Eucharisteo - Counting My Gifts from 2013 (Part 1)

One of the best books I've read in the last several years is "One Thousand Gifts" by Ann Voskamp.  Subtitled "A Dare to Live Fully Right Where you Are" and written by a fellow busy, broken, weary mom.  It captured my heart.

Having undergone many hardships in life, Ann is challenged by a friend to write down 1,000 gifts graciously given from God.  And not the 3-day vacations, $25 Starbuck gift card, or 2 dozen roses kind of gifts.  No, the iridescent soap bubbles in a sink full of dishes, baby toes, calloused husband hands, smell of fresh-brewed coffee, finger-smudged walls kind of gifts.  The kind we usually miss.  The kind I have learned to notice.

" Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change."  James 1:17

The Greek word for thanksgiving is Eucharisteo.  

Charis = Grace

Eucharisteo = Thanksgiving

Chara = Joy

All given to us through Jesus' work on the cross.  All captured in the breaking of bread and drinking of wine.  The Eucharist.  All ours to be had through surrender to Him.

So, this Christmas, I'll be forgoing a traditional Christmas letter.  (Don't let me fool you, I haven't written one for 5 years at least anyway).  Instead I'll be using pictures to capture, examine and express thanksgiving to my Father.  I guess you could call in my own 1,000 Gifts.  Except for there are 51 (and counting...).

January
Brown eyes (1) and toothy grins (2)

Sam. 3 years old.  Ready to go outside.

Baby chuckles (3), finger food (4), new kitchen curtains sewn by my mom (5)

Levi. 11 months.  Spaghetti.

Cousins! Eve (6), Zoe (7), Wedly (8), Gabe (9).  Four of my boys' favorite people on the planet! 

Eve, Wedly, Zoe at the Levi's birthday party.

Fuzzy PJs (10), bedtime routines (11), brotherly love (12)

Freshly bathed Kellar boys

February

Beds to jump on (13), garden beds resting before spring planting (14), cozy flannel sheets (15)

A daddy that works 50 hour weeks as a teacher (16), yet still musters up the energy to wrestle every day with his boys (17)

Good books, read again and again! (18)

Nate's trip to Anchorage (19) to celebrate this young man's life (20).  Read the story <here>

March

 Spring break (read more <here>) (21), Grandpas who dearly love their grandsons (22), downy baby hair (23), mullets (24)

Sweet spiky-haired 5 year old boys (25), with button noses (26)

Budding artists (27) creating life-size monsters (28), hung with Costco supplies of tape (29), given by two fun Aunties (30)

April

Stormy days at the beach (31), healthy bodies for hiking (32), baby carriers (33)

Time and energy to work outside (34), wood supply for the winter (35), (much of it supplied by my Dad (36)), free swingset from our neighbors (37)

Daffodils (38) and blue glass (39)

Life long friends (40) with beautiful smiles (41)

The Langelier's kids

May

Sick days to slow down and snuggle (42)

Wardrobes drawers full to overflowing with artistic creations (43)

June

Chubby-thighs (44) helping in the green, green garden (45) on bright, shiny days (46)

 

Big brothers playing patiently (47)

Big back yards (48) with fluorescent flowers (49)

 Loving Grandmas (50) who give large portions of ice cream! (51)

(Part 2, found here)

"Love Me for Me"

God blessed my socks off with lots of things last night.  For starters, my dear friend Karen.  A friend who has been a true friend.    One who was not been afraid to call me out on sin when I needed her to, challenging me in good times and bad to keep my eyes on Jesus.   Because she loves me.  A true "iron sharpens iron" kind of friend.

Karen didn't know it, but it had been a rough week.  As I left the house, I still had ringing in my ears the sounds of the week, like a

whining 6 year old,

a complaining 4 year old,

a tantruming 1 year old

Sounds I desperately needed a break from.  

Karen bought me tickets to see JJ Heller.  Heard of her?   She's a young mom who loves Jesus, sings angelically, and loves to share her story through song.  There was not a song I did not enjoy.  Cried during most of them (emotional much?).  She writes music with her husband, and many of their songs are for their two little girls.  The kind of songs I would want to write to my kids.  If I could write songs.

Here's a few I particularly loved:

"Love Me"

"Who You Are"

"Your Hands"  


Thanks you, Karen, for an evening I needed and loved!  Thank you, Jesus, for great music and friends!

Little Boys and Their Words

Okay, so it has been a LONG time since I updated everyone on how the boys are doing!  I honestly don't see how people fit it all in - blogging, schooling, laundering, dish-washing, diapering, cleaning, gardening, working, parenting, food-preserving, everything-ing.  Obviously, I don't.  I know it is just a stage, but I am looking forward to when I can update more often!  Maybe the fact that I have a bit of time today is a sign that the post-baby stage is nearly over.  Yay or Sniff?  Mostly sniff.

I used to update often on recent quotes, but it's been almost a year and a half!  I keep their cute little phrases in a section of my Home Management Notebook (Read Tsh Oxenreider's book Organized Simplicity yet?  Go buy it!), so at least they have a safe place to be stored.

Here goes:

Ben's Cute Quotes:

After seeing me avoid beans during Levi's infancy, I noticed Ben was picking the beans out of his taco.  "What are you doing Ben?"  "Oh, I didn't want to hurt Levi's feelings."

After we had a long conversation over breakfast about prophets and what God calls them to do.  "God is telling me something, Mom."  What?  "To marry a woman."  Good news.

"Mrs. Niceling": the name Ben called his teacher after his first day of kindergarten.  She's Mrs. Goodling.

"Ben, did you think about Jesus today?"  "Yeah, mom!  When I was playing with the bears during choosing time, I remembered that God made them.  And I remembered Jesus when I was on the crowded bus!"  (So proud).

With a huge grin on his face and excitement in his voice over his discovery, "Mom!  I have something to tell you!  Inside every old stump is a tiny little seed."  There's a sermon there somewhere.

With tears in his eyes, Ben described how one of the boys in his class lost his bag of cars he had brought for show and tell.  This is a boy who is very poor.  All of a sudden, "MOM, why don't I give Cesar some of MY cars!!  Oh, I can't wait!"  And he did.  (Again, so proud.)


Sam's Cute Quotes:

Not a quote, but oh so cute.  Last spring, he got on his socks, boots, hat, coat (zip it up momma?), which is no small feat when your that little.  Ran outside for 10 seconds, literally, then came back in and took them all off.  His mission?  To pick me a dandelion which was to be promptly placed behind my ear.  Sweetie boy.

"Jesus is a tiger.  Yes, He is!  Jesus is a tiger."  A day after hearing the song "Hail, hail the lion of Judah" and my explanation of why the Bible calls Jesus a lion.  Close enough, right?

Sam used to say all of his S sounds with a SH instead.  Imagine our muffled laughs when Sam yells across the park, "The birds S*it on the tree mom!  The birds s*it on the tree!!"

"Where is your sock, Sam?"  "I don't know.  The tornado took it."

"I love you mommy." Said multiple times a day.

"Is it school time yet?" Repeated about 5 times each moring of a school day.  This boy takes after his Momma.  He LOVES school!

Sam is pretty gifted verbally (remember how when he was two, he said to me, "Actually, mom, I realized something important"?).  So, often the things he says are understandable, hence not as many funny quotes as perhaps a normal 4 year old!


Levi's Cute Quotes:

"Mammy" = Sam
"Papa" = Grandpa
"Mamma" = Grandma
"Baby" = anyone shorter than 4 feet.
"I buvoo" = I love you

At 1am:  "Hi-yee.  Hi-yeeeee. Iwonadrink.  Hi-yee Hi-yeeeee.  Iwonaapple."  Did you catch that.? Yes, that's him asking for room service by using my first name!!

Levi says SO many things now!  Much of it is hard to understand, so it's often a guess and check (this? this? this? "Yup" when you get the right thing).  Nevertheless, he is more understandable every day.

More on Levi, and all the boys soon!

Invasive Species

Himilayan Blackberries - The top invasive species of the Pacific Northwest.

River choked with Himilayan Blackberries in Oregon

Himilayan blackberries are nearly impossible to remove.  Cut them down, till them up, burn them back, spray them all season - no matter the method, they’ll soon be back.  In the Pacific Northwest, this non-native plant species absolutely ruins plots of land, shoving out the native plant species like a bully.  Without great care and diligence, they soon take over the beautiful land in our neighborhoods.

But…

My life is infested with an invasive species too. 

Or, at least this is the image that God gave me awhile back of how deceptive and secretly invasive my PRIDE is.  It is permeating and quietly destructive.  Over the last 33 years of my life, it has spread, seemingly unnoticed, into every area of my heart, mind, and strength.  Pride keeps me from a posture of worship.  It keeps me from sinking deep roots to draw up the Water of Life.  It chokes back the fruit God wants to produce as His Truth spreads up each vine. 

I am ashamed.

Back in 2003, as I was earning my MAT at GFU, a man in my co-hort named Rob said something to me that I’ll never forget.  We were working on a group project and, although I don’t remember the exact circumstances, I’ll never forget his words: “You are the kind of girl that always wants to be the center of attention.  You want to talk over other people because you’re self-centered.”  Ouch.  It hurt.  I remember purposefully being quiet around Rob after that.  It was as if I was forcing humility upon myself, but only so that I wouldn’t fulfill his prophecy.  Even my “humility” was prideful, as I attempted to look good in the eyes of others. 

Lord, I have so far to go.  So much to learn! 

Master gardeners say that Himilayan blackberries cannot be tilled, burned or even bulldozed.  In fact, such actions invigorate new growth!  The best solution they have found is to individually cut off each branch at the proper stage of growth, then, paint it with round-up.  When you have a bramble of bushes, this can take days, weeks, even years! 

Lord, this is what I need.  I need you to identify, cut off, and kill each area of pride in my life.  I want to be closer to you, but my bramble of pride is not allowing me to!  Please teach me through Your Word.  I want to know you and posture myself as your daughter.

I want to know from your Word what it truly means to be…

Humble.

I've spent the last several months seeking out specific Scripture revolving around pride and humility.  It has been so good.  I've realized a few "symptoms" of pride in my own life:

• Contempt for other people
• Thinking I've got x mastered, so why don't they?
• Believing "I deserve" or "I've work hard for" something, when really every good and perfect gift is from God.
• Worrying about one particular area of my life
• In general, thinking about myself way too much

I love Tim Keller's definition of humility: "Humility is not thinking less of your self, but rather thinking of yourself less."  

He says, if you were to meet a truly humble person on the road, you would not walk away thinking, "Oh wow, they are really humble."  But rather, "Man, why do they care so much about me?"

The way to true humility is to see yourself through the eyes of Jesus, as the Creator of the Universe hung from the cross.  To repent.  To worship.  To allow Him to define who I am.  Through His eyes, I see myself as I truly am: a sinner in need of a Gracious God; as a person who can literally do nothing good apart from Him.  As one who is not defined by what I do right or wrong, but by what HE did for me!  And to realize this every day, every hour.

Would you believe what incredible morsel I came upon in Isaiah the other day?  From one of my all-time favorite chapters.  In fact, notice how I had every single verse highlighted at some point, except for these verses, which now bring tears to my eyes:

 “You will go out with joy and be led forth in peace; 

the mountains and hills will burst into song before you, 

and all the trees of the field will clap their hands…

(and here’s where it gets really good…) 

Instead of a thornbush will grow the pine tree, 

and instead of briers the myrtle will grow.  

This will be for the Lord’s renown, for an everlasting sign, 

which will not be destroyed.” 

Isaiah 55:13

Here's what a myrtle tree looks like, folks.  Gorgeous.

And, I'm sure you don't need a reminder, but here's a pine tree:

This is not just any pine tree, either.  Several years ago, when we first moved to Washougal, little Ben and I attempted to walk along a trail near our neighborhood and were stopped short by a wall of blackberries.  Gradually, over a span of 2 years, the blackberries have been chopped back by city workers.  And would you believe what their diligence revealed?  

This: 

And this: 

A beautiful meadow
Where we love
To hike and retreat, 
An oasis from the
The busy suburb.

A beautiful meadow 
where on a quiet day
If you listen very closely 
you'll hear the trees clapping their hands
And hills bursting with song
And pine trees
Declaring the Lord's glory.

A beautiful meadow
Where if you look even closer 
You might just see 
A young mom lounging nearby
Remembering He who made it all,
Reveling in her glorious smallness,
Not forgetting what the meadow once was,
and thanking her Master Gardener,
Who will continue to cultivate it with care,
Cutting out the briars,
Pruning back the unfruitful branches,
Creating an oasis
For HIS glory.

Spring Break

Sigh.

Oh, Spring Break, how I miss thee!  It's taken me a couple of weeks to post these, and now we are in the thick of track season.  Nate coaches, which means 10-11 hour days away on practice days and 11-13 hours away on meet days.  Today, he left at 6:45am, came home for an hour at 5:30pm, then went back for a training.  

But, alas, I digress.  Fabulous, restful, carefree, beautiful SPRING BREAK!

Our first weekend was Easter, which I, unfortunately, did not get any pictures of.  We spent the day with the Kellar's and it was fabulous.  For some appropriately spiritual thoughts, see my last post <here>.

For now, we'll move on to the deeply meaningful truth that Levi had a mullet.   On Easter Sunday afternoon, in Grandpa and Grandma K's backyard, we decided to take care of it.

Business up front.

Party in the back.

Teamwork!

Don't you just wanna kiss him?

Somehow, I failed to get a final picture, but Mike and Nate did an amazing job.  No clippers, even.


Later in the week, we took a day trip to Cannon Beach!

We wanted to:
A) try out a road trip in our new Honda Odyssey (yes! we now have a minivan! love it!),
B) Let Levi experience the sand and the waves for the first time, and
C) have something other than yard work to show for our week off.

Ecola State Park viewpoint

Hike from the top viewpoint down to Indian Beach

Levi LOVED everything about the beach:

Logs, sand, water, rocks, you name it.

I realize I don't have to include all of these pictures,

but I can't part with any of them.  What personality

this little one has!

A 14-month's old perspective of the beach.  Levi's

quote of the day was "Whoa!" which he said over and over

on our hike and near the water.

I agree, buddy!

While I chased Levi and kept him from eating too much sand, the older boys played in the tide pools.  Jeans, sweatshirts and all!  They had SO much fun!

The rest of the week was spent mostly at home.  We were supposed to do an Easter dinner with my family on Monday, but Gabriel had to go and get croup, so we had to postpone that.

Nate started reading the boys The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.  Totally recommend it!  Ben was SO into the story.  He understood the connection between Aslan and Jesus right away.  He begged and begged Nate to keep reading each night.  He cheered and jumped up and down when Aslan came back to life.  Sam got into it too, but got a little caught up with Mr. Tumnus.  He was very concerned about him and asked about him every chapter.  Didn't exactly get the big picture yet.  On a side note, if you have kiddos that care a little too much for the bad guys in stories, like ours do, then this is the perfect story to teach them to cheer for the Good side.  

Reading C.S. Lewis with Daddy and scarfing kale chips from the garden.

Doesn't get much better for my boys (or me)!

Sammy's a big fan

On the right, you can see Nate's handiwork.  We have almost all of our wood for next winter already, thanks to all of his hard work!

On the left, you can see the garden work we've been doing: expanding the bed on the bottom, tearing up the grass in between the beds, and now we've laid cedar chips.  It looks great!

Overall, it was a wonderful week together.  We felt rejuvenated and ready to tackle a very busy Spring!