Friday's Fave Five~ 12.21.12

'Tis the Friday before Christmas...and I'm counting down a few of my favorites from this week.


1. A break from school. The kids' break starts at noon today. They are all having class Christmas parties this morning, and they are super excited about being away from their teachers until January 8.

2. Christmas musicals. Lil' Nut sang in the school choir, and Curly Girl played the hand bells in our school's program. They both did a super job!

3. No more shopping. Most of my Christmas purchases were made online this year, and the friendly man in the big brown truck brought them to my door. Yesterday I hit the mall and picked up the last few items on my shopping list. One more trip to the grocery store, and then I'm done!   

4. Silly firsts. A few days ago after picking the kids up from school, I stopped at the gas station to fill up the truck. Bookworm asked, "Mom, how come you've never let me pump gas before?" I wondered the same thing, especially since it's not my favorite task. I told her that it was her lucky day! She was a little embarrassed about me walking her through the process step-by-step with cars driving by. When the pump clicked off, she jumped back and was scared that gas was going to fly everywhere. It was hilarious! After we got back in the truck she said, "That wasn't near as fun as I thought it would be." Even though she's not old enough to drive yet, it's good to know I have someone else who can do my dirty work for me.

5. Quiet evenings at home. We haven't had too many of these this month, but I love it when we do. Family time is a treasure.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I hope that you and your family have a very blessed CHRISTmas!

Great Joy

Gray Thursday

The sky is overcast today, but I'm not complaining since it's been rather dry here lately. It looks cold out, but it's not. I spent the morning making visits to some of our church's winter visitors, and now I'm going to wrap a few presents before the kids get home from school. I hope you are having a great day no matter what the weather is like!

Homework

Birthday Girl

Curly Girl turned 11 today. I love you, my Hope!

Friday's Fave Five~ 11.16.12

Happy Friday! Our family is up early getting ready for a fun-filled day trip, but I'm going to make you wait to find out where we're going. Let's just say that we'll probably be standing in long lines a good part of the day.

Here are five of my faves from this week:

1. Bible preaching. Several great messages were preached during our church's fall Bible conference Sunday through Wednesday. I'm still pondering thoughts from a couple in particular. You know, we really waste so much time on the trivial things in life. It was good for me to sit in church four nights in a row and meditate on God's word.

2. Saving money. Thanks to pleasant temperatures so far this month, I think we've only had to run the a/c one day. That makes a HUGE difference in our electric bill.

3. Smart kiddos. All four of the kids made the 1st quarter Honor Roll at school. The girls all made straight A's, and Case made all A's & B's. They have all worked hard, and I haven't had to hound them.

4. Clean carpet. We've lived in our house for four years, and we've never had the carpets steam cleaned. The carpet is very light colored, so you can imagine what it looks like with six people and a dog tracking all over it. After doing a ton of research and waiting until I had a 30% off coupon, I purchased heavy duty carpet cleaner. After cleaning a couple of the worst areas, the carpet looks brand new. Seriously. The doggie stains are completely gone. Now I'm smiling when I look at the floor. The carpet cleaner was a big investment, but a small one compared to installing new carpet.

5. Early morning views. I took this picture when I walked outside to get the newspaper. I just stood there for a few minutes admiring the Creator's creation.

If you would like to share your favorites from the past week, you can link up here.

Friday's Fave Five 11.09.12

I've had a good week, in spite of being a bit under the weather with a head cold. Some things I'm thankful for...

1. A girls' night out. The girls and I enjoyed watching the Imperial Symphony Orchestra perform. The guest pianist was a 19-year-old Julliard student and the son of a man who has judged some of the girls' piano competitions. This event has been on the calendar for a few months, but I didn't get advanced tickets because I wasn't sure whether or not we'd be able to go. Thankfully, the concert wasn't sold out. Students received free admission, so I was the only one who needed a ticket. I asked for the least expensive seat, which ended up being on the very front row in front of the stage. It wasn't the best view of the orchestra, but we were right up close to watch the pianist's hands as they flew across the keys playing Grieg's Piano Concerto in A Minor, Op. 16. We had so much fun! Check out our view from the "cheap seats".

2. Giving my voice on election day. It's good to know that my vote counted, even if the national election didn't turn out to my liking. Thankfully, no matter what, God is still in control.

3. Good friends who are good encouragers. I received some uplifting emails and texts this week from a couple of my friends just when I needed a little pick-me-up.

A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in pictures of silver. ~Proverbs 25:11

4. Hot apple cider. It's been a little bit chilly here (for me) this week, so I've been sipping hot apple cider throughout the day to warm me up and help sooth my sore throat. I found some packets of instant mix at AL*DI, and it's delicious!

5. Quiet. Just peace and quiet. Lovely!

If you would like to share your favorites from the past week, you can link up here.

Giving my voice

Jump!

Shay (wearing the red jersey) just finished her season on the JV volleyball team. This was her first year on the team, and she did a great job! Her height and those long arms come in very handy at the net.

The thing that impressed me the most about her being on the team actually took place off the court. At the beginning of the season, Shay agreed to get up early every morning and spend some time practicing piano before school so that volleyball practices and games wouldn't interfere with the one hour a day of piano practice her piano instructor requires. She is so not a morning person, but she kept her word and got up early each day even when she was tired out from getting home late at night after out-of-town volleyball games. I'm proud of you, Shay!

Trip to Georgia

Last weekend our family traveled back to our "old" church in Eatonton, Georgia, to be part of its 25th Anniversary service. This was such an exciting trip for us, especially for the kids since it had been almost three years since our last visit. We had such a good time visiting with all of our friends at Grace Baptist, and we're thrilled with what the Lord is continuing to there through their faithfulness.
I sure do miss the beautiful views of the land and Lake Oconee.

The current pastor and the three previous pastors (including my hubby) all had a part in the service. The auditorium's renovation was recently completed, and I loved the new look!

Evangelist Kurt LeBouve sang several songs and preached the afternoon service. He and Mrs. Dale are such sweet people! I heard a little rumor that they just might be with us next month at our church.

This is what the kids looked like when we moved back to Florida in 2008.
And just look at them now!