Pre-K

Today was Bryce's first day of Pre-K. I cannot believe we have such a big boy already. He did great. Walked in like he owned the joint. Put his things away and began playing with play dough. Makes a momma happy. :)

Sure do love this boy.

Generosity

Ronnie, our preacher, has been talking to us about generosity.

Oh, how our church has shown my family so much generosity in the 9 years we have been here!

The time that made the most impact on me was when the church carried us through our difficult time at the beginning of Jayden's life. We were astounded. And still are. We received tons of cards, calls, texts, visits in the hospital, prayers, friends who took care of Bryce, our dentist came to our house one night to look at Bryce's teeth when he fell, a sweet nurse friend who wanted to be in the OR with us and made it work, a doctor friend who gave me so many words of encouragement and was there for every phone call to explain everything, people who even called my mom (who was taking care of Bryce) to see if she needed anything, a best friend who took Bryce to the doctor when he got sick, sweet friends at church who came to clean our house, another friend who paid someone to clean our house later, food, food, and more food for about 2 months, people at church were calling friends they knew that were doctors and nurses or parents who have been through the same thing with their child to call us and talk to us about it, people at church we didn't even know came to visit us in the hospital, anonymous checks in the mail, clothes for Bryce because he was quickly growing at the time. I know there is even more that I am currently forgetting, or that I never even knew about.

Generous. That is our church. I have learned by their example to have an authentic giving heart. They take less so that others may receive more. I am proud to be a part of our church.

It is so apparent when we start to treasure ourselves, our things, our time. But laying up treasure in heaven is learning to value what is valuable to God, and to not value earthly things. Studying Jesus and the way he lived his life here on earth is the best way to learn that.

"Relearning to stockpile in heaven will be huge for most of us. It will probably require a radical change in our thinking. But first you have to decide where your heart wants to be. If you want to redirect your heart, then lead with your treasure".

Thank you, church family, for being so generous for so many reasons. Your generosity will never be forgotten.

then

and now

Worry

That is something I do often. More often now that I am a mom.

Is Bryce going to like the food I gave him? Is Jayden going to eat at all? Is Jayden stable enough to climb to the top of the fort by himself? Is Bryce's constant night time cough going to ever get better? Will my palms stop itching, heart stop beating so very fast, my body stop sweating so much every time I hear one of them wake up in the middle of the night? Is Bryce going to like his new teacher? Is he really starting Kindergarten in one year? Will Jayden's heart ever get better to where he doesn't have to take meds? What is in store for the future? Will my boys choose godly women for their wives that make them better men? Will they, most importantly, follow God and the path He has in store for them? I could go on and on.

Every time I start this "worry questioning," (or I should say most of the time-I am not perfect, not even close) I stop and pray. I know God is in control, and I am not. And I am so very grateful for that. I would make a mess of these wonderful blessings He has given me if I were the one in control. And it takes the stress off of me. Yay! Talking to God gives me such peace.

I came upon this quote today, and am so glad I did. It was great timing with how I was feeling. It is pretty amazing. I need to hang it somewhere in my house (or in every room) so that I am reminded of this every day. Hope it encourages you like it did me.

“When a woman has a kingdom heart, she has an active understanding of what matters most to the heart of God. She lives in the balance of passion and contentment. She learns to love well, give without regard to self, and forgive without hesitation. The woman with a kingdom heart may have a duffel bag full of possessions or enough treasures to fill a mansion, but she has learned to hold them with an open hand. Hold everything with open hands. I don’t think we are ever allowed to grab hold of anything or anyone as though they matter more than the kingdom of heaven. When you hold relationships with open hands, then people come in and out of your life as gifts of grace to be cherished and enjoyed, not objects to be owned and manipulated. And then when you hold your dreams with open hands, you get to watch God resurrect what seemed dead and multiply what seemed small.”

Summer Overload

This is about 1,000,000 posts in one. Our picture uploader thing (whatever that thing is called) broke and we finally bought another one. Hallelujah!! So, here is what has happened in the past couple of months (not in perfect order)...

Grammy and Pappy came to visit.

We went to MaMa's house.

Making ice cream with Daddy

Goofball

Cooking with MaMa

We went to Grammy's and Pappy's house.

Crazy boy cousins

My cousin and fam came to Galveston for vacay. We went to an Astros game with them while they were here.

Bryce had his first dentist visit. It went great!!

We have had such a fun summer (except I wasn't a big fan of the dentist). I will do another post later of summer randomness.