Thursday, November 21, 2013

Fourteen Months Old

Sariah...

  • Went on a long hike (9 miles) and mommy and daddy forgot to bring the carrier
  • Is learning to whistle with daddy
  • Throws a fit when she doesn't get what she wants - mommy and daddy are working on establishing healthier ways of dealing with frustrations
  • Is willing to try different kinds of food: mushroom, olives, sausage, apple sauce...
  • Says 'WHOA!' every time something surprising happens
  • Had a bad cold that included a couple of day with a fever
  • Likes to talk on the phone
  • Helps mommy around the house by carrying the clean laundry from the dryer to the bedroom, picks up some toys, throws away her dirty diapers, etc
  • Has been drooling a lot - perhaps more teeth are on their way
  • Sings with mommy 
  • Is trying to spoon feed herself
  • Climbs everything
  • Really wants to play with the toilet water
  • Spends a lot of time in boxes these days as mommy and daddy get ready to move to a new home

Wednesday, November 13, 2013

Reasons Why My 14 Month Old is Throwing a Fit


  • I took the glass lid away from her
  • The magnets are all under the fridge because she put them there
  • I turned off the water when giving her a bath
  • I didn't let her play with the toilet water
  • She is tired in her crib, but doesn't want to go to sleep
  • I put her sweater on so we could go play outside
  • The book does not have more pages
  • Her toy ran out of batteries
  • I told her she could not play with garbage
  • The tissue box is out of tissues
  • I didn't let her get inside of the dishwasher
  • Daddy closed the fridge and didn't let her hang out in there
  • The rock is too heavy for her to carry
This list could go on and on...

Monday, November 11, 2013

Living in the Danger Zone

When John and I found out I was pregnant, we wanted to share our baby news with everyone we knew and we wanted to do it in person, because we wanted to witness the excitement on people's faces. We also wanted to share our baby news as fast as we could because exciting news should ALWAYS be shared! We planned a special way to announce the news to our families and we called the family members and friends that were too far away for us to drive to and we giggled out of joy with them.

And then someone said...

"Oh! You are only 6 weeks along? You are still in the danger zone!"

My smile went away and I began to worry. I worried because I had no idea if our baby was going to make it to full term...I worried because miscarriages are real. I worried because I was in the danger zone.

If I could go back and relive my early pregnancy days, I would worry less and enjoy each day a little more. I would repeat the verses below every morning and I would trust God's plans for our family.

"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life? “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." Matthew 6:25-34

God has been teaching me that as Christ's child, I live in the danger zone all-the-time. Living a life of faith is the equivalent of walking into the great unknown! Danger is all around. When I opened my heart and declare to the God of the universe - "Not my will but thine" - I opened my life to all kinds of possibilities. When my desire is to bring glory to God through all circumstances, I have to get ready to bring him glory in the midst of jubilation and devastation. I have to remember that "all things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together." Colossians 1:16-17 Trusting God is hard and it requires me to be vulnerable and humble, but it is in the midst of my nothingness that God shows me exactly how great He is. When I come to him with an abandoned heart, He shows me that the plans He has prepared for me are far better than anything I could come up with on my own. 

Sariah Faith made it to 39 weeks of gestation and was born full of life and personality. I have celebrated every day of life with her because every day with her is a gift, but I am still following Christ; asking Him to be the lamp unto my feet and the light unto my path. In other words, I am still living in the danger zone, asking him to lead me where my trust is without borders, having faith that I do not have to worry about anything.

So, here I go..."Highway to the Danger Zone...Gonna take you...Right into the Danger Zone...Highway to the Danger Zone..."

Tuesday, November 5, 2013

Finding Joy in the Mess


My brain works better when things are organized, clean, filed ... I am a better person when everything is in its place and my "TO DO" list has a bunch of things crossed off.

Before I had a baby, my life was neat. I had time to make things pretty and I was always on time.

Before I had a baby, I imagined being able to continue living the same life once the baby arrived. I thought that if I was organized enough, I would still be able to clean, cook, do the laundry (including loads of cloth diapers), work on photography, read my Bible, hang out with friends, go grocery shopping, paint my nails, exercise, spend quality time with my husband, work on crafts, etc.

I didn't know that my world was about to change in the most terrifying and wonderful way.

For a while, I allowed frustration to set in when I couldn't get everything done that I planned to do. My TO DO list kept growing and growing and I kept praying that God would multiply the hours like he multiplied the fish and bread in the Bible.

God didn't multiply the hours, but he provided a community through MOPS that has helped me prioritize what is most important to me. I am learning that life is a beautiful mess and it is time to embrace it!

I looked around my house yesterday and was discouraged by how messy everything looked: clean dishes waiting to be put away, dirty dishes waiting to be cleaned, a load of dirty cloth diapers waiting to be washed, clean clothes waiting to be folded, emails waiting for a response...

I wanted to pack a bag and go out, ignoring all that had to be done, but it was cold and cloudy outside and I didn't have anywhere to go. I had a choice to make: Be grumpy about my current stage of life or embrace it all with a good attitude.

I turned on some worship music (worshiping God always does good to my soul), danced with Sariah while we wore out pajamas and slowly started working on the day's TO DO list. By the end of the day, I had accomplished quite a bit - not everything - and dinner was yummy!

Night time arrived and I was tired, Sariah was tired and John was not going to be home until late, so I decided it was time to have some fun relaxation with my baby girl! I got her in the bathtub and decided to join her. She was so excited to be with me she never even played with her bath toys. We just splashed and practiced whistling and sang songs and gave hugs and kisses. We had a wonderful time!

Our time together is precious and I don't want my life's mess to get in the way of finding joy in this stage of life. Some days are better than others, but I am working on leaning on God and doing the good works that He prepared in advance for me to do!

"For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do." Ephesians 2:10
Related Posts with Thumbnails