This video puts forward a really important message for parenting today.  Pay attention to the words - especially the last verse.  It really hit home with me. 

Christmas day

A day this beautiful,

A husband this stellar, 

and a baby this cute

deserved copious amounts of pictures.

and the family grows...

It was a battle of the wills, at least on my part.  Everything was going just fine in our lives: we had a seven month old, I was (slooooowly) getting my girlish figure back, and plans for a new house were under way.  It had taken me six months to feel "normal" again after giving birth, and I was just beginning to get used to not being an emotional wreck.  Why in my right mind would I ever wish for another child at this moment in my life?  Granted, such an attitude meant that Joey and I had to place our faith solely in our "family planning" methods.  But, really, did God actually expect us to have baby after baby...after baby?

Such were our thoughts on the subject.  So great were our "convictions" that we easily found 101 other reasons why we should not conceive at this time -- and they were all very good, very acceptable reasons.

• Will we really be able to cope with "two under two"?
• There's no certainty of getting a bigger house in time, and we need a bigger house.
• Can I physically handle another pregnancy?  Is my body even capable of coping this soon?
• If I get pregnant now, then I'll be due in SUMMER! aka my least favourite season ever (it's the heat).
• We need time to "adjust" to being just three of us.  
• It's not fair to the Cuteness to focus our attention on another baby so soon.  He'll feel neglected.  Our relationship will suffer because of it. 
• People will think this baby is an "accident".  They'll just assume he/she was a surprise -- that we are just being irresponsible.
• NO ONE is having kids this close together these days.  
• ...and so on...

All of these seemed viable excuses.  Anyone would understand - and even applaud - our decision.  But, the more we thought and talked about it, the more selfish and untrusting we realized we were being.

Even when we tried to pray about it, the answer was shockingly blunt.

"Lord, please forgive me for not considering You in this matter, but, well, we want to know what You want for our family.  Do you want us to have more kids--"

Be fruitful and multiply.


"Yes, Lord, that's what You've said.  But, You can't really expect us to do that NOW.  What would people think of us?"


I have called you to be separate. 


"But now, Lord? Are you certain?"


Yes.  Do not be afraid.


Then the Holy Spirit would proceed to bring to mind many of the women of the Scriptures: Sarah, Rachel & Leah, Hannah, & Mary.  These women all trusted God, and He gave them children in His own time.  And yet, there we were, hoping against hope that God wouldn't bless us.  We were trusting in a store bought item rather than the Lord of all creation.

That's where these convictions left us: without device or argument, naked and revealed before a Holy God.

We let go.  We let go of our fears and trusted in the Perfect love which drives it out.  We let go of our desire to seem "normal" in society to be separate - set apart to the Lord.  We repented of our sin.

This is where we are now: resting in the glorious knowledge that He has worked a miracle within my womb and brought for life from one as good as dead.  We are hoping to raise a family that fears the Lord.  We are rejoicing in each other and how God has made us one.  And, we are praying that we will continue to be conformed into Christ's likeness from glory to glory.

Here we are.  Ten weeks along.  Praising God.

He is good!

May Christ be glorified this Christmas.

not of this world

As I stay at home and take care of the Cuteness, I have plenty of time to think things through and simply observe what’s going on in this world.  We don’t have television, so the radio is our main authority when it comes to world events.  I almost prefer it that way.  Watching TV is so all-encompassing for me.  If it’s going to be on, then I’m going to drop everything and watch it.  When I listen to the radio, I find myself being much more productive because only one of my senses is being called upon.  Along with much radio listening, I also have enrolled myself in the oh-so-popular web monsters, known as Twitter and Facebook.  With Twitter, I can follow people I’ve never met in person and read what makes them tick.  I’ve learned a lot about trends in North American humanity and Christianity that I was completely oblivious to before - such things aren’t as easy to pick out on public radio.  As for Facebook, it has kept me informed as to what the current trends are in the people I know directly.  Granted, one shouldn’t need social media to connect with the people she knows.  I admit that Facebook has it’s flaws.  What it has done is made me aware of just how big my circle of influence really is.  Not only do I get to take the heartbeat of the people I know, but I am also challenged to live with more integrity.  And, lastly, I am part of the blogosphere.  This is probably the most narrow-sighted form of information out of all four.  Instead of learning about vast numbers of people, I’ve gotten to know a dozen world views - all narrow simply because they only belong to one person.

What has all this information-gathering done for me?  First, it’s given me perspective beyond my own little blip of a life.  I have to be careful, though, because gaining a broader vision can make you blind to the things close at hand.  But, overall, I am grateful for what I have learned.  The main benefit from all of this is simply summed up in one sentence: 

The more I see of this world, the more I’m convinced I don’t belong in it. 

That may sound harsh, but it’s completely true.  I continuously find that my affections and passions are in stark contrast with what the world values.  I am constantly drawn to my God and Saviour, Jesus Christ.  I crave heaven’s joys and while inwardly repelling earth’s sorrows.  

And, you know what?  I am a follower of Christ - a citizen of heaven.  I was born into sin, and have died to it through the precious blood of Christ shed for me.  My life is not lived by the provision of this world, but by faith in the Son of God.  

As long as I am here on earth, I am a sojourner and an exile - cast off from modern society because, as a Christian, I cannot rightly take on the passions of the world.  I am called to abstain from the passions of the flesh because they wage war against my soul (see 1 Peter 2:11).

Emmanuel shall come to thee

I realize that I have not written a Christmas post yet, and this is unacceptable.

It's especially bad because I've had my tree up WAAAY too long.  You'd think I'd be ready for Christmas by now, wouldn't you?  Wrong.  I only set up the tree that early because I knew the season would pass me by without me even realizing it if I didn't.  And, nope, I'm not sick of it yet.  It has served as a reminder to me that we're going to celebrate the birth of the Ancient of Days.  It's one of those things that I feel like I need to prepare my heart for.  And I suppose that the Christmas tree has absolutely nothing to do with Christ.  It's a rather silly tradition, really.  But, nevertheless, it's a constant reminder that even though life goes on, Christ's birth, life, death, and resurrection continue to hold power even to this day.

That's why I love Christmas so much.  It breaks my heart that the world has trumped GOD coming to EARTH as a MAN (yet still God!) with a jolly man who gives out presents every year.  Sure, I'm quite certain that St. Nick was a nice man.  So nice that his niceness became a legend.  So nice that people want to celebrate how nice he was.  Every year.  But, seriously?  He probably didn't do it to get recognition.  He probably didn't do it to steal the show.  But people saw the opportunity to avoid a topic that they'd rather not think about too too much and took it without a second look back.

What are we doing this year? That's a good question.  Joey needs to be at work from the 26th to the 28th, so we're sticking around here for Christmas Day.  We're actually looking forward to being just us three for most of it.  I'm excited to make traditions, even if we're not sure what those will  All I know is that

a. we have stockings 

b. there's a ham (ON. THE. BONE) in the fridge, and 

c. it's waffles for breakfast.

Other than that, it's pretty much open.  We'll probably head over to the husby's parents' for a bit on either the 24th or 25th.  Also, we're going to visit my parents after Joey's done work on the 28th (weather permitting).  I am so grateful that we get to spend this time with family!

Judah would like your attention...

because he has some very important things to show you,

like how he can eat all by himself,

and how he loves hummus on homemade bread.

He would also like you to note his two newest teeth.

Also, sometimes his mother's mental welfare concerns him.

thankful

1. A family of my own

2. A warm house and a roof over our heads

3. The hills where we live

4. The body of Christ, wherever it may be found

5. Plenty of food and water

6. That, even though I am a wretched person, I can be friends with God

7. Christmas! 

8. The skill to make presents I'm proud to give

9. My baby who woke me up at 5 and has been squealing in delight ever since

10. My best friend, who also happens to be the man I married

11. My mom - my other best friend

12. My dad and our intriguing theological conversations

13. A cat that makes my baby's eyes light up

14. Free medical attention when it's needed

15. The word of God and it's renewed impact each morning

16. The ability (and desire!) to be a homemaker

17. Having family close by

18. Living with Joey's "workplace" right out our front door

19. The gift of marriage

20. A warm bed to sink into and fall asleep in without fear for the next day

21. Untroubled dreams

22. The continual safety surrounding all of our road trips to see my parents

23. The money to bless other people this Christmas

24. The bigger house we will receive within the next year

25. My goofball of a baby

26. The wide open spaces here in the Prairies

27. Good friends to stay up (way too) late with 

28. The incredibly useful advice & many "hand-me-downs" (that I will inevitably hand back) from a certain sister-in-law :)

29. The anticipation of Judah enjoying his first Christmas

30. Nine months with this amazing little boy

31. Almost two years of wonderful marriage

32. Friends that are getting/have gotten married 

33. Getting at least one year of Bible education

34. I'm never done learning

35. God who forgives more than I fail

36. The amazing miracle of childbirth that I experienced before my 21st year

37. The pastor I call my dad

38. Good health

39. God who spoke so clearly to the prophets & apostles of old - and they wrote it down

40. People I can look up to

41. Persecution which brings about perseverance

42. Family living for God

43. A very intelligent little boy who already understands "no" and "daddy's home!"

44. Music and my ability to make it

45. All the things I take for granted - like a refrigerator, a washer and dryer, and freedom to read the Bible by myself

46. My caring in-laws

47. A car to go places

48. Photography (and our awesome camera)

49. God's mercies are new every morning

50. The miracle of new life

Thanks to Allison from OMyFamily for inspiring this post.  I need to be more thankful.

on Christian maturity

I know I haven't blogged in a while, and this post is kind of a strange re-introduction into the habit of blogging.  Nevertheless, this topic has been on my mind for quite some time, making it impossible for me to blog about anything else in the meantime.

I have been wondering what it means to be a "mature" Christian.  Is it weighed by how adept I am at religious practice - prayer, scripture reading, involvement in the church, and the like?  Or is it measured by my ability to repel the sinfulness around me like a waterproof jacket - immersed in sin, but unaffected by it?  

As a Christian who acknowledges that I have been saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ and by His merit rather than my own, I cannot readily agree with either of these definitions.  If the mark of maturity lies in the former, then it lies solely in my ability to purify myself.  If I cannot faithfully perform these religious "duties", then it is clear that my maturity is lacking.  Similarly, the latter would imply that only my ability to withstand temptation signifies that I am spiritually mature.  And yet, the Bible repeatedly attests to man's eternal and inborn depravity (Romans 3:21-26 is an excellent portrayal of Christ's work, not ours).  What does this say for maturity lying in the grasp of a Christian's abilities?  The outlook isn't good.

I submit that where true maturity lies is in the Christian's decision to not partake in activities that are characterized by sin.  This requires great humility on the the Christian's part - which we are encouraged to bring about on our own (1 Peter 5:6 ), for it is a terrifying thing to be humbled by Holy God.  In humility, the Christian is not tempted to believe that his good works gain him any standing with God.  In humility, he will recognize that placing himself in positions where sin is running rampant is not a good idea and only tests his ability to resist sin.  A humble person knows that his "ability" is entirely flawed.

I attended a Christian school for most of my schooling years.  I found that, although we were given solid biblical teaching every day, the very act of attending a Christian school tempted my peers to believe that they were saved simply by association.  Self-righteousness is a slippery slope.  But I am straying from my point.  On one "party day" before school let out for summer, the entire high school body congregated in one of the multi-purpose rooms to watch a movie.  I suppose the intent was to "kick back and relax".  I don't oppose the activity.  Before the movie started, one of the staff at the school proceeded to warn us that there was one scene in which the naked form of a man's behind would be seen - momentarily. Instead of choosing to skip the scene, the teacher gave this speech: "If you are MATURE, you'll be able to handle it. If you can't, then leave."  Thus, the scene was played and 70 students felt justified staring at a naked bum.

This moment has always bothered me in two aspects.  First, I am unsure if that scene would even be played in public high schools.  Nudity is not a generally accepted phenomenon, even amongst those who don't call upon Christ.  I had always assumed that a Christian school should uphold higher, borderline fanatic standards for the sake of properly instructing young Christians. In this case, I was sorely mistaken.  Second, the message that the teacher gave us proclaimed that maturity means you should be able to stand face to face with filth and not let it bother you.  It is the immature person who avoids such temptation.

If Christians take this attitude upon themselves, then what would separate them from the rest of the world - at least outwardly?

No, I believe that true maturity lies in the Christian choosing not to stand face to face with filth, as far as that decision can be made by him.

According to Romans 14:13-19, we should avoid anything that could become a stumbling block to another believer.  I believe that openly endorsing something like regular alcohol consumption can lead to other believers adopting the habit and abusing it.  Addiction to alcohol may not be something you struggle with at all, and you may be a responsible drinker, but there's no telling how that could affect those who see you partaking in it.  It could lead to a serious stronghold in their life - even if it's not one in yours.  I definitely do not want to be held accountable for unknowingly leading someone astray.  Of course, there are many other things that could lead a person astray - I just picked alcohol to set out a clear example.

If we, as Christians, believe that Jesus Christ has paid for all of our sins and that we are made friends with God by His merit and not our own, then we should not trust in our own ability to remain pure.  We need to trust daily in Christ's finished work on the cross and pray that we will be evermore changed into His likeness.  Separating ourselves from what the world deems "basically harmless" may have it's hardships for us in this life on earth, but obeying God is something that we will have the privilege to do for an eternity.

Maturity should not be based on a Christian's upstanding moral character, but her willingness to be alienated from the world for the sake of Christ.

fancy pants

I don't have time to do a proper post, but here's a little sample of the decorations Joey and I came up with for his fancy pants 5-course dinner.  I had a lot of fun with it!

nine months

My baby boy is nine months old today.

And I want to know where the time is gone.

Nine months ago I was drinking in the sights and sounds of my new little baby in an uncomfortable hospital bed.  I had slept maybe an hour in the last 36, and I couldn't even walk for the pain that it incurred in my back.  All I wanted to eat was peanut butter and toast, which my husband graciously supplied at my request.  I was trying so very hard to get a grasp of how to nurse my baby, and I was enamoured by his tiny, perfect little self.

The most special thing about that day was that I finally got to meet my little boy.  He had been inside of me for nine months, growing physically as much as he was growing in personality.  I felt like I knew him, even though I had never met him face to face before.  There had just been a veil between our relationship.  All of a sudden, it was gone.

Nine months inside.  Nine months out.  I have known my baby for 18 months.

Today I will drink in the sights and sounds of him as he interacts with his world.  I cherish every little wave of the hand, every little giggle, every squeal of delight.  I love everything about him, and I'm still just as enamoured by him as I was nine months ago... as I was 18 months ago.

Happy nine month birthday, little one!

it was one busy weekend

Here's a random mish-mash of pictures from our weekend.  A couple of friends of ours were getting married, and Joey was in the wedding party.

The best thing about marriage

is spending time in the word of God, in prayer, and in praise together. The best thing is rejoicing in our great Saviour.

4 But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared,
5 he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit,
6 whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior,
7 so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.

It is good for a man and wife to worship God in their marriage.

when will he learn that gross things are gross?

It's no secret to the general public that we are a cloth diapering family.

And you should be aware that my baby is eating solid foods.

Also, it may come as a shocker to you, but when your baby soils a cloth diaper, you cannot (or should not) just throw it out.

Do you see where this is going?

I doubt that you do, actually.

Because I had one of those "mom fail" moments today.  And it had to do with cloth diapers.  And baby poo.

I changed my baby's dirty bum like a pro.  I set him lovingly on the ground and grabbed the soiled diaper to get rid of it's contents.

Said contents were plopped safely in the toilet.  And I closed the lid.

As I was rinsing all of the leftover bits from the diaper, I heard a funny little splashing noise.

I turned around to witness a frightening sight:

My baby.
Toilet lid open.
Hand in bowl.
Playing with poo.
Mom fail.

I'm splitting my gut just typing this out.

I grabbed him as if he was going to drop off a cliff and plopped him in the sink, where I abundantly supplied his little hands with soap, LATHERED LATHERED LATHERED, and rinsed.

Oh...
Parenthood.

have we forgotten about holiness?

If you have noticed, I have a section heading over there on the right called "Discernment" with a few links underneath.  Why would I care to put something so serious on my personal blog, you ask?  It's because I cannot separate my personal life from what I believe.  What I believe is my identity.

I believe that there is a very disconcerting shift happening in churches today - a very subtle shift that has taken years upon years to even register on the charts.  I believe that the most important doctrines of the Christian faith are:

• Mankind's sinfulness, depravity, and inability to be reconciled to God
• Jesus Christ's holiness, divinity, and absolutely sinless life on earth
• the penal substitution of Christ on the cross for our sins - He bore not only the punishment for our sins, but the actual sins themselves and died to satisfy the wrath of God, which we deserve as sinners
• the resurrection of Christ in which He loosened death's grip forever and was glorified here on earth, as He should be
• that Christ came not only to save us, but then to sanctify us

Everything hinges around these doctrines.  

In Tim Challies' daily A La Carte, I found a very pertinent article written by Kevin DeYoung that draws attention to the aspect of holiness in the Christian's life - perhaps one of the most misunderstood/forgotten/ignored things in Christian circles today.  I won't say much about it because Kevin DeYoung does it far better than I could.  I trust that you will prayerfully read the article.

The Hole in Our Holiness 

by Kevin DeYoung

I love the way he sums up his article:

It’s not pietism, legalism, or fundamentalism to take holiness seriously. It’s the way of all those who have been called to a holy calling by a holy God.

the first snow

it came upon a midnight clear

The moon was out in full force two nights ago.  The husby thought it would be great to attempt taking a no flash long exposure photo out there in the moonlight.   The above picture was taken at 25s exposure, with me holding as still as possible while the seconds ticked away.  It was kind of an uninteresting picture SOOC (straight out of camera), so I played with it and made it a little more fantastical. I love how you can see little glitters in the snow and one lone star in the sky.  

a place of healing

My husband and I are so burdened for the word of God.  We are desperate to learn from it, desperate to have it opened up to us, that we may grow in our faith.  We want to dive into it and pay attention to every detail, dig into the context, and discover why & how the Scriptures are written.  We want to be taught the principles of Hermeneutics and the doctrines of our depravity and God's holiness.  We don't want to read it merely for the discipline of doing so, nor do we want to adopt the attitude that it makes us better people by doing so.  We want more.

The last Sunday that we lived in the big City, the Husby and I decided to go to a church we had never attended before.  I honestly have no idea how we came to the church we did, save the guidance of the Holy Spirit.  We had always noticed how the words that were put up on the sign along the street weren't the usual "God loves you" or "Everyone Welcome" (not bad things to say in and of themselves), but things that were sure to cause those driving by to avert their eyes and try not to process the truth that was being proclaimed.  We knew before stepping into the building that the leadership there knew they had authority to speak the truth with boldness to anyone and everyone.

As we walked into the sanctuary, the pastor was greeting his congregation like a shepherd caring for his sheep.  It was clear that his compassionate words  for them were not born out of an obligation to say the right things, but out of a deep love for God and a burden for those under his care as a pastor.  He was watching all who entered the doors of that holy place as if taking the pulse of his varied community.  He looked into the eyes of his parishioners and silently assessed the burdens these weary Christians had brought with them to the house of God that morning.

I felt his eyes on us as we nervously made our way across the creaky wooden floor to a care-car worn pew near the back.  Oh God, I don't want to be noticed.  Not this Sunday.  Not when we're moving out of the City tomorrow.  I knew that we'd be hard pressed to get out of the building unnoticed after the service was over.

I don't remember much detail about the service that day, except that I was quite skeptical that the lengthy order of service in the bulletin would be completed in the "normal" (read: North American) Sunday service timeframe.

Needless to say, when the pastor had assumed his place at the pulpit for the "meat" of the service, quite a bit of time had elapsed - although, for some strange reason, it didn't really seem to matter to anyone.  He opened his mouth to proclaim the word of God.

And we were hit by a tidal wave.

At least, that's what it felt like to witness the outpouring of truth that was coming from the simple, wooden pulpit.  The word of God was alive and active.  Both my husband and I were convicted and changed because of the authority with which the pastor spoke.  We were filled to overflowing.

I looked down at the bulletin in my hand to find that he was just giving the Scripture reading for the morning.  The sermon was still to come.  I thought that there must have been a misprint. Maybe he had rolled up the Scripture and sermon all into one...? But, as the order of service unfolded, it became more and more clear that he still had a message from the Lord for his congregation on the Lord's Day.

Rarely have I heard the word of God spoken with so much authority, at least in person.  Then again, maybe the hearts of the other people were far from the service that morning, and Joey and I were the exception.  Who knows.  What is amazing, though, is that we had blindly walked in to a foreign place without knowing that it was exactly where God had wanted us to be on that specific morning.

When the end of the service came, I no longer felt the need to dart out the back door as soon as the pianist picked up her hymnbook.  Joey and I sat dumbfounded by the awesome power of God's word.  I watched to see if anyone else was in the same state as I was.  Everyone seemed to be picking themselves up off the benches quite easily, whereas I felt like I was scrambling to scoop up the puddle of myself off the floor.  In the midst of all of this, more than one person came to talk to us and find out who we were.  It was not a fake "Visitors! Visitors! We know what to do with visitors!" conversation, but one that was genuinely interested in how we had come into the house of God that morning.  Throughout the whole conversation I was simultaneously thinking about how I never wanted to leave that building.  I'm pretty sure Joey felt it, too.

The time finally came when we were able to head towards the back entrance.  There was the pastor, shaking hands and conversing with his sheep.  I felt a little shy about having to say "hi" to him - I knew that we would never get the chance to be a part of his congregation permanently.  Nevertheless, he grabbed our hands warmly and claimed to remember seeing Joey on one or two other occasions.  This was true, and Joey was a little bit shocked that he could even remember something like that.  He asked who we were, what we did, where we were from.  Eventually, we had to break the news to him that we were moving out of the City the next day.  His countenance fell, and he (quite sincerely) said, "Oh!  You break my heart."  I don't think I would have believed any other complete stranger if he said this, but I believed him.  He then asked if he could pray for us.  So, right there in the entrance way, he put his arms around us and petitioned the Lord for us.

I will never, EVER forget that experience.  I had entered that building almost giving up on church entirely.  I hated that we were randomly sitting in some unknown congregation's worship service.  I hated being "obvious".  When I left, however, I had gained perspective.  I had been refreshed and reminded of the importance of the body of Christ.  I had been honestly loved by a fellow body of believers.  I had heard the word of God spoken with boldness and authority.  I was convicted of my sinfulness and left praising God for His holiness.

I thank God for that day.  And I crave more and more of His word as we meet with believers each and every Lord's day.

the odd couple

I have found that date nights look quite different when you have babies.

Take last night, for example.  Joey came home and suggested that we go for a Timmies run after supper.  It wouldn't be much, but the 25 minute drive to the nearest "city" sounded like a much needed getaway to me.  After a little more discourse on the topic, we just decided to go for supper there as well.  Because dishes are just dumb when you don't have a dishwasher.

So, we insulated our small child as best as we could and hopped into a freezing car to "live a little".

It was magic. The boy fell asleep within a couple of minutes.  We talked.  We drove.  We ordered our food in the drive-through, then started to drive back.  Then I realized that hot soup in a moving car on our horrible Prairie highways is not a smart idea.  So, we pulled over on a little gravel road and enjoyed our prefab supper while the Cuteness chugged a bottle silently in the back seat.

Ok, so maybe it wasn't magic.  But it was special, as odd as it may seem.  And, to tell you the truth, I quite prefer these little, strange date nights to the over-the-top romantic ones.  Being all Prince Charming and romantic is wonderful, but simple day-to-day life has it's own charm as well.  I rather prefer finding the odd little treat in the everyday!

I love homemade bread.

That is all.

for you today

Do you think I should unpack? the Cuteness doesn't think so.

I just can't go anywhere without him latching onto my pants.

I love this

Did you know that my husband is a poet?  Oh, yes, he's always making silly rhymes - mostly about the cat.  This is the most recent:

That is the cat.  See how her tail sways.

Do not envy her ways; her life is simple.  

She eats, she sleeps, she poops-not even a dimple.

At any rate, it made me laugh - mostly because he was just sitting in the kitchen with J on his lap, saying it so nonchalantly.  I barely even heard it.  

Thinking about my husby being a daddy gives me so much joy.  It was one thing I never considered before we got married.  My mind was all like "WE'RE GETTING MARRIED WE'RE GETTING MARRIED WE'RE GETTING MARRIED WE'RE GETTING MARRIED!!!!!" instead of rationally considering all of the (wonderful) things to follow.  All I saw in my future was a white dress and a handsome man.  I was pretty nearly blind to everything else that moved.   It was the same when I was pregnant, the dominating thought being I'M. HAVING. A. BABY.!!!  

But now?  

Watching those moments when the boys have each other in spasm-inducing laughter make me think of all the laughs they'll share as Judah grows up.  Seeing my baby squeal in delight when the Husby comes home makes me wonder what it will be like when he can run and jump into his arms.   Witnessing those tender moments between father and son as he puts Judah to bed foreshadows thousands of nighttime stories and snuggles to come.  

I can't wait, and at the same time I want those moments to last a lifetime.

Being a mother is being blessed beyond measure.  

thankful to be home

Sixteen hours of driving.  In one weekend, that's a lot.  With a baby, that's insane.  Thankfully, Judah only had to deal with half of that (in four hour stints) thanks to my parents' willingness* to look after him.

a grain of salt

My parents really do love their little grandbaby--so much so that they are always encouraging us to have more*.  To reply to said encouragement, I said:

"I may turn out to be the size of the Titanic, but you'll have lots and lots of grandchildren!"

To which my loving husband replied:

"THAT'S why your parents' hallways are so wide!"

He's so supportive.


*Just so people know, if we have more babies, it will be because WE want them  and not because anyone else wants us to! 

of the seeing and the blind

He's teaching me.  He's always teaching me.  

There is a certain folly to declaring oneself righteous, to saying, "how glad am I that I am free from the vices of the world!"  Thinking such things only leads to destruction.  The sentence is ever nearer if we think that we see clearly, for then we are deceived all the more severely and are revealed to be utterly blind (Jn 9:39-41).  Our wealth of wisdom, Christ came to make into folly.

the selfishness of me.

Today was going to be a bad day.

I forgot my ceramic flat iron, my makeup, my bobby pins, my deodorant, my toothbrush and my hairbrush at my in-laws' house last night.  And I'm going to church today.  Playing piano.  Singing in a choral group.  On stage.

being honest about this blog

Forgive me for the essay that follows, but I think it’s really important for me to post it.

When I first started blogging, it was intended as an outlet for me to share my opinions on things (mostly Christianity).  I had a few regular followers which frequently commented on my posts, as I did on theirs.  I longed for a bigger audience while at the same time being grateful that it wasn’t any bigger. 

eight months

and I cried.

On a day like today, all I needed was encouragement.

while I wish he was napping

I think it's about time that I give an update on life in general around this crazy house.

Our little piece of property has seen some updates during the last two weeks.  Manitoba Hydro offers to pay a certain amount to get houses re-insulated (something to do with lower heating bills, perhaps?), and we've benefited from this grant.

a recipe for a rainy day.

It's a gloomy day here in the sticks.  The skies are thick with clouds and everything is drip-drip-dripping.  They say snow is on a way.  In fact, they are so confident as to issue a snowfall warning for our region.  I really wish I knew who "they" were...

it was love

This is just a simple post today.  As I was showering this morning, I found this song reverberating around in my head.  It is simply a song that praises God for His wonderful love for us.  Enjoy!

he must increase

I'm reading through the book of John.  One of the first things that has stuck out to me is how John the baptist was a man after God's heart.

the cuteness