This And That Tuesday...

Okay...Okay...I saw my first BIG spider this morning scurrying across the kitchen floor and I'm not one bit happy about it! I HATE, HATE, HATE spiders which means I will be having Kyle get some "wonder-spray" from our brother-in-law Mark. We must get them gone before they mate and multiply! Yucky! Yucky! The weather has turned amazingly beautiful here the past several days so I am fairly certain that is what has started bringing the furry fellows inside! Did I say, YUCKY?!? I've had this fear ever since I was a little girl that if I try to swat/smack them they will grow bigger and bigger with every whack... I don't feel any more love for them now then I did 30 years ago!!!

Both MaKayla & Mallary were moving quite slow this morning and since the weather was so nice, I suggested that we all put on our shoes and take a stroll around the pond. It was a great way to start our day! :o)

We saw:

The sun coming up...

Reflections in the water...

New life emerging from the dead ground that we burnt off...

The first calf of the spring season...

I want the girls to remember moments like these... I want them to recognize the simple gifts that God gives us through His presence in creation and nature...


For the most part I'm not a big fan of Facebook since much of what people post isn't fit to think...much less type or share with the world but Kyle and I recently decided to open an account in order to stay better in touch with family. This way we get to chat with Bri more consistently as well as watch Tucker change and grow. I love the idea of being able to connect in such a diverse way with so many people but I seriously am amazed at what some people feel compelled to disclose and the language in which they disclose it... I have enjoyed being able to visit Marci's, Bri's and D's Facebook pages and "see" their family whenever I am really missing them...which is often!

(is he not the most precious thing EVER....)

Life has been unusually crazy for us the past few weeks and between the non-stop busyness and not adjusting to the time change that took place a week ago, we are all quite tired!

Over the past few years, Kyle and I have really purposed to simplify our schedules and scale down our outside activities. The Lord clearly showed us that we needed to be going/doing less and spending/investing more time as a family unit. It's been a great change for everyone individually and for us as a family as well, yet when those unpreventable busy seasons of life do come around, we all have a little trouble keeping our focus.

All-in-all the past several days have been full of fun, family and memories sprinkled with yard work, house work, school and life in general.

We've:
had fun with cousins/nieces
celebrated a birthday & an anniversary
spent time with my side of the family as well as Kyle's
assisted Uncle Mark in getting a home cleaned & ready for his dad & grandma
enjoyed lunch & a time of fellowship with very special friends
helped Bri begin a new venture in life
relished in the preciousness of baby Tucker...
recognizing each of these opportunities & moments as rich gifts from the Lord!

As you can tell, life has been busy, but life has been good!

The Lord has done great things for us,
and we are filled with joy.

Psalm 126:3

Faces That I Love... Thoughts From MaKayla...

I love the people to whom these faces belong so very, very much!!!

Me and My Gorgeous Momma...

Fun summer memories... We're close "homies"... :0)

Grandpa G's 65th Birthday...

Never a dull moment with Bri...

Mal, and the two men in her life...

Sharing a special supper with best bud Becca...

Crazy Uncle Troy...

Inseparable...

Mr. TJ...

Soul Sisters from the beginning...

Oh how I love my Grandpa B...

Note: Danielle's belly has definitely grown since this picture... and I am SO glad...

The "Three Amigos"...

My Handsome "Mr. Darcy"...

My Uncle Mark...

We're not real sure that we are sane...

My AMAZING Momma and Daddy...


"I Praise you God, for these faces that make my life so very, very special! I pray that I never have to live without them!"

Work Seasoned with Celebration...

Today Kyle's dad celebrated his 65th birthday and although we spent the majority of the day working, we were blessed to be able to spend the day with him!


Kyle's parent's are in the process of purchasing an in-town home that needs a great deal of TLC given the fact that the house hasn't been lived in for twelve years. The past three weeks we have spent great amounts of time painting, wall papering, taping woodwork, tearing up carpet tackboard, cleaning, washing windows, yard work, ect... Today Kyle and our brother-in-law Mark spent several hours painting the basement while Marci, Bri, MaKayla and I spent the day doing LOTS of yard work! Needless-to-say we will rest good tonight and be very sore upon waking in the morning...I'm not being pessimistic however I'm sore already so...


Kyle's dad has been battling lung cancer for over two years and after extensive chemo and radiation, his body is very weakened and fragile. This means a project like this is a big undertaking for them, yet one where we are thankful we live close enough that we can be actively involved in the renovations.

Today was a busy day of work but the Lord allowed the day to be savory seasoned with celebration as well!


We about to fall into bed blessed and fulfilled!

Eat honey, my son, for it is good;

honey from the comb is sweet to your taste.

Proverbs 24:13

A "Now" Word...Salve On An Open Wound...

Let me start by saying that our week has been a "different" one of sorts...one of difficulty and reality.

As I was putting on my make-up and getting ready for the day, Kyle came into the bathroom and in so many words said, "Oswald was just what I needed today. My week is catching up to me and all of the overwhelming dynamics I am facing seem less significant!" I love when God meets us right where we are and speaks a "now" word to our hearts that acts as salve on an open wound. It calms the pain, starts the healing process and cleanses what is exposed.

Kyle's dad has been battling stage 3B adenocarcinoma of the lung since last December. It's been a year of ups-and-downs, good days and bad days. It's been a year of rejoicing and suffering, learning and growing. It's been a year where Kyle has done a great deal of "finding himself" in areas that he has never chosen to or had the courage to face. It's been a year of difficult reality yet a year of spiritual/emotional healing, deliverance and freedom.

Due to some re-occurring complications Kyle's dad was put back in the hospital late last Saturday night/early Sunday morning. All-in-all, the extreme amounts chemo is ravishing his body...as we have concluded so many times, we're not sure what is worse, the cancer or the toxins used to treat the cancer. With every treatment he takes, his body becomes weaker, sicker, more broken down. New complications arise and the ability to "sort through" what is causing what becomes more difficult. It's hard for a son to sit through and watch his dad weaken, struggle, deteriorate. It's difficult for a son to sit through and watch his mom "work through" the mind-boggling realities of keeping a job, learning new meds, hearing various doctors opinions, suffering from exhaustion, being overwhelmed.

Yesterday evening Kyle's parents were able to come home yet they have now put his dad on oxygen full-time so we took dinner over and were there when the medical supply company brought all of the necessary apparatuses. Talk about overwhelming... For Kyle it was another reminder that the situation we have been facing for over a year has taken "another step".

The love-of-my-life went to bed last night sad, hurting, overwhelmed, burdened, consumed...his parents are in a place that he can do nothing to change. A place that no one in this world would choose to be. A place of loneliness. A place of fear. A place of uncertainty.

I find myself in a constant state of prayer over this one that I love more than life and I am so thankful that the Lord is faithful! He brought a "now" word to my "Jesus in the flesh"...a word in due season...a word that nurtured, renewed, refreshed. A word that was like salve on an open wound.

"Look to Me, and be saved..." Isaiah 45:22

Our difficulties, our trials, and our worries about tomorrow will all vanish when we look to God.

Wake yourself up and look to God. Build your hope on Him. No matter how many things seem to be pressing in on you, be determined to push them aside and look to Him. "Look to Me..." Salvation is yours the moment you look.
~ Oswald Chambers

No matter what you are facing in life this day...God is enough when you look to Him!

One special evening...

Relay for Life was an amazing experience to share with Grandpa and Grandma! It opened my eyes so much to the struggles of those dealing with the same illness as the one I love so very much. Walking hand-in-hand with Grandpa, Grandma, Dad, Mom, Mal, and my very special Aunt Connie in the survivor's walk, was something that I will Never forget!


As darkness settled in and I watched them light Grandpa's luminary, it brought tears to my eyes, as I thought about how this battle within him has changed his life physically maybe for the worse, but spiritually for the better as he has accepted Jesus Christ as his personal Savior and I praise you Father God for that!

It was so neat Father God, to watch Grandpa use the strength you gave him as he walked several laps for the LMP/ Nucor team, proudly displaying their creative headgear!?!

" But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength:
they shall mount up with wings as eagles;
they shall run, and not be weary;
and they shall walk, and not faint."
Isaiah 40:31

~Precious Times~

Sharing a birthday treat...

Grandpa & Kyle taking a rest from a "stressful" game of golf...

MaKayla loving on Dad...

I'm so glad that our girls love one another so much...

Mal with Grandpa and Grandma...
I so love the smiles on these faces!!!!

What precious times we've been afforded in some of our most recent outings. God has most graciously blessed us with moments of joy and fulfillment as we celebrated Grandpa's birthday together! These are times and seasons we shall hold dear as individuals and as a family. Our hearts are forever touched through the conversations, smiles and experiences we have encountered.