Learning From Mrs. Cardinal

Yesterday, Joshua and I were looking through an old issue of Birds and Bloom, and we came across a picture of a sweet brown bird. Joshua exclaimed, "Look, a girl cardinal!" He was correct, it was a female cardinal. He then told me all about how boy cardinals are bright beautiful red, and the girls are a pretty brown color.I thought about that a bit. I thought about how male peacocks are so beautiful, and the females so much simpler looking. I thought...

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Thankful Thursday- Late again!

I am going to have to start writing "Thankful Thursday" ahead of time, or we may as well call it "Thankful Friday"! :) Thursdays always seem a bit busy.Linda, the youth girl that works for me, comes on Thursdays, and we enjoy having her here so much that I never have a moment to sit down and write. She is such a blessing to our family. It's not the work, although it is certainly nice to have help with the housework, but it is her company that just...

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Saying Goodbye to my Bird Friend

*Photo courtesy of www.allaboutbirds.org*Yesterday was a really nice day, but the afternoon brought with it a piece of sadness. Jacob called me over to the window and said, "Mommy, I think Rocco ate your bird!" Sure enough, there were pieces of him scattered on the ground under the window.Several weeks ago, my beautiful friend started visiting me. He would come to my window and sit and we would have the most delightful wordless conversations. I so...

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Kindness is Contagious!

Children can teach us so many lessons, if we are willing to learn from them!This morning's lesson: Kindness is contagious!I was watching the boys play the other day, and one brother took a toy from the other. The wronged brother stopped, hugged the offender and said, "I forgive you", which then caused the one who had stolen the toy to return it to his brother.Today, after our noon meal, Jacob started wiping the chairs. Joseph saw him and said, "You...

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Count it all Joy- Part Two

"My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience." James 1:2-3The last post focused on the first half of this passage...counting it all joy when we face difficult times. I'd like to talk now about the second half.Patience. Patience is a scary word for a lot of mothers, especially when we have children in the younger age set, and especially so if you have four of them...

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Count it all Joy- Part One

This week has been hard...no, it's been really hard. It seems like every area of my life that could become a trial has become a trial. There's almost nothing that feels entirely comfortable. I think the only area of life where I feel completely secure, completely comfortable, is my relationship with my Father.This isn't entirely unexpected. Whenever you set out to follow the narrow path, the adversary will throw every rock, thorny bush and pot hole...

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