindred spirit

119. Jen L. and her genuine, giving, thoughtful heart...it never ceases to amaze me

120. a washing machine and dryer...though they are always full and never finish their jobs, they keep me from having to wash my clothes in the creek! (or lake!)

November Giving Challenge

I just saw a link from Money Saving Mom for this 30 day Giving challenge for the month of November. I thought it was a great idea to focus on others and realize how much God has blessed us with that we can give..even if it's just a batch of cookies or a note of thanks.

I find that, staying at home, I am alone alot more than I'd like to be (being such an extrovert) and that can often lead my thoughts to be focused on...ME! Now, I know some of you love me and have nice thoughts of me, but these thoughts I have often start with either how I'm failing in one area or another or they are just thoughts that are not gospel-centered. I often have to stop, remind myself of the gospel, pray, and move on. I also often pray that God would give me someone else to think about so that I get my mind off myself. This challenge fits so well with that prayer! So, I have printed off the calendar to fill in and praying that God would help us to be a family that gives out of a greatful heart of all that He has given us. Would you join me in this challenge?

The Homemaker's Mentor

I just found a site that I LOVE! It's called The Homemaker's Mentor. They have a monthly newsletter you can sign up for, and they also sell homemaking lessons, cookware, cookbooks, etc. I plan to utilitze this new site for my girls (and myself!) here in the near future, as I am always preparing them to be homemakers one day. I love what they have to offer, and though I was blessed to have a mom who taught us, I know many women out there did not have such a mother. If not, and you're still wondering how to clean and cook, this is a great site! You know, I'm sure I'd still learn alot here, too! (like "Keeping a sparkling bathroom!") Let me know if you check it out.

If I could go anywhere in the world... (Lizzie)

I'm sharing Lizzie's work, because Myra is more timid and I have to sneak hers into my blog! ha! (again, spelled like she spelled the words. I used to get upset over spelling mistakes, now I realize they are precious and will be a treasure one day. However, we use the spelling mistakes as our spelling words for the next day.)

10/12/10

"If I could go anywhere in the world...

I woulD go to Haiti.

in Haiti I woulD Be a mishenarie.

I woulD live in haiti.

I woulD Give the childern candy.

I woulD help out.

I woulD teacH them abot God.

I woulD teacH them about How to cook.

I woulD say ther's only one God.

I woulD give them toy's.

I woulD tell them a bote crismas.

I woulD Give them steak.

I woulD teacH them Games.

I woulD make a church.

I woulD Give them a hot Dog.

I woulD Give them a Hamburger.

I woulD give them a cheesebugur.

I woulD bring flarp.

I woulD bring mac and cheese."

"If I were the teacher..." (Lizzie)

(personal journal writing assignment for 10/13/10) (spelling mistakes left in tact!)

"If I were the teacher....

I woulD not strike.

I woulD be nice.

I woulDint yell.

I woulD spank.

I woulD do a hunting class.

I woulD be super nice.

I woulD be super super super nice.

I woulD be Good.

I woulD spank the bulleys bottem till it was Bright purple.

I woulD trow tomatos at the kids.

I woulD hit them with a footBall."

I think we'll have to work on not ending every lesson with violence! ha!

New Gluten Free Blog

My friend, Sara, has just started a new blog on Gluten Free cooking. She was diagnosed with Celiac's disease recently, and has had to start experimenting with new recipes, and decided to share them with all of us! I'm excited, because of having to go gluten free myself. While not diagnosed with Celiac's, I have found that I am sensitive to gluten to the point of having extreme pain while ingesting any, even in small amounts. It was pain I lived with for years, and couldn't figure out. I plan to get tested before long to see if I'm just sensitive or have Celiac's, so I'll keep you updated on that. For now, I look forward to some new recipes! Thanks, Sara! (note: the picture has nothing to do with her blog, but it's one of my favorite pictures, and since meat is gluten free.... :) )

A Few Thoughts On Hospitality

"Entertaining says, 'I want to impress you with my beautiful home, my clever decorating, my gourmet cooking.' Hospitality, however, seeks to minister. It says, 'This home is not mine. It is truly a gift from my Lord. I am His servant and I use it as He desires.' Hospitality does not try to impress, but to serve." Karen Burton Mains, Open Heart, Open Home

1000 Gifts Sunday...

74. a fun day out with my sister and my girls yesterday

75. a great day at church

76. cool, fall weather

77. healthy children

78. my dear sister in the Lord, Kim, who opened up her heart to me today...for knowing we're not alone

79. for God's grace and mercy on sinners such as I

80. for the True Woman 2010 conference..what a blessing!

81. for a FREE ticket to True Woman

82. for my new friends..Holly, Renita, and Nancy..and for God's sovereignty in putting us together

83. fall flavors

84. Godly parents

85. the joy of children, not just my own, but the joy that they all bring

86. for God's gentleness to keep reminding us that this world is not our home

87. women like Joni Erickson Tada who realize God's sovereignty and who spur us on

88. the opportunity we have daily to make God famous, through our choices

89. the grace we get when we fail miserably at that

90. the friendships of women

91. dirty dishes...because it means we have food to eat

92. dirty laundry..it means I have a family to care for

93. today our needs are met

94. hot coffee with lots of creamer :)

95. thankful kids

96. almost 11 years with our oldest daughter

97. suffering that brings about growth

98. all things apples in the fall

99. good, deep conversations

100. authentic people

Journal Writing-Myra

Here's Myra's journal entry today...

If I were a Parent...

"I would buy myself nutela every week, I would buy beef jerky every week, I would watch any show i want, I would buy three musketeers every week, I would buy a bunch of treets every week, I want as many kids as god gives me, I would go to church every Sunday enless somebody sick, I want to work as a police man, animal cop, or waitress, I would go out to eat once a week, If i have girls i want to name them emily, cristy, sam, and madison, If i have boys i would name them Alex, ben, rex, and cody, I would like to live on a Farm house with 6 bedrooms, 3 full baths and a pool, I would let my kids watch pirets of the caribean one, pirates of the caribean two, pirats of the caribean three, all the lord of the rings, batman one, sighns, the pashion, star wars, all the Jurastic parks, all the indiana jones, and all the iron man vidios real people, and all the spider man vidios real people."

ha,ha!!! So cute! Talk about a run-on sentence! :) So, next week we work on punctuation, capitalization, and spelling! ha! But, at least they are loving to write, where they never did before. I know I will treasure all these journals full of misspellings one day! I love to see how their minds work, what they think about, what they love...and I see "Nutella" as a running them in both of their passages. They always ask for it and I always say "no", so I guess it's time for a special treat soon. :) I'm seeing this as a great way to get "into their little heads", too. Very fun! My favorite line? "I want to work as a police man, animal cop, or waitress." :)

Journal Writing-Lizzie

Today's Journal Entry topic was IF I WERE A PARENT.... here's what Lizzie wrote. :) (spelling and all!)

"If I Were A Parent...

I would spank my children.

I would buy everything.

I would get my own cell phone.

I would get a DS.

I wouldit have to do school.

I would yell at my husband.

I would move to Montana.

I would kill Myra.

I would have my own gum.

I would be in a game show.

I would buy newtela. (nutella!)

I would hug my mom.

I would kiss my husband.

I would sail the high seven seas.

I would be a astrunat.

I would love my family."

So, I guess we need to work on "yell at my husband" and "kill Myra", but overall I thought it was adorable! The kids have asked that we do this assignment every week. I love creative writing-they love it so much more than technical writing! Thanks, Julie at Brave Writer!

1000 Gifts Thursday

59. the library-and the never ending amount of books for learning
60. cool days, bright sunshine
61. creative kids
62. curry-mmm...beef curry for dinner, one of my favorite flavors
63. new friends, like Sara...thanks for such great fellowship yesterday
64. gluten free banana muffins (mmm...thanks Sara!)
65. gluten free chocolate chip cookies (better than the regular ones)
66. this town..it is, honestly, the nicest (people) town I've ever lived in!
67. warm clothes on cool days
68. our Toyota van-that has been such a great vehicle
69. our truck-which was free and gets Shane where he needs to go
70. kids who are grateful for what they have
71. purified water
72. my camera
73. God's grace, that never ends, and His love that never fails

Teatime Tuesdays

One of my goals this year is to have "Teatime Tuesdays." This first week, we had time, this past week, we did not. However, the kids enjoyed it so much, that they were bummed we didn't do it this week. Teatime Tuesday is a time where we have tea or hot cocoa, sweets, and we read poetry together (each taking turns). Since I left most of our poetry books at home (oops!) , we are starting with Robert Louis Stevenson's "A Child's Garden of Verses."

Enjoying our tea and brownies. :)

Our poetry book.

Pretty girl. :)

First week of school highlights

This year we are studying Geography/Cultures of the Word/Children around the world. We're really enjoying it so far. Here are a few highlights of our first week of school...

Our math programs this year are on the computer...we LOVE it!


Each day we have what we call "book basket" time, where the girls spend 15-30 minutes looking/reading through books I have gotten from the libraray on our current subject. These first two weeks are basic geography/culture books. Later in the year, they will be more specific to our week of study (i.e...Africa, China, etc..)

This first week, the girls filled out a "passport application" for their "trip around the world. They had to fill out the form, write a "check", and address an envelope to the "passport office" (c/0 mom and dad's address!) :) When the "passport officer" (mom) gets around to it, they'll get their "passports" and we'll put a "stamp" of each date we "travel to another country." In this picture, Liz is filling out her "check."

Addressing the envelope.

This week, we colored three pictures from around the world (this one is Korea), and each of them had John 3:16 in that country's language written out.

Nehemiah's first week of school..

Last week, we all started our schoolyear. Nehemiah is doing preschool this year. Thought I'd share a few highlights of his first week..

Tracing (pre-writing)

We're reading stories each week on animals for science.

He learned to trace his hand! He did this all by himself! :)

His new "thing" is drawing on white paper. We now need a "white paper" fund in our budget! :) I have to limit his number each day. Anyhow, these were some monsters he drew..too cute!

And, this was where he learned HOW to draw his hand. :)

One of my gifts

These were from my hubby last week...just unexpected and for no reason at all..except he loves me. I am so blessed.

1000 Gifts Revisited...

49. the breeze that surrounded me tonight as I was walking...ahhh...
50. homemade strawberry jam (thanks to sis again) (was great on my homemade gluten free yeast rolls)
51. goodnight kisses from the little ones
52. the faithful that have gone before us, and have left their stories to encourage us along (was listening to Piper's sermon on George Mueller on my walk)
53. 14 inches lost in the last month!
54. fall flavors
55. comforting embraces from my hubby
56. family
57. new bikes coming for two of the kiddos (free to us)
58. quiet evenings at home

One Thousand Gifts....Tuesday

So..my "One Thousand Gifts" post is 'technically' a 'Monday post,' but since I didn't have the time yesterday, I'm sure I'm still allowed to be thankful on a Tuesday! :) So, to add to the list......

26. that I got to spend time with my dear friend, Elizabeth, and her precious children for a day last week

27. red barns...one of my favorite scenes while driving in Indiana

28. fresh cherry tomatoes, brussel sprouts, and green peppers from my sister's garden

29. crisp, cool days-I LOVE the fall!

30. warm coffee with real cream

31. hugs and kisses from my little ones (all three of them)

32. that the bills are payed and there is food in the pantry

33. Marc and Stephanie-new friends we got to open our home to this past weekend

34. that, as we studied in 1 Kings this past Sunday, 'Jehovah is God'-there is none other!

35. for Larry and Gladine...so full of grace and humility, so encouraging to all who they cross paths with

36. a dishwasher-amen, ladies? :)

37. an amazing husband, who helps me with my kitchen messes (because a good cook makes messes!) by cleaning up my kitchen so often after dinner-how that blesses me!

38. a beautiful, unexpected bouquet of flowers from said husband

39. the missionaries who sacrifice so much to share the gospel

40. that I serve a living God

41. the warmth and coziness of a down comforter (which came with the furnished house, by the way..we are enjoying the gift while we have it!)

42. homemade ice cream (thanks, again, sis!)-there is nothing like it!

43. cute, toothless, crooked teeth smiles that light up my day

44. Myra's laugh..I love her laugh!

45. the man who didn't have to be my husband's dad, but CHOSE to be, not giving up on him when so many did

46. the man who CHOSE my mom and always treated me as his own and love me as his own, who led me to see the Lord in the character and grace he exhibited

"It is good to give thanks to the Lord..." Ps. 92:1

Haircut...Before and After

Do you see the boy, happy and blissful in his curly-headed beauty? (the orange spot on his left nostril is from putting an orange peanut m&m up his nose! As proud as we were of his new "skill", we quickly discouraged that!) Well, daddy was not so happy about boy's bouncy curls...saying he looked like a "girl"...so.....
...out came the scissors and trimmers...and, this is what happened (remember who's idea this was?)...

...and this was the result! Handsome boy? Yes. Happy boy? No. :) He actually told me the next day that he was "just teasing me" with his tears. :)

By the next day he liked his hair. Daddy told him he was "handsome like Peyton Manning." :)