This Is Kristin

~ I helped in Sunday school today, have been running errands and am washing sheets and things today for my in laws coming for a visit! (yay!) So I don’t have time to write much today, but am linking to a short devotional type article, or whatever you’d call it. It’s by Beth Moore and about needing the Holy Spirit filling us up. Read it Here…

An excerpt:
“God gives His Spirit without measure! He has all that you need. Or more properly stated, He is that all you need. Our fulfillment and greatest joy are in the flooding of the Holy Spirit of God in our lives. He is how we understand God’s Word and will for our lives!”

Of course I think my kids have a natural talent to be artistic, because everything they do I think is amazing! I started realizing how much I love kids’ art in general and checked out this book that is a design book for kids, and the creations are by kids. I think I love how unhindered children are with their art and designs, they are not thinking about what someone else wants to see, they are creating from their own imaginations.

~My favorite thing that my sons have made was a painting they worked on together, and I just sat and watched their different styles. My oldest had large and quick brush strokes taking up most of the canvas while my two year old stuck to a corner and painted little circles and dots. The end result was a collision of many colors and two satisfied little boys.

~What is your favorite creation by your kids?

~To be honest, knowing that my husband is gone for a month and a half, combinbed with my hormones doing something crazy due to the fact that I have been pregnant or nursing since April 2004 and have recently weaned my baby, combined with issues in my family, combined with daily life….. make (for me) a hard time, and it very easy to focus on what is “lacking” in my life. I have a natural tendency to be a pessimist, and be negative, and I hate it.

My grandparents, who were some of the only christians in my family, were the most positive people. Toward the end of my grandfather’s life, I became a christian, and we had that common bond. One day I asked him how he could be so happy when he was dying of Leukimia, and had recently lost my grandma. He told me that he told himself “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” throughout the day, and he said, “all things, what else is there?” Simple, but hard for me somehow. He said, it took him a lot of practice, but eventually, happiness and faith were his nature. He was given 6 months to live after being diagnosed with Leukimia, saying that it was all through his body. He lived for a year after that, golfed up until 2 weeks before he died, and up until the day before he died, not once swayed from his faith that Jesus would heal him. He’d leave the doctor, only really absorbing the positive news, never really even hearing all the negative things they were saying. I believe that positive outlook, allowed him to have a very full life, even while dying of cancer.

I read this article about teaching yourself to focus your attention on things that make you happy. “happiness is all about the allocation of attention. Getting more pleasure out of life, and increasing happiness can be done in many ways: By savoring sensory experiences (really feeling the warmth of the sun or tasting sweetness of a strawberry), becoming more engaged in what you do (being in the moment and blocking out thoughts/feelings that are not relative to that moment), and by finding ways of making your life feel more meaningful (volunteering, meditating, reaching out to those in need).”

~I am trying to teach myself to be happy, and to appreciate all the people in life that I have relationships with, whether here or far away, instead of focusing on all that is rocky, difficult and lacking. “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” and I will focus on “whatever is pure, lovely, true….” (Philippians 4:8)

(It still feels like the end of summer here…so I am not much in the mood for fall recipes yet…)

Turkey Burgers with grated zucchini and carrot
(good way to sneak in extra veggies!)

¾ lb. turkey
1 med. Zucchini, grated
1 medium carrot, grated
2 cloves garlic finely chopped
¾ tsp. dried thyme (or oregano)
¾ tsp. kosher salt
¼ tsp. black pepper
1 large egg
3 TSP olive oil

In a large bowl, combine the turkey, zucchini, carrot, garlic, thyme, salt, pepper, and egg. Form the mixture into 4 patties
~Can bar b que (or grill) them, bake in oven, or in stir fry pan.

“The doors we open and close each day decide the lives we live.”
~Flora Whittemore

~My sweet Aiden reminded me as I was leaving their room one night, “mama you got for, (forgot) to pray for Bluey.”

~”I’m not an itty bitt…” says my 5 year old to my two year old as they were talking in their room

My husband to Blue, “Where’d my drink go?”
Blue: “I drank it.”
My husband: “Your a stealer!”
Blue: “I’m not a stealer, I’m a finder!”

Me to Blue: “Are we playing restaurant?”
Blue: “Yes, what do you want for dinner?” he asks, holding a pad of paper.
Me: “Are you the waiter?”
Blue: “No you guys are the waiters!”

(for more Tiny Talk visit Mary@notbefore7)

~ I love M&M’s, I have not found a kind that I don’t like. I couldn’t pass up trying out the new Raspberry M&M’s when I saw them, and I have to say, they are most likely the best thing ever. They may just be my favorite, though the peppermint ones around the holidays are a close second, and the peanut ones….it’s hard to pick a favorite!

~What is your favorite M&M flavor?