My Very Young Husband and Some of His Family Members

Michael

More photos!

Some Old Photos

My husband's family has not given my many photos to date, but his Aunt Kathy has graciously sent me these photos of his childhood. I have more and will post them one set at a time.

Wishes

I am wishing today for many things.

I wish for peace worldwide, but also for peace in my heart.
Storms are always near us. It seems that we are just getting through one or about to face another, at all times. The sunshine and blue skies are temporal, at best. One of my blog friends talked about "dancing through the storms". Wise people realize that storms are inevitable. Wise folks also realize that the end of the storm is just as inevitable. They can hold up their head, knowing that no one is exempt from the storms in life, and be confident that the sun will shine again...for everyone. Their faith is amazing and I wish my faith were that strong. Wise people know that beauty comes from the trials of life and even joy is forged that might never have been realized any other way. My faith is a work in progress and my goal is to not only face the storms that life tosses my way, but to dance my way through them with the full knowledge that God is in control, that He cares what happens to me, and that He is ever faithful, even when my faith is weak.

I wish that I had no regret.
I wish I had been smart enough to make better decisions in many areas of my life. I have done nothing that has been so detrimental that I could not overcome it, but I want to learn to have the wisdom to avoid even the smallest regret from now, forward. I would love to be able to learn from other's mistakes, but sadly, I tend to have to "buy" my life lessons, instead of "borrowing" from other's experiences too often. How does one learn to shift hindsight forward and judge what is the best road to travel? How does one know when the Spirit is leading, as opposed to Satan getting a foothold in one's thinking, making one believe the Spirit might be pointing them in a certain direction? How can one be SURE? Is there such a thing as an absolute when circumstances are so varied and changing?
Having said all that, I think I would much rather reach the end of my life, look back and think, "Wow. I really wish I hadn't done things that way", than reflect and always wonder what might have been. Regret, either way, but one acts and apologizes later, if necessary. The other is just existing.

I wish that life could be simple.
Why does everything have to be so complicated? Maybe I bring on complexity by having too many irons in the fire, or procrastinate until it all piles up, or maybe life just isn't simple, regardless. I don't know, but I long for simplicity in all things.

I wish that I could control myself better.
Learn to act instead of reacting to my surroundings. Learn to master this emotional self that plagues me with its highs and lows. I have always been a passionate person, but the passion both good and bad, are wearing me thin. I would love to just get to a balance and stay there. It is exhausting trying to maneuver the emotional rollercoaster on which I find myself these days. Maybe age contributes to that. Maybe hormones? Whatever the reason, I find that more than ever before, I am ready for just a little straight, smooth roadway, minus the curves and the ups and downs.

I wish I could grow up.
I don't believe that I am suffering from the Peter Pan Syndrome. I don't want to be childish. Childlike, certainly, but not forever immature. I wish I could feel like an adult, but most of the time I find myself wondering how I got to be so old and not grown up, emotionally. I want to be self-disciplined, assertive, and proactive, but find myself lacking in those areas. Now, more than ever, I need those qualities. My family is depending on me, so I must find a way to achieve this. Just don't quite know how. Therapy maybe?

I wish I could be the wife, mother, daughter, sister, friend, and servant that I want to be.
I am pretty good in some of those areas but in others, not so much. Some of them fluctuate and alternate, depending on the situation. I am a good person, with many good qualities, but I know that I can do better and have to find a way to master my life so that I manage it, instead of it managing me.

My birthday is this month and I am keeping all these wishes to whisper before blowing out the candles. Maybe the birthday wishes will magically begin the growth process. Maybe another year of age will fill me with enough determination (or desperation) to acquire the tools necessary to accomplish my wish list in the near future. Reflecting on another year passed has brought me face to face with my wish list.

Here's hoping 2010 will be the turning point for me. Cheers!

Happy New Year!

I invited a few friends over for New Year's Eve for food, fun, and watching the ball drop in Times Square.

We played cards and chatted until well after midnight. What fun we had.

Then Callie got sick, next Gracie dropped with the same virus that Micah brought home from Exposure. Luckily, MT and I have been spared this one. Maybe we have already encountered this virus and it only got the children who have never been exposed to it. Who knows?

Above are some pictures of the cupcakes I made for the party. I piped out the numbers in chocolate candy melts. I garnished the cupcakes with vanilla icing, red and clear sugar crystals, and the chocolate 2010 perched proudly atop each one. Fun for my girls and me, in the making of these treats.

May peace abound, may comfort soothe your aching heart, may joy surround you and love enfold you, and prosperity be your constant companion in the coming year. May God's richest blessings be poured out on you and yours!

Happy New Year!

Not the Merriest of Christmas', so far...

This Christmas has been plagued with troubles. I wonder if that is just the nature of aging and watching those we love age as time marches on for each of us or maybe, just the troubled times we find ourselves in this year.

Many of my people have experienced illness, loss, and suffering. In essence, Murphy's Law has been alive and well this Christmas.

I dreamed of a beautiful Christmas repleat with merry-making, joyful times, playing outside in our new yard in the sunshine, happy times making happy memories to be fondly remembered as our "first" Christmas in our beautiful home.

The weather is not cooperating. No snow, no sunshine, just cold rain is predicted. Not the scenario I have dreamed of since moving here. I planned to have family here, but the weather will probably keep our Christmas dinner to a bare minimum this year, possibly only my little family.

Our children have outgrown the "Santa" thing, so the magic seems to have diminished considerably.

Several of my family have been experiencing depression. Nothing I can do about that, but it is quite difficult to watch someone you love so much, be tortured from within, at such a beautiful time of year. Tends to be contagious and depression sets in around my heart, as well.

Many people are no longer with us this Christmas and grief at the holidays is so tough to deal with. No way to get around that one. Just gotta go through it.

Finacial worries plague nearly everyone I know. Times are tough right now for so many people.

Little things that go wrong seem to be magnified. Add to that the hormone factor and my life seems pretty troubled this season.

The beloved Christmas tunes that I cherish so much, that have played throughout my house for weeks now, will soon be coming to an end.

I am going to revisit How the Grinch Stole Christmas and learn how to be a Who in Whoville. Learn how to keep Christmas joy from being stolen from my heart. This is the first Christmas I can remember that I have had to fight so hard to stay merry.

But my resolve is solid. It is going to be a happy Christmas for me. I am determined to make it so. To appreciate the good that is my life. To recognize the blessings that have been showered on my family. To understand that even when life is tough, it is still worth the effort to enjoy. To be thankful for what is, for it could easily be so much worse.

Yes, Virginia there is a Santa Claus. It is a Wonderful Life and there is Joy to the World to be shared by all.

To quote from one of my favorite writings:
"With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams it is still a beautiful world. Be cheerful. Strive to be happy."

Wishing you all a very merry Christmas this year. May your days be merry and bright and may we all remember What a Wonderful World it is, in which we live.

May His love fill us in this sweet season and carry us through the coming year. May we all keep Christmas in our hearts everyday of the year and not only count our blessings, but share them, and in doing so, spread the love of our Saviour and God to those who need it, whenever they need most, every single day of our lives.

"God bless us, everyone!"

"Happy Christmas to all and to all a good night!"

Our New Home

Here they are...finally! Photos of our new home. Please excuse the Rubbermaid containers that are still lying around with stuff in them to unpack. It is still a work in progress.

Let me state from the beginning that Callie's room is clean and has stayed that way since we moved in. Her room is decorated with her beloved horses as a theme. Western all the way for that girl.

Grace's room is for lack of a better term, eclectic and new age. It is a little messy, but she comes in second on the clean room competition.

Micah's room is easy to spot dispite the camoflauge literally EVERYWHERE he could find a place to place it. He got a really bad grade for neatness and his room has only been clean a couple of times since moving in.

Our master bedroom is clutter with the boxes of stuff aforementioned.

The kitchen is usually not buried under layers of clean, freshly washed dishes, but I took these photos after our dinner party and since our dishwasher is not here yet, I am washing by hand and letting them air dry.

A couple of other places you might see an ramdom box or two whose contents haven't found a home yet. However, if I waited until it was perfect the photos would never happen.

I love the tranquilty of the living room. I can feel my BP drop and my heart rate slow the longer I sit there by my tree. Another favorite place is the den with a roaring fire in the fire place. My overall favorite is the kitchen. Most of you who have been to our former home know that my kitchen there was smaller than most galleys on boats, so I am still trying to determine the best place for everything, since there are so many options for placement. Just so many places to love in this house!

Our home sits on a gererous 1.7 acres of land. How unheard of is that? We have so much space inside and out and we are loving every minute of it!

So if you are ever in Fort Deposit, Alabama drop by and pay us a visit at 210 Golson Road. We would love to have the company!