BAPTISM

Just wanted to post some pictures of Alex and Patty's baptism.

It was a great morning.

HOW WAS YOUR CHRISTMAS

That question will be asked alot in the coming days. How will you answer? I will answer "blessed". We truly had a blessed christmas this year. It wasn't stressful...it was blissful. I think I truly felt the Christmas spirit this year. It wasn't about the malls or the to do lists...it was about people. It was so great have alot of family in town for Christmas. Here were our highlights:

- Christmas eve service with two rows of family in attendance
- fun dollar store gift exchange on christmas eve
- the annual opening of the christmas pjs for the kids
- Christmas day brunch
- opening gifts one at a time
- christmas day prime rib and ham dinner
- homemade gift tradition.

This year we made heirloom ornaments as our homemade gift for family. The ornament included a special picture of a loved one who is no longer with us. They turned out great. I am so proud of the girls for working so hard on them. I also included a letter with a few of my gifts to my mom, mom-in-law, daughter and sisters. We can tell them how much we love them but a letter will last forever and can be read over and over.

Dad and wally's mom received handmade fleece blankets. They both loved them very much. I bought my mom and sisters a necklace with a star fish charm. The starfish reminded me of our annual beach trip. The place where we stay uses the starfish as its logo. The beach trip is a special time each year and it could not be possible without them.

Allison has taken a real interest in sewing so she received a dress form and lots of project runway supplies. It was fun seeing her sewing with wally's mom last night.

I gave my dear friend sandi an encouragement box. I saw the idea on Oprah. It is a small box with a letter inside telling her how much her friendship means to me. Her birthday is soon...so another letter will go in her box.

For those of you who live in the area...you may notice a special necklace that I am wearing. It is a simple puzzle piece on a piece of leather. I made one for myself, Ashley, my mom and sisters. Why? Difficult times have come into each one of our lives. Sometimes it is so hard to understand why? We only see the small picture while God sees the Big picture. It seems at times like a "puzzle" with a piece missing. We need to be reminded that He holds the pieces...even the one that we think is missing.

Tonight we will be visiting with more friends and a great moment will take place tomorrow...Alex and my sister will be baptized. Then we are off to West Virginia.

Yep...it was a blessed Christmas. Hope your's was too.

CHRISTMAS BLESSINGS

We have returned from the windy city and are awaiting the arrival of more family. This will be the first Christmas that both families are celebrating together. Wally's mom came back with us and my parents and sisters are on their way as I type. I am so excited!!!The presents are wrapped, the stockings are hung and it's going to be a blessed holiday.

The other day I went to help our church youth group wrap presents at the mall. As I got out of my car I looked down and saw a piece of paper frozen in the snow.

I tried to pick it up but it would not budge. It was someone's Christmas list. Actually is was someone named Greg's Christmas list.






I read the list and it said the following:

(I actually had my camera with me so I immediately thought...blog entry)

Ipod cover
jeans

and a few other things

So why was the list on the ground.

Did a frustrated shopper give up and toss it out the window?

Was it dropped my a stressed out shopper?

Who knows. When I saw the list two things came to my mind:

1) I hope Greg gets everything on his list
2) Has Greg received the most important gift of Christmas? Does he know the reason for the season?


I hope Greg gets an ipod cover...I hope he gets jeans...but most of all...I hope he has Jesus.

Merry Christmas

CHRISTMAS CARD

AFTER MANY MANY TRIES...HERE IS THE CHRISTMAS PICTURE.

ENJOY

PROVERBS 31 WOMAN

Yesterday I was reading the story of Jesus' birth. I was mainly interested in the story of Mary and Elizabeth. Both women were surprised to hear that they were expecting a child. I wanted to be reminded of their obedient character and their willingness to trust God. It made be question if I had the same attitude...I don't.

Then to beat myself up some more...I read the description of the Proverbs 31 woman. I was ready to crawl into a whole until I read verse 25.


"She is clothed with strength and dignity; she can laugh at the days to come."

I don't know about the clothing part...but I can LAUGH.

I have laughed a lot lately...especially when I am making over 400 buckeyes with my dear friends.

LAUGH A LOT TODAY!!!

SIMPLICATION UPDATE

Sold a computer today!!!! I am on my way to getting rid of STUFF!!!

THE MANGER

We just returned from a wonderful holiday weekend in West Virginia. We had a ball spending time with family. We had 16 people for dinner. Yummo!!!

A tradition was changed this year and we did not wake up at the crack of dawn to hit the mall. You know what? That was okay!!! We slept in and ventured out at a reasonable hour.

It was fun decorating mom's house for Christmas and putting up the beautiful red and white tree.

As we were unpacking I found the nativity set that we had when we were small. It is ceramic and each piece is handpainted with detail.

I found the cradle but I could not find baby Jesus. I am sure it is packed in a separate box or possibly even lost. I remember as a child we would always hide the baby Jesus and replace it with a small army guy or my favorite...the rubber cookie monster. We were mischevious pastor's kids.

This behavior might be expected of children but it reminded me that even as adults we sometimes take Jesus out of the manger and replace Him with other things.

My prayer is that this Christmas I do not get caught up in the holiday and forget the true meaning. Ashley and I were walking through the mall and commenting on how stressed everyone looked. They weren't smiling...they were frowning and looked tired and weary. We made a point to smile at people and to encourage tired clerks.

God, please keep me focused this holiday. Let me not take my eyes off you.

One more thing...

The other day I was asked what God was teaching me.

I am not one who cries easily....really...but I broke down and said...simplicity.

GOd is teaching me patience and the importance of the simple things. I have a plan. I want to simplify my life and rid myself of "things".

I am going to start selling tons of stuff on craigs list. I am talking longaberger baskets, home dec items, jewelry, clothes. If I don't need it, use it and if it's not nailed down...it's going.

If you want to view my items...let me know.

UPDATES

I have really neglected this blog...that's okay...no one is complaining.

Here is a little of what has been happening:

- received a very last minute request to speak at a ladies gathering. I immediately said yes..why...because it was so last minute...I had no time ro prepare so I knew it had to be all God. God is so amazing. The message came together and it was a wonderful evening.

- waiting to here back from a job interview today.

- leaving for west virginia in a few hours to spend time with family. Can't wait for our morning cups of coffee and maybe a trip to the auction

- been a crazy month of parenting. God continues to show me how so many times we can do nothing but pray. It seems that each child has something going on in their lives right now that will result in growth and hopefully a deeper relationship with Him.

- I sit here thinking about how thankful I am for the simple things in life.
My crazy dog who makes me smile and has learned to scratch my back on command, a warm cup of coffee, a snuggly quilt, the stillness of the morning, spontaneous trip to starbucks in a blizzard last night, great friends, great family, and a God who loves me more than I can fathom. I wish the above for everyone...love ya all.

EMPLOYMENT UPDATE

This week I applied for 2 full time jobs. I am excited about both opportunities and I am leaving it in God's hands. Where he leads...I will follow.

Today I was checking out an employment website and applied online for a substitute teacher position. Fifteen minutes later the phone rang. There is a school that is experiencing a huge increase in enrollment. The school is an "arts" school. The arts are incorporated in math, science, english, etc. The pay is much higher then other schools and this would be a long term position. I am going to check them out on tuesday. I would love to have my own class for a long period of time. They will even help you become certified to teach full time.

Pray for me...I don't want to get my hope up...but...it's all up to Him.

I especially want to be teacher during the holidays...they get soem great gifts. (ha ha)

STICKS CONFERENCE

Today I am at the Sticks Conference. There are some great speakers here and I thought about blogging about some of the great things I heard from the keynote speaker Mark Batterson. Then...I went down to the prayer room and I heard from the best speaker of all...God.

Here is what He said

"Don't just pray when all else fails...pray before, during and after it fails"

There are some people very close to me who are struggling with some big issues. Know that I am praying for you!!! Know that God loves you more than anyone. Know that He never moves...He is always there to catch us when we fall, to put us back on our feet or to carry us through.

I do want to share one thing that Mark shared. Sometimes we focus too much on the small perspective. When we are going through hard times...we focus on the small and not how it fits into the big picture. It may seem BIG now...but it really is just a small piece of a larger picture.

Mark also said that we are always praying that people will come to church. We need to stop praying for the "coming" and be part of the "going." We need to be the ones who GO and bring them.

I enjoyed his talk and even gave him a personal prayer request.

FIREPROOF

Last night our care group went to the movie "Fireproof:. I highly recommend the movie. It was a great example of what God has called us to in a marriage.

The other day in church...this became a visual for me. I was standing beside Wally who is 6'3". I am 5'4" and I was wearing flats. He actually stood over a head taller than me. It made me realize that because of his height...he can possibly see things that I can't and he can see things coming before I do. As the leader of our home...he is our protector and it is important that he sees things better than anyone in the home. God called us to be a "helpmate" to our spouse. Someone told me that God made us from a "rib" so that are at our husband's side. Not from a foot to walk over us.

Great job Wally!!!

I AM SO TIRED!!!!!

There is not a word to express how tired I am. We just finished the outreach that our church does every october. Our entire family was involved. Last night my team counted and we acted our scene 99 times. Literally 99 times. Our scene was very emotional. In this scene...my husband in life and in the drama dies. We have to be very emotional. My the 90th take...I was literally justing saying my lines. There was no emotion left in me.

It was a great event and lots of great stories have been told. We had 4000 people attend and way over 400 people gave their life to Christ.

I had so many great things happen last week as I subbed at three different school.

That will have to come later...I am too tired...

I am grateful for one thing today...I voted early and won't have to worry about lines tomorrow.

VOTE!!!

GIRL MATTERS CONFERENCE

I am so excited!!!!A few months ago I had an idea for a girl's conference for girls 3rd through 6th grade and their moms. I continued to pray about this and began to outline what the conference would look like. On a whim I decided to propose the idea to an organization and so far the answer is yes. I am meeting with the leadership team on Monday. If you can remember to pray for us that would be great. This would take place Spring of '09. The name of the conference is

GIRL MATTERS...because girls matter.

THE FAMILY THAT SERVES TOGETHER...

Every year our church holds an outreach event called Judgement House . It is a walk through drama for two weekends. It takes at least 200 people to pull this off each weekend. For the first time, our entire family has a part in the outreach. Wally and I are acting. His character is killed in an automobile accident and I am the grieving widow. I have to cry a lot. Ashley and Ally are playing the nurse in the scene. They have the job of pulling the sheet over Wally's head. Austin is an extra in the cafe scene and Alex will be a "door knocker". This is a very important job. He knocks on the door so I will know when to enter my scene.

It is going to be a busy October so we are leaving today to visit family in West Virginia. Can't wait to see my nephew play football, my niece in her horse show, shopping, morning coffee with my family, and hopefully a trip to the local auction.

Wally and Austin will be staying behind for some male bonding and heart to heart "man" talk. I am so excited to return home on Sunday to see them and to see my new floors that wally will be installing.

Have a great weekend.

PRAYER FOR OUR CITY

Last night I attended an incredible prayer group. A few months ago the Twinsburg Board of Education made the decision to stop praying before meetings. You can read the article here. One citizen felt a strong conviction for this and began a prayer meeting that meets at the library. I attended the prayer meeting. What an incredible experience to be praying with people you don't even know...but feel like you have known forever. What bonded us together? We each shared a passion for the Lord and for seeing our city experience His love. We prayed for the schools, safety forces, government and residents. I will definately be at next month's meeting.

WE ARE ALMOST THERE

Where you ask? We are almost to the place where it will be harder to find a free night on weekends for us to do something as a family. Our kids are at the age where they have busier social schedules than us. They enjoy going to football games with their friends, they want to shop and go to movies on weekends...with their friends. They want to hang out at their friend's homes...with other friends. I am okay with that. I remember those days.

Last night was an unusual night. The 3 younger children had no plans. WHAT!!!

So I found an event that we could go to as a family for under $15.

The twinsburg historical society was hosting a graveyard tour of famous people who lived in twinsburg. I called to make sure that this was not going to be a "scary" event. Everyone reluctantly agreed to go. We went to the historical society and began the night with free starbucks coffee, homemade cookies, hot chocolate and pizza.

Our guide carried a lantern and 100 of us began the tour at the "vault".

As we approached the grave yard...40 high schoolers were dressed in costumes from the 1800's and were singing amazing grace.

Each student stood beside a tombstone and reenacted the part of the person who had died. They shared their story and it was very interesting and humorous. It lasted about an hour and I believe we all learned something. Yes...I think I even saw my teenagers laugh and smile a few times.

All in all...it was a great night that ended with food from McDonalds.

So what's tonight...One is going to a party and one is going shopping and one will still be hanging around mom and dad at a hayride.

Oh...it was good while it lasted.

THE BURRITO FIASCO

If you ever need an emotional lift...hang around a child. My mom continually shares with us stories from her kindergarten class. This is the best so far:

Mom was monitoring the lunch room with her "cutey patooties" and it was burrito day. She did her usual opening up the milk and making sure everyone was eating nicely and quietly. She noticed that two of her students seemed to eat a little faster since their tortilla shells were already gone. Mom asked them why they ate the shell first. They replied "Oh we didn't eat them...we are using them as napkins." They had neatly placed the tortilla shells across their little laps.

So the next time you go to Taco Bell...don't ask for a napkin...just another shell.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

I heard this quote today from Anita Renfroe as I was driving kids to the bus:



"If my body really is the temple of the Holy Spirit...then I must be a Mega Church"

HAPPY BIRTHDAY PA PA

Two special people want to send Pa Pa a very special birthday wish

PERSONAL REVIVAL

I grew up in a time when the word "revival" was used alot in the church. Our church would schedule revivals that would last for usually a week. The word revival has taken on a new meeting for me. It isn't something that can usually be scheduled...it just happens.

I have sensed a personal revival lately. Things that use to bother me or upset me don't. Things that use to have a lot of meaning in my life...don't. Things that use to not have top priority in my life...do.

It is almost scary to type this post because I know I will be tested.

The biggest area I see change in is in material things. I have been selling things on the internet lately. Things that I use to hold on to very tightly. Things that had sentimental value...things that had monetary value. I recently took a huge load of shoes and clothes to a resell shop. Clothes that still fit, but were never worn.

I realized that a purse really is just a purse.

A basket really is just a basket.

Today I am going to sell something that once held a special place in my home and was once a "must have."

I am hoping to use the money to pay off some bills.

Tonight we are going to go hear some missionaries speak. They are a great example of people who gave up everything to go and serve. A lighter load really is better.