50 Years

My husbands parents celebrated their 5oth wedding anniversary while we were back east. Actually that is the main reason that we went home was to throw them a party to celebrate. The whole day was such a blessing from start to finish. We had a big white catering tent sent up, we hired a bluegrass band, it was catered to make life easy for us. We had all the white lights and white linens on the round tables with colorful centerpieces and candles. They were calling for thunderstorms that evening, around 2 o'clock we heard a rumble and Beth(Jim's sister) and I prayed aloud as we heard it rumble. And God heard our prayers, it turned out to be a beautiful night. Everything went so smoothly... the best part of the night was when Jim's parents got up and honored each other. Their words were so sweet and heart felt, and so full of the gospel. God's grace is truly sufficient, he is so faithful to give them such a loving marriage. I am a beneficiary of their love for the Lord and their love for each other. I get to spend my life with their son and get to receive their input and wisdom passed to him. I am so grateful for them and for raising their son to be a man of God. Here are some pictures of Jim's parents dancing the night away... I loved watching them enjoy themselves, they are so cute!

Cousins

How sweet it is to be joined to another by blood. There is a sense of sameness, it brings a closness that cannot be found with others. The feeling that you are chosen to be a part of this family and no other. You don't need time to warm up to each other, you don't feel the need to hide who you are, you just are who you are and you are loved for that person. Such is the case with Mady and Christian, here they are enjoying their time together. Parting is such sweet sorrow....

Happy Father's Day

To our Daddy,

There are many moments that make up a lifetime but only a few that make up a childhood. Thank you Daddy for always being just as excited to see us as we are to see you at the end of the day. Thank you Daddy for being a man who's heart is for the Lord, who leads us to a knowledge of our Savior. Thank you Daddy that His spirit that was placed in you draws all of our hearts closer to him by your example. Thank you Daddy for working so hard for our family. Thank you daddy that our family comes first in your life. Thank you daddy for playing superman, pillow time, Ready Set Go, Chase around the patio, and for teaching me how to ride a bike. Thank you Daddy that you never grow tired of repeating the same answer to me even when I have asked you the same question before. Thank you for the way that you dance with me and pretend to be my prince. Thank you the way you wrestle with me and let me climb all over your back and front and every limb that you have. Thank you for believing in me and believing in the promises that God has for my life. Thank you for being there for all of my moments and not wanting to be anywhere else. We know this, we sense this, every time we look in your eyes, we know how much you adore us and we hope that today you know how much we adore you and how much we love our Daddy.

I'm Back

I have been disconnected from my blog for awhile. I was out of town visitng my family back east. It was great seeing my family, especially my sister and her two boys( our kids are the same ages). I loved watching the cousins play and laugh and beat each other up, it truly made my heart swell with joy. It seemed like we had just settled in and it was time to head back home.
We spent the first part of the trip at Jim's parents house for their 50th wedding anniversary. We threw them a party the was straight off the pages of the Great Gatsby, it truly was that magnificient. It was hard to leave them as well, Mady loved playing with her BIG cousins as well.
I will be posting pictures and stories from my time away... just to play a little catch up. As there were many memorable moments I want to record. My DSL has been very fickle since I have returned home, that's why I haven't posted until now. So hopefully it won't be long before another post, my apologiies to those who have been waiting.

Yard Sale

We had our yearly yard sale today. Yes, once of year we get rid of all of the junk that has been accumulating or all of the projects that never got finished and pile it all onto our driveway. I find that there are two kinds of people in this world those who don't like yard sales and those that do. I have always loved bargain hunting and searching for things that I can fix up and make new again. I equate myself to a pirate searching for gold in the vast sea of yard sales that take place on any given Saturday morning. I always find the best treasures burried under ugly paint or unpolished brass. I always take my first mate Mady with me, it's fun to watch her as she digs through chests of toys to find the one gems she can add to her artillary. And I am happy to oblige her as the cost of her new found treasure is usually under $1.00. We scour the coastal yard sales early and the hit the inland sales on our way home. Today however we gave our day to offering our lost treasures to those who would find a new one. We didn't do quite as well as we had hoped, we have been pretty good about getting rid of things lately. But it was great to talk to the neighbors and to interact with the people who came to shop. I actually was able to clip some of my jasmine for a muslim lady and talk to her and her husband about the Lord. So the Lord had his hand our day and rewarded me with a little less junk and a heart full of joy.

Simple Pleasures

Peanut Butter and Jelly... A Symbol Of Childhood.

Summer is Here

Yesterday we went to the beach. It was such a beautiful day. I watched Mady running around splashing in the waves and shrilling with delight. Aslan also took his first turn in the water since he has been walking. Yes.. that's right he is walking now. He loved how the water would chase him up and down the beach. He reminded me of a little sandpiper scurring up away from the water only to run it down again. I love being with my children, they are so carefree. They remind me how to live a life of freedom one that is surrendered to the Lord.