My Favorite Four Plus One!

My heart belongs to these beautiful people~

Friday, January 29, 2010

Thankful on this day!

Today marks the anniversary of John being Cancer FREE for 11 years!  I have already written about his journey a time or two before, but I can't go through today without at least speaking of our thankfulness and his cure!!!  I probably "remember" it and "celebrate" it more than John wishes I did...I don't really know, he doesn't talk about it a lot and I probably remind our friends and family more than what they really care to hear about BUT I don't care and I am so thankful and will celebrate it for as long as I can!!  So instead of going through the long story again, I just wanted to write down what I am thankful for!

1.  I am thankful for a cure.
2.  I am thankful for Dr. Emhof, Dr. Sellinger, Dr. Scidmore, Dr. Bolek, and Dr. Einstein
3.  I am thankful for John's will power to get through 3 months of radiation, work full-time, and go to school full-time.
4.  I am thankful for phenergan...the drug that helped him not vomit everyday!
5.  I am thankful for early detection on John's part and Dr. Emhof's part
6.  I am thankful for my three beautiful children that we were not suppose to have or at least it was suppose to be very hard to have
7.  I am thankful for great friends and family
8.  I am thankful for 11 years of no cancer
9.  I am thankful getting to share the story with my kids!

We are celebrating tonight as a family. We put a big sign out by the door so when he came home this morning it said..."Happy 11 years of being Cancer FREE"  I am making a favorite meal and having his parents over.  It is a great anniversary!  And he asked me to marry him on this same day 11 years ago!!  Big day in our house!!!

Thursday, January 28, 2010

Fun Run!


As a way of raising money for the school, CCS has an annual Boosterthon Fun Run...the great thing is that they get the kids really excited about sportsmanship, fitness, and positive attitudes.  The kids are suppose to get pledges for the amount of laps they run with a max of 35 which is approx 2 miles on the CCS track.  They run a lap, the coaches put a mark on their shirt, and they run around again..and again...and again... It is a big deal at CCS..they have a big tunnel that the kids run out of, the boosterthon leaders (20 something year old males that have more energy than I can stand to watch) are at the school all week cheering on the teams (classes), handing out prizes, and being just plain crazy....They have loud music playing as the kids run, they pick themes for each lap such as bunny hop this lap, do your favorite dance move to this lap, walk as slow as you can for this lap, and do the YMCA to this lap...it keeps the kids pumped and very excited!  It was a lot of fun for the kids as well as the parents!  They played all kinds of 80's music and the parents were all dancing!  Emily ran 35 laps!  Way to go Emily!!!!  After getting pledges, Emily was running for about $11 per lap which means she made $385 for her school!

Friday, January 22, 2010

Being Frugal

I am not a frugal person by nature...but I am learning how to be a more frugal person.  It is actually exciting!  Last night, I co-hosted a little get together called "frugally feeding your families".  It was basically a bunch of women, gathered together to discuss couponing, saving money, meal planning, grocery shopping, stocking your cupboards, frugal recipes, and other money saving tips like going on vacation (disney), eating out, buying clothing, etc.  It was a great success and so informative.  I started couponing about 1 month ago and I have really saved some money AND I no longer feel the desire to drop $45 at a restaurant to eat out when we have food here to fix!  John is actually more frugal than me and he will "make do" to save money.  He is very easy to please....except that last week I had a great coupon for gatorade and he won't drink it..he has to have powerade:)  Anyways, I learned stuff last night that I did not know.  It was very exciting gettting together with other women that want to save money for their families, want to share this info, and want to be good stewards with their money.  Dave Ramsey would have been extremely proud!!!!  Everyone was so pumped after the meeting that three of the women went to publix right after leaving!  I learned some great stuff about how to combine coupons and new places to get coupons and one of the ladies handed out the amazing, very impressive and detailed price list of most anything grocery you can buy...it has prices for Wal-mart, Publix, and Costco listed for each item!!!!!  Holy Cow!  I am not a detailed person and sometimes honestly I have no idea if something is a "good" price because I have never paid attention to the price before.  This lets you compare the prices and check it when something is on sale so you know if you are getting a good deal!  My Friend, Amy, did an amazing jobspeaking about couponing.  She had already shared with me a lot of her tips but I needed the refresher.  She showed the women a bunch of stuff all laid out on the coffee table (pretty much covering the entire coffee table) and asked them how much they thought she spent on it.  Some of the women were floored to know that she actually made $3 on the stuff!!!  She is a numbers person and she described in detail how she got stuff free by using the coupons and stacking them with sale prices.  John and I have a few more payments on our van and it will be paid off...we will no longer have a car payment...YIPEE!  We want to start paying more on our mortgage payment every month...who knows, maybe we could pay it down a good bit...Dave Ramsey says you can!  On the other hand though...I found out some really cheap ways to go to Disney, which I think we are going to do for a family vacation this year....I think we might totally surprise the kids and just get everyone in the car and drive until they start seeing the signs and surprise them!  I am very glad that saving money and being frugal is "cool" these days and I am very thankful for other women that don't mind sharing their knowledge with me! 

Thursday, January 21, 2010

Squeals and screams

I have a squealer!  Molly is a happy, content baby but she has now started squealing when she wants something...back to my book by the Pearls, Huh!  Anyways, I think she is in a growth spurt right now, because she eats all the time...she squeals when she wants more food and it is so loud, so annoying, and so disrespectful.  She also hollars/squeals/more or less yells at us when she wants something (toy), when she wants to exert her independence, or is not happy about something.  So John started flicking her in the mouth and saying "NO", I am trying to teach her some sign language like "more" and "please" and I say "No" in a stern voice.  She wants to be down, exploring all the time.  She isn't one that has to be held or rocked and she is not real needy, but she KNOWS what she wants!  I blame John...he said when I was pregnant that it would be nice to have a child with a spunky personality.  Well, I believe his wish came true!

Wednesday, January 20, 2010

My chores

I talk a lot about chores that I give the kids so I wanted to also explain...I do chores too!  Side note...the surprise chore basket is working out great right now. 

So I have a list (once again, I am such list person) of chores to complete and when they need to be done...

I don't think I have ever followed through with this list in its entirety but I am working on it....ever heard of the fly lady...well she is a chore queen and I love reading her website.  I have tried setting a timer and I work at as many chores as possible in 30 minutes.  It really is amazing what you can get done...The flylady's biggest thing is get dressed from head to toe and clean and shine your sink at the start of your day and it will start you off on the right foot.  The sink thing is weird to me because mine keeps getting dirty all day long but making my bed is "my version" of cleaning my sink.  I feel like if I start with making my bed, all goes better. 

Here is my chore list (John don't laugh).  It is posted on my fridge.  And I want to get better in 2010. 

Monday:  Clean both bathrooms, Mop bathrooms, 2 loads of laundry

Tuesday:  Vacuum all carpet, dust mop wood floors, encourage/help kid's with room pick up, 2 loads of laundry

Wednesday:  Check fans/clean fans, Dust whole house, clean glass windows, 2 loads of laundry

Thursday:  Clean window seals/baseboards, 2 loads of laundry, vacuum couch, deep clean kitchen countertops and sink (obviously, the kitchen has to be cleaned everyday)

Friday:  Top of fridge, wipe fridge shelves down, microwave, change sheets on beds, 2 loads of laundry

Saturday:  Straighten garage, sweep back porch, front porch, Dog chores, 2 loads of laundry

Sunday:  Nothing but some meal planning for the next week and maybe some coupon clipping

Then I have a list of things that need to be done at a less frequent basis:

Organize and sort toys
clean oven
clean out closets
clean/straighten linen closet
clean under fridge
replace shower curtains
wash curtains
wash the back porch floor
declutter bookcases in our corner office
sort through scrapbook stuff

Momma's Birthday


It is hard to buy for my parents although they always like anything I get them.  My mom's birthday was on Sunday and the best thing I could think of doing for her was to get our little family together to visit and eat a good meal.  I love to cook and I love to have people over and I especially love to make food that reminds us all of my grandmother!  So, on Saturday night we had my parents and my brother over for a birthday meal.  I made cube steak, gravy, rice, squash casserole, a salad, and sour cream pound cake for dessert.  It was delicious and all recipes were from my grandmother!  My mom doesn't have many family members left.  The only brother she has still living out of three lives in Miami and we don't see them a lot, so I feel like the times we have to share as a family, where I can make something or do something that gives her a sense of family is special to her.  We all loved my grandmother's cooking .  It was a huge part of growing up for me.  I think my mom also really appreciates the fact that I want to carry on my grandmother's traditions and recipes.  Emily and John Daniel both helped make the cake!  I left the present giving up to my dad and brother...my dad got a really cool present for my mom.  It is called a kindle.  It is amazon's digital book.  You download books to this notepad and read the book from it.  It is really amazing!!!  The books are cheaper than buying them, you can enlarge the print, light it up, etc., and you don't have to store a physical book.  They are all kept on this digital notepad.  I am pretty sure that my brother and my friend, Ann need one of these things.....it is the coolest thing for an avid reader!  My mom brought supplies over to do a science experiment with the kids...soooo my mother!!!!  They made a volcano and watched it erupt!  Overall, it was a nice evening!  Happy Birthday Mom!

Tuesday, January 19, 2010

Being a wife

John and I rarely fight about the big things...money, sex, politics....we mostly fight over communication issues...one of us has not communicated with the other in a positive or beneficial way.  I have been researching for over a year now...MARRIAGE...ways to influence my marriage in a positive way.  I talk with John about these things as well, so he is a willing party and by most of the things that I have posted about him, you can tell he is a very good husband, he takes care of me, he serves me, he loves me....But these are things that I can and strive to do myself to benefit my marriage after a year of research on the subject.

1.  I strive to never talk negatively about John to anyone.
2.  I strive to only build him up in public and at home. (Home is slightly harder for me)
3.  I strive to stop nagging.  This is huge for a man or at least my man.  I have found that even if I am nagging him about something that is important or even emergent, it does not benefit our marriage.  I could nag him about taking out the trash, but really it is not worth it.  I need to either do it myself (which would be the greatest way of being his help meet) or just shut my mouth.  If we miss trash day because he forgot, then he has to deal with that by himself and I am not adding to the problem by nagging.  We may have overflowing garbage, rodents, or smells....but we have a peaceful marriage b/c I did not nag.  I know it is a strange concept but it truly works....the above has occured in our home!  And I am at the point now where I joyfully pull the trash out to the road myself if he forgets because it helps the man that works so hard to provide for my family and it is another way for me to use my muscles a little :)

4.  I strive not to tell him how to do things, his way is not wrong, it is just different than my way.
5.  I ask his permission/advice except when dealing with an issue or concern that has to be dealt with immediately.  In my humble opinion a husbands greatest desire is to be respected.

6.  I strive to let him lead me and strive to obey him....oh the OBEY word...but gosh it takes some pressure off of me!  I seriously have no problem with the fact that I need to obey my husband.  I feel like where ever he leads us, he has to answer to God and the only question that I am going to be asked in the end is did I follow...I don't have to answer to God for leading my family, that is John's job, and boy am I glad that I can just be the willing participant! 

7.  I strive to find ways to serve him...John is actually much better at this than me but in being his helper in life, I want to find ways to make his life easier....ie, ironing his shirt for work.  It really is the little things.  And this means a lot to John! 

8.  I strive to be a happy, joyful, and positive person...a person/woman is much more desirable and nicer to be around when she has a good attitude!  A mother and wife's attitude can change the entire atmosphere of the home!  (this is a hard one)

I am sure there are others but that is all I can think of right now.  The above is hard but it makes marriage work (at least in my short 10 years of experience).  The home is more peaceful, the marriage bed is loving, the kids are happy, the husband feels respected, the wife feels love, and all fits together...I seriously believe that I am to be his helpmeet, I was created to be his helper, lover, friend, and companion...not his equal.  It feels right to me, it makes sense, it takes the burden off of me, and it makes me happy...it truly does!  I also believe it is biblical.....which is what makes it so important....just my humble opinion...

John and I got a very nice compliment the other day...

A girl that I work with, whom we have also spent a little time outside of work with, made a very nice comment about us and our marriage.  I am not posting this to brag, but posting this to say...the ABOVE is why...it really works and shows through.  We have had many struggles, we are sinners, we have dealt with sin, we fail everyday but God, our faith, Grace, and a desire to make it work...is what makes us better.  My friend, who is not a Christian (does not have any religious background at all) said something to the effect..."You seem to really be a beautiful person on the inside as well as the outside, and John seems to be the same way, your family and marriage seem to radiate this and your life seems truly beautiful, not just picture perfect, but really happy."  This girl is my little "project" for lack of a better word.  She is struggling and I cannot wait to tell her why we are happy and also share with her about our struggles.  I am having lunch with her soon so that I can share.  I can't wait to tell her, after 6 years of working with her and building a friendship with her, that it is only by God's grace that we are even still married!  I have prayed for an opportunity to share my faith with her...and I have had moments where I have shared tidbits but I feel like God is prompting me to share more now and I am so excited for the opportunity!

Some this and that

I don't blog for the most part when John is home...he has started really limiting himself to only a few minutes of FSU football web surfing so I limit myself as well...the computer can really be an addiction!

Molly poops all day long!  John and I have both noticed that she poops more than the other two did.  I am blaming it on her totally nutritious, wholesome, non-processed diet that I feed her.  We haven't bought a jar of baby food yet :)  It has been really fun cooking it all by myself!  John has been super supportive and she loves ALL food!!!  But we do get tired of the 6 poops a day!

I have exercised for 14 days straight now!  Hopefully it is a habit now!  I am running further than I ever have.  I want to start swimming but have no idea how that will work out.  My friend Harriet has encouraged me to sign up with her for a 5K.  She wants to support me and have fun with it...it is called "Run for the Cookies."  When you finish, you get a box of cookies!  Sounds like my kind of race!  John ran with me today.  He pushed Molly because there is no way in you know what that I can run, breath, and push the stroller.  Last week when I ran the furthest that I had ever run, I could not breath...but I could text...I texted Harriet to tell her so she could celebrate with me....but seriously, I couldn't breath :)  I have always hated running but it does make the work out does go by faster when you are running.  Emily ran/walked the 3 miles with me last week, John Daniel has ridden his scooter, they both have gone with me on their bikes....I love it because it is something we can do as a family.  John is doing a bike race out of town in two weeks with my dad called the Croom.  He also signed up for the RedHills Triathlon again in April.  He is doing P90X...one of those infomercial work out insane videos...it is really insane..but the kids love doing it with him...I say that in the loosest of terms, but they think they are doing it with him.  I came home from getting J.D. from school today, and John had put Molly in her high chair with some cheerios to eat and pulled it into the living room while he worked out.  She was happy as a clam, sitting there watching him sweat, curse, and jump around to his work out :)

So with all that said, I can't seem to get it all in....the things that I want/need to do just don't all fit in one day.  It seems like if I have a really good quiet time, work out...then laundry or dinner go by the wayside...then the next day I do housework but can't seem to fit in a work out or my coupon clipping...it is really hard to balance it all and I can't ever seem to fit it all in.

Thursday, I am co hosting a coupon share called frugally feeding your families...a bunch of us moms are getting together to hear some "pros" tell us how they save money at the grocery store and then we can all share ideas, tips, or strategies.  We have had an overwhelming interest!  I am really excited!  I am on a money saving frenzy right now to pay off debt and build up our savings...I am on a mission!

Tuesday, January 12, 2010

Reading is not for fun....

Michael and Debi Pearl, authors


Reading is not for pleasure, at least for me. I read to figure something out, to make myself better, to get information. So, I guess this isn't all bad but I just do not like reading for pleasure. I started reading the best seller, The Shack...and didn't even finish it. It's not because it is boring or a bad read...I just don't enjoy it. I really hope that this doesn't rub off on my children...I really do encourage fun reading for Emily in hopes that she is more like my mother or brother and even my dad more recently. I know it makes you smarter and I know it is good for the brain..yada yada..I just don't enjoy it like some people. I like the idea of books...book fairs at the kids' schools get me excited and we have TONS of books in our house, but I cannot tell you how many "fun" books I have started and never finished! The books I read get me info I need, on subject material that I am interested in. For instance, most of the books that I am reading right now are books about child rearing, marriage, spirituality, being a mom, cook books, or organizing/cleaning. Gosh I sound boring! I really have tried...it just doesn't happen. Even, my list of books about the above are ones that I go and come back to. I usually don't just read through it. I pick out subjects that interest me, etc. I am reading a really awesome book right now called "No greater joy". Yes, it is about child rearing...but I can't seem to put it down right now. I have found this couple named the Pearls that are well, amazing! They have three books out that I have read/picked apart. One is on marriage.."Created to be his helpmeet", the others on child rearing..."To train up a Child" and a compilation of letters called "No Greater Joy". They may have more, I just don't know. Now don't go googling them...some of you may freak...they are conservative, Christian, homeschooling, hard core, old-fashioned, plain, and different. I have never read " a self-help book" that makes so much sense! They seem firm but loving, they are rooted in the truth but know what the world is telling us, they are serious yet so funny....their book on marriage and the way she (Debi Pearl) takes you back through scripture and explains how God designed marriage truly made me a better wife and has saved marriages of friends that I know personally...John loves to hear their advice because it all seems so simple, yet modern marriages and modern men and women don't understand....ahhh...the divorce rate!!!

Now I could go on and on...and some may think that I sound like a old fashioned wife that is stuck doing housework and being at home with the kids and you may think that John is this male chauvinist ruling over me...BUT that is so not how it is and not how they teach it to be (and anyone that knows us could most likely affirm that we have a pretty great marriage, rough spots, but pretty great!)....There will be another post coming very soon on some of what I am learning through their books and going back through scripture but I can't post it all tonight. So, no I don't read for pleasure but I LOVE finding simple truths that seem to make so much sense...
Above is a picture of the Pearls...some of what I was saying about them may make sense after looking at their picture.

Sunday, January 10, 2010

So, I wasted some time....

I wasted some time tonight but it was fun...

I follow some of my friends on their own blog and tonight I noticed how my friend Vanessa had decorated her blogspot...oooohhh how pretty it was. So I started playing and changed my blogsite all around. If you are one of my followers and my blog post just gets emailed to you, well go to my site and check it out just for fun! I had to take the video spot out due to some trouble with the you tube site. My family videos were being infiltrated some how :) Technology!!!! Anyways, I had some fun and made it look all girly...and wasted some time!!!

Now that is what I call a productive day!

Yesterday was what I call a productive day....sometimes it is the little things that make me feel like it has been productive like getting something done I have been thinking about for two days...this was our day.

I had to work..so actually I didn't even think it would be that productive but the day surprised me!

My dear husband got up with me and started a fire in the fireplace and made ham biscuits for breakfast before I left for work.

I got ready for work and made my lunch.

Off to work I went at 7:30 am!

While I was at work, John was a very productive Daddy! (and I promise and he can back me up, I left NO honey do list)

He did all the normal things like feed the kids, get them clothed, etc. He also totally rearranged and straightened Molly's room. He moved her crib on the other side of the room because she has now learned how to open her door if she puts her hand through the crib slats. She would open it and yell at us...he fixed that problem. He picked up misc. stuff that was sitting around the room and vacuumed it!

He cut the cantaloupe that had been sitting on the counter for days...I had been meaning to do it myself and kept forgetting..and he froze some meat for later use..that also needed to be done before it went bad...see it is the little things!

He cleaned the kitchen (all except the big pots).

While Emily watched Molly and played with J.D. (in his direct line of sight), John did his 1 and 1/2 hour P90X work out....it is this crazy hard insane work out that he started...he is on week one and he is feeling the burn!

I got off at 2 and went and got the poor man some powerade to fuel his weary body...

After getting home, I nursed Molly, put her down for a nap, and got the big kids all dressed for our 3 mile run/walk/bike. IT WAS COLD!! The kids and I are in the "3 mile club" and have gone 4 times this week ...we have a route and the kids do great riding their bikes! Molly goes with us when its not so cold! Emily and I practice math facts and spelling words while I run/walk and she rides. Multi-tasking is our game!!!

While we exercised, John swept the floor and laid down for a short nap.

We got back and I finished cleaning the dishes and started dinner.

John started getting ready for work.

The kids each did their chore of the day.

We all sat down for dinner.

I put on a load of laundry and cleaned the kitchen after dinner.

John left for work.

I blogged some and returned some emails.

I got everyone in the bath and ready for bed.

The kids watched a movie and ate a little snack.

Everyone was in bed by 9.

What a day..but I felt very productive...exercising through my "sleepy" part of the day and John getting the cantaloupe cut,diced, and put in the fridge were the highlights!!!

Saturday, January 9, 2010

My list, my prayers, my goals

I once read an article or an example in a book (can't exactly remember where I read this but it has stuck in my mushy brain) that spoke of a mom who every year went to the beach once a year and prayed over her family, her children, their strengths, their goals, the things that needed to be done, etc. She would make lists for herself and for her children...things that she wanted to do, wanted to learn, wanted to teach, wanted to get done. She would make prayer lists for each of her children that included things that she felt God had laid on her heart about each of them. These prayer lists may include prayers about struggles, friends, issues, school, wants, needs, etc. You get the picture. It was her time (just two days) to be alone, to focus, to be totally open and up front with God (not that we can't do this on a daily basis) to set some goals and get some focus. I, being the administrative type, love this. I have been thinking about this a lot. I will not get to go out of town but am thinking about asking John for a whole afternoon to go sit at Maclay Gardens (hopefully it will warm up a bit) by myself and spend some time in prayer and focus on some goals for my kiddos and make some prayer lists. This woman said things changed throughout the year, of course...she would go back to her lists and scratch something off or add something to it and the next year during her alone time she would reevaluate the goals and pray again about what her children needed most during the year....She gave her lists and prayer sheets to her children when they entered college so that they could see all the hopes, dreams, prayers, struggles, triumphs, tears, cries that she had brought before God...how cool is that!

I have some things that I have been mulling over since the turn of the new year and I am going to write them down...they are goals and aspirations for us as a family , for me personally, for my marriage, and specific things for each of my children. I won't spell them all out here but the thought of at least having a journal, a prayer list, a plan makes me happy! And on the top it will say...We want to be a fragrant aroma to God....!!! I would love to make this time of focus and prayer happen and would love to be able to go back and look at it at the beginning of next year and see what God has done in our life...I feel that I may be very humbled and very surprised!

Is there really the perfect chore plan?

I think I have posted before about my numerous attempts to get the kids to do chores...I think it is necessary, I think it is good for them, I even think it is biblical. My Dave Ramsey commission work plan works well but it too has lost its luster right now, especially after Christmas! So, sitting at work today, I came up with something new...a GAME! I wrote on tiny pieces of paper the name of a chore. These are not our "because you are part of the family chores" like picking up dirty clothes, because I am trying to teach them that things like that are part of everyday life and that they are big enough now that they can hold themselves responsible for those things. These are chores like sweep back porch, vacuum living room, empty bathroom trash, do a load of laundry, clean the sink in the bathrooms. Things that I would normally do but that they can do when we are home to help me out. I have figured out that because we are gone some afternoons and because some nights tend to be heavier on homework, that I cannot enforce an everyday chore chart or calendar...it has to be something that can be flexible. That is why I liked the commission work... So once all the chores were on the tiny pieces of paper and folded up, we mixed them around. I even added "free day" on a piece of paper. They each had to draw a piece of paper and do that chore. One problem with the commission work chart is that when they would choose a chore off the chart to work for...they would always choose the same chore for the most part. John Daniel would either choose laundry or dishes. Emily would chose bathroom and floors. Who knows why. But John was saying that that posed the problem that they were not learning a variety of tasks....Emily had no idea how to do the laundry whereas, I could almost leave J.D. doing it by himself... and J.D. never wanted to clean up after himself in the bathroom... So this variety to our game is good. Rules are that they cannot get "free day" more than once in a week and that they cannot do the same chore back to back. And they are not allowed to complain! I don't even think I am going to pay them...they need something different and this did it...they were soooo excited! Maybe I will do a lump payment at the end of the week b/c we are working on saving and giving. So they chose their chore today out of the basket with their eyes closed and they were sooo excited! They even said, "YES!" when I explained the idea to them. Maybe that is the key with chores and charts and to do lists with kids...be flexible, use variety, make it fun, and change it up!~ So Emily drew Vacuum living room and J.D. drew out straighten shoes on shelf in garage. It took them 2 minutes and it helped me out and they were very excited! They just loved the surprise of opening up the little piece of paper....how funny is that!

Tuesday, January 5, 2010

God's New Years Resolutions for us!

At the start of a new year, I always have a want to set goals, write lists, make resolutions and then I realized...it isn't about my goals. Yes, I think it is important for me...it certainly is my personality to want to make lists, set goals, check the list, cross things off, etc. but I starting thinking about what was truly important and took some time over the past week to think about the basics...what does God want for me in 2010!

These are some things that stood out to me and things I want to focus on before I set my sights on completing my own list!

1. Who I am as a Christian (Ephesians 1:1-14)
As a Christian I have been blessed with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ.
He chose me in Him before the foundation of the world that we would be Holy and Blameless before Him. He predestined us. He gave us His grace, which he freely bestowed. In Him we have redemption, forgiveness. He made known to us the mystery of His will. We have obtained an inheritance. We that were the first hope in Christ would be to the praise of His glory. (my favorite)...We are sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit promise!

(Ephesians 2:1-10) He gave us mercy, His great love and we are alive together in Christ (by Grace I have been saved). I will be seated with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus. We received a Gift of God...for it is by grace through faith we are saved. We are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them (love that last part!) The fact that we are his workmanship and that he prepared good works for us beforehand to walk within him is awesome!

(Ephesians 2: 19-22) We are fellow citizens with the saints and are of God's household. Jesus Christ is the cornerstone.

So with all this in mind...what does God want me to be...it is simply spelled out in Ephesians 5...why is this so hard...well because we are sinners but how awesome it is to know I have the instructions laid out for me for 2010...and He is right there wanting me to join him in achieving these most important goals!

I am to be an imitator of God, walk in love, just as Christ also loved me and gave himself for me. I am to be a fragrant aroma (love that!). And verses 3-7 discuss what not to do/be...amongst them is impurity, greed, filthiness, silly talk, covetousness, idolater, deceit....and it says give thanks!

It is going to take me awhile to let all of this set in but I do know that when I read these verses...words and phrases that stood out to me were thanks and fragrant aroma, and good works, Grace, and faith all made me pause! I desire for 2010 to be a blessed year for my family, one where I can look back and say that our family acted in such a way that we were a "fragrant aroma" to God. I still have lists to make, goals to set, but most of all I want to teach the kids what it means to have Jesus as their savior..what it means to have him in our hearts! Every Day I need to step out of bed, and ask for help to be an imitator of God!

Monday, January 4, 2010

Neck ache fixed due to the droid

So my husband got me this handy dandy new very expensive and very sophisticated phone for Christmas. I use to turn the computer on in the morning and check email, facebook, and get wrapped up in other computer stuff during the day. I will admit, my blog is fun but it distracts me because I don't just sit down to write a post, it ends up that I go to other sites to look, browse, and it is time wasted. About a month ago, my neck really started to hurt everyday. I have neck issues but it was getting worse. It probably doesn't help that I sit at the computer at work sometimes for 6 hours and probably don't have the best desk, keyboard, or chair at home. Since getting the droid for Christmas, I rarely turn on the computer. I did it tonight just to sit down and write this but my email alerts me every hour if I have new mail on my phone. I look at it quickly, delete or respond. Facebook is right there on the phone. I have the web, my friends blog and texting all there on my phone. I can pay bills through bill pay on the phone, I even ordered a book from Amazon the other day from my phone...it is always with me, it is quick and effective, and I have realized that my neck no longer hurts. I don't tend to stay on the phone as much surfing web sites, looking at facebook etc because it is smaller and I get distracted, and typing out long emails etc would take too long....this is a good thing!!! I don't think I will be blogging as much...I have thought a lot about that...I will probably miss it but I know it will allow me to get some other stuff done. I might be a little addicted to the computer...and this helps! I have a long list of GOALS for the new year that maybe I will sit down and write about soon...during the day...I am always thinking of blog posts but it might be good to take a little break and enjoy not being attached to this computer and enjoy my pain free neck! And my phone is really cool! Thanks Babe!

Saturday, January 2, 2010

The fantastic tree house





























New Years and Lots of friends

Molly is better and well we wanted to do some play dates with friends that we don't get to hang out with or see all the time. First, we called the Connells and did a switch-a-roo play date meaning that I took the boys and my friend, Ann, took the girls. It is great in that there is no fighting...and they totally entertain each other for hours. I got a lot done that day. John Daniel and Cooper had a grand time in the new tree house! Secondly, we went over to the Boulos' house and played. The Boulos go to our church. Molly and the Boulos #3 girl, Lily, are the same age. Lily has two older sisters. J.D. opted to stay with Daddy. The girls and I went over ate lunch with the Boulos. Susan and I talked couponing, making baby food, scheduling, etc while the bigger girls played. Lily and Molly are only two weeks apart and they just laughed at each other and climbed all over each other. On New Years Eve, we went to Madison to spend some time with the Brewers. We launched J.D.'s rocket 4 times on their property. The kids, John, and Mr. Jeff, ran all over the property chasing the rockets. New Year's Eve night Ms. Harriet and I cooked a big meal. We had pork roast, black eye peas, creamed corn, mustard greens, and cornbread dressing! It was delicious!!!!! We enjoyed a bonfire and then the kids had a sleepover while the grown ups enjoyed a movie! We actually all stayed awake to see the ball drop on TV just after our movie was over. On New Year's Day, we enjoyed breakfast and then Mr. Jeff and John left for Jacksonville to go to the Gator Bowl. The rest of us played in Madison until after lunch and Ms. Harriet came to Tallahassee to keep my kids for me to go to work. She had 6 kids to watch but says they were all awesome! After work, we enjoyed some pizza together before the Brewers went back home. Daddy got back soon after and told us all about the great Seminole win! We are so happy that the Seminoles won and I loved hearing about what they did for Bobby Bowden for his last game! Today, we have another switch-a-roo play date with the Vincent girls. John Daniel and Maddie are playing here, while Emily and Kaylen are at the Vincents. John's watching football and I'm still in my pajamas! We are loving this low key time with family and friends!