First Day Over

First Day of Bible Camp is over........whew, and I feel like we missed the mark by 1 hour. If we had 1 more hour to finish up the areas I was in charge of .......... it would have been so much better! Now to prepare for day two and allow the Lord to work! To treat myself to something good.........I am off to watch "Gone With the Wind" and drink coffee for the morning! Yeah :)

Be Accountable!

Gosh, some days life just is not fun and others, you want to soak every moment up. Bible Camp (VBS) for our church is huge; with over 500 children attending, 300 plus workers, plus all the specialty things that happen before and after, we have close to 1100 people experiencing BC in some fashion. I have poured so much into this year. I have been able to direct areas I have not directed before and have been able to be on the front lines of answering questions. I love it - I can tell this is what nourishes me and I enjoy being able to partner with others and create an experience that children can experience Jesus in. YET - it only takes one person, one phone call, one rough conversation to damper my heart. That phone call came last night........and I am still processing it. But as I do, the glasses I need to wear have Romans 12:12 stamped in them "Rejoice in our confident hope. Be patient in trouble, and keep on praying."

So on I tread, and as a final remark....7 more days to go!

Celebrate!

Now that we are head deep into Bible Camp preparations and meetings, true personalities start to shine through, and I am no different. I think it is a combination of greasy fast food for breakfast, lunch and dinner that puts the extra spin on things, along with the early and late hours that seem to happen because of the nature of Bible Camp and then children who have been spending way too much time at church..............but we are having fun!!

Treasures

As I was cleaning house the other day, I found a drawing in our school room on the dry erase board. It was perfect and summarized a moment of contentment and peace in our house! (It also tells me my daughter does not think I am overweight, even though I am!) We all know drawings can be very powerful and revealing. My day is off to a good start!

Enjoy the Moment

Coming off of a Graduation Open House and Ceremony that we hosted was exhausting...but all the open houses we have attended since our weekend and all the food we have ate is even more tiring (very filling, but tiring). On top of this our family is neck deep in Bible Camp (VBS) preparations, set-up, meetings, etc. Needless to say time and energy are scarce.. My heart strings are tied together and I am going to remember this:


"Sometimes you have to go against the norm, and just lay down and enjoy the moment." Our youngest has no shame in just embracing every activity she does and taking it all in. So as the overwhelming feelings start to set in this week, I am going to remember the above picture and just lay down and enjoy!

This picture reminds me of the simple days of life........when Mike and I were the sparkle of our child's eyes, I could do anything with the kids and they enjoyed every moment and life was at a slower pace. The past few weekends we have spent at graduation open houses and I am realizing life is going by faster than it did before.

So that I can make the most of it - I will tie my heart strings together and remember to enjoy all those unexpected moments when life throws you a gentle hug.

Let Loose

Okay - I just need to let loose and enjoy blogging....and even more so, because I need softer edges of my heart. As I was reading my Bible today, I realized that the Lord made all seasons, all things for us to enjoy and to take care of. Some of us (like me) are stuck in the taking care of, while others (my kids) are enjoying........so my term today is to enjoy! Enjoy the little things, the big things, but most of all everything.

Shelby has been begging to open the pool. Of course Mike and I were so busy doing other things that we did not take the time to look at her heart and face.....she did not care if the water was clean, or filled all the way up, or even if the water temperature was warm. She just wanted to enjoy....so when the moment came....she was gone and laughed the rest of the evening. So today marks the day I laugh and enjoy.

...tiredness

My hope is to some how find the energy I use to have ........ the energy to push your child on the swing, plant flowers, play a game. Some how I allow work and society to dictate to me what I should be doing and how much.

Life is so short and when you stop and put your kids first.......the harvest is well worth it. Take a moment, find the fries and enjoy!

Life Moments

The time has come to start the phase of life called blogging.........the adventures of our family are ones that need to be shared and yet, need to be given a voice.

This past weekend started our new phase of life called "Parents of a Homeschool Graduate." My heart is happy and yet, so heavy. You wonder if you said all the things you needed to say, did all the activities you wanted to do, gave fingerprints to all the dreams you had....and the list goes on.

Our first born - Michael has moved into the college years.......and I really am not ready. I thought I was, I felt I was, I told myself I had to be and yet, my heart is not there. So my first life moment will be "letting go and letting God" and our family will stake claim in the verse Romans 12:12 Rejoice in our confident hope. Be patient in trouble, and keep on praying.

We pray that Michael will stake claim in this verse as he begins his new journey!