Xin Nian Kuai Le!

happy Chinese New Year!!

it's the year of the dragon & there's

lots of fun happening around here today...

some cool crafts, fortune cookie baking, 

and of course some local Chinese food tonight.

happy monday y'all

and

"Gung Hay Fat Choy"!

the Response

this past tuesday evening we had the
privilege of attending an amazing evening of 

prayer for our country.

The Response is a prayer gathering,
 based on Joel chapter 2,
being held around our nation with the

 purpose of lifting the Name of Jesus and

"pressing the gates of heaven to see

justice and righteousness in America."

you can read more about it HERE.

if it will be held in your area, I highly

encourage you to go and be a part!

our Ali was asked to be one of the participants

to read Scripture and pray...

oh my goodness.

my heart was ready to burst with thankfulness

that the Father has captured her heart

and has given her a passion to see His will 

done on this earth, and a boldness to 

make Him and His love known.

that's my baby girl!!

Joel 2:12-13

 ¹² “Even now,” declares the LORD, 

   "return to me with all your heart,

with fasting and weeping and mourning."

 ¹³ Rend your heart 

   and not your garments. 

Return to the LORD your God, 

   for he is gracious and compassionate, 

slow to anger and abounding in love, 

   and he relents from sending calamity.

distractions, dentists and phish food

wowzers

it's january 13 & my motivation button

seems to be in need of a tune-up.

wishing I could be confessing 

organized drawers and closets

unpacked boxes

color-coded schedule charts

daily aerobic workouts...

but nope, I got nothin'.

things are slowly happening house wise.

painting is being done, & yes,

some boxes have been unpacked.

I do manage to get out of my pjs by mid morning,

and there is a home cooked meal on the table nightly.

but

  distractions are a biggie for me

 for some reason this new year.

with so much to be done, our normal 

daily routine has been dicey.

one of the toughest aspects?

the home school routine.

a new setting & trying to recover

from a big move have been a tad difficult.

the biggest distraction?

these guys

I mean really...

we're loving the bay window w/

the groovy bird feeder view,

but w/ every new, fabulous bird that

lands for a bite or two,

we are immediately glued to the window.
it's like a daily ornithology field trip.

really, our Creator is amazing!

we are birding nerds.

I might have some t-shirts made.

yesterday this little penguin went to the dentist.

she can walk into the surgeon's, ENT's

and pediatrician's office w/o batting an Asian eyelash,

BUT

the dentist is a different story altogether.

I'll just say that her amazing dentist has stated

that Gracie has the strength of a grown man.

she. hates. that. dentist. chair.

so, being the awesome mother that I am,

with memories of our last visit dancing in my head,

I allowed Brian to take her.

she cried, yes, but she laid back & was compliant

enough for an exam.

thank You, Jesus.

the next leg of our journey will be a three-ring-circus

of working between her surgeon, her dentist

and an orthodontist.

buckle up. it's all good.

oh, and poor Alison...

she had a craving for a particular

Ben & Jerry's ice cream yesterday.

so, being the softy that I am

( in more ways than one...

see above "non-aerobic routine"reference)

 I bought her some.

after a few bites she thought it tasted, well, odd.

"mom! this says it went bad in september!"

then I noticed

it went bad in september

of 2010!!

when I called the store manager and politely

suggested he check the freezer shelves,

he told me we could bring it back for an exchange.

don't think so.

a refund is just fine,  m'kay?!

thankfully, no digestive disturbances occurred,.

and I think the craving for that treat no longer exists.

happy non-distraction weekend!