Last night I gave Cory his Valentines gift early...I treated him to a fun "almost" free date. I promised on facebook that I would share so here goes.......

So there you have it...our "mostly" free, but completely FUN date night...thank you http://www.thedatingdivas.com/ for inspiring me. Happy Valentines Day a little early baby! Love you like CRAZY!!

Tonight I met with our "7 Council", Steph, Nicole and me. I am overjoyed by the suggestion from Nicole that we shorten the 7 months to 14 weeks. We will spend 2 weeks on each area. Here is how are schedule looks:
Feb. 4-16: FOOD
Feb. 17-March 2: CLOTHES
March 3-16: POSSESSIONS
March 17-30: MEDIA
March 31-April 13: WASTE
April 14-27: SHOPPING
April 28-May 11: STRESS
We will take 2 weeks for each area and focus on them. After our 14 weeks we hope to share our experience with a summer 9-week Bible Study Version for others in our church. Please pray that God will teach us enough to share and that others will want to take this journey again with us this summer. 

I was honestly super happy for the suggestion to shorten this for 2 immediate reasons: 1. I am not enjoying this food change so much...it is truly a challenge. I don't like eating healthy (which is obvious by my physical appearance) 2. I was having anxiety already about the clothes month. (please don't judge me) However, I am now feeling guilty about being happy to reduce this experiment because its only 3 days in and I am already missing the point! I have been so consumed the past 3 days with what I will eat, how to prepare it, fighting off hunger pains and an annoying caffeine headache. I have completely missed the point of this entire month. There are children not just around the world, but right here in our own community that go days or more without ANYTHING to eat There are starving people everywhere and I am sitting here spoiled with my 7 choices and an abundant amount of each choice. Not to mention the fact that my own kids and husband refuse to do this part with me and are complaining about the multitude of foods they get to enjoy whenever they want! My heart has not broken yet over this, I am still stuck in the "me" of it. What I am afraid now is that when this part is up, will I go back to my selfish ways and not think twice? I need God to move a mountain in me right here, right now. I need this time to really hurt not just for me, but for those starving children everywhere. BREAK ME GOD, BREAK ME, I BEG YOU!

At a time like this when I am sick of myself, the only thing to do is to turn the Bible for guidance. The first verse that comes to mind without even opening it up (of course this could come first, since this whole thing is about me anyway...grrr...I hate me!) Philippians 4:13 "I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength." This is only 2 weeks for pete's sake...I can do this, get over yourself Jen, suck it up and do it!!
The next passage comes from Matthew 25:37-40 “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we
see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see
you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in
prison and go to visit you?’ “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me." I may not be able to give financially to feed the poor and hungry of the world, what I am doing right now is giving of myself to Jesus. I am showing him through my fast and sacrifice that I do care. My heart does hurt for the hungry. I will find a tangible way here in my area to serve him and serve the hungry before this 7 experiement is over, that is my goal....I will be selfless. But for today and probably over the next week and half I will continue to go without in Jesus name and for the sake o

Usually when I want to start something new I am prepped and ready to go. I have all my ducks in a row, supplies purchased, plan in place...I just go when it's time to go. However, it is already completely evident to me that God is going to be 100% in control of this "7" adventure....why because today I seem to have no control of anything!!!

Let me back up 24 hours and tell you how this all began. You see yesterday afternoon our carbon monoxide detector went off, we evacuated the house and called the gas company. Sure enough we had a leak and our furnace (on it's last leg) was the culprit. Seeing it was Sunday we agreed with the heating & cooling man and the gas man to shut off the gas, stay somewhere else for the night and deal with it today. Because Monday is not a bad enough day as it is...lets add this stress....DUH!

With all this rigamarole AND the superbowl party we went to that kept us up much later than usual on a Sunday night AND the fact that I needed to pick up a few more groceries  to be ready for today but didn't get it done...needless to say my day, my start to "7" has not gotten a great start. However, I am doing my best to stay under control. I have eaten only eggs, bananas, carrots and water so far today. My head is throbbing right now...I am still uncertain about the status of our furnace. Sounds like it is temporarily fixed to get us through the rest of the winter but a new furnace will be needed for next year. And I may or may not be PMSing...which for me means TOTAL CRABBINESS. Ok so I lied...I do not have it under control I am about to burst.....into tears!!! I am not a fan of Mondays and today just doesn't seem to be going anywhere good. Oh yeah did I mention that on my way home from work I rolled down the window in the car to drop mail in the box and it wouldn't roll back up so I drove 7 miles  in the FREEZING cold with the window down. And one more thing...I HAVE HAD NO COFFEE TODAY....GRR!!

Now that we got that out of the way....here is what I am thankful for today...I am thankful for Carbon Monoxide Detectors...because we have one installed in every room of our house, we are grateful to even be alive today. I am thankful for people like the gas man and the heating and cooling people and their skills to be able to come fix our problem and get our house back to normal functionality. I am thankful for my parents and for their willingness to open their house up to us last night and today while we figure out the furnace situation. I am thankful for girlfriends who listened to me vent about my day. I am thankful for Jesus for protecting our family and for reminding me that he will never give me more than I can handle...because even though this day has been a wreck...it's all within the realm of things we can handle....it too shall pass. And I am thankful for my husband for leading our family and taking care of us through all of this...even if I would have done it differently! :)

So as I said today is the start of "7". The beginning of my mutiny against excess, the start of my path to a more Christ-like simplicity in my life. I am eager for this adventure and where it will take me mentally and spiritually. Today I begin the next 30 days of eating just 7 foods, drinking water and just  1 other drink (still undecided...debating between orange juic and 1 additional condiment (ranch will be mine....don't judge) and only other seasonings are olive oil, salt & pepper. I have chosen for my foods Chicken, Eggs, Apples, Bananas, Spinach, Carrots & Whole Wheat Bread. PRAY FOR ME!!!

Last night I was treated by my husband to 90 minutes of alone time snuggled in my bed watching "People Like Us". I am pretty sure he granted me this just so he didn't have to watch the movie with me, but that's not really my point.

I enjoyed this movie. It's not a story that I can relate to personally, but what I can relate to is the moral of the story. Which is that siblings really are the only people who truly understand what it's like to grow up with the same life. I am very forutnate to have an amazing husband that fits into my family like he has always been there...I am pretty sure that my parents actually love him more than me at times. And he would probably say the same thing about me and his family. I adore Cory's family, they are like my second (and third) parents and his siblings are like my very own. But what's missing for both of us with our "in-laws" is that "I get you" unspoken language.

You see my sister and I have a bond that is different from all others. We are not just sisters we are best friends. We spend WAY more time with eachother than what is healthy. But when we go a day apart...we miss eachother. Only the two of us know what it was like to grow up in our house. To eat the kinds of food that my mom made (or burned), to share the traditions as kids that we shared, to laugh together, to cry together, to sneak out together. As much as I love Cory's siblings there are times when I look at them and say..."I just don't understand your thought process here." It may be sad, but I never have that with my own sister...I get it, I get her. Maybe it's because we grew up very close, only 16 months apart in age, both girls and we had amazing parents that taught us how to love. I know it's not like that for everyone so I am not speaking on behalf of all siblings of the world here, just my own experience. Basically what I am trying to say is that I am so grateful for my sister. She is a true blessing to my life and I am so happy that she lives close and we can spend so much time together. She has her differences from and that's ok, good actually.

Siblings, however can go beyond blood. I am thankful everyday for the opportunity to be a part of a bigger family, God's family. You see I am not only a child of Rod & Brenda Anderson, I am a child of God. And the beauty of this family is that it's not just 1 or 2 or 7 siblings...its the world, millions of people are God's children and He welcomes EVERYONE into his family. What I love about this family is that it's not just your blood siblings that "get it" it's your brothers and sisters in Christ, they all "get it". They all understand you and have walked a road similar to yours. They are there to laugh with you, cry with you, encourage you, keep you accountable....be your family when you might not have one. So I encourage you today, if you are struggling with a sibling, pray for them and pray that God will provide you with another child of His to be your sibling. Reach out to God's family and you will never feel more welcome anywhere else...you will be able to say "I get it" too!

I've shared before that I am reading the book "7" by Jen Hatmaker. My friends Steph, Nicole and I are about to embark on a journey to increase  a Christ-like simplicity in our lives, reducing our excessiveness and hopefully become radically better people.
We officially start our journey on Monday, February 4th with Food. We will eat only 7 foods for the entire month (more to come on that soon).
Right now I am reading the book, praying and preparing myself for this transformation. I am currently on Month 6: Spending...I will live out this chapter in July. However, I am already thinking about the changes I will make and what I can start doing now. One day in this chapter has really struck me, Day 25. Jen talks about whether or not as Christians are we truly fasting or just feasting. I FEEL LIKE A DIRTBAG! I am very much feasting.
She says "At some piont, the church stopped living the Bible and decided just to study it." We are feasting our selves with Bible Study, Sunday School, Small Groups over and over and over. But at what point are we taking what the Bible is teaching us and putting it into action? This is me people...this is where I struggle. I a the queen of Bible studies...I try to do it all. But in the end what am I actually doing with the teachings of God's word. Am I serving others, if so how?
This is what I am learning by just reading this book, before even beginning my 7 month journey. I am learning that my world has for too long now been just about me. It's time to redirect my focus and start finding ways to serve others. To stop feasting on the Bible and truly fast from my selfishness.
I do not expect one day of the 7 month process to be easy. But what I am looking forward to is finding out what it is inside of me that is broken for others...what makes me weep. Where is God calling me to direct my servanthood?
I also want God to clarify what I truly should be doing and what someone else might be better at. You see I am really good and saying yes, I will help. But where I fail is in the follow through. I will show up to help, but a lot of the time, my heart is not really there, I am helping just to help and all to often I am helping because it makes me feel good, not because my gifts are reaching others. I don't want to be this person. I long for the opportunity to do something completely selfless.
Today, I close with this quote from the book that lingers with me...."Oh Lord, may we be focused on the least; a people balancing the fasting and the feast."

Today is the 3rd day this week that we have been iced or snowed in. Sometimes snow days can be fun. You know, the days when there isn't 30 mile an hour winds so you can bundle up with your kiddos and get some fresh air, maybe build a snow man. But these are not the kind of snow days we have been having around here. Sunday was ice city...no one really went anywhere.....it was nice to stay home after a busy weekend and "catch up". Then Monday the kids were home (well at my sisters) I ventured out and went to work, but most everything was canceled for the evening. We started getting really good at playing UNO and Phase 10. And now today is day 3 of being snowed in and call me a party pooper but I am bored out of my mind and so are my kids. We need fresh air. But since we can't (or won't) go out anymore today... we kept ourselve busy. I did make the trek to Parkersburg this morning to grab some work, some groceries and a few Valentine making supplies. Probably not the wisest thing I've done in my life, but I have driven on worse roads so that was good. I got back home around 11 to my children nearly killing eachother...after we got everyone reigned in we set to work. I am please to say we did accomplish somethings today. All Valentines are done and ready to go, Homework is done, Church Newsletters are done, Carly's 4H Record book is off to a good start, Laundry is caught up and now blog is done. I think I will snuggle up on the couch the rest of the night, eat some chips and queso, maybe do my Bible Study lesson or read "7"...but I am planning to let laziness take over for the rest of the day. Why because I am sick of snow days and there is just nothing else to do...BOO! Bring on the 70 degree days I am ready for you!

Today I am inspired by song. I keep replaying the songs in my head from Winter Jam this weekend. This new one that I hadn't heard before keeps popping up...it's call Love, Love Love, by Sidewalk Prophets.
Check out this video....

My favorite part of the song is this verse:
Read about a man who came in to this world
Loving every man, woman, boy and girl
Hung out with some folks that would make you stare
Saying come as you are, you’re welcome here

Spent His life with the least of these
Died on a cross between two thieves
And on the third day the stone rolled away
He beat back death so we could say
Chorus
Love love love
Love love love
Love love love
Goes that far
Love love love
Love love love
So love love love
With all your heart

I am so thankful today for the love of my Savior. Thank you Jesus for loving me as I am and for filling my heart with your love to share with those I encounter in my life here on earth. I pray that your love can be seen through me! I love you with all my heart!

Whew...what a weekend! It's been a couple of days since I've posted, mostly because I haven't had a chance to sit down for the past 3 days...until today (thank you ice storm...I needed today).
Our weekend started with the A-P High School basketball games Friday night, this is a family activity that we've added this year. We haven't attended many games in the past and honestly I still don't know that many of the players, but I have very much enjoyed watching anyway and visiting with friends in the crowd. I know there are big debates about how much focus on sports there should be for  families these days...but the facts are we live in a very sports minded community and this is where we gather with our friends and families and support each other. I wonder is if its worse to go out to a ball game as a family and sit and watch the children of our friends or sit at home where we are all seperately plugged into our electronics or seperated into different rooms doing different things or even watching mindless television, because honestly that's what our "family" nights usually end up being. So I think getting out of the house, supporting our friends, visiting with our neighbors is not such a bad thing to do...I like it!
So that was Friday....Saturday while my husband worked all day at the tax office (bless him for working so hard for our family)...I loaded up the kids and we went to Carson's first of 6 indoor soccer games. Are we becoming soccer junkies??  I think so! Are we loving it? YUP! Check out the picture...this is Caron's team playing. It's a different thing the indoor soccer, but very fun to watch...it was an intense game, they ended up with a score of 14-14, we'll take it! Great job boys!

After the soccer game Cory's parent's picked up kids 2, 3, 4 (yes we do call them by number sometimes...I know not cool...but there's just so many of them....ahhh!) Anyway, they picked up the younger ones and Cory and I took off for Des Moines with Carly and her friend Molly to see Winter Jam 2013. All I have to say is it was AWESOME!! One thing Cory and I LOVE to do together is concerts. We try to get to 1 or 2 a year. Winter Jam was the way to go, we saw Capital Kings, OBB, Jason Castro, Royal Tailor, Newsong, Sidewalk Prophets, RED, Matthew West, Jamie Grace and TOBY MAC!!!! I loved every second of it. It was a late night, but very worth it. We were fortunate to get in as the Wells Fargo Arena was packed with about 17,000 people and 400 didn't get in, 50 of those were youth kids from A-P...crazy!! Here are a few picks from that event.

So after all that excitement this weekend...I was actually pretty happy to be "iced in" today...we got caught up on sleep, house got cleaned, bills paid, supper at moms and now relaxation before we start again with the busy days tomorrow! Whew....what a weekend!

It took me a while tonight to think of what I would write about. It's been a whirlwind of a day...I feel like I ran a marathon today...but nope just a gazillion errands!

As I am sitting here thinking about what to write my husband walks by and I am instantly reminded of a hilarious story about our 4 year old Ciara. I have to back up just a bit and tell you that for those of you that do not know, my husband Cory has worked as a part-time tax preparer for Dennis Ihde for the past 10 years...he just began his 11th tax season. Most people dread a second job, but not Cory, he lives for this time of the year every year, it's definitely one of his gifts and passions. Anyway, so Cory picked up Ciara from AWANA Wednesday night and one of her leaders pulled him aside and said "I have to tell you the hilarious thing Ciara said tonight." Oh brother, here we go. Our children are known for saying some crazy and embarrasing things...don't even get me started on the stories we have about Carson! But back to Cici.....she proceeds to tell Cory that they were learning about Zaccheaus at AWANA, Zacchaeus is a tax collector in the Bible...you know the little guy that waits in a tree to see Jesus and Jesus calls him down from the tree and invites himself over to his house to save him and ask him to repent....yeah that guy. So the AWANA teacher asks "Does anyone know what a tax collector is?" and of course Ciara raises her hand..."I do" she says "They are the ones that steal all the money." Oh my!!! We laughed our buns off over this.

So, when nothing else inspires you just talk to your children they always have something "cute" or embarrassing to say....at least mine do!

Sometimes it's only Tuesday and the week has already gotten the best of you...that's what happened yesterday...by the time I got to sit down for the first time at 9:00 pm I was done for! My mind was shot so I did what I do best when I am tired and overwhelmed...I park my butt on the big comfy couch and watch Parenthood. I just started watching that show this season and it sucked me right in. I am intrigued by the sense of family the Braverman's have I love how Zeke and Camille are kind of the glue that holds the family together...whenever one of the kids or grandkids are having trouble they stop home and see what mom and dad have to say...and they never fail to offer sound advice. I love it. It just seems to really represent what families are like these days. The one thing that's missing is their love for Jesus...if they all had that piece the show would be perfect. Wouldn't it be a  realy television shocker if someone came up with a show that showed the real life of a Christ centered family....what would that do to the world? Maybe someday one of my children will become a TV producer and make millions showing the world how real families live for Christ....I think I might start praying for that.

Anyway, all of that doesn't have a lot to do with what I was really going to post about today (it was all just my excuse for not posting yesterday...and my endless need to digress)! So here is what my wheels are turning about this week. I am attending a ladie's Bible study on Monday evenings, we are studying the book of Nehemiah in a study with Kelly Minter. I am IN LOVE with this study!! Between this study and the book
"7" that I am currently reading by Jen Hatmaker...I am feeling God work in me. I have never really been that much of a want what everyone else has kind of person....who am I kidding I am totally that way...ugh! Probably what I am more of is just your average poor me, why can't we catch a break, why did God choose our family to be the ones who have to live paycheck to paycheck in a 900 square foot house kind of gal! Someone once said to me that God didn't make us wealthy because He knew we couldn't handle it....I actually totally agree with that. You see I suck at managing money...just ask my Hubby...I like to spend. This is exactly where God is working in me....he is teaching me as I look around my house that even though I don't have what Jo Neighbor has....I have an overabundance of STUFF that I DON'T EVEN USE!! How wasteful have I been with the things I have been given. How careless I have been with the money God has entrusted me with. SHAME ON ME!! And people I am here to tell you that Cory and I are doing some serious praying over this....we need to change and we WILL CHANGE. We don't like the path that we have been on in this area and we are about to divert. So, I am just going to tell you right now....this year is going to be different for us...I hope you notice change, or maybe not, maybe I hope that you don't notice so that I will realize it doesn't matter what anyone else thinks about the house we live in, the cars we drive, the clothes we wear...but what does matter is how we use the gifts God has given us.
So I am praying that God will show me my sin...especially in the materialistic area of my life. Forgive me Father for being careless with your gifts, show me grace and mercy and give me the wisdom and tools that I need to change the path I am currently walking and head towards you