New Look...

for the month of LOVE... 

(as some say)

Hope you like the new look. I have found SO many elements online with which to create backgrounds. I CAN make them myself, but it is SOO much simpler to use these for now. As I play around, some things may change; but the basic design will stay for the month :).

I FINALLY scanned some of our wedding pictures... SO I hope you enjoy them as I post them throughout the month.

Well, thanks for stopping by... 

and don't forget to tell someone you love them!!

growing... growing... UP

Well, our BABY is now "playing" in the excersaucer. She has already been sitting in her bumbo seat since she was 6 weeks - and now has started grabbing things and trying to look at them... She seems to really like having so much within her grasp :) and, of course, she now has more face-time with the older 2 :). They have to "show" her everything. It is hard to believe she is already almost 4 months!! I have not yet gotten a picture of this, but she LOVES to stand just holding our hands!! And she ADORES being sung to... hearing music... seeing our faces up close! Sometimes when she is lying down, she just looks are her hands like they are the neatest thing... SO precious! :)

WOW! what are all these things?

This is fun!

not such a baby anymore :(

spacin' out...  wonder where she gets that :)

Well, we now have another princess!!

~  ~  ~  ~  ~  ~  ~  ~

I will both lay me down in peace, and sleep:

 for thou, LORD, only makest me dwell in safety.  

Psalm 4:8

Thanks for stopping by...

Beautiful...

SUCH A CUTIE!

BIG SMILES :)

Thanks for stopping by...

Resolution - 3

"...for the joy of the LORD is your strength."

 Nehemiah 8:10

JOY: glee, gladness, mirth, pleasure...

I had a friend point this out to me the other day, and it has stuck with me. So now, I tell it to you. It is very basic, and I am sure this has been pointed out to me before; but it has had a profound effect on the way I thought and prayed this past week. (thank you, Cathy)

When I need strength to get through the day, what I really need is God's joy in my heart. I must take note of what has pushed that joy to the side and taken root in its stead. I must allow God to purge it from the soil that is my heart and allow Him to replenish His joy.  His joy can be present in the midst of trials and heartache, but it will not thrive where there is bitterness and self-pity.

So instead of asking for more strength, I must seek the joy of the LORD! 

Singing songs about the Lord helps also! 

(I personally recommend Patch the Pirate when small children are involved)

"...but be filled with the Spirit;  Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord..." 

Ephesians 5:18,19

Though provoking... from our church bulletin

At a Wednesday evening church meeting a very wealthy man rose to give his testimony. 

"I am a millionaire," he said, "and I attribute it all to the rich blessings of God in my life. I can still remember the turning point in my faith, like it was yesterday. I had just earned my first dollar, and I went to a church meeting that night. The speaker was a missionary who told about his work. I knew that I only had a dollar bill and had to either give it all to God's work or nothing at all. So at that moment I decided to give my whole dollar to God. I believe that God blessed that decision, and that is why I am a rich man today."

As he finished, it was clear that everyone had been moved by this man's story.

But, as he took his seat, a little old lady sitting in the same pew leaned over and said, 

"Wonderful story! I dare you to do it again!"

Made me think.... 

Thanks for stopping by...

J - O - Y... down in my heart!

Kyria's Choir Class sang last night:

"J-O-Y down in my heart..."

She really is a ham at times :D

She saw her daddy in the "crows nest" - our sound booth upstairs. And she LOVES to sing! 

Mikalah

little laugh - getting SOO big!

Her 3 month check-up revealed that

her length is 24 1/2 inches

and her weight is 15 1/2 pounds!

All the girls are growing well. We have been relatively healthy this cold season, and I praise the Lord for his protective hand on us. Kyria is looking forward to being 5, though this does not happen for a few months. :D  She loves being the biggest sister! Anya has her wonderful moments of happiness and a few "oh my" moments when her communication melts into a pile of tears on the floor. Her vocabulary is expanding, but her ability to be understood has not quite caught up with it.  Poor baby. But she is usually a very happy girl - giving smiles all around and making everyone laugh! Mikalah is not missing any meals (as you can see). And she is laughing and talking so much. She loves to have her big sisters read and sing to her!

We enjoy sharing with you....

Thanks for stopping by...

Resolution - 2

Again I have found my truth in Psalm 119. They were actually both impressed upon me at the same time, but I can only type so much at one sitting. :)

Psalm 119: 67 - "Before I was afflicted I went astray: but now have I kept thy word."

Psalm 119: 71 - "It is good for me that I have been afflicted; that I might learn thy statutes."

When we have affliction - of any sort - it can do many different things in our heart. It can cause us to let bitterness in and have a poor spirit about serving the Lord. It can bring us to our knees or drive us even from the church-house and all fellowship with God's children. The way we respond shows others the condition of our heart.  What David says here is what I pray to say when I have had affliction.

"...but now have I kept thy word." 

- My affliction has prompted an obedient life 

    - not more straying.

"...that I might learn thy statutes."

- My affliction has promoted a teachable spirit 

    - not a defiant one.

Are you obedient? 

Are you teachable?

This prompts two questions in regard to affliction (no matter how minor it may seem) my own life: "How have I responded in the past?" and "Did I learn to be obedient or teachable?" 

This ties in a with my contemplation from last week.

My personal Bible study for this year has started with learning (among other things) the meaning of several words. Two of these words are: VIRTUE and GOODNESS.

VIRTUE: 

moral goodness or excellence in our thoughts 

- producing modesty and purity

GOODNESS: 

uprightness of heart and life; beautiful, blest, cheerful

Has any of my affliction or any of my past failures produced the obedient and teachable spirit needed to learn and DO these things? I pray so, as I wish to have these attributes in my life - especially in regard to being a help meet to my husband. If we do not possess virtue then we can be a stumbling block to younger, weaker Christians. If we do not practice goodness then we can cause the unsaved to turn away from God instead of TO Him. Both of these traits are needed in my life if I am to be the help that is meet (proper, fit or perfect) for my husband and his ministry.

I hope this has made sense. Sometimes, my thoughts tend to wander.

I pray that we all have have the proper spirit for being obedient and learning what God is teaching us. And just as importantly - that we know what God is trying to teach us!

Finally, some more... for the Grandparents

As you can see...

I got a new crockpot :)

It's the kind that has a locking lid.

John liked this movie LOTS more than I did :) 

Kyria thought it was pretty neat though - 

a mouse COOKING - she loves to cook!

a few fun learning books - 

she is having a blast with them

Hi-Ho Cheeryo!

This game is a LOT of fun :)

ABC cards...

that have "hologram" pictures on them

that's FUN!

my pretty girl...

being silly...

the girls each got new 

"princess"

"spinning" outfits

Here is a little blurp of them right after all the presents were opened.

please excuse all the mess :

I thought that John had gotten more pictures with his camera - we were both taking pictures...

Anyway, it was a memorable day. We opened gifts on Christmas Eve, and spent Christmas Day with some good friends from church. They have 2 little boys that the girls love to play with... It was a great time of fellowship, and it was very nice to just all be together for a while.

I get spoiled when John is home for even a day (I get spoiled every Saturday!). 

Thanks for stopping by...

Looking forward to church tomorrow...

FUNNY _ guess we're here :)

I got this in a e-mail recently... 

It made me laugh... 

Hope you laugh too!

Thanks for stopping by...

Resolution - 1

Psalm 119:66

Teach me good judgement and knowledge: 

for I have believed thy commandments. 

Do you want to have good judgement? 

Do you want to have God's knowledge?

If you are a teacher (and all mothers are teachers!), then this will make sense: If the one you are attempting to teach does not believe that you speak the truth, they will not learn whatever it is you are teaching them. If your child does not believe that you will punish their naughty behavior, they will continue to pursue it. If she does not believe that the stove is HOT when you say so, she may touch it when you tell her not to. And I am sure we all have many more wonderful examples of such unbelief. 

Our children do not always believe us. And so it is with US and our Heavenly Father. 

So my question now is, Do you believe God? Not do you believe IN God. Many people are saved and even serving God, who do not completely believe God - the words of God - the nature of God - the path of God.

I would say that I believe God, but when I have any moment of second-guessing what God has brought into my life, then I am not believing God in that moment. 

How can I be taught God's knowledge or have His good judgement if I am not believing Him? Even just in that moment of unbelief, I do not use God's judgement and I do not have His knowledge; and therefore, I make poor choices and behave in a poor manner. And then I look back and wonder - WHY did I DO that?? It is because I had a moment of NOT believing that THIS (whatever THIS was in which I needed that good judgement) is what God had planned for my day. 

And, the more I believe God, the more He can teach me of His knowledge; and the more I can understand and use His good judgement.

So, the next time I second-guess God's hand of goodness in what is happening in this moment... I need to pray this verse. 

LORD, help me to believe you; so you can...

Teach me good judgement and knowledge.

A new year... a resolution

RESOLUTE: 

admirably purposeful, determined, and unwavering

To be called resolute means that you are both staunch and steadfast, but the emphasis here is on character and a firm adherence to your own goals and purposes rather than those of others. It is a conscious decision to DO whatever it is you have said you would do - and more importantly for a Christian: to DO whatever it is God has told you to do!

So this year, 

I stand resolute!

I will study His word more faithfully, and I will write down (or in this case, type out) at least one truth that He has impressed in my heart each week. The reason for typing it here is for the accountability it will give me. I will not be able to loose the computer as I would a notebook :) or not be able to find the computer because little hands have misplaced it, so I will ALWAYS have access to my resolution! 

And with each truth posted, please comment any insight into the truths that God has revealed to you; because our personal experiences will cause us to have different perspectives, and we can learn from each other things that God may not teach us directly - because we have each other to learn from.

And, if you keep up with our blog, and I miss a week; please be patient. But if I miss more - be my friend and (gently) rebuke me! We all need a little prodding to do as we ought from time to time.

As always...

Thanks for stopping by...

And I still have pictures from Christmas to post - we were sick most of the week of New Years', so I am behind on MANY things!!