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I was about to sit down and write a sweet little post about some of the fun times we have had with our friends and family in the past few weeks.

But, I am simply not feeling it right now.

Why?

Because I have had one of those days where I feel on the edge…..the edge of anger, frustration, and not liking very much in general. I could go into the various reasons why I feel this way, on this particular day, but really, what is the point?  We all have these days, these moments, these emotions.  The key is figuring out what you are going to do with it.  Am I going to allow my emotions to rule, get on Facebook or Twitter and vent or am I going to die to my emotions, bathe myself in Scripture and prayer, and CHOOSE to respond in a way that brings Glory to His Name.  I think this is a battle that I fight more days than not. More than that, I think this is the battle I see many moms fight each day….especially with these last few days of summer upon us.  Life is hard, days are long, frustration is inevitable, so why not get a plan together for how to handle it instead of blowing up and moaning and groaning about it?  Imagine how that would look to a non believing world? Not that as Christ followers we don’t feel every single one of those emotions, but that we allowed Christ to respond for us, in the midst of those moments.

That is my prayer, my longing.  Is is yours?

This past weekend, Mom, Kim and I headed out to Atlanta for a little girls Get-A-Way.

It has been a while since it has been the original Bradley chicks, so it was high time to plan a trip.

We decided to go to the Beth Moore Simulcast which was being hosted at First Baptist Church Woodstock, GA and it was

just what we needed to plan around.

On Friday, the girls had Grandparents Day at school.  LuLu had come in for a few days and the girls LOVE being able to share their school

with their GP’s.  They show off some cool things they have learned and enjoy time with them.  I love that our school does this, even if there is a push for the GP’s to

donate money!!

We left after eating lunch and headed south.  We rolled into our swanky Embassy Suites and were pleasantly surprised with our cool suite.

We dropped our stuff and headed to the Ballard outlet and  you know it….IKEA.

We pause for a moment of silence to honor my most favorite place to buy stuff for our home….

Now, we spent a few mindless hours walking around and a few hundred dollars later, exited.

I bought these for our hallway project….more to come on that at a later date.

I also got this and this for outside.  They are a lot larger than they appear. Excited about all the things I can do with these.

We then went to eat at Pappasito’s. I adore this place.  Their tortillas are hands down, the best I have ever had.  It was fun to take Mom and Kim.

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We were up bright and early and headed out.

It was POURING…so we stopped to get an umbrella.

Thank the good Lord for Navigation….that’s all I am saying.

We were early birds.  Seriously early birds.  That is the way we roll for some members of my family.  While I am not ALWAYS late, some members of my family like to point out that I am not ALWAYS on time, either. Some members of my family, on the other hand, are especially fond of punctuality.

Trust me, I am reminded A LOT that I don’t always arrive on time.

Anywho, we were at the Beth Moore Simulcast for her new book

So Long Insecurity.  I have not read the book, but I am a big fan of kissing insecurity goodbye.

I am a girl.

I have insecurities.

Shocking, I know.

Let’s just say, I sooo needed to hear this.  She talked about 6 Signs of A Secure Woman.  She based most of it out of Ephesians 4 and looking at the demon that is insecurity.  Insecurity is, in its most basic form, making it all about OURSELVES.  Insecurity keeps us chronically self-aware…and honestly….how gross is that?

We are caught in the Am I’s….

Am I smart enough, cool enough, skinny enough, Am I witty enough, Am I saying the right thing.

Yet, a life controlled by the Spirit curves out to serve others, love others, forgive others…to Magnify His Glory.  We are so esteemed by our Creator that we don’t focus on ourselves, but rather on Him.

There was so much meat that I can’t wait to read her book, look at myself through His Word and be transformed.

Because it matters to me, my faith and my ministry.

But it also matters for my girls.

To raise them SECURE in His love, His Grace, His AMAZING journey for them.

It matters to every woman, to every mom.

This is a battle we ALL face and I am so sick and tired of being told what I am supposed to be as a woman, a mom, a daughter, a wife by our twisted culture.

The only measuring stick I am to hold to is that of Christ.

I could be the skinniest, most beautiful, talented, confident, witty, woman on planet Earth, but I would still be a quaking mess of fears without recognizing who I am as a Daughter of the King.

I am WORTH it to HIM.

I am PRECIOUS to HIM.

I am BEAUTIFUL to HIM.

I am IMPORTANT to HIM.

I am DESTINED for An ABUNDANT LIFE through HIM.

Needless to say, I could go on and on.  As someone who has worked with teenagers most of my adult life, these are things I have known and said for years, yet it is sooo good to be reminded that I can be enslaved to my own self and be hindered in by obedience to the life God ordained for me.

I don’t want to miss His plan.

After the simulcast, which over 300,000 women heard about finding their security in Christ alone, amazing, we headed to the hotel and then to a local mall and the Container Store.

To me the Container Store is the Pottery Barn of organization and IKEA is the Target…..I am more a Target girl myself.

We ate a Maggiano’s and picked up Cheesecake Factory for dessert.

I soo gained weight this weekend, but I am secure in the knowledge that my pounds do not determine my worth!

We relaxed at the hotel and the next morning headed back to IKEA to pick up a few last things and to Atlantic Station.

All in all, it was a refreshing, relaxing weekend.

And when I got home, I came home to a clean house, happy kids, folded laundry and homework done.

Can I get an amen??

My man is a-may-zing.

A perfect ending…..

This year, Jason and I decided to read through the Bible- table of contents to maps!

He chose, and I just went with it.  We are using youversion.com and following the Life Journal Reading Plan.  We will read the OT once and the NT twice.

I am super stoked because it is not overwhelming, which means I am more likely to stick to it.  Also, Jason set it up on my phone so I can read it through my day, as well.

If you would like to join in, it isn’t too late. Also, my username is kelstew if you want to follow along!

Next week, I am also starting the Esther study with some other staff wives and I am BEYOND excited to go through this study with these ladies.

I hope to share some of the things that God is teaching me and how I see His Word impact my day to day.

What about you? Are you strategic and intentional in reading the Word?  I can say with certainty that you will not be disappointed!

2009 was quite the whirlwind for our family.  Jason and I experienced some amazing highs and some challenging lows.  As a result, we are both sensing the Lord leading us to be more intentional in just about every area of life….faith, family, friends, finances and our home (it doesn’t start with an f but I was stumped!).

Here is how we spent our past year….

JANUARY:

We spent New Year’s Day with friends, bowling…quite fun!

Our church officially changed its name to Lifepoint Church. This has been an amazing year at our church.  We launched a second campus,

moved to three services, and are sending out teams to Thailand and Belgium in the next year.  We are so blessed to see God moving in a real, tangible way!

FEBRUARY:

We launched our Stewart Family Nights…all centered around a theme and a devotional.  I love these nights, but they are a lot of work! So worth it though.

I am looking forward to picking up the pace again this year.

We started with Colors night..

and had Backwards Night. We started with dessert and ate under the table.  Kids loved it!

Lauren, my niece, had her birthday party at a rock climbing place and Parker and Emery gave it a whirl.  Emery loved it!

AFRICA…..how you changed my life!  Jason and I spent 10 days away from our family on a mission trip to Africa.  It was amazing,

heartbreaking, life changing and all the things you think it would be.  You can read about our journey here.

MARCH:

The house was painted while we were in Africa and was starting to feel more homey.

The girls also started a new soccer season, which was great!

We celebrated Bradley’s 3rd Birthday at our home!! We had a golf party and it was a blast!

We also went to Knoxville and spent some time on the girls’ Spring Break with LuLu. We went to WonderWorks and had a great time!

We also went to The Creative Discovery Museum in Chattanooga with our dear friends, The Hales.

APRIL:

In April, we took a girls trip to Atlanta for the weekend to celebrate Emery’s 6th Birthday.

Our big outing was to the American Girl Store and Bistro.

We ate at the bistro and added a cake to celebrate!

We shopped our hearts out in the AG store….

We also celebrated Easter with some fun activities to highlight the Resurrection…

MAY:

We honored Emery’s actual birthday with a date with Daddy.

She loves going out one on one and this was no exception..

We also ended the school year with Emery’s Kindergarten Graduation. Where does the time go?

The kids also planted a garden with Poppy.  That garden was very plentiful…

The kids were also in a production at church and Bradley made his debut.

He wore his sunglasses the whole time and came very close to stripping off all his clothes…those preacher’s kids…

Parker had her first speaking part in the History Fair at school. She did great!

Jason and I also started P90x and managed to complete most of it…until the addition started.  It worked for us!

JUNE:

Emery had her dance recital and performed in two dances..loved it!

She also was on the praise team for VBS at church…

But, by far the biggest thing we did this month was start an 1100 square feet addition to our home.

Two trees had to come down and my kids loved watching the initial progress…

Ready to pitch in.

JULY:

This month, we had a lot of fun, enjoying summer.

The kids, Mom and I went to Mississippi to see my family. This was a great trip and I totally

had a moment where I realized my kids are getting older and somewhat easier to travel with!

We also potty trained t his summer and it was BRUTAL. PLAIN BRUTAL.

The kids on my aunt’s farm.  They had a blast on this trip.

We also had Kid’s Camp.  We invited our good friend, Callie Grace, to come stay with us and attend.

She did and it was AWESOME!

Lastly, the girls started 1st grade and 2nd grade!!

AUGUST:

We had a safari family night at Rainforest Cafe. This was a fun night out. We were needing a break from

construction and this did the trick!

Bradley also started back to Mother’s Day Out two days a week! He loves it!

We bricked the addition and got many a questioning looks when it looked like this…

SEPTEMBER:

Then, we painted the brick…Lafonda Sagebrush was the color and 31 gallons later…

the house looked like this…

Jason took a much needed Annual Golf Trip and while he was away, my dad

and I landscaped the majority of the house…

That was an exhausting 3 days!!

But, worth it…

OCTOBER:

The kids had two weeks of Fall Break and on the second week, we went to DISNEY WORLD!!!

6 days at Disney World.  We had a great time, but wow, not the best idea on our parts during the middle of construction.

But, the kids did amazing and we will cherish that trip always.

We went with the Hales and we love traveling with them. Our 6 kids did SO WELL and I love “doing life” with them!

We came home and hit it hard on the addition and were finally able to move in!!!

It looks so different now! I will post new pictures soon!

Having our own bathroom, closet and a master bedroom again, can not be put into words! It is so sweet and I feel so

blessed and thankful…

NOVEMBER:

We spent a lot of time finishing up a lot of details of the addition.  We still had a lot of painting!

But, for Thanksgiving, we went to Orange Beach, AL for several days to be with my parents and sister.

We had a great time, fabulous weather and of course, lots of shopping!

DECEMBER:

We finished up a lot of work this month and are very close to having all the details done!

We celebrated Parker’s 8th Birthday!

Here she is on her day with a new bible, a fish and some flowers! She had a sleepover with her BFF’s and a joint party with a friend at

a bounce place.  She is growing into such a sweet girl..

Bradley was a Wise Man in the MDO Christmas play.

He did so good.

Lastly, we celebrated with all of our family for Christmas.

(My camera memory card was placed in emery’s new cam, which was left at Jason’s aunts…pics to come)

This has been an incredible year…high highs and tough lows.

Looking back, I am so thankful for this life I lead, the God I serve, the man I married, the children I get to raise, the church we call home,

the family that love us so faithfully, the friends who support us and the school that teaches our kids that Jesus is enough.

My prayer is that I am found more faithful, more loving, more patient, more giving and more in awe of Jesus in 2010….

Blessings.

Today is such a big day in the Stew house, for many reasons.

One, it is my birthday.

Two, it is Parker’s 8th Birthday.

Three, it is Marta’s, our compassion child, 19th birthday.

Wow, is all I can say.  The Lord made this day significant to me for three very specific reasons, some I am still not aware of.  He ordained my own birth, the birth or my first child and the birth of a girl I will probably never meet, but to whom I am forever connected.

I am reminded on this day, that it is not about me, anymore.  IF it ever was, those days are long gone! Now, for my birthday, I get to take donuts to a 2nd grade class, be taken to McDonald’s to lunch by my 3 year old, and get to choose between Fazoli’s and Arby’s for my birthday dinner.  Why?  Because I am a mom and it is my daughter’s birthday.  It is her childhood and her day.  I will gladly take backseat to let her have a day that is special just for her.  She thinks it s SO COOL that we share a birthday.  She asks often if she was the best present I ever received on my birthday and I answer her that yes, she is…..and the epidural was a close second!  Don’t get me wrong, my family and friends are great to treat me to night’s out, presents and fun to celebrate my day, it just usually happens on another day.  God uses this day to show me that life is greater than me and it is all about His plan.

13 years ago, we began sponsoring a little 6 year old girl.  Jason had chosen her because we shared a birthday.  Little did I realize then, how significant that would become to me.  After traveling to Africa and really seeing the reality that her life could be and seeing the difference Compassion makes in a generation of women in Africa, I am reminded that God is in the details, He is about redemption and salvation.  I don’t know the impact we have on Marta, but I know that we have been committed to her and I have been taught so much through her life.

A baby truly does change everything.  My life was forever changed 8 years ago, today.  Parker Caroline, 6 lbs 11ozs, of pure, life changing, flesh.  She amazed me, overwhelmed me, flustered me, had mercy on me and showed me a glimpse of the Father’s sacrifice, when He sent a baby that changed everything.

This song has become an instant favorite of mine.  The Lord is crazy in love with His creation and if you ever doubt, remember the lengths He went to show us…..His baby changed everything….

Today I am thankful for an evening out with my friends.

We saw a movie and had a quick dinner.

These are the ladies I do life with on a daily, weekly, at times moment by moment basis!

I am thankful for time to hang out and relax with the girls!

Besides, Jason would never go see New Moon with me!

SO

I got behind…

Anyway…

For these days, I am thankful for:

Going out of town for a retreat for my part time job…

Working in adoptions….with families that are adopting…seeing a child be adopted….love it

Being back home with my fam….I love the squeals of excitement when they see me!

Today, I am thankful for some down time with the kids.

Life is crazy and I too often get caught up in my to do list and choose the urgent over the important.

Tonight, I chose the important….hanging out with my kids, baking a cake and watching a little Merry Madagascar.

These are the moments I will remember with the children…no doubt!

Today I am thankful for my older sister, Kim.

Lord, I gave her grief growing up.  I was without a doubt the pesky, annoying younger by almost 6 years, sister!

So, having things in common didn’t come until I hit puberty!

Today, she lives about 30 minutes away and hanging out with her is one of my favorite things to do.

We are classic birth order personalities and are very different, but it works.

I can’t let it out with her and just be myself….and that is worth its weight in gold!

I am thankful God gave me a sister….

Today/Tonight,

I am thankful to be

sleeping

in

my

Long Awaited,

Beautiful,

Master

Suite…..

Here is a picture….more, fully decorated ones to come…

but tonight,

I am thankful…..