2 weeks and no posts!

We must be a bunch of slackers! But life is very busy with the kids, softball games (thanks for coming out NaNa), concerts (Brad Paisley was great for what we remember of it!), and movies. Our movie couch time is the best thing we do each day! This Thursday it is off to see Kenny Chesney! I guarantee this will be a great concert with lots of friends!
We had our first game night this past weekend. It was great smoking all of you in Last Word but everybody got me back when I was stuck on the 2 sets of 4's for 7 rounds! If you don't know what I am talking about come over and I will show you! Game night was great and I hope we can have another one really soon!
By the way baby....Yes your chest is getting huge and no matter what you say I like you in the wild turkey shirt!

I'm still Here...

First off, Sorry. Sorry for being such a slacker that I can take 10 minutes out of my day to write a couple thoughts down. I know, some may say it’s laziness, but not me.. I think of it as keeping people in waiting.. It’s fun.. J Sorry, mom! Sorry, baby! You know I love you both! You two are probably the only ones reading this anyway…

Anyway, I want to say having your own home again, and not having to live in a cramped up, bug infested, 900 square foot apartment is like being a kid again on Christmas morning. So exciting and refreshing to come home from work, pull in my nice 2-car garage, and be able to crank my surround sound during movies, and not have to worry about the neighbors beating on the wall beside me! The kids love it to, especially since they can actually go outside and enjoy a yard, and a nice one at that! Thanks to my new in ground irrigation system.. okay, I’m starting to brag a little too much… but can you tell I’m excited!!!

Let change gears a minute…Anyone ever ponder this thought… I do all the time..

What if you could be blessed with one talent that you currently don’t possess what would it be?

Mine, hands down, to be able to sing and play a piano, much to the likeness of Nate Sallie. His music has inspired me so much over the last week since I downloaded his CD. His music and lyrics speak deep into my heart. And I have mad respect for him as an artist, b/c he took the gift God bestowed upon him and used it to glorify His name. Every song he sings, speaks of the glory and grace of our Savior.

I enjoy Christian music so much. If only more people would take the time to listen to some of the artists they would be amazed. So many criticize and stereotype the music by thinking it’s all “churchy” and “not for them”… For those people, I try suggest trying out:

Jeremy Camp
Skillet
Brandon Heath
Shawn McDonald
Bebo Norman
Red

Just give these artists a try. You might just be amazed at what you hear….

And to my baby, I love you! Thanks for the trip to AtlantaFest to see some of these amazing artists, and rocking out with me at home! You rock, Christian music rocks, and GOD ROCKS!!! Let’s keep rocking!!

Update

Well life is great! Oatmeal and tea still wake me up in the morning. We are meeting more and more of our neighbors. I can't believe we have been here almost 4 weeks! A HUGE Duke flag hangs in front of our house and we have all of the furniture! Very soon we are planning to have a mexican or italian or well we just like good food game night~! Maybe we will have a grilling game night!
I really enjoyed game night last weekend at Nana and John's because sometimes luck falls my way and I win! But to my sweetheart who always wins at everything.....you are a fabulous teacher and have taught me the tricks to keep winning! The best thing about all of the games we play is spending time with you!
We are so blessed with everything we have in our lives. I am so thankful that we both put God first and trust in Him. I know that by following His word we will be amazed at the blessings He has in store for us! I sit and think about our lives as we know them now and think only 6 months ago that I only dreamed of finding someone special! I am so excited about our future because look at the awesome man God had in store for me all along!

XBOX

XBOX rocks! I played Tiger Woods and scored a 91 last night in the wind!!!! I am an official gamer! Let's hope I get better so the league will let me stay in! Ladies...the men love it and if you gave it a chance you may have something else to do together that allows you more special time and ...it's FUN!

What a great weekend!

Thanks to all of our friends and family who came out for a great BBQ Housewarming on Friday evening. The homemade BBQ was fabulous! We were wondering if the recipe was a secret or if we could have that emailed? Our backyard was full of chairs, neighbors and friends sharing stories, making plans for football season and trying to get KerryAnne the right directions to the house! We got some many nice gifts including dishes, towels, wine, gift cards, a sweeper and more! For those of you who couldn't make it please come over and see this incredible house God has blessed our family with!
This was our first weekend with all of our kids together under our new roof! They all think the house is "Big" and "cool with neighbors to play with!" We can't wait to get the rest of our furniture in this week. Everyone will soon have their own bed to sleep in!
We had another birthday lunch on Saturday so the kids could celebrate with Tim. We went all out and made an awesome lunch of chicken nuggets, curly fries and fish sticks! He blew out the candle in his fish stick! Creativity counts when you don't want to go back to the grocery store!

By the way this message is for my love.....Baby you are the KING of making tea for me and there is nothing like waking up and eating the HOMEMADE oatmeal or cream of wheat you make for me. Thank you for being such an awesome and loving man! I am so blessed!

Thanks to EVERYONE!!

Wow, another year gone by, another year closer to 40! I know, I didn’t make a post on my birthday, but it was done INTENTIONALLY !!! The less I think about my b-day, the less I think about how much older I’m getting. But it was a great one none the less. My wonderful grandmother cooked me some of the best fried chicken in the south, and even made me one of her famous made-from-scratch carrot cakes. Yes, she even make the cream-cheese icing from scratch… I dare you to tell me your grandmother is better!!! :-) I love ya, Maw-Maw, you're the best!! Thanks for giving me the best birthday lunch a man could ask for.. Ashley and Dakota should did enjoy themselves as well. Hopefully Dakota won't tell his Nana that your food is better….

Overall we had a great weekend, we got moved into the house, got unpacked, and cooked a whole lot on the new grill. After being without a outdoor grill for 18 months I sure did some catching up this past weekend. I broke the grill in with some wings that my brother still says were burned… but he must have still enjoyed them b/c he ate like 15 of em.. He's just jealous b/c my grill is bigger and better! Thanks to my wonderful Mother and StepFather for buying me all the grill nessecaties for my B-day, GREAT PRESENT!!

Last night was a hoot, I was outside grilling burgers for the 4th, and before I knew it my realtor and his kids show up looking for a bar-be-cue that I'm planning on having this Friday. Good to know that realtors pay close attention to detail… :-) Anyway, they came at just the right time to enjoy some of the best Bacon Cheesburgers, I really do think I could give "Cookout" a run for their money… We all had a great time, and enjoyed the neighborhood fireworks. You could defintely tell who actually "crossed" the border to get the better ones….

I would like to end this post, but expressing a BIG THANK YOU, to all my family, friends, and loved ones who helped make this weekend one that I will never forget. Thanks for all the wonderful b-day and housewarming gifts, and help with the move. I can't wait to see you all again this weekend as we celebrate our housewarming together with even more family and friends… I just hope we have enough parking!

-- And a quick note to my baby: You will never beat me in FORZA, but I love you baby… Keep Trying! --

Happy Birthday Baby!

This blog is for you baby on your birthday! This is a great day because every special day is a first for us! I hope this birthday is awesome and you enjoy every moment of it! Thank you for spending it with us. I look forward to 70 more years of birthdays with you. (Well that would put you at 101 years old....sounds good to me!) Look out because I will be practicing Forza and do intend to beat you one day when you least expect it even though it was your birthday present!
I love you and Happy Birthday!

Confessions of a Pastor...

Pastor Steven, you flat brought it today!!!

Pastor preached the first of his five sermons on his series titled, "Confessions of a Pastor". His sermon today was centered around his first confession of "I struggle with the same sins over and over again"..

This is powerful. And this is respectful. How many preachers do you know would bring their own struggles to their congregration in order to help them better their walk with God..

..That's Steven Furtick, and that's what sets him apart!

His application point of his sermon today spoke right to my heart, See below.

For those that continue to struggle with the same sins do the following:

1. Hate the sin..
2. Starve the sin..
3. OutSmart the sin...

"When God saves you, it's instant.... But God changes you little by little..."

I love this! I love Elevation Church!