God is Sovereign!

I feel like I've been grieving all day today. I've gone through some of the stages, anyway- first anger, then sadness, then just despair for our country. However, through it all, I know in my heart that God ordained this from the beginning of time, and this was no surprise to Him. I guess I have to say it didn't shock me, either, although I was hoping and praying for a different outcome. Regardless of the political scene that is going to "change," our God is constant, never-changing, all-knowing, and all-powerful. He is much bigger than the political agendas of those who will be in power in our country in a few short months. I don't think I can put into words what our attitude should be any better than a man I've quoted before....Jamie Work. Here was his devotional for the day, and I thought it was worth putting on this post....

November 5, 2008
"The king's heart is like channels of water in the hand of the LORD; He turns it wherever He wishes." (Proverbs 21:1)

The longest and most expensive presidential election has come and gone. Barack Obama has been elected the 44th President of the United States of America. With a clear mandate from both the electoral college (349 to 162) and the popular vote (63.4 million to 56.1 million), Mr. Obama was established early in the election evening as our president-elect. What does his election mean for America?

For one, all of us can celebrate with African-Americans that another racial barrier in America has been broken. Just like Jackie Robinson breaking the racial barrier in baseball and Thurgood Marshall being appointed as the first African-American to the U.S. Supreme Court, when racial barriers are destroyed there is reason for all of us to celebrate.
More importantly, however, Mr. Obama's election means what every other presidential election has meant to followers of Christ. The President is one for whom we are obligated to pray (I Timothy 2:1-2); he is one whose heart is "like channels of water in the hands of the Lord" (Proverbs 21:1) and therefore he is a servant to God's will and purposes; and the President is one who we recognize as NOT having the answers we need for life - he is not our hope (Lamentations 3:24), the Lord Jesus Christ is our hope!!

While the world applauds Mr. Obama's election, and European leaders are quoted as saying his election is a "new deal for a new world," and Mr. Obama himself said in his victory speech last night "a new dawn of American leadership is at hand," neither his presidency nor Mr. McCain's presidency, had he been elected, will be our hope for a brighter tomorrow.
God is bigger than our presidential election; bigger than politics; bigger than America. God is our Rock. He is our refuge and strength. He is our shelter and a very present help in time of trouble. God is our Shepherd, our Sovereign, and our Savior. It is in HIM ALONE that we find comfort for the trouble of today and hope for the challenges of tomorrow.

You and I will pray for president-elect Obama. We will obey the governing authorities God has placed over us. We will demonstrate Christ to our lost and dying world in the way we carry out our citizenship. But we will not find our hope in any person, government, or organization except the Lord Jesus Christ! He is supreme! He is our everything! Rejoice in this and I will see you Sunday. Pastor Jamie

Happy 11th Anniversiary!

Happy Anniversiary my

sweet husband! 11 years married, 10 years dating before that- it's flown by! I am so glad to call you my husband, and so thankful the Lord blessed my life with the gift of you! Our love has grown and changed over the years, and I am excited to see how our love for one another grows even deeper as the years roll by. Thank you for all that you are to me and our family! You were and will always be my first love....the love of my life! I love you!

P.S.- Many more pictures/posts to come- we've been out of town the past few weeks. Stay tuned...

Happy Birthday, Richard!

You can tell Matthew has learned to read phonetically.....this says "I LUV YUW DADE." He even put a line over the "u" so it would be the 'long u' sound! Too funny! He said the picture was of himself and his Daddy walking down the road.

Matthew wanted to show off some of his math work on Daddy's card....he messed up on the first "4+4", so he did it again...he's so proud of knowing his math facts!

Sarah Beth's card...I wrote what she dictated "I love Daddy's birthday party and Daddy." You can see that they both got a little carried away with the markers while they were making cards....they said they were trying to look like clowns! So glad they were washable markers!

Special birthday hats and a cake made by Matthew and Sarah Beth!

Happy 37th Birthday, Richard! I feel so blessed to have such an incredibly wonderful husband. We have dated since I was 14 (well, I couldn't actually "date" until I was 16, but we were "going together"....do they even still use that term these days?). Although we've only been married almost 11 years, it feels like we should almost be at our Silver Wedding Anniversiary! In a good way, of course! We had our few break-ups and dated a few other people, but we were always drawn back to one another, and I know the Lord had it planned for us from the beginning. I posted a few months ago on why I love my husband so much....it was one of my first posts....so I won't go into all of that again here, but I do so love my husband, my first love, my first boyfriend, the daddy to my babies! He is so precious to our family, and I appreciate all that he does to take care of us, love us, and always keep us laughing.

Richard has been somewhat incapacitated the past 6 1/2 weeks due to a muscle injury (we finally have a diagnosis, thank goodness...piriformis syndrome), and he has had to lay on the floor with ice most of the time he is at home. I have never seen him in such pain as he has gone through these past several weeks, and it was so difficult to watch him hurting, and feel so helpless to do anything to ease the pain. Even more difficult for him has been his inability to "participate" in our family functions....taking care of the kids, going to ballgames, going to church, playing out in the yard, horseplaying with the kids, working in the house and yard, etc. I realize just how much he does on a daily basis when I've had to do it all myself (except for the yard of course...that will always be his job according to him!). Anyway- we've both learned how much more we need to appreciate our health and just the ability to do the everyday things we are able to do. He is slowly getting better, and I see so much how his presence in just the little things makes such a difference for me, and especially for Matthew and Sarah Beth. We are so thankful for him to be feeling better.

So....that's what happens when you get OLD, I guess.....things start breaking down! No, really, although he thinks he's old at 37, I still see that sparkle of youth in his eyes and his personality, and he'll be back to working out and jogging soon, he hopes, anyway. I do believe he is wise beyond his years, but that's about the only thing that's "old" about him! I love you, my precious husband! Happy Birthday!

Friends

I just want to take a moment to give the Lord praise for answered prayers. Last spring, as Richard and I were deciding whether or not to homeschool Matthew for Kindergarten, although I really felt it was the right decision for our family, I was concerned that he wouldn't have regular play times with friends since most of his friends would now be in preschool or Kindergarten. I began really praying for the Lord to open up doors for us in this area, and as I was praying for him, I also began praying for myself, that I would meet other moms and develop meaningful, fun relationships with other women. It seems that the older you get, you have those long-term lasting friendships with college roomates or high school friends, but you don't get to see them often, and as our lives become busier with children, it's difficult to find time to develop new friendships and even to find time to maintain the old ones!

So.....fast forward to July....Matthew was in Kindermusik camp, and as usual, the mothers do the typical small talk for those few days during the week while the kids are in class. The last day, one of the mothers, Susan, who I had seen at church, but didn't know, asked if we wanted to come swimming at her neighborhood pool after class. The kids of course were thrilled, so we decided to go, and it was a really fun time for all of us. There are just some people who you immediately "click" with, and Susan is just one of those people. It's so nice to have friendships that are so easy, and where you feel so comfortable with the other person. We have had several other play dates since that time, and we were so excited to go to the Fireproof Premier with Susan and Tony a few weeks ago. We so enjoy spending time with them, and I am just so thankful the Lord brought Susan into my life for a new friendship to develop. It has been great getting to know her family, and I look forward to many more fun times with them.



A few weeks after meeting Susan, I was talking to our former neighbor who had moved out of her house last summer after she got married. She told me a family would be moving in next door....with 4 kids! Goodness! I wasn't quite sure what to think. However, from the first day we met Kathy, Aaron, and their four girls, we knew the Lord was continuing to answer our prayer for Matthew to have lots of playmates. They have 4 children...ages 4 (soon to be 5- Matthew's age), 3 (SB's age), 2 and 5 months. Aaron is the new chaplain at Shorter College, and they have served at various churches around the country before coming to Rome. I would describe Aaron as a "free spirit"- ALWAYS making the children laugh and have such a good time (recently he rigged a zipline in his backyard for the kids to play on, and even today, he brought out a bunch of pillows for the kids to have a pillowfight- they loved it!). Kathy is such a wonderful, nurturing Christian mother and wife, and has also become a good friend in the past month. We feel so blessed to have such great neighbors....and permanent playmates for our kids! Wow- the Lord certainly answered our prayers! Pictured below are the kids playing, and the bottom picture is the first day they moved in....we shared some popsicles with them as Mom and Dad were getting moved in!




Then, there are the friends who are just always there when you need them, and even at times when you don't know you need them.....Naomi, for example. What a godly example of a mother and wife she has been for me! She is my inspiration for homeschooling when I see what all she has accomplished with her daughter who is older than Matthew. My children love her daughter, Abbey- we have had TONS of playdates and fun times together. Naomi is about the most thoughtful, generous, kind and considerate person I have ever known (actually, there are two of those in my life...the other being my mother!). I have learned so much from Naomi, and I can always count on her for encouragement, advice, and prayer on the other end of the phone line when I am in the midst of a difficult time, or anything else (i.e....spending hours helping me decorate for a bday party or dressing up as a clown in 100 degree weather for a bday party!). I thank the Lord so much for Naomi's presence in my life.





Then there are those friends who have been with you through times of growing....such as the college years. I was able to visit with my college roommates a few weeks ago, and it was really nice (although not nearly enought time) to catch up on one another's lives. God has really blessed all of us- all together we have 9 children! I don't think any of us could have imagined how blessed we'd be 13 years after we graduated from Samford University. Kathryn, Leigh Ann, and Susie are precious women who love the Lord, and I was so fortunate to spend 4 years of my life with them.



I just wanted to share this answered prayer...the Lord really does know what we need when we need it. His timing is perfect and always right. He knows the people we need to have around us for our own growth, for friendship, even just for fun! I am honored and grateful to have these friends, as well as many others, in my life. Make sure to tell your friends how special they are to you! They need you as much as you need them!

Willy Wonka Party

Oh, what fun we had at our Willy Wonka party for Matthew and Sarah Beth. It was LOTS of work, but LOTS of fun for the kids. That's the point, right? Birthday parties are always a big deal in our family because we want our children to feel special and have great memories of their parties. This year was no exception.

Matthew and Sarah Beth have been watching the Chocolate Factory movie since we gave it to them for Valentine's Day this past year. They also love the new version, and often quote from the movie or sing the oompa loompa songs. They have enjoyed it so much, that Richard suggested that be the theme of their party this year- of course they loved that idea. So, creating that "paradise" in the movie where everything is edible was our goal. Of course, there's only so much you can do to a room to try to make it look like that. We did our best to create a chocolate waterfall/river, and had the chocolate fountain with lots of good things to dip in it. I think that was the favorite of the kids. Although, the cupcake decorating with all the different candies might have been a favorite, too. As the children came in, they were required to sign a "birthday fun" contract (like in the movie where they sign the contract before entering the factory). We had a huge screen with the movie playing during the entire party. After eating pizza, they settled down for a fun magic show, and the magician did balloon twisting for the kids throughout the party. Our games were rolling the blueberry to the juicing room and passing the golden egg. We had a fabulous turnout with about 25 kids, and I'm sure my little ones will never forget it!

A special thank you to Naomi and Abbey, who were truly our lifesavers in getting all the decorations up the day before, making us banana bread for our breakfast the day of the party, entertaining my kiddos, taking all the pictures, helping with clean up, and just about everything else that left my brain that day! I couldn't have done it all without them! Also, thank you to my mother who made all the cupcakes for us- that was a HUGE help!

As I said in the beginning....it was a LOT of work, but a LOT of fun! Until next year.....

FIREPROOF Movie Premier at the Fox Theater

Wow! What an event! We went to the Fireproof movie premier at the Fox Theater last Friday night with Tony and Susan, and we had such a good time. Tony works for Chick-fil-A, so we were honored to be their guests at the VIP reception before the movie. The picture of the ice sculpture doesn't do it justice- it was beautiful. Of course, the best part of the evening for me (other than spending a night out with my husband and great friends, of course!) was meeting Kirk Cameron- actually getting our picture made with him. He was much skinnier than I imagined, but still quite cute- he obviously looks a little older, but not a whole lot of change since the days of Growing Pains- my favorite show when I was a pre-teen. His testimony is just awesome, though. He wouldn't pose for a picture with a single female- it had to be with another person or a group- he has that much integrity! I, actually, would not have thought about it, but to hear him speak, you can just tell that he wants all of his words and actions to honor his Savior, Jesus Christ.

As for the movie- it exceeded my expectations. It is from the creators of "Facing the Giants," a movie created by a church in Albany, GA. However, Sony pictures and others got behind this, contributing the much needed funds to make it quite the production. It is such a relevant movie for the state of marriages these days. Anyone who is married MUST go see this movie. I was either crying or laughing the entire time. It was just very well done, and I know the Lord will bless it in our country, especially if we, as Christians, support it by going to see it opening weekend, Sept. 26. They say the movie is only as good as it's opening weekend, so make plans to go!!!

Happy 5th Birthday, our precious Mattthew!

I know, I know.....this slide show is just TONS of pictures, but I wanted to capture much of Matthew's little life. Unfortunately, I didn't have a digital camera for his first two years, so I had to take pictures of my scrapbook. I enjoyed going "back in time" and see how he has grown.

My precious little Matthew is 5 years old today. I am amazed at the little boy he has become. He is so full of life, loves to laugh, and is so very kind to others. Matthew is just the sweetest little child I have ever known, and that’s been echoed by other family members and friends, so I’m not that biased! He readily gives hugs, kisses, or a helping hand if needed. He is obedient (most of the time!), compliant, and has such a sweet disposition about him.

Matthew’s interests include building, building, and more building! Other than that, he loves Curious George, trains, digging in the dirt, playing baseball, watching movies, riding his bike, scooter, and jeep, and playing with his little sister (again…most of the time!). Matthew loves his family, loves snuggling with Mommy and Daddy, and especially enjoys spending time with Daddy in the yard or horseplaying/wrestling. Matthew is a very smart little boy, too- he has been reading for several months, now, and caught on to reading very quickly. He is enjoying Kindergarten, and loves to ask questions and learn more about things by asking LOTS of questions. He especially enjoys trying to understand how things work, and “why” things are as they are (for which there are often no answers!). Like his Daddy, he has an EXCELLENT memory, and seems to remember things back to when he was even 2 years old. I have to be careful with that…..he’s not going to forget my parenting mistakes!

I am so proud of the way he readily connects with other children, and how he has socially matured just in the past few months. I have seen a new confidence in him with regard to meeting people, speaking up while in a group setting, and just engaging with other children in social settings. It is so good to see his confidence and enjoyment in being with other children.

Lately he has also been asking many spiritual questions, as well. I can see the Lord pricking his heart, and Matthew’s desire to know more about Jesus every day. He has begun memorizing Bible verses, and often asks questions about heaven. I’ve also seen him having a desire to pray for certain situations, and when the Lord answers those prayers tangibly where he can see the answer…..he gets the biggest grin on his face! What a joy for a parent!

My prayer for you, my little Matthew, is that the Lord will grow you in so many ways, physically, spiritually, emotionally, socially, and that you will bring glory to His name as you turn into a fine young man one day. For now, though, no matter what, you will always be Mommy’s little baby boy. Thank you for letting me love you, teach you, and watch you discover the world around you. You are such a joy to your Daddy and me, and we will forever be thankful for our little Matthew- “gift from God.” I love you, baby boy. Happy 5th Birthday!!!

First Day of Kindergarten!

My baby boy has officially started Kindergarten! His first day was Monday, Aug. 11, and although he is being homeschooled, he was still very excited! He drew a picture and wrote in his journal, learned about the water cycle which creates rain, learned all about rainbows, and we even made one ourselves (forgot to take a picture of that) with a glass of water, some paper and sunlight. We began reading several different books- some dealing with history/geography, and then one of my all-time favorites...The Boxcar Children. Sarah Beth is enjoying listening to the read-aloud books, as well. Matthew did a little reading of his own- 1st grade readers, at that! He is doing very well, even if he does have a biased teacher! I hope it continues to go as well as it's gotten started! I love teaching him and seeing him "get it," and then being able to do other things with him throughout the day to reinforce what we learned or talked about. I feel very blessed and humbled to be homeschooling my children. It's such a wonderful opportunity! To Matthew- Congratulations on your first day of Kindergarten! I know you'll learn many things and do well this year- can't wait to be there with you every step of the way, my baby boy!

Good times in TN

O.K.- I have been working on this for about 45 minutes, now, and after numerous attempts, the slide show won't post to my blog, so I'm having to post the pictures separately- sorry about that!

We had a really nice weekend with my brother, sister-in-law and twin nephews this weekend in TN. The weather was fabulous- very strange for August in the South! We sure enjoyed it, though! We did a little shopping, then just played in the pool, had a great birthday dinner (celebrating my kids' bdays as well as my own), and a yummy bday cake! Thank you David and Janeeen for our bday dinner! On Sunday, we went to their church- FBC Smyrna...but it's no traditional Baptist church- it's extremely contemporary complete with stadium-type seating, it's own Christian gift shop and coffee shop, and very relevant topics. It's also very obvious that they make GREAT use of the many talented musicians in their church- there's a picture above of my brother playing keyboards. Their pastor is really a good speaker, and it's obvious they are meeting the needs of so many people in their area-I think they average over 2000 every Sunday- WOW! I was very proud of my talented brother up on stage. It was family picture time after church, and after a quick lunch, we headed back home. Sarah Beth cried for the first 20 min. after we left- so sad to leave her cousins. It seemed like such a short trip, but we enjoyed every minute of it! Thanks, David, Janeen, Landon, and Wil, for hosting us for the weekend!

Happy 3rd Birthday Baby Girl!

What a day we had! Sarah Beth woke up to lots of pink balloons in her room and pink streamers hanging down in her doorway. She was awake at 6:30! I guess she just couldn't stand the excitement! We went to church and her teacher/class sang to her, then we had a relaxing afternoon as we baked her birthday cake, she napped, and we got ready for her birthday dinner. We invited Mimi, Grandaddy, and Grammy over for our little family party, and she got a few gifts, too, of course! All day long she said "Sing Happy Birthday to me, Mommy!" I believe she truly felt like a princess, as she should on her birthday (although I'm not sure how this is different from any other day with regard to feeling like a princess :). Sarah Beth is still trying to get the hang of holding up three fingers to tell how old she is- she just can't seem to hold that pinky finger down with her thumb! But.....she knows she's 3, and she's very excited about that! She's really looking forward to her birthday party in a few weeks when we'll celebrate both her's and Matthew's birthday together- a Willy Wonka party!














Decorating her Strawberry Shortcake cake (it had LOTS of sprinkles on it!)














Blowing out her candles...




















Some of her gifts (she'll get her "big" ones at her party in a few weeks). She got a Strawberry Shrotcake doll, a Disney Princess cell phone, Don't Spill the Beans game, and the Mega Blocks Cinderella carriage- what fun!!!














Enjoying her cake with her new Strawberry Shortcake doll at her side!

Wow- it just seems like yesterday that we were at the hospital waiting for a room to become available as I was in labor wandering the halls of the maternity floor. I was HUGE! That's easy enough to explain, though, with a 8 lb. 15 oz. baby! She was born at 11:51 pm on August 3, 2005. What a complete joy to have a newborn baby girl!!! She had dark curly hair, dark skin, and dark blue eyes. It was quite a frightening delivery, though, because she was so large that her shoulders were too wide, and she was stuck. Dr. Asa Peek (my hero!!!) had planned for this, and immediately did all the "emergency" things they do in this situation, including putting her arm up beside her head and pulling her out with one arm up, narrowing her shoulders. Praise the Lord that everything went well for us at that moment!!! After 16 hours in labor with no pain medication (my choice, I know- but I would still do it all over again!!!), she was a sight to behold!
















Precious Baby Girl!













Matthew kissing Sarah Beth for the first time.














One of my favorite pictures when she was about 3 weeks old.

Sarah Beth is such a precious little person. She is completely different from her brother, in that she is extremely independent, and can be quite stubborn at times. She has a very strong will, which will be an asset to her later in life (although it is quite challenging these days!). Sarah Beth is very self-confident, she knows what she wants, and she goes after it- I like that about her. She can also be extremely loving and nurturing. I love watching her sing to her baby dolls or feed them. She talks in this high-pitched voice that is just precious. Sarah Beth is all "girl," completely! She loves pink painted fingernails and toenails, and she enjoys wearing dresses that can "twirl," as she says. She enjoys riding her bicycle, playing baseball with Daddy and Matthew, putting on make- up (every day!) with Mommy, and playing with her big brother. She has quite the personality, and I love seeing her grow and develop every day. I'm amazed at her communication, the way she picks up on others' emotions so quickly, and the way she learns so easily. She also already seems to have a spiritual sense about her. As she was going to bed on her birthday, she said, "Mommy, I want to give Jesus a piece of my birthday cake." Who would have ever thought of such a thing but a child? It was precious. She loves to pray every night before going to bed, and is very sincere with talking to Jesus. I'm very thankful for that. God truly blessed us when Sarah Beth came into our lives, and we are so proud to be the parents of Sarah Elizabeth, "Princess Consecrated to God." Happy Birthday my precious baby girl! I love you!!!!!