Sanctus Real - Lead Me (Slideshow With Lyrics)

The angel of the Lord appeared to him and said to him, "The Lord is with you , O valiant warrior." Judges 6:12 It's Father's Day and I wish my father, Tim, and husband, Brandon, a joyful day. We love you and pray for you. I know that leading a family must seem impossible sometimes but I plead with you to stand firm and look to our Heavenly Father for strength because your family needs you to be warriors for us and most of all for Christ. When Gideon heard those words "valiant warrior" spoken to him he did not believe he was capable of leading his people to victory against the Midianites but God doesn't see us as weak human flesh He sees how He is going to use us. He sees the end result... the redeemed, the sanctified, the cleansed, the forgiven, the valiant warrior.

I realized, Daddy, that you are the patriarch of this family. Know this... your family kneels behind you in prayer. "Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, so are the children of one's youth. How blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them; they will not be ashamed when they speak with their enemies at the gate." Psalm 127:4-5 You are blessed, your quiver is full... me, brother, Ellie, Ethan, and Eli (and I'm sure more in the future). I love you, Daddy.

For my husband... thank you for your hard work and perserverance. I mostly appreciate and am thankful for your spiritual growth. I pray for your protection as you enter the world everyday and I pray you will be a light among the darkness. I pray that other men will see you are different and they will desire to know what makes you different. When you take my hand I feel the result of hard labor but when you hug and kiss your children I see the result of a gentle spirit. Continue to grow and walk in Christ and I will continue to pray and support you. We love you.

I pray this for my father, my husband, my brother, and my sons...

The righteous man will flourish like the palm tree, He will grow like a cedar in Lebanon. Planted in the house of the Lord, They will flourish in the courts of our God. They will still yield fruit in old age; they shall be full of sap and very green, To declare that the Lord is upright; He is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in Him. Psalm 92:12-15

The song I have posted above I feel has a wonderful message so listen and enjoy. Happy Father's Day!

What will we do today?

Well, we have been busy the first 2 weeks of our summer vacation. First of all, this is the time that I enjoy being a stay at home mom the most. Everyday the kids get up and ask "what are we going to do today?", and we go from there.

We started off with Memorial Weekend and spent most of our time with the Lemonds (refer to Amandas blog or facebook for pics because she always has her camera and I always forget mine). On that Memorial Day Monday Ethan had to go to the doctor and get his 5 year shots so he can go to kindergarten in the fall. I haven't cried yet but call me on the first day of school and I'm sure the floodgates will open. Also, that week I had to go meet with the insurance agent about life insurance because they so graciously reminded Brandon and I that we are ten years older and we need to go over some things and update policies. We also went shopping on Ellie's birthday but she managed not to purchase anything with her money. We had a special lunch at KFC and then that night we ate supper at the Mexican restaurant. Ellie got to wear a sombrero and the waiter sang to her (once again sorry about the pics but I took one with my phone and I don't know how to download it, upload it whatever I'll do better next time.) We ended the week with a t-ball game and Ellie had a sleepover with her friend Andrea. I spent some time baking a barnyard cake for little Jake McGinnis' first birthday (yeah go to Jen for pics). We also cooked out with the McGinnis', you will learn that Todd and Brandon share a love for food and grilling. It's kind of ridiculous really. Jennifer and I sit through many conversations about meat and seasonings. Well that's just the first week.

What's next, you ask? Well I will tell you. This week we went to the dentist. No cavities for all three kids, what are the odds? After the dentist we stopped at the Collierville mall and walked through Build a Bear, too expensive for Ellie, we used the potty in Gap, went to Dillards just to ride the escalator at Ethan's request, went in Barnes and Noble so Eli could play on the train table, and finally I managed to get to walk through Charming Charlie's with only a few complaints and grumbles from the kids. Finally, we had a cookie. Also this week, Ellie and I dragged the boys thrift store shopping. Ellie loves to buy books at thrift stores. She always has her nose in a book and is usually reading 2 or 3 at a time. Brandon and I have been building and painting props for VBS. Brandon has built a ship and a ships wheel and I have painted a ship and a ships wheel plus a jungle scene. Maddi and Wade Malone came over for a play date on Wednesday while I was painting the ship and the kids spent the day splashing in the pool. Yesterday Ellie went to a friends to play and Ethan, Eli and I went to Pop's tractor store. Ethan got to help Pop park a brand new tractor that had been delivered that day. Then we visited Aunt Gail at the bank and got loaded down with suckers. I also put some of my paintings on craigslist and through that I got a job doing some custom paintings for a lady who is redecorating her living room. So today is Friday and what will we do today? I don't know. Wherever the wind takes us!

Happy Birthday, Ellie!

Happy Birthday to my sweet girl, Ellie! You are growing up fast. Today is your ninth birthday and I can't believe how quickly those nine years have gone by. Mommy and Daddy are so proud of you. You are so smart and you do so well in school. You are happy and you make others happy when they are around you. Remember to always be kind and to make others smile whenever you can.

We love you sooo much!!!!

Lord, I pray that Your Beauty will be upon my precious daughter that you have given us and that you will establish the work of her hands. I pray that as long as she lives, her life will be dedicated to you Lord. Use her, work through her, bless her all the days of her life. AMEN

"I have no greater joy than this, to hear of my children walking in the truth." 3 John 1:4