His Eye Is On The Sparrow...Part One

 "Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. But even the hairs on your head are all numbered. Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows." -Matthew 10:29-31

A female rose-breasted grosbeak stopped at James' bird feeder for a snack during last year's migration!

In a previous blog, I promised to share one of the ways God has shown that He cares for me, even caring about the smallest things. I know you've all been on the edge of your seat waiting for this one, so enjoy!...

Siblings and Best Friends

I had to post this just so I wouldn't forget it!

James & JoyAnna were laying on their bellies, side by side, in the middle of the living room talking as I was preparing our last minute things for going away this weekend.

It sounded like they were having their favorite conversation...the one where they discuss how they cannot marry each other when they get older. It usually goes something like this:

James: "JoyAnna, I can't marry you when I grow up."
JoyAnna (sadly): "Why not?"
James: "Cause brothers can't marry sisters. I have to marry someone different."
JoyAnna (even more sadly): "Oh. Okay."

This time I think it started out with James telling JoyAnna how much he loved her, with JoyAnna reciprocating.

(They really are becoming good friends, I love it! Today they had a little argument which they quickly resolved on their own with James apologizing for his sharp words and JoyAnna forgiving him and asking, "Now can we be best friends again?")

Then James said, "When I grow up I will marry a different person and I will miss you..."

This was immediately followed by a more matter of fact statement: "Kids have to grow up, you know."

I think turning 5 has given James a new perspective on life?

On a more serious note, I am praising God for his goodness!! We have been praying that our children would be best friends since we learned that we were expecting JoyAnna. It is so wonderful to see how God is answering that prayer!

It makes me sad to hear people sometimes comment, "Enjoy it now, because when they get a little older they will hate each other." Why? Certainly they are capable, and even prone, to behave this way. Our hearts are wicked. (Jeremiah 17:9, "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked. Who really understands how bad it is?") But with lots of encouragement and prayer, I don't see why siblings should not be the best of friends.

Do you have any sweet stories of your children becoming best friends?

Progress & Poundage

To say that I have been working overtime with my children on their attitudes recently would be an understatement. Insisting on first time obedience with a cheerful heart is tough work, isn't it, Mommies? But it is good and it is right. And it is being done in my home now.

Early last week I expected my children to grumble and complain, and sadly, ignore me for the first few times I instructed them to clean up their mess. After a much need pep talk with a dear sister, I began implementing the "Mommy says it and it gets done right away with a smile" rule.

By the end of last week, I noticed a change happening. Two or three times I received  a "But I don't want to", which was consistently and lovingly corrected. But usually when I said, "Okay, let's pick up our things now.", there was at first a tiny moment of hesitation (and decision making going on) and then "Okay, Mother! I won't complain!".  (Now, most times, there is not the moment of hesitation, but instant obedience!)

Oh! How sweet that is to hear and see! And even sweeter...each time they practiced this, their cleaning became more thorough! Things got put away more neatly, and more care was taken to ensure that each toy was put away in it's appropriate bin. I really didn't think we would be reaping such wonderful rewards so soon. How faithful God is to us when we, by His grace, begin to obey to His Word!

This evening as I was finishing up the dinner preparations, I announced that it was time to pick up and set the table. I heard, "Yes, Mother!" right away, followed by the happiest sounds of a brother and sister working together to complete a task. Being busy in the kitchen, and alone (Josh is at school tonight), I didn't "inspect" the room like I usually do. After they bathed and went to their rooms to get dressed for bed, I went into the playroom to close the blinds and make sure all was locked up. The room sparkled as I entered. "Wow!", I breathed. And in my joy, remembering how sweetly they had worked together to accomplish this job, I decided they would have a treat tonight.

I put on my stern Mommy voice and called, "James. JoyAnna. When you are dressed, please come to the playroom. I have something I would like to talk to you about." They came and stood in front of me with their little "Uh-Oh" faces on. "Look around this room...(dramatic pause)...I think you two are...professional cleaners!! This room looks amazing! What a great job you did! And with such happy hearts! 2 scoops of ice cream for everyone!"

I served their ice cream in sugar cones, and then served myself. Naturally, I gave myself a little more. James keenly observed my larger helping and commented, "You get to have more scoops."
"Yes," I answered with a wink, "I get an 'adult cone'."

Josh called at 7:50, as he usually does when he is at school, to ask the children about their day and say good night. James shared how he and JoyAnna got ice cream cones with 2 scoops of ice cream, and Mommy got "an adult cone". I heard Josh say, "Oooohhh....Mommy got an 'adult cone', huh?" I couldn't help but chuckle. And then James said, "Yeah...I think it was 60 pounds!"

"Ok! Say good night!" and I commandeered the phone from that little munchkin. Then I had some splainin' to do.

How He Loves!

I know I'm a day late with this, but in honor of Valentine's Day, I would like to share a video that Josh made a few years ago.

"How He Loves" was originally written by John Mark McMillan and then remade by The David Crowder Band.

In an interview, David Crowder explains the reason the band chose to re-record the song. "For those not yet touched or affected by this song yet, we wanted to put our breath behind the song because we think it is one of those unique songs for the church at large to sing." 

It's one of those songs that I have trouble singing all the way through without crying. Like "In Christ Alone". I can never make it past the 5th or 6th verses:

 "There in the ground, His body lay. 

Light of the world by darkness slain. 

Then bursting forth in glorious Day. 

Up from the grave He rose again! 

And as He stands in victory, 

Sin's curse has lost it's grip on me! 

For I am His and He is mine! 

Bought with the precious blood of Christ!"

And "There Is a Fountain Filled with Blood". I am usually moved to tears by only the second verse: 

"The dying thief rejoiced to see 

That fountain in his day; 

And there have I, though vile as he, washed all my sins away..." 

By the 5th verse, I am barely squeaking out the lines: 

"Then in a nobler, sweeter song, 

I'll sing Thy power to save, 

When this poor lisping, stammering tongue lies silent in the grave..."

Oh! I can hardly wait for the day when I will see my sweet, dear Jesus! When I can look on Him as I sing these praises! The thought of that day is all it takes to melt my heart and take my breath away. What a wonderful Savior God has provided!

My hope is that you will come to love and desire Jesus more after watching this video.

Adopting Older Children

"...And I will be a father to you,
and you shall be sons and daughters to me,
says the Lord Almighty."   

2 Corinthians 6:18

"God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure."   

Ephesians 1:5

 "Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world."   

James 1:27

"Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ."  

 Galatians 6:2

 

 

 

Five Years Ago Today

Five years ago Josh and I woke up before the sun to drive to the hospital for the planned birth of our first child. After a near miscarriage and very difficult pregnancy, our sweet and wonderful James Nathanael arrived at 3:05 in the afternoon, full of vim and vigor..and a voracious appetite for milk! I think if we added up the hours I have spent nursing my 3 babies, half of them would have been spent with him alone! And that is fine with me...what precious hours they were!

Over the past five years we have watched him learn to crawl, walk, run, climb, skooch, use the potty, use words, get dressed, sing hymns, ride a bike, make peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, dig gardens, write his name, read a book... Oh my, where has the time gone?

We are thankful to our Lord, Jesus Christ, for this wonderful, undeserved gift! James has brought so much love, laughter, joy, encouragement and sweetness into our lives. Our prayer has always and will always be: May the Lord be pleased to save him and use him for His glory and honor!

James is born!

James at 12 months

James at 2 years

James at 3 years

James at 4 years

James at 5 years!

A Fancy Monster Dinner

Perhaps the only things missing were a pianist and some candles? Oh, and a babysitter! Josh surprised us by bringing home...

 

MONSTERS!!

er...LOBSTERS!

In the 10 years that I have known Josh, I think we have only had lobster one other time. 

I am not a lobster lover:

1) They're chewy. I like chewy in brownies and beef jerky-not seafood.

2) I have a hard time picking their...entrails...out while maintaining an appetite. 

3) They make threatening noises when about to be cooked.

And while I thought I would have no problem dropping the ugly things into the boiling pot, I just couldn't do it. Literally. The things splayed their legs out in an attempt to grab the sides of the pot to prevent themselves from being submerged. 

Creepy. 

It was at that point that I screamed. This resulted in Josh running in to see what the problem was. "I can't do it!", I wailed. "Okay. Take the kids out so they don't see." 

No problem!

  Twenty minutes later, everyone (aside from the lobsters) was all smiles:

 James took a bite after much hesitation. He said he liked it but declined his own piece. I'm pretty sure JoyAnna ate a whole one all by herself! We didn't let Lydia have any because we don't give shellfish to the kids until they are over 2 years old. There are no known shellfish allergies in our family, but we like to play it safe.

I made garlic mashed potatoes from scratch, steamed broccoli with butter, and some cheddar garlic biscuits like Red Lobster. (I cheated for those and used the Bisquick mix, then doctored it up a little.) Josh bought me some crab shaped serving dishes at the Georgia Aquarium on our Honeymoon. We use them to hold melted butter when we have crab legs. They were just as fun to use with lobsters! Go figure! And as if splurging on lobster wasn't enough...Josh and I even had a cola!

 One of James and JoyAnna's favorite things to do at Publix is to visit the "monsters" in the seafood department. They would get so excited they could hardly contain themselves as they realized we were getting closer, and would loudly cry out, "We're going to see the monsters!! Yay!" How cute! One time, the nice lady behind the counter came out to feed them for us. It was almost like being at SeaWorld!! Okay, that was a stretch...

 Here they are making the lobsters kiss. Teach them not to play with their food? What fun is that?! One of the neatest things that we noticed about how God made these, ahem, interesting creatures is that there is flesh even inside the teeny tiny little ridges of their claws. For some reason, I was surprised by that. Silly, I know. Josh gave them a little lesson on how they swim using their tails. He fanned the tail out and then pushed it back together, moved it up and down.
So, dinner turned out to be a home school science lesson.

Dinner was a little bit of a challenge for me. Well, really, it was just those lobsters. It started with the clicking noise they made at me from the counter while I was preparing to give them their "bath". Then the whole "grab-the-side-of-the-pot" strategy they tried. (Seriously...where did they learn that?) Can't forget the...undesirables...that needed to be picked out. Eww! Then it was chewy. Have I mentioned I really don't care for chewy seafood?

 The worst part?

 When Josh first opened the box and the kids yelled, "WOBSTERS!" 

When did they stop calling them "monsters"???

 ___________________________________________________________________________

On a side note, I want to mention JoyAnna's adventurous spirit when it comes to trying new foods. Last December she bravely tried alligator at The Sandyhook Fish & Rib House in Matlacha. And while James did try it, he just didn't enjoy it quite as much as JoyAnna did. Enjoy these throwback videos:

 "I like to eat alligator!"

Plague of Locusts

My children often request to have me tell them stories. Not read them books. Yes, they do request that quite often. But what they like the best is when I recite those familiar stories to them from memory. Goldilocks and the Three Bears is a frequent one we tell. The Three Little Pigs is another one they love to hear. On Wednesday, James begged me to tell him about Moses again. (We had read about Moses during devotions the previous night, so it was fresh in his mind.)

We sat down on the couch and I told him about Moses. I started at his birth and continued until He led the Israelites out of Egypt and into the wilderness. I covered the plagues. How after the hail that destroyed their food crop, God sent locusts to devour whatever food remained. Then I had to explain locusts. Well, here in Southwest Florida, we have these enormous 3" Lubber Grasshoppers that are bright orange. They really are beautiful...as much as an insect can be, at least. I explained that the locusts are similar to these grasshoppers, which he knows eat everything in sight and have no predators. James got the point...those locusts were not a good thing!

Later that evening we went outside to water our garden and trees. When I got to the yellow pot that holds a blueberry plant and began watering, I noticed the sihlouettes of many creepy crawlies climbing up the opposite side of the pot. When I walked around to check it out, I noticed a parade of baby Lubber Grasshoppers making their way up out of the grass.

This is only about a third of them. The kids were having fun poking them to make them hop.

 I'm sure you can imagine the expression on James' face when I called him over and showed him! He went from his "Oh, neat!" face to his, "Wait, what are those?" face and then to his, "Uh-Oh! Not good!" face. Too cute! By the time I got my camera, the kids had scared most of them away...but I did manage to snap a few shots before they were all gone..

It was so neat to be able to see them as babies. They start out so very tiny, and grow up to be the largest grasshopper I have ever seen!

I'm A Dolphin

We just adore Slugs & Bugs. No, not the ones that you find in the garden. The ones that you find on CD. Like Slugs & Bugs & Lullabies, or Underwhere?. 

What? You've never heard of this before? Oh my...

If you have children, and you do not own these CD's, you are seriously depriving them of the hysterical, side-splitting comedy that only Randall Goodgame and Andrew Peterson can offer.

There is one (not-so-silly) song about adoption. It's really fun and upbeat, and we love the picture it gives of God adopting us into His family. The chorus is this:

"I'm adopted! I'm adopted!

Love came and found me,

Wrapped arms around me.

I'm adopted...

Love made right the wrong,

Now I know where I belong!

I'm adopted!.."

We noticed a few weeks ago when listening to this song in the car, JoyAnna was singing (rather jubilantly, might I add!) "I'M A DOLPHIN! I'M A DOLPHIN!..."

And that was BEFORE our trip to Sea World! 

It's pretty clear adoption is a concept that is very difficult to grasp when you're 3.

Of course, at 3, the idea of being a dolphin is much easier to understand.

Here is the story of how and why the song was written:

I'm Adopted: Story Behind the Song

Here is the music video for the song:

Official Music Video 

If I can ever capture JoyAnna singing her own revised chorus on video, I will have to update this blog with her very own "Unofficial Music Video".

Even The Small Things

 I am always amazed at how God cares for even the small things in our lives. I remember once during a small group book study we were participating in at church, the leader mentioned that if we pray to find a parking space and one opens up, we shouldn't believe that God orchestrated the event just for us. Why not? He does care about even those small things. I have seen it more times over the past few months than I have perhaps over my entire 29 years in this world. The first time I noticed this when rare (at least to our family) bird species began showing up in our backyard after we began birding. More on this later...

Last Wednesday our family visited Sea World in Orlando. They have a wonderful play area for children with all sorts of carnival-like rides and games. In the very center is a four story rope play area called the Net Climb. This thing really is enormous...it has slides, tunnels and tire swings inside and multiple entrances and exits. Josh took the kids up to play while I sat below on a bench to nurse Lydia. 

After awhile I walked over to meet up with them. I stood for a while underneath it, gazing up into it's stringy bowels. When I couldn't see them I thought maybe JoyAnna chickened out and they left to go on a different ride. So Lydia and I walked all over looking on the other rides. Nope. I walked around for a long time feeling very lost and all alone in the world. Okay, all kidding aside, I was getting upset at this point. I really did not like the idea of being lost at sea...world.

I wished I had brought my cell phone into the park so I could call Josh. Bingo! I'll ask someone if I can borrow their phone to call him! But then I thought about how that conversation might go:

"Excuse me, I lost my family. May I please borrow your phone to call my husband?...No, why would he leave me here intentionally?... Hey, come back!"

I had to think of an alternative. Lydia and I were making our way back toward the Net Climb when a light bulb randomly appeared over my head. (Strange, I know!) And it occurred to me that there was Someone who knew exactly where my family was at that very moment. And all I had to do was ask for help. So I quickly whispered a prayer, "Lord, please help me find them. Thank you for knowing where they are and taking care of them always."

Not more than 3 steps later I heard the sweetest little sound, "I found Mother! Hi, Mother!!"  I looked up to see James standing at the side of the 3rd story in the Net Climb with JoyAnna and Josh crawling through a tunnel just next to him. (For those of you who aren't aware, James has begun calling me 'Mother'. He used to call me 'Mama'. I guess he's too sophisticated to call me that now that he can read.) "Wow, thank You!", I prayed. 

The next morning at breakfast I was talking to James and JoyAnna about how faithful God had been to me at SeaWorld. I told them how even when I didn't know where they were, God did. And He was taking care of them all the time. He planned to have James notice me just after I prayed to say to me, "See, My Child, I love you and listen when you pray." They both were as amazed as I was that God had answered my prayer so directly. When I mentioned it to Josh that night he said, "You know, every time we get separated in a store or when we're out somewhere and I pray, God has always immediately answered by bringing us back together. In fact, I can't remember a time He hasn't." How that has increased my faith. 

So often I think, "This is such a small, insignificant thing. I'm not going to bother God with it." But isn't that really doubt? Aren't I really doubting His kindness and love? 

Matthew 7:7-11 says, “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. Or what man is there among you who, when his son asks for a loaf, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, he will not give him a snake, will he? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give what is good to those who ask Him!" 

What amazing love He has for His children! Lord, help me never to forget it, never to doubt it again!

Learning To Read

Ever since they were babies, I have been longing for the day that my children could read by themselves. A whole new world is available to someone when they can read! Our children know that when they finally learn to read, they will be given their very own Bible. This is a great incentive for them, because one of the things they love most is reading and talking about those faithful (and sometimes not so faithful) men and women who have gone before us in the Bible. 

I've been working with James, and sometimes JoyAnna, with a book called The Reading Lesson: Teach your child to read in 20 easy lessons. I have borrowed it from the library a couple of times over the past few months and have used it to help teach James how to read. I really like it. We tried another book at the library that is similar, but he just didn't take to it like he did this one. This week he's really been learning by leaps and bounds, which is so very exciting! 

After today's lesson, which ended with us doing a crazy reading dance around our living room in celebration of his success, (it's okay, we're not technically Baptist anymore) I asked him to read the short story again for me so I could take video to share with you. He was very happy to oblige:

 

It's really great fun! It is such a blessing to have a husband who supports and allows me to stay home to teach and take care of our children.  :) I can't imagine not having the joy of watching my little ones take their first steps, or say their first words, or write their name or read a little story for the first time.

UPDATE: 

Josh was so impressed at how quickly and how well James is reading after only 6 weeks that he insisted we purchase our very own copy of the book!  I am going to be looking into their Big Words for Little Kids book as well as their Verbal Math Lesson book to possibly use for next year.

Farm Day!

What could be better than snuggling some fuzzy bunnies on a Friday afternoon? Not much... 

We spent some time yesterday afternoon visiting Flowers Rabbitry in Punta Gorda. Mr. and Mrs. Flowers were most generous with our family! We were quite impressed with how knowledgeable they were in everything we asked them about. They knew so much not only about the breeds of animals they own, but about many other breeds too...and not just bunnies! 

We went to cuddle and learn about English Angora rabbits. We left having pet, fed, kissed and plucked eggs out from underneath various other farm animals. (Well, the eggs only came out from under chickens). Mr. and Mrs. Flowers sent us home with a dozen farm fresh eggs...which I served alongside some sausage and french toast for dinner (courtesy of Publix)! 

James and JoyAnna made cards to bring along to thank Mrs. Flowers for letting us come visit.

 They also baked and iced some sugar cookies that they cut out into rabbit shapes. They had so much fun, and I think they turned out pretty cute! We made the white icing for the face thin enough to paint on with a pastry brush, which worked pretty well and was lots of fun for the kids to do. I helped guide their hands when they did the eyes, ears, nose and mouth.

I made my herbal foot bath to take along. I always have such a hard time trying to tie the yarn around the lid to secure the fabric. There MUST be an easier way! Of course, it fell off twice before we got there. Once on the way to the car, when a certain bouncy boy was carrying it, and the second during the car ride when unprovoked. Oh well! It's what's inside that counts, right?

 

James and JoyAnna really liked the bunnies. But I LOVED them! They are so soft and warm, and oh so cuddly! Really, they are sort of like little, breathing pillows of love. I had dreams last night of turning our playroom into a rabbitry! I wish I had taken more photos...when I got home and looked through I couldn't believe that I hadn't taken any of the little babies in their cages, or any of the mama and daddy bunnies. We will definitely be going back to visit and I will get some more pictures then.

When we left the rabbitry, Mrs. Flowers brought us outside to show us the rest of the farm. We met three horses, one pig, other types of rabbits, including New Zealand meat rabbits which were enormous! (And as Joshua said, "Quite tasty!") There were also many different types of chickens, which they show, and there were even a few turkeys. James and JoyAnna were given treats to feed to the pig and the horses each got one too!

 

That's one big pig!

Mrs. Flowers brought us inside, where we met a beautiful macaw, a sweet dog, and a skinny pig. All of which, unfortunately, I failed to photograph! James, my sweet boy who is forever smelling EVERYTHING, of course smelled his hands after he touched the skinny pig. How embarrassing! 

Mrs. Flowers lent me her drop spindle, some sheep's wool and some angora fiber to practice spinning with.Then, Mr. Flowers took James and JoyAnna out to the chicken coops to collect the eggs they sent us home with. 

On the way home, I asked the kids what their favorite part was. JoyAnna said, "Holding the baby bunnies!" James said, "Getting the eggs with Mr. Flowers! Oh! And holding the bunnies too!"

Joshua loved everything! The horses, the pigs, the chickens, especially the turkeys. And my favorite, of course, were the angoras! 

Some day we hope to have our own little farm. But we will wait and see what the Lord sees fit to give us. And, Lord willing, we will be content with whatever He chooses, knowing that He always gives according to our good and His glory. (Romans 8:28)

To God Be The Glory!

 "The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away;

blessed be the name of the Lord."

-Job 1:21

“All that I have has been lent to me by the Lord so that I may glorify Him with it. It is not some inherent right for me to have good health, a beautiful family, a safe home or the freedoms I currently enjoy. How is it that I may glorify Him? By doing good works in my good health; to serve my family by teaching my children to love and honor God and to encourage my family to love and honor Christ with all our heart, soul, strength and mind.”

I just stumbled upon this note, which I had written sometime over the last year. It was sloppily tucked underneath the computer monitor. How could I have known at the time I wrote it just how much I would need these words right now? And how did it stay tucked under the monitor for a whole year without getting “tidied up”? Divine providence, no doubt. “All that I have has been lent to me by the Lord so that I may glorify Him with it.”

Today we received some bittersweet news. Our fourth child, whom we excitedly learned we were expecting just days before Christmas, has preceded us to Glory. While we grieve the lost opportunity to love and nurture another sweet child in this world, we are overjoyed to know that he or she is blissfully at home with our wonderful Jesus!

We find it a tremendous comfort and, yes, even a joy to have been counted worthy to suffer for our Lord. And yet, it does not seem right to call it “suffering”. How can it be suffering to know that this child is free from the cares and entanglements of this world, never having to wage the deadly battle against sin, and is now free to worship Christ and rest in him for eternity?! And how good it is to remember that our God is a God who knows and understands the pain and loss the death of a child brings - Who knows it better than we ever could! What solace we find in His loving arms!

I have been wondering lately: Do I love Christ above all other things? My favorite hymn writer, Fanny Crosby, wrote one of our family’s most loved hymns, “To God Be The Glory”. As I consider those words she penned, I believe I have my answer. Do I love Christ more than this little baby who has left us so quickly? Yes. Do I love Christ more than the children that remain? Yes. Do I love Christ more than I love my husband? Yes. Do I love Him more than my own life? Yes. “But purer, and higher, and greater will be our wonder, our transport, when Jesus we see.” Oh, just to glimpse His face! Every other joy, every other love, every other delight I have known pales at the thought of seeing my Savior’s face!! And, oh! our sweet baby, even now, does behold Him!  And like our dear baby, when He calls me, I shall go, like a bride goes to her groom!

May we bring glory to God by remembering and rejoicing in this little life that He has lent to us for such a short season!

“And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose…

He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?...

Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?...

Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.

For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Romans 8:28, 31-32, 35, 37-39