Monday morning brain dump

• I just updated the blog background. A little chevron always makes me smile
• I have been having the.most.adorable conversations with Kai. Three used to make me shudder. For some reason, this time around, it is the cutest age. Perhaps it has something to do with the fact that this is my baby… and this is the last of age three that we will experience. I don't know, but what I do know is that God blesses me daily through this kid. 
• Kai is asking alot of questions about Joshua. He went to the cemetery with me on Saturday. So.many.questions. It was good. I really enjoyed talking to him about Joshua. I want all of the boys to really know about this slice of their family history. It is more important to me than I realized. Kai kept asking "who died?", and I would explain that K was an identical twin, and that they both were born too early, and they both were very sick…  and he would respond, "oh" - almost reverently.  He would then ask a few more questions. And then he would say "that makes me feel a little bit sad." -And then he would say, "who died, mom?" ;) Love that kid. 
• I am faithfully continuing my 365 photo project, after letting it go about 9 months ago. I had forgotten how fun it was for Dave and I to peek in at what we were doing a year ago, a few months ago, (or during those really forgetful times, a few days ago). It's mainly for us, and for a neat way to document the different phases in our lives, but if you want to scroll through my 365, feel free. Click here, or on the button on the right that says "365 "photo-a-day". 
• I sometimes feel as if the very breath of God is warm against my cheek when I am seeing things through the lens of my camera. I don't know how to explain it, but I know some of you just "get" this. 
• I am leading a Bible study, "Faithful, Abundant, True", on Tuesday nights and every other Thursday morning at my church. Wow. It's good, and intense, and so exciting to teach and learn from! Yesterday it took me a couple of hours to prepare for the week. I am falling more and more in love with the Word of God. I am finding a deep passion for discovering, pulling words out, finding definitions, cultural contexts, and application. I would *love* to go to Bible school someday and continue to educate myself in these things.
• Jay is starting chess club today. he is so excited, and it makes me smile. He already beats me in chess, so this can't be good for me. 
• We are doing all kinds of home improvement projects, and they are so fun! Dave is making us an awesome headboard and bed frame. The headboard part is built and just needs to be stained/finished. It is so pretty, with a shelf on each side and lighting built into it. Of course there will be pictures soon. I am also working on decorating some old windows. The boys helped me with this initial design. I will work on the final product soon, and then figure out where to hang them. :) I love stuff like this.  And I adore the fact that the boys made those little banners on top. They had huge grins when they showed me, because much like the color yellow, and chevron designs, sweet little banners are so "me" - and how cute that they know this?! 

-Oh, and my newly painted chalkboard pantry doors are very sweet too! 

• I am working out for the first time in a l o n g time. Right now I am rotating between the 30 day shred and Pilate's. It has something to do with the fact that Dave has been dieting, had a personal trainer, and is now working out regularly. 1) I began to feel like a wuss in his presence, 2) I started to see how much better he felt and how much energy he had. So, I am trying it. I have never in my life been athletic, played sports, or worked out much. When Jay was a baby I started doing Pilate's regularly, and kept it up for a while. I definitely got stronger during that time! That's the biggest thing I am working towards. I need to build strength! After 5 babies, and years of pregnancy/nursing/being somewhat physically sedentary there is alot of work to be done. The cool thing is that I just started last week, and I already feel like I am gaining ground. Dave has been a wonderful encouragement, even working out with me. I begged him to validate the fact that I was winded and sore after the first day, and he was kind enough to say that it was fairly comparable to what he has been doing at the gym. He's so nice. ;) 
• Michigan weather is bi-polar, and it caused me a few issues this morning. Over the weekend it felt like an early spring. We all knew it wouldn't last, but it was pretty pleasant. Last night it froze. Rain turned to snow/ice. So…. my van doors were frozen shut this morning, I could barely chip away at the heavy coat of ice on my van windows, and the roads were slippery when I took the boys to school. I had to keep reminding myself of all of the things that I have been teaching and learning lately. Just yesterday I taught our 2nd through 6th graders at church about *patience*. We talked about keeping our cool under adversity and pressure. So…. when I was chipping away at the ice, could not open my doors, was trying to hold K up while doing all of this, the clock was ticking away, and I was c o l d, I had to pause and take a very deep breath before continuing on with my duties. I *almost* threw a big 'ol childlike fit over it all. Seriously, I started grumbling through my teeth and felt my blood pressure rise. Two of my own kiddos are in the class I teach, and those 4 big beautiful eyes were glued on the mommy/teacher this morning. No time off for this lady. 
• This song has been having a huge impact on me lately. All about obedience, surrender, following, being light. It's been on repeat on my playlist alot these days. 

This one has been on repeat alot too. This turns any moment into a full-fledged-hands-in-the-air-awe in-my-heart moment of worship.




Have a great week, friends!