So Long Ordinary

We really had a great Thanksgiving. Special, special times. Those memories are now safely tucked away in our hearts for next year and years to come when loved ones and American traditions are very far away. I spent my afternoon getting out Christmas decorations. I love getting all those ornaments and decorations out each year. We don't have a ton of stuff - which is on purpose. We like to have things that are meaningful. We have ornaments from all over Latin America (and others that are gifts from friends or family), a "Quichua" nativity set, a toy nativity set that is pulled out for little hands to play with each year, stockings that are only special because of who they belong to, a "Christmas" quilt that I've had for at least 8 years... I love it! Brooklyn was really into it too this time and was reminiscing of Christmases past with me. She loves her bag of ornaments and listening to the story behind each one. We made some popcorn strings to go on ...

Wishing you all a fun, relaxing, blessed Thanksgiving Day. We're really looking forward to spending time with both sides of the family and to eating way more than any person should eat in one day (or one week). We treasure these moments with family, knowing that next year will most likely look very different. Be thankful. Treasure your loved ones. Watch football. Praise the Lord. Eat turkey. Remember what really matters and let the rest fall away. And you should probably take a nap.... Enjoy your day!

We had a great weekend. Sean and Brooklyn especially loved Mesa Verde. I was feeling pretty sick while we were there and really just wanted to collapse into a bed...which I did the moment we arrived at our hotel, leaving Sean with three travel-weary and needy little girls to deal with on his own. He did great! I'm just glad he wasn't feeling as terrible as I was at that point. While our night was rather rough, our Sunday morning time at the church in Cortez was wonderful. Such a blessing. We love our dear friends, the Maes family, that pastors there. What a treat to see them! But we came home feeling pretty sick...again. Sean and I have both been battling similar symptoms for nearly a month now. We finally caved and went to the doctor together. (What a special date, huh?) Turns out we have matching sinus infections. Aren't we cute? Anyway, we're on antibiotics now. I'm feeling quite a bit better. Sean is still in bed, feeling under the weather. I'...

Ate Calvillo's for lunch. That's our favorite local Mexican restaurant. We're pretty sure that Mexican food will be in heaven...in fact, we're suspecting that the Mexican food we ate today came directly from there this morning. Ay, la comida mexicana es la comida celestial...la misma comida que comen los angeles! We watched "My Life in Ruins" tonight. Pretty good, though not as good as "My Big Fat Greek Wedding." More than anything, I enjoy the opportunity to veg a little bit and laugh with Sean at dumb jokes. Any more it's pretty hard to find a decent movie to watch, though.... Well, this weekend we're off to Cortez, Colorado to speak at a church there. We couldn't be more stoked. We love this! It is such a cool blessing to get to share our ministry and all God has done in our lives with these churches - but I'll be honest, we're usually the ones that get ministered to. We almost always leave with our socks blessed off....

Watching the Veteran's Day Parade last week....

God is good. His Grace is sufficient. Much to my dismay, I realized I've been in a slump lately. Stuck in the mire of stinkin' thinkin'. I've been seeing the challenges of life and not the blessings. But the blessings! Oh, the blessings! When we were in language school in Costa Rica, we lived in a small house at the end of a dead-end street. It wasn't much. The couches were scratchy. There wasn't much of a yard. Cockroaches were quite comfortable there. We had to walk to our language school (it was uphill by the way). At first, when the adventure was new I loved the entire experience. But as time wore on, that hill to school got steeper, the house less inviting, and the whole work of living and learning another culture became altogether miserable. One early morning as we trudged up the hill to school, I was hammering Sean with my complaints. Sean didn't disagree, he heard me, but finally he said, "Instead of listing our complaints, let's...

Not a whole lot going on around here. We're having a nice, leisurely Saturday. It's a bit breezy outside with a chance of some snow. I wouldn't mind me some snow! We'll see if that actually happens. I'm dying to do something crafty today. Maybe get out my knitting needles again and see what can be done. I'm not sure. I'm not very good at crafty things. Not patient enough. I want to get it right the first time and I'm terrible at reading directions. That's a recipe for disaster every single time. I don't deal well with failure. I have a lovely sewing machine but I'm afraid to use it. I guess I'd have much more fun if I'd just get over my issues and try some things. But what if I ruin the beautiful fabric I've stowed away in my drawer? I'm glancing outside our big picture window right now. Gosh it's pretty here. Our home is nice and cozy...smells like the great new candle I got last night. Everything is picked u...

God is doing some truly awesome and amazing things in His Church these days. http://theiheartrevolution.com/

It's another lovely, unseasonably warm November day. I'm grateful for the warmth...and wondering when the real snow will come. I'm getting anxious this year for Holiday Cheer! I'm resisting, though, the urge to turn on the Christmas music. Normally, this isn't a problem for me because I don't like to be tired of Christmas by the time it actually comes - but this year is different, I'm overly anxious to enjoy all that Thanksgiving and Christmas have to offer. This is probably our last traditional holiday season for a few years. A year from now, God willing, we'll be in Indonesia. Indonesia. I still can't wrap my head around it. Will I ever get used to the idea? Maddie was up a lot in the middle of the night last night. I'm not really sure what that was all about. She did have a very mild fever, but she didn't act sick. She acted....AWAKE! I woke up at 3:45 a.m. to the sound of her whining from the living room that she was cold. N...

The past couple of weeks have been good. Very encouraging. While we still have far to go in raising our support, we're having some very exciting calls. This process is always so humbling and wonderful. God never fails to prove Himself faithful. And His people are the best. I'm loving this second opportunity to realize afresh both the faithfulness of my Father and the generosity of His children. Going into this we are confident that God will provide. We don't doubt that God is calling us back overseas and we know that He knows our needs. (Phillipians 4:19) But when it starts happening - well, it just leaves me speechless, breathless. I'm humbled. Completely undeserving. Blessed, blessed, blessed, and blessed. I wish I could earn this...but I can't. I'm grateful, though. So grateful. Thank you for praying for us. Thank you for believing in what we are doing and expressing it to us in so many ways. You'll truly never know how you've encouraged...

Sometimes, when a little girl comes home from a bad day of school, a mom just has to throw all the normal rules out the window and take her daughter to the Dollar Store for a bag full of meaningless junk....that means all the world to her. Brooklyn's two main love languages are Quality Time and Gifts. Nothing tells her she is loved better than a special outing....except maybe a special outing to do some shopping just for her! I'm just glad that, for now, it doesn't have to cost more than a few dollars!

"I will remember the deeds of the Lord; yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago." - Psalm 77:11 " God never forgets His promises to us. In turn, He intends for His children never to forget His faithfulness, never to doubt that He will fulfill the promises He has made in His Word." - Beth Moore

So, with plenty of hot and humid days devoid of fall and fall-like pursuits looming in our future, we're making the most of all that Fall in Colorado has to offer. Fun stuff! Yay fall! The Ballet Dancer and the Princess The Elephant. Three Punkins. The picture does not do it justice. Carving Pumpkins Maddie really preferred squishing the seeds and pumpkin innards between her fingers. Brooklyn only helped clean out one pumpkin. She wasn't fond of the squishy ickyness. Ewwww, Mommy, it's squishy! Three pumpkins - the real kind.