Thinking

It is generally not a good idea for a mother of two young kids to be addicted to reading. Because reading does not easily allow for full attention to the two young kids. I love to read and have been able to keep the habit due to nursing but that is soon going out the window (yeah!) and I will have to find other ways to read and not totally ignore lucy & nate.

I just read a book that has me thinking long after I finished the last page. I love these kinds! This one was Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer and it was a true story (the movie came out last fall). A young college graduate wants to sow his oats type of thing, goes into the Alaska wilderness and finds he can not get out when he finally wants to. It was tragic and I'm amazed at the press it's gotten and am hopeful it will be used for God's glory, in the end. This man was seeking something, like we all are, and that fulfillment only comes in the person of Christ. But he likely rejected that (not sure of course) and died in the end. Sad, sad, sad.

Other books that keep me going after they are already back in the library slot (I never buy books!) are ones by Angela Hunt. She is a Christian author but not fluffy like a lot of them. The Justice was a great book as well as The Truth Teller, The Awakening and The Debt.

On the movie end of the spectrum, Mark & I just watched Gone, Baby, Gone. We "discussed" the ending of this movie for days. It was so troubling that I had to concoct a whole new scenario of what I thought should have happened to be able to let it go!

Yeah for great entertainment...

Happy Birthday To Me

I got the best birthday surprise... a month early! Mark got my present while we were in Texas. Isn't it beautiful? And it's just what I said I would like, too! Thank you, dear!

Update

We've had a fantastic 2 weeks spending time with family and are now settling back into Missouri life (where it is still 45 degrees). I am so anxious for spring to come!
Mark & I are busy wrapping up our big adoption application with doctor's visits (lots of shots!), fingerprinting, pictures, autobiographies, etc. Our next milestone is a workshop coming up in May and then our home study begins!

Here are a few pictures of our recent adventures.

New Residents

We have new friends living in our front yard! There are also robins everywhere and we have some cardinals nesting in one of our trees. We also had a deer in our back yard recently (she was caught in our fence) but thankfully no snakes yet!

Meet Chip & Dale:

The Best Holiday Ever

Sure, Christmas is great and magical and you get gifts and Thanksgiving is nice with the yummy food but I think Easter is the best holiday ever. Because it is so not PC to celebrate Easter! Sure there is the Easter Bunny but he doesn't begin to compare with Santa's popluarity! And so in our culture it's totally fine to ignore Easter altogether. But if you are part of the population that believes Easter marks the day when the world changed for eternity, then you realize it truly is amazing!

We met with some new friends recently who were wanting a 'sign' from God, to have clear evidence of His existence. If you read the crucifixion story where the sky went black in the middle of the afternoon and the veil in the temple tore in half when Jesus died, how can you need more? (See Matthew 27:45-51)Sure that didn't happen in our lifetime but that is where faith comes in. Anyways...

Without Easter I do not live in hope. Without Easter, I do not have peace that if I died in a moment I would go to heaven. Without Easter, I do not have confidence and assurance that I'm living for something greater than myself. And without Easter, I do not have access to the Almighty and therefore can not release my burdens, cares, dreams, and aspirations at His feet.

It is a great time to share the good news with those around you..."He is not here, for He has risen, just as He said."

Winter Schminter!

7 inches of snow today (as of 2:30 pm) and still falling....

Good Bye February

I am so glad that the shortest month, which felt like the longest month, is over! We had our first hint of spring this weekend (although it is supposed to snow again on Tuesday...) and I am so thankful for change in the weather and the promise of things to come that it brings. It just felt amazing to just be outside in our backyard again, to run around and breathe fresh air. Here are some pictures from the cold days we've endured. I'm hoping this winter spell coming is the last of its kind but we'll see.