Funny Friday: My Crazy Kid

My kid cracks me up!  Yesterday I was cleaning the bathroom (only three things left on the to-do list!!) after she went to bed.  But she did NOT want to go to sleep...so she watched me from under her bedroom door.  Crazy kid.

And of course play time is not complete without a dispersal of blocks ALL around the living room...

And just for good measure, me in my daughter's sunglasses:



Thankful Thursdays Top Ten #18

Hey there!

I was in my car listening to K-Love today and heard a song about doing everything we do for HIS glory!  Love it!  That was a good mood picker-uper!

1) I am thankful for 38 weeks of healthy pregnancy, 2 weeks till my due date and my baby girl who could arrive at ANY time!  Cannot wait to meet her! 

2) I am thankful for Stephanie who has miss Grace today to play with her three kids!  As we all know I have a list of things to get done and hopefully will accomplish some of them today, all my work stuff and MAYBE squeeze in a nap.  I also have a project I want to get done for her kids and my kids but I'm guessing that won't be today.

3) I was told I was "really cute pregnant" today...while I was walking out of the fabric store...by some 20-30 year old lady in a car.  Thanks I think?  It surprised me and made me laugh at how slow we are to compliment others sometimes.  Thanks for noticing! :)

4) I am thankful that our family ministry update finally went out but I still need to figure out ways to get the word out about what we do and why to people we don't already know.  Prayer...lots of prayer!

5) I am thankful that my kiddo is such a good sleeper!  She does really well in her big girl bed, I am SO proud of her!  She also usually sleeps in really well...except today she got up before 7am.  Fortunately Hubs got up with her...unfortunately I forgot he had to be at work early so I woke up to the text message of "I have to leave for work, Grace is watching Sesame Street"...she was fine of course but I felt bad that he left for work before I got out of bed!

6) I am thankful for time with my husband and daughter.  We spent Tuesday night out together and then Hubs and I went on a date last night.  (Mama DiSalvos is seriously the best Italian food EVER)  He is so much fun to be around and watching him with our little girl is delightful.

7) I am thankful for all the ways my friends have shown love lately - from keeping me company while Hubs is at work, watching my kiddo so I can focus on some other stuff that needs to get done, baking me happy birthday treats to just letting me talk and laughing with me over silly stuff.  I love them!

8) I am thankful for 27 years of life!  I had a birthday last weekend and I got to celebrate with my Grandpa who has a birthday the same day.  I have learned so much and am excited to see what the next 27 years hold! 

9) I am thankful for Beth Moore - I just finished her Paul Bible study.  I learned a lot about him - he makes more sense to me now!  I am also thankful for websites where I can find new Bible studies to do for awhile.  (I want to find a new book similar to the one I finished...but I want to do something other than Beth Moore so I don't get in a rut)

10) I am thankful for God's provision for friends...one is pregnant with twins - one is pregnant and will be in the hospital for at least the next 4 weeks because of high blood pressure, but she is being taken care of and it is under control (her first baby) - two are completely trusting God with His timing and it is a JOY to see and be a part of - - I am blessed by these lovely women!

Got some thankfuls?  Link up!

  

(And I'm thankful this is my 100th blog post!)

Family Ministry Update Letter

"We loved you so much that we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well, because you had become so dear to us." 1 Thessalonians 2:8

 Dear Lovely Blog Reader,

Aaron and I are headed into a busy season in our lives and I wanted to send out a quick family and ministry update to all those who have supported and encouraged us over the years.  We are thankful that God is continuing to work through and around us in very real ways and excited that we get to be a part of it!  I enclosed a pack of hot chocolate mix and I was wondering if one morning, as you sip that (or your beverage of choice) if you could pray for us!  And to return the favor, I have your name written on a pack of hot chocolate mix at my house so one morning I will spend some time in prayer for you and your family as well!

Aaron and I recently talked about the life we have been called to and it is not an easy one.  We are fully aware that there will be heartache and trouble along the road.  We have known teens that died in car accidents, consoled teens whose friends have committed suicide and helped teens deal with the pain of relationships that have broken their spirits.  We work with young girls who are pregnant and need to know that someone still loves them since their boyfriends, families and friends have turned their backs.  We get 2am phone calls from kids who don’t know where else to turn.  We have even had teens live in our home short term because their parents were more interested in drugs and alcohol then they were in their children.  We see firsthand the pain and torment that a lot of these teens face every day and praise the Lord we are there to offer them the hope we have found in Christ Jesus.  We are thankful that five teens have recently accepted Christ and already this year the ministry has been involved in the baptisms of 70 teens!

Please pray with us that we can continue in this life to which we have been called.

As some of you know, Aaron and I are working toward our goal to raise 100% of our own mission support so that we are not drawing from the general fund of Harvest Youth Ministries.  Currently 98.5% of donations go directly into supporting our programming but as we are able to raise our own support more programs such as retreats, more Bible studies and events will be offered.  Right now we are at 24.8% of our support for the first six months of this year; however some of those are one time gifts that will not be duplicated in upcoming months.  We have been given the deadline of January 1, 2012 to raise at least 50% of our monthly support.  In order to meet this goal we are asking once again for our family and friends to prayerfully consider their support.  If you already donate to the ministry or to our family’s goal we are grateful and appreciate your sacrifice on our behalf.  If you don’t and would like to, we would love to have your support.  We also covet your prayers and encouragement as we continue on this journey.  If you know of anyone who loves teens and ministry that would possibly like to get involved we ask that you please pass our information along!  We cannot meet this goal without help.

It is intimidating to me to have the responsibility to get the word out and ask people for their help, but we feel that we have been called to a life of ministry and as the Bible says “And how can they preach unless they are sent?” (Romans 10:15).

Again, I look forward to drinking my packs of hot chocolate and praying for you and your family over the coming months.  We will send updates on our progress in all of these areas in the coming months.  You can visit our family’s ministry page at www.harvestyouth.org/aaronandelizabeth.htm and we again we are always thankful if you are able to tell even one friend about our ministry and ask them to pray for us as well.

With Love,

Aaron, Elizabeth, Grace and Baby J

Harvest Youth Ministries is an IRS approved 501 (c) 3 organization and all donations are tax deductible.
To make a donation, you can use the enclosed envelope writing our names somewhere on the envelope or check.  You can also go to our family website (www.harvestyouth.org/aaronandelizabeth.htm)  to set up a monthly donation via paypal. 

Some Updates:
- Baby Girl is due August 18^th and we are looking forward to meeting her and introducing her to you!
- Grace turns two on September 16^th!  We cannot believe how fast the time has gone!
- Aaron is currently working to find a new location for Harvest Thrift Store.  In September our current building will be bulldozed to expand the neighboring McDonalds so we are prayerfully looking for the building that will house this part of the ministry next.
- I am beginning the planning stages of our next Princess Program which will start up again this fall!  It is always a thrill to get a new group of ladies in our small group setting!
- The Attic is doing well. 

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Please visit www.harvestyouth.org/aaronandelizabeth.htm for information on how to donate.

Even if you don't make a donation, if you set some time aside to pray for our family please let me know and I'll set some time aside to specifically pray for yours!

If there is ANYONE you know that has a heart for teens PLEASE pass our information along.  We need to get the word out about what we do and why we do it and we can't do that without your help!!

To Do List Tuesday

So as a follow up to yesterday, I thought I'd call this one To Do List Tuesday...I feel like my To Do list NEVER gets finished! But of course the goal is to finish the list before I finish the chart...

See how few spots are left?!?  (And for those that don't know what I'm talking about, that is my count down to due date chart.)  Anyway, most of the stuff on my list just takes some time and attention.  I finished FIVE of them yesterday!  I gotta say though, I'm not super pumped about the rest of them. 

Washing the carpets isn't hard in and of itself but the kitchen table has to move to get it done right.  (Maybe I should tell hubs I want Stanley Steamer for my birthday!) 

The car needs to have all the junk removed, not just gathered and be swept. 

Laundry isn't hard for me to wash and fold...but for some reason I have an aversion to putting it away...to the point that it seems like we are used to living out of baskets.  I've failed as a wife :)  (Not really, hubs doesn't care as long as he has clean clothes and they are folded!) 

I have a PILE of stuff to take to the thrift store.  You wouldn't think this was a problem since my husband goes there EVERY DAY but I either don't remember or he already has stuff to take with him. 

During the weekend my eyes were bugging me so I dug my glasses out of my hospital bag so everything is sitting AROUND the bag instead of in it.  Ugh. 

Bathrooms are the worst possible thing to clean (ok, not really).  I don't wanna!! :) 

And finally, the closet where I store all my kid's clothes that she is not currently wearing needs some attention.  I had to dig stuff out yesterday and realized I need a strong organizational/space saving guru to come help me get this organized so I can get to what I need easily.  Essentially I have one tub for every clothing size and then toys that are too old/young for my kid.  It needs help!

I also need to put a lamp in the hallway upstairs...there is no light up there and before baby is here it'd probably be good to come up with a way to NOT fall down the stairs. (Not that I have, but why risk it?!?)

So, I'm off...between this list of personal To Do's and my list of work To Do's I may never leave my house again...except to go to the thrift store and clean out my car of course! :)

Elizabeth

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It is now 10:34, 1 hour and 30 minutes since my original post.  I have since added 5 things to the to do list and finally gotten the thrift store stuff out of the house.  Hubs says I'm nesting :)

Update 2 7:37pm: I have put the lamp in the upstairs hallway and am ONE load of laundry away from being done!  One blanket, 3 pairs of hub's shorts and it is all washed, folded and PUT AWAY!  

It's been awhile...

It's been awhile...mainly because it has been busy around here.  And when it isn't busy, I just want to sit and do nothing.  :)  Yep, I'm at THAT stage of pregnancy.  I wish I had a little more "nesting" instinct going on...then maybe Morgan wouldn't have made fun of my to-do list...

I mean, I did "sorta" clean out the car...what's wrong with that?  I also had a birthday this past weekend.  I'm now 27 years old - 27!  Every year for our birthdays my dad sends my sister and I flowers.  It is the ONLY day of the year that I answer the door if I'm not expecting someone...and usually I sprint to the door!  Stop and smell the flowers...

So pretty!  Speaking of pretty, I love this kid...I'm not sure if you caught on to that by now!

And one last picture, this is my Grandpa and me on Saturday...he turned 84 and I turned 27...I love sharing a birthday with this man and all the delightful things he has taught me over the years!

OK, I lied, one more...this is how I started my day (well, it was noon but I figure my day doesn't start until Grace is down for a nap and I can actually accomplish something)

More to come...I will do my BEST to be more faithful! :)

Elizabeth