Exploring

Asher seems to be all about exploring lately–well, he kind of always has been, but now that he’s walking and we’ve been outside a lot, he gets to show off that side of his personality.  He loves people and yet he will also be the one to leave the group and just keep on walking.  He really doesn’t appear to have any fear.  He’ll trek down the halls at church.  He will wander toward the trees.  He will wander around the corner of the house.  Sure, he will get sidetracked sometimes by a tiny pebble on the ground or by the fun mud to put his hands into or even the puddle to plop down in of course, but he sure does love to keep on walking.  I love his carefree attitude and how he really seems to enjoy and go after what he wants to do.  If he’s curious about something, he is beyond persistent.  I love that.

Yeah. this kid knows how to love life and tackle all that it brings with a lot of personality!  He’s teaching me all sorts. 🙂

Currently!

I saw this fun style of post and thought it’d be a perfect fit for a Friday! But to start…a few fun photos from recently 🙂

Currently: July Edition

Current Books:

Goodness I am having such a hard time finding a clean, fun fiction reading lately…suggestions!? So, instead, I’m reading The Cry of the Soul: How Our Emotions Reveal Our Deepest Questions about God (such an interesting read!!), Living the Spirit Formed Life (I’ve been reading this with some Bible study ladies and there have been some really good chapters in here..we just finished the one on submission–way beyond the marital type!), and Attachments (Ryan and I have been slowly reading through this one and it’s fascinating to hear some more theories about attachments).

Current Music:

I echo “No Longer Slaves” by the Helsers and then Asher is still into the All Sons and Daughters Prone to Wander: A Collection of Hymns.

Current Guilty Pleasure:

Sugar cookies!  We made them last night and now I’m devouring them… 🙂

Current Nail Color: 

Essie’s “Over the Edge” covered in “Set in Stones” on my toes!

Current Drink: 

Water and more water!

Current Food: 

I’ve been craving yummy stir fry or a tasty burrito!

Current Shows:

Nothing…any recommendations!?

Current Wish List:

Another car, more trips, fun new clothes, and oh the big one would be to pay off the rest of the debt from my master’s degree–we are so so close…

Current Needs:

Belonging, affirmation, friends, and a fun night! Oh and life direction 😉

Current Triumphs:

Writing this blog! Running lately. Asher sleeping. Finally getting my physical done.

Current Things to Be Thankful For:

Ryan! Asher! Boaz! A place to live and a car that works. Air conditioning! Friends to text. An Africa trip to look forward to soon!

Current Outfit:

Running shorts and a tank!

Current Mood:

Happy and a bit tentative about wondering when Asher will wake up from his nap!

Friday Write

I haven’t done this in forever but Ryan reminded me of it…so here goes for a 5 minute Friday free write with no editing and just writing!

Topic: Passion

My friend texted me about passion earlier today and was asking if I knew what I was passionate about.  I loved the question!  I also was a little stumped by the question.  Sure, there are plenty of things that I can think of that fit the category, but how do I pick and how do I rank them.  Better yet, does it even matter if they are in “order?”  Passions are interesting things.  Especially when I start thinking about the Bible and about how our passions line up with our callings and our gifts.  Sometimes God really does call someone to something they are absolutely gifted at and love.  Other times, he asks them to step out of their comfort zone and do something they may not love or may even be really bad at doing.  Moses sure didn’t love speaking.  Paul was definitely a gifted teacher, writer, and scholar.  Jonah wasn’t passionate about going to Ninevah.  The list goes on and there’s no specific formula.  There is part of me that kind of loves that about God.  The surprise, the expectancy, the suspense.  What is He going to do? Where is He going to call us?

And there’s the 5 minutes!  That went fast…and there’s a lot left unsaid.  🙂

Hope you all have a fabulous weekend full of little surprises and ways that God meets you right where you are.

Nap time

I’m sneaking in another post during nap time.  The little man has been sleeping for a bit so who knows when I’ll have to jump ship from this blog post, but I figured I might as well pop in while I have the opportunity.  I didn’t even come with a well thought of topic or substantive thing to write about either, but I’m here.  When the little guy was littler, I wondered how all these moms seemed to be able to write blog posts during nap time–let’s be honest, I still wonder that sometimes!  Now, though, he’s being a little kinder and giving me some longer stretches of naps, which I will definitely take!

Lately, I’ve been mulling over vision, purpose, and the next right step.  God’s been ever gentle with me and patient both with my impatience as well as my stubbornness alongside my confusion.  Plus, he’s given me a couple really great images about the current season.

Yesterday, we spent 2 ish hours stuck in a hallway in the Holiday Inn (we went there for dinner at the restaurant connected to it) because of a tornado warning.  Let me tell you that I was ready to high tail it out of there and was sure trying to have a good attitude when the phones kept going off to tell us that the warning was being extended.  Not to mention that we hadn’t even eaten yet… Hungry, tired, and lacking a clear plan.  On the upside, Asher got to run up and down exploring and making people smile with his crazy noises, quick smile, and just happy personality.  In the end, we got out of that hallway and got some tasty food.

Then today, I read a super great post talking about waiting and the process.  You can go read it here.

And I also had a time of encouragement this morning with the ladies from my church with some sweet, sweet ladies who just exuded friendship, kindness, joy, and laughter.  They simply looked like the type of friends who had weathered all sorts of seasons together and were still there together enjoying the ride and ministering to all around them.  Pretty sure I want to be like them when I grow up and I want sweet friends at my side.  They also encouraged me so much with a word about feeling like I’m a vessel sitting on the shelf right now but that God’s really doing a work right now and preparing me for more. They said so much more but just that visual of being on the shelf waiting so resonated with me.  I’m thankful for a God who sees me, speaks to me, provides encouragement, exhortation, and confirmation about this season I’m walking out.

The little guy is sleeping still but I’m ready to go read a book or journal or something else fun.  Maybe even sneak in a walk or a run later too or oh never mind somebody woke up!

Hope you’re all having a fun Monday 🙂

Friday Fun

I’m super ready for the weekend!  We have some fun things planned and some nice down time that will likely happen too.  This week has felt more back to normal after the rush of VBS and then Asher’s birthday party.  The little guy is napping right now too so I’m enjoying the quiet from my seat by the window.

We even snuck in a 2 mile run earlier today, which was hot, hot, hot.  I thought about running to the nearby playground but ended up going toward the lake.  I think that ended up being a good choice since I doubt we would have wanted to stay and play in the heat.  Even Boaz was seeking out any shade he could find.  He’s pretty funny when he will run to the other side of the road to run in the shade.  I don’t blame him!

I’ve also been getting better at adding in variety for meals.  Today, we’ve (mostly Asher and I–but Boaz likes to sneak a few bites too) eaten eggs, cottage cheese, blueberries, bananas, cheese sandwiches, Annie’s bunnies, and some milk.  Not bad for a Friday 🙂 We have jicama to make into fries too still!  The jicama has been sitting waiting for us.

So there you have it.  A more “real” blog post rather than my usual book reviews or Asher updates.

To top it off, here are some answers from a fun A to Z survey:

Age: 29

Biggest Fear: Hm…heights or small spaces or not doing anything with my life

Current Time: 4:17 p.m.

Drink you had last: Water and then before that chocolate milk

Easiest person to talk to: Ryan

Favorite Song: I have tons, but lately I’m loving “No Longer Slaves”

Grossest Memory: There are a lot of gross things. Today the grossest thing I saw was a dead snake.

Hometown: Alexandria

In love with: God, Ryan, Asher, Boaz

Jealous of: people who travel all over, people who have the things/relationships I (think) I want 🙂

Kind of Ice Cream: Vanilla, White Chocolate, Mint Chocolate Cookie, Pistachio Pistachio, Breyer’s Natural Vanilla, Ben & Jerry’s

Longest Relationship: Ha, my family or Ryan 🙂

Middle Name: Rose

Number of Siblings: 2 brothers

One Word: Fun

Person You Spoke to Last on the Phone: Ryan

Question You’re Always Asked: How old is he? (referring to Asher)

Reason to Smile: Asher, Ryan, Boaz, sunshine, ice cream

Song You Last Sang: Stronger or I Just Can’t Wait to Be King–came up on shuffle while on my run

Time You Woke Up: 5:30 or so to feed Asher and then 8:30

Unique Thing About You: I’ve lived in Africa

Vacation Destination: Africa, Europe, New Zealand, Australia, and so many places

Worst habit: Leaving towels laying around

X-rays: Teeth

Your favorite food: Ice cream, white chocolate, cake, and more.

Zoo animal: Giraffe

And of course, a few fun pictures for you all 🙂

Believe Storybook

Two reviews in a day! I’m on a roll 🙂 And I even have started Asher’s 1 year update…so that might be coming later too!

I was pleasantly surprised when I received the Believe Storybook!  I had ordered this one to review thinking that it could be fun to use with Asher and to check out if it would be another good resource for church.  The book is big and super nice!  I was expecting it to be smaller and not as nice quality so this was a bonus!  The illustrations are simple, but relevant to the stories included.  They aren’t flashy or overdone, which I appreciate.

The format of the book is also different than many other storybook bibles that I’ve seen.  The book is divided into three sections of “think, act, be like Jesus” and then the chapters are based on themes.  For example, one chapter in the “be” section focuses on patience and includes a story about David and one about Jesus healing.  The chapters incorporate both the Old Testament and the New Testament while adding in Key Ideas and Key Verses.  I love that this is different from the typical storybook that goes through the “popular” stories from the Bible in chronological order.  Adding in the connection of the Old Testament and the New Testament is great for kids too.  Some of the wording can be a little cheesy for my liking, which is fairly true for a lot of kids books.

Mostly, though, I’ve enjoyed the stories that I’ve read and have found them to be kid friendly.  I would say this would be a good read for elementary aged kids or maybe as family devotions.  Also, as expected I did find a few theological points that leaned one way or another but most were written in a way that could be explained.  Mostly, I’m excited to have another resource with a fun format to be able to use with kids and to learn from myself!

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookLook Bloggers <http://booklookbloggers.com&gt; book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html&gt; : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Women Are Scary

I requested this book to review mainly because I thought it looked humorous (I mean really there are cake pops on the front cover with a bite out of one…that has to mean funny!) and because I thought it would be an interesting read on finding mom friends.  A year into this mom gig and I’ll admit that it is like what Melanie Dale calls it an “awkward adventure.”  There have been super fun and funny moments with others moms and some awkward crash and burn, run for the hills.  Melanie sets out to describe finding mom friends by using a baseball theme.  She shares about the different types of friends using the metaphor of bases.  Fourth base friends are the lifelong friends you don’t let go, the ones who get you and love you.  First base is much more a let’s try this out and we see each other at similar places.

I wanted to like this book even more, but I’m not quite as into the humor as I hoped.  I got a little “eh” about some chapters.  Other chapters though hit home and delve a little deeper.  I did take a while to read this one too…for some reason I had a hard time getting fully immersed into the storyline/chapters.  There were some “how to” chapters and some “me too” chapters mixed throughout.  I would say to expect to get some solid ideas on how to enter the adventure of creating mom relationships as well as to gain some reminders that if it’s hard and awkward…you’re not alone.  The book added a few real life stories, which were at times fun to read.   All in all, if you like humor and are a mom, this might be a fun read for you.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookLook Bloggers <http://booklookbloggers.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”