"...He learned obedience from what he suffered, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him."- Hebrews 5:8-9

The strings of sin pull at my heart,and for some reason I follow.
Why can I not hold on to Christ's handsthat surround my heart?
anger,
covetousness,
crime,
demerit,
disobedience,
envy,
evil-doing,
gluttony,
guilt,
immorality,
imperfection,
iniquity,
lust,
offence,
pride,
tort,
transgression,
ungodliness,
unrighteousness,
vice,
violation,
wickedness,
wrongdoing.
There is hope!
GRACE!
But lest us not forget, atonement.
On a cross he bled and died, re-paid our debt,faced wrath of God our Savior!
Our Jesus made it feasible for a holyGod to be propitious, our scapegoat even though we are ugly, horrid, guilty sinners.
Oh, how great our Savior is,
so draw near to him and let him take a hold of your heart,
and though we will falter
as Satan pulls sins strings,
bring yourself back on hands and knees,
to be forgiven and wrapped in Christs arms again.
Live a real, vital, dynamic melding with our Lord that is not abstract but true!
originally written:October 3, 2005

maxwell and mom

Evan & Mom

recommendation monday: Mrs. Meyers

Who knew cleaning could be so much fun? With Mrs. Meyers cleaning products it can be! While this product is hard to find sometimes (our Target stopped selling it!) it is well worth the searh. I can only say I have used the dishwasher soap and hand soap, but I love them both! My personal favorite scent is Lemon Verbena, but I know they all smell good! It just makes household duties a little more fun when the products you are using smell sooooo good !

while you were sleeping...

Maxwell and EJ passed out on the couch.

Buying a home over the internet?

Maybe you think we are crazy and maybe we are, but we are considering it. We had friends of ours go and check out the home so we are not completely blind going into this. The thing is we have not had time to go and house hunt like we thought we would. We are moving just after Christmas, and by the time we would have time to go it will be like mid-December. We both love this home we found. It is on a dead-end street, it has a fenced in backyard, it has wood floors (a must for me!), and the master bath is awesome! Not only does it have a whirlpool tub it has a two-person shower. Justins dream come true. Two showerheads to use at once...what could be better. For a man who spends no less than a half hour in the shower this is a beautiful thing. So, this week we are hopefully going to make an offical offer, and we shall see. It is all still up in the air, but I thought I would give an update.
Plus, that awesome tree in the picture...would be ours! I have two boys...need I say more?

Free Documentry to check out!

If you have time (or continually hit pause like I did and came back to it) you should check out this really interesting documentry put out by the BBC. It is called Control Room (about 1.5 hrs.) and is about the war and the news network Al Jazeera. Here is the link.
Thoughts?

three months

It amazes me how much this boy smiles...he can always make my day just that much brighter!

Vote!

photo credit: cnn.com

Don't forget to vote today!

Shameless tears

"If this story leaves you cold, I don't think I can help you."- my cousin Jeff Heidkamp

Check out the story here.

oh yeah! a fattys update!

Alright so I am not going to lose 18 lbs. by thanksgiving...it was a bit much for me to hope for.
So my cousin (also working to lose the baby weight) had a goal of losing 10 lbs. by December 10 and I am shooting for 15 by Thanksgiving.
I have lost 8 lbs. since I started three weeks ago. I am pretty proud of myself so far, I lost 4 the first week, 3 the second and 1 last week. They say it gets harder as you get closer to the goal. I am proud to say I am back to my pre-pregnancy weight but let me tell you...my body not so much the same even more different than from my first pregnancy. Ah well such is life. I will never wear a bikini again...okay so I never wore one to begin with since I have swam competitively since like 5th grade and have always worn competitive suits but I am not big on the bikini thing anyway...a little too much nakedness for me. Anyway thanks for all the encouragement...and telling me I look skinny...you know who you are. I appreciate it, even though I know my face will always be as round as a basketball! :)

ps- what is up with my hair? I have got to do something about that!

October.

Kerry, Kerry, quite contrary

On Monday, Kerry was in California, stumping for Democratic gubernatorial candidate Phil Angelides. At an event at Pasadena City College intended to highlight Democratic education policies, Kerry told students, "You know, education, if you make the most of it, if you study hard and do your homework, and you make an effort to be smart, you can do well." But, he added, "If you don't, you get stuck in Iraq."

our biggest pumpkin

yikes! It's a ghost! Heehee!

We went to a few neighbors homes (good thing I took him out because the older couple next door said they only had their light on to see Maxwell...the husband had just had his knee replaced...they are so sweet and I have known them since I was 10) and Max really did not get the whole trick or treat thing down but people loved seeing him out. Of course he took his puppy hood off as soon as we walked back in the door...so no good pictures but he sure is enjoying his candy.

our littlest pumpkin

So Maxwell is NOT willing to cooperate and wear his cute puppy costume..he didn't really last year either...but Evan was willing to comply to some pictures! Maybe Max will give in later today! :)

bedtime.

matching pj's.
I promise this won't become a habit...
at least not too often :)

caught in the act...

picture credit: Sue Heidkamp

Happy Birthday!

mom & aunt sue

Happy Birthday Aunt Sue (aka. second mother)! Hope your day is a good one. Thanks for all your hospitality and good eats whenever the family is together! Love you! Happy Birthday!

sick day

Yesterday was a good day, spent outside raking leaves and jumping in them(It was impossible to get a picture of Maxwell standing still)!
But...I knew this day would finally come, where one of the boys would get sick. Maxwell woke up every few hours last night wimpering a little. We brought him into our bed and sure enough his warm forehead indicated a fever. We took him to my Dads office today where it ws diagnosed he has his first ear infection. He is doing quite well considering I know he feels yucky (and he has never been sick before) but he is going to have a full day of reading, Thomas the Train, and just relaxing...the weather outside is not to appealing anyway, so it is not such a bad day to be sick.

prayer.

"Anyone who has been on the Christian way for a while knows there are times when our private prayers run something like this? "Dear Lord, I thank you for the oppurtunity to come into your presence by the merits of Jesus. It is a wonderful blessing to call you Father...I wonder where I left my car keys?[no, no back to business.] Heavenly Father, I begin by asking you to watch over all my family-not just in the physical sphere, but in the moral and spiritual dimensions of our lives...Boy, last Sunday's sermon was sure bad. I wonder if I will get that report written on time? [No, no!] Father give real fruitfulness to that missionary couple we support, whatever their name is...Oh my! I had almost forgotten I promised to fix my sons bike today..." Or am I the only one who has had problems with mental drift?"- D.A. Carson, A Call To Spiritual Reformation, Priotities from Paul and His Prayers.
I do not know about you, but I am not that great at praying. I am a majorly guilty in the mental drift department, not only when I am praying alone, but also when I am praying with others. This is something I am trying to work on. Praying more often, but even more so, praying more focused. Reflecting on his word, his glory, his riches, his kingdom come. A few days ago an old family friend came to pick up my Dad to go Mayo clinic conference and he had not met our boys yet, and just before they were to leave he asked to pray for them. A simple gesture, but it really touched me. I get a little wierded out when people want to pray over your kids all the time, touching them, blessing them, blah blah, but this was not strange at all. In fact, it was quite nice.
I have found that I do not pray enough. I also tell people I will pray for them...and then I don't. Or, I just pray for their specific request but that is all. The book I mentioned above is one I am reading through right now. I would really recommend it to anyone who is struggling with prayer, or who just wants to learn more about how and why we should pray.
A few years ago I used to write down praises and prayers in a journal each night while I prayed, it kept me focused and I could reflect in writing what I had read in Gods word. After I had Maxwell though it started to collect dust. Now, I find I have time to do the journal again, and am starting that up again. I hope God will continue to reveal himself to me as I seek to give him glory each day.

Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday to my dear friend and cuz Vanessa...



















...and to my sister-in-law Julia. The best nurse I know!

Recommendation Monday

So I have been looking for new shoes right? Well I have finally found some at Gap inc.'s latest and greatest new store...Piperlime. They have a variety of shoe brands and for now free shipping and returns. My black shoe case just may be solved!