Living the Adventure, Telling the Stories
Yes, friends…it was another milestone today for our girl.
This milestone made mommy’s heart a little sad, but it’s ok…she’s too cute for me to be that sad about it. 
Here we are with Aunt Bethany, who did the hair cutting.
(She is actually Tobin’s sister, but she looks like she could be my sister. True.)
Here’s a pic from the front…
… and from the back.
Yep, the curls are gone…but we’re sure they’ll be back!
Definitely a d
ay to remember.
Tobin and I came “home” to our first home today.
..well, our first one together.
We spent our first three years of marriage in a suburb of Minneapolis, and it was a great place to start out. After Indonesia, we kinda thought we’d come home to here…but God had other plans.
It wasn’t easy to leave this place…and we thought we’d return to visit more often than we have. We spent Thanksgiving 2010 here…and that was the last time we’ve been to Minnesota until
today.
That seems like a long time to go between visits.
But what’s funny is that though home is now C’ville…which we LOVE, Minnesota still feels so familiar.
I guess it’s good that a place that isn’t home anymore still feels like a place we can come home to.
We’ll be busy the next couple days
with family…including LOTS of Mae’ s cou
sins, so forgive me now if my posts are short or just pictures.
Sending a little love from Minnesota…it’s good to be b ack for
a few days.
From my family to you…Wishing you a jo
yous Christmas as we celebrate the birth of our Savior!
One of my favorite Christmas songs.
Enjoy.
(But as a side note, I’ m not a huge f
an of the video.
Just sayin’. ;))
Maybe yesterday’s heart spillage was healing for me.
I went to bed and woke up feeling like I actually slept…which is something I haven’t felt for weeks.
And?
It was a good day.
Like, a really good one.
There were smiles and laughter.
The laughter began early when we discovered that our gymnast-of-a-daughter was turning somersaults in her crib. I kid you not. We’ve seen her do it once before but thought it was a fluke…apparently not. Seriously?!?!
There were reflections on the season
and moments of rejoicing. Mostly due to the fact that I took some time to truly think about what I wrote about Mary yesterday. I decided she’s definitely one of my heroes.
There was a 3-mile run spent singing along to my favorite Christmas songs. (Sorry if you were driving by and happened to hear me…it is very hard to sound good when you’re out of breath and wearing earbuds. But I SANG. And it was really good.) And to make you laugh…I know all the words to You’re a Mean One, Mr. Grinch. I blame Newsong for putting it on their Christmas CD.
😉
Maybe the biggest blessing of the day was being able to encourage a friend. You know how when you are hurting and feel like you are the one needing the encouragement? This opportunity fell into my lap…and it made my heart happy.
Sometimes my favorite thing in the world is making someone else’s day a little brighter.
I’ve talked about JOY over and over…knowing full well that it’s often a choice.
But at the same time, making that choice to find JOY in my days has become almost habit. I think that’s a good thing.
I’m really looking forward to celebrating the next few days with family and friends.
I hope you are feeling blessed this season.
If you’re not, take some time and count those blessings…you’ ll be surprised how much JOY is in a day.
Love to you…and thanks for praying.
I was reading some of my favorite blogs tonight and was struck by two different thoughts that somehow tie together in my mind…and actually make sense with the place I am tonight.
I’ll start with a very UNdetail-oriented overview of life lately.
It’s been really hard. And I can’t give you details, just ask for
your prayer.
At the same time, I know that this difficult time…this brokenness…is what God is asking me to do right now.
And it WILL be good and it WILL be what He wants, but that DOESN’T mean it’s easy.
I haven’t been able to talk through things with anyone. At times, I desperately feel the need to process what’s going on in my heart, but I’m seeing the wisdom in the fact that, through circumstances, God is asking me to wait before I talk. (New concept for me, definitely. ;))
And so I wait in what seems like darkness and oblivion.
And I choose to trust though I’ll admit that I don’t understand.
And through tears, I find JOY buried somewhere deep in side.
..choosing to see it in the small things that make up a day. A hug from my daughter, a text or call from a friend, a promise from the Word, a cup of coffee.
The last two weeks have been spent walking this road, doing just these things.
And then I think back to Mary…and how she did these same things… on a much greater scale.
What was being asked of her, she never would have chosen. The road of judgment and fear and unknown that He asked her to travel…she did so with complete trust.
I’m sure there were days when it was dark.
I’m sure there were moments when she just couldn’t understand why God chose her to carry His Son.
I’m sure she sometimes had to dig deep to find JOY in the midst of something so unknown…so scary.
Yet, she chose to be obedient and do what God asked of her when He asked it.
I’m not sure these two connect for any of you…but it’s where my heart is tonight.
What I love about God’s promises is that they are just that…PROMISES.
He doesn’t leave those He loves brokenhearted. Without hope. Unloved. Forgotten.
He does exactly the opposite. He heals the brokenhearted. He gives a Hope that is more sure than anything.
He Loves with an everlasting Love.
And He is with me always… never leaving my side.
I ask for your prayers…but I also completely trust my Father.
Sometimes life is hard.
But my God is still so very Good…and I cling to that.
Love you all.
If I’m being honest, I don’ t wan
t to count my blessings today.
I also think that on days like today, the best thing I can do is count them.
So here we go…
My daughter’s cuddles.
A precious reminder of the very first Christmas tonight.
(Great job, ILS students!)
Starbucks coffee with peppermint.
Jeans on clearance.
A “talk” earlier this week on Skype with our beloved pembantu in Indonesia. The language barrier and internet connection made it challenging, but just having the chance for her to “meet” Maelie…was precious. Mae even blew her a kiss goodbye. I hope for more moments like that.
Opportunities to show love
to others.
Running in snowflakes.
The chance to trust when I can’t see.
My Father, Who loves me and holds me each
and every moment.
The most precious gift of all, a tiny baby, sent so many years ago.
Today, I went running.
3 miles.
In the snow.
But not just any snow…the biggest, fluffiest, most amazing snowflakes were falling from the sky.
(And totally hitting me in the face, but that’s ok. :))
This?
Was priceless…though the picture doesn’ t do i
t justice AT ALL.
Sometimes it’s the little things that bring JOY.
Sorry for the lack of words the past few days.
Though by the end of this, you may wish that I had kept w ith
my current trend of posting photos…
Anyway, it’s been busy.
I’ve been tired.
Christmas is practically here, and I feel like it completely sneaked (snuck?) up on me.
(I hate that word…I honestly don’t know which is corrrect, and I’m too lazy to go to dictionary.com to look it up. ;))
Yesterday we invited some neighbors over for our 1st Annual Neighborhood Christmas Party.
Translation: a chance to say hi to and chat with those people we live near but hardly ever see in the w
inter. It was fun…a mix of different ages, some people we know well, some people we don’t know at all…and it worked. It was really good. (And really sugar-filled.) And I was sad when everyone went home.
Tobin is home for two weeks (thank you, Judson U) and that’s nice. M ae
and I had a playdate this morning, he met us for lunch at the mall, then we each had to get some things done before going home.
Once Mae went down for her nap, I went for a nice, 3-mile run (really, it was nice ’cause it was 45 out) then it was home to make dinner.
I was impressed that I ran the whole thing after not running for two weeks… though I was definitely huffing and puffing by the end!
I really love my Christmas tree…and, well, Christmas in general. I mean, I know the reason for Christmas…and that’s what the season is to us. But I’d be lying if I said I didn’t get excited to put up the tree every year. Then, decorate it.
White lights…always white lights. Then ornaments, the number depending on the year and the mood we’re in that day. 😉 The ones that are special to us, a few extra, and then all the UNbreakable ones within Maelie-reach.
And then, I really, really love to just sit and look at the tree.
I’ll sit and look at it every night until Tobin makes me take it down… probably early January.
The one thing about Christmas I don’t enjoy is wrapping gifts. I put it off every year…I’m sure I will be wrapping them on Christmas Eve, just like always. My hubby is a very gifted (HAHA!!!) present-wrapper…too bad he can’t wrap his own gifts! I suppose that would ruin the surprise, huh?
I should wrap this up before midnight. (Did I SERIOUSLY just write that
? I’m rockin’ the puns tonight!)
I better end this before I can’t stop. 😉
‘Nite, friends.
… and some cookies to go with it!
(I can’t believe I didn’t get a picture of the neighbors…you know, the ones who ate
the cookies! Rats.)
Follower of my Father. Wife to Tobin. Mama to my Mae and Mac. Friend. Writer. Dreamer. Lover of adventures. Throw in some coffee, chocolate, running, music, and that's me. I fill this space with the real of my heart and life as I dance through my days with one hand holding my daughter's (or my son's, if I can keep up with him!) and the other holding my coffee mug. Welcome! I hope you'll stay awhile.
