TJC: yum.

My favorite.

I haven't tasted this stuff in FOREVER. Which is probably a good thing.

But oh.my.goodness. Perfect ending to a bad day. Or a good day.

Also pairs great while watching The Biggest Loser.

the joy challenge: adoption

I meant to write this one yesterday. Apparently, I got all caught up in my own self pity to remember (I'll blame it on the meds...).

 Anyway, for those of you who may not have been aware, yesterday was Orphan Sunday.

I was not adopted. I don't have any adopted siblings.

But I did grow up in a church where adoption and foster care was definitely a big deal. A few of my friends have adopted brothers and sisters. Some were the ones that were adopted. And it always touched me to see how much they loved these little ones as much as their own birth children. Because in their eyes, these were their children. And the kids loved their parents.

I'm sure it wasn't easy.

I've seen families struggle to afford adoption. The transition must get tricky. But God places it on their hearts, and their commitment to fulfill his calling on their lives never ceases to amaze me.

So while this post isn't particularly about me, I am thankful for those who adopt.

Because of them, children have hope.

They have my upmost respect. It makes my heart smile to know that because a person decided to forgo fancy additions on their home or that nice family vacation in order to save up... a child now gets a hug and a kiss before bedtime. She has someone to call Mommy and Daddy. She has parents who consider her a blessing, not just another mouth to feed.

She's no longer unwanted. She's not a burden.

Even if she was born with disabilities, she's perfect in their eyes.

She's someone's baby girl.

To all of those out there who want to adopt, have adopted, and are in the process of adopting... you're a total inspiration. Keep it up and know that you'll be blessed for being a blessing.

And while the rest of the world is total madness, and it all seems to be going to hell in a hand basket... try to remember those who are reading their baby from Ethiopia or Kenya or China or the Philippines or Japan or America a bedtime story, cherishing every moment they now get to spend with them.

There is good in the world.

Smile about that.

:)

Happy Monday!

the joy challenge: my man

So today I woke up feeling like I'd been hit by a train.

Kind of ironic it happened the morning after I did a whole blog post about the Lord.

A little obvious, if you ask me...

I felt terrible all day and thought maybe I just didn't sleep well.

But then I knew something was up when I couldn't for the life of me get warm.

I tried to take a nap while Noah was asleep, but I was so cold.

Yet, I was wearing flannel pj pants, a tshirt, one of Brad's long sleeve thermals, and sock. And I was buried underneath a comforter and two blankets.

Brad took my temp, and it clocked in at 101.3.

At least I had a valid reason for feeling so crummy.

The worst part about being sick?

I miss my little boy. No joke.

He knew something was up. He kept reaching for me, wanted to play with me, and came up and patted my head while I was on the couch.

Brad sent me to my room. :)

So today, I'm thankful to have a husband that's willing and able to watch our boy when I'm sick. To make me dinner and bring me Tylenol. I know there are a lot of women out there that have to do it on their own, pretending to be perfectly fine when all they want (and need) to do is sleep. Not to mention get up and go to work somehow. So I'm thankful this guy is so awesome. I'm glad to have him.

Otherwise, we'd be in an awful mess. :)

(ps. that's water all over Noah. I promise. hehe)

the joy challenge: life lessons

"Be joyful always..."

I Thes 5:16

Today, I'm thankful for life lessons.

But it's not without some effort.

Part of life is going through challenges, some simple and some more painful.

I've been through both, and neither are much fun.

But He is the potter.

We are the clay.

He molds us into His image, and part of that is allowing us to go through difficult situations. Not only does it build character, but it also causes us to rely solely upon Him. It's easy to want to be in control; to take hold of our own lives. Do our own thing. Accomplish our goals.

But it's not about us.

It never fails that when we attempt to take control, life seems to get a little bit more complicated.

Yet when we surrender ourselves to His will and His path for our lives, we have peace.

Because we realize that God can do a much better job at this whole life thing than we can. And when He's in control, life seems a little less scary. Someone who has way more experience at this is now in control.

We just continue to worship Him, praise Him for his faithfulness, and live according to His will.

My current challenge?

Learning to live simply.

My friend Anna touched on this in her blog tonight.

Apparently, we've been challenged in a lot of the same ways.

My upbringing was a tad... lavish.

Life was good. Even during financially hard times, we never really were hurting.

I was always taught that we weren't entitled to any of it. Everything we had was a blessing.

I didn't move out until I got married. When I still lived at home, I did my own thing, bought my own groceries, etc... but yall know that's nothing compared to the real world. I went into marriage thinking that shopping wasn't a big deal. Bills were magically going to get paid without me worrying about it.

Brad and I both had jobs. What was there to worry about??

I was clueless.

Fast forward to now.

We don't have a lavish life.

We can't have a lavish life. Not right now.

And while part of me wishes there were things I could have, that's all they are... things.

I don't need them.

I don't need new mums to put on the front porch.

I don't need to practice my cooking skills by making some fancy dinner with ingredients we'll only use once.

I don't need more photo equipment.

I don't need new dining room chairs, the cute dancing snowman from Hallmark, or gorgeous nursery decor to spruce up Noah's room.

There are so many things I'd love to buy my husband for Christmas.

I know there are things he'd love to buy me.

But we can't.

Because right now, God is allowing us to go through a life lesson.

To learn to rely on Him, to find satisfaction and wholeness in Him, and to realize that what we really need has nothing to do with money or materials or possessions.

All we need is Him.

Because in Him, we find peace...

we find joy...

we find love...

we find completion...

we find purpose...

and we find what we really need...

And when it's all said and done, none of us are going to wish we were spending our last moments next to our yacht. None of us will wish we'd spent more time making more money for more stuff.

Because that's not what it's about.

And when I get to heaven and get to hug my Savior for the first time, I want Him to be proud of me for putting what really matters first. Not the stuff... but Him. My family. And His kingdom.

"Whom have I in heaven but you?

And earth has nothing I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever." Psalms 73:25-26

the joy challenge: Noah

...and on that note...

Today and everyday, I'm thankful for my little man Noah.
I know this one's a no-brainer, but you knew it was coming eventually. :)

His little smile really does light up my day. I'm SO excited to be a SAHM. I know without a doubt that this is where I'm supposed to be and what I'm supposed to be doing. I never had a "career" goal. I wanted to stay home with my babies (fyi, no judgement on the working moms! for me, this is where I'm happiest).

He's growing up so darn fast. When I look back, it's obvious we've done a lot since he was born, but it still seems to have flown by.
In a matter of just a few months, he's gone from this:

to this:

He's now feeding himself with a spoon, playing with the shape sorter and actually getting them right, and seeing if a pitiful fake cry will make mommy baby him. lol. He enjoys playing in the dishwasher and reorganizing the pantry. He now gives kisses (the closed mouth kind), and it makes my heart melt.

He's constantly getting himself into mischief (that George must be giving him ideas). Like last night, Brad forgot to put the toilet lid down, and it wasn't long before I started hearing some splashy sounds. Gross! Luckily it was time for a bath anyway. :)

This little guy is so darn cute (mommy bias). We're constantly covering him in kisses. We're bff's, and it's the best.

So yes. Today (and every day), I'm thankful for Noah.

The Joy Challenge

So I found this blog yesterday, and she's doing "the joy challenge". Since it's the month of Thanksgiving, it seems appropriate to find at least one thing a day to be thankful for. So the challenge is for the next (well, it was for 30 days, but I'm a little late) 25-ish?? days (sorry, I'm not going to stop to count), I'll be attempting to join in the thankfulness fun.

So today, I'm thankful for RAIN.

There's nothing like a nice dreary day of doing nothing, especially if it's cool outside. Lingering around in your pj's for a little longer than normal (um... all day in our case), watching some tv, reading books, building blocks, taking a nap, and enjoying the laziness. We'll be eating grilled cheese and tomato soup for dinner... perfect rainy day food.

And this evening, maybe we'll go walk around the mall or something, look at the never-too-early Christmas decorations and pretend we can afford to buy presents for people.

I'm kind of excited... :)