Birthday Weekend

Thanks to everyone who emailed me well wishes for my birthday and condolenses for my grandmother's passing. I appreciated all of them.
My 30th birthday was indeed incredible, and isn't actually over yet...y'all know I have until the end of the month!!!!! Seriously, my two best girlfriends are having dinner with me on Thursday night at our favorite place, Cheesecake Factory. I am looking forward to that, as we are going out with no kids. They are the same two who met me on Friday at the local deli, with all our kids in tow (we are outnumberd 7 kids to 3 adults) and we actually had my mom there and one of the other girl's mom there...so, 7 to 5, not all bad. :) We let the kids play in the Pottery Barn kids for a little bit that day too...
My wonderfully, terrific, outstanding, godly husband made me an appointment for that evening at my salon to have my hair highlighted. Oh, it is indeed highlighted alright...looks a lot more blonde now.....ahhh...I have been wanting to do that for a while now. I will have to post pictures soon. After that, my boys took me to Macaroni Grill (my choice) and we had a wonderful dinner and dessert for my birthday! It was awesome!
Saturday was filled with wonderful memories as we honored my grandmother at a memorial service. I spoke and so did my husband and we played lots of her favorite music. My husband's family came and so we all had lunch together at Chili's...another favorite of mine. We spent the afternoon with my mom, uncle, aunt and cousin. It was extremely nice.

Full week ahead, with parent and child meetings this week...we are allowing the little boo man to go to his Nana and Papa's the week and will spend some last summer vacation time with them before school starts. We will be wrapping up birthday month too...in style.

--Karen

Thankful Thursday

"Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body; and be thankful." Colossians 3:15

I am thankful with a grateful heart this week for...

Peace. When a loved one passes away unexpectedly, I long for God's peace. Only it can truly bring comfort and healing to such a weird experience. He has certainly done that for me and my family and for that, well, there just aren't any words. We rejoice knowing my grandmother is truly in His hands.

Preschool. I have been busy working on my 2 year old preschool room and have been having the time of my life with my assistant teacher! Boo has been having a good time too, enjoying playing with some other kids. I still have so much to learn and do, but having a level lead meeting today helped tremendously. I can't wait for school to start!! :)

Family. I just have to brag...my cousin, Nolan, made the USA Jr. Olympic Baseball Team and is in another country right now playing baseball for the good ole' USA. Folks, there just isn't a better jersey to wear. I am just so excited for that kid. Remember Fontana, just stamp it on your brain. The kid has my grandfather's genes! Also, my dad was in town this past weekend and we enjoyed a Braves game and luncheon with some of my aunts and uncles too...it was nice.

Birthdays! We celebrated Jeremy's on Sunday, and mine is Friday! WAAHOO!

God's Perfect Plan. You know what I mean...there just isn't anything better than God's perfect plan. Even when we found out that my grandmother passed away on Monday morning, it was never not in God's perfect plan. I kept thinking that this is the last thing I needed this week. I had a meeting to get to at the preschool, I was already starting to not feel good with a head cold...it just was a blow to my week. Life is a constant state of divine moments though, so I didn't want the minute to slip by without acknowledging that my life is in Christ...I never have to venture far or step off the cliff without Him. He's always there. He always has been. His eyes never left the situation or circumstance and nothing EVER surprises Him. Praise the Lord.

Many blessings to you all!

--Karen

Tribute

God's plan for my week hit one of those life altering moments when my mom called yesterday morning to let me know my grandmother, my last living grandparent, passed away. Totally unexpected. I have been emotionally dealing with that aspect for the past day and a half as well as supposed to be working on my preschool room, and if that wasn't enough, now I have a cold. I am in a miserable state right now, but, on the bright side, I have a blessing of a son who knows how to play by himself and for that I am grateful.

Let me introduce you to my grandma, Josephine, Gigi:
Boo and GiGi - I actually named her GG, for Great Grandma, but she signed everything GiGi, so it stuck.

Here we are a year ago.

This is Boo, Grandma (my mom) and GiGi at Christmas time last year and the last one is me, Boo, my cousin Patrick, and GiGi. Last picture of us together.

Grandma (GiGi) was a special lady! She loved the Lord and first introduced me to church as a little girl. She prayed for 20 years for my grandfather to stop drinking and saw it come to fruition. She was loyal, almost to a fault. She was devastated when my grandfather passed away 6 years ago, but managed to place her faith in God and move to an assisted living with my mom and uncle's urging. It seemed like that prolonged her life some...she met friends there and enjoyed some special moments with those ladies. I will miss her greatly. Lord, I already know she is enjoying time with You.

--Karen

The VOTE

I am sure you are just dying to know...
The motion to recommend Jeremy as the new Minister of Administration passed with flying colors and he will begin tomorrow...although, he has been taking on more responsibility for a few weeks now. In fact, last week, he was at back to back to back meetings for three nights...ahh, the life of a minister. :) hee hee.
Meanwhile, I am enjoying being at home more, although, I wasn't actually at home. hm. I guess I should say I am enjoying not being at work 40 hours a week. I will be working in my classroom this week and HELLO, it's BIRTHDAY WEEK! Which is so much greater than birthday month!!! Jeremy's birthday is actually TODAY and mine is FRIDAY! WAAHOO, birthday cake is in order.
Come back all week! It's party time!

Catching Up

Whew...the weekend is not over yet, but I have some catching up to do! :) I was tagged by Terri from In His Hands the other day for 10 things that have happened to me...so, here goes something...

1. I got my license suspended for 6 months when I was 20 years old for going over 22 mph. On my way to church, no less.
2. I was rear-ended in my brand new car just 2 days after getting it.
3. I absolutely had the wedding of my dreams just six years ago.
4. I have met many famous baseball players and their families, because of my grandfather.
5. I carried a baby for 41 weeks and never had a contraction. He was 9.8 pounds!
6. My parents are divorced, but remain friends. It certainly makes life easier.
7. I am an only child and one of the closest relatives I have is my aunt. She's more like a sister.
8. When I married Jeremy, I gained instant brothers and sisters.
9. I sang a solo on one of our choir tours, and I don't think I sing that great at all.
10. When Christ entered my life and heart some years ago, I was forever changed.

My friend, Christine, gave me a complete blessing by honoring me with the Nice Matters Award! I am so excited, this is truly an honor!

The Nice Matters Award is given to "those bloggers who are nice people; good blog friends and those who inspire good feelings and inspiration. Also for those who are a positive influence on our blogging world. Once you've been awarded please pass it on to others who you feel are deserving of this award."

How exciting!! There are so many people that bless me each day! Here are just a few:

Havard Family and The Preacher's Wife

In Him-

Karen

Today is the DAY!

I am foregoing my usual Thankful Thursday, not because I am not thankful, but because I have about 789 things to do before Noon! :) My dad is on his way here, and poor Boo couldn't even sleep last night knowing the fact that Papaw would be here in just hours!!! We have grocery shopping to do, laundry to finish, and cleaning to get done.
We will be busy bees this weekend with the Braves Hall of Fame lunch and game tomorrow and then hanging with Papaw the rest of the weekend. Jeremy's birthday is on Sunday, too...so we are slammed this weekend!

Love,
Karen :)

In Other Words

I am so excited that In Other Words is back! And, Iris, a woman after my own heart, chose song lyrics by one of the greatest worship leaders, Matt Redman. Enjoy the thoughts of Blessed Be Your Name!"Blessed be Your nameWhen I'm found in the desert placeWhen I walk through the wildernessBlessed be Your name"~~Matt Redman~~

Oh how I love that song! I can recall so many times that the Lord has used it in my life...

When we first came to the church here, 2 years ago, August 1st, I wanted a house. We had a 15 month old and I wanted a yard for him to play in. I was not secretive at home by telling Jeremy, probably every 18 minutes. After having to return to work just 4 months later, I though for sure now we could definitely think about moving from our apartment...we still had debt, but did it really matter? (nice thought process, huh?) At church one Sunday I opted to go to the first service since I had to work in preschool during the second service. It was totally the Lord prompting me, because that morning we sang this song! I was joyfully singing and we got to the part that says "you give and take away"...I felt that the Holy Spirit asking me to give up the one thing I wanted more than the Lord. Yep, you guessed it, the desire of wanting a house. I couldn't understand why He was asking me to give it up, except for the fact that it was consuming my life!! The end of the story for that is, because of our obedience and following what He wanted, we are in a better position now to purchase the house...the very house God wants for us.

When my grandfather passed away in February, I was taking a discipleship class about a worship book by John Randall Dennis. I was learning that my circumstances cannot be my guide for worshipping Christ. Circumstance change, but my God, He's forever and He never changes. As I got in the car that day to drive home after talking to my dad and other family members, I made a conscious choice to worship Him. Yes, I was grieving, but that wasn't going to be my deterrent to worshipping Him! I went to this song by Matt Redman and sang it loudly! It reminded and confirmed to me that no matter my circumstance - whether in the wilderness or desert, or land of plenty, I was going to worship Him. It took some time for my grief to hit me, but when it did, I was ready to praise Him even more.

Be surrounded today with Him and not just the circumstances of life.

In His Hands -

Karen

THE News...

I know you all have been waiting, holding your breath, for THE News. I wanted to respect the procedures and wait till it was announced in church this past Sunday....so without further ado...
After talking, much prayer, and a unanimous recommendation from the Personnel committe, next Sunday Jeremy will be voted on for the Minister of Administration position! It all started the few days after Jeremy got back from Africa, and I referred to it vaguely here in this Thankful Thursday from July 5th.
This is completely God's dream/plan come true. I can honestly say I was floored. I felt while Jeremy was gone to Africa that the Lord was going to keep us here, which I felt much peace about, but didn't know how He would actually do it...and then all this came down.

There were many things happening around us during this time...we had a few churches calling and we were really at a vulnerable time, but oh my gracious, I could not have imagined that this would be His plan.
After Jeremy met with the committee Wednesday night, they called about 25 minutes after he got home with their unanimous decision to recommend him. I cried, I am not going to lie, I cried! I was just so overwhelmed about God's grace and goodness during this time. It was totally worth working the past year and a half to pay off our stuff and get things in order to serve Him more fully. I look forward to sharing with you more about all of this, but you can be in prayer for the vote this Sunday, which is also Jeremy's birthday!!!!!! How exciting!

Have a great Monday, and start of school for so many kids today!

--Karen

Thankful Thursday

I am thankful with a grateful heart today for...

God's hand and provision - only it can satisfy and be completely what we need! He answered a huge prayer last night and I can't tell you till Sunday, so you will have to come back!!! :) It's all good, very good. It still blows me away! I got to call my mom to tell her and I could tell she was just so overwhelmingly excited for us. We have been obedient to God's calling in many ways over the 6 years we have been married, but never have we seen His hand more clearly than during the past 2 months. And to clear up rumors, no we are not pregnant! :) Although, if you would agree to approach the throne on my behalf regarding that, I would appreciate it.

Today is my last day at the landscape company. I am sad...but I am excited about what the future holds - see below. We will be enjoying some Mexican for lunch today, because I so enjoy it!!! :)

It's still birthday month! I am eagerly counting the days till my birthday, because I Love Birthdays...I love cake too, can I just say that? The working out thing might hinder that, but do you honestly believe I will let that happen? What kind of world would this be with no cake?

It's a great day for loving Him. Enjoy His ever-present-ness today. Happy Thankful Thursday!

--Karen

Almost the last day...

Today is the second to the last day of work...I could have done that for days upon weeks, but I spared you the details. Be thankful, cause this girl loves a countdown. And while we are on it, my birthday is...

less than 17 days away!

If you recall, it IS Birthday Month!

After tomorrow, I won't have to think about change orders, construction of a project, invoicing, warranties, or architect plans. I will however be able to spot a river birch, magnolia, red maple, holly, and some various other trees, and I can tell you the difference between certain hollies, because gracious, I got me an edumacation working here. Seriously, I am wiser in the landscape department and about life too. I have worked for some great people in my short years, and I can tell you that these people rank highly on my list. I will miss them.

As I move on to begin the next adventure God has planned, my excitement builds. I am nervous too, but more excited than anything. I have been telling Boo recently how Momma and him get to spend more time together, in which he loudly proclaims, "YEAH!" and claps his hands. We are gonna have some fun, that's for sure. I will be working at our church preschool 4 days a week, but it's only 5 hours a day!! Boo will attend 5 days a week and I have Wednesday off and Jeremy normally has Fridays off, so we are hoping to get back to having more family time and not being exhausted all.the.time.

And, since i have been raving about my working out, it's probably time I fess up about my arms being sore. Like going on 2 days sore. The lady trainer worked me over on Monday, and thankfully my next training session with Sorin isn't until Friday. I still have about 42 hours to recover, and so help me if he says "Let's work Arms" in his best Ukrainian voice. I am already starting to feel better and have more energy, maybe it's just psychological. :)

Have a great day!!

--Karen

Grandma Land

Boo went to Grandma's yesterday to spend the day. Jeremy had to be "in-house" this week and we had no one to keep the little man. Luckily, the grandma came to our rescue! She picked him up at the church and then we went and got him last night. I called to check on him and her during the day...she says he talks big. I agreed. She says he looks taller. I agreed with that too. He is just growing up so fast.
Grandma Land is filled with many things, but two things are for sure...the lay of the land is all for him and the dog, Buzz, is his best friend. He is a big helper, taking trash cans back to the house, getting the mail, and always willing to walk with her when she takes Buzz for a walk. She sets up a pool for him to play and he smells like suntan lotion when I get there. He sure does love his grandma.
The last few weeks he has had some incredible time with his grandparents...I am so thankful for their willingness to take Boo and love and nuture him. They may not do everything like Jeremy and I do, but it's okay; it's the priceless moments that help mold who Boo is. Two more weeks till Papaw comes and spends a few days with us too!!! We are headed to the Braves game!!
His memory is growing and being filled with memories of the last year - Disney, Busch Gardens, and even most recently he is recalling the time he spent with Nana and Papa to us. He knows 8 scriptures very well and told me all about Jonah and the whale from reading a book the other day. He blows my mind.
Happy Saturday to all!
--Karen

Thankful Thursday

I am thankful with a grateful heart this week for...

Christ in my Life - I have said it a hundred times, I would just be a puddle of mess without Him! He is my Rock, my Source of strength, my Guide. He did the ultimate in Love by sending His Son to this earth to pay the penalty for my sins. He sent the Holy Spirit to overtake my conscience and make me realize my need for a Savior. Praise the Lord!

Working Out - Yeah, I know, you are thinking, who is thankful for working out. Oh, I am ladies, I am! I started with my personal trainer this week and it's hard, but girls, I can taste and see the end project - me thinner and healthier, and I WANT THAT. I want life and I am actively choosing it.

My Boo - He blows my mind so many days with his memory of trips and times he has done special things with people. He was recalling last week and Chuckie Cheese and then he was thinking about our trip to FL and going to Busch Gardens with his Papaw and seeing elephants! He is one of the greatest gifts the Lord has given me...which is why working out is so important, so I can be here to enjoy him.

Birthday Month - Oh my sweet mercy, if you didn't know, it's BIRTHDAY MONTH!!! ALL month! Come BACK for more! Addendum: It's Terri at In His Hands birthday today! She is participating in Thankful Thursday! Drop by her site!!

Old Job/New Job - I have one week left at the Landscape Company and then I will have some days off and then begin training and working in my preschool room. It's bitter-sweet really. I will be sad to leave Tri Scapes and the people there, but I am looking forward to spending more time with my boys.

The Lord grows my heart each day for more of Him...I am learning that when that happens it's because He wants more of me too.

Be Blessed today!

Love,

Karen

BIRTHDAY MONTH!

Oh my gracious! It's AUGUST 1st! PEOPLE! PEOPLE! Do you know what this means???? IT'S BIRTHDAY MONTH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Crowd goes wild! Ballons and streamers EVERYWHERE! And this year, I am excited to say, I will be 30!!!! WAHHOO! Not that I think anything great comes with 30, except more wisdom than the previous year, but I enjoy birthdays...can you tell? Really? You can tell? hm...


Attention Family: In honor of birthday month, I will be accepting cards, gifts, flowers, notes, money, mail, email, blog love, etc. beginning today and ending on the 31st. Even though my actual birthday is before the 31st, I will still accept some lateness from the fam....it's a gene we can't control.


Show the Love: I have lots of friends, some of them have blogs, that have birthdays also...so, I would enjoy it if you would show them some bloggy love this month, too.

Mandy - she is a wise, dear friend of mine who lives in Texas. She is due to have her third child in about a month and she needs to blog more. :)

D - he has a real name, but that's what his name is for this summer. :)

Laura - She is my brilliant/wisest sister-in-law and I love her dearly.

Meg - My neice Meg, who is Laura's daughter.

LeRay - friend and wife to a pastor, who just got in to blogging - you sent her some bloggy love a few weeks back through Thankful Thursday. Her son was born on her birthday!

Jim - my father in law; my neice (his granddaughter) was born on his birthday!

Michelle - a long time friend with twin girls and a little boy - her birthday is between mine and Jeremy's.

Kim - friend of mine with two little girls - they just moved to Alabama...:(

and lest I forget, my beloved, Jeremy, his birthday is 5 days before mine.
If you are an August baby, leave a comment and I will be glad to send the blogosphere, or the 10 people who actually read this, over to your blog!

Additions 8/2: Terri - She is one of my favorite people in bloggy land!!! Her and her family are in the final stages of adopting a little girl from China! Praise the Lord! And guess what - TODAY, 8/2 is her BIRTHDAY!!!

Happy Birthday to us! Happy Birthday to us! Happy Birthday to UUUUSSSS! Happy Birthday to us!

Love,
Karen