(mondays)

I love and look forward to the weekends... My husband is home from work, we get lots of time with the family, and we're all ready for a break in the regular routine. Lets face it, Mondays can be a bummer. Hubby's back at work, and well... I suppose that's about it. What can I say... we like having him around! However, there are a whole lot of good things about Mondays so I'm going to think about them instead.

My husband has a job that he loves-
God provides and I am able to stay home with our kids ~ we are so blessed!

I usually don't have too much going on-
Therefore, the kids get back on schedule.

My sister doesn't have to work on Monday-
Which means that I usually get to see her and my sweet niece before 9am and enjoy a good, STRONG cup of coffee with her:)

I'm refreshed and ready to tackle the house again-
I pretty much take the weekends off of any major cleaning since my hubby's home.

The kids often play happily for longer periods of time than usual-
They're so busy over the weekend they're happy to see their toys again!

And I'm thankful that I could go to church again-
What a great way to start the week!

Prayers...

In this Thanksgiving season, I have SO very many things to be thankful for... Jesus Christ, my family, friends, a warm home, life in a free country where I'm free to worship God, plenty of food, good health, and I could go on and on and on...

Right now, I think of the health our family enjoys. I just ran across a blog asking for prayers for the child in Monica Zylstra's womb. Baby Esther Jade is full of fluid and the doctors say it's unlikely that she'll make it outside of her mother's womb. They say she will most likely have congestive heart failure. BUT, our God is BIG. While they face the reality of the diagnosis of their precious little girl, they also hope in the Lord and pray for a miracle. Please join me in praying for her and her parents. And for Cash Parriera and Jensen Anderson... that they would also be miraculously healed from their cancer. That God would surround the families of these children with a peace that surpasses all understanding. Pray that they would know HIS love and strength in their trials.

"Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us, to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen." (Eph. 3:20-21)

Hunting Camp

Every October, we spend a week with my mom's side of the family at hunting camp. We look forward to it as a great camping trip and if there are deer in camp, well, that's a bonus. Aside from the births of our two kiddos, I've NEVER seen my husband more excited than he was this past week. He got his first buck... a nice 3x3. I probably sound like a strange sort of wife right now, but it was actually quite endearing to see all the guys in this hunting camp help with packing the deer out, skinning it, and what not. They're SO excited for whoever got the deer, they all pitch right in and join in on the process... and it really is quite the process! I have to say that it's about the nicest bunch of campers. Camping neighbor, Brian, who isn't even in the family bunch graciously pulled our truck all the way home ---at least five hours--- because we had transmission troubles. Anyway, we enjoyed a great week of camping, riding horse, and lots of dutch oven cooking. On top of that, we're thankful for some good meat for the freezer this year!

a new creative outlet!

Teresa and I and our need for a creative outlet started putting together headbands, clips, and hats (NO, we are not so talented as to crochet them!) We're having SUCH a great time embellishing all of this stuff. And thanks to my dear friend, Jenn (Sweet Bliss Photography is where to find her), we have some great pictures! Not only of our little girls, but of our stuff! We'll see where it all goes, but we're having great fun in the meantime. There's something to be said about having something completed that STAYS looking pretty. While I'm thankful to be able to do daily chores and don't mind folding laundry, washing dishes, and vacuuming/sweeping my floors, they surely don't stay that way! Anyway, here are the pics that show what we've been up to!:)

This girl can fish!

On Saturday afternoon, "E" took Kyla to a local pond to do some fishing. Little Miss LOVES to fish. What blows me away is how incredibly patient she is. The fishing doesn't have to be hoppin' for her to be quite happy. She will sit with a fishing pole in hand for hours... literally! Maybe if I caught something this big once in a while, I'd be more patient too!:)

family...

When God tell us to "think about such things" as in Philippians 4:8, and when I'm tempted to worry myself sick about something or another... I try to pray prayers of thanksgiving. (This is advice from my mom. Believe me, when I'm worrying, I'm not thinking of anything but the matter at hand... my mom is not only wise, she's selfless... and I'm trying to take her advice!)

One of the things I am MOST thankful for is my family. While I'm incredibly grateful for them, I'm also very blessed to have wonderful brothers and sisters in Christ. I love my dear, intermediate family who I'm so comfortable with... the ones I can laugh with, joke with, and be completely relaxed with. But God blesses us with brothers and sisters in Him, and what a blessing and encouragement that is as well! I'm so thankful to have brothers and sisters in the Lord that are very much a part of my "family".

There is a particular couple who "E" and I have been so blessed by. We consistently enjoy wonderful fellowship, fabulous food, and lots of laughs together. Our kids absolutely love them, and they have embraced our kids. The love and kindness that they have shown is overwhelming and something to be most thankful for. It's truly something that is pure and lovely, something I should not only dwell on more often, but spend more time thanking my Heavenly Father for!

I love this picture of Little Miss and the Little Farmer in the back of E's pickup... they are obviously so happy to be there!
I have to say that when the Little Farmer was born, I didn't know how the two would interact with nearly four years between them. My worries were in vain... these two absolutely love each other and watching them just being together is so much fun! These are the smiles we see so often when they are goofing around in their rooms, teasing each other in the car, and playing in the sandbox. Maybe one of these days I'll do a post on the high-pitched, eardrum-shattering screams from the little one when they're not getting along--- or maybe not! I think we'll just enjoy this for now.