Everyday Joy

 Back to school.....vacation is over. We are getting back into the school routine. It's very hard to get back into school when we have had such a LONG break! After the tears Monday morning, this week turned out to be great. We accomplished everything in the lesson book plus a few extra activities.

Trevor and Patrick really like the Daily Schedules that I made for them. When they finish a certain task/subject, they get to pull the square off the page. When the page is blank, school is done! They get very excited about getting a blank schedule page.

Fun over Spring Break!!

We have been enjoying our spring break for the last 3 weeks. I have enjoyed this much needed break.  Trevor was baptized on Easter Sunday, April 8th @ Fairview Baptist. Prasie God!!!

Prayer Letters

My prayer for my prayer letters:

Heavenly Father, 

I come before you pausing to give you praise. Praising and thanking you for all you have done. For sending your Son, Jesus, to die for my sins. For everyone's sins. He paid the price so that I may one day rejoice with you in heaven. I thank you for the loving husband that you chose for me. I thank you for my 3 sons that you to me. I am truly blessed. Blessed more that I deserve. 

I ask you to pour your blessings on the recipients of these letters. I pray that you will open their hearts to receive the love that only you give. I ask that you will reveal yourself to those that may not know you or have not made the commitment to follow you as their Lord and Savior. Open their their hearts that they may respond to their letter as you would have them. 

In your precious and Holy name, Amen. 

"And for me, that utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak." Ephesians 6:19-20

 

Where did February go....

I can't believe that February is almost over! This month has flown by and I just realized that I never shared on how I did with my January resolutions. One word: Terrible! My goal for the month of January was to learn how to make bread from scratch. Well that didn't happen. And now that I'm thinking about it, I don't think that I have kept most of my resolutions. I'm behind on reading thru the Bible in a year, and unless you count a short story book that I read to Phillip, I didn't read an entire book in January. I did make a resolution to cook more healthy foods for my family and I've done that. We no longer eat processed foods, in fact I don't buy them anymore. Steven has said that he feels better lately since we made the change. YEA!!

What's totally amazing is that even though I failed at keeping all my resolutions, I'm not going to give up. I will continue to ask God for the strength and wisdom.

A lot has happened over the last few months. My Granny is now living with my parents until a permanent place can be found. She can no longer live on her own and take care of herself. Her Parkinson seems to be getting worse. Some days are better than others. I was excited to have her over for dinner tonight, while my mom went to a work meeting. I hope she enjoyed herself.

Trevor got 2nd place in the AWANAS Grand Prix at Baptist Grove Church a couple of weeks ago. 

Patrick placed 8th in the PineWood Derby for Cub Scouts. He made his car look like Lighting McQueen.  

I'll post soon what I plan as my goals for March. Maybe I'll actually accomplish those....

Valentine's Day

This year I sort of made a big deal out of Valentine's Day with the boys. My boys are not into flowers and heart shapes candy boxes; but they are into dynamite and things that explode. 

We had a picnic brunch on the living room floor while watching Scooby Doo. 

Then I gave them their surprise. I gave them dynamite filled with candy.

Steven came home from work and surprised me with my Valentine's Day gifts. He gave me a bottle of water, because I drink water. Animal crackers because I like both animals and crackers. And also an Angry Bird toy because I have the game on my phone. He handed me each of these directly out of the WalMart bag. I couldn't help but laugh because while we were in Disney World we watched a show on TLC called Extreme Cheapskates. They featured a man who gave his wife these things for their anniversary; and he wrapped them in a garbage bag.

Here's my real gift. Roses. I love flowers! 

My husband is the best person in the world and I love him SO MUCH!!

It's Official....I'm going back to Munkacs, Ukraine

I received the email that I am on team Fairview going to Munkacs, Ukraine this year. The dates for the trip are June 29th thru July 8th. I am very excited to see what God has planned for this trip. Last year was my first mission trip and it truly changed my life. Things that seemed so important are no longer important to me. I'm ok with wearing the same clothes all the time, eating the same things frequently, and just enjoying a simple life. I'm not a person that has lots of wants, ask Steven. He'll say the same thing. I don't want for anything.
I've been told that I'm very hard to buy for at Christmas because I don't make a list of wants. It's just not me. Yeah, they are a few things that I think would make things easier if I had them, but I have done just fine without them.
Anyways, Munkacs has a great need for the Gospel to be shared and I am so grateful to God for allowing me to be part of it. Last year, we held a conference with the pastors and their wives. It was a time of encouragement for myself as well as the pastor's wives. They want better for their families, they want things to change and they know that with the help of God, things can change. I am looking forward to working with the gypsy children again during VBS. They came very excited to hear what we had to say, what God wanted us to say.

Over the next couple months, I will meet with my other team members as we plan for our trip. I can't wait!!

Happy New Year!!

I know I'm a few days behind but Happy New Year! That's what happens when you have 3 children, time flies. It's already January 5. We celebrated the New Year at home with the boys, playing Monopoly City. We had a great time playing, even though we (Trevor, Patrick and myself) knew that Daddy was going to win from the start. He always wins. On his first turn he bought Diamond Hills, which is either Boardwalk or Park Place on the regular board.

Every January I make a few resolutions and for the most I am pretty good at keeping them.  This year I plan on making a few yearly goals, and some monthly ones too. 

Yearly goals/resolutions:  Read thru Bible chronologically along with Fairview Baptist Church

                                             Read a book every month. (can't remember the last book I read from cover to cover)

                                                       Maybe run in the Fuquay 5k, if  I'm home.

                                                       Learn to cook more healthy meals for my family

January Monthly goals:      Learn to make bread from scratch