Saw this on another blog- thought it was good. Kicked me in the butt a little....but what can I saw? I like that!

When I am uncomfortable...

• I'm intentional; not casual.
• I'm confident in God; not me.
• I'm hungry to learn; not content where I am.
• I'm making decisions on purpose; not by accident.
• Life's a little bit harder; not a little bit easier.
• My faith is a little bit bigger; not a little bit smaller.
• I think a little more about others; not a little more about me.

Couldn't pass this up...got this from one of my friends! Happy Oct. 29th!

We're currently sitting in the Orlando airport. We finally discovered a great little table right next to an outlet where we can sit and do things we need to on our computers. We are headed back to Tennessee after a wonderful work week in Florida.We had a great time last night watching old home movies and just hangin' out...and we'll see them in a short 3 weeks for Thanksgiving-which is going to be so much fun. I get BOTH sides of the family! :-) Super wonderful.

Jordan's all excited because it looks like "true" fall weather has finally hit Tennessee! I'm pretty stoked too- actually might use the fireplace and put my summer clothes away...fun, fun!

We are here in wonderful Florida (it's so hot!) working this week. We worked a full day yesterday and then got sushi with the family beforing watching "The Biggest Loser" and hittin' the sack. We watched that show once when we were here last month...we only catch it when we're in Florida. I was SO annoyed watching it last night (If you watch it, you know why) This guy pulled the worst thing ever and got one of the other guys voted off. It was dirty and mean! Not fun. Other than the meanie Neil- I really enjoy that show.

Can't believe the wildfires in CA. It's crazy, but I heard a little of the news this morning and it sounds like they're starting to get contained. It's so interesting how almost every area has their worry of natural disasters. Here in Florida it's the hurricanes, in Oklahoma it's the tornados and our west it's the fires. I guess Tennessee's pretty safe other than the occasional tornado.

Well be blessed today! I hear back home we've been getting lots of rain- GO grass! (We reseeded our lawn a couple of weekends ago so I'm all for the rain)

Have a great day!

I've been very bothered by some things I've been hearing and reading lately. Stories from across our nation that I just cannot ignore, and things that are happening that greatly bother me. One such thing I read this morning: A MIDDLE school (that's grades 6-8) has ok'ed a new law that allows students to obtain birth control pills and patches at their student health center. They must have written permisson from parents but under state law such treatment is confidential and the student decides whether or not to tell their parents. What? This same school has provided free condoms for students since 2002. (Read about it here)

This bothers me, not simply because of what they're doing, because I know that the people behind this are coming from a completely different perspective than me, and are trying to prevent STDs and teen pregnancys, and are not looking at it from a biblical perspective. It bothers me because it is continuing to support what Gregg Johnson talks about that our kids are growing up faster but staying young longer- meaning that they are being exposed to things before their time....coming into contact with decisions, concepts and things that God never designed us to worry or think about at such a young age. But, they're staying younger longer, not knowing how to grow up, think for themselves or be adults in our society. (putting away childish things)

We are robbing our kids of childhood without giving them the tools to succeed as adults, and that's what saddens me. Lord, help us as the church to learn to not only teach but to parent an un-parented generation.

This middle school is trying to put a band-aid over a greater problem.

I worked out this morning....woohoo! This seriously has been such a challenge for me to get in the swing of things the past year and get myself in the habit of working out. I always feel so good when I do, but my biggest thing has been my loss of motivation over the past year. It's been hard to muster up the energy to "get going" especially in the morning. But this morning I did it and of course it was so worth it!

We're continuing to water our grass, although it is apparently "supposed" to rain according to weather.com. It had better! I want that rain whenever we can get it!

We had a great night last night...got to have the Borst girls over for dinner and to watch a movie. I made some chicken enchiladas and mexican rice and then some "Jordan-friendly" (no yeast, no refined sugar, and whole wheat flour) cookies that got inhaled-seriously! We watched the newest "Pink Panther" movie which is SO funny. It was a lot of fun.

Oh, and I did move up to 2nd place in our Fantasy Football league. Patsy is number one-which I love- the two ladies are leading it! Alright!

So we begin...the Roe's vs. their front yard. Jordan and I had set aside this past Saturday to tackle our issue of having no grass in the front yard. Some of you who have seen our house might argue that, but in reality it was mainly crab grass, which is tons of fun.

So we mowed, and raked and thatched and bagged and seeded and fertilized and layed down straw and watered, and watered....and continue to water....

And now we pray it grows!!

The temperatures are beautiful right now- and I'm prayin' for rain.

Fantasy Football rank: 3 of 10 (but all of that should change after tonight)

Last night we helped pack up the dear Borst family for their move to St. Louis. Frank & Wendy and their girls (and Josiah) have been in our lives for over a year now, but a year has seemed like much longer- they have become SO dear to our hearts. Last night, as we were working and loading, the only way to keep from crying was to not really think about what we were doing. Their oldest girl, Chantel (on the end) is staying in the area, so we'll still get to see her, but we are saying goodbye for now to Janel and Laurel.

I am so thankful to the Lord who brings people in our lives, and though it may not be incredibly long, they can leave such marks on us. I know that our relationship is not over with this family, and we are believing God's best for this new season in their lives!

Dylan came home this weekend, which is so exciting! AND- he came down and hung out with Jordan and me last night at home, so we got a good chance to talk and catch up with him, which is always wonderful. I am always so thankful for my siblings...we've just always had such great relationships, and that's something I treasure dearly.

Jordan's been a little under-the-weather for a while now, so we're trying to take it as easy as possible this weekend. He made omelets for us for breakfast this morning (my attempt was a disaster- never been good at that) and we're doing some reading now. We have a meeting at 1:00 up in Cool Springs and U-turn (youth group) tonight. We'll be able to take it easy tomorrow- I'm going to spend some time with my mom and we'll all have dinner together up there at Mom & Dad's.

have a blessed weekend and enjoy your weather- whatever kind it may be :-)

We had a great time at Fall Festival. We got home yesterday afternoon just in time for our Leadership Meeting for New Song. We were able to spend the weekend with Hope & Steve, Jerry & Cindy Lamar, Grandma Carol and other family, and Zach & Joy Griepenstroh. I wish I had more time to write, but I'll try to catch up later on the actual events of the trip. I have a lot of catch up to do with work. Blessings to ya,


Fantasy Football update: beat Dylan this past weekend. Current rank: 2 of 10

**Ferris is rockin' out the other league in first place! Go sis!

This has been an incredible weekend so far. Last night, I got to hang out with my mom, mom-in-law, my husband and a dear friend, Cindy Lamar. We went shopping-minus Jordan- I found some jeans I love, and ended up for dinner at Basil. mmm, mmm, mmm! Always a smash!

Today has been pretty near perfect so far! This morning we woke up and went to downtown Franklin for breakfast at the Mercantile. I had an egg-white omelette with spinach, feta, red onions and turkey. It was delish!! After bfast, Hope & Cindy headed back to E'ville and Jordan and I set off to walk and talk. We chatted and strolled up and down the quaint streets of Franklin for several hours, in the gorgeous, soft Fall-ish weather. We ended up in 5-pts Starbucks with our books and a wonderful iced coffee before heading home. It was such a relaxing fun day and there's no one I'd rather have spent it with than my dear husband!

We are now back at the house. I just did some worship prep for tomorrow (I'll be at New Song Woodbine) and vaccuumed and cleaned the car. Jordan is doing a quick workout before all the kiddos, or teenagers rather, get over here for Merge. We're heading up to E'ville tomorrow after church! We actually get to go to Fall Festival this year and we're excited.

Mom & Dad- you'll have to come next year!

Blessed Saturday!

Fantasy football: big matchup with the Dyl-buddy this weekend: Watchout!

What a great morning! I woke up to it raining hard outside this morning- I don't know why I love it so much when it rains. Maybe simply because I know I won't have to water my plants, but for whatever reason- it always makes me smile.

I chose my ginger-peach apricot tea this morning. Actually finished it off b/c I needed that tin to put my new Masala Chai into. MMmmm, it was good though! We had Life Group here at the house last night and it was amazing! SUCH a great time and we were so thankful, ARE so thankful for what God's doing in people's lives. There are good things happening...changes, which are hard in some ways but at the same time, change is an opportunity for God to show Himself to us in a new way, and that excites me!

I'm out of time for the morning. Gotta get people set up with insurance! Have a blessed day!

I keep meaning to post...sorry for the forgetfulness! We've had a good couple of weeks, been to Florida and back, all sorts of fun stuff!

We were in Naples working last week! It was a fun week, got to see Erin & Dan, everyone in the office, Grandpa Chalker and of course Hope & Steve. The week flew by and now we find ourselves back in Tennessee.

I can hardly believe it's almost October! Where did September go??? My goodness...I am really looking forward to October though. I'm believin' for wonderful fall weather! I know it can get there. We're actually going to get to go to Fall Festival in Evansville this year. We're heading up there on Sunday for one or two nights- we're pretty excited about it. We'll also be heading to the Lakehouse in a few weeks and then back to Florida the last week of October. Traveling definitely keeps us on our toes...having to stay up to speed on different things which takes a little more work, but it's totally worth it.

Got to see Merari & Ian a little bit last night which was wonderful. I was at a few meetings at the Buchanan's and needed a ride home b/c Jordan had dropped me off, so Merari was kind enough to bring me home. Ian was here with Jordan, so the 4 of us chatted a while, made some cookies, and watched a little of the game before they left and we went to bed too late- oh well.

I actually woke up very refreshed this morning despite having less sleep than normal, so I got my shoes on and went for a morning run. So glad I did- it was beautiful and well worth it!

Alright- gotta go- have a great Tuesday!

Fantasy Football rank: 3 of 10 (lost by 1 stinkin' point this week)

Ahhhh!

Eli's out for a month.

Dang.

Alright!!

Fantasy season is off to a booming start. (For those who don't know, I am lovingly referring to Fantasy Football, which I'm in my second season of playing) Don't worry, I had my doubts as well before beginning. My previous arguments of, "it takes away team allegience," and "no one cares about the teams anymore," still stand to a certain degree. But I do have to say- it was great watching Eli Manning hit up Plaxico not once, or twice but three times in the end zone last night in a game I usually wouldn't care anything about. A glorious 34 points for my dear Manning's little bro!

Another big surprise that many thought was a huge risk on my part was Randy Moss and his connection with Brady for a surprising 27 points. Brady and Peyton both took a respectful 29 points with Tony Romo and Roethlisburger's CRAZY unexpected starts! I thought they were crazy for picking those guys.

Some disappointments of the weekend (though not on my team) were Drew Brees and a measly 2 points (ouch!) Steven Jackson (BIG surprise) getting a big fat goose egg (0) and Rex Grossman with 3 (although I'm not sure anyone REALLY expected much more from him)

Tonight should be good- we'll see how Frank Gore does for me, but the football madness continues with not just one, but 2 Monday night games.

Football is back in full swing and I LOVE IT!

How 'bout them Colts?!


Last night we had the Clingers and Robby & Ferris over for dinner, which was so much fun! It's so great to spend time with friends like that. After everyone left, Jordan and I turned on the Colts & Saints NFL season opener. When we turned it on it was half time and they were tied 10 to 10.

From that point forward- the Colts ran away with it- literally. With weapons such as Reggie Wayne, Joseph Addai and near-perfection from Peyton Manning, the Colts proved that they weren't some onetime winning team. They are a force to be reckoned with.

Oh the joyous days of football have returned, and I am LOVING it!

Yesterday was a really fun day. The weather has finally mellowed out a bit, highs of 90 insead of 105 make for some nice days! We took it easy (very easy) in the morning and just chilled around they house- I accomplished some random tasks that I never have time for during the regular week (such as touching up paint in spots in the house) We took off to go play frisbee about 3:00 and had about 14 people out to play. It was so much fun and I was glad for the exercise. We spent the rest of the evening grilling out at Mom & Dad's and then playin' a little Trivial Pursuit, which Robby & Ferris dominated, despite coming in late and finishing early.

It was all in all, a GREAT (non) labor day :-)

Football is back!! So exciting! College ball started on Saturday with a few crazy upsets (excuse me, who is Appalachian State again?) and my dear Vols and their sad excuse for a defense losing out to Cal. NFL isn't quite here yet, but coming and last Sunday night we drafted our Fantasy Football teams. My league consists of Robby, Jordan, myself, Tres Winn, Chris Maple, Dylan, Jim & Brendan Fraser, Nate Sallie and Patsy Bass. Draft was stressful and it started off on a bad note as I didn't get any of my prized Colt's players in the first round. Last year I was lucky enough to get Peyton and Marvin, and really, it just doesn't do it for me if I don't have ANY of my faves....but, we'll see.

My top pick went to Frank Gore, which I'm a little nervous about, so we'll just have to see. My first victim is Tres' team, "Royal Flush" so everyone better wish him luck- he's going to need it.

Ferris is playing this year (Yeah Reese) and Robby and Dad coached her along pretty well on who to take. She ended up with a stellar team. Her league consists of Kelsey Shockey, Mark Mumford, Dad, Ernie, Christin Moore, Brian Elliot, Becky Crowell, Jason Gill, Dustin Whitney, and her. It'll be interesting. Dad won the whole league last year, but there's no way we'll let him get a repeat.

Alright, we're off to play some frisbee!

It really was a great week! It was full, but not too busy. I'm trying to remember some of the details of the week, but they're escaping my memory. I know Tuesday we thought we had a meeting but it ended up being cancelled, which gave us a free evening we weren't expecting. Wednesday we had Life Group, which was really, really good! I made hamburgers and made the patties way too small- they were midget burgers, but oh well- they tasted good and there was plenty to go around. Don Ramsey brought some amazing desserts from Panera- SO good!! Thursday I got to hang out with Trish which was SO great. I hadn't gotten to spend time with her in WAY too long, so it was much overdo. We had a great time just talking and laughing and catching up. And I got to see the house she is building which is SOOOOOO amazing! I'm so excited for her.

Last night we ventured out for the first game of the High School football season to see the Independence Eagles play the Brentwood Academy Eagles. IHS wasn't doing the best when about 10 minutes before half time the lightening started striking pretty regularly and they ended up calling the game a few minutes into half time. It was a good thing too, because by the time we got to our car and started to pull out, a full out HUGE storm was upon us. I seriously haven't seen lightening that bad and consistent in a while! It was crazy. After dropping Brad Oliver off at home and getting through all the weather- we crashed when we made got back.

Today is my mom's birthday! HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM! I LOVE YOU! I am going to get to spend some time with her this afternoon before U-turn tonight, which I am looking forward to. So on that note, I am going to leave you to go read and do a few things before heading up "north." Have a blessed weekend! I'm sure I'll have much to report after this weekend: tomorrow is our Fantaasy Football draft!!! Woohoo!

Great weekend!

Friday, Jordan and I got some time at Saxby's and then decided to go out to eat. We drove around a few Spring Hill restaurants and then landed on one of our favorites, The Sultan Table- Mediterranean food. I got the standard: gyro platter and hummus- SO good. Jordan tried to grape leaves, which were good, but he liked mine better :-)
Ferris came over late after Frontline and spent the night with us.

Saturday I woke up early and ran over to the grocery to grab a few things for breakfast. I made whole wheat pancakes and turkey sausage. We all ate breakfast together and then Jordan took off for a couple of meetings and to see Robby while Ferris and I got some really good "sister" time together in. So wonderful. She then ran a few errands with me and I bought a wheelbarrow and shovel at Home Depot. How exciting, right?! The joys of being a home-owner.

Saturday evening was our U-turn Gathering, and man, was it EVER strong! Kyle Cooper led worship, we had a bunch of new kids come up from Spring Hill with us....Jordan taught and the students were laughing, having an awesome time, praising with passion and listening intently. I really am expectant about what God has planned for this group this year. I think it will be an incredible year!

Sunday we had a wonderful service and then had a quick lunch with the Kellums over at our house and then headed down to the William's for a pool party. They have an AMAZING place in Green Hills- absolutely beautiful and the students of course loved it. We ended the evening watching "deja vu" with the Pearson's over here at our house. Awesome weekend!