A Beautiful Mess....

Life so often is a "beautiful mess" isn't it!?!? As Norris gets more comfortable with his new home he is showing more of his "puppy-ness." We borrowed my parent's crate (or crate-tell...like cradle, as M says) after Norris got into a lot of trouble on Friday while the kids and I were at a playgroup B-Day Party all morning...so a crate was in order! He has been so spoiled having everyone home for so long with all the snow we've gotten-- everything has been canceled- even church! I don't think he knows quite what to do when "his people" aren't home...it's neat to have such a calming affect on him when we are here...it reminds me of how God calms me...

Last night we went over to my parents house for dinner bc some of our "beach buds" were visiting...it was so good to see Becky and Bob and enjoy time together and eat yummy food...we had put Norris in the crate, but upon returning home he had busted out of it (I must not have latched it all the way) gotten into a ton of trouble and eaten half a bag of Hershey Kisses-- wrappers and all-- from Mike's school bag (he was bringing them home from school to share with the family)...So a trip to the emergency vet was in order since chocolate can be fatal to dogs...

We were thinking about how Norris greeted us so excitedly and unashamed of all he had done last night...how he ran to his masters and how we as people a lot of times try to hide our "mess" from God when we should just honestly run to Him unashamed...After a pricey couple of hrs and some help from the vet Mike and Norris returned home last night around 1:30am...

Our V-Day plans changed a bit as we needed to monitor our dog and make sure he was doing okay...we hung around the house instead of going to church (we were disappointed bc we have missed so much due to snow), but it was nice to relax, Mike made a fun V-Day breakfast for the kids, and they got to open their gifts...M got some new rain boots and Carter got 3 little Sesame Street figurines to play with from us (they also got some other fun stuff pictured in these photos from their aunts!)...they got to take baths in the morning, and then we headed out as a family to eat Mexican for lunch and let Norris try the crate again for 1 hr...

We had a wonderful meal-- the kids did great (you never know how it will turn out! We don't get to go out to eat much so it was awesome that it was so enjoyable for everyone!) And Norris was a little angel in his crate while we were away.... :)

I am so grateful for my family and that they love me so well each day of the year and they love me despite all my quarks and my "mess"...I am grateful for a God who loved me first so that I could know what real love looks like and I'm grateful that He wants me to run to Him everyday with my "mess" and ask Him for His peace...

As we approached this V-Day I've been thinking a lot about And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love. ~1 Cor. 13:13. ....I loved the footnote in our Bible:

"In morally corrupt Corinth, love had become a mixed-up term with little meaning. Today people are still confused about love. Love is the greatest of all human qualities, and it is an attribute of God Himself (1 John 4:8). Love involves unselfish service to others; to show it gives evidence that you care.

FAITH is the foundation and content of God's message;
HOPE is the attitude and focus;
LOVE is the action.
When faith and hope are in line, you are free to love completely because you understand how God loves."

I am so grateful for the love I feel this V-Day...He looks so innocent doesn't he?!?! I love how he sleeps with his stuffed animals like a kid! :) I'm looking forward to when the fam wakes up from their Happy Nappies...Norris included! :) Happy V-Day to you and yours!!! :)