The Six Month Mark

First off I will tell you that Saturday, Kelsie's HSM3 birthday party, was lots of fun and I will tell you more about it and post pics later. Today's post is dedicated to the fact that Wayne has been on staff at First Prosper for 6 months yesterday. Sometimes I think the time has flown by and we've barely begun and in other ways it feels like we have been here forever. The last 6 months have been a major growing time for me personally just learning more and more about letting go of the control I want to have over my own life and turning it over to God's purposes. It's been difficult at times but it's also been a testament to God's graciousness as He has provided for so many of our needs - selling our home and giving us transitional housing, Kelsie making friends so easily and a great school district...the list goes on and on. (Just a side note - if there is something you are struggling with God about, I want to encourage you that there is blessing in obedience).

Sunday was a HUGE day for me as I looked up on stage during worship and saw the beginnings of Wayne's vision coming to fruition. He has always wanted to be a part of a church where he had the freedom to train up young people and give them real life experience and opportunities in ministry - leading worship, planning, team building, etc. All for the purpose of carrying out kingdom work and on Sunday morning Colin led part of our worship and did so great. Just knowing that in God's timing he will be launched into a new chapter too - can't wait to see what God does with him. I believe God will continue to bring more and more to be trained up and sent out. I see the church's passion for that - expanding God's kingdom and doing it together along the way.

So, as we mark this small milestone - 6 months - we thank God for our pastor who is steadfast in the word, he is just consistent in his pursuit of being true to God's word. We thank God for a staff that is united and more than that - they are friends. They just become closer friends and have more respect for one another the more they are together. We thank God for a church with a heart for missions - from community outreach events to personally talking to someone about Christ to missions trips and missionary support all over the world. We thank God for so many people who have just loved us and invested in us in the short time we have been here. We thank God for His presence in our worship, how He is just continuing to teach us more about Himself here and given us a family to do life with as we grow. There are still things and especially people at Wedgwood I deeply miss. But, I pray that God will continue to grow our love for Prosper just as He did while we were at Wedgwood. Pray that God will use us to expand His kingdom for His name's sake while we serve here and that we can have a part in being used to teach about having a lifestyle of worship. We are blessed!

Finally, it's Fall!

I am so glad Fall is finally here, I have loved the cooler weather this week. My husband, on the other hand, is a summer person and doesn't love the colder weather like I do. I did make him appreciate it a little more tonight by making his favorite soup (taco soup) for dinner. Once again, this week flew by us and this was the first night we were home all week. Looks like that is becoming a trend, Thursday nights at home - I like it.

Kelsie had her first honor choir rehearsal this week and she learned that they would be singing something special for their Veteran's Day program. She enjoyed rehearsal and seemed excited about things to come. Her last birthday party (thank goodness, we have birthday partied all month) is Saturday. We are taking 8 of her friends to see High School Musical 3 (much anticipated). It should be fun. Morgan is coming from Fort Worth to spend the weekend too which is a huge treat for all of us b/c we haven't seen her in a while.

There is not a whole lot of news to report - we stumbled on a house that we really like but it is not officially on the market yet. We saw a house that was an obvious foreclosure - the backyard was literally a wall of weeds waist high with absolutely NO landscaping in the front. We called the realtor on the sign and she told us it was a pre listing and the price had not been determined yet. The next day we noticed that people were clearing the backyard and cleaning the inside so we asked the contractors if we could walk through. We loved the floorplan and the location but the house was stripped down by the people that left - no appliances, doors taken off and light fixtures missing. It's a mess, but has possibilities especially for the right price. So, we will wait until it officially comes up on the market - the listing agent is suppose to call us the day before so we can have a heads up. So, we are continuing to watch new listings and monitor the few we still like as well as pray and wait on God's timing. The good thing is that we are not in a hurry and we are not tied down to rent or another mortgage. So, here is this week's thankful list:

1. Pumpkin bread Kelsie made after dinner tonight - yummy!
2. The cool weather we had this week.
3. The sweet blue birds that I got to see this afternoon out the window.
4. A hilarious episode of "The Office" tonight - the funniest one of this season so far.
5. Girls Night Out - Tuesday night out to eat with the girls and our wonderful husbands who watched the kids. It was delicious Kobe and the company was better.
6. A question that Khris (our pastor) gave us last week to ask ourselves - "What is the thing that will bring God the most glory?" That has caused us to think about houses (and other decisions) in a new way. I love that we are challenged every week by our pastor.
7. Kelsie being so sweet to little kids - they love her and she is so caring and patient with the

Hope you have a good weekend - I will hope to post pics of the Saturday party next week.

A Great Weekend

There are some weekends that fly by because you are so busy going from here to there that on Monday you can't believe the weekend is over and you wonder why you had no time to recuperate in between busy weekday/weeknight schedules. Well, that has been our weekends for a while but this weekend was a restful weekend mixed with quality family time and fun. I loved it! It started on Friday afternoon, Wayne and I got to spend the whole day together. We did spend the first half of the day with our realtor looking at some houses and taking him to lunch but the rest of the day we just hung out and then picked up Kelsie from school. That night was the Prosper/Celina game - a good game with a better outcome. It was a blast to be there and see this year's team win this huge rivalry game. Saturday morning we all slept late and then watched college football and capped off the day with Kelsie having a friend and a babysitter over while we met the Griffs at Babe's in Carrollton for dinner - we had a lot of catching up to do with them. Sunday worship was great, it never gets old seeing how many men come to the altar every week to pray. It always sets a tone for worship. After lunch, we came home to watch the Cowboy's play (I love having a DVR, we didn't have to watch commercials) and that was disappointing and UGLY. We squeezed in a quick nap and then took Kelsie to Prosper Party Place for Allie's birthday party. They played laser tag and games. Wayne played one game of laser tag with them - they broke up into teams of 6 and he was his own team. After the party was over, we came home and made a fire in the fire pit because it was a chilly night. We ended up roasting hot dogs for dinner and we all said we felt like we were away somewhere - it was dark, quiet, the stars were bright and we were sitting by a fire on the perfect night roasting hot dogs.

So, today is Monday and we are back to our normal busy schedules. Kelsie is off at school, Wayne is spending his day off site to do mega planning and I have a huge to do list that is typical for Monday, cleaning, laundry, grocery shopping, bill paying and errand running. This week I think we have something going on every night but this weekend was fabulous and we can hope for more like it! See below - a few pics taken with my phone after the game on Friday night.

People starting to rush the field when the game was over.....fun!

From top - Joy, Sarah, Kelsie, Karis, Kensey and Caroline after the game.

Prosper Wins!!!

Wow! What a game last night - Prosper beat their biggest rivals, Celina, last night 33-7. It was a huge win since Prosper hasn't beat Celina in 24 years. We had a blast at the game. Hope you are having a good weekend. We are enjoying a lazy Saturday with Kelsie working on some craft projects and Wayne and I watching Texas Tech play A & M. Love days like this and we look forward to worship tomorrow. Will post some pics later.

Thursday Already?

I can't believe it's already Thursday, this week has flown by and so I will start with this week's thankful list:

• My Sunday School Class has been a blessing to me just watching them really do life together. They all step up so many times when there are things going on in each others lives. They are a GREAT group of friends!
• Pumpkin Spice Limited Edition coffee pods for the Keurig that I found at Bed, Bath and Beyond - yummy! My very own starbucks at home (cheaper and less fattening too, a win/win)
• Time to sit down and eat breakfast with Kelsie several days this week. I love starting my day with her.
• Our dentist (Dr. Toney) and orthodontist (Dr. Jensen) - both professional and exceptional in their field and generous men of God. Kelsie has been relaxed and comfortable with both of them which is so important to me!
• The cooler weather - it's been nice to have the rain and the cooler morning today. Fall is my favorite.
• Market Street's Chicken Tortilla Soup. Yum!
• Karen Kingsbury's "Sunset" which I am reading now. I have to force myself to put it down at night so I don't stay up until 2 a.m.
• Watching all the bunnies, birds, and especially the hawk at the farm house - it's fun to have nature all around (as long as it doesn't include snakes and mice - so far they haven't come up to the house but I know they are out there).

Monday night we went to look at some vacant/foreclosed houses. Even though our plan is to wait until after the first of the year to move, we learned that foreclosures take a while to work out and close so we decided to go and look. There were a few we liked, nothing we loved yet. We have a few houses that we are watching but don't want to see yet because people live in them and we know how it is to be given false hope by lookers that aren't serious. We will wait on those until Nov/Dec. It is fun to look at houses though and it gives us good ideas of what neighborhoods to narrow our search to, so it's useful even if we aren't making offers yet.

Tuesday night we ordered On the Border for a Deeper Worship Conference meeting at the farm house. I love the team that is working on this project! God really has assembled such a talented team and we all have such different strengths that we work very well together. It will be an incredible weekend-don't miss it! Wednesday we had our first visit to the orthodontist, Dr. Jensen, who was fabulous. We loved him, he was great interacting with Kelsie and explaining stuff to us. We left with a good understanding of what we need to do now and the long term plan for her future smile. Right now, we have to see a specialist for a root canal on the malformed tooth so there won't be decay later and they can shape the tooth further. After that is done, the tooth next to it (a baby tooth) needs to be pulled to make room for the impacted tooth that is not wanting to come down in the right spot. All of her other teeth (she still has 7 baby teeth) look like they are coming in correctly. So, we get those things done and see him in one year to take another x-ray and see where the impacted tooth is and how the other teeth have come in so we can go from there straightening the turned tooth and whatever else they need to address. Kelsie enjoyed looking at the x-ray of all her baby teeth and perm teeth that are in there - I think she was counting the tooth fairy money!

So, tonight kinda starts the weekend for me - the first night we haven't had plans this week so we can actually sit down to dinner together and spend some quality family time. On Friday, Wayne and I get to hang out together - I am looking forward to spending the day with him. Then we have Friday Night Football, Prosper plays their biggest rivals Celina this week so it's a huge game and should be fun! Okay, if my weekend is to start tonight I better get busy on finishing up laundry and stuff. Have a great weekend!

Birthday Celebration Weekend 2

This weekend was Kelsie's birthday celebration weekend #2 with Wayne's family. Normally, we have one celebration for family and one for friends but typically in the same weekend but this year ended up being a little different and will expand almost the whole month of October. I'm sure Kelsie doesn't mind getting gifts all month. So, this weekend was kicked off on Friday morning with Rucker Rocks at Kelsie's school. She was recognized on stage with the other birthday kids and they have to do a little dancing in front of everyone. Luckily, Kelsie had a friend from her class (Miranda) that went up with her and a little girl (Emma) in Kindergarten that she knows from church was up there, so she was a little more comfortable but I think still a little embarrassed.

Kelsie on stage, getting ready to dance. Miranda in black and pink and Emma in white and blue standing with her.

Kelsie's class made a sign to show school spirit so they could win the gold rock for the week.

4th Grade won!!!

Kelsie and Kensey before it started. Kensey got Rucker Rocks for the week (an award that is given out to kids who do extraordinary things that week - see Kennedy Krew blog for details)

On Saturday, we had everyone out in the afternoon to celebrate (after the Texas/OU game). We always let Kelsie pick the menu so she wanted to cook outside hot dogs and roast s'mores. We purchased a small fire pit to have an open fire so we could cook out hot dogs and s'mores. It was nice weather outside so we all enjoyed sitting outside on the deck and the kids had a good time playing and exploring. We had a great time getting together for Kelsie's birthday!!

Kelsie got lots of webkins from her cousins.

Kelsie and "rattlesnake" she got - look closely....Aunt Joy is so creative.

Wayne, the fire starter.

Christopher, Brittany and Wayne roasting marshmallows.

Posing for a silly pic - they didn't want a sweet, smiling, serious picture.

An unconventional Birthday Cake - a s'more without the graham cracker...????

Made a wish!!! Happy 10th, my big girl.

Kelsie and Brittany both like their s'mores without graham cracker. A Gooey mess!

Hey - watch the hair!

As you can see, we had a fun weekend. Hope yours was good....more later.

I See Some Dentists in Our Future

We had a good visit with Dr. Toney (our wonderful dentist and elder at FBC) yesterday for Kelsie. She has a tooth in the top front that is turned slightly so we went for a little repair before our trip to the orthodontist next Wednesday. After some x-rays and investigation, he saw some things with that tooth (technical names I don't get) leading him to believe she needs to see a root canal specialist to fix it so it doesn't decay. YIKES!! Also, another tooth is impacted and not growing the right way to replace the baby tooth that is loose. So, we have some dental work in our future and we will know more next Wednesday. However, because he had to do some repair to that tooth and look at it closely, she had to have the top part of her mouth numb. It was so funny b/c she was shocked at how big her lip felt and that she couldn't talk or anything. She also hated the feeling that she couldn't swallow so they just gave her the little wand that sucks out the fluid from your mouth. She did really good being still and doing what they said, we were proud of her b/c she hates anything done to her mouth. Also, once we got home, the tooth that was loose she pulled so the tooth fairy brought $5 which made it all worth while in her eyes.

This is a pic that Wayne took with his phone because she was trying to smile...funny.

THIS WEEKS THANKFUL LIST:

• Wayne is home this week and got back safely from Ecuador. The stories and pics are great - can't wait to continue hearing more from everyone that went.
• Cooler weather - each morning and evening has been beautiful. We have enjoyed spending time outside on the deck.
• A 7 minute commute to Kelsie's school.
• Kelsie making friends at school and church - she has already made such sweet friends at both school and church. Everyone has welcomed us with open arms and I am thankful for a smooth transition.
• The new iphone apps - love the grocery list maker and the balance sheet.
• Harvest Candles (Yankee) - my favorite.
• Praying friends and family - we love you!!

Random Stuff

Kelsie's Birthday - On Monday Wayne took the day off because he had been gone to Ecuador all week and was tired and starting to feel a little under the weather. So, we took lunch to Kelsie at school. It was the first time we had eaten lunch with her at school and we enjoyed meeting some of her little friends. It cracked me up how the kids immediately separated into boys at one end of the table and girls at the other - I know that won't last much longer but it's cute that they are like that still. I asked Kelsie if any of the girls ever mix it up by going down there and sitting with the boys and she gave me a definitive NO!!! When we picked her up from school at 3, she immediately opened her gift and then we let her choose where to go eat that night - she chose JinBeh, a favorite for all of us! She said the kids in class counted down her birth time (12:04 p.m.) and said Happy Birthday to her in class - how cute!! The celebration continues on Friday with Rucker Rocks - I hope to post some pics of that later in the weekend.

Microwave Fire - Tuesday morning I was heating up some bacon in the microwave for Kelsie's breakfast and I put in a Happy Birthday plate left over from Grammy's house this weekend. It went up in flames - big flames. Apparently you cannot put paper plates in the microwave if it has little foil sparkles on it! YIKES.

Margaret was kidnapped - While I was at my mom's house, my gps (Margaret) along with Kelsie's portable DVD player and my iphone car charger were stolen. My mom's neighborhood is rear entry garage in an alley and I must have left my car door unlocked at some point and it presented a nice opportunity for someone to help themselves. I am thankful there wasn't a "break in," no broken glass or anything like that to deal with and they did close the door back so the light didn't stay on and run my battery down. Of course, Kelsie was upset b/c it meant a 5 hour drive with no movie but I assured her she would make it - after all, what did kids do before portable DVD players? She didn't know and didn't care! She did find some things to do like read and draw, listen to her ipod (which was in a bag and not stolen, thank goodness) and then we practiced "Christmas in Reverse" which was a good thing for both of us to do. It wasn't that bad but will all be replaced. I am LOST without Margaret. JERKS!!!!

House Hunting - Before Wayne left for Ecuador, we had been house hunting on the internet and narrowing down our search to 3-4 houses that we were going to look at once he got back. Now with financials and credit the way it is, we have decided to hold off a little and have more cash when we make an offer on something. So, we are back to our original plan to wait until after the first of the year and hope that things settle down. We are anxious to have our own house for sure but living at the farm house has been fun and it's really great when the first of the month rolls around and we don't have to make a house payment. We know God has the perfect house for us (within our budget) and His timing will be perfect just as it was when our house sold. So, we will keep praying, sorta looking and wait for "our" house.

Well, I have finished my cup of coffee and I need to get busy with some household chores and errands today. Talk later.

Happy 10th, Kelsie

Happy Birthday, Kelsie.  Since you are 10, I thought I would make a top ten list of the things I love about you (in no particular order):

1. You are sweet to other kids, especially little kids.
2. You use your gifts in music to praise God.
3. You love to cook and help in the kitchen.
4. You like to help me pick out jewelry and shoes.
5. You like to go and play golf with your dad.
6. You love animals and are so responsible with Raider.
7. You are not afraid to tell people about Jesus and your relationship with God.
8. You have a heart for people in different places all over the world, especially kids.
9. You are a leader.
10. You are a good daughter and a good friend.  

We thank God for giving you to us.  We love you and can't believe you are 10 years old!  We are so proud of the young lady God is shaping you into.  We love you!  Mom and Dad

Surprise!!

Wayne and the Ecuador team got back yesterday afternoon around 6 p.m.  He was not expecting us to pick him at the airport but SURPRISE!! we were there.  Our original plan was to go to San Angelo on Friday and come back on Sunday but when we realized that the team was getting back so early, we decided to pick Wayne up at the airport and surprise him.  So, we went to San Angelo on Thursday after school and went straight to the airport on Saturday. Wayne was very surprised when he came through the door and saw us standing there.  He wanted to go to Sonic and get iced tea with ice (b/c they couldn't have ice all week) and so we drove through and came home to eat and look at all his pictures from the trip.  It was nice to have him home again and we enjoyed looking at all the pics and hearing about his days in Ecuador.  

Monday is Kelsie's birthday, she will be 10 - I can't believe it.  We went to San Angelo this weekend to celebrate with my family since my grandmother cannot travel right now due to having her surgery a few weeks ago.  We had a great time visiting with everyone even though it was a quick trip.  Kelsie requested grammy's mashed potatoes so we had grilled chicken with all the fixins including funfetti cake.  We will celebrate with her tomorrow by taking her lunch at school and opening presents after school is out.  On Friday at school, she will get to dance on stage at Rucker Rocks so we will be there to see her do that.  Next weekend, Wayne's family will come out to the farm house on Saturday to cook out and celebrate and then she will have a party with her friends a few weeks later when "High School Musical 3" opens.  So, I guess this year we will have a month full of birthday celebration which is okay for double digits.  

Other good news is that Kelsie made Honor Choir.  We got the letter on Thursday and she was really excited about it.  They get to sing at the town's Christmas event as well as other events throughout the year.  It should be lots of fun, we are proud of her!

Thursday's Thankful List

First, we are doing well - thanks for all your e-mails, phone calls and facebook messages but especially thanks for your prayers for us and for the Ecuador team. You can read the missions blog to find out some of what has gone on during the trip and see a few pics. They did not have internet service last night but hope to have it today to post again before they begin traveling back on Friday. Our week at home has been busy with our regular school and church stuff going on and this weekend we will travel to San Angelo to celebrate Kelsie's birthday with my family.

Last week, I said that I felt a need to have a weekly thankful list as a matter of discipline instead of just a "Thanksgiving" season thing. It's been good for me all week to just think about the things I am thankful for, when you start doing this you realize how blessed you are by God. Psalm 30 says :

"I will extol You, O LORD, for You have lifted me up, And have not let my foes rejoice over me. O LORD my God, I cried out to You, And You healed me. O LORD, You brought my soul up from the grave; You have kept me alive, that I should not go down to the pit. Sing praise to the LORD, you saints of His, And give thanks at the remembrance of His holy name. For His anger is but for a moment, His favor is for life; Weeping may endure for a night, But joy comes in the morning. Now in my prosperity I said, I shall never be moved.” LORD, by Your favor You have made my mountain stand strong; You hid Your face, and I was troubled. I cried out to You, O LORD; And to the LORD I made supplication: “What profit is there in my God, When I go down to the pit? Will the dust praise You? Will it declare Your truth? Hear, O LORD, and have mercy on me; LORD, be my helper!” You have turned for me my mourning into dancing; You have put off my sackcloth and clothed me with gladness, To the end that my glory may sing praise to You and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give thanks to You forever."

My Thursday Thankful List:

• Friends that pray, support and encourage us
• Kelsie's sweet spirit toward others
• Coffee - this week I needed it EVERY morning
• Facebook chatting - we got to talk to Wayne using this without paying a gazillion dollars to talk on the phone
• The fact that we are healthy
• The opportunity for me to be room mom and volunteer at Kelsie's school and be home right now
• During this financial mess - that our house sold before all this stuff happened

Hope you have a good weekend. What about you, do you have a thankful list for the week?