Set Free

i hold her in my arms. i pray nothing will ever harm her. nothing. i do everything i can, to give her what she needs. i know her cries, whimpers, and noises. i know her favorite ways of being comforted. but I don't know what I would do without her. and as a parent, thinking of being without her makes me want to fall apart. But that's what our Father did. He gave us HIS SON so we could live. So I could hold my daughter. and that we would be delivered. and you too .

Wake up.  Check email. Feed kids. Check Pinterest for a new idea for dinner. Post pictures of your little darlings in their perfect matching outfits and combed hair on Facebook. Lunch!  Taking the time to make those cool looking lunches . During nap time: checking Facebook, getting dinner started Post a picture of your dinner.  Blog the recipe with a super duper delicious looking picture of it. Check your phone for news updates, weather updates, or updates in general. Put the kids to bed or snuggle reading them a story from their kindle or ipad. Write a Facebook status about how thankful you are for your wonderful, delightful children. Sound familiar? More like, look familiar ? The internet can be a blessing to us but sometimes it gets in the way.  It changes our hearts, minds, and time for the better (or worse).  Facebook, instagram, blogs, and the list goes on and on with how easy it is to post a simple picture of your sweet kiddos. I'm thinking reality

"Wives are given a gift, they get to bless their husbands."                                                                                            -Jonathan's wife But Mary, you don't know what my husband has done, said, or won't stop....! Doesn't the Bible say for husbands to love their wives (Ephesians 5:25)?  My husband is not good at loving me. It's so easy to blame others.  I know it is.  But if we spend all our time blaming "our man" and not looking inward we are not doing ourselves any favors. Sure, get upset when your hubby comes home late from work.  AGAIN. Be annoyed when he leaves his dirty clothes on the floor.  AGAIN. Cry when he forgets to say good-bye when he leaves in the morning.  AGAIN. Get angry when he responds with your home-cooked meal as being not as good as his mom can do.  AGAIN. Feel lonely when he doesn't help around the house or with the kids.  AGAIN. What about that time he planned something

Well, it's been a crazy month!  I've missed my daughter's fifth month birthday!  Her birthday was a day we were packing....and packing...and packing!  Who has time to write blog posts when you are busy moving?? If I remember right, this 4-5 month age stretch was tough.  Ellie started to have a harder time falling asleep in public places and she just wanted to be at home in her crib.  She does not like to be held when tired.  I know, it's weird.  So if you see me with my fussy baby at church, at the store, or out to eat know that I'm not trying to be mean to my daughter.   I just know she is tired and does not want picked up!  Holding her when she's tired just makes her get frustrated even more! She likes to sleep on her tummy.  Which I'm okay with (just to get that out there).  And if she's in the car in her car seat she does pretty good if the car is moving and she takes a little snooze.  however since she's not on her tummy she likes the fee