Summer and Winter and Springtime and Harvest...

Everyone who reads this blog on a regular basis knows that I absolutely love summertime.  I love the sunshine, warm weather, relaxed schedule, extra playtime with the kids, and extra time for doing things that I can't do in the school year (like sew and read).  I'm most definitely a summer girl.

I have found over the years, though, that this love of summer produces a certain amount of dread and anxiety as fall and winter approach.  The days will be shorter, the sunshine won't be out as much, the schedule picks back up, and the responsibilities get heavier.  This year has been no exception.

Ah, but isn't it like the Lord to come in and bring truth in unexpected ways.  He spoke to my heart a couple of weeks ago to the point where I find myself anticipating the coming of fall like I never have before.  This may seem like a small thing, but it is a big hurdle in my own life and attitude.

I was at a prayer breakfast for homeschooling moms, and we sang a few songs together including "Great is Thy Faithfulness".  I have sung that hymn hundreds, maybe thousands of times.  We even sang it at our wedding.  I would say it is a personal favorite, but one verse popped out like it never has before.

"Summer and winter and springtime and harvest,

Sun, moon, and stars in their courses above,

Join with all nature in manifold witness,

To Thy great faithfulness, mercy, and love."

As I was singing, it hit me...

Summer and harvest both proclaim the faithfulness of God.

Summer AND harvest AND winter?

And not just proclaim, but join with ALL nature.  I had to let it sink in for a few minutes.

Could even my beloved summertime flowers, gardens, and sunshine be joined by leaves, cold weather, and snow in proclaiming the goodness of my God?  And joined in manifold witness?

Manifold.  Many fold.

                    A thousand-fold?

                                         A million-fold?

Manifold.

Witness to what?

To Thy GREAT faithfulness.

And enduring mercy.

And everlasting love.

To most people, this may not seem like much of a realization, and it's something I've known mentally for a long time, but what about my fickle, frail heart?  It's not always so quick to follow the truth that I know in my head.  I don't notice the "joining in manifold witness" as quickly as I notice the shorter days, cold weather, dead grass, and gray sky.

The truth that changes the looming drab into a buffet of anticipation and color is knowing that I'm heading into an autumn where God IS and where He will most definitely be praised.

How like my Lord to sing His truth over me once again-- to redirect my heart and mind to His glory in every time, every season, every change.

All I have needed Thy hand hath provided...

...even when the thing needed is the grace-filled truth that helps a summer girl say hello to autumn.

Great is Thy faithfulness...
 again,
 and again,
 and again.

Checking In Quickly

I apologize for my long silence.  We were just getting settled in after our eventful camping trip when we received the word that Paul's Uncle Ed went to be with Christ last Tuesday morning.  After weighing the options, we decided to travel as a family to Myrtle Beach for the funeral.  The kids knew Ed and loved him very much, and we were flexible enough in our schedule to be able to drive down together.

We left last Thursday and just arrived home again last night.  I think we spent more than 32 hours in the van in the last several days, but it was a good trip.  The kids are amazing travelers, and I don't think I heard a single complaint the whole time (although Paul's "Car Bingo" helped us pass many hours as we searched for all of those easy-to-find items like a West Coast license plate and a dinosaur)!

I'm extremely glad we all went down.  Despite the sad reason for a reunion, funerals have the effect of bringing many family members together in one place.  Along with spending time with Ed's wife (Paul's Aunt Linda), we saw two of Paul's uncles, another aunt, two cousins, and all of Paul's siblings.  We also had the opportunity to love on Paul's mom and dad for a few days.

Ed's favorite song was Michael Card's "Immanuel", and it was my privilege to play that song along with other favorite hymns and songs at his funeral.  He has been quite ill for many years although his death was still unexpected.  I think we are all rejoicing that he is no longer struggling physically.

The Lord was gracious to us on our long drive.  We have literally driven thousands and thousands of miles over the last thirteen years and have never once had a mechanical difficulty with a vehicle.  About four hours into this trip, a sensor in the van went out, and we ended up at a dealership somewhere along our route.  Two hours later we were back on the road with a new sensor that was covered under our warranty.  (We were less than 2,000 miles away from the end of the warranty when the sensor went out.)  Praise be to God for protecting us and allowing the problem to be fixed quickly.

Now we are back home settling in again.  Since we were in Myrtle Beach, we did take the kids to the beach on Saturday, and we made a couple of trips to the pool where Paul's parents live (more x's on the bucket list!).   I'll try to post some pictures in the next few days-- as soon as I figure out our new camera.  (Our old camera never did recover from the shock of the canoe incident!)

So on we plod, being reminded again that life is fragile and fleeting.  We don't know much, but we do know that to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord.  Ed's healing is finally complete, and for that, I am very thankful.

Thunderstorms, Tents, and The Capsizing of a Canoe

After a very full few days, we are back home from our camping trip!  I'm pleased to report that we returned with all of our children, all of our belongings, and most of our sanity. (Well, we probably returned with as much sanity as we left with, but that's a different post!)

All in all, we had a fantastic time!  We picked Josiah up from summer camp on our way, and it was so wonderful to be back together again out in God's creation.

Other than the obligatory mosquito bites and campfire smell, our trip was uneventful-- unless you count a torrential thunderstorm our first night and the capsizing of one of our rented canoes the second afternoon.  If you count those things, it was a grand adventure that our kids will never forget.

I've never experienced a thunderstorm from inside a tent before.  A few of the thunderclaps were so loud that they caused us all to pitch to the floor.  Then we would sit up and laugh hard when the rumbling stopped.  I don't know if we laughed to send the fear scurrying or if we laughed to keep embarrassment at bay.  Either way, we would scream and laugh, talk about making a run for the van, and then decide to just stay put as another torrent of rain came pouring forth from the heavens.

The skies cleared up just in time for us to build a fire for marshmallow-roasting before bed.

On the second morning, the owner of the campground took the kids out into the river for "Kayaking 101".  They did really well learning to paddle and steer a little boat-- something that helped immensely a few hours later.

Our plan that day was to rent two canoes (the place we stayed is a campground and a canoeing/kayaking outfitter) and canoe down a river through a national wildlife refuge.  The trip was supposed to take 4 1/2 hours and cover about 16 river miles.  We planned to stop for some bird-watching and snacks along the way.  It was still very cloudy, but the guy that put us in the water said that the sun was supposed to come out later that afternoon.

Everything started out well.  I was in one canoe with Josiah and Isaac, and Paul was in the other with Micah and Sarah.  Other than a few mishaps canoeing into trees, getting stuck on some fallen logs, and knocking spiders out of the trees into the canoe, we were moving along just fine.  (Who knew that one treachery of canoeing is spiders falling out of trees when you bump into said trees? Eek!)

About an hour into the trip, I had just gotten stuck on some fallen logs when Josiah, who was in the front of my canoe, looked behind us and yelled, "They're in the water.  The other canoe is upside down!"

At that particular spot, the river was narrow and full of rocks and downed trees.  Paul, Micah, and Sarah had gotten dumped over when the current knocked them into a large tree branch.  When I turned around, I could see that Paul was struggling hard to keep the large canoe from sinking while the twins were floating through the water trying to catch our belongings and a lost paddle.  Praise God that the water wasn't very deep or fast in that spot and we were all wearing life vests.  Providentially, because I was stuck and my canoe wouldn't budge, I wasn't struggling to stay nearby.  I had the twins swim over to me, we retrieved our things as they floated past, and then they climbed up onto a log and got into our boat, shivering and crying.  Meanwhile, Paul was still trying to get the canoe turned back over.  When he finally did, it was full of water.

After about 30 minutes of tipping the canoe to get the water out, bailing out the rest of the water with a cut-off water bottle (it takes awhile when you're bailing 12 oz. at a time), calming the twins down, and discovering that everything in our fancy "stay-dry" bag was soaking wet (including the extra clothes and our cameras), we were finally underway again.  A few hundred yards down-river, we found the lost paddle caught on some more downed trees.  I had prayed specifically that God would stop that paddle somewhere so we could find it, and He answered that prayer with another log!

At that point, we had many miles and several hours to go to meet up with the van that would take us back to the campground.  I found myself in knots most of the rest of the afternoon.  Paul kept trying to remind me how blessed we were and how God had taken care of us, but my mama-heart was anxious every time either canoe got stuck or looked like it might tip even slightly.  We got the twins paddling right away to warm them up, and a couple hours later, the sun finally came out.

Eventually the river widened, the going was much easier, and the kids (and the mama) began to enjoy the trip.  They were such troopers-- all four of them paddling most of the way.  About five hours after setting out, we arrived at the pick-up point to meet our ride.  Aside from sore muscles (and Josiah declaring that his "blisters had blisters" from all of the paddling), we were all in one piece.

God really protected us that day.  Our only casualty was our camera, although thankfully everything on the memory card is likely still there-- (hence the reason there are no pictures of our camping trip yet).  I'm going to be reflecting on that canoe trip for a long time-- the providence of my getting stuck just before the other boat capsized, the shallow water, the hard work Paul did righting and bailing out the other canoe--all while standing chest-deep in the water.  I'm also going to be pondering how it helped when the sun came out, the obstacles and twists and turns of the river, and the spiritual parallels to the experience of those in the canoe farther ahead yelling instructions to those behind them on the journey-- "Stay to the right up here.  Be careful in this spot!"

Compared to that adventure, the rest of our trip was truly uneventful.  We had a great evening by the campfire (I loved learning about cooking over a fire), we all slept hard, and we arrived home late the next day.

I'm certain that there are many more camping adventures in our future.  The kids are now officially hooked!  I think Paul and I had the chance to remember how much we enjoy taking trips like this.  We decided long ago that we would always try to give our kids experiences, not things.  God was good to give us a safe, albeit adventure-filled few days, and I'm thankful for the chance to get away from the hustle and bustle of our everyday life.

So a few more items have been crossed off the summer bucket list, and memories were made that will last a lifetime.  I guess the only thing I can add is this:

God is very good...

To protect His children...

To give us the opportunity to make memories together...

To allow us to experience the beauty of his creation and the majesty of His thunder...

and

To bring us back home again after teaching us many things about Himself.

The Two-Person Tent

Almost thirteen years ago, Paul and I were given a two-person tent for a wedding gift.  We both enjoy camping, and we had registered for a tent and sleeping bags thinking we would have great times going up into the mountains of Colorado on little weekend excursions.

When we came home from our honeymoon, I started back into my teaching job, and Paul started a law practice.  Six months later, we found out we were pregnant with our first baby.  As it turned out, we never used that little tent before Paul went into the Army and we moved away from Colorado.

Fast-forward thirteen years.

In the years since we were given that little tent, God gave us four kids in less than five years, and we had nine different addresses in five different states (I still struggle to remember my zip code-- seriously.).   Somewhere along the line, the kids used the tent as a play structure a few times, and then it got ruined in our last move.  Sadly, we never went camping in it.

Next week we will celebrate our thirteenth anniversary, and how will we celebrate?

We're taking the kids camping for the first time.

Instead of breakfast in bed, it will be bacon over a campfire.  Instead of lazy days in a romantic resort, we will spend a day on a lazy river in two rented canoes.

And I couldn't be happier.  Or feel more blessed.

Because with the "for better or for worse" (and we've had our fair share of both in the last thirteen years), came the blessings of a family and a love that hangs on tight through the good and the bad-- precious gifts from an Almighty God Who loves us with an everlasting love and holds us in the palm of His hand.

I can't think of a better place to tell God "thank you" than sitting beside a campfire in His woods in the early morning with my family sound asleep...

...in our new 8-person tent.

When God Speaks Through a Bird's Nest...

Several weeks ago, I was sitting in the family room reflecting on a conversation with my sister in which she said she believes that each room in a house needs three things: something growing, something from nature, and something from the ocean.  As I looked at the room, I realized that while I already had a plant and had set out some of my favorite seashells, there was nothing from nature.

I didn't grow up loving nature like I do now, but in recent years the Lord has given me a deep love of the outdoors and the beautiful paintbrush that is expertly wielded by His Almighty hand.  I have to ponder-- Can you love the Creator without also coming to love His sovereign omnipotence so marvelously displayed in all things from the tiniest seed to the largest mountain?

In the midst of my ponderings,  I was suddenly inspired to begin my quest for something from nature to put on our large mantel.  I was still testing different arrangements and objects when Paul came in from outside and surveyed my progress.

"What I'd really like to have up there is a real bird's nest," I commented to that man that I love so well.  

"But... really," I had to ask myself, "How often do you come across an abandoned nest?"  I figured I'd just wait and keep my eyes open, and maybe someday I would find one. 

A few days later, Sarah and I decided to take a leisurely walk on a Sunday afternoon.  At one point, she looked over at a large tree and exclaimed, "Mama, look at this!"  On the ground underneath the tree was an empty little nest.  

I stood there absolutely amazed.  Could God have heard and fulfilled even my tiny longing for a bird's nest?

We brought it home, cleaned it out, zipped it up in a bag, and put it in the freezer for a few days in case there were any mites.  Now it sits on the mantel with a picture of a bird tucked up in the top.

I have spent much of the last several months poring over Matthew 6 almost every morning, finding promises that carry me through hard days, uncertain days.  As I've run to the Word, I've also looked out the window and watched the birds flit around the yard in the early morning sunshine.

"Look at the birds of the air, " Christ says to my fearful heart.

  "They neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns,

and yet your Heavenly Father feeds them.

  Are you not of more value than they?"

Matthew 6:26

A few chapters later, He says,

"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 of your head are numbered. 

 Fear not, therefore;

 you are of more value than many sparrows."

Matthew 10: 29-31

I know He hears all of the little prayers and longings of each of our hearts, yet in the grand scheme of life, hard times, famines, wars, and other giant issues we face, a bird's nest for my mantel seems so tiny.

But is it really?

Day after day, night after night-- that nest sits on my mantel, and I think of these verses...

And His promises...

And my own fears that go flitting away as He says, "Look at the birds of the air..."

Can God really speak through a bird's nest?

Absolutely.

On turning 40...

I celebrated my 40th birthday a couple of weeks ago.

I was blessed with a wonderful day surrounded by my husband, children, and precious in-laws.  They showered me with love and kisses and fun presents like a watering can, flip-flops, and a bracelet that grows over time as beads and memories slide onto the silver band.

So what do I think of 40?  I think I have plenty of wiry, gray hair beginning to appear on my head.  Those creases around my mouth and eyes?  I think they're here to stay.

More than anything, though, I have now lived long enough to know that I don't really KNOW much at all.

But I know this...

"O God, from my youth

 you have taught me,

 and I still proclaim your wondrous deeds.

So even to old age and gray hairs,

 O God,

 do not forsake me,

 until I proclaim your might to another generation,

 your power to all those to come."

Ps. 71: 17, 18

The Summer Bucket List

I've always been fascinated by the people that make these "bucket lists" of the things they want to do before they "kick the bucket".  The lists usually go something like this:

1.  Go on an African safari
2.  Climb Mount Kilimanjaro
3.  Ride to the top of the Eiffel Tower
4.  Read War and Peace
5.  Sing at the Sydney Opera House
6.  Read every Dr. Seuss book 5 times

(Well, I'm not so sure about that last one, but it sounds like a worthy goal, right?)

Anyway, I saw a great post on another blog about a mom that makes a Summer Bucket List with her kids every summer.  Imagine the thought-- a fantastical, dream-filled list of everything they want to try to do before summer kicks the bucket!  I thought that sounded like a great way to soak up the summer and redeem the time (not to mention eliminating the mournful conversation I always have with Paul in September that starts with "Where in the world did summer go and what in the world did we do?")

I was tremendously inspired by this idea, so I sat my little gaggle of blessings down and said, "Family, what should we try to accomplish this summer?"

We now have a big chart on the fridge of all the fun things we'd like to do-- play dates with buddies, berry picking, making pickles, going to visit Great-Grandma on the other side of the state, mom/dad/kid dates, bike rides, having some families over for dinner, and a whole host of other exciting things.  Most of them are very low cost, although two trips to Cold Stone Creamery and a family trip to a Detroit Tigers game managed to sneak their way onto the list.  We'll see how much we can actually accomplish by Labor Day when the bookshelves, pencils, and textbooks begin calling to us and we have to drag our sun-tanned faces back to the table for very "non-bucket-list" things like math facts and very non-exciting, handwritten essays about exotic places like Mount Kilimanjaro and the Eiffel Tower.

So now I'm sending out e-mails, setting up play dates, looking for fun places to visit on day trips, and heading off to our neighborhood pool with four little sunscreen-smelling, goggle-wearing, towel-wrapped people.  It has been fun to see the kids cross things off and anticipate each thing we get to do-- no matter how small or simple.  They're loving being intentional about how we spend our summer.  It has also been a good exercise for this mama that struggles with a tendency toward all work and no play. I'm learning to work hard at finding things that will build up the joy in our family as we play together.  That is most definitely a lesson I need to learn.  Maybe that's why God in His providence caused me to stumble across that other blog post.

It will be interesting to see the list at the end of the summer.  The kids put "Pool" on the chart 30 times.

Literally.

As of tonight, it's 3 down and 27 to go.

Oh, yeah, and just in case you're wondering-- I don't have a bucket list, but I did read War and Peace cover to cover once (emphasis on once) and sang with a music group at the Sydney Opera House.  I'm not sure, but I would be willing to bet big bucks that I've read every Dr. Seuss book at least 5 times to at least one of four tiny people.  As for Mount Kilimanjaro and the Eiffel Tower, I guess I'll have to be content with those exotic, er... interesting, handwritten essays.

For now, though...

...Sunscreen, here we come!

Gardens and Grace- Consider The Lilies

Consider the lilies of the field...

...how they grow...

...they neither toil nor spin...

...Yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these...

...But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?

Therefore, do not be anxious...

Matthew 6: 28-30

Summertime

It's been a couple of weeks since I've written anything here.  We finished up school at the end of May, and I spent the last few weeks excavating some of the piles that built up throughout the school year.  After seven years of homeschooling, I have finally come to accept that I can do school well or my house well, but not both.  School and the kids always win over dusting and piles, and this reforming perfectionist of a mama is finally at peace with a decorating style that is best described as "Early Science Experiment with a touch of Dust and Lived-In".  (The basement decorating style is "AAAAAAAAAA! with a touch of Run for Your Lives", but that's probably a different post...)

Anyway, I've made a little bit of progress on the piles.  I've also got a ton of summer sewing projects on the docket, so my sewing machine is dusted off and out on the dining room table, waiting expectantly for those spools and bobbins.  We're spending time soaking up the sun, working in the garden, swimming in our neighborhood pool, and generally enjoying the more relaxed pace of summer.

I love summer, partly because the slower pace gives me a chance to reflect on all that God has done and is doing in our family.  As I sit on the patio, soak in the sunshine, look at the flowers, and watch the birds flit around the yard, I am so thankful for the ways God cares for His creation.  It sends me straight to Matthew 6 almost every morning-- "Look at the birds... Are you not of more value than they?  Consider the lilies of the field, how they neither toil nor spin... Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow..."  Summer is such a gift of grace-- a loving reminder from the Father who cares for His birds and His flowers and His children.

Soaking.
              Savoring.
                               Reflecting.
                                                 Regrouping.

I'm incredibly thankful for summertime.

Food Poisoning and God's Schedule

Paul was out of town this last week, so we decided to go out to dinner Thursday night on the way home from picking him up at the airport.  We had some "free kids' meal" coupons, and we thought it would be fun to have a nice dinner to celebrate his homecoming.

About 30 minutes after we ate, I started feeling sick to my stomach, and by Friday it was clear that I had some type of food poisoning.  I ended up spending all day Friday, Saturday, and part of Sunday completely out of commission.  Praise be to God that I am feeling much better today!

To be completely honest, I was not a bit happy about being knocked out by this unexpected kink in my plan. I was mad at the restaurant and upset that I lost more than two days of productivity.  I had my agenda for the weekend, and it didn't include getting sick.

I often struggle to adjust to God's plan for my days when it is so dramatically different than what I had planned.    I know in my head that His plan is absolutely perfect, and I know that He works all things together for His glory and my good, but I am being sanctified as I learn to submit to His agenda for my days instead of insisting on my own agenda.  I'm learning that there is a big difference between just adjusting mentally and truly submitting with all my heart and mind.  As I lay on my bed wrestling with my attitude, the Lord kept reminding me of the verse that says, "All the days ordained for me were written in Your book before one of them came to be."(Ps. 139:16)

All the days ordained for me...even the ones with food poisoning.

I can be such a slow learner, but God in His wisdom used this last weekend to teach me more about what it means to submit to His schedule and to listen to His truth in the midst of the unexpected changes and adjustments.  Thank God for His unfailing love and tenderness as He draws each of us along, for He knows exactly what He wants to teach us in every moment that He gives us life and breath.  Sometimes those teachable moments come from unexpected speed bumps like food poisoning.

There is one other unexpected blessing that came out of being laid up for a few days.  I finally finished a book I've been working on for 10 months!

Gardens and Grace: The Paintbrush of God

Consider the paintbrush

 of Almighty God,

Who,

in giving His spectacular gifts,

still reminds us that they are only shadows

of the glories yet unseen.

Gaze long.

Breathe deep.

Kneel forevermore.

Pictures and Ponderings: June 1

Sometimes I come across a funny little scene in my house that makes me stop and say, "Hmmmm....I wonder how that got there?"  Recently, one such pile made me literally laugh out loud-- squirt guns, hair accessories, and a crystal-handled wedding cake server-- all hanging out on the laundry room bench together!

Yep, we are a family, and I guess this is a little bit like the way we roll--

  imperfect,
 sometimes illogical,
 but hanging together nonetheless!

Reflections on Memorial Day

At the airport- Memorial Day 2008, minutes before saying good-bye.

For the last few years, Memorial Day has had a double significance in the life of our family. It was on Memorial Day exactly four years ago that my husband deployed to Iraq for 12 months.  This blog was born out of those difficult days and the need to focus on the blessings instead of the fears that threatened to consume us daily.

Today I remember and honor all of those men and women who paid the ultimate price so that we can enjoy so many freedoms.  I am so thankful for their sacrifice.  I also remember and pray for the families that never had the joy of being reunited with their loved one.  We were so thankful that Paul came home to us, but I know that God had a different plan for many other wives and families, and I grieve for their loss.

"The Lord upholds all who are falling

and raises up all who are bowed down."

-- Ps. 145:14

May the Lord uphold all those whose hearts are bowed down today, and may He bless those who serve so far from home.

The Three Rings of Marriage

A few weeks ago, we were sitting at the kitchen table, and the kids were asking me about my wedding ring.

Suddenly, Micah piped up and said in a goofy way, "There are three rings of marriage:  the engagement ring, the wedding ring, and suffering!"

I was absolutely stunned (and slightly amused, I admit!).  Where DO they get these things?

Knowing that he probably heard it somewhere, and knowing that he couldn't have gotten that idea from one of us, I started querying him to find the source of such a comment.

"I don't know.  I heard it on TV or something."

The kids don't watch a ton of live TV, so all day long I kept asking him if he remembered where he had heard that statement.

Finally it came to him-- "America's Funniest Home Videos"!

They've only seen that show a few times, but that one line stuck.  I'm so thankful Micah got the joke and knew it wasn't true.  Even at his young age, he is already beginning to understand that being married is a good thing- a blessed thing- and not a life-sentence of suffering and unhappiness.  Hard times and suffering will come at some point to every marriage, to be sure, but marriage itself is a gift, not a curse.

Now Paul and I have even more reason to make sure we love one another in such a way that the kids would never believe that one of the "rings" of marriage was suffering.  By God's grace, may our family and marriage be marked by these "rings" instead:

sharing,

remembering,

admiring,

adventuring,

adoring,

anchoring,

caring,

savoring,

persevering,

ministering,

cheering,

maturing,

considering,

endearing,
and

enduring.

Oh, the ways God teaches me truths because of that one other ring:

MOTHERING!

Silly Saturday- The War on Germs

I came upon this scene this week:

I had to laugh as I noticed that the soap container is completely empty.

All hope is not lost, however, because we have obviously acquired a mighty and fearsome squirt-gun arsenal.

Therefore, I have now concluded that we can just simply shoot any lurking germs and call it a victory!

1,003 Words- May 18

(Since a picture is worth 1,000 words, I'll only add 3 of my own...)

Open

for

humming-business!

Who Knew?

Who knew we had a laundry room floor?


(It's normally covered with laundry, so I don't see it very often!)  


What a pleasant surprise to see it this week.


A reminder to myself and all of my friends to keep plodding on...

Gardens and Grace- May 11

I look up from my weeding when I hear the door open.

"Do you want some gloves?" asks the man that I love so well.

I look down at my dirty fingers, knowing that it will take days to erase the evidence of digging in the flower beds bare-handed-- filthy fingernails, brown outlines in winter-roughened skin, green stains from battling dandelions.  No, these are not model hands.  They're mama hands, garden hands.

"Thanks.  That would be great."

A few minutes later a pair of green gloves are tossed out the back door onto the patio.  As I pull them onto the stained fingers, it almost seems silly.  I'm already so dirty.

"How's it coming?"  he says with a smile.

"It's coming along well.  I'm about to quit soon.  The sticker weeds are bad."

Sticker weeds.  I'm sure they have some elegant-sounding Latin name, but you can't hide ugliness behind a fancy name.  They hurt to pull, they root deep, they pop out of the ground tucked under nice plants like lilies and irises, sneaking their way into the flower beds, stealing the sun and nourishment from beautiful things like dianthus and hollyhocks.

"Do you want some music out here?"

"No thanks.  I'm fine."

He's about to close the door, finish making lunch, feed four hungry kids-- the same four kids that picked fluffy dandelions all morning in the hopes that the few million seeds that have already blown all over the yard won't be joined by a few million more.

Suddenly, I have a burning thought, a confession.

"I know it sounds silly, but God talks to me when my hands are in the dirt."


Then comes the gentle reply from that man I love so well.


"I know.  He talks to me too." 

And wouldn't it be just like my God?

The curse was pronounced in a garden.

Sticker weeds, dandelions, dirty hands desperately pushing back the chaos for

a few more days.

My Jesus prayed and was arrested in a garden.

"Not my will but Thine..."

And yet God redeems the loss found in those other gardens by teaching me great things about grace,

  and little plants grown up,

and weeds that crop up in my heart under the things I like to think are beautiful and lovely,

and His pruning of the branches,

 and my bearing much fruit.

Oh, thank You, Lord, that gardens are not just for curses and loss,

but they are redeemed for teaching and blessing and beauty and speaking...

...speaking to Your daughter.

You know the one, Lord-- that messy one with the very dirty hands, who is ever so thankful

 that the winter is past and the time for gardens and listening has come.

A Completely New Look

I've spent a good bit of time lately pondering this little blog of mine and playing with different ideas to visually enhance the story of who we are and what God is doing in our lives.  As I have visited other blogs in the last several months, it has become very clear to me that you can often tell the worldview of the author the instant you reach their page.

I love to write about my family and the things that God is teaching us on this journey.  Lately I've realized that this blog has become my online journal and digital scrapbook.  As I have prayed about having this creative outlet, the Lord has impressed upon my heart the fact that since I belong to Christ, every facet of this blog should reflect His face-- from the title to the posts to the pictures.  After much trial and error (this girl is a technological work-in-progress!), I have completely revamped the look of "Chocolate Syrup and Cookie Dough"!  In the days to come, I will be adding some tabs at the top that will hopefully provide even more ways for the love and grace of Christ spill out all over this blog for His glory and our joy.

I'd love to know what you think of the new look!

Savoring His sweetness...

Pictures of the Latest Birthday Cakes

All of the kids have had birthdays in the last several months, so we've made some fun cakes to celebrate.  Josiah turned 11, Micah and Sarah turned 9, and Isaac turned 7.  How are they getting so big?  Didn't I just give birth to all of them yesterday?

I think we're up to 38 different cakes now including a couple that I've made for other events.  If you would like to see some of the other cakes we've made, you can check out the slide show entitled "Cakes, Cakes, and More Cakes" down on the right side, and you can also click on "Cakes" in my labels for pictures of more recent cakes that aren't in the slide show.

Here are the kids' most recent cakes:  (click any picture to enlarge!)

Josiah loves moose, so he asked for a moose cake.  I cheated and used figures for the moose because I truly had no idea how to do antlers in frosting!  The trees are sugar cones, and the logs are oreo straws.  The water is made with blue jello.

Sarah loves to play the piano, so she wanted a piano cake!

Micah LOVES the Denver Broncos, so to go along with last year's Broncos helmet,
 he asked for a Broncos jersey!

Isaac LOVES the Detroit Red Wings, so he asked for a very specific cake!  He wanted a polar bear in a Red Wings jersey with an octopus in front.  It is tradition in Detroit for people to throw octopi onto the ice after a goal.  The tradition goes back to when it took 8 playoff victories to win the championship.  The octopus is made with a lollipop and gummi worms.

Happy Birthday to the most wonderful kids I could ever imagine!