See the morning...

Are you a morning person? Usually I am. Yep I'm one of those people who typically wakes up in a good mood. Growing up, my sister hated it. My mom and I are both morning people. By the time she had gotten out of bed, my dad was already gone to work. So, she had no one on her side. She's different now, but she will still take you up on an offer to sleep in late!

Over the last few weeks, I have been a grump in the mornings. I finally figured out why.

I have two natural alarm clocks that wake me every morning between 5:30 and 6:00:

When I'm on my game, I let them out, feed them and get my day started. But lately, I've been crawling back in bed. And then, a little later, I am undoubtedly awakened by my other two natural alarm clocks:

And these two hit the ground running. Not a good way to start the day because I'm already trying to catch up. And I'm usually very grumpy as a result.

Part of my morning routine is to have my quiet time with the Lord. When I sleep in later, it is the first thing to go. And if I get around to the quiet time at all, it is late at night when I'm exhausted and can barely keep my eyes open. So it has been over the last few weeks.

There's something special about the morning. The house is quiet. The dew glistens on the grass. The birds chirp. The sunlight streams through the trees and the windows. If I listen closely, I can hear my Lord calling me to come and enjoy the peace that is the morning. The Bright and Morning Star invites me to revel in His new mercies and to understand the symbolism of a new day.

Greet the morning, will you? Don't roll over and try to catch a few more winks. Jesus waits to be with you and your cup of coffee (or tea in my case). Open His Word and the see the morning through His eyes.

See the morning, see it rising
Over the mountains high
See the mercy in the mighty hand of God...

Rejoice, Rejoice
Sing with the angel voices
Rejoice, Rejoice
All Heaven and earth rejoice
-Chris Tomlin

The Lord's lovingkindnesses indeed never fail. They are new every morning; Great is Your faithfulness. Lamentations 3:22-23

Wordless Wednesday

Reconnected and caught up!

We are finally back online after being off for a few days. Hubs spent a couple of hours on the phone with someone in Malaysia fixing our router! Yay!
While he was doing that, I finally got those pictures into the albums, with dates on the back! So I am caught up through June 2008, with the exception on the Israel trip. That's going to be a monster.
We have had a lot of fun spending some much needed family time together over the last few days. It's been refreshing and very nice. We have eased back into our normal routine. I'm a planner, so this really helps me stay on top of things.
OK. Gotta' upload some pictures to get 'em printed!

Ten on Tuesday

1. Bull threw up last night while I was at a meeting (Hubs was at home with the boys).
2. We have been cooped up in the house all day not wanting to infect anyone else. Here's a picture of him late in the morning:









3. My pictures arrived today!!
4. I have to iron clothes before I can put pictures in the albums.
5. Bull has improved steadily all day today. Here's a picture of him just a few minutes ago:

6. Because we were stuck at home, I was able to clean out my bathroom cabinets and linen closet (we're in zone 3 this week).
7. I made mango sorbet for dessert with the sorbet maker that Hubs got for Christmas. It was sooooo yummy.
8. I think that we have taken some serious steps backward for potty training. Bull's been in diapers all day today. Will we start again tomorrow?
9. Hubs is finishing up the yard. It's really pretty!
10. I need to go iron so I can do my pictures!

Monday, Monday...

1. Potty training is going as well as potty training can be expected to go. I haven't found Bull's "sweet spot" for reward. Gator was over the moon for stickers (and still is). Bull couldn't care less about stickers, and M&Ms aren't doing it. Flushing the toilet seems to be a big deal though...

2. Gator is swimming a few feet in the water by himself now. He's come a long way in two weeks. He even brags about going underwater. Bull is doing well too. He loves being in the water and is also swimming underwater for a few seconds.

3. I found the best organization tool! If you look closely in the last post of the boys' bedroom, you can see the red bins on the window seat and the bookshelves. They're dish pans!!! The best thing about them is that they are less than $2 at Wal-Mart! Perhaps some of you people don't have kids that pull their toys off the shelf in a semi-violent manner at times. But I do. So these things work wonders! They're sturdy and cheap!

4. We went to Wal-Mart today and my kids were well-behaved the entire time! A welcome blessing for this mom! And to top it off, they both fell asleep on the way home, so now I have some quiet time to really work hard (as soon as I'm done blogging!).

5. Some great verses to remember today:
Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget none of His benefits. Psalm 103:2
O taste and see that the Lord is good... Psalm 34:8

When I have nothing better to do...

...or have a list that is a mile long that I don't want to do, I redecorate. I think it's genetic. My mom got her degree in interior design and is always changing things in her house. My sister insisted on having furniture with wheels on it when she was a kid so that she could rearrange things at will (and she married an architect in training). I get it honest!

Anyway. This week I rearranged some stuff in our house. There are many reasons for doing such a thing. Bull is potty training, so I needed an outlet for my frustration. We put in our dream sheet of active duty placement, so I have moving on the brain. And I just got home after a long vacation, so I saw my house with fresh eyes. Oh and Hubs is home, so I had muscle to put behind my dreams! I still have some accesorizing to do, but that will come later. One step at a time...

I also ordered 9 months worth of photos (445 to be exact) to be printed. I was a little behind. All I have left is our Israel trip (probably another 500 pictures there!). Again, one step at a time...

Here are the before and after photos:
Kitchen



Dining Room



Boys' Room

Happy 4th of July!

As you enjoy consuming burgers, potato salad, and homemade ice cream today, please take a moment to thank God for the freedoms we enjoy in this country. And pray for His peace to reign in the world.

Cardboard Testimonies

What is your cardboard testimony?