I'm thankful for... songs and emotion

We sang (and sing often) this in church this week. This summer I wasn't surprised at the emotion this song evoked from me. 

But this time I wasn't expecting it and it caught me off guard. It's not a bad thing, and I don't feel "bad" about it- just surprised. 

This song brings me to tears and resonates with my heart- it expresses my desire (at the very least). I'm glad God's still working in me.

  Blessed Be Your Name In the land that is plentiful  Where Your streams of abundance flow Blessed be Your name

  Blessed Be Your name When I'm found in the desert place Though I walk through the wilderness Blessed Be Your name

  Blessed be Your name When the sun's shining down on me When the world's 'all as it should be' Blessed be Your name

  Blessed be Your name On the road marked with suffering  Though there's pain in the offering  Blessed be Your name

  You give and take away You give and take away My heart will choose to say Lord, blessed be Your name

Every blessing You pour out  I'll turn back to praise When the darkness closes in, Lord Still I will say
  Blessed be the name of the Lord Blessed be Your name Blessed be the name of the Lord Blessed be Your glorious name 

I'm thankful for... House progress!

Sometimes I wonder why things happen. Sometimes it makes me wonder and think about God in ways I haven't before. Perhaps that'll be some post some time. I haven't wrapped my head around it all yet.

In any case, for whatever reason (or lack thereof) our house flooded 10.29, was gutted (see this post), dried, and since Monday the 16th has been getting a facelift - all caused from the little water tube on the back of the toilet. -but is all getting fixed compliments of our insurer! Praise the Lord. In the end it will be amazingly better than before. It's just that right now is a little rough (for the past 3.5 weeks!) But I see the light at the end- maybe 2 weeks! YAY!

We've been...

Picking out tile floors and showers for two bathrooms.

Picking out carpet for every last inch of floor on both floors.

Watching walls get rebuilt and mudded (may I just say I'm fascinated by that goop- I could watch them do that for hours! hehehehe).

We've lived through gross drywall-dust air and floors, all surfaces have turned white- so much for dusting this month! (our contractor has been amazing at keeping living quarters tidy and projects moving along though; as well as inspirational and helpful as we choose everything from tiles-to paint to carpet and wood! Thank you South Face, Inc! errrr..... Alex and Andrea hugs!)

Speaking of living quarters...

This is how we roll...

And we've tore out old, out-dated, cupboards (as I type at this moment our new vanity's are being picked up! YAY!)

While the carpet and trim are out (or are being replaced) I've painted a few of the closets I had conveniently skipped the first time I painted when we moved in... this also provided an opportunity to sort and goodwill a bunch of stuff. That's always a good thing.

And I'm super thankful I get to spend the afternoon cleaning then packing for vacation to Phoenix for Thanksgiving~ where we'll get to spend time with our cousins and relax in the warm desert air. Ahhhhh. A welcomed activity.

I'm thankful for... My Sisters & Brothers!

Each of these individuals add their own unique, needed, precious, and special dimension to Charlie's and my own life. Without just one of them we wouldn't be who we are today, they add love, laughter, depth, conviction, spontaneity and spark to our lives! God has bless us with them!!!

Anna:

A woman who know what she thinks!

She's a great one to look to if you're looking for

an honest answer woven with light-heartedness and love and energy.

Cally:

This young lady is tender-hearted,

thought-provoking and is up for adventure and craftiness!

(us "big girls" call them "the little girls"- who are not all that little anymore)

Zach & Bridget:

Zach is strong man with a soft heart; he's a people lover and will give the shirt off his back to help others (us!) out and make them feel comfortable. Bird is full of life (quite literally-little nephew due next spring!) and knows how to make us laugh; she always looks at the bright side and is willing to be vulnerable and open. Together they're dynamic!

(e)Liz(abeth) & Michael:

Liz is strong, creative, and bubbly; she never shrinks back from monumentally difficult things. She is so caring and thoughtful. Michael is an amazingly steady, level-headed man. He is great at giving perspective and always thinks before he talks (and always has a gentle tone!) Together they impact the lives of everyone around them.

Andrew:

This guy always has others needs before his own, and deeply cares for his friends' (and our!) well-being - physically and spiritually! He's a great movie quoter and wilderness camper. He can talk about theology, sport statistics, family, remodeling, love, news, and craziness with ease, enthusiasm, intelligence beyond his years.

WE LOVE YOU ALL!

I'm thankful for... My Parents 2!

Mom & Dad J:

Mom is such a calm, level-headed, humble woman. She is gracious and always shows great respect for her husband, she embraces her role as a Godly wife. Dad is a jovial guy; he always has a smile, a kind word filled with truth, and is witty (if you're fast enough to catch on).

Together they willingly and joyfully serve their family and their church family (often from behind the scenes); what a great example they are to us!

(I'm also REALLY grateful for the fabulous man they raised, who I get to enjoy!)

(this is a picture of them enjoying a spot of tea on one of their recent adventure to London)

We love you both very much!

I'm thankful for... My Parents

My Dad:

My Mom:

My Mom and Dad are amazing. I love them so much! The above pictures are testaments to their servants hearts for those around them. This particular weekend they brought gear all the way up from Iowa to help us with some yard work. My mom always looks for ways to love us through gifts or acts of service, and my dad shows us love by spending time and being patient. (both show love MANY other ways, but this is what stood out to me this trip).

I've learned so much from my God-fearing parents, who are committed to each other (and their family) through thick and thin, who always put others before themselves, who are down-to-earth and always up for anything.

I love each of you!

age

Ten days ago Charlie and I got to go to Waterloo to celebrate my years as a human. (not that I've had years being anything else...) I guess I should say to celebrate my birthday. Let me break it down for you:
(Amanda)You have been living for 29 years, 0 months, and10 days.
Your age in months - 348 months
Your age in weeks - 1514 weeks
Your age in days - 10602 days
Your age in hours - 254448 hours
Your age in minutes - 15266880 minutes
Your age in seconds - 916012800 seconds
You've seen 8 leap years.
We also enjoyed dressing up to go get CANDY CANDY CANDY with our little nieces and nephew!

dehydrate

Main Entry: de·hy·drate
Pronunciation: \(ˌ)dē-ˈhī-ˌdrāt\
Function: verb, transitive verb
1 a : to remove bound water or hydrogen and oxygen from (a chemical compound) in the proportion in which they form water b : to remove water from. (our house!!!)

Soooo, I had a little surprise waiting for me upon my arrival home Thursday afternoon. I tell ya- I wasn't gone for no more than four hours and our house began to turn into a swimming pool! Yes, that's right, the little flexible tube that connects the toilet tank to the wall (pipe) sprang a leak in the valve sprayed about 4 feet constantly for a good long while. Enough to flood that upstairs bathroom, the hallway outside it and just into the rooms connecting to the hallway. Then as it continued to spray it filled the ceiling in the bathroom, hallway, and family room below on the lower level. And didn't stop there- it filled the walls, the floor to standing water and finally down in to the basement level and into the drain in the floor. Completely ruining our new paint work, all our carpeting, vanity(s), sub flooring, trim, doors, and baseboards.

Yes ladies and gentlemen, we've been gutted. We get to do a $50,000.00 + unwanted remodel. :-) BUT we're thankful that 1. it was not sewage water! YAY! 2. it happened BEFORE we went out of town for the weekend (could you imagine what it would've been like if we were gone and found it after 3 whole days!!?!?! YIKES). God was good to us. Our insurance will foot the bill. We'll be staying in a hotel (thank you state farm!) until they at least finish the upstairs portion and get that carpeted.

Here are a few pictures of our fun. If ya think of it, just pray that we could get things repaired really quickly, so this project doesn't drag on for weeks and weeks (like what usually happens with builders). We'd really like to have it wrapped up within a month. (is that crazy?)