{ Loved }

The other day I was watching Tim spreading bark on our flower beds in preparation for spring.  I was absolutely overwhelmed by how much this man loves me.  I mean I've always known he does, but it still gets me when I see him in action like this, doing things I didn't ask him to do, just because he loves me.  He tells me all the time he is trying to take good care of me, and he does.  I realized I need to be more proactive about recording these "little" things because it is exactly this kind of love in action that keeps a marriage strong.  It is service and it is laughter, and he's good at both.

 We talked about love languages recently.  Tim's is overwhelmingly "Acts of Service".  It has helped me a lot to recognize this, because I am much more likely to think of writing him a nice card, sending him an email at work or putting my arms around him, and he likes those things, but it is service that makes his eyes light up.  I distinctly remember when we were dating he had mentioned wanting to get a portion of the driveway swept.  I took on the project one afternoon, while waiting for him to get home from work.  I could tell it meant the world to him when he drove in and saw me there, covered in dust.

He prays for me all the time.

Spends hours in the cold doing maintenance on our vehicles to help make ends meet.

Washing loads and loads of dishes.

Meeting me at the grocery store to do the lifting and loading.

Putting the kids to bed because by then I need a break.

Getting me out of the house as much as possible during the winter to keep me sane.

Carrying the laundry up the stairs.

Spending time with the kids when he gets home from work so I can finish dinner.

Washing the cloth diapers.

Opening doors for me.

Making me tea.

He says it is so little and that he is just trying to take of me and it doesn't seem like much.

I pray he sees that it is a lot to me.

Saturday morning he helped with the very overwhelming project of uncovering the bassinet for our soon-to-arrive baby.  It meant pulling everything out of the guest room closet, sorting the clothes by sizes into totes and putting them back in.  There is still a long way to go, but it is so much better in there.... and our baby will have a place to sleep :)  Silly Oliver tested out the new bed!

Then there are the many hours Tim puts in at work to provide for our family.  He is doing his job to please God.  It is his greatest desire and it humbles and excites me to witness his faith in action.

This past month and a half, on top of work, he has plowed through mountains and mountains of paperwork and hours of phone calls in the aftermath of the medical emergency with Katy Grace.  I've seen him discouraged, clinging to God's provision.

I've seen him praying.

I've seen him tested.

Challenged.

I've seen him grow.

And I know beyond a shadow of a doubt how much he loves all of us and how far he'll go to show it.

{ We're all crazy about this guy }

Today he took to day off to spend with his dad who is visiting for a couple of days.  It has been a cold and rainy day and this afternoon both grandpa and kids were down for naps.  Tim suggested a fire in the fireplace, just the two of us.  Then he made us afternoon tea.

How did God ever decide to bless me so fully from head to toe with this man who knows so well how to love me?

We have our struggles.

We get overwhelmed.

We don't always get along.

But because of God and His love, we're keeping at this marriage and it is beautifully rich.

{ Valentine's Day }

source

A crazy amount of life has happened in the past couple of weeks, even though it seems at times like we've done little more than recover from the sickness that went through the whole family and kept us home for most of that time. I am very thankful that for the present everyone is finally healthy, with the exception of myself. I have been fighting an earache since Thursday, which came on the heels of a nasty cold. Uuugh! Can't wait for spring and the death of all these bugs!

For Valentine's Day this year I told Tim I would be perfectly happy if we combined the celebration of the day with my birthday, which is exactly a week later.  We decided to go out for dinner the weekend between.  Valentine's Day itself was a still a special day.  I decided to do a sweet little project for Tim that I had seen on Pinterest shortly before (sorry, apparently I didn't pin it, just did it).  I called it a "Passport of Love" and inside are suggestions for weekly dates to restaurants we've never tried of places we haven't gone.  He loved it!  We've already added to it.  It's fun to see how much there is to do in our area that we hadn't thought of before or maybe had, but since it wasn't written down we just haven't gotten around to it.  He woke me on Valentine's morning with a sweet card and a little box of chocolates.  That's another thing, I've suggested that he wait until the day after Valentine's Day if he's going to go all out on buying me flowers or chocolates.  Seriously, why not wait until they are 75% off?

We were all feeling pretty miserable with our colds that day, but we made the best of it.  I helped Oliver make a little craft for Tim to take to his office and I baked a chocolate cake for Tim and I to enjoy after the kids were in bed.  The thing I appreciated most about the day was that, despite the fact that I was blowing my nose every 5 minutes, eyes were watering and my nose was red and that I served leftovers for dinner, love was everywhere.  I realized just how blessed we are to be living a life where the externals don't matter so much because our hearts are right.  Our love is for every day, not just the "day of love".

The following day, Friday, my mom came up for the day and overnight.  I ran off to Winco when she arrived.  Now that I am so far along in my pregnancy my days of hauling both kids along with me are over!  Tim took a short break from work to meet me there and helped load all the groceries into my car.  So wonderful!  Later that afternoon he called me to say his boss was letting them out a little early and since it was such a beautiful day and my mom could watch the kids, did I want to meet him for dinner?  We went to a new Italian restaurant.  They only serve pizza, but they are traditionally italian so it is on the fine dining edge.  The pizzas are served uncut in the traditional style.  They were delicious!  After dinner we browsed an antique store and bought Katy Grace's very first tea set (though we'll have to wait a few years to give it to her) and came home early enough in the evening to spend time with the kids and put them to bed. 

Speaking of kids being in bed, they are both napping so I better get some work done!

{ Summer Days }

Our summer days, here on High Street, have been such a busy time.  

There are so many projects underway, things that desperately need to be taken care of that haven't been done in many, many years, but that will last for many, many years or our lifetime once they're finished.  I am posting this mostly for me to remember.  I never want to forget how hard my husband is working to take care of his family.  He has chosen, mostly out of necessity, to do most of the repairs himself.  

Let me just list the projects:

Replace the furnace that quit in May

Repair the chimney

Insert a chimney liner

Replace all of the duct work in the basement

Replace the main water line to our house

Put in attic vents on the roof

Remove and kill the moss on our roof

Clean out the gutters

Collect firewood in his "spare" time

Act as mechanic to replace several parts on our vehicle

All this on top of working his normal job and coming home and helping me with the kids, keeping up with our substantial lawns, and helping with dishes, diapers and laundry.

In case I have or ever will doubt that I am married to an amazing man,

he is living proof.

 

Some of these projects are completed.  Most of them are still in progress. 

{ The chimney repair:  We hired a mason who allowed Tim to assist him.  We were able to save a substantial amount of money this way.  Tim carried all of the brick and mortar up the ladder. }

{ Here is the inside of the chimney and what it looked like before it was rebuilt.  When they went to tear it down, they literally picked up the brick by hand, no demolition needed.  Yeah, it was time to replace it! }

{ After the chimney was finished, a chimney liner had to be added.  Here are a couple guys from church helping Tim carry it up. }

{ Here is Tim cutting holes in the roof to put in attic vents.  He is amazing!  It was over 90 degrees that day and that is smoke as well as dust you see.  He had burns on his arms from the asphalt shingles. }

I think we would love to experience the lazy days of summer,

but then again, neither of us likes to sit still, so we can see that this life if probably best for us.

The timing has been perfect on these projects and God is clearly, unmistakable leading each

step of the way.  We have saved literally thousands of dollars and thus far remained debt 

free, which is nothing but the loving provision of God.

All of this has also brought us closer together.  We've actually spent more time as a family.

Don't get me wrong.  All of this has been a challenge, too.

It has pushed us to... and often past our limit, but I'm so thankful 

for the opportunity to get some of the ugliness out of my heart and and an adjustment for 

my attitude.  We're learning to work together as a team and juggle marriage, and kids, and home.

 Aside from projects, we've been having plenty of summery fun.

We've spent evenings at parks,

watched sunsets,

tried new wines,

played in the kids' little pool,

had a family backyard water fight,

played frisbee,

and planned our vacation.

We are picking raspberries,

enjoying our flower gardens,

going out for ice cream,

spending time with friends and the kids' grandparents,

and enjoying shorter work hours for Tim.

I am also enjoying more energy this summer.

This is the first summer since we got married that I am not pregnant!

We've still been living with less sleep.  What am I saying? With kids, less sleep is pretty much normal!

This week that sleep has gone to comforting while teeth come in:

Katy's first two teeth

and Oliver's molars

We are also putting both kids to bed in the same room.

This is to prepare for our first family vacation, 

which we leave for on Monday.

There have been several very long evenings

and plenty of tears while they adjusted,

but they are doing great now, and I am

actually hopeful that all of us in one room,

in a different place every night for a week 

is going to be possible!

To say we are excited to take a vacation would be an understatement!

To say we are still a little nervous about traveling with two little kids is also true,

but I am sure it will be so worth it!

 It has been a wonderful summer and I'm so looking forward to the rest of it!

{ Valentine's Day... and a Birthday Thrown In }

I have always valued time with my man, but now that we have two children, I value that time to a whole new level. Being alone is a treat, and being able to talk uninterrupted is enough to make an evening spectacular. We decided to celebrate Valentine's Day the Saturday before. Tim arranged to have my parents come up for the evening and he lined up a very special evening for us.

 We ate at a Mediterranean restaurant downtown that we've been hearing good things about. The food was delicious!  We savored our meal and lingered over it: appetizer, meal and dessert.  It was wonderful just to be together and have the time to talk and to just be quiet.  I love that we enjoy a comfortable silence.

After dinner we headed to a local winery.  Tim had intended this to be a surprise.  He is always a little frustrated that he struggles to come up with original date ideas. Being in a small town contributes to that! Earlier that week, he received an email invitation to a local winery where a friend of ours would be performing with his band (he played at our wedding reception). The trouble was, my dear husband left the email up on the computer and I happened upon it! Oh well, it was the thought that counted. It worked out well in the end, I think, because it would have proved a little disappointing had that been the only thing we did. This was my first time to visit a winery and it wasn't as fancy as I anticipated it would be. It was rather cold in the building and very casual. It was a fun experience overall, though. We enjoyed homemade chocolates along with our wine.  We laughed and flirted and held hands.

The evening was still rather young when we left there, so we decided to go listen to jazz at a pseudo Irish pub downtown.  We stopped back home first to feed and put Katy Grace down for the night.  On our way out the door, Tim couldn't find his phone.  After looking for it for a few minutes, I decided to make things easier on us and call it.  It was in my purse, which I was holding at the time... oops!  We left and a little while later, when we were settling in, I decided to check Tim's phone to make sure my parents hadn't tried to call (I'd left mine with them).  I realized I had a missed call from my phone so I went outside to call them back.  They told me they hadn't called.  I was confused.  Then I realized that was the call I made to find Tim's phone.  I wish I could say this is the first time this has happened to me, but it's not!  It happens on a rather regular basis!  Oh, dear!

Then came my birthday.  My poor husband has Valentine's Day to remember, followed by my birthday a week later, but he always makes them both very special.  He surprised me with these beautiful roses.  I love them because they remind me of my wedding roses. 

We did the majority of celebrating on Sunday.  Tim helped me go grocery shopping and put up with me while I shopped for jeans at the mall.  Thankfully I found a pair so it was time well spent!  Later in the evening he got a babysitter and took me out for dinner and dessert.  Over dinner we had a fun time talking about the re-decorating we want to do in our master bedroom.  It was fun to dream and look forward to the completion of this project someday in the future. 

{ Birthdays just aren't complete without cake.  My mom had given me fun cupcake supplies for Valentine's Day so it was perfect.  They were soooo yummy! }

{ And my guys did the dishes! }

This is my last year to be in my twenties... and probably the last year I'll admit my age.  I actually received a card that referenced getting old.  *Sigh* I knew it had to happen eventually.....

{ A Sweet Weekend }

September 26, two years ago, I married my best friend.

We spent a sweet weekend celebrating. Saturday we went out for dinner. It was just heavenly to spend a whole evening together alone, with Oliver happily playing with Grandma and Grandpa.

{ Dinner on our Honeymoon }

{ Two Years Later }

{ Breakfast Sunday Morning ~ My mom surprised us with overnight french toast when we came to pick Oliver up Saturday night! ... yummm.... no cooking for two meals, thanks Mom! }

{ Presents from my man. *Sigh* So spoiled I am }

After two years of marriage, I am so happy to know that we know each other better, we are better people and life has only improved since our journey began!

{ Quiet Enough for Blessings to Be Heard }

Sometimes there is real blessing in slowing down so much that I am able to hear and see all the blessings in my everyday. There have been a lot of these opportunities over the past several months. Tim and I decided to eliminate "going out" like we used to do. We have been surprised that we don't miss restaurants one bit. The result has been a lot of sweet "at-home dates" and special times spent as a family.

~After dinner walks in our neighborhood and a stop at the park to swing. Sheer glee and contagious giggles from our little O.

~Dessert on our porch, just the two of us. Good conversation. A lot of counting blessings.

~Holding hands in the moonlight and walking around our property. Realizing how blessed we are and that the struggle is worth the cost.

~Dressing up, wine and cheese on our porch, enjoying the cool evenings and the beautiful flower beds. Victrola in the background and dancing.

~A full and busy weekend with grandparents and our small-town annual festival. Good music, lots of yummy food, good conversation, and spoiling.

~Enjoying our outdoor fireplace. Sometimes hot cocoa.

~A bowl of ice cream at the end of the day. Reconnecting. Readjusting our perspective and praying to trust, to accept.

It is a precious thing to us to see how we have grown through our struggle. It is equally humbling to see how far we have to go. I pray I remember these everyday blessings and cherish the quiet.

{ Being Willing to Let Go }

My previous post about peace is still the desire of my heart as this new week begins. Challenges are still mounted against us and Tim and I are seeking our Lord together a lot more earnestly these days, to find Him FOR US as He promises.

In a month, Tim's job will be re-bid or it will not be re-contracted and will go away all together. Right now we simply don't know and we've been fighting fear. We've been on our knees a lot admitting our lack of faith, humbly confessing it and asking for it to be renewed. Faith comes back each time, but it's a daily struggle because fear so readily creeps back in. It's so hard not to worry about the future, but as John 14:27 says, our hearts must not be allowed to be afraid.

The blessing of this challenging time is that we are growing closer together as a couple and we are growing closer to God as individuals. There is comfort in knowing that we are doing our part as stewards of what God has entrusted us with. We have cut out and paired down our budget as much as possible. We have maintained our commitment to not using debt, but with car trouble and our baby on the way, we wonder if we can do it. But, we are assured that we have done our part. Now we wait to see if God is going to choose to provide for our present needs or if He will choose to move us on to something totally new. We are praying for willing and obedient hearts to let go of the things God has given us right now, if it is for our best.