Thankful

You know the saying “It’s the little things”?  Well, it’s true.  Very true.  I have been thinking so much lately about this – and yesterday I was in the middle of it.  And it was awesome!

Matt heard that the United States Modified Touring Series (USMTS) cars were going to be racing in the area, so he called & asked what I thought about going.  I do like watching those races (really, they are FUN!), but I just didn’t think that Eli would want to sit through the whole thing.  So Matt called Jed, who said he’d be interested in going – and they took Brett & Trevor along and had a “guys night out”. :)

This meant that Eli & I got to have some 1 on 1 time after I got home from work (and picked him up from Grandma L). Since it’s been about 100 degrees most of the week, we tried to think of some things to do inside. First we made some supper (mom gave me some awe-some sweet corn when I stopped by – THANKS mom!), and then we switched the laundry.  Eli decided it would be a good idea to walk to the train tracks – so we headed outside. 

We walked east & it was so fun just to talk to him and listen to all of his stories. He’s so dang cute when he talks because most of the time he’s so expressive.  It’s also the time of year when the planes are out spraying the fields – so he got to see 6 airplanes while we were out there.  He thought that was the coolest.  When you’re 4 years old – sprayer planes are just as cool as any other kind!

He got a little tired before we actually made it to the tracks, so we turned around & started to head home.  Most of the way back, we talked about what it means to be thankful – and how we should remember to thank God every day.  For whatever reason, he just seemed like he “got it” in a way that he hadn’t before.  Maybe I made that up in my head, but I think he caught on.  Anyway – we ended up sitting on the sidewalk in front of the house for about half an hour after we got home, and we made “Eli & Mommy’s Thank You List”.  I adore that little boy so much more than I could say (and I feel the same way about his brothers)!  But I wanted to capture our lists here so someday he can look back and see what he was thankful for when he was 4. ;)  Eli started, and we took turns telling each other (and God) what was on our list. (*Note: I couldn’t figure out how to get the lists side by side, so it seems like this post is a mile long!)

Eli’s List

1. sky
2. shooting stars
3. pretty clouds
4. Heaven
5. lightning
6. toys
7. Reese’s Pieces
8. rainbows (in his words, “that I saw at Grandma Langstraat’s house next week”) ;)
9. snow angels
10. camper
11. sprinkler
12. bird baths
13. tomorrow
14. tree house
15. if we can buy a snowboard
16. birds
17. cheese pizza
18. ABC books
19. Christmas tree
20. Mickey
21. purple flowers
22. ice cream
23. Grandma
24. baby kittens
25. cousins
26. coke

Mommy’s List

1. family
2. rain
3. Jesus
4. friends
5. food
6. sunshine
7. rainbows
8. seasons
9. home
10. grass
11. today
12. Bible
13. our country
14. saving us / forgiveness
15. farmers
16. jobs
17. Christmas
18. beds
19. church
20. senses
21. fireflies
22. moon
23. eagles
24. neighbors
25. safety
26. blessings

So those are just a few of the things we came up with.  He also thought that while we talked to God about these things, we could also have Him say “hi” to Grandpa L. (*tears*)

Then we went inside and had root beer floats & watched The Veggie Tales “It’s a Meaningful Life” movie.  And then we snuggled up and fell asleep on the couch.  The night was precious and I would not have traded that time for anything in the world. 

(oh, and all of the other boys had a great time at the races too!)

Thank you, God for blessing me in so many ways – and for making these “little moments” a very BIG deal.  Please forgive me when I take things (and people) for granted & help me to always know that these little boys are watching and learning from my words and actions.  Please help me to live each day for you.  I love you.  Amen.

This & That

I can’t imagine how writers do it.  I sit down to write 1 post, and can barely figure out where to begin.  Oh well, I guess that’s why I’m not a writer, huh? ;) 

We had a great weekend … we got to see some very dear friends that we hadn’t seen in 2 years. (much, MUCH too long!)  Chris, Pam & the kids had a wedding nearby on Friday, so since they were in the area, we got to see them on Saturday.  They stopped by the house for a while, and then we went and had lunch. Brett decided to stay home because he’s been feeling a little under the weather, so that was a bummer!

 

I just love how God puts people in your life when you need them.  The time spent with these guys (although it was short) was exactly what I needed!  Thank you God, for wonderful friends, and for great timing!

Brett was still not feeling well by evening, so Matt & Trevor went to the Figure 8 races – and I stayed home with Brett & Eli.  It turned out to be a spaghetti & movie night (well, toast for Brett), and that was a great thing too!  Eli spent some time in the little-ish pool in our backyard, and he loved every minute.  Hard to imagine since until now, he has always been perfectly content on the OUTSIDE of any water – and never really liked being IN it.  (most likely got that from his mom!)

 

On Sunday, we had an awesome church service in the morning.  Pastor Joel filled in for Pastor Mark, and he just had a great message!  Some parts of it were so sad because the topic was ‘death’ – but every time he turned it around so that he spoke about how we are alive in Jesus.  So many in our church family have experienced the death of a loved one in recent weeks/months – so he wanted to give them some comfort.  Funny thing is, even though my dad has been gone for almost 5 years (incredibly hard to believe!) – this sermon touched me deeply as well.  Sometimes it’s just so unexpected when that wave of grief will still hit – and I’ll be honest, it happens a lot.  But God is always faithful, and I am comforted by something I read, or a song I hear, or whatever else He chooses to use.  Anyway, it was just a great service.  I wish I could be that good at teaching life lessons to my boys.  I always feel like I am tripping all over my words, and they’ll never get anything good from it.  I know that’s exaggerating, but I just really, really want for Matt and me to be good parents who teach our kids the right stuff.

Okay, moving on. :)  In the afternoon, we took the kids to Sioux City where we surprised them with tickets to the Bandits football game.  They were SO excited!  We have been wanting to go for a couple of years (since we had never seen an indoor league game), but just never made it work. We rarely get to do stuff like this, so it was such a fun treat!  It was a play-off game, so that was cool!  Brett & Trevor loved every minute of it – but Eli ended up falling asleep.  Guess he wasn’t as thrilled as I thought! ;)

The Bandits ended up winning the game 61-28 (against the Mid-MO Outlaws), so at least we were cheering for the winning team!

It was just a great weekend to hang out as a family (and friends!).  Here’s to a lot more wonderful memories!!  SO blessed.

Brett . . .

      

I know this is late, but I’m writing it anyway.  On June 16, you turned 12 years old.  I am so in awe of how fast time is going.  You’ll be moving on to 6th grade at the end of this summer.  I’m pretty sure it seems like YESTERDAY that we were trying to figure out how you’d handle 5th grade. :( 

You are a really great kid, and your dad & I feel so incredibly blessed to be your parents.  You are funny.  You have a soft heart.  Your dad is starting to get you to like sports cars (oh Lord, help me!).  You like video games, and you love sports. Right now you are nearing the end of your summer baseball schedule, and looking forward to football camp/practices/games – and that will all start in July or so.  You also love Rec soccer, but since our school doesn’t have a soccer program – Rec is as far as it goes.  Plus, in a few weeks you will be going to church camp, and will be gone from home for a full week (for the 3rd year in a row). Ugh.

(above left, Brett& Jose … right, 2012 soccer team w/ Jenn & Traci)

You are such a great big brother.  You and Trevor fight at times, and sometimes you just drive each other nuts.  But MOST of the time, you are the best of friends.  And Eli adores both of you!  He laughs at you guys and is learning from your example all the time.  I will be forever grateful that we have 3 boys.  You love to hang out with each other, and  I consider it one of my greatest joys to be a part of this journey. 

I want to support every dream that you have – and I will do everything in my power to make that happen. (even if it includes 92 extra trips to town in a week) ;)  I pray that you will make smart decisions and great friends.  I pray you will always have a kind heart, and a love for family.  I pray you will marry a great Christian girl who will adore you, and that you will enjoy a successful career in whatever you do (right now you want to be an architect).  But my main prayer is that you will grow up to be someone who will chase after Jesus with all that you are.  That you’ll seek and find Him – and that you’ll always bring everything to Him (good and bad). 

Oh yeah, and I love you.  You’re awesome.

Love,

Mom

Choosing Joy

“Consider it a sheer gift, friends, when tests and challenges come at you from all sides. You know that under pressure, your faith-life is forced into the open and shows its true colors. So don’t try to get out of anything prematurely. Let it do its work so you become mature and well-developed, not deficient in any way.” (James 1:2-4 MSG)

A friend sent me the scripture above.  Sometimes it is so hard to choose to be joyful.  I have been having a hard time the last couple of weeks.  There is just so much going on, and a lot of things seem to be stressing me out.  And … this Friday, April 13 would be dad’s birthday.  There would never be enough room on this blog (or the whole internet, for that matter) for me to adequately say how much I love and miss him. 

So, here I sit.  I fully realize that my problems are nowhere nearly as bad as what some (many!) other people are dealing with.  Most of what stresses me out relates to commitments that I’ve made and having to choose between several GOOD things for those commitments.  So I’m not complaining (or at least I’m trying not to).  I just need to be reminded to be joyful. 

There is nothing on earth that can give me as much joy as my Father in Heaven.  I have an amazing husband, 3 wonderful kids, and the best family! I have a great job and a few very sweet friends!  But none of that can be first in my life.  In order to find true joy, I need to look up.  When challenges come my way, and when things start to feel like a weight on my shoulders, I need to go to Him.  When I am missing my dad more than I know how to say, I need to cling to my Father.  He will help me to manage it all.  To laugh and cry when I need to, and to say “yes” or “no” when I need to.  (and this is when I start to laugh – because saying “no” has never been my strength unless people ask me to try a new food!) :) 

We just celebrated my favorite holiday of the year, and it helped to put things into perspective.  God sent his Son to die on a cross for ME!  Because He loves ME!  I’m not saying I won’t continue to feel stress – it’s all around.  However, if I am willing to give it over to the One who can help me with it, it can’t get much better than that!  I just need to remember that sacrifice and that love.  And then it’s not hard at all to choose joy!

"So that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ." Ephesians 3:17-18 (NIV)

Birthday Blessings

It was Grandma’s birthday … so we celebrated with a family lunch at Mike & Pat’s house.  Sure wish Eli would’ve been excited – ha!  :)

I wish I could put into words how much my mom means to me, but I just can’t find those words.  She has taught me countless lessons.  I’m not sure which is the most important one (or even IF there is a ‘most important’).  She loves us all so well, and I want to be as good a mom to my kids as she is to me.  I definitely feel blessed to have grown up in such a loving and fun family – and I thank God for that!

Look at what we all gave mom for her birthday this year…

   

   

We started tearing up her house!  It will be so different to see how it looks in a couple of weeks.  It’s long overdue for her to be doing this remodel. I can’t wait to see the transformation!!  I’ll try to get some ‘after’ pictures up later on.

So anyway – happy birthday, Mom!!  You are so amazing, and I hope that you know how much we all love you.  We can never tell you enough!

Daytona…

It’s almost time for the first “official” race of the year.  Last year we hardly watched any racing.  And we won’t watch it every week this year either because it just takes so much time.  But – since it’s cold out yet, we’ll go ahead and watch the Daytona 500. 

I will be cheering for this guy:

 

Matt will be cheering for this guy:

(at least they are on the same team!!)

So – let’s get caught up on what else has been going on …

Stephanie & Paul got engaged!  So there will be a wedding coming up – congrats to my sweet niece – love her so much and definitely wish them the best!

 

Brett & Trevor have been doing great in school.  It has been a very mild winter, so they haven’t had any snow days yet.  (shocking!!) They have started late a couple times, and let out early once.  We got several inches of snow yesterday, but it probably won’t stick around very long.  Spring will be here soon! Yay!

      

Eli has been under the weather the last couple days – hopefully it’s nothing serious.  Low to mid-grade fever and a bad cough.  My little pookie will be going to Kindergarten Round-up in about 3 weeks.  (puke)  I can hardly stand the thought of that.  How did our baby get to be 4 1/2 years old?!   We are thinking that he will go to T-K this fall.  (not sure that I can handle the thought of him going to Kindergarten … we’ll try to adjust by doing T-K first)  :)  It worked out great for Brett & Trevor – so I’m pretty confident that it will be the right move for Eli too.

We’ll see how it goes. 

Thank you, God for the blessings of these boys.  And also this one… ;)

Starting over…

Okay, so that little ‘bloggy break’ lasted a while.  And it wasn’t even an intentional break – life is just … life.  And it’s busy.  It’s so crazy how fast time goes.  I know that people (including me) say that all the time – and it’s because it’s true. 

I don’t even really have anything specific to blog about … but figured I would just start somewhere. 

How about if I just mention the weather?  What is going on?!  It is January, 2012 and this week it got to 62 degrees or something like that.  WHAT?!  Awesome!  It snowed once in early December (proof is below), but otherwise it has been dry.  I know that won’t be good for the farmers in the spring, but on the plus side – I have not yet gotten my van stuck on our gravel road yet this year!!  Yay!!  :) 

                 

Well, another Christmas and another New Year’s Day have come and gone.  We had some great family time and Matt even got some time off of work. (okay, well he still did quite a bit of work … he just didn’t, you know, get a paycheck for it)  Brett & Trevor definitely enjoyed their Christmas break, and Eli got to spend several days at home with daddy and his brothers.  And back to the weather topic – it was so strange that there was no snow on the ground during that time.  I really wish I could have spent some more time at home with them – but thankful that I did get the Mondays off of each week (since Christmas and New Years Day were each on a Sunday).

All 3 boys participated in the Sunday School Christmas program – the first time for Eli!  Karter was in it too, so it was so fun to see all of them say their speeches and sing songs.  The best part was knowing that this story was about the true meaning of Christmas – the birth of our Savior.  Not Santa, not presents, not trees or cut-out cookies … but about the One who came to save us.  What an amazing love!

   

   

It’s amazing that God has blessed us so abundantly when we fail Him so many times.  I am so thankful tonight for His grace and forgiveness. 

Here are some pictures of our Christmas activities…

I hope that I always remember the Reason for the season – but not just in December. 

Here’s to the best in 2012!!