Thoroughly Clean

 It was very difficult to take a picture so that you could read the fine print here.  Sorry!  Don't worry I've been seeing it for over a month and never read it until today. It says "It is important to thoroughly clean this product after each use"  It says this in CAPS!  I am not sure what 20 year old punk thought this was appropriate instruction, but you've got to be kidding me!  Other than dishes, I am not sure if there is anything I clean after each use, much less this:

 A child's potty, each use, thoroughly. come on.  I have totally and completely failed to comply to these directions, I confess.  I hope there are not toilet cleaning authorities that plan to pursue justice in this case.  I did clean it today though, but I'm not admitting when I cleaned it last, mostly because I don't keep track . . .  hope you have some thorough cleaning to do this weekend.

Craftiness

I have been trying to catch up on my scrapbooking before I have another book to keep up with . . . I love making new pages and finishing a year or a trip or event, but it is not always easy to find the time to get to it.  Lately I have been making an extra effort to get upstairs where all my stuff is on the desk.  Using my Cricut is also a fun and helpful way to add something extra to the pages and keep it going a little quicker, too.  Last week I finished Briella's first book, from birth to age 2 1/2 (it is almost 4 inches thick!).  She has looked through it several times and loves her pink book :)
Here are some of my favorite spreads:

 

Outtakes

 We have had a hard time getting Gideon's 2 year pictures taken . . . for several weeks he had large bruises on his forehead (2 different ones, one after the other), then it snowed again.  Anyway, it was nice the other night so we went to a local school and quickly took a bunch of pictures.  It wasn't as nice once we were in the shade and feeling more of a breeze, at one point I zoomed in and saw that Gideon's teeth were chattering---poor guy!  But, for a 15 minute photo shoot I thought we got some pretty good shots so they are ordered.   Here are a few that are unedited and cute but not print worthy . . .

WW--17 weeks

Gideon's 2 (more pics)

 He spent at least 30 minutes checking out all the tools and pieces that came with the little tool box and the parts Dad made for the bench.  Looks like he knows how to concentrate on his work!

 He was pretty excited about the train set, too.    

Nice face, huh?  Briella always looking on . . .

We are excited about Gideon's potty progress, too.  I had low expectations, but he has done really well!!  Two days in a row with undies and no accidents!! Yippee! I'm so pumped to have a diaper free summer!!

Gideon's 2

It is so hard to believe how quickly the past two years have gone  . . . from this innocently sweet little boy to the rascal who gave me a little present for his birthday:

 His other mommy saw this and used my very words "Gideon, what did you do?!?" with the same tone of voice that went through my head when I saw the mess.  After wiping it up, Briella had so much fun that she gave him an orange marker to try again.  I guess we need to explain that sometimes sharing is a bad thing.  I was only a few feet away the whole time, but completely distracted by the birthday dump truck.  It turned out pretty well I thought . . . always a little more complicated than the  5 step instructions, but oh well.  Gideon was thrilled, especially when I let him try some of the 'dirt' in the truck.

T

This is Stephan's project for Gideon's birthday (isn't he talented?!? he just whipped this up on Saturday).  The tool bench isn't quite complete, but close.  I hear lots of banging in our future! 

Maybe you noticed the undies on the first picture, we are slowly working on potty training.  He has gone in the little potty several times and has even told me when he has to go more recently.  He loves his car underwear and we might be switching to undies only at home, but I'm a little reluctant chicken and keep putting it off.  He is so proud when he goes and we cheer, give high fives, call daddy, give bumps with fireworks, and act a little crazy.  (His other mommy is very proud too; she checks on his progress, discusses stats, and tells him good job repeatedly.)

Gideon is still a sweet boy, regardless of the messes he makes.  He is generous with hugs and smiles and is quite agreeable, too.  He definitely fits the meaning of his name "warrior" and shows his strength and toughness daily! We are thankful for the blessing he is in our lives and pray that he grows into a man after God's own heart.

Encouragement to Refresh our Hearts

I was blessed to hear Mary Beth McGreevy at a women's conference this weekend.  A local church plans a conference every March and for various reasons I have not attended inthe past, I was really looking forward to it and definitely not disappointed (well, only in the food . . .)  I thought I would share a few highlights that may be helpful and/or encouraging to others.

The Source of True Encouragement
       -God's Word (Romans 15:1-7, Romans 12:1-2) God is good, what He does is good, pleasing and perfect.
       -God's Character (Romans 15:8-12) Paul quotes four OT prophesies, all fulfilled perfectly by God.  We can TRUST Him to give us HOPE because he is MERCIFUL.
       -God's Enabling Holy Spirit (Romans 15:13) The Holy Spirit enables us to live the Christin life.

 Encouragement in Deed: Building Up in Love (Acts 18:1-8)
 God uses friendships with others to encourage His people(Aquila and Priscilla, then Silas and Timothy are provided to encourage Paul).  We need to be there for each other and come along side others in their work, in their grief, in the joy . . .
God uses resources to encourage His people, practical needs and help are a great encouragement to fellow believers.  (Matthew 7:12)
Support and Blessings through our efforts encourage others (Acts 18:6-8).  Seeing fruit from our labors is encouraging.
A few practical lessons in encouragement:
1. Listen--convey an interest, pursue an opening when people 'hint' that they are hurting, reflect back to them what you are hearing, clarify by asking questions helps you and the other understand even more deeply, ask open ended question and then listen, acknowledge that intimate communication has taken place and that you appreciate it and will keep it in your confidence, ask for permission to share your thought or direction you see in God's word.
2. Pray for each other, be specific.
3. Believe the best about others, give them the benefit of the doubt.  Let them know you believe in them (praise them publicly, get behind them during failures).
4. Live out the gospel in deeds of love and mercy.


Encouragement in Words: Apples of Gold in Settings of Silver (Acts 8:9-11)
v9 God tells Paul not to be afraid, the root cause of discouragement is often fear.  Words of love spoken from the heart makes real encouragement.
v10 God reminds Paul that He is with him.  Paul knew that, but the reminder encouraged him, we too often need reminders of something we already know.  We need to know God and His word in order to encourage others in His word.
v11 God tells Paul He has many people in this city, but at the time it did not appear to be so.  God has a plan for our lives and knows the people we will run into that will encourage us or that we will encourage.
Practical tips on what to say . . .
-The essence of encouragement is exposure without rejection, express acceptance as God does with us
-Understanding sometimes offers more encouragement than advice, sometimes we just need someone to listen and care, not offer solutions
-Strive to understand more precisely so that we can point them in the right direction, ultimately pointing them to the importance of knowing God, that He is sovereign and good.




As part of the conference a local minister gave a sectional about a little-known woman in the Bible, this year it was Ahinoam (I Samuel 25:43).  She was David's wife, set to be queen, mother of his firstborn son (IISam 3:2).  Then many discouraging, upsetting events took place in her life; David took more wives, he left her and Abigal to be taken captive by the Amalekites, her son rapes his half sister, he is later killed, and then she and her household have to flee Jerusalem because of Absolom.  He used this example to show that we have all had difficult situations in our lives, and in our darkest moments we may not be able to pray or sing praises (Isaiah 12).  In those times we must pray for and sing for those who are hurting too much right now--that is the purpose of the body of Christ to strengthen and encourage one another.   He mentioned a few things that might be helpful to share with a person going through a very difficult time: Remind them that God is not taking His wrath out on them personally, He already took it out on Jesus Christ.  Remind them that God is our salvation and we will trust and not be afraid.  Bring them to Christ and remind them of the riches and glory of God's grace in our lives.  In Isaiah 12 he pointed out that in verse 1 the you is singular, but in verses 3 and 4 the you is plural and together we can draw from the well the wealth of blessings in salvation, especially when one is too weak and discouraged to draw from the well herself (what a beautiful picture of God using His people to encourage one another).

 It is so good to fellowship with fellow believers, to listen to godly leaders, and to be refreshed and encouraged in His Word and in my walk.  I hope my rough, brief notes give you some encouragement in your trials and some ideas for encouraging others towards spiritual growth.