Amazing stuff

On the 16th day of December my daughter gave to me....(my gifts to Jesus)

My wonder...... awestruck, can't believe my eyes, questioning the amazingness of it all

Have you ever seen something that just hits you hard in the awesome department? The thing that leaves you amazed at how wonderful it is?  Well I have. In fact I get amazed at so many things. Things that the normal Joe might not think is very amazing.  I'm amazed at the amount of stuff that creeps into my house and scatters itself everywhere while I sleep. Those clutter elves are pretty hard workers and do a really good job. I'm also amazed and how many pairs of socks get eaten by the washer/dryer. It is so hard to comprehend how amazing that is!  Ok, I jest ... I am actually amazed at how blessed I am for having a wonderful husband and awesome boys. I just don't understand how me, a silly girl with so many imperfections, is blessed with so many wonderful things. It really does blow my mind. But how about this.....  God looks down onto the earth He created and sees this silly girl and He sees you too... and He says I need to save them so they can come live with me someday.... what shall I do?   He decides to send His son, Jesus, (now mind you, God has one Son... one!) as a teeny tiny baby that grows up in our imperfect world. Who goes on to tell everyone of God's plan  and how much He loves us. Then he dies on a cross for a silly girl, and you too, just so we can be saved and go live with Him someday. Now that is amazing..... and that is what makes Christmas so special.. It's about the giving of the most amazing gift of all time.  It kind of makes that sweater or fruitcake gift seem so insignificant doesn't it?   I hope you are all filled with God's wonder today!!

(pretty decorations on the pinterest tree ... www.jenniferhayslip.com)

Oh a hunting we will go....or not

On the 12th day of December my daughter gave to me.... (my gifts to Jesus)

My Best laid plans.... the perfect day, all the little details, arranging schedules, excitement for the day.

I'm a planner... in more ways than one. I like to plan our family's schedules (I am not a control freak....am I?) and I am a wedding planner. So I guess planning flows thru my veins. I am also pretty good at "winging it". However, I am not necessarily fond of winging it. But I find when I wing it, my creative side comes out much more fiercely and it usually ends up better than the original plan. (why is that?) So here I sit looking out my window seeing the slushy, wet, cold rain/snow fall from the sky and know that my plans for today to go hunting...for a Christmas tree... have been dashed. Probably. It's kinda that way with life too... my best laid plans might not be what Jesus wants for me. It's my plan not His that gets dashed. I know that if I listen to his voice I will find that the alternate plan, his original plan, is the best winging it plan ever! So I am going to put a big ol pot of Chili on the stove and see what transpires and if it is nothing other than sitting with my family over warm chili and crocheting up a storm to finish Christmas gifts it will be a good plan! What's your plan for this wintery stay inside day?

(beautiful snowy red house captured on pinterest by www.KenScottPhotography.com)

Past ,Present & Future

On the 7th day of December my daughter gave to me..... (my gifts to Jesus)

My Past..... the olden days, things done that might have molded me, memories, unforgettable events.
The past... my past to be exact, was an interesting one. A good one. It molded me into who I am today, especially if I learned from any of my shenanigans growing up.  But it has also etched into me certain things that make me react in a different way than most. I was a Missionary kid and grew up in Japan... that's different, right? Well, with it comes a world view different from the normal Joe..the american Joe. To add to that, my Daddy went to live with Jesus when I was only 8 and living in Japan. My mom felt that God wanted her to stay and finish his work there so for 8 more years we lived, loved and laughed in Tokyo. That added a different perspective to life even more. I could've turned out really weird ...(ok, never mind....) So, in my weirdness, I have discovered that even thru tragedy and loneliness and even a sense of abandonment that might be hard to go thru at the time, Jesus was using all of those events and circumstances to grow me, mold me , shape me.  So today in the present I accept all of the things life hands me with the assurance that I will turn out alright if I just lean back and let Jesus mold me thru the hard times. That makes the future so bright that I might need some shades..after all my future has some gold paved roads in it !  I hope you can embrace the past, be present in the present, and hope for the future... because we are gonna be awesome after all of this character shaping molding!

(cute little pinterest cowboys of the past)

Umbrellas and Bumbershoots!

On the 4th day of December my daughter gave to me. ..

My umbrella..... the thing that you pop up over your head the minute it starts raining. .. The colorful fabric stretched over spokes to ward off wet hair in inclement  weather.   People look at rain as a bad thing that messes up their day and hair. It's looked at as an inconvenience at best. But what if the rain drops were drops of blessing and joy and laughter and promises?  Would we be so quick to pop up our Bumbershoots? Our parched, drought stricken ground here in Cali is soaking up the nourishment  from the sky. I am giving Jesus my umbrella of fear and doubt.... no more covering and cowering under a brightly colored piece of flimsy fabric of self doubt!  I'm gonna dance in the rain of His love and grace and relish the feel of those delicious drops of blessings and joy! I need the nourishment. .... Will you join me ?

Pinterest rain dancers