How can we make Christmas new when we’ve celebrated this holiday so many times? We begin by being fully present.
I’ve already been to the Hidden Villa Farm.
That’s what I thought when CJ’s Mommy-and-Me class announced a field trip for our two-year-olds.
Years back, I had taken the same excursion with my now-six-year old son TJ.
This was not your local petting zoo. This was a real farm, people! Open for “educational” purposes.
The highlight for all the kids, of course, were the farm animals.
But, this mommy mostly recalled memories of tracking down read more…
No matter how traditional, sentimental or ordinary this Christmas may turn out to be, one thing’s for sure. Jesus stands apart from the tinsel to bring you a new message this year. Will you unwrap Him to find what it is?
A year ago, my son’s preschool put on a special Halloween concert for the parents. The kids dressed up in costume and sang an incredible number of songs that I never knew came with so many hand motions.
Before we started, the director offered an interesting comment in her welcome to the audience.
She said that despite what we think about Christmas, Halloween for kids is their favorite holiday of the year. read more…
I like to keep Christmas shopping simple. A Super Sale
at DaySpring caught my eye yesterday. I’d like to share it with you.
I like to keep my inbox free of advertisements. But, it’s also smart to take advantage of a good sale when you know there is shopping to be done. The mailing lists I opt-into is very short. DaySpring is one of them.
I’m not adventurous when it comes to home decor, but it’s easy when it’s Christmas. Christmas is my favorite time of the year.
When I was single, read more…
Thanksgiving Day is here… And my family and I will stay home this year, to nurse a yucky cold.
It’s one of those winter bugs that remind me of the turkey and gravy that goes around the table on Thanksgiving Day.
It gets passed around.
One way I enjoy a soul pick-me-up is writing letters of gratitude. How about you?
We all fall into these now and then.
Ditches.
Sure, it happens when we’re tired. Or too busy.
Some days, we simply wake up in the morning and we can find ourselves there.
I’m not talking about the holes in the ground, dug up by construction crews.
I’m talking about the snags we find ourselves tangled up, in everyday life. read more…
19 year-old "Butch" Gray battle-ready in Kon Tum, Vietnam (1968)
“Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle.” ~ Plato
Maybe it’s because I grew up in Silicon Valley surrounded by engineers. For whatever reason, I had never met a war veteran face to face. That is, until I met my future father-in-law, “Butch” James Gray.
I was nervous meeting him for the first time because I had only seen pictures of him in my boyfriend’s photo album. Butch proudly stood next to his pocket knife collection which was perfectly lined up in several glass displays. He wasn’t from Texas, but he didn’t seem like someone I wanted to mess with.
Sometimes we listen to the critical voices that keep us at bay. Is God calling you to step forward and say “yes” to Him?
A year ago, around this time, I was quick-sand sinking into battle.
Chin-dipping deep in war.
You’d think warfare happens when tragedy strikes or something awful ensues.
It hadn’t. read more…
A walk through the cornfield on a sun-kissed harvest day.
I’ve never picked corn before.
At the supermarket, sure.
But, I had never walked through a cornfield. Until a few weeks ago.
Sunday church was over and while milling around, a friend mentioned a nearby farm was putting on a Harvest Festival.
I knew the place would get crowded later in the afternoon, so I was anxious to get there before noon with Hubby and my two boys.
Problem was, I wore my heels that morning.
I wasn’t dressed for the occasion.
We had to drive home — in the opposite direction — so I could change into my mud-ready outdoor boots. read more…
A journal in my hand.
I’ve been writing here at Faith Barista, talking to you usually in the dark — in the morning before the birds start chirping, at night when the children are no longer up.
In the quiet, my fingers cradle a pen over a journal. I rest them over a keyboard to type my words out.
Writing is where I’ve always found freedom.
I find my voice.
I hear God’s.
And I am no longer alone.
It’s always been that way growing up as a little girl.
But, when I started this blog — writing in the open — things changed. read more…
A cloud floating in the wide sky that moved so beautifully slowly
When you encounter circumstances that find you delayed — even stranded in the unexpected — remember Jesus is with you in it. He can still use you. All the way.
It’s the last day of our 31-Day series and I am sitting on a plane that took off from Houston to make its way in the night to San Francisco.
I am seated between a man watching football and another flipping pages in his home improvement magazine. It has been a very long day. I have been on three flights at four different airports.
The first snow of the year fell beautifully yesterday in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, but good weather for airplanes — it does not make.
I walked through the body scan at security checkpoint and read more…
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