So, it's been a while since I blogged about food, but for those of you that follow this regularly, you know I love food! And one of my favorites is breakfast. Nothing better than waking up early on a Monday morning, and starting the week off with a wonderful breakfast. So, here's what I made this morning:

2 Farm fresh organic eggs cooked in a tiny bit of olive oil
1 piece of homemade (by me) 4seed whole wheat toast spread with this amazing organic goat/feta cheese I bought at the farmer's market
glass of 100% orange juice

YUMMY!



I LOVE breakfast! :-)

Things that have changed since having 2 teenage girls move in:

- There are no longer "leftovers" in the fridge.
Not that they eat a TON- because they don't, but when you're cooking breakfast, lunch and dinner for 4 grown people every day and packing lunches, whatever was leftover goes fast!

- my 2 or 3 loads of laundry per week have suddenly increased to 7-9! We're dealing with high school girls here. They have lots of clothes, and don't use towels more than a a couple of times.

- It takes a lot longer to get out of the house. Again, teenage girls like to "get ready," and they take time doing it!

- Lots & lots of giggling! It was no different with my sis when I was in high school. There's a lot of giggling and laughing that goes on! :-)

- Things smell good. No offense to Jordan Fenton- we love him- but girls just smell "good," thanks to all the lotions and sprays that are constantly happening in their room and bathroom.

- I wake up every morning now b/w 5:00 and 5:30 (depending if I need to shower that morning) I was waking up about 6:30 every day, so it's a little bit different, but I've adjusted well.

- Our gas output has doubled. I really know what moms feel like shuttling their kids places!

These girls are a tremendous blessing and Jordan and I are honored to be able to speak so much into their lives during this season. God has and is providing for all that we need!

2:00pm
Erin is getting to meet her daughter for the first time! How exciting :-)

12:45pm
HERE SHE IS!













11:41am
Just got a call: HOPE RHODES HERRENBRUCK is here!! 7 lbs. 5 oz, 18.5 inches, born at 12:28EST, so 11:28 for me. Erin, Dan and everyone are doing wonderfully and Nana Hope said she's beautiful!!! I'll post pics when I get them!

10:45am
Just got a call from Erin and from Hope- she's all prepped and ready for her c-section. Just waiting for the Doctor. I spoke with Erin, she's definitely having contractions, but everything looks good, so if she can hang on for a little while, her little girl will be here in no time! Hope & Steve are there with Erin and Dan, and Erin's two good friends, Blair and Terra. More to come!

9:30 am
So we are awaiting the birth of a baby. Erin was scheduled for a C-section on the 19th, but it appears her water broke earlier this morning. I talked to Hope (grandma Hope, that is) about an hour ago, but I haven't heard any more. I will be sure to let everyone in the blog world know when we know more! It looks like there will be a baby today! Exciting!!

We had a great time last night! Janel & Laurel went with us up to Mom & Dad's house for family dinner night. It was so good to see Ferris & Robby (they just look so cute and so "married!") and we all had fun laughing (a lot) catching up and watching a little football. Oh yeah, and we broke out the leftover wedding cake, which was yum, yum, yum!!

In other news, we are anxiously awaiting Baby Hope! Right now Erin has a C-section (there were some slight complications) scheduled for Sept. 19, but it could be sooner, so we're at MAX 10 days away! WOW!

And then in OTHER news......which I've had to keep quiet about for a while now- congratulations to Kyle & Janelle Kellums on their upcoming baby. We found out a few weeks ago but have been keeping it on the downlow. They told the youth group on Saturday night, so I think it's okay to post it here, too. She's due April 10th, so I've added yet another baby counter to the right! haha!!

Have a Terrific Tuesday!

WHAT A FOOTBALL WEEK!

Ugh! My teams are getting off to a rough start on ALL fronts.

High School Football
- our dear Independance Eagles, who played for the TN state championship last year came out for their first home game and got trounced by the Centennial Cougars....who are reputably the worst team in Williamson County-usually....that is.

College Football
-in their big season opener against UCLA- the University of TN Volunteers couldn't seem to remember that scoring points is what wins a game, and they fell hard as well.

And then the worst of all

NFL football
- first game in the brand spankin' new Lucas Oil stadium in Indy, the Colts fell to none other than the Chicago Bears...WHAT?! I do have to say the Bears looked better than anyone expected....Lovie Smith & other decision makers made a good choice with Kyle Orton over "Sexy-Rexy" (as Robby calls him) and of course Devon Hester (except for his red-zone messup that helped the Colts score) is always a force to be reckoned with! But alas, not the way I wanted to start the season.

Oh well- at least it IS football season! That alone is enough to rejoice in, right?!

Before I took the girls to school this morning, I was reading a little, thinking and praying- in some ways asking God when things would get back to "normal." After I dropped them off- I was praying a little more and God just dopped it in my spirit that there is no "back to normal," but I have to press into Him to get my "new normal." Normal isn't a bad thing, and routine can be good- but for me, it's so easy to get locked into it: my days, my mornings, my spending and saving habits, my words, my actions, etc. The events of the last couple weeks have shaken up almost every bit of my "normal" life. I no longer wake up and think about MY morning. I wake up and think about two young girls, and what they need for the day: mentally, spiritually and physically. I no longer think about what it will be like when I am pregnant, but I think about what it will be like as we see God's plan for children continue to be realized in our life. And I no longer focus on different aspects of my life. It's all one! It's all fit & working together, in a big, beautiful, God-purposed way, and it is my NEW Normal!

It's labor day! A whole day to relax and do nothing! Woohoo!! Jordan and I had a good evening last night. We took the girls and a friend up to Franlin for a birthday party and then enjoyed doing a little shopping and running around in Cool Springs. We finished it off with a good dinner at the new Boscos and renting a movie. I fell asleep and slept SO hard last night. It's been a long time coming.

Today, we made breakfast- the girls are doing some organizing and I need to do some cleaning. We may head to the pool in a bit, so we can relax a little more, and other than that, the only things I NEED to do are go to the bank and the grocery store. I think we're going to squeeze in a little time with Robby & Ferris and maybe a game of settlers too! We're glad for the normalcy and a little bit more routine settling in.

So it's only been a week since I blogged last- I've been feeling like it must have been two or three. Let's just say it's been a rather long week.

Don't want to go into full details here (not really a huge fan of posting my deepest things on the internet) but I can say that Jordan and I have hit a bit of a wall in our quest to conceive. At least in the natural and in this physical world, it will take a miracle, but God is a God of healing and of miracles, and He is more than able to do whatever He wants to do. This has been an emotional weekend and early week. We currently have a family (mom & 2 teenage girls) staying with us, again, can't go into detail, but that's been heavy- spiritually, physically, and I have needed Him more than ever. But what's amazing, is I've been sensing Him and being strengthened by Him more than ever too. His grace IS enough!

God is faithful! Jordan and I believe it and feel it more strongly than we ever have before. God will be glorified and He is raising us up to be signs and wonders for Him!

Please pray that Jordan and I would hear God clearly as we continue to seek Him on what His path is...whether it's medical, beginning an adoption process now, etc, but we surely feel His tangible presence and peace surrounding us, in every part of our lives!

I don't know if I should even attempt to write about everything that has happened since last Thursday. Almost a week and PACKED with all sorts of things. So, I think I will let my pictures tell the story and I will give you some highlights:

Friday: Great morning here at the house...enjoyed the peace and quiet and time with the Lord- SUPER fun Bridal luncheon at Lillie Belle's- LOVE the bags Ferris gave us and just cried as Ferris shared with each and every girl there- i LOVE my sister. We had a really good time getting our nails done- the pedicures felt AMAZING....the last time I had one was 2 years ago for Erin's wedding...wow! Rehearsal dinner- the room looked AMAZING!!! The decor crew did such a great job and the food was wonderful. The slideshow played without a hitch, and everyone loved it (maybe I'll post on youtube) I loved hearing Ferris and Robby share and everyone else who said something about or to them. It was a beautiful evening.

Saturday: Ferris & I woke up bright and early- dad made a Starbuck's run for me and Bethany Hawkins and we had fun (me, Ferris, Janelle, Christy & Bethany) getting ready (well, they were getting US ready) in the bathroom. How do I sum up the rest of the day?? Pics were great- weather was beautiful, lunch was delish! The ceremony was AWESOME! The music was perfect- the decor was stunning, and Ferris was out of this world. My favorite part of the day had to be the couple of quiet minutes with Robby & Ferris, just as they were getting ready to run through the blanket of rose petals into the waiting limo...we were on the side of the church, and I got to just love on them for a few minutes- it was quiet and peaceful and awesome!

That evening was a whirlwind of activity as all sorts of family and friends descended on Mom & Dad's house- I'll take another post to tell you about Sunday- Tuesday, but for now- that's enough! :-)

Oh MY GOSH! One Day away!! How exciting. Today is a packed day with a Bridal luncheon, Pedicures and manicures, rehearsals, dinner, etc. Can I just say I am SUPER DUPER excited about my dress tonight for the rehearsal dinner. Mom bought it for me this week (THANKS Mom!) and I really really like it! So, I'll post pics. Here are a couple of pics from the shower last night. It went SO well and was SO MUCH FUN! I really like ALL of Ferris's friends so much. I always have, but it's so much fun getting to hang out with them and be around them more.








And if you get a chance- LISTEN to the new song I uploaded over to the right. It's off the new Hillsong album, "This is Our God." It's written by Brooke Fraser, who I've posted about before- she's incredible- but as I was preparing for the shower yesterday, I put a worship mix on and just worshiped all day- this song came on later and I was FLOORED! It speaks to me so perfectly about what God's been teaching me and calling me to, specifically with my battles with infertility, and it has become the outward expression of what's going on in my heart. It will encourage you where ever you are!

"I will bring praise, no weapon formed against me shall remain. I will rejoice, I will declare- God is my victory and He is here. All of my life, in every season, You are still God, I have a reason to sing, I have a reason to worship!"

We had fun last night. Grandma and Grandpa were here, of course, and Meaghan and Dylan pulled in just as we were ready to eat. We all sat around outside on Mom & Dad's beautiful deck and enjoyed the nice weather, food and family. We all worked on tying the ribbons on programs and just enjoyed being together. I left around 10:15 and came home to make a cheesecake, slice some fruit and cheese and just do some initial prep for tonight. Jordan and Meaghan got here around 12:30 and I think we all pretty much fell into bed. Today's going to be a nice, semi-relaxing day! Tonight is a shower for Ferris that I am hosting, so I'll try and post some pictures from that.

Well, if you're keeping up with either of my counters over to the right, you can probably guess why I haven't been blogging much lately. Yes, that's right, we are FOR SURE 3 days away! So exciting. I've been emailing, calling, editing photos and music, setting up appointments, organizing teams, charting music, painting, moving, cooking, shopping, cleaning, etc. I feel like this is WAY more work than my own wedding- super fun- but I think maybe it's b/c three and a half years ago at mine, I was so blissfully ignorant it all just floated by! hah! Everything is going to be beautiful and exciting, so I will be sure to update a LOT after Monday or Tuesday. But, you may not hear from me before then. I am SO grateful for people though- being willing to help and put themselves out there to see something accomplished.

And a big congrats to Mike & Sarah Clinger who are expecting their first baby in March! Yay!!!

Well, the Dance finale was last night and we were NOT disappointed. In a perfect world, I think I would have had Katee win, but I certainly wasn't upset that Joshua won. In my book, they were both very deserving!! Last night was a great finale, and Jordan and I enjoyed watching it VERY much.

Speaking of Jordan, he's feeling much better and is now well into his quick overnight to Evansville to see Steve, Dan and others and play a couple of rounds of golf with them. Leaves me wondering what I am doing tonight...but don't worry- I have a few ideas of my own. Might make it down to Green Hills (TEAVANA CALLS!) and end up with a friend back here in SH. We'll see...it's kind of fun not having a plan and not having anywhere I HAVE to be.

So, here's my Grocery Game Week 4 Update. This was the most disappointing week of all, BUT, it as also a week where I really needed to get lots of items that weren't on sale at all, so I know that certainly didn't help me.

My Kroger trip:
Total Cost: $54.19
Total Savings: only 25% (Eww, I know, but oh well! That included, like I said about $20 of non-on sale items.)

My Publix trip:
Total Cost: $12.54
Total Savings: 58%- that was AWESOME! I paid $12.54 for over $30 worth of stuff.

I also went to Walgreens on my own, based on sales I saw they were having. I got 4 packages of pens for 9 cents each, almonds at 50% off, only got a few items, but I only spent $5.03 for $21.57 worth of stuff!! That's a 77% savings- woohoo!

I'm going to stick with it. It's been 4 weeks, and although some have been better than others, I think I have found the way for the "system" to work best for me. Whatever your plans are- have a wonderful weekend!!

Jordan's been sick. Most of you who know Jordan, know that he has to deal with more than the lion's share of allergies and sinus issues. And to top it off, he's usually more susceptible to infection than your average joe. So, he caught something the other day. Blame it on the abnormally high pollen and ragweed counts and him being outside all day Monday giving tennis and frisbee lessons....whatever the case- he was OUT yesterday. He's feeling better, and I was grateful for the opportunity for him to rest and get well. He's feeling much better today, but I am trying to encourage him to take it easy...since he'll be playing two rounds of golf this weekend.

Yesterday, I got the opportunity to go be a part of my sister's Bridal portrait session for a few hours. (Thanks to my WONDERFUL father in law who also happens to be my boss) He let me take off a few hours yesterday to do that and let me tell you- Ferris looked incredible! Her dress is SO classic, elegant and gorgeous and she looks amazing in it! Combine that with the beautiful Cheekwood gardens and an incredible photographer, and you get some pretty incredible pics. I'll be sure to post some- AFTER- the wedding. Can't show you the dress now! But, for now, I will let you enjoy these adorable baby pics of the Bride & Groom. So fun!!

So, who decided and how did we get to the point that breakfast foods were breakfast foods, lunch foods were lunch foods and dinner foods were dinner foods? If you asked anyone in the United States to guess which meal was what for you the previous day and the choices were bacon and eggs, tuna sandwich with chips and grilled chicken with salad and baked potato, I bet (and I haven't tested this) 9 of 10, if not 10 out of 10 would say the eggs for breakfast, the sandwich for lunch and the chicken for dinner.

I want to know- why is this? My husband has laughed at me before because I have occasionally pulled out last night's leftovers to eat for breakfast, or wanted black beans and rice or something like that. Most people have certainly had the "upside down" dinners with pancakes and sausage or bacon and eggs for dinner, and lunch seems to be the most hodge podged of them all.....b/c if you move it too early, then it's brunch and then anything goes- almost.

Anyway, just a question I've had. I have been bad about eating lunch at a decent hour recently. More days than nought...it rolls around to 2:00 and I'm just plugging away working, when I suddenly realize that my stomach is about to eat itself. Today, I stopped at 12:00 and decided I should go ahead and eat. I'm not your typical sandwich person, it's just boring to me, but our refrigerator is pretty random to say the least (I'm going to the store today) and what I ended up eating was an egg cooked in olive oil, some fresh watermelon and a potato. It was definitely an odd combination but strangely pleasing and satisfying.

So, if anyone happens to know origins of our meals and how they came to be, do please inform me!

What a weekend!! It was full of wedding prep, painting, a little pool time, youth group, worship, potluck dinners, spending an afternoon with the Moore kids, and ending it all with a little bit of reading. Okay, so actually a lot of reading....I was up until midnight last night reading "The Shack." But, I slept well and the morning is starting out great with a bright, sunny day and whole-wheat waffles with fresh strawberries. It's gonna be a good week!!

Oh yeah! Look at these yummy fresh, organic veggies. This week I got lots of tomatoes, a watermelon (its buried under there) some potatoes, peppers, eggplant, fresh basil, summer squash. We're going to be eating fresh tomato basil soup this week!! Yeah, and probably going to be making some fresh salsa. Mmmm, Mmmm, Mmmm!

So I was TOTALLY wrong! I knew Mark could go, but I didn't think Chelsea would. OH well...next week's sure to be a good one.

Jordan and I are taking it easy tonight and staying home to work on some things. Him his message for tomorrow and me some wedding stuff.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Really nothing in my life I can think of to blog about right now...so I'm going back to dance....

Okay, so did you watch So You Think You Can Dance last night? We were pretty old school....we went to dinner with Jordan Fenton (who lives with us) and recorded it on a VHS tape. haha- hey- we still got to see it.

Some of the highlights, in my opinion, were Katee & Joshua's contemporary routine, Joshua's solo dance, Twitch's solo dance and Chelsie dancing the mambo.

So, who do you think is going home tonight?

It's a tough one, I know. I'm going to go ahead and say Twitch and Courtney.

I would LIKE it to be Mark & Courtney, but I just don't know.....America's weird like that.

what do you think?

Grocery Game- Week 3 Update:

So, it's beginning to work out pretty well. I'm stocking up on things like meat and pantry staples, as well as getting toiletries and medicine for dirt cheap! It does take some planning, but using what I'm getting and supplementing it with the fresh produce I get has turned out pretty well. Here's what happened this week:

Publix:
Regular price: $36.15
My price: $17.06
Savings 53% ($19.09)
Some items I bought: Season salt, couscous, bananas, fresh cherries, etc.

Kroger:
Regular price: $58.39
My price: $33.94
Savings: 43% ($24.45)
Some items I bought: HUGE package of pork chops, whole chicken, turkey meatballs, peaches, onions, etc.

**again, I spent about $10 on non-sale items- things I needed to make some of my planned menus for the next couple of weeks, but it still turned out to be a great savings b/c I had a couple of coupons for some of those items. So, I saved about $44 this week. Hey- if I can save an average of 45-50 per week- that's almost $200 a month. I think it's worth it so far!! We'll see if this holds up.

If you haven't been watching "So You Think You Can Dance" you've been missing it this season. I'm so blown away by Katee, and she RIPPED it Wednesday night in a Contemporary dance with Twitch, but I've decided this is my favorite. I feel like I could watch it over and over...



Incredible.

I got up and worked out this morning. See, I used to, in college, have a great habit of running and working out and was very much in shape. Most mornings of the week, I'd be up and run 4-6 miles before the sun was fully up...then, for some reason, after getting married and both of us adjusting to one another's schedule, that stopped happening. Mornings weren't as easy as they used to be. So, I've stayed "in shape" but definitely not where I'd like to be. I'm smaller than I used to be, but size truly isn't everything, and I know my body needs more exercise and I need more energy. A friend was over here for dinner on Tuesday night, and was talking about how she and two other ladies from church go to the Rec Center at 5:30am every morning. Ewww...But, last night, after Life Group, I came home, ate b/c I hadn't all evening, and decided I should just go on to bed about 9:50, so I did. I woke up this morning (w/o alarm) at 5:40am and decided, "What the heck- I'm going." So, I went and had a great work out and I must say I'm feelin' great. Not sure if this is a new pattern or not, but I am certainly going to try and make it more of a habit. (I also made it to the gym yesterday BEFORE life group- so I'll fit it in when I can)

On another note, I need to do my Grocery Game, Week 2 update. I have to say, I'm not quite as thrilled with this week. I am finding some holes (for me) in the Grocery Game. Part of the problem is that a lot of things on the list- I just don't buy normally, so I've bought a few things the past 2 weeks that I normally wouldn't, which means, even though I am saving money on THOSE, I'm not really for us, b/c we don't typically eat it anyway. BUT, I think with that realization I can use it to work for me and still save a good amount of money. Here's the breakdown:

At Publix, I spent about $23. I don't have my receipt, so I can't remember exactly, but I think that was actually about a 56% savings....didn't use a lot of coupons there, but bought several buy 1 get 1 items and stocked up on some good stuff. I didn't get the penny item though...it was hot dogs, and I just can't do that :)

At Kroger, I spent $31.73. I saved $33.74, so 51% savings for my items. Here's the bad part about Kroger- I HAD to buy butter- spreadable and in sticks, and that was NOT on sale. Luckily I had a coupone for $1 Smart Balance, but those two items still added up to $6.18 which was almost 20% of my total spending, so you see buying stuff when you need it as opposed to when you don't and it's on sale certainly does cost more.

I do however, after 2 weeks, have a freezer stocked with Bacon, italian turkey sausage, chicken breasts, a whole chicken, shrimp, lots of frozen beef, 16 oz. shredded cheese, lots of frozen veggies, etc. for much less than I would have spent normally. So- I'm stickin' with it. We've certainly been eating well (with the help of my organic produce I get from Delvin farms bi-weekly) Here's a run down of this week's meals (if you REALLY care to know)

Sunday Lunch: pot Roast with Organic potatoes & carrots (we had a church picnic, so it was actually more than that- but that's what we brought)

Sunday dinner: homemade pizza with italian turkey sausage, red onion, tomatoes, bell pepper

Monday dinner: shrimp & beef kabobs with squash, zucchini and onion, FRESH tomato basil soup (made from the tomatoes from the farmer's market and my neighbors home-grown basil) cranberry walnut salad and bread

Tuesday dinner: grilled honey soy chicken, fresh corn on the cob, mashed potatoes, salad and watermelon (it was a yellow one- very strange!

Tonight: I don't know yet- I'll open up the freezer and be creative!

Weekend Re-cap:

Friday after work, we took off to Franklin for me to do my final dress fitting for Ferris's wedding. The dress was great and we left there and headed to downtown Nashville to see Scott & Courtney and new baby Noah! He was precious and we had a great time with them, chatting and holding the newborn. Jordan and I left Baptist hospital and headed down the street for some Mexican food off Nolensville road, and then met up with Robby & Ferris to see "Dark Knight." It was a great movie- VERY dark, VERY intense, but very good. We were up WAY too late though and got in bed somewhere b/w 12:30 & 1am. (ewww, I know)

Saturday morning came too early, as Jordan had a bunch of high school guys meeting here at the house at 8am to go play in an Ultimate Frisbee tournament. I woke up to make him some breakfast before he left and spent a couple of hours, cleaning and preparing for worship before I took off. I got to squeeze in about 45 minutes at the pool to catch a little sun before taking off to meet up with Ferris. We looked at some paint color options for her apartment and had a great time chatting and catching up. I ended the evening in Spring Hill with the youth group in a great night of worship, teaching and connecting in our small groups.

Sunday again came early, and I had a great time leading worship for our service. After church, we had a great baptism/picnic with the congregation, the only downside being that it was incredibly hot!! By the time the events were wrapping up, the ONLY thing that sounded good was a pool, so Jordan and I headed off with several of the youth to the pool to cool off. We spent the next couple of hours playing Green River and Categories in the pool and had a blast!! We finished off the evening back at home with homemade pizza (I topped this one with hot turkey italian sausage, green peppers, red onion & tomaotes) and Step Up 2. I got in bed early and slept like a log- ready for an awesome- full week!

It's Friday, how exciting! It's a beautiful day here in Middle Tennesse. This morning, I was out watering my flowers (which are growing splendidly, by the way!) and marveling at the size and height of my pink impatiens. Mom & I planted several plants a few months ago and despite some plants having difficulty growing in my flower beds, these have LOVED it. I've never seen some get so tall. Here's an idea of what they look like when you buy them at the store:

Here is what one of the stems from my plant looks like....plucked out of the whole bush of them:



I think it's hilarious! Who knows why some grow the way they do...it's just the mystery of God's incredible creation!

Big news to announce: Baby NOAH is here! Scott & Courtney Ray's little baby boy was born yesterday around 2:30 by C-section at Baptist Hospital. He was 8 lbs. 6 oz which was a BIG relief to Scott & Court who had been told based on ultra-sound that he was swiftly approaching 10 lbs!! (They thought he was 9lb.8oz) Jordan and I will see him later tonight, so we'll post some pics of that, I'm sure! I got to talk to the new momma this morning and she sounds great! So, CONGRATULATIONS!!

All of you have a marvelous Friday and weekend! May it be full of God's perfect will for each moment :-)(That's what I'm shooting for!)

Ferris & Robby's wedding is:

1 MONTH FROM TODAY! YAY!!!

So last week I blogged about The Grocery Game, a way to seriously save money at the Supermarket. I'm currently doing a 4 week "trial" so see if I want to continue to subscribe to the lists that provide insight to the best savings. So, here ya go:

The Grocery Game: Week 1
-clipped coupons from Sunday's paper and some old papers I had. I hadn't really been in a habit of clipping coupons but I figure if I'm going to do this right, I had better collect as many as possible.

-I am currently subscribing to Kroger & Publix lists, which are the stores I go to regularly anyway. After pulling up "The List" (which organizes all of the best deals of the week and color codes them to tell me what to buy) After trips to both stores, here's how I made out:

Publix
Total bill w/o coupons & savings: $113.46
I paid: $59.80
Savings of 53% overall
(keep in mind that my savings is actually more b/c most of these items are already ON SALE w/o coupons)

Kroger
Total bill w/o coupons & savings: $110.46
I paid: $44.56
Savings of 62% overall

Here is a sampling of some of the things I got and some meals I will make from this:
- 1 1/2 lbs. of fresh organic shrimp (for jambalaya and shrimp scampi pasta)
- 2 bags fresh frozen asian veggies & 3 lbs. hormone free chicken breast (for stir fry)
- 2 boxes of whole grain spaghetti
- 2 lbs. top sirloin steak for grilling
- 9.5lbs. sirloin roast (this will last a LONG time. I felt like a butcher cutting it up, but with a little work, I saved a TON of money on this)
- Grilled Mesquite chicken strips & Dole Salad Blends for a yummy southwestern salad
- lots of fresh stuff like tomatoes, cherries, bananas, eggs, milk, turkey lunchmeat & then lots of pantry items like graham crackers, townhouse crackers, popcorn, brownie mixes, air freshener, bathroom cleaner, cereal, tea, shaving cream, medicine, and many other things!

I have a few doubts, but I am going to give it at least 3 more weeks. It takes me being creative, b/c I can't just plan out my menus and get what I need, but I need to really plan around the sales/coupons, but as I go more and more weeks, I'll have more and more to work with and will be able to probably get back to some of my "normal" menus.

I would say it's definitely been worth it so far.

We got to have our "adopted" children over this weekend! Charis & Judah Moore spent the evening with us so Mommy & Daddy could spend some time for their anniversary. Our time was full. We had sandwiches for lunch, and took naps, went to the park and played on swings and in the sand pit, went to the grocery store and got balloons and Diego (from Dora the Explorer) fruit snacks, ate chicken and zucchini (which they loved) for dinner, watered the plants, and ate pancakes and bananas for breakfast. Oh, and of course took a bubble bath! (Just the kids, not me- haha) We had a great time and we hope Mommy & Daddy did too!

Okay, bear with me...this could be a long one.

I just started reading "The Importance of Being Foolish" by Brennan Manning. (The Ragamuffin Gospel, Abba's Child) There are some things in this first chapter that are CHALLENGING ME! Here's an excerpt:

We are satisfied by our decent little life. We are pleased with our good habits; we take them for virtues. We are pleased with our little efforts; we take them for progress. We are proud of our activities; they make us think we are giving ourselves. We are impressed by our influence; we imagine that it will transform lives. We are proud of what we give, though it hides what we withhold. We may even be mistaking a set of coinciding egoisms for real friendship.

The demands of the gospel bring us to the vivid awareness of our weakness and imperfection. They stun us, reduce our overestimation of ourselves, and make us realize how limited we are. This realization- when we allow it to infiltrate our hearts- keeps us from smugness, complacency, and the self-sufficiency that poisons spirituality. God's Word wakes us up to our need...

...If the radical demands of the Christian life are never proposed, if we settle instead for the tepid observance of a lukewarm set of precepts, how easily we become pharisaical and self-righteous. We try to save ourselves by our own works. We never experience the mystery of redemption or loving dependence on God. According to our own invulnerable standards of justice and honor, we are doing quite well at playing Christian.

WOW.

Ouch.

Now, don't get me wrong- I am not saying I'm completely off track or totally and utterly missing the mark, but God is speaking to me through these pages. I can completely identify with the bolded parts in the above paragraph. I still give too much when it's easy for me...whether my time or my treasure. I still need to go to a new place of servanthood...with my friends, family and the people I come in contact with. I still expect too much COMFORT! Serving God is NOT COMFORTABLE! Why don't I expect that instead? I am moved to tears this morning, but they are tears of renewing and purity, not tears of guilt or shame, and that's how I know the Holy Spirit is speaking to me. There's a place the Lord is calling me to, He's drawing my heart, He's reminding me of things- it's eye-opening, embarrassing, raw, beautiful, refreshing, wonderful and compelling. I haven't been "dry" or "tired" lately, I've been growing in my intimacy with Jesus, but He's opening my eyes in a whole new way, and I don't want to miss it- not even a tiny little part.

Okay- if you haven't gotten Brooke Fraser's CD, Albertine- now is your chance. It is just $5.99 on iTunes right now and is SO worth the buy.

This is one of my most favorite albums of all time and her voice is incredible! I love to support her, so PLEASE - go buy her album. I can't think of a better way for you to spend your 6 bucks!

Got a forwarded email from my mother in law this morning. See how you do on these quetsions...they aren't trick questions- it's a quiz for people who know everything, which I, obviously, don't. (I got #'s 4, 7, 8, 9)

1. Name the one sport in which neither the spectators nor the participants know the score or the leader until the contest ends.

2. What famous North American landmark is constantly moving backward?

3. Of all vegetables, only two can live to produce on their own for several growing seasons. All other vegetables must be replanted every year. What are the only two perennial vegetables?

4. What fruit has its seeds on the outside?

5. In many liquor stores, you can buy pear brandy, with a real pear inside the bottle. The pear is whole and ripe, and the bottle is genuine; it hasn't been cut in any way. How did the pear get inside the bottle?

6. Only three words in standard English begin with the letters 'dw' and they are all common words. Name two of them.

7. There are 14 punctuation marks in English grammar. Can you name at least half of them?

8. Name the only vegetable or fruit that is never sold frozen, canned, processed, cooked, or in any other form except fresh.

9. Name 6 or more things that you can wear on your feet beginning with the letter 'S.'

Click HERE for the answers.

Just finished watching "So you Think You can Dance." LOVED the Bollywood dance number at the end. Yes, that's right...I said, Bollywood. I'm sure you can check it out on You Tube if you missed it.

So, my new favorite thing right now is "The Grocery Game." I was reading the paper about tips on saving on all sorts of things, and I seriously LOVE trying to save money at the grocery...it's a weird little interest of mine. The article was talking about this website- thegrocerygame.com and it intrigued me enough to try it out.

If you are one who doesn't like planning ahead, making a list, sticking to it, looking for deals then this is definitely NOT for you- and that's okay. But, if you're like me and love being a savvy food shopper than this is SO for you. It's a little confusing at first, but I decided to try it with a "mini" trip to the store and here's what I ended up with:

- Herbal Essence Shampoo
- Herbal Essence Conditioner
- Pantene Pro-V Shampoo
- Swiffer Sweeper Refill Pack (32)
- Frozen Broccoli
- Frozen Corn
- Crest Whitening Toothpaste

My total?

$9.21 plus tax! (Look back again at everything I got)

I saved almost $21 off list price from this trip alone. And these are all things I use! (The swiffer refill pack is usually $8.99 by itself) Imagine what my real shopping trip will be like. If you're intersted, check out it out here and read up. I'll be sure to keep you posted on how it goes. It is supposed to take a while (12 weeks) to really get to a place where you're saving the max, but I think it'll be worth it!

Great start to the week. Yesterday was a full but wonderful day of work- got a lot accomplished and worked through! We had some friends over for dinner last night. I made a few different pizzas: my standard barbeque chicken pizza, and then a ham & pineapple and a new one- buffalo chicken. MMM,mmm, it was good! I made little Hannah her own personal cheese pizza and we had a wonderful time talking and hanging with them until 11:00 o'clock! Totally could have gone longer, but we all knew it was bed time!

Not too much going on this week. One of my friends is RIGHT on the verge of labor...so we're anxiously awaiting that! She's due in about a week but TOTALLY ready to pop, so we're praying little Noah hurries himself on up. She's certainly ready.

I have a dress fitting after work for my bridesmaid's dress for Reese's wedding. Let's hope it fits! I love the dresses- they are so pretty! And we may have another family over tonight, but other than that, it's a pretty easy breezy day.

Have an awesome Tuesday! Be blessed!

This was an AMAZING weekend! I guess it helped to have an extra day, but it was such a perfect combo of rest and getting things done- I just loved it!

Friday, we had a lazy morning, and then begun work on our front flower beds...weeding, planting and MULCHING! We've been in this house since November of '06 and hadn't re-mulched yet. Needless to say, our poor flower beds were desperately needing it. It was pretty hard work...more so than I realized but a great workout. Jordan also did a TON of work in the garage...we put the TV up in the corner, got rid of some junk, he cleaned and straightened and organized. I LOVE IT when my husband gets his mind set to cleaning/fixing something because he is so thorough and does a great job. We spent the evening with my parents, Ferris & Robby and Dylan celebrating Dad's birthday, which is today! We had a wonderful time and it was SUCH a treat to all be together.

Saturday we slept in a bit, and I headed off to pick up my basket of fresh goodies from the Farmer's Market. I should have taken a picture...the box looked SO pretty. I got squash, cucumbers, zucchini, tomatoes, potatoes, Kale, Lettuce, Eggplant, Onions...mmm,mmm! So good! I met Jordan at Utopia and we had some breakfast, excellent coffee and read for a while before heading home to take care of some stuff there. We packed up and went to the pool, and hung out for several hours with some of the youth group and Ferris & Robby. It was SO fun and I accomplished my goal of getting rid of my tank-top tan lines from playing frisbee and camp. Now I can just try to get a little more sun before the wedding. We took off from there (I had 3 high school girls in tow) and packed up to go to the Drive in movies in Lewisburg with the youth group and some families. It was a total blast and so many asked to come again.

Sunday came WAY too early, b/c I was leading worship at our Cool Spring's campus and had to get up really early, but it was a wonderful morning, and God extended my energy. Jordan and I spent a couple hours at home, watching the finals of Wimbeldon and resting, before he went back to work in the garage, and then helped me finish the mulching. Here is our finished product:





I'm so excited for my flowers to grow- making sure they get lots of water, but everything turned out SO nicely. We went up to Carrabba's for dinner and had a wonderful evening together.

Praise the Lord for an amazing weekend full of wonderful people and fellowship!

Jordan got back yesterday from taking a group of the high school guys camping in the Cumberland Gap at Stone Door. It's a GORGEOUS place in East TN. I LOVE living somewhere where this kind of hiking,climbing and scenery is available just an hour or 2 away. (Of course, Colorado beats it hands down- but I don't live there, do I?!) He took some pictures on his phone (I'm so proud of him) that turned out very well so I'll get those from him soon and post a couple.

I loved hearing all his stories of the guys, funny things they said, did, etc. One of the boys (who I consider one of my many "sons", but I won't name names to protect the innocent) was apparantly getting himself all worked up and freaked out about the dark. Jordan said that there were several raccoons barking at night, and he got all freaked out about it. Knowing this boy and knowing EXACTLY the facial expressions and tone of voice he had just sent me rolling! Hilarious! They survived it well and from Jordan's account are probably ready for the next level- the true back country camping. So fun...only thing I wish, is that I could have gone! :-) Next time!

I love finding new worship music. 10 years ago, there wasn't much out there, but then a revolution happened in modern worship and Passion & Hillsong began pumping out new stuff every other week it seemed, Chris Tomlin followed suit, and now we have a wonderful environment around the world of fresh new music constantly being poured out. Of course, granted, there are those who have taken their opportunity to capitalize on the chance to make some money, so there are plenty of "worship" albums out there that are anything but.

But I've been finding some great stuff. I am of course a huge fan of the stuff Hillsong produces and they've got a new one by United and Hillsong coming out in the very near future. VERY exciting! Chris Tomlin's got a new one coming out later this month, I think.

Here's what I'm listening to right now:



Gateway Worship, "Wake up the World" REALLY, REALLY enjoying this! Starting with the track "God of My Days," the next 4 tracks are incredible. Going to see about adding some of these to our worship rotation at church.



Jamie Jamgochian, "Above the Noise." Not all the songs on this are written by her, but I love her style. It's refreshing and pure, and I am looking forward to listening more and more to this record.



Jeremy Riddle, "Full Attention." I LOVE how he incorporates the choir on this record. It's a little "old school" style but it is BEAUTIFUL and POWERFUL! I've been enjoying this VERY much.

Anything you all are listening to that you're loving?

Great weekend that went by too fast:

Friday night, Jordan took off to the Men's Overnight retreat our church, New Song, was having. He was leading worship and from what I hear- did a wonderful job! I took off up "north" to Cool Springs to run some errands and then ended up at my mom's house with Mom, Karen Hillis (in town for Ferris's shower) Ferris and her future mother-in-law, Sungcha Owen. We had a good time chatting, making dinner until poor Sungcha got eaten alive by mosquitoes on the back deck. (No joke- I cannot describe how many bites she had on her legs from a 15 minute time block) We ended the evening watching one of the most incredible dances I have EVER SEEN! I am not joking...it makes me cry almost every time I watch it. Check it out here. (Scroll past the interview part if you don't have time- the dance is only about 2 minutes)

Saturday, I caught breakfast with my friend Jessica Cupp- who is in town all the way from Hawaii. We had an incredible time catching up on so many things. I haven't seen her in a year and a half! Unbelieveable they've been over there for that long! It was so much fun!! I took off from there to change real quick and head to Franklin for another bridal shower for Ferris. I still don't have pictures because I've been too busy at the shower to take pictures, so I'll try to collect them from others. It was awesome! She was SO blessed by so many encouraging and wonderful words and generous gifts from friends and family. I ended the evening hanging out with our U-turn youth girls at one of the other leader's houses- playing Loaded Questions and laughing at the crazy antics of these girls. They are hilarious and I love them so much!

Sunday after our normal service in Spring Hill, Jordan and I headed out to New Song Murfreesboro to lead worship and participate in the service out there. This is the congregation that Robby & Ferris are pastoring, and it was SO exciting to be out there! After service we got to see the apartment they are living in, which is great and then spent the evening with them at our house.

So there was the weekend and we're gearing up for a fabulous week!

I don't need another reason to love the Indianapolis Colts, but maybe you do. In an interesting poll in an Indiana newspaper, they polled to find out how non-political figures stacked up next to Barack Obama and John McCain. How did Tony Dungy, coach of the Indianapolis Colts do? Out of a possible 10- being the highest level of respect, he got a 7.3. Percentage of people polled who said they had the highest level of respect for him, 33%. Maybe those numbers don't seem much, but consider this: out of a list of about 15 people, the only one to rank higher on the list than Tony Dungy?

Mother Theresa.

So- GO COLTS AND GO TONY DUNGY!! (and read his book if you haven't already- so good!)

So here's a rundown of the last few days. It'll probably be long, so click on my music tab to the right and get a little music while you read!

Saturday:
-hooked up with Steven & John Herrenbruck for breakfast on Saturday in Newburgh. We had a great time with them before hitting the road to get back to Nashville. As soon as we arrive, I took off with Ferris and Mom to Ferris's shower, which was wonderful, and Jordan took off to play some Ultimate Frisbee with my brother and some friends. (More from the shower later) As soon as that was done, we met up with all the youth and parents at Pinkerton Park for a family picnic/game night. We grilled hot dogs, played water balloon toss (Jordan and I came in 3rd out of about 60 groups!) hung out, talked, played frisbee, angle ball, etc. It was beautiful weather and it was so fun to have everyone out there together. We crashed that night, and I think both slept hard!

Sunday:
-I woke up early to get ready- had to get to the church by 7:30 because I was leading worship. Went through rehearsal and had a great service. We are consistently at about 215 people these days, which is so exciting! Pastor Andrew Lamb from Woodbine was speaking, and we had a great time of ministry at the end. There is a lot to process still from the service, but God is doing some pretty amazing stuff. Afterwards, we hurried home, I made grilled chicken salads, we stuffed them in, and ran off to Ultimate Frisbee, which is an outreach we do every other Sunday for the youth group. We had a lot of fun playing frisbee for a couple of hours. We both got home around 4:45 from that, and got to rest for about an hour before I made dinner and we took off to go bowling for a friend's birthday. We had a great time bowling with friends that night- I actually broke 100, can't remember the last time I did that.

Monday:
-slept in until about 7, and then got up to read and get to work....had a lot to do! The day flew by working and catching up on things, and as soon as it was over, I prepared my grocery list and took off for some errands. Picked up our dry cleaning which I had dropped off like 4 weeks ago- OOPS! In the midst of grocery shopping we decided to go up to Mom & Dad's for the evening, so I made it home, whipped up some spinach artichoke dip, packed up the steaks I was marinating and we took off. We had a great evening, got to see Reese and Chris and got some good talks in with Mom & Dad. We left (too late) but oh well! It was worth it.

Today:
-work up early, and stepped outside to weed my front bed. we HAVE GOT to get some mulch down there...these stupid weeds are growing way TOO fast, so I took care of that, and got some great reading in before starting work. Finishing up the work day now, which again has flown by. We have our Spring Hill youth leadership team (about 9 total) coming over for dinner tonight, and I still need to clean the house. So, in the next 2 hours I will attempt to dust/vaccuum/clean the kitchen and cook chicken marsala/pasta/green beans for 9 people. I'll letcha know how it all turns out!

Don't know why, but I feel like giving you a list of my top 10 favorite movies. These are pretty much movies I could watch ALMOST anytime and certainly movies I have loved every single time I've watched them (which has been plenty more than once with the exception of one) So, here you go- my top 10 favorite movies:

10. Pink Panther
-the only comedy on my list. I just laugh & laugh everytime we watch this.

9. Walk to Remember
-great if you want a good cry...incredible story, incredible movie!

8. Sleepless in Seattle
-always been one of my favorites growing up, so I think it's just stuck with me

7. Lord of the Rings Trilogy
-I know, I know, it's more than 1 but I really can't separate them...I love them all!

6. Bourne Trilogy
-okay, again, more than 1 movie but they're all INCREDIBLE!

5. Iron Man
-yes, seriously. It's that good!

4. Last of the Mohicans
-GORGEOUS music, unbelievable scenery, great dialogue and of course a beautiful story

3. Remember the Titans
-I love football and I love this movie!!

2. Gladiator
-what an inspirational movie with a fabulous soundtrack

1. Pride and Prejudice
-I don't know if I will ever get tired of watching this. One of my favorite all-time authors and one of my favorite of Austen's works.





What are some of your favorites?

So I was totally in the mood for an old song. Click here to take a listen, and enjoy!



or

So bear with me as I kind of piece together a couple of things I read this morning in scripture...it's some pretty cool stuff!

First off, I read Psalm 138:8 "The Lord will perfect that which concerns me; Your mercy, O Lord, endures forever; do not forsake the work of Your hands." That has always been a favorite of mine. There is so much assurance in there!

And then I was reading in Acts 13, and came across verse 41, "Behold, you despisers, marvel and perish! For I work a work in your days, a work which you will by no means believe, though one were to declare it to you." Sounds kind of harsh, doesn't it? I thought...I like the one in Psalms better, but here's what I started thinking about.

The verse in Psalms is so encouraging- to all of us! We are all experiencing one or several things in our lives that we just have to trust God for. Whether it's moving, changing jobs or financial situations, (big one for us right now) dealing with a difficult relationship, the loss of a loved one, infertility stuff (another big one for us) or trusting Him for a healthy pregnancy (for our little niece Hopie) there's always something. God says in that verse that not only will He bring something to completion, but He'll PERFECT it. He doesn't do things half-heartedly or leave things unfinished like I do sometimes. He finishes it, and He does it perfectly.

Now in Acts, this is Paul speaking to the Jews in Antioch, and cautioning them against turning their backs on Jesus as the Messiah. That's why the language is pretty harsh. Paul didn't beat around the bush- He told it like it was! But he cautions them not to miss what God is doing. "God is working," he says, "but you can't see it. You can't believe it even though it's in broad daylight, right in front of you."

So it made me think, what other things in my life am I missing? Things that God wants to do? Sure, I'm believing Him for a baby and to heal my infertility, and we're trusting Him for finances for this next season, but what else? What things in my heart, or in my relationships is He wanting to work on, and I may be missing? Because what's neat is that God is so faithful, when we're willing to recognize the things He is doing, He's faithful to complete it to perfection.

I just really enjoyed reading these things this morning,and thought you might as well. Happy Friday!!

We are currently in Evansville, Indiana. Jordan planned this trip some time ago to do some fund raising for some of the new things he is stepping into, (Click HERE for more info) and he really wanted me to come with him since he'd be there an entire week. When we realized that I can work from pretty much anywhere with a strong internet connection- we decided that I would come with him. So, I'm currently working from Jerry & Cindy Lamar's this week. It's going well so far- please pray for us as we continue stepping out in faith to raise the support we need for Jordan to be in full-time ministry.

Well, I absolutely must finish off the post I started about camp. I told you about all the fun we had and activities we did, but the most incredible things were the things that happened in these student's lives. We saw some give their lives to Christ, we saw some decide to return to following God after doing their own thing, we saw some realize their callings in life and so many set free and let go of unforgiveness, bitterness, suicidal thoughts, anger and so many other things that were holding them back from what God has for them.

So many times, we see it take a couple of days for students to really feel comfortable and get into being there...enough to let their guards down to really hear from God, but what we saw this year, was students going right after it, from the very moment we got there. By the time we had the first session, which was a couple of hours after we arrived at camp, I had already had conversations with 2 or 3 girls about breakthrough they needed in life. That first evening was incredible. We saw them give their lives to the Lord- let go in worship- tune in the message...amazing!

I could write for probably the next 3 hours about different things, but since I don't have that kind of time or space (nor do you) here are some highlights:

- Sunday night worship: students and leaders alike went RIGHT for it. I co-led with Kyle and we had an awesome time!
- Monday night dorm time: just saw the girls really let down their walls and share with one another, victories and struggles alike.
- Tuesday night, praying with one young lady to receive the baptism with the Holy Spirit, which we believe is for greater power in our lives. We receive the indwelling of the Holy Spirit when we accept Christ as our Lord and Savior and then He baptizes us with the Holy Spirit for greater power and effectiveness in our lives.
- Wednesday night- many of us as leaders were sensing that it was to be a night of extensive ministry. Joel and I were leading worship, and both of us were really struggling vocally. I was praying for wisdom in what to do, and really sensed that we were to go forward and trust God to restore our voices, and He did JUST that. The entire night, I was able to sing full range and full strength.
-Wednesday night, we had prayer for many different things for the students, ranging from those who have had suicidal thoughts or oppression, to those who needed to forgive fathers and mothers. We saw UNPRECEDENTED breakthrough in their lives that night
-Thursday night, baptising several of our students in water. What a sweet and amazing time that was.

I could go into great detail, but alas- the time!

Check out this video if you get a chance....there are a few students sharing here:

What a GREAT movie! We saw it Wednesday with Hope & Steve and it did NOT disappoint. I'm anxious to see it again. I used a couple of the the songs from the soundtrack this year for camp- check out my favorite one at my listening section on the right, and I would highly recommend this movie if you have yet to see it.

I couldn't embed this video- I guess Sony has it protected, but I am totally DIGGIN' this song. I actually stumbled on Sara Bareilles about 5 months ago on iTunes and loved her, but didn't buy the album. (it was $6.99 on iTunes- shoulda snatched it up) This is her second single and it's great!

Click HERE and take a listen

So now we're back from camp, and I have no idea how to begin!! Way, way, way too much happened to be contained in a tiny little post. I think what I'll do it tell a little about some of the funny and activities-related things, and then later this week tell about some of the transformation that occurred in many, many students' lives.

So, first of all, I must talk about my team! A few years back, we (the activities team- mainly Jordan) determined to have names for the teams that were consistent from year to year instead of having them come up with a team name on their own. We chose cherokee animal names like Yona(bear,) Soquili(horse,) Tlvdatsi(mountain lion,) and Uwohali(eagle.) Last year we had 10 teams total, but needed to add 2 more this year, so we added Wahuhi (owl,) and Ogana(groundhog.) I was, of course, a groundhog! My team was awesome!! I was so proud of them. They really worked together and we ended up going from placing 9th or 10th the first day to 1st the 3rd day and a VERY close 2nd the 4th day. They were SO much fun and one of my favorite teams ever!



My dorm was also a lot of fun. My group was about half of the junior high girls from Spring Hill and we were partnered with Marisha Wagner who had about half of the junior high girls from Cool Springs. Our evenings were complete with LOTS of giggling, creaking bunk beds and funny sleep talking. We had a lot of fun with dorm inspections, and made "stuffed people" the first day which was HILARIOUS. Click HERE to watch the dorm videos. They were really funny! We were Tefteller B.


Team competitions were amazing this year! Here's a run down of the days:

Monday: This was what we call "Name Discovery" where everyone finds out what team they're on, and who else is on it with them. We had 1,000 feet of twine per team, beginning at the center of camp and weaving all throughout. They had to follow it to the end, and then decipher some puzzles that led them to their next clue. It looked like a giant spider web and was amazing.


Tuesday: This game was called angle ball. It consisted of 4 seven foot tall posts with a basketball on top. The teams were trying to knock the basketball off, getting passed defenders and keeping their's from being knocked off as well. Again, will post pictures of this later.

Wednesday: This game is called tank. Basically each person is paired with another one on their team, with one person, the "gunner" being blindfolded. The gunner gets a mouthfull of flour, and then, while guided by the other, non-blindfolded person, walks around the field trying to "shoot" the other tanks. It's basically a game of annihilation and this is the one my team won. It looks something like this:

Thursday: this was a repeat from last year called "Storm the Mound" It is impossible to describe this game but let me just say it is one of the most incredible games I have ever played. My team came in 2nd by 5 points! Crazy!

And then I must just add a picture of some of my girlies being so fun and getting into it. I love these girls so much!



Well, if this isn't long enough for you, check back later for more stories and more pictures!

Ever since my last post about camp, it has been my life :0) We've been cutting twine, material, painting, pasting, coming up with games/riddles, making emblems, blindfolds, wood burning team staffs, planning, praying, practicing, etc. I've been purchasing everything from posterboard and muslin fabric to flagging tape and burlap bags.

We've also had some really late nights this week. Tuesday night we had the team over working on all this stuff, and despite us starting at 5:30, we were still going strong with lots to do at 11:30. TOO late for my taste. Last night, I got home from camp worship rehearsal about 9:30 and saw Ian & Jordan all the way down at the end of our street with twine stretch down the length of it. We found out we are oh, about 4,000 feet short what we needed. (How was I supposed to know that 2-ply 8,500 feet meant it was only 4,250 of usable twine) So, instead of the 17,000 feet we thought we were getting, it ended up being 8,500. And now I need 4,000 more - so, trying to find that. Stayed up WAY to late this morning, and then J & Ian woke up at 6:00am to finish wrapping said twine....all that to say, I am looking forward to sleeping in tomorrow. We certainly need it to get rested up befor Sunday!

This is an amazing time, though and I wouldn't trade it for anything. I am so excited this year- not about games and activities, although I know those will be awesome, but about the breakthrough that will happen in these students lives. I am more sure of it and passionate about it than I've ever been.

Please be praying for us next week. I would LOVE to have an amazing blanket of prayer over us, which I know we will!

I can't wait for camp!! 10 Days to go! God's gonna do some amazing things this year- I know it!

The Lord is my strength, give thanks to the Lord, the Lord is on my side, the Lord answered me, the Lord is for me, I called on the Lord, the Lord helped me, trust in the Lord, the Lord is my song, this is the day the Lord has made...

All of this is in Psalm 118, a song of praise to God for His everlasting mercy! How can we not praise the Lord? Do we have testimonies of what the Lord has done in our lives? Do we focus on the bad and the things that have not yet been,or do we focus on the things to come and what He has already done?

My favorite verse in this chapter is vs. 17, "I shall not die, but live, and declare the works of the Lord!"

When I read that this morning, I pictured a person- tired, broken and beat from the battle, victorious but weak and worn, declaring with all the strength they have left, 'I shall not die but live and I will, with all that is in me, declare the awesome works of the Lord to everyone around!"

If we never went through battles & trials in our lives, would we really have the chance to see who God is and all that He can do for us? I want to be one who stares defeat in the face and declares the power of life over the power of death & darkness because of my Lord!

RECENT PHOTOS:


"Jon & Bethany Melton"


"Backdrop at Jon & Bethany's Wedding"


"Me & Joshua Adams"


"Group of U-turn Girls on break from the Mercy Ministries' Event"


"Visiting Taylor's (my cousin) college for his play"

It's been a good week, but quick! As I previously posted, Jordan and I were away at a Lakehouse off Centerhill Lake for a little anniversary getaway for a few days. We had an excellent time...only got in the lake a tiny bit on Tuesday- took the inner tubes out. It doesn't come close to jet skiing, but oh well- it's what we had!

These past couple of days have been full but great! We had our first Life Group with our new multiplied group on Wednesday evening, and it was awesome. Jordan and I are the youngest couple in the group, and the only ones without kids...we are not leading this group, just a part of it. It's the first time we haven't been leading a group we've been in, and we had an amazing time on Wed. They ended the group with everyone laying hands on and praying for Jordan and me...for this new season with Jordan's vocation, and for the issues I've had conceiving. It's been a year now, and Jordan and I are trying to really hear the Lord on the direction He wants us to go with it. It was a wonderfully, encouraging night!

Yesterday we worked and had several things going on that evening. I met with a decorator and my sister to discuss some wedding details, and then had a leadership meeting and Camp worship rehearsal. We are going to be working on the Ultimate Frisbee Tournament tonight, which is tomorrow, so there's a lot to do with that. More updates to come...

I am back from the dead! Well, I never really was dead, just really busy and have had to put aside the blogging for a while...wow- April 30th....has it really been two weeks?? A lot has happened in that amount of time, babies have been born, people married, and even some passed away. It's been a full season, but we've celebrated every moment with people we treasure deeply. Here's a rundown:

In late April we took an emergency trip to Naples, FL, because Jordan's Grandpa Chalker had taken a turn for the worse. We booked the soonest flight we could find, but weren't quite soon enough as he passed on our way down. We are so thankful for an incredible life and the wonderful model that he was.

We were home for a week that included the birth of a friend's baby, the loss of another one, camp meetings, among other things, before I took off to Kentucky with my mom to see my cousin's play- Romeo & Juliet in Danville, KY. Taylor (my cousin) played Romeo and I was IMPRESSED. It was great.

I was home for an afternoon before taking off again to Florida, this time for work because Hope & Steve were going out of town. We spent that week working hard, but also playing hard with Dan & Erin and our dear friends the Gaddis's (and new baby, Jovie)

Then it was home on Saturday for a quick weekend that included Jon & Bethany Melton's beautiful wedding, leading worship on Sunday for church and a whole day of wonderful Mother's day events that concluded with dinner at the Loveless Cafe, which was a blast!

Jordan and I drove straight from the Loveless to the Lakehouse at Centerhill, which is where we are currently. We are here for a couple of days to celebrate (a little late) our three year anniversary. Today has been amazing, I've slept in, eaten a yummy breakfast, gotten groceries, eaten lunch, spent time with my husband, taken a jacuzzi bath, read, and am currently and finally updating my blog.

You'll hear from me again much sooner than before. There's a LOT going on that I need to fill you bloggers in on...but I'll have to save it for another day. Have a good one!