Happy Birthday to Dear ol’ Dad!

Today’s my dad’s birthday.  I still have hope that our third child will share his bday.  ☺  Only time will tell.  My dad is one of a kind and we sure do love him!

Happy birthday, Dad, I hope it’s a great one!  You just get better every year.

New Pages

Since I haven’t had this baby yet, 😦  I’ve been trying to keep my mind off my ever growing (and stretching) belly by scrapbooking.  Here are some of my last couple pages…

Fire-A Devotional from my Hubby

This is the latest from my husband, Chris.  To be honest this one stung a bit.  I’ll be the first to admit that I can get caught up in playing Christian.  I want to be transparent-to my friends, family, my kids, strangers.  I want them to see a forgiven sinner.  But…when I first read this-I felt my human, fleshy side burn with pride.  I felt that Chris should’ve written it a bit more on the sugar-coated side.  And I told him so, too.  Of course his response was that he just writes what the Spirit leads…my husband.  ☺  What a blessing.  I’m grateful that God has partnered me with such a Godly man, who is obedient in all areas of his life.  One who doesn’t “sugar-coat”, but tells it like it is.  Enjoy!  I hope God uses these words to press in a bit and change you!   

 

Fire

 

   Have you caught it?  Have you caught the fire that is not merely fire?  Not merely fire, but a raging inferno in your heart that’s unquenchable, undeniable, uncontrollable for Jesus.  This Jesus who loves you beyond comprehension.  This Jesus who was beaten, slashed, stabbed, spit on, mocked, whipped, punched, torn up, and crucified; why?  Ultimately it was payment for your debt.  For your separation…for your SIN.

     If you are not a follower of the Jesus of the bible, I invite you to take a journey down the path of your life.  God demands perfection.  Have you ever lied?  Stolen?  Committed adultery? Hated someone?  Used God’s name as a cuss word?  Disobeyed your parents?  Looked with lust?  Longed for stuff that wasn’t yours?  I could name a hundred more.  Have you ever done any of these even once?  God knows.  And He demands justice.  But all the good deedsin the world aren’t enough to satisfy the chasm you’ve created between yourself and God with even one time missing the mark of perfection.  In fact, the bible says, “All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away” (Isaiah 64:6).  But God in His infinite mercy and uncomprehendable grace stepped in and paid your fine with a gift.  “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23).  Did you catch that?  Did you see the gift that God gave you?  The gift that you can’t give yourself?  It was Jesus.  God gave Jesus as a sacrifice for your crimes.  I invite you to repent, turn from your ways and yourself, and trust in the Savior Jesus with all your heart.

     If you are a soundly saved, born again, addicted follower of Jesus Christ, then I’m begging you to stop playing games with Him.  Stop playing Christian.  Stop your hypocritical, surface level, God-in-a-box, I’m in control, envy filled, wretched ways.  Catch the fire of God!  The unknowingly big, holy and awesome God.  Let it burn through what you see.  Let it burn through what you say and do and think!  Let it burn through what you are!  “Do not put out the Spirit’s fire” (1 Thessalonians 5:19).  Catch the fire that’s found in suffering.  Catch the fire found in contending for the faith.  Catch the fire found in servanthood; in surrender; in humility.  Some say all we need is Jesus.  I say all we have is Jesus!  Let the Spirit reign in your heart and burn and consume all of you.  There is nothing else!  There is only one Savior.  Only one Christ.  Only one Lord.  He is Jesus.

Amen.

 

Chris

 

 

Miller Farms

November 21, 2008

The boys (incl Daddy) and I went about 15 miles north of Brighton to Miller Farms in Platteville to glean the fields for veggies!  We heard about it from a couple of different friends and thought it would be a wonderful family outing.  Everyone had fun except for Ryan.  He didn’t care for getting dirty in the goodness of God’s green Earth.  There were lots of fun kids activities that we did after we gleaned that he enjoyed much better! 

AJ was the opposite, however.  He pretty much picked up anything that he could find.  He would pick up a big clump of dirt and say, “Look at THIS potato!”  Here are some pictures from our morning at Miller Farm.

There were so many people!  The staff said they had more people show in the first hour than they were expecting the entire weekend!  They had to turn people away after 10:00am because there wasn’t enough produce.

AJ picking a not-so-fresh onion.

Mommy:  Ryan, are you having fun? 

Ryan:  No, this is not fun.

Cool potato tractor.

70 Degree Weather in Denver-in November!!!

Well, it’s gone today, but wow! while it lasted we sure enjoyed it!  We checked out a new park near our neighborhood.  It’s not one we can walk to, but it’s on our way home from the grocery store!  The boys played on the playground and then we went on a walk to…well as AJ would put it (because he hears Mommy say it so often these days) “because Carson needs to come out.”  ☺

Ryan is SOOOOOOOO 4!

My boys!

One of the many reasons…

mommy needs a night with the girls, a vacation, a date night with hubby, a day at the spa…whatever fills you up and gets you going for the next “opportunity” to show patience-you fill in the blank.

Let me first give a warning, this post is not for the weak of stomach or anyone who plans on eating in the next few hours.  Unless, of course, you’re a mom and we can talk anything involving the two p’s (puke and poo) and continue to eat our chips and salsa…

So the story begins with AJ napping, Ryan riding his Smart Cycle- since it is officially fallnter (little bit colder than fall, but not quite winter) and we are finding ways to stay active indoors-and me, well I of course was scrubbing down floors, doing laundry, preparing a four-course dinner, the day-to-day normal stuff.  Okay, what I was really doing was waking up from my own nap and was scrapbooking Ryan’s 3rd birthday-I’m a little behind.  I look down at my phone and check the time, 10 minutes after AJ was supposed to be up.  I waddle-the 37 weeks pregnant waddle-up three short flights of stairs, but before I get there my super- heightened sense of smell detects a not-so-good odor.  A darn right stinky foul funk coming from the bedroom of my “potty-trained” almost 3 yr old’s bedroom.

As a story my mother-in-law once told me came to mind, the story of a very soiled diaper that was taken off by her young sweet boy and turned into a poo-Picasso all over the walls and everywhere else…horror began to take over. 

I walk in and see my little AJ covered in poo from the waist down standing on his comforter that is half on the bed and half on our new carpet, also spotted with poo.  Then I see the huge mess that my child has made in the bed.  I must admit that I thought of taking a picture just to show this HUGE, smelly mess!  But opted not to, you’re welcome. 🙂  As he continues to pull the comforter off the bed to cuddle up with it on the floor, under normal circumstances such an endearing quality, he reveals yet another HUGE, smelly mess!  I also spot his “night-time” diaper laying on the floor, clean. 

 Oh my what fun!

So I’m trying to think like an almost 3 yr old to figure out how??? why??? what was he thinking???  I realized that I will never know the thought processes of my boys and the why’s behind their actions.  Only this I know, with a toddler, every day is an adventure!

Viestenz-Smith Mountian Park in Loveland

We are really enjoying how close we are to the beautiful Rocky Mountains!  One weekend we took advantage of the wonderful Colorado fall weather and took a trip to Loveland.  The boys have never seen so many leaves to throw around and play in.  They had so much fun being boys!  Here are some of my favorite pics from our little adventure!