Turning Seven

Celebrating my kids' birthdays has become increasingly bittersweet.

I love planning the party, sending out the invitations, and preparing for a special day, which is all very fun and exciting.  But it all adds up to one more year farther away from childhood.

My second child, Clara, turned seven today.  She was born at 2:00 AM seven years ago, from a textbook pregnancy, labor and delivery.  Her most distinguishing features when she was born were her large bright blue eyes and her hint of red hair on her almost bald head.  She was a sweet baby, easily pacified with her ever ready thumb, and her favorite pink blankie.

The years have gone by so incredibly fast, and one can't help but look back with some pride and some regrets. Sorry, I guess I always feel a little melancholy at birthdays.

Danny and I started a birthday tradition a couple of years ago that we'd heard from a homeschooling mom.  On each child's actual birthday, we take them out for a special, one-on-one dinner date with mom and dad.  The child gets to choose the restaurant and dessert place.  

So Clara chose to go to a local Italian eatery that also serves sushi (I know, weird, but it's really good, and more importantly, california rolls are Clara's favorite).  I dragged along my sad feelings of time whirling by too fast along with my huge purse.  We sat at a nice little table, complete with glass goblets for the water and fabric napkins.  Clara was impressed.  

As we started looking at the menus, and my fears began to make my brain start counting down the years I had left with Clara until she morphs into a teenager (5, by the way), I glanced up and watched as she acted the part of a perfectly wonderful 7 year old.  She asked about what each fork and spoon was for, "Why two forks, mom?"  She slurped her drink, cracked jokes, and made endless silly faces.  The more serious the question we asked her, the more goofy her response.  She jumped out of her seat at one point, did a silly dance, then ran over to give Danny an impromptu hug.  

My heart finally stopped fluttering.  So my Clara is a year older.  She's seven, not seventeen.  And I vow to savor that seventeenth birthday as much as I savored seven.  Time is so fleeting, and children spend their days growing, so it's time to live and love, not wallow in what was.  What IS is just right.  

A Note on Prayer

Yesterday morning I participated in a deep and meaningful group prayer time.  It is organized prayer with a four part structured outline.

1.  Praise (Tell God specifically how awesome He is, usually thematic. Yesterday's focus was His grace)

2.  Silent Confession 

3.  Thanksgiving (Give thanks for specific ways God has answered prayer)

4.  Petition (Ask God for help or guidance for yourself or someone else)

Yes, we do prayer out loud.  And yes, when we first started, it felt awkward.  I have prayed for many years, but not out loud and not with a true understanding of the purpose of prayer.

Since accepting Jesus as my Savior as a child and getting baptized at age ten or so, I have regularly prayed to God.  My prayers as a child were, I'm sure, pretty typical of a child's prayer.  I requested things I wanted, or begged for a situation to change; selfish prayers that focused on my needs.  As I grew older, my prayers matured as well.  Rather than focusing on only my needs, I began praying for others once in awhile, mainly for health issues.

As a result of joining a Joy of Living Bible study a few years ago, my prayer life transformed into something even more real.  The Revelation study revealed that prayers actually reside in the throne room of God.  That the prayers of God's people are actually mixed with the smoke of incense so that they are sweet smelling in the heavens.

The smoke of the incense, mixed with the prayers of God's holy people, ascended up to God from the altar where the angel had poured them out.  Revelation 8:4

I had always wondered where my prayers really go. And who really hears them?  Sometimes my prayers had felt meaningless because I couldn't sense that God was listening since I couldn't hear a response.  But I learned that my prayers are actually sent into God's presence.  Knowing this put a whole new incredible emphasis on the quality of my prayers.  I have learned, finally, after over twenty years of being a Christian, how to pray.  And it is definitely not about flowery words or long speeches, it is about simplicity and a yearning to do God's will.  Sure, I can ask God for something, but my true desire is for God's will to rule in my life.  Even if on the surface I want something to go a certain way, what is best for my life is God's infinite wisdom.  This has taken a long time to accept!

I would like to encourage you, if you are not already doing so, to consider a structured prayer time, like the one above.  My prayers, prior to this structure, usually started with quickly thanking God, then turning immediately to petitions.  And boy, were there lots of petitions!  Now, I spend more time on confession, a step I used to regularly skip.  I give thanks, but it is more specific, and I note when God specifically answers prayer, which he does, in incredible ways.  My petitions are now fewer in number but deeper, somehow.

Now here's the hard part for me.  Once I have given my prayers to God, I am not to worry over them anymore.  The prayers are God's, not mine.  This is so hard to do.  I truly want God to take care of them, but a part of me continues to fret, and over talk the issues with friends and families, which reveals that I haven't really given anything over to God.  So it becomes an issue of trusting Him.

As the apostle Paul says:
Do not fret or have any anxiety about anything, but in every circumstance and in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, continue to make your wants known to God. Philippians 4:6

What an awesome God we serve.  That He seeks to hear our prayers, yearns to reach out to our thoughts, as we empty them out in the dark of night.  What great love.

I hope you are encouraged to say a little prayer today.  God is listening!  And as the Bible says, believers in Christ' prayers will be in the presence of God, the creator of the universe, once the words have left your lips.

The Best Chocolate Pie. Ever.

A couple of years ago, Danny and I were in a supper club.  One couple per month would cook and host dinner, complete with appetizers, the main course, and of course, dessert.  The first couple to volunteer to host basically pulled out all the stops with a decadent, delicious meal.  Every course was prepared to perfection, while beautifully served.  The woman made flavored butter, and shaped it into little seashells, people!  Anyway, the entire meal experience was amazing, my mouth is watering with the memories.  As the meal began, all of the women started sweating with nervousness, just imagining how on earth they would ever try to top this Food Network display.  However, in the end, we decided to just crown her the queen of cooking and not stress.  By the end of the meal, Danny finally busted out with, "This is for sure the best meal I've ever had!"  Which made me feel...awesome.  

Which leads me to the best chocolate pie in the history of the world. This amazing hostess not only prepared melt in your mouth appetizers and a fabulous main course, but her dessert would be the crowning glory.  By the time dessert rolled around at the supper club, I remember thinking, sure it's been great up to this point, but the dessert can't be that great.  Yeah right.  Out comes a still warm slice of chocolate fudge pie alongside a scoop of (my favorite flavor!!) coffee ice cream.  One bite, and I died and went to heaven...then quickly returned and finished the pie.  It.  Was.  Amazing.

So, I thought I would bestow this pie onto my unsuspecting relatives at Easter lunch.  It had the same effect.  And I hadn't even added the ice cream.  My husband had two pieces!  And if any of you know my husband, you'll know how crazy that is.  By the end of the lunch, about a quarter of the pie remained.  I went to my moms the next day to grab a slice, and it was gone.  It had vanished.  My mom was perplexed.  I wasn't.  

So here it is, in all it's chocolatey glory:

Chocolate Fudge Pie

And more importantly, here's the link, so you can make one yourself!  Enjoy!

Earrings

We hit another milestone today in the Walker household.  Our oldest daughter got her ears pierced!  She has been wanting to get them pierced since she turned eight years old, but our busy lives seemed to always get in the way.  I was ready to drive her over to get them done a month or so ago, but then she felt too scared, so we postponed.  Today it all worked out, and I have one beaming little girl on my hands!  

One of the challenges of this occasion was the combination of the fact that all four kids came along, and the shop where we had it done is tiny and FULL of small items.  Emma's two little cheerleaders, seen here grinning for the camera, were on their very best behavior.  However, their little brother, below right in green, grew increasingly antsy as the full explanation of how to keep the earlobe properly sanitized went on a little long in his book.  He is gazing out the window at the baseball hat display, wishing he was anywhere but in a girlie accessory shop.

Emma seemed only the slightest bit nervous, but she was committed.  She was definitely more excited than scared.  

Before

After

Emma was so giddy afterward, that I had to shoot a little video to capture the sweet moment.  By the way, the whole process was almost completely painless! She didn't hesitate or shed one tear.  Our sweet ear piercer, Heather, was very kind and patient with us, and yet knew when to get it over with!  Overall, this was just a super fun moment, and no drama whatsoever.   

I know lots of people these days get their little girls' ears pierced as babies, and I think that's awesome, plus they look so adorable!  I guess when it came to my own daughters, I wanted to purposefully make it a mini-milestone in their lives.  When Emma turned eight, something changed in her.  She took a step forward in her maturity.  She started talking differently and acting a little more grown-up.  She is becoming a young lady before my eyes, and I love that I got to experience this with her. I know it's not anywhere near earth shaking, but it's a tiny memory that she and I will always share, and that makes my heart happy.