Merry Christmas 2011

In keeping with my family's least favorite Holiday Tradition, everyone was dressed 15 minutes before we needed to leave for Christmas Morning service to have pictures made.  They may not like doing it, but they are sure gorgeous!

 And the best . . .

Merry Christmas to our friends and family -

We are so blessed to have each of you in our lives.

May God richly bless you this Holiday.

Christmas Pics with Gran

My mom was able to visit this Christmas!  The kids liked showing their Gran where they live, their church and friends and their home.

This Good Day

Today is peacefully quiet in our home.  The kids are working on lessons, I'm doing my Bible study and praying;  the crock pots are cooking dinner for the Youth Group and the dog is snoring.

The peace is palitable.  Like a warm coat and fuzzy mittens you love.  Knitted with care by loving hands.

Outside the clouds cover the Colorado mountains in the same manner, wrapping them in a snug blanket of winter white.

The whole of the atmosphere seems to speak,

"Be Still my soul.  Know, I am God!"

Still Going....

In the past 5 weeks we have:

Been to Denver twice.  Ashley has had surgery once.
Been To ABQ.  CHris played a soccer tournament
Taken down Fall Decorations.
Put up Christmas decorations.
Rehearsed and Directed Music for Children's Christmas Program.
Made Xmas lists.
Xmas shopped.
Wrapped gifts.
Sneezed.  Coughed.  Ran Fever.  Passed it around.
Got better.
Started it again.

And you wonder why I haven't written a blog?

The 99 Cont'd

So the 99% are following the 1%.  Showing God's great love.

As our friends move to Phoenix we wish them well and pray God's grace and protection for them.  They are completing a great calling.  They are driven by a God-given passion.

Not only will their newest gem get great medical care, but so will two other little treasures.  I will so miss my Christmas Cookie Buddy!

Good things, friends!

Go with God!

Follow at:  www.aplacecalledsimplicity.blogspot.com

The 99

With the occupy W*all Str**t hullabaloo, there's alot of talk about the 99.  But, wouldn't you know it, God said it first!  He's always so on top of things!

Luke 15

The Parable of the Lost Sheep

 ¹ Now the tax collectors and sinners were all gathering around to hear Jesus. ² But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”

 ³ Then Jesus told them this parable: ⁴ “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? ⁵ And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders ⁶ and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ ⁷ I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.

Wondering if we would be willing to leave our 99 to go find that lost lamb?  What would it take to move us into saving one soul?  What about simply buying someone a cup of coffee and showing them someone, somewhere is thinking of them?  Are we willing to just SMILE at the person in the check-out line who is obviously having a hard day and her screaming kids give evidence to the fact that she is on the brink?  


Some friends are rescuing the one.  It has required great sacrifice on each member of the family - from the littlest to the oldest.  They miss mom.  They are tired of babysitting and maybe they are all just a little tired of each other. :)


But they are united in the ONE.  And the 1.  


Read their story here:      
         www.aplacecalledsimplicity.blogspot.com






WARNING:  You will want to place some judgement based on your own bias.  You will ask Why?  How?  Your humanness will call it crazy.  But I'm sure the other Shepherds thought it crazy for the Shepherd to leave and go after the 1, too.  And remember, God came after you. Again and Again.  And he would still do it today!

Just one preview...

Today I photographed baby Jason!  I had to post a preview pic!  or pics.

Snowing

Almost 5:00 pm.  Time to start dinner.  Chris is playing the drums.  Ashley is playing with Sherman.  I'm sitting at my computer contemplating the need for a vacation.  Outside my window the snow is falling.  Beautiful.  

The soft flakes are coating the last green leaves of grass.  And it's so quiet out there.

The heater hums softly - I have it sitting on Ashley's desk facing me - I'm a little chilly on this pre-winter night.

And my mind is quiet too.  I could sit and stare for hours out this window.  I think I must might!

Turn off the lights.  Open the curtains and watch the snow fall.

And pray the good fairy fixes dinner, folds laundry and remembers to record Terra Nova for me!

Lucky #7

She did it!  Surgery number 7!  (Yes, I thought it was #8, but I miscounted.)

As before her last surgery, Ashley fasted soda pop for 4 weeks - last time it was two months!  She was very committed to her fast and her promise to God.

Marilyn flew in on Wednesday to go to surgery with us - this was her 3rd.  She's got the routine down. She's my extra set of ears.  Let's me do my own coping.  Carries bags, fixes coffee and sits with Ashley when I've got to get out of the room.  A true friend.

David and I have had the "divide and conquer" mentality for healthcare.  We have two children.  Each child gets a parent.  We hate this separation.  We are the Fabulous Four and function much better together.  But texting and phones keep us close.  And nothing beats the beautiful prayer Chris prayed over us before we left.  

On Wednesday night, Marilyn, Kayle, Ashley and I put purple streaks in our hair.  Purple is the color for Pediatric Stroke Awareness - We Streak for Strokes!

(Purple is dark and doens't show well in photos but they're there!)

The night before surgery Ashley was able to eat dinner, walk the mall and have a sleepover with her friends Felicity and Caitlin.  I don't think those girls have ever notice that Ashley has any type of disability.  It was great seeing the girls laughing and shopping and giggling.  If the Randol's ever wondered why they live in Denver - it just may be because we need them!  They have definitely learned the lesson of the God of Just enough and are now moving into the area of God of More than Enough.  Their new home is set in the forest and was a wonderful way to start our busy day.

(View from their deck.)  

On Friday morning, we stopped by Bass Pro - Sommer and Sean went with us!  Who can pass a trip to Bass Pro and stocking up on bulk cinnamon bears and starlight mints!  Then it was off to the hospital.

For our 2:45 surgery time, we checked in at 12:15.  And waited until 5:00.  We were all done.  Ashley and I were walking the halls of pre-op when we saw Dr. Chang.  "She's done," I said, "and we're leaving."

Actually we were headed to the activity room where she could play on the computer.  Dr. Chang couldn't find us!  Funny guy.  When he did arrive in the activity room, Ashley presented him with a challenge.  Dr. Chang is known for his great casts - stars, moons, mixed colors, glow in the dark.  Well, Ashley gave him two cookie cutters - a dog and a dog bone - and I said, "here's what I want."   He studied them and said he could do it.

And he did!  

It was late before Ashley got in her room.  Honestly, this was the best she has ever done after surgery - no screaming, no thrashing, no massive spasms.  Oh, our God is good!

In her room, we hung posters - pictures of family, scriptures.

We need to see God's promises ever before us!

On Saturday morning, we saw the Physical Therapist.  Lovely lady!  She's helped us twice now.  And we saw one of our favorite nurses from Romania.  She has always been so kind to us.  

By 10:00 am, the Randols were back to help us get out.  Ryan got the car for us and put her in.  Sean was in charge of the red wagon with the suitcases and each girl was carrying things for Ashley.

We loaded her in the car and by 11:00 am we were in the car headed south.  

Uneventful trip home.  Lovely colors.  Worship music.  

And God.

Always with us!

Always present!

Always More than Enough!

God's Provision

After hours of delay, Ashley was in surgery 120 minutes. Doctors said it went text book perfect! She has had little pain. Rested well - we all did! That's God!

Even the wheelchair was right!

He is our Provider. As we need it. Each minute. Each. Breath.

Thank you Father!

Easier?

Anyone who says things get easier with time has never had a child with a chronic medical condition, or put their child on an operating table multiple times. They've never waited years to conceive a child then have that dream fade like a wispy vapor.

However what does get better with time is Gods grace. It grows richer and thicker. It wraps you like a warm, worm quilt. It quiets your mind. It brings rest to your body when sleep alludes you.

Grace. So amazing. So pure. So free.

Lessons from A Soccer Season

I can't believe it's almost over!  Just a few more games and Chris's first year on Junior Varsity will be done.

Those close to us know I'm insane.

You see, conditioning started the second week in June. After a two week break after Club play.  Every day, for two hours.  Plus 10 sessions of personal conditioning to strengthen and protect his back.  Then, he had one week off in August.  This is the 285 day of the year.  He's played soccer approximately 191 days of those 285.  That's 67% of this year.  At an average of 2 hours a day that's 382 hours of play.  There have been roughly 6,840 hours in this year to date.  Approximately 20% of this year has been spent with a soccer ball.

Twenty percent of his life his year has been spent on a Mission Field.  We teach our kids what we so firmly believe - you are all called to go.  "Go into all the world," means the soccer field, the dance studio, the doctor's office, the grocery store, your business and even the blog-o-sphere.  

At one point the fatigue of the season hit him.  He asked to not go to practice.  We knew he was tired - did you read those statistics?   But he had made a commitment.  We made him go.  Then he went to Youth that night.  Commitment is hard, service is not always fun.  It's about learning to be a Man.  A Man of Character.

A Man of God.

Sometimes it means standing alone.

Doing what's right when no one else does.

Leading the pack.

Treating people with respect.

Going the extra mile.

Being early.

Staying late.

Supporting those who are cruel.

Loving those who are mean.

Keeping your mouth shut.

Speaking up for those with no voice.

And before someone goes "holy" on me and yells about a "balanced" life - Chris has also learned an important lesson on his own this year.  As he saw himself spending more and more time in the sport, God began to deal with him on how much time he spent on his relationship with God.   Each day he spends time alone, reading the Word of God.  Studying his Father's plan.  

I don't believe in a "balanced" life.  I believe in an integrated life.  We are born-again Christians.  It's who we are.  It's what we believe.  It permeates every pore of our being. 

We are not perfect - far from it!  Just ask someone who lives with us!  But we are working each day to be closer to our Father.   We take God with us everywhere!  He doesn't get left on the doorstep.  The warm-up bench.  The waiting room.  The office door.   We believe God uses every opportunity, ever failure, every success;  every bump in the road, mountain top high and valley low - everything! to bring us closer to Him.

Even 191 days of soccer.

Another lesson learned.

PS - I will not even being to add up how many miles we've driven.  Let's see, 2-a-days;  3-a-days;  training;  Albuquerque league, Denver Showcase, Tournaments.........

Funny.

So in my zeal to blog, since I hadn't done so in weeks, I posted on the wrong blog.  The hazards of keeping two going I suppose.

www.livinginhishope.blogspot.com - my other site.

The irony is, I'm writing about planning and letting God direct.

I wonder why God "directed" my steps to post there.  Someone must need to read some tidbit I posted.

Obedience.

That's all He asks.

A Good Parent

What is a good parent?


What do they look like?  What do they say?


Are they always smiling?  Laughing?


Do they know how to make the best french toast?  Meatloaf?  Bread?  Scrambled eggs?


What do you say a Good Parent looks like?

A Life of Worship

"The highest form of worship is obedience."  - Mark Palmer

Makes me think.

I want to live a life of worship.  I want to do it to the best of my ability.  I want it to be worthy of the God who has given me life.

But what is he asking of me?

I voiced this to Ashley.  Her answer?  Maybe he's telling you to be still.

Hmm.

Still.

Stillness.

Quiet.

The hardest part of living.

Going and Going and Going

For the first time in weeks I looked around and, well, breathed.

There's always things to do.  And there's still a list on my desk.

But fall is in the air.  And somehow the list doesn't seem so important to me.

School is going.  Assignments being made and kept.  Run kids places in the afternoon.

Soccer.  Dance.  Church.  Groceries.  Doctors.  Therapies.

It's all good.

No worries.

I'm liking this breathing thing.

New School Year

Vista Academy 2011-2012 Begins!

 

Our Classroom - Messy but Functional

Teacher - Mentor - Mom

Chris reading.

Ashley working at her desk.

Even Sherman has a place!

Reading time in her Room!

Cheese!

Here I Am

...in Oklahoma.

Where it's beyond warm and humidity takes on a whole new meaning.

My hair is bright red from the water and curly from the moisture in the air. It takes forever to dry!

This week, I was to begin training for the Run for Orphans.  The air temperature doesn't get bearable until it's been dark 60 minutes!   And I'm coughing.  My mom has  a cute kitten but she is not kind to my allergies so I'm using my inhalers.

I have been able to finish school reports and work on next years plans and read some.  Cooked alot.  Freezing stuff.  My mom stays quite a bit at my aunt and uncle's house - okay they're really my cousins but in the south anyone close to your parents age is an aunt and uncle.

Chris made the Junior Varsity soccer team as a sophomore.  I"m very proud of him.  He has worked hard all summer to make it;  to show himself approved.  Workouts, runs, healthy diet.    Now we have his schedule and it's alot of travel - but I won't miss a game.

That means the Run for Orphans is presenting a dilemma.  We will be in Grand Junction that weekend.  I"m thinking I will do my Run, rather Walk, the week before.  I've made a commitement.   Don't think I can run it - can't even breathe well - but I can walk it.

Funny how things don't ever turn out like we except.  Sometimes they're better.  Sometimes not.  It's not the results that matter but how you handle them.  How do you hold on to your integrity?  What do you do with the unexpected crisis, and the equally, the unexpected blessing?

I want to meet them both with equal grace.  Not given to worry or self-glory.  I've done nothing in myself to warrant either - my Father knows what I need and what I can handle and he knows what refining fire I need at each stage of my life.

Grace, Grace, God's Grace!

My prayer.

Crazy

I'm doing it.


Running.


The River Run for Orphans


145 million orphans in the world.


65 million in the United States.


Alone.


Can you imagine?


Give.


Give something.


Kim Beach
2571 CR 220
Durango, CO  81303

Watch for news on my progress!

The Dirt

I've never been one to enjoy the outdoors.  Mostly because it makes me sneezy, itchy, wheezy - and few other dwarfs I've forgotten.  My memories of the outdoors as a child involve the park with my mom and watching clouds go by - a nice memory.  Then there's the endless nights at the ball park while the church softball team played;  the 120+ temperatures at the west Texas sand dunes with sand in places it should never be;  sitting on the bank of a dank, humid river with my grandpa while he attempted to teach me to fish - okay I like the part about my grandpa but not the heat and hummidity.

My Grandparents Roork didn't have an air conditioner.  It would be 120 +  (my new favorite number) at bedtime.  You laid on top of the covers because it was just too hot!  I remember one day my cousin and I took 5 cold baths because it was so hot.   The summer Grandma and Grandpa put a window unit in the kitchen, we all slept in the living room with the bedroom doors closed to keep the cool(er) air in the central room.  We laughed and giggled - my mom, aunt, my cousin, Grandma and Grandpa and me - until Grandma  declared, "that's enough" and we settled into blissful, frigid sleep.

All of my grandparents and my parents for that matter, like the outdoors.  They had gardens.  Pretty flowers, fresh vegetables, lush lawns.  Where was I?  Inside.  Reading.  Maybe watching the Miss America Pageant - a great end to the summer.  Mostly reading.  But not in any dirt.

Moving to Colorado, I met dirt.  And we developed a truce.  There's an appropriate time to be dirty and dusty.  But once I enter my travel trailer, the dirt must stay outside.  The first years of camping I made everyone take their shoes off outside.  Everyone showered every night.  Even the dog got a bath at the outside shower.  I traveled with enough clothes to survive a natural disaster.

I'm progressing.  I insist on showers every-other night.  And the dog can wait til we get home.  And shoes - ah, keep 'em on.  That's why we have vacuums and brooms!  Plus the socks were being ruined by everyone walking OUTSIDE in them.

Today is my 20th Anniversary and it makes me take a retrospective of my life.   Some things I'm so proud of - my kids.  Other things embarrass me - my in-laws were so patient with a mouthy, insecure know-it-all.  My how I've changed!

When we were first married, a spider sent me screaming for my husband.  Once when David was traveling for work and we'd been married about 3 months, a mouse dared to walk across my living room floor.  I screamed, ran to the garage, went to the all-night W*l-M*art and bought a dozen disposable traps.  I was awake all night til I heard the "snap".  I through away the entire trap and then slept an hour before work!

Last week, a bee flew in the car and I just watched him.  Never flinched.  I've been known to kill a spider with my bare hand!  Wipe it on my jeans and go on.  Okay, that only happens when I'm camping, but I'm getting there!

Today, I dropped Chris off at soccer and came home for my two hour afternoon break before picking him up, taking him home, driving to church, driving to dinner.... I decided to head to the garden - Ashley and David's summer project.  They are growing tomatoes, green beans, peppers and squash and a variety of flowers in another plot.  I wanted to plant some petunias in there while they were still seeding.  I grabbed the little hoe and went to work.

The dirt smelled good.  Clean.  Alive.  Soon the wind began to blow and the wind chimes sing in the breeze.  Large drops fell from the sky and I kept working.  A little water never hurt anyone.

I pulled weeds.  Planted flowers.  Trimmed hollyhocks.  And mostly enjoyed myself!

Time changes us all.  The great outdoors I once dreaded today brought me peace.  The rain reminded me that good and happens.  It's all part of the day.  Part of our life.  Enjoy it.

Today I danced in the rain. 

And I am thankful.

Thank you Lord for changing our hearts.

(okay, not everything changes.  This fly swarming my keyboard seriously needs to find a new home before he is sent to an early meeting with his maker!)

20 Years

Today is our 20th Anniversary!

I'm usually full of words, but today, my heart is just at peace.  Twenty years with those blue eyes that still make my heart beat faster.  Twenty years of hand-holding that still make me feel protected.  Twenty years of kisses and tears and laughter and  smiles.

Thank you Father God for this beautiful man to spend my life with.  Thank you for his heart.  For his mind.  For his work ethic.  For his desire for his children.  For his love for me.

Here's to...forever!