Oops

I realized last night that including material directly from Out of Control... may not be allowed. So I thought I better find out for sure. Yep - right there in the front of the book was the disclaimer you see in every book. Unless I get permission, I won't be able to keep my notes from the book on my blog. Hmmm - what to do? If I am granted permission, this will continue, if not, I guess I'll just have to start posting pictures of my children. :) So until then, once again I say, GET THE BOOK.

Be free!!!

UPDATE:

Hi Amy! Your blog is great! Copyright laws allow quoting up to 250 words--as long as credit is given to the book (title, author, publisher, copyright date, and page numbers). If you're wanting to use an excerpt of more than 250 words, you would need to get permission from the publisher (for this book, it's Thomas Nelson). We don't publish our own books, so we unfortunately can't give permission to quote them. Hope this helps. Thank you for asking; we appreciate your integrity! Keep blogging! Sheila Seier, MI Correspondence

Here We Go

Every now and then, I hold my breath, and as fast I can possibly get it out I say, "God-do-whatever-it-takes-to-make-me-who-you-want-me-to-be." And then next thing you know, the hard times come. As in all things God, it's a paradox. The bad in our life brings the good. And in my case, it's usually just my perception that things are bad. But thankfully, God prepares us even when we don't know He's doing it. That's why He led me to this book. I read it and two days later, I crashed. It was a hormonal mess that I won't bore you with, but strangely through it, I felt God's peace. So onto my notes...

Chapter One

Awake, Daughter of Zion

Awake, awake, O Zion, clothe yourself with strength. Put on your garments of splendor, O Jerusalem, the holy city. The uncircumcised and defiled will not enter you again. Shake off your dust; rise up, sit enthroned, O Jerusalem. Free yourself from the chains on your neck, O captive Daughter of Zion" (Isaiah 52:1-2)

It is a contradiction for a daughter of Zion to be captive.

Tired of constant disappointment I resigned myself to my condition. I decided it was better not to hope than to hope and only be disappointed again. So I concealed my chains and quietly moved within the confines of my restrictions.

I was tired of acting free when I was not, tired of acting strong when I was in fact weak. (I can SO attest to the last half of that sentence. - AD)

Heirs - yet captive. Free - yet bound.

From Out of Control and Loving It! by Lisa Bevere

As you read my notes on this book, and as you hopefully read the book, I would love for you to share anything God is teaching you with these truths.

Why I Bought the Book

For five years since Little M was born, the control I have felt over my life has little by little slipped away. The type of control I'm talking about is the ability to decide what I want to do and when I want to do it. Like - "I want to stay asleep all night." Nope, sorry. You have to feed the baby. Or, "I want to watch my show." Nope, sorry. The baby isn't asleep yet. Or, "Hey Babe, let's go eat somewhere." Nope, sorry. It's the baby's naptime. Any parent can relate to this.

I am a very scheduled, time-oriented person. I like to make lists and check them off. This can be good. But it can also drive me crazy, as well as those around me, I'm sure. I guess I should say, I was this way. God has used parenthood to totally obliterate this aspect of my personality. Oops, I mean He has caused it to be more balanced in my life. :)

So just a few weeks ago, in my thoughts I was surveying my daily life and the condition of my house. I felt so out of control. I thought, "I am so out of control. It's like everyone else, and every circumstance dictates how I spend my time." I had thoughts like, "Why can't I keep my house neater? Why don't I get out of my pajamas in the morning instead of the afternoon? Will I ever get to be involved in anything outside of my home again?" These combined with some serious post-partum hormonal issues were really weighing on me. While still reading my Bible for answers, I decided I needed a book. So one night while the girls were at AWANA and Honeybees, I went to our church library. I loaded up on books. I put some back. I chose some more. Then I came across a book called, Out of Control and Loving It! by Lisa Bevere. It's about giving God complete control of your life. While I have always set out to live my life like that, I guess I've just never really known how. So I checked it out and devoured it. And then I ordered my own copy so I could write in it. And now I must share. I hope to do this on a regular basis. I also hope you will get your own copy because I will only be highlighting things that stood out to me. If you don't read the text in full, you'll miss so much! Keep checking back. I'll get started soon.

So to close I'll share a picture of Little Guy. I stopped blogging when he was just weeks old, and my how he's grown! He just hit the 7 month mark a couple of days ago. He is a joy to our family!!! Sweet, sweet, sweet!

Out of Control

I may be emerging for good... :) I have just read a book called Out of Control And Loving It! by Lisa Bevere. I want to go through it again and highlight the parts that have changed my life already. And I can't help but share! I just can't help it! :) Have you read this book? If not, I want to encourage you to go get it. Today. Once I get started, this will be the topic of my posts until I get through the book. Join me!

Nativity Giveaway

I've come out of my blogging hibernation to post a Christmas giveaway! My friend, Autumn, at Autumn Asks Why, is giving it away. Check out her blog for all the details. This contest ends tomorrow, so you better get on it!

Baby Brother

It's hard to believe that in two days my baby boy will be 6 weeks old. What a blessing he is. I guess everyone says that about their babies! But with each new life God has given us to care for, it seems like my heart softens more and more for these little ones. It feels like we've always had this little guy. Our family feels complete now.

I don't think I'll be blogging anytime soon, though Blogger calls my name on a regular basis. I always have ideas in my head, and my thoughts quite often say, "I should blog about that!" But it's just so hard to fit in.

I'll leave you with some pictures:

It's Coming!

I will get a post about Baby Brother on here soon. I have so many pictures, so many thoughts...where do I begin? God has been good to us. Things are going well.

You know how everyone thinks their baby is a good-looking genius? Well, ours really is! See for yourself:

Happy 5th, Baby Girl!

Amidst all this newborn raisin', we have been celebrating Little M's birthday for a few weeks. I knew I'd be too exhausted to have a party after the baby arrived, but I didn't want her to get overlooked during all this change in our lives. Birthdays are very important to her after all! So we celebrated early, by having a special day for her where she could choose what she wanted to do.

She wanted to have breakfast at Cracker Barrel, go to Build-A-Bear Workshop (our suggestion), play at a park, and watch a movie. Bambi it was! It was a fun day.

And then the celebrations continued. She had a little party with my in-laws while I was in the hospital having the baby. And since my mom is always here in the summer and celebrates her birthday with us, Little M wanted to know if she could stay and celebrate her birthday with us and help make the cake like she does every year. Well, Grandmother had to leave before her birthday arrived, so we decided to have a little cupcake party. The guests were Joaquin, me, Tia (my sis-in-law), Grandmother, and Baby Brother.

Then to top it all off, my mom and I made a cake to have today for her actual birthday. Whew! I know she loved it all, and I think we accomplished our goal of keeping her birthday special. Next year, I'm pretty sure we'll just be having a small party! Here are a few pics:

Happy Birthday to my first born. You amaze me each day with the way you obey your parents, love your sister and brother, and always want to learn. May God bless you, sweet one. I love you!