#SheSharesTruth: Named by God

The book of Ruth reminds me of the blessed Hope I have through my Redeemer. So often our perceptions of ourselves (and who God sees us as) are fueled by our circumstances.

 Failure. Hopeless. Forgotten. Abandoned. Lonely. 

Seeing only the bitter cup in our hand, we lose heart. Begin renaming ourselves. Redefining our own lives based on what we perceive to be the only possible way. There is no hope for change. No hope for healing. No hope for life and joy to possibly enter our reality again. How could it? Don't you see the heartache? Don't you see the very things that made life joyful- that made life worth living- are gone? Injustice and fear seem to be overtaking so we give up. Settling in to this new existence. The new normal. The bitter cup. 

Many circumstances are capable of leaving us feeling like every piece of anything that meant anything is shattered into a million pieces on the floor with no hope of ever being restored. To settle here would be to rob ourselves of the blessings our precious Redeemer came to give. And even though all we may be able to see at the moment is heartache and pain and anger--He is working. The Redeemer is working on our behalf. On YOUR behalf. And the blessings are great because His blessings are always great. 

And I will give you treasures hidden in darkness- secret riches. I will do this so that you will know that I am the Lord God of Israel, the one who calls you by name. 

Isaiah 45:3

Out of brokenness, he creates something more beautiful than we could have imagined. It is true, somethings will leave us forever changed. We can never go back to who we were last year, last month, yesterday... hours, minutes, seconds ago. And we might be broken. Shattered even. The precious thing about our Redeemer is, he doesn't attempt to fasten us back to who we once were. He takes those broken pieces and creates new life. New beginnings. Abundant blessings. He sets us on a path that leads us straight to Him. Straight into his loving, gracious, gentle arms. The arms where peace and rest and joy are found. In this place, circumstances will not define us but truth will.

 Child. Worthy. Justified. Royal. Blessed. Loved. Whole. Redeemed.

 Link up with #shereadstruth. A place where people from all over the world read God's word together.

Hello & a Vlog

Well hello :) I have been super duper quiet around here lately because well, life has just been happening and I haven't made time to write. I'm coming to you today via vlog so check it out. Hopefully, this will be the beginning of blogging again. :)

Vulnerable

Not Sure I Should Click Publish

Hearts are a funny thing.

I'm being totally honest when I say, this is more of a struggle for me to publish than my "belly" post so bear with me.

The past couple of posts I've mentioned the 10 Days of Intentional Parenting series featured over on the inspirational blog, Finding Joy- seriously, if you haven't clicked over, do it. Now! (but at least come back and finished reading this post later) Day 2 encourages you to write a letter of encouragement to yourself. I never, ever expected it to be so challenging. I feel like so much of what I've written so far, are just words on paper. I don't necessarily feel them in my heart. At least not yet. If the instructions were to write an encouraging letter to a fellow mom/friend- easy peasy- no bigs and I could believe every word of it.

I realized after draft 392, my letter needed to begin this way,

Dear Sarah,
You are your own worst enemy. You're making the enemy's job too easy. Stop listening to the lies. Stop believing the lies. 

JESUS is the way, the TRUTH and the LIFE! Follow Him. Rest in HIM. He loves you with an everlasting love. Believe that.

Isn't it so true? Too many mornings I wake up tired and discouraged before I even raise my head out of bed. I'm not talking depression but already realizing I am going to have to hand wash cups because the night before I wrote a blog instead of cleaning my kitchen after the children were in bed. "Sarah, you should have taken that time to be productive. Why are you so lazy? Great way to show love to your family."  


Those are not life giving words. Not even a little bit. And those are not the worst.

He creates all things beautiful. You are beautiful in His sight. You are exactly the Momma that Malakai, Ava & Lillian need. You are exactly the wife God intends for Michael. You have purpose. You are a gift. You are loved.

Life. Grace. Gospel truth.

The past couple of years have been full. Sometimes I wonder if I even fully grasp the life we've been living. When people tell me I'm brave or hard working- I honestly don't know what to say. I try to receive it and give God the glory but inside it confuses me. He has carried us through the toughest times and let me tell you, it could have been a lot "worse". Worse doesn't even seem like the right word because I truly feel so blessed.

You are brave. You work very, very hard. And it isn't in vain. Your plate may be full but the weight isn't on your shoulders. Stop trying trying to carry it alone. Rest. Rest in Him for He cares for you. Trust him with everything. 

Slowly but surely the truth is there. His spirit is in me and when I listen I can hear his still small voice.

Home. This is where you struggle the most, Sarah. In your mind you hold a dream... full of expectations... only to realize where you fall short. You desire a safe place. A peaceful haven. You want it to be something your family looks forward to. Those things are not built on cleaning, organizing, or any of the mundane tasks you feel so required to accomplish in order to not be a screw up. The foundation is found in Jesus. He is your peace. Show them Jesus. It is okay to mess up. Practice grace. Practice forgiveness.

 A good friend just recently said this, "Trying to clean a house while raising small children is like shoveling sidewalks while it's still snowing." So when the tornadoes follow you from room to room, breathe them in. Seasons change far too quickly- especially when children are involved so take it all in. Thank Jesus for the hole in your foot from stepping on the army mans. Blink and that plastic toy soldier may suddenly be your little boy.  

Breathe it in like the crisp fall air. 

So this is where I am right now. There are so many other things I could say but I'm going to stop here. Maybe this will bless some one out there. I don't know but I knew I needed to write it. Truly, this time in my life feels like it is flying by but I am loving this season. My family are my favorite people. Most days, I'd be content to spend being together- the 5 of us... doing anything or nothing at all.

This week has brought me so many opportunities... I am thankful for Finding Joy and the intentionality she is bringing to my parenting. Thankful for toes. Thankful for little hands. Thankful for my friends that draw near when my husband is away. Thankful for grace.

"But I received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in Him for eternal life." 1 Timothy 1:16 (ESV) 

Love,
Me

A Look at Toes

Hello friends :) I'm forewarning you, this post is unplanned and probably not that well written but it is what it is. Just sayin.

If you jump over to a really precious blog, Finding Joy, you will see she is currently hosting a series called, 10 Days of Intentional Parenting. Today, I decided to join in the fun. The journaling for Day 1 led me to where my thoughts are now. In the 5 things I would like to see change/grow in my mothering I listed:

"Look at their toes." 

Think about how many things change, grow and even disappear in your children- right before your very eyes. It is slow. It creeps up on you. But it happens. Ever so slowly, it happens. Their tiny little faces begin to grow into their seemingly huge eyes. Teeny tiny noses no longer seem teeny tiny. You forget the smallness of their little ears. One day you can just rub their head with a towel after bath and have a perfectly dry head of fuzz and the next, you need conditioner, a comb and time. Their tiny little lips are suddenly forming words- "Momma." "Daddy."  "NO!" Just yesterday- it seems- I was their only source of nourishment. Now it's all cheese sticks and fishies. One day I needed coffee to get up with them, now I need it to keep up with them. All THREE of them. 

Photo credit: In His Grace Photography

Photo credit: In His Grace Photography

And then there's those toes. Those little feet. Thirty little toes that I've kissed, smelled, covered, held. They change too. Boy, do they ever change. I kick myself for never making imprints. I had the stuff- just never made it a priority to get it done. 

Now? 

Now I can't remember the smallness. 

They come from the womb completely unblemished. New. Untouched by this world. No dirt or sweat or scrapes or scratches. Just perfect, lovely, little tiny wrinkled baby feet. 

Photo credit: In His Grace Photography

Photo credit: In His Grace Photography

When I really think about it, I can remember the stretches. Their feet extended as far as they'll go and toes spread apart as if to say, "I'm here! I'm ready to go! And you're never gonna squish me back into that tiny space again!"

Today, all those feet have touched the ground more than once or twice. They've been scratched, stubbed, dirtied. They've grown! My goodness, they have grown! Malakai's are wider- they remind me of my brother Sam's feet. He has short stubby toes. They smell awful. I mean, it is truly terrible. My girls feet look the same as  one another but very different from their brother's. They are long & skinny. And hello? Nail polish on baby toes? Duh! (it's how we told them apart after we brought them home from the hospital) 

You may think I'm strange. You'd be right. 

Regardless, I am a mom that avoids infant shoes at all cost. They are adorable but I like to hold on to that innocence. My girls were born in winter- they wore lots of thick tights & socks. :) Shoes are for walking and they weren't ready for that yet. It seems silly but it's completely the truth. I remember the first week we took them to church after they started walking, I thought, "shoot, I have to find shoes for them to wear." Added a whole 10 minutes onto my routine ;)

As I'm writing this, I don't know if it is even making sense. All I  know is, looking at their (still) small feet and toes is going to be a priority. It represents all the small stuff. Those fleeting moments that are easy to forget. 

Feet tell a story. Innocence lost. Wisdom gained. Memories and miles. All part of life. A glimpse into the past- evidence of life lived. At the start though, they are a promise of a story to tell. Miles yet to be had. 

I'm alive. And well.

Long time no blogging.

Don't give up on me. 

I've had a lot on my brain lately.

 unfortunately 

making it difficult for me to write. 

Here I am though. We had a pretty successful Valentines Day.

I gave my husband a nifty gift and he showed me some lovin.

Absolute favorite part?
Daddy giving gifts to his baby girls

Melted my heart.

Next on the agenda :

We are heading to Parris Island

Charles' USMC Graduation!

ROAD TRIP!

I am so excited

And proud!

My days have been filled with

purple & red baby toe nails

giggles

one year old humor

pigtails 

new words
which today included
"dudette"

Tomorrow we have

15 month check ups

A big boy hair cut

naps

praying for little to no reaction to shots

Hopefully the next few days

include lots more snuggles

very few tears

ridiculous amounts of photos

and no car sickness.

Up coming blogs

Meatza Pizza

Photos of said hair cut

and random thoughts

Embracing Him

Last night as I laid in bed I felt sad... worried... anxious.
Some family situations were/are weighing heavy on my heart.
My heart so overwhelmed with emotion, I couldn't even cry or sleep. 

Fortunately the issues at hand really don't have anything to do with me. 

Unfortunately, that means there is not much I can do personally to fix it.  

Minutes passed... I began to pray. 

All the worries in the world- He has in His hands. 

He is a loving Father that can make all things new. 

Rather than fighting through the anxiousness just enough to go to sleep, 

I was going to fight it with thankfulness, peace & trust.

Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire.

(Hebrews 12:28-29 ESV)

Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.

(Colossians 2:6-7 ESV)

His love is steadfast.

(inspite of my mistakes)

He calms the storm.

(although I stirred it up)

He turns desert into pools of water,

parched land into springs of water.

(even when I put myself in the desert)
(See Psalm 107)

“We would worry less if we praised more. 

Thanksgiving is the enemy of discontent and dissatisfaction.”

 ~ Harry Ironside

Today, I give thanks with a grateful heart. When I am weak, He makes me strong. 

When I don't have answers, He does.

Rest in Him.

Find refuge in His arms.

He is faithful and good.

Worthy to be trusted.

Holy.

Just.

Rich.

Righteous in all His ways.

Abounding in love.

Wise.

Restorer.

Healer.

Sovereign.

I AM.

He is all this and so much more.

More than enough to be thankful.

More than enough to rest in.

More than enough.

Ending today with a couple things that make my heart overflow with gratitude...

He was happy to oblige mommy w/ a photoshoot... NOT.

Ava sliding w/ mommy... Her laugh at the end... melts my heart

So, are you ready to embrace the camera?

here's the nitty gritty:

1.  take a picture with you and your kids/spouse/family member/friend/whatever.

2.  blog about that picture and include a link to our blog, or grab our button.

3.  link your blog post up on the link tool here (@ the anderson crew).

4.  visit the other embracers...give each other lots of compliments about how good we look with our greasy hair andsweatpants velour jogging suits on.  cause yah, we need a little boost when it's been days since our last shower.

5.  have fun!

Linking up again w/ Brown Eyed Bell(e) this week :)

Regular

Okay, so it's really time to get back on the regular with this whole blogging thing.

Jack Frost must be rebelling. I mean this is supposed to be his time of year but he certainly isn't showing up here in MD. I'm not really complaining. It just makes me a little nervous to really enjoy the 60+ degrees we've had. I mean really- January 31st and we could pretty much wear short sleeves. In Maryland. Good 'ole Jack's gonna have a goooood laugh when he finally decides to show up... chances are, he'll find us all with our pants down sleeves up.

Regardless of how uncanny these temperatures are for the good old eastern shore, we are taking advantage. Twice within the past week, TWICE, we've made our way to the "big park." It is so fun to watch the girls toddle around :) (I'll get a vid of the walking up soon) I can recall going to the park before they were born imagining have 3. Even just a few short months ago, all three in tow, looking forward to watching the 3 of them playing together, seeing the girls walking around in my mind's eye. Unfortunately, it was way more glamorous in my mind. haha :) While I do enjoy watching them and having them walking rather than crawling on the ground, the logistics really do not allow me to take them by myself. They literally go in 3 directions and FAST! :) 

::side note::  while writing this, my son has "sipped" about 1/3 of my coffee. I'm gonna pay for that very soon....

Considering I began writing this post this morning... when I was still drinking my coffee... and it is now 11pm, I am going to leave you with some photos I took with my phone over the past couple days/weeks. 

Enjoy!

#1 wonderpets. #2 Ava taught her this. #3 hour and a half.

#1 Adorable Ava. #2 "The Boss"

Ava = pink & green, Lilly = purple & pink

love.

Never buy shakes from malakai- he will eat them before you ever have the chance to try it.

2 things: My girls are growing up. Sleeping kids = should have just stayed in the van.

So there ya have it. 

Now I think I'll make like a baby and head out... 

wait, no. 

As Mikey says, I'm gonna get horizontal.

Ok. 

Whatever. 

I'm going to bed.

Feelling < Inspired

Every time I sit down to write a post, it seems like all the thoughts of inadequacy flood my brain. I become overwhelmed by all the things I'm *not* doing.

It's stupid

and I'm tired of it.

When I look at my life, as a whole, I feel overwhelmingly blessed. Blessed beyond measure. 

This blog is meant to be an outlet for me. It is intended to be a place where I can update family, share my heart and grow as a person. As long as those things are being accomplished, I don't need to worry about what other people "think" of me (or my blog). Opinions are like [butt] holes. Everyone has one and everyone thinks everyone else's stinks.

My grammar won't be perfect. I may not have award winning photography. 

But what I will have are memories. My memories. Our crazy life documented. 

As time marches forward, I hope to become a better writer and photographer. 

I desire to be a good story teller and inspire people through the things God is teaching me. 

For now, this is ME. 

And I'm okay with that. 

Take it or leave it.

To top everything off- my sweet Lilly hit a soft spot. Water works ensued.

 Tears of sweet, sweet Kairos joy.

She kissed my cheek. Not an open-mouth baby kiss. 

An, I-love-you-mama-closed-mouth-mwah! kind of kiss. :)

Kairos.

and I'm eating it up.

Jesus, heal my computer, please :-)

No, really.

I was in the middle of writing my baby girls 10 mo blog post when the screen went black. It is acting like the battery is dead but it shouldn't be. I will most likely be making a call to my friend and favorite computer dude, Jeff Sanders @ Power Up Computing, to see what can be done... that is, if Jesus doesnt fix it first :-) Believe with me :-)

Obviously this little mishap will only delay my blog posting further but hopefully we will be back to normal here soon :-) I have another computer and a smart phone so one way or another I'll get things rolling again :-)

Missing writing my blog and reading all those wonderful, encouraging blogs I follow :-)

And it begins...

Welcome! I'm so glad you are here!

This is the beginning...

Not of being me- that began 20-some years ago.

Not of being a wife- that started [almost] 4 years ago.

Not of being a mama- that began about 2 1/2 years ago.

Blogging. Yes, blogging begins today.

My name is Sarah.

I love my husband and children more than I ever imagined a person could love. As our little family grows, I look forward to experiencing all of it... the good, bad, ugly and everything in between. Join me as I document the growing pains of growing little cains :)