Fun-Filled Weekend!

When my hubby is away....I get to play! Not that I couldn't play while he is here, but him being out of town for the weekend means I get to do whatever I want!! Which means...Friday night cuddling with my kiddos, movies, and popcorn. Saturday.... Friends and Fun!! (I invited some of our favorite friends over so their mom and dad could enjoy some birthday time together.) Now, this is what Saturday is all about, nothing to do but
P-L-A-Y..... ALL DAY.... Literally :)

We come to love not by finding the perfect person, but by learning to see an imperfect person perfectly.

September 8, 1968
What A special day!

For all that has become since then,

We celebrate you today.

To my mother and father in-law,

Happy 40th Anniversary!

I love Jeremy's parents! I love that they honor their marriage. I love that they raised 2 wonderful sons who know and love the Lord. I love that they love their family. I love that they stayed together for 40 years and enjoy life together. I love that they played their role in MY happily ever after. Without them, there would be no "us." Thank You!!

There were decorations!

There was cake!

There were surprises!

There were 40 heartfelt reasons we are forever grateful that these two married and for the lessons they have taught along the way! (compiled from Jeff and Wendy, Jeremy and I)



Some of the words brought laughter and countless smiles....

Some of the words brought reminiscing and stories to share....

Some of the loving words were too hard for a tough guy to read, so he handed them to his sis....

And some of the words brought tears...

There was a special video made with lots of love to celebrate 4o years of togetherness...

And a precious thought that touches my heart, as I try to picture Jeremy and I 33 years from now celebrating with OUR children.....

Bragging Rights....Every Parent Has Them, So I Think I Will....

School has been in session now for 6 weeks, and these weeks have really been great! I am so proud of my children for their accomplishments and truly for who they each are!

Kyle has stayed on green(good behavior), he LOVES books, writing, and puzzles. He had a Nursery Rhyme day and went as, well I am sure you can figure him out! He was so cute. He has been signed up for soccer and is super excited for it to begin! He is 5 and he is proud! (this is where he would correct me...."5 AND A HALF"!) He has the BEST teachers...we are so very blessed, he needed them!

Cameron Nicole is loving school and doing wonderful! She LOVES to read, read, read, which I am so happy about! Cameron was chosen as the student of the week 2 weeks ago....YAY! She is taking a hip-hop dance class with one of her favorite friends. During PE this semester she goes to the Y for a swimming class...can you say heaven? Cami is a fish! Cameron loves animals and wants to be a vet when she grows up. She is in training- for now she is busy taking care of her 20 or so webkinz!!

This is his shy wave to his beautiful aunt Amy who came to watch him play!

Chris...I still can't believe this young man is just that!! A fine young man. He is doing awesome in school as well, just got his progress report...all A's! He is playing football this year (and mom is praying football this year, for NO injuries, still haven't recovered from the broken arm and surgery from the last season)

They are 3 and 0, Chris has played in each game. He recovered a fumble tonight and was in on a tackle! Way to go Greyhounds! His first project in Science was to, "build your own solar oven", his (and dads) won FIRST place! It reached 124 degrees and it cooked a hotdog. So exciting!

Through each of my children, I truly catch glimpses of heaven!!!

What's in a name? How about a smile and a great photo opp...and a perfect teaching moment!

The little man of the house has been writing his name for over a year or so, but has had trouble with the ever difficult "K". He is so excited with himself because he now has it mastered, and he loves to write his name....everywhere!! On his homework, in his coloring books, in the steam on the shower door, and EVEN on the truck! Yep! He left his mastered signature for everyone to see in PERMANENT marker, on the truck!

Blessings From a Blog ?!?

Not very many years ago I had never even heard of the word, blog. Today I find myself...
Looking forward to blog ,

Cannot get enough of blog ,

Wish I started this sooner blog,

Why can't I be more like her blog,

I wonder if I can find that on a blog,

Thank you Cristin for inspiring me to blog,

WoW!I have been forever touched by your beautiful example of faith, your incredible strength, your testimony, and your gift of pure love blog!



And....I am SO happy I have found YOUR blog!!!

*Kimmie*Angie*Marni* Carla*Judy* Natalie*Amy*Kathy*Lashelle*Valerie*Jodi*Sue

I believe every person you meet and spend time with in your life is there for a reason. I believe that when peoples life paths meet it is more than just a coincidence! These past couple months I have re-connected with some special friends from my youth. Friends who may think they just went to church with me. Friends who I have thought about many times throughout the years who I have fond memories of. Friends who I saw almost every Sunday for many years, friends who were friends with my mother and very special to her, friends who I worked with at the childcare, friends I went to Wednesday night activities with for years, friends who I enjoyed some wonderful youth activities with,went to girls camp with, friends who I danced with, laughed with, cried with, learned with, and grew with! These friends will always be special to me and my heart was over-filled with joy when I "saw" each of you again!



"No love, no friendship, can cross the path of our destiny without leaving some mark on it forever." - Francois Mocuriac -




Did I mention I LOVE to blog?

I also have some AWESOME cousins who I love greatly and had wonderful times with too. Memories can take you back to some very special times and I love thinking about our youth together. I love being able to stay in touch with you through blog and even though we are far apart, I feel close!

*Michael and Jen* Shannah* Kristen*Bethanie*

"Cousin to cousin we'll always be, Special friends from the same family tree."

Cristin and Dana...I am so glad our lives paths have crossed. I enjoy getting to know you better! You are both so sweet and I am blessed to call you friend!
So....Blessings From a Blog? Most definitely...lots of them....and I am SO grateful!!
Big Hugs to you all
~Melissa~

We have been

I am so grateful we have been protected again. Gustav was not much compared to his friend Katrina. We left to check on our home, and we didn't ever even lose power. We lost some siding from our home and had some damage to our fence, but I will gladly take that! And although we would have loved to spend our Labor Day weekend MANY other different ways, we are reminded of how blessed we are and are thankful for our growing experiences!!

Gustav visits Mississippi

Because Gustav's path had moved more West of us, we decided to "ride out the storm" in the comfort of our own home. We knew it was a strong hurricane but we were not directly in it's path this time. We were well prepared with food, water, a generator and all other necessities. And... we were ready for some family fun!

Games
Games....
....And more games!

Gustav was to make landfall around 10 a.m. so we headed over to nana and papa's for a hurricane breakfast around 8 a.m. Rain had started and winds were blowing, but we were safe to drive. We decided to stay there and hang out until the storm passed. Winds got strong(about 45 mph) and we lost power about 10:30. We watched out the window truly without fear this time! We knew we were going to be okay. We were experiencing more of a severe tropical storm other than a hurricane because we were so far East of him. The frequent tornado warnings got scary, but playing games helped pass the time. We were ready to get out of the house and scope the neighborhood(it was getting quite hot with the power out)
So out with my camera....
This is the beach! Behind this concrete wall is usually about 50 feet of sand and THEN water. In front of the wall to the stop sign is (usually) a 2 lane road to drive down. The water covered the road and was high up into the neighborhoods!







more pics to come...