I am loving where my heart is right now. When we felt God was leading us into a new direction, I had no idea that it was going to do SO much for MY heart and mind. I knew the boys would love and benefit from having their mommy 100%. I knew Sam would thrive and beam in his workplace ministering to and playing with kids all day long. I knew our home would have a new sense of peace, calm, and orderliness. But I had no idea that I would wake everyday yearning to soak up every little simple joy that God so beautifully places in all of our lives that we seem to mow over and miss being swept away by busy-ness and overloaded lives.
I've always heard that God doesn't have to change our circumstances, we just need to let Him change us. It's so true! In summer's past, when we would travel to our family's homes; the lake, the mountain, the creek... I would say to Sam, "Oh, I need this... the peace I feel inside here is what I need." So, I always attributed "needing" to live on a lake or in the mountains or in a treehouse on a creek to feel that peace. Needless to say... I got a big wake up call when we first moved from Orlando and stayed at Sam's parents lakehouse for 4 weeks while looking for a home in Georgia. When it was approaching time to leave the lakehouse and move to our home... I looked across the lake and said to myself, "I don't need this place, I needed to absorb the peace of following God's voice and living in the center of His will for this time in our life."
Our Valentine's Day this year... simple joy of a date"in". We got the boys to bed, I hopped in the shower while Sam started to grill the steaks and bake the potatoes, I put my pajamas on, and we relaxed in our home eating our yummy meal! No babysitter to pay, no traffic to dodge, no voices to speak over... just us!
So, I am just excited to be anywhere... so, long as I am following God's lead... no matter how radical it seems sometimes! In doing so, I've found that God speaks to my heart the loudest and clearest when life is simple... shall I say when I am simple... Here's a few simple joys from the past week...
Today... Pop and Lali came for a day visit!! We played and grilled out. That's it.. plain and simple. But when you have been atleast 6 hours away from each other for the past 9 years... you soak up the beauty of living close to family.
Simplicity of Toys... when we were packing up our Orlando house we decided really scale down the toys. So, when we found this house, Sam and I were determined to have ALL of the boys toys in this one closet. WE DID IT! What a pure joy to have so little to keep clean and organized. And if we can't get to clean up... close the door and don't worry about it!!
Our Valentine's Day this year... simple joy of a date"in". We got the boys to bed, I hopped in the shower while Sam started to grill the steaks and bake the potatoes, I put my pajamas on, and we relaxed in our home eating our yummy meal! No babysitter to pay, no traffic to dodge, no voices to speak over... just us!
Free haircuts from dad... Ooh, I just beamed inside as Sam gave all the boys GREAT haircuts... that saved us forty bucks..
My Jen... just a simple phone call away to say "Hey." Never a need for a long conversation (well, atleast 2 times a week), just a quick simple hello can bring each of us so much joy! This is one of my favorite pictures of us. Snapped at a wedding by the photographer while we were talking to others. Simple moment, simple joy to me every time I walk by it
My gift to the boys... we have so much room in our new house due to us simplifying our "stuff" when we moved that we have closets with no purpose. So, the boys have two closets in their room... this one with an empty bottom. Well, the boys LOVE reading lately, so I decided to surprise them with a reading nook. A place where they can go and close the doors and have a quiet adventure with their books. Before bedtime last night, I told them that I had a gift for them in their room. They all lit up saying, "Ooh, a present!" To which I said, "Well, it's nothing I bought, just something that I did for you." They got even more excited... which that is a simple joy in itself. :) So, we scurried off to their room for bedtime and THEY LOVE IT!!! We piled in and read their bedtime story... then all throughout the day today, I kept finding someone tucked away in their reading nook... who knew a quilt, a body pillow, and a lamp would be so adored... simple joy
I hope you're able to find the Simple Joys in your day today... and everyday!!!
love you sooooo much...
