The New-born Babe

" The new-born babe is a fresh act of God.

He is the latest revelation of God's creative handiwork.

The babe's presence so fresh and pure says all anew "God is faithful"."

"Here is the latest impress of the wondrous image of God.....

No thoughtful man can study his own baby, and in his heart doubt the existence of God"

~S.D. Gordon

"Quiet Talks on Home Ideals"

Photo: These are the precious feet of a Gift from the Father to some dear friends of ours.

A Pictoral Update

Little painted toe nails...too cute for words!

"C'Mere, Tucker... c'mere..." She calls out to her doggie, beckons him to his bed, snuggles in beside him, borrows a lock of his hair and snags her thumb. For her, it is pure bliss. This girl and her dog...

A beautiful trip to Pacific City with my parents, complete with the lowest tide of the year. Treasures abound!

Hunting and searching...

Hundreds of starfish: purple, orange and pink, feasting on the mussel-coated rocks

My Dream-Come-True and our Fabulous Four! Oh, how I love these people!!!

Worth it!!!

"Sacrifice is the a and the z, and all the vowels and consonants in between of motherhood. Sacrifice is love at its best.

There is no other spirit for motherhood; no other key to unlock its doors; no other solution of its tangling problems; no other sure weapon to lay its foes low in the dust." ~S.D. Gordon

This quote above was on my mind this morning when Craig took us out to breakfast. We piled our modest-in-number family into a booth and chit chatted about various happenings and the such. The hostess, a young gal looking to be in her early 20s, came to take our drink order. She glanced around our table at Craig and I and the Fabulous Four and then back at me in shock, "Are these all yours?" As I looked around the same table, I joyfully announced, "Yes!!!". Her next question was so fitting: "Isn't it hard?" There was a look of disbelief and perhaps of feeling overwhelmed at the very thought of said children being all hers. I don't criticize her for that question or the look that went with it. There are days when I must look the same way and that same question is written all over MY face. How do you answer such a question? If I answer "No, its not hard", I'm down-right lying. If I say "Yes, it's terribly hard", one would question why its not the Fabulous One instead of the Fabulous Four that sit around our table, with room for more. A thousand thoughts went through my mind as she stood there, looking at me with expectation. There were a million things I would have liked to tell her. But time does not stand still long enough. There wasn't time to tell her that those little people looking back at her have given so much more than they have taken, that I am not the person I was pre-children (and the world is grateful for that!!!) and that life is full of hard work (for goodness sakes, I wouldn't call waitressing an easy job!!!). There wasn't time to tell her that life is not about taking the easy way and doing our best to get out of hard work. There wasn't time to tell her that these children were actually flesh-wrapped gifts from the Creator of the universe with the potential to worship at the feet of Jesus Christ for all of eternity. There just wasn't time....So I looked at my table full of gifts and said to her, "Yep, its hard but it's so worth it".

And it is! It is so worth it!

Preparing...

"I am not preparing my children for college...

I am preparing them for Heaven."

~Voddie Baucham Jr.

Did Your Husband Take You to Church Today?

Did your husband take you to church this morning? Did he sit beside you in the pew, stand with you as you worshipped the Lord, closed his eyes beside you during prayer? Or perhaps he led your family in worship some other time this week, prayed with you before a meal, or read God's Word to you and your children? Have you thanked him? Have you told him lately how much you appreciate him taking your family to church? If not, please do it... today. I know many women who love the Lord but sit alone every Sunday. Both my husband's mom and my own mom took their families to church, with no husband beside them. On behalf of these women, thank your husband today.

Did you leave the house grouchy this morning? Did your husband take too long drinking his coffee, reading the paper, checking his emails? Did he not help you enough with the children this morning? Did he drive too fast or park in the wrong spot or wear that shirt that you just can't stand? Instead of thanking your lucky stars that you have a husband who will take his family to church, did you sit there in that pew grumbling inside about all the things your husband is not? Then please repent before the Lord and then before your husband and count your blessings instead of his faults.

And when you're finished with your counting, on behalf of all the women who sat alone today, wrap your arms around your husband and, even if it feels awkward, thank him for taking you to church today.

If you are one of those women who had to sit alone today, please know that you were on my heart this morning. May you feel the Lord's presence in an undeniable way each and every time you sit in that pew alone. And may the Lord reach into the heart of your husband in a way that only He can, and bring your man to his knees. You are brave women and I admire you greatly.

Sarah Discovers

Sarah Discovers...

...Birds in flight

...Mountain lupine's sweet aroma...Life wrapped around Daddy's finger...Belly Buttons!!!...Shadows in the dust

If This Table Could Talk...

A repost from a few seasons ago...

You know the saying, "If these walls could talk..."? Today I was thinking about my kitchen table. I call it a kitchen table because it is in the kitchen. It could be a dining room table except for the fact that we have never lived in a house big enough to have a dining room. Thus it is a kitchen table. Well, if my kitchen table could talk, oh the stories it would tell. In fact, it just might be the hub of our entire home life.

It is where we share our meals together: nice, homecooked meals made with thoughtfulness and love; after-thought meals made with rice and leftovers; quick meals made with pb&j. It is where we start the day as a family and it is where we end the day as a family.

It is where I expand my role as mother by teaching the ABCs and the 123s. It is where my son first learned to write, add, subtract and read. It is also one of the places my children learn manners.

It is where miscellaneous objects become art, where miscellaneous ingredients become cookies and where miscellaneous activities become memories.

It is where God often meets me when the house is quiet and the children tucked soundly into their beds.

It is where my father sat, waiting to hear the cries of his newborn granddaughter from the bedroom.

It is where I've layed my head in my hands and cried and it is where I've raised my hands to Heaven and praised.

Oh, if this table could talk, oh the stories it could tell!

A Field Trip

I took my USHCs (UnSocialized Home school Children, of course!) to a children's museum in our area the other day. While they played and learned, I captured.

My Littlest Love

I love this little girl. She is our fourth child and I really don't know how I ever lived without her. She's feisty as all get out, louder than the other three combined, can't hold still to save her soul and as sweet as honey. Those eyes and that sweet nose and those kissable lips and her wispy hair... I could go on and on. Sometimes I get lost in her, watching her every move, listening to her sing-song chatter, soaking her in. Smitten, I tell you. Hook-line-and-sinker-in-love. You wouldn't think that you'd be so head over heels about the fourth one. I mean, doesn't that baby love start to get old after four of 'em? Guess not, because I've got stars in my eyes for this one, too. How is it that a mother's heart keeps from exploding?