Toby Mac

One of Stephen's favorite groups is Toby Mac and Family Force 5 so for his b'day I got tickets to go and see them together at the BI-LO Center. Since you know he is 14 now I knew he didn't want to go w/ mom alone so we got 5 tickets and then Mary Beth was taking some of her dance students which one Taylor happen to be the daughter of my friend Faye (see previous post about Fall Festival) so we all got tickets together and made it a big crowd and also had 2 other boys for Stephen. I have to say this was a wonderful concert all the groups are christian bands and they get you up on our feet and get you jumping.. I had a ball with all these young kids...

This is when all the 3 groups came on stay

All 10 of us that went

Happy Thanksgiving

So, my day already has been busy. I got up this morning got ready went to the store to get 1 pack of broccoli so I could make a casserole (I knew last night I should have gotten 2 but didn't), came back home and put together the casserole and left to take Ryan to Ft.Inn so he could go w/my sister to GA to see my other sister and her family. Then off to the church to pick up our turkey and then to Fingerville to pick up our ham and dressing from Scott Garland's place Big Daddy Hawg. I have to say it is worth the trip his dressing and ham is the BEST... All the while as I was gone my hubby was here making mac and cheese in the crock pot and mash potatoes. Oh yeah and I made my first banana pudding last night.. As soon all is done we are going to Eric's mom to have lunch and then Susan and I will plan out our Friday shopping.. Also, Eric and I have have always gone to K-Mart on Thanksgiving day so we are doing that later today on our way to get Ryan in Ft.Inn.. Once the day is all over with Susan and the kids are coming to spend the night so Eric and the boys can watch all the little ones (while they sleep) and we are headed to the Prime Outlets in Gaffney for our shopping to begin.. So, as I get a chance all day I will be taking short little naps so I will be wide awake all night and in the morning.. If you know me you know that I am truly excited about all of this.. I do love thanksgiving, some have football and other things I enjoy spending time w/ the family, eating and SHOPPING!!!

So, I want to wish all of you a wonderful, happy and bless Thanksgiving. In this past year God has given me so much to be thankful for or should I say open my eyes up...Here is an email that a co-worker sent to me yesterday and it is a great reminder of what we should be thankful for...

Even though I clutch my blanket and growl when the alarm rings each morning, thank you, Lord, that I can hear. There are many who are deaf.

Even though I keep my eyes tightly closed against the morning light as long as possible, thank you Lord, that I can see. There are many who are blind.

Even though I huddle in my bed and put off the effort of rising, thank you, Lord that I have the strength to rise. There are many who are bedridden.

Even though the first hour of my day is hectic, when keys are lost, bagel is burned, and tempers are short, thank you, Lord for my family. There are many who are lonely.

Even though our breakfast table never looks like the pictures in magazines and the menu is at times unbalanced, thank you, Lord for the food we have. There’re many who have no job.

Even though I grumble and bemoan my fate from day to day and wish my circumstances were not so modest, thank you, Lord, for the gift of Life.

Even though we gets so caught up that we do not take the time to capture the moments, for all of the blessing that you have given us through out the year.

Lord, we asking that you give us a peace of mind this day, so that we can be thankful for your “Harvest Season”.

May you wake up everyday and realize all that we have to be thankful for...

Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family!

Thankful Tuesday

You know from blogging you get to meet people or get to know people that you don't normally get to know at church and Stacy is one of those people. I did meet her once during Upward sign ups but I am so bad w/ names and who is who (must be the age) that I didn't remember her name until I went over to another friends blog and saw that she was on it... So I started following Stacy blogs and she has started doing a post on Tuesdays about what she is thankful for and I thought that was a neat idea. I wanted to start doing it so I could focus on the good stuff and not the bad... By the way, I also love the Not me Monday, I might get brave to do that one day..lol...

10 Thankful Things....

1. I am thankful that I am daughter of the most highest King and that He has a great plan for my life...

2. I am thankful for my boys.. Ryan challenges me on days to be a better person, Stephen and his sassy silly attitude gives me laughter when I need it.. Tyler keeps me young, I get to see things from his eyes and it is a happy place there... they all give me love and I thankful for each of them.

3. I am thankful for what God has bless me with being able to do for my kids and not have to really worry..

4. I am thankful for the youth group at church esp for the girls in my ss class.. I learn more from them each day about who our God is and I bless to watch each of them grow..

5. I am thankful for my friends in my life that know when I need them and prayer is needed. They just look at me and can tell and they encourage me and pray for me.

6. I am thankful for my husband he is a hard working man, provides for his family, and keeps me grounded..

7. Oh yeah, I am also thankful that he cleaned out his buildings and our laundry room.

8. I am thankful to have my sisters and their families back in my life.

9. I am thankful for a wonderful sister in law that I enjoy spending time with and I am thankful for my niece and nephew they are just a joy to be with..

10. I am thankful for my friends that are crazy as I am that will get up with me at 3am on Friday morning and go shopping...

Beach

Durning VBS this year my friend Kim told me about a house in Ocean Lakes that her friend mom owns and I have always wanted to go back there and I knew the boys would love it. So, I got on Ocean Lakes website and checked out all they have to offer and found that in Oct they were having a big halloween weekend. Now, I am not a big halloween person I think the kids going to trunk or treat is about enough but this weekend they were having a scavenger hunt, pumpkin finding contest, trick or treating, dog costume contest, pumpkin craving contest, carvinal, kids and adults costume contest and pumpkin eating contest and a hay ride so it sounded like alot of fun... I have to tell ya, if you have never been or if you like to go camping somewhere for halloween or they even have houses pretty cheap for rent you need to go one year we had a ball...

On Thursday after the kids got out of school my sister in law Susan and her kids Preston and Emily came here and we watch Eric loaded up her Excursion for the 7 of us (Ryan stayed home cause he had a concert to play in, the Dorman and Byrnes game he films for Dorman and then the church had a big musical day through the whole service and he had to play in both the church and the youth band "Ready To Rise" and sing that day... Susan handed the driving over to Eric and she has a GBS in her car and let me just say if get one for Christmas it will not be cause I ask for one.. My husband had a toy and he loved it, it was like a game to him we were kinda of worry if we make it down to the beach or not. We did make it there by 7 and stop and went to eat at TGIF by the way did anybody know they have change their menu??? I don't think I will be going back there the service was good but the food was not great... Anyway, we made it to Ocean Lakes got Susan checked in at the house she was staying at we went on to the one were staying at w/ the Davis and Horns. It was prettier than what Kim had posted on blog in September... They had a big kids room upstairs that had 2 bunk beds and I have to say all the boys 6 in total if you count Tyler and Preston LOVED it...

On Friday we got up with Ree making us all breakfast and then us girls including Emily and Lauren took off and went shopping. Ree took us to this mall like it like the shops on Woodruff road nice to look at but to rich for me and then she took us to a place call Thomason and let me tell ya that store will be a place I will go back over and over every time I go to the beach. It has everything and is in my price range. It is on hwy 17 beside the post office.. LOVED it... It was a chilly and rainy day so all the guys stayed at the house and the kids played in their room w/ the Xbox, Wii and movies and the older guys took their naps and watch TV. They deserve it will all the hard work they had been doing... That night we meet up our friend Ginger and her family and went to a place called Driftwood that is off the beaten path in a strip mall shopping center and let me tell ya they had the BEST devil crab you could tell how fresh it was and the butterfly shimp were just as good and combo dinner was only $12.99 that is cheap for the beach... Another place we will be going to again and again.. We had a great dinner and some fun socializing..

On Saturday we got up rented 2 golf carts so that all 15 of us could do the scavenger hunt. You could tell it was our first time ever doing it we didn't have the golf cart decorated, we had no clue where half the places were but there were TONS of people doing it and we had a blast. The rest of the day we all kinda of did our thing from sleeping, going and catching the dog costume contest, playing down at the beach and in the indoor pool. That night Susan and Eric took the kids that wanted to go trick or treating out and while we cooked out steaks and afterwards we all went back to see the pumpkins, the costume and to the carvinal which we did miss but we had a great time riding around on the golf carts checking out all the campers and let me tell ya this people know how to do it...

On Sunday none of us were in a hurry to leave so we chilled out, packed and loaded up the cars, clean the house, rode around on the golf carts and went back to the beach for some pictures. Then headed out to see what the grand strand looked like now with the rides gone.. All in all it was a great vacation. I was blessed to spend it with my family, Susan and the kids and friends.. Being in the house with 12 and then riding in a car there and back for 4 1/2 hrs w/ 7 was nothing I LOVED every mintue of it...

Yes, we are going back next year I think it will be a one of those family vacations that will happen every year until the kids think we aren't cool anymore.. I have stuff already to decorate the golf cart up next year...

Home away from home for the weekend

1/2 of the boys room and 1/2 of the boys

Waiting to start the scavenger hunt

My scavenger hunt crew before Stephen ditch for the older kids
Ree, Lauren and Allison waiting for the scavenger hunt too
My sis Susan we got the plan for next year..lol
Best friends and cousins Tyler and Preston

I not crazy, I not crazy, not crazy.. she says it so sweet and funny...

Tyler and Stephen being good brothers on the beach.. 2 of my 3

Sad thing is that I carried my camera everywhere but I forgot to take pics all the time.. The full things in on my facebook page..

Tyler sharing Jesus

Ok, I had to come to work today so I go just type the blog... No, not really I have a doc appt Monday morning to see if I have acid reflux or if is my gall bladder or what it wrong with me and then I am going to vote Tuesday so I came in to make up some time... anyway....

Have you ever been in the car w/ your kids and they are talking to other kids you really aren't listening but then you hear something so you turn down the radio w/out them noticing, you stop talking you are even scare to breathe cause you don't want to miss what they are saying.... Well we had a moment w/ Tyler the other night like that... He was talking to his cousin and asking him about songs he sings at his church and what Bible verses he knows and he went on to tell him the ones he knew....He asked him did he know what Easter was about what happen 3 days (this is the point we really started to listen).. Then he went on to tell him about Jesus dying on the cross to save us for our sins, do you know what sins are? well if disobey your mommy or do what you aren't suppose to do then that is a sin and God saved us from all those sins.. He loves, you and me enough to do that (Tyler's words)... at this point we arrive at Gigi house which I hated cause I would have loved to hear him finish it out... It was a proud mom's moment but also it was one of those moments that if a 6yr old can share their faith like that and with such passion and kindness then why can't I... Tyler loves to talk about Jesus, he loves to go to church, he loves to sing about God. Heck, when he does something wrong I just have to say that Jesus doesn't like that and 9 out of 10 times he never does it again. I pray to have the same love, passion and obedience he does...

I feel lost....

So, this past weekend we went to the beach and I took my Verizon Internet card with me just in case I wanted to get on my sister in laws (Susan) laptop while we were there (yes, I was going to get up to date on here)... Well, I only used 1 time on the way down there and I know for a fact I stuck it back in my pocketbook. I even saw it in there a couple of times... Well Sunday we got back and Eric wanted to get on the Internet and guess what???? I have LOST my Verizon Internet card... Yep, just got made the first huge payment on it on Thursday before we left to go to the beach and now it is missing... Susan has clean her car out, I have gone through everything that we took, cleaned my pocket book out (it needed it anyway), another couple that went with us car broke down and they have to go back and get it and he is going to see if the owners of the house will let him go back in so he can look around for it. I am still waiting on rather or not he has found it or not but it is not looking good... Bad thing about it is that we got it for free cause and now I am going to have to pay the full retail for it cause I didn't get the insurance. I don't think he ask me if I wanted to get insurance or not cause I would have cause I knew this was going to happen sooner or later... So, until we find it or until I go and get another one I will be getting behind cause I have no way to post pictures or the time to really go update at work... Pray that it is found soon!!!!!!!!

Frazzle Female

On Thursday night myself and some of other crazy gals went to hear Cindi Wood that wrote Frazzle Female speak at Taylor's First Baptist. Her hold thing on "Frazzle" is was taught out from the story of Mary and Martha. Well you know our church and has had a Mary and Martha year I believe all the ladies I heard speak this year from Kathi Mumpower, Sherry Vaughn and Ruthie Neely (which by the way are wonderful speakers) all have spoke on this subject and you know that little passage in Luke 10:38-42 has been brought in some many wonderful different ways. It is something that all of us women near to hear... You know we don't have to be a Mary or a Martha we just need to have both in us...We need to sit at the feet of Jesus but we are also called to be servants. Here are some things that she spoke about...

1. You have a choice! You can't control other people but you can control your attitude and you have to let God take care of them. Even the little things as the sock ball, let God take care of that. John 16:33 and Matt 5:3

2. Are you to busy? Pray about what God has you doing? We do things for Him but are we stopping to love on Him.

3. Keep an on going dialogue w/ God going all day. If you are angry about something take it to God instead of your sisters. Mark 6:31

4.Let Jesus help you through the day, pray about your house work and all your daily life stuff.. He saved us so let go to him for your power to get through the day.

5. Don't have a quite time take baby steps to develop one. Everyone has distractions just don't let Satan win by getting discourage and not spending time w/ God each day.

6. When you sit at Jesus feet you are...
.more patient
.you have peace
.you have a mind like Jesus

Now some fun things I learn..

1. Rhonda does not drive fast when she is talking and driving.

2. There is a traffic light before you get to the church and I didn't notice that on the way there, but it was all good they found us..

3. Joy doesn't like her food mix up and will play with it to make it look like she ate something and even put it on others plates but she does love little pumpkins

4. Always bring a jacket, it was freezing cold....

5. Me nor Rhonda brought a camera so we could post pictures on our blogs..

All in all it was a great night and I had a fun time hanging out with some ladies I never get to...

I also would like to thank Shay for getting this all together for us, she was unable to go in the end cause her father had emergency eye surgery. Please keep Shay, her father and the rest of the family in your prayers.