Every Hair On Your Head

Today, I was home with my son Bennett who was sick. He is my snuggler, my thinker and my questioner. He likes to ask those big questions like Why did God make the sky blue?, When will I get to see Grandma Margaret again (she passed away in Dec 2006)? How come people have to get divorced?, etc. Today I got another one of those questions. Bennett asked, How does God count all the hairs on my head?

Recently I had taught the kids that come to our After School Jams program at our church about God knowing each of us before we were born, how he created us, made us, and has plans for each one of us. We taught the kids that in God's eyes were are all superstars and as long as we have God in our lives, we are rich. We talked about the following Bible verses with the kids...

Jeremiah 1:5 "Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you."

Luke 12:7 "Why even the hairs on your head are all numbered."

Genesis 1:27 "So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him."

So, now nearly 3 weeks later, my son asks, how did God count the hairs on his head. I just answered, only God knows and hopefully someday we will know all the answers, but until then, we just need to know that God made us and we are special to him. I hope that was enough for him to ponder, at least until the next question.

Mondays Matter: Week 13

Taken from the book Every Monday Matters: 52 Way To Make A Difference by Matthew Emerzian and Kelly Bozza.

This is an idea that is near and dear to my heart...Books and Reading

Donate Books

61% of low-income families have NO books in their homes.

55% of children have an increased interest in reading when given books at an early age.

ACTION STEPS

1. Go through your booksheves and pull out books that you will never read again or have owned for more than 2 years and haven't read yet.

2. Pack the books in a box.

3. Call your local library, school, foster home, or children's organization to see if they need books.

4. Deliver the books!

5. If you don't have any books at home, purchase some books to donate or find an organization that accepts financial donations and will purchase books and deliver them where they are needed.

We probably have more books in our home than toys. I love books. I love to read and I try to instill that in my kids by making sure they have many reading options readily available. Then twice a year I go through the kids bookshelves and pull out the ones we have outgrown or no longer need. Then we donate them to a very needy organization called Heart of Iowa. They provide treatment and housing to women that are pregnant or have children and struggling with a drug or alcohol addiction. A friend of mine was helping her husband who works for Heart of Iowa and a child came up to her and asked if she had any books he could read. She noticed that there were no books for the children. So, she asked us at church to donate books for the kids and the books came in boxes and boxes. Now our church's circle regularly donates to purchase new books for the kids and I regularly go through our shelves to add to that as well. I also regularly donate my books to our local library. If they don't need to add them to their shelves, they go into their bin for their annual book sale for which the proceeds are used to purchase more books for the library. So, every body wins.

Having access to books is the key to literacy. By donating books, especially children's books, you can impact some of the 12 million children who don't have books at home.

10 Years

Ten years ago today I married the love of my life. Actually 11 years ago tomorrow I met the love of my life. At least for me, I knew immediately that he was "the one". From the day we met, we hardly spent a day apart and it has been that way ever since. I can't say it has been a smooth and easy 10 years of marriage, but I wouldn't change a moment of it. We have stuck together through trials and triumphs, have 3 beautiful children, a home full of love, and family and friends that regularly keep us in check. What more could a married couple hope for. Pat, thanks for all you have given me in this 10 years and I look forward what the future holds for us. Happy Anniversary!

This was the Scripture from our wedding ceremony and is always good to hear again!

1 Corinthians 13:4-8 Love is patient and kind: love is not jealous or boastful; it is not arrougant or rude. Love does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrong, but rejoices in the right. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends.

Review: Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin

This young readers edition of the worldwide bestseller Three Cups of Tea has been specially adapted for younger readers by Sarah Thomson and updated by Greg Mortenson to bring his remarkable story of humanitarianism up to date for the present. Includes new photos and illustrations, as well as a special interview by Greg’s twelve-year-old daughter, Amira, who has traveled with her father as an advocate for the Pennies for Peace program for children.

The story in an inspiring account of one man's campaign to build schools in the most dangerous, remote, and anti-American reaches of Asia. In 1993, Greg Mortenson was the exhausted survivor of a failed attempt to ascend K2, an American climbing bum wandering emaciated and lost through Pakistan's Karakoram Himalaya. After he was taken in and nursed back to health by the people of an impoverished Pakistani village, Mortenson promised to return one day and build them a school. From that rash, earnest promise grew one of the most incredible humanitarian campaigns of our time—Greg Mortenson's one-man mission to counteract extremism by building schools, especially for girls, throughout the breeding ground of the Taliban.

I enjoyed this book and appreciated the "easy read". From other reviews, I read that the adult version has much more political involvement throughout the storyline. I thought this YA version had just enough information to keep me interested, enough stories to get me invested, and an excellent assortment of photos to connect you to the people in the story. This was a quick and enjoyable read for me and it has led me to look further into the Pennies For Peace campaign. Since I am in charge of our Vacation Bible School this summer, we are going to do the Pennies for Peace Foundation as our mission project and help raise money for these schools and for the much needed supplies. To find out more about this mission go to http://www.penniesforpeace.org/. I gave this book 4 out of 5 stars.

Buddy and Baxter

You cannot look at a sleeping cat and feel tense. - Jane Pauley

I found our cats Buddy and Baxter having an afternoon nap together today. Wouldn't it be great to be a cat...just for a day?
Buddy (on the left) was my husband's cat and Baxter was my cat. At first, when we brought the cats (both boys) together, there was definitely some tense moments: growling, arched backs, hair standing straight up, and hissing. But, before too long, they became best buds. The cats have been together for 10 1/2 years and are completely inseparable. They have very different personalities, but always have a soft spot for each other.


*UPDATE* Buddy and Baxter have since moved on to their great home in Heaven, Buddy leaving us in 2013 and Baxter almost exactly a year later. They lived long lives and have been missed, but we hope they are taking naps together and watching over our family.

Mondays Matter: Week 12

Taken from the book, Every Monday Matters: 52 Ways To Make A Difference by Matthew Emerzian and Kelly Bozza

Party With A Purpose!

Every week there are 79,623 births, 42,884 weddings, and 5,812,037 birthdays! Whew!

Birthdays are the #1 reason people celebrate!

ACTION STEPS!

1. Select a charity, cause or purpose you wish to support.

2. Decide which holiday or occasion for which you would like your friends and family to make a donation instead of giving you a gift.

3. Provide your friends and family with the proper information to make their giving easier - website, phone number, address

4. Make up a reason to party if you don't have one. Simply have guests bring a dish to share and their charitable gift.

Giving is a lot more gratifying than receiving, no matter the occasion. This is a perfect idea for that person who has everything he/she needs. Making a donation to a charity, cause, or organization they care about shows that you care about them as well.

Spring Flowers!

All through the long winter, I dream of my garden. On the first day of spring, I dig my fingers deep into the soft earth. I can feel its energy, and my spirits soar. ~ Helen Hayes

Yesterday I raked away my leaves and found spring rising up out of the dirt in my flower bed. I love finding the first flower to spring up in my flower bed. Spring is here!