Thanksgiving

The videos take a long time to upload, but I'll include those when they finish.  I've been getting behind on blogging, but I don't want to give it up.  I mean, who is going to record the everyday miracles I'm able to see.  I think years from now I'll be glad I chronicled it all.  (chronicled?)  Well, anyway...

Gwen and Zeke 

 It was Beki's idea to have the guys dress up in tights and tutus and dance to the Nutcracker.  She actually made the tutus.

They had a "hoedown" where all the kids danced.  We have a lot of little kids.

My Zeke

Gwen was being, um, grumpy...

Zeke playing around.

Gwen got a ring from a machine.  I'm not exactly sure what it is, but it made me smile.

Look at this face... so beautiful.

Complete

A little pinterest Christmas art for the house.

My phone chair!

and next, I will update and show videos from Thanksgiving!

Layers

Remember this phone chair I got at the MOPS consignment sale for $5?  Well, I've been working on it.  I took off the pink fabric and was pretty convinced that the fabric underneath was the original because the pattern was pretty dated.  I was wrong.

Painting and second layer of fabric.... groovy!

Then I started taking that fabric off and low and behold, there is another layer underneath.  Ugh...

This is what I'd like for my phone chair to look like in the end sitting at the top of my stairs.  There's quite a journey in there between and it takes time.  You can't spray paint, recover and stencil your chair in one day.  I thought to myself, Lord what if you took away the thin fabric that I show the outside world... would there be some funky pattern underneath?  I'm going to really try to let this Advent season be one where I let the Lord show me the old fabric underneath that needs to be thrown out... ya know? 

Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. Philippians 1:6

Impromptu Lunch

Friends

Dress up time for all.  This photo makes me smile.

Gifts

Discretion

So I had an epiphany of sorts today.  I thought back on the Bible story where Mary anointed Jesus' feet with oil and dried it with her hair.  There's an aside to Judas and how he didn't really care about the poor, but he was a thief.  I thought... wait a minute... Jesus knew the whole time his thoughts and knew he'd eventually betray him and he never said anything to him the whole time.  THAT'S discretion.  Discretion isn't my strong suit.  I like to lay all my cards on the table... but sometimes you need to have discretion and stay silent.  I'm working on being wise enough to discern between the two.

John 12

Jesus Anointed at Bethany

1Six days before the Passover, Jesus arrived at Bethany, where Lazarus lived, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. 2Here a dinner was given in Jesus’ honor. Martha served, while Lazarus was among those reclining at the table with him. 3Then Mary took about a pint^a of pure nard, an expensive perfume; she poured it on Jesus’ feet and wiped his feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.

4But one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, who was later to betray him, objected, 5“Why wasn’t this perfume sold and the money given to the poor? It was worth a year’s wages.^b” 6He did not say this because he cared about the poor but because he was a thief; as keeper of the money bag, he used to help himself to what was put into it.

7“Leave her alone,” Jesus replied. “[It was intended] that she should save this perfume for the day of my burial. 8You will always have the poor among you, but you will not always have me.”

I Look To You

I love this song!  I love the line... "when melodies are gone, in You I hear a song."  Touches my heart.

Abundant Living

What does that mean?  Well, I've been reading a book called "1000 Gifts" and basically she says that thankful living=abundant living.  Just acknowledging God in every day moments and thanking Him prepares you for hard times to thank Him then too.  Here's a Scripture I've been mulling over:

Psalm 50:23
"He who sacrifices thank offerings honors me, and he prepares the way so that I may show him the salvation of God."

Just think on that for a few days and let it blow your mind.  Here are some things I noted that I was thankful for today.

Majestic Red Trees... majestic even though they are losing parts of themselves
American flags waving in the wind
Wind blowing my hair
Going out in my pjs to get the mail in the cloak of darkness
laughter with family
Zeke tumbling
Gwen singing Swanee River with vibrato
birthday candles blown out
Sunset through the trees
finished races

Doors

My neighbor, Angela, made these and brought them over to the kids.  Aren't they cute?

Zeke playing

The kids

The house we just closed on.  I call it our "bungalow", but really it is an investment house.  We are letting business start ups live in there.  Please pray that it is a house of ministry and we can share the gospel freely with these young people.  Ben has been working very hard to make this dream that God has given him a reality.  Door after door has opened for us and so... here it is!

My Christmas gift early from my mom.  She bought new doorknobs and paint for the door.  :)  Yellow is my favorite color, but even I have to admit that it is pretty bright!

Beki's Halloween Party

My two... Gwen is a kitty cat this year and Zeke is a bat.

Beki and Jeff went all in and went for Smurfette and Smurf.  I was highly impressed that Beki made their hats.  She is definitely becoming domestic.

I love gorillas and Jeff's daddy had a great costume!  I am a pink flamingo.

I bought this costume back in the summer at some garage sale for $5.  It was worth it with all the laughs I had.

The games were really fun.  This one you had to shoot a rubber band and break some toilet paper.  This guy is Mike, the one that lives with us at the moment.  He won over Ben in this match.  Look at Smurfette!

The kids really enjoyed this game.  It was sucking an M&M to the bottom of a straw and putting it on another plate.

Jake and Melody came as Zombie Jeff and Zombie Beki.  It was really confusing to the kids...but great costumes!

Good luck getting this Sharpie tattoo off... but it was exactly like Jeff's!

I really am blessed to be married to Ben.

Smurfette holding Hosea.

This is Abigail and John with their son Hosea.  New friends, but I feel as if I've known them for a long time.  Love that when it happens!

Broken and Spilled Out

Yesterday the sermon was on the account of Mary pouring pure nard on Jesus' feet and drying them with her hair.  I just can't get that image out of my mind.  Let me be that lavish with my love for the Lord.  It brought  back a memory of a song I once sang... Broken and Spilled Out.

One day a plain village woman
Driven by love for her Lord
Recklessly poured out a valuable essence
Disregarding the scorn
And once it was broken and spilled out
A fragrance filled all the room
Like a pris'ner released from his shackles
Like a spirit set free from the tomb

Broken and spilled out
Just for love of you Jesus
My most precious treasure
Lavished on Thee
Broken and spilled out
And poured at Your feet
In sweet abandon
Let me be spilled out
And used up for Thee

Lord You were God's precious treasure
His loved and His own perfect Son
Sent here to show me
The love of the Father
Just for love it was done
And though You were perfect and holy
You gave up Yourself willingly
You spared no expense for my pardon
You were used up and wasted for me

Broken and spilled out
Just for love of me Jesus
God's most precious treasure
Lavished on me
You were broken and spilled out
And poured at my feet
In sweet abandon Lord
You were spilled out and used up for Me

Fall Days

An impromptu fall picnic. 

Gwen's preschool had a fall festival.  I had to correct the kids several times on the way there that indeed it was not a "fall vegetable".

Reading a spooky story in the library with flashlights...

The duck pond...

Monster feet...

We entered the pumpkin contest with our own baby pumpkin.  We didn't win, but I thought it was cute and we got a $5 Sonic card.  Sounds like a win to me!

It's getting very cold here and I'm not sure if it has anything to do with it getting darker earlier, but I feel like I'm in slow motion some days.

Kid's Room

Something I've been working on off and on is the kid's room.  I've painted, then painted some more, then painted.  It's actually the never ending story and I'm still not done.  BUT the kids have gotten in on decorating...take a look.

Complete with a picture of Gwen from the womb!