A Life of Gratitude

They say, "There's no place like home," and ya know, I think they're right. Tonight I went to the house I grew up in for the very LAST time.  I've gotta say, it was surreal to know that I will never step foot in that house again. Even though I haven't actually lived in this house for a long time now, it is still "home" to me somehow. I guess it always will be in some ways.  My mom and dad built this house 44 years ago! I can hardly believe another family will be living there in just a few days. It is exciting though because my kids will have 2 of their grandparents living just a few minutes away now! I'm a sentimental person so I had to go tonight, just to walk through the house and take it in once more. I'm glad I did. I believe God gave us memories for a reason and they can be a really sweet gift at times. As I walked from room to room, I envisioned myself playing dolls as a little girl, riding my bicycle in the driveway,

Look at that sweet boy! He is so proud of those tomatoes! He has helped his daddy plant the seeds, water, and now he enjoys gathering the harvest!  Tonight, when he brought all those tomatoes inside he said, "Mooooom, look at what I have for you!" He knows that I'm the only one that will eat them so he considers them a special gift for me! The sweetest thing is, I remember Dylan and Evan doing the exact same thing when they were about this age. With Dylan, we only had one tomato plant in a little pot but now we have 3 big garden boxes! Bryan's thumb has gotten greener over the years! Each boy has had their turn being daddy's helper and bringing mommy gifts. So now all three have little green thumbs, too! Today I am grateful for that precious smile and that little voice that sounded so happy to deliver my tomatoes. It brings so much joy to my heart to watch my little guys grow and find things they are interested in. I am also thankful for the abundance

There's nothing better on a stormy evening than playing games with the family! We actually played 2 games that were mine when I was little. My mom is cleaning out her house since she is moving soon and brought over Mouse Trap and Chicken Out. The boys loved Mouse Trap! Bryan and I were a little stressed out by it (haha). I don't think we'll be playing that again for game night! I don't even remember playing Chicken Out before but it was pretty fun too! Today I am grateful for fun times with the kiddos. I read a quote earlier today that said, "Today is the youngest you'll ever be." We definitely take that for granted. My kids will never be this young again. I want to make the most of the moments we have together with our 10, 6, 3, and 1-year-old. My prayer is that we will never take our time together for granted. 

We sang this beautiful song by Matt Redman this morning in church. Honestly, I had forgotten about this song. It's one of those songs the enemy wants me to forget, I'm sure! Why? Well, because it speaks right to my soul.  These past few weeks have been tough for me physically. I have been diagnosed with fibromyalgia previously but recently some new symptoms have arisen and I've just been struggling. A few times this week I recall saying to myself, "If I can just make it to the car" or "if I can just make it home." If you know me, you know that isn't like me. I'm not a home-body. I don't sit around much. I am out and about and always doing something. So these past few weeks have been tough physically but also emotionally because this isn't who I am-- if that makes sense.  I have some appointments coming up and some decisions to make and some questions I hope to have answered. With all of that comes anxiety and fear...but you k

This evening while I watched the boys at Karate, I overheard one of the other kids say, "I wish people had fangs and could spit poison!" Ummm, wow, what a thought?  What if people had fangs and could spit poison!? Can you imagine how horrible!?!  That made me think, God could have given people fangs if He'd wanted to. He could have made us with the ability to spit poison. I mean, He did create pufferfish, cone snails, rattlesnakes, jellyfish, and alligators, all of which are deadly for various reasons. God could have given some of us poisonous venom and some of us stingers...that would have been interesting too, wouldn't it? I've never thought about this before but truly, humans are all on the same playing field. God created us all the same. While some have more resources than others, we are created the same. Not one of us was made better than the other, with more special powers or more deadly appendages. We are all the same.  So why do think we'r

There's just something sweet about Summertime, isn't there?  The days are easy and simple. They're full of fun and relaxation. Today was the third time we've been to the pool in the last week or so. The kids really enjoy jumping off the diving board, swimming and playing with friends, and eating snacks....I'm not sure what it is but there's something about the pool snacks! Allison LOVES the pool, too! She smiles from the moment we arrive until the moment we leave. She enjoys being in her little float and playing in the baby pool. She is so cute splashing around! Today I am grateful for a fun time with my family and the many fun pool days to come this summer. I'm also thankful for the ability to have a pool membership to enjoy together. Mostly, I am grateful for summertime. I enjoy homeschooling the kiddos and being active in all their extracurricular activities but it is really nice to relax and just enjoy one another's company. 

When I look back over the past 20 years or so, I can think of so many different times where God has fulfilled His promises to me. Some specific examples include healing my back, selling our home, working things out with our new home, and providing what we needed to homeschool. There are many more examples too but those stick out in my mind because each of those took a great deal of time....at least in my opinion (my very impatient opinion). So why do I so quickly give up now when I'm waiting on God to act in a situation? Why am I so quick to get frustrated and fearful that He has forgotten me? He has proven to me that He keeps His Word and He has a better plan but for some reason, I have a hard time remembering that when during the waiting. On Sunday a friend at church shared something that really struck me. She read Matthew 17:20 which says,  "And He said to them, "Because of the littleness of your faith; for truly I say to you, if you have faith the size of a

June 5, 2004 was one my favorite days! I had been dating this handsome fella for 8 years...yes, eight! Marrying him was something I dreamed of for 8 years, too.  Fourteen years ago today that dream came true.  I always love looking at our wedding pictures on our anniversary. Today I decided to look at our honeymoon pictures, too. Oh, we were so young!! Just babies! We had so many dreams and plans but had no clue what that God had in store for us. His plans have been better than anything we could have imagined.  These pictures capture our excitement and love for one another, don't you think?  I wonder what those two young people would say if they had been told they would one day have 4 kids! Or that they would homeschool those kids! I know that I would have laughed at both of those statements! It wasn't in our plans to homeschool four kids! God's way is so good. I wouldn't want it any other way now! Today I am grateful for the fourteen years