5 months

Abigail is 5 months now. It seems like she has started doing so many new things over the past few weeks. Here are some things she likes:

reaching for her toes

sucking her thumb

sticking out her tongue

rolling across the room

toys that squeak

laying on her back & kicking her legs

sitting up longer without help

getting up on her hands & knees

watching Samuel

petting Toby

Abigail had a lot to say during Christmas dinner

Dream

Have you ever had dreams or aspirations? Is there something in your life that makes you feel alive when you do it? I hope the answer to these questions is yes. I believe that God places dreams and aspirations in us for a purpose. He gives us gifts and talents to bring Him pleasure. And what makes me feel the most alive is singing. I'm reminded of a quote from the movie Chariots of Fire based on the life of Eric Liddell. In the movie Eric says,

"I believe that God made me for a purpose...but he also made me fast. And when I run, I feel HIS pleasure!"

I love to sing because when I sing to God I feel His pleasure and His presence. It's the most wonderful feeling I have ever experienced. I would sing all day long if I could. My dream is to be in full time ministry as a worship leader, traveling and sharing the gospel where the Lord would lead. And I would love to be with orphans. Loving those that are often forgotten by man, but never forsaken by God. I want to see lives changed for the King. I want to see souls won and set for eternity with my Lord.

The Lord reminded me a week ago that there is a time and a season for everything. That He finds pleasure in me when I sing. And He also finds pleasure in me when I take care of my children and cook meals for my family. He likes it when I share Jesus with someone I meet at the store. He delights in me when I clean the house and call a friend on the phone and encourage them. He likes it when I talk with Him throughout my day. He delights in me every moment. And He knows that I have dreams and aspirations. And He gave them to me for a purpose.

His plans for our lives are so much bigger then we could ever hope for or imagine. And if I strive in my own strength to make my dreams come true then I may miss what He had in store for me.

God is helping me to be content to set certain gifts on the shelf at present for the sake of my family. He is teaching me that He is more interested in what I am than in what I do. ~Sandra K. Strubhar

I write all of this in hopes that it would encourage you to keep dreaming. And continue enjoying His presence while you allow Him to take care of the rest.

And then there was a van...

Before we left to see Cody's family in California a friend from our church said something to Cody. She said, "I just have this feeling that you will be coming back with a vehicle." Then Cody remembered a dream he had a couple months ago. In the dream he was picking out a van. For those that don't know we have been borrowing a Geo Metro from our landlords for a few months now. We have been praying and trying to save up money to buy our own vehicle. So when our friend made this statement we were excited at the possibly of what God might have in store for us.

While heading back to Cody from the Denver airport we stopped at a gas station just before sunset. After getting gas Cody went to turn on the headlights and realized they would not turn on. So, Cody called a friend of ours from Missouri to see if he could help him. Our friend said he had had a dream the night before about us and had been praying for us that day. While in prayer he had this feeling that we might be on the side of the road somewhere. It was comforting to know that the Lord had someone interceding for us ahead of time. We ended up staying at a hotel that night in Glendo, WY and headed to Cody the next morning. About 5 minutes from home I got a phone call from my friend Laura who is from Cody. She said she felt the Lord leading her to give us her van! It is a '93 Dodge Grand Caravan ES. It has been sitting in her driveway and has had people offer to buy it, but she never felt led to sell it. It's in great condition and it is the perfect size for our family! I am in awe once again with the Lord. He provides in His perfect timing.

"The Lord is good to those who wait for Him, to the soul who seeks Him." Lam. 3:25

Thanksgiving

Our journey to go visit Cody's family for Thanksgiving began with a drive to Boulder, Co. We drove to Boulder on Friday, November 19th and stayed the night with my sister and brother in law. It was fun to be with them for the evening and they made yummy chicken and dumpling soup for dinner. It was also fun for me to see my sister with her baby bump. That's right, she's about 23 weeks pregnant. I am so happy she gets to have the experience of pregnancy and motherhood. I'm also pretty excited to become an aunt! Heather took us to the airport the next morning. And we were headed for Placerville, Ca. We had a great time with Cody's family. Cody's dad has 8 brother's and sister's. Since Thanksgiving is the only time many of them are able to be together during the year they had a lot planned. Here are some highlights from the week:

Flying on Southwest Airlines

Celebrating Samuel's 3rd birthday (Dec.14) early

Samuel wearing the hat and scarf Grandma Laurie made for him

All dressed up for Thanksgiving day

Aunt Ashley and Abigail having fun bowling

Samuel went fishing for the first time with Grandpa John and Cody. He caught a German Brown Trout. It was15 inches long!

Playing the guitar Grandma & Grandpa got him for Christmas

Celebrating Cody's birthday (Dec.28) early

4 months

Thanks for the cute outfit Aunt Vicky!

Thanks for the lady bug toy Grandpa & Grandma Morris!

Abigail had her4 month check up on Thursday. She weighed 14.9 pounds and was 24 3/8 inches long!

Here are some things she likes:

reaching for and grabbing things

putting anything in her mouth and chewing on it

drooling a lot

sitting up in her chair

smiling often

laughing and smiling at her brother when he talks to her or roars like a lion

laughing when you tickle her

laying on her tummy and pushing herself up with her hands

rolling from her tummy to her back

standing with help

blowing bubbles

Confessions of a Stay at Home Mom

As a stay at home mom I get the pleasure of spending the majority of my day taking care of Samuel who will be turning 3 in December and Abigail who just turned 3 months old. Each of my children are such a joy and I can't imagine my life without them. The Lord uses them multiple times a day to teach me. One of those lessons in the last few weeks looked like an insect bite.

One day a few weeks ago I noticed Samuel had a couple insect bites. But as each day passed I found more bites on Samuel and began to think we had flees. So I cleaned Samuel's room and vacuumed every day that week. Samuel only seemed to itch at night and had trouble falling asleep. Samuels spots are all gone now. But then when I noticed Abigail had a couple spots on Monday, I read a little about Chicken Pox online. And it sounded exactly like what Samuel had. Abigail is doing remarkably well and is not showing signs of discomfort. She is still sleeping through the majority of the night as well.

During the past few weeks I found myself becoming fearful of flees. I thought we needed to bomb the house to get rid of them. When in reality there were no flees. How many times have I wasted my time and energy worrying? God knew exactly what was going on. When Samuel's spots stopped spreading I thought the flees were gone. When we found out it was Chicken Pox I was reminded by the Lord how foolish it is for me to worry. I gain nothing by worrying.

"And which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?" Luke 12:25

"And do not seek what you should eat or what you should drink, nor have an anxious mind. For all these things the nations of the world seek after, and your Father knows that you need these things. But seek first the kingdom of God, and all these things shall be added to you." Luke 12:29-31

Thank you Lord that you hold each one of us in the palm of Your hand. I'm so glad that You know what is going on in each situation. Thank you for your forgiveness. Help me to trust in You with every part of my life.

3 months

I can't believe Abigail is already 3 months old. And we will celebrate Samuel's 3rd Birthday in less than 2 months. Where has the time gone...

Things Abigail likes...

To try and grasp things to chew on.

When her brother talks to her.

Mommy singing.

Chewing on your finger.

Making bubbles with her mouth.

Scooting during tummy time.

Smiling when she wakes up.

Talking while changing her diaper.

This month we went to our first Yellowstone Quakes hockey game and Cody high school football game. Hockey is now my favorite sport to watch in person. Samuel was interested for the first 20 minutes during both the games and then walked up and down the bleachers looking for other kids to play with.

Samuel is very energetic and creative. He is always coming up with something new. After watching a portion of Joan of Arc he loves playing with his fighting sticks. He also likes to talk with his little people or cars with you. And will often ask for his favorite books to be read to him a 2nd or 3rd time each day.

Dos Meses

Abigail running for the next President. Samuel as her VP.

2 months old!

sleeping beauty

Abigail turned 2 months old yesterday! At her 2 month check up she weighed 12 pounds and 2 ounces and was 22 1/2 inches long.

Things she likes:

Sleeping (often sleeps 7-8 hours straight at night!)

Drinking Mama's milk

Smiling at you when she wakes up

Snuggling

Getting a clean diaper

Talking to you (cooing and making cute sounds)

Holding your finger in her hand

Listening to music

Sometimes Abigail has a hard time falling asleep. She cries, fusses, kicks and screams; she fights against the very thing she needs. I walk with her up and down the hall doing a bouncy dance until she calms down and falls asleep. One night while doing this bouncy dance I had a thought, and I felt like the thought came from the Lord. I thought that at times we are all a little bit like Abigail, fighting against the very thing that is best for us, pushing away Gods instruction and blessing. God tells us to give worry to Him, but sometimes we just don't want to let it go. God instructs us to lay down our sins, but sometimes we don't want to give them up. And sometimes we're just cranky because we don't get our own way, fussing and crying like babies. But when we, finally give up the fight and surrender, then we receive the peace and blessings God intended for us in the first place.

It is His kindness that leads us to repentance; the patience and gentle persuasion of our God of love. Our Heavenly Father will walk up and down the halls of life with us doing the bouncy dance until we finally surrender to Him.

"Or do you show contempt for the riches of His kindness, tolerance and patience, not realizing that God's kindness leads you toward repentance?" Romans 2:4

Samuel the Extraordinaire

With Samuel approaching his 3rd birthday in just a few more months I've been thinking more about how I would like to do homeschooling. Samuel loves to read books with me and is doing really well identifying animals, shapes and colors. I've been trying to think of some fun projects we can do to incorporate learning while having fun. This month I found out how to make a bird feeder out of a milk carton. We put the bird feeder outside our window and I think it's too high for the birds to find it. But we've had fun throwing bird seed out for them to eat. Last week we made play dough. Which brought back memories of me making it with my mom.

Stunts on stools?

Finger painting and bird feeder

Homemade Play Dough

Blessed

I've been feeling very blessed lately. I feel blessed to have a wonderful husband who loves me and is a great father to our children. Who loves the Lord and desires to live each moment for Him. I feel blessed to get to snuggle with such a cute and cuddly 6 week old girl named Abigail. Who can't crawl or run away from my cuddles yet, so I'm trying to get in as many as I can. I feel blessed to get to hang out with a smart, charming, funny, cute and creative 2 1/2 year old named Samuel. Who makes me laugh and smile everyday and encourages me to enjoy the simple things in life and not to worry. I feel blessed to have a Savior, who loves me and died for me. And He loves me not for who I am or anything I have done, but because of who He is.

Samuel had fun riding the horse at the Red Lodge Pizza Co.

"Are you my Mommy?"

Watching hail on a Sunday afternoon

Pretty in pink and poka-dots

Samuel loves those Mr. Potato Head glasses

Big Smiles

"I'm even cute when I cry."

My favorite

Future golfer in the making....I think so :)

The Word