HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEAR SISTER!

HOPE YOUR DAY IS FABULOUS!

Cultural Experience!

Today I received a cultural experience that I was neither expecting nor wanted. Braylon was up most of the night crying. He cried and cried and cried, we knew something was wrong because if you know Braylon, he is not a crier. This morning we headed to the Dr in Highgate. As a mom I was worried about the quality of care he would receive and the education of the Dr caring for him. The CSI crew and families prayed with Braylon and I before we made our trip to town, that brought comfort. As we walked into the Dr I was slightly fearful as the walls were not fully painted, the waiting room was about a 10 x 12, the receptionist was in the next "room" (a partially sectioned off room that held filing cabinets, one desk and one chair) and eyes were on the "white" baby. My name was taken down on a plain piece of white paper, as well as Braylon's age and his weight was taken on a small infant scale. The Dr's office housed the Dr's desk and a small patient table. Overall my experience was great. The Dr was good with Braylon and diagnosed him with a respitory infection, minor ear infection, and inflamed throat. The amazing part was our visit only cost 11 dollars and to fill three prescriptions was 2200J (approximately 22 dollars). After one dose of antibiotic, and the other two medicines, Braylon is acting much better! He took a nap with Brad (a Jamaican worker in the mission house) and awoke ready to eat and play :) God is taking care of us and providing for all our needs!

We are Here!

Fear

I have been excited about visiting Jamaica, until today. Okay I am still excited but a new feeling has set in, nerves. Nervous about the plane? "No" Nervous about customs? "No" Nervous about traveling with two kids? "No" I have complete faith that God will protect us and if anything bad is to happen he will be with us there too. So tell me, why have I become nervous about the possibilities? The possibility of falling in love with the same people my husband fell in love with. The possibility of confirming the call that we are to be missionaries. The possibility of changing everything we know to serve our wonderful and faithful God. The same God that will be with me while traveling is with me in all avenues of life. Sometimes it is easy to remember God and then leave him in the background for other circumstances.

I know why God wants us to be like children when we approach him. My daughter is so excited to go to Jamaica. She says things like "I want to stay at my new home in Jamaica!" "Will there be a school for me in Jamaica" (We have told her several times this trip is only for a few days) Audrey is not worried about the possibilities, the changes, the decisions....she is leaving them to God. She has not developed a sense of fear or stress so she is thinking as I should be. I must turn to my Father in Heaven and remember that he knows the numbers of my days and the plans he has for me!

Yummmmmmm!

Anyone for a sandwich?

Turkey, cheese, cracker, double chocolate oreo, turkey

I am surprised there was only one cookie in her sandwich!

Understanding

About a month ago I wrote about confusion in my spiritual life (you can read it here). After some time of thinking and reading, I have come to the conclusion I am worrying about too much! The two most important commandments are where I need to start.

But the Pharisees, when they heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, gathered themselves together. One of them, a lawyer, asked him a question, testing him. "Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the law?"
Jesus said to him, "'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.' This is the first and great commandment. A second likewise is this, 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' The whole law and the prophets depend on these two commandments."
Matthew 22:34-40

Concentration on solely loving God will allow all of the other qualities I worry about to follow suit. I have known all the answers but was too wrapped up in my "personal holiness" to remeber that I am surrendering to the Holy Father, not the holy or should I say unholy melissa. Keeping his word in my mind and heart by daily reading and devotion, dwelling on his word through music and serving others are my first steps. Transformation will be made as I count on the Lord's strength. I shall not worry because "perfect love casts out fear" 1 John 4:18 as long as I am surrendering to Christ.

Good Day!

Yesterday was a fun day! Audrey and Braylon were spoiled by grandparents and other relatives all day :) Aaron's parents were kind enough to get up early and stay with Audrey and Braylon for the morning. When Audrey woke I am sure she was pleased to have donuts waiting on her and a new outfit from Mamaw and Papaw. I know Braylon appreciated the two hour nap in Mamaw's arms. Aaron and I went to breakfast and did a little shopping. It was fun to hang out with just Aaron and take our time browsing the aisles. We even did a little dreaming and test drove this for fun. The sales guy was very nice and not pushy so it was easy to drive it and walk away. In the evening we headed to my parents for a birthday celebration. Dad's birthday is Tuesday and my sister's birthday is next Tuesday so we had a get together in honor of them. Before the food was enjoyed Aaron, my brother and I went for a nice run, the weather was perfect! We then enjoyed yummy tenderloins, fruit salad, and dessert. Audrey enjoyed playing outside with her Nanna and Poppy and Braylon appreciated a nap on Uncle Mike's shoulder. (Braylon is sick so he is wanting to be held while he sleeps, he is normally much more active)

The day was great, but there could have been a damper on it. Everytime we have a get together with family I am reminded of the shape of our economy. The scariness of job loss or lay off is hitting everyone including people in Aaron's and my family. I believe my Mom put it best that we need to keep our eyes on what God wants from the circumstances and not the circumstances themselves. While the circumstance may be scary, it can not take the Joy knowing Christ brings. We need to be praying for all the families being struck by the poor economy.

This does not give you an excuse to pick your nose!

Thump, thump, thump was the noise coming from the play room last night. Audrey was supposed to be relaxing before bedtime and obviously she was doing more than that. As I made my way to the room, I see her jumping on her enormous teddy bear like a trampoline and reaching for a decal 1 foot above her head on the wall. Maybe I should not have inquired what she was doing because now I am wondering where else I may find her "fingerprints." Me: What are you doing? Audrey, "Trying to put my boogie on that flower (the decal above her head)" Lovely, she had picked her nose and had found a target she wanted to plant it on :)

It amazes me how quickly kids shift gears! Thirty seconds after I said "maybe we should use a kleenex," she was asking me to open a CD case for her. I opened the case (a praise and worship CD) and was then promptly kicked out of the play room. After I heard the music blare, I tip toed back to see what she was up to. There was my boogie jumping daughter, twirling in circles, hands held high praising her Heavenly Father.

Thank you Jesus for loving all of us!

Jesus however said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them; for it is to those who are childlike that the Kingdom of the Heavens belongs." Matt 19:14

Random Thoughts

I am having writers block so here are some random thoughts:
*The ice on my knee is really cold (it is getting better)
*Today was beautiful!
*Braylon is teething aka chewing everything, including my face and hair.
*I got to run with the team a little bit today.
*I enjoyed this weekend with my family and basketball.
*I look forward to March Madness/bracketology!
*I am ready to visit Jamaica and meet the wonderful people Aaron met.
*My mom got her haircut and I am a big fan!
*Audrey and I made pine cone bird feeders today :)
*Tomorrow should be another great day!

What have I done?

It is track season and that brings a smile to my face! I am an assistant coach for the varsity team and have the pleasure of working with a very knowledgeable head coach. He amazes me with the amount of information he has about running, fitness and the body. He also does a great job of using his knowledge in a practical way with the kids. So, as we are getting the team into shape all of the coaches run with the team (the other two coaches could both out run me and they have at least 15-20 years on me). I love it, I leave my children for one hour each afternoon and go run with a great group of kids and I learn alot! Now I will not let myself be beat by all of the high school girls so I have been pushing myself pretty hard (I have not ran since the first week of January and before that was pre-Braylon) and I am not in the best of shape. I have been pretty happy because I have not had much soreness and my lung capacity is excellent. That happiness started to fizzle last night and has turned to worry this afternoon. Yesterday while running I felt my knee begin to ache, as the evening went on it became pretty painful, throughout the night I awoke in pain several times. I thought once I got up this morning and loosened it up, the pain would dull, nope not happening. I don't know if I am more bummed that my knee hurts and I may need to visit the Dr or that I know I will not be running tonight at practice? The one thing I do know is I am supposed to go shopping Saturday and I better be able to make the trip!

Spring We Welcome You!

Children's Museum

We made a trip to the museum today. I did not take my camera so these are just some pictures of the kiddos. Audrey and Sam are museum buddies! They love the Dinosaur exhibit and could probably spend all day there. There is a new exhibit with legos, it has a castle theme. Audrey dressed up as a princess/knight. I love to watch the kids enjoy themselves, play and learn. Braylon even got in on the action today. There is a section for babies and he enjoyed playing with the toys and looking in the mirrors. He was very excited over the fish tank and played with Audrey in the submarine. In between watching our little ones run around Dawn and I got to chat. I think at the end of the day we are more wore out than the kids (they did get a nap on the way home) but it was worth it. I enjoy the car ride with Dawn becuase we get to know each other even more, chat about life and let off steam in a safe environment. Sam is such a great friend for Audrey and I believe he will be a great "big brother" for Braylon. Today was a great day and it is only half over :)