8 Months Pregnant!

Well, here we are ... 32 weeks in! I can't believe I have been pregnant for 8 months! David and I were sitting around talking about how long I have been pregnant last night and we just couldn't believe where the time had gone. These next 8 weeks will fly by, I am sure. Although we are hoping she comes in 7 so we can actually spend Christmas in Tampa with our families, but this is the one time she actually gets to be in control in all her years of childhood! She better enjoy it now because I don't know when it will roll around again! :)

She moves like crazy and I can actually feel body parts poking out at me. Sometimes she rolls over so her back is poking the front of my belly. It is the most uncomfortable feeling because it feels like she is literally pushing so hard she might come out! With all her crazy movement, looks like she may take after her daddy. Oh the horror stories I have heard about David when he was a kid!! Please start praying for me NOW that she will not be as poorly behaved as my husband! :) (Love you honey!!)

I am very much enjoying being pregnant and don't want to wish these 8 weeks by too fast. This is the only time I get to be one with my little girl. It is such an amazing bonding experience. Although, having her here to hold will be the most precious thing I could ever imagine.

For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother's womb.
I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful, I know that well and full.
Psalm 139:13-14

What a weekend!

Well, this was the first weekend David has had off in over a month! Those doctors sure do work a lot of hours! It was such a nice weekend to have David home especially with the weather finally cooling down! David loves the cold weather. I'm pretty much on the opposite side of the spectrum, but I must admit the weather this weekend was beautiful! I was outside in the 57 degree weather in short sleeves! Thanks for all the extra blood flow to make me warm, Cori!

We started our Friday evening off with a nice date to Chili's (we used a gift card of course!) Oh, how I love gift cards to Chili's, or to any restaurant for that matter that allow us to have a date night! :) Dinner was followed by Gator Growl, which was probably the best Growl I have ever been to! Usually I leave Growl a little disappointed, but this year was awesome! Dana Carvey was the comedian and did a tremendous job playing to both the student side and alumni side. The Jabbawockeez were there and had an outstanding performance. What an incredible group of dancers! They also walked in the Homecoming parade earlier in the day, which I walked in as well with my cheerleaders. As the cheerleaders and I were lining up to begin our walk, the entire Jabbawockee group walked by us and gave all of us high-fives. So cool! :) Growl closed out with a live performance from OAR, which was amazing! It took me right back to my college dorm room sophomore year (Well, Dave's dorm room actually!) I remember him and Dan playing OAR's hit, "Crazy Game of Poker" over and over again. It was such a great night with my hubby and live entertainment. Not to mention, the weather in the Swamp was so nice!

Jabbawockeez Performance!

OAR's Performance!

Saturday started with a little college game day and then the Gator/Arkansas game. Since we don't have student tickets this year (tear!) we were unable to attend the game, but it was nice watching it together at home. I was on the edge of my seat the entire game, trying not to throw things at the TV every time the Gators fumbled the ball (4 times by the way!!). Luckily a win is a win, but I did not like the way we got there! Oh, and by the way, Gary Danielson is the WORST college football announcer I have ever heard! Does he have something against the Gators or what? He could barely mumble anything nice about Florida. CBS needs to get some other commentator for the Gator games. I might throw something at him next time!

Not only did David and I get to spend time together relaxing this weekend, but we also did some work! Our good friends Lance and Lauren went out of town this weekend to a wedding in Kansas. Earlier in the month Lauren's parents called us about doing a "While you were out" makeover on Lance and Lauren's kitchen. It was so much fun! We put in new counter tops, tile back splash, a new sink & faucet, and new track lighting where the horrible florescent light once was. The best thing is that Lance and Lauren have NO IDEA! David and Lance have been talking about re-modeling both of our kitchens in the past few months, but neither thought it would ever come to fruition. Lucky for Lance and Lauren, their kitchen dreams have come true! They fly in from Kansas tonight and get back in town around midnight. I can't wait to hear their reaction!

To the left is the before - florescent lights, white counter tops, no back splash, old sick and faucet. To the right is the make over! Wow! It's amazing what a little lighting, color, and newness can do for a kitchen!

Let's take a closer look...
Old Sink!

New Sink!

Old Kitchen!

New Kitchen!

I just can't get over the new homey look and feel. We hope you like it Lance and Lauren! It's our turn next! :)

Fall is here (I think!)

Yesterday morning I walked downstairs to let Maverick out. Much to my surprise when I opened the front door, a brisk chilly morning had come! I actually had to go back upstairs to get a jacket just to stand outside with Mav. It was such a nice change from the sweltering heat. But, like typical Florida weather, it warmed up to about 85 by the afternoon and this morning when I woke up it was definitely not as chilly. Fall is here, but I don't think the weather is going to be consistent just yet! Is it ever?!?

However, being that it was October 1st yesterday AND the chilly weather showed up, I decided it was time to decorate for fall! So, what did I do? Me and my big belly self went up in the attic to get all the fall decorations down. Oh, was that fun, but someone's gotta do it! :) Outside decorating is at a minimum because we live in a condo (oh, how I can't wait to have a YARD one day, but for now I'll choose contentment!). Check out the pictures below of some of my fun fall decorating festivities!

To the left is the big scarecrow sitting outside on the bush and to the right is the little scarecrow sitting next to the walkway by the front door.

I'd LOVE to go buy some big hay stacks and set up a little scarecrow farm, but that may be a few years down the road for me!







I love this center piece on our dining room table!

So, maybe there wasn't much decorating going on after all, but a little is better than none! I am just glad we are entering the holiday seasons of Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas. These are some of my favorite holidays of the year and at the conclusion of them this year will be the birth a newborn baby girl! Oh, how I can't wait! I did notice that I haven't put many pictures up of how my belly is growing and boy is it growing! Below is a picture of me at 28 weeks, which was this past Tuesday. For all of you folks that would rather know the months, that's 7 MONTHS! It's coming down to the wire here! :) I don't know how my belly is going to get much bigger, but I hear it's going to!

Until next time...
Danielle and Cori Belle

Deeper Still

This past weekend all the Family Group girls took a road trip down to Orlando for the Deeper Still Conference. What a wonderful and Godly adventure it was! The conference was at the Amway Arena with thousands of women filling the seats. It was so incredible to see literally thousands of women together in the same place worshiping God. In this world that can seem so crazy at times, it was calming and reassuring to see so many women there and to hear 3 great teachers of the word. We heard from Kay Arthur, Priscilla Shrirer, and my all-time FAVORITE women's speaker, Beth Moore! The theme, "Deeper Still" was an illustration all 3 speakers used to challenge us not to be surface Christians, but to desire God on a deeper level and to continue to go deeper with him on a daily basis - something in which we all could benefit from!

Kay Arthur was the first woman we heard from at the conference. She is such a true woman of God and boy does she know her scripture! I bet that lady could recite the whole bible to you if you asked her to! :) While she really spent a lot of time going through the book of Hebrews, the main message I got from Kay was this... In all things, are you going for the approval of others or the approval of God? When it comes down to it, God is truly all that matters. We are here to live our life for him and only him. We are not here to be accepted by others, after all God the Father was certainly not accepted by most. He sacrificed his life for us, why can't we do the same for him? We must "Rest in Faith" as Kay said over and over again with the bible against her head because without faith, it is impossible for us to please God. (Hebrews 11:6)

Priscilla Shrirer was the second woman we heard from at the conference. I had actually never heard of her before this past weekend, and I have been missing out! Her message hit home to me more than any other (Sorry Beth! I still love you!) She spent time taking apart 2 verses - Ephesians 3:20 and 21 which say, "Now to HIM who is able to do immeasurably MORE than all we could ever think or imagine, according to HIS power that is at work within us, to HIM be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever! Amen." I can just see Priscilla now as she took this verse and acted it out on stage (which I did later in the weekend back in the hotel room, but that's another story!) What hit home the most about this message was that God is capable! Of course I know that God is capable, but sometimes you need someone else to remind you of this every now and then. Not only is God capable, but he is capable NOW. Right NOW he can do amazing things in our life - in the here and now, which I need to remember on a day to day basis! Being at home and not at work full time makes me feel like I don't have a purpose at the moment. But, I have to remember that God can use this time that I am at home without a baby to do MORE than I could ever think or imagine. I just have to spend time resting in him and let him lead & teach me. ... I think this is such an important message in the state that our country is in as well. There are so many people without jobs right now and so many uncertainties, but we have to remember Ephesians 3:20-21. HE is ABLE to do immeasurable MORE than whatever we could ever think or imagine. How reassuring is that?!? Just knowing this is the foundation of our faith. One other thing she said is that when she prays for something she says, "God, you are able and I pray for you to do this in my life, but if not, then do something BETTER!" Just because God doesn't do what we have asked doesn't mean he doesn't care or doesn't love us. Gods thoughts are greater than our thoughts and his ways are greater than our ways - he can see the BIG picture when we can't. Trust in the Lord your God for he will not forsake you. Our God is so great. Don't forget that!

And finally, Beth Moore, who is so near and dear to my heart. If you have ever done a Beth Moore bible study you know what I'm talking about. She is a woman on FIRE for Jesus and it is so evident in all she does. God is using her to reach women around the world and she is so obedient to him. I just LOVE her! Her message this past weekend was on how to become spiritually discerned - listening to our spiritual gut! Have you ever just had "that feeling" deep inside where you knew something was right or wrong? Well, if we are in the word daily, that's our spiritual gut. But, the key point here is being in the word. You cannot walk in the spirit without walking intimately with him; in a RELATIONSHIP with him. This was such a reminder to me about how our Christian faith is NOT a religion. It has nothing to do with religion at all - just go ahead and take it out of the equation. Our Christian faith is about a relationship with our maker. Thank goodness for that!

I want to end with a quote from Beth. She said, "The sense of God's presence in my life is EVERYTHING I live for!" What an encouragement. God created us to live for him and nothing more. Our soul purpose on this earth is to love him and love others. I pray for God's presence in my life so that I can be an example to others; so that they might see Him through me.

Thank you Lord for an amazing weekend! Until next time...

Heeeeeeeeeeere Come the GATORS!

Gator football is truly one of the reasons we love living in Gainesville. Saturday was the first official College Game Day of the season. I woke up to ESPN blaring throughout our house. Good thing we bought a TV 2 weeks ago (with CASH - Oh yeah, Dave Ramsey would be so proud!) otherwise David would have been out of his element this past Saturday. I have to admit, I actually like ESPN on College Game Day. What memories it brings to mind! Saturdays from September through November just wouldn't be the same without it.

Before the game we tailgated with Davids sister, Jamie and her friend, Chris in the O'Connell Center parking lot. We had such a good time eating and enjoying the pre-game festivities with everyone!

Here are Jamie and I - don't worry, I'm drinking Sprite! :)

We even ran into Lauren and Adam at the tailgate! It was so fun to see them since I am used to seeing Lauren everyday at school!

Although, this past Saturday was a different kind of Saturday than we have had in years. For the past 8 years we have gotten Gator student football tickets - 4 years of Undergraduate School and 4 years of Medical School. Unfortunately, residents don't get football tickets. :( Luckily Jamie came up to visit a friend this weekend who just happened to have 2 extra football tickets. Whew! For the first time ever, we sat on the Gator Alumni side, which actually was quite nice. There were no drunk people around toppling over one another and I even got to sit for most of the game, which I know the baby appreciated! We had great seats on the 40-yard line. Check out the view!

Oh, how I love the Gator band!

Here we are enjoying the first game of the season together.

Well, it was another Gator victory in the Swamp! It is expected to be a great season with Tebow kicking butt while he trains Brantley to take over his job next season. Can't wait for next weeks game! :)

Happy Birthday Daddy David!

This past weekend sure was an eventful one! First, we found out we were having a baby GIRL and then we celebrated David's 27th birthday! August is FULL of birthdays in our family. I have a birthday, our sister-in-law has a birthday, David's sister has a birthday, and David has a birthday. Not to mention a few of our closest friends have birthdays in August as well.

Every year David and his sister, Jamie, celebrate their birthdays together since they are only 4 days apart (well, really 6 years and 4 days apart, but whose counting?!) Since everyone was in town for the baby shower, David and Jamie got to celebrate together once again. Here they are in the birthday hats they wear together every year!

The tradition - a nice picture together....

and a silly picture together!

His birthday was actually on Monday and being the newly "domesticated" wife I am learning how to be I decided to bake! I went to Publix early Monday morning and bought all the necessary things to bake a double layer Funfetti birthday cake with orange and blue colored frosting. Once I was all finished, here is what it looked like...

It may not be a masterpiece, but I tried! I even took a picture of the cake with his presents on the table. By this time in the day I was feeling like such a good wife/new mom - I baked, wrapped presents, took pictures, and I even had the idea of surprising him at Family Group that night with the cake, which I did! I got to family group a little late, lit the candles, and had everyone singing to him before he even knew I was there! My downfall came when I forgot to take a picture of DAVID on his birthday. I had all intentions of taking a picture of him with his cake and our friends... but my baby brain got the best of me. Luckily I have some time to get some more practice in before our little girl gets here. I can't forget to take pictures of her on her birthday!!

Until next time... dani

It's a GIRL!

The wait is over! Most of you know that David and I have been waiting and waiting to find out the sex of our baby. We went to the doctor a month ago and had him write down the sex of our baby in an envelope to give to 3 of our special friends who then threw us a surprise "sex" shower this past Saturday. Finding out what we were having in front of all our family and friends was so special and fun! I wouldn't have wanted it any other way!

Here are some pictures from the party!

They had everyone write us a special note on a diaper so when we are changing our little one, we have something funny to read!

David made a "Fantasy Baby Ball" board where people could place a bet for $1.00 on the day and time of the baby's birth.

The way we found out was the most fun of all! Our wonderful shower hostesses had 10 guys stand up in front of everyone and put balloons underneath their shirts. David and I then went around popping all of their "pregnant bellies," tallying up how many pink pieces of tissue paper verses blue pieces of tissue paper fell out each balloon. Well, by balloon number 9 we had 5 blue pieces and 4 pink pieces. Obviously my husband, who was CERTAIN we were having a boy, thinks to himself, "We have 5 blue pieces and 4 pink pieces so far and there can't be a tie so..." I pop the last balloon and confetti falls out so David shouts, "It's a BOY!" Then someone told us to actually look at the confetti on the ground, which when we looked closely read "it's a girl" on each piece of confetti. So, David turns around to the crowd and shouts once again, "Never mind! It's a GIRL!" ... It was one of the funniest and most precious moments of my life. We are so excited to be having a baby girl!

Here are all the guys lined up with their "pregnant bellies!"





















Here we are on the left when David shouted, "It's a boy!" and then here we are on the right once it was clarified that actually, "It's a GIRL!" It was a whirlwind of emotions and so much fun!

Clearly, it is a girl! :)

Here we are with our diaper cake SO EXCITED about our little baby girl!

So now, we are working on the room and getting it ready for our precious little one. David is practicing how to be a protective father for his little girl. He says this is just God's way of making him more sensitive. There are so many boys on David's side of the family, I think adding a little girl will be a nice addition. Right now, the topic of conversation is how much of a tom-boy the family can make her, but she will be whoever God created her to be and I can't wait to see what the future holds in store. I feel her flipping around constantly so maybe we have a little gymnast on our hands. :)

This weekend was such an exciting time for us. Thank you to my incredible friends who threw the shower - Rose, Lauren & Kristy! I love you guys! Thank you to everyone who was there! It meant so much to us. Four more months and we can welcome home our little baby girl! :)

Greater Things Have Yet to Come!

Today marks the beginning of a new season for me. School began today and it is the first time in 4 years I am not welcoming children into a classroom. This year would have been my 5th year teaching. It is crazy to think I have been out of college and teaching that long. Where does the time go? Those years in the classroom treated me well and if anything, they taught me how to be a better person. I think it's incredible when the profession you choose teaches you how to love deeper, care more, and to "be kinder than necessary because everyone is fighting some sort of battle" (a favorite quote of mine). Being a teacher also prepared me to be a much better mom. Even though I'm not technically a mom yet, I know I'll be a better one because of the experience I have from the classroom. Dealing with 18 children on a daily basis taught me so much, even though I went to school to learn how to teach them. I know I'll go back to teaching one day, but for now, I can't wait to teach my new little one come December.

One of the hardest parts for me at the moment is not having the baby here. If my sweet baby was here I don't think I would have as much sadness in my heart about not teaching this year, but I have to remember that "greater things have yet to come and greater things will be done" in my life. Those words from Chris Tomlin are such a reminder to me of God's plan. Full time teaching was His plan for me for a season, and it may be His plan for me at a later date, but currently there is a different plan for my life that I am waiting to unfold. Thank you Lord for your faithfulness.

So, today instead of being in the classroom, I am learning how to be a stay at home mom. I have started learning how to "coupon". Yes, I'm using that word as a verb because it takes a lot of doing to be good at couponing. I have started a new ritual of buying the Sunday paper every Sunday on the way home from church. Then I spend the afternoon researching the BOGO (buy one, get one) deals at Publix, Target, Walgreen's, and CVS while cutting out every store, manufacture and competitor coupon I can find. After I have a mess of coupons on my kitchen table, I organize my grocery list for the week. I literally write out where the best deal is, what the deal is, and how much money I can save using a coupon. (Look at that! I am not even at school and I'm using part of the 5 w's and the h! Go me!) It seems like a daunting task, but when I leave the store on Monday, I feel invigorated and ready for the next week of couponing to begin. I must admit, it was a bit overwhelming at the beginning and I am still learning the ropes, but if I'm going to be a stay at home mom, I better make it a goal to save money!

So today, I went to Publix, Walgreen's, and CVS to buy our weekly groceries. I bought 2 1bs of apples, 1 lb of bananas, 6 boxes of cereal, 2 boxes of cheeze-its, 2 boxes of mac & cheese, 2 loaves of bread, 2 frozen pizzas, 1 squeeze bottle of jelly, 2 bags of cape cod chips, 2 bottles of coffee-mate creamers, milk, toilet paper, Ibuprofen, dish detergent, and 2 packs of blank note cards to mail letters to my old students. I spent 50.02 total and saved 60.65 in coupons and store deals. I saved MORE than I spent and I'm not even an expert couponer yet. You should see how much some of my friends save! My favorite deal of the day was buying Ibuprofen and dish detergent for $4.80 total at Walgreen's as well as spending $0.99 for milk at CVS. Now, that's a deal!

Check out my groceries! :)

So far, my first day as a "soon to be" stay at home mom was a success! I am still working part time at Sun Country as their cheerleading director, so tomorrow is a working day, but we will see what other mommy things lie in store. We serve an awesome God who has a perfect plan for our lives. Just remember greater things have yet to come! And, when I'm having a bad day, hold me accountable and remind me of God's faithfulness. What else are friends for?

Much love to you all! Until next time..
dani

26 years and 21 weeks

Tuesday, August 11th, was my 26th birthday and my 21st week of pregnancy. I can't believe 26 years has already flown by. Where has the time gone? I remember just being a little kid and now I'm going to have a little kid of my own! :) It was a wonderful birthday! David took me to my favorite restaurant - The Melting Pot! The cheese fondue is my FAVORITE! It truly was such a wonderful night. This week has been a bit crazy! David and I have both been working A LOT! I had cheerleading camp all week as well as regular practices to coach and office hours to hold. Thank you for the 16 messages left of my voice mail. I am still returning phone calls!! The Melting Pot only had two people working on Tuesday, which made service kinda slow, but the Lord knew we needed it. The best present I could have gotten was one on one time with my incredible husband. We had 3 hours to talk, catch up on life, and eat some amazing food! What a wonderful birthday present! :)

Here we are on my b-day! Look at that belly! I think the horizontal stripes make me look even bigger!

Oh, by the way... if you know David at all you will know that he refuses to eat vegetables. Well, he ate ceaser salad at The Melting Pot and actually liked it! I know what you're thinking - it's a miracle! :) He says it's because the salad had parmesan crusted pine nuts (which I have to admit were a great addition to the salad) but I think he was looking for an excuse as to why he has refused to eat salad for so many years, and now he suddenly liked it. Hmmm... I love you honey! I just had to take a picture so there was proof!

Well, I am sure you are wondering what my 21-week old belly looks like (those horizontal stripes are deceiving, I think). Here is my birthday belly and it's only getting bigger!
I can still fit into my jeans - wahoo! But it certainly is different to look down and see that huge bump. There is no laying on my tummy anymore and boy does that baby kick! As I sit here and type at the moment the baby sure is having a party in my belly! :) Hmmm, is it a boy or a girl throwing a party in there? August 29th is the big day. Can't wait!!

Thanks to everyone to made my birthday so special. Annie, I LOVED those cupcakes at bible study! Thanks so much for thinking of me! Steph, thanks for lunch and Lauren, thanks for tagging along. Family Group, thanks for my special card. I loved all my gifts from all my special friends and thank you so much for all the wonderful phone messages I received. You guys truly made this birthday a wonderful one! Much love to you all!

dani

Cohort 29 Wedding

When I transferred to UF into the Elementary Education Program I met some wonderful girls. These were the girls who transformed my life from living in the dark to living in the light. They challenged me to think about what was important in my life and what my life could be with Christ as the center. They loved me, prayed with me, encouraged me, studied the bible with me, and were an inspiration in my growth in becoming who I am today. Christ used these girls not only to lead me to him, but to lead David to him as well, and for that I am forever thankful!

This past weekend Emily got married and a few of the Cohort 29 girls were there to celebrate with her. Emily and John met at a friends wedding in January and were married just last weekend on August 1st. I know what you must be thinking - "They met and got married within 8 months!" But, God had a plan for these two. As Emily says, "When you know, you KNOW!" I have to agree with her, especially when you are in love with the Lord as much as she is. I know God would not lead her astray! Below is a picture of the wonderful girls of Cohort 29 celebrating with Emily.

Marie, Chrissanna, Emily, me, Kristy

It was so great to see these girls and find out what everyone is doing now with their teaching degree. Only 2 out of 5 of us are teaching still (Emily & Marie - although Marie is teaching ESE now). Chrissanna is working at an outdoor camp for kids full time and loving it. And, Kristy and I are becoming moms (Well, Kristy has been a mom for a little over a year and is expecting another little one in March!! :) with part time jobs in the education realm or cheerleading for me! God sure does direct our paths in different ways, but he has wonderful plans for each of us.

"For I know the plans I have for you", declares the Lord. "Plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future." - Jeremiah 29:11

Here's a picture of the wonderful newlywed couple! Congrats Emily & John!

18 weeks, 2 days

Time flies when you're having fun! Being pregnant has been so good to me so far. I have enjoyed every minute of it. I have been feeling great, a little tired every now and then, but who doesn't enjoy a nap? :) I thought I'd post some pregnancy pictures up for you guys to see. I haven't grown too much, at least I don't think. It's so funny when your belly starts growing. It just becomes a part of you and you don't even realize it's there at times. Of course that may change when I get bigger. I'll probably be toppling over as time goes on, but I can't wait!

To the left is a picture of me at 7 weeks and to the right is a picture of me at 18 weeks. I've definitely gotten a tan and my tummy is definitely growing! :) At 18 weeks the baby is 5 1/2 inches (crown to rump) and weighs about 5 1/4 ounces. The baby also looks much more like a human! Yay - he or she is not an alien anymore!

We go back in for another ultrasound at 20 weeks. This is the big one. The doctor will check everything out - head, shoulders, knees and toes (and everything else in between!) The sex should be able to be determined by then although we won't find out. Some of our good friends are throwing us a party where we will find out the sex. So, I should say that Rose, Lauren & Kristy will find out on Aug 4th, but we have to wait a bit longer to find out. It will be worth the wait though! I can't wait to celebrate the sex of our baby with all our closest friends!

Please continue to pray for the health and development of our little one.

For this child we prayed.
1 Samuel 1:27

Give me Jesus

In the morning, when I rise
Give me Jesus.

Give me Jesus.

You can have all this world.
Just give me Jesus.

When I am alone
Give me Jesus.

When I come to die
Give me Jesus.

Give me Jesus.
You can have all this world.

Just give me Jesus.

These are the lyrics of an amazing song sung by Jeremy Camp that I heard today as I was cleaning the house listening to Pandora radio. As the song played, I stood there, vacuum in hand, and couldn't help but feel so much peace from this song. I am currently doing a bible study with a few friends from Williston called Me, Myself, and Lies by Jennifer Rothschild. The study is all about the thoughts that consume our minds on a daily basis and how our "thought-closet" is probably sometimes filled with lies we have told our self. What we tell our self depends on the circumstances we are going through in life, right? Wrong! If we have lost a job (I know the feeling!) we may begin to tell our self that we aren't good enough or smart enough to have that job anyway. If we have failed at something we may tell our self that we stupid. If we are going through a struggle we may tell our self that we deserve it. These are all lies. God would never want us to think this way, no matter the circumstance. God wants us to hear the truth that we are fearfully and wonderfully made. God wants us to know that every battle is something that brings us closer to him and he will be with us every step of the way, speaking truth into our hearts and cheering us on. Take Paul for example. Paul wrote many letters of the New Testament from a jail cell. Talk about unfavorable circumstances! Paul could have told himself that he was a failure; a no good disciple of Christ. He could have put himself in the corner of that cell and waited to die. But no, not Paul. Paul didn't listen to the lies; he didn't even allow his thought-closet to consist of anything other than God's truths. In Philippians 4:4 he says, "Rejoice in the Lord always. Again, I say: Rejoice!" Paul is in jail rejoicing! Apply that to your life. How many times have you been in a difficult situation, struggling to come up for air, rejoicing all the way? I don't know about you, but that isn't all too often for me. Later on in Philippians 4:12 Paul says, "I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want." We can learn a lot here from Paul. He gets it. Our contentment isn't dependent upon our circumstances. We can't praise God one day for something good in our life and then curse him the next day for something that went wrong. God's love for us isn't conditional so why is our love for him that way at times? Paul is content whether things are good or bad because he believes the truth that God speaks. Christ is what brings us peace, not the things of this world - not a job, a significant other, a material possession, a friend, a sibling, etc - only Jesus.

So, back to the song at the beginning. In the morning, we need Jesus. When we are alone, we need Jesus. When we come to die one day, we need Jesus. We don't need the things in this world, we need Jesus. ... Times right now are tough for people. We are in an economic crisis. Some of us have other crisis going on. But that doesn't have to turn your world around. Just let it turn you to Jesus.

Many of you know that I lost my job a few months ago due to budget cuts. It was tough. Did I speak lies to myself about my self worth? You bet I did. Do I realize now that I just needed to turn my gaze to Jesus and he would take care of me. Yes. I even knew that at the time, but it was easier for me to just be mad. I wish I had read Philippians chapter 4 in that time of need to be reminded of Paul's story and to hear Christ's truths. Fortunately, God stood by me and saw me through even with the lies I told myself. ... I will not be going back to teach this year, which is difficult to swallow, but God knows me better than I know myself. Rather, I will be the director of the cheerleading program at Sun Country Sports overseeing & running the entire program. Cheerleading is something I LOVE to do and something I have been coaching for the past 4 years alongside teaching. The most glamorous thing about this job is that is gives me the flexibility to be with my new little one come December. What more could I ask for? God is so good! I hope you realize that as much as I do! I'll be praying for you! :)

Much Love!

Catching Up on Summer Fun

Wow, has it been a long time! Summer has been a whirlwind of events and vacations so far. I thought I'd catch you up... The last day of school was June 4th. Below is a picture of me and my little first graders whom I'll always remember. They have such a special place in my heart, as all my other classes have as well. Being a teacher is such a treasure and the impact we have on the children we teach is what makes me love my profession. Even though they sometimes drove me crazy, I can't help but look back on my years of teaching and smile. All their little faces roll to the front of my mind and I giggle at all our little memories and moments together. Thank you Lord for the way I love and care for kids. Only you could make me this way. 2008-2009 First Grade Class. Look at those faces! How can you not love them?

The very next day after school ended David and I hopped on a plane up to Minnesota to visit his little brother Casey & Rebecca. They moved to Minnesota last summer and we had not yet been up to see them. It was such a fun trip even though it was a bit cold and rainy. Rebecca swears it gets warm up there, but I have yet to see it! :) We had so much fun on our visit. We went to the Mall of America, which is quite an experience if you have never been - there is a Universal Theme Park in the middle of the 4-story mall!! Craziness! We also went to Ikea which is my new favorite store. It's a 2 story warehouse full of anything and everything you would ever need to decorate your house. They actually give you a map when you enter the store and you have to follow the blue arrows around so you don't miss anything. The top floor, which is where you begin your shopping consists of show rooms for every room in your house. You go through an entire set of set up living rooms, kitchens, offices, bedrooms, kids rooms, etc. You can't pick anything up on this floor to buy; it's all to give you ideas. However, everything is labeled with a number so you write down the number of something you might want on your shopping list and then you can pick it up downstairs. Downstairs is the market place/warehouse. This is where you can actually put things in your cart - plates, silver wear, duvet covers, sheets, baskets, rugs, blinds, curtains, light fixtures, plants (real & fake), artwork, custom framing, etc ... it's like a Michael's/Bed Bath & Beyond that has exploded! Then you move into the warehouse where you can pick up any furniture you liked along the way. It's complete awesomeness! Oh, and not to mention the prices ROCK! We actually bought a new kitchen table that seats 8 people normally, but seats 12 when you put the leaf in. (We bought it at the Ikea in Tampa, not Minnesota). It feels so good to finally have enough chairs to have people over for dinner and chairs that don't sway back and forth when you sit in them. Hallelujah! ... Now that I've gone on a rampage about Ikea, I'll get back to our visit to Minnesota. We had one nice day and went on a hike that was beautiful. It was the perfect temperature to go hiking - not too hot, not too cold. We took Aspen with us. She was such a good dog!

Here is a picture of me, Rebecca, & Aspen

Casey is a boat salesman up in Minnesota so we spent some time boating around Lake Minnetonka one morning. It is a HUGE lake with HUGE houses all along it! Here's a picture of David & Casey driving the boat.

We also roasted marshmallows by the fire one night. Yes, we had a fire in the backyard in JUNE! I thought June was the summer, but apparently I was mistaken. :) We had such a great time visiting. Thanks for having us Casey & Rebecca. We hope to make it up there again sometime soon. Love you guys!

We hopped a flight home from Minnesota to Tampa, drove back up to Gainesville, unpacked and repacked, then drove to Hilton Head Island, SC the very next day with our good friends Lance & Lauren. Talk about a climate change from Minnesota to Hilton Head! It was such a relaxing time on the beach with the Jones'. How funny is it that the Smith's and the Jones' took a vacation together - the most common last names in all the world it seems. Hilton Head is a beautiful place and the beaches are nice. We got up in the morning and ran on the beach almost everyday, then spent time relaxing and reading for pleasure (something I don't get to do in the school year) every afternoon. One word can describe that vacation - peaceful!Here is a picture of Lance, Lauren, me, & David hanging out on the beach.

We went out for one nice dinner at Catch 22. It was delicious! Roasted Red Paper Crab Soup and Calamari Pasta - mmm good! :)

After a week at Hilton Head we drove straight down for our Smith Family vacation on Crescent Beach. It is our annual beach vacation we take every year. I think in years to come it will become a Smith family reunion. This year was a bit different than most because Casey, Rebecca, & Jamie were all missing this year. We missed them so much, but we are so excited everyone has off next summer and will be in attendance. Things are changing with babies on the way and we had to rent our own condo for next summer. Usually the whole family crams into one 2-bedroom condo, but the tradition is moving on. Mama Smith & Pops are still staying in their own 2-bedroom condo, but the kids rented a 3-bedroom condo for David & I (plus a 6 month old baby by then), Casey & Rebecca, and Ryan & Missy. We can't wait!

Normally our beach games of choice are volleyball and horse shoes, but this year it was bocce ball. Bocce started becoming popular in our family when we went to Minnesota and Casey & David started a tournament of sorts. It continued in Hilton Head with David & Lance, and then in Crescent with David, Ryan, Pops, and our good friend Alex Mouro. We did take a picture of our last bocce tournament where 8 of us played with one ball each at sunset the last night on Crescent, but it's on Mama Smith's camera so you'll just have to imagine it. :)

So, with the first 3 and a half weeks of summer gone, we are finally back home in Gainesville. It does feel good to be home after traveling so much. David has been working hard at pediatric residency orientation. Residency begins tomorrow and he will enter the working world from here on out. It's an exciting time. Little baby Roo is still growing rapidly. I am 15 weeks pregnant today and get to see our little one next week at my 16 week ultrasound. I hope your summer has treated you well so far. There is still much more fun to be had!

Much Love to you all! :)