What's been on my mind lately.....

I got a new cell phone this week and it's funny because it is one where the screen flips up and there is a keyboard that makes texting easier. It's funny to me because I am not a big texter (is that a word?). My old phone made it really hard to text, so it would take me seriously like 5 minutes to respond to a text. Most of the time I would just call the person back. My new phone makes it so easy and I have been texting a lot more. It got me thinking about the fact that it is so convenient to text someone instead of calling them and how this is not necessarily always a good thing.

Don't get me wrong, I love technology and I think texting is great. It is definitely convenient when you are somewhere where you are not able to talk on your phone and you need to call someone. It is great when you need to quickly get a message to someone, ask a quick question, etc.. On the other hand, I think it can become too convenient.

It makes me ask myself, "What happened to "real" conversations?" The kind where you need to call a friend and ask a question and you ask how they have been doing, and end up catching up for hours on the phone. The kind where you hear the other persons voice. I am as guilty of this as anyone, and I don't want to be anymore. Relationships take time and effort and I want to make sure I am taking the time to call my friends and family and talk to them.

Our world is so fast passed and texting, My Space, Facebook, and blogs like this one make it easier to stay connected, but I still think there is nothing better than a good ole' fashion conversation. Maybe it's the fact I'm a girl and communication is so important to us. I don't know, but sometimes I wish things were still like the old days. When people would sit on their front porches and visit with their neighbors face to face.

I know that the world won't change just for me, so I will still keep texting, but I am committed to making time to call my family and friends more. Be expecting a call soon!!

R.I.P

March 2009-July 2009

I am very sad to announce the death of my beautiful garden today. After talking to some experienced gardeners, I had to make the tough decision to quit watering it and let it die because it was not thriving anymore. This summer has been so hot and despite my best efforts to keep it alive by watering and fertilizing it, it just couldn't survive. My two cucumber plants shrivelled up and died a few days ago and my tomato plants have not grown like they should have. They were still producing a few tomatoes, but the squirrels suddenly took an interest in them and I would find my beautiful, red tomatoes lying in the grass half eaten. I had to give up the fight and let it go. I did get a good harvest in the beginning and I will definitely try again next year!

On a brighter note...when I planted my garden I had no idea all the ways God would use it to speak to me and teach me about spiritual things. I wrote down some of the lessons I have learned from my garden.

1. If you plant a pepper plant too close to a tomato plant you will have hot tomatoes.....We become what we are around.

2. Plants need at least 6 hours of full sun exposure a day to grow....We need to spend time with the son (Jesus) every day if we are going to grow.

3. You have to till the soil and remove all the rocks, old plants and roots before you can plant new ones....We need to allow God to come in our hearts and dig up and remove all the junk in our lives from the past and get rid of it , so He can plant new seeds that will take root and produce a good harvest in our lives.

4. If you plant a tomato plant you get tomatoes...You reap what you sow! ( An obvious but good one)

5. Plants need water to live...We need to water the seeds that have been planted in our hearts with the Word of God daily.

6. The fruit must stay on the vine until it is ripened...We must hang on the vine (God) and He will provide us with everything we need to grow and mature into what He created us to be.

7. My first cucumber plants died because their roots were not deep enough and developed enough to handle a heavy rain fall we had...We need to develop and deepen our relationship with God so that when the storms in life come we can stand and not be blown away.

8. You have to pull off the dead leaves on the plants so the plants energy won't be drained.....We need to tear off, put aside, all the "dead" things in our lives that are draining us and stopping us from doing what God wants us to do.

9. Some plants need to be caged or staked to help support the plant as it grows...We need a good circle of friends and family around us too for support and encouragement!

10. It is a good idea to net and cover your plants to keep birds and certain insects away....We need to pray daily for God's protection in our lives.

Fourth of July trip

I have been looking forward to this trip since March. On March 5th, one of my best friends, Britni, had her baby on my birthday. Until now I have only been able so see him through pictures and I couldn't wait to meet him in person.

I drove to Waco last Thursday and stayed with my sister Stephanie and Ross. Stephanie was off work on Friday so we layed out at the pool and just relaxed. On Saturday, I left Waco and drove to Britni's house in Weatherford to celebrate the Fourth of July and see everyone.

Britni invited Heather, Carrie, and their families over for a cookout. I called Britni on the way over and she told me that Jan was coming too. Jan and I were roommates when I was in college and I haven't seen her in years. She ended up moving to the same town where Britni's brother, Brandon, lives and so Britni and her got reconnected. I was really excited to see everyone!

Heather brought her two girls and her husband Wallace with her. Heather and Wallace were the college and career ministry leaders at my church in college. Carrie and her husband Jon, Britni, Jan, and I all met at the college and career group. So, we had so much fun reminiscing about old times.

Jan, Pierson, Me, Heather, Carrie, and Britni

Here I am holding Pierson for the first time. He is the sweetest, most adorable baby ever!! I called him my "birthday buddy" all weekend and I know it was the beginning of a great bond between us :)



We took full advantage of the guys photography skills and took tons of pictures that day.

This one is my favorite!

Wade, Britni's husband, cooked burgers on the grill for lunch and for supper we went to Granbury to eat and watch the fireworks over the lake.

I have been to Granbury once before during girl's weekend last year, and I feel in love with this town! It is what you picture when you think small, country town. I love that it actually has a town square with a big, beautiful, court house in the center with all these cute little shops all around it.

Granbury went all out for the Fourth of July. Every where you looked there were flags and banners.

This is the courthouse at the center of the town square. They were also having a Fourth of July festival. Carrie and I were able to walk around the booths for a few minutes while everyone was waiting for a table at the restaurant nearby.

We ate at Babe's. It's different because they don't have any menus and you choose a meat, either chicken fried steak, smoked chicken, fried catfish, or fried chicken and they serve you "family style". With your order you get green beans, corn casserole, and mashed potatoes. I ordered the smoked chicken and I can honestly say that I have never had chicken that good.

After we ate we walked to the lake and found a spot to watch the fireworks show. It was pretty hot, but we made it until the fireworks started. Pierson did great. We layed him on a blanket and took turns fanning him with a piece of paper.

Heather and her girls...Hannah and Sara.

On Sunday morning we opened the front door to leave for church and saw this. I ran and got my camera and got a quick picture before it ran away.

On Monday, the weather was actually not that hot. I guess a cold front came in an cooled it down to 95 or something, so we decided to take Pierson for a walk. He slept almost the whole time and I got this picture of how cute he looked with his little hat and swim outfit on.


Before I left on Monday, Britni changed him and put him in this outfit. It says, "When God created me He was just showing off." I couldn't have said it better :) I had such a great time getting to see family and friends and I can't wait to do it again!

A day in the country...

We celebrated Father's day and my dad's birthday, which was on June 25th, yesterday at my aunt and uncle's house. They live out in the country between Sour Lake and Kountze. Stephanie and her husband Ross came in and we had such a great day....and of course I took tons of pictures!

My uncle Mark let dad take over his grill and he grilled steaks, boudain, deer sausage (my favorite), Zummo sausage, and chicken. It was so good!!

Me and Steph

Maggie loves going out there so we brought her along. Here she is laying by the barbecue pit waiting for dad to throw her a piece of meat.

They have a pond complete with ducks

They have two goats and they are really cute. I was surprised to find out that this is as big as they get.

We wanted to ride their horses, Jubilee and Cheyenne, but it was their feeding time so we helped feed them instead. We hand fed them carrots and treats.

Here I am giving Cheyenne a treat...you can tell I was a little nervous sticking my hand in the horses face. Last time I was out there I was able to ride her. They are both beautiful horses, but I have always thought that paint horses are so pretty.

After supper, we all changed into our swim suits and jumped in the pool. The water was really warm since it has been so hot outside. We all divided into teams and played "keep away" until we could hardly swim after the ball anymore. Then, we played water baseball and a good old fashioned game of "Marco Polo" with the pool lights off. Even my 80 year old Grammy joined in the fun. So great!!!

It has been a long time since I have actually "played" in a pool.... what was so great about it was there wasn't a kid in the pool. My cousins are all in middle school and high school. Sometimes it's good to bring the inner kid out and just have fun. I got home that night and fell into bed completely worn out and feeling just like I did as a kid after a long day of playing at the pool with friends. It was such a great day!

Jon and Kate Plus 8

If you are a Jon and Kate plus 8 fan like me you were probably not completely shocked at Monday's episode where they announced they are getting a divorce. I was hoping they would announce they were quitting the show to focus on their family, so the news of a divorce really saddened me.

I have watched the show from the beginning and it quickly became one of my favorites. I fell in love with their kids, and was always amazed at how a family with twins and sextuplets made it work.

I went to Houston with some friends, to a Proverbs 31 women's conference, where Kate was a guest speaker right before all of the media stuff started. She shared her story about finding out she was having sextuplets and the struggles she had during her pregnancy. It was really great to see her in person and hear her talk about her life and faith.

Kate at the Proverbs 31 Women's Ministry

Despite the attention they get, I am reminded that they are a normal family and they need our prayers like anyone else. I am so sad for their kids, but I know that nothing is impossible for God. He can change their hearts and restore their marriage. It is never too late. My friends parents were getting a divorce and every time they were supposed to go to the court house to sign the papers and finalize the divorce something would postpone it. During that time, God did a work in their hearts and healed their marriage. Please join me in praying for them and their family.

The Small Stuff

The other day I was shopping at Target trying to find a swim suit and as I walked to the dressing room this blue jean jacket caught my eye hanging on the mark down rack. I went over and couldn't believe that is was on sale for $2o and it was my size. I looked around and it was the only one left. This might not sound like a very big deal to you, but to me it was. You see, I have been wanting a blue jean jacket for a while and I have looked and looked, but couldn't find one the right color, fit, etc.. So, this was exciting because it was exactly what I had been looking for.

This post is not about fashion, but to share with you how God loves to show us His love through the little things He does for us, and if we are not careful I believe we can miss it. In any relationship I think we could all agree that it's the little things people do that often mean the most to us. It's a phone call to say I was just thinking about you, it's a card in the mail on your birthday, or help cleaning up after supper.

Many times I think we miss the little things God is doing for us to show us His love because we don't recognize it as Him. Some might call it luck, coincidence, or just nothing that I found that jacket the other day. But I believe that God knows the desires of my heart (big and small) and that He loves to bless me and give me those desires. I took the word luck out of my vocabulary a long time ago because I believe that when good things happen to me it is because God has blessed me and He gets all the glory, not luck or chance. In the same way, maybe many of the things we call coincidences are really God showing us His love.

This is something that God has really burned in my heart lately and my relationship with Him had become so much sweeter because of it. The past few weeks I have tried to be more aware and look for the little things God is doing and acknowledge it and thank Him for it. Let me share some with you...

~The last week of school I was sitting on the playground with another teacher and I was telling her how all day I had this chocolate craving and I really wanted some chocolate! A little while later this other teacher, who is never out on the playground, came out to ask us something and threw this plastic bag in my lap. I looked inside and it was full of mini chocolate Twix bars (one of my favorites!) She said, " Please eat it, I have had enough." After she went back in Robyn and I looked at each other and she was like, "You were just saying you wanted some chocolate....that's crazy!"

~ I love Starbucks coffee and almost every Friday I go before work and treat myself to some. It's great because I almost always have a gift card that someone has given me for my birthday, etc.. So, the other day I went to Starbucks and I used my last gift card. Then, at school later that day a teacher came up to me and gave me an "end of the year"gift and guess what it was....a Starbucks card!

Some people might say, "Come on, do you believe that God cares about whether you get to have Starbucks or not, or a blue jean jacket you have wanted, or chocolate candy?" My answer is YES!!!! He loves us and just like any good father He loves to bless His children with the little things we enjoy and that only He knows about, the secret desires of our hearts.

So, I encourage you today to start looking for the little things God does for you to show you His love!

Random....

One thing I have come to love about blogging is choosing the background for my blog. If you have followed my blog for anytime now you have seen how often I like to change it. As you can see, I have a hard time making up my mind sometimes. There are so many websites out there with what seems like hundreds and hundreds of backgrounds to choose from. It reminds me of the medicine isle at Wal-Mart. You can get a cold medicine for a runny nose and fever, a runny nose and sore throat, sore throat and fever plus a headache, daytime headache and sore throat...Ahhh! Don't you ever wish that there was one or maybe two medicines to choose from when your sick? There is something great about simplicity! Anyway, I found this background and fell in love...purple is my favorite color and don't you love the BLING :)