Happy Birthday!

I just wanted to wish my sweet Seth a happy birthday! I am so thankful to be married to such an amazing husband. Landon wishes his great daddy a "happy buday" too :)

Pray without ceasing

1 Thes. 5:17 "pray without ceasing;"

Landon is really teaching me the meaning of this verse. He often folds his hands and says, "Pray, Bekah;" "Pray, Joshie;" "Pray, Finn," etc... He patiently waits for me to pray for that person then asks me to pray for another. Although tonight he said, "Pray Tommy" (referring to Thomas the Train). He insisted probably five times that we pray for him. I tried to explain that we only pray for things that are real like people and that Thomas isn't a person. Then, he said, "Pray Percy" (since it sounded like person). How do you explain this concept to a 20 month old?

Menu for the week

I'm trying to get back into menu planning again after the holidays and craziness of life. It sure does save money to have it all planned out! I've been learning that the hard way the last few weeks with extra stops at the store or eating out.

I just put the chicken pot pie into the oven and it is making my house smell wonderful! Hopefully it tastes as good as it smells :)

M: Chicken Pot Pie
T: Chicken Soft Tacos
W: Homemade Pizza
R: Lemon Cream Pasta
F: Seth’s Birthday! Going out.
S: Pitas with chicken, veggies, and chickpea sandwich filling.
S: Baked Potato Soup

I haven't posted a video in a while, so I thought I'd share:

Our Great Hope

Romans 5:3-5
And not only this, but we also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance; and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope; and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.

John 16:33
These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world.

These passages were shared last night at prayer meeting. I was really encouraged by them. Those who know the Lord Jesus have such a great hope. This world is not our home and the Lord will bring us through. Often through pain and trouble since this world is full of sin. But the Lord can use the pain and suffering for His glory.

I heard a really neat example comparing our life here on earth with that of heaven. Someone compared our life here to the inside of a sweater, often times it looks all jumbled and messy to us. Although, when we get to heaven we will see the other side of the sweater - the beautiful design God was working in our lives all along.

I am so looking forward to heaven where the Lord will wipe away every tear and there will be no more pain. No more sin, no more sadness. The Lord will fill heaven with His beauty and perfection.

Revelation 21:4
He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away."

Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. - 2 Corinthians 4:16-18

Daisy Lou

Please keep my dear friends, Jenica, Andy, and their families in your prayers. After many weeks of prayers and tears, Daisy entered this world at just 22 weeks. She was just 14 ounces, tiny, but perfect. Little Daisy is now at home in our Savior's arms. These things are so hard to understand. The days ahead will be very difficult. I pray the Lord will bring them comfort, strength, and peace as they walk through this valley.

Matthew 19:14 Jesus said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these."

Jesus Loves Me

Jesus loves me! This I know,
For the Bible tells me so.
Little ones to Him belong;
They are weak, but He is strong.

Chorus:
Yes, Jesus loves me!
Yes, Jesus loves me!
Yes, Jesus loves me!
The Bible tells me so.

Jesus loves me! This I know,
As He loved so long ago,
Taking children on His knee,
Saying, “Let them come to Me.”
Chorus

Jesus loves me still today,
Walking with me on my way,
Wanting as a friend to give
Light and love to all who live.
Chorus

Jesus loves me! He who died
Heaven’s gate to open wide;
He will wash away my sin,
Let His little child come in.
Chorus

Jesus loves me! Loves me still
Tho' I'm very weak and ill;
That I might from sin be free
Bled and died upon the tree.
Chorus

Jesus loves me! He will stay
Close beside me all the way;
Thou hast bled and died for me,
I will henceforth live for Thee.
Chorus

Catching up

Sorry for the lack of posts. Our computer was out of commission for about a week... Word to the wise, don't let magnets anywhere near your computer... Thankfully, my dad had backed up our hard drive just a month before, so we didn't lose much at all.

Our neighborhood Christmas party went well. The kids all seemed to have a good time. Pray that the kids would continue to think about why Jesus came and what He did for them on the cross that they might come to know the Lord Jesus as their Savior.

I can't believe Christmas is next week! We will be headed up to Iowa. I'm excited to see many family and friends.

Here is my menu for the next few days:

Our grocery store had a big 8 lb bag of apples for only $2.99, so I thought I would make these Apple Cinnamon Muffins for some of my neighbors if I have time.

S: Chicken Noodle Soup
S: Best Chicken Ever with homemade Mashed Potatoes
M: Ground Beef Potato Bake
T: Chicken Spaghetti
W: Off to Iowa for Christmas!

Menu Planning Monday

M: Chicken Noodle Soup with bread
T: Tacos with chips and salsa
W: Ham and Potato Soup
R: Asian Peanut Wraps with rice
F: Homemade Pizza
S: Kids Christmas Party - Gingerbread Cookies. Definitely won't be up for making anything after the party so we'll go out to eat.
S: Baked Spaghetti with garlic bread

A New Look

Lately, our little boy has been being called a little girl. As stated by our little two year old niece last weekend, "he's a good girl." It was time for a hair cut. I love his little side curls - they just fit his goofy personality. The back curls, however, have ceased and it was starting to look bad. Last night, I impulsively took out the scissors and just thought I'd cut the back a little and leave the side curls...

Here are the before pictures:




Here is when I thought I could be done, leaving a few curls...




...but it just didn't look right, so I had too take more off. Seth said the curls had to go, it just looked funny to leave them with the rest of his hair being so short. I shed a few tears because I know they probably won't be back. He looks so much older now!

18 Months

My sister, Rebekah, sent me this cute picture and I thought it would be a good time to do a Landon update. I can't believe my baby is 18 months, time just flies by.
Here are some things that Landon has been up to:

He's starting to say two word phrases: "Bye bye, daddy," "Happy Day" (for Happy Birthday), "Bite Please," "My baby"

He's identifying a few people/things in his cartoon Bible - Jesus, Moses, David, Ark, Sky (for creation). He loves looking for Jesus in the Bible and any time we ask him who the Bible is about, he says, "Jesus."

Many time when we say "I love you," he says, "Jesus," and we say, "Yes, Jesus loves you." Then he says, "Bible" and we say, "Yes, the Bible tells us that.

He started to really like to play with legos. He puts several together then points it at me and says, "bang bang!"

Anytime we turn onto the road our church is on he starts kicking his legs and says, "AJ, Ja Ja" - for two boys in our church AJ and Josh that he absolutely adores.

He says, "Amen" after any songs we sing at church or after the prayers.

He loves chocolate and always wants to eat his dessert first (like any kid would) - of course I don't let him :)

Sometimes I cradle him as I would a baby and rock him back and forth and say "you're my baby." Recently he started saying, "my baby" when I start to hold him like that.

If I tell him we're going to see someone and ask him several minutes later who we're going to see, he remembers.

Every time we're waiting in line he makes conversation with strangers. He first says, "one" and holds up one finger (to tell them how old he is) then he says, "basketball." I don't know why, but he thinks it's a great conversation starter.

He's 32 inches long and just over 26 pounds.

Anyway, I just thought I would post these few things to have a record of it. We are looking forward to Thanksgiving. We will be spending it in Iowa this year for the first time since we've been married. I'm looking forward to the traditional Butter Horns - a family recipe for the best rolls ever :) And of course being with family and friends. Well, today is a beautiful day and I need to go enjoy it! Hope you are all having a good weekend.

The Second Miracle

We are going through John 6 in BSF and I wanted to share a few things I've been learning.

John 6:16-21
"Now when evening came, His disciples went down to the sea, and after getting into a boat, they started to cross the sea to Capernaum. It had already become dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them. The sea began to be stirred up because a strong wind was blowing. Then, when they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and drawing near to the boat; and they were frightened. But He said to them, “It is I; do not be afraid.” So they were willing to receive Him into the boat, and immediately the boat was at the land to which they were going.

I had always been amazed at how the Lord Jesus walked on water, but never noticed this second miracle in this story. The sea of Galilee stretches somewhere between 6-10 miles based on the map below from Biblos. They had only rowed about 3 to 4 miles yet as soon as they let Jesus into the boat, the sea is calmed and they immediately reached Capernaum.

Before Jesus came, they were struggling on their own. He knew their struggles and came to them. They didn't recognize His presence in the situation. Jesus made Himself known and they welcomed Him into the boat. We need to welcome him into our boat or rather recognize His presence in each situation in our lives. He knows our troubles and wants to help us through them so we can be where He wants us to be.

Menu for the week

After being gone a couple weekends in a row, and having our Thanksgiving kids club a couple days ago, I am finally getting back into the groove of menu planning.

M: Chicken Stuffing Bake
T: Lime Chicken Soft Tacos with Mexican Rice
W: Three Cheese Baked Spaghetti
R: Asian Peanut Wraps
F: Homemade Pizza
S: Leftovers
S: Grilled Cheese with Carrot and Squash Curry Soup

Landon and Sophie

Last weekend we went to the parenting conference in Topeka. It was really good, we learned a lot! Here is a little video of Landon and Sophie giving each other a big hug.

Ring around the Rosie

Be careful what you say...

I have had the opportunity to attend BSF (Bible Study Fellowship) for the past couple years and have been greatly blessed by it. If you have one in your area that meets, I strongly recommend going! This year we are studying the book of John. There are so many practical applications and revelations of who Jesus is throughout the book. I wanted to share something that really challenged me last week.

The portion of scripture was John 3:25,26

"An argument developed between some of John’s disciples and a certain Jew over the matter of ceremonial washing. They came to John and said to him, 'Rabbi, that man who was with you on the other side of the Jordan—the one you testified about—well, he is baptizing, and everyone is going to him.'”

There is a portion in the notes that says, "Sometimes a friend's sympathy and suggestions of unjust treatment can be the worst possible thing for us. This can make us feel sorry for ourselves, start a root of bitterness, and even shake our faith in God. Are you such a friend? Do you put thoughts against other people into a friend's mind, thereby sinning and causing them to sin?"

This was so convicting. I need to watch what I say about others and what I agree with in regard to what others say.

Matthew 12:36
"But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken."

Menu for the week

M: Homemade Macaroni
T: Chicken Noodle Soup
W: Crockpot Applesauce Chicken Recipe (never got a chance to make this last week)
Acorn Squash
R: Vegetarian Chili
F,S,S - Iowa for the weekend!

Landon saying his first memory verse

Here is a movie of Landon learning his first memory verse. It's Jonah 2:9 - "Salvation is from the Lord." We pray that he comes to know the Lord at a young age! His favorite part of the verse is saying, "nine" at the end so as soon as we get to "Jonah" he wants to skip ahead to the "nine." Silly boy...

Introducing the Potty

When we were at IKEA we picked up a little potty for Landon. The first two days he actually went poo poo and pee pee in it, but has since lost interest. We'll just try little by little and hopefully we'll start to save a few diapers in the process.

Menu for the week

M: Slow Cooker Orange Chicken - This was so sad. I woke up early to prep this before church and we came home and I realized I never plugged in the crockpot! I was so disappointed. So, I still have the rice ready to go in the fridge and will just need to try this again.
T: Rosemary Corn Soup with bread and a salad
W: Baked Pasta Primavera Casserole with garlic bread and a salad
R: Hope Pregnancy Center Fund Raiser Banquet
F: Crockpot Applesauce Chicken Recipe with Acorn Squash
S: Tulsa Conference
S: Tulsa Conference