Alabama Homecoming

Quick Post:

Last weekend was Homecoming at Alabama. We went down and went to the Zeta house. I was a Zeta in college and wanted to take the kids in to see the house. All these years of going to football games and we have never been inside. The house recently had some renovations and I was eager to see them. But, I was so into looking around inside, I didn't take any pictures!! I couldn't believe it myself when I realized it later in the day!! There are more home games, so maybe we will go back and I can take some pictures.

Here is the outside decorated for Homecoming. I remember well putting in my hours on the lawn decoration in college!

We ran into one of James' friends and classmates. This is Brandon. He is very sweet! A great kid! And his mom was a Zeta, although a few years after me.
James was excited to get a new jersey!

Great Saying!

A friend of mine posted this on her facebook page and I just love it!! So true!

Alabama Football and Zoom-A-Thon

First of all Roll Tide!! Below I am with my friend Celisa. We met up before the Alabama - Arkansas game.

This is before the game. Thankfully, our seats are under the upper deck, so we are always in the shade and covered in case of rain!
Last week the kids had their fall fund raiser at school Each year they get sponsors for the run called, Zoom-a-thon! It is so much fun! I have helped out each year by marking the kids' shirts for each lap their run. There is loud music, the school mascot and the run mascot, Z. The kids love it!!
This is James' class making their first lap around before they begin running.
Sorry, this are out of order, James is on the left holding one of their class signs. This is before they begin too.

Annamarye and some classmates enjoying a Popsicle afterwards:)
Annamarye with her teacher, Mrs. Easterling.
James and his good friend Daniel. Yes, I see the Florida jersey! That is why I took the picture. I asked him if he and James would still be friends after we win the game. This was Saturday afternoon. They were so funny calling each other during the game. Of course Bama won!!

Football and Candy Corn

I don't know where last week went?! I started this post on Friday? and now it is Monday.

The picture on the left is Annamarye, Abby, Scott, Alex, and James. Abby, Scott and Alex are siblings. As you can see Scott is in the band at Alabama. This was taken before the Alabama - North Texas game. Johnny was in the band at Alabama with Scott's parents, Sam and Lisa. Wow!

We met up with them before the game.

This is our cousin Shelby. You may remember her from last year. This is her 3rd year on the flag team:)

Somehow my pictures got mixed up. Anyway, this is one of the treat bags I put together for the kids' teachers. I started out doing some fall colored hand towels. Then when the new White Chocolate Candy Corn M & Ms came out I had to add that to the treat. You really need to try them! But be warned, they are very sweet!

You can only find them at Walmart.

Here is Annamarye with Shelby and some of her friends. Last year James took a picture like this and was thrilled to show it to his buddies. This year he was a little too embarrassed.

Remembering 9-11

Here is the link for the lady in our neighborhood that organized the 9-11 Bow Project.

http://www.bowdazzlingdesigns.com/the_911_brookhighland_bow_project

Living Bible

Now, THIS is the Living Bible:

His name is Bill. He has wild hair, wears a T-shirt with holes in it,
jeans, and no shoes. This was literally his wardrobe for his entire four
years of college.

He is brilliant. Kind of profound and very, very bright. He became a
Christian while attending college.

Across the street from the campus is a well-dressed, very
conservative church. They want to develop a ministry to the students but
are not sure how to go about it.

One day Bill decides to go there. He walks in with no shoes, jeans,
his T-shirt, and wild hair. The service has already started and so Bill
starts down the aisle looking for a seat.

The church is completely packed and he can't find a seat. By now,
people are really looking a bit uncomfortable, but no one says anything.

Bill gets closer and closer and closer to the pulpit, and when he
realizes there are no seats, he just squats down right on the carpet.

By now the people are really uptight, and the tension in the air is
thick.

About this time, the minister realizes that from way at the back of
the church, a deacon is slowly making his way toward Bill.

Now the deacon is in his eighties, has silver-gray hair, and a
three-piece suit. A godly man, very elegant, very dignified, very
courtly. He walks with a cane and, as he starts walking toward this boy,
everyone is saying to themselves that you can't blame him for what he's
going to do.

How can you expect a man of his age and of his background to
understand some college kid on the floor? It takes a long time for the man to reach the boy.

The church is utterly silent except for the clicking of the man's
cane. All eyes are focused on him. You can't even hear anyone breathing.
the minister can't even preach the sermon until the deacon does what he
has to do.

And now they see this elderly man drop his cane on the floor. With
great difficulty, he lowers himself and sits down next to Bill and
worships with him so he won't be alone.

Everyone chokes up with emotion.
When the minister gains control, he says, "What I'm about to preach,
you will never remember. What you have just seen, you will never forget"

"Be careful how you live. You may be the only Bible some people will
ever read!"

I asked the Lord to bless you
as I prayed for you today.
To guide you and protect you
as you go along your way....
His love is always with you,
His promises are true,
And when we give Him all our cares,
You know He will see us through.

Lucy

This is our sweet dog Lucy with Annamarye and James. Lucy passed away on Friday afternoon. She lived a good long 14 years though! Before I met Johnny I had two beagles. Daisy passed away 8 years ago. Both were very sweet dogs. They loved to run and play with the kids too. Although it was very clear that Lucy was my dog. She would always stick by me. Over the past year her arthritis really began to bother her. The past month she really went downhill quickly. She got where she wouldn't eat and recently got where she was not able to stand or walk. This past week she could stand for a short time after I lifted her up to a standing position.

She will be greatly missed!

9-11, Blue Bell and the First Day of School

I can't believe the 10 year anniversary of 9-11 is Sunday! I remember the day well. James was 16 months old and I was pregnant with Annamarye. I was getting ready to head to the church for Bible Study. I was watching the Today show and was shocked! It didn't seem real. In some ways, it still doesn't seem real.

A lady in our neighborhood offered to make these bows for our mailboxes. She is also going to decorate the front of our neighborhood. I will try and snap a picture and post it over the weekend.

Near the end of the summer we took a field trip to the Blue Bell Factory in Sylacauga. It was so much fun! It was one of those things we had talked about for years and just never did it.

Our friends the Ramseys went with us. My nieces, Sophie and Claire were visiting my in laws and so they went too! We had a great tour guide and learned a lot about ice cream. After the tour we got to have samples!

The summer just flew by for us! We went to Meet the Teacher and Annamarye was thrilled to see so many of her friends in her class! Here she is with Avery Rose and Madison and their teacher, Mrs. Easterling. James knows lots of kids in his class so he was excited too. His teacher is Mrs. Anderson who happens to live on the street behind us! We can see her house from our backyard. Of course he is too big to get a picture with the teacher.
Here's the kids on the first day of school:


Have a great weekend!! Roll Tide!

Daily Devotion

I receive the daily devotion by Rick Warren from Saddleback Church. This was on Friday and it is really worth reading! I have also enjoyed listening to sermons with the Saddleback app, so check it out! 6 Things You Need to Fight the Devil: (#4) Certainty by Rick Warren Hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil. (Ephesians 6:16 NLT) In Ephesians, the apostle Paul says the fourth thing to do in spiritual warfare is to hold up a shield of faith. The full armor of God includes integrity, purity, serenity and certainty. How effective is a shield? One of the most famous battles in history is the Battle of Thermopylae in 480 BC, when 300 Spartans stood their ground against perhaps 100,000 Persians. At one point in the battle, the Persians shot volley after volley of arrows at the 300 Spartans. The Spartans knelt together and held up their shields, creating a wall of protection from the arrows. Have you ever had a day you felt like that? When life is coming at you from every angle and thousands of fiery arrows are aimed at you? That’s when you need what Paul calls “the shield of faith.” Paul says, “Hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil” (Ephesians 6:16). What are the devil’s fiery arrows? Doubt Depression Discouragement Delay Dead ends Despair Satan has been casting doubt on mankind since the Garden of Eden, when he asked Eve, “Did God really say you must not eat the fruit from any of the trees in the garden?” (Genesis 3:1). The moment you open your door to doubt — even just a little bit — Satan will charge in and create doubts, despair and depression. What do you need when you’re facing those kinds of “burning arrows”? You need faith — and certainty. Certainty comes from trusting the promises of God when everything is going wrong in your life. You’ve got to put on your shield of faith, and doubt your doubts and believe your beliefs. Most people do the exact opposite. That’s just foolish. It is the doubts we should doubt and beliefs we should believe. If you don't have faith, you will stumble when Satan attacks you. The Bible says, “Because of your faith, it will happen” (Matthew 9:29). What does that mean? You’ve got to believe in God’s promises, even if they don’t appear to be true at the time. Lean on God’s promises and lift up the shield of faith when Satan sends his fiery darts of doubt.

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Summer Beach Trip 2011

Hello! Welcome back:) I am so glad you hung in there with me! After a much needed break, I am back and ready to blog away. I am warning you now - this post is picture overload!!

I am not going to go back and start where I left off. I am just going start with our beach trip this past summer. Slowly I will go back and share some things from the past months.

This past July we went to Perdido Key and had the best time EVER!!

Here's James with his net. He made friends with some other boys ~ I love how kids do that! ~ and they had fun catching fish. Here is one James caught that was dead though.
My in~laws went with us. A couple of nights we went out to eat and a few Johnny and his Dad went and picked up dinner for us. Dessert is Annamarye's favorite part!
My chocolate martini is my favorite part!




We had several great days! The water felt great and we had a nice breeze so you could easily sit at the beach without feeling like you were sweating to death! By far, the best weather in a long time for us at the beach! Earlier I mentioned my in~laws went with us. I know some of you may cringe at the thought, but I love my in~laws! They are great!! We had the best time together. I am glad my kids got to hang out with them. We had a blast playing games too. We are big game people. Now don't get me wrong, my kids love the Wii and Playstation, iPods etc.. But we also love games too. We played Apples to Apples for hours one night! If you have never played it, you have got to try it out!

It may have been because the kids were older too. They played in the water and sand and had a blast. I loved getting out and playing in the waves too:) I love being able to act like a kid again because I have kids!!



The day we left it was raining and was supposed to rain all day, so we didn't mind leaving. Here's the kids with their beach shirts - a tradition. I always get a picture on the balcony before we leave.
It is so great to be back sharing and giving you a glimpse of our everyday life!

More posts coming soon - kids back in school, and work done around our house this summer!

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