Playdate

Mona and I met when I was in seminary. We were roommates and worked together at Chili's. I sang in her wedding and she was one of the first people to come see Brandon when he was born. She and her husband, Mark, are now in ministry in Arkansas so I don't get to see her near as often as I would like. But, her parents live in Louisville so she was here for the holidays and was able to take some time go hang out...plus, she had a baby five weeks ago so I HAD to meet him!

So, yesterday we met at our friend, Sally's, for a fun little playdate. Mona has two boys: Gannon (1 1/2 years old) and Lincoln (5 weeks). Sally has a little girl, Laine (turned 1 yesterday)...she is on here lots! =) Then, there was Brandon (6 months on the 10th). We had a lot of fun and it was good to be able to catch up!!

Brandon in the jumper...his favorite toy at Sally's house

Baby Lincoln...so precious!

The kiddos

Laine and Lincoln

Gannon working a puzzle

Gannon giving Brandon his paci...hahahaha thanks, Gannon! =)

Mona and her boys

It was great to see you, Mona!!! Hopefully, it won't be 5 months before we see you again!

Meg

Rocking my babies

I got Eli from the Humane Society in March 2005. He will be five years old in January and definitely spoiled and stuck in his ways. I was rocking Brandon tonight and Eli decided he wanted to be rocked too...




Meg

Thankful for great friends...

On Black Friday some people wake up at 2:00am (if they go to bed at all) to go shopping. It's not a RIDICULOUS idea but to me it is...sleep is too precious and there was NO WAY I could go shopping that early and attempt to keep Brandon all day. So...I slept in and spent the afternoon with friends. I couldn't think of a better way to spend my time while Nathan worked.

Our good friends, Sally and Cody, invited Brandon and I to have Thanksgiving dinner with Sally's family on Friday. A few weeks ago we weren't sure if Nathan was going to get off work for the holiday, so Sally had invited me to eat with her family so I wouldn't be alone on Thanksgiving (awwww now that's a great friend for ya). Nathan ended up getting off work but since he had to work Friday Sally kept the invitation open. Cody is the pastor at their church and since they had so much family in town, they just used the fellowship hall at the church. It was perfect!!

Brandon and Laine (Sally's daughter) hadn't seen each other in almost a month...they had lots of catching up to do! =)

He loved the sweet potatoes and homemade apple sauce

Since the dinner was at the church, the kids were able to play in the nursery. There were six kids there so it was nice.

Me and my boy

Thanks for the invite, Sally!! We had a great time and Brandon was SO glad he got to see y'all!!! =) We look forward to hanging out again next week! Love you!




Meg

Thanksgiving 2009

Holiday weekends go by way too fast!! We left for Jackson Tuesday night (arriving there at 10:30pm) and came back to Louisville Thursday afternoon (arriving back at 9:00pm)...very quick trip! However, it was a great time with family and I am so glad we were able to spend a couple days in God's country - oh, I mean Tennessee! =)

Brandon playing with his toys at Nanny's

Sweet boy...drooly shirt and all =)

Mimi brought him a UT bear...thanks, Mimi!

His first taste of lime...despite the face, he LOVED it!

Bath time at Nanny's

On Thanksgiving Day, we drove to Covington, TN to eat at my Aunt Jill and Uncle Derek's. The food was delicious, of course, and it was good to see family that we only see once or twice a year.

Brandon watching football with Daddy...

Oh wait, Daddy is sleeping! =)

He loves his Nanny!

Daddy and Jonathan playing ping pong

SO thankful for a wonderful husband!

Mama Sae (my grandmother) tempting Brandon with ice cream...

We have lots of be thankful for and a wonderful family is one of those things! We are looking forward to Christmas!


Meg

Baptism

We are members of Highview Baptist Church. Since Highview is a multicampus church, we have combined campus worship once a quarter. That's when seven of the eight (the eighth is in New York City so it's kind of hard for them to make it here...) campuses get together for an amazing time of worship. I won't get into all the different campuses but if you're interested, check out the website.

Last night was the last combined campus worship service for the year. There were lots of baptisms which is always encouraging but there was one particular one that just blessed my heart! Dan Odle is our worship leader and a good friend of ours. Last night he baptized his ten year old son, Jacob, and I couldn't help but get teary-eyed. It was awesome to see a father lead his son through the public profession of his faith and to see the true joy in their faces.

Sorry the pictures are so small...the first one is of Jacob and Nathan; the second of Dan and Jacob...

It also got me thinking about Nathan and Brandon. When I was pregnant with Brandon, Nathan and I chose a verse for him...Psalm 119:9, "How can a young man keep his way pure? By living according to your word." We have prayed for Brandon's salvation and hope that one day he will choose to follow Him. When that day comes, Nathan will (Lord willing) have the amazing opportunity to baptize our son.

In the meantime we will strive to model Christ's love to him...

He's Always Been Faithful

He's Always Been Faithful (Sara Groves)
Morning by morning I wake up to find
The power and comfort of God's hand in mine
Season by season I watch Him, amazed
In awe of the mystery of His perfect ways
All I have need of, His hand will provide
He's always been faithful to me.

I can't remember a trial or a pain
He did not recycle to bring me gain
I can't remember one single regret
In serving God only, and trusting His hand
All I have need of, His hand will provide
He's always been faithful to me.

This is my anthem, this is my song
The theme of the stories I've heard for so long
God has been faithful, He will be again
His loving compassion, it knows no end
All I have need of, His hand will provide
He's always been faithful, He's always been faithful
He's always been faithful to me.

We have this song on our ipod and I listen to it often. I love the lyrics and every word is SO TRUE!!! Some days I look at Nathan and Brandon and think, "How in the world did I get so lucky?" It's not luck or chance...it's God's faithfulness!! How humbling! God is so good!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, Nathan!

Today is Nathan's 29th birthday!! Woo hoo!! He has been sick the past couple days which is a real bummer for him, but it caused him to miss work which means he was home with me and Brandon! =) He requested chicken fajitas and no-bake chocolate oatmeal cookies for his birthday dinner so that is what he got!

As I have mentioned on here, Nathan graduates from seminary on December 11th! We are so excited/anxious about the future and looking forward to where God will have us serve. I don't talk about this too much because I don't want to embarrass Nathan but he has done an amazing job at providing for our family. I was put on bedrest in February and wasn't allowed to go back to work for the remainder of the pregnancy. After Brandon was born we decided that I would be a stay-at-home mom which meant we had to rely on Nathan's income...he is in sales...he doesn't have consistent income since it's commission based...Meg was nervous! =) I have been out of work for nine months now and we have every bill paid on time, food on the table and occassionally money left over for a night out. God is good!!!

I have known Nathan for four years and I have never laughed so hard at someone or been so mad at someone...he has been my best friend, boyfriend, best friend again, LOL (if you know our story then that's funny), fiance, husband and baby daddy! hahahaha in all the different "roles" he has played, God has used him to be a picture of stability and encouragement. I can't imagine life without him and I so honored that God would choose me to serve with him!

Nathan, Brandon and I love you are we are SO thankful for you!!!

Yes, I married a Bama fan...

Nathan's adopted son, Eli!!! They love each other...............

Orange Beach 2008...ok, this is the REAL Nathan. He fools a lot of people into thinking he is real quiet and reserved...NEGATIVE!

Birthday weekend 2008...we spent a few days in Michigan - we are at a game at the Big House!

Us at Lake Michigan. I was pregnant with Brandon on this trip and didn't even know it! We found out a few days after we got home.

Proud Daddy.

One of my favorite pictures!! This was taken in the hospital...Brandon was probably one day old. This was their first nap together! =)

One month old pictures taken by Cody & Cassie Chaplin.

October 2009

November 2009

WE LOVE YOU!!!!!!!