Family Day...Hmm, What Could We Do?

What could we do for family time this week?? We had to go do our monthly shopping at BJ's and the girls said they really wanted to go by Bass Pro Shop after. It was a nice day to just relax and not feel rushed to be anywhere!


Sunset Sunday evening...so awesome...

no matter how the day goes sometimes...what a gift from God to see the beauty He created and to get our eyes in focus, back on Him :)

We had lunch/dinner at Zaxby's and when we drove out through the Target parking lot we were thrilled to see a lot of ducks by this pond...there were so many you would have thought you were at a park!

As soon as they heard or spotted the manager at Zaxby's coming out the back door with the stale bread they flew off...

...we then understood why there were so many hanging out in this parking lot :)

Entrance at Bass Pro Shop

These gliders are so comfy!

a bear...oh my!!!

The girls found the kids section this visit :)

Now the trying on of hats begin...first the mens dept...

Howdy partner!

We thought this would be a good choice for doing yard work

camo cowgirl :)

I'm in...where are we going!

These were my favorite ones!

Mom, I could have worn this on crazy hat day, right?

We also saw the shooting arcade...it is really cool...too dark for the camera to pick up though!

I can already picture them hunting with Daddy...LOL!!!!

We had so much fun in this area of the store :)

After this, Roy was trying to figure out when we could get out of town and get into the woods...all four of us for the 1st time!! :)

They sure do love their Daddy...that is such a blessing to my heart!

They had to go upstairs :)

Of course, they could not leave without a picture on one of the ATV's!!

It was a great time and it amazes me that it was free :)

Last Days of T.S. FAY...

We enjoyed the rest of the rain we got from the storm...the girls & I love to school in the rain :)
We had a good week...school was a little hectic at times. We are still adjusting with the new school year and the sequence of lessons. Hopefully soon I will not have to experiment so much. It is a challenge sometimes to work with them both at the same time. I know many Mom's who school 5-6 kids though so I truly have no reason to complain!

leading the lizard back outside:)

2 girls, 2 raincoats...2 much fun!!!!

It is all about the lollipop when going to the bank!

A little game of Trouble...Daddy & his girls!

We decided to go 4-wheelin and then the rain started up again...on this dirt road there were areas that were washed out...one side even looked like a little mudslide.

This bridge used to be one of our shortcuts underneath it...pretty torn up right now!

Here's a better look around...starting to dry up!

Mia was not happy about going 4-wheelin today :)

When we pulled in the driveway this was a visitor we had next to the garage...it was pretty big!

Tropical Storm Fay...

We have been following the track of Fay since it was in the mid-Atlantic...Roy & I love this time of year! I know it may seem strange but we are fascinated by the weather. We thought we were going to get a more direct hit from the wind initially, so when the track changed I think we were a little disappointed. I can't explain our passion for this type of weather other than when Roy & I were in Mississippi visiting his Mom back in 1998 and Hurricane George came through the Gulf Coast there. We put on our rain suits, boots and headed out into the elements (before it got real bad!) to help secure some things in her condo community at the clubhouse that had come loose, I believe. It was the coolest thing to walk in those high winds, leaning forward...almost bent at the waist to keep from falling over or flying away...LOL!!! I can still remember...so every year we are excited anticipating what we may get to see! I guess this is one area in my life I have never had to struggle with fear...Praise God for that!! :)

Roy was up on the roof Sunday evening filling in some areas around our ridge vent when we thought we were going to be getting the heavy rain.

This was what the sky looked like last night when we started to get some of the bands of the storm. It was the coolest color between the dark clouds and the sunset trying hard to peek through! This was the best picture that came out of the color...looking up at the clouds.

We decided to take a drive to go into Orlando and see a little more than we were getting. This picture is in our little town.

Roy got the truck fixed...Praise God!!! He worked on the lights yesterday when he came home and they are working!! The leak that we had was found and he took almost everything apart twice and got it all put back together and it is doing great...Praise God for the wisdom & knowledge he gave my husband!

This was looking the other direction...it was beginning to get windy!!!

We were almost in the area of Universal Studios and saw a gas station that was much lower than our area...so Roy topped it off. The girls were having fun hanging out in truck again :)

Then they started to get silly in that short time waiting for Daddy. Here is Madeline's funny face!

Then it was Mia's turn!

We decided to drive through Disney...there is a spot near the Magic Kingdom that we usually always see deer on the side of the road at night. We didn't know the fireworks were about to start so we had to turn around and go a different way. We then found a great new spot to view the fireworks though...much closer than our last spot! This pic to me looks like a strawberry, what do you think?

The girls were tired from waking up early yesterday and then all the excitement from driving around or maybe from their day of schoolwork?? Hmmm...either way they couldn't stay awake until we made it back home! :)

Rescue the Turtle!

When were on our way to get in the car to drive to a spot where we like to watch the sunset. On the way out the driveway Roy spotted a turtle on the sidewalk. Of course I had to get a picture and the girls wanted to see it!!! So, since a lot of the body's of water around us are low or even dry we decided to bring this water turtle back to the water :)

We put him in a box, he rode on Roy's lap (in the box) on the way. He was very curious about the car ride...LOL!! The girls thought it was the coolest thing :)

The water turtle :)

The girls saying bye before the release!

Roy said he was so happy to get right into the water...Mia on the other hand was pretty sad to see him go :)

Turtle's new home...isn't it beautiful!!

Thanks Honey for teaching the girls a wonderful lesson about taking care of the Lord's creation!

Encountered & Encouraged By The Lord!

Roy was out of work with his leg and the tendinitis he suddenly got (a week ago Sunday) from a reaction to an antibiotic for a sinus infection...yes, a drug for a sinus infection had him walking with crutches unable to bear weight on his leg or at times, even have the weight of a sheet on it!!! The enemy, Satan is such a liar...we know he only comes to steal, kill & destroy the work of the Lord. We know there are times when we are attacked that it just won't make sense and that is quite an encouragement...to have confirmation that the Lord is at work in & through our lives!!! We were able to go to our church as a family (has been about 4 months since we could attend there together-they only have a morning service right now) Roy received prayers of healing for his leg, we got to Praise & Worship the Lord as a family, the word given from our Pastor was like the Lord was speaking directly to us…Praise God!! Our faith was stirred & restored in many areas. Roy’s leg is healed, he is off the crutches and was back at work Thursday and at his mens bible study last night too (had been away for a while)…Praise You Jesus!!!!

We have to stay connected, we can not afford to pull away from the body of Christ…God has a huge purpose for our fellowship and keeping each other lifted up in prayer. By the way, if you get offended in the church (once or many times) that is not a reason to leave or walk away, I tried that…it won’t work!! Satan wants you to believe you can “survive” on your own…in reality he is only deceiving you to believe that lie so that while you are ‘out there’, outside of your corporate prayer covering in the church, he can come against you in several ways/angles to weaken your faith to the point where he hopes you abandon all the promises that GOD has given you and walk away from your faith entirely and into the hands of this world. This is not a fun place to be once you find yourself there…However, God is Faithful and rich in His mercy and love! He will allow us to run from him and give us the freedom to run in circles until we become so worn out or dizzy (whichever comes first!!) and then we find ourselves standing there broken before him, on our knees surrendering and crying out for his mercy and forgiveness!! Knowing that he is quick to forgive and abounding in love. All that running for what…???!! Pride or maybe some other yucky stuff we have allowed to live in us like…hatred, bitterness, unforgiveness…just to name a few, they all rang a bell for me :) In fact, scroll down to the bottom of the blog and you’ll find a poem the Lord gave me to write, I believe to reveal the condition of my own heart. I know it will encourage you!!!!!

If God wasn't at work...moving and drawing us closer to him through the truth of His Living Word about the blood shed of his only begotten Son, JESUS for all of us as a final sacrifice, paid in full, for ALL our sins on the cross at Calvary and His glorious resurrection back to the Father so that one day when we pass from this age to the next we can live eternally with our Lord & Savior... when we choose to confess that we are sinners, in desperate need of a Savior and invite Him to come in & be the Lord of our Life through the power of the Holy Spirit and through the teachings of God's Word, the Bible. It then becomes kind of silly to ask...why would the attacks be coming???!!!!! As believers, when we have chosen to live for the Lord and His purposes (on earth, as it is in Heaven), to walk by faith and not by sight...we need to continue to stand and Stand FIRM on the Word of God...that no weapon formed against us shall prosper and that greater is He that is in us than he that is in the world!!!! If God is for us, who can be against us??? When the Lord speaks to us and we choose to respond in obedience, whether it makes sense or not and especially when it is in God's timing and not our own and we try (although many times fall short...Praise God for his grace!) to live according to His Word...is there any wonder why the enemy is so mad and is out to destroy us????? 1 Peter 5:7-9 (NIV) cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings. Persecution is a good thing…it confirms that we are in the will of God!!!!

Be encouraged, let’s continue to declare and decree the word of God over our lives and the circumstances that come at or against us; knowing that…

2 Timothy 1:7 (NKJV) - For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.

Philippians 1:6 (NKJV) - being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ.

If you haven’t given your life to the Lord yet and you may even be worn out or beat up from trying to live your own life, just close your eyes…bow your head and confess that you are a sinner in need of a Savior. That you believe that Jesus Christ died on the cross for your sins and that He rose again. Ask him to forgive you of your sins and to come into your heart and be the Lord of your life. If you prayed this prayer…you are now born again, your name has been written in the Lamb’s book of life and you have eternal life through Jesus Christ. I encourage you to get plugged into a bible based church, tell someone of your decision and grow in God’s love for you and all that He has planned for your life!

John 3:16 (NKJV) - For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

All Glory to you GOD!!!!! 8-15-08

What a Blessed Sunday!!!

We had an Awesome day on Sunday!!! After church in the late afternoon, we went by a friends house from church to drop off some things and the girls finally got to meet Cocoa & Cisco in person. We have been telling them that 'one day' we will bring them by there to visit...this turned out to be that day!!! :)

This is Cisco, the Bethlehem donkey and Cocoa, the miniature horse...aren't they adorable?!!!!

The girls could not have been any happier...well, maybe if it was fall with cooler temps!!

Madeline loves horses and would truly love to be a farmer one day :)

Mia loves horses too and was helping to gather the hay for the feed bucket! :)

It was so nice being outside and enjoying the view of their beautiful place, the animals, the fellowship...it felt like we were away on vacation!!!

Daddy & his country girls :) We would all love to live in the country!!! Donny & Cathie decided to surprise the girls with a ride on Cocoa before we headed out...the girls were so excited:)

Mia went first...Mr. Donny helped her get situated on Cocoa!

Miss Cathie walked her around the loop only because Roy's leg was still acting up at that point and I am currently allergic to horses...although I am believing God that will change! The girls love horses way too much for Mommy to be allergic :)

Mia's joyful ride almost up!!!

Madeline's turn...she was so happy!!!!

While she was riding, she got to pet the donkey as he followed close by next to Cocoa!!! It was really sweet to see how protective Cisco was of Cocoa :)

What a blessing for the girls!!!

Thank you so much Donny & Cathie...we had such a nice time visiting, hearing and sharing stories! Meeting Cisco & Cocoa and the puppy :) You all are so blessed...you have such a beautiful home & property...it truly was like we went out of town on vacation. Thank you for spending time with us on our "short-notice" visit!! You both made the girls so happy with the time they got to spend with the animals and the ride we were not expecting!! Roy & I appreciate the fellowship we had with you both...we haven't had for that for a while and really missed it :)

On our way home, we took the scenic route by the Lake...we were blessed to have favor to see a beautiful sunset!

One last shot closer to home...it was incredible!!! Thank you God for your creation and the beauty of it that surrounds us everyday :)