I didn't mean ME, I meant someone else...

Those of you who have children know that sometimes God speaks to us very directly through our kids. That happened just the other day at breakfast...

STEVE: I'm going to thank God for our warm house (it's been sub-zero here for a while now). How about you, Judah, what do you want to pray for this morning?
JUDAH: I don't know.
TERI: Maybe you could pray for all the people who don't have a warm home and are living outside in the cold. Some boys and girls don't have a nice warm house to sleep in like you do.
JUDAH: Well maybe some kids could share their house with those boys and girls.
STEVE & TERI: That's a great idea, Judah. Should we let some people stay at our house who don't have a house of their own?
JUDAH: I didn't mean MY house. I meant that maybe some OTHER boys and girls could do that. If boys and girls stayed at our house they would mess my things all up and I don't want my things getting all messed up.

Wow, God really spoke to me in this conversation! This could very well have been a conversation I was having with God inside my own head. God, please forgive my selfishness and lack of compassion (love turned into action!) for people around me who are suffering. Help me to show your love to others in practical ways and to be your hands, feet and voice to a hurting world.

Stay Off The Roads--Judah's Driving!

Judah's Poppy and Grandma bought him a remote control race car back when we lived in Reno. At the time, Judah was a bit too young to play with it. He's old enough now and he's having a blast! He's not the best driver, however, so you'd be wise to stay off the roads while Judah's driving!

SNOW!

Winter has officially arrived here in Iowa, despite what the calendar says. We got blasted with our first snow storm last week and ended up with about 8 inches of snow. Judah's been having a great time in it though. He and Steve went sledding on our neighbor's hill (on the other side of our backyard fence) and on our little hill in the backyard. Judah also loves to bundle up and play with his diggers and dump trucks in the backyard and on the deck. He scoops up snow with the diggers and fills up his dump trucks with it. He comes in all rosey-cheeked, wet and cold--ready for a nice cup of hot chocolate, with marshmallows, of course. Cassidy loves the snow, too, and had a great time "sledding" with Steve and Judah.

A Bit Excessive

Typically, Judah is only allowed to sleep with one or two of his fave toys. On this day, for some reason, he managed to persuade either Steve or I to let him sleep with all of his cars (his "friends") for nap time. A bit excessive to say the least! Notice, though, how he has all of them neatly lined up. I'm sorry, Judah, for passing my "everything has to be 'just so'" gene on to you!

Tree Cutting & Decorating Fun!

We are so excited to celebrate our first Christmas in our new house. Although we can't quite top the adventure we had two years ago hiking into the Natl. Forest in Northern California to find and cut the perfect tree, we did find the next best thing here in Iowa. Last Friday we hopped in the Jeep and took a short drive to a cute little tree farm in LeClaire, IA named Trees and Traditions. Their barn is set up to look like a cabin on the inside, complete with woodburning fireplace and an antique sleigh. They also have an antique tractor, which Judah loved "driving." We found the most beautiful tree we've ever had and the price was really great, considering all of the amazing customer service they provided. We would highly recommend this place to anyone in the Quad Cities area.

After finding the perfect tree, we headed to downtown LeClaire, which is an adorable little strip of shops along the Mississippi River. We stopped for a coffee and snack at a cute little coffee shop named Lydia's and had a really great visit with the owner, Ken Bailey. A nice Christian man doing a little soul searching for the direction God wants to take him next. We left feeling refreshed and encouraged knowing that our new friend, Ken, is in God's perfect hands. We'll be praying for you, Ken!

That evening, we put on some classic Christmas tunes, cooked up a junk food feast (pizza rolls, onion rings, chips & guac, chicken wings and shrimp w/cocktail sauce). We sang along while eating and decorating the tree. What a fun tradition! However, I must add that we decided that adding some healthy food to the mix would probably be a good idea in the future...we all had stomachaches!

Thanks, God, for a perfect day spent as a family enjoying your beautiful creation, encouraging our brother in Christ, feasting on your generous provision and preparing to celebrate the birth of your Son, Jesus. It just doesn't get any better than that!

It Smells Like...

The other day Steve, Judah and I were getting into the Jeep to run some errands. Steve and Judah had been working in the backyard (where Cassidy "does her business") earlier that morning so the first part of what came out of Judah's mouth as we got settled in the Jeep didn't surprise me.

Judah: It smells like poop.
Steve: WHAT does it smell like???
Judah: Poop. Little teeeeeeny tiny chickmunk (i.e. chipmunk) poop!

Needless to say, we both busted out laughing. Where in the world does he come up with these things???

The Treehouse

Since we moved into our new house in July, we've been working on making the backyard a place where Judah and his friends can safely play. First was the fence--a necessity when you have a dog and an active young boy. Then came the walking path to keep the dirt and mud to a mininum. The latest project has been the foundation for a treehouse. Since our yard has such a big slope in it, we figured the best way to use that space would be to level it via a raised play area. Steve (with Judah's "help") has been working very hard on it over the last several weeks and Phase 1 is now complete. The actual treehouse will be completed in the spring. In the meantime, Judah can enjoy playing on the platform, climbing wall, etc. We'll keep you posted as Phase 2 begins in the Spring. BTW, there will be side railings installed so nobody takes a nosedive off the side.