Future Rocker??

The other day, Bob was playing the drums on Rock Band 2 (he's so good!) and decided to let Ethan in on the fun.
We just might have a future rocker on our hands....

He had a strong grip on those sticks--I literally had to pry them out of his hands!
I hope Ethan has his daddy's musical talent!

Sing unto him a new song; play skilfully with a loud noise.
Psalms 33:3

My Stronghold

My best friend Holly and I recently started the Bible study by Beth Moore entitled, "Living Free: Learning to Pray God's Word". The other day we talked about strongholds and how they can put us in bondage--they can be so hard to break free from!

Instead of only focusing on the negative aspect of a stronghold though, Beth Moore also shared the often-overlooked positive aspect of what (or better yet, Who) a stronghold can be.

I grew up playing basketball, so how she explained Christ's stronghold over our lives was pretty neat to me. She related it to a basketball player holding the ball up high so that his opponent(s) could not reach it. I've seen that over and over in basketball and know first hand just how frustrating it can be when you can't steal the ball from the opponent's strong hold!

I really enjoyed the study we had and every day since, I often picture a tall basketball player holding the ball out of the defense's reach. It makes me smile. =)

...Because this is sometimes how I feel in life....


That ball is me and I'm open game for all my enemies to attack.

But according to scripture, I shouldn't be afraid of anyone!

The LORD is my light and my salvation—whom should I fear?
The LORD is the stronghold of my life—of whom should I be afraid?
Psalm 27:1 (HCSB)

The way of the LORD is a stronghold for the honorable,
but destruction awaits the malicious.
Proverbs 10:29 (HCSB)

And be not grieved and depressed, for the joy of the Lord is your strength and stronghold.
Nehemiah 8:10b (Amplified Bible)

No one can pluck us out of the Father's hands! (John 10:29)
Jesus is our Stronghold!

"Freeeeee Credit Report Dot Com"

Okay, I CAN NOT stand those Free Credit Report commercials! They drive me insane!
However, Bob and I were watching one of our favorite comedians the other night and he did his own version of those commercials.

I would love it if this is how it went:




Love it!

Hope you all enjoy your Friday!

Playing Catch Up With Lots of Pics!

There's been a lot going on lately! If I were more consistent with my blogging, I wouldn't have to post a million pictures at a time--so hang in there if you can, b/c this is a pretty long one!

Anyway...here are some pics/captions to let you know what's been happening lately in our life...

We recently went to a Minor League Baseball game with my parents...we had a blast! We got the tickets from Bob's parents. The sun was still shining here...we look a little ghostly..haha.

Here are my wonderful parents! My dad was a tremendous pitcher and was even scouted by a few pro teams but he suffered a really bad injury to his arm and ended up just playing college ball.
He was really into the game. He LOVES sports!

All the little kiddos loved the team's mascot...here's a little girl getting an autograph. How cute!
We had such a fun time...I hadn't been to a baseball game in years!

Ethan spent time with his Nana and Papaw (Bob's sweet parents) that night.
They had a blast!

My cousin Luke was recently promoted to Captain! He's already served one tour of duty in Iraq and will soon be deployed again. I'm so proud of him! (He's the one in the middle)


We went to Bob's company picnic this past weekend...I used to work for the same company so it was fun seeing a lot of my friends! As much as I miss working with them, I wouldn't trade staying at home with Ethan for anything!
Here we are on the way...I had Ethan try out my new sunglasses. They're just a tad big, don't ya think?

Everyone wanted to hold him!

He wasn't too impressed with the hat I picked out for him but that sun was blazin'!

Here's Bob's boss. He's been a friend of the family for a long time. This was his first time holding Ethan......and maybe his last! Haha, j/k. Ethan was starting to get hungry here.

Ahh...He finally fell asleep.


Visiting Nana and Papaw after the picnic. Look at him holding his head high. What a big boy!


That same night we went to my parents' home for my early birthday celebration.
I LOVED my cake! These Snow White decorations were the same ones used on a cake when I was a little kid! They're atleast 15-20 years old! I'm very sentimental so this cake meant a lot to me. It brought back some great memories =) Thanks for making it mom...I wouldn't have had it any other way!

Ethan was worn out after the wild party we had...haha.

...So I turned 25...and I was actually kinda sad about it. But I got a call the morning of my birthday that cheered me up! Praise God, Ethan's monitor is off for good!!!!

He had to wear that band at the top right of the picture around his chest. Those black squares were the leads that monitored his heart beat and any signs of apnea.

The long cord in the previous picture connected to this machine...it was sooooo loud when it went off!! I will NOT miss having to hook Ethan up to that thing at night after he'd fallen asleep in my arms..b/c then I had to wake him up to put the band on and he was NOT a happy camper! Ethan went home from the hospital with the apnea monitor March 2nd. He had to be monitored 24-7 from March 2nd-April 1st. April 1st-June 7th he was only monitored at bedtime.
Here's his first picture monitor-free!!

Later that day, my best friend Holly brought her son Nathan over to play with Ethan. (Actually it was more of a "playtime" for the moms..haha..the boys pretty much slept the whole time) They're already best buds and they don't even know it!

I had a wonderful birthday, and was a little sad when it was over! It's kinda scary getting older...I'm not a kid anymore!


I'm posting this picture because it reminds me of the day I got saved! I was saved the day after my physical birthday in 1993. I like the fact that I have two bdays (physical and spiritual) in a row..and believe me, I milk 'em for all they're worth! haha.

The night after my birthday, there was a horrible storm and a tornado actually went over our house. I HATE storms, so needless to say, I was mortified that night. I knew I was a sinner--so I realized that if the tornado came and swept me away, I would go to hell...and I didn't want that to happen! Thankfully, it was only an F-1 tornado and it passed over quickly with no damage except for a few missing shingles. Later that evening, we went to church and I gave my life to Christ!I love celebrating my physical birthday, but there's something extra special about my spiritual birthday. I praise God for sending His Son to die for me so that I could have eternal life!

So there you have it...my highlights of the past few weeks.
I hope you made it through! Sorry it was so long--I'm just trying to catch up =)

Oh, and I think I'm going to change the layout of my page too..so be on the lookout!

God bless!

Made Me Jump...Made Me Think.

I saw this video on Tangle last night and had to share it. I almost turned it off when it got to the preacher b/c I thought it might be just a sermon the rest of the way through (not that it would be a bad thing...that didn't sound right) ..but anyway..just watch it all the way through.

It'll make you think (and probably jump, too, just to warn you)..I know it did me.







I've become complacent in my preparations for His coming--I had to ask myself, "What am I doing to further His Kingdom?"

Mr. Bouncy Man

Okay, so you've seen "Mr. Smiley Man" already--
Well, today I'll introduce to you "Mr. Bouncy Man"
(For some reason I make up all these goofy nicknames for Ethan and call him by those more than I do his real name...I need to work on correcting that!)

I actually made up a song for Mr. Bouncy Man Ethan that I sing to him as he plays in his bouncer seat...he instantly starts smiling and kicking those chubby legs of his once I start the song. It's so cute!

Here's "Mr. Bouncy Man" in his bouncy seat...

Fry-Daddy Frenzy

I pulled out the Fry-Daddy last night to try out an onion ring recipe...

I had leftover batter so I decided to try to make a funnel cake like I saw Robert Irvine do the other night on Dinner: Impossible...here's the results:

Bob loved the onion rings! =)

I also made a dipping sauce like Outback's sauce for Bloomin' Onion...however, I didn't have any horseradish sauce so I used Thousand Island Dressing. Bob and I both really liked it!

Here is the link for the onion rings.
(If you look at the 1st review on the page by Christina B, it gives a no-mess way to make the rings)

Here's the recipe for the dipping sauce:

• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 1 tablespoon ketchup
• 2 tablespoons cream-style horseradish sauce
• 1/3 teaspoon paprika
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 pinch ground black pepper
• 1/3 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• In a medium bowl, combine mayonnaise, ketchup, horseradish, 1/3 teaspoon paprika, 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1/8 teaspoon oregano, a dash ground black pepper and cayenne pepper; mix well. Keep sauce covered in refrigerator until needed.

I'll need to work on the whole funnel cake thing..haha..it wasn't quite sweet enough. The batter needed sugar in it too rather than just having some sprinkled on top.
I had fun experimenting, though!

Happy Friday!