TAG...I'm It!

Kristen and Maggie Elizabeth both tagged me to do this... Go Check them out...


First off... the rules:

1) List Six Unimportant Things That Make You Happy.

2) Mention and link to the person who tagged you .

3) Tag six of your favorite bloggers to play along, and comment on their blog to let them know they've been tagged.


Okay..6 unimportant things that make me happy...


1) Lounging by my parents pool

2) Cute shoes!

3) Random Junk!!!

4) Chips and Salsa and Cheese Dip

5) The smell of Baby Shampoo

6) Writing for my blog



So...I now tag...



1) Kristi

2) Shana

3) Jennifer

4) Whitney

5) Jen

6) Amy

They're So Kind...

Just wanted to give another shout out to Shabby Blogs...she's so kind!

I got my super cute background and header ABSOLUTELY FREE from her website. She also posts very helpful how-to's. Notice my button...I made it with free graphics from Shabby Princess...and Megan from Shabby Blogs taught me how to do it with one of her how-to posts. How nice is she?

Notice my "signature" at the bottom of this post? I made it again with items from Shabby Princess and again Megan posted a how-to and VOILA! I have a signature!

Thank you Shabby Princess and Shabby Blogs! You have helped me create a cute blog! And the best part...it was FREE!!! So I figured the least I could do was give you another shout out! You both rock! Thanks a Million!

PS I would like to see a post about how to add my own background image!...

Kind of Jumped the Gun

We've renamed the dog...yes...we jumped the gun!

Her new name is Lexie...and she is still as cute and sweet and well-mannered as yesterday.

She just seems like a Lexie...

Still Oh So Cute!!!

So....Now We've Officially Lost Our Minds

Remember this post?

Yeah...The fish have already gone on to be with Jesus. Apparently you are supposed to put some kind of water neutralizer hoopla in the water to make tap water safe for fish. Yeah, Momma didn't know that! So needless to say they lasted about a week. Oh well!

WEEELLLLLL....

My sister's dog had puppies back around Easter. Go on and say it....GASP..."you didn't?" OH WE DID!!!

Here she is in all her puppy glory...

She's part Pomeranian and part Dachshund.

Her name is Macie Lexie and she is the best doggie! She is so well-mannered and loving. Ava is in hog-heaven (or should I say dog-heaven)!

Weighing On Me

I have alot weighing on me. Not my actual weight...which could use a good decreasing...but random thoughts, commitments, and life in general...


Is there such thing as a "brain diet"...you know where you can decrease the amount of thoughts and worries floating around in your brain to in turn decrease your "weight"?


There actually is such a thing. It's called prayer.


When we pray we are supposed to give everything...every care, every worry, every praise...EVERYTHING to Him. We need to tell Him our fears and praises. He is a loving God and He already knows the outcome of any situation. And you know...He won't put more on you than you can handle. Every up and down we face God knows you can handle because He knows you inside and out.


I remember once talking about Matt's Nana...I never got to meet her so I enjoy hearing stories about her...Anyway, I think I was actually talking with Sharon (my MIL) and she said that Nana was the kind to lay all her burdens at His feet, say "Amen" and pick it all back up and put it back on her shoulders and go about her daily tasks. I feel that way sometimes. Don't we all? I'm not gonna lie to y'all...it's hard for me. I am a worrier by nature...it's in my bones. I worry about things that are small and big and I worry about things that probably shouldn't be worried about...Some things I can't just let go of, and I know I need to. I am working on it though. Imagine with me, if you will...a life without having to worry...how nice does that feel?


And as for the situations, worries, etc...they aren't really anything major...just things that a natural born worrier would worry about (or a SAHM or a Wife, for that matter). But I am trusting in God and trying hard to be carefree, and trying to lay it all at His feet (and not pick it right back up!).

"Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you." -1 Peter 5:7

Look What I Got...

My sister, Chickie gave me this awesome award. Thanks! I would like to thank the academy...what?...

To accept this award, I need to pass it on to a few of my new bloggy friends that I think are SuperStars!

1. Jennifer at The White's- They are expecting another little girl soon!

2. Kristi at Bringing Lucy Home-The very soon to be Johnson 7! YEA!

3. Maggie Elizabeth at Maggie Elizabeth-Her little one is too cute!

You gals rock!

Works For Me Wednesday

So....it's 8:15 PM and I am just now sitting here trying to think of a WFMW post. Ah...nothing like a little procrastination.

As a Stay-At-Home-Mom, one of my jobs is to try and save us as much money while grocery shopping as possible. I have played The Grocery Game (although I no longer do) and I clip coupons. We only grocery shop majorly once a month so that is generally when I buy my meat and the sides that will go with them. I will go throughout the month to buy produce and other items needed. Anyway...Here is what has worked for me while preparing to go shopping.

1.) Buy the paper every Sunday. Once you have your coupons in hand, clip the only the ones you know you will use. I don't clip coupons for things we don't buy...it wastes my time and my coupon space.

2.) Our local grocery store does Buy 1 Get 1 Free on meat. I don't put meat on my list until I see what meats are on sale. You can't beat B1G1 Chicken Breasts.

3.) I make my "Menu Options" list based off the meat on sale. I then pair my meats with side items and then throw on the toiletries/staples needed and VIOLA!!! An instant Shopping list.

4.) Once you have your list made...compare shop. Look at ads from your different local stores. I have no problem going to more than one store to save money. Look for the best deal on items from your list and buy them at the cheapest location. (Here's another little hint related to this...I am not big on Brands so we buy what's on sale...and I will put side items with my meats that are on sale...ie...sometimes our local store will do 20 for $10 canned veggies or B1G1 frozen veggies). It's all about getting the most for your money.

5.) Once I have made my list and scoped out the ads I go to my coupons. I pull out all the coupons I will need for that trip and put them in a snack size baggy and toss it in my wallet with my list. That way you won't be thumbing for coupons in line. All you have to do is open your baggy and hand the cashier all of the coupons.

6.) Sign up for your stores program. Some offers are only available to those who participate in the programs. I know our local grocery store does. CVS does the "Extra-Care Bucks" (free money) on items purchased that can be used on a future purchase with their card. Programs pay!

That's about it. Sorry for the choppy randomness. Going on vacation this past weekend has really thrown a loop in our routine.

Now...It's time for some night night lovin with Ava!

Memorial Day Weekend 2009

Memorial Day Weekend 2009 leaves me needing a vacation from my vacation. I am not gonna lie to y'all...Ava gave me a run for my money behavior wise this weekend. She was in rare form and I honestly thought that I had left my sweet angelic child at home by mistake and brought with me the devil's child. (I am just being honest here...because honestly, no one has a perfect kid...so I am writing about this just for those of you looking for that "Ah, I'm not alone" moment. You're welcome!) Anyway...we did have a good time.

Ava and I left out Friday morning with Nonna and Granny (Matt's Mom and Grandmother). (The boys and Miss Meredith came up after they got off work.) We got there and got settled in and waited for the others.

Saturday we got up bright and early to blueberry pancakes. The men folk headed out on the motorcycles to Deal's Gap (better known as the Dragon's Tail). While the boys were getting their ride on us girls where shopping...we had a blast!!! Thank you Lord Jesus that the boys made it back in one piece and with NO SPEEDING TICKETS and us girls didn't spend too much money!!!

Sunday was a kind of lazy day for most of us. Matt and Granny headed back home for church so we just relaxed and waited for them to get back before we really did anything...we also didn't have a vehicle so we were kind of stuck...Once they got back we headed to the Art District and walked around. We ate an early dinner and then headed to the little "river" outside of the aquarium for Ava to play. She had a blast!

After we left downtown we headed to the Covenant College area where we saw where crazy people jump off the mountain and call it "Hang Gliding". I am serious y'all...I had some heart palpitations going on. I took my few pictures and headed back to the truck. No playing around the edge for me. Nope...I have things to live for...

Monday we headed home which is always sad but we knew we would get to see Unkie Zach. He got to come home Saturday from Fort Gordon (he is in the Reserves and is currently stationed there for AIT.)

Here are some pictures in no particular order because blogger doesn't like me today and is giving me a hard time with pictures.

Ava, Unkie Jason, and Unkie Jason's Dog "Zoe"
We swam a little waiting for the guys Saturday

The Guys Getting Ready to Head Out Saturday Morning

The View From the Hang Gliding Place...SCARY

This is the Concrete Pad in Which Said "Crazy People" jump off of...I had to walk away...

Random Art in the Art District

Ava Playing Outside of the Aquarium

Playing Around...AT THE SPLASH PAD!!!

Ok...so I decided to play catch up while my many few pictures from the weekend upload...

The Splash Pad is officially our new favorite place...well almost as much as we love Mia and Pop's pool!

Our friends from Huntsville came down to visit today! Ava loves them! We played at the house for a little bit and then headed to the drive-thru at Chik-Fil-A to pick up an instant picnic.

We had a blast today with you guys and we hope we can do it again soon!

What Do You Think?

I LOVE my new design. With free downloads from a couple of sites (Shabby Blogs and Shabby Princess) I was able to create this super cute layout! Grab my button and leave me a comment letting me know what you think! If you have a button I will be happy to add it to my site...just let me know that you took mine!

Wait for it...

An update is coming soon...I need a vacation from my vacation...I will try and have a post up tonight. We are exhausted!

ALSO...be on the lookout for some a new blog design...you have noticed this boring white background haven't you? I am in the process of redesigning...wish me luck!

Carefree Like Her

I want to be carefree like her...I walked into the kitchen the other day and found Ava laying naked in front of the back door looking up at the sky. She asked me to lay down with her...so I did...

Here we are laying in the floor...and no, Ava isn't that skinny (she actually has a nice budha-belly)...I was tickling her to make her smile therefore she was sucking in...gotta love a stubborn two year old!

Here's our view....

Works For Me Wednesday

Welcome back for another installment of "Works For Me Wednesday"! This week I am going to share some vacation tips...since we are going on vacation this weekend...what? A vacation? WOOHOO!!!

Moving right along...

When we travel with Matt's Mom and Dad in their RV we exclusively live out of our suitcase. LITERALLY! All three of us. Here are some of the helpful hints I have figured out...

• When packing, roll your pants and other things that might not get wrinkled so easily. For us rolling rather than folding gives us a little extra room.


• Plastic baggies are a travelers best friend. We put all of our toiletries in a plastic baggy to prevent them from accidentally leaking onto our clothes.


• Our suitcase has a top zippered pocket and we put all of our dirty clothes in that pocket so that they don't get mixed in with clean clothes...that way there is no deciphering of whether a pair of underwear are clean or dirty.


• Two words...WRINKLE RELEASER!!! This stuff really works. Unroll your pants, spritz them with some WR and viola! Unwrinkled pants! (Works on just about everything.) I hate to iron in general so I even use wrinkle releaser at home.

• We pack shoes on top and we pack them soles up. That way dirty shoe bottoms don't dirty your clothes. We try to pack as few shoes as possible. Generally we carry shoes that can be warn with just about every outfit instead of a pair for each outfit.


• We don't over pack. If we are going on vacation for 3 days we might carry 4 or 5 outfits each so that if something happens to an outfit we have a backup.

Well, there you have it folks...K-Mommy's Vacation Version of WFMW!!!

And yes, we will be gone from Friday until Monday. Posting is not guarnteed. I plan to relax as much as I can. Expect a full update when we return. :o)

Kristen will be here (you knew she currently lives with us, right?) to feed the fish and hold down the fort. Thanks Chickie! Enjoy getting to spend time with your Hubby while he visits home!

**Ironically...we leave Friday morning and we have NOT even started packing...better get on that huh?...There's always tomorrow...

What Did You Say?

This post is completely dedicated to the funny things Ava says. She talks very plain but interprets words and pronounces them so cute! I can't believe some of the things she comes up with and how growny (is that a word, growny...) she talks. She is a hoot!


If Ava asks you something and you say "Not right now" she will almost always say "In just a few little bits?"


Pretty much any word that ends in -ing she prounounces with an extra "n" sounds...paintnin (painting), colorlin (coloring), eatnin (eating)...it's too cute!


She never ceases to amaze me with her vocabulary and knowing exactly how to use a pharse or word in proper context...like the other day...she was with her Nonna and Granddaddy and Nonna was blowing bubbles for her. Nonna blew a pretty nice sized bubble and Ava responded with a "WHOA! That's amazin!"

I will continue to post about the funny things she says...she cracks us up so, of course, we must share!

Oh How Good It Feels To Be Caught Up

I will be the first to admit it...I loathe cleaning! I will find every logical excuse not to do it as long as possible...like blogging...no I'm just kidding...but seriously! Cleaning is not my forte! I even tried to strike a deal with Matt that if I could solely rear our children and teach them all they need to know before school...could I be exempt from cleaning...he didn't fall for it.

So anyway...we are officially caught up on cleaning. Laundry is done (big thanks to Matt for helping me get it caught up), the floors are vacuumed, the bathroom is cleaned...the beds aren't made but hey, we are just gonna climb right back in them tonight...and I have never been one for making the bed unless we have company coming over.

Ah...now to find something to do while Ava is entertained in the play room. Maybe I should fold the clothes that are washed...seeing as there is a nice pile of them...maybe two... Ta ta!!!

Weekend Recap

I have tried and tried to get these pictures to the bottom of my post but Blogger isn't cooperating with me. Hope you enjoyed them...

This weekend has been wonderful!

It started off with my hubby taking off on Friday (our anniversary)! We relaxed around the house, went to the park and played, ate Mexican food, went to the splash pad and played...I could go on and on. We had such a good time and Ava and I really enjoyed our time with Daddy.

Saturday we had a family reunion (Matt's Dad's family). We had a good time. I forgot my camera so no pictures...sorry! There was lots of good food and fun had by all.

And that's about it...Hope you all have a great week!

PS Comment with some ideas about what "Works for Me Wednesdays" should be about. My posts are open to all commenters (anyone at all...Matt? Amanda? Brenda? Nonna? Granddaddy? Mia? Pop?) Anyone and everyone can comment. Let me know what you think.

5 years ago...

Matt and I were married 5 years ago today. I am amazed at how far we have come and what things have changed since then. We obvioulsy have grown older (and we can tell it) but we also have grown closer. We have been through quite a bit in our 5 years of marriage. Just like every marriage we've had our ups and downs...our ins and outs...but no matter what we have stuck together.

I am gonna ramble for a bit, so if you don't want to take a journey of mushed together memories then go on and move to your next blog of choice...I promise my feelings won't be hurt.

Way Back Then...

When we were little, my sister and I loved to play dress-up. We always had tons of dress-up outfits...some made by mom and some purchased. I remember vivedly playing dress up one time at my Nanny and Granddaddy's house. Kristen and I dressed up in our play wedding dresses and we both married our Granddaddy. Too funny! What's even funnier (and true) is that unconciously we were already visualizing our weddings and future husbands.

A wedding is something a girl dreams of forever. Even after the big day is over, your wedding day stays fresh in your memory. Forever. It's one of the biggest days of your life and it's something you will never forget.

We were engaged in July of 2003. I will never forget that day. Matt called me and told me to wear something nice that night but didn't tell me where we were going. I had no clue what the evening would bring. He picked me up late in the afternoon and we headed to the Botanical Gardens. We walked around talking for a while and then finally found a little secluded gazebo to rest in. We talked some more and then it was time...he got down on one knee and popped the big question. I, of course, cried and said yes. We then headed to my most favorite restaurant, Copeland's (which is now closed). After dinner was over and we were getting out of the booth Matt spilled an entire glass of tea on me. Oh the memories. (By the way, I still have that dress...tea stain and all...and I can't even wear it anymore.)

Matt and I were married in the same church we attend now. The same church we met in back in 1998 (although he had a girlfriend then). The visual appearance of the sanctuary has changed but I can still feel the same anticipation and excitement and Holy Spirit I felt that day.

I won't bore you with the details but I will say this...that day changed my life forever. I no longer will encounter life alone...I will always have someone to share the ups and downs with.

Here are some pictures of our big day:

The Handsome Groom

Me (aren't our stained glass windows beautiful?)

I love him even more today...

We had our pictures made before the wedding so this was the first time we saw each other that day...

The entire wedding party...L to R

April, Casey, Whitney, Alline, Amanda, Kristen, Me, Matt, Matt's Dad, Jason, Cory, Kris, Ryan, Daniel...the kids L to R...Devyn, Ivey, Garrison, Walker

Exchanging our rings

Our Unity Ceremony...much thanks to my friend Heather for the idea...we used colored water instead of candles

Our new family

(L to R My Dad, my Mom, me, Matt, Matt's Mom, Matt's Dad)

Our Reception...we opted to do this ourselves...more for less, ya know what I'm saying?

Leaving the church in Matt's Camaro...

What about now?:

Well, now...now we are more in love than ever. We have our beautiful daughter to keep us busy (what we did with "free time" before her is something I can't even remember). We have all we need...a roof over our heads, clothes, food and transportation and most of all...love. We have our ups and downs but we always manage to figure things out.

We have been through alot in our 5 years of marriage but I won't post all that in this post...maybe one day...but not today...today we are just celebrating!

Matt,

I can't believe it has been 5 years! It seems like just yeserday we were making weekly trips to and from JSU so you could march with the Southerners. And now...now you are the music director at church and you are instilling your same love for music in our daughter. I seems like just yesterday we were planning our wedding and now here we are five years later with a wonderful house, a beautiful daughter and more love than I ever thought I could have. You are my best friend and my soul mate. God truly blessed me when he brought us together. I can't imagine my life without you. Thank you so much for being such a hard worker, an understanding (and forgiving) husband, and a wonderful father. You make me so happy and I am so proud of you for everything you do. I love you, Matt, with all of my heart!

Love,

Karmen

All photographs by Randall Veazey Photography. (And yes...we bought the proofs and rights to these so that we could make more copies later on down the road.)

We've Officially Lost Our Minds....

We got Ava a fish aquarium Tuesday night. It was her final surprise for being completely potty-trained...yes you read that right! She is just now 2 1/2 and is fully potty-trained. Some say we are late...some say we are too early...but we wanted to wait until Ava was ready and that happened to be now.

So anyway, back to the fish tank. We took her to Wal-Mart (yes, Wal-mart...I'm not paying a ton of money for something that could potentially die in a few weeks) and let her pick out two fishies...yes 2! I told you we had lost our minds!!! We have a little black one and a little gold one. She is overly excited about them and has been doing really well with feeding them and not tapping the glass etc. She loves them. It's the first thing she thinks of when she wakes up and the last thing she thinks about before bed. TOO CUTE!!!

(And I am aware that fish is plural as "fish" but Ava calls them fishies so that is what we call them.)

A Contest for Those Who Like to Write on Pretty...

All of you hard working people and all of you SAHMs will love this giveaway... It is for some pretty cool stuff from Carolina Pad and the giveaway is being hosted by AuntieThesis... Hop on over to her blog for your chance to win!

Want a Pretty Blog?

Hop on over to Finding Joy In The Journey and enter her contest to win a blog makeover from Selective Beauty.

I am so hoping I win...My poor blog could use some help!

Works For Me Wednesday

I enjoy cooking. (see here)

Today's post is all about some of my cooking shortcuts.

I love recipes. I have cookbooks galore and tons of loose recipes. To maintain order of all those loose recipes I use a pocket folder. Yep, a regular old pocket folder. I can thumb through and find what I need and easily pull it out to use or loan to someone.

I love cinnamon toast. But mixing cinnamon and sugar EVERY.TIME.YOU.WANT.TOAST is inconvenient. So....I got a handy dandy shaker from the Pampered chef and made up a batch of my cinnamon sugar concoction and keep it on hand so I am always ready for cinnamon toast.

Ever cook pasta that sticks together as soon as you drain it? Put a little oil (I use EVOO) in the water before it boils and that always helps my pasta not to stick together.

Aluminum foil is my friend! I line everything with aluminum foil if possible to aid in clean up (you're welcome honey!).

It works for me...and I hope it might work for you!

Prayer Request

Will you please take a minute and say a prayer for my friend's mom? She is in the ICU. Will you please pray for her, the doctors caring for her, and her family?

Also, Kayleigh passed away last night. Will you please pray for her family?

Thank you so much!

A Day For Mom's

Today's the day we celebrate all the Mom's in our lives...Mother's, Mother's-In-Love(replacing the law with love...much nicer term), Grandmother's, Grandmother's-In-Love, Aunt's, Wives...all of the women who play such an important role in who we are.

Mother's Day is such a special day, even more so now that I am a Mother. There is something special about a Mother's love. I am sure some of you can relate. Sometimes I get frustrated with Ava (she's 2, remember?) but my love for her never changes. And oh, a child's love! A child's love is even more special. A child loves you with an unending love. It's the best feeling in the world.

As a mommy, I appreciate all the Mom's in my life. I value their opinions so much more than they realize. They, after all, have raised those around me that I love. So, this post is for them. I love each of you so much! You mean so much to me and my little family and you never truly will know how much you all have impacted my life and how I raise my daughter.

Mom-I strive to raise Ava the same way you did Kristen and I...to be well-mannered, polite, and caring. I try and share in the joy of some of the same things you did with us. I appreciate you so much and I love you to the moon and back!

Nonna-Matt and I try so hard to raise Ava with the same love that you raised him. We appreciate all your medical advice :o) ! It makes me so happy to watch Matt with Ava because I know he is imitating the both of you.

And there are others...I could go on for days listing all the women important to me, but that would make for a pretty lengthy blog post...

I will close with this quote...

"Being a full-time mother is one of the highest salaried jobs... since the payment is pure love." -Mildred B. Vermont

I love that quote! And it's so true!

Happy Mother's Day!

Oh, What a Night

Ava spent the night with Nonna and Granddaddy (Matt's Mom and Dad) so that Matt and I could have a date night. I just love date night because it gives us the opportunity do things we normally wouldn't do with Ava in tow. Like last night...we dropped Ava off around 5:45 and headed out to eat somewhere new. Well, 78.8 miles later we ended up a Hooters on Lakeshore. 78.8 MILES!!! (And we have eaten at Hooters before.) Oh how my husband loves me!

We slept in this morning...until 9:30!!! It was fabulous! We went and got Ava around 1:00ish and man, did she grow up over night! It's so weird! My baby is growing up.

Now we are sitting here trying to figure out what we are gonna do next. It's kinda overcast here so playing in the pool is out...hmmmm....maybe a trip to the antique store is in order???

I am working on a post of funny things Ava says. Look for that coming soon! I also have a post scheduled for tomorrow (because I am not even thinking about the computer tomorrow). Our anniversary is coming up soon so be on the look out for a post regarding that (and maybe some pictures too!).

Take care!

A Picture For You...

Isn't she the cutest? She loves her some "cornbread on the cob"!!!

Works For Me Wednesday

It's that time again....

This week I am gonna spotlight several secrets revolving around your freezer...since that is all that currently works on our Refridgerator.

A friend sent me an email quite some time ago about Household Secrets...you know, using something totally off the wall to clean your bathtub and such. Well, it also included some pretty cool things for your freezer too!

Tip #1
Do you have candle holders that have wax in the bottom and you just can't seem to get it out? This has worked for me...put them in the freezer (I didn't even try to scrape mine out, just stuck them right in). I forgot about left mine in the freezer for about 2 days. I took them and and stuck a knife dwn in there and it all popped out in one big piece.

Tip #2
Have a little one that likes to chew gum? If your kiddo gets gum on their clothes just stick it in the freezer for a few hours (or longer...see tip #1) and it picks right off. Woohoo! And you thought you could only keep food in the freezer.

Tip #3
Got a teething Baby? We would wet clean wash clothes and put them in zipper baggies and freeze them. Instant chewie!

Tip #4
I don't know about you, but our mail gets wet if it rains. (We are too cheap frugal to buy a new one.) One time our Water Bill was soaked. We let it dry out and then opened it. Low and behold...the return envelope was sealed shut! I put it in the freezer and with little effort I had it opened. Too cool, huh?

Tip #5
Have you ever left your purse or make-up bag in the car just to come back later and find that your lipstick (or concealer) is all melted? I HAVE!!! Stick them in the freezer in their tubes and in a few hours you will be able to use them again. They may look a little funny but they will be useable.


That's all I have time to write right now...do you have any freezer secrets?

Why Are We Dancing?

Since the birth of "Dancing In The Rain" I have never really explained the meaning of my choice of name. (I don't think I really gave it much thought...but little did I know God had some big plans in store.)


At first, I found a quote that said "Life isn't about surviving the storm, it's about dancing in the rain." (Author unknown to me.) I loved it! Recently, with a little help from Angie, I came across MercyMe's song "Bring the Rain". I love it! God must have been trying to teach me something that week because not only did I discover that song but our preacher did a sermon that same week out of James that flowed with the same message! If that ain't God workin' I don't know what is.


Anyway, It gave me a whole new outlook on the name of my blog. And here is my best attempt to explain my new found meaning...


James 1:2 (NIV) says:

"Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds..."

When I sat and mulled over this verse I realized that it went right along with my blog title. Dancing In The Rain...while those words seem so common and even childish, the meaning to me is really powerful. When we dance, we dance because we are happy or joyful. We don't dance around when we are sad or mad or down. We dance because we have something to be happy about...something to celebrate. And we do have something to celebrate...we ALWAYS have something to celebrate...James 1:12 says:

"Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him."

I don't know about you but, as if we didn't already have enough to celebrate...here's one more reason to encourage us.

Dancing...to move about joyfully.

Now, when you look at the play on words...we can view the word "rain" to be all of our trials and tribulations. Most of us view rain as a burden...I know I do...my hair frizzes in the rain...I am not a fan of rain. But we all face "rain" all.the.time...And when you look at rain in the context of a trial (or burden), God says we are to "count it all joy" (that's from he KJV of James 1:2). I'm not gonna lie to you...that's hard for me (and I am sure it is hard for a good majority of you, too). How am I supposed to count it all joy when some major, minor or in between burden is bringing me down? We are supposed to give it all to Jesus and and let Him guide our paths.

...in the rain...in the trials we face that bring us down.

After I had pondered these verses for a few days, I came upon a quote on Angie's blog. It said "I know there'll be days when this life brings me pain, but if that's what it takes to praise You, Jesus bring the rain." An email later I found out that it indeed was from the song "Bring the Rain" by MercyMe. The chorus of the song goes like this:

"Bring me joy, bring me peace

Bring the chance to be free

Bring me anything that brings You glory

And I know there'll be days

When this life brings me pain

But if that's what it takes to praise You

Jesus, bring the rain"

How awesome?

So...thus is the new meaning of my blog name. I am going to choose to dance in the rain and praise God for everything He's given me...the good and the bad...

Thank You God for blessing me beyond measure. Thank You for the good...and the bad...and thank You for loving me no matter where I may fall. Thank You for picking me up out of the pit of sin and please God, draw me closer to Your side. Teach me to persevere under trials, Lord and help me, Lord to be more like You. I love You, Lord! Amen.

The Big Reveal

Those that follow me on Twitter have been waiting on this post...the big reveal of my BIG NEWS!

So here it is! Ava got her very FIRST HAIR CUT last night. She has needed one for quite some time but I have been too afraid that whoever cut it would cut too much off and I definitely wasn't going to cut it because I would never forgive myself for jacking up her hair. There are somethings that I am just not willing to try.

Our friends next door have a friend that comes to their house to cut their hair. Long story short we joined in on the hair cutting action and voila! A new do!

Ava wouldn't sit in the chair at first so Bryce got to go first so that Ava could see there was nothing to be scared about. After Bryce was done...it was Ava's turn. She still wouldn't sit in the chair so she sat on Matt's lap.

All in all it wasn't an awful experience and I am very pleased with how it turned out.

Here are some pictures:

Before

During...

After

Another view of the after...

I love it! It is much more tame now. Thanks to Aunt Heather and Uncle Cory and Bryce for letting us crash their hair cutting session and a BIG thank you to Ms. Kristen for easing my hair cutting woes!