Thanksgiving ushers in reflection. Reflection on what causes gratefulness to rise up within us. Reflection on the past year. The ups, the downs, the progress or lack thereof. This year, getting a handle on my health and exercise has been one of my greatest accomplishments and reasons for gratitude. I feel so much better! I can move better, and I enjoy being active. I have even started running with my husband and Molly. They want to run more often; I want to do it without feeling like I need to vomit. They went to a running coach for some tips and have passed them on to me. So far, so good. We have been running a mile at a time and practicing our form, cadence and breathing. The little metronome has been quite helpful in that it gives me something to focus on rather than focusing on how in the world I am even going to make it til the end of my run. I am also super grateful for this past year and my time with the Lord and in His Word. I am in the book of Romans and just about five weeks away from finishing the whole Bible! I don’t read the Bible through every single year, but when I do it is one of my greatest joys and provides much spiritual growth. One theme that I notice when I read through the Bible is God being […]

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If I was paying close enough attention, I would have blogged three more times to get to 10 years AND 1,000 posts.  But as it is, I am at 10 years and 998 posts. Still a long time and a lot of words on this-here blog. I knew ten years of blogging was approaching, but I don’t really know how to celebrate. The kids asked me how much money I have made blogging, and I told them exactly zero dollars. This started as a way to keep up with the funny stories from the crazy days with little kids. My parents and Josh’s parents loved reading the stories since they have never lived near us. And I am so thankful I finally started blogging because as we look back at some of the posts, there is no way I would naturally remember all of the funny stories. This evening we decided we would “celebrate” by going back and choosing random posts to read together. It will be funny to read the silly stories and see the photos I have posted. The blog continues to share some personal stories from the kids, though much less since the kids are at an age where they don’t really want the world to know details about their lives. Can’t blame them.  I share about homeschooling and good books I have read, as well as some devotional thoughts. I love words and writing, and I […]

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The Dawson kids and Noah came over to trick-or-treat. Julie, Josh, Summer and I handed out candy to all the Hulks and Harry Potters. Chubby WonderWoman was my favorite–she was so smart. How do I know she was smart? I could tell because  she purposely chose several Reese’s Cups for her candy basket, careful to skip over the KitKats and bubble gum. The night before this, Mack played his last flag football game. It was the first game they lost, which was heartbreaking. But Mack played so well all season, and he loved every second of it. Here are a few photos and a video of some amazingly kind words from his coach. We realize we haven’t exactly set Mack up for football greatness and scholarships since we home school, but I still know God has a perfect plan for Mack. When I am tempted to worry about his future, I am reminded to cast all of my cares on the Lord because He cares for me…and He cares for Mack even more than I care for Mack. And He withholds no good thing from His children. That’s awesome! Lastly, little Rolo went to Social Pet today for an enrichment class and some grooming.  She has been super anxious and whiney in the car lately, which hasn’t been her normal until just a few weeks ago. Also, when I take her to pet stores she seems to be fine with […]

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“What do you want Me to do for you?”  It’s a question Jesus asked more than once while His feet walked the streets of this broken world. And it is a question I have thought about often. I contemplate what I would reply to this question if Jesus asked me. I ask it in the depths of my heart and ask God to purify my desires, to bring clarity to dreams in my heart. And I write about some of those thoughts on the blog from time to time.  In Mark 10:36 James and John are asked by Jesus, “What do you want Me to do for you?” Their request was to sit on each side of Jesus in glory. And their request was not granted because in Jesus’ words, they did not know what they were asking.  I am so grateful I can trust that God knows absolutely best what I need. the Bible says He withholds no good thing from me. In Mark 10:51 Bartimaeus was asked by Jesus, “What do you want Me to do for you?” He boldly says, “I want to regain my sight!”  And Jesus gave Him what He asked for, and Bartimaeus immediately followed Jesus.  I am so grateful God is willing and able to give me what He knows I want. So while I think it’s a perfectly fine question to ponder—“What do you want Me to do for you?”—I also think […]

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