PenniesDimes From Heaven

Yesterday I was having a discussion with a friend at Vacation Bible School. We were talking about how God speaks to us through various means.  She finds feathers in very un-feathery places that remind her of a loss ten years ago.  I told her that I frequently find pennies on the ground, much like the "pennies from heaven" that people often refer to.  However, I joked with her that on occasion, when things are really out of whack, I find dimes.  It's like God shouting ten times as loud...

"I GOT THIS!!!"

Because as I've said before...sometimes I don't listen when God tries to get my attention. 

So you'll never guess what I found last night when I was folding some laundry!

This morning I initiated a very overdue conversation and got the closure I had been looking for.  It's kind of like when you're playing a game and you get to the point where you recognize that there's no way to win, so you might as well start over.  Or, when you played video games as a kid and the screen got all those lines through it and you had to take out the cartridge, blow on it, and start again. 

Does God ever have to whack you upside the head, or is that just me??

Lent: 40 bags in 40 days

If you are paying close attention, you may recognize this idea from last year. I wanted to join in on a movement for Lent to get rid of 40 bags of stuff in the 40 days of Lent. Well I got off track and I gave up. But I am realizing more and more lately that getting sidetracked does not mean the end of your goals. I am constantly recommitting myself to things I want to accomplish. And I really do want to make my house a better place by getting it cleaned up.

Frances' Heart

We got home late tonight because we took Ken dinner at work and decided to eat there with him. I got home and put Henry to bed and then put Frances in the bath. I had a conference call to make at 9, so we hurried her out of the tub. She wasn't going to make it into bed before the call started because I still had to comb her hair. I told her she could play on my computer while I was on the phone, but that when I said to go to bed, she had to say, "Yes Ma'am." and go straight to bed. I talked on the phone and combed her hair, she contentedly played computer games. I finished her hair and whispered, "Good night." She immediately said, "Yes Ma'am." and got up to go to bed. I glanced up and noticed that she had left the bedroom door wide open. Henry can't sleep that way, so I got up to go shut it and saw her standing next to his crib. I started to get after her about getting in bed when I looked a little closer and saw that her eyes were shut tight, her hands were folded in front of her and her little head was bowed down. I waited a minute and watched. She then crossed herself in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit and looked up at me. I asked her what she had been doing and she said she was praying for Henry that he would sleep good and have nice dreams. I am surprised that I made it all the way back to the couch without losing it. She loves that little boy with all her heart! She also loves God with all her heart, and if that doesn't warm your heart, then nothing will!

Frances' Theological Question of the Day

"Daddy, how old is God?"

Frances' Theological Question of the Day

"Mommy, what does God eat for dinner?"

Frances rendition of the first part of Genesis

"God said let there be a moon and there was. God said let there be a sun and there was. God said let there be a lot of stuff and there was. God created a man and a woman they were the first people. God created a bear and a giraffe and they were the first creatures. All the animals had a girl. And there were mean people who would not share nothing. But there was the only man and other people god would save-Noah and his family. And they built...and God told them to build a big ark and they did-7ft tall and 80 inches big! And then Noah did. His brothers and his wife and everybody worked hard. Nobody gave them directions and then they went into the ark-it was the inches it had to be. "


She was "reading" the first couple of chapters of her bible. I thought it was quite amusing! I wonder how far she would have gotten if Henry hadn't woken up?!

Innocence

During prayer time this morning at school, I opened it up to the class to see if they had anything they wanted to pray about. A few weeks ago when I asked this question, one of my girls told us that her mouth hurt (she had a bad toothache). So we offered that up in prayer. Well today when I asked, the same girl spoke up again to tell us that her mouth didn't hurt anymore. *tears* WOW! I took a minute to think about how often we ask God for things and then forget to offer prayers of thanksgiving when a situation is resolved. This girl is not one that attends church regularly, or even hears about God at home. I am afraid that school is the only place where she hears any kind of Gospel at all. But she's got it! We need to seek God at all times-not just the bad ones. We need to have faith at all times-not just the good ones. Thank you K for opening my eyes today.

Thankful Thursday

It has been a very busy, but fulfilling week. I told someone yesterday that if I can get through October 5th (Frances' birthday) then I might be able to rest-but only for a day or two because then the Christmas madness will start. I am trying to really reflect on thankfulness this week and dig deep. I feel like I have used up all the "easy" ones and that is actually good. Thinking hard about thankfulness could never be a bad thing!

This week I am thankful for:

• My co-workers at church. Especially Valerie and Louisa. Louisa has put together a religious education committee and Valerie and I are the only members (as of right now). We get together every few weeks to talk about our work, but also to do a book/bible study. We are reading In the Name of Jesus: Reflections on Christian Leadership . It helps us to reflect on our duty to be servant leaders. It has also prompted some really deep discussion. We talked a lot about personal stuff yesterday and it felt very cleansing-it also helps us to know each other more deeply and work together better as a team.
• 5:30 AM. I know you won't believe me if you know me, but I am thankful for 5:30AM. Henry is still breastfeeding in the morning and before bedtime. This is the indefinite stage for us. Frances nursed this way until 17 months when I had to be out of town for a weekend and didn't think pumping was worth the work. She didn't complain when I put her to bed that week without nursing. It is just part of her nature to be easy going. I was sad that it was so easy to wean her. Well, Henry and I have spent two or three weekends apart. I pump while I am gone, and he either takes a bottle or not-but when I get back, we pick up where we left off. He doesn't ever ask to nurse during the day-he is quite content with a sippy cup (and he LOVES lemonade-just like his mommy!). But at night, once he is in his pajamas, he starts banging on my chest and he is ready to settle in for the night. Lately he has been waking up early (I need to push back his bedtime a little bit). It has been anywhere between 4:30 and 5:30. He doesn't so much as cry, but yell out. At 4:30, he will go back to sleep, but at 5:30, not so much. And neither will I at that point. So I get up and get him out of his crib. I feel his cold little legs against me because he always kicks his blanket off. We go out to the couch where I can snuggle up with him and my green fuzzy blanket, and he nurses. The house is quiet and dark. His legs warm up as they lie across my stomach. I can listen to his snurglley breathing (I just made up that word-I think you know what it means). He nurses until he goes back to sleep and then sometimes I just hold him. I know that all too soon (even now while he's awake) he won't let me hold him anymore. Sure I can pick him up, but I can't just hold him. This is our time and I am thankful for it.
• I am also thankful for me. I am trying to think of how to write this with the correct mix of humility and pride. It has been on my mind a lot lately and I am not sure how to write it. I said part of this in my book study yesterday and mentioned how it makes me feel silly. But here is goes anyway. I am proud of myself lately. Sure I still mess up and do stupid or unkind things, but lately I have stood up for myself in a few important ways. I have taught my preschoolers some things that make me proud. I have made a difference in some people's lives. Is it a "mom" thing or a "woman" thing to always try to hide in the background and pretend that you don't matter? Maybe it's just a "me" thing, but today I am feeling pretty thankful for who I am and what I do. In the youth ministry world, we joke about "9th grade boys" as being the silly, immature, epitome of who we are trying to reach. Last night, Ken and I took the kids out to eat. As I was walking into the restaurant, I saw one of my teens (a 9th grade boy!). Well there is a rule in youth ministry about letting teens acknowledge you first in public, so you don't embarrass them (or something like that), so I was ready for a smile and a nod; but this young man jumped up off the bench and gave me a hug! Then he said to his mom, "Look who's here!" At that moment I felt very proud to be an adult who can get that kind of positive reaction from a teenager in public. Teachers and ministers sometimes complain that they don't feel like they are accomplishing much, but this week I feel like I have made a difference.

Praying for MckMama

Today after our rest time, my class at the preschool took some time out to pray for MckMama. I told them a brief version of the story in words I hoped they could understand. I had them each feel their own hearts. Then I told them I had a friend whose baby had trouble with his heart. I told them that the doctors weren't sure what to do for him. I asked the kids if they knew anyone who could fix Stellan's heart. I wish you could have seen them all sitting there with their hands over their hearts as they all shouted "GOD!!" Then I gave each kid a letter of Stellan's name and had the color them. I asked them to pray for Stellan as they colored. I wish I could have written down the conversations they had while coloring!

When they finished their coloring, I had them hold their letters together to spell Stellan's name and then took their picture. Of course, I had forgotten my camera at home, so I had to use Amber's cell phone and send the pictures to my facebook account. Then I took all the kids into the office at the day care and let the kids watch me email the picture to MckMama as we said another prayer together. We made her photo gallery!! You have to scroll rather far down the page. MckMama is adding new pictures all the time and she puts them at the top, so we keep getting moved further down.

After they were all done, one of the kids asked if he could take his letter home and keep praying for Stellan. How sweet!!

Wednesday's Wonderful Website

Today's website of choice is a bit different. In my "spare" time, I like to hop around to other people's blogs. I have a habit of reading a post or two and then clicking on one of that person's recommended sites. I can get quite far away from the original blog by doing this. It is very "six degrees of separation." It also satisfies my nosiness and curiousity.




I don't even remember for sure how I got to this particular website, but when I did; I clicked quite far back and read a lot more of the story. The mom here has four wonderful kids-the fourth child has yet to be born. He has a very serious heart problem that the doctors are not sure how to treat or fix him. It sounds like it would be depressing, but it is not. It is one of the most positive, uplifting, God-praising things I have ever seen. Won't you take a minute to pop over and say a prayer or two for this family?

Thankful Thursdays

I am impressed with myself for actually remembering to do something two weeks in a row!! Yay me! (In my head that sounded like London Tipton, which is really sad. If you get that reference-that's sad too!)



This week I am thankful for:

• Our gorgeous weather. The past few days have been absolutely awesome. Not too hot; not too cold. There has been lots of sun, but a nice breeze also. I was able to spend most of Tuesday outside with my kids from school. Despite a slight sunburn on my leg, it was quite comfortable to sit and watch them play.

• Popsicles. I bought some new ones at the store this week. I decided not to go with the classic orange, grape, and cherry flavors. We always ended up with a box of orange ones that no one really wanted. The ones I bought are citrus punch, tropical punch, mango punch, and kiwi strawberry punch. I like 'em, Frances likes 'em and Henry LOVES 'em. I don't think Ken has had one yet and if he doesn't hurry back from his business trip he may not get the chance!!

• My daughter. Frances is quite the character. Some days I want to walk around with a tape recorder and record everything she says. Of course, she would stop saying funny/profound things if I did so, but I can still wish. Some of my favorites from this week:

F: "I didn't kick her! I pushed her with my foot!"

F: "Mommy, I went in my room and talked to God."

Me:"Really, what did you talk about?"

F: "I told him I was mad at you because you said to get my pajamas. Then I laid on my pillow and cried it all out. Then God made it better!" (BTW, Her face was completely dry when she said this to me, so I'm not so sure about the crying part.)

F: "Mommy, Woody [her imaginary friend] was really bad at school today. He got on red [the "worst bad" color on our behavior chart]."

Me: "Really? What did he do that was so bad?"

F: "He did all the bad kinds of bad stuff. He ate snack outside without a teacher. He threw his cookies on the floor. He was not nice to his friends."

F: "Henry! Get in the boat! You are sinking!!" They were playing in the laundry basket and Henry climbed out.

Frances-ism

Tonight when I was saying good night to Frances, she said she wanted a back rub. I climbed in bed with her and started to rub her back, but I noticed she was watching me so I told her to close her eyes. She did and she was still for a minute before she says, "MOMMY! I see God!" I said, "What's He doin'?" She says, "He's sayin' 'Frances B-Jances, I love you!'" I smiled and rubbed her back for a little while longer. Then I said, "What are you going to say to Him?" She paused and then said, "Jesus B-Jesus, I love you too!"