Happy Birthday, Amy.

Very few people are blessed with a true friend in life.  Sure, we may have a best friend for a season, but then the season changes, circumstances change, and most of the time, our friends change too.  I am one of the very few with a true friend.  I am even more blessed to have a few.  But one stands alone, and her name is Amy.

Amy and I met 16 years ago as I began my career at the Tax Collector’s Office.  As a matter of fact, I didn’t even like her in the beginning.  I thought she, and one of the other girls there, were a little snooty.  This is quite funny now, because if there is one quality you will NOT find in Amy, it would be “snootiness.”  For some reason, we had to work together on a project, and it has been an unbreakable bond ever since.  That was 16 years ago.  I was just 18, and would never have imagined I would ever have a friend like Amy.

Amy is the friend who has encouraged me through a divorce.  I remember her going with me to meet the mistress, tracking down where they were living, and helping me sharpen my investigative skills.  Shortly after the divorce, I found myself staying out later, and partying a little too much.  Many times I would oversleep, and Amy would call me to tell me to get my butt out of bed and get to work before I lost my job

After Rob and I got married, and I had children, Amy was still my dearest friend.  She loved Cade like her own and was there for the birth of SaraGrace (and even provided some comic relief).  Most of you know she was the one in the ultrasound room when we got the news about Faith.  She wasn’t supposed to be there that day, but thankfully God intervened, gave her an intuition, and she did what she wanted instead of listening to me  She encouraged me, loved my family, and loved my daughter. 

When Faith was born, she was there bright and early.  She would come back to where I was waiting for the c-section, and just hold my hand, and tell me it was all going to be okay.  Once Faith was born, she was one of the first in the room.  She was the only one other than Rob and me that held my angel.  She took off the entire week to help us out.  She loved our children and took care of them, she supported my parents, she helped with the funeral, but most importantly, she was my friend. 

There have been very few days these past 16 years that we haven’t talked on the phone, or in person.  We have our “morning coffee” on the phone on the way in to work, and it just makes my day.  She always listens, tells me her honest opinion, and knows me better than most.  She knows my deepest darkest secrets.  She’s been on the mountain tops with me and in the valleys.  She is the epitome of a TRUE FRIEND.

Proverbs 17:17- A friend loves at all times.

Today, Amy turns 40!!!  We celebrated with a wonderful surprise party last night.  There is no way in the world to repay her for what she has done for me.  My only hope is that I can let her know just how special she is.  Friends like her are few and far between.

Happy birthday to the best friend a girl could ever ask for!!!  My sister from another mister!

SaraGrace Sings a Solo

Be still my beating heart!!!  My sweet, spicy redhead sang her very first solo in church last night, and I couldn’t be more proud of her.  I must admit, I teared up a little as she stood up on that stage singing “Change My Heart”. 

I am so thankful for our church and their willingness to let the little ones share in worship.  She will never forget last night!

Of course we want to share it with you, so here she is in her very first official singing debut.  (Note that baby sister is trying to compete with her in the background.)

Be Still

So many times when you are seeking God’s will for your life, there are so many directions that seem to be right.  But you just don’t want to step out in front of Him or his timing.

Serving God wholeheartedly has been on our hearts for some time, and there are just so many shapes in which it can be manifested.  I have so many thoughts and wants, and ways in which I think it should be.  But all of my own personal opinions just seem to cloud what is He really wants from me.

There is no doubt I am a busy woman.  Too busy for my own good.  I have been convicted and my heart has been heavy.  There are just so many great things going on in my life, and I want to be neck-deep in all of them.

But that sometimes comes at a cost.  The important people in my life sometimes suffer at the hand of my ambitions to be the best at everything I do.

God has opened HUGE doors with my book, and we are working so hard on getting it done.  We are looking at having the manuscript complete by the end of October.  He has blessed me with a wonderful woman who is helping me put it all together.  I am so thankful for her, and the joy that I have had the past few weeks.  To physically see something that God has put into motion come to fruition is one of the most fulfilling things I have ever been a part of.  He is taking my deepest pain and allowing it to become one of my greatest joys!!!  It is totally unexplainable, except for the fact that He is God and I am not.

So my quest to find my niche in which the Lord has called me has lead me to a quiet voice that is whispering, “Be still and know that  I am God.”  I need to quit trying to be Wonder Woman in everything I do, and just do what He’s set before me with my whole heart.  So I have committed to work on this book with the same effort that I have been chasing everything else that comes my way.  That may mean that other trivial things will have to temporarily take a back seat, but that is okay too.

I cannot wait for you to be able to share in this project with us.  It truly is a testament to the HOPE we have in Jesus Christ!

When it Rains, It Pours

It has rained this week in our lives.  And I mean FLOODED!!!  But in an AWESOME way.  God has poured out so many blessings on our family this week, I am on such a high.

Some of this will be vague, and I am sorry for that, but we are still praying through some of these details.

The first thing that happened this week, was that we got to see awesome details being worked out in students’ lives.  The Lord literally orchestrated some things that were undeniably Him.  He’s so awesome!!!

Secondly, we are praying about some opportunities for Rob.  His heart is in ministry to students, and God has opened a small door.  We have a lot of praying to do!!!

Lastly, but the best!!!, is my book.  Y’all, I have been burdened by my disobedience in this area.  I have a hard time managing my time (I’m busy.  I’m a wife, a mom, a Sunday School teacher, a youth worker, a jewelry lady, a contractor, and this list goes on and on.)  However, NOTHING should get in the way of being obedient to God’s calling on your life, and I have been so guilty of that.  So here is what went down….

We were at a youth leadership team meeting discussing an upcoming event.  I just happened to ask for prayer in regards to the book situation.  My heart has been so heavy to get it done.  One of my sweet friends mentioned that her long-time friend had just published her second book, and it was a number one pick on Amazon this past week.  I asked if she thought the lady may be interested in helping me finish my book. 

The next morning, I asked for the contact information.  I facebooked the sweet lady, and she messaged me back almost instantly.  She couldn’t help me at this time because she is so busy.  But she happens to be a member of a Christian authors group, so she put my request out to them.  Within minutes, I had a sweet woman interested in helping me.  I facebooked her and a partnership was born.  A door was FLUNG open by the Almighty God. 

I am now working with the sweetest lady who is going to help me finish Faith’s book, and she is going to edit it as well.  I was waiting for the door to be slammed closed whenever I asked her fees.  But me and my faithless self were proven wrong again.  It is something we can work with.

  The weight of the world has been lifted off my shoulders.  Rob and I are going to work diligently this weekend to get the rest of our story done and get it to her.  She said she shouldn’t take too long to finish it. 

I cannot begin to tell you how it feels to personally see God working miracles in my life!!!  I know God is good, all the time.  But He has POURED out blessings this week to us.

As I’ve been studying James these last two weeks, I have been convicted about having faith without action.  It’s easy to say I believe in Jesus, and I trust Him, but do my actions say so?  Sometimes we have to just step out on faith.  And that is what we are doing.

Please pray for us as we continue to seek and follow God’s will for our lives.

Liquid Gold

We love us some creamed corn around these parts.  It is probably my most FAVORITE food of all.  It is a lot of work, but so worth it.  For a while, we just settled for “tube corn” cooked in the microwave.  It was okay, but not nearly as good.

Since we all love to eat corn, we had a family gathering  to put some up in the freezer.

The girls started out with the shucking and silking process.  Because we were so busy, I do not have any pictures of us doing that work.  But I do have some pictures of the cows enjoying the fruits of our labor.

 

Remember Lulabelle?  She is growing….a little.

Mom & Dad got some new contraption to do all the work for us.

Once the corn was creamed, it was time to vacuum pack it. It was definitely a family affair.  Cade was away at at Children’s Camp, and SaraGrace was in charge of all of the littles (Lord Help Us!!!).  

It was a job keeping them all entertained.

Sometimes she left her post because she got bored herself.

Emmy had a great time, and was sooooo good!!! 

Now all we need are some of the O’Steen’s famous CORN FRITTERS!!!

Things I Learned on My Very First Run

I never thought I’d be blogging anything about running.  I am not a runner.  I am not a motivated person when it comes to exercise.  However, after doing some stalking of some facebook running pictures, I thought it would be a good idea to do the Couch 2 5K training regimen.

You see, Disney has several runs throughout the year, and I can be easily motivated by Disney.  So I set out to get started.

I did go to a local running store to get fitted for some shoes.  That’s the only smart thing I did leading up to this. 

I did (barely) finish day one of C25K.  But not without learning a few things.

So here is a list of things I learned about running in the 30 minute training session. 

***Please Note:  This is just me being honest. Do not hold this against me:)***

• Watch what you eat before you run.  We thought that eating pizza and drinking a gallon of diet coke would be no problem if we waited long enough before running.  SOOOO not the case!!!  I thought we would be experiencing dinner for a second time on the second lap.
• $50 is NOT too much to spend on a good sports bra.  I am a tightwad.  I do not spend lots of money on clothes and such, and my shoes were over $100.  There was no way I was going to buy a bra for $50…until now.  After layering THREE bras, I finally felt comfortable enough to run.  But OHMYGOODNESS it was HOT.  I will definitely be making the investment next week!
• Compressions shorts are important.  We went to Orlando a couple of weekends ago and ended up in the Under Armor Store (hence the $50 bra).  I do love a good deal and found some running shorts on clearance for $10 so I bought them.  But they also had some compression shorts on the rack.  I couldn’t imagine wearing those things in the heat of Florida, so I skimmed by them.  They are like Spanx, but only tighter.  And thicker.  But after making a few rounds on the rack, I thought I would try them for $14.  I.AM.SO.GLAD.I.DID!  The purpose of those bad boys is to keep my thunder thighs, and the chaffing,  in check.  SOOOOO worth the $14.
• Dry-Fit Socks.  I did not spend $10 a pair on dry fit socks because one would be missing after just one wash.  However, there are no bathrooms at the track that are open, so I was so wishing I had them after I had to pop a squat behind the car (remember the gallon of diet coke?)
• I should invest in one of those tight-fitting running tops, even if my six pack of jelly rolls is completely visible to those within a 100 yard radius.  Between my three bras and a tshirt, I liketa died of a heat stroke.

I guess it’s good to learn by trial and error, huh?  I knew running wouldn’t be easy, but we all enjoyed it as a family last night.  I did push Emmy in a non-jogging stroller half way last night, so I think I should  get a little extra kudos in the workout department.

On the way home from the track, we started talking about coming up with a family team and supporting a cause in Faith’s honor. 

Cade came up with the idea to support a cause that “helps women to not have abortions.”  So if anyone knows how that works, we would love to hear from you!!!

Catch Up Post that is WAY OVERDUE!!!

Oh my goodness!!!  I have neglected my blog in a huge way, but we have been so busy making memories so it’s been lots of fun!  There is so much to catch up on, so I’ll start with this post, and continue throughout the rest of the week.

As I mentioned before, we didn’t get to do anything the weekend of Faith’s birthday as a family.  Per Cade’s request, we had made a pact that we would celebrate her every year, so we had to make good on that promise.

We headed to the most magical place on earth over Memorial Weekend.

I do not ever tire of Disney World.  It’s a good thing, because we should be added to the payroll since we’ve been there so much in the last couple of weeks:)

We stayed at Coronado Springs again, and loved it.   Our dear friends, the Collins, met us over there to swim and hang out.  The first order of business was to slide into their amazing pool and have a great time.

 

These two oldest children of mine are something else!  They love each other so much, then fight like cats and dogs.  They crack us up!!

  

The kids loved playing on the steps in the waterfall.

Emmy loved the water, but she got so comfy, she slept in her raft as I pulled her around the pool for 45 minutes.  She’s spoiled I tell you!

After all of the swimming we could handle for one day, we went to  the Pepper Market Restaurant at the hotel.

Kristen (Kicken) is expecting a baby girl in August and we are over the moon excited!  We worked on Casey all weekend about Baby Girl’s name.  They keep telling us they will agree soon!

I love this girl!  One of the greatest blessings of friendship in my life:)

I love this picture of our family.

 

After dinner, we turned in early.  Our kids were excited to just lay in bed and watch tv.  Since we don’t have tv at home, that is vacation to them.

We got up early the next morning for breakfast and did some more swimming.  Then it was time to check out.  We had a gift card to Chili’s so we left out and headed there.

Once lunch was over, it was on like Donkey Kong.  Rob surprised me and Cade with the thrill of a lifetime….a ride in a NASCAR!!! 

   Somebody was really excited!

I was excited, but nervous as a pole cat.

SaraGrace wanted to ride so bad, but she isn’t quite 6 years old.  Although she tried really hard to convince them that she should get to since she would be 6 on July 30th.  But they let her sit in the car and get her picture taken.

Cade absolutely LOVED his ride.  Sean, our driver, took him to 120 mph and Cade is still talking about it.

I got to go 140 mph and I prayed the entire 3 laps.  I told Sean that if you ever wanted to see a praying parent, take them in a NASCAR at 140 mph while their 3 children are watching on the sideline:) 

We were so sad to see the weekend come to an end.  We all had the best time making memories and honoring Faith and her birthday.  I love my family and I thank God every day for the blessings they are in my life.  Although we were sad to leave, we were excited because we knew the Volpes were coming and we were coming back in a few days. 

Stay tuned for the pictures from the Vaughn/Volpe Voyage to the Mouse.  Never a dull moment with all of us!!!