Pickles and Ice Cream

What a tremendous blessing and incredible way to start off the new year!

We recently found out that we are expecting our FIFTH gift! We couldn't

be any more excited and are so looking forward to meeting our

newest family member!

I am three months along and feel so blessed to assist God in this miracle....

A wise woman prayed for me recently and spoke over me that this child

is very significant because it is our fifth child and FIVE represents Gods'

full hand upon our lives- His full blessing and full grace.

In the meantime, He has blessed my husband with a new job and we will

be moving in June to a new place after our oldest graduates from high school.

So we have put our house on the market, and are making plans to move,

find new schools, etc. and the whole nine yards.  All of these "new "

things have allowed us the opportunity to trust HIM deeper than ever before

and to press forward. We are excited and a little worried all at the same time!

We are prayerful that this is the right decision for our growing family and 

continue to walk out our faith daily. Some days, are a little harder than others

but our prayer has been- your perfect will. Not ours Lord. Not, your permissive 

will- but your perfect will be done.......

Great Joy!

JOY! It's different than happiness. Joy. It's different than excitement. Joy is -in my own humble opinion,

contentment in our heart, mind and soul. It's being filled with things that money cannot buy.

It's the ability to look at our life and say without doubt or hesitation .."I am blessed" and mean it.

Joy surpasses happiness, enthusiasm, excitement and many other things. One dictionary

describes joy as a "source of delight".  

For me personally, my joy and source of delight comes from my children.

I love nothing more than to watch them, to listen to them. To spend time with them.

When they speak to me- it's important. I get down on my knees and look into their

beautiful faces and I listen. I hang on their words. I journal their day to day comments

and interactions with one another. I dress up. I dance. I sing. I let them "put the love in"

when I'm cooking. I pretend and create. I color and draw and "make decorations" for

make believe parties. I read stories and play grocery store. Sometimes I'm the customer,

and sometimes they allow me to be the clerk. I play beauty shop, bank, school and

savor every moment. I let the laundry go. I order take out  and I enter into the place

that my children live in every day. The State of Joy.  Capital , Delight.  Population, 4 Children , 2 Adults.

May you find in 2008 your very own state of joy.

Blessed New Year- Clutter Free!

I love the beginning of something new. A clean slate. A fresh start. This is just what the new year offers each of us. Last year I learned the power of the word "no." As a natural born people pleaser with a big mercy gift, it had always been hard for me to say "no"- to anyone for anything. I wanted so much to help, serve, sow and just be a blessing in general.  There were many opportunities in 2007 for me to practice using my new word. I remember how difficult and how strange it felt saying it time and time again. I would ask myself over and over, do I REALLY want to do this?  God really had to teach me how to reign in my mercy gift and that everyones crisis and emergency didn't need to become mine! God has shown me that 2008 is going to be a year of tremendous blessing and that part of that is going to come once I put my hand to the plow and weed out the garden that is my life. A little clutter control! Getting organized, paring down, simplifying, letting go and cutting loose. In doing so, I will be making room for the things in my life that I really want- and nothing else. In 2008 I only have room in my life for the lovely. I only have room in my life for the people, places and things that are full of goodness, love, beauty, light and positive energy. Friends who are pure in heart can celebrate with you, rejoice with you, be present in the relationship, give as well as receive and support you during difficult times. 

 God has recently been ministering to me that when my life is cluttered and the space is occupied with people and things that I don't want, there really isn't very much room available for what I do want. It is my job to care for and protect the life He has blessed me with. So this year, one beautiful day at a time I am paring down and I am weeding out so that I can make room for the beautiful blooms that are going to blossom in my life this year. This year is going to be full of life, full of fragrance and full of growth and I thank God for teaching me how to weed out the garden He has given me.

What A Blessing To Meet You

Thank you for visiting Pearls and Grace! I am a stay at home Mother of five children whom I refer to here very often as my gifts. I have been parenting for nineteen years and have loved every minute of it. Even the difficult times. If you read this blog for more than five minutes you will also see that I love the Lord with all of my heart. Mainly because it took me more than half my life to realize that He loves me and most importantly that I am His Pearl.  My years of parenting my oldest daughter as a single Mother would have gone a lot smoother if I had known those simple truths. But not knowing coupled with a lot of adversity is what gave me my testimony.  Looking back now, I am so grateful. It's what motivates me to edify, lift, support and encourage others. A tremendous honor in this life I call my own.

I started this blog as a way to encourage others. I also started it as a place to write. I love to write. I mean I love it. I also love photography and love to encourage God's precious women!

My passion for those three things allowed me to give birth to Pearls and Grace. I thought if I could encourage even one -this blog was worth my time. If even one gets the revelation knowledge of who she is and how much He loves her then this blog is worth my time. If even one woman turns her heart back toward Him again- then it's worth it. If even one would be inspired or encouraged - then it's worth it. I never dreamed that it would actually happen. I just so desperately wanted to share what I have learned so that others would have a source of encouragement.  I also wanted to share what He has done in my life. It is really something.

Most would never believe the adversity that I have lived through.  I am full of gratitude for it.

You will see that for yourself while visiting here. I write from the heart. My prayer is that you would find hope, encouragement and inspiration here but most importantly that you would

find Him.

You are His Pearl.....walk in that truth.

Blessings,

Pearls and Grace