Taming the Tongue

I generally don't think of myself as a gossiper. Who does? But several weeks ago, my husband was confessing a specific incident where he thought he had painted someone in a bad light by a comment that he made about them. He shared that he thought that this was gossip and that he needed to follow up with appropriate individuals out of repentance, and be more careful only to speak words that build up. Mind you, I didn't even think that the incident he was referring to was gossip; it seemed to me that he was only re-telling about something that happened. The Lord convicted me though, that gossip is just what Josh had said-something that has the potential to "paint someone in a bad light."...

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Quick Life Update

This is probably not the best time to blog given that I've got water on the stove attempting to boil, a daughter who is nearing the stairs, and only a couple of minutes to spare. But I haven't updated in forever and I figure that if I don't update more regularly no one will read so....Really quickly:*Thank you for your prayers for my retreat! The Lord met me and I was refreshed in my soul as well as encouraged for this next season.*Thank you for your prayers for Tali. We found out that she has a sinus infection & she is not feeling well but is hopefully on the road to recovery.* I am storing up about a million posts in my head and I hope that at some point soon I'll have time to type them...

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Retreat Day!

Today I am off for a much anticipated retreat. I would love your prayers for the following:1) That I would have fresh affection for the Savior and His work on the cross for me.2) That I would be filled with wisdom from the Lord to evaluate the specific priorities of my devotional life, my marriage, parenting, and managing the home.3) That God would show me practical ways to pursue growth in each of the above areas, particularly as it pertains to this next season with a new baby.4) For energy & focus, as I am lacking in both these days!5) For Tali: she's got a horrible cold that may be turning into something worse.6) For the Trainor family: they all have a terrible stomach flu. (Yuck.)Thank...

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Brush Those Teeth!

Tali signing "toothbrush."Isn't she just so stinkin' cute???p.s.-She hasn't had any tremors in the past 2 days so I ended up canceling her appointment. I think it's pretty likely that they are just big "shivers" from her getting cold. She has really horrible circulation (she wears 2 long sleeve onesies and a sweater most days but her hands and cheeks are still icy). Anyway, thank you for your prayers. We are gratef...

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One Year Stats

Miss Talitha showing off her new gloves & hat (that Mommy accidentally put on backwards!) We took Little Missy in on Monday for her one year check up. She is a healthy, growing girl and aside from screaming and crying all throughout the visit, things went well. :) Below are some things that we learned about her current stats and other fun Tali facts.Weight: just under 22 lbs (a little above 50th percentile)Height: 29 inches (we think...we forgot to write it down)Words: Ma Ma, Da Da, MahMa (Grandma), Bay-buh (baby), aye (hi), bye, wawa (water), bah (bottle), baa (bath), buh (brother), Puh (Pops), mayyy (mail)Signs: Daddy, Mommy, Grandma, Grandpa, Baby, ball, eat, more, please, thank...

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The Lord Establishes Our Steps

"The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps." Proverbs 16:9Well, a slight change of plans. Lord willing, I will be taking the retreat at some point before the baby is born but today is not the day. I am content in knowing that we can plan all that we want but ultimately it is the Lord who establishes our steps. When it's re-scheduled I'll be sure to ask for prayer again.p.s.-So far Tali hasn't had any tremors in her chin. Thank you for the praye...

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Prayer Requests

Tomorrow I'm taking a personal retreat to spend time being refreshed in God's Word and to evaluate the different priorities that God has given me for this season of my life & the season when the baby is here. I would love your prayers! Would you pray for the following:1) That I would have fresh affection for the Savior and His work on the cross for me.2) That I would be filled with wisdom from the Lord to evaluate the specific priorities of my devotional life, my marriage, parenting, and managing the home.3) That God would show me practical ways to pursue that growth in each of the areas I'm seeking to evaluate.Thank you so much! Also, on another note, I would love prayers for Tali....

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Worshiping Him Alone

We talk a lot around Sovereign Grace Ministries about loving the Gospel (Christ's dying work on the cross on our behalf) above all else. We want to bow our hearts to Jesus alone. As David Powlison puts it (and this is a paraphrase), we all worshipers and we all worship something. If we're not worshiping Jesus, then what are we actively worshiping? What is ruling our hearts, what are we bowing down to at any given moment in the day? If we're not bowing to Jesus, then we're worshiping an idol, a false god that will not satisfy.My idol of choice tends to be love of ease. I want things to be easy. I want life to be a resort. Essentially, I want every day to be like my beautiful honeymoon...

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Thank you, Pops & Grammy!

Dear Pops & Grammy, I love the pretty birthday flowers that you sent me. I am having so much fun sniffing at them and playing with them. They are so bright and beautiful. Thank you for loving me and blessing me on my birthday! Love, T...

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He Is Always At Work

Once the baby is born, my time in God's Word will be shortened for a while and I want to seize the opportunity that I have now to dig a little deeper into scripture. This morning, I was debating what to start studying and the Lord brought to my mind a great resource that I was given on Esther. I am always struggling to trust that God's sovereign plan is actually a good one (especially when what He's doing doesn't make sense to me or I can't see His hand at work) so I know that the book of Esther will be instructive for me.Today, I read the following in Iain Duguid's commentary on Esther & Ruth:"...we may well have no idea what God is doing. He may seem hidden and remote, refusing to answer...

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Happy Birthday, Tali!

Enjoying her first sugar rush everYesterday was our sweet girl's first birthday. It is hard to describe the varied emotions and range of thoughts that Josh & I experienced as we celebrated our daughter turning one. There has just been so many changes in her over the course of year! The time has gone so quickly and each month has been filled with more fun and more gratitude towards God for the gift of our baby girl. We never deserve any of God's blessings but I feel even more undeserving when I consider the blessing of Tali. She is just such a gift to us! When I look at her, I am reminded of God's undeserved kindness on our lives. Not only did God choose to save us from His wrath by...

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Little Pumpkin

A couple of Mondays ago, Josh & I took Tali to a very small (and I mean small!) pumpkin patch. She adores anything that she can stand up against so she loved the pumpkins. She especially enjoyed trying to eat the small gourds. :) Unfortunately, it started to rain not long after we arrived, but we were able to snap some pretty cute pictures before that happened (but no pics of the gourd eating).Have a wonderful weeke...

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