"It's Gonna Be Alright..."

It's been awhile, yes I know. I love blogging & totally miss it when time simply doesn't allow but to be honest, life has been crazy. I truly don't ever remember a season of life that has been as overwhelming, consuming & exhausting as the one I have been in for the past several weeks. School, family, Thanksgiving, saying final good-byes this side of heaven to ones we love, difficult decisions, Christmas preparations, church commitments, disheartening conflicts, a shopping trip or two, life... Intermingled in there have been a few threats of depression... You know, not wanting to get out of bed to face the day since there is so much to do & you won't deny the fact that there is no way it can/will all get done as well as that black cloud of what should have gotten done yesterday or a week ago that's still waiting... Several times I just wanted to crawl in a hole & say, "I surrender... I give up... I can't do it..." and then the Lord reminds me of His presence or an unexpected note of encouragement comes in the mail or a friend messages me on facebook or a specific scripture is brought to my remembrance or one of our beautiful daughters gives me a hug or Kyle sits me down, looks me in the eye and says, "It's gonna be alright..." It's a scary feeling when you start asking yourself, "Am I going c-r-a-z-y???" Is this really me?" The other day as I sat with my Bible open, my journal before me & my pen in hand, the Lord specifically spoke to my heart and said, "Mendi, if there is more to do in your day than you have time to get done, you've taken on more than what I've asked of you. You've taken on things that I didn't ask you to do. I will NEVER give you more to accomplish than what time I give you to accomplish it in. You need to evaluate. You need to prioritize. You need to scale down. You need to let go. Life is not a burden, it is a blessing. Life is not a yoke, it is freedom. Life is not drudgery, it is joy." It's time to refocus on simplicity...

The teapot is hot & I'm eager to start my day but first a few special moments from the past several weeks...

(Kyle & Mal searching on-line for the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.)
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(Tuck...no other explanation needed other than PURE SWEETNESS...)
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(MaKayla's homemade biscuits...yum-oh!)
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(Friends...sisters...sisters-by-heart...M ♥ M ♥ M ♥ M ♥ )
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(Our awesome Pinterest creation that turned out perfect!)
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(Taste-testing the Pinterest creation...delish!)
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(Kyle creating his MU tie-blanket. So cozy!)
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(Love my girls... ♥ ♥ ♥ )
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(Science project with Dad...)
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(A special something, a special someone surprised me with for breakfast! ♥ )
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I have many pictures from Thanksgiving & Little Man's special birthday celebration yet they deserve their own post. :)

Be blessed today & remember to diligently seek God when allotting your every minute.
His plans may be very different than your own!
His plans define simplicity.
His plans bear fruit.
His plans bring freedom.
His plans are filled with JOY!

Love to each one who reads... ♥