Monday and Tuesday were wet and gray.

Wednesday morning the sun appeared…and these icy puddles were everywhere.

Last night the clouds came back…and it hasn’t stopped raining since.  Literally. Has. Not. Stopped.  For one minute even.

It’s not supposed to stop for two more days. 

It’s so wet.  And so gray.

But I’m not complaining about the weather anymore, remember?

So I’ll be thankful.  For my warm house.  For my husband getting to stay home from work due to the weather.  For potato soup and french bread.  For fun winter crafts and pretend voyages and Mario Bros. on the Super Nintendo.  There’s so much to be thankful for there really is no time to complain.

This evening as Miss A looked out the window at our flooded backyard she said, quite mournfully, “Oh, Mom will it ever stop raining.”

Of course she had my complete sympathy.  But I couldn’t help but think…we just had sunshine yesterday.  And until Monday  we’ve had amazing sunny and warm days for a couple of weeks straight.  And yet, after an entire day of rain, she thinks it will never stop raining.

It seemed a fitting illustration for words I read just this afternoon:

How long do our days appear when our soul is cast down within us!  Time flies with full-fledged wing in our summer days, but in our winters it flutters painfully.  A week withn prison walls is longer than a month at liberty.
-Charles Spurgeon, commentary on Psalm 13

Last night a good friend of ours taught at church and he talked a lot about suffering.  How we all have our own kind of suffering to bear, and how our perspective makes all the difference in how we handle it.  “Proper remembrance of the past corrects the perspective of the present,” he said.  Look back and remember the work God has done in your life.   “When we lose sight of what God has already done, we lose sight of what He is currently doing.” 

He exhorted everyone to stop dwelling on that bad thing in their lives and instead look at how God is using that bad thing to change us for good.

Obviously I was very moved by what he was sharing.  I’m always affected when God’s Word is taught.  But sometimes, it hits me so directly it just blows me away.

Like the night God opened my eyes to how big His love is.

Last night was the same.  When our pastor talked about the joy we can have because of our relationship with Christ.  And then he said the words that really grabbed a hold of my heart : “NOTHING can change our position with Christ.  We are REDEEMED.  By HIS work.  NOTHING can separate us from His love.”

It’s a simple truth.  I’ve known the words of Romans 8 for as long as I can remember.  And yet, like a rainy day can make me forget what it’s like to see the sun, a heavy spirit can make me forget the truth about the One who loves me most.  I can take burdens on myself that are not reasonable, and are unnecessary.  Sometimes the weight I try to pick up is about as ridiculous as my daughter wanting to walk outside and stop the rain. 

We read a children’s devo together this week and it’s focus was Psalm 118:1… “Oh give thanks to the Lord, for He is good!”  The point of the story was that, yes of course we thank God for all of the good things in our lives, but more importantly we give thanks because HE IS GOOD.  He deserves our praise and gratitude, for who He is.

God loves me more than I can possibly imagine.

And NOTHING can separate me from Him and His love.

How can I not rejoice?

But now, thus says the Lord, who created you, O Jacob, and He who formed you, O Israel:
Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; You are mine.
When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; And through the rivers, they shall not overflow you.
Isaiah 43:1-2

I’m not one for New Year’s resolutions…I just think they’re kind of silly. 

But I do think it’s good to (at any time of the year) set your heart and mind on applying something good in your life.  The most worthy things don’t come easily…

…being filled with the fruits of rightesousness which are by Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.
Philippians 1:11

I happened to read this list a few weeks ago, and have made it my daily goal.  If I ever accomplish all five in one single day it will truly be a miracle from God.  

E.B. Pusey suggested rules for those who wish to gain contentment that surely reflect Jesus’ own attitude:

1. Allow thyself to complain of nothing, not even the weather.

2. Never picture thyself to thyself under any circumstances in which thou are not.

3. Never compare thine own lot with that of another.

4. Never allow thyself to dwell on the wish that this or that had been, or were, otherwise than it was, or is.  God Almighty loves thee better and more wisely than thou doest thyself.

5. Never dwell on the morrow.  Remember that it is God’s not thine.  The heaviest part of sorrow often is to look forward to it.  “The Lord will provide.”

-Elisabeth Elliot
Secure in the Everlasting Arms

After a couple of weeks of beautiful sun and unseasonably warm days, winter has returned!

Only no snow (so far), just lots and lots of rain…completely unglamorous.

Anyway, I’ve decided it would be good to continue my quest to embrace all of the seasons, even the ones I’m not real fond of.  SO, I’ve been contemplating ways to enjoy winter. 

First, I started with the obvious.  I don’t mind the winter weather one bit in December, when my house is all colorful and cozy and glowing.  But I’m sure you can all relate to the stark blah-ness that comes to the house with the packing away of Christmas decor. 

Boring inside, gray outside.  Hideous combination.  No wonder January feels so gloomy.

But we’ve been working to change that.

The girls have taken over on dressing up the house for winter…

instructions here

All Miss A needed was a little inspiration and she was off, covering the house in snowmen.

Aside from the decorating, I’ve loaded the living room drawer with all of our winter and Valentine’s books, for fun reading.

We’ve also made sure that cozy blankets are always nearby.

I’ve seen lots of other things we could do to make the winter days more exciting, but fitting them in between school and everything else is a bit tricky.  We’ll get to them eventually.  For now I’ll just share in case you need some entertainment for your gray days.

Fantastic Snowflakes

Fun Igloo Picture

Spool Snowflake Prints

Eric Carle Inspired Snow Men

Easy Snowflake Suncatchers

Indoor Ice Skating

Snow Globes

How To Draw a Winter Tree

I’ll let you know when we’ve finished them all!

What are you doing to pass the winter days?

For Today… January 18, 2010

Outside my window… winter has returned…cloudy, rainy and cold.

I am thinking… about the best movie ever that I watched with my sister today.  Let me just clarify…my ideal movie involves: humor, romance, and predictability.  If you do not like these things, you will HATE this movie.  But I loved it!

From the learning rooms…   back to school after a long weekend.  I’m scheming some fun winter and Valentine activities to occupy us through the next few days of rain.

I’m thankful for… where I live.  I know it’s silly, but I was thinking about it today, and I really love where I live.  It’s a great place.

From the kitchen… bringing some soup out of the freezer to enjoy tomorrow night.  Looking forward to that.  And I have to say, less that two weeks into it, I’m thinking it really is worth it. 

I am wearing…  

I am reading…  daily devos here.  I love it.   

I am creating…  ways to focus on my girls more, and for all of us to just enjoy each other.

I am hearing… my phone telling me the battery is fully charged.  But I don’t want to get up and unplug it.

 Around the house… working on some decorating I’ll try to share tomorrow.

A few plans for the rest of the week… My friend finally had her baby! Yay!  So, I’m planning to bombard her as soon as possible and hold that baby until she kicks me out.

Here’s a picture thought I’m sharing with you…

I have to preface this picture.  All around online I’ve been seeing people talking about this Real Me Challenge.  I know you’re all pretty used to seeing less than glamorous pics of me around here, so I thought what the heck?  Why not?  Honestly, it’s so liberating to me to have everyone know what I look like at my worst.  I don’t ever have to feel trapped by a bad hair day, or no time for make-up.  So even though I’m a little late to the challenge, here you go…

The Real Me

Good Morning.

For more daybooks, or if you’d like to participate, click here.

Or leave me a note in the comments… I’d love to hear about your day