John and Kate + 8

Fred and I watched this show for the first time last night. Holy Cow! I'm guessing that most of you have seen it, but for those who haven't-- it's so crazy! I looked at Fred at one point and said "that's basically like having two Joshuas and SIX Anna Bells!!!! Whaaaattt!!!! Anyways, it's a good reminder of perspective; on days when my life as a mom of two seems crazy chaotic... it could be a whole lot crazier!!!

Do I REALLY Fear the Lord??!!?

Our pastor began a series titled "The Way of Wisdom" a few weeks back. It is a study of the Proverbs that has really challenged me. The first week, Pastor Tim challenged us as families to commit to reading a chapter of Proverbs each day and to memorize one verse each week for the next 31 days. As simple as it sounds, it has been very refining for me. When I look at the Proverbs and all the references to "fearing the Lord," I am greatly convicted. Do I really fear Him??! Do I even really know what having a right fear of my Father looks like? One resounding theme that I have seen as I've read is that only with humility comes a right fear of God. Here are some other characteristics that our pastor shared with us from God's Word that really hit home with me:
Fear of the Lord means...
*keeping my heart tender before the Lord. "Blessed is the one who fears the Lord always, but whoever hardens his heart will fall into calmity." (28:14)
*valuing God's approval more than that of any person. "Fear of man will prove to be a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord is kept safe." (29:25)
Another amazing truth that Pastor Tim taught is that when Fred and I rightly fear the Lord, we experience great confidence, which in turn, creates and place of security for our kids. "In the fear of the Lord one has strong confidence, and his children will have a refuge." (14:26)
I am so thankful for how my loving Father refines me. I love how He teaches and corrects me with His Word! I am both overwhelmed and excited about how much I have to learn and grow!

It Wasn't on the Agenda, but....

Yesterday, when we went outside to play, (and perhaps find our critter) we came upon a mud puddle instead. I suppose that this could count as our science experiment: what happens when you drop a rock into a puddle of muddy water? Ummmm.... our results = one really dirty two year old! It was a great day for getting dirty; it wasn't too cold and we had our play clothes on. Joshua had a blast. (Anna Bell and I spectated from a distance!)

Here are some pictures of our dancin' to Lincoln Brewster. I tried to capture one of the three of us, but the whole "timer" thing on the camera kind of interferes with the free-spiritedness of the moment! (Joshua's dancing usually consists of running in circles and occasionally clapping...I need to teach him some of his momma's "moves" ...:))

"To Do" List for the Week

1. Dance...and dance and dance:)

2. Catch a critter... and let it go before an appendage is removed by little fingers.
3. Finger paint...and if it's nice outside, make a really big mess while doing it:)
4. Build a fort/tent...and read a pile of books by flashlight.
5. Perform a science experiment...any ideas?

Pictures to soon follow...Have a WONDERFUL week!

Yes...Joshua is wearing a Pink Shirt.

The Finally Finished Picture....

Here's the picture...Fred has wanted me to "try" selling paintings for a while now...and guess what?!!? This picture sold today! WoooWhooo! Granted, it was Fred's mentor/accountability partner that bought it...he's one of the most encouraging guys you'll ever meet....so he might have bought it because he simply is that much of an encourager! Him and his wife have three children, so he wants me to add two boys to it...and then it will be completely done. (I don't know if you can tell, but there is a little girl on the path and she is standing at a fork in the road. The theme of the event was honor, so the point of the picture is the decision to choose the "path of honor" verses the path that's easy/well-traveled.)

More Painting...(thank you, dear husband:))

One of the big deal events that Ingleside does every year is a father/daughter dinner. On the first night, they have it for teenagers and their dads and the second night is for elementary aged girls and daddies. Because it is technically a "student event," Fred and the high school pastor are part of the planning. Besides them (and the children's pastor) it basically consists of a bunch of creative/decorative-inclined ladies. I would love to be in these meetings to watch my husband's blank stare as the women go on and on about stargazer lilies and floor-length tablecloths! Not long after Fred started attending these meetings, we were playing battle of the sexes and he answered the question correctly "What is toile?" Wow...that's all I have to say.
Anyways, after one of these particular meetings, Fred got home and we all went out to run errands. When we got home, I had a message on the answering machine from a woman who helps with this event. She said that she had a "proposition" for me. Being that I have only met her once, I thought this quite strange. I looked at Fred and said "hmm...I wonder what that could be about." Fred replied with a bit of a chuckle "...I think I might have some idea." Hmmm. So...here's what happened: The ladies were discussing how great it would be if they had someone paint a picture that would be displayed at the entrance of the event that "captured the essence" of the theme verse. One of the ladies had a friend that did these sort of paintings and she said that she would give him a call. Before moving on to the next order of business, my dear husbands piped in.:) He said that I painted and could probably do something like that. Thank you, Freddy Broome!!! It's not that I didn't want to help, it's just that I haven't painted much at all since having kids and I don't really know what I'm doing in the first place. I have no idea about technique or brushes...it's really just through trial and error that I learn. The pressure of painting something for an event like this kind of overwhelms me. However...I called the woman back and told her that I would do it. Many of you know how difficult it is to serve in the local church when you've got little kids (especially if your husband is on staff) ...there's so many times that I go to events to "help" and end up getting paged or having to leave early for bed time or chasing the kids the whole time. This was a way that I could use my "gifts" even as a young momma. I am actually really grateful that Fred volunteered me for this project. The painting is far from perfect, but I thoroughly enjoyed working on it. For the past week, I've spent every nap time and some evenings painting. I would pull out the ipod and be in my own little world for an hour or so. It was really fun! I guess that sometimes I get in the routine of being wife and mommy and forget about some of the hobbies that I really love. SO....Thank You, dear hubby for allowing me the opportunity to paint:)

Painting...

For those of you who have never seen my hair brown, here it is. (I think that this is pretty close to my natural color...but I'm not quite sure.) I've highlighted my hair for a long time but cannot keep up with it for anything and constantly have terrible roots....so I decided to just dye it brown. I'm sure that I'll get bored with this before too long and change it, but for now it's nice to not have to bother with it.

Joshua is ALL boy when he works on art projects! I can't wait until spring when we can take the paint outside!