Rylieism; a Biblestory

"Peter and Joseph were walking on the water because a bad Pharaoh wanted to bite them on the cross."
Apparently, she wants to unify the Old and New Testament!

Miscarriage Poem

Since heaven has become your home
I sometimes feel that I'm alone;
And though we now are far apart
You hold a big piece of my heart
I never knew how much I'd grieve
When it was time for you to leave
Or just how much my heart would ache
From that one fragment you would takeGod let this tiny hole remain,
Reminding me we'd meet again
And one day all the pain will cease
When He restores this missing piece
For Jesus heals each tiny part
That holds your memory in my heart

The Post I Never Wanted To Write . . .

June 19th we found out that I was pregnant. We were shocked, as Anna is only three and a half months old, and we thought we were done having children. Our shock quickly turned to joy and excitement. It was an emotional week, complete with morning sickness. We were very excited as we anticipated our doctors appointment and ensuing ultrasound.
June 26th was when we found out that our precious, tiny baby had gone to Heaven. I knew something was wrong when the doctor was very quiet as he did the ultrasound and he didn't take any measurements. He asked a few questions, then told us that I was farther along than we had originally thought. He then said the words that shook me to my core, "I don't see a heartbeat". I was trying to hold it together and be very factual and ask him questions. Inside I was screaming and felt like I was suffocating.
I have cried more in the last two days than I thought was possible. My emotions have been convoluted and confusing. There are times when I am okay and times when I fall apart.
Ryan has been grieving as well, but still manages to be my rock and my support. Rylie wanted to know if Jesus had toys in Heaven for the baby to play with. She also said she was sad because she wanted to see what the baby looked like. Anna has been our constant joy, continually smiling and cheering us.
I am struggling with my emotions, but I have no doubt that this has passed through the loving, sovereign hand of God. Yesterday morning, before we went to the doctor, in my devotions, I was struck with the thought that I don't deserve any good thing in my life, especially my salvation. I deserve much, much worse. It is only by the loving, sovereign grace of God that I have anything. If I keep the perspective of the Cross in the forefront of my mind, I realize that I can only be thankful for everything in my life. I am thankful for the brief time I did get to spend with my tiny baby. I am thankful that God is now taking care of it. I am thankful that someday I will hug and kiss it in Heaven. I am thankful that God is my strength and my refuge. I am thankful for such a loving and gracious God. I am thankful for all three of my children and for such a loving husband. I am thankful for all of my friends and family that have been so supportive and helpful. (Special thanks to Pam for taking Rylie for a fun play day today, and to Becky for bringing us dinner, desert, and coffee!)
Please pray for us as we try to learn how to deal with this loss as our hearts are breaking.

Sisters! (We are so blessed!)

Resting in Christ's Righteousness

Here is a snippet from The Gospel Primer that I read in my devotions this morning. I hope it encourages you and causes thankfulness.
"The gospel encourages me to rest in my righteous standing with God, a standing which Christ Himself has accomplished and always maintains for me. I never have to do a moment's labor to gain or maintain my justified status before God! Freed from the burden of such a task, I now can put my energies into enjoying God, pursuing holiness, and ministering God's amazing grace to others.
The gospel also reminds me that my righteous standing with God always holds firm regardless of my performance, because my standing is based solely on the work of Jesus and not mine. On my worst days of sin and failure, the gospel encourages me with God's unrelenting grace toward me. On my best days of victory and usefulness, the gospel keeps me relating to God solely on the basis of Jesus' righteousness and not mine."

Craft Projects

I've been trying to spend some one on one, quality time with Rylie each day while Anna takes her nap. The other day we did some craft projects. She loves to paint, so she painted a sun on a paper plate and then made a "Mommy" octopus and a "kid" octopus. She enjoyed taping the legs on to the octopus the best. Then we made crayons. We had taken all the broken pieces of crayons that we have, (with the paper off) and melted them in a mini muffin tin (well oiled, at 275). She enjoyed combining some colors but there were definitely some that she wanted only the same color together in. She really has a sense of order (so different from her Mama). She eagerly checked them every couple of minutes while they cooked and then afterwards while they dried. She hasn't colored with them yet, she just wants to look at them!

I also threw in a baby picture, because who doesn't like baby pictures?!

First Pigtails!

Zoo Pictures

Linky Love

Games to play with your camera: This is a fun site for creative photo games to challenge yourself or others.



Recipes: This site, by Kraft foods, has lots of practical, everyday recipes and sometimes coupons.



How to save your life: Good ideas if you ever find yourself in a scary situation.

Pictures from the weekend

Forgiveness!

Today was a bad day! I have excuses to why it was so, but they all just add up to the fact that I was sinful! I have been sitting here all evening wallowing in my guilt and depression about it, then I read this section of The Gospel Primer in my devotions. It was exactly what I needed to hear today and so I thought I would share it with you as well.
"As long as I am stricken with the guilt of my sins, I will be captive to them, and will often find myself re-committing the very sins about which I feel most guilty. The Devil is well aware of this fact; he know that if he can keep me tormented by sin's guilt, he can dominate me with sin's power.
The gospel, however, slays sin at this root point and thereby nullifies sin's power over me. The forgiveness of God, made known to me through the gospel, liberates me from sin's power because it liberates me first from its guilt; and preaching such forgiveness to myself is a practical way of putting the gospel into operation as a nullifier of sin's power in my life."

Smiles For Your Day

I needed a big smile today, how about you?!

I could survive!

OnePlusYou Quizzes and Widgets

Happy Father's Day!

From Rylie: "I like playing push up and jump down (games they play together) with Daddy." "I like doing everything with Daddy." "My favorite thing about Daddy, is everything."

I'm sure Anna has lot's of glowing things to say about her Daddy too. She sure lights up whenever she sees him!

I appreciate him being such a loving father to these two girls! His love for them is very evident. He plays with them, takes care of their physical needs (yes, he even changes diapers), and is mentoring them spiritually. He is sacrificial and giving to them (and to me). I love to watch him play with them and the smiles I see on their faces, just melt my heart! Happy Father's Day Ryan! Thank you for being the best Daddy for our girls! I love you!

Happy Father's Day to my Daddy! I have the best Daddy for me! He has taught me so much and has always loved me with an unconditional love. He is also very giving and loves my girls almost as much as I do! He is an excellent Grandfather, even if he does spoil them! He has helped to shape my character and given me a theological foundation. I know that he has made many sacrifices for me and my brother throughout our lives and I thank him for it. Love you Daddy!

Joy is. . .

hearing your three year old say, "I love you more than all my toys!"

Linky Love

Craft ideas for kids: This site has some fun ideas for summer boredom! The sidebar especially has some great ideas.

Beautiful Artwork: Becky's sister, Eva, is an incredible, award winning artist. Go show her some love!

Like my new look? This is where to go for free Blogger templates.

Incredible Pictures: This guy compiles amazing photographs from around the world and beyond. From Saturn to a previously unknown tribe in Brazil.

Week 8 Weigh In

There is not much to report on the weight loss front this week, so I thought I'd give you pictures of a Birthday boy instead! I have not lost any weight this week, Luke has gained another year. Our nephew, is now two!
We had his family birthday party tonight, unfortunately, my batteries were dead in the camera so I don't have any pictures. You'll have to imagine the huge smile on his face when he received the big dump truck from Grandma and Grandpa (which Grandpa picked out at the store). You'll have to imagine the gobs of frosting smeared all over his face from his 'pidaman (that's Spiderman to the rest of us) cake.

We are so thankful for this precious little boy! He went from failure to thrive in the womb, to allmost dying in the NICU, to having heart surgery, to being a robust, happy little boy. He is very active and is able to hold is own with his big sister. He is very gentle with his baby cousin and loving towards his older cousin. He likes his Uncle and always gives his Aunt Amy kisses with a loud "umma" sound. He sat in on Puggles this past year and learned the verses along with the older kids, he's able to recognize several letters, numbers, and colors. Now he's two! But don't tell him Happy Birthday, he'll shake his head at you and say "no". Maybe he'll being accepting of it by Saturday for his big Spiderman friend party!

Meme

I was tagged by Pam for this meme!
You can only type ONE Word!



Where is your cell phone? table
Your significant other? wonderful
Your hair? ponytail
Your Mother? sacrifical
Your father? loving
Your favorite thing? daughters
Your dream last night? interesting
Your favorite drink? latte
Your dream/goal? Europe
The room you're in? living
Your hobby? photos
Your fear? ms
Where do you want to be in 6 years? skinnier
Where were you last night? home
What you're not? cleaning
One of your wish list items? trip
Where you grew up? here
The last thing you did? ate
What are you wearing? pj's
Your TV? ON
Your pets? None
Your computer? slow
Your life? fulfilling
Your mood? overwhelmed
Missing someone? Ryan
Your car? clean!
Something you're not wearing? shoes
Favorite store? scrapbook
Your summer? rainy
Like someone? yes
Your favorite color? unknown
When is the last time you laughed? today
Last time you cried? today
Who will reply? everyone

Now, I tag anyone who wants to do it! Let me know if you're doing it, I'd love to read your answers!

Happy Birthday Elisa! We love you!

Anna Sophia

Anna, I can't believe you are three months old already! I love this picture because it shows your beautiful smile. You are such a cheerful girl and you love to smile. You are very social and love it when people make eye contact with you. You kick your legs and wave your arms and talk. I enjoy watching you try to sit up. Recently, you get big grins when Mommy helps you to jump up and down. You like to put your blankets, bibs, or toys in your mouth. You keep trying to find your thumb and usually end up sucking on whatever fingers are most convenient. You get so excited when you kick in your bouncy seat and make the lights and music work. I love watching you watch Daddy! You keep your eye on him, you especially like watching him play the Wii. Last night, as you watched him, you kept sighing contentedly. You get so happy when you see your big sister! You talk and kick wildly. You get pretty excited when you see your Mommy too! I love your crazy hair! I am so thankful that you are part of our family. You are a blessing to us and we love you very much!

Friends!

John 17 and other things. . .

I was going to write a post to tell you all of the things I learned from my devotional reading of John 17 this morning, but there is way too many things! This chapter is chock full of good things! It is Jesus' high priestly prayer. He talks about our salvation, eternal security, unity, His deity, our separation from the world, His love for us, His relationship with the Father and on and on. If you haven't already read it today (or yesterday, I was a day behind in my schedule), go read it! Read it thoughtfully and prayerfully!

Here is a Rylieism for you! Ryan asked her, "Are you beautiful?" Rylie said, "yes", and Ryan added, "and humble too". Rylie said, indignantly, "I'm not humble!"

We are listening to our new CD by the Carter family! We love it! The Carter's are a family in our church. They are very special to us! I have known them since I was a little girl. They have been mentors and friends for a very long time. They have made us laugh so many times and encouraged us in a myriad of ways. Their children (the older ones and the younger) have become dear to our hearts. These pictures are of the younger ones, Jonathan and Hannah (holding Anna) when they stopped by our house a few weeks ago. Rylie thinks they are the coolest big kids in the world! They graciously give her lots of attention, especially Hannah! They are a very musically talented family and have won several fiddle competitions. They have recently made a CD and gave us a copy yesterday. Our friend Chris designed the cover and it looks incredible. The music is so fun and uplifting! The whole family either sings or plays an instrument on it! Once they have a venue to sell it, I will include a link so you can get your own copy!

What a Face!

Kung Fu Panda Day

Ryan and Rylie are very excited for their Kung Fu Panda date today! They have been looking forward to this for awhile. They have been watching the trailers on Ryan's computer every day. Ryan asked a man from our church who works at a movie theater, for posters or things. He gave us this huge Kung Fu Panda banner that Ryan thought needed to be hung up in the girl's room!

They are meeting Keegan and his Daddy at the theater so it's sure to be an afternoon of fun!

Linky Love

10 Ways to help your kids love Missions: Desiring God Ministries had a great article a few weeks ago about how to get your children engaged in thinking about and praying for Missions.

Comic Relief: Hope these parodies of real government signs will bring a chuckle to your day!

Third Day: One of our favorite bands is the first Christian band to grace the cover of Billboard Magazine.

Great Sermons: Here are free mp3 downloads of sermons from the New Attitude conference. The first one by C.J. Mahaney is ecspecially good.

Week 7 Weigh In and Mariners Game

We had a great time with our friends, Chris and Angela at the Mariners game yesterday! Angela's sister gave her tickets to the Terrace Club seats. This meant free parking in the garage attached to the field (so no finding parking on the street five miles away and hiking to the stadium, hoping no one steals your car while you're gone). We were seated in an exclusive area that only people with these tickets can get into. There was a restaurant behind out seats, or we could order from the menus and have the food delivered to us without having to leave our seats at all. We however opted for the cheaper (I use this word loosely) route of leaving the club and going down a level to the regular concession stands. The picture is all of the garlic that was left over after we had eaten the fries! I had never seen so much garlic on the garlic fries before (I still smell like it!) We lost the game, 4-5, but did enjoy some good hitting by Jose Lopez. Better still, we enjoyed the company of our good friends! Thanks Chris and Angela!


A bump in the road; that's how I will describe last weeks weight gain. I didn't post because I was discouraged by it. Thank you to those of you who asked me about it, it so helps to be accountable! This week I have lost the pounds that I gained last week, so now I'm back to where I was the previous week. I'm still at nine pounds down. I feel like I just wasted two weeks of time where I could have lost more! That's discouraging, but I am encouraged that I was able to lose it and that I haven't given up. In the past I would have given up by now. Thank you for all of the encouraging comments, they really do help me so much!

Happy 3 month birthday Anna!!! Already?! Mommy loves you!

Anna and Sophia

Lean On Me . . .

Here are Haily and Anna, two little girls, born less than a week apart. Haily's Mommy was my pregnancy buddy. We both had rough pregnancies, she worse than me. She had to be on complete bed rest for quite a long time and there were concerns about Haily's size. Now look at these two beautiful girls! Becky and I were imagining their future play dates! They have another friend born in the same week as them (the day after Anna), Sophia. Her Mommy had to be rushed into emergency surgery right after Sophia was born and Deb had a rough beginning of pregnancy, they weren't sure if Sophia was even going to live. Praise the Lord that these three girls are healthy and happy and growing well! (We're going to Sophia's house tonight, I'm hoping to get a picture of her and Anna.)

This week, these girls had a new friend born, Hudson Elliot. His big sister, Ashlyn is one of Rylie's good friends, so I forsee more fun play dates in the future! Congratulations Josh and Kate!