Weathering the storm

I have been struggling the last week thinking about possibly writing this post. I think about how social media can make such personal matters public, whether you're ready to address the matters or not. I have been thinking about Grace and her cousins and how their whole lives are documented by social media and how one bad decision doesn't just go away like it might have when we were young. My heart breaks for our youth (and adults alike) and the publicity their bad decision receive. These thoughts remind me to model where I find my value. Grace will learn more from my actions than words and I have been reminded to be conscious of getting my value from being a child of God.

Through pain and "pull back" this week, I had friends reach out just to let me know I was in their prayers. I feel like God prompted these friends one way or another and many were spiritual mentors to me... I just cannot chalk that up as a coincidence. I think it's God knowing our needs before we ask for them and delivering when we do. Alex is the best leader of our home. He encouraged me that though I am hurt, I'm not helpless in prayer. I humbled myself and found peace in prayer and asking others to pray. And God delivered.

I came across some things in my reading that I found timely. In my study last week, Beth Moore talked about weathering a storm due to another person's poor judgement (in reference to the shipwreck Paul experienced on his way to Rome). I loved her tips for surviving these storms. 

• Don't pull up the anchor (stay anchored in Christ, the one who holds us steady until the storms begin to rage). 
• Don't give way to the storm (we feel helpless but don't give way to the storm, give way to the Master of the seas). 
• Throw some cargo overboard (storms complicate life enough, ask God to simplify and clarify and throw old cargo overboard).
• Throw tackle overboard (storms serve an important purpose, they help us to see what man-made solutions we are substituting for depending and getting to know God).

Flipping through The Screwtape Letters this week gave insight into the heart of evil. This is coming from the perspective of the devil, "Hatred, we can manage. The tension of human nerves during noise, danger, and fatigue, makes them prone to any violent emotion and it is only during question of guiding this susceptibility into the right channels. If conscience resists, muddle him... Hatred is best combined with fear. Cowardice, alone of all the vices, is purely painful- horrible to anticipate, horrible to feel, horrible to remember." Basically, rereading chapter 29 of the book enabled me to conclude that it's best to try not to understand evil. We are all capable of it and we see evidence of it every day in the news. I think it's best to just realize we are all flawed and the best we can do is pray for each other.

I am thankful for my faith in God and those in my life that will pray for me and my family. In times of helplessness, that's all you can do. Psalm 62:5 "Find rest, O my soul, in God alone; my hope comes from Him."

Busy week and a blessed heart

I love the 30 days of thankfulness! It has been such a great opportunity for me to reflect on all of the blessings that God has given us and pick just one to share. It's so much more refreshing to focus on the positive!

We had fajita Friday this weekend followed by gelato at La Centerra. There was live music on central green so we brought a ball from home and played while listening to music. It was lovely :)

She loves riding high!

Saturday, I woke up to Grace banging on the door to our bedroom. Alex got up early with her and while getting some things put away in the kitchen, Grace wondered where I was....so she decided to bang on our bedroom door to see if that's where I was hiding. It was precious and sweet to wake up to her coming to me for a change. We got our running clothes on and went to Terry Hershey Park for a shady and cool morning run. Following our run, we went to City Center for coffee and to explore Kitchen Aide Stand Mixers. I am asking for one for a combination birthday/Christmas present and am so excited about the possibility of getting one someday.

So excited to finally put our Houston Parks book to good use!

In the afternoon we went to our neighborhood Harvest Festival. Grace and I went on a couple of rides and she got her first face painting. I made a pizza and went next door for a Pinterest party that my neighbor hosted. Everyone was asked to bring a dish to share and Jamie had two crafts for us to complete. The company was great, the food was delicious, and the crafts were super cute. Here's the one I finished:

She's got a ladybug on her face! :)

Sunday, we went on a run when we woke up (our house woke up at 6:30 due to the time change) and then headed to church. We had a pretty low key day filled with study, a little housework, grocery shopping, and a nap.

Monday morning Grace and I went to "Mommy Mondays" at La Centerra. We were ready pretty early so we decided to go to the shopping center and walk around a little. We grabbed a cup of coffee at Starbucks and sat outside to enjoy the cool morning. An adorable, Asian, pregnant woman stopped by to chat with us about when her baby was due and talked about her move to Houston from China. She every so timidly asked question after question about when Grace reached different milestones and humbly mentioned she didn't know much about children, how to raise them, etc. My heart was so sad for this woman. She lacked confidence and feared she wouldn't know what to do with her baby on the way. I could totally empathize with this woman... regardless of being around tons of babies and children, I too feared parenthood. It is so different when it's your child, you really don't want to mess them up somehow! We exchanged phone number and I encouraged her by telling her that no one really knows what they're doing, you just try your best and pray for wisdom and grace. If you see a pregnant woman in your near future tell her she looks beautiful (because she definitely doesn't feel that way) and be an encouragement to her! Don't tell her to get her sleep while she can. Love on her... because she's well aware her whole world is about to change.. for the better!

"Mommy Mondays" was super fun and a great chance to catch up with Sarah and Ryan. Grace is so brave and wandered all over, checking out the toys other kids brought. Her favorite was the maraca! Following MM we went home and put up Christmas decorations! The Christmas music is on at our house and I looooove it! It's the holiday season guys!

Monday night the Franks watched Grace so Alex and I could have a date night. We went to a little Mediterranean restaurant called Ephesus. It was delicious and we received lots of attention from the staff. I highly recommend it if you're local! It was so nice to enjoy a dinner with Alex as husband and wife. Our night out really enforced the commitment to invest in our marriage. A wise friend shared that you need to constantly invest time in your marriage because in a heartbeat your children are grown and out of the house. You don't want to be left with a stranger you're married to!

My date night dinner. It tasted as good as it looks!

Tuesday I hosted our ABF's playgroup at my house. I enjoyed chatting with the other mamas and watching the kids play. We had a couple with a new baby over for dinner. Holding their new baby was so sweet and reminded me just how fast time goes. Grace loved Kate and giggled and looked at her endlessly! She's been so sweet around younger babies and it melts my heart. But no, we are not giving Grace a sibling in the near future. :-P

Grace cuddling with ALL her stuffed animals and watching Praise Baby

Wednesday, we went walk/running with Jennifer and Carolina in the morning. We enjoyed our walk and chatted but unfortunately, got caught in the pouring rain! We got soaked but it was a good excuse to come home and get cozy. Last night, I had a few neighbor girls over for dinner and a chance for our kiddos to play. It was lovely and I went to bed feeling so blessed that God has placed us just where we are!

We had bible study this morning and you guys (wouldn't "y'all" sound so much better here) know how much I love it. On my drive home I talked with Alex about how blessed I feel to have so many inspirational women in my life. Godly women that love their husbands and children and are such role models that live with intention. Hash tag blessed. Hash tag I love feeling inspired. Hash tag Texas isn't so bad. 

A Month of Thankfulness

This week has been a busy one! I find myself becoming more of a protector of Grace's nap time (another thing I said I wouldn't do because I wanted to protect MY freedom to go out when I needed to). I'm finding that unfortunately, it's just not worth stretching this poor, exhausted baby ...when she's tired, she's tired and angry. It's okay though, it's teaching me to be productive at home during that time and also allows for quiet time and that folks, is priceless.

Monday, Grace and I went for a little bike ride. We found a new park a couple miles from our house that is covered. Grace loved the slide and running around. Here's a picture of her posing at the bottom :) Take notice of her outfit Illinois friends... it was 80 degrees out!

Monday after Alex finished working, we met at the gym and Alex was pleased with BLTs for dinner.

Tuesday we went for a run and juiced in the morning. I've been experimenting with ginger in our juice and it's incredible! Grace was helpful in making the kale, cucumber, carrot, apple, ginger, lime juice. Her helping is also known as sitting on the counter taking bites out of apple slices and  handing me things to put into the juicer but she sure does enjoys drinking the finished product :)

Alex had a work dinner Tuesday so Grace and I had a girls night eating breakfast for dinner. After Grace went down I got a ton of stuff done around the house while watching "The Wonder Years." Alex was so sweet and pitied my cereal for dinner and brought me guacamole from the restaurant he visited.

Wednesday morning Grace and I woke up and baked snicker-doodles while watching "Hocus Pocus." She wasn't as in love with the movie as she was the cookies but one day she will love it! We attended the play group for our Sunday school class later in the morning. There was a great turn out and the costumes were absolutely adorable! I wish I had taken a video of the chaos that ensued from trying to get a picture of all the kids but instead got a picture. Precious:

The rest of Wednesday consisted of going to the gym, making salsa, and homemade pizza crust. Unfortunately though, when I went to make the pizza, I realized I didn't have pizza sauce. I improvised with oil, sun dried tomatoes, goat cheese, and coastal cheese. I used the pioneer woman's pizza crust recipe as it came highly recommended from The Closet Therapist. She knows her stuff... it was amazing!

Halloween was super fun! We had bible study, lunch while watching Earnest Scared Stupid (Alex and I love the Earnest movies) and got prepared for trick or treating. We had chili dogs and sweet potato fries for dinner and I made a large pitcher of fall sangria (recipe below). We visited a few houses on our block but couldn't venture too far. It was a great opportunity to meet the neighbors we hadn't met yet and socialize with the ones who have become our friends. We shared the sangria and enjoyed the 75 degree evening. Here's our pretty ballerina :)

Last year, a friend inspired me to commit to 30 days of thankfulness. I try to have a thankful heart but learning my new role as a mother and becoming a stay at home mom, it wasn't always easy to see the silver lining. This did wonders for my spirit.... Every day, I will post something I am thankful for on Facebook. A couple weeks ago, I worked on this craft to encourage me to "give thanks." 

Directions:

I used a margarita glass to trace and cut circles from scrapbook paper.

I printed "give thanks" from a word document, traced a circle with a smaller glass, and glued the white letters onto the scrapbook paper.

I punched holes in the scrapbook paper and thread twine through the holes. Viola, a sign, ready to hang!

Fall Sangria Recipe:

1 large apple, cored, sliced

1 large orange, thinly sliced

2 tspn. fresh lemon juice

1 container of fresh, organic apple juice or cider

3 oz of brandy

3 oz of vodka

1-2 bottles of cider beer (my favorite is Angry Orchard)

Place all ingredients in pitcher except beer. Serve in a tall glass over ice, topped with cider beer.