Open Mic Night!

Something we love to do as a family is ACT SILLY! Last night, the family gathered in the play room for dancing, jumping, singing, tickling, and lots of LOUDNESS!

Here are some pictures of the kids taking the stage!

That's my girls!!!

Heaven: Through the imagination of a child.

This morning I thought I would give you a glimpse of Heaven through my child's imagination.

Here is her mansion in heaven! She loved this craft (with some glitter control help from mommy)! And she had true excitement about one day getting to be with Jesus in Heaven! I just love it!

My artistic niece also participated in this craft. I must say that I adore the fact that she has a "Jesus" sign posted at this mansion (it's Jesus' mansion)!

The idea for our craft came from our morning devotional. Each day before school starts, we take some time out to spend time in prayer and getting our hearts prepared for our day. Here comes my plug for a great Bible for kids...

My First Message

by Eugene H. Peterson

Each Bible story is written on a child's level of understanding. Also, a few questions are printed throughout the story. At the end of each section, there is a portion that leads you to Pray with your child and an idea to Live it out. This is where we were given the idea to draw what we thought Heaven might be like! Great Book!

Thought you might enjoy a light hearted post this morning! With our economy in such a critical place, and our nation under such stress, let's think of something today that brings us joy...why not start with HEAVEN!

Girl Time!

My oldest, Annalise loves a pedicure! She has been asking for weeks now for mommy to give her a pedicure. So, this weekend, while daddy was still in bed (recovering from his week in NY), we gathered our nail stuff and headed to the living room for a foot make-over!

This was Allison's very first pedicure!

Annalise loves for me to file her feet!

Annalise really likes to do mommy's feet also. So, I let the girls file away! Annalise soaked my feet, massaged them, and then filed all that yucky dead skin away!

The finished product! No, Annalise didn't paint my toes! I'm not quite ready for that yet!

I just love having girls!!!

A Peanut for my Peanut!

A friend of mine found this costume on Walmart's website. She said she immediately thought of Allison! Watcha think? Will a 19 month old wear this in Orlando? Will MY 19th month old wear this period? It's about $13.00 plus shipping. Is it worth trying, even if it is a disaster?

Wouldn't Peanut be SO cute?

The Anxiety Update

It has been well over a week or so since I have had an "episode." Praise the Lord! Now, if you read my previous two posts, you might have an idea about the process I have been through. Since I posted about my sickness, I have ran through a gammot of emotions. Initially, I was going full force to try and diagnose myself. I prayed a lot! But, most of my praying and work was about me finding out what was causing the pain and then doing the work to fix it. My ultimate goal was to feel better. So, I can tell you that, even though I felt my relationship with the Lord was growing stronger each day, changes in my thought patterns were happening, but, my symptoms of pain also grew stronger and stronger. I didn't quite get it! I fell apart one night and wanted to know WHY I was having to go through such pain. I had worked so hard! Well, the Lord answered me. He said, I have chosen to have you go through this for now. I'm not taking it away at this time. I want you to praise me anyway. Stay close. Trust me. So, that is where I am right now...trusting and praising. Since I have made that choice, the Lord has actually given me several days with no major physical pain. But I will stay humble and willing to let the Lord take me to pain again if it is for His glory. I know that things can change any moment and the pain can come back. I pray that I will remain in Him no matter the cost.

Blessings,

Jaime

"the office" Premier Party!!!

Are you tuning in to NBC at 9:00 tonight?

I have been looking forward to this day for months!

The only rule: You must bring an item in Jello!

Push Pins and Pencils!

"the office" Premier Reminder!

Keyboard keys: "PARTY!"

Erasers!

Okay...it's 9:00...gotta go!!! Let the show begin!

Defeated?

Have you ever felt like you have worked so hard to only feel continually defeated? I have. And I've gotten down right mad about it. Just a little over a week ago I was DONE! I was tired of the work. I broke down, cried, and beat my pillow for a little while. But, it didn't last long. Jarrett was with me, he even did a great job of having sympathy for me. He was so sweet. He wanted me to feel better. But, even through the self pity, God shook me. He said, "that's enough!" I felt Him telling me that it's never time to give up. All the work I had been doing was not for ME. It was not to achieve the goal of feeling better. In fact, the Lord spoke to me and told me that I may always struggle with my physical pain. He may have me endure this pain forever. And guess what...I'm supposed to Praise the Lord for it! I didn't understand at first, but, the more I praise Him in the storm (good song by the way), the more I fall in love with Jesus! Yep! It's been quite the journey these last few weeks. I know that my goal is to serve the Lord always. I thank Him for His incredible power and ability to heal. But I also must thank him for his discernment in choosing to heal or NOT to heal. That's right. He knows more than me. And I want my ultimate goal be to love and praise the Lord for His Majesty no matter how I "feel!" It hasn't been easy. And Satan will take advantage when I am weak to fight and make me believe that I should just give up. But my strength is in the Lord. I'm asking the Lord daily to help me have the endurance and strength to make it through every storm.

So whatever your storm is, children, marriage, physical pain, sickness, etc....know that He has got a plan. The fire we walk through is only to strengthen us. He may choose to save us from the fire, stand in the fire, or even die in the fire. It is all for his Glory! I don't always like it. But today is a good day and I praise Him for it!

Blessings, 

Jaime

Thy will be done...

Prayer is an amazing, amazing, amazing privilege and experience! I love REAL conversations with the Father of Life. An intense personal relationship with Jesus can be founded and strengthened by prayer. Reading the Bible, serving others, and good deeds are all great things but not what I believe are the most essential elements to becoming closer to really KNOWING the Father. Prayer, for me, has created such an incredible bond between me and my savior.

My prayers have evolved quite a bit over the last few weeks. Without major reconstruction detail, I can tell you that my prayers are much more focused on His Will than mine. I am continuously urging the Father to teach me how to be at peace among the storms raging in my life. I know that my current "life happenings," rather good nor bad, have been moments that the Father has given to me to become who he has created me to be. I can say that I have often thought I would be happy if my requests were met. If I got my way, I would miss all of the incredible molding that the Potter needs me to undergo to be prepared for the future.

So, when I pray, remembering that the scripture tells us in John 15 (my favorite daily reading), that we must remain in Him and bear fruit. Then the Father will give us whatever we ask in His name. So, what does this mean? Well, for one, it means my requests change. We don't ask for things for selfish gain. All I should ask for is for His will to be done. And second, if we are walking with the Father, the desires of our heart automatically change. We don't even have to try and figure our what to ask for. It becomes natural to ask things only in His name.

My current prayer -

"Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done." Luke 22:42

And recently, this prayer has radically energized my life!

Blessings,

Jaime

N.Y.C. Birthday Adventure!

So, tonight was my choice of fun in NY for my birthday. And since I have been kind of "out of my shell" all weekend, I decided that, despite my extreme fear of heights and previous refusals, I picked to travel to the top of the Empire State Building!

And here we are! Unafraid! It was beautiful!

We arrived to the top at around 7PM. Perfect timing for the sunset!

But, when we turned the corner to the other side of the observation deck, the view was much different.

Lucky for all of you, my adventure of NYC is over and I will have to come up with other post ideas! Goodnite! It's time to get some sleep for my flight out in the morning! I'm ready to see my two little princesses!

N.Y.C. Day# 3

Today was our last day with Matt and Ami. So, we needed to start eating early!

This is our first food stop (at 10:30AM) for Gyros! They were quite messy and ended up all over my jeans. The guys aren't quite as adventurous with their eating. So they opted for another Hot Dog! And before they left this afternoon, we stopped for a slice of NY pizza! I hope all this walking has paid off!

Next stop...the famous F.A.O. Schwarz Toy Store!

We even got to take our socks off and play on the BIG piano! Ami was pretty impressed that I could play "Mary Had a Little Lamb" with my feet!

To end our time together, we headed for a stroll in Central Park. We found a nice young couple that didn't look like they would run off with our camera. So, we posed for our only group shot. And here it is...

Awwww! So Sweet!

So, now I am sitting in the hotel room for a short rest. Matt and Ami are on a train to Pennsylvania. Jarrett is at work for a few hours. And I get to pick out a birthday adventure for the night. Jarrett won't be able to be with me on Tuesday for my birthday, so I get to experience it with him a few days early in New York City! I just don't know if I have the energy to walk anymore. We may just order in some Chinese! We'll see!

N.Y.C. Day#2

Last night I was so tired that I just couldn't bring myself to blog.

New York is a city that requires a LOT of walking! And that took quite the toll on me.

So, yesterday started off with hitting the NY Subway for the first time. That was quite the experience for a first timer all by herself. I was on my way to Penn Station to pick up my sister and brother-n-law. Matt (brother-n-law) had to be the lone man with two crazy sisters! Jarrett wouldn't join us until later that evening. Stinky Work!

Yep, that is me. And nope, that is not my sister. Ami, like most girls, don't particularly like to have pictures posted of themselves that haven't been thoroughly examined. So, I had to be quite selective and post a few (your welcome Ami)!

Below is a picture of some kind of fair/festival in "Little Italy." It was quite crowded!

Here would be a yummy picture of my spinach ravioli with all kinds of fancy cheeses that I forgot. It was very tasty!

We stopped by the World Trade Center site to see the progress on the new Twin Towers. It is expected to be completed in only 4 years.

Another view of the construction and huge pictures of the new World Trade Center.

Several memorial items were on display at the site. As we walked through, memories of that horrific day flooded my mind. I got chills as I read names and saw pictures of NYPD officers and Firefighters that were killed that day.

"May We Never Forget"

Next stop (of many) was our first New York stand hot dog! Wow, they are yummy! Ours were ordered with Sour Kraut and Caramelized Onions!!! Yes, we had only eaten a couple of hours before but we wanted to get all the NY treats we could! Just a little secret...the "Simon's Sisters" LOVE to eat!

The closer we got to Times Square, the less personal space we owned!

Ami and Matt at the Havana Grill (yummy Cuban food and beautiful scenery). By the way, this was at dinner time. That doesn't mean we didn't stop for a few more treats along the way.

Yay! It's Jarrett again! He did get to enjoy dinner with us and a night out to go "people watching." Then we called it a night. Our feet hurt, and my legs, hips, and shoulders, our hands felt dirty, and we needed some sleep!

Worshiping with the Nations!

Tonight I experienced something incredible...

Worshiping with hundreds of believers of many nationalities in the heart of New York City.

Heaven is going to be WONDERFUL!


Blessings,

Jaime

N.Y.C. Day#1

So our morning started early as we dropped our kids off at a friends house, headed to the airport, and hopped on a plane for NYC!!!

My first cab ride!

Unfortunately, Jarrett had to work today (which is the reason I got the wonderful opportunity

to be on this exciting trip). So, while he headed to the office, I put on my tennis shoes for the walk of a lifetime! Our hotel is fairly close to the heart of NYC (I never realized how enormous this city is). I walked about a mile and found Times Square and decided to take a New York City Bus Tour! Great recommendation Fran! So, on the Red Bus I got! The weather was perfect...60 degrees! BEAUTIFUL!!! Although, at times, it was VERY windy!

I'll show you a few pictures along my tour. I must add that this tour was extremely informative. There is so much history in New York City. Also, the architecture is gorgeous!

Here is my tour guide showing us John Lennon's past home and place of death.

Radio City Music Hall!

The Original Soup Kitchen (famous from Seinfeld)! Now closed.

The Apollo (in the heart of Harlem)

The famous Trump Towers

My sweet friend told me about Times Square Church and said I must try and get to a service if possible. They had a Friday night service and I was able to be a part! I'm so glad I did. It was amazing! It was so awesome to worship with so many hundreds of believers from all nationalities!

After church I headed off for a 2 hour night tour of the City and Brooklyn. WOW, it was cold!!!

Times Square

Night View from Brooklyn, NY

Well, that's my first day! I was definitely taken out of my comfort zone today. Typically, I don't do the "tourist" thing by myself. I don't even eat at restaurants by myself. I also talked a vendor's price down on a handbag (so not like me). He told me I was pretty (he was a little creepy) and I didn't cry. I also hate to have my picture taken...especially when they look like they do above. But, hey, it's New York!