Day 3: Snow

Isaiah 1:18 (HCSB)

“Come, let us discuss this,” says the Lord. “Though your sins are like scarlet, they will be as white as snow; though they are as red as crimson, they will be like wool.

I can't see a snow covered landscape with out thinking about this verse. I was talking to Daniel while we were out playing walking carefully in the snow about this verse and what it means in our lives. He just says "Oh!" or repeats phrases in question form any time I talk to him about salvation. At this point I know he has no real understanding of what we are talking about but that won't stop me from telling him! I pray daily for my boys and the #1 thing I pray for is salvation. I want them both to know Jesus intimately and understand the beautiful picture God creates of salvation every time it snows. 

I couldn't pick just one.

With as little as we get a good snow around here, today was definitely a nice one. I took the boys outside to "play" in the snow. Daniel is very intrigued with it but if his skin comes in contact with it AT ALL he kind of freaks out. Needless to say, the morning ended with D cozied up on a chair with his blanket and pillow watching Cars. 

Day 2: Ermold Life 365

Okay, so a friend of mine started this new blog The 365 of 2014 and it has inspired me to take the 365. The goal is to document the year with a picture a day.

 Now to find out how well I keep up with it. I don't have a very good reputation of posting consistently and I am hoping this will help me. I am rather excited at the thought of 2014 coming to an end and being able to look back on the hundreds of pictures that will capture the work of God in our lives throughout this year.

My first picture is this of my boys. Daniel loves his brother so much. He is always loving on him, giving him hugs, kisses, bruises, bringing him toys (...and taking them away). He also likes sharing his food...

I pulled this toy out for Micah a few days ago.
He is SO proud of himself when he walks with it.

Today, I let D have a few peanuts and repeatedly and intentionally instructed him to NOT give any to his brother (he loves to put things in Micah's mouth...). I was keeping a pretty keen eye on them both just in case Daniel dropped any on the floor (or went against my wishes) so I could quickly swipe them up before Micah got a hold of any. He has not been exposed to peanuts and I would rather avoid the choking hazard even if he has no allergic reaction. I turned my back...bad decision...perhaps it was a bad decision to let D walk around with a cup of peanuts when I know better...When I turned back around, Micah was mulling something around in his mouth. I asked D if he had given a peanut to his brother and he gave me a look of "oh oh I was caught." I promptly went over and fished the peanut out of Micah's mouth and took the peanuts away from D. Needless to say, D had a rather lengthy time out and has told me since that Micah can't have peanuts. HA!

I am thankful that Mikie is okay and seemingly has no peanut allergy. I am also thankful that he has a brother who adores him and even though it was against my wishes, he wanted to share his tasty snack and that is kind of sweet. 

Day 1: I choose...Experience!

Back in September Davey messaged me on g-chat and asked if I would want a "thing" or an "experience" for Christmas. Naturally, I ran to my coworker and told her what he just asked me and she said "Uh...your going to choose an experience right?" (or something to that effect) So of course I chose an "experience!" 

On Christmas day, Davey pulled out an envelope and handed me train tickets, a map of NYC and tickets to see  the NEWSIES! Needless to say, I was very excited! I had never been to a Broadway show before and had visited NYC only one other time. So on Dec. 27 we left the kiddos with Davey's parents and caught the train from Trenton to NYC! We got up there early and walked around the city for the day (Aprox. 10 miles after all was said and done...phew!) and then caught the show at 8. It was VERY good. 

NYC here we come!

Trying to find our way.

Davey  put the camera on a rock so we could get a non-"selfie."

The look of disgust is to hide how much he really enjoys my kisses.

I should have tried to jump like that for the picture.

Thank you Honey!

On the Move

Micah is officially on the move!

He started the scoot/army crawl about two weeks before Thanksgiving and is now a master crawler.

Those eyes.

He enjoys his time in the walker. Especially when the tray if filled with puffs.

Oh, and he stands/pulls himself up now too.

Yay me!

It will never cease to amaze me how quickly a child grows and develops. I love to watch the little wheels turn in their heads as they figure out how to move themselves forward or pick something up for the first time. It is such a blessing to be a mom.

My Big Helper

 Today, D and I vacuumed (or swept as we always said growing up) the floors and the couch. I am such a firm believer in teaching them young! When ever I vacuum I usually let him help me hold the handle while we push "forward and backward." Today I let him do some of  it on his own! He was thrilled! This is definitely the time to start teaching your kids how to care for their home- when they still want to be just like mommy and daddy and are excited about it! He was actually sad when it was time to put the vacuum away.

Am I the only one who does this?

Then I pulled out the bucket and taught him how to wash the floors.

dip. squeeze. scrub.

He especially like the squeezing part. He didn't quite get that your supposed to squeeze the excess water in the bucket but that made for more fun when it was time to scrub!

A Delicate Balance

Investing in my relationship with Christ while keeping up with the demands of life, that so easily take over every minute of my day is, well, difficult. Once upon a time I would get up early before work and spend 30 minutes in scripture and in prayer. I took time to really invest in a relationship with the One who holds my life in His hands. And if not in the morning, then at night before bed. 

That was before kids. 

It's different now. Yes, I should make time for God before family, work, etc... It's not so easy though, when your 2 year old demands every ounce of energy you have left after work and your infant demands all of your night leaving...zero energy. When all is said and done I often have nothing left for God. Or at least that's how I feel. I will try to get in a few minutes of scripture reading here and there but it seems like I am just going through the motions. It's easy for me to get frustrated with myself because "it's not enough" and end up spending no time at all because "God deserves more." How do I give 100% to everything? 

It is a delicate balance. One that seems too difficult to achieve sometimes.

 In this season of life my children need a lot from me. I have this vision in my head from childhood of my mother closing her door during the day or retreating to her car and spending hours alone with God studying scripture and journaling pages in prayer. I need to remember that though it may be the ideal, it is not exactly possible for me at this time. Any time I can spend with God is valuable in building our relationship. For me this means talking to God any chance I get and even staying up "late" (we go to bed around 8-9 around here) after everyone has gone to bed and pushing through my exhaustion to spend time with my Lord. He is worth that effort.

Recently I began reading through the Psalms and Psalm 3 has really resonated with me. Psalm 3:3-5 says  "But You, Lord, are a shield around me, my glory, and the One who lifts up my head. I cry aloud to the Lord, and He answers me from His holy mountain. I lie down and sleep; I wake again because the Lord sustains me."

The Lord is my sustainer. I may be tired and worn from the day but I only wake up each morning because of Him. He is the key to the delicate balance. He will get me through this season and through the trials of the next. I need only to lean on Him. 

Life.

In  2 days I go back to work for the first time since Easter. After such a long "break" you'd think I would be ready to go back. But, I'm not. It is going to be a struggle for me emotionally. I have had nearly 5 months at home with Daniel and 4 months with Micah. Those who know me, know that my "dream job" is to be at home with my children.  This little taste of stay-at-home life has been such a blessing and I don't want to give it up.

This year, however, will be different in many ways. Previously, Daniel stayed home with Davey or my mom. Since Davey is now working full time (Praise the Lord) I have a rare but blessed opportunity to bring my children to school with me. They will be just down the hall in the staff nursery where I can visit them any time I want....well, when I'm on break. What a special thing that is. I know so many other moms who would love to be home with their kids but have to work and can't have their kids near them.

With that in mind I know I need to stop this complaining I've been doing. Besides, as far as jobs go, I have a pretty great one. I may not have the opportunity to pour every ounce of my energy in to my own children during the day or be involved in other ministry opportunities that at-home moms can be part of but I do have a wonderful ministry where I am. I have the opportunity to share the Gospel with children every day. And through them I have a unique opportunity to minister to their parents. What is more the people I work with minister to me on a daily basis. I could not ask for better women (and men) to work with. They are not just my coworkers but my friends and my sisters/brothers in Christ.

I only ask that Christ would shine in me this year, give me strength when I need it most, words of love and compassion when speaking to my students and to their parents and plenty of energy left over for my family at the end of the day.