My New Scrapbook Area

Before:


AFTER:





Oh my gosh!! I'm so excited!! My parents were here this past weekend and I had been throwing around the idea of moving my scrapbooking area to the living room closet. I thought it would be perfect. Aaron didn't. I thought that moving my stuff into the closet would be perfect because it still gave me a space to work, but it could be hidden. Aaron thought my stuff should be packed away and put in the attic or our bedroom. I use my stuff too much for it to be in the attic and I don't want the clutter in my bedroom.

Anyway, so I asked my dad if he would measure the closet. I thought that if I could find out exactly how much it would cost, then I could bring the proposal back to Aaron for approval (or not). My dad told me he thought I could just buy a countertop from Home Depot and cut it to size. So, I called handyman Randy and he said it could be done!!

My dad offered to do it all for me!! So, I called Aaron for approval. . . hey, at least he didn't have to do the work!!! He said yes. . . although, I'm not quite sure he was in love with the idea. So, this is what my dad (with very little help from me) did on Friday!! It has been a lot of work -- more than we thought -- and I kept adding to the project, but I absolutely love it!!

Here's what I love about it:
* Once I find out boy or girl, I can start on the nursery because it's almost cleaned out.
* I can be in the living room with everyone else while I scrapbook!
* I can close the door and nobody can see the mess!
* I don't have to clean off the table in the middle of a project!
* It's all organized, although I'm having to downsize a little bit.
* It's countertop height so no little hands can get into my sharp things or get their hands on a layout/project. I know paper is on the floor, but that's safer than scissors!
* It's a space all my own!!

Please pray! I don't think Aaron is as excited about it as I am. I think it will grow on him. He said he let me do it because he loves me . . . I just hope he remembers that every time he looks at it!!

So, to all my scrapbooking buddies in Blogville, I have a few organizational things I don't need or don't have room for anymore if you would like them. I have an embellishment organizer and right now, I have 4 drawer things (the small ones on the top shelf) that I don't need. I have some foam stamps (letters and Christmas) that I don't need due to my Cricut. I'm sure there will be more to come.

100 Things About Me. . .

I realized the other day that I don't have pictures of myself (I'm always behind the camera), therefore, I don't scrapbook about myself, and I even wondered if I could come up with 100 things about me to post. . . But, in honor of my 100th post, I will try!! Some you may know and some you may not know. Some are current and some are old, but if there's ever a quiz about me, the answer should be in here somewhere!!

1. I'm currently writing my first children's curriculum/lesson.

2. I did own a pair of hammer pants in the 7th grade (M.C. Hammer, that is)

3. I even had a gold vest to match M.C. Hammer!!

4. When I go in a public restroom, I won't go in a stall right next to someone. I'll skip one or two and then go in (unless there's 2 and I don't have a choice).

5. My favorite restuarant is Fuji House.

6. My favorite place to shop is IKEA

7. I am a two-time back-to-back state champion golfer (ok, our team was, but I have 2 rings!)

8. I love to scrapbook and make things for others.

9. I am quite organized, although my closet looks like a tornado hit it!!

10. Aaron was my high school sweetheart, although he never asked me out.

11. We broke up in college because I was a social butterfly.

12. I cross my toes when I'm concentrating or reading . . or just about anytime I can.

13. I know that one day I will go to Africa and be a world-changer there.

14. My college roommate was a missionary kid who grew up in Zambia and Kenya AFRICA!

15. I'm not big on reading. I can't seem to finish a book.

16. My favorite scent is Coconut Lime Verbena from Bath & Body Works.

17. I spend way too much time on my computer.

18. I have been having a lot of prophetic dreams lately -- at least I think they are.

19. I spend way too much money on scrapbook stuff!!

20. I absolutely love anything zebra!

21. I was kicked out of my house 2 times in 1 week in high school. Once for not having a job (which I did) and once for dating Aaron.

22. I have two $50 gift certificates to A-Town/Hi-Tech for carpet cleaning! I need to get that done!

23. I can't do dishes by hand -- it makes me throw up.

24. I hate laundry & dishes -- they're never all done.

25. I graduated 3rd in my paralegal certificate course.

26. I was the only one in the paralegal certificate course that didn't have ANY legal experience!

27. I want to go back to college and get my degree in criminal justice with maybe a minor in education.

28. My favorite TV show is Shark

29. I don't like odd numbers.

30. Our family's birthdays are on odd months, odd days, & odd years!!

31. I don't like shopping for clothes -- although I'm getting better at it.

32. I'm not very huggy-huggy.

33. When I go in the store, I love to touch everything!!

34. I've always wanted to be a district attorney or a paralegal for one.

35. I used to sleep on my stomach until I was pregnant with Payton. Now I can only sleep on my left side or on my back.

36. I'm a procrastinator a lot of times. I do work better under pressure, though.

37. I love to be creative.

38. My theme song is "The Voice of Truth" by Casting Crowns.

39. I would love to flip houses.

40. I'm a HGTV & TLC junkie! That's why I don't have it at my house!

41. I definately have my own way of loading the dishwasher. Doesn't everyone?

42. I am no longer a perfectionist, but close.

43. I have A NEW SCRAPBOOKING AREA IN MY HOUSE!!! (I'm jumping up and down on that one!! I'll post the story & pictures once this post is finished!)

44. I am a night owl . . . not a morning person at all.

45. I started getting gray hair when I was 16.

46. I can say the alphabet backwards.

47. I never thought I would be a children's pastor.

48. I don't like to go to the movie theater to watch a movie -- although I will go.

49. In elementary, junior high, & high school, my nickname was Olive Oyl.

50. I worked for the district attorney of Jones & Shackelford Counties -- loved that job!

51. I am a home body. I like staying at home.

52. I'm not very relational, although I'm working on that.

53. I almost always have a project going. Even when I'm watching tv and "doing nothing", I'm usually doing something.

54. I don't like to cook. So, I find myself cooking the same things over and over and over.

55. I love buying presents (or making presents) for people.

56. My love language is gifts.

57. I have 3 birth marks.

58. I've had knee surgery twice.

59. I've had kidney surgery once.

60. I don't like to be late and I don't like people to be late (I'm getting better at having grace on those people!)

61. I don't like clutter!!

62. My desk is always a mess, but I like to call it organized chaos.

63. I have a hard time staying awake when I'm in a car -- sometimes while driving.

64. I've had 2 accidents from me falling asleep at the wheel.

65. I despise toy packages and all the screws and twisty ties!!

66. I don't call people because I'm afraid they're going to be busy and I don't want to bother them. . . again, working on this one.

67. I've always wanted to own my own tile saw and table saw.

68. I love to paint -- rooms that is.

69. I'm surprised none of the rooms in my house have been painted yet.

70. A few weeks ago at Office Max, the lady said, "Thank you, Miss Rachel." I don't even know her.

71. I don't like crowds.

72. When I was in the 3rd grade, I wore a women's size 8 shoe.

73. I was very clumsy growing up.

74. On my birthday, I will be 30 years old!

75. I was a drum major in high school.

76. I won the John Phillips Sousa award (high school band award -- it really is a high honor).

77. I played the saxophone.

78. I also played the flute.

79. I've always wanted to learn to play the piano.

80. I can play the piano by ear sometimes.

81. My favorite book was "To Kill A Mockingbird".

82. Growing up, our yearly tradition was to watch "The Wizard of Oz" on tv.

83. Every year at Thanksgiving, my sister and I have to break the wishbone. Well, at least when we celebrate Thanksgiving in the same place.

84. I usually end up with the bigger side of the wishbone.

85. I LOVE CHRISTMAS time!!

86. I love shopping at Christmas!!

87. I don't normally eat breakfast, although I have since I've been pregnant to keep from getting sick.

88. I cannot sleep with the bedroom door closed.

89. I have to be able to see the door when I go to sleep. I cannot have my bed on the same wall as the door.

90. When I go to a public place, I don't like my back to be towards anyone. I have to see what is going on in the place.

91. I am an over-achiever.

92. When I take a nap, I have to have covers -- no matter how hot it is.

93. I don't take criticism very well. In my mind, I'm doing things the best way I know how.

94. I find out if the baby is a boy or a girl on July 16th at 10:15 am!!

95. I have very big plans if it's a girl. . . if it's a boy, I have nothing!

96. I have had 6 people tell me they KNOW it's a girl. I've had 2 tell me they KNOW it's a boy.

97. I am mom to the Slam Dunk Champion at ACU basketball camp!

98. I love how my boys want to know everything that is going on with the baby. They want to know what it looks like, what it's doing. . . just makes it all the more fun!

99. I will be getting new neighbors in just a few days, I think!! YAY!

100. I cannot imagine my life without our church and all the women in blogville!!! ;)


SO, there you have it. . . . I did it!! It is a lot harder than you think! So, now that my 100th post is finished, I'm going to have to finish my next post and get it up here!!! I'm so excited about it!!

Post #99: Vacation Pictures

Night 1: Temple, Texas. Evan learns how to swim in his floaties. Aaron took him out to the middle of the pool and left him! It worked!



Payton had fun, too!!!


Day 2: The beach somewhere between Freeport & Galveston





Day 3: Galveston, Texas

The submarine & warship museum:

The boys on top of the warship

The information on the submarine

I think that's where the engine was in the submarine (notice how Aaron & Payton are standing almost identical!!)

This is where they put the torpedos/missles. It was a really deep hole!!

The boys & the anchor

Our really cool condo pool

Evan under the mushroom

Payton on the crocodile

Evan doing his funny pose

Day 4: The beach

Our friends' son, Luke. My boys LOVED him!!

Playing in the sand

The boogie boards were the funnest for the kids!


SCHLITTERBAHN -- the funnest thing we did, I think!!

The kiddos: Caroline (L), Evan (Back), Sarah, & Luke
Payton's first water slide! He loved it!! He was a lot braver than I thought he would be!Payton having a little fun in the kiddie pool.

Day 6: Getting ready to say goodbye

Caroline, Payton, Sarah, Luke, & Evan
One last hug from Evan to Luke


The boys releasing some steam on the way home


So, there you have it. . . our vacation in a nutshell!! This is post number 99 for me, so watch out for my 100th post!! It will be longer than this one!! ;)

We're home!!

After driving 8 hours today, we have arrived back in Clyde America!! We did have a great time despite the last 2 hours of whining because Evan was ready to be home!!

I'm trying to upload my pictures now, but I also have a ton of laundry to get sorted. I HAVE to wash all of those yucky beach/pool clothes TONIGHT!!

Some really fun news for now: I felt the baby move this weekend!! I had almost forgot how exciting that was!! ;) Just makes it real now!

Heading for the BEACH!!!

Yes, you read that right!! We're leaving 1 day (or 2 days) early and we couldn't be any more excited!!

Tonight we're driving 1/2 way to Temple and staying in a hotel and letting the boys swim. Tomorrow, we're finishing our drive to Galveston and hanging out at some war ship museum (or something) and hanging out on the beach. It's just us on Thursday, so I'm not sure what we'll be doing, but I'm excited!! Our friends will arrive on Thursday night. Friday, we're going to Schlitterbahn and Saturday is Moody Gardens. Oh my goodness!! I can't tell you how excited I am!! Aaron & I have been married for 9 years and I can't think of one vacation that we've been on. Aaron has owned his own business for the last 5, so he couldn't go far for more than one night. I'm very thankful for Jesse & Christin taking over for the week!!

I still have a ton of things to get done before we leave, but just wanted to update you on our vacation!!! Pray that my emotions stay together while we're gone!! It will make the trip so much smoother and more fun!!

P.S. Evan is doing much better. The inhaler works almost immediately!! Dr. J did say he thought Evan would outgrow the asthma and for that, I am thankful. But, I'm still believing that God will just take care of it altogether.

Update on Evan. . .

Evan went to see Dr. J this morning during church. He has an upper respiratory infection. He gave him a shot because he's been coughing and throwing up, so he wanted to make sure some medicine got in him. Evan's been up and down all day. He feels better and he's bouncing off the walls. His fever comes back and he gets tired and he's laying on the couch saying he doesn't feel good. His leg is a little sore from where they gave him the shot.

Anyway, Dr. J also gave us a prescription for an inhaler. He thinks that Evan has asthma, which I've wondered for quite a while. I'll just add this to my believing God list . . I don't want him to have to carry an inhaler around all his life. I just want God to heal the problem!!

Well, it's 11 pm and after being up with Evan all night last night, I'm also believing God for a good night's sleep!! 3 days until we leave for vacation in Galveston!!!

Please Pray for Evan (and me)

Evan has been up the last 2 nights with a really high fever and a nasty cough. I give him some medicine and the fever goes away. Yesterday he acted like he was feeling fine, so we went swimming, but last night was terrible!!

Aaron left last night to go see his grandpa who is in the hospital, so it was me and the boys. Evan was so whiney! And, he woke up in the night several times just burning up. This morning, he got up and is still running a fever and that cough is lingering. He has been so whiney all day that my nerves are shot. I'm already dealing with crazy emotions and him being sick doesn't help any!!

I know this is an attack because tomorrow is Sunday. . . one of those attacks like happen on Wednesdays right before life group. Please just pray for him (and me). I need him healed -- totally. We are also leaving for vacation on Wednesday (or maybe Tuesday) and I don't want him being sick to spoil it!!

Adding something to Believing God List

Last night I decided that I'm adding something to my list. Here it is:

I am believing God that He will give Payton supernatural bladder control during the night!!! Payton still has to wear a pull-up to bed at night and some nights (like last night), he COMPLETELY soaks through them!!! We've tried vitamins (although not consistently) that were supposed to fix the problem. Aaron has just said that he can't wear pull-ups anymore, but that doesn't help anything. We've cut off his liquid intake at 7 pm and that doesn't seem to help. I know that it's more common than I know, but I can't tell you how frustrating it is for him and for me. There are nights where he stays dry, but they are few and far between.

Evan has stayed dry since he was potty-trained. It was like the underwear went on and he stopped peeing in the bed. He did have a few accidents, but he wears underwear to bed (has for a while now) and he gets up in the middle of the night if he has to go (most of the time).

Payton, on the other hand, is such a HARD sleeper!! When he is asleep, there can be a party going on in his room and he won't hear it. He grinds his teeth at night so bad he can wake me up out of my sleep and I'm down the hallway.

I did notice yesterday that he doesn't go to the bathroom very much during the day. So, I'm thinking that his "system" is backwards because sometimes he goes so much at night. Last week, he went to Ethan's to spend the night and I was so nervous! He did just fine, but he's getting older and going to be spending the night at more houses and I don't want him to be embarassed about it. One time, a boy came over and saw Payton's pull-ups in the bathroom and the boy made a comment about Evan wearing pull-ups. Payton said, "Oh they aren't his. I wear them at night." The boy started laughing!! At first, he thought Payton was kidding, but I'm telling you, it doesn't really bother Payton much -- yet.

Anyway, I'm praying that God will supernaturally fix this issue. I don't care if God fixes Payton's bladder or if God gives us a creative way of getting Payton to wake up at night. It doesn't matter to me. I just want our house free of Pull-Ups before the baby comes!!

My latest "revelation"

OK, so I have to start this blog out with a 'precursor' or a 'warning'. As you're reading this blog and when you see the word "men", I'm not necessarily referring to the men in our church, just men in general. I do not have anything against men and I'm just sharing what I believe God gave me the other night. . . so, here we go.

Aaron and I went on a date on Friday night. It was a lot of fun and we haven't been able to do that in a long time due to the craziness of our schedule. As we were sitting at Rosa's, we started talking about the BFW and some of what happened there. He told me about how he had lunch with some guys a few days ago and one of the questions was why God was pouring out His spirit on the women lately. This wasn't a "why not me" kind of question. They were just chatting about it.

Aaron said he felt like that in the past, men (here's the "in general" part) have done a poor job with their families and that now, the women were saying that they wanted everything God had for them and God was answering them because they were willing.

As we were sitting there, this was my revelation:

Of course God is pouring out His spirit on the women! There have been so many prophecies about the children and how they are going to lead us into revival. How the kids are going to move powerfully (and all of those other words that I haven't heard yet or that I've fallen out of my chair laughing in the spirit while they're spoken!) Anyway, who is with those children most of the time? The moms -- the women. Who is the main teacher in most homes? The moms. If God is going to use the children, I believe with most kids, it's going to start in the home. I'm already having to "run" to catch up with some of my kids. Others, I'm having to coach along and that is ok. But, if God is wanting to pour out His spirit on the kids, wouldn't it make sense that He would pour His spirit out on the women?

Anyway, I was excited about my 'revelation'. I'm not saying that God can't just pour His spirit out on the kids at any time, but God is a God of order. I believe that some kids will get it before their parents and it will work. But, I'm telling you -- those moms who are encouraging their kids -- those kid are going to FLY!!

P.S. I'm also not saying that God isn't pouring His spirit out on the men. I believe that He is!! I'm also NOT saying that the women are better than the men. . . not at all. Gosh! I hope that makes sense with all my 'disclaimers'! What do you think?

Update on Believing God List

I need to make a correction on my "God is Good" post. Instead of $100 worth of clothes, I'll be getting $75 worth of gift certificates for clothes. But, that's pretty good for free clothes!!

**************************************************************************************

So, here's where my post starts for today. I'm updating you on my "Believing God List":

** I'm believing God to miraculously heal Aaron's head. I'm through with all the medications he's on, I'm through with all of the side effects. I'm through with people making rude comments about it. I just want God to heal it.
Last night, the cyst popped out of Aaron's head. I know that sounds kind of gross and it was!! But, I'm believing that is what had to happen for Aaron's head to completely heal!! Our friend, Trish, took care of it for him!! I'm so thankful for that!!


** I'm believing God that the baby is paid for -- IN FULL! I have an appointment on Thursday and I'm not exactly what to expect as far as "making payments" go, but I'm just believing God that He's taken care of it already.

I had a doctor appointment on the Thursday that we went to the BFW and found out that I was going to have to pay $267 a month to pay for the doctor bill for the baby. I made the first payment, but I just believed that God was going to give it back to me.

Aaron came home from work this week and said that someone had given us $1000 to help with the cost of the baby!!! As if that wasn't enough, today we got a check in the mail for $500!!! That totally wipes the doctor bill off our list of things to pay!! The note said she figured we could use it for something. She was ABSOLUTELY RIGHT!!!

** I'm believing for a nice vacation this summer. Somewhere we can go as a family and have fun. I don't have memories of family vacations and I've always wanted my kids to have them. Now that they are getting older, it's the perfect time.

On June 14th, we are heading to Galveston Island for our vacation!! We're going with our friends from Tyler and we are so excited!! We are staying in a condo that is right on the Gulf coast. We are all so excited!! We've been looking at all the things to do there!! We've been planning our meals!! We are just itching to get out of town for a few days!!

So, there you have it!! Before long I'm going to have to make another list!!!

Memorial Day Fun

Here's what our kids did for Memorial Day:



Doesn't that look like fun? Sunday night we had a bunch of people over and some of the guys decided for one of them to hold the ball while they both ran towards each other and jumped into the ball. It was absolutely hilarious!! Arms & legs went flying EVERYWHERE!!

So, last night we had a bunch more people over and the kids really got in on it. I don't think my exercise ball will ever be the same.

God is GOOD!!

Over the last week, my tummy has "popped" and my clothes aren't fitting. So, I've been believing God that He would provide a way for me to get a few things. I found an outfit on OldNavy.com that I LOVED (and Erica approved)! So, I was waiting until I got my "blow money" for June.

But this morning I checked my MyPoints account. It's a thing where they send you e-mails and you earn 5 points for just clicking through to the website they're "advertising". Anyway, you can earn points by shopping through their website, etc. Then, you can cash in your points for gift certificates to different places. It's a neat program, although sometimes it takes a while before you get your reward. I just look at it as free gift cards!!

Anyway, I checked this morning and I had enough points to cash in for a $50 gift card to Old Navy!! On June 14th, I will have enough points to cash in for another $50 gift card to Old Navy or Motherhood!! They say it takes 2-6 weeks for shipping, but I usually have the gift card within a week!!

I am not sure $50 will cover the entire cost of the outfit from Old Navy, but it sure will come close and even if I have to pay $5 or $10, that's a cheap outfit to me!!!

P.S. If you want in on the MyPoints thing, leave a comment and I'll e-mail you. I also earn points for referring people!! ;)

Purse Contents -- 5/24/07

So, I never posted my purse contents when everyone else did and I haven't had time until today. I'm back at Stor & Lok for the afternoon and since it rained, it's dead around here. So, I was able to make my list. . here it goes:

5 peppermints from Pizza Hut
2 Jolly Ranchers
Payton's graduation present from the Wilsons -- 25 cents left
Sunglasses
2 jump drives
5 pens
3 Chick-Fil-A mint wrappers
School keys
Small key for small cedar box
1 watch band link
1 foam square with "P" on it
Receipt for Cool-Cuts: $15.95
2 lip glosses
Burt's Beeswax Life Guard's Choice lip balm
1 hidden Chick-Fil-A mint (well, just wrapper now)
BooksAMillion receipt: $2.17 for suckers
Pictures of my boys
Wal-Mart receipt: $33.90 for food
Chick-Fil-A receipt: $9.29
Appointment card for 5/17 @ 9:30 am
Receipt for Abilene Educational Supply (ESC): $81.97
KFC Receipt: $5.82 (mashed potatoes)
Mr. Gatti's receipt: $18.70 for mommy date
Expired Michael's 40% off coupon -- exp. 4/21/07
Appointment card for 6/18 @ 10 AM
McDonald's receipt: $8.18
Scrapbook store receipt: $5.13
Gas receipt: $66.14
Checkbook
Paint can key
$1.02 in change
Hobby Lobby tax exempt card
Wal-Mart tax exempt card
Family Christian Family Perks card
Blockbuster card
Hollywood Video card
Lifeway Rewards card
Lifeway business card
Pier 1 Credit Card
Cool Cuts Reward Card
Drivers License
ATM/Debit Card
MyPoints Visa credit card
ESC Debit Card
Scrapbook Visa credit card
Razor
Coin for Putt-Putt Golf & Games
2 more surprise Chick-Fil-A mints
4 Tru Blue Catering business cards
Bath & Body Works Coconut Lime Verbena Body Cream
Taco Bueno receipt: $9.37
JC Penney return receipt: $24.35
Cassette tape of prophetic words given at Bethel
Coin purse with $0 in it
Wal-Mart receipt: $14.29
Order of Service for 5/20 -- that makes me laugh
Dollar General receipt: $2.17 ESC
Dollar General receipt: $30.06 Kathy for BFW
Chick-Fil-A receipt: $8.64
Picture of Makayla -- a friend from college's little girl
Albertson's Preferred Savings Card
Wal-Mart shopping card: $0 balance
Driver's License w/ old address
Abilene Public Library Card
Victoria's Secret Free Panty card -- exp. 3/4/07
Gaylord Texan room key
Starbucks gift card -- balance $0.45
Canadian Insurance Card -- don't think it's any good
2 World Insurance Cards -- no good
Sport Clips Rewards Card
Olan Mills Rewards Card
AT&T calling card w/ 12 minutes on it
Limited Too 20% off card -- exp. 3/19/07
Hollywood Video gift card -- $5 on it
Wal-Mart "A Christmas Story" gift card: $0 balance
20% off entire purchase @ Limited Too -- exp. 2/19/07
Eckard's Photo Rewards Card
Shaklee Membership Card -- expires 8/2007
Dollar General receipt: $13.97 for life group

OK. . so there you have my list. Not anything all that exciting, but I did get my purse cleaned out in the process!!

Catching Up . . .

So, life has been hectic since I posted last!! I'll start from last Thursday:

I had a doctor appointment for the first ultrasound. The baby's feet were crossed and it was asleep, which scared me at first. The baby wasn't moving at all and the angle was where you couldn't see the heart beating. But, the dr. moved the wand thing and there was the heart beating away. He said, "Well, baby is asleep." I was very relieved! The baby had it's fist up in the air, which is exactly what Payton & Evan both did in their ultrasounds!! I laughed and told God that isn't funny! ;) As I was walking out, I overheard a woman saying that she was having boy #4!! Can you imagine?!?! She said she was ok with it, but her oldest son wasn't. Wow . . just don't even want to think about that! ;) I have pictures, but I have to go scan them somewhere and I keep forgetting to do that.

Thursday left for the BFW. I still can't comprehend everything that happened last weekend. I know that I laughed a lot, prophesied a lot, and prayed a lot. I learned a lot on the way home about breast reductions -- WAY TOO MUCH INFORMATION on them, in fact!!

But, on the way home, I was able to talk to a woman about why our church is growing so much. I told her that it's just because we love people right where they are. And, how we really are a family -- not a disfunctional family like most people think of when they hear "family" -- but a true family where we go to people if we have an offense or how we just live our lives transparent before each other. She was blown away. I was excited that she will be able to take that back to her church! That was one of my favorite times of the weekend -- just bragging on KLF!

And, I couldn't talk about the BFW weekend without talking about those college girls!! Can I tell you, they did something in me!! It was fun to eat chips and salsa with them, it was fun to just talk to them, it was fun to see how hungry they are for the things of God!! I saw some of them last night after skate night and I didn't want to leave!! ;) I met a girl on the last night that we have similar lives -- it's weird how similar it all is! I was able to share with her a little more of my testimony and just encourage her that God is going to tell her where to go and what to do. She came up to me Sunday after church and just thanked me for being open and honest. I tell you, I love that girl. I couldn't remember her name until yesterday, but I know there is a connection there regardless of whether she comes to KLF or not. I am excited for her!!

Yesterday, someone asked me what happened on Sunday when I fell out of my chair. Some didn't see it, but they heard about it. When Kathy started talking about how our kids will begin to prophecy, I started laughing. I remember thinking, "God, not now!" and then I fell out of my chair. Someone else said that Brandi got up and threw her "cloth thing" on me and that's when I fell. I'm not really sure how it all went down, but I am fine. The only thing I remember is how hard my head was pressed to the cement. I couldn't move it. It even felt like I had a bruise on my forehead on Monday! But, I'm glad God did what He did on Sunday.

As for the BFW, I will say one more thing: I had been having a major identity crisis. I hope this makes sense. People would say that they wanted to relate to me as "Rachel" and not "Miss Rachel" and I thought those people had to be 2 different people. I struggled with it because I didn't know who "Rachel" was. "Rachel" just became whatever someone wanted her to be -- she was very much a people pleaser -- just trying to figure out how someone else WANTED her to act. But, in the middle of my talk, I just realized that there isn't a separation between the two. I am Miss Rachel and that is ok. I can be Miss Rachel in front of adults just like I can be Miss Rachel in front of the kids. People call me different things -- wife, mom, sister, daughter, children's pastor -- but Miss Rachel doesn't have to change with those different roles. I can just be me to those people. I am so glad and I feel so free! That is what I meant the last night during testimonies that my talk changed my life. I started looking at myself differently. Last week before the BFW, I went to the bank and I know those ladies in there, but as I was leaving, the teller said, "Bye, Miss Rachel!" I just laughed! Then, I went to Office Max where I didn't know the lady and after I paid, she said, "Thanks, Miss Rachel. Have a great day." I believe that both of those situations were prophetic for what was coming in the weekend. . . I am Miss Rachel, no matter what and that is ok.

I will tell you that I've been a little overwhelmed after coming back. It seems like there are SEVERAL prophecies about the children and how they will be the ones to lead our church into revival. There have been several more and they are all awesome. I'm just a little overwhelmed and feeling a little "under-qualified" to lead these kids! I know I'm not and the truth is that I can only do it with God's help, and I know that. I just don't want to miss it and I don't want to mess up. Thankfully, I am in a church where it's ok to mess up and you just go on. . . I just feel so overwhelmed by it all. I am excited that the kids got to see the fire tunnel on Sunday morning. I'm excited that parents could explain what was going on. I'm excited that kids are wanting to soak and kids are wanting to go to Heaven. Nothing makes me more excited!!

So, there you have it. . my life since my last post. Oh, and there's Payton's Kindergarten graduation that I'll post on later. I haven't uploaded my pictures from my camera yet.

My PATIENT Boy

Today Payton had an awards ceremony at school. This is just another reason that I LOVE Cornerstone!! Every child got an award and each child was given encouraging words by their teacher. Even the kids that you KNOW were hyper or sometimes got on that teacher's last nerve, they got a neat award! One boy that I pick up after school, gets in my car and is bouncing from door to door and ceiling to floor board, but today he got the JOY award because his teacher never saw a frown on his face. Never thought about it like that!!

Anyway, Mrs. Brokaw says, "Payton Laughlin. Payton receives the Spirit of Patience Award because he is such a patient boy. He will stand in line until it's his turn, he'll wait on whatever he needs to wait on. He is just a patient boy. In Galatians 5:22, it says, 'But the fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering -- which is patience -- and that's just what Payton is."

I wanted to fall out of the pew!! My son?! Patient?! Did she get the right boy? I'm telling you, if she could bottle the "mojo" that she has and sell it, she would definately be a millionaire!! She's just amazing!!

So, here's some pictures of my PATIENT BOY:





And, remember that Six Flags guy that did the commercials? Here is a picture of him at 3 years old:

Update on Evan

Last night, Evan slept all night long!! YAY GOD!! He got up this morning and is feeling much better!!! It felt so good to sleep all night long!!

My Mother's Day & Pray for Evan

My mother's day was so relaxing!! Just what I needed! At church this morning, my secret sister gave me the cutest "basket" with 4 small Dr. Peppers in it and some chocolate -- what better gift for a pregnant woman!!!

Aaron stayed home from church with Evan this morning. I came home from church and Aaron had gone to get lunch at Chili's. It was so good!! I had a chicken fried steak, mashed potatoes (a recent craving of mine), and some delicious corn!! It was so good! He even picked me up a Dr. Pepper!!

Then, I laid on the couch and took about a 3 hour nap. Sleep has been very important lately! ;) Nothing beats a good nap!! We got up and went on a walk, which felt really good.

Tonight I'm planning on watching the finale of Survivor and work on Francesca's scrapbook a little (I'm half way finished, by the way!) Aaron's in the kitchen doing the dishes (awesome for me!).

I love relaxing days like today!!

***********************************************************************
Now, here's the scoop on Evan:

Thursday afternoon, he was a little hot, but I didn't think much of it. He was acting fine. Thursday in the middle of the night, he woke up with a fever of 101 and throwing up. I gave him some medicine, but it didn't seem to help. He was up most of the night on Thursday night. He laid around the house on Friday, but by Friday afternoon, he was running around and acting like he was fine.

Friday night, fever again and up most of the night. Saturday, I took him by so Trish could look at him. She thought it could be strep throat, but couldn't be for sure without the test. He did have a little bit of a rash on him. He's had the fever between 101 and 103 since Thursday and we couldn't get it to break. Aaron made a phone call to a friend and called him in some medicine.

As the day went on, he acted fine again. He was wrestling with Payton and the fever finally broke. Things started looking up for him. We went ahead and picked up the medicine, but he was up most of the night. He threw up once and just couldn't sleep. His fever went sky high again.

This morning, he woke up with this rash all over him. It's splotchy (sp?) and then under his chin, there are these pimple things. His lip looks swollen and the fever is still there.

I'm believing that the antibiotics will help him feel better. That's why my nap today was so good!! I have been up with him for the last 3 nights, pretty much all night. So, please pray for Evan -- that all of this would be gone!!

Updated Believing God List

Wanted to just update my "Believing God" list:

** DONE!!! I'm believing God to miraculously heal Aaron's head. I'm through with all the medications he's on, I'm through with all of the side effects. I'm through with people making rude comments about it. I just want God to heal it.


** DONE!!! Not sure on the total yet, but either we met my goal or we were really close. I'm believing that this weekend's garage sale is going to be an AMAZING fundraiser for the ESC! Right now, I don't know how much stuff we're going to have and I'm not sure how much help I'm going to have to get everything there. We just need God to bring things to the sale and bring the people.


** DONE!!! I'm believing for a full return on my dryer -- whether it's a small problem that can be fixed or a new one for free. The very thing we were "sowing" by letting Cherith use our dryer is the very thing that was stolen the other night. Not sure what's going on with that, but again, believing that God is in control.


** I'm believing God for a desk that can go in my kitchen. I had one picked out at Target just a few weeks ago, but I guess they clearanced it out and they no longer have it -- not even online. I want to put my current desk in the garage sale this weekend -- sow a little seed. Sowed a little seed actually to Goodwill, but still believing for a desk.

So, there's 3 of them DONE!!!

And, the last week I had a doctor appointment and I never was crazy with my doctor with Evan. He was ok, just always seemed in a hurry. But the other day, he was so patient and talked things over with me. There are some genetic birth defects that have shown up in my family and he went over those with me and just encouraged me that he isn't worried about them, etc. He just acted like he had all the time in the world! The girl that sets up the payment plan wasn't there, so I didn't have to pay any money then. But, the nurse came around the corner and gave me my lab work sheet and said that since I was paying cash that if I went to the health department it would save me at least $150 or $200.

So, off to the health department (first I had to find it -- they've moved) still not knowing what to expect. The guy was AMAZING!! I've never had someone stick me once and get blood. It's always 2 or 3 times, but he got it on the first try!! He was very talkative and wanted to help me in any way possible get out of there as cheap as possible. He said something about an "extra test" and he said, "Oh I'll just throw that in for free." I'm not sure if he was kidding or not, but it sure did make me feel good!! When I went to pay, it was $110!! I know that probably saved me much more than $150 or $200!! I just felt like I was God's favorite that day!! It also let me know that He is taking care of the medical bills with the baby and I don't have to even think about them -- they're already taken care of. I know that God is doing all of this just for me -- because I'm his favorite, remember?

Update on My Dryer

Aaron took my dryer all apart last week just determined that he could fix it. He found that the light socket thingy was completely burned up and left all of the sides off of the dryer until the repair man came.

The repair man showed up today and determined that yes, the light socket thingy was burned up and he said he needed to put the dryer back together in order to see what the problem was. He was in there for a few minutes when he comes out and says that it's fixed. When I asked him what was wrong with it, he said he just put it back together and it worked. The light socket thingy isn't important for the dryer to work. He said he just plugged it in and it started working. That will be $64.95.

So, my dryer is back up and running. I went to the laundry mat yesterday to do 7 loads, which was probably only 1/2 of my laundry, but I just had to get SOMETHING washed to hang in my closet and to wear!!

So, yay God!! I got my dryer back!!! I still think the devil owes me the money, though!!

A Card for Today

When I opened my mailbox today, there was a card with my parents' return address and my dad's handwriting. I opened the envelope and there's a silloette (sp?) of a tree with an elephant with his trunk in the air. When I opened the card, this is what it read:

Wishing Happy Mother's Day to you
With some recycled poo.

Your Ma & Pa

Is this cool or what?

The card is made from recycled elephant poop. This is so my dad's personality. The deeper thing for me is that my dad never sends anything. I occasionally talk to him but not much more than the difference in weather or what new things the boys are doing. The neat thing is that my dad has known that I'm pregnant each time -- before I knew. He's also known boy or girl before we did and he's been 100% right. I just love that about my dad. I know it seems small and it is a little weird -- to send your daughter a Mother's Day card made from elephant poop -- but it is straight from my dad and I love it.

A new friend . . .

Today has been a great day. I am back at Stor & Lok this afternoon because Rhonda was having a bad day, but I only have 2 1/2 hours left. It's been pretty boring around here and they have dial-up for internet, which takes forever. But, I finally got my blog to load and wanted to share something from today.

I FINALLY got to go to coffee this morning. I haven't been able to go since I've been working. It was great to sit around and talk about nothing again! Evan enjoyed playing with his friends. Brandi invited Trina and she came. I don't know her very well, but now I think we could get along just fine!!

I was telling them about how I'm going to make scrapbooks for Francesca's girls and how excited I am and how I need to call Francesca and tell her that Hobby Lobby has a 40% off coupon this week (making myself a note and a mental note here). Brandi asked Trina if she scrapbooked and she said no that she just sews. We talked about how I wish I had learned how from my grandmother who sewed ALL of my clothes growing up -- even my first bathing suit and those Hammer Pants!

Anyway, she said that she had made her son's crib bedding because she couldn't find anything that she liked. I said, "Really?" I told her that I've been looking all over and haven't found anything that will work if the baby is a girl. I told her what I wanted and she said, "Oh yeah. I could sew that for you. That would be easy!" HOW AWESOME IS THAT?!?! I would much rather pay her to sew it for me and get exactly what I want rather than pay a bunch of money for something that isn't exactly "it"!

I'm so glad I made a new friend at coffee this morning! Not because of what she can do for me, but just because she's a great person that I think will fit into our "coffee club" just fine. We talked about several different things and she just jumped right into our conversations. She wasn't shy at all. She really made me wonder how many other relationships I'm missing out on because I just don't "know" them. . . hmmmm. . makes me think.

Believing God List

After Brandi's laptop answer from God and after reading Francesca's vacation plans, I decided to make my own "Believing God List". I'm sure this isn't the only things I'm believing God for right now, but it's a good start.

** I'm believing God to miraculously heal Aaron's head. I'm through with all the medications he's on, I'm through with all of the side effects. I'm through with people making rude comments about it. I just want God to heal it.

** I'm believing God that the baby is paid for -- IN FULL! I have an appointment on Thursday and I'm not exactly what to expect as far as "making payments" go, but I'm just believing God that He's taken care of it already.

** I'm believing God for some energy. I've been exhausted since I've been working at Stor & Lok and things around me are suffering. Today was my last full day at S&L and I've done absolutely nothing this evening. It has felt good to just relax & blow a few hours doing nothing.

** I'm believing God that He will give me clear direction on a lot of things. Since being back from California, I haven't had much time to spend on children's church things, but I feel like it's very urgent that I get the answers that I'm seeking. And, even when I stop long enough to read my Bible or pray, I fall asleep -- see above note.

** I'm believing that this weekend's garage sale is going to be an AMAZING fundraiser for the ESC! Right now, I don't know how much stuff we're going to have and I'm not sure how much help I'm going to have to get everything there. We just need God to bring things to the sale and bring the people.

** I'm believing God that He's going to give me the rest of the contents for my children's book. I got a little bit once in the shower, but I don't know which direction it's supposed to go.

** I'm believing for a full return on my dryer -- whether it's a small problem that can be fixed or a new one for free. The very thing we were "sowing" by letting Cherith use our dryer is the very thing that was stolen the other night. Not sure what's going on with that, but again, believing that God is in control.

** This may sound silly to some, but I'm believing that God is going to give me a creative idea on what to do with my scrapbook "store" that currently resides in what is going to be the nursery. Yes, the baby could stay in our room for a while, but that's not what I want. I don't care if God provides some "building" or a room in the garage or whether it's a closet in my own house. I'm going to start doing some things for others and I need that area set up without having to drag everything out whenever I want to do something. And, I have the perfect idea for the nursery, which doesn't include a desk or my scrapbook things.

** I'm believing God for a desk that can go in my kitchen. I had one picked out at Target just a few weeks ago, but I guess they clearanced it out and they no longer have it -- not even online. I want to put my current desk in the garage sale this weekend -- sow a little seed.

** I'm believing for a nice vacation this summer. Somewhere we can go as a family and have fun. I don't have memories of family vacations and I've always wanted my kids to have them. Now that they are getting older, it's the perfect time.

** I'm believing God for a new bed for the boys. We told them we were going to buy them one when we moved into our house, but Aaron's car needed some work and it took the money. Sometimes Payton asks when his new bed is going to be here and I hate it for him. The ones they are sleeping in are fine. . they were Aaron's dad's and uncle's beds and then Aaron and his brother's beds when they were growing up. So, yes they are sturdy (they've survived all these years), I just want them to have new beds.

** I'm believing for God to heal a rash that has popped up on Payton's elbows. I'm not sure what it is, but it itches and these little bumps are just plain irritating to him.

I realize that a lot of these things have to do with money and the things I want to do with it. Working at Stor & Lok did give me a nice paycheck and I'm seeking God on what I'm supposed to do with it. I could blow it in 2 seconds, but I want to be smart!! I believe in all of this that God is breaking a poverty mentality in me. The things on my list are things that I can't do in myself. I might be able to financially pull one or two things off, but I'm not sure that I'm supposed to.

So, there's my list. . I can't wait until I can stamp "DONE" across every one of them!! OK. . I have a million and one things to get done tonight!! Just realized today is the 1st and I have things due -- sorry, Erica!!

Angels @ Work -- Again!!

Last night, around 10:30, the electricity transformer to our house was hit by lightening. There was a very bright light and a really loud pop and all the lights went off in our house. The electricity came back on around midnight or later. We were blessed to get up this morning and everything worked -- or at least I thought. Everything except the dryer. After work, I came home and threw some clothes in the washer that I need for tomorrow. When I went to put them in the dryer, I opened the door and sparks started flying inside the dryer. I screamed and slammed the door, which scared everyone. When Aaron opened the door again, smoke started coming out of the dryer -- NOT GOOD!! So, Aaron just got back from taking my clothes to the Caperton's house so they can dry. So, we are blessed that the dryer is the only thing that is fried, but I'm still seeing it as something the enemy is going to have to repay!!

Also, today Evan was at Aaron's warehouse while I went to grab some lunch. I came back and Evan was crying in the bathroom. I thought he just needed help with something and nobody was answering. But, when I turned the corner, Evan was sitting on the sink with a bloody towel in his mouth. He also had 2 cuts around his eye. Evan had 2 bungee cords attached together and then hanging on two boxes. He stepped on them and when he stepped off, they popped up and hit him in the face. It got the inside of his mouth and his eyelid and right below his eye. I'm telling you that there were angels there with him today to close his eye. That thing would have probably taken his eye out or SERIOUSLY hurt him.

I am so thankful that I have angels camped around my kids and around my house!

Mom & Payton vs. Dad & Evan

Payton and I have been talking a lot lately about how we are a lot alike and how we're so different than Aaron & Evan. So, I thought I would make a list of the things we've come up with:

Payton & Mom:
* We are NOT morning people.
* We like lots of covers on our bed.
* We are not "touchy feely" people.
* We are pretty serious people.
* We like things in order and organized. Most of the time, we have a place for everything.
* We like a plan. We don't operate well on spur of the moment.
* We like to explain ourselves when we are wrong (actually try to convince someone of why we were "right").
* It is important that people listen to us when we are talking.
* We are naturals at sports.

Evan & Dad:
* They are so very chipper in the morning!
* They don't like to sleep with covers
* They are very affectionate and love hugs & snuggling.
* They are really laid back.
* They aren't total messies, but they just put stuff down wherever.
* They fly by the seat of their pants. Usually no plans.
* Aaron's not so much this way, but Evan is quite the entertainer when he is comfortable in the environment.
* They have to work at the athletic part of them a little bit -- more Evan than Aaron.

These are just a few things of how we are all different in our house. I'm not saying Payton and I are better than Aaron & Evan -- not at all. We love them and realize that we need them to balance us out! Sometimes I wish we were more like them. We're just so different. I think it's really cool that my 6 year old is figuring out how we are alike and different. We were talking about this the other night and I told him that the reason we sometimes fight is because we're so much alike in so many things. He thought that was weird. He thought that we shouldn't fight because we are alike in so many things.

I will admit that Payton and I have gotten along much better recently and I like that! I changed how I saw Payton -- God showed me how He sees Payton -- and it did something in my heart. I'm so glad!! I'm really enjoying really getting to know the little person who is a lot like me.

Ding Dong Scooter's Gone . . .

On Tuesday, I finally did it. I put Scooter (our guinea pig) on Freecycle to see if anyone would want him. I had 3 responses and I took the first one. It was a lady who lives in Clyde and she already has 3 guinea pigs. She came to get him last night and was so excited about him!! She has some grandchildren that she said would love on him!! Payton was excited that she was excited about him and we knew he would be in a good home. I'm just glad that the boys' room won't stink anymore just because I forget to clean out the cage. We got Scooter so Payton could learn to take care of him, but like Pam told me, I learned something, too. Payton isn't ready to take care of a pet like that!! ;)

Here's an observation I've made in the last few days. Evan's been coming to work with me and it's actually working out ok for the most part. On Tuesday, I told him we would go to the park for lunch so he could run around and play. Right before we were supposed to leave, it started pouring down rain. So, we decided to go to the mall and play in the little play area. We were playing this alphabet game with the letters on the floor/mat, but I'm here to tell you that there is no "X" on that mat!! We searched all over for it and couldn't find it. So, next time you're at the mall play area, look for that "X" and if you find it, you have to tell me where it is!!

Thoughts on Working Moms

The last few weeks, I've had to fill in at Stor & Lok because the manager is in the hospital. Let me tell you, I have a new appreciation for working moms!! I can't seem to find time to do laundry, clean my house, hang out with the kids, squeeze in a little scrapbooking, get children's church ready, prepare for our meeting on Sunday, clean the kitchen, cook dinner, catch up the checkbook, clean out the car, and fold the laundry that I do get washed. I'm exhausted working 7 days a week!!

Work isn't that hard. I am just in an office all day. I'm used to doing whatever I want whenever I want. I do have a schedule that I go by during the week, but working has thrown me off. I do have my computer with internet up at the office, but there's only so many things you can do online. I read through my children's church lesson and I didn't like it -- not good.

Anyway, since we've been back from California, I feel like my life is out of my control. It seems like the whole month of April has been a whirlwind.

On another note, I talked to a few of you about how I was nervous about telling my sister that I was pregnant. Her and her husband have been trying for a year to get pregnant and it hasn't happened yet. She called me yesterday to see if the "rumor" was true. She is very excited about it. I asked her how their "trying" is going and she is very frustrated. She is making an appointment to see her doctor to see if they can get things started/straightened out. She's having her period every 2 weeks and they're lasting for 10 days!! That won't help her get pregnant!

I just encouraged her and told her that I have been in her shoes. We had a hard time getting pregnant with Payton and I know what she's going through. She seemed to be encouraged that there is hope.

So, please pray for her. The other night, Aaron and I were talking about her and he said, "I think it's something spiritual." Her and her husband have said they would never have kids. I think it's one of those things that is going to have to be broken over them.

Other than that, life is good!!

Is There A Prophet In My House?

A few weeks ago, Evan went up to Payton and said, "Hey, Payton. Guess what? When I turn 6, I'm going to have a baby sister." Payton just rolled his eyes and walked away. The thing is that Evan thinks that on his next birthday he is going to be 6. Could he
be right???!?!?!

THE MOST AMAZING MOTHER-IN-LAW EVER!!

I don't mean to brag or anything, but I have the bestest greatest mother-in-law in the world!!! She really is amazing!!

On Thursday night, she called late to tell me that she had come to town and wondered what our plans were for the next day. I told her I had to work at the storage buildings and that Payton had a skating party at school that she could go to.

In the morning, I told Evan that Purty had come to town and asked him if he wanted breakfast. He told me that he didn't want anything because Purty was going to take him to McDonald's for breakfast. I asked him a few times and he kept mentioning McD's.

So, we got to the office and he said, "Purty, will you take me to McDonald's for breakfast?" She said, "Well, I guess we could go." I'm telling you, that child has her right where he wants her!! ;)

She went to Payton's skating party and ended up buying 3 kids inflatable guitars and she picked Payton up from school for me and took them to Frontier Texas. She took us back to McDonald's for supper (because Payton didn't get a Ninja Turtle at breakfast like Evan did).

Saturday, she had the kids until noon while I worked and she brought us Sonic for lunch. As she was getting ready to go, Evan started crying because he wanted to go with her. He didn't have any clothes and he didn't have his bop-bop (his blanket he HAS TO HAVE to sleep). But, he was determined to go -- bop bop or no bop bop. She said, "Why don't we just stop by Wal-Mart on our way home and pick up a few clothes for him and it will work fine." Evan ran and jumped in her car, got his headphones on for the DVD player, and off he went without a second thought!!

She's going to keep him as long as he will stay with her. I cannot even begin to tell you how much easier it is going to be to work with him at her house. We called last night to check on him and she said he's doing fine . . just chattering away.

I'm so blessed to have the mother-in-law that I have!! She's amazing!!!

Prayer Request

Today I'm blogging to ask you guys to pray for Rhonda who is the manager at the storage buildings. She went into the hospital on March 31st and is still there. Yesterday they told her it would be at least 1 week, if not 2 more weeks in the hospital.

I can't go into a lot of details on what is exactly wrong, but she had an abcess that got infected and they think it was a staf infection, which can be deadly if it gets in your blood stream. She has one spot on her body where they did surgrey that is 2.6 inches deep. Yesterday they put some kind of "vacuum" on one area to suck out the infection (or that's how it was explained to me). But, once she gets out, there will be some outpatient care that will have to be done.

Anyway, I'm asking you to pray for complete and TOTAL healing for her. She's in a lot of pain and she knows that God is bigger than all that she's going through.

Pray for us here at the storage buildings. Right now the plan is that I'll be working for her until she is able to come back. There is an older man who works part-time and he's had to learn the computer system and everything on his own and he is pretty stressed out about everything. Pray that he would have peace -- because the things he stresses about aren't really that big of a deal in the grand scheme of things and everyone is very understanding with him that things won't be perfect, but they are getting done.

Please pray that my kids (especially Evan) will be understanding and patient while we're here. Today worked out great because Aaron's mom came to town and she has Evan, which gives him a break from being in here with me. Good news for today is that I got a raise from the amount he was paying me when I worked here before (3 years ago)!!

Anyway, Rhonda's been coming to our Encounter services and I'm believing that she's going to come to KLF eventually. But, today, I just want God to heal her.

A Funny Perspective

On Friday, I was listening to a CD that I bought at Bethel and the words to the first song went like this:

Oh how we want you to come
Oh how we want you to come

It just repeats itself and that's pretty much the song. Anyway, the boys and I were in the living room and Evan was singing along with the song, but he stopped and looked at me. He said, "Who is Howie and why do we want him to come?"

No matter what I said or how I tried to explain it, he didn't understand that it was "HOW WE" and we want God to come.

Weird Dream

Last night I had a really weird dream and I'm not sure what it meant, but it was one of those "so-real-I-can't-believe-I-wasn't-really-there" dreams. I've been thinking about it all day and thought maybe someone on here would know what it meant.

I was in the USA, but I was also in the Czech Republic (sp?). The USA news was saying that there was a tidal wave or tsunami was going to hit the Czech Republic and it would wipe out the whole country. It was like I saw the news report and a second later, I was in the Czech Republic. I went there to try and save as many people as I could, but we got caught in it. We parked our car at our hotel and we watched the water go out and when it came back in, it covered 1/2 of my car. When it went back out, it took my car with it. We (I don't remember who was with me, but I know that I knew them) ran in the hotel and decided to go to the top floor because it should be the safest there. When we got to our room, we looked out over the ocean and watched it go out and knew that when it came back, it was going to hit the building and it was going to be powerful. The water came back in and it hit the hotel. We felt it shake and felt the lower floors give out. It was like the top of the hotel sat on the bottom rubble. The water went out and when it came back in, it knocked out the top floors of the hotel. I remember being swept away by the water, but then I MADE myself wake up. I remember in my dream that I kept telling myself to wake up.

Then, it was over. I'm not even sure if there is any water around the Czech Republic. I don't think there is. That dream was just so vivid that I felt like it was from God, although I'm not quite sure what it means yet. I had a dream a few years ago about tornados and I've seen that one come to pass. I never figured out what it meant at the time, but after it happened, I knew I had just witnessed the tornados(make sense?). This dream was just as vivid. So, any revelation on this dream?

We're Home!!!

YAY!!! We're home safe and sound!! Our flight home went much better than our flight out there -- imagine that. We flew out of Sacramento on time and landed in Denver. We didn't have much of a layover there and flew into Dallas. Nicole's flight from Sacramento landed in Dallas before we did and she found out our original flight had been delayed until 8:15 (we were supposed to land in Abilene at 8:30)!! Nicole said there was a flight leaving in 20 minutes. We had planned on trying to get on an earlier flight home, but we only had minutes from the time we landed (Me, Krissy, & Kelly) to get to the other side of the airport. We told Nicole to stop somewhere and try to get on stand-by. Meanwhile, Kelly, Krissy, & I were on a train and running through the airport like crazy people!!

We made it to a counter and got us on standby, but we had to go back up the stairs and get back on the train to get to the gate. Again, running like crazy to catch the train. . . I'm sure we were a sight to be seen!! We make it to the gate and they let us on the plane. We are sitting on the plane and I'm talking to the children's pastors from New Hope in Abilene (they were at the conference, too) when they come over the speaker and say we have to deplane. . . UGH! But, I would much rather be on a plane that everything is working than a plane that has a problem!!

We get off and stand and talk to the "New Hope" people and we are allowed back on the plane after about 10 minutes. Our plane landed about 7:45, but our luggage wouldn't be there until 9:15 pm because that was our original flight. I did seem to get a little more sick on the way home than on the way there. . that wasn't fun!

I couldn't go home without my luggage. Payton had asked me if I would get him a basketball jersey while I was gone. His only requirements were that it wasn't pink or purple and that it had a number on it. Funny thing is that we were in California -- the Sacramento Kings and the LA Lakers, but they are both PURPLE (and $55)!!! I found plenty of those jerseys, but no other colors. I went to Old Navy and found a blue & white jersey with a number 4 and some shorts. . it would have to do. I thought about carrying it on, but decided to put it in my suitcase. When we got on the earlier flight, I was expecting a major confrontation when I got to the airport because I didn't have that uniform in my hands, but Payton shocked me. He was very understanding and very patient with the whole thing. We went to Rosa's to eat and went back to the airport to get my luggage. My suitcases came around and I had to open them right then and there to get that uniform out. . . good thing I made sure I put it on the outside of my suitcase!! He was very happy with it and that made me happy!!

So, yes we are home, but we're all exhausted!! Krissy called this morning to see if she was the only one who couldn't get going. I told her that I was having a hard time, too. But, I have too many things to do!! ;)

Thank you to those (I can't remember who actually did it, but a few had the same idea) who cleaned my house and did the laundry and watched Evan for Aaron!! It was so nice to know that my life group wouldn't be completely shocked to come to my house on Wednesday night!! It also made it so much easier to come home and the house was picked up and there wasn't PILES & PILES & PILES of laundry waiting for me!!! It was also nice that Aaron could go to work without Evan for 1 day (Thanks Becky!) Those things were HUGE blessings to me!! Really nice to know that my "family" was taking care of my family while I was away.

Again, I'm still processing stuff and I can't wait to share what all we received while we were there. God gave me an awesome vision about our children's ministry and about our name and just some amazing stuff. I want to share it at church sometime when I have the opportunity to do so, but if that opportunity doesn't come, I will blog about it soon. . . but for now, I need to find out the status on our Easter Egg hunt. . looks like it could be inside again!!

Coming Home . . .

It's 5:30 am California time and we're getting ready to head home. Please pray for us for a safe trip today. Nicole is on a different flight than the rest of us as we're heading to Dallas. Just pray that we would make our flights. There are supposed to be storms in Denver this morning and we don't have much time between our flights there. We need to leave on time and arrive on time!!! We're also going to try to catch an eariler flight home from Dallas once we all get there.

Yesterday, they told us that during the night session, they would be praying over each one of us and doing an impartation for each one. So, we decided to go to the children's ministry final night and skip Kim Clement.

We saw an AMAZING ballet!! The kids did the first act of their spring recital for us. It was creation played out in front of us. Then, Adam and Eve were created. The serpent came and Adam gave the keys to the serpent in exchange for the apple. The act ended there, but it was POWERFUL!! We were all amazed at what the kids did -- from all age ranges, not to mention their costumes!!!

Then, the speakers kind of wrapped up the evening and asked for testimonies. They went on for quite a while. They had a time of answering questions from us (which was really short). Then, they did mini-fire tunnel and sent us out.

It really was powerful and truly, we have no regrets. But, I'm sure Kim Clement was awesome last night!! As we drove by Bethel to get to our location for the evening, cars were streaming up the road. Cars were parked all the way down the hill (where all the flags are) and people were walking up. We would have had to been there REALLY early to get in. It's ok, though.

We have had a great time, but we are ready to come home. I have had so much information and so much ______ that I feel like I can't take any more. I bought enough products to keep me busy for the next 2 years!! But, I'm holding on to the word that said I was sprinting for the endurance of the race! My suitcases are PACKED. Last night as we were separating all the stuff we bought, if sounded like this -- Rachel, Rachel, Nicole, Rachel, Krissy, Krissy, Kelly, Rachel, Rachel, Rachel . . I feel sorry for the people at the airport that have to go through my luggage. I'm not sure they will get my suitcases zipped again if they open them!! I might even have to pay extra at the airport because I think my luggage might be too heavy!! Oh well!!

So, I'm signing off for the day. I have been watching the weather at home for Sunday and it says it's supposed to rain and be really cold!! I need total cooperation from the weather -- today and at least until Monday!! ;)