Nashville, TN...July 23, 2007... One of the most successful and best-selling new Christian artists in 2007, INO Records’ 33Miles, crossed the U.S. on a jam-packed promotional tour filled with television appearances, radio station visits, concerts, festivals and more. Now in follow-up to their smash top-10 debut single “What Could Be Better” 33Miles has released “There Is A God” to radio on July 20. Reflecting on “There Is A God” lead singer Jason Barton says, “In a world full of unbelief and confusion, this song offers an anthem for Christians to sing aloud the undeniable evidence that we did not just appear from nowhere, that we are wonderfully made by the Creator of the universe and that He calls us ‘friend.’” Since their self-titled album released on April 10, 33Miles has logged over 33,000 miles touring the country in a whirl-wind of press

Friends...this group was in chapel today...I decided to buy one of their CD's for a b-day present.
As I was standing there to get it autographed, I starting talking to Chris Lockwood(member of the 3 guy group), asking him where he is from. He said Mobile, Alabama! I told him that we served in a church there for 4 yrs. As we talked, we figured out that he went to high school with our daughters. He did not remember Shana but remembered Jill b/c of cheerleading. HOW COOL IS THAT? So I went back and bought 2 more CD's (1 for each daughter) Chris also is on staff at North Mobile Baptist Church...how cool again!

If you have not heard this group....listen up, they are very good! Their songs have a distinct message of the Gospel. For those of you who do not like 'rock'..they are not! Their song "SALVATION HAS A NAME" is wonderful.....'salvation has a name, mercy has a face, holiness was scraficed on the cross' WOW!

Justin, if you are reading this....you will love this group! Joy to you all!

Check out my Slide Show!

Not/Knots...and what to do about'em

John 2 : On the 3rd day a wedding took place in Cana. Jesus’mother was there and Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding as well. When the wine ran out, Jesus’ mother told Him, “They don’t have any wine.” V4-Jesus asks her “What has this concern of yours to do with Me, woman? My hour has not yet come.” V5- “Do whatever He tells you,” His mother told the servants.

I was in charge of devotion today at work….I love God’s word but freeze when I am in front of a crowd…nevertheless, I took my turn and tried to encourage a busy group of people who work best at providing encouragement for others.

I started with a piece of ribbon. Tie it in a knot, as many knots as you have to handle today. Then I expounded on the verses above. Pointing out that Mary was in the middle of a social knot (so to speak) and what she did was interesting…She did NOT go into a frantic state, she did NOT make a list of who was to blame…she simply and quickly went to Jesus and stated the problem. When life hands us KNOTS how do we handle them? Most times, we do NOT use Mary as our example…we try to figure it out on our own. Kind of like when we use to get our shoes in a knot….b/c we were in to big a hurry to untie them. In our lives it is so much easier to have that pity-party, anything else but the solution. Mary went to Jesus “I have a knot, fix it Jesus.” Moral of this story…give all your knots to Jesus. You still have to untie them but you will untie them in a calmer manner.

And remember this….the Bible states 365 “Do Not Fear’s” ..that is one for each day of the year!!! How cool is our Lord that He provided His word to give us power every day of the year.

Tag You're IT....

4 things about me you may not have known:1. I can touch my nose w/my tongue. 2. I would love to own a small bookstore (like in You've Got Mail) 3. I want to retire from work and read to children at the library. 4. I would love to volunteer at a PICU ward

4 Jobs I've Had:1. 14 yrs old-Bingo worker at the American Legion 2. 17 yrs old- worked a dried flower bouquet shop entirely by myself. 3. 32 yrs old- owned my own home cleaning business. 4. 43 yr old -Assistant Manager of a college bookstore

4 Movies I can watch over and over again:1. It's a Wonderful Life 2. While you were Sleeping. 3. You've Got Mail 4. Independence Day

4 Favorite TV shows:1. HGTV 2. Food Network 3. Miami Ink 4. Survivor or Amazing Race

Favorite Hobbies:1. Painting 2. Photography 3. Blogging 4. Hand Quilting

4 Places I have lived:1. Va Beach, Va 2. Fort Worth, TX 3. Mobile, AL 4. Beeville.TX,

4 Favorite Foods:1. Mexican 2. Italian 3. Shepherds Pie 4. Macaroni & Cheese (my comfort food…)

4 Places I would rather be right now:1. On a Beach 2. Key West 3. home 4. With my grown children and grandchildren

4 Websites I check daily:1. My blog and Friends’ blogs 2. Yahoo 3. Foxnews.com 4. game.com

4 People I tag:1. Shana 2. Jill 3. Kathy D. 4. Nancy S. (NHS)

Vine and Branches...

(me at 2 yrs old..God knew then that He had a plan for my life that included YOU)

Today, John 15 really spoke to my heart. The chapter talks about me being the branch and Jesus as the vine. It says I am to produce fruit....I suddenly thought about grapes...sweet, juicy but sometimes sour!!! God please keep me from producing sour grapes in my life.
V2 states that God, the vineyard keeper, prunes His branches so it will continue producing good fruit. Keep pruning me Lord! B/c my ultimate desire is to be pleasing in your sight.
V8.."My Father is glorified by this, that you produce much fruit and prove to me My disciples." I am to produce fruit (share, witness about Christ) in my life. (If I confess Him before man , He will confess me before the Father)

Many days I so disappoint Him...I am glad He never gives up on me. God sees my worth even when I don't ! It has taken me a long time to figure this one out, so keep pruning me Lord, help me to see growth in the smallest of things.

Writing to Beth Moore...

I love going into Beth Moore's blog that she does with her daughter. Blogging is a great way to keep in touch w/those long distance friends and family. I am a self-confessed blog-a-holic after only 9 months.

I wrote the short story below on Beth's blog and thought I would share it with ya'll.

DeeDee said...
Beth, here is my HOTTER THAN 3 DIGITS story! We have 3 darling granddaughters and had the privledge to 'baysit' while mom and dad took a long needed vaction. Well, we went to a friends house to swim but waited till 6pm to splash in the pool b/c of the heat index. We played for 1.5 hrs then headed home. Not having to do this in a gazillion years, we had to bath, wash hair, dry hair, fix dinner, do bible story time and get them all bedded by midnight (just kidding at least to bed by 9) At dinner our oldest "georgia peach" in that thick accent said "DeeDee did you see me pole dancing w/Sir?" (her grandfather name for my husband) I am tring to think quick...pole? was there a pole in the pool and if there was, why was she poledancing. My dear sweet husband looks at me and said "POOL DANCING HONEY, WE WERE POOL DANCING!" "Oh Pool dancing, yes sweetie, DeeDee saw you dancing w/Sir." (Whew!)Now that is one for the books! Joy,Debi

Now why would I choose to miss out on this?

If we were not playing, crafting, cooking, napping, singing, swimming, or watching Dora/Deigo/Animal Channel...the girls were positioned in our laps!

Thanks Shana and Bill for allowing us the privledge of babysitting your daughters. God is going to do a wonderful thing for His kingdom with the lives that these girls will lead. We are richly blessed to be their DeeDee and Sir.

Also note the baby belly picture, I could not resist! and what I call The Return Home!

Grands times Three

We swam all weekend but only in the evenings...weather has been in the triple digits here. it did not matter where we swam , just as long as we were in water! AndreyAnn made a new friend, McKenna, both girls did not like being in the big pool.

JennahKay spent her time jumping into Sir's arms and then decided that she could go all the way under but ONLY IF Sir would hold (of all things) her ears! So on went the goggles, ears were plugged up and she held her breath, touched bottom and came back up. After Sir explained that God made wax in our ears to protect them for such an occassion, she decided that she didn't need to have them held anymore! Oh, yeah, she also danced in the pool with her Sir!

Lorahbeth loved just floating in the big pool...now that is the way to relax!Sir was never to far away.

Time w/The Grands..... #2

When I looked at my refrigerator door (the side of the frig) I remembered the song by Michael W. Smith titled "Water Colored Ponies" It talks about the 'water color ponies on my refrigerator door, something that I could barely recognize.' But " Those water color ponies will one day run away." p.s. Lorahbeth is our artistic one!

pictures of Our Fun...

Jumping up and down and never getting tired! Except AudreyAnn did not want to get inside the jumping rooms!

Decision Time....

I had to make a decision, take vacation days to babysit our darling grands OR take vacation days to enjoy my 35th high school reunion. My daughter was sweet and said she would make other arrangements if I decided to go back home for my class reunion. Since these two occasions were only days apart, I decided to be a grandmother and enjoy the sounds of fun coming from the young eyes of our granddaughters. I would of so enjoyed connections with old friends from school but did not want to pass up a MEMORY MAKER!!!

You know the kind of memories? Ones that you talk about for years! Like the time my parents came for a surprise visit when we lived in Arkansas. Our girls were the coolest kids at school that day b/c my dad gave the girls turns on riding his motocycle to school and back that day! What a memory maker that was.

Or how about the time we let our daugthers choose having presents for Christmas or going to Disneyworld that year....they choose Disneyworld! Or the Christmas they got to spend traveling to Kitty Hawk,NC w/their Aunt Beth and Uncle Gene....then met us in Williamsburg,Va for a wonderful, sweet smelling, sight-seeing authentic colony days holiday!

Steve and I had a blast with the Grands! I had forgotten how many times you wipe faces and hands, kiss boo-boos, clean the table, fix meals, wash clothes, step over toys, read books, NOT watch the news, tell stories, say prayers, kiss goodnight with little children! (We have several styles of kisses we have to give each girl before bedtime...i.e. butterfly, eskimo, the famous chin kiss, sorberts, etc.)

We played at a indoor play area with big blow-up slides and jumping rooms. Went shopping for a birthday present. We swam all weekend, crafted, and pretended to be on the Food Network. Waited for Sir to make his famous fried bananas and topped the time off with creating an ice cream cake in honor of Lorahbeth's upcoming birthday! JennahKay thinks, "Sir should be on Food Network but making the friend bananas didn't take long so he would have to come up with other things to cook") My compliments to the cheif! I love you Steve!!!

Steve called me this morning and said that he was so glad we had the long weekend with the girls! I totally agree. Two songs came into my mind during the weekend and when you see the pictures, you will know what I mean...

After everyone left Monday morning, I got busy and cleaned the house for a finance meeting later on, I found myself singing and recalling the memories we made. And once again, I could not bring myself to Windex the fingerprints off of my glass coffee table just yet! Maybe next week!

R U ????

READY FOR SOME FOOTBALL??
Countdown ...28 days till collegiate football begins a new season! I absolutely love college football. The Big 10 starts on Saturday, September 1st. That means, lots of finger foods, cheers and jeers, phone calls to my momma and high-5's with my best friend---Steve. And I almost forgot, I have to start making and freezing Buckeyes for the dessert portion of the games and also sharing them w/our neighbor Wes. "Go Bucks, Michigan Stinks, Phee-uu!"

SMILE!!!

Family is great! There is nothing better on earth than to have your family around any table, laughing! In the fifth picture, we are all laughing b/c Steve NEVER shows teeth when he smiles, so he over-stating the issue a bit..haha!

And may I add....

....my other son in law! He has only been in this family for a year BUT it feels like he has always been apart of us. This past weekend we spent with Jill and Warren (and Shana n Bill) having a blast! Warren has such a quiet servants heart. He has been given a great opportunity to start a new ministry in a church and I can already see his abilities and gifts coming into view. God is going to use him in many ways! Once again I thank my God for the men in our daughters lives...they are EXACTLY who we prayed for!

We always enjoy time with our adult children...but this weekend was nice having that time w/Warren. Steve and I did teach J&W how to play Ucker (pronounce:long U-ker)and of course Steve came out on the winning team 3 times. We also enjoyed 9 holes of golf but none of us liked the 'swatting of the knats' (Georgia is bad for knats and humidity) Stir fry was dinner that Saturday night and another game of cards till midnight!

Thanks so much for a wonderful weekend guys!

Playing the Waiting Game....

Phil 3:10-4:9
We all play the waiting game. Wait in traffic, wait in line –anywhere! Wait for results of medical tests, Wait for someone on the other end of the phone line. The Church also plays the waiting game…this life is not about this life! It’s about waiting effectively until the next life starts, if we do not wait effectively, it will make for a bad experience while here on earth.

*Who first invented waiting? Look into Psalms Chap 27:14 “Be strong and take heart, wait on the Lord.” 130:5-6 states, “I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in His word I put my hope. My soul waits for the Lord more than a watchman waits for the morning.”

Isaiah 30:18 “For the Lord is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for Him.”

Romans 8:23b “Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.”

Romans 8:25 “But if we hope for what we do not see, we eagerly wait for it with patience.”

*HOW TO WAIT EFFECTIVELY….Know Christ and the power of His resurrection(3:10-11)….fellowship in the sharing of His suffering(v10-11)…..Become like Him in His death…..attain the resurrection from the dead….Don’t get caught up in what HAS BEEN…..Press on with the right focus…(v10-11).

*HOW TO HANDLE SATAN'S DISTRACTIONS…End disagreements (4:2-3)…Praise God during the hard times (v4-7)…Have Godly thoughts, resist the negative (v8-9).

ENDURE THIS LIFE WE HAVE BEEN GIVEN…..Galatians 6:9-10, “Let us not be weary in well doing, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.”

James 1:12 gives us a promise..."Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love Him."

How well are WE playing the waiting game?

(this was the sermon notes from my son in law on Sunday evening) Right now in our life, we are playing the waiting game and I must say that I am not doing so well. I constantly have to remind myself that whining is not acceptable. It will not get me to my goal any faster, it will hinder God's work in my life and how He wants to use me in the lives of others. Billie really spoke to me that night. I was so proud of his delivery of the Word, but he would be the first to say that it was not him but rather God! Billie has a real passion for reaching the lost and I am glad that God chose him to be apart of our family.

Pax the Horse

Pax was born on July 28, 2007. We borrowed a friends trailer and brought Pax to our youngest granddaughters 2nd birthday party. Yes, every little girl wants a pony. I did! Pax was truly born out of love. He was conceived on July 16, 2007 and finally was presented to AudreyAnn in celebration of her birthday. Pax was nameless until JennahKay and Lorahbeth came up with his name from a baseball hat that had a "P" (for Pittsburg) as it's logo. So Pax became the name of this horse, of course! Lucky for us, he has a huge backyard to play in. He will enjoy his days pretending to win races, chase a herd of cattle, or just be happy to graze in the grass under the pine trees.

We are glad all 3 of the grands love him already. I cradled him for 2 weeks, making sure every little detail was taken care of. Well, Pax is a little to big for AudreyAnn right now, she will have to 'grow into him'. His size scared her at first, but in time she will learn to love him as I have. Besides that she absolutely loved her Sit-n-Spin from mommy and daddy and all the books Aunti Jill and Uncle Warren gave her!

I have to thank Sir and Uncle Warren for helping me harness him to his post, THANK YOU GUYS, you were a big help.

Enjoy looking at Pax, he is a sight!

Pax the Horse

Isn't He cute!