Devotions

So here I am on Day 11 {really, Day 11???! Wow!} of my 31 Days of Blogging effort. I am amazed I have made it this far!

Today I am going to put up a few links for some other writing I have done. Yes, I know it's a shortcut, but that's ok. I want to have this list all in one place and have been meaning to do this for a while.

I have been blessed to have the opportunity to participate in our Church's devotion writing project, and am starting my third year as one of the writers. The project began in 2009, and I was very interested in trying my hand at it, but did not step up. When the call for writers came out for 2010, I repeatedly encouraged my husband to sign up. He finally told me, flat out, "You do it." So I did. Last year I finally got him on board and he became a writer as well. We will both write again this year.

This writing has been a great growing experience. We have a specific format to follow, and a very limited 350 words in which to communicate. I usually start out writing a whole lot, then paring it down, word by word until I have the right amount. It makes me more careful with the words I use. I think limitations are generally good for promoting creativity. Writing these devotions has not been easy. I am not a Bible scholar, by any means. But it has been a very, very good experience, I highly recommend!

I have enjoyed revisiting these writings, some which I had forgotten. Here are links to my devotions:

Genesis 42 {February 19, 2010}

Joshua 7-8 {June 23, 2010}

Judges 8 {July 23, 2010}

2 Samuel 8-9 {September 27, 2010}

2 Kings 11-12 {November 30, 2010}

Acts 21:1‐16 {March 7, 2011}

1 Corinthians 13:8‐13 {June 17, 2011}

2 Corinthians 13:11‐14 {August 9, 2011}

Romans 16:25‐27 {September 29, 2011}

Glorious Day!

Yesterday was such a special day! Last night at church, our 8-year-old son Jacob was baptized! He has been wanting to be baptized for over four years. We finally felt the time was right. He looked so cute in his little robe. I kept asking if he was nervous while we waited in the preparation room. He wasn't. But he was excited.

Jacob read the first two verses of Psalm 23, and did a great job! I was in the back taking photos, while the rest of the family watched from the sanctuary. I was so emotional!

It was a special, wonderful event for our family!!! We are so proud of Jacob. He is a sweet, special boy, and such a blessing to us.

After church, my mom took us all out to dinner. Since we didn't have school today, we were able to take our time and enjoy our evening and Chinese food.

I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.

~3 John 4

Sunday Thoughts

Mystery Reader

At parent night for Jacob's class, I had the opportunity to sign up for a Mystery Reader spot. The first one of the year was on Friday, and that was our day! Jacob had no idea I would be coming to his class. As it turned out, Grama is visiting, so she was also able to visit... in fact SHE was the Mystery Reader!

Grama had asked Jacob the night before about his favorite books so she could be sure to bring one he liked. When we came into the classroom, he got to help her to her seat, and sit in the place of honor beside her. He was so proud!


And he also had input for her along the way, such as, "You are supposed to show them the pictures." Fortunately, Grama didn't mind a little help!

Jacob's 3rd grade classmates listened attentively and were so well behaved. It is fun to see the kids growing up.

I think the Mystery Reader was a big success!!!

Cute gift!

I LOVE that I have a very creative daughter! I guess you could say she takes after her mother... including the creative clutter everywhere, but that is a different subject. Where I have always been reserved and introverted, my daughter is outgoing, silly, loud, and social. I love that about her, too!

I love that Abbie has lots of friends, both at church and at school. Tonight she is at a birthday sleepover {complete with pedicures at a local salon!} for one of her very best friends. Her friend's name is Isabelle, and also goes by Izze. Several weeks back, Abbie spotted this sparkling juice in the grocery store and just knew she had to have it for Izze's present!

Earlier this week Abbie's vision was fulfilled as we picked up a 4-pack of the juice, and then went shopping for some extra goodies to put in two of the spots that hold bottles. Abbie picked out a couple of fun nail polishes, some lip gloss, and Izze's favorite candies. All of those items got wrapped in tissue paper and added to the drink box. I think it is quite the clever gift, and a fun & festive presentation. I am impressed at my girl's thoughtfulness on behalf of her friend!

Got Box Tops?

Do you save Box Tops for Education? These cute little pink labels are found on all kinds of products. Each one is worth ten cents. That might not seem like a lot. But as you collect them, they add up quickly. You probably have or know a child who is in school. Well, these Box Tops can provide their school, or daycare, or possibly even homeschool co-0p with some much-needed funds with just a little bit of effort on your part.

I love to save these, and I have a few tips to make it easy.

1. I try to cut all my Box Tops off of the packaging as soon as I unpack my groceries. I use a box knife to slice through the first couple of layers on a cereal box, cake mix, or box of baggies (see the missing Box Top on the box above?), and peel off the label. By cutting them off first thing, I avoid having to dig through the trash later. I also don't have to worry about getting upset at whomever threw the packaging away without first cutting off the Box Top! That's a good thing.
2. I keep a little container in a kitchen drawer in which to collect all the Box Tops. They are small, and some are downright tiny. Having a place to store them keeps them safe and contained until it it time to turn them in.
3. I keep my eye out for special deals that will provide extra "Box Tops". Recently, a supermarket promotion provided a coupon at checkout worth 50 Box Tops with the purchase of eight qualifying General Mills products. These coupons get turned in right along with the Box Tops to the school.
4. Ask others to save their Box Tops for you. My mom regularly sends me a handful in the mail.
5. Submit the Box Tops to your child's school. Chances are they are having regular Box Tops collection drives. When I turn mine in, I trim them all down, and package them in lots of 50 per bag. This isn't necessary, but if you don't trim yours, someone at the school will have to before they are redeemed. I write my child's name, teacher's name, and "50" on each bag, because at our school they have competitions over these things!

Just last week I bundled up 300 Box Tops to send to my children's elementary and middle schools. These all accumulated over the summer with little effort on my part. What an easy way to give $30 to my kids' schools! I will continue to do this throughout the year.

I hope you save Box Tops! And if you don't, maybe you are inspired to start!

What's up with all the blog posts?

I have to admit that I have really gotten out of the habit of blogging. It is not that I lack for ideas and thoughts. I even take a lot of photos specifically for future blog entries. It is more a matter of life being full, the To Do list being long, and blogging not ever making it to the top of the priority list. I am so deadline-oriented that often, if it doesn't have a deadline, it just might not ever get done.

Several bloggers I know {Nester, Emily, Jen} planned October as a "31 Days of..." month. They have admirable goals to write everyday on a particular theme. They have planned out in advance their topics and posts, leading to what will be a very informative, inspiring and helpful month on their blogs. While I haven't had time to actually read any of their wonderful posts yet, I do look forward to it! {Links to the nearly 750 bloggers joining them is here!}

For me, I thought I would just challenge myself to write and post everyday. {Oh! A deadline!} I am not going to overthink it. I am not going to spend a lot of time at it. I am just going to do it. It is a challenge to myself to get back to blogging. It is a creative outlet for me, a place to record thoughts and ideas and pictures, a wonderful opportunity to interact with others, and a way to share my Creative Memories fun. This is going to be an unplanned, fly-by-the-seat-of-my-pants-month as I post about random things. My goal is to write something each day so that I can get back into the habit of blogging.

So here we are, on day 5 of the 31 days and I am making a commitment. I have a couple of good friends who are so faithful with their blogging, Jenny & Melanie. Their blogs, which inspired me to start blogging in the first place, are like their family scrapbooks. I really admire their tenacity and perseverance. I miss blogging. So now I am accountable to keep it up throughout this month. Accountability --- another thing that motivates me!

This is SO Cool!!!

I have a new coverset to use for our 2011 family album, and I am SO excited! Creative Memories came out with a new Custom Album that can be designed simply with a photo, and maybe some text, or as elaborately as desired using the predesigned templates or our digital software.

Last week, I literally opened up the template at the Creative Memories Digital Center, uploaded my photo, dragged it in, cropped it, and added my text, and placed my order.... all in about 15 minutes before I headed out the door to flag football practice. Today, just a week later, it arrived on my doorstep! I was not prepared for how stunning it would look in person!!! These pictures truly do not do it justice.

This is a 12x12 coverset in which I can insert my traditional scrapbook pages, as well as my digital page prints. I am excited to add my layouts to this beautiful book! And I can't wait to help others create their own Custom Albums! What would you put on the front of an album?

What a great Sunday!

We had such a GREAT weekend! It was busy and full, and so very FUN! Sunday was the best of all!!

We did have to get up and get out of the house bright and early. We had a special worship service at church. Both Abbie & Jacob were scheduled to sing, so they had to be there an hour early for rehearsal. I never mind that part... I get to enjoy all the wonderful music at least twice! Plus, I can get up close and get some good pictures during rehearsal!

Jacob sang with the Joyful Praise Children's Choir. {I was a bit of a stage mom and asked for him to be moved... at first he was totally hidden behind all the taller kids!}

We had a special Student Ministry choir made up of middle and high school students. Abbie was part of that. The worship service had a special emphasis on "The Next Generation". I am so thankful for our wonderful church and the opportunities our entire family has to grow in our knowledge of and service to the Lord.

This day was extra special because right after the morning service, we all went outside for the groundbreaking ceremony for our new Calvary Life Center! It was a wonderful celebration of the faithfulness and grace of our Lord. I can't wait for this new building to be completed! As someone who serves with the children and youth, I know how needed it is.

Our wonderful morning was capped off by our church's annual Family Day picnic! It was a beautiful, brisk fall day. The weather was just about perfect. I was asked to be judge for the dessert contest. I am always ready to serve where needed! Abbie immediately took off with her friends. The only time I saw her was when she asked if she could sit with her friend's family during the dinner! All my boys enjoyed the rock wall, games, and football. It was fun to see Gil in his element, surrounded by his team of players! I had a great time catching up with all my friends. It was a great way to end a wonderful weekend!

Fun Fall Outing

After our Friday night date, Gil and I got another date on Saturday! We spent the evening at a cute, country corn maze... listening to a great band, eating grilled hamburgers, and enjoying the beautiful, crisp, fall weather.

Gil really liked the band, which we didn't realize would be there. We enjoyed the extra time together.

And Abbie enjoyed the time to play a game of football with all her friends!

Did I mention that we were on a middle school youth outing? We were part of the adult leaders attending the Fall Kick Off. It was a great event with dinner, fun, fellowship, and s'mores around the bonfire. Here is our wonderful youth pastor Justin challenging the students. We had a great evening out with all these cool kids.

And on the way home on the bus, I got to snuggle with my sweetie!