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Going out to eat is great.  It means I don’t have to cook.  I don’t have to wash dishes, and those crumbs my boys drop on the floor, someone else sweeps them up.

Aside from the extra expense of eating out there is one major disadvantage.  I have a hard time deciding what to order.  I like to try new things, but hate the feeling I get when I order something or spend money on something I don’t like.  Ordering in a restaurant has always been difficult for me.  There’s always the chance that what I order won’t be as good as what I could have ordered.  I just don’t always know what I will like best or what is best for me.

Prayer is often the same.  I desire to see the Lord do something in my life, but is that the best or is there something better?  I want the Lord to use me, but am unsure of how.  I feel the Lord has a message He wants me to share, but I’m still not sure what it is.

But He is so good.  He has me covered.  He already knows what I need.  He already knows what’s best for me.  He already has a PERFECT plan for my life.  And I find rest and peace in that.

“Here’s what I want you to do: Find a quiet, secluded place so you won’t be tempted to role-play before God. Just be there as simply and honestly as you can manage. The focus will shift from you to God, and you will begin to sense his grace.

“The world is full of so-called prayer warriors who are prayer-ignorant. They’re full of formulas and programs and advice, peddling techniques for getting what you want from God. Don’t fall for that nonsense. This is your Father you are dealing with, and he knows better than you what you need. With a God like this loving you, you can pray very simply.

Matthew 6:6-8

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I’ve seen the pictures on Pinterest.  Cute little boys and girls lying on the ground with sidewalk chalk crowns drawn above their heads.  So when I saw one already drawn on the sidewalk I had to get a picture!

I asked Grande and Mediano, but both refused.  I thought surely Chico would cooperate better.  But he didn’t want the picture either.  This was the best one I got.

It was uncomfortable and hot on the ground.  The sun was in his eyes and he would much rather be playing with the other kids.

He didn’t want a sidewalk chalk crown.

He didn’t want to be a prince.

I get it.  There are times I would rather not wear my crown.  I’d rather blend into the crowd and society.  At times I’d rather do what others are doing, wear what others are wearing and not have to live to a higher standard.

Because to be honest, at times living as a daughter of the King can be uncomfortable, hot, and it can feel like the sun is in your eyes.  It would be so much easier to run and play like the rest of the world.  To not concern myself with the eternal and to forget for a while my royal heritage.

But living a life of holiness is what I was made for.  To bring honor and glory to my King through my life is what inspires me to get out of bed in the morning.

And although there may be an easier life out there, I was meant for that crown.  And I will wear it well, because it is my offering to Him and one day I will place it at His feet.

Whenever the living creatures give glory, honor and thanks to him who sits on the throne and who lives for ever and ever, the twenty-four elders fall down before him who sits on the throne and worship him who lives for ever and ever.  They lay their crowns before the throne and say:

“You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being.”

Revelation 4:9-11

Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.  Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – His good, pleasing and perfect will.

Romans 12:2

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Watch him go!  Chico conquered the climbing wall!  But in my eyes he’s still so small.

I can’t believe it.  He’s still not two and he’s running behind his brothers doing nearly everything they do!  When I left for the park I couldn’t have imagined he would be climbing that wall.

Because he is my baby.

But he’s a boy.  A child.  No longer an infant.  But it’s so hard for me to see that.  To accept it.  To let him run.

Keeping him tiny in my mind will not limit his potential or ability, but it could very well limit his success, influence, and mission.

He is capable of far more than I could ever imagine.  Far be it from me to be the one who holds him back and keeps him from fulfilling his God given purpose.

Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity.

1 Timothy 4:12

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#308 – 320

•   Come Drink Live 365
•   Mother’s day flowers picked from the neighbor’s yard

•   Bumble (our new dog)
•   getting kindergarten curriculum
•   a weekend of homeschool wisdom
•   writing
•   brunch with my boys
•   quiet
•   late night snacks

•   my husband cooking
•   a free crib for Chico

•   a singing fish
•   the tv not working

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My sweet little Chico has a new habit.  He brings me my slippers.  It’s so sweet and his little face seems to say, “Here Mami, put these on.  Get comfortable.  I want you around.  And I know you won’t leave if you’ve got your slippers on.”

For him home is where I am.  And he wants me with him.  He does what he can to please me and make me comfortable.  The last verse of Psalm 73 speaks about making God our home.

But what do we do to make Him comfortable?  Would He be comfortable in a place of praise or a place of complaining?  Would he want to be in a home filled with forgiveness or resentment?  Does He abide with the holy or the unrepentant sinner?

Let’s do something today to make the Lord comfortable and show Him we have made our home in His presence.

But I’m in the very presence of God-oh, how refreshing it is! I’ve made Lord God my home. God, I’m telling the world what you do!

Psalm 73:28

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#269 – 307

•  Mediano bringing me my glasses first thing in the morning
•   3 boys sleeping together in 1 room
•   thorns gone
•   fire truck fun
•   a toys r us giftcard
•   finished projects
•   a house becoming beautiful
•   fresh flowers
•   little boys in ball caps and diapers
•   babies back in cloth

• smoothies
•   my own space to work and write
•   Mediano’s the lorax voice
•   a new fancy doughnut shop right by our house
•   puzzles
•   bumblebee
•   butterflies
•   ladybugs
•   having a place to call “our park”
•   Chico singing to his Abuelito and cousin
•   a toddler in a sling

•   the boys’ “new” favorite chair
•   Mediano’s church classmate missing him now that he’s with the 3 year olds
•   making gifts for friends
•   celebrating a friend’s pregnancy
•   extra chairs
•   upward sports soccer

•   Chico conquering the climbing wall
•   a friend treating us to icecream
•   birds
•   my husband giving the boys their baths
•   cute shoes
•   my husband cheering on Grande’s soccer team
•   smoothies with avocado
•   homemade fraps

•   lifesize bumblebee parked on our street
•   playing in the rain
•   Grande playing with a friend he’s been asking for for a month
•   my boys playing with children from different cultures, backgrounds, and races

I may have mentioned smoothies twice this week.  But I’ve decided not to worry about multiples in my list.  Surely it’s not a bad thing to give thanks more than once.

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I am a mom of three boys.  I have a husband.  It’s simple math.  In our house I’m outnumbered.  This means when we watch a movie it’s usually a “boy movie.”  But I love a good romantic, sweet, girly movie from time to time and the Love Comes Softly series is one of my favorites.  I’ve read several of Janette Oke’s books and have seen most of the movies in the Love Comes Softly series snuggled on the couch with my husband after the boys are sleeping.  We both like them.  They are wholesome and moving.

Love’s Everlasting Courage is a prequel to Love Comes Softly and it’s coming out on DVD this week!

Keeping in line with the other Love Comes Softly books and movies, Love’s Everlasting Courage is a sweet, and at times sad story with the Christian faith woven into every strand of it’s fabric.  With themes of endurance and a trust in God it is encouraging and inspiring. There’s even a film companion with Biblical application and scripture to accompany the movie.  This would be great to use in a women’s group or other activity.  I can just imagine a room full of women with popcorn and chocolate enjoying this movie and growing in faith together through meaningful discussion after.  I may just have to invite a few of my friends over to do that.

Would you like to win a Love’s Everlasting Courage Prize Pack including the DVD and a set of Recipe Cards?

Enter Below!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclaimer:  Fox and Allied Faith & Family generously provided me with “Love’s Everlasting Courage” on DVD for review and two additional DVDs to give away.  Thanks Fox and Allied Faith & Family!  All opinions are my own.

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Someone’s crying.  My ear tunes in.  The three boys are in their room and I’m on the other side of the house.  But I know.  It’s Mediano.

That’s how things go when we are at home.  When it’s just us.  But here’s a little mom confession for you.  Things are VERY different when we are around other children.  When we are at the park or in a crowded noisy place, I no longer know who is crying, or if it is one of my children.  Unless I see their tears, I can’t discern their cries when they are surrounded by the voices of unknown children.

It is much the same with God.  When I’m in a quiet place.  When I’m listening only to Him.  I can hear clearly.  I can recognize His voice and respond.  I can walk firmly in the path He lays before me.

But when I begin to listen to other voices.  When I open my ears to the enemy.  When my mind is crowded with what other people say and think.  I can no longer recognize His voice with confidence.  Confusion sets in.

I need the quiet.  I need to hear Him.  I need to refuse to hear anyone else.

Lord, help me to tune out the world and tune in to You!

My sheep recognize my voice. I know them, and they follow me. I give them real and eternal life. They are protected from the destroyer for good. No one can steal them from out of my hand.

John 10:27-28