MOPS Serving

Our fantastic craft coordinator at MOPS has done it again, a really great project, but I could not leave at that, I came home and kept going. I am pleased with the final outcome now, so here's the big reveal! What was once an unfinished wooden tray is now a stained, wallpapered, and hand-painted, well, tray! There are a few things that always catch my attention, they are leopard print, cherries, Eiffel towers, and monogrammed stuff (even cheap crap looks expensive when you monogram it!)! So, I was drawn to the wallpaper that looked like it had little cherries on it, and it "became".
Ethan wanted to know what it was for, so I told him what we learned about serving others, and he asked if the tray was for us to use, when I told him yes, he said,
"Good, cause I'm gonna be sick tomorrow, my throat is gonna be sore (pause) and my scab is gonna fall off, (pause) and I will have a fever (pause) and a stuffy nose!"
"Sounds bad!", I said.
"Yeah, so you can bring me breakfast in bed then!", he said with a grin!
When I was getting out my paints, I saw this little plaque that I got at the Dollar Store and I had primed it but never painted anything on it. So it "became" too! I saw the idea in a magazine and thought, I am not about to pay 20 whatever dollars for that, I can make it! So, I did! I even put some cherries on it, which is the theme I have going in my laundry room, it is actually leopard and cherries, I know that sounds a little strange, but I LOVE it, and it really works. It goes really good with the clock I painted cherries on.Ethan needed to paint too, so he gave his log cabin (out of craft sticks) a paint job too, we just happily painted the afternoon away while Zach snoozed. We really had fun, Ethan got to use the paints that he drools over every time I get them out, I got to let the creative juices flow, all was right in our world!

Teaching God's Love

I have been trying my best to be very sensitive to God's voice in my life, and I believe I heard Him loud and clear the other day, and at the risk of weird looks and possible embarrassment, I did exactly what He said.
I am teaching Ethan about God's love and showing kindness to others by using a gift to show the worth of a person. Tuesday morning it was a whopping 17 degrees out by 8 am and we were running AHEAD of time, that doesn't happen very often. None the less, we were, after dropping Grace at school we drove by a bus stop where there were several people, freezing, waiting on the bus, that's when I heard Him, I stopped at the gas station on the corner and bought four cappuccinos, and then told Ethan, we were going to find four people waiting for the bus or walking down the street and give each of them one of these hot drinks. Ethan thought this was crazy and asked why, of course, and then I got to explain how God's us and how we can show God's love to others by being kind and giving them a gift and today our gift was something to warm them up. Then of course, how would we give it to them, what would we say and so on.
The first person we saw walking down the street was a guy in his early twenties and I park in the parking lot next to him and ask him if I could give him something, I left the truck door open so that Ethan could hear what I said, I told him that my son and I wanted to help warm him up a little and tell him that God loves him. Of course I got the standard, "Are you nuts?" look, but he accepted and Ethan was thrilled!
Off to find our next recipient, a woman in her mid thirties, waiting for a bus, she was surprised, and accepted with a smile, Ethan was so happy and by now was bouncing up and down in the backseat anxious to find someone else in the cold!
Around the corner, we did! A young guy maybe 18, we stopped and told him what we were doing and wanted him to know that God loves him. Such a big smile came across his face, and he watched us drive off, waving to Ethan as we went, we turned the corner again and he was still smiling, Ethan was so happy and told me that "God's love really made that guy happy, did you see his smile, Mommy?" Seriously, tears in my eyes, "yes, I saw, isn't that great how we can show God's love", I felt great success in this lesson I was trying to teach my son.
Off to find the fourth person, we say an gentleman in very worn clothes, in an old jacket walking, he was actually the first person we saw on that street walking, I stopped the car and got out to talk to him, but he was not receptive, and picked up his pace and kept walking. When I got in the car Ethan has questions, I was expecting them. I tried to explain the best I could why someone would not want a gift that was free, which also tied in nicely to talking about Jesus' free gift for us!
The last person we found was a woman who did not seem to speak very good English, she was probably more than 50 and was Asian, at best guess. She greeted me with a smile, and I explained the best I could, but I'm not sure that she understood more than, "God loves you", which was all we wanted really wanted her to know. Our mission was completed, Ethan was very pleased and I felt that I had taught him this lesson to the best of my ability.

Thank you, God for such a wonderful idea and for your perfect plan for our Tuesday morning, what a blessing to share with my son!

What's that white stuff?

Well, let me tell you, this is Kansas, and in Kansas we get to have ice storms in October, and 10-12 inches of snow in February! This is actually the first time that we took Zach outside just to enjoy the snow.
One of funny little things about Zach that we've discovered is that he LOVES the cold weather, snow especially. He likes the cold wind in his face, and to plant himself face first in the snow to eat it up! WEIRD!
So, while Ethan begs me to pray for warm weather (because God listens to me!), and Rob complains that he's cold, Zach is loving every minute! Well, at least someone is enjoying this crazy cold weather!

Interference

We have recognized the inference we have been experiencing in our family and God has told us in no uncertain terms to get rid of it. So, no more satellite, no cable, no rabbit ears, nothing! No, we aren't in the "stone ages", we have just recognized that our TV is pretty much the easiest way for Satan to invade our home, and we're having no more of it! It will no longer rob of us our of our time, we will live life on purpose, with a purpose! I'm excited, tonight, I dove into one of my creative realms, I made some cards for friends, I haven't done that in a long time. I got out my stamps and fancy paper, and I had such a good time, I forget sometimes how important it is even for Mommy to "color". It really got my creative juices flowing and I felt inspired to do other things around the house too! The kids really don't even seem to care so far, it was more of a distraction than an entertainment most of the time I think. Everyone of us is very creative, I'm anxious to see what comes out of this home now!

Anxious at eight-for nine!

Grace and I were doing, as she calls it (and I LOVE it!), her "Princess Lessons", and there was project that I just had to share! The "Princess Lessons" is actually a study we are doing that goes along with the book "The Princess and the Kiss", it is a beautiful story by Jennie Bishop and the study is written by her and Susan Henson (they even have a coloring book that goes along with it). It is life lessons on purity, it is a story book that you could start reading to your daughter very young and then when she was about eight or so start the lessons (but really, if you started later with an older girl, I think she'd still gain a lot from it). Grace really is enjoying this time we are sharing together and I think she is learning a lot too.

One project suggested in the book was a little heart shaped pocket that she wrote Psalms 56:3 ("Whenever I am afraid, I will trust in You"), and on little pieces of paper she wrote down things that she is anxious or worried about, illustrating that God loves her and that His love is powerful. Aren't you curious what an eight year old is anxious about? She got the worry part , but she had the wrong meaning of anxious, here's what I mean; "I worry that I won't get into college," (good girl!) " I worry that Ethan won't get into heaven" (he is kinda naughty sometimes!) and here's the anxiousness, "I'm anxious of my birthday coming!" I think she's gonna be okay!

ER

Last night was a tough night for Rob, well me too, but really bad for Rob. He was up every hour coughing and with fevers coming and going. Yep, the flu, but then this morning, things got more serious, he was dizzy and felt like he was going to pass out-not good. I will spare you the gross details of the next few hours and just say that then with chest pains and not being able to breath, we were calling Grandma to come stay with our still sleepy babes. Of course by the time Grandma got here everyone was up and going and the two little boys went with us to the ER and the two older one were taken to school by Grandma. It took one look at Rob hooked up to a bunch of tube and all sorts of beeping machines that I decided that the boys were not going to be there anymore, another emergency call to a friend that came from their house up the street to get the boys. Once they were in a utopia of toys without a care in the world, I focused all my energy on the love of my life in a hospital bed. Very scary. All tests came back negative, except, the Influenza type A. It is really bad, but he's gonna live.