A Pajama Mama

I'm all about free Kindle books. I usually skim the description but more closely read customer reviews. My latest five-star free read is "Sifted: God's Scandalous Response to Satan's Outrageous Demand" by Rick Lawrence. During an emotionally-charged couple of hours yesterday afternoon, I jerked my kindle out of my bag and started reading Sifted...mostly so my mouth and brain would be otherwise occupied and not tempted to say what I was thinking....which wasn't very kind, gentle, necessary, or who I am, for that matter. "The names we embrace are the names we become, therefore, we're in desperate need of a good name." And the people around me that afternoon were in desperate need of hearing good names, good words....not the angry mama-bear words bumping around in my head. The author told of a movie called Validation...a 16 minute film that does a brilliant job summing up what we have learned over the years...call out, call forth the good, cal...

13 years ago, Father sent to this earth a one-of-a-kind creation...our boy. I prayed he'd have brown eyes like his daddy but they were blue. They were blue until he was two....then slowly turned to the same melty caramel brown eyes that his daddy looks through. Through the years, I have realized that he has more than just his daddy's eye color....but he sees the world through the same eyes as his daddy does. He has heart vision....gazing at things through a filter of compassion, kindness, and tenderness, with the most precious heart. Just like his earthly daddy. And his Heavenly Daddy. He has had his share of struggles. They've made him stronger and more compassionate to others. Only Father knows what path our boy will take, what profession he chooses, but I can say with confidence that he will touch people's hearts with his kindness and compassion, he will cheer folks up with his cheerfulness and cornball humor, he will encourage those around him with his gen...

Around 1500 years ago, a young British teen was kidnapped by Irish Raiders and forced into slavery in Ireland. Six years later, he escaped and returned to his home in Britain. This young man became a Christian and took the Christian name of Patrick. Through a vision/dream (as it's told), the Lord put it on his heart to return to Ireland as a missionary. He did just that....sharing the love of Christ and building schools and church buildings. Did you catch that? Just in case you missed the point....Patrick RETURNED TO IRELAND...the place where he was enslaved for 6 years. Could I do that? You? By the 8th century, he was a patron saint of Ireland. March 17 is believed to be the date he died. Irish Catholics began celebrating this day in the 17th century. Irish-Americans introduced the celebration of St. Patrick's Day on American soil during Colonial times. Most believe it to be legend that St. Patrick drove snakes out of Ireland. Some believe it was symbolic of him driving pag...

We spent New Year's Weekend at the beach with our sweet friends. After a fun New Year's Eve celebration with fireworks, blow horns, noise makers, fun hats, PFChangs, cheesecake and sparkly juice in plastic wine glasses, we started New Year's morning together reading The Word and spending some time in prayer. As each person took their turn praying about the fresh, new year, a picture began to form in my mind. The little girls had spent the weekend skating on the sidewalks. I pictured Little C in full skate gear. Helmet, elbow pads, gloves, knee pads. She had her rollerblades on and was poised to take off skating...headed down into the depths of a canyon, completely obscured by a blanket of thick, gray fog. As I pondered the foggy canyon and the fully-padded skater girl, the symbolism...the meaning...became perfectly clear. Little C in her pads represents all of us in our spiritual armor. The Full Armor of God, spoken of in Ephesians 6. The canyon, foggy and path uncle...

Tonight, we watched the Little Drummer Boy together. Below, you will find a repost of my own Little Drummer Boy story from a year ago. Have a blessed Christmas! " Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. Matthew 5:8" That's how the 1968 version of "The Little Drummer Boy"show ends. I'm sure you've heard the song....and you probably saw the tv show as a child. The storyline goes like this....a little orphaned drummer boy and his animal friends follow three kings and a really bright star across a desert. The Little Drummer Boy finds himself at a stable where a newborn baby has just been born and a crowd of shepherds have gathered, along with the three kings. Just as the Little Drummer Boy begins to make his way to the manger, a chariot runs over his little beloved lamb. With a huge tear in his eye, he approaches one of the Three Wise Men and asks him to save his dying lamb. This king told him the lamb was dying and he could do nothing...

Elf is one of our favorite, cheesy Christmas movies. Some people in our house have already watched it THREE times this season...and it's not even December quite yet!! So, I was so excited to find this free printable on Pinterest. I printed it out, put it in a cute aqua frame, added a sparkly snowflake and placed it in a prominent spot in our kitchen.  You can get yours here at LessCakeMoreFrosting.com . A sweet friend is also offering a free printable with this same quote on her site that is absolutely DARLING!!!  Look HERE . The best way to spread Christmas cheer is  singing loud for all to hear!!  The music of Christmas! Let the singing begin!!! Joy to the World!