Remembering the First Year

I am feeling a bit nostalgic tonight remembering that one year ago tonight I was preparing to get up the next morning and go into the hospital for Lilly Faith's induction. She will be turning one tomorrow. This year has absolutely flown by, and I love my baby girl so much. She adds such a sweetness to our family. Here are some pictures of her first year, and hopefully I will post more tomorrow.

"AND YOU Will KNOW THE TRUTH AND THE TRUTH WILL SET YOU FREE." - John 8:32






Happy Fourth of July! Today I spent time with my oldest and youngest daughters going shopping. After that I went swimming with my oldest. Tonight our dear Daddy grilled burgers for us, and we played outside. Due to the burn ban we made our own fireworks with silly string. We also enjoyed sidewalk chalk and LOTS of BUBBLES! Towards the end of the evening I enjoyed a walk up the road with my precious two year old. She is talking in full sentences and says the cutest things. Tonight she observed the cracks in the road and informed me that the road is broken. :) Happy Fourth to you all!

Seven Quick Takes

It has been awhile since I did a Seven Quick Takes but here goes:

1. We are all SEVEN of us currently sniffly. Lilly Faith has been teething over the past week, and Daddy and Mama have had many rough nights. Now we all have a cold. It really makes you appreciate the times when the family is well.

2. After two estimates from two different companies we have decided to bite the bullet and have shutters put in all the windows. After a year of many windows with no coverings we are finally going to have privacy in our home. That is a good thing. I am grateful.

3. I have been reading through II Kings about the many kings whose hearts were not turned towards the Lord. Some of the kings did have hearts turned towards the Lord but did not tear down the high places. It makes me ponder our own christian culture and how many times we as believers love the Lord and yet still have "high places of idolatry in our lives." It is a good self check.

4. What has the Lord been teaching me lately? Well, I really think He is showing me that curriculum is a good, helpful resource in our homeschooling adventure but not the most important thing. If you look at Detuteronomy 6 it says, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul an with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them DILIGENTLY to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates."
This is what the Lord asks His people to teach their children; the ways of the Lord. I am finally realizing that God's Word should be the core of our curriculum that everything else flows out of. I have leaned too heavily on curriculum and worried too much about what curriculum I should purchase, etc. I have worried if I have not completed the whole program in its entirety. Many times we have rushed through Bible to get to "SCHOOL." The Lord is challenging me in this area and showing me that if we "Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness ALL THESE THINGS will be added." Matt 6:33. In way of application I am finally seeing our time in God's Word, at the start of our day, as THE MOST IMPORTANT THING. We are taking that time to read His Word, work through character building books, sing our hymn of the week, and talk to God about what is going on in our family. Yes, it is taking time and perseverance to get through all of that when so many other things are calling, but I am finding it very rewarding. I am seeing fruit and encouraged by it.

5. Lilly Faith will be turning one year old on Friday. I do not know where the year went, but I do know that she is such a precious gift from the Lord. I love her gentle sweetness.

6. I have been reading the Duggars new book "A Love That Multiplies." There have been many very helpful and practical ideas in it. The thing I LOVE is their emphasis on teaching their children to love God, know His Word, and serve others. They are an amazing family, and the Lord has given them an incredible platform to share their faith with the world.

7. Some of our Crepe Myrtle trees and bushes have begun blooming this past week. We planted them after Christmas, and it is so exciting to see the beautiful blossoms. One of those little joys in life when we take the time to really see.

Have a blessed week, everyone!

Questions to Ponder

There are clear cut, black and white areas in Scripture and then there are areas that are not so clearly defined. Sometimes it is hard to know where to land on those "gray areas."
I recently heard a message by John MacArthur that had some wise insights on how to discern right from wrong and how to make wise beneficial decisions. I thought I would share some of his points. He said it is good to ask the following questions when trying to evaluate what is wise and best.

Will It Be Spiritually Profitable?

"All things are lawful for me," but not all things are helpful. "All things are lawful for me," but I will not be enslaved by anything."

The question I should ask myself should not be, "Can I do this and get away with it. Rather I should ask, "Will this be spiritually profitable?"

The next question is, "Will this build me up?" Will this thing, activity, etc. build my spiritual strength? Some things are beneficial and some are just a waste of time. Life is short, so it is wise to use my time on things that build me up and further God's kingdom purposes.

"Will it slow me down in the race?"

"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." Hebrews 12:1-2

"Will it bring me into bondage?" Will this thing bring me into an imbalance in some area in my life or become an idol to me?

The answers to these questions may vary for different people and circumstances. These questions are a good guide on those gray areas where believers differ on their personal convictions. We can each take these questions before the Lord when evaluating any given situation or thing in question.

Teach them to Your Children

"You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise." Deuteronomy 6:9

This verse from Deuteronomy is what we are trying to live out with our children as we live life with them from day to day. We are trying to point them to Jesus as we sit and as we work and as we learn......... ALL THROUGH THE DAY and in every situation we are trying to model the ways of the Lord and share the truth of God's Word at every opportunity. The days seem to be flying by so fast, and one week rolls into another week before I know what has happened. Honestly I feel like I have very little time to teach them all I want to teach them. I am looking for teachable moments even if it is a few minutes here and there.
One way I am trying to disciple my children's hearts is by grabbing them one on one even for a short while and reading through great christian books with them. Books that inspire greatness and godly character. We also enjoy reading biographies of great men and women of God. We sometimes do that as part of our schooling and all together.
Our days are so filled with activity, but we are trying to intentionally find those teachable moments in our busy and chaotic days. Here are some pictures of some of the things we have been doing lately. You can see the little girls spinning in their dresses, and the little girls enjoying the letter of the week preschool activities. I am trying to be more intentional about giving my little girls the first part of the school day, so that they know Mama has noticed them and given them some focused time. You can also see a sweet picture of Annagrace and Gabriel looking at a book together on the couch. These pictures illustrate some of what you might see if you were a fly on our wall.

A Portrait of Mama

Recently we took a trip to children's museum. My sweet four year old daughter painted this picture of her Mama. :)

So Thankful for This Girl!

This picture was taken several weeks back, but my baby girl is less than a month away from her first birthday! WHERE has this year gone to? The Lord has blessed us so much. I just have to say I totally HEART this little girl. She is so gentle and sweet. I am so thankful that the Lord has kept little babies in my life for over ten years now. As a little girl it was my dream to have a baby, and here I find myself having had five babies in the past ten years. The Lord has been good.
My baby girl is holding onto things and letting go and taking some steps holding my hand. She is getting strong on her legs. She likes to play patty cake and peek a boo. She also gets a lot of amusement from watching all the carrying ons of her siblings. She says Da Da and Ma Ma and brings lots of joy to our family. How my heart LOVES this precious gift from the Lord.
Looking back and remembering how early on in my pregnancy we thought we had lost her. The doctor said things were not looking good. Having been through a previous miscarriage we were certain that was the path we were going down again. How grateful I am that the Lord surprised us with a turn around in blood tests and allowed the pregnancy to carry on giving us another precious daughter.

Cousin Faith's Wedding!

Two of our girls had the joy of participating in their cousin Faith's wedding. I first met Faith when she was a toddler and enjoyed watching her grow up in the church my dad pastored. I taught her Sunday school, piano lessons, children's choir, etc. One of my sweet memories of her is when she sang a solo of Happy Birthday Jesus in the church children's choir program at Christmas. She could really sing and still can! Well, fast forward a few years, and her Uncle Matt moved in with her and her family. He was moving to Houston to go to University of Houston. He was going to live with their family. Since they attended the church my dad pastored Matt began attending too. Well, if you haven't put the pieces together yet, Mat became my Dear husband several years later. :) My little student Faith became my niece Faith!
I have to say I am encouraged by Faith's godly example. She has served the Lord and grown in grace and character. She was home schooled and developed many skills in home making, music, crafts, etc. Our Lilly Faith is named after her. Faith also has a sister, Heather, who is also a lovely lady. Heather is a little older and was my friend who became my niece. :) Both Heather and Faith are precious to Matt and I. It was a joy for our girls to be included in Faith's special day. Here are some pictures from the big day.

A Trip to the Houston Zoo

"O Lord, how manifold are your works! In wisdom have you made them all; the earth is full of your creatures. - Ps 104:24







It has been sooo long since I have posted anything on this blog. Life has just been crazy busy, and I have been snowed under and a bit sick. Looking back on these pictures revives my spirit to remember the sweet memories we created with our friends at the zoo. They were so sweet to go spend the day with us while our Daddy was traveling.
I think it is wonderful to go to the zoo and see God's great creativity in all the creatures He made. Such differentiation in size, color, behaviors, etc. There are many Biblical lessons we can teach our children from the world of nature. For example we can see the sloth and talk about how God does NOT want us to be lazy, or we can look at ants and talk about how they work storing up food for winter, etc.
Well, here are some pictures from our trip to the Houston Zoo.

A Bitter Sweet Goodbye

Our family has had the joy of watching a litter of baby kitties grow up. Our cat, Luv, delivered them in our attic garage where they lived until they were several weeks old. She did not want us bringing them down. We would try and she would pick them up and start putting them back. She was not a happy Mama when we moved her kitties.
Then the day came when we tried again and she was o.k. with it. She just wanted us to keep them in the garage, but they did not have to be hidden in the attic. The fun really began at this point when we all started spending lots of time watching them move around and get more and more adventurous and playful.
Eventually Luv decided that we could carry them out of the garage as long as they stayed close by. Also, I have noticed that she has spent less and less time hovering over them. As a mother it has been interesting to see her gradually release her hold on these little kitties. It made me think about parenting and how I am in the process of training my children and very gradually loosening my hold on them. The goal is to launch them out one day to do great things for God's kingdom. It has been interesting to see how that our cat has had this instinct to discern when the right timing is for releasing her kitties. I have to admit that I do not trust my own instincts about when to let go of my children. In fact I know I would like to hold onto them forever. I am thankful, however, that I do not have to rely on my own instincts, because I know I could be wrong. I am thankful for God's Holy Spirit and that I can boldly come to the throne of grace and find mercy in time of need. When I do not know what to do in parenting, which is most of the time, I can ask my Father in heaven and He will guide me each step of the way.
Well, today is a bitter sweet day for us. The children and I have been praying every morning for good homes for these kitties. We are thankful that the Lord has heard our prayer and that some of them are going to be picked up by some friends in our church later this evening. We have decided to keep the light colored one and are naming her Peaches and Cream. It will be sad to see this precious little family split apart, but we are very thankful that some of them are now going to have a good home. God answers prayer.

Growing Chickens

One of my young man's evening chores is to feed and water the chickens. As stated in an earlier post we originally had four baby chicks, but two of them became dinner for our cat. Since that time our Daddy replaced the two we lost thus we have a size difference between our four chickens. The original two are getting really big, and the newer two are growing fast. We will be glad when they can permanently live in the chicken pen and not in the garage anymore. We will be really glad when we start getting farm fresh eggs. :)

A Confession

My confession is this, "I Love the Goodwill Store." I am stunned at the deals I am finding there. Last weekend I found this smocked dress for Abbie Joy. I think I paid 2.99. Another great find was this Talbots shirt for Gabriel. It had tags on it indicating that it may have never been worn. Actually I have found several things that are brand new or in like new condition. Lilly Faith's christmas dress last year was 2.99 and looked brand new. It feels like a treasure hunt when I go in. Sometimes I come out with one thing while another time I will come out with bags full. It is just so fun to save money.

A Homeschooling Moment

Don't let anyone tell you otherwise; homeschooling is HARD work. It has to be the most difficult job I've ever had but also incredibly rewarding. The Lord is gracious to give moments of joy when I see glimpses of fruit from what I am laboring to do day in and day out. My goals in homeschooling are far more than academic goals. I see being at home with my children and teaching them God's Word as my mission field. It is the place of ministry where the Lord has put me. Most moments call for faithfulness in my calling and are not warm and fuzzy. However, the Lord is good to give me encouragement and joy as I stay on the path of His calling for me. I will share that the longer I journey this path the more I am totally convinced I would have it no other way. I do love the privilege of spending time with my children and seeing the ordinary through their eyes day in and day out. I am learning so much through them. My character is being pruned and shaped, and I think it is often more for my sanctification than anything. Well, here is one of those ahh moments when the children were all lined up totally engrossed in a lesson with NO fighting or squabbling and no bad attitudes. You would think they were perfect little scholars. ;) I had them watching an art lesson on drawing dinosaurs. Look at the smile on Lauren's face.

More on Chore Packs

As I shared in the last post we are busily working on training the children to do daily responsibilities. We are using the chore pack system as explained in the book, "Managers of Their Chores." The chore packs are filled with sequenced task cards that direct the children to do everything from getting dressed, brushing teeth, etc. to household chores. This last week Lauren learned to clean out and organize our fridge. It was wonderful to see her training Abbie Joy to work beside her. She had her little sister carrying things to the counter as she emptied the fridge. I was also encouraged to see Lauren's good sense in how she organized our food categories. After the girls finished the fridge they all found their places on the floor to work puzzles. I love sister pictures where all four girls are together. Lest all of this look too simple let me assure you that we are working VERY hard at this system. I am having to encourage the children along and show/inspect them in how chores are done properly. Honestly it is sometimes easier to do things myself, but I'm thinking about the long road ahead and how great it will be to have children who know how to work hard!!! This will pay off when they are older and have families of their own. We are laboring hard through this process, but I think it is worth the effort.

Working on our Chores

Our family has been working on implementing a new chore system. It is from the book "Managers of Their Chores."
The book shows you how to set up individual chore packs for each child to help them move through their daily responsibilities. This past week was our first week with our new chore packs, and I know it will be an ongoing process of training the children and tweaking things as we go. It helps us, however, to have some kind of a plan in place. It is good for the children to learn to be more self sufficient in moving through their day. It has also been encouraging to see Annagrace and Lauren helping Abbie Joy learn to use her chore pack. Here are pictures of the children with their packs and learning to do some household responsibilities.

Our First Easter in our Home

Here are a few more pics showing our egg hunt on our property. I'm sure this will be a yearly event our children will want us to hide eggs on our property. We enjoyed having my parents, brother, sister in law and little niece over.

Some Favorite Shots from Easter 2011

Here are some of my favorite shots from Easter, and isn't that a short post? :)