#635. family days with my 2 favorites
#636. Thanksgiving with both sides of our family in one place
#637. my sweet girl and her first tea party with Great Grandma...so grateful she gets to enjoy her great grandma
#638. gracious hubby who is patient when I forget her seat and the tickets for the game
#639. time with friends on my lunch break
#640. hubby yet again who let this sick mama rest and sleep the days away
#641. my hard-working better 1/2 who is willing to do whatever it takes to get his job done and help his team
#642. snuggling under a mountain of blankets in the back of the car while watching movies...nights at the drive-in are at the top of my favorite list
#643. watching my 2 favorites play "millenium falcon" together....she is so his daughter!
#644. his creativity in motivating the munchkin to use the potty
#645. connecting with a kid at work...I made a difference for one
#646. scoring an amazing deal on Christmas cards...can't beat only paying the price of postage..SCORE!
#647. fun new lights on the patio...another doing of my fabulous man

Neverland 5K

Yes, I think I have officially gone crazy. Today I signed up for and payed for my first ever 5k. For anyone who knows me well, you will know this is a VERY big deal. I am not a runner. I hate running. I don't enjoy exercise. I am LAZY.

I'm not sure what possessed me to do it, but it just sounds like it might be fun! It's a 5k (3 miles) inside Disneyland, at 10:30pm...kinda cool! So yep, I have goal now...2 months to get myself up to running 3 miles. I found a great app: "Couch to 5k" that only asks for 3 times a week, 30 minutes each time...so do-able! It got great reviews and people say it will get you going and hooked on running.

So, today I did my 1st "couch to 5k" session...definitely do-able. Hoping to get back to the gym tomorrow for day 2.

5k, here I come!!

#623. hockey games
#624. low-key days at work
#625. pictures that capture this sweet little family of ours
#626. creative presenting of celebration @ church
#627. family day
#628. Christmas trees...even before Thanksgiving...the Star Wars ornaments and her joy @ their discovery, the memories that each ornament brings, the sparkle of the lights-the calm of their glow
#629. raincoats and rainboots and a very excited 2 year old...who knew street gutters could bring so much awe and wonder
#630. catching up on shows sitting next to my love
#631. Disneyland 5k...the goal is in sight
#632. great apps that educate and guide
#633. the amazing Mr. that somehow gets stuck dealing with a sick little girl
#634. hubby dearest who works his butt off to do his best and complete projects for his company...I hope they know how they blessed they are to have this hard-working, honest, integrous, and smart man working for them

#617. her exclamation of, "look Dad, the north moon", as she gazed into the sky
#618. pictures on the playroom wall...love that pictures that were once in my room as a kid are now being used for her. Thanks for saving them Mom.
#619. when asked what she is thankful for, she tells me, "about Jesus and my church"...me too Hope
#620. sitting in her Daddy's lap cheering on her guys and hearing her tell him, "I love you Dad"
#621. train city and time outside today
#622. words of affirmation...even if we were put on the spot...glad for a moment to tell the Mr. how grateful I am for him and all he does for us

Drive Thru Difference

Today I finally got a chance to participate in the "Drive Thru Difference". I've heard about it on the radio for months and months, but have never done anything. Each Wednesday after swimming lessons I drive through Starbucks to get Hope a birthday cake pop. It's our routine and she loves it! I've thought about the Drive Thru Difference each week as they have chosen Wednesdays as the day to do it. Most weeks however, there is nobody behind us. For some reason, Starbucks was rather slow this morning. Imagine my delight when I looked behind us and saw 2 cars also waiting! I felt compelled to do it and couldn't help but feel giddy and so excited to pay for the car behind me. It was so fun. When I told the cashier he wasn't phased by it so i wonder if it happens often. As Hope and I drove away with our usual cakepop, I had butterflies in my stomach and was so excited to be able to hopefully bless the car behind me. As I drove away I prayed for the 2 women and the little girl in that car and prayed that they'd be blessed today. It wasn't anything big, but I love that I finally had the opportunity to bless somebody else!

Next time you're in the drivethru, consider blessing someone else and praying for them.

#609. family naptime
#610. 2 days in a row of early to work = home by 9pm
#611. her sweet "i lub you Mommy" throughout the day
#612. unplanned mornings together to explore
#613. her love of the "chocolate store" and her sweet "peanut butter pattie please"...gets em everytime
#614. Christmas presents for the munchkin completed and done
#615. a gracious clerk who offered a $10 off coupon on an already great steal...so worth it as hubby loves it
#616. snuggles with little ones at work...gotta love getting paid to snuggle

#608. As Jaye was pulling things out of his work backpack Hope looked over and said, "Daddy, don't go anywhere". Someone has been missing her time with Daddy!

#607. On Mary's show this morning they were doing an episode about Operation Christmas Child. Hope and I watched the show and talked together about making boxes for kids around the world. We talked about things we could put inside, etc. I told her that we should ask Daddy when he wakes up, if we can make a shoebox today. We've been talking about the boxes with Jaye and just now she asks him, "Daddy, can I put shoes in boxes?". Jaye asked her if she wanted to make some boxes today and her face lit up. I'm so excited to do this with her today and to start even now to show her the importance of helping others.

Temple

"Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought with a price. Therefore honor God with your body." -1 Corinthians 6:9-10

I will be the 1st one to admit that I am horrible at caring for the body God has given me. I don't enjoy running, I don't want to walk as our neighborhood is filled with mean dogs, and I could go on and on with excuses. Bottom line is that I am lazy...plain as that. I've had a few gym memberships over the past 10 years, but I have never gotten my money's worth as I was never faithful in going. The only time I actually made the effort to go to the gym was the 4 months between getting engaged and getting married. Pretty pathetic.

For the past several months our main streets around our house have been lined with signs for Fitness 19, promoting their new deals for a soon-to-open gym...$10 down/$10 a month, $12 down/$12 a month, $14 down/$14 a month, etc.... the thought had crossed my mind, but quickly passed and on I went. The gym opened, the signs came down, and that was that. A few weeks ago we received a flyer in the mail advertising $10/$10 again and I thought about it, but never made the time to check it out and the deal expired 10/31/11.

When I checked the mail on Monday I came across yet another ad, only this time it was $7 & $7. I've kinda had in the back of my mind this idea that maybe if I can get my spiritual life together and find a routine in that, then maybe I would be able to get other areas of my life aligned. 1 thing at a time. I called the gym yesterday just to ask some questions and somehow scheduled an appointment to check it out. We went this morning and I really couldn't think of a reason NOT to sign myself up. (other than the fact that Hope's "membership" costs more than mine a month) So, I signed the papers, payed my deposits (which did not end up being $7), and left a member. I also left knowing that I am going to have to commit to a time and days in order to actually use this membership. We have the time and I just need to get off my rear-end.

Imagine my surprise this afternoon when I came across the verse above. Hmmm...think God was moving/speaking?! (go figure, after yesterday's reading) I couldn't help but think this afternoon about the fact that "you were bought at a price". Jesus DIED for me, paid the ultimate price to free me from my sin...the least I can do is "honor God with my body". Why wouldn't I make more of an effort to provide a temple that is healthy and well?!

So, here I am with yet another thing that I am wanting to commit to. My goal is Mon,Tues, Thurs @ 9am. If we can make it to Gymboree and swimming lessons each week, why can't we make it to the gym and just make it a part of our week?! The goal is to start on Monday and the goal is to care for this body physically AND spiritually.

Whispers

"The Lord said, 'Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by'. Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper." -1 Kings 19:12

I love this. I love that God didn't use the major, obvious, earth-altering things to speak to Elijah. It seems that in those things it would have been so easy to see God at work as they were each so powerful...but no. God chose to used a gentle whisper to speak to Elijah. Elijah was obviously tuned in to the Spirit as he actually heard the whisper despite everything else around him. He heard the whisper of the Lord and moved and spoke with him.

I will be the 1st to admit that I have a hard time "hearing" the voice of God. I always hear of people telling how God spoke to them in a dream, or they heard a voice telling them to stop and talk to someone, or they sensed something they ought to do...I dont' feel that I have stories like that to tell. I don't doubt that God has spoken to me or led me, I just have a hard time pin-pointing the moment or the message I was to hear.

Do I think that He isn't speaking to me or whispering to me? Absolutely not. I have no doubt that He speaks, I think I just suck at listening. Aside from the past 6 weeks, I have not been one to be faithfully in the Word or to have dedicated times of silence or prayer. God was just a part of my life that I took with me wherever I went and uttered a few words or prayers here and there as the day would go on. My time with God was reserved for Sundays at church and that is where I expected to encounter Him....and yet I never left the building being able to remember the words that were shared or with a sense of what God had for me. I wasn't really listening. "Listening" for 45 minutes on a Sunday does not count as intimacy and does not really give God the time of day to speak to me.

So, fast forward to today. I still can't say that I've "heard" God speak recently or that I've sensed Him calling/asking me to talk to a certain person or give money to someone, etc., but I am slowly growing in my knowledge of who He is. He is impressing upon my heart the big picture of His Word. For the first time I actually know the whole story of Paul and not just a verse here or there. I am discovering that what I thought I knew of the story of Job, was actually not very accurate. I am definitely not "there" yet, but I feel as though I am on my way to actually knowing my Savior in a real and very personal way. I feel as though once I actually get to know Him and establish that intimate relationship with Him, maybe then I will actually hear Him speak and be tuned enough to sense what it is He has for me.

I am not there yet, but I am excited at the hope of things to come...and the thought of someday actually hearing God speak to me and guide me in ways that I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that it is HIM leading and stirring in my heart. So thankful for this place I am in and the ways in which I am actually learning and remembering His Word and am actually able to share in conversations with those I love about what I am reading. Love it!

#602. road trip to Yuma = family adventures, quality time with my 2 favorites, playtime with favorite friends, coolest playground ever, shared experiences
#603. catching up with Mr. Josh
#604. a home where we can host friends from out of town/state
#605. early morning snuggles
#606. time change = extra time in the day

#594. Star Wars Halloween...what a fun day of costumes and candy! Loved the way Hope was a big jealous of all the kids wanting to take pictures with her Daddy...she marched right up and got in there with him.
#595. Extra time with the hubby on Weds. Love days spent together, side by side.
#596. clean house...has stayed clean all week and it is wonderful!
#597. rainy mornings
#598. prayers answered for connection at church on Weds
#599. Gymboree with my girl...love dancing all around with her
#600. glimpses of sharing and patiently waiting her turn
#601. trip to Yuma is 1 sleep away

R2(hope)D2

Our original plan for Halloween was to dress Hope as Alice (in Wonderland) and then Jaye and I were going to be the cards. On October 10th (Jaye is the one who told me the date...) Hope told me she didn't want to be Alice. She has been quite obsessed with Star Wars for the past 2 months...she sleeps with an R2 and C3PO figurine and if Jaye is home, they are watching Star Wars. We decided to ask Hope if she'd like to be R2 for Halloween and her whole face lit up. So...starting October 11th Jaye and I got to work on creating costumes.

Jaye was given this set of Storm Trooper armor to assemble/build several years ago for a birthday. His ultimate goal was to join the 501st, a group of Star Wars fans who build/create professional grade armor and costumes and then do charity events. This change of costume was great motivation for Jaye to get his armor built. He was up til at least midnight every night, but he got it done the evening of the 30th! It looks incredible and I so enjoyed watching him build it!

We couldn't find a pre-made R2 costume, so that became my project! I really enjoyed making it, placing pieces, etc. It made it through a visit to Jaye's work for their Halloween party and through Halloween night (barely) and that is all that mattered. Hope was happy to be R2 and she was proud of her costume! I was a happy Mommy!

Initially Hope was not a fan of Jaye in his armor once the helmet went on. We had her watch him put on all his gear so she'd see that it was him inside. She'd be okay with all of it, but the helmet. Once he got it on she'd hide or tell him to take it off. By the time we got to our church last night, she was fine with it and I think really enjoyed our family theme!

Between Jaye and Hope, they were quite the hit! I think Jaye must have posed for at least 50 pictures with different kids, families, and groups. We as a family posed for several as well. Kinda funny! So thankful for memories like this that we can share!