Work Hard for Me

We are trying hard to establish deep-rooted work ethics in our children.  We teach them that anything in life worth doing takes sacrifice, dedication and yes, a lot of hard work.  On our journey we have had many teachable opportunities to demonstrate this for our little ones.  Although, each new day brings with it it's own set of challenges, we know that all of this is for a greater purpose.  

Often we will gather together before daddy leaves for work and pray for God
to help us work hard throughout our day. 

 We pray for strength, peace, joy and the ability to see every blessing that each day holds for us. 

(They are easy to miss if your not looking for them.)  

At the end of most days daddy will ask them, "What was your favorite thing that you did today?  What didn't go so well? and "Did you work hard today?"

Each one takes their turn telling him about their day, sharing the good and the bad!  They love this time with their daddy and it also helps to serve as a reminder during their day that they need to work hard!

Many times throughout my day a little one will tug at me and ask, "Mama where's daddy?"
I'll remind her that he is at work and then this sweet little voice will say,

  "Is he working hard for me?" 

Even if today gets hard and frustrating at times I will find the strength to keep going because if that sweet little voice should happen to ask, "Did you work hard for me?"..... I want my answer to always be, "YES!"

A Badge for A Stethoscope

When you take a family of five (which has recently increased to six) and elect to leave behind all reasonable sources of income and walk down a path of uncertainty, I think it safe to say that you have made a leap of faith!  And now that is exactly what we live by...... Faith!

I have married an extremely humble man, it's one of many characters that attracted me to him.   However, it is that same trait that almost cost me the opportunity to witness what would turn out to be one of my greatest blessings.  When my husband was leaving his career as a Charleston Police Officer after fourteen years, they had a retirement lunch for him.  He told me that there was no need for me to come because it was just going to be a few people, nothing really special.  I couldn't shake the feeling that I needed to be there and one day while intercepting a call from one of his coworkers, that feeling was confirmed.  I never told him that I was planning on attending...he can't stand to be fussed over and REALLY (to put it mildly) dreads the idea of being the center of attention.  I had asked his dad to come with me and later wished that we would had made arrangements for his mother to come as well.  Still we were envisioning only a few people and "nothing really special"!

When we walked into the restaurant I found myself in a room filled with about 50 people!  My husband, smiling sheepishly, greeted me with a hug and whispered in my ear, "I am so glad that you are here."  I knew that he was struggling with being the star of this party but he was also humbled by the many people that came to see him off.  As I sat and listened to these men and women talk about their memories of my husband and the way that he impacted their lives, my heart swelled with pride.  I loved hearing these stories about the person that I think so highly of and I couldn't help but be moved to tears.

I am so blessed to have a husband that would leave everything that he had worked so hard for, so that he could follow the path that God chose for him.  This was no easy decision for him, he had built a life and a career.  However, we knew that whatever the Lord had chosen for us would be better than anything that
we could ever desire for ourselves.

Where a badge use to hang, now hangs a stethoscope.  Both were created to help people and both have been worn by a man
 that desperately wants to follow a God that is so much bigger than we could ever imagine!

I am so proud of you honey!

2 years, 8 months, & 27 days into our "new" journey..... so far!

Beaming...

Late one night Kayla climbed in bed between daddy and me and giggled while we snuggled her from both sides.  She was having trouble falling asleep and came in for a kiss.  That is just what she got, we showered her with hugs and kisses and listened to her talk for sometime.  

In our home these moments are highly treasured events. 

 I could feel her beaming with happiness and it made me think, I want each of my children to feel this way in every minute of every day of their lives.  

Safe, heard, loved and cherished should not be feelings reserved for only rare special moments, 

they should be a standard of life.

I want my every action in every day to reveal to my children the way that I truly feel about them... 

       

so that they may learn to feel that way about themselves. 

Easter Egg Hunt 2011

It's my first Easter!

The Ultimate Sacrifice

Here I am, Lord, and I'm drowning in your sea of forgetfulness 

The chains of yesterday surround me

I yearn for peace and rest

I don't want to end up where You found me

And it echoes in my mind, keeps me awake tonight

I know You've cast my sin as far as the east is from the west

And I stand before You now as though I've never sinned

But today I feel like I'm just one mistake away from You leaving me this way

Jesus, can You show me just how far the east is from the west

'cause I can't bear to see the man I've been come rising up in me again

In the arms of Your mercy I find rest

'cause You know just how far the east is from the west

From one scarred hand to the other

I start the day, the war begins, endless reminding of my sin

Time and time again Your truth is drowned out by the storm I'm in

Today I feel like I'm just one mistake away from You leaving me this way

I know You've washed me white, turned my darkness into light

I need Your peace to get me through, to get me through this night

I can't live by what I feel, but by the truth Your word reveals

I'm not holding on to You, but You're holding on to me

You're holding on to me

Jesus, You know just how far the east is from the west

I don't have to see the man I've been come rising up in me again

In the arms of Your mercy I find rest

'cause You know just how far the east is from the west

From one scarred hand to the other

One scarred hand to the other

From one scarred hand to the other

~Casting Crowns

If This Was a Test Then I Get an F

You could say that I have never been one to assert myself!  I have always hated any type of confrontation or even the remote possibility of confrontation.  Now that I have children I have tried to overcome my inability to speak up.

It is pretty safe to say that I failed this time!  At the dentist office, I went up to the front desk to tell them I needed to go back with my daughter (my son was already back there too).  I was told by the receptionist to just wait until the dentist was ready to talk to me about all three of my children.  A little taken aback I said, "Well I would like to check on my daughter."  She then proceeded to look back towards the chairs where my daughter was and said, "I can see her she's doing fine."  I walked back to my seat in a state of shock.

The longer I sat there the more angry I became...

so I told them how I felt...

well most people would have I am sure, but of course I said nothing.

I kept saying (to myself), "You won't let me go to MY children!"  I could never bring myself to say those words out loud and as you can tell, I am obviously still upset.  Although, I never believed that my children were in any real danger, the thought of someone else telling me that I couldn't see them still blows my mind.

I WILL do better next time ...simply because my kids are counting on me.  No longer will my need to not offend someone, interfere with the needs of my little ones! 

Sweet babies your mama is a work in progress, I will never claim to be perfect.  However, I will always work hard to make your tomorrow even better than your today.

Addyson's first time letting the
dentist work on her teeth.

Ducklings All in a Row

It is a rare occasion when I walk down an isle at a grocery store when someone doesn't make a comment about my little gang.  I never have to wonder what someone is thinking, on lookers are usually more than willing to tell me exactly what's on their minds.  The most famous of all comments is, "Wow, you really have your hands full."

During one trip a very concerned patron asked me, "Are ALL those yours?"  I am assuming she meant children...I didn't even have my fourth little one yet.  The comment took me so off guard that I looked around to see if I had picked up a few others that I wasn't aware of.   I think the surprise for most isn't so much the amount of children I have but the age span in which they fall (however I could be wrong, it could be both).

Another one of my favorite comments is, "Four?  I don't know how you do it, I would go crazy!"  The answer...yes four, and I don't know maybe I am crazy... but I wouldn't change my life for anything!  So if you see me at Kroger be patient chances are there are at least two little ducklings following close behind me with their own little carts.