sweet little words.

I can't wait to Wes starts talking!  He babbles a lot, but as fas as we know, still no official words yet!  But I found this today (via) and I think it is fabulous!  I totally want to get one & write down all the wonderful things that Westin says!

"My Quotable Kid" 

This looks like fun too to keep track of birthdays!!

Love, Jesus

I feel like Jesus is so sweet to speak to what my heart longs to hear... through chocolate :)

strength.

So I've been thinking a lot about strength lately.  I think because I feel so physically weak!  Carrying my big little boy up & down stairs & lugging our stroller & chairs & all we need to get through the day... I'm tired.


When I think of the opposite of strength, I obviously think of being weak.  And when I am weak, I am fearful.  I'm fearful... that I won't fit in, not having close friends, not being beautiful, not making a difference, missing out, not being pursued (by my hubs & by women friendships), that I'll be rushed through life, and well, just not being perfect!


What I desire... I desire to fit in, have close friends, be beautiful, make a difference, never miss out, be pursued, to slow down AND... to be perfect :) I know, I said it. But that's what I want. Perfection.


Why do I desire perfection?  Because God planted perfection in our hearts! Desire is a good thing! And to desire perfection is good.  But, only Jesus can fulfill that desire!  Only He is perfect.  (I need to remind myself of that every day!) 


So what do I do with all these desires that I have that lead me to being fearful?  


"The “desires” of the heart must be desires that are satisfied in more of God in more and more ways. If that were not the case, we would not truly be delighting in God as an end in itself but only using God to get what we enjoy more than what may be found in him alone." -John Piper via Sam Storms (emphasis mine)


OK, so I'm supposed to delight in God.  Check. Or... no check... do I really want to do it? Do I actually delight in Him more than these other things??


Delight is a command.
Delight (or  joy) is a feeling.


Few.  So I can obey & choose to delight.  But, it's also a feeling!!


I know how to delight in things.  Like I delight myself in chocolate by eating it. I delight myself in my husband by spending time with him. I delight myself in Westin by playing with him & making him laugh.  But how do we delight ourselves in God?  Sam Storms suggests 4 ways:

1. Intellectual fascination- Know Him!  I have this "thing" where honestly, I just don't really care that much about people I don't know.  But what's so sweet of the Lord is that within seconds of meeting someone... sometimes as quickly as hearing their name from their lips, my heart is filled with care & love for them. I desire to know them.  And to do that, I talk with them, spend time with them, get to know their personality & character- what makes them, them.  I think that's how it is with God.  To know Him, I need to engage my mind, & become intellectually fascinated with Him!

2. Aesthetic adoration- we are drawn to beauty & repelled by ugliness.  "God is ultimate Beauty.  To delight in Him is to behold His beauty in all its vast array." Look to Him for beauty.  Thank Him for His beautiful creation.  

3. Emotional exhilaration- our affections are also designed to find their focus & fulfillment in God- with the Spirit's help we must learn to cultivate & re-direct all affections so that they are rooted  in Him & riveted on Him- all of our zeal, love, devotion, delight, fear, passion, gratitude, hope, etc. I need an emotional makeover!!!

4. Volitional dedication- the engagement of our wills & the choices we make.  Obey His commandments & choose to avoid all He has prohibited. Obedience nourishes delight & joy.

So you might be thinking, "where is this really going? You're all over the place!"  Well, I might be, but I have a point.  

See, the root of my fears, the things I think I most desire.... they all tie into these 4 ways that we can delight ourselves in God!  The only One worthy of our desire!

Intellectual fascination- root: I desire to be known & to know others

Aesthetic adoration- root: I desire to be beautiful & to be surrounded by beautiful people

Emotional exhilaration- root: I desire to be loved & fulfilled

Volitional dedication- root: I desire my own way, to choose my own path

These fears that I have are because of my desires, desires that should be rooted & fulfilled in Christ.  

"For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control" 2 Timothy 1:7

Thank you, Jesus!  It is through Him, through His Spirit that I am able to be strong!  Strength comes from the Lord.  My desires can change.  They can change because of His Spirit inside me who gives me the ability to choose Him over all these other desires.  

Let me make this really clear...

I desire to... 

...fit in & have close friends ... The Lord is my strength to choose Him- to be so satisfied in Him that I am free to love & be loved by whomever He chooses.

...be beautiful ... The Lord is my strength to be so captivated by His beauty that I see myself as His beautiful creation that I am.

...make a difference ... The Lord is my strength to choose to live for Him & follow His ways so that my legacy lasts for eternity through the souls of man.

...never miss out ... The Lord is my strength to choose to follow the Spirit's leading in my heart so that I never miss out on what He wants me to do.

...be pursued ... The Lord is my strength to see Him as my ultimate pursuer & be satisfied in His passionate love for me.

...to slow down ... The Lord is my strength to stop & enjoy Him, His creation & His gifts.

...be perfect ... The Lord is my strength to look to Him & be satisfied in His perfection.

The Lord is who I desire.  The One I find my joy in.  The Lord is my strength.  I am strong because He has made me strong.

"The joy of the Lord is my strength" 
Nehemiah 8:10

Oh Billy Buttons.

Isn't that just the funniest/cutest name?!  They are also known as "billy balls," or "woolyheads"  

That just makes me giggle.  And I love that. 

{ via love made me do it }

Oh billy buttons. I adore you.

*And this is a pretty genius idea for getting the same look for A LOT less: DIY Billy Buttons 

I confess...

I have an obsession. Bags!!!!  I just love them all!  Here's one I will never own (price, ehhmmm) ....

[ by strawfood handmade via paperpony ]

So my lovelies, if you see something like it in the normal person price range give me a holler!!!

love this resource.

So I just got home from "Wives Conference" with Campus Crusade for Christ.  There I attended a dinner with moms of infants - preschoolers.  Joyce Rowland from East 91st Street Christian Church joined us to share her wealth of knowledge to us young moms.  Man, am I grateful!!!  I learned so much!  Here are two of the resources she gave us.  Honestly, I had no idea babies could learn so much about Jesus.  Can't wait to teach Wes!!

*if you want these files, let me know & I can email them to you!

vintage blocks + wes.

Today I picked up my hubs from work & took a quick stop at the antique store on our way home.  We have gone there soo many times over the past few years & have never bought anything... until today!  Our first purchase: vintage blocks.  Aren't they adorable?!  I'm so glad we found the right letters to be able to spell something for our little guy.

And bonus, the lion & the lamb blocks!  I love that something as simple as a toy block can help Westin look to Jesus & understand more of His character.

 Here's a photo of the blocks up on his bookshelf.

ps Joel, I feel like you should get two shout outs in this photo -- Your sweet gift + I found something in our car the other day & it made it to Wes' room! Look familiar??

 The little man was crawling around on the floor while I put  his blocks up -- I couldn't resist to take a few of him.  I mean, I like the blocks and all... but this face... and that drool!

...oh, and THOSE EYES!!!

I love this laugh.

Last night, Scott & I had Westin rolling!  It was so great!  We were doing fake hiccups, and he loved it!  

Enjoy.

Laughing with Mommy.

Love this little guy's laugh!! He's so awesome!

scarf hanger.

check out that scarf hanger on the right side - amazing!  Why aren't these sold everywhere?  

{ photo found here }

Next project : figure out how to make this myself! Hmm....

Ikea makes it! Who knew!?  Check it out here. (Thanks Nick & Kara)

PS wish I had the need for a ladder in our house.  Maybe someday.

goal = simplify {matchbook}

I'm really into de-cluttering my life/home/wardrobe right now.  If only I actually had the time to do this, I would be so much more productive!  I think it comes from the reality of not having any time with our little one-- I figure, if there isn't much stuff, it can't make a mess, especially if it all has its own nice, neat place that it belongs. That's what I desire.  Simplicity.  Less.  No more corners & boxes filled with stuff I haven't touched in years.  So, we'll see how long it takes.... it will be worth it in the end!  Oh, I can't wait! 

Matchbook is a new online magazine - so cool!  This is one of the articles from the magazine (pg 38-43)...  my closet is one of the next items on my to-do list!  I thought this was a great article to help me feel OK about my purging of clothes & see what is the perfect "go to" clothes that every girl needs.  I'm sure I'll keep more than this... but I'll take all the help I can get!  

*The end goal = a wardrobe that consists of clothes that fit me NOW & that I love & that fits nicely in the space that I have for it (no more shoving in drawers)

can't get enough.

Listen to Greyson Chance.  Please.

...here's his performance.  Love this too (same song).

hip hop kids.

Seriously? This is amazing. Watch this.

iphone apps for moms.

check out the top 50 iphone apps for moms

here are some of the ones that I liked -- bonus these are all free ones!

WebMD - type in your symptoms, it  suggests what's wrong with you

Baby travel - input your travel dates, whose coming, weather -- then it creates a packing list for you

Red laser - scan a barcode -- it compares prices (don't be fooled by poor sales!)

Grocery IQ - create grocery lists by stores & isles -- & it's linked with coupons.com

Coupon sherpa - uses your location to create a list of nearby retailers offering coupons & discounts

fast mall - provides virtual maps of malls - nearest elevator, restroom & SALES

Betty Crocker - her cookbook = love

crock pot - who doesn't love crock pot recipes?

all recipes - thousands of recipes & a filter to chose or avoid ingredients

*total baby (not on this list but it's my fav for tracking your baby's activity! bummer though it's not free)

love this.

Ok, so here are a few things I'm loving right now...

> The History of Rap with Jimmy Fallon, Justin Timberlake & The Roots

> Lil' P-Nut (Ellen DeGeneres Show) -- this is the cutest thing ever!

> So You Think You Can Dance (Ellen DeGeneres Show) -- amazing! Wish I could dance like this :)

> Today is National Coffee Day! (some stores are giving away free coffee today!) ...Here's me enjoying my first cup of caffeinated coffee in 9 months on the 20th!

> my adorable little boy... I had to get him a hoody since it's so chilly out! He's so cute I can hardly stand it :)

Westin Alan Ebsen.

September 7, 2010

9:49pm - 8 lbs 2 oz - 21 1/2 in

a little Jesus storybook bible.

one of the sweet girls in my Bible study wrote this-- written like a chapter from the Jesus Storybook Bible. We are obsessed with this Bible! And I just love her rendition!!!

enjoy.

The Light of the Whole World

That same night, in amongst the other stars, suddenly a bright new star appeared. Of all the stars in the dark vaulted heavens, this one shone clearer. It blazed in the night and made other stars look pale beside it.

God put it there when his baby Son was born -- to be like a spotlight. Shining on him. Lighting up the darkness. Showing people the way to him.

You see, God was like a new daddy -- he couldn't keep the goo dnews to himself. He'd been waiting all these long years for this moment, and now he wanted to tell everyone.

So he pulled out all the stops. He'd sent an angel to tell Mary the good news. He'd put a special star in the sky to show where his boy was. And now he was going to send a big choir of angels to sing his happy song to the world: "He's here! He's come! Go and see him. My little Boy."

Now where would you send your splendid choir? To a big concert hall maybe? Or a palace perhaps? God sent his to a little hillside, outside a little town, in the middle of the night. He sent all those angels to sing for a raggedy old bunch of shepherds watching their sheep outside Bethlehem.

In those days, remember, people used to laugh at shepherds and say they were smelly and call them other rude names (which I can't possibly mention here). You see, people thought shepherds were nobodies, just scruffy old riff-raff.

But God must have thought shepherds were very important indeed, because they're the ones he chose to tell the good news to first.

That night, some shepherds were out in the open fields, warming themselves by a campfire, when suddenly the sheep darted. They were frightened by something. The olive trees rustled. What was that... A wing beat?

They turned around. Standing in front of them was a huge warrior of light, blazing in the darkness. "Don't be afraid of me!" the bright shining man said. "I haven't come to hurt you. I've come to bring you happy news for everyone everywhere. Today, in David's town, in Bethlehem, God's Son has been born! You can go and see him. He is sleeping in a manger."

Behind the angel they saw a strange glowing cloud -- except it wasn't a cloud, it was angels... troops and troops of angels, armed with light! And they were singing a beautiful song: "Glory to God! To God be Fame and Honor and all our Hoorays!"

Then as quickly as they appeared, the angels left.

The shepherds stamped out their fire, left their sheep, raced down the grassy hill, through the gates of Bethlehem, down the narrow cobble streets, through a courtyard, down some step, step, steps, past an inn, round a corner, through a hedge, until, at last, they reached...

a tumbledown stable.

They caught their breath. Then quietly, they tiptoed inside.

They knelt on the dirt floor. They had heard about this Promised Child and now he was here. Heaven's Son. The Maker of the Stars. A baby sleeping in his mother's arms.

This baby would be like that bright star shining in the sky that night. A Light to light up the whole world. Chasing away darkness. Helping people to see.

And the darker the night got, the brighter the star would shine.

support nashville.

this is my brother & sister-in-law's printing business: check it out now > friendly arctic and their shirt was promoted by anderson cooper on 360! buy their shirt now at the cool people care shoppe-- 100% of the proceeds of the "we are nashville" shirts & bumper stickers help support flood relief in middle tennessee.

my family is sweet.

ps. the guy wearing the shirt on the main page of cool people care shoppe (photo above) is my bro :)

I love having a boy already.

alright, anyone who says little boys clothes aren't cute... check this out! ...

Izod 5 pack- there's a little blue hat too!

ok, I don't think it can get any cuter than this!! Red windbreaker, t-shirt & pin striped pants! I'm so excited for our boy to wear this I can hardly stand it!

5 pack of Polo onesies :)

...all from TJMaxx. I'm in love with my little man, and he's going to look soooo cute!!!!!!!!

our new stroller.

I can't believe we got this today! That was not the plan... but who can pass $100 off!!!?? So, we went for it. I LOOVE it! I can't wait to put little baby Ebsen in it someday!

And then... when there is baby Ebsen #2.... BAM! We have room for 2 already! I love practical things :)

speaking of baby stuff... more importantly is, the baby! We heard a healthy heartbeat again today! All is good as far as we know. And the best part... we get an ultrasound in just 3 weeks to find out the sex!! AHH!! I can't wait!!!!