Friday faves

Today is great because:

~ I'm sitting here in the peace and quiet.
~ Isaac is taking a good, long nap.
~ Crowd pleasing lasagna is on the menu tonight.
~ My hunky-hunk hubby will arrive home promptly at 4pm today.
~ I'll choose to show extra grace if that same hubby arrives later than 4pm today.
~ Isaac loves telling me things and really loves asking questions.
~ Isaac has the sweetest voice (when he isn't whining that is!).
~ Clean sheets will greet me tonight as I fall asleep.
~ As I glance at Isaac's Coco-Nutty Monkey Play-Doh set, I grin over how much he enjoys it!
~ Fall is in the air.
~ Peasant Princess session two is coming up tonight.
~ God gives abundant grace for every season.
~ A friend is praising God for working in her marriage.
~ Project SSAM is here!
~ I'm not overly concerned that my house is not completely in order at this moment.
~ Tomorrow is filled with three fun events.
~ Matt can relax this evening and not think about his thesis.
~ Matt is supposed to surprise me with something today.
~ I'm hopeful that surprise is a Starbucks chai latte.
~ The weekend is here.
~ Most of all: This is the day the Lord has made. I will rejoice and be glad in it!

Today is good!

Making Trains with Cars

There is no doubt that Isaac has a strong connection with his cars. Maybe it's because he's an only child right now, and they keep him company while Mommy is working around the house. Last week, I was in the kitchen putting away some things. I peeked into the living room to check on my boy. This is what I found - isn't he just the cutest?! Check out the first car in his train going around the roll top desk. He put two smaller cars on top of it! Ingenious idea!

I have a super cute video clip of him talking about the long train, but I think the file is too large for Blogspot. Nevertheless, these pictures capture his love for cars and his meticulous and methodical thinking processes! When I watch Isaac discover and learn things, my heart can't help but want to have more children. He is a gift! (Perhaps we'll start trying again in a four or five months; we shall wait and see!)

He makes these by himself! What a great way to entertain himself and develop those cognitive skills! (Check out the two smaller cars on top!)

This is his first train of the day. He likes to arrange the trains from biggest to smallest. Sometimes he'll end with a big caboose!

I guess he needed a break to play with another car!

Well, he's back to his first love - BOOKS!

Happy Birthday, Isaac!

Mmmmm... birthday cake!

Our little lovie turned two years old yesterday! We had a great time celebrating him with our friends and family. We are blessed to have so many people in our lives who love Isaac. Here are a few pictures from his party. Unfortunately, Matt and I were preoccupied and forgot to take lots of pictures. I don't have very many, but I'm hoping some people who were at the party will send us some of their pictures!

Haven and Isaac (not the best pic, but it's the only one of them we took!)

Checking out the cake with Deborah, Kate and Mati

A radio flyer tricycle from Gammy (my mom).

Some of the goodies. These banana pops were fantastic. I'm treating myself to another one tomorrow!

Isaac wanted the grader and the dump truck off of his cake. Grandpa Ken (Matt's dad) is ready to eat the cake!

Precious Mathios getting ready for his lunch - Okay, don't you just want to gobble him up?!

Isaac and Daddy working on a castle with his new blocks before bedtime. Aunt Kelly bought these for him.

Thanks, everyone for joining us in celebrating Isaac's birthday!

Tasty lil' cups

Check out this fun breakfast idea. I made them for our house church last night, and everyone enjoyed them. You don't need to bake them very long if you like a slightly runny yoke. So easy, so darling, so good! Try them out and taste for yourself!

Excited 2 Learn

You have to check out this website! http://www.excited2learn.com/shop/index.php?main_page=page&id=1

I know Amanda and Sarah from Boston and became good friends with both of them. (Look at how adorable they were as toddlers!) I met Amanda while teaching in the Lincoln school district. I tutored a few of her students. She is an amazingly gifted teacher. She was also my neighbor! I then met her twin sister, Sarah. They are both incredibly talented. The first time I visited their parents' house, I was blown away by their artwork. And, they completed most of it when they were very small children! These weren't simple stick figure drawings. The house is outlined with intricate drawings of figures, animals, and abstract concepts along with many sculpture pieces. So, if you want something unique and educationally sound, check out their items and support these wonderful ladies! I know they will appreciate it!

Be anxious about nothing...

but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:6,7 NKJV emphasis mine)

As I read this passage last night, the Lord brought life to it in a new way. How many times have I read this and not paused long enough to let the Word richly penetrate my very existence? Over the past two years I've battled with fear of having more children. When describing my thoughts to other women, particularly moms, I have often said how anxious I felt soon after having Isaac. I know part of it was the natural human process of carrying a child for nine months. Hormones don't always cooperate with us ladies! Some of it though, is in my control. This passage tells me to be anxious about nothing. Nada. Not one thing at all. Ever.

I am to commit my concerns to Christ - every single one of them. While reading this last night, I realized I tend to quickly pass over the second part. When I commit myself to the Lord, He gives me the peace of God and guards my heart and mind. Did you hear that loud and clear? The peace of God! Not the peace of man, which diminishes at every twist and turn. I have a choice to let my worries overcome me or to lift them up to the One who has overcome the world.

The next few verses in Philippians exhort us to keep our thoughts on Christ. We are to think about things that are true, noble, pure, lovely and praiseworthy. When we meditate on the nature of Christ, we don't have room for worry or anxiety. I realize I'll never perfect this in my lifetime, but through the Spirit I have the power to submit everything, heart or head, to the Lord.

I believe God is working in me; He is teaching me to trust His plan, not my own. Now, I joyfully look forward to expanding our family if that is what He has for us. Thankfully, Jesus is patient and loving toward me. He knows the life He gives is a life of growth. Today, I choose a life of peace, free from anxious thoughts. Tomorrow, I will choose the same. It is always a choice. It is a choice to sin or submit. What do you choose? Let's trust God at His Word as He floods our hearts and minds with His undeniable peace!

Rainy Days R Fun!

Isaac and I were in Waverly last weekend visiting my mom and some other family and friends. Here's a video of him playing in the rain after our morning trip to Kroger. He was very fussy and tired, but when we got back to Mom's house, he perked right up and didn't want to go inside!