God loves us!

“Give thanks to the Lord for he is good. His love endures forever.”

Psalm 118:1

As I was laying next to my four-year-old, staring up at the Elsa and Anna nightlight glowing on the ceiling, counting Reese’s breaths and thinking surely she was asleep, she rolled over and said,

“Mommy, God loves us …… even when we don’t ask him to, he still loves us.”

I think I kind of gasped a little at the impact those precious, innocent, deep and profound words had on my soul. Tears welled up in my eyes, “I know!!” I said. “Isn’t that so awesome! We don’t have to do anything and he just always, always loves us.”

My daughter quickly dozed off to dreams of princesses and unicorns, or so she told me the next morning, and I lay there for a while just thinking about her words. Whoa. I needed to hear that and God sent it through the little mouth of my girl. I kept repeating her words over and over in my head,

“God loves us. Even when we don’t ask him to, he still loves us.”

Even when I don’t deserve it, he still loves me.

Even when I’ve been selfish, he still loves me.

Even when I lose my patience, he still loves me.

Even when I believe the lies in my head and not the truth, he still loves me.

Even when I don’t expect him to, he still loves me.

Even when I don’t ASK HIM to, he’s just waiting there, loving me, and waiting for me to accept it.

“Give thanks to the Lord for he is good. His love endures forever.” Psalm 118:1

It’s just such a simple truth. God loves us. Why do I take it so lightly? It is absolutely no small thing. I sure don’t deserve his love. But that’s the whole incredible thing about it…

First John 4:10 “This is love: not that we loved God but that HE LOVED US! And sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.”

I love how it’s translated in The Message:

“My beloved friends, let us continue to love each other since love comes from God…. This is how God showed his love for us: God sent his only Son into the world so we might live through him. This is the kind of love we are talking about – not that we once-upon-a-time loved God, but that HE LOVED US and sent his Son as a sacrifice to clear away our sins and the damage they’ve done to our relationship with God. My dear, dear friends, if God loved us like this, we certainly ought to love each other. No one has seen God, ever. But if we love one another, God dwells deeply within us, and his love becomes complete in us- perfect love!” I John 4:7-12

We love because he first loved us, with his “Never Stopping, Never Giving up, Unbreaking, Always and Forever Love.” (as the amazing Jesus Storybook Bible phrases it). So, if I know he loves me like that. And I accept that he loves me like that. Then what?

I think he then tells us to love each other like that. Read the last verse of that passage in 1 John 4 again. “If we love one another, God dwells deeply within us, and his love becomes complete in us – perfect love.”

Perfect love. That has no fear. No comparison. No conditions. No end.

It’s “Never Stopping, Never Giving up, Unbreaking, Always and Forever Love.”

Who do we love with love like that? God. Our husbands. Our kids. Our parents. Our best friends. The list goes on. God says, “Love one another.” I’d say that includes pretty much everyone.

Can we be honest here, y’all? That kind of love is hard. And it’s a challenge for this broken sinner. But that’s what God calls us to do. If we keep reading in 1 John 4 it says, “We love because He first loved us” (verse 19).

So, that’s what I’m going to do. Because God first loved me, I can love others. And really be intentional about it, especially during this Valentine’s Love-y Dove-y month! Who’s with me?

I’m going to love my husband with a NEVER STOPPING love. Even if he gets home late and we’re both exhausted.

I’m going to love my girls with an UNBREAKING love. Even when they disobey and run away from me when I ask for the 13^th time for them to put their shoes on. Even when they cry because they don’t get their way. God loves me with an Always and Forever love and I probably look like a two-year-old throwing a tantrum to him sometimes, too. Running away from him. Crying because my life doesn’t go as I planned….  The least I can do is grant that grace to my kids and to my best girl friends and to my husband.

I’m going to love my best friends with a NEVER GIVING UP love. They are always there for me. They are cheering me on. They are doing their best in the same way that I’m doing my best. We’re all in this ‘woman’ thing together – all in different stages. If we can’t stop comparing ourselves to each other and sizing each other up, then we’ll never be able to love each other as women with that “perfect love” and we miss out on the refreshment our soul can receive from a sweet friendship, Proverbs 27:9.  

As women, let’s keep each other accountable this month to really love ‘one another.’ If nothing else, lets remind each other as often as we can that God loves us! He made each of us in love.

I’d challenge you today to send someone a little note or text and just remind her how much God loves her! How special she is! And that even though we don’t ask him to, God always loves her!

Let’s THRIVE in God’s TRUE love as we celebrate Valentine’s Day this year.

LucyKate is TWO!

LucyKate! How is she already a two-year-old?!

Here are a few of her favorite things and a few stats so we never forget...

Oh, how she loves her 'tutu'!!! She found a precious off-white, lace dress hanging in her closet sometime after Halloween and hasn't taken it off for three months. It was the cute dress Reese wore as the flower girl in Joel & Julia's wedding. She calls it her Tutu and literally puts it on the second she wakes up -over her jammies. Then when she puts her clothes on for the day, the tutu goes over the clothes. Then when she puts her jammies back on for bedtime, the tutu goes over the jammies again. She knows she has to take it off to eat meals and she'll patiently stand by her chair waiting for me to take it off before she sits down. so cute. then as soon as the meal is over.... tutu goes right back on. She also (usually) has to take it off before we get in the car. Generally, there are a few tears involved with this, but she knows she'll get it back as soon as we're home again. It's like she is just wearing her blankie, or her lovie. It's her comfort. She just loves it so much. She puts it on and her eyes light up and she dances around and holds it out like a princess. I don't know what it is about the dress that she loves so much. She has so many actual dress-up princess dresses, but she won't wear them because she just wants her tutu. I have to wait until she's asleep to wash it on ultra-delicate cycle and then hang dry it through the night so it will be dry in the morning. Oh the things we do for our sweet kiddos.

She loves "bia da dirst" aka Sofia the First on Disney Jr. She has just started to pretend and act out different scenes from the movie and its just so adorable.

Sometime between Thanksgiving and Christmas (right before she turned two) she decided she could talk and all of a sudden just started saying tons of things. Before that she barely said a word. Her big sister says and does most things for her so Lu figure out pretty quick that she didn't need to talk :) She has the cutest voice. Kind of raspy and so dramatic.

She is so sweet to her baby dolls and loves to take care of them. and her little people princesses too.

Oh this is so cute... when we ask her a question (and reese isn't around to answer for her ;) before lucy answers shell say, 'um um... um um' really quickly and then say the answer. precious little voice.

She is still such an active little thing. Climbs on every.thing. jumps off everything. hangs on everything. jumps at all times. runs everywhere. in the store. in the hallways. at school. if any child ever needed a leash... it's this silly one.

She's still pretty tall for her age!! At her two year check up she was 34in tall (70th%) and 26lbs (50th%). Blue eyes. Blondish hair (well not much of it though haha) and we still can't really tell, but I don't think it's curly like her sisters'.

She'll finally sit and read books with me, which I love!!! She's not as much of a cuddler as Reese was so I love it when shell sit in my lap long enough to read a book!!

She still sleeps in her crib and its just working great and easy and I have no desire to rock the boat on this one. I think she'll be in her crib until we just absolutely need to move her.

Her best friend here (besides "beese") is our buddy Charlie Morris. He's also two and in our small group. He taught her "jump jump shake your booty" and she is pretty much constantly singing this now haha she says"jump jump booty booty" its hilarious.

she loves Frozen (what little girl doesn't) and she loves to pretend to be Elsa by wrapping a blanket around her and letting it drape in the back and singing let it go or '"noman....go!' aka do you want to build a snow man. and this is just so cute.... when she gets out of the bathroom and has to walk from the bathroom to her room wrapped in her towel that makes it look like she has a crown on her head she started saying 'coldcoldcoldcold' and it was super cute and i just thought she was being silly bc she is always making us laugh (or just making herself laugh haha) but the other day reese realized she was pretending to be anna from Frozen when she falls in the water and her dress is frozen and she can barely walk and says that. so so funny!

She still is an awesome eater!!! Loves loves loves all fruit, especially blueberries and pears.

She seems to be pretty independent! She's always saying "dooot" aka 'do it' and wants to do everything by herself. put on her clothes. take off her clothes. go up and down the stairs. feed herself. get her own snack. "nack peeese!" pick out her coat. walk by herself instead of me carrying her.

I'm sure there are a million more things... but this is all i can think of off the top of my head :)

We sure love watching you grow up Lucy girl!!!!! You are so precious and fun! Smart and hilarious. energetic. caring. full of personality.

oh my favorite thing.... we still always rock a little in your chair before bed, say our prayers and I pray luke 2:52 over you every night. "grow in wisdom, stature and favor with God and favor with man" and then we sing Jesus loves me. I don't know when this started but now you sing it with me and its the sweetest sound I've ever heard. "es, deesus yuvs me. ess, deesus yuvs me. da bidle dells me do"

Reese World as a 4.5 year old

hello blog world. {I wrote this four month ago (in September) and just discovered that i never posted it} just a quick update of Reese at this phase of life bc I just wish i could freeze time.....

reeser just started four year old preschool. she goes m-th in the afternoon and just loooooves it. i mean there is no hesitation or worry on her part (except when it comes to maybe going through the drop off for her to walk down three stairs with the parent helper into her classroom. then mommy and lucy don't even have to get out of the car! but that would be way to easy and is obviously super scary ;) i love that girl.) so she just runs into the classroom and has the best time, i think? its hard to get anything out of her except for 'we dont learn anything mommy, we just play and eat a snack' so glad we're paying for this. jk i know its awesome.

she loves her sister,

loves strawberry shortcake (but not as much as she loves her sister),

plays make believe with her animals and still loves to play doc mcstuffins. yes we still have the doc mobile made out of a diaper box that she pulls around. dear disney, please make a somewhat life-size doc mobile so we don't have to have this falling apart diaper box in our living room. thank you.

this summer reese tried soccer and ballet. both were little four lesson "camps" to see if she liked it. in her words "soccer is just so super hard. and the shinguards hurt my knees" yes people, her shinguards went up past her knees. she's still a sweet little peanut. (and also still allergic to peanuts for the record). so we told her it was ok if she wasn't a soccer star and we were still proud of her and couldn't wait to see what else she would like. ballet sure seems like a perfect fit to me. but even though she really loved it (and wears the whole ballet get up all the time - even to the grocery store or maybe the park) she said "i want to do a 'paetren' (pattern. one word i just can't correct. its so cute. and she also still says 'stegot' for forgot. we are working hard on teettttthhhhh instead of teet.) anyway, she wants to do a pattern of ballet for a little bit and gymnastics for a little bit.

so today, ladies and gentlemen, reese e. mason has come out of retirement and started gymnastics again. it was darling. she was so excited about it and was so brave and awesome compared to the precious little three year old reese at the gym last fall. who knows how long she'll love it but I'm always proud of her, especially today when she jumped off the vault for the first time and then turned up to me with the biggest smile and waved!!

she is still somewhat of a picky eater. well not so much picky more just like she'd rather not eat. haha however, her fav foods are hummus with pretzels, all fruit, couscous, hotdogs if they're cut in skinny long strips and wheat thins. who is this child? oh and apple juice. we've had some pretty good fits bc i make her drink water sometimes. i know, i'm a terrible mom.

speaking of fits, not much has changed, but she still DOES NOT like for me to pick out her clothes. we've been trying to balance this for pre school. but lets just say getting her dressed is not the best part of the day. today i let her pick out her clothes and she came down in polka dots. head to toe. she said it matched bc it was all polka dots. pink dot shirt. purple and green dot running shorts. black and rainbow dot toms. oh girl. "mommy I'm so good at picking out my clothes aren't I?"

oh and this was hilarious the other day- we went on a run with the monster double bob to the library a little over a mile away. we got almost to the parking lot and i realized it was closed that day.
me: shoot the library is closed, girls!
reese: awww why?
me: its thursday. and I forgot the library is always closed on thursdays.
reese: its ok mommy. but you should have just told me and i would have remembered it for you.

yep. that sounds right. this girl still surprises me all the time with her memory. its nuts. she's a smart one i tell you. she has her daddys brain. which is so cute bc there are so many times they just "get" each other in different situations. i love it. i pray they always "get" each other. especially when she's 13 and doesn't want me to make her have a dance party to t.swift (maybe thats why God gave me lucy. she's always dancing!)

reesieboo still LOOOOOOVES all things art, crafts, painting, creating, writing, drawing. and gosh is she good at it. i mean i'm no expert at what four year old art should look like but her paintings are frame worthy in our house!! ;) she will sit and paint and color and glue and cut really focused for so long! its awesome.

she is so energetic and passionate about everything she does. happy or sad its pretty easy to tell her emotion :) love her to pieces! i feel like i say this every day- but i just LOVE four year olds :)