While They Were Out...

Last week, I had the privilege of re-decorating my mom and step-dad's living room over a two day period... while they were camping. The fun part was that they knew nothing of what I had decided to do or what I had purchased! What a great time, using the small budget I was given, traveling to many thrift stores, as-is sections in furniture stores and purchasing from a second-hand online site. I found so much excitement looking for the "diamond in the rough". On the decorating days, my children, my sisters, and my cousin, helped sand and paint. I had never been interested in re-finishing furniture before but I was surprised at how much I enjoyed this project. The result was beautiful and the unveiling for my anxious "clients" was well worth the work :)

Here is the BEFORE photo...

And here are some AFTER photos...

As you can see, they returned home before I could peel the painter's tape in some areas, and put the fans away. I also purchased fabric for drapes and had just enough time to hang them over the rod. I will have to sew the panels another day. My mom loves winter pictures so the birch trees painting was suited to her taste. Can you tell what is "new" and what was re-finished from before?

Now, where will my next room be? Hmmm... :)

Interceding For Me

At times I'm weary. I carry little ones and I carry the pain of women in my heart and prayers. What runs through my mind in a day would cause a head to shake in shear bafflement at the complexity of it all. So much analyzing, so much planning, so much burden-bearing. I must leave it all. The only safe place to leave it is in Jesus' hands. I am easily brought to tears at the sound of this song, which describes the intercession of Jesus on my behalf (and yours!). This is where my rest comes from... the very thought that the One who died for me is ever praying for me to the Father. If that isn't enough to calm a frazzled spirit, I don't know what is. Soak it in, Friends. (Taken from Romans 8:34)

Oh the deep, deep love of Jesus

Spread His praise from shore to shore

How He came to pay our ransom

Through the saving cross He bore

How He watches o'er His loved ones

Those He died to make His own

How for them He's interceding

Pleading now before the throne

Oh the deep, deep love

All I need and trust

Is the deep, deep love of Jesus

click here: Sovereign Grace Music

Yard Sale For Haiti

My eleven year-old daughter sought information about this country she'd grown to love. She perused heart-breaking photos in books and the Internet and began to compare and contrast her country and lifestyle with her beloved Haitians. New and urgent emotions rose up in her and she investigated ways to help. When we began to talk of having a yard sale, Meghan's first thought was that all the proceeds should go to Haiti. And so, an idea was born, and the stuff to sell started piling up in our garage. Soon the day arrived and Meghan, outfitted with her money box and water cooler, was raring to go. We prayed for God to multiply abundantly and the result was $666!! On Sunday, we dropped the cheque, marked for Haiti, in the offering plate and continue to pray for it multiply even more.

As I watch my daughter grow a heart for people she doesn't know, I wonder what God's will is for her life. It scares me a little to imagine her as a missionary in some far-away country, but I must begin to daily give her to the Father now so that I am able to accept His perfect design for her as she matures. Is it okay to pray for her to remain close to home? The Lord knows what's best and it is exciting to think of where she will go. Whether it be near or far, I pray that she will always listen to His voice.

Thank you to everyone who donated items for our yard sale and thank you to all who added a little extra money to your purchases to help our struggling brothers and sisters.

Pyjama Day

I walked into the family room and there they all sat, snuggled together on that big chair they love so much. It was a picture of serenity and I smiled at the sight of my four babies all cozied up, riveted by The Story Keepers. We'd been running around for several days and my children were in much need of some home time. A pyjama day with a good movie... this is what rest is all about.

Mud Puddle

It began innocently enough... a little dip with the feet, a little retrieving of something from the water. It felt so good between the toes...

and the fingers...

Then things started getting out of hand.

Oliver and Maysie--living life to it's fullest in a mud puddle.

Daddy's Girls And Other Blessed Things

In two different thrift stores, squeezed between bunches of kids' clothing, were these two shirts--perfect for the day that honours fathers. They donned them proudly and chanted in unison, "Read my shirt!", giggling the whole time. And he was proud too. Proud to be a daddy and proud that we all put effort in to show him our love.

And Gratitude keeps me filled with joy on good days like these and days when the good is not so obvious...

382. thankful for fathers: mine, my children's, my husband's, and step-dads too

383. for fun in decorating rooms on a tight budget

384. for my gardens that are filling in beautifully

385. for the first day of summer!

386. for a daughter's interest in and compassion for Haiti

387. for all the offers to swim in pools after I posted here (so not expecting that! :)

388. for paddle boat rides

389. for early morning tea on the porch with the sunlight spilling over me

390. for the bluest skies which beckon us to bask in lakes, to have picnics, swing at the park and lie down in soft grass

391. for Daddy's girls (and boy)

392. for my husband's satisfaction in a job well done (spring busyness is almost past at the nursery!) and the credit he pays to his Lord

"Nothing is better for a man than that he should eat and drink, and that his soul should enjoy good in his labour. This also, I saw, was from the hand of God." Ecclesiastes 2:24

The Making Of A Man

Someone once peered into my husband's truck while they were chatting. She chuckled a little and mentioned that it looked funny for a man to have baby car seats in his backseat.

He looked at her and without hesitation replied, "Those seats are what make me a man."

Terry shared this with me later that day and I've never forgotten it. He takes the honour of fatherhood very seriously. Our children know it and feel it in their bones when he lavishes his love upon them. So, today, I honour him, the father of my children, because I'm so proud to be his partner in parenthood and I can't wait to see how he'll father them as they grow.

How To Keep Cool When You Don't Have A "Real" Pool

Counting blessings one by one...

371. our little pool that suffices

372. our music department

373. battery chargers

374. Ride For Cancer Research

375. picnics with family

376. beautiful piano recital

377. fruit platters on Sunday evenings

378. early morning calls from God

379. answering the call in the early morning--I listened!

380. long-time mentors and new ones too

381. filling Christmas shoe boxes--thanks for the encouragement, Oxana!

A Reason For Music

The girls know that piano lessons are a blessing. They know that their music is praise to Him who created it in the first place. But today, at the end of the school year, they play for an appreciative audience; one that has lived many days filled with music. The elderly residents of this home in our town applaud our young ones, who nervously seat themselves upon an unfamiliar bench and plunk out melodies with pride.

It's a reason for music; a way of giving back and honouring those who've walked this earth before them. It's a means of blessing a generation who shared themselves and their talents with the next. This is how we receive the gift of music--by passing it on.

(duet by Meghan and Molly--"Heart and Soul")

Our beautiful teacher, Beth, demonstrates how persistent practice over the years turns hesitant plunking into "tickling the ivories".

Beth's mother enchants us with her music while we mingle. This piano belonged to her and she graciously gave it to the home.

Mama and Papa attend and cheer the girls on.

Prayerfully becoming a musical family. With a talented Grandma who inspires us with her playing in church and a Grandpa who sings, we each are learning to grow in His amazing gift. And blessing others with this gift ... now that's a reason for music.

Mentorship Over Tea

They drove for miles just to teach us about what it means to really live out Proverbs 31 and to pass it on to our daughters. Their passion oozed out to each of us women and our girls, who sat around tables with scones in hand, ears pricked for tidbits of wisdom. They, a mother and her three daughters and daughter-in-law, divided the passage between them and shared practical examples from their own lives. My eldest, on one side, pointed out those she recognized from the videos we'd seen and discussed. On the other side of me, my mom, who, by the grace of God, demonstrated this Proverbs icon even amidst the turmoil of her marriage to my father. She continues to grow and learn what it means to share her history with the younger women and help them to make wise choices in their marriages. Titus 2 is her life now while I wrestle daily with practicing the model of the "Noble Wife".

My little ones, along with other small children played at my feet and I glanced across the room at my dear friend, soon to be a mom of five, and her sister, soon to birth her seventh. They're living out this model in ways I have observed and applied to my own life... a spurring on of the faithful. These two sisters and their children encircled a table with their mother, who exemplifies the qualities of both biblical women. Another table held an acquaintance, one I occasionally smile at and share a passing, "hello" at gatherings such as these. Yet another woman I had just met that day rocked her newborn and inspired a new idea in my mind by her stories of hospitality. Mentors all around, young and old. Many others, eager to grasp God's ultimate design for them, listened carefully, some took notes and asked questions.

We collected Hot Wheels cars, markers and notebooks and piled into the van. My thoughts burned with the desire for more knowledge--more of His knowledge. I don't want to perish for lack of it. I don't want to tear down my house with my own hands. I don't want to live without the law of kindness on my tongue. I want my daughters (and son) to value this model. I want them to see it in me. I want them to become the woman described in Proverbs and naturally move into becoming a woman of Titus 2 who shares her qualities with others.

How do we live out these counter-cultural ideals? I believe it begins with a deep familiarity of the Scriptures and then surrounding ourselves with mentors. Am I seeking to live out this model that God has deemed important enough to put it His Word? To whom am I being a mentor? I stand in a very privileged position-that of wife and mother. But also, I am blessed because of the myriad of mentors whom I am frequently inspired by.

For your interest, here is the link to the conference I was invited to and was able to attend the "Tea" that day... http://ncfic.org/