Its A Leap Day!

Really it's a big deal. Why? Because SO much happens in four years!

Josiah will be four years old the next time we have a leap day. Maybe even a little brother or sister?!

There will be a different president.

Stronger faith. Different person than I am today. Better season of life. Oh I do hope so!

More in love with my husband than I can possibly imagine (5 years of marriage!)

Rob doing what God has called him to do school and career wise.

I think leap day causes more reflection and thoughtfulness than new years or my birthday. It's exciting to dream!

It was a most beautiful day. Went to a lovely little park with Josiah and the dog, had a picnic, basked in the 75 degree breezy sunshine, and spent the rest of the day simply relaxing. These kinds of days are my favorite :-)

Happy leap day friends!

Home Alone

It's not often I get time to myself these days. But today I have, and ohhhh what a wonderful day it's been! I love my husband a ton, but we all need time to ourselves, right? Rob is at a men's conference through tomorrow afternoon, so it's just me and the little guy. So far today we:

Were visited by "Aunt Em" who treated us to Mocha Frappe's at McDonalds (shhh don't tell Starbucks I did that!)

Little man fell asleep in the carrier on the walk back home.

I've had some time during naps to spend some much needed time in the Bible.

Made roasted red peppers, cous cous, and italian sausages for dinner, all while keeping Josiah entertained. [yay multitasking momma! I always have Rob around, so I'm pretty proud of myself!]

After I got him all lotioned up, changed, and ready for bed, I turned away for two seconds and little man peed all over himself. Cue quick bathtime!

After some crankiness and crying, he agreed that 8 pm was a good bedtime [we're trying to start being more consistent on a bedtime, and he's at a point now where it seems to be working out, and he'll sleep until about 30 minutes before my alarm goes off for work...of course]

And now, glass of wine, and a classic childhood favorite movie on Netflix...Baby's Day Out [anyone remember that movie?! still love it!]

Cheers to perfect, quiet little evenings.

Overwhelmed - the Good Kind

Seriously. He gets cuter every.single.day.

God has really been blowing us away with His provision in our lives recently.

Last payday, we deposited the check into our account, went home and paid the tithe the very next morning. After paying the tithe I went to check our account to see if it had shown up yet, and there was a deposit INTO our account for more than 10 times the tithe! We definitely didn't deposit it! I look at the deposit slip and it was anonymous and simply read "God is faithful." WOW! We are able to pay all our bills, rent, everything, with some left over this month.

I also had a job interview today for a very well paying part time job that would allow me to stay at starbucks, be home in the evening, and pay our bills. There was only one other person interviewing for the job, so be praying I get this!

This past weekend at church, what I really got from the message is to continue believing. God really blessed us big time, but it would be so easy to start to worry again about the next month. God's blessings and provision don't ever run out, and we must continue believing.

To the 3 people that read this blog, I pray that you are encouraged, your faith is strengthened, and that God would shower you with His richest blessings upon your lives!

One Year Ago...

I cried myself to sleep.

I wondered why God had done this. Didn't he know Rob had JUST lost his job, I was in Canada with no access to health care, we wanted to wait several years and just enjoy life with the two of us. In my minds eye it was the worst possible timing.

Those little pink lines changed everything in my life that night one year ago.

I remember those first few days and weeks, saying the word pregnant over and over and over. It just didn't seem right.

Oh but now, now when I look back on this day, I PRAISE GOD for His plan. I can't believe we wanted to wait so long for kids! My heart is more full that I ever could have imagined, and I am blessed beyond belief. I simply cannot imagine life without my little Josiah.

Double Shot, Extra Hot, 2 Splenda Faith, Well Stirred

[like my coffee themed title?]

I was going to start this post boasting in the silence of my apartment, with baby asleep and husband out. Then he showed back up. Hey don't get me wrong, I love my husband! But I was really enjoying the dead silence that I NEVER experience anymore. Anyways... :-)

Before I dive into my thoughts, just wanted to brag that I totally won a chili cook off contest at a super bowl party last night! I wasn't going to enter because I was intimidated, but Rob really encouraged me to do it. So glad!

Oh, and look at the cuteness of my boy in his little football jersey!

Since about two months old Josiah has had a bad rash. It started on his face, then it spread on his head, then basically all over his body. We used creams and lotions and soaps that the pediatrician said to used, we tried all kinds of things to help it, but nothing has been working. This past week, however, we started praying. Like really, faith filled praying over him. And now there are only very small remnants left of the rash!

Through God answering our prayers to heal Josiah's rash, my faith has really been built up. I have questioned God a lot recently if He's even hearing our prayers since our situation isn't getting any better. But this has shown me that God IS listening, He DOES hear our prayers, and He hasn't forgotten about us.

And so, I'll keep praying.

God WILL give us vision for the future.

God WILL guide our steps.

God WILL provide all our needs according to His great, glorious, and unimaginable riches!

The Sauna

Tonight as I was sitting in the sauna at the gym, I was praying and listening for God [something I haven't done too much of lately]. After meeting with our small group leaders I've really been seeking God for answers. Then I heard it.

Temporary.

It's something I've told myself MANY times in the past, well, year. These trials are only temporary.

Financial struggles are temporary.

Uncertainty is temporary.

But this time there was an extraordinary peace with it. I felt peace that if I didn't get any of these higher paying jobs I've applied for, that it was going to be okay, because me having to work like this is only temporary. Rob is going to be able to work soon and provide for us.

Temporary is definitely a word from God that I need to cling to. There's no explaining the kind of peace I felt tonight.

And friends, I welcome your accountability and godly reminders of this word if I start to let go of my focus.

God speaks in the saunas, in the fires and hard times that we go through.

Prayer

Last night we had dinner with the couple that leads our small group from church. I am so thankful that God placed us in this group, and that we have leaders who pray, seek God fervently, and speak into our lives. Our conversation brought on a tidal wave of emotion in my heart. They challenged us to really be seeking God and praying constantly, and for good measure! We need direction in our lives, we need to know God's will, God's plans, we need God's provision. I can't understand this season of our lives and why it's so difficult, but prayer changes things. The power of God is literally within us, and that power has the ability to change things! [go to www.gatewaypeople.com and check out this weekend's sermon]

In this weekend's sermon, pastor Robert gave an awesome analogy. When we turn on our hot water faucet, we will stand there and wait, and wait, and wait until it turns hot. We know it will turn hot. But when it comes to prayer, it's like we're turning on the faucet, letting the cup fill up and we feel that it's cold, so we say Oh well, guess it's not gonna get hot, and we walk away. We can't give up! God is definitely going to answer the prayers that we have

And there are so many questions/prayers. Just a small few of them...

Has God called Rob to go to college? Have we even asked Him if it's His will for Rob?
Why is immigration taking so long? Is there a block in the way that we need to pray through?
What is God's desire for us this year?
What creative ways are there to make money? How can we get by while we're waiting for a better paying job?

I know this is a lot of deep stuff to blog about, and that's why I'm done and leaving you with adorable pictures of my growing boy.

3 months old! Want an idea of how much he's grown? See below of him at two months old:

Oh hi little Rocky Balboa baby. 

He LOVES to stand now. And smile :-)