Remodel mess

We are in the middle of remodeling the kitchen/dining area. I use the term "we" loosely, since Brian is the one doing all of the work! However, I am left trying to care for a very busy little boy in the midst of a wrecked house. Remodeling the kitchen is different from all the other remodeling projects we have tackled. We have done two bedrooms, the office, and the master bath. With all of those rooms, we could close the door and keep the disaster area out of sight. Not so with the kitchen. You must go through our kitchen to get basically anywhere in the house. So, we regularly find ourselves tripping over power tools and painting paraphernalia and all sorts of other home repair stuff. Daniel does not understand why he can't check out all the "new" things crowding his space. In addition, cooking in the midst of the remodeling mess is not exactly fun. I keep reminding myself how wonderful it will be to have it done. To illustrate my point, see the photo below. Good bye, forty-year-old light fixture! Good riddance, dark paneling!

Ball popper woes

Look at my brave little boy. He is overcoming his fear of the dreaded ball popper! For Christmas, Daniel received the ball popper shown above. We brought it home, added batteries, and turned it on. Daniel immediately started crying and shaking. I had never seen him frightened like that before, so it surprised me. However, the ball popper kind of freaks me out too. When turned on, it emits a vacuum noise that slowly grows louder and louder. Circus music eerily plays in the background too. And then balls suddenly start shooting out of the top. Yep, definitely scary.
Anyway, we immediately turned off the toy and packed it away in his closet. About a week later, I had left the closet door open, and Daniel spied the ball popper. Instead of becoming upset, it was like he was irresistibly drawn to it. At first he just stood at the door of the closet and stared at it. Then, he became braver and touched it. A few minutes later, he had actually pulled it off the shelf and was inspecting it on the floor. I came and sat with him as he gave it a thorough going over. He even tried to turn it on! So, I sat him on my lap and flipped the switch. As the vacuum noise grew, I could feel Daniel tensing up in my arms. At his first cry, I switched the thing off and whisked it away. However, the next day, he was back after it again. So, we have settled into a nice arrangement. We never turn it on, but we give him the balls to put into the top, and he watches them roll down the shoot. It has actually become his favorite pastime.
Oh, my baby boy! He keeps us laughing and exhausted!

Praises!

This morning I fired up the iTunes and began listening to some praise music. "Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing" was one of the first songs to play:

Come, Thou Fount of every blessing,
Tune my heart to sing Thy grace;
Streams of mercy, never ceasing,
Call for songs of loudest praise.
Teach me some melodious sonnet,
Sung by flaming tongues above.
Praise the mount! I’m fixed upon it,
Mount of Thy redeeming love.

My heart was overwhelmed by the blessings God has poured on us this past year. What undeserved mercies and love He lavishes on His children. Here are some of our family's significant events from 2008:

February: Our precious son Daniel Scott was born, and our lives completely changed forever! He is the source of so much joy and laughter. Praise the Lord!


March: Brian's grandmother passed away. We thank the Lord for her life and her positive influence on her family. Brian has many fond memories of his grandparents, and they did much to shape him into the person he is today. During March, my grandfather also had open heart surgery. He has recovered completely and is back to his normal activities.

Summer: Brian's position changed at work. He now works primarily in the sales department, and we are blessed that he has a company truck to drive back and forth.


September: Daniel was baptized! The service was blessed, and our little man did incredibly well in front of the congregation. He was almost jovial!


November: We finally discovered what was causing Daniel's frequent hive outbreaks. He is allergic to peanuts and eggs, and also has mild allergies to milk and dogs. We continue to pray that he outgrows all of these allergies with time.

December: We celebrated our first Christmas with Daniel. Isn't the Santa suit adorable?

Puppy love

Daniel loves Annie. He laughs every time he sees her. He reaches for her, lunges toward her, tries to pet her. Annie, on the other hand, is what I would call tolerant of Daniel. Note her expression in the photo below. Somewhat pained.

One slight problem with this relationship is that Daniel tested positive for dog allergies. Since then, Annie has been living outdoors. With the cold weather, we have allowed her inside once again, but she is restricted to the linoleum floor. Daniel is delighted with this arrangement and constantly comes to "visit" her. We are thankful that he exhibits no negative reactions to being around her. No stuffy nose, no sneezing, nothing. Maybe there is hope for this friendship after all!

Christmas is coming!!!

Mr. Daniel is getting six new teeth all at one time. This makes for some short nights and sleepy parents! Otherwise, our little man is doing great. He is jabbering more and more. At the grocery store yesterday, he "talked" to just about everyone we passed! He is also very intrigued with putting objects inside cups and containers. He puts his pacifier in his cup, and then takes it out again. Over and over and over! For Christmas, we are giving him a shape sorter, which I think he will really enjoy. Oh goodness, I am looking forward to Christmas with Daniel. I cannot wait to post photos of him in his Christmas outfit. Lots of laughs are in store!
When I decorated for Christmas this year, I had to make some minor adjustments. For example, we did not put up our normal 7 foot tree. Instead, we put our little 3 foot tree on a table. This saves me from constantly protecting Daniel and the ornaments from one another. However, he can still reach the cord for the lights, but so far we have avoided any tree catastrophes.

New Favorite

Song to the King by Pocket Full of Rocks

I've felt the thunder
speak of Your name
And I've watched the lightning
Your glory proclaim
I've gazed upon mountains
that testify of Your fame
And I've heard the waves on the ocean
echo their refrain

Chorus
This is my song, my song to the King
And I stand in awe of Your majesty
And I don't have much
but I give everything
This is my song, my song to my King

It seems all creation
is longing for You
From here to the farthest star
they're worshipping You
And who am I God
that You are mindful of me
I'm simple in heart, simple in song
I'm a small offering
(Chorus)

And all of creation hesitates now
All of the angels
stop singing now
As the King of all glory
listens to my song
(Chorus)

Righteousness

The Lord has been speaking the same message to me for several days now. It has to do with righteousness…with fulfillment…with joy. The verse in my devotional this morning sums it up nicely.

Galatians 3:3
Are you so foolish? Having begun in the Spirit, are you now being made perfect by the flesh?

I have been walking with the Lord for quite awhile. And still…still I try to create righteousness for myself with my own two hands. It never works. It never will work. So why do I, and most everyone in this world, keep trying?

Here is how it affects me. I am a perfectionist. I feel fulfilled and satisfied when everything around me is organized, put away, finished. I have this constant drive to “get things done.” I love marking things off my to-do list. Now, perhaps these traits are not bad in and of themselves. But, what I find so tempting is to place my happiness and self-worth on these very external, worldly things. And I can NEVER get everything done or have everything just exactly as I want it. My to-do list is never complete.

At our prayer group last week, my mom said the most profound thing. I knew it was straight from the mouth of God when she spoke it. She said that God does not want us resting in a righteousness that is not His righteousness. Ahhh…righteousness. My only righteousness comes from being washed clean by the blood of Christ. It most certainly does not come from having a clean house, organized closets, perfect relationships, etc.

My dear cousin Melody wrote something in her blog several months ago that really spoke to this phenomenon. She said, “It doesn’t have to be just so, for it to be so sweet.” Life (like my house) is not neat and tidy. Praise God that our joy does not rest on circumstances being perfect. True joy and peace come only from following Jesus. Ahhh...what a relief!