Chilly Willy, The Next Generation

We had a fun evening with the neighbors, and Nathaniel visited the homes of the families we know. He is such an amazing, sweet, fun little man. Thank you, Jesus, for choosing us for him!

My pumpkin - then and now!

God is so good! Nathaniel is just as sweet as ever - laughing, learning and loving (oh how we enjoy the hugs and kisses!) more every day! I'll try to expound later. Right now...there is a bowl of ice cream with my name on it! :)

Purposed, Prayerful Parenting

The Holy Spirit certainly highlights various parts of the Word to us at various times in our lives, revealing new truths and teaching us new lessons. I'm contantly amazed by this. It's also so wonderful to see the Lord bring scriptures to life in a new way now that I'm a Mom. Hmmm...I've either already written that in a blog before, or I've been thinking it for quite some time...
A page in Nathaniel's "Story of Jesus" book tells about the little boy who gave his lunch to Jesus (John 6). Jesus took it, blessed it, multiplied it and miraculously fed 5,000 men, plus the women and children. I've been thinking about that mother who packed that lunch...she prepared her little boy to be a part of what Jesus was doing that day. She allowed him the opportunity to be where Jesus was, to listen to Jesus' teaching and to watch Jesus minister. She didn't hold him back. She didn't say, "No, son, that would interrupt my plans for today...." or "No, son, we are going to have a family day today..." She allowed him (perhaps she accompanied him, or perhaps she sent him) to be in the presence of Jesus. Brian and I are so blessed to have had parents who did the same. The took us to the house of God. The love the Lord, and taught us, through example, to do the same. They allowed us to pursue God's plans for our lives - even when the concept of "Master's Commission" was so very new and somewhat scary (thanks, Mom!) and even when it meant a move halfway across the country to be with the person God had ordained (thanks, Mom & Dad). May we always allow, provide, encourage the same opportunities for Nathaniel (and, of course, any siblings he may have. No, I'm not making an announcement. :)) We want Nathaniel to love the house of God, the people of God, the work of God, the heart of God and, of course, to obey the will of God. And...that isn't the only obedience that is vital...
I was reading in Romans 1 the last few days and was struck by something new (Thank You, Lord). In the second part of chapter 1, Paul writes, "The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who supress the truth by their wickedness..."(verse 18). In the rest of the chapter, Paul explains the various "wickedness" he is talking about. Obviously, this is a list of things we would never want in our lives, the lives of anyone we know or care about and, certainly, not in the lives of our children. As he describes it, these are the behaviors of those who "....although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened." (verse 21). What struck me was 4 words in the middle of the list of offenses Paul mentions. "they disobey their parents;" (verse 30). Disobeying parents made the list of vile, sinful, destructive behavior. Teaching our children to obey us isn't just a matter of making our homes peaceful or our trips to Walmart as uneventful as possible. :) Teaching our children to obey us is directly related to their willingness to obey God and to live in His blessing and protection. From what I read here in verse 21, it can start with glorifying God, giving thanks to Him, and protecting our minds & hearts by festing on the Word of God - and doing everything within our ability to see that our children do the same. Help me, Lord.

My First Haircut!

We took Nathaniel for his first haircut this morning (note -this morning, before Mommy had any makeup on. But, he is so cute that I am still posting the pics!) He just needed a trim on his crown and a bit of evening in the back. We could have done it at home (or so I'm told by many of my confident-scissor-using friends) but we opted to go for the "chair experience" complete with booster seat and adorable apron. The woman cutting his hair owns the salon and is a believer. She is so sweet, and doesn't charge for the first cut. I told Nathaniel that her tip came out of his allowance. ;) They caught some of his hair in a little zip-lock, which then affixed to the fun certificate they gave him. So fun! Our little boy is growing up! And to answer your question, Sharon, we hear both opionions. Some of Mommy...some of Daddy. Of course, Brian and I see more of one another in him than we do ourselves. :)

ready for a nap!

She's 16?!

Our oldest niece turned 16 a month ago! And while she is on Brian's side of the family, I've had the pleasure to know here since she was 2. So, both of us were pretty floored that this year was "16!" We brought her to Savannah for 5 days to celebrate her birthday, see our new area, cuddle with her cousin and, most of all, remind her that we think she is an amazing young woman of God! We love you, Mariah! I posted all of the pics at facebook, and I don't want to post any of her here without permission (:)), but here are a few of Nathaniel from the last few days. We had a great time!

waiting for the pizza to arrive at the table

downtown Savannah (on a cool day!)

The Ocean!

" See you later, Mom & Dad!"

"Back away from my french fry...back away!"