When You Can't Hear the Music

One of the issues that I have had to deal with while fighting illness this past month was loss of hearing in my left ear. It felt and sounded like I was living under water although it has slowly improved. I thought I was doing great with it until I was listening to one of my favorite worship CD's and realized that it was hurting my ears....or so I thought.

You see, I wasn't hearing the music...or at least not all of it. I could only hear a certain range of sounds and I was missing others. So instead of beautiful harmony I was hearing discord...and then I realized that so often that's what it's like in my life.

The music hasn't changed but I'm not hearing it the same way. Whether because of illness, schedules that are too busy, fatigue, stress or difficult relationships, I don't hear the music and I think everything has changed. But really it's just how I hear it. I need to take a step back and be reminded that God hasn't changed or moved, and He is still here and in control. I'm still here learning to be still.....and slowly hearing the music again.

Techno Baby

 It never ceases to amaze me how much the little people in our lives watch and learn from us....

 ....this is how you use a blackberry! I know...I watched!

 And a computer....well that's easy!

 Of course then there is the old fashioned flip cell phone.....I think it works like this(although I'm not sure why Mommy always holds it to her ear with her shoulder)

And this is how you turn it off and on.....just like this! You see, I am truly a techno baby!!

Momma says I'm slimming out....

 Momma says I'm slimming out....

....You think?

Road Trip

Over the Remembrance Day weekend we went on a Road Trip  to our favorite northern destination....the fresh snow on the mountains was magnificent as we drove up.

 As always we enjoyed spending time with Matt, Heather and Kai.

 Both Kai and Kitty loved joining Dave on the couch......

 Kai 'loving' on Kitty! Amazingly enough she puts up with it.

 It's so much fun to see how much this little boy loves spending time with his Daddy. The feeling is definitely mutual! Just watching the two of them lowers my blood pressure! Just what the doctor ordered.

 

 There's nothing quite like it...time to rest, relax and be refreshed. Thanks for always welcoming us with open arms Heather and Matt. 

Winter snuck in before Fall was done.....

Yesterday morning we woke up to a feather dusting of snow....but as we walked we couldn't get over that it looked like winter had come too soon and somehow snuck in before fall was done...

There were still colored leaves on the trees...especially on the magnolia in our front yard.

So there it was....looking like icing sugar on top of the leaves and the grass.

It was just so beautiful I had to share.....

I know for those of you on the Prairies this can hardly be called snow, but for us, it was truly a magical morning!

Learning to be still

It's been an interesting few months for me. A viral infection triggered a host of other complications that have resulted in literally weeks upon weeks of not feeling good and not being able to work at my normal energy levels. For someone who is a Type 'A' personality, always a 'Do-er' with long lists of things to do at any given time this has definitely been a downtime and I have had to be content with far less activities and accomplishments than normal for me.

To say it's been a challenge is a huge understatement as I have had to evaluate my worth not in terms of accomplishments but in terms of just being. I have had to learn to be still, to rest when needed, to take time to read when there wasn't energy to do anything more than that, and to be willing to admit that I really couldn't do more. It's meant that there have been floors unwashed, shirts not ironed,  blogs unwritten, phone calls and visits that were never made.

I have had to recognize again that  I can't be driven by what others expect of me, or even what I expect of me, but instead I need to only do what God asks me to do each and every day. It's just fine to say that I cannot do it. In fact it is exactly where He wants me to be. And along the way He has asked me to 'Be still, and know that I am God'.

Happy Birthday Jamie!

Thirty-three years ago our lives were forever changed in the wee hours of the morning! I was in the hospital because of high blood pressure and Dave was at home when the doctor came in the morning before and said that they couldn't wait any longer. Our lives, yours and mine, were in jeopardy and they were going to induce my labor. It was a very long day and everyone was sooo surprised when you finally arrived and were fullterm!! You were indeed our miracle baby having lived through a D & C when I was 6 weeks pregnant(and in those days they couldn't know that I was pregnant then yet...hard to believe in today's world I know!!!) Right from the start you knew exactly what you wanted!

God has answered our prayers and today you are a man after God's own heart, serving and loving Him, and married to your beautiful Megan! What a blessing she has been to you and to our family and it's fun to see how perfect you are together. God knew what He was doing when he brought the two of you together.

We love watching you and your boys, and you are an awesome Dad, whether it's wrestling, playing some ballgame, reading or playing in the pool.

They both want to be just like you when they grow up!

We are so proud of the man you have become - son, brother, husband, father, teacher, coach, friend. Have a wonderful birthday today Jamie(and Megs, please let him know that he should read this post since I know with working on his Master's this fall and the beginning of basketball season he probably isn't reading a lot of blog posts! :-)

We love you and are so thankful that you and your family live here in our city so we get to see you at church, at Sunday Dinners, in the gymn as you coach basketball games, over dinner and games on weekend nights, or sometimes just sharing blizzards on summer nights!

Happy Birthday Avery and Sophie!

It's hard to believe that today you are celebrating your third birthday in heaven. Not a day goes by that I don't think of you, of what you would look like now, what you would be doing, what kind of personalities you would have, what kind of big sisters you would be to your little brother Kai. Two years ago I wrote this poem and it is still true today.

You are loved and remembered
today and every day.

We never got to hold you,
to feel your soft baby cheeks,
to marvel at your little fingers and toes,
but still you have left your footprints on our lives.

You have captured our hearts
given us a new longing for heaven
and reminded us that life is precious.

Every life,
no matter how long or how short,
no matter how perfect or imperfect from the world's point of view,
from conception on,
every life is precious.

So today I remember you,
Matt and Heather's precious little girls,
Sophie and Avery,
Forever in our hearts.

You are loved and missed today and always Avery and Sophie!

Enjoying the Simple Things....

There are times in our lives when our busy schedules find us rushing from one thing to another, checking them off as we go without really noticing our surroundings or taking time to enjoy the simple things or a conversation along the way.

This beautiful red leaf reminded me of this.......it's one of thousands in our backyard and yet it is unique, bright, a small reminder of God's amazing creation. A couple of weeks ago I was rushing to get ready to go to a meeting that I was looking forward to when the phone rang. It was my Dad and in that instant I knew that I had a choice....sit down and enjoy the conversation and be late, or let him know that I should have been walking out the door instead of picking up the phone.

I sat down and enjoyed the conversation......and yes, I was late! But as I drove I thought about how thankful I was that I had a Dad that had picked up the phone and called when so many people didn't have their fathers here on earth anymore and Dave would give anything to hear his father's voice on the phone one more time.....and really in the end, being late was a small price to pay.

So today, enjoy the simple things in your day or take the time for a conversation that otherwise might not happen. You won't regret it!

A Dinosaur and a Super-Hero

I know this post is late but I've been sick all week and I just had to share.  Last Sunday night we had a visit from two of the cutest little guys ever...a dinosaur and a superhero!

 I was the first person to put treats into their little pails....so they got one of each kind!

Before they left Aidan showed me his 'Superhero pose'.....perfectly!! I sure love these little men......and I am so thankful that they live here in town and that I get to put candy in those pails! Thanks for making our house your first stop.