Nothing Surprises Me

I am missing the girls more than I can even put into words! So, tonight I picked up Kaitlyn's copy of Jesus Calling to read from, instead of my own. It's WONDERFUL. I just love how personal it is, and anytime I pick it up, I read something that I truly needed to hear right at THAT moment. God is great like that.  Here is what it said tonight.

I go before you as well as with you into this day.  Nothing surprises Me. I know exactly what will happen - both the good and the bad.  Trust in me and don't be afraid. Stay close to Me, and I will not let you be overwhelmed by anything that happens today. I will help you through it all - fights with a friend, disappointments, a bad grade, temptations to sin, illness - whatever comes your way.


Don't go through today with fear in your heart because of what might or might not happen. I will help you deal with whatever happens - moment by moment. Facing your problems with Me brings blessings that are much bigger than your troubles. So bring all your problems to Me, and I will bless you with My Joy.

Tennessee!!

With the girls away at the beach, I decided to take my own little respite away to Tennessee. It is truly one of my favorite places to go. It has been close to a year since I have seen Meredith, but we can just pick up right where we left off. I was so excited to see her and her precious boys! I can't handle the amount of cuteness that is in that house.

When I left Lubbock it was literally 110 degrees. When I got to Mere's house it was 70 degrees and RAINING. We stayed on her porch drinking coffee for about 4 hours. It truly was a gift from the Lord in many ways.

When I got in the car at the airport this little stinker gave me this look. He was probably thinking, "who are you, and why are you interrupting my Elmo video?"

Not this one though! He was all smiles! 

This was before church Sunday morning. They go to a great church and I got to meet some of Mere's sweet friends. 

Later that afternoon we ventured out on the lake in the kayaks.  When we first started rowing I said, "I don't remember it being this easy last year!" Then about 3 minutes later Mere goes, "Do you think we should call Ash and have him pull us in with the jet ski?" haha...we are so old. Don't worry though, we made it all by ourselves. Dodging boats all the way. That's just how we roll. Or row. oh man, i'm tired. 

For Father's Day Meredith and Ashley's parents came out to their house for dinner. We took a boat ride to the restaurant. It was a great night for it! 

if I couldn't spend Father's Day with my own Daddy...this was a pretty good back up!

beautiful!

charlie was loving helping his daddy drive the boat!

just slightly wind blown. makes the head look a little disproportionate. 

beautiful trees, water, AND a sunset? i'm moving. 

the amount of food that we inhaled will not be discussed. but they spoiled me big time with fabulous restaurants! this was at stoney river. 

oh yes we did. and they even brought out shot glasses of milk. how fun is that? 

can't handle this.

or this.

before i left for the airport i got to spend some time with this special friend! so fun to see shanta. another great acu friend who blesses me so much!

the last little munchkin i got to squeeze before heading all the way home to Lubbock. he is getting so big! here he is in his new little 4 wheeler. 

i had the greatest 4 days. there was just the perfect amount of laughter, peace, serenity, food, babies, food, coffee, rain, laughter, and family.

(i realize my capitalization in this post is not all that consistent. it's okay.)

Happy (real) Birthday!

I woke up this morning with this image in my head. 

A couple of weeks ago I finished reading the book Heaven is For Real. What I thought about that book deserves it's own post - but the author references this picture of Jesus. It was drawn by a 12 year old girl. Pretty unreal, right? I love it. It's just peaceful. Today is kind of a hard day for me, as I won't get to see my sweet 8 year old on her birthday. She is away having a fun vacation at the beach with her Daddy and his family. I know she is having a blast, but not being able to see her today is hard for this Momma! So, I'm thankful that the Lord put this picture on my heart today. 

A friend of mine also put this verse up on Facebook this week. I can honestly say that I don't think I had ever read it before. It's perfect though. My new favorite. 

"The Lord will FIGHT for you. You need only be STILL." Exodus 14:14

Isn't that great? So, happy REAL birthday sweet girl! I love you so, so much!

NOAH!

I made a last minute decision to pack up the girls and take them to Ft. Worth for Summer Spectacular (VBS) at my Grandmama's church. Let me tell you, The Hills C of C knows how to put on a show! It was the most elaborate VBS I've ever seen! The girls loved it and learned so much about the story of Noah. They each went to their own class, and then everyone met together for the Musical each night. It was so entertaining! The songs were current songs from TV/radio with the words changed to fit into the story of Noah. The talent, costumes and make-up were truly unbelievable. The pictures just don't do it justice. I'm so glad that we were able to go. It was fun to stay with my grandmother for a few days.  She was extra good at saving great seats for us each night and we were so thankful! It was a mad house! 

2 of each animal almost to the ceiling!

rainbow!

kaitlyn and grandmama waiting for the show to start

i wish you could tell how big the ark was....but the picture doesn't show that at all

view from the balcony looking down at the little petting zoo they brought into the church!

the 2 peacocks were SO fun to watch! they took their characters very seriously! 

 the animals inside the ark

the pink flamingo's were cora and claire's favorite

deer...

claire liked the lion...cora was "a little shy" to meet him!

noah and "mrs. noah." this time claire was the shy one. 

one of the elephants

cora's little pony in the petting zoo.

little ms. thang and her pony

mrs. peacock. love her!

claire getting all up in ms. piggy's business.

even lady bugs made it onto the ark!

It really was a great experience! I also enjoyed running into some ACU friends that I had not seen in a long time. Can I just say real quick how thankful I am for ACU? It may sound silly to some, but I really am so blessed and thankful that I was able to go to school there. My most faithful friends, prayer warriors and encouragers came from that place. I'm truly eternally grateful. 

We had some time Tuesday morning to go see precious baby Conner! He has changed so much since I last saw him. He was rolling over so much, grabbing for toys, and starting to "talk" a little more!! Such a sweet little man. I'm so glad we were able to hug on him for a little while. 

these next three pictures crack me up. you can tell how conner is getting less and less interested in being held....

aaaaaand he's done.

Poor Conner. You're in t-r-o-u-b-l-e with these 3 girls.

OH - and WAY TO GO MAVS!!!!!!! We made it back to my grandmothers in time to watch most of the 4th quarter. It was SO exciting to watch them clinch the title!! 

Happy 8th Birthday, Kaitlyn!

One of Kaitlyn's very favorite things to do is to stay in a hotel. Which is why, for the second time, she chose to just invite a few friends to spend the night with her at the Holiday Inn Express for her birthday. Because of the limited amount of friends she was allowed to invite, and the busyness of the summer, it was just her and 3 other sweet girls. (Which was fine with me!) I went up and decorated her room before she got. Other than the part where I fell off the chair (forgot it had wheels) trying to hang streamers, I would say it was a success.

The girls swam, and swam, and swam some more. She had asked for a new bike, so I decided to have my dad put it up in the hotel room while the girls were swimming. When we all went upstairs for pizza and presents, I thought for sure she would notice it right away. I mean, hotel rooms aren't THAT big. She had no idea it was there the entire time they ate dinner. Her friends did though, but I told them to keep it quiet...I was enjoying Kaitlyn being completely oblivious. When she finally noticed it she just said, "Mom, why did you bring your bike up here?" Really? It's your bike sweet girl. Sweet, sweet Kaitlyn.

i'm really horrible at taking pictures. oh well....

She asked for a red velvet cake this year. i went all out and went to the united bakery.

crazies.

They ended up swimming until 11:30, then went right up to the room and went to sleep! Easiest sleepover ever!

Kaitlyn,

I know I say it every year, but I can't believe that you're eight! You amaze me every single day. You are such a brave, strong, independent, funny, smart girl. I am so proud of you  - SO proud to be your Mom. You have had to deal with so many transitions this year, and you have handled them so well. I learn a lot from you sweet girl. You are so much fun to hang out with. I love our bike rides, and dinners and movies with just the two of us. I love that you share my love for Asian food and frozen yogurt! I love that you are not afraid to be yourself...no matter where you are or who you are with. I pray with all of my heart that this 9th year of your life is full of joy, laughter and peace. I pray that you continue to make friends - you just bless everyone that you are around. I pray that you always keep Jesus in your heart. He  LOVES being a part of your life!

Love you so much,

Mom