Blessed Among Bubbles!

Here is a quick note to other mothers of preschoolers. This is just an idea that I thought of sharing. Bathtime with your Bible!While talking with college and adult women, one of the most common complaints is when to spend time with God. We all want to wake up a half hour before the world begins and spend time alone with God - which is precious time, but if most of us are honest, we wake up 15 -30 minutes after the alarm has initially gone off. We feed our kids bananas and toast in the car on the way to work and our kids sometimes even show up at preschool in their pajamas.

So when can we spend that 15 - 30 minutes just alone with God?

When our kids are in the bathtub!

Austin loves his bath time. He would spend as much time in the bathtub as I would allow. A few months ago I noticed that I was really rushing Austin to finish his bath time quickly.
"Austin, let's hurry and wash your hair."
"Austin, let's not play anymore, mommy needs to go do the dishes."
"Austin, let's not climb in your bucket."
"Austin, are you trying to tell me your stuck?"

About a month ago, I realized what I was doing and thought, "Why can't I allow Austin to enjoy his time in the bath? Why do I live my life in such a rush?"
So, I started taking magazines or books into the bathroom with me and enjoyed some down time while Austin played in the water. This week it hit me... why don't I use that time for extra time alone with the Lord?

Austin doesn't seem to mind one bit. He is having so much fun in the suds, and I am finding the time so meaningful and enriching.

For example, yesterday I was having a tough day. We have made the decision not to fly to Florida for Thanksgiving due to the current cost of airline tickets and I was just feeling sad all day. At bathtime, as Austin played and splashed, I picked up my Bible and read Psalm 68.

Since my current Bible was still in the living room from morning church, I grabbed an old Bible from under my bedside table. I saw that verse 9 was circled and underlined heavily. Next to the verse, it said..."I am praying this for my time in Texas."

The verse: God sets the lonely in families.

You see, seven years ago when I moved to Texas, I was moving as a young, single woman attending seminary. I was so nervous and scared about being so far away from home, but at the same time claiming that God would set the lonely within a family.

As I read this verse seven years later I thought about my life. In that time, James and I dated and got married... we had Austin, and we have had beautiful friendships in both Fort Worth and Denton... God was faithful to his promise. He sets the lonely within families.

Tonight as I watch Austin splash in the bathtub, I hear the strong sounds of laughter coming from 30 Japanese students playing charades in my living room.

Oh, Lord, you do... you set the lonely in families.

"Lord, thank you for these precious bathtime blessings. I pray that in the midst of Austin's busy life, he will find time to read your Word daily and fall in love with you! I pray that you will surround Austin with the family of God every day of his life."

A Heart for the Nations

Sing to the Lord a new song
sing to the Lord, all the earth
Sing to the Lord, praise his name.
proclaim his salvation day after day
Declare his glory among the nations
his marvelous deeds among all peoples
Psalm 96:1-3

As many of you know, James and I went to seminary with plans to graduate and move to West Africa. Before we got married, we felt God pressing our hearts to the Nations - to tell others about the wonderful love of Christ. Maybe someday soon I can spend some time in a blog telling you how God changed our plans to match his plans, but we still feel that constant pressing on our hearts, to tell the nations about Jesus. One of the beautiful ways that God has fulfilled that love is with the international students at UNT.

Tonight, our house was filled with the smell of spaghetti and the voices of 25-30 Japanese students. What a wonderful evening. At first, Austin was cautious about all of the new faces, but before long, he was fascinated by his new friends.

After eating dinner, the students played frisbee in the backyard, while several girls spent time with Austin. I had to take this picture because they were treating Austin like a rock star. It was so precious to hear all the students saying, "Austin! Come here! Austin come here!"

Austin loved showing them his swing and his playroom. He had such a wonderful evening and cried when I told him that he needed to get ready for bath time.

Oh, how we have been richly blessed!

"Lord, please give Austin your heart for all peoples! Help him to understand how beautiful your world is through all the cultures and people that you have created. Help him to love others - from every nation. Stir in his heart a desire from a young age to travel and help him to fall in love with the people that he meets - telling them about the glorious love of Christ. As a mother, help ease my heart about Austin ever traveling abroad and help James and I to be wise stewards of our money so we will be able to help Austin travel to tell the world about you!"

Austin, Did you Know?

Dueteronomy 2:7 The Lord has blessed you in all the work of your hands.

I wanted to write Austin this letter after receiving a beautiful email from one of my former students, Becky Heyse - pictured above with Austin (6 months)

Dear Austin,

I want you to someday read this and understand how unique your life is. Before you were born, I worked at the Baptist Student Ministry at TCU. Every single day while you were growing inside of me, you heard the voices of some of the most Godly college students I have ever met. Every day, your mom would meet with five or six college women for discipleship and during those days we would talk about life, about our struggles, about you, about marriage, about school, and about growing in our relationship with God. Each and every day, those college students would ask me how you were doing, how I was feeling, and how they could be praying for us.

As the day for you to be born came closer, your dad and I had some decisions to make. Would I continue working with college students, or would I stay home with you for the first year of your life? The college students made the decision easy. They encouraged me to do whatever it took to be a Godly mom to you. I knew in my heart that although I absolutely LOVED my job, I needed to stay home with you and watch you grow that first year.

As soon as you were born, the girls came to the hospital to see you. They held you and prayed over you and asked when they could babysit. Your very first babysitter was Becky Heyse. She is so special to our family and I knew that I trusted my girls if I could leave you with them. Caralisa came over and helped your grandma do your footprints, and Hillary often babysat so I could pack, clean or sleep during those first few difficult days.

Those first days were hard, baby, because although I loved you, I missed my college girls. Do you know how special the Lord is? He allowed your dad to take a job as the Director of Baptist Student Ministries at UNT that summer after you were born. For all the relationships I was leaving behind, the Lord was preparing new relationships for us with the college students in Denton, TX.

Do you know, Austin, how blessed we are? You have already been on two mission trips at the age of two. You have a second home at the BSM, and your own home is constantly filled with college students who are trying to walk a Godly life. They love you, they play with you, and they make you think that you are a college student yourself. You are the only two-year-old I know who thinks that every beautiful, young college woman only has eyes for him. You are the only two-year-old at preschool who waits to be picked up to make a basket because you have been so spoiled by guys like Ryan Gay who always make sure you can reach the rim.

During these days, it is so difficult for us to be away from our family - your grandparents and aunts and uncles, but then I think... oh, do we know how the Lord has blessed us through the relationships with college students?

Your life will be different, Mr. Austin. You will not always have your grandparents at your birthday parties and you will not always understand why our home is busy and active, but I want you to know, my precious boy, that we have said Yes to Jesus and we truly believe that this will be more than we ever hoped or dreamed for you!

Love you,

Mom

Austin with Caralisa

Austin with Stephanie

Katy and Stephanie visiting Austin in the hospital

Becky visiting after Austin came home from hospital

Some of my precious, TCU girls.

What do you think that he's saying?

I don't have much to write about tonight, but I want to update my blog daily for the parents and grandparents so far away, so here is a picture from today.

What do you think Austin is thinking in this picture?

Here are some possible explanations of this facial expression...

- no more pictures, mom
- don't wash my face
- i want the camera...

but, none of these are actually correct. At this moment, Austin was actually saying, "Help, mama, STUCK!"

Yes, that's right, Austin was stuck in the tub. I use a small plastic bin (the kind of plastic bin that you use for shoes in the closet) to store Austin's bath toys. He has decided that more than any of the amazing bath toys he has accumulated, he wants to play with the plastic bin. Lately, he has been sitting inside his plastic bin during bath time, and tonight he got stuck.

I am glad that he is talking so much now - I am glad he has learned how to say STUCK!

There must be a paper due!

James says that he always knows when I have a paper due at school. When he arrives home from work, a room in our house has been freshly painted.
Procrastination? Maybe
Therapy? More Likely
There is something so stress free about painting, something so rewarding about watching a wall change colors immediately before your eyes. And something so fulfilling about see the accomplishment of a hard day's work.
So instead of writing papers, I paint.

Today, Austin and I tackled the Master Bedroom.
James has been asking me for a more masculine color in our bedroom - so today we went from "yellow ribbon" to "cup of cocoa"

I LOVE the new color and have some tips for having a great paint day.

1. Buy the paint while your spouse is at work. This alleviates the pressure of having to agree upon a specific color.
2. Paint while your spouse is at work. This saves marriages!!!
3. Allow your children to paint - remember to take off their nice clothes first

4. Make sure that your child is painting in an area that will be covered by your bed. Then, it doesn't matter if they paint on the floor. The bed was just pushed right over it.

5. Tell your child what a great job they did on the one little square you allowed them to paint before you sent them to their room for nap time.
6. Continue to paint in absolute peace and quiet, enjoying every moment.
7. When your spouse comes home, tell him how difficult it was without him and how easy he makes things when he is there (even though you loved your day!)

Our day...started with Prunes...I should have known

It was just one of those days...
It started with prunes, yes prunes...
My independent, precious, little son decided that the only thing that would do for breakfast this morning was prunes. Typically, I wouldn't have a problem with him eating prunes for breakfast. I am normally just glad that he isn't begging for cheetos for breakfast.
But today, I needed to run errands...
the bank, home depot, the post office.

Disclaimer: this post might be jumbled as I am very tired tonight!

When I asked Austin if we could look for something different for breakfast, cereal, grapes, a banana... he just replied, "No, Mama, Runes!"

So, "runes" it was.

The prunes fully took their toll right in the middle of Home Depot. Typically not a big deal, but by that time James' car had broken down, my car window stopped working, and I spilled a huge coke on my new white t-shirt. Just some of the little frustrations of daily life. As I pulled Austin towards the bathroom in Home Depot (he wanted to look at, take that back, pull out all the paint samples in the store), we passed an elderly couple sitting on a bench.

What a happy young man, they said as Austin sang his way to the bathroom. (Notice, that they didn't say, what a happy mom as I was not excited about cleaning the prune mess). Austin grinned up towards the couple and shouted, "Blue Shoes!" while holding his blue crocs up in the air. It was as if Austin was saying, "you know, it really doesn't matter what else happens today, mom let me wear my awesome blue shoes!"

Have you ever had a pair of shoes like that? You know what I'm talking about. A pair of shoes that doesn't match anything in your closet, but just makes you happy. Austin's crocs are those pair of shoes. They are bright blue and he wants to wear them with every single outfit. In the midst of my miserable day of spilling, frustrations, etc., Austin was just thrilled and singing about wearing his blue shoes.

My sister, Jenny once gave me a pair of shoes like that - brown high heels that look like they are made out of crocodiles. They are awesome. So, today I went home and did two of my favorite things, painted the house and wore my crocodile shoes while doing it!

The Apple of my Eye

"he guarded him as the apple of his eye." Deuteronomy 32:10

I wonder if Austin will ever know how much I love him. Until I had my own child, I had no idea that this type of love was even possible. Yes, I love my friends, my family, and especially James, but this love is so different... sacrificial, pure, whole, indescribable.

I grew up knowing that I was loved by my parents, but I had no idea... did they love me this much? Do they still? I believe so. Having a child of my own has dramatically changed my own relationship with my parents as I understand their sacrifice and love for me in such a new understanding as a mother.

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I remember a song sung regularly in my home...
Daddy loves his little girl
She's the apple of his eye.
Daddy loves her, Daddy loves her
Daddy loves his little girl.

I love the phrase "apple of his eye" because of the rich memories it holds from my own childhood. I want Austin to understand and feel this same type of love - he is the apple of my eye. The most beautiful part of the phrase is that is is Biblical. God uses this phrase twice in Scripture to describe his relationship with mankind.

In Deuteronomy, God uses the phrase to describe his relationship with Jacob - his protection and care over Jacob's life. Zechariah also uses the phrase to describe the nation of Israel - the apple of God's eye.

A friend of mine passed along another blog this weekend - the story of a woman who recently lost her child. I spent the weekend in tears as I read the heartbreak so beautifully expressed in Angie's blog. Last night I pulled Austin into the bed with me after he had fallen asleep in his own crib. I just wanted to lay next to him and watch him sleep. I just wanted to hold him and thank the Lord for his health and safety. I wanted to thank God for being blessed with the gift that is Austin, and I wanted to thank him for a lesson in learning how to love...

Oh, he is the apple of my eye.

"Lord, I cannot begin to express my gratitude that you love us like a father loves his children. Please enable Austin to understand a fraction of the love that his parents, grandparents, and family feel for him."