Friday, January 25, 2019

2018 Backlog - LCN trip to FL

February 2018

Josh and I have learned to multitask our ministry trips.

We were asked to lead an intimate time of worship with some 
(Which, by the way, will be happening again in just a few short weeks!)

So we took advantage and soaked up the beautiful, WARM scenery and sights
while reconnecting together during our off-time.



I am only posting this next photo because,
after a full day at Journey and then the rest of the day running around airports,
Josh looked down at my feet and said,
"Wow babe, I bet your feet are so sore after wearing those, uh, high tops all day."

Bahahahaha, lol.

Wedges will forever now be referred to as "high tops"!


I couldn't get enough of the brilliant colors and budding flowers


Sunsets were just as gorgeous as sunsets




We had so much time in the quiet for reading, reflecting, praying, talking...


We even made it over to the CRU headquarters in Orlando
and went through the Jesus Film Tour which was pretty spectacular!
I highly recommend taking the time to go through that if you are ever in the area.



Friday, January 18, 2019

2018 Backlog - The Farmhouse Table

Josh has had the sweetest tradition over the last few years of gifting me with blog books for each year I have blogged.  I kind of dropped the habit of scrapbooking once I began blogging and we missed those years of memories in a tangible book. 
But the past few blog years have contained less and less posts.
It doesn't help that my real camera isn't working...

Anyway, I decided that we actually DID have some fabulous memories to capture from 2018 that I want to backlog for my future blog books I will receive from Josh (hint, hint;).

My first post is a project that began at the beginning of 2018 and took the better part of the year to complete, but we eventually got it done!

We saved all of our Christmas money and added it to the Lowe's gift cards we received so we could make the table we had always dreamed of having.
And because buying a 10' table just wasn't an option, we decided to build one.  

As our family has grown we began running out of seating for any additional people that might be at our home to eat with us...and we always seem to have extra mouths to feed and people to enjoy at mealtime.  So it was a want, but certainly a need as well.

We found some FREE PLANS on Pinterest.

As we all know, the first step of a project can sometimes be the most difficult.
It took us nearly two weeks to purchase the wood.
January 12, 2018
An additional two weeks went by before we even began the sanding process.
And that process seemed to take FOREVER!

So.Much.Sanding.

January 24, 2018
Then the pieces began taking shape (another 2 weeks later, ha!)

February 3, 2018
With the cuts made we were a little more motivated to begin putting the pieces together.

February 9, 2018


Then the process of staining.
The first coat went on WAY too thick.  It took several days to dry completely.
We learned quickly from that lesson and the other two coats went much quicker.

February 13, 2018



My parents let us borrow some folding chairs so we could begin using the table.
I'd like to say we jumped on the benches super quick, but life happened...

Here was our first dinner at the new table.

March 1, 2018


FINALLY, in the middle of May we took advantage of the gorgeous weather
and began the process all over again,
this time with the benches.

May 12, 2018


July 3, 2018
By the beginning of July we were using both assembled benches.
Staining began July 3, and took a while because we could only do one bench at a time 
so we could have a place to eat and do school.

July 3, 2018
August 1st was the magic day.
The table was done! 

August 1, 2018


We had long begun incorporating this table with the many people that came in and out of our home.
They saw the whole process!
The good. The bad. The ugly.

The only way to hide this process was to shut the doors to our home,
and that simply wasn't going to happen.

And even though our table is done,
there are many more lessons to learn,
so much more refining to do,
any many, many more messes to clean up.

But you are welcome here.
Let's walk through it all together.

Saturday, January 5, 2019

A Season Of Release and Seeking Perspective



The last time I wrote a blog was right before heading to Via Vacation at the beginning of September. I have never neglected my blog for such a long amount of time!

We had no idea what the rest of the year was going to hold for our family.

Not only did Josh and I find ourselves in an abnormally busy traveling ministry season, but we also welcomed little 2 1/2 year old Homestar into our family the morning after we arrived back home from vacation.

I have grabbed my computer to sit down and write at least a dozen times over the course of the past 4 months but I literally can't will my mind to formulate anything blog worthy.  (Part of this is because of the nature of our lives right now.  We are sharing our family with another, one of the most difficult and beautiful things we have ever done. This means that not all of our memories are OURS to share and we want to be sensitive.)

As I look back over the past several months I see that my blog isn't the only thing that has been neglected. I have released almost every responsibility of mine that is not absolutely necessary.

When I am at my best I see that my release of so many things has been a good, healthy, necessity for this season that we are in right now.  I simply know that I can't do it all and I'm okay with that. It is viewed as a "release".

But when I am at my worst I feel like a failure. I feel like I can't keep up. I feel like I can't do it all and that feeling is very defeating. It is viewed as "neglect".

This is when I begin to doubt my calling and my capacity for that calling.

But the Lord keeps whispering the word "perspective" into my soul.

I love the quote by Raymond Edman that says, "Never doubt in the dark what God told you in the light."

This year I'm praying that God would help me keep focused on His perspective.  

His perspective with relational conflict, with life circumstances, with parenting, with fostering, with ministry, with homeschooling, with EVERYTHING.

When I am seeking the Lord's perspective I see that it isn't my own strength loving all of these kids and this wonderful husband and the community He has surrounded me with anyway, it is Him. It's always Him.

Perspective.