All you need..

31.1.12





Dear Grey..

27.1.12


Dear Hair. I found one of you had turned grey this week. Be informed that this is unacceptable behavior and will not be tolerated. Since this was the first time, I will forgive you, but if any of you follow this bad example I will be forced to pour chemicals on you that will turn you brown. K, thanks.
Dear Grey. Grey or Gray? I know both are acceptable. Grey is the UK spelling and Gray is American. I can't decide which of you I like better..
Dear Sienna. Please remind your teacher that you are only in kindergarten. Mommy is having a hard time keeping up with all this homework you have had lately considering you require assistance with pretty much all of it. I do enjoy spending that time with you though, so maybe don't tell her.. Mommy will just work a little harder at trying to keep up.
Dear Husband. Thanks for painting, drywalling, mudding/taping, fixing electrical, tiling, stippling as well as helping with the laundry and dishes. You are superman. I on the other hand feel like a lazy bum. Love you.
Dear Friday. Glad you are here once again. Can't wait to hang out with some great youth tonight.

Love,
Brandy Jane Mabel



Photobucket

Winter Walk

25.1.12

We went from -40 weather to 0 degrees in a matter of days.. (I'm talking Celsius here people) It is amazing how balmy the weather feels sitting right around the freezing mark once you've experienced a few days where going outside feels like some kind of cruel torture.. This winter has been such a nice change from last year when we were digging ourselves out of our houses. Then we climbed through multiple feet of snow to get to our cars while we prayed the plows had already been out so we could actually drive somewhere! Phew.. This year we've barely had enough snow to even cover the ground! The boys and I took advantage of our warm winter day and went for a walk while Sienna was at school. 








and then, she {snapped}

Clustered thoughts..

24.1.12


He formed us. He knows us. Our every thought. Our every fear. If God is for me, who can be against me? These are the thoughts wandering in my mind lately. Do we forget about the character of the one we serve? We change. HE DOES NOT! We wander. He remains. Waiting.Waiting. Waiting_longing for us to let Him in. To allow Him to guide us once again.

"You keep track of all my sorrows.
You have collected all my tears in your bottle.
You have recorded each one in you book.
I will praise God for what he has promised;
Yes, I praise the Lord for what he has promised.
I trust in God, so why should I be afraid?
What can mere mortals do to me?
I will fulfill my vows to you, O God
and will offer a sacrifice of thanks for your help.
For you have rescued me from death;
You have kept my feet from slipping.
So now I can walk in your presence, O God,
in your life-giving light."
Psalm 56:8,10-13




Control Freak Confessions..

23.1.12

CONFESSION
I'm kind of a control freak.

Even when it comes to my kids' crafts, I have a hard time letting go and letting them do things their way. I really struggled with this when Sienna was little and we started coloring together. She would have her page to color, and I would have mine. She always wanted to 'help' me with mine, and it drove me crazy. She would always mess with my perfect in.the.lines coloring method! I know that sounds awful. I really have come a long way, and I have let go of the coloring thing.. Really
Sienna had a school project to do this weekend. We had to make a snowman with some paper plates. I am glad to say that doing it together went really well. It helps that she is so girly and was cool with me making some fabric flowers for the scarf! I told her that the pink eyes she wanted to put on were kind of weird, but she insisted. It was her snowman, so I had to let it go.. I know, control freak. I've still got some letting go to do, but I am pleased with how my our snowgirl turned out!








Love this kid..

22.1.12





Oh Dear..

20.1.12

Dear Thursday. Once again.. you, me and blogging just did not work out. I think I may have to schedule some posts for you..
Dear Husband. Thanks for all the work you've done this week. I know this is a crazy busy season for us!
Dear Kinder Cooking. We are going to rock on Monday now that I have found THIS RECIPE. They are all going to think I'm the best! {I hope..} How on earth did I end up in charge of you anyways?
Dear Houston. I guess I don't mind if you drop food on the floor. I know you'll just eat it later.. Ewww...


Dear Boys. The cuteness displayed in this photo is almost too much to handle. Wyatt, those pudgy little cheeks are just screaming to be pinched.. Houston, your I_know_you_want_to_give_me_whatever_I_want look is almost perfected. Shoot..



Dear Readers. I am so thankful for every.single.one of you! Praying you all have a blessed weekend!


Love,
Brandy  Jane Mabel


Photobucket

{Worry}

17.1.12


But in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.
Phillipians 4:6





When the kids are gone..

16.1.12

Well, our weekend was FULL. Much of it was spent without the kids because my hubby and I had some training and meetings to go to at our church.
It is crazy how much I miss the kids when they are not with me. I like breaks. I need breaks. Breaks are good, but life just doesn't feel normal when they are not near me! Even though at times it drives me crazy in the moment, I feel a void when I don't hear "mom" called to me every few minutes.. I miss the unexpected comments that make me laugh and the constant entertainment they provide. They are just so precious, so silly, so busy, so crazy. I just love hanging out with them..


Houston is missing in this picture, but I love hanging out with him too..


Dear Thursday..

13.1.12

Dear Thursday. You totally got away from me. I didn't even get a chance to blog.
Sad..
Dear Houston. Good job, buddy! Four decent nights this week. FOUR! That is more than we've had in months.. Please keep it going! I wonder what it will feel like to feel well rested.. I hope I find out soon.
Dear Husband. We have lots to do this weekend. I am glad that we get to do it all together{awww} I am getting excited for the things that are to come!!
Dear Me. Please.Please get it together!I don't know what is wrong with you this week! You need some energy.. some motivation.. You should really think about cleaning the house a little today. You've left things a little too long. Also, that cup of coffee at 9pm last night.. Bad idea..
Dear Sienna. I am kind of completely in shock that you just said to  me that you wish you had a real boyfriend. I know Jill has one, but she is in her 20s. You will have to wait until then, k? Could you maybe slow down this growing up thing. It's breaking mommy's heart a little..
Dear Anyone with a barn. Jealous.. I heart barns. Is that weird?


Love,
Brandy Jane Mabel



Photobucket

Free to love..

10.1.12

In every season..
In every circumstance..
In every valley..
 On every mountain top..
wherever..
whenever..
I am free to love Him.
It is my choice.
MY.CHOICE
What will you choose? 




Created Memories..

8.1.12

There are many things I would like to make.
Many little tasks that I would love to one day accomplish.
As I browse through Pinterest..
oh.so.addicting.Pinterest
I can find 100s of brilliant projects I can only wish I had dreamt up.
But the one thing that I desire to create more than anything.
The thing that I think that is the most valuable and long-lasting thing I could ever create..
is to create MEMORIES for my kids!



Did you know my husband is an amazing bowler?
Well, he's not really, but he sure makes it fun!



Dear sister..

5.1.12

Dear 2012. 
So far, so good.
keep it that way, k?
Dear Husband.
Thanks for all the sweet texts you've been sending my way.
They really do make my day..
Dear Supper.
Cook yourself!
{I wish I didn't hate cooking so much}
Dear Weather.
Seriously, where am I?
KEEP IT ROCKING WITH THE WARMTH.
Dear Sister. 
Sorry it has taken me so long to get your pictures to you. 
A bunch of the picture files from our shoot were corrupted somehow and I wasn't able to fix the problem. 
I was worried I had lost some of the best shots from our session, but I think I fixed it today. 
Woohoo.
Your family is so gorgeous, and there are so many photos I want to share.. 
but my favorites are the ones of you!
You are beautiful.. 
inside.and.out


Embrace the Camera..

I was given a tripod and a wireless remote for Christmas..

a w e s o m e

I am going to have so much fun with these new toys.
Jeremy, on the other hand, will probably regret ever buying them for me.
(he's not a fan of having his picture taken)

But he loves me, so he endures...









Sleepy Days..

4.1.12

I love sleep.. I miss sleep..

But me, being the optimist that I am force myself to be, have found something to love about sleepless nights..

Sleepy Days..

After nights with almost no sleep I can spend the day planted on the couch, snuggled up to my little ones, without an ounce of guilt
Hey, I've been up all night.. 
I deserve to sit and do nothing, right? 
The dishes can wait - the crumbs on the floor can sit a little longer - the clean laundry can wrinkle up in the bottom of the laundry basket. 
I'm tired.. 
So I'm going to take it easy, ok?

Maybe that is why these ones keep me up at night.. Cause they love hanging out with their mama!





Linking up..






A path to follow..

2.1.12

Do you ever have dreams that feel so close yet so far away?
There are moments when it almost seems crazy to hold onto hope.

 Hope can never be lost.
It has to put down  -  let go  -  given up.
I'm gonna white knuckle it.
I want to hold onto it and never let it go.

This picture I took recently resonates well with me in this moment..
It speaks to me of a path.. of a promise..
Laid out not by me.. but for me.
Perfectly placed, and all I have to do is follow..
I believe that what I am hoping for lays somewhere down this path..


"Show me the right path, O Lord; point out the road for me to follow. Lead me by your truth and teach me, for you are the God that saves me. All day long I put my hope in you."
Psalm 25:4-5




A wall of pictures..

1.1.12

HOW TO CREATE A PHOTO GALLERY...

1.(a) Spend a year collecting frames and procrastinate about putting them up for a really long time. Have your husband get so tired of all the empty frames laying around that he will force you to complete the task. 

1.(b)Lay the frames out on the floor/table and arrange and rearrange.rearrange.rearrange until it is to your liking.


2. Find an empty wall.


3. Have your handy husband hang the frames in the design laid out for him.


3. continued...


4. Now that your frames are all hung, you should probably order prints to fill them (unless you like the photos of random people you don't know).


5. Place your pictures into frames, sit back, and enjoy your masterpiece!


This has been a project I've wanted done for so long! It feels so wonderful to finally have it completed. The best part.. Seeing my own photos displayed. So neat. I am awful at actually having pictures printed, but now that I've started I will hopefully keep up and switch them out every few months!






 

JANE MABEL © All rights reserved · Theme by Blog Milk · Blogger