Enter to win one of 3 Clorox Toilet Wand Starter Kits from @survivingstores here: http://www.survivingthestores.com/2009/10/new-5-clorox-toilet-wand-coupon-giveaway.html
Say, aren’t you a latte pumpkin?! October 16, 2009
Well….you are.
Happy Fall everyone from Andrew & Amanda & cute pumpkin!! 
Out the mouth of babes October 6, 2009
Andrew’s substitute teaching has led to some funny comments as well as rough classrooms. High school kids can be brutal man! Wanted to share the funny ones with you. They make us laugh:
“You’re a giant! I’m going to draw you with really tall legs.”
After Andrew does a magic trick….” I want you to be my teacher forever.”
After Andrew juggled in gym class… “Are you a clown?”
One little girl when school was over just came over and hugged his leg. He said it melted his heart.
Look what’s been cooking at our place October 1, 2009
Wanted to share some photos of interesting little things we’ve been doing around our place. We….
- made an ottoman cover for the fishy one we have (complete with manly ruffle)
- cleaned up our entry way cork board
- made Velcro fabric doors for around our storage/supplies/catch all shelving
- organized our photos in a cool way on our living room wall
- put the shelf we had on the one big wall to above the couch
- created a supplies tray to be at arms reach without having to dig around to find them
- created a card holder with custom made dividers (this is one of my favorite things!)
- made a sorting setup for things to file/hold/to be looked at and a receipt bin/old Kleenex box turned useful!
- changed out my wreath decor for fall
- bought an on sale box of Yankee “Autumn Wreath” popporui and Yankee “Cranberry Chutney” candle for fall! I love it when our home smells delicious.
I’m pretty satisfied with how things turned out. Look and see!
P.S. > I put some pictures up of new wallets I made. They’re fun.
Overwhelmed by the spirit September 28, 2009
Yesterday I was overwhelmed by God’s spirit in such a deep way. Have you ever been in worship and then feel as if you have to just fall down? That you feel the weight of God that you almost can’t stand?
Yesterday was such a sweet one for me. I was wide awake at 7am on Sunday and got to spend few hours with the Lord reading lots in the word. Then when I got to church we sang African style worship songs! It was so fun. And then we sang a song that I just loved. We’ve sang it before but yesterday it ministered to me so much. The song was written by Aaron Strumpel called “Twenty Three.” As God continues to teach me, I was able to this song truthfully. My eyes flooded with tears, I was heaving and could barely sing and kept crying out to God. It was so intimate and I loved meeting with God. He is so near. I pray I don’t miss him. Here are the lyrics:
Arise, O Lord, lift up your eyes
Don’t forget I’m helpless
Arise, O Lord, lift up your eyes
Don’t forget I’m helpless
Oh you lead me to waters and pastures so green
Oh you pour out your oil and choose goodness and mercy for me
No I will not be in want
No I will not be in want
You are with me
I will not fear
You comfort me
I will not fear
Everything I’ve ever wanted I have found in you
Everything I’ve ever wanted I have found in you
I could run away
You would never leave
You will always stay right by my side
The italicized parts are the ones that ministered to me the most. I was overwhelmed by G0d’s love and his choosing me and how near he is to, how much I need him, and how he is the satisfaction of all things my soul longs for.
EVERYTHING I HAVE EVER WANTED I HAVE FOUND IN YOU!! Singing this brings me to tears. I love to meditate on this truth.
If you’ve never heard it before, you can listen here.
Coupon Holder Giveaway September 24, 2009
Come enter to win a super cute coupon organizer from Surviving The Stores! http://bit.ly/1tmpZN @survivingstores
Awaiting his return September 24, 2009
Last night Andrew took me to Pizza Hut and then went to Sweet Eugenes to share a hot chocolate (Andrew’s favorite)…yumm OOO! I’ve been craving pizza like crazy lately. Not sure why, but nevertheless I got my fill last night. It was fun. We colored on the sheets they had on the table and then asked each other the questions that they were encouraging families to have fun with:
What if you had a million dollars, how would you spend it?
Andrews answer: probably invest like half of it in an interest bearing account and then pledge to give the interest made on it to certain organizations, pay for kids schooling, build a home.
Amanda’s answer: probably have at least one Starbucks cup of coffee & a pastry every week for the rest of my life, which we tallied up (haha. over the course of 60 years you’d spend about $21,000!), I’d invest it in interest bearing accounts, pay for my children’s college expenses if they wanted to go, build a home, travel all over the world serving and site seeing.
What if you could have any wild animal as a pet, what would it be?
Andrew’s answer: white tiger
Amanda’s answer: elephant
What if you were President for a day, what would you do?
Andrew’s answer: tour all the latest technology we have in the military, ride on Air Force One
Amanda’s answer: slip in slide all over the White House in socks, go out on the town seeing all of the cool monuments and sites, ban abortion forever and ban debt from hereon, saying you can’t buy it if you don’t have money to pay for it (these are if I could say something and it went just because I said so).
This question Andrew made up: What if you could ask God one question and he’d answer you now?
Andrew’s answer: How do I fellowship with the Lord in every circumstance? (like knowing how to live in freedom with him in each moment)
Amanda’s answer: When is the exact time you’re coming back?
So those were fun questions that we did. My last answer though allowed me to see into my heart. See I know the reason why I want to know when he’s coming back: so I can know how I should live. As if, if God’s not coming back till after I’m gone, I can live this way, but if God IS coming back in my time, then I need to get my act together. It sounds awful to say it out loud, but I know my heart goes there.
So this morning I went onto BibleGateway and looked down to see the verse for the day. Hebrews 10: 35-36
35So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. 36You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised.
I recently read through Hebrews 10 and surrounding areas. When I clicked to expand the passage it says this:
32Remember those earlier days after you had received the light, when you stood your ground in a great contest in the face of suffering. 33Sometimes you were publicly exposed to insult and persecution; at other times you stood side by side with those who were so treated. 34You sympathized with those in prison and joyfully accepted the confiscation of your property, because you knew that you yourselves had better and lasting possessions.
35So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. 36You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised. 37For in just a very little while,
“He who is coming will come and will not delay.
38But my righteous one[f] will live by faith.
And if he shrinks back,
I will not be pleased with him.”[g] 39But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who believe and are saved.
It says in the amplified bible vs. 37: For still a little while (a very little while), and the Coming One will come and He will not delay. The point being, he’s coming soon. This was written a long time ago too and it was said that he’s coming soon. I need to be reminded that God’s time is not our time. He’s not bound by years, seconds, months.
This passage tells me the truth and tells me where to be setting my heart. He is coming soon BUT the righteous live by faith. We need to persevere in awaiting his return and as the amplified says: “My righteous servant shall live by his conviction respecting man’s relationship to God and divine things, and holy fervor born of faith and conjoined with it.” This servant will stand firm to the end and not shrink back and will be saved.
I’m reminded to not shrink back; to live by faith and to persevere in living well to be one day rewarded. Those who shrink back and don’t live as awaiting the soon coming of Christ do not please God. It pleases him for us to endure to the end in faith and we will be saved.
Wanted to share those thoughts. Any thoughts on this? Have you ever wrestled with this? Or how has God taught you about his coming and how we are to live in light of this?
New Life on the Scene! September 23, 2009
Josh and Allison are expecting a wee little one come late May/early June time!! AHH! I’m so excited for them. I can’t wait to spoil their new little child when I get to meet him/her. I have so many ideas bouncing around in my head on cute things to sew and how to help her decorate her nursery (that’s if she wants me to help of course!). I’m going to be an aunt!
We’ve had so many new babies popping on the scene in our church and this last Sunday a couple from our homegroup told us they were 7 weeks pregnant! They are so excited. Fallon can’t wait to be a mommy.
Children are a blessing. They are so precious. Yay, sister’s going to have a baby!
Choffy Giveaway! September 23, 2009
My friend Rachel is giving 2 people 2 bags of Choffy. It’s like coffee only from Coco beans instead. You brew it like coffee but don’t get the caffeine effects, though it’s supposed to give you a better kind of energy. I’ve wanted to try it and hopefully will win some…you can win too if you want some In her post she’ll tell you a few things about Choffy.
Go to her site here to enter and win!
Shade drapped cardigan giveaway! September 16, 2009
Go here to post a comment and possibly win this cute cardigan!
http://www.aroomsomewhere.net/2009/09/shade-clothing-giveaway.html
