A Man who lays down his life for his wife

Mike and I are frequently studying the Scriptures regarding marriage and it seems the Lord has a word for us in Ephesians 5.   Our first small group as a married couple read Love & Respect (I can’t really recommend this book), then we studied the book of Ephesians.  Our current house church just completed a study on marriage being the bulidng blocks of the church, and our pastor is currently preaching through Ephesians.  As George, our pastor at Twin Cities Church, preached on Ephesians 5:25-30 last weekend, I grasped what a biblical man the Lord has given me as my husband.  Mike has grown tremendously in his role as husband, father, and as a man.

Mike has accomplished more in the realm of biblical manhood at the age of 30 than many “men” have by the time they reach retirement.  He is a real man in that he loves me the way Christ loved the church.  Mike lays down his life for me as his wife and for his family.

When I met Mike 9 years ago he was passionate about fishing, hunting, and the outdoors.  In fact, one of our first dates was to the Boundary Waters on a canoe trip.  Since becoming a husband and father Mike has gone fishing a handful of times and only hunts a couple times a year.  I would go so far as to say that he’s given up his love for fishing as evidenced by selling his fishing boat.  A man’s passions change.  Mike is far more passionate about meeting his family’s needs and desires than he is about fishing.  I trust that the Lord will honor his sacrifice and reward him with many fishing trips once our children are older.

As a husband Mike protects me, defends me, and builds me up  He assures me that I have what I need, and if I don’t have it he provides it. He encourages me in my relationship with the Lord.  Mike knows my desires because he’s taken the time to know my heart.  He treats me with honor and lives with me in an understanding way.

I celebrate this day as the day the Lord gave me the greatest gift.  Next to my salvation through Jesus, Mike is the best thing that happened to me.  I am proud to be his wife and to create a godly heritage with him.

I married a great man

Happy 30th Birthday Mike!

Baked Oatmeal

Breakfast is the hardest meal of the day in our house.  There isn’t really a breakfast that we can all agree on that is both filling and doesn’t consist of eggs.  FYI, Mike hates eggs.  I’ve seen him choke them down on two occasions, but it wasn’t a pretty sight.  Anyway, baked oatmeal has become a standby throughout the years.  We love it, and this recipe is stick-to-your-ribs filling!  It makes this rich custard layer on the bottom, so don’t skimp on the eggs or the coconut oil!

2 cups oats

2 cups buttermilk

3 eggs

½ cup coconut oil

½ maple syrup or brown sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons cinnamon

2 teaspoons vanilla

1 cup raisins

1 cup chopped walnuts

 

The night before:

Mix oats and buttermilk together and leave on the counter overnight to soak.  Soaking the oats in an acidic solution helps break down the phytic acid in the oats, making them more easily digested.

 

In the morning:

Preheat oven to 350 °.

Beat eggs, coconut oil, and syrup or brown sugar.

Add baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and vanilla.

Stir in soaked oats.

Fold in raisins and walnuts.

Pour mixture in a 2 ½ quart casserole pan greased with coconut oil.

Bake 45 minutes.

You could probably mix this all together the night before and leave it out covered on the countertop.

A Good Mommy

Mom:  Hazel, what do you want to be when you grow up?

Hazel:  A Mommy.

Mom:  That sounds great.  That’s a pretty high calling.  What kind of Mommy are you going to be?

Hazel:  I want to be a good mommy so that I can eat vitamins, drink beer, and do dishes.

Mom (laughing):  Is that what Mommies do?

Hazel:  Yep, only good Mommies eat vitamins, drink beer, and do dishes.

Mothers Day with my 2 Blessings!

Well, later today while finishing up the dishes for the day I may just have to wash my vitamins down with a cold one and revel in the fact that Hazel thinks I’m a good mom.

One girl. One boy.

When I was pregnant with Ambrose and out and about with Hazel in tow, strangers would comment “Oh, I bet you hope you’re having a boy.”  At the time I was secretly longing for another girl—a little girl for Hazel to play with.  I grew up with a younger sister and I never wished she was a boy—I loved having my sister as my best friend.  Anyway, it seemed to me that people wanted one of each gender.  I still get comments along the lines “One girl.  One boy.  Your family’s complete.”  That’s for the Lord to decide.

Ambrose is not a little girl.  He is very much a little boy.  And I love it.

The other day I was out talking with a friend and the kiddos were running around the backyard.  Hazel was picking up a large bouquet of dandelions.  “Momma, aren’t these yellow flowers pretty?”  And Ambrose picked up a rock and started smacking it with a stick.  I loved how they were both outdoors and each found something to do that spoke to his/her interests.  I love seeing how God designed us differently.  Male and female.  The genders are different, and it’s so beautiful.

 

 

March on Dodd Road

Wow, we’re only updating this blog often enough to include a monthly update.  One of these days we’ll write more frequently—these are not those days.

March was difficult.

Ahhhh!

We are still sharing our one vehicle as Mike continues to look for another dependable car to get him to and from work.  Used vehicles are surprisingly rare and the few that are out there are pricey.  Last year we sold my 2002 Sentra and now a comparable Sentra (same year and miles) costs more than we sold ours for!  So we’re praying for the right vehicle to come along.

And during the month I struggled with some health issues related to going gluten free.  Removing gluten from my diet completely opened the flood gates to some auto-immune issues.  During my worst days I had thrush, a nasty fungal rash on my feet, my brain felt like someone had wrapped it in plastic wrap, and I lost vision in one of my eyes.  It was bad.  I cut out all grains and sugar (including fruit) and felt better in 2 days.  After taking the conventional medicine route and being told these symptoms were in my head, I went to a naturopath.  He validated my conditions and recommended the GAPS diet.

So in the coming months I will embark on a “crazy” temporary diet to heal my gut and restore health to my and Ambrose’s life.  You can expect several updates on this journey to healing.

Hazel just loves life.  At church each weekend she just dances her heart out during the worship songs.  It is so amazing to watch her praise her god in such a tangible way.  She is also learning to write out her name, draw people, and count to 100.  Her capacity to learn is so amazing.   One of her favorite activities is to recite the names of the streets we drive on—“Momma, we’re on Dodd Road!”

 

Putting her to work.

And Ambrose has been such a delightful stinker this month.  Since our diet change he is doing remarkably well.  He is all smiles, all the time!  Well, he still gets cranky and has the typical toddler tantrums.  He continues to demonstrate his Danger-Man abilities.  He is particularly fond of climbing on top of our dining table and then not-so-gracefully getting down.  He always is sporting a bruise.  I once learned that the Dutch version of Ambrose is spelled Ambroos and that a common nickname is Broos or “Bruise.”  I think the nickname is quite fitting for our little Immortal Man.

Praise the Lord for such beautiful spring weather to get us through the month.  His mercies never cease!

February on Dodd Road

February was interesting.  We have been extremely challenged and incredibly blessed.

Since the beginning of the year our family has been attending a new church in our neighborhood.  We felt called to put down roots in our neighborhood and be involved in true community.  What a blessing Twin Cities Church has been.  We both have felt, through this church, God urging us into a deeper, stronger relationship with Him.

During the month I also discovered that I am extremely sensitive to gluten.  After eating a pasta dish I broke out in a blistery rash indicative of Celiac’s disease and became very bloated.  After one week of being gluten-free I felt incredible–I had more energy than I had in a long while, my insomnia disappeared, and my digestive health was great.  Currently I’m not feeling as great, and it’s discouraging.  I know it will be a long path to healing, but I am willing to put in the effort to feel better.

This month we also became a One-Car family.  Mike’s car had an irreparable engine failure.  Being without a car, Mike has needed to rely on others to get to and from work.  It’s been a humbling experience for him, which he is handling with incredible grace.    A few days our whole family has driven him to work and has enjoyed the extra time with Daddy.  The 50 mile round-trip to Stillwater has given me a renewed appreciation for Mike and the work he does to provide for our family.  What a man!

Hazel is growing like a weed and has a new love for eating spinach.  She says that spinach will help her grow stronger.

Ambrose is now 16 months old and loves music.  Anytime he sees someone pick up a guitar he gets so excited!  He and his big sister have daily dance parties, in which they giggle and dance.  He’s really taken a liking to his sister.

 

Blessings from this month:

• Getting to celebrate Granny’s birthday with her
• Mike got a promotion
• The auto shop did not charge us a dime to look at Mike’s car
• Many people from our church offered to provide rides and help as we search for another car
• Mike was able to sell his car on Craigslist to the first guy who looked at it (which never happens with Craiglist!)
• Mike was able to sell his boat on Craigslist to a very pleasant man.  He also was the first to show interest in the boat
• A couple from church offered to watch our kids on two occasions so that we could go out on a date.  One time they even brought over dinner which we enjoyed together before our date
• Mike and I have an extra hour to spend together on days I take him to work
• Hazel celebrated her half birthday at preschool and she even got handmade cards from her classmates
• We’ve been staying so warm thanks to Mike and the pellet stove

 

Music Makes a House a Home

Today I was transferring pictures and videos from the camera to our computer.  It’s a long process to do so.  I look at each picture and watch every video remembering the activities of that day and being thankful to experience this life with my family.  One thing I noticed in nearly every video I have of the kids is that there is music in the background.  Music lifts our spirits, enlivens our house, and sparks impromptu dance parties.

I think Ambrose has a new theme song.