What a week its been!!  Its been unusually busy...which in our world, means really busy :)  But this business has created many, many blessings.  Our weekend was filled with family time and  birthday parties!  My sister, Teigha, and I combined our little one's birthday parties into one....which was fantastic!  I finally realized that the party is nothing to fret over, its mearly an opporunity to spend time with those near and dear to you.  Which is exactly what we did :) 

    We celebrated the birthday girls at Church and then headed over to Sean and Cheryl's for smores and swimming :)  Such a blessing to gather around a campfire with family :)  Then Sunday started my work weekend....after a great Sunday school and church service I headed to work.  This weekend marked a wonderful moment of sharing Christ's love to a patient that I will never forget.  How rewarding. 

We also started small group this week....and oh it was good!!  Again, such an awesome thing to gather together and talk about God!!  How blessed are we that we can just do that?!  I know I take that for granted some days.  I've never felt real persecution over Christ.  What's that like?  How awful that some people feel REAL persecution every day for knowing and showing Christ's love. 

If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first.  John 15:18

This just makes me soooo much more thankful for where I am in life right now.  And I am SOOOOO thankful for small group! 

And finally, we added a new friend to play with each day to our household.  Miss Emma Stephens.  She is 7 months old and so much fun to have around.  The kids are loving her.  The adjustment for me has been the hardest, but also rewarding.  I, for the first time in years, am getting up prior to the kids.  Instead of the pitter/patter of little feet on my bedroom floor, I am waking up to an alarm clock, sitting in peace and quiet with coffee in hand, and spending some quiet time with Jesus.  What an amazing thing to start the day!   

I hear laughter, crying, screaming, giggles, more crying, feel hugs, watch cuddling, kicking followed by apoligies, forgiveness and hugging, receive kisses, give kisses, wrestling, jump, play, dance, sing at the top of my lungs, feed little ones, change little ones, comfort little ones and know that I am so very blessed by each and every one of these chaotic moments in my day.  What an amazing, crazy week.  God is so good, all the time.