Marks of the True Christian (ESV Bible)

Romans 12: 9-21

Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good.
Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor.
Do not be slothful in zeal, but be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord.
Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.
Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality.
Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them.
Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep.
Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly. Never be wise in your own sight.
Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all.
If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.
Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, "Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord."
To the contrary, "if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head."
Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

Looks like I have a LOT to work on . . .

Love Syrup

Bill went grocery shopping for me (as he often does) and was informed of some seriously dire news. Now, I know not how reliable the Wal-mart stock boy is :) but he informed Bill that Toranni (the company that makes wonderful coffee syrup) is going out of business. Regardless of whether or not this is true is certainly not the point of my story. The point is, upon hearing this news, my Sweetie took pity on me and bought six bottles of the carmel flavored syrup!

It must be love:)

Enjoying Everything

Someday I'm going to miss picking up Cherios from every nook and cranny. And someday I'm going to definitely miss wiping down the toilet seat, floor, and walls every day because someone's aim isn't quite perfect. And who really needs all the potholders, dish towels, and measuring cups in drawers? I'm sure I'll miss wiping runny noses and making meals that no one appreciates. Someday I'm going to miss walking through the grocery store all by myself. Scheduling activities around nap times and having to decline grown-up time because one of the little loves woke up with green boogers and a cough. Someday I'll miss getting up at night to answer the cries. There will come a day when I'm going to miss supervising teeth brushing and reading the same three books over and over. I don't mind tripping over toys and wiping up spills, someday I will miss that too. Someday I will miss ironing those little man shirts and mini cotton dresses. Someday we won't need a carpet cleaner to visit quite so often. Someday I am going to miss folding little loads of pink and blue, and folding all those beautiful, little, foofy blankies is such a treat. Someday I'm going to miss all the giggling and screeching and definitely all the pitter -patter. Someday I'm going to miss all the hugs and kisses and every day "I love yous." Someday I'll miss kissing little cheeks good night and all the joy children have in the morning (without coffee)! Someday I'll miss all the adorable little nonsense conversations we have. I do so love being a mommy and I'll take the good, the stinky, the monotonous, the annoying, and the beautiful and call every moment perfect. Someday these little loves will grow up and move out (which is what we are training them to do). So today I'm going to be thankful and treasure each moment.

Hugs and kisses Ike and Baby Cakes! I'm so in love with you.

Monday Bag

I'm always looking for new ideas on how to express love to my family and make memories. Recently, I was inspired in the most unlikely of places -- in Target, filling up my shopping cart with Easter treats for the wee ones. I kept coming across a lot of Bill's favorite treats as well. Hmm, thinks I. And a light bulb started flashing above my head -- which with my Mommy brain, that light bulb doesn't flash very often! So into the cart goes the honey mustard pretzels, the sweedish fish, and Peeps. And voila! I've stumbled across a new tradition: the kids and I will go shopping once a month (or there about) and get a few special treats for Daddy. We'll put it in a special bag with a special love note and sneak it into the passenger seat of Bill's car. Keeping in line with the title of this post, our special gift will appear on occasional Mondays (to make that first day back to work a little sweeter)!

Love is an Act

My Bill looked at me as we were driving in the truck (some of the best conversations are while driving) and asked me, "Isn't it amazing that we aren't asked to love God, but we are commanded to love God? He has been reading the book of Mark recently and it has brought up some very interesting subject matter.

Bill's question quickly sent me back to over four years ago when my Dad was dying. About a month before his death, my sister Michelle and I were talking to him and my Dad wept and told us, "Love the Lord with all your heart -- nothing else matters." It was the last of our "real" conversations with him as he was quickly dying.

After he died, I have to admit that I didn't love the Lord with all my heart. I wasn't trying to and I didn't know how to. However, after hearing a service in which the pastor encouraged/pleaded with the congregation to READ the Bible so we could fall in love with the Lord I was hit on the head with exactly how to LOVE. So I started reading (from the beginning) and have to say, I was terrified and fearful of the power of God! I told Bill I would never read the Old Testament again (so similar to all the headlines in the news today which I do like to read either). Okay, I probably will read it again, but it was quite a bit more intense than I expected.

So move on over to the New Testament and you'll find more brutality and human cruelty. However, move over to the ever popular 1 Corinthians 13 and you'll find HOW to love spelled out quite clearly. Read it. It's something that I've heard all throughout my life, but now know that I am "nothing" if I do not have love. Love is just a word, but love spelled out and made into an action verb is quite different.

Well, I don't mean to preach. I am flawed. Quite imperfect (anyone will tell you that). But I do love and love deeply (though never perfectly)! I hope that by writing this, you'll pursue love along with me. How wonderful to love the Lord, your husband, your children, your family, your neighbor with actions and not just words. I can't command you to do this, but God does.

Thank you, my Bill, for challenging me and conversing with me. It's so nice to have someone to learn alongside and grow with.

Story Time

Love Those Little Ones!

There are no gifts in life quite as wonderful as the gift of new life. Maybe it's the soft cries, or the way a baby needs you so much, or maybe the fact that in one moment you are completely changed. How wonderful a gift to be given a child! How amazing the amount of love that grows in our hearts!

Our children came into our lives when God knew that we needed them the most. Sweet little Ike came into the world 65 days after we said goodbye to my father. He was a sweet gift of hope when our hearts were burdened with such deep sadness. I was in the room when my father took his last breath and I (of course) was there to hear the first breath of my baby boy. How much comfort and joy came from the breath of new life!

Bill and I found out we were pregnant in November 2006. All the excitement and joy we felt crumbled when the ultrasound revealed that our baby had no heartbeat. We were devastated and our hearts were broken. Yet in June 2007, God chose to reveal to us (two days before our fifth anniversary) that we would be having another baby. Now we are holding our precious baby Kate. Our hearts are indeed overflowing. And yes, they are healing.

No matter what age our "babies" are, they will always be our babies! Squeeze them and love them! Be patient and kind to them. Kiss them and encourage them! Life is the best gift. Cherish it.

Just Another Day in Paradise

Last night I passed Ike's room and peeked in to see if he had fallen asleep. He was indeed sleeping so I tip toed in and kissed his soft cheeks, stood there for a moment admiring my favorite boy, and reflected on how much fun we had throughout the day.

Ike is so sweet and thoughtful. Now that the sun is shining and everything is turning green, he scouts out the newest dandilion blossoms daily and proudly presents them to me. I always thank him excessively for the sweet gesture and we put them in a vase or bowl (depending if he got stems or not). I never knew these yellow flowers would brighten my day so much. From here on out every time I see a dandilion there will be a smile on my face as I reflect on how wonderful my sweet boy is.

Holding Kate is something Isaac really likes to do. However, since I am breastfeeding, Ike has a fear that when Kate leans into him she is going to eat him. He panics a little bit and wants me to hold her instead. If she has her "finky" in her mouth then he's okay;)

Our little Kate is two months old. She's now cooing and often sharing her sweet smile with us. Of course we are like every other parent in this department -- proud and delighted. She is just a bundle of joy and comfort. There is nothing like the innocence of a child and holding a baby close brings the most peace a human heart could ever know. We are just bursting at the seams with love for our dear little ones!

Jammie Ride!

It's official! We had our very first "jammie ride" last night!

Bill tucked Ike in bed around 7:00 while at the Brooks' household they were doing the same thing with Ike's cousin, Kailey (jammie rides are lots of fun if cousins are involved). A few minutes later Bill and I stood in front of Ike's door to find him playing under his covers so he didn't see us right away. When he finally surfaced from the covers, we excitedly annouced, "Jammie Ride!" He looked at us with delight sparkling in his eyes, yet not knowing exactly what sort of adventure he was in for. Hey! He was happy just to be able to get out of bed! He was all smiles and laughter, as we piled our little family into the truck.

The drive to Dairy Queen was a long one for a little boy awaiting the unknown! Once we arrived and announced we were having ice cream, he giggled and instantly chose strawberry. We didn't stop there with the surprise though. It just so happens that Great Grandma June's house is very close to our ice cream stop so we headed over for a visit with her. Not only was Grandma there, but cousin Kailey, Aunt Michelle and Uncle Jeff were there with their jammie ride desserts. We all sat around and ate ice cream and the kids got to stay up a little later to play.

We can't wait for another jammie ride. They are too much fun!

It's Delightful!

For those of you who have kids, you'll understand what I am about to say. For those of you who don't have kids, I am going to tell you what you have to look forward to!

When I was expecting my first child, I had no idea what I was in for. I had no idea how overwhelmed with love I would be -- not just for my new son, but for my husband. Watching the man you love adore your little ones is one of the most precious gifts in life. I often find myself smiling as I watch him talk softly and sweetly to our children. I love the way he notices when Ike needs some father and son time. I adore how loving he is with them. He's such a gentle husband and an adoring dad.

Filling up the Gas Tank

My Dad and I were always friends. Some of my first memories are of he and I playing silly childhood games together. He had such patience as children can play the same games over and over and never get bored . . . he never seemed to mind.

When I got a little older, I remember him often taking me to the gas station to fill up his work van with gas (he was a carpet cleaner so he often had to fill the tank at the end of the day so he was prepared for the next work day). As a small child, I loved going for the treat he'd buy for me (I usually chose gum), but as a teenager I went because I loved the conversations we would have. He would listen to me and my ridiculous opinions -- sometimes he would smile, sometimes he would agree, and sometimes he would share his own insight. No matter what, he would never laugh or scoff at my foolish teenage babbling. I was safe to tell him anything and everything. He would always try to understand; he never once made me feel young and dumb which I am sure I often was.

The strong and trusting parent and child relationship I had with my Dad started very young. Although I get busy, I try to remember how my Dad treated me and took time for me. I always want to be there for my kids like he was there for me. He gave me such a great example of parenting. He may have just been filling up his gas tank, but to me it was so much more than that.

Now I am twenty-six and I am sure that if my Dad were still on earth, I would be just as excited to go on rides to the gas station with him (probably more excited). I sure do miss sharing my thoughts with him and listening to his wise advice . . . but most of all, I sure do miss my friend.