Just a typical Saturday...

... in the Bleger house. We woke up around 8 AM, thoroughly enjoying the extra sleep time the girls gave us. We got ready, had breakfast, and headed out. We had a list to accomplish.


We drove to Farmington with minimal drama, always a plus. Went to the mall to price mattresses at the furniture store there. Realized that the mattresses were still cheaper at Sam's. Drove to Sam's, met my mom there, bought a twin size mattress (more on that later).


Next stop was target, where we purchased our presents for Operation Christmas Child. Every year we take the girls to pick out presents for this organization. Operation Christmas Child takes our presents...






... and deliver them to children in orphanages around the world. For most of these children, it is the only present they will receive. And, for our girls, it is a time to teach them what Christmas is really about, how blessed they really are, what it means to give. It is really neat to watch them look forward to this, to eagerly choose presents for little girls they will probably never meet.


After Target, we headed to the pet store. Why, you may ask? Because on Friday, Jerome brought home a fish. Apparently, one of his coworker's roommates moved out, leaving the fish. And somehow he convinced Jerome that it was a really good idea for the fish to live at our house.


He seemed to forget - I killed three beta fish in college. Fish are not my friends. Fish are food. We thought we had a brilliant thought - give the fish to Celine, Jerome's sister. But, when the fish came home, the girls promptly named the fish Sammy and began fighting over him. So, he's ours...


So, the trip to the pet store became a trip to get a tank that the cats couldn't get into (buffet=bad), and two friends for Sammy. Because apparently Sammy was lonely. So, now, I give you the Rat Pack. Sammy, Dean, and Frank. Although Sammy did die this morning while we were at church. So the remaining Rat Pack have been renamed Phineas and Ferb.

After the pet store, we met my mom for lunch at Fuddruckers (hallelujah), then headed back to Sam's to get our grocery/large quantities of sandwich baggies/diapers out the wazzoo.

So, why did we get a mattress?

Because Violet is two. And, as much as I hated to admit it, she was ready for a big girl bed. So the new mattress went on Katrina's bed (the top bunk), and Katrina's old mattress was paired with the matching box spring and set up in Violet's room. We dismantled the crib (sniff, sniff) and put it in storage. Hopefully, to be used again someday.

Violet was happily playing with her sisters while we did this. But, once her room was set up, she was all about it. "My big girl bed!"

She went to bed just fine, slept great. She even stayed in bed until we came in to get her! She's getting too big for me.

Once the girls were asleep, we had one more task to accomplish...

My man now has no hair! Don't ask me why he decided to shave his head in November, but
I think he looks cute. And, bonus for me - sometimes he gets his head stuck in his sweatshirt!


Yup, just a typical Saturday...

Thankful Thursday... God's Provision

This whole experience these last two years, if nothing else, has taught me so much more about trust than I ever expected to learn. While I am nowhere near where I want to be in trusting my Daddy, I am learning.


This week we have seen His provision in ways we would have never expected.


Katrina has been growing out of clothing, especially dresses, at a ridiculous rate. Some of our friends gave us clothes their daughters had outgrown. Included in the sack were four dresses.


Jerome closed a deal today that we sincerely doubted would get done. The client is in extreme physical pain, is very emotionally unstable, and has treated Jerome, well, like dirt. There have been numerous times that any other agent would have walked away. Jerome stuck with it, and today it closed. Right when God knew we needed it.


Another friend brought a garbage sack full of sweatshirts and jackets to our house last night. She was in charge of clearing out her kids' school's lost & found, and getting rid of everything. We now have at least a dozen new sweatshirts for myself & the girls.


We really needed two new tires and front brakes for my van. But we didn't have the money. At all. This week, we got a bonus from a client that was the exact amount we needed to do both.


When Jerome's parents left for France at the beginning of the month, they also closed the restaurant downtown for the month. Yippee, our mom got her first real vacation in who knows how long. But, they had a lot of food leftover that would go bad before they opened the restaurant again. We got sent to, essentially, clean out the fridge. Needless to say, this month my grocery bill has been diminished because of my in-laws' blessing. Much of the food we were given were items I won't normally buy - things like bacon, asparagus, French cheeses, grapes. My sweet mom-in-law even had the bakers bake six loaves of sandwich bread & freeze them so that we would have plenty of that while the bakery was closed.


Do I still worry? Unfortunately, yes. Do I still have trouble trusting God's plan when I can't see it? Yup. But, . Because is it getting easier to trust, even when I can't see? Absolutely. And weeks like this one, I never want to forget.


What are you thankful for this week?

Mama's new toy

One of my fav bloggers, MckMama, besides being super mom of four tiny hineys, is also a pro photographer. She often shares tidbits & tricks to help the photo-editing-impaired, such as myself.


This week, she shared how she creates the beautiful photo collages on her blog. And, while Photoshop terrifies the snot out of me, I really, really wanted to be able to make cool collages.


But Photoshop is how much? Seriously? For a disk?


Yeah, not happening.


Basically, my photo editing needs are simple. Get rid of the red eyes. Fix the photos taken when it's too dark for regular light but my brilliant flash doesn't think it's dark enough for it's expertise. Perhaps hide a facial blemish or two? But really, that's it.


Yes, I have a point and shoot. Yes, my husband has been pestering me for eons that we need one of the fancy-schmansy cameras that he and his techie buddies drool over. He would use it for work. We could take amazing photos of the girls. Whatever. I see the price tag, have a minor heart attack, and tell him politely to fuggetaboutit. I would rather be able to feed my children this month, thank you very much.


But, it would be nice for my children to not have the evil possessed look in their photos.


Enter - my new favorite toy. My cousins introduced me to Picasa last year at Thanksgiving. I watched them turn ho-hum everyday family photos into beautiful art. And it seemed really simple to use. Simple enough for me.


And, bonus! It was free! Seriously!


And, it is super easy to use. Easy enough that, the other night, I sat on the couch and edited ALL of this year's photos. I was then able to take my newly-edited photos and create something for some people for some upcoming holiday. Sorry, but they read this blog. Had to be vague.


And, I was able to create this:




My first collage! And, while I am by no means even considering the possibility of thinking about considering myself to be anywhere near the level of most of my friends, I can now edit my photos and create a collage!


I know, I'm proud too.

Other proud moments in our home this week included Madison's return to non-runny poop, Violet's success in climbing out of the tub on her own, Violet's subsequent lesson in the physics of water on a tile floor, and Katrina mastering the art of little sister wrestling. All in all, a momentous week in our home.

Techie Junkies

Since the girls have discovered the internet, this is how we spend many evenings:

Gathered around the computer, playing virtual princesses, practicing spelling and math, or just helping Mom on the farm. Oh, and sending Daddy chickens. They really like to send Daddy chickens for his farm. Or turkeys. Hmm...are the children trying to say something?

And although the youngest is still in the "look at piturs" stage of computer saviness, she still has just as much fun as the sisters.

All this to say - I will take snuggles however I can get them!

Please don't call the fashion police!

Yesterday, I let Madi pick her own outfit. This is what she chose:

And she just couldn't understand why I had issues with it! Oh well, give her time...

I called her a grape-flavored leopard the rest of the day.

Thankful Thursday...on Friday

I have come to treasure my daily devotionals from Crosswalk. I learn so much, and it is usually just what I needed to hear on that day. And, with the holidays just around the corner, it was again just what I needed to hear. Enjoy, and may it touch you as it inspired me.


Give Thanks
Mary Southerland


Today's Truth
"No matter what happens, always be thankful, for this is God's will for you who belong to Christ Jesus." (NLT)


Friend To Friend

The fourth-grader rose from his desk and walked slowly to the front of the classroom to deliver a report concerning the origins of the Thanksgiving holiday. With Thanksgiving just days away, the classroom was buzzing with excitement. The teacher shared the eagerness of her students and felt that she had done an adequate job of encouraging each child to focus on the true meaning of the holiday. Those hopes were soundly dashed against the words of the young speaker.
"The pilgrims came here seeking freedom of ... you know what. When they landed, they gave thanks to ... you know who. Because of these brave people, we can celebrate the Thanksgiving holiday and our freedom to worship every Sunday ... you know where."

We laugh at the thought of leaving God's name out of this childish writing but, in fact, many of us are just as guilty of leaving Him out of our daily walk - especially when it comes to giving thanks. While Thanksgiving does remind us to stop and give thanks, Thanksgiving is not just a national holiday to be celebrated for a few hours each November. Learning to live in the gear of perpetual thanksgiving is a life changing discipline. Giving thanks should be a natural characteristic and innate practice of every believer. It is thanking God for all that He has done as well as for all He is presently doing and going to do in the future. Thanksgiving heightens our awareness of His presence and thrives on an active, living faith - a faith that is not ashamed to boldly act or afraid to speak out even in the face of doubt.

The book of James tells us, "When you ask him, be sure that you really expect him to answer, for a doubtful mind is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the sin" (NLT).

Learning to be thankful - even when we cannot see, hear or understand what God is doing or how He is working - is authentic thanksgiving and the direct result of a living, active and personal faith in God. We often say that we need more faith in order to be more thankful. I don't think so! We operate in faith every single day. We flip a switch believing in faith that light will appear. We turn a key believing in faith that a car will start. We even go to a doctor we hardly know who scribbles an impossible - to - read prescription which we promptly take to a pharmacist we have never seen. This unknown druggist proceeds to fill the prescription, giving us a medicine with a name we cannot even pronounce. And we take it - all in blind faith! Amazing!

I believe that instead of pleading for more faith, we need to exercise the faith we already possess. As we continually step out in faith, not only will that faith grow stronger, but we will begin to trust God more, naturally developing an attitude of thanks. Faith does not believe that God can or will act. Faith believes that God is answering as we pray. And that truth, my friend, will send us to our knees in praise and thanksgiving.

Don't leave God out of your Thanksgiving celebration. Instead, realize that He is the very reason you can experience abundant and eternal life. Do not let the day pass without finding a few moments to be alone, thanking Him for His magnificent bounty in our hearts and in our lives.


Let's Pray

Father, my faith seems so small and weak. I confess that I have allowed fear to invade my heart and mind. Right now, I choose against that fear and step out in faith, thanking You for what You have done in my life, for what You are going to do today and in every tomorrow of my life. Make me aware of Your presence today and give me the courage to share with others what You have done for me.
In Jesus' name, Amen.


Now it's Your Turn

Examine your life for evidences of faith at work.
Would you consider your heart attitude to be one of praise and thanks? Why? Why not?
What changes do you need to make in order to cultivate a thankful heart?
What is the importance of thanksgiving as it relates to faith?

To Our Veterans

Thank you for all you have and will give to our country. Thank you for sacrificing your time, your talents, your desires, and your life. You have sacrificed these things for a greater call that many argue about, fewer still believe in, and even fewer are willing to fight for. Please know that your sacrifice has not been in vain. We are still blessed to call this country the Home of the Free and the Land of the Brave because of you.







To my Soldiers (past, present, and future) - Daddy, Mike, Steven, Brad, Bob, Ryan, John, Tyler, Kevin, Clint, Serenity, Jonathan, and so many others - you are my heros. Thank you.

If you are blessed enough to have a veteran or active member of the Armed Services in your life, please take the time to honor and thank them today. Regardless of your political beliefs, it is their sacrifice that allows you to have that belief.