Can you tell we might be a little partied out around here?
This is the birthday girl & she looks like I’m making her celebrate! 🙂

This is better – her table decorations & a pretty smile.

A glittery card from a glittery Bumma to a glittery girl.

Can you say ‘Fancy Nancy’? This is a saying in our family, those of us who aren’t ‘fancy’ say it frequently. As far as mom & CJ are concerned there are many things that can’t be too fancy. We don’t even like tinkerbell – but look at her grin because ‘it’s glittery’!

I think the gift Christine will remember for all of her life….Bumpa gave her her own fishing pole, a good pole. But wait – it’s HOT PINK?! and there’s more – it LIGHTS UP when you reel it!!!!!!!!!! Vince considers this a disgrace to fishing, but CJ could not have been happier. (Can you say, seriously ‘fancy nancy’?!) 🙂

For Christine’s birthday last year dad gave her a ‘fairytale cottage’ cake mold… He apologized to me last year because he knew it would involve me. Yes, I made it last year. The non-frosted gingerbread house version shown on the picture. I cleaned it well & tucked it away – hoping, hoping, hoping she’d forget about it or for sure at least not want the same cake 2 years in row. Not so, last week she asked where the mold was & said she wanted a pink and purple cake. My only thought was “Yuck – the house again and it had to be pink & purple?” I put it off & avoided making it until today, hoping she’d change her mind at the last minute. Nothing doing, so here is the ‘Shabby Chic’ ugly-not-so-fairy-tale’ish cottage, and it’s pink with purple trim (the green things are 4 large trees on each corner of the house). By the time I got done with frosting this thing my thoughts were running along the lines of “What a horrible, mean person to think up this idea of 3D molds? Why didn’t they have any thought or consideration for the poor mothers who’d get stuck frosting these things! … or, Ugghhh, the Bumpa’s that fall for the gimmick and buy these horribly-cute-in-the-picture-only things?!…”

(yes, you are seeing 3 different outfits. yes, all these pictures are today. these are just the ones when I took pictures, there were a couple others-besides the 3 sets of jammies in all worn today. it was her day, so I said nothing — to her…)

I can not believe my baby is 9! It is weird to think I have 2 school age children, (not just school age but 1/2 way thru elementary school!) they are no longer preschoolers. Yes, I know they haven’t been preschoolers for a long time, but my mind still has them there. I want to keep them there. I wanted them to grow up with a daddy, not with just me as their parent. I have had a lot of thoughts about my kids not growing up with a dad in their early formative years and what repercussions the 3 of us will have the opportunity to live through as a result. I can’t control the outcome & I have to work at not letting these thoughts overwhelm me. I’m not to live with a spirit of fear, but I also want to go forward with my eyes open, with some idea of what to do. I like a specific list of what to do. There is a verse I read a couple weeks ago & it has stuck with me.

Psalm 138:8 “The LORD will fulfill his purpose for me; your love, O LORD, endures forever – do not abandon the works of your hands.” This has been very confirming & comforting to me – He will fulfill his purpose for me. It goes well with a passage I’ve been hanging onto for 9 years now. “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you.” (Jeremiah 29:11-14)

• He will fulfill His purpose for me. (Each of us.)
• He has a plan for me. (He has a plan & He will fulfill.)
• A plan to give me hope and a future. (Is there any better hope than knowing our future includes spending eternity with Him?)
• Then I will call upon Him, pray to Him and he will listen to me. (He listens & hears me!)
• I will seek Him with all my heart and He promises I will find Him. (He promises I’ll find Him when I seek Him)

WOW! The God of all creation, the ruler of the universe, my Heavenly Father, my Saviour has promised He has a plan for me & He will fulfill His purpose with me. My part, seek Him first.

This is huge – I don’t need to ‘do something’ to make certain things in my life happen. I seek Christ first and all else will fall into place. This doesn’t mean I don’t act responsibly or do my best- but it isn’t up to me! Thank you, Heavenly Father for this provision. A provision I’ve taken for granted, not fully understood, still don’t fully understand. You have a plan & You will fulfill your purpose. Use me. I want my actions & words to glorify You & You alone. Thank you for being the father to the fatherless. Thank you I do have my dad & brothers in my kids’ lives. Thank you they are men who desire to live for You. Help me to teach the children You have entrusted to me to walk in Your paths, to seek You first, to rest in You.