Little Helpers

I have some really great helpers. Tryn and Berlin help me out with lots of things. They like to set the table, empty silverware from the dishwasher, bake, do food prep, vacuum, sweep, and dust. The crazy thing is that they love to do these things. They get super excited if we ask them to help and a lot of the times they are the ones who actually ask if they can help. I don't know why they are so excited about helping with chores, but I am afraid that someday they are going to wake up and really realize what's going on. :) Their favorite thing to help with is Kye. Anytime I ask them to help by putting something away or get something for Kye they always say yes. Anytime I ask them to hang out with Kye they get excited about it. And they especially like things like helping with the diaper changing process or feeding the man child. Example:

Snippets With God

I have been running a lot lately. It seems like whenever I start running a lot I stop blogging a lot. I am not sure why these two things go hand in hand for me, but I remember the last time I was running a lot I didn't blog much then either.

I am training for another half marathon, 13.1 miles. Tomorrow is my longest training run before the race. Anyone want to join me for a really long run that will result in nothing but the satisfaction from achieving a personal goal that I somehow convinced my brain I needed to accomplish? Haha!

Last time I trained I didn't listen to music at all when I ran. It was a tough strange year over all for us during that time when I learned how to run. Maybe I had lots of things to work through on my runs, but I would really look forward to them as a time to think about things. I loved being alone with the silence. And I needed thinking to get me through my runs. I would talk myself through miles, convincing myself that I could keep going because I had endured many more long hours and more pain in bringing children into this world.

This year, however, I started listening to music instead of thinking as a way to get through my runs. Last time I trained the few times I listened to music I tried listening to a list of my favorite songs. It would bore and annoy me. This time I had Steve help me make a really long playlist of all of my favorite worship songs. I tell you what, there are definitely some miles that I would have started walking through if I did not have those songs as motivators.

Because I am listening to my favorite worship songs during my runs I actually spend a lot of time praying or feeling like I am just hanging out with God while I am running. Sometimes when I am getting tired one of the greatest songs will come on and it literally feels like God is there with me. Like if I turned my head to the side really fast I would actually catch a glimpse of him running there beside me. And I would feel like if God is for me and my mind is my biggest adversary, then how could I quit? My runs have been a sweet time for me lately. Lots of time to spend with God.

The best thing is that since I am listening to these songs for several hours each week these are the songs getting stuck in my head. All throughout the day I am hearing lines running through my head that say things like,"Come to Me, I'm all you need..." or "My God is mighty to save..." or "...lead me to the cross, where Your love poured out. Bring me to my knees, Lord I lay me down. Rid me of myself, I belong to you..." it's like having snippets with God all day long.

Cutest Thing Ever

My Trynie has such a great heart. She has taken to writing notes to people lately, I posted about one on Facebook the other day. We were going to her friend Ava's birthday party and - all of her own accord - she came up to me right before we left with a card for Ava that she had made. It said, "Dear Ava, I like you very much. I like to play together with you. You are a nice friend. Love, Trynica." How sweet is that?

For Steve's birthday Tryn wrote him a beautiful note, all on her own. Yesterday she made him a card that said (and this is with my spelling corrections so you can read it), "Dear Daddy, I hope your smiles are perfect. Dad, I love you more than anything. To Daddy, Love Trynie. I always think that I will be loved." Melt my heart. Seriously.

She wrote this card to Cait, "Dear Cait, I like you for so many reasons too. I love you. I like you so very, very much. To Cait, Love Trynie."

But my favorite of all was this picture that she wrote for Berlin after Berlin fell down and scrapped her knee yesterday:


(Dear Berlin, I do not like when you fall or get hurt really really bad. I am so sorry. To Berlin, Love Trynica.)

She also drew the two cupcakes and told Berlin the bigger one was for her, which made Berlin very happy.

Cutest thing ever. Seriously. Tryn is fully embracing the gift of encouragement and freely giving words of affirmation. It's awesome. I am so proud of her. :)