I went to a REAL salon and got my hair done today. It was a great experience. Expensive, but I am so happy with my hair. My family is a little unsure of it, but I got tons of compliments today, every where I went, which was many places. The school, my store and the dentist office. Okay, the pictures are not the greatest, but they are self portraits.

Please help me pray for my family. My Mom is going in for some exploritory surgery this morning. Not exactly sure what is going on, but hopefully they will have some answers today.

Thanks, and Heather I will try and post something soon. LOL!

Today was an exciting day for our family. We were all baptized as believers and we joined the membership of Christ Presbyterian Church. My sister and her family were present. It made me so happy that they shared in our joy. Thanks for coming and sharing our day. God has brought our family, and my sisters family so far and I am so glad we are all together still. God is so faithful.

At the end of service a young man came up and introduced himself to my husband. He is a student at a college in Richmond, and he had Pastor Charlie (our pastor from Memorial Baptist) as a professor. Evidently he visited MBC quit a few times, and asked Pastor Charlie if there was a church closer in proximity for him that he'd be comfortable recommending, and guess where he sent him. Christ Presbyterian Church. It is so exciting to see the work that God is doing through our lives.

Continue to pray for Jenny and Dean. They are sure facing prosecution from the family. I've had a chance to talk to her a couple of times, and of course I never have long to talk, but I can see the work of the Holy Spirit in their lives.

Must go for now. Have a blessed week.

Exciting News

Rob's sister Jenny and her husband Dean, the parents of these 3 darling children have left our former faith family. I know that sounds crazy to say "exciting news" and follow it by "left the old church". WOW! God is so faithful. He has seen fit to open their eyes to the false teachings that they've grown up in. It is a hard decision, and I have to say that, although we did it, I can't truthfully imagine making the decision and living so close to family--that is still in our former faith family. It was hard enough for our family to deal with, but we were not so close in proximity or other ways. Please help us pray for God's direction for them. I didn't get to talk much to Jenny while we were home for Thanksgiving, but Dean told Rob they weren't so sure where they were going to end up, but they were going to devote themselves to reading God's word and praying for direction. (that is exactly what we did, and look where we are today) God has so answered our prayers with this. I am trying to stay away, unless they want to talk and ask questions, because I do not want to sway them in any way. God will reveal to them as he see fit. It is so EXCITING! I do think that this stems from a few things, Rob has had the opportunity to witness to Dean on quit a few occasions, and I did post my testimony on my other blog. But, most of all God has openend their understanding and made them alive spiritually. Praise God for this exciting event.

Me & My Twin Sister

I forgot to post this picture from Thanksgiving. This is my family with my twin sister. I know that she knows who I am, honest, I can tell by her response to me when I talk to her. I apologize it didn't get a great picture of her face. She is beautiful. She has long fingers, thick blac wavy hair, big brown eyes. She lives in a hospital for handicap. It is a great facility. We don't get to visit very often, mainly because we don't get to Illinois often at all, however, she is well cared for. I can tell because we ALWAYS show up unannounced and she always looks good. My husband has stopped in their more than I--mainly from his past job when he would travel to pick up--he would stop in, just because he wanted to be sure she was being taken care of well. He is so wonderful like that. He sais he can tell she is in a good facility because he has been in SO MANY different facilities, and this is one of the best. Well, this isn't the best picture of my family, but it is us. The boys were a little nervous, well Zach was anyway. The other 2 remember more of our visits. Hey, I really can ramble can't I. Have a blessed day.

It looks like our family will be joining a church finally. It has been a long journey to find our homechurch. We didn't take it lightly at all. After all it has been over 2 years since we resigned. We visited and attending many, many churches. This church fits what we believe theologically. It is in line with everything that God has revealed to us.

We have learned so much on this journey. God has used so many people to teach us so much. He made us alive, and opened our understanding to his word. We are so thrilled that God chose our family. He knew exactly what we'd be, in all our imperfection, and chose us as a covenant family. Nothing we did derseved his Grace, but He, for His own glory chose us. How humbled I am when I think of this.

Christ Presbyterian Church in Richmond will be our home church. It will be official the first Sunday of January. We are looking forward to this day.

Homemade gifts

This is the gift each of my employees will recieve from me. I sure hope that they enjoy it as much as we enjoyed making it.

**I forgot that we also made snowmen out of Nutter Butter cookies. They are super cute, and fun to make.

Dip a Nutter Butter Cookie in white chocolate, for the hat: a peppermint pattie in half, the scarf: a twizzler pull and peel, buttons: reeses pieces minis, some of them had eyes which were mini chocolate chips. The chocolate hardened and I forgot to put eyes on some of them, and then we decided that they were much more cute minus the eyes anyway.

Christmas Cookie Time

I was off work this weekend. Rob was on call for the Street Department. Well, I guess it was better that way, because he worked the entire weekend anyway. We got LOTS of snow. He worked about 7 hours on Saturday, and then 15 hours on Sunday. The boys and I took advantage of the snowy weather and made some Christmas cookies. Austin is dipping ritz crackers with peanut butter in chocolate. Jordan is dipping oreos in white chocolate. Zach was unwrapping peppermints for peppermint fudge (not made yet). Zach also dipped some pretzels in white chocolate. Then I made chocolate chip cookies, sugar cookies and then 2 batches of buckeyes. I couldn't find my recipe so of course I used the internet, and chose the first recipe I found. WOW! Are they good. It was super simple. I froze the balls for 1/2 hour or so before I began dipping. Why? I asked myself why I had never done that before. What a time saver it was. (well, when you are from Illinois I guess it isn't too hard, because you dip the entire ball, but here in on the ohio state line, you make them look like buckeyes.) Well, we really enjoyed our weekend. We were snowed in with lots of candy and cookies--and of course the necessities.

The Northside Elementary Ambassadors.

This is the singing group Austin is involved in. They preformed this evening. It was a dinner theater. The kids did a fabulous job. I was blown away by the talent. They all looked so nice in their uniforms. The pictures is a little blurry, but I guess that is for the best, since it is not of just my children. This is a group of 3rd, 4th and 5th grade children. They each had to audition, were chosen and have worked very hard for this performance. It was great. I thought it was so neat at the end, as the guests left, the children were in a "receiving line" and they shook hands with all the 180 guests. Great job Mr. Hoggatt training the children. I'm so very thankful for a christian teacher, who loves music and takes so much of his personal time to have this group.

Christmas Card picture

Look at these hansdome boys. These are the pictures I used to make my Christmas cards. I thought the jammies were fun, and of course Jordan is a little beyond the "snuggle jammies". It was fun for the younger boys to have a new toy from Thanksgiving/Christmas to have in the picture. I'm pretty excited about the cards we created this year.

I LOVE family worship

Tonight in our family worship the question we worked on was this.

What is justification?

Justification is the act of God's free grace by which He pardons all our sins and accepts us as righteous in His sight. He does so only because He counts the righteousness of Christ as ours. Justification is received by faith alone.

Is that awesome or what?! God is so stinkin' AWESOME. Nothing we can do, or have done can earn us justification. It is totally an act of God.

What a thought to ponder.

A few pictures of the weekend. I'll post more later, and give some details. WE had a great weekend.

Zach making brownies

These are a few pictures of Zachary making his first pan of brownies.

They were YUMMY! I didn't take a picture of the finished product.

In Christ Alone

I love this song. Check out the you tube video. I don't know how to put the video on here, so you will have to link to it. It is a fabulous song. It is so rich and true. Listen/watch and be blessed.

Check out this blog.

My husband found this blog and saved it for me. I hadn't had time to read much on it until this morning. What a wonderful post. It is so true. Check it out if you have time. It is well worth the read.

Weekend fun. WOW! What a weekend we had. We stayed at home, with the exception of church on Sunday. It was ABSOLUELY WONDERFUL! The weather was beautiful. The boys played baseball outside for a while, we did some baking, and just simply enjoyed each others company. On Friday when I got home from work we ate supper, I made some caramel chex mix, and some haystacks. YUMMY!! Austin and Zach bought playdoh with their allowance, and they created all evening--like for about 4 hours. Cookie cutters everywhere, and lots of neat creation, I just wish again that I'd taken more pictures. Saturday we slept in--ahh this is the life--and when I woke up I thought, "I haven't made cut out cookies in forever." I made sugar cookie dough, and then made a pot of "White chicken Chilli", the boys enjoyed the weather outside for a while. We ate lunch, which was tacos--an all time favorite in this house. Tacos at least once a week. Then to decorate the million cookies. Really there were only about 65 cookies. They were divided between boys, and let them go. Zach got tired and left a few undone, so between Austin and I we finished them. Now, Austin, my artistic one, took great care with each cookie. It was just a wonderful weekend of family. Much needed relaxing.

My boys and their pumpkins. THey didn't enjoy cleaning them out very much. In fact, I think it is absolutely disgusting myself, so they sure didn't get cleaned out much.

This is from last weekend also. I had to work on the weekend, because I was off Thurs/Friday, and Rob took them to a orchard. They had a great time. WE thought we could all just meet there, however, they would be closing by the time I get off of work. They got apple slushies, apples, took a hay ride, and fed some animals. It was fun for them. Rob took me and the 2 little ones for a "quick" visit (just so I'd know where it was) on Sunday afternoon when Jordan was at a youth function. (We had planned on going to the fruit farm the weekend prior, when I was off of work for the weekend, however, the weather was just not fall like at all. I think it was near 80*)

This is one of the projects I worked on in my house 2 weeks ago. I had my Thursday/Friday off that week. On those days, I rearranged the house, cleaned carpets and did some extreme cleaning. It was so rewarding when it was done. This is obviously is my bedroom, with our bathroom. They are both painted the same, and I did have a cream shower curtain and rugs. Well, a few months ago I saw this shower curtain in LTD catalog for less than $20 and ordered it. It just came in, and then I got a few $ from the in laws for my birthday so I bought towels for the bathroom. I think the whole redecrorating thing cost me less than $30.00. (each basket--there are 2--cost $1.80, the shower curtain was less than $20, and the rugs I got on clearance a while back for real cheap--can't remember exactly) It looks really nice too.

Quit an eventful 2 days

Our school had a bomb threat yesterday in the morning. The children were all evacuated to area churches. There were suspicous backpacks found in the general area of the churches. They do not have 1 person in custody for the threat, and that is all I've heard today. We didn't send the boys to school today, it was just a little much for us to do today. Let me back track, the school had had a threat on Friday also, it was thought to be a copycat, because there was one at another neighboring school on either wed/thurs of last week. The kids were evacuated on Friday, school searched, and all that goes along with it. Then this happened on Monday, today there were more threats at neighboring communities schools. Not sure too many details right now, I just knew I would feel much better with my boys at home and not at school today. Even though in all actuality it was probably the safest day, because of the security checks and such. Now, let me tell you we live in a nice rural community, and not much happens so this is quit an event. Please keep our community in your prayers.

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stuff

What a wonderful weekend we had.

Rob's sister and her family came for a short visit. They called on Thursday evening and said that Brent had to take a piece of equipment to Fort Wayne (about 1.5 hours from here) and wondered if they could just continue on for a quick visit. It was nice. I was off this weekend, we sure enjoyed our time with family. Their little boy is so stinking funny. He is almost 3 and he is a hoot to be with. He loved playing with the boys, and when it was time to go he said, "I don't want to leave the boys". Right before he left he found out box of stickers, and wanted some, so I gave a small sheet of stickers, which he promply put on his face. He had smiley faces and stars all over his face. One fell off and you'd thought it was the end of the world. Of course i couldn't find my camera for any pictures.

My 2 little are still in their new members class for church. 2 more weeks of that on Sunday afternoons. We will be glad when it is over, not because they are not learning or anything like that, it is just that we travel so far to church, that it makes for a long day. We miss just chilling out with the boys on Sunday afternoon/evening.

We did some house rearranging this weekend. When it is finished I'll post some details and pictures.

I need to also take some picutres of Austin and his creative play. He loves to build things out of cardboard boxes, and anything else he may find to use. Nothing is trash to him. He built a hotel, complete with elevator, and door bell for a dog that he has. He built a play ground, complete with slide, teeter totter, and I can't remember what else for his dog also. Pictures to follow--when the camera batteries are recharged.

I have a story running through my head that I want to share, however, I need to listen to the sermon again, so as to not misquote the illustration. It was so wonderful. I don't want to loose the great depth of it.

It was such helpful illustration. It reminds me of the first time I hear John Piper talk of Abraham and Sarah, and how when they were old--well beyond childbearing years, God gave them a child. Out of the deadness, came a child. It only came from God, nothing they did, just plain and simple God. It is how we are made new. It is all God, we are spiritually dead, and he does the "waking" up, nothing we do can make us alive spiritually. It is all God and all for his glory.

Okay, I must go and check on the 2 younger ones, they are being awfully quiet. What in the world could be happening.