It Never Fails...

So it has been a week since I've blogged last. For some people that is not a big deal, but for those who are like me - who like to write and find release in doing it - it feels like a long time. I felt out of touch with life last week. Tim worked really long days Wednesday and Friday and had Tuesday and Thursday off. On Wednesday and Friday nights he did not get home until 10:00pm (they were working almost 2 hours away.) On those nights I would put the kids in bed and have about 2 1/2 hours all to myself...to do anything I wanted. The difference between this and naptime is that with naptime, I have no guarantee of how long it will last or if they will even sleep. With bedtime, they go down quickly and I know they're asleep until morning (except for those random cries out for a binky from Ellie.) On Wednesday night I spent the time writing. I worked a bit more on my novel. I also wrote up a couple...articles? I don't really know how to describe them. They're just little 3 page thoughts I guess. On Friday night I read. It was wonderful.

I have been reading a lot lately. After all, I have the Blizzard of Books at the library going on so I constantly have my nose in a book. Last Thursday I turned in my first 5 and went home with a box of chocolates.

They're gone.

Tim helped.

No, really, he did. We also threw out the last three because they were coconut and we don't like coconut.

Our friends, Unty and Kerin, came over Saturday night. They brought over some ingredients and we combined them with what we had and made a Mexican buffet. It was yummy. After the kids went down we made funnel cakes with a mix my sister had bought me for my birthday. That was an adventure but they turned out just like at a carnival. Greasy and delicious.

Today Jen and I spoke at Calvin College. Every year for the past three years we have talked to the interim Women's Health class about sex. We share our past sexual/physical relationship stories and talk about God's forgiveness, the importance of boundaries and accountability partners, and that if you haven't had sex - don't until you're married - and if you have or are - it's not too late to stop and start over. I think it went well. Every year on our way to the car afterward, we criticize ourselves, praise each other and lament on how the previous year seemed to go better. Then we remind ourselves that every year we have the same conversation and if just one woman has been touched, it's worth it. We spend time leading up to the morning praying that God would open hearts and guide our words and that's all we can do. The professor asks us back each year so we must make some type of impact. The girls are then required to write a response paper and the professor sends us their papers for us to read. We then are able to take their thoughts or questions and use them to help shape our talk for the next year.

On a different note. I got a package in the mail today from a close friend from college. She sent a very sweet note with it and in it pointed out all the neat ways that God has been providing things for us - little things especially. It prompted me to reflect on some of those ways and how cool God really is. I wanted to share some because I thought maybe it would prompt your heart to also reflect on the little ways that are easy to go unnoticed that God has provided in your own life. Maybe you can take the time to thank Him.
*We did not think we would be able to buy a Christmas tree this year because they are expensive! Seriously, I had no idea since we hadn't bought one for the past two years. Our realtor sent us a card in the mail for a free Christmas tree from a place in Grand Haven. We had a beautiful Douglas Fir (my favorite and we've never had one) for Christmas.
*Tim brought home roses in December for me. He had a coupon for a free dozen and when he went to get them, he found out the coupon had expired the week or so before (that's what happens when he forgets things.) He persuaded them to honor the coupon and they did. He's good when it comes to bargaining/bartering/haggling (is that what they call it?)
*Speaking of those three words above, Tim had to file a claim for a new cell phone. I accidentally washed his (the one time I forget to check the pockets in his jeans - thank God we have insurance on our phones.) No one told us that he had 30 days to file the claim. We were waiting for some extra money because we knew it was going to cost $50 to file it. When he filed the claim just after the New Year they told him he was outside of the 30 days. He talked to a manager and fought his case and they honored the $50. After all, if it's not written anywhere on the paperwork and no one tells you, how are you supposed to know? So that saved us the cost of a new cellphone
*An old friend from high school asked if I wanted a pair of jeans that were too short for her. They were my size and so over the weekend I got a package in the mail with a new pair of jeans! They fit perfectly and are a brand I could not afford myself at this time. Thanks, Bekah!
*We thought we were going to have $50 to live the next two weeks on - and that would have to cover groceries and gas (with Tim driving to GR every day.) I had one day of panic mode, but I was also PMS so the hormone center was already pretty much in hyper-overdrive. The next day I again gave it over to God telling Him I had no idea how He was going to pull this one off, but I couldn't wait to see it. In my head I was making a mental note of where to donate plasma and what things in the house we could sell off. Sunday brought about an email for an interior designer wanting Tim to paint her and her husband's master bedroom this week on his days off. And again God has provided.
*Before we painted the kids' bedroom, we were visiting our friends, Chris and Rachel. I was trying to describe the color I was envisioning to Rachel and she actually had a scrapbook paper (with birds on it even!) that she showed me. It was the exact color I was trying to describe! She ended up giving it to me, along with another piece that had birds on it that look like the ones I wanted on the tree mural. Tim took in the one piece and had Sherwin Williams color match it for the paint for their room and then Rachel came and painted her birds (that the scrapbook paper ones looks like) on the tree I painted. Recently I framed the two pieces of paper as artwork for their room and it looks great on the wall.
*And last for now, but certainly not least, I'm just getting very sleepy, the friend that sent me the package (Kelly) had sent some facial products that weren't working for her skin. One of the products, a skin revitalizer, I already use and know it doesn't make me break out. The other one is a foundation primer that I have yet to try.

What is a little way that God has blessed you?