Flowers

Like most women, few things put a smile on my face as quickly as fresh flowers.  Whether it be a simple bud vase by my sink, a fully bloomed Hydrangea bush, or a hand-picked bouquet of dandelions from one of my girls, flowers instantly lift my spirit!  I just love everything about them (with the exception of mums:))...their scent, their shapes, their unique colors.... You can't help but be inspired by and in awe of their designer!  Sure wish I had an eye like Him!!!

Conveniently enough, I happen to be very close to someone who runs a pretty close second when it comes to color, creativity and design.  My beautiful mother (more so on the inside but definitely a pleasure to look at as well) sure has a  knack for that!  In fact, one of my favorite reminders of her gift hangs right above Amelia's head every night!  Take a look...

A picture just doesn't do this objet d' art justice but it's origin sure does.  Mom made this just before graduating from The University of Alabama's school of Design.  I don't remember the whole design premise but up close you can see all the different types of stitches (done without a pattern) and it sure makes for an interesting and happy piece of work.  It hung in my grandmother's house before she passed and now (with the help of a new matte and frame), it hangs above Amelia's bed.  I just love greeting it each morning along with the beautiful blonde snuggled in below it.  Both brighten my day and make me blissfully aware of the beauty  found in relationships and creation!

Love bugs!

Morning romp around sissy's bed!  Amazing thing the picture still hangs on the wall....

**Disclaimer** Yes, you will see mums on my porch.  I just suck it up and bring 'em on when the options dwindle...  White pumpkins can make anything look better, right?

You are beautiful!

Red and Yellow...Black and White....

It is week 4 post-Peru and I am still wrestling over how to transfer these thoughts/feelings/emotions from my heart to this keyboard.  Clearly, I expected an outcome of this sort...but never this depth!  I had an inkling that if we were called to go and share Christ's love to 47 orphans in the middle of the Amazon jungle, then we had better be prepared for what He had planned to do in our hearts.  Boy, I should know better than to underestimate the I AM!  It's not that He just softened our hearts a little more or that He opened our eyes to things unseen.... For us, Heaven and Earth collided!  I felt HIS perfect...merciful...unconditional love pouring through my veins and out of my heart and for the first time, I truly grasped why God left his throne and dwelt among us.
"See what kind of love the father has lavished upon us, that we might be called CHILDREN of God; and so we are."  1 John 3:1
And so, 47 little Peruvian faces...faces abandoned by their families...faces unwanted by society...faces deemed worthless...broke my heart wide open.  These faces became 47 of HIS cherished children!  47 unique creations with stories, yes, even quite horrific ones, but also with hearts that feel and minds that dream just like ours.  47 faces that long to have someone hold them...long for someone to chase them...long for someone to say "They belong to me."  47 faces that yearn to have a family.  And while I still wrestle with the fact that Hunt and I couldn't be that to them, I rest in the fact that one day we will be...not on Earth but in Heaven.  For now, HIS love is sufficient...and HIS plan is sovereign.  So, to be used as a vessel, I am humbled and honored.  As a dear friend of mine said when sharing her pictures of Sudanese orphans, "Some of them we know their names, and some we do not.  The great news is that God does!"  They are God's children!  How BEAUTIFUL!
Take a look and see...

Red and Yellow, Black and White, they are precious in HIS sight.
Jesus loves the little children of the world!

Can a woman forget her nursing child, that she should have no compassion on the son of her womb?  Even these may forget, yet I will not forget you.  Behold, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands...
Isiah 49:15-16

Pure religion is this:  to look after orphans and widows in their distress...
and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.
James 1:27

A snap-shot at best, I know.  I plan to unwrap stories in posts to come but tonight I want to leave you with this question...
What if our lives counted for something greater than ourselves ?  What if we could be used in a mighty way to lift these orphans up, to love them, to care for them and to ultimately give them that which cannot be taken away?  Reel Life Adventures

You are BEAUTIFUL!

Our BEAUTIFUL Life

It's not all roses...it's often messy, hurting and confusing.  In fact, our life can be rather un-beautiful!  We live in a fallen world.  A world spinning about on it's own agenda, seeking it's own desires and pushing us further and further away from the very heart of the one who made us.  But...to him who made us, our life, our being, is undeniably BEAUTIFUL!  No we don't always act, think and feel BEAUTIFUL but He loves us still the same and longs to change us...to redeem us...to recreate us in His image...to turn an ugly caterpillar into a BEAUTIFUL butterfly!  Oh, the grace in that!  God hates the sin but loves the sinner.  What a BEAUTIFUL thing!!

THIS kind of love and mercy absolutely overwhelm me. And so, I feel compelled to stop and record all the ways He reveals HIS BEAUTY to us...all the blessings poured out on us....all the hope we can see through HIS creation.  Whether it be through crystal waters and sandy beaches,  a kind favor from a friend, a date with the hubbsters, an orphan's open arms or your toddler's dewey kiss, God's gifts make LIFE MORE BEAUTIFUL!  To relish in and praise the giver...that is my goal!

To that end, I will start with 2 of my nearest and dearest BEAUTIFUL blessings....

I'm sure to most of you reading this, these two need no introduction.  But to any unfamiliar eyes, here sit Amelia and Tillie...my two darling daughters.  This is one of my favorite pictures from summer as it is so rare to catch coordinating smiles on camera!  Much, much more goosh and many, many more pictures are to come but I wanted to leave you with these BEAUTIFUL smiles as we all head off to enjoy our Labor Day weekend!

You are BEAUTIFUL!