I don't understand why the world at large has decided that the role of homemaker and mother is somehow inferior or unimportant compared to other careers. Elisabeth Elliot said it beautifully; "This job has been given to me to do. Therefore it is a privilege. Therefore it is an offering I may make to God. Therefore it is to be done gladly, if it is to be done for Him. Here, not somewhere else, I may learn God's way. In this job, not in some other, God looks for faithfulness." Mothers have the amazing opportunity, and immense responsibility, of pouring their lives into their children, teaching, training, loving and nurturing. It's such a beautiful occupation.
I have my plans for what I'd like to do career-wise. I've always talked about a certain field, and thought about the opportunities I'd have to serve people. But you know what I'd really, really want more than any other career? I just want to be a mama and a homemaker, and spend my life investing in my children and family. (and why am I posting about this right now? I don't know really, except that I've had the future and decisions on my mind a lot lately, and this keeps coming up.)
I'd love to hear you thoughts on the homemaking role. :)
+ lots of tea and coffee (it's not like i didn't drink those in the summer, but being able to drink them without dying of overheating would be cool. :)
+ sweaters, scarves, and boots
+ pies
+ stunning leaves and colors
+ falling asleep to the sound of rain
+ fires crackling in the stove in the evenings
+ my girls bible study at church starting again
+ listening to Christmas music (it's my favorite, okay! Yes I do start listening to it full time in October, and yes, I am listening to Michael Buble's christmas album as I type...)
+ Pan (Fairy tales are my favorite, too, and I am pretty excited to go see this one with my favorite sister in law!)
+ road tripping to the beach with my bestie
+ getting to know new friends better
+ family camp with my church starting tomorrow.
+ reading many books and lots of the Bible
what are some things you're excited about now that it's September?
1. feeling complete peace 2. bright red heels (somehow wearing red shoes makes everything 50% more exciting) 3. adorable little brothers 4. tart lemonade 5. amazing devo's in the morning 6. blackberry pie 7. baby goats that eat pears out of your hands and then lick the juice off your fingers 8. getting to spend time with both my big brothers at once 9. it's almost September, which means sweaters, hot drinks and beautiful leaves! 10. Be Still My Soul (In You I Rest) 11. cleaning all the junk off my desk so that I can actually use it again. 12. psalms 34 13. conquering fears! 14. watermelon and cantaloupe from my Grandpa's garden 15. quiet 16. fresh canned peaches lined up on the shelf. 17. long conversations 18. books that make you really think 19. christmas is in exactly 121 days, but we can "officially" start listening to Christmas music in only 66 days. 20. feeling comfortable around people 21. smiles and giggles from Lydia 22. vanilla ice cream 23. lighting candles (totally improves my mood!) 24. Earl Grey Tea 25. burts bees lip balm 26. audrey hepburn (she's just so adorable!) 27. psalms 94:19 28. phantom of the opera (I just read the book, and it was wonderful!) 29. reading late into the night 30. looking forward to seeing good friends this weekend! (and climbing Mt. St. Helens on Tuesday!!)
source This drawing has been really striking my fancy lately. I think it's all kinds of adorable!!
What have been some of your favorite things lately.
I will bless the Lord at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth.
My soul will make its boast in the Lord; The humble will hear it and rejoice.
O Magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt His Name together.
I sought the Lord and He answered me, and delivered me from all my fears.
They looked to Him and were radiant, and their faces will never be ashamed.
This poor man cried , and the Lord heard him and saved him out of all his troubles.
The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear Him, and rescues them.
O taste and see that the Lord is good; how blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him!
O fear the Lord, you His saints; For those who fear Him there is no want.
The young lions do lack and suffer hunger; but they who seek the Lord shall not be in want of any good thing.,
Come, you children, listen to me; I will; teach you the fear of the Lord.
Who is the man who desires life and loves length of days that he may see good?
Keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking deceit.
Depart from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it.
The eyes of the Lord are toward the righteous and His ears are open to their cry,
The face of the Lord is against evildoers, to cut off the memory of them from the earth.
The righteous cry, and the Lord hears and delivers them out of all their troubles.
The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.
Many are the affliction of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all.
He keeps all his bones, not one of them is broken.
Evil shall slay the wicked, and those who hate the righteous will be condemned.
The Lord redeems the soul of His servants, and none of those who take refuge in Him will be condemned.
Psalms 34
Lately I've been dealing with some overwhelming fears, plagued by doubts and worry. Fears are something I've always dealt with, but this is so much more than usual. I was letting them take over my thoughts, and affect my sleeping. Obviously focusing on the fears and doubts wasn't helping; it was making it much, much worse. So finally, I started doing what I should have been focusing on from the very beginning. I began surrendering my fears to God. Praying even more than before for wisdom, direction and especially peace. I started clinging to verses from Philippians 4, reading them over and over throughout the day. "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God,with surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." and verses from Psalms, "When my anxious thoughts multiply within me your consolations delight my soul."
God keeps bring out the verses I need to read, in family devos at night, or a cross-reference from Pastor's sermon. Last week at church it was James 1:5-7 "But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him. But he must ask in faith without any doubting, for the one who doubts is like the surf of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind. For the man ought not to expect that he will receive anything from the Lord, being a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways."
And this morning I randomly opened the Psalms, and began reading Psalms 34, and it felt like it was exactly what God wanted me to read. "I sought the Lord and He answered me, and delivered me from all my fears." He hears and he answers our prayers! And He can and will deliver me from all my fears!
I've been listening to this song over and over too, and it's been really helping. Sometimes it is just really hard to remember to be still and wait on the Lord. "Leave to thy God to order and provide. In every change he faithful will remain. Be still my soul, thy Best, thy heavenly friend through thorny ways leads to a joyful end.
So, this is a very "rambly" post, but I just was so excited this morning, because I felt complete peace. God is so faithful, and so loving! I am excited to see where He leads me, and in the meantime I will continue to cling to His promises! :)
Finding photographs you'd forgotten about on a SD card is super cool. It's like getting an unexpected gift... from yourself! These are just some forgotten frames from my last visit to Goldendale. There was a large fire that closed the highway I usually take home, so we drove out the back way, and were able to snap a couple silhouettes of the mountain and sunset.
the blood moons from Goldendale are always stunning. It was extremely exciting to be able to see one one the one night we were there!! (Please forgive the quality... This was snapped from a moving vehicle, and then cropped so that it could be seen. ;)
also. I just killed my bamboo plant... do you know how easy a bamboo plant is to care for?? The only care a bamboo plant requires is being refilled with water about once every three months! I think my skills in the gardening/plant growing area are non-existent... and it's kind of embarrassing! (but slightly humorous at the same time.)
1. London, England, and all the surrounding countryside. Seriously, with all the British Lit that I have read, and BBC movies I’ve watched, England has become a fascinating country, and I would love to take tours all over the lovely island. I would visit castles and gardens, and famous reformation landmarks, churches and cathedrals, coffee shops- lots of coffee shops, and tons of tiny cozy restaurants. I would go hiking and backpacking, and probably accidentally drive on the wrong side of the road. I would listen to the people around me talk and become more than slightly desirous of their accents, and probably accidently mimic them. I would peep at the Queen’s castle, and take pictures of Big Ben, and really I'd take tons and tons of pictures.
2. Italy Can I be 100% honest about this one? I think I would go to Italy for no other reason than to eat… Although, I had a lengthy conversation about traveling with my oldest brother a few years ago, and he insisted that I cannot travel to another country (Much less Italy!!) just to eat, and if I visit Italy I must do sightseeing and visit all the lovely touristy things as well. So I would duly visit the famous places, and I would love to travel the countryside as well, and maybe a vineyard or two. But I would be doing a lot of eating whilst “sightseeing.” :) Also, Gelato… I would eat lots of gelato ice cream. 3. India I have wanted to visit India for several years now. Ever since I first read a book or perhaps it was a documentary, about girls in the sex trade. I would love to go on a short-term mission to somehow either work with some of those girls, or orphans. I also have always wanted to touch and ride an Elephant, so India seems like they might have elephants, (maybe they don’t and I totally just embarrassed myself! :) But that would be pretty cool too. (ACTUALLY IT WOULD MORE THAN COOL IT WOULD BE TOTALLY AWESOME!! :)
4. Israel It would be fascinating and special to visit the Holy Land, and to see the places that Jesus lived, and walked, and taught. I've read about, and seen pictures of the great diversity of people and civilizations that are packed into the cities, and I would love the opportunity to people watch and observe. People watching is one of my favorite hobbies. ;) I would want to swim in the dead sea, and ride a camel and try Israeli food. I would want to visit the wailing wall, (I just typed whaling wall…) and visit many, many other historical and biblical sights. 5. Paris, France Ever since watching Funny Face, with Audrey Hepburn and Fred Astaire, I have wanted to visit Paris. I would climb the Eiffel tower, (not ride the elevator, I think. It would be much more impressive to climb.), and walk along the banks of the Seine. I would listen to the people speaking French all around me and wish that I had learned to speak it. I would eat snails, once, because why not, I'd be in Paris... I have to eat them, and then I would eat a lot of other delightful dishes.
6. Ireland oh, the Irish landscape. I want to walk along the cliff lines on the ocean and revel in the glorious views. I would hop from bed and breakfast to bed and breakfast and hike until I dropped. (not quite literally.) I would take pictures of sheep and look at the sea again. I think the sea is one thing I will never get tired of looking at. 7. Germany I don’t know off the top of my head what places I would visit, or what I would do, but I know there is so much history wrapped up in the cities and it would be amazing! It would be heavenly to listen to the Vienna Philharmonic. 8. Scotland - I feel like this one should be higher on the list. I would want to go everywhere and see everything and listen to accents and witness the highland games and just everything. :) 9. HawaiiTechnically not abroad, but it is over-a-sea. ;) I think diving in a warm ocean would be amazing and more than weird. But to see the colors and fishes and everything under the water would be stunning.
10. New Zealand um, I would totally travel here because of the accents, the accents and the accents. Also because of their gorgeous accents. Just sayin'. There's also the stunning landscapes and hikes. But mostly accents. ;)
That's it! I just want to travel everywhere and see everything!! :) What are some spots you've always dreamed of seeing?
I decided today was a favorite dress day. This one is twirly, polka-dotted and fun. The perfect pick-me-up for days when I feel less than great. I thrifted it a couple of weeks before valentine's day this year, for the swing dance I attended with my big brother. It is absolutely perfect to dance in, paired with my favorite pair of black pumps. :) It's also perfect for church, weddings, sunny days and everything in between. It's basically my equivalent of a LBD. :)
"We are called to be women. The fact that I am a woman does not make me a different kind of Christian, but the fact that I am a Christian does make me a different kind of woman. For I have accepted God's idea of me, and my whole life is an offering back to Him of all that I am and what He wants me to be."
..."so the woman who accepts the limitations of womanhood finds in those very limitations her gift, her special calling--wings, in fact, which bear her up into perfect freedom, into the will of God."
Worship is not an experience. Worship is an act, and this takes discipline. We are to "worship in spirit and truth." Never mind about the feelings, We are to worship in spite of them!"
I've been reading Let Me Be A Woman by Elisabeth Elliot all week, and my-oh-my... it's fabulous! I had tried to pick it up several times before, but hadn't been able to really get into it. But it's totally a God thing, because this book is exactly what I need to be learning/reading and it's answering so many questions I'm dealing with. I've always been a very strong personality. I've always believed that women are perfectly capable, that it's fine for them to attend colleges, and have careers, that women could be called to do anything. And I still believe that, (as long as it is the will of God, but that is true of men as well!). But Mrs. Elliot has helped me realize more fully that the woman's role in society, marriage, and life in general is absolutely beautiful, special, and unique and it is something to be fully embraced. It's not that we aren't capable as women, it's that we were created for something entirely different.
This morning I was able to join a group of girls, from my church and bible study, for coffee/breakfast and blueberry picking. It was wonderful to fellowship and great fun to pick berries together, something I'd never done before. I think some blueberry muffins are in order, and perhaps a cake or pancakes too. ;) They're incrudibally delicious. (Something about picking them yourself makes them way better than those bought from a grocery store. ;) The rest of the day has been spent running various errands, doing laundry, cleaning my room, babysitting Lydia, and packing for a trip I'm leaving on tomorrow. I just know I'm gonna end up packing way too much stuff. But I think I'm okay with that, because 'tis better to end up with to much rather than not enough, right? :)
+ sleeping in ('nuff said? :D ) + journaling + writing prompts + early morning walks + friends that make time to just chat + lists ;) + dancing until my feet hurt and I can hardly breath + gorgeous soundtracks + spending time with my brother and sister-in-law + hiking trips with friends + this song by my favorite instrumental group + vitamin d drops. (yes, they're my solution to not spending much time outside. lol) + black + white mochas + nice barista's. (seriously, there is such a difference between sweet baristas and people who hate their job and thus hate you...) + beautiful sunsets + watching Larkrise to Candleford again (made it past the first season this time. :) + warm, but not to warm, days + anticipating things + pepsi. (just sayin') + when brothers buy you caramel lattes!! :) + wearing my favorite dress + when it finally cools down at night + being busy + sunsets + planning a zoo trip with my bestie to see the elephants (!!!!)
This evening I ran out to take some photos of the sunset, and ended up attempting to take some pictures of my puppy, Jess. One of my brothers noticed that I was having a little trouble getting her to be still, (it's hard when her attention span lasts all of .32 of a second! jk #butalsonot!) So he started waving a stick above my head and gosh,that dog paid strict attention! But instead of epic dog pictures, like this one, or this one, I got classic Jess, and it turned into a hilarious shoot. (part of the hilarity was probably from the fact that I have had way too much coffee today, though. :) Jess is a complete sweetie, though, despite all her faults. (The biggest of which is her car chasing, and barking frantically up and down the fence every.single.time a car drives by.) She is great with kids, and loves to just sit and be with me. She also came into my life two weeks before the hardest weekend of my life. (moving to a place I did not want to live, and putting my horse down.) and that makes her even more special. Plus, we're perfect for each other. We make quite the klutzy, ditzy pair. (seriously, we both fall up and down the stairs regularly, trip over things, run into walls, fences, people... etc. ;) But I love my ridiculous, silly girl. :)
