A Life Full of Gratitude ~ A Heart Full of Gratitude: Long Weekend Ramblings

We had such great plans for the long weekend. We planned to finish getting the basketball hoop set up. We planned to plant our trees in the backyard. We planned to sand and prep the interior of the garage for painting. I planned a long run along the river. However, with all the rain, our plans got sidetracked. Not that it was all bad as it turned out to be a really good weekend. And a few things did get accomplished.

Rather than a run along the river, I ran on the treadmill at the gym. Running on the treadmill in a hot and humid gym is never as good as running outside. But, I got my run in and it felt great when I was done. That is, until I was hit by a migraine, likely from not hydrating enough. A good long sleep helped dispel the migraine eventually. I am now into tapering my runs as I am less than two weeks away from running the ScotiaBank Half. I am excited about it and really hoping I can run it injury free this time.

We spent some time this weekend shopping around for patio furniture and a fire table. On Monday, the contractors dug for pilings to begin our deck. Knowing that the deck will be done in the next week, we realized we should begin looking for the sofa and chairs we want for our new deck. And of course, I got sidetracked with all the shrubs and perennials that I can't wait to add to the yard when we then have landscaping done in the next couple of weeks.

Although it rained Friday and Saturday, it began to clear on Sunday morning. Because it was still really cool, we did some more shopping for patio furniture after church. I am going to digress here for a second to touch on the sermon. A Pointed Perspective was preached by Pastor Ian Trigg and was another practical sermon that spoke to me. He summed it up in one sentence by saying that our final words and final actions carry so much weight in life and in death and that these final words and actions need to focus on our Heavenly Father. But of course, if we know that to be true, why would we not live our whole life with the end in mind. Because when we can live a life where those final words and actions are how we live our life day in and day out, an amazing and marvellous thing happens. And the good life we all long for is defined by Jesus as being a life that is invested in others. We are on a journey and we need to keep trusting even at times when our faith may seem frail and that we need to live a life that shows we trust in Him, no matter what. As we live a life that shows we trust in His great love, we need to share that truth with others in our lives. My heart is to teach my children of Jesus' kind, good, authoritative, and trusting love and to teach them to rely on this truth through all the ups and downs of life. And then the mandate for all of us is to share this truth with those we come in contact with and to even seek it out as we go out and share God's love with others who haven't been exposed to this truth. This leads me to missions which is something that I feel takes me out of my comfort zone but something that I would one day like to pursue. But before a missions trip, I want to seek out those opportunities in my daily walk. At the very end of the service, Pastor Trigg talked about how as parents we warn our children against the potential for evil and often forget about reminding them to look for opportunities to live for God and share His love with others. We tell our kids what to avoid. We tell them what not to do. But, do we challenge them to embrace the good and encourage through how God might work through them? We need to teach our children early to make good choices but also teach them early how to share the life of Christ. How they can share the grace, hope, and love that is our Christian faith. To walk in a way that they encourage and uplift others to make wise choices as they also make wise choices. This reminder was so important for me. I love praying over my children - for them to do just what Pastor Trigg spoke about. But, then the Mommy in me sometimes forgets to trust more fully God's plan for my children's lives. Each time I leave my children, I whisper an "I love you." But I also whisper, "Be God's." I remember hearing of this expression year's ago, perhaps from Karen Kingsbury or in a devotion I read. But the moment I heard it, I knew that I needed to take it on as my own prayer for my children to be said as a reminder for them each time I part from them. It reminds them to make wise choices. It is an expression that reminds them to show God's love and encourage those who they come in contact with. It reminds them of whose they are.

Getting back to the weekend - the basketball net is not quite finished but the most difficult steps are complete and it won't be long until Jaret is sinking baskets. Three of the six columnar aspen trees are planted. And we spent time as a family and time with friends. Mark and Shea have just moved and we enjoyed an evening at their new place for a delicious supper, visiting, and games. So despite us not getting as much accomplished, it was a really great weekend. Feeling so grateful. Feeling so blessed.

Kirra loves writing love notes. They just warm my heart.

Our Columnar Aspens...

The kids hanging out on the path by our house.

Love the trees in bloom and the fragrant smell of their blossoms.

Jaret loves being on his bike (I might add that he always wears his helmet, not sure where it was when I snapped this pic). He even kept me company on my short run this weekend.