We leave for our New Jersey vacation in 3 days ...
Preparation for a trip like this is nearly impossible. I don't really know how to prepare since I have no idea what it's going to be like. Our first 2 week vacation, with both children, out of state, out of their (and mine!) comfort zone. We will be staying for the first couple of days with friends of Andrew's parents, that live right on the outskirts of Ocean City, NJ (I think). Then when the beach house becomes available, we will be staying there for the remainder of the time with Andrew's parents, grandma, sister and her husband and three kids. 12 people sharing a beach house. I can only imagine the noise level and entertainment involved.
Tristan is really excited to fly on an airplane and find seashells on the beach and Kira, well, I've tried to prepare her, but she really has no idea what's happening. She's such a little delight and I'm sure she will light up the airplane with her big eyes, gorgeous smile, and high pitched squeal! I figure if we just feed her trail mix the whole flight, she should keep relatively quiet. Tristan, on the other hand, will probably press the "Call Flight Attendant" button over and over and then take frequent trips to the potty just to make sure it's still there and not broken.
What I am looking forward to most is, time with my husband (2 whole weeks of no work, woohoo!), making memories with the kids, and getting to know Andrew's family better.
Oh and for those of you readers who only know my husband as "Drew" and are wondering why I am calling him "Andrew", well, ya know, it just seems fitting. Andrew means "strong, manly, and warrior", and I am really seeing that side of him as he works in the yard every day and fixes things around the house!
Sunday, June 20, 2010
Thursday, June 17, 2010
Healing
It has been an amazing week of preparation for our 1st Housewarming Party (which was this past Saturday) and little God-moments sprinkled throughout.
A dear friend and sister in the Lord came over last Thursday to pray for healing for my condition of Ulcerative Colitis. I was beginning to get anxious as our East Coast Vacation drew near, and we'd be sharing a beach house (and bathrooms!) with Drew's extended family for 2 weeks. Our time of prayer was so powerful and even the kids felt God's presence. When she left, I was so encouraged and at complete peace with my current and upcoming circumstances. The rest of the afternoon, I felt this strange pressure on my colon, almost like a physical presence, which I can only give credit to God's healing hand, wrapping around my colon and giving it a rest, as He begins His healing process for me. Since then, I have had more energy than I've had this entire year, I haven't been worried or fearful for the future, and I keep hearing God whispering to me, "Be at peace, child, I have begin the process of healing". Love it! Already I've been healed of my fears and for the first time, I am at peace.
Our housewarming party was a huge success, and an incredible blessing. We had all of Drew's extended family here, my Grandpa came, our friends from our old neighborhood, and our dear friends from church. The house was full of good food, conversation, laughter and little kids running about. We did a toast and prayer for the house and gave tour after tour, showing all the guests the hard work Drew put in to make this place beautiful. We had a "before" picture album of how this house looked when we bought it, and that was very amusing to everyone. It doesn't even look like the same house! A dear couple from our church prayed over our house as the party came to a close (10pm!), and it was so wonderful to hear their words of encouragement and to be reminded that this is where God has placed us.
I had my Grandpa over for dinner Tuesday night and we had such a great time talking and eating and hanging out with the kids. He even sat down at Tristan's little table and played PlayDoh with him! Tristan was elated.
Now we are preparing for our Ocean City, NJ vacation next week. That must explain my sleepless nights. This will be the first airplane ride with both kids, and the first time our little Kira will be sleeping in a different bed. She's very secure in her room and her crib and it will be interesting to see how she does in a new environment.
A dear friend and sister in the Lord came over last Thursday to pray for healing for my condition of Ulcerative Colitis. I was beginning to get anxious as our East Coast Vacation drew near, and we'd be sharing a beach house (and bathrooms!) with Drew's extended family for 2 weeks. Our time of prayer was so powerful and even the kids felt God's presence. When she left, I was so encouraged and at complete peace with my current and upcoming circumstances. The rest of the afternoon, I felt this strange pressure on my colon, almost like a physical presence, which I can only give credit to God's healing hand, wrapping around my colon and giving it a rest, as He begins His healing process for me. Since then, I have had more energy than I've had this entire year, I haven't been worried or fearful for the future, and I keep hearing God whispering to me, "Be at peace, child, I have begin the process of healing". Love it! Already I've been healed of my fears and for the first time, I am at peace.
Our housewarming party was a huge success, and an incredible blessing. We had all of Drew's extended family here, my Grandpa came, our friends from our old neighborhood, and our dear friends from church. The house was full of good food, conversation, laughter and little kids running about. We did a toast and prayer for the house and gave tour after tour, showing all the guests the hard work Drew put in to make this place beautiful. We had a "before" picture album of how this house looked when we bought it, and that was very amusing to everyone. It doesn't even look like the same house! A dear couple from our church prayed over our house as the party came to a close (10pm!), and it was so wonderful to hear their words of encouragement and to be reminded that this is where God has placed us.
I had my Grandpa over for dinner Tuesday night and we had such a great time talking and eating and hanging out with the kids. He even sat down at Tristan's little table and played PlayDoh with him! Tristan was elated.
Now we are preparing for our Ocean City, NJ vacation next week. That must explain my sleepless nights. This will be the first airplane ride with both kids, and the first time our little Kira will be sleeping in a different bed. She's very secure in her room and her crib and it will be interesting to see how she does in a new environment.
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
"In The Morning, When I Rise ... Give Me Jesus"
We've been in our new home for two and half months now! We got the keys on Drew's birthday, March 6th, and we moved in on March 27th! God has been so faithful in providing the finances for the repairs the house needed and the time needed to get it all done! It's been a whirlwind of events, including ripping out the old carpet on our own, painting the interior ourselves (with the help of our dear friends!), and dealing with critter infestations and fixing broken things like the heater, sliding glass doors, etc.
We were warmly welcomed into the neighborhood and met all our neighbors within the first week living here! Incredible neighborhood with such sweet people!
We've been blessed by our friends and family's generosity in helping us furnish the place, with new couches, a playhouse for the kids, bookshelves, dressers, a room size rug, lamps, patio furniture, a palm tree, and most recently a train table for the kids.
We're all unpacked and feeling more and more settled each day, as we prepare for our house warming party! The kids are in love with the house, because of all the space they have to run wild and they each get their own rooms for the first time! The first couple of days we were here, they simply ran from one end of the house to the other end over and over and over. Hilarious.
Looking back, the best way to describe the whole process is, "We came, we saw, we conquered"! For those of you that saw this house in it's original state, and persevered with us as we waited 6 months to get our offer accepted, you understand what I'm talking about! But also looking back, and most importantly, none of this could have been accomplished without God giving us the strength and the outpouring of His blessings.
Daily I am reminded how much I need Jesus, that even in the midst of so much good and blessing, there is a spiritual battle going on, as the devil is trying to grab hold of us from every angle. From Tristan's nightmares, to Kira getting wounded around the house regularly, to stress and busyness and sleepless nights. But, as the Bible says in Ephesians, "Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil". Daily that is my goal to put on God's armor and fight the spiritual battle for family. It's amazing how peaceful and reassuring being in God's word all day long actually is! When I am immersed in the Bible, Tristan's nightmares are gone, Kira doesn't get hurt as much, the stress and busyness burden is lifted, and I sleep like a baby. Thank you God!
We were warmly welcomed into the neighborhood and met all our neighbors within the first week living here! Incredible neighborhood with such sweet people!
We've been blessed by our friends and family's generosity in helping us furnish the place, with new couches, a playhouse for the kids, bookshelves, dressers, a room size rug, lamps, patio furniture, a palm tree, and most recently a train table for the kids.
We're all unpacked and feeling more and more settled each day, as we prepare for our house warming party! The kids are in love with the house, because of all the space they have to run wild and they each get their own rooms for the first time! The first couple of days we were here, they simply ran from one end of the house to the other end over and over and over. Hilarious.
Looking back, the best way to describe the whole process is, "We came, we saw, we conquered"! For those of you that saw this house in it's original state, and persevered with us as we waited 6 months to get our offer accepted, you understand what I'm talking about! But also looking back, and most importantly, none of this could have been accomplished without God giving us the strength and the outpouring of His blessings.
Daily I am reminded how much I need Jesus, that even in the midst of so much good and blessing, there is a spiritual battle going on, as the devil is trying to grab hold of us from every angle. From Tristan's nightmares, to Kira getting wounded around the house regularly, to stress and busyness and sleepless nights. But, as the Bible says in Ephesians, "Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil". Daily that is my goal to put on God's armor and fight the spiritual battle for family. It's amazing how peaceful and reassuring being in God's word all day long actually is! When I am immersed in the Bible, Tristan's nightmares are gone, Kira doesn't get hurt as much, the stress and busyness burden is lifted, and I sleep like a baby. Thank you God!
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