tools.

about a year ago todd was teaching on the fruit of the spirit @ our old church back in santa clarita. during that time i was reading a book about the fruit by jerry bridges called the fruitful life. (if you have never read it, please pick one up... it truly did change my life.) one of the things that it brought me to do was think about how i can implement the fruit of the spirit in a fun way into the lives of my kiddos && teach them discipline at the same time. i came up with this idea of happy/sad jars. the "happy jar" has the list of the fruit of the spirit. the "sad jar" has lists of things that each of my kids struggle toward. example: whining. complaining. hitting. hurtful words. strife. the list goes on. the idea is to get marbles (as many as you can) into the happy jar... without having them in the sad jar. i took ashlynn and jeremy to micheal.s and let them pick out the color of their marbles. they helped me decorate the mason jars. this, of course, makes the jars theirs. it becomes a since of pride for them. plus i have a jar with extra marbles up high... i caught ashlynn trying to give jeremy one for being nice. cute but not ok... they both got one for being so sweet... of course.

when we moved up to SLO, the jars got boxed and left amongst the garage. when we finally pulled them out (we waited so long i'm afraid to say), both ashlynn and jeremy were so excited. they counted their marbles in each jar.

heres how it works:

1. start with 5 happy marbles. (positive reinforcement)

2. when they exhibit the fruit of the spirit they get a marble from the "overflow jar", or if they have some marbles in the "sad jar", they get to remove 1 from that jar and put it into the "happy jar". RECITE with them the fruit of the spirit. a song or something catchy... we make it silly... this way they can learn the fruit.

3. if they do something that exhibits a negative trait, they take a marble from the "happy jar" and place it in the "sad jar". (unfortunately there are times when there are no marbles in the "happy jar", that again is when you would use the "overflow jar".

4. REWARD when they get to 10/20/30 "happy marbles". use whatever works for your kids. ashlynn wants "dollars". she is our saver. she has to keep them in the "happy jar" and not use them. they are there! she has $3!

top 10.

the day before valentine.s day we got ready! we decorated the table. hung hand.made by ashlynn and jeremy valentine hearts from the lights. then in a big huge heart wrote down 10 things that they love. here there are in very specific order... their order.

ASHYLNN.
1. my Jesus.
2. my papa.
3. my grammie
4.my whole family.
5. my dog hurley.
6. grandpa & grandma
7. san luis obispo
8. elephants
9. my uncle danny & aunt lindsey
10. my mommy & daddy (bff.s)

JEREMY.
1. tigers & elephants.
2. woody & jessie
3. Jesus & God
4. lions.
5. pluto.
6. my dog.
7. my sister... ashlynn.
8. that.s all i love... i don.t love anything else!

love day.

ashynn got a "pink princess cookbook" for christmas from my mom. we celebrated christmas with her when she came out from texas last week. ashlynn carried the cookbook pretty much where ever she went, claiming that she was going to try and figure out what she wanted to make. she landed on making chocolate dipped pretzels with sprinkles. (vanilla candy coating/ candy making chocolate, powedered food coloring (optional), pretzel rods/ twist pretzels, and assorted sprinkles). as we were making them, ashlynn decided she was going to make them to share with the girls at winter camp. she did just that. she came out of her shell and offered her handmade, delicious pretzels to people all on her own. a very proud moment for my extremely shy daughter. she definitely blessed my spirit with her willingness to share and serve.

constant.

there is no doubt that my move has been hard. it has been a struggle emotionally. it has been a physical burden. it has taken a toll of my spirit. that all pales in comparison to the consistancy of my SAVIOR. he has continually provided for me through our time of change and adventure. i have seen him work in the lives of my children. my husband. and me. when i am lacking anything, GOD has restored my spirit through provision. my hope has been renewed. my faith stretched. the time of change has been exactly what my life needed. ashlynn's response to someone telling her how lucky we were to live in such a wonderful place was, "this is exactly where we are supposed to be because GOD has us here." it is so true. though where we live is beautiful. spectacular even. it is truly beautiful to us because this is where GOD has us. this is where we are supposed to be. it is remarkable how a five year old can say it so perfectly. we are exactly where GOD wants us to be! praise the LORD for guidance. for provision. for consistancy. for HOPE!

simple.

gracefully... all but jeremy... did we roam through shell beach. we had such a wonderful time playing in the freezing water, catching crabs, looking for shells, and watching the beauty of the day. we simply took a bucket, two shovels (each kid needs a shovel) and ourselves down to the beach. our exploration began. ashlynn continually said, "look. this is so beautiful." jeremy was worried about the waves getting him. todd wandered out on the rocks. i took pictures and dug in the sand with ash looking for beautiful treasures. it was a fun family adventure. i love being able to explore with the kids. it is a blessing to see their faces as they see things for the first time. my joy!