My Home Sweet Home: Decorated with Family, Faith, and Photoshop

Decorated with Family, Faith, and Photoshop

Sunday Scripture today at (in)courage

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Sunday Scripture at (in)courage

{I will update you soon on the birth of our first granddaughter, but today’s Sunday Scripture post at (in)courage was written last week, before she was born!}

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world,
but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned,
but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed
in the name of God’s one and only Son.
John 3:16-18 NIV

FOR GOD SO LOVED . . .

Because our eight children are separated by 19 years from top to bottom, my husband and I straddle two seasons of parenting. We have four school-age children at home, but we also have one grandson, another due in September, and our oldest daughter was due with our first granddaughter two days ago, as I’m writing this post.

I’ve known the depth of mother-love for years, but being a grandparent is heady stuff, too. And as I wait for the call from my daughter–the one announcing labor has begun and we’ll meet our granddaughter soon–I’m torn between feelings of excitement and the dread of seeing my daughter in pain, unable to take it for her.

My mother didn’t stay in the delivery room the entire time with me (she’d just pop in to see how I was doing) until my fourth child’s birth. I wanted her there, but she couldn’t handle it. It was frustrating at the time; now I understand how she felt.

Join me today at (in)courage for the rest of my story and how it ties in to your story too.

Sunday Scripture

March 2018 Desktop Calendar

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March 2018 Desktop Calendar

Birth and rebirth are on my mind, and the image and verse for this month’s calendar reflect it. Our oldest daughter is past her due date with our first granddaughter; we’re waiting for the phone to ring to race to the hospital!

Our family is full of March babies: my husband and I, our second son, and our only grandson were born in March.

Although spring doesn’t officially start for almost three weeks, it’s definitely in the air here in Georgia. Bradford Pears are filled with white blooms, the petals already falling from many as green leaves take their place.

I found this tulip tree, or Japanese Magnolia, when I hopped in the car with my camera to go capture some of them. This was one of the few blooms still fresh enough to photograph, the ground covered with its purply-pink petals.

I love the hidden detail in the center and like to imagine I’m the only human to see it, although I’m happy to share it with you. :)

I added an image of Bradford Pear blossoms at the top of my home page (email subscribers can see it here).

How’s the weather in your neck of the woods?

With Love, Mom releases this week!

Writers like to say that we birth our books, so my daughter isn’t the only one bringing something new into the world this week. With Love, Mom releases this Tuesday, March 6. It’s filled with stories about mothers and daughters; I wrote one for each of my four daughters and my mother.

Maybe my first granddaughter will arrive on the day when a book mentioning her—although I didn’t know my daughter was having a girl when I wrote the story—is published!

With Love, Mom includes stories from Rachel Macy Stafford, Holley Gerth, Jennifer Dukes Lee, Wynter Pitts, Rachel Anne Ridge, and more than 30 other beloved voices as they share their journeys and parenting memories. These stories are just lovely and I promise you’ll treasure this collection !

Download March’s Desktop Calendar

Enjoy!

Date Night Roundup!

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Hello, friends! Here are some fresh date night options, either for couples dates or dates with your kids. Thanks to our new Movie Pass cards, we’re seeing more movies at the theater than ever! Recents include 12 Strong, The Darkest Hour, Maze Runner: Death Cure (with my 16-year-old son), Game Night (this was a Regal card screening, not yet in theaters), The 15:17 to Paris, and Black Panther.

Black Panther

Black Panther
I love most of what Marvel releases and Black Panther is no exception! The setting was fascinating and I loved both the new characters and the development of characters from related movies.

Chadwick Boseman is just so likable and a great Black Panther. Letitia Wright, who plays Shuri, T’Challa’s (the Black Panther’s) sister, is like a teenage, female Q from the Bond movies—so cool! The female characters in this movie are strong, positive roll models. This is a great role for Marvin Freeman too, as CIA agent Everett K. Ross.

If you haven’t seen photos of the Black Panther Red Carpet premier, check out the amazing clothing worn by the actors.

Game Night

Game Night

Game Night releases on Friday the 23rd. A weekly couples’ game night gets out of control when the kidnapping in a murder mystery party turns real. This one calls for suspension of disbelief; I laughed a lot.

It’s rated R for language and some violence (no sex or nudity), although a lot of the violence is comic in nature.

Amazon Prime Video

Endeavour
Endeavour
A good friend recommended Endeavour and we’ve watched the first two episodes this week—I love it! We’re reading detective fiction (Father Brown and Sherlock Holmes) in the high school class I teach one day a week, analyzing the difference in fictional detectives and how they operate.

I like the show’s primary character Constable Morse: an isolated but intelligent rookie who doesn’t get much respect from his fellow officers—either from envy or who knows why (more of his backstory seems to be revealed in each episode)—except for his boss Inspector Thursday.

The setting is 1960s Oxford, England, and the episodes are long, approximately an hour and a half each.

Logan Lucky
Logan Lucky
I saw Logan Lucky twice in the theater and I’m tickled to see it added to Amazon Prime Video this month.

Rent 20th Anniversary Tour at the Fox

Rent 20th Anniversary Tour
Rent comes to the Fox Theatre in Atlanta on its 20th anniversary tour from February 20-28. From the official website:

In 1996, an original rock musical by a little-known composer opened on Broadway… and forever changed the landscape of American theatre. Two decades later, Jonathan Larson’s RENT continues to speak loudly and defiantly to audiences across generations and all over the world. And now, this Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award®-winning masterpiece returns to the stage in a vibrant 20th anniversary touring production. A re-imagining of Puccini’s La Bohème, RENT follows an unforgettable year in the lives of seven artists struggling to follow their dreams without selling out. With its inspiring message of joy and hope in the face of fear, this timeless celebration of friendship and creativity reminds us to measure our lives with the only thing that truly matters—love.

This show is not recommended for children under 13.

What is the best movie you’ve seen recently or your favorite streamable show?

Planning for a Winning Valentine’s Day at (in)courage

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Valentine’s Day is next week, a holiday just as likely to cause disappointment as celebration. Watch your Facebook feed on February 14 and you’re sure to see a variety of responses. I’ve mulled this over — because honestly, I’d like to offer up something that helps — and I wonder if our expectations are a big part of the problem, whether married or single, dating or unattached.

We’ve got six days until the big (one) day, so you’ve still got time to talk expectations with your loved ones. Click on over to (in)courage and let’s talk about some ways to make next Wednesday a winner, no matter what we do.