um, i think jay was trying to look like keith green here ^ hahaha
welp, we’re in new orleans. leland and my sister are here keeping me company while the rest of the folks go out tonight on the outreach. we had a crazy long (16 hour drive) yesterday! i’ve successfully learned how to warm up a bottle in a hotel room without a microwave (fill the sink with hot water) and found that one or two baby toys is not enough for a long road trip….
anyway, on the way here i was having some good conversation with jay and listening to leland make his little noises in the backseat. i wanted time to just stand still for a second. i was enjoying the moment and began thinking about how fast time goes by. it truly does. so many times in my life i have always looked forward or looked back to a certain time in life. when i was in a certain season of life, i was always ready to move on to the next season. when i was dating, i couldn’t wait to be engaged. when i was engaged, i couldn’t wait to be married. even in high school i couldn’t wait to be in college (and therefore homeschooled myself and graduated early.) i was always looking ahead and never really content in the present- in the here and now.
i can honestly say that having a little one has helped this mindset of mine incredibly. i am learning to be here- right where i am now. this season of life that i am in at the moment, i will never get back. it will not always be just little leland and my husband. leland will grow and get older, we may have more children down the road (way down the road), we may move one day….things will change.
i want to treasure these days, as small and insignificant as they sometimes may seem. in my daily tasks and routines, it is so easy for me to lose focus. i want to be still- put down my computer, iphone, twitter, any distractions- and reflect on the goodness of the Lord.
wherever you are in life- single, dating, married, no children, five children- enjoy and embrace this season of your life. you won’t ever get these precious days back. you may be thinking that there is something “better” ahead when instead you could be making the best of what you have now. enjoy today, and take a moment to thank God for where He has placed you :)
“i will bless the Lordat all times, His praise shall continually be in my mouth.”
psalm 34:1
have a beautiful weekend!
love,
arielle
Oh sleeping baby…makes my heart ache a little. Precious!
I hope your trip goes well and that God is glorified in your outreach!
So True!
This time in our lives we truly can never take back! And it is such a beautiful season to enjoy, soak up, and treasure for all that it is worth!
16 hours is a long trip with a baby. My husband, my 18 month old and I took a 11 hour trip a couple of weeks ago and thankfully we had a a t.v. or I don’t think my little girl would have made it. Great post.
Audrey
http://www.livingfoxy.com
thank you so much for this post . . . my husband and i are having a difficult time having a little one of our own. your words were such a great reminder to know how blessed we are to just have this, just to have each other. because anything that God gives us, at the end of the day is enough. we don’t have our little one right now, maybe someday God with bless us with a baby and that will be an amazingly beautiful journey. but the here and now is not any less important and memorable. thank you again for your words because it really did make me step back and remember that these moments are to be cherished. God bless you and your little family :)
thank you, lacey for your encouraging words. “but here and now is not any less important or memorable.” …that is so, so true. enjoy this time with just you and your husband and many blessings to you! :)
Arielle you seem like such a sweet loving person!!! I’m so glad i found your blog. I’m your newest follower… visit my page and follow me at http://aadreamsblog.blogspot.com/
xoxo,
ani
the Lord has really been speaking the same things to my heart lately. that no matter what season i’m in, today He can use me. love your blog and these words of encouragement!
Amen.
I’ve been thinking about that a lot lately, enjoying and embracing this season of my life … it’s so easy to get caught up in the day to day. With the hockey season winding down, I am getting ready to go back to work for the summer. That means less time with my son, Linden. I am so blessed to be at home with him, almost year round.
Thank you for this reminder …
just wanted to thank you for being one of those blogs that inspires me day after day… i gave you an award and linked back to you from my blog. Check it out if you like!: http://handmadeconamor.blogspot.com/2011/03/15-beautiful-blogs-and-1-award.html
A big latin hug from mexico! Clau
so true…your family is so sweet :)
have a fun time!!! live it up!
thank you brittany! ;)
This was a great reminder girl! Sometimes I get to eager to have a family, but I have to remember to cherish these days that its just me and my hubs. We won’t be able to be so free to go wherever we want once we have kiddos.
I hope you guys have a great time in New Orleans!
Thank You for this reminder! I am 26 and I long to be married. It is easy for me to get impatient because I want to be married and have babies. I must constantly remind myself that my contentment and my joy are in Christ. If I really think about it, this time of singleness in my life will seem soooo short in the whole span of my life!
yes, you are so right! enjoy this time of singleness :) truly cherish it- what a blessing it is!
Thanks for that reminder, Arielle! I really needed it!
thanks jenny! :) hope all is well!
So true!! Time goes by so fast and it’s so easy to get caught up in what lies ahead, what you are working towards. I read a quote somewhere, “Right now is a gift, that is why it’s called the present”.
Leland is absolutely precious!! Is there anything more beautiful than a sleeping baby?
oh wow, what an awesome quote! :) love it. thank you!
sleeping babies are precious :)
You’re so right. Being content with the season of life I’m in has been a consistent prayer of mine recently. And God’s been gracious and faithful in making my heart joyful with the days I have now. :) Every day is a blessing, filled with hope and new mercies from the Lord and it’s too easy for us to forget that. Take hold of that reminder, lovely. I’m glad the trip’s going well so far. Stay safe.
Being single I often get those “SINGLE FOREVER ATTACKS”. Thankfully I believe they are thrown my way is because God has really been allowing me to learn and appreciate just how valuable this time with JUST HIM is. I know that both seasons are completely different so there is no reason to compare but it is what I learn about LOVE in HIM alone right now that will promote the helpmate, virtuous woman my future husband deserves. I’m thankful for this season of just me and my love JESUS but when that time comes I will gladly accept :). I just pray now and then to keep GOD as my first love and to enjoy HIM in every moment. A STRUGGLE I know, but every step I take the flesh falls away :)..
♥cheche
such a sweet post. I am definitely always feeling like I can’t wait for the next step!! I can’t wait to feel right living in the moment once my fiance and I are married and TOGETHER.
:)
I love this. I wrote a post very similar back in November: http://wheremyheartresides.com/2010/11/01/on-going-for-it/
Here’s to being present! ;)
Beautiful post.
Beautiful family.
Beautiful Blog.
♥
Pearl
Your newest follower.
Love what you said in your post! Especially like the end, where you say how ‘you may be something better ahead, when instead you could be making the best of what you have now’.
Great thing to read, and to remember.
i, too, am leaving how to enjoy the “there and now” and the season of life that i am in, instead of always looking to “what’s next.” thank you so much for this, i needed to read it. god is good like that :)
Hi! Thanks for the lovely comment, you’re little son is very cute & the same age as our little one. Would love for you to follow us!
Look forward to reading your blog, Hanna
I love what you said about enjoying the season you are currently in. I feel like so many times I wanting the phase I am in to pass by, and be on to the next and “better” days. I really needed this today! Thank you!
What a great thought…and something I needed to hear. Thanks!