. . . a glimpse into my heart.

A child's eyes lighting up at the wonder of all the lights! Snow! Snow! Snow! Being with Family! All the Brilliant holiday colors! Santa hats and lit garland! The Nativity! Stockings! Christmas Cards! Ornaments over the years!! Heart Frame Dave bought for me our 2nd Christmas, it's got our picture in it. And the little Holy Night bootie for Liam from a camp friend. A little snow man family made for us by a friend. A picture of us in front of our new house shortly after moving in last December. A graduation ornament from Dave's aunt in honor of his graduation from Emmaus Bible College. Our new ornament this year: 4 little bears around the tree, Dad, Mom, Liam and Gabriel Our 2005 Christmas when I was pregnant with Liam Dave's aunt sent us a little bear ornament. Liam picked out the zebra from the Seattle zoo. He loved "Bebras".

I have been thinking about Christmas so differently this year. Dave preached the first two Sundays of Advent on the Advent of Christ in the Old Testament. He preached about Christ in the covenants and then Christ in the prophecies. I always have known Christmas was all about the baby Jesus but I have a new view this year. Christ's first coming, although miraculous and awe some, cannot stand without His second coming. I have been thinking a lot about when Christ returns and when that is in the forefront of my mind His birth looks so much more majestic and brings me to tears. What a wonderful Savior we have. He is going to come back for us, Praise HIM! Last night while we were at a friends home for a Thanksgiving/Christmas get together it started snowing. This is our back yard at 10:30 last night: Beautiful! It was snowing this morning when I woke up too. This is our back yard this morning: The brilliant white brings Christ to mind once more. So pure and clean and untainted. That...

till we leave for Seattle! Dave had a touch of the flu last week and we thought it missed the rest of us. Then last Monday during small group a little girl threw up in the play room with all the other kiddos. We aren't super worried about our kids getting sick because we know it's good for their immune systems to learn how to fight early on. well, Tuesday evening Gabriel was acting up and not nursing well. So, I offered him some peas. He just wasn't eating like he normally does and to be honest I was getting irritated and frustrated. I went to the sink to get a wash clothe to clean him up and can the feeding attempt when all of a sudden Gabriel pukes over the side of his tray all over the floor. This was no baby spit-up. Poor little guy! He hasn't been acting normal ever since. No more puking but he's just fussy and always looks tired. Since that puking evening I haven't felt so great either. All it's been for me is sore muscles and an upset stomach. Liam...

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Till we leave for Seattle! Woohoo! I cannot wait. I think with the hour time difference we'll be putting the boys to bed around 8. That will be great. Dave and I hope to take advantage of staying with his parents by putting the boys to bed and leaving to go "hit the town". We can go see late shows, go for walks (brr), go out for ice cream . . . We don't have to be stuck because every evening and night we'll have free sitters. :-) Most likely we'll only go out after the boys go to bed but I am excited to have more one on one time with Dave. Things have been crazy lately and we've been super busy and super stressed. I feel like I am on my last leg. Thankfully Seattle is near. Praise the Lord. He brings refreshment when you need it most.

So, the other day Liam had his Little People manger scene strewn all over the living room floor. He was looking around with a confused look on his face. I asked, "Liam what are you looking for?" He responded in a very frantic voice, "I'm looking for Baby Jesus!" It was so sweet!! I got to thinking about the inocence of my little boy. He doesn't understand who Jesus really is yet but it's so neat to see in him an understanding that Baby Jesus was the key person in this manger scene of his. Jesus is the star and Liam knows it.

For ThankGiving lunch we went to the home of some friends from church. It was wonderful to spend time with them and for them to so lovingly open their home to us. Liam and Gabriel kicked back on the bench in the dining room after filling their bellies with good eats. We headed to my parents house for dinner. I got some cute pictures of my grandma with the boys. It's hard to know how many more years we have with her so I make sure I get pictures of her with my kiddos for the memories. She's so cute. . . Friday we brought out the Christmas decorations. Liam LOVED helping this year. Last year he didn't really get it. He hung many of the ornaments and fell in love with a couple of them. Gabriel tried to join in the fun too. :-) The final touch: the angel!

Yeah, this may not be that exciting to you but it has THRILLED us to say the least. Last Wednesday Liam told Dave he needed to go poop in the toilet. He DID it!! I came home from running arrends and Dave shared the news. I asked if he took a picture (joking, of course) because I couldn't believe it. Liam had been in big boy undies for a long time and would consistenly poop in them almost once a day. This was huge!! Well, since then he has only gone poop in the toilet. What a wonderful break through this is. I think I can officially say. . . Liam is 100% done with this toilet training stuff. From day one till now is was under four months.

. . .and tired. I know, after this weekend away we were supposed to feel rested. However, I have neglected to take my vitamins for a week so I think that is a big part of my problem. Anyway, we have no pictures to share since we forgot the camera. It was a nice weekend. We spent a lot of time just veggin' but we also spent a lot of time praying and studying God's word with our pastor and his wife and 4 elders and their wives. There were so many encouraging moments, sprictures and prayers that I wouldn't know where to begin. Dave and I got prayed over by the rest which was a huge blessing to my heart which has been aching a lot lately. I was a bucket of tears but it was wonderful to feel so much love and support. Gabriel was the only kiddo and always was the center of attention. I was thankful he did well sleeping somewhere other then his own bed. He was a pretty good boy for us. We still have youth group tonight so unfortunately we can't just kick back and take it easy....

We are leaving tomorrow morning for Telluride for the Elders/Staff Retreat. It's a beautiful place. We get to stay in a nice condo that's probably the nicest place we've ever stayed in. We've been there twice before. One of the elders in our church has a time share and they were nice enough to allow Dave and I to stay there May of last year. We also were there for the last retreat. We're leaving Liam with some family and just taking Gabriel. I would love to leave him too so Dave and I can have some 'us' time but he's still breast feeding. It'll be a nice break from the norm. We're going up earlier then they need as too because we want to make the most of the weekend. Here are a few pictures of us in Telluride May of '07.

Sunday morning Pastor Rob spoke about how we often forget the we're in the presense of God or that the Holy Spirit is ALWAYS with us. He shared a story of someone who wanted to take a team to help Mother Theresa in her ministries. They made a phone call and an elderly woman answered the phone. The person asked if they could come help Mother Theresa and this lady said 'yes'. "Do you need to check with Mother Theresa to make sure it's ok?" The responce was, "I am Mother Theresa." The point was that this person had no idea they were talking to Mother Theresa herself. They missed her presense. This is how we are with the God of the Universe way too often. We come before Him in prayer and rattle off "I need this" and "Help me with that" and "Heal this person" etc etc etc. We forget who's presense we're in. So, on the drive home from church I was thinking about this. I can see GOD in all of creation but I miss Him most...

Here are a few signs that you child has been watching too much Food Network: 1. He makes any toy into a cooking tool. 2. He speaks with words and frases like: "it's so alisious", "yummy", "mix it", "add some salt", "a little pepper", "sheet pan". 3. He is mezmorized while watching Guy's Big Bite, or whatever that show it called

Dave's pretty bogged down with school and work. Poor guy. He is working on his masters degree and Lord willing he'll be done in May. WOOHOO!! I promised him I would take him on a weekend away to celabrate once he graduates. He is so good at his job, his classes and studying, being a father and being a husband. I would call him an over achiever but I would never want to imply he bites off more then he can chew cause he ALWAYS gets it all done and well too. We're all getting colds. The past two days Gabriel has been taking short naps and he's fusses most of the time. He woke at 5:30 this morning to nurse which is earlier then normal. He woke an hour later crying bloody murder and nurse another whole feeding. Poor kiddo! I think he's not only sick but also going through a growth spurt which makes for a bad combo. ---- I hate it when Dave and I get sick at the same time. It makes it hard for either or us to baby the other. We both just wallow and have no one to take car...

Did you know that some scholars think that King Darius and Cyrus the Great were the same man? A little back ground: Daniel chapter 5 is all about King Belshazzar. He sees the writing on the wall, Daniel tells him that it says the writing basically says his days in reign are numbered and his kingdom will be divided. THAT very night king Bel is killed. King Darius takes control of Babylon. Chapter 6 is the story of Daniel and the lions' den. Well, the last verse of chapter 6 says, "Daniel prospered during the reign of Darius and the reign of Cyrus the Persian." Scholar Joyce Baldwin explains that the word 'AND' in that verse is used often in the book of Daniel. It could be said as 'namely' or 'that is'. The writer could be saying that those names belong to the same person. Daniel 6:28 could read "Daniel prospered during the reign of Darius, that is Cyrus the Persian." Interesting.

Dave and I (and the boys) drove to Montrose today. We ate some fabulous pizza for lunch. Liam ate a whole piece and needed no promting cause he loved it. We went to Russell Stover Candies and bought a bunch of cheap Valentine's and Easter candy for our upcoming Oct 31st lock-in for the high schoolers. Yeah, I know, it's funny that we're giving away candy for totally different holidays then the one on which we're having the lock-in. It'll be funny to have a chocolate bunny eating contest on Halloween. :-) Last Tuesday I missed my Daniel Bible study so I downloaded the audio for it and Dave and I listened to it on the drive home. It was very encouraging to our hearts. It's awesome how every week I feel like God is speaking through Beth Moore to me and my heart. It was cool to share this weeks audio with Dave too. It was on Daniel 6 which is when Daniel was found guilty of praying to God rather then the king. He was then thrown into the lions' den. God delivere...

So, we had a late night last night. We had a bunch of high school kids here to watch the Broncos loose. I didn't get Liam to bed till 10:30 and Dave and I probably didn't actually fall asleep till around 1am. Dave had to get up early for work. G-man woke me @ 7:40 but after nursing he and I both went back to bed. Liam and I didn't get up for the day till 11:30. I know, lazy bums! But it was wonderful to sleep so soundly. Praise God for a refreshing night's sleep. Doesn't happen often. Our pastor's daughter is in the hospital after a bicycle accident. She will be ok in the long run but there was a lot of ingury and it will be a long and painful recovery. We haven't been able to visit her yet as she JUST today got out of the ICU. My heart really hurts for her. This will affect her classes, her job, and her basketball season which should be starting soon. I wish there was something I could do to help. Things like this make me appreciate my life even more. It...

Sometimes it's a miracle that I make it to church on Sundays but once I'm there I always feel blessed by something. This morning I felt touched by a couple songs we sang and some verses the whole congregation read together. I really felt like I was resting in the arms of the Lord. It Is Well With My Soul When peace, like a river, attendeth my way, When sorrows like sea billows roll; Whatever my lot, Thou has taught me to say, It is well, it is well, with my soul. Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come, Let this blessed assurance control, That Christ has regarded my helpless estate , And hath shed His own blood for my soul. My sin, oh, the bliss of this glorious thought! My sin, not in part but the whole, Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more, Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul! And Lord, haste the day when my faith shall be sight, The clouds be rolled back as a scroll; The trump shall resound, and the Lord shall descend, Even so, it is well with ...

I have known Alisa since I was 5 years old. That's a 22 year friendship. That's a long time. We went to coffee today and it was so wonderful to just be able to talk the way we did when we were 15. Being able to share our hearts and lives with each other right now is a blessing. She has always been available and I regret that some years went by without us seeking each other out. It's been 22 years but within those years there was a lot we didn't share. I've realized that I don't want things that way anymore. I care so very much for her. She seems to always be there when I need her the most. I thank the Lord for such a true and loving friend. Alisa is truly an old AND lovely friend! If you read this, Alisa, I love and cherish you. Here's a couple pictures of our fabulous high school days.

I am so thankful my relationship with the Lord is stronger now then a couple months ago cause I really need Him. He sustains me through so much. Life has been over whelmingly hard this past week. There's been a lot of tears and many emotions. I wish I could spill it all but it would leave a terrible mess on this little blog. I just thank GOD for being faithful and consistent because so many others in my life are not. I CANNOT wait till Dec. 22nd when we board a plane and leave for 2.5 weeks. Being in Seattle is always refreshing to me and is good for my soul. I am not totally sure why we don't live there. . .hmm? Oh yeah, we have a wonderful church that has emplyed my husband. He's their first paid Youth Pastor and he's doing some wonderful things with the youth program. Parents are thrilled and kids that would come once in a while are now coming regularly cause they love it. It's been very encouraging and THAT is why we're here. God wants us here.

I LOVE cold weather. It has been chilly lately which is a nice change. This morning there was frost on the grass. However, I am struggling a little bit. Our grass is in now and just lovely. :-) It still needs some time to thicken up but it's so green and very exciting. A little part of me wishes I could fast forward to next summer when my boys will be running around together in the grass while I sit under our pergola at our cute little patio table reading and listening to my miniature men laugh and play together. I know I would miss so much if we could skip this upcoming season. I wouldn't skip it if I could. But I am very excited for next summer. 2009 will be a wonderful year and there will be a lot of super exciting things going on and new experiences and the 3rd birthday of my first born and the 1st birthday of my youngest. However, I MUST also live in the moment. Speaking of THE moment. . . Gabriel is still working on the crawling. He's been all over our living room flo...

Dave bought me a couple long tables for our office when we moved into the new house. I set up my area but it was never very organized. I finally made some skirts for the tables to make it look a little nicer and to hide the storage underneath. I had a wire rack but it didn't fit everything I wanted under the tables. So, Dave built me a little shelf that would perfectly fit my large cutter, papers, photo albums etc. I got baskets to hold all my embelishments, scissors, envelopes etc. I am so pleased now and excited to start making Christmas cards. Here's a couple ideas I found for cute Christmas cards. The first one is just a little snow man but I thought he was awefully cute! teehee! This is the one I just made. It's missing a cute little ribbon around it's neck for the scarf but I don't have any Christmas ribbon right now. This one is a didgital picture of bells but I thought it was very classy. This is a picture of it out of a magazine. It's got some little si...

So, I think Liam is potty trained (for the most part). He still wets during most naps and over night but he will go all other times in the toilet with the exception of a few accidents. HOWEVER. . . and that's a BIG 'however, he will not poop in the toilet. He poops right in his big boy underware making a terrible mess. What do I do to break this?? He doesn't seem to mind the mess. There were a few times early on in potty training (granted, that was only two months ago) that I could catch him in the act and he would finish on the toilet. I am not sure what's changed but I can't even catch him any more. He will almost always tell me AFTER he's pooped but NEVER before. Any tricks I can try?

So, I just sent Dave to the store. Here's the shopping list: Prune juice Pencils Sleeping aid pills size 3 diapers goats milk dish washer soap I just thought it was the most random shopping list ever and I had to share cause it makes me laugh. I know, I need to find better things to laugh about.

This first one is Dave, my brother Alex and Liam playing Rock Band on the Xbox. Liam is singing to it although he has no idea what he's singing. Gabriel is getting on hands and knees now which is fun to watch. Liam likes to copy Gabriel too which makes the whole episode that much more entertaining.

I will be 100% honest and confess that my walk with my Savior has been really dry. It's all my fault as I know He has never walked away from me. It had been a long time since I had opened my Bible just because I wanted to spend time with my LOVE. Things pile up and life gets complicated and everything under the sun distracts me from what is truly important. Dave and I started a "community group" (Bible study)with another couple from our church. It's geared towards young people (college age and young marrieds). The turn out has been incredible, upwards of 30+ people and around 18 kids playing in the basement with the supervision of two wonderful young students. This group is unlike anything we've been a part of. The realness is so amazing! People are spilling their guts all over the place every week. People are crying and sharing their souls and we're REALLY praying for each other. It's wonderful. I am also involved in a Daniel Bible study by Beth Moore wit...

Liam slept in till 8. Dave took him downstairs right away. Gabriel finally woke me at 10am. I thought for sure Dave must have fed him some expressed milk from the frig and he was waking up from his first morning nap. Nope. Gabriel slept from 9pm till 10am. Way to go little guy! So, my three boys made mommy happy this morning. Oh my, how I LOVE my sleep!

Liam has been getting up earlier and earlier every day. it's taking it's toll on me. I NEED my sleep and cherish each moment my head rests on my pillow. Sunday mornings I am basically a single mom. Dave has to leave around 7ish for church. I get the kids going and we barely get to church by 11. I usually leave church before Dave and beat him home by an hour. Well, last Sunday Liam woke at 7 when Dave was a bout to walk out the door. Dave fed Liam breakfast, dressed him for church and took him with. Gabriel slept till 9 and so did I. WOOHOO! I had a easy morning just feeding and dressing Gabriel. I even had time to give him a bath. We got to church and I felt like a different person. It was great. I love Liam but he's been a little handful lately. All that to say, Dave is such a caring husband!

We've had a tough couple of weeks with Liam. He's been quite the trouble maker lately. Dave and I got to go to a high school football game and dinner last night and were able to leave both boys with a sitter. It was so wonderful!! I love my boys but Liam's been driving me nuts. This morning Dave had to leave for work. I was determined to keep my head on straight today. I talked to Liam seriously (I know he's only 2 1/2) about how the day should go. I told him, "Liam, I don't want you going into Gabriel's room today, I don't want you going into the garage, I don't want you to play with the dog and cat's food, I don't want you to make Gabriel cry. Okay?" He's smiles and says "yes, mom!" He goes on to tell me how he will get spankings if he wakes up Gabriel or plays in the garage etc. He KNEW what I was telling him. So, most of the day was going well. He's pottying in the toilet on his own. He's being very gentle with...

So, I joined a Tuesday morning Bible study. We're going through a Beth Moore series on the book of Daniel. Today was our first day and it really spoke to my heart. She's really making it personal and very applicable to us as women. She talked a lot of how in Babylon there was so much selfishness and everyone thought only about themselves. Isaiah 47 is about the fall of Babylon and this verse really sums up what it was all about "Now then, listen, you wanton creature, lounging in your security and saying to yourself, 'I am, and there is none besides me . I will never widow or suffer the loss of children.'" She talked about how we're all living in a present day Babylon. Our culture is selfish and swimming in their sin. We easily fall into it and become just like the world around us. It was convicting. In Daniel there were others who came from the same back ground as Daniel and his 3 firey furance friends. Yet only those 4 men stood up for what was right. I l...

Liam got some new tennis shoes and he was showing them off for the camera (I think this would make a cute Gap commercial)

So, things are a bit gloomy today. It's been raining all day, thunder and all. It's very overcast and grey. I have been trying to get over some sort of bug. I don't know what it is but I have had an upset stomach off and on for maybe two weeks now. It started as a cold but now all the cold symptoms are gone and it's all just my stomach. As a result of the way I have been feeling there are files of both clean clothes waiting to be folded and dirty clothes waiting to be washed. The kitchen floor is in need of a good sweep and mop. The toilets could use a scrubbin'. And here I sit, doing nothing. How I wish I was motivated to do something.

Do you see it?!?!? It's like we just got a + sign on a pregnancy test. We are thrilled to see these little blades of grass popping out all over the yard. Very exciting! I know it is really nothing like finding out you're going to have a baby but we feel kind of silly for being so happy over some grass. teehee! My little man is so stinkin' cute! I absolutely love how his little ears stick out. And his dimples. . .ahh! Tummy Time for all three boys!