A Change of Pace

Today was cloudy and mild. We enjoyed a little bit of time outside.

Laura Kate was having a good time on the little see-saw thing, until Anna got on. Big sister can get a little crazy. Right now she's begging to get off.

Anna can now go as high and fast as her little heart desires.

Laura Kate moves on to the slide. No telling what mischief is being cooked up in that brain.

Ah ha. That's the mischief. She isn't allowed to climb the slide that way.

Anna, again, feels a need...a need for speed (a little Top Gun, anyone?).

The girls asked me to take a picture of some migrating birds. They were fascinated with the V-formation, which led to a teachable moment. You probably wouldn't have had any clue that this was what the picture was if I hadn't told you, huh?

We decided after coming inside that we needed to bake something. I don't typically like to bake with the girls. There is a thing I have with mess, I don't like it when they make it and I don't like to clean it up. Well, I'm letting go of that, so here we are. Instead of "Charlie's Angels" we've got the whole "Mommy's Angels" thing going on. Incidentally, this was taken just a few minutes before Laura Kate abandoned our effort. While the oven was pre-heating, it began to smoke. Evidently, when I cooked sausage balls Sunday night some greased leaked onto the bottom of the oven. As smoke poured out of the oven, the smoke alarms began to go off. Fun stuff. We opened the windows to help air the house out, but Laura Kate decided this was all too much fun for her. While Anna was working hard...

Laura Kate was hardly working. She was out like a light.



Anna cuts...

and counts the scones. We were only supposed to have 12, but we ended up with 17. Hey, the more the better.


Once she got everything laid out on baking stones, we started the clean-up. Anna washed dishes...
while I cleaned the oven. This is Anna making fun of the smell (don't worry, it's cool at this point) before I commence scrubbing.


Now we can finally finish up the scones. Anna puts the finishing touches on and...

pineapple scones nearly as sweet as that little face. This was our first time to tackle scones, and they turned out pretty well. Good news: they're delicious. Bad news: they're delicious. I've had two already! I suppose Anna and I should be nice and share with Justin and Laura Kate...maybe.

"But, I'm Not Sleepy..."

...famous last words. Isn't it amazing how, though your children "really aren't tired", they tend to fall right asleep at naptime? It's shocking, really ;)

Getting Into The Christmas Spirit A Little Early

This morning I began getting out fall/winter clothes and putting away summer clothes. The girls were with me when I came across these dresses. Of course, they had to try them on. Each dress is one size too big for the respective girl, but they certainly don't mind. My friend Faith gave me these two dresses last year. They belonged to her two girls, who are about the same difference in age as Anna and Laura Kate, except that her yougest, Megan, is 4. Aren't they as cute as they can be? They are already gearing up for Christmas. The last couple of years have been a bit of a struggle. Anna is so focused on gifts that it consumes her for months, literally. We have been trying to explain how Christmas isn't about receiving toys and clothes, but about the gift God gave us in sending His son Jesus. We're to celebrate that gift and share it with others. Well, last year it fell on deaf ears. This year we're not making much more headway. I know she's little and it may take a while. But, we're plugging along, hoping it sinks in eventually! The girls are also excited about filling up their shoeboxes for Operation Christmas Child. We've done that every year since Anna was born, and the girls love it. This is Laura Kate's first Christmas to really understand what's going on. I hope it builds their character and helps them focus on what's really important during this time of year. They're so precious and full of life. I look forward to seeing what God will do in and through them as they grow.

Timely Food for Thought

Quote from Billy Edwards, senior pastor, Brazos Meadows Baptist Church -on the election:

"One thing, however, has already been decided: God is on His throne, Jesus is Lord of all, and the church is the one hope for the world. Those things are true no matter who is president! I've told you this before...I've lived through 6 Republican presidents and 4 Democratic presidents. And honestly, not much changes. Neither can give us salvation. Neither can give us deliverance. Neither can give us hope that matters. Neither can make iron-clad promises. Salvation and deliverance and hope and promises come through Bethlehem, not Washington!" "I am a citizen of the United States (proudly), but I'm not at home here. My home is in the Kingdom of God, which is both here and in the future; which supercedes nations and borders and political causes. The older I get, the more I feel like an alien, for I long more and more to be home. I don't plan on going home anytime soon, so I am yielding more and more of my life to God today. I gave my life to the Kingdom of God years ago; I re-up that commitment right now. Join me."

Wow. That's good stuff.

Social Studies, History, and Bible Study Make For a Full Day

The girls and I show off our "I voted" stickers

This morning the girls had a little social studies lesson. Following Laura Kate's dentist appointment (which went really well), we headed to our polling place to cast our vote. Of course, when I say we and our, I mean me and mine. No voter fraud here:) The girls were intrigued with the voting machine. They were really quiet and stayed right next to me. I was grateful for that. Of course, I spent a good deal of the morning (before voting) explaining what we were doing and why. The concept of "country" is still a little too big for them, I think. They understand city and state, but country is still a little confusing. As is Earth, for that matter. They do know that a globe is a representation of Earth. I think they're doing just fine :) On a side note, I did not vote for the president elect. I didn't think he was the best choice for our country for a lot of reasons, not the least of which are national security concerns. However, I think we should respect the office. He will be president, our president. And it was an historic election. The first black president is absolutely nothing to sneeze at. 61% (according to GMA this morning) of his voters were not minority, they were white. I hope this election puts to bed the notion that our country doesn't have the ability to see past skin color. God made us black, brown and white and expects us to love each other because He first loved us and we're His creation. I agree with the late Dr. King that it's not the color of one's skin, but the content of his character that is of importance. Evidently our country does as well. We have come a long way in 50 years. From segregation and voter intimidation to an African-American holding the highest office in the land. Partisan politics aside, that's pretty awesome. That's our history lesson for the day.

On a different note, we have Laura Kate's scope scheduled. It will take place on November 24, first thing in the morning. She's not really been having stomach pain lately, so we've been second guessing whether or not we need to have the scope done. It's not something we're thrilled about having her go through. And, it's not like we can pay our copay and have the procedure done. We have a deductible to meet since our insurance reset in October, so there's the financial aspect as well. I have to keep telling myself what I told Justin: if the GI specialist wants it done, you do it. Scott and White will just have to put it on our (ever growing) tab! Could that be the math and science lesson? I dunno.

We just have to have faith that we're doing what's best for our little one and that the Lord will provide the means by which to do that. In Philippians 4:19, Paul tells us that "my God will meet all you needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus." A GI scope isn't a want, I can guarantee you! It's a medical need. I like what Jesus says about the Father supplying needs in Matthew 7:9-11 (emphasis mine): "Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!" So we ask Him to provide what we need.

I've been doing the the Experiencing God study by Henry and Richard Blackaby. If you haven't done it, do so. I promise you'll be grateful that you did. Here are my thoughts about our situation, based on what I've come to understand: If we accomplish a task by our might and resources, how is that glorifying to God? It isn't. People don't recognize His power in that instance and aren't drawn to Him. He wants to accomplish things through us that we are incapable of doing on our own so that His power is showcased and people can experience Him in a way they couldn't have otherwise. I can assure you that our (the Mitchells) emotional and financial resources are limited. I've wondered why Laura Kate just doesn't get completely well. We've asked for healing. You've asked for healing. I know and believe He could do it if He so chose. Perhaps it's to increase our faith. Perhaps it's to demonstrate His power and resources, since ours are limited, and increase your faith as well. It's probably both. I assure you that we are not without some times of stress. Truthfully, those are times of weakened faith that call for repentance. However, at our core we believe God is good and He loves us. He's our Dad in heaven. Our dads here on Earth took good care of us when we were kids (and continue to). Oh, how much more can we depend on our Dad in heaven! Bible study-check. Whew...busy day :)