Love Is In The Air

Happy Valentines Day!

Valentine's Day is a little bitter sweet for me, mostly because I often have unattainable expectations of my amazing husband.  The good thing is that I am fully aware of those expectations.  Poor guy, huh?  So as I prepare for the holiday that says "I love you" with cards and gifts I am trying to figure out what to do for the guy who does not celebrate the holiday.  Remember from previous posts, one of my love languages is gifts so I just have to give Chris something.  Lucky for me, one of Chris' love languages is eating.  (I made that up.)  Since he has a love affair not only with his wife but with peanut butter the girls and I are making these yummy Reese's Peanut Butter Bars for daddy. The recipe is from OurBestBites.com which I found on a new friend's blog, Brandi.


No Bake Reese's Peanut Butter Bars
1 1/2 C graham cracker crumbs
1 lb (3 1/2 C) powdered sugar
1 1/2 C creamy peanut butter
1 C (2 sticks) real butter, melted
1 12oz bag chocolate chips (milk, semi-sweet, or dark, you pick!)
2 tsp shortening (or use more peanut butter)


In a large mixing bowl, combine graham cracker crumbs, powdered sugar and peanut butter and butter and beat until combined. Press into a parchment (or waxed paper or foil) lined 9x13 pan.

Place chocolate chips and shortening in a microwave safe bowl and heat in 30 second intervals, stirring after each one, until melted and smooth. Pour chocolate over peanut butter mixture and spread out evenly. Place pan in the fridge just until chocolate is set and then cut into bars. Tip: If the bars chill until the chocolate is too hard to easily cut, use a sharp knife and score the cuts first, then gently cut through. Can be stored in the fridge or at room temp. They will stay firmer if stored in the fridge.



There are other signs of love in our home and I'm not sure how I feel about it.  Why do kids have to grow up?  There was a day not too long ago that they all had chubby cheeks and nothing brought them more joy than their toys and hugs from mommy and daddy.  *sigh* 

However, the greatest love affair known to man is the one God so generously shares with each of us.  Why can we accept the love of a human who is flawed in so many ways but struggle to accept the free, no strings attached love of the creator who is perfect in every way?  My prayer for you tonight is that if you don't already know that love seek it out or comment on my blog and we can have a private conversation.  You are as precious as gold.

Blessings to each and every one of you visiting my blog today. 
Melanie

There's A Website

Have I mentioned that my devilishly handsome husband wrote a novel about nineteen months ago?  Just in case you missed that post here is some of the background information.  Chris has a great love of writing and he is even good at it.  Several years ago Chris started writing a novel that would appeal to young men, specifically his middle school and high school students.  He got about three chapters in and he lost direction.  Fast forward to May of 2009 when a well known author visited the school that Chris teaches in.  Once again, he was inspired but this time took the time to map out the entire novel.  Before July 1st rolled around Chris had completed the first draft of his book.  If I remember correctly, the manuscript was sent in to WriteLife publishing in October of 2009.  There have been countless (well Chris knows exactly how many) revisions, many late nights and lots of uncertainty but now we are just 1 1/2 to 2 months away from having a published young adult novel in our hands.  I for one, can not wait!

Now we are learning about publicity.  Geesh!  What do we do?  How do we accomplish it?  What can we expect?  It's all a mystery to us but God knows the plans He has for us...for this book.  We would love to have you visit Chris' new website. Click Here Feedback is much appreciated.  You can subscribe to the site and certainly, tell all your friends about it.  We will send out all updates through this site and THE NEW PHENOM3NON facebook fan page.

Thanks to so many of you who have offered encouragement along the way.  We hope to have the opportunity to do many book signing events.  If you are interested in having this friendly, handsome author come speak at your event please leave a comment on the website.

Scrap Friendzy Blog Hop

Today I'm checking out a list of blogs.  The scrappy ladies over at  Scrap Friendzy  are doing a blog hop and then this weekend they will do a crop.  Sounds like fun to me.  I have some friends who are part of the design team, guess it's time for me to check out the site a little more.  If you want to check out the hop start here at their blog.

Birthday Pictures

My Twelve Year Old

How can it be true?  Emma will drive in four years. That was one of the first things she told me after wishing her a happy birthday this week. Oh my, she is so ready to grow up and I'm seeing it happen right before my eyes.

My card to Emma had a mom and daughter on the front, it read...

"Daughter, when I look at you I see myself

but so much better."

So true.  That statement gives me such hope and honestly a little fear.  :)

Birthdays remind me of the nine months I carried the child and then the few days I spent in the hospital bringing the child into the world and what parent could ever forget the first few weeks home from the blessed event.  Yes, there was discomfort, uncertainty and loss of sleep but the pure joy out weighed all of it.  My greatest job title to date is "mom".  Chris and I pray for the health and salvation for our girls everyday.  What a privilage it has been to thus far to care for and help raise our girls. 

Emma,

I love you

and

Happy Birthday!

Mommy

It Is Finished

The cleaning of the townhouse I mean...
No I didn't take any pictures.  By the time I cleaned the bathroom, floors, counter tops, really every surface I didn't want to run home to grab my camera.  I was tired from 3 days of sick kids and didn't want to battle the blizzard outside.  So again I say, it is finished.  PRAISE GOD!!

Now to figure out where to put all the stuff we didn't think should go in the storage unit.  Just what my house needs...more stuff.

Boxed & Ready

We have had so many moving days it's difficult to know which one this is.  However, I'm happy to say that after doing a little light cleaning tomorrow I will be done with the townhouse that stored Aunt Delma's household goods for three months.  Talk about some expensive storage!

I just want to again thank some dear friends who stepped in to help us; Nickie, Chad and Tim faced the cold and ice for two hours.  Love you guys!

Tomorrow I will take some pictures of the cleaned location.

A quick update on Aunt Delma: upon arrival to her new home she was grumpy and sure that MRE was the junkiest place she'd ever lived.  I am happy to let you know, however, that my inside sources tell me that she has been active and enjoying her stay.  I know all these changes have been very difficult on Aunt Delma.  I thank God for his direction and wisdom.

A Little of This A Little of That

 Emma and I raced up the hospital to meet our new little cousin before the big snow storm hit yesterday.  The room was full so we stayed just long enough of Emma to hold Levi for a couple minutes.  I hope everyone else in there got the hint that it was time to go home.  We'll see Kelly, Ryan and Levi soon.  Thank you God for the blessing of a healthy baby and loving parents. 

Olivia and Madison have spent many hours on the soccer field or basketball court sidelines as their big sisters play sports.  Keeping them entertained some days are easier than others, thank goodness for the Nintendo DS and cell phones with games.

Reagan had a good game today until she had a battle with the floor.  My tough girl crashed in the first half and didn't make it back into the game.  Tonight the Heat outscored their opponent by 20 some points.  Great job girls!

Moving Day Part 3 or 4

I really can't recall off the top of my head how many times I have moved Aunt Delma since November 2010.
1. from Kansas to Omaha
2. to the hospital
3. to the better hospital
4. to the rehab facility
5. to the skilled care facility while we were waiting for assisted living to open up
6. and today we are moving stuff from her town home to the assisted living. 
7. later this week we will move her and her belongings from skilled care to asst. living.
8. the rest of her belonging from the town home will be moved before January 30th into storage.

Along the way we have had so much help, I can't even begin to thank everyone.  Today we have inlisted a foreign exchange student who lives with my inlaws.  Nothing says living in Nebraska like moving a total strangers belongings when it is 5-15 degrees outside.  Just think of all the stories Charlie will have when he goes back to Korea. 

Chris is back with the truck so I need to head over to the town house.  Please keep our family in your prayers for safety in moving and that Chris and I don't get irritated with one another.  :)

EXCITING SIDE NOTE:
I have a new baby cousin, born yesterday at 6:15pm weighing in at 8lbs 12oz.  That's a big baby for my skinny little cousin's first baby.  All is well with baby and mommy and I think grandma even survived the day in the waiting room.  I can't wait to start putting pictures in the scrapbook I made for him.  Thank you God for the safe delievery of little (or big) Levi.

It's So Hard

Why is it so difficult to eat right? Seems like the harder I try, the more I want a donut. The more I try to work out, the busier my day gets, therefore making it difficult to exercise. Unconsciously, I am sabotaging myself. So, I have one hour until I have to face all the other crazy carpoolers in the school parking lots…3 of them. That’s just enough time to get in a quick workout while I watch the DVD for tonight’s bible study.


Have a great day. However, if today isn’t a great one or even a good one, try to find one blessing hidden in the garbage of stressful living.

Beth Moore Scripture Challenge

Good morning! I'm a little slow this morning as I have been up too late the last few nights with some of my scrapbooking buddies. What a joy it is to spend time with friends.

I have a desire to know God more and the only way I can know Him better is to spend time with Him and read His love letter to all of mankind. (the bible). January 1st I began a 12 month journey with Beth Moore to learn 24 scriptures. This is very doable and yet will not be easy. Even though the first entry has come and gone, you can still join in. Click here Beth Moore's blog

Verse 1:
Restore unto me the joy of your salvation; and grant me a willing spirit.  Psalms 51:12

Verse 2:
If you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord" and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.  Romans 10:9

I have to admit that this verse is very familiar to me but I can't ever remember the exact wording or where to find it. I call this the salvation verse. When leading someone to Christ, this is all they need to know...see why it's important that I know what it says and where to find it?

Verses that were posted on January 1st numbered greater than 8000. I'm praying for all the gals joining in that they will be blessed by their new bible knowledge and that they will stick with the challenge. It's always easy to start new habits in January but difficult to carry through to December or even April sometimes.

SNOW DAY

Last year we had so much snow over Christmas vacation that we couldn't go back to school on time.  This year we have had almost nothing stick to the ground when it snows.  Now that Christmas vacation is over is snows and school is called off for tomorrow.  The weather forecast tells us 9-10 inches is coming our way.  I have food in the house and really no need to go outside.  So if we do get that much snow, I'm staying inside.

The girls are excited and honestly, so am I.  The thought of sleeping in tomorrow morning has me all giddy inside.

Have you ever thought about the possibility that maybe big snow days in the Midwest or sand storms in the desert are God's way of slowing everyone down?  I don't claim to know this as fact, it just came to me.  Even tho we have set aside a 24 hour period of time for our family to observe the sabbath I can get bogged down with the business of life the rest of the week.  Today was a busy day; early to church, dinner with the in-laws, indoor softball practice and a basketball game.  God is slowing me down.  Now if I can just keep my handsome hubby at home relaxing all day, I will have accomplished something pretty amazing.

Take some time to slow down.  It is a biblical principle that I forget to practice and sometimes need a snow day to keep in check. There's a prolonged coffee hour scheduled tomorrow morning with God and I will be in attendance.

Praying for each and everyone of you. 


Be a Blessing,
Melanie

Praying for Our Community

Yesterday was a rough day in our school district.  A senseless tragedy happened at our local high school which resulted in the end of two individuals lives and another person injured not to over look the mulititudes of people this has affected emotionally.

Today during my morning prayer time I remember how thankful I am that my husband and children are safe and will spend another day here on earth with me.  That is my selfish part because I know if one of them were to pass they would instantly be sitting with Jesus.  I'm just not ready to let go of them.  :)

Healing will come, for some ever so slowly.  I ask you to pray for the families of all involved including the shooter's family.  I don't know what would have driven a bright young man to make such a tradgic decision but I do know his mom and dad are mourning his death and his actions today.

Let me take this moment to ask you, if today happens to be your last day on Earth do you know with complete certainity what your eternity will be?  There are only two options:  a life with God in Heaven or eternal damnation in Hell.  It's not a matter of being good enough.  All you need to do is to accept Jesus Christ as your personal savior.  Jesus is God's son who was sent from Heaven to live a fully human life but without sin.  He took on the sins of the world so that we could have a relationship with His father.  His death on the cross was punishment for my sins and your sins.  Then something happened that has not happened to ANY other religious figure in all of history, Jesus was resurrected, raised from the dead and now sits with His Father in Heaven. 
If you have questions about what I have written, please ask.  I am happy to talk to you. 

Restore unto me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit.  Psalms 51:12 NIV

Finally A Date

Well, sort of.  Chris' first novel will be released but not just yet.  Finally, the publisher told us we can expect a release date in late March or April 2011.  I was a little disappointed just because I am so excited to see this book in printed form. I want to see it now!  However, we have been a little busy the last few months so March is probably a much better time for our family.  It also gives me more time to plan a release party and put together a few more contacts.  If you or someone you know has great info for me about a release party for a new book PLEASE don't hesitate to share that information with us.

I know God has plans for us and even this book, plans to prosper us and not to harm us.  I am confident that this book will bring glory and honor to our Lord and Savior.  Since I can't see into the future I'm not sure what that means other than I can trust He has our best interest at the heart of the matter.  I can't wait to see what His plan is.  My prayer is that we do His will and always point all glory back to Him.

WriteLife is a small publishing company in Omaha, Nebraska that has picked up Chris' book.  WriteLife is interested in helping out new and young writers.  If you have any interest in submitting some writing go to this site http://writelife.com/  This is a great place to start.  Once again I remind you, the book you want to get hot off the press is THE NEW PHENOM3NON by Chris Raabe.  You will find it on http://www.amazon.com/ and http://www.barnesandnoble.com/ .  If you reside in Omaha you may find it in the local storefront at as well.  I think tonight we got a great connection at B & N.  Chris will also be making several book signing stops across the nation.  If you have interest in an up and coming author visiting your area please contact me via this blog.  Soon we will have an official site with more information.

Happy Wednesday to each of you.

Christmas Hangover

That's the only way I can explain it. Two days after the big holiday and I have a headache to top all headaches.  It's not just the holiday it's all the extras that a person either deals with or lets build up stress, here are a few of those things:  staying up way too late, eating too much junk food, no exercise, company, the stress of hoping everyone is pleased with their gifts, hanging out with sick people, dealing with unpleasant people, crazy traffic, too much Wii...it all adds up to one big hangover type of headache.  I don't want to imply that our Christmas was bad. There's just lots going on this time of year and when everything finally dies down it leaves my head pounding.

I tried all kinds of things to feel better today, you know the usual...
chiropractor
lots of water
shopping with a dear friend
pedicure
Starbucks
lunch out
nap
ignoring my phone calls
but then finally I hit happy hour with some girlfriends.  I think nachos, a margarita and some girl talk did the trick. 

May you all enjoy the days after Christmas as much as the days leading up to the birth of Christ.  I urge you to remember why we celebrate December 25th.  It's 363 days until Christmas 2011...plan ahead in order to avoid the pre-christmas headache.

Christmas Dance Recital

The 2010 Dance season is in full swing around our house now that we have two beautiful dancers.  Lil' Sister is following in the footsteps of her Big Sis.  Every Wednesday Liv has an important date with 9 other little dancers.  I am simply amazed how Ms Jackie can teach these little darlings the art of ballet and the discipline of not jumping in taps.

Even Chris enjoys the Christmas recital, after all it's a one afternoon ordeal and lasts just over one hour.  What dad wouldn't love it?

Christmas Dance Recital 2010

I tried to fade out the other dancers to highlight Emma but it kind of looks like she is dancing with a stage full of ghosts.  Love your smile and beautiful dance movements on stage!

This little cutie-pa-tootie had a brief moment of fear and then she poured on the charm.

Final Bows

Great job girls! 

May you continue to grow and learn all the while acknowledge that your gifts and talents come from God.  I love you both.  Mommy

Berry World

It's been 32 days since our family joined the rest of the world in texting, internet via the phone and constant connection.  This little device called the Blackberry is my friend but might become my foe.  I am about to learn the importance (once again) of boundries. 

I won't be a driving texter but have been known to answer a text at a long stop light.
I won't text during bible study.
I won't surf the net during church.
I won't facebook during dinner.

With this new level of availablity you should be able to reach Chris, my oldest or myself most of the time.  If not try our home phone. (yep, it's new)

Judas Asparagus

The bible through the eyes of a child: The Children's Bible in a Nutshell In the beginning, which occurred near the start, there was nothing but God, darkness, and some gas.  The Bible says, 'The Lord thy God is one, but I think He must be a lot older than that. Anyway, God said, 'Give me a light!' and someone did. Then God made the world.  He split the Adam and made Eve.  Adam and Eve were naked,  but they weren't embarrassed because mirrors hadn't been invented yet.  Adam and Eve disobeyed God by eating one bad apple, so they were driven from the Garden of Eden.....Not sure what they were driven in though, because they didn't have cars.  Adam and Eve had a son, Cain, who hated his brother as long as he was Abel.  Pretty soon all of the early people died off, except forMethuselah, who lived to be like a million or something.   One of the next important people was Noah, who was a good guy, but one of his kids was kind of a Ham.  Noah built a large boat and put his family and some animals on it. He asked  some other people to join him, but they said they would have to take a rain check.  After Noah came Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.  Jacob was more famous than his brother, Esau, because Esau sold Jacob his birthmark in exchange for some pot roast.  Jacob had a son  named Joseph who wore a really loud sports coat. Another important Bible guy is Moses, whose real name was Charlton Heston.  Moses led the Israel Lights out of   Egypt  and away from the evil Pharaoh after God sent ten plagues on Pharaoh's people.  These plagues included frogs, mice, lice, bowels, and no cable.  God fed the Israel Lights every day with manicotti.  Then he gave them His Top Ten Commandments. These include: don't lie, cheat, smoke, dance, or covet your neighbor's stuff.  Oh, yeah, I just thought of one more: Humor thy father and thy mother. One of Moses' best helpers was Joshua who was the first Bible guy to use spies.  Joshua fought the battle of Geritol and the fence fell over on the town. After Joshua came David..  He got to be king by killing a giant with a slingshot.  He had a son named Solomon who had about 300 wives and 500 porcupines.  My teacher says he was wise,  but that doesn't sound very wise to me. After Solomon there were a bunch of major league prophets.  One of these was Jonah, who was swallowed by a big whale and then barfed up on the shore.  There were also some minor league prophets, but I guess we don't have to worry about them. After the Old Testament came the New Testament.  Jesus is the star of The New.  He was born  in   Bethlehem   in a barn.   (I wish I had been born in a barn too, because my mom is always saying to me, 'Close the door! Were you born in a barn?' It would be nice to say, 'As a matter of fact, I was.') During His life, Jesus had many arguments with sinners like the Pharisees and the Democrats.  Jesus also had twelve opossums.  The worst one was Judas Asparagus.  Judas was so evil that they named a terrible vegetable after him.  Jesus was a great man.  He healed many leopards and even preached to some Germans on the Mount.  But the Democrats and all those guys put Jesus on trial before Pontius the Pilot.  Pilot didn't stick up for Jesus.  He just washed his hands instead. Anyways, Jesus died for our sins, then came back to life again.  He went up to Heaven but will be back at the end of the Aluminum.  His return is foretold in the book of Revolution.

Mary Sunshine????

No, not really!!

Yes, I try to avoid the yucky part of life in my blog entries because there's plenty of that all around us.  Every day the newspaper, television, freeways, grocery stores and internet are full of discouraging stories, mean acts and dangerous truths so if I can concentrate on the positives about my life it's better for all of us.  I don't mean to portray a life that isn't real.  We have issues.  We have faults.  We have trials.  Do you really care to read about my garbage when you have your own junk to deal with?  I didn't think so.

However, just to make Lindsey fell alittle better about herself I have a few things to say...

The past 4 months have had moments of joy, pleasure and excitement but they have also held some of the toughest times that Chris and I have encountered in our fourteen years of marriage. 
*I finally decided to face some of the junk in my past; it brought up more junk and then I had to decide what to do with that information.
*Our good friends moved out of state.
*Fall is always busy but this year Chris coached high school softball as well as Reagan's competitve softball team.  We had very little time for family.
*We learned that some close friends had no use for us.
*Chris' father has been in the hospital five times.
*Amelia lived only a few hours
*I moved my aunt to town only to take over her financial and health decisions.
*We have a middle schooler.  YIKES! I'm stuggling with my parenting
* My last 2 scrapbook weekends have been cancelled.
*One friend is getting a divorce
*Family...
*We have children in 3 different schools.
*My house is a mess most of the time.

I could probably come up with several other stressors if I stopped to think about it for a minute or two.  This is a list of "yuck" but I can offset each bullet point with a silver lining.  My positive view point is not because I am Mary Sunshine but because God gives me hope.  Never has He put more on my plate than what I can handle.  Growth comes through trials.  Precious metals are refined by fire.  I pray that my struggles will help me focus on God and not on myself...some days are easier than others.

PaRty TiMe

Can it be true?  My baby is turning five years old today?  Does that mean I'm not a mommy of toddlers anymore? 

There may be a sad little corner in my heart as I think about the baby years, cute little clothes, learning her colors and knowing I won't have more babies but the rest of my heart is overwhelmed with JOY!  Watching Olivia overcome many of the struggles she faced the first two years of her life and becoming a delightful little girl makes smile with contentment, knowing I have a powerful God who cares about the smallest of details to the biggest concerns.

As with every birthday in our house, this morning Olivia woke to a room filled with streamers and balloons.  The breakfast of choice always seems to be donuts...go figure.  Then we had a little photo session as she opened her gifts but I was careful to stay out of the pictures as I was sporting my jammies and CRAZY hair.

As soon as everyone is showered and dressed we'll take a van full of donations to the Salvation Army, go see Aunt Delma and then have a little birthday party this evening with some close family friends and the grandparents who can make it today.

The bible tells us that all good things come from Heaven.  My sweet baby was created by a loving God and sent down to our family for a time.  I am so privilaged to have the opportunity to love, care for and teach this little blessing from God.