A Month of Natalie - Embarrassing Moments

Describe your most embarrassing moment.

To bad I still don't have it memorized....

My sophomore year of high school I was in Chemistry. (Quick, let me insert a little background information: I went to a private school this year. While I was slightly punk rock and definitely marched to the beat of my own drum everyone else at the school was beautiful, super wealthy, and in general, more ‘normal’ than I was. Now I had wonderful friends there and everyone was very kind but I was already different than of my classmates.) One of our Chemistry assignments was to MEMORIZE the periodic table. Because at the time I was much more interested in alternative activities than my studies I neglected studying for the test and decided to cheat instead. Not only did I get caught but I had to apologize to my entire class for my lack of integrity. It was pretty bad; I never cheated again though. 

A Month of Natalie - My People

List ten people who have influenced you and describe how.

Brandon

This man has a greater influence on my life than any and every other person. He is my heart. I tell him all the time that he is my favorite person on the face of the earth (and he is!) but he is so much more than that. He is the rock upon which God has built our family. He loves me unconditionally and unquestionably. He not only allows me to be the silly girl that I really am, he relishes in it. Because of him I no longer make excuses about who I am and because of him I want to be a better person. Brandon has spent the last (almost) ten years tenderly restoring things that I didn’t even know were tarnished. He was the first person on the face of the planet that made me want to feel good about myself.

My handsome husband with a giant hamburger!

Ezra

I knew I loved Ezra from the first moment I found out I was pregnant but holding him in my arms for the first time changed me forever. He is one of the best things that ever happened to me. From the moment he made his grand entrance into this world (ten days late mind you!) he was the center of my universe (a spot he now shares with his precious little brother Elisha). A mother is not just one aspect of who I am, it is something within me that stirs up and fuels every other part of me. As Ezra has grown he has become this pensive little boy who sees the world differently than anyone I have met before. He is brilliant and compassionate. He is amazingly tender (but all boy). I cannot imagine my life without Ezra. I don’t feel like my heart grew when I had Ezra, I feel like it came to life.

I can't get over how cute he is!

Elisha

Elisha made his entry into the world in a much different manner than Ezra did. As a baby Ezra was relaxed and as he grew he was open to relationship with anyone. Elisha on the other hand has always been a mystery. He takes his time and has set out to discover the world on his terms at his own pace. You cannot make Elisha do anything, regardless of how hard you try (trust me). Elisha is remarkably introverted but when he lets someone in it is because he has something to share. Because of this I am a more intentional parent. What comes naturally with Ezra takes work with Elisha. Because of Elisha I have realized the value in really seeking out what is great in people. My relationship with Elisha is one of the most rewarding things ever because the more I discover him, the more amazing he is. He is a great character, complex, sometimes confusing, and always beautiful, that is unfolding word by word.

Elisha, with his baby in a sling.

Joyce

My sweet grandmother has been my biggest fan my entire life. She has always supported me and loved me. She has always asked me if I am doing my best, encouraged me when I wasn’t and praised me when I was.

My lovely Granny.

Dana

You are amazingly fun to be around and you have always been. This combined with the fact that you are most the most responsible adult I know is quite a feat. You taught me which rules I can break and which ones to heed, and for that I am eternally grateful! (And probably a more fun person to be around!)

You are my most fun family member!

Rene

Can you believe that I had to look up how to spell your last name the other day? Okay, I am bad at spelling but we have always been best friends and no matter where life takes us we will always be friends! I love you unconditionally and will forever be grateful for your love. I am and will remain eternally grateful for the friendship you have offered me. 

Gorgeous as always. 

Lauren

I would have never made it through my teenage years without you. You know how messed up my life was. You still hold some of my favorite memories. Through our friendship I discovered who I was.

I love this picture by the way.

Emily

Christine Caine said “Compassion is never compassion until you cross the street and go do something about it.” Emily, you are the embodiment of this. You have always been such a spiritual mentor to me. I love the way you love the Lord. You faith inspires me and I cannot thank the Lord enough for your friendship.

Your entire family is amazing. Such a power house for the Lord!

Hugh

My grandfather was amazing. To have the life I had but still have a strong, God fearing man, who was ALWAYS unconditionally sweet with me was a great gift. He was the sole example of what a man should look like in my young childhood. He worked hard his entire life to take care of his family and he tenderly loved his wife. That example was priceless. 

Wasn't he a looker?!

Brittany

You are the embodiment of the word sister. We are adults now and just the other day I caught you wearing my shoes and you told me you weren't giving them back. With as much as we fought growing up, I would have never made it out alive without you. I didn't really like you tagging along with my friends when we were kids but I had no idea that you were going to grow up and be my friend. Your children are AMAZING! And while we still don't see eye to eye on everything I am blessed to have you in my life.

My sweet sister with my sweet baby.

Zachary

I know that you probably don't remember most of this but you taught me how to me a mom. Because of you, I am a nurturer. Seriously, you were the cutest little brother a girl could ask for. And I am SINCERELY sorry for picking on you when you were a kid, and yes, that does have something to do with the fact that you are a beast now. I am immensely proud of you and what you have done in the last year or so! You decided to be someone different and accomplished it. You have all the potential in the world to be whoever and whatever you want, and through that mean guy guise I still my sweet baby brother. 

You look a little scary dude, but I like this picture of you, it captures your essence. 

A Month of Natalie - Passions

For anyone who really knows me this won't come as a huge surprise, but alas, here they are:

What are four passions you have?

       Homeschool. (Let me preface this with saying that I understand that not all families can homeschool and it probably isn’t best for all families.) Homeschool is the best thing since sliced bread. The notion that I get to hang out with my children everyday, that I get the responsibility of teaching them about the Father’s great world, that I get to learn alongside them, that I get to love on them 24/7, and let them discover this world in a manner that suits their individual personalities is the most amazing thing ever. Nobody knows my children like I do and I can’t imagine that anyone else would my children’s education above anything else in their life. God uniquely created me to be their mother and their teacher. I also have growing concerns about government controlled school. In the last several decades postmodernism has replaced critical thinking. School has become about creating “citizens”. My goal is simply to encourage them to discover who God has created them be. 

Ezra with his lung model.

Elisha learning math.

Books! I am a nerd, in the best and worst ways. You can hang out with and befriend any person throughout all of history with a book. You can learn anything you want through a book. Want to know what it means to love? Read Redeeming Love. Want to know what it means to lose yourself in pain? Read She’s Come Undone. What to know what it means to find self worth? Read A Lesson Before Dying. Want to know what it means to fight for God’s best? Read Perelandra. Want to know how it feels to have lack? Read The Grapes of Wrath. Want to know what it feels like find yourself? Read Their Eyes Were Watching God. Okay, this is just a random smattering of a few of the books I love, but you get the idea. Words are an art form unto themselves. Sure a movie or a painting can show you what something looks like, but through a book you can experience it. Like I said, nerd, I know it, but I am okay with it.

 Marriage. I am intentionally and purposefully married to my amazing husband. My marriage is one of the greatest gifts God has ever given me but it something that takes work. Brandon and I have a great rhythm now. We have spent the last decade getting to know each other and because of that we could probably coast through the rest of our lives. But I know that God is continually growing our marriage and growing us through our marriage. We set apart time to work on us, we have put in place safeguards so that the devil cannot steal our marriage and we have both set in our hearts that no matter what, we are in this for life. I have heard it said that God intended for marriage to make you holy not happy. I am just one blessed girl then because my marriage is making me holier and happier! I also believe that God has the same desire for every marriage. Whether someone looks at their marriage as act of glorifying God or as a mistake they made, I have never met any couple who said that they were going to give God their all, including their marriage, stick with it no matter, and never get divorced who regretted.

I love him forever. 

 The Church. We live in a society where the value of the Church is lost. While the Church is not infallible, the Church is the bride of Christ. We are His hands and feet. We are here for each other and we are here to reach the world. The notion that you can have a relationship with Jesus without being surrounded, supported, uplifted, kept accountable, and trained by a group of believers is completely unbiblical. The notion that the Church owes you is also not what the word says. Service is a fundamental of Christianity and we have been given the great opportunity (not chore) to serve wholeheartedly our local church and reach a dying world. You cannot have one without the other and both are essential to the work of the Holy Spirit. Someone mops the floors, prepares the children’s church curriculum, plans the mission trips, rocks babies to sleep, prays over people in need, and fulfills every need that the Church has. Don’t just assume that it is someone else’s responsibly or that you have ascended beyond that. There is not one of us in the church that is beyond serving and there is not one of us in the church that is exempt from the call to preach the gospel of Christ wherever we go and wherever God has planted us. If you are in a local church, serve it, and if you are not, find one. 

Our church. 

A Month of Natalie - Dream Job

 What is Your Dream Job and Why?

This is an easy one, I want to be a home-school mom with a maid. I love everything about being able to stay at home with my children except the cleaning. I would love a maid. But that being said, I will suffer through the cleaning any day to be able to serve my husband, serve at church, and raise my children. It doesn’t pay much, but I love my job. I have a million other things I want to do, but for this season, I couldn’t think of a better job.

A Month of Natalie - Hard Things

What is the hardest thing you have ever experienced?

Waiting on God’s timing. I think this stems out of my great desire to control everything; I know, big shock. I expect to be able to decide I want something and then achieve it. Most things in life fall into the category of “if you work hard enough you can…” but not everything. The things that are out of my hands are what I have difficulty accepting. But I am getting better and I love and will serve the Lord unquestionably. I know that His ways are above my ways and in His will things are timed perfectly. But when the Lord gives me a glimpse of what He has for it is difficult not to want it RIGHT NOW. There is a verse in Proverbs that says “hope deferred makes the heart grow sick but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life.” (13:12). We are waiting on some words from God right now and I must admit that this waiting period has also been a great learning time, just some lessons I would have preferred to learn the easy way. But, I know that the Lord is called Faithful and True and I know that the work He began in me He will complete. So right now, I am just waiting on His timing.

A Month of Natalie - Happy

What are the 5 things that make you most happy right now?

*      My children. I absolutely love them. I think they are amazing, wonderful, fun little boys, who I get to hang out with all the time. I am beyond blessed to have them and to get to spend as much time with them as I do is more than I deserve.

*       My husband. I feel like between school, work, and his internship I don’t get to see him as much as I would like but any moment I get to spend with him is fabulous. He is best friend, an amazing husband, and hands down, the neatest dude I have ever met.

*       Homeschool. Maybe it is because I am a nerd and I would love to be in school forever, but I love homeschool. I like being able to teach my children what they need to know about the Lord and the world. I love hanging out with them all the time. I love writing curriculum and learning new things along with them.

*       I love Milestone. Our church is magnetic. The work of Lord is exciting and getting to be a part of is overwhelming. Seeing lives changed, hearts restored, and purposes fulfilled is amazing.

*       Last but certainly not least is my Jesus. To be used by Him is the best feeling in all of the world. There are billions of people He could have chosen to fulfill this purpose and He chose me. He definitely has a better opinion of me than I do, but nonetheless, He makes my heart happy. 

A Month of Natalie - 16 Year Old Me

List 10 things you would tell your 16 year-old self, if you could.

*    Go find Jesus RIGHT NOW! He doesn’t look anything like some of the people in your life that    are representing Him.

*    Take care of your body, it is the only you have.

*    If it is against the law, you shouldn’t be doing it. This includes drinking, smoking, and other recreational activities you seem to have found yourself involved in.

*    Pick friends that build you up, that nurture your authentic self, that make you a better person.

*    Don’t think about boys. You don’t even know the wonderful, amazing man that will be your husband right now. Save yourself the heartache.

*    Have fun. Sure being a teenager is hard and there a lot of emotional angst that naturally goes along with it, but if it won’t matter in ten years it doesn’t matter now.

*    Be genuine. If you can’t impress them with who you really are then move on and find a different friend.

*    Embrace yourself, the good, bad, and ugly make up a unique individual who will never again grace the face of this earth. It is fabulous to be different than everyone else

*    School will get you very far. Plan to major in something practical, study, and actually go to class.

*    Treat Brittany and Zachary better. Even now, they need you more than you know.

A Month of Natalie - Mom and Dad

 Describe your Relationship with your Parents 

Mom and Dad with my grandmother. (Sometime in the early 80s.)

This is an interesting question. Touchy subject,  if you will. I would start with the fact that I know that both of my parents love me. As a child I didn't have great relationships with either one of my parents. As an adult I have learned quite a bit through my relationship with my parents.

My dad is not a believer, and honestly, I am fairly certain he thinks I am a moron for believing in the authenticity of the bible and clinging to the promises of God. Shortly after I was saved I had conversation with him where he insinuated that I was much to smart to be a Christian. I see my dad at family functions and I enjoy spending time with him but it isn’t very often when it happens. My father has a level of compassion that I haven’t seen in many other individuals. He cares deeply but carries the wounds of his past close and can’t seem to let them go; and I think that effects his relationship with the family. 

My dad with Ezra and Ian.

My mother and I have a much better relationship now than we did when I was a child. My mother is the most self sacrificing person I know. She will literally give the shirt off her back. This kind of service extends naturally to her children. I would say that she and I have a healthy adult parent child relationship. And more than that, we are friends, and it has been a pleasure to discover my mother in this way. 

Mom (in the back) with her best friend Bridget

A Month of Natalie - Fears

Describe 3 Legitimate Fears You Have and Explain How They Became Fears. 

They are slightly creepy looking aren't they?!?

Worms. I have always been grossed out by worms and maggots. When I was young (pre second or third grade) I found a dead squirrel and flipped it over with a stick only to find it teeming with maggots. I don’t care about the circle of life. That was just nasty and I don’t want to see that crap. I want to be cremated for this very reason. It doesn’t make sense to me to spend thousands of dollars to put an airtight box under ground just to let it rot, and I certainly don’t want my body to be eaten by worms; so to the pyres it is. 

Swimming in the ocean. Shark plus jelly fish equals not a safe and secure Natalie. Honestly I am more afraid of jelly fish than I am of sharks but still, there is a lot of scary stuff in there. Plus, do you know what the Humboldt squid is? Seriously scary plus super smart plus lots of teeth plus human bone crushing strength beak. Uhh. This fear however will not keep me out of the ocean. I just approach it with a little more trepidation.

Solar flares. I know this is random but as I began my efforts to prepare for an emergency (I am talking first aid kits and wills not that crazy Doomsday Prepper business) I started researching. Solar flares are a legitimate possibility and since the Bible speaks of destroying the earth by fire I can’t helped but be alarmed.

Now, let me offer this afterthought. I struggled a little in writing this post because I have a great Father who is my protector and strong tower. He is my defender and since I know God is for me, who can stand against me; I have nothing to fear. But  in the spirit of the thing, worms, I am afraid of worms.

A Month of Natalie - Randomness

One of my goals for 2012 was to blog two or three times a week. If you scan my previous posts it will not be difficult to deduce that I have not been successful in that endeavor, as of yet.


However, I am going to dig in my heels and try best to post everyday for the next month. Since coming up with 31 different blogs in one month sounded a little daunting I decided to borrow a sort of  'all about me' list from the fabulous blog: Cherishing Hopes and Dreams. I modified some of the topic, but for the most part it was a great list. 


So, for day one, I am listing twenty random things about myself. Here goes. 

I have a freckle on the rim of my eyelid (you know, the part where eyeliner goes).

I cannot stand tea (iced, sweet, herbal, any leaf infused water) and yes, I was born in raised in Texas.

I am a die-hard Stratfordian.

I am a compulsive list maker.

I would pick a pencil over a pen any day.

I am obsessed with cloth diapers.

Feel free to order this for me when I get pregnant with baby number three! (theelimonster.com)

I have ten tattoos.

I used to have my eyebrow pierced (back when that was cool.)

I graduated high school a year early.

I love diet Coke with lime. It is delish.

I changed my major three times in college.

If money wasn’t an issue I would to have loads of children, both biological and adopted.

Baz Luhrmann’s Romeo + Juliet is probably my favorite movie of all time.

I think neon colors were the best part of the eighties and I am so glad they are back, even if it is going to 

be short lived.

I think homeschooling is the most fun thing ever.

I don’t really like fresh fruit. I make myself eat it because it is healthy.

    I love vegetables though. Almost every kind.

    

    I won’t drink milk because it is cow’s breast milk.

   

    I sleep with three or four pillows.

Fall is my favorite season.

So, there you have, twenty random things about yours truly. Please feel free to take this journey with me and share with us thirty one days all about you.