I honestly do not have anything to talk about. There has been a lot of activity in our house over the last few weeks. Cutie Pie and Sweet Pea have been in school now for about two weeks. They absolutely LOVE it! They are a little sad when the weekend comes. Cutie Pie has 'homework'. There are memory verses and letter flashcards to go over three times a week. I think that Sweet Pea and Honey Bear have learned these things along with their older sister. I remember trying to learn the things that my brother was doing, but mainly mimicking him. I love to see the dynamic with the girls. Even though Sweet Pea has a stronger will and is decided on many things, there are times that she so badly wants to be exactly like her sister, Cutie Pie.
One of the things that we conquered was when Preacher Man went away for four days to do a revival. In the past it seemed like anytime he would leave there would be these huge meltdowns or tantrums. This time we said a short and sweet (might I add a tearless) good bye. When we got home, we prepped for a day at church without Preacher Man there at all. I was covering youth Sunday school, so we headed to bed pretty early. The morning of worship went so amazing. The praise team was in the right spirit and led us all into worship with them. Preacher Man was so excited to hear this part while he was leading many others in another town. The next morning, we all arrived at school on time. (if you know me, this is a HUGE victory!) That evening, we watched Tangled and ate a little take out. There was no tantrum about wanting Daddy to hold them, just a lovely prayer with Honey Bear and then they both went to bed with a kiss good night. The other two days were much of the same kind of harmony. In no way do I take credit for any of this. I know that it is God granting me grace! It has been said by many minister wives that calamity always breaks out when their husbands are away for something. I prayed every morning to have the ability to deal with whatever came our way.
We are prepping for a quick little vacation to see our families in a couple of weeks. Before we do that we have a revival at our church. Oh, and we are having a youth minister's cookout too. So if we could cram in any other event between now and the end of the month...bring it on! Just kidding. We love a challenge around here. Just as with any house you buy, when you buy, you imagine what you could do to improve or make it your own. Well in the last month we have ripped up our carpet to find beautiful hardwoods except in the den. Since we have bought this house we (I) have wanted to get rid of the 70s carpet. Also, when we bought the house there was a screened porch. I had one growing up and I LOVED it on spring and fall mornings and evenings. Our little porch had some obstacles that I thought I could overcome. Well about $30 into our redo, we conceded the fight and let it sit for a couple years. This spring I was tired of not being able to enjoy that area. We ripped up the green outdoor carpet and painted with concrete paint and just painted the wood. Now we are in the furnishing stage...there will be pictures to come. I think the tough part about all these little improvements is that they take time once you start and we tend to have very little of it. I am trying to not completely over work Preacher Man with a huge list of honey do's, but I really would love to have everyone over with these things done. I guess it is a little vain...I am going to make a sign that says "Excuse the mess, but we live here." I honestly never notice if my friends have messing houses because that is not what I am there for. I am there to minister to my friend in whatever way I can..or have them minister to me. I could careless about the mountain of laundry because I have it sitting at my house..I could careless about the smudges on the walls and TV because my girls still get PB & J on most everything. (even after washing hands sometimes) All this to say that I have loved the last few weeks and fellowships with friends and I look forward to the couple of weeks ahead as we have revival and the cookout. I am so grateful for the people we have in our lives.
