"We Picked uh....uh....uh....."

That is what Landry ran in exclaiming to GiGi after she had helped PawPaw pick muscadines.  She knew they were round like berries, purple like plums, but the size left her head spinning.  My dad is quite the agriculturalist.  He's grows the meanest, greenest garden I've ever seen.  I am thankful because I benefit greatly :) The muscadines Landry helped him pick are going to make me some amazing jelly!  Three cheers for home-grown goodness!

"Whew!  Picking muscadines is hard work!  I must wipe the sweat from my brow."

And here are a few other pictures from our weekend at GiGi and PawPaws for free.....

Reflection

I have never been the real emotional type.  I come from families who are on opposite ends of the spectrum when it comes to feeling and expressing emotions.  Just to give you an idea of what I am talking about: my mom's mom once won $10,000 on the radio.  They asked if she could call back and act a little more excited so the listeners wouldn't think it wasn't a hoax.  My dad's mom will cry over pretty window treatments. HaHa!  I like to think I am a healthy mix, but then again, I could be dead wrong in that assumption.  

Anyway, I used to think something was wrong with me because I didn't cry in movies.  I would try and try and try, but couldn't squeeze one lowly tear from my eyes.  Imagine my surprise when I watched Armageddon for the first time and found myself in a puddle of tears as the character played by Liv Tyler told her father goodbye.  For the first, I felt like I actually put myself in the position of the character and empathized with her.  As I have grown older and experienced more things, I find myself empathizing with many more characters and the tears flow much more freely than when I was younger.

Recently, Cory and I were made aware of the death of good friend, Aaron Whatley   He was only 35 and died unexpectedly.   He left behind a beautiful wife and 3-year-old daughter.  We were honored to attend his memorial service where his life was celebrated.  I wasn't quite sure how I was going to react at this memorial service.  It had been a while since we had seen Aaron, and the news of his death seemed so surreal.  It quickly became reality as we walked into the service, spoke with his wife, and watched a slideshow of his wonderful, and all-too-short life.  I could not fight back tears as I viewed picture after picture of him with his most prized possession, his family.  We celebrated by singing songs of Praise, exactly what Aaron loved to do.  We shared wonderful memories of Aaron and his quirky personality.   But most of all we talked about his love for Christ and how he lived to make Christ known to others.   Funerals and memorial services always cause me to reflect on my life.  How will others describe me?  Will they be able to honestly say that I lived my life for Christ?  My prayer lately, is that God takes my mind of selfish desires and are replaced with desires of God.

We love you Aaron!!  You were an amazing friend and inspiration to us all.

Nana, Aunt Z, and Baby Mason come for a visit

I can't recall if I have mentioned it before, but Cory's family lost their home to a tornado a few months ago. It's been a difficult road for them, but God is good and has protected and provided every step of the way.  However, it has kept them very busy, getting rid of the old and planning for the new.  Imagine our excitement when Cory's mom said she would be able to take off for a weekend and come to our house.  Even more she was bringing Cory's sister Lindsay and Baby Mason as well.

Bad news is that it rained and rained and rained.  Good news is that we didn't let that stop us from having a great time!

On Mission

Did I mention that we were going to Costa Rica?  I'm pretty sure I never did since I got so behind on my blogging.  Well, Guess What?  Cory and I went to Costa Rica.  There were a total of 15 of us who traveled to the small town of Guatuso to help a local Pastor minister to a neighborhood there.  The Pastor and some of his church members started a  house church in the neighborhood.  Our job was to go door to door and share the gospel with the people in the neighborhood.  God showed up in amazing ways and we saw many come to Christ!  He WAY surpassed our expectations, but I don't know why we ever put limits on God in the first place.  If you would like a more detailed description of our trip, you can go to the blog from the trip  where there are several daily entries: guatusomission.blogspot.com

Here are some of my favorite pictures from the trip:

Willing to admit defeat

Sooo.....if you follow my blog at all, you must think I have suddenly vanished off of the face of the earth.  It would seem that way, the way I left my blog high and dry on Day 150.  Truth is, I got busy.  WAY busier than I could handle, and I failed.  It's very hard for me to admit when I fail, because when I set a goal I am determined to achieve it.  That is a very good characteristic in many situations, and I am thankful I possess it.  However, it can also be a very negative characteristic because it makes me prideful.  If I have to choose one sin I struggle with the most, it would be that gosh-darn, awful PRIDE.  We know what the Bible says about it.  So, I started the project 365 because I thought it would be fun and beneficial to me.  Turns out it became a time-consuming chore.  At every moment I had the camera in my children's faces because I HAD to get the perfect shot for the day.  And if you have followed along, you've seen pictures of them covering their faces saying "enough is enough".   Well, mommy gives.  Don't get me wrong, I will still take excessive amounts of pictures of my children, but it will be out of my love for it and them and not because I have to prove something to myself.  Expect to see me back to my normal blogging, where I tell cute stories of day-to-day life and special achievements. I've missed it!

For now, here is a LOAD of pictures I have taken recently but honestly can't tell you which day of the year.....

Landry taking Eli for a ride

When you're tired, your tired

 Oh, what do you know? Blossom came to clean my house. lol

Daddy's Father's Day Breakfast, just like he likes it

 The King of the Day and his princess

Oh, the wardrobe...

 Our little fashionista waiting for a snowball

I love watching my children learn.  Here's Eli's new trick.  He likes to count them too, even if it just sounds like "uh, uh, uh, uh ,uh"

So Landry is aching for cold weather.  She is always wanting to wear coats, and scarfs and hats.  She also wants to build a snowman.  This is probably the only kind of snowman she'll be able to build here in South Louisiana 

A friend of mine taught me how to curl hair with my straightening iron.  Landry has been tickled-pink!  Look at my beautiful ballerina

 A little game of chase

Here's Eli rocking one of my garage sale finds

And the fashionista has expanded her creativity to incorporate interior design.  She said, "Look mommy!  I put decorations on my door!"

Then she went back to decorating her feet