Happy Birthday Alex and Carl
I cannot believe it.
I knew it would happen one day.
My baby -
my oldest child-
my child that I remember being place on my chest and him looking at me with those big brown eyes-
my child who gave Baba and Pop Pop their names-
my firstborn-
Alex is 16!!!!!
What?????
I have a 16 year old.
I do not feel like I have a 16 year old.
I am too young to have a child who is 16.
It is hard to realize that in 2 short years, he could be out of our house.
He could be in the military or in college or in culinary school or art school.
The world is open to him to figure out where God wants him.
He has been so blessed with talent. God has gifted him with a love for art and a love for cooking. I cannot wait to see where the Lord is going to lead him.
It is hard though because I feel like I have so much more to teach him. He cannot be getting ready to leave us. I need more time. I have wasted time.
But I serve a gracious and merciful God. A God who can redeem the broken efforts of a sinful mother and turn them into something that only he can do. A miracle. I know that the Lords has great things in store for Alex. I also know that the choices to follow God or walk away are Alex's alone. A long time ago I realized that taking the burden of my children's walk with the Lord was not mine to hold on to or worry about. The only thing that I am called to is to teach, train, admonish, demonstrate and love my children. Alex is his own person and therefore has to decide to follow the Lord where He leads. As much as I want to, I cannot force Alex to do anything. He has to desire to draw closer to the Lord. It is my job to teach him how to do that. That is all.
I know that God can work mighty things through Alex. I know this in my heart, but only if Alex desires to do them. My prayer is that Alex would draw closer to God more every day. I pray that he would be a man who recognizes the devastation of sin and tries every day to walk in a way that honors God. I will teach him as best as can how to do this as I am also on the journey to do the same thing.
Alex spent his birthday morning with his Dad. They went to IHOP where he had a huge serving of stuffed French toast. He said the rest of the day that he was on a sugar high,
In the afternoon he got to meet Baba and Pop Pop for lunch at the mall. We all ate at Panera. He wanted to go to the Cheesecake Factory but it was at the other end of the mall and he was hurting.
We went to Barnes and Noble afterwards and then to A.C. Moore on the way home. He got books, Lego's, pens, pencils, and a cool eraser. Baba also bought him some cool shirts. He received some new pants and a new jacket from me. The surprise gift was a new IPod Nano to listen to his Josh Groban and Piano Guys. A $50 iTunes card came with it.
That evening we were all tired so we met Carl and all the kids at Baba's house. We ordered chicken gorgonzola and white pizza from George's, Alex's favorite restaurant.
It was a busy day for all of us but he enjoyed it so much. We are planning on taking him to Great Wolf Lodge as his gift but the doctor says to wait a few weeks. I cannot wait!!!!
A 16 year old man. Wow!
I also celebrate the life of my sweet man. 43 years on this earth was "celebrated" last week. I say "celebrated" as all the kids were sick with the stomach bug and Carl had army duty. Talk about a bum deal. We did get a chance to go out to Red Robin a few days after his birthday, once everyone was well.
I pray that Carl would continue in his walk to draw closer to the Lord. I see the battle that rages between where he wants to be and the attacks of Satan. When any man makes a commitment to honor God and fix some problems in himself and his family, the attacks of Satan get fierce. I pray that Carl would continue to rely on God for his strength and grow more and more everyday. I am so thankful for a man who desires to walk close to God. I am proud of the sacrifices he has made so our family can go on this journey.
I know that there will be times that he falls into sin and so will I. I pray that the Lord will give me patience and strength to encourage Carl and be the helpmeet that he needs. I fail miserable sometimes but Carl is gracious to forgive those moments (sometimes days).
He has stood by me through so much, especially the loss of our dear Asa. It is hard for a man to understand the depth of sorrow a woman goes through when she miscarries a precious baby. He never got to feel the child growing inside of me or see our little Asa on the ultrasound. He had to stand by and watch me grieve and grieve hard at times. Times when I thought the despair and sorrow would consume me. It was then that this dear man called in the cavalry of women to come and surround me. Women who understood the pain and sorrow. Women who could do what he could not. Understand the loss. He stood by and held my hand as I was wheeled into the room to have the D&C. He took me home and loved on me. He took me away for a few days soon thereafter to recover and talk about our future.
It was that same weekend when we decided that change was necessary for our family. Change that would lead to us selling our house, buying an RV, and spending time building relationships with our God, each other, and our children. Not an easy decision for any man, but I am so glad we made that decision.
Most men would not and I am so proud of you for putting God and our family above all else in your life. I love you sweetie and cannot think of a better thing we could be doing at this time in our lives. Thank you for being on this crazy journey with me. We have grown so much and both desire to grow so much more. I will continue to encourage you in your walk with God and me and our kids. Thanks for all you do.
I knew it would happen one day.
My baby -
my oldest child-
my child that I remember being place on my chest and him looking at me with those big brown eyes-
my child who gave Baba and Pop Pop their names-
my firstborn-
Alex is 16!!!!!
What?????
I have a 16 year old.
I do not feel like I have a 16 year old.
I am too young to have a child who is 16.
It is hard to realize that in 2 short years, he could be out of our house.
He could be in the military or in college or in culinary school or art school.
The world is open to him to figure out where God wants him.
He has been so blessed with talent. God has gifted him with a love for art and a love for cooking. I cannot wait to see where the Lord is going to lead him.
It is hard though because I feel like I have so much more to teach him. He cannot be getting ready to leave us. I need more time. I have wasted time.
But I serve a gracious and merciful God. A God who can redeem the broken efforts of a sinful mother and turn them into something that only he can do. A miracle. I know that the Lords has great things in store for Alex. I also know that the choices to follow God or walk away are Alex's alone. A long time ago I realized that taking the burden of my children's walk with the Lord was not mine to hold on to or worry about. The only thing that I am called to is to teach, train, admonish, demonstrate and love my children. Alex is his own person and therefore has to decide to follow the Lord where He leads. As much as I want to, I cannot force Alex to do anything. He has to desire to draw closer to the Lord. It is my job to teach him how to do that. That is all.
I know that God can work mighty things through Alex. I know this in my heart, but only if Alex desires to do them. My prayer is that Alex would draw closer to God more every day. I pray that he would be a man who recognizes the devastation of sin and tries every day to walk in a way that honors God. I will teach him as best as can how to do this as I am also on the journey to do the same thing.
Alex spent his birthday morning with his Dad. They went to IHOP where he had a huge serving of stuffed French toast. He said the rest of the day that he was on a sugar high,
In the afternoon he got to meet Baba and Pop Pop for lunch at the mall. We all ate at Panera. He wanted to go to the Cheesecake Factory but it was at the other end of the mall and he was hurting.
We went to Barnes and Noble afterwards and then to A.C. Moore on the way home. He got books, Lego's, pens, pencils, and a cool eraser. Baba also bought him some cool shirts. He received some new pants and a new jacket from me. The surprise gift was a new IPod Nano to listen to his Josh Groban and Piano Guys. A $50 iTunes card came with it.
That evening we were all tired so we met Carl and all the kids at Baba's house. We ordered chicken gorgonzola and white pizza from George's, Alex's favorite restaurant.
It was a busy day for all of us but he enjoyed it so much. We are planning on taking him to Great Wolf Lodge as his gift but the doctor says to wait a few weeks. I cannot wait!!!!
A 16 year old man. Wow!
 |
| Being Silly |
 |
| We lovingly call this the vampire pose in our house. |
 |
| Just look at that dimple. Oh, my heart. |
I pray that Carl would continue in his walk to draw closer to the Lord. I see the battle that rages between where he wants to be and the attacks of Satan. When any man makes a commitment to honor God and fix some problems in himself and his family, the attacks of Satan get fierce. I pray that Carl would continue to rely on God for his strength and grow more and more everyday. I am so thankful for a man who desires to walk close to God. I am proud of the sacrifices he has made so our family can go on this journey.
I know that there will be times that he falls into sin and so will I. I pray that the Lord will give me patience and strength to encourage Carl and be the helpmeet that he needs. I fail miserable sometimes but Carl is gracious to forgive those moments (sometimes days).
He has stood by me through so much, especially the loss of our dear Asa. It is hard for a man to understand the depth of sorrow a woman goes through when she miscarries a precious baby. He never got to feel the child growing inside of me or see our little Asa on the ultrasound. He had to stand by and watch me grieve and grieve hard at times. Times when I thought the despair and sorrow would consume me. It was then that this dear man called in the cavalry of women to come and surround me. Women who understood the pain and sorrow. Women who could do what he could not. Understand the loss. He stood by and held my hand as I was wheeled into the room to have the D&C. He took me home and loved on me. He took me away for a few days soon thereafter to recover and talk about our future.
It was that same weekend when we decided that change was necessary for our family. Change that would lead to us selling our house, buying an RV, and spending time building relationships with our God, each other, and our children. Not an easy decision for any man, but I am so glad we made that decision.
 |
| Silly Daddy!! |
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| More Silliness! Really?????? |
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| A very rarer picture of the two of us. |
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| I love this man because he loves his children so much and for so many other reasons. |
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