Prayer for Momma Hearts

While working through this week’s BSF study, I read these verses…

1 Peter 4:8-11

“Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms. If anyone speaks, they should do so as one who speaks the very words of God. If anyone serves, they should do so with the strength that God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen.”

As I read, my heart found encouragement from these five verses…I know they weren’t intentionally written for Mommas of little ones hearts…but sifting through the words made me feel like each was penned for where my heart is at right now…in the thick of trying to love and serve others (our kiddos) well and in a God honoring way.

Heavenly Father,

Help me to love my husband, our kiddos…this precious family that you have provided deeply.

Help me to offer daily hospitality to my family without grumbling…despite the messes, the accidents, the laundry, the dirt, etc. etc.

Help me to discover what gifts you have given me…help me to use them.

Help me when I speak to use YOUR Words…for Scripture to be on the tip of my tongue (and heart)…help me remember that this is made possible through reading and learning YOUR Words daily…protect my tongue from sudden outbursts of frustration or despair that hinder love and joy.

Help me when I serve…remind me that You provide the strength…it doesn’t come from my own resolve…You sustain.  Help my heart to see my service as an act of stewarding Your grace.

Help me to trust and praise you in all things…despite the chaos or monotony that may unfold throughout each day.

Thank You for Jesus…and for making Scripture come alive.

Amen 

Be blessed.

Reminding Me…

To take deep breaths as I step(sometimes trip) over toys, sift through what seems like mounds of laundry and wipe little noses again and again and again!

http://www.whenyourise.com/2012/04/there-is-beauty-in-this-mess.html

Happy Saturday from a very soggy and chilly Our Neck of the Wood.

Be blessed.

Slobbery Sugar

Rody Horse got to experience a sweet and typically slobbery kiss from little A…the verdict is out on whether or not he enjoyed it as much as this Momma does…

Oh, the joy that sweet slobbery sugar brings!

Be blessed.

Sleeping Nuggets

The other night I finally captured Little A sleeping as she typically sleeps with two of her left fingers in her mouth, her right hand on her head and her little bumper in the air…

B on the other hand is less habitual with his sleep…though one can often find him asleep with a book (typically in hand) as he waits until the very last minute possible to close his eyes and drift into dream land.

Sweet Dreams!

Be blessed.

What A Difference a Year Makes

When Little A was born, I set out with the best of intentions to capture every week of her life…well at least until it was hard to count the weeks and then planned to move onto month photos. I didn’t have the cute onesies that labeled her age but snapped photos with her ‘Bun’ bunny as a gage for her growth.

I start out strong, but lost steam between our move and other happenings in our neck of the wood.

I was able to get quite a few…I’ll admit, not great photo quality…but it does capture how our littlest nugget has changed this past year.

C snapped these photos on the day of her party…oh Happy Happy Birthday sweet girl!

Be blessed.

Sunshine Day!

This spring, simply out of nowhere, B has started calling Little A ‘Sunshine Girl’. 

The name is quite fitting as that describes our littlest nugget to a tee.  Her smile lights up a room, her giggle is contagious and her little life has provided some much appreciated sunshine throughout this past whirl-wind of a year.

We felt it only appropriate to throw our precious Sunshine Girl a sunny themed party. 

I will admit that B’s first birthday was a little over the top but so much fun to plan…wanting to keep things as equal as possible, I fully admit that I may have gone a little over the top in planning A’s…especially because we just invited family…but it all was a labor of love and so much fun to put together.

Our invitation looked a little like this…

A

is our sunshine, Our precious sunshine!

It’s hard to believe she’s turning one!

Please join our family as we celebrate,

with some sweet ‘sunny’ birthday fun!

Saturday, April 21st 3:30pm

Pinterest spurred on some fun ideas for the sunny theme as I tried to keep everything yellow and pink.

It was fun to pull out serving pieces that haven’t been used since our move…things I’ve collected over the years for showers and other get togethers…

We enjoyed a miniature candy bar with yellow and pink nerds, candy dots and yellow sixlets, lemon bars, yellow peeps, banana pudding, sugar cookie bars, pineapple and strawberry kabobs, lemonade and a delicious lemonade cake!

A friend from Cowtown had given me these pink pom poms specifically to be used for little A’s first birthday…in effort to tie in the yellow I tried my had at making some…super easy and really fun for little ones to play with.

We pulled the playhouse out last minute as the forecast predicted rain. With the basement still under construction the kitchen doubled as a playroom/party spot.

I ventured out of my creativity comfort zone by saving various jars, puff painting them to add some ‘detail’ and then spray painted them to create these whimsical vases. We asked everyone to sign this ‘You Are My Sunshine Book’ as a little keepsake for A’s special day.

When it was time to sing, little A quieted down to take it all in. 

As we sang, she simply watched everyone looking pretty puzzled.

We were certain that she would dig into the cake without a second thought…to our surprise, she hesitated…

Cried…

Tried it again…

Got some help from C and B…

Cried again…

And finished her few bites very tentatively.

A good old bottle helped wash her very confused cake experience down before enjoying some more play time with cousins and other special family members.

Our hearts continue to be blessed by this little sunshine, it is hard to believe that we’ve known her for an entire year and are grateful for all the sweetness she brings to our family.

Happy Birthday Sunshine Girl!

Be blessed.

Gigi…thank you for helping with the sugar cookie bars and other treats!

Gram…thank you for making the cake…it was simply fantastic & Little A’s dress was such a gift!

Gigi Papa’s Visit

Gigi and Papa ventured up to Our Neck of the Wood to join us in celebrating little A’s first birthday.

After picking them up from the airport, we enjoyed a walk around one of our favorite lakes to look for ducks and then met up with C for some tasty BBQ lunch…little A was quick to get in on the chicken and other tasty goodness!

Later, we ventured out for dinner to celebrate Gigi’s and little A’s birthdays…in honor of A’s big day she tried a little bit of whip cream for the first time…

While B proved to be an old pro!

The next day B gave Gigi and Papa a tour of his school…they saw where his cubby sits, got to meet his teacher and even got a quick tour of his classroom!

After school we headed to IKEA…yes, we did. Gigi and Papa wanted to check out a couple things and B was thrilled by the opportunity to enjoy lunch from one of his favorite spots (seriously).  While we were there, Gigi and Papa graciously purchased a high chair for little A to use outside on the deck as the weather is finally getting warm enough to eat outside.

After naptime, we enjoyed dinner at home and then watched little A open gifts from special loved ones in Texas.  B supervised as it was a little hard for him to understand that it wasn’t his birthday and the gifts weren’t for him.

A teal Rody horse made its grand entrance into our neck of the wood with just a little bit of apprehension from A…she wasn’t interested in riding it, but liked standing next to it and bouncing.

In true little one fashion, opening the cards and playing with boxes and tissue paper proved almost as exciting as the new gifts themselves!

Gigi made sure that little A was outfitted for the myriad of cooking/baking endeavors she will enjoy in the future.

These two enjoyed little A’s very first doll house…oh how it made our hearts melt!

The next day B practiced golfing under a tree with Papa before heading out for another ‘adventure’.

Our planned adventure, a trip to a new park, was somewhat of a bust as it was pretty chilly outside. But we found a fun lunch spot and made the best of it. Later C and his dad enjoyed a round of golf while Gigi and I headed home for nap time (for the kiddos of course).

On Saturday, we ‘lounged’ around and got the house ready for little A’s special party.

We talked with Auntie B via skype…

And picnicked on the floor as our kitchen table was in party mode.

After the party (I’ll post more about that in a bit) we ‘lounged’ some more and enjoyed being sung to by these two… ‘Applebee, Applebee…..’

A trip to church was a good book end to Gigi and Papa’s trip. B & A enjoyed having their company as did C and I.

After church, we enjoyed one more meal at one of our new favorite spots. We enjoyed tasty french fries, burgers and good old fashioned milk shakes together before they headed towards the airport.

Whew! Where did the long weekend go? We so enjoyed our time together as it was a great blend of giddy up and go and hang out around the little spot that God is continuing to hollow out for us at home.

We love you Gigi & Papa, thanks for visiting!

Be blessed.