Heart Check

Recently, I have been studying the book of Genesis and the book of Matthew. It’s been a great study so far. And so interesting to me all the parallels in the themes from the first book of the Old Testament and the first book of the New Testament. The biggest one I have pulled out is – the heart. Since the beginning of men and women, God has always been concerned with our hearts.

Starting with Noah’s time, you read that God saw the hearts of the people and that their hearts were evil. That was the purpose of the flood. God was wiping the slate clean. However it didn’t work. Hence the need for our Rescuer.

And in the gospel according to Matthew, Jesus lays out the new laws. He makes us realize that we are not perfect. We easily can break all the 10 commandments in our hearts. We may not murder, but if we have hate for a friend than we have committed murder in our heart. Or what about thinking a sexual thought about the opposite sex? That’s adultery in our hearts, if we are married.

How does it make you feel to know that God can see into your heart? Uncomfortable, squirmy? Yeah, me too. But, it’s the truth. God can see what our heart intentions are by every move we make. Thank goodness our Rescuer came and died on the cross for our sins. If we confess that Jesus is Lord of our life, we can cross the bridge to God. Jesus makes us clean.

I don’t know about you, but I needed a Rescuer. And I’m so grateful that thought I’m not perfect, Jesus is. And I am checking my heart now…

If you are a Christ follower, when was the last time you checked your heart? 

And if you are in need of a Rescuer, send me a message or comment on this post. I would love to give you more information on freedom!

Jesus, Rock of Ages

Every single time I listen to this song, I am comforted. It is such an encouragement to know we stand on a sure foundation. Take a minute to allow these words to wash over you. And then you can listen to the song by Christy Nockels.

I am not alone 
There’s a stone I’m built on 
There’s a love that will never let me go 
He hears my every cry 
He knows how to understand me 
He is my one defense, day and night 
I rest my soul on the rock of the ages 
And my feet stand firm on a sure foundation 
All my hope in this salvation 
Jesus, Jesus, rock of ages 
Precious cornerstone 
The one for all generations 
Laid that I would hide myself in You 
Through every trial and storm 
When all else is sinking 
There is none so faithful and so true 
When my heart is faint, my faith is small 
Oh hide me, Lord 
And when all is well, through it all 
Oh hide me, Lord

Some Birthday Love

I’m breaking my plan for a Wordless Wednesday! Today is a special day…

Happy Birthday to my amazing husband!

I am so blessed that God put us together early in life! This is the 9th birthday I have celebrated with G. So thankful!

Please join me in wishing him a happy birthday!

Saturday Stories – Haiti 2013

Many of you have asked about G’s Haiti mission trip. I thought the best way to share is to show you a video he put together. This captures his trip the best. Enjoy!

Saturday Stories – 12 Months

Feeding
Selah will eat anything you put in front of her. This past week she found a new favorite food. Roasted cabbage. Random! This girl loves food. And is not picky at all yet. I hope it doesn’t change. But you never know. For now – I just keep giving her everything and she just keeps on loving everything!
Weight
She is a solid 19 lbs and 5 oz. She is in the 20th percentile for weight. Getting close to having to change car seats!
Sleep
Selah is a solid sleeper at night. 7:00 pm to 7:30 am most days. She still wakes up randomly between 10-11 at night. But she will get back comfortable and go back to sleep on her own. During the day she’s the same as last month. Some days one nap and some days 2 naps. Just depends on our plans.
Wake Time
Selah Grace has taken a few steps but isn’t taking off yet. I know she can walk but she’s choosing not to right now.
Clothes
She is wearing 12 month clothes now. It’s so great that it’s warmer now because I love seeing her in little skirts and dresses! So cute 🙂
Fun fact
Below is a video I made of Selah’s first year. I’m so grateful to the Lord for this child.

Saturday Stories – My 31st Birthday Weekend

Ok first of all, I have to give huge props to my amazing husband. I had the absolutely best birthday weekend. I want to document it. So here it goes!

FRIDAY

 I woke up to find a note of instructions. See picture below. I did all it said and found out that both kids were being picked up in a few hours and would be gone all weekend. Then I found out that I had an appt at 3:30 for a 2 hour spa treatment. Amazing! I really enjoyed the day.

After I got home from the spa, he told me to get ready to go out. Before we left – he asked me…do you want to live on the edge, go with the middle, or an ole reliable? I said “i’ll go with the middle.” So I scanned the QR code and it said sushi and movie date! Below is a picture of me with our dinner – lobster!

SATURDAY

I woke up to find another three options of QR codes. I chose to live on the edge. It said that I was going to get my nose pierced. I decided to change my mind and scan again. Then I found out that my sweet hubs was taking me to breakfast then on a shopping spree. We had a great day just spending some great quality time together at the Mall of GA.

After that we headed home to rest. G said we had reservations at my favorite Mexican restaurant for dinner at 7:00 pm. I was excited to wrap up the weekend with a yummy dinner. But when we arrived at dinner, I was surprised to find my best friends there! G is so sneaky! I had no idea! Below are some pictures from the surprise dinner party (Sad but I didn’t get a picture of me with Meriam)

Here’s my surprised face!!!

Kristen and IThe delicious Margarita drink!Ashley and IThe whole crew (just missing Kristen and Meriam)Ashley and I

Sunday

To top it all off, we woke up and had a nice breakfast at Waffle House before picking up the kids. What a great weekend!

Big thanks to Abba and Papi for keeping the secret from me and for taking good care of the kiddos for the weekend!

Saturday Stories – Selah Grace

Today is a special day. We are dedicating our Selah Grace at our church, Browns Bridge. We are also celebrating her first birthday with family today. I know it will be special! And I will have plenty of pictures to share later.

But, I wanted to document the day. And I wanted to declare my thankfulness for our spunky, outgoing, and beautiful Selah Grace! Can’t imagine our family without her.

Saturday Stories – 11 Months!

Finn is always jumping in her pictures each month. This was the best picture of Selah I got and Finn looks cute too!

Feeding
Selah is a bottomless pit as her picture says. She will eat as long as I keep giving her food. Some of her favorites this month were tilapia, tacos, and rice. As for nursing, this month she started to wean. We are down to just one feeding per day. I have a feeling that will be dropped soon too. I can’t believe we made it a full year! So proud of myself!!

Weight
She sits around 18 lbs. I know last month she was 19 lbs. But I think it’s because she had just eaten lunch before our appt. I have weighed her a couple times and it’s always 18 lbs.

Sleep

Selah is still napping at 10 and 2. But some days she skips the morning nap . She will go down from 1-3. Over the next few months, I’m going to transition her to napping at 2. That way we have a lot of freedom to go places for the whole morning. So that will be great!

Wake Time
She isn’t walking yet. But that’s ok. I’m sure she will when she’s ready!

Clothes
Most 9 month outfits fit now. She can sometimes wear 12 month but they are pretty big.

Fun fact

The picture below is of Selah with the tree Daddy planted for her when she was born. It’s fun watching it grow! Also its a really cute picture of Selah Grace and her daddy.

Saturday Stories – 10 months!

Feeding
Well, i’m still nursing. Not sure why I’m not ready to stop. I guess this is just easiest for right now. She nurses morning and night. And some days after lunch. She also loves almond milk. She is drinking that at all meals. She is doing great on a sippy cup so that’s wonderful. I have determined that Selah is sensitive to dairy. So she can’t have cheese or yogurt. But her doctor seemed to think we could try it again in a few months.

Weight
She had a doctor appointment last week and she was 19 lbs. Almost to that 20 lb point! Can’t believe it!

Sleep

The recent time change has changed things a little. She gets up around 7:30 and goes to bed around 7:30. Her naps are around 45 min to an hour at 10:00 and 2:00.

Wake Time
She isn’t walking yet. But she has been cruising a ton. And every once in a while she is just standing. I thought she would be walking by now. But she is content crawling everywhere. She loves dancing! We have a lot of dance parties in this house 🙂

Clothes
She is still in the 6-9 month size. But some 9 month outfits fit. Just depends on the brand.

Fun fact

This month she said her third word – “Nana.” And here it is on video for you! Just disregard my voice and how I treat her like a little puppy. HAHA!

 

Saturday Stories – Sleep like a baby

Finn is starting to drop his nap. Most weeks he will only sleep 1 or 2 days. And that only happens if I keep him really busy in the morning. This past week we had a busy and fun Tuesday. We went to CBS (Community Bible Study) then out to lunch at Chickfila with a few friends. He almost fell asleep in the car on the way home. Such a sweet boy!

About an hour into his nap, I went to check on him. I found him like this…

Isn’t that precious! That is exactly how he slept when he was a baby. So sweet!