Monday, April 29, 2013

Multitude Monday {double feature}

Here's my continuing Multitude Monday post which is part of a series started years ago on Ann's wonderful, amazing blog that is a favorite of mine. If you've never checked it out, do yourself a favor and click on over. She's an amazing, gifted writer, a wonderful friend and an inspiration (not to mention a mother of 6)!

"One Thousand Gifts"::
3189. Mom's night at preschool
3190. Anna's bravery for her Kindergarten shots
3191. some great finds at the annual "garage sale" at our school
3192. a fabulous CSC banquet (one of my favorite nights of the year)
3193. my longest run ever (over 6 miles)
3194. 1st thru 4th grade talent show :: so entertaining!
3195. middle school open house with Rebekah
3196. my book club girls (what a blessing!)
3197. spring weather . . . finally!
3198. trampoline back up again in the yard
3199. clothes hanging on the line
3200. a really, really good book
3201. a freshly vacuumed house (thanks Mom!)
3202. a playdate for the 2 littles and a bit of time to myself
3203. the college-aged girl with her Bible and open journal on the table at Starbucks, writing away like crazy. 
3204. birds chirping outside the window during my early morning quiet time
3205. well-deserved good news for a dear friend
3206. powerful words
3207. 60's and sunshine
3208. Rebekah reading "Charlie and Lola" to Sara before school
3209. dinner at my parents
3210. chats with friends
3211. our basement filled with kids watching a movie on Saturday night
3212. a productive morning
3213. washing and packing up all the winter gear!
3214. 18 years today since he asked and I said yes

May you realize all the blessings the Lord brings your way and take the time to make note of them. (you'll be glad that you did!)

Friday, April 19, 2013

eight {and a bit of Flashback Friday}

this crazy-haired baby
turns 8 today!
Oh how the years go by . . . 
Happy Birthday, Joe!
We love you lots!

Monday, April 15, 2013

Here's my continuing Multitude Monday post which is part of a series started years ago on Ann's wonderful, amazing blog that is a favorite of mine. If you've never checked it out, do yourself a favor and click on over. She's an amazing, gifted writer, a wonderful friend and an inspiration (not to mention a mother of 6)!

"One Thousand Gifts"::

3174. free Starbucks :: I ordered at the drive thru and when I got to the window the guy informed me that their computers were down, so they couldn't ring me up. They could still make my latte, they just had no way of charging me for it. How great is that?
3175. a new babysitting job for Bekah
3176. 1/2 way through Kirb work trip and no major problems
3177. Kirb getting back home safely
3178. parenting with a partner again :: so much easier as a team!
3179. listening to my kiddos perform :: Bekah singing and Jake on the trumpet
3180. a super fun night with TONS of friends at a girlfriends annual gathering with probably close to 100 other ladies (my once-a-year night when I stay out WAY, WAY past my bedtime)
3181. having my parents over for lunch
3182. a nap on a cold, gloomy Sunday afternoon (following my late night)
3183. hearing from the mom who drives Jacob to jazz band 2 mornings a month what a nice boy she thinks he is (who doesn't love hearing good things about their kids?)
3184. friends who give our kids rides to stuff
3185. a hearty conversation with a girlfriend about running :: it amazes me that I would actually choose to carry on a conversation about that particular topic at all!
3186. waking up to NO fresh snow on the ground for the first time in a lot of days :: there's still plenty of the white stuff on the ground, but no new snow overnight for once!
3187. cross things off my to-do list
3188. taking time to make some cards :: it had been a LONG time since I had done that. I almost forgot how much I like it!

May you realize all the blessings the Lord brings your way and take the time to make note of them. (you'll be glad that you did!)

Friday, April 12, 2013

flashback friday

Joey the 2-headed giraffe boy . . . wearing tap shoes . . . in our snow-free yard (it is FAR from snow free today!)
April 2009, age 4

Monday, April 8, 2013

multitude monday

Here's my continuing Multitude Monday post which is part of a series started years ago on Ann's wonderful, amazing blog that is a favorite of mine. If you've never checked it out, do yourself a favor and click on over. She's an amazing, gifted writer, a wonderful friend and an inspiration (not to mention a mother of 6)!

"One Thousand Gifts"::

3153. our REI dividend arriving right when we needed new rain boots :: perfect timing!
3154. packing up
3155. the amazing, fabulous, genuine, caring, smart men that teach 5th grade at Falcon
3156. a great 3-day trip to the Audubon with Lydia's class
3157. such a nice group of 5th graders to spend 3 days with
3158. making the "Ort Hall of Fame" for the first time ever in Falcon Heights history (our group went 4 meals with ZERO food waste . . . our teachers and a few dads were more than willing to "take one for the team" a time or two and clean up some trays, I'm sure)
3159. seeing kids challenge themselves, even when they're a bit scared :: at the end they are so glad they did it
3160. watching the kids genuinely encourage each other, even kids who aren't friends with each other
3161. the 4 fabulous girls I had the pleasure of bunking up with
3162. learning to use a compass ("Put Red in the Shed and follow Fred")
3163. being home again
3164. Face Time
3165. sunshine
3166. snuggles with Joe who was home sick from church
3167. getting in a run between rain showers
3168. a friend of mine drove by me when I was out running, slowed WAY down, opened her window and starting singing "Hey Shana, you're so fine. You're so fine you blow my mind. Hey Shana!" Made that last mile or so MUCH more fun and a bit less painful!
3169. my dad pitching in to help when I needed hand
3170. Joe's quick recovery
3171. a good nights sleep
3172. chirping birds
3173. our washer and dryer

May you realize all the blessings the Lord brings your way and take the time to make note of them. (you'll be glad that you did!)

Friday, April 5, 2013

Flashback Friday

Last year at this time our basement looked like this ::

I'm so thankful to be on the other side of that project!

Thursday, April 4, 2013

Bread & Wine

I'm quite certain that I've mentioned before how thankful I am to have been introduced to the writing of Shauna Niequist. Her first two books Cold Tangerines and Bittersweet were some of the most enjoyable books I've read in the past year or two. Her stories resonate with me in a deep place. It reminds me of the way I connect with the music of Sara Groves or JJ Heller. It's like someone has finally put into words feelings that I've had pent up for so long and could never express in ways others could understand . . . and then, all of a sudden, there they are right in front of me. Articulated so perfectly.

Well, Shauna has a new book coming out soon :: Bread & Wine: a love letter to life around the table with recipes. It is a memoir of sorts. Shauna loves food and loves entertaining and so many of her memories are inextricably tied to food and time around the table with those she loves that she combined the two into a very unique type of book. Stories from her life. Times as a family. Times of birth and death and crisis and how people always bring food when they want to be helpful and are at a loss for what else to do. Many of the book's chapters end with a favorite recipe for a dish with a connection to the story that had just been told.

No one who knows me (even just a little bit) would ever call me a foodie. I don't enjoy cooking, and I'm a picky eater. So I know it is probably surprising for me to be excited about a book that is part cookbook and is so tied to food, but Shauna's stories draw you in and her descriptions of the intimacy found around a table are something I enjoyed thoroughly.

Being the font snob that I am, before even cracking the book open I was in love with the chosen typography. The title itself had a hand-lettered look, completely with feather-like flourishes. LOVED it! And when paired with the sans-serif, all lowercase subtitle and authors name, it was even more lovely. So we were off to a good start before the book had even been opened. Now I know that "you can't judge a book by its cover", but a good cover sure doesn't hurt either.


Then once you dive in to the "meat" of the book (pun intended), it only gets better. Here are a few of my favorite quotes from the book ::

From the chapter titled "run" ::
But I have also long held the belief that one's tears are a guide, that when something makes you cry, it means something. If we pay attention to our tears, they'll show us something about ourselves. Against my preferences, watching people cross marathon finish lines makes me cry. Crazy, deep, ugly cry. Specifically, watching average-looking people cross marathon finish lines makes me cry. Professionals who finish in two hours are amazing, but it doesn't move me the same way. And not all physical feats move me like marathons do. I don't cry when I watch the Olympics or the Super Bowl. There's a thing I have with marathons.
 If you know me at all, that one is so very me! I'm a crier too. I guess I better start paying better attention . . . and in case you're curious, she did eventually run (and finish) a marathon ::
I got an e-mail from my friend Nate. Registration for the upcoming year's Chicago Marathon was open, he said. Was I still up for it? I immediately wrote a reply: No, not this year. Next year. And as soon as I wrote it, I knew it would always be my answer: next year, next year, next year. I deleted those words and began again.
Yes, I replied, before I could change my mind. Yes. I'm signing up. And I did. And then I dug out my running shoes -- shoes that had been to the coffee shop and the farmers market but had never been running.
Another favorite from the chapter titled "morning, noon, and night ::
I've long wanted to be better at accepting help, better at admitting weakness, better at trusting that people love me not for what I can do buy just because they do. It would have been lovely to learn those things on my own terms, when I wanted to, the way I wanted to. But we never grow until the pain level gets high enough.
. . . love isn't something you prove or earn, but something you receive or allow, like a balm, like a benediction, even at your very worst.
And as a fellow midwesterner, (she is from the Chicago area) I resonate strongly (especially this year) with the opening to that same chapter, which begins :: "Winter turned to spring just when we were sure it never would." Right about now I would like to say those same words about Minnesota and this particularly long, cold winter.

And from the chapter titled "open the door", we read
What people are craving isn't perfection. People aren't longing to be impressed; they're longing to feel like they're home. If you create a space full of love and character and creativity and soul, they'll take off their shoes and curl up with gratitude and rest, no matter how small, no matter how undone, no matter how odd.
So, I echo Shauna's thoughs :: pay attention to your tears, accept help, admit weakness, trust in love and let people see your imperfection.

Oh, and she also talks lots about babies . . . and you know how I feel about babies! (If you were at the Y the day I was on the stationary bike reading through my tears the chapter titled "hail mary". No surprises there. Baby stories bring me to tears.)

Tuesday, April 2, 2013

multitude monday {a day late}

Here's my continuing Multitude Monday post which is part of a series started years ago on Ann's wonderful, amazing blog that is a favorite of mine. If you've never checked it out, do yourself a favor and click on over. She's an amazing, gifted writer, a wonderful friend and an inspiration (not to mention a mother of 6)!

"One Thousand Gifts"::

3133. coffee with a friend
3134. my Bible study girls
3135. 5 years of Anna
3136. time with friends
3137. a wonderful, powerful, meaningful Maunday Thursday service :: Christ's sacrifice is so amazing to me
3138. grace, survival and coffee on tough days
3139. friends with the willingness and skills to help when you are out of ideas
3140. genuinely caring, concerned, loving teachers who care for (and teach) our kids when they are struggling
3141. Joe's excitement over Timberwolves tickets
3142. the depth of the love and sacrifice that Holy Week gives us the opportunity to reflect on and give thanks for
3143. 50's and sunshine
3144. running on a glorious day {and just over 5 miles . . . that's the farthest I've ever run in my life!}
3145. He is risen!
3146. the sites and sounds of melting snow all around
3147. Easter dinner with our family
3148. lunch and time to catch up with a friend
3149. friendships that span decades and miles and remain a great blessing
3150. my selfless parents
3151. Rebekah's generosity and giving heart
3152. fun, personal, hand-addressed mail in the mailbox {such a bright spot amongst the bills and junk}

May you realize all the blessings the Lord brings your way and take the time to make note of them. (you'll be glad that you did!)