In His Arms

Today our friend Julie Mangrem is in the arms of Jesus, worshiping Him. Last night, after almost 5 years of battling cancer and trusting God, Julie went Home. We have heavy hearts as we think about her husband, son, and daughter that she left behind. Her children are 8 and 5 and will have much healing to go through. But we also rejoice, knowing that she trusted God completely. She leaves behind a legacy of a woman of God, mighty in prayer, and sure in her faith.

(Arica, Julie, Sarah)

We will be going to Arlington to be with our friends there and to attend the funeral and celebration services. Please pray for her family as they continue in the grieving and healing process.

Actually, this is her first rodeo

Last Friday a friend and I ventured to San Antonio to take our girls to their first rodeo. It was not the sunny beautiful day we were hoping for, but it was still a great trip and the girls were bundled.

They loved the animals! It was so fun to see Kate's eyes light up as she sat forward and looked at the horse or pig or cow or pony I was pointing out to her. She would point and wave at the animal.Looking at the chicks. She really wanted to get in there with them.Here I am telling her something very intelligent about the chicks. Probably something she will remember forever and will help her win at trivial pursuit.

Pointing at the ponies. She loved watching them!

Kate does not want to be a goat when she grows up.

Kate and her friend Abigail. Don't they look thrilled?
Our little piggies! Don't they look so cute!

The rodeo is a must for next year. We are thinking cowboy boots and hats are in order for the girls.

In case you were wondering, I did wear my cowboy boots.

Kate and her daddy on the beach

Puerto Rico

This past weekend we took a quick vacation with my parents to visit my brother in Puerto Rico. First of all, it was so wonderful to be warm again and to feel the sun on my face and to walk around wearing a skirt, sandals, and t-shirt. We got to lie by the pool, watch the ocean waves, put our feet in the ocean (Josh actually went in but I didn't really want to. The water was still a bit chilly.).

But even more importantly we got to spend great time with my brother and my parents. We got to see Matthew's house, attend a church that supports his ministry, meet some of his friends, get coffee at his favorite coffee shop, and see other local venues. Matthew is doing really well and seems to be adjusting to life in PR pretty well.The view from our hotel room

Another view from a different side of the hotel

a funny chair at the hotel

Kate was a great traveler. She hung in there for all the craziness that comes with long flights, time changes, and different cultures. She loved spending time with her tio (uncle) and grandparents. We have an amazing baby girl.

I need to get some more pictures from my mom's camera, so I'll post more when I do.

It was hard to leave Puerto Rico, but I know we'll be going back soon.

Watching closely

Josh has been getting up early lately and two days a week he goes and works out with his brother before work...that means he is leaving about 6:15am. I'm so proud of his dedication. He's been doing it for a few weeks now. Impressive.

Two days a week we have planned for it to be my turn to exercise in the morning and he will hang out with Kate so she doesn't decide to climb on me while I do my crunches or something. I have not been as dedicated. Between getting up to feed baby girl and major sinus pain, I have opted to sleep in several times rather than get up.

Today I decided to give it a try. Nothing special but I did exercise a bit. Then I asked Josh to watch her while he got dressed for work so I could take a quick shower. When I got out of the shower I saw that he had watched her very well....in fact, he had carefully watched her pull almost everything out of my bottom drawer.

This was of course taken with my phone as I did not have my camera with me. She would triumphantly pull out a pair of socks and hold them up for me to see before discarding them in the stack of clothes.

I guess she thinks I should clean out the drawer...

Clarification:

I really did just think that cartoon was funny. Nothing more intended.

Just wanted to spread some laughs.

=)

(I really have to be more careful on this thing.)

Blogging for Books

Get excited about this book! I sure was when I got the email that this book was up for review. I enjoyed several of John and Stasi Eldredge's previous books and was interested to hear what they would write about marriage. They did not disappoint.

In Love & War, the Eldredges candidly explore the great adventure of marriage. In fact, they often discuss adventure. As they discussed in their previous books about men longing for adventure and a beauty to rescue and women longing for beauty and shared adventure, in this book they take a look at what that means when these two come together in marriage. There is the potential for something great, something powerful, something beautiful.

Too often, however, the adventure gets lost in the mundane and the Enemy of our souls tries to take us out by playing up our insecurities, by whispering lies about ourselves that we choose to believe, and by pitting us against the one we love. The Eldredges attempt to call us back to the battle with renewed hope and strength. They encourage us that this is war and we must fight, but that we are equipped for battle and the cause is worth every effort.

John and Stasi share stories and experiences from their own marriage and how they have fought their way back to each other and to God over 25 years of marriage. They assert from the start that marriage is hard....but it's worth it.

I was so encouraged and so energized from reading this book. I plan to pass it to Josh next so that we can talk about how we can move forward on our adventure together. I am reminded that there is a real enemy who is doing everything he can to destroy what God is doing in and through our marriage. I am motivated to choose love everyday (or at least try to do so) instead of frustration or annoyance.

I highly recommend this book. If you are sometimes frustrated that marriage is hard, read it to be encouraged that while that's true, there is joy and hope to be found, beauty to be discovered, adventures to share. If your marriage is blissfully happy and exceedingly unconflicted, read it to be reminded of the battle you must fight alongside (not against) your spouse. If you are a newlywed and haven't yet found out that marriage is hard, read it to start off on the right track on this amazing adventure. If you want to know about the potential of marriage in God's great story, read this book.

Just in time for Valentine's Day, too.
(Click on the book for ordering info)

This book was provided for review by WaterBrook Multnomah.

I thought this was funny...