fathers

I could say a lot about dads in honor of Father's Day, but mostly I just want to say how thankful I am for the dads in my life. 

Josh, my dad, and Josh's dad are fathers in the truest sense of the word. 

Though obviously imperfect, as we all are, they show, time and time again, that they are worthy of their calling to be fathers.

Thank you for providing a great example of God's love not only to your own families, but to the church families you serve daily.

Thank you for working hard to more than make ends meet for your families, yet still finding time and energy to be daddy.

Thank you for loving, for being patient, and understanding, even when your wife and kid[s] are less than deserving.

Thank you for being the best dad.

friday five (6-14-13)

This is my last post with a one-year-old. I cannot believe Jordan turns TWO next week!!  

Josh had MAD [Music and Drama] Camp this week. His only camp this summer, for which I'm thankful since his life is crammed between school and ministry these days! Maybe next year I will actually get to go again :)

So happy daddy's home!

My parents came at the beginning of the week, and Josh's mom came for the end. And then Josh's dad had to come to Omaha for a hospital visit, so he got to hang out, too! It's fun that the Nanas have summer free-time since they work in schools. I absolutely love the help they provide, and we all enjoy the fun with them!

I am so very thankful my dad likes to help me get house stuff done, especially with Josh so busy. This time he (I helped, too!) cleaned the gutters, trimmed trees, fixed the microwave, and still had time to take care of Jordan all morning through naptime one day.

{An extra special note of thankfulness for dads.}

"I go upa yadder [with] Papa!?"
Cleaning gutters. Jordan went to the cellar door because only going up two rungs was not satisfying enough.

We are getting to know more of our neighbors better, and are enjoying spending some more time with one family who has littles. On the same note, we finally got his pool out this week. Love, of course.

Jordan got another kind-of major owie this week... Tripped on our front steps and got a good scrape and bump - exactly in the same spot he split his head open. He still barely cried, and as soon as Nana put a cold wash cloth on it, clamored off my lap and said, "That's better!" :)
Just another side affect of him constantly being in motion, and usually running at 50000000% crazy ;)

I love these three boys.
As you can see, in this capture I'm helping Jordan up on the tire swing, so the three
conductors can  pull their train whistles. (with lots of train whistle noises, of course!)

Jordan's Notables:

New phrase: "Stop talking!" He first did it when Josh's mom and I were talking, with the microwave going, while he was watching Mickey and it wasn't very loud. He's said it multiple times since then and I'm working on helping him say, "Please be more quiet" or "Please stop talking." ...But it's not working yet :)

So many scrapes and bruises. SO. MANY. But they barely slow him down and sometimes I don't even know when or where he got them because he doesn't always cry. Boy, boy, boy. :)

Two bottom molars are making their way up into his gums.

Teething = strong need for mommy.

For quite some time now he has been over-using the word "need." Still working on understanding that want does not equal need, and saying "need" does not equal get :)

High chair is completely out of the picture. It's been just sitting there as a threat for a little while, I finally just put it away. He'll now sit in his "helper" (don't call it booster, it's different ;)) at home, Praise the Lord, but just loves to sit in a regular chair. Except he will never actually sit, on his bottom or knees... I'm not exaggerating when I say he is moving 99% of the time :)

He wants to grow up too fast... this time it's wanting to ride a bike with training wheels like the big boys. No satisfaction on the bike without pedals for him!

His most used phrases are: "I need [whatever he wants at the moment]" and "I don't want it." He has such a cute inflection he uses with each one, too!!

{more than} friday five 6-7

Just some life as we wrap up May and fly into June... I'm going to call it Friday Five, just don't count past five. :)

Memorial weekend was a blast and a whirlwind. Josh's parents were at our house for a couple days, he preached Sunday, and then I headed to Des Moines with Jordan after church to enjoy some time with my family. Jordan had some fun firsts.

first road trip just mommy and Jordan this year

first road trip front facing

first time sleeping in a big bed for night

first bath with a cousin/ first bath with jets

first s'more

A lot of time each day at nannying is spent swinging. I thought he loved swinging in my lap prior to asking to swing on his bottom on his own (which I think is what helped him learn to hold on well!), but boy does he LOVE to just sit and swing! And he loves to go high - always asking for underdogs!

Josh is playing basketball weekly again this summer. Jordan went with for the first time and he went crazy running, throwing, chasing, and running some more. He loves "baskegall!"

In an effort to maximize his amount of time spent in motion, he figured out how to land on feet most of the time instead of crashing when going down the slide. [http://youtu.be/AB80madUpk8]

Jordan will sit and watch Mickey Mouse Clubhouse as long as you let him, but would never watch much else... until Toy Story 2. He's so in love! :) 

He's obsessed with singing "you got a fren' in me!" right now, and it's adorable. My favorite is when he does a mix of: abc's, Jesus loves me, and You've Got a Friend in Me.
Part 1: [http://youtu.be/8AzC2kVguAk]

Part 2: [http://youtu.be/tB2Xn8W-2NM]

Visited the new Bug's Life exhibit at Children's museum. And rode the carousel for the first time. Amazement!

Finally bought him some regular sunglasses his own size. He's a fan.

Watching a snake. Then he almost grabbed it!

Sleeping through the night is still rare, but 2-3 hour naps happen often. So thankful for at least one or the other!

We are learning about strong willed, or spirited, children. Jordan most definitely fits the category. It's reassuring to know that we are not crazy in thinking our kid is different, and that we didn't make him the way he is, and most importantly, how to help him foster that spirit for good and God!

God is taking me through a lot of heart changes. If you want a little glimpse you can check out: Faithfulness, Worth It, and Surrender. As God works more, I hope to share more, and encourage.

surrender.

I've been promising this post for awhile now, but God keeps holding me back... I think I'm ready now.

A component of faithfulness heavy on my heart the last month & a or so is surrender. What is God calling me to surrender, to Him and for Him?

Listening to this song by BarlowGirl was what made it click for me that "surrender" summed up what had been on my heart. (http://www.barlowgirl.com/discography/album/barlowgirl/surrender)

My hands hold safely to my dreams

Clutching tightly not one has fallen

So many years I've shaped each one

Reflecting my heart showing who I am

Now you're asking me to show

What I'm holding oh so tightly

Can't open my hands can't let go

Does it matter?

Should I show you?

Can't you let me go?

Surrender, surrender you whisper gently

You say I will be free

I know but can't you see?

My dreams are me. My dreams are me

You say you have a plan for me

And that you want the best for my life

Told me the world had yet to see

What you can do with one

That's committed to Your calling

I know of course what I should do

That I can't hold these dreams forever

If I give them now to You

Will You take them away forever?

Or can I dream again?

And then an I'm-so-tired-I'm-going-to-die moment at 2:30am with a very sick boy turned into a wonderful, worshipful moment when God brought this song by Big Daddy Weave to my heart: "And now just to know you, Lord, has become my great reward. To see your kingdom come, your will be done, I only desire to be yours, Lord."

The tears started flowing.

What can my life be when I surrender everything, leaving only the desire to be God's, to know God, to do His will?

"But don't I already surrender a lot?!" says the "martyr mom" side of me. Sometimes it really feels like I just give of myself, a lot! But that's not what surrender is about.

And I'm definitely not currently surrendering what I need to, to the Lord.

Last week I wrote: I'm feeling it heavy today, as a few of my hardest things to surrender are popping up in the forefront of my mind. I want to spend my time wisely (so many aspects of this one!). I want to be healthy and look good. I want to be an inspirational/influential blogger. 

I can tell I'm not surrendering those things in this moment because as each of them came up within the last 30 minutes in different ways I allowed myself to compare, to feel sorry, to wallow.

Then the quote {I've been repeating to myself over and over lately} popped into my head: "Comparison is the thief of Joy." I called out Satan. I spent some time in prayer. Heart a little lighter.

Then our Pastor shared this verse one week: 

Luke 14:26 (NLT) “If you want to be my disciple, you must hate everyone else by comparison—your father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even your own life. Otherwise, you cannot be my disciple."

Surrender is about loving Christ more than everything.

Following God first.

Liking being Christ's disciple more than {insert desire/dream here}. 

When Pastor Paul said, "What's holding you back from surrendering? To His greatness, in devotion, and discipleship?" I realized... I need to fathom His greatness first. 

So that's where I'm starting now. Building on top of the great love my heart has found for Jesus, to learn more about Him, and fathom His greatness... So I can surrender to Him.

Lord, help me to understand the importance of surrender, and what I need to surrender to You: this season, this year, this month, this day, this moment. Open my heart to placing my hopes, dreams, desires in Your hands; to the fact that You can take them, and make them so much greater than I could ever hope, dream, imagine.

friday five 5-17

I skipped last week. Not because I didn't have 5 positive things to focus on, but because I just didn't feel like taking the time to make a post! :) I decided that though it's okay to not post about it, I still need to make a conscious effort to focus on the positives from the last week even if I don't physically list them. I could feel the effects of skipping. As our family seeks to return to focusing on positive more than negative, I'm realizing how much sharing my 5 things with you each week helps!
All that to say... I'd love for you to write out and share the positive from your life with me (in the comments maybe?!), or others, too. Just a thought!