Most of you are used to my spiritual rantings and mildly inappropriate humor blogs…
So I bring you something new on the blog today. I had intended to do a Christmas letter to our friends and family, but in the middle of training our new puppy and training the kids in general, I ran out of time. But mostly I didn’t want to, but I do now that I have a spare moment and a delicious dark beer.
Most of your know our story of moving out of our farm house a year ago, and while I was off recovering from illness in California. my husband Matt found the house we are living in today. This house has been an oasis for us. We are learning to be content in a beautiful home that we do not want to purchase. It is not a forever home for us, for this home doesn’t have much land and we are in city limits. I cant just shoot a struggling for life duck here, I would have to call Matt to come home, as I have learned my lesson in how to kill a duck in 5 different ways. None of which work, and all require counseling for the murderer.
I heard that from a friend.
While I am grateful for this home that has loved on us and allowed us to trust again, while we lean on the Father, we are still praying about a house with land for our children to roam free. Free range children. No antibiotics or hormones added. For sale at your local Farmers Market.
Matt wants land to build on, or just land in general…and I just want a forever home. A place I can remain until I am 107 years old. Then I want to be buried there, as a reminder to my Grandchildren , who will of course inherit the home that I am still the boss. Basically I will live in said house forever and ever , amen.
Family Updates, in a way boring way-
Rachel- I am getting all fancy with my publishing company, now filling out a press release form for my first book. Apparently they will alert the press? Whatever this means, I will never be cool enough to be famous. My eyes are tired of looking at computer screens, and I know this is just the beginning of me picking out reading glasses. I am now 27 and an almost published Author, which means I am old.
I am entering a season of wholeness, I believe for my body to return to normal. After the trauma of the past two years, my body has been on strike to work like a proper, healthy human. I believe I am stepping into freedom, as I taste it more each day. I am learning to relish in my childrens presence, even when my body is screaming to throw in the towel. Wave up the white flag. Hold up a lighter. Anything. But above all, I know who’s I am, where I am going, and what I am here for.
The road to your destiny isn’t just paved for you, you have to actually cooperate the one who paves it.
Matt- I speak for him when I say he is the most hard working guy I know. He has been really busy doing what he loves, and I love watching him work. His brain doing all these things I know nothing about while he draws out some crazy cool plan for a landscape design. He has grown so much as a father in this past year, he has stepped up to be my shoulder to cry on and my rock to stand on when I am so very tired. He is my constant encourager when I am weak. Not to mention how much I love his new hair cut. It reminds me of this one time in High school that he cut his gorgeous locks ( shaved his head ) and showed up at my place of work where I was a waitress. He walked in the door, I screamed and threw my promise ring at his face.
Sweet , sweet times.
Asher- Man. He has blossomed at his new school that I was deathly afraid of enrolling him at. He is currently the class clown / responsible one that his teachers love. I prayed long and hard that his first year in public school would be an outpouring of God’s grace, and it has above and beyond exceeded my prayers. Both of his teachers are wonderful, Godly women who teach him well. He is currently VERY into Basketball, riding his four wheeler and listening to Justin Beiber any chance he gets on his Ipod shuffle. I love watching him look after his sisters as their protector, and often times instigator of fun/ and or pain. He is so sensitive to my feelings, and often prays for me, and encourages me. He is my guy.
Rhema- Oh Rhema. We never know what is going to come out of her mouth. Today while in line at a restaurant she says aloud – ” Momma, your booty jiggles when you wear those pants.” I looked at her blankly, acting like I didn’t hear her, and ordered her ice cream anyway. She is extraordinarily particular about where her special toys are placed. Everything is “so so special ” . Meaning if I am cleaning her room, I must not misplace or clean anything that is special to her. The fact that everything is special makes it easy to clean her room. I walk in, make up her bed and close the door. She is so sensitive to the Holy Spirit, and often speaks in tongues while worshiping in the mini van. I love to hear her voice with a slight lisp singing to him only. She is a treasure, and a pistol, and we love her so.
Adah- My baby girl is now refusing for me to rock her at night. I don’t think she understands that she is my last baby to rock at night. I’ve explained this to her in detail, but she only stares and asks for a snack. She can be so selfish sometimes. Kidding.
Today I set up her big girl bed, and nearly sobbed as she laid right down to take a nap. Who is this child? Oh right, she is mine because she doesn’t want to be cuddled before bed, she wants peace and quiet and definitely no physical touch. Her facial expressions remind me so much of when Asher was a baby, but with a bow in his hair. She has a new best friend, our puppy bear that we welcomed as an early Christmas present for Matt. I mean the children that we have. Adah and bear have a strong bond, Adah kisses bear, bear bites her. Its really sweet actually. All the times Adah has helped clean up bears massive bombs he laid in the playroom floor has really been a blessing to me. I know its a generic thing to say that she is growing up too fast, but she is. Someone stop her and remind her that she is only 2.
Christmas morning, when Adah got her favorite and least expensive gift. Isn’t that always how it pans out?
Oh, and here is bear. Our beloved, stinky, wild lab puppy. We welcomed him with open arms and shots of tequila.