Lately

My last post was about a month ago and since then we have done quite a few things. We had family camp at Brookeville which was so much fun, but flew by! We didn't go on the boat or go on a hike. Braylen decided to skip every single one of his afternoon naps that weekend, which you can imagine how crazy he was the rest of the evening. He is super whiny and down right cranky (although my mom would say he's a perfect little angel!). But he slept great at night and had a fun time with the other kiddies there. We had the annual cornhole tournament-with an opening ceremony-and my dear ole' dad won first place! He's so cool. And he's the best cornhole player in the league. :) My mom bought our family matching tshirts to wear. Don't we look so cute? Not redneck at all! Kidding mom!

The next weekend, we had a Young Life leader retreat in California, KY at the Gautraud's house. They have a gorgeous home that over looks the Ohio river and allows for 60+ leaders to stay the night there. My friend Maria and I have planned the retreat for the past 2 years and we really enjoy doing it. We plan the menu, sleeping arrangements, schedule, etc. We love gathering everyone in their home for fellowship, teaching, and encouragement. I left feeling spurred on to pray and consider where the Lord is working at BCHS. Things at our school have been down right tough! We are still rebuilding the ministry there and it is hard. Students just have their own busy schedules and don't want to be apart of something else. We know that "in all things God works for the good of those who love Him," so we will keep at it!

Last week I had the privilege of helping with the annual YL banquet. This year we hosted the banquet at the Syndicate in Newport. We had around 200 people show up and the night was very successful. Coordinating the banquet is hard work! There are so many i's to dot and t's to cross. I love being apart of it though and look forward to making improvements for next year.

September has FLOWN by and it's not about to slow down because in a few days we are leaving for this place:

It has been 3 years since our last family trip to Destin, FL and I am so excited. We planned this trip over a year ago and I can't believe it's actually here. 3 years ago Jess was not even engaged yet and I was 6 months pregnant. So much has changed! We are looking forward to some wonderful family time and much needed playtime in the ocean.

P.S. Braylen has been talking like crazy. It is so fun to hear him learn new phrases and songs. We have a Veggie Tales Sunday School cd and his favorite song to sing is "Joshua Fought the Battle of Jerricho"! His new favorite phrase-which is not so cute-is "but I don't want to!" And then throws himself on the ground. He usually says this before leaving the house or naptime. He is just as sweet as can be though, and today he hugged my leg for no reason and told me that lunch was yummy. :)

Like lightning in a bottle...

I'm not sure which is more exhausting.

THIS:

Hanging out with 15 energetic high schoolers

Or

THAT

Keeping up with an energetic toddler

Both are super fun and super rewarding but shew.......I am worn out. :) We left for Sharp Top Young Life camp in Georgia last Sunday, June 27th and returned July 4th. It was a long trip and I missed Braylen soooooo much. We didn't see him for 8 long days. He spent his time with grammy and poppy and then with maw-maw and paw-paw while camping. He had so much fun. And I think that he grew like 12 inches or something because he looks like a giant now. Braylen is saying his ABC's and can count to ten. Yay! He "sings" twinkle twinkle little star" all day, everyday. And usually changes the word "star" to whatever he's playing with or eating. Adorable. If you are having a bad day or need a laugh, call Braylen. He will lift your spirits immediately.

Back to camp: we really had a great trip. We took all sorts of different "types" of students: athletes, cheerleaders, video gammer's, band players......or however you say it. But everyone really got along and we feel like we formed our own little family. It is so great for them to know that they have a family of believers and have friends to help them out. If you've never been to Young Life camp, you are seriously missing out. It really is one of the best weeks of your life. I've had 10 best weeks.......and I've never been disappointed. The food is so delicious!!!!, the scenery is breathtaking, the entertainment is hilarious, and there are so many fun things to do. And to top it all off, these young adults get to hear the message of Jesus-sometimes for the first time-and always in a way that introduces so much freedom for the things of life that weigh them down. We are really looking forward to what the Lord has in store for our YL friends.

This is our little group on top of the mountain that we climbed!

Camp was awesome! God is great! And I'm glad to be home with our favorite little man!

Also happy birthday to my dear Mom and bro-in-law Vince!

And congrats to my sis-in-law Amy for getting engaged! Woo hoo!

Summer Update

So I was looking through my calendar and realized that next week is July 1st! That is so crazy to me. I am so amazed at how quickly time goes by-especially the older I get. Wow. James was right when he said "you are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes!" I have been learning so much these last few weeks about different things and look forward to sharing them, but let me back up. Here are some highlights from the past month!

1) Guy finished his first year of school! Yea! He made the dean's list both semesters! PTL! He is enrolled in summer school right now so keep him in your prayers.

2). We went to the annual Rockbridge YL leader weekend over Memorial Wknd and had so much fun! We learned a ton (about making daily choices that will affect the rest of your life and that Jesus will meet you where you are-John 11), we had delicious meals, and enjoyed the beautiful scenery.

3). The next weekend I went on a girls trip to Nashville! Oh we had so much fun! Stephanie, Jenna, Nina and I packed up and left our kids with our husbands and enjoyed a wonderful weekend of fellowship, eating, bonding, singing, dancing, shopping....I could go on. The last trip we took together was 7 years ago!! on spring break in Destin. I should go scan an old photo of us in our bikini's. :)

4). Guy started at Master Provisions! Another praise! We are so blessed to have received support from so many of our friends and family! We are at HALF of our monthly goal so Guy was able to start full-time! We are on a SUPER, SUPER, SUPER strict budget but it is so worth the sacrifice for Guy to be at a job that he is passionate about. We have been learning so much about God wanting us to rely on him for our daily needs-to find hope and joy in Him and not material things. I struggle with that a lot because before when we had extra money I could go and get whatever I wanted, when I wanted it: food, clothes, movies, music, accessories... And now I am asking Him to provide it and if he doesn't then maybe we don't need it. I don't know. Still learning! I am just kicking myself for not living this way before. Everything is so temporary and you just don't realize it until it smacks you in the face! Ask my sister about this too!

5). We leave for summer camp on Sunday morning and I am getting excited. It will be a special trip because Jess and Vince (or Dess and Bence as Braylen calls them) will be there too! It will be awesome to share the week with them.

6). Also Braylen can swim by himself with his floaties! It's awesome! He loves it! He laughs the whole time! He is learning and growing so much!

We are thankful for everyone who reads our blog and hope that you find encouragement to trust in the one who made you and has a plan for you! See ya soon!

Summer Fun

We have been on the go this whole summer! We've had so much fun though! Last weekend we decided to go to Idle Wild park in Burlington to take a walk on one of their trails. When we got there we saw that they were having a "Touch A Truck" event. They had tons of huge trucks for kids (and adults) to check out! Braylen was so excited! He loved sitting in the drivers seat and "turning" the steering wheel. One trucker accidently left his keys in the ignition and Braylen tried to start it up! If he would have kept turning the key, he would have! Guy captured the moment below-

He is so sneaky! He got on fire trucks, ambulances, police cars, tractors, semi's...just about every truck you can think. We thought he might be nervous from all of the loud noises but it didn't phase him a bit. He even honked the horn a few times-even the big semi horn too. He's so cool.

On Monday we took him to the Boone County Fair. We were meeting some of our YL students there so it was a good opportunity for him to go and ride the rides. Which of course, he loved. He had so much fun. Just loving life. He just runs around like crazy. And then Wednesday we went to the Red's game! So fun! Braylen danced and waived to everyone. We taught him to say "Go!" and point your fist out in the air. It was so cute.

He has been learning and growing so much. When we say, what does a cow say? He says moo! Same with a dog-woof woof! But everything is high pitched and cute sounding. Please! Mama! Baby! Dada! so cute! We are so amazed that the Lord brought this little boy in our lives. We pray every night that Braylen would have confidence in Jesus and be so secure in his faith. Only time will tell......

On another note, Guy is starting school in a few weeks so things are about to get a bit crazy! We are so proud of him for going back. He is going to be the best elementary school teacher ever.

Hope everyone has a great weekend! We are headed to a YL 40th Celebration tonight and then Goetta Fest tomorrow! Woohoo! :) It's the small things in life that are the most fun.

A Much Needed Update

Hello! Hope everyone is having a great summer! Braylen is napping right now so I thought I would update the blog. It's been too long. I have the windows open and it is so nice outside. I would be sitting out there but the kids next door are screaming. Plus they are like magnets to our fence whenever we are out there. They just stare at us......weird.......Anyways! We have had a really fun summer! In June we took 9 Boone students to Rockbridge Young Life camp in Virginia. We left Braylen with my parents and Guy's parents and it was very very hard to leave him. But our trip was amazing. Perfect weather, entertainment, food, club talks, music...everything. The staff was amazing as well. Our group was awesome and everyone got along wonderfully. We are now doing follow up work with the students by having hang outs at our house (we watched a movie outside! It was cool!), campaigners, and bible studies. We really want to start Club this fall but we're not sure how that will work out.

We had a busy start to July with the holidays and back to back birthdays-mom and Vince. Also this past weekend, Guy's cousin Brooke and her husband Wayne came to visit. We went to the Dayton Air Show with them all day on Saturday and it was freezing! The clouds were out and it was really cold. Good thing my capri's rolled out into pants. Braylen stayed with Grammy (Guy's mom) so we missed him. He'll love the air show one day!

We also got our house painted! It looks awesome! We are so pleased with it. It's a lighter shade of the previous green color. We have been working hard on our landscaping and everything is looking really good. We have soooo many projects we want to work on. The landscaping on both sides of the house and the back needs a lot of work! Frankly it just needs to be removed (sorry Madden's!). We'd also like to put a small stone patio in the back by our fence so we have a place to hang out and put our fire pit! Can't wait for it to be completed. We also just painted our bathroom. I love it but Guy is not sure about the color. It's a turquoise color. We painted the cabinet and sink white so it ties together. Stop by and see it!

Braylen has been amazing! We are trying to get him to repeat lots of words right now. He actually tries to repeat things but they just don't quite come out correctly. He can "say" amen, please, ball, woof, moo, mama, and dada. We've been working on more sign language so that he isn't as frustrated when we don't understand what he is saying. With sign language, instead of just babbling when he wants something, he can sign it and show us. Our bedtime routine is the best. We give him a cup of milk, read a story, sing a song, and say our prayers. Then he says amen and puckers out his lips to give us a kiss! Soooooo precious. I could just melt everytime he does that. He has been testing us a lot more too. He's so busy and gets into everything! It's also really hard to not laugh at him when he does something wrong or doesn't listen. He's just so darn funny. When he gets mad, he literally shakes his head and makes a fist and screams. But then he laughs about it. He's crazy! But we are all learning right now and I'm sure we will figure it out.

Next month, we are going to the beach! yea! Braylen has never been before so I am so excited for him to go. It's just going to be me, Bray, mom and Jess. The boys can't get off work! I can't wait!

Next week is mom and dad's 30th anniversary! Can't wait to celebrate with them. They are so amazing and we are so blessed to have a Godly example of marriage in our lives. Thank you God for my parents!

Hope everyone has a great week! I'll be updating more often!

The Case of the Missing Diamond

I know that it has been almost 2 weeks since my last post but right after I wrote Wednesday's blog, I went into the kitchen and noticed that my diamond was gone!!!! I guess that I had lost it somewhere in Bellevue! I was so upset and called Guy crying. It is such a sentimental piece and so special to Guy and I. However since it was insured I was able to get a replacement diamond for free and my new ring should be ready sometime this week. So sad. :( On a side note-make sure to get your prongs tightened around your diamond once a year! Didn't know that!

Our little family has been so busy with parties, retreats, and get togethers. Last week we went to Rockbridge for a Young Life leader weekend! We had a great time! Braylen loved being the center of attention. And he loved playing with the other kids. There were 8 small/2 big kids and 5 moms from our area in NKY! Wow! Our community has grown so much. We all shared a tiny 2 bedroom/2 living room pull out couch room. Friends of ours brought a little car to push their baby in instead of using a stroller, but every time Braylen walked outside he went right to that car. He was so sneaky about it too. He loved it! The fellowship, food, worship, scenery, was great! Guy and I bought the Chronicles of Narnia on CD and it was so fun to listen to during the ride. I highly recommend it. It made the trip go by quickly. Braylen slept for only 2 hours both there and back but had a great time entertaining himself during the other 4 hours. He is such a good boy.

Braylen has been teething so he has been quite fussy. He had a 101 temperature all day on Friday but seems to be feeling better. He fell asleep in my arms Friday morning because he just felt so bad! He NEVER does that. I of course loved it but once he woke up he had a fever. Poor kid. But he is better now. He is just so much fun. He copies everything we do now! He's so observant now. Yesterday I took the garbage can out from our cabinet to throw some things away and Braylen went over, picked it up and put it right back where it belongs. Today he went into our bedroom, picked up one of Guy's shoes and then tried putting it on Guy's foot. He's so smart. Oh he also went up to this little boy at Cracker Barrel and tried to give him a hug. The little boy just pushed him. Punk.

This week we are having 2 Boone Young Life get togethers, bible study, and then a wedding to go to on Saturday. Lots to do! Can't wait to work out this week! I ate so much food over the weekend! Diet starts Monday! But for real. I'm thinking about taking Braylen to the YMCA's outdoor pool tomorrow but I'm not sure if it will be warm or not!

I will update the blog more often! Here are a few recent pictures of our sweet baby boy!

"Abee, Abee, Abee"

"Abee" is Braylen's new favorite "word." He says it all day long. I have no idea what it means. Up, hold me, feed me, happy.....he uses it for everything! I can't wait for him to start actually talking. It's so funny! He woke up this morning saying it.

Yesterday, after I worked out at the Y, I took Braylen to the swimming pool. We saw Bob Boswell and talked with him for a little bit and then went on swimming. Braylen loves the water and since he's been putting his hands into our toilet (YUCK) I figure I should get him into water a lot more. I dunked him a few times and he comes up all wide eyed but he laughs after wards. He thinks it fun. We came home, ate lunch, and both took naps! Braylen slept for like 3 1/2 hours! Yea BabyWise! For dinner, I cooked Chicken Taco Salad (I posted the recipe below) for me, Braylen, and Corrine since Guy was away at bible study. We had study over here at 8pm for the girls and it was good to catch up.

Today we spent time with Grandma and Grandpa Hicks. Braylen had a good time playing with grandpa while I showed grandma how to import picture onto her computer. He played with all of their toys and books. Now Braylen is napping (and coughing). Tonight we are meeting with the Domec's since tomorrow (our normal day to meet) is Mike and Kim's rehearsal dinner. Can't wait for their wedding!

We have been experiencing a difficult time in our ministry these past few days, as a former Boone County YL student, Laura Chaney, died suddenly in her dorm room at WKU. Guy and I were not her leaders but a few current students knew her well, as does one of our co-leaders, Chris. Chris is also the best friend of Laura's older brother. There have been a few prayer vigil's and Guy was able to go to one last night at the Chaney's house. It's been hard knowing what to do since we are new to the school and because YL is not that well known there. Please pray that the Lord would open doors for us to share His message of hope and love to students who are lost. What a wake up call to us all that life is short and you only get one shot at accepting Jesus into your heart!

Thanks for reading!

Chicken Taco Salad

1 pound boneless chicken

1 can corn, undrained

1 can pinto/black beans (or both), drained

1 can chopped tomatoes or tomato juice

1 packet taco seasoning

Chopped lettuce

Shredded cheese

Sour cream

Crunched up taco chips

1-Boil chicken for 20 minutes and then shred with a fork.

2-While chicken is boiling, on low/md heat add corn, beans, tomatoes/juice to large saucepan. Mix all together and allow to cook.

3-Add shredded chicken and mix in taco seasoning.

4-Top with lettuce, cheese, sour cream and chips. Other toppings: guacamole, cilantro, salsa.