Birthday Time, and some thoughts on Love

Birthday celebrating time at our house tonight, our son Steven turns 23 tomorrow.
I made his favorite cake, chocolate with peanut butter frosting, and with that we had peanut butter cup ice cream. Lots of fun with the babies and lots of laughter as usual as we all chat around the table. We celebrated with sparkling apple juice and a supper of Haystacks

Having such love in a family is really a blessing. I look at my children and feel nothing but pride for the young people they have become. Emery has been such a good example for them and I try to be too.

I thought a lot about love today as I went about my day. The kind of love that reaches beyond the easy to love people, the kind of love that the good Samaritan had. Not the kind that says, " I love them because they do what I think is right." I personally want to have the kind of love that reaches unconditionally, accepting everyone without malice, knowing that we all sin and fall short. I want to feel the kind God has for all of us. Not a one of us "measures up" to His standards, but His hand is ever reaching out to us, and yet we, who are to be like Him, accept only those who we might say... dress right, believe like we believe, say things properly, agree with our standards etc. We expect so much more of others than God does of us. He loves us in spite of our failings, in spite of our hiding our true thoughts so much of the time. Imagine if God loved you, like you love others ? I was not always where I am today in life and I bet most everyone can say that, yet we fail to hold out a hand to those new on the journey of life, or who have fallen off the path. What kind of person inspired you in life, the judgemental, or the compassionate, accepting one ?

Miss Elizabeth, asleep when she arrived at Grammies house

She is awake !

Steven blowing out his candles, all 23 of them

Thats My boy ! (oh wait, he is a man now isn't he )

Steven and his wee Elizabeth