April Wrap-ups & May Musings

 

Happy May! The month of May brings about the close of many school related activities, and a whole host of new transitions as Garett prepares to graduate. We ran out of the month of April with Wyatt’s 16th birthday, Easter dinner at our house, the Junior/Senior banquet for Garett and Chandler, the state golf tournament for three of the boys, Emma’s piano recital, getting a few chickens and whatever else happened at the end of the month that I can’t even remember! We burst into the month of May with the state baseball tournament, Garett’s senior trip, and the wrapping up of the school year. Whew- no wonder I feel like I need a nap most afternoons! (And the fact that I’m getting old also contributes to that idea!) 

Wyatt is now officially 16 years old, and my mind has a hard time wrapping my head around that idea! Roger has tried to take him to get his permit twice now, but the lines for the DMV are absolutely ridiculous around here. The last time they tried to get the permit, they went to a smaller town. Roger and Wyatt were in the parking lot by 6:30am, and the lines were already long! At 7:30am, the DMV worker came out and told the first 14 people in line that they could enter the building, but there was no guarantee that they would get seen that day! One person ahead of Roger in line said that he had been in line since 1:00am that morning! I’m not sure if the lines are so lengthy due to the requirements for the Real ID or the DMV is just that short on people. Either way, Wyatt does not have his permit yet! Hopefully, he will be able to get it soon. Chandler has an appointment for his drivers license on June 2nd, and we’ve had that booked for him since March 2nd! 

Aunt Jen bought a few more baby chicks, but we are currently babysitting them. I do not have anything to do with the chickens, but Travis and Emma love the chicks! They take care of them completely. The day that Jen bought the chicks, she called to see if the chicks could live in our shed for a bit. I said, yes, and she, Travis and Emma bought the chicks and brought them over. Jen told me that on the way over to our house, Emma announced that this baby chick was her “social security pet”. Jen was completely lost at sea until she asked, “Emma, do you mean your emotional support animal?” I about died laughing when Jen was telling me the story. Oh Emma, you do our hearts good! 

The last Friday of April was the night of the Junior/Senior Banquet for the boys. Both Garett and Chandler invited dates with them to the banquet, so it was a fun opportunity for them. I have some great pictures of the boys and their dates. Garett invited a girl named, Kate, from the Junior class, and Chandler invited his girlfriend, Ava. Jen went along to the banquet, and she was willing to go along with the boys to the after activity as well. When we found out that there wasn’t really a plan for an after-banquet activity for most of teens, a few moms put our heads together to see what ideas we could come up with. Thank the Lord for Groupon! We found a groupon for bowling, and it was right down the road from the banquet. Chan invited everyone in his class to come bowling, and I think about 13 of them ended up going bowling. All the kids that went seemed to have a really great time, and after bowling a few of them came over to Aunt Jen’s for more snacks and fellowship. It was a late night, but a good night for our kids and their friends also. The boys had a hard time getting up on Saturday morning to work at the Pickle Festival, but they made it! 

Wyatt, Chandler, Garett, and I, all worked at the Mount Olive Pickle Festival. It’s basically a full day of all things pickle related! We sold fried pickles, chocolate covered pickles, a pickle lemonade to name a few items. The boys worked hard at squeezing lemonade, frying food, and breading pickles. I worked hard at taking money and giving correct change. It was a long day, but it was a good day. Travis told me that he needed to start working again as his money box was getting a little low after the winter. Haha- oh yes, Travis is discovering the importance of budgeting wisely! 

A little over a week ago, the three younger  boys competed in the golf tournament for our conference. They’ve enjoyed playing golf this season, and we are thankful for the coaches that invest in them. Their team placed third at the tournament, and they only lost by a few strokes. The boys are already looking forward and talking about next year. Roger was able to get away to see their tournament, and I was thankful that he was able to go. It’s hard to get away from school this time of year, but we wanted one of us to be there. Roger went from the golf tournament to then watch Garett’s baseball game, and then to Emma’s recital! Emma was excited about her recital, and I wasn’t sure we were going to be able to make it there when I discovered that the van had a tire with a nail in it! However, Emma and I used the air compressor to pump up the tire. Then we filled the air compressor with air, hopped in the van, and drove to Aunt Jen’s. We put more air in the tire at Aunt Jen’s and we made it to school safely and on time! Praise the Lord! Garett was also supposed to be in the recital with his guitar, but through a series of miscommunication, not enough guitar lessons, and a long baseball game, he did not make it into the recital. He was fine with that, and it was the best solution. Emma had worked hard on her piano piece, and she did a good job. We are thankful for music teachers! 

Last Wednesday, the boys asked to go golfing after school. I agreed to drop them off, but before that happened, we ended up with six golf bags and six boys in the mini van! Gabe and Enzo are friends with the boys, and everyone wanted to go golfing. I dropped everyone off at the golf course, and then came home to do a few things. I picked them up on the way back to church, and they ate pizza on the way. These are the moments that life is made up of, and I am thankful for these memories. 

Last weekend was the baseball tournament for Garett. Roger was kept busy with a fire for the entire weekend, but the rest of us stayed busy at the tournament with helping with collecting admission fees, concessions, trash, or whatever else needed doing. It was a beautiful weekend for a ball tournament, and it was an exciting end to the season. Roger was unable to go to the tournament as he was busy flying on fire patrol.  We need rain quite badly, and while we got a little this past weekend, we already need another shower of rain. But the baseball championship game went to ten innings, and it ended on a home run hit! The school baseball team had won the game! It was exciting and emotional for me all at the same time. Garett is done with baseball. No more watching him play first base with ease and confidence,  and then praying he will be able to hit the ball when he goes up to bat! I’ve watched him display leadership skills, confidence, humility, kindness, and compassion as he’s played this season. I was an emotional basket case as I hugged him in his smelly, sweaty jersey one last time. I am so incredibly thankful for this young man. He doesn’t know exactly what God has for him, but I am confident that Garett can and will do great things for God as he focuses on Jesus. Please pray that Garett will have wisdom and discernment as he continues to pray about his future. 

Speaking of futures, Roger and I have some decisions of our own to make regarding our future. God is always at work, even when we can’t see or feel it. Sometimes, I wonder why God is moving so slowly, but it’s not slowly, it’s perfectly. Please pray for clarity and direction. 

As we head down the final weeks to gradation, we are talking and considering summer plans. Garett has a job lined up for the summer, and then he will need to make some more decisions in the fall. He is planning on taking a missions trip in early June and then working the rest of the summer. The younger three boys are planning to go to Teen Extreme Camp at Pensacola Christian College. Chandler, Wyatt and Travis are also considering a soccer camp at Bob Jones University this summer. Everyone has a job lined up for the summer, and we are thankful for opportunities of employment. The summer flies by, so we really do need to be intentional with our time. 

Thank you for your prayers, support and love to our family. 

Work and Play! Graduation is coming!

Garett’s Graduation Trip

It’s been a busy week, per usual, with sports, activities, preparing for our elementary Fine arts competition, and just life. I’ve tried to savor the moments here and there as well as take the time to ponder the significance of this week in history. Imagine if we had no hope?! I am so thankful for Jesus coming to  earth as a baby, but the fact that He died for my sins and rose again to give me hope for an eternal future is more than my finite brain can comprehend! I hope I never lose sight of the cross. We went to a Good Friday service last night, and it was good to sit and ponder the cross and the Resurrection. 

Thankful for the cross! 

(This was last Saturday 4/12) I’m currently sitting in a coffee shop near Raleigh, NC, as I have one son working at the Farmer’s market, and I really, really needed to work on Garett’s graduation announcements. But as I sit here, I can’t help but look back on the past 18 years of Garett’s life. The fact that he will graduate from high school in six short weeks is enough to bring me to tears! I tell Garett all the time that I have no idea what I am doing, and he’s the guinea pig. Garett has taught me so much as a parent. He has so much compassion and love for younger kids, and I’m looking forward to seeing how God uses that gift in Garett’s life. The younger students at school all shout Garett’s name when he crosses the campus, and everyone wants to be on Garett’s team. Garett has been my Teacher’s Aide for the first hour during this school year, and he’s completed so many art projects for me. I like to try things out before I teach them to my students, and Garett has been a great sport about trying a lot of things for me! Garett is still trying to figure out what he’s going to do once the summer is over, but we are praying for him to have wisdom and direction. He has a summer job offer to work for the gutter company again, and he’s planning on doing that this summer. He is also planning on going on a missions trip with the church youth group in the beginning of June. I have a few ideas that I am praying about for him, but we will see what God will do over the next few months. 

In other news, April has been a crazy month! But first let me back up a bit into March. We had a wonderful time on Garett’s senior trip cruise as a family. It was so good to get away from emails, texts, phone calls and responsibilities! The boys were all in one small interior room for a week, but I don’t think they even noticed- their room at home is pretty small. We went on a Carnival cruise ship and we went to Roatan, Belize, and Cozumel. The snorkeling in Roatan was amazing, and I would definitely want to do that if we ever go back. We took a horse drawn tour in Belize, and that was fun. We saw several children’s schools and homes on the tour, and I think if we ever went back to Belize City it would be fun to find a missionary that we could possibly help for a day. In Cozumel, we rented scooters and traveled around the island. Travis was my partner, and he shouted all kinds of advice the entire ride! We had beautiful weather for most of the trip. There was one last day at sea when the sea was a little rough, but for the most part the weather was fabulous. My sister, Jen, came with us as well as our family friends, the Everetts. The boys tried all kinds of new foods at the formal dining every night including frog legs, swordfish, escargot, and many other things! Emma enjoyed Caesar salad every night. We will look back on the week as a week filled with memories and fun. I know that as the years go by, it will be harder and harder to get all of our family together for a vacation, so I’m glad we took the opportunity to go when we had the chance. We saved for 18 years to be able to do Garett’s trip, and I guess Chandler will have to camp in the backyard. Just kidding! He has a few ideas of what he would like to do, but we will see what the next year brings. 

The boys are all busy with spring sports. Chandler, Wyatt and Travis all play on the golf team. Chandler is typically the number one golfer, and often Wyatt is tied for second place with another teammate. There are 10 golf players, and Travis usually holds the number 4 spot on the team. The first four players scores count in the tournaments, and Travis usually isn’t quite as low on the score as his older two brothers. Travis plays his own game..every time. Roger says he rarely gets rattled by a bad shot, and just rolls it off and keeps playing. Wyatt is his own worst enemy in any sport he plays as he gets rattled by a bad shot or a missed ball. But he’s working on getting better. Chandler likes to be good in all the sports he plays, sometimes to our aggravation. :) We have a membership to a small golf course near our house, and Chandler can often be found on the golf course practicing his putting after school or on the weekends, or whenever he can convince someone to drop him off! Roger was able to go to the boys golf tournament last Tuesday, and we were thankful for that opportunity. This has been a pretty busy fire season, so Roger has been working about 6 days a week. It was a pleasant surprise to have a golf meet on a Tuesday, and that Roger was able to go. Garett is busy playing baseball. He plays first base, and he’s decent at it. He gets so flustered when he goes up to bat that it drives me a bit crazy. I know that he can hit that ball, but he struggles to overcome if he strikes out the first time. But we only have about three more weeks of spring sports, and then another year of sports will be behind us! 

This past week the high school students competed in a Fine Arts competition. I have many fond memories from my growing up years at competing at school competitions. Garett and Wyatt both sang in the choir this school year. I told Wyatt that he either had to be in choir or take piano lessons. He chose to take choir, but he told me he thinks he’d rather go back to piano next year. We will see. Garett also took guitar lessons this school year, but he did not advance as much as either of us would’ve liked. He’s got some natural talent, but mostly, he needs consistency and frequent instruction. Garett did sing in a trio and a quartet for the competition, and that was a joy to my heart. He worked hard on learning his part, and I hope that he will continue to be willing to use his talents for Jesus Christ. Chandler ran in the one mile run at the competition, and he placed first. That was much to my chagrin as he didn’t even train or practice! He is active all the time (like the energizer bunny), and  while he was probably a bit sore the next day, he placed first in the one mile run. If he goes to college that has a cross country team, I want him to try out for the cross country team (although I think he’d pick soccer first).  It was a long three days, but we can check another box for the school year. Oh, and Garett placed 2nd with his photography entry! 

I am getting 32 elementary students ready for their fine arts competition, which is coming up in a few short weeks! I’ve worked with students every day after school this week, and while the art room has been a disaster, we have made progress!! I will be so, so glad to have this event behind me! I’m thankful for my art assistant, Kaycee, who constantly cleans up messes and resets supplies for the next class. She hangs art, files art, and I am so thankful for her. 

I send out the information about the competition way back in February, but it’s usually not until these two weeks before competition that suddenly everyone needs help! I’m excited about some of our entries, and there are a few that just can’t be changed this late in the game. My library assistant and friend, Jen, and I have also been working with the Bible Sword drill students. I’m a little nervous about whether or not the teams will be ready, but there are only so many hours in the day. I’ve stayed until around 4:30 or 5:00pm at school almost every day this week, and it’s still not all done. It’s gonna be what it’s going to be. I’ll do my best, but I still need to be present for my own kids and family and everyone likes to eat! I find myself often in tears these days, and I think its partly due to fatigue, my age, my hormones, Garett’s graduation, and just really wanting to be present and soak it all in. 

Sometimes I just sit back and reflect on how truly good God is to me. I am so very blessed. Even when I’m tired and weary, He knows. I am blessed with a great husband who packs school lunches, keeps us moving in the right direction, and is faithful and calm. Our oldest son, Garett, is a delight to my heart. Oh, he frustrates me and drives me crazy, but he also shares so much with me. He tells me things that matter to him, and I know so much about so many things because he is willing to talk to me. Chandler is so much like me that I’m often terrified. He’s energetic, enthusiastic, strong-willed, competitive, hard working, and passionate about what he believes in. I know that God has great things in store for him, and lately I have been fervently praying for Chandler to have wisdom and direction for his future. Wyatt is our quiet middle child. He will share things with me if we have about four hours! It takes him about 2 hours to warm up to more than one sentence answers, and then suddenly he will talk. I am praying for him to be diligently in his studies and to recognize that his worth is in Jesus. Travis is constantly just plodding along. He doesn’t get riled up much unless it’s from Garett or Emma, and he is quiet at school. However, he can be loud at home! He makes us laugh often with his dry sense of humor. Emma is often overwhelmed with friendships and how to be a good solid friend. I pray for her often to love Jesus, be kind, and do the next right thing. She loves all things girly and pink! Please pray with us for our children. Parenting is hard, and parenting teens is harder still! But, God is so so good. 

Closing (written 4/19)

    We are looking forward to hosting Easter dinner at our home tomorrow. I think we’re having about 30 people over for dinner around four pm. My prayer is that we will be a blessing and an encouragement to our friends and also that Roger will be able to get off work in time to join us for dinner. He has been working long hours. Also, tomorrow is Wyatt’s 16th birthday! Time flies! 

Happy Resurrection Weekend! 

March News! (Nothing to do with March Madness!)

 Spring Break! It’s hard to believe, but we’ve made it through the long stretch of school from Christmas to spring break- Praise Jesus! It’s been too long since I’ve posted on our blog, so I’ll just give a few highlights, and post some pictures. 

Fine arts projects 

Kindergarten art

Fifth grade- warm and cool colors

Middle School-acrylics 

I love this man! He got up at 4:00am one morning to make sure that I had everything I needed for a project for art class. Then he went and visited his mom on her birthday - so thankful for him. Happy Birthday to Roger 

1) We finished up basketball season. Hooray! Basketball is a looonng season, and while it was a good season for the boys basketball teams, I am glad it’s over!

2) We’ve started the spring sports season. Garett is playing baseball, and while I think he sometimes wishes that he was playing on the golf team with his brothers, he is a good first baseman. The other three boys are all on the golf team. Travis is the youngest player in 8th grade, and he was a little nervous for their first match. Chandler, Wyatt and Travis are enjoying golf, and they’ll even go practice on days when there is not a practice. 

Baseball and Golf 

3) Achievement testing was last week, and we made it through! Garett and Chandler took the ACT testing,  and Garett was a little overwhelmed with that. Testing makes for a long week for everyone, and it makes teaching afternoon classes a little more challenging than normal. All brain power has been used up by the afternoon! 

4) Our junior high and high school students had their Fine Arts competition this past week. We sent 19 projects in the Junior High division, and we placed with 8 of those entries! I was thrilled with that, as it’s my first year sending art to this competition, and I had no idea what we were doing! Roger helped Travis get an idea for a wood working project. Travis’s project wasn’t perfect, but he did the work himself, and he did get a blue ribbon on his project! Travis doesn’t usually show a lot of emotion, but I am thrilled for him! I do feel like there are a lot of rules and guidelines for this competition, and reading through it all can be tedious. However, we did not get disqualified in an of our entries, so that’s a win in my book for this first year. 

Travis’s wood working project

5) Please pray for Garett’s car situation. He’s got a great little vehicle, but the engine needs replacing. The body of the car is in great shape, lower miles, etc, and he has the money to get the job done, but we are having a hard time finding someone to replace the engine. I’d really like for Garett to have a vehicle, as it’s a lot of hanging around at school waiting for practices to wrap up! 

6) Garett graduates from high school in about eight weeks! I asked Garett the other day if he was ready to graduate, and he said, “I am kinda ready to graduate, but this last year has really gone by quickly. I’m trying to enjoy where I am, but time is going by fast!” Get ready, boy! This is only the beginning! I’m trying to figure out how I got old enough to be the mom to a senior! Garett caught me in tears the other day, and he was like, “Are you okay? Mom, it’s just a graduation!” Awww, son! I cry often these days as I feel like my hormones are all over the place, but I am so thankful for Garett. He can get mad at his brothers in an instant, often butts heads with Roger, and can be arrogant and not know when to stop talking. But…he’s also one of the kindest and compassionate teenagers that I know. I am thankful for him. 

7) Roger’s birthday was yesterday, and I am so thankful for him. Roger is not flashing or flamboyant, but he is faithful, loyal and kind. He has been working many long hours during this fire season, and I don’t know of many men who would come home from a long day at work and then go play golf with their sons, or cut wood for their wife’s  art projects, or play a game with their daughter, or make lunches for school. We are so blessed to have Roger in our lives, and we are looking forward to a few days away this next week! 

Art Project Sculptures- still working on them! 

8) My friend and co-worker, Jennifer, and I hosted a book fair for the library during Grandparent’s day recently. It’s so fun to get new books for the library. The way we run our book fair is that we purchase books for the grandparents to buy for the library. They buy the book and a sticker goes in the book stating that so and so purchased this book in honor of so and so. It’s worked out fairly well in the years we’ve done it, and we were able to add 76 new books to the library. 

9) We are going on a cruise this week for Garett’s graduation trip. Everyone has been counting down the days, and we are looking forward to some relaxation in the sun! We’ve been planning, saving and scheming for a long time now, and it’s finally here. I know that not everyone likes cruising, but for us, it’s one of the cheapest ways to see different ports, and have lodging and food included! Our tribe likes to eat food, and they aren’t necessarily picky about food, but they eat a lot of it! For me, I look forward to reading books out in the sun, not having internet, and making memories with our family. From here on out, it’s going to get harder and harder to get all of us together to do these kinds of trips as Garett takes on a full time job or school or whatever God has for him. He was offered a job to work for the gutter company again this summer, so he’s going to do that. After the summer, he’s not really sure what God has for him, but we’ve been praying for wisdom and direction. 

10) As we pray for Garett to have wisdom and direction, we’ve also been praying for direction for me as well. Every year about this time, I feel like Roger and I are faced with decisions about “next year”. We are asking God for wisdom, direction and discernment as we navigate through changes, challenges, and adventures. 

11) I am so thankful for the faithfulness of God. I am thankful that He is unchanging, never grumpy or tired, and He never gets tired of His children. I am such a work in progress, and I often feel like I’m not consistent, tired and grumpy! I’m thankful for forgiveness and grace too. 

In our church in Maine, we sang a lot of Getty hymns. This one popped up on YouTube the other day, and it was a blessing to me. Enjoy. 

February - Basketball, Moments, Basketball, Memories, and More Basketball!

 

Championship Game! That’s where we found ourselves on Saturday as we watched the JV Boys Basketball Team compete in the Championship game for the second year in a row! This probably wouldn’t be so exciting for me, but Wyatt and Travis played on the JV Basketball Team this year, so it was very exciting! Wyatt has really had a great season, in my opinion, and he has become a much better basketball player in the three years we’ve been in N.C. Travis played on the Middle School team this year and the JV Boys Varsity Team. Travis got a lot more playing time on the Middle School team, but unfortunately they lost several games due to snow days and bad weather, but Travis did enjoy playing on the Middle School team. As Travis says, “I was a good water boy to Wyatt on the other team.” Haha! He didn’t get as much playing time, but he did seem to enjoy the season, and he enjoys watching the team play. On Saturday, 2/15, the Championship game was held in Newport, NC, which is a bit of a drive from our house. But we were excited to watch the boys play in the game. The team was actually playing the exact same team that they played last year for the championship game. Wyatt and Travis had to be there early for the game, so Emma and I went to visit a thrift store instead of sitting in the gym. My friend, Tamela, is always up for visiting thrift stores too, so she came along. It was a good way to spend a few minutes, and the thrift store was having a sale of certain tag items for .49- now that’s my kind of a sale! We came back to the gym to watch the girls championship game, which went into overtime, and then it was the boys game. The game wasn’t as close as I would’ve imagined it to be, but it was fun to watch the boys team play. It was a long day, but a day spent with family and spending time together. 

Roger’s brother, Dale, came to visit for a few days. It was good to see him and to catch up with him for a few days. Roger was able to get off a little early on Friday, so he went golfing with the older two boys and his brother, Dale. The weather hasn’t been exactly warm, but at least it wasn’t raining! Chandler was able to golf with Ava, and while it was an interesting Valentine’s Day for Roger and I, we are at the place where we are happy to go get flowers on the day after Valentine’s Day when the flowers are 50% off! I know that’s not the way everyone would choose to do it, but it’s worked for us for many years now. I’m thankful for Roger as he expresses his love for me every day in many ways. He’s willing to help pack lunches, do dishes, help with chores, make coffee, bring me coffee when he can, work hard and he loves me. I am very, very thankful for him, and I am so very blessed. I was at the game watching the JV Boys in their playoff game, so we weren’t together for most of the day, but ya know, love is an action that we need to express to each other every day and not just on special occasions. 

Last Saturday evening, Chandler and Garett went to a teen activity. It was a “Thrift Shop” dinner where you’re put in pairs. One partner goes to one thrift store and one to a different thrift store, and they buy outfits for each other. I wasn’t sure how the night would go, but both of the boys said that they had a really great time. The pictures from the event are absolutely hilarious, and it’s a memory for sure! Travis spent all of last weekend sleeping on Aunt Jen’s couch! He asked Roger to take him over to Aunt Jen’s right after his JV game last Friday night. He ran a fever all weekend, and thankfully Jen offered to keep him at her house for the weekend. His fever finally broke on Sunday, and he turned a corner to start to feel better. It’s very unsettling to see Travis so still, so I am glad that he is feeling better. I had suggested that he stay home from school on Monday since he was just starting to feel better, but he really wanted to go to the basketball game on evening. He went to the game, but he sure did look pale! Wyatt told me after the game, that he wasn’t feeling too great, and his throat really was hurting. Wyatt stayed home on Tuesday and Wednesday, and Travis stayed home again on Wednesday as he was running a low grade fever on Tuesday night. Thankfully, both boys seem to be feeling better, and no one else has gotten sick! We are praying that it will stay that way! 

These last two weeks of school have felt really long to me. I think it’s because the weather has been kinda chilly and damp, the nights of basketball are long, there’s a lot of big upcoming events in both art and library, and it feels like a long time til spring break! But there’s always something to be thankful for in each and every day. Every day gets us a little closer to Garett’s senior trip, and we are all looking forward to that. Garett has been praying and thinking about what to do when he graduates, and we would appreciate your prayers for him.

Emma has been doing some academic testing to try to figure out how to best help her learn. Is she learning? Yes! Is it slow and painful at times? Yes! I am concerned about her progress and how we can best help her learn, develop and grow. I would’ve never have chosen for three of our five kids to struggle with school, but it definitely helps me have compassion on my students that I teach that don’t “get it” the first time around. Garett is a young man who doesn’t always “get it” the first time around, and I can say that for the most part, he is becoming a fine and capable young man. He really works well with younger kids, he has lots of patience with others (just not his brothers), and he has a general idea of what ideas he wants to pursue after college. Hard work and character will get him far in life, I’m sure. I used to think that I prayed a lot when my kids were toddlers, but these teenage years have proven to me how shallow my prayers were back then! So. Much. To. Pray. For! 

This week, in my art classes, I spoke about God’s love as we approached Valentine’s Day. It’s so easy to quote John 3:16, and almost everyone knows that verse. But, it must be real and personal to each one of us. We have to acknowledge that “For God so loved Sarah, that he gave his only begotten son, that if Sarah believeth in him, she would not perish but have everlasting life.” I am so thankful that eternal life in Heaven is mine. I also shared my personal salvation testimony with my Middle School Art classes, as it’s good to talk about what God has done for me personally. I hope I never lose sight of God’s amazing grace, and His love for me. What an amazing God we serve! 

Started on 2/5/25 

Ya’ll be amazed because it’s only been a little over a week since the last post! I feel like so many things are happening in our lives so quickly these days that it’s hard sometimes to keep up on a daily basis much less a weekly basis! 

Last week we had a short week at school due to the Marriage Retreat that our church plans every year. Roger and I had planned to leave early on Friday morning and make the most of the day, but that’s not what happened. Roger was called to a fire on the Western side of the state on Thursday, and then on Friday morning, he had to go into work. We had hoped that he would be able to get off early, but he didn’t get home until around 5:30pm. While it wasn’t the way that I would’ve picked for the day to go, we did get a lot done around our house. The boys went golfing, and a friend went with them. They spent a good chunk of the day outside as the weather was beautiful! (It’s hard to believe that we had two and 1/2 snow days the previous week, and this week the temps reached into the 70s!)

 I wondered if we should still go to the marriage retreat since we had missed the whole day, but we decided to go anyways. It was already paid for and Myrtle Beach is only a little over two hours from our house. Now that Garett can drive, he was able to take his siblings over to Aunt Jen’s for supper after golfing. Emma, Travis and Wyatt stayed overnight at Aunt Jen’s, but Garett and Chandler came back home. Roger and I got on the road a little before six pm., and we made it in time to go out to ice cream with some of our friends after the session! :) It would’ve been nice to hear the session, but I”m not a fan of coming in late and then having to sit on the front row! We checked into our room, and then met up with some friends after the session was over. It was good to visit for a bit before heading back to the hotel. 

Roger and I got up early on Saturday to take a walk on the beach before breakfast. I do enjoy the sound of the ocean waves! We ate breakfast with Tamela and Stephen, and then we had the last session of the marriage retreat. The speaker was good, and I did prefer his speaking over last year’s speaker, but I do wish that sometimes more practical ways of how to actually do things would be discussed. There were a lot of stages of marriage discussed in the session. But, I already know that we are in the trenches of marriage. I know that we are in some hard years of parenting kids and that kids take time. But how do families decided between the “good” and the “best”? I know what works for one couple may not work for another, but sometimes it’s good to hear success stories on how others made their marriages or families stronger. I also know that most people don’t have four kids in four years and then another one three years later! But, I also know that I don’t want “good kids”. I want Godly kids that will love and serve Jesus, and the outcome will be “good kids”. And it’s not enough for us to just influence our own kids, we’ve got to think about upcoming generations.  There are two things that I’m really concerned about right now in our own kids lives. Those things would be “entitlement” and “apathy”. Whew! Those are some big and powerful words right there! I tell our kids often that you don’t have to have a lot of stuff to be entitled as it’s an attitude of the heart. I can tell them to do their devotions in the morning, and that they must read the Bible before anything else, but I can’t drive apathy out of them. Oh, how we need Jesus! 

After the marriage retreat was over, Roger and I visited a few thrift stores and puttered around in the Myrtle Beach area before heading over to Conway. Roger’s aunt and uncle recently moved to Conway from California, and we’ve been wanting to stop by and visit with them. I hadn’t seen Uncle Bob and Aunt Carole since Chandler was a baby so that was almost 17 years ago! We visited with them for a bit, toured their beautiful home, and then we went to supper with them. It was good to sit and catch up (or try to) on each other’s lives. Of course, I forgot to take any pictures of them, but still, we did have a really good time! 

Our friends, the Hardison’s, had also gone to the marriage retreat. Tamela knew that we weren’t planning on being home until later on Saturday evening. She invited the boys to come over to their house to watch the Duke basketball game. The boys were excited to go over to their house to watch the game as they also have three boys. The boys had a great time, and Roger and I were able to get in a visit with Uncle Bob and Aunt Carole. It was a good weekend, and it’s always to get away with just the two of us. 

January- School, Skiing, Homecoming, and Chandler’s Birthday!

 

Whew! This has been a fast week at school! We had Martin Luther King, Jr. day off on Monday, and we had snow days on Wednesday and Thursday. So, needless to say, the week has flown by for our family. But I want to back up a few days/weeks in this month to share a couple of highlights for our family. 

Early in January we were invited over to our friends, the Guelfis, for lunch after church on Sunday. This was a special treat for our family, but especially for me. It was so nice to be invited over for lunch at someone else’s house, and to have fellowship and laughter. We enjoyed our time together, and it was a great start to the first Sunday in the new year. Laura has a contagious laugh,  and I always enjoy spending time with her and her family. 

We hit the ground running when we returned to school on Monday, January 6th. The weeks have been full with basketball games, practices, and all the other school/church events. Our school has a “Homecoming” event every year in which a boy and girl representative from each class (7th-12th) are chosen to represent their classes. It’s a kinda formal event, and while I’m happy that two of the boys were chosen to represent their classes, it made for a very, very long night last Friday night (1/17). 

Last Thursday, Garett collected all the items of clothing that he would need for Friday evening. He went to Aunt Jen’s to iron his pants and shirt. Travis had basketball practice, and when he came home on Thursday  night, I asked him what his plans were for clothes for the homecoming event. He said, “Oh mom, it’ll be fine. I can wear the suit I wore last year.” Keep in mind, that the last time he worn this suit was 11 months ago! I told him to go try it on, and I messaged my friend, Tamela, to ask about borrowing a white shirt from one of her sons. Travis came back out with his suit and pants. The pants were a little short, but they were salvageable with black socks. The pants were pretty tight in the waist, but Travis was not worried. He replied, “I just won’t sit down in these pants cause it pinches my stomach.” Oh great! But ya know- if we can get by without buying anything, I’m all for it! Garett was the polar opposite in this as we had gone shopping with him the week before. He had originally thought that he wanted a suit, but those were expensive. He eventually decided to purchase a sport coat and two pairs of dress pants. It wasn’t quite as dressy as a suit, but I do think he will get a lot of use out of the sport coat and pants. Garett was excited about his new dress clothes, and Travis probably would’ve worn shorts if it was allowed!

Friday (1/17) was a very full day for us. I had been asked to help plan for the student pep rallies, so that meant some significant thinking and planning on my part. Garett is my Teacher’s Aide in the mornings, so he helped me with a lot of my ideas, and I tried out several game ideas on the 7th grade gym classes. I like to try things out before assuming that the game will work out correctly. And I am glad that I did because one of the games was an epic failure! While we were prepared for the pep rallies, I still spent most of the day with my stomach in knots, as it takes a lot of energy to get a pep rally going. However, the grace of God sustains and carries me, and both the pep rallies went smoothly. We did pop an air mattress on one of the games that we played, but no one was hurt, and most everyone seemed to have a good time. The cheerleaders did a great job on their routine, and then it was all over and behind us- Praise the Lord! 

 We had gotten an email from the school stating that Travis and Garett needed to be in the library for pictures for Homecoming at 8;00pm. The boys were dressed and ready to go by 7:30pm, and we headed to the library around 8:00pm. The boys were the only ones in the library besides the kindergarten representative. It was a LONG evening! The Homecoming events don’t start until after the basketball games, and when the boys basketball game was barely started at 8:00pm, we knew it was going to be a long evening! Shortly after we arrived in the library, the 7th grade boy representative showed up. I’m pretty sure that Aiden and Travis were praying that the Rapture would happen anytime before they had to walk out on the gym floor with a girl on their arm! Garett was one of the representatives for the 12th grade, and it was fun to see him excited about it. We didn’t do great about taking pictures that evening, but I’m thankful for the memories. It is an honor to be chosen to be a class representative, and I’m thankful that Garett and Travis were chosen. I’m also really, really thankful that we have four sons cause those formal dresses are not cheap! When the time for the event finally rolled around, the technology didn’t work! Each student that is chosen pre-records their salvation testimony, life verse, etc, and it is played while the student walks out on the court…but it didn’t work. On one hand, it was a real bummer because it would’ve been nice to have heard some of the kids testimonies that I haven’t hear before. But on the other hand, it really sped up the event and it was already 10:15pm at night! I had forgotten to tell Travis that I wanted to take some pictures after the Homecoming was over, and when I found him, he was already in the hallway wearing sweatpants and a sweatshirt and asking if we were going to stop for something to eat on the way home! A senior boy and a senior girl are chosen to be Mr. FCA and Miss FCA. Garett had told me that he really didn’t think he would be chosen as he’s only been at this school for three years. And he wasn’t chosen. While part of me is a little disappointed, the young man that was chosen to be Mr. FCA is a fine young man also. And while it is an honor to be chosen, I already think that Garett is a pretty special young man. :) 

We headed to the mountains on Saturday morning to meet up with Aunt Lisa and Uncle Ryan. They had invited us to spend a few days in the mountains with them, and we were all looking forward to the opportunity. It was a great few days in the area of Blowing Rock, NC. The boys and Roger went skiing on Sunday afternoon/evening. The snow was blowing and it was cold, but the kids were so excited about going skiing and snowboarding again. They had a great time! Roger and I had thought about taking Emma, but we decided against it with the blowing snow and cold. I enjoy skiing, and I’d have welcomed the opportunity to do it again, but I didn’t think I was worth the money of the ticket and rental costs. I just wanted to go for a little bit and take Emma, but it’s expensive so Emma, Aunt Jen, and I went to the swimming pool instead! It was a great visit with family, and it was really nice to see the beautiful snow in the mountains. Emma enjoyed swimming and sledding with Lainey (Lisa’s granddaughter), and I was thankful for a playmate for Emma. 

While on the way home on Monday morning/afternoon, we listened and watched the Presidential Inauguration. Garett had messaged our State Senator about getting tickets to the event, but apparently Garett isn’t important enough to attend :) He would’ve enjoyed the opportunity to go, but I’m glad we were able to go to the mountains. Our kids were fairly interested in the events of the day, and I’m thankful for technology that allows us to watch important events like these. President Trump spoke about bringing back an “era of Common Sense”. He also stated that the United States would recognize two genders…male and female. That is a huge stance that made some people very unhappy, but it’s a Biblical stance. God created male and female in His image. 

Tuesday brought about our return to school for one day. Then on Tuesday night the snow began to fall. It was beautiful and pretty, and apparently very unusual for this area! While our kids did get out and play in the snow, I don’t think that they recognize it for the rarity that it is in this area. Snow is beautiful, and we weren’t complaining about the snow day! I was surprised when we got a second snow day on Thursday, but it was nice to stay home and work on some projects around the house. Sometimes it’s just good to sit and soak it all in, and not have to run off to the next thing. We are so very blessed. 

Roger left for work early on Friday morning as he had a flight to make to Asheville, NC. He was flying the Commissioner of the state of North Carolina to a meeting with President Trump in Asheville. Of course, we all wanted him to get pictures of the President. Roger wasn’t able to do that, but he did get some pretty cool pictures of Air Force One. It was exciting to see the pictures. 

Today (1/26) is Chandler’s 17th birthday. Where have the years gone?! I tried to pull off a surprise party for him, but I wasn’t completely successful. We invited a few families to come over for lunch after church, and just told Chandler that the Everett’s were coming for lunch. However, he told me that he was suspicious by the amount of food I was preparing for just a few more people than normal! Oh well- it was fun anyways! My sister, Jen, created a beautiful ice cream cake for his birthday that was immensely enjoyed by all. We did have a bit of a moment when it was time to light the candles, and we couldn’t find matches or a lighter! Stephen and Jen figured it out to turn on the oven and light a piece of paper and then light the candles- it was a bit of a redneck moment, but it worked! I think we ended up with 22 people at our house and a lot of boys! They played outside almost all afternoon with basketball, golf, rc cars and who knows what else! I’m thankful for friends that come over to help celebrate our kids birthdays and for those that invest in the lives of our children. Chandler is a junior this year, and he is praying about what God wants him to do with his life. He plans to go to college, but he doesn’t know where yet. We are praying about several different Bible colleges, and asking God for wisdom for Chandler’s future. We are thankful for the young man that he is becoming, and we pray that he will continue to grow to love and serve Jesus. 

There’s a lot more that has happened this month, but I’m about out of time to write about it all. We do need wisdom about a car situation for Garett. He bought a vehicle for a really good price, but it has developed some interesting issues. We need wisdom about what to do about that situation. Garett has been selected to go on a missions trip to Chicago this summer, so please pray that God will use him in a mighty way. Garett is still praying about what to do after graduation, and we are praying with him on that. He needs wisdom, direction and guidance. 

We appreciate your love and prayers. 

Christmas Break!

 

We blinked. Just like that Christmas break is over, and tomorrow we are going back to schedules, routines, school, basketball, and another semester of school! Tomorrow morning is probably going to be a bit of a rough wake-up call as we get back to school and work, but we made some great memories. It was a good break for our family, and it provided a much needed reset for my mental health and clarity. 

As you might remember, I mentioned in our previous post (Here), we planned to take a trip to Maine over Christmas break. We left on Christmas Day about mid-morning, and made it to New Haven, CT., on Christmas Day. We arrived in Maine on Thursday, and we were all excited to see snow on the ground! My boys had been praying that there would be some snow in Maine, and when we arrived, there was snow! God provided safety in our travels, as we went through many of the major cities on the east coast including, Washington, DC., Baltimore, New York City, Hartford, and Boston! Thankfully, traffic was moving right along, and we did not run into any bad weather or traffic. We arrived in Maine on Thursday afternoon, and we headed right to Hannah and Josh’s house. Our kids were all excited about seeing their cousins, and they tromped around outside for a good chunk of the afternoon. Hannah had arranged for a photographer to take family photos while everyone was together. Originally the pictures were supposed to be on Monday afternoon, but it was supposed to rain on Monday! We were able to reschedule the pictures for Friday afternoon, so that meant coordinating clothes for fifteen people. We did have to take a trip to Sam’s Club, but we managed to get clothing that didn’t completely clash. Josh had cleaned out his closet, and Hannah had saved the bag of clothes instead of hauling it right to Goodwill. She saved it as she thought some of our boys could use some of the items. They sure did! The boys borrowed clothes, boots, and coats from the bag all week long! We ended up trading with some of our jackets, and that Goodwill pile sure did come in handy! 

Our family headed down the coast towards Owl’s Head for Thursday night as a friend of Roger’s had offered to let us use his house for a few days. It worked out really well as we were able to catch up with some of our Maine friends over the next few days. I met with my friend, Allison, on Friday morning, and we chatted our way through a quick two hour visit over coffee and a walk around town. It was good to catch up in person. We are terrible about actually calling each other, and we are not much better at texting! The boys’ friend, Austin, came over to spend the day with them on Friday, so that was a fun time for them. Roger and Garett went to visit Penobscot Island Air (where Roger used to work) on Friday morning, and they even caught a flight out to Matinicus. Since we’ve been gone, the company has undergone some changes. Roger’s boss passed away in 2020, and our life was abruptly turned upside down. Through a series of events, Roger took a job in Michigan in the fall of 2021 while the kids and I stayed in Maine as I was teaching and the kids were in school. We didn’t end up in Michigan as we had planned, but instead we arrived in North Carolina in the summer of 2022. We were a little battered and bewildered as to what God was doing, but God is always good. Anyways, back to our Maine visit…it was good to see the company thriving again. They have a new hanger, lots of new faces, and I think it was also a time of healing for Roger. Roger was able to see in person that the company was doing well, and that several needed and good changes have taken place. I stopped in for a visit on Friday mid-morning, and I was able to say “hi” to a few people that I recognized, and I was introduced to the new chief pilot who promptly told me that if Roger ever wanted to come back, he would have a job. While I surely don’t know that that is what God has for us, it’s always nice to feel welcome and appreciated, and it was good for Roger to hear that. 

We survived family pictures on Friday afternoon…in the snow…with all fifteen of us. The weather was actually quite nice as the wind wasn’t blowing, and the sun was shining. Since we were already paying for pictures, we asked the photographer to shoot a few extras of Garett for his senior photos. (Might as well get it all done at once!) Also, for all those that sent us a Christmas card- thank you! You can expect a family card and Garett’s senior photos all in the same envelope around April! :) We had a great photographer who was able to get all the photos we needed or wanted in under 90 minutes. We are excited to see how they turned out, but everyone was also glad to go back to Aunt Hannah and Uncle Josh’s for pizza!

Saturday morning found four of our kids and I visiting with some school mates from Travis and Emma’s classes. We didn’t really plan anything ahead of time for our time in Maine as I wasn’t sure how the week would unfold. However, I reached out to my friend, Claire, and she welcomed the kids and I for a morning of visiting. It was good to catch up on school events, her kids, life, and the kids seemed to just connect right back. Roger and Garett were able to catch up with another one of Roger’s pilot friends, and that was a good time for them. We had invited our friends, the Davis’s, for supper on Saturday evening. I made a big pot of soup, and we sat and fellowshipped for several hours. Jess and I had taught at the same school our last year in Maine, and we had really hit it off. Tim and Jess have four kids, and our children also seem to really enjoy visiting together.  Allison and Jason and their girls came over in the evening as well, and we fellowshipped and laughed until 11:00pm! Our family had made several really great friends during our six years in Maine, and it was good to catch up in person. While we were all a little tired on Sunday morning, it was an evening well spent together. 

We flew around in a flurry of activity on Sunday morning, as we cleaned up the house we had been staying in and prepared for church. We were able to worship with friends at our home church on Sunday morning. Lots of smiles and hugs as we were greeted by so many that remembered us. “How the kids have grown!” That was the most common statement, and yes, the boys and Emma have grown a lot in 2 1/2 years! Several faces were missing as we greeted those we knew as several of our older dear friends have passed on to Heaven. I saw grief-filled faces as I hugged a few of my older friends, and it was a reminder that whether we like it or not, time marches on. Heaven grows sweeter every day. 

Our friends, Nick and Hannah, invited us over for lunch after church on Sunday morning. Hannah and Nick have five of their own kids, we have five, and Tim and Jess have four! The house was brimming with laughter, voices, the smell of delicious food, and families fellowshipping together. Whew! It was a fast visit as we knew that we needed to get to Hannah and Josh’s house later that afternoon. Before we left the Rockland area, we made on more last stop. We pulled into the driveway of Terri Waters later that afternoon, and so many memories came flooding back. When Kevin was alive, we had spent several holidays together, time at their lake cabin, family birthday parties, dinners together, and so many precious memories. Terri welcomed our tribe with a smile and a hug, and we wish that we had had more time to visit with her, but it was good to see her. She sold the company last year, and I think it was a good move for her. Life can change in the blink of an eye, and that is certainly what happened in 2020. It is so comforting to rest in the fact that God doesn’t make any mistakes. His plan is always the right one. I may not like His plan at the time or perhaps even for years to come, but He doesn’t make mistakes. I’m thankful that we were able to stop in to give a hug and a smile to Terri while we were in Maine. 

We spent the rest of the week up by Hannah and Josh. A friend of theirs had offered to let us sleep at their house, so that was really helpful. We love each other, but fifteen of us in the same house can be a lot! Monday was a rainy, dreary day, so we pretty much puttered around in the morning talking and drinking coffee at Hannah and Josh’s house.  Everyone was kinda getting a little stir crazy in the afternoon, so we went out and looked around at a few different places. My parents stayed at Hannah and Josh’s house, and they probably were not sad to see us leave with eight children in tow! 

Tuesday was a beautiful morning, and while the ground was wet and muddy, the sun was shining again! We ended up on a hike with my dad, Hannah and Josh, their kids, Jen, and all our family. It was about a three mile hike through the woods in a preserve. If we had been quiet, we might have seen some wildlife, but certainly not with fourteen of us! Travis shouted loudly at his brothers, who were ahead on the trail, “GUYS, WE HAVE TO BE QUIET TO SEE A DEER!” Um, son…there are no deer for miles around after that! It was a fun morning and everyone got some fresh air. Roger and I, and Garett and Chandler, met up with another couple for lunch in the afternoon. The Peabody’s have been good friends to Roger for years, and they are a special couple to our family. Chandler told me later that he didn’t really remember the Peabody’s but he figured that lunch would be good. He said that he was glad he had come along because after visiting with them, he did remember some good memories…and lunch was good too! 

Garett and Chandler drove down for a youth event that they had been invited to by some friends on Tuesday evening. It ended up being one of the highlights of the trip for them as they were able to re-connect with some of their friends. Soccer is pretty big in that area of Maine, and that is right up Chandler’s alley! They ate food, played games, participated in a soccer tournament (but were unable to finish it as they needed to drive back), and came back tired but refreshed. I’m thankful that Levi extended the invite to them to come, and that Garett and Chan were able to go. 

We packed up our belongings, washed sheets and bedding, and headed for Hannah and Josh’s house on Wednesday morning. It was raining again on Wednesday, and it was a good day to leave as everyone was tired. Hannah fed us (again) and we got on the road to head back to N.C., around eleven am. We made good time, and we stopped around 7:30pm in Bordertown, NJ. That is not a stop we will make again! The pool was not heated, the hot tub was broken, and the room was so dirty that I told my kids not to take off their shoes! We were able to get a different hotel room, but it still wasn’t super clean. We aren’t picky people, but I don’t like some else’s hair on the bed or mud on the floor! Oh well! We survived and continued on the way to home on Thursday. We arrived back around 4;30pm, and everyone was glad to get home. It’s a lot of work to unpack, do laundry, and prepare for reality, but we did it. It’s been good to be home for a few days before heading back to school. We have two weeks of school before we are going to spend a weekend with my Aunt and Uncle in western NC.! 

So…it’s a new year! I’ve been thinking about my goals for the year, the goals for our family, the goals I have for our children, and all the dreams and expectations for the new year. I have a list, and I have plenty of ideas for the new year, but I really want God to be glorified in and through me. I want to encourage and point others to Jesus. I want to help our children understand their need for a personal and growing relationship with Jesus. I want to help them be able to defend and understand what they believe and why. I have a lot longer list of ideas and goals, but these are my starting points. What about you? What are your goals, dreams, ambitions for the new year? I was reading an article that stated that one of the number one ways to succeed in something is to write it down. So…write it down! 

Happy New Year!