You Bring Restoration

what our little man might look like right now. This is a baby from 14-18 weeks, so he is somewhere in that mix
So last night we went to a prayer meeting at The Village's Flower Mound campus. It was all three campuses coming together to pray for God's leadership over our church. (This is something I love about our church. They are very aware that it is easy to become a church that cares about numbers and can get away from God's leadership. They dont want to be that church, so they continuously seek Him in prayer for guidance.)

Anyway, in traffic, it was about an hour drive and I was kind of hoping we wouldnt get in because I really wanted to go eat at this pizza place called Pallios near by (AMAZING pizza and Im pregnant, but still...pizza over prayer?) Needless to say, God had different plans for me last night. We did not get turned away and were able to go to the prayer meeting. I would say there were about 700-800 people there. Matt had us break into groups of two (I was with John) and start praying that God would reveal to us how much we needed Him. I of course then had to confess that I wanted pizza over prayer time with God:)and Im pretty sure he forgave me for that one, but then John and I both prayed together that God would show us Himself even more and remind us every day how much we need Him.

After that little prayer session, Michael Bleeker (my most favorite singer EVER) started singing the song "Your Bring Restoration" It is the most beautiful song and is something that I have enjoyed singing since working through my last miscarriage. The lyrics go like this: "You take my mourning and turn it into dancing. You take my weeping and turn it into laughing. You take my mourning and turn it into dancing. You take my sadness and turn it into joy. Youve taken my pain, and you call my by a new name. Youve taken my shame and in its place, you bring my joy. Halleluja! Halleluja! You make all things new." Its an awesome song, and I always love singing it.

Last night, however, was especially special. The song always makes me kind of emotional because it's awesome to see how God has taken away my pain of the miscarriage and its amazing to see the joy that I have had since then. Well, when we were singing it last night, I had my hands on my stomach where the baby is (I think im going to be one of those weird pregnant people that always touches thier stomach...)and he started moving around during the song. He was gettin down with his bad self. I hope I never get used to him moving. I hope it amazes me every single time until he is born. It is a miracle that I am growing a child inside my stomach and I hope that it never ceases to amaze me. It was precious to be reminded even more so that our life is in God's hands and that he has a perfect plan for us.


Psalm 30:11 & 12 says "You have turned my mourning into joyful dancing. You have taken away my clothes of mourning and clothed me with joy, that I might sing praises to you and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give you thanks forever!

Do You Really NEED Something New For Christmas?

So, My hubby and I were discussing last night the fact that we dont need anything for Christmas. This is easier said than done because both sets of parents are not happy with not getting us anything. BUT what if you told your family you wanted a pig, goat, chickens, ducks, or a cow this year? It's a tangible gift, yes?

Well, you are in luck. World Concern (a fantabulous non profit Christian organization that my brother works at) has a GLOBAL GIFT GUIDE of all kinds of crazy fun things you can purchase for the poorest of the poor. Want to give someone a goat? No problem and it only costs $40.
Want to give twenty chickens to a family? Twenty chickens that will produce eggs and more chicks? Only $30!
You can provide water wells. Schooling for children who have been saved from sex trafficking. You can fill a lake with 2,000 fish fingerlings that will give struggling families an ongoing protien source and a way to make an income for $65.


For the last year, John and I have been more and more convicted about how much "stuff" AKA "Crap" we have. We dont need it. Why would we ask for more at Christmas? For us, we are just starting to feel selfish and this is such an awesome way for people to still get you gifts and feel like they have given you something. Plus, they dont have to wrap anything! Even if you want some Christmas gifts for yourself this year (which Im sure I will still be getting some) this is a great way to think about someone else and donate the money yourself. YAY WORLD CONCERN!!!

Click HERE to go to the World Concern Global Gift Guide!!!

Our Baby

I was having terrible cramping last night. (terrible in my books because any cramping while pregnant freaks me out) Anyway, it started around 6pm and lasted until this morning. This is not normal. I know that round ligament pain is normal, but this was too constant to be normal. So, even though I had promised many people that I would not be getting many more sonograms, I decided to get one today at work. The second the ultrasound probe hit my stomach, my beautiful baby popped onto the screen. Praise GOD! (Seriously, God is so good. How do people not believe in Him?!) He (what I'm calling him right now because I'm almost positive) was hiccuping. So cute! He was wiggling around and even cuter, he was covering his eyes with his hands. I fell even more in love with the little guy today..so much so that I'm even OK with it if he is a boy. (I really wanted a girl) I'm just so in love now, that I don't care what gender the baby is. So, here are some pics to enjoy and please no lectures on how I don't need to get anymore sonograms. I'm done until I find out the sex of the baby:)

This is the little guys side profile. He's a cutie. I'm a proud parent.

OK, so this one was a lot easier to see on the sonogram machine, but you can kind of see his arms covering his face. It was super cute when it was all live

I titled this one creepy baby. Its his face, but I think it looks creepy. Glad to see that the eyes and everything else are in the correct spot though.

Seattle..The Happiest Place on Earth...if it didnt rain.

We had a blast this last weekend in Seattle. We were able to go visit Mark, Erin, and Ryann Cate for a few days, and it was totally worth everything we went through to go! Seattle aside, seeing family was great, and it helped us remember how much we miss them...which was not so great. We had so much fun playing with Ryann Cate and following Erin and Mark around as our tour guides. We learned that he works in a beautiful building and can make a mean grilled cheese sandwich and we learned that she is an awesome tour guide..and is hot...but I guess we already knew that. So, thank you Mark and Erin for being AWESOME hosts while we were in Seattle. We miss you and cant wait to come visit again next year!

My first day in Seattle. We went to Beechers. They are known for their homemade cheese and Macaroni. SO GOOD

This was the awesome gift next to our bed in the guest bedroom at Mark and Erin's house. So sweet of Erin. She was an AMAZING hostess.

Ryann being cute with her baby doll.

Cute pic of Mark and Erin at Pikes Place Market. You could get these HUGE bouquets of flowers for $5...put flowers from Albertsons to absolute shame.

These next two pictures are upside down and I dont know how to change them...we still look cute upside down:) This pic was taken at this really cool sculpture garden that Mark and Erin took us to. Love it!

Me and John inside a little ice cream shop eating our Mac n Cheese from Beechers.

Mark and John enjoying boiled seafood at the CrabPot...the shrimp still had their heads and legs on...

Ryann being super silly on the way to the Space Needle. It was a perfect day outside!

Right before we went up to see all of Seattle. Ryann loved being up there. Every day after we went, she would ask us if we were going back to the Space Needle. She was a big fan!

While I was there I got to go see Ryann's class that she goes to. They were having their Halloween party. It was so much fun to see all of her friends. They all seem so sweet, and Ryann had a great time!

This is where Mark and Erin both work. www.worldconcern.org It is an AMAZING place. How awesome would it be to go into this place for work every day? So beautiful!

This is Mark working in his office...diligent...We were able to meet a bunch of his co-workers. Such sweet people.

We had such a great time and I cannot wait to go back! I miss them already! LOVE YOU MARK, ERIN, and RYANN!!!!!

Life Without Christ

Ok so this is UBER random, so bare with me...

I had a HORRIBLE nightmare last night. In my dream this creepy old man (who was recently a character on the show Criminal Minds...which I will not be watching anymore) was a serial killer and was trying to kill me. Everywhere I went, he would be standing there waiting for me. I stabbed him to try to kill him. He wouldn't die. I would run and get to the next place and he would be there, waiting for me. In the end of my dream, I blew his head off with a gun (violent dreams, I know). He died. I thought it was all over until I realized that he had a partner, who had a partner, who had a partner, who had a partner...etc. It was the never ending nightmare. Well, when I woke up, I was terrified. I started thinking about how scared I was. It was almost odd. I started thinking about what the difference was between this happening in real life and this happening in a dream. There was something just soo scary about it in my dream.

Thats when I figured it out. In my dream, I didnt have God to pray to. I didnt have God to ask Him to help me. I didnt have the knowledge that if I died, it would be ok because I would be in heaven. It was like for the first time in my life, I got a glimpse of what life without God looks like. See, I grew up a "Christian" (when I truly believed on my own, I dont know.) but basically for my entire life, I have had that feeling of eternal salvation and I have always felt like I could turn to God for help. Im so glad I had this nightmare (even though I basically didnt sleep starting at 5:00am when I first woke up) because I feel like I really got an idea of what life separated from Christ looks like. Its hopeless. Its meaningless. Its sad. Its super scary. I cannot imagine being a situation like that and trying to handle it on my own. I am so glad that I have a savior who was and is and is to come. How blessed are we to know the living God?!

So, would I like to continue to have nightmares? NOPE. BUT, I am so grateful for this one because I feel like I have this new love and just utter gratefulness to the Lord, that I am saved. I love the fact that if I ever am in a situation like this, I wont have the same kind of fear, because I will know that my eternal salvation lies in the Lord. I feel like I finally get the verse in 1 Corinthians 15 "Where oh death is your Victory? Where oh death is your sting?"

We Are Having A Baby!

So glad I finally get to blog about this! I have been dying to talk about it, but we were waiting to tell our parents the good news before blabbing it to the entire world. (This was very hard for me considering my big mouth) We are elated. After our miscarriage only a few months ago I was super bummed and decided that we would try one more time. I (John basically agreed) didnt want to have another miscarriage and then try again. We decided that we would take it as God's sign to adopt. (Its something that we plan on doing anyway) So, I got pregnant even before I had a period...because Im a rebel like that, and because I figure my clients disobey the rules all the time and their babies turn out fine. So, I disobeyed. I can say with certainty that if I had miscarried this baby, that I would have blamed myself completely for it because of the fact that I disobeyed the rules, but by God's grace, that did not happen. The first few weeks were very scary. I found out that my HCG levels werent doubling and that my body did not produce Progesterone. The heartbeat was low at one sonogram, and I panicked. Every time I had the slightest cramp or lack of pregnancy symptom, I automatically assumed I was miscarrying. Talk about an emotional roller coaster. It is by God's awesome grace that this baby is healthy and happy:)...wouldnt you be if I was going to be your mom?...and we are sooo excited to welcome this little one into the world.

I have had 8 sonograms now, which is ridiculous, but its so hard not to have one when I work at a place that provides them! We have so many pictures. Its kind of funny. Its been awesome to see the change in the baby and it constantly reminds me how awesome God is. I dont understand how people can see this stuff and not believe in Him. He is an awesome God.

Which brings me to raising a baby to honor the Lord. How stressful?! I want my child to grow up and serve the Lord and I want to be a good example to my child, but what kind of example am I being when I go buy a pair of shoes for myself that I dont need? What kind of example am I being when I go shopping just because Im bored? What does that teach my kid when there are millions of starving people in the world? I have realized that I am going to have to change my ways. This is a good thing. I have been trying to change them, but Im hoping the desire to raise my child to honor the Lord will spur me on. I think it will help to constantly have someone watching me.

Anyway...all kinds of things to stress over now...not worry over because I have put this baby into God's hands, but stress over because I want to be a godly example to my baby.

Enough for now. Im sure I will be blabbing a lot more now that I have something exciting to blab about!!

Beyonce

It was six years ago this October that I purchased Beyonce. I went to the pet store at the college station mall. I had no intentions of purchasing a pup, especially a chihuahua. I have never found them to be cute dogs, and had no desire for one. BUT, when I walked into the pet store and asked to play with her, she stole my heart. She walked up to me and kissed me on the nose. I handed over my dad's credit card right then. (I did have to pay him back later) I took her home. I thought my roommates would be delighted, but they were basically jerks about it. One roommate had recently purchased a Collie without asking us so I figured a chihuahua would be no big deal. Not so much. They weren't happy and without the moral support, my desire to own this dog died down a bit. That night at about 3 am I was awoken to a horrible cry. It was Beyonce. She had had diarrhea all over her cage and had rolled around in it. So, at three am, I was up with my dog in the shower cleaning her up.

Well, like any normal person would do the next morning, I returned her. The man at the pet store did not appear to be thrilled with the idea, but he kindly said that he would rip my check up. I went back to Dallas that weekend to hang out with John and see my family. All I could think about during that time was Beyonce. I had abandoned this child:) because she had pooped on herself and because I didn't like waking up early in the morning.


So, once again, like any normal person would do, I went back to the pet shop that Sunday and kindly asked the man (who rolled his eyes when I walked in) if the black chihuahua was still available. He said yes with a sigh and went and got her for me. John was with me and when I handed Beyonce to him he looked at me like "you have got to be kidding me" and kind of held her with one hand.

Life since then has been bliss. Beyonce is the best dog anyone could ever ask for. She lives up to her name, but is super sweet and cuddly most of the time. I love her and she will always be my favorite dog in the entire world.

I know that this was a random post but someone mentioned that I needed a new one, so this is what I decided to post on:)

William Leonard Lamb

My new favorite nephew was born today!! (Sorry Scot and Blake. You have been demoted:)) William was born at 3:26 this morning. He weighed 7lbs 15 oz and was 20 inches long. I havent been able to hold him yet, but I get to go up and see him right after work. I am so excited to love on this new baby boy. Its amazing how much you can love someone without even meeting them. Ok, this is a short post. Pictures and gushing to follow in the next few days.....

Was My Starbucks Coffee This Morning Worth It?

Nabakoza died this weekend. I posted about her last week. This is her. She died from starvation. When I first found her story, I had prayed that she would be saved. Renee did everything she could to save Nabakoza, but more importantly during Nabakoza's last few days, Renee loved her. She showed Nabakoza Christ's love by feeding her, giving her water, cleaning up her puke, and loving on her. I found out through Renee's blog that Nabakoza was starved by her family because she had a disability.

"Sweet Nabakoza lived a life full of incredible pain, and suffering; she lived a life of neglect. A life of abuse. She grew up in a home where because of her disability she was denied the right to eat food, wear clothes, and go to school; she was even denied the right to be loved by her own mother. Can you even begin to imagine what that would be like?"

I know we aren't all called to move to Africa or some foreign country, but we are supposed to do something about this starvation, physical abuse, poverty, lack of education, sexual abuse, sickness...should I keep going? There are so many great organizations out there that provide education to these countries, medical help, food, and job education for women and men. No, we cant all be over there, but we can support these kinds of organizations, and as believers (or just good people who care about others, but if you are not a believer....I highly recommend it:)) we are supposed to!

I got a Starbucks coffee this morning. It has become an addiction of mine. It costs about $4 every time I get one, and I get one at least three times a week. Besides the calories (which kill me) it is a huge waste of money. If I stopped getting my Starbucks three times a week, I would be able to give an extra $48 a month. That could easily feed Nabakoza's entire family for about half a year! (plus it would help me lose weight, which is a win/win situation.)

Here are some great organizations that John and I have given to or have heard great things about. World Concern My brother Mark and sister in law Erin are both currently working for World Concern. They are based in Seattle and go to the most poverty stricken countries and meet that country's biggest need. (for example, they work with children in sex slave trafficking over in Asia, provide jobs for people in Haittie by paying them to build back their own town, de-worm kids over in Africa (only $44 de-worms 100 people) etc..)It is a great organization and I'm really happy to have learned about it even if it did steal one of my favorite families away from me and move them across the country...

Then there is Compassion . This is also a great program. You get to choose a child from any of their countries and sponsor that child. We have a few over in Africa and are able to write letters back and forth just by logging onto our Compassion account and clicking on our child's name (so fun!). By sponsoring them you are providing them an education, clean water, food, medical care, and important life-skills training. You can sponsor one child for only $38 a month. You can also send them birthday money, Christmas money, or a family gift. One of our kids bought a goat and sent us picture of his goat which was awesome!

There is Amazima Ministries which is Katie's ministry. I have written about her a ton! I love her. Amazima Ministries operates a sponsorship program for 400 orphaned children. These children are provided an education, school supplies,
3 meals a day, and medical care. They are also provided with spiritual encouragement and attend a weekly Bible study/fellowship program. Another aspect of Amazima Ministries, is the feeding program provided to the displaced Karamojong people of the Masese community. These people are Uganda's poorest and often considered
outcasts. A lunch meal is served to over 1,200 children Monday - Friday and a plate of food is sent home for dinner. This allows the children to attend school and not go to the street in town to beg. Also provided is basic medical care, Bible study and general health training.

And finally, I will give you Renee's organization Serving His Children . She is the one who took in Nabakoza and fed and cared for her. She, along with Katie, provides food for over 1200 children M-F. She also brings in starving children and adults, cleans up their throw up (without complaining I hear) and nourishes them back to health (or in Nabakoza's case, loves on them and cares for them until the Lord takes them home).

Any of these organizations would be a great place to donate money to and I encourage you to take that step and find ways that you can stop spending money and start giving it to people who are in need. We have to start waking up every morning and realizing that everything is NOT okay. We might be over here in our comfy little suburbs, but in other countries (and even here to an extent...but don't get me started on Medicaid, food stamps, and welfare, or I'll never stop. Come work at a non profit organization, deal with my clients, and then tell me we need to provide more help for them...its crap man...) people are dying of starvation or being trafficked into sex slavery, and it's not ok!

I want to leave you with part of a note that Renee wrote to Nabakoza after she died. Its so sweet and because I'm a dork, it brought me to tears...in bed..while John was sleeping...seriously, I was like a blubbering idiot.

"You should know that thousands of people are praying for you and your family. I know your Mom is feeling so sad about the past 23 years; I told her you forgave her. My heart hurts for the hard life you had to live, but your pain was not in vain my friend. Because of you hearts are being stirred, God is calling out a people who desire to bring about change in this world. You made a difference in this world, Nabakoza! You matter. It’s a privilege and an honor to call you my friend, my sister. Thank you for allowing me to be a part of your life even for a short time. Thank you for forever changing mine. I love and miss you. See you at the golden gates… "

So, was my Starbucks worth it this morning? Nope.

A Letter to My Future Children...Whoever You Might Be and However Many of You There Might Be...

Disclaimer: I know this is cheesy, but I have been thinking a lot about how hard it is going to be to raise my children well when they are finally here. It is so easy to get caught up in the American lifestyle and I have been stressing about how to raise them in this lifestyle and still serve God well. So, I decided to write them this letter. I decided to post it on here because I'm hoping that one day I will still have this blog and I can just pull this up and show it to them. The idea of my printing it out and knowing where it is in 15 years is comical.

"Ive been thinking about raising you lately. It kind of stresses me out. Raising you well comes with a huge burden. I want you to follow Christ. (Not the kind of following where you just got to church on Sundays, but really really follow Him.) I want Him to be the most important thing to you. I want you to grow up and be godly men and women who serve Him. But how am I going to teach that to you? I know I must lead by example, but I hope that you will learn from my mistakes instead of follow in them.

I don't want you to care about meaningless things in life. I don't want you to care about making the best soccer, basketball, baseball, or football team. (Let's face it, none of you have the chance of being talented dancers, you have me as your mother...although, if you were adopted by us, there is hope for you.) I don't want you to care about getting the best grades. (although the only way you are going to college is if you pay for it with scholarships, so you better get good grades) I don't want you to care about that "hot" boy/girl in high school that you wish liked you (because trust me in a few years they will most likely be bald or fat..) I don't want you to care about having the cutest clothes. I don't want you to worry about having the most friends or the most fun house to hang out at. I don't want you to care about being popular. I don't want you to gossip. (Its been a problem of your mom's in the past. We can call that one a generational sin) I don't want you to cuss. (also a problem of your moms in the past/present) I don't want you to get drunk. (again..a problem in the past...none of these are true with your father which is really annoying, but makes me feel blessed at the same time.) I don't want you to have sex until you are married and I don't want you to get pregnant before you are married. (But if you do make that mistake, know that I will not freak out and will support you in having your baby) I don't ever want you to try drugs. I don't want you to value yourself based on worldly things. I don't want you to care or worry about these things, but I know that many of these things are bound to be something that you go through during your life, and I want you to know that your dad and I will be here to love you and will try to always point you back to Christ and His Word for the right answers in life.

What I do want for you is this: I want you to know that you are loved by God. I want you to know that He loves you so much that He always forgives you for your sins. I want you to know that He is a God of mercy and grace. I want you to know that He holds no records of wrong doing. I want you to know that no matter how many hundreds of thousands of times you screw up, He will always take you back. I want you to know that He is mighty and powerful. I want you to know that He is the great physician. I want you to know that no matter how much we love you, He loves your more. I want to teach you that serving Him is all that matters. I want to teach you how to love your neighbor as yourself. I want to teach you how to love your enemies. I want to teach you how to forgive and not hold grudges. I want to teach you that serving others doesn't always make you happy, but brings you a joy that can only come from God. I want to teach you to be humble (because all the good that you do only comes from Him...trust me on this one. You have nothing to brag about.) I want to teach you that judging others is stupid when you yourself have all kinds of problems that need to be worked on. I want to teach you that serving your God first and foremost is the most important thing you can ever do.

Sweet babies, you are not being born into a fabulous world with no problems. We are told that in this world we will have lots of trouble, but to take heart because our God has overcome this world. I pray that this will resonate in you. know that we already love you. We are already praying for you. (If you are one of our adopted ones, we are already praying for you, your mom and dad.) You are PRECIOUS in His sight. You are loved beyond anything you can imagine, and we are very grateful for you. "

Let's Get Organized. Organized. I Want To Get Organized. Organized.

The above title is supposed to be sung to the tune "Lets Get Physical" by Olivia Newton John. FYI.

So. I kind of went off on my last post. If you didn't read it, please do so now:). I was really upset about the pictures that I had seen and kind of had a rant. I stand by my rant completely. This shouldn't be happening. People shouldn't be dying of starvation. Once we know about it and are made aware of it, we should do something about it. You can donate to Amazima ministries here. Katie (a 21 year old girl who is the adoptive mother of 14 girls in Uganda) is a rock star. She started Amazima ministries and with the help of others, she feeds hundreds of people, takes care of their medical needs, and started a program where hundreds of kids go to school every day. I digress. You can read more about her here and here. DONATE!!

OK so my point to all of this: I mentioned in my last post that I don't want to see these kinds of pictures and then go on living my life the same. (A little bit like the good Samaritan story.) So, I started thinking about some of the things I can do to save money and therefore donate to Amazima. One of the main things John and I spend money on is food. (ironic since these people are starving...or just sad...) I never want to cook because my kitchen is an unorganized mess so we go out to eat.

So, I decided to organize my kitchen, (Copied an idea from Terri Flanigan) and I plan on cooking all but three meals each week. Obviously, we will not be perfect in this, but this is my plan.

Here are the before and after pictures. Drum roll please......

The before picture of my pantry. It was not a pretty picture...literally:)



Pantry After. Much more organized. Now when I need something, I can go to that box. Before I would assume I didn't have it, and I would go out and buy something I already had. No more!




And finally. Do you hate your spice rack? I did. So, I went to Ikea and purchased some very cheap spice containers that magnetically stick to your fridge. I was able to throw away all my spice bottles and will be labeling these beauties tonight when I get home. (yes I remember what is in each one).


So, this is step one in how I will be trying to save money. It's not an easy thing to change your lifestyle, but Im pretty sure God didnt say it was supposed to be easy to follow Him. For examle: This weekend I tried to go shopping (you know, take advantage of tax free weekend. Its like they are giving stuff away:)). I was determined to find something cute, but no matter where I went, I didnt like anything...I am viewing that as God protecting me from my shopping addiction. Thats another post for another day.

What are We doing?

I am sad. I am sick to my stomach. I don't think that's ever really happened to me before. I don't think I have felt unrest like this before. I know starvation is out there, but to see these pictures coming from people that I "know" (through the blog world). They took these pictures. This isn't some National Geographic magazine. Its pictures of young women and little babies that they took with their cameras. It's not OK. There is nothing OK about this. What are we doing? I have this huge unrest in me right now. I want to go over there right now. There are so many thoughts though. People say, "you can send money." "You can pray." That's true. So true, and God is the Great Physician, but aren't we supposed to be over there taking care of them? I hate that this is happening. I hate that this takes place thousands of miles away while we go to the movies, watch TV, buy more clothes, make sure our kids are in private school, put our kids on the best soccer team, make sure we have the makeup we need, get our hair cut and highlighted etc. I hate this. But am I willing to make more of a change than sending a $100 check? Am I going to send this check today and then forget about it? I don't want to forget about it. I want to feed the hungry. I want to "be the hands and feet of Christ". But what am I actually going to do? I think staying over here in America is fine. Some people are called to stay here, but I also think that that becomes a crutch. "I'm supposed to stay over here. My mission work is over here." That is true for so many people, but are you really doing mission work? Are you changing your life for Christ. God's word says that "for whom much has been given, much will be required." That's us. Are we giving much, or are we giving our 10% so that we can feel good about ourselves?
Look at these pictures below. The one of the older girl is current. (They are all actually current) but the one of the older girl was taken this week and they think she is going to die this week. This shouldn't be happening. I hate that this is happening. Look at these pictures. Become sick about it. Make it change you. Don't look at these pictures and then forget that this is happening. It is better for your soul and my soul to take these pictures into our hearts and do something about it.

My Nieces

God has blessed me with two awesome nieces and two awesome nephews, but today I am going to focus on my nieces. Angie and Ryann Cate Lamb are ROCKSTARS. One is 13 and one is 3. They have a 10 year gap in their ages, but the are both equally cool. I have had the privilege of hanging out with Angie a lot more lately. We had a fun girls day on Friday, and had a blast. We went to lunch with Mom and Grandma. We went and got pedicures and frozen yogurt. Went to buybuybaby to buy some gifts for her two new little brothers that are going to be born in the next few weeks, and then headed to Mardel's to get Ange a new Bible...because all she had at home was a KJV...which would put anyone to sleep... and then I took the lovely young lady home. (run on sentences, I know.) Ok, so think about having a conversation with a 13 year old. Doesn't sound very enlightening, right? Well, in Angie's case, she acts like a 23 year old. She is the most mature teenager I have ever met. When I asked her what kinds of guys she liked, she told me that they had to be nice to everyone, have a good heart, be smart, and be a Christian. What 13 year old says that? Seriously. Besides all of that, she is great at having adult conversation. I forget all the time that she is only 13 years old. I am so proud of the young woman she is becoming and pray that she continues to grow close to the Lord. Here are some pics of one of my favorite nieces. I LOVE YOU ANGE!




Then there is Ryann Cate. She stole my heart the day she was born. She is a precious little princess. She has the sweetest demeanor and is also quite hilarious. They have moved to Seattle and I HATE IT! I hate that I cannot see her anymore. Its just no good. But it's God's will so I guess I have to deal. I was talking to Ryann on the phone yesterday and said, "Ryann Cate, I love you so much!" She replied "I love you so much too!" Just her little voice is so precious. I pray for her that she will grow up to be a woman who loves the lord. I hope one day I will be living close by her again...maybe in Africa or something.... She is growing up way too fast, and I don't like it. If she turns out anything like Angie, we all be in good shape. I LOVE YOU RYANN CATE!!!!



I love you both very very very very much!!!!