Missing New York (Semi-Wordless Wednesday!)

I am really missing New York this afternoon. I absolutely LOVE living in the south, but there's a tiny part of me that misses Niagara Falls. I miss my family up there most of all. I was never really able to develop a close relationship with most of them and that is something that bothers me to this day.

I was looking through boxes of my grandmother's old pictures (think early to late 1950's) that were taken when they were starting their family in Niagara Falls. The pictures preserved a type of unadulterated innocence that this generation missed out on. The town is SO different now. For those of you who have visited the area more than over the past 10 years, you know exactly what I mean.

As I wrap up what was supposed to be a Wordless Wednesday post, I'll leave you with some more pictures from our January/February trip up there. Keep in mind that this was Brett's first trip up there (even though his dad was born in Buffalo)! :)

I just adore this picture of Brett! This Florida boy was COLD!

My great-grandmother worked here until she retired at age 83 and moved back to Alabama.

I love this picture of Brett and I. As soon as we got home, I framed it!

This is one of my favorite places on Earth! I could eat here every day...literally.

For reference, Brett is 6'3".

Niagara Falls State Park. For the record, the sign is accurate, too. We found that out first hand!

P.S. I added a new song to my playlist this afternoon. I've tweeted several times (and blogged!) about "Hosanna", my favorite song on Selah's new CD. Christy Nockels has also recorded this song and she does an awesome job with it! Listen and see for yourself!

Sufficient Grace

2 Corinthians 12:9 has been speaking to my heart now for the past several days (and when I say speaking to my heart I really mean making me bawl my eyes out and lay myself bare before Him.) I'm partial to both NIV and NLT translations, but this verse speaks to me more powerfully in the NIV form.

But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. 2 Cor 12:9

According to dictionary.com, the theological definition of grace is the freely given, unmerited favor and love of God. Free. Unmerited. Favor. Love. God places no price on His love. It's free. None of us are worthy of His favor, yet He gives it freely out of love. I'm prideful, selfish, stubborn, spiritually weak, and a laundry list of others too great to count, yet God clearly states that His power is made perfect in my weakness. My weaknesses are nothing to be ashamed of; according to 2 Cor 12:9, I should be proud of them for they make me more malleable to God.

On a wonderful side note, today was the release date for Selah's new CD, "You Deliver Me" and I can honestly say that this is my favorite Selah CD to date. Brett and I had the great honor to listen to several of the songs back in March and April and were SO excited when our copy of the CD came in the mail yesterday. I can honestly say that my favorite song on the entire CD is "Hosanna" and I've probably listened to it AT LEAST 10 times today alone. If this CD doesn't open your heart to worship Him, I don't know what will.

Pete Wilson, pastor of CrossPoint Nashville, is giving away 5 copies of "You Deliver Me" on his blog, so stop in and enter!

A Godly Wife (and a Kaden update!)

My job description has changed these days. I'm still staying at home, but I'm not content to just be a stay-at-home wife. I seek to be a godly wife to Brett. My daily goal is for him to see the love of Christ through me every day. Headaches, dirty dishes, overloaded washing machines, and clogged toilets (sorry for the visual!) will happen, but through it all I know I have MUCH to be thankful for.

I stopped in at a small local store on Saturday and bought a small canvas to hang in the kitchen. It wasn't just the colors or design that caught my attention, but the words. The two sentences printed on it sum it up quite nicely, in my opinion. Thank God for what you have. Trust God for what you need.

Thank you God for my wonderful husband.
Thank you God for my loving parents and fabulous in-laws.
Thank you God for my awesome friends who are more like family than mere friends.
Thank you God for a pastor who truly loves our family and is always there for us.
Thank you God for the means and ability to enjoy our hobbies.

Yesterday C and her mom brought Kaden over to our house for a quick visit. Kaden is fast approaching 6 months and is already starting to scoot all over the floor! He's doing really well and we're all very thankful for God's healing and protection. His "big" urology appointment is on September 2 and I'll be riding down to Mobile with them to lend moral support and plenty of laughs! Please be in prayer for this appointment.

Kaden had his first experience with grass yesterday afternoon and it was so cute. He seemed fascinated with the fact that he could pull it up!

A little of this, a little of that...

I've been reminiscing a LOT lately. The past few years have had a lot of ups and downs, but I can honestly say that I wouldn't change a thing. I know that sounds a bit trite, but each of those experiences (and several Max Lucado books!) has helped draw me closer to the Lord. With His help, I've been able to overcome the bitterness that I've been carrying around for 3 years.

For those of you who follow me on Twitter or who are on my Facebook, this will be old news, so just bear with me! My dad, Brett, a good friend of ours, and I drove down to Mobile a couple weekends ago and came home with a Kawasaki jet ski. Our lake cabin is right on the edge of the lake and the river channel, so we have two completely different waterways to ride on. Brett prefers the open lake and I love riding up the river. There's something about riding 50 mph through the curves of the glass-smooth river. Each time I go out on it, I always forget to bring the camera. The sunsets out there are just incredible!

Please pray for my mom as she goes in for surgery tomorrow morning at 6:45 CST. We hope that she'll be able to come home Friday (or Saturday morning at the latest).

There is a time for everything...

A lot has happened since my last blog post, but I've been hesitant to post about it here or on any other public forum. As of yesterday afternoon, I'm no longer employeed with THSC. I enjoyed my job and most of the people who worked there so in a way I'm upset, but after months of prayer I feel like God opened another door for me. I'm going to use this time to get some much needed organization done around the house and focus on my ancestry research full time until God leads me elsewhere. Brett has been absolutely wonderful throughout this and has supported me every step of the way.

I have a complete feeling of peace that can only be from the Lord. Even though my thoughts are all jumbled and I'm having a hard time focusing on anything right now, I pray that He will use this situation for His glory.