Fantastic Quote!!

"All the adversity I've had in my life, all my troubles and obstacles, have strengthened me... You may not realize it when it happens, but a kick in the teeth may be the best thing in the world for you." - Walt Disney

Back to Blogging

It has been a LONG time since I have felt like blogging - I've just had so much going on lately that I haven't even had time to process it all in my head, much less write it down for everyone to read!

First things first - JOHN IS GOING BACK TO AIRTRAN! Yes, we are shocked and pleasantly surprised by this turn of events!! He received his recall letter the first week of December and after taking a week to pray, seek out godly counsel, and talk to everyone he knows in aviation, he made the decision to go back. We do have to pay a large sum of money to his current company since he will be breaking his 2 year contract, but it is worth it to both of us. John has also made the decision to keep our address in South Florida and he is going to commute. Neither of us are sure how this is going to change things, but since over 70% of the AirTran pilots commute, I think that it won't be that big of a deal. John isn't looking forward to the extra flights, but I am not looking forward to him being gone longer either, so I guess we will both have to wait and see what happens. Our goal is to save, save, save so that we can move back to Georgia with a down payment - no more renting or moving, hopefully!!!

I am excited about 2009 and what God has in store for us. So many things have changed dramatically in the last 2 years - almost everything in our life is completely different than it was when we first got married, and while you would think that we would be miserable with all of the changes - 99% of which were NOT our choices - we are more content than we have ever been. I have learned a lot - more than I will ever be able to share on this blog - and I am looking forward to what lies ahead...

Deck the Halls With Buddy Holly

I love Christmas music! I've had Love 94 on in the car for the past 2 weeks (24 hour Christmas music!!) and when I'm working at home, I have the digital cable set to the Christmas channel. Although we have yet to put up our decorations, the songs still put me in the Christmas spirit!!

The only thing that might surpass my love for Christmas music is my love for misheard Christmas lyrics!!! Here are a few that were taken from a fabulous book entitled, "Deck the Halls With Buddy Holly" by Gavin Edwards...

• "Please bring us some friggin' pudding" - "Please bring us some figgy pudding" - We Wish You a Merry Christmas
• "Oh come, hoggy faithful" - "Oh, come all ye faithful" - O Come All Ye Faithful
• "In an eggshell stable" - "In excelsis Deo" - Angels We Have Heard On High
• "While shepherds washed their socks by night" - "While shepherds watched their flocks by night" - While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks
• "O tanned and bound" - "O Tannenbaum" - O Tannenbaum
• "Police have my dad" - "Feliz Navidad" - Feliz Navidad

Do you have any to add to this list???

On the Third Day of Christmas, My True Love Gave To Me...

This is a tree in our backyard.

Upon closer inspection this afternoon, I found an early Christmas present inside/under this tree...

THREE FRENCH HENS!!!!





We should have gotten these girls ages ago...they are a constant source of entertainment!!!!

Congratulations!!!

Congratulations to my amazing husband for passing his test - he is now a certified fire fighter in the state of Georgia and will hopefully be transferring his certificate to Florida so he can volunteer here. He worked SO hard and I am SO proud of him!!!!

Fantastic Week & Weekend!!

We have just finished one of the best weeks/weekends we have had in a LONG time. This week was especially amazing because the majority of our time was spent serving in ministry as volunteers. As someone who was committed to full-time ministry for 15 years and expected to be serving in ministry full-time until the day I died, I was not prepared for the abundance of free time I experienced when I was let go from full-time ministry. While I firmly believe that being let go was the GREATEST gift God has ever given to me (next to John) and the time I have been able to spend focusing on my marriage and family has been a blessing I would not have traded for the world, there has still been a hunger in my soul to serve in ministry.

Now that I have had the chance to get my priorities in order (church does not equal God and will never come before my first ministry, which is to my family) and now that we are back in South Florida where the ministry connections never cease to amaze me, it seems that God has opened the floodgates and provided me with so many opportunities to serve in ministry. This week was spent serving at Sheridan House, hosting an accountability/prayer/encouragement group for high school girls, attending a celebration banquet for all that God is doing at Sheridan House, serving at a Parenting Seminar hosted by my church, visiting a ministry that serves foster parents and foster children, and serving on the media team this weekend at my church. Now, I am not telling you all of this so that you will think I am great - FAR from it! I'm sharing this with you because I am so excited to be reminded that God is STILL using me even though I am not on a church staff, and that even though I am a big screw up and have so many dysfunctions and hang ups and hurts, God still allows me to serve Him and sends me opportunities that excite me, thrill me, and renew my passion for Him.

I have to tell you that the majority of the weekend was spent focusing on children and families and a couple of local ministries that do a fantastic job of bringing Christ's love and hope to these families. Sheridan House is an amazing family ministry that has hundreds of resources for all types of families. They minister primarily to kids & teenagers and single moms. They also provide family and marriage counseling and do a phenomenal job of showering every person that comes through their doors with love and grace. Take a minute and check out their website - there are several ways you can be involved in what they are doing and every one of us can benefit from their resources.

Barnyard Blessings is another amazing ministry that provides resources to foster parents and foster children. Based in Cooper City, it was founded by the most amazing couple I have ever met in my life and their love for foster children is absolutely contagious. They are always in need of kid's and young adult clothing, furniture, and toy donations and will even come pick up your furniture donations. Please check out their website, too - you can even schedule a time to visit the Barn and hear their amazing stories of how God has taken their dream and turned it into an amazing reality.

One last thing...this has been the busiest week/weekend we have had in a LONG time, but I am more energized and excited than I have been in a LONG time. Especially as the holidays approach, I hope that you'll consider taking some time to serve someone - even if it's just holding the door for someone or giving someone a little bit of grace - you'll be amazed at the difference it makes in YOU :)

The Snuggie!

Okay, I know it probably seems like I do nothing but sit around and watch informercials, but I saw this yesterday and had to share it!!!!







"The Snuggie" is a blanket that you wear - that's right - complete with sleeves and a hood, it's a blanket and cult robe all in one!!! The commercial seems like an SNL spoof commercial - check it out!!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2xZp-GLMMJ0