Beauty for Ashes

Happy 11th Birthday, Eli!

2011-02-24T12:01:00.004-06:00

Happy Birthday to my little man!

He requested his favorite breakfast in bed, so, that is what he got.
Biscuits, bologna gravy, eggs, and fried apples!

It's pouring rain today, so he will not be outside to play on his new trampoline. Instead, we are heading to the old birthday stand-by...Chuck E. Cheese!

Have a great day!

Blizzard 2011 Pic's For the Family

2011-02-01T11:54:00.002-06:00

For my Florida family

9 AM

10 AM

11:45 AM

When Blizzard 2011 Comes In.....

2011-02-01T04:39:00.004-06:00

The parents wake up hearing the ice hitting the windows at 4:30 AM, and move into action.

Big nasty farm dogs get to sleep in the laundry room.

10 year old boys sleep in their new birthday sleds, dreaming of snow days, forts, & sledding.

The ice is covering the ground at this point, and blizzard conditions with up to 16" of snow are expected today. I love it!

Happy New Year

2011-01-31T09:40:00.003-06:00

On the 1st, while getting ready to go to my sister's house. I walked outside, and right in front of my house, stood a cow with a leg hanging out her back end. Since we moved here I have wanted to see a calf born. The field behind my house is where the dairy cows have their down time. These dairy cows provide milk for Kraft. From the time they are being bred until they calf, they are in our pasture. Most of them like to go off by themselves when they give birth, so I have seen many hours-old calves over the year, but never one being born. This mama stayed within 15 feet of the fence that separated us and gave birth to this cow. I was so excited! Truly, God has spoken to me most over the years through nature. On this day, I was reminded that He is the giver of life and new beginnings. May 2011 bring us closer to Him!

There is a picture below taken within minutes of the birth. If you click it to view large, or look too close, you will see some afterbirth. If you are squeamish, don't look!

10 Year Old Boys

2011-01-29T14:02:00.004-06:00

Here are a few shots of my Brother, Sister, our spouses & kids during the visit. See the 10 year old? (Eli) No one noticed that he was blowing a bubble in every shot we took together...UGH! There are literally 15-20 pictures like this. Oh well, it will be something to laugh at when I am older.

Miss Emma Comes to Hayee's House

2011-01-28T08:03:00.006-06:00

Christmas was wonderful this year, BUT, the best part was the week after when Miss Emma arrived with her mom & dad for a week. She kept us all smiling all week long. I am Hayee to my nieces and nephews because my first nephew Travis named me that. This Hayee spoiled this little lady as much as I could get away with. She loves Elmo so Karlee & I met her at the airport with Elmo shirts on and a bag of Sesame Street goodies & books for the ride home. We were instant friends. The week went by much too fast, but my siblings and our spouses had a great time together.

This first picture is Emma sitting in our family high chair. Dad, you will have to help me with how many generations have used it.

She was so cute all bundled up in her winter gear.

Cousins

Big eyes, big sippy

Big girl carrying cousin Karlee's purse

Catching Up

2011-01-27T19:49:00.008-06:00

I'm going to try to catch up a few photo's here over the next several days. Here are a few of the Christmas decorations. Thankfully, the decorations are all down and put away now.

What? It's CHRISTMAS, and I Still Have Daisies For a Background?!

2010-12-19T06:45:00.005-06:00

Have you ever gotten away from something, and the further behind you get the less likely it is you will ever finish that project? Well...that is me with this blog. I have really been considering just shutting it down, but my children will look over my shoulder and say, "Mom, you really need to update your blog!", "Mom, it's Christmas and you still have Daisies on your background!" Then my dad sent a request this morning, so for my beloved Bopps, I will blog.

During the summer while I was going through the valley with my broken leg, I really did not feel like putting my heart out here on the blog. I knew exactly what the Lord was teaching me, and it is personal and I still will not share it. However, I am glad to be on the other side of that lesson!

I am healing well, my last visit there was significant bone growth! I go back February 21st for one last x-ray, and to be released (hopefully) from the Dr. I am now wearing shoes on both feet and only have a slight limp, and swollen, painful ankle in the evenings to show for my summer.

Today, I am up early to cook for Friend Day at church. It is a sentimental day for me. Read here to understand why.

I will strive to blog more, or I will talk my dad into getting on Facebook, one of the two.

Blessings to you all!

What Kind of Animal Was That?

2010-10-25T14:21:00.006-05:00

Here's an Eli story for you.

We just got home from the Dr., and we ran by Sam's Club on the way. The artichoke hearts called my name and I bought a big jar.

Eli came out to help his dad unload the car. He was carrying in the artichoke jar, and he said to JD, "If one of these starts beating, I'm out of here!"

He thought they were the heart of some kind of animal he had never heard of.

That's my boy!

Here is the leg update, copied from my facebook status.

Dr.'s appt. this AM, still no bone growth on x-ray. However, Dr. is encouraged by the fact that I'm walking w/o pain. He feels that I'm making good progress with soft tissue growth and thinks that we will see bone starting to form by next month. If not, on Nov. 22 he will remove the screw in my leg from the top of the ...rod, to cause pressure on the bone. Please pray with us for bone growth this month!

Happy Birthday, Emma!

2010-10-12T13:20:00.004-05:00

It's hard for me to believe that we went from this.

To this already!
Happy Birthday, darling niece, I love you!

Quick Update

2010-10-02T10:32:00.003-05:00

For my bloggy friends, I wanted to let you know that God is answering prayers for my leg. Although I do not know if the bone is mending, I am able to walk some without crutches. I started yesterday, and have already gone into the kitchen and "cooked" my first meal in 8.5 weeks today. Yes, it was only putting some beans, onions, & a ham bone in the crock-pot, but still! I had to walk around the kitchen to do it, and have my hands free. A wonderful feeling!

Please continue to pray for bone healing for me!

Flashback Friday

2010-10-01T09:05:00.006-05:00

I was telling J about this the other day, and thought it was worth putting up here. I hope some of you get a laugh on my behalf today.

Here's the background...I started babysitting at 12, I was a very sheltered, naive girl who had been in Christian Schools and church my whole life.

I was asked to babysit for my hairdresser's two children. They were around 5 & 7 at the time, how hard could it be? When this story unfolds, I had babysat them a few times. By now, I had figured out that they were a couple of Satan's minions. One day I asked them, "Why don't you EVER obey?". The boy looked at me and said, "What does obey mean?". Yep, that's what I was dealing with.

So this particular day, the parents come to pick me up, and on the way to the house they explain to me that they have worked really hard to clean the whole house. A set of their parents was coming in and they really wanted to impress them. They went on and on about the rules they wanted me to follow. Two that stand out is not to let the kids eat in the living room, and NOT to let the pair of St. Bernards out of the garage because the female was in heat.

Well they dropped me off, and the first couple of hours went pretty smoothly. The boy was excited to show me a movie his parents had recently bought. It was Rambo! Not only was there no way I was allowed to watch that movie, there was no way I wanted to either...I do not like blood & gore. But, they both had seen it before, and were totally into it so I let them watch it to try to keep the house clean.

I'm not sure what I was doing when the calamity started. However, this is how it went down. The girl let the St. Bernards out, and without me knowing it the boy had gotten himself a bowl of cereal. I took off running up the stairs after the dogs, it was easy to know where they were, I just followed the trail of blood from the female up the light carpeted steps. In all the commotion, I didn't notice the boys cereal on the floor. I stepped right in that bowl, and spilled it and soaked my sock. I chased the dogs back downstairs, pulled my sock off and threw it in the microwave and turned it on. We had never had a microwave, and I thought this would be a good way to dry my sock...wow, does a wet, stinky sock make quite a stench through the house! About this time, the boy comes out and tells me the toilet is overflowing.

Let's recap, there are blood drips all over the floors, two St. Bernards running wild, spilled cereal on the carpet upstairs, a toilet running over, my sock twirling in the microwave, two children going crazy, AND the guests walk in...SURPRISE!! We made it early!

They helped get the dogs in, and the toilet to stop overflowing. Took me home, and I was never called to babysit there again.

This is a true story!!

Hope you have a great weekend!

The Rest of the Story! Double WOW!

2010-09-29T21:08:00.003-05:00

If you read the post before this one, you know that the balance on the hospital bill was $500.00. If you look at the date on the check, you will see that this check was written yesterday. Before we or anyone else (other than the hospital) knew the balance, but guess who did? God!

This check was given to me tonight, it comes from a sister church in the area. It is a true showing of Christ-like love for this church to reach out to us. What an awesome God we serve!!

We are so blessed!

WOW! Good News!

2010-09-29T12:58:00.005-05:00

JD just came home for lunch with the mail. He said, "I have some really good news, and some not so good news, which do you want?" I said, "the not so good first".

The not so good news is that we were supposed to close on the house tomorrow morning, and it has been moved to next week. Not horrible, but definitely a downer, as we have been dreaming of a big celebration tomorrow.

The really good news is that the hospital where I had the surgery gave us a discount.

Our bill was $25,635.73.

We received a bill today that said we had a credit of $25,135.73. Our new balance is $500.00.

Is God good or what?!

A Renewed Attitfude

2010-09-28T14:56:00.004-05:00

"This is the day the LORD has made; We will rejoice and be glad in it."
Psalm 118:24

A Good Cry

2010-09-24T20:29:00.005-05:00

I have that feeling, I need a good cry. I don't want it to happen, but it is going to, and I am not going to be able to stop it.

I went to the Dr. today with high hopes of getting a clean bill of health. Instead, I found out that the main break in my leg is not healing as quickly as the Dr. hoped. The fracture is not mending and it was not a happy visit. My ankle break is healed up, so my Dr.'s advice is to put as much weight on it as I can stand without "gritting my teeth in pain". This might cause the fracture to push back together and begin to mend. Please pray with me that this will be the case, the alternative is just plain yucky, and I don't want to talk about it.

I was in the kitchen yesterday, and the calendar has a big VACATION written across this up-coming week. You see we had plans to take our family on vacation to Gatlinburg, TN, which of course has been canceled.

My mama is coming on October 15th, and it is right in the middle of the Craft Fairs which are huge here in this area, and I had hopes of driving, and being able to walk around with her all day.

We're kicking off a new children's program at church and I am the teacher, and I was hoping to stand to teach those sweet little ones.

Okay, so there are some of the reasons I want to just cry.

I know I have many blessings in my life that I can be thankful for, and I know God is in control, and I know He has my best in His plans.

I just think His plans for me include a good cry.

10,000

2010-09-11T20:59:00.003-05:00

I know that there are blogs out there who receive 10,000 visits every day, but this, my little blog, in the middle of cyberspace hit 10,000 visits today. (since I began it, not all today) It is kind of fun to think about all the different people, from all the different countries who have stopped by for a visit! I am honored to be here sharing my life with you. Thanks for listening!

Leg Update

2010-09-11T11:45:00.003-05:00

Just a quick update for my blogger buddies. I went to the Dr. yesterday, they removed the cast and the Dr. reassured me that it is perfectly normal that my foot & leg still turn purple (almost black) every time I am up on my crutches. He also informed me that although pain usually means you need to stop what your doing, when in rehab pain means keep on going. In other words he wants me to push my ankle & knee through the pain until I get some flexibility back. I have an appt. in two weeks. He will x-ray everything then and if I have healed to his satisfaction, I will begin to put weight on the leg w/ a walking boot. He gave me the boot yesterday, and let me tell you that thing is a monster, it is huge & heavy! I need to start doing squats so I can haul it around...just kidding...can't do squats if you can't put weight on it silly. So that's the scoop, if you are a praying friend, will you please pray for movement in my ankle & knee? I would appreciate it. If you have anything I can pray for you about, leave me a comment. I have lots of prayer time sitting in this chair!

Have a great weekend!

Go Gators & Wolverines!

Heather

September, Then and Now

2010-09-09T11:05:00.006-05:00

I have been reading in Romans during my quiet time for a week or so now. Yesterday, I came to chapter 12. I memorized chapter 12 as a teen for a school project, and was thinking it would be fun to see how much of it I remembered...about the first 4 verses...

Yesterday was our anniversary. We have been married 14 years. I have read of people who "divorce" the first years of their marriage after an affair, remarry and start over. Leaving all of it behind them. I understand this in some respects, there are aspects of my marriage before that bring back bad memories with them. Knowing that if we had done some things different, we would have never had that failure in our otherwise good marriage. However, there are very sweet memories in those years too. We talked last night about my pregnancies and our newborn baby years, of memories too sweet to just "forget".

While I was reading Romans 12 yesterday, I was thinking about the verses, the chapter starts out asking us to be "a living sacrifice", it moves into our spiritual gifts, the gifts given to us to do the specific work God has for each of us, the last verses of the chapter are titled, "Behave Like a Christian" in my version. We could break down each verse, and spend all day in these verses. I came to the end of the chapter, the picture above is a picture of the verses in my Bible. I felt at first as if I had been slapped. I do not remember finding these verses in dreadful 07 just weeks after finding out about the affair. I did not expect to be confronted with that date on my anniversary. Those are memories I try to put far from my mind.

Then I read the verses again. God did not mean to slap me, but to show me that we had overcome evil, that we don't have to hold on to vengeance, it is His, and He will repay. I look back at these three years, and I see God's hand all the way through. He has restored my marriage & family stronger than we ever were before, not perfect, but strong. He has gently guided us back into ministry for Him, sending the right people at the right times into our lives.

I wrote this letter for my church this week...church members you are getting a sneak peek...

Dear Church Family,
I just want to write and say thank you. Not only because you have taken such good care of us since I broke my leg. Thank you for being obedient to the Lord when you called us here as your pastor family. You have shown such grace to us, loving us like your own right from the start. I have said over and over that it was like coming home. It feels so good to know you are where you belong, and I pray that each of you in our church family feel that way too, you belong with us, and without you we are missing a piece. You all make it very easy to love you, and we do love you! Thank you all for the cards, emails, meals, the love offering, and especially those of you prayer warriors out there praying faithfully for us each day. You have made these hard weeks much easier for us! Please continue to pray for your pastor & his family as we continue to strive to serve our Lord with our heart, mind, body, & soul!
Love to all,
Heather

Thank you Lord Jesus for overcoming evil with good!

Bowling & Badgering

2010-08-30T08:31:00.006-05:00

J.D.'s dad is here for a visit this week. We have not been out and about as much as we would have if I had been on (both) my feet. We have had a very nice visit anyway. On Friday, we decided to go bowling. We have a very small, hometown alley close by and that is where we went. We basically had the place to ourselves, which left me the opportunity to work on my wheelchair skills. I had fun weaving in and out around the tables. Here are a few pictures of the fun.

My knee minus staples, hooray!

Papa John

JD teaching Eli some skillz

JD & his dad checking out the score (Arnold's are ALWAYS competitive)

I'm only putting this in here to remind myself of how much fun KK & I had. I relentlessly badgered her about her bowling because she refused to let anyone give her advice.

Fine, mom, take a picture...

It was a great day. We even went into an Antique Mall and I was able to go down most of the aisles in my chair. I didn't buy anything but it just felt good to get out! Yesterday, I was able to go to both services at church. Our worship services were both exactly what I was in need of, I'm so thankful I could go!

I hope you have a great Monday!

Perspective

2010-08-26T12:04:00.006-05:00

So, here's the new cast. The picture doesn't do it justice. It is Florida Gator colors, and I think it's pretty awesome! I had been dreading yesterday's appt. all week. The last one was very painful and this one was guaranteed to be bad also. It's not like you can tell yourself it's not going to hurt when the nurse tells you that each staple will feel similar to having a bee sting and you have 18 staples. Then she informs you that a few will be worse than that!

Well she didn't lie! It was painful, and having the new cast put on was the most pain I have been in to date.

Now for the perspective. As God always does, He showed up yesterday morning.

First, I have to say that dreading & worrying are two different things for me. Yes, I was dreading the appt. but, I did not lose sleep or make my family miserable this last week. (Those for me are sure signs of worry) I constantly asked the Lord to help me through, and relied on Him, knowing that He never asks us to go through more than we can handle.

On the way to the appt., I was sitting in my middle seat listening to the radio. The Jeremy Camp song, This Man, came on. Here is the first verse and chorus.

In only a moment truth
Was seen revealed this mystery
The crown that showed no dignity He wore
And the king was placed for all the world
To show disgrace but only beauty flowed from this place

Would you take the place of this man
Would you take the nails from his hands
Would you take the place of this man
Would you take the nails from his hands

I was overwhelmed with love for my Savior. I thought about how I dreaded the pain of that visit for one week. I knew that I would hurt, but it would only be about 30 minutes tops. I wouldn't be giving my life, suffering agony, humiliation, separation from my Father, and ultimately death.

Wow, put like that a few bee stings are like nothing aren't they?! To further His point, God allowed a man who I am assuming had been in a terrible car accident to be sitting exactly in my spot when J pushed me into the waiting room. He had casts on both legs and one arm. It made me think that although this has been very hard, really it could be so much worse. Then...after my appt. we were walking through W-Mart and a lady walked up to me, she was limping and using a cane, she said that it had been 4 years since her accident. She had broken both of her legs and it was obvious she would never be the same.

I am expected to make a full recovery.

I am grateful!

Blessings!

Sacrifice

2010-08-23T17:46:00.007-05:00

I have been down for 3 weeks tomorrow. Today, I lost it for just a little while. I was crying, and feeling useless, sick, stuck in a chair, unable to help J get ready for his dad to come in tomorrow. Just really feeling sorry for myself. I even posted a pitiful "ugh" on Facebook hoping to get some sympathy from my friends. (which I got)

My night, last night, consisted of sleeping from 10-12, waking up miserable, tossing and turning (as much as you can in a recliner) moaning, and asking J to please wake up and move Eli out of our bed and help me try to sleep in it. That move occurred at 1:45. Then I laid there until 2:30 at which time I finally fell asleep. Wide awake and in pain, I had to wake J up at 7, to help me to the restroom. I decided I might as well go back to the recliner and let him sleep awhile. I needed to take some Tylenol, and therefore needed something in my stomach. I asked nicely for some cereal, and I heard him getting it ready for me. He knows that I only like the little spoons when I eat cereal. There were not any clean, and I heard him washing me a little spoon. He didn't say a word about washing the spoon, being exhausted, which he is, he didn't say anything about NEVER getting a whole nights sleep for 3 weeks. About taking care of my potty chair. (I would never do a #2 in there...sorry if that is too much info, but I'm just sayin.) He just gently got me arranged in my chair, got my breakfast, ice water, medicine, the remotes, and asked if he could do anything else for me. He told me he loved me and went back to bed.

This is just one very small example of the sacrifices that J has made over the last 3 weeks. In our almost 14 years of marriage, I have never been down like this. When I had my babies, my mom was there to take care of things until I got back on my feet. He has been down a few times, his stomach ailment, a dirt bike accident, a broken arm, etc. During those times he has been a wonderful patient. Now, he has been a wonderful caretaker, much better than I ever was to him. I hate to admit it, but it has surprised me.

You see, I am a doer, I like to do (almost) all the work around the house. I have never asked him to help out with things like laundry, cooking, etc. Typically, he comes home to a clean house and a warm home cooked meal, and I even make his plate & cut his meat. I don't know why, I just do. And, I love it.

In the last few years many things have changed in our marriage. We have both learned how to love each other better than ever before. One of the things J tells me often is "I love you fervently, and I am going to be by your side taking care of you until the day I die." I have to admit that I have struggled w/ believing that he would really "take care of me". I still have insecurity issues from the past hurts, and often I need to be re-assured. I will look him in the eyes, and ask, "are you sure your in love with me?" Honestly, I can not be told that enough.

One of the lessons God has taught me these last 3 weeks is that J IS going to take care of me. He has spent these weeks hovering over me. Lifting me off the chair, EVERY time I had to get up, bringing my med's and water, making mine & the kids plates before his own, sponge bathing me, doing laundry, dishes, vacuuming, cleaning toilets, putting on my sock & shoe, helping me in and out of the van, emptying my throw-up bowl, caring for/loving our kids, adjusting the pillows under my leg, and many, many more things. He has done all of this patiently, and lovingly. He has not once lost his cool, or made me feel inferior, or like a nuisance. He has told me over and over that he loves me, and right now I am what is most important.

I just want to say, Thank You, J.D., I think you are wonderful!

Mil Besos!

Facebook Statusessss

2010-08-22T18:05:00.005-05:00

So if you were my friend on Facebook these are my last few status updates. I thought this might be a fun way to let you into my world the last few days.

3 blind mice, 3 blind mice, see how they make J.D. run, see how they make J.D. run...

mouse caught! Somewhere around 3 this morning my husband bagged another one. I believe it was a 7 pointer....

gonna watch the Lord of the Rings trilogy...hope it makes the next few days go flying by. I hope when they unwrap my leg tomorrow I don't look like schmiegel under there. :)

Please pray for my Dr.'s appt. this morning. My foot has been turning purple every time it is down and causing me to feel light headed. Please pray for the Dr.'s wisdom & my strength to get through it.

back home! I now have a very bright green cast which Karlee picked out. The Dr. said he was very pleased with my healing. I am happy to have a wheel chair, I was able to go into WMart after the appt. Still no weight on the leg for 4-6 weeks. (the ride to the appt & the time at the appt were both very rough, and I'm going to take a nap now)

is getting a pedicure from my darling daughter.

we are all wiped out today, kind've a down day after all of the excitement yesterday. J.D. is doing laundry and cleaning up, to quote him, "a woman's work is never done!".

got in my wheelchair today, wheeled myself into the kitchen (first time to go in there in two weeks) and did donuts. Then wheeled to my back window and just sat and looked outside. I have such a beautiful view and have really missed it! Then I had a terrible headache for two hours. Now I am happy on pain meds! :)

is gonna get out of the house today, and do something fun! Woo Hoo!!

finally going out, J & I are taking Karlee & Britany to Target...should be fun!

my trip to Target was really fun! I bought my favorite shampoo, and some pink nail polish! :) The girls bought junk food, and proceeded to giggle all night...it was a very welcome sound around here!

is going to try really hard to go church in the morning. I have been sick to my stomach all day but hopefully will feel better tomorrow. I decided at 9:30 this morning that, That was my last pain pill. I would rather feel pain then feel lousy from the med's. I have made it all day, now for the evening/overnight. Please pray for me as I make the switch to Tylenol.

So, is this the kind of friend you like on Facebook? The kind who actually updates, or do you prefer the silent type? I personally like the updaters, therefore I am one. I do NOT, will NOT, EVER play any of the games and have them all blocked from my "feed" so don't expect a new friend to send you a bale of hay or whatever!

If you want to friend me on Facebook, look me up...Heather Stinehelfer Arnold, if I know you and your not some weird stalker we can be friends. :)

I did make it to church this morning and it was a blessing! I'm home tonight however because I still can't kick the headache, nausea, etc.

Post Op

2010-08-13T10:07:00.008-05:00

Just wanted to check in here, and let you, my blogger buddies know what's up.

Tuesday morning, J's alarm went off at 3:15 and the day started. He got a shower, got me cleaned up, packed the van, it all was going very well. Then, on the way out to the van, my leg got tripped up and I fell into the van, putting pressure on my bad leg. This of course made me cry out in pain and Missi, (our Pomeranian) came to see what was going on, realized she was out the door, and took off.

J spent about 15 minutes trying to catch Missi, before we decided we just had to go, and so at 4:50 we called Gayla who was keeping the kids for us and asked her to wake Karlee up and go find Missi. I felt really bad about doing this, but it couldn't be helped. Worrying about Missi getting run over did take my mind off of some of the stress of getting to the hospital. Before I went into surgery we got a call that they did find her and had her safely in the house. I was very relieved.

We arrived at the hospital at 5:40, and the pre-op work got started. I was in a lot of pain because I had not had any medicine since 11:30 the night before, however, everything went very smoothly, and I was not nearly as nervous as I could have been. I believe this is a direct result of all of the prayers that were being said for me. Because of my veins, I am typically very difficult to get an i.v. started in, and the nurse was able to get it going on the first try! We were just in the waiting game then. I answered all of the usual questions to all of the usual people. Then the anesthesiologist gave me a shot in my i.v. to calm me down, except he shoved it in too fast and it had a very hard shocking sensation instead. J.D. gave me a kiss and I was trying not to show the pain. I had tears running down my face once we walked away from him, and one of the nurses took my hand and said it was going to be okay, and I went off to dream land.

I woke up in tremendous pain, but there was a wonderful nurse right there taking care of me. She immediately got the medicine running and when she had given me the max amount the Dr. had said, she got right on getting more for me until she got it under control. She was very patient and understanding. Also, during the middle of that, she received a call that her elderly father had escaped from his nursing home and had sat out in the heat for too long. She was very calm in caring for me and making arrangements for him. I told her I would be praying for her.

Then I was sent to my room, and reunited with J.D. I know he had to be relieved to see me. Mainly because the night before the surgery I had a "if I don't wake back up" talk with him. I felt like it was necessary for him to know what I would want to be buried in, the songs I would want, his 2nd marriage options, etc. (We really did have the talk but I am smiling at the same time)

The last two days since the surgery have been full of pain, and taking pain medicine. I have not had any really bad complications. My left arm is swollen and sore from the medicine in the i.v. and we have been treating it with ice. I have 5 screws in the ankle area and 1 under the knee. The nail/rod goes from the top of the tibia to the bottom and then there was another fracture that had to be fixed, which is why I have the 5 screws instead of the planned 2. The extra fracture could be the result of a few things, the Dr. could have done it while putting in the nail, I have had some major muscle spasms in my sleep that have caused me to jerk the leg, and the fall on the way to the hospital. I am hoping today is going to be a better day.

Some things I am thankful for

Knowing that God is in control

J.D. loves me so much

The recliner that I am sitting in, it was a gift many years ago and I would not have been nearly as comfortable without it

access to pain medication

good friends all over the globe who are praying for me

sweet friends nearby who have cared for my husband, children, and brought food

the wonderful food and ability to taste it

when J.D. washes my hair

the care I rec'd at the hospital, the Dr's & nurses were very kind

knowing that, this too, shall pass!

Quick Update

2010-08-07T10:56:00.002-05:00

I went to the Orthopedic Surgeon and...I'm going to have surgery. I will have a rod put in on Tuesday morning. I will be spending one night in the hospital for pain management, then I will be on the road to recovery. I will actually be much better off after the surgery. I'm nervous about it and would love your prayers.

I have a post rolling around in my head of things God is showing me through all of this, and I will try to get to it soon. For now, know that J.D. is the best caretaker ever, don't take walking to the bathroom all by yourself for granted, when you take a shower today, feel the water, smell the soap, enjoy that clean feeling all over, I could go on but if you are healthy and well today, take the time to recognize all of the little things. I know I will be once I am back up and about.

Have a wonderful weekend!

A Mission Trip, VBS, Sinuses, Summer Camp, and a Broken Leg

2010-08-05T08:39:00.009-05:00

I don't think I mentioned it here, but July was scheduled to be an action packed month. It did not disappoint. We started out with a Youth Group from Jacksonville, FL coming to stay at the church for a week. I believe there were 19 teens & 7 adults. We had a wonderful time with them! In the mornings they ran a day camp for the children in the area. In the afternoons we went canvassing in our area. We took groups of 3, door to door, down dirt roads, and up main highways and asked hundreds of people a few questions about what they looked for in a church and how they believed they would get to heaven. We saw 1 lady accept Christ during the canvassing, and have MANY prospects to follow up with for our church. At the end of day camp several children went forward to be saved and will be following up with J.D. Most exciting of all for those of us who know him, on the last night we had a Youth Rally and one of the JAX teens went forward and accepted Christ. It was a very moving night as many of us had prayed for him through the week! Also after the service one of our teens prayed to accept Christ. J.D. & I and several others from our church were with them from early morning until late at night each day. It was exhausting, but, I LOVE being exhausted while serving the Lord! I love to get in on the action, not sit on the sidelines and watch.

That group left on Saturday, on Sunday after morning church we finished the decorating for VBS and started our VBS that evening. What a week we had! I worked with the teens this year and we had a great turn out. We started the week with around 20 and quickly grew to over 30. That is a lot of teenagers running around our church! There were 5 teens that went forward to accept Christ. The first day we had 45 total in attendance, and it steadily grew and topped off at 94 on Wednesday. Family night was Friday and we had a great turnout of parents come to see their children sing. It was so good to have all of those new faces in the pews!

I started feeling sick on Friday, and by Saturday I knew I had the bug again. Saturday was J.D.'s birthday. We celebrated by having a quiet day at home, playing games, napping, and grilled steaks for dinner. Michael, Katie, & Sara Beth had already left for children's camp which started Saturday, but our family had plans to meet them on Sunday afternoon. We did go up that afternoon, I still was not feeling well so I just stayed a few hours and drove back home. That was one of the longest nights ever. I had not stayed alone in a house for a long time and for sure not out in the country where I heard every noise! Monday was uneventful, I went up to camp with the kids in the afternoon, they were having a great time and J.D., Michael, Katie, & Sara Beth were doing a great job of keeping them busy & teaching them more about Jesus. That evening they took them to the community pool and I left partly because I didn't feel well, and mostly because watching those little kids jumping off the high dive was worrying me sick! I don't like heights, and, I kept worrying about them bumping their heads on the diving board or something else.

Tuesday, I picked up around the house, then headed for camp. I was really debating going because by then I was really feeling lousy. I started taking some antibiotics and decided that if the rest of them could tough it out I could too! Within an hour of getting there, I was coming out of a closet, stepped on an air mattress, lost my footing, caught my right foot on the doorway, twisted my leg and heard a snap. I immediately started hollering for J.D., it took a little while for them to find him and I was in shear panic mode by the time they did. I had my first ambulance ride to the e.r. where the xray's showed I have a spiral fracture in the lower section of my right leg. I don't want to be a whiny butt, however, this is the most pain I have ever been in. One day of it would have been comparable to having my children but we are in day 3 now and I definitely would have preferred child birth to this! Plus I would have something sweet & cuddly to hold right now. :)

I'm going to wrap this up for today. I am going to see an orthopedic surgeon tomorrow, and if I am up to it I will post the results, and some lessons I am learning tomorrow afternoon.

I would appreciate your prayers!

Blessings,

New Background w/ a Question

2010-07-16T10:21:00.003-05:00

Thank you to Karlee for my new background!

The question is, how does it look on your computer?

On mine it spaced nicely w/ the flowers to the left like this...

On Karlee's the flowers on the left are running into the body like this...

(click for larger images)

Thanks for your help!

Emma at 9 Months

2010-07-13T21:47:00.002-05:00

Beautiful girl, how I wish I could be with you!

It Was a Plum of a Day!

2010-07-12T18:21:00.004-05:00

I am sick, I despise being sick. It makes me cranky! So, I had to find something to keep me busy today. I walked next door and picked a large bag of beautiful plums!

Then I made this cobbler. It has plums, nectarines, & blackberries in it.
This is my favorite cobbler recipe because it is healthy, quick, easy, and goes w/ any fruit!

I also made this plum sauce, for my waffles, and ice cream. I replaced the almond extract w/ some cinnamon & ginger, then cooked it down a little to thicken it.

Karlee got the plum bug, and decided to make plum bread. It is awesome good!

She doubled the recipe, and took one next door to thank the neighbors for sharing the plums!

It turned into a nice plummy day!

Motivation

2010-07-09T07:42:00.003-05:00

Translation~I love you with all my heart

Beautiful B a bus kid brought me that

She was dressed up special this Wednesday because she turned 6 Thursday.

Matthew 19:14

Wordless Wednesday - OUCH

2010-07-07T21:20:00.002-05:00

July 4th

2010-07-06T16:46:00.013-05:00

We celebrated July 4th, first with a great service at church. J.D. brought a wonderful message which you can listen to here.

Then we went to Eureka Springs, AR, where we had another super experience at a Best Western Hotel. (they do not pay me, nor have any idea that I exist) This particular BW had a lot of perks! Free miniature golf, shuffle board, and ping pong. Air Hockey, pool and video games for a small charge. An awesome heated pool, and small hot tub. There is a very good restaurant on site also.
We swam, and played for two days. Here are some pictures of the fun.

The pool was divine

Eli, in his 3d glasses, ready for fireworks

Karlee, enjoying a funnel cake

The only firework shot we got, this does not do them justice,
this was by far one of the best shows I have ever seen

Monday, we went to Cosmic Cavern, it was AWESOME!

On the way home, God gave us this beautiful rainbow

I hope you had a great 4th also!

Blessings!

For My Sister

2010-06-07T16:20:00.003-05:00

I have to admit that I have been feeling "in bondage" to the unnecessary bondage post about as much as my sister has. However, I just have not been inspired to write over here. So, here are some of my favorite pictures that my dad took while visiting here last week.

Unnecessary Bondage

2010-04-24T11:01:00.006-05:00

God wanted to thump me on the head this morning, and I thought I would share the lesson with you. I was working in the kitchen peeling and chopping apples for a salad, and my mind was wandering. I began thinking about how scared I am to go back to the city where the affair happened. It is only about 25 minutes from me and would be convenient for several things, but I have refused to go back. (I can barely drive by on the highway without anger & tears surfacing)

Anyway, I was thinking about how I feel in bondage to this fear. Meanwhile, Missi was scratching at the front door to be let in. It is a rainy morning, and I was putting it off because I would have to dry her off. I got my cutting done and went to let her in. While I was drying her off, I undid the leash. I finished drying her and walked away. She would normally follow me wherever I was going, but this time she just continued to sit on the towel. I walked into the kitchen and called her and then went back to work. I checked a few minutes later, and she was still just sitting there. I tried to bribe her off the towel with her favorite bear and she wouldn't budge. It was then that I saw the lesson, that leash was lying there beside her, she was free, but had no idea. I decided to take her picture. (look closely and you'll see the leash laying by her) Then I called the kids in, they continued to try to get her to come, she had to be picked up by Karlee and moved before she would realize she is free!

How many of us are sitting in bondage to something God has freed us of?

II Corinthians 10:4-5 "For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ."

Mail Anyone?

2010-04-23T10:18:00.002-05:00

Another homeschooler checking the mail!

Who is it this time?

Eli!

Revival

2010-04-19T11:16:00.005-05:00

Here are some lessons I have been learning the last few weeks. Revival is not an event. It does not start on Sunday morning and run through Wednesday night. It is an action that takes place in our hearts.

For me, revival started the first week our church met in one of our member's home, the 16 of us bowed our heads and poured out our requests to the Lord together. Hearing my sisters & brothers ask for brokenness and healing, started the conviction in my own heart. I have been wrestling with a personal sin for a couple of months now. I would ask the Lord to remove it. I was expecting Him to do something about the situation. I knew I had the sin, I was sorry I had the sin, and I wanted God to remove it WITHOUT surrendering my heart to Him. I wanted the sin amputated, and I did not want to have to go to the hospital or cooperate in any way to have the surgery done.

Our time of meetings this week was set up just for the church body, I am not saying that visitors were not welcome, only that it was supposed to be a time of getting our hearts right and ready for the next big thing God has in store for us. It was not a pack the pews and see how many people are saved event.

I find myself feeling like a limp dishrag so far this week. It is over, and I gave myself physically, having a lot of company and such, but more importantly emotionally, allowing God to speak directly to me, piercing my heart with His two-edged sword. (Hebrews 4:12)

Witnessing the new enthusiasm in my church family, I am so excited to see what God is going to do in us and through us!

Would you like to share your last personal revival experience in the comments? I would love to hear your experience!

Blessings,

Welcome

2010-04-15T20:55:00.002-05:00

A big hearty Welcome, to my Facebook friends! You are an interesting combination of my past & present. I have childhood friends from Michigan, teenage years friends from Florida, relatives all over the country who I barely even know, because we were only able to be together 4 or 5 times as kids, Pastor's wives, and friends of friends. Then there are my present friends, people who know me now, those who attend church with me and see me on a weekly basis.

I posted my blog on my Facebook page today and I have been feeling kind of vulnerable, reluctant, excited, and a few other emotions. I have known that I needed to do this for awhile now and decided to jump in this morning. Well, the hard part of that was that we left the house at 10 this morning and have only been home for two short 10 minute periods since then. I know this was for the best because the temptation for me would have been to constantly update and see if I had any comments or messages, etc.

I do want to say thank you to those of you who kindly sent me a message and encouragement to me!

I pray that God will use my testimony to touch your life in His way!

Happy!

2010-04-01T09:20:00.002-05:00

Snow Ice Cream

2010-03-22T13:17:00.007-05:00

We had a big surprise snow on Saturday. It left us without church yesterday which was a bummer. We had a great time with our neighbor's though. We ate lunch together, played some cards, and watched some basketball.

Today, we woke up to sunshine and it is obvious that most of our snow will be gone by dark. The kids always ask to make snow ice cream. Normally, there is not enough "clean" snow but this time there was plenty. Here are the pictures!

Here is where I got the snow, I used the top few inches.

The snow!

First whisk 1 egg very thoroughly
Then add 1 cup whole milk (I used about 3/4 cup milk 1/4 cup heavy cream)
Add 1 tsp. of vanilla and 1/2 cup sugar. Add snow by spoonfuls until it reaches your desired consistency
The finished product
Eli takes a bite
He has sensitive teeth so his reaction was OUCH! (he was able to eat it when it melted a little)Karlee gets her turn

Love!

Facebook

2010-03-10T10:56:00.003-06:00

Where have I been? On Facebook. I have been "friending" and "updating" and ignoring "farmville" requests by the dozens.

I have also been busy homeschooling, taking care of sick kids, teaching and feeding AWANA kids, caring for my pastor husband, and playing with new friends.

My daughter gave me a new look yesterday and the sun is shining and I think I am going to get back over here again!

Is anyone still out there?

A Question

2010-02-10T10:17:00.003-06:00

One of our Youth Leaders asked the question, "How does uncompromising faith in God make life "worth it"?"

This was my answer:

God has brought me through many storms since I have been a christian. During this time my faith has been building to what it is today, although I am sure I will learn many more lessons before I die, I am at a place in my walk with the Lord where I can honestly say that I trust Him and His decisions for my life. When I was a young christian, J.D. & I went through a very hard couple of years where everything seemed against us. Our babies were fussy or sick so we weren't getting much sleep, J.D. had a strange illness that caused him a lot of pain and me a lot of work to keep up with the house and kids alone, then we had a huge amount of Dr. bills which almost drove us to court, during this time God was working on me and teaching me that He alone is in control. That I can trust Him even in the midst of the worst times of my life. What I also learned is that with the faith I have in God, I have enough. Even when I thought I couldn't go on, He was right there beside me carrying me through. I had enough love, support, peace, and comfort.

If I did not have my faith, life would be miserable! I would say that uncompromising faith in God is not only "worth it" but it is the only way to have joy in our lives!!!

How would you answer the question?

While the Cat's Away the Mice Will Play!

2010-02-05T13:59:00.004-06:00

We had a wonderful trip and I want to write about it, but I am way too tired. I thought I would put up a couple of pictures of things I came home to. We were teasing our church family about the mice not playing while the cat was away. Of course, then they had a big snow storm and had a good reason to skip church on Sunday. The night before we left, our fridge gave up the ghost. It was wonderful to come home to brand new one all set up and working and no sign of the old one. A major perk is that this one has much more freezer space! I love it!!As mischievous as our congregation is, I would suspect that they planted this little surprise in the tub for us. However, I know they took it easy on us because we had a friend fly home with us from Florida. J discovered this when he went to make sure the shower was in working order for our guest...let's just say he used our shower.

Sitting Here

2010-02-03T14:48:00.002-06:00

I am sitting in a very comfortable recliner with the windows open, enjoying the Florida sunshine and holding my sleeping niece, Emma. Now tell me does life get any sweeter than this?!

I Will Hold Her, and Love Her, and Squeeze Her, and Call Her Emma!

2010-01-23T17:11:00.002-06:00

I couldn't leave with the fussy picture up. We will be flying to Florida for the next week and a half. J & I will have the privilege of going to the Pastor's Conference in Jacksonville together. I am not sure if I will blog or not. I am also going to get to FINALLY meet Emma! I can not wait to hold, kiss, snuggle, smother her!

Have a great week!

Housework

2010-01-19T09:51:00.003-06:00

Sometimes Emma just says it best. I have company coming tonight and I have TONS of housework to do first. YUCK!!!!!

The Gift of a Cow

2010-01-18T09:19:00.006-06:00

I feel like this post is going to be all over the place, so get ready...

I have to say that since November 1st, our first official Sunday, I have been busy. I can not tell you how much I have enjoyed it! It is so good to be back in the center of God's will doing what He called us to do. It feels like after a long time in the desert, we are swimming in a refreshing pool.

This morning I had a sweet gift from God.

To understand this, you have to have a little background on me. I LOVE animals, all animals, I always have. God speaks to me often through nature. Also, I have always wanted to live on a farm. I grew up thinking that I would definitely marry someone with land, and animals...especially horses.... Then I fell in love with the biggest city boy you have ever met, and he doesn't even care for most animals. Go figure! Then being a pastor's wife, I felt destined to never have my dream. Parsonages are usually in town next to the church. Even owning our home, J would not be interested in keeping up land.

Well, to my surprise, my parsonage sits on a little hill overlooking a dairy farm full of cows. The best kind of farm because the animals aren't even raised for slaughter!! (not that I'm against that, it just makes it easier for me to name them) :)

So, now I am going to tell you a little about my week. We have a dear deacon in our church, he is a founding member of the church, and he has become most peoples father figure or Papa, depending on your age. He and his wife are those people who draw others to them in an instant bond. He has been in the hospital this last week, on a roller coaster ride of tests and cancer diagnosis, with a heart attack thrown in just for fun. They have reversed the cancer diagnosis, praise the Lord. It has been a busy week of hospital visits.

On Wednesday, I had a call that a dear friend had passed away. He was 92 and lived the sort of life we would all be proud of. He was a war service hero, a good husband and father, served the Lord faithfully, and had a great sense of humor. His wife died a year and a half ago, they had been married for 62 years when she passed. I know that he is home with his Savior and his love and I am happy for him.

Also on Wednesday, I had the privilege of sharing my testimony and just answering some questions for a dear lady in our church. It was a joy to be used by God in this way. She was saved that afternoon. There were many people in the church who shared with her and had been praying for her. She stood before the church yesterday and with tears of joy shared her salvation. What a wonderful Savior we have!

This morning I awoke to my dog barking. I got up to let the little one out and check to see what was going on. I looked out the back door and within feet of the fence was a brand new calf and her mama. She was just learning how to use her legs, stumbling around. Her mama was licking her and she was sniffing around her mama. I just went out and sat on the back deck and watched the miracle before my eyes. Nursing was one of the best things about being a new mother to me, and watching that baby learn to suckle was so sweet. It is a beautiful morning here, after having freezing temperatures with ice and snow, then fog and clouds for a few days, it is gloriously sunny and even warm enough for me to sit out there in just my nightgown. I just had a special time of thanking my Lord. He has given me so many gifts in the last two years. I know that they are abundant blessings for obedience, and I am grateful!

Today, I will go to the funeral of my dear friend, then we will head to the hospital where our new dear friend will go through an extensive surgery. It will be a long day, but I will carry with me how personal God is in my life. When we are aware of His presence, walking closely with Him, there is nothing better.

Blessings,

New Year's Resolutions?

2010-01-05T09:37:00.007-06:00

I personally do not make New Year Resolutions. However, I do get excited about the feel of a new beginning. For the last few years, I have taken my previous years calendar and thanked the Lord through it sometime in January. I start in January and look at everything I have penciled in, and just thank the Lord for the special times with friends and family, healing, church functions, the hard times He brings me through, birthdays, etc. I have not done this yet this year but it will be a very special time when I do.

Thinking about this fresh start in 2010, I was thinking of some things I would like to look back and say I accomplished. I know this sounds like a resolution, but remember I am rebellious and if I set a "rule" for myself I am bound to break it!

So, when I am writing the first week of 2011, I would like to say that in 2010, I~

Walked closer than ever with the Lord

Am more healthy

Was a wise steward of my money

Intentionally loved my husband and my children well

As for walking closer with the Lord, I am excited about having a close knit group of ladies at church to study with and to hold each other accountable. I have really missed that for the last few years, and I should say it like this...I AM EXCITED ABOUT IT!!!

On being more healthy, I have been a Yo Yo dieter for many years, in the last 2 years I had taken off about 30 lbs. and kept it off. I know how to do it and I need to get back at it. A web site that I really like is Spark People it is a totally free site where you can log your food & exercise.

For the wise steward, I am going to dedicate my earnings working for my dad, 80% toward debt. (10% to God, 10% to fun) Also, I am going to continue to do my best when I plan our menu's etc. Here are some great web sites for saving money.

The Grocery Cart Challenge
Never Pay Retail Again
The Bargain Shopper Lady

Here is a great blog post about saving money with coupons and the web sites to go to. I personally do not do this because I live in Wal-Mart country and we do not have the competitors to shop at. (I wish we did) If you live where you have a few grocery stores to choose from this can really save you money! I just use ALDI for most of my groceries, I took my note pad around and shopped all of the competition in my area and they beat everyone including WMart.

Also don't forget to check eBay, I have a coupon book in my van that is just for restaurants. Especially Chick-fil-A. They will accept any coupon, to anywhere, with any date, at any restaurant. We love to eat there, and with a coupon J & I recently had a date where we each had a grilled sandwich, large waffle fry, and med drink for $1.80 each. Many things that we pay full price for, there are coupons available with a little looking. Best Buy, Lowe's, Home Depot & Office Depot put 10% off coupons in change of address packets. You can buy these cheap or even get one from some one who is moving. (they are free at the Post Office)

As for loving my husband & kids intentionally. I will look for opportunities to say & show my love to them. I will fight the urge to bury myself on my computer or in t.v. I will hug them more and kiss HIM more.

Do you make resolutions or goals? Will you share them with us? If you have any additional web sites or advice I would love to hear it...really!!!

I hope you have a beautiful Tuesday!

We've Got Talent

2010-01-04T17:35:00.002-06:00

This is our very talented music leader Michael, and his sister Katie. They wrote this song for our talent show on New Year's Eve. They do a wonderful job leading our worship time each week and apparently keeping their eye out for inspiration. I love these two!

Good Bye, 2009

2010-01-01T16:04:00.006-06:00

Here are some highlights from 2009...

I can't remember any highlights from January or February.

March~ I started my blog, J really thought I was crazy, but being the loving husband he is, he went along with it.

April~ We had our first tax return as a regular working guy...it was nice getting a chunk of change.
(pastor's are considered self employed...we won't be seeing that again...it's worth it!)

May~ My dad came for a visit and we enjoyed beautiful weather and a week of hiking together. J.D. and I flew to Virginia for his mom's b-day and a visit with his dad.

June~ J.D. begins to be asked to preach a lot. We start to feel strongly that God is pulling us back into ministry.

July~ We had a nice quiet summer this year. Full of going to the pool, flea markets, picking blackberries & blueberries, and just spending time together.

August~ J preaches at Emmanuel for the first time. On the way home we talk about how much we like the church. We are very impressed with the friendliness of the people and the welcoming facilities. I begin preparing for a new school year and a family vacation.

September~ The goals that I accomplish (cleaning out rooms & closets) are really going to help me when I wind up moving. (something that is not even on the radar right then)
We have the best family vacation we have ever had. Going to Colorado on a shoe string budget.

October~ God moves in our heart and our future church's heart and J is voted in as pastor of Emmanuel Baptist Church in Jane, MO. I tell myself I will take my time packing and moving. My niece, Emma is born.

November~ On the 1st we move into our new house...I love living in this parsonage. This is also J's first sermon as a restored pastor of a church, a very moving day.

December~ What a busy month it was! High's include Friend Day at church, a Christmas party complete with a white elephant exchange, many gatherings at friends houses for food & fellowship, my first open house, and a talent show to welcome in the New Year.

2009 was a wonderful year! It was a year of family bonding, restored ministry, and new family and friends.

Thank you, Lord, for 2009!

Blessings,

P.S. Thank you Karlee for the new look!

Wishing You and Yours

2009-12-21T19:01:00.003-06:00

This week I have an Open House for our church family tomorrow. A Christmas Party to go to Wednesday. Christmas Eve. Christmas Day complete with the big dinner. So, I am wishing you all a Merry Christmas and I will try to get back to blogging next week.

Merry Christmas!

This Is How I Feel Too!

2009-12-15T19:28:00.002-06:00

My Emma is expressing my feelings perfectly tonight, how about you?

Yesterday

2009-12-14T17:00:00.004-06:00

I have been thinking about yesterday all day today. I want to write about it, but I am not sure I can do it justice. I will try though.

Yesterday was Friend Day at our new church. One night very soon after we moved here, I had a list of ideas for J. We were busy and I didn't get to rattle them off to him until late that night. One of my ideas was to have a Friend Day in December complete with a Christmas message and a meal. He said that sounded good, but it might be too soon to try to pull something that big off. At first he thought we should wait until the spring. The idea quickly grew on him and he set it in motion.

I share with you that it was my idea because it was so special to me to see God's plan in action yesterday. I know that God put that idea in my head, so I am not taking credit for it. My point is that because I brought it up, and J took off with it, then the people stepped up and did the work, we had a very successful day yesterday.

Our congregation has been running between 80 and 100 people lately. J set a goal of 125 for Friend Day. Our people got out and invited and we had 145 in church yesterday morning. A record for a Sunday morning at the church!

When we were singing, I felt overwhelmed by the Holy Spirit's power. I tried to look around to see who was there and just enjoy the sight of a full auditorium but my emotions would take over and the tears would start. I have said it before, I am hard headed and God has been doing overtime to affirm to me our decision to come to this church.

The day started out with 3 baptisms. One teenage girl who was recently saved in Youth Group, and a married couple. This man and his wife have both come to the Lord in the last few weeks. (I was there when she knelt and accepted Christ and it was so wonderful)

J preached a sermon about Jesus, he covered His fulfilled prophesies, birth, life, death, and resurrection. The message was powerful. I am praying that those that were there who needed to accept Christ would not be able to get it out of their minds this week. I think we will still see results from our peoples obedience in the weeks to come.

The meal was overflowing with good food. There was plenty for everyone with enough to spare for the evening meal as well. We are even freezing enough extra ham that will feed us (the church) for our New Year's Eve party.

After a short afternoon, we had a White Elephant Party at 5 p.m. It was a lot of fun and just a great time of celebration after such a super day.

My sister was the only person that was not a regular attender of the church that was there and this is the comment she had for those at the church.

YourSis said...: Tell your church family that we had a blast at the party. I heard a lot of warnings about how ruthless it would be. I hate to ruin any hard-nosed reputations but I think I saw more selfless acts than selfish ones. Iris and I chatted excitedly all the way home. Thank them for a fun time for us.
I hate to say it but I do agree with her...mostly...:)

I have had a few of you tell me that you try to comment on the blog and it doesn't show up. Here is what to do...Before you write your comment click on the down arrow that says Comment as and choose anonymous then write your comment and if you'd like, be sure you sign your name so I know who you are, after you write your comment, click post comment. Part of the fun of a blog is comments so if you are trying I would love to hear from you!

If you are still having problems shoot me an email and I'll try to help.

I hope you have a wonderful evening!

Blessings,

Luke 2 (Another Christmas Flashback)

2009-12-11T08:09:00.004-06:00

As long as I can remember Luke 2 has been a part of my Christmas morning. Growing up my dad always read it. The lights were low and the Christmas tree was sparkling. The presents were now ALL under the tree...even the ones I didn't know. As a child it was so hard to focus on what dad was reading between peeking at the presents and my stocking. You could feel our excitement. If my parents had given us a choice to just dig right into those presents and skip the Bible reading, I wonder what I would have chose?

Looking back, I remember far more special times reading the Christmas Story together, than I do special presents. Many times my dad or mom or both would get choked up. Now as adults we are all sappy when we happen to all be together. Our children are sneaking peeks at their presents/stockings and we can feel their excitement...will they look back with fond memories of our Christmas tradition? I hope they will carry it on for many generations.

Luke 2:1-20

And it came to pass in those days that a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered. This census first took place while Quirinius was governing Syria. So all went to be registered, everyone to his own city. Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, to be registered with Mary , his bethrothed wife, who was with child. So it was, that while they were there, the days were completed for her to be delivered. And she brought forth her firstborn Son, and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn. Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. And behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid. Then the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior who is Christ the Lord. And this will be the sign to you: You will find the Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger." And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying: "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace goodwill toward men!" So it was, when the angels had gone away from them into heaven, that the shepherds said to one another, "Let us now go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has come to pass, which the Lord has made known to us." And they came with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the Babe lying in a manger. Now when they had seen Him, they made widely known the saying which was told them concerning this Child. And all those who heard it marveled at those things which were told them by the shepherds. But Mary kept all these things and pondered them in her heart. Then the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told them.

"I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people!"

If you are reading today, and you do not know Jesus,and the great joy of being part of His family, and you would like to, please send me an email. I will be happy to share what He has done for me and what He would love to do for you.

Blessings,

Is That A Cigar?

2009-12-10T08:27:00.003-06:00

I just stopped by to see my new comments...thanks Tammy & Leah! I was looking at my new template and I think the shepherd looking over Mary's shoulder may be smoking a cigar??!!

What do you think?

Christmas Cow

2009-12-09T20:59:00.003-06:00

Karlee took a picture of this cow in the pasture behind our house, then she doctored it up with picnik. I thought it was cute enough to share!

A Christmas Flashback

2009-12-08T11:07:00.003-06:00

Every year my children get Christmas presents before Christmas. This is my fault. Honestly, it drives J.D. a little bit crazy. It all started when I was a child. My parents had a tradition of putting a few presents under the tree each week leading up to Christmas.

What they didn't know was that I was an EXPERT at unwrapping enough of the gift to find out what it was and re-wrapping it without them knowing. I would do this when they were still in bed on Saturday mornings. My brother & sister would gather around me to watch my skills, in return for their secrecy, I would do their presents too.

One year in particular, we hit the jackpot. All three of us were avid Mr. Rogers watchers. This year sitting under the tree was a puppet each from the show. My brother got King Friday, my sister had Lady Elaine and for me X the owl. We were SO EXCITED about getting these. Of course we all were cool and collected when mom handed them to us for our Christmas Eve present and we all acted very surprised to see them. (as we did with all our presents over the years)

My parents did not find out we did this until I was 25. It was my first Christmas that I didn't live at home with my parents. They came up to Arkansas, and Christmas Eve, after everyone was in bed, my brother and I spent some bonding time unwrapping and re-wrapping gifts. The next day we were cracking up at each other trying to act surprised and we finally confessed what we had been doing all of those years.

Now, I get so excited to give my kids their gifts that I just can't wait. They know I'm a big softy and that I understand their pain of hating surprises.

So, today they will each open a present after they finish school & chores. Can any of you relate? Share your stories!

Blessings,

Baby Angel

2009-11-28T10:08:00.002-06:00

Here is a little something for you to look at instead of my shopping rant. My niece Emma at 6 weeks.

Happy Black Friday!

2009-11-27T04:39:00.003-06:00

I never can sleep Thanksgiving night. I feel the same way I did when I was a kid on Christmas Eve. The anticipation of all the shopping keeps me wide awake. Well, last night I decided to do some of my shopping at 11:00. I had an email from Kohl's saying that their door busters would start at 11:45 and figured I could get some shopping done early. I did my shopping and had my cart all full and ready. At 11:45 I clicked the check out button and watched with glee as the Black Friday prices appeared. I had beat the system!

NOT!

At 11:45 as I clicked the check out button the Kohl's server went into over drive.To my dismay Kohl's kicked me off their web site completely. Oh well, I thought, at least my shopping cart is full and I will only have to go back on and check out.

WRONG!

I got signed back in and found that I had lost everything. Not to be stopped, I began my shopping again. Now the site is moving VERY SLOW, every page taking well over 2 minutes to load. I am telling myself to think of all the time I will save in lines tomorrow. Then I am kicked off again, lose everything again...I am very frustrated!

I try to log back in. (yes, sanity was long gone) Now I am being blocked. I can not even enter my password without being kicked off. At 1:00 I finally give up and try to go to sleep. I am ticked off, forget about anticipation of shopping, I am ready to go have a few rounds of kick boxing. (I will not mention with who or what)

It is now 4:45. I awoke at 3:45 ready to conquer that website. Guess what? I logged right on, did my shopping, checked out and never had a glitch. Doesn't that figure?

I hope your shopping is full of insanity and laughter today. If you see me, I will be the one in need of strong coffee and direction.

For those of you who are snug in your beds and wouldn't think of going near the stores today....I'm sorry I just can't relate to you! :)

Blessings,

Thankful

2009-11-23T09:17:00.004-06:00

I am thankful for~

My Heavenly Father! Who has restored our ministry to us. Serving HIM is the ultimate satisfaction.

My husband! He is a hard worker, who loves the Lord and his family.

My children! They are both the best in their own unique way.

My family! We are a tight knit group even though most of us live far apart.

My new church family! It is so good to feel like I belong somewhere again.

My new home! I love almost everything about it, especially the kitchen.

New friends! I have been needing you.

How about you? What are you thankful for?

Come on, you know you want to comment and tell me! :)

Psalm 75:1
"We give thanks to you, O God, we give thanks! For your wondrous works declare that Your name is near."

Blessings,

My Homeschooler Checking the Mail

2009-11-21T09:20:00.003-06:00

This was yesterday. I asked her to go check the mail. She said,"But mom, I'm still in my pajamas". I replied, "No one is going to see you". Then I snuck out with the camera and took these. Isn't she a cutey?!

Slow Fade

2009-11-20T08:16:00.004-06:00

This song has been going through my head this week. This video is so powerful, if you have never watched it please take a couple minutes and do it. So often, we find ourselves in situations that we never thought we would be in.

Sometimes it's finances...it starts off as just a little Target credit card...then it's $20,000 worth of debt.

Our marriages...I'm too tired, we have nothing in common, all he ever does is work, all she ever does is shop, I'm just not into him anymore...on and on it goes.

Our walk with the Lord...I don't have time to read and pray in the morning, I'm only missing Wednesday nights, Sundays aren't that important.

It's only one swear word, one drink, one puff on a cigarette, one time of looking at a dirty magazine, one Google search for porn, one time of eating the whole pie, one time you lose your temper.

We tell ourselves we have it all under control. IT'S ONLY ONE TIME! We can quit. It won't get bigger than this.

Then it is bigger. Then we are dealing with the crumbling of the walls in our lives.

Let's search our lives and look for that area where we are compromising. What are we telling ourselves, "I'll deal with that soon, I won't let it get out of control."

Confess it, turn from it, FLEE!

Psalm 38:3-5
"There is no soundness in my flesh because of Your anger, nor any health in my bones, because of my sin. For my iniquities have gone over my head; like a heavy burden they are too heavy for me. My wounds are foul and festering because of my foolishness."

I John 1:9
"If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."

(P.S. Whenever I watch a video, I push play and then pause it, let it load all the way and then watch it. It is so much better!)

A Quick Hello

2009-11-19T08:10:00.003-06:00

I have been absent this week. There are two blog posts rolling around in my noggin, but I just can't make myself start either one. So instead I have been ignoring this here spot of mine.

I am having a wonderful week complete with enjoying a retired missionary couple from Venezuela, WAY too many desserts at a dessert fellowship, cold rainy days that make you want to hunker down and watch old movies and drink hot chocolate, getting out alone with J for a little shopping, roasting 2 pumpkins, making pie & roasting the seeds. Today, I am taking my sister shopping and out to lunch for her b'day. Happy Birthday, Leah!

I hope you are enjoying your week!

Don't Mess With These Baptists!

2009-11-13T05:00:00.004-06:00

Just as promised, here is a picture from the front page of the paper today. That is my Karlee and her friend Niki.

Pretty Funny, huh?!

In other news, I took some pictures of my new friends today. This is Karlee's favorite...she named her Salt & Peppa.
Here is my favorite. She has such unusual markings. Meet Reese. (For the Peanut Butter Cups, my sister's idea) I love her ears!!

If you were a witness to me getting this picture, it would have cracked you up. She did not want to look at me and I had to make all sorts of noise, run in place, and jump up and down. I considered it great practice for next weeks Simon Says game with the AWANA kiddo's.

Have a great weekend!

Introducing Emma

2009-11-12T08:32:00.005-06:00

Emma Noelle

It is about time this very proud aunty introduced~Emma Noelle

She is my brother's first baby. She was born on October 12th at 12:02 P.M. weighing in at 6lbs. 4ozs.

As you can see she is a beauty. I am dying to get my hands on her! I will be able to see her at the end of January. I hope my bro & wife do not expect to hold their baby all week!

Here she is with her mommy...you can see where the beauty comes from!

Proud daddy

I love you Sam, Jeanna, & Emma!

Out Of My Box

2009-11-10T13:54:00.005-06:00

Last Thursday I was awarded this!

Let me tell you this class was WAY out of my box. I was blessed to be given Lori as a partner, because, she felt the same way I did about avoiding the camera. (There was a man from the local newspaper there)

I can't wait to see the write-up about our church group taking a self defense class. I will try to post a copy here for all of you who don't belong to the church. (unless I am in it) :)

I did learn some good moves that I think I could use if I had enough adrenaline flowing through me. We also had a really great time and our instructor was very patient with us as we giggled our way through it. Talk about breaking in your new pastor's wife right. First wash her feet, then beat her up a bit. I wonder what they will do to me next?!

Here is a picture I took Sunday night before church. Doesn't the building look warm & inviting? Well, it is. There is family waiting inside.

This picture is unedited as I do not know how to use any photo editing...that is exactly what it looked like!

I hope you are having a beautiful Tuesday!

A Beautiful Washing

2009-11-09T05:00:00.000-06:00

Last Tuesday night Gayla & Lori had invited all the ladies in the church to a special service. That was all that we knew about it. I saw them arrive early and was really wanting to go over and fellowship with them. I just did not have peace about doing that. I stopped and prayed for them and the service and proceeded to make some bacon wrapped jalapeno's. (I thought we were bringing finger foods, but that was the week before...oh well)

When I went into the auditorium there were chairs set up in a semi-circle. I thought it interesting when all the ladies were there that each chair was filled. It turns out that Gayla & Lori had covered each chair in prayer as well as prayer walking the church.

Gayla started off by saying that this was a foot washing service. Immediately, I thought about the condition of my feet. They had been in my socks & tennis shoes all day. My toe nails had chippy nail polish and had not been clipped in awhile.

Then Gayla started speaking, she shared with us that God had laid this on her heart to do a year and a half ago. She explained how she gave excuses and let her self get in the way of what God wanted her to do. She talked about how she had been miserable in her disobedience and that she was willing to do this hard thing that God had asked of her.

After sharing with us, she asked us to be in prayer for our fellow sisters while she was washing their feet. She knelt before the first lady and began praying as she poured water over her feet and washed them. I was so moved to see her obedient spirit and the ladies each being touched by her humility and prayer. I began to pray with her for my dear sisters. Some I knew and others I did not.

The Holy Spirit was so powerfully moving amongst us. I could feel His presence. All I could think was, this is so beautiful. Over and over I came back to those words. She is beautiful. As Gayla went from one of us to the other I forgot about what my feet looked like, I could not tell you what one of the other ladies feet looked like. I could only think about how our obedience is pleasing to our Heavenly Father. I do not believe there was a dry eye in the house.

If I had known that I was attending a foot washing service, I would have been very nervous. I would have for sure pre-washed my feet and clipped my toe nails. I may have even made an excuse not to go. I'm sure I am not the only one that was there that night that would have felt that way.

I would have missed out on a huge blessing! I am so grateful to Gayla for her obedience. This night made me search my own heart, looking for any area where the Lord has told me to do something and I have made excuses, or reasoned my way out of it.

So often when God asks us to do something, we listen to lies, we hear... you are going to look foolish, or, are you sure that is God telling you to do that. I can not think of one time when I was obedient that I looked back and said oh, I wasn't really supposed to do that, or man I really made a fool of myself. I have never had an obedience regret. I have had plenty of times where I let fear keep me from being obedient and regretted it in a big way.

This night was the start of a bond for me with the ladies of my church that I am looking forward to growing into great things for many years to come.

Thank you, Father, for allowing me to see the beauty of obedience through Gayla's life.

Blessings,

A Little Something Sweet

2009-11-07T10:14:00.009-06:00

I know I promised to write about Monday & Tuesday today BUT I decided to wait and ask the ladies who will be in the post if they mind if I use their names. So, I will wait for those posts on Monday & Tuesday. (ladies feel free to say no)

I have been wanting a stand mixer for several years now. They are very expensive, so I didn't really expect to get one anytime soon. J has been saving his bonus points to buy new living room furniture. Now, with the new job, he will no longer get bonus points, making the furniture out of reach. He used his points to order me a stand mixer for my birthday!!! All the ladies say, "Awww, he's so sweet!" You would be right!!! (he also ordered a much needed vacuum cleaner)

Karlee & I have been wanting to try making homemade marshmallows. This requires a stand mixer and I had promised her if I ever had one, we would make them with it first. Turns out Eli spent the night with Leah Thursday, and it gave us the perfect day yesterday to make our marshmallows. We decided on Peppermint with some dipped in chocolate. Here are the pictures & details.

We used this recipe~the only change we made was using only 1 tsp. vanilla at the time it said and adding 1/2 tsp. peppermint extract & green food coloring w/ about 3 minutes left in the beating time.

Ready to go~notice my apron a bday gift from my sister (she made it)

The Mixer~ Do you hear the chorus of angels singing?

KK measuring the sugar

The syrup & gelatin get started.

Adding Vanilla

Starting to look like marshmallows~see the green swirl?

Mmmmmm!

After they set overnight in the tin foil lined pan, we dumped them onto a powdered sugar covered cookie sheet.

Sifting powdered sugar on top, they would be impossible to cut without all of the powdered sugar

Notice the gloves...I can not stand to touch anything powdery, esp. flour! This was a good idea, it also kept them from sticking to us.

Dipping in chocolate!

The finished product.

This was J's request! I said I would make it Saturday but that just wouldn't do.

Would you like to come over for some hot chocolate with homemade marshmallows and a side of chocolate pie?

This, That...Part Two

2009-11-06T07:50:00.005-06:00

Okay, so I left off yesterday with me realizing that my idea to get the dogs might make us late for church. Sure enough, by the time we were loading the dogs, it was obvious that at best we would barely get there on time. As we were driving back to the church, I called Michael to ask how J was doing. I assumed he would be panicking. Michael said they were just discussing that and J said he was okay, that a couple years ago he would have been panicked but he was more "laid back" now. I was very glad to hear this, I did not want to be in the "dog house". (pun intended)

While on our way back, the kids went over to the church. Tammy B. asked Eli what they should do about his dad being late? Eli replied, "I don't know, but don't fire him, I don't want to have to move again!" That's my boy!

When we got to the house/church we were late. J ran and put on a collared shirt with his jeans and I stayed to get the dogs settled. Gator is a big dog. He has never been chained at our house as we had a big back yard for him. He did not like me putting him on the chain. He started running and broke his collar within minutes of me putting him on the chain. I was chasing him and he was running wild. I could see that the church door was open and I was thinking...boy they will wonder what they got themselves into...a late pastor in jeans and then his large outside dog comes running down the aisle with the pastor's wife running behind. Well, thank goodness that did not happen and I was able to get him chained up. I got to church about half way through. I am sure I was a sight!

After church, we were blessed with a gift once again. We were given a gift card to Lowe's for the kennel we were in need of for Gator. I could write two paragraphs about what a blessing this was. I will condense it down to...this blessing was a consequence of obedience on my part. I wanted to conquer the dog kennel and was willing to spend money we didn't have to do it. I came to my senses and agreed to pray about it. God showed me AGAIN that he always blesses obedience.

Edited to add: Of course if the couple who gave us the gift card had not been obedient we both would have missed out on this obedience blessing!

When it was time to leave, we invited Michael for some breakfast for dinner and after we ate, Missi (the Pomeranian) got away. Michael got to join the family as we chased her down the road and around a barn and finally caught her.

Monday, I worked on unpacking and chasing the dogs some more. First Gator broke the leash that I had him tied with. Then Missi somehow squirmed out of her harness. Once again the chase was on. By the time Michael got there to take me to pick up the kennel I was about done in. (Somewhere in there, I had also run to Wal-Mart) What a wonderful thing to get it put up and Gator's big tail wagging as I put him in it!

I cooked a huge pan of spaghetti because I knew I wouldn't be home the next night. We ate and shortly after fell into bed exhausted!

Tomorrow, I will recap Tuesday and Wednesday. I am looking forward to sharing a beautiful experience I had Tuesday evening. Then get ready for a post titled, Out of My Box. (the story of last night)

Blessings,

This,That and the Other Thing

2009-11-05T07:27:00.006-06:00

My last post was last Thursday, and it has been a non-stop week! I am just going to do a quick (ha ha) recap.

Friday, my sister, bro-in-law, and their kids came to the new house to help me. We had 2 full vehicles with what I thought was the last full load of things from the old house. HA! We had all of the clothes from the closets, all of the food from the kitchen, basically everything except what we would need through Sunday. (I thought)

We spent the day putting away and organizing the closets. If my sister said, "you need to pare down" once, she said it a hundred times. We do have a lot of clothes and I tried to get rid of a bunch but I definitely did not do enough to suit her! I do admit our closet is packed too close for comfort and we are going to try to "pare down" again.

My Bro-in-law spent the day doing handy man chores for me. It was so nice to move in and have my own curtains hung and all the doors closing nicely.

Saturday, I was supposed to clean up the old house and get it ready to move on Sunday. I started in one room and moved my way through the house and I was becoming overwhelmed with how tired I was and how much there still was to do. I realized I just could not get it all done. I also wound up with another whole van load to take up that night. I took that load up and unloaded it and put it away and then it was time to go to Light the Night.

It was my first time to go to a Light the Night. Our church family meets at a church member's house, the house is LIT UP with flood lights, there are games for the kids to play, we gave out bags of candy, cotton candy and popcorn. Each bag of candy had a tract with church info and the ABC's of salvation on it. It is a very popular house on October 31st! We passed out a little over 300 bags of candy that night. It was a fun night of fellowship and community outreach!

After driving around for awhile (and even going back by the house I was at) I finally got back home. (thanks to J who patiently dealt with his impatient wife and gave directions) Then, I fell into bed exhausted.

Sunday, I awoke early, and went through the house room by room AGAIN. I couldn't believe how much stuff was still there. Of course the bedding took up a lot of the space but I wound up with ANOTHER van full to take with me on my way to church. I was astounded by the amount of dirt you uncover when you move. I thought I had been cleaning the house....

For the next few weeks J is working full time at the dealership and so he is being creative with finding time to prepare his sermons. He had left very early to get to the church that day. He knew that he would have no time to study before the evening service with moving that day. I just barely pulled in on time for Sunday School.

There was an excitement in the air all morning! It was J's first Sunday to preach as their pastor. J said that he cried all the way to church that morning praising God for His work in his life and allowing him to serve Him in this way again. I knew that we would be singing my favorite song, Be Thou My Vision, and I knew that it was going to be emotional for me. Before we got to that though, I looked over at J during White As Snow and saw him tearing up and I was done for. I was past a few tears and on to ugly cry by Be Thou My Vision!

God has been so gracious to confirm our decision in doing this in so many ways. One of them was that Michael picked that song for our first week. For the last 2 plus years I have longed to hear/sing that song in church. The church we attended did not do it once. Michael said that it was the first time they had ever sang it there. Isn't God good?!

I know this post is getting long, sorry! It's not over yet! We were welcomed to the church with a wonderful gift. They are sending us to the Jacksonville Pastor's Conference in January! We are both so excited to go, J has been by himself and he says that it is a wonderful time of preaching and praising that can't be beat.

J preached a sermon on our Savior, that was wonderful, and after the invitation we joined the church.

Then we all headed downstairs for some homemade soup, rolls, dessert and fellowship. We are in a church full of good cooks and I will have to watch it! Moderation, Moderation, Moderation!

After that, we headed out to Gravette to pick up the last of the stuff at the old house. I was afraid we had too many trucks and some might feel like they made the trip for no reason. I did not need to worry, all of the trucks were put to good use. It really did not take long and the men had the trucks loaded up and we were ready to go. There was even a team in the house who wiped out the cabinets, cleaned the bathrooms, and vacuumed the floors. Praise the Lord!

Side note: Karlee has been babysitting for our next door neighbor's boy. They are a christian couple and have been going through some serious trials and so I have had her mostly donating her time lately. The lady came over Friday and asked me to come and look at something. I followed her and she took me to her grown teenage daughter's room and showed me the bed. It is a wonderful loft bed with a full size desk and shelves underneath. She explained that someone had given it to her as a blessing and they wanted to pass the blessing on to Karlee.
All I can say is WOW! It was a great lesson for Karlee to learn. She was not thrilled with me at first for suggesting she donate her time...you see she wanted to save up for new stuff for her new bedroom...the bed she received would have never been in our price range!

Okay, back to Sunday, we arrived at the new house and the men unloaded all of the trucks and trailer. The men who took down Karlee's new bed, stayed and put it back up. Praise the Lord! I would hate to know how long it would take J & I to figure it out! We had left our dogs at the old house so they would not get underfoot and I knew that we would both be exhausted after church so I suggested that we make a quick trip to pick them up. Somewhere along the way, I realized that we were cutting it very close to make it back on time for church.

I am going to leave off here and pick back up tomorrow.

I am heading out to Gravette this morning to put the For Sale By Owner sign out. Please pray with us that the house would sell quickly. I will tell you that God will get all of the credit for a miracle if it does because from the outside it looks like an impossible situation. Isn't that where He loves to show up though?!

Have a great day!

Blessings,

Pounded

2009-10-29T09:43:00.005-05:00

My family has been pounded! If you asked me what that was 2 weeks ago, I would have said I have heard of it but I'm not really sure. I had never had the opportunity to pound or be pounded before.

So what is it? Our new church family pounded us with gifts in the form of groceries. On Sunday, J, the kids, and I took a load of stuff to the parsonage and when I walked in there were bags of groceries all over the counters! There were vegetables, baking supplies, canned goods (I can't wait to try all the different homemade jellies and canned garden tomatoes), paper towels & toilet paper, garbage bags, newly picked apples, fresh butchered ground beef from someone's farm, and farm fresh eggs in the fridge. Then yesterday there were two more bags in J's office. Guess what someone did? They had read through my blog and found a couple of my favorite recipes and bought the ingredients to make them! I can make my favorite beans and yummy chocolate cherry cake the week I move in!

My children were even pounded with a $10 Wal-Mart gift card each. What a great way to make us all feel welcome!

Here is the perfect verse for this season in my life~

Ezekiel 34:26
I will make them and the places all around MY Hill a blessing; and I will cause showers to come down in their season; there shall be showers of blessing.

I love this because our little church sits on a beautiful hill. I pray that we will see His showers of blessings on that hill many times over.

(I hope I am not the only one that is going to sing Showers of Blessings all day now)

Hijacked

2009-10-27T09:07:00.001-05:00

I have hijacked Heather's blog and I am asking all of her readers to take just a quick second to leave a comment wishing her a Happy Birthday. I think it would be really cool if she gets 40 comments on her 40th birthday. Have a great day!!

Happy Birthday to my love!! Words cannot express how much I am in love with Heather. She truly is my best friend and partner in ministry. Honey, you are beautiful, smart, funny, and you know me better than anyone and you still love me!!! If all we ever had was each other, that would be enough for me!!

Happy Birthday to Me

2009-10-27T08:10:00.002-05:00

I am 40 today. I chose to live my life wide open and so even though I am not really thrilled about everyone knowing I'm 40 it's better than everyone knowing it and just not telling me they know. :)

I remember thinking 40 was VERY old as a teenager. Like the next step was rocking in a rocking chair on the porch, sipping tea and eating cookies. Then you were DEAD.

Well it turns out it is really no different than 39.

When I was 39 I

Played hard
Laughed hard
Loved lavishly
Was loved lavishly
Saw restoration from my Lord

Sounds like 40 is going to be pretty great!

Blessings,

A God Thing

2009-10-26T08:42:00.004-05:00

The new church was in need of office furniture for the Pastor's office. J & our Worship Leader, Michael, have been doing a lot of research. They thought they found the answer for the desk off of Craigslist. They drove together to the house, the desk was nice and they were going to buy it. Then they tried to get it out of the room. They took the desk apart and removed the doors, it would not go out the door. J leaned to Michael and said, "I think God is trying to tell us something." They left without that desk.

They continued searching and found a set that sounded good. When they went to look J was thrilled with the furniture. When the man heard it was for a church he threw in an office chair and an all in one Dell printer, fax, copier. All for a very reasonable price! If they would have bought that other desk they would have had a very difficult time finding matching pieces and I'm sure it would have cost much more.

Now look at the picture. See how the book shelves and the hutch all go perfectly together? The bookshelf on the left did not come with the furniture J & Michael bought. A couple in our church has the exact same set of furniture! When they realized J would need the extra bookshelf they lovingly donated it. They have had that set for several years. Amazing isn't it?

That's what we call A God Thing!

Have a beautiful Monday!

Packing Missi

2009-10-24T07:53:00.004-05:00

As I said, I have been packing all week. Our dogs have both been very curious about this. We have a Pomeranian named Missi that we adopted from an animal shelter. We also have a large outside dog named Gator, he was dumped in the front yard and just kind of weedled his way into our hearts.

Yesterday, Missi decided that she better get packed. First, while I was loading the van she went out and jumped in with the boxes. This is very unusual for her because she is afraid of getting in and out of the van. She was shocked severely from chewing through a computer cord when a puppy, then one time while I was pulling her out of the van she rec'd a shock from the static. She has not forgotten it and still clings to us when we are trying to take her anywhere.

Then last night when we got home I heard a big commotion in the bedroom when I looked this is what I found.

She dug out a few of the newspapers to make room for herself. Do you think she is ready to go?

Me and My BIG Mouth

2009-10-22T06:59:00.004-05:00

So, we are moving. When I realized we would be moving I told myself that I would take my time. I even promised the kids that we would be moved in by Thanksgiving. That was Sunday. Monday I started planning, Tuesday I started moving, yesterday was J's day off and we moved some more. So far we have taken 5 van loads over to the parsonage.

I am a conqueror. (hear me roar) Once I set my mind to something, my strong willed nature takes over and there is no (little) stopping me. So J had his hands full yesterday. It started with me doing my Bible Study in the morning. I was so excited from the night before with the ladies that I hollered in and told him I really want to go to Bible Study next Tuesday. "We can do my birthday Saturday instead." He blew me off, saying I wasn't going to go on my birthday. I didn't think anything of this, we always have a romantic date on our b'days so I was willing to skip Bible Study.

Moving on....then we are packing the vans. I kept asking him when we could move. You see, I realized that I could be ready as soon as Saturday. The kids are much older this time, I just went through their rooms and closets and gutted them, this would be much easier than the last time I moved. My new home is over looking a beautiful hillside of trees all changed with magnificent fall color. I had dreams of talking J into moving before those leaves were all on the ground.

I was relentless, I said, "how about next Thursday?", "okay, if not next Thursday, how about Sunday?", "please just give me a date?" On and on I went.

Then I started to pout, "well if you don't want to move, why are we doing this today?", "we might as well put it off if YOU are going to just make me wait weeks anyway!"

Then finally about 3 o'clock the light bulb came on! He must be planning something for my birthday! As soon as I figured it out, he knew. He has always been able to read me. Oh was he ticked. I of course began to back pedal. "We don't have to move next week." "Let's just forget about it, we'll talk about it later."

You see, next Tuesday is my 40th (AHHH!!) birthday. Before the church, I was expecting he would do something bigger than usual for me. Then I really just put it out of my mind. I was perfectly happy to move that week. He only gets 1 day off a week and I assumed we would move.

So, I ruined J's big surprise.

I really am sorry!

BUT, I am also very excited!

I am going out to dinner and to spend a romantic night in a souped up jacuzzi suite for my birthday next week! Then he is taking me Flea Marketing! WOO HOO! (he even set up the child care!)

So much for that post yesterday about keeping my eye out for those little decisions!

Have a great day and watch your tongue! That world of iniquity! (James 3:6)

Bible Study

2009-10-21T08:59:00.003-05:00

It has been a couple of years since I gathered with a group of ladies for a Bible Study. I did not realize how much I was missing that. Last night as we looked at David's life together and reflected on the decisions he made during his crossroads, I was reminded that we have those moments each day. Each day our decisions small or large will affect the days to follow. Like our leader pointed out, David's sin could have started with just the "small" sin of feeling tired and deserving. He could have been thinking, Lord I have served you for many years out on the battle field, I'm tired and I deserve a break. That little feeling of I deserve this, could have been the beginning of the slippery slope that led to all of that trouble. I am going to strive to be on guard for that feeling and I hope you will too.

I will leave you with some verses a wise 19 year old shared with us.

Lamentations 3:55-58

I called on Your name, O Lord, from the lowest pit.
You have heard my voice:
Do not hide Your ear from my sighing,
You drew near on the day I called on You, and said,
"Do not fear!"
O Lord, You have pleaded the case for my soul;
You have redeemed my life.

Praise the Lord, our Redeemer!

Thank You, Karlee!

2009-10-20T10:05:00.005-05:00

My daughter has been after me to change my template for awhile now. She is a master template maker! She edited and designed this for me. The picture in the header was taken by my brother, Sam. It is one of my very favorites.

Thank You, KK

You May Now Call Me Mrs. Pastor's Wife

2009-10-19T08:48:00.006-05:00

I do have good news to share!

I am going to start at the beginning. A year or so ago when J was selling cars, a man named Jim came into the dealership and while test driving a car he started witnessing to J. J shared his testimony with Jim, and they became fast friends. A few months later Jim bought a car from J and he has continued to stop by the dealership often for fellowship & coffee.

A couple months ago Jim was visiting with J and when they were done he walked out the door, he turned around and walked back in and asked J if he would consider being an interim pastor or just filling the pulpit at his church. He told me last night he wasn't going to do this but decided he could at least ask.

Here is where God really kicks it up a notch. J had recently been recommended for a ministry position and so had just updated his resume. He knew that Jim's church would have no idea who he was so he handed Jim a copy just to show them he was a legitimate pastor. They called and we went there to fill the pulpit for just one Sunday.

Lately J and I have both been strongly feeling the hand of God moving us back into ministry. J has been supply preaching at quite a few churches. He also was in the interview process with this other ministry. Before this one we supplied at 2 other churches in need of a pastor. Both of those experiences would help us to discern the peace of our current decision. Although they were great churches neither one of us felt that we could or would be their next pastor.

From the first day we went to our church we were both excited. We did not know if they would ever call us back to even fill in there again but we had a feeling that they would. One thing you should know is that we do not give out J's resume unless asked for it. We want God to lead in every area of our lives and we have never just blankly given out his resume for a ministry position. They did call us back to fill in and asked if we would stay after and meet with the Pastor Search Committee.

That is what we did. It was two weeks before we left on vacation. While meeting with the Committee we shared our story. We knew that God wanted us to live with our lives wide open and that it would only affirm our knowledge of His will in our decisions. We were honestly shocked at how the wonderful people there accepted what we had to say and continued the interview. We would not have been surprised if they had said that concluded the interview and sent us on our way. We had prepared through prayer for that very thing. When we left we put it in God's hands and waited for them to call. It was a long 3 weeks later when we heard from them. This gave us a chance to be really seeking God and for me to come to peace with a couple of obstacles that I had standing in the way.

We met with the committee last Monday night. They presented us with an offer to come in view of a call the coming Sunday. (yesterday) We both agreed that J would not give them any decision that night to give us some time to talk it over and pray and have total peace about the decision. We still had the other ministry position open and we wanted to know that we were going in God's direction. The thing is that from a worldly standpoint we should want the other position. It would not be the 24 hour life of a pastor, the $$ was better, we would not have to sell our house, etc.

When J & I sat down to talk about it we were both in agreement. Our passion and heart's desire was to serve in this church. Yes the other opportunity was a ministry where we would be serving the Lord. (in a cushy way) But this is dig your heals in, hard work doing what God has called us to do. We both know from experience that there is no greater joy than serving the Lord while being in His will!

On Wednesday we both knew that we were ready to go forward with the church. We let them know and started anticipating what would happen. We knew that we would share our story of the affair and our restoration with the church before they voted. This gave me more than a few stomach aches last week.

Yesterday was wonderful! J preached in the morning, then the men had a chili cook-off, after that we went to one of the couples house for an afternoon of fellowship and fun. (and great chicken salad) I had fun getting to know a few of the ladies in the church and J had fun looking at potential office furniture. Last night J shared a short sermon and then he went into his testimony. I was asked to share also, so I stood with him and gave a brief testimony and answered a question or two. Again God's grace was so evident in the people we stood before. I believe because of our brokenness and theirs, God is going to do a mighty work in this church. After quite a bit of question and answer time w/ J, they voted us in unanimously. I feel so touched even now, by how loved we both felt, not only by the people but by our Lord.

Sunday, November 1st, is our first Sunday and I can hardly wait!

I know this was long but I wanted to be able to remember all of these details in the years to come.

Blessings,

Today

2009-10-18T08:57:00.002-05:00

Today is a big day for our family. I am hoping to have some really exciting news to share tomorrow! Will you please say a prayer for us today.

Specifically

Most importantly, that this is God's will for our family!

I will have to share my testimony in public, pray for calm nerves, clarity, and that I don't throw up!

For J to speak only God's words!

For a peaceful outcome!

I hope you have a beautiful Sunday,

Heather Kay

Bus Kids

2009-10-13T18:29:00.005-05:00

I love bus kids. You know, the kids who are running around the church willy nilly, they don't always flush, they rarely say thank you at potluck, they don't know how to sit still in church, sometimes they are dirty and stinky, rarely do they know the right answers in Sunday School.

My dad started my love for bus kids when I was just a young girl. He captained a route in Jackson, Michigan. I was/am a daddy's girl and just wanted to be with him at first. Often, if I went with him on Saturdays to call on his kids he would buy me a burger or my favorite orange sherbet. What started out as quality time with my dad, would become a passion for these often love starved kids.

A few years ago at FBC we had a tragedy with a couple of our bus kids. Two of our bus kids, a brother and sister were killed in a house fire. It rocked the core of our church. Many who had previously taken the bus kids for granted, or maybe even resented them for their messes and wear and tear on the church, learned to look at them through new eyes.

My mom was a bus kid. Neither of my parents come from christian homes and without a bus ministry who knows if they would have found the Lord. It is because of the faithfulness of those men to go out and bring those children to church, and the openness of the church to allow those sometimes undesirable children to come, that ultimately has led to many, many people coming to know the Lord as their personal Savior. (including me, my siblings, my grandparents, etc.)

The next time you are sitting in church and that row of noisy bus kids is annoying you, or you are dishing out potluck and you don't want them to have all of the food, or the toilet is in need of a plumber AGAIN, the walls need paint AGAIN, the nursery toys are broken AGAIN. Remember, Jesus said, "Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of heaven." We will never know the impact we will have on those little bus kids or the Kingdom.

Thanks to my dad for the inspiration for this post. Thanks to all of the bus drivers & captains out there. What you are doing is one of the greatest, least recognized ministries out there.

Love your bus kids!

Blessings,

Sick!

2009-10-01T12:25:00.004-05:00

Monday, when I got home I felt okay, but just not quite right. I just thought that I needed to get back in the grind. So I pushed through and unpacked, did laundry, and worked out. Same thing Tuesday and yesterday. Yesterday, I started thinking I am just not myself. I was out of sorts and even after working out I just didn't have any energy. By the time I went to bed, I told J that I thought I was getting sick. At 4 a.m. I woke up with a burning sore throat. I got up gargled salt water and took some garlic and got back in bed. Needless to say, that was not a winning combination for getting back to sleep! I read for about an hour and went back to sleep. I woke up with a fever and my throat hurts so much I can't talk. I am so proud of Karlee right now for the efforts she made to finish our vacation without complaining.

So this riveting blog post is going to come to an end, I know about 100 words to late! If you were lucky enough to read this, will you leave me a quick hello? It would brighten my day!

Blessings!

Vacation Day 7

2009-09-28T14:04:00.007-05:00

Okay, so today is Monday and day 7 of vacation was Saturday. Saturday, we went to the Royal Gorge in Canon City, CO. It was one of the most beautiful places we went. It was also the best coupon deal of the week. The regular admission to the park was $24 per adult, $19 per child. I bought a pass for 4 for $31. A savings of $55!! When you are in the park all of the rides are free except for the sky coaster. I am going to let the pictures speak for themselves!

A view from the bridge...I was very nervous up there!

Click to enlarge this to read the sign

These men were working on the bridge...this gave me THAT feeling in the pit of my stomach!

This is what was below those men! UGH!

Karlee was very brave this day, she still really didn't feel that great.

This is an incline railroad that takes you straight down to the bottom of the gorge.

A view from the bottom.

Eli was dying to go on this sky tram...there is no way I would ever get on there. J took him and they said it was fun.

A view from the sky tram.

Looking up at the bridge from the bottom of the gorge.

On the way back to the hotel there were 2 serious accidents on the other side of the highway. The traffic was backed up over there for miles. I felt very blessed to be on the side that was moving but also it reminded me to thank the Lord for giving us safety the whole week.

Yesterday, we drove home. It was a 12 hour drive, which is long, but the kids were great and the roads were clear. It is good to be back home. I have been unpacking and doing a ton of laundry today.

Thanks for going along on our vacation with us!

Vacation Day 6

2009-09-26T11:10:00.003-05:00

We planned on the family going on the Cog Railroad to Pikes Peak today. Karlee was still sick enough that I did not want to risk her being on the train and having a relapse and we were stuck for 3 hours. So, she and I dropped J & Eli off for the train and went to Manitou Springs for the day. That is the town at the base of Pikes Peak. It is full of little, overpriced tourist shops. It was fun to stroll together and we both bought a souvenir. She bought a zip up hoody and I bought a perfume decanter.

Here are some pic's from the guys outing. Eli said this was, "The best man to man time they ever had!"

Blessings!

Vacation Day 5 Continued

2009-09-24T17:42:00.004-05:00

Another great tip from the hotel staff here. Gold Camp Rd. outside of Colorado Springs is an absolutely breathtaking drive. At first I was very hesitant to go because it is a narrow dirt road and there are no guard rails. But I was quickly sucked in by the beauty. This was a nice low key thing to do this afternoon. We are going to stay in tonight and hope Karlee is able to get out tomorrow feeling better.

Here are the pic's!

Vacation Day 5

2009-09-24T12:51:00.004-05:00

Karlee woke up feverish and her throat was worse. So, J & I Googled quick care facilities in Colorado Springs. We are recommending Integrity Urgent Care if you ever find yourself in need while you are here. We called and talked to them about prices and they were honest and kind. Also, the office was very clean and the service was quick. On the way we saw another quick care facility and stopped in to save a few minutes driving. J went in and talked to them and they quoted him a starting price of $180.00. He told them we were on our way to Integrity and they had quoted us $94 with a strep test. They were not willing to match the price so we went up the road. The funny thing is that Integrity was a much higher scale facility for a better price.

Karlee now has some antibiotics and will probably be ready to go by tomorrow afternoon. Thank you for your prayers!

We are going to go for a scenic drive this afternoon and I will post some pic's tonight if we get any good ones.

Blessings!

Vacation Day 4

2009-09-23T20:04:00.005-05:00

Day 4 was cold, and Karlee has a sore throat, so we chilled out this morning. We didn't get around until lunch time. Then we headed to the (FREE) Focus on the Family headquarters. We were not sure what to expect. It was really great! First we split a large pizza for $12.00, then we went through the children's areas. They have a wonderful set up for children!

After that, we went to the American Numismatic Association Money Museum. Eli loves collecting coins, so this was a real highlight for him! This was $5 for adults and free to kids. It was well worth the $10.

Here are the pic's!

Focus on the Family children's area

Who can resist putting their heads in these things? Certainly not us!

You walk through a wardrobe to enter into Narnia.

The highlight for the kids, they got to record their own episode of Adventures in Odyssey. They offer this for free and give the kids a copy of their episode on c.d. If you ever go there be sure to go and sign your kids up for this as soon as possible. There are only a limited number of sessions available each day. We were excited to get the last open slot!

J did the sound effects!

Here are some pic's from the money museum.

That's all for today. Please pray for Karlee to get to feeling better and for protection for the rest of us. We will probably take it easy tomorrow, hoping that Karlee gets some needed rest and healing. We have two big activities planned for Friday & Saturday, hopefully we will be able to do them.

Blessings!

Vacation Day 3

2009-09-22T16:59:00.010-05:00

Today we woke up to sunny skies! Hallelujah! The weather is still chilly with a high of only 47 today. That is fine because my very smart husband insisted that I pack the winter coats, hats, and gloves. I was insisting that he was being over cautious. I was WRONG! Thank you, J!

We ate our FREE hotel breakfast and then we took off to the FREE Garden of the Gods park. It is an awesomely beautiful place! You can see that we are in our winter coats and with them it was a tolerable and beautiful hike.

After that, we went to Five Guys Burgers for lunch. This was the splurge for the day. I had never been there and I had heard lots of great reviews. It did not let us down. That was a great lunch and we all left stuffed!!

Then we were off to the FREE Olympic Training Facility. There is a short tour that is really interesting and takes you through some of the workout facilities. The movie they show is really inspiring and gave me goose bumps more than once. We were all very impressed with the facilities.

I am including quite a few pictures in this post, but when I uploaded today's total there were 101, so consider yourself lucky I narrowed it down to this many!

The kids petting a buffalo beard, don't ask why, we don't know.

The family with Garden of the Gods in the background.

The next 10 pictures are all at the Garden of the Gods park.

Oops, how did THAT get in here?!

Olympic Training Facility

A view of Pikes Peak from OTF

Michael Phelps was here 3 months ago.

We are back at the hotel for an hour or two of relaxation and then we are going to go to Subway for dinner. We will buy a sub and get one free and each have a half. This should be a $7.00 meal to make up for lunch. All in all, today was my favorite day so far.

I am blogging about all of the deals, coupons, and free stuff not to brag but to give tips for others who want to take a family vacation but think they could never afford it. It can be done very economically with the right attitude and preparations.

Speaking of economical, when we were out on the trail I noticed that all of our winter coats were bought for a deal. Mine was $3.00 at a garage sale. Karlee's was $4.00 at a garage sale. Eli's was $3.00 at a garage sale, and it came with a light jacket he can wear for fall/spring and then it zips in for winter. J's was FREE, a gift from his dad. All of our gloves & hats were also bought either on clearance at the end of the season, or garage sales. I think we look pretty cute for bargain shoppers, don't you?

Blessings!

Vacation Day 2

2009-09-21T19:58:00.005-05:00

Today we woke up to COLD weather. When we were getting ready for this trip the Weather Channel was predicting sunny skies and 70's this week. Then the day before we left they changed it to a cold front coming in. Sure enough, the cold front is here! When we left the hotel the rain was changing to snow.

We were prepared with some inside things to do today. First we went to the Air Force Academy. That was a really neat experience. The kids both really enjoyed it. This is a great free activity for the whole family.

Getting ready to leave, if you click on the picture and enlarge it you can see the snow.

Air Force Academy Entrance

Enlarge this, Eli is proud to be flying his sissy.

KK wearing the Falcons' colors

The chapel, the snow was coming down like a blizzard when we walked to this, it was really beautiful. I would love to be there for a worship service!

A nice man offered to take our picture, the quality isn't that great but here we are.

The mountains now have snow caps!

After lunch we went Glow Golfing. This was a lot of fun. This was one of my great coupon deals. The four of us had unlimited golf for $10.

After golfing we stopped by the biggest antique mall in Colorado Springs. They are not lying, it is huge! I could spend the next 4 days in there and maybe see it all. We will stop back in again sometime this week. All I bought were a few magazines for .35. I like to read myself to sleep and I forgot to bring a book. So some old Good Housekeeping magazines should put me to sleep nicely.

We are off to the pool!

Vacation Day 1

2009-09-20T21:40:00.005-05:00

Today we arrived in Colorado Springs around 3 p.m. While checking into the hotel J asked the clerk what the most over rated attraction in the area was. He told him that it was a waterfall that they charge admission to and we were glad we didn't buy tickets to get in. He told us that there was another waterfall that was free and just as beautiful so we decided to go explore it this afternoon. Here are some pictures.

This is Helen Hunt Falls, it was quite a hike to get up to the top. The kids and I were not expecting a hike and we were wearing flip flops. Not a good choice!

We proved ourselves tourists by stopping in front of this house for a picture.

The view out our hotel window tonight...awesome!

Now it is time for bed. I am going to try to post a few pic's each evening this week.

P.S. I bought a coupon on Ebay for 2 free large pizza's with 4 toppings at a local pizza place, and we all agreed it was some of the best pizza ever! The coupon was $5, what a deal to feed our family of four dinner and enough left over for lunch!

Blessings!

Happy Birthday to My Doodle

2009-09-19T07:16:00.009-05:00

Happy 12th Birthday Karlee!

Today is my daughters 12th birthday. She is a wonderful girl who is bright and lovely.

Here are some of her famous quotes:

When she was around 2 I was laying with her trying to get her to sleep and I said, "Why don't you just close your eyes and go to sleep?" and she replied, "Why don't you just put on a space helmet and fly to the moon?"

She has always been very good at her language skills and around 3 she was very interested in learning Spanish. She always got into bed with us by about 5am. One morning as I was trying to wake up I noticed I had wet sticky stuff all over me. I asked, "What's all over me?" She replied, "It's squenchers." I asked, "What's squenchers?" She replied, "It's Spanish for diarrhea!" Yes, my child had the flu and she made up the name that still stands for diarrhea in our house to this day.

At 5 her AWANA teacher asked the class if they could have anything in the world that they wanted, what would it be? As the other children were saying, dolls, cars, etc. My girl raised her hand and very seriously said, "my drivers license".

Her grandmother was here visiting for Easter and preparing baskets and what not. Karlee came to me obviously concerned. I asked her what was wrong and she said that Nori still believed in the Easter Bunny and that we shouldn't ruin it for her.

Here is the youngest picture I have of her on my computer. She is almost 5 and we are on a family vacation in Branson, Mo.

She loves hot tubs. We are leaving on vacation today and we made sure our hotel has a hot tub for her!

5 year old birthday

This was her favorite ride, (Branson the next year)

Playing guitars and singing with her Nan at church

With her cousins (who she loves) not wanting her picture taken!

An Easter with her bubby (5 or 6)

She loves the county fair, it is usually the week of her birthday

Being silly

She is a great big sister!

There are lots of pictures in my camera of her taking pictures of herself in the mirror...here is one

She loves the snow and dislikes the heat

Those silly cousins

Another Easter and the only picture I could find that I was in with her

This is her dog, Missy, they are a inseparable pair

She finally got some wheels, her scooter for birthday this year

She loves her daddy!

First time I let her wear makeup, to her birthday party last week

Her best friends skating at the party last week

Beautiful at 12

I hope you have a wonderful year. You are an amazing girl and I love you very much.

Raindance

2009-09-16T09:24:00.003-05:00

Goals Part 2

2009-09-14T15:02:00.003-05:00

We had a busy weekend, full of college football, J preaching and an exciting meeting. Then yesterday I kicked it into overdrive. With just 5 days left it was time to mark some more of my goals off.

I had J's help with the floors. He knows that I do not like to mop, so we have an arrangement. I move everything, sweep and swiffer the floors and he mops for me. We got this done last Thursday.

I took a multitude of the kids tests to Office Depot and made the copies awhile ago. Yesterday, I offered Karlee $5.00 an hour to help me put the rest of the work together to mail in all of the end of the year stuff for grading. This is really tedious work and I hate it! (that's why it has not been done when we have been out of school since the middle of May) It is right up her alley. She loves to organize and she did a great job. So I will be able to mark that goal off by the end of today.

Eli & I tackled his room yesterday. It was much harder than Karlee's because he is a collector. He collects rocks from our hikes. He collects feathers. He collects coins. He collects paper weights. He collects Star Wars. I could go on like this for about 15 more sentences. Also, EVERYTHING is a treasure. I was not able to clean nearly as much out of his room but we did organize it and at the end there was 1 garbage bag full gone.

By the way the black paint in both of my kids rooms is chalk board paint. It has been so fun for them to be able to write on their walls, and have their friends and relatives sign the walls when they are here. The chalk wipes right off with a wet rag.

So the last of my goals would be to clean my closet and order this years school. I have started on the ordering process for school this year but I am raising the white flag of surrender when it comes to my closet. I will leave that for October. I am going to be selling a lot on Ebay and I just really don't have anywhere else for it to go now.

Here are some pictures.

The Before

The After

Ahh, mopped floors with clean rugs

I had to make the first footprint on my clean rug...yes that's my huge foot :)

Have a great day!

I (finally) Hit 100 Posts!!

2009-09-11T08:26:00.002-05:00

I always love to read other peoples 100 things posts. As a matter of fact when I discover a new blog, I usually go there first. Often, I can tell if I want to stick around by that list. Now I have just put a lot of pressure on myself to have an awesome 100 things list. I really enjoyed reading Kat's 100 things because she had her family help. I am going to do the same.

1. I was born in the small town of Chelsea, Michigan
2. My dad taught me at a young age to say, "Oh how I hate Ohio State!"
3. I am the oldest of three
4. My dad has red hair and blue eyes
5. My mom has brown hair and green/hazel eyes
6. I have blond hair and brown eyes
7. They told me they got me out of a Mountain Dew can
8. I actually look like my aunt, my mom's sister
9. Growing up people told me often that I looked like Haley Mills in The Parent Trap
10. I am tall...5' 9"
11. I am the shortest of my siblings
12. My sister is 5' 11", my brother 6' 7"
13. I was a merciless big sister
14. My oldest does not get away with as much as I did
15. I am a people pleaser
16. I have had to learn to say no
17. J is still working with me to just say what I want
18. I still want him to read my mind
19. I feel very awkward in social situations
20. I like people who like to talk
21. I am good at being a listener
22. Unless I know you well, then I know how to talk...a lot
23. I love sharing advice
24. I love teenagers
25. I love teaching my children
26. I don't like teaching other peoples children
27. For instance I volunteer in Children's Church but I dislike/dread it
28. I would love to work with the Youth Group instead
29. This made me an odd and loved sub when my daughter was in school, everyone else wanted the little kids
30. I have great respect for teachers
31. I went to private Christian schools from kindergarten through graduation
32. This was at great sacrifice by my parents
33. I am grateful
34. I always wanted a tattoo
35. The two men in my life never thought this was a good idea (dad & J)
36. I am now really glad I never got one
37. In my twenties, I traveled all over our great nation
38. It was a wonderful experience
39. I spent my 21st birthday alone in Louisville, KY
40. I went on a horse trail ride in the Rocky's
41. That was an absolutely beautiful fall
42. My birthday is October 27th
43. The next year I was in New York
44. The colors of the leaves beat any others I have ever seen
45. I love to read
46. Mostly Inspirational Fiction
47. I love cookbooks
48. I like to try new things while cooking
49. I almost always tweak the recipes
50. I love fruit
51. Especially watermelon
52. I enjoy cleaning
53. Except bathrooms & mopping...I despise doing those
54. I love to exercise
55. I love to shop
56. Any shopping, especially bargain hunting, garage sales, antique malls, etc.
57. I am a daddy's girl
58. My dad still calls me almost every day
59. I am grateful for rollover minutes

I'm going to let the family take over

60. She's a great cook~Eli
61. She likes to play games while we hike together~Eli
62. I like playing volleyball in the house with her~Eli (we use a beach ball)
63. I love her~Eli
64. She likes to collect cookie jars~Eli
65. Her favorite flowers are Daisies~Karlee
66. She is Beautiful~J
67. She is an extremely compassionate person~J
68. She likes vintage glass~Karlee
68. She cares about everyone, especially senior citizens~J
69. She is the most unselfish person I have ever met~J
70. She loves to be outside~J
71. She loves her children~J

Karlee sent me this email

I love your cooking
You have great taste in antiques
Mom loves all animals, she's always the first one to put the snake around her neck at the zoo.
She makes the best chili I've ever had
Mom loves to bake.
She loves to spend time together as a family, and is super excited about vacation.
She is one of my best friends
She used to work for wal mart and she's traveled all over the country.
She is famous for her backwards over the head shot in horse.
I love her.

So that gets us through 81

82. I knew that I would name my oldest daughter Karleen Kay from the time I was about 10
83. She is named after my Aunt Karleen Kay (Kollie as I called her)(the one I look like)
84. I told ALL boyfriends that would be my first daughters name
85. My Aunt K set a great example of how to be a great Aunt
86. I hope I am like her in my nephew and nieces eyes
87. I was married in September of 96
88. I was saved in December of 96
89. I had Karlee in September of 97
90. I love Jesus
91. I love sharing what He has done for me
92. I would love to be a Pastor's wife again
93. The thing I miss most from being a pastor's wife is the hugs and being taken under the wing of the older ladies in the church. I never realized that was only happening because I had the PW title.
94. I am in love with my husband
95. I never really knew how sweet that could be
96. I am a happy person
97. I love shoes but am very limited because of my height and shoe size (11)
98. I always wear mascara....Every day
99. I love my sweet mama, she always made me a special birthday dress, every year
100. I am looking forward to the next 10, 20, 30 years to see what God has in store for my family

That was fun. It is hard to put the nice things in that my family said, but on the other hand I am very grateful that they did!

Blessings,

Busy, Busy

2009-09-10T15:58:00.003-05:00

We got home late last night from our anniversary trip. We went to Mountain Home, Arkansas. It is a very pretty area. We traveled through Eureka Springs on the way over and stopped for a little shopping. Actually, the only thing we bought was a kids size ice cream and the only reason we bought it was to get $1.00 back in quarters to pay for our parking.

There is something about Eureka that rubs J the wrong way. He is always on a mission just to conquer the place. Normally, he will go nice and slow with me and look around when we are out shopping, but not there. Anyway, we went to several Antique Malls over the couple of days and really had a great time.

Now, I am back with just 9 days for my deadline. I was feeling pretty discouraged this morning, but I got started on Eli's room and I am going to keep plugging away at it.

I better get back to it.

BYE

13 Years Ago

2009-09-08T09:22:00.003-05:00

13 years ago today, I stood by a friends pool and said, "I do". I really had no idea what all that would mean. We have had the sickness, the poorer, the bad times, the sorrow.

We have also had the health, been richer, had good times and joy.

I am so glad that I looked into the most wonderful brown eyes and said those words 13 years ago today.

I would marry you again in a second, J.D.

I love you!

Happy Anniversary!

Goals Accomplished Part 1

2009-09-07T12:57:00.006-05:00

After 3.5 hours, Karlee & I accomplished one of my goals! We went through every piece of clothing, every shelf, basket, even under the bed! It has been exactly a year since we did this. I know this because we painted her room for her birthday last year. Normally I do a spring job on their rooms but it just never happened this year. Ahh, this is a great sense of accomplishment! Now I just have to clean up the mess in the rest of the house!

The closet before

Room Before

More Before...Trashed!

All of this came OUT permanently!

A bag of trash, and two to give away

After

Goals

2009-09-03T13:19:00.002-05:00

I am going to post my goals for the next 2 weeks here so that I will have motivation to get them done. I may even do before and after pic's where appropriate.

1. Clean out all closets in the house
2. Clean out and detail the van
3. Mail in all of last years school for grading
4. Order school for this year
5. Mop all my floors, wash the bathroom rugs
6. Help the kids organize their rooms

When all of this is done I will be all ready to start school with a fresh house and attitude!

Do you have any current goals you would like to share? We can cheer each other on!

Out of Commission

2009-08-31T12:10:00.003-05:00

I am going to have my good friends 3 kids for the next three days. They have a boy who is Eli's age and a girl who is 7 and a little guy who is 4. This is a house full for us but the kids really keep each other entertained, for the most part. This friend is due to have a baby girl on October 25th, and this is giving her and her husband a little alone time first.

Karlee got all ready for them to come this morning. This is her babysitting look.

She is really a great babysitter!

I'll post again on Thursday....Lord willin' and the creek don't rise...(hoaky Arkansas saying)

Speaking of Spiders

2009-08-29T09:43:00.002-05:00

Oh, we weren't speaking of spiders?! Well we should be. This beauty has been living in my flower bed this summer. The webs have been amazing!

There is a line that Mammy says in Gone with the Wind about Scarlett being like a spider. I love the way she says spider in that line. Does anyone know what I'm talking about?

Getting Mama Back

2009-08-27T20:37:00.008-05:00

Edit: I just looked at this on my blog and I can't believe how bad the photo's are. I will try to do better!

I had to run a couple of errands today. When I got home my kids were scrambling around to achieve this.

After hearing the alligator story they thought it was only right to get me back. They were staging their own murders. Yes, that is ketchup on their necks. Yes, when J saw these pictures the first thing out of his mouth was, "Did they get ketchup on the carpet?" (the answer is no by the way)

Those two are so funny!