Little ones to Him belong

I tend to title my posts using songs I learned in Sunday School as a child. Mainly because they still bring me comfort...but also because they are simple and remind me of the love from my Heavenly Father. 

I am attending a bible study on Nehemiah...by Kelly Minter. She does a great job "making us" read every verse in Nehemiah and other verses in various books of the Bible. I have to say it has been awhile...like a lonnnng while since I have done a bible study. They overwhelm me...honestly. That is my lame excuse anyways. Once I start them though I am of course overwhelmed(in a good way) with God's love for me and many times my eyes are opened to my weaknesses and heart is refreshed with the plan that awaits for me. Sometimes that plan is not so clear, other times it is a huge "aha moment" followed by a clear path.

Kelly Minter continually asks a few questions that really hit deep for me...but left me wondering the answer. You see...I didn't have a clear answer...yet. I wanted to be careful to not just write anything down, but to really think about it. The first question is "What makes you weep?" Now, that is something I could answer right away. I think we all were given compassion and empathy to certain groups of people, so we could help them. Sometimes we have that compassion because it is something we struggle with ourselves. 

The next question was "What has God put in your heart to do?" I see this as an action follow up to the question "What makes you weep?" Many times the things/people that make you weep and have a heart for are the things/people that God has put on your heart to do something about. 

Let me share what makes me weep. Children, young and old who are in need of some love. Being a mom, I know the instant I found out I was carrying my child I had an enormous amount of love for that child. Then once my son was born...that love grew and grew. So, when I hear of a child who does not have a mother or father to love on them it makes me weep. Adoption has always been something I had much respect for. Being an advocate for Pro-Life I love hearing stories of Adoption rather than Abortion. I have helped in various centers that support these mothers and fathers who are scared and unsure of what their options are once they find out they are or their partner is with child. I witnessed a beautiful story of adoption in my own family. My Aunt and Uncle were involved in a prison ministry and ended up adopting my cousin, as his mother was not able to care for him. I couldn't imagine life with out him and I praise God for the better life he has now because of Adoption. I hate to imagine where he would be if he was not in my Aunt and Uncles' home...but it was all in God's plan. He kept him safe and now we get to be blessed by having him in our family!!! 

In many cases the reasoning for someone to choose abortion is because they can not take care of that child. Many times they just don't want to and many times they are in a very poor and/or harmful/toxic lifestyle. When they choose life, I weep. When they choose to give their child to someone who could give them more love and a better life, I weep. When they choose to turn their life around, I weep. There is nothing better than seeing someone who is weak take hold of God's promises and allow God to be strong.

"Little ones to Him belong,
They are weak but He is strong.
Yes, Jesus loves me!"

I have to say I began to get a little off track in what it was I thought God was wanting me to do. It was really leading no where and I was confused. I have always been interested in how the mind works and love reading psychology books. People who are mentally ill (bipolar and schizophrenic) really do have my heart and I am not saying that I am writing it off...but I think my main focus, which has been since I was little, is children who need love...attention...affection...or who just really need. But, then I realized many of the mothers and fathers that came into the center I volunteered for were in need too and some even had some mental illnesses that were keeping them from being able to take care of their child. Just as much as these unborn children needed love...so did the parents.

So, what makes you weep? They poor, the handicapped, the orphans, the widows??? And what has God put in your heart to do about it? Believe me it may not be clear, but I challenge you to pray about it. He may not make it clear for years...but I am sure you have an idea of what it may be. Life on earth is short compared to the eternity we will share with God. Make it count. Love on someone who needs it. And as Kelly Minter put it, "May you one day hear the words"..."You have done well to have this in your heart."   

Bedding Saga

In just a few short months, we will have lived in our house for 3 years! I really can not believe it. I really can't believe that shortly after our three years "living here" anniversary...Shane will turn 4!!! Yikes...time truly does fly!

We are in a rental. I feel very blessed to live her in our...home. Hard to say home when it is not technically ours, but home is where the heart is, right? The fixtures are not what I would chose for my home, the exorbitant amount of tile is just that....exorbitant. There is a huge list of what I do not like about the house, but I love that we do have a house to live in. One that is spacious and that fits all of our stuff. The location is ideal and our neighborhood is really quite nice. With all that said I was thinking about living here for almost three years and what I have and have not done decor wise. Since it is a rental I didn't want to fill it up too much...but as I type that and look around...it is pretty much filled to the brim...so that last statement was an outright lie! I can't help myself. I love interior design. Our first home that we bought...was well... brand new and a blank slate. We had a lot of fun filling the walls up with art and filling the rooms with furniture. I have to say it was a bit more modern than my liking...but because it was a new home I felt that was appropriate.

Our current home is a bit more traditional. The hubs hates it. I slowly started to bring in some older pieces and cluttered some of the space up. I have to admit, it is too much for me too. I am in the middle of establishing what my style is (also trying to incorporate The Hubs style as well). It is hard when one likes ultra modern and the other likes a more traditional palette. He is more LA loft and I am more Newport Bungalow....James Bond vs Fred Astaire....Plummers vs Pottery Barn...cold vs warm(hehe). I do appreciate his style..I just find my style superior. Oh man, I might be living by myself if I don't stop.

Sooooo....lonnnnnngggg story short. It is hard to combine our two styles. The house we are in now is light and beachy. Which I am now getting tired of. I have always incorporated the beach into my living spaces some how and I probably will continue to do so, but in a more subtle way. I hate kitsch and themes. My bathroom is about as themey as I want to be. In our next house it will be completely different, so I am enjoying it now. It is what I have to work with and I need to be content...pfffttt.

So, my major brain freeze has been in my master bedroom. It is a bit on the glammy side. There is no pink so I think I am safe. I call it Modern Glam. My furniture is all vintage pieces. Most are faux bamboo, which I love!!!! My problem has been deciding on bedding. It has been three years and The Hubs has this horrific navy blue blanket that we were given and I use my warn and beloved pink quilt my Nana made me (guess I do have pink...ooppps). I have found a few options from time to time, but nothing I absolutely loved. I didn't want to settle but I didn't think it would take this long. After wrestling with my color choice I decided white would be best. It is so crisp and clean. I love the whole pintuck look, but a lot are duvets and I can not stand duvets. So, I currently have grey striped sheets...grey striped pillow cases ....solid grey pillow cases...navy blue pillow cases....navy blue blanket and a pink patchwork quilt....lovely! I thought all hope was lost until I saw Jcpennys' new collection. Be still my heart. Well done JCP...you have designed my perfect bedding. I got a little discouraged when I saw the price and read some reviews, but there are actually two options I like. Here they are(which are not white...but I think I am over that...until next week). What do you think? Which one would you prefer?

Velvet...ohhhh.

This comes in white too...but is a little blah. This color is more of a grey in person.

New Day...New Year

 Every new year brings with it ideas of change and setting goals. I happen to be one of those people who love it. It is a big reset button for me. After all the hustle and bustle of Christmas...I need a moment to get my thoughts together and recharge. I love making goals...even if I don't stick to all of them. Some people find it silly...but the new year is one of my favorite times of the year. Almost like a fresh start. I need a big slap in the face sometimes to make me refocus. So...I welcome the new year with open arms.

My goals are usually the same ol' same ol'. Lose weight...read more...get organized...etc. This year I wanted to be a bit more specific. I think that is why a lot of goals fall to the wayside. If you don't have a plan to go along with those goals then you have failed before you even began. When I start to get discouraged... I am encouraged by this verse in Lamentations 3:22-23 "

²² Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed,
    for his compassions never fail.
²³ They are new every morning;
    great is your faithfulness

 

 I especially love "They are new every morning". We should never become discouraged. God is 

always faithful. Make those plans with God. Include Him in your planning and if you fail... know that it isn't the end. Wake up feeling refreshed and ready to start again. This is my motivation. So, here are a few of my goals for 2013!!! 

1. Get Organized. Since I had Shane I have become more occupied in other areas(which is totally fine). Most mothers feel the same, I am sure. I will never blame him for that(one of my pet peeves...side note...he also isn't the reason for all my fat...that would be lack of exercise and eating poorly). Ok, back to getting organized. I have felt a little out of whack in the last few years. Kind of just floating around. When I am overwhelmed, instead of getting the things I need to do done...I wander aimlessly. Nothing gets done and just piles up. I think if I was more organized it would make my life a lot more simple!!! One of my favorite sites is Money Saving Mom. She has a great 4 week program that I did last year and plan to do again this year. I highly recommend checking it out and her whole site! I would love for my linen closet to look like this: 

 

and not like this: 

This is not my closet...but my closet looks very similar. Glad to know there are other disorganized closets out there!

 Goal number 2 is to: Read more. I enjoy reading. I am not a reader. I read maybe one book a year. If I find a good one I can read it in a few days. Last year I read a book by Dr. Mark Hyman, ...called: "The Blood Sugar Solution". Amazing!!!!! It really got my health on track. I think books are great. So, if you have any suggestions let me know. Unless it is Twilight or 50 Shades of Grey...I can go into a long explanation of why I won't read those but I will save you the time...ain't nobody got time for that! Unless you want to know then I will gladly tell you:) Ok...again I am sidetracked...back to reading. I am currently reading "Nehemiah...a heart that can break" by Kelly Minter. Only on day one (it is a study we are doing at church) but it is already sooooo good!

A few other random goals are: I want to work on my writing. Like I remember that when you are writing about a book title there is the appropriate way to do that with quotations..or is it underlined??? I don't remember...I think that was like Junior High and I barely remember anything from yesterday...so I need to brush up on my writing skills...so I don't have to use ellipses(...) learned that one from The Hubs. Always just called them the dot...dot...dots:). They basically are put in to indicate an unfinished thought...very appropriate for me...

I NEED to learn how to SEW! Just a pillow would do. It would save me so much money. I can never find a pillow I like but I have a huge stack of fabric that I LOVE. I am going to try to take a class a Joanns. If anyone wants to join me, let me know!

So, I still need to sit down and really organize my thoughts and set more goals. For now, that is what I have. I must remember that each day is a new day full of new mercies. I can do this...with HIM.  Great is Thy faithfulness!

What are some of your goals??? I would love to hear about them!