Saturday, January 30, 2010

This year I changed




I was painting the bathroom yesterday, reflecting instead of paying attention to what I was supposed to be doing! (Now I'm thinking a discreet quarter round will look nice between the ceiling and the wall.) I was thinking about what an eventful year this last one has been. I know I'm supposed to have been thinking about that long before now, but things have been a little crazy with the move. I guess I'm running a bit behind!
If I am going to truly believe what I say, that God is using everything I've ever been through to make me who I am supposed to be tomorrow then I need to look at how He has changed me in the last year. This year has been hard. I know I haven't experienced pain like others have. And it is easy to see someone else MUCH worse off than we are. But the hard stuff we have gone through is still hard stuff. Walking this road we have experienced things I never thought I'd experience. Hopefully I've learned compassion and some sensitivity to others going through the same.
This year I learned what it was like to have an empty cupboard and nothing to fill it with.

This year I learned that God is sovereign and doesn't have to explain why.

This year I learned that people disappoint but God never does.

This year I learned what it was like to humble myself and ask for help.

This year I learned what it was like to really feel blessed in the middle of crisis.

This year my concept of church changed.
This year I changed.

"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of
Compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so
that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have
received from God. For just as the sufferings of Christ flow over into our
lives, so also through Christ our comfort overflows."

2 Corinthians 1:3-5


Wednesday, January 13, 2010

More Pictures


Progress has slowed considerably these days. Randy is working hard to finish plans for my sister-in-law's remodel. When those are done he will be back to finish ours! We have moved into the basement and the kids rooms upstairs. I've got a "kinda" kitchen set up in the basement because I don't want to unpack boxes upstairs and load cabinets only to unload them a week later to pull the cabinets out!
Since I can't stand to post pictures of the chaos that is our living space. I am adding some of the property. Again its got lots of potential. Our big outdoor project come spring will be the garden and hopefully fixing the pool, if its fixable. If not I'm going to have the biggest water feature in the neighborhood!



This is the view of the property from the deck. Our property line is in front of the trees you see along the back of the pictures.


This is what I see out the front door. Looking west over the field across the street. I'm hoping for no houses anytime soon. I LOVE the tree in the front yard. I can't stop taking pictures of it:)

This is the picnic table on the deck. Not a property shot, but it shows how much snow we had! Randy had to take the glass out of the screen door so he could put the snow shovel out and clear a path just to open the door.

This is the sad pool. It hasn't had a liner in three years we just hope it can be salvaged. It's so close to the road though that we are going to have to invest in a privacy fence before I will even think about swimming!

And this is the shed. You cant see the fantastic, blacktopped second drive and parking area under all the snow. Just made for parking when all our friends come over.