Spring is Here

Oh I do love the seasons. Spring has to be a favorite of everyone. It is so fun to walk out to the garden and see the flowers come peeking out. The proportion is hard to see, but these are my miniature daffodils planted in Samantha's garden. How welcoming they are!

And to my delight, the rhubarb made it! A friend gave some of hers that she had split and I wasn't sure if it made it through the crazy winter we've had. Isn't it lovely? This talented lady could do something with the rhubarb leaves... I just love them. They would be fantastic to imprint. One of these years I'll try it.

Happy Spring.

OAM cooking

Lately I've been on a once a month theme. This week a couple of my friends and I did some once a month cooking. They arrived at 1 and left around 4:30 and we had 12 meals to put in the freezer. This was our menu:

chicken and rice casserole
Mexican style macaroni
meatloaf
sloppy joes
chicken noodle soup
waffles

It was a great experience! We all had fun doing all the tedious chopping and mixing together and were glad to stock the freezer for the month.

He Did It!

Without training wheels!

Hurray Josh!

So Big

Our little man is getting so big. At 10 months old, he's still doing the army crawl but this week he started to push himself to a sitting position and he just started pulling himself up. Yesterday in his crib, he pulled himself up to a stand but cried and cried because he couldn't figure out how to sit down again. Too cute.

Here's a couple of photos of Judah from a photo shoot Sophie took recently trying to capture a picture of him standing up:

He has four mothers here during the day. Anytime there's a problem, everyone comes running to help. He is frequently called:

Judah

Judah James

Judah Jame(ers)

Jude

and (credited to Soph) his theme song: Zip-i-dee-Juu-dah

Last Egg Cracked

Whew. We made it. I cracked my last egg yesterday. We've been trying to cut grocery costs by going once a month. This evening is my second, once-a-month shopping spree. I'm trying to pep-talk myself today. It's not the most fun experiences of mine (I try not to think about how many shopping carts will be filled). Yet it's good. With grocery prices rising and with the normal busyness of life, I found my spending way too high lately. Motivation from the sermon mentioned in this post and some of this family's practical advice, I hope to change my spending ways. I am not an organized person by nature, so this is good for me. Really good.

Hymn in my head today

Jesus Lover Of My Soul

Jesus, lover of my soul, let me to Thy bosom fly,
While the nearer waters roll, while the tempest still is high.
Hide me, O my Savior, hide, till the storm of life is past;
Safe into the haven guide; O receive my soul at last.


Other refuge have I none, hangs my helpless soul on Thee;
Leave, ah! leave me not alone, still support and comfort me.
All my trust on Thee is stayed, all my help from Thee I bring;
Cover my defenseless head with the shadow of Thy wing.


Wilt Thou not regard my call? Wilt Thou not accept my prayer?
Lo! I sink, I faint, I fall - Lo! on Thee I cast my care;
Reach me out Thy gracious hand! While I of Thy strength receive,
Hoping against hope I stand, dying, and behold, I live.


Thou, O Christ, art all I want, more than all in Thee I find;
Raise the fallen, cheer the faint, heal the sick, and lead the blind.
Just and holy is Thy Name, I am all unrighteousness;
False and full of sin I am; Thou art full of truth and grace.

Plenteous grace with Thee is found, grace to cover all my sin;
Let the healing streams abound; make and keep me pure within.
Thou of life the fountain art, freely let me take of Thee;
Spring Thou up within my heart; rise to all eternity.



Charles Wesley, 1740

Little Poet

Remembrance

by Sophia Mary Age 8

Remember the blessings that God gave you
Remember remarkable as I go through
Remember a memory from long ago,
Remember a memory that you know!

Remember the valley that led up the hill,
Remember the milking pan that you did spill.
Remember the picnic with apples and grapes,
Remember the fruit pies, remember the drapes.

Remember the poem and remember me,
But speaking my future, I’m as happy as can be!

Good Questions

Joshies, who is now 4 1/2, brought me Samantha's photo album along with many questions. It has been 18 months since Samantha died. But, for a 4 year old it, it seems like a decade. At 3, Josh didn't understand what was really going on. The first long car trip we took after she died, Josh asked if we were going to pick up Samantha. Now, as a 4 year old, he had questions:

How did she die?
Where was she when she died?
Did it hurt?
What was heaven like?

He looked at her pictures and said 'it's too far away...I don't remember what she looks like'. Then with tears pooling in his eyes he asked,

'But Mom, who's holding her in heaven?'

At that point I couldn't hold back the tears either.

But Jesus called for the children, saying, “Let the little children come to me and do not try to stop them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. "

Luke 18:16