Joyfull Living

What a great week we had at camp! A few mornings, I took my camera out at sunrise and captured a few images. There were over 130 children there along with adults. In my cabin, there were 8 girls and 6 women counselors. There were 4 bunk beds and 2 double beds. Let's just say we were packed in like sardines! It was a delightful challenge having all those girls and women together under one roof! We were all different, some quiet, some loud, some young, some older, some night owls, some morning larks! But the best part is appreciating and enjoying our differences. It was truly a great week. Oh, and as much as I tried to prepare for girls, I found out one other way girls are different than boys...they can't "hurry". Boys, I have noticed are constant motion, they talk fast, they walk fast, they never sit still. In our camp schedule, many times during the day we had to be from one place to another in 15 minutes - complete with clothes change and needed materials for the ne...

Our family will be attending children's church camp this week. I along with a few other women from church will have a cabin of girls under our care. This is the third year now of doing and I have had a great time each year. However, I have learned a few things. As a mother of all boys, boys can be relativley simple. For dressing, they just slap some clothes on, put a cap over their head and they are ready to face the day. They like to be moving, like action, horseplay and fun. The first year at camp with a cabin of girls, I was astonished at the amount of time it took to do...anything! First they had to find their clothes - the right clothes - then they sat down awhile and "chat" or play those slap games. Finally as we were at the door ready to leave, they needed to do their hair. This I learned can take up to 1/2 hour! So now that I have a better idea of what to expect with my girls, we are ready for camp. If you think about it, please pray for the camp, that al...

Today is Wednesday and one of my favorite things about Wednesdays is sharing God's Word with pictures. Over at 160 AcreWoods where WFW is hosted, there are many beautiful verses to see. As I was searching for a verse this one seemed to capture my heart. Recently I have been studying Proverbs and paying close attention to the blessings it reveals. Also this has been a week where I have been blessed to celebrate Father's Day and our wedding anniversary. So, to bring it all into focus, I am truly blessed to be married to a man filled with integrity, who fathers his children with purpose and direction, teaching and guiding them with love and sincerity. As the fruits of his labor unfold through the years, we are trusting God's blessings in the lives of our children that they will be blessed. Thanks be to God for his blessings and promises. Have a great WFW !

June has always been a bittersweet time of the year for me. In June there are happy and sad anniversaries, pretty close together. In 1989 as my wedding was being planned for June - my father died suddenly - eight days before my wedding. The day after my wedding, was Father's Day. Through the years, God's comfort and strength being ever near, I realized how only God can take a tragic time filled with grief and loss and transform lives with hope, peace and joy. There was a choice to be made back in 1989 - to sit in despair or move forward. My family chose to move forward, and the very next step for us was a wedding and the beginnings of a new family. Of course I miss my father deeply and treasure the memories shared with him. He instilled a lot of knowledge and wisdom of life into me and unconditionally shared his love with me. As I took the new steps of a new life with my new husband, I look back over the years and say that I am blessed beyond measure! God gave me...

The IDEAL Man of God and father would be? A man who loves the Word of God and Loves the Lord with all his heart and all his soul and all his mind. He would love his wife like Christ loves the Church. He would love his family UNCONDITIONALLY and would ".... provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord." ~Ephesians 6:4~ In our home, we are blessed beyond measure to have a dad who is the true head of the home and family. A dad who is filled with integrity, faith and love. We love him very much and appreciate all that he is and all that he does for us. With the help of my sister in law Danell, we have compiled almost 20 years of photos which capture a true father's heart. We love you Dad!!!

Is there anything more sweet than simple pleasures? Things like a boy with his Legos... Or a dad with his grill.. May you find joy today in the simple things of life!

Happy Wednesday! Today is Word-Filled Wednesday over at 160 AcreWoods . It is a time of sharing God's Word through pictures and verses. Today my verse is a reminder that nothing is impossible with God. Sometimes that thought is hard to grasp, but the living Word tells us that the things that are impossible with man, are possible with God. So, that is where I will choose to put my faith - in the Everlasting God with whom all things are possible! May you have a blessed day!