He gives and gives and gives

• hearing johnson's testimony 
• good news about elizabeth phillips' surgery
• waffles and clue and AUNT AMY on a friday morning

• "you are my lovely star" mug from nick 
• tatyana's milk soaked cinnamon sugar bread
• fun christmas eve morning at the beach

• emma's charade game
• the hardwork of the galley and dining room teams
• Christmas brunch = best meal of the year! 

• tasty treats and sweet gifts in our shoes
• how peaceful and easy it was to have the barki kids with us
• delicious pizza on the 3rd floor of dody's

• unicorn pajamas (and the smiles they bring)
• seeing the mcmichaels gathered
• the way nick cares for our kids...and especially for the girls' hearts

• open cabins
• laughing at miranda (the tv show) 
• red beans & rice, pecan pie, sweet tea...and delightful friends that shared it

• going back to sleep/morning naps
• tasty pretzels
• kj's willingness to take me and amy to ouidah
  
• being at ouidah with amy - one who cares deeply for justice and human rights and LOVE
• "take time to be still in My presence so that I can strengthen you." - jesus calling
• the way the "joy to the world" creation was used in the dining room decorations

• the hand/ring in the above picture...i am so very thankful for his dedication to our marriage
• reading by dock light
• 8:33 bedtime 

He gives me presents all year round.

• parking lot full of cars on a thursday night
• hearing nick sing/lead worship
• carols by candlelight on the dock. 

• the beauty of santa lucia
• suzanne's willingness to teach the girls a dance
• the way kj captured emma's worship

• the variety of cultures and nationalities that lead the community gathering (south african, nigerian, australian, american, malagasy, dutch)
• thinking about the question "is there room?"
• emma & adalynn's friendship 

•  the wall family's faithful service on the AFM the past 4 1/2 years.
• amy's here!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
• finding eli's words on a bulletin board

• gluesticks.  they're so helpful.
• so many wonderful Christmas activities
• another successful trip to the fabric market

treats and delights.

• computer issues cleared up (i think)
• plenty of time with shea
• shea's friendship and all around awesomeness...and especially in the realm of teaching!

• LAUGHTER (especially when MWS songs are involved)
• unexpected time to get things done
• AFM Christmas cookie making

• unity cup soccer
• nick's phone calls with keith
• sugar cakes place!! (and the friends that introduced us)

• baby #5 in the making for the whites
• package from cathy
• boost bites.  wowzahs.  good stuff.

• unexpected thursday morning firedrill means no afternoon firedrill (and there's shade in the morning!!)
• relevant podcast entertainment and sprints in a thursday morning run
• emma!  celebrating her 7th birthday

• holly's willingness to take (and mail!) all of our christmas packages for us
• amy will be here in 4 days!!!
• powerful quotes full of Truth:

• remembering that missing people is a reminder of the mutual investments made
• overhead announcements successfully made
• spontaneous christmas caroling (and a beautiful problem solver)

thank to the ful(l)

• friendship with the barrs that will last long beyond their days on the ship
• coffee and doughnuts
• time with the wall family before they depart
• decking the decks...6th grade boys happily decorating.  a 1st grader and a 9th grader playing in a cardboard box. chicken fingers & fries as an extra incentive.  

• carly's time here
• pointless (not out of date) magazines to enjoy 
• listening to patricia share her stories of when God spoke to her
• when people joyfully serve behind the scenes and make so many special moments happen.

• cheesesticks for takeaway (how many times are cheesesticks going to make one of my lists?!)
• ipod that allows for emailing when the computer isn't cooperating
• how Molly lives her life - glorifying God every day - not perfectly (cause that's never what's expected) but beautifully, faithfully, consistently
• our amazing malagasy crew...their beautiful voices...their incredible hearts...their powerful stories...their determination

• listening to eli and a friend play and being reminded that 11 year olds can still be little boys
• listening as God was saying "go downstairs"...and then finding a friend who encouraged and prayed for me
• brave and courageous decisions (and the friend who made one this week)
• emma's last night of being 6.

such randomness when you really look at it...but boy am i thankful.

• christmas plays in the blom's bedroom
• the creativity of charlotte and emma
• dr. pepper christmas gift

• cheesesticks 2 nights in a row (both graciously paid for by others!)
• dining room and galley devos
• sweet goodbyes to sweet friends who came as 2 and left as 1.

• loaf of delicious bread bought for a good cause
• accents. love hearing them all across the ship. 
• ghost breath/fairy floss/candy floss/cotton candy from a lovely friend.

• chocolate seashells from my favorite dutchie (no offense to any other dutchie)
• christmas quotes and solomon's happiness to cut and laminate them for me
• sitting with a friend in the pain. (but oh how wish i knew what to do when hugs and prayers don't seem like enough)

thanksgiving...everybody's doing it.

• meeting/listening to dr. benjamin
• fun.peaceful.sort of productive shift in reception
• treats & gifts galore all throughout the shift
• ornaments for the crew that are very nearly complete

• fun fun fun frisbee (wish it was as much fun to lose as it is to win)(still working on that)
• jo ann/s kindness in the dining room...her thoughfulness to save fruit for families, the way she happily serves, her willingness to go above and beyond with my honey bottle request...
• "love over hate...i'm here for dat.  real over fake...i'm here for dat." - song from the relevant podcast
•  podcast listening runs and a perfectly framed sunrise to enjoy

• the shutterfly album i had poured hours into is not actually missing (the website was just not working properly due to the high traffic that the amazing sale brought to it)
• shutterfly order is done!!  (including free shipping thanks to a code that i guessed at)
• favorite favorite playlist
• epic nerf battle on the dock 

• purple needle tip pen .7 
• seeing the pictures of the hall family together in korea
• day crew david's thoughtfulness to bring us "that thing you do"
• josh and katie...and time with them

• tastes of gelato.  just enough. 
• thanksgiving.  love the thought of so many intentionally giving thanks (though this is the hardest thursday of the year to post my blog...almost seems too cliche)
• sweet treat to start my wednesday (cake for breakfast is always a good life choice)
• dinner and worship/dancing on the dock.  so refreshing. 

•  40+ minutes of skyping with molly
• laughing about "let 'em hear"
• successful cooking making (and eating)
• time with this precious girl and her mama

• meaningful conversations - especially spur of the moment ones
• a principal who is willing to ask for questions
• figuring out solutions
• working on the world with nick

keep on counting the gifts.

• nap on the dock at babs
• "mi casa es su casa" shirt (and praying for the adoption of a family that i don't even know)
• good reminders

• successful trip to the fabric market for emma to pick out her birthday dress fabric
• box cutters that make projects so much easier
• working as a team on ornaments for our crew (big work in progress)

• peace in the midst of heartache
• continuing to learn how to best communicate and care for nick
• free dental care (with Carly -a girl from Columbus!- assisting)

• cheese naan, butter chicken and rice to celebrate josh
• meeting/sharing dinner with/listening to dr. benjamin
• emma's sweet friendship with aaron (i love it when she wears the jersey he gave her)

5 minutes on the word of the week: passion

The Marvelous Molly gave me two word options well over a month ago: passion or regret.  I didn't know what I would write about either (which is kind of the point of this little writing exercise....don't think, just write.  Or as Andy Dwyer says "don't think.  just stupid.")  So then I just didn't write. #regret  But this morning I have the time and space to write...so I'm gonna go with.....

Passion

Justine snapped this picture Tuesday night:

It may not look like a picture full of passion...it's a whole lot more parking lot than passion....but it's actually got passion written all over it.  This is us...heading out for a date.  Nothing fancy.  Nothing earth shattering or remarkable - except that it is remarkable.  I love the man I'm married to.  And, while I'm not sure that should actually be categorized as remarkable, I think it IS remarkable.  

We love our marriage...and date night has been a constant part of our marriage - even before we had kids.  We need date night.  I'd even go so far as to say we are passionate about date night.  The time to connect - and reconnect - with one another is essential in our friendship and in our passion.

Need more passion in your marriage?  Go on a date.

So much more could (and should!) be said on this subject...but my 5 minutes is long gone.

psalm 138:1 "Lord, with all my heart i thank You."

• so.much. birthday love
• realizing that my "birthday wish/hope/prayer" from last year came true!
• morning after birthday cake
• fresh perspective (from reading "I Will Always Write Back")
• a life lived (even at the cost of an unkept -at times- cabin)

• looking up words and finding that unkept and unkempt are pretty much the same thing
• caroline's pancake making skillz
• watching "that thing you do"
• seeing the fruit of obedience (why oh why am i not quicker to obey?!)
• this recipe:

• that moment when you realize that you didn't get credit for something and it's really ok
• bookcase sharing
• knowing an amazing retreat has been planned for the JHHS students
• "who we are and how we engage with the world are much stronger predictors of how our children will do than what we know about parenting." - brene brown, daring greatly
• a friend who walks in with a tiny cup and says "trust me...drink this."  (and who gives me the remainder of the bottle)

• "give me a heart that doesn't want anything more than to worship you."  psalm 86:11(b)
• "as He stands in victory, sin's curse has lost its grip on me."
• worship/extended worship 
• speakers who stick to their allotted time
• popcorn making success (no burns or pots of popcorn on the floor...which was a very real possibility a number of times in the process)
• the wells have made it to bulgaria

little treat for your tuesday.

Scottish Version Of Rachel Platten’s ‘Fight Song’

Click here to hear.

thankful for more than just food.

• regular phone calls with beth
• a room full of ladies worshiping
• priscilla shirer's teaching
• "dad jokes" (puns)
• brownies!!!!!

• the retreat all came together
• chicken fingers & fries
• 125+ women gathered together to hear from God
• hearing how one lady heard God's voice for the first time
• scones...hot, fresh, delicious scones (in a wire basket to boot!)

• sunday runs with alison (and guest runners for the last part)
• 10 minute end of retreat clean up (many hands really do make lite work!)
• shea's tea - small gesture that was really really special and impactful
• no washers overflowed in my laundry experience tuesday (though one totally did in my experience today...but bubbles aren't so hard to clean up after all)
• the way nick and the kids had the cabin so neat and straight at the end of saturday
• delightful monday night dinner and mini-driving lesson with a treasured friend

• getting to share monday during mom's community group
• lunch time movie (and nap)
• the other kids' boxes from yaya and grandaddy arrived
• the best pain au chocolat yet 
• caroline's thoughts and writing

just some quotes for your tuesday...

few more for the list.

• gilmore girls with shea
• "bible in a minute" song
• finding just the right blend of syrups, shots, milk and mug 
• package from yaya and grandaddy and the smiles (real and silly) that followed

• container boxes!!!!
• alfred's courage and authenticity
• knowing it's all going to be ok and come together just right
•  time in the library

• "you are called to...continual dependence on Me." - jesus calling
• cheesesticks that did NOT disappoint
• easy teeth cleanings in the clinic downstairs
• sweet saturday spent at sakate

• codebar rooftop conversation with my favorite person on the planet
• ridiculous song lyrics that make me smile ("i love who you are, i love who you ain't....)
• messenging and talking and having coffee with KJ....
• powerful moment of hearing a spoken word piece during our worship gathering

• peaceful productivity
• being thought of in the boutique
• card from the winsteads
• list of ladies planning to attend the on-ship women's retreat this weekend