God with us...

Happy Birthday Jesus Party!
(we made our own hats)

Merry Christmas friends! I hope you all enjoyed a wonderful time with your family as we did.

A few days ago Ella came down the stairs after waking up chatting as she usually does. But this day was filled with a conversation that went something like this...

"Mom, God protected me. God was with me". Me: "Really Ella?" "Yes Mom, I was scared in my room and God was with me". I absolutely loved her honesty and the sweet realization that she had that she could call on God...that little verse we are always saying to her... "what time I am afraid, I will trust in God." And she knew it.

We had our first Southbridge Christmas Eve service on Wednesday, which was wonderful! The worship Christmas music and the powerful message of hope that my husband preached were right on. He said around 10 people raised their hands to trust Christ between the two services held that day. Praise the Lord! He is with us and He is working to change lives every day.

We had a Happy Birthday Jesus party a couple of days before Christmas. We wanted to take every opportunity to share why we celebrate this season with our girls and make lasting memories. As I watched commercials and even the news this year, I was struck with the realization that the world simply can't deal with Jesus. They have to have something or someone else to focus their attention on during this season, because it couldn't possibly be about the Christ-child who came to be with us.. to save his people from their sins, like Luke 2 says. What a message of hope.. that so many miss. I hope you too will take opportunities to share this truth.

Merry Christmas!! Much love to you all!

Three!

Ella Grace just turned three on November 8th! How did that happen? It seems like just months ago that we locked eyes for the first time. She was as pretty as she could be with the sweetest little eyes and pouty bottom lip. Love.

She is growing so much and learning so quickly. We laugh quite a bit at the way she views life.. because it is unique. Scott asked her a series of questions the other night and I thought it was so interesting that I'd share it here..

Scott: who cares for you Ella?

Ella: Mommy

Scott: who protects you?

Ella: Daddy

Scott: who loves you Ella?

Ella: God does

Mmm.. I love that my girl knows these things and knows at such a young age that God loves her and has given her parents that will care for her and protect her. This past year has been a struggle in many ways as well. We're learning to listen to our girl's heart when she's misbehaving and try to figure out what's going on in her heart to make her act that way. God has taught us so much and continues to and we are so grateful for that.

Little sis Ava is getting big too. She's running all over the house and talking like crazy. She's a real joy and a blessing to Ella. Here are a few pics of the girls...

I love the Fall!

Ella was so proud of herself on this pony.

Mimi took Ava and my niece Skylar through the maze. They are just 8 weeks a part. So fun!







Ahh.. the picture we planned this entire event around. :)









oh..don't you think we look alike?

The cool crisp air, pumpkin butter, delicious smelling candles and the pumpkin patch are just a few of the reasons that I love the Fall. Yesterday our family went to the Hillshire Farms in Youngsville for the best-ever trip to the pumpkin patch.


When we arrived, we were greeted by loads and loads of pumkins in a nearby field, all sorts of farm animals, a pond, hay mazes, and a Tee-pee! The "Chuckwagon Grill" was cooking up all sorts of yummy things to eat and gave us the feeling that we were just stepping back in time to a more simple day. The girls loved it. They were squeeling from the minute we arrived and continued laughing and smiling all day. My parents "Mimi" and "Papa" came, as well as my sister, brother in law and their 3 kiddos. We had a wonderful day. Enjoy the pics!





ps. the pumpkin butter comment is because someone in my community group gave all of us pumpkin butter from Williams Sonoma. It is so delicious! I added it to a cake and some frosting the other day to make what could have been an average dessert... very Fall-like. :)

Beautiful mountain weekend

It was Friday morning and Scott and I were off! The girls were laughing and playing with Mimi as we ran out the door. We were so thrilled to have a weekend away.. the purpose: a garden-mountain wedding! We headed to Asheville in a torrential downpour! When we finally arrived, we checked into our B&B..precious! It had the coolest wrap around porch with gazebo and all. Their cat greeted us first and then the Inn owners. This whole concept of a B&B is actually quite fun. I dreamed for a minute of owning one, but Scott quickly put that to rest. :)

The rehearsal was done under umbrellas with our heels sinking deep into the garden, which was quickly becoming mud.. but oh, if it just wouldn't rain, but a beautiful setting this would be for a wedding.

Saturday arrived and it was a lovely mountain day. There was a small breeze and a chill in the air, which was exactly what I was hoping for. Scott and I walked around and shopped the cute town of Waynesville and ate at the yummiest little restaurant called "Sweet Onion". Right up my alley and they even had the MSU football game on, so it was up his as well. We laughed at having "the best of both worlds".

The wedding was at 3:30, officiated by my precious husband, who made it so personal and sweet to them. We have been counseling this sweet couple over the past 6 months as they prepared for their big day. I helped direct the wedding, which has become a very fun little thing for me to do.

The reception was held in the garden of a B&B..beautiful! Mountains in the background, lights hanging down, guests mingling and really not going anywhere, because they had all pledged their love and their weekend to this wedding. It was divine!

Sunday morning was unlike any Sunday morning that we've had in a while! We missed our sweet church and of course prayed for our other teaching pastor first thing and then after a great breakfast at our B&B, we hopped in the car headed to Asheville.. home of the Biltmore Estate. This was George Vanderbilt's claim to fame for those of you who have not visited. This was our first time.. a right of passage to being a true North Carolinian. We had a ball. This property was unbelievable..a winery, an Inn, the house, gardens and much much more! We really enjoyed ourselves.

After all that fun, we hopped back in the car racing towards Raleigh, so that we could kiss our girls before their bedtimes. It was a rejuvenating and sweet time for us. We decided we'd just have to do that again!

updates

Well, I haven't been so great about updating, so here we go!

Ava did well with her frenulectomy last week. She was a real champ that day and then followed it with a cold and lots of cranky, so last week was full with all of that. She's doing great now and has been laughing with her sister and walking all over the house.

Ella has started preschool just one morning a week. We're so excited for her as she learns how to share with others and be in a structured environment. We are learning so much about our "passionate" little Ella, but it has been good for all of us. God is teaching Scott and I a lot about parenting right now. We pray continually for His wisdom.

Yesterday morning I took the girls on a walk and as we walked we talked all about God's creation and "Noah and the ark", because that's what Ella really wanted to talk about. It's been so sweet to hear her tell me the stories that we've told her. She has a real sensitivity to the Word of God and that's encouraging.

Scott and I are keeping busy of course. The last few weeks have been so full of stressful decisions and stressful situations that we're just tired. But, this weekend we'll be in the mountains for a wedding of a sweet couple that we've been counseling (pre-maritally). We look forward to a little time away just the two of us! I can just imagine getting up and smelling that fresh mountain air as the Lord rejuvinates us both and brings us back for more!

I've been reading "The New Eve" by Robert Lewis, one of Scott's mentors from Little Rock. Incredible book for any woman-especially younger women who are concerned about doing it right the first time! I feel a sense of urgency about life and how I want to do all that I can for the Lord. I want to raise my children well, love my husband well and serve others well. I want to look back and say, "yes! that was a great life!" That might sound silly, but it's really my heart's desire.. we only get one shot and I want mine to count.

That's all for today...enjoy the pics of my sweeties!

My Song

Psalm 28:7 The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusted in Him, and I am helped; therefore my heart greatly rejoices, and with my song I will praise Him.
My little Ava Sophia went to an Ear, Nose, and Throat doctor this morning to have her frenulum clipped (under your tongue) and while we were all geared up with my Mom in tow, the Lord had other plans. I read this verse before we left and just asked the Lord for His peace, because as any of you mothers know, you'd much rather have something/anything happen to you than your babies.
She'll have outpatient surgery in the next couple of weeks to have it done "gently" and without trauma. Thank you Lord for a sweet physician who cared about how my Ava would respond to this!!
Wednesday morning I was up early. Took a walk before my girls got up.. I thought the morning was off to a great start. But then, I burned my ear and broke my coffee pot.. all before7:30am. While leaving in a hurry, I backed into my husband's car in the driveway.. real nice. So after apologizing and feeling just horrible, I got back into my car (now running late) and turned on the radio. I heard the best song by Natalie Grant. The words went like this.. "On Christ the solid rock I stand, all other ground is sinking sand.. I will not be moved!" I thought.. this is my song! It was the encouragement I needed at that moment to refocus on my sweet Lord as I took off for the day. I could just sense that He was slowing me down and telling me to look at Him. It ended up being a wonderful day of talking with a friend who is growing in her new relationship with Christ and getting a lot of errands done.. just more slowly this time. :)
So, you could say that God is putting new songs in my heart.. sweet, isn't it?
See this song at Natalie's myspace link.

Can somebody give God Praise??

I read this question on the sign of a tiny little church near our house a few weeks ago and I thought it was so funny. But, today, I just have to!

I'm thrilled really, at the way God is working here. Moving in our church and in our people. I love to hear of people inviting friends to their church and then their friends make decisions to follow Jesus. That happened at Southbridge today and it just thrills my heart!

My husband was able to lead an 82 year old woman to Jesus today as well. Statistics would say that most people who choose to follow Christ will do so before the age of 13.. wow. That should challenge all of us young moms. But today, the Lord again beat the odds and brought an 82 year old woman into His Kingdom.

So, Praise God!

This has been a busy summer, but so much fun. We started out a little slow with my back injury, which is doing so much better. I'm still at the chiropractor weekly and being very careful how I move, but I've been able to go running again, which is another joy of mine and I literally crave it.

We spent a week in Hilton Head, which is what these pics are from. The girls loved the pool moreso than the ocean, which was fine by Scott and I. We don't like to be dirty. :)

A little update on the girls: Ava isn't walking yet.. nor does she have any teeth at 14 months! But, it will all come in time. Ella has learned to swim, with swimmies and is doing so well. She's obsessed with "baptisms", which I'll have to write about another time and she's such a little social butterfly. We're really enjoying this stage with our girls.

So again, we give God praise!

TKO

...I've been down for the count for a week now. I suffered a bad back injury last Wednesday morning that caused lots of "subluxation" in my back and very tense muscles in response. So, since last Wednesday morning, I've been totally knocked out! Literally in bed and unable to even pick up my sweet children. That's been the worst part.. worse than the pain that I have felt with almost every movement. I'm now turning a corner as of today and doing so much better.
During this week, I've had friends living out Acts 2 in the sweetest ways. Pregnant friends coming over to care for my babies, friends folding my laundry and cleaning my bathroom!!, coming at 7am on Sunday morning to stay with us during church so that my husband can go preach, taking me back and forth every day to the chiropractor, providing meals so that my family doesn't starve in my absense, and loving on us every which way. It's been amazing.
I feel like I could just cry even typing this. I have had the thought over and over this week of how lavish God is. When He does something... He really does it. And He places in our hearts ideas and ways that we can serve one another and these friends really responded.
I can't tell you how many times this week I've heard, "this is such a blessing for us".. and you know, I actually believe it. The joy that I see on my friends faces as they lovingly help us is for REAL. All I can say is... Thank you! In fact, tonight after a friend dropped off some groceries knowing that I hadn't been to the store) he had bought "My little Pony" cupcakes for Ella. As she prayed tonight, she thanked God for her "pony cupcakes". I am so grateful that at such a young age my babies can experience Christ's love from our sweet friends.

Baby girl turned One!!!

It's been a happy birthday for little miss Ava. She's one today! Oh, how the time has flown by. I literally cannot believe it's been one year since my precious girl joined our family. Last night, as I prayed over her in our nightly fashion, I couldn't help but remember a few things about last year on that night.....

I cried all evening, because I felt so bad for Ella. I thought "this poor girl's world" would be turned upside down by bringing a new little person into our home.... only to realize now what a gift her sister has been to her.

I found myself anxious as could be, to meet this new little girl, but a little unsure of how my heart could love her the same as my firstborn... only to realize that God made my heart for my little Ava and it aches for her when we're apart.

I was already tired from 9 months of pregnancy and wondered how I'd ever have the strength for TWO little ones... only to find that He renews me each day and gives me just what I need... even if that's different than what I think I need. :)

Thank you Lord for my precious girls and the gifts they are to us!

Here are a few pictures from Ava's birthday party today. It was a "Tea Party" theme with

peti fours and tea sandwiches. So much fun!! Ava's having her first bite of cake in the first picture and both girls are having tea with my mom in the last picture. :)

The Zoo!!

We just took our girls to the NC Zoo and it was such a fun day of zebra's, rhino's, baboons and my personal favorite, the giraffe. What beautiful creatures! I couldn't help but imagine however what poor Noah and his family must have experienced on their wooden boat for almost a year!

The smells... oh the smells.

But, nonetheless, our family had a great time and here's a few pictures of us enjoying God's creation.

Pure Fashion

Sunday afternoon, Ella and I had the opportunity to attend the Pure Fashion show put on by our friends who own Creative Visions. It was such a special time. This event is the culmination of an 8 month mentorship for young ladies in their teens who want to learn how to carry themselves and dress modestly while still looking great! I was so thrilled to see that Kohl's and Dillards sponsored the event heavily and even supplied their clothes for the models to wear. The models were the cutest teen girls who have a desire to be pure in all areas of their lives, especially their dress. They realize that they need to help boys be pure as well and there is quite an emphasis on that subject. I'm sure all of you who have little men can appreciate that!
Lisa Rice was the keynote speaker from "For young ladies only" and the other more famous books in the series like "For Women Only" which many of you have probably already read.
Nate Sallie was the artist for the event and was great!
I immediately thought of all you Dallas girls, because I think a program like this would go over so well there and it's now a National program. I imagine many of us who have little girls standing in their closets someday or shopping at the mall and the conversations we'll have about taking a stand to dress modestly. What an encouragement for a young mom to know that programs that are "cool" exist for our girls!

Watch this clip of it if you'd like to see what this is all about:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=UH_xAdq5UFw&feature=related

We're back from Hawaii!!!

Well, how can I describe the most beautiful place in the world?? This was our second time in Hawaii and we still think it's true. This trip, we stayed on Maui, which was so fun. The island is so lush and beautiful and we saw rainbows at least once a day! Scott and I had an eventful time getting there due to American Airlines canceling a ridiculous amount of flights that day, but after we got there, we had a super time. We went whale watching, ate great sea food, relaxed in the nice lagoon style pools in our hotel, shopped and laughed harder than we've laughed in a really long time. It was absolutely what we needed.

Scott and I used to travel quite regularly before we had our little girls and we had been missing a little time away, just the two of us, so this trip was literally heaven-sent. And, you know that's true if you read that I won this fabulous trip. Thank you Lord!!!

Enjoy the pics!

Easter

Easter this year was such a joy! We've had our house decorated for a few weeks so that we could really enjoy all the pretty colors and talk about what Easter means. It's such a celebration for those of us who know Christ! We celebrate that he is alive in heaven, that after dying a miserable death on the cross for us, he defeated death and lives! What wonderful news to share with our children!!

We had an Easter egg hunt and breakfast a couple of weeks ago at our house with several of our young families from church to help them get connected to one another. That was a real joy for us. Then, yesterday after an amazing message by my husband at church (if I do say so myself :) ) our family came over for another easter egg hunt (for the kids of course) and lunch.

We had a record number of people at Southbridge yesterday... 730!!! Wow, what a blessing to see God moving here in might ways! People trusted Christ in both services and we just couldn't rejoice more at this amazing work that God called us to. While it has been unbelievable amounts of hard work to move here away from a place we loved and friends we still miss terribly and just starting a church in general is a lot of work, God is doing immeasureably more than we could ask or imagine!! Praise Him!

Hawaii????

Well, I have some exciting news! I won a trip for 2 to Hawaii from Evite.com.... yea, no one ever wins those things, right?? Well, apparently God graciously thought that Scott and I should! We're really excited about going in April to Maui. Evite has payed for absolutely everything, even a really nice trip to the spa and our spending money! Unbelievable!!

If you follow the link below, you can see our picture on Evite. :)

http://blog.evite.com/evite/2008/03/aloha-hawaii.html

Box of Blessings

Yesterday was my 30th birthday. Since being an adult I haven't always enjoyed my birthday, except for last year when I found out that I was having a little baby girl, who we've named Ava Sophia and now, I can add yesterday to the list of really great birthdays!

I had visits from a few friends and phone calls from family, but as the day went on it became apparent to me that blessings were all around me. We found out that some dear friends in our community group who've we've been praying very specific prayers of provision for are now staying in Raleigh as God provided exactly what they were needing in relation to his job. Then, I found out that a baby that our community group has been supporting at Duke (even set up a Foundation for a surgery that she needs to have) has been given almost half of the amount that is necessary to be raised in order for her to have the surgery that she needs to save her life!! After dinner with my family, we "stopped by" some friends' house so "they could wish me a happy birthday", only to find my entire community group and family there to surprise me and have a serious chocolate fest!! It was so much fun!!

But, then it got better... they sat me in a chair and all came around me and prayed blessings on me and then presented me with a "blessings box" in which they had all written kind notes, verses, and prayers of blessing for me. As I layed in bed reading them last night, I was truly touched by the people God has brought into my life! I am not only having so much fun with them, but I am spiritually encouraged every time I leave them.

As I think through where God wants to use me right now, I realize that it's so much with my special girls as I pour into them all that I know about Christ and His love for them, but He is so kind to give me others as well. It might be counseling a lady from church or spending time with a friend or sharing Jesus with the girl who cuts my hair. I resonate with a song by Britt Nicole that says, "I want to set the world on fire" ... being used by God to ignite something great in this world! That's where I'm at and I'm thrilled to think of what He will use me to do.

May you experience the love of Christ, though it is so great, you may never fully understand it. Then you will be filled with the fullness of life and power that comes from God.

Ephesians 3:19