I want to be different. That's my prayer. Lord, I'm begging you to change me. Yes, I'm posting it here for the world to see. No more hiding it within the secret places of my heart, so that I don't feel badly when people don't really notice a change. This is true accountability. My prayer for the last few weeks and, for forever more, has been for the Lord to take me and mold me into what He wants me to be. I don't want to say things that hurt other people, I want to be encouraging to my brothers and sisters in Christ, I want to be a light in a dark world, I want to be salty, I want others outside of the church walls to know who I really belong to and whom I really serve - Jesus Christ. I want the lost to know that they are lost and I can introduce them to the only one who can save them. I will believe that Jesus can save anyone. I want my friends and family members to understand that there is so much more to this life than what we will experience as humans on this earth. We will live for eternity, either with God or apart from him. And living apart from him isn't a dreary, boring, gray place, but a wretched place that will torment those living there forever. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. An ugly, horrid place that makes those living there wish they had made a different choice. On the other hand, living with him won't just be a beautiful, peaceful, rainbow-every-day type place where you get to see your Grandma again or catch up with friends who have gone before you, there will be rejoicing, shouting of praise, singing at the top of your lungs, worshipping at the feet of Jesus... forever. I won't be apologetic for offending others because I know the Truth and aren't afraid to speak it. I know who Jesus is and I know what he did for me and for you. I will pray for people to understand the cross. I will live so that others can see Jesus in me. But, most of all, I want them to know Him. He has changed me and I want to live as a changed person.

Can you say Y-U-M!!! Saturday night we headed out for a pre-race meal for Chris and his running buddies, then went to WalMart (isn't that what all married couples with children do on date night?), then decided we would go across the street and enjoy a wonderful dessert - CHOCOLATE FONDUE! It was absolutely delicious!! This particular one was call Yin and Yang - a mixture of dark and white chocolate. Except the dark chocolate wasn't bitter... mmmmm is was so good! And, to dip was strawberries, bananas, poundcake, cheesecake, marshmellows, brownies and rice krispy treats. Absolutely one of my favorite desserts ever!

Our 7-yr old dog, Charlie, is absolutely Gavin's favorite friend. She is such a sweet dog... now. In her puppy days, I couldn't keep a good pair of shoes and her favorite thing to do while we were away was to open (and empty) the kitchen trashcan. But, now that she's calmed down and mellowed a bit, she is a wonderful pet and certainly the best dog we could've ever asked for for our kids. This particular day, Gavin was using Charlie as a pillow as he sometimes does, but he actually fell asleep on her. I thought it was very sweet. Two ole pals.

Yes, it was our turn this past weekend for Happy Turtle to visit our home. Such is the life of a preschooler.
Ivey was SO excited to bring him home! He went everywhere with us except to downtown on Saturday where we went to pick up Chris' race packet for a race he did on Sunday. We certainly didn't want to risk leaving Happy Turtle on MARTA... I think her class would have been devastated and I certainly wouldn't want that for 15 four-year olds! So, Happy Turtle slept with Ivey all weekend and played and read and even went to church with us Sunday morning. I'm sure it was his favorite part. And once or twice she even let her little brother hold him. So long, Happy Turtle. I hope you have as much at your next home to visit!

I forgot to post these pictures of our last snow fall. It was actually the only one that the kids got to play in this year... we were out of town for the others! Even though I wasn't thrilled about them playing in the snow (I knew they would miserable in about 30 seconds since we own absolutely NO snow-playing worthy clothing), I decided to let them go for it. Actually, I stayed inside while Chris watched them outside. Yes, I do have the best hubby ever!!! I'm pretty sure he had the best idea of all the parents outside though... he got out the firepit to stay warm!

Throwing snow balls and having a great time!

Even Charlie loved the snow! After running around in it for a few minutes, she just enjoyed laying down and watching the kids play.

Chris and Gavin have their cake and eat it, too! Enjoying the snow while staying warm by the fire.

I thought it would be fun to dye Easter eggs this year, so, after being inspired by some really cute decorating ideas, I decided to get all the supplies we needed in order to have a fun craft night tonight. We designated tonight as family night and headed off to Subway for dinner. Then, after running to the grocery store for a few groceries, we went home to dye eggs. It really was a lot of fun and I think I enjoyed it as much as the kids did. In fact, we had so much fun we decided to do it again tomorrow! However, I'm really looking forward to making the Easter cookies that everyone talks about each year. The ones where you put them in the oven over night, seal up the oven with tape and then in the morning you find that the cookies are hollow... just like the tomb that Jesus was put in. Ivey's teacher sent home the recipe for the cookies last week along with the Scripture verses for each step. It sounds really fun and I think the little kids will really understand it this year!

A quick stop at mile 6 to get a picture with Jesse from the Toy Story!

Our group: Shannon, Cacee, Shawn, Kathy, Debbie, Barbara, Jen and Teri after the race

Finished! So proud of that princess medal around my neck!!


I did it! We all had a wonderful time at Disney World this past weekend to run the Princess Half-Marathon. It was absolutely the most grueling physical activity I've ever had to do, but, at the same time, it was fun and exciting. The Disney characters cheering us along the way definitely helped! The first 5 1/2 miles were the easiest until we had to stop to go to the bathroom around mile 6. It seems that stopping really wasn't in our best interest as my legs cramped up and Shannon's knee blew out. We were able to walk/hobble/jog to the end, but it was only because of sheer determination and will power!! Everyone in our group completed the 13.1 miles and several tears were even shed at the end of the race. We were so proud of each other and what we had accomplished. We were thankful that the Lord gave us all good health to run the race and a good attitude to complete such a task. I'm ready now to move on to something else - probably not another half-marathon. I'll stick with shorter distances and free t-shirts!