Coming to you live from Texas!!

Let me first quickly apologize for not blogging since March!  I could give you a list of excuses, but I'll spare the time.  A sum of our current Texas life...
We are so blessed beyond our dreams!  God is so faithful to us when we aren't faithful to Him!  He has placed us in Coleman Texas at a little church full of amazing people!  We felt at home quicker then we expected and have been loved on more then we deserve!  We've only been here for 2 months and it feels like its been a great 8 months!  The first week sweet grandma's brought us food daily!  Jaxen attacked one with his toy drill that he pretends is a gun to her ribs...then brought her a book to read him! 
Our teens are so much fun!  They all mostly have accents that make them so much cuter to listen to when the say "yes ma'am," most of them wear big shiny belt buckles and are so respectful!  We have had so much fun with them!  It is great to get to watch Brandon do what he was created to do in life, minister to people he has settled in with the Pastor and his routine quickly and is so thankful for God's plans unfolding!
Jaxen has adjusted without one hiccup!  The first night he went to bed like normal and hasn't acted like he knows any different!  His speech is developing  rather nicely within the past few weeks and we're getting excited b/c he is now mimicking after what we tell him to say!  He has gone from saying around 10 words when he was evaluated in November to now probably 50-70 words give or take.  He is putting 2 words together without hesitation and thinks about putting 3 words together.  We've looked into starting his speech therapy here, but we're still up in the air with that. 
I get the wonderful opportunity to get to stay at home with Jaxen since we've moved!  I've always wanted to be a stay at home mom/pastors wife!  The first day Brandon went to work here was so surreal simply b/c I've waited for 28 years to be at the spot we are at in our lives right now!!!  Since staying home I've found myself trying more recipe's and some succeed and some fail, but when I put on that apron it feels like my super hero cape!!  I don't like the clean up process so much but the trying new things is fun!!  I'll post pictures of the new house up soon!  Stay tuned!!

We're moving!!

I am proud to announce that we are moving to the state of Texas!!! Concho Baptist Church voted 100% to hire Brandon as their youth pastor! So we are anxiously getting ready to move the third week of March! We are in the process of going through boxes that have been in "storage" for 2 years and re-organizing and packing those up! Donating, selling, cleaning, etc! We are color coding our boxes with colored duct tape! The sweet pastors wife has asked for specific details on how we want the house painted so it is our "home!" I am thrilled beyond belief that God isn't done with us! He still has plans for us!

Cakes, Texas, Valentine's

I'm sitting in a quiet house listening to the the wash machine and dryer and smelling a chocolate cake in the oven! Jaxen is still napping and it is a Friday! Friday's are my days off and I look forward to them so much! I love getting to play with my Jaxen and get things done around the house!

This past weekend we attended a church in Texas to candidate for a youth pastor position there. It is 10 hours from our current home and praise the Lord we were able to fly! That 10 hours is projected but I'm sure they don't take my 2 year old in to account for the timing! We had a fantastic trip! We absolutely love the pastor and his family! The were so welcoming and made us feel like part of the group just sitting around the kitchen table! Their youngest daughter is 7 and my Jaxen was smitten! He would have followed her anywhere! The church there will be voting on hiring us this upcoming Sunday and then the ball is in our court.

Valentine's Day was Brandon and my's 9th one together! We both had to work all day but that night we went to Fazoli's which is where our first date (group date) was in 2004 and sat in the same booth!! Then we went to see the movie "The Vow"! Loved it! There were a few things in the movie I wish they would have left out but overall good!

The above pictures are 2 cake orders I've made and then Jaxen posing showing his tattoo!

It's been a while

Hello friends! It's been a while so here are some of my favorite pics since I've blogged last!

Sorry I have slacked lately in the blogging dept. With Christmas crafting I have been super busy and married to my hot glue gun the month of December, now January is here and the decor is back to normal in the house so here I am blogging again!

I'm sitting in a nice warm and quiet house thinking of how blessed I am! We had a fantastic Christmas with both sides of our families! It was odd not having my daddy there however I'm sure their celebrations in Heaven are way better then anything we could do down here! Gifts were given and received and the moral of the story we are very loved!

We are still actively pursuing a full time ministry position to wherever the Lord has for us! We do however struggle with the thought process of serving some place we wouldn't choose to be members if we moved to the area. We want an up and coming church, nothing liberal but we love good worship music and great preaching. We prefer bigger churches with more then 1 staff member. So we struggle with the option of taking a job simply b/c its offered to us and there is evidently a need to reach people in the area and is that where our preference is to be. It might sound silly or over thought but it is something we discuss often especially now we have a child in the mix. So please pray with us as we follow God's will in our life and pray that the job He has for us will show itself clear very soon!

As you can see above the cake orders coming in! I absolutely love them! In the midst of it all its a bit stressful but at the end when you know it turned out exactly the way you wanted it to be it is so worth it!

too blessed

I am sitting in bed on my lap top as Brandon is asleep next to me snoring away! Jaxen is in the next room breathing heavy to where I can hear him from here and the 2 basset hounds are snuggled up in the other room cozy and quiet on their beds! I am so blessed! I take so many things for granted that I don't pause to observe them most of the time! I am surrounded with so many people that love me and poor their love onto me! God has blessed us with good health, a roof over our head, food in the pantry, more clothes then can fit me, too many shoes to count, great relationships, a fantastic church with the Godliest pastor I've ever been under, a good paying job, friends that are a hoot, family lives close, the list goes on...
Today as a service project with our small group from church we volunteered at the Salvation Army. We unloaded a truck full of food and then sorted and re-packed the food for people to be given! I wasn't around the poor and desperate people that need the food, but it still blessed me. It blessed me in the way that it was so nice to see how much food was donated to people there was no face with. Thankful I live in a country where food is one thing we never go with out!

Crazy Love

I haven't blogged often for simply lack of anything blog worthy. Some days all I want to write about is missing my dad and how much of a void I feel without him here. But I choose to not be depressing or sad. Other days I feel that I'm simply going through the motions between working, mom-ing, wife-ing, etc. simply living life with nothing new to blog about.

However, I am here today to post about the current book we are doing our Bible study on Wednesday nights about! My husband is leading a small group Bible study at church on Crazy Love. I'm not a reader! I'll define that better...I pretty much loath reading books. I get bored and it takes me forever to read anything since I make different voices up for each character. The book Crazy Love is a very convicting read!

"Have you ever wondered if we're missing it? It's crazy, if you think about it. The God of the universe-the Creator of nitrogen and pine needles, galaxies and E-minor-loves us with a radical, unconditional, self-sacrificing love. And what is our typical response? We go to church, sing songs, and try not to cuss. ...when you're wildly in love with someone, it changes everything."

Luke 6:32-36 says If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even "sinners" love those who love them. And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even "sinners" do that. And if you lend to those from who expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even "sinners" lend to "sinners," expecting to be repaid in full. But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.

I am learning so much! Even growing up in church and being around Christians my entire life there is so much to learn about how to love like Christ!

update

I've added some new things to the Etsy store today! I plan to finish 8 new recipe boxes and upload them by the end of the weekend! Keep checking for new items! My new favorite is the duct tape brooch! Check it out! www.onegirlscurls.etsy.com

My baby turned 2 in Sept!! I still can't believe I am a parent of a full blown todler! I look at people that have 11 year old children and they seem so old and that stage of life seems so far away! I'm afraid we'll be there before I want! Here is a picture of my sweet baby on his birthday!