last Thursday

in the excitement of my hubby's arrival home, i failed to post this...
so, my friends, i take you a few days back to my ramblings of last Thursday...



we have the radio playing. currently, the song "Restless" is on, and it's ringing my mantra. i truly do find my complete spiritual rest in God, but this word embodies me physically when my husband is absent.

i could have put my fist through a wall last night this morning. tossing and turning for hours, my final glimpse of the clock read 4:01. that's right, A.M. i almost got up to start my day, except for the sudden weight on my eyelids. so, alas, dreamland was found and the wall was spared.

waking up this morning was.not.easy.

in a sleep-walking state, i've squeaked out the had-to-be-done's for the day. i'd held great hope to stain our outdoor deck this week, but thunderstorm after thunderstorm have rained upon us in the past days (one, partly responsible for my staring at the ceiling last night). so, i take that as a firm "no" from God. i apparently wasn't supposed to stain the deck... at least this week.

God's also showed Himself gracious with a night of rained out baseball.. we don't relish the thought of make up games, but it allowed for at least one unplanned, peaceful night at home.

the past days have not gone as fast as we'd liked, but the finish line is in sight. when my Dave walks through the door it's likely that tears of relief and joy will surface, as well as imminent snoring when i finally wrap myself in his arms.

i.cannot.wait.

...certain he's excited as i, especially about the snoring.

heart poison

i saw it when the sun got too much and i had to open the umbrella, tattered as it is, it still protects.

there, this hive, small and delicate. noone was home, but the occupants were sure to return.

they'd labored there while the folds were closed and i couldn't see them taking up residence.

sometimes my heart is closed like that umbrella and darkness tip toes in,

quietly staking ground, building walls.

and as intricate as those walls become over a shockingly short time, they must be knocked down.

the folds of my heart are no place for something that packs such a stinging poison.

but i have to open my heart up first, asking for the cleansing, and the movement of the wind.

i fool myself into thinking that i'm protecting my heart when i close it to the Spirit.

if my umbrella's outstretched, the wind may take it too far.

i am a slow learner, a stubborn sort.

and the stinging flyer is persistent, back to try again, slipping in through the tattered and torn places.

i must make sure it labors only in vain.



joining in at

put me in coach

with three boys playing on three different teams,

it should come as no shock that we enjoy being at the ball field.

which is a might good thing, 'cause we are there often!

while the schedules are at times difficult to keep up with,

we relish each crack of the bat and that firm sound of ball meets leather.

it helps greatly too that the weather has mostly cooperated,

giving us picture perfection baseball days and nights. 

there's nothing quite like a night at the ball field.

the sun just set, with a slight not-quite-summer-yet nip in the air.

or a day spent in the midday high sun.

either way, watching my most favorite players.

it is invigorating.

all three boys have played their very best, enjoying each game, win or lose.

 excelling and enjoying are the perfect matching pair this season.

and Little Man asks, "can i play baseball for Jesus?"

.. wondering what that looks like ..

we've had some lessons in this during the season... some tougher than others.

each have played something fierce, hitting and pitching and catching.

and when they reach their dugout, they encourage and smile,

no matter the tale on the scoreboard.

and all we've asked is that they do their best,

and share the love of Jesus.

they're each braver than i, 

flat-out asking coaches and teammates alike if they know our Father.

(it is a wonder to watch a coach's reaction to this child's question)

and yes, you can play baseball for Jesus, boys.

everything you do in life, do it all for Him.



keebler elves

keebler elves make for some pretty sweet friends. i know this, a true fact i'm certain.

my Dave's been away for several days now, serving and sweating in Nicaragua (it's rainy season there and humidity is thick). it's not headline news that my nights without him find me restless, it's always been this way. those close to me know that i stay up until wee hours of night morning, in an attempt to bring on tired enough to sleep.

for some reason, the first night without him is always the worst.

so, on that first night, i sat in my living room, reading and facebooking. it was a little after 10:00 when the first text came. one of my dear friends, checking on me. we texted for a few minutes, the conversation somehow leading to how i needed some chocolate cake.. because every woman knows that chocolate cake is helpful in any desperate moment. my friend almost had me up and baking before i got the text telling me that perhaps there were keebler elves in my driveway...

..these 2 special ladies, who I'm certain are going to love this picture so :-) , showed up on my doorstep with cake! and, even better, they kept me company that first night, talking and laughing 'til very early the next morning.

i went to bed no later than i would have. tired, but with my heart ..and tummy.. full. so thankful for these 2 ladies, and many others. i am so blessed to have such sweet friends!

Beautiful Spring

To call these days beautiful is an understatement, at best. Upper 70's, low 80's, sunny, with a slight breeze. If I could order a forecast, it would be this, year around.

We've found every excuse in the book to take our tasks outside. School work and reading seem much more accomplish-able when accomplished on the deck.

In between subjects, we watch the "fluffy stuff" float through the air. We're not certain what it is (though I could probably look it up).  It shows up every year about this time, floating by, and landing in our side yard. Once landed, it's reminiscent of small patches of snow and glistens brightly in the sun's path. We haven't found the source of the "fluffy stuff". We just know that it lands here, in our yard, every year, like clock work...and it's sort of magical.

When school work is completed, we spend as much time as possible outdoors still. Playing and practicing baseball, of course. We're only at the fields almost every night of the week. What else would we do during the day?? :-)

Nicaragua..."Are you going?"

I've had a few questions about this, and I apologize for not posting something sooner. Please forgive me.  Below, you'll find out what's up with our trip to Nicaragua :-).

I know it's been a couple of months since I've mentioned it, (the last time in this post) but we are still going to Nicaragua. However, our plans have changed a bit.

About 2 months ago, our 2nd oldest began experiencing some irregularities in his heartbeat. The first "bad episode" landed us in the ER, then to our primary care, then to a pediatric cardiologist, whom we've been working with ever since.

Throughout this process, our son's worn a couple different monitors, run through a battery of tests, and there's been a couple confirmed diagnosis. He has a hole in his heart and is experiencing episodes of ventricular tachycardia.

At this point, we do not know the severity of his condition, nor what treatment will be necessary. They do not believe the hole in his heart is anything to be concerned about (unless he joins the military or wants to scuba dive :-) ).

With all that said, we are on hold for a trip to Nicaragua, where medical care is not adequate if he were to need it.

Interestingly, the Mr. of our staff missionary couple has the same condition, but has been treated for it. He and his wife have been a wonderful source of information, as well as prayer and encouragement. They were also the one's who were insistent that we wait until our son's been completely diagnosed and treated before we make our trip.

So, our family is waiting until September to go to Nicaragua.

Dave is still going during our originally scheduled time, as well as our staff missionary and the other gentleman who was planning on going with us. They will spend the majority of their time there teaching at the Bible institute. This will actually enable us to visit and spend more time at different orphanages and schools when we're all there in September. We see it as a win/win :-). (We're also excited that we have some more time to learn more and practice our Spanish!)

During the next couple of weeks, we should find out more specifics concerning our son's condition. We'd appreciate your prayers. We are confident of one thing... we are not in control, but we know Who is. For that, we are so grateful. God has got every detail of our lives covered.

Please also pray for my hubby and the 2 other men traveling to Nicaragua. They're excited about teaching and training the pastors there.

instafriday... snippets of my week

Joining in, for the first time, with instafriday at Life Rearranged!

Here's a summary of our week via my instagram pictures...

the week began with me thankful to be home. hubby and i had been away the previous week (more on that later). while our time away was wonderful, it was also wonderful to get home with our boys.

the yellow roofed building is still in progress. but, it's coming along quickly, and i'm not afraid to say that we're a bit excited about it! it's right down the road from us... i believe i hear a cherry limeade already calling my name. that's right, S*nic is in our near future!

this is pretty much our daily wear around here these days. if it's not being worn, it's in the wash, in prep for the next day. with 3 on 3 different teams, we're lovin' us some baseball.

 here's my "Blue eyes" catching... he did a fantastic job! beyond playing well, he wrote a song when we got home. it's about having a good attitude and reflecting God's love in the midst of a game.
he entitled it

"No Matter What's on the Scoreboard"

 although baseball's not our oldest's love, biggest brother is at most every game, cheering on whomever is playing. here, both older brothers are watching their little brother.
they are each other's biggest encourager's.

our oldest may not enjoy playing baseball, but he does love to golf! it has become a yearly tradition for him and Dave to play in a day long tournament/fundraiser for our local pregnancy center.

 he looks forward to, and talks about this event for months.

...AND.. because I've been MIA for a couple of weeks...

here are a few more from last week...

between a great deal and earned points that we were able to cash in, Dave and i got away together for a much needed respite. we cruised from Florida to the Florida Keys, then to Cozumel, Mexico.

 it was such an enjoyable time with each other.

 my view from the back deck. love watching the wake.

 the view from "our" table. we sat at the same table almost every breakfast and lunch..

outdoors,  overlooking the beautiful, blue water.

vantage from the hammock in Cozumel, Mexico.

Exquisitely Gorgeous.

I hope you all have had a wonderful couple of weeks!!

What have you been up to?