Heavy heart this morning...

While in Missouri I was so lucky to meet a great group of girls. There were ten of us in our Bible study from all different churches and all different backgrounds, but it just worked. Saying goodbye was hard and i miss them all so much already. On my way out of town, Kelsey called me and asked me to come see her nursey before we left. She and husband Bryan had already been through one very difficult miscarriage months earlier and she was so excited about baby Anna. We had showers and sent cards, and decorated...we were all so happy for Kelsey and Bryan and just knew that they would be excellent parents.

Whitney, one of Kelsey's very dearest friends, called me this morning in tears. Kelsey felt some extra movement and later learned that the baby was strangled by the umbilical cord. She was nine months pregnant and only one week away from her due date. I just do not even have words to tell you how heavy my heart is this morning.

Kelsey will still have to give birth to the baby either today or tomrrow, which sounds just awful, adding insult to injury. I know that these kinds of things happen all the time without any explanation, but the fact is, it's never hit this close to home and my heart is just broken for my friends. I think the very worst thing I keep playing over in my head is them coming home to that empty nursery. This should be the happiest time of their life, and yet, it all changed in an instant. Lord, be their peace and walk them through this valley of the shadow of death.

Below is the email I sent to my Bible study girls this morning.

"Girls, be the hands and feet-- i so wish i was there to help. Think of what you can do, whether it is to bring food, send cards, just sit with her or be a shoulder she can cry on, walk her dog, clean her house, clean the nursery out when she is ready, whatever it is, we need to be there for Kelsey and Bryan.

Can I pray? Will you agree with me?
God, we don't understand your ways and your will and timing, and we are all hurting for Kelsey and Bryan during this awful time of overwhelming sadness. We just pray that you would bring the peace and comfort that only you can bring and hold them in your arms right now even as we pray. You love them so much and your Word says that you will restore what the locusts have taken away and devoured, and in Jeremiah you say that your plans are to prosper and not to harm us, to give us a future and a hope. We believe that you still have the plan and as hard as it is, we believe that you will help Kelsey and Bryan to grow from this and to not only grow closer together but also closer to your heart. Lord, bring peace. Bring healing. We dont have words to say, but at the end of the day we trust you and that is all that we can do."


If you want to send a card to Kelsey and Bryan Himes, even if you don't know them, their address is :
203 N. James Drive
Clinton, MO 64735

Because I think it helps me more to pray when i have a picture in my mind of who i am praying for, here is a picture of the sweet Himes family taken just weeks ago at our going away party.


"The pathway is broken and the signs are unclear,
And I don't know the reason why you've brought me here.
But just because you love me the way that you do,
I'm gonna walk thru the valleys if you want me to.

Cause I'm not who I was when I took my first step,
And I'm clinging to the promise that you're not through with me yet.
But you never said it would be easy...
You only said I'd never go alone.

So when the whole world turns against me and I'm all by myself,
And I cant hear you answer my cries for help,
I'll remember the suffering your love put you through,
And I will walk throught the valley if you want me to."

-Ginny Owens

LORD, HEAR OUR PRAYER.

A bright day in the middle of the blizzards of 2010!

Yesterday was especially exciting! Right before all the snow came, I had several visitors.

My first visitor was the plumber who came to fix the broken toilet...nothing special there. ( Believe me, new construction has not been all it's cracked up to be! I think we found more things wrong in this brand new house than we did in our home in Missouri built in 1968!)

My second visitor was a sweet little old round man named "Guy Music" ...isn't that such a happy name! He was so sweet. He was from the church we visited this past Sunday with our neighbors M&O and he braved the snow to come give me a giftbag with information on the church and the best homemade cinnamon bread you have ever tasted...makes my mouth water just thinking about it!


And apparently i had a third visitor too, but they didnt knock or ring the doorbell, so when i went to get the mail, this was on my front steps! How they ever made it up my street in the snow is still a mystery, but i'm sure glad they did- it really brightened my day! Thanks Keek!


Inside was this sweet note from one of my dearest friends from high school,Ciarra ( the lucky duck who is in California! Rough life!) Her hubby is in the military so she has made several moves with him already in their few short years together...she totally gets it!


And inside the box were these BEAUTIFUL flowers! Gerbera Daisies are my favorites! So pretty!


Anyways, so I think for only being here for two weeks we have done fairly well... we have had dinner or gone to hang out with another neighbor couple almost evey night, which has been nice not to have to cook and plus we get to make new friends! It will be my turn soon to have everyone over to our home, but for now, my house looks like this in just about every room...boxes to the ceiling!


I did cook the other night for Joe's first day of work-- I made fresh grilled salmon with olive oil and seasonings, couscous with pine nuts,(which Joe affectionately refers to as "that rice-y stuff")and a caesar salad...can you tell we're working on portion control!


Joe gives the thumbs up, so I guess it will be a repeat meal(even though the house smelled strongly of fish for the next three days!)


I was grateful for all my visitors and a bright spot in an otherwise nasty week!

Punxsutawney Phil, you better sleep with one eye open!

So there's this cute little tradition Pennsylvania people have that the world has adopted about a groundhog. I know, the story is already kooky- a groundhog, really?! But wait, it gets better! They pull this ugly little furry thing out of hibernation once a year to see if he will see his shadow or not and legend has it, that is how we can predict the next six weeks of weather. Teachers like my mom thrive on these kinds of silly little things...people make movies, shirts, even fan clubs! I was on the internet researching and people literally make pilgrimages to come see this ugly groundhog in the freezing cold to see if he sees his shadow. GIVE ME A BREAK!

Well, lets just say that this little mangy beast predicted six more weeks of winter this year right as we were moving in and, true to tradition, we are getting six more flippin weeks of winter! We have had two blizzards already accumulating over three feet of snow...yes you read right, three FEET! My mom says i am the local celebrity in her class lately because they are enamored with Phil and Groundhog Day, but even more so since i now live where Phil is. I bet those little first graders think he's living in my backyard! She also called me the other day and said a little boy brought in a retractable tape measure for show and tell (I'm telling you, they are amazed at anything!). Just for kicks she said " Class, let's measure how much snow my daughter has on the ground at her house in Pennsylvania where the groundhog Phil lives!" She said she had to get up on a chair to show them how deep it was (granted, my mom is not even five feet tall so the chair added some definite drama to the whole thing!). Mom said they couldn't even believe it- their little Texan minds could not even comprehend that much of the white stuff...down there, I remember even if we would get a dusting of snow, school was shut down to play in it!!

I, on the other hand, am over the "pretty factor" of all the snow. I have decided it is magical when it's falling and then when you wake up to several feet, it's nice to look at with a cup of coffee, but let me tell you first hand, the newness wears off when you are shoveling the driveway with snow up to your waist, stuck inside for two days, and you have to take the dog out about every hour to potty in subzero temps: that's when it gets old fast!

So as promised, here are some snow pics ( before the additional 14+ inches we got on top of that last night!)

A very bundled-up Tex gets ready to go play in the snow


Joe and tex


Katy and Tex


The view of the front of the house and the cars!


Joe and me


Tex tuckered out after a long day playing in the snow


So all i have to say is Punxsutawaney Phil, you better sleep with one eye open! I'm coming after you, you little punk!

PS: i think i am starting to understand cabin fever!

Praises from PA!

Well we made it! We split our cross-country trek into several days and stopped to see several dear friends on the way. Taking time to enjoy the drive and scenery and just enjoy each other's company was more like a vacation than anything...it certainly didn't feel like moving! Times like these I think I fall in love all over again with my Joe...what a guy!

We arrived to our new little home on Tuesday and the moving van came with our things on Wednesday. We had a pretty peaceful day Thursday, but the storm was brewing....the weathermen were already calling it the blizzard of 2010 before the snow even fell! I rushed out to Walmart the night before to grab a few things, but apparently my 30,000 new best friends in the area had the same idea. The six lines that were open snaked down the aisles to the back of the store and things like bread and milk were long gone by this time. I waited in line for close to forty minutes and about three people away from the check-out the very flustered cashier comes out of her booth and announces to the line that she needs a break- i thought i was about to witness either a murder or a mutiny right then and there!

Well, Friday night the snow started. It fell, and it fell, and it fell some more and it did not stop til about noon on Saturday. We woke up Saturday to the most snow I had ever seen-- over eighteen inches and in some places it had banked up well over three feet! About noon, we decided that we should go shovel (living in a borough, if you do not shovel the sidewalk in front of your house within several hours, you get fined!). Much to our suprise, everyone else had the same idea, so it was like a block party and we got to meet all of our new neighbors! Many of them are young, newly married couples without children- we were SO excited! Everytime I would meet a new couple, i would rush into the house and write down their names, anything that they had told us, where they were from and what number they lived in... this may seem a little extreme, but people, we NEED friends asap! ( on a sidenote, I think I just proved once and for all that I am my mother's daughter!)

We ended up talking the longest to one couple directly across the street named Mike and Orpha and they invited us to church... so today we went to church and lunch with new friends after being here less than a week! God is so faithful to hear our prayers- we have prayed so long for a quick transition into a new place! M&O said that they have lived here since October and had never seen that many neighbors out, so it was a perfect time to move and to meet neighbors!

So those are the praises; we made it here safely, we survived the "blizzard of 2010," we are making new friends and getting to know our neighbors, and we are now world-class-snow-shovelers! All of our stuff got here, most made it without being broken or scratched too bad, we have a WONDERFUL new little home in an exciting new place, and did i mention i have a walk-in closet...i think i can hear the angels singing!Hallelujah!

Joe starts work tomorrow- we are praying that he will adjust quickly to his new roles and that God would place his hand on Joe and give him such favor during this process that we will not even believe it! He has a lot to learn and big challenges ahead, but that is what makes the boy thrive, so I know he will do just fine!

We are still actively seeking out friends and looking for churches- this one today was great, but with over 400 in the immediate area, i think we will keep visiting, but definitely keep this one on the list-- great praise, great message, and they seemed to really love Jesus. Don't you just love that: we moved hundreds of miles away but instantly felt at home when we found people who loved the same Jesus and sang the same songs and cherished the same book of love stories he left for us...i love that feeling!

So here's to Pennsylvania and a new adventure- may it be a wonderful journey filled with many happy memories...and may we not see that much snow again for a LONG, LONG time!! Pictures soon to come...give me a break, if you saw the boxes piled to the ceiling, you would understand why i haven't gotten around to posting pics yet! Sheesh!

Thanks for the prayers ...keep em coming!