Marching on with gifts

It was an out of the ordinary week. The kids were on Spring Break, which meant I had noise, more chaos, less quiet, more laundry... and more fun going on around the house! The great news is the weather was GORGEOUS, which means the kids spent a LOT of time outside!!

Our week started with a bang... Family Fun Day to kick off the week of kids' Spring Break! Daddy took of work and we drove about 2 hours to visit Cabela's... have you ever been?? It's lots of fun for the kids and I enjoy it too! Taking pictures of the same things every time (we have made it a Spring tradition).  It also gave me great "gifts" for the counting in the Joy Dare!!  Before I start counting, I just want to share a few pictures of our fun day!!

 (I could not get a serious picture of them ALL DAY!!) ... but it was lots of fun, and I embraced their craziness!!

March 12
232. Flags flying in the wind

233. Bright colored fish in the water

234. lots of fun animals at Cabela's during our family fun day!

March 13 (round)
235. Cereal bowl filled with Golden Grahams

236. Delightful Dayspring coffee mug

237. Kids all coloring together at the table
238. Birds singing a pretty tune
239. Celebrating a friend's release of her book of poetry

March 14 (silence)
240. Sweet snuggle with my 5YO in the morning
241. Reviewing verses from Sunday's message (Psalm 141:3)
242. Kids' quiet/nap time

March 15 (given away)
243. Giving away nap time for some delightful time outside
244. Giving away friendship bread
245. Giving a bit of my heart in writing for my girls

March 16 (hard eucharisteo)
246. Change of plans
247. a minor disappointment
248. Being on my feet all day in the kitchen
249. Cramps...

March 17
250. Making homemade spaghetti sauce and meatballs
251. Finally folding laundry, laundry, laundry
252. Homemade shamrock shakes

253. Gorgeous display of stars hung in the sky

March 18 (red)
254. Red meat (burgers on the grill)
255. redwood chimes singing in the open window!
256. Using the sled as a shield against our crazy rooster!

Sometimes I struggle in my counting, to make it all a nice list. Some days I can't find anything that fits the specifics that Ann Voskamp lays out in the JoyDare Calendar each month. Sometimes the gifts catch me by surprise... and I'm reminded that God is a personal God! He cares about ME and He cares about YOU! Our lives may be running totally different paths, but He still plants gifts in our path that are perfect for us!

And some days I get gifts that have nothing to do with the day's theme. I've started adding them to my list which means I will have way over 1000 by the end of the year! and that excites me!  Sometimes I get discouraged that my "JoyDare" posts don't get very many comments,  but then I remember that I am counting for me and I am counting to say thanks to God!  and sometimes the gifts may not make sense to you (if you ever really want an explanation... or more detail, just email me! :)

How has God shown Himself personal to you this week??