A new home

Well, we signed papers on the "new" house yesterday and as of tomorrow morning it will all be ours! It's a little slice of...well, it's not quite heaven, but we're hopeful! We are excited, anxious, willing, able, and full of hope that in the years to come we will be able to transform it into a wonderful home. We have seen God's hand in every part of the transaction of buying this house so we trust him to give himself all the glory for whatever we're able to do with it!

Don't be jealous. It's all mine.

Kitchen

Part of the back yard. This picture was taken the second time we were there after the bank (foreclosed house) had someone come and mow it all down. It was thigh high everywhere the first time we went. The second fence line to the right is where the right side of our property ends.

See...it's not all bad. The master bedroom is above and the upstairs family room is below. Both are parts of a new addition built in 2005.

On your first birthday

Welcome Benjamin Levi!

Going home

My dear baby Benjamin,

A year ago at this very moment I was walking into the operating room in preparation to meet our son or daughter. I had been so nervous the weekend before your scheduled delivery, and I felt a rush of peace wash over me. God meets us in our moments of need, and I felt him with me. The nurse assigned to me was calm and strong; two important qualities in a situation like that. We waited for everyone to arrive including the anesthesiologist, who was the last to arrive and has a very important job! The surgery took a long time, and we were so excited to hear your cries as you entered the world at 12:10 p.m. IT'S A BOY! Such exciting words that we had been waiting to know for nine months. With each pregnancy it has been harder to wait those nine months to find out if it's a boy or girl, but it's always worth it on delivery day! You were healthy and pink and beautiful. What a miracle.

These last 12 months have flown by in a few blinks. It's wonderful and sad. My early days of nursing and rocking you are over. Our through the night slumber parties are in the past as well. You ate your first food, you've crawled your first crawls, you've produced your first two teeth, and you've walked your first steps. You are calm and a watcher. You are cautious of others. You love your Momma but get so excited to see your Daddy in the evening. You are a snuggle bug!

You love blueberries, a warm bottle, showers (you'll crawl in with all your clothes on if I'm not paying attention!) and your sister and brothers; Daddy's arrival home and animals, splashing in the tub or a mud puddle. You are my sweet fourth born child, and I'm so glad we trusted God to give you to us!

This morning we made chocolate cupcakes for your party with our family and friends this evening. They'll be beach cupcakes (of course!) and yours will be a larger one with a big "B" on it. I took pictures of you in the backyard, front yard and inside. I got a few inside that I just LOVE so I'm pretty excited that our photo shoot was a success.

My precious boy, we have prayed over your life in this last year and asked God to protect you in every way. We have prayed that he will reveal your purpose to you early and that you will run this race with endurance. You are a little arrow that we are sharpening for His kingdom, and I pray everyday for more wisdom, more patience, more eternal perspective, more of HIM in me.

I love you, my sweet little man, and I hope your first birthday is a wonderful day! We'll have lots of pictures to show you when you're older!

Love,

Mommy


Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. Hebrews 12:1-2


Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity. 1 Timothy 4:12

Beauty

What makes a space beautiful? Is it the decor, the square footage, the layout, or how you feel when you walk into it? I have been in beautifully decorated homes that were either cozy or stiff, and I have been in messy homes that either feel stifling or warm and well loved. So what is it that makes our personal spaces beautiful? It took me years to find out what made me giddy when I looked at pictures in magazines. It was never the size of a house, and I always gravitated towards light, cozy spaces. Then I went to Kauai in 2004 and my life, and my decorating, changed forever. I'll pause here while you laugh or chuckle. Don't judge me until you've been to the most wonderful Hawaiian island! I knew when I came home that I could make do with my light blue denim couch set and start incorporating the colors I've loved all along: beach colors! Now I just want to smack myself sometimes for not seeing it sooner. I LOVE blues, aquas, greens, khakis and browns. I see something "tropical" and my heart skips a beat. I see "beach house" and I know that's what I want to create in my own space. I love how the beach makes me feel. I love being amazed at God's creation. I love seeing how He so extravagantly threw out so many beautiful colors into land and sea! He's worthy of our praise!

We are embarking on a new adventure in the next month when we will be moving out of our first home. It has taken me almost 12 years to start to create the feel of our home that makes me feel a little like I'm near the beach. The move to the new home will be exciting and a little scary. The house we're buying needs, ahem, a lot of love and attention. It does have some great features, but it's crying out for attention. My mind has been reeling with the questions of where to put this and that. What paint colors would help create my little beach cottage, even though it's no where near the beach? I know what I love, but time and resources don't always cooperate. My husband and I are raising four kiddos. Enough said.

I love homes that tell you a story. I love white. See above about having four kids. Regardless, I love white. I love white couches. Yes, smack me now. But still... I love white kitchen cabinets with dark counter tops. I love sink-into-me chairs. I love crisp white sheets and fluffy pillows. I love family photos blown up big and hanging on a wall in a collection. I love vases and flowers from my garden. I love appliances closed up and out of sight. I love my family, and I want everyone to have a chair to curl up in to read. I love big bookcases filled with books. These are some of the things we have now, and some of what I want to create on a larger scale at the new house. See, it's just a house now. But, I'll be working for a while to make it our home. We do not store up for ourselves treasures here on earth. This I know. But I'm excited to transform an unloved home into something we can call a haven.


These are just a few rooms I would naturally gravitate toward. I have pages and pages of tear sheets from magazines, and I'm constantly on the hunt for new ideas. The new house adventure begins soon. Stay tuned!

Fifteen years

On this day in 1994 I became Shane's wife, and it was such a surreal day. I had turned 20 ten days prior, and now looking back I think about how young I was. I was young in so many ways! I didn't know how to cook, I didn't know about sacrifice that's required in marriage, I didn't know what it meant to be a Godly wife. That is something I'm still learning. Marriage is amazing. It's fun. It's tiresome. It's gritty and ugly sometimes. But, it's an amazing gift. Because all good gifts come from above, I know it's been a gift to share these last 15 years with Shane. He is a good man. He loves people. He loves his family. He loves me! I am unlovable at times, and he still remains firm in his commitment to me. I'm so thankful.



I awoke this morning, jumped in the shower to get ready for our son returning fairly early from a sleepover, and was met at the bathroom door after my shower with breakfast on a tray presented by my daughter and her friend with Daddy right behind them. It was a precious offering and made me feel so loved. And I got DB coffee! Who could feel more loved than when someone brings coffee, especially since we have an espresso machine here at home! I came out to the living room to find roses everywhere. It was a sweet way to start the day. From there the day commenced much like any other day. Kids fought. Kids spilled things; today it was the roses. The baby! Laundry is being done. Life carries on. I am looking forward to a quiet evening with just the two of us while the kids go to our friend's house. It's a blessing to have friends or family who love your kiddos and welcome them into your home (all of them!)

I love you, my sweet husband, and I'm so very thankful that God brought us together. We have shared so much, and this is the treasure of marriage. There are memories to comfort, to make us laugh, to teach us, and to remind us. The days are fleeting, and the years go quickly. God has given us four children so far to raise up as arrows in this dark world. I pray that the next 15 years and beyond will allow us to begin to see the fruit of our efforts. I pray that the next 15 years will be more glorious, more wonderful, more loving than the first. What a blessing the journey has been so far!

Malachi 2:15-16 Has not the LORD made them one? In flesh and spirit they are his. And why one? Because he was seeking godly offspring. So guard yourself in your spirit, and do not break faith with the wife of your youth.


Isaiah 40:28-31 ~ Do you not know? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak.Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.

Let us not grow weary in our marriages. They are a treasure and our life is a vapor. I'm so thankful for my life and our marriage!

New homeschool year

I'm realizing that a new year is quickly upon us, and I'm not ready mentally or physically (in terms of materials needed.) Hmmm...could it be that the fact that we're moving in the near future have anything to do with it? Homeschool prep has taken a backseat while we've been all wrapped up in the upcoming move to our new home (with a laundry list of projects and things that need to be fixed.) So, here's what we have so far for school:

Explode the Code (Phonics)
Saxon Math 3 (Ryan started this in April)
Horizons Math 2 (Sarah started this in May)
Reading (various books at their own pace)

What's needed:

Bible
Mystery of History (99% sure I'll use this for the coming year)
Grammar
Spelling
Writing
Science

I'm looking into a pattern based writing program HERE but I may opt for something completely different like Daily Grams or ???? I think we're going to focus on lots of fun reading for science, at the recommendation of a science teacher from church. He recommended not using textbooks and reading about a lot of different subjects. We'll probably sprinkle this with science experiments that are age appropriate and some field trips. I'm still looking for just the right Bible program that is age appropriate. I want lots of discussion but no workbooks (I think.) Apparently I have some work to do to get us ready. I better get on that quickly!

To the moon...

Fresh from the womb

Our sweet Matthew Joel was born three years ago today, and it's always nostalgic on a birthday to reflect on how quickly the years go by. His birthday was a scheduled c-section the morning after my 32nd birthday so those two days were full of fun, anxiety and precious memories. He arrived at 8:14 a.m. on that morning in 2006 and he was greeted with love, laughter and tears of joy when Shane brought him to the waiting area to introduce him to everyone. It was just a magical time! *Blink.* It's 2009.Happy 3rd Birthday, my sweet boy

My precious boy, you are a gift whose seed was planted in my heart 1 1/2 years before you came to us. You have brought so much laughter and joy to our home. You are funny. You are determined. You are feisty. You are loving. You snuggle. You climb. You laugh. You demand. You are helpful. You love "warm tummy." You also love "jojo noche." You want to "why?" about everything. You are curious. You have just started praying out loud..."Father..." You think you're big. In some ways you are, but to me, you are still fresh from my womb. I want to hold you closer, hold you tighter, and you are telling me that you want to go! I'm embarrassed at how many times I have had to go looking outside for you after you've escaped and found you chatting with a neighbor. They laugh, and I wonder when protective services is coming! Matthew, you are a boy who is going places! I pray so often for your physical and spiritual protection. This world looks pretty in some ways, but our treasure is in heaven! You have been a treasure to us, and it is such a privilege watching you grow. Thanks for being such a loving boy, and I will always "love you to the moon, and back to the ocean and to the beach." You are a boy after my own heart.

Happy Birthday!