Stuff is Just Stuff...

Until it's my wedding ring!
So Tracy always gives me a hard time about how I leave my rings on my nightstand and go about my day (I have finger claustrophobia issues but that's another therapy session). I went to the gym on Saturday, tied my rings to my tennies, went for a run on the treadmill, stopped to re-tie my shoe halfway through my run and went home.
An hour later, through teary eyes I kicked myself for being the most irresponsible person EVER for forgetting that my rings were tied to the shoe that came untied. Before Tracy left to go find my rings he says, "It's just stuff." Thanks to a quick phone call and Isaiah at the front desk my "stuff" was retrieved.
Through this experience, I have realized how sentimental I am. They are so much more than just stuff. As I was explaining to Ellie why mommy was crying, I got in touch with the fact that memories are sometimes embodied in things that we hold dear and sometimes take for granted until we come face to face with their loss. My treasure is in heaven, but for now I will be grateful that we won't be ring shopping anytime soon.

Drinking Fountain

This past weekend I had the privilege of seeing some former college friends (I didn't say OLD!) We had a great time catching up, sharing pictures, meeting new people in their lives and realizing that even though time passes there's much to be said for the close friendships formed in college. The most significant point over the weekend though was to hear an old (yes old) professor speak (David Needham). This man of God hasn't changed his style of speech from the years I was at Multnomah! He made me laugh as he started hymn singing as he shared, he challenged me by his Bible memorization and most of all he pointed my to Christ once more.
His topic? Receiving the love of God. There's no greater challenge to a "doer" like myself than hearing again that I DO NOT have to impress God in order for His love to wash over me daily. I DO NOT have to DO in order for my life to qualify as worthwhile. We were to think of the one person who loves us most in our life. What is the first thing we must do when that person says, "I Love You"? We must accept their love.
His analogy has stuck in my head - Jesus is the Fountain of Living Water. When we were in college, we studied the chemical properties of the Fountain of Living Water, we knew the Ph balance of the water, the ins and outs of how we could drink from it and it would satisfy. We can know that Fountain of Living Water better than we know anything else on earth, but until we drink from it, receive its properties, gulp in its goodness, we will be standing before our only way to life dying of thirst.
How do you stop a doer dead in her tracks? Point me again to the Fountain and remind me - DRINK! Receive it, Receive God's Love. That's all He's asking of me today.

Little Details

I took Mattie shopping today and I got a look into what I must have been like as a kid! We were walking by a rack of white capris on the way out of TJ Maxx. She stopped walking, looked at me, looked at the capris, looked back at me. She then concentrated on plucking off a small black thread that had somehow made its way onto the front of the capris. She smiled a HUGE smile as she proudly fingered and showed off her new treasure. I told her what a good job she did for pulling off the thread, but I then reminded her we had to go and pick up her sisters from art class. She looks from the thread, to the capris, to me and back to the thread. She then placed the thread back onto the capris (since hey we don't throw things on the ground!) and reached for my hand to leave. I got a chuckle out of the fact that she has such an eye for little details! Oh to find delight in our little black thread today!

When Did that Happen?

We went and had pictures taken today of the girls. I walked out of there in disbelief! I have 3 little girls! There's no baby living at my house anymore. Now, Mattie may think she's fooling us by not using her words, still walking around in diapers and well, she may still be SLIGHTLY bald!, but these pictures don't lie. She's a big girl on her way to doing big girl things.