Lunar Eclipse

Where were you between 8:45 and 10:00 pm on Wed, February 20th? George and I grabbed a thermos of hot chocolate, two chairs, the camera, tripod, and plenty of warm clothes and drove to a street that had very little light in order to watch the lunar eclipse. What a wonderful show it was. I guarantee it was better than anything on the television. Approximately 3 billion people around the world could have witnessed this spectacular event and another chance will not occur until Dec 21st, 2010. These facts are rather staggering and while we were there in the dark, I wondered how many people took the time to see God's majesty in action. I wondered who across this world that I may be sharing this experience with. People from Europe and Africa and Western Asia. All from different walks of life and yet our God brings us together in a common and sublime way. It made me sad to think that George and I don't take advantage of more of natures daily acts of beauty. When was the last time you saw the sunrise or a sunset? Our last time was in September, on top of Warren Dunes. Most of us, including me, take for granted that we have time to see and appreciate those things "another day". Wonder if today is our last day? We all get tied up in the rountine and rut of daily living with schedules, meals, appointments, meetings, cleaning, TV, etc.; These are all things we do to keep life moving. However, I hope I can challenge all that read this and a reminder to George and I, to take time out for the beauty of God's majesty. There is a worship song at church that we sing and one of the lines goes something like this: Undeniable, Indescrible, You put the stars in the sky and you called them by name....You are Amazing God.

St. Valentine's Day

George and I shared our Valentines Day dinner with a few of our friends. Love is not just to share with your spouse, but with those around us. When I was single, many of my friends would get the blues around Valentine's day because they didn't have a boyfriend to celebrate with. I learned long ago that Valentine's Day was a special day to show love to your parents, siblings, children and friends. Ashley and I would get dressed up for Valentine's Day and have a special dinner together. Our traditional meal when I was single, was BLT's. It was special because we were thankful to share this day together. Friends sometimes joined us in this little tradition and I never felt that I was missing out on a big day that is traditionally dubbed as a "couples" day. This Valentine's day dinner did not include the BLT's but I'm sure glad that I spent it with friends and with my spouse. It was filled with laughter, good conversation, and most of all love.

Our Pregnancy: The half-way point!

We are so so thankful to be pregnant!!! We can't believe that we have reached the half-way point. We are having a baby girl and her first name will be Ava but we are struggling with her middle name. We took some pregnancy photos tonight to record this moment in our life, and will try to continue to document this AMAZING process. According to our pre-natal book, Ava can now hear sounds from the outside world. George has been talking to her in hopes that she will recognize his voice when she is born. We are excited to be on this path and look forward to the day she will announce herself to the world.

GAP MAN, My Valentine

As we draw close to Valentine's day I begin to reflect on Love and what it means in my life. Each year that passes, I feel like I understand the word better and what it looks like to live it. This is a lifelong learning curve and a wonderful ride to be on. It is preached and taught in churches across the world of how Jesus came to fill the GAP for our sins, that we may know the Father. He died on a cross to fill that GAP and give us eternal life. I am thankful for this sacrifice of pure love. God's love and provision has also granted me the opportunity to love and cherish an earthly "GAP" man. My husband George willingly fills the GAP for me and my shortcomings and loves me in spite of them. He is there for me when I need prayer and he stands in the GAP and prays for me. He is my intercessor. He is there for me when I'm frustrated about situations with Ashley and he stands in the GAP and takes the brunt of the conflict. He is Couragious and Fair. He is there to stand in the GAP regarding decisions and directons of our life and weighs the possible outcomes. He is a Leader and a Provider. He stands in the GAP when I need a person to share my feelings, emotions, thoughts and dreams with. He is my Friend, Partner and Lover. He Stands in the GAP when I may not deserve his love and respect and he offers himself to me anyway. He is Selfless and Committed. My husband is my earthly GAP man and I love him more each moment we share.

WHATEVER IT TAKES....

Last night I prayed the same prayer I prayed four and a half months ago....
It was for my daughter Ashley, and the prayer starts out as, "Lord, do whatever it takes to bring Ashley back to YOU, and keep her safe. Keep her safe spiritually, physically, and emotionally. Please Lord, whatever it takes." God has answered this prayer BOTH times I prayed this, but not in the way I expected. The first time I prayed this prayer for her, she had been kicked out of her apartment, living in her car for two days, and had less than a dollar to her name. I had no idea she was in this circumstance but I was worried about her life choices and I had run into a friend's Mother who shared her story of this same prayer for her daughter many years ago. That night I sobbed and pleaded this prayer for many hours and the next day my daughter called and asked for help, and to move back home. She stated she had hit rock bottom and once George and I met with her, we knew she was in a place to hear us. I knew my prayer was not a coincidence to her phone call, and at first I was humbled and grateful that we had received such a clear answer from God. Then my selfiness set in and I began to worry about the stress and problems that may occur having her live with us. You see, George and I had been on a long journey of trying to have a baby and we had just found out we were pregnant. Stress was the last thing we needed, but obedience and faith that God had this worked out for us pulled us through. The second time I prayed this prayer was last night during the winter snow storm. We had not heard from her after many messages and texts sent. George had the opportunity to come home a day earlier than expected from business travel and we went to bed and tried to sleep. I went in and out of a fitful sleep and then started to pray the "whatever it takes" prayer. Several hours later, this prayer was answered by her calling at 2:13 am and crying out for help. She had drank too much and couldn't see any further to drive and pulled into the next available parking lot. It was a church of course and George and I rushed to her aid on the icy roads. We brought her safely home and we realized how active God is in our lives when we turn things over to him. The way God answered both of these prayers was not what I expected, but he answered in a way that we could know him more closely and model many of his characteristics through Love, redemption, sacrifice, grace, and forgiveness. MY solution to my prayer never involved George and I, but God's solution made us part of his great story and made us know how much he love's us all.