Bridal Showers.
Proverbs 18:22
New International Version (NIV)
22 He who finds a wife finds what is good
and receives favor from the Lord.
Oh what a weekend…
My brother is taking a wife… and I really feel like we have snatched her out of heaven. She is just that great.
She walks every day as an example to everyone that the Spirit which raised Him from the dead is within her.
She is brave and strong all tempered with grace. She is beautiful.
So what a fun weekend of just celebrating her coming into our family.
We had bridal showers and bachelorette parties…. all just so we could make memories with her.
I have said it from the very beginning of their meeting… “I trust that my brother hears clearly from God…and because he does, I know she is the one.”
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Later on we went to our aunts’ beautiful horse farm to begin the rest of the evening….the bachelorette party! We all had a great time eating sushi and playing games. Then we went out to the funniest spots in town….ending up at a karaoke bar. It was a big stretch for me… as I , in the past ,have never been the “going out” type. However, Andrea is an amazing inspiration to me… she has overcome so much…and she walks everyday in Power. She was once identified as the girl-who-has________ but she is healed…and now she is the Woman who Walks in Healing and in the wake of a God who Provides. Did I mention how amazing she is? Can you tell the same rule of the “sun rising and setting on my brothers head” has quickly extended to his soon to be wife?
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As if the above listed things aren’t enough…HE still gives me more reasons to be Thankful….
- That He shows me time and time again… People are on their own paths and I don’t need to understand it.
- Coming home on Sunday to find a person there by my husbands’ request…just to minister to me. They had been there… they know what this is like…this starting of other places.
- A friend saying, “The price isn’t pricey…the price has been paid… But there is a lot of backlash and reverb from shaking things up spiritually like you are doing.”
- Friends slow dancing in my kitchen.
- A brother who clearly hears from God.
- How all this reverb of backlash…or whatnot…is all hedged in peace….knowing that is a cloak of Grace not woven by me.
- Seeing performance and understanding why it’s not the same as the Spirit…at least not the Holy Spirit.
- Learning every day more how I am supposed to steward my gifts… I think I dropped the ball yesterday morning… but someone else picked it up…knowing I can’t wreck it… but I really don’t want to miss out.
- Another person calling me a title I am just not yet comfortable with wearing…learning to be humbled and honored….all learning…all growing.
- Listening to Liz sing the Torwalt song with my husband on my deck as they practice for the wedding. No rocks were crying out then, that is for sure, as it echoed over the fields.
- My humble husband who wants to grow as much as me.
- My husband who wants me to go as far as I can with all of this… as far as God will take me.
- A husband perfectly chosen for me who is so sure in his role in our marriage and house he doesn’t care what other people think about me being a leader.
- Sleeping so hard you don’t remember falling asleep.
- Homeschool portfolios nearly done… Oh please pray for me…they just need to be done.
- Getting to hang out with a new friend.
Snips and Snaps….
Well let’s be honest here…I have written a post every day…
and scrapped it.
I fuss about at the computer and just don’t know what to say…or rather it is that I have so much to say and no where to start… and sometimes I haven’t known how to stop.
Not a writers block… because that would hint at me being a writer…
and I am much more a thinker than a writer…
and all my readers shout “amen”.
lol.
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It has been one of those weeks… not a bad one…just one of many things. So without writing about each one…Perhaps it will help me to just let them all out in praise…just gush thanks till it is all out:
- That the copper headed child doesn’t need stitches and he is healing up just fine.
- Memorial Day Family cook-out. Grabbing those small moments where I can sit and chat with those around me.
- My baby started talking in long sentences some of which included…”Where is my pink potty?”…and then there is all that goes along with that.
- Major building projects the love of my life is thinking about.
- An abused woman sought me out….still debating on writing about this. (this is the one I couldn’t figure out how to end)
- The garden has been expanded and hopefully I will be getting all the plants off the deck and into the garden.
- Hearing that copper headed son figure out the math of when he will be 12 his older brother will be 19, “Good because I want an ice cream sandwich and he will drive.”
- Knowing that when my uncle died this week…he is healthy now. There was no question where he went. Peace in this.
- Running around, for the Bridal shower, is done…now onto the party!
- Hearing Him tell me to take my kids to pray for my grandfather (because of my uncle having passed)…and getting to finally coordinate it today. Amazing moments of three generations praying together.
- Understanding that everyone is on their own path…and sometimes that means they won’t always make sense to me…that’s okay.
- My husband having someone to write music with once a week.
- Knowing that sometimes, when you think He is being quiet…He is just waiting for you to do the last thing He asked..the last thing He said.
- How exciting it is to know my brother is marrying the right girl! We get to have her in our family forever…it’s a pretty big deal.
- How our Sunday Dinners are evermore becoming an Everyday lifestyle… a way of being.
- The way my kids pray…they pray better then they speak…it is such a phenomena to listen to.
- Counters lined with fresh grown food.
- an attic fan…running at night… the hum of summer and the coolness of sleep.
- This dear blog and her Facebook page...and all the nice things said about my recipe cards. I hear you and it has my wheels turning. Mostly I am just so humbled by your words.
- A darling husband who shuts his office door, with me inside and says, “just write something…. and finish it.”
- My grandfather’s voice, “We love you,” as we loaded up in the car after praying for him….he’s not really the “I love you” said-all-the-time-sort.
- rain in the garden
- my house clean from top to bottom
- Oh! having heard the Before Kony2012 video.… I barely knew about Kony because I stay clear of things that get a lot of media hype…(Right or wrong, it’s the way I am)…I saw what happened before Kony…and it is one of the single most powerful and crazy stories I have ever heard outside of the Bible. I don’t know how to embed it here…but you need to hear it so click on Before Kony 2012 and listen. If you don’t have time you could easily skip (fast forward) to the 30min line after you get the gist of what the speaker is trying to say. But it is a riveting story. It is not about numbers… it is about determined passionate hearts. To hear him tell you about how many high places Kony had given himself to… blows your mind. I mean you haven’t heard this kind of stuff since Frank Peretti’s This Present Darkness . But how these Ugandans took down Kony is real!! Really makes you think. Amazing.
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Like this:
Cassel’s Winery
I have to gush…
The love of my life and I went out on a date. To put it in perspective that happens about once every other year….if that. We aren’t complaining… and actually I don’t know if you would call what we did a “date” … but we did… because we hired a babysitter (another thing we never did till a few months ago).
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We went out to the Cassel’s Winery for their friends and family “soft opening. They just opened a new winery showroom and tasting bar. The bar is all copper and reflects the light onto everyone making them look glowy. It is gorgeous…. and I am not just saying that because they used some beautiful products from my husband’s company…. but that helps (Smile). As my shutter snapped I could just imagine events…. ohhh or a wedding, taking place there. Being familiar with the area , I know that often on Saturday nights the town sets off fireworks…can you imagine how beautiful being at the winery would be with fireworks exploding in the background!?! It could quickly become one of the most sought after locations in the area.
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But enough about the place… let’s get to the wine!
Right off the bat I love their Concord wine… but who wouldn’t it is so grapey and happy…we use it for our Communion wine. You have seen it here plenty of times and you had no idea you were seeing such deliciousness.
I sort of thought I knew all of their wines.
But no.
Have you ever tried….wait for it…
Chocolate wine?
It was amazing. You need to… no…You must try it.
It is a show stopper. The kind your friends will raise their eyebrows and go…”Whoa! This is really good!”
The flavors are so true.
and I live downwind of a chocolate town… so we smell chocolate everyday of our lives.
But this wine will amaze you.
The flavors are so sexy. Can a wine be sexy? Well it is.
My husband loved the Chambourcin. By the end of the night we had a full case of wines we were bringing home.
We had a wonderful time…. in a beautiful place with a great collection of people.
They are having the Grand Opening this weekend (June 2, 2012) so if you are nearby you need to get out to it!
Make sure you try the Chocolate Ruby Royale… it will be worth it.
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More information on Cassel’s Winery:
Posts Involving the vineyards or wine:
We are all just a Messy Kitchen.
(in full disclosure… I didn’t receive anything in return for writing this…although I probably had an extra tasting of their Chocolate Ruby Royale… but I don’t know if they were paying attention to that. (smile) )
My Baby is Safe!
She slipped under and into the blue and it seemed so peaceful.
She just glided right under the pool cover.
The pool cover quietly slipping shut , trapping her under….
as if it just wanted to gently swallow my baby.
We had taken everyone to the pool.
Everyone.
It was Sunday and after everyone enjoyed Sunday Family Dinner and some heated conversation about different interesting topics…ironically about being protective and watchful of danger
we cleaned up and prepared to go swimming.
My grandparents pool, a normal Sunday routine for us…for as long as I can remember.
My guard was up all day…so many other peoples kids there…I was so watchful.
My baby dancing around the pool all day bouncing a huge beach ball.
I wasn’t afraid that anyone would drown…all you do is jump in after them, we had a collection of doctors, nurses and exlifeguards…. but just be watchful.
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The day over and everyone hustling and bustling around collecting overly tired kids …my girls glided the blue bubble cover over the pool…tucking it in for the night.
My brother and his fiance were having friends over the next day.. the heavy pool cover on, we hoped the water would warm up…and stay clean.
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I watched my baby step out in faith that she could walk on water.
I heard a mother yelp behind me…
“NO! NOA! NO!”
and just like that ,
my baby was gone.
slipped right into the water and right under the pool cover and into the deep end.
the pool cover flapped shut as she sunk in….
all of this happening in a fraction of an instant.
All at once I could feel the skin on my knees tearing against the concrete and I could feel her slip through my first grasp.
I can remember not seeing my babys’ head and barely making out her arm and the trim on her bathing suit.
But my second grasp was determined and I didn’t care if I pulled her arm out of the socket…”they can fix anything I break,”I thought just like I did when I pushed her into this world two years ago.
I grabbed her up into my arms and stood up, twirled around hiding her and I from everyones face….needing that second to drink her in, just her and I.
My momma heart registering her baby heart beating
I turned back around to everyone, smiling.
She sputtered and blinked in a birth like way.
Everyone cheered for her… and she sputtered.
a cough and gurgly yelp.
“I sim..I sim?” She moved her arms over her head as if she had picked up a freestyle stroke.
I have so much to be thankful for…
- Skinned knees which reminded me all night that my baby is alive.
- A wise man explaining how close a religious spirit resembles the Holy Spirit. Those were the perfect tools I needed!
- How full and satisfied I feel when we gather and hang out and exchange ideas.
- My God exists..and I don’t need to format him into a man made curriculum…He exists and He will be in charge.
- People who go in to minister and pray for my grandparents.
- Being excited every.day. on what my Divine Itinerary will look like.
- That He would use me?! me?! awesome.
- the season where you walk into the back garden and pick lunch.
- Strawberry rhubarb crumble…and Springy Strawberry QuickCake everywhere!
- Sharing my garden with everyone for Sunday Dinner.
- that the battered and abused know that PFW is a safe place…and that it is available to them.
- that the love of my life can play music whether it be drums or guitar, nonstop for hours …in worship…no performance…just worship.
- seeing my grandfather smile when I caught his eye after pulling my daughter out of the pool.
- Poolside days …every day…full of friends and family.
- Waking up early this morning to make my kids a giant pancake breakfast….”Because it’s memorial for strong soldiers day momma?”….”Not exactly honey, because we are what we celebrate…and I celebrate that we are all here today…alive!”
- People who understand that Sunday Dinner is a lifestyle….and not actually just on Sundays…it’s an every day…all day…interactions…coffee appointments, texts, hey tells, etc.
- Just now realizing, yesterday I asked God to make the supernatural natural…it being Pentecost, yesterday….and what is more supernatural then saving your own baby out from under the pool cover.?!!
Like this:
Springy Strawberry Quickcake…. (gluten free)
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I remember when I was young and every summer we lived on strawberry shortcake… and I mean…lived on it. Breakfast, lunch and sometimes dinner…generally two meals a day. But it wasn’t like you see in magazines… it was this giant Jiffy mix made bisquity thing in a 13×9…you would cut out a square, cover it in strawberries which we picked that morning, then cover in sugar and milk. It was a pretty big deal as a kid…this strawberry shortcake season. Now as an adult we live a mainly gluten free life so that changes things…like strawberry shortcake season.
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So when the opportunity presented itself to go pick up extra strawberries from one farm over, we jumped at it! Quickly our counters filled up. I fully intend to make jelly…because my one brother would drink homemade strawberry jelly if given half a chance. But I still long for the real deal strawberry shortcake… So I experimented last night. Albeit the cake part did not turn out all crusty and bisquity… it was springy and amazing. I mean….amazing…. you see the picture of it sitting out with whip cream and mint sprigged…yeah that is for show. I have to say that in full disclosure so you don’t think I am being a fake…truth is I ate way too many pieces right over the sink like a barbarian….it was that good. It was so good that we polished the whole 13×9 off in one night…no joke. Don’t judge us..remember we are a family of 9, lol.
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It isn’t a sweet cake…so please don’t forget to sprinkle the sugar on it before you put it in the oven… it makes it a touch crispy…so good. Also, for those who are not gluten free and want to make this…just use some type of pancake mix to substitute….I think you should be okay.
So seize every opportunity to use those strawberries while the season lasts… there is nothing like strawberries which don’t have frequent flyer miles…local are much better!
You know a recipe is good , in this house when I don’t stuff it in the junk drawer…but I paint a recipe card for it. Don’t get me wrong I am still looking for that nostalgic strawberry shortcake… but this Spring Strawberry Quickcake will fill the gap for now!
This shared at 5MinFriday, Jennifer at StudioJRU and PPF. and Homestead Revival.
Like this:
He is not cleaning up after evil.
Your God exists.
And He isn’t going around cleaning up after the devil.
Those “attacks” in your life? God isn’t responding to them (like we respond to our children’s spilled cereal)
He isn’t going forward and then stopping to turn around and clean it all up….
His good Works are strong and they are bigger then it all.
God is doing a good work in your life.
He is working everything together for those who love Him.
He is a wave of Glory and Power and Might that keeps moving forward no matter how many obstacles are put in His way.
And you walk in His wake.
When you stand in confusion at what is going on…. “why is this happening?”…
Look at the opposite….
and then you will see what Good and Perfect Thing was started…is happening,
and what evil is trying to stop.
Reread the Text….every single thing you could chalk up to “an attack”…. look…. and look again…isn’t it the exact opposite thing that He was already starting in their lives?
Look at the story of Esther…. the very official decree that precedes her is one of breaking down marital trust and clear communication.
But Esther needed every one of those things to save them all.
Right before His Plan is to be carried out….evil makes a last ditch attempt to thwart it.
See the opposite.
How does this play out in our lives every year…
That evil has been here for so long… and we, for so little… it catches on faster then us…. evil sees how good our God is to us.
a jealous snake wanting, from the beginning, to figure out a way to make us choose any way of permanently stopping us from the blessings of our birthright.
A snake trying to get ahead by foiling His plans…. not something He cleans up after….
But the Joy of the Lord is our strength. A type of joy only mentioned twice in the entire Text.
You only Receive this type of Joy when you stop reading things as bad or as good… and realize He has had you all along.
That He is a mighty wave rushing forward , always forward, working everything…not some things…everything! for good for those who love Him.
What are your opposites to the perceived “attacks” in your life?
Do you see Him better now?
He has you.
He always has.
shared at emily’s canvas child.
Never underestimate the power of breaking your water heater in a family of nine.
On the weekend.
Knowing your house will brim with people on Sunday
Knowing your dishwasher ( for said, family of 9) runs on that water heater….and so does your washing machine!
Everyone needs showers before Sunday morning.
Never under estimate the mysterious leak that happens in a skylight during a string of rainy stormy days.
I mean, what are you going to do?
We called Chris….do you remember Chris?…sure you do….here is a quote from him, “umm…ma’am there are goldfish in your driveway.”
Do you remember now…
How about when all of heaven sang his name…. I knew you remembered him.
So he came with, what my kids refer to as, Worker Jon.
It was good to see Chris again… my husband keeps in contact with him through texts and hey tells…. and meetings over coffee.
So in anticipation of the hot water heater ready to take on the sky high laundry epidemic we had accumulated over the weekend, I ran upstairs to fill baskets.
Coming down the stairs I could hear the rhythm of prayer. I couldn’t make out the actual words… but the rhythm was unmistakeable.
Where was it coming from?
There gathered on the front porch with tools and mess from the projects…there they stood gathered around Chris…my kids and my husband just praying.
And right outside their little circle stood Worker Jon. I wondered what he must be thinking.
I heard the familiar chirps of my kids, “amens”…. then I heard the loud pop of the front door opening… but it didn’t shut.
I came around the corner to see what was going on.
Then the love of my life turned to Worker Jon, “do you want part of this?”
To which Worker Jon nodded wide-eyed like he was being handed a seat in a life raft off the Titanic.
He took two steps forward and my husband and Chris put their hands on his shoulders….and it began.
Just like that another chorus of angels sang for Worker Jon.
Leak Fixed….check!
Hot Water Heater installed….check!
An ever growing collection of saved contractors…check check!!
now onto the laundry.
(and those dirty windows..sheesh! although they did keep Worker Jon’s privacy during the photos…so don’t underestimate a dirty window! (smile))
Need to read more about Chris’ story:
Of God and Goldfish
All of Heaven Sang his name.
