We went to Sam's. There, Bella did the sweetest, cutest thing ever. She put a quarter inside the red (Salvation Army) container to help the needy. As I sit here on my desk, I think that this has been a very satisfying day. Oh, one thing I almost forgot to tell you was that we went to Gigi's house after we left Sam's and we ate pizza and oranges (Cuties) and watched 3 (1 &1/2 hours)Teenage Mutant Ninja turtle shows. ~Bailey's pick (written by Bailey)
To have all of our family and friends over. ~Sam's pick
*Most of the pictures were taken with Gigi's camera but these are from my phone.
"Marriage can force us to become stronger people, because if we want to maintain a strong prayer life as married partners, we must learn how to forgive. We must become expert reconcilers. Friction will inevitably develop. Anger will surely heat up on occasion. So we must learn to deal with conflicts as mature Christians- or risk blowing off our prayer life in the process. Marriage forces us into the intense act of reconciliation. It's easy to get along with people if you never get close to them."
"To worship God throughout a lifetime requires discipline. Without discipline, our worship of God will be thin and inconsistent...Worship can't be diagramed or calculated, for it is the response of a heart in love with God. And yet, we also must be able to think of worship as a Discipline, a Discipline that must be cultivated just as all relationships must be to remain healthy and grow."
I never finished listing 1000 Gifts so I am enlisting help from the children! Livi and Cameron are contributing this time. Livi said she's thankful for family. Cameron specifically said he's thankful for Bailey. :) Yes, so thankful that we have each other as we strive to love, learn with, forgive, and accept each other, and grow together by God's grace.
I found these quotes from a blog post by Juana Mikels:
A careful woman I ought to be;
a little girl follows me.
I do not dare to go astray,
for fear she'll go the selfsame way.
Not once can I escape her eyes;
whate'er she sees me do, she tries.
Like me, she says she's going to be
that little girl who follows me.
I must remember as I go
Through summer sun and winter snow,
I'm molding for the years to be
that little girl who follows me.
~Author Unknown
"Relinquishment is always a part of the process of maturing. When Christian parents have done all that can be done to shape their children for God, the time comes when the hands must let go. The child, now a responsible adult, must be released. For any parent this is painful, even when the child is moving in the direction the parents prayed for. The child's continued development, and the spiritual health of the parents as well, depend on the willingness to accept this next stage of the cycle—hands off, ready to part without a struggle, giving up authority and control, entrusting that child to God
~Elisabeth Elliott
"There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under the heavens:
a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,
a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,
a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,
a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,
a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away..."
-Ecclesiastes 3:1-6
