seeing double...miles apart

This past weekend I babysat the kids of the worship leaders at our Youth Retreat. They were super sweet kids and it was fun being back with the youth (I will post about that later)! The strange part to this was that the little girl I was watching was eerily like the little girl I used to babysit! I mean VERY MUCH like her. She acted like her. Talked like her. Looked like her. A, the little girl I watched this weekend on the left. K, my princess on the right. Uncanny? I think yes.

Prayers needed: UPDATE!

A friend of mine going to school at Carson Newman called our college group leader the other night asking us to pray for a friend of his at school.

His friend, Sonny, was found unconscious in his dorm room Monday evening. Apparently he had been having seizures for quiet some time. He is now in a coma in the ICU. Soon he will be moved to another hospital. I don't know anything about his family or past.

Please be praying for Sonny and his family and for my friend Chas, that he would shine Christ's love to those around him.

For this reason I kneel before the Father...Eph. 3:14

**Update: Sonny is awake and moving around finally! Thank the Lord! The next step is to get him up! Thanks for praying!**

training

My job is a training ground. Everyday presents itself with new challenges and things to work through. I am in the process of training for one of the biggest tasks God gives to people, parenthood.

Lately thought this guy seems to think that my "challenges" weren't challenging enough.
This is his true personality. He is happy and sweet, eats like a horse, he is content, he does not complain much.

I love watching him sleep! When I go to wake him up some times I wait a minute and just watch him! He is quiet and still. Peaceful.

He falls asleep anywhere, even my lap. A favorite is the car seat, por supuesto! =)

But, in the last 2 weeks he has given me a run for my money. I can't say everything but, most things I say, "no" about he looks right at me and does it anyway! I sat in astonishment the other day as he walked to the door way he knew not to go through, shoots the death glare at me, lifts his foot and firmly plants it just over the threshold on the other side. Time outs are becoming more and more frequent. I don't believe in the whole "don't say no, just redirect." Whatever, he would be redirecting all over the place!

A personal favorite is when I have to take something from him or move him away from somewhere. He starts up the motor and whines! I can't STAND whining! Can't stand it. It is this long moaning sound accompanied with occasional fussing and to give the final protest, he props open his mouth, shuts his eyes, and wails...yes, I said wails, until I give in...which does not happen, just FYI. It takes a few minutes and he is over it.

This we because I did not want him to choke on his lolly pop while I was driving...how dare I?

He is sweet. He copies everything I do...everything, as pictured below! =) I love this kid! He is a handful...but he is my handful! It is a training ground. I know that it won't be exactly like this when I have my own. I know that my training will begin when they come to me. However old they may be.

God's ways are not my own and I am so thankful for that. This training is rigorous and defeating sometimes. But, I wouldn't trade it right now. I am being paid to learn how to do the very thing I want to do with my life.

In the mean time I will be loving on this rotten boy even through his trying!

REALLY??!?!?!?!?!!!

Look what I got in the mail yesterday.
Maybe a closer look...

Yes, you read the right. LIFE insurance!

I mean really!

Seriously, pictures of older peop...err...the more exprerianced!

The WHOLE deal! Turning 20 next month is already looming over my head! Way to crush the LAST bit of positive outlook on this!

Our osh-kosh model!

Last week I got to spend some quality time with my nephew! The light was almost perfect. So I snapped some raw shots of the boy! He is SO sweet and I love how these capture him!
L-O-V-E his eyes! This picture is screaming for some photoshop magic...!

hmmm...

I am not sure it did what it was supposed to! =)

Mas

I wanted to post some more of the ornaments I made this Christmas. These I made for the kids I watched for 3 years until June. =(

I wanted to make thier first initial with their personality...girls are WAY easier at this! It was so easy to add some pretty and glitter!

I did like how the car turned out! SO cute!

I was pretty proud of the flad too!

The smudging made me sad! I guess that's the nature of the beast working with sharpie and sealer! Cute none the less!

Choo Choo!

Family Fav Friday...

Well, a day early! Looking ahead to tomorrow I knew that I would SO not be able to post with all that we have going on! =)




Inspired by my sis, I decided to post "how to" something we love! And I mean LOVE! These have become a fast fav around here! Even dad, a picky cookie eater l-o-v-e-s these cookies!





Flax Chocolate Chip Cookies



1 cup butter
1 cup sucanat w/honey
1 cup sucanat (I use just 2 cups of sucanat)
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 1/5 cup fresh soft white wheat flour (if I don't feel like grinding, which is alot! =) I just use unbleached all purpose. Works the same just a lower nutrition value)
1/2 cup flax seed
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cup coconut
2 cups chocolate chips



I am not a huge fan of chocolate...ok, I don't like the stuff. We used many different things and I think I finally found "the one!" They are PERFECT! They stay to themselves and if I am having a particularily detest to chocolate day I can pick them out. BUT, they stay pretty much to themselves and I love what they add without over taking!

Cream butter and sucanat and sucanat with honey into a grainy paste. Add eggs and vanilla and beat well. Mix dry ingrediants and stir into creamy mixture. Add coconut and chocolate chips.

**WARNING** this dough is EXTREAMLY thick. It does not just blend and stir together like it says. I'm just saying.

With my FAVORITE unitasker make some 1" cookies.

Plop 'em on a greased pan. This is my preferred size. They stay soft and chewy!

Bake at 350 for 10 minutes. At this size it took more like 15-17 minutes. Catch them when they are golden that way they are not crackers later!
Enjoy!

kid-isims

I babysit for a Bible study at my church. There are a lot of kids in this small group. The other 3 babysitters and I are very creative when it comes to how we spend our time. We like to keep things moving! =)

Tonight we were playing 4 square. For those who don't know what it is: there are 4 corners in a rooms and they are labeled some how. For the younger kids we just do colors. The person in the middle closes their eyes and counts while everyone runs to a square/corner. The person in the middle then guesses a color and whoever is on that color is out.

Back to the story...one of the little boys walks over to me and asked me if I wanted to know a secret. This is how the conversation went.

Him: wanna know my secret?
me: sure!
Him: I go to the color that he last called.
me: you what?
Him: like, he just called blue, so this time I am going to blue. He does not call the same color twice.

*smile*

And we think we are smarter...HA!

struggle

I don't want to complain. In reply I hear a resounding, "then don't!" But, let me explain...OK, maybe it is the sugar coated word for complaining. Just listen...read.



I am not normal. I never have been and I have surrendered to the fact a long time ago that I don't think I will be. That doesn't bother me. I like being "abnormal." I know where my convictions stand and I will stand for them. So with that, I do not wish to be in the "in" crowd, nor do I want to keep up with anyone.



The past few weeks have been fun catching up with friends home from school. It has been nice to see them and hang out. Reliving high school! =) It really is nice having them home but, this is what bothers me. People seem to think that they need all this focus. That school some how adds this importance that those of us who chose not to go don't have. It does not matter where you go, what you do, it seems, in other's eyes, you are important.



Today's message was a good one. Don't get me wrong. I gained a lot from it. It struck some cords that have been pulling on my heart for a while. BUT, the part I did not enjoy is how much emphasis was put on students. "How much students needed to hear it."



My struggle is not with a some-teen credit schedule, 2 jobs, an enormous work load, crazy hours of homework and studying, an oppressive professor, negative peer influence, being away from family, and fighting for my faith on my own.



My struggle is with nagging parents, too much advice, tired workers, volunteers dropping like flies, scheduling not working out, procedures failed following in a sick child, meetings with my boss, training, the requirement of being an adult yet the not being viewed as such, and an 18 month old's nap and meal time to take into consideration.



I am tired. I struggle with my job. Some days I don't want to do it anymore. I was talking with a friend who is home from school and one thing he told me is that I just don't get how hard it is. He's right, I don't get it. In the same vain, He doesn't get it. Just because they are in college does not mean that those of us who are not don't struggle with things.



I am reading in Psalms and time after time David is crying out for God to save him. His next breath is literally hanging by a thread. His tomorrow is being hunted down. That was a real trial. So, no, I am not struggling like the Psalmist. That's when I have to step back and see how much light that sheds on the situation. I am not going through anything compared to him.



So, I guess my soap box is this. Why do those who come home from school get so much attention upon return because they are "struggling," while those of here day in and day out are left to our own because we have it "easy?"

My song still stands, I'm waiting on the Lord...because his promise is this, I will renew my strength. I will soar on wings as eagles. I will walk and NOT grow weary. I will walk and NOT grow faint.