My favorite part about being pregnant is definitely feeling the baby moving. I don't think I'll ever tire of it. Everything has happened so early this time that I've been enjoying the little kicks for weeks. More recently I can feel him/her turning over and other random movements. I love it! The baby is getting stronger for sure!
The last time we had a couple speak at our church I miscarried our ninth baby. Thankfully this weekend, I was much further along than last September, and I was able to enjoy the encouraging talks and my wiggly baby of 23 weeks.
Rick and Marilyn Boyer have fourteen children and have homeschooled for thirty years! Now that is experience! We were so blessed by their talks and resources. Their blog is http://thelearningparent.blogspot.com/ and they also have a website by the same name. They've spoken often at the HEAV convention and have close friendships with many of the homeschooling pioneers in our state, including the late and dear Christopher Klicka.
Thankfully when discouragment feels overwhelming, God has already launched a great dose of encouragment that will arrive just in the nick of time. : ) That was the Boyers for me this weekend!
Even potty training has been on the upswing lately. We have had a success almost daily for several days! Phew! I knew the boy would get to wear underwear before graduating, but I wasn't so sure that it would be soon. There is hope afterall!
After living in our house for seven years, I decided to make a few window treatments. Kendal had already made the ones in the kitchen and dining room and they were beautiful. I made three for our bedroom with a matching pillow on Friday. It cost less than $30 for all the materials and we have three windows. Today I made three more treatments for the living room/dining room area for about $15. Now that I am on a roll, I hope on Wednesday to made two for the room over the garage.
I've had a strange, ragged piece of material hanging in our bathroom window for months. Once Kendal tired of it and sewed it up. It still needs help. So I bought a remnant that matches that room and draped it over the half made other thing...it's a tiny window, you'd think I could pull it off. The problem is that I love light and won't block it out for privacy or any other reason. And their are no blinds in there. Eventually I will be inspired and finish all the projects. For today, I'm enjoy the new view in three rooms. : ) and my wiggly baby!
Monday, February 22, 2010
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
Daddy's trying hard
My husband is trying very hard to be more attentive to the disciplinary needs that arise when he is home. It's difficult for him since he has this incredible skill of blocking out everything that is unpleasant. : ) That helps him to always have a happy countenance. Afterall, ignorance is bliss! We laugh about this together often. Sometimes I cry or whine about it because I, on the other hand, can hear everything.
Last night, he and I were enjoying some quiet time in the den when a fight broke out in one of the bedrooms between a son and daughter of ours. This particular son and daughter are like oil and water. There is always very loud sqealing and yelling involved when they disagree.
The new and improved husband called out to the son and asked him to come and sit in front of us on the coffee table. Without asking what was happening in the back of the house, he informed our son that he should never under any circumstances enter the girls' room ever again. He reiterated it several times very authoritatively and even our older two daughters raised their eyebrows at Dad's new firm approach. I'm sure they were hoping this would be the solution to the noisy problem we are enduring everyday between these two children. The son was asked if he understood his new instructions, which he did, and as he left the den, the son quitely said, "but I was in your room"!!! HA HA HA HA HA!
Needless to say, atleast three of us nearly peed in our pants laughing at the predicament that my husband was in. He blew it off and sent the son on his way to get ready for bed without aggravating the daughter any further. But we all continued to roll in laughter, including my husband. I should clarify that we weren't mocking him or discouraging him at all. We were laughing with him. And it was a hoot! Even an hour later we got a healthy belly laugh remembering his attempt at stern parenting. If only it were so easy.
Last night, he and I were enjoying some quiet time in the den when a fight broke out in one of the bedrooms between a son and daughter of ours. This particular son and daughter are like oil and water. There is always very loud sqealing and yelling involved when they disagree.
The new and improved husband called out to the son and asked him to come and sit in front of us on the coffee table. Without asking what was happening in the back of the house, he informed our son that he should never under any circumstances enter the girls' room ever again. He reiterated it several times very authoritatively and even our older two daughters raised their eyebrows at Dad's new firm approach. I'm sure they were hoping this would be the solution to the noisy problem we are enduring everyday between these two children. The son was asked if he understood his new instructions, which he did, and as he left the den, the son quitely said, "but I was in your room"!!! HA HA HA HA HA!
Needless to say, atleast three of us nearly peed in our pants laughing at the predicament that my husband was in. He blew it off and sent the son on his way to get ready for bed without aggravating the daughter any further. But we all continued to roll in laughter, including my husband. I should clarify that we weren't mocking him or discouraging him at all. We were laughing with him. And it was a hoot! Even an hour later we got a healthy belly laugh remembering his attempt at stern parenting. If only it were so easy.
Mountain of God
I took our littlest one to Trader Joe's today. It's a long trek from our house but worth the quality and savings. On the way home I had one of those moments when I am driving, I know I am on the right road, but I really can't remember where I am or what comes next. It used to scare me because it sounds like the early signs of Alzheimers disease-that was ten years ago. Now I just blame it on all the brain cell donations I've made to our nine babies and that I've lived here long enough to be able to drive home without thinking very hard.
In that forgetful moment today I had some revelations. I've never been afraid that I won't find my way. I've never stopped the van to figure out my location. I've always been confident that I am on the right road and know that when I need to make a turn I will recognize it...God is so good. This is a great metaphor for my life when I am discouraged or tempted to lose heart.
When the temporary memory loss happens in the van, within a few seconds I remember where I am. It's like walking in faith. Generally I know my life is on the "right" path, the 0ne of wisdom described in Proverbs. Likewise, I have never just stopped or quit on the life I believe God wants me to live for Him. Oh! Have I been tempted!!! But I always keep doing what I've been doing. Thankfully, when I hang on, He sends comfort, encouragment and confirmation that He wants me to keep going in the same direction. I love Him for this!
Near the end of our ride, I heard a song that really blessed me. It's from Third Day and I've never heard it before. This song is not my favorite style but the words were very meaningful today:
"Mountain Of God"
Thought that I was all alone
Broken and afraid
But You were there with me
Yes, You were there with me
And I didn't even know
That I had lost my way
But You were there with me
Yes, You were there with me
'Til You opened up my eyes
I never knew
That I couldn't ever make it
Without You
Even though the journey's long
And I know the road is hard
Well, the One who's gone before me
He will help me carry on
After all that I've been through
Now I realize the truth
That I must go through the valley
To stand upon the mountain of God
As I travel on the road
That You have lead me down
You are here with me
Yes, You are here with me
I have need for nothing more
Oh, now that I have found
That You are here with me
Yes, You are here with me
I confess from time to time
I lose my way
But You are always there
To bring me back again
Sometimes I think of where it is I've come from
And the things I've left behind
But of all I've had, what I possessed
Nothing can quite compare
With what's in front of me
With what's in front of me
[ THIRD DAY LYRICS at www.AZLyrics.com
In that forgetful moment today I had some revelations. I've never been afraid that I won't find my way. I've never stopped the van to figure out my location. I've always been confident that I am on the right road and know that when I need to make a turn I will recognize it...God is so good. This is a great metaphor for my life when I am discouraged or tempted to lose heart.
When the temporary memory loss happens in the van, within a few seconds I remember where I am. It's like walking in faith. Generally I know my life is on the "right" path, the 0ne of wisdom described in Proverbs. Likewise, I have never just stopped or quit on the life I believe God wants me to live for Him. Oh! Have I been tempted!!! But I always keep doing what I've been doing. Thankfully, when I hang on, He sends comfort, encouragment and confirmation that He wants me to keep going in the same direction. I love Him for this!
Near the end of our ride, I heard a song that really blessed me. It's from Third Day and I've never heard it before. This song is not my favorite style but the words were very meaningful today:
"Mountain Of God"
Thought that I was all alone
Broken and afraid
But You were there with me
Yes, You were there with me
And I didn't even know
That I had lost my way
But You were there with me
Yes, You were there with me
'Til You opened up my eyes
I never knew
That I couldn't ever make it
Without You
Even though the journey's long
And I know the road is hard
Well, the One who's gone before me
He will help me carry on
After all that I've been through
Now I realize the truth
That I must go through the valley
To stand upon the mountain of God
As I travel on the road
That You have lead me down
You are here with me
Yes, You are here with me
I have need for nothing more
Oh, now that I have found
That You are here with me
Yes, You are here with me
I confess from time to time
I lose my way
But You are always there
To bring me back again
Sometimes I think of where it is I've come from
And the things I've left behind
But of all I've had, what I possessed
Nothing can quite compare
With what's in front of me
With what's in front of me
[ THIRD DAY LYRICS at www.AZLyrics.com
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Thankfully our week without Bob went smoothly and he is back safe and sound. We didn't make any great strides in potty training. But we did tighten up our morning rountine significantly. This was a great blessing to us all since it added nearly an hour to our morning.
The snow has been so much fun. Even Bob was involved. It is the most snow our children ever remember seeing. Of course I spent most of my time peeling off the wet, cold clothing of each person as they came inside. And I couldn't get the gloves and hats dry quickly enough for the next round of outdoor play. We still have a lovely scuplted snowwoman in our front yard. Many people have stopped to stare as they've driven by.
In preparation for the coming "blizzard" last week, we bought a propane stove. Its a camping stove and should not be used indoors. But in a crisis we'd gladly cook in the garage or near an open window. While we were in the camping aisle at Walmart I learned that we can purchase alot of neat things to help with our preparedness efforts. Maybe we will be able to make a small stash in our backpacks.
I did learn this morning when I left Noah on the potty alone that he successfully used it! I'll have to try that again. I've been afraid to leave him on the big potty for fear he'd fall off. Maybe privacy is all he's needed. We've been so annoyed when he immediately soils his diaper after sitting on the toilet for ten minutes!
We enjoyed the surprise element of not knowing our last baby's gender before birth. In fact, I enjoyed that so much that I thought we would never "peek" again. But over the last week, I've decided that I would rather be prepared over the next four months for the correct gender than be surprised for a few seconds. Given the opportunity, I will peek. Telling everyone else is still a question though.
The snow has been so much fun. Even Bob was involved. It is the most snow our children ever remember seeing. Of course I spent most of my time peeling off the wet, cold clothing of each person as they came inside. And I couldn't get the gloves and hats dry quickly enough for the next round of outdoor play. We still have a lovely scuplted snowwoman in our front yard. Many people have stopped to stare as they've driven by.
In preparation for the coming "blizzard" last week, we bought a propane stove. Its a camping stove and should not be used indoors. But in a crisis we'd gladly cook in the garage or near an open window. While we were in the camping aisle at Walmart I learned that we can purchase alot of neat things to help with our preparedness efforts. Maybe we will be able to make a small stash in our backpacks.
I did learn this morning when I left Noah on the potty alone that he successfully used it! I'll have to try that again. I've been afraid to leave him on the big potty for fear he'd fall off. Maybe privacy is all he's needed. We've been so annoyed when he immediately soils his diaper after sitting on the toilet for ten minutes!
We enjoyed the surprise element of not knowing our last baby's gender before birth. In fact, I enjoyed that so much that I thought we would never "peek" again. But over the last week, I've decided that I would rather be prepared over the next four months for the correct gender than be surprised for a few seconds. Given the opportunity, I will peek. Telling everyone else is still a question though.
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Deep thinking
After a very deep conversation with my sister last night, my mind has been so occupied today. My thoughts and our conversation are not directly related but it seems that it started a whirlwind in my head...
While trying to still potty train, homeschool, taxi to one part-time job, grocery shop, and keep up with laundry and sibling spats, I quizzed myself about why we haven't put anything in the backpacks we purchased this fall. They are supposed to be full of "survival gear". We discussed buying filtering waterbottles for every member of our family. It costs about $300 just to do that! We wondered about packing a set of clothing and shoes in each one with nuts, seeds, jerky, and first aid. Then we discussed that someone should carry rain gear, tents, blankets, knives, cord, weapons, maps, non-hybrid seeds, tarps...oh my!!! Who could carry all that stuff???
How can a family of ten (soon eleven) continue to eat organic, gluten free, take supplements, visit the chiropractor and orthodontist, and afford to make a stash for "later"?
I kept wondering, "how can I know what is most important for us to focus on?" I listened to a very few minutes of a webcast of Dr. Dale Sides, at Liberating Ministries for Christ. It was entitled Urban Survival. I read some links but I didn't really listen to much of the show. Through the links I learned that the items that are most necessary are most scarce. If you did own a generator or a lot of food, it would be stolen from you... I fast-forwarded to the middle, then towards the end of the webcast. The guest speaker was talking about having his bible, talking to God and listening to God. I wondered how he was incorporating that advice into the survival advice show. I didn't have time to listen and find out. But it struck me, in a peaceful way, asking God was the wisest choice.
There are people who stash money because they are afraid of being poor. There are those who hoard weapons because they'd rather die defending themselves. There are people who know all that is necessary for survival in the wild and have all the gear, but they still aren't at peace about the future. Christians do not agree whether the Lord will rapture the church out of this world before the toughest times arrive, or whether we will live through physical suffering. How can any of us be prepared when we don't know what we are preparing for?
We have family and friends who live in the mountains. They have room on their property to house our family. We've never asked to build a safe haven there. We wouldn't necessarily be able to communicate with them in order to come and stay if the worst happens. We are just going to have to trust God to tell us, if and when we need to make a change. For now, we will continue discussing and purchasing those small things that we can afford. But staying close to our Lord, keeping in the Word, holding our thoughts captive to the obedience of Christ are better for us than any amount of worrying over "tomorrow".
While trying to still potty train, homeschool, taxi to one part-time job, grocery shop, and keep up with laundry and sibling spats, I quizzed myself about why we haven't put anything in the backpacks we purchased this fall. They are supposed to be full of "survival gear". We discussed buying filtering waterbottles for every member of our family. It costs about $300 just to do that! We wondered about packing a set of clothing and shoes in each one with nuts, seeds, jerky, and first aid. Then we discussed that someone should carry rain gear, tents, blankets, knives, cord, weapons, maps, non-hybrid seeds, tarps...oh my!!! Who could carry all that stuff???
How can a family of ten (soon eleven) continue to eat organic, gluten free, take supplements, visit the chiropractor and orthodontist, and afford to make a stash for "later"?
I kept wondering, "how can I know what is most important for us to focus on?" I listened to a very few minutes of a webcast of Dr. Dale Sides, at Liberating Ministries for Christ. It was entitled Urban Survival. I read some links but I didn't really listen to much of the show. Through the links I learned that the items that are most necessary are most scarce. If you did own a generator or a lot of food, it would be stolen from you... I fast-forwarded to the middle, then towards the end of the webcast. The guest speaker was talking about having his bible, talking to God and listening to God. I wondered how he was incorporating that advice into the survival advice show. I didn't have time to listen and find out. But it struck me, in a peaceful way, asking God was the wisest choice.
There are people who stash money because they are afraid of being poor. There are those who hoard weapons because they'd rather die defending themselves. There are people who know all that is necessary for survival in the wild and have all the gear, but they still aren't at peace about the future. Christians do not agree whether the Lord will rapture the church out of this world before the toughest times arrive, or whether we will live through physical suffering. How can any of us be prepared when we don't know what we are preparing for?
We have family and friends who live in the mountains. They have room on their property to house our family. We've never asked to build a safe haven there. We wouldn't necessarily be able to communicate with them in order to come and stay if the worst happens. We are just going to have to trust God to tell us, if and when we need to make a change. For now, we will continue discussing and purchasing those small things that we can afford. But staying close to our Lord, keeping in the Word, holding our thoughts captive to the obedience of Christ are better for us than any amount of worrying over "tomorrow".
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
January photo frenzy
It happpens every January...we take more pictures than any one scrapbooker can begin to sort and paste. I am amazed looking back at how much I've already forgotten that happened after Christmas! So here's my fast track, photo recap of the last month.
The Saturday after Christmas, my sister and Brian, and my grandfather and his wife, Bea, came to visit. We had a nice lunch and a great afternoon catching up. It doesn't replace our childhood memories of what used to be "the Fahnestock gathering" (my mother's entire family gathering after Christmas), but it was wonderful to share the day with dear loved ones.
Here are all of our children with Carrie and Brian. They all adore one another. It blesses Bob and me greatly!
Our washer died one Friday, and wasn't repaired until the following Friday. The boys and I took all these clothes to the laundromat. We are so thankful for our home warranty and are shopping for a heavy duty washer. Until we could find a solution, we piled all the baskets of dirty laundry in our bedroom.
We have a wonderful friend who is a fireman. He gave us the grand tour one morning. All the children sat in the truck, of course. Here's Noah in the driver's seat.
And Steve with most of our group.
Bob and I usually forget to photograph ourselves and especially neglect pregnancy photos. We were surprised at the early appearance of our baby bump this time and took this 16 week photo.
On the sixth, Joy turned six. Kendal did a great job on the cake.
Dad and Susan visited one Saturday in January. We enjoyed a great lunch together. They brought Christmas gifts too. Susan was invited to help construct one of the gifts with Mary and found herself surrounded by girls for nearly two hours at the table.
Dad, Bob and our boys had no trouble connecting around a case of rifles and model airplanes. Kendal is opening her traditional Noah's Ark gift in this photo.
On the twenty-fifth, Mary turned four! She was very excited about her birthday this year! Since I stayed home from church with Noah, I was able to make her cake, sew her dress, wrap her presents and make lunch while everyone else was gone! (I should have the house to myself more often) We had a nice afternoon together enjoying her special day!
Mary looked like a little princess in her new dress, surrounded by her girly gifts!
We are so thankful for our family and friends who've already made this new year so special for us. And for this blog helps which me to remember so many of our blessings! Thank you, God!
The Saturday after Christmas, my sister and Brian, and my grandfather and his wife, Bea, came to visit. We had a nice lunch and a great afternoon catching up. It doesn't replace our childhood memories of what used to be "the Fahnestock gathering" (my mother's entire family gathering after Christmas), but it was wonderful to share the day with dear loved ones.
Here are all of our children with Carrie and Brian. They all adore one another. It blesses Bob and me greatly!
Our washer died one Friday, and wasn't repaired until the following Friday. The boys and I took all these clothes to the laundromat. We are so thankful for our home warranty and are shopping for a heavy duty washer. Until we could find a solution, we piled all the baskets of dirty laundry in our bedroom.
We have a wonderful friend who is a fireman. He gave us the grand tour one morning. All the children sat in the truck, of course. Here's Noah in the driver's seat.
And Steve with most of our group.
Bob and I usually forget to photograph ourselves and especially neglect pregnancy photos. We were surprised at the early appearance of our baby bump this time and took this 16 week photo.
On the sixth, Joy turned six. Kendal did a great job on the cake.
Dad and Susan visited one Saturday in January. We enjoyed a great lunch together. They brought Christmas gifts too. Susan was invited to help construct one of the gifts with Mary and found herself surrounded by girls for nearly two hours at the table.
Dad, Bob and our boys had no trouble connecting around a case of rifles and model airplanes. Kendal is opening her traditional Noah's Ark gift in this photo.
On the twenty-fifth, Mary turned four! She was very excited about her birthday this year! Since I stayed home from church with Noah, I was able to make her cake, sew her dress, wrap her presents and make lunch while everyone else was gone! (I should have the house to myself more often) We had a nice afternoon together enjoying her special day!
Mary looked like a little princess in her new dress, surrounded by her girly gifts!
We are so thankful for our family and friends who've already made this new year so special for us. And for this blog helps which me to remember so many of our blessings! Thank you, God!
Good news and bad news
The good news is that the toddler is wearing training pants and actually used the little potty after breakfast. He just said, "book", begging me to pull one off the shelf for him. This is all very encouraging since thirty minutes ago I was sitting in front of him in the bathroom with my head against the wall asking myself if he would ever speak real words (rather than shooting me with a pretend gun) or be potty trained.
The bad news is that I spent another thirty minutes explaining to the eldest four children the reasoning behind creating, and enforcing a morning rountine. I'm hoping tomorrow will be an improvement.
Evening update: the bad news is that the potty training toddler never used the toilet for the rest of the day. The morning success was just a tease. After dinner, the training diaper sagged so low inside of his courduroys that his poop fell out the pants legs, onto carpet, slippers, etc...but he enjoyed a nice shower and a rub down with sweet almond oil. Last night it was a bath with olive oil. I'm hoping we'll find something to remedy his eczema and his potty issues. : )
The good news is that although all the children are in training boot camp (that means I'm really following through on every instruction I give), everyone went to bed in peace and even my teenage daughters smiled at me, hugged me and still love me. Time for bed!
The bad news is that I spent another thirty minutes explaining to the eldest four children the reasoning behind creating, and enforcing a morning rountine. I'm hoping tomorrow will be an improvement.
Evening update: the bad news is that the potty training toddler never used the toilet for the rest of the day. The morning success was just a tease. After dinner, the training diaper sagged so low inside of his courduroys that his poop fell out the pants legs, onto carpet, slippers, etc...but he enjoyed a nice shower and a rub down with sweet almond oil. Last night it was a bath with olive oil. I'm hoping we'll find something to remedy his eczema and his potty issues. : )
The good news is that although all the children are in training boot camp (that means I'm really following through on every instruction I give), everyone went to bed in peace and even my teenage daughters smiled at me, hugged me and still love me. Time for bed!
Sunday, January 24, 2010
Answered Prayer
A couple of years ago we started having biblestudy and prayer time before school. We've mostly read through a chapter of Proverbs each day. Other times we did specific studies on subjects such as humility and obedience. We focused on the love chapter of Corinthians for weeks until most every child had memorized it. Recently, we've been discussing a verse of two from my personal quiet time. I think it's especially helpful to the children for us to really apply one verse, rather than reading many verses quickly.
At the end, we each take turns praying for whomever comes to mind. I often give reminders about new situations that we should lift up in prayer. We have many family members that we aren't sure are saved so we always mention them. Rather than talking about them amongst ourselves, we agreed that praying for them daily was ideal. We never know the effect of our prayers on each person's daily life. But it is exciting to talk and dream about how God might choose to bless them.
Recently, I realized that one of our daily prayers had been answered in a surprising way. I do not want to forget how incredibly humbling and wonderful it was to know that someone's life has been dramatically changed! We haven't discussed this with the person/people for whom we are praying, but within our family we were able to praise God for His kindness towards us and them. In praying we aren't asking for a better relationship, or anything that would be a reward for us, that is what is so amazing.
We will definitely continue to be fervent in prayer for our loved ones and neighbors. We hope that we can be the answer to someone else's prayers for their loved one.
Prayer works. And we can never guess how. God is awesome!
At the end, we each take turns praying for whomever comes to mind. I often give reminders about new situations that we should lift up in prayer. We have many family members that we aren't sure are saved so we always mention them. Rather than talking about them amongst ourselves, we agreed that praying for them daily was ideal. We never know the effect of our prayers on each person's daily life. But it is exciting to talk and dream about how God might choose to bless them.
Recently, I realized that one of our daily prayers had been answered in a surprising way. I do not want to forget how incredibly humbling and wonderful it was to know that someone's life has been dramatically changed! We haven't discussed this with the person/people for whom we are praying, but within our family we were able to praise God for His kindness towards us and them. In praying we aren't asking for a better relationship, or anything that would be a reward for us, that is what is so amazing.
We will definitely continue to be fervent in prayer for our loved ones and neighbors. We hope that we can be the answer to someone else's prayers for their loved one.
Prayer works. And we can never guess how. God is awesome!
Friday, January 22, 2010
Partakers of His Divine Nature
I usually try to keep reading during my morning devotions until I get to a verse that falls fresh on my soul. This morning, after loving all of the first book of Peter, I began the second.
In II Peter chapter one, verses three and four:
"According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:
Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust."
I often have wondered how we can actually be like Christ especially in difficult circumstances. These verses seem to say that by the very promises that we have in God's word we are partakers of Christ's nature...that certainly explains why meditating on His word is so vital to equipping us for spiritual battles. And it's very comforting to be reminded that He has already given to us everything we need for a life that is pleasing to Him!
In II Peter chapter one, verses three and four:
"According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:
Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust."
I often have wondered how we can actually be like Christ especially in difficult circumstances. These verses seem to say that by the very promises that we have in God's word we are partakers of Christ's nature...that certainly explains why meditating on His word is so vital to equipping us for spiritual battles. And it's very comforting to be reminded that He has already given to us everything we need for a life that is pleasing to Him!
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Journaling
I was reminded by an article yesterday how important journaling can be. God told Jeremiah to write the words He gave to him in a book. People who have kept a journal since young adulthood can testify of it's power to strengthen their faith. I am usually humbled and stirred to gratitude when I reread my journals. Sadly, over the last decade my handwritten entries have been reduced to attempts to recapture a birth story or a milestone birthday of an older child. Some of my favorite entries are prayer requests. It is so easy to see the hand of God years later. It always brings me to tears to realize that I had forgotten the prayer requests, but clearly He had not! Likewise, copying verses and meditating on them has truly blessed me.
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