Autumn is but a breath away!

Summer is over...ho hum...BUT I do LOVE Autumn! I love the cooler weather...not cold...but just right(even if today is not one of those days). I love UT football. I love oranges, browns and yellows mixed with greens...whether it's in trees, on clothes or interior design. There's just something about the fall. I guess I love seasons...I must admit that in the Spring-I'm happy it's here. In the summer-I'm happy it's here. Even the winter (if there's snow)-I'm happy it's here. I don't think I'd be happy somewhere that was always cold or even somewhere that was always hot.

God uses theses seasons to grow us, to love us and to help us to realize that something knew is always in our future. There have been times when I haven't understood why things happen the way they do, but I can always look ahead and see that the season is changing.

May this change of season bring you out of your slump and into a new relationship with the Father. Lately, I've been drawn to Him. I'm leaning on Him more and more out of reflex instead of conscious thought. It is the hard stuff that pushes us into His very arms. I've definitely had my share of hard stuff lately. He wipes my tears and hears my cries.

Thank you, Father for being patient with me in my silliness and just as happy to have me when I can't resist you any longer. You are all that I need.

Terri

Sunday Morning...

I wanted to get this in writing and out of my head before it was lost forever.

Keith's sermon this morning was very timely for me. We've had an exceptionally long and hard week. I'm sure that many of you have as well. Problems that have seemed insurmountable have cropped up. We've been a little discouraged and disheartened with several things in our family this week.

Keith reminded us of who Jesus is in our lives and WHAT he is capable of. I needed that reminder, but I also needed the reminder about what comes next. He said that once you get your faith on-then you need to count your blessings one by one. Well, that's what I'm gonna do today. Count my blessings. Please feel free to count yours in the comments as you feel led, but I'm going shout mine out here. It's easy to get discouraged and down and dwell on everything that's not happening as we feel it should. I'm letting go of that and grabbing onto those things that are DEFINITE BLESSINGS in my life.

1. My husband- he is very good at making me feel secure. When he's not with me, all those crazy insecurities come back. Not that they should, but he does provide me with a certain sense of security. I was somewhat bothered by this, but he reminded me that that's what God gave us each other for. I think I have always been consumed with this certain amount of independence. I feel like I have to be able to do everything without asking for help. That is not how God intended for us to be. Eve was given to be a helpmate to Adam. They were put together to go on the journey together as helpers to one another.
2. My sweet, healthy children- so many times during the day I look at them and want to freeze little moments in time with them. They are so unique and awesome in their own individual way. God blessed me with them and I want to enjoy the journey with them-not complaing about the hike on the journey.
3. My church family- I say family because now that we are at EMC it truly feels like home. I feel comfortable and loved by many of you. Sometimes, I'm still trying to find where I'm supposed to fit in, but that's my insecurity not one that you guys have put on me. If anything you guys have gone out of your way to include me in the family side of church.
4. My job- not many people get the opportunity to choose to take their career and slow it down to part time so that it works with your family. I get to be an adult and interact with adults- and still be a mommy, too. I'm thankful that the Sara Hoskins has allowed me this opportunity.
5. Last but far from least-I'm so blessed to be called by the Son of God to be part of the best family. He CHOSE me first. Grant it I had to choose to make him my Lord and Savior, but he LOVES ME. He loves me in spite of the screwy things in my past, or the mixed up crazy thoughts in my head. He makes my life significant. Without his sacrifice for me, I truly would be a wandering, confused, unhappy person. I can't imagine trying to make sense of life without HIM as the center. It's what urges me to be the best mom, best wife and friend that I can be.

Thanks go to Keith for the gentle reminder about keeping our minds focused on pure, lovely and holy things.

Hugs to you all!

Where did the last 6 years go?

Okay, so I didn't think today would bother me near as much as it has. My first born has reached the age of school dances, bringing clothes for PE, and the much sought after BAND CLASS! I can't believe that the same little boy that used to sit in my lap, hold my hand as I walked him into school, and tell me jokes that just weren't funny is starting Middle School today. I still hold dear in my heart the crazy pictures that he used to draw of dinosaurs and star wars scenes.

I have to admit I had forgotten about the dances, but I was quickly reminded when I signed up to help with PTO. Lori, the person signing me up, said , "I've already got you down to help me with the dances. They're crazy!" Now, she has had a year to adjust to middle school. I'm just starting. Do you think I really enjoyed the "They're crazy!" No, I didn't. Because the thought of Will mixing it up with the girls really makes my stomach turn. Ken and I have known for some time now that we were heading down a difficult path. You see, our boy and our girl are too close to the same age. Meaning that his friends will be interesting to her and her friends will certainly be interesting to him (and his friends). Does this make me nervous? Yes, it makes my stomach churn deep down inside. Something else that really, really frightens Ken and I is that we will have children in MS for the next 10 years. Yes, count it on two hands. We carefully spaced (okay, it wasn't careful, but who's keeping up with whether I was trying to get pregnant or not? Oh yeah-that's my mom that keeps up with that.) our children three years apart with the exception of Will and Bryn (they're 21 months apart). So when Bryn leaves MS, Erin will start. When Erin leaves MS, Jayden will start. SCAREY!!! We also will have a child enrolled in the youth group for the next decade and 1/2. Also scarey. You see we know teens and we know what teens do that their parents don't think they do...yes, it's scarey. Did I mention that it was scarey. I just wanted to make sure you knew that it was S-C-A-R-E-Y!!!!
Actually, I'm looking forward to having fun playing with my kids and I'm gonna try my very best to enjoy them when their brains turn to mush as a teenagers.
Here are a few pics from our first day back to school. Jay won't start until the 18th.


This was right before we left the house!!!


This is Erin. Doesn't she look thrilled to be in first grade? Her two buddies, Mary Grae and Carson weren't there yet. I think she was feeling all alone in a new place. I'm sure she perked up once they arrived.

This is Bryn with her new teacher, Mr. Kubin. Ya' know , 20 years ago I would have never guessed that I would WANT my child to be taught by this man...LOL. We go way back! He is an awesome teacher and I know that my kids will get what they need to succeed from him.

Bryn had no trouble walking right in , finding her buddy, Victoria and sitting down to a great year. Aren't they photogenic?

Superheros

Okay, you guys have read my posts referring to my super heroes. These two love to dress up as super heroes and save the world from the Joker, or any other evil villain they can think up. They even sneak up on me and act like I'm the villain. I have also often thought there was a huge fight going on between them, when actually it was a simple game of make believe super hero fun. This pic was snapped on Wednesday during one of their great times of make believe. Spider man is helping batman to soar through the air. Batman doesn't have super powers really...just a lot of gadgets.

Now, on to the real reason for my post. A lot of you know that we braved Six Flags for our last little bit of fun before summer slips away from us. Well....you will not believe what I was so ecstatic to see at this great place of summertime fun. One of the big sellers in their souvenir fodder(believe me we walked clear across the park to get it-sold out everywhere else) was a PINK superman cape. It's pink, long, and sure to catch some air as she zips across the room. Now, I love that Jay and Erin play together. It's kind of amusing to watch, but I must admit that sometimes I'm thinking "do you have to be a boy super hero?" What happened to my girly girl? Well, I thought this beautiful, pink cape was affordable. $4.95- so I had to buy it. I also found a superman tee for Jay with an attached cape. He nearly came unglued when he saw it. i have to admit it was pretty cute when they let their capes fly behind them while they rode the balloons soaring through the air. Don't worry. I was careful that they couldn't get hung on anything. Remember, I live with the safety patrol. So our day at Six Flags ended on a high note. A little rain, a few coasters, a few souvenirs, a little food, a lot of $$$$, but even more fun!

I thought I had a good picture of their capes flying behind them, but maybe not. This one was too cute to pass up.

This was the best picture I had showing Jay's cape. I must not have done as well on my picture taking yesterday.

Oh and just for the record, the other kids did go. There will be more to follow about them later, but for now this post is dedicated to my super heroes.

PS I had to look up how to spell souvenir. I still think it looks wrong, but dictionary.com says I'm right.