OUCH!

So, there is this manhole (coal shoot) in our soon-to-be office, that leads down to a concrete coal room beneath. We had removed the lid while we were cleaning the coal room, to get some ventilation. Fast forward to the end of the day. It is dark, there are no lights in the office yet, and I was skipping (literally) across the floor joists to go lock the doors. Suddenly, there was nothing beneath my feet. It happened so fast, that I hardly registered what happened. I didn't fall through to the bottom, I think at least one leg fell through, the other leg, and two arms stayed on top. My rib cage caught my fall on the edge of the concrete. Now that I am envisioning this, I want to laugh, but it hurts too much! :) Thankfully the windows were open and Aaron and Rick Elliott (a friend of ours who was helping Aaron out with some tower work) heard me cry or holler or whatever I did, and got me into an upright (or partly upright) position. Took awhile to catch my breath. We are pretty sure I either broke or cracked a lower rib, or tore the cartilage up and I figure since there is nothing one can do about it, going to the dr. will be a waste of time and money. Advil is my new best friend! I am so thankful that I did not fall completely through...could have been a really bad thing! Proverbs 31:25 "She can laugh at the days to come". :) I have a feeling there may be quite a few of those in the near future. :)

Big Changes

Well, I haven't posted for quite some time. We have been insanely busy these days. Seeing as we have been married for 7 years in June, I guess we got an itch for some change. Several closed doors in the past couple years, and new opportunities in recent months have led us to purchase Chase 3000, the internet provider that Aaron has been working for since 2000. Needless to say, the weeks that have led up to this have been a hectic and a bit frightening at times, but the Lord has directed our steps in ways that we could never have dreamed. We are both excited about the new possibilities that are in the works, both for the business, and our lives as well.

Hopefully very soon we will be closing on our own house. It has an awesome location and room with outside access for an office. There will be quite a bit of fixing up to do, but it is very much what we have been looking for for a long time and holds lots of potential. I will post pictures after we close. :)

For the time being, we are living with Aaron's parents. Our original closing date was supposed to have been June 23rd. We gave our landlord notice, and he rented our house out immediately, effective July 1st. The closing date got changed and we had to be out of our old house, so with the help of our awesome friends and family (thank you everyone, so much!) we packed away our belongings (now in various locations across town), and moved in with the 'rents. It is an odd thing, living with another family. Each family has their own ways of taking care of daily tasks. But we have all chosen to make this work, and are getting along quite well. God bless them for putting up with our onery cat! He is out of sorts these days. :) We are hoping to close on the house this month and get the new office set up in quick fashion. I will keep you all updated...hopefully with some pictures soon to follow. We would greatly appreciate your prayers as all of this unfolds, that we will seek God's will and conduct our everyday lives and business in a manner that is pleasing to Him.

Happy Mother's Day to My Moms!

In light of Mother's Day being this weekend I thought that I would take a moment to say something special about our moms. You have both contributed so much to our lives and deserve honor each and every day.

Mom Jacqueline: Thank you for raising three wonderful kids. You have done well! Not only do I witness that each morning when I wake up and see my husband's face, but also through the relationships that I have with Emily and Ryan.
I admire your gift of hospitality and how you are always willing to add a few more unexpected chairs to the dinner table. Somehow, you always manage to find enough food to feed everyone on unplanned occassions!
God has also blessed you with a courage and willingness to witness to and share His word with complete strangers. Something that we all should do, but don't always. Working for God's Kingdom is the only lasting value on this earth. Thank you for the time and energy that both you and Dad put into doing that.
Thank you for accepting us as daughters, rather than daughters-in-law and for always being available when we need you. We love you ! Happy Mother's Day!


Mom Beth: As the world looks on, they do not realize the sacrifice that you made to teach me at home. You put your life and what you wanted to do on hold for 18 years. I appreciate that each and every day and only hope that God will give me the patience and sacrificial heart to do the same. Especially on the days when the math books go flying across the room. :)
Your talent in gardening is so fun to watch through the summer, and even though you are not active in community functions, or traveling here and there, I know that you are walking through your flower gardens with the Lord & praying for people who will never realize it on this earth. There have certainly been many unknown answers to prayer in my life because you and dad are on your knees. Especially on those days when your spirit is willing but your body is weak. Thank you! Don't grow weary of doing good and "being still before the Lord". He has a plan for your life.
Thank you for always being willing to listen, to give advice when asked, but having the wisdom to hold back at other times. Not every woman can consider her mom to be a best friend, but I am blessed to have that privelege. We love you. Happy Mother's Day!

I have gotten so side tracked with the wonders of Face Book that I rarely update my blog these days. Not alot going on. My job at the dentist office is going well. I am falling into a routine, but I must say my house suffers these days. One starts to realize what is important and what isn't. Sometimes that dusting can wait in order to sit down over a cup of coffee with a good friend.

Last weekend we helped out Aaron's family with his Great Uncle Joe's estate auction. The work we put in was minute compared to Aaron's mom & aunt...they have true organizational skills! :) The day went well, despite the rain.

The school season is winding down, and with that there are only two more weeks of youth group. I will be bowing out for the time being. I Will miss the kids, but feel that I am being spiritually unproductive in that area, so on to the next. For now, I will probably use Wednesday evenings to plant and maintain a small garden again. Beyond that, I am not sure what God wants me to be involved with. There are times in life when He calls us to "be still and know that He is God". I haven't been doing so well with devotions and prayer life, so that may be exactly what He is wanting from me at this present time. I cannot minister effectively to others when I am spiritually drained myself.

I do not know what the summer holds this year. Probably work, yard work, a few days at the lake, hopefully a visit to our little sister in Lincoln, church and fire department functions, some good books, and family and friends. I am hoping and praying for a few happy surprises along the way. As Kristy Dupeire wrote on Facebook the other day “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love Him” (I Corinthians 2:9).

As for today, I am galavanting down town to look for a one year birthday gift for a precious little miracle named Mason and maybe a little something for our mom's for mothers day, seeing as this is the weekend.

I stand upon the holy mountain
Overlooking the horizon of Your glory
Longing to stretch out my arms and fly
Up into the intense blue
Higher and higher
Lord fill my desire
I want to be consumed by You
Illumination of my face
Echoes of Your love resound
Slowly I am drenched in grace
I find myself falling down
Into Your arms I descend
This is the beginning of the end
Say goodbye to sinful self
Transformation-my mind made new
Beloved Redeemer, never let me go
I give my all to you
-Erica Greene

He's Just Not That Into You

This movie focuses on the story of several different relationships, with brief interludes of "street interviews" of people's opinions & experiences in their own relationships. One of the relationships is a couple who has been living together for 7 years, and the man has no interest in marriage, and even believes that marriage is a recipe for disaster. Another couple appears to be happily married, but as the movie goes on, the husband has an illicit affair and lies to his wife. Another young woman is on the quest for that perfect man, and in the process sleeps with most of her dates, and sits by the phone, longing for one of them to call her back. When it boils down to it, basically the message of the movie is, there is no wrong way to have a relationship and all are imperfect. While I agree with the fact that there is no such thing as a perfect relationship, I disagree with the thought that there is no wrong way to be in a relationship. There is God's way, and that is the only right way. Purity, commitment, respect, faithfulness, love (1 Corinthians 13).
Let's just say that what it boils down to is this: I am just not into "He's Just Not That Into You". It had a few laughs, but did not uphold faithfulness, commitment, & purity in the least. I shouldn't have been suprised...it is Hollywood after all, but it was disheartening to see that the theatre crowd was made up of mostly teenagers. It is sad to see them being influenced strongly with the message that anything goes when it comes to relationships. I have seen worse movies, but I have seen much better.

Marley & Me

I have not read the book "Marley & Me, so am not able to compare the movie to the book, but I felt that this was an excellent movie, particularly if you have a love for animals. I was pleasantly suprised to see that the movie not only featured the life of a family pet, but also featured the ups and downs of marriage, commitment, family and real life. I am not a huge Owen Wilson fan, but he really pulled it off in this one. The character suits him well. I thoroughly enjoyed this film and would gladly watch it again. Even though it has a PG rating, there are some thematic elements that kids might not understand, or that may make them sad. Very small children probably won't be entertained much by it at all. Be ready to talk openly with your kids at the end of the movie as it is sure to spark some questions.
Also, keep in mind: I love dogs and totally understand the bond that is created between dog and owner. Those who dislike dogs strongly will probably think the entire theme of the movie is unnecessary. :)