Defending her faith...

In 2011 Alyssa was supposed to be taking a nap.  It was a cold December day and her room was dark.  Only lit by the light of her Christmas tree.  I heard her and wanted to remind her again that is was nap time!  I walked in her room and told her it was her last chance to get quiet and get to sleep.  That's when she proceeded to tell me she was awake because she had just asked Jesus in her heart!  My heart skipped a beat.  I said, "You did what?"  She said, "Mommy, I laid my head under my tree and asked Jesus to forgive me of my sins and come in to my life."  We talked a little bit and when Matt got home she told him her story.  We were so proud of her.  There's nothing we desire more than for our girls to fall madly in love with their savior and live their life to please and glorify Him.

We have talked for the past year about her relationship with Jesus and we have no doubt that she accepted Jesus on that cold December day and He became her Savior!

Alyssa amazes me with her faith and her willingness and desire to share Christ.  She has taught this momma more this year that I can begin to write.  This past week she was sharing about Christ with a few of her classmates.  She asked a little boy in her class if he knew who Jesus was.  He said, "Yes,  He's still dead on the cross."  Alyssa told him, "No, he died on a cross and was buried and 3 days later her arose and he lives in my heart!"  He began to argue that she was wrong and she told him, "that's where we disagree." :)

As she told me this story I couldn't help but think about the fact that she is only 6 years old and is already having to defend her faith to someone her age.  I was thankful she had to defend her faith because that meant she had shared her faith. As long as she's living, and as long as she is sharing, she will come across those who just don't believe the same way she does.  I reminded her that not everyone will accept Jesus as the person that he is to her.  They will not agree that He is Lord and that he lives in her heart and that He can live in theirs too.  I reminded her that only the Holy Spirit can lead them, but it is her responsibility to always share.  I never want her to grow weary and get discouraged.  She smiled and said, "Mom I will always share about Jesus it's just so hard when people don't believe me!"

Praying that her boldness will never fade.  Thankful for the daily lessons the Lord teaches me through my daughter.  May I have a fire that burns so fiercely for Jesus that I won't let an opportunity pass to tell someone about His amazing love!

I don't tell this story to brag on my daughter.  I tell it so I will remember it, and I tell it because it is a great reminder to me.  When sharing Jesus is what we are called to do, it's not brag worthy when we pour Christ into others.  It's simply obedience.

I pray that you may be active in sharing your faith, so you will have a full understanding of every good thing we have in Christ. Philemon 1:6

Our week:captured by the iPhone!!:)

Um. Thank goodness for the good ol iPhone. What in the world would we do about pics if we didn't have it?  I have captured so many things I would have missed if I didn't have my trusty little side kick with me!  Thankful for that technology. It can be so distracting at times ( if I let it) but it is quite the blessing in capturing those sweet memories!!:).

Monday morning with my sweet girl. Girls days with this precious girl are my favorite!!  Hers too:)

She is a coffee girl. Just like her momma. Decaf of course!

Now that I am working I wanted a few meals that I could just throw in the oven and BAM dinner is done!  So Alyssa and I whipped up 2 different pasta dishes and some taco meat!  I must admit the pics don't look too appetizing.  Haha!  But in less than 30 minutes I had 3 dishes ready to go!  Ready for the work week!!

I managed to sneak in a lunch date with this hottie this week.  That sure made my day!  CFA of course!

I sooo look forward to my Friday's with this girl!  Our days have been cut short with me working, but I cherish our Friday's more than ever!  Be still my heart.  Total cutie!

Saturday mornings with these girls is my fav.  Coffee and donuts.  Every week.  I love it.  I look forward to it!  When they say.."we really want toast," I kind of cringe inside.  Momma likes her donut fix!

Saturday  morning this little fashionista wanted to go jump on the trampoline so she got her cute self dressed!  She finished her outfit off with her robe!  A girl with her own mind!

Love the view out my picture window.  I was folding laundry...they were playing so nicely.  Happy Girls.  Happy Momma!

Hello hotness working on our land.  Nothing like your man cutting down wood, driving a tractor, and making brush piles.  Hubba Hubba!

Let them praise the LORD for his great love and for the wonderful things he has done for them. For he satisfies the thirsty and fills the hungry with good things. Psalm 107:8-9

Family update...

I just wanted to give a little update on our little family!
This past year has brought many blessings in our lives and in our family...and though his goodness has overflowed our hearts, there are always valleys and lessons to be learned.  Praise God the Lord is never through with us.  Pruning and teaching and building us into the parents and individuals that he created us to be.  I am thankful for that. This year has been a year full of pruning.  It has not been easy.  We have been through heartache this year.  We have seen God transform relationships in our lives.  We have seen him use us in ways we never imagined.  We watched as he removed things in our lives that were not lining up with his will.  But, if I want nothing more than to be like Him, I have to be willing to let go...let go of the things I want.  Let go of the things I feel are best for me, and look to Him because HE alone will fill me heart with love, patience, contentment, and JOY.  That is what I/we desire.

Matt and I have pretty much spent our whole marriage driving.  Haha...seriously. Driving here and there and everywhere.  We have never lived in the town that we did "life" in.  We lived in Fay. for 5 years and drove back and forth to Lavaca for church for that entire time.  The last 2 years Matt drove back and forth daily for work in Fort Smith.  We got a brain, and decided to move a little closer!  We have been in Alma for 4 years and have loved every second of it....except the constant driving to work and church in Lavaca.  We have thought about moving to lavaca a few times, but we knew the Lord was not calling us to make that move just yet.  It's been tough.  It's been tiring.  It's cost a lot of money, but God would just say..."Not yet."  Until now...:)

The Lord has made it very clear he is calling us to put our house on the market next month and get our booties to Lavaca.  We know FBC Lavaca is the church we are called to serve in and we can't serve in the capacity we wish to serve from Alma.  We have land we will build on and we could not be more exited.  We will miss Alma.  It has been a great home for us.  We love our home and the memories that lie inside these walls. We love that my dad can just swing by our house at any given time to see the girls and to bring us goodies! We love that my mom and Mike can stop by on their many trips to Fay to watch the Hogs play!  We love that this is the place we brought home sweet Bella Grace and that we watched Alyssa grow from a baby to a little girl.  Our home...this house is where are little Alyssa got out of her bed and sat by her Christmas tree in her room and  prayed and asked Jesus to rule her life and live in her heart.  Memories...they flood over me as I type.  I am thankful for these memories and thankful they will continue.  Its true that Home is where the Heart is.

We are thankful for the Lord's calling on our life.  We are thankful that through this past year He has shown us time and time again that our lives are in Lavaca and that He is calling us to move our family.  We are blessed to serve Jesus and we are thankful he speaks to us and leads us.  We may not always get it right...we mess up..A LOT!  We jump ahead of God and try to do things on our own daily, but we are so confident in the Peace that has been given through the timing of this move.  A peace that can ONLY come from the Lord.

I started working this week.  It sounds so strange to even type that.  We have been incredibly blessed for me to stay home for the past 6 years.  It has been wonderful.  I have enjoyed every second.  It wasn't always easy and we didn't always have the things we wanted, but God has always supplied all of our needs according to his riches in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:19)  I always said, "Maybe I will do something a few days a week when the girls start school."  Well oddly enough, I am there.  It has flown by, but I am there.  Alyssa is in 1st grade (what?) and Bella Grace is in preschool 3 full days.  My days of having little ones running around all day long are over.  It can make me sad if I let it, but each and every phase of their life has been pure JOY!
I am loving being around a awesome group of ladies, I have a fabulous boss that I also get to call my Father-in-Law and I get to use my brain in new ways!  It has been an ADJUSTMENT.  I have been soooo tired.  You know 3 days will do that to ya:) It has taken a lot more organization and time on my days off to prepare for the days I work, but I am thankful for this opportunity to work a few days and also be home a few days with my people!:)

Please be in prayer for the timing of our home to sell.  We know it is in His hands and we are resting in that alone!

But they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint. Isaiah 40:31

Another one missing...

Alyssa lost her first tooth today!  Well she has two teeth missing but only one of which became loose and was pulled!  (The first tooth she lost she had pulled at the dentist.  The nerve had died from a fall that took place when she was two.)  She came running and screaming from the bathroom and I knew what had taken place!  The look on her face was priceless.  It was a look of sheer panic/amazement/excitement all in one!  It was pretty funny.

I needed to share...Just for the record!:)

Christmas in the mountains

This year we decided instead of doing all the Christmas gifts we were going to go snow skiing as a family!  We had a blast!  It was sooo much fun just being together as a family.  No gift could ever take the place of quality time with the ones you love!

Christmas morning we got up and did Christmas with our girls and then Matt got the car loaded and we headed down the road.  The girls did AMAZING!  Matt and I had prayed for them literally since we knew we were going to make the trip and the Lord definitely heard our prayers and had favor on us!  They could not have been better.  We stopped once for a bathroom and gas stop, and once for dinner.  So in 13 hours they got out of the car 2x!  Matt and I were so proud of them and so thankful the Lord calmed them and flooded them with contentment on this trip.  They skied and just had a blast!

We played Mexican Dominos each night after a day of skiing and night skiing.  We ate, snacked, skied, and laughed a lot!  It was a blessing of a trip!

The whole crew!

Skiing with Alyssa!  She did awesome and was such a natural!

Picking up Bella from Ski School!

After day 1 of Ski School

Sunset while night skiing!

The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Psalm 19:1

Sweet traveling sisters!

Ice Cream reward!

Bella Grace...

Ok, so I am behind.  Again.  Always.

Bella had a birthday! December 17th. Yes, I forgot to post about my child's b-day.  So...she turned 4!  What???  She had such a fun birthday!  She had a small little party with some of her school friends at a gymnastic place.  It was perfect!   The kids had the whole gym to themselves and just ran around and had a blast!!  She loved it and loved all her gifts!  This was her first real party and she was not quite sure what to do!  She thanked everyone for "letting her come to their birthday!"  It was pretty sweet!!

Matt picked her up from school on Monday and Alyssa and I met them at none other than CFA.  Then we went to the movies!  They had a blast.  We got home and got the girls to bed and Bella felt warm but I just thought she was wound up.   I went in to cover her up (like I do each night before I go to bed) and she was on FIRE!  One of those fevers where you just know it's high!  I didn't even take her temp because we knew it was at least 104.  One thing about Bella is she rarely gets sick, but when she does, she ALWAYS runs a high fever!  So we stripped her and got her in the tub.  She woke up Wed. and felt ok.  She went with Matt to run a few errands and by the time she got home she just wanted to lay around.  This went on for 7 days straight.  She ran fever for 7 days.  High fever.   I was so frustrated on day 5 when she would go all day then at night she would spike a fever.  My flesh wanted to fear, but I chose to trust.  Don't get me wrong...after several days of fever I began to think something was seriously wrong with her.  Neither of the girls had ever been sick that long. But,  I heard story after story of the Flu and a flu like virus that was going around and lasting 7-14 days.  Well..we had fever for 7 and by day 10 we were seeing signs of our spunky 4 year old again!  It was rough.  She looked terrible and was just exhausted and worn down from fighting such high fever for so many days.   We are so thankful she is all better!  She went to Colorado and snow skied and had a blast!

Bella is one precious little girl!

We are so thankful for her life and that God chose us to be her parents.  She has brought us so much joy and happiness.  She has a smile that lights up our hearts and she is just the most loving little girl.  She is a cuddle bug and loves to be rocked.  She loves to talk about Jesus and is starting to understand more and more about Christ and that he came to save our souls!  She loves her church, her school, her friends, and her family!  She is high energy and full of life. She is content and has always been such a go with the flow kind of kid.  We pray God's protection and biggest blessing on her precious little life!

We love you Bella Boo!!

May the Lord bless you and protect you.

Numbers 6:24