Make a Joyful Noise

This is a "Dora" microphone. Little Miss found it on a recent trip to the thrift store. It was part of a bag full of trinkets and treasures for the bargain price of $2.95. I knew it was in the bag but had no idea that it actually worked. It took Little Miss about a microsecond to figure out how to turn it on once she opened the bag after we got back to our house.

• It "sings" some cute little songs
• It amplifies your voice
• It has some terrific feedback when the microphone is placed too close to the mouth            
• and....Little Miss just loves it, she played with it all afternoon.

It was clear pretty quickly why this little gem was at the thrift store....I think this will have to

be a toy reserved for grandma's house....probably shouldn't send it home...just sayin

            Now if I can just get her to sing some praise songs with this little treasure

Blessings

It has been a busy month, is it possible it's the end of January already? It has been a while since I have posted a a gratitude list, these are things I am thankful for.

• Grandchildren.....All four grandchildren spent the night earlier this month, this is only the second time we have taken all four at the same time....they survived and so did we
• Time spent with our youngest son while he was home on Christmas break. Brothers also got to spend time together while he was home

• 

  Son tuning niece's violin

• Thankful for the women's ministry at our church, we will be starting a bible study in Colossians soon
• For snow and spring like temperatures all in the same week...something for everyone
• For those that are always willing to pray with me and help point me back to truth of scripture when I am tempted to despair
• MRI I had earlier this month showed no changes, this is a good thing, I will have to repeat in 6 months....sigh....thankful that I have physicians that want to make sure all continues to be well 
• Even though the MRI was done for the liver it also visualized the kidneys...which was helpful for the kidney doctor.... and the kidney stones I had last year... are gone!!! Thank you Lord!
• Med changes that are agreeing with me, and nausea that I have been plagued with for months has subsided and I have actually been able to gain a few pounds
• For quiet days, and for the ability to get some much needed chores done.
• For a grand daughter who likes to cook things with me. I showed her how to bake bread the other day then she went home and baked some more with her mom

There is something about listing the things I have to be thankful for, helps me realize just how blessed I am. Helps stop the grumbling and complaining and that's a very good thing

But this I call to mind, and therefore have hope; The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.
Lamentations 3:21-23

Oh Snow!

Kids and snow kind of go together, they just love it. I know this picture doesn't look like we got much snow but in the end our accumulation was almost two inches. Poor husband didn't enjoy it quite as much, our roads got bad pretty quickly and his commute from work was almost two hours. (usually only about 20-30 minutes) 

Neither child lasted long outside, it was pretty cold, but they stayed out long enough to make some snowballs and snow angels. Little Miss kept eating it, I guess it was her way of trying to figure out what this stuff was. I photographed them from the "relative" warmth of the garage. Have I mentioned that I am a real wimp when it comes to the snow. The weather is due to warm up, so it shouldn't last long but it was fun watching the little ones enjoy it....you think that will be it for this winter?

My Plan

My plan for this year, among other things, was to resume a somewhat "normal" life, one that did not involve what sometimes feel like endless doctors appointments. I had a routine followup with my family doctor the beginning of the month and it was quickly apparent that she DIDN'T get the memo about MY plan. As I had mentioned earlier she was insistent that I get a previously scheduled MRI done AND she had another specialist she wanted me to see. They got me in the next day....good sign..but it was in his office that I had my mini meltdown, I had my ideas on what was wrong he had his...I left the office in tears.

That was almost three weeks ago, since then, the specialist in who's office I had the meltdown has left the practice, I was informed of this a week after I had seen him. I was assigned a new physician and will be seeing him in February. My first reaction was...you've got to be kidding, why was he taking new patients if he knew he was leaving but, then I remembered my first visit with him and decided to see it as a grace moment.

About three days after THAT call, I received a package in the mail from yet ANOTHER specialist with paperwork I needed to fill out prior to my appointment. (in case you have lost count this is two new docs I will be seeing) This also arranged by my PCP,  I have to admit at this point it was getting comical....I get it, I get it, apparently MY plan was not God's plan for me right now. I would prefer the open highway, smooth sailing, no traffic. He instead has me taking the scenic route, the back roads, the slower speeds.

Earlier this month I was pretty upset, I wasn't getting my way, but as things continue to unfold, it's obvious that God is in this. This was not my plan, not even close, but I can have peace that it is His. Time to fasten my seat belt and take in the sights he wants me to see.

See You Soon

The house is quiet once more, sounds of a french horn practicing will absent for awhile. The room over the garage is empty again and we are back to being two. We have enjoyed having my young son around the house for awhile but it is time for him to go back to school.

You know they need to go, walk the path God has set out for them but as a mom it is hard to say goodbye. In our case it wasn't goodbye but, see you soon, because we plan to see each other in March for a concert that he will be in, but for now I am a little sad, it was a real nice visit

Always send them away with goodies

Tonight my husband and I have planned a date night and tomorrow we are filling the house with grandchildren...thats one way of chasing away the blues

Making Use of Time

Time, it's the one thing we have that once is lost cannot be regained. We each have a set number of days, an allotted amount of time.

The reality is...life is short, death can come unexpectedly and eternity is forever. Each and every one of our days need to be lived with those three things in mind.

Man's days are determined, you have decreed the number of his months and have set limits he cannot exceed  Job 14:5

Teach us to number our days aright that we may gain a heart of wisdom  Psalm 90:12

your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be  Psalm 139:16

I have said many times that I wanted to live my life without regrets. I don't want to come to the end of my days and wish I had made different choices. My heart has been burdened for the last couple of months about the importance of using my time for his purposes, and to make the most of opportunities. He has been reminding me that the doors that are open today may quickly shut and opportunities could be lost. My prayer Lord, is to give me more sense of the eternal when making decisions today

Sunshine On A Dreary Day

Little Miss and I spent the day together. It was the first "grandma day" we have been able to have since before the holidays. We spent the morning playing dolls and watching a video, then we met my husband at Subway for lunch. My youngest son has been home on Christmas break, so he joined us as well. After lunch we headed back to the house and had a quiet afternoon until it was time for her to go home. Pretty ordinary day but one that was made a little brighter because of a visit from a Little Miss

January' Scripture

Every month the children in our church are given scripture to memorize. This memory verses for the month of January are from Psalm 118:19-24.

19. Open to me the gates of righteousness, that I may enter through them and give thanks to the Lord.

20. This is the gate of the Lord; the righteous shall enter through it

21. I thank you that you have answered me and have become my salvation

22.The stone the builders have rejected has become the cornerstone

23.This is the Lord's doing; it is marvelous in our eyes

24. This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it

The littlest ones will only be memorizing verse 24. Ages 5-7 will be memorizing verses 22-24 and ages 8 to adult will be memorizing verses 19-24. The children will get little rewards for memorizing their verses, usually a little treat, but the bigger reward is that they will have stored scripture buried deep in their heart that they will be able to draw on in years to come

I said in the beginning that this is for the children, they are the ones that will be quizzed, but we all are encouraged to participate. I haven't done it for several months, just got out of the habit. I know the benefits of memorizing scripture and yet still get off track so easily, can you identify? So with the new year my goal would be to memorize what the children are memorizing...I know I could do more but this seems a good start

When It's Not Easy

Now that all the Christmas stuff is put up, the holiday feels like it is officially over. I am ready to get back to some sort of normal routine

I have noticed many of my favorite blogs are sporting new looks this year. Way to go guys, I have really enjoyed looking at all the new things you have done. I considered making some changes myself, but after looking through photos and different templates I decided to stick with what I have. Think of that old comfortable couch that you know you need to replace but you just can't bring yourself to let it go, that's how I am with this blog design but then change in general is hard for me, so should that surprise you?

The next couple of weeks are going to be busy, I have some annual appointments that I have been postponing since last summer and a routine MRI that I tried to talk my way out of... but was told in a very kind and compassionate manner..."just do it" The last couple of weeks have been a struggle with all things medical and it all boils down to this...things aren't going the way I want them to go...lots of bumps in the road...nothing major wrong physically, just lots of little things ... it has been a heart revealer. I still  want what I want, I want things to be comfortable and I want them to be easy. I would like people to respond the way I think they should respond....basically, I would like it my way please.

We all know that our way is not necessarily going to be God's way of doing things. After I had my mini melt down...right in the physicians office mind you... and spent the next day feeling sorry for myself, I remembered that fact. We know that right, that our ways are not always his ways, and we know that God is faithful, does all things well and uses all things for his purposes but when things don't go as planned it's a hard application. I will continue to trust Him though because I know these things to be true...just wish sometimes things could be easy....but that's not this life right?

Looking Back and Moving Forward

I find it so hard to believe we are at the start of another new year. The first of the year always feels like a time of new beginnings for me. I get to pull out a new calendar, usually decide on a new devotional plan, and I think about goals for the year ahead.

When I look back on 2012, I can say that it continued to be a year of change for our family. I no longer work outside of the home and although there was quite a bit of angst while changes were happening at my job, I can now see it was the Lord's way of helping me to let go of it. When the job went away, I was ready to say goodbye, I had already emotionally detached. Being home fits me like a well worn shoe....it's what I need for this time in my life. 

Now I don't make resolutions anymore, never seemed to keep them so I stopped making them. But with the new year in view there are things I would like to accomplish or at least get better at.  I am making an attempt at the 365 Day Photo Challenge....we will see how that goes....I plan on being flexible...not going to worry if I don't get a photo everyday

There are relationships that I would like to improve that have suffered battle scars through the years, some doors are opening, I would like to take advantage of that fact. 

I would like to get better at sharing the gospel when opportunities arise...and with that in mind I would like to be more keenly aware of opportunities that are given to me. Now is the time

Finally when I think of an area that the Lord is wanting me to grow in this year, I think it would be trust, taking thoughts captive and remembering that he has everything under control

Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out your heart to him, for God is our refuge  Psalm 62:8