A Dream Fulfilled

Mom2Mom at P4Square

So unbelievable that after almost two and half years of dreaming about this ministry... it's finally here! God has been so good in orchestrating all the details and assembling a team of women that can't be compared. Moms will be encouraged and inspired while the kids uplifted and taught! What an honor to be apart of pioneering such an amazing ministry!

Stop, Drop, and Rrrr... PRAY?

"So when the Lord saw that he had caught Moses' attention, God called to him from the [burning] bush, 'Moses! Moses!' 'Here I am!' Moses replied. 'Do not come any closer,' God told him. 'Take off your sandles, for you are standing on holy ground.'" (Exodus 3:4-5)


So many times I see little fires in my life that need to be put out. I forget that maybe... just maybe... that li'l fire is meant to get my attention. Once captured, I need to remember to stop and wait to hear God's voice speak to me. To drop to my knees because I am on Holy ground. I don't wait and listen to the Lord as much as I should. I tend to try and fix the problem myself. You know the old addage, "Putting out li'l fires" all the live long day. This is a great reminder to not be so quick to put out that fire. To just take off my shoes and just wait and listen. Funny thought... if I take off my shoes... then I guess I'm less apt to go anywhere! I have to stay put! Hmmm... never thought of that before.



So I'm going to try! I'm going to attempt to Stop, Drop, and Pray more in my life! Although. I will say. The picture above was one of my "li'l fires" I needed to put out today. Wink Wink. I admit... I didn't stop, drop, and pray at that point. No! I told her to "Stay put, so mommy can take a picture!" And then proceeded to discipline her for getting into the cupboard! SIGH. I'll figure it out eventually: which fires I'm meant to put out right away... and which ones are just meant to keep on burnin'.

Just. Like. Me.

I had MOPS today where the theme for the meeting was: Spa Day! We had various stations throughout the room where we could go and pamper ourselves. I got to soak my feet and paint my nails... It was heavenly. For my nail color, I picked this obnoxious shade of pink. I LOVE IT.

When Ava and I got home, we continued our relaxing morning. We snuggled. Played toys. Read books. Watched TV together. All the while, Ava kept playing with my fingers and admiring my pink nail polish. Finally, she asks, "Mommy. Can I hab pink po-wish just like you?!" Heart melting. "Of course you can!" We had the best time together. Ava's First Manicure! She was so giddy! She even went and stood in front of the mirror showing off her nails... to herself... and just giggled.

And then it hit me: My precious baby wants to be just like me. This knowledge alone gives me chills. The weight of that responsibility is pretty sobering. I don't want her to acquire my weaknesses... just my strengths! Oh if only it could be that simple. So with her little soft hand laid on top of mine... FLAMIN' PINK NAIL POLISH and all... I whisper a promise to myself. That I will be the best version of JEN I can possibly be for her. Cause I have a li'l one... who wants to be just like me.

Life Can Look Funny

Life can just look so funny at times!

It's been a while since I've updated my blog... mainly because I miss out on the two way dynamics of communication. Blogs seem to be just "one way" but I guess that's o.k. That's what Facebook is for and go figure... the phone! So as I ease back into the world of writing, I start with just a quick li'l note of how life can look and seem so funny at times!

I found Ava recently making faces in the bathroom... at first I didn't know WHAT she was doing. She was just staring at our bathroom sink, or so it had appeared. And then as I looked closer, I noticed she was making faces in the handles of the cupboards! I tried to hold my delight in, as I didn't want to interrupt her curriosity. It was absolutely fascinating to watch her just smile and then contort her face in all these ways so as to make a more unique and often hilarious version of herself! I was crackin' up so hard!

It reminded me to just take pause and just enjoy a different side of myself. I don't always have to look just right and strive so hard in life. Sometimes a little variation of who we are shakes things up a bit! So taking a cue from my almost three year old, take a minute and go stare at yourself in the knobs or spoons of life... and just crack up at your self for a few! It's hilarious!

Simplicity

I love this time of year.
It's a season where I have no choice, but to get my heart right and mind set on what's really important. It's so easy to lose sight of that sometimes. My life gets busy. It get's hectic. And the weight of the world starts to push me down and then my heart and mind become fixated on the circumstantial rather than the eternal. With Ava, I find that I've become more purposed in helping her know what this time of year truly means. What Christmas is all about. In doing that, I find that I've grown because of it. I'm learning. I'm being reminded of why I celebrate this joyful season.

Recently at my MOPS group, we were asked to share what special Christmas traditions we remember fondly. We shared so many different memories. They were all so beautiful. But the underlying themes were so simple. And they didn't involve talking about the coolest gift we had received. We weren't talking about the latest and greatest of the season. No. We all shared memories that involved our mom and dad. Our family. It was about going to church and participating in the bell choir. Taking turns decorating the tree. Memories of the candle wind mill and beautiful advent wreaths our moms laid out. It was about the sights and smells of the seasons and who we were with that made it so important.

For me, that solidified my absolute desire in making this Christmas simple. With my sweet Daughter, I'm challenged to try and not allow the world to influence my traditions with her. I want to create the most simple traditions. The ones where she can have smells and sights that trigger a sense of emotion that will bring her back to her mom and Dad. That will bring her back home. So with that, here are some pictures of us making Christmas cookies for the very first time. A simple tradition that I hope to maintain over the years. And one that she too, will share fond memories of with her MOPS group!

Ava springking her cookie with goodies.

It was relaxing watching her be so meticulous about her creation.
She took such care in making her cookie!

Ava was so proud after wards!
"Mook It! My Cookie!"
That precious cookie was devoured in less than three minutes flat!

Fancy Girl

I got to get dressed up this past Wednesday...
and it was so much fun.
Our church put on a Christmas At Tiffany's event for all the women.

Up til' this event, I hadn't had an occasion for getting all dolled up lately. And that's o.k. Although I must say, I am inspired to find fun and exciting things to do with my hubby. Things that would require a little more than my red "pull over" that I've been wearing since high school. Events where Matt would have to take his hat off and wear a tie. And places where we both were not allowed to wear jeans. I must say, that there is an added benefit to getting all dressed up... yeah it makes me feel good. But it's that look. It's that expression of "ooohh" that is always good for the ego. Like when I came out in the living room to model for my husband and asked if he liked my top...
Matt's expression was just what I needed for my feminine love tank!
He glided toward me and sighed, "Ooooh, I LIKE this!" and then couldn't keep his hands off me. That was FUN! O.k. TMI maybe but you get my point.

It's also great for the girls! I got to go shopping with two of my friends for this event a couple nights before. It was so fun trying on things and just helping each other by keeping things real and encouraging. What would we do with out our girl friends?

My dates (my bible study small group):
Heather, DeeDee, and Holly
We missed Steph and Amy so much!

I got to see other friends there too. It was so wonderful to see all these lovely ladies looking so beautiful. And the best part... was that you could really tell we truly ALL felt that way.

The MOPS Girls:
Holly and Jenny

The event was held at the Pioneer Park Pavillion. It was decked out in beautiful Christmas Lights, black table cloths and classy decorations. We enjoyed a fancy buffet of shrimp and other yummies and for dessert we had cake lolly pops. We even had Tiffany Blue lemon aid to sip on. Nothing was missed. We listened to this hilarious comedian... my cheeks hurt even the next day! It was just so much fun!


Ladies from my previous small group:
Tara and Sandie


This event reminded me that:

It's imporatant to get dressed up from time to time.
and
It's a blessing to have so many relationships
that build the facets of sweet community in your life!
and
Buying a really nice, form fitting top...
will make your husband drool.
Try it!