faith

Reunited + Things That May Surprise You

Our little family was reunited on Saturday evening after Jimmy’s trip

Family laying on porch swing

My sister and brother-in-law dropped him off, so we hung out with them for a bit. Sadie and Caroline snuggled under a blanket at it was the sweetest thing.

I just adore watching their relationship develop as they grow ❤

Toddler snuggling under blanket

That evening, I crashed. The 3:30 am wakeup finally got to me and I fell asleep outside while reading this book after Sadie went to bed. 

It has been so nice to have Jimmy back at home! He wasn’t even gone for a week, but I missed sharing smiles with him during everyday moments of joy with Sadie, rolling our eyes together at the antics of the pets, and having coffee with each other in the morning. Marriage is such a huge blessing. 

We spent Saturday catching up around the house and just hanging out. It was a sweet weekend 🙂

Onto things that may surprise you. Or maybe they won’t. 

I heard a great sermon about how it’s important to examine why we believe what we believe. With things that are faith-related, is what we believe based off of a religious group, a religious leader, a book, what your parents believe, a tradition, or something else? 

I can remember when I first realized that my faith in God was my own faith in God, if that makes sense. My parents raised my siblings and I in a non-denominational christian church and we were required to attend church if we lived under their roof. What was being taught at our church lined up with the Bible and it really clicked into place for me when I was in high school. The Bible, which is God’s Word, is what I base my life and beliefs on. 

This kind of got me thinking about things that are practiced in some religions that claim to follow the Bible, but the practices don’t line up with scripture. I will never claim to be an expert on the Bible, but you won’t find these things in God’s Word:

  • Infant baptism
  • Lent and Ash Wednesday
  • The Sinner’s Prayer
  • Baptism that involves sprinkling of water
  • Confessing sins to a pope
  • Salvation through belief in Jesus only

Were you surprised by any of these things?

What’s your favorite part about being reunited with a loved one?

Four Monday Thoughts: Goats, Gardening, Reading, and Matching

It’s the first Monday in August. It feels like a fresh slate for the last full month of summer! Some goals I have for this month:

-Choose a book, topic, or person for my personal Bible study time
-Go on a picnic as a family or go to the Pittsburgh Zoo
-Go through Sadie’s homeschool items + plan when we will start
-Organize our linen closet and bathroom vanity
-Use the sewing machine Jimmy’s aunt gave me

Okay, onto four things I’m thinking about today.

1. Gardening. I’ve been loving not having to buy much produce at the store lately. Our garden is a squash growing machine at the moment, so I roasted a big batch of zucchini and tomatoes yesterday.

Zucchini and tomatoes to bake in oven from vegetable garden

I just slice everything up, coat it in olive oil and spices, and roast at 400 degrees until it’s browned and cooked through.

2. Fun for Sadie. While I was cooking yesterday afternoon, Sadie spent time at my aunt and uncle’s house! They have goats, cows, pigs, chickens, and all sorts of animals, plus lots of land to run around on. I’d love to have a few farm animals and land one day, too.

Kids petting goats

I’m hoping all that excitement and fun she had yesterday leads to her sleeping in this morning 😉

3. Matching. I tried to match with Sadie on Sunday morning for church. We went with the yellow dress theme, lol. Yellow is my absolute favorite color. It’s just so happy and bright 🙂

Mom and toddler wearing yellow dresses

4. Reading. I just finished up The Story of My Life by Helen Keller and was so impressed. I was always awed by how she overcame incredible limitations as she grew up, but was even more wowed that she wrote that book in her 20s, was so tenacious, curious, hard working, and had zero self-pity. Up next, I’m going to be reading this memoir.

What’s the best book you’ve read lately?

Would you rather live in a rural area or city?

What’s your favorite color?