Before and After

In our church bulletin this morning there was a little green card.

On one side it simply said.."Before I met Christ" and on the other side it reads "Now that I know Christ." At the bottom is a place for your signature.

It really got me thinking about how I would fill this out. A few years ago I gave my testimony at a MOPS meeting and it was a very tearful cleansing experience. However, I look back and think how different it would be today. I have moved so much farther past "my past" and although I don't want to forget that person, I hardly recognize her or relate to her. I have been the new me long enough in my adult life that I am now more used to this version of myself. However it was still easy to fill out the before part and on the other side I just wanted to write...BETTER! I thought it would be good though to complete it...

Before I met Christ...

My "moral compass" was broke..no clear direction on right and wrong.
I lived a very selfish life which is the wordly standard.
I had no real hope of anything better.
I filled my life with destructive behavior to feel loved and fill any void I felt in my life.

Now that I know Christ...

I look to God's word for direction on right and wrong in my life!
I try each day to live out God's purpose for me. I realize that living for the moment is a very lonely place!
I know this life is temporary and believe with all my heart that heaven is real and amazing and I want to go there!
The deep hole in my soul has been filled and I know I am loved by God no matter what!

So, that is basically it in a nutshell. Not quite as complicated as I thought.

Just BETTER!

No More Tears

Ok...just a few, but the title sounded better with the whole Johnson ad idea, hopefully I didn't infringe on some copyright title!

On Tuesday we took Aunt Lara to the airport after a fun filled extra long weekend visit! It seems that we have gotten into a good enough routine that Connor no longer gets overly upset when she leaves. I brought up on the way, our plans to see her in July to make sure he had a time frame in his head. He explained that if he knows when he will see her again, he doesn't feel the need to be so sad. So, a few deep breaths, some red eyes...and a few tears..then smiles on the way home:)

This visit was also very efficient because we made a list on the way to pick her up this time. It seems that after every visit Connor and Brody both had things that they wanted to show her, or do with her that just didn't get done. As we were loading suitcases, she watched them both kick off the new football tee which marked off the last thing...success! Some other things on the list were....

Swimming at the Croc Center

Chuck E Cheese

The Lambing Barn at OSU - Aunt Lara and Connor left to get some "fresh air" after a few minutes...Brody would of stayed all day and remained true to the fact that to him..."sheep smell isn't stinky"

Our new favorite game, Blokus

There were many other things I didn't get pictures of such as showing her Owen the cat, playing the Wii Fit which she got us for Christmas, and reading the adventure story that Connor is writing.

We did have a great time and my boys have a terrific aunt that they love dearly. I am blessed to have such a wonderful sister too!

It really is THAT good!

I have heard from many people how good this book was and we finally read it!! I know they made a movie a while back and maybe one day we will tackle that, but it can't be as good. Are they ever really? We have found the book is always better and the few that we have watched after we read have fallen way short of our expectations; Trumpet of the Swan, and Lassie come to mind.


The boys and I finished reading this book last weekend and it was SO good that I just have to share...just to make sure that if you haven't read it...you do. It is a wonderful read a loud; short chapters, fun characters, and easy voices (remember my Lassie fiasco?). We could hardly put it down and read through it very quickly. Connor and Brody would beg for more each day, at every meal and and again at bedtime. The best part was that I enjoyed it too. We read a lot of great books through our school curriculum, but I always have an extra read aloud going as well. I borrowed this from a friend but went and bought it the day after I finished because I knew we needed to own this one. Sure enough, that night Connor started reading it on his own at bedtime. (I just knew he would do that)

Every time we read a good book, I usually think to myself; I hope I remember these characters and these situations when I need them. I hope that when I can use them in life lesson teaching around here, there they will be on the tip of my tongue and luckily because God knows me very well, He brought one quickly.

I was helping Connor to log onto the computer to play some Webkinz when I got a notice of a possible threat to the computer so I ran a quick scan and had to shut down and restart. He was absolutely stumped by all of this, especially when I introduced him to the term "hacker". He just kept asking me..."why would someone do that mom?" So, I thought of Botticelli who explained that a rats purpose was to bring other people suffering and we talked about how sad it is for some people that live in the "darkness of a dungeon" without light in their lives. They don't have a moral compass, and they block out God's voice that offers guidance on right and wrong.

So, thank you Kate DiCamillo for such wonderful characters...I just wish the comparison between the rats and people was much harder to get to!

The Pitter Patter of Little Feet

Doesn't that just sound sweet?

Not so sweet when those little feet are walking over your head at 2:30 in the morning!!! I'm not sure what has gotten into our cat but he has decided that would be the best time for him to get some attention. He has food, doesn't need water...so all I can assume is that he wants to be loved. I guess the hours he spends in our laps before beds only stretches so far and he runs out about this time. So, we are working on that...but otherwise everything is going great with those little feet.

Now onto more and more little feet! Our first month is done with the homeschool co op and it is going great! At least I think it is and my boys are having a blast! I have always wanted to do this and am really enjoying myself. It is in a way the same program that I got started in California only that didn't really have time to get off the ground.

God has brought 13 wonderful families to come together each and every week. (we have had to start a waiting list) Not only did He provide a place for us to meet, but it is a great place that is happy to have us there and even has an indoor "gym" area! Our home church, Court Street Christian Church here in Salem has opened their doors to us and have been wonderful to work with!

We are organizing a PE class each week and having a presentation class almost every week. This is where kids can get up and share things such as a poem memorization, scripture verses, book reports and show and tell! I am organizing some art lessons and projects that we do twice a month and we have one session where we just focus on some sort of "group project". This week we collected all sorts of recycle items such as milk jugs, boxes, and paper towel tubes. We split the class into groups and had them decide as a group what to build. They had some time to decide then got to building and then presented their creations to the whole group. It went really well and was a great exercise. It was a great chance to involve kids with different opinions and work with other kids besides siblings!

Starting next month we will have one meeting a month where we separate the boys and girls and have sort of a club meeting with a devotion time, craft and anything else we decide to plug in there!

Our mission is this....

"To enhance our homeschooling experience by providing a time and opportunity for our kids to participate in activities better executed in a group environment."

One of my main goals was to spend one afternoon having different "elective" type classes to fill in the gaps (FIGS) of things we can't or don't do at home. I want less on my calendar and this is a real great fit for us!

Here is our last art project...tear bears! They came out so cute!

My Flowers

Tomorrow is Valentine's Day. .

There are some cards on the table and even a box of candy this year...but my favorite gift is MY SPECIAL FLOWERS. They don't smell good, add color to the room or even fit in a vase, but they are mine.

I am reminded of a story shared by Aldeana at a MOPS meeting so many years ago. She told how her husband, Pastor Don wasn't one to bring her flowers, but she explained how he would often be up for hours a night trying to help her to be comfortable enough to sleep. He would arrange and rearrange her pillows trying to bring her damaged body some comfort. She explained that those were "beautiful flowers" to her.

I have to admit, I am personally responsible for never receiving flowers from my husband. Years ago, when times were a lot tougher for us, I felt them a waste. You see, Byran always wants to give me "the best" of everything and I just thought they were extravagant so I probably made him feel bad for buying them for me. Because of what I heard so many years ago, I am able to see, enjoy and appreciate the "beautiful flowers" he gives me every day...Here is just a few...

Every morning there is a fire going in my favorite room to warm me up as I start my day.

There is wood stacked right outside the garage door, so I can reload all day without getting wet or cold.

He loves to take me to out to eat and give me the night off from cooking!

I can be home all day and it is still OK to serve hot dogs for dinner!

He works hard so I can enjoy each and every day home with our kids.

He encourages me to homeschool and gives me freedom with the decisions.

He insists on a life insurance policy for himself to take care of us if the worst were to happen.

He constantly encourages me to have "me time".

He never puts expectations on me and how I spend my time.

He never uses my past mistakes against me.

He calls me to check in and tell me that he loves me and sometimes he just says, "I love being married to you."

I know I can buy flowers any time I want because he doesn't criticize the way I spend money.

So on this special Valentine's Day I want to say to him...

Thank you honey, for all the flowers you have given me that brighten so many of my days. I love being married to you!

One Cool Cat!

Well, we did it....we added to our family; with an animal that is! Connor is really the one that initiated the desire for a cat. I have to say that I have always seen myself as more of a dog person, but I am really a sucker for this cat we got!


We started looking at the Humane Society a few weeks ago just to give us time to find the right one. We all fell in love with a beautiful little kitten named Maestro on our second visit, however he was already "on hold" pending his neuter surgery. So we put a second hold him and sat back and waited for a week. We would check the "stock" online almost daily and the boys really got to know almost all of the cats. I prepped the boys fully that he had a home and we would only get him if it fell through for some reason. The shelter called the day he was supposed to go home to let us know that he did so we planned another visit. They were genuinely happy that he got a home and weren't upset like I thought they would be.

That is when IT happened....the three of us just fell in love with Owen. He was the sweetest cat we ever visited with and when we went into a visiting room he would not leave us alone. He was happier walking over our laps and sitting next to us then hiding under the bench. He was playful and a total love bug. He was not what we expected our cat to look like, but I told the boys over and over again that we would just "know" and all of us did. We were discussing putting him on hold so we could bring daddy up and Brody says...."mommy I really think God wants us to have THIS cat."





So, the rest is history. Of course daddy loved him as much as we did and the next day we brought him home. It has been almost a week and I have to say that we totally scored with this cat. He is around 5 and I believe that for us, an older cat was the way to go! (Maestro was only 5 months) As we were filling out the paperwork we were a little surprised to read that the previous owner surrendered him because he would pee in the house and spray the furniture. SO, I warned the boys that if that happened, he had to go back...no deal on that one! Reading further though, we found that for whatever reason they would not offer him a litter box, so that gave me plenty of hope. Well, with the litter box, he has done fantastic, we have had no problems! We were worried about him with Jake, but they are both doing very well. He doesn't even hiss and Jake has become brave enough to look his way just a little bit.









He lets the kids just carry him around and would rather be on your lap than anywhere else. He sat with the boys and I today the whole time we did our history and bible study and the boys were in heaven! I think he might be part dog...he rolls over and loves his belly rubbed and meows at you when he has to use the litter box, wants to eat or needs water! He enjoys drinking out of Jake's bowl more than his own and as soon as Bryan's alarm goes off he is right there with him!




He is a real pleasure and we are so happy to have him. I feel like the mom of a newborn with the camera, but I will control myself and only post a few:)

Let's Celebrate!

On Sunday, our church had a celebration dinner and it was truly an amazing event. I have to say that I only visited 3 churches before we settled into a routine with Court Street Christian Church. The boys both fell in love with the church upon their first visit and kept us going back because of their enthusiasm. After spending almost 11 years at Yucaipa Christian Church I felt like nothing could replace the comfort level I had there.

On Sunday, the goal was simple..to celebrate what God did in the life of the church in 2009 and offer praise to Him. There was an amazing home cooked lasagna dinner and the sanctuary looked beautiful. One person was so excited that they donated all the food and there was around 300 people there. They had a party set up for the little ones with pizza, movies, and even a bounce or two set up. There was 3 people that shared their testimony on how the church has impacted them personally and it was incredibly powerful.

There was Bob, who at the age of 67 decided to give his life over to Jesus and thanked the church who prayed for him for years as his wife attended without him. There was Megan who gave an amazing account of what life looks like apart from God after walking away from the church in her young adult life. One day she realized that although she had a "good life" it wasn't the life God wanted for her. Then there was Russ. Russ showed real raw emotions as he shared about a very recent event in his life where he made some bad choices that also became public knowledge. He explained that the members of this church welcomed him when he returned to church when he thought they might "hold the doors shut" when they saw him coming. He said that two people hugged him and said they were glad he was here and that people would move across the room to welcome him and shake his hand. Basically they loved him when he didn't feel lovable.

It was a great evening and I walked away finally feeling at home with this church. I just felt without a doubt that it was a place I wanted to be and something I definitely want to be a part of.

That feels good.