Brave

I had to share this little (amazing) video my wonderful dad told me about.

The U of M Amplatz Children's hospital has a huge part if my heart. After all it is where Gavin got his start in this life. We spent many nights in the hospital rooms after illness, MRIs, and surgeries.

The surgeons, doctors, and nursing staff are beyond amazing!!! They are our heroes, but the kids who spend day after day, month after month hooked up to IV poles - THOSE are SUPER-heroes. They fight life's hardest battles and still have a smile on their face!

Check this video out.

Praying for the little heroes in hospital beds all over the world today!

God is the great physician, and we put our trust in Him.

My little BRAVE hero.

Stuck

Do you ever have moments in life where you feel - stuck? 

You overbooked yourself, you spent too much money and now have a mountain of debt, or if you are like me you find yourself stuck in mommy guilt - worrying you aren't doing motherhood the "right" way.

Maybe you are moving, but only backwards or in circles? 

That, my friends is Gavin's life right now. He is scooting around, but only backwards, or he pivots around on his tummy in circles. The poor guy can't reach things he wants, and when he tries to get to them he just moves further away.

He isn't completely stuck, but to him - he is trapped.

 Starting to get a little worried - being under the table and chairs is a new adventure for my love.

And of course, when you are under the table you must take time to lick the chair leg.

Have mercy he is adorable!

Officially stuck. His legs were between the chair legs, and he had no room to move. Help mama!

Can you relate?

Isn't that just like us?

We try on our own, struggle, go in circles, end up going backwards, and then finally - STUCK. I don't know about you, but it is then that I find myself going to my Heavenly Father. Instead, I should be seeking Him first, so I avoid getting stuck, or "guck" as my sweet niece used to say. If my focus is on my Lord, my heart is in the right place, my eyes are on Him, and I am less likely to find myself...

STUCK.

Imperfect is good enough.

I meant to post this a week ago - Oops!

This weekend we had grandiose ideas of how we would spend our 2 days at home.

Friday we planned to spend the night doing a full James Bond marathon - while munching on popcorn and cuddling.

Saturday morning we planned to do family pictures with the warm sun shining on our faces, and fall colors surrounding us. Later, Jason was to go play Frisbee golf with his guys, and I was to head to a Tupperware party, Gavin in tow. Saturday afternoon was to be packed with fall fun! Apple Jack's orchard was the spot - and fun was on the agenda.

Sunday is our family day. We always go to the early service at church, so I can serve in the preschool room. Then Sunday afternoon was nap time! Yay for the weekend right!?

Not so sure about the piggies

Well - this is where I level with you. Friday night James Bond marathon ended up with me falling asleep on Jason's shoulder (drooling included) about 20 minutes into the movie. We were in bed by 10. Yes, 10:00pm folks! We are officially old, tired parents.

Saturday morning's pictures went swimmingly (thanks Cambria), but the sun refused to break through the clouds and it was cold! I missed the Tupperware party because I lost track of time - sorry Deb! And our picture- perfect day at the apple orchard was more like snap a few pictures, check out how EXPENSIVE it was to actually buy these apples from the apple orchard (for the record $55 for 1/2 a bushel is too much), then run back to our car 15 minutes into our adventure because it was raining and COLD!

Oh - and I bumped Gavin's head on a shelf while we were shopping - first mommy inflicted injury (besides nail trimming mishap). Thankfully he has daddy's skin and didn't even bruise! See - imperfect!

Love seeing my boy on a hay bale!

Sunday Gavin woke up with such a bad cough and stayed home with daddy, while I worked in the preschool room at church. Sunday nap day ended up with Gavin being more awake than I have ever seen him. He slept for 1/2 hour and then talked the rest.of.the.day! LOVE! I'll go without sleep if it means having a happy energetic boy!

Petting Mr. Goat

Now - before you think I am upset about any of this, let me set you straight. MY plans were the ideal weekend, but life isn't always ideal. It is what you do with the imperfections in life, and how you turn them around.

Our weekend maybe wasn't a picture-perfect fall weekend that I had planned, but life is so much more than planning. It is about living life - rain or sun, apples or no apples, nap or no nap.

The Wheels on the Bus go-----

Thank you Jesus, for loving us in our imperfection!

Parenting Bootcamp

Our church is doing a sermon series titled "Parenting Bootcamp". For new parents, we haven't really thought much past dirty diapers, feedings, and getting tons of playtime in during our week.

This series got me thinking on the future. How do we want to raise Gavin? What do we want to be the main focus of our parenting? The obvious answer is God. We want to raise him to know HIM. Our prayer is that when Gavin is outside of our home, that we have equipped him with enough knowledge and wisdom to handle himself like a godly man.

We also learned that parenting is transitional. While Gavin is young, his thoughts are concrete - black or white. But as he gets older he will begin to challenge what we say, and we can't blame him for that, his thinking will be more abstract. Why mommy? How come? I don't believe that! - and so it goes. The point is - we will have to adjust our parenting as our children grow. Just when we think we master one stage of life, they are onto the next.

Ah, the beauty of parenting!

An obvious tip that our pastor brought up was that "Yell" parenting NEVER works. I see it all the time, whether it is at Target, the park, or even in others' homes. Parents yelling at their kids to "Stop it", "don't do that", "NO!!!". This does not work. Kids spirits are so sensitive, and they also need to know why. Why is touching the hot oven a "NO"? We may know the reasons of "NO", but we need to explain them to our children. Also, yelling at your spouse crushes the spirit of our child. Whether they show it or not, it does. Thankfully Jason and I were both raised in godly homes where yelling just simply didn't happen. Our home is a yell-free space, and we pray it always is!

New besties - JJ & Gavin

With Christmas time coming rather quickly, we also have been thinking on how we want to handle gifts. I am smart enough to know how I personally operate - that is I. LOVE.to.give.gifts. However, this year money is a little tight. (Which is JUST fine - we don't need anything). Every year we have a "gift list" a mile long. I am not trying to be the Grinch here, but I also feel it has got WAY out of hand! Right now we are tossing around an idea that my co-worker shared with me - Three gifts for each kid. It ties back to the three gifts the WiseMen brought Jesus. Plus it keeps me from going nuts at Target!

Watching the WILD with daddy

Bottom line is this. Gavin won't look back on his life and say "man - I really wish I would have got _______", or "if only we went to Disney World - then, THEN my life would have been complete". No! - he will remember the experiences he gets with his family. He will remember the times that mommy & daddy took to play with him, take him to the park, or just listened to him talk about his day. He doesn't need every newest gadget out there - Hello?! kids put the iPad down and ENGAGE in conversation. Side note: Parents -our lack of focus/engaging due to technology/TV/Facebook/Twitter is breeding an ugly generation. Where do you think they learn it from. They don't want to see the tops of your head - they need to look at you in the eyes. Am I the only one?

Goofing off. Duck Dynasty style.

Let us be the parents who create memories - not provide momentary satisfaction through things. Those things will break, get lost, and be outdated. Spend time, say "YES!", and LOVE well.

Happy weekend friends!

Food for thought

One of the speakers I enjoy listening to is Ben Stewart with Breakaway Ministries, on the campus of Texas A&M. I first heard him at Passion 2011 and have enjoyed listening to his podcast online.

The most recent one I listened to was about Surviving the Wilderness, when things don't go how you think they should have. One of his key points was regarding complaining - being a cry-cry. He says "for us to complain shows contempt for our Maker." Ouch - that stings doesn't it? The common response to that statement is "I am not complaining about God - I am just not happy with this person, or that circumstance, or this ________."

He noted that when we complain, it is comparable to having a guest over for dinner and when they sit down to eat the beautiful meal you prepared (slaved over) for them they say "That smells dis-gusting, that is horr-endous -Yuck!" You sit there obviously hurt as they go on to say, "well I didn't mean that to offend you..." Ummm - "I MADE IT!"

See the point?

That is on a small scale what it is like to complain about our circumstances. I think I will benefit from remembering this - complaining about my circumstances is criticizing God.

Put a smile on that face!

food for thought.

Ahhh...fall.

Weeks and days fly by. I never thought life could move so quickly - but here we are in October.

 

I would like to say Hello to all things pumpkin,

especially my beloved Starbucks Pumpkin Spice Latte

Apple Orchards and Falling Leaves

Scarves and Boots

Bonfires

and... Frolfing (Frisbee Golfing)

I love his sideprofile. Those lashes! That nose!
Too much cuteness!!!

 

Fall gets me all twitterpated - no, not Twitter as in "tweeting" - twitterpated as in to be completely enamored with someone/something. That, friends, is my love relationship with this season of Fall.

 

 

Sunday Jason had went Frolfing with his guys, and we decided to tag along. So with the little guy strapped to my chest, we headed into the woods.

 

Little did I know, it was a 27 hole course. We still had a great time, and I surprisingly wasn't sore after baby-wearing for that long.

 

 

Happy Fall friends! 

Potpourri

A little bit of this - a little bit of that.

Life is like that isn't it?

 

A little bit of my life right now.  

This little boy sure knows how to love life.

The mirror can entertain for hours!

The second "sad" photo we have ever taken.
Yes - he does have his bad moments, but thankfully they are few and far between.

He is handsome, is he not?

Visiting with great grandpa Gene. We love him so much.
Gavin was obsessed with the button on his jacket.

Great auntie Cindy came to visit too!
She is such a sweetheart and we always deeply enjoy our time with them both!

His favorite spot to sit while
mommy does her make-up.

Sunday morning smiles.

I could spend all my days with this boy and his daddy!
Side-note - look at those forehead wrinkles.
It may be time to think "anti-aging".
Thankfully most of them are from smiles!