and you there

 

Hayley,

Stop growing up so darn fast. Except for the part where you grow out of the complete meltdown of a mess stage that has come with being 3. I mean, I know you are 110% girl and some of that will never go away, but some of it, some of it we could do without. But overall, stop looking like a little girl and return to being Mama's baby face.

 

P.S. Didn't Breezy do a great job on your turkey shirts? Even though all you and your sister's rough housing have their feathers all ruffled by this point!

this. face.

 

Dear Bowen,

This face of yours. This face. It is iconic of your temperment when things aren't going your way. You aren't even 2...not even 1 1/2 officially yet...but you know to pull out this face to let us all know exactly how you feel about it.

 

It is terrible. And it is wonderfully you.

 

Just please, get this out of your system before you are 16.

 

Love,

Mommy

Signs I love!!

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Linking Up With: http://5minutesjustforme.blogspot.com/ for The Pinning Party!

thankful, rewind for 2 weeks

Y'all... I really, really, really am awful about getting my thankfuls in! I guess that is nothing like a shove in the face for where I need to get my priorities in line!

15 - Thankful for a school to take my daughter to every day. There are so many parents in so many places who don't have options or choices or funds to keep their kids in school. We are so blessed to have choices and transportation, options and funds to support our children's education. In many places, it is not a right of citizenship.
16 - Thankful for Operation Christmas Child and the work they put into providing shoesboxes of love and gifts for children across the world each and every year. And thankful that they've added a "track your box" function where you can find out which country received your boxes this year.
17 - Thankful for a paycheck that hits the bank today...and every two weeks. So thankful to be able to provide for my family and have funds to minister with by having a job to go to every day.
18 - Thankful for the wonderful "girls" who went to supper and Chonda Pierce together... it is so refreshing and good for my heart to spend time with other believers just "doing life" together!
19 - Thankful for great seats to a less-than-stellar game on the greatest campus in the USA. So glad to have spent it with my cousins who we don't see a lot, but really had a great time with
20 - Thankful for fresh popped popcorn and movie night with our Church family at the Clubhouse. Thankful that my girls antics don't cause hard hearts and frustrations between our young family and our not-as-young church members.
21 - Thankful for the ladies of HOPE circle...for good food, and laughs, and voices and words of truth in a setting of friendship. Thankful for John Riley and praising God for the supporters of Radical Life ministries in Costa Rica and what amazing things God is doing there. Extremely thankful for good open conversation with the best friend. Even if it was WAY WAY WAY past my bedtime when I made it home.
22 - Thankful for the next generation of daughters who are getting old enough to take part in the dumpling making and celebration preparations for family Thanksgiving. I am also thankful because now I can blame the floury mess on the littles instead of taking the blame all by myself.
23 - Thankful that today is my "Friday" and that it will involve a trip to see Jo sing in the big city of Patmos this evening with my family

Sic 'em!

I am sure this wasn't recorded with the University of Georgia in mind... but GO DAWGS!!!!

Battle Hymn... Muppet Style
(couldn't get it to embed...you'll have to click over)

Go Dawgs! Sic 'em!

12:30 a.m. Get in bed from Friday Night Concert

4:10 a.m. Get up from bed to get ready to leave

4:30 Leave Bluffton

7:00 Stop at Nastiest convienent store in town for bathroom break and fill up gas tank

7:03 Decide Hardees would be good... use Hardees bathroom to wash all the filth of the world's sketchiest bathroom across the road off my hands... give Michael a hard time for not letting me know that Hardees was being considered as next stop so I wouldn't have entered world's sketchiest bathroom in the first place

9:30 Arrive in the Classic City. Walk past old dorm. Visit bookstore, find name on Graduate plaque for 2006. Attend Dawg Walk.

10:45 Climb 500 million stairs and walk halfway around stadium to get to Gate.

11:00 Pay $10 for slice of Dominos pizza and 20 ounce Coke with no lid

11:05 Realize it took less than 5 minutes to eat $10. Walk 2 levels down to find seats.

11:15 Fall over dead at how good our seats are. And that they have the cushion seat things.

11:45 Still gush about being in the best seats of my entire life. Head off to find Audrey and catch up on life before kickoff.

12:30 Kick off!

12:30 - 4:30 Marvel at how good Kentucky d-line and o-line are. Almost get caught in the middle of grown people brawl over whether its appropriate to flash the middle finger repeatedly in the presence of small children. Watch us force turnovers and do nothing with the ball. See failed attempt at getting touchback. Get the detailed description of "pass blocking" from Michael to explain why the Kentucky line is so effective. Catch up with Steve & Shelley during halftime. Finally, see a Georgia Touchdown in 4th quarter...did we really just go 3 quarters without turning in a TD from the Red Zone. yes, we did. We win. 19 - 10 ... worst looking win in my book, but it makes us SEC East Champs. We gotta get tough and moving if we want a fighting chance at SEC Championship in December.

5:00 Mexicalli with Lane. Yum. Yum. Yum. Yum. Listen to Michael harrass Lane for not following him on twitter. Realize that Mexicalli offers a Tofu taco salad...gross.

5:45 Leave the Classic City headed for home.

7:00 Am practically sleep driving when we stop in Forsyth. Make mandatory swap in drivers, drink a Sunkist, ride a little, sleep a lot.

9:15 Miss a turn almost kiss a deer through my window

10:00 Home. Get girls in bed.

10:30 out. done. finished.

weekend whirlwind...

...here we go!

Tonight: Girls Night Out: Dinner and Chonda Pierce... woo hoo!

Tomorrow: Ga vs. Kentucky... leaving at 5 a.m. to make it to the Classic City before game time. Returning to the not-so-big city same night

Sunday: Church + prep for movie night at chuch  laundry that hasn't been done in 3 days + unpack all bags from shopping trip yesterday + actual movie night at church (Soul Surfer...from my winning!)

And then the week continues on...

Monday: Work and Monthly Womens Devotional Meeting (in which I bring dumplings for our "Thanksgiving" meeting)

And then the building up to Thanksgiving and shopping for what I forgot to buy yesterday and shopping for the county children's toy collection that I keep forgetting to do.

And then Thanksgiving... 3 family meals in one day... how many will we make???

Day after Thanksgiving: Decorate House for Christmas!! yay!

Sunday after Thanksgiving: Photo Shoot

Dec. 5th - Tree of Life Ceremony at Work

Dec. 10th - Holiday Awards Banquet for Work

Dec. 16th - Hayley's School Program


Yowzers...the Holiday months get me every year!!!

catching up...again

Thankfuls:
10th - generous donations from employees to our Volunteer group...either by purchases or outright donations for equipment for our hospital.
11th - fire by the lake
12th - a husband willing to ride 65-miles of yard sale with me...from 7 am to 3 p.m. ... without complaint
13th - an afternoon talking wedding with my recently engaged cousin...this makes me mostly estatic and a lot grateful to have her!
14th - impromptu trips to Breezy and Big Dave's house...and girls in bed on time without a fight!

Pinned: No more Trays?!

Love these creative options for stepping up fruit and veggie and cheese trays....

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Linking Up With: http://5minutesjustforme.blogspot.com/ for The Pinning Party!

quote it

“Grace is not about giving people what we want them to want.”

Read Full Story Here

love. that. line.

It is not our role to choose what we give and when we give and what the outcome is... it is our role to give to those who are needing...even if we don't agree with what they need for.

Breezy's Day

Nov. 9th - Today I'm thankful for...

Breezy! It's her birthday, and I am so thankful for all she's done for me and my family and our whole family our entire lives! I want to be just like her when I grow up...except for the crazy parts, I'll leave those out!

: )

Harvest

Speak it, part 2

More encouragement to speak it and share it!

(part one inspiration found here)

today's thankful

Nov. 8th : mexican restaurant for lunch...and the fact that the waitress brings me a cheese dip and a dr. pepper as soon as she sees me sit down (yes, I eat there that much!), a box of nerds shared with Hayley girl before school, a hot shower, plans finalizing for a girls night out,

If all the cool kids are doing it....

..you do it too! Join me in following Big Mama, Boo Mama, Kelly, Shaun and the whole Compassion Trip as they blog through Ecuador!

Get Shoppping/Giving/BOTH!

Y'all...there is some really Serious Goodness!!! happening over with The Welch Family & The Mercy House Kenya project.

If you haven't done your Christmas shopping, this would be a great way to get double bang for your buck... awesome product for you or your loved one...100% of proceeds benefit Mercy House!!

If you are thinking of doing some kind of donation at Christmas...why not change it to now?!

And there are several things on there that would qualify for my wishlist (and the fact that the money is not profit but gain for a ministry sweetens the pot in my book)...so you can always shop for me! (you know, because its completely legit to beg for gifts on your blog) ha!

catching up!

Nov. 4 fried dill pickles, a meal where both girls manage to make it through the meal without complete breakdowns (or 5 trips to the bathroom); warm covers hand-knit by a loved one

Nov. 5 mornings at home, new babies to love on and their families to see, a large family who does special events together

Nov. 6 fall back! we didn't get the extra hour in the morning, but we got it through nap and early bedtime! The many ministries that are serving orphans and their families and the many people who support through prayer or financial devotion the efforts of ministries around the world!

Nov. 7 the sun being up when its time to leave the house, health and wellness in our home, means to support ministries such as Operation Christmas Child (and the shopping trip that's in store for today)

There are no outcasts, there are no orphans of God...

I read this article...which presented to me, for the first tim, a change in paradim when thinking of orphan care....what if, instead of focusing care solely on providing for those who have been orphaned...we focused on preventing the reoccurence of orphaning...what if, we focus on the support systems needed to keep families from deciding to release their children to orphanages???

Y'all...that is some deep, serious stuff right there.

And its not to discredit any means by which we minister to the orphan...or in what setting we do so...

But, what if, the answer isn't as simply as more orphanages? What if the answer is substainable change in the cultures and families which reduce dependencies on outside aid through programs that also prevent orphan-ing?

Projects Like These:

In Haiti

In Mozambique



In Kenya

and I'm sure many, many more!!


The Bible is clear in stating that there will always be poor and needy. The Bible is clear in stating that it is through our actions that we demonstrate our love for Christ and His love for even the least of these. There is no quick fix to orphans. There is no one solution fits all. There is no way to prevent the natural or man-made disasters that leave children parentless.


But the call to think outside of the box...to prevent the cycle of creating more orphans while caring for those who have already been orphaned....that, is something to think about.


Today is Orphan Sunday... where do you fall in what you can do for orphans? Prayer, donations, international involvement...whatever it is.... do it.

Speak It!

Love this: Read It Here

Sidenote: Saw Pricilla in person at .Mom...she is one of the most graceful ladies I've ever seen in my life...but she moves and speaks with power!

Maybe I should speak these as much over myself as I consider speaking them over my children.

30 Days of Thankful

This are going to be posted haphazzardly as internet connectivity for the next few days will be just that... however, this month, I'm going to do Daily Thankfuls in the spirit of Thanksgiving!

Nov. 1 - Cold sweet tea and french onion dip & chips waiting at Mom's house for the ultimate slumber party week; oldest's girls first barefoot trip through a peanut field

Nov. 2 - Leftovers for lunch, a church family who listens to me ramble, a babbling Bowen

Nov. 3 - a job that provides a paycheck, a super happy Bowen in the mornings which makes waking up and getting going much easier, an unexpected phone call, leftovers for lunch