Walking in the Shadows

*I’ve been trying to write this post for a week, and I just can’t seem to get the words out of my head and onto the screen. There are times in our life when the feelings are just to raw to make them sound pretty or correct, there are times when you just have to get them out. That is my disclaimer for this post.   Can you go 10 whole days without praise? I think you can, I think I did. Can you be thankful but not praiseful? The week of surgery, I was prepared, at peace and even excited about it. The Lord had given me great peace and I truly had no fear. I thought what a great opportunity surgery would be for me to practice my praise. I finished Ann Voskamp’s One Thousand Gifts and was well on my way to recording my own personal One Thousand Gifts. I packed my little notebook along with my things for the hospital and was ready, like I was about to embark on a great adventure. Surgery went well, even with a little complication, and I was so happy to have the w...

Last week I went for Pre-Op and my final visit with the doctor. Can you believe they want me at the hospital by 5:30 AM??? Me, with no coffee, has to leave my house at 5:00 AM to arrive to the hospital by 5:30 AM. Just pray for my hubby, as I am sure he'll need it. If you know me at all, I am not such a sweet person early in the morning, especially without my coffee. Now just two days from surgery and I am surprisingly calm. Well, it's not really surprising because I know many have already been praying for me. The Lord has helped me so much this week, that I am almost looking forward to surgery. I know that sounds crazy, but God is good and his peace comes just at the right time. As I read in Psalms this week, every verse on mercy or compassion seemed to jump off the page. How good God is to me, is beyond amazing! Psalm 81:10 " I am the Lord thy God, which brought thee out of the land of Egypt; open thy mouth wide and I will fill it." Psalm 86:13 "Fo...

I can't believe I didn't post this yesterday! This week has been beyond busy and I simply did not have the time to finish and post. Think about where you were on September 11, 2001 and think about where you are on September 11, 2013 and I don't mean physically. Where is our country today? Are we closer to the roots of our country or further away? *Conclusion of letter written shortly after 9/11/01 attack. September 11, 2001 You arose early your second morning at home, you surely didn't want to miss a thing. We were snuggling on the couch, I guess it was a little after 8:00 am (I had let your Daddy sleep in) when the call came. It was your Nana and she was calling to tell us there had been an accident, it seemed an airplane had somehow crashed into the World Trade Center. I hang up the phone as I turn on the TV and wonder how could the pilot have flown so far off course. As I am processing what I see, there comes another plane and it hits the second tower and I...

12 years ago today, around 8:30 am, my world was forever changed. I became a Mother at the ripe age of 22. What an exciting time, and how I felt we could take on the world, our little family. As I was thinking about writing a special birthday post to Ethan, I remembered a letter I wrote to him shortly after his birth and the September 11, 2001 terrorist attack.  Today, I am going to share a part of that letter and hope to share the rest on the anniversary of the 9/11/01 attack. I thought as I read the letter written 12 years ago, how I feared the changes ahead for my newborn son and wondered what his world would look like. Now, as I look at his world I cringe with what it has become and grow burdened for all three of my children as they face such uncertain times.  As Ethan embarks on a new phase in his life (ah adolescence), I am so very proud of the young man he is becoming and praise the Lord that he has already given him his heart. Ethan is my leader, the one I a...

  Ah, my week has been crazy, busy and it is only Wednesday! I haven't even thought about blogging until today and usually I at least have thoughts bouncing around my head. Hence, the title "Busy Blog." I really am trying to be more consistent, but this week and the next few are going to test me to my limits! I'll be begging for surgery, just so I can rest, ha.   Monday, my sweet family came over and helped do a myriad of chores around the house for me. I'm very grateful for family and friends that love me! I'm sure I don't know why they do, but I'm very blessed.   Here is Miss Addison helping me pick out Mums at Lowes for my planter out front. You see the Umbrella she has shielding her from the sun?   Oh and we also have been working on our downstairs bathroom and by "we" I mean mostly Jason. I helped paint a little and picked out the shower curtain, but other than that it was him. What a good man I have! A lot has b...

I just started reading One Thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp, and what a great read on thankfulness! I am learning I have a very long way to go. Are we really living a grateful life? Before beginning this book, I thought I was a grateful person but wow the conviction and how ungrateful I truly am. Lest you judge me to quickly, think about the last time you stopped and felt truly grateful for the small things? Like the squirrels scurrying in the trees, the big white puffy clouds, your children squabbling (thankful because you have children to squabble), running late for work (never know what God protected you from) and on the list goes. It's amazing how the Lord is using this book to help me stop and see the blessings in every day. It's shocking to see how quickly I complain and how little I thank!! So, for this week, I am thankful for: 1. 14 years of holy matrimony 2. 3 Little Blessings as a result of that holy matrimony 3. A week with little pain 4. Sweet S...

I decided to blog yesterday about our first day of the new school year and show adorable pictures of the kids hard at work. I mean just log on to any social media site and you will see adorable pictures of all your “friends” kids and their first day of school, right? But, even the best of plans are foiled!! We started school Tuesday, and the day went great! We always get excited at the start of a new year, one of the boys said “it’s like getting to start perfect.” Isn’t that true? Getting a clean slate is a blessing for all of us I think.   This year I have a 3 rd and 6 th grader plus lil missy starting K3 (it’s mostly to keep her busy and get her used to sitting still). Every year we get the questions on our choice of homeschool and I feel as though I must defend our choice once again. But, the Lord showed me something recently during one of my Pastor’s messages; this homeschool thing is what God has called me to do. So, when the clean slate has been smudged a...