Today + Today + Today = FOREVER

What is the chief end of man? 

Man's chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy Him forever.

- Q.1 Westminster Shorter Catechism

If my main purpose in life is to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever, why did I title this blog "Glorifying and Enjoying Him...Today''?  Forever just sounds overwhelming to me.  I thrive off of very small goals.  I do understand that I cannot glorify or enjoy Him for even one millisecond with out Him first loving me (I John 4:19).  But I figure if each morning I wake up trusting that His  mercies are new every morning, I have a fresh start and another shot at glorifying and enjoying Him even more than I did the day before.  AND if I string each of these "today's" together like a strand of pearls in the end it will add up to forever. 

(Mary Kathryn 5 weeks old)

This concept of "new every morning" has been so freeing to me the past few weeks. Being Mommy is a non-stop adventure....sometimes there is no definitive beginning or end to my days. No matter what time my day starts (1:30am, 4:30am or 7am) there is a fresh helping of mercy and grace just waiting for me. Because my Lord has given me this sweet gift I can in turn give my family a large serving of grace each morning. I no longer need to carry the burden of yesterday into today. 

(Levi has the craziest bed head)

 "The Lord's lovingkindnesses indeed never cease, for His compassions never fail.  They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness."  Lamentations 3:22-23

Let's Try This AGAIN

I have always loved journaling and scrapbooking.  As a teenager and throughout college I would crawl into bed early (9'ish) to write and decorate fancy pages before I fell asleep.  It was my "Me" time.  I looked forward to it every day.  After marrying this dashing young man who is a night owl and has a love for late night movies and ice cream my "Me" time became "Us" time.     

(May 2005 honeymooning in Maya Riviera, Mexico)

A little more than six and a half years have past and LOTS has happened, but we have stayed the same ;)

Through the years I have attempted to keep up with my journaling and I have purchased scrapbook materials thinking that would motivate me. I even started this blog about 5 years ago, in an attempt to document some of our fun adventures as young married coupled.  We had some big changes and I let it go...

  

But now I have these super cute munchkins as my motivation to make recording our memories a priority.  One day these guys ask me all kinds of questions about their childhood and I will need these pictures and stories to jog my memory.  Though there is something so special and real about writing it all out on paper, I have come to the conclusion if I haven't made it happen in the last 7 years of marriage it's just not gonna happen.  So I am embracing technology and praising the Lord that it is His gift to me, so that I can quickly and diligently record sweet memories of my family.

   

losing a friend

When you lose your running buddy it's hard to stay on task. Candice had to move away, so I have been on my own and 6:30 am is very lonley with out a friend. I did a race in April and in May. But it's very difficult to practice with out accountability. You run slower and don't even realize it. The worst part is the mental aspect of feeling like the route is never ending and that you are going to die before you get there...all you can think about it how heavy your legs feel.
Thankfully God has sent me a race buddy, Jynne. We can't run together during the week, but she's been coming to the races with me. April's race would have been a TOTAL flop if it weren't for Jynne (she's wearing blue in the picture with Candice and I at the Reedy River Run). Learning to run these 5k races has come by trial and error...at the Furman 5k in April, I learned the very hard way the importance of being hydrated. I got to the last stretch of the race and stopped for a split second thinking I was going to gag, but Jynne looked back and said "keep mov'n we can see the finish line!" We finished thanks to Jynne's encouragement of staying with me and being my pace setter in 26:00 min.
For May we (Jynne, Britney, my dad, and me) ran the Lake Hartwell Dam Run...nice and flat!! Best race ever, minus the torrential down poor. It was the rainiest day we've had in months. As we got in the car we convinced ourselves that once we got into Georgia the rain would stop, but no it was just as hard. Thankfully during my run the 5k it had lightened to a sprinkle, but poor Jynne & Britney who ran the 10k were on mile 4 or 5 and the bottom dropped. I don't think that I have ever been that wet before, even in the swimming pool. It was a great race and hopefully next year it will be sunny and warm, so we can enjoy the flat course.

Reedy River 10k

Since I started running races in August of last year I have made LOTS of running friends, but none as crazy as Candice (left). Candice and I have been running together for a couple of months. We've faced the 20 degree weather in January @ 6:00 in the morning, recooping after being out for 1-2 weeks from colds (that we gave to each other), and our latest accomplishment is getting Candice back out running after having her wisdom teeth. Before her surgery she convinced me that we could run the Reedy River 10k Race 1 1/2 weeks after her surgery...i was skeptical seeing as we only run 3 miles on a normal day. I thought how are we going to double our milage in 1 1/2 weeks? But we did it!! Last Saturday we finished the Reedy River 10k in 58 min and 30 seconds.

Mary Bell

This past weekend we went to visit Mary Bell in Chatty Town. It was a very exciting day with her, but bitter sweet at the same time. We went to get one of our last doses of "Mary Bell" before we send her off to Japan. BUT thanks to Mary we have a plan for when she gets to the states...After she serves in Japan she is going to come back to South Carolina to be Josh and I's nanny to our first child she named Tomoyo Belle. Mary, you don't have to be our nanny to live with us when you get back. If you are in need of a place you are ALWAYS welcome (for free, you don't have to get up to cook us breakfast). We love her and will miss her much, but we know that we have to share her with the people in Japan so that she can share Christ's love and promise of eternal life with them. We love you, Mary Bell, and we are excited to see and hear what God is going to to with you in Japan. Thanks for a great trip!!

My favorite thing about Mary is the way she makes me laugh and through her joy she points me to Christ. I never leave her with out being encouraged and challenged in my walk with the Lord. What is your favorite thing about Mary???

Why Hearts??

Why do we have Valentine's Day? And why do we use hearts as the Valentine's Day symbol?? Keep reading...


The Shape of My Heart

Where did the ubiquitous Valentine's symbol come from?

By Keelin McDonellPosted Tuesday, Feb. 13, 2007, at 5:20 PM ET

Americans will dole out countless Valentine's Day paraphernalia today, a good portion of which will be in the shape of hearts. In an "Explainer" column printed last year and reproduced below, Keelin McDonell attempted to track down the origin of the Valentine's Day symbol and explain how it got its familiar shape.

It's Valentine's Day, and as usual, people are presenting their loved ones with heart-shaped cards, candy, and trinkets. How did the heart shape become the symbol of true love?
Nobody's quite sure, but it might have to do with a North African plant. During the seventh century B.C., the city-state of Cyrene* had a lucrative trade in a rare, now-extinct plant: silphium. Although it was mostly used for seasoning, silphium was reputed to have an off-label use as a form of birth control. The silphium was so important to Cyrene's economy that coins were minted that depicted the plant's seedpod, which looks like the heart shape we know today. The theory goes that the heart shape first became associated with sex, and eventually, with love.

The Catholic Church contends that the modern heart shape did not come along until the 17th century, when Saint Margaret Mary Alocoque had a vision of it surrounded by thorns. This symbol became known as the Sacred Heart of Jesus and was associated with love and devotion; it began popping up often in stained-glass windows and other church iconography. But while the Sacred Heart may have popularized the shape, most scholars agree that it existed much earlier than the 1600s.

Less romantic ideas about the heart-shape's origin exist as well. Some claim that the modern heart-shape simply came from botched attempts to draw an actual human heart, the organ which the ancients, including Aristotle, believed contained all human passions. One leading scholar of heart iconography claims that the philosopher's physiologically inaccurate description of the human heart—as a three-chambered organ with a rounded top and pointy bottom—may have inspired medieval artists to create what we now know as the heart shape. The medieval tradition of courtly love may have reinforced the shape's association with romance. Hearts can be found on playing cards, tapestries, and paintings.

Hearts proliferated when the exchange of Valentines gained popularity in 17th-century England. At first the notes were a simple affair, but the Victorians made the tradition more elaborate, employing the heart shape in tandem with ribbons and bows.

Bonus Explainer: Why do we single out Feb. 14 to celebrate romance? It's said to be the day St. Valentine, a Roman priest during the third century, was executed. Legends about Valentine vary. Some say he was killed for illegally marrying Roman soldiers; others claim it was for helping Christians escape punishment at the hands of the pagan emperor. Just before his death, it's believed that he sent an affectionate note to the beautiful daughter of his jailer—the very first Valentine.

Snow Day!

Well, it's been a while since my last blog (like 2 months!)...i just don't have anything excting to write about. But i thought i would share with you our snow day fun (we built our first snowman). Instead of being your typical grown ups and staying in by the fire we decided to go out to play after it had stopped snowing and had begun raining. Josh had all of his water proof hunting gear to wear, so he stayed dry. i just had my pink knitted stocking cap and down coat. I was drenched!!

Last year for Christmas Josh's grandmother gave a Snowman Kit. It came with wooden black buttons, a wooden carrot nose, a red scarf, and a black top hat. I have been SO excited to use it, but b/c it has been so warm this winter i put it up in my parents' attic. Guess what? we FINALLY got snow and we don't have our kit. SO we got creative. Meet our snowman Bob (the Builder). His buttons and mouth are made out of chocolate chips, couldn't find any coal. And believe it or not he's still around...not all of him, just his bottom.

Candy Cane Cake

i always love new recipes...and my favorite are ones that are easy and really cute. I found this recipe in a magazine and thought i'd share it with you...








Candy Cane Cake

Cake
1 box white cake mix
water, oil, and eggs called for on cake mix box
1/2 tsp. red food color
1/2 tsp. peppermint extract

Icing
1 cup powdered sugar
1 Tbs. milk or water
1/2 tsp. vanilla, if desired

Decoration
crushed candy canes or hard peppermint candies, if desired

1. heat oven to 325 degrees. Generously grease and flour 12-cup fluted tube pan. make batter as directed on box. pour about 2 cups of the batter into pan. into small bowl, pour about 3/4 cup batter; stir in food color and peppermint extract. carefully pour pink batter over white batter in pan. carefully pour remaining white batter over pink batter.

2. bake as directed on box or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 min. turn pan upside down onto cooling rack; remove pan. cool cake completely, about 1 hour.

3. in small bowl, mix icing ingredients. if necessary, stir in additional milk 1 tsp. at a time, until smooth and spreadable. Spread icing over cake. Sprinkle top with crushed candy. store loosely covered.

***the first time i made this (last week) i got the icing to thin - more like a glaze. it soaked into the cake making it kinda soggy, SO i am going to try again, but this time i think i will just sprinkle the top with powdered sugar and just leave the icing off. So be careful when making your icing! a little milk goes a LONG way.

perfect timing

we always say that God has perfect timing in everything that He dose, but when things go sour it can be so hard to believe that even in these horrible circumstances God's timing is still perfect. i really believe that we have to prepare for the battle. if we do not trust this truth before the storm arises we won't be able to believe it when it does come. this weekend we found out that josh's brother was very sick...no one, not even the doctors knew what was wrong. it was a scary couple of days not knowing what to do. and while we were at the hospital we met a couple who lost their new baby. the daddy had fallen asleep with the baby on his chest and had rolled over in his sleep and smothered the baby. why does God even allow such horrible things to happen we ask?? why would God allow a 20 year old boy to have such a terrible side effects from a medication and allow him to be admitted to a mental hospital when there is nothing wrong with him? why would he allow a father to accidentally hurt his own baby??? these are questions that just baffle our minds. we don't have answers and never will. sunday night we got home from the hospital and josh just opened the Bible and began reading and God gave us Psalm 104. the whole psalm talks about how God takes care and governs His creation. what comfort to rest in that even though we don't understand God is in control. "bless the Lord, o my soul! o Lord my God; you are very great...o Lord, how many are thy works! in wisdom you have made them all...let the glory of the Lord endure forever; let the Lord be glad in His works...i will sing to the Lord as long as i live; i will sing praise to my God while i have my being. let my meditation be pleasing to him; as for me, i will be glad in the Lord." to all of these questions and circumstances the only answer we have is that we have to trust with obedient hearts that God cares for us, His creation. if you get a chance read Psalm 104 and see exactly how God cares for His creation.

this weekend my faith in the truth that God's timing is perfect was strengthened. i believed it before this storm, but it was amazing to see how God let it grow from a fact in my head to a comfort in my heart.

the storm in not quite over, so i look forward to see what else God has to teach me through all of this.

it's not christmas w/o the christmas tree

6 of My Favorite Christmas Tree Memories: (no specific order)

1. The scent...I have NEVER had an artificial tree before!!! It is the scent of Christmas.

2. White lights...sorry to all of you die hard colored light fans, but I'm a white light kinda girl. They are so bright, you don't have to ues the overhead light all season. They remind of what I imagine the angles looking like when they came to see the shepherds. (I don't know they could be "colored" angles and all give off different colored light...guess we'll have to wait and see.) And the pure white light also reminds me of the bright star that lead the wisemen to Jesus.

3. Last year was my favorite time cutting down our tree...first it was Josh and I's first Christmas so that made it special, but it was extra special b/c it was Josh's first time cutting down a Christmas tree (he had always had an artificial tree, NEVER had a real one before last year). As a first timer he had NO IDEA what is involved in seeting up and caring for a live tree. He had about had it when we had to buy 2 different tree stands and when the lights didn't work at first. He also had no clue how BIG the trees are. So he picked out one that looked not too big and deffinitely not too little (in the field). But when we got it home it was WAY TOO BIG!!! We measured it to be 6 - 6.5 feet across the bottom branches. It was so big we had to move the couch out of the house for Christmas. We named her Ulga b/c of her size.

4. Stringing popcorn...as a family we would watch It's A Wonderful Life and string popcorn to put on the tree.

5. The train...my dad spent hours some times setting up the train that goes around the bottom of the Christmas tree. Once it was set up we would see how fast we could get it to go before it would fly off the track.

6. Ornaments...I love pulling out the ornaments and all the memories that come with them. I remember this UGLY gingerbread man ornament I made for my dad and every year I didn't want to put it on the tree, but Mom always managed to get it on there even if it was in the back.

Help me come up with (at least) 4 more of your favorite memories.

Santa comes to Williamston

on saturday some of our favorite girls came to hang out with us. isabella and kate come every couple of months for dinner and we go to the park to play...well the very first time they came we told them as a joke that Santa lives in the cabin at the park, b/c he comes every Christmas. they believed us. so we took them to see Santa on saturday. kate really enjoyed it, but isabella get scared and did not want to visit santa. we enjoyed the lights in the park and watching the girls play. and we loved having thier big sister Rachy come !!




***santa is at the spring water park in williamston every night form 6 - 9 pm for those of you who would like to go.








kate told santa that she wanted a watch for christmas















it was cold... see everyone's pink noses.

699 miles

699 miles to Gramma and Pop Pop's house (that's just one way)...but it's worth it every time. Thanksgiving for our family is 3 day festival. It begins on Wednesday with rest and shopping for groceries, and for dinner we have Gramma's Rigatoni (we start stretching out our stomachs the night before so that we can eat more on Thursday) . Thursday begins early around 5:45 -6:00. Gramma gets up and makes the stuffing, stuffs the Turkey, and starts to cook him. When the rest of us decided to get up we snack on cold Rigatoni for breakfast and there is a few of us who will go for a run. Cooking a turkey is hard work. We take turns basting him and taking his temperature to see when he's done...you can't over cook or he'll be dry. We prepare for the side dishes while the turkey is cooking so that they are ready for the oven when the bird is done. We have a very strict menu: Tukey (of course), broccoli cheese casserole (don't be fooled there is triple the amount of cheese and buttery crackers than broccoli - this is not a healthy dish), squash casserole (same as broccoli casserole - LOTS of cheese), mashed potatoes, gravy, pickles, olives, apple suace, green beans, corn, rolls, and the best stuffing (and this is NOT the same as dressing for all the southerners who don't know) . We eaqually divide the stuffing from the turkey among all of us...so we usually only get a bite, but it's the best bite of the whole meal. What takes us 6 hours to cook only takes about 20 minutes to eat. We gobble til we wobble, so we have our annual football game (this year I got to be captain of my team). The game doesn't usually last very long b/c the turkey has made us sleepy and we are ready for pumpkin pie. Friday we eat leftovers for lunch and the girls go get pedicures (Gramma's treat) and we end the festival with pizza from Perini's - the best pizza ever!

Wednesday we prepare for Thursday, Thursday we celebrate, and Friday we have to recoop from Thursday...as crazy as it may seem it's the best 3 days of the year.

What are your favorite Thanksgiving traditions??? Things you do every year? Foods that you always eat? What is a tradition you'd like to start?

$10 doesn't go as far as I remember

I remember when I first started going out to dinner with my friends, I was able to buy a lesser expensive meal, drink water, and leave a tip for $5-6. I was able to have dinner and go to a movie for $10.00...it was $5.00 for late show. Now even if I do drink water and order a cheap dinner it's $10.00 and a movie is $7.50 for the late show. I have seen this same thing at the grocery store. 2 weeks ago I went in to the grocery store with $10.00 and the only things I came out with were a loaf of bread, a gallon of milk, and a package of lunch meat. The total was like $9.94. 3 items!! Well, it happened again today...I bought a bag of carrots, a few stalks of celery, an onion, a green pepper, a can of black beans, a can of chicken noodle soup, and a 1/2 gallon of milk. My total = $9.63. I know I sound like your mom with all my rantings, but it's out of control. Has anyone else seen this happen to them lately??? You go to buy like 3 things and you drop $20.00.

My Dad...Best in the World

I'm a little late on posting about this race since this was 2 weeks ago, but it's a good story. This race was very special to for several reasons...I got the run it with my Dad, how cool is that? We ran the whole thing side by side. I always start out pretty slow especially when it is 50 degrees out like it was that morning, and Daddy stayed right in front of me. If he had taken off I would have probably slowed WAY down. But he pushed me through the burning throat and lungs. By mile #2 I was right there with him. I knew we were making pretty good time b/c we did mile #1 in a little over 8 min and mile #2 in about 9. So I knew even if we slowed down we had 13 min to finish in 30 min. I had run the course before so I knew where I was going, but Dad had no clue. So I tried to tell him what was ahead and I reminded him that we end on a hill, so it wasimportant not to bust it too soon. Well I did forget that there were 2 other hills before that last one. Ya! BIG surprise. We made it through the 2 surprises and then the adrenaline kicked in on that last hill and I took off. I felt bad to leave him behind, but I kept going. I knew it would push him. And it did we were right at the finish line neck and neck. The thoughts running through both of our heads was should I let him/her finish first. But being the nice Daddy he is he let me finish first. That competition at the end really pushed me and we finished in 27:21 and 27:22. I was SO excited I had beaten my fastest time by nearly 1 and a half minutes!!! This was the first "Me and Dad" adventure we have had together in a long time. I was sad that Josh couldn't be there b/c of work but it was really sspecial to run it with my Daddy. Thanks, Dad, for the competion and the great run together. I'll see at the Reindeer Run in Anderson on December 9th, your birthday!!! I'll let you finish first this time. =)

Hidden Sales

Don't you just love the days where you are wandering around the store killing time on your lunch break and you come across a great sale. That happened to me at K-Mart today...just about 30 minutes ago. I had gone in to pick up the new George Strait CD "It Just Comes Naturally" for Josh (SSHHH!!! don't tell it's a surprise)...It's a really good CD I'm listening to it now (don't tell Josh that either). Anyway back to the story...I had gotten the CD and was cutting through the Purse/Accessory section and I came across these these large tote bags that were really cute! Some of them were that khaki canvas color with orange on the handle and the other ones were navy blue with green handles. They were the perfect size for your beach towel, ipod, sunscreen and favorite book or for a change of clothes if your staying somewhere just for the night. "I think I might
need one of these," I thought to myself. Then I noticed that they were on the sale rack so I took a
gander at the price tag...$4.00!!! (And it wasn't even a Blue Light Special!!) And then I began to
think "...with a large single letter Monogram on them these will be fabulous Christmas gifts,"
SO I bought ALL of them. And have made several lists of people I can give them to (maybe you are one of them???) Well it did not feel like a sale when I got to the register and my total was $50.00. But to justify this shopping spree I have been reminding myself that when Christmas comes I will be glad for the me surprise find at K-Mart. K-Mart. Where you can find a hidden sales. Check it out for yourself one day when you're wandering out of boredom.

Fun Times with Josh

we have lots of fun together...josh's new thing of the summer has been learning to ride a motorcycle. we are currantly unable to afford to buy him a bike, but my dad has graciously let josh borrow his first one. when he first began riding he would tell me how nervous he was and that my dad and brother would go so fast that he felt like he couldn't keep up. but now i must say that he is a very good rider. this i know from experience...saturday was the first time i rode with him. i have to say i was a little nervous, only b/c all the other times we talked about him taking me for a ride he said no. well, i was in for a surprise. at first he said that he would just take me around the block, but then i relaxed and began to enjoy it...i never got scared. he did a great job, and we ended up going for about 30 min until i got cold.
i was so relaxed, that after a while the helmet got heavy and began to give me a headache so i rested my head on his shoulder and closed my eyes. while we were riding i kept thinking about how my trusting josh by getting on the back of the motorcylce was a lot like how i should trust him in our marriage. while we were riding i could not always see where we were going and the way things looked to me were different from reality and what josh saw. josh had a clear view of the road, where i had his big melon-head in my way. i know that God gives josh a clear view of how and where to lead me, but so many times b/c my view is different and often times skewed i argue and questionhim instead of trusting. i freak out b/c i see danger, but josh sees clearly b/c of God's grace and the special wisdom given to him.
i am so thankful that i had a moment of insanity and got on the back of that motorcycle, b/c in those 30 min God taught me how much fun it is to obey His command about trusting my husband even when things may not look right to me. and i was able to encourage josh in a special way by showing him that i trust him to take care of me, even though my actions don't always say that.

How Well Can You Spell?

Spelling is NOT my gift as many of you have probably seen from my blog. Not having spell-check is one thing I would change about Blogger. Well, here it is the Encarta "How Well Can You Spell?" quiz. I can't. I made 5/15. This puts me on the B Team or even the C Team for the spelling bee. Tell me how you do...
http://encarta.msn.com/quiz_36/how_well_can_you_spell.html

Goose Hunting

The only thing I had ever huntd before was a good sale Old Navy or Ross until Saturday. Saturday I hunted me a goose. I have gone to the pond to feed the geese before, but never went out to kill one. This was WAY different. You have to wear camo, water proof boots, a hat, and lots of bug spray. Did you know that from the sky the geese and ducks too can see your eyes?? That's why we had to wear the hats, so they couldn't see our eyes.

The funniest part was getting me dressed to go...as you can see from the picures. The pants I wore were Josh's old ones. They have cinches on the sides and we pulled them ALL the way in. And we borrowed some boots from his parents that were a womens size 8 and I wear a 6 1/2...I deff had some clown feet going on.

My only jobs were to remeber the bug spray, and to carry my bucket (to sit on) and my Propell. Josh did the rest..he even had to carry me and my bucket a few times over the water.

We saw one goose, but he was on the ground and Josh said that killing it like that is not very sportsman like. So we came home empty handed. (I was kinda glad...what in the world would I do with a dead goose???)

We had a great time! The best part was spending time with Josh doing something he loves. He was SO excited about me going that he has talked about it all week. And I will deffinitely do it again.

Fall Education

We all need to always be learning about something, especially things we love...like Fall. I found this little quiz and thought I would share it with you. It's only 10 question...I only got 5 out of the 10. I had a few things to learn. What will you learn???

http://encarta.msn.com/quiz_13/Getting_to_the_Bottom_of_Autumn.html?GT1=8506

FALL...it's coming!

it's coming!!!
What's coming? you ask. FALL is coming!! i knew it was on it's way the other when i was sitting on my porch putting on my shoes for a run and there was this refreshing breeze. it wasn't hot and thick like it is in the summer. another big clue is that i sweat less on my run after work. and everyday i have the great urge to make chicken soup or chili for dinner.
fall has to be one of the greatest things about living in south carolina. all of the seasons are here in s.c. and they each are special. summer as a kid was hands down my favorite..no school and my birthday is in july, but as i have grown up fall fall has caught up. fall was the worst as a kid b/c that ment back to school and no more swimming which was my absolute favorite thing to do. there is spring that is beautiful and full of life. and winter is great for the rest it brings and the slower pace of life.
the funny thing about me writing about this whole "love" for the autum season, is my brother and my sister and i used to harrass our mom about how only "old" people rant and rave about how beautiful the leaves are and how wonderful fall is. so i have now graduated to be an "old" person who loves this time of year. it was the middle of august and i was dying to start decorating for fall, but i did restrain myself and i waited to the first weekend of september. i hope that you all grow "old" in you love for fall this year.