life giving moments and gifts

• easy cottage guests and turnovers
• celebrating 23 years of being married to nick! i love my husband so much. 
• butter chicken!  indian restaurant with all the fun vibes. (not sure anything will ever top shamiana in benin...but we'll keep trying) and the best person to share it with.

• caroline made her flight!
• she's ropes course certified
• good stuff: 

• eli has had a good week in houston! (can't wait to hear about it!)
• laughing at seinfeld and hearing nick and emma laughing at it
• buttermilk pie (and driving all the way to byron to exchange half for papa's fried chicken...but then lane didn't show up)(just kidding)(and i hope he was kidding)

• bouquet making at cityscape for mother's day!
• that i get to be eli, caroline, emma and zoe's mom. unbelievable. 
• getting to use beth's art for the tags

• having eli and logan and friends here
• the way they came in from a very busy (and early!) day at impact and proceeded to take time by themselves to spend time with the Lord
• charcuterie on a stick and lovely flowers (both thanks to logan!)

• all of tuesday worked out (even though 4 trips to ccs were involved)
• encouraging emails from amy's end of semester reviews
• so much love and friendship in one picture.

• folks accepted jesus at cityscape on sunday!!!
• teamwork making the dreamwork for pretty much everything....specifically for the rehearsal dinner
• the robertsons.  grateful for ALL the ways they love and serve...and their willingness to go where the Lord is sending them

sad to say i still haven't figured out how to add an email subscription button to the blog...i'm not giving up....just need someone who knows alot more about coding than i do. 

noticing the abundance in my life...just as a little treat.

• jesus and satan are not equal opposites. not even close.  
• delightful walk in the woods sunday afternoon

• getting to hold things with folks and pray specifically
• arnold is sounding like a cash:

• God is at work in every situation. every single one. 
• most precious daisies delivered by a beautiful friend in a just right vase

• lots of swimming! 
• getting to meet baby lizzie!!  (zoe is actually happy about it....)

• beth's kindness to create the mother's day tags for cityscape
• eli is home!  love it when they get out the legos (almost as good as getting out the trains)

• fun times dance times playlist
• cute sweet things:

• how good the yard looks after nick mows
• forgotten flowers that bloom so incredibly

• mr. wright's continued kindness and generosity (fly stuff)
• piper perry!!!!  

• celebrating shelley
• picturesque moments

• getting to wear a sweatshirt in may
• sweet sisters on a delightful quilt on an incredible day

• closer than i've been in a while to having a working "subscribe" button on the blog
• shared cinnamon roll and a just right cup of coffee at CHOA

God's abundance is ours...a few more examples....

• suzanne and lex getting to meet. love connecting incredible people.
• yup. this: 

• rich mullins + button box + zoe in cute pjs = delightful thursday morning
• starting the book of James at CityScape. timely word. 

• camp empower is FULL for campers (trusting God to bring the buddies!)
• kids serving and scrubbing

• having a good book to read (in this case, atonement child)
• the frogs and turtles this week (this is shelly)

• when people could easily be front and center and they choose to be back and left. 
• mercy med gala.  really fun time. 

• an hour and a half of self-care that pretty much turned everything around.  thank you, jesus. 
• convertible driving with 3 really great kids (and a frog and a baby doll)

• anytime any of my kids share anything with me
• the ways the moms (specifically waffle friday moms) love on the kids...no matter which one...my community is ridiculously wonderful (thought about doing a whole post just on that....maybe sometime soon)

• nick's all around awesomeness. he's wonderful. truly. 
• just right baby shower

• zoe worked hard, saved her money and the bunny (toy) was HALF the price when she went to buy it!
• these 3 waiting on the bunny to have her babies. this was very serious business (i got shushed and sent to the porch)

• icees at sam's - 3 treats for less than $3. i like it. 
• zoe's excitement about previously mentioned bunny's arrival.  

• 2 new (not toy) babies in our world!  safe arrivals for tex and lizzie!
• such a good reminder:

noticing the thousands of little miracles.

• Psalm 16 - song by Brian Suave' 
• always more to get rid of/take to valley rescue
• sweet easter egg hunt at northside christian church (2 years in a row for these sisters!)

• journey to the cross.  such a wonderful event!!!
• conversation with micey (and meeting jellybean in person)
• perfect parking place, perfect timing.  sometimes it just can't get any better. 

• cold pressed fruit juice. so good. 
• strawberry shredded wheat cereal
• beautiful day for a ride/run on the riverwalk

• time in molly's kitchen. and the girls' room. and smidge in the living room.  so.much.fun.
• broken window panes can be fixed
• moments. they are on a bridge under a bridge

• easter morning run.  something so special about starting in the dark and ending in the light. 
• everytime the cottage is left in wonderful shape!
• pretty reminders:

• favorite song from Easter Sunday morning
  
• Jesus died for our sins - all of our sins. i do NOT want to take that for granted. 
• family easter pic (eli edited in)

• so many babies in the nursery!!  we made it! 
• the way God provided lunch for the Breathe Event
• so much BEAUTY at Breathe

• time to work on lisa's bible study.  love how it all seems to get done. 
• all the ways people are showing up and loving and serving
• yup.  this: 

• good walks with good people. 
• so many good songs out there
  
• reminder of why we feel restless sometimes: 

• walmart pick up.  so easy. 
• good sleep. 
• zoe and the goat

comfy pants and other good gifts.

• the pool is back to blue!!!  (papa is wise - " it's always gotten back to blue before")
• munchkins + coffee + perfect weather + backyard 
• clingstones game!

• the way community can be so stunningly beautiful
• steak + fries + eating outside
• emma's loveliness

• comfy uga pants (both pair!)
• emma + refresh retreat
• caroline's perfect timing with the trader joe's treat

• rides home for emma from james
• pasta salad from aldi (and all the other treats!)
• working on the journey to the cross project with emma

• forgiveness. redemption. restoration.  it's all real and possible. 
• fresh cherry coke.
• celebrating ella k. with all kinds of fun things

• caroline is home for the weekend!!
• successful neighborhood outreach at cityscape
• celebrating and praying for eli white and naomi...just right ultimate wedding shower!

grateful.

• such good conversations
• best tennis of my life  
• nick took zoe and emma out on the lake! (and brought back gas station pizza!)

• sweet mom's gathering wednesday morning (sister schubert's cinnamon rolls and sausage rolls...goodness in a pan)
• emma's NHS induction 
• nick is here for all the things

• moments where i really think the Lord helped me forget some things that needed to be done so that i could rest/relax...and then He reminded me and there was time to get them done. 
• honest and authentic conversation on suz's back porch. love those ladies. 
• this plant came back! (thanks, mrs. sherry!!)

• emma & mp & the lukes playing pickleball
• lovely weather (and safety in the midst of the not so lovely weather)
• moments that are just so zoe

• having eli and friends around (in and out) for the weekend
• spur of the moment dinner invitations that work out...and include a round of snowball freeze tag
• drew's kind note and the gift of pecans (10/10 recommend order here if you need some tasty pecans! milk chocolate are my favorite...meme's sugar pecans are a winner....cinnamon sugar...they are all good!!!) 

• suggesting a scholarship only to find out caroline's already applied for it. way to go. 
• pretty easy sam's run
• THE SWEETEST bunch in the nursery.

• camp empower is already 1/2 full of campers!
• the pink package from soozi arrived - beautiful truth to pray over friends and family
• the thank you letter made it to john & trudy