mmm homemade apple pie

When Scott was in Ohio a few weeks ago his Mom sent home one of her famous apple pies, frozen for the ride. Today in the chilly fall weather I decided it was the perfect day to bake it...

I just ate my first piece and can I tell you she makes the best pies in this WORLD. I love my own Mom and I like her pies too, BUT the crust and thin apple slices of Letha's pies cannot be compared. Just cannot be beat NO way NO how. By ANYONE.

She sold a couple of her pies this last week at her church mission sale and one sold for $30- I would pay $50 easily for this pie. :) They are THAT good. And no, sorry, but I am not sharing with any of you no matter how good of friends you are....

Hot AC

Jack says "Mom turn on the hot air conditioning it is really COLD in here." He announced that tonight in the car. Cute :)

Just what I needed today...

Once again my daily devotion was just what I needed...

Younger, Cuter, Skinnier

7 Oct 2009

Melanie Chitwood

"For we are God's masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago." Ephesians 2:10 (NLT)

While I waited in the carpool line to pick up my 10-year-old son Tyler, I watched the other moms coming and going with their kids. When Tyler got in the car, we talked about his day.

Abruptly changing subjects, I asked, "Tyler, do I look 46?"

He quickly answered, "No, mom, you look … 37."

I smiled, wondering how he came up with that number, but liking that it was much lower than my actual age.

I said, "Good answer!"

"Except for those wrinkles," he added as he studied my face.

"What?!"

"And …"

"Okay, we are finished with this conversation!"

As we drove back home, I wondered what prompted me to blurt out that question. Instantly, I knew the answer. While watching the other moms, I had started comparing myself. My comparison led me to think that the other moms were younger, cuter and skinnier.

Can you relate to these thoughts? We can fall into the comparison trap in an instant. For example, we flip through the pages of a magazine and compare our bodies to the images of skinny models. We go to a new Bible study and hesitate to speak up because we're sure the other women know more than we do.

Comparison usually leads us down a dangerous path of feeling insecure and "not enough," or else prideful and "better than." Neither path of thinking is one God wants us to take. God's Word tells us exactly what to do with faulty comparison thinking in 2 Corinthians 10:5, "We take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ" (NIV).

What does this mean in practice? First, we have to become aware of our thoughts. Next, we clarify if our thoughts are God's truth or the enemy's lies. We can be sure that any condemning or prideful thoughts are not from God. Finally, when we recognize a thought which is a lie, we need to replace the lie with God's truth. The verse I memorized to combat the lies resulting from comparison is a personalized version of today's key verse in Ephesians 2:10: "For I am God's beautiful masterpiece. He has created me anew in Christ Jesus, so I can do the good things He planned for me long ago."

Take time today to ask God to reveal to you any lies you believe about yourself. Confess pride or insecurity, and ask God to fill you with His truthful perspective.

And don't ask your child how old you look!

Dear Lord, keep my mind centered on the truth of who You say I am. Don't let my thoughts be tossed all over the place by the lies of the enemy. I know I am not defined by my circumstances, what I see in the mirror, or even what other people say about me. Let me rest in Your confidence as I acknowledge who You say I am, a masterpiece, fearfully and wonderfully made.
In Jesus' Name, Amen.

Talking sports with Grandpa

It's cute...the Twins just won their division, and now get to play the Yankees in the playoffs. The tie breaker game tonight vs Detroit went to 12 innings and Tommy watched the last half of the game. Tommy was so excited...Dad was, of course, at the game...so Tommy couldn't WAIT to talk to him. We had to wait a bit until we thought he would be in his car to call him.

I love listening to Tommy talk sports to my Dad. It makes me smile. They talk about the plays, Tommy asks what Grandpa thinks of this and that, wants to know if there is a lot of traffic, if any of his friends were at the game with him....they strategize. It's sweet. A sweet relationship.

Making me smile

Scott is gone this week for work....and the boys were in bed by 8 or 9 depending on who you were. :) I was watching the Viking game alone, yes shocking I even watch games sometimes when Scott is out of town and the boys are in bed, amazing. Makes my hubby, Dad and brother proud I am sure. Back to the point of this post, I was laying on the couch and had the remote on my tummy. Well the last 10 minutes of the game the baby was going NUTS. Must be a football fan is all I can say. The remote was bouncing up and down and side to side. I was laughing out loud to myself.

I told Scott today I think this baby has gained 4 lbs in strength in 24 hours. The kicks, rolls and punches are SO strong! This IS my very favorite part of being pregnant...feeling the little one move. Love it.

Dear Yenenesh

Over a year ago, our family started sponsoring a little girl named Yenenesh through Compassion International. Yenenesh lives in Ethiopia with her 2 siblings and her Grandma. We chose her because her birthday was closest to Jack's bday and we wanted to find a child that was close to the age of one of our boys. Not to mention she is just darling in her little picture and was noted as being IN NEED of a sponsor soon, due to her living in an HIV/AIDS area. Yenenesh was born November 21, 2002 and Jack was born November 20, 2002. SO they will both be 7 years old next month.

We just received another letter from her in the mail Friday. Compassion is SO good about the correspondence between Sponsor and child. Our boys look forward to her letters as do we. It is a joy to read how she is learning about God in her country, she is going to Sunday school now, the weather there, what she likes to do for fun, how our small gifts are making a HUGE difference in her life. How the $20- we sent extra this spring bought her all new clothes. Amazing to me.

As I sat and wrote her a note back tonight, send an updated picture of our family, told her about the baby on the way...shared about the bible story we read tonight(she always shares the bible story she just learned in her letters)...it makes me smile and makes my heart warm to know that we are making a difference in a life of a child we may never ever meet on this earth. But our boys pray for Yenenesh, and we were just talking about how it is almost her birthday too. We know she will celebrate in a simple way, but God made her and loves her as much as any other child He has made.

And when I hear stories about families who DO get to meet their sponsored child, sometimes years and years after having been their sponsors....I get chills. What a wonderful thing that would be, okay now I am tearing up...can you even imagine what that would be like? To think that right now our family photo could be posted in her home, as hers is on our fridge, gives me chills.

A quick story to end this post...I read this summer, in one of the "Chicken for the Soul" books about a family whose daughter needed some sort of life saving surgery...and how this family "happened" to be in an area close to a hospital where some young specialist Dr from another country was in town teaching this particular specialty to this team of Physicians there. To make the long story short...her life was saved by this man who did the surgery...and after the surgery the parents met the young Dr. And do you know that it was the very man that they sponsored his entire childhood. After he was 18 and no longer being sponsored he went to school, medical school and now was this very young Doctor who saved their daughters life. No coincidences with God. NONE. Amazing stuff.

The Proposal

Okay FINALLY the video is up, funny thing is the only way I could figure out how to do it the old Jr High way, I took a movie off my camera of the computer screen playing our rehearsal dinner DVD, so there is a bit of a slideshow with it too, and some James Taylor. Oh and it is a bit grainy. But you will get the idea of the moment.

Don't let my words and confusion let you think that I wasn't excited...I was thrilled, utterly in shock. When I look up and say "what are you doing here? why are you doing this to me?" I am in such shock that my parents are standing there and were in on it, Scott had told me he was in Chicago for a business meeting so I had thought he wasn't even near Mpls (he lived in Omaha at the time), I was supposed to be meeting him for a Buckeye game (surprise surprise) in Chicago later that weekend and had a plane ticket for Chicago and was packed, I had thought my parents were out for a business dinner the night before when indeed it was Scott who had taken them out to dinner to ask for my hand in marriage, none of it made sense to me...and I really pride myself in not ever being surprised. So enjoy my reaction...and enjoy the kids giggles and laughter. They are 1st graders, not 3rd like the news lady says, and I was student teaching in Edina, where I grew up.

Enjoy....

My turn

Well this morning at the breakfast table we were sitting around chatting about...guess what boys like to talk about? The buckeyes. And the discusssion came up, again, about who will get first pick for next years games with Daddy. Tommy and Drew have talked up the Michigan game forever, they have each been to one, Ohio State's big rival. They play Michigan in Ohio every other year. What Tommy and Drew haven't realized is that by their talking it up all the time...Jack now thinks it would be a great game for HIM to go to.

Here is how the conversation went

T "Next year I am going to the Michigan game, it's gonna rock"

D "Yea Tommy it was awesome last year when we stormed the field after the game"

J "It's my turn to pick first and I am picking the Michigan game, I wanna storm the field"

T "Oh Jack the Michigan game really isn't that much fun, it's always really cold and really loud and there will probably be a lot of fireworks "(Jack does not like fireworks)

D "Jack, it's not that fun, it's really loud"

J "I will be fine, that's the game I am picking"

Be careful what you brag about there older brothers, your line in the Buckeye weekend rotation is getting longer.

Tommy Fall of 2006, last year of a grass field. Holding part of the field after his MI game

Drew Fall of 2008 laying on the block O in the middle of the field after the Michigan game

Amazing Grace

The boys are walking around singing Amazing Grace this morning, not sure where it came from or why they are singing it, but it's a sweet sound.