God,

let me be all he ever dreamed

of loveliness and laughter.

Veil his eyes a bit

because

there are so many little flaws;

somehow, God,

please let him see

only the bride I long to be,

remembering ever after --

I was all he ever dreamed

of loveliness and laughter.

Ruth Graham Bell

Happy 15th Anniversary Babe.

I love you so much - you have my heart.

She's Going Potty!

Just to Encourage You...if you are a mom who is desiring or attempting to potty train your little one! Our little Rachel Grace just decided 4 days ago to get the potty chair out, sit on it, and go! Yeah, Hurrrahh Rachel!!

Up until four days ago, just the mention of a potty chair merited an immediate "NO" response from this little girl. Knowing that most adults are potty trained, I knew the day would eventually come. She simply suddenly decided it was time to "go"!

Rachel is our seventh child that we have gone through a potty training journey with. My view on training...they need to be ready and wanting to go, or else you need to be ready and wanting to change A LOT of clothes and wiping up many messes!

Isn't that just like so many things in life, like becoming potty-trained. I do things when I am ready and able. I hope Rachel is thrilled with her decision...we are certainly trying to give her lots of praise!!

"Today, IF you hear his voice, do not harden your heart..." Hebrews 3:7

She Considereth a Lawn Mower and Buyeth it!

Yesterday an auction was held at the residence of a couple we know. Earlier in the week I drove by and saw a posting outside their home and also noticed a green riding lawnmower. Sometimes when I notice things, or something pops out to me, I try to give room for..."Lord, did you have me notice that?" Was that rider mower going to be auctioned off? I am not sure if this story is blog-worthy, but I thought it may be a fun to share. I hope it is something that may encourage you! Here goes:

This summer we have opted to use our push mower to mow our BIG yard and, for the most part, has been working out O.K.. It was what we had and nothing came across our path that was another affordable option for us. We all (not the little ones of course!) have jumped in to help mow sections a day. Our old red Toro has been "revved-up" all summer! Although it has been been working out, it has really consumed our lives at times. We love to be able to have things for our children to do, but was it to mow lawn constantly! :)

The night before the auction we looked online and saw that they were going to auction off two mowers: a push mower and the green rider that I had seen. "Lord, can we go and bid on those?"

I have never been to an auction as an adult, so this was going to be a new venture for me. My husband had previous plans for that morning, so I left my children at home and ventured a few blocks away to considereth a mower...and maybe buy it! With agreement from my husband and two specific dollar amounts I asked the Lord to give me, off I went. I discovered that auctions take time, but finally the time came to bid on the lawn mowers. I am so glad that I observed the happenings of how to bid on items before it was my time!! There is a little bit of an art to it!

The push mower was first... it went for a way higher amount than I was able to pay for it. In fact, I did not even join in on the bidding. For a moment I got fainthearted, but I felt a nudge from the Holy Spirit...keep going Anna, just wait. The bidding started for the green rider. It started WAY high (at least according to my bid!). To my surprise (or unbelief!!) no one was bidding. The bid got down to range that I could jump in! So...I started bidding!! Much of it was a blur to me, but all of the sudden I knew that I nodded my head at the exact amount I received from the Lord - I would go no higher. The auctioneer took my nod and spoke the next bid, spoke it again, and again and again...he looked around, then looked at me and said, "Sold"! I raised my number and bought a lawn mower!! I was a bit amazed, thank you LORD! My husband and some of our children came back to the auction and it was so fun to tell him the story! We brought it home and had a great time mowing the lawn and connecting as a family, which is a HUGE blessing as well.

Thank you Lord, that you were with us in that purchase, that You guided us the whole way. I am so thankful and humbled to know that you are alive and so willing to be involved in the lives of people. May this family bless You as we seek to know You and walk in step with Your Holy Spirit. When I am weak, He is strong!

Thanks for letting me share. To God be the glory, in Jesus Name!

Another Rainy Day!

My children are waking up - oh, I LOVE thunder

and the cozy feel that a rainy day brings!

Today we are going to get our morning chores done, and then bring out some materials to "do art" today!! Now, I am with you...the mess that comes from children doing art can be a little daunting, but I have found some blogs to help us really make art time purposeful, with a plan and plain old FUN! TeachKidsArt, ArtProjectsforKids and Deep Space Sparkle are a few of my favorites blogs! Take a peak if you have children,

or if you don't, and try out a project or two!

I posted a few pictures above of some projects we have recently had fun creating!

"Be joyful ALWAYS;

pray continually;

give THANKS in all circumstances...

for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."

1 Thessalonians 5:18

If I could "say" something Just to Encourage You today,

lift your heart to the Lord and deny your flesh which wants to

complain,

compare,

(it is our flesh that wants to point fingers and see how "bad" OTHER people are!)

and be contentious.

Look to Jesus and be filled with the Holy Spirit of God...know your Heavenly Father!

When I DO this (not merely think about it being a good thing to do!) I find that...

I am joyful, I am continually brought to prayer and my heart desires to give thanks to my Creator, Saviour and Judge...

to the One who gives us our breath today!!

He has set eternity in all our hearts! Ecc. 3:11

Good Morning! Check out the picture of our beautiful little Ellah Corrie. She is now four months old, everything goes into her mouth and she kicks and moves...so cute! Enjoy your children and grandchildren. In fact, God's Word instructs us women "to love their husbands, and children..." Titus 2:4 When you do not know how to serve the Lord with a heart of thankfulness for what He has done for you...go ahead and love! That is what He does for us!

It is a beautiful rainy day today! I love rainy days as they are a day to pretty much keep the kids inside, pull out toys and live out life indoors for a day! What do you like about rainy days? Our oldest daughter just returned from our chicken dwelling place outside (I need to post pictures of it someday!). Other than our "chicken chores" we will be inside. My sister invited us to go to her home to play! While the children play, she has asked if we could go through her homeschool room and organize things a bit! We will return to get the home in order, a little bit of time each day helps to keep this machine running pretty smoothly! I did notice that a bomb must have gone off in the laundry room - so appropriate time will be spent cleaning up that mess. I have learned that things always have a way of "looking" like they are huge messes, but really take a very little amount of time to get back in order.

Last night I went to my Beth Moore Bible study, Believing God. I was so encouraged. I love the Lord so much and am so astounded at His continued love toward me. Just over 16 years ago, He chose to reveal Himself to me. Now, that was the absolute WORST time in my life...but the BEST EVER and I would gladly go through what I did, if it meant to come into fellowship with Jesus! God simply showed me my sin in light of Him, there was NO condemnation, but I tell ya, a fear of the Lord entered my heart! Oh what blessed salvation Jesus offers to all who need His forgiveness! I guess I could have hardened my heart and said, "I see no sin in my life, I am just fine." But by the grace of God, I was humbled and acknowledged my sin. All of the sudden, I knew God...now I know that that was the Spirit of God came to live in me and give me eyes to see and ears to hear! The first time I sang Amazing Grace as a new creation in Christ, I nearly exploded! I knew then that the Lord had given me such a precious gift, to see life with spiritual eyes. "I once was lost, but now am found. Was blind, but now I see"! Praise the Lord with me!!

"Praise the Lord of my soul, all my inmost being, praise his holy name. Praise the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits:

1. Who forgives all your sins

2. and heals all your diseases,

3. who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion

4. who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagles."

Psalm 103: 1-5

Thank the Lord for His Word and for the pens of the psalm writers. David wrote Psalm 103. A real man, with real emotions, with a heart for the same God...is that actually possible!!

I do hope you find your rest in the Lord Jesus today. I hope to be able to share snippets of what the Lord is doing in my life this week...Just to Encourage You!

Wow, my first post!  I love it...writing that is.  I hope to be able to encourage anyone who reads this blog.  Life can be very full at times and I hope that by sharing a little bit of my life, joy will spill into yours.  As a child of God, a disciple of Jesus and filled with the Holy Spirit, my writings will hopefully touch your innermost being!  We are all created to know and love the God of the Bible...let me share life with you, it would be an honor!