Christmas Adam

It raining here today, but hopefully it is going to stop this afternoon.  The kids are planning an airsoft battle amongst themselves!

We're excited that the forecast for Christmas Eve into Christmas Day is saying a light snow!

Isla has arrived in town, bring her parents along with her!  She has been having fun playing with Uncle Kyle, hanging with Auntie Sarah, feeding the horses with Grandpa, and giving the chickens some oats.

Tomorrow, the whole family and some friends are going to lunch to celebrate Tim's birthday.  We're very pleased that his brother Dan and family will be with us for that!  Then we have an early Christmas Eve service at church, then home for birthday gifts and later, stockings.

I hope you are all enjoying the season.  I know for some this year is challenging due to loss, or illness.  I know that for some there is deep pain due to broken relationships with loved ones.  I'm praying for comfort for you all, for Joy in the Lord which is not dependent on circumstances.

 I've been enjoying a blog for the last few years called Golden Hours.  I'm linking to a post that it is a must read. (here)

"If you’re hurting this Christmas, know you are beloved of a God whose special concern is the brokenhearted.
If you’re rejoicing, don’t let fear have your joy, even for a moment."

The Season of Joy is here!

We had a truly lovely day, yesterday.

Great food and a beautiful table


Isla warming up to grandpa!

Group photo - Lindsay and Joseph where with his family this year but popped over for photos. (thankfully his family live 3 minutes from us!)  We also had a friend of my parents with us for the day.  Happy to say that she is now our friend, too!

We ate, talked, enjoyed the grands, and played Mexican Train all evening.

We managed to get a family photo that is nice of everyone!

Don't mind Kamryn's tongue.  She's seven.  Its been hard enough to get Kyle to not stick his tongue out in photos, and he's 12.  Sigh...At least everyone is looking at the camera!

Today I'll start with my Christmas decorating.  We'll maybe go get a tree, too, as we always do a live tree.  

I'll be working on plans this weekend for hosting our co-op mom's Christmas party here a week from today, then our ladies tea at church on December 7th!

Oh and I think we may go look at Christmas lights this weekend while Isla is with us!  Fun to see their reaction to seeing the lights for the first time!

The season of JOY is here!  I'm so excited and I know you are too!

Delights of Summer

Lorrie asked what was delighting us this summer - here's my list so far.

Lights in the garden
Hollyhocks
Hydrangea
Roses
Fresh Fruit
Salads
Grilled Chicken
Swimming
School Break
Painting (things in my house)
Warm Evenings
Reading
Deck Dates


What is delighting you this summer?

Unexpected Joys

 Sunday Kyle went fishing at a pond near our friends' house and caught his first fish!  He was pretty happy.  I love these boys.  I pray that God will grip their hearts, and that they will follow hard after Him.

Last week I caught the sunrise…

Family Culture: Having Fun Together

Sunday evening several families came over after church and as is our new custom we had a quadruple batch of pancakes on the griddle.  Tim decided that he was going to be the chef this week, and our friend John was doing the assisting.  Emily was helping out as well.  The next thing I know I hear this crazy laughing and see Em with the giant white platter catching pancakes as Tim flipped them into the air!  

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This got everyones' attention and their was a lot of laughter going on.  The Moms were sitting in the living room and visiting and watching the cooking show going on over in the kitchen.  One of my friends leaned over and said, "That looks like fun.  I'm too serious about everything.  I think we need to add some more fun into our lives."  This dear friend has had a decade and more of serious health issues having developed RA at age 30.  The RA has left her with a body that doesn't work like it used to, but she still has such beauty and I love her heart for the Lord and her family.

What she has been recognizing is that pain, difficulty, sorrow, worry - you name it - can come in and steal joy from our lives.  We lose our focus on eternal things.  We forget to have fun.

It's so important in families!  As we are working to tie heartstrings between our children's hearts and our own, we need to make sure there is time for fun in the midst of daily life.  Cooking pancakes for 23 people can be a blast, if you don't take it and yourself so seriously!

I fell into that trap of taking everything so seriously for several years.  I felt so burdened with the need to make sure my children knew the Lord and were making right choices, and learning and growing in the right ways….I completely lost sight of it being the Holy Spirits job to draw all men unto Himself!  I forgot that what I needed to do was to be faithful to share the Lord with them, and to SHOW them a real vibrant, joyful relationship with the Lord.

I am thankful for the reminder the Lord gave me and that I made the choice to have fun again.  Our home is often chaotic but in a controlled way, if that makes sense.

Rachel may have the Piano Guys playing on the computer and someone may be cooking, and Sarah might be drawing at the table and Kyle and Kamryn playing in the living room, and we are all talking, and hanging out and laughing.

I sometimes say, "I live in a zoo."  But I always say it with a smile and thankfulness in my heart.  God has used fun and joy to bind our hearts together.

Whatever stage of life your in, I want to encourage you to be joyful and to share that joy with others.  If you are older perhaps there is a family member or a young mom next door, who could use a dose of joy, and a reminder to enjoy their little ones.  If you are a mom in the midst of diapers be thankful that diapers don't usually last forever, and that during this important training time in your children's lives, it is important to see just how special God made each of your children and to drink it in, savor it!  What gifts they are to us.

I loan my kids out on a regular basis to my parents.  They get to spend the night, eat out (sometimes), watch movies in the big bed with Grandma or hang out with Grandpa downstairs watching Mythbusters or Storm Chasers.  These are beneficial times to both my kids and my parents.  They are tying heartstrings too, and my parents get the joy of companionship with some of their grandchildren.  It's a win-win for everyone.

When my Sarah was about the age of my granddaughter Kamryn, I had been correcting her about something, and had a frown on my face.  She in very open and honest Sarah-like fashion said to me, "Mommy, you don't smile at me."  Oh, how that cut me to the heart!  You know what?  My little dramatic one was right!  I was so serious all the time dealing with her.  She needed to see me smiling and enjoying her bubbly, drama queen personality.  God got my attention that day through my little girl, who is now not so little and yet she is still who God made her!  I learned to delight in her, and often my being able to laugh about a situation, helps her too!

I believe that our homes should be places that people want to be, places of love, acceptance and joy.  I also believe that it is these times of fun and laughter that help us through the hard times that inevitably come our way.

I'd love to hear about some of the ways you and your family tie heartstrings one to another, so please share!

Wedding Prep: The Final Week

We've entered the home stretch.  5 days to go.  Last night Lindsay told me she looked down our row at church and realized that this is the last time she will sit there as an unmarried daughter.  She is saying her 'farewells' to her life as it has been, and welcoming it as it will be.

I wrote Tim a note in church and said, "I'd like to go out to lunch." We don't do this very often, and it was what I needed.  Sarah played with my phone and took this photo and the next one.

 My sweet girl is growing up.  She'll be 12 this year.  She's a mixture still of little girl in braids and young lady.  I love her so.

Our van has been making strange noises and it doesn't surprise me too much considering it has 245,000 + miles on it!  Tim found it needed a motor mount and a wheel bearing.  These two, along with Joseph's brother Daniel, made the changes and Tim says, "Your going to love driving the van now!"  He was amazed at how much of a difference those two things made.

 Meanwhile, I stayed nice and clean and texted with my friend who is doing the flowers for the wedding.  We are making a change to the table decor and we got that all worked out - she is a genius, and got my creative juices flowing!  So I tried out a few things with some flowers that I had that were left over from Lindsay's shower.

Then I made about 4 dozen pancakes that were devoured in about 15 minutes, and took myself off to my room for the evening.  I mostly had the time to myself but I was also Kyle's consultant for Balderdash.  He thinks I'm a genius and I'm happy to have him continue to think so!

This post sounds like it should be titled 'Scenes from Sunday" but really this is all prep for the week ahead.  It is the final week of having Lindsay in our home on a daily basis.  There are things to accomplish this week, but I think we have achieved our goal of a no stress final week.  Just busyness, which is a part of our daily life.  

Today, Lindsay has an appointment for a trainer/animal handler job at Sight and Sound.  She'd dearly love to get this job, as this is what she was doing when she injured her knee last June.  She's excited but trusting God to open and close the doors.

Our family from Florida and California arrive on Wednesday and Thursday, friends from out of state on Friday.  We are all so excited!  We pick up the wedding dress on Wednesday, get manicures and practice hairstyles on Thursday, and do the table settings at the church for the reception, Friday morning is making the flower arrangements for the tables, the rehearsal and the rehearsal dinner.  

Then Saturday is the wedding.

It'll be over in a blink of an eye.

Twenty-two years we have worked to raise a daughter to love Jesus, to serve others, to be ready to be a wife and mother, to love her family and her home, not just ours but her own home.  She's ready.  It's a joy to see.  

 I won't lie and say that there have been no irritations or frustrations along the way.  We are human after all, and prone to self focus and for me the expectation that my priorities should be everyone else's.  But our relationships are all good, and we are still smiling and laughing here.  We are holding onto the JOY of our family life.  It's a beacon and a blessing to us all.  

This last week before the wedding?  Bring it on!  We're ready to enjoy it in all its potential craziness!  You'll forgive me if I am scarce here, I know, but I promise lots of photos and stories to tell this next week.

Sorrow and Rejoicing

It's been quite a year.

So many of our friends and family have lost loved ones this year, including three dear ones who had miscarriages, my cousin whose son died in November, a friend who lost a dear Aunt on Christmas day, and one who lost her mother yesterday afternoon.

For me most years have gone by without much loss, for which I am grateful to the Lord.  This year has been different.  I feel like it has taken me deeper in my relationships with others and with the Lord.  So though there is sorrow, there is also a deep joy.

Over the last several weeks my mom had been undergoing different medical tests.  They saw something on one of her ovaries, and she had a CT Scan last Friday.  We thought we'd hear something on Monday, but didn't hear results until yesterday.  In the days that we waited I faced the fact that we may be walking through cancer with my mom…while finishing the preparations for Lindsay's wedding.   Thankfully we are not dealing with cancer!  Praise His name!  It is a calcified fibroid tumor and she'll see her doctor early in January to discuss it.

Can you sense my relief?  I do know that if that is what He had allowed, He would have carried the burden with and for me.

So as the year comes to an end, we are rejoicing with deep thankfulness and gratefulness for His care for us throughout this year.

If you will, as the Lord brings them to mind, will you pray for my two friends who have fresh losses?  One lost her mother and the funeral is Monday, and one lost her aunt on Christmas day.  I know that they would be deeply thankful.  I know they both are hopeful to be rejoicing to see them again one day.

For This I Will Praise You

In the busyness of my daily life, I have to work hard to be in 'the moment' - to take the time to pay attention to my children, my husband, our guests....

Yesterday we had a home economics class here for Rachel and Sarah and two of their friends.  The girls were working on sewing skills by making a simple skirt.

They did really great - cutting out their fabric, sewing them up, learning to use the seam ripper, finishing their projects.  I'm really proud of them.

 Each of the girls, chose fabric that was as unique as each of them are.

 Our friends Mama is beautiful too, isn't she?

 Their grandma was visiting this weekend, and she came along to encourage the girls and help out.  

As usual this one was so dramatic while sewing!  She loves the creativity but wants to do everything perfectly at all times...so you can imagine how that went!  LOL!

I'll show you photos next week of all the girls together in their skirts.  They are waiting until the Sunday we get back from Florida to wear them to church.  

As is usual in our home it was a revolving door Monday - Emma and Kyle went to help some folks from her work do yard work and clean up at another co-workers home.  Tim went to the church (in the morning - he had to go to work at 4:00pm) to help with tearing out a wall to expand the sanctuary.  Our friends came for the Home Ec class, our friend Denny came over.  Later in the afternoon as the girls were finishing up their skirts, our other friends came by for my friend Amy to give Sarah her piano lesson.

My friend who was here with her girls for sewing, said to her mother in law, "It's always busy here.  I love that."  I smiled.

I love it too, and we are happy to allow the Lord to use our home to be a blessing to others.

In the evening, the seamstresses headed home, the piano lesson was over, and we settled in for a movie night.  Lindsay is in the middle of a courtship with a fine young man, Joseph and he came for the movie.  It is fun to see them enjoy spending time together.  They are very similar in interests and temperament.

Tonight they went to dinner and I snapped some photos before they left.

Pardon my iPhone photos.  I went to use my regular camera and just as I went to snap a picture, the battery died.  But I guess the excitement and happiness is evident anyway.

We are happy for them.

This afternoon I sat in the shade of some trees in our backyard with my Momma and Daddy and enjoyed watching my son and my granddaughter playing together.  

It is these moments that I take in, and hold in my heart.  It is these moments that, along with the Psalmist, I am lead to praise.  I thank God for His grace to us, and for joy in the midst of our very real lives that can be challenging.  

Merry Christmas!

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. John 1:1

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 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.  John 1:14

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For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.  John 3:16

 The older I get the deeper I feel Christmas...it is not all lightheartedness - it is deeper a joy that is increased by knowing that there is much sorrow.  
Among the new babies and marriages, there are those who have lost dearest loved ones and they hurt.  This is why Jesus came...to save us, to bind up our broken hearts, to free us.
I am full of deep joy...I pray you are too!


Blessings...


Deanna

Happy Anniversary...

to us!

We married 23 years ago today!  I love him better today than I did then.  It is all due to the grace of God in our lives.  Thank you Lord for helping us to grow in grace and to learn to really love one another!

I pray that the Lord will grant us many, many more years together!

Domestic Life

We have been very busy around our cottage the last several weeks. We have our daily mounds of laundry, our school work, keeping things tidy, cleaning bathrooms, doing dishes. This is daily life around here!

However, domestic life is not only about those kinds of chores. It encompasses all sorts of delightful things such as sewing, knitting, gardening, decorating.

Emily and I have been knitting alot lately working on winter hats and scarves for the family. I have been sewing - I made a skirt for me, an apron for a friends birthday - she is now 16 and while she doesn't cook much she loves to garden and that is what I had in mind when making her the apron. I also made Emily's apron! It is so cute but required much bias binding. I finished it today and will try to post a few photos soon. Now I have to make mine and Lindsay's.

Today the girls didn't have to work and so they were industrious here at home. I have been talking to them about the need for them to take on more "ownership" of their bedroom. They have the master suite and this is an opportunity for them to be responsible for their own place. Today they hung curtains around their beds and strung white lights around them too. It is very cute. They even switched some furniture around to make the curtain surrounds work.

My younger ones being inspired by their older sisters cleaned their room very well and are now trying to figure out how to put curtains up around their bed. They are hinderd by a ceiling fan, however!

I love to see them all being so creative.

I have been working on decluttering, going through boxes which probably haven't been touched in 10+ years. The neighborhood is planning a yard sale for Labor Day weekend. I hope to get rid of baby things, a bike, some children's movies, and more. My mom may bring some things from her home as well. I don't care if we make a lot of money - I just want to get the stuff out of the house! Aaaah, I love the feeling of less "stuff."

We also have been working on clearing up the trees from the storms last week, and I also did the mowing the other day.

It will be busy around here next week too. Tim is taking Thursday and Friday off and planning to start work on the horse barn that has been in the works since April! That will be so awesome to see that finished! Tomorrow he is working on more downed trees! He wants to get all that cleaned up before next weekend!

Domestic life is a great joy to me. Lots of work, but lots of blessing too! I love seeing my children embrace it!

Have a wonderful weekend!