the island of misfit pictures

The pink cheeks, the sweaty hair, those dark thick eyelashes...oh Zoe, I could eat you up I love you so.

If he only knew how many times those eyes (and dimple) have saved his life...if he only knew.

Sweetness with a side of sweetness...I love how he always cocks his head to the right in photos.

Found this on Ella's desk one day this week. This girl is so my daughter in her list making abilities...but I could learn a lot from her heart.

Why paint paper when you can paint seashells?!

dry bones

I'm not gonna lie here...my motivation and creativity are in a dry spell.

I can't put my finger on the exact why of it?

Perhaps it is the remaining 4 days of school, or that I've been nannying extra days lately, or all the photos I've been editing every spare minute I have? All this extra has left little room for white space...and white space is my re-feuler of creativity and motivation.

All I know for sure is that I just feel blahh.
Boring.
Un-inspired.

Which isn't normal.
And I don't like it.

But, I've learned that in all things there is a certain cycle...dry spells don't last forever.

So, I'll wait.
And try not to feel bad about it.
And watch my kids, who are never lacking in motivation or creativity.

These were taken at Hanna Beach, Florida during our recent trip...

Ezekiel 37: 1-6

The hand of the Lord was on me, and he brought me out by the Spirit of the Lord and set me in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones. He led me back and forth among them, and I saw a great many bones on the floor of the valley, bones that were very dry. He asked me, “Son of man, can these bones live?”

I said, “Sovereign Lord, you alone know.”

Then he said to me, “Prophesy to these bones and say to them, ‘Dry bones, hear the word of the Lord! This is what the Sovereign Lord says to these bones: I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life. I will attach tendons to you and make flesh come upon you and cover you with skin; I will put breath in you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the Lord.’”

thursday thoughts (on Saturday)

**I originally wrote this yesterday but never posted it because I never got around to finding time to add the pictures in, but I'm just going for it today...edited for a day later and still with no pictures.**

I have 6 (5...) more days till our school year is over.
Done.
Stick a fork in it.

Yesterday (two days ago...) I went to the NC Homeschooling Conference in Winston-Salem with a friend. We took in a session, walked around like deer caught in headlights at the book fair, bought a cow eyeball to dissect with the kids (because when in your life are you given the opportunity to buy a cow eyeball to dissect for only $2.25?!), and generally had a good time. I am excited to plan out next years school, which is a big deal seeing as how we still aren't quite finished this year! I will "officially" be teaching all 3 big kids next year...whew.

Zoe started talking A LOT this week. 90% of it is still unintelligible,  but she will talk and talk and talk, making good eye contact, and talk and talk and talk. Heaven forbid you break eye contact and try to do something like wash a dish if she wants to talk to you. It's possible I have overkilled it on taking a video of it, but it is so stinking cute. So. stinking. cute.

Jeremiah and I have a date tonight. So. stinking. excited. (It was last night and it was great...)

We still don't have our van back yet. Probably not till next week. We are very thankful that we've been able to borrow a van from family so that I haven't been stuck at home all this time.

Our vegetable garden is doing amazing! This is our first attempt at raised bed vegetable gardening and so far I am really excited with how well it is coming along. I ate our first ripe cherry tomato out of it this week.

We are getting a dog.
The kids are over the moon.
I am kinda excited-nervous. I like dogs, I grew up with dogs, I want my kids to have the experience of caring for a pet, but there are still a lot of unknowns...we travel a lot, I hate dog hair, the expense. We shall see...

We are completely out of coffee, milk, and down to only 2 diapers.

Guess that means I have to go to the grocery store...now! (Jeremiah went for me, ha!)

Happy Friday! (Saturday!)

ten

We celebrated a month early in Jamaica, but today is officially our 10 year anniversary.

Today there will be no outward celebration as it is just normal life happening.

Inside, I am celebrating and reflecting on the 2nd best day and decision I ever made in my life.

The day I spoke my vows we had so carefully written out:

I choose this day to deny myself for you,
to commit my heart and my eyes to you alone,
to support, encourage, and to love you,
in good times, in bad times, in rich times, in poor times, in sickness and in health.
I will challenge you to be God's best.
I will work to be God's best for you.
I will love you unconditionally.
This is my covenant with you and my God.

For Christmas Jeremiah had our vows printed and professionally framed and it hangs on our fireplace mantel. I love the constant reminder of the words we spoke to each other.

Especially after this past year...

This was the year where I figured out what everyone meant when they told me that "marriage takes work". Up until this year there was no work involved. Or at least any real work. And not to pretend that it was a horrible or terrible year for us...it was just the year where we both realized that to keep our marriage healthy it was going to take a lot of intentionality and a return to sacrificially serving each other. You know, work.

And so, Jeremiah Hambrick, to borrow a line from a favorite song...I don't have a choice, but I still choose you.

10 years, 4 kids, 3 churches, and 4 moves later...the best years of my life have been with you.

Happy Anniversary, I love you.

______________________________________________________________________________________

p.s.

My top ten reasons why being married to Jeremiah Hambrick is grand:

10) He is his own person. He doesn't follow a trend (skinny jeans, tattoo's, etc...) just for following a trends sake. Ever. I love that about him.

9) He is an amazing cheerleader. He has always been my biggest fan and makes me feel like I can do anything.

8) Whatever he is involved in, is better for it because of his creative contribution.

7) He leads me and our family. Gentle yet strong leadership...and he is worth following because I know who he is following.

6) He is fun. Really fun. Laugh out loud fun. And funny. It was the one quality that first attracted me to him all those years ago. And he hasn't lost it. I still have more fun with him than anyone else.

5) He is best Daddy of the world material. He can stick asparagus up his nose at dinner time and completely wrap his face up with tape to be silly with his kids...but within the same hour he is lovingly shepherding their hearts. He rubs backs and makes up stories and cleans up vomit and disciplines with control and shares the Word through silly made up songs. I could go on and on.

Washing feet during Holy Week.

One of his finer moments.

4) He is aging really well. I tell him all the time that I truly think he is more handsome today than the day I married him. And I'm still jealous of his shapely legs, wasted on a man, I tell ya.

3) He is teachable. I've never met a man more teachable. And I don't mean that he is weak and a pushover. I mean that I have seen over and over and over how he has allowed the Holy Spirit to move in his life. I have seen how he responds when I tell him he has hurt my feelings or did something I didn't like. He doesn't instantly bristle and get defensive. He listens. He examines his heart. He is quick to apologize. I have learned a lot from him through this quality.

2) He treats everyone well. The waitress, the gas station attendant  the CEO, the dying Haitian widow. You will never be embarrassed by how he treats someone if you go out with him. He overtips, overpays, and mows the neighbors lawn.

1) This one is going to come across as narcissistic, but oh well: He adores me. I know he adores me. I catch him looking at me sometimes and I can see it in his eyes. I have never once felt jealous of another woman in his life because I know he adores only me.  I realize what a gift that is for me, a wife, to say about my husband. It gives me a glimpse of the way God looks at me.

the trouble is, you think you have time...

We had our van transmission blow up on the way to Florida a for a family wedding last week.

One minute we are driving along...kids are engrossed in a movie, Jeremiah is listening to a podcast, and I am actually asleep...

And the next minute...

Smoke.
Revving.
Stranded.

While it was a traumatic event for us, no one was hurt (besides our savings account!), and everything turned out ok.

I was struck with the suddenness of how quickly things can change, and how things can go from good to bad...just like that.

And then I watched the news about the tornado in Oklahoma.

For so many people, their entire lives were changed...just like that.

I realize I can't, we can't, live our lives fearing the worst...and that it just isn't practical to go throughout the day "making the most" of every single second with our kids. I mean it is just reality that bottoms need to be wiped and dried cheerio's scraped off the floor. There's no need to over-spiritualize those moments, ha!

However, only good things happen when I don't assume that I will always have the time.

There won't always be the time...

for playing tea party with my 7 year old,
for making egg carton ants with my crafty 5 year old,
for sitting and watching The Blue Elephant with my movie buff 6 year old,
and playing "gonna getcha" with my wild 21 month old.

The trouble is, I think I have the time...

But I'm not guaranteed another second. And neither are you.

brothers from another mother (but of the same Father)

My boys are almost exactly 6 months apart in age. 

And for the the 1st six months that they lived in the same house, I honestly wasn't sure they would both make it. I had moments where I wondered what I had been smoking to think that it was a good idea to have two boys so close in age. Neither one liked each other. Neither one was happy about their new family arrangements.

Until about 6 months in.

Then it was like something sort of clicked for both of them. I think they had finally resigned themselves to the fact that neither one of them was going anywhere, so why not join forces to overtake the family?!

Ever since that six month mark, they have been brothers and buddies and truly the best of friends. Yes, they fight sometimes and they get mad at each other...and then they promptly apologize by some unknown (to me) ritual of unspoken words and shrugs and grunts and slaps on the back...and all is right in their little circle. 

I now wonder what I had been smoking to think that I wouldn't have wanted two boys so close in age.

__________________________________________________________________________________

As of May 6, 2013 my boys now share something even more awesome than a last name...they share a Heavenly Father. Jeremiah got to lead them both (in the living room after some intense dinner conversation) to start their journey of following Christ.

Not only brothers by adoption, but brothers by The Adopter.

You haven't received the spirit of slaves that leads you into fear again. Instead, you have received the spirit of God's adopted children by which we call out, "Abba! Father!" 

Romans 8:15

on this day for Mother's

I have a long love/hate relationship with mother's day.

I've written about it a time or two.

However, I'm not going to repeat myself yet again.

Instead, today...

• I am full of thoughts for Eli's first momma. His Emaye. She is never far from my heart. 
• I am full of thoughts for my sweet Myla in heaven. I would have loved to have known her, but I'm so grateful that she is hanging with Jesus till I get there.
• I am full of thoughts for dear friends who long to be a momma. This day is just hard.
• I am overwhelmed with thoughts of gratefulness for the three women that had the influence of a mom in my life. Three passionate Godly women who have poured into me and shown me what it means to be a Jesus follower, and how that is fleshed out in a daily life.

But mostly, I am full of thoughts of the beauty of my four blessings and how proud I am to be their momma...

Happy Mother's Day!

life

Just plain ol' life this week.


No trips.
No cheesecake.
No tropical sunshine.

But who needs that when you've got moments like these...

I'll take it.

Jamaica, part three

Last one, I promise.

At this stage in our lives with the kids and work and life in general...when we were planning our trip we looked into a lot of possible destinations...and settled on one where we wouldn't feel like we needed to spend the entire trip doing things, sightseeing, etc. I'm so glad we made made that decision, because I most enjoyed just relaxing with my hubby all week.

I read 3 books, utilized the resort gym, took naps in the sunshine, had loooong uninterrupted times in the Word, watched movies, snorkled, went windsailing, watched my hubby play water polo against a bunch of Jamaican's, enjoyed the resort nightly entertainment (they had a steel drum band one night that was a.ma.zing!), took numerous walks on the beach, and just enjoyed doing "nothing."

With that said, every person who heard we were going to Jamaica told us to go to Dunns River Falls. Every person. And so we did...

We took a cruise over to the falls and spent a few hours there and then snorkeled at a nearby reef.
It was worth it!

I decided that Jeremiah is still my favorite person to do things with. We had so much fun together throughout the week...man, I love that man! I'd rather do "nothing" with him than anything else with anybody else.

Time to start saving again for the 20 year anniversary!

Jamaica, part two

Ok, now that we got the pretty pictures out of the way...

It is very very possible that I had a slice of cheesecake and a latte every.single.afternoon. Very possible. It is also very very possible that I am missing this indulgence now that I have returned to reality more than any other indulgence.

Again, with the latte...

The next collage of pictures requires some explanation.

You see, I've been known to watch an episode or two of American's Next Top Model (terrible show, don't really watch it...ahem) and I have learned a thing or two about modeling, ya know.

It's all about the angles and working the light.

Who ever said watching television doesn't teach you anything?!

And now for a few non-picture observations of the week:

• Drunk people are very entertaining to watch. And enforce the decision to never get drunk myself.
• Sex is way better at the 10 year mark than on the honeymoon.
• Jamaicans are very  happy to offer you weed. Or maybe we just give off the weed-smoking persona?
• People from other countries are generally more fascinating than Americans. Or maybe it's just the accent that makes what they are saying sound so much more fascinating?
• Sex is way better at the 10 year mark than on the honeymoon.
• I will never understand the European bathing suits for men. Never.
• Just because you can wear a bikini does not mean you should. Same goes for the above mentioned European bathing suit for men...aka: Speedo. 
• Sex is......ok, ok.....you get the point, ha! 

Part three coming tomorrow.
And then I promise I'm done and you can stop hating me for making you jealous.

snapshot: Play Hard. Crash Hard.

Jamaica, part one

For the record, I did not saturate the colors in these photos.
Jamaica really is this colorful and beautiful...

 

Yeah, it was pretty much ridiculous awesome.