wordless wednesday

we've got dinner on the brain

almost wordless wednesday

a few pictures of late:

wonder kitchen woman - "the fate of dinner lies in her hands"

silly times in COAT kids

and this beautiful sweetness is my newest nephew - i'm in love.  that adorable little faux hawk is 100% natural!  7 more days till i get to hold him!

"it's a morton salt day, God"

that's what i found myself praying just a few minutes ago.  oh i could write tale after tale of how wonderful these kids are and how good it has been going.

but today is a morton salt day.  my momma used to collect morton salt collectables and still has a few.  morton's picture was always of an adorable little girl under an umbrella holding a spilling container of salt.  their slogan?  "when it rains, it pours."  now, while it's been cloudy all day, there has been no actual rain. but oh how it's poured.

my kids are getting to the point where they are realizing that this move is permanent, they have to do their homeschooling with me instead of mom, and the novelty has just plum wore off.  one of the kids is showing anger that they have never really shown before.  one bursts into tears at the least little thing.

and in my house, there seems to be sorrow after sorrow as well.  roommates deeply hurting.  roommates believing satan's lies.

so i feel a good bit helpless in both cases.  i want to cry, but don't know whose shoulder wouldn't break under the weight of one more thing.

so as i was walking today, i just prayed, "it's a morton salt day, God."  He knew what i meant.  and He's here.  He'll be present as i scramble to get dinner on the table for my housemates for our "family" dinner.  He'll be there as i process and plan for tomorrow, hoping for a better day, but finding a way to trust if it isn't.

pray for my hurting kids.  pray for my hurting roommates.  pray for me, please.  pray for stuff that i don't even know how to articulate.  we're having some morton salt days - and i could use the strength from your prayers to help myself and others remember that Jesus is here, scooping up the mess of salt and rain that are falling down.

wordless wednesday

a taste of fall up north

i went up to atlanta two weeks ago for the catalyst conference.  in a word, it was awesome.  i got an amazing reassurance of my ministry.  it became so clear that i have been judging myself for not having this stellar, rock-star perfect ministry by now.  instead, the past few years have had many struggles, pitfalls and setbacks.  yet, i was so reassured that i'm being grown and molded by God in His perfect timing and ministries take time to build.  i'm still so young!  society tells me that i have to have it all together and be climbing whatever ladder is before me right now, but God tells me to rest in His grace and trust His timing in my life in everything.  and oh, what amazing things He can do in the things i think are struggles, pitfalls and setbacks.  that's when i have to throw up my hands and say You're right God, i'm not in control, i can't do this, it's all You. and how HE MOVES!!

after that i spent the weekend with the lovely binkleys!  i got to see emilee and kelsey - and had lots of hanging out girl time with Nina!   too bad bethany and mary were out of town!

the awesome oreo chocolate cream cake kels and i made for her husband travis's birthday!

then i headed on up to knoxville

i wanted to spend some time with my best friend, kristen, her husband cameron and baby Jenna - well 2 year old baby.  :-)  i figured i could plan for COAT kids just as easily from her house and the JBC teacher ed resource center as i could from home, so off i went.  kristen and her husband just lost a baby and kristen has beautifully written about her experience and God's faithfulness here.  i have been so encouraged by their faithfulness and trust in God.

trying to get a picture of jenna, kris and i proved to be tricky.

very tricky

but i did get one of a sleepy jenna & me

sweetness.

all in all a great trip up north.  didn't see everyone i wanted to see but i had amazing quality time with kristen, which was totally worth it.

coming, i almost promise that it will be this week, pictures of my first week of coat kids with my family with 10 kids and my family with 2.  i'm homeschooling 6 kids daily!  it's crazy wonderfulness.

in between quilts

i have to keep busy.  the same baby shower that i made the green cupcakes for, i made these.

are you there God? it's me, Abigail. it's 3:30 a.m. and yup, i'm still awake

i chose a new background. again. i seem to be on a quest for constant redesign, yet no new blog entries.

this background seems fitting. crumpled up paper. that seems to be where all my blog ideas go lately. down in the bottom of my purse on sticky notes stuck on my journal, yet not written in. short disconnected thoughts. my whole self scattered on bedside tables, in purses and somewhere between my two offices. and in the kitchen. i always have things in the kitchen.

to say my insomnia has been bad of late would be a massive understatement. it's horrendous. the not sleeping i could handle if i could still remember things in the daytime. if i could still function enough to work.

instead i have bursts of energy, short sweet bursts, and then i proceed to sit and stare - or worse i get up to do something and then stand in the middle of a hallway or mid-sentence, completely blank. then i start all over again.

but i'm thankful. right now i don't have any COAT kids. so while the next COAT is right around the corner and planning time is at a premium - i'm thanking God that i can go home and take the occasional mid-morning, i-can't-function-anymore, who-am-i-again, power nap to get me through.

so until then, my 'brilliant' journal scribbles will have to wait in their crumpled holding spot in the bottom of my purse - while i continue to get by on my sweet tea and a dream (now if that's not a book title, i don't know what is.)