That Extra One

I just donated 101 baby hats! I made them over the course of fall/winter, and just got around to donating them. I was aiming for 100, but when I counted them up the other night, I only had 99. Logically, Id make another and we would have 100 to take to New Hope. After making another, I counted them up this morning, and discovered I had 102! Quite perpuzzled, I had Mom count them again and it was 101 (I trust her counting skills lol!). Oh well, I thought to myself, and put them in a couple cute bags. When I got there I gave them to the lady and told her there was 101, and how that came to be. She smiled and said simply,

"There must be a need for that extra one."

It got me thinking, God often does that. We have an extra pair of shoes, or extra money in our pocket, an extra cup of coffee, or maybe extra time...and God uses it for a reason! Embrace "that extra one"! :~)

Beautiful Blessings - 9/25/15

~ 90 days till Christmas!!!

~ My crochet hook, Marco, and my scissors, Polo!

~ Over 70+ baby hats made to give away!

~ Exploring with colors!

~ Delicious homemade quiche! We havent had it in ages! Mmmmm!

Valuing Life: Beginning to End

Our guest post today is from the lovely Eden. She is 15 years old and enjoys studying God's Word, spending time with family and friends, dancing, singing, and much more! You can visit her blog at:

www.edensevaluations.blogspot.com

Life... the very word brings so many pictures, thoughts, and ideas into my mind.  One of these thoughts would, of course, be my life. I have one amazing family consisting of seven awesome brothers and sisters and two incredible parents.  I also have lots of fun cousins, aunts and uncles, and dear grandparents.

As I look over my family tree, I see a picture of a generational, pro-life family, who has always valued life, from conception to life’s completion.

All of this reminded me of the quippy Dr. Seuss quote, “A person’s a person, no matter how small.”* But to me, it seems like something is missing from that quote... something that we are going to discover in just a moment.

Life is defined by the one who created it... God.  Life begins at conception and continues until God decides that time is up.

Sadly, many people today do not believe that life is a precious gift; they don’t seem to understand that life is a blessing from the Lord. Unfortunately, from times past until now, we have seen the destruction and devaluing of human life through abortion, extermination, and euthanasia.

All around us, innocent lives are being purposefully killed and eradicated.

People are deceived and tricked... they do not see that every stage of life, from the womb to the end, is absolutely priceless.  Lisa Wingate quotes, “...Every child, no matter how tiny in the womb, must be welcomed into the world, for each child is a gift of love from God. Therefore, abortion is never the answer, for abortion kills.”* Nobel prize-winning author, Pearl S. Buck says,“Euthanasia is a long, smooth-sounding word, and it conceals its danger as long, smooth words do but the danger is there, nevertheless.”* Just like abortion and extermination, euthanasia is murder as well.

Now, looking back at Dr. Seuss’s quote, I would add, “A person’s a person, no matter how small... or big.”  Life is a miracle and a tremendous gift from God. We see this in Psalm 139:14 which says, “I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.” We are knit together in our mother's womb, formed by the very hand and in the image of God Almighty! That is indescribable!!!

We have, are, and will always be in a battle for life.  So in closing, I urge you to continue the fight for the gift of life... to publicize to the world that life is incomparable, and therefore, we must always value it; from beginning to end.

Footnotes:

*“Horton Hears a Who!” By, Dr. Seuss

*www.miamiarch.org

*www.quotes.dictionary.com

T-bug's first birthday!

Remember what we celebrated last year???

Well those little feet are now a year old!

I'm a little late as is the norm for birthday posts, but this wee baby has grown into a fine little girl! :)

Happy birthday little pumpkin! :~D We love you!

Fun at the Zoo

T-tot. L-Jo, Lil' G, and T-bug :)

The penguins!

The snow leopards!

The baby Muntjac and parents! 

The 2 year old elephant! :) 

The bubble man!

Bubbles + kids = Pure Joy!

A bubble in a bubble is still a bubble!

The baby monkey and his Mommy.

My friend, who we adopted for the day.

We were twins and unplanned matching shirts. :)

Lots of fun at the Zoo!

Ach!

She is getting sooooooooooooo big! Where has the time gone? 

She is crawling and sitting up. And she is desperately trying to figure out how to stand. 

My lil baby sister is growing up! 

Mushu: "My little baby, off to destroy people." 

(Mulan)

13 days till X'mas

Our hearts grow tender with childhood memories and love of kindred, and we are better throughout the year for having, in spirit, become a child again at Christmas-time.  ~Laura Ingalls Wilder

22 days till X'mas

We put our Little People Nativity sets up!

This is last year's picture, the manger scene is currently being played with, like it is meant to be! :~D

Matthew 1:18-25

¹⁸ This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. ¹⁹ Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law, and yet did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.

²⁰ But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. ²¹ She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”

²² All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: ²³ “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”).

²⁴ When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. ²⁵ But he did not consummate their marriage until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus.

45 days till X'mas!

I have a friend who collects nativities.

She had at least 20 sets.

I love nativities. They can be ornate or simple. Big or small. Tiny or tall. They can be life sized or pocket sized.

But each carries an important message.

What is the message?

It is intertwined with love, joy, promises kept, family, trust, and giving.

It is the message of Jesus' birth.

We may not know the exact day, but it is a day we set aside to remember the day Jesus' was born.

You would think that a someone like him would be born in a palace.

Oh no.

In a stable. A place with animals.

A bit more privacy than an inn, yes.

Mary and her family...husband, mother, father, sisters, brothers, aunts, uncles, all celebrating the birth of a child.

Because God wanted to teach us something great, he made it happen in a unlikely place.

That is what Christmas is about.

So today, read the Christmas story. Talk about it with your family and see what they would like to do to celebrate the birth of our Savior.

Christmas already????????

Christmas....don't you love that word?

I definitely do.

Snow, giving, and of course the celebration of our Saviors birth.

80 days till X'mas.

Already.

It is creeping up on us.

Gaining speed.

And WHAM!

Hits you like a frozen snowball on your face.

It can't be coming.

The year just started.

We just had our birthdays.

We just danced in our dance recital.

I just went to camp.

We went just camping as a family.

The baby was just born.

School just started.

Apple and pumpkin season just got here.

Where did the time go?

It is not possible!

Celebrate the next 80 days as if it were Christmas already.

Cause it coming faster then you know.