God's into the Details

He's into the big details and the little ones.  I'm thankful for this tonight! 

Back in April my car starting acting up a bit.  It would drive great and then all of a sudden not start.  There really was no rhyme or reason for anything.  We took it to Honda for them to look at, and they couldn't find anything wrong.  When my dad went to pick it up, the mechanics told him it might be the transmission and that fixing it wouldn't really do any good.

Needless to say, this news was devastating to me.  I love my car, and the part I love about it most is NO CAR PAYMENT.  When I bought my car I specifically went with a car known for holding it's value and lasting long term.  While my car is 12 years old, it only has 124,000 miles - which is low mileage for a Honda.  My plans have been to buy a new car when I need more room for kids.  (WHEN I have kids.  Not IF.  Just speaking faith, people!) 

I researched new cars, but never had a peace about it.  My mom and dad reminded me about a praise report shared in church.  Someone having car trouble had laid hands on it, praying God would repair it and He did!  That very night I went out into my garage and did the same thing.  At first I felt silly, but I felt God gently reminding me that He cares about the things that bother me.  He wants to help me.  He is there for me.  I walked back into the house with a great peace.

Fast forward four months.  Praise the Lord I had NO car trouble all summer long.  It ran perfectly every single time I drove anywhere!!!  Two weeks ago it began acting up again.  My dad took it to a mechanic in Rogersville.  Once again, nothing could be found wrong.  My dad had him replace a relay switch and picked it up yesterday.

Many people have been praying about this with me.  (So thankful for that!)  I'm believing the relay switch was causing the problem and now that it's been replaced, I won't have any more problems.  I'm so thankful the cost of the mechanic having my car for nearly a WEEK was only $160!!  Definitely affordable - barely a car payment!!  I'm thankful my mom generously loaned me her car for so many days without ever acting like it was a big deal - which it was!!  I'm so thankful God works in ALL ares of my life!

Ozark's Finest

Today was their first day of school!

 They all came home feeling good about school.  Ethan didn't even cry - first time ever!

 We prayed, and my sisters are confident they each got the teacher they needed and were meant to have.

I know that God will walk with them once again this year.  He will protect them and guide them like He has every other year.  I know His favor will rest upon them and that their teachers and friends will see their light shining!  I'm so proud of each of them and couldn't possibly love them more!!

**This morning on the way to school Tonya was praying with Abby and Jacob about their first day.  When they were finished, Abby said, "You forgot to pray for Meme, Momma."  Abby prayed this prayer for me today, "Jesus, be with her."   Can't tell you how much those sweet words meant to me!!  About the time she prayed them, I was sitting at my desk preparing for the day and the absolute sweetest peace washed over me.  God's presence was so very real in that moment.  After school I found out it was because of the prayers of my sweet niece!!  My cup runneth over!!

Ready or Not, Here We Go!

So, my last post was about summer beginning and just like that, it's gone!  Today was the first day of school and in keeping with tradition, I thought I'd post a few pictures of my classroom.  I have to thank my momma who came and spent 4 hours on a Friday evening and 3 hours on a Tuesday helping me hang things, organize, copy, sort...you name it, she did it!  Love you, Mom!!

Here's the Reading Corner.  I opened it up more this year to be able to utilize more classroom space.

 Math bulletin board and my "teacher" bookshelf.

 My desk.  This year I moved the lamp and phone to on top of the stereo system.  I'm loving all the extra space on my desk.

 Love my new polk-a-dotted magnetic board.  I'm going to put special notes and inspirational quotes there.

 Character wall - I made those signs last summer.

 This is new.  I used to put class jobs here, but decided to change that this year.  Only a few people actually wanted to do the job, and therefore did them correctly.  So, I made this a problem solving resource.  We added a few things to it today!

 Love my new black "Be Yourself" sign!!

And just like that year 13 is under way!!  It was a good day today.  I know because I didn't come home and cry because of being overwhelmed.  Working out this summer has definitely added to my energy level that's for sure!  (More on that journey later.)  Speaking of working out, 4:40 a.m. will come VERY early!! 

I have MUCH blogging to catch up on and hope to add a post a night.  We'll see...:)

Summer - it's in full swing!

Baseball games...

 on cool evenings...

and hot afternoons.

 Lunch dates with family!

(and friends - no pictures of Aimee, Kayla, Alysia, Cara, and Leslie!)

 Family get-togethers...

 with homemade brownies and ice cream...

and movies.

 Staying up late to watch 3D movies on a week night!

 Horseback riding anytime - day or evening, whenever the weather is nice!!

LOVE summer!!!

Meet the Combs Family

Back in October of 2010, I posted this asking for prayer for my friend, Kayla.  The time that I wrote the post she'd just received devastating news.  It seemed like a door had been slammed in their faces, BUT God opened that door and countless others to make their dreams come true.  He completed their family!!

 Jonah's Gotcha Day

Callie's Gotcha Day

 These precious babies have no idea how lucky blessed they are to have Kayla as a momma!

 Hearing them call her "momma" melts my heart and brings tears to my eyes!  (Can't imagine how it makes her feel!)

God is good and does good!

This story is such a testament of His faithfulness!

May all the praise and glory be His for this miracle! 

SHOW US YOUR LIFE - Living Room

I'm linking up with Kelly at Kelly's Korner for the tour of homes!  I did this a few years ago, but thought I'd join again just to look back at how I change things over the years.  Plus, it was SO much fun the first time!

 Here is the view from the front door.

And a view from the back door.  I like to move the furniture around and because of the shape of the room, that's pretty easy to do.  This is one of my favorite arrangements, though.

A corner...

(You can't see it from this picture, but that Uppercase Living sticker says, "With God all things are possible."  SO true!)

The doorknob sitting on the table (on the left) is off the house my Grana grew up in.

 I LOVE having pictures of family out.  It reminds me to pray for them and to thank God for the blessings that they are!

And that's the living room!

D.I.Y.

Let the "do it yourself" summer projects begin!!

I live for projects that are inexpensive, simple, and make a big change.  Here are three I've done this week.

PROJECT #1

This trash can was blue.  With a little spray paint, it's now a beautiful chocolate brown.  I was surprised at how much this little change did for my kitchen.
(Thanks, Mom, for your help with this!!!)

PROJECT #2
I always used these cute little baskets for storage in my bathroom, but it wasn't very user friendly.  I could never remember what was in each basket.  Because of this, I haven't really been using them.  But, I remembered the cute labels at Staples (from their Martha Stewart collection).  Now I have a system that I use every day!

PROJECT #3

I bought a new bedspread!  It was inexpensive and GRAY!!  Here's the before...

and the after...

I LOVE it!!  You can't tell from the picture, but it has accents of yellow that coordinates perfectly with the other colors in the room.  I didn't have to change any decorations or paint color!!

That's it!  Three quick, easy, inexpensive projects I completed this week!