self-check

The other day I found myself ranting about a certain political view that I disagree with. I was griping about the ignorance of those whom I disagreed with and getting myself worked up. Now, I'm not well versed in the political jargon and I often am in the dark about what is happening with the big wigs in Washington, but I try to stay somewhat informed in an effort to be an educated, well-informed citizen. In the midst of complaining, I came to a realization....have I once in the recent past stopped to pray for those who are in leadership and make these decisions? Hmm, can't say that I have. This got me thinking. Christians often complain that God has been taken out of our country's political front and that Christian morals don't have a place anymore. Haven't we as Christians only aided in this? I mean if we don't pray for our country and it's leaders, aren't we taking God out of it as well. This may seem like a stretch, but we shouldn't be so quick to get disgruntled with politicians if we're not doing our part to uplift them to God and ask for God's wisdom to be granted to them. Sure, we're not going to agree with everyone, and I'm not saying that we should pray for people in hopes that their opinion will match our opinion. I do think though we should take the time to pray for God's will to be done. I don't want to be a Christian who complains and acts angry at the way our country is run, but does nothing. There are enough people like that. I may not agree with everything, but I can pray for the wisdom of those who do have to make decisions. I find in myself that I need to be quick to pray and less quick to judge.

I've done it again...

Once again I have failed to keep my blog updated. It's amazing to me how quickly time seems to be moving. I blink and 3 months have passed! In a few days Nathan will be six months old. I don't know how this has happened. I'm pretty sure he was just born yesterday. With age he is becoming more and more fun. I love watching his expressions as he discovers new things, and his smiles are enough to melt all your worries away. After Nathan was first born, I was worried about trying to make sure I did things the "right" way and was concerning myself over reading books and blogs. In the past 3 months though, I've thrown most of it out the window and have just relished in the enjoyment of raising a baby. If I want to rock him to sleep I do it and don't even think about whether I'm spoiling him. I realize that those will be the moments I miss in the coming years, and it will make no difference anymore if he can soothe himself to sleep or not. I do have to say though, he is such a good baby, and I am thankful for his content and happy personality. Let's just hope he doesn't take after his momma and have the "terrible two's."

I started Christmas shopping tonight! I ordered the first gift for someone. So excited. I love giving people presents.

Unexpected Blessings

Today I'm thankful for an unexpected blessing. I love the surprise blessings that God gives you when you least expect it. We received one of those such blessings from someone yesterday. The kind gift of this person brought tears to my eyes. I'm so thankful that this person allowed herself to be used by God to bless us in this way. On the reverse side of that, I realized that I need to give of myself more to bless others with those unexpected acts of kindness. Pay it forward!

Garden Goodness!

Summer is here! I love this time of year. I think this is mostly because as a teacher I have summers off, so to me summer means 2 months of freedom to do as I please each day. I love the long days, the warm weather, going to the beach, cookouts with friends, and the abundance of fresh veggies. With that said, Luke and I decided to plant our own garden this year. We're garden virgins, but we planted with hopes to harvest something in the end. Much to our delight the plants are not only surviving, they're thriving. We've got a collection of squash, tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, and watermelon. Hopefully in the next few weeks, we should be enjoying the fruits of our labor.

Nathan is now a month old! It's amazing how different life has become in a month. We're now late for many things, there's no quick run into the grocery store, life is organized around feedings and naps, and getting 4hrs. of uninterrupted sleep is a blessing. My priorities have drastically shifted. I love spending my days holding him and caring for him. He's now smiling a lot more. It's the greatest feeling when you're able to do something that causes his little lips to curl up and begin to smile. That's one of the greatest blessings of motherhood so far.