Ledford Adventures

What's a Year in Blog Time?!

2010-05-20T09:24:00.000-07:00

So it's been over a year...yikes! Well this is just to say I am still alive...I am here! I will blog my life's adventures...just later this week when I am not so busy! PROMISE!!!

Long Time, No Blog...Oops

2009-05-29T17:58:00.000-07:00

Wow. Long time since I have gotten on this thing (sorry Mendi and Debbie)! Okay, here is a nutshell of what has been happening in my life the last few months:

1. Quit my job at ACMA
2. Started a long-term sub job at Bryant High School for the choir director
3. LOVED Teaching - took 2 of the choirs to State, directed their spring concert and taught solfeg for fun
4. Just finished the last day of school (today)
5. Going to work with a handicapped boy this summer and teach voice lessons
5. Trying to find a teaching job for the fall...if none can be found will continue the sub thing, teaching voice, and possibly start my masters in teaching
6. Going to Wisconsin in 2 weeks to visit family

That is it basically. I need to give a SHOUT OUT to my professors at DBU who taught me all I needed to know about teaching! THANK YOU! I think I have finally found what I was created to do...teach music. Who would have thunk it! I love it...it is so wonderful to talk about music all day long! The kids at the High School are great. I was really blessed to not have any real troubles erupt! It was great teaching them theory and sight-singing...they really didn't do much before me. That is something EVERY singer needs to know how to do! I thought it was funny...every day I would get really excited about the theory and sight-singing. Ha Ha.

I am looking forward to working with Robert this summer...it will be nice to show love and compassion as my job. Who knows...it may even give me a glimpse of nursing to see if it's for me.

Our trip to Wisconsin is fast approaching...don't you know I am going to eat my weight in cheese! I am bringing a ton home and a cheese-head if I can find one! I have always wanted one of those things! We are going to stay with my sister Brenda for aprox. 5 days! We are driving...we have the whole trip mapped. We get to see Lincoln's grave, the windy city and all kinds of stuff. Not to mention take my Granny and Aunt out to dinner one night!

Okay. I need to get off this thing...dinner is calling and it won't make itself! I promise not to be away so long next time (promise Debbie and Mendi)! Until then.....

Stepping Out on Faith…

2009-03-16T07:34:00.000-07:00

As some of you may know I have put in my 2 weeks resignation at my current job at CGI, Inc. and am going to trust in the Lord and peruse teaching voice as my “career”. Here are most of the details:

In January I had several meetings with my supervisors to discuss my job/position, how I was performing, how they perceived I was doing and what I thought of the position since I had been working as the MPA (Meeting Planning Assistant) for a few months. Long story short…I really began to think about whether or not I wished to continue down this career path or if I wished to pursue something using my degree and the gifts God has given me.

Last November/December (prior to those meetings) I had begun to take the necessary steps to start a Music Studio in our home. Sometime during January Ledford Music Studio was born. I began teaching the first week of February… I had one student (a lady from our church). Half-way through the month I auditioned my 2nd student and I currently have those two students.

A few weeks ago I had a follow-up meeting with the company CEO. We basically recapped what had taken place during those January meetings. During this whole time (January-March) Aaron and I had been discussing Ledford Music Studio, my desire to see it grow and how difficult that is with me working a full-time job. We began to consider the possibility of part-time work for me which would free up some time to “market” Ledford Music Studio. I was hesitant but over the period of several months of prayer and earnest seeking I began to feel at peace with the idea.

The following weekend (after my meeting with the CEO) I was offered an opportunity to substitute teach for 2 different school districts, with orientation the next week and the possibility of subbing at least 2-3 times a week and the pay would be equivalent to a part-time job. I was also given the opportunity to meet with a family that needs someone to watch their son during the summer months only…since substitute teaching is basically non-existent during the summer I felt this might be the Lord opening doors. After much prayer, Aaron and I decided it was God opening a door for Ledford Music Studio’s growth. I returned to work Monday morning and gave my 2 weeks’ notice.

Since that moment I have felt nothing but peace. Even though we aren’t sure about “steady” pay, insurance and several other things I believe the Lord is directing our path. This is my final week here at CGI, Inc. and I am somewhat “heavy-hearted”. I have been here just over a year and have developed friendships with several of the people. I pray that God will use me in a mighty way this week to leave a lasting impression of God’s grace.

Ledford Music Studio currently has 2 students, but with a “huge” marking “campaign” about to happen in the following weeks the hope is those 2 will double or even triple.

Until later…

Being a Voice Teacher....

2009-02-05T09:46:00.000-08:00

For those of you wondering how the Lessons By Ledford Music Studio is doing...it is slow in starting. I only have my one student right now...I am still building the studio trying to find students. I have contacted several of the schools and churches in the area but nothing yet. However, I did receive a call yesterday from a parent interested in lessons for their 10 yr old daughter... who knows...maybe my studio will double (wink wink).

My first "official" lesson was last night and went well... I now know what to do for my student more specifically and am looking forward to next week's lesson. I am going to make some charts that show how a whole note breaks down into smaller notes and what their value would be (that is a hard concept to teach without a visual aid) and I am going to put all the "markings" onto a chart to show what they all look like and can be used for easy reference (ex. bar lines, repeat markings, measure numbers, etc). My student is really trying to grasp that concept but it is a challenge for anyone not familiar with music. I told her to think of it as reading a book...you go left to right always.

It was neat to see some light bulbs click on during the lesson and it caused concern to see the cloud of doubt cross her eyes when there was something explained that I thought would be simple to get but in fact was confusing. She is going to make great strides...I can feel it!

I have a feeling I am going to LOVE being a music teacher (I already do)! :)

Until Later...

A Look Into 2009...

2009-01-16T06:45:00.000-08:00

As 2008 came to a close and we all looked towards a new year each of us made a choice to resolve things which needed a change in our lives. Perhaps it is to save money, to lose weight, to find that special someone, or so on...what we all are saying is basically this, "I am not 100% happy with the current coarse of my life and must do something to re-direct the path I am headed down and thereby making me a better/stronger person."

In the spirit of "bettering oneself" I have "resolved" to better my pocket-book, my career, and my body. This month I have been focusing on the new budget and trying to live on basically 200% less than we have been and thereby lessening the stress on the pocket-book. Now that I am a little more comfortable with the money aspect of my life I am going to focus on bettering my career and what every woman in America is striving to do...lose weight.

To better my "career" I have begun my own private voice studio...Lessons By Ledford Music Studio. I have interviewed with a company that contracts voice teachers for nights and weekends. I am happy to say they want to hire my, but I have to complete a 10 week vocal ped class online and then I can start taking on students. The only catch is...right now the class is only available Wednesday mornings at 10 am. Since I work 8-5 that won't work. However, they are hoping to have it availalbe 24-7 in a few months. Since they would like me to teach for them the head lady said she will contact me when that occurs so I can begin the coarse and after a few lessons they may begin giving me students.

For my private studio I have contacted all the public schools in the surrounding areas and will be sending packets to all the choir teachers about Lessons By Ledford Music Studio. I am also sending packets to the churches in the area and am hopeful to have the studio up and running soon. Since I have never formally taught voice before I have "signed on" a free student. A lady from our church choir who can't read music very well and as expressed interested in taking lessons to better her singing and reading abilities. We begin lessons the first week in February...this allows me to study-up on somethings and make sure I have all that I need in stock.

Now for the scary portion of this blog...the betterment of my body. I have started working out little by little and it is amazing how things that use to be so simple are the hardest thing to do. Who knew that lifting your leg and holding it waste high could send you into convulsions. Along with working out, eating right is always a good idea. Weight Watchers is a great program and I have begun doing this at home...thankfully my sister in Wisconsin is doing the same thing. We have started our own "online meeting" via email. It helps knowing someone else is out there, going through the same battles you are, and striving to better themselves as well.

May we all find the courage and strength to make our resolutions become reality, and find the perseverance to press on even when it seems futile.

Until later...

Ice, Ice, Baby...

2009-01-06T07:43:00.001-08:00

The past few days AR has been hit with some freezing rain….which has made the trees a beautiful white color and thankfully the roads haven’t frozen over (yet). I received a call from Aaron yesterday saying some of the limbs in the back yard had broken off because the leaves had iced over and where to heavy for the trees to hold on to them any longer. Which sounded ok to me…you expect something like that to happen. I arrived home like usual and was greeted by Aaron who told me a story about these iced, tree limbs. Here is his story:

During his day off he let the dog out like normal, and noticed that an iced, tree limb was resting on our roof. He didn’t like the idea of a tree limb sitting on our roof, so he did the most logical thing…grabbed the broom and pushed it off the roof. Well, that poor “little” limb couldn’t hold the weight of the ice and promptly broke off, tumbling to the ground and didn’t cause any damage to the house (thankfully).

After hearing his “heroic” story of rescuing our house from the limb, I went out back to look at the “little” limb…

Thank goodness that thing didn’t break off and hit our roof! Well until later….

The Holiday's...

2009-01-05T13:07:00.000-08:00

It is hard to believe the Holiday season has come and gone already! Where does time fly too? We had a great Christmas and New Year's Eve.

Christmas was in Vidalia, LA this year. It was a lot of fun. We took Lucy with us...can you say FUN! She travels really well...no accidents of any kind! Aaron’s niece’s really loved having a big dog to play with…they are use to little “Winnie” dogs and we all know Lucy is NOT little! It was so nice to see his family and spend time with them all. We had lots of time to visit and when the time came to go back home we wanted a few more days (but isn’t that how vacations always end?). We went and saw “Marley & Me” on Christmas day and loved it. Highly recommend seeing it, but if you do bring tissues!

For New Year’s Eve we had a semi-impromptu party at our house. It all came about when a few friends called aaron about the same time and asked, “Are we coming to your house for New Year’s Eve?” From then a party plan was hatched! We played games, eat good food, and watched the ball drop. I was shocked I lasted that long since I am normally asleep before 9:30 rolls around! My sister, Heidi, the one in Australia sent Aaron and I a board game for Christmas called “Partini”. It is sort of like cranium but a little different. In fact I am almost sure we all liked it better than cranium. There are 6 categories instead of 4 and it moves at a more rapid pace.

I know I have promised the second half of my “after pictures” but it has been difficult since we still don’t have internet at home…so I have to try to remember to do all my internet stuff at church (or at work if I have time…which is NEVER!). Have no fear I WILL have those pictures up before the end of 2009! I hope…..

We have some exciting, upcoming events….all of which I will have to blog about at another date! Until then…

Part One of "The After"

2008-10-28T06:35:00.000-07:00

Okay.... I know what some of you are thinking, and yes I am JUST NOW posting some pictures of the new house post move-in day. I have to thank Rachel Logan...if she hadn't been here visiting this week I don't think I would have been able to take any pictures until Christmas. She was kind enough to take these few pictures yesterday. Okay so here are the descriptions of the pictures below:

Picture #1: The view when you open the front door...notice the difference in curtains! Much better! You might also notice the speakers which tower on top of the entertainment center...that is Aaron's master piece! We get great sound while watching TV...almost like we are inside the movie!

Picture #2: The view when you are standing in the bedroom hall way. Behind you would be all the bedrooms and gust bath with our bedroom off to the right. Again...notice the curtains in the living room and dining room... Me likey! As you can see the "wall of cabinets" is still in place. We aren't going to remove them until we own the house.

Picture #3: Our great fireplace. It is electric…no messy firewood needed! This living room is laid out in such a way that I can fit more furniture than the Wylie house...even though it is much smaller than the Wylie house. If you can see the candle holder on the coffee table (in the bottom right corner) my mom brought that back from Maine for my new house and I love it! It has wonderful Pumpkin Spice candles that you burn in it and makes the whole house smell fabulous!!

Picture #4: Our entry way...this is the first time we have ever had an entry way and it is lots of fun. It is so nice to have a "little room" where your guest can take off their coats and shoes without being on top of the people in the living room.

Picture #5: The dining room...it is a little dark but you can get an idea of how the room feels. Directly behind you would be our china hutch and to the left is the kitchen.

Those are all the pictures I have for right now... I will try to get Rachel to help me get pictures of the bedrooms so you all can see my new bed-spread and the other rooms.

If you would like our new address shoot me an email.

Until later....

The Pictures...

2008-10-28T06:19:00.001-07:00

Our new home…

2008-09-25T06:54:00.000-07:00

Well I am sure many of you are wondering how the move went and how the new house is treating us. Sorry it has taken so long for me to blog this! Life is crazy right now. I am in the busy season for work and going away on business a lot. Not to mention we don’t have internet at home so when I forget to get on during the day I can’t at night when I remember. It’s a”vicious” cycle.

Have no fear...pictures of the "after" house will be posted soon, but for now here are the highlights of the move:

1. We started on time (8:00 am…although Aaron and I started around 5:00 am because we couldn’t sleep)

2. Moved quickly (the men worked fast and furious. By the end it took 1 huge moving truck, 2 pick-up trucks, 2 cars and 1 SUV to get us all moved)

3. Ended on time (I had said I would have liked to be finished around 3:00 and that is precisely the time all the moving crew left for their homes)

4. It took the “unpacking” crew (Aaron’s parents and grandma, plus us) a few days to make headway…it looked like a war zone in the house. We couldn’t locate the hinges for the refrigerator doors (which were removed last December in Wylie)…we were unpacking boxes and not putting things away trying to find the hinges. Aaron ended up having to special order them and they just came in last week. That’s right 3½ in my new home with no fridge. Oh the stories we are going to be able to tell our children one day about when we moved to AR.

5. Day 2 in the house we discovered the A/C wasn’t working and the dishwasher was leaking! If you are wondering we still don’t have A/C or a dishwasher…it is taking some time to get them fixed. Like I said…oh the stories we have to tell

Good news…the dishwasher should be fixed this weekend and the A/C should be fixed in the next 2 weeks! Yahoo! We love the new house…I can already feel myself more settled here. During the unpacking days I would get a little sad because I kept thinking, “Now that we are in a house again we can have the Tully’s over tonight!” Then I would remember they don’t live in our neighborhood any more. Then I would think about my friends in Texas who couldn’t come over for dinner one night…I had to tell myself you all can come over it will just take some planning! So don’t be surprised if you get an invite in the mail to a free weekend get-away at La Chateau Ledford conveniently located in Bryant, AR.

Oh, and if you were wondering that picture is one of my 5 rose bushes! I have always wanted a rose bush and now I have 5! Yeah! Well, that’s all I have time for right now…Until later.

The “before” of the new house…

2008-08-28T06:49:00.000-07:00

Well for those of you who have been after me begging for pictures of the new house. Here you go….keep in mind the curtains are not ours! After you read this blog scroll down to see the pictures…

The front of the house…the front yard is huge like the back yard, plus we have the humongous flower bed that stretches the full length of the fence. Everything you see in the pictures is part of our property!

The inside of the house…the first one is the view from the front door when you first walk in (curtains not ours); the second is the dining room/kitchen. After we close on the house we are going to remove the cupboards that are creating that “wall” between the two…it will open it up a bunch! The third, hard to see picture is my sink… I have a window right above it!!! Hooray! Remember…curtain not mine.

Finally the huge backyard…Lucy’s new haven!! Last Saturday while we were doing the pre-clean I went into the back yard and there was the biggest rabbit! Aaron said Lucy is going to have fun catching that one! Okay…that’s all for now. After we get settled in I will take more pictures!

Here is the plan for after we close on the house:
1. Install a storm door… I need more light! I have been living in a dark room for 9 months. Me want light!
2. Install a vent-a-hood/microwave, matching stove & dishwasher
3. Knock down the cupboards creating the wall in the kitchen/dining room. Re-hang them else where…TBD
4. Paint, paint, paint
5. Install a mantle above the fireplace…I am thinking one of the little shelf-like mantles
6. Install new blinds…the wood kind. Right now they are the aluminum kind.
7. Update the light fixtures and door knobs

Now keep in mind all of those things won’t be done at once…we are going to have to pace ourselves! Okay. I must work now…I can’t believe the big day is tomorrow!!

Until later….

The House....

2008-08-28T06:48:00.001-07:00

Inside the House...

2008-08-28T06:46:00.000-07:00

Backyard Pictures...

2008-08-28T06:37:00.001-07:00

The day after tomorrow.

2008-08-27T06:46:00.000-07:00

Time is flying by…we are moving the day after tomorrow. I am so not ready! Ha ha…yeah right! Life is a crazy “mess” right now. I am so busy at work I can’t think straight most nights when I get home. You ever have one of those days where your mind is spinning in about 5 million directions that you just want to slap yourself to focus?! Yeah…that would be me right now at work. What can I say…that’s busy season.

Church is going really great! Aaron is preparing for Christmas already (man it’s only a few short months away)! Each week I have been interpreting for a deaf lady at our church. It is great fun, but every week I am reminded how much sign language I have forgotten! Since life is a crazy “mess” I haven’t had the time to devote to remembering what I have forgotten…so she helps me. I will sign something or fingerspell something and she will show me the correct sign. It really helps with the friendship bond.

Some Sunday’s we can get to laughing and she will tease me about signing…I am thankful that God allowed me to take sign language because until I started signing she would come to church and just sit there. She can read lips really well and she can hear “noises” (more like vibrations) better than most, but she can’t hear. She first came to church through our food pantry ministry. She was saved and baptized and has been coming ever since. Some Sunday’s she brings some deaf friends. I am hoping and praying that when I am fluent again I might be able to start a class at church to teach how to sign that way more of our church family can talk to her. We’ll see…

My parents were in town last night and we were able to take them by the house…the next time they will be in town will be October (they and my high school teachers, the Dawsons, will come over for dinner one night) their company will be doing a seminar in Little Rock during that time. I wanted to show them the before and they will see the after. Mom is just as excited as I am…Aaron and dad are men (they’re happy if we’re happy). Aaron is excited though…I think he is ready to have a home that’s ours again and to have the opportunity to take Lucy for a walk at nights like we use to in Wylie.

Aaron’s dad is coming into town tomorrow and spending the night with us to help with the big move…his mom and grandparents will follow on Friday evening after mom gets out of school (she’s a high school algebra teacher). They are going to spend the weekend with us unpacking. We aren’t sure if they are going to go home on Sunday or Monday. We are really glad they are coming…we haven’t seen them in a long time.

Last night Aaron and I, along with my folks, went and looked some hotels that Aaron’s family could stay in this weekend since we won’t be unpacked…I suggested camping out with us, but they want to stay at a hotel. Anyway, let’s just say some of the ones we went into were really scary! I think we found a nice one that is very affordable in Bryant (the town we are moving too).

Well I guess I need to get off and do some work….since I am leaving early to go to the foot doctor. Hopefully this will be my last visit. I have had 3 shots in my right foot and 2 in my left over the course of 3-4 months. The shots hurt like you wouldn’t believe! I have planter fasciitis really bad in both feet. Hence the shots and all the trips to the doctor. Anywho…today I have another appointment and I am hoping no more shots! Think happy thoughts today!

Until later….

The Count Down begins...and is nearly over!

2008-08-22T09:16:00.000-07:00

WOW! Hard to believe in just 7 short days we will be moved into our new house! Yikes! Okay, for those of you who haven’t gotten crazy phone calls from me announcing the days, and hours left until the big move let me bring you up to speed:

We officially move NEXT Friday, August 29, 2008! I have been counting down since 3 weeks ago…recently I have been known to call someone and announce, “10 days, 17 hours and 34 minutes!” ….Bet you can’t you tell I am excited?!

“What’s the game plan?” you may ask…here it is… we have several men from our church coming to the church at 8:00 a.m. to move us out of the church. I am leaving the “where to begin loading” task for Aaron… All I know is, I have packed up basically the entire apartment, moved all the boxes to our upstairs storage room, and am planning the menu on what to feed the “boys” when they come to help us. Not to mention planning/practicing my “bossy voice” so I can direct traffic…jk!

We are renting a truck to move…we decided it would go much faster if we loaded and unloaded everything at once instead of making multiple trips in pick-up trucks. Plus, it has been really rainy here so just in case the pattern of thunderstorms continues we don’t have to worry about everything getting soaked through.

Okay…what else has been happening here (besides me becoming obsessed with moving)?! We have been so busy the days/weeks are flying by. We are doing an outreach program at church and that has consumed most of Aarons days getting ready for it all. There is a new sub-division only a few miles from the church and we went and pasted out flyers last weekend advertising our church’s outreach program…painting their house number on their curb! We have had a great response so far…over 100 homes I believe.

Here is how it works…we handed out (or hung flyers on their doors) inviting them to call and make an appointment where our church’s “curb painting team” could come out and paint their house number on their curb for FREE. No cost to them…all they had to do is call, make the appointment and guarantee someone will be home when we come by so that we can talk with them, and they can watch us paint. (Wink, wink, which is where the evangelism comes in…get it?).

We were scheduled to paint Thursday night, Friday night, all day Saturday, and Sunday night this week, but because of the rain we had to try to move the Thursday & Friday appointments to Saturday/Sunday or possibly next weekend…don’t worry if we have to paint next weekend it will not stop me from moving….NOTHING could stop me…I am a very motivated lady!

Anyways…the entire church is really excited about this. In fact when we went out last Sunday night you could feel the excitement building. By the time we were going back to the church so many were practically beaming and excited…there was more talking riding home then there was headed to the sub-division. It was great!

Well… my job is going well. Lots going on there and I don’t have the time to go into detail today. I will do that later. We are gearing up for our busy season to begin in 3 weeks. Basically in September and October I will be gone on a trip almost every week. 2x some weeks. It is going to be crazy…please pray for me.

Well I must sign off for now, but I will ask that you pray for some family friends of ours…they are going through a really rough time right now…I don’t feel comfortable telling their names, but pray for them. They are having major health issues on both sides of the family and trouble finding a job (which we all know can cause financial difficulties). Please remember them in your prayers.

Until next time!

Reflections....

2008-08-01T07:23:00.000-07:00

Well there has been so much going on these days. It is hard to believe almost a year has passed by since moving to little rock! Last weekend (as some of you know) was my birthday! 3 cheers for me… ha ha. I had a grand time with my new friends here in AR. You know I am going to give you the blow by blow so here we go….

Before my birthday weekend we had just finished a week long VBS at TBC and it went really well…lots of kids. Aaron and I taught the K-3rd grade class…what a fun bunch! Anyway…Friday night we got together with Melissa, Matt, Rebecca and Paul for a fun night filled with homemade pizza and games! It was a blast hanging out with some of my newest, so to be dearest friends. I wish you all could have been there.

Saturday was very packed…Aaron hosted the 1st annual musician’s cookout for TBC. Most of the day was spent hauling things over to April & Mike McFarland’s house (the couple keeping Lucy) since the Ledford’s don’t have a house YET (more about that at the bottom)! Since it was my birthday weekend I spend the morning lounging around watching BONES…one of my favorite shows! It was great… I didn’t get out of my PJ’s until almost noon! We went to my favorite restaurant for lunch…any guesses…yep, Chick-fil-a! after which we took Paul on a tour of our soon to be new home (more to come), followed by grocery shopping…and let me just say trying to shop with 2 men is a nightmare… ha ha. JK! Once we had all the vittles secured we dropped them off at the McFarland’s and went back to the church for a few minutes of down time before the party began. The cookout was a smashing success…we had about 40ish people show and had tons of fun.

Sunday was an event filled day as well…it was my office birthday day! Yahoo! It was also my last week for a while on the praise team (we have the teams set-up on a rotation bases), and I tried my best to interpret for a deaf lady at our church. It is really great using sign language to communicate God’s Word…now I just have to work really REALLY hard to remember all the signs I once knew! After church Aaron took me to a really nice steak restaurant for lunch. After which we went on the hunt for my present. I had asked for a new vacuum cleaner and he wanted me to pick it out. I have to tell you I did NOT get a vacuum cleaner…we ended up replacing the filters on our old one since we have never done that! The old filters were 3 years old!! Yikes! Aaron did buy me Season 1-2 of NCIS another show I really like…so in the end it was ok that I didn’t get the vacuum cleaner!

Ok, so Sunday night we had to go to 2 different small group bible studies and make an announcement about an evangelism opportunity we are going to have in a few weeks at TBC. So we drove way out to the boonies to the other McFarland’s house (Jeff & Christy…Jeff is Mike’s brother) and made the announcement. Then we drove back to civilization and went to Jimmy & Kathy Eldrod’s house for another get together. Jimmy coaches the church softball team that Aaron is a part of…jimmy also sings in the choir and we are working on getting Kathy to join the choir. Anywho…the weekend was filled with lots of fun, good food and great fellowship!

Okay now to the house… I know you have been on pins and needles waiting. Drum roll please….we are moving out of the church and into our new home August 29 weekend (Labor Day weekend...I have Labor Day off)! I don’t have any pictures yet, but hopefully will have some soon. The house currently belongs to Sue & Jerry Kidd from TBC. We are going to do a lease to own like our Wylie house…once we close on the Wylie house we can close on the AR house. It is 3 bed, 2 bath, and 1497 square feet and has a back yard that makes the plains of TX look small!! We are so very pumped! We can’t wait to have windows, our puppy and all our home things again! I have to say I will probably miss the church…it sure does get really dark anytime of the day, making sleeping-in very easy. Plus, we all know how hard change is (especially for me)…I would be lying if I didn’t say I am a bit nervous…but from what I hear that is normal. We are very excited about the house though, there is tons of potential and we have plans already on how we want to re-do/redecorate it. We may even get to start moving boxes in earlier than the official move date. The Kidd’s are a great family and so generous to us. We feel so blessed that God brought such a sweet & precious family into our lives.

Anyways…that is all I have time for now… I must get to work! Until later…bye!

The day has finally come....

2008-07-10T08:18:00.001-07:00

Aaron and I are going to be able to move out of the church!! Yippy! Since we have been able to do the lease to own option on the Wylie house we have been considering renting.

There is a couple in our church that has a house they are trying to sell and they spoke to us about possibly renting/buying their house. We went and looked at the house and have been talking/praying about it for a few weeks now. The Kidd family (the family that own the house) are very kind and understanding...in fact he is one of the directors for the BMAA….he travels all over the world working with BMA missionaries.

We won't be able to move until September and that was something we thought might be a drawback for the Kidd's went considering us...we got a phone call last night that they are willing to hold the house for us until September and the rent price they asked is less than what we were thinking which is a huge blessing (I wasn't sure if we could afford the rent we were thinking it was going to be)! We are going to work out all the details after Mr. Kidd returns from his business trip!

The house is a little smaller than our Wylie house but only by about 60 sq ft. not bad…the bedrooms are a little smaller and the ceilings are a little lower, but that is ok. It was built in 96 and is in good condition. Aaron and I are going to do some remodeling if we buy it…we want to knock down a few things to open it up. PLUS I want a storm door since I had to leave me last on in TX!

The back yard is about the size of a field….. If you were to take our Wylie back yard and add another 1 ½ that would be about the size of the back yard!!! HUGE!!!! We will finally have our baby puppy back…since she has been living apart from us longer than she lived with us!!!

The landscaping in front is my favorite…it is so beautiful!!! I will have to take pictures…OR if you feel the need to come visit you could come see it first-hand!!

Well that is all for now...I will keep you posted!

Yahoo!!! The House!!!

2008-06-22T07:47:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone....we have some great news!!! Our house is going to sell!!! We have a young couple with 3 kids who are doing a lease-to-purchase on the house. That means they are going lease it from us until July 2009 at which point we will close on the house!!! There is a light at the end of the tunnel!

This will allow Aaron and I options...we can choose to rent a small apartment or stay at the church "apartment" and save money for a down payment on a house here. I have to be honest I think we are going to opt for the former rather than the later.... I know on one hand that will probably mean more days of sadness for me, but on the other hand I keep thinking we will FINALLY be able to get our feet back under us financially! Thus allowing us to buy a house here without a fear of where is the money going to come from! Yippy!

I have to say life has finally reached a sense of "normal" whatever that is.... we have gotten into a good routine now and I have accepted the fact that for now we must live in the church because we just can't afford anything else...FOR NOW!

It is nice to finally have some type of peace & settlement about where I live....you all know it has been a hard road! I guess you could say I have acclimated my self to the church gym! ha ha!!

My job is going great... I have started my new position as Meeting Planner Assistant and I spend most of my days calling different state tracking down a possible meeting location for that state's chapter. I also book flights, create various forms & brochures, plus a whole bunch of other stuff I haven't even learned about yet!!! Yikes! In fact this is the first time in my life I brought work home with me!!! Oh no....it's happening.... I am becoming a "work-a-holic"!!! HA HA... yeah right.... It is the people who make the job not the job itself and ACMA has WONDERFUL PEOPLE!

Aaron is doing really good...he is really enjoying having Matt on staff. For those of you who may not know our friend Matt Henslee has become our new youth pastor ( http://www.templeuth.com/ )! He was Aaron's roommate at DBU for a few semesters, and is the drummer in our band Fragile Stone ( http://www.fsworship.com/ ). He and his wife Rebecca have moved out here about 2 weeks ago and it has been really good having friends from Texas here.

We have decided to make all our Texas friends move to Little Rock....our first "victims" are the Tully's.... ha ha.... Even Matt & Rebecca say the Tully's need to move here....so if you know Matt & Wendi...you need to tell them to pack-up and get their little butts out here! :) Don't worry...you might be next... muahhhahhhahhahh!!

Well I must get to church, but stay tuned for more.... love you all! Bye now!

Our House...

2008-06-02T05:48:00.000-07:00

Well I know most of you are probably wondering if we have sold the house yet...the answer...NOPE!!! Grrrr.... oh well. I have to keep reminding myself God is in control and there is a reason we haven't sold yet.

On the upside... I listed the house on craigslist and surprisingly we have had a few responses...who knows perhaps one of them will be the lucky new owners of the best house in Wylie TX!

Meanwhile...that is what our AR "home" looked like a few weeks ago...boy did it rain!!

Please keep us in your prayers…we really would love to sell and get settled here! Until later….

What happened in Vegas....

2008-06-02T05:41:00.000-07:00

Hello Everyone! I know, I know...it has been FOREVER since I blogged and I know you are dieing to know what happened in Vegas and if it stayed in Vegas or not. So let me begin....

I got there on April 23 and that was a long flight...for some reason I was thinking a short 2 hour flight...nope 3+ hours. Yikes and let me just say the landing was AWEFUL!!! Because Vegas is located in a valley there are some nice gushes of wind that rock your plane back and forth... I seriously felt green after landing! Yuck!

So we get to the hotel and it is the coolest hotel I have ever been to in my life...it was great. It was the Red Rock Casino, Spa and Resort....if you saw the movie 21 that recently came out then you have seen the inside of the hotel....most of the Vegas scenes in that movie where shot at that hotel. Here is their website if you are interested to see it...http://www.redrocklasvegas.com/

Anyways...we get there, check into our room (which is the picture above...me and my room) and then we headed down-stairs to begin working. And let me tell you we worked really, REALLY hard all week! The first few days were prep days and so we would get ready for the convention and then at night our boss would take us out to dinner....speaking of which I have a few tails to tell regarding my "dinning experience in Vegas".

So the first restaurant we went to was called Terra Rosa and the chief there was one of the Hell's Kitchen winners. I had Sea Bass and Swordfish for the first time and let me just say....FABULAS!!!! YUM! I will definitely have those dishes again! Hello!! The second restaurant we went too was called T-Bones...it is the really expensive steak place... I mean just the steak itself for $50. You then had to purchase each side item by itself...prices ranged from $10-$20 per side item...needless to say it could easily cost $100 per person! Yikes!

Anyways...so me and another lady I work with, Kelli, decided to spilt the T-Bone and the New York strip and a loaded baked potato. As our server was bringing out our food he ran into another server and I saw this container go flying in the air...all this white stuff just flying through the air and I thought, "Oh! That must be our cheese!" Well has it splattered on my head, shoulder, back and leg...I realized it was NOT cheese, but SOUR CREAM!!!! All up in my hair, and all over the ONLY suit I brought for the conference…I was wearing the suit because you had to dress a certain way to dine at this restaurant. I of course immediately started laughing...what else could I do?!

As I am sitting there turning red from laughing and my co-workers are just staring at me like I am nuts and if it had been them they would be yelling at the guy…2 of the biggest managers I have ever seen came over and surrounded me. It was like something out of an Italian mafia movie. As they hovered above me they were telling me that I didn’t want to get my dry-cleaning compted but rather would want something taken off of the bill that way I could see instant results. Because if I got my dry-cleaning compted they would have to see the bill and mail me a check and that could take up to a few weeks. So I told them okay…take it off the bill. I really just wanted them to stop intimidating me by breathing down my neck…I told my boss they were going to reduce the ticket cost some and he very kindly said he would take care of the dry-cleaning since it would be about the same amount that was coming off the bill! So for the rest of the night as we continued to prep for the conference I had sour cream hair! Let’s just say after we were done that evening I went up stairs and took a nice long, hot bath in the world’s largest tub…no joke. If I were to try to touch my feet to the end of the tub I would have drowned easy…it was really long, and deep…very nice!

Anyways…here is how the rest of the time went….work until 12,1,or 2 am, then get up and at 5am to be at work by 6am and do the same thing….work until 12,1,or 2 am. Many days this occurred….one of my main jobs was the money lady. I was assigned to registration but when we got there the money took on a life of its own….we had a 50/50 Raffle, a Silent Auction and Live Auction and I was in charge of all that cash!! There were times when my raffle sellers would be there to pick up more tickets and hand in cash AND some one would be wanting to pay for an auction item…I was the only one allowed to take money basically so let’s just say I went crazy with money…every time I ran out of tickets to sell I had to go downstairs to the safety deposit box and get more, put up the money and tickets stubs, etc. I went down to the box so many times the people working the front desk knew exactly who I was…no joke!! I would be walking up and they would say, “Do you need into your box again?” They were my friends during the conference…ha ha!

The last day of the conference we were done at 12 noon, but we had to pack and ship things back to Little Rock…so we finished about 4 pm and I went outside for the first time since getting there 8 days earlier… I lounged by the pool! It was great! I spent about an hour and a half out by the pool and then I met up with my co-workers and we ate at this HUGE buffet place….$25.00 a person! It was good! I actually got to go to bed at a descent hour that night…keep in mind by this time I really have only had about 14-15 hours of sleep in 4-5 days!

We got up early to catch our flight and it was a great trip home… I tried to sleep but that just didn’t work since the man behind me was coughing up his left lung and I was afraid he would hock a loogie into my hair! It was nasty!! Coming home was great…Aaron picked me up and he even had a welcome home present…he bought me Becoming Jane!! Then he took me out for a wonderful steak dinner! I was so great coming home! I think I slept about a million hours the next day! We went and saw Lucy…who has just turned 1 years old! She is getting so big! Merlin wouldn’t leave me alone… I think he missed me!

Well I think that is all the details on Vegas….more to come on life in Little Rock!

Welcome To Vegas

2008-04-24T08:07:00.000-07:00

Well as most of you know i am going to Vegas for a company trip...I will be there for 10 days. We are putting on a convention and it takes a few days to set up, the convention and a few days to tear down.

Well after a long travel day yesterday I made it!! And let me just say the hotel and my room are awesome.

I can't really talk now we are about to start setting up, but i wanted to tell you about last night....we at a Terra Rossa...this Italian resturant where Hell's Kitchen''s 1st winner is the excutive chef!! It was great...so fancy!!! My boss treated us to dinner.

I had a Lobster Brische (not sure if that is how it is spelled) and the Seabass... which I split with one of my co-workers so I could aslo try the Swordfish...let me just say it was great... the Swordfish was my favorite!!!!

Well that is all I can say now, but I will try to post more....

oh that picture is in the airport...LOVE IT!!!

Interesting Twist!

2008-04-01T06:06:00.001-07:00

I have some exciting news…after only being at my job for 7 weeks I was offered a promotion! Here’s what happened:

We are preparing for our national conference which is in Vegas next month and on Wednesday of last week (3/26) we had a mock registration (that is where people who have been to nationals before pretend to be “customers” and those of us who have never been try our best to “register” them for the conference).

The company flew in a lady who has been going to the national conference for the last 15 years…she along with our Meeting Planner was the ones in charge of the training session. Once they thought we were ready they called our CEO and he came up and pretended to be a person….lots of questions. If you didn’t know the answer you really had to BS your way through and then after the “scene” acted out they would tell you what you should have said.

Well, during the mock registration they kept saying I was doing a great job and I was good at that kind of thing…etc.

Thursday rolls around and my boss asked to speak with me. He took me into the conference room and said, “This is going to hurt me more than it hurts you.” I kept thinking…”oh no…he is going to fire me”. However, he ended up offering me a promotion! He said they all were very impressed with how I handled myself during the mock registration and thought I would be a good fit for the Meeting Planning Assistant.

He also said there is a chance that in 6 months or so I might be able to plan some events on my own….perhaps that means another promotion to Meeting Planner!!

I spent all weekend talking with Aaron, parents, and various people from church including our pastor…after much thought and prayer I decided to take the position! As soon as we can hire a replacement for me in my current position (Customer Service Assistant) then I will start my new job!

Needless to say things are going great here in AR! Now if only we can sell our house!! Please keep that in your prayers!

Until later….

Holy Week....reflections

2008-03-19T05:51:00.000-07:00

As I reflect on the wonder that is the Easter season I have to pause and give thanks for the many blessings in my life! God has given me a loving husband, a roof over our heads, food on the table, jobs for financial support, and most important eternal life!! Praise God for all His many blessings.

Life has been slowly, but surely improving. If I am being completely honest I would say when we first moved here I didn't like it (bet you couldn't have guessed that...ha ha). Now, however, I am growing increasingly more and more fond of our new home. The people are so sweet, genuine and possess good hearts...you can't help but love them! I have to say I believe I am truly and completely HAPPY here!! I never thought the day would come, but I think it has! :)

Since getting my new job (which is going great by the way), it seems the "sun has begun to shine again". I wish I could say that during all the different seasons of my life I trust God whole-heartedly and NEVER doubt....that would be a lie! Sadly I fall very short of that mark! Praise God for his ever-present patience for us lowly, Earth-dwellers!! Without His sufficient grace we wouldn't be able to make it day by day!

Well, as we get ready for this weekend I keep thinking, "So many exciting things are going to happen!!" Such as, the Tully's are coming to visit, my good friend Erin Richard is on her way here tomorrow, & Aaron is holding the first ever Good Friday service at Temple! I am so excited I am about to burst out of my skin (figuratively not literally...yuck!)!!!

Friday night we are having a service that reflects solely on Christ crucifixion. There is going to be scripture reading that correspond with video clips and music. After the service Matt Tully is going to have an art exhibit set up that features pieces on the crucifixion (go figure). It is going to be a wonderful time for us to remember why we get so excited on Easter Sunday.

Saturday we are having an Easter Egg Hunt for the children in the church and surrounding community with a fun lunch! Then of coarse Easter Sunday we’ll have a wonderful service and the most exciting part is 2 of our new members are going to be Baptized that morning! What a wonderful, visual reminder of Christ's death and resurrection!!!

Okay, I need to say goodbye for now, but shall write again soon!!! Oh, if you are wondering who the cute little boys are above they are April & Mike McFarland's little ones! They are the folks keeping Lucy for us right now!! Aren't they so precious!?!?!?! Oh yeah...nothing on the house yet!! Keep that in your prayers!

Well...

2008-03-02T07:57:00.000-08:00

life is interesting these days! It can be so frustrating when you have no money! I am sure several of you can understand...I bet you have been there at least once in your life. I experienced a first this past week...I couldn't buy chicken because it was to expensive and we don't have the funds for it!!!! I had never even thought a day would come when buying chicken would "break the bank"!!! Oh well...at least it is payday this week!!!! Yeah!!

The job is going really good. We just relocated into a new office and I really like it! I have a view again...not as nice as the view from Advancement but pretty close to it (enjoy that Debbie)! :) This up-coming week will be the first at the new office... I will let you know how it’s going after a few days there!!! :)

Aaron and I had dinner this past week at some friends house, the McFarland’s, and Aaron played "Cowboys & Indians" with their 4 yr old Ethan...that's the picture above!!! It was pretty darn cute!! :)

Well I think that is all for now... Oh yeah... STILL WAITING FOR THE HOUSE TO SELL!!!! GRRRRR. If you know of any buyers wanting in the Wylie area please tell them to buy our house!!!! I really want to get a house here and we can't until we unload the TX house!! Even Aaron is getting tired of the room at church! At least we aren't paying rent...we would be completely broke if we had to pay 2 housing payments!!! Yikes!

Until later!

The New Job

2008-02-20T05:56:00.000-08:00

Well...it has been a week now since I started my job, and I have to say not a day goes by that it doesn't make think of my DBU!!! I miss everyone there, and this job makes me think of the Cashier's office, the Business office, and Advancement!! It is like I took all those jobs and mixed them together! :)

I am liking it ....we are trying to relocate our office so I think this week and next will be a moving week!!! yikes!

Aaron is doing really well...he is LOVING his job and we LOVE our church!!! They are a wonderful group of people!

Merlin is still a playful cat, but now he will crawl up into your lab and fall asleep!!! I LOVE it!! Lucy is getting so big....I hate that she isn't with us, but she is having the time of her life with Boo! I think we may need to get another dog after we buy a house that way she doesn't get so lonely! :)

Speaking of the house....we just lowered the price from $144,900 to $142,500. That is about all we can afford to lower it! We really need to sell it....we barely have any money in the bank!! That house payment is killing us!!! Hopefully our finances will do better now that I have a job and will be getting paychecks!!!

Okay...I need to get back to the old job!!! Have a great day everyone! :)

New Job!!!

2008-02-13T19:22:00.000-08:00

Okay, I know I promised some of you that I would blog sooner....sorry!! I have been SO busy at my NEW JOB!!!! YEAH!!!!

Here are all the details:

I had an interview Monday at 8:00 am with ACMA in Little Rock (off Markham & Shackleford for those of you in AR). By 12:00 he called and offered me that position and asked if I could start 2:00 pm the same day!! I of coarse said yes!

The reason I started Monday was because the lady who left my position had her last day today! So I was able to train with her a few days!! Tomorrow is my first day alone!!! yikes! The lady's husband was transferred to South Carolina...that is why the position opened up! Praise the Lord though...for me!! :) She had only been there for 2 months!! She didn't know that he was going to be transferred!!! They tease me already about not leaving in 2 months.

The position title is Customer Service Assistant....here is what that basically entails:
1. I am the 2nd assistant to the CEO
2. I am the Financial Director's assistant
3. I am Customer Service (just me)
4. I am the Receptionist/catch all for everyone else

So I will pretty much stay busy until the day I die...just kidding!!

The company's official name is CGI which stands for Cunningham Group Inc. However, they mostly go by ACMA/NICM.

ACMA- American Case Management Association
NICM - National Institute of Case Management

In a nutshell we keep certified all Social Workers, RN who work with case workers, Case Workers, and any one else in that type of field. They have to become a member of our company to remain certified, attend our conferences to achieve the hours they need to be certified, and take the certification/re-certification test through us.

There are several chapters in different states with presidents and so on, but they are all members of our company...if that makes sense. Each chapter has their own state conference once a year (which we help put on) and then we host the National conference which is held in a different major city each year... this year it is in Vegas!!!

The entire staff goes to our National conference for 8 days and works it...they pay the way for all of us (get us a hotel and give us money for food)!!! I am really excited I get to go to Vegas...even if I will be working for most of the time!!

They are paying me a little less than what I was making at DBU, however, there is a possible $2,000 bonus each year based on performance...so if I can get that bonus it will be about the same as what DBU was paying! Let's face it... I have been without a job for 4 months now... I will take anything that pays!!! :)

The job itself is kind of like my Cashier job and Advancement job all rolled into one... I am processing all financial apps., payments, ect. At the same time keeping track of who has registered/paid for the conferences....not to mention COPYING CHECKS again!! :)

Thankfully it is similar to jobs I've held before...it helps me not feel as overwhelmed. I know this job will be a ministry opportunity... I don't think any of them (or many of them) go to church or are saved. They kept making comments today about how I am a crazy Baptist when I was goofing around with them! Here's the story....

I was joking with one of the ladies about buying eatable underwear for her husband for Valentines day! She of coarse told the entire office that I was going to buy my hubby eatable underwear!! They kept saying, "Wait, aren't you a Baptist Ministers Wife? You want to buy eatable underwear?!" I would just laugh and say, "It's okay, because we are married and there is nothing wrong with that in a marriage" Of coarse the entire time I could feel my face getting red! :)

I also told them that even if I wanted to go buy something like eatable underwear I didn't think I could work up enough nerve to actually go into a store like that... I would be too embarrassed. They thought that was funny! Who knows...maybe they will see that Christians can have fun too and are normal just like they are!

okay... now that I have told you an embarrassing story....I am going to get off this thing!

Until next time!! xo

Life in the "big" city

2008-01-31T07:54:00.001-08:00

Well it has been a long time since I've gotten on this thing...sorry about that!! I don't know where to start...I guess I'll start at the very beginning (a very good place to start).

Here is the honest truth:

I am not employed yet, we still have not sold our house, and we are almost broke!! Things are getting to be really tough! There are days I want to pack up and move back "home" but I know it would break Aaron's heart if I did, so I try not to cry and "suck it up"....let's face it.... I am a big girl right?!?!

There are days I can feel myself slipping into a dark hole...a pity party if you will. Some days all I can think about it is, "I need a friend, not just a passing bud but a real BOSOM BUDDY. You know a KINDRED SPIRIT. That's all it would take for me to feel at home! I just know it!"

Other days I think, "If only we didn't own a home in TX, but rather had one here especially one with LOTS of windows (since I live in a room with NO windows)! That's all it would take for me to like it here!"

Then there are those days all I can think about is the fact I have NO job, I haven't worked since November 2007. I have sent out 50+ resumes and haven't had any bits (kind of like our house). Oh, and the one bite I did get was a dud!! It is on those days I feel like a lazy bump on a log!!!!

As those and other thought whirl around in my head I have to work really hard at not letting myself get "depressed" and hate the fact we left TX for the state of AR!

If there is one thing I am trying learn in all my "ranting and raving" is this...God has supplied me with wonderful opportunities for ALL of those things that I think are hopeless!

For example:
1. He has given me bosom buddies/kindred spirits, but it’s going to take time for those friendships to blossom - I MUST be patient.
2. He has given me a "home" that is rent free with a built in gym for me to workout in - I need to be grateful.
3. Even though I haven't found a full-time job yet... He did give me an opportunity to work (with pay) for 4 1/2 weeks as a fill-in secretary at our church, therefore, allowing me to connect with the people of our church

**I need to remember God has provided in the past and he is continuing to do so. Even if it isn't in the way I think it should be or the way I think we need it to be done!! After all who knows best, Karice or Christ?!

Well here is a little update....as I was sitting here typing this note I received to phone calls. The first was a job interview and the second was a house showing!!! Isn't that funny!! God has such timing!

Details... I am sure you want details.... The job interview is Monday Feb. 4 at 10 am with Baptist Health Hospital for a Secretary II position. I am not sure what the pay is but I know it is an 8-5 job! This is a good thing...Baptist has a program that helps assist you if you pursue nursing...I am not sure of all the details but that is okay... perhaps I will know more on Monday!

The house showing is a first time show, but that doesn't mean the person looking won't fall in love with the house at first sight and make an offer today! You never know!

Oh yeah...I almost forgot... it is official (at least on our end)... I am going to be starting nursing school in the summer!! Aaron and I decided this week that it is something I need to do. I have been wanting to do this for at least 3 years now and Aaron said whether I get a job that helps pay for it or not , I need to do it...he supports me 100% (even if we have to pay for it out of pocket)! That was all I needed to hear!!! I am so pumped...and now God may be opening a door for me to work somewhere that actually pays a portion! WOW!

I think I need to get off this thing now and get some work done...I still have 2 more days of work at the church! I hope you are all doing well and we miss you all so much!

~Until next time~

Update- boy does time fly!

2008-01-05T18:04:00.001-08:00

Well that job interview was a bust... it was a temp job and they could only guarantee me 4 months worth of work (that is if I was bumped up from the back-up list). I decided not to continue down that road... I don't want to work for 4 months and then have to start the hunt all over again!

I know God is going to bring me the perfect job...I hope it is sooner rather than later (funds be getting low). :)

Okay, so here is the scoop since I haven't been as faithful to blogging as I thought I would:

We went to Texas for Christmas and had a blast!! It was great to see friends and family (if we didn't see you so sorry, maybe next time!)

We were in Little Rock for New Year's and I welcomed in 2008 with a semi-meltdown, but all corrected it self before the actual gong of 2008!! I am doing okay now...I must be honest and admit I have my moments were I think I am going to crack, but some how I don't! A big part of that is Aaron and how he is understands (when my moods allow)! ;)

Lucy and Merlin are well adjusted to their new homes, but Merlin is a little scarred to venture past the bathroom doors in the upstairs hall...I think the air-condition spooks him when it comes on (it sounds like someone slamming a door and running down the hall)! Lucy is having the time of her life with Boo (the other families black lab). They play non-stop! I will be happy when our house sells and we can have our own home again with our puppy there! It feels like a part of us is missing with her not present! And YES our house STILL has not sold...grr. Remember that in your prayers!

I flew to Dallas on Thursday and returned today (Saturday) because my brother Curt was visiting and I haven't seen him since my wedding! It was so much fun seeing him and the family again. We did some serious shopping and game playing!

Speaking of the shopping I have to tell... we only went to one store (JCPenny's in Lewisville at the Vista Ridge Mall) they had the biggest sale I have ever seen!! They are the model store for all Penny's world wide so they have to have their displays set up so corporate can take pictures and send them to the other locations. Needless to say they had $300 suits on sale for $47!!! So here is a rough breakdown on what all I spent (prepare to be amazed):

If purchased off the rack - $2,200
Paid in store - $350
SAVED - $1,850

That is a good sale... I was able to buy Aaron a complete new wardrobe basically!!! There was a leather jacket I got for $7.00! Oh yeah!!! now I do have to show Aaron all the loot...we may end up taking some of it back, but I always say "if you find a deal get it and return it tomorrow if you don't need it because it might not be there the next day when you go back to get it!"

Anyway...so I am back now with an ear that STILL hasn't popped... I have been off the plane for 6 hours now!!! It hurts so bad...Aaron wants to take me to the ER... I don't know what they could do. Maybe remove my ear!!! ha ha!!!

We are gearing up for our Mission Symposium that is this week at church and Aaron's family is coming into town so we are going to have Christmas with them when they get here.

I think I need to get off this thing for now...I haven't eaten since 11:00!! I hope to send another update soon!

GOD BLESS!

Job Hunting.....

2008-01-02T07:08:00.000-08:00

Here it is in a nutshell:

I really don't like job hunting, but I know God is faithful and he will provide....I am off to an interview for a Loan Specialist Assistant...we shall see.

I will write a much more detailed blog later....

New Address

2007-12-12T14:11:00.000-08:00

This is our new/temporary address until our house in Wylie sells and we buy a house here:

Temple Baptist Church
10710 Interstate 30
Little Rock, AR 72209

Speaking of our Wylie house...it has shown 3 times since we left...2x to the same guy!! Keep his in your prayers!

Here's all the details of the move!! :)

2007-12-12T12:12:00.000-08:00

Okay everyone…here is the long version of what happened during the big move. I don't know how to type this so it is easy to read/follow...I am just going to give an account day by day....that seems the easiest for me! So let's start at the very beginning...a very good place to start! :-)

Friday, Nov. 30 - Sunday, Dec. 2

Aaron went to AR and I went home to visit with my family. We had a great time! Mom and I did some serious shopping! On Sunday afternoon my friend Rachel Logan met up with us and rode back to Wylie with me...she helped us pack up and move.

Monday, Dec. 3

What a busy day... I was running around trying to get things ready to pack-up because we were planning on loading the truck Tuesday night in order for us to pull-out on Wednesday morning. One major thing I did accomplish was buying some special boxes for my china!!! :-) Aaron was driving home from AR so he didn't get home until after dark....We went out to dinner with the Tully's (we went to BABES)... we tried to take a picture in front of the BABES truck but the batteries were dead!! We had a great time....at one point Wendi and I both were crying...Matt said the sweetest prayer and we started crying...talk about an awkward moment for the boys... hee hee. I sure miss the Tully's!

Tuesday, Dec. 4

Aaron went to pick up the truck and of coarse there was problems...it took him 4 hours to get there and back with the truck!! Rachel and I packed all day and all night! Rachel was given the task of packing the kitchen....it took for ever because there was so much stuff in there!! Amazing really! I was running around to all the rooms trying to sort out apartment things vs. storage things. (We call the room at the church "the apartment"...it helps me think of it as home and not just a room we’re living in at the church). Some time in the afternoon my parents came to the rescue...they came to help pack!

There was so much to do....we had the Tully’s and our friend Nathan Stokes coming over at 6 pm to start loading things onto the truck and all day I felt like we were packing but nothing was getting done!! PLUS I had to make Taco soup as "payment" for the movers and that added stress because we couldn't just order a pizza, but it all worked out okay (not to mention that was the best pot of soup)! :-)

We all worked on loading the truck until about 10:30 then our “troops” went home because it was so late! Aaron and I kept packing until almost 1:00 and we still didn't get everything loaded!!

On Monday night the Tully's said they had a goodbye gift for us and since we didn't get a picture that night we all lined up in front of our mantle which still had the mirror Matt made me hanging on it and took a picture. I went back to work and 10 minutes later Wendi said I needed to come to the kitchen. On our dinning room table was the most beautiful picture frame with the picture we had just taken in it. Matt designed and made a frame for us and they brought their printer to our house that night so they could print out that picture…capturing our last moment together. Matt designed the frame symbolizing a journey and an embrace around the picture! It is so special to me... I love it!!! It was so hard saying goodbye to the Tully’s. I didn’t want to let go of Aislyn…she’s my girl!

Wednesday, Dec. 5

We woke up much later than we intended...oh well. We continued packing and it seemed like it would never end. Aaron kept finding more things to pack. When we thought we were almost done we suddenly remember the things out back: the grill, dog-house, dog, etc.

By the time it was all said and done we had the truck completely packed full, Aaron's truck loaded on the back of a trailer and it was loaded down with stuff...we looked like the Clampett's from Beverly Hillbillies (I have pictures to prove it).

We pulled out of Wylie at 2:16 pm and stopped by 2:22 pm because Lucy had gotten stuck under Aaron's feet in the truck and he couldn't drive! Once we got the ”kids” all settle we were off again! We stopped for dinner at McDonalds in Greenville, TX right by I-30. When we got Lucy out to go potty she pulled backwards so hard that her collar came off and she took off running! I thought my heart was going to stop! There was so much traffic! I ended up waiting until she was sniffing some pole, then I snuck up on her, grabbed her neck and Aaron came running with the leash and collar. He said, "that does it...we are getting you the tightest collar ever!" :-)

After that the trip was fairly uneventful, however, a funny thing which kept Rachel and I laughing the entire trip was one of the bicycles in the back of Aaron's truck had a reflector on it and the wheel spun the whole way (moving truck created nice wind). At night the reflector on the bike wheel would shine white and all you could see in the dark was this little white thing going round and around. It made it really easy to spot Aaron when he was amongst all the semi-trucks! We took a video of it...it really cracked us up. It was hypnotizing us! :-)

We got to AR around 9:00 pm and took Lucy to April & Mike McFarland's house (they are church members). They have a black lab named Boo and she stays outside all the time. When we first got there Lucy seemed afraid of Boo, but after about 15 minuets they were running around playing. Mike has a water tub outside for Boo and wouldn't you know it Lucy jumped right in there and took a swim...did I mention it was about 34 degrees?! Mike said the next morning they both were soaking wet and Lucy was covered in mud! :-)

After visiting with the McFarlands a little while we headed to the church...we had called JD (our pastor) earlier and arranged for the moving crew to get there in the morning at 8:00 that way it wouldn't be 3:00 am before we finished. We were so tired by the time we got to the church we crashed big time!

Thursday, Dec. 6
Several gentlemen from our church came at 8:00 am to help us unload. Unloading always seems faster than loading. I would stand at the door and point to storage or the apartment any time anything came through the doors. After we had the truck all unloaded we brought in the sky-lift to help get the apartment stuff upstairs. By the time everything was put into storage or the apartment it was mid-afternoon. We started unpacking and trying to organized the apartment...we worked until after mid-night and by this time my feet were killing me since I had been on them since Friday of last week thanks to the marathon shopping trip mom and I went on!

The apartment is located above the gym on the 2nd floor. There are bathrooms next door, but the showers & laundry room are down stairs. The apartment doesn't have any windows so it feels the same anytime you are in there and because we didn't know where our clock was packed we would work until we remembered to look at a cell phone for the time. We have to leave the light on during the day for Merlin so he knows that it’s day time and then at night we turn all our lamps on and leave the main light off…this seems to help us all get ready for bed at a more normal hour. It’s like living in the dorms again…Aaron and I both think it’s fun!

Friday, Dec. 7
We unpacked, went to the store for supplies, unpacked some more, etc. Since the apartment is just a large room I had an idea about making a temporary closet/utility room out of sheets, so we had to go find material which meant another trip to the store! By the end of the day I had a migraine the size of TX!!! It was so bad I ended up going to bed around 7:00. There was a Christmas party going on down stairs in the fellowship hall and several of the people wanted Aaron and I to come join them, but Aaron told them about my migraine. They ended up send us food to eat and tons of sweets (they are all so considerate)!! :-) Some members at our church (Ken & Billie Medlock) brought us a toaster oven to use until we move out of the room…I nearly cried! I now have an oven!

Saturday, Dec. 8
Rachel and I attended a Ladies Christmas party/ornament exchange which was tons of fun. The speaker talked about 3 wise ladies (Mary, Elizabeth, and Anna). It was a wonderful devotional. After the party we headed back to the apartment and continued to unpack/decorate. That evening we met up with the Home team/Bible study group...it was their Christmas dinner/party. Rachel and I stayed for dinner but then headed back to the apartment to finish unpacking. I had to get it all done because I had invited the pastor and his family for lunch on Sunday! ;o) We got it all done except 2 boxes of clothes that are in our closet.

Sunday, Dec. 9
We had church and lunch with the pastor's family…I made a big pot of chicken spaghetti in my crock pot! It worked great! That afternoon Aaron and I took Rachel around to see some of the homes we are thinking about buying...because it was Sunday most of them where open (Sunday tends to be the day for new homes to have an Open House). That night we went to bible study…we really enjoy our new home team/bible study group.

Monday, Dec 10
Since I hadn't been off of my feet in 7 days I decided to take the day off! Rachel and I watched the entire Lord of the Rings trilogy! it was great! After that we got out of our pj's and went to get cat food...which took 3 hours because I don't know my way around yet!!! We finally found the store with some help. After our little adventure for cat food our friends Morgan & Amanda O’Neal came to the church (they live in Conway which is about 30 min. away). We all went to the youth room to watch The Village on the big screen and we got to use the nice audio equipment! That was fun!

Tuesday, Dec. 11
This was adventure day for me and Rachel. We had a nice lunch and then went to the Old Mill (pictured above) and spent hours there taking pictures. It was a very nice day and we came back to the church for some down time before Rachel flew home.

Wednesday, Dec. 12
The church secretary is on vacation so I am filling in for her...it is nice since I haven't worked in over a month! As far as job hunting goes...I am looking online and sending our resumes but I think I am going to wait until after the holidays before really getting serious. I am still thinking about nursing school but there is a lot to think about if I were to do that. Aaron and I are still trying to decide what to do...not sure, but I will decide soon!

Okay I must get off this thing because I am sure you have gone blind reading this and I defiantly have carpal tunnel after typing this blog!

MERRY CHRISTMAS everyone! :0)

Here

2007-12-12T08:15:00.001-08:00

Little Rock...in a nut shell!

2007-12-09T08:28:00.000-08:00

We are here... things are crazy... the room is coming together and looking more like a home, but it is just a room!

Our wylie house has shown 3 times since we left!!! :o) Running late for church....more blog to come! ;o)

We're Gone....

2007-12-03T20:59:00.001-08:00

The time has come for the big move... as of Wednesday morning our new address will be Little Rock, AR!! We are so tired... it has been a busy month for us!

Thanksgiving week went really well...we just traveled over 2,000 miles round trip! I was ready to come home about day 6! We went to AR one weekend, then drove to LA for the week of Thanksgiving, and drove back to AR for the next weekend service. We had planned to come back to TX on Monday morning, but I wanted home so we drove back on Sunday night! It was so nice getting home to my babies! :)

This past weekend I went home to Lewisville and spent time with my family...it was great! We took family pictures and they turned out really nice!

Aaron went to AR for church and got back tonight...he was able to set up our apartment at the church. We decided to live in a room at the church until the house sells...there still have been no hits!!! We are having to drop the price AGAIN! Oh well.

The room at the church is nice because it has a sink and a microwave...plus we have a griddle and a 2 top burner thing... that makes my "mini" kitchen! Oh not to mention a crock-pot...you can make a ton of stuff in a crock-pot! :)

Lucy will be staying with a church member at there house...they have a black lab that stays outside so she will have a friend to help keep her warm on cold nights. Merlin will be with us.

We are using Budget because we have had problems with Uhaul before since the trucks are so old...Budget has newer trucks. Aaron is really excited about that fact! I guess it is a guy thing...cause my dad is excited about it too... hee hee.

My friend Rachel is here with us helping me pack and stay sane... she is going to ride in the car with me and a very sedated Merlin...Lucy will be with Aaron in the truck (it has vinyl seats in case of an accident).

We are loading up tomorrow night and pulling out Wednesday morning... Aaron would like to get to AR in time for choir practice...we shall see. :)

I am ready to be there and get plugged in and find friends... I am going to really miss my dear friends here though.

Our friends, the Tully's, took us out for dinner at Babe's! It was great... Wendi and I started crying when Matt said the prayer...they are such precious friends of ours...oh how we are going to miss them and Aislyn!

Okay I think that is all I have in me right now! See you in a few days!

Holidays...

2007-11-15T06:28:00.000-08:00

Can you believe the holidays are here!! Thanksgiving is a week away! Where has this year gone!? Wasn't it just yesterday we were celebrating Thanksgiving and Christmas? It is so amazing how time can fly so quickly when you aren't looking!

Aaron starts his job this Sunday...we are gearing up for the weekend! Since Thanksgiving is in LA this year we decided to travel to Little Rock tomorrow and on Monday go straight to Vidalia and not come back to Dallas...it will save us 400 miles.

Because we are going directly to LA from AR we had to find someone to watch the kids for 11 days!! Yikes! Thankfully our friends the Tully's will be able to watch them until next Wednesday, and after that our neighbor’s little girls will take care of them until we return (one week from next Monday)!!!

We have never been away from Merlin & Lucy for that amount of time! I know they will be okay, but they both have abandonment issues (Merlin especially). Whenever we are gone for a few days you would think we had left them for good...they follow us around for days. Almost as if they are making sure we are really there and not going to leave again!

I miss them so much when we travel...I have to be honest when I say the thought of moving and not have a place for them to stay with us really is causing me stress. I may not seem stressed on the outside but it is there...silent on the inside!

There is a kind family that is offering us there spare rooms & extra living room until we sell the house, but they don't have a fence for Lucy & don't want Merlin on the inside...that means we would have to find Merlin & Lucy a place to stay (with strangers) until the house sells and we buy a house. Now this couple's daughter-in-law has offered her fenced in backyard for Lucy (they have a black lab) and that would be fine if Lucy can get along with their dog.

I don’t' know... I really don't want to split us up! I can't explain it, but there is something deep inside me that can't bear the thought of moving to a strange place and not having my kids with me... I know they would be close, but it is already going to be so traumatic for all of us...this might be the straw that breaks the camels back!

I am sure there are some of you who think I am being crazy, but I am sure there are some of you who can relate! It has been really hard...I have to be so careful not to get so discouraged about the house not selling... we haven't even shown it once! There is a deep dark part of me inside that thinks we are making a mistake moving to LR...perhaps the house not showing is a sign!

However, I know we are doing the right thing... I believe God has given us the opportunity and we need to have faith and trust. It is just so disheartening when you haven't even shown your house once in a month!

I have to be so careful what I say to Aaron... I don't want to discourage him! Please pray for me...I really need the encouragement right now!

Okay...well I must get off this thing...I have so much to do today! We are leaving for LR tomorrow morning and won't return for 11 days....I need to get the oil changed in our car...rotate the tires...clean the house because there is a realtor tour set for next Tuesday (hooray our first showing)!! Lots to do and not a lot of time!

I don't think I will be able to update the blog until we return from our trip....so see you in 11(ish) days! :o)

Happy Thanksgiving!

Staying Home

2007-11-12T07:56:00.000-08:00

It has been one week since my last job and I am loving it!!! It is scarry to think about NOT bringing home a paycheck, but it is so WONDERFUL to be home taking care of my little family!

Every morning we are able to have breakfest together (which hasn't happened since we lived inthe dorms at college). Not only that but we eat every meal together! It is great!

We are leaving for Little Rock Friday...Aaron starts his new job Sunday! We are really excited about that too!!

We still haven't sold the house...but we did have an answer to prayer...our realtor quit! We didn't have to pay her any fees AND we got another realtor...it is a sister team and they are bulldogs when it comes to selling homes!!! :o)

Well I must get off this thing to take care of my sick hubby... he is coming down with the flu!! YUCK!! More info coming later! :o)

Life....

2007-11-02T13:55:00.000-07:00

Life takes unexpected twists and turns...and on this rollercoaster called life one can either enjoy the ride or spend the ride in fear! I am choosing to enjoy the ride!!! I only hope and pray I will continue to enjoy it long after the "effects" of the ride wear off!

As many of you know Aaron and I will be moving to Little Rock, AR this month. I am looking forward to embarking on the new road set before me and because of that road this is my last day at DBU...the place I have been for the last 7 years.

As I look back at the time spent at DBU (as a student and staff member) it brings a smile to my face and tears to my eyes...so many precious memories and friendships were made at this wonderful University! DBU will always hold a special place in my heart! :o)

As I said goodbye to DBU I was reminded of these precious words of blessing (this is my prayer for my DBU family...Oh how I shall miss them all so much), "The LORD bless you and keep you; the LORD make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you; the LORD turn his face toward you and give you peace." Numbers 6:24-26

Selling a House

2007-10-30T07:10:00.000-07:00

We went to AR last weekend to look at houses, and let me just say we looked at a ton of homes!! So many that I think my eyes went cross! :) Thankfully I am a genius and created those score sheets! They really helped us narrow it back down to 6 houses we like. Our realtors name is Mike Pierce and he is very helpful...he is our eyes while we can't be there.

It was a little awkward because we had arranged to look at homes with Mike and then a member of our new church wanted to help us so she contacted a realtor friend of hers and had this lady give us a call...her name was Debbie and she wanted to show us houses also.

It worked out where Mike showed us houses one day and Debbie the other. We ended up telling both of the realtors (who were from different companies) that we had meetings with another realtor and we would make our decision on which person/company we would use. Aaron and I liked both of them, but we decided to stick with Mike since we had originally planned to have him be our realtor.

While we were gone our TX realtor had an open house...no one came! She even said the signs would end up missing after they put them out. When she would go our there and put another sign she would see a car full of teenagers drive up, grab the sign and peel out...they were just being stupid! I have to admit it was very discouraging/frustrating!

Be praying that God will send the buyer soon in order for us to get to Little Rock by Aaron's start date...Nov. 18!

That is all for now...keep watching for more updates!! :)

Ponderings...

2007-10-24T08:33:00.000-07:00

As I sit here, I can't help but think about all that goes into a move...even if it is just across town! So much comes into play. Since this is my first move as an independent, married women there is so much more coming into play!

Never have I moved before and had to find all new doctors, try to sell a house, think of every possible address change that will have to be "reported" after the move. Not to mention trying to find out the best way to move the "kids"!

My days are spent in constant wonder, prayer, and more wonder. There are times I let my mind run crazy with all the possibilities of what might happen, but I am forced to reign them in and remind myself that someone much greater than I is in control!

I am constantly making lists of things that must be done and there is the ever-present voice in the back of my mind telling me I have forgotten something. It is as if I am abscessed trying to think of what it is I have forgotten! I am sure once the big day arrives there will be countless things thought of that were not on any of my lists, but I pray I will take it all in stride and not feel defeated.

Thank the Lord for friends and family who have already said they are helping us move...even riding with us to Little Rock! That puts my mind at ease!

If one allows ones self to be caught up in the chaos of it all you will find yourself lost and unable to see the way, however, if one simply lets go and trusts, a beam of light sent from above will guide the way. Even if it only shines on a small portion of the road one must still trust the master holding the light. He knows what is a head of you and will bring it into the light when the time is appropriate for you to see. No sense worrying about what you can't see or control.

House Selling & Buying...

2007-10-23T08:33:00.000-07:00

Well our house hasn't had any hits on it since we put it on the market, but the good thing is we ran out of flyers once! This coming weekend (Thursday-Sunday) we will be in Little Rock looking at houses, so our realtor is going to have an Open House for us...she seems to think we will get a buyer that way!! Please Lord!!

We have the houses in Little Rock narrowed down to about 20 homes, and me being me I designed a "score sheet" so that we can eliminate any houses that we don't really like after we look at them.

Each score sheet will have a printout of the home we are looking at so that when we are reviewing the scores we can remember what the house in question looked like!! I love being organized!!

Aaron is going to be leading the worship again this coming Sunday! We are excited about that!! It is hard to believe moving day is only a few short weeks away!! Yikes!!

Well until later...

Aaron & Karice

Anicipation…it's killing me!!! ;o)

2007-10-15T12:43:00.000-07:00

This weekend past in a flurry of activity! It all started with deciding to use a realtor to sell our house...our neighbor Evelyn Johnson with Keller Williams Realtor is going to "represent" us. We met with her late on Thursday night, and signed tons of paperwork. She went through our house telling us what we needed to fix in order to make it ready to show...after which we both were a little bummed out, but that is okay! God is going to bring a buyer to us!

Friday came with flurry of activities...work, work, and work. That night we intended to work on the house, but ended up spending much needed time with our friends the Tully's...they are moving to Henderson (East Texas) and we really felt they needed encouragement as much as we did.

Saturday came and went in what felt like a blink of an eye! Sunday dawned bright and we set about the house trying to pack, paint, and do whatever else needed to be done. My parents came over and stayed until after 8pm that night. We got so much accomplished...we packed up about 70% of our things, but we still have several big jobs to be done before tomorrow evening.

What an exciting time this is becoming, but along with excitement there is chaos and nervous stomachs!!

Please continue to pray for us... I know God has the buyer out there and He will provide for us!

Oh and a little side note... most of these pictures I didn't take... I found them online! I am going to start using my own pictures though...especially since we are going to be away!

The Decision is Made....

2007-10-10T08:23:00.000-07:00

Aaron and I have decided to accept the offer! We are moving to Little Rock! We are planning to move the week before Thanksgiving, however, that is a tentative plan! There is so much to think about now! I can't believe this is happening! What wonders does God have in store for us?!

Please continue to pray for us... we need to sell the house, buy a house, pack and move in the next 5-6 weeks!

Until later,

Karice

The Vote is in...

2007-10-09T07:29:00.000-07:00

We received a call this Sunday from the pastor of the church in Little Rock. Here is the result of the vote:

171 - Yes votes
6 - No votes

Now it is up to us... we are still praying for God direction, but I have a feeling we will accept.

I will post more after the decision has been made and we have either declined or accepted the offer!

Please continue to pray for us!

Exciting Weekend!

2007-10-02T08:45:00.000-07:00

Hello all!

This is an update on this weekend...the BIG weekend. A.K.A. our anniversary and the "in view of a call" weekend.

Here is the blow by blow of this adventure.

We flew out on Friday night. Our flight was delayed but we still got in around 10:30 pm. We got to the car rental place about 10 minutes before they closed, and because of that we got a free upgrade to a luxury car...it was all they had left! :o)

We got to our hotel, which was a suite at the Holiday Inn Express. It had a very comfortable California King and a Jacuzzi hot tub in the room. It was great!

We had to get up early on Saturday because we were going to meet the pastor and together we were going to go look at this house (long story). In a nutshell, there was a wealthy man in the church who owned the house and was renting it out to a woman in need, but he pasted away and his wife's caretaker could not handle being a landlord on top of everything else she was doing.

We looked at the house...it was a dive and very scary, but on the up side there was a house a few streets over that we looked at and really liked!

So after the "house-hunting" we sat down with the pastor to discuss the job descriptions. The job Aaron would be getting is Music Minister and Education Minister. That just means he is in charge of Sunday school and few other things.

We talked to him for about 2 1/2 hours and rushed back to the hotel to change into nicer clothes before the meetings that night.

Our first meeting was with the music and education committees...there was cookies and punch at this meeting (food is very important to Baptist you know) ha ha. Aaron did really well answering their questions. He said it was good practice for the open forum meeting with the whole church.

At each of the meetings a lot of the same questions were asked. Ex. How do you choose what music is appropriate and what order to put them in? Have you ever lead a choir before? What is your testimony? Have you ever done visitation before? Have you ever been in charge of the education at a church before and do you think you would be able to do it? ect.

Of course at each meeting after about 40 min they always wanted to hear something from me... so I would tell them my testimony and of coarse brag on Aaron. :o)

After the meeting with the 2 committee's there was a dinner and meeting with anyone from the church who wanted to attend. It went really well...a lot of older people attended this one.

After the meeting we went back to our hotel and crashed BIG time!! ;o) We had to be back at the church early on Sunday morning to get ready for the service.

Sunday morning came and this is the order of events:
1. Get music ready for rehearsal]
2. rehearse
3. rehearse some more
4. Lead the service (including sing a special)
5. stand at the door and greet people as they left the service
6. Rush to the fellowship hall for lunch with the musicians and sound crew
7. Another question and answer time
8. Rest
9. Come back to church and lead evening service
10. Rush to small group bible study at one of the younger couple's house
11. Bible Study
12. Go back to hotel and crash! ;o)

We flew back into Dallas Monday morning.

All in all it was a wonderful weekend. The church people are very VERY sweet. We really enjoyed the time we spend there.

We have to wait until next Sunday (Oct. 7) to hear whether the church voted to extend the call too us. Aaron and I are very excited about the possibility of going...we are still praying that God will direct us and close the doors if this isn't his will.

Please keep us in your prayers... until next week! ;o)

Karice

Oh What Shall I do?!

2007-09-18T09:32:00.000-07:00

As promised in my last blog here are the details of the big decision we have to make (in a nutshell):
There is a church in Little Rock, AR that wants Aaron as their Music Minister.
About 6 months ago our pastor friend, JD Courtney became pastor at Temple Baptist Church. JD is the pastor that Aaron worked with at Rivercrest in Allen, TX for several years...he is the pastor who brought Aaron to Dallas back in 2002. Anyway, he called Aaron and was talking to him about it and jokingly asked Aaron if he felt called to Little Rock. We didn't even think anything of it because the church had a music minister at the time. Well a few months ago we got another call from JD. He said their music minister just quit one day and never came back. JD asked Aaron to consider coming.

On Labor Day weekend we decided to go visit JD and check out the church. No one from the church (other than JD and the children's director) knew who we were or why we were there. This allowed Aaron and me to observe the church in its "natural habitat". We liked the church and JD asked Aaron to pray about coming in view of a call on Sept. 30th weekend. After much prayer, Aaron and I decided that we should go in view of a call...there are so many doors open.

That means is we are going to fly there Friday night, meet with a bunch of people on Saturday morning including the choir and praise team, rehearse the choir and praise team, lead the worship service on Sunday morning (as if Aaron were the music minister) and then the church will vote and decide if they want to call Aaron. After that point (if we are asked to come) Aaron would talk out the logistics with JD, we would either accept or decline the offer. God has a bunch of doors open right now and so we are moving forward, but continuing to pray that He would close any doors that are needing to be closed.

As of right now, we are gearing up for that weekend, which also happens to be our anniversary weekend! As things develop I will continue to keep you posted!

Please pray for us.

Is This Thing On?!

2007-09-04T12:39:00.000-07:00

Hello to all! This is a first attempt at "blogging"...I have never tried this before, and think I shall like it! I will keep this short.... That picture is of the "old" husband and our kids (Lucy and Merlin). Lucy has grown so much since that picture... she is getting to be so huge! Merlin looks the same, and Aaron, well, he is about the same too. :)

So much is happening in our life right now I don't know where to begin. I will say this... we ask for your prayers. Aaron and I have a big decision coming up (details at a later date) and we really need wisdom/guidance right now!

That is about all I have time for right now, but keep watch... another blog is coming soon with mega details regarding our decision! :)