Our 9th Anniversary

The beach line near Springmaid.
Swinging on the Springmaid Pier around midnight on our anniversary.
Eating seafood at Sara J's in Garden City! Oh. My. Goodness.

For our 9th anniversary we were able to go to Myrtle Beach together for a couple of days (thanks to Bibbi and Papa Jeep for watching the children for us!). Actually, it was for Jason's SC State Firefighter's Convention that he always goes down this time of the year and it always falls on our anniversary (oh, how fortunate am I! Ha! Didn't even get to go last year b/c we had a 5 week old baby). Anyway, the cost of the room at Springmaid is covered and all of his meals are covered by work (he really did have to work each day even if just for 2 or 3 hours on our anniversary). The main expenses were my gas since I couldn't stay the whole week and my meals.

We did a lot of things; I went Christmas shopping and got all the kids' things! Oh, what a relief! I also got to.....listen to this.....READ in peace out by the pool and coast around the lazy river for nearly 2 hours! WOW. I know you're all jealous right now...especially if you have little ones. :)

But, the most important thing is that Jason and I got to spend quality, uninterrupted time with each other! How wonderful! I'm now reaquainted with Jason's chest hairs! Ha! I had forgotten that he even had them since it isn't very often that I get to lay my head on his chest for snuggle time. We last had that quality time without children back in Feb. when we went to the mountains together for a super weekend. And I hope that we can have a date night or two the week we go back to Garden City in September for a full family vacation, but we'll have to see. I may see if a sitter wants to come with us for the week! I know lots of families who do just that! Kelsey, are you available? :)

I must tell you, my husband wrote the sweetest, most loving note to me for our anniversary. Simply beats all the Hallmark cards he has ever gotten for me in the past. I cannot tell you how I love this man...he loves me for who I am and helps me to be all that God has intended for me to be. How blessed I am!

Girls, ladies, all you who are single even if you are just 12 years old...start NOW developing the list for the kind of characteristics you want in a godly husband. I don't mean "macho" or "muscular"...I'm talking long-lasting qualities that edify the Lord. Don't just make the list, but stick to the list. Don't date anyone who wouldn't qualify. Then, begin praying diligently for that godly man. Pray for him each day...pray for him to be developing into the kind of leader you would wish for in a godly husband and godly father. Pray for his patience, contentment, and strength. I am SOOO glad I did this and God has been faithful in bringing me that man. First, though, He had to develop me into a godly woman that Jason would want in a wife and mother. Oh, please don't get me wrong, we "have not yet arrived". We have our downfalls and areas that we need work in, but oh, how wonderful marriage can be when lived according to His principles instead of our own!! Praise Him!

Well, here's to 59 more years (oh, wow, that makes me 94 years old---hey, it can happen and I'm praying for it!)!

A Long Way to Ohio

Callie, the bride, throwing the bouquet

Emma Grace and Jason

The car ride up to Ohio
This past weekend (really a 4 day trip) we ventured up to Marion, OH because Jason and Bubba were both in Daniel and Callie's wedding. First, I would like to say, "Thank you, MOM!" We are so thankful to my mom for keeping Jase for 4 whole days! That is the longest we've EVER left any of our kids, and we missed him so much. We know how much dedication it takes to take time off from work and travel up where we live in order to give undivided attention to one special little boy. I know he enjoyed being with his Mimi with no distractions or sister to split the time with. :) We also know that we couldn't have made the trip with him either. Emma Grace was a sheer delight. She was SOOOO good---probably fared better in the van than I did. Kids are so resilient and flexible! She even had to hang with the adults and went to bed around midnight two of the nights!




It was a great trip up and really was a special time for Daniel and Callie! We wish God's blessings on them as they begin their lives together as one in Him! Such a fun time! I remember it like it was yesterday, and I can tell them it only gets better!! A godly husband is SUCH a blessing---and speaking of husbands and Father's Day....



I wanted to take this time to first thank my own Dad for all that he provided for us 3 girls growing up. I would say I got my work ethic from my dad, and for that I am grateful! There are lots of things said in the Bible about working and not being slothful or lazy.



I also want to thank my hubby Jason for being the greatest father to our children. He loves our children so much and spends so much time with us as a family---that can't be said of every father. He bathes the children, feeds them, plays with them, reads and prays with them, laughs with them, and more than anything he is the finest example of a godly father and husband both at our church and in our home. The way they run to him when he enters the door in the evenings is very special! Our whole family loves to be with DADDY. And I have fallen more in love with him every day over the 9 years we've been married!

I love you, Jason!

Too Many Irons in the Fire?

Have you ever just looked around at your desk (my home desk I mean) and thought, "Wow, what pile am I working on now?" I guess I have so many things going on, especially that require me to look up some phone number on the internet or compile my list of grocery deals from the website I mentioned below or get a card out to so and so who is sick.....on....and....on it goes. As I look over my desk, there is SOME semblance of order to me even if no one else knows what's going on.

I have one pile of papers about my Educator Recertification, which I need to call the SDOE to find out if a couple of classes I want to take this summer for CEU's (continuing education units) will count toward my recertification. My certificate is due to expire in June 2011, so I really have over a year to do this, but I might as well take one day classes that are only $25-$50 versus $900 a taking up 7-11 days and even weekends.

Another pile is papers I printed with information about our reservations this week for Daniel's wedding in Ohio, which my husband and his brother are groomsmen in. I like to plan ahead, so of course I've tried to look for places to eat, shop, fun things to do, etc.

Another pile is Father's Day cards and gifts that will need to go out before we leave for Ohio or will need to be wrapped and taken with us to Ohio for hubby and his dad who are going with us.

The other stack relates to an ongoing file of resources/catalogs/price lists/etc. of homeschool resources and field trips we hope to take this year.

Oh, and there is just one more stack that I would call the "Get Ready for Emma Grace's 4 1/2 Birthday swimming party" that is coming up June 27th. I'm trying to get my ducks in a row as far as presents, food for everyone, decorations, invitations, games they can play besides swimming, treat bags for the guests, etc.

Woops, hidden under the recertification stack is a small bunch of papers (2-3 sheets) that relate to our current insurances and life insurance policies. I need to evaluate what we have--- is it enough for us now that we also have Jase, are we paying for some policies we don't need, and do we need to add other term or whole life policies to be sure? I want to sit down soon with Jason and a Christian financial planner to see if we're on target and being wise with the resources we currently have coming in. I don't want us to sit down and one day say what one lady in our church shared recently about her being punished for her sins in the area of financial irresponsibility from years back.

Now I guess I should turn around and look at the scrapbooking table behind me sitting open with pictures ready to go in from June 2008 (YIKES, I'm one year behind already!!!!).

Saving Money---working on a budget

A couple of friends' blogs have referenced frugalness lately, and some on FB had me searching around on www.southernsavers.com for grocery deals at local grocery stores. People, if you live in the southern states, this is the best website I have ever found for helping me know what the weekly sales ads are in conjunction with coupons. It frankly amazes me how people can get Pampers Jumbo size diapers at CVS for .49! You'll just have to look at that website on the CVS section to see what I am talking about. They get bread for free at Bi-Lo.....only .66 for a block of cheese at Bi-Lo this week when you use your coupons. SO MANY deals---you could easily get your groceries for virtually FREE if you shop around!! Why not?? And now I know exactly why I have clipped coupons for years and have them organized by isles in my coupon organizer. God has certainly told us to be wise with the money and resources He gives us.

????

There are so many things I've wanted to title this post, but none seemed to fit well, so I will just leave the question marks. I'll just say that I need prayer in dealing with my attitude with others in general. Maybe it's rooted in jealousy, which I definitely can fall prey to coveting others "fun" time with their older children. I would imagine most people do not have a CLUE what I'm talking about since the way I feel is not often displayed on the outside for all to see, but ask my husband and he knows what I feel on a daily basis (he probably will not tell you, though, because he knows it is my weakness and an area of prayer).

It's an ongoing struggle in my head involving where I am in this season of life and trying to soak up babyhood while still yearning for some sense of what I would call "fun" that I think will come as Jase finally grows out of babyhood. A lot of my friends who have kids (some even have just one who is older) try to pawn their kids off all the time to grandparents or daycare or sitters so they can be by themselves and it won't "cramp their style". I, on the other hand, have sooo many things I want to do this summer and even during the school year that involve Emma Grace having fun and doing those "homeschool" experiences, but I feel she often gets the short end of the stick because of us having to stay home with Jase. We tried the strawberry patch thing with him, and we had a little fun and got strawberries (which was the thing we did go for), but it doesn't take but an hour or so in a stroller or being carried (which he HATES) and then we're heading back home for his nappy-noo-noo.

I want to take Emma Grace to places I know she'll enjoy---it's about making memories, right? Some of the places are to the Riverbanks Zoo, the free movies on T/W (once a month maybe--not every Tues. and Wed.), Putt-Putting, Fort Jackson Water Park, Edventure (they have the butterfly garden right now), Happy Cow Creamery tour, etc. But all of those would last more than an hour or two, and Jase would be begging for his bed....not to mention how I'd be toting a diaper bag, a snack and/or lunch for him, a stroller, his juice, sunscreen, probably a cooler, etc. It's just not like putting Emma Grace in the van and going. I really don't think it would be worth it to go for an hour to the zoo and then head home---waste of money. Nor to Edventure and home after an hour---you could easily spend 2-4 hours in that place and not see everything---and the cost is like $7 for a child 2 and over and $9 for adults. I'm quite certain, also, that he would not sit through a movie or putt-putting (I'm envisioning right now him crawling down the embankment into a green colored pond while I'm putting a hole-in-one)! So I guess I should ask those of you who read this blog, do you:

1.) Have to wait until your children are out of babyhood to begin to enjoy life?
2.) Hire a sitter since you can't expect grandma to watch him once a week or more often if you have doctor appointments that week too or if grandma has to work that week?
3.) Take the baby anyway and forego making the most of a visit your older child will enjoy (hence wasting $$ since you'll have to go back again to catch the rest of the visit)?
4.) Some other option I'm not realizing??

I guess you can see that I sort of feel doomed to leave my van parked right here at home and not go anywhere all week long. Now, don't get me wrong, we do activities here at home and she's really loving riding her bike lately (won't go outside unless I go out with her still---which is hard b/c Jase again is crawling and pavement isn't a nice friend to knees), but there is just so much cooking, cleaning, playing babies, reading books, sidewalk chalk, etc. you can do before you need to get out of the house. Hopefully the pool at MIL's next door will be ready soon and we can go enjoy the outside weather---Lord knows we've been cooped up in this house too long!

I guess I have a problem like http://www.theprayerofhannah.blogspot.com/ has been hitting on this week about "Entitlement". I need to pray hard about overcoming my feelings of expecting other family members and friends to want to help me in taking care of Jase. (Lord, don't let me go there...part of my attitude thing) This is especially hard on me this year as a stay-at-home mom. Those of you who know me know I'm a mover and shaker. I don't like to sit still for long...don't understand how people can stay at home day after day with no activity. Just would drive me NUTS....does drive me nuts. Now, don't get me wrong...we're busy bees---at least it seems my kitchen gets a pretty good workout! I'm a people person and I like to see progress. Like I told my MIL (we've had this discussion before about her being a home-body and me the opposite), I am a people person and I crave action. I crave the day when we can pack up the kids' bikes and go camping and hiking! I want to cook marshmallows and weenies over the fire with my kids! I want to see their eyes light up at feeding the lorikeets and giraffes. Want to take Emma Grace to dance lessons or allow her to take gymnastics if that's what she wants to do. And the thoughts that weigh me down now are that I could be doing thrifty activities with Emma Grace if I had a reliable sitter ($5 water park, free movies, zoo membership). Just makes me sick to my stomach. :(

Y'all please pray for me in these areas and I'd love feedback from other moms who have the same issues. I know I'm not the only one to ever trod down this path of stay-at-home blues. :)

Definition of "Blog"

A blog is defined as, "A Web site that contains an online personal journal with reflections, comments, and often hyperlinks provided by the writer ; also : the contents of such a site." Please remember that these are my personal thoughts and reflections. Does that make them absolute truth? Heavens no!

Having said that, I would like to clarify a previous blog entry I wrote that seems to be causing some confusion. You all know I am a person who says it like it is...there is little processing between what comes in my head and what comes out of my mouth. This is an area that I may apologize for or I may be praised for, depending on if you agree with what I say or not. And having written in an earlier post about how our family (personally--Jason and I are all I can speak for--and Jason sometimes disagrees with me, but, hey, this is my blog, not his...so don't blame him)(and yes, I think he agrees with me on this subject) seems to not have much in common in the way of our Christian walk with other members of our extended family.

Now, I in no way mentioned first names or even last names of individual family members when I discussed this and sometimes my language is a little sarcastic, I'll admit. But the subject of the blog I still stand behind and still hope that those who read and disagree will call me or leave a comment so some discussion can be started about just that....our Christian walk on a daily basis. Lord knows we all need uplifting and encouraging in this life together. So maybe I don't know our family very well (which may be true considering we only see each other once a year and do not otherwise share daily happenings through calls or emails), in which case I'd absolutely LOVE to have some dialogue about so I may know that I walk among brothers and sisters in Christ and you too can know that you walk among brothers and sisters in the Lord. :) Maybe you didn't know that about me either (shame on me if my Chrisianity was hidden from you as well!!). I will feel much assurance if I know that we'll be reunited in heaven one day!

I will add some words below from another author that restate my point about non-church-attenders with the scripture to back it up about using your spiritual gift, etc. There are many who read this that may not agree (and possibly former co-workers, friends, etc.), but I don't see myself arguing with the Word of God. It's dangerous business when we argue with our Maker. :)

Here's the article:

Some people joke about the “Bedside Baptists” who attend the "Chapel of the Tube" on Sunday mornings. But it's more than a joke. Many people refuse to get near a church unless their nephew is playing the role of a sheep in the Christmas pageant! They claim they can get more out of a walk in the woods than from the typical sermon.
Can a Christian survive apart from a church? Some Christians have no choice. They are trapped in a hospital bed, or working in an isolated area where no church exists. And God is certainly sufficient to care for their needs. You can still get to heaven if you can't go to church.
But even though it's technically possible to live the Christian life in isolation, it's certainly not the norm.
When you become a Christian, you are called into a relationship with God (1 Corinthians 1:9). But I John 1:3 makes it clear that we enter a fellowship that goes two ways: with God and with other Christians.
The New Testament never divides Christians into the church members and the non-church members. All the way through, it assumes that everybody participates in their local assembly. It gives no samples of Christians who belong to the “universal church” but have no link with a local church. One scholar has said that "any idea...of enjoying salvation or being a Christian in isolation is foreign to the New Testament writings" (Alan Stibbs, God's Church, p. 92). Wherever Christians are within range of each other in the New Testament, they meet. Every time the apostle Paul comes to a town in the book of Acts where there are no Christians, he wins a few converts and immediately organizes them into a small group - a little church.
Acts 20:7 reveals the practice of the early church: "And upon the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul preached to them." For Christians in every location, regular gathering was a part of life.
It's illogical to say that you are merely part of the worldwide, universal church, yet refuse to gather with the segment of that universal church that exists in your geographical area. It would be like claiming you have a car, when the right fender is in Phoenix, the engine is in Tucson, and the wheels are in Paradise Valley! You don't have a car; you have the beginning of the inventory for a junkyard. It just won't function until the pieces are put together.
The church must be together to carry out many of its purposes.

Here are some irreplaceable pieces of the Christian that cannot happen when you live in isolation from the church:

USE OF SPIRITUAL GIFTS - I Corinthians 12 makes it clear that God has given spiritual gifts to every Christian. And verse 7 states unmistakably that these abilities are not provided to make you feel good; they are abilities to minister that should be used for the common good! I Peter 4:10 commands us to use spiritual gifts to help each other.
The same passage makes it clear that we meet with other Christians so they can use their gifts to strengthen us. God's gift of a preacher or teacher is wasted if no one comes to hear them speak.

MUTUAL MINISTRY - The church is pictured as a body in I Corinthians 12, and Paul explains that each part of the body exists to meet the needs of other body parts. In the same way, God intends each of us to meet the needs of other believers, using our strengths to help in their areas of weakness. I Corinthians 12:21 expresses it this way: "The eye cannot say to the hand, I have no need of you." Neither can a Christian claim to be self-sufficient today.
The New Testament is full of “one another” commands. We are to comfort one another (I Thessalonians 4:18), build up one another (I Thessalonians 5:11), confess our sins to one another (James 5:16), pray for one another (James 5:16), and many more. How can we obey these directives if we stay away from the gathering of believers?

ACCOUNTABILITY - God designed the church as a place where spiritual leaders could watch out for our welfare, as a shepherd guards the sheep (I Peter 5:1-4; Hebrews 13:17). A Christian who answers only to himself can easily rationalize sinful attitudes or actions; regular contact with other Christians can keep us sharp.
A single verse should actually be sufficient answer for this question: Hebrews 10:25 warns its readers against “forsaking the assembly of yourselves together, as the manner of some is.”

Author: Dr. John Bechtle.

1 year old portraits

I took Jase to Portrait Innovations at Sandhills yesterday before his 1 year shots (boo!) and these were the decent pics we got. You just can't count on a busy one year old to sit still and smile for the camera! :) Gotta love this cute little guy!!

Not too happy about the flash!