february blogging

quick blog update before jane wakes up from her nap (which could be at any moment.) i only blogged once in january and i want to write about things more often - at least to share them with you.

i like the month of february. it is shorter, usually we get some snow, and it has valentine's day. with the month being shorter (though by a few days) i feel like more can be accomplished. this might come from being a teacher because february was an in-between month. the students were back from Christmas break long enough and the end of the quarter/spring fever blues hadn't hit yet. i taught so much in february; it was like my A game month when other teachers dread it for some reason (i was that way with march - not enough breaks and spring comes back.)

anyway, i am not a fan of super cold temps but i do like to watch the snow come down. i hope it snows soon or spring really does come early this year (thanks little groundhog.) valentine's day is not a crazy big holiday but i feel like it is a "girly" holiday and i celebrate on my own for about 2 weeks. i seem to dress up more, paint my nails, jane and i have socks with hearts... things like that. when jane is older i am going to enjoy making cards with her for our friends and family. i would also like a date night out of the whole thing (hint, hint) but i'll talk with pete about that soon :)

spiritually, february is usually a down month for me. i think because january usually is still going strong from my "new years" high. this year is different because i slacked off quite a bit the last weeks of january so i am in need of more depth in february. i hope to read and study more of acts to coincide with the sermons and go back to previous chapters to study them again. i hope your month can be spiritually uplifting and you will leave february stronger than you came in. well, jane is still not awake, woohoo! i bid you good bye, until my next post. i'll put up some fun videos of jane's craziness lately.

jane's first sledding adventure

tom and anne bought a sled for jane (complete with "seatbelt") and we tried it out the other night. jane had a great time being pulled around and going down the hill papa tom made for her. the video is short but you get the idea.

symbolic "last post" of 2010

here we are, the last day of the year. i feel like this year and mostly december was filled with things i was meant to do or wanted to do and did not make time to do them. blogging was one of them. i had a wonderful year, filled with many good memories and goals met, but things went so quickly that being intentional was difficult. i am going to spend 2011 being more intentional - in everything - and hopefully you can notice that change in my life. so here's to the year twenty.ten and all God has done!

posts i meant to have in december: "jane is 18months old" "Christmas time" and "jane's first ski trip" so here are a few pictures to hold you over until i get back to being intentional with this blog

my "big girl" posing by the fireplace

family photo at the Christmas eve service

jane and i both received a new pair of toms shoes for Christmas. i love them. hers are a size too big still but i can't wait for them to fit better (they fall off a lot now) thanks grandma and grandpa massie!

jane and her dad on jane's first ski day at 18 months old! we borrowed skis from the foggs and off she went. she really enjoyed being pushed fast by dad

big jane on the skis. i'm sure the boots were way too big but she only needs to stand up so they served their purpose.

one of my readings from "december of proverbs 2010" was this: "Every word of God proves true; he is a shield to those who take refuge in him." proverbs 30.5

happy birthday!

i like to think of Christmas as Jesus' birthday because it reminds me to "give" a gift to Him as i do for others on Christmas and their birthdays. i think this started in high school youth group with terry m as my youth pastor. he encouraged us to think of something only we can give over or give up to Jesus and start doing that on Christmas.

some years have been more intentional than others; to be honest, i totally forgot about it this year until about two days ago. i think about what in my life could be better for God or change and work that into a "gift." last year, - i have forgotten. perhaps i wrote it down somewhere but the memory is meshed with my new year's resolutions so i can't keep them straight. i'll have to look back in my journal or blog to figure it out.

this year, i am giving Jesus more of my time each day. for the past three weeks i have made a list on sunday or monday of all the things i need to accomplish that week or appointments - even the fun type. sadly, i have left off "time in prayer or Bible reading" i am still reading proverbs for december but i am two days behind. i need to have quality time just praying and sharing my life with God and right now i am terrible in that area. so i am going to physically write it on my list and make a better habit of reading my Bible and sharing with others what i am learning. hopefully by doing that, it will transfer into my life through a better attitude about everything, more thoughts about God that i share with jane, and an overall better amy. hopefully you can keep me to it, in a kind way.

Merry Christmas!

november, done

i finished all my snippets for november month of thankfulness. though i will not be writing a snippet every single day any more i do want to continue the thankful attitude and positive thinking. being thankful and actually thinking about it and telling others about what i am thankful for has helped my attitude and outlook on who i am and what i am doing with my life. it is so easy to get discouraged, especially when it's just me and little jane most days (a lot of time to be with my thoughts) but i can't let that happen because that's not the person God wants me to be. so if you find yourself discouraged during these cold winter months, i encourage you to reflect on how blessed you are and how great our God is!