I thought it was a good idea, but I didn’t know I would take to it. 

Not this fast anyway. 

i tried the oil cleansing method.

(more…)

4 Sundays ago, PC3 Leland, the Leland branch of my church launched! Here is a brief recap video:

I’ve taken pictures each Sunday, just to chronicle the experience and this chapter in my church’s life.

I’ve been amazed at the hard work this team of people has put in to pull off such a technology stunt, all the way to live-streaming, last Sunday! I know that so many have played a huge role in the success of this being a reality, and I have gotten to experience a lot of that first hand through my hubs.

So, this next portion is going to be dedicated outrightly to bragging, on Jeremy. I am so proud of him.

Today, in the hallways of PC3 Leland many came up to me to brag on Jeremy because of a few technology type things that happened in the early hours of Sunday, saying things like, “We love Jeremy,” and “Jeremy is a rock star” and “What would we do without Jeremy?”

and I agree, and know all of these things to be true,

every. single. day.

Jeremy does so many things well, and with ease. He is patient, loving, understanding. In public, at work, and at home. Always. I see many sides of his character, and I can vouch, he is a rock star, a rock star daddy to L, a rock-star husand to me, and a rock-star client helper (if I had a dime for every time I heard, click start, go to open, etc, etc, etc). And I, too, love him. And often wonder, what would I do without him. He is a true gift! I am so thankful for him.

Thanks PC3 Leland, for loving on Jeremy and in turn, loving on our family.

Last night, my friend Brad sent me this link to this blog…

with this homemade sign…

maybe I will attempt my own. We’ll see.

I love her words on that blog, too. This is the gift, that is sharing your word. Immediate accountability.

Check out Brad’s facebook page for some awesome furniture, too. Like this dresser he painted, love that blue!

I’ve read a few posts lately about not using shampoo & about using a homemade face wash, which is a part of my 18 things to make in 2012 goals, but then I started discovering that she applied the same principle to many other areas.

Which got me thinking….

Maybe the only reason why we are dependent on so many of these things is because we’re so used to them, hooked, a self-created dependence. Or rather, marketed dependence.

we’re hooked…

I am so interested to try a lot of these money saving, simple, & green solutions to everyday hygiene. If they work, I estimate I’ll be saving our family upwords of $200 or more a year. With the potential to save a lot more, if the whole family embraces it.

So, take a look at one of my new favorite blogs, simplemom.net, she posts about a lot of great everyday and green solutions, sort of like Real Simple, but without the $5 price tag, per issue!

A few months ago we switched to Shaklee for our cleaning products, and got rid of a slu of other products (pictured below), and applying this same idea to other areas, may just be the makeover, or makeunder (as it were) this little life of mine needs.

goodbye unneccesary cleaning products

To de-commercialize, and break the dependences on so many of the products that I use.

I think it’s worth the experiment at least. Here’s to my attempt! I’ll update you on how it goes.

i think i say this every month, but the time… is passing… so quickly. i put those elipses there just to extend time for a smidge of a second. because time with you, is priceless to me.

every day is a gift. i am learning so much about you, and i think you about me. i am amazed, often, at how you know who i am, this humbling responsibility wakes me up to the reality of my legacy in you. you are a reflection, an extension of me, and i pray sweet liam that one day you’ll know the Creator that made you in my womb, and that you will worship him with us, freely, by your choice.

five months of absolute delight is what you’ve given us. don’t get me wrong sweet liam, there have been days where we wondered if we would make it out alive. especially about two weeks ago when you refused, REFUSED to nap, so instead of staying home for you to nap, i would go on errands, and you would fall asleep in the car, and i would sit, in a parking lot, somewhere in this town just so you could nap for longer than 30 minutes. it was a trying time, one that i don’t care to relive anytime in the near future. i think they call this wonder week 19, unfortunately, we have another wonder week around the corner, oh 26, i dread you!

that whole rolling over thing at month four really revved you up in your sleep, too, so much so that we didn’t know how to get you to go to sleep… we tried… everything. but now, you’ve settled into yourself a bit, you seem like you’ve got the sleeping on your belly or on your back thing down. and now that you’re consistently sleeping through the night (hip hip hooray!) i wish i could too.

you’ve been HUNGRY like the wolf! at one point i wasn’t enough for you, which made me really, really sad, but you’ve taken back to me now that you started eating rice cereal. learning to feed you from a spoon has been fun for me, and also really messy as opposed to our previous feeding times.

you are also slightly a drool monster, we couldn’t own enough bibs! you soak through three or more a day. it’s quite impressive. niagra falls should be jealous.

our friend laura beth, let us borrow their exersaucer which you just love! a few other things that you really love are the baby bjorn, especially with daddy, road trips, pulling hair, tummy time, milk!, and grabbing mommy’s mouth, nose, or whatever you can get to.

i suspect you are only days away from starting to crawl, you’ve already been in position too many times to count.

you love the sound of my voice and crane your neck to look at me wherever i am in the room, and i just love the affirmation of love that is inside that gesture.

i love hearing the beginning of your learning of language, those little sounds you are making, i love repeating them back to you, and you back to me, i love our conversations.

we’re amazed by you little L, and how you change, grow. we love your little personality, and how you enjoy us. it’s so heart-warming.

i can’t wait for you to read these… one day.

i love you. 

love,

your momma

although somedays are really, really hard, most days are beautiful. and amazing. and you, are 1000 gifts, all in one.

Update: I’ve decided to change my word since this post was written, read more about it here.

This year has been a year of lists. So far. And we’re 6 days in.

These lists consist of what to read, what to make, goals to strive for, personal, financial, and beyond.

But the most compelling of lists is this one that was inspired by a book I just got for Christmas. The book, One Thousand Gifts, has captured my heart in every possible way. It was exactly what I needed to read at exactly this point in time. Isn’t it funny that the One who knows us so intimately, who created our every fiber, knows the exact number of hairs on my head, cares what I read, cares what I let my mind rest on during the day and in the night. 

Before I’ve shut my eyes into slumber in these first few days of twenty twelve, my mind has pondered eucharistio, a greek word that Ann Voskamp, the author, locks into early into the book’s pages. And, I, too have wondered, have pondered, what does it take to live a full life as Christ intended? Scripture makes it clear that it’s possible and attainable… but what must we do to seize this life? To take it all in and not get caught into the things that matter least, but rather be captivated by things that matter most.

I’ve decided, based on my own experiences, that it does take intentionality, that it takes DOING something. Not saying you are going to do it, and certainly not making a list declaring you will do it, you must actually DO it.

In fact, Ann cites a fantastic quote on the matter by Pierre de Caussade,

When one is thirsty one quenches one’s thirst by drinking, not be reading books which treat of this condition.

Ann goes on,

If we are dying of thirst, passively reading books about water quenches little; the only way to quench the parched mouth is to close the book and dip the hand into water and bring it to the lips. If we thirst, we’ll have to drink. I would have to do something.

Ann started this wonderful journey of writing down gifts, not to buy, not for someone else, but the gifts of God, a love list of sorts. She begins this list, of gifts, of one thousand of them, and realizes that she is changing. That she starts to see things differently.

I’m not so great at writing, no, not like Ann, but in reading this book, it was somehow my words, my thoughts, said 20 times more eloquently than I could ever dare.

So because of this, my one word this year, is also my list of one thousand. Eucharestio. Thanksgiving. Gratitude. Grace. Joy. Yes, in one profound greek word, that Ann explains, always precedes the miracle. Jesus gave thanks (even in not -enough), Daniel gave thanks, Paul gave thanks, yes… thanksgiving. So, for non-greek scholars, my word is Thank-full (yes with two l’s, to be FULL of thanks). For greek scholars, and readers of One Thousand Gifts, my one word is Eucharisteo.

It is also my challenge, to list 1000 things over the course of this year that I am thankful for. I believe that it will be a stretching experience, a lesson on gratitude, that I intend to fully inhale. I am up to twenty nine in my list currently. It is an exercise in gratitude.

I am only on chapter 5, of 1000 gifts and already feel my heart expanding. I am so thank-full! 

Is time flying? Or is it just me? Regardless, you, little bean (which I affectionately call you, along with a myriad of other names) are growing up at a rapid speed, faster than the speed of light, it does seem. You are causing my heart to grow, and the capacity by which I knew what love was. You are redefining a lot of things in life for me, which is causing some growing pains (for me & you) both. I am thankful that you have learned to stretch your sleep out at nighttime, and even naptimes.

Many things are getting better, including me as your momma getting used to you being in my life. For the longest time I would wake up in the night and remember, “oh yeah, we have a baby!” but I don’t seem to really do that anymore. I remember that it’s you, and you in all of who you are. I know you now. That’s the biggest difference of this month from the prior 3 months. I know your cries and what they mean, I know your smiles, your laughs, your snuggles. I view the hardest times as gateways into the best of times with you. I know that these little mental leaps and learning that you are doing, are leading into the next thing. Which for you this month has been pulling yourself up, supporting your head, and the biggest one, rolling over! Your rolling over had caused the most difficulty. Your daddy says it’s like a super hero with a brand new power, that he does not yet know how to control. It’s exactly that, your superpower.

I love you sweet Liam. I love all of you. I love being your momma.

love,

your momma

Marking moments is such an important thing to do (and Biblical, too!). I believe that it’s important to mark moments in our spiritual lives, financial, family, and beyond.

This morning I was reading out of Jesus Calling, a devotional book that Jeremy and I have decided to read through together. I’ve always had a hard time finding a devotional that would really leap off the page and dig deep into my heart. This morning though, that very thing was accomplished…. but I’m getting ahead of myself, back to marking moments… 

A year ago, I was feeling very needy…

In fact I had a few much needed conversations with friends at that point, letting them in on that very fact. I struggled, deeply, with the fact that “needy” was the best description of my emotions at that moment in time. I don’t know what it is, but that word, and that feeling, and knowing others that you would describe as such – is not an attractive feature. But, I’ve come to realize that spiritual neediness is exactly where the Lord wants us to be. He wants us to come to him broken. He wants our hearts, not our self-sufficiency. Realizing this fact has helped me to move on from it and embrace it.

Today’s devotion, almost a year later… (read this as if Jesus is speaking to your heart.)

Your needs and My Riches are a perfect fit. I never meant for you to be self-sufficient. Instead I designed you to need me not only for daily bread but also for fulfillment of deep yearning. I carefully crafted your longings and feelings of incompleteness, to point you to Me. Therefore, do not try to bury or deny these feelings. Beware also of trying to pacify these longings with lesser gods: people, possessions, power.

Come to Me in all your neediness, with defenses down and with desire to be blessed. As you spend time in My Presence, your deepest longings are fulfilled. Rejoice in your neediness, which enables you to find intimate completion in Me. 

-Jesus Calling, December 8th

and then these two references: Phil 4:19, Col 2:2-3, which both just encouraged my heart so deeply.

I hope you as well, will be encouraged and Rejoice in your neediness, what a wonderful sentiment and reminder! I’m so thankful that the Lord allowed me to mark this moment with him. I’m so thankful.

You, my friend, rejoice in your neediness today!