Waking Up Before the Sun 9/27/10

5:45 am. . ."Girls, God created something really beautiful that he wants to show us this morning. Let's wake up." And 3 groggy little girls climbed out of bed, pillow and blankets in tow...









This week we had a beautiful start to a holy Sabbath. . .and then Claire threw up. . .yes, she did :-) and all of a sudden we had to resort to Plan B. (she's fine now, BTW - 24 hour bug)

So. . .we basically just relaxed, which was probably just what we needed.

Claire took a nap and Kevin and I had dates with the other two girls. Olivia and I went for a walk around Purple Park with our iPods. I told her I was going to listen to a message by Charles Stanley and see what God would say to me. She listened to her "God music" and we walked for about 40 minutes, taking time out to run through a few sprinklers along the way. I really should enjoy running through sprinklers more often. It made Olivia and I laugh together so much more than we usually do. Note to self:I need to laugh more! It feels so good.



She said that God told her to keep listening to "God music." I think that's a pretty good thing for a 7 year old to hear, don't you?

After that Kevin and Emma went on a getaway to Borders and the mall. Daddy daughter time is so special. I love it that my girls value time with their dad. I love to see the joy on their faces when they find out they get to be alone with just him.

Other than that, Sabbath was just a day of lying around and resting. It's hard to rest in my house. There is always something that I see to be done. But for this day, it was good.

Pancakes, Eldorado Canyon and Despicable Me for Sabbath 9/20/10

Today was one of those days that my soul craves. . .one of those days when as it happens you are just continually thinking in the back of your mind, "WOW! This is what it's supposed to be like. . .this is what God wanted." Sabbath. . .no doubt God knew what he was up to in making this one a commandment. I so wish more people would take him seriously on it and just give it a try. It's part of what we were made for - enjoying the Father and allowing him to enjoy us.

Today started for me with a cup of coffee, Charles Stanley on the iphone and a drive around Superior before the world awoke. Then God prompted me to do some drive by praying. I'm sure a few people thought I was a stalker as I sat outside the houses of my friends and prayed for their families and for their marriages this morning. But what a privilege it was. And what an even bigger honor it was to then come home to my own quiet family and pray for them, too. Then it was to the basement for an hour of ridiculously intense cardio with http://www.mytrainerbob.com, only to earn each and every one of those calories back about an hour later with the family at The Original Pancake House in Boulder. http://www.originalpancakes.com/index.html YUM!

One of my all time favorite places around us here is Eldorado Springs Canyon. Only about 15 minutes from our house you can feel miles away from the world. We took the girls on a 3+ mile hike that ascended 800 ft. from start to top. It was hard work. But the beauty made it all worth while as we stood on top and looked over the Continental Divide and everything below. Emma, Claire and Olivia are rock star climbers and hikers - true Coloradans.

When we came back down, the girls played in the water for a while and then it was off to the movie. . .






We went to watch Despicable Me and if you have had the chance to see it, you already know that it was surprisingly sweet. It had a great love message and the best part was that the three little girls COMPLETLEY reminded me of Emma, Claire and Olivia. Their personalities were all spot on. Even they agreed. So much fun!

Click Here for a Fun Video of Claire's Pre-movie entertainment for us I love that girls' craziness. I wish I had just an ounce of it. She is her father's daughter!!

The day ended cheering on Jennifer Grey and Derek on Dancing with the Stars and family prayer time on the bed after a very LONG DAY!

How I love my family! Yes, we drive each other crazy - even on Sabbath. Sometimes we bicker and fuss. We get tired and cranky (even me! :-) ). But we keep pursuing this special day together. And it is SO worth it!! The best part is when you ask our girls now, "what is their favorite time as a family?" they will automatically respond "Sabbath!" And I'm pretty sure that's just what God intended.

Summer Sabbath Recap

Summer has been wild and crazy and we're finally getting around to telling you about some of our Sabbath Experiences. Some were full and beautiful, some were short and choppy, some just didn't happen.

What we've learned is this:
* You have to prepare for Sabbath -- If you don't prepare, you'll end up working too hard for it and thus defeating the purpose.
* You have to fight for Sabbath -- The enemy is after you when you're trying to do something good. You got to scratch and claw for it. And when you win...it's totally worth it!

Sabbath has been an amazing journey for us. We're hoping for many, many more amazing days with God and family.

Here's a quick recap of the last few.....Enjoy. Each day we are trying to incorporate intentional God conversations, prayer, scripture, nature and family.

June 25 -- Toy Story 3, Pearl Street, West End Tavern and a walk along Boulder Creek


Early July we were off to Kentucky and Vietnam


July 19 -- Rocky Mountain National Park, Trail Ridge Rd.


August 2 -- 13th Wedding Anniversary Celebration Day

We spent the day watching the Cosby Show, Prince Caspian and The Flintstones as we celebrated love and life and marriage.

August 8 -- Black Sabbath

This was our worst Sabbath ever. We didn't prepare. We didn't pray. We fought a lot. We came home and worked. It was not good at all. We learned a lot, though.

August 16 -- Echo Lake and Mount Evans

88 degrees in Superior, 70 degrees at Echo Lake, 32 degrees and snowing at the top of Mt. Evans




August 25 -- Amy's Cupcake Tour of Denver



Click Here for a video from the day

September 6 -- Labor Day, Rocky Mountain Regional Airport, Pearl Street, Boulder Fire

A fun, relaxing day turned crazy. Breakfast at the airport watching the planes come in, Purple Park walk, saw smoke, ran to see, huge fire in Boulder. Went to Pearl for a closer look. Ended up back at Key to pray.

September 13 -- Rest, Rest, Horses and games