In Loving Memory-My Gramps

My grandpa passed away a week ago...He was 91 years old, a WW2 veteran, a loving and caring husband, father, grandfather, and greatgrandfather, and a selfless, godly, man.  As much as I knew this day was coming and I know he lived a good, long life, it still hurts and I will miss him greatly.  I am posting below what I read at his funeral.  He wanted each of his grandchildren to say something because we were everything to him.
There is no perfect way of describing my grandpa or adequately explaining how much he means to me.  I am fortunate to be his only granddaughter and he always let me know how special I was by telling me I was his "favorite" granddaughter and I would reply I am your only granddaughter, the he would say I would still be his favorite!  :)  We were blessed growing up to be able to spend a lot of time with him.  As most of you know, his wife, Shirley, passed away at a young age.  28 years ago to be exact, and Grandpa really turned his attention on us.  My mom also got sick around this time and my grandpa was called upon to help out quite a bit.  That was the best thing about Gramps.  He was always willing to help and wanted to do everything he could for us.  If we ever needed a ride somewhere, we could call Gramps.  If we didn't want to eat what Mom made for dinner, he would make us something else (or take us to McDonalds).  If we wanted to go to the pool or the park, he would take us.  The list could go on and on.  He not only showed his love for us with his actions, but also with words.  He was constantly telling us how proud he was of us and how we were the "best" at everything, even when we weren't.  Besides loving us with actions and words, he loved us with gifts.  He loved Christmas time and birthdays so he could watch us open our presents.  One very special gift he gave to me was a blue stuffed bunny.  It may not sound like much, but usually he gave money to my mom and my mom would pick out the presents.  But one Christmas, he knew how much I loved bunnies and he went to the store and picked it out himself.  He was so proud to give it to me.  I still have it to this day.  Finally, he also loved us by spending quality time with us.  He would take us to the river to feed the ducks, and have us over for sleepovers (where I would have to watch MASH-dumb show), and would come to all our practices and games.  He was just always there, loving us as best he could. 
I could go on and on about what a great grandpa he was  but I want to end with the best gift he left behind.  That is he is a believer in Jesus Christ and is in heaven right now.  I know I will see him again in heaven and like my little brother said these are not just comforting words I am saying to myself to make myself feel better-it is really true!  My grandpa and I share the faith that Jesus came, lived, died for our sins, and rose again, and because he did this, we can have everlasting life.  This is the best give he could of given us and I look forward to our reunion in heaven.

Blessings

As I sit here tonight and think about how my daughter is 3 months old today, a lot goes through my mind.  I think about how the last three months have been tough and I have been more exhausted than I ever thought I could be.  I think about how crazy it is to have a 2 year old and a newborn.  I think about how I have felt sorry for myself that I am not getting enough sleep, enough time to relax, or enough "me" time. Don't get me wrong, I love being a mom, it is the greatest job/role/gift in the world, but it is tough!   Then I realize how selfish and horrible all my thought sounds... God has given me two beautiful children.  So many people can't have children or want to have children but haven't found the right person yet, or there are single men or woman out there that are raising children alone, and the list could go on, and I am having a pity party.  I have a wonderful husband who is an amazing father, and healthy, growing, children.  
When we were trying to have our first child, it took us a year, and that was a painful experience to go through, to have that hope each month, and be disappointed.  But God came through and it brought me closer to Him than ever before.  Then, right after our son turned 1 year old, we found out we were pregnant with our daughter.  This was a complete surprise and one that we weren't "planning" on and we were upset at first!  Yes, I will admit that...  We didn't feel like we were ready for another child and we couldn't understand what God was doing.  But 9 months of pregnancy and 3 months of having our precious baby girl, we know exactly what God was doing: blessing us!  I don't deserve my children, but God has blessed me with them anyways and I thank Him for it.  They continually stretch me to be a better person, to lean on God more, and to realize that my life isn't about me.  God didn't send his Son to BE SERVED, but TO SERVE.  And as a Christian, I am called to be like Jesus, which means to serve, and to serve with a glad heart.  Thank God for the last three months of Alea being added to our family.  I can't wait to see what God blesses us with next!  He is good!

1st Blog Ever!

I decided to start this blog because I feel like life moves so fast.  I want to document all the lessons I am learning, things that are happening in my life and my families' lives, and how I am really working on truly loving as God wants us to love.  Hence the name of my blog: Love, Life, and Lessons!  I hope that you will enjoy catching up on us and learn right along with us.  So I will just dive right in...
This past weekend we spent time at my husband's farm for my sister in law's baby shower.  She and her husband are expecting their first child: a little boy in April.  We are so excited for them and know they are going to be terrific parents. (even though they are really nervous!) :)  It was a great shower and a good ride home to Ankeny until our son Evan puked all over himself and his car seat.  As we darted off the interstate to a rest area, we were trying to figure out what caused this.  We finally determined the ice cream he had was egg infested!  Meaning it was made with egg yolk, which is fine and normal, but not good for a boy with an egg allergy.  Poor thing!  I checked every label of every food at this party except for that one!  He ended up fine and was actually quite the trooper. 
My husband works today, which most of you know, means he is gone for 24 hours.  So I did a lot of playing and a lot of cleaning up today, and look forward to him getting home tomorrow morning.  The Super Bowl just ended and my dad is a Packers fan, so he is a happy camper right now.  I don't care too much about football, especially NFL football, but I did notice something at the end of the game.  The players jump up and down, but most of their faces don't look truly happy.  Their faces more look like: ok, now what? This makes me think about eternity: meaning these players are happy they won the game, but they know that in the end it really doesn't mean anything.  When we meet the one and only true God, I can guarantee He is not going to mention any Super Bowl game.  Not by any means am I saying I am perfect in only caring about things that are going to matter to God in the end, but seeing this makes me want to try to really focus on what is important.  And that is loving God, loving others, and being a servant and a light to all around us in His name.  
That's all for today!  Need to put laundry away, feed my baby girl, and go to bed!