The details

I was reminded yesterday that God is in the details.

First of all, we were going to go to Charlotte and see Rachel and her family. But Rachel got sick. I was super bummed but after a busy week it was ok not to have to travel. Yesterday morning we ran by the church (Nana was with me!) and dropped off some shirts and picked up a CD, we were heading to Asheville. After a quick stop by McDonalds, I went to get on the interstate and noticed my battery light and brake light had come on. I put it in reverse off the exit ramp and started heading back down hwy 70 towards home. We made it about 3 miles before my car completely lost power. I called the church, since we were close to it, and Robin the secretary came and picked all of us up. We hung out there, got the van towed, etc.

Looking back I see how God protected us from breaking down on our way to Charlotte. He helped guide the van to a perfect spot off the road to where we weren't in danger of getting hit. Nana was here to help me with the kids and I am thankful I didn't have extra babies with me. He opened the path for Robin to pick us up, for Jerry to contact a mechanic, and best of all for it just to have been the timing belt breaking.

I am so thankful to have been given grace through this situation and know that God is the God of details and He has His hand on us always.

Dropped it.

Last weekend I wanted to show Matt something on Netflix. While trying to sit next to him somehow I dropped my laptop and the screen went black. It's getting fixed and so I'll have more pictures/random things up soon.

So far it's been a crazy week and will end with a trip to Charlotte. I'll tell you about it soon!

My Baby Daddy

So... ten years ago there was this really hot guy in Social Problems. We were very sarcastic with each other and often took opposing arguments in class. The teacher thought it would be fun to make us work together on a project. And folks, that's all she wrote.

Here we are 10+ years later and I can look back and see how God has orchestrated the details in bringing us together, giving us children, buying and endlessly renovating our first house, etc.

I was thinking the other day about how I had no idea what kind of dad that guy with earrings and oversized sweater vests would be when we first started out on this journey together.

And I can tell you, I am blessed. Noah, Ella, and Luke adore their father. He knows what quality time is and gives it freely to his children. They count down the time to when Daddy is going to be home from work because they know that daddy is going to give them undivided attention. He's going to make jokes at the dinner table that sometimes aren't exactly appropriate and I'm going to have to be the one to reign them all back in. He boosts their self esteem and encourages them. Some nights he's goign to make a pizza at 9:00 and if they are still awake he will share it with them. He's going to be "all in" for family movie night and watch every second of whatever movie is chosen. They are safe in his love for them and for their mommy and know that our family won't ever be broken a part. He's going to find something fun and special to do with them each weekend, from swimming to the the lake, to soccer in the backyard, to movies...

Happy Fathers day Matty. You make us happy every day.

This guy

There was this guy who used to slam on the brakes, when no one was stopping in front of him, and throw his arm across me and say "did you see that?" just for fun. He would start laughing hard, I mean really hard until we were all laughing with our bellies jumping without knowing what we were laughing at - he would tell us it was this funny word, and keep laughing. By then we had tears in our eyes when he would finally say it - Peanut. Music was important to us, from my own song he wrote me "Sarah Sue, I love you" to putting scripture to music so we would memorize it. He would say pretty embarrassing things loudly out the window of the car when he dropped me off at school as a 4th grader with a huge grin on his face as I rushed hurridely to the class so know one would associate me with that guy. He took me on walks and would tell me stories about the great leaders in christian history, I find myself having Susanna Wesley moments at my own house. Vacations with him were teachable moments - we saw every battlefield this side of the mississippi. We sang together a lot. He taught me how to drive, because mom couldn't handle the anxiety. And he helped me out with all of my wrecks that I had in just a few years from 17-22. He held me and let me cry the night I got my heart broken for the first time. He told me I was beautiful while walking down the aisle at my wedding rehersal and I had to tell him he couldn't do that on the actual day, or I would be in tears. Bad Sunday in the hospital one of my few memories are of him walking in the room and me crying, not because I was scaired of what was happening to me, but because he was there and I knew because of that I would be ok. Even though there were five of us, he made me feel special. He tolerates my obsessive need to take family pictures. He loves my kids a lot. He sacrifices time with his wife because he knows how much I need her to come visit and help me. He's an all around great guy.

He's always been my safe place to land. And I'm so glad to have him as my dad.

This is for all the dads.

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Hot Topics

Jerry has started a blog to answer the questions that people are asking after the summer series. Go to http://www.digging-in.com!

The first day of summer

Luke is man enough to rock it out in a purple bumbo
Hard at work!

At the grocery store check out I had a brilliant idea, grab some paper bags.



Today's summer craft was making robot dress up vests. Noah, Ella, and Meredith worked hard on their vests this afternoon and then played robots. They even had on/off buttons which made them freeze (I totally took advantage of the button!).

My kiddos are super creative, and I love to watch their imaginations work!

Hot Topics for a Hot Summer

It was great to be at Grace again this morning. Last Sunday Luke and I stayed at home and watched Papa online so we missed our home church. I was excited to hear about Jerry's new sermon series. He picks a differnet hot topic every week, one that was suggested to him by a church member. During the service he encourages the congregation to text message him questions and he answers them at the end of the service.

Today's topic: Where does my baby go if I miscarried. Woah.

Just yesterday I was cleaning up my picture files online and I saw them again. I'll be a little transparent here - I have taken pictures of my positive pregnancy tests. I take them to put in front of my babies Baby Books. In the past 2 years I have two sets of pictures that didn't end up in Baby Books. They are the only reminders to me that a miscarriage really happened. That for awhile, those babies were in my belly. So to walk into grace this morning and hear the sermon topic I felt like God was telling me that it's ok to still think about them. Even with the joy of having Luke in my arms, that those babies were here, they were innocent, and were accepted into the arms of Jesus when they left. And that yes, I will see them again one day.

While that was the main question of the sermon, Jerry went on to talk about our small children and how crucial their point of salvation is. He encouraged us to look for signs, not rush, and wait for baptism to make sure. He gave key signs that your child understands.

I have been thinking for awhile that I really want to disciple my kids this summer. You can be in prayer for me as I try to incorporate it every day with Noah and Ella. We will have so much extra time together and I look forward to watching Noah's faith grow even more and for the seeds of faith to be watered in Ella.

Jerry said at the beginning of the sermon that you probably know someone who has miscarried and if not, you will in the future - so write this stuff down. To hear "that stuff" go to www.graceforall.org and click on the sermons link, it should be up online tomorrow.

Heading to Second Grade

We celebrated the last day of school with Noah on Friday. Earlier in the week we got a note saying he would be receiving two awards on stage. We got to his class early and were able to see him get the classroom award for "Best Attitude." At the ceremony we watched as he received the writing award for his class. There is some computer program where the highest you can score is a 20. Noah consistently averaged between 18 & 20, highest for his class, all year. He also received a trophy for reading 300 books this year (our boy loves to read!).

We are so thankful for the teachers God placed in Noah's life, and our boy's heart for learning. We are proud of you Noah!

Mama's Bed is for Wrasslin

When I'm feeding Luke I usually go to my bed so that it's quiet. Usually after a few minutes the other little people in the room wander in to see what's going on. And sometimes, they start "wrasslin."

Morning Cuteness

I know two things. Luke is so stinking cute. And he really looks like Noah did at this age.

He woke up from his morning nap in time to enjoy some coffee with daddy and I.

Today's a great day for a playdate

Today we went over to CarrieBeth's house for a playdate with CB, Jen, and our kiddos. It was so much fun! There was dress up, fantastic brunch, and the coolest "Kid Wash." CB's hubby Chuck had made a "Kid Wash" out of PVC pipe that he drilled holes into and attached a hose to. The kids loved running through it!

GracePark

I am so proud to be a part of Grace Community Church and all that God is doing there. Some things that our church body is working on are a new children's building. And it will be built completely debt free. New ministrys include foster children programs, the Lunch Bunch which feeds children over the summer who receive free lunch at school, a hispanic ministry to the trailer parks that surround our church, and many more that I am forgetting at the moment. One of the awesome projects in the works right now is something called GracePark.

GracePark will be a one acre natural play park, open to the public. The park will consist of walking trails, picnic areas, natural streams, and natural ADA approved playspaces. GracePark will encourage and enable physical movement and play for the 7, 146 children under the age of 14 residing within 10 miles of the park. Community members will also enjoy the walking trails and excercise opportunities, therefore increasing an active lifestyle in a community where 34% of adults have a BMI of 30% or higher. GracePark will take advantage of our natural resources while promoting healthy lifestyles through excercise and play.

Our church has applied for a grant and you can help. If you own a facebook or twitter account, please go to this website http://www.vivint.com/givesbackproject/charity/1304 and follow the directions to endorse the campaign. Our church will fund the project through giving and applying for other opportunities, but if we were to receive this specific grant, just imagine how the money the church currently has could go to reach more people in McDowell County. GracePark will be an incredible ministry tool to reach our community in the future. I think one of the things that stands out about Grace is how giving our church is. Through Benevolance, outreach, and so many more other ways Grace is reaching people in McDowell County and showing them the love of Christ. Thanks for your help!

Gratulations

Ella has been so excited about preschool gratulation (graduation - her way of saying it is so much cuter). Today was the big day so Luke, Mere, Daddy and I headed out to watch her sing songs, and accept her "moving up" diploma. She did her classic over posing and turned to the crowd as she was handed her diploma. It was priceless. Hopefully I will get some video up of it soon!

2 Months Old

Two months have flown by so quickly! Luke is getting so big! He sleeps more at night (he gives me a 5 hour stretch!), he loves to eat, he has doubled his birth weight, he has two siblings who dote over him and a daddy who loves to give him snuggles, but his favorite place is in mommy's arms. He spends most of his awake time in my lap, the baby bjorn, or the sling. He doesn't like his car seat, the bouncy seat, or the swing (pretty much being put down). This past month he started smiling and talking to us. He is his happiest the first little bit after he wakes up from a nap and that's when he smiles the most. He also recognizes all of us and will search me out in a room if he hears my voice. He has brought so much joy to our family and we are so thankful God blessed us with Luke.

Ella and Carter

I have so many pictures of Ella and her best bud Carter, that if they do get married one day (like they plan on) I have plenty of pictures for their rehersal dinner. :) This week Carter came over to play and for dessert they enjoyed a good old fashioned push-pop. Buddies and icecream, the joys of life!

Those cheeks

Luke's sweetest time is right after he wakes up from a nap. I love that he recognizes us and has started smiling and talking to us. He even throws out a wink every once in awhile. I hope you enjoy this short video taken after his afternoon nap.