What We've Been Up To (and my prayer request)

So much has happened since I last blogged...

We moved!

We found out we are having our third child!

We celebrated 10 years of marriage!

Trip to Grove Park Inn- Asheville

We have an upcoming Kindergartener! 😢 

I started selling Norwex home products. 

Ben got a promotion at work!

Camping trip last weekend. He's such a great Daddy!

God has been just pouring out His grace on us. 

But, if I'm honest with you, I'll tell you that I have not been enjoying those blessings like I should. I have not been grateful or worshipful. I have not even been as joyful as I should. 

Feeling like a narcoleptic and like I could throw up at any moment for the first two months of the pregnancy has been a major contributor to my unjoyfulness. 

I've never had trouble getting out of bed in the morning, but I have struggled these last few months. I haven't been meal planning because nothing sounds good, and I can't find the motivation to clean the kitchen anyway. Many things have just fallen to the wayside- including my morning quiet time spent reading my Bible. I must also admit that I realize this is probably the first step I need to take in getting back my joy. It's time for me to make that a priority again. 

Please pray for me that I will find my joy and zeal for the Lord again. "The Lord is my strength and shield. I trust him with all my heart. He helps me and my heart is filled with joy." Psalm 28:7

I am amazed at how even when I've been ignoring Jesus, He doesn't leave me on my own. 

Have you ever been ignorant to God's blessings in your life? Did you find your blind spot?

Thankful Thursday

Today I'm thankful for coffee. I wonder if I could function without my morning cup? Isn't that canvas cute?! My sister made it!

I'm thankful for sisters, biological and in-Christ. I had such a great time at our exercise class at church last night. It is always so uplifting to be there no matter what kind of day I have been having.

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 says, "Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks. For this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."

What are you thankful for today?

I Haven't Been Hiding

January. 

That was when I last wrote. 

It's been a whirlwind of a first quarter of a year. 

I got the flu on January 8, developed bronchitis two weeks after onset of the flu, somehow planned and pulled off our third annual Couple's Night dinner at church on February 12, then left for New York City the next day with my Valentine, Ben. 

I turned 30 during an ice storm on February 18. 

We got an offer on our house in early March and put in an offer on a house a week later. 

We had a church conference on March 13-14, then another PEP Moms meeting on March 20. We made the adorable succulent mason jars: 

Ben and I have also been taking ballroom dancing on Thursday nights for the last six weeks. It has been so much fun!

I was able to go out on a Mom's Day Out with my sister and friend, Sarah to see Cinderella and get coffee. It was so much fun!

This month, I started getting sick again, and the day before Easter, my eardrum ruptured! I'm on the mend now, and still managed to have an enjoyable Easter Sunday despite being in pain. There is not a more joyous day in my Christian life than the Sunday that we celebrate Jesus's resurrection!

This week, we got to go to the aquarium with friends and a playday with Nana. 

And now the packing has begun. My house is full of boxes- some already packed, but most are empty at the moment. I have realized something about myself that I did not know before: I do not like the smell of cardboard! 

Here's my living room:

It's been a fun first quarter of 2015, but I hope to be more intentional about personal reflection and spiritual introspection in the rest of the year. I need a good book to read that will help me grow. I'm thinking about re-reading The Pursuit of God by A.W. Tozer. 

I may not write again until we get settled in the new house, but I'd like to share a new recipe that I've been working on.

Vegan Peanut Butter (PB2) Banana Walnut Muffins

2-3 ripe bananas

1/2 unsweetened applesauce

2 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 cup agave nectar

2 cups flour (I prefer whole wheat pastry flour)

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1 tbsp PB2

1/4-1/3 cup chopped walnuts

Heat oven to 350°. 

Grease a six muffin tin.

Combine wet ingredients in a mixing bowl.

Dump dry ingredients on top of the wet ingredients, and combine gently without over-stirring. 

Fill each tin almost full. (These are BIG muffins!)

Bake 15-20 minutes.  

Thanks for stopping by and checking in. I promise to try and be more regular in posting. 

A Hug From God

As a stay-at-home-mom, I am sometimes prone to feeling isolated, lonely, separated from the "real world." When Ben and I decided that I would not work full-time once children came along, I had no idea how emotionally exhausting it would be hanging out with little ones all day. There are so many moments when I could just use a hug, and hear "It's going to be okay."

If you are a parent, you know what I'm talking about. So many different situations arise at every level of your child's development that affect the parents emotionally. I won't even try to make a list of scenarios that I've experienced  personally that have left me feeling helpless, alone, and like I'm the only one going through it. But what I do want to share with you is how God has made himself even more real to me as a result of being a parent and stay-at-home-mom, and how over and over again He wraps His arms around me in a great big hug!

The Bible,which I believe is 100% true and without error, promises us that we can give all of our cares to God because he cares for us. (1 Peter 5:7) Before I became a mom, I was aware of this truth in scripture, but it has come to mean so much more to me. When my children are testing me with their behavior, and not showing progress; when my son is struggling emotionally; when the two of them seem like they will never get along, and I just want someone to talk to, God is there. He cares. He loves me. Some translations call cares "anxieties." And I don't care who you are or what your lot in life is, I'm sure you have anxieties.  

I can pause anywhere at any time, and tell Him about my worries and troubles. Isn't that just like a big hug from God?!

Do you have any favorite verses that bring you comfort? (There are so many throughout the Bible!)

Goal-Setting for 2015

I have mentioned a few times how I need to write things in order to remember them. Things like appointments & meetings, social commitments, grocery lists and meal plans, marathon training plans, and etc. would dissolve in my brain never to be remembered if I did not write them down! So when I recently read a blog about writing down goals for the new year as a family, I was inspired to do just that. 

The categories that we came up with are "personal," "family," "household," and "travel." I will not be disclosing our entire list to you, in case you had started drooling over an opportunity to get a bit of "dirt" on us! 😜 However I do want to share a few things on our want-to-accomplish in 2015 list. 

In the personal category for me, I listed:

• find my joy and contentment in Christ (see yesterday's post)
• Write (blog and journal) more
• Read more
• Less phone; more face

In the family category:

• Read the Bible with the kids more
• Pray with Ben more
• Lottie's letter recognition
• Rush's handwriting and reading

For the household list:

• Replace carpet in main living area 
• De-clutter several cabinets and closets
• Organize the garage
• Paint the master bedroom

Travel:

• Go back to NYC (to celebrate my 30th birthday in February!)
• Start saving for a 2016 Disney trip

Writing down year-long goals is definitely new for our family. But I can already tell that I feel more ready to tackle, prepare, and plan the carrying out of these things, simply because I wrote them down and discussed them with Ben. 

I'm excited about 2015! I pray that you are too. 

Do you write down goals?

A Different Kind of Resolution

A new year; a fresh start; a clean slate. Such hope and potential in these phrases. 

Most new year's resolutions are for keeping up appearances: healthy eating, exercise more, lose "x" pounds, clear the clutter. Those are all good, and I would never tell someone not to set such a goal. But in 2015, I want something that goes deeper.

I feel a longing in my soul to be transformed on the inside. To truly let the joy of The Lord be my strength in every circumstance (Nehemiah 8:10). To fend off the temptation to conform to this world's standards (Romans 12:2), and to strive for contentment (1Timothy 6:6) knowing that in all things, God will be working for my good (Romans 8:28). 

What makes these changes different from the typical New Year's resolution is 1. It is something that I hope to strive for every day for the rest of my life. I don't want to just be content in my current and near-future status; I pray that I will always be able to give thanks in all circumstances! (1 Thessalonians 5:-17) And 2. It's not only in my control. I have a helper, The Holy Spirit, to guide my heart and mind. If I am going to be able to resist the temptations of materialism, discontentment, etc., I need to arm myself with supernatural strength. I can exercise and build my spiritual muscles by studying and memorizing God's Word (The Bible), and by repenting of my sins daily and resting and trusting in The Lord (Isaiah 30:15). 

I hope that you take advantage of the opportunity that a new year brings. Whether your goals are physical, spiritual, organizational, financial- whatever- I pray that you will allow the joy of The Lord to be your source of strength, and that you will be content with what you do have and strive to honor God in it.

Source

I can't wait to see what happens in 2015!

Happy New Year!!!