Snickers is a Noodlehead...literately

So we had fettuccine carbonara today, a thicker version of alfredo with peas and ham. I cut up little Snickers meal up pretty well, I used scissors, it's easier than a knife and fork when working in a small bowl. I thought I did a good job, she ate her dinner pretty well. She likes to talk with food in her mouth and chew with her mouth open. "Nom, nom ,nom Mommy I yike dis!"

Dinner entertainment from a 2.5 year old! Oh, but it gets better!

While Hubby was upstairs with Princess installing princess protection, (aka a ruffly net that keeps monsters away), Little Snickers was finishing up her meal and started saying that something was in her nose. I peeked around the corner and she had half her finger up there. I thought she had shoved a pea up there, I ran over and tilted her head back and there wasn't anything there. I had her finish and she was still fussing, insisting that there was something in her nose, then she started gagging.

So I grabbed a flashlight, sat her on the couch and had her show me what was wrong.
There was a noodle in her throat that was curled up and barely stuck out the back of her nose. When she sneezed, I could just barely see it in her nose, and it ended behind her hangyball and tonsils in her throat.

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW!!!

Usually I'm the one that deals with boo boos and barfing, but this is my limit. Mike thought that he could get it, but I wanted to take her to the ER. He grabbed a pair of tweezers and made her sneeze another time, we could see it in her nose; so in he went with the tweezers. I was singing 'Itsy Bitsy Spider' to distract Snickers (and myself) and out comes the noodle. The absolute grossest thing I've seen EVER!

I'm so glad I don't have boys.

What Bianca wants for her Birthday...

So Mike hasn't talked with Bianca about his grandmother. We aren't quite sure how to explain death to her. So we've just been letting her pray for her 'great-grammie emily', I kinda choke up when she does though.

The funeral was today, and I took a bunch of roses and gerber daisies from her bouquet. I put them in a vase and set them on the table when we had dinner, we told Bianca that the flowers were from Great-Grammie Emily.

We then asked Bianca what she wanted for her birthday.

She wanted one of these:

To call Great-Grammie Emily....

We just might have that conversation.

I am a Mighty Warrior! RAWR!

April 12

Seeing Us for What We Will Become

Judges 6:12
..."The Lord is with you, mighty warrior."

God always looks at His children for what they will be, not what they are now. The Lord already had seen Gideon as a leader of others, not just a laborer who threshed wheat.

Gideon was an Israelite who lived during a time of oppression from the Midianites. God had allowed Israel to be oppressed because of its rebellion. However, the Israelites cried out to God, and He heard their cry for help. He decided to free them from the oppression of their enemies. God chose a man with little experience in such matters to lead an army against Midian.

When God came to Gideon through a visit by an angel, the angel's first words to him were, "The Lord is with you, mighty warrior." God always looks at His children for what they will be, not what they are now. The Lord had already seen this man as a leader of others, not just a laborer who threshed wheat.

The apostle Paul said, "I can do everything through Him who gives me strength" (Phil. 4:13). God has reserved an inheritance for you and me. He has foreordained that we should accomplish great things in His name-not so that we will be accepted or become more valued, but to experience the reality of a living relationship with a God who wants to demonstrate His power through each of us.

What does God want to accomplish through you today? He used Gideon, with only 300 men, to deliver Israel from an army of more than 100,000. He demonstrated His power through one man who was willing to let God use what little faith he had to free a nation from oppression and bring glory to the God of Israel. The Lord delights in showing Himself strong through those who will trust Him.

Squirt & Squish

Feed them, Spin them, Grab them by their tails and toss them. They love it!

Sadness Today

We got a call this morning at 1:20am from Mike's mom. His grandmother passed away last night at 12:30pm. Mike was very close to her.
Please keep Mike in your thoughts a prayers today. He's off from work today and tomorrow and going down to Newton today to help his mom make arrangements.
I will probably be off a couple days next week for the funeral.

I'm still in a bit of shock/not awake yet. I will be thinking about this all day, trying to absorb it, understand and get myself situated so I can comfort Mike and his family.

We haven't told Princess or Snickers yet. Snicker is too young to understand, but Princess prays for her 'Great Grammie Emily' every night. So we will most likely talk with her tonight and kinda teach her about death and life and help her understand.

The dots are connected now, but last night, my Worship Team leader only had a very small core group of people to worship on Sunday, and that didn't include me. At first I was confused and hurt, but now I understand that this is what God had in store for me. He needed me available to comfort my family.
God is so great and I praise Him for the wonderful things that he has in store for my life. I want to praise and serve Him with all of my life!

I have free REIGN!!!

So I asked couple of people permission to write about them today. So I will share a couple of things when I get home from rehearsal today.
HA HA HA!!!! You all don't know WHAT you've signed on for!!!

Just kidding!
I promise I will be nice! But I've had a lot of you on my mind today. I've done a lot of praying at work, so much that I feel like I haven't accomplished anything at work!

So I will leave you with this to ponder...
In all of the tough situations that you're going through and that you've been through....

is your heart BITTER or is it BETTER?

Love Song

Love Song For A Savior Lyrics
Artist(Band):Jars Of Clay

in open fields of wild flowers
she breathes the air and flies away
she thanks her Jesus for the daises and the roses
in no simple language
someday she'll understand the meaning of it all
He's more than the laughter or the stars in the heavens
as close a heartbeat or a song on her lips
someday she'll trust Him and learn how to see Him
someday He'll call her and she will come running
and fall in His arms and the tears will fall down and she'll pray

i want to fall in love with You

sitting silent wearing sunday best
the sermon echoes through the walls
a great salvation through it calls to the people
who stare into nowhere, and can't feel the chains on their souls

He's more than the laughter or the stars in the heavens
as close a heartbeat or a song on our lips
someday we'll trust Him and learn how to see Him
someday He'll call us and we will come running
and fall in his arms and the tears will fall down and we'll pray

i want to fall in love with You

it seems too easy to call You "Savior"
not close enough to call You "God"
so as i sit and think of words i can mention
to show my devotion

i want to fall in love with You

my heart beats for You

Just another song that touched my heart recently.

Praise You in this Storm

I know that this is an old song, (thanks Tim W)
But I just fell in love with it!




Praise You in This Storm
words by Mark Hall/music by Mark Hall and Bernie Herms

I was sure by now,God, that You would have reached down
and wiped our tears away,
stepped in and saved the day.
But once again, I say amen
and it's still raining
as the thunder rolls
I barely hear You whisper through the rain,
"I'm with you"
and as Your mercy falls
I raise my hands and praise
the God who gives and takes away.

Chorus:
And I'll praise you in this storm
and I will lift my hands
for You are who You are
no matter where I am
and every tear I've cried
You hold in your hand
You never left my side
and though my heart is torn
I will praise You in this storm

I remember when I stumbled in the wind
You heard my cry to You
and raised me up again
my strength is almost gone how can I carry on
if I can't find You
and as the thunder rolls
I barely hear You whisper through the rain
"I'm with you"
and as Your mercy falls
I raise my hands and praise
the God who gives and takes away

Chorus

I lift my eyes onto the hills
where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth
I lift my eyes onto the hills
where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth

Chorus


Jesus,
Thank you for loving me, ME so much. I am so weak and give up so easily, yet you are alway right next to me ready for me to give my burdens to you. I love you and I praise you for being a loving God. Your love is something that I can't even comprehend, something so much more than I can express to you myself. I won't ever be able to match your love, but I will work on doing that every day of my life.

Praise You Lord!
Praise You in all of my storms!

Women's Retreat Weekend

I went on my first Women's Retreat this pas weekend with my church. I sang on the worship team and was really looking forward to this get away. I have been so absorbed in what was happening at work, the stress of my jobs, the people that I work with and the gossip that goes along with everything. I just wanted to get away and learn something from God. I went with an open heart and an open mind.
Most of you know that I've had really bad issues with a coworker. I was bitter, resentful and I hated it. I just wanted it over, for someone to make it all go away. I even tried to quit my job! I was frustrated at my director and felt like no one was listening.

This is my testimony of how God transformed me this weekend.

In the first small group session this morning, Lord your called my name ,to listen. I hear Kelly Clough's name in my head and am immediately overwhelmed. I say a quick prayer for this woman, someone I barely know. Someone I've hardly talked to someone that I'm afraid to talk to because she's Chris, my Worship Team leaders wife. It was twice Lord, that her name was in my head I teared up both times. I knew You wanted me to talk to her.
"Okay, God, Sure, I will. When I get a chance. If we happen to be alone or something. She looks preoccupied and I'm afraid."

In our first session, You talk to be about prioritizing. Making You number one. Putting you first in my life. I wrote: Teach me to prioritize You at home, work, etc. What will I be doing when I prioritize You? Will it be prayer? Will it be confession or forgiveness? Will it be Your Holy Spirit speaking to me? Open my ears"
In our second session, You spoke to me about attitude towards You and my faith in You.
In John 11:1-46, these are the attitudes from :
Disciples: sarcastic, Thomas" Sure Jesus...! We can all go back to where we came from. We almost got killed...but whatever you say! Yeeha!
Mary: Confident faith without embarrassment in from of non-believers.
Martha: Jesus says to her, don't be afraid of believing He can work miracles in her life. Don't react to Him out of fear. Be confident in Him.

My prayer was to change my attitude towards Jesus being in my life. To be open, willing and confident and hopeful that He will use me for His Glory, that He has a bigger plan for me. To believe and not to be fearful about how God's going to use me in this world.

As much as my heart believed that, I was still scared and I didn't want to! But He gave me this personality to reach out to His children, I prayed that He would give me courage and confidence and peace and a true understanding that I am doing this for His Glory.

And I did! After out next small group session I said, ", Kelly, I love you and you've been on my heart. I don't know what I'm suppose to say to you. I feel that you have a heavy heart and I'm just here to talk."

She told me that she was having issues with forgiveness with a friend. and THAT triggered my memory of Ashley, my old roommate in college. She was a Christian, yet I felt completely betrayed by her. I felt she was putting me down because she had more faith than I did ( I was just getting back on track with the Lord)

I felt that God was calling me out to forgive Ashley. To forgive with out resentment, bitterness. After all, Christ forgave us!

Kelly and I prayed together. I asked God to teach me how to forgive just like Christ forgave us.
As I was walking back to my cabin, the Lord put on my heart ANOTHER person to forgive.
This someone was my old boss. I had asked God to help me forgive my boss a couple of weeks ago. Someone who I also felt betrayed by. A very unsavory character. I was and still am hesitant to forgive.

How do you forgive someone who caused so much pain? Someone who treated me so poorly? I still have to be around him and still have yet to forgive him.


Lord, I forgive Ashley. I will not feel resentment or hurt towards her. Help me to see her as my sister in Christ.

Lord, Continue to teach me about forgiveness and forgiving Ric, position my attitude and my actions to glorify You every moment at work. Amen

Thank you for using me Lord, to teach me and to forgive me for my unwillingness to be used. I love and you and am blessed that You have make my faith stronger.
Praise Your Holy Name!!

I hope that touched you heart as much as I was touched. If you want to talk about anything I wrote about, let me know! I'm open to anything!