Hope's 4th Birthday Party

Hope's Birthday was almost a month ago. Time is flying by so fast. First here are the pictures from her birthday and birthday party.

 Hope's actual birthday was crazy busy. We had Bible study, followed by a trip to Chick-fil-a, then a few stops before home. Daddy brought her these beautiful flowers. And we had dinner of her choosing: Fish sticks (Thanks, Grammy and Papaw, for introducing her to these!) followed by chocolate cupcakes. She opened a few of her gifts from our family before bed.

 The next morning she woke up and we were planning her birthday party with extended family and friends. She thought for a few moments, threw her hands up in the air and exclaimed, "Now I'm five!" After a good laugh, we realized she was (and remains) quite certain that since she had two parties she is indeed five. Funny girl!

 The previously mentioned Mr. Dan and Mrs. Dan came down to help us celebrate. It totally made Hope's night to have them there. The purple butterfly pajamas they brought her were only icing on the cake.

 If you've read my blog for very long, you'll understand my great relief when Hope agreed to a pink lady bug cake this time. We had lots of fun making it.

 One of the favorite things about my kids birthday parties is when they get old enough to be interested in the cards. Hope "read" several birthday cards aloud. It was so stinkin' funny!

 Tyler was so sweet to read the names from the cards for her so she would know who brought the gift. The party was a lot of fun and we are once again blessed to have so many to love on our baby.

11

Eleven years ago, on a night so cold that I put on an extra pair of my boyfriend's pants over my own to keep warm, we walked along the canal and stopped for a kiss on the top of this bridge.

Then he asked me to marry him, and pulled a ring from his pocket. I'm one lucky girl.

What Matters

It doesn't matter

that my floor is cluttered,

or that there is laundry to be folded

and put away.

What matters is God

is always,

has always been,

and forever will be

good.

It doesn't matter 

that yesterday was full 

of mistakes and 

shortcomings and

failings.

What matters is God

reminds me to seek him,

redeems me from the pit,

forgives my sin,

and gives me new mercies

every morning.

 Today I want

GOD.

And by his grace

the desire of my heart

and the joy of my life

to be found in him.

Always.

Conversations

Conversations are interesting things when little ones are about. Today while talking to our doctor's billing office, I found myself saying, "We don't step on cats, Hope. That's not nice." The giggle on the other end reminded me I had listening ears.

Also today while Hope was making some very unladylike noises, I asked, "Hope are you a lady?"
"No," she said. "I'm a girl."
Not to be deterred, I rephrased, "Are you a girl?"
"Yes."
"Girls grow up to be ladies."
Trying to change the subject she pointed at her dad, "And he's a man." Hope said.
"Yes," I replied, "but you are going to be a lady. And ladies should not make tooting noises with their mouths."

Another long interruption where she tells me who in our house is going to be a man and who is going to be a lady. Then we look down to see that Breeley has emptied a tub of crayons on the floor.

"And look at the mess the little lady made." Hope said.

Red Stains

Today we practiced for our church's Christmas program. Like last year, we practiced in the sanctuary on the "regular stage" for a several weeks. Then the church undergoes a dramatic transformation when they build the set into our sanctuary. Really, it's quite amazing that they do what they do. I love watching it come together.  Each year they gather the set that was broken down the year before and move it in and put it together like one giant 3-d jigsaw puzzle. Although it has minor changes year to year the main structure stays the same.

We practiced on the set for only the second time today.  As I stood behind a curtain waiting for my cue I was looking over the set. Taking time to notice a few details I don't normally pay attention to. On the back of a wall someone had written LCT 2000 - AWESOME. It made me smile to think of the people who wrote that. The story is just that: awesome.

Some days I get bogged down by the struggle to learn a dance, remember a cue, get all my kids their costumes and get them into them. Some days of practice are great community builders. Some are just gotten through. Some days, I forget that it's an honor to be a part of retelling this Story. This tremendous Story.

This last week was one of those weeks.  Doug and I are both just worn out, burnt out. We're ready to be done. And it was with a rather rotten attitude I headed to practice today: the first of 9 practices and performances in 8 days. Getting cranky kids in costume. My body hurting from past weeks of dance practice. My emotions torn between my commitment to the show and my baby who was teething and wanted Mama.

All this was on my mind as I stood looking at the scenery. It is beautiful. Our set designer and builder does a great job, but that wasn't what caught my eye.

What caught my eye was the red stain on the floor. Over the years the red make-up from the back of the man who plays Jesus has soaked into the stage.  I was entering to dance where the cross would soon stand.

In that moment, I experienced a rush of gratitude, humbleness and meekness.  My feet would dance where the red stains from make-up had fallen on the stage. The truth is my feet dance everyday because of the blood shed and grace of Jesus Christ. My hope, my joy, my peace are the gift of a red stained road He walked for me.

I am so grateful for the red stains on a plywood floor today. Tomorrow will be another long day of practice. My baby will still be teething, my four kids will probably all lose something and need me to find it in a rush, I will still be tired, but I will be dancing with a refreshed sense of joy, humbleness and gratitude on red stained floors.

The Days are Long....

When I look back through the photographs of my children,

I am reminded that although the days sometimes seem long

the years go by much too quickly.

So I will treasure the moments.

The joy of riding in Daddy's arms.  The giggles over silly songs.

I'll treasure the memories and the secrets whispered into my ear.

I'll hold them close and let them go.

Because the joy of holding my babies close only grows when my children choose to run back into my arms.

Living Christmas Trees

Yesterday I had a chance to hang out with Hope and Breeley alone for a little while. We were driving to get chocolate milk, apple juice and a coke when Hope piped up from the back seat. "Mommy, turn on the 'ees song." I asked her to repeat herself several times as I normally don't have any trouble understanding her. When we stopped at a light I half turned and said, "What song, Hope?" Closing her eyes and raising both hands in the air she begins to sing, "At the cross I found my knees...." *

Our family is once again involved in our church's Christmas production. I never blogged about it last year, so this seemed like a good time to pull up all the old pictures and relive the memories.

Living Christmas Trees tells the story of Christ's life from birth through resurrection. Our dear friends are once again directing it and it is a privilege to work alongside them to share the story of Christ.

The kids absolutely love being a part of it, which I knew they would. What I didn't know was how much closer our family would grow to each other through this experience.

Doug was hesitant at first and ended by fully embracing his roles, makeup and all. So the the makeup was a stretch - he could hardly wait to get home and take it off. :) He was really great about helping put it on though. Years of helping his mom came in handy here.

Bree was a trooper. She got fussy towards the last of every evening. They were long days for her, but she hung in there and made into at least one scene in every performance.

Hope loved practice, but was a little unsure of walking into a room filled with people. She did great being a part of several scenes. Her favorite part was the make-up!

Becca grew up so much during this process. I loved watching her grow into her roles and love being on stage. During the scene of Jesus' ministry the song Healing Rain played. Becca was the "dead girl" who Jesus raised to life. A dramatic and heartbreaking scene. She did so good holding still and coming to "life" on cue.

Tyler had a short appearance as "little Jesus" as he grew into a man. Being on stage is totally his thing. He loved everything but the makeup.

We are enjoying putting in the hours, growing together as a family and being a part of telling the story of Christ. If you live in the area and would like to come, here is a link to the church website for information.


*The song she was singing is Hillsong's "At the Cross."