Come and sit awhile

The anticipation is building as the countdown is now in full swing. The tasks at hand range from short and sweet to drawn out and lengthy. End-of-the-year school shenanigans are rampant, birthday planning for a certain almost 10-year old is underway, outdoor/indoor projects are alive and well, summer planning for a variety of things is slowly but surely happening, etc...etc....etc... ;)


Mother's Day was a great reprieve to the hustle and bustle as of lately. A day with just my boys...all 4 of them. God's creation provided the perfect backdrop to a day of rest and near solitude as hills were hiked, waters tested, magazines read (yes--I actually DID that!), more fun memories made. We revisited Martin Creek and this gal soaked up the laughter and relaxing and all-around fun of the day!

My LOVES!

exploring the little cave

  

 

creek time!

 

We saw a lot of this type of action from mr. Mason....

 

...and then it finally happened. :)

love his little reflection ;)

I just love this little guy :)

 

How is he almost ten?! Oh my heart! LOVE!!

This guy...LOVE him to pieces!!!

Getting one of those 'handmade' and oh-so-precious gifts from my CJ

 

my lil' explorers

brothers & best friends!

Carson made it to the top!!

 

 

During these last few weeks of school...ok, let's be honest, nearly all year...the endless lists of demands, to-do's, daily norms, etc . don't necessarily come with an extra shot of espresso that's needed to tackle those lists.  Although they should. Coffee IV anyone? But lately, two shots of espresso would have deemed most helpful. Family and friends alike have been bombarded with things and situations beyond the 'normal' aspects of life albeit health issues, house projects, job changes, major life decisions, minor life decisions, decisions in general, you get the point. But as much as one more cup of coffee downed in order to stay awake or exuberate that needed burst of energy could have been the "go-to", I was humbly reminded of something quite different that provides an even greater outcome. As the mind raced and the anxious pacing, finger-tapping, run-on sentence praying, phone glancing continued, the knock on my heart grew louder as Jesus kept prompting, "come and sit awhile." And so I did just that, with my back-up cup o' joe sitting on the ocean-blue ceramic coaster nonetheless. ;) Oh the silence. (yes...I shut my bedroom door with a movie on for mini-man, so I really did have some purposeful silence) The Word. The words jumping off the pages of the Word as if they were written for that very moment. You know how you can read a verse from the Bible a hundred times but it's that one hundred and first time you read it that it suddenly takes on a whole new meaning? A new depth. A new revelation of the Creator Himself....and yep, you're pretty sure those words were written just for you. I had such a moment recently. It was sweet. It was raw. And it was real. And whenever those moments come, I always find myself in awe. Awe that the God of the universe chooses to give me such encouragement, such rich fellowship with Him when I am just a speck in the midst of this ever-revolving world. It wasn't the same day, but I was reminded how much He really does care as I watched the birds fly about in our backyard--coming and going, perching on a tree branch for a moment, and this one just stopped long enough on the grass for me to soak up the fact that if God cares about these beautiful creatures flying about, how much more He cares for me! For you!!!! His Word tells us so. And that's just plain amazing. No. Awesome. :)

 

So, I sat awhile and just praised Him for that simple fact. That Jesus cares. Truly cares. Deeply loves. Always provides. And sitting awhile with Him led to all those other moments that caused for needed pause in the craziness of schedules.

My mini-man rounded the corner into the kitchen with a stack of books of all sizes laying flat on top of his little manly hands, reaching all the way up to his chin...mom, let's read on the couch! "Come and sit awhile" :)

book reading turned into giggle-fest ;)

The revolving doors around friendships that weren't necessarily revolving the same direction, or the same place, requiring the list be put down and rather coffee consumed in one another's presence....taking time out to 'come and sit awhile.' And phone conversations across the miles with dear friends that were richly enjoyed over coffee that contained a splash of laughter to give relief to the stresses of the day. Even in the bouncing back and forth between baseball fields and, what at times can feel like nonstop games, those baseball bleachers providing time to sit awhile with friends & family and do some story-swapping, seed-spitting, boy-cheering, catching-up-on-life chatting, laughing, 'sit a while' type of moments.

hard to see, but Carson slid into home plate..."Safe!"

this little guy sure loves his t-ball!! ;)

big hit for #4!!

We're still heavy into the countdown mode and as items are crossed off the list, new to-do's are added, but I can guarantee that within the tackling of 3-day weekend projects, there will be time-outs to do this. Time to come and sit a while with my littles and my main man and my Savior.

 

 



Plans

I've had a conversation or two....or four....recently with other mamas who are in agreement with me that we feel as though time is slipping away beneath our busy fingertips before we've had a chance to really grab hold of it...or of our precious kiddos! Their word choice (delectable?!) is a bit more grown-up, sassy-like at times, questions about life deepened, their comprehension more mature than given credit for, and yet certain giggles still escape that vault me back about 5 years.

Stop. Growing. Up. So. Quickly!!!

I know I've been a little bit sentimental lately. Ok, maybe a lot bit.

And I won't apologize for it. I'll get over it. Someday. But until then, relish with me in the fact that if you have littles like I do, you've stepped into this sentimentality like I have, maybe right along with me. You've packed a bag and taken up residence in it for a while. I know of a few mamas with seniors who's sentimentality is worse than mine! That makes me nervous for what lies ahead...

A little spring snow that lasted only for a day.....



...because the next day looked like this! From snow suits to shorts! ;) 



the boys took advantage of some sweet mud puddles thanks to melting snow! If you
could only see the dirt caked in the ears and hair....LOVE IT!

Now that my oldest little is entering double digits in a matter of weeks (like, just under 4 weeks) and moving on up to middle school (eeeeeeeekkkk!!!), my other two will be the ones sharing the halls of the elementary school together. (read: tear escaping) Years ago we had plans established in our minds as to what life might look like once we got to this place, all of our boys now 'school-age'. Mind you, they were OUR plans. It made sense. We just assumed what God probably wanted and thought nothing more of it. Keep in mind, I'm thinking big picture here. People make 5-year plans, 10-year plans, & yet some people can barely get by making daily plans. Nothing wrong with those. We've done those--called them goals--succeeded with God's grace and provision, and the plan-making continues. But within the framework of those larger plans, there have been all sorts of little speed bumps, u-turns, steps of faith taken even in the "mundane", if you will, aspects of life---our faith rocked to the core at times, big and little decisions that required rug burn on our knees as we took them to the throne of our Father, plans that we made that He took charge of and in the long run proved to be glorious! 

Rock painting! Because....why not??

The creativity is never ending!!!

Becoming a parent really throws a curve ball into the plan-making and establishing. Now you have littles to think of when making those plans...and that can complicates things. Big  & small things. But it also beautifies things. His ways are not our ways, and I'll go with His ways any day! I'm ever-learning what it means to bow my will before His will, to continue walking forward but not be completely caught off guard when where I thought I was headed turns out to be a different destination. Forever making plans, but forever laying them at His feet along with my selfishness. Taking every step in obedience.

lost in the branches ;)

love these little tree climbers!

Looks like you have more mowing help this summer mom & Ruth!! :)

They did great!

Ready for more baseball!! Still going strong...

The very best man-made plans have nothing on God's plans...and sometimes it takes just a few moments of again, being still long enough to stare at a portrait painted across the sky like this to remember "God's got it". Just be patient and continue to "Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord." (Psalm 27:14)

"The Lord foils the plans of the nations; he thwarts the purposes of the people. But the plans of the Lord stand firm forever, the purposes of his heart through all generations."  (Psalm 33:10-11)

"Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him..." (Psalm 37:7a)