Thursday, September 30, 2010

com-group family fun and a super-hero!

We had a com-group family fun night last night. It was super fun. Decorating pumpkins, football, dress up, pizza, worship that included Jada and Sophie dancing beautifully, 3 games of settlers and some sweet time on the porch over green tea and tiki torches :) Good times.




and a couple of weeks ago we had a visitor...a mouse! A terrible-yucky-horrible mouse. Sparing you the very long story of how these pics came to be..."Uncle Will" was a hero and cleaned out the fireplace of all sorts of ashy gross stuff which inevitably led to the mouse's departure! These pics were taken around midnight...while Aubrey and I sat with our feet up on the chairs squeeling. He deserved way more than a blog "shout out" for this super-hero like action. Thanks, Will!

a bit of an update...& prepare for girlie-ness

just some fun with a mirror...my favorite days are stay at home days!
Look at that sweet Kiva-Bear face!
and a puppet show with a barking puppy!
good times at Jada's school roller skating party...photo booth pics!!


jada's first attempt at skating...so fun!

as promised...jada's party pics. It was a sweet small group of girls that Jada dances and goes to school with, and of course cousin Madyson. Kat Phinney, a precious friend of ours, dressed in her butterfly dance costume from last year and made an appearance as "queen butterfly"...seriously, it was so sweet. I was teary watching the scene. She gave them butterfly wings, fluttered around and showed them how to fly, taught them a precious little song about how only God in heaven can make a butterfly and then had to go back to her castle. One of the funniest things was that Kat went inside, got dressed in normal clothes, came back to the party and the girls didn't recognize her :) Isn't a 4 year old imagination wonderful?

and Aunt Shannon was a 4 year old birthday party super star! She made these incredible cupcakes..seriously, she made them and created them and designed them and they were not only beautiful, but they were super yummy! And during the party she painted all of the little butterflies' faces (and MiMi's of course!) It was too fun.
it was pretty hot...can you tell?and Mazie (MiMi and PaPa's dog) even made an appearance at the butterfly party
Brian's Mom gave him an ice cream maker and so we all had home-made ice cream after the party was over! Needless to say, Kiva loved it :)
Kiva noticing Jada has some ice cream left...
and Jada was so nice to share...a HUGE mouthful!
dance started for Jada and I am not teaching this year (just subbing when needed :)) and Aunt Suzanne gets to be her teacher. Jada loves it!

Sunday, September 26, 2010

our 4 year old and one week!

I have decided that if I had the power to freeze time, I just might do it! Our sweet Jada bug turned 4 last Sunday and Kiva will turn 1 in a little over a month! We celebrated Jada with some close friends and family...photos of our celebration to come. BUT...here are her 4 year old photos. She just looks so grown up! I will try and post some celebration pics soon!



Tuesday, September 14, 2010

a sweet prayer followed by none other than...

Me (Steph)- "my tummy hurts a little"

Jada- "do you want me to pray for your tummy"

Me- "yes please, that would be great"

Jada- "ok, I will, but after I pray for your tummy I need to do the hula dance"

Me- "of course" (meanwhile thinking, how does she know about the hula dance?)

Jada- "God, please heal mommy's tummy and make it feel better, in Jesus name, Amen" followed by a very calculated absolutely correct hula dance complete with wave like arms and a slow turn including large hip motions

Me- crying in laughter and still laughing now.

Saturday, September 11, 2010

the only response...joy

I have wept tonight over two friends who have precious children with unknown stuff going on and the anticipation of the "what is going on?" and the plea of "LORD HEAL." I am broken for them, yet hopeful, expectant and will continue to pray in belief that God will rescue and write beautiful stories of redemption and grace. I recently read through some of my journals from this time last year and I was honestly blown away by God's utter faithfulness in not only answering my deepest cries and prayers...but He actually far exceeded what I had asked for. This has served to spur me on in my faith to believe God MORE. He is truly moved by our faith. I could list the many scriptures that I have been pouring over and really questioning my own heart on this...why don't I ask for more. Why don't we believe God more? I don't know. But I want to. I love Him and he has been nothing but amazing to me. So...Please God, I believe...help my unbelief!

My friend, Kari, gave me a gift when she came to visit. A book called "A Gospel Primer for Christians" by Milton Vincent. It has been so so so so so so so so good. Order it if you can! Anyway, it has been a daily reminder for me of the truth of the power of the Gospel in my life. One of the sweetest parts for me has been that the Spirit of God has quickened things that He has already placed in my heart and brought them to the forefront of my thoughts through these short chapters. It is as if words are written to the things that I have been thinking about over different seasons of my life. One small part has stood out to me in a unique way. I hope it encourages you to worship and overflow with gratitude towards Christ as you read it and may your life be marked with joy.- Quoted from Milton Vincent:

"Viewing life's blessings as water in a drinking cup, I know that I could discontentedly focus on the half of the cup that seems empty, or I could gratefully focus on the half that is full. Certainly, the latter is the better of the two, yet the Gospel cultivates in me a richer gratitude than this.

The Gospel reminds me first that what I actually deserve from God is a full cup churning with the torments of his wrath. This is the cup that would be mine to drink if I were given what I deserve each day. With this understanding in mind, I see that to be handed a completely empty cup from God would be cause enough for infinite gratitude. If there were merely the tiniest drop of blessing contained in that otherwise empty cup, I should be blown away by the unbelievable kindness of God toward me. That God, in fact, has given me a cup that is full of "every spiritual blessing in Christ," and this without the slightest admixture of wrath, leaves me truly dumbfounded with inexpressible joy. As for my specific earthy circumstances of plenty or want, I can see them always as infinite improvements on the hell I deserve.

When I look at any circumstance that God apportions me, I am first grateful for the wrath I am not receiving in that moment (The empty part of the cup never looked so good!). Second, I am grateful for the blessings that are given to me instead of His wrath. (Life's blessings, however small, always appear exceedingly precious when viewed against the backdrop of the wrath I deserve.) This two-layered gratitude disposes my heart to give thanks in all things and it also lends a certain intensity to my giving of thanks. Such a gospel-generated gratitude glorifies God, contributes to peace of mind, and keeps my foot from the path of foolishness and ruin."