Fun at the Pumpkin Patch

This year we took Mason to Joan's Farm in Livermore again. Only this time he was walking. It was so much fun watching him explore and feed the farm animals. Not so much fun were the meltdowns he displayed when he couldn't go the way he wanted to go. That boy is a stubborn one. Now I know how my mom felt when I threw my tantrums. It's getting incredibly difficult to get a good picture of him because he rarely stops and when he does he doesn't look at me because he's too busy with whatever captured his interest to make him stop in the first place. I did manage to capture a few cute shots of the back of his head....

The Father's Love

"Because of the LORD's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness." ~ Lamentations 3:22-23

So often, I beat myself up because I feel like a failure as a Christian or I remind myself of all the things I do wrong or of all t he times I get wrapped up in myself.  The truth is many days I get caught up in living my life my way and don't stop to consult God on how He would want me to live that day or in that moment. I forget that I'm only here to live my life for him and my only purpose is to worship Him and bring Him glory. Now that doesn't mean God doesn't continue to bless me with things I enjoy or with meaningful relationships. Quite the contrary. You can't out give God. It does mean that I need to remember all of this belongs to the One who created it. On many occasions, I fail to do this and I feel like I'm a big disappointment to God. I tend to want to lump all my shortcomings and faults into one huge pile and think about how terrible I am and how much I don't deserve to know God. The reality though is that none of us do, but He wants to know me....and you. How amazing it is to know that the King of kings, and Lord of lords, the Alpha and Omega, the Creator of the whole universe, knit me together in my mother's womb. He knows my weaknesses and my strengths and loves me all the same. 

I have learned so much as a mom about God's immeasurable love for us. And even what I've learned doesn't even come close to understanding it fully. But when I think of Mason even at this young age and the times he disobeys me, I don't love him any less. I have to remember that even though I mess up everyday, God too doesn't love me any less. I am His child. His forgiveness, mercy, and grace cannot be measured. Thank you Lord Jesus for taking my place at the cross so that I could become a new creation and a child of God. For His compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.

Puzzle Pieces

"Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations. ~ Jeremiah 1:5

When I was younger I used to love putting puzzles together. To accomplish this you must first look at the whole picture. Next you put down the corners. After that come the outer edge pieces of the puzzle. And finally you fill it in by grouping certain colors and patterns together until you have the final, completed picture.

This, to me, is like our Christian walk. God knew me before I was born. He knew who I would become and He has a plan for me, "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future." ~ Jeremiah 29:11  He sees the whole picture and He is putting the pieces of MY puzzle together. "...being confident of this, that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus." ~ Philippians 1:6   To complete my puzzle, God knows what pieces need to be placed first. Things may happen in my life that I don't understand the reason for. But God knows. He knows that ultimately, in the end, it is a part of the puzzle. A part of the whole picture that He ultimately ordained. And this piece must be placed in a particular order to make me complete. My puzzle won't be completed until I see Him face to face on that day, but oh what a glorious day it will be to see the whole picture and to finally see the One who completed it.

Time to put our house in order, literally

Today I was finally putting all of our laundry away (almost done), and I decided to rearrange some of my clothes in my closet because I noticed the rack, or whatever it's called, was sagging in the middle. Had no idea it would lead to such problems. After I had moved 1/3 of my clothes over to a different rack I saw that the rack had ripped away from the wall in all the spots except for the ends. So we're talking about 4 screws here. So I've decided it's time to simplify and organize my home which I think that will actually lead to less stress. I hate clutter. It makes me crazy, but somehow I can't get away from it. I need like a month vacation just to work on this to get finished. I had already put a bunch of clothes in bags headed for Goodwill and it doesn't look like I even made a dent in my closet. I think what happens is there's a certain fullness I've come to expect in my closet and when it gets a little empty I go and fill it up again with new clothes! Not very bright.

So since I don't have a month to take off from being a mommy, I'll just have to work at it a little at a time and work on one room to the next. I need to hang some things and paint too. I really don't like the paint I have downstairs and have contemplated changing it, but I'm not sure I can stomach the cost. It's not just the cost of the paint, but two new rugs. Rugs that I purchased from Pottery Barn (my favorite store by the way). I wish I could live there and fill my house with all their merchandise. The rugs were on sale, but even so. I don't think I could even do it through e-bay, especially since I want a new camera really really really bad. We'll just have to see. The colors make me feel even more cluttered. It's very warm looking which is nice, but I've learned that I really love cool tones. I think I'm more afraid of changing it and hating it. 

Maybe I should start the organizing process first....

New way to paint your nails

Mason has been doing lots of funny things lately.

A couple of weeks ago I was reading my Baby Center e-mail. In the e-mail it said that a toddler Mason's age may begin to take off their shoes, socks, clothes, diaper, etc. I read it and thought to myself, Mason's not really showing any signs of that. Later that day I went upstairs to get him after unsuccessfully trying to get him to nap. As I opened the door I saw him standing in his crib naked! He had taken his diaper off instead of falling to sleep. As I walked in to get him he peed all over his mattress! I thought it was hilarious. I guess I have to make sure he doesn't go down for his nap with only his diaper on.

Then Saturday, I was getting ready in my bathroom where Mason was playing underneath my feet. He was taking everything out of my bottom drawer. I started to smell something strange and looked down to see nail polish all over the floor! He had dropped a nail polish bottle and it broke. He was smearing his hands all over the nail polish while holding a piece of broken glass! I grabbed him and tried to wash off as much as possible, but just ended up getting it all over my hands as well and all over my sink. In the end I had to use all of my polish remover to get it off. I'll have to move the rest of the bottles somewhere he won't be able to reach or put a lock on the drawer.

In other news, Mason has started clapping. Hooray!

To my sweet baby boy

I love that you come and sit on my lap when we read or throw the ball for Cayda.

I love that you get excited to eat fruit.

I love that you have a sparkle in your eye when you smile.

I love when you're tired and you come rest your head on me.

I love hearing you laugh when you play with Cayda.

I love that you come to me for comfort.

I love watching you sleep.

I love that you are curious about everything, yet still cautious.

I love when you look at me when you know you're about to do something you're not supposed to.

I love watching you splash in the bathtub.

I love being your mom.

I love you for who you are and I always will.

A boy and his watermelon

Mason loves fruit. I wanted to try to get some pictures of him and since he has this passion for fruit, I thought I would bribe him with it in order to get him to sit still. The problem is he gets so focused on eating it he won't look at me. I never realized "the way to a man's heart is through his stomach" started this early! Here are some of the shots I did manage to get. I think the one where it looks like he's playing a flute is so funny.