A Special Valentine

I know it's a bit late for me to count this as a Valentine per se, but here is one passage that has come to me lately like a Valentine from the Lord. ☺️ It speaks of His pursuing of us in His searching of us and knowing us inside and out. I have read this group of verses so many times, but in this song, it sounded almost like a love song, which it always has been. I was pondering it so differently the other day, though, and realized this reality and I felt so marveled to only, just now, have understood it this way. We spend so much time trying to know ourselves with personality types and quizzes and friends and books, yet He is "acquainted with all [our] ways" even before we can ever know ourselves. I think I had always thought of it as God just knowing everything, but then I realized how personal this was, that it was a song I can sing to Him, and not just David, who wrote the Psalm, and I was, and still am, kind of overtaken by such a grand thought. So, I guess I could come across as sappy, but I don't care. I am just baffled by the fact that the Creator of the universe would care to know all my ways, and not only that, search them out! Such is His Love.

Happy Belated Valentines Day! I hope this sings to your heart the way it did to mine!☺️❤️

Here is the link to the verses and the song that inspired this post.

http://theversesproject.com/verses/133/Psalms-139.1-3

P.S. I was sick this Vday, so I had to stay home, but I was wonderfully taken care of by my sweet husband and kids! I really felt that this was one of my favorite Valentine Days! We spent the day together, minus my missing church, and it was very calm and peaceful! Then the hubby and I ended the night with dessert and Downton Abbey, so I hit jackpot. ☺️❤️

This pic is from a date a few weeks ago. We didn't photographically document today, I guess because I was still in recovery mode. 

Super Easy Real Potato Soup

This is a recipe that I usually do from memory. I learned how to make this in our first year of marriage, when cooking was still an enigma to me. :) I love this recipe because I'm an extremely minimalist cook. I like to use as few ingredients as possible. This recipe really is minimal. When I was looking for a recipe for potato soup as a young bride, I found recipe upon recipe that called for packets of spices that I didn't regularly buy and didn't really want to include in our pantry. This is my tweaked version from a family friend from way back when. Making this brings back memories of when peeling and chopping potatoes and onions with my husband was romantic! ;)  Let me know if you try this recipe and any way you tweak it yourself. I'll try to attach a picture of ours at some point, but until then, here's this! :D Bon appetit!

Super Easy Real Potato Soup

6-8 medium potatoes chopped

1 onion chopped

2 cups cheese

2-4 Tbsp butter

2 cups milk

Salt and pepper to taste 

Garlic powder optional

Sour cream, cheese, chives and bacon for toppings

Cover chopped potatoes and onions with water and boil until they're soft but not mushy, usually about 20 minutes.

Drain half the water. Add milk and cook on medium. Stir occasionally so it doesn't burn. Add in butter and cheese and stir. 

Add salt and pepper to taste (I think I do 1-2 T). Enjoy! 

Your First Breath

Today is my husband's birthday and one of the things I decided to do for him this morning, was to write him a birthday poem. He's always such a huge supporter and encouragement to me with my poetry, and I do write a lot of them about him and us, but his birthday is really quite special for me! ☺️ And we actually were delivered by the same doctor just 3 months apart!!! (The crazy thing is that we didn't find out until we were married and I was going to that same doctor when we were told we wouldn't be able to have kids, and then also when we found out we were expecting our first!)

Anyway, Happy Birthday to my wonderful husband whom we love soooo much!!! We love you and are excited to celebrate you! 

Your First Breath

Today marks the dawn of your first breath

You, man of mine, were born.

The first gasp of your sweet life's path

And I'm blessed you breath still more.

Our story is amazing

God really topped them all

When I was caught by the same hands

That very Doctor, held you first so small.

Our lives lived close together

And at times so far apart

He knew us for each other

And brought me to your heart.

You knew from the first moment

But I needed time to see

That you weren't being flippant

With this heart of mine or me.

I've fallen for your spryness

As you navigate our stroll

I am stayed by your sweet kindness

That first wooed my fearful soul.

We love to celebrate you

The one who makes our days so bright

The Husband and the Daddy who

Works so hard and plays so light.

I'm thankful to our Father

Who brought your life to be

That we can celebrate another

Year on earth and through eternity.

Maia Forde

9-26-15

Today marks 14 years!

Today marks fourteen years! 

These years have been short and long, mostly good but sometimes rough, happy and sad and grueling and bliss! Some have been easy, but that was never a whole year. ☺️ Nothing of worth comes easily and I have thought about what makes things stick, other than the grace of God. I will say I have fought for us and I fight for us. Everyday. All uphill some days, downhill others, but with ALL of my heart. The battle to give myself, to be available, to be vulnerable, to be honest, to be the safe place, to be the soft place, to be the helper, to be the lover, to be the best friend, to be the one who defends my man. And sometimes it has been only me. And sometimes it has been everyone but me, but only for a moment, and then, by God's grace, I have pulled close again and bowed my heart to the Lord to tuck myself back under his heart, right by those ribs. Some days are rough, and I have wondered if he's so mad that he doesn't want to forgive me or be forgiven, but I'm so thankful to God for giving us the grace to forgive and be forgiven by Him and one another. The "funny" jokes about always being right are so off target from where we are and must stay daily. I fight for us! He fights for us, and I hope we continue to fight for one another as strongly as I have seen we are so far. I love my man, and I'm so glad that we look to Jesus together to keep our hearts together! I will continue to pray that God keeps our hearts in Him. Counting our years together is more fun than a birthday! ☺️ I love you and I love us!

We had a boy!!! Again!!!

Yes! You read that correctly! We have added another child to our family since the last blog post! I haven't posted since Harbor was born. I'm really disappointed in that, because I really do enjoy blogging, but I hardly find time to update my Facebook status these days much less blog, so hello again. Our youngest sweetheart is Koa Gage. He was born in November 2013 and he was 9 pounds 4 ounces, 22 inches long and he has been the best sleeping baby of the bunch from literally day one! He is 15 months younger than his big brother Harbor. Harbor surprisingly loves him to pieces! He was a very attached baby, and I was quite concerned that the transition would be very hard, but the LORD has given us grace in the fact that Koa has slept at least 5 hour stretches most nights since the night he was born. We are still sleepy, however, but mostly of our own doing! I'm a night owl, and I am doomed to sleepiness because of how much I cherish these quiet nights to myself. 

There are some exciting new things in our family! 

With our newest addition, we upgraded to a new mode of transportation. We are now the owners of a 15 passenger van. The kids love the new ride, and it's not as hard to drive as I had originally feared. The Lord is gracious to us in His constant provisions and His consistent answers to prayers. 

 We now have a 4th grader, a 3rd grader, a 2nd grader, a pre-kindergartener, a pre-schooler, a toddler and an infant! Whew! We are enjoying our curriculum and happily trekking our way through school. We recently changed Math curriculum for our oldest girls and they are actually saying things like "I love Math" like their younger brothers! I am so excited about their newfound love for Math and the fact that they actually come to me and ask if they can do their lesson for the day! Even with the new baby, we are on track to have a summer break. I'm praying that things can continue as they have been! :) 

 I have also recently become a distributor of Young Living Essential Oils and we have been enjoying including them in our family learning! There is so much to learn, but I am loving how much fresher our home already is because of the diffuser, and how much healthier we have been! Even when the kids catch a cold or tummy bug, they have recovered much more quickly! The oils are just amazing! I may have to post a blog about them very soon! 

 Well, I'm praying that I can really get to blogging again! I miss it too much and I have too much to share to lose track of time again. Blessings! Maia 

We had a BOY!!! :D

Well, I am a month behind in the announcement of our son! Harbor Crag was born 8-15 at 7:17am in our room at home!!! He was 10lbs 4ozs. And 22 inches long! We had 5 attending midwives and our other 5 kids were sleeping in their beds during the calmest labor and birth I have had! :) It was such a blessing to have a home birth, and I really need to write down my birth story while it's still rather fresh! :) Our family was hit this week with the stomach flu this past week, and we're still in recovery, but I will try to blog my birth story! I have SIX to write out now!!! Uh... just a bit behind! ;)

33 weeks and counting

Crazy we're already at 33 weeks! That means I have about 6 1/2 weeks (since we're actually 33 wks and 3 days) before our due date! I think I'm more ready this time than I was with my last babykins, Eden! :) I have lots to get from our list, and lots to decide, but my home is readier and readier by the day! I have some sweet friends to thank for this readiness! They came and helped me organize the homeschool room and unpack my bedroom in 4 short and sweet hours!!! We are so thankful for our church family! They are such a blessing!
We went in to get a sono 28 wks to see why I was measuring big, and it turned out baby was breech. Baby flipped before our 30 wk appointment, so all is great, but I need to show my sweet sonogram pics of baby' face! I can't figure out if this little face looks boy or girl, but it's soooo cute! ;)
We are all counting down the days! :)