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Wordless Wednesday: Back To School

Prayers for our schoolchildren

Noah, who has knowledge, spares his words, and he is a man of understanding and of a calm spirit. Proverbs 17:27

Noah is wise in heart and will receive commands. Proverbs 10:8

He walks with integrity and walks securely. Proverbs 10:9

Wisdom is found on Noah's lips and he has understanding. Proverbs 10:13

Noah is wise, he stores up knowledge, he keeps instruction and he is in the way of life. Proverbs 10:17

Thank you to my dear friend Sheryl, a fellow mom of three boys, for sending these passages on to me a while back in preparation for Noah going to school!

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More of my Wordless Wednesdays here.

(Yeah, you'll find none of them are truly wordless!!)

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Also check out 5 Minutes For Mom & the comments below.

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I Hope To Never Disappoint...

Carter: Oh, my Batman mask is broken!

Noah: Give it to Mommy! She can fix anything!



Me, after picking Noah up from school: What are you going to do in class tomorrow?

Noah: Teacher says we're gonna art!

MeMeMeMe

I've been tagged for a couple memes, both requiring me to really think!

Sharon at The Bird's Nest tagged me with The 5 Person Meme and I've taken the liberty to trim it to become The Three Person Meme...

If you could meet and have a deep conversation with any three people on earth, living or dead, from any time period, who would they be?" (Explaining why is optional.) Name three people from each of the following categories: Heroes from your native country, Authors/Writers, & Celebrities.

Heroes:
Abraham Lincoln
George Washington
Thomas Edison
Pope Benedict XVI
Harriet Tubman

Writers:
C.S. Lewis
Ann Coulter
Elie Wiesel
J.R. Tolkien
Dr. Seuss

Celebrities:
Frank Sinatra
Simon Cowell
Julie Andrews
Jenna Fischer
Phil from The Amazing Race

My Answers:
Hero: I was always fascinated with stories in school of Harriet Tubman. The secret underground railroad, the fearlessness and strong heart and mind she must have had… amazing. I’d love to sit and talk with Harriet- to see what she’d have to say about my life as a mother, to see what thoughts and ideas she had about how I could change history from my home with children at my knee.

A couple quotes I found from her:

"If I could have convinced more slaves that they were slaves, I could have freed thousands more."

"I never lost a passenger."

Writer: C.S. Lewis just seems like the obvious choice to talk with (although I must admit that Theodor Seuss Geisel aka Dr. Seuss would be a hoot to get inside the mind of…) but back to Mr. Lewis- I find him mesmerizing and am hungry to learn more of his perceptions and explanations of Christianity. I find myself referring to his ideas when I am in the midst of debate with people struggling to understand why their innocent child is sick, or dying, or why we must go through the pain we go through. How wonderful it would be to actually sit him down in my living room to make more sense of it all!

Celebrity: I think I’d want to hang out with Pam (Jenna Fischer) from The Office (a hilarious show- especially if you’ve ever worked in an office.) I was just watching her being interviewed at the Emmy's and she looks and seems so real & untouched, unfazed from Hollywood yet. I kinda hope she stays that way!


And now… Lori at Glass Half Full tagged me for the Novel Idea Meme:

If you could write a novel about any subject, what would it be?

Hmmm... Possibly someday I'll be an expert on raising boys! Right now though, I don't see how I could write a book for anything, as I am still such an amateur- learning and growing, getting some things right and making plenty of mistakes, and occasionally just scraping by.

Part of me feels like I am already writing a novel of sorts... here on my blog everyday and in my head constantly. But the plot changes so often, the theme not really one I am able to categorize... I could see writing about Noah's story, beating the odds, our obedience to God's Word and Promises to the manifestation of his healing, etc. I guess whatever I write, I'd want it to be helpful or a source of inspiration to others. I don't think my novel is in me just yet, as I need to see how life plays itself out a little longer.

If you'd like to share your thoughts on these memes, I'll let you tag yourself- let me know in the comments below!

Do Something

No matter where you stand in your business, career, or life -and no matter what challenges you now face- when you make the conscious decision to become a person of action -rather than being indecisive- you instantly turn the tide of life in your favor.

Andrew Wood

It's That Easy

Have you ever been reading your bible or sitting in a church service and a verse or words on the page just jump right out at you?

And you might not even know why they are sticking out at the moment, but the hairs on your arm stand up and you just know.

This happened to me on Sunday, and during a reading of Psalm 23 of all things! I mean, come on. That's such an easy set of verses. I already know what it says.

But it was new to me that day.

At the very beginning I read this:

Psalm 23:3
He restores my soul.

I glanced at the same verse in my Message Bible, and this stung my heart and lifted my tired shoulders:

Psalm 23:3
True to your word,
you let me catch my breath
and send me in the right direction.

At that very moment in time, these were the exact words I needed to hear, and didn't know it. But He did. 'Cause He knows me best.

I guess I just thought this Psalm is for beginners, or funerals! I felt like I was listening to the 23rd Psalm for the very 1st time. I read through the rest of that Psalm and felt every word hug me and cause tears to burn my eyes.

Is it really that easy? Yes, it is.

BLUPDATE

First of all, the minestrone was awesome… I will be making this again and again… and last time I was at Olive Garden I bought a bottle of their salad dressing, so now we can have our own soup, salad, & breadsticks at home! Yay!

Noah is doing great. It’s been so fun for me to make things for him that he hasn't tried before, so it's interesting when we go to the grocery store. Of course I am excited to make him Rice Krispie Treats, buy him ice cream cones, and squeeze 4 lbs of lemons to make fresh lemonade at his request- which was dee-lish, by the way!

He also starts kindergarten today!

So, summer has flown by and so has all the time I thought I'd have to catch up on my reading. I am just starting The Memory Keeper's Daughter and welcome your suggestions for other great reads!

I did not splurge on this, but I did get a great deal on a used Rockin Baby Sling on eBay... can't wait for it to arrive!!

Oh, and I told you I'd fill you in on our dog situation... Once Upon A Time we had three miniature pinschers and then two of them (males) decided to 'mark' anything and everything and almost drove hubby & me crazy. It was just too stressful, and marital & household harmony meant more to us than the dogs. I took them to our local animal shelter (no matter how good it was for our sanity, it still wasn't easy) and - God Is So Good - they were taken by the Min Pin Rescue group and supposedly were going to stay in a good foster home and most likely be adopted out together, living Happily Ever After.

We now are enjoying having just one dog and she is enjoying being just one dog among three messy eating little brothers.

And one last thing, Are You Ready? It only takes a few seconds so PLEASE be sure to click on this if it's the only thing you click on in this entire post! Thank you, Journey To The Prize for the link!

Wordless Wednesday: Hand-Me-Downs

Noah at 14 months old.

'G' for Goover






Carter, 8 months.
'G' for GOOBER

And now 'G' is for Grayson,
10 months old.

For more of my Wordless Wednesdays, click here.

Show Me!

Blogger Goddess Extraordinaire Jess at

O Mama Mia wants you to show off your Inner Domestic Goddess...

Are you in suburban bliss? Do you get lost in your kitchen, flouring the hours
away, baking? Do you love your home? Or maybe you're in suburban turmoil &
you live amongst desperate housewives? Show Me!! Let me hear all about it!

I find myself lost in domestic bliss especially in fall and winter. I love to try new recipes for soups and chili, and just found a new one I am going to simmer up this week- the copycat recipe for Olive Garden's Minestrone soup- See recipe here! I also can make a tasty-sweet spaghetti sauce... secret ingredient is lots of brown sugar! And hubby's favorite (other than my spaghetti) is also my peanutty pad Thai.

Give me my garlic press, fancy apron, and a good CD in my under-the-counter CD player (see far left of picture) and I am one happy housewife.

I had to include one major indulgence as of late- if I am truly in suburban bliss, I'll be enjoying my iced chai latte... like my cute Petunia Pig glass?

You must check out the other glamorous participants here & please play along if you dare...

Symphony & Soup For The Weary Mom's Soul

I know there's been some heavy posting from me the past few days. I am happy to report: I officially feel refreshed.

I am doing much, much better! Fall is arriving here, and you know how much I love fall.

Saturday evening I was blessed to escape for some much-needed mental wellness time with Ashlee & Xavier. We stopped for soup & sandwiches outside at Panera (Gray totally loves the Tuscan Vegetable & Ditalini- couldn't get enough!) He also can't get enough of his pal Xav & as you can see they never run out of things to talk about!

After dinner we headed over to a free outdoor symphony concert nearby. Blankets spread on the grass, just hanging out with beautiful music playing; purple autumnal rain clouds rolling overhead.

It began to sprinkle a bit right at intermission, so we decided it would be best to head home just in case.

What a wonderful night. It ministered to my soul. Fresh air really will do you some good. Friends, Soup, & a Symphony... even better.

The Healer's Signature

It was about this time of year, a few years ago when I went to see a doctor for some allergy problems. On the way out of the doctor’s office, it was raining really hard outside.

I decided to run really fast to my van, in super-flat plastic flip-flops… which became little water skis sliding me clear across the parking lot and almost directly under my van.

All in a moment I felt: wet, embarrassed (looking to see if anyone was watching), and PAIN. There was a bone sticking out of my wrist. And NAUSEA. I’m gonna be sick.

It was broken- my right arm (and yes I am right handed.) I had to wear a cast for 8 weeks (at that time Noah was 2 and Carter was just 1… both kids still in diapers!)

This was very inconvenient for a stay-at-home mom. But I managed. Couldn’t wait to get that cast off (showers with a plastic bread bag over your arm everyday are just not what they are cracked up to be.)

When the cast finally came off, my arm was still weak. It wasn’t like I could just use it like before. It felt funny and awkward. The skin was different and there was still healing time even after the cast was off.

I guess as I was praying about how I’ve been feeling the past few days about Noah’s good news and all, this is what came to mind.

Things just feel weird now with Noah off the diet. It was so strict and something we were so accustomed to for over 2 ½ years. Now it should be exciting for him to try new things and eat whatever he wants, but it feels uncomfortable.

Maybe my heart is a little sore. I didn’t even realize it this whole time with the “diet” as the cast, protecting it.

Good thing is, it only took a short while to use my arm again like old times. I hardly even think about it! I’d hope to say the same about Noah & his diet. I have a feeling it will be harder to forget, as this experience has challenged and shaped our being, in a very positive way.

Should we even try to forget? It’s a wonderful reminder of His faithfulness and promises, and that miracles still happen today. I shouldn’t suppress a story that might bring hope to one person and strengthen faith in another.

Perhaps it should be a battle scar to proudly bear… interestingly enough, a definition I found of the word ‘scar’ is: a mark left by the healing of an injury.

A scar is there to show that healing has taken place... the Healer’s signature.

The All Clear

I admit for a moment, as I sat there in the hospital room during Noah's EEG, it was depressing that my little boy wasn't doing what all the other little boys were doing the week before starting school.

Were they all out riding bikes, swimming in a pool, playing outside while he was stuck here with all these wires on his head?



But just as quickly as I felt that, I felt such joy and relief that he is doing so well and so far from how horrible things were just 2 1/2 years ago in that very same hospital room.

We've come such a long way. I am so thankful and grateful we are on this side of things now. The mountain has been moved.

Noah has been given the "all clear" and is officially off his special diet. He has been med-free & seizure-free almost 2 years now. We have been looking forward to this momentous occasion for a very long time now.

Philippians 1:6

...He who began a good work in Noah has been faithful to complete it.

For breakfast I offered Noah some cereal with milk. "But Mommy, what does milk taste like?"

So odd to hear from a 5-year-old little boy about such a 'little' normal thing.

I am confident he is healed. I am not fearful.

Yes, I am still jumpy at every little sound he makes and will continue to check on him several times at night... but that is to be expected after where we've been and how far we've come, and I wear it as a battle scar for now.

There is plenty to be grateful for in this house. There is much cause for celebration!

Psalm 139:14

I will praise You,

for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.

Marvelous are Your works,

And that my soul knows very well.

Wordless Wednesday: Inside Joke?

And because I am never good at keeping these things "wordless"...

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Noah with my best friend since kindergarten, Jenny. Next week he starts kindergarten... and will possibly meet his best friend for the rest of his life, that will be in his wedding and still close after 25 years!

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Am I ready for this "growing up" thing?

Do I have a choice?

See more of my Wordless Wednesdays here. Also check out 5 Minutes For Mom & the comments below.

i heart books!

I used to want to be a librarian. Mainly because I think I thought you got to actually live in the library if you were the librarian.

My mom used to tutor kids during the summer at the library, and my brother & I would hang out there all day... it still feels like home to me. I love the quiet, the old book smells and the new book smells, and the plethora of knowledge and make-believe.

I used to get lost in Nancy Drew novels and guilty pleasures like the Sweet Valley High books when I was in 6th grade. I remember the first time I read The Lion, The Witch, & The Wardrobe and being lost inside that book. And I'll never forget my first reading of Jane Eyre-during winter break, with the snow falling outside, as a young girl; lengthy as that book is, I didn't want it to end.

1. Book that changed your life: Evidence of Harm by David Kirby & What the Bible Says About Healthy Living . (And of course a book that continues to change my life is the Bible- in many versions!)

2. Book that you've read more than once: Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte- I love to revisit this one every 5 years or so! Same with Pride & Prejudice, but give me the A & E mini-series anyday!!!

3. Book you'd want on a desert island: Maybe the complete novels of Jane Austen would be nice, as well as The Complete C.S. Lewis Signature Classics, and definitely William Shakespeare’s Complete Works. And then of course a book about how to live on a desert island (or get off of one) would be nice!

4. Book that made you laugh: The Ashley Stockingdale series by Kristin Billerbeck- especially What A Girl Wants.

5. Book that made you cry: The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd.

6. Book that you wish had been written: Hmmm- I can't come up with a good one for this, and maybe someday I will just write the book I think should be written!

7. Book you don't enjoy: I really can’t get into the Left Behind Series. The style of writing is just not me- maybe it’s too science-fiction-y for me? I also can NOT stand books with spelling errors. It makes my skin crawl.

8. Book you are currently reading: Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis

9. Book you've been meaning to read: About A Boy (one of my favorite movies- I bet the book is even better. )

10. Book you remember as a real page-turner: The Nanny Diaries and Maeve Binchy's Circle Of Friends (I read this without ever seeing the movie- this is one where you MUST read the book!!)

11. Non-fiction books that you have enjoyed: Ruth Bell Graham's beautiful writings about motherhood, life, and her children.

12. Children's books your family has loved: How Do Dinosaurs Say Goodnight?, Shel Silverstein's Where the Sidewalk Ends, and our all-time favorite read is Mouse Moves House by Usborne Books.

To see what others are reading, check out this post from Rocks In My Dryer, and let me know your book indulgences in your comments below!

Cloud On The Tip Of My Tongue

Get your Word Cloud here.

Tipped off by Mommy@Home - be sure to check hers out, too!

Under The Covers

I'm taking a break today.

I. Need. Rest.

And a good tank fillin'.

In the meantime, make sure you go vote & buy some diapers.

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