30 years old!

When you're a kid, you feel like 30 is a lifetime away!  It sounded so old.  These days, 30 is sounding REALLY young to me. ;-)  Those of you that know me, know that I am, well...sneaky.  Not a whole lot in my house gets by without me knowing it.  Something pretty big got by without me ever even half way suspecting it.  My husband and our church family planned a surprise birthday party for me and pulled it off!  There was a church wide cookout scheduled for last night at our friend's house.  It was in the bulletin.  Our pastor sent out an email reminding everyone about it.  We got to the house, parked, and walked into the house.  I walked into the kitchen and noticed pink decorations all over and everyone started singing "Happy Birthday".  I think even then it hadn't started to sink in that the whole "church wide cookout" was really my party.  I was so surprised.  I felt so loved! Then I turned around to go get something for Hannah out of the other room and my parents walked in!  They drove 2 hours to come and celebrate with us.  I am so blessed!  I can't believe that James was able to keep it a secret!  He did so good.  He was so nonchalant about the "cookout".  Then I had another surprise!  Everyone pitched in and got me one of these bad boys:

Seriously?!  I have wanted one of these sooooo bad, and now I have one!  I'm still in so much shock, I don't even know what to make yet!  

I am so blessed to have such an amazing husband, wonderful family, and awesome friends.  I mean really, who could ask for more?  

  

I'm back!!!

Oh my!  I knew that it had been a while since I updated this blog...but 2 months?!  I had no idea it had been that long.  There have been so many things that have happened since I posted last!  My Nathan turned 4 in October. Wow!!!  I can't believe he is already so old.

My birthday boy! =)

He is such a fun part of my life.  I love how his whole body smiles when he is happy.  For those of you that don't personally know him, when he smiles, his whole body wiggles.  He can't even help it.  He radiates joy.

Today Hannah is 6 months old!  It has gone by so fast already!  I can't believe that in just 6 short months that she will be 1!!  If the next 6 months go by as quickly as the last, it will be too fast.  She is so fun and has such a sweet personality.  She is rolling all over the place.  When you lay her down in one place, you never know where you are going to find her when you check on her next.  

Hannah eating her first bite of cereal.  Can't you see how much she loved it?

Joseph is still enjoying the 1st grade.  He is so smart!  A little too smart for his own good if you ask me. =)  He loves being the biggest brother so much.  He's getting so tall and is growing up before my very eyes.  He is turning into such a sweet Godly young man and I can't wait to see what He has in store for Joseph's life.

Joseph holding Hannah

This photo captures my children PERFECTLY!!!

C.V. Pickett

  5 days after Nathan's birthday, my grandfather went to be with the Lord.  He was a wonderful man and will be missed greatly.  For my prayer warrior friends, please pray for peace and comfort for my grandmother as she learns to live life without her husband.











James is doing great!  He is working a lot, which is nothing new.  I am so blessed to have such a wonderful husband that works so hard to take care of all of us.  He is my knight in shining armor. xoxo

James and me at Nathan's party

Anyway, that's us lately.  I'm gonna try a little harder to make sure I keep up with this thing in the future!  Blessings!

A time to celebrate

A Time for Everything

 ¹ For everything there is a season,
      a time for every activity under heaven.
 ² A time to be born and a time to die.
      A time to plant and a time to harvest.
 ³ A time to kill and a time to heal.
      A time to tear down and a time to build up.
 ⁴ A time to cry and a time to laugh.
      A time to grieve and a time to dance.
 ⁵ A time to scatter stones and a time to gather stones.
      A time to embrace and a time to turn away.
 ⁶ A time to search and a time to quit searching.
      A time to keep and a time to throw away.
 ⁷ A time to tear and a time to mend.
      A time to be quiet and a time to speak.
 ⁸ A time to love and a time to hate.
      A time for war and a time for peace.

 ⁹ What do people really get for all their hard work? ¹⁰ I have seen the burden God has placed on us all. ¹¹ Yet God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God’s work from beginning to end. ¹² So I concluded there is nothing better than to be happy and enjoy ourselves as long as we can. ¹³ And people should eat and drink and enjoy the fruits of their labor, for these are gifts from God.

Ecclesiastes 3: 1-13 

What a great weekend of celebration!  Saturday, August, 21 was Faith Lynn's 8th birthday in heaven!  It's such a bittersweet day.  It is a reminder of her life, her death, and her eternal life with our Father.  The celebration started out on Friday when my grandparents came to town and stayed in a local hotel.  We went to visit, had fried catfish, swam, and just had a whole lot of fun!  The lighting was AWFUL at the pool, so I only have this one pitiful looking picture to share. =(

Of course I had to get one of Hannah enjoying the pool too...

Can't you see her excitement?

Saturday morning was a little difficult for me.  I was sitting there with Hannah, looked at the clock, then realized at that exact same time 8 years prior I was holding Faith.  Even though it was a tough moment, I'm so grateful for God's gift of memories.  We went back to the hotel and had a yummy waffle breakfast with my grandparents.  Hmmm...didn't think to take any pictures.

After breakfast, we caravaned to the cemetery where we met my brother and sister-in-law, their 2 girls, and my dad for Faith's birthday party.  For some people that might be weird...but it's a wonderful celebration of Faith's brief life here on Earth.

After we had our cupcakes, we headed over to our traditional restaurant and met my mom, sister, and niece for lunch.  Here's the whole crew:

Hannah

Ava, Joseph, Emma, Jill, Claire, & Brian

James & PaPa

Mom, Dad, & Nathan

Grandmaw & Lindy

Me, Grandmaw, Lindy, & Mom

All in all, it was a great day remembering our sweet Faith.  

James & Faith

Faith,

We love and miss you so much!!!  Eat some of heaven's special cake for us!  We can't wait until we get to see and hug you again.  Thank you for being our special baby girl.

XOXO,

Mommy, Daddy, Joseph, Nathan, & Hannah

  

Summer's Coming To An End

This is the last week before Joseph goes to school and is an official 1st grader.  *wiping a small tear*  I can't believe how fast the summer has gone.  I know several moms that are doing the countdown to when school starts back.  They are ready for the kids to be back.  Maybe I'm weird.  I don't want him to go back.  I enjoy him being at home.  He and Nathan have had so much fun together.  Don't get me wrong, they have had their fair share of arguments; and I have had my fair share of being totally frustrated with them.  But in all, we've had a great time.  Tonight we go to meet Joseph's teacher.  I have been earnestly praying about who he will have for this school year.  I pray that he will have someone that will love him almost as much as I do, that he/she will be able to teach him well, and that he/she is someone that he will have fun with.  We'll see tonight!

Here are some pictures from a couple of weeks ago.  We had a whole Saturday at home to just be together as a family.  It was so nice!

Joseph being pushed down the slip-n-slide

Nathan being pushed down the slip-n-slide

Do you get the feeling that Dad is having more fun?

Me going down the slip-n-slide

Me trying to remember why I thought that was a good idea

Nathan making me feel better

Joseph and James having fun

Nathan getting ready to take a ride

What can I say?  They love their daddy.

God's artwork for us while we ate our dinner outside

And of course, Hannah after her nap

11 Years

I am SO late on this entry. But better late than never! =)  On July 17, James and I celebrated our 11'th wedding anniversary.  That sounds like such a long time, but I can't decide on whether or not it feels like it.  Sometimes it feels like 11 years if I start thinking about different things we've been through and all of the memories we've shared.  Other times, it feels like we were just dating.  I can remember our wedding day like it was yesterday.  *Insert the memory chime here* I was 18 and he was just one month shy of being 21.  At the time I felt like I was so grown up.  Now I look back and think, "Oh my! I was such a kid!"  Even though I was so young, I don't feel like I got married too soon.  I knew that I was making a lifetime commitment and I knew that James was the man that the Lord had prepared for me.  That doesn't mean that our marriage has been without struggles.  Our 11 years together have been quite difficult at times.  Our marriage has survived the death of our firstborn, a miscarriage, cancer, and just everyday life.  But the Lord has been faithful to us.  He has also provided many wonderful times.  We now have 3 BEAUTIFUL children, loving families, and great friends.

I am so blessed that James was chosen for me.  I know I'm a little biased, but I truly believe that he is the best husband, father, and friend on the planet.  He is everything I could have ever wanted and more.  If I could go back to our first date and relive every moment, I would and wouldn't change a thing.  Even more, I can't wait to see what the Lord has planned for our family.

I love you James.  Thank you for 11 wonderful years!

7-17-99

Will you please skate in the house?

 It is no secret.  I HATE to clean!  Not only do I hate to clean, but I'm a pretty messy person.  My husband on the other hand is a very organized and neat person.  He would be a much better stay-at-home-mom than I am.  But even though I don't enjoy cleaning, it's still something that has to be done.  Earlier, my kitchen floor was so icky.  I have been telling myself for a couple of weeks to get the mop out and just do it, but then other things happen.  You know small things like, 3 kids; getting breakfast for 2 kids and myself; nursing 1 kid; getting lunch for 2 kids and myself; nursing 1 kid; getting a snack for 2 kids and myself; nursing 1 kid; getting dinner for 2 kids, a husband, and myself; nursing 1 kid.  What?  We like to eat. ;-)  Anyway, all of this eating doesn't help my icky kitchen floor problem.  So I moved my kitchen table and chairs into the living room.  Put some warm water and dish washing detergent into some plastic food storage containers and put them on the ground.  

Then my boys and I put on old socks, dipped our feet into the water, and started to 'skate' on the kitchen floor. =)  This was not the first time that we have done this, but it was just as exciting for them this time as it was the last time.

After the floor is clean, we take old towels and 'skateboard' to dry off the floor.  Now mopping the floor is their favorite chore to do.  Truth be told, it has also become mine.  I hope that these are memories that they will have for a lifetime! 

4th of July

O! say can you see by the dawn's early light,
What so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming,
Whose broad stripes and bright stars through the perilous fight,
O'er the ramparts we watched, were so gallantly streaming.
And the rockets' red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there;
O! say does that star-spangled banner yet wave,
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?

On the shore, dimly seen through the mists of the deep,

Where the foe's haughty host in dread silence reposes,

What is that which the breeze, o'er the towering steep,

As it fitfully blows, half conceals, half discloses?

Now it catches the gleam of the morning's first beam,

In full glory reflected now shines in the stream:

'Tis the star-spangled banner, O! long may it wave

O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave.

And where is that band who so vauntingly swore

That the havoc of war and the battle's confusion,

A home and a country should leave us no more!

Their blood has washed out their foul footsteps' pollution.

No refuge could save the hireling and slave

From the terror of flight, or the gloom of the grave:

And the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave

O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave.

O! thus be it ever, when freemen shall stand

Between their loved home and the war's desolation!

Blest with victory and peace, may the heav'n rescued land

Praise the Power that hath made and preserved us a nation.

Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just,

And this be our motto: "In God is our trust."

And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave

O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!^[12]

This is our friend David with my dad-in-law just after David's first flight in a small airplane. =)

^{What a fun holiday!  We went to James' parent's house (mom-in-law) for their annual party.  Fun was had by all.  Of course it wouldn't be a huge get together without it's difficulties (some more severe than others)...but all in all it was a good day.  I mean really, what could be better than a party with a whole lot of food?!  There were boat and plane rides, games, and fireworks.  Yes you read that right, plane rides.  For those of you that don't know us, my dad-in-law is a pilot.  My in-laws live on a private airstrip and he gave people rides for about 3 hours.
Our kids really enjoyed the fireworks!  We all loaded up on the back of trailers with blankets and chairs and went to the end of the runway to watch the show that shoots off over a local lake.}

Joseph and his best bud Samuel

Hannah's first 4th of July =)

James, Joseph, & Hannah behind her mosquito net

James & me being goofy

David, Amanda, Grace, & the silly one in the back is Molly

David & Amanda's youngest, Joshua

Our family and James' brother's family stayed the night with the in-laws and the following day ate some cinnamon rolls and overnight danish twists for breakfast and then everyone except Hannah and I went out on the lake for a fun day of boating.  The kids were exhausted!  We are so grateful to have such a fun family and friends to hang out with!

Happy Independence Day!!!