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January

In 2010 we set a goal as a family to each read 20 books. I learned a great deal from the books I read as well as the process of trying to reach this goal. I will reveal right up from that I did not accomplish 20 books I love to read, I have said that many times, and I loved reaching for this goal but just fell short. I read more books than I would have with out the goal. It pushed me to continue reading and therefore it is a goal I am going to set once again in 2011!

Below is a listing of the books I read in 2010. I will not be listing them in order for one main reason, I lost my list two different times this year and had to recreate it both times. There is a good chance I forgot a few books and I know I did not remember them in order!

1. Bringing Up Boys by James Dobson
2. Stomping Out The Darkness by Neil T. Anderson
3. Julie and Julia by Julie Powell
4. When People are Big and God is Small by Edward T. Welch
5. Same Kind of Different As Me by Ron Hall and Denver Moore
6. Emma by Jane Austin
7. Mansfield Park by Jane Austin
8. Northanger Abbey by Jane Austin
9. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austin (why not throw it in there one more time!)
10. Jesus, 90 Days With the One and Only by Beth Moore
11. The Poor Will Be Glad by Peter Greer & Phil Smith
12. Helping Your Kids Deal with Anger, Fear, and Sadness by H. Norman Wright
13. Beyond Belief by Josh Hamilton & Tim Keown
14. The Last Battle by C.S. Lewis (still finishing this one with the kids)

I really believe there are a few books I forgot about, that I read in the beginning months of 2010 and were lost from memory when I lost my list. It is amazing how long ago January 2010 feels from today!

This coming year as I set a 20 book goal once again I decided to add a layer to the resolution. I desire to read at least one book from each of the following categories: marriage, parenting, classics (Jane Austin does not count…I have now read all of hers), NY current best seller list, spiritual walk, and theology. I look forward to reading and blogging in response!

Now to reveal a few of my new resolutions:
1. I have fallen in love with my slow cooker! Therefore, this year I will use my slow cooker at least once a week, with the exception of the summer time. During the summer I use the grill all the time…and love it completely!! I found a blog with great slow cooker recipes, A Year of Slow Cooking. Be sure to check it out if you do not already know about it.
2. Run a second marathon with a new PR! I can not say enough about how much I loved running the San Antonio Rock N Roll Marathon in November. It was such an encouragement to me in many ways.
3. Attack the basement…AARRGGG!! For years I have wanted to do something drastic down there, just too many things are down there that need to be given away or thrown out…too much clutter.
4. Do a Bible Study with Addie and Emma. They are at a wonderful age and I want to take full advantage of the opportunity to disciple my daughters!
5. In 2010 I started a twitter journal of sorts for God’s love. I began in Genesis and as I read through the Bible I noted where I saw God’s love. I tweet each of these and am currently in I Samuel. In 2011 I plan to continue with this #God’sLove twitter journal.
6. In a restatement: I will work to read 20 books this year with at least one from each of the above stated categories.
and lastly:
7. I want to be faithful to post a blog for each of the Monday’s in 2011! (I missed one last week, but I am OK with that.) Hopefully, there will be 51 Mandy’s Mondays at the close of 2011. Writing is enjoyable for me, so this goal is for me to force myself to take the time to do so!

I am looking forward to a new year, the old has gone the new has come!

Category: Book Reviews, Emma, Family Life, goals, Mandy's Mondays, marriage, Motherhood, spiritual life, Websites One Comment

Tuesday’s Tunes

November

written by:brian | One Comment

One of the things that has been very powerful in my life through the years is music. I think that is mostly universal for people, and we all resonate with certain types of music. I love all types of music, but the words are important to the experience that I have as well as they style of music.

So here is a place that I want to share some of the songs that have impacted me through the years and currently.

This summer we loaded the family up in the suburban to take our long Oklahoma/Texas/Georgia tour, as we were leaving town we stopped at our traditional first stop, Starbucks! Mandy went in to get the drinks and I stayed back with the kids…then this song struck me at the heart

I bought it on my iPhone right there while waiting on Mandy, and it quickly became one of those “our song” types of songs between Mandy and I. His advice for making it in marriage is right on! We could use this stuff in the premarital counseling we’ve done…

“Be a best friend,
tell the truth,
overuse ‘I love you’
go to work, do your best
don’t outsmart your common sense,
never let your prayin’ knees get lazy,
and love like CRAAAZY!”

“Always treat your woman like a lady,
never get to old to call her baby,
never let your prayin’ knees get lazy,
and love like CRAAAAZY!”

Now, That’ll Preach!
May the Lord grant us 58+ years together.

Category: Brian, coffee, Family Life, marriage, Music, Starbucks Tags: Music One Comment

50 First Dates and a Plane Trip to a Funeral

February

written by:brian | Leave a Comment

I just watched 50 First Dates on the airplane today and was inspired! I know it came out awhile ago (2004), but I’m not always the most current on new movies, and I sure did appreciate the airplane edited version.
If you haven’t seen it, the basic concept is that this girl Lucy (played by Drew Barrymore) was in a car accident and lost her ability to turn short term memory into long term, so each day was a completely new day, but she only remembered her life before the accident. So this guy Henry (Adam Sandler) wins the affections of Lucy everyday over and over again. There are a few fun plot twists and a great ending, but what struck me is how much we can take each other for granted. We often think of family as people who will always be there, but that is not necessarily true. Each day, each experience we have with those we love should be cherished like it was the first time or the last time. It stands to reason that if I love my wife in this way, we will never drift apart; if I relate to my children like this, they would always be confident that their dad wants to know their heart and help guide them through life.
These thoughts all come together as today we join with family to be together and grieve over the loss of and celebrate the life lived by my Granny Early. We don’t ever know when our last time to see and experience life with our loved ones will be. There are no guarantees, and the only surety that we have is right now and our eternity after this life in the body. Paul said, “For me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” each moment for us on this earth is not only a moment to invest in those around us, but also a moment to live life IN CHRIST to the fullest. So Wednesday, our family suffered a great loss, but my Granny Early experienced the greatest gain anyone could hope to experience…that through faith she entered into the eternal presence of her Creator and Savior Jesus Christ.
So live today as it is your first and last day with those around you, cherishing great relationships and family history, but taking nothing for granted.

(ps. remember that this is not a movie endorsement, and I watched an edited for airplane version, so I don’t know what I “missed”.)

Category: Family Life, love, marriage, movies Tags: death, life, movie Leave a Comment

Mandy’s Monday – Count Down

January

written by:mandy | Leave a Comment

I love Valentines day! I love all that comes with Valentine’s Day: the cards, the hearts, the pink and red everywhere, the CHOCOLATE!! I just enjoy the focus being on love itself! It does not have to be romantic love, although I am thankful for my wonderful husband in ways that no words can describe, to me the day brings the chance to celebrate love in many different forms. My girls always want to make tons of cards and will spend days doing so. Last year we made heart cookies and really enjoyed them as well as giving them away.

Why in the world am I writing about Valentine’s Day on January 25th? One week from today will be February 1st and I have plans I want to tell you about

This year I will make a count down blog to Valentine’s Day and it will start February 1st. Each day I will post three quotes on love. The first category will be a Scripture passage or quote about the love of the Lord. He is the BEST @ love, that is for sure! What better example and encouragement can we have than the Lord himself. The second quote will be from Jane Austen and one of her beloved novels. If you have not figured it out by now I have a small obsession with Jane Austen novels! The final category will be motherhood. A mother’s love is constant!

So check back and count down with me as we are together encouraged by the Lord’s love, touched by love seen in fictional characters and reminded of our own mother’s love or our need to BE a loving Mom.

Category: Mandy's Mondays, marriage, Motherhood Leave a Comment

Mandy’s Monday – Marriage in the Movies

December

written by:mandy | 4 Comments

It is Christmas time and in addition to all the wonderful Christmas traditions comes the watching of movies in this house hold. It may not be the most meaningful activity, but it is a fun one that we do more often this month than other times. There are some great Christmas movies out there, that just beg to be watched each year! “A Christmas Story” is one of my favorites and we watched, yes we did! “You will shoot your eye out!” Love it!

One of my new favorite Christmas movies is “It’s a Wonderful Life.” Of course this is not a new movie, it is new to my list of favorites. And if I had to pick my absolute FAVORITE Christmas movie it would probably be this one! Since I am older, not old just older, I see things in this movie I never really paid attention to before. About three years ago I found myself watching it alone, Brian was out of town, I was sitting on the couch crying thinking “I get it, the guy is depressed!” I just understand it in a different way than I used to! George wants his life to matter for something, don’t we all. The final scene where everyone is pouring in to give money and thanking him, well I just can’t watch it with out crying every year now! This year something new struck me. It was Mary’s love and devotion to George. She encouraged him all along the way and was patient with him when he was discouraged and down right mean! I thought to myself, I don’t think I respond like that when Brian is having a “bad day” I am more likely to tell him “hey, you are really being a jerk ya know…snap out of it…” Mary encouraged me with her love and patience for George – a great picture of marriage!

A week or so later Brian and I rented “Julie & Julia” to watch together. I had been intrigued by this movie from the first trailer I saw. I wanted to go see it with a group of 30something women thinking it would be fun. It never happened (something that often happens with my ideas, they never come to reality). So Brian and I watched it together, and I really enjoyed it. I love to cook and so the cooking side was fun but what I really liked I did not expect. I enjoyed the picture of marriage seen in the lives of both Julia and Julie. Here was a story about two already married couples, even married for awhile, and the plot showed them very much in love, even passionate for one another Paul standing along side Julia encouraging her endeavors and Eric doing the same for Julie, even PUSHING her to try something new. The couples encouraged me to enjoy my marriage, a beautiful gift I am always thankful for!

This brings us to Christmas afternoon! On a side note I now know why so many people go to the movies on Christmas afternoon. After you have stayed up late wrapping and UP movie scene setting stuff out, been woken up early by excited kids and then cooked a big meal you are ready to chill out with a movie or send all your house guests to one so you can recover We did not go to the theater, we watched “Up” at home, which was given to our Aunt Kathy who was here for Christmas. The kids had seen this movie earlier, but Brian and I had not. Again I was surprised to find myself encouraged in marriage, from UP! a kids movie! I did not even get to see all of the beginning where the courtship and marriage of Carl and Ellie are told in detail, I was in the kitchen cleaning dishes still. Even so I was brought to tears by the love and devotion shown in their relationship. And it held an extra special string to my heart with the adventure theme! Adventure, specifically an appetite for adventure is one of our family values. Up encouraged my heart to continue to be devoted to Brian and to live for the adventure of being married to him and having four kids (four kids and marriage is an adventure to say the least, then you throw in all our dreams and desire and it is quite a ride)!

Movies and stories are so very powerful! With them we can be inspired, encouraged, spurred on to greater living… I am thankful for these three pictures of marriage in the movies! Encouraged to love more, to be more patient, to enjoy more, to be devoted and seek adventure!

Category: love, Mandy, Mandy's Mondays, marriage, movies 4 Comments

Mandy’s Monday – Beautifully Brave Bartimaeus!

October

written by:mandy | Leave a Comment

I have always loved the story of Bartimaeus the blind man who called out to Jesus as Jesus was passing by. You can find the account in Mark 10:46-52.

I was first introduced to this passage by my youth pastor, Dean Woodward, many years ago. I can still see him telling the story reinacting Bartimaeus crying out to Jesus “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” I loved the way Dean would tell about the disciples trying to hush Bartimaeus and then the way they changed their tune when Jesus stopped to address Bartimaus. They went from rebuking Bartimaeus to encouraging him! “Take heart. Get up; [Jesus] is calling you.”

While in college at Columbia International University I was assigned a word study for the words “all the more” found in verse 48. Sounds like a strange word study, but I loved it! This phrase is used several times in Scripture. It is used here to describe Bartimaeus’ response when rebuked, he cried out to Jesus “all the more”. It is used when the crowd is asked by Pilate if he should release Jesus “and they cried out all the more Crucify him!” (Matthew 27:23) In Romans 5:20 we are told, “where sin increased, grace abounded ALL THE MORE”! What an amazing picture!

So I came to this passage last week already loving it and by no surprise God showed me a new adoration Brian and I are currently reading Sacred Rhythms by Ruth Haley Barton together. Last week we worked through chapter one individually and then had a great date night discussion! The chapter was on desires and it lead us to Bartimaeus. Here is a blind man sitting on the side of the road who decides to cry out to Jesus for help. I love the way he does so “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” Bartimaeus asks for mercy. He asks to receive that which he does not deserve, he knows his own sin, his own brokeness and the fact that before the Lord he needs mercy. Bartimaeus does not give up when told by others to be quiet! Oh, no! He cries out all the more! Then Jesus calls to him, and asks him the most beautiful question “What do you want me to do for you?”

Barton writes “Jesus himself routinely asked people questions that helped them to get in touch with their desire and name it in his presence. He often brought focus and clarity to his interactions with those who were spiritually hungry by asking them, “What do you want? What do you want me to do for you?”"

Bartimaeus has a precious gift, Jesus is asking him “what do you want me to do for you?”, and he responds with a deeply personal request. “Rabbi, let me recover my sight.”

Barton challenged her readers to answer this question “what do you want Jesus to do for you?”. As I sat and pondered this I was struck by Bartimaeus’ personal request. He asked for something in his own life. He was honest about his deep desire to see. There is a balance in our prayers, we should not always be coming with our own needs in mind. We should ultimately be deeply burdened with the very glory of God increasing in this world. I agree and feel this strongly, but I was also deeply moved by the fact that Jesus wants to know the deep personal desires I have in life! Tears came to my eyes as I answered the question “I want you to bless my family Lord!” I don’t mean “Lord, give me lots of money and stuff and make everything perfect.” What I do mean is “Make your face shine upon us! Help us to be the godly parents you desire. Bless us with a close relationship with our children. Guide us in wisdom. Bless us with your presence. Bless us with you Lord!!”

I think Bartimaeus was brave! I think he was beautiful! And even more so I think Jesus was a blessing to Bartimaeus as a result. Ponder anew what the Almighty can do! My new adoration for Mark 10:46-52