Mississippi '08

James and I in Macon, GA. We stopped at a rest stop for a map and some directions.

Christmas morning in January. Someone gave Rebeka spray deodorant. (i think it was dad, maybe he thought it was funny?)

Opening all the presents. :)

My crazy sister-in-law, Stacia!

My mom cleaning the kitchen

Nathan and Hanna

Jesse playing with dad's hat

Nathan, Janel and Jesse- showing some love

Jesse posing for some pics

Jesse again- He's the cutest!

Scruggles

We all decided it would be fun to do a puzzle

Esther and Jesse

Here is the puzzle finished. Yes, it's missing one piece. =(

Dad, Aaron, and James working in the flower beds.

Lydia and Jesse hanging out outside.

Jesse

Dad and Aaron working some more.

Nathan's truck (John D)

My wonderful husband!!! =)

James and I having fun!

Lydia- i'm not sure what she is doing.

James and I again


And again, it was fun...until he started running around the yard with me on his shoulders.


kickin' the ball

Not sure what was going on here.


Kickin' the ball some more, but this time Scruggles wanted to play too.


Head ball


wild


Jesse and Esther playing the keyboard.

This was a fun trip. We all (my parents, 5 sisters, 3 brothers, and 4 in-laws, and my nephew) stayed at my brother Nathan's house. I don't know how his wife put up with all of us. She's amazing for sure!

Saying Grace In A Restaurant

Usually I wouldn't post a forward, but this one was really good. And it does help that I am a BIG fan of Ice Cream! :)

Saying Grace In A Restaurant

Last week, I took my children to a restaurant.

My six-year-old son asked if he could say grace.

As we bowed our heads he said, 'God is good, God is great. Thank
you for the food, and I would even thank you more if Mom gets us ice cream
for dessert. And Liberty and justice for all! Amen!'

Along with the laughter from the other customers nearby, I heard
a woman remark, 'That's what's wrong with this country. Kids today don't
even know how to pray. Asking God for ice cream! Why, I never!'

Hearing this, my son burst into tears and asked me, 'Did I do it
wrong? Is God mad at me?'

As I held him and assured him that he had done a terrific job,
and God was certainly not mad at him, an elderly gentleman approached the
table.

He winked at my son and said, 'I happen to know that God thought
that was a great prayer.'

'Really?' my son asked.

'Cross my heart,' the man replied.

Then, in a theatrical whisper, he added (indicating the woman
whose remark had started this whole thing), 'Too bad she never asks God for
ice cream. A little ice cream is good for the soul sometimes.'

Naturally, I bought my kids ice cream at the end of the meal. My
son stared at his for a moment, and then di d something I will remember the
rest of my life.

He picked up his sundae and, without a word, walked over and
placed it in front of the woman. With a big smile he told her, 'Here, this
is for you. Ice cream is good for the soul sometimes; and my soul is good
already.'

The End

I hope God sends you some Ice Cream today!

Mountain Biking Saturday

James and I decided to take my little brother Andrew with us biking Saturday. It was going to be James, Andrew, our friend Andy and his girlfriend Carmen. We all met at the park as usual. Carmen hadn't been on a bike in awhile so she rode around a little to get used to it. Then we started the ride. Carmen was a trooper, but not long into the ride she had a accident. She hit some roots and rock, and fell with her face on a rock. She ended up slicing a nice gash on her brow bone. She had to have 5 stitches. OUCH!!! I felt so bad for her- Her first ride and she gets all beat up. After that happened we decided to call it a day. So James, Andrew and I went to Stax for lunch, then went to wal-mart to get Andrew a bike helmet.

Later Saturday evening James and I went to the cabin. We had some smoked meat. YUM YUM! Home smoked. It was the best I've had in a long time.=)

Yesterday we literally did nothing, and it was great! We didn't go to church, i never got out of my Pj's, we just talked and watched TV, and did laundry. I loved it!!!!

It's Friday

Friday! Finally. This is my favorite part of the week- the weekend. Tomorrow James and I are planning to mountain bike downtown with some friends, and then hang out for awhile. I am so looking forward to it! We haven't been able to ride for a few weeks, and we really need the workout. As far as I have heard it should be a nice day tomorrow, but it may be a little cool. The sun has finally come out today. =)

Here is a little more about me. I have worked at a lumber yard for the past 4 years. It's never really been my favorite place, but it worked for me. Right now, and for the past while it has not really worked for me. I really like the flexibility of the job. I work part time and come and go pretty much as i please. The atmospher is terrible though. So I am thinking about doing something else. Maybe something like a coffee shop. I would love to be able to work 4 or 5 hours in the mornings. I work for a packaging store also. It's fun, but it takes up all of my evenings, and i'm not crazy about that. Although I'm not a big on cooking, I like being home when my husband gets home from work.

I am also thinking a little about going to school. I haven't decided anything yet. I really just started thinking about it at all. The idea sounds nice, but you just never know. And I have no idea what I would take. Hmmmm........ I will keep thinking about it.......

The Family

Aaron, Janel, Jesse, Rebeka, Esther, Dad, Mom, Me, James, Andrew, L.D., Ashley, Stacia, Nathan, Lydia, Hanna

Above is a picture of the whole family. Wow! It won't be long before we won't all be able to fit in one picture together. =) Our wedding was awesome! Thanks to our friend Dr. H. He made our day so special! It was great to have everyone there, too.

all the girls- Stacia (sister-in-law), Janel, Rebeka, Me, Esther, Ashley (sister-in-law), Hanna, Lydia