Happy Anniversary!

May 29th was Beau's and my 5th wedding anniversary. We were able to spend it with some great friends, the Arringtons, who celebrate the same anniversary just a few weeks after us. We spent five days down in beautiful Hollywood Beach and Fort Lauderdale, Florida. It was a blast! The boys have known each other since they were little, so it's so neat to see how God has kept them close through the years, and gave them both wives from Spring, TX!
I am amazed at the blessing the Lord has loaned me through my sweet husband. My heart overflows with thankfulness. I love you babe! Here's to many more years.

Summer begins!

Brynne is a fish out of water...excited for summer to be here!




Qtips anyone?


Man I love this girl!

May '09

The Ladies

The Cousins

The girls and their Mimi and Papa

Brynne and AnnMarie dressing up a princesses

The cousins on a lunch date

Happy Easter!

Fun Times

I walked into this the other day...

Girlfriend has figured out how to brush her teeth on her own and drags this stool everywhere in our house to get what she wants. Lord knows how much toothpaste this child has swallowed in her lifetime.
Below is princess day at the movie theatre. Brynne's first official trip to the movie theatre and she got to enjoy it with her friends Kaelyn and Shae. They were taught how to curtsy and twirl, then we watched the movie "Mulan."


Brynne had a super fun birthday party to attend last weekend for a boy in her class. His family had a company come to their home that brought a petting zoo! She had a blast holding chickens, ducks, and bunnies. She got to feed goats, a horse, and a cow...then to top it off, there as a pony ride at the end. Yes...in the middle of a neighborhood in Dallas suburbia. It was crazy!




My other kid...

This girl loves her daddy...her one and only boyfriend according to him!

Healing

We were able to get some fun pics of Brynne last weekend, but before we post them, I felt the need to mention Mom. Although the purpose of this blog is to highlight Brynne's life, I don't want to disrespect my mom by not mentioning her again or by acting like we have all moved on. We miss her very much, think of her often, mourn her not being here, and we definitely still have tough days...especially Dad. It gets a tad easier every day, because the Lord grants us peace, strength, and a love for Him that makes my heart sing "whatever Your will Lord, I will follow...He gives and takes away...my heart will choose to say, Lord, blessed be Your name." It's not the path we'd choose, but as history and prophets have shown, our true love for Him is revealed when life hands us what we don't want.
We need continued prayer - not only for healing, but strength as we face cleaning out and selling the old house, making the new one a home, and Dad moving forward with his new life in Aubrey. Many people don't have to face cleaning out their spouse's things and clothes for a year...but my parents were in the process of moving and we had to face these difficult things right away - in addition to dealing with the painful memories of her tragic death. Many friends have helped on both ends and we can't say enough how blessed we feel. Dad has a great new job, great new neighbors, and a beautiful new home. I pray daily that He would draw near to the Lord through this time and let God minister to his hurting heart. I choose to believe God will bring good out of this and that He will heal our hearts towards joyful memories of Mom. We love and miss you Mom! We're choosing to step forward and love others more as Mom would want. If she could tell us right now, standing there next to Jesus, I know she would remind us of Isaiah 43 that our purpose on this earth is to KNOW and BELIEVE Him, and that every day should be spent as it was our last day on earth to fulfill this purpose.

February '09

The past month has flown by...and Brynne has grown like a weed since we last posted pictures! She has been in "3T" sizes for a month now, and has had 2 haircuts to make up for her "self-induced" accident of a haircut. It looks precious now...



Brynne is obsessed with this felt pillow...a pillow that leaves her with an afro on her head every morning.


Would you stop taking my picture, remove this dumb hat, and let me get to the good stuff?


Brynne spent Valentine's Day morning with her aunt, uncle, and cousin while Beau and I went out for massages and breakfast...then Haley came to our house that night so her parents could go out on a nice date too!

Yes! Icing!

Dad's New House

We have been working away on dad's new place! We're so excited to soon have him permanently close by!

To know Him deeper

It's the cry throughout Isaiah, it's the heart behind Christ's words as He speaks to us...that each of us would grasp even a fraction of our purpose....
Isaiah 43:10 - "You are my witnesses," declares the LORD,
"and my servant whom I have chosen,
so that you may know and believe Me
and understand that I am He.
Before Me no god was formed,
nor will there be one after Me.
That is the cry of my heart...and how I desire for everyone in my life...to know Him deeper and to put down our other "gods." We consume ourselves with so many other obsessions...anything we obsess about more than God becomes an idol - right under our noses and we don't even know it's there! The average "suburbian" woman seems to understand how materialism is idolatry, but very few of us put our pride down long enough to let the Holy Spirit reveal the things we're consumed with more than Him. For example: worrying about our children, the cleanliness of our house, our appearance, people pleasing/whether or not others like us, busyness, getting our point across, being successful, time on the internet, proving ourselves to others, being liked, did I mention worry???...and the list goes on.... It's a plague in suburbia that leaves women feeling empty, lacking peace, anxious, and being driven by false gods that don't fulfill. Being set free from these idols is a daily process for everyone...God constantly reminds me to refocus, and often knocks me upside down with something that has been consuming me without my realization.

Philippians 3:7-9 - But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith.

Lord may we be found in You, filled with faith and focused on You above all else.

Welcome babies!

Two of my college roomies had babies this past week!! How fun it has been!
First, Lucy was born to Maggie on 1/24 at 7 lbs, 12 oz.
Then, Annabeth was born to Amanda on 2/3 at 6 lbs, 6 oz!
Welcome baby girls!! Brynne and I are looking forward to "girls days" in the future!

The Best Birthday Gift

My friend Amy got me some of these for my birthday. How cool to know a child in Ethiopia has a pair of shoes like me! Not only that - they go on "shoe missions" where they fit each kid specifically!

Birthday Bash

My sweet hubby's' b-day is the 7th of January and mine is the 19th, so this month has a lot of excuses for cake eating! Our last year in our 20's...we better make the best of it!





I leave you with a lesson. Never leave a box of opened teddybears on a table then tell your 2 year old "I'll be right back," even if you're only going to be gone long enough to grab a bowl and walk back.

Peace

We really appreciate the calls, cards, texts, emails, etc....so much. Thank you for surrounding our family with prayer and support. Although I have my moments, please know God has granted me a peace through this that I just can't explain. There is a blessed assurance that He is in control, He can get us through anything, He has the sovereign right to give and take away, that His plan is bigger than we an understand, that grace is here (we see pieces, but how much more can't we see?), and that we will one day mend to where we can just rejoice over mom's life and not feel such deep sorrow. The 11 days that mom was in ICU, she was in a vegetative state that we knew she would never want to live in. We were at a point of devastation in facing that mom may be in a hospital bed and unresponsive the rest of her life...which changed our prayer towards begging God to take her because we knew she wouldn't want to live that way. Mom is joyful and dancing with Jesus...that grants a peace I can't explain.
Philippians 4:7 - And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
This peace is needed to guard...satan is constantly whispering lies and seeking depression in our lives...and I'm constantly reminded to seek His truths and peace to guard my heart. It's hard. Life is hard. It's supposed to be..it's not heaven. I'm looking forward to the days I get to be with her again. I miss her so much. I want to mourn in a healthy way, but I refuse to let satan rob me of the unknown days I have left. His plan wasn't ours...but who am I?
He is my rock, fortress, strength. He is my purpose, peace, and daddy. In all things, to Him be the glory.
Psalm 139:16 - All the days ordained for me were written in Your book before one of them came to be.
Job 1:20 - At this, Job got up and tore his robe and shaved his head. Then he fell to the ground in worship and said: "Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked I will depart. The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away; may the name of the LORD be praised."
Psalm 23:4 - Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me
I'm not sure how people face this without the Lord...I praise you Jesus for the comfort and peace you bring. Please cover Dad with it!

NEMO 6/24/47-12/22/08

My mother, or Nemo to Brynne, suffered a brain aneurysm on December 11th. She was in ICU for 11 days and went to be with Jesus on December 22nd. She lived 61 great years...a woman of gentleness and compassion. Our hearts are broken in so many ways, yet we have found comfort and grace throughout it all. Christ is with us and comforting us as we mourn, and giving us the strength to take a step forward. She has left a legacy and will never be forgotten.

Brynne's Turns 2!

It has been a rough month, but before getting into that, we have to mention Brynne's birthday! December 15th Brynne turned 2! My sister-in-law did a great job putting a quick family birthday party together the one night we were in town. Brynne was greeted at the door with a princess outfit and fabulous Tinkerbell decorations. Mimi made a Tinkerbell cake and Brynne was in presents up to her ears!! We were all so blessed.

Family Pics

We had some family pictures made by our friend Mallory at church. She did an amazing job!