Hello friends!! What a FABULOUS weekend it was!! Friday evening was a little sad. Wyatt and I went to Joy Warner's visitation. It was beautiful, there were tons of flowers there, and even more people who loved her. She made a difference in SO MANY people's lives! She was amazing! Many people were of course crying but a lot of people were full of joy (for her) because they knew she was in heaven with her Father! What a wonderful place it must be!! After we left there, Wyatt and I had a wonderful talk about life. Sometimes I just take Wyatt and my family and friends for granted not really realizing that life on earth is really temporary. We are not here for good, and at some point God will call us home. So we must live every moment for Jesus, we must SHINE so brightly for Him that people cannot help but see our love for Him. That kind of joy is contagious good friends! Whoo-hoo!! I also realized that I need to spend more time in God's Word! Whenever I am in God's Word, I often think to myself, "Why do I not get in here every single moment that I have free??" There is so much good stuff to read about! Let's live to make a difference! Make a difference in someone's life, that is my challenge to you today! I will take on the same challenge and I will pray that God will reveal to all of us someone we have made a difference through! God's love will be shown to all who live for His glory! YAY!
On with the weekend. :) On Saturday we had "Harshman Work Day," which was a ton of fun!! Adam is not really an emotional person, but I think he had a lot of fun, it was sure fun surprising him! :) Saturday evening I got to hold and kiss on my little nephew Mr. Max. He is so absolutely adorable! I love him SO much!! It is always fun to see how your friends take on new roles! Nick and Katie are awesome parent's, I am amazed at their strength and patience! (Schmickle's and Harshman's you are next!! Whoo-hoo!!!)
Sunday was awesome! Sunday School rocked my face off :):):) and the sermon was one I certainly needed to hear!! Sunday afternoon was also fabulous!! We enjoyed having all you people over!! We had a blast!! Thanks to all who came to hang and watch the game!! Thanks girls for hanging out with me and talking about girl stuff!! I cherish you all!!
Hope you all have a fabulous week!! I can't WAIT to see you soon!!!
Sunday, October 22, 2006
Wednesday, October 11, 2006
The Week at a Glance
So it is Wednesday! Can anyone believe that it is Wednesday?? Holy cow! Time flies when you are having fun! It has been a very cool week. On Monday we visited the small quaint town of Bolivar, MO. I could never live in Bolivar, MO. I just couldn't, it is too small. Now some of you might be thinking, "Don't they live in Nixa, isn't that a small town." Ah contrar good friends, Nixa is indeed a small town, but it is a COOL small town. There are fun restaurants (we don't have many restaurant' s mind you, but the ones we have are cool!!), cool shopping places, AND fabulous friends who live in or around Nixa!! (YAY Ozark!) There is no such thing in Bolivar. Nope, Bolivar is just straight up boring, not much to do there! I am so glad it was a short visit! :)
Tuesday evening was way cool because we got to hang out with the Schmickle's! Now they are a fun crew!! Carlye and I laughed and chatted, and I think the boys did some of the same (perhaps they did not laugh as much, but I think they had fun too.) We are so thankful for those Schmickle's, thanks for letting us be real with you both! You are a blessing to us!
Tonight was family night. We usually have family night on Thursday night, but since we are having our Financial Fun Class, we had to move it to earlier in the week!! Family night is so very special to me! I have a wonderful family! We started having family night when I was 5. My dad is a campus minister so there were always students at our house, or he was often off doing something, so there were times we did not get to spend a lot of time together. So, one night we (I say "we" although I am sure I did not do a lot of the deciding about getting away for the evening, I was only 5) just decided to get away from the house and from the phone, so we could spend some time just together!! So we walked down to the McSalty's that used to reside by campus, ordered a Bear Pie for dinner and thus had our first family night. We have been getting together every Thursday night since! I am so thankful that Wyatt likes my family, he makes family night so much fun!! He and my dad often remember things that happened when they were away on missions trips. It is so much fun to hear their wild and crazy stories!! Great family, special friends, we are so blessed!
Tuesday evening was way cool because we got to hang out with the Schmickle's! Now they are a fun crew!! Carlye and I laughed and chatted, and I think the boys did some of the same (perhaps they did not laugh as much, but I think they had fun too.) We are so thankful for those Schmickle's, thanks for letting us be real with you both! You are a blessing to us!
Tonight was family night. We usually have family night on Thursday night, but since we are having our Financial Fun Class, we had to move it to earlier in the week!! Family night is so very special to me! I have a wonderful family! We started having family night when I was 5. My dad is a campus minister so there were always students at our house, or he was often off doing something, so there were times we did not get to spend a lot of time together. So, one night we (I say "we" although I am sure I did not do a lot of the deciding about getting away for the evening, I was only 5) just decided to get away from the house and from the phone, so we could spend some time just together!! So we walked down to the McSalty's that used to reside by campus, ordered a Bear Pie for dinner and thus had our first family night. We have been getting together every Thursday night since! I am so thankful that Wyatt likes my family, he makes family night so much fun!! He and my dad often remember things that happened when they were away on missions trips. It is so much fun to hear their wild and crazy stories!! Great family, special friends, we are so blessed!
Thursday, October 05, 2006
Not the sharpest knife in the drawer...
Ok, so I know this is going to be a VERY silly question, and perhaps I am totally and completely computer illiterate, but could someone PLEASE tell me how to get links on my page to other peoples' pages. (As I am typing this, my hands are going around and round, motioning that I would like to get to get to other peoples pages! Just wanted to give you a visual. :)) I am telling you I have tried everything, and my blog just doesn't want me to have other links!! What is up with this??? Laugh if you must (which I am sure you are, I am not the sharpest knife in the drawer when it comes to technology), but please know that computers are not my specialty! HELP! Can a girl just get some links to her friends, the other loyal bloggers in her life? I mean really, come on now?!?!? :)
Paige, I changed my page template in your honor!! Pink ladies have to stay together!! :) Pink ROCKS!!
Thanks in advance for your help, I appreciate you all!!!
Paige, I changed my page template in your honor!! Pink ladies have to stay together!! :) Pink ROCKS!!
Thanks in advance for your help, I appreciate you all!!!
Wednesday, October 04, 2006
A tiny bundle of JOY!
What a week it has been!! A blessed week, a joyful week, and certainly a week to celebrate, but what a week!! :) Happy Birthday Max Powell Ramsey! Max is my new nephew! He was born at 11:15 this morning weighing in at 6 pounds and 15 ounces. He is a beautiful baby boy! He has dark hair and beautiful eyes!! I have never loved a tiny person so much! He captured my heart the second he was born! I cannot even begin to imagine what a joy he will be in our lives. I had the honor of sitting with his new mom and dad (Nick and Katie Ramsey) last night and this morning as they anxiously anticipated his arrival. We kept taking bets on when he was going to be born. Whoever won, we bet, would be treated to Cold Stone Creamery. (We all LOVE CSC!!:)) Well none of us won (and we bet like 5 times,) but he is here and he is healthy and I love him so much.
I was a little nervous when Katie called last night just as we were leaving for family group to say, "Max is on his way, can you come?" I was thinking, "Whoa, back that buggy up, what do you mean he is on his way? Stop him, he is too early, there is still so much to be done!" However, when we arrived at the hospital we waked into the Labor and Delivery room and found two of the most excited people there, I was reminded that God's timing is always perfect. Nick was beaming with excitement and Katie was glowing with anticipation. We had so much fun talking about what Max was going to look like, and when he would come. After a few minutes of stress, an epidural (for Katie, not Nick, Wyatt or I,:)), a rousing round of "Friends" trivia, a lot of waiting, even more laughter, and a ton of ice chips later, Max is here! It was such a joyful experience, it was such an honor to be there with them watching their joy come alive!! Thank you Father for having perfect timing in all circumstances!! We love you and are so thankful for the blessings you give us!
I was a little nervous when Katie called last night just as we were leaving for family group to say, "Max is on his way, can you come?" I was thinking, "Whoa, back that buggy up, what do you mean he is on his way? Stop him, he is too early, there is still so much to be done!" However, when we arrived at the hospital we waked into the Labor and Delivery room and found two of the most excited people there, I was reminded that God's timing is always perfect. Nick was beaming with excitement and Katie was glowing with anticipation. We had so much fun talking about what Max was going to look like, and when he would come. After a few minutes of stress, an epidural (for Katie, not Nick, Wyatt or I,:)), a rousing round of "Friends" trivia, a lot of waiting, even more laughter, and a ton of ice chips later, Max is here! It was such a joyful experience, it was such an honor to be there with them watching their joy come alive!! Thank you Father for having perfect timing in all circumstances!! We love you and are so thankful for the blessings you give us!
Thursday, September 28, 2006
Joy!!
Hello good friends!! What a FUN week it has been!!! First of all, I have to give a shout out to Paige and Todd, we had SO MUCH fun with you guys on Saturday!! THANKS so much for inviting us to the auction!! Cabool is a hip and happening place. It is probably not a place we would go for vacation, but if it were to get a Cheddar's, a Wal-Mart, and perhaps a few good craft stores, we would so be there!! Although I do have to say that Clea's Flower Shop is pretty amazing, I could have shopped there all day!! Honestly though it is always fun to be a part of someone's family for the day!! We hung out at the auction, we went to the fabulous cabin in the woods, and roasted hot dogs and s'mores. It was FABULOUS!! We had a GREAT time hanging out with the Ferguson's, the Fredericks, and Paige's family!! Whoo-hoo, what an adventure!!
Sunday was also a fun day! We went with my family to Silver Dollar City. We all traveled together talking and laughing. My mom, dad, sister, and I LOVE roller-coasters!! We do. My husband and brother-in-law would rather watch, but we all feel that if one person is going, we all need to try it out. It is pretty hysterical to see a 50 year old guy (my dad) get excited about going on a ride. Of course he can't get too excited (that might ruin his cool, calm and collected attitude,) but let me tell you, as we are waiting in line for the huge disk ride that rotates around as it slides back and forth on a half-moon track, he was almost giddy! I rode inbetween my dad and my sister (somehow I thought I might be safest there,) and off we go with my dad holding his arms straight up in the air (as I am clinging onto the bar in front of me for dear life) with a huge smile on his face. I am shrieking, thinking death is inevitable as my mom and sister are on the other side of me laughing hysterically!! What a blessing it is to have so much fun with family!! I LOVE my family, we have a great relationship!! Now my family is certainly not without its quirks, some people don't understand us at all, but we have such fun adventures together! I am so thankful!!
Hope every one has had an awesome week!!! What a beautiful week it has been!! Happy Friday tomorrow friends!!!
Sunday was also a fun day! We went with my family to Silver Dollar City. We all traveled together talking and laughing. My mom, dad, sister, and I LOVE roller-coasters!! We do. My husband and brother-in-law would rather watch, but we all feel that if one person is going, we all need to try it out. It is pretty hysterical to see a 50 year old guy (my dad) get excited about going on a ride. Of course he can't get too excited (that might ruin his cool, calm and collected attitude,) but let me tell you, as we are waiting in line for the huge disk ride that rotates around as it slides back and forth on a half-moon track, he was almost giddy! I rode inbetween my dad and my sister (somehow I thought I might be safest there,) and off we go with my dad holding his arms straight up in the air (as I am clinging onto the bar in front of me for dear life) with a huge smile on his face. I am shrieking, thinking death is inevitable as my mom and sister are on the other side of me laughing hysterically!! What a blessing it is to have so much fun with family!! I LOVE my family, we have a great relationship!! Now my family is certainly not without its quirks, some people don't understand us at all, but we have such fun adventures together! I am so thankful!!
Hope every one has had an awesome week!!! What a beautiful week it has been!! Happy Friday tomorrow friends!!!
Wednesday, September 20, 2006
Lots of Thoughts
When I was in third grade my Sunday School teacher challenged us to memorize a book of the Bible. I am not such a good memorizer, so obviously I did not think that this was a great idea. However everyone else thought it was a great idea we decided to take on the challenge. Our class decided that James was the book for us to memorize, so we started studying it. Every week our teacher would assign us a different verse, we would learn what it meant, how we could apply it to our lives, and then we memorized it. It was amazing how "easy" memorization came when the verses really meant something to me! Sometimes as a child I did not think that the Bible applied to me, I thought it was just for my mom and dad, and the nice man who yelled at us from the pulpit every week! :)
But learning about scripture and how it affected my family and I made a HUGE impact on me.
One of the big ideas of Classical Education is memorization. At GDA we teach Classical Ed., (for a full definition of what "Classical Education" is, please ask for the 5 pages of notes I took on Classical education for my interview for this job. Did I end up needing them? No! Did they even ask me about it? NO! But if you need great notes, I have them! ) so I am having my students memorize poems, and we are currently memorizing all of the countries in Africa. We are also memorizing scripture (Psalm 47 is our scripture for the month.) IT IS AMAZING how much joy my 5 year olds receive from hiding scripture in their hearts!! We go through each verse, talk about what it means, and then we memorize it together!! IT IS SUCH A JOY to see them at such an early age memorizing the Word of God!!! Priceless!!
I did not memorize the entire book of James like my Sunday School teacher might have hoped, but I did memorize the first chapter. Having this scripture in my heart and mind often eases worry and doubt away. Just the other day, someone flat out told me that they thought my joy was annoying and that they wish I was not so happy all of the time. Obviously I was hurt. I love living life through Christ, why not have joy??? How could you not be happy? I realize that life is not perfect, but life with Christ is pretty amazing!! So I started thinking, "I do not want to be annoying, am I turning people off of Christ because they think I am superficial???" Will you all please hold me accountable for this. If I ever get to a point where you feel I am giving off some sort of fake or superficial vibe, PLEASE let me know. I always want to be encouraging and uplifting, not a pain in the butt!
When I was thinking through all of this, the one James chapter that I have memorize popped into my mind, it was a true blessing of reassurance from God!
"Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does." James 1:2-8
What an incredible chapter!! We PRAISE YOU Father for the way you always encourage us through your Word!
But learning about scripture and how it affected my family and I made a HUGE impact on me.
One of the big ideas of Classical Education is memorization. At GDA we teach Classical Ed., (for a full definition of what "Classical Education" is, please ask for the 5 pages of notes I took on Classical education for my interview for this job. Did I end up needing them? No! Did they even ask me about it? NO! But if you need great notes, I have them! ) so I am having my students memorize poems, and we are currently memorizing all of the countries in Africa. We are also memorizing scripture (Psalm 47 is our scripture for the month.) IT IS AMAZING how much joy my 5 year olds receive from hiding scripture in their hearts!! We go through each verse, talk about what it means, and then we memorize it together!! IT IS SUCH A JOY to see them at such an early age memorizing the Word of God!!! Priceless!!
I did not memorize the entire book of James like my Sunday School teacher might have hoped, but I did memorize the first chapter. Having this scripture in my heart and mind often eases worry and doubt away. Just the other day, someone flat out told me that they thought my joy was annoying and that they wish I was not so happy all of the time. Obviously I was hurt. I love living life through Christ, why not have joy??? How could you not be happy? I realize that life is not perfect, but life with Christ is pretty amazing!! So I started thinking, "I do not want to be annoying, am I turning people off of Christ because they think I am superficial???" Will you all please hold me accountable for this. If I ever get to a point where you feel I am giving off some sort of fake or superficial vibe, PLEASE let me know. I always want to be encouraging and uplifting, not a pain in the butt!
When I was thinking through all of this, the one James chapter that I have memorize popped into my mind, it was a true blessing of reassurance from God!
"Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does." James 1:2-8
What an incredible chapter!! We PRAISE YOU Father for the way you always encourage us through your Word!
Monday, September 18, 2006
Happy!
What an awesome day!! I got to teach today, and it was awesome!! My kindergarten are so much fun!! I LOVE teaching them!! We have a great time together!! I am also so blessed by the new women this school has introduced me to! It is a small school so there are just 8 of us teachers, but we all just click and it is such a blessing!!
For example this morning I was in my room getting it ready for the students and I open my BIG green cabinet and the door falls off. Oh yes, the entire door. Not only does it fall off, but I do not catch before it falls to ground making a huge BOOM on the floor. My good friend Torrie (the second grade teacher) runs over to my classroom to see what has caused this gigantic rustle! She runs in and finds that my entire door has fallen off, and bursts into a fit of laughter. Ok, so I did not think that it was that funny, after all, how am I going to keep everything in my cabinet without a door??!!? (And, I tend to get a little embarrassed when random things happen to me that I am not quite prepared for!) Finally after a few minutes I started to see the humor in the situation and I began to laugh with her. After all it is not everyday you see a large green door falling off a cabinet onto a short (but buff) unsuspecting teacher on a Monday morning, with her students well on their way into her classroom and the director just one classroom away!?!?!? :) Whoo-hoo!! Bring it on!
Yes, it was a blessed day!!
"Rejoice in the Lord always," I will say it again, "Rejoice!" Let your gentleness be evident to all, the Lord is near!!" Philippians 4:4-5
For example this morning I was in my room getting it ready for the students and I open my BIG green cabinet and the door falls off. Oh yes, the entire door. Not only does it fall off, but I do not catch before it falls to ground making a huge BOOM on the floor. My good friend Torrie (the second grade teacher) runs over to my classroom to see what has caused this gigantic rustle! She runs in and finds that my entire door has fallen off, and bursts into a fit of laughter. Ok, so I did not think that it was that funny, after all, how am I going to keep everything in my cabinet without a door??!!? (And, I tend to get a little embarrassed when random things happen to me that I am not quite prepared for!) Finally after a few minutes I started to see the humor in the situation and I began to laugh with her. After all it is not everyday you see a large green door falling off a cabinet onto a short (but buff) unsuspecting teacher on a Monday morning, with her students well on their way into her classroom and the director just one classroom away!?!?!? :) Whoo-hoo!! Bring it on!
Yes, it was a blessed day!!
"Rejoice in the Lord always," I will say it again, "Rejoice!" Let your gentleness be evident to all, the Lord is near!!" Philippians 4:4-5
Sunday, September 17, 2006
A Lesson from a 2 year old!!
I love Sunday's!! I do!! I love them!! I love getting up and going to church to praise God!! I love our Sunday School class and our Church service!! I love the joyful fellowship among believers, there is nothing more uplifting than being together with your friends and family!! Today I have realized how blessed Wyatt and I are! We live in a beautiful house, drive two cars that always start, and have a love for one another that grows every single day. We are not perfect mind you, we still pick at each other at times, and we still argue over who holds the remote, but, besides those things we are blessed!
I work as a nanny for a perfect little boy and I love him so very much!! He is 2 and a half. (Just ask him, he will tell you in plenty of detail exactly how old he is.) I have been with him since he was 2 weeks old! I sure did think I was going to drop him when he was so tiny. I had really never been around children very much. So I don't know what possessed me to even look for a nanny job, but I did look for a nanny position and God has blessed me richly through it!! (P.S. I did not exactly drop him, but I did watch him fall off of a bridge one time just last fall as he was leaning over the edge on one of those little play areas, against my better judgment. I did not quite catch him in time, but no worries, he is alive and well. That story, another time! :)) He was so beautiful!!
In his two and a half years his life has been turned upside down a variety of times!! His parents divorced almost exactly a year ago, and since then they have each had a significant other. Even though he is so young he certainly knows that his world has been turned upside down, YET he continues to be joyful and happy!! I am amazed at him, he has taught me so much about rejoicing even in the hard times! He is an amazing little guy!!
Remember this week friends to be joyful about everything! God has given us such an incredible purpose for life, HE created us to be exactly who we are!! I am so thankful!!
I work as a nanny for a perfect little boy and I love him so very much!! He is 2 and a half. (Just ask him, he will tell you in plenty of detail exactly how old he is.) I have been with him since he was 2 weeks old! I sure did think I was going to drop him when he was so tiny. I had really never been around children very much. So I don't know what possessed me to even look for a nanny job, but I did look for a nanny position and God has blessed me richly through it!! (P.S. I did not exactly drop him, but I did watch him fall off of a bridge one time just last fall as he was leaning over the edge on one of those little play areas, against my better judgment. I did not quite catch him in time, but no worries, he is alive and well. That story, another time! :)) He was so beautiful!!
In his two and a half years his life has been turned upside down a variety of times!! His parents divorced almost exactly a year ago, and since then they have each had a significant other. Even though he is so young he certainly knows that his world has been turned upside down, YET he continues to be joyful and happy!! I am amazed at him, he has taught me so much about rejoicing even in the hard times! He is an amazing little guy!!
Remember this week friends to be joyful about everything! God has given us such an incredible purpose for life, HE created us to be exactly who we are!! I am so thankful!!
Saturday, September 16, 2006
A GREAT Day!!
Hello friends!! What a beautiful day it was!! Wyatt is home, we got to hang out all day, AND tomorrow is Sunday!! Could we be any more blessed!?!?!
So today, Wyatt did the wonderful husband task of helping me in my classroom!! Now please understand that Wyatt just got home from his last audit for the season (hopefully.) He arrived home with all of his luggage, some fun stories, and a cold, so he was not SO excited about getting out today, but that is beside the point! :) So here we are at church working on my classroom, he is sneezing here and there trying to be the best husband ever and I am going on and on about my students and how much I love school etc. etc., when I realize that I do not quite have everything that I need to work on the said classroom!! Ooooops, (I might have told him that I had everything because I thought I did, but you know, oooooops... :)) so I think ,we should just run like lightening to Mardel so I can finish my classroom today, never mind my husband is sick and just needs to rest!! So here we go to Mardel for just a quick shopping trip! Seconds turned into moments, moments turned into hours, we might have seen a few people we knew, and just a few hours later we were back at church "finishing up" my room!! I have to give Wyatt the "Husband of the Year" Award for being such a trooper! I am so thankful for him and his graciousness and thoughtfulness!!
It was fun, it was fabulous, it was a great day!!
P.S. Does anyone have any advice on the spell-check botton?? I keep pressing it and it keeps giving me a pop-up saying that I can't use it?!!? What??!?! I apologize for the mis-spelled words!
So today, Wyatt did the wonderful husband task of helping me in my classroom!! Now please understand that Wyatt just got home from his last audit for the season (hopefully.) He arrived home with all of his luggage, some fun stories, and a cold, so he was not SO excited about getting out today, but that is beside the point! :) So here we are at church working on my classroom, he is sneezing here and there trying to be the best husband ever and I am going on and on about my students and how much I love school etc. etc., when I realize that I do not quite have everything that I need to work on the said classroom!! Ooooops, (I might have told him that I had everything because I thought I did, but you know, oooooops... :)) so I think ,we should just run like lightening to Mardel so I can finish my classroom today, never mind my husband is sick and just needs to rest!! So here we go to Mardel for just a quick shopping trip! Seconds turned into moments, moments turned into hours, we might have seen a few people we knew, and just a few hours later we were back at church "finishing up" my room!! I have to give Wyatt the "Husband of the Year" Award for being such a trooper! I am so thankful for him and his graciousness and thoughtfulness!!
It was fun, it was fabulous, it was a great day!!
P.S. Does anyone have any advice on the spell-check botton?? I keep pressing it and it keeps giving me a pop-up saying that I can't use it?!!? What??!?! I apologize for the mis-spelled words!
Friday, September 15, 2006
Joy
Hello friends!! I want you all to know that I am becoming a fellow blogger to follow in your foot-steps!! You all have inspired me! I read your blogs every evening before I go to bed!! I love to hear about the things going on in your lives!! I am not SO great about posting every day, but this will be so fun, I promise to try to post at least once a week!! I appreciate you all with your joy and bantering!! It is so much fun to be friends with such joyful people!!! Happy Friday friends!! I look forward to seeing you soon!!
" A friend loves at all times..." Proverbs 17:17.
" A friend loves at all times..." Proverbs 17:17.
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