Everyday post

Just pictures that make me ridiculously happy. 

 London's teacher took this picture at school and I thought it was fantastic! I love walking into that view twice a day! Counted as a blessing for sure!

Not one thing on earth makes me happier than watching her dance. Especially when she does 'criss cross feet'.. and when she pulls her panties up to her ninnies in the middle of her freestyle routine. Completely owns me. 

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Again with the dancing. I've only watched this video 30,000 times, but who's counting. They learned the cha cha dance at school, which I for one was THRILLED about! So so funny! 

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Just a fun, lazy Friday night with my favorite person ever. Gah, the good times!

 School picture... in which she's not looking at the camera so this is all you will see of this! 

 A sick day. That morning I had her in my nook, cuddling and brushing through her hair, and she asked if we could please go ride the carousel today. We took our time getting ready, then off we went for a mid-morning carousel ride. I was speechless in love with her this day. God is so good to me. 

 From the backseat: "Mom! Look, a dolphin!" 

Do you see it?! Holy cow, its a perfect dolphin, swimming right next to a perfect goose! I can't get over how exactly these clouds formed! So awesome! 

 Peek-A-Boo

 A friend delivered a big box of hand-me-downs and this fancy little number was in it! She's getting SO BIG! Sassy little lady!

Speaking of sassy, I gave her a big hair cut yesterday so she has this adorable little bob cut now. She looks so cute I could eat her alive. Anyway, some little girl thinks she is HOT TO TROT now! She spent ALL of last night and this morning making flirty faces at herself in the mirror and swinging her hair around! Haha!! I was dying laughing all night!

 One of my bosses suggested we come to their neighborhood for their annual free wine & beer festival. Doesn't that sound FABULOUS?? I was so excited about it! This little joker was having a rather winey day, and it felt like every time I snuck off to grab a taste of wine, I'd immediately hear, 'Mom. Mom. Mom. MOm. Hey Mom. Mooooooooooooooooom. Mom. Mom. Mooooooom. Hey!! MOM!!!' 

I put this picture on Instagram and said 'the wine to whine ratio was way off. #MoreWine #LessWhine' because that was the truth, man. Whew. Rough day. She ended up looking super cute after the torture that was sitting in the line to get our face painted. :/ Cue the tears. Then the happy. #drama

Freedom Week- Birmingham Remembers

"On Sunday morning, September 15, 1963, the Ku Klux Klan bombed the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama, killing four girls. This murderous act shocked the nation and galvanized the civil rights movement." nps.gov

Addie Mae Collins, Denise McNair, Carole Robertson, and Cynthia Wesley

Birmingham did a remarkable job remembering the events that so famously put our city on the historical map during the Civil Rights Movement. For the whole month of September, Birmingham held various events, speeches, concerts, and art installments to celebrate our '50 Years Forward'. London and I stopped by Railroad Park to see a bit of what they were doing and we had such a nice afternoon talking to people about the history of our city and how these different groups of people were bringing honor to very hard-to-swallow past.

An local elementary school made 15,000 origami birds in memory of the children who were killed in the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing. They hung them from the rafters at the RR Park pavillion. London and I laid back and watched the birds sway silently for a long while. My soul was quieted as I watched and thought of these four girls. It was a very innocent, touching tribute for lives of little girls lost. 

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One big stage. One tiny performer. One happy audience member. One great show. 

My heart was turned over how lucky I am to have a daughter to hold and love and laugh with. She was looking out over the train tracks, turned around, reached out her hand, and said, 'Mommy, come and see the whole world with me.'

With a lump in my throat that I couldn't clear, my heart whispered, "yes, baby girl. Let's do that."

Thank you, gracious God, for daughters.

Knox is 4

A day celebrating our very favorite, incredibly sweet, hilariously funny, best hugger in the world 4 year old boy. Back yard jump house, bat man theme, amazing cake made Kurt, and jumping until our legs absolutely could jump no more. Such a fun weekend making a grand deal over our very favorite friend!

 "Im being mean Batgirl."

 (even a rare Taylor sighting on the blog!)

 (a new favorite)

 Only decent picture I got of Lucas. Impossible to get a good picture of this kid. It's like he puts a spell on the camera so every. single. picture. blurs. 

 Hot, sweaty, and all so in love with each other. Even Kurt. Though he'd never admit it! :)

Just Around the River Bend

(If you are a email subscriber, you might want to go ahead and click the title of this post to get to the actual blog. I loaded a bunch of videos... just in case you'd like to enjoy the day with us in full!) 

Saturday morning, we woke up, got our packs together, and headed out for a bar none GLORIOUS day. The weather was perfection. Hannah, John, Lu Lu, and I all jumped into the back of Mr. Roy's truck as he peeled out of the drive way! The inlet to the creek is a few miles down an old dirt road and I kid you not, Mr. Roy was driving 60 MPH down this old bumpy road! We were all holding on for dear life! Not to mention that we're having this enormous spider issue in the south... but you can't see a spider web until you are right up on it... so someone would scream 'WEB!!!' and we would all hit the deck as fast as we could! We looked like the biggest bunch of morons you've ever seen but we were rolling laughing about the whole thing. Speed racing down a dirt road and dodging rouge spider webs. What a scene. 

Some lucky little monkey was short enough to be safely under the cover of the cab, so she was immune from the blanket of sticky spider webs. London was over the moon excited about our day. This is the song in her heart on the way to the creek. So. Much. Great. 

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London and her main squeeze enjoying one of their favorite past times.... chewin' sunflower seeds! 

 I'm not sure if London knows that Hannah and John aren't family. I mean, they might as well be, but I've never seen London more naturally comfortable around anyone. I think this speaks volumes for how perfectly amazing these two people are. They are simply a place where your heart feels safe. 

She kept calling to Mr. John and saying 'Hey, Best Buddy!!" :)

"Just Around the River Bend...." from Pocahontas. And John with his ridiculously cute smile! :)

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I'm not sure what London thinks about all the places we go and see.  I hope one day all of our adventures will leave her with a deep appreciation for this beautiful life God has given us. Nothing makes me happier than watching the light in her eyes when she sees something amazing for the first time! Being her momma is the most fabulous experience. 

"Uhh, Mrs. Bananas?? I think we're lost."

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This. Is. The. Life. 

(I can't even type over this one. Simply no words.)

 Mr. John doing 'Stage 10 canoeing'. Standing on one leg with his paddle above his head. He's so silly!

Sand Bar Angels :)

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 Most of you know how fiercely I love Hannah.  My gratitude for her friendship is endless. It has been an honor to walk through life with her. Hannah has bravely traveled a difficult road of pain and beauty this year as God called her 3 precious little girls home to Him. This creek is a very significant place for Hannah, John, and the remembrance of their three baby girls. Hannah wanted me to stop and see a bend in the creek that is particularly important to them. Just as Hannah pulled in her boat, she stopped, took a picture... then showed it to me... 3 baby monarch butterflies, sitting still on the rocks, peacefully fluttering their wings. 

Let us never forget how tenderly, lovingly, and intentionally He places His gifts before us. 3 happy souls are with him today, and because of his precious reminder to us, we can find peace in the waiting for reunion. 

God is Good. All the time.  

Weekend Retreat at Murder Creek- Part 1

My BFF Hannah has been asking me for a year to come home with her. We've always been busy and have never taken her up on the offer... until recently. About a month ago, we packed up and headed to Brewton, AL (on Murder Creek) to Hannah's parents house. I honestly was just expecting a normal visit with parents plus a day canoeing down a creek. No part of me was prepared for what we were about to experience. 

Hannah's mom is a character. She is super outgoing and chatty and is tons of fun, but she's a bit quirky! We've laughed with Hannah for a while now about how her mom doesn't really like doors in houses, so she built her home with no doors. Hannah and her brother had to lay down the law on bathroom doors, so luckily, there are a few rooms where you can hear the satisfying click of a door close behind you! :) Their home is fabulous. Truly fabulous. It's this great, open floor plan with the master bedroom down stairs, then the upstairs rooms are loft style. The whole house is decorated with conversation pieces. I LOVE that in a home. Nothing really matches all that much, but every item there had a story, a history, and it was just splendid. The open floor plan did mean that when the first person woke up and started stirring around, the rest of the house would be up shortly there after! However, there was something remarkably restful about waking up early squirrely, fixing a really good cup of coffee, then watching the day come to life out on the front porch. Mr. and Mrs. Chancery had just gotten 2 new kittens, so we spent both mornings playing with the kittens and chatting away with Mr. Roy and Mrs. Marina- wrapped in blankets, watching the rising sun dance all over the dew on the grass. Like manna, really. God ushering in a new day and feeding me on the simple goodness of being alive. 

What genuinely lovely people they both are. Mrs. Marina is so fun and sweet and Mr. Roy... my heavens.. Mr. Roy. Im not sure exactly what to say about him except that I just want to be around him all the time, forever and ever. He's smart, and totally comfortable to be around, and strong, and kind, and he fell head over heals in love with London... as she did with him. Mr. Roy is the boy version of Hannah... and like being with Hannah, it just felt like home with him. 

 The Chancery's have cats, (amazing) dogs, chickens, and I'm sure a variety of other amazing animals that just didn't stick their heads out to say hello! London and Marina on their way to collect evening eggs!

Good morning fireworks (poppers) with fun Mrs. Marina!

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The view of the creek in front of their house. 

This speaks calm straight into my soul.

I was so thankful to be standing right in this spot. 

 Playing dress up, eating corn bread, and killing me with how beautiful she is. 

 Good bye squeezes and thank you's for a fabulous retreat. 

 And the part of the weekend where Hannah and I both flat died from the sweetness. Bear hugs from the two love birds. They just lit each other up and it was a joy to watch these two piddle around together!

 A moment. Me and God. His always gentle whispers that He loves and cares deeply for us. What a sweet word to receive. 

Last minute good times! 

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I already CAN NOT WAIT for another visit... sans the part where Mr. Roy showed London a safe spider and I walked down to find them petting it together :/ 

Thank you kindly for the beautiful weekend of restoration, fun, and friendship. It was a delight for us to spend time with you, Mr. & Mrs. Chancery. 

(Part 2 canoe trip to follow!)

Walk to Emmaus

I'm not posting sequential posts, but I didn't want to let the memories of this weekend pass without documenting them with the feelings of the moment. Two weekends ago, our family went to Grenada, MS to serve on my Dad's Emmaus walk.  And I don't think I'll ever be the same….

I read this right after we returned and spent an entire night chewing over the gut-wrenching truth of this statement:

"We are frequently impoverished spiritually by our own not letting ourselves be rich." John Piper

Gosh. Isn't that so true? The Sunday before we left, I confessed to my small group that I had spent the last few weeks in this very self centered frame of mind. I try to Christmas shop really early so that I can attempt to contain the chaos during the holidays, so I have been in full on Christmas mode lately…. which unfortunately can cause a very prioritized 'me and my family' mind set. We prayed that God would kindly return my focus to Him and that he would allow me to spend this weekend loving on people with no self serving motives at all…. and just like that, my world was shifted.

Fast forward to last Sunday- my Sunday night small group met to start a new Beth Moore study. (Sidenote: Good grief. Beth Moore. She had us all in tears within the first 10 minutes.) She gave us an assignment. We were to write a letter to God. A straight, honest letter telling God what we wanted…. what is the true desire of our heart. If you've read my blog for long, you know I sometimes just like to let my heart bleed words. I loved this assignment, especially after just returning from such a remarkable weekend. After going back and reading it, (and changing a few parts) I decided to share it with you… because it really is my takeaway from a truly fabulous experience.

"When asked the desire of my heart, I have a knee jerk reaction that most anyone could guess, but when I search my heart,  that reaction is not the TRUE answer.

I just simply want more of the Holy Spirit more often. When I think on this, the simple verse that keeps popping in my head is “If you seek me, you will find me, if you seek me with your whole heart.” Jeremiah 29:13 That is where my heart is in this season. Seeker. And by His faithfulness, a finder. 

I am in a season of being overwhelmed with how God multiplies the return of what we give. I just returned from my Dad’s Emmaus walk a few weeks ago and I prayed that God would pour me out and fill me with himself. I was poured out for sure. Physically. Emotionally… but in the greatest of ways! It was all to show love to a group of (big) men I had never met, and it was a JOY to pour out. But God took the small offering of my time and willing hands and just FLOODED ME with his return. I was tired but every cell in my body was ALIVE because I was so awash with the Holy Spirit. It’s electrifying.  However, the math just wasn’t right. If I poured out 50% of me, He returned the gift with 500% of Himself.

I don’t want to forget that God’s math doesn’t calculate. I don’t want to forget that the (pure heart) giving of myself equals a flood of the Holy Spirit that is so great it feels like I can’t contain it. And really, isn’t that it? That I can’t contain it… that the volume of love is so great that I have to pour it out because I don’t have the capacity to hold it in, all for myself?

That's the desire of my heart. Let my life (heart) be a purified vessel. An instrument that God trusts that he can fill and fill and fill again and know that I will be a joyful outpouring of what he's giving to me. It's interesting how the emptying of self reaps such reward: joy, compassion, generosity, wisdom. I think that when we pour into each other and build each other up, we learn more about who we are meant to be. Pour me out, Lord."

"You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love." Galations 5:13


{PS. If anyone is interested in going on the Walk to Emmaus, please let me know! It would be a joy to send you!}