Busy as a bee....

Well friends, for the past few weeks we have been SUPER busy! Here are some highlights of what we have been up to lately

• We spent Memorial weekend with some friends on the lake. It was J-man's first boat ride. :)

• After Memorial Day weekend, we left for a week at the beach with my parents, my brother and his wife, and my sister!

• One night on the trip we all sat around and ate some yummy food, watched my sister perform a monologue for us, had a mini dance party, and played a serious game of ERS...it's a card game. :) Look it up!

• Then we spent a week watching 4 of the most precious children we know! I was a momma to 5 kiddos for the week and LOVED it! Am I crazy?! I would love for Adam and I to have a house full of our own one day. My favorite conversation with one of the kids from the week went as follows:                                                                                                                               

          Her: You know, you remind me a lot of my mom.                                                                     

          Me:  (smile, sigh, and feel deeply touched) Why do you say that?

          Her: I don't know. I guess it's because you like to get on your computer, and so does     

                    my mom.

          Me:  (well, isn't that nice.)  Oh really? That's why I remind you of your mom?

          Her:  Yeah, but there's another reason.

          Me: (totally expecting to hear something profound and moving) Yeah?

          Her:  Most mornings my mom doesn't usually wear make-up or fix her hair either.

          Me:  (Oh).  Thanks dear. You are so sweet.

This is the whole gang eating dinner one night...

• And since today is Father's Day, I thought I'd (publicly) say Happy Dad day to the two greatest dads I know. :) Love you both!

~Monica

Making Messes

Before having my little munchkin, I couldn't understand why people who have kids always talked about how daunting of a task it was to keep their house cleaned, to keep their car cleaned, to keep the kitchen mopped etc. etc. Honestly, I naively (and perhaps a little arrogantly) thought, "Well I will keep my house, car, kitchen clean. It really can't be that hard. How much mess can a little kid make after all?"


That was until, munchkin became a food throwing, crumb making, drool dripping toddler. 


Now I know. 


Little precious toddlers make BIG messes.


Now I completely understand why hardwood floors are preferred over carpet, why cars seem to stay filled with crumbs, and why at any given moment you might find a cheerio in a corner crevice of my kitchen. 


Oh little man doesn't do it on purpose (most of the time); it just seems to be innately in him to make a mess. 


I was thinking about all of that when I was on my hands and knees wiping up some spilled applesauce on the floor after Jackson ate lunch. I was thinking about how after I finished cleaning up that mess, he was sure to make another one at dinner, and I (or Adam) would clean up that mess too. I  wasn't frustrated. I was just thinking about how if I didn't love Jackson so much, I might be. (And to be honest, one day I probably will be frustrated, but hopefully not.)


As I was wiping up the sticky goo, Jackson came up behind me, squealed, and laid his sweet head on my shoulder.


And just like that, Jesus whispered truth into my heart. "My child, just as you spend countless hours cleaning up after your child because you love him, I do the same for you. I clean up your messes. Do you notice?"


I'm sure I'm not even aware of just how many messes God has cleaned up for me. And to think he does that joyfully, and not frustratingly really does overwhelm me. 


I spent a little while that afternoon thanking Jesus for taking care of things for me that I have probably overlooked, or  that I've not be grateful for.  And when I cleaned up after Jackson that night after dinner, I cleaned up the floor thanking Jesus for all the times he has does that and much more for me. 


Thankfully, we serve a God who continues to mop up our never-ending messes. 


Praise Jesus. 




~Monica