A Life of Gratitude

Yesterday I took my youngest two kiddos to visit my Great Uncle George at his nursing home. We went with my mom to an End of the Summer cook-out. We could only bring 2 of the children because the facility had to limit the number of guests due to space. So, I brought along 2 of the most joyful people I know, Tyson and Allison!  Allison was immediately drawn to her great, great uncle! She played with him, gave him five, stole his TV remote controls, ran around him, told him a lot of jibber jabber,  and sat on his lap. He was smitten with her from the moment she arrived!  We had a picnic outside and ate hamburgers and hotdogs for lunch. We enjoyed live music, good company, and a slight breeze. It really was a lovely afternoon. One of my favorite moments was watching an elderly couple dance together. It was truly precious. The kids sat still for a few minutes but then they began to put on a show for everyone around us! I'm sure you can imagine how...

Several people in the AS community have been sharing about their daily lives with Ankylosing Spondylitis so I thought, "Why, not?" Most AS patients don't have 4 young children so my story might show a different aspect of life with this chronic auto-immune disorder. I very rarey sleep well. Most nights, even if the baby sleeps all night, I wake up multiple times because of the pain in my upper back, neck, and hips. When I wake up each day, I have no idea if it will be a good day or a terrible one. Regardless of what the day holds, every morning starts with a stiffness that covers my entire body. It takes a great deal of effort just to get to a sitting position on the edge of the bed. Bryan actually has to push me to help me get up a lot of days. I usually sound like an eighty-year-old woman stretching slowly and  trying to get my body to work correctly.  Yesterday was no different. When Bryan left for work I began the process of getting myself up. I've learne...

If we're honest, I bet most of us have wondered why such a loving, powerful God allows bad things to happen, especially to those who love and follow Him. I mean, He does have the power to stop a hurricane or heal a disease, doesn't He? Of course, He does. If He wanted to restore broken relationships or reveal a cure for cancer, He could do it in the blink of an eye.  So why doesn't He? I've been writing this post in my head and in my journal for weeks now. I've been batting around these ideas and thoughts and trying to make sense of what God is teaching me. I've got to admit, being a 36-year-old mom of 4 with a deteriorating auto-immune disorder like Ankylosing Spondylitis, will cause you to ask questions of God. But I'm 100% sure God is big enough to handle my questions and more importantly, I know He isn't mad at me for asking them. He wants to reassure me. He isn't trying to trick me, avoid me, or confuse me. I can talk to Him and He is l...

Four years ago today, Bryan and I got the biggest surprise of our lives!  Each year on all of my kid's birthdays, I spend time looking at photos and watching their birth videos and reading the blogs I wrote about their births. Today was no different. As I read the blog I wrote about our surprise BOY, one of the sentences struck me. I had written, "Although surprises aren't always easy for planners like me, I'm 100% positive that this will turn out to be the best surprise Bryan and I ever receive!" Wow, 4 years later I can already say, "YES, YES, YES!"  I cannot imagine life without our sweet boy, Tyson! He has brought so much joy and laughter and love into our home. He has been a mommy's boy and my sweet snuggle-buddy since day 1!  I knew that day that God allowed this surprise for a purpose. We had planned to get my tubes tied while I was in the hospital but with the big surprise, we decided to wait. Because of that, our family ended up...

Over the past year or so, God planted a sweet dream in my heart and helped it blossom into something incredible! Today we started the second semester of Students of the Spirit. This is a homeschool co-op that meets biweekly at HopeCity in Wallburg. We will be meeting on the off weeks also to go on field trips and service projects. This is not your average co-op! We are led by the Spirit and offering families the opportunity to spend a few minutes focusing on Spiritual growth. I have enjoyed watching this idea develop into something so wonderful! We had 20 families attend today! We spent time worshipping together, learned about some of the different ways people worship God, practiced the gift encouragement, and the moms spent time sharing, fellowshipping, and praying together. It was a wonderful first day of Students of the Spirit! This is such an amazing community of Homeschool families!    Today I am grateful to b...

When I turned 35 years old I distinctly remember feeling like it was no big deal. That was until I filled out a form that looked a lot like this.... What???? Because I aged one year I'm now lumped in with the fortysomethings?  I assumed though, that would be the biggest "pill" I'd have to swallow in my 35th year.  Well, I was wrong. This past year has had a lot of hard things but also a lot of good things. I've learned a lot about myself, about God, and about my deep, neverending need for Him. I've felt a great deal of pain physically and emotionally. I've endured rejection that changed how I view friendship and acceptance that reminded me that God's ways are better. I spent 3 months recovering from wisdom teeth removal which taught me patience and perseverance. I've began homeschooling 3 children at once and I've been learning so much from my children as their teacher and their mom.  I've stepped out in faith and began a h...