A Life of Gratitude

I have heard the term "beauty from ashes" a thousand times in the past week. It wasn't the first time I 've heard the term but I've always just brushed it off. Since I've heard it so much lately, I decided to pay it some attention.  So here we go... The Bible says in Isaiah that God will give us beauty instead of ashes. In Biblical times it was the custom for people in great times of mourning and difficulty to lay down in ashes. Just imagine this...you’ve got a big problem in your life so you just lay down in a pile of dirty ashes. There is absolutely nothing beautiful about this scenario. So where does the beauty come from? Can ashes really be turned into something beautiful?   Scripture says that God is able to take the situation that burdens you or causes you pain and turn it into beauty. He can pick you up out of the ash pile of life and make something beautiful out of you. The Hebrew word for ashes is epher and the Hebrew word for beauty is pheer. Just m

This morning we went for a play date at Jack's house. Jack is one Dylan best friends from church. We had a great time! Dylan and Jack played with trucks and trains, made sidewalk paint, rode the 4-wheeler, made little pizzas and ate a ton for lunch! The best part of the play date had to be when Dylan rode the 4-wheeler. It took a while for us to talk him into riding it but when he did, he loved it! Today I am thankful the encouraging words of Dylan's little four year old friend, Jack. Dylan didn't want to ride the 4-wheeler which isn't uncommon for him. He is often timid when it comes to something new or a little scary. Jack kept asking him to ride and told him how much fun it was. So, Dylan decided to hang on for dear life and ride behind Jack. After getting used to it for a little while he decided to be the driver and then, a few minutes later, he drove it all by himself. He even drove it directly into a bush at one point but he didn't give up! Because of Jack

I have been amazed at how fast Dylan is able to pick up things I have been teaching him. So, for the past week I have been giving him the kindergarten assessment that we used at the last school I taught at. This assessment isn't as easy as most people might assume. It includes writing your full name, telling your age and birthday, reciting the alphabet, recognizing all upper and lowercase letters, distinguishing letters from words, giving the letter sound for consonants and vowels both long and short, rhyme recognition, rhyme production, concept of spoken word skills, syllable blending, syllable segmentation, syllable deletion, rote counting, writing numbers, counting objects in a set, and identifying colors and shapes. He scored 93.26 out of 100! To be considered "high," a student's score must be in the 75-100 range. I just have to say it again, my 3 year old son scored a 93.26! The Kindergarten Assessment Here are the numbers 1-10 Dylan wrote the alphabet

It has been said that " The quality of your life is the quality of your relationships" (A. Robbins). For most people, that quote is very truthful. When our relationships are broken and strained, our lives are usually greatly affected. The people in our lives and the way they treat us have an enormous impact on the quality of our lives.  Someone very close to me is currently dealing with a broken relationship. She has cared for and loved this person for years and years but this relationship is in a very rocky place right now. As I listened to her to talk today about the pain she is experiencing, my heart was breaking. I have felt this type of hurt before and I could easily relate. When those who are closest to us turn on us, it is painful! While driving in my car later this afternoon, I heard a song that I hadn't heard in a while. While listening to it, I quickly thought of this broken relationship. The chorus of Natalie Grant's song "Held" says: "Thi

You've probably done it at summer camp or at a team building retreat... the Trust Fall is fairly well known. It involves standing with your back to a group of co-workers or friends and falling backwards into their arms.  It forces you to trust them and believe that they will catch you.  I had the privilege of hearing an amazing story this morning. This is the story of a "trust fall," but one of a completely different kind.  Jodie Wilson shared the life changing journey that she and her family have recently endured. When her son, Spencer, was only 13 years old he was diagnosed with   Rhabdo myocsarcoma.   He completed eight months of chemo on March 15, 2010 and was in remission for six months. Sadly, he relapsed on September  16, 2010.   After nine months of chemo, radiation and a vaccine trial at NIH in Bethesda, MD, he was declared in remission on June 14, 2011. This past Monday they found out that his scans are still clear! Spencer is now 16 years old, enjoying life, a

I recently heard Jason Gray, a Christian artist, talking about his new song, "Remind me who I am." He was telling about a time when he started wondering why we, as humans, struggle with sin. He soon came to the conclusion that a lot of our sin occurs when we are trying to prove our self-worth to ourselves. It makes a lot of sense really. When we are consumed with ourselves and trying to "fit in" in this world, we end up making a lot of poor choices.   Some of the sins that may fall under this category are idolatry, slander, envy, lust, and pride. Pride seems like a sin that most people don't struggle with, right? Nope....in Stuart Scott's book "From Pride to Humility," he provides a list of manifestations of pride. Some of the things on this list include complaining, seeing yourself as better than others, seeking to be in control, talking to much (especially about yourself), being consumed with what others think, being defensive, being impatient,

Today I am thankful for Spring afternoons! I absolutely love spring! It is definitely my favorite season. We had beautiful weather today so Dylan, Evan, and I took advantage of it. We played outside and did a fun little science experiment with vinegar and baking soda (Its a really fun way to make bubbles since mixing the baking soda and vinegar causes a chemical reaction to occur). Dylan really loved creating the bubbles and Evan enjoyed watching his big brother. I think we all had a great time being outside. I am hoping that Spring is here to stay so that we can have more fun Spring afternoons.

We have had a lot of fun celebrating St. Patrick's Day! Yesterday we made green cupcakes with lucky charms on top and then we read poems and books about leprechauns. This morning, when Dylan woke up, he found little green footprints and shamrocks all over the house. He was so excited to find that the leprechaun had left clues for a treasure hunt. We read each clue and he found the treasure! He also enjoyed a yummy St. Patrick's Day breakfast. We all made sure to wear green today because Dylan was very eager to pinch anyone who didn't abide by the "must wear green" rule.  Today I am thankful for all of these amusing things we get to do as parents. Being a parent is almost as fun as being a kid! I truly enjoy planning, preparing, and engaging in these thrilling activities with my children. All of these things are silly and simple but they bring laughter, excitement, and joy to my boys. There isn't much better than that! Our Lucky Charm Cupcakes...Dylan helpe

During MOMS today we were given the opportunity to worship, "popcorn style." Every few seconds someone would stand up and say "My God is ____." Then that person would sit down and someone, somewhere else in the room would stand up with their response. It was completely random and really neat because there were a lot of women in this room. Not everyone participated but I was very touched by the responses given by so many of the women. Here are a few of the statements I heard this morning: My God is my Rock. My God is unchanging. My God is faithful. My God pursues me. My God is sovereign. My God is my anchor. My God provides everything I need. My God is forgiving. My God is always with me. My God brings joy in pain. My God is LIGHT. There is no darkness in Him. My God created me and knows everything about me. My God is capable. My God is powerful. My God gives sustaining grace. My God can move mountains. My God sees me as valuable. My God loves me. I loved hearing t

Tonight, while working with the elementary aged children at church, I heard the old familiar bible story about  Shadrach, Meshach, and Abendego. These three brave men refused to worship a golden idol built for King  Nebuchadnezzar. When the King gave them a second chance to obey his command they still refused to bow and worship the idol. The King was very unhappy and ordered that the men be thrown into the fiery furnace. The men just responded to the king by saying,  "O Nebuchadnezzar, we did not make a mistake nor will we apologize for not bowing down.  If we are thrown into the furnace, the God we worship will save us, and he will rescue us.  But even if he doesn't, we still will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold." So, right away the king ordered the heat to be turned up and he had Shadrach, Meshach, and Abendago thrown into the furnace. Suddenly, the king shouted,  "Weren't there only three men thrown into the fire?"  His soldiers replied,

I have really been having fun the past few days while my boys are napping. I've been making some adorable wall hangings for their rooms. I've also made a family name banner with "SHAW" on it! I have a lot more great ideas that I plan to work on in the next few weeks. I truly enjoy "crafty" projects like scrapbooking and cake decorating so I guess I'll add mod podge crafts to my list! Today I am thankful for my exciting naptime past-time. Its relaxing and fun all at the same time!! If you'd like to purchase one of these fun wall wall hangings, please send me an email at torilovesthirtyone@yahoo.com

We have a little cup in Dylan's room that has a bunch of popsicle sticks in it. Each stick has the name of a family member or friend written on it. Each night Dylan picks one stick and makes sure to pray for that person during his bedtime prayers. Tonight he picked me! So, part of his prayer sounded like this: "Thank you God for my mommy. Please keep her safe and sound and beautiful. Help her to be healthy and strong." When he was finished with his prayers I told him how much I appreciated him praying for me. He said, "I pray for you because I love you Mommy!" He is so sweet! I just love that kiddo! Today I am thankful for these precious prayers my son is sending up. We can all use as many prayers as we can get so to hear that 3 year old angel talking to God on my behalf, brings such joy to my heart!

Dylan absolutely LOVES to swim! He is like a little fish! He has been enjoying his swim lessons the past few weeks and has even been jumping off the diving board. I am so proud of that little booger! My Little Fish! He loves it! Swimming the length of the pool all by himself Evan is exhausted from just watching his big brother =) Today I am thankful that Dylan loves the water and isn't afraid to jump right in and swim. We started "mommy and me" lessons when he was a baby and he has loved swimming since. We will definitely be starting Evan in the few months too.