Humility

These are pictures I've taken with my phone. I just recently downloaded them. Some are from a year ago...

Asleep in her bed with ALL her blankies!

Just waking up with the crazy hair.....

Playing with her cousins.
Asleep after a FUN birthday party with Dora the Explorer!!!!

Loving on Preston or should I say "choking" the poor dog!

weight training! lol Long day at the lake....

Humility: we find our lives when we lose them to something much larger.

Pride: we will never feel better about ourselves by becoming more consumed with ourselves.

Insecurity: relentless pursuit of perfection.

Insecurity refers to a profound sense of self-doubt-a deep feeling of uncertainity about our basic worth and our place in the world. Insecurity is associated with chronic self-consciousness, along with a chronic lack of confidence in ourselves and anxiety about our relationships. The insecure person also harbors unrealistic expectations about love and relationships. The insecure person creates a situation in which being disappointed and hurt in relationships is almost inevitable. Ironically, although insecure people are easily and frequently hurt, they are usually unaware of how they are accomplices in creating their own misery.

(Beth Moore: So Long Insecurity)

"To find yourself, your true secure self, you must loose yourself in something larger. God shows us that giving, rather than getting, is the means to receiving."

My prayer:
Why are we so proud and foolish? We don't listen until we're faced with disaster, and then we come crying to you, wanting you to fix us. Help me to to accept these changes and not be so jealous and needy. Help me to know in my heart you are sufficient. Help me REST in you."

As I was reading this book by Beth Moore, I was realizing how she was writing about ME! It helps to see right in front of you, how you tend to be. My prayer is that God reveals to me and all the other women who struggle with such insecurities, that HE IS SUFFICIENT and HE MADE US PERFECTLY!

SNOW 2011...

Hanging out with papa.

"Testing" papa's birthday cake!

Mom insisted on taking a picture of the heels! Needless to say, she bought me some SNOW BOOTS! lol

I have been doing a lot of reading and one of my favorite verses is...

Psalm 112:7-8

"She will have no fear of bad news; her heart is steadfast, trusting in the Lord. Her heart is secure, she will have no fear; in the end she will look in triumph on her foes." ****God will work all things-no matter how difficult or devastating-out to her advantage. It may hurt in the beginning, but its going to be beautiful "in the end." The bible says "he", so I just added "she".

Christmas/Snow 2010

Kaley had a wonderful Christmas this year! She was sooooo into santa that it made me get excited for her. After opening her presents Christmas morning, she came to me and said, "I want to hug Santa." She couldn't believe he came through the chimney with all her presents and ate all her cookies! I think I was on the verge of tears ALL day for seeing how excited and how grateful she was!

Halloween brought many fun events this year and my face painting skills were surely tested! On halloween night, we went on a hayride through a local neighborhood and had a blast! Our sweet friends invited us along and we absolutely LOVED it! It's so fun to watch our children grow up and enjoy life together. I think us parents got more enjoyment watching them have fun than anything else. I was going to share the hayride pictures, but I am having difficulty uploading them!!! I need my friend Dez to help a sista out!!!!

"God created mankind to live in a love relationship with Him and to reflect His character. People weren't created to live independent from God. The law was written that man might recognize his sinfulness and turn away from wickedness to the Lord. How will you ever learn who and what you are without learning who God is."

How Long? How Long?

"Through waiting, God wants to open your nearsighted eyes to the vivid depths of His immense character. He invites you to nestle in the assurance that He is loving, faithful, all-powerful and trustworthy. He wants us to consider Him punctual and not a latecomer. Even if you never see God show up in the way you hoped, are you going to refuse to buckle or bend to defeat and despair? How do we keep holding out hope in God when we feel certain He's detained in some celestial gridlock? In waiting, we may not see the final outcome of our prayers and persistence, but deep within the caverns of our soul, God is gently tapping. While we pace and sweat it out, nervous and impatient for God to intervene, He longs for you to rest in His love, His compassion and peace. BUT you can rest easy as you wait. God will always weave together good from your dangling shreds of disappointment and weariness-even if, you can't see the lustrous beauty of the tapestry." (Proverbs 31 magazine)

See what is Coming..

"Don't look at what you see, See what is coming"

"And what is coming is truly glorious! We shall live as we were meant to live before sin rocked our world. We shall see clearly. We shall see Him for who He really is and we shall be known for who we really are. "

"So for now I will walk this path and run this race as best I can with this earthly vision but I'll be ever on the look out for a glimpse of what is to come."

**Kaley turned 3 a few weeks ago and here are some pictures from her birthday party.

Trying out the new skates...

Pinatta fun!!!

Kaley decided to "test" the cake to see if it was edible...

Fun with her cousins..

Opening presents....Of all her presents, LIPGLOSS was her fave!!! Oh my, she IS MY CHILD!

This picture was taken a few weeks ago, Kaley discovered a butterfly on papa's hand and thought that WAS THE GRANDEST THING EVER. So we spent 1/2 hour playing with the butterfly. How nice it must be to have such a child's mind and enjoy such a thing as a butterfly!

Things I am Learning...

First I will share some recent beach pictures!

I've had many months to think about my life and the direction it is going. I am learning to trust God and WHO he really is. God is beautifully revealing to me that:

* God did not give you a heart of fear.

* God will prevail. He will use everything to his good purpose IF you love him and trust him.

* I am learning to take my sufferings to him because he knows/understands suffering so much more than I.

* I no longer wish for life to be easier. If it was, I wouldn't have given my heart fully to him.

* Each day is a day he made and I will rejoice in it.

*JOY=being content, not happy. To be content with the blessings he has given you and nothing more. To run and not grow weary. To walk and not faint.

* Being a mother means lots and lots of sacrifices.

* My identity does NOT come from money, material possessions, longing for a perfect child or husband or even myself, medications, appearances...My identity is found in Christ.

* When in sorrow, it is only a season. God loves you and will not waste your tears.

* Experiencing God's discipline, I am able to gain a life-changing understanding of redeemption and restoration.

* To fear dishonoring God and being disobedient MORE than fearing your own unhappiness.

* We control very little in this world. All we can change is the way we think and the way we live.

* To take things ONE DAY AT A TIME.