Day of Remembrance, Vegetables, & Fall Weather!

This week started with the anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attacks on our country. A friend posed the following question on his Facebook that really got me thinking: "Why should we 'never forget' September 11th? What does it mean to you to never forget?"

I've been thinking about that a lot since he posted that, and for me, there are a couple of things I think we should "never forget." First of all, I think never forgetting means remembering/honoring the lives of all who lost their lives that day, all the firemen and rescue workers who lost their lives, and all the soldiers who have lost their lives since then. We should also remember all who helped in that catastrophe, and all the soldiers who are still fighting this war. I think we should never forget what happened that day so we will never let it happen again. It gave us an opportunity to raise our awareness and security standards, and I hope we never forget how unprepared we were, so we are never that unprepared again.

On to the rest of the week. A couple of months ago, we planted a vegetable and herb garden. I was SO excited this week when Robby came in and told me we had our first green beans! Soon, we should have corn, zucchini, squash, and cucumbers.

The garden when we first planted it

Our first vegetables:)

This week I also decided that I am going to finish my degree at Limestone. The way my degree is set up at Greenville Tech, the only places I can transfer to and not have to retake a bunch of classes are Southern Wesleyan and Limestone. I really like Southern Wesleyan and it seems to be a great school, but the way their adult studies program is structured just isn't for me. Limestone gives me the flexibility to take only the classes I need and to move at my own pace. So I'll probably start there next Fall. It's nice to have that decision out of the way!

Friday nights we always go to my dad's house for dinner (us, my sister and her family). Last night my dad, me, my sister, and Micah (her 2 year old) were driving to pick up the pizza. I guess "Grandpa" was going too fast, because most of the way he was saying "Wanna slow down." It's really cool to see how well he's learning to talk. He's come such a long way in just a few months.

This week we have been having amazing Fall weather! The highs from now until next Sunday are in the low-to-mid 80s. Have I mentioned how much I love Fall?! Last night after we got home, we got to use the hot tub for the first time this season. I don't know if the weather will stay cool enough for the next couple of weeks to continue using it, but we're enjoying it while it lasts.

I'll end on this note. God has really been working on me lately. He is continuously teaching me the perspective that my circumstances don't need to change - God is using my circumstances to change ME. Instead of asking God to constantly change my circumstances, I need to ask Him to show me what He is trying to teach me through them.

One of my favorite verses helps me remember that, and I thought it might be an encouragement to others as well.

Phillipians 1:6 - "Being confident of this, that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus."

Have a great week!

Fall Preview!

Last week we had a wonderful taste of Fall weather. I cannot WAIT for Fall. It's my favorite season...scarves, boots, sweaters, beautiful weather, leaves changing colors...there's just something about it that puts me in a good mood. Unfortunately, it was only temporary, but it was nice while it lasted.

Monday we celebrated Labor Day. Robby and I both had the day off work, so we just spent some time relaxing together and enjoying each others' company. It was nice to have an extra day to relax after the football game Saturday.

The rest of the week was the same old stuff - work, schoolwork, repeat. School is still going well, and I even got an A on my math test (which hasn't happened in I don't know how long!).

Tuesday was my stepmom's birthday, so we went over to their house Friday evening to celebrate. She has a shih tzu and loves them, so I decided to make her a shih tzu cake. I really enjoyed making this one.

Me with the cake

Top view

Side view

This week's song is "Reach" by Peter Furler. It's funny - I never really cared for his music when he was the lead singer of the Newsboys, but I love this song. If you listen to the words, it's a refreshing reminder of how important each one of us is to God, despite how many other people He has to take care of. He never forgets us, never leaves us behind.

Week Ending 9/3/11

The first half of this week was spent catching up on schoolwork (or trying to catch up, I should say). I'm doing pretty well in my classes. I LOVE my Small Business Management class. I'm learning so much and I actually really enjoy it.

I've been attending a Bible Study at our church about how the grace of God can change us and how we handle the difficult things that happen in our daily lives. It has taught me so much about who God is and who I am in Him. Most importantly, it has taught me that a life of daily cross-centered living is essential to becoming more and more like Christ. Many Christians (including myself) don't really give the cross much thought outside of the moment we ask Jesus into our hearts, and maybe on Easter. But recognition of our daily need for the cross changes our perspective in a way nothing else will. All of that being said, Thursday was our last night of the study. Instead of breaking out into our small groups like we normally do, we had a praise & worship service. Let me tell you, it was truly amazing. It was so awesome to hear people get up and give testimonies about how faithful our God is and how He had changed them throughout this study. At that moment, I was so thankful to be a part of a church that is so excited about God and loves to worship Him and share it with the world.

Friday, my sister and one of my favorite little boys came to meet me for lunch. I love my little nephew Micah. He sat at my desk and helped me do my work:) Ashley had taught him that Jessica loves Robby, Mommy loves Daddy, and Grandpa loves Grandma. She was trying to show me by asking him, "Micah, who does Jessie love?" And he replied with, "Jessie loves...Micah!" So every time she asked who Jessie, Mommy, or Grandpa loves, he said "Micah!" It was adorable. I guess he thinks everyone loves him:) That evening Robby, me, my sister, brother-in-law, and her kids went to my dad's for dinner. The boys' birthday party was last week, but the presents weren't opened at the party, so we did it then. We got Micah the new Thomas train, Toby. We got Ethan a Lego helicopter (which I later realized was probably not so nice for the parents).

Micah opening his train

Ethan opening his helicopter

Saturday, Ashley and I went to the first Clemson football game with my dad and stepmom. We had a blast. It was very hot, but a lot of fun. Hopefully Robby and I can go to the homecoming game in October.

The players running down the hill

Balloons going up in the air

It's game time!

Me & Ashley at the game

Ha ha...I painted our toenails orange and white:)

So, as a music lover, I decided to post one of my favorite songs right now. It's such an encouragement to me, and just reminds me that I can always trust in God because He is always faithful.

Fun with Friends & Family

On to last week's update...

On Tuesday, I got to have dinner with one of the girls from my Bible study. We met at Carabba's at 6:00 and had so much to talk about that at 10:00 we realized they were closing up and hadn't even noticed. It was such a blessing to be able to talk with someone who challenges me spiritually and reminds me of God's love and promises for me. I really hope we can do it again and often.

Saturday, my nephews Ethan and Micah had their birthday party. Their mom let me have the privilege of making their cake. Although it didn't work out as planned, I was pretty happy with the end result. I'm learning more with each cake I do, so I guess that's a good thing.

Thomas Cake

Robby looking a little like a creeper...LOL. He loves me:)

Chowing down on cake!

Love this little boy! But I somehow forgot a picture with my other little boy:(

Me with the cake

After the party, my brother Ben stayed the night with us while my parents were at a hotel. We had a blast. We took him to Applebee's (one of his favorites), played Just Dance on the Wii, played The Office game, then WATCHED The Office. He wore me out:) On the way home, he told my mom that he wishes I lived on their cul-de-sac (TOTALLY made my day).

On Sunday, we got up and went to church. I am so so grateful to be a part of a church that consistently teaches the Word of God and never fails to challenge me in my walk with God. After church, my mom, stepdad, sister and her family all came over for Sunday lunch. I made country fried steak, mashed potatoes, and green beans. I LOVED having my family over and being able to cook for them &  spend time with them. I'm so thankful to have a house now where I'm able to have ten people over for lunch. At about 5:00, everyone left and it was just me and Robby. They wore us out so bad we took a two hour nap:) Then I had to get busy on my schoolwork and get ready for the reality of a Monday quickly approaching.

I don't think this week will hold quite as much excitement, but I guess you never know:)

Tybee Island 2011

I wanted to start by writing about our vacation from a couple of weeks ago. I know I'll want to remember everything about it, so I'm writing it down here. This year, Robby and I took a week's vacation to Tybee Island, GA. It's a small island about 15 miles outside of Savannah. We had a WONDERFUL relaxing time just hanging out and resting. We were right on the ocean with an unbelievable view. One of the coolest things was to be sitting on the balcony or on the beach and seeing the shrimp boats going back and forth to Savannah. We spent a lot of time at the beach, the pool, and our condo. I read a LOT (2 books in 5 days). Since we didn't have DirecTV to record the shows we normally watch, we spent a lot of time watching Food Network. Seeing all the amazing recipes made me want to cook more, and I promised myself I would try some of them. It hasn't happened yet, but who knows:)

One of the many shrimp boats we saw

Our view from the balcony

One day, we rented bicycles from a place downtown and rode around the island to the lighthouse that's there. We actually climbed the lighthouse to the top in 90-something degree heat. But it was so much fun. I've never been to a lighthouse before, and I just thought it was so cool.

Robby and me in front of the lighthouse

At the top

Close-up of the lighthouse

Cool picture of one of the storms we had

On another day, we went into Savannah to do some sightseeing. What a beautiful city. I just love historic towns like that. I know it sounds silly, but as I ride around the town in the trolly, I try to imagine what it was like in its first days. It just fascinates me that these houses and buildings have been standing so long and have seen so many different eras. While we were there, we took a trolly tour, walked on River St, went to Leopold's Ice Cream, and walked in Forsythe Park. There is also an unbelievable cathedral there that blows my mind. There is so much detail in the architecture and paintings on the walls. It's indescribable - you just have to see it for yourself.

River St

St. John's Cathedral

Sitting in Forsythe Park

Fountain in Forsythe Park

At Leopold's

On our last full day on the island, we took a dolphin tour. We must have seen at least 50 dolphins during that hour. They were absolutely beautiful! We even saw some babies. It was a great way to end such an awesome trip.

One of the many dolphins we saw

Another lighthouse we saw while on the tour

On the boat

Intro

I've always loved the idea of having a place to document memories in my life and later look back on those memories. I just don't have time to keep a journal, and never really thought of a blog being a way to do this until recently. I recently decided to majorly cut back my time spent on Facebook. It's mostly a waste of time and I have so many more important things that need my time and energy. I'll still get on there sometimes on the weekends to keep in touch with people, and will respond if someone writes to me, but I won't be on much more than that.

So, I decided to start a blog to keep in touch with people and to document the events in my life so I can later look back on them and maybe even share them with my children someday. I plan to update it once a week on the weekends. That way I can post something at one time about what's going on in my life and not be bogged down with all of the other stuff on Facebook. It may never be read by anyone, and that's OK. It'll be there if they want to, and I'll still have a place to write.