Around the House

We've been having a pretty low-key week this week, no plans, nothing much going on, it's been nice to relax and hang out at home. I snapped a few pictures of the kids playing though, for the most part they play well together, but Timothy seems to think he has to be right next to Charlotte, which usually means that he knocks her over and she cries. She seems to think that she has to have whatever he's playing with, which usually means that she ends up climbing all over him...and then he knocks her down...it's a never-ending cycle! Her hair is getting really long in the back and front though, you can see how crazy it's getting! She rocked a mini side pony the other day in an attempt by me to get her bangs out of her face. I'm trying to let them grow out and they keep hanging in her face. She has learned to pull her bows out, so I thought if it was in a ponytail that she couldn't mess that up as fast. She really didn't like it, but it looked pretty cute! I'm just tired of her rubbing her eyes all the time because her hair is in her face! Anyway, here are some pictures. I probably won't get in another post till we get back from Thanksgiving, so Happy Turkey Day!!

"For the Least of These"

I know that this blog is pretty much always about my kids, but humor me this one time :) and let me write up some things that have been on my mind and going on in our lives lately. A few weeks ago, I started getting this nagging feeling that something in my life was missing, that I was doing the things I needed to do to get by, but that there was something more that I could do, and I just couldn't figure out what. Two weeks ago, while Brandon was gone playing basketball and the kids were in their beds, I picked up a book that my mom had gotten me a couple months ago and started to read it. The book is called "Crazy Love" by Francis Chan and it has completely changed the way I view my life. It was such a challenging book and it really made me think about how I was spending my time and how God wanted me to live this life that He's given to me.

I finished the book in about a week, and I think I underlined most of it, one piece that really stood out to me was the following - "In Matthew 25 we get a frightening picture of the coming judgement. In this passage, Christ condemns people to eternal punishment because they did not care for Him during their lives on earth. 'I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me'. The condemned protest, saying that they never saw Christ in any of these positions of need, and Jesus responds,' I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me'. Ouch. To me that is like a stinging, unexpected slap in the face. Like many of you, I've heard that passage taught on numerous occasions. I've left convicted, but haven't taken it literally. We see it as a fresh perspective on poverty rather than a literal picture of impending judgement. How would my life change if I actually thought of each person I came into contact with as Christ-the person driving painfully slow in front of me, the checker at the grocery store who seems more interested in chatting than ringing up my items, the member of my own family with whom I can't seem to have a conversation and not get annoyed?"

Sorry, I know that was a long quote, but it really hit me...I'm so incredibly selfish and I'm teaching that same characteristic to my children. So once I finished reading the book, I spent quite a bit of time in prayer and asked for God to help me find opportunities to give, really really give. I spent one night last week looking up to see what places in San Antonio needed volunteers for service work and immediately begin to feel a tug on my heart to help the homeless. I've never been one of those people who refuses to give to homeless people because I think they'll waste my money, but I never really gave much more than a couple of dollars and then rolled my window back up and kept going. I wanted to be different this time and from now on...so last Friday, the kids and I headed to WalMart after reading an article from a friend that had some GREAT suggestions on what homeless people really need. We put together five gallon sized ziploc bags full of bottled water, socks, gum, jerkey, granola bars, toothbrush/toothpaste, chapstick, and a note with the address and hours of our church's Care Cottage which gives food and clothes to needy people. We threw them all in the car and just took off driving. It didn't take us long to find a man on the corner near our WalMart and Timothy was so happy to hand out a bag of stuff to "someone who doesn't have nothing".

We ended up handing out four of the five bags total. The difference to me, this time, was that I put myself out of my comfort zone and talked to these people, asked them their names, how their day had been, I told them I was going to pray for them and that I would hopefully see them again. One man, Willy, told me I had the biggest smile he had seen all day. Another man, Gary, teared up a little when I told him I would pray for him. Willy didn't have any legs and was in a wheelchair and Timothy was really interested in that, he kept asking me where Mr. Willy's legs and toes went, so I told him that the next time we saw him, he could ask. Hopefully we'll see Willy again and we can bring him some more food. Farther along in "Crazy Love", Mr. Chan writes that "Jesus is saying (in the passage from Matt. 25) that we show tangible love for God in how we care for the poor and those who are suffering. He expects us to treat the poor and the desperate as if they were Christ Himself."

I can't even tell you what a great start this has been for me and the kids. Timothy asks every day if we can "ride in the car and find people who don't have nothing". And God has blessed us already and quite abundantly! We got a notice in the mail over the weekend that said WA state was extending my unemployment pay another month! Tonight, I went to WalMart and gave all my spare quarters to the Salvation Army bell ringer at the door and when I got inside, I immediately noticed a man looking at me, I had to walk past him, so I smiled and he waved me over and told me that I looked like a walking angel, that he had never seen someone looking so radiant. Now, I know what I looked like when I walked into that store, in my sweats and with very little make up on, so my only conclusion is that that man saw Jesus shining through me.

Now, I've struggled with posting this for a while, because I didn't want anyone to think that I was bragging, or boasting...but I can't help but share what God has done for me in the past two weeks. More than anything, I feel joy - real, happy in my heart, joy. And if sharing my story can bless someone else and help them to feel that same joy that comes from serving God with your whole heart, than I'm happy I took the time to write this all out. Please pray for Willy and Gary, I don't know much about them, but I'm hoping to see them again. It's really getting cold at night here and I hope they have a safe, warm place to sleep at night. And pray for our family, that we can continue to boldly show the love of Christ to those who need it most.

Why, to the North Pole, of Course!

This past weekend, we drove up to Palestine, TX and took a trip to the North Pole on the Polar Express. It was so much fun, Timothy was just precious. He reminded me of Will Ferrell's character in the movie, Elf. He was so excited to be there and to see the North Pole and Santa Claus! We got to the hotel Saturday afternoon and hung out for a bit with the family and then we all went to Ryan's for dinner and then to the train station. They had it decorated so pretty and there were so many fun places to take pictures. Once we got on the train, they played the songs from the movie, and the waiters sang and danced along to the "Hot Chocolate" song while they served us hot chocolate and cookies. We rode all the way to the "North Pole" where Santa got on the train and came to see every child and give them their own special "I Believe" bell. The kids had so much fun and Timothy really was so happy and excited. Hopefully we can go back next year when Charlotte understands more too! And just a note - all of the pictures are on facebook, but I only put some of them on here...

Who's Who?

It's actually pretty easy to tell, but I love to find pictures of them at the same stages, they both love spaghetti!

And even now, there are times when they look alike :)

Backyard Fun

Brandon and Timothy cut the grass on Saturday and after nap time we all went out to play. Timothy had been asking for a while to take his car into the yard to play so we brought it out and they both hopped in to play. Charlotte was so cute trying to drive and Timothy was being sweet and sharing the seat with her. And, I have to brag on Timothy a bit because he's had a few rough weeks starting new medicine and then the time change...he had a couple rough times in church class and at school...but last week he got a special sticker at school for having a great day, and he got to blow out the "quiet candle" at church last Wednesday night. Way to go buddy, keep up the good work!

Mommy's New Toy

About a month ago, we got a letter in the mail from a local Toyota dealership that said something about a trade in program...I casually mentioned to Brandon that maybe it would be wise to trade in his truck for a minivan...I thought he would dismiss it as a dumb idea (because we both really loved that truck), but miracle of miracles, he agreed and a week or so later, I had a new minivan! We're trying (not too hard, but trying) to sell my car and go down to one vehicle and a van seemed to be the most practical choice. So, here's my new toy! I love it, by the way and fully intend on driving it until it falls apart!

I would have posted about it sooner, but we got it right before we were leaving to go to Brandon's parents' house for a weekend and he wanted to keep it a surprise...then, we got home and got busy, and then it was dirty so I had to run it through the car wash...you get the idea. We have plenty of room to haul the kids around now though. It's a Toyota Sienna, it seats eight, it's a gray/blue color and the best part of it is that it drives just like a car! So, come on over for a visit and I'll take you for a spin!

Challenge Extended

So Brandon informed me last night that I'm 13 posts short of breaking last year's blog post total...he doesn't think I can beat it...but the competitive nature in me has taken over and I fully intend on beating last year's total...just wanted to let you know. And yes, this one counts, so only 12 more to go in the remaining 7 weeks of 2009 (how scary is that?)! And just to make it an "official" post, here are some pictures from yesterday!

Charlotte at 15 Months

I know, technically, she's not 15 months old yet, but it's close enough for me! It seems like she's grown up so much since her birthday. She's walking so much better now and trying to run and jump too. The only problem with that is, she wants to walk everywhere, all the time. It's fine at home, but can be frustrating when we're out and about. She's talking so much more now, and she doesn't really say one word things, mostly we get "what's that?", "wanna get down", and occasionally "no", she's great at waving and saying "hi". Her new favorite game is to clean off the shelves and empty out the toy buckets and then fill them all up again. She's started to throw toys (and sometimes food) and she LOVES to dance!

Now that she's over the flu and her cold, she's been so funny. She laughs at everything and loves when someone chases her. She tries really hard to climb on whatever she can, and now that she's been promoted to the toddler class at church, she likes to find chairs and try to sit in them, or she'll come and sit in my lap and bring me a book. She's getting a little better with the separation anxiety, she went into Bible class on Tuesday morning and Wednesday night with only a little crying. That's a big step for her!!

She's learned that she can annoy her brother too, so we've already had to break up some fights. He's learned if he wants to do a puzzle or color, he needs to do it on the kitchen table where she can't reach him. She loves to sing songs and clap along. She has her 15 month check up on the 18th so I'll be sure to post her stats then. I know she's getting bigger though, she is HEAVY!! When I had to take her to the doctor a few weeks ago for the flu she weighed about 24 pounds.

I didn't have many good pictures of her, but she's hard to catch sitting still and looking at the camera! I did manage to get a (short) video of her playing with her doll house, enjoy!

Zoo Boo Hoo

We decided last Friday to take the kids to Zoo Boo and I'm not really sure we'll be going back. We got there a little before it opened, and thankfully, a lady in front of us had two extra tickets that she gave us, so we only have to pay for Timothy. Basically, the whole event was...wait in line for 20 minutes and get a piece of candy...really, what one and three year old wants to do that? The kids didn't really know what was going on though, so we just walked around and looked at stuff...they were selling light saber glow stick things, so we got one for Timothy and I don't think he cared about anything else that night! And then, the next night, for Halloween, we had some friends from church come over for dinner and trick or treating. It was fun but I totally forgot to take pictures, oh well. We got some good ones at Trunk of Treats so that will have to do! It was great Halloween weather though, cool and clear! Next weekend, we're going to drive up to Palestine and ride on the Polar Express, Timothy is so excited, it's all he's talking about. It should be fun and hopefully worth a four hour drive!