to Him Who is able

Dear Mama, Where do I even begin? How do I formulate enough sentences to express who you are to me, what you mean to so many people, how much I love you ? You taught me all the way from preschool through high school, and you taught me really well, but right now I'm struggling. Struggling to express all of that.  Mama, you are beautiful . Outwardly you are stunning! Inwardly you are priceless ! For 19 years now I have been watching you. For 19 years now I have been learning from you. For 19 years now I have been loved by you. I only wish I had realized how wonderful you are and how incredibly blessed I am to have you every one of those 19 years.  From the beginning of my existence you loved me ! When I entered this world, you cherished me.  You cared for my every need, kissed my (adorably) chubby cheeks, rocked me to sleep, soothed me, wiped my tears, sacrificed sleep, energy and time to make sure I was comfortable and ha...

People disappoint people. People let other people down. People hurt people.  People are broken and sinful. Parents, siblings, friends, parents of friends, acquaintances, people you don't even know personally but know enough about them (through countless hours of stalking on social media...come on, I can't be the only one) to basically know them...we all have those in our lives who we look up to. We watch and try to imitate the way they live, we listen closely when they talk, we run to them for advice, encouragement and wisdom...these people, in our eyes, seem to have their lives together and are pretty darn close to perfect. We unconsciously put them on a pedestal, wanting to be like them, thinking that they know all, assuming that they don't have struggles, and if they do, then they fix them so easily... Maybe you start reading the books they read, singing the songs they sing, wearing the kind of clothes they wear, praying the way the way they pray, posting the k...

Watching you grow up has been a joy. I love your smile, your laugh, your snuggles, your eyes, your sweet "I love you's", your bed head, your crazy antics, your energy, your wit, the conversations we carry on late at night in the kitchen... I love you, now and forever. And I wish you would stay this little forever. I wish time would pause, and you would be 4 and 1/2 for the rest of time. I want to be able to keep you from all the darkness this world offers, I want to shelter you from hatred and hurt, I want to shield your innocent eyes from the filth of sin that consumes this world.   I want to protect you from the unattainable standards this culture puts on us to be "perfect".  I want you to only see and hear the good things. I want you to dream big and not be afraid to try new things. I want you to be confident and bold about who you are. I want you to be kind and loving, and I want people to be kind and loving towards you. I don't want you...

I was in the grocery store tonight, like I am A LOT of the time (we are very regular at our local grocery stores.) and as I was checking out I told the 2 cashiers who were there about something exciting...something wonderful and heavenly. I told them about Pirate Day at Krispy Kreme. "The deal is," I said, "if you talk like a pirate you get one free donut and if you dress up like a pirate you get a free dozen." I mean...how amazing is that, right? A dozen free, hot, Krispy Kreme donuts.  It is a wonderful, exciting thing. The 2 people I shared this with thought so too....in fact they said they were definitely going to do it because who doesn't want free donuts? Especially Krispy Kreme. It was so easy to tell them about it. I felt obligated to do so too, because free donuts is something everyone should know about and take advantage of. I feel like I made their weekend that much better. So why did I beat the steering wheel on my way home in anger and f...

One day last week I was driving down the road in our big white van with the windows down and the radio up. The AC in our van is confusing...sometimes it works, most of the time it doesn't. When I got in the van that day I assumed the AC wasn't going to work so I opened the windows in hopes of getting some kind of relief from the sweltering heat that July in Tennessee brings. Did it work? I guess the air blowing hard in my face brought some sort of "coolness" but it was still fairly warm and far from what I would prefer. I endured, though, because I figured it couldn't get any better so I might as well enjoy the small bit of relief while I had it. After a few stops and lots of inward complaints about the heat and how unbearable it was getting, I got a phone call and had to close the windows in order to hear whoever was on the other line. When I hung up and was about to roll the windows down again I paused at the wonderful feeling of nice, cool air flowing from...

First off, you are beautiful. I am in awe of the Lord's creation when I look at your faces, your eyes, your hair and most of all your smile. I find myself staring at you and wondering "How in the world did I get blessed with such gorgeous little sisters?" I hear your laughs and I can't help but join in, I listen to you sing and can't keep myself from getting chills all through my body. I adore introducing you to people and being able to say: "These are MY sisters."  You have become my best friends, and I have the most fun when I am with y'all. I will treasure all of the memories we have made and look forward to the many more we will make, Lord willing.  I am thankful for you girls. I love you more than words could ever express. It has been a beautiful thing for me to witness the Lord's work in your lives. Seeing you study His word, writing it on your hearts, has been been an encouragement to me more than you will ever know. Hea...