I can't hold them forever...

Thoughts from my journal this month...

It's a hot morning, but have found a beautiful place under a shade tree to sit, write and reflect as I watch Sadie and Cole play together. That's good stuff. Thank you Jesus for their precious lives. For their love of life and sense of discovery. Thank you for Sadie's incredible imagination and Cole's love for sifting through rocks, dirt and sand. I look at them daily and am completely amazed with how wonderfully you have made them.

Some days I wish they would freeze at the age they are right now. Any more it seems that although the days are sometimes long, the months fly by. Some days I feel like if they stayed three and one forever that MAYBE I could protect them with every ounce of my being. As a mommy it breaks my heart to think that in the days ahead there will be times they are scared, hurt, confused, teased and wounded. Protect them, Lord, as they grow. When these days come, give them strength to trust you and walk with you. Help me, as their mommy to trust YOU with their precious lives and understand that the trials they will see could very well be what deepens their faith.

Give them sweet days, Lord Jesus, and as they continue to grow, give me whatever it takes to release them into your power and protection.

Because yummy green beans make me happy

I have never liked fresh boiled green beans. It seems like you can boil them and boil them and boil them and they still come out a little on the crunchy side... in my opinion the only thing worth eating out of a pan of boiled green beans is the butter soaked bacon.

Last summer I became addicted to roasting veggies. We ate roasted carrots, potatoes, asparagus and cauliflower... and everybody (well, most everybody) loved it. So, last week I came across a recipe that included roasted green beans... I hadn't even thought of roasting green beans... THEY ARE SO GOOD. And tender. And flavorful. And so yummy you will want to eat the whole batch BY YOURSELF. So, I'm passing along this wonderfully delicious and healthy green bean recipe... enjoy!


Roasted Green Beans
12 oz green beans
1 T olive oil
3/4 t. salt

Mix the ingredients in a bowl until the beans are well coated. Spread beans out on a cookie sheet in a single layer (I cover mine with parchment). Bake for 18-20 minutes at 400 degrees.

Still waiting for fruit

Wordless Wednesday

100th POST edition

Today is my 100th post! To celebrate, I thought I'd share one of the most incredible things that has recently happened to me as a stay at home mom!!! Drum roll , please....

After not taking naps for a little over a year, SADIE HAS STARTED NAPPING AGAIN! Are you doing your happy dance??? I don't know how it happened, but during rest time over the last 2 or 3 weeks, she has fallen asleep half of the time! Maybe it's from playing outside more or a growth spurt, but she sleeps! Incredible.

Only one problem - I find myself not knowing what to do while everyone sleeps here! So today, I took some pics of them resting (because one of these days I'm not going to be able to sneak in on them and snap pics of their sweet sleeping faces)... and next, I get to go clean the bathrooms! My life is so glamorous!

Yep, they're crazy about each other....

What I'm Reading this Summer...

Pretty soon I'm going to be posting a blog called 30 B4 30... simply a list of things I want to do before my 30th Birthday... anyway, one of the goals on my list is to read 5 books every season for the next year. Since I can easily get in the habit of reading non-fiction, I tried to include a fiction, a biography and a couple books Eric's been recommending over the last few months (which are usually non-fiction... apparently we have imagination issues). Here are the books that I'm planning to read over the summer...

bringing up GIRLS by Dr. James Dobson
Remember to Forget by Deborah Raney
I Became a Christian and All I Got was this Lousy T-Shirt by Vince Antonucci
Wild Goose Chase by Mark Batterson
Jesus by Charles Swindoll

Would love to know your book recommendations as I plan for the following seasons! :)

All in a days time...

After picking up this afternoon, this is everything that needs to be carried back upstairs. How does this happen???

Redeeming Love

Just finished reading the incredible book, Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers. I'm going to be thinking about the pages of this book for many days to come. For now, I'll leave you with these words from Rivers:

"Love the Lord your God, and love one another. Love one another as he loves. Love with strength and purpose and passion and no matter what comes against you. Don't weaken. Stand against the darkness, and love. That's the way back into Eden. That's the way back to life."