Church Family

Moving once again...

2009-01-22T18:51:00.003-05:00

Well, in case you don't know, our family is moving once again. We have been in GA for 2 1/2 years and it is such a nice area, we really hate to leave it. Especially the weather :) God is leading our family else where. We don't have a definite place yet, but God has opened doors for us to go to Slidell, LA. Please pray for us over the next few months that God will give us a peace of what and where He wants us to go. All we desire to do is serve God with all our hearts. We will be moving back to MI for a couple months to kind of take a little rest. I will be working on school as I have recently started and we will be doing some work on our house in Harbor Beach. Please pray for the selling of that house as it is much needed in our family. Thanks for the prayers!!!

Christmas Day at the Church's

2008-12-25T19:06:00.004-05:00

Christmas So far...

2008-12-23T16:13:00.006-05:00

This year has been a little different for our family during this Christmas season. We don't always know why things happen when they do, but that doesn't matter cause God does and we count only in Him. A week ago today, Amanda got a phone call from her dad letting her know that her Uncle had passed away. Immediately, we bought a airline ticket and AJ and Amanda flew out the next day. Please pray for Amanda and her family with the loss of a family member this close to the holiday season. I know that they will appreciate it.

With Amanda and AJ in OK, that left me with just the boys. I have loved my time with them as we don't get to hang out as much as I know we should. We have done lots of things together, like gone to McDonald's and again went to McDonalds, and then we actually had mexican, then it was back to McDonalds. :) I probably let the boys get away with more than usual, like staying up late, camping out in my bedroom, and having coke and chocolate cake right before bedtime. But hey, it is not like we do that all the time right? They are finally flying back to home tonight and we are very anxious to get them home.

As for other things, I have greatly realized that my wife does so much for this family. As husbands, we know that our wives do a lot, but it is when we are put in their shoes that we realize we take it for granted sometimes. My wife is the best and I want everyone to know that I love her so much. I realized these things while she was gone, while I had to do all the baths for the boys, laundry, cook (a little) do all the Christmas Cards (probably forgot some) and bake 100 cookies for all the SS. teachers at church. Usually she would have done most of that, but when I had to do it all, it gave me a greater appreciation for my wife. Husbands, if you are reading this, remember what your wife has done and thank her for all she still does for your family. They are precious gifts that God has given to us.

As for Christmas ideas for family this year, we made a DVD of our family, so I thought I would put it on our blog. Just photos mainly of the kids over the years. Hope you enjoy and Merry Christmas to ya'll!

Family Movie from Nick Church on Vimeo.

Elf Yourself

2008-12-10T17:19:00.001-05:00

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Christmas Shopping and Other Busy Things

2008-12-07T23:42:00.003-05:00

This past weekend we took the whole family Christmas shopping. It was fun to be out with everyone but it was also pretty tiring. We all went on the Christmas train ride in the mall so that was the boy's highlight. Baby girl is really growing up fast. She is talking all the time now it's really cute. Her favorite thing is phones. She loves to pretend she's on the phone and walk around the house (I think she's imitating daddy).

On a separate note, our long awaited neurologist appointment for Zeke is finally here. We are really praying for a doctor that we can talk to and will answer our questions. He's been doing pretty good lately but still occasionally has issues. Please, please, please pray for him this week. Our appointment is on Wednesday. We appreciate all the prayers and support we've had thus far.

Little Indians

2008-12-05T10:44:00.004-05:00

This week in school we learned a little about the Native American Indians. The boys made little Indian feathers to wear on their heads and painted symbols the way the Indians did to tell stories.
The boys have been doing really good in school, I am very proud of them. They both work really hard and most of the time they are pretty good. Next year we'll be starting Bryson on First Grade material since he's doing so well in reading. The program I have does cursive handwriting, so I'm a little nervous about doing that. I guess we'll just see how it goes. I'm not going to push it too hard if he's not ready. Zeke is very close to reading more fluently. He can read now but sounds out each sound. He's starting to blend the words together in his mind and then read them. It has been such a blessing to see each of them learn to read....God is good!

And then there is our sweet baby girl...she's been growing up fast. She's got quite the personality and has been talking a lot. Her most frequent words are "cookie," "juice," "night-night," "stinky." Pretty much her day...eat, sleep, poop :).

Here's also some pictures of AJ waking up from her nap.

What's Your Learning Style?

2008-11-19T20:13:00.003-05:00

I thought this quiz was really helpful for those with young children. Since I home school, I think it's really important for me to know what the learning styles are for my boys. I've especially been thinking about this lately since Zeke is starting to read but doesn't learn the same way Bryson does. He is very bright and capable (and only 4). This quiz revealed that Bryson is an auditory learner, that's probably why he likes books so much and Zeke is a visual learner. Zeke will study all the details of the illustrations in books and learned most of his letter sounds through the LeapFrog letter factory video.

Anyway, here is the link, hope it helps someone else like it did me :)!

http://parenting.quiz.kaboose.com/25-what-s-your-child-s-learning-style

Tis the Season to be Busy

2008-11-13T17:49:00.003-05:00

Our poor blog hasn't gotten updated in awhile so I just thought I'd write something. We are quickly approaching the holiday season and are already bracing for a very busy season. Every weekend pretty much until Christmas is filled not to mention all the Christmas parties in between. In a way I dread how busy it is because it really is one of my favorite times of the year. I know it's not Thanksgiving yet but we already have the Christmas music playing (the new Casting Crowns Christmas CD is really awesome). The boys of course are really excited about Christmas. They, like the rest of us, like all the presents. I'm praying the Lord will help our family really focus on Him this year. I know that there is nothing we could give God that could ever compare to what He has given us. But since it is the celebration of His birthday, I would like to honor Him as such. If you have any ideas of what your family does to help remember what Christmas is all about, I'd love to hear them. I know we can read the Christmas story and I thought about getting the new Nativity movie that just came out (it is really good too).

Anyway, that's pretty much it from our little part of the world. I'll hopefully post some pictures and stuff soon.

Fall Time in Michigan

2008-10-28T14:41:00.003-05:00

Well, for those that didn't know, we are here in Midland MI right now as we are here for my mom's brain surgery that she will be having tomorrow. We have been up here for a week enjoying the time before my mom has to recover from her surgery. While we have been here, we have seen friends and family we haven't seen for a while and done some fall things that we miss here in Michigan. We have gone to the pumpkin patch, and of course our favorite, Baynes in Freeland. There we ate Cider Donuts and had warm apple cider. I sure miss the season up here even though it is really cold. It has hailed a couple times since we have been here but you can just smell the fall time in the air. I miss that. Here are just a few pics of some of the fun we have had up here. Thanks for all the prayers for my mom as she has her surgery tomorrow and her quick recovery.

Bryson's Science Project

2008-10-17T10:46:00.004-05:00

We finally finished up Bryson's science project for a science fair I signed him up for in November. He made sugar crystals and then watched them grow. One was "seeded" meaning had been soaked in water and rolled in sugar and the other one was not. Now we just have to learn all the science type stuff of why that happened and so forth and then put the presentation together. I think he had fun with it.

The only other thing going on really is getting ready to leave for Michigan. We got all the sweaters and winter stuff down from the basement. We even had to go buy baby girl a new coat. We are looking forward to seeing everyone. I've been getting a bunch of car stuff together so we can have an unconventional school in the car ont he way there. We might as well since we'll just be sitting for two days :). It will be good to get away for a bit and the fall is my favorite time of year in Michigan.

Keep praying about our house selling. We've had it now for two years and we'll be putting it back up on the market in March since we have renters in it right now. We've had quite the ordeal with our home insurance company so we have to go up and make a few repairs to get it insurance qualified. It seems to be such a burden but everything in life we can learn from. The thing I've learned the most is that God is in control of every situation...He knows our needs and is faithful to supply our needs. I'm so thankful for that today and have to remind myself of that truth as I trust Him for our future.

Backyard Fun!

2008-10-06T20:41:00.002-05:00

A few years ago we bought the boys this Power Wheels Monster truck and it is still going. I had to do a little fixing on it this weekend and it now only goes forward, not backwards, but the boys still love playing with it. The back of it is just big enough for AJ to fit in it so she just sat in it and let the boys drive her around the yard. It was really fun to sit back and watch them play. The weather is getting actually nice enough to go outside without having to drip with sweat. The nights are really getting nice. Pretty much everyday now, the boys want to go play in the backyard, which is good for us cause they need to get outside and burn some energy.

Bryson's New Haircut

2008-10-01T12:30:00.003-05:00

Bryson finally got his haircut today. It looks really cool...however the only way we can duplicate it is to put gel in it and blow dry it every time. I never thought about blow drying my boy's hair but I guess that's the cost of fashion!

Update on Zeke

2008-09-27T20:45:00.003-05:00

Many of you already know what is going on with Zeke but I thought I'd put an update on the blog anyway. We had his appointment last Thursday to find out the results from the 8 hour EEG test he had done about 2 weeks ago. The doctor indicated that he did not have any seizures during that test but did notice some unusual readings when he is trying to transition from sleep stage 1 to sleep stage 2. So she prescribed him some medication for migraines.

After the appointment both Nick and I had very mixed feelings. To make a long story short, we are seeking a second opinion. I found out on Friday that our insurance WILL cover it (thank-you Lord!) and we have to get it going through the Primary Care Physician. As the advocates for Zeke's health, and as young as he is, we just don't feel right putting him on any other medication until we have more confidence in his diagnosis.

All those prayer warriors out there, please pray. I am praying specifically for a doctor who will take the time and will explain to us in layman's terms so we can better understand what exactly Zeke has. I know God has been teaching me through this whole circumstance. I told Nick the other day that it would be better if it were me going through something, but when it's your child it is really hard. Especially when they are so young and can't explain what is wrong with them. I guess this is just a fraction of a glimpse of what God felt when His only son suffered for ungrateful wicked people such as me.

As a mom I try not to worry and am constantly repeating the verse, "Be careful (anxious) for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God." Philippians 4:6

Will you pray with me? I will be forever grateful!

Memories

2008-09-23T18:48:00.004-05:00

Like life isn't busy enough but this year I decided to coach Bryson's under 6 soccer team. We are the "Thunderbolts" and we have 7 kids on our team. I have really enjoyed coaching these little kids as I am a soccer lover myself. Especially with being Bryson's coach, I hope these are times he never forgets. I love my children so much and thank God for them all the time. I love this picture of Bryson and I before our first soccer game of the season tonight.

Future Neurologist!!!

2008-09-15T08:35:00.002-05:00

This morning in the waiting room Zeke told me that he wanted to be a brain doctor when he grows up. I thought it was nice of him to say that and hey, who knows, one day he may be. He is such a trooper with all these tests and all. As you are reading this, I took this picture and put it on the blog while we were in the room for his test. (nice feature of the MACBOOK) He is really tired and he put a little fuss when they started putting the wires on his head, but it is just cause he is tired. We will be in this room for pretty much the rest of the day. They want to record about 8 hours worth of brain activity. Dr's are still unsure what is going on with him and we are pretty much starting over again and just making sure we are getting this right. Please continue to pray for him as he undergoes these tests. I am very thankful that my mom is here right now to take care of the other kids during this time. Plus she really missed everyone so she flew in for a couple weeks. (Thanks mom) Thanks for all the prayers.

Princess turns 1

2008-09-09T19:32:00.004-05:00

We can't believe it, AJ turned 1 yesterday! It is exciting but yet sad. They grow up so fast...but she is doing so well. I love watching her grow everyday and the things that she does is so precious. We just had a day together as a family and Bryson and I (dad) made her a cake during the afternoon. After we were done with dinner we let her dig in and if was so much fun to watch. Meme and Papa sent her some gifts and then we let her open our last night. She had a blast! Here is a slideshow that we put together of the different photos fromt he past few days.

What a Concert!!!

2008-09-05T10:17:00.006-05:00

Last night I had the opportunity to take 5 of my girls from the youth group to a concert. We went and saw Building 429. They were awesome! We were one of the first ones there and so we sat, (or should I say stood) 2 rows from the front stage. Literally we were like 10ft from them if that. Plus we sat right in front of the speakers. It was so fun and the girls had such an awesome time. I was glad I got to take them. They really did a good job and even though they were entertaining at times, the thing I like about them is that they truly are real about their faith in Christ. Every song reflects it. I have been wanting to do this for a long time, but I believe the Lord blesses us so we can bless others. So, last night our family sponsored a girl named Steffany from Costa Rica. We will be hearing from her I am sure here soon, but Worldvision does such a great thing for poverty and our family will have faith that God will help us support this little girl. Soon as I get another picture of her, I will post it. Anyways, good job Building 429 and keep serving Christ.

New Marines

2008-09-04T09:51:00.002-05:00

This morning was a very special morning for one of my former Youth Members. Not only did he just graduate high school this past school year, but today marked the beginning of another new journey for David Thomas as he graduated as a Marine from Parris Island boot camp. I have never been to one of these ceremony's but it was very respectful and very proud. America does a great job of turning out fine Marines. David is a great guy and I am very honored that I had a part of being in his life. David now will go on into Aviation for more training and as of now will soon be headed to Pensacola FL. GOOD JOB DAVID!

Soccer Has Started!

2008-09-03T20:17:00.006-05:00

Bryson's first soccer practice was yesterday. He and "coach daddy" had a great time even though Nick was a little nervous since he's never coached before. I think he's gonna have a fun time. It's so sad to see him grow up but it's neat at the same time. He's such a great kid!

I also thought I'd put a video on here I shot of the kids playing in AJ's room. Sometimes I have the boys play with AJ to keep an eye on her while I take a bath or something. I heard them all yelling and playing Star Wars....even AJ. Apparently she was the bad guy (why is the littlest always the bad guy?). Anyway, I tried to capture it on video but I got AJ taking all the wipes out of her wipe container instead and trying to be one of the big kids like her brothers. Her bottom is wet from all the wipes and then she got a little sleepy and found her beloved blanket and thumb :)!

Feeding Ducks in the Georgia Heat

2008-08-31T16:38:00.004-05:00

About two weeks ago Bryson and I were doing some lessons that revolved around the book "The Story About Ping." So on the last day of the lessons (Friday) we went to the park with the pond (and alligators!) and fed the ducks. Well, the boys of course remembered that and really wanted to go this past Friday and feed the ducks again. The boys had a really good time feeding the ducks but some of them can get a little vicious, especially the big fat males! Bryson also brought his scooter and rode it around a little and they played on the park. It was a fun time.

Right now it is rainy season but luckily it didn't rain. However, it was VERY humid and sticky. We still had fun but needless to say we were all drenched in sweat by the time we got home. I didn't really get that much of a fuss when it was time to go home. Oh well, I guess that's part of the "joy" of living in Georgia :).

Fun at School

2008-08-28T17:02:00.005-05:00

I think the boys had a fun day at school today. On Thursdays I try to do some type of art project so today we broke out the new paints and had fun painting. Zeke's creative picture is of Noah's ark during the flood and it's storming. He's a very imaginative little boy. He even manages to name all of the vowels - but not by their real name, by the "good guy" name he gives them (he knows the proper one too). He then takes out his light saber (a white board marker) and defeats them when I say a word that uses their sound. He usually keeps them the same name and he wants them to be the good guys 'cause he is the bad guy. Funny little boy! He's been doing really well since we started school. His teachers at church even noticed he was listening really well.

Bryson was in a dress up mood and so he dressed up as a SWAT Policeman today. He thought it was pretty cool. He wanted to go to "www.SWATpolicemathgames.com" which of course doesn't exist but he thinks everything has a ".com". He had a faithful sidekick with him today, AJ, who helped him get all the bad guys and take them down. I thought he'd enjoy spelling a little more today if we pretended a ball was a grenade and when he spelled a word right he could throw it at me (spelling can get pretty boring, ya know??!!). Anyway, those were the exciting things we did at our "Church Academy." If I was a paid teacher at a job I probably would of called in sick but I guess there isn't a substitute that can come in for me, huh? Oh well, I survived by the grace of God (literally).

One of Zeke's favorite parts of school is his computer time. He loves listening to the silly songs they sing on a "Jump Start Science" computer game. We do it at the end after lunch as a special reward for doing a good job at school. I love to hear him laughing at the funny songs and playing them over and over while learning at the same time.

God has been so good to me and helping me with all my insecurities about homeschooling. He's made it clear this is what He wants me to do but I sometimes struggle with what others think of my life and is it very meaningful in their eyes. I know that it doesn't matter but God gently reminded me through his Word and through the mouths of my own children. I believe God used Bryson to show me that my efforts for Him are not in vain. Yesterday he was extremely interested in learning all there was to know about the Bible and said he wanted to praise the Lord and serve Him. Although he hasn't come to understand completely what it means to ask Christ to save you or anything, seeds are being planted and I'm so excited to see him excited about God.

On a separate note, please remember to pray for Zeke. He is pretty much being reevaluated from the beginning and in more detail. We are slowly weaning him off the Depakote and he is no longer on any vitamin or mineral supplements. For those of you who don't know, the medicine that he was on was not working and his headaches/eye pain are continuing and getting more frequent. We are supposed to be taking back to the Ophthalmologist to reevaluate his eye and then he has another sleep deprived EEG scheduled for Sept. 15th but this one is 6 hours long. My sister explained to me why they sleep deprive him. Since they are looking to capture his seizures they need him to be in a state that is most likely to produce seizures, sleep deprivation. Normal people do not have seizures even if they are sleep deprived. If we just took him without him being sleep deprived than he may not have a seizure since he may not have them every time he sleeps. Anyway, prayers are appreciated as we go through this process again. I'm thankful we at least have a doctor who is willing to say she doesn't really know what's going on and willing to retest or whatever to get to the bottom of what is going on with him.

Have You Ever Wondered?

2008-08-28T08:38:00.003-05:00

I started this funny video series of "Have You Ever Wondered?" in our youth group the other night. I thought I would put our first video on our blog so you can see what we are doing. The teens thought it was pretty good and now they are coming up with ideas for our future videos. When we do them, I will post them. I am excited about tonight cause we signed Bryson up this year to play soccer and he is really excited. Tonight is our first meeting and we will find out games and practices and all. I was called the other day to see if I would coach and of course playing soccer my whole life, I said sure. I get to coach Bryson's team and another kid from our church. I am excited. Well, have fun watching the video. If you have an idea's let me know.

School is Back in Session

2008-08-19T18:49:00.006-05:00

Well, we've started our second week of school now and the boys seem to be doing pretty good
(jury's still out on the teacher though). We've been talking about creation in our Bible part of school. So, as a fun little treat we made our very own "creation concoction." Here is all the yummy things that were inside:

cool whip and chocolate chips (day one - God created the night and the day)
marshmallows (day two - God created the air and the sky)
vanilla wafers (day three - God created the land and the sea)
sprinkles (day four - God created the sun, moon and stars)
Jujy Fruits - fishes (day five - God created the fish and the birds)
animal crackers and sour patch kids (I tried to find gingerbread men but it's the wrong season; day six - God created the animals and Adam & Eve)

And of course on day seven God rested so in honor of that they ate their wonderfully delicious "concoction." I found this idea from a website I use a lot for teaching children Bible stories - here.

Of course we had to put a picture of AJ in here too....we let her walk around in her cute little robe for a little while last night after her bath. It's getting a little small but she is still so cute!

Happy Anniversary...

2008-08-13T09:58:00.004-05:00

Well, we have had some things happen over the past few weeks and so now we h

ave a new blog site. We hope you find this some how cause we lost most everything on our other one. Anyways, Family here is doing great. Last weekend was our Anniversary and so Amanda and I hired some babysitters and went away for the weekend. We had a great time...living near Savannah we have never really done much of the tourist stuff, so that is what we did. We stayed at the Hyatt on River street with a beautiful view from our room, ate and a wonderful restaurant called the "Boars Head," and then ended the night with a Ghost Tour of Savannah. It was really fun. I appreciate and love my wife so much and thank God for her everyday.

Finally Home!

2008-08-05T20:59:00.004-05:00

We are finally back home now and back into the swing of things. Amanda and the kids were in OK for about a week before I flew down to spend some time with them. We got to see her brother and his wife in Tulsa, OK and then it was off to her NaNa's house in Cookson OK. I love it out there cause they have such a beautiful place. We took the golf cart out threw the back of the mountain area where they live, then we went fishing. I caught my first catfish around 10:30 at night. It was a good size one and a nice little fight, but I have never hear of catching them off of worms. I guess I just got lucky. Then the next day, the boys and the girls had a competition on how many fish we could catch. We all tied with 9 each. It sure was nice to see her family and spend some time with them. But I was excited about getting them home. It took two days and our new car did a wonderful job. Now Amanda will be starting school with the boys here next week. While they were gone, it was Zeke's birthday and we didn't really get to do anything, so yesterday we took him to his favorite place, Chucky Cheese. He wanted to tell him that he missed him :) Here is a little movie of some pics on our vacation, some before it and some after it.

And they are off...

2008-07-21T11:01:00.002-05:00

Today the family left early this morning for Oklahoma. They are driving to Tupelo, MS today and should arrive sometime around 6pm depending on stops and stuff through the day. Yesterday was a stressful day getting them ready to leave. Actually it was the car that I had to get ready. As you may know, we bought a new car this year. We went from a Chevy Trailblazer to a Mazda 5. I love the thing, it is a neat car and does really good, but this is the first trip it has been on. Of course coming from a Trailblazer where we had tons of room for luggage to a Mazda 5 with no room at all. That wasn't a problem too much cause we already had a car top carrier. All we had to do was purchase a luggage rack. Well, the car top carrier didn't fit and so at last minute I had to do my own modifications to it and so I pray it holds up well. It should. But everything is going well so far, i just heard from them and they are almost out of GA so they are making decent time. Kids are doing fine and the car seems to handle pretty good. Please pray for my family as they are on the road today and tomorrow.

Zeke's early Birthday Gift

2008-07-19T18:56:00.004-05:00

Zeke won't be here for his birthday this year so MeMe and PaPa sent his gift this past week. We let him open them tonight and he is already playing with his new toys. Thanks Mom and Dad. Zeke loves them.

Back from Camp!

2008-07-19T18:06:00.004-05:00

Well, what a great week it has been in Brevard, NC at The Wilds Christian Camp. We took up about 24 teens and some juniors and everyone had a great time. Many decisions were made through the week and now I will go through those slips of paper this week as I try to keep our teenagers accountable to what they committed to the Lord. It was also a great refreshment for Amanda and I. She has never been there so it was good for her to go this year. We will be up there again next year about this time. Our kids really enjoy it there.

While we were gone, Amanda's Mom stayed with the kids, and before we left, AJ was starting to walk...well when we returned today she is pretty much walking all the time. How fast those kids grow. I will miss my family dearly as I only get one day with the kids before they all leave for OK on Monday morning. Please pray for them as they travel.

Up at Camp!!!

2008-07-15T14:46:00.004-05:00

Well, Amanda and I this week are at Teen Camp at The Wilds in NC. It is really nice here and the teens are having a blast as we speak. We have taken tons of pics already and will through out the week. Before we left, Amanda's Mom came here with her sister (Amanda's sister) which came to camp with us and before we left we played at the park during the week. The boys found a tiny little lizard which they thought was just the coolest thing. Zeke loves to push AJ on the swing. By the way, my little girl is almost walking. It is so cute watching her try. She takes about 7-8 steps and then falls. Won't be long :) Continue to pray for our teens while they are at camp this week. We have already had some problems, but pray they will stop. Satan tries his best to ruin God's work.

Weekend Fun

2008-07-06T12:40:00.007-05:00

It has actually been nice not doing much over the past weekend. Usually for the 4th you are busy going here and there, but this year, our family just hung out around the home. We watched movies together, played outside together and then went and saw the fireworks as a family. With things so busy here in GA it was nice to just relax for awhile and not do much. Here in our blog today you will find some pics of just fun stuff around the backyard and of course AJ in a laundry basket. We had one of the boys when they were real little so it was cute to get one of AJ too. The boys love their water slide and then at church they showed off the armor of God. It was good. Here are some pics and some videos...enjoy

Our American Idol Gets Stage Fright

2008-07-01T17:49:00.003-05:00

Okay, I'm posting this separately 'cause I think it's really funny. It happened awhile ago when Nick's mom was here. AJ really likes to "sing" into the microphone....watch what happens, it's gross but funny (note - if you have a weak stomach you may not want to watch!).

VBS & Summer Fun

2008-07-01T17:37:00.003-05:00

This past week our church had vacation Bible school. The boys had a lot of fun singing the songs, learning verses, playing games and most importantly spinning "the wheel." Our church has a huge wheel that when their number is called they get to come spin it. Also, on the last night we had a carnival for all the kids and their parents. It was also a lot of fun. They each painted their faces with spiders and Bryson with a spider and cherries (go figure :}).

We also got a cool inflatable water slide at a garage sale on Saturday. The boys had a lot of fun with it yesterday. Daddy made it a little too slippery with some dish soap and Bryson about slipped right off the slide!

On a side note, we were supposed to be at church tonight for the Pensacola Christian College drama team. AJ woke up from her nap with over 103 temperature so we weren't gonna make it. I think it's related to her teething but that's an pretty high temp even for that.

Please continue to pray for Zeke. Last week was a real trial with VBS and the reaction he was having to that medicine (Trileptal). Anyway, we got him on a new medicine (Depakote sprinkles) which seems to be doing better with his behavior and seizures (as far as making them worse). I guess it's a little too early to tell whether or not it's going to work or not. Thanks for all your prayers!

Info About Zeke

2008-06-18T15:26:00.002-05:00

If you are like me, you may have a lot of questions about what Zeke actually has and how it differs from other types of seizures. I found this video and I thought it was very helpful. I can't actually put in on our blog but this is the link where you can view it:
http://www.epilepsy.com/node/976294

It is quite long and the first 2 1/2 minutes or so is just a lady introducing this doctor. If you don't want to watch the whole video the most interesting part is towards the end - start the video at about 28 min. 45 sec.
The first video clip of the infant looks exactly like what Zeke does when sleeping except it usually involves his arm or hands as well. They aren't as dramatic as the other types since he only has focal or partial (a specific part of the brain) that seizures.

There are a lot of other videos on this website but I thought this one was the most helpful in understanding the differences between seizures and seeing actual video of the different types.

I've been trying to find out as much as I can so when we go back to the doctor I might have a clue to what they are talking about. I didn't know much about it when we initially went in. We just upped the dose of his medication today and are possibly seeing some bad side effects. He's been pretty irritable since we started the medication but today was pretty bad. We had quite the temper tantrum/rage today at the park. It's really hard to know what is just bad behavior and what is related to the medicine. He really isn't acting like himself. Hopefully his body will adjust to it or we may have to call the doctor and see what we can do. We appreciate all your prayers. I know all of you are concerned for him and I thought this info might help.

Beaches, Animals and Loosing Teeth!

2008-06-17T14:05:00.003-05:00

We had a really fun day together as a family on Nick's day off. Savannah has a zoo of sorts that you walk through and can see some of the animals that live in this area (alligators, fox, etc.). It was fun but rather tiring.

Since we were over in that area we decided to take the kids too the Tybee beach. It was nice 'cause it was at the end of the day and wasn't too hot. The boys really enjoyed the waves and getting very sandy. They didn't like the salt water, however, and would come over to our towels and get a drink quite regularly to get the taste out of their mouth. AJ liked to eat the sand but did NOT like the water, it scared her. She was also really tired so that didn't help. It was a fun day!

Then today after lunch Bryson said he had a loose tooth. Well, sure enough he lost his very first tooth today. He said it was because he was almost in Kindergarten. How sad, he is really growing up!

Old Giants

2008-06-13T14:31:00.002-05:00

As many of you know, we got the results of Zeke's tests on Tuesday. If you don't know already, his EEG indicated he has a form of epilepsy, where as far as we know, he's having partial seizures while sleeping. There is a good chance he will grow out of this in time and if his medicine works, it should make his headaches go away.

We are very thankful to have some answers but are slightly overwhelmed. On the day we found this out we had some other "giants" come back. Sometimes when you have something happen to you it's hard to process all of it. I "forced" myself to do my devotions that day and God spoke to me about the very issue we were going through. It was in II Samuel 21:15-22; David was promised the throne but had one last "old enemy" to fight - the Philistines. In my devotional by Beth Moore she says, "Few things make us want to flee more than the prospect of an old battle...Have you ever noticed that Satan always chooses just the right time to haunt you through an old enemy? When you haven't had enough rest, when things have been emotional and turbulent, when you've been swinging from one extreme to the other, when you're completely vulnerable - that's when the enemy strikes."

David was weary fighting these old giants as I was. Satan was attacking at just the right moment and it was hard. I'm glad to know the victory was already mine even though I don't understand how it's all going to work out - I know he does.

We appreciate all of your prayers for Zeke. I'm also comforted to know that His grace is sufficient for all of us and I trust Him completely.

Our New "Micromobile" and Other Fun Stuff....

2008-06-10T10:04:00.002-05:00

Nick and I bought our first ever brand-new car. It's already been nicknamed "Micromobile" because one of it's classifications is a micro van. It is a pearl white Mazda 5 that had 2 miles on it when we drove it off the lot!! It's so weird for us but very cool. We feel relieved getting rid of our gas guzzling SUV, which was nice but this car will save us A LOT in gas.

Tammie left today after staying with us for over a week for the whitewater rafting and testing for Zeke. We had a really good time with her. While she was here we went to the mall and went to Gymboree. They were handing out little coupons that you peel off and see what you won (usually a % off whatever you purchased). Well, Tammie was the lucky winner of a $500 shopping spree which she graciously gave to us. These are some pictures of the kids in their new "free" clothes :)!

What a Trip!!!

2008-06-03T12:02:00.003-05:00

During the school year with the youth group, we put on a competition that they participate in which rewards them through the year. I grew up doing this in my youth group and remember that at the end of the year, there was a winner's trip. Usually ours was to Chicago. Well, we have been doing that hear in my youth group and it was a good year. Many more things to perfect for next year, but it was really good. The whole intention of our program here at RBTYG is that it helps build spiritual habits before anything else. We have seen good things from that. But as they do different things for the year, all their points add up and at the end of the school year we tally them up and the winning team goes on an all expense paid trip. WE HAD AN AWESOME TRIP. We took the winning team on a Whitewater rafting trip in Copperhill TN. It was a packed trip, from Rafting the Nantahala and the Ocoee river, then horseback riding and doing a High Ropes Course and Low Ropes Course. It was such a great time to spend with those teens and I am looking forward to this next years incentive program

School is Almost Done!!

2008-05-23T22:12:00.004-05:00

Bryson took this picture today of their funny clown they put together in school. They each had to read one of the words on a flashcard and then put it in a sentence (this can be quite entertaining). After they read the word and everything they put a piece of the clown on. Anyway, Bryson thought the clown was really cool so he wanted to take a picture of it.

We are all looking forward to school being done for the summer. It's been a great year - one of learning which I'm sure I'll still be doing next year. I really didn't think I would like homeschooling and there are days where I don't really like it that much, but overall it is been something God has helped me be more open to. I never thought it would be something I would even consider, but I do find it's the best for our kids and our family. I just have to keep abiding in the vine (Christ) 'cause without Him I really can do nothing - especially not homeschooling!

On a side note please be in prayer for little AJ. We were out today and when we came home she was burning up. She had about 103 degree temperature and was throwing up. Her fever has come down but she's still not feeling well. Of course we are always busy on the weekends but this weekend in particular because of all the graduations and parties. Oh well, maybe God knew I needed to just rest with AJ and enjoy her even if she is sick.

We are also looking forward to Nick's mom coming down again :) for awhile. She is such a blessing and we are so blessed to have her. You really do appreciate your family more when you don't have them all the time. So those out there who live close to their families...don't take it for granted. No one cares for your children quite like a grandparent and our children have 4 wonderful grandparents.

It's Been Nice!

2008-05-19T15:55:00.002-05:00

Today sure has been a great day for me...even though we have pretty much just stayed around the house. After the long and busy weekend that we had, it was nice to just do nothing today. Bryson and I (daddy) have hung out a lot today. That has been fun. He broke his glasses over the weekend so we had to go get those fixed, then we did some other things around town. Then the weather has been HOT here and so we went swimming earlier today. Of course from the pics, you can see that AJ joined us after a while. She loves the water just like Bryson and it is so fun watching her play in the water.

AWWWWWWWW!!!

2008-05-15T15:53:00.004-05:00

Today was Zeke's Neurology appointment in Savannah for his headaches, and needless to say they think he may suffer from migraines and some other little things. So to determine that, he is going to be having a series of tests the first week of June. Thanks to MeMe coming back down to be with us and help out, we really appreciate our families. Zeke on Monday June 2nd will be having an EEG. It is a sleep deprived test so that is not going to be fun. Then he will have an MRI on June 6 where he will be sedated so he will be still. That is going to be a rough week for him so please pray for him. It is rough seeing him go through these things.

Today after his appointment, while we were in Savannah all day, we did some more car shopping and of course something I have been waiting for (Dad) is that AJ got her ears pierced today. She did so GOOD and is so adorable. She was to begin with, but these little earrings are so cute. I never thought as Dad I would love the whole girl thing. She is so adorable and I love getting her little cute things and stuff. She can't even talk and she already has her dad wrapped around her little finger! UH OH!!!

Back to the Routine

2008-05-13T07:32:00.002-05:00

We haven't blogged in awhile 'cause it's been so crazy around here lately. We went to Michigan for a week and then our boys were gone for another week and then we had Nick's parents here with us up until yesterday. It's been really fun getting together and seeing everyone. It was nice to have Nick's mom here for Mother's Day and we really did have a great time with everyone.

However, I am looking forward to getting into our normal routine. The boys really need to finish up school and I'm already getting prepared for them next year since Bryson will officially be in Kindergarten (can you believe it!). Last night I had to do a devotion for a baby shower which I was extremely nervous about. I'm just so amazed that God still decides to use me despite of all my weaknesses. Through it all I was reminded that in everything I try to do, including raising my children, I can do nothing without HIM. John 15:5, "I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing." Just the thought of homeschooling next year seems like a daunting task. I think of all my obstacles, I have three children one being a baby. I still have all of the other home things and ministry things I have to do as well. Then I sigh a big relief knowing that if I remember to abide in Christ He will do the work through me.

I'll add some pictures and stuff later, but we are still around and haven't forgotten about our blog.

What a Day!!!

2008-04-20T06:47:00.004-05:00

Well, as you can tell from the title, our Saturday was jam packed. It started off with getting the family up at 6:30Am to go garage selling around town. There were a lot of them out yesterday and they all started around 7AM so we wanted to get our early. We usually go to get things to sell on Ebay which God really blesses us with that, but I think He knew we needed some stuff yesterday for ourselves so we got more for us than we did to sell. Then we got home around lunch time and I had enough time to eat lunch with the family before I headed off to walmart to finish up some stuff I had to get for the rest of the day. I went into work around 1PM to get ready for our SLT workshop that I do once a month with my (Student Leadership Team Leaders) and I always enjoy them. That was from 3-5PM. Then Amanda had girls Bible study from 5-6PM while I watched the kids for an hour and the teen boys of the youth group put together our new basketball hoop. Then from 6-8PM we have REFUEL which is our every Saturday youth activity. That is not all, because from 8-9PM we have PRaise Band practice. So needless to say, when the day was done (around 10PM) we went to bed and tried to get some sleep for a great day at church.

Beyond all the business of yesterday, our kids sure do know how to fill the day with laughter. In this video, AJ is having a blast. She is sitting up on her own, with a few falls here and there, and she is always making so much noise. She is defiantly going to be a singer like her mom. She makes so much noise that she makes herself cough. Then, (at the time it was not funny, but after watching the video we had to laugh) while we were practicing our Praise Band, our boys decided to have some fun too. I didn't put the whole video of the practice on it, just the part where the boys are having their fun. I wanted to see what we sounded like after only 2 weeks of practice, (actually only 2 times) so we decided to tape it. Watch the video to see who decides to join this little practice of ours. Needless to say, they are not from our planet :)

Hungry AJ

2008-04-17T13:46:00.003-05:00

This past weekend Amanda started a Bible study with our teenage girls and they are talking about "Being Hungry for God." So Amanda had taken some video footage of AJ during the week of her eating and the different reactions she will do if you hold her food from her and stuff. Anyways, she gave me the footage and I put together a little video for her Bible study with the girls and it turned out really funny so I wanted to post it on our blog. ENJOY!

Sittin' Pretty

2008-04-11T11:24:00.003-05:00

A.J. crawled for the first time last night and sits up on her own now. She's also cutting in at least two teeth. It's so sad to see her getting so big but it's so fun too. Pretty soon we're gonna have to get the gates out 'cause she'll be everywhere!

Tonight we're all going to a Savannah Sand Gnats game with the youth group. Then tomorrow we're raking some people's yards, have girls' Bible study, youth group and then praise band practice! It makes me tired just thinking about it. However, I'm encouraged in the thought that it is all work for my Savior and I wouldn't trade it for anything. A thought that I came across was this...the Christian life takes blood, sweat and tears. It takes His blood, our sweat and both of our tears. I thought that was good.

Crawlin' and Drummin'

2008-04-04T17:03:00.006-05:00

When I was gone last weekend Nick thought AJ might crawl for the first time. This is the video of her attempting to crawl.

We have also had quite the musical family. Nick bought a new drum set and the boys have been playing on the old one. Bryson has really taken an interest to it. Needless to say we do not have a quiet house :)! On a side note, please pray for us as we're trying to put this praise band together. We really don't know how it's done but feel this is a direction God is taking us. We're excited but could really use the prayer!
Bryson likes to take showers now so Zeke and AJ take baths together....

God is Awesome

2008-03-30T14:12:00.002-05:00

I was so blessed this weekend to be able to go to a women's conference in Jacksonville with Beth Moore. It was soooooooo awesome. I learned some new praise and worship songs and learned A LOT. More than anything I got a fresh revelation and motivation to serve our Savior. Maybe I'm the only one, but sometimes I get pretty "blah" in my spiritual life. This conference was just what I needed to help me press on toward that prize, to chase after and pursue the Lord with all that is within me. Will you pray for me? I know that sounds selfish but God has always given me life more abundant and I want more than anything to walk in that life. I know hardships come and the seemingly mundane will set in, however I don't want to live in drudgery or defeat. I want the joy in my heart to never cease!

Don't Get Comfortable!

2008-03-27T18:10:00.003-05:00

There is a song called, 'Don't Get Comfortable' by Brandon Heath and it is about how we are not to get so comfortable in our Christian lives that we don't grow. Well, I don't think he meant that song for your furniture!!! We are so excited cause we bought our first piece of real furniture since we have been married. Only took us almost 9 years. This thing is GIGANTIC and I love it. We got a new couch and a snuggler to go with it so now I can sit with my sweety and watch movies :) Here is some pics of the new furniture and boy is it COMFORTABLE!!!

Resurrection Sunday!

2008-03-23T22:01:00.005-05:00

He is ALIVE! We praise the Lord today for conquering death so that we may have life. Today was such an awesome day. Nick and I are in the choir and we did a short cantata which I think went pretty well. Afterward our adoptive family, the Kings, invited us over to her parents house. We had some reeeeaaaallly good food (which we enjoyed a little too much) and fun hunting for easter eggs. The boys did several easter egg hunts this year. One at the library class last Tuesday, one at school time with mommy (we searched for the resurrection eggs and then told the resurrection story), last night at their church easter party and then today with the Kings. So, needless to say we have enough candy to last us quite awhile. Not to mention we got a special package from Meme, Papa and Cristal filled with more goodies and their very nice easter outfits they wore today.

We sure enjoyed ourselves today but I hope to remember the reason of Easter all year round. "And if Christ be not risen, then is our preaching vain, and your faith is also vain." 1 Corinthians 15:14

Azaleas and Tornadoes ....It Must Be Spring!

2008-03-19T12:41:00.002-05:00

Here is a slide show of the Azaleas blooming at our house. They are so pretty everywhere. We also went to the site of the tornadoes that hit near us. Two homes were completely leveled and thankfully no one was home. A member of our church lived right next to this site and was lucky to only have his porch taken. The power lines are what are really amazing....it just bent them right over!

Celebrity Morph by MyHeritage

2008-03-14T11:40:00.001-05:00

MyHeritage: Family tree - Genealogy - Celebrity

My Mom looks like a celebrity!

2008-03-14T10:04:00.001-05:00

MyHeritage: Family tree - Genealogy - Celebrity

Church Look-alike Meter

2008-03-14T09:31:00.001-05:00

MyHeritage: Family tree - Genealogy - Celebrity - Collage - Morph

Church Look-alike Meter

2008-03-14T09:24:00.001-05:00

MyHeritage: Family tree - Genealogy - Celebrity - Collage - Morph

A.J. - Church Look-alike Meter

2008-03-14T09:20:00.002-05:00

This is something fun I saw on Rachel's blog. It was fun to play with the different pictures and stuff. I tried two different pictures of Nick and I for all the kids. On the other picture I tried AJ looked more like me (Amanda) by 6%; Bryson looked more like me by 17% and Zeke by 9%. So I guess it depends on what picture you use. I'm gonna try and do one for Nick and his parents and see what happens and maybe even me and my parents. This might be something fun for you to do on your Friday "work" day :).

MyHeritage: Look-alike Meter - Free family tree - Pedigree

We're Mobile

2008-03-12T16:09:00.003-05:00

It was so funny today...I was sitting doing some stuff on the computer. I had put AJ in the middle of the living room floor with some toys. Before I know it I turn around and she's under the coffee table on the other side of the room. She was kicking the sides up and down and letting them bang back down on the sides. It was so funny! She doesn't crawl yet but she finds her ways around (rolling, scooting).

UH-O I'm busted!!!!

Who cares, this is fun!

Bikes & Scooters

2008-03-10T18:46:00.005-05:00

Bryson and Zeke had a lot of fun on their bike and scooter the other day. It was Zeke's first time on a bike and he did pretty good. I think having that video game system with the bicycle helped (thanks Meme and Papa).

Yesterday Grandpa Church and Marilyn stopped in on their way back from Florida. They left this afternoon after we went out to lunch with them. It was good to see them again. AJ also got her 6 month shots today. Only three this time. She now weighs 14 lbs. 3 oz. and is still 26 inches long. She is a little girl but full of a lot of energy and very active. We can't wait til we can come to Michigan and see everyone. The boys ask about coming pretty much every day.

Hair like a "Star Rock" I mean Rock Star!!

2008-03-05T15:34:00.003-05:00

Bryson and Zeke finally go their haircut today. When they came home the first thing Zeke said to me was I look like a "star rock" which Nick later told me he meant "rock star." They both look real handsome.
The boys are also into this "Bibleman" character. They are movies that have Bible stuff in them and they fight evil and stuff. I personally think it's cheesy but they like it.

Out with the Family

2008-03-04T17:20:00.004-05:00

Nick's day off is on Mondays so we all went out to eat and to the mall. The boys like to look at the fish at Bass Pro Shop. I think AJ liked them too. AJ looked so cute in her little spring outfit (yes, it is very nice here).

Bushy-haired Bryson also enjoyed the day.

I didn't have a picture of Zeke this time but please be in prayer for him. His eye pain/headaches are persisting, if not getting worse. He has an appointment with the allergy doctor at the end of the month which will probably result in a referral to a neurologist. He's had these for over a year now and as a mom I try not to worry but sometimes it's hard. Please ask our great physician for help for Zeke, please.

I hope to be putting some video and pictures from the boys' songs they did for church Sunday. They both did really well. Zeke was hamming it up a little but he got it under control after a loving but stern look from his mother :)!

Anyone need a shave?

2008-02-26T21:33:00.004-05:00

Today in school the boys had a fun and messy time with some shaving cream. We put food coloring in it and wrote letters in it and made shaving cream ice cream. Of course we didn't eat any! I think they had fun with it. What could be more fun than oozing shaving cream in between your fingers :).

The boys are also singing a song called "Jonah" in church this Sunday with the other kids. For those that won't get to hear it, here is our own version of it done at home...

Best Friends Forever!!

2008-02-25T14:23:00.004-05:00

The boys finally filled up their book chart last Thursday. Every time they read a book they got a sticker on their chart. Together they read over 100 books (good job Bryson and Zeke)!
So we had a book party with pizza, games and movies and of course their best friend Ronnie. Nothing is more fun than having Ronnie come over. Bryson and Ronnie were making some fort out of the bunk bed and it looked like they were having a lot of fun.

AJ eating carrots for the first time!

2008-02-14T11:52:00.002-05:00

Good Morning from AJ

2008-02-13T15:58:00.003-05:00

Here are some cute pictures of AJ in the morning. She is really happy when she first wakes up and laughs and smiles a lot on her changing table.

Bryson's Cool Hat

2008-02-13T15:52:00.002-05:00

Bryson has been helping around the house today and found one of my hats. He wanted me to take a picture of him...he sure looks cute!

Our Kids

2008-02-07T14:30:00.000-05:00

Recently here we took our kids to get their pictures done at Sears. They did a wonderful job and so I put together a little movie of some of their photos. If you want some of these photos, you can see my mom as we are sending her the CD with the copyright to them. Hope you enjoy them as much as we do. They are precious !

Thanks for the Prayers

2008-02-01T23:24:00.000-05:00

Just wanted to say "thank-you" to all those that prayed for Zeke and his allergy testing. We found out he is allergic to both types of dust mites. We just have to do some things in their bedroom and religiously clean. We are thankful we got some answers. Hopefully with some environmental changes and some changes in his medicines, his headaches will get better.

We also went to the doctor with AJ this week. She is now 13 lbs. 5 oz. and 26 inches long. She's been really fussy since her 4 shots but we're surviving!

Pray for Zeke

2008-01-22T15:24:00.000-05:00

Please continue to pray for our little boy Zeke! He is such a blessing to our family and you hate seeing your kids going through things and they can't really tell you what the matter is. Anyways, Zeke has suffered for about a year with headaches and allergies, and our Family Dr. finally referred us to an Allergy Specialist. We went and saw her today and next week Zeke is going to have an allergy test! If this is not the cause, then the next step is for Migraines, which me and my dad suffer from. Anyways, he is in great spirits and is always our little clown. We love him so much!!!!!!

Colorful!

2008-01-17T09:56:00.000-05:00

Our AJ sure is a colorful baby isn't she? She is the most beautiful baby :) She is now getting to the stages where she just likes to lay on the floor and play. She can roll over really good and almost roll back, but she is still working on that. She sure does have a set of lungs on her though. I love listening to her just talk away. Now AJ is getting cereal during the day. She sure looks like she enjoys it! Of course the boys always want to feed her which is nice because they are such good helpers. And last but not least, the weather here in GA has been a little cold lately so last night when we got home from church, the boys wanted a cup of 'hot cocoa.' These boys can't eat or drink anything without getting it all over themselves. But it so funny!

God is GREAT!

2008-01-15T14:17:00.000-05:00

It is amazing when you look at your life and see where you are now and think to yourself 'I never would have imagined being where I am today!' That is how I feel when I look at my life. I have a great wife who loves me unconditionally and is there when I need her. She truly is my best friend. We have been through good times as well as tough times (who hasn't?), but everyday I love her even more. The gifts that God has given to me I don't deserve, but He loves me that much. He has blessed us with wonderful kids. I am so thankful and happy to be a part of these precious lives that God has entrusted me with. Anyways, I just felt like reminding all who read out blog that God is GREAT and He is everything we will ever need! Here are some photos of Bryson who had to get glasses and AJ who loves her BUMBO seat. Then there is an old pic of Cory and I when we were little boys playing just like my 2 boys do today! (Love ya Cory)

Holiday's are OVER!!!

2008-01-03T16:38:00.000-05:00

I like the Holiday season, but man can it get busy. Now is the time where we take down all the decorations, return some gifts, go buy some gifts :) and just unwind from it all. Over the Holiday's is Bryson's Birthday too so here is a movie we made of his birthday!

Christmas Eve PJs

2007-12-24T22:28:00.000-05:00

We have a tradition we started last year of buying pj's for each other and opening them on Christmas Eve. Zeke got "Lightning McQueen" and Bryson got Spiderman. AJ has some cute polar bear Christmas ones (which barely fit her 'cause she's growing so fast). The boys are very excited for Christmas Day tomorrow. I remember when I was little I always had such a hard time falling asleep because I was so excited. Having children definitely makes Christmas special. God is so good to us and we are so blessed to have such wonderful friends and family!

Christmas Boys

2007-12-24T22:23:00.000-05:00

We took some pictures of Bryson and Zeke on Sunday in their handsome suits.

They get their handsome looks from their daddy :)!

Thanks for the Wii Meme and Papa

2007-12-24T22:20:00.001-05:00

We have a thumb sucker!!

2007-12-22T13:57:00.000-05:00

All of our kids have been so different. Bryson was addicted to the pacifier, Zeke didn't take a pacifier or his thumb and now AJ sucks her thumb. It's so cute :)!

12 Days of Christmas

2007-12-19T13:07:00.000-05:00

Nick sends out emails to the kids every week and puts fun games or videos in them. Today's had an Accapella group from Indiana University sing Christmas songs. They are a little mixed up though!

Christmas Baby Girl

2007-12-17T22:43:00.000-05:00

Here is AJ in one of her many Christmas dresses. She is sure a blessing and a joy!

Family Night

2007-12-11T20:05:00.000-05:00

Saturday night we all sat down together as a family and watched the new movie "Transformers" together. Of course the boys loved it as it is a pretty good movie. We have been really busy around here of course with the holiday season and all. Yesterday we spent the day in Savannah doing some Christmas shopping and we got just a few people done. Then we had another Christmas Party for our church so we had to be back for that.

Please pray for us all as we have really been battling the sickness down here. We don't know what it is, but we are just sick all the time. I have had a cold for over a week and a half, Amanda has it now, the boys are coughing and runny noses and now AJ today started. The weather has been great down here with 80 degree weather and all, but this sickness is getting pretty old around here.

Well, hope all is doing well with everybody and we will try to keep up with the blog better here this month.

Concert

2007-11-30T09:57:00.000-05:00

Last night Amanda and I went to the Point of Grace "Winter Wonderland Tour" concert with our good friend Jennifer. We took one our Pastor's daughter with us and we met another family from church there. It was really good, Point of Grace was good, but I really went to see Scott Krippayne. I really like his voice and he is really good with his music. So, of course we had to get some of his music and then I got a photo with him after he signed a couple of things. The concert was really good, Christmas music and then the church we went to was a big one and the choir from that church sang with Point of Grace and it was just awesome. I love Christmas music and stuff! Teresa (Pastor's wife) watched AJ for us and of course their little boy Ronnie loves to play with Bryson and Zeke so they all had a blast. THANKS TERESA!

Boys Memory Verses

2007-11-23T20:16:00.000-05:00

In school we learn a different Bible verse every week. Here is Bryson saying some of his....

Now here is Zeke....

Fun

2007-11-13T12:34:00.001-05:00

Last Saturday we took the boys to a fall festival with our good friends Brian and Jennifer King. Jennifer's school was putting on the festival and they had inflatables and games and things like that. Of course the boys had a good time as they always do with these things. It was funny watching Zeke try to balance upon the stool and then try to hold the joust. It was funny and they took their falls pretty good.

Other than that, we are anticipating my (Nick) parents return again down here next week for the Thanksgiving weekend. We are really excited cause my Grandpa and Grandma Booth are coming down to and I know they will look forward to seeing us. Especially the boys and AJ.

Pictures of AJ

2007-11-09T12:55:00.000-05:00

Here are some more pictures of AJ. She is sure growing up...two months old yesterday!

Long Week!

2007-10-29T17:07:00.001-05:00

Busy...is that the first thing you think of when you hear the "Church Family?" I hope not, although that is what we tend to think sometimes. :) We just finished this past week with our Missions Conference and it was great. There were two people who accepted Jesus Christ as Savior and one of our teenagers came to me and told me they need to get baptized, so Sunday night after church he got baptized. For our missions conference, Bro Sam and Miss Sue Husser were here with us. For those that know they are good friends of ours and we had a wonderful time with them. We love seeing them and please keep them in your prayers now as they are starting a church in Slydel Louisianna. We are excited for them.

This past weekend, we took our teenagers to the County Fair. This was the first time for our family and so we had a good time. We bought the boys arm bands so they could ride all the ones they wanted and they had a blast. AJ slept through the whole entire thing. Other than that, all is going well. Please enjoy the pics and the video of the boys riding their favorite ride.

Shame on Me :)

2007-10-18T09:43:00.000-05:00

I can't believe I am pretty much just now getting back to my blogging world after the birth of our daughter. You would think with having a new baby and all, we would be doing so much on the computer with pictures and movies and stuff. WELL you thought wrong :) when do I ever have time to do this anymore? Now that we are out numbered, it is a little different around the house, if you have 3 or more kids, you know what I am talking about. But life has been great although busy too. We sure are enjoying our little girl, but she is not content anymore like she was when she was born. (Your time is coming Cory and Shannon) for the past week or so, this little Georgia Peach of ours won't go to bed. Anyone want to come and stay up with her, fine by us :)

Amanda is doing such a wonderful job with the boys and AJ. They started back with home-school this month so I know that has been a change for Amanda, but God has given me such a wonderful wife who is great at being a mom. (I am writing this from work so she doesn't know I am talking about her, but I am sure she will know later when she reads this...love ya sweety!)
It is neat how the boys in school have been learning about fire safety and fire trucks and while we were out one Saturday, we found a church that was having a festival and there was a fire truck. So we stopped and they got to see first hand what they were learning in school. It was really neat for them. Family is doing great. So with that said, here are some pictures and then a video of of the boys doing the pledge of Allegiance during their school time. It is so cute! See ya'll.

Were on our own...and out numbered!

2007-09-28T17:10:00.000-05:00

I can't believe it has been 3 weeks tomorrow since the new bundle of joy entered our life on Saturday September 8th. Sorry we haven't posted in a while, but things sure have been busy as you can imagine. My(nick) mom came down on September 1st and was with us till the 21st. and my dad came down a couple times (thanks you guys so much for all you did for us and still do.) And then on the 21st Amanda's mom flew in and we just took her to the airport today (thanks for all you did 'mema.). So, now we are on our own and outnumbered, but we will survive. As you can tell from the pictures that AJ got her first real bath tonight, (just before we all go to the Friday night football game.) Everyone is doing great and staying healthy. AJ had a check up this week and she is now 20inches and almost 8 pounds. The boys are so good to her and they just love their baby sister.

AJ video

2007-09-10T20:44:00.001-05:00

AJ

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Zeke singing to AJ

2007-09-10T16:28:00.000-05:00

Well, we are home now from the hospital with our new addition to the family, Arianna Jane Church. We wil call her AJ or Ari for short. I will get some more photos up here soon, but thought we would just get this video of Zeke singing to his little sister.
Zeke singing to AJ

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Not Much

2007-08-27T19:44:00.000-05:00

Well, we haven't blogged for a while cause we just have forgot. We haven't been doing too much out of the ordinary except getting ready for AJ. So with that comes different projects around the house and getting ready for my parents to get down here this weekend. Other than that, just continue to remember Amanda and AJ in your prayers as any minute she could come. Hope everyone is doing great and hey, we are excited about our best friends Mark and Kimberly Kirkpatrick...they too are having a baby! YAH

Church Baby Shower

2007-08-20T18:55:00.000-05:00

Ya, that is kind of funny, a "Church" baby shower for the Churches. :) Last night after the evening service our church blessed us immensly with gifts for AJ. I will never be able to thank this church enough for taking care of us, I am just so thankful to God and pray so many blessings upon our wonderful church family. I am so saddended for those in this world today that don't have a good home church family. Being away from our mom's and dads' and other family members, the church makes it so much more better for us. Thank you God for Rincon Baptist Temple!

Is it Growing Yet?

2007-08-18T09:04:00.000-05:00

We are homeschooling the boys this year and have been learning about plants. We planted a bean seed the other day and right after we were done planting it, the boys sat and watched it. They thought it would grow right away. It was really funny!

Attack of the Thing and Buzz!!

2007-08-18T08:57:00.000-05:00

A couple weeks ago we got the boys some costumes at the thrift store. We don't do Halloween but the boys really like to dress up. Every day they wake up and want to put on their suits...Zeke calls it his "soup." I was looking for them one morning and found them in my bathroom looking at themselves! Zeke calls Bryson's mask the "scary face." They are such funny boys.

Surprise!!!!

2007-08-11T19:52:00.000-05:00

Tonight was our 'usual' saturday night hang out with the teens called, "REFUEL" but we were in for a little different surprise. Tonight we went to one of our teens house for our time together, and when we get there it was a surprise. Bridget had planned a youth group shower for AJ. They gave us a bunch of gifts and things we really needed. It is nice to know that you are loved, and I really appreciate what these teens did for us. We have the best group in the world :)They played some games, the girls held a bottle while the boys drank coke, then the girls got to dress up the boys and then it was Mrs. Hand's AWESOME cake and gifts. It was a great night. All the girls were taught how to croche by Deena and so they all made a square in the blanket they made for AJ :) It is very precious!

Anniversary

2007-08-06T20:27:00.000-05:00

Tomorrow is our 8th anniversary, but today was my day off, so I suprised Amanda tonight by getting a kid sitter and I took her to Lady and Sons. If you are familiar with place in Savannah GA, it is owned by Paula Dean. It was good food, but we had to wait in line for over an hour just to put our name on a list to come back to dinner. Definetly the effort was a lot, food was good but something I wouldn't do all the time. Now we can say that we have been to Lady and Sons.

Birthday Time!

2007-07-28T19:49:00.000-05:00

Today was Zeke's Birthday! He has turned 3 years old. My little Zekee Bekee is growing up. See what we did today!

Teen Camp

2007-07-20T12:26:00.000-05:00

This was my first time to take teens to the Wilds! It was such an awesome time that I am looking forward to next year already. Here are some fun times that we had while there this year. Enjoy!

Ho Down

2007-07-19T13:46:00.000-05:00

Family and Friends! Here it is! Some of you have wanted to see our Hilbily Ho Down that we did for the teens this past month and so I finally got it on the web. This is just the short version of it cause the longer version wouldn't fit on the site. Hope you like it and don't hurt yourself when dancing to the music. Oh, by the way, I still like peanut butter! (Watch video to see what I am talking about) ENJOY!

Funny Socks & Star Wars!

2007-07-18T08:29:00.000-05:00

Bryson and Zeke like to wear Daddy's clothes. I know they pretend they are robots and stuff when they wear it. Here is Zeke with Daddy's socks on...we thought it was really funny!

Yesterday we went to the library and got some books. When we were checking out the boys saw some Star Wars books (very huge and heavy books) and of course we had to get one for each of them. Daddy later read one of them to the boys. There were alot of "Ooohs" and "What's that?" The boys are both crazy about Star Wars!

Homemade Supper

2007-06-29T19:22:00.000-05:00

Well, tonight I put all my pizza making skills back into action and I will have to say that I didn't forget a thing. The boys sure loved it and I was really impressed with myself. Just like riding a bike, you never forget how to do it. We made it right from scratch, from the dough to the cheese. Okay, that was store bought, and so was the pizza sauce and the pepperoni...but hey the dough was made from scratch.

Daily Refreshment

2007-06-26T20:26:00.000-05:00

Tomorrow is Bryson's half birthday that we usually celebrate every June. Then in July is Zeke's birthday, so this year we thought about getting them both something that they would love to use. Of course it is stinking hot here, so we bought a pool. Not a real expensive one, but just perfect for our family right now. They boys went swimming tonight and they love the water. Plus, when we are hot, we can all just get in it and relax. This is really nice.

1974 Bricklin

2007-06-25T08:42:00.000-05:00

My dad loves to get project cars, and here is the latest one that he just bought. This is not the actual car, but just a video of what he has. I am sure when he gets done with it, it will be a lot nicer than the one in the video. Can't wait to see it dad!

Boys Bunk Bed

2007-06-23T12:26:00.000-05:00

The boys have been doing really good in their bunk beds. Here recently I got the ladder up for Bryson and he does pretty good about getting up and down by himself. I remember these bunk bed things when my brother and I shared a room. The boys need to share here now cause we are getting AJ's room ready. They love sleeping in these things.

Happy Father's Day!

2007-06-19T12:17:00.000-05:00

The day before Father's Day we gave Nick some of his present. It was the new "Ghost Rider" movie that came with a really cool bandana! We went out to eat that night at one of Nick's favorite restaurants, Spanky's. It was a good time except Nick didn't really feel well. Please pray for him 'cause he's still not feeling too hot.