The Best Dad!

 Happy Late Birthday to my Dad! I love him so very much! God has truly blessed our family with such a kind, courageous, loving, and strong leader. He is a man that I love and respect and I know that he holds my heart with love and care! I am so thankful for a man in my life who is fully devoted to God's will and call upon his life. 

 He has touched many lives and by God's grace alone he will continue to do so until the Lord calls him home, but that of course won't be for a LONG time. 

I LOVE YOU DAD WITH ALL MY HEART! 

So very handsome! ;-)

My wonderful parents.

Us girls with our HERO!!

The boys with their AWESOME Dad! (Can't you see the adoration in Zeke's eyes?)

A Perfect Strength

 When our family announced that Anna has Leukemia last Sunday a dear friend said through a shower of tears, "Just remember that God counted you worthy to bear this burden."
 What a humbling thought! It makes me want to be as the disciples of God who counted it an honor to lose their lives for Christ's sake. We don't often look at the trials of life as an honor but we should, even the trials of correction. He is purifying us to make our image more like His. He is using us for His glory not for our own.
 God gave His perfect Son to die for our sins. He was the only one who could fully wipe away the black stain of sin. Why do we, who have been given everything, have such a big problem with God testing us and using us to show his glory.
 God gave us His promise to be the strength that we need to face these trials if we simply serve Him faithfully. We often say that, "God will never give us anything that we can't handle." This is untrue.
 God always gives us things that we can't handle so that we have to depend on His strength. He provides everything we need. He is our strength, our peace, and our patience.

28. Hast thou not known? Hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of His understanding. 29. He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might He increaseth strength. 30. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall: 31. But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run and not be weary; and they shall walk and not faint,

~Isaiah 40:28-31

7. How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace; that bringeth good tidings of good, that publisheth salvation; that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth! 

~Isaiah 52:7

9. And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap if we faint not. 10. As we have opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith.

~Galations 6:9-10

A Wonderful Girl!

I love this girl!

Happy Birthday to my sweet sister Julia Katherine! What a beautiful young lady you are growing up to be! You have a sweet spirit and you truly love the people that the Lord has brought into your life. May you never lose your sweet love for God's people and your true concern for those who know not the truth of God's love!
May you only grow sweeter every day! May you always have a heart to serve those who are in need!
I love you so very much!!!!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!
May you be a proverbs thirty-one woman that is always giving to God even life itself so as to shine His light on this lost world!

"She stretcheth forth her hands to the poor, yea, she reacheth forth her hands to the needy." 
~Proverbs 31: 20

I wonder where she got her sense of humor?

A beautiful young lady!

Look at this amazing smile!

An Amazing Boy!

Sweetness seems to be pouring out of this face!

 Today is Ezekiel Craig's third birthday and I can't believe it! It was only yesterday that Dad and Mom called and for the first time in seven years excitedly announced, "It's a Boy!!!" I almost didn't believe them because three times before him I had heard, "It's a girl!!!" which of course I didn't mind because I had prayed for many years for more sisters and God had given them!
 This time it was a new little boy and we were all so very thankful for another healthy baby but we were also excited to have another little brother.
I love you so very much Zeke! You are my little snuggle bug and big helper!
May the Lord grow you into a great man of God that will reach thousands if not millions of lost souls with the special gift of Salvation! May you be as the prophet Ezekiel who prayed for God to raise up these dry bones.

1. The hand of the Lord was upon me, and carried me out in the spirit of the Lord, and set me down in the midst of the valley which was full of bones, 2. And caused me to pass by them round about: and, behold, there were very many in the open valley; and, lo, they were very dry. 3. And he said unto me, Son of man, can these bones live? And I answered, O Lord God, thou knowest. 4. Again he said unto me, Prophesy upon these bones, and say unto them, O ye dry bones, hear the word of the Lord. 5. Thus saith the Lord God unto these bones; Behold I will cause breath to enter into you and ye shall live: 6. And I will lay sinews upon you, and will bring up flesh upon you, and cover you with skin, and put  breath in you, and ye shall know that I am the Lord. 7. So I prophesied as I was commanded: and as I prophesied, there was a noise, and behold a shaking, and the bones came together, bone to his bone. 8. And when I beheld, lo, the sinews and flesh came upon them, and the skin covered them above: and there was no breath in them. 9. Then said he unto me, Prophesy unto the wind, prophesy, son of man, and say to the wind, Thus saith the Lord God; Come from the four winds, O breath, and breath upon these slain, that they may live.

~Ezekiel 37:1-9

I know that right now you are still young and even learning about our physical bones but I pray that one day God will use you in a mighty way to raise up the spiritually dead bones of this nation!
I love you sweetie! 

He is sooooo cute!

The excitement of a little boy just thrills my soul!

I LOVE THIS LITTLE (BIG) BOY! :-)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Great Quotes

"Absolute seriousness is never without a dash of humor"

~Dietrich Bonhoeffer

What Love is this?

 You never change, you are the God you say you are. When I''m afraid you come and still my beating heart. You stay the same when hope is just a distant thought, you take my pain and you lead me to the cross.
 What love is this that you gave your life for me and made a way for me to know you and I confess you're always enough for me. Your all I need.
 I look to you, I see the scars upon your hands that hold the truth that when I can't you always can, and standing here beneath the shadow of the cross I am overwhelmed that I keep finding open arms.
 What love is this that you gave your life for me, and made a way for me to know you? And I confess you're always enough for me, you're all I need. Jesus in your suffering you are reaching, you thought of me.
 What love is this that you gave your life for me and made a way for me to know you? And I confess you're always enough for me. Your all I need.

 You are all I need!

~Kari Jobe

My Sweet Lydia

Happy Birthday to my sweet sister Lydia. She is so precious to me as are all of my siblings but today is her special day. She is now 7 years old!! I cannot believe it! It seems like only yesterday we were up with aunt April and we heard Dad say over the phone, "It's a girl!" We were excited then but little did we know what a sweet and "Precious" sister had been added to our family.

Warning! That face can melt hearts! 

Isn't she BEAUTIFUL?

What a sweetheart!

I love this girl!

Is that mischief I see?

She always has a smile

Look at those BLUE eyes!

I LOVE YOU LYDIA!!!!!

Sweet Treats

Apple Fritters 

1 cup flour

1 cup milk

1 cup apples (diced)

2 tsp baking powder

2 TBL sugar

1 beaten egg

Three eggs for us because we triple the batch!

Mix in the baking powder and sugar

Mix all together really well!

Pour in the milk

Beat those eggs!

Add the eggs to the flour mixture

Look at those things bubble away!

Everything tastes better deep fried right?!

The finished product! Yumm!!!

Small scoops are best for yummy fritters!

My favorite treat of the fall would be apple fritters and so I thought that I would share the recipe with you. We make these on the first day of fall or as close to it as possible every year. 

This is one of our favorite family traditions to enjoy while putting up the fall decor together.   

Enjoy!

Sorry for the mixed up pictures! Still trying to figure this whole blog thing out. 

Fall

A BEAUTIFUL FALL DAY!

 A perfect fall is full of bright colors and gusty winds that cause the leaves to dance about the ground. A sharp bite in the air that hints at the cold winter to come. It is the time to snuggle in the warm house with a good book, a cup of tea and a roaring fire that keeps you warm and snug!
 It is a time for the gathering of family to enjoy love and laughter!
 These are a few of my favorite things of fall; knitted sweaters and scarves, the sweet smells of apple fritters and homemade doughnuts, the brilliant colors of the changing leaves, the laughter that fills the house, the cinnamon apple candles that Mom lights throughout our home, the gathering together of friends for a time of Thanksgiving, the blazing fires that Dad and the boys make everyday, and the times that Mom reads to all of us out of the Little House books.
 There are so many wonderful things that I love about fall that I could never list them all! What a glorious world the Lord hath made!!!!

The Beginning of a new Adventure

I am now embarking on a new adventure as I begin this blog. I look forward to the many opportunities to write and share the thoughts of my heart with you. There are so many things to be discovered and learned and we can look to it with excitement. So come and join me on this new voyage  

of my life!