Thankful Thursday, Weeks 116, and 117

First disclaimer: I did not post yesterday's post. And Tori did not write it. No, I now have a new little tyrant behind my back. *Looks pointedly at Bethani*. Moving on...

Second disclaimer: Get ready for a few days of Thankful "Thursdays". It's been too long since I did one, and I plan on catching up and staying caught up. *Laughing at my unrealistic brain*. So if it seems like all you see around here this next week is posts like this... um, it's because that's what's happening. Heehee :).

A few thankful thoughts from last month...

~We got all the little girls clothes switched out (well, the boys too, but that never seems to be as big a deal. Theirs either fit, or they don't. There is no middle ground. Haha :).)!

 

~This sight. Is he cute, or what?! Mommy pointed out that the boys seem to put pencils behind their ear naturally, while the girls seem to only do it if they see their dad do it. It's like playing with cars. Isn't it funny how this stuff is ingrained in them? Haha :).

 

<3

~Matching monkeys.
~Peter's love for the Piano Guy's "Peponi" (hence the cd player in our room, heehee :).).
~Seeing these little ones enjoying time together.

~I do not think it is wrong to note that I was also thankful for the clean-ish room that night. And Abbi took over cleaning the books on our bookshelf all of her own volition. It's amazing how neat she can be while picking one when it is her, and not I, cleaning them every day ;).

~A game of "Candy Land" with the younger five (well, six... if you count that Josiah was sitting by watching ;). Peter was so cuuute, he had never played it before :).  He insisted on placing the card rather than his man on the matching square :).

I have a picture of Abbi where she was trying to use the computer 

"illegally" when she was just a bit older then he is now, haha :).

~Mornings spent outside.
~Sweet Abbi and her obsession with frogs... yuck... but she's happy :).

(On a side note, the nest that I mentioned before fell down a few days later. Daddy said there wasn't anything in it, so that was good. But that will explain the lack of updates.)

~Popsicles.

As his first popsicle, he wasn't sure at first, but he enjoyed it :).

Sweet baby soaking up that sunshine :)...

 
~Juicy, sticky little hands :). (Although it rather bothered him... heehee :).)

~Josiah's love for this duckie toy. It was Abbi's favorite when she was a baby, too. He is sooo much like her... it will be interesting to see if he continues to follow in her footsteps. Watch out ;)!

~THIS face... that smile, ohhh, that smile!

~Emmi's artist rendition of our family :). Isn't it cute :)?

Have a blessed Sunday :)!

"And they sang responsively, praising and giving thanks to the Lord,

“For he is good,

for his steadfast love endures forever toward Israel.”"

                                        ~Ezra 3:11

In which I eat a strawberry buttercup sandwich :)

AHHHHHHHHHHHH, I ATE A SANDWICH WITH SOME STRAWBERRY-BUTTERCUP JAAAAAAAAAAAM!!!!!!

AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! 

=(

Totally Dependent

At church yesterday, the pastor made this statement:

"We are to be taking strenuous efforts in our walk with God, while being totally dependent on God."

I've known this and believed this; obeying God doesn't save us, but God saving us makes us want to obey him. But hearing it in these words made me think about it a little more deeply, and a thought came to me that I thought was a wonderful illustration of this. When a baby is learning how to walk (which happens about bi-yearly around here ;)...), she is totally dependent on those who are holding her up. Those first little steps are never taken without the supportive hands of those around her, usually her Mommy and Daddy. But the fact that they are there gives her the desire and ability to take those precious steps. It just really struck me as a wonderful way to describe that relationship between us and our Heavenly Father :)!

A Freedom Worth All Our Praise

It's been one year today since we officially moved into our VA home.

We've made friends, we've tried several churches, the little ones experienced the first snow they remember (and many others, with a more snow-filled winter than VA is known for!), everybody has gotten a year older, we've enjoyed several visits to and from family (with another one planned next week, yay :)!). Tori and I were able run a table at Daddy's store anniversary in a fundraiser for Penny that we wouldn't have been able to in SC, I've enjoyed several bible studies with friends and family, and, praise the Lord, little Josiah joined our family, and he and Momma are here celebrating with us today!!!!

There has been joy and tears in the last year, blessings... and blessings that we might not realize were blessings until we get to heaven. As Corrie ten Boom once said (paraphrased), "For now we see the underside of the tapestry. But when we stand at God's throne, he will flip it around, and show us that Jesus is King".

The early Americans knew that what they were doing was the will of God during the revolution that lead to the Declaration of Independence (which was actually finalized in August, did you know that?). But most of them didn't want to do it. All they could see was the underside... the side that looked like war and blood and broken family circles. They couldn't see the upside, the side that would have shown them that it was, for sure, all for a purpose. But from their heartache came our freedom. Freedom to do what we want and to believe what we want. 

This isn't true everywhere. I don't think we fully realize just how much that freedom means. We just don't seem to fully realize what it would be like to be someone like Miriam Ibrahim, who is being held in prison once again, this time with her whole family, after being let go and trying to leave the country. All because she "is not ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ."

The gospel that tells us of Jesus' suffering, his heartache for our spiritual freedom. His love for you and I. The blessings he bestows.

Because that is really what our freedom is about. Not that we never have any trials. Not that we get to make our own rules. And not that we get to celebrate with fireworks and cookouts.

We'll always have trials. God uses them to grow us. And once he has taught us the lessons he expects us to learn from one, he knows that we are strong enough for another. But we have the freedom to trust him openly in every one of his designs, even when we do not understand. And, more importantly, the freedom, not only in America, but in all the world, to come before his throne in our time of need. To trust him with our cares, and follow the law he has laid down for us, while knowing that nothing we could ever do could earn our freedom, but is an expression of our thankfulness for that gift.

While the celebration of our American freedom is a thing to enjoy, how much greater is the celebration we can enjoy knowing that our Lord is King, and that it doesn't eternally matter how much earthly freedom we have, so long as he calls us his own! And that is truly a freedom worth all of our praise to the one who made us!

My Blog got Bored...

A couple weeks ago, Tori was laughing at me, and I told her, in a very-overly-exaggerated-voice, "Tooooriiii, don't laugh at me. That's meeeeaaan!!!". To which she teased back in a just-as-overly-exaggerated-voice, "I'm sorry. I didn't reeeaaally mean to laugh at your Bri... but my laugh just got bored!!!"

With that opening statement, what I mean to say is, my blog has been quieter than I would like lately. And it's getting bored. So, I think it's high time a post made it's way out of the draft folder. ;)

Celebrating our Daddy on Father's day.. 

 

Abbi got to help twist Daddy's maple twist this year :).  

 The guys :)...

  

The past couple weeks, when I'm getting Peter ready for bed, he has been reaching up to pull my glasses down, and he invariably  follows the action with looking at my eyes and saying "Oh! Hi!". It is the funniest thing!

And a couple weeks ago the little guy grabbed Josiah's feet, looked at them... said "Awesome!"... and kissed 'em. Ooohhh, they're both yummy! Haha :).

Josiah is three months old. How has it been that long since this little ray of sunshine made his unusual entrance into the world?! He started rolling over on June 18, he laughed (for sure) on June 19th. Sweet boy :)... It was right about that time that the little guy found my glasses, too. That was cute :). He has awesome motor control, and is so very curious :). He also *loves* to talk! Tori said last night, "If Abbi and Emmi are the bookends... he's gonna end up the bookshelf!!!" Haha!!! Probably :)!