A few weeks ago, Morgan and I took a field trip to the Funk Heritage Museum for a presentation they were doing called Georgia History Timeline. It was really neat, although standing and walking for two hours wasn't really all that great for my pregnant self. Anyway, it was very interesting watching and listening to the characters who were dressed up, in full costume, and acted as though they were that person in history. They were very knowledgable and interesting since I'm sure most of them do this sort of thing professionally. Here's a few photos (thanks to my friend, Rhonda) of only a few of the historic people we were able to meet...

Hernando DeSoto

Turtle Woman

James Oglethorpe

A Colonial home

Gavin's class took a field trip to one of the local pumpkin patches, so I thought I would take Ivey along to kill two birds with one stone. Of course, her class and our MOPS group is going to the exact same place all within the next week. I wish we could have gone as a family, but I'm beginning to accept the fact that the more people you have in your family, especially when the children are as spread out as mine are and when one of them is gone every other weekend, it's difficult to find time to take do things as a whole family. This is something that Chris and I will have to be very intentional about, making sure that we plan outings as a family when everyone can be involved. This is something we try to do now, but I'd like for us to do a better job of it in the future. But, anyway... I digress... Ivey and I joined Gavin for his pumpkin patch field trip. He wasn't nearly as excited for us to be there as I thought he would be, he had a terrible attitude and he refused to let the teacher take a picture of him. Great, I love it when my children blatently disobey and misbehave in front of other adults right in front of me. But, anyway, I think the kids had a really good time and next year, we'll definitely be going as a whole family.

Morgan is turning 14 in just a few days. I can't believe my baby is turning fourteen!!!!! Every year his birthday takes me back to when I found out that I was pregnant with him at the tender age of seventeen, a very trying time in the lives of two families, and the reminder of what a blessing he is today and always will be. We've been through a lot the last fourteen years, but God remains faithful. I'm excited to see Morgan continue to grow and will always continue to pray that he will be a man of God, loving the Lord with his whole heart and wanting to lead his future family in a godly manner. He is such a joy to our family and we're excited about another wonderful year! Happy Birthday, Morgan!

Last year we began buying pumpkins at a local store and then letting the kids clean them out to make jack-o-lanterns. The kids love the messiness of cleaning them out and getting to create their own faces for the pumpkins. And, Chris and I love to roast the pumpkin seeds to have them to snack on - yummy!

This past Saturday, Mom and I took Ivey and Gavin to the Auburn game. Going to the AU football game is absolutely one of my favorite things to do... although this time it was bit more difficult with two small children in tow. Being able to participate in the Auburn games is fun for me because I didn't have that sort of college experience at a small college, living at home and raising a child - so now I get to experience it as an adult and it's FUN! And, since my Dad, Mom and sister all graduated from Auburn, I feel like I'm part of the Auburn family too. Our family attended games when I was a kid, we shopped and tailgated with my grandparents and watched my sister play in the marching band. I love the experience and traditions of an Auburn football game: Tiger Walk, Toomer's Corner, walking around campus, shopping at the bookstores, tailgating (when we have the chance), watching the band and the cheerleaders and cheering on the Auburn Tigers! WAR EAGLE!

We took a trip to the beach this year with a few friends from church. It's so nice to get away for a few days, play in the waves, eat some yummy seafood and just be together as family. The four days that we were gone flew by, but everyone had a great time and it was nice to be together. And, yep, that's right - all the mommies of this group are expecting!

It's been forever... I know! We've been just a bit busy around here plus I couldn't figure out how to load the pictures from my new camera. So, here's a bit about what's going on...

Ivey started Kindergarten at The King's Academy. She LOVES it! End of story. Homeschooling has definitely been a big adjustment for us all, but it's going well for everyone! We took a field trip to the fire station with Ivey's class and it was actually a lot of fun! Because TKA is technically considered homeschooling, we have to take field trips on non-school days. It was neat to see all the other moms (and a few dads) bring their little ones to the fire house. Ivey also turned 6 in September. I can't believe my baby girl is getting so big! She's such a joy and such a huge help to Mommy!

I love homeschooling! It's been a great week so far and, even though I know that difficult days are sure to come, I'm so excited about spending this time with my thirteen year old and five year old. I know that this year will yield lots of fruit in season and I'm excited to see how God will work in our lives as we walk on this journey. I just had to sneak in this picture really quickly because I wanted everyone to know that they really are LEARNING!

Gavin's first day of Pre-K went very well. He was so cute getting ready for school, although he was sure to mention at least three or four times that he didn't want to go. I'm not so sure that it wasn't just because he had to leave his swords at home! He had a really good day, but was even still a bit hesitant on the second day. He was asleep in less than 5 minutes when it was time for bed and slept like a rock! Pre-K really does wear him out!

I also had to show this really cute bag that I made with the embroidery machine. Gavin isn't allowed to take a backpack because there isn't enough room to store it in the cubbies. So, all the children were supposed to bring totes. I know it's a little baby-ish but who cares?!?!? I thought it was really cute!

My camera died. Well, it didn't exactly die... it just got sick. Anytime I tried to zoom in or out the camera would turn off which was really frustrating. Since that doesn't work very well with active kids and such, Chris was so kind enough to buy me a new camera. This one is really nice and takes really good pictures - it even came with a case! I'm so happy with it and excited to take better pictures!

Today we went swimming and these are the pictures I took. I can tell a huge difference and am so happy with my new memory saver!

Gavin and Ivey truly are best friends. Even though having them so close together (16 months apart) was really hard for the first year or two, they are playmates for each other now and it works out perfectly. Right now they are really hooked on playing Super Mario. I thought it was so cute that they were both tucked under the covers in our bed playing together. Of course, they continue to fight over who gets to be Mario - and I'm wondering, does it really matter?? Luigi is cool, too!

Has it really been over a month since I last blogged? Well, life has been... different. Since finding out that I'm pregnant with baby #4, I've spent a lot of time the last few weeks on the couch or in bed except for the one week that we spent at vacation bible school. Also, I often feel that my life isn't that interesting and sure that no one really takes the time to read this blog anyway. But, for the two or three out there that really do want to know what's going on here at the Smathers household, I guess I'll keep writing even if it means I only get to it once a month.

We are happy and excited about baby number 4. After several months of intense discussion and prayer about God's will for our family, Chris and I decided to try for one more baby. It took a little longer than we anticipated, but God's timing is for the best and we knew that all along. It was difficult to watch two of my best friends become pregnant during the time that Chris and I were trying, but God taught me many things during those few months. How to be genuinely happy for my friends when their successes were my failures, how to be thankful for the beautiful children with which God had already so richly blessed me, how to rely on God when what was happening in my life didn't seem to match up with what I thought I had clearly heard him say and especially that all that I have was given to me by God alone... and much more. So, when Chris and I found out that we were indeed pregnant we were very excited. But, of course, even when you're following God's plan, reality can be a bit scary. I had a sonogram several weeks ago and, yes, our blueberry-sized baby looked great. Absolutely amazing isn't it? But, on the way home I silently sobbed (is that possible?). I didn't want Chris to hear me because I didn't want him to think that I wasn't excited about the baby or was in any way sad about what was happening. I just had a moment of "Oh my gosh. I feel extremely overwhelmed right now." Thank you, hormones. And, thank you, God, for reminding me that I absolutely can do nothing without you. Chris and I did have a good discussion about it later and again God reminded me of another wonderful blessing in my life - my husband. Chris is the level-headed, everything's-going-to-be-okay, let's-pray-about-this kind of guy. So, everything was okay after our discussion and I felt much better.

Anyway, the last few weeks have been filled with the typical pregnancy issues... nausea, tiredness, generally not wanting to do anything. I believe I'm starting to round the corner now and things are starting to level out. We are excited about this new adventure and the blessing that another child is. Now, if I could just stop eating so much all the time...

Last week, we went to Pigeon Forge for family vacation with some members from my side of the family. Others couldn't come because of work. There was a lot that we could have done, but we stuck with go karts, swimming and shopping for the few days we were there. We had a good time. Chris even went "zorbing" one day - rolling down the side of a mountain in a ball. He said it was a lot of fun and it really did look like it. Maybe next time I'll try it too!

Chris ending his zorb ride.

The kids LOVED the go karts!

About a week ago Ivey and Gavin both learned to ride their bikes without training wheels. Thanks to a healthy dose of peer pressure from their buddies down the street, they were excited to have their training wheels taken off. I wasn't so sure how they would do, but they both caught on right away. Gavin LOVES to ride his bike now, we have a daily riding session every afternoon!

My little guy is so accident prone... part of it is just because he's fearless. In four years he has had countless scrapes, scratches and bruises, been run over by a toy jeep, had a broken leg, a pencil stuck through the inside corner of the eye and now a finger slammed in the car door at Grammy's house. His finger began to get bloody right away and he screamed for a really long time which isn't normal for him at all. After Chris and I decided to just head home and put the kids to bed, Gavin couldn't sleep at all because of the pain. Our PA friend, John, told Chris how to poke a hole in the fingernail to allow the blood and pressure out. Well, he forgot to mention that you don't actually POKE a hole, you are supposed to heat up a paper clip (or something of the sort) and burn through the fingernail. So, I tried to hold Gavin while Chris tried to poke a hole in the fingernail. The agonizing screaming was too much for me and I told Chris to let John do it. So, the following night after the finger was extremely swollen and very bloody underneath, Chris took Gavin to John's house for the procedure. John's wife, Cacee, said that she could hear Gavin screaming from outside! Poor little guy! I'm glad I wasn't there. But, as soon as the blood came out if felt all better and he was ready to play! That's my Gavin! Now his finger looks just fine except for a little blood at the bottom and a hole in the middle of his fingernail!

This is a picture of his finger after we got home that night. By the next day, blood completely covered the underside of his fingernail and it was oozing out the top. Gross!!

Chris and I decided to try Savannah this year for our birthday/anniversary get-away. It actually turned out not to be the best choice for us... I honestly thought it was a little boring, I guess since I'm not really in to history. But thanks to my husband who always looks on the bright side of things, we had a nice time. It was really nice to spend time together and have a chance to talk and just be together. The weather was absolutely beautiful and we did get to spend a couple of hours at the beach at Tybee Island. We also took in a movie, Iron Man 2, which I thought was awesome! We walked around all of historical Savannah, looked at old homes, a cemetary and lots of little parks. We really look forward to taking a weekend trip or two every year to really spend time together, talking, laughing and just hanging out. We have our best conversations on the road, when it's just the two of us. Our kids were shuffled around between family members while we were gone, but they were excited to see just about everyone in their family in one weekend! It was a nice weekend to be together and we always enjoy our weekend getaways.

This is the bed and breakfast that we stayed in...

Walking on River Street...

A beautiful entryway to one of the larger parks...

The kids' end of the year program was adorable. Each class wore a fruit of the Spirit and sang lots of songs. Of course, everybody in the church sactuary could hear Ivey singing loud and clear. On the contrary, Gavin wouldn't even open his mouth. He started sing a time or two, but then noticed that we were watching. That little buggar! I love watching all the little kids singing praise to God at such a young age. Ivey also had her graduation ceremony. It was really sweet, but I didn't cry! I didn't even get teary! Ivey and Gavin both loved their teachers this year and it was a great preschool year!

Soooo disappointing. I don't know what's up with my camera, but it hasn't been saving the pictures I've been taking. I lost a picture of Morgan mowing the grass... yes, it's that time! YAY! He wasn't as excited as we were for this new job of his, I think he spent about an hour in the bathroom and getting water trying to prolong the inevitable, I guess. The first attempt at mowing was... well... let's just say that Helen Keller would've probably done a better job. So, Chris made him do it over again with more guidance this time. He still missed a few spots, but the improvement was wonderful. I'm sure my neighbors were glad.

The other pictures I lost were of our trip to the aquarium last week. We had a really good time with our neighbor and her children. We bought the Mommy and Me passes back at the beginning of the year. Next time, though, I think I won't choose to go on Friday - I forgot about Spring time and field trips! But the kids had a great time. The were especially fond of the whale sharks!

Last week, Ivey's teacher gave her the letter bucket to take home and fill with things that begin with the letter X. Um, OK. Other than xylophone and x-ray I'm left with pretty much nothin'. We did find an x-box game, other than that we just had a few random x-items, like a magnet and puzzle piece of the letter X. She was pretty down about it since we couldn't fill the bucket all the way to the top (over-achiever.) So, we decided to make the day better with X-cupcakes. Hey, it's all I could think of.

I read a book yesterday entitled "Crossing the Valley: Biography of Ramon Rivas." It was incredible. This man's love and passion for the Lord were absolutely inspiring. He was a missionary in the Columbian jungle in the mid 1980's. His love was for an unreached people group, the jungle people of Berrocal, Columbia. His sister actually led him to the Lord when he was 20 years old and they were the only ones in their family who were Christians. He attended World of Life Bible Institute in Argentina and then went on to Columbia after receiving an unquenchable desire to serve that forgotten people group by man, but knowing that God had never forgotten about them. His service to the Lord was absolutely amazing, reminding me much of Paul. Wherever he went, he preached the Word and people came to receive the Lord Jesus Christ. Then they would beg him to stay or to come back to visit them, forsaking arrangements to visit in other cities. Ramon was killed after only serving in the jungle for 2 years. He did not ever know that both of his parents and all of his siblings became devout believers after his death, nor did he ever see his vision of a Bible Institute built in Berrocal become reality. This poem was one that he loved and I was touched by it as well:

"That Comes from Me"

'Our confusions are His occasions'

Soul, I have a message for you, I am going to whisper it into your ear so that you shine marvelously in the midst of the storm clouds of your life. The message is short, only four words. Let them penetrate deeply in your heart so that they carry you to true peace.

That comes from Me.

Have you thought that everything that worries you also worries Me? Because "he that touches you touches the apple of his eye." (Zechariah 2:8) You should know that when temptation entangles you and the enemy is surrounding you, that comes from Me, because your weakness needs My strength and your security is only based on what you leave Me to fight.

Are you in difficult circumstances? That come from Me. I am the Lord of the circumstances, your environment, your neighbor, they only do My will.

Are you in economic difficulties? Is it difficult for you to overcome? That comes from Me. I am responsible for your money. I want you to have to come to Me and depend on Me. My wealth is unlimited. (Philippians 4:19) I want to show you that My promises are true.

Are you crossing through the darkness of life? That comes from Me. I am the "man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief" (Isaiah 53:3). I allowed the earthly counsel to fail you so that you had to turn to Me and you will reach the enternal Counselor.

Has a friend disappointed you? One to who you had opened your heart? That comes from Me. I have permitted this disappointment so that you would know that I am your best friend.

Were your plans undone and are you tired and overwhelmed? That comes from Me. You made plans and then you asked My blessing. But I want you to allow Me to make your plans; then I will take the responsibility because "this thing is too heavy for thee, thou art not able to perform it thyself alone. " (Exodus 18:18) You are only an instrument.

Did you want to do something big for Me, and instead you were confined to your bed in pain?

That comes from Me. I could not get your attention when you were busy; I wanted to tell you my deepest secrets. "Also they serve those that are on foot and wait." Some of my better laborers I exclude from active service so they learn to use the power of prayer.

Were you suddenly called to a difficult job, full of responsibility? Trust in Me. I believe you are capable of overcoming difficulties "for this thing the Lord they God shall bless thee in all thy works, and in all that thou puttest thine hand unto." (Deuteronomy 15:10) In this day I deposit in your hands a receptacle with sacred oil: use it with prudence. Oh soul! Anoint with it all the events, every word that hurts you, every interruption that makes you impatient; every expression of your own weakness. The sting disappears

when you learn to see me in everything.

"Set your hearts unto all the words which I testify among you this day, ... for it is not a vain thing for you; because it is your life." (Deuteronomy 32:46-47)