Such a weird week...

1. I was very sick most of the week. So sick that I actually stayed home from quiz practice and kid's Connection - very hard to not be there for my 2 favorite ministries! But thank you Jesus, I am better today and ready to quiz tomorrow.

2. I saw Mark cry after eating hot sauce. Mark LOVES hot food - the hotter the better. He got a new sauce and didn't read the WARNING label about how hot it was and just put his normal amount in the beans and rice. Suddenly, he had tears pouring out of his eyes and sweat pouring out of his head!

3. As I was looking out my front window yesterday, suddenly a huge raccoon came from beside the garage and walked across my driveway with a dead squirrel in his mouth!

Unfortunately, none of these lovely events was caught on camera, so you will have to use your imagination! I have a Friday's thoughts that I have been saving and will try to catch up soon. Will also update about our tournament tomorrow ASAP! Have a blessed weekend!

Family

This weekend, my sister, her boyfriend, her daughter and her daughter's boyfriend came to visit from south Florida. We haven't seen them in quite a while, so it was nice to finally get to visit!

Part of the reason they came when they did was to celebrate my mom's and brother's birthdays. January is a crazy month in our family. Here is the bday roll for this month - my best friend Kimi, Holly, Mark's twin aunts, London, Mark's mom, our sister-in-law, Paris, Jason and Bear, Kimi's daughter Micaylah, my mom, Kimi's son Garrett, Paul and now Travis - Kir's boyfriend. (I hope I didn't leave anyone out - if I did, it was an accident!) Whew - January is a busy month around here. So, we normally celebrate my mom and brother's all at the same time at my house with my homemade Lasagne, salad and cake. This year was no exception.

Brenda came on Saturday morning and we finished up dinner prep before everyone else arrived. We had a yummy dinner - salad, lasagne, texas toast and sweet tea. My mom had mentioned again how much she loves eclairs, so I got brave and made a batch - yummy!!! They were quite divine. I also made a chocolate cake with chocolate frosting for the boys. We sang happy bday to everyone here who had a January bday and ate some more!

That evening, we played games and watched a movie before hitting the hay. Sunday after church, we had lunch together at Tijuana Flats, then went to visit my grandmother, who will be 82 next month, and my aunt - my mom's sister. My sister and her famiuly left too soon, but we did have a nice time together while they were here. More memories were made that will last forever! Here are some pics of our weekend:

Me and Brendie in the kitchen cooking up trouble, I mean, dinner!


For my mom's bday, Brenda, Paris and I gave her a photo book that I spent an entire day creating online! It was the coolest thing. You go to the website (we used picaboo), upload your pictures and then create layouts using your photos. You can add words and change the backgrounds. The book turned out so good. Here she is with Bear and Kir looking at the book:


Brendie and Maggie became fast friends:


Brenda and Paul - True Love Forever! (this was just a joke, BTW!! - the pic, not the true love part!)


The whole gang Saturday night. From left to right:Jason, Bear, mom, Brenda, Paul, Caleb, London (the cool one in the shades), Kir, MaKenna, Travis, Holly, Mark, Me and Maggie.


Everyone who went to visit my nan (grandma). L to R - Paul, Caleb, Travis, Kir, Brenda, Bear, mom, nan, Aunt Penny, MaKenna, Holly, Mark and me:


Nan with 4 of her great grandkids:


My mom and nan with mine and Brenda's kids. Why didn't Brenda and I get in there for a 4 generation picture?? I don't know what we were thinking, except that it was pretty warm out there and the sun was very bright! Maybe our brains were melted.

Brenda and I:

More frost and life...

Well, it has been a might cold here in sunny Florida the past few days. We have had frost on several mornings in a row and there were icicles on a sign out front as well as on the planes at the airport! So much for global warming! Here are some pics of our pretty frost outside:

BTW - I realize that for those of you who see this as a daily occurance 8 months out of the year, this is nothing. But here in Florida, it is a complete change and one that we celebrate - and then pray for a quick return of the warm sun to thaw us out!

As for life, we are busy but well. Holly is rapidly ending her first year of High School while MaKenna finishes her last year of middle school. Oh boy... I truly love every step of the journey and am so thankful that I am still able to homeschool my children! What a blessing. Our family has made many so called "sacrifices" in order for me to stay home with them, but I wouldn't trade this for anything! Those things will pass with time, but my children and I will always have the memories we have built and the bond that we have shared for their whole life.

We are also preparing for one of my sisters and her family to come to town this weekend. Today is my mom's birthday and we will have some time to celebrate with her tomorrow.

Holly and MaKenna have their first quiz tournament of the year tomorrow as well, so we have quite a few things going on right now. How fun! I will keep you posted on the events ASAP! Have a great weekend!

Jump!

I have seen versions of this story before and every time I read it, it just encourages me. Just felt like a good thing to share the encouragement today!

One night a house caught fire, and a young boy was forced to flee flames by jumping to the ground from the roof.

His father stood on the ground below with outstretched arms, calling to his son, "Jump! I'll catch you."

But the boy was afraid. He couldn't see his father - all he could see were flames, smoke, and blackness. He was afraid.

Still, his father kept yelling, "Jump son! I will catch you!"

But the boy refused, crying, "Daddy, I can't see you!"

His father replied, "It's okay, son - I can see you, and that's all that matters!"

Sometimes we find ourselves in the midst of the fiery trials of life! And all we can see is the smoke and the flames. But faith is knowing who will catch us when we take that leap. God delights in responding to our faith. He wants us to jump into His arms, especially when we can't see Him.

George Mueller said: "Faith does not operate in the realm of the possible. There is no glory for God in that which is humanly possible. Faith begins where man's power ends."

I pray that you are inspired today to take the jump of faith, even if you can't see!

Good Words

This is on the little "inspiring words for teachers" flip calendar that I keep beside my computer:

Lord, give me the wisdom to make stepping stones out of stumbling blocks.

AMEN!

He Makes All Things New

We had the most incredible services at church this weekend. The prevailing theme was that God makes all things new and boy, am I thankful that He does. Even today, I am overwhelmed by all that happened. It is such a blessing to know that He knows right where I am and that He sends help right on time. My help this time came in the form of two random people who don't know the details of my life any more than a stranger would, but who God sent to give me a word from Him that was exactly what I needed. I write this to encourage you to keep your eyes on the Lord in this new year and to remember that He knows where you are and that He truly does make all things new!

Isaiah 43:19-21 - "Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall ye not know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert. The beast of the field shall honour me, the dragons and the owls: because I give waters in the wilderness and rivers in the desert, to give drink to my people, my chosen. This people have I formed for myself; they shall shew forth my praise."

So, today I am thankful:

...that I know an "on time God."
...that God knows right where I am and He cares.
...that He never leaves me nor forsakes me.
...that He makes all things new.
...that He provides - did you see in the verse above that the animals will praise Him when they see that He provides for His people - even rivers in the desert! Does anyone but me feel like sometimes life is a desert? Take heart - God will send rivers!
...that He holds me in the palm of His hand.
...that I have reassurance that He is guiding and directing me, even when I can't see the way.
...that my children love the Lord and respond to His moving.
...that He gently and patiently reminds me when I start to go my own way.
...that He loves me.

There is so much more, but that is all I have time for right now. I pray that you are blessed and that you remember the God who makes all things new and that you keep your eyes on Him. I will leave you with a family favorite verse:

Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans to prosper you and not harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future.”

What next?

I have been a little torn about what to post about the past couple of days. Am I the only one who goes through that? So, here are a few updates on what we have going on.

We are back to school this week - YEAH! I love structure and the routine of being home with my children, so it truly is a YEAH for me. It is hard to believe that the school year is 1/2 over already.

We are back to Bible Quizzing season and had a great kick off practice the other night with about 10 kids - too exciting! I was speaking to the parents about their role in this ministry and Holly and MaKenna told me after that I sounded like one of the speakers at Homeschool Convention - I took that as a compliment and realized that I must have missed my calling! Any takers on booking my first appearance?????? Tee hee!!!!!

I guess the big news this week is all the great deals I have been getting at CVS and Walgreens. I read somewhere recently that it is not about how much you save, it is about how little you spend and I can see that as being good advice. Even in the midst of getting great deals, if you are still spending more than you should, it is not a good deal. But, I was able for next to nothing to stock up on hair products that the girls and I go through like crazy, cereal, girl products, splenda and oatmeal. If you are not doing CVS and Walgreens, let me say that you are missing out. You should head to couponmom or moneysavingmom and get the info to get started - or comment me and ask what to do - I would love to help you! I will not pay full price again for shampoo, hair products, TP, toothpaste, deodorant, etc. because I know the blessing now of getting them free or almost free. I have been avidly at this for a year now and it just keeps getting better!

So, that is about it in the DeVore house lately. I am finding myself wondering what God has next for me. Do you ever hit a dry spell and wonder if you are really doing what He wants you to do? I just don't always feel very effective in the things I am involved in. I know that it is not about me, it is Him and that it is not always in things we can see that is the evidence, but... I don't know! Any thoughts?

Well, this has been a very random blog and I am through rambling for now! Have a wonderful weekend!