Counting Our Blessings

Tonight as I was catching up on the latest MckMama update about baby Stellan (click here to check out his story), I couldn't help but stop and think about how incredibly blessed we are. We have more blessings than we could count and are so thankful for:

Jesus. Each other. Resolute commitment to our marriage vows. Our Little Miss (a major bundle of blessings in and of herself!). Extended family and close friends. Strong faith. Food-o-plenty. A comfy home. Warm clothes and a larger-than-life bed. The extra security of two jobs and two incomes. Good health (excluding the current cold infecting our house but that's a temporary infliction). Lot's of love. True joy. Regular occurrences of laughter (The list could go on and on)...

Even in the midst of trials, Jesus is our provider. Regardless of the state of the economy or the GM Corporation, regardless of personal struggles or health dilemmas, whether we can walk...or talk...there is hope in Christ.

Jesus is faithful. He is good. He is our Savior.

Does Jesus listen to our prayers?! Always. Does He answer them as we expect?! Seldom. Does He always answer in a way that's the best for us in the long-run? Eventually. Does Jesus love us through it all? Absolutely!

We are thankful for His grace.

"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life." (John 3:16).

Very Important Visitors

Our apologies Dear Readers for the long hiatus. We've been out and about and have been busy with things other than the www. We were blessed this past week to have Mr. Wagner's parents visiting. Our Little Miss had a grand time with her Gr'ma and Gr'pa Wagner. We had fun taking them to the coast and then later to the mountains and central part of our state.

Gr'ma is our girl's new BFF. They played...and played...and played. Little Miss loved all of the one-on-one attention and her playmate's willingness to do pretty much whatever she asked. Mr. Wagner and I both agreed that we'd have to step it up a notch so as to not thoroughly disappoint the Little Miss now that her BFF is miles away. No matter what we do though, I'm sure our creative talent, imagination, and patience threshold are no match.

Gr'pa Wagner was also a hit (after he fed the Little Miss some ice cream!). Mr. Wagner took the more "senior" Mr. snowmobiling one day where they were able to enjoy God's creation at it's finest (Not to mention the extra fast, mechanical man-made creations they were riding). Gr'pa Wagner said he felt years younger after that adrenaline rush (until the next day at least!). Thanks go out to my bro and SIL for playing tour guides.

We are already looking forward to our next visit with Gr'pa and Gr'ma. Our girl will be talking of the experiences (and sharing all of the new songs and rhymes that she learned) for months to come!

Mr. Responsible

The Wagners had a fun weekend...actually, to be more specific...the Wagner girls had a fun weekend. The Little Miss and I left for the "city" Friday afternoon and had a nice getaway with a girlfriend of mine from high school and her 8 month-old daughter. We ate, shopped, ate some more, shopped some more and talked the night away (after the young 'uns went down). We were only gone one night but while we were away, Mr. Wagner had a blast balancing the checkbook, washing the truck and working extra hours. Hmmm...does that mean he's the responsible one in the family? I sure am thankful for his hard work while we played!

Thankfully, all of the Wagners are looking forward to having a lot of fun soon. Mr. Wagner's parents are flying out from the Midwest for a week-long visit and we can't wait! Now, if only the weather will cooperate...

Family Fun

My birthday wish this year was to have a fun family outing. We started the day off right with a latte from Starbucks (for me) and delicious bagels from our local bagel shop. Next, we headed to the PDX area to take our Little Miss to The Children's Museum. She was ecstatic from the moment we entered the doors. Her parents on the other hand were slightly over-whelmed by how (crazy!) busy it was and decided that we'll aim for a weekday the next time we visit. Regardless of the zillions of little people and parents trying to keep track of them, it was worth the trip.

Our next stop consisted of lunch at The Cheesecake Factory (they serve a favorite of mine, Thai Salad Lettuce Wraps). I then took the opportunity to do a little shopping while at the mall, knowing the "can't say no because it's your birthday" advantage would quickly be gone (thus, the next time I'd be able to coerce Mr. Wagner to join in a shopping trip would be a year away). Thanks for being patient Honey!

We headed home after that and my BEST birthday present was yet to come. Our girl successfully stayed dry all day and willingly "went" in public restrooms while we were in PDX. When we got home, she "presented" me with a Big Movement in the potty! That alone made my day (when you get to be my age, you're easy to please)!

P.S. I promise, Dear Readers, to now officially "retire" from potty training posts. We'll "move" on...

A Good Read

I just finished reading Frank Peretti's novel "Monster" and would highly recommend it. I've always enjoyed Peretti's books and this one certainly kept me on the edge of my seat. If you're looking for a good read and haven't already checked this out, try it. I think you'll like it.

Mission(s) Accomplished

We'd been expecting to be out of town this weekend but our plans changed and we took the opportunity to catch up at home. I have been wanting to paint two accent walls in our living area for quite some time. Mr. Wagner is not a fan of painting so I wasn't expecting his buy-in or help. I learned however that my Honey won't say "no" to even his least favorite of activities if I use the "it's almost my birthday" comment in a sweet yet ever-so-slightly "I-dare-you-to-say-no" guilt-laden tone. Plus, Mr. Wagner knew that his Mrs. was on the verge of a potty training breakdown so he (reluctantly) agreed.

As you can see, the painting mission was accomplished. Mr. Wagner sure did win points with me this weekend. He didn't even complain (too much) as we were painting side-by-side. Oh how I do love that man!

It's hard to tell from the picture but the color is Mocha (it's really called "Neutral Brown" but how boring is that? I'm taking the liberty of renaming it for Ralph Lauren). We're just showing a snippet so you'll have to come for a visit if you want to see how it really looks.

As for our other very important mission this weekend, we are happy to report that the potty training is starting to "click". Our Little Miss made great strides the past couple of days and Mommy is no longer on the verge of a melt-down. Can you say Praise the Lord?! Mission (almost) accomplished...now we just need to get the BM's down (Can't figure out what that means? Try a medical dictionary).