I'm thankful for...

We are mostly packed and ready to head to Martin tomorrow morning for what I know will be a wonderful Thanksgiving. We are SO thankful that Paula (my wonderful mother-in-law) finished up her last round of radiation today and is moving back home! I wanted to reflect and list some of the things I am thankful for during this season. (this list is not necessarily in order)

1. My salvation. That Christ died on the cross and bore the wrath that I deserved.
2. My husband. That he loves me, that he provides for our family, that he leads our family, that he can cook, that we laugh together and that he is my best friend
3. Eden. that she such a delight that loves to read, that she is caring and loves helping mommy.
4. Owen. That he is loving and loves to cuddle. That he smiles all the time and laughs.
5. As I just mentioned that Paula has finished up her treatment and can move back home!
6. For my loving mother and father
7. For my sweet sister and her family
8. For my interesting and super smart brother
9. For my wonderful sister-in-law
10. The rest of my aunts, uncles, cousins and grandparents. So blessed by family!
11. Sweet friends that keep me accountable
12. For our home.
13. Centerpoint church family. Thankful for their support in our transition
14. New church family at Audubon Park
15. How the Lord is shaping my parenting and character
16. Our call and desire for missions
17. That I get to stay home everyday with my sweet children
18. For my husband's job that allows me to stay home
19. For the neighbor that the Lord has placed us in
20. Sweet surprises that my husband does for me
21. Friendships that my children have
22. That we are all healthy
23. That I have more than I could ever dream about. I should never complain
24. Our books
25. That my children sleep well and Don and I get full night's rest (typically)
26. Heat (you have no idea how cold natured I am)
27. freedom from religious persecution
28. my loving father-in-law
29. 3 meals and 2 snacks everyday
30. My children laughing

I could go on and on. Here are a few pictures

The amazing family the Lord has blessed me with


Going to Turkey with my sweetie (even though my eyes are closed)

brother and momma

Grandma last Christmas

Aunt Sara and Grandpa

sweet friends for my children

little buddies

It was one of those days...

Last Thursday I had a pretty rotten day. It was one of those days that I was counting down the minutes until Don walked through the door. It was a day (mainly an afternoon) full of crying, fits and extremely whiny attitudes. And no matter how hard Mommy tried I could not make my little children happy. I informed my sweet husband how the day had been so he could be ready when he arrived home. Didn't want him to think he was going to walk into a calm household. When he got home I just vented and told him all about the day, how I had gotten angry with our children and how I hadn't instructed and disciplined them in the way of the Lord. I felt like I had blown it. Ever have days like that? At the end of all that I became more grateful for the Lord's grace and my husband's love. Grace that the Lord wasn't going to hold my sins over my head and remind me of them over and over. Grace for a new day and fresh start with my children. I was thankful that my husband didn't just tell me the way I should have handled things (although we did talk through them) but he listened, bought me a cupcake from Muddy's, took time with the kids so that I could sew and then watched a movie with me (which is rare in our house). I wanted to share that experience because I know we all have bad days and days when we feel like we have blown it. It could be at work, at school, with friends or our children. A beautiful part about walking with the Lord is that there is grace for those days those moments and that He wants us to rest in those and to give him our burdens and the heavy things of our heart. I am more grateful now than I was last Thursday morning for the grace of the Lord in my life.

Painted Mason Jars

A quick little DIY I did a few days ago. It was so simple! I just painted different jars and vase I had on hand and they turned out great! I painted the inside of them a mixture of white and two different shades of gray. As I was doing it and looking inside the jars I thought this is a disaster, but the glass (obviously) changes the look of the paint! The idea came from here

The beauty of the Lord's kindness

I have been reminded this week of the kindness of the Lord. How He so cares about the small things in our lives. That He is a God that cares deeply about His children. Owen was running a fever on Sunday and was pretty pitiful all day I thought we were going to have to go to the doctor on Monday, but on Monday little guy woke up fever gone and ready to play. I can only attribute that to the Lord and His kindness to Owen and myself. Another thing from this week, is that we have had mice. Yes, mice!!! It has been horrible and highly stressful on Don and myself. Seriously, you don't even know how this has impacted the Gale household. Thankfully, Don has attacked those mice with everything he has. He has put grates up, plugged holes, put traps down and even ordered a "rat zapper". And last night we didn't hear them and there were no droppings in the house when we got up. Some may say that it is because of Don's hard work and yes that is part of it, but I know that the Lord is sovereign and even in something like mice in the house He cares. We prayed every night that the Lord would take them away and we have seen His hand move. I know some of this could sound "over spiritual" (whatever that means) but I believe that God is not detached from our the everyday part of our lives that He is working and gives favor and mercy where He desires and wills. I can confidently say that I am blessed by the kindness of the Lord.

Rise and Shine!

Alright, this is going to be a hard one to talk about...
Getting up early in the morning is a valuable thing. (But why is it so hard!) I am right there with the person that just wants to go back to sleep or that thinks they are going to sleep for just another 10 minutes, but wakes up 45 minutes later and has to rush in the shower or doesn't get a shower at all. I love my bed! And I love to sleep. It is a great comfort. When I was in high school probably like most high schoolers my Saturday mornings meant I got to sleep until 12 or 1 in the morning... i mean afternoon. That's a lot of sleep! I wanted to share what the Bible says about rising early and importance of it.

"And rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark, he departed and went out to a desolate place, and there he prayed." Mark 1:35
Jesus got up early. So many times in the Gospels it talks about him getting up early to teach the crowds and here to meet with the Lord. He knew and made an example of getting up while it was still calm and the craziness of the day hadn't set in. This is the time it seemed that He knew He could just be with His Father.

"O LORD, in the morning you hear my voice; in the morning I prepare a sacrifice for you and watch." Psalm 5:3
David and the other psalmist made it a priority as well to get up early and be with the Lord. They started their day with prayer and pouring their heart out to the Lord. The Psalms are full of request being made early in the morning. Ex. "But I, O LORD, cry to you; in the morning my prayer comes before you." Psalm 88:13

"She rises while it is yet night and provides food for her household and portions for her maidens." Proverbs 31:15
I am so encouraged by the example of the Proverbs 31 woman. I want to be more like her. I can picture her getting up lighting her candles getting things ready for her household. Preparing their food, getting herself ready for a full day of work.

These are just a few examples of the importance of rising early. Personally, while it is hard and the moment I hear that alarm go off I dread putting my feet on the cold hardwood once I am up and going I am so thankful that I did it. I see 2 reasons why it is important. 1. it makes sure that you have time with the Lord and 2. it helps to get your day going without interruptions.

My rising time changes with different season of my life. Right now my alarm is set for 5:50. I take my shower, I spend time with the Lord, I finish getting ready, I eat my breakfast, check my email, and then start on house chores and having the kid's breakfast ready. When this happens it is a smooth morning even if Eden and Owen both wake up in terrible moods, which does happen. I can then take the time i need to console and help them instead of rushing around to get the morning started and grumpy because I know that I didn't get a shower and probably won't get one for the rest of the day!

I am not perfect at this. By no means. I already said how much I love to sleep, but I know I have to get up. There are mornings when it just doesn't happen. But there is grace for that and thankfully I serve a gracious God who helps me through the day and provides me with strength for those crazy mornings.

Quick disclaimer: I do believe that if you are sick or just had a hard time sleeping or a late night then the extra sleep is needed. We need our bodies to be well rested. That is also why you have to get in the bed at a good hour. On a typical night my bedtime is 10:00pm at the latest. Also, when you have a baby your sleep schedule is most of the time their sleep schedule. So rising early is not always possible maybe getting up 20 minutes before your baby typically gets up is a better goal.

Basically, you make it fit with your schedule for work, when your children rise, but the valuable thing is getting up to spend time with the Lord and to get your morning going. Trust me I understand the difficulty, but it is so worth it!