Why I Believe...

For I am convinced that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God -Romans 8:38-39

As you saw in my post yesterday, this past weekend we celebrated Christmas with the Burdas ;-) It was a great day and even more special because Joey’s dad was able to come home from the hospital. Yeah!! Last Wednesday, he went into the hospital because of a blood clot that they found in his lung. It is so amazing to see how God worked in this situation. He went in to see a dermatologist for a rash and ended up with a scan of his chest that showed he had a Pulmonary Embolism in his lung. As most of you know, Pulmonary Embolisms are very dangerous because they can pass through the heart or brain and cause immediate death without having any knowledge of ever even having one. They are literally described as silent killers because usually a person that has one feels fine and completely healthy…. which is why 100,000+ people die every year from the effects of a pulmonary embolism. Very scary! So, we are very thankful for God’s protection over his life.

It seems like every year God brings me back to reality…the reality that He is good, the reality that he is sovereign. Last year, I had these same “feelings” of thankfulness when I was in the hospital with an ectopic pregnancy and when Elizabeth gave birth to a very pre-mature Logan. Every year I am reminded of God’s love and provision for my family. I love that I am able to see God’s mighty hand at work around me in everyday life, but I am even more grateful that I am able to see Him work in the lives of those I love. Many times I get caught up in everyday life and miss out on seeing God’s goodness at work around me. It is very easy to miss…especially when I am so caught up in my life. The closer I am in my relationship with God, the more of HIM I see daily.

A girl in my Bible study asked us all the question, “how do you know there’s a God.” I am always baffled as to how one can ask such a question…especially with all of creation staring them in the face each and every day. It’s always hard for me to answer that question… I know there’s a God because He has shown himself to me through the experiences I’ve had in my life. However, if one does not have a relationship with Him then I doubt very much that they would be able to see the fingerprints of God in their life or in my life experiences, for that matter. God has never been a “religion” to me, but rather a relationship. It is because of this relationship that I am able to “see” Him work in my life and the life of those around me. So many times we look at death as if it is something that happens to everyone else but us. I know for me, before my mom died, death never seemed a reality. Now that she is gone, I wake up to the reality of death every morning. Rarely do my feet hit the floor in the morning without the realization that this day could very well be my last day on earth.

This past fall semester I attended a Bible study by Beth Moore called, Breaking Free. I have done this study before, but she updated it this past year and it was just as amazing as it was 10 years ago. Never in my life have I learned so much about myself and my relationship with God and others. In one of the lessons she asks the question, “when is God’s presence most present in your life”? I can honestly say that the time He is most present is usually during the most difficult times in my life. I can also say that God’s presence was felt most in my life the moments before my mom passed away and the days after. My mom went into a coma a few days after my dad’s birthday in early March of 1997. She didn’t pass away until a month later on April 7^th. That month was probably the most excruciating time in my life…ever. I can remember literally begging God to take her home in peace. I remember begging Him to allow us one more coherent moment with her. Did he provide? Absolutley!!! ;-) Not only did He provide, he exceeded! My mom was not able to communicate very well because of the location of the brain tumor. She knew who I was, but was unable to remember my name. I remember she used to point to me and say, “the middle one.” The last few days of my mom’s life I was able to see the presence of God surrounding her. It was truly a beautiful thing. She had difficulty speaking and difficulty getting out the words she wanted to say, but at no time did she ever have difficulty re-sighting a bible verse she memorized or a hymn that she knew by heart. There were two hymns that she sang in her last moments awake… Trust and Obey and My Jesus I Love Thee. In Presley’s room sits a memory board I created before she was born. On this board are several photos of my mom and a copy of the hymn, Trust and Obey. In my room, next to my bed, I have the words from the hymn, My Jesus I Love Thee. As powerful as the words are in these two hymns, nothing is more powerful than the fact that my mom was able to sing them with complete joy on her face and without faltering. The fact that she chose to sing verse 3 of the hymn, My Jesus I Love Thee is not “luck, fate, or a coincident.” It was not a coincident that she used her last coherent moments to give God the glory and it was not a coincident that I was able to sit before her on that very day and hear those words come from her mouth. They are the words I shared here on my blog just a few months ago...

"My Jesus I love thee...I'll love thee in life, I will love thee in death, And praise thee as long as thou lendest me breath; And say when the death dew lies cold on my brow; If ever I loved thee, my Jesus, 'tis now."

It is because of moments like these that I can say...... That is why I believe. That is why I know that there is a God and that is why HE is more than just a “religion” to me. That is also why I give God the glory when He, and He alone, provides for my family and those I love.

I love on Sara’s blog that it says…

I do not have a religion made up of rules.
I have a lifestyle of faith, joy, hope, and belief.

'O Christmas Tree...Round 1

We had a wonderful Christmas Round 1. ;-) It was such a great day and I absolutely loved watching the kids open their gifts...especially Cooper. I've never seen so much excitement in one kid. Presley was very much into her gifts this year...not so much the opening up of them, but she definitely took the time to play with each one. In fact, it was hard to pull her away from one gift to get her to focus on the next one. She has really enjoyed each and every one. It was definitely one of those holidays that will be etched in my memory for life. Good times were had by all...just see for yourself...

And it's the man of the hour...lol ;-) We were so thankful to have Joey's dad back at home with us after having been in the hospital for 3 days! We were all so excited to celebrate Christmas together. ;-) God is good and we are thankful for His protection over Popo!

Sweet boys...Jester asleep in my lap and Cooper givin him some love....like he needs any more lovin ;-) rotten pup!

Presley LOVES, LOVES, LOVES the kitchen that Nana and Popo got her :-)

Cooper blowing his train whistle...he was SO excited about EVERY present! I was getting excited just watching him. lol

Presley is terrified of dolls. She hates them, to put it mildly. I think they are too life like, but after a few minutes of watching from afar she warmed up to this little crawling baby from Great Grandma Barb. ;-) Thanks to Barb, Presley has gone from complete hate to complete fascination...now if she could just get the darn thing to clap. lol...

She loves her new book :-) We read it EVERY morning, day, and night!!Two little posers ;-)

"ahhh, run for your life"...
until next year ;-)

"See You"

When Presley was little I would play peek-a-boo with her...just like every mother. ;-) I would always say, "peek-a-boo I see you." A few months ago she started instigating a friendly game of "peek-a-boo" with me on her own. At first she would just hide behind her hands, pull them down, and then say, "see you." Now she hides behind anything and everything around her...a banister, a door, a towel, a tree, a bush, etc. You name it and she's behind it. She would play the "see you" game with me all day if she could...and she does! :-)

A Touch of OCD and a Clean Closet ;-)

Yesterday, I told Joey that for my Christmas gift this year I wanted someone to come in and clean all of the blinds, baseboards, and fans in the house. He wasn't too keen on the idea, but 20 minutes later I found him in our master bathroom cleaning and dusting the light fixtures! I had NO idea what this little cleaning extravaganza was going to lead to, but I should have known that it it was going to be unbelievable. Once he starts something he can't stop...a little aggravating at times, but also great at times too. He always puts 110% into everything he does...no matter what it is. He always helps me out. There are a few things that he "doesn't do"... the kitchen and the bathroom toilets. The only reason I allow him to get away with actually saying "I don't do the kitchen and I don't do the bathroom" is because he does so much more...laundry, ironing, outside work, and vacuuming. He really is a rare find. He was very involved in our wedding and helped pick out the flowers, food, bridesmaid dresses, and decorations. He is pretty much involved in every aspect of our lives. Yesterday afternoon he spent 8 hours cleaning our bedroom, bathroom, and closet. He dusted anything and everything in sight...from the light fixtures to the blinds. He polished the furniture, cleaned out and wiped down the closet, drawers, and cabinets. He cleaned out the closet, did the laundry, re-ironed everything, and then re-organized it. I have really never seen anything like it before. It was like watching my mom work through my husband...lol. My mom used to always tease that her sister, my Aunt Carolyn, put her cleaning to shame. I have to say, my husband put my "spring cleaning" to shame! He still didn't touch the toilet, but that is FINE by me ;-) He started cleaning at 10 am and took two breaks...lunch and dinner. After dinner, he started working his way into the living room by dusting everything on the bookshelf and fireplace mantel. I finally had to tell him to stop! He finally sat down at 9:00 to watch a little t.v. :-) As I got into bed (I love clean sheets!) I heard him rustling around in the closet. I walked in to find him spacing out the hangers...really? I think we might have a touch of OCD, but that's ok.....I still love him. ;-) This morning he said, "I just want to take a picture of our closet" so that's what I did! :-)

I tried helping out by re-organizing my clothes and shoes while Presley napped, but when I came back in he had re-organized my shoes to look like this....hmmmm.

Our wonderful hangers so nicely and evenly spaced ;-)

Ducky!

I took Presley to the "duck park" in Flower Mound last Friday and she loved it! Joey and I have taken her there a few times before to feed the ducks, but the ducks stayed in the water and Presley wasn't that interested in them...she was more interested in the playground. However, this time there weren't many people there so all of the ducks were out and about running around and she was thrilled! She kept pointing to them saying, "ducky, ducky." I brought my camera, but I found it difficult to take pictures while watching a fearless toddler run circles around me near the water so a rubber ducky on the ground is the only "ducky" picture I got. :) For the past couple of weeks Presley has been picking up on new words daily...ducky is a word she uses often. She has two little ducks that she plays with in the bathtub that she absolutely loves! She also has a book called Ten Little Ducks. She brings me this book to read ALL.OF.THE.TIME and she constantly pushes the one little duck that squeaks. I have never seen a child that adores animals as much as her. She kisses on all of her stuffed animals and she is constantly giving kisses to Goose...and the new puppy! Sweet girl takes after her daddy...lol. ;-)

What a Lover!

What a lover this puppy is. He loves to just sit in our laps and sleep. You can literally pick him up and walk around the house and he will stay asleep in your arms. I guess he didn't have much human interaction growing up in a shelter??? He just loves to be around us and he is not content unless he is in our laps! Sitting next to us is not an option...he would much rather be cuddle up on us. There isn't much I don't love about this puppy...well, except the barking! He can be a barker and we are trying to "nip that in the bud" now! He is a hound dog so we wont be able to completely train him to not bark, but we can at least have it under control a bit as he gets older. He is a sweet little guy and he loves Presley. Although, her first love is still her "Goosey Goosey Goo" ;-)

A Memorable Tree

This little guy is our one lonely Christmas decoration of the year :-( and the only reason he is out is because he was never put away last year. I just tucked him away in the book case he sits upon. I have had a hard time getting into the Christmas spirit this year and I am not sure why. I don’t know if it is because of everything that we have been doing with the Brain Tumor Society or because I have begun working on my mom’s scrapbook, but whatever the reason, ‘tis not the season to be jolly for me! Last year, I was all about Christmas…I created scrapbooks, had our house decorated, tree up, Christmas CDs made and playing throughout the house by November 1^st. I have just been struggling a lot lately. Last night I thought to myself, “what is this non-christmasy funk that I am in”? This morning, I was blog hopping and trying to catch up on everyone’s newly updated blogs and came across my little sister’s best friend's blog. Kristin's mom was my mom’s best friend for several years and Sara & Kristin were inseparable growing up. They were pretty much best friends right out of the womb. Kristin has had some challenging times this past year, but through it all she has forged on in complete trust and faith in our Lord Jesus. What a great testimony she is. I popped on her blog real quick, she is a stay-at-home-mom to 5 kiddos and a wonderful photographer. I love to take a peek at her pictures because she captures such sweet moments and there is so much to be said in just one picture…always a story behind each photo. Well, as I took a look at her blog, I read through one post titled...‘tis the season to make some memories. I took one look at the Christmas tree they decorated this year and fell to pieces. It was truly such a blessing to see the captured moments of her heart lining the very tree that would stand before them for the next month. What a great reminder to what the Christmas season is all about...family memories and the birth of Jesus! If I could, I would plaster a picture of her tree on every Christmas website and blog. ;-) Take a look at her beautiful heartfelt tree by clicking HERE. hope she doesn’t mind me sharing this! :-)