Confession
I have a confession to make: (Ahem)
When Nathaniel (my 4 year old) gets up in the morning, I turn the TV on and go back to bed for an hour.
I feel like I just confessed embezzlement or something. I can hear the silent gasps everywhere.
In all seriousness, I am ashamed of the fact that I am a lousy morning person. My Mom was always up first, had her QT before anyone was awake, and greeted each of us with breakfast and a smile. It totally annoyed me, but it set the standard.
I hate mornings lately. I don’t want to get up because I HAVE to…I want to get up when I WANT to. Once I’m up, I don’t want to be needed. I don’t want to fix breakfast for everyone. I don’t like noise or rowdiness that comes with two small kids. And I don’t like Dora the Explorer at 8:00 AM. (She talks sooo loud)
I want my coffee, quietly brewed, and then I want to quietly sit on my balcony doing my Quiet Time, peacefully contemplating the richness of God’s goodness. I do not want anyone to speak to me until this has happened. Doesn’t that sound nice?
So, recently I was convicted about our family’s morning routine. Several Mom-friends shared with me about their morning routines, and how they get up around 4:30 AM (GASP!) so they can have time to themselves before their family gets up. That way they have time to drink their coffee in peace, have a QT without shouting at the kids to stop body slamming each other, watch a little TV that doesn’t include learning how to count to ten, workout, and then shower without being interrupted.
My friends have enlightened me and I realize that the morning experience I want to have is totally possible…just at a few hours earlier.
So now that I know this, the battle is doing it. Every morning this past week I have felt the Holy Spirit prompting me to get up before the kids. And every morning I roll over and push the snooze button on Him. Obediance is HARD. It may be THE hardest part of being a Christian, in my book.
So pray for me. I know I can do it. I just have to want it bad enough.
Anyone have any tips on how to force yourself out of bed early in the AM?
Nothing Profound
I don’t have any profound thoughts today…just joy and gratitude that I wanted to share.
Last night as we were going to bed, Nate and I were thinking back over the course of the past year. Wow! How far God has brought us! It blows my mind to see how He has been faithful to answer our prayers. I’m ashamed when I consider my doubt and frustration, especially now that I look back to see that He was working the entire time…just in a different time frame.
Prayers Answered:
- Three years ago we began to ask God for an Adventure. We didn’t realize that we were in the early stages of it at the time, but nevertheless…here we are! Riding the tidal waves of Adventure in Charlotte, NC.
- Nate has been ordained as a Pastor. He is doing what he loves, and thriving while doing it. And the best part is that he knows that he is doing exactly what he was created to do. What a privilege.
- With Nate’s new position has come a salary increase, which is a HUGE answer to prayer since we are a one-income family. Now Nate is getting paid well to do what he loves! We are so grateful.
- We are building our dream house. To own a home, much less build it ourselves, is a huge dream come true. God is so good.
- Mosaic has given me an outlet for my creativity and passion for writing. I volunteer as the Communications Specialist (I invented that title) three times a week and have the opportunity to write, create, edit, etc. It’s wonderful. I have the chance to use my gifts for a great cause while still staying at home with the kids, which is important to our family. It’s perfect.
- We have an amazing group of friends with which we foresee lifelong friendships being formed. We are all in the same phase of life, we have the same goals for our families and ministries, and we’re all on the same mission together…to live a life of faith, be a voice of hope, and bring the power of God’s love to the world around us.
What can I say? Life is good.
While all those things are amazing blessings, I will have to say that the greatest gift has been walking through such a low valley earlier in the year, and coming to know the Lord in a new and intimate way through it. There were multiple times in the past 365 days when it seemed like the Davis world was falling apart. We’d get to the point where we had done everything we could possibly think to do, and still came up unable to resolve the situation. God literally was our only hope. And every time we got to the end of ourselves, He showed up. He proved that He honors His Word. He fulfills His promises. He holds us in the palms of His hands, and WILL NOT let go.
In reading my journal from last year, I remembered that my prayer at the time was to be “rooted and established in love”. From where I stand now, I think that’s exactly what has been accomplished this year. If nothing else, God answered that specific prayer. I can honestly say that Nate and I feel more firmly rooted and established in the Love of God—-we love Him more because of what we’ve learned about His character this past year, and we are more confident in His Love for us. Praise God.
The Davis Life
Here’s a glimpse into our lives these days. Enjoy!
Nathaniel, Ella, and chocolate milk. Sweet.
Holding Hands.
Haircuts at Snippets.
Pool time.
Mosaic Church baptism. It was Nate’s first opportunity to baptize someone as their Pastor! (He’s the third person from the left).
Pastors’ Wives Gone Wild. We may look tame, but you should’ve seen us around the table of desserts. It got crazy for a minute there… (From left to right: Shannon Phelps, Ashley Fazal, Jessica Noy (who’s pregnant with #4 btw!), Heather Gutierrez, and me. Mandy Devine managed to sneak out before the picture)
The kids playing at our “dirt”, which has recently been upgraded from a pile of dirt to a huge hole filled with concrete. I saw today that we now have bricks and cinder blocks too.
The Jacobs Family enjoying our “Last Supper” together at Mayfield the night before we moved Mom to her new home. (From left to right: Mom, my brother Christopher, my Dad, my brother Jeffrey, my brother Gregory, and me.)
Saying our goodbyes.
Let the moving chaos begin…
A new way of moving…or should I say “dropping”?! That’s Bless (his real name) at the top, handing off to Herb at the bottom. I was a little concerned when they got to the washer and dryer, but they brought those down the staircase.
Mom’s new home…Welcome to Lowndes Lane!
The bathrooms are my favorite part of Lowndes Lane. Each one has a unique sink bowl.
So, that’s a glimpse into our lives as of late. Come back for more soon…
Life and Death
Have you ever experienced life and death in a matter of moments?
Recently a friend shared the wonderful news that she is pregnant. She had suspected it for awhile–in fact, she took TEN pregnancy tests until her husband told her to stop spending money on them because she wasn’t pregnant. That may sound harsh, but this IS their fourth addition to the family! Needless to say, hearing the pregnancy was officially confirmed was both fun and exciting. (Their youngest is 5 months. Can you say, “Adventure”?!)
As I was rejoicing with my friend and listening to what she told her husband (which was a big fat, but very sweet, “I told you so!”), I got a message from another friend. While in mid-rejoicing mode, I was quickly slammed with the coldness of tragedy. My second friend had just lost her father. Wow. Life and death. High and low. Joy and pain…all in a very small moment. Who knew one instant could hold so much?
I wrestled with how to process such conflicting information in such a short amount of time. Of course, it’s easy to celebrate the newness of life. But celebrating death feels unnatural, even for people who have the hope of Eternity. The contrast of emotions was very confusing.
This week will be somewhat similar, in that I am preparing to face both joy and sorrow in an abbreviated span of time.
Today my husband and l celebrated as we began the “labor and delivery” process for the home we are building. We officially broke ground today, with a projected due date of October. Just like the Egyptians built pyramids and the Israelites built temples to represent something of importance, our home on Troubadour Lane will stand as a monument of triumph, freedom, and healing for our family. It is more than just a place to live; it marks the birth of a new season for us. To watch as it is birthed before our very eyes is a miracle. Over the next few months we will see our house grow and develop, morphing into what it has been purposed to be: a place of peace, hope, joy and growth for our family and for others. I am in awe to have the privilege of watching it all unfold.
Sadly, only two days after celebrating the birth of my own family’s new phase of life, I’ll be in Charleston with my three brothers, packing up our childhood season as we move our Mom into her new house. We will be dividing up the furniture and moving things that haven’t been moved in twenty years. It seems almost like desecrating a temple. But a house is not supposed to be a museum, and that is what Mayfield has become…a preservation of the way things used to be. The bright side is that with every box we pack at Mayfield, we will have the joy of unpacking at Mom’s new home on Lowndes Lane.
While I know that the structure of a house is not what makes it a home, I also recognize the important role it plays as the backdrop for the stages of life. This weekend my brothers and I will be putting away the set of our childhood, and I am reminded of the same clash of joy and sorrow from a few weeks ago.
So from the delivery room to the funeral home I go, watching as both life and death unfold, awkwardly intermingled.
The “Delivery Room”: Our dirt on Troubadour Lane. Due date of October, 2008.
Childhood home on Mayfield Street. That’s my dog, Norfleet, spread-eagle on the lawn!
My Friends Are Better Than Your Friends
Yes, you read the title right. My friends are better than yours. In fact, I challenge you to a friend duel because let’s face it…my friends are just cool. My earlier post gave a shout-out to my friend Shawn Wood, who is releasing his book this month and is rumored to have a second one in the works. (See below post for info on 200 Pomegranates and an Audience of One.) But he’s just one of the many cool friends I have that are better than your friends.
For example, let’s take my friend Jamie Hamic, who is shown rubbing elbows with George W in the pictures above. She is a new friend whom I plan on becoming close friends with because the coolest things happen to her! First of all, Jamie Hamic is the mother of FOUR girls and is pregnant again! Having all those beautiful girls in the family is about to pay off—she and her oldest daughter are flying to NYC this weekend for a Family Circle Magazine mother-daughter modeling competition. What she’s done in one week—from hanging with Mr. President, being a Mommy to five, to heading to the Big Apple for a modeling competition—would be a lifetime of accomplishments for me! I’m trying to remember what I did this week…um, fed the fish, moved the microwave to where the coffee maker was and the coffee maker to where the microwave was, met a new neighbor who donated a couch to the Furnish The Davis Family’s Empty Apartment Cause, cleaned the toaster (have you looked inside your toaster lately?), etc. Whoa. Take it easy, Carrie.
Needless to say, the highlight of my week was today when I got to hang out with the Hamic girls—all five of them, plus Ella and baby in utero made for 7 girls, one unknown, and Nathaniel. Even though Nathaniel was surrounded by estrogen and beauty, he refused emphatically to cave in to the peer pressure and play dress up, even if it was as Prince Charming. Anyway, the purpose of our Girl Time was to help Jamie plan her outfits for her NYC trip. Naturally, I showed up on her doorstep with an entire suitcase of clothes, jewelry, and shoes. So while my clothes, shoes, and jewelry are touring the Big City, I’ll be in Charlotte changing the fish’s water. Maybe I’ll even move him next to the microwave.
So from last weekend’s jaunt with Mr. President & Co, to the week of being stay-at-home Mommy to an entire cheerleading team of her own, to modeling in NYC…Jamie Hamic, you’re my hero! Go win that competition Girl…and look good doing it!
So what have your friends done lately?
200 Pomegranates and an Audience of One
“Everyone longs to live a life of meaning and purpose, to leave something of real worth behind when we’re gone. All too often, we feel that our day-to-day tasks make no difference in the great scheme of things. The truth is exactly the opposite—God has given each of us extraordinary power to create beauty and transform the world through our daily work and ordinary actions. You have immense potential to develop your God-given talents and contribute something that makes a difference in the world, be it through construction or counseling, doing people’s taxes carefully and ethically, or raising and teaching children. Even if your contribution seems to go unnoticed by others, you can rest assured that God sees and values your work.
200 Pomegranates and an Audience of One draws on the story of obscure Old Testament figure Huram of Tyre, an artist putting the finishing touches on Solomon’s temple. He honed his craft and contributed something of beauty and excellence, though some of his most detailed and time-consuming work was more than thirty feet off the ground, where few people would notice its intricacies. Likewise, we have the ability and opportunity to create something of worth, be it for the lasting enjoyment of others or for God’s eyes only. We may not all be artistic in the traditional sense, but we are nonetheless creators, made in the image of God the Creator and endowed with skills and talents that can honor God and impact our world. Every good mom is an artist, molding her children as creations of God. Every ethical businessperson leaves a legacy of people seeing God through his or her careful work. Every after-school teacher leaves an indelible mark on the young people whose parents are busy just making ends meet.
You too are an artist, equipped with a palette of skills and strengths that can honor God and impact the world in amazing ways. Where will you make your mark?”
This is an excerpt from the book I wish I had written! My friend Shawn Wood, the Experiences and Creative Communications Pastor and a Teaching Pastor for Seacoast Church, is the author and he is a fellow Communicator of Truth! This book is available for pre-order through Amazon on 8-08-08.
Buy it.
Read it.
Spread the word, people!
Available for advance purchase online 08-08-08 at www.amazon.com
Available everywhere great books are sold 9-01-08
I Have a Dream
I’m sitting at home alone stalking people on Facebook while my hubby is out of town changing the world. Don’t feel sorry for me. I have a bag of Starburst jellybeans, a tall cold Coke (at 12:32 a.m.), and plenty of mental energy that I’ll be longing for in about seven hours when the kids wake up. So, while I should be in bed dreaming right now, I’m sitting on the floor of my empty apartment with a blank screen in front of me…dreaming.
I’ve blogged before that I battle claustrophobia—except my phobia is more of being confined to a small life, rather than small spaces. When I was in high school and college I had big dreams of impacting, influencing, and inspiring people. When Nate and I were dating we had big dreams of traveling and building the Kingdom together. I remember flying to California together for a wedding and using the time on the plane to dream about our first year of marriage. We talked of selling everything we owned (which was a coffee table, a guitar, and alot of clothes from Express, Gap, and Banana Republic) to go backpacking for a year. But then we got married and had kids and traded in our dreams for hard decisions, like becoming a one-income family, becoming a one-car family, living with family members, etc.
Every once and a while something happens to make me realize that I spend way too much time in the real world and not enough time in La-La Land. My family has spent it’s early years of development in survival mode, but I believe we are emerging from that time as stronger, wiser, and more faithful people. A new season is upon us! So I’m taking some time to dream tonight. And I want you to do the same.
My Dreams:
-I have a dream of celebrating my 75th wedding anniversary with Nate. I dream of dancing to our song “Come Away With Me” by Norah Jones, cutting the cake and feeding it to each other through our dentures, while celebrating each other wholeheartedly and unreservedly. I dream of upholding and preserving my marriage, fighting for my husband’s integrity, and teaching women how they can do the same. And I dream of sharing a million kisses from now until that day in 2078.
-I have a dream of planting my family on Troubadour Lane in Charlotte for the next 20 years. I dream of giving my children the same gift of growing up in one home that my parents gave to me. I dream of them bringing their children to their childhood home to visit Mimi and Pop. I want them to remember when they were three and got stung by a bee on the front porch, or when the Tooth Fairy came to visit for the first time. I dream of hearing them tell their spouse about how they did their homework at the kitchen table while Mom made homemade chocolate chip cookies or how Dad grilled out on the back deck in the summertime. I dream of watching my family grow “in wisdom and in stature, and in favor with God and man” while living together at 15632 Troubadour Lane. (1 Samuel 2:26)
-I dream of being a better Mom tomorrow than I was today…and to continue that for the rest of my life.
-I dream of supernaturally mastering the Ezzo’s Biblical guide to parenting and then sharing this beacon of hope with every parent I encounter! (www.growingkids.org and www.gfi.org)
-I dream of leaving my thumb print on the world somehow, someway, someday. I think that will be done by allowing myself to be used as a communicator of Truth. I dream of God giving me words to write and speak that will cause chains to be broken, lives to be healed, and eyes to be opened so that Jesus Christ is revealed.
-I dream of dying with no regrets. I dream of living a life to the fullest. I want to squeeze out every drop of life while I’m here. And then I want to walk into eternity and live in glory with the person who is Life Himself.
What are some of your dreams?
A New ‘Do
Since my life in general seems to be undergoing a serious makeover, I figured it was time to revamp the Blog and give it a new ‘do. I can’t guarantee this look will last. I may get wild and try on a few skins for size. Bear with me during my blogging identity crisis!
(On that note, does anyone know of an affordable “blog stylist”? I’d like something kind of edgy and urban…with a b&w photo or two from my archives.)
On a similar note, you know you’re in a blogging identity crisis when you start to ask yourself, “Why am I doing this?” I don’t really know the purpose of my blog—and I am the type of person that HAS to have purpose in everything I do! I also don’t know who reads this thing or why you read it.
So, if you’re a reader and you’re not linked on my page, that means I don’t know you yet. Drop me a line…I’d love to visit your page and add you to the blog roll.
Thanks for reading, people!
Love,
Carrie
Hmm.
Yes, his head is stuck. And I mean REALLY STUCK.
Yes, I had to pull the posts apart while pushing his head at the same time. Definitely could have used two more hands.
Yes, I had a brief moment of panic when I pictured my child surrounded by firemen, sawing the posts to free his head.
Yes, I imagined what my Mom would say when she came home to find her beautiful staircase completely hacked apart.
And yes, I vowed to be sure the staircase in the new house we are building is at least one toddler-head-length apart.
