Merry Christmas

Heading out to my mom's for Christmas.
At least this year we won't get snowed in!
Hope everyone has a blessed Christmas!

For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government shall be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6

Happy Birthday Jesus!

December Already?

Where did this year go? I'm just now getting used to 2010 and its almost gone already!
As we're sitting here by the fireplace watching "Holiday Inn"for the third time this season, I'm trying to think back on what happened over the year. I'm realizing what a boring, I mean quiet year we've had. I guess its good to have one of those every once in a while.

Okay, so I'm going to just list 10 things about 2010.

1. Mike lost his job.
2. Mike found a job. (A six month contract, still praying it becomes permament.)
3. Baby Maci entered the family.
4. Saw God's hand in several situations.
5. No dogs or cats were dumped on us this year! (Oh yeah, that's big!)
6. Everybody stayed healthy. (Thank you Lord!)
7. School, school, and more school.
8. Decided to have two kids graduate instead of one.
9. Got four bushels of apples off two of our little apple trees. I was thrilled!
10. Mike bought a chain saw. (Okay, so I'm desperate!)

Oh, and I got a new camera for my birthday last week! I can take pictures again! Now if I could only find some willing victims, I mean subjects!

So, I wonder what exciting things will happen next year!

Fun Pics

I love it when my daughters decide to do a photo shoot.

They have a lot of fun together.

Most of the time :)

Introducing...

My great-niece, Maci Eryn Elizabeth.

Born 10/10/10.

In hospital room 10.

Yep, she's a perfect 10 ! :)

Although she was born 5 weeks early, she seems to be perfectly healthy.

Welcome to the world little one!

Happy B-day!

Somebody turned 50 this month.







I guess we should have told him beforehand. :)

Happy Birthday Honey!

We love you!

No Longer Jobless!!!

God promised to provide, and He did! Mike starts to work on Tuesday. It's a 6 month contract, but he was told that this company frequently hires their contract workers. So we're excited about the contract and hoping it turns permament. God is good!

A couple of weeks ago (before the job) we weren't going to be able to make the house payment. We prayed about it and knew God would provide. After church, a dear man we know handed me an envelope and told me to put it in my purse. I opened it in the car and guess what was inside? Yep. A check for the exact amount we needed! I was giggling the rest of the night. Our God is an awesome God!

On another note, school is in full swing. We now have a sixth grader, a freshman, and two seniors. How did that happen? I'm afraid this year is going to go way too fast. I'm not ready to give up two of my kiddos next year. At times these school days seem to go so slow, then you blink and all of a sudden they're almost over. I enjoy having my kids at home with me all the time, so next year is going to be a big change! Maybe the Lord will send us a couple more - I'm praying for it! : )

We are still jobless in Oklahoma. Am I worried? I should be-at least that what Satan keeps trying to convince me. But what does God say about it?

Philippians 4:6
Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.

1 Peter 5:7
Casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.

Philippians 4:19
And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.

I just have to look at all the ways he's provided for us during this time to be reminded that He is faithful. Like the electric company telling us we overpaid in the past, giving us a $100 credit for this month. And the cell phone company overcharging us for several monthes, so that we now have a $500 credit! And the girls' piano teachers deciding that they want to give the girls free lessons until Mike gets a job! How cool is that? And allowing the kids to go to youth camp and the church mission trip (where Bethany was privileged to pray with a young girl to accept Christ!). And being able to replace the kitchen floor. And all the gifts people have blessed us with. This has actually been a pretty exciting time, just to sit back and watch the Lord work! I don't know how many times I've just started giggling at what He's done!

Psalm 105:1
O, give thanks to the Lord! Call upon His name; make known His deeds among the peoples.

Psalm 77:12
I will also meditate on all Your work, and talk of all Your deeds.

Oh yeah, He's good!

Happy Birthday Michael

Yesterday was Michael's birthday. How did he turn 15 already? From a little colicky baby who cried continuously for the first 14 monthes of his life, to a young man who towers almost 6 inches above his mom (yes I want to cry); he has been such a joy to raise. He definitely keeps us on our toes!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOOSE! LOVE YOU!

Waiting on the Lord

For the past couple of years, it seems like the Lord has spoken to me time and again about waiting on Him.

Isaiah40:31
But those who wait on the LORD shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles, They shall run and not be weary, They shall walk and not faint.

Psalm 25:4-5
Show me Your ways, O LORD; Teach me Your paths. Lead me in Your truth and teach me, For You are the God of my salvation; On You I wait all the day.

Job 35:14
Although you say you do not see Him, Yet justice is before Him, and you must wait for Him.

Isaiah 30:15,18
For thus says the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel: “ In returning and rest you shall be saved; In quietness and confidence shall be your strength.” But you would not, Therefore the LORD will wait, that He may be gracious to you; And therefore He will be exalted, that He may have mercy on you. For the LORD is a God of justice; Blessed are all those who wait for Him.

Isaiah 64:4
For since the beginning of the world, Men have not heard nor perceived by the ear, Nor has the eye seen any God besides You, Who acts for the one who waits for Him.

Psalm 27:14
Wait on the LORD; Be of good courage, And He shall strengthen your heart; Wait, I say, on the LORD!

So I’ve been thinking a lot lately about what it means to wait on Him. I mean, I’ve heard that phrase my whole life, but I don't think I ever stopped and thought about what it really means.

Webster defines “wait” this way:

:to stay in place in expectation of
: to remain stationary in readiness or expectation
: to look forward expectantly
: to hold back expectantly

So if we are waiting for something, we are expecting it to happen. If I’m sitting in traffic waiting for the red light to change, I’m expecting it to change. Why would I be waiting for it to turn green if I’m not really expecting it to?

If I'm waiting on a teakettle of water to boil, I'm expecting it to eventually boil. It would be foolish to sit there waiting on it if I'm not really expecting it.

In the same way, why would I be waiting on the Lord if I’m not really expecting Him to act? To keep the promises that He’s made to me? Am I really believing Him?


I don’t remember where I got this quote, but I love it.

Prayer without expectancy is disbelief in disguise.

And what does God say about disbelief?

Hebrews 3:12
Beware, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God.

Hebrews 3:19
So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief.

Matthew 13:58
Now He did not do many mighty works there because of their unbelief.

Mark 6:6
And He marveled because of their unbelief.

Mark 16:14
Later He appeared to the eleven as they sat at the table; and He rebuked their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they did not believe those who had seen Him after He had risen.

That's pretty strong.
So if I'm waiting on the Lord, I'd better be believing in Him and His word!

Hebrews 10:23
Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.

Oh yes, GOD IS FAITHFUL to keep His Word!

Fallen Heroes

As we near this time of celebrating our country's birthday, I want to honor two of our fallen heroes who gave their lives protecting our freedom.

Jaron Holliday was the son of some dear friends of ours. In August 2007, he was killed in Iraq when his vehicle hit a roadside bomb. He was 21 years old. He had 7 little siblings who looked up to him very much, and was a very accomplished pianist who loved the Lord. He loved people and always took the time to brighten someone's day. He loved to make them smile. A few days before his death, he had red roses sent to his mom, who was undergoing chemo for breast cancer. His homegoing left a hole in many hearts.

Last week another young man in our church family was killed in Afghanistan by a suicide bomber. Andrew Looney was 22 years old and had been in the country for 6 weeks. He had been wounded in Iraq in 2007 when a roadside bomb exploded. He lost part of a foot and suffered a traumatic brain injury. After spending over a year in rehab, he was determined to return and fight for his country.

I can't imagine what these families have gone through, and are still going through. I pray that the Lord will carry them in His loving arms and heal their hearts.

Thank you boys for giving your lives so that we may remain free!

Big Jake

18 years ago today, I became a mom.

I made the mistake of blinking, and now my son is an adult.

Happy Birthday Jacob!!

We love you and are so proud of the young man that you've become!

This and That

It's been awhile since I've posted; not a whole lot going on, and someone in our family lost the camera.
( I later found the camera in the bottom of a bag of mine I had taken on a trip. oops! sorry kids!)


Days are going by quickly - tomorrow's the last day of school! YEAH! I am so ready to be done this year! Of course then comes the fun of picking next year's curriculum. My youngest is already complaining about being bored and wanting to get started on next year's work. Oh no, this mama's taking a break!

We went to Six Flags a couple of weeks ago and that was the most fun we've had in a while. I actually got my oldest two on the Shock Wave with me! I've got to say that Tony Hawk's Big Spin is an absolute blast! The cars spin around as they go down the track. I don't know when I've laughed so hard! ( I need to stop here and thank the Lord for continued healing of my back. Compared to where I was 2 years ago, I was absolutely thrilled to be enjoying roller coasters again! I'll have to do a post later on the path the Lord has been leading me down.)

Let's see, what else has been going on? The garden is in and growing, my niece graduated from high school this week, Bethany's mission trip to Mexico has been postponed due to violence down there, and my dear husband was laid off from work 4 weeks ago.

The Lord is so good! A couple of weeks before Mike was laid off, the Lord told me one day to fast. I asked Him what specifically to be praying for and I heard Him say, "Your husband's job". So I knew something was going to happen, but didn't know what. Later in the day He told me "Pray
big". So I started praying that Mike would either get a big raise where he was, or the Lord would place him in another job with a big pay increase. ( So we can do some things the Lord's been speaking to us about!) Well, then he got laid off and I got excited! I can't wait to see what the Lord has planned! In the meantime, the Lord's stretching our faith - this is definitely a growing time!

Fun stuff!

Romans 8:28

And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.

More Sarah

I had so much fun looking through Sarah's baby pictures, I just to had to post some more!

No, I really did not clean my baby with Ajax and a scrub brush!

We love you Princess Grace!