January Activities and Garett’s Decision

 The month of January has actually gone by fairly quickly- usually this month can have a tendency to drag on and on! We are about six weeks from the end of basketball season, and then the start of baseball season. Garett and Chandler have enjoyed playing basketball, but I think they’re looking forward to baseball, the opportunity to be outside more, and a sport that they have a little more experience with playing. Chandler has improved a lot with his basketball skills, and he no longer looks quite so nervous when he gets out on the court. Hustling is not Garett’s strong suit nor is making quick decisions and basketball involves both! However, we’ve been faithfully attending games, and if nothing else, our children will remember our presence - I hope! 

                                            Happy 15th birthday Chandler! We love this young man! 

Last week, Garett made a big decision in his life. Last Friday, the student pastor asked me if Garett had talked to me about the decision he had made on Wednesday during chapel. I was like, “no, he has not.” The pastor encouraged me to ask Garett about his decision. The opportunity presented itself on Saturday night, as Roger and I were talking to Garett. I asked him about chapel on Wednesday and a decision he had made. At first he looked confused, and then his face cleared and he said, “Oh, yeah! I went forward at the invitation. Pastor Alex came over to talk to me and asked me if I had any questions. I said that I wasn’t sure about my salvation. Pastor Alex told me to come up to his office and he would answer my questions with Scripture. So after lunch, I did. Pastor Alex showed me from the Bible how I can be positive about my salvation. And now I’m sure.” I was about in tears over hearing Garett’s testimony and how the Holy Spirit was working in his life. I asked him why he didn’t come to Roger or I, and he said, “It’s not that I didn’t think you had the answers, but sometimes it’s nice to talk to someone other than my parents.” Well, I can agree with that. I asked him why he hadn’t mentioned it to us, and he was like, “well, it’s settled in my heart and mind. I don’t have any doubts anymore and I guess it just didn’t occur to me to mention it!” Um, my dear son, these are the types of things that I definitely want to hear about! We’ve been praying for all our teenage boys as of late. I know that both Roger and I made assurances of our salvation during our teen years, and we’ve been praying for the Holy Spirit to work in the lives of our children. Sometimes we just have to keep putting opportunities in front of them where the Holy Spirit can  continue to nudge and prick their conscience. We are thankful for teachers, coaches, and those who provide mentorship and discipleship to our children. 

                                     Good fellowship makes the long nights of basketball a lot more fun!!

We’ve had a few late nights with basketball games, school events, and other things happening. Last weekend we had a few families from church over to our house for fellowship and food. We ten kids and six adults, so the house was full of excitement! Our friends, the Wades, brought some Chick-fil-A sweet tea, cookies and bread, and the Everetts brought some food as well. We had a good time of fellowship and the ladies spent some time praying for some things that have been trying in our lives. On Monday, it was Martin Luther King, Jr. Day so the students had off. I went in to school to work for a few hours as we are preparing for our school accreditation in a few short weeks- and that is a big undertaking! 

On Monday afternoon, we went bowling with the Everett family. I’m a terrible bowler and I hate to lose, but I definitely lost! I think even Emma beat me at bowling! Oh well! We had fun, lots of laughter and fellowship. We’ve enjoyed getting to know the Everett family and we are thankful for their friendship to our family. We have several children that are similar in ages, and Laura and I have also been getting together once a week to go walking and pray together. Usually we get in about three miles while waiting for our kids to finish up sports practice and then we spend some time praying. We’ve never run out of things to pray for or things to talk about. 

Chandler told me on Tuesday that there were some kids in his class that were teasing him about liking Ava (one of the Everett girls). I asked him how he felt about it. He replied, “those particular kids are always making dumb comments, so I guess they’ve just found one more thing to be dumb about.” Roger and I encouraged him to stay kind and gracious and to remember the feelings of others too. Roger and I have been working hard about encouraging our teens to have healthy relationships with the opposite sex. Since the Everett’s and us are good friends, I guess it stands to reason that our kids might be teased about something like this. However, both Chandler and Ava have continued to be kind and polite to each other, and they both seem to just let it roll like water off a duck’s back. I remember my dad making that statement when we were growing up, “Just let it roll off like water off a duck’s back. You don’t need to be easily offended.” 

God has provided multiple opportunities to pray with ladies in my life lately. On Thursday we had a very rough morning on the way to school. One of my children, in particular, does not like to admit when he is wrong. Instead of just admitting and apologizing, I about lose my sanctification while trying to have a conversation with him! We parted ways with both of us saying, “I love you,” but it wasn’t’ extremely heart felt. I felt the Holy Spirit convicting me, so I made my way to that son’s classroom to apologize for the way I handled the situation. When I arrived in the library, I found that my friend, Jen, had also had a very rough morning with her son. We were both practically in tears, and I said, “The only thing that I know to do is to keep praying.” So we spent some time in prayer before our library classes began. I’ve also been praying with one of the teachers at school every morning. She is facing a particular trial in her life, so I’ve been popping in every morning to pray. God hasn’t specifically answered our prayers yet, but we know that He is still working! We are trusting Him while we wait. I’m not the most patient person, and I want God to solve this situation right now, but while we wait, we will pray! 

While we know that our families, churches, and Christian schools are under constant attack from Satan, there are times where that force feels stronger. We are definitely in one of those trenches right now, and the only thing to do is to cling to the Rock. I am so thankful that God continues to be our shelter in the storm, our Fortress, our Deliverer, our Strong Tower, and the one in whom I trust! I am so thankful for opportunities to pray. We can come boldly to His Throne where we know that mercy abounds. 

This weekend Roger and I have the opportunity to attend a marriage retreat- it’s been a long time since we’ve been on one. When we committed to go, we weren’t sure who was going to watch our kids. We are very particular about who they can stay with and who can watch them. However, God worked out all the details! Chandler and Garett are staying home by themselves, but we have a friend who will be checking in with them. And today, Friday, Garett and Chandler will be spending the day with some great friends of ours, the Everett Family. Chandler’s 15th birthday was yesterday, and the Everett’s have some special plans for him today. Roger and I are so thankful for the mentorship and discipleship of other’s in our children’s lives. Roger and I left on Chandler’s birthday, so I told him we would celebrate at another time. He was totally fine with that especially as this is the son that does not like extra attention! Wyatt and Travis both went with some school friends while we are away. And Emma went home with a school friend also. I don’t know that the kids have ever been so spread apart while we are away, but we are thankful that God worked out the details so that Roger and I could get away for the marriage retreat. When I called Garett last night to let him know that we had arrived at the hotel, he said that he and chandler were eating supper. I asked him what they had made for supper- chicken. Okay, what else? He sounds surprised and said, “What’s wrong with chicken?” Well, nothing! But usually you have something to go with it! Oh well! They won’t starve, and they’re eating protein! It’s different than how I would do it, but that’s okay. This is the first time we’ve left the boys on their own for a few days, so I think my mama’s heart is struggling a little bit with how fast that creeped up on us! Time flies! 

This song has blessed me time and time again. I’ll never forget the voices of my kindergarten class singing “Jesus, thank you” last year. Regardless of the chaos around me, Jesus reigns supreme and I can thank Him! 

    Photo credit: bereaproject.org 

Back to School! January Praises and Prayers!

 Back to school! I’m not sure that any of our children were thrilled to be back in school last week, but every day gets us closer to summer break! The months of January and February can tend to drag on and on, but the basketball schedule keeps us busy, the boys have started practicing baseball a little, and sometimes the weather is really quite nice!

Last weekend the boys had a basketball tournament in Elizabeth City which is about three hours away. We originally were not planning on going to the tournament as its a drive away and Garett and Chandler don’t play a whole lot during a game. We try to make it to as many games/tournaments as possible even when they are bench warmers because we feel like it is important. However, we are trying to save money for some additional house projects, so we decided that we wouldn’t go to the tournament. However, on Friday morning, my friend, Laura, messaged me to say that they were not going to be able to go to the tournament and would we want their hotel room. After thinking about it for a few minutes, we decided that we would go to the tournament and use the provided hotel room. After school, I left immediately with the three younger kids to head home, pack some stuff for overnight and try to make it to the boys 7:30pm game. Roger told me to go ahead with the kids as he was off flying fire patrol and he wasn’t sure when he would make it home. So the three younger kids and I headed for Elizabeth City. There is not a direct road to that city, and it took us a while to get there! We arrived at 7:10pm, and we discovered that the game had started at 7:00pm! I was thankful that we had left immediately after packing up our stuff at home or we would’ve missed the game. The boys team did win their game which meant that they were headed for the championship game on Saturday at 2:00pm. That was exciting! In the end, it worked out that Roger wasn’t able to come as the hotel room had one king bed. So Wyatt and Travis slept on the floor and Emma and I slept in the bed. We all sleep best in our own beds, so I don’t think anyone got a great night’s sleep- read (crabby in the morning!). It was kinda a long day, and the boys and girls team both ended up with second place at the tournament. No need to mention that there were only four teams at the tournament! Garett and Chandler have never complained about sitting on the bench, but it’s nice to see that they are becoming more comfortable with being on the court. They don’t look as nervous to have the ball as they did at the beginning of the season, and we are thankful that they have had this opportunity to see if they’d like this sport. 

We were all a little tired on Sunday morning, but it was a blessing to be in the house of the Lord on Sunday morning. Roger and I have really been enjoying our sunday school class and the current topic is “visionary parenting”. Biblical parenting sessions are always encouraging but also so convicting. My spirit wants to do better but the flesh truly is weak. I am a wonderful mother and full of patience and kindness until my children get out of bed in the morning! However, it’s been good to be reminded of the things that we should be doing, and to love God more fervently and passionately. 

On Sunday afternoon we had the opportunity to host some dear friends of ours, the Falde Family. Garett and I have had the opportunity to go to Haiti with the Falde Family. The Falde’s have become dear friends of ours and they’ve been serving in Haiti for several years. They were visiting a church in the Wilmington area and then came to visit us for the afternoon. We enjoyed the opportunity to fellowship and catch up on what God is doing in Haiti. They are in the process of adopting a set of twins from Haiti, and I’m sure they would appreciate your prayers as they wait for the process. Nothing happens quickly in Haiti- ever, and we are praying for God to help the adoption process go smoothly. They received a wonderful Christmas gift when someone offered to pay for the rest of the adoption fees! That was an amazing gift, and now it’s the process of working through all the paperwork to adopt the twins. We had a great evening of food, fellowship and visiting together. 

Our school had spirit week this week, so excitement was high in the school! We’ve not had whole lot of experiences with spirit week, and trying to come up with outfits for each day was a challenge! We weren’t able to participate every day, but we did our best. It’s hard to be the new kids in a new school and not exactly know what is and what isn’t allowed. It’ll be nice to not be brand new next year to so many of these new experiences! Tuesday was “Rhyme without reason” day, and my friend, Jennifer, and I dressed up. We work in the library together on Tuesday, and Jennifer came up with the idea of using two acronyms (CFA and FCA). She’s worked at Chick-fil-a in the past, and I figured I could find a cheerleader outfit somewhere around the school. We forgot to take a picture of the two of us, but we did manage to come up with both outfits! Oftentimes spirit week is a lot of fun- until we need to try to find outfits for six people! 

Monday was a bit of a drag of a day, and that was compounded by a basketball game that was away. The JV teams both lost their games, but the varsity teams both won. Garett and Chandler didn’t play in the game, but it was a good game to watch. The varsity boys did win the game by one point!  It was a bit of long evening, but we are thankful  for these  opportunities to support our boys and their efforts. 

On Tuesdays I help out with choir for the elementary students. Normally I just tell students to listen, be quiet, run the PowerPoint, etc. but the piano player was not there for class. Tamela asked me if I was comfortable helping out with the piano aspect. Well, I was quickly reminded that it’s been about 8 months since I’ve played a note on the piano! I was not amazing, and I don’t think I was especially helpful, but it did remind me how much I miss playing the piano and how I need to get back into finding time to practice! 

Tuesday afternoon found our two younger boys at an informational meeting regarding a JV baseball team. It looks like there will be enough interest and enough boys to have a JV baseball team this year, and Wyatt and Travis are very thankful for that! The boys enjoy playing baseball and while they’ve never been formally on a team, they’ve played it in our backyard for years! The coach told both Wyatt and Travis that they did very well in the practice especially as they’ve never been on a team. They were both encouraged by that!

On Thursday afternoon, I had the opportunity to go walking with a new friend. Laura has become a good friend to me, and I am thankful for her. Since our kids have sports practice after school, we decided to walk for a while while they were at practice. It was a great use of our time as we walked three miles and then spent some time in prayer especially for our children, spouses, school and church. If we really want to change the world for Jesus, it’s going to happen first when we get on our knees. I want to be passionate and fervent in prayer, and it was nice to have a fellow mama and friend to pray with and share our burdens. While Laura and Justin have two girls and a boy, and we have four boys and a girl, our children seem to relate well to each other. As mamas, Laura and I are happy for our children to have friends that they can laugh and have conversations with each other. Laura and I are hoping to continue our walking/praying plan. We have a few specific prayer requests that we want to continue to pray for and see what God does. 

Friday was the longest day we’ve had in a while! It was the last day of spirit week, and the students were excited about it being Friday, a game day, and a pep rally! Today was also Homecoming day, which I don’t have any previous experience with, so we were excited to see what was going to happen. There were four basketball games after school, JV girls, JV boys, Varsity girls and Varsity boys! The JV teams both won their games yesterday, and both varsity teams lost. Chandler did get some playing time in the JV game, so that was exciting for him. At the close of all the basketball games, the school recognizes the two class representatives from grades 7-12. One boy and one girl from each class is chosen by classmates to represent Mr. And Mrs. *** for the school. These students have a good standing with their classmates and are to be chosen based on their character and reputation. The boys dress in a suit and the girls wear a formal dress. The whole ceremony takes about 20 minutes, but it’s a privilege to be chosen to represent your class. It was fun to watch the students and to listen to their testimonies. Wyatt’s friend, Gabe, was chosen for the 7th grade class, so that was especially cool. I did shed a few tears as I listened to the recording of Gabe’s voice telling about his salvation and how thankful he was for his parents, teachers and school. It was a super late night as we didn’t get home until around 11:00pm, so that made for a tired Saturday morning! 

We also have a huge praise to share- the kids school bill for this year is paid in full! Praise the Lord! Due to my parents generosity as well as my sister, Jen, we’ve been able to pay off this year’s school bill. That’s a huge, huge praise! Roger and I were just talking about how we’d like to think about sending the boys to a Christian camp this summer, and now we will be able to save some towards making that become a reality. God is so good to us, even though we don’t deserve it. We didn’t expect to be able to get the school bill paid off until closer to the end of April, so this is about three months earlier than we anticipated! 

Also, we have a prayer request. When we were at Wednesday night church, Roger and I were convicted about providing opportunities to our children to bless others. We are in the process of raising up third generation Christians, which is a huge responsibility! It’s easy to become lethargic in our praise of all that God has done, and I think our children need to be reminded that they are children of God and that they have the privilege to SERVE Him. We are looking for meaningful ways that our children can bless others. They could pick up trash alongside the road for several hours and that would be beneficial to our community. We are not opposed to that, but we’d rather have the kids have a face to go with their service. I’ve contacted a few people about ways that the kids could serve either by doing yard work, cleaning, serving food to the homeless, etc, but we are still praying about what would be best. We are SO blessed to live in America, and we are SO blessed to be the children of God. I want our children to be able to be a blessing to someone. Please pray with us that we will choose wisely. That our children would enjoy the opportunity to serve. That God would be glorified. We serve a great God!

Christmas Break!

 

After over a week of lots of sugar, rich foods, a different sleep schedule and lots of excitement, we are heading back to school tomorrow! We’ve  enjoyed some “down time” this past week with our family, extended family and friends. 

A little over a week ago, on Christmas “Adam” (the day before Christmas Eve), we went over to a friends house. We’ve become friends with the Everett family, and we always have good food and fellowship when we are together. We had dinner at their house as well as another family. Lisa and I went to school together - a long time ago! It was good to see Lisa again and meet her family. We had eleven kids between us, so there was a lot happening! It was a bit of a cold day (especially for North Carolina), but we went on a walk anyways! I wouldn’t say that all of the walkers were willing participants, but it was good to get out in God’s creation! It was good to see our teenage kids interact with other teenage kids with lots of laughter and fellowship for them too. We enjoyed a fun relaxing evening on the day before Christmas activities. 

Last Saturday (Christmas Eve), we were planning to go to Hickory to see some of my extended family. However, last week was cold in North Carolina, and we had a lot of wind come through our area. We had two trees that were blown down due to the wind, and just as we were getting ready to leave for Hickory, the power went out at our house! It was about 12 degrees, and we didn’t have any idea of how long the power would be out. It’s a four hour drive to Hickory, so we needed to decide what we were going to do. Roger ended up staying home to make sure the pipes didn’t freeze as well as he was the “on-call” patrol pilot for fires. We were disappointed that Roger wasnt able to come with us, but the kids and I had a good time anyways. It’s a bit of a hike from our house to Hickory, but we were there around eleven  in the morning. We enjoyed our time together, and my cousin, Brittany, and I even went on a walk. It was chilly, but I like to do something active every day if possible. We made it back home by around 9:00pm, and we are thankful for the Lord’s traveling mercies. 

This was our first year in a long while that we didn’t attend a Christmas Eve service, and I think that next year I’d like to find an area church that is having a Christmas Eve service and attend with our family. Christmas Day was a beautiful albeit still a chilly day for North Carolina. Our church was having a Christmas Day service, and we were looking forward to that. We opened our stockings, ate a delicious breakfast together, and then headed off for the 10 o’clock church service. I was surprised at how many people came out for the service! It was a good Christmas Day service, and I’m glad that we had the opportunity to actually be in the house of the Lord on Christmas Day! I do enjoy singing “Silent Night” with the candles lit, and I think there were even a few people that raised their hands for salvation during the invitation. It was a blessing to worship together. 

We spent Christmas Day gathered as a family at our home. We enjoyed a relaxed afternoon together, and we ate a lot of delicious food! (We’ve been eating lots of good food all week long!) 

On Tuesday morning we dropped Chandler off at the church building for his Freshman Focus trip. Chandler is not a big talker by any means, but he did tell me that he was excited about going on this trip with a few other freshmen in his class. Five boys went and four girls on a trip to Florida. They arrived back on Friday night so it was a whirlwind of a trip! Chandler said that he had a really good time, but he wished that the trip had been a little bit longer. He was just starting to become better friends with some of the freshman and then the trip was over. But it was a good experience for him, and God provided the perfect timing. It’s a hard adjustment on teenagers to move, and the rest of the freshman class has pretty much grown up together. It was a good opportunity for Chandler to get to know some of them a lot better as well as have other adults provide discipleship in his life. We are thankful that he had the opportunity to go. God is so good. 

Also on Tuesday, we went ice skating! Not outside- it’s not been THAT cold! Our friends, the Hardisons, invited us to come along with their family to an ice skating arena. Emma has the least amount of experience with ice skating, but we were all looking forward to going. The boys have missed playing pond hockey this year, and they were happy to see that their ice skates still fit them. We enjoyed the time together as well as dinner with the Hardisons afterwards. We are thankful that they thought to invite us, and we’ve enjoyed getting to know their family better. Emma was a little bummed as she was the only girls with six boys, but she survived! 

The weather continued to get warmer throughout the week, and  by Friday, it was about 65 degrees! We enjoyed a lot of time outside this past week. Emma enjoyed a play date with her friend, Cynthia, at Chuck E. Cheese on Friday. We had dinner at the Pastor’s house on Saturday along with another family. Emma was again the only girl with seven boys, but she’s used to it!  We enjoyed talking about many topics, and getting to know both the Pastor and his family better as well as another church family. It takes time to build relationships and friendships, and we are thankful for so many that have extended hospitality to our family. 

Sunday afternoon gave us the opportunity to host at our house! I was excited about having people over to our house, and while the boys were excited about having friends over, they were not excited about all the extra cleaning I made them help with!  But by three o’clock, we were ready for our friends to come. We had invited several families, but not every one was able to come. We ended up with 22 people at our house for a New Year’s Day get together. It was super informal, but I think we all had a good time! There were eleven young men, so they spend most of the time outside playing soccer and basketball until it was too dark to see. Emma and Cynthia were happy to have some teenage girls to interact with while the adults enjoyed fellowship too. We ate lots of food (again!), and played a bunch of games together. The Carillo Family brought over some sweet tamales, which is something none of us had tried before! We had lots of desserts, food, and laughter. Our last guests left around 10:00pm, so it was a good way to wrap up the night before our last day of Christmas break. Our kids went to bed encouraged by laughter and fellowship, and Roger and I had a great time also. I was thrilled to have the opportunity to have people over in our home, and no one even seemed to notice that the windows might not have trim or that the yard isn’t landscaped or that 100 other projects are waiting to get done. Instead we focused on building relationships, fellowshipping together and opening our home to our friends. My friend, Laura, and I sat at the kitchen table after everyone else had left and just spend some time talking and praying together. I think that the older I get, the more easily I cry! I cry when children are singing, or over someone’s heartache, or over a heart-felt prayer, or anything else! I’m thankful that we were able to have over friends that share our desire to raise up sons and daughters to fear the Lord and to be warriors in the Army of the Lord! We cannot falter or give up as we endeavor to press on to raise up a generation that will be steadfast, unmovable and abounding in Jesus! 

We also asked our children about some goals that they would want to set for the New Year. I’ll have to share some of those goals in another post, as I need to wrap this one up. We have another year ahead of us. Every day is a gift from God, and I certainly want to use each day wisely. God is so good to me and our family. We are so blessed. 

Happy New Year! 

 Photo credit; cdn.Shopify.com/files 

Christmas Break! Praise Jesus!

 

Christmas is almost here! I know that if I don’t write about the adventures and memories of the past few days, I’ll forget! We are so thankful that it is now Christmas break. Chandler has a “Freshman Focus” trip planned for next week (several of the freshman are going on a trip to encourage fellowship and hopefully deepen their relationship with Jesus Christ). Other than that trip for Chandler, we plan to stay around home. Last Christmas the kids and I drove from Maine to Michigan over Christmas break, so this Christmas I am thankful to be sticking around home! 

In the past week, we’ve done A LOT of Christmas baking! I think we made 39 little boxes of treats for our neighbors, teachers and friends. The most popular treats were peanut butter balls and Christmas crack, but we also dipped Oreos, made oreo truffles, caramels, chocolate chip cookies, and a bunch of other sugary treats! I am about sick of making peanut butter balls, but hopefully others will be blessed and encouraged by a box of Christmas treats! 

A few Sundays ago, our Sunday School teacher was talking about Random Acts of Kindness. I know it’s been on our hearts and minds (Roger and I) on how we could help teach this to our children. I printed several Random Acts of Christmas Kindness cards for our kids to hand out to strangers, and I was pleasantly surprised as to how much they seemed to enjoy the idea. Then I had the idea to print a bunch more of those same cards and challenge our 4th and 5th grade classes at school to pass out the cards! So I spent much of last Monday printing out the cards, attaching an invitation to our church’s Christmas service and a candy cane. Then Jennifer and I gave them out to our library classes on Tuesday. We didn’t make the students take a card, but we just encouraged them to take one if they would use it. The majority of the students did take a card, and I’ve been praying that God will specifically use those cards to encourage some spiritually weary people in our world and point them to Jesus. This world needs Jesus, and since we have our hope in Jesus, we need to share that with the world! 

The boys survived mid-term exams! I wasn’t sure that we would make it through the week, but by the Grace the God, we made it through! It was a long week, and it was more stressful that I would’ve liked, but it is behind us for now. Last Friday evening, the kids and I went over to a friends house to do some Christmas baking- including more peanut butter balls! This family has two teenage daughters and a fourth grader boy. It was refreshing to see the teens have conversations with each other and laugh together. I think that teens are often intimidated to talk to the opposite sex because then some one will tease them about “liking” that person! It’s annoying to them and it’s discouraging as a parent who’s trying to raise kids to have healthy relationships at their ages! 

We had over some friends last Saturday, and we did more Christmas baking! Maria and I made oreo truffles and more peanut butter balls! It’s fun to have them over as they have a bunch of boys too, and we enjoy fellowship with them. On Sunday, our Spanish church was having a potluck Christmas dinner and Maria invited our family to join the Spanish church dinner. It was a little odd to go to a potluck dinner knowing that I hadn’t made anything to contribute, but per usual for church dinners, there was plenty of food! It was a good opportunity to interact with families outside of our normal church circle and to be introduced to some ethnic Mexican food. It was delicious!

Monday began the last 1.5 days before Christmas break from school! The older kids (6th-12th grade) had a special day of games for them. The boys all agreed that it was far better than school, but they would’ve preferred more active games- sounds pretty typical for them! The more running, moving, and being active, the better in their opinion! Meanwhile, the younger grades had one last rehearsal for the Christmas program! I had the opportunity to be involved a little in the rehearsals, and it’s always fun to see it finally start to pull together. After weeks of instructing in music, drama, songs and telling students to be quiet on the stage, it’s nice to see the light at the end of the tunnel…either that or it’s an oncoming train! I had the opportunity to be involved in several years of music in Maine, and I’m glad that God continued to allow me to have a small part in this new Christian school. I worked with two great ladies, Lauren and Tamela, and we were all thankful to know that by Tuesday at 11:30am, this program would be behind us! The students did a fantastic job on Tuesday morning, and I think we are all relieved that we don’t have to hear those Christmas songs for a while! 

Roger’s parents came for a few days, so we were able to enjoy some time with them. They arrived on Monday afternoon and left on Wednesday morning. They are traveling a lot this Christmas season as they visit several of Roger’s siblings and families. We enjoyed conversations, laughter, lots of food, and opening gifts together with them. Mom and Dad were able to come to see the Christmas program on Tuesday morning, and we were thankful that they were able to spend some time with us. 

I’ll be honest- this Christmas season has been a rough one. I don’t know that I could adequately express how I feel, but tears have been close to the surface many times in the past few days. My heart hurts for those that have lost a loved one recently. One of my friends lost a son this past year, and we’ve shared many moments of watery eyes. My heart hurts for those that are hurting this season. It’s a season of joy as we celebrate the birth of Jesus, but for some it’s a season of deep sadness and grief. 

Transitions are hard- even if they are good transitions. We are figuring out new friendships and relationships here in North Carolina, and it’s not without some rough moments on both Roger and I and our kids... especially Emma and Travis. We left behind six years of friendships in Maine, and some of those will remain life-long friends. I miss shopping trips and church events with Allison, laughing with Jess, and school and church Christmas programs. I miss deep conversations about things that really matter with some of those very close friends. I know that God is at work here too, and that He will bring about those friendships and conversations in His perfect timing. It’s hard not to feel sad about what was behind, but I also know that God will continue to work out His perfect will here too.  

But, we’ve made friends with a military family that’s also new to the area. Getting to know Justin and Laura and their family has been a blessing to our entire family. Laura and I have shared conversations about raising teenagers, and I’m thankful for another “like-minded” mama. Also, I’m thankful for friendships such as Jennifer and her family. Jennifer and I have been working together in the library, and she and her husband have been an encouragement to our whole family. They’ve shared fellowship with us, welcomed our family, and have encouraged both Roger and I.  Wyatt and Travis have made friends with Gabe and Enzo, and I have been encouraged by conversations with their mom, Laura, and we always have lots of laughs together! It’s been six months since we’ve moved, but God has been faithful. Even when I am weary or discouraged, He is still good. He never changes! 

Just this week, God provided several blessings for our family. 

*Garett got his driving permit! I can’t believe our son is old enough to drive! His brothers do not like him to drive because they say that he drives too slowly, but he is being responsible! We are thankful that he takes this responsibility seriously. 

*Christmas cards! We are still one of those weird families that send out Christmas cards, and we also enjoy receiving them! This week we received several cards from friends in the mail, and our kids pour over the pictures and letters also. “Look how big so and so is!” “Mom, did you know…?” Even if they don’t know or remember the family, they enjoy looking at the pictures on the cards also. Also this past week we received a special card and note from some dear friends in Maine. Roger has stayed in touch with them, and we were blessed by their thoughtfulness and generosity to our family. 

*Christmas break- oh, I am so thankful for Christmas break! We are looking forward to soaking up some time together as a family as well as just relaxing at home. 

Photo credit: seedsoffaithdesigns.com

Christmas Season and Blessings!!

Library decorations! 

 November is over, and now it’s starting to feel like the mad dash to Christmas break! My dad has been gone on a missions trip to the Dominican Republic, and my mom spent the week visiting her sister and family as well as time with us. My mom folded lots of laundry for me, matched socks, and played many games with the kids. It was a good week, but it went by quickly. 

The Saturday after Thanksgiving, a friend reached out to me to tell me that she was getting rid of some Christmas decorations. She asked if I would be interested in any of the decorations either for our home or the school library. We gave away a lot of our Christmas items when we moved to North Carolina, and the school library could definitely use some new decorations! Roger and I went over to pick up the Christmas decorations. We stayed for a visit and spent some time just talking with this friend. Christmas can be such a hard holiday on some people, and it’s good to be reminded to spend some extra time in prayer for friends that are hurting or grieving. When we came home and unpacked the decorations, we were thrilled to find that there was a very nice Christmas tree in the mix! We’ve ALWAYS have had a real tree in our 17 years of marriage, but Christmas trees are expensive here, and we weren’t sure about buying one. However, this tree is perfect for our house, and it was fun to decorate for Christmas while my parents were here. There was also a smaller Christmas tree, so the kids had a fun time putting on all the random decorations we’ve collected over the years on that tree. 

My dad was leaving for the DR on Monday morning, and on Sunday afternoon, I got a text from the missionary that my dad was going to be going with. They asked if I could help my dad get some information printed so that he could easily enter into the DR. After finally managing to get the paperwork filled out and completed, we needed to print it. However, last Sunday was a very windy day and the power went out at our house! Now what!? Well, thankfully, we could run the internet off the phone and Roger dragged out the generator to plug the printer into the generator cord! We looked like totally red-neck folks but we managed to print the paper! Whew! My parents headed to Raleigh to check into the hotel, and Emma was excited that she was able to go with Nana and Papa. Since my dad’s flight was so early on Monday, they went to Raleigh on Sunday afternoon. I was happy that Emma was able to have some one-on-one time with my parents. The boys enjoy all kids of outside activities with my dad, but Emma isn’t interested in deer stands, hunting, or shooting at targets. Thankfully, we were able to mend all relationships with our neighbors after Chandler shot the deer on the other neighbor’s land. My dad ended up helping the boys move the deer stands, and I think they might have ended up with a better spot than they were originally. They also met a new neighbor who was extreme helpful in  them figure out where to set up the stands. It was a blessing to have a neighbor help out the boys and give them a few hunting pointers. 

On Monday morning,  Chandler woke up with a rash on his skin. Apparently he had gotten into something while out in the woods. I didn’t think too much about it as the boys are always getting into something. However, by the time basketball practice was done on Monday evening, Chandler’s forearms were swollen and the skin was very irritated. Clearly, whatever he had gotten into wasn’t going away, and we needed to have a doctor look at his arms. So Tuesday morning found Roger and Chandler waiting outside a walk-in clinic in a near by town at about 7:15am. The clinic opened at 7:30am, and when they went to sign in for an appointment, the secretary told Roger that they weren’t taking any new patients. Say what? The walk-in clinic isn’t taking new patients?! I thought that was the purpose of a walk-in clinic. Roger was told that Chandler could come back in January to see if they were taking new patients then. Um- Chandler would have his skin scratched off by then! So they went to a different walk-in clinic. At that walk-in clinic they discovered that there was already about 20 people in line! Roger remembered that there was a clinic in our local town that opened a little later. So they headed there. Thankfully, Chandler was able to be seen by the nurse practitioner who prescribed prednisone and a cream for his skin. Roger picked up the cream and Chandler put it on. Roger had planned to take Chandler to school, but the cream caused his skin to start to “weep”. Clearly, he wasn’t going to be able to go to school like that. So he took Chandler home. A teenager on prednisone was a crazy week! Chandler is like the energizer bunny without a steroid, so he was really eating us out of house and home this past week! He was irritable, unable to sleep and ate so much food I don’t know where he put it! However, we made it through, and his skin does look a lot better. We are thankful that we found a clinic to go to and that Roger was able to adjust his work schedule so that he could take Chandler. 

Friday found me with a passel of kids to take home after school, which I absolutely do not mind in the least! Garett and Chandler had a basketball tournament for part of the day on Friday, so they were gone to that. Typically we go to all their games, but I had already planned a “baking for Christmas” evening with a few friends. Since I wasn’t going to the game, I ended up taking a few extra kids home with me as their parent was at the game. The kids had a great time running around in the yard and playing while I got ready to make a huge mess in the kitchen. Laura and her sister, Suzanne, arrived around 5:45pm with Suzanne’s son, Eli. Two of the other kids that I had brought home had already left, so there was just seven kids left. Laura, Suzanne and I made so many sweet things that we probably were close to a sugar induced coma! We made peanut butter balls, dipped Oreos, gingerbread cookies, caramels, dipped pretzels, reindeer pretzels, Christmas toffee, and I don’t even know what else! It was the perfect day to do it because we had to stay up late anyways waiting for the boys to get home from the basketball game. It was a late night, but such a fun night! Wyatt, Travis and Emma were thrilled to have friends to play with, and it was such a fun night of laughter and fellowship! 

Travis said on Saturday night that “We used up all our Saturday!” And he was rather dismayed about it! We went to watch the boys play in the basketball tournament on Saturday morning. It was a longer day than anticipated as all the games started later than they had anticipated. The boys ended up losing the game, so that was disappointing for them. The boys have learned a lot this season, but the late night are really late nights! We aren’t a late night family, so that’s been a total adjustment.  I’m thankful that they’ve had this opportunity to try, but I’ll be curious to see if they try out next year. 

This past week we also received a really big blessing regarding Emma’s school bill. When we moved to North Carolina, we discovered that the state of North Carolina offers an “Opportunity Scholarship” that will help pay for a student’s tuition bill. However, while we met the financial qualifications for the requirements, we didn’t mean the other requirements. A student has to be entering K, 1st or 2nd grade or be from a military family or be adopted or have been in a public school for at least a semester. Well, we didn’t meet any of those. God provided a job for me though and we’ve been slowing working through paying off the school bill. My parents and sister, Jen, have also given generously towards helping us with their tuition. Late September we made the decision to move Emma back to second grade. Once we made that decision, I decided to see if we could apply for the opportunity scholarship for the second semester of school. We received a reply almost immediately that we were eligible to receive at least a portion of the scholarship and we would be notified if funds became available. I didn’t think much about it after that, but then at the beginning of November, we received an email stating that Emma qualified for 90% of her tuition fees for the second semester! This was a huge, huge blessing to our family! Then we received and email stating that if our child had been enrolled in the same school since October 1st, we could ask for a tuition scholarship for that semester. I sent the email, the school secretary helped with a few phone calls, and a few days ago we were notified that Emma would receive 90% tuition assistance for this school year! Praise the Lord! While God has always provided, and always right on time, this tuition assistance does help relieve some of the financial concerns regarding the school bill. When the kids were enrolled in Maine, we received a significant discount since I was teaching, as well as the Christian school there had a policy that any family that had more than four children, the fifth was free. That worked out well for our family with five children! God has always been faithful and this past week was just another reminder of His goodness to us. So we will continue to pursue our children having a Christian education as we continue to trust Him to provide while we budget and work at it also! God is good. 

This has seemed like a long week, but tomorrow is Friday! Friday is my favorite day of the week. It’s the day that I anticipate all the many projects that I’ll accomplish over the weekend, which I never complete the list! But it’s still my favorite day of the week. 

As we prepare for Christmas, we are looking forward to some family time, making memories, and enjoying a few days off of school. We’ve started a devotional book for Advent season and it covers some of the many familiar Christmas carols. We are only a few days in, but we are enjoying it. I love music, and I am so thankful for music. We pray that you will enjoy this Christmas season. Take some time to read through the Christmas story in the Bible. A helpless babe - and the Savior of the World! 

Photo: cache.love thispic.com

A Week of Giving Thanks! Happy Thanksgiving!

 Happy Thanksgiving from our family to yours! Our hearts are full of thanks as we reflect on the past year and all that God has done for us. We were thankful for a short week of school this week, my parents coming for a few days, a short visit with Roger’s parents, attending the pie and praise service at church, a successful deer hunt, a fun Turkey trot race, and a table full of guest and family on Thanksgiving day. We are so blessed! 

My parents came in from Wisconsin for a few days, and they arrived late on Monday night. We allowed Chandler to stay home from school on Tuesday to spend some time with them. He’s done well with making good choices in school, but a day of mentorship from my dad was the right choice for him on Tuesday. They spent the day setting up deer stands, talking to the neighbors, and just being together. We are thankful for those that mentor and disciple our children. My friend, Laura, brought me coffee and a biscuit to school and that was a special treat. I’m also thankful for those that pour into me! It was so thoughtful and kind! It’s not easy to uproot, move, and re-start, but God has been faithful through it all. 

On Tuesday night we attended the Pie and Praise service at church. This is always one of my favorite services of the year, and every church does it just a little bit differently. We were happy to meet Roger’s parents at the Pie and Praise service as they were passing through the area. My heart was full as I listened to testimonies of God’s goodness and character. I tend to be emotional on nights like these, but I only cried when I heard my friend express the goodness of God when I knew that she has had the roughest year in her life. I did say a word of praise expressing my thankfulness to God’s perfect timing. After I sat down, I thought of other things that I could’ve said better or differently, but God knows my heart. We do have so much to be thankful for as we look  back over the year. 

Wednesday was a half day at school, and we were thankful it was a short day. I came home and made lots of food in preparation for Thursday’s dinner. Two pies, pumpkin roll, chocolate crème pie, macaroni and cheese, and a bunch of other food items. Chandler went out to deer hunt around four pm, and he came back around 5:15pm to tell us that he had shot a deer. There was a few frantic moments as we gathered up the knife, boots, and everyone piled into the truck to go out to the field. Chandler was excited to have hit his first deer, but we then realized that he had accidentally shot the deer on someone else’s land. The person was very gracious about it, but we would appreciate your prayers that we could figure out who’s land is whose and where the property lines are at. We want to be on good terms with our neighbors and we want to be a good testimony for the Lord to our neighbors. But anyways, it was an exciting moment for Chandler and our household! 

Oh, and I know this is random, but I did want to interject a moment about the Freshmen Trip that Chandler is preparing to go on next month. There was a teen fundraiser after church on Sunday night, but it was poorly attended. I mentioned in my last post that Chandler has been working on raising money and trying not to take money out of his bank account. Last week, a new friend came to visit me in the library for a minute. She handed me a card and as I read the note I could hardly keep the tears at bay. It was the sweetest note that I’ve read or received in a long time. It was for Chandler and her family was expressing their thankfulness for our family and in getting to know us. Funny thing is that Roger and I had a similar conversation about this exact family earlier in the week and Roger had commented on how easy they were to talk to and we were looking forward to getting to know them better! She had read the blog, and then her family had given Chandler a gift for his trip. Even though the Sunday night event wasn’t well attended, Chandler now has all the funds that he needs for his trip! God is so good! 

Here’s another random story about the goodness of God: Last Friday Travis had taken a dollar to school with him so that he could buy a treat at lunchtime. Well at lunchtime, he realized that one of his classmates didn’t have any lunch. Travis gave his dollar to his classmate so that his friend could buy something to eat. At the basketball tournament later that same day, Travis had noticed that the Pastor had spilled his drink. The Pastor asked Travis to go grab some paper towels to clean up the mess. Travis got the paper towels and cleaned up the mess. Pastor gave Travis $5.00 for helping and being thoughtful. Travis tried to refuse the money, but the Pastor told Travis that the Lord wanted him to give the money to Travis. When I saw Travis later in the day, Travis immediately told me about the story. It was the PERFECT reminder that we cannot out give God, and that God will do exceeding abundantly above all we ask or think! Also, last Friday, Travis and Wyatt had the opportunity to get out of school early so that they could go to the basketball tournament earlier to watch the girls team play. I was going to be coming after school, but the younger boys were thrilled to get to go to the basketball tournament earlier with the Hardison boys. Mr Hardison had a van full of five boys! We are thankful for friendships that are being made in the boys lives also. 

Anyways, back to the week at hand- that is now almost over- again! This morning (Thanksgiving morning) the four boys and I ran in the 5k Turkey Trot race. There were 244 runners in the race. Chandler came in second overall. Garett beat me, but I was ahead of Wyatt and Travis. It was a slower race for me (read “I haven’t been running as much lately!), but I did finish third in my age division (which also gets older every year!). Roger came along for moral support and Emma was happy to stay home with my parents! It was a beautiful morning for a run, and we are thankful that we have healthy bodies to run with. My friend, Jennifer, was there at the race, and she’s the one that invited us to join the race. It was good to have a few moments with her also. 

After the race, we came home to do more cooking! We had Turkey, ham, rolls, corn, mashed potatoes, gravy, strawberry fluff, Brussel sprouts, macaroni and cheese, pasta salad, and lots of dessert! Another family from church was able to join us, and I love to have people in our home, so I was especially thankful for that opportunity again! We are so very blessed to have people to gather in our home to eat and fellowship with us. 

This year I’ve again created an acronym using the word THANKSGIVING. I’ve done this before and it’s interesting to see how things change from year to year. God has been so faithful through the years, and while every year brings about challenges and trials, the faithfulness of God never changes. 

T- Together Last year, Roger had a job in Michigan and while he was home for Thanksgiving, we spent much of the year apart. This year we are thankful to be together and host dinner in our home again. 

H- Heart I am thankful that God knows my heart. These years of raising teenagers are challenging, but when I don’t know how to express my thoughts into prayers, God already knows my heart. 

A- Attitude Sometimes we really struggle to have an “attitude of gratitude” in our home. As we talk to our teens and Emma about their attitudes often, I am thankful for the moments of gratitude in our home when our children remember to have that attitude. 

N- New Experiences I’ll be the first to admit that I am not always thankful for new experiences, but my faith is always challenged to grow. When I lean into Him, I can be thankful for new experiences. 

K- Kindness As we’ve experienced many new things in the past six months, I am so thankful for those that have extended kindness to our family either through action or word. 

S- Salvation- This is the best gift I’ve ever received! God send His son to die on the cross for my sin. I am so very thankful that I have the promise of a home in heaven. Jesus is the Rock of my Salvation. Spouse- I am thankful for Roger. He is my best friend. School While it’s been a major adjustment to transition to a new school, we are thankful for the Christian school. It’s not perfect, but we’ve added five imperfect children to the school. We are thankful that they have the opportunity for a Christian education. 

G- Good- byes We’ve said a lot of these this past year, and some of them have been very emotional. It’s hard to be thankful at times, but it’s also a reflection of the gifts of many friendships that we’ve been blessed with in our lives. 

I- Intercession I am thankful that the Holy Spirit ever gives intercession for me/us. So often I don’t know how to pray for our family, or 500 other things, but God knows. 

V- Victories When we see our children make good choices, love others, speak kindly or reflect Jesus, my heart is blessed. These are victories over the flesh and that is a victory! 

I- Investors I’m referring to those investing in the lives of our children and Roger and I. We are so blessed by those that speak Jesus in to the lives of our children and are investing in them for eternity. 

N- Never late Whew! I am thankful that God is never late and always on time! My timetable is rarely, if ever, on the same schedule as the Lord’s, but He is never late. He’s provided in miraculous ways for our children’s Christian education, our home, and thousands of other ways! 

G- Grace  I am thankful that God’s grace is never ending. He is never weary of me, and His grace flows freely. What a blessing! 

Photo credit- aleanjourney.com 

November Musings

 

Another week in November is over! And it took me almost a week to write this post, so it’s already old news! 

We’ve experienced more sickness, our first basketball game, a day off of school, fellowship at the pastor’s house, a fall sport finale, and a bike-a-thon! Last Monday, I wasn’t feeling great, but I managed to drag myself and five kiddos to school. It felt like a long day, but we made it through. The boys have been having basketball practice every night except Wednesdays, and it makes for some late evenings. We’ve started coordinating pick ups with another student who also plays basketball and that has helped a lot with trips to school. Roger and I also try to go together to pick up the boys so that we can spend some time together. Since one of us has to go to pick up kids, we might as well both go so that we can have some conversations with each other also. 

On Monday evening (last week) I went to bed as soon as Roger and I brought the kids back from basketball practice. I wasn’t running a fever when I went to bed, but by 2:00am, I had a fever. I knew that I wouldn’t be able to go to school on Tuesday, so I sent a text to my administrator to tell them I wouldn’t make it in for school. I hate missing school because it puts us behind on our school bill, but I also knew that I was going to need some extra rest. By the time the kids were up and we were leaving for school, my fever was gone, but I was just really, really tired. I stopped to vote on the way to school so that I could have that done. I was voter #26 at 6:50am. I am always thankful for the privilege of voting, and while it often seems like lately the votes haven’t come out the way I’d choose, I know that God is still in control. Voting is also a reminder that I want to make sure that our children understand the importance of voting, taking part in campaigns, and doing our part to stand against the tide of evil. God is faithful, and He rises up and set down rulers. He is still at work in the lives of people, and I am confident that He will continue to do His plan. It’s easy to be discouraged and disheartened as it seems like evil runs rampant around us, but I can rest in the fact that God has a perfect plan for each one of our children and their future. He is not surprised. 

After I dropped off the kids at school on Tuesday morning, I came home and took a four hour nap. It’s amazing what some extra rest can do! I felt like a new person, so I cleaned the house, did laundry and about 500 other things that needed doing around our house. It was a productive day. I went to get Wyatt, Travis and Emma at three pm, and the boys were invited to go to the basketball game with their friends, Gabe and Enzo. So Emma and I headed home to wait for Roger to get off work before going to the varsity basketball game. I wanted to be there to encourage them, but we didn’t make it until the varsity game. Unfortunately, the varsity boys lost their first game, but we have to start somewhere! Chandler and Garett both did get a chance to play in the game, so that was fun. We were not prepared for how late the night would be! It was about 11:30pm when we arrived home on Tuesday night! Needless to say, we will be rethinking our plan about away basketball games! We are thankful that they boys have have the opportunity to play, but we are definitely not late night people, so it’ll be interesting to see if the boys decided to try out for the team next year. But for now, we are committed to this year. We will see what God continues to do in and through the boys during this season. 

Guess what? It was a short week last week due to Veteran’s day! We were certainly all ready for a day off of school, and it was nice to have minimal plans for Friday. We did some painting, house projects, took the boys to basketball practice, and spent a quiet day at home. We never get done what we think we are going to get done, but every time we do make progress. My parents are coming to visit next week, so we are trying to make some additional progress on our house. The painting is never done, and neither are the various projects, but we do make progress. 

Chandler participated in a bike-a-thon on Saturday morning. He is trying to raise some funds for a Freshman trip that the youth group is going on. He would rather work for someone but we don’t know very many people to ask for funds or work. He did find a few to help him out with his trip, including my sister, and a new friend here in North Carolina. He did a lot of biking on Saturday, and he would’ve kept on biking but I told him that no one wanted to keep paying him for biking! He is closer to his goal for the trip though, and he would really like to not take money out of his bank account. 

On Saturday afternoon, Roger worked with Garett on his car while I took three kids to a birthday party. The party was at a roller skating rink, and those places always feel like stepping back in time! Emma, Travis and Wyatt had a good time while I enjoyed the opportunity to sit and have adult conversation with Laura. I’m thankful that Gabe and Enzo and their family as well as extended family have become friends with our family. It’s nice to start to develop these important friendships in our lives here in North Carolina.  Acquaintances are good, but we sure do savor the deeper friendships in our lives. I stay connected with a few friends from our travels across America- Alaska, Wisconsin and Maine, and I’m thankful for deep conversations and friendships. 

Garett is getting much closer to being able to drive, and I know I’m not ready for this new stage of life! While it takes up a lot of time for us to run the kids to and from practice, I’m going to miss these moments of conversations in the car with our teens. I will never be able to understand why some parents seem to step back from their middle schoolers/teens rather than trying to spend more time with them! These moments are just so fleeting, and every day is a reminder that life is flying by.  We are so blessed to be the parents to five great kids, but we are such a work in progress! Sometimes, the progress seems measurable and sometimes it feels like we are taking three steps backwards! Emma struggles to have good friendships, and Travis is just looking for a friend in his class! Garett is friends with everyone, but he doesn’t have a close friend. Chandler has a lot of friends, but he is selective in his deeper friendships.  He’s kinda a loner in someways, but so far it’s probably kept him out of trouble. Garett is kinda looking forward to driving, and I’m confident that he will be a safe and cautious driver, but I’m just not ready for our kids to grow up so fast! 

Thanksgiving is right around the corner, and we are looking forward to having a few days off of school. I love this time of year, but I don’t like how fast the time flies between Thanksgiving and Christmas! I want to do some baking, decorate our house, prepare some Christmas cards and do all the Holiday things! But for now, I’ll just keep making food for supper, painting, and living one day at a time. We have so much to be thankful for and I am so thankful for all that God has done for us. We are blessed.  

These days are full with activities, memories, and life with teens and Emma! :) We are wanting to make the most of the moments and the memories. We do have a few prayer requests to share.

1) We are still praying for a good friend for Travis. A bad friend is worse than not having a friend, but a good friend can be such an encouragement to a weary heart. Emma could also use a good friend. Sometimes Emma gets a lot of attention from older girls, but it’s not always good attention. One of her brothers made the comment to Roger and I that he feels like the girls just want to be friends with Emma because the girls want to be friends with them (the boys). Pray for the protection of our son’s hearts as well as Emmas. We need healthy relationships in our lives, and so do our children. 

2) Garett will be driving soon and this will be another transition for our family. I probably need the most prayer in this as I’ll be the one driving with Garett the most! 

3) We need some parenting wisdom, which is nothing new, but parenting teens is a challenge. Actually so is parenting Emma! So we just need a lot of prayer!

4) Roger and I are facing some “stressors” in our life, and we need wisdom in how to adjust the sails and make changes or just keep on in the direction we are going. 

I.pinimg.com