I'm so proud of my sister!

My very talented older sister, Amy, has started an etsy site and is having a giveaway today of some awesome felted creations made from my parents' sheep!

Check out her blog, leave a comment, and enter the giveaway.   !!!!  :o)

Psalm Thirty-Two: Hiding Place

"Blessed is the man whose sin the LORD does not count against him and in whose spirit is no deceit.  When I was silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long....  Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity.  I said, "I will confess my transgressions to the LORD."  and you forgave the guilt of my sin.  


Therefore, let everyone who is godly pray to you while you may be found; surely when the mighty waters rise, they will not reach him.  You are my hiding place.  You will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance."  

God, over and over the Scripture I am seeing how you use the contrast of groaning and singing- to produce peace and comfort.  My hiding place, Lord Jesus, is the peace I have from knowing I am in your will- doing what you want me to do and being where you want me to be.  Then- whatever circumstances, trails, hardships, or blessings come- I know they are there because You want them to be, and I know You know, with Your help, I can handle them.  

It's funny to think how this time last week, millions of people (us included) were readying ourselves for a hurricane.  Hundreds of thousands of people were evacuated from their homes here in New Jersey.  (We were a few miles from the cut-off of mandatory evacuations.)  I am thankful that God was gracious in not allowing the waters to rise enough to destroy the many homes that were expecting to be swept away.  

However, I feel the figurative flood waters begin to rise in my life and I am ever so reminded of how important it is to cling to God.  

School started this week.  I absolutely love my students and my subject matter that I'm teaching.  This year I'm only teaching Home Ec to nine seniors (7 of which are boys!) and a 9th grade Fundamentals of Art class.  My classroom is immaculate thanks to my lower-school counterpart, and it makes my working environment a happy and peaceful place.  But with the addition to being sleep-deprived and cranky and not able to take a nap during the day, I'm not very pleasant to live with.  I'm unhappy with how slow my baby weight seems to be clinging to me still and how little my will-power is to take it off, Molly has developed a wonderful two-year-old attitude, and I'm stressed about getting everything done that I need to....  (figuring out what to do for Molly's birthday, meal planning, keeping Molly occupied, feeding Sadie every 3 hours, working on my commissioned portraits (yay!), trying to stay afloat with laundry...and the list continues.)  I'm floundering.      

For my Home Ec class this year, I wanted to challenge my students to be more involved in the care and cleaning of their own home.  (For some, it looks like it will be a challenge to inspire them to clean their own rooms!)  More importantly, I also wanted to inspire them to take better care of their spiritual lives.  We read the passage in Luke about Mary and Martha, and how much more important Jesus thought it was to be at His feet than taking care of housework.  So I'm doing a project with them called the "Heart and Home Challenge."  I gave them a September calendar and had 5 "heart" challenges (Praying for 3 minutes, reading a chapter from the Psalms, putting a memory verse on an index card and reading it before they go to bed, etc.) and 5 "home" challenges (Making their bed, cleaning for 3 minutes straight, doing a chore without being asked...).  Heart challenges are worth 10 points and home challenges are worth 7 to emphasize the lesson taught in Luke.  They have 30 days to complete at least 3 tasks from each category, and 85 points will get them an A.  They have to record it on the calendar and write a paper how the challenges affected them.  Easy, right?  (I wish I had a Home Ec teacher to keep ME accountable!)  

It is always through teaching that I learn the most, and by inspiring my students to become better members of their home and better stewards of their heart, I really really want to do the same.  In my drawing, I imagine Mary sitting my the tree with Jesus, her hiding place, and her sister, Martha treading water with the busyness and stress of home and housework.  She pleads with Jesus to tell Mary to come join her in the chaos, but Mary is content just to listen to her Savior.  Jesus is pleased with exactly where she is.  

I feel blessed that God has entrusted me with so much, and I know its my responsibility to take care of it.  This passage, this drawing, my students, this hurricane....they all remind me that by sitting at the feet of Jesus first, the tasks that seem so daunting will soon subside when I first take the time to retreat into my Hiding Place.  

My new baby!

Okay...so it's not a real baby, but it sure feels like it! I am so thrilled to announce my new "official" business!  

Time Savor Portraits

Drawing portraits is something that I've enjoyed doing for years.  I've done lots for gifts and a few commissions here and there, and I'm finally making a conscious effort to make a little extra income by doing what I love!

The past week I've been designing my website and tweaking and re-tweaking and annoying my poor sisters and husband with questions like..."Do you like this font, or this font?"  and "Do you think this should be bigger?"  and "How does this sentence sound as opposed to this one?"  I've been a real peach to live with, and a huge laptop hoarder the past few days.

I would LOVE for you to take a few minutes and look around and tell me what you think!  And as a special introductory offer, for the first week, I'm throwing a little launch party by offering my blog readers a 15% discount for any portraits they would like to commission!  Just be sure leave the word "PSALMS" in the comment box under the "Contact Me" menu so I know you came from my blog.          

Also, because I'm crazy and obsessive when I get started with things, I also made a facebook fanpage that you can "like" if you want to. (with the same name as the website.) and you can become a member of the site too if you want updates with my newest projects.

Thanks so much for your prayers and support as I try to juggle being a mom, teacher, wife, and now small business owner!  :o)  

Here's the link!  Enjoy! 

I have an announcement!

Wondering what it is?  

...here's a clue from a self-portrait I did when I was 5....  

I'll be posting about it in 3 days!!!!!  

Tuesday 9:00 p.m.  I'm giving myself a deadline.  It could be some pretty life-altering stuff for me and I'm so excited to tell the blogosphere about it.  :o)  

Psalm Thirty-One: Rock and Fortress

I was going through some of my old posts, mainly my Psalms entries...you know...the reason I began this blog.  I stopped doing them for a while, mostly because Josiah and Molly wanted to color with my pen when they saw me drawing in my journal.  Molly still likes to color, but I'm more deliberate about giving her her own paper to color when I'm doing my devotions.  I really have been missing this precious time I used to have when I sat down to read my Bible and reflect on God's goodness found in the Psalms by illustrating the words I would read.  I would like to try to make a conscious effort to make more of these entries in hopes of encouraging others to have deliberate and daily encounters with the God of the Bible.  You can read more of these entries here.
  

"In you, O LORD, I have taken refuge; let me never be put to shame, deliver me in your righteousness.
Turn your ear to me, come quickly to my rescue; be my rock of refuge, a strong fortress to save me.  


Since you are my rock and my fortress, for the sake of your name lead and guide me.  Free me from the trap that is set for me, for you are my refuge.  Into your hands I commit my spirit; redeem me, O LORD, the God of truth." v. 1-5


"Be strong and take heart, all you hope in the LORD." v. 24

God, I can hide in the shelter of your truth, knowing you know what is best for me and how much you love me.  How quickly you answer me when I call out your name and declare your righteousness.  

I love the imagery of birds' nests.  For me it represents safety and refuge and complete faith.  The baby birds must trust in the home that their mother carefully and lovingly prepared for them, but the mother must trust more:  she must trust the strength of the branches in which she built her nest. 

 In this drawing, I drew the branches as hands in which the nest is held (v. 5), seven leaves to represent the number of perfection.  How temporal my world (the nest) around me is.  How flimsy and breakable and shaky things around me seem sometimes.  It is encouraging to know in whose Hands my spirit is held!  The truth in verse 24 reminds me, I can be strong and take heart if I hope in the Lord.     

Cousins!

As promised...pictures of the littles on our 2 week adventure.  There was lots of passing around babies and a whole lot of, "Molly, share.  You need to share.  Molly, he was playing with that...MOLLY!!!!!"  But all in all a fabulous time celebrating our mommyhood together.

Our trip to the zoo in 98 degree weather...

Robin & Molly and Sadie

Micah-bean

Amy & Micah 

This is how we felt...

Gramby and Jesse

Picnic! 

Sadie and Pop-pop

Great-grandpop, Dut, comes for a visit

How we managed to get all 5 on the couch without a melt-down was quite a miracle

Our Aunt Jacque and cousin Jessica from IL came for a quick visit to meet all the babies

Robin & Micah

Cousin Jessica and Sadie

Judah!

Celebrating Micah's birthday

Mmmmm....ice cream cake. 

Pop-pop and Jesse (note the matching John Deere hats)

  

Bubble tub!  2 more babies will join them next year...

Sadie helping Gramby with the cross word puzzle

Sadie Bug

Judah bounces

Gramby and a sleepy Sadie

This is what most attempts at pictures looked like....

Jesse singing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star to Sadie

Look at those eyes!

Molly just likes the top of the donut.  

Hot hot hot!  

Sisters!  It was so good to be together!  

...tired of pictures yet?  I'm sure you get the idea...  These were just the ones from my camera.  There was also swimming, and a treasure hunt, and lots of eating, and napping, and playing with fisher price little people, and negotiating sharing and turn-taking.  Turns out its a little hard to take pictures in the middle of all of that. What a joy it is to share this season of life with both of my sisters!  I can't wait until Thanksgiving when we're all together again!  

La. La. La. Whatever.

Apparently sleep depravity and emotional drainage has the same affect on my car as pregnant brain....

but this time, unfortunately, there was another casualty.

I could tell you that my sister chose a terrible place to park behind me ever so slightly caddy-corner so I couldn't see it out of my rear view mirror.  (But I have a back-up camera on my car, so that's not a good excuse.)

I could also say that I really thought I heard her pull out of the driveway before I put my car in reverse.

Instead, I'll tell you that that's what happens when Colts memorabilia enters Eagles territory.  (Sorry, Jared!)

My sister Robin said I should call my car "Bruiser."  I think "The Bruised" is more appropriate.  Justin was a just little upset about this one.  I told him that he has golf, and my recreational activity is wrecking our car.

I'm choosing to not let it ruin my week.
Sing with me...  La. La. La.  Whatever. La. La. La.  It doesn't matter.