I've often wished I could go beyond the template suggestions in Blogger without having to pay a lot of money. But since I'm not all that computer-savvy and have really no idea how to do it myself, I contented myself with the Blogger options. Until now.
Sarah has a beautiful new blog design. And when she mentioned it was free, I headed right over to The Cutest Blog on the Block and got my own free blog background. It was so easy! Thanks, Sarah. And, thanks, Ashley.
I was even able to customize my font colors!
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
The Flood
Sometimes we have a flood of activities. In the last five days I have :
*Made cute doll t-shirts and purses at Michaels (for free!)
*Brought Faith, Joy, and Grace to a total of four Nutcracker practices
*Attended a birthday party
*Attended a college ministry swim party in which the only people swimming were my girls
*Went to church
*Hosted our small group at our house
*Quickly cleaned up (as best we could) for small group
*Watched a friend's children
*Taken the girls to a total of three dance classes
*Eaten out with Paul and the girls
*Stood in line for 30 MINUTES at Stuffmart!!! (With all four girls!)
*Went to and helped at our first 4-H meeting
*Helped Paul lead a class for engaged couples in our home (and cleaned up and made a dessert for that)
*Homeschooled the girls
*Went to Wednesday night church
*Witnessed this last night on the way home
The picture doesn't do God's creation justice. And there was a second, fainter rainbow above it that disappeared by the time we got home. As I was thinking about the rainbow today and what it means, I realized that not only does God promise never to flood the earth with water, but He also promises never to allow my life to become flooded with more than I am able to bear in Him. Psalm 142:3 says, "When my spirit was overwhelmed within me, You knew my path."
God does know my path, and when I am following Him, He will lead me beside still waters and restore my soul, even in the midst of what may seem overwhelming.
*Made cute doll t-shirts and purses at Michaels (for free!)
*Brought Faith, Joy, and Grace to a total of four Nutcracker practices
*Attended a birthday party
*Attended a college ministry swim party in which the only people swimming were my girls
*Went to church
*Hosted our small group at our house
*Quickly cleaned up (as best we could) for small group
*Watched a friend's children
*Taken the girls to a total of three dance classes
*Eaten out with Paul and the girls
*Stood in line for 30 MINUTES at Stuffmart!!! (With all four girls!)
*Went to and helped at our first 4-H meeting
*Helped Paul lead a class for engaged couples in our home (and cleaned up and made a dessert for that)
*Homeschooled the girls
*Went to Wednesday night church
*Witnessed this last night on the way home
The picture doesn't do God's creation justice. And there was a second, fainter rainbow above it that disappeared by the time we got home. As I was thinking about the rainbow today and what it means, I realized that not only does God promise never to flood the earth with water, but He also promises never to allow my life to become flooded with more than I am able to bear in Him. Psalm 142:3 says, "When my spirit was overwhelmed within me, You knew my path."
God does know my path, and when I am following Him, He will lead me beside still waters and restore my soul, even in the midst of what may seem overwhelming.
I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. ~Phil. 4:13
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
More Excitement!
Like many others, we kept a very obsessive close eye on Ike as it entered the Gulf. The track varied widely before finally seeming to be headed for Galveston. That was only somewhat of a relief for us. Since Ike was such a big storm, our area was still forecast to have strong winds and flooding from the storm.
We knew the evacuees from the Galveston/Houston area would make an evacuation to my mom's house a very long journey. And since we would have to bring our pets anywhere we went, we decided to ride out the moderately bad weather we were likely to experience. And if the power was out for too long, we could always go later.
We spent Thursday and Friday making our preparations. Paul boarded up our businesses and our home (a task made far easier because we saved the wood he had cut in preparation for Gustav). We purchased food, water, flashlights, and batteries. I filled the tubs with water and gathered our candles. Then we waited. The wind blew. It rained some. Just as I was thinking that we would probably not lose electricity, the power went out. We had no power from about 12:30 am on Saturday morning until about 2:30 pm on Saturday afternoon. It wasn't the heat that was so bad, it was the humidity. Everything felt sticky! We were so thankful when the power came back on!
Other than the relatively brief loss of power and a few small limbs down, we had no damage. I feel extremely blessed, and I am praying for those in Galveston, Houston, and the other areas that had severe damage from Ike.
We knew the evacuees from the Galveston/Houston area would make an evacuation to my mom's house a very long journey. And since we would have to bring our pets anywhere we went, we decided to ride out the moderately bad weather we were likely to experience. And if the power was out for too long, we could always go later.
We spent Thursday and Friday making our preparations. Paul boarded up our businesses and our home (a task made far easier because we saved the wood he had cut in preparation for Gustav). We purchased food, water, flashlights, and batteries. I filled the tubs with water and gathered our candles. Then we waited. The wind blew. It rained some. Just as I was thinking that we would probably not lose electricity, the power went out. We had no power from about 12:30 am on Saturday morning until about 2:30 pm on Saturday afternoon. It wasn't the heat that was so bad, it was the humidity. Everything felt sticky! We were so thankful when the power came back on!
Other than the relatively brief loss of power and a few small limbs down, we had no damage. I feel extremely blessed, and I am praying for those in Galveston, Houston, and the other areas that had severe damage from Ike.
Excitement!
We've definitely had some exciting times as of late. I got to go to Living Proof Live in San Antonio in August. I had had my ticket for months, but the friends I had planned to go with were both unable to go. God provided another sweet group of ladies to ride to San Antonio with, and He totally blessed me! I loved hearing God speak through Beth that I am His heiress!!
I came home to a really painful throat infection. As I tried to recuperate, I had to get our family ready for Family Camp the following weekend. And in case that wasn't enough, it appeared that Gustav might be coming our way, so I had to prepare for a potential hurricane! Thankfully, the Z pack worked quickly, and I was able to pack for our trip and pack up for the hurricane without too much trouble. As we left for Family Camp on Friday, we still didn't know if the hurricane would come to our town, so we really looked like the Beverly Hillbillies - a Suburban packed FULL of stuff including 12 American Girl dolls, a box of pictures, a few momentos, a dog, a cat, and a gerbil! (The folks who ran the camp were nice enough to make an exception to the no pets rule!!)
We kept abreast of the hurricane via our laptop at camp, and shared the news with others who worried about being in Gustav's path. On Monday, we went to stay with friends who live about an hour away from the camp before heading home on Tuesday. The storm had not struck us, so we had no damage. However, as we settled back into our normal routines, it appeared that Ike might cause us some trouble. More about that next time!
I came home to a really painful throat infection. As I tried to recuperate, I had to get our family ready for Family Camp the following weekend. And in case that wasn't enough, it appeared that Gustav might be coming our way, so I had to prepare for a potential hurricane! Thankfully, the Z pack worked quickly, and I was able to pack for our trip and pack up for the hurricane without too much trouble. As we left for Family Camp on Friday, we still didn't know if the hurricane would come to our town, so we really looked like the Beverly Hillbillies - a Suburban packed FULL of stuff including 12 American Girl dolls, a box of pictures, a few momentos, a dog, a cat, and a gerbil! (The folks who ran the camp were nice enough to make an exception to the no pets rule!!)
We kept abreast of the hurricane via our laptop at camp, and shared the news with others who worried about being in Gustav's path. On Monday, we went to stay with friends who live about an hour away from the camp before heading home on Tuesday. The storm had not struck us, so we had no damage. However, as we settled back into our normal routines, it appeared that Ike might cause us some trouble. More about that next time!
Tuesday, July 8, 2008
What Time Is It...
It's summer time! We're on vacation! Life around here has been a great balance of activity and rest this summer.
We started our summer at the end of May with a family vacation to a nearby big city. We visited museums and the zoo and had a great time. My girls really enjoyed the space exhibit since we have studied space this year. Another favorite was the jewels and gems exhibit. All but Joy enjoyed the interactive butterfly exhibit. She was scared of the butterflies landing on her. The butterflies liked Paul best.
We brought home some yummy snacks, too!
We really did buy a pack of Larvettes. The cheddar cheese variety. We've offered them to several friends, but so far, no one has eaten any! Go figure! We think they will complement the possum quite well. (What goes better with a can of "road kilt possum" than a pack of cheddar cheese Larvetts?!)
We recuperated from our vacation, worked on organizing our home (still a work in progress!), and then it was time for VBS. VBS week actually went smoothly, and no one got sick! Since then we've hosted and attended birthday parties and 4th of July parties. We've had a visit from Nana. We figured out Skype and talked to and SAW my sister who lives overseas! Way cool! Faith had a week of dance workshop at her ballet school, which was both challenging and rewarding.
And, of course, the girls have enjoyed swimming in our above ground pool and spending lots of time with friends. And we still have over a month of summer left!
I am so thankful for times of refreshing, like summer. These times help me rejuvenate and relax so I am ready for the busier seasons ahead. God is good!
We started our summer at the end of May with a family vacation to a nearby big city. We visited museums and the zoo and had a great time. My girls really enjoyed the space exhibit since we have studied space this year. Another favorite was the jewels and gems exhibit. All but Joy enjoyed the interactive butterfly exhibit. She was scared of the butterflies landing on her. The butterflies liked Paul best.
This one stayed on him for ten or fifteen minutes!
One landed in my hair, too.
We brought home some yummy snacks, too!
We really did buy a pack of Larvettes. The cheddar cheese variety. We've offered them to several friends, but so far, no one has eaten any! Go figure! We think they will complement the possum quite well. (What goes better with a can of "road kilt possum" than a pack of cheddar cheese Larvetts?!)We recuperated from our vacation, worked on organizing our home (still a work in progress!), and then it was time for VBS. VBS week actually went smoothly, and no one got sick! Since then we've hosted and attended birthday parties and 4th of July parties. We've had a visit from Nana. We figured out Skype and talked to and SAW my sister who lives overseas! Way cool! Faith had a week of dance workshop at her ballet school, which was both challenging and rewarding.
And, of course, the girls have enjoyed swimming in our above ground pool and spending lots of time with friends. And we still have over a month of summer left!
I am so thankful for times of refreshing, like summer. These times help me rejuvenate and relax so I am ready for the busier seasons ahead. God is good!
Sunday, May 25, 2008
Heart-Breaking News
It was our second night of our vacation. We were watching the local Fox station's newscast because they said they might have an interview with newly crowned American Idol David Cook. When the breaking news announcement came on I thought it would be something political or maybe a local happening. What came next wasn't just breaking news, it was heart-breaking news. We learned that Maria Sue Chapman, 5 year old daughter of Steven Curtis Chapman had been killed in a tragic accident. While I was still teary-eyed Jack gathered us all together to pray for a family that I've never met but feel like I know.
To know more about Maria or to leave a message for the Chapman family, go here.
And please keep remembering the Chapmans in your prayers. Because even though Maria is whole and happy in Heaven with Jesus, her family is still grieving the loss of their beloved daughter.
To know more about Maria or to leave a message for the Chapman family, go here.
And please keep remembering the Chapmans in your prayers. Because even though Maria is whole and happy in Heaven with Jesus, her family is still grieving the loss of their beloved daughter.
Monday, May 12, 2008
Time Flies
April flew by, just like I knew it would. We actually had a great month. The ladies' conference at our church was uplifting and challenging. God is continuing to heal me from past hurts, but it's a long and on-going process. We were challenged to spend time with God first thing in the morning for two weeks, and I did it! My time with God has been rather hit and miss lately, so seeing how I could get up and have time with Him was a good thing. I wish I could say those two weeks set the pace for the rest of my month, but I have found myself waking up late far too often, so I need to get to bed earlier, so my mornings can start earlier!
My friends and I had a fun-filled whirlwind shopping day in the nearest big city. We hit an outlet mall, a regular mall, a great stand-alone department store, and a Tex-Mex restaurant. All in one day! I bought a few things and got some really good deals. But the best part was the fun we all had!
We capped off the month with the girls' dance recital. All four of them looked beautiful and were so graceful! This will probably be the last recital that all four girls dance in. Hope wants to take piano instead of dance next year. She really has not been fond of dance lessons the last couple of years, but she does like dancing at home. She is very graceful and would do pretty well if she continued, but her heart is not in it. Faith is a beautiful dancer! She has a natural grace and poise that shows in her performance. And she is a natural-born performer. Joy and Grace also enjoy being on stage, and they seemed to be having a lot of fun performing. My mom was able to visit for the weekend and the girls especially enjoyed having Nana watch them dance.
I can't believe May is already over one-third of the way through! Time is certainly flying!
My friends and I had a fun-filled whirlwind shopping day in the nearest big city. We hit an outlet mall, a regular mall, a great stand-alone department store, and a Tex-Mex restaurant. All in one day! I bought a few things and got some really good deals. But the best part was the fun we all had!
We capped off the month with the girls' dance recital. All four of them looked beautiful and were so graceful! This will probably be the last recital that all four girls dance in. Hope wants to take piano instead of dance next year. She really has not been fond of dance lessons the last couple of years, but she does like dancing at home. She is very graceful and would do pretty well if she continued, but her heart is not in it. Faith is a beautiful dancer! She has a natural grace and poise that shows in her performance. And she is a natural-born performer. Joy and Grace also enjoy being on stage, and they seemed to be having a lot of fun performing. My mom was able to visit for the weekend and the girls especially enjoyed having Nana watch them dance.
I can't believe May is already over one-third of the way through! Time is certainly flying!
