Multitude Monday

Multitude Monday is about intentionally fixing my eyes on God's blessings, big and small, whatever the season, whether life is good or the road has been rocky.

57. 8 months with this little munchkin

58. a morning playdate with a neighbor up the street... complete with traveling to Mexico via a loveseat "airplane," a "train" with chairs in the hallway, a "boat" box in the attic, dancing to Swan Lake, and art... who knew so much could be packed into less than 2 hours.
59. a "letter and shape" walk on a beautiful fall afternoon
60. french toast for dinner
61. a complete night of sleep for mommy
62. late sleepers this morning
63. a chance for a morning coffee and quiet time before the little ones woke up
64. a TOTALLY HILARIOUS talent show at our church on Saturday night... the laughter continues to spill over
65. a very funny daddy who helped bring the house down (along with many other very talented people at our church)
66. the anticipation of next talent show
67. checking some moving "to dos" off the list last night
68. a sweet card from my aunt

Multitude Monday

Multitude Monday is about intentionally fixing my eyes on God's blessings, big and small, whatever the season, whether life is good or the road has been rocky.

Here is my continuation from last Multitude Monday.

 
40. another bedroom (and a backyard)
41. Gracie's enthusiastic "Momma's back"
42. An opportunity to study Hebrews with other women
43. a supportive husband
44. a fun week with Nana
45. opportunities to pray for others
46. breakfast with just my mom
47. weeding out "stuff"
48. an encouraging email
49. a much needed talk with a friend
50. Elizabeth's morning happy sounds
51. a crazy game of hide and seek complete with LOTS of little girl laughter
52. two loads of "stuff" to the new house
53. birthday party at a campground with friends
54. babies who fall asleep in your arms
55. evening in a quiet house
56. a phone conversation with mom and dad

Multitude Monday #4

Multitude Monday is about intentionally fixing my eyes on God's blessings, big and small, whatever the season, whether life is good or the road has been rocky.

Here is my continuation from last Multitude Monday.

31. Weekend Visits from Long-time friends... This weekend we were blessed by a visit by the Boggs family. It was a great time of just being together. Our hearts are full.

32. Levi... Hannah's special friend. When he first came in they flew into each other's arms for a BIG HUG. It was the sweetest thing ever. They played great (and fought a little) all weekend. My little girl is very sad tonight as she had to say goodbye.

33. Eve... a precious little girl who has stolen our hearts again and we have only "met" her 2 times in her almost 1 year old life. Grace LOVED crawling around after her. I think Eve really enjoyed chasing Grace as well. I think there might be a budding friendship there.

34. Derek... A man after God's Own Heart. It was wonderful to hear how God is working through him in Princeton. As sad as we were to see our friends move, we are beyond certain that God has placed them, and Derek especially, right where He wants them.

35. Jessica... Our friendship continues to grow as we navigate these waters of being wives and mothers. She has wonderful listening spirit, asks great questions, and is someone who I appreciate hearing her wisdom. She is a great friend and I'm thankful that our friendship is one that continue to grow despite the distance.

36. Our Church... the service today was great, full of love and the presence of God. This community has so reached out and loved our family, I'm so glad God has called us here to give back as well.

37. Birthdays... We celebrated Grace's birthday this weekend and it was fun to watch her tell everyone about blowing out the candles on her cake. Daddy did a great job!

38. Good food and fellowship... We had a great afternoon sharing food and fellowship with some of our church family.

39. Books that make you think... I've been reading the book called There is No Me Without You, by Melissa Fay Greene. It is a book about one woman's answer to the orphan crisis in Africa. Wow. It is really challenging my thoughts and perspectives. I will need to put some of those into a blog post at some point.

Multitude Monday #3

Multitude Monday is about intentionally fixing my eyes on God's blessings, big and small, whatever the season, whether life is good or the road has been rocky.

Here is my continuation from last Multitude Monday.

18. The imagination of my eldest daughter and the developing imagination of my middle daughter. They have started playing "restaurant" with Daryl and I. Hannah comes up with the funniest names of food and Gracie follows right along.

19. Family vacations I wasn't sure how this would go, but as you can read from this post we had a really great time. It is important for the whole family to have a change of pace.

20. Coming home, even after a great vacation, it is good to come home and get back into a regular routine.

21. Northshore Parks and Playgrounds Last week we enjoyed our days at 4 different playgrounds. They were each great for different reasons.

22.  Friends new and old... we were able to connect with several different sets of friends at the various parks last week. Hannah is especially good at making friends with whoever may be playing at the park. I could learn a lot from her.

23. Good example of exercise set by Daryl. I love his enthusiasm for exercise and trust we both set that example for our girls. Hannah and Grace both enjoy getting outside and I hope to encourage that as they grow older.

24. Completion of the Gloucester Triathlon... for more details, see here.

25. New recipes... although recently I have felt in a bit of a rut with my cooking, I enjoy learning new recipes. I'm especially thankful for all the work my cousin, Krista, puts into developing recipes. I have definitely taken advantage of that.

26. New challenges... especially when I get a chance to think through ideas with other people. I enjoy a chance to grow.

27. The prayers of children Hannah asked the other night how to God to be in her heart. It was precious. The next day she prayed with Grace. Lord, help Daryl and I to guide her in your ways through our own lives seeking after you. May she seek your Spirit's guidance each day. Grace likes to pray before meals... I wish I could record her prayer. It is very sweet and I'm sure God knows what she is saying.

28. Community of Believers I so appreciate the church where God has placed us. It is a great place to learn, grow and serve. I love how this community has embraced our children.

29. Dancing girls and Giggling babies I know I have said laughter before, but this is specific to Hannah and Grace dancing around Elizabeth in her exersaucer. Elizabeth laughs and laughs and laughs, so of course Hannah and Grace keep doing it.

30. Finding Cloud shapes with Hannah... that's what she is doing now. I think I'll join her.

Multitude Monday #2

Multitude Monday is about intentionally fixing my eyes on God's blessings, big and small, whatever the season, whether life is good or the road has been rocky.

Here is my continuation from last Monday.

11. Good conversations long overdue... It was just good to sit and talk with my husband tonight. One of the things that drew me to Daryl early on was simply being able to talk to him. We needed to do that again tonight and it was good.

12. Thunderstorms I really enjoy hearing the distant rumble of a storm coming. The flashing and crashing of the lightning and thunder bring my children scrambling to my lap. Cuddling with my children adds to the enjoyment of a storm.

13. Cooler temperatures after a storm I think this is the other reason I enjoy thunderstorms... they bring the hope and possibility of a brake in the heat/humidity of the day.

14. Memories brought to life in photos One thing I love doing whether I am at my parents' house, my in-laws' house or my own attic is going through old picture albums. It is fun "discovering" again a picture I had forgotten or catching a glimpse of Daryl's childhood. We give Mom Olson a hard time for taking so many pictures, yet I think we all enjoy looking at them.

15. Clean laundry, especially when I didn't have to do it myself. Daryl is home with the girls on Mondays and he has taken it on himself to do a lot of the laundry. It is so nice to leave the house with a pile of dirty laundry and come home to it being folded and put away. Thanks, honey!

16. Reunions with old friends... facebook has made it possible to reconnect with people I met in Jr. High! It is fun to see where they are and what they are doing.

17. Bedtime... enough said.

Multitude Monday #1

Multitude Monday is about intentionally fixing my eyes on God's blessings, big and small, whatever the season, whether life is good or the road has been rocky.

My cousin at Corn rows and Meadows has started doing this every Monday and I thought it would be a good habit for me to get into as well and so... here it goes in no particular order...

1. Laughter of Little Girls ~ I'm so thankful that I have a house full of this. Hannah's laugh has always been contagious and now I get to hear it from her sister, Grace, AND her baby sister, Elizabeth. There are few things as delightful as hearing all of them laugh together.  

No babies were harmed in the making of this video.

2. My home ~ It is enough. 

3. The library ~ I love going to our public library and getting stacks of books for me and for my girls to read. I can get lost in someone else's life for hours or discover new interests. I love reading picture books to my girls. Hannah, especially, devours them.

4. The last entry leads me to Reading time. One of my favorite times of the day is bedtime, not just because of the quiet that overcomes the house:-), but because it is a time that I can snuggle with my girls and share my love of reading. I'm enjoying discovering the Little House series all over again with Hannah. 

5. My husband ~ He works so hard to provide for us and yet when he is home, he jumps right into the rhythm of the house, playing with the girls, helping with chores, fixing dinner, or whatever else needs to be done. He is a good listener and very supportive of me and my work both at home and at church. 

6. Anchor Leadership Team ~ This is a great group of people who have invested in the lives of the kids of this community. We laugh, we pray, we eat, we fellowship. Does ministry get any better than that? 

7. Sleep ~ I love a good night's sleep and I am SO THANKFUL that my baby does too. 

8. The Ocean ~ There is something really calming about sitting by the sea and just listening to the surf against the sand. It is amazing that I can do that by just walking down the hill from my house. 

9. My pastor and his wife ~ Our family has been so blessed by this couple. They are compassionate, wise, and a lot of fun to be around.

10. Water ~ I LOVE a tall glass of water. There is nothing that quenches my thirst like water. I think I'll go get a glass now.