Today I just want to take a minute to reflect on some things that make me happy.
First, my children and the things they say/do that make me smile daily.
Noah: His sweet sweet spirit and kind heart...makes me teary-eyed just typing it.
He is such a good big brother, a natural care-taker, and my special little helper.
He is REALLY into cleaning lately, he says he loves it. Wow, seriously, all those lessons of cleaning up are finally taking shape. He has my way too, everything orderly and symmetrical. lol (FYI, I am not a cleaning nazi by any means, but we do ask them to pick up before bed and after they make BIG, can't see the floor, messes!)
He calls his magazines, "magic-zines". Maybe I should correct him, but I love it, so until he realizes the correct way to say it, I am going to enjoy hearing him say it.
He is SO excited about his birthday....10 more sleeps! I can't believe my little buddy is about to be five.
He's a blessing, a miracle, and I could just stare at him all day.
Elijah: Wow, Mr. Personality. He is so so funny. Almost something that has to be seen, he is his father's son for sure!
He is talking so much, new favorite sentence: "I don't want to." lol
He is obsessed with wearing pajama bottoms all day long. I have to hide the dirty ones and just pray he'll accept the clean ones, but sometimes it's a battle.
He LOVES The Wiggles, and I find their catchy tunes invading my brain space way too often. Fruit salad, yummy, yummy.
His stubbornness is often a challenge, but my days are much brighter because his amazing personality and physical affection outweigh any challenging component of the "terrific two's."
Ava Mae: My sweet sweet ladybug. She is such a happy girl. Her smile is THE BEST! And very contagious, you can't help but smile with your whole face when she looks at you.
She is a little snorter...she snorts when she's happy, mad, or hungry. My little piglet.
She just wants to be held. All.The.Time. I am happy to honor her request even if it makes me appear lazy.
She is really into eating her toes. The other night, I laid her down and before I got back with her pacifier, she had already put her toe in her mouth, still asleep. If I had only had my camera!
She's beautiful, perfect, and everyday I am so glad I have a baby to love on.
And last but not least, my husband. He's amazing, kind, and the best help mate I could ever ask for. We are dreaming together...an exciting chapter of life is emerging. We are growing together...in love and in faith. Life gets hectic at times, but our hearts are always connected. We balance each other out so well. God couldn't have done a better job pairing us up. We are alike in the important ways and different in the important ways. Sometimes in the mundane tasks of life, it seems hard to spend the quality time together that we'd like to, but we are learning to savor each moment in this wonderful journey together. The crazy nights of being woken up by crying children, the constant battle of keeping a clean home, the demands of feeding, clothing, and nurturing, are all overcome at the end of the day with a constant appreciation of how blessed we are. Jason makes my life full of love and laughter, what more could I ask for?
We are so thankful for this life, it is wonderful. We have an awesome little family, and feel so so loved by our heavenly Father. I celebrate my family, my home, and the life I have been blessed with today. I truly believe this home is an image of heaven, and I am so happy that I can see past the everyday tasks of life and into the eternal realm, where love is all we need. Go give your family a big hug!
Friday, October 1, 2010
Monday, August 30, 2010
Perfect Peace
"Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." John 14:27
My heart hurts. For a number of reasons. For myself, my children, my family, my friends, the world. Even though I had a wonderful time on vacation, a lot of it was spent praying and seeking wisdom for so many things going on right now all around me. I have many things that make me happy and I am extremely aware and focused on those things, but I cannot ignore the numerous heart issues that I am facing right now. I won't go into detail because that doesn't matter, and this goes much deeper than what is on the surface, the personal matters that I have faced with people I love. No, those things have been settled and I have peace. They were a part of the journey, but there is a much deeper grief I am facing right now. At at time when God's presence is so strong and all around me, putting the answers IN MY FACE, thank you Lord, I felt like sharing some scripture that has helped me during this time. Because this world is not an easy place to live in and during these times, we MUST seek Him to overcome victorious in truth and peace.
"Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee." Isa. 26:3
That is so powerful, perfect peace, that is where I want to rest and that is my prayer for all. But we must seek Him to receive this true, unshakable wisdom. It is not in our power to be able to receive this wisdom from any other method, it will only be temporary. My prayer for myself and for anyone reading this and suffering heart struggles right now for any reason, is to rest in Him, cast your care upon Him, He is the ONLY rescue, nothing else will be permanent, nothing. He is faithful to give you the answers you seek. Always LOVE, Always PEACE, Always!
So while I am heavy hearted and physically feel grieved for many things right now, I am casting all my cares upon Him and seeking the wisdom to know His will for me concerning these issues. I know He will show me truth, answers, mercy, grace, peace, strength, wisdom, because that is who He is...never failing! Thank you Jesus for you have given me all these things, you perfected it all, and I receive it through you alone.
"Casting all your care upon Him; for He cares for you." 1 Peter 5:7
"There is no pit so deep that God’s love is not deeper still." Corrie and Betsie Ten Boom
Monday, August 23, 2010
Blogging at the Beach, Volume 3
Wednesday morning, I awoke feeling pretty shabby. I am pretty sure it is allergies, what a bummer! But I was really excited about the boys getting to go on their pirate adventure with their Dad. We had a quick breakfast at the condo and headed to Harbour Town. Jason, Noah, and Elijah got all geared up in pirate attire and set sail into the harbour at noon. Ava and I did a little shopping, staying inside as much as possible because it was HOT! She was a sweetheart and slept the whole time I browsed. The best find was in the Hatley store...matching pajamas for Ava and I!!! :) They are so cute...I will have to insert a picture once we wear them together. Every stay at home mom can appreciate good pajamas...we wear them most of the day!!
The boys got back from the pirate cruise about an hour and a half later. Elijah got to drive the boat, if they only knew how much trouble this little guy can get into! lol During their hunt for treasure, they encounter the bad pirate "Stinky Pete", who approaches on a little boat. They get to spray him with water cannons and he goes overboard, Noah loved that! Then they discover the treasure chest, which was actually under the water out in the ocean, how cool! The boys got to pick out their treasure to keep. Noah had 5 gold pirate coins and some sea creatures. He was really excited to tell me all about it. Jason was very impressed with the operation and said the guys running the show were great with the kids.
Since it was so hot and everyone was ready for lunch, we braved the eating out world again and had great success this round. YAY!! We ate at a place called The Crazy Crab, very neat little restaurant and good food. The boys played at the playground for a few minutes while I fed Ava and we headed back to the condo for nap time. By this time, my allergy/cold issue was really making me feel yucky, so I laid down myself and slept the rest of the afternoon with Ava.
After Eli woke up, Jason and the boys headed to the beach for some fun. They got to be 100% boys without Mama bird in sight. Jason got some great exercise since they went pretty far down the beach with the bike. They got all yucky and wild. lol I am so glad that they got to spend this precious time with their Dad. He is such an awesome father and I feel so blessed to have him.
Ava and I woke up around 8 p.m.! Since it was past dinner time, we went the pizza route again to make things easier. After baths and popcorn, the boys fell asleep with Jason. I watched a movie, ate a big bowl of fruit, and laid in bed until I fell asleep again, praying I'd wake up feeling much better.
Jason got up early and took some nature and sunrise photos.
I didn't sleep that great, but I was really excited that it was my spa day! I got up, ate some more fruit, and headed off to my appointment. It started with a really awesome facial. It was about a 45 minute ordeal with a shoulder and arm massage. I could have laid there all day, it was so relaxing and my skin felt great. Then I got a pedicure with a reflexology session. This was kind of a step up from the normal pedicures I've gotten before. Super nice massage chair, relaxing music on my headphones, and a very professional nice lady pampering me. Reflexology was very neat, I enjoyed it a lot. It does really trigger a state of relaxation, and that felt really nice. I actually broke away from wondering if the baby was okay for about 30 minutes, and that is not easy to do with a three month old.
Jason did great back at the condo with the kiddos. Ava was ready to eat for sure when I got back! She giggled when she saw me and it was so sweet, even if she was glad her food source had returned. We loaded up and headed out to the Hilton Head Brewery, per Jason's request. He has been brewing his own beer for the past year and wanted to check out the local beers. The food was really good too, and it was again a fairly successful experience. We learned to order fast and give Elijah the table "breaks" he needs. We still have to eat really quick, but that's part of it for now. :)
We were planning on going back to Harbour Town to see a local children's musician do a show, but my annoying allergy issue was in full effect and we headed back to the condo to get some rest. Jason took the boys swimming at the pool for a while and I spent some time working on the blog in bed with sleeping Ava. I was really bummed that we didn't get a chance to get beach pictures, but hoped to do that Friday evening.
Friday morning, I awoke feeling a lot better, praise God! I was so glad that I was going to be able to enjoy my last day of vacation. Jason got up early again and brought back breakfast from Signey's. We loved this place on our last visit, the blueberry and blackberry french toast casserole is amazing. It is a hidden little place, but was featured on Rachel Ray's $40 A Day show and we happened to see it before our last trip here. After breakfast, we all got ready and headed to The Sandbox Children's Museum. I think this was definitely a huge highlight of our trip. It is the neatest little place for children. Jason and I had a blast too. :) It is set up to be very interactive and the boys had so much fun. Noah's favorite part was the train table and Thomas Cards, of course. Elijah LOVED the airplane set up, we may have a future pilot on our hands. Ava looked cute having a tea party. We played for over 2 hours there and had it not been lunch time and nap time, I would have stayed a lot longer! Noah was very pouty because he made a friend and was having so much fun with her. She had the best imagination and he was following her every move. So cute! I wish this place was accessible all the time, it was so neat.
We had lunch at Panera Bread via the drive-thru, so we could eat at the condo. Elijah had already fallen asleep by this point. We ate our lunch and while little man slept, then Noah and I headed for a bike ride to the beach. I was really excited to spend time with him, he is such an amazing little boy. Unfortunately, the rain had other plans. We made it to the beach and it got really dark and started thundering. :-( We played in the ocean for about 5 minutes and rode the bike back. We were so bummed, but it was still fun taking a solo bike ride with my little buddy.
We showered and waited for the storm to settle a bit. I realized that beach pictures were not happening tonight, guess we'll be working on those back home. It was still raining on and off, but we decided to see if the children's music show was going on. We saw this guy last time and he was awesome, so we were really hoping to catch his show again since it is a nightly event in Harbour Town. Unfortunately, he had to cancel the show due to lightening. Another rain bummer. :( But we decided to do what we do best, and brave the dining out experience again. Another good experience, woo hoo! We ate at Wild Wings Cafe since Jason loves wings. Pretty good food but pretty loud atmosphere so thankfully they were fairly quick with our order before Elijah and Ava got too overstimulated. Noah is always an angel, my little sweetheart is such a good boy. All of them are good, but age makes all the difference in their patience meter! lol
We headed back to the condo and started packing for our morning departure. My crazy husband suggested just taking off that night, but the more sensible side of our relationship, me, knew that would be certain chaos. Gotta love his spontaneous spirit, but my spirit of discernment trumped this crazy idea! lol So we got most everything packed and went to bed. I think we all fell asleep in about 5 minutes. I slept really good and was thankful I didn't go along with Jason's crazy idea!
We woke up Saturday, ate breakfast and packed up the van to head back to home sweet home. The two little ones slept the first few hours. Jason and I talked and had an amazing revelation moment, again, God brought us confirmation about an issue in the neatest way! He seems to love to minister to us while we are on wheels, ha ha, maybe we need to wear roller skates all the time! LOL!! The funniest part of the trip home was that I had to pay 50 cents to use the bathroom! Yes, you read right, in Georgia there was a country gas station that requested a donation to go potty! It was hilarious telling Jason I needed 2 quarters to pay to use the restroom. We got a good laugh out of this place:
There were some patches of rain here and there, but the sky was absolutely gorgeous. I took a few pictures from the inside of the van, but these pictures do no justice for the view we experienced. Truly stunning skies.
The ride for the kids was pretty good up until the last leg of the trip. Ava and Elijah were over being in the car and whined pretty much the whole last 2 hours. Shew, that is always the longest part of the trip. I was wishing I knew how to teleport them to the house, because nothing was helping at this point.
The boys were really wanting to go see Pa and Nanny, but Elijah had fallen asleep about 20 minutes before we got home, so we decided to wait until today to reunite with the beloved grandparents. These grandkids are so blessed, they are so loved, and love their Pa and Nanny so much. They asked several times daily to go see them, and I know it makes my Daddy and Mama smile to feel so loved. :)
So we learned a lot of lessons on this wonderful family vacation. Jason learned that life with three young kids sun up to sun down is sometimes challenging, my reply was "welcome to my world honey." lol We learned that eating out is a "bonus" to life right now, sometimes a good one, sometimes not so good. We learned that this season of life is so precious, these babies are teaching us so many good things. Getting away from the distractions of life helps put things into perspective. This trip was a bit crazy at times, went by way too fast, but was much needed for all of us. I am so happy to share all of these memories with you. I feel refreshed, reconnected, and excited about life. Vacations seem to be a little piece of heaven here on earth. Hope you get to go on one real soon.
The boys got back from the pirate cruise about an hour and a half later. Elijah got to drive the boat, if they only knew how much trouble this little guy can get into! lol During their hunt for treasure, they encounter the bad pirate "Stinky Pete", who approaches on a little boat. They get to spray him with water cannons and he goes overboard, Noah loved that! Then they discover the treasure chest, which was actually under the water out in the ocean, how cool! The boys got to pick out their treasure to keep. Noah had 5 gold pirate coins and some sea creatures. He was really excited to tell me all about it. Jason was very impressed with the operation and said the guys running the show were great with the kids.
Since it was so hot and everyone was ready for lunch, we braved the eating out world again and had great success this round. YAY!! We ate at a place called The Crazy Crab, very neat little restaurant and good food. The boys played at the playground for a few minutes while I fed Ava and we headed back to the condo for nap time. By this time, my allergy/cold issue was really making me feel yucky, so I laid down myself and slept the rest of the afternoon with Ava.
After Eli woke up, Jason and the boys headed to the beach for some fun. They got to be 100% boys without Mama bird in sight. Jason got some great exercise since they went pretty far down the beach with the bike. They got all yucky and wild. lol I am so glad that they got to spend this precious time with their Dad. He is such an awesome father and I feel so blessed to have him.
Ava and I woke up around 8 p.m.! Since it was past dinner time, we went the pizza route again to make things easier. After baths and popcorn, the boys fell asleep with Jason. I watched a movie, ate a big bowl of fruit, and laid in bed until I fell asleep again, praying I'd wake up feeling much better.
Jason got up early and took some nature and sunrise photos.
I didn't sleep that great, but I was really excited that it was my spa day! I got up, ate some more fruit, and headed off to my appointment. It started with a really awesome facial. It was about a 45 minute ordeal with a shoulder and arm massage. I could have laid there all day, it was so relaxing and my skin felt great. Then I got a pedicure with a reflexology session. This was kind of a step up from the normal pedicures I've gotten before. Super nice massage chair, relaxing music on my headphones, and a very professional nice lady pampering me. Reflexology was very neat, I enjoyed it a lot. It does really trigger a state of relaxation, and that felt really nice. I actually broke away from wondering if the baby was okay for about 30 minutes, and that is not easy to do with a three month old.
Jason did great back at the condo with the kiddos. Ava was ready to eat for sure when I got back! She giggled when she saw me and it was so sweet, even if she was glad her food source had returned. We loaded up and headed out to the Hilton Head Brewery, per Jason's request. He has been brewing his own beer for the past year and wanted to check out the local beers. The food was really good too, and it was again a fairly successful experience. We learned to order fast and give Elijah the table "breaks" he needs. We still have to eat really quick, but that's part of it for now. :)
We were planning on going back to Harbour Town to see a local children's musician do a show, but my annoying allergy issue was in full effect and we headed back to the condo to get some rest. Jason took the boys swimming at the pool for a while and I spent some time working on the blog in bed with sleeping Ava. I was really bummed that we didn't get a chance to get beach pictures, but hoped to do that Friday evening.
Friday morning, I awoke feeling a lot better, praise God! I was so glad that I was going to be able to enjoy my last day of vacation. Jason got up early again and brought back breakfast from Signey's. We loved this place on our last visit, the blueberry and blackberry french toast casserole is amazing. It is a hidden little place, but was featured on Rachel Ray's $40 A Day show and we happened to see it before our last trip here. After breakfast, we all got ready and headed to The Sandbox Children's Museum. I think this was definitely a huge highlight of our trip. It is the neatest little place for children. Jason and I had a blast too. :) It is set up to be very interactive and the boys had so much fun. Noah's favorite part was the train table and Thomas Cards, of course. Elijah LOVED the airplane set up, we may have a future pilot on our hands. Ava looked cute having a tea party. We played for over 2 hours there and had it not been lunch time and nap time, I would have stayed a lot longer! Noah was very pouty because he made a friend and was having so much fun with her. She had the best imagination and he was following her every move. So cute! I wish this place was accessible all the time, it was so neat.
We had lunch at Panera Bread via the drive-thru, so we could eat at the condo. Elijah had already fallen asleep by this point. We ate our lunch and while little man slept, then Noah and I headed for a bike ride to the beach. I was really excited to spend time with him, he is such an amazing little boy. Unfortunately, the rain had other plans. We made it to the beach and it got really dark and started thundering. :-( We played in the ocean for about 5 minutes and rode the bike back. We were so bummed, but it was still fun taking a solo bike ride with my little buddy.
We showered and waited for the storm to settle a bit. I realized that beach pictures were not happening tonight, guess we'll be working on those back home. It was still raining on and off, but we decided to see if the children's music show was going on. We saw this guy last time and he was awesome, so we were really hoping to catch his show again since it is a nightly event in Harbour Town. Unfortunately, he had to cancel the show due to lightening. Another rain bummer. :( But we decided to do what we do best, and brave the dining out experience again. Another good experience, woo hoo! We ate at Wild Wings Cafe since Jason loves wings. Pretty good food but pretty loud atmosphere so thankfully they were fairly quick with our order before Elijah and Ava got too overstimulated. Noah is always an angel, my little sweetheart is such a good boy. All of them are good, but age makes all the difference in their patience meter! lol
We headed back to the condo and started packing for our morning departure. My crazy husband suggested just taking off that night, but the more sensible side of our relationship, me, knew that would be certain chaos. Gotta love his spontaneous spirit, but my spirit of discernment trumped this crazy idea! lol So we got most everything packed and went to bed. I think we all fell asleep in about 5 minutes. I slept really good and was thankful I didn't go along with Jason's crazy idea!
There were some patches of rain here and there, but the sky was absolutely gorgeous. I took a few pictures from the inside of the van, but these pictures do no justice for the view we experienced. Truly stunning skies.
The ride for the kids was pretty good up until the last leg of the trip. Ava and Elijah were over being in the car and whined pretty much the whole last 2 hours. Shew, that is always the longest part of the trip. I was wishing I knew how to teleport them to the house, because nothing was helping at this point.
The boys were really wanting to go see Pa and Nanny, but Elijah had fallen asleep about 20 minutes before we got home, so we decided to wait until today to reunite with the beloved grandparents. These grandkids are so blessed, they are so loved, and love their Pa and Nanny so much. They asked several times daily to go see them, and I know it makes my Daddy and Mama smile to feel so loved. :)
So we learned a lot of lessons on this wonderful family vacation. Jason learned that life with three young kids sun up to sun down is sometimes challenging, my reply was "welcome to my world honey." lol We learned that eating out is a "bonus" to life right now, sometimes a good one, sometimes not so good. We learned that this season of life is so precious, these babies are teaching us so many good things. Getting away from the distractions of life helps put things into perspective. This trip was a bit crazy at times, went by way too fast, but was much needed for all of us. I am so happy to share all of these memories with you. I feel refreshed, reconnected, and excited about life. Vacations seem to be a little piece of heaven here on earth. Hope you get to go on one real soon.
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