Glimpses of the last 2 months

September has given way to mid-October and I've finally made it back to my blog. We are as busy as ever.  The photos below capture some of the fun and beauty we've been blessed with these last weeks.

-Family Camp on Labor Day weekend is always enjoyed, but also puts somewhat of a bookend on the summer.  It's always back-to-the-books after a long and fun weekend with friends.

-We needed a family photo for our church's annual prayer card exchange, so we set up the camera on a tripod in the backyard and hoped for the best. Not bad!

-I was surprised that planting carrot seeds in a pot on my deck actually resulted in edible carrots! I planted the seeds in June and by September we had delicious carrots. Amazing!

-We continue to love our weekly Little House on the Prairie co-op. The girls made bread together and each took a small loaf home to bake.

-Family time! It's always wonderful to eat with family and gather around a bonfire to make smores.

-Last week we had the amazing opportunity to spend a day in 1875 in a one-room schoolhouse.

The schoolmaster had them stand for the roll call, sing songs, and practice their penmanship on slate boards. (and much more!) The girls had to sit on one side of the room and the boys on the other. (yes!)

They ate lunch on the steps of the schoolhouse and were able to play with jump ropes, wooden stilts, and other toys they would have had in 1875. It was a wonderful experience.

-The color of fall is all around now. We just had 2+ weeks of warm weather... and now it is cold, windy, and raining. But honestly, I look forward to being tucked into our little house together. I'm not sure it actually slows down the pace of life, but it seems like it does - at least a little.

I hope you're enjoying this season wherever it finds you... may you be able to open your eyes to see what God is doing this very day in your life and may you have the courage to say yes to whatever great thing He has for you to be a part of... His plans are always the best!

With love,

Christine

1000 Gifts : All is Grace

Ann's words speak to me this morning.

What is good? What counts as grace? What is the heart of God?

Do I believe in a God who rouses Himself just now and then to spill a bit of benevolence on hemorrhaging humanity? A God who breaks through the carapace of this orb only now and then, surprises us with a spared hand, a reprieve from sickness, a good job and a nice house in the burbs—and then finds Himself again too impotent to deal with all I see as suffering and evil? A God of sporadic, random, splattering goodness—that now and then splatters across a gratitude journal? Somebody tell me:

What are all the other moments? ….

I hope you'll go over here and read more of Ann's words (in the blue box especially) or pick up a copy of her book and be blessed by her journey of discovering that all is grace.

I'm still on that journey of discovery. I forget too easily that the other moments are His grace as well.... my list this week is crammed full of the moments I enjoyed. I hope next week is a better reflection of my discovery that all is grace. May He open my eyes to see...

gifts from last week through Sunday...

976. using what I've learned to help someone else

977. a new printer

978. out of the blue hand-me-downs

979. their love for creation and desire to capture it with photos


980. John grilling our dinner

981. steak and potatoes -- delish!

982. just Madelyn and me takin' a drive to the library

983. stripes


984. sharing stories of God's faithfulness with mom and the girls

985. perfect weather from beginning to end

986. brown bag lunches

987. a surprise box in the mail with my name on it

988. new blue polka-dot dishes


989. Madelyn sharing the last steak with me

990. playing Whoonu with my favorite girls

991. balloon flowers


992. another box delivered to my door -- this time with school books!

993. a bunny sticker on top of the box


994. books that have never been opened

995. when John is in the company of Godly men

996. only being a 5 minute drive away from John's parents

997. on call doctors

998. that no one was hurt in the house fire down the street

999. going to the park with my girls


1000. sitting on top of the big hill


1001. a completely empty playground

1002. playing with my girls

1003. spaghetti and meatballs -- and M saying 'spaghetti just isn't spaghetti without meatballs'

1004. watching the bats dart through the evening sky

1005. finding the goggles we had almost given up on

1006. when God grants our completely out-of-reach wishes

1007. early morning hours to talk and pray with my friend

1008. finding lost puzzles pieces

1009. sidewalk chalk + water = beautiful art on the driveway


1010. evening bike ride

1011. the different sounds of the bugs on a beautiful summer evening

1012. 70 used books for $10!


1013. peaceful rain

1014. all 4 of us on a bike ride

1015. friends who are always happy to see you

1016. cotton candy

1017. listening to music at the bluegrass festival

1018. 3rd grade graduation brunch for C

1019. a new NIrV Bible

1020. sweet Kelsey, C's small group leader since Kindergarten (we're going to miss her!)


1021. her new small group leader for 4th and 5th grade (I'm so excited she'll be with one of my dear friends!)

1022. afternoon on the lake with the Worship Music Ministry team and their spouses

1023. jet skis

1024. spending most of a beautiful day outside

They sang,

“Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom
and thanksgiving and honor
and power and strength belong to our God
forever and ever! Amen.” Rev. 7:12

1000 Gifts : Fresh Beginnings

Much more than Jan 1, this time of year is all about fresh beginnings for us.

Last year's accomplishments and shortcomings have been thought through and filed away. What direction to take with our studies this year has been decided and the books are ordered and on the way.

And there's an excitement about the year ahead. 4th grade and 7th grade. How CAN that be? My prayer for our year (and every year) is this:

That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give us the spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that we may know him better. That the eyes of our hearts may be enlightened in order that we may know the hope to which he has called us, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe.
(Eph. 1:7-9)

So it is with a humble and excited heart I add to my gift list.

gifts # 955 - 975:

cool mornings

fresh beginnings

the beauty of a moth rescued from the garage

food enough to share with friends

easy conversation

the softness of baby's skin

sharing life with those you treasure -- in all it's difficulty and wonder

when God is responsible for changing our plans

time found for organizing school stuff

summer cantaloupe

dancing butterflies

the beauty of approaching storm clouds

new school books on the way

unplanned visit with friends

after having the summer off -- remembering how much I love serving the kids at church

gathering with others who have the same calling

comfortable silence

this ancient song

watching a downloaded BBC version of the Hungarian F1 race with John (and our favorite driver winning too!)

the crisp top layer of a brownie

free ice cream for our girls (thanks to the library's summer reading program!)

So we Your people and the sheep of Your pasture
Will give thanks to You forever;
To all generations we will tell of Your praise.
(Ps. 79:13)

A joyful discovery

"Be joyful in God, all you lands; sing the glory of his name; sing the glory of his praise.
Say to God, "How awesome are your deeds! All the earth bows down before you, sings to you, sings out your Name."
Pslam 66:1-3

Last weekend we discovered a beautiful park just 10 minutes from home.

With John out of town, the girls and I met up with my parents and their 4 dogs at a Botanical Garden in our neighboring town.

The delights continued to mount as we walked the 1/2 mile paved path around the pond.




Near the end of our walk we looked down to discover this sight:
When we spotted the bench we knew we had permission to get a closer look.




We lingered here for nearly an hour, wading through the water and hopping from rock to rock. It was only the growling of our tummies that convinced us that it was time to go home. It was truly a slice of time I will always remember as a special treat from above.

We are anxious to find time to share it with John... he's going to love it!

"Every day will I bless you and praise your Name for ever and ever." Psalm 145:2

1000 Gifts: better late than never

I'm not sure what happened to Blogger on Thursday, but this post (which I published on Thursday) was unpublished by Blogger and all the edits I did on Thursday were erased as well. This is unfortunate since my goal is to post my gift list on Monday and I was already late. I've been busy.... re-doing my blog-post is not convenient. But life isn't about being convenient so I'm not complaining. Just explaining why it's now Saturday... I'm over explaining, aren't I? I do that sometimes.

Anyway, LAST week was so long ago... I hardly remember it. I'm glad I still have my good friend emailing me her list each day, otherwise I would certainly fail to remember to write down the many gifts of grace God gives me each day...

my endless gift list #0884 - 0935

Tuesday
cereal
hairdryers
only needing to go into work for a short meeting
an amazing thank you gift
working from home
a new recipe that everyone enjoyed
the girls drawing in their art pads until bedtime



Wednesday
seeing Jenny's email first thing and then talking to her! :)
visiting with the ladies today at gym
noticing the young leaves on all the trees as I drove home from gym
the smell of beef cooking in olive oil and butter
cheesy biscuits piled high
lacy shadows
God's fingerprints everywhere



Thursday
a full and busy day
gas in the van (though it cost a sickening amount, I'm glad we were able to fill it)
celebrating the National Day of Prayer
eating lunch out with John's mom, grandma, sister, and kids
finishing a great book (Prince Caspian)
emergency rooms (Our youngest nephew had to be taken to the ER because of a severe allergic reaction. He's much better, but it was very scary and the cause is still unknown.)
God's healing touch

Friday
half days of school because I say so
a visit to my sister and kids
praying over my nephew
when he reached out to touch my tears
and then checked to see if anyone else had tears
the presence of God ALWAYS
a sweet afternoon running errands with my girls
new swimwear
new-to-us used books




Saturday
familiar faces
M's miniature creations
both girls and their friend spending the afternoon creating art and watching Peter Pan
John helping me with the dishes
raindrops on tulips
C's photos
painting C's nails




Sunday (Mother's Day)
gifts from the heart
one of my Sunday school students giving me 2 nickels for Mother's Day
being a mom
being a daughter
being a granddaughter
not being self-sufficient
Isaiah 45:3

I will give you the treasures of darkness,
riches stored in secret places,
so that you may know that I am the LORD,
the God of Israel, who summons you by name.

Monday
staff retreat for work
listening -- lots and lots of listening
eating lunch outside
sitting on the pier with Jess
dangling my toes in frigid lake water
sharing this practice of giving thanks with others
coming home to my family, all fed and happy to see me

I'm continually amazed at how this practice of giving thanks opens my eyes to see... it's really quite extraordinary. He gives us grace far beyond what we can even recognize...

Psalm 84:11
For the Lord God is our sun and our shield.
He gives us grace and glory.
The Lord will withhold no good thing
from those who do what is right.