Mom, I'm Exhausted... but I'm Alive...

Yesterday my thirteen year old daughter went to skid row - Skid row is an area in downtown Los Angeles that is home to many homeless - food kitchens - homeless shelters - crime, and sadness.. She volunteered with her youth group to work in a homeless shelter - She spent nine (9) hours playing with the many children there - holding them - loving them - reading to them - and just listening to them - a friendly face - a beautiful face - a loving face - that is my daughter...

She served a Thanksgiving dinner to the families that stay there - not knowing that 150 more hungry souls were going to come in from the cold - 150 more mouths to feed than expected.... I asked her - "Did everyone get to eat?" She said "yes" I asked her "What do you think about that?" She said "I have no idea how we did it - we even had a little left over..." My first thought and I am sure you are thinking the same.... Jesus fed 4000- 5000 with five (5) small loaves of bread and two (2) fish - I know He can handle 150 more mouths to feed...

Through out the day - I received updates via text - First one - "Mom - I am at the shelter u should c the kids they're so cute! I'm in charge of games".. Next text - "There are a lot of hungry people here" Next text - "Mom - thank you" - Next text - "Mom, I'm Exhausted...but I'm alive" - Next text - "Going to In N Out on the way home Love you" Next text "I'm 10 minutes away.. come get me"

When I picked her up at the church - the first thing she did was apologize - She apologized for getting angry at the thought of her sister getting something that she wanted (she thought I was buying an IPOD touch for her sister - I wasn't it) - she apologized for acting greedy at times... She said that she saw a bunch of kids - younger than her and others her age that had nothing... and they were happy.... She learned that true happiness isn't from what she gets under the Christmas tree but what she feels in her heart..... love from her family and friends and a Lord and Savior that died on the cross so that she can live forever.....

Butterfly Kisses From Daddy

My husband sometimes has to travel for days at a time... my youngest Kara used to get very upset when he would leave... She is a Daddy's girl and I am sure Dusty just loves that... A couple of years ago he went on a trip... he left her a present for her to find in the morning.. It was a book based on the song "Butterfly Kisses" and in the book was a CD of the song... she would play that song over and over again - because it was her and Daddy's song....
Well today we were driving home from dropping off her friend and Butterfly Kisses started playing on the radio.. I heard Kara sigh in the back and say "God knew I needed to here that song cuz Daddy isn't home tonight." wow.. I almost started to cry....
I thank God everyday for blessing me with my daughters...

Dinner Time Prayer

My husband Dusty was raised Lutheran and at meal time the prayer was always the following "God is Good.. God is Great.. Let us thank Him for our food.. amen... It's funny because now that my girls go to a Christian school our dinner prayers sound something like this:
Nikki - "Dear Lord, thank you for this day.. thank you for all that you have given "me".. please help "me" and Kara not to fight so much...and help "me" to get a good grade on my math test tomorrow...oh, and please bless this food that we are about to receive.. in Jesus name amen..."

Kara - "Lord, "I" just want to thank you for today..and thank you for the blue skies.. Please help "me" and Nikki to not fight.. and that Mom does well on her loan processing and Dad on being the boss and help "me" to keep getting good grades.. and bless this food we are about to receive and I hope it's good..amen."

Me - "Father thank you for this beautiful day and please bless this food.. In Jesus Name we pray... amen..."

Dusty -"God is good.. God is great.. Let us thank Him for our food.. Amen"

What cracks me up is that my kids try to fit all their prayer time at meal time... the other night, Nikki's prayer must have lasted about three minutes and she forgot to bless the food... This led us into the discussion on the difference between "family prayer and blessing food" to "our alone time in prayer"... I gotta love it though.... especially the "help me and Nikki/Kara to not fight"... This statement has been a part of their prayers at dinner for over two years... and before the end of dinner one of them would have already said a wise crack statement to the other...

"Lord save me from preteen/teenage girls...."

Is He Going To Heaven, Mommy?

We live in Southern California and our family is very much into watching sports..Okay, my husband is into sports and we all join him for the ride...mostly because he is in charge of the downstairs remote control! That's okay...most of the time. We have gone to many baseball games, The Los Angeles Dodgers, The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, and my husband's favorite team The California State University of Long Beach Dirt bags!! Yes, a college baseball team is called The 'Dirt bags'.

Last Thursday, we watched Angel's pitcher Nick Adenhart pitch a great six innings against Oakland leaving with a lead of 4-0 before a late-inning rally resulted in a 6-4 defeat. Later that same evening Nicolas James Adenhart was killed by a drunk driver. He was 22 years old. The police reported that a driver raced through a red light, causing a two car crash which killed three people, including Adenhart. The driver fled the scene but thankfully was later caught and charged with felony hit and run.

While watching the news report on this tragic event, my twelve year old daughter asked me if he was saved and if he was going to Heaven. My tendered hearted child was so concerned for this young man that she had tears in her eyes. "I don't know, Honey", I said..."Only God knows some one's heart." Well, she decided to pray for this baseball player she had never met... I was so proud of my "Little Prayer Warrior" and thankful for the many blessings she has given me and others.

My Creator

Written By My 12 year old Daughter Nicole

My Creator
My Lord, My Savior, all-powerful. He spoke the earth into existence
The beautiful Flowers,
The clear waters,
The wide blue skies.
How amazing, His creation is
His love is enduring
and His mercy is never ending
In a cave in Bethlehem,
You send Your Son to be born
forgiven for my sins.
Your Son died on a Cross for me
I am grateful
for all the generosity you show
When I see you in Heaven.
I will kiss your feet
and say "Lord Almighty"
I love you, my Creator

Daughter Choose Your Friends Wisely

When my daughters were younger everything I said in their minds was a fact. I knew everything and I was always right.. They never questioned whether I was right or wrong... I was the final authority... or dad was... Those were the easy days...
Now my girls are older... not quite teenagers but close enough... and now I KNOW NOTHING!!! Whatever their twelve year old friends state as fact...must be true..... I'm considered old fashioned and out of touch with reality..... WOW... They have decided that they have the right to question what I say to be a fact or not....since I am so old......
What is really concerning me today is the friends my oldest daughter chooses... Remember both of my children go to Church every Sunday, go to a Christian school, and live in a Christian home....but somehow my #1 daughter likes to hang out with kids whose idea of fun is tohave a boyfriend, go on dates (just wondering how they get there..on their bikes?), make out, sneak behind their parents' backs, and having a baby sounds really cool...
Yesterday, my eldest told me her friends think that I shelter her too much..... SHE'S TWELVE YEARS OLD!!! Of course I am going to shelter her... There is no way....she's going on date.. there's no way she's going to go make out, and having a baby.....Lord help me. She is angry with me that I will not allow her to "hang out" with her friends at their homes..... I said she can invite her friends here.... but I will not open the door for my kid to sneak behind my back and possibly do things that she would regret later. I will not back down on this.. God gave me this very important responsibility to raise my kids right and I take my role as a mother very seriously.
What really angers me is the parents of these kids. Many are single parents whose priorities have switched from being a parent to taking care of their own wants and needs.... One friend in particular has a mom that is looking for a boyfriend and is never home leaving her daughter home by herself..... In the daughters loneliness, she started hanging out with a much older boys and her home has become the "party hangout".. She's TWELVE!!!! My daughter thinks it's cool.. I feel sorry for this little girl who is looking for attention and love in the wrong places..
I had a heart to heart with my beautiful and incredibly special daughter and this is what I said... I remember being twelve years old... I remember how it felt to want to fit it...I remember how important my friends were to me and how important their opinions were. Kids have not changed since I was your age...granted you dress better and have more toys but the emotions are basically the same. You are an incredible kid with so much going for you. I see the love you have for the Lord and I see your heart...it is a big one...But honey, you have to open the door for new friends to enter.. You have to put yourself out there to find a true friend...not someone who will tear you down...but someone who will lift you up.. You need people in your life that have good morals and things in common with you... like keeping good grades like you do, playing tennis, reading books, same taste in music, and they love God with all their hearts just like you... It is a fact that whatever we surround ourselves with, who ever we hang out with, and whatever we fill our minds with..is what we will become... I am not saying to be mean to the girls you have been hanging out with.. I am saying that you need to fix your thoughts on what is true and honorable and right. Think about things that are pure and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. Philippians 4:8 (paraphrased).
I don't know if I got through to my loved one....But I do know that I am covering her in prayer and I will not, I repeat I will not lift up that shelter...