Valentine's Reflections, Now and Then

We made pink frosted sugar cookies this week for Valentine’s Day.  Mmmmmm…  Not only are they yummy and beautiful, but they bring back so many memories of years gone by.  My mom made these for us when we were growing up, and I love to make them each year now for my family. 

 

Big Helper

(who probably got more frosting in her tummy than on her cookies)

 

As I savored my scrumptious treat, licking the deliciously pink frosting, I realized that we have now celebrated Valentine’s Day here in Niger for 3 years.  Wow!  As I looked back over some of my pictures from the last several years, I could barely believe how much the children had grown from year to year, and how much had changed in just 4 years.  Our location, culture, climate, day-to-day life experiences...  We've been stretched and grown more than I could ever have imagined possible.  Join me for a quick walk down memory lane. 

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Four years ago at this time of year, Jonathan and I were preparing to move to Niger.  Isaiah was 2, and Anna was about 10 months old.  I enjoyed reading through this entry that I had posted on Valentine’s Day that year.  Here's a few pictures of the Wee Bitty Bowdens back then.

 

A proud little boy with his freshly made Valentine's Day box.

Anna enjoying a gift from Grammi...  Forget the crackers - paper tastes way better! 

 

Continuing on, as I looked through my pictures from 2011, I was surprised to see that I hadn’t taken any pictures on Valentine’s that year.  Then I remembered why.  We were still in the throws of learning Hausa, adjusting to a new culture and climate, setting up house, and Jonathan had just begun teaching his first course in the Discipleship Bible School the month before.  Even though we’d been in Niger for over 7 months, we were still in transition.  I did find some pictures of the children that I took within a few days of it, though.  Here they are: 

 

Miss Anna (19 months old) discovered a can of cocoa drink mix, and enjoyed as much as she possibly could before Mommy found her. 

Who can blame her, though?  What girl doesn't love chocolate?!

 

Daddy's Helper - Jonathan built many shelves to help me make our then bare-bones house more homey.  The children loved helping whenever they could.  Precious memories.

 

Thinking of last year, Valentine’s Day of 2012, brings back really special memories for me.  My closest childhood friend, Mary Anderson, came to visit us for 3 weeks.  I was 7 months pregnant with Grace, and had nary an ounce of energy for celebrating a holiday.  Mary made the day shine, though, doing crafts with the children, making cookies, bringing candy from the States, and babysitting the children so Jonathan and I could go out to dinner together that evening.  Thank you for the memories, Mary!  We were thinking of you this Valentine's Day!

 

Mary with Her Little Helpers

(one of whom, I'm pretty sure, was snitching in the flour)

 

This year, our 3^rd year in Niger, brings with it another special guest.  Becca Cavari has been with our family for 5 weeks, and will be spending a total of 3 months with us.  She came to Niger to serve the Lord by blessing our family in any way she could, and, wow, has she been a blessing! 

 

 

We are all enjoying Becca’s time with us.  She has such a sweet, joyful, helpful spirit, and has been an incredible help to me.  Since Jonathan has been away from home more than ever before assisting with church planting in a previously unreached village, as another year of Bible School begins, as we host teams and missionaries who are traveling through Maradi, and as I home school the children, Becca’s assistance and companionship have been an incredible blessing.  If you are friends with me on Facebook, you have Becca to thank for most of the fun family pictures that you are now seeing! 
Like this sweet one of me and my Valentine...

 

 

  While Becca baked our sugar cookies with Isaiah and Anna, I made the frosting, and then we all enjoyed eating those yummy bits of heaven, made with many treasured ingredients.  

 

Frosting time!

 

Check out the "this-looks-so-yummy" tongue.  Priceless!

 

I couldn't help but put up this picture from last year, because, as you can see, the "this-looks-so-yummy" tongue is ever present when making sugar cookies.

 

My mom, ever so thoughtfully, sent a Valentine’s Day package from the States with cards and gifts for all of us.  How fun! 

 

Daddy reads Anna's card from Grammi to her.

 

Even Baby Gracie had her own card.

 

My sweet, resourceful husband gave me this beautiful bouquet of flowers that he gathered from around our yard.  This is no small feat as Niger is hardly known for its flowers!  But Jonathan, knowing that I LOVE flowers, made me this bouquet of desert blooms. 

 

I am so blessed.

 

The last 4 years have been an incredible journey for us, and they are only the beginning of a longer, unfolding life-story.  If you look back, you will see the same beautiful hand of God working in your life.  I love seeing how the Lord takes the situations, circumstances, people, and events in our lives and shapes them into something bigger, something different, and something more beautiful than we could ever have imagined.  Think about baking a cookie, like our Valentine’s Day cookies, for example – so many ingredients go into them.  Some sweet, some bitter, some salty,
some blah, some savory, some ugly, some beautiful. 

 

 

It’s then all mixed, jumbled, molded, reshaped, and lastly, put into the heat of the oven.  It comes out something new!  Our lives are often like this.  The Lord takes everything, working it together, the good, the bad, the ugly, the beautiful, and makes something from seemingly nothing.  He adds His beauty, His love, and His grace.  Is there anything more beautiful than a life that has been carefully shaped by the hands of a loving Heavenly Father?  
 I don't think there is.      

 

 

 This week, before bedtime, the children were talking about heaven.  Isaiah said, slowly and thoughtfully, "I'm thankful that Jesus has bigger hands than us, and can hold us."  Anna piped up a minute later, adding, "And I think when we go to heaven,

we might find out just how big His hands are!"

 

What a delightful thought.  One day, we'll be able to stand in eternity and see just how big those hands are, and just how many times they were holding us.  Even though you may not be able to see what He is making yet in your life, my prayer is that you would be able to feel the tenderness and love with which the hands of Jesus are taking all of the "ingredients" in your life and forming, working, shaping, creating - something beautiful.

 

Happy Valentine's Day. 

Let your heart rest safely in the hands of Jesus.    

 

 

Happy Valentine's Day!

My mom has a gift for making special occasions SPECIAL! I have so many memories of anticipating birthdays and holidays! Each one had fun traditions, projects, and yummy treats that made it unique and memorable. Every year as Valentine's Day rolls around, I get a hankering to make our special project, a Valentine's Day Box!

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I felt especially zealous this year, and, realizing that Isaiah is getting old enough to appreciate crafts and special traditions (not to mention he loves quality time with Mommy), I decided that this was the year to make a Valentine's Day Box once again.

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I want to take a brief minute before sharing our fun time to say THANK YOU to my mom. You are an incredible woman! The more I grow up, the more I realize how much you invested into us. Thank you for every day that you made SPECIAL!

Our 7 Steps to Making a Valentine's Day Box

Step 1: Gather the goods (anything will do - it's a great way to use odds and ends!)

Isaiah is ready to go! Anything that involves wrapping paper has GOT to be fun!

Step 2: Pick a box! (any size or shape will do)
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Step 3: Cut a hole in the top or side of the box. (big enough for cards and goodies to slide through - I cheated and used a tissue box!)
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Step 4: Wrap box, then carefully cut through the paper to expose the opening.

Whew! We got it wrapped, a feat in and of itself! Mommy's getting a little tired at this point. I didn't anticipate having to teach Isaiah that this was not a present to OPEN! He must be thinking, "Grown-ups are so confusing! They spent all of Christmas teaching me to tear presents open, and now Mommy says this one has to STAY WRAPPED? What's the fun in that?"

Step 5: Decorate, decorate, decorate! (crazy or elegant - whatever suits your fancy!)

A little glue, a little glitter, several cotton balls, stickers, doilies, bows, and ribbons later, here we are!

Isaiah's box

Step 6: Fill with cards and goodies!

One proud little boy!

Step 7: Enjoy!

Anna's gift from Grammi Dawn. Forget the crackers...paper tastes way better!

With me in my shoes...

Sometimes you can tell what season you're in by what you find in your shoes when you put them on! I'm not in Niger yet (that's coming very soon), so I don't have to worry about scorpions, but yesterday, I put my slippers on and found that my foot was not alone! I was sharing it with Mr. Potato Head's tongue. Sigh... So, yes, I am in a young mommy season! Another indication of this is that I have difficulty remembering dates, times, what project I just started, and what I came into a particular room for, but I always know:

1. where Monkey is,
2. where Anna's pacifier is,
3. where Isaiah's cup is, and
4. where Isaiah's stool is

(yes, the stool that he uses to get into all kinds of things, and the very same stool that keeps Mommy and Daddy up to date with fresh shin-bruises).

Just now, Isaiah is pounding away on his "drums" (a compilation of tin cans and plastic containers), and singing at the top of his lungs his own remix of "Joy to the World" and "Deep & Wide". I have to smile, and my mommy heart overflows...

Ever Growing...

I can't believe it's already been a month since I posted a new entry! Where is the time going? It's speeding along like freight train, but goes silently instead, never making a sound. Suddenly one day you stop to think about it and realize, WOW, it's been over a month!

Jonathan and I have been very busy. This is a season of great adventure and great stretching, all at once! We've had such joy visiting new churches, reuniting with old friends, and making new ones!

Isaiah is talking in whole sentences. He is a chatty little fellow, who is currently "taking a nap." I'm hearing a lot of gabbing going on, though. He's saying Oh, no! A BIG ball! (or bug, I'm not sure which - should I be worried?) Laughs to himself. Oh, boy! It's high! Now I hear the sounds of little feet jumping on the bed... Hmmm...

Anna is rolling over like a pro. She's only still when she's in a deep sleep! Since she'd rather be on the go, I've taken to putting her in a jumper (Isaiah calls it da baby swim) or a walker (da baby's car).

Now I'm hearing Mee (Monkey) ahs a boo-boo! Ah, no! On da nose! Yep! Mee (Monkey) tired! Yep! Someday, I'll have to post an entry specifically titled The Adventures of Monkey. That little fellow leads one incredibly exciting life!

Please pray for us when we come to mind! We continue to need strength, endurance, and grace. We couldn't do this without your love and support, and we are so grateful for you!

THANK YOU!!!

New Seasons!

Anna, three months old...

I remember back before Anna was born... I worried about how Isaiah would handle having a sibling. Would he feel left out? Having two children was untrodden territory for me. How could I possibly know what it would be like? I could only imagine!

Now that I have passed over the threshold from one season into the next, I would never trade the past for the present! I love having two children! Isaiah loves having a sister, and is much better off for it, too! I cannot imagine my life without our precious Anna!

Hugs and Kisses

All the time!

As Jonathan and I begin the itineration process, we sometimes feel the same way about leaving our present season for the next. What will Niger hold? We'll be leaving our family and friends, the comforts of home... Whenever I start to worry or wonder, I have an overwhelming sense of God's love and presence flood through my spirit. I think that, like when Anna was born, we will find that the next season will be perfectly tailored for us! Yes, there will be many difficult times, but the Lord has things for us to learn in it.

Isaiah loves his new-sister-season.

I think we will love our new season, too.