Family Life~

As I always say His mercies are new each morning.... and for that I am so thankful. He continues to carry me through this journey. I will continue to praise Him.

All my children are here. We all went to church then came home. For lunch we had manicotti. It was very good. It has been years since I made it but it was a hit. My mother was full blooded italian. We all love italian food. I also tried Betty Crocker Cookie Brownie Bars. They are so good. We had corn & salad.

Michael's (my oldest) swimming with the little boys. They love playing with him. It is so awesome seeing my oldest with my two youngest (older pic~ last Christmas). There is eighteen years between Michael & Wesley... and seventeen years between Michael & Wyatt. They love for them to come visit. Amber loves them too.... Michael is TOUGH with them and Amber is SOFT. Last night Wes laid on the couch with Amber and fell asleep. It makes my mama heart smile.

Last year at the beach~ We will be going again in a few weeks. We are all excited.

This week is our VBS week. My kids love it.... we are usually so tired by the end of the week but we have fun. This is my first year not teaching (in ten years) but I will be helping throughout the week. Tonight is our kick off.... at church.

I have been thinking about our Keepers of the Faith Club. I received my catalog in the mail and I am planning out what I want to order. They are excited.

May the Lord bless and keep you and make His face shine on you.

Grab hold of the moment.... for tomorrow it will be a memory~

Only Trust Him....

Its been a difficult week. I need to sit at the feet of Jesus and just soak Him up. I need His grace. His peace.... His strength.

one of the Red Sea Rules by Robert J. Morgan is ~

"Trust God to deliver in His own unique way" I really need this. I really need to say this over and over in my mind.

I am thankful for my blog friends. I appreciate you coming by and visiting.

May God bless you today~ and always.

Summer School....

We are about to kick into our *summer* mode. This year we will be doing things a little different. We will still be doing school.... atleast 2 days per week. We want to do some fun things that do not seem like school. Wyatt will continue with his phonics. Alyssa will continue her reading in Heart of Dakota.

We will be reading together, memorizing the first chapter of John. We have already memorized the first 18 verses but will continue on with this. We will also be doing *Keepers of the Faith" club. We are very excited about that. The boys will pick 5 activities they want to work on over the course of this next year and Alyssa (11) will pick 10 activities she wants to work on. We will have an Honor's Night but with just our family.


We have a new addition to our family. It is a robo dwarf hamster. We named him "Nugget." He is really cute. We brought him home from Florida this weekend.



We thought about getting a *Bearded Dragon!* WE would have to save our money for that though.... the boys really thought that a Bearded Dragon would be so cool.

We were in Florida this past weekend at my cousins wedding. It was so beautiful. Reminds me over and over again... just how fast they grow up.

Make a memory~

Peaceful Time~

This past Friday we drove to a college that my oldest daughter may attend in the Fall. They allowed us to stay in their guest house over night. It was the children and I. We had a great time. Such peace....

It was an old antique house.... we kept finding extra rooms! Twelve rooms in all...

This is part of the living room~

This is the den. This was Dakota's favorite room. I would find him in there reading. He said it was awesome... so peaceful.

This was the LONG hallway. It was so neat. The children played hide/seek. We played Narnia. We all loved it. Everyone talked about how peaceful and quiet it was. I had alone time with three of my children. Mandi and I sat on the couch and talked for a long time... just about everything. Dakota and I talked for a long time in the den. Alyssa and I went to the store to pick up a couple things and we talked together. God is so good. Often it isn't peaceful here at home. I want it to be.... but sometimes life is hard and so I cry out to the Lord to give me grace. This was a nice break away from the daily stuff......

This is the girls room. They loved it.

This is the room I stayed in. The Lord woke me at 3am and I couldn't sleep. It was such a neat time in the word. He gave me Rom. 15:13 & Phillippians 1:12.

Thank you for letting me share.

May God give you His peace & joy~

Reflecting....

Reading over at Ann's place... I find myself so often *there* with her. Its a good read....

http://www.aholyexperience.com/2009/05/weather-report-forgetting-your-address.html


If you haven't read the entries below.... I am blogging more so you may have missed one.

"Our Adopted Papa" ~ I posted last night.

We will be going to the beach for a week next month. We do this each year. We do not stay in a fancy motel or condo. Not that that is a bad thing... we camp. My husband is x-military so we stay at a military camp ground. It is on the bay.... This year we rented one of the cabins to stay in. We are excited. It is very peaceful. I always try to find a new book or two to read while there. We spend the mornings on the bay.... reading, walking and just relaxing.



I am thinking about this book~ don't let the words fool you. I do believe I have been called to be a mom. The review was excellent ....

here is some of what Leslie says in her book~

What I want most for my children is that they would be dependent upon God. I can’t make them God-dependent, but I can live out my own dependence on God. I can do this by letting my kids see my fatigue at times, my mistakes, my limitations, even my tears---and my fears! Let them see some of that, as is age appropriate.

if you’re superwoman all the time, they’ll not see your need of God. Don’t be afraid to just be human! Let them see you pray when you’re afraid, when you fail. Let them see your sadness at your own sin. Let them hear of your own struggles to live righteously. We can’t bring our children to faith ourselves---this is God’s work. But we can show them what it looks like to live as a servant of God.

Thanks for stopping by~ I enjoy visiting with you~

Our adopted Papa....

For almost two years now we would see him in Burger King alone. He would speak to us, speak to some friends of ours. His weathered skin reminded me of my Dad. How I still miss my Dad so... I know in just a few days it will be 22 months since my Dad went to be with Jesus... but my heart still aches.

We drive 23 miles one way to church, baseball games, basketball games..... one day I saw this man in the yard of a house we were passing on our way to church. I realized that him and his wife use to sit on the porch and rock.... I realized I've passed this house for the past 14 yrs.

Asking around.... I was told that his wife had died and that he went to a local church. Each and every time I would pass his house I would be reminded of him... wondering how I could or if I should ...... I wondered how he was doing, if he was lonely, if he had children, grandchildren....

I didn't see him for a while ..... then one day as I was passing his house he was in the yard.... I slowed down, rolled the window down some, waved and smiled. He waved back. About a week later I was pulling into Burger King and he was coming out the door. I stopped rolled the window down and spoke to him.

The Lord kept allowing our paths to cross..... what do you want Lord? How?

In April I went with a group to see the Passion Play. On the way home we stopped at Cracker Barrel. I shared with two ladies (that went with us that I had never met before) that there was this elderly man... that we wanted to *adopt* ~ explaining that my children do not have any living grandparents, or great grandparents. I explained where he lived asking if they knew him. One lady said "yes!" She told me that he had one son who lived about 4 hours away and no grandchildren. She told me he was a very lonely man. I told her what we wanted to do and she thought that was a great idea.

So the week of Easter the children and I made a Easter bowl for him. We put Easter grass, bananas, apples, candy & a card explaining/introducing us. When we went by ... he was gone. We left it under the carport. About a week later we stopped and knocked on the door. We told him we were the ones who left the basket. The children gave him hugs. We told him we wanted to adopt him. It was awkward. He was grateful.

We have stopped two other times. Just for a couple minutes.

Each time we pass his house now.... one of my three youngest will ask if we can stop. We are not sure what to call him.... Mr. H.... Papa H....

Tonight we saw him in Walmart. He was thrilled to see us. The three youngest gave him hugs. Mandi (oldest daughter, who hasn't been with us to visit) smiled and hugged him.

My heart aches that my two little boys do not have a grandpa..... there is something about grandparents.... my Dad with my boys 2003

I have thought about asking Mr. H to come to one of the boys t-ball games.... maybe I should of invited him to their award ceremony.....

He is in his late 70's or early 80's.

Why is this so awkward?

I am thankful for our adopted Papa.....

Blessed to be a Mom

I bought some flowers today. My husband gave the children some money so that they could buy me some flowers. I picked out two hanging baskets of flowers, some potted flowers for my strawberry pot, and a bird feeder. I like planting things in my yard. We have a small garden.

As I walk each morning I really enjoy seeing the growth, seeing the birds and hearing them. Most mornings the ground is still wet... and there is a breeze.

This morning I walked to the end of our road (use to be dirt but is paved now)~ at the end of our road is a cemetery. I often go there and look around. I know that may seem strange but death is part of life.... and the past several years I have had to say goodbye to some very special people. I look at the dates... and wonder what kind of legacy they left behind.

This will be my first Mother's Day without my mom. It is sad.... she died May 25th of last year. My sister spent Mother's Day with her. I chose to stay here (Mom lived in Florida and I in Georgia) with my children. Sometimes I wish I would of went to see her on her last Mother's Day.

My sister is a widow and never had children.... I think of her a lot on Mother's Day. I know it is a hard day every year for her. This year will be one of the hardest for her as she will miss Mom and be alone.

A dear friend of mine..... went to be with Jesus six months ago. It is her children & husband's first Mother's Day without their Mom. I miss Sandi.

As we celebrate Mother's Day..I thank God for my children. Ps. 113:9 talks about the barren woman being the JOYFUL mother of children. I am so very thankful the Lord allowed me the gift of children. I am thankful for this life He has given me....


~ My children~


May each of you... be blessed this Mother's Day. If you are hurting and missing someone know that God is the God of comfort.... He will wrap His love around you.

Our new project...

We are bottle feeding four kittens. Our oldest daughter Mandi is mostly. I help her some. The mama cat went missing, and Mandi found the kittens. The vet said they were about four weeks old. That was two weeks ago, today they started eating cat food!

I have realized yet again how very important "mamas" are. I know that may sound silly but even a mama cat.... is the best thing for her kittens.

The Lord continues to show me just how much my children depend on me. Long ago I heard something that has really stayed with me.

"As moms we set the tone in our home."

How important it is for me to be a wife and mother. I am so very thankful God has allowed me to be the joyful mother of children. I truly believe HE has commanded me to be JOYFUL. I want to laugh MORE with my children.

Take time with them today.... laugh, read, enjoy this wonderful gift God has given us.... our children.