Hopeful Hoopers

Ahh... Spring break week is here, luckily for me I have an AWESOME boss that closes for spring break so I get to spend some extra time with my babies!! We normally just stay home and do fun things around our hometown but not this year!! My husband took off work & we packed our bags and headed east, Far East-- to Myrtle Beach South Carolina. We have never traveled there before, we normally just end up in PCB and that's only because we are familiar with it. As soon as we got to Myrtle Beach & got out of our vehicle Bradley & I looked at each other & I said did we drive to Alaska? It was so windy & cold there!! We got unpacked and the fun started. This trip was probably the best trip we have ever been on.  It was filled with the pools, lazy river, the beach, shopping, sky wheel, aquarium, go karts, putt putt golf, an arcade, food, food & more food. Owen said he loved everything about this trip. Nora Kate loved the beach and the pool -- she just about fell asle...

It's been a while since I have blogged... life is so busy!! Nora Kate is about to be 9 months old, not sure how that is even possible!! Seems like just yesterday she was born. Owen is about to start Tee Ball & will be starting Kindegarten in August. Wow! I have been wanting to get back to blogging for a while now but didn't know what to blog about other than my kids. This morning the Lord laid this on my heart so I must share.  My favorite bible scripture of all time is "You can make many plans, but the Lord's purpose  will prevail." Proverbs 19:21 I have always been a control freak, I like to know every detail and have everything planned out. I get so caught up in life that I try to do everything on my own instead of asking God to show me the best way to go. As many of you know, for the past couple of years we have been planning on Owen going to a certain school. We were recently told that due to where we live he could not go to that school unle...

I once heard "If going through a storm draws me closer to God, then bring on the rain!" We all go through bad times in life whether it comes in a loss of job, a divorce, or something even worse like cancer or death of a friend or loved one.  No matter how much joy and happiness we experience, we cannot escape the trials of life. I had a patient a couple weeks ago who I was telling him what all his wife needed to have done-- he began to tell me they would just sell their house & live in a tent to afford her dental work, then he went on to say God hates him.  That really struck a nerve to me--all I could do was smile & say well it could be a lot worse. I don't understand  how anyone no matter how bad of a storm they are going through can say that God hates them, after everything he has done for us. There will always be times when it all looks hopeless but that is when we need the Lord the most, whenever we are facing one of life's storms we need to turn to the L...

It's been a while since I have posted anything on my Blog-- having two kids each day passes like a whirl wind. On August 21st, Bradley & I, along side Bro Jon Powell dedicated Owen & Nora Kate to the Lord. We promised to keep them in church and to raise them up knowing the Lord.  This awful temporary home that we call the world won't teach them about God, so we must teach them.  Although Bradley & I fail daily we will always teach our kids to trust in the Lord & to put everything you have in him.  Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it. Proverbs 22:6 

  It's 4:30 a.m., as I sit here watching Nora Kate sleep I am having a hard time fighting back the tears. Today is my last day of maternity leave before we enter the weekend & reality hits on Monday. Although I am thankful for my job, I would gladly take 9 more weeks of maternity leave!! I never imagined I would have two children, I thought Owen was going to be my one & only- but God had NK planned for us and she is the perfect addition to our family. God has blessed me over the years and continues to bless me daily, but two of my biggest/greatest blessings are the two that call me/will call me momma. It's hard being a mother, there are days where nothing seems to go right. Days where I feel judged for every little thing I do, Days I want to call my mom & tell her I get it now, Days where I am terrified for my children's future, Days where I don't care if I have a social life as long as I'm with my family, Days where I am so exhausted I don't think I...

 It was my last weekend to be pregnant, praise God!! I had went to my last Doctor appointment and was scheduled to be induced at 40 weeks on Tuesday, May 31st. I had talked with my husband a few times about how I have thought about having natural labor with no pain meds, neither him nor I ever thought I could do it. Well Sunday we went to church and went out to eat with some of our church family- we then came home and worked in our pool to get it up and running. Later that night my back begin to hurt. Something told me to get our bag completely packed, so Bradley helped me get everything together. I told Bradley that I wouldn't be surprised if my water didn't break, he asked if I wanted to go to the hospital but since we live an hour away I didn't want to go and it be a false alarm. As the night went on I tossed & turned and finally got out of bed at 1:15 and realized that I may be in labor. Still unsure I called my mom and my mother in law and agreed to go ahead and go...

Music has always been a huge part of Bradley's life, wait- music has always been Bradley's life. Ever since Bradley & I got back together, almost two years ago, Bradley has not played music outside of our home or church. Since Our daughter Nora-Kate will be here in 7 short weeks (or less) I told Bradley if he wanted, he could play music some on the weekends to save some extra money for Maternity leave. Since making the decision for Bradley to play music, I have constantly prayed that this would not be an opportunity for the devil to wreck what we have going.  Last night Bradley played music at a local restaurant- In the past while playing music Bradley would drink too much & stay out way too late & I would wake up the next morning feeling uneasy and questioning the night before. I have always had trust issues and never fully trusted anyone- including Bradley,  especially in an environment where alcohol and music were present.  Bradley was offered alcohol m...