Okay, so I am a little behind on getting the beach pictures up, but I have been a tiny bit busy with the children STARTING SCHOOL.

Let me just say, that I adore being at the beach. I knew going into it that it was NOT ABOUT ME and what I wanted to do, so much as, being with my kids. They are a handful right now, with the added Bman factor. He requires one on one, while around large bodies of water, which leaves the other parent with the girls. So, there was not much of us just sitting by the pool or the ocean. Although, I did a little more of that than Jason did. He was so amazing to watch. The girls are finally old enough to get IN the ocean and RIDE some little crests of water called waves! They were by no means large and at times looked like the lake! Even Bradley was catching some waves. So, we had a great time and were EXHAUSTED by the end of the day. But, we made some great MEMORIES.

So, here are some highlights:

Can’t wait to go back!

What a fabulous first day of school we had. I know it is a little early to be starting school, but come fall when we have our 2 week break, I will be thanking the good Lord. We have had an 8 week break and I think most would agree that isn’t a bad thing!

Both girls did amazing this morning. We stopped at Parker’s room first and she just skipped right on in. She did get a little “dear in the headlights” on us when Jason told her bye. She is a daddy’s girl.

Emery, as well, walked on in like she owns the place. She sat down at her chair and basically tuned us out. When we were ready to slip out (I knew from experience to do this before they read The Kissing Hand) she tilted her eyes up and gave us a little wave. Felt a little emotional at this point, but I had to stop Bradley from running in to people as he was pushing his stroller down the hallway at manic speed. So, the moment passed and I was good.

Here are our two cuties:

Could they look any cuter?

Sisters, Sisters

First day of school!!

Emery’s first day of Kindergarten

Off they go!

Parker at her first desk!
Parker with her Top 4 Books Poster

On a sidenote, Parker has been reading a ton this summer and had to pick her top 4.
She chose Go, Dog, Go; Clifford and the Runaway Rabbit; Five Pies and Sweet Treat.

For us, summer is coming to an end.

Why, you may ask?

Because the girls start school TOMORROW.

Yep, we start back to school tomorrow. Emery starts Kindergarten and Parker starts 1st grade.

I am continually reminded that we are bound by time, by place and by the continual movement forward, whether we want to go or not. Time does not stop, stand still or listen to us rant and rave over how our lack or abundance of it. Our job is to use what time God has ordained for us, to honor Him, live for Him and make Him famous. Right now, I am feeling somewhat a victim of time not used to its fullest potential. I think of the girls when they were little and I remember so much less than I thought I would. They were 17 months apart, both in diapers, I had a very busy husband, we moved when Emery was 8 months, and life took off at an even more rapid pace. I am not making excuses, I am just reminding myself that the lack of sleep might have had something to do with it! And the sheer exhaustion.

SO many times, I reminded myself to stop, take it in, relax, enjoy, breathe. Sometimes, more successfully than others.

I have done a lot more of that with Bradley and I feel like these past few months have been filled with moments that are sealed into my memory. Jason and I keep looking at each other and say, “we are going to miss this ……….” fill in the blank of whatever it may be.

Emery starts Kindergarten tomorrow and it is amazing that no matter how much more comfortable and relaxed I am this year, as compared to when Parker started, I am still feeling those emotions of time moving on and life shifting. She is so ready and excited. I am so excited for her to experience new people, a new place, get more of her own identity (instead of being lumped in with Parker) and learn in new ways. She is such a blend of sweet and sassy, friendly yet shy, outgoing yet cuddly. She has the same teacher that Parker had and that is such a blessing to our family. She will already have 2 friends from church and one in the other class. God is good and has answered the prayers of this mommy beyond what I even prayed.

Emery, you are such a reminder that God’s plans are more abundant than what we can ask or imagine. You, alone, remind us, that surprises usually turn into the greatest of blessings. I am thrilled to watch you grow, learn, and become the young lady God has called you to be.

Blessings my little school goers!!

We are at the beach!!!

I love the beach so much. I love the sound of the ocean, the breeze, walking along the seaside, sitting and relaxing by the ocean and so many more.

We have had a great time so far. The weather has been a little finicky, but we are still enjoying our time with my parents and my sister and her family.

Some first for us this trip:

• Parker and Emery riding the waves. They are little pros! We had to go buy boogey boards, and managed to come out of the cheesy souvenier store without a hermit crab!
• Bradley swimming in his new Superman life jacket. He is trying to mimic the girls and keeps putting his face in and trys to swim. He will be in swim lessons this winter!
• Being here at peak season. We have lovingly termed this “Our big Redneck Vacation,” after hearing LSU and BAMA fans yell at each other from the balconies and the beach. We are used to a little less action since we normally come in early Fall!

• Having swimmers! The girls are swimming fabulously!

We are looking forward to the rest of the week. We are planning on having professional beach pictures taken, going to see some movies, date night with Jason, going to the driving range, shopping and more playing in the pool and the ocean!!

I will post pics later!

Head to Jason’s blog to see what our family did last night!

It was so fun!

I am super proud of my girls for plowing through swim lessons, especially for little Em, who blessed me incredibly yesterday.

Go read at J’s for the details.

For a few months now, we have been going through the book of Ephesians, as a church. Love it, I must say and Pat is bringing it, which I love, as well.

So, we start in chapter 5 and the main point is that we were darkness and through Christ, we are children of the light- so live like it. I was stopped in my tracks on Sunday, processing that we were darkness, not in darkness, but darkness itself. We were not just sinners, but sin. One main statement was that we are different to make a difference. Don’t you love that?? I do, because I think we can get way to caught up in the “different” part and forget the make a difference emphasis. We are called to be light to impact the darkness, not to point to the darkness from miles away and point out how bright we are! Anyways, I have really stayed in Ephesians 5 this week.

All that background to say- God has given me many chances to be light this week. Some I know I have failed in and others I hope my little light shined!

The big chance happened yesterday. The girls have been in swimming lessons and after each lesson they have a sheet that shows what they have mastered for the day. After Emery’s class, I mosey on over and check it out. I am perplexed and confused because there is an A for absent, by her name. Trust me, after wrangling Bradley for 45 minutes, I know we have been present.
So, I go speak with her instructor, whose home we are at, by the way. I informed her that Emery was present.

She states, “Well, she didn’t answer when we called role.”

I say, “So, what did she do this entire time?”

She states, “Well, we did a lot of group things today and she didn’t answer when we called role. We give several chances to answer and we count before we get in the water.”

At this point, I have a million things going through my mind. Mainly, how can my child be under your supervision for 45 minutes, in a pool, with 3 other adults, and no one notices the RANDOM girl in the pool? How do you not recognize her after 5 days of swim lessons? And lastly, obviously, you counted wrong!

I say, “Okay, I am just concerned that she was in the water for 45 minutes and no one knew she was present.”
She states, “It’s okay, we will catch her up tomorrow.”

I knew at this point, I needed to get out of dodge. It was definitely one of those things that the more you think of it, the madder it makes you. So, what do I do?

I call Jason and vent it out for about 5 minutes. Bottom line, it is unacceptable.

Today, I had another conversation with the instructor, seeking greater clarification (this is what we call a confrontation!). I came out of it realizing that we were speaking a different language. For her, it was about checking off what Emery had done and not answering her name when it was called (so much that she told me we should work on that for Kindergarten.)

For me, it was about the fact that you didn’t notice my child was present, in your swim class, where she is learning about water safety.

I knew at one point that it was time to walk away. I knew nothing I could say would make a difference in how she viewed the situation.(Basically, it was all Emery’s fault) I never raised my voice or used a harsh tone. I simply asked questions and answered them. And decided, my children will never darken the doors of her pool after Thursday.

Being light is hard.

Here is a clip of Jason and B playing some hoops!

It is like my own personal reality show since Jason has started streaming family moments live!!

Live .TV show provided by Ustream

Here is the one from Bradley’s haircut and it is quite long! You can forward to about 15 minutes to see him really start talking to the computer. And as a small disclaimer, I don’t really sound as country in real life. And, my girls are the ones being loud in the background. And, I don’t normally wear bright orange, but it was for VBS! So, enjoy….
Free .TV show from Ustream

Okay, so it is 4:21 am and I have been awake for about 2 hours now due to a child getting up with some need of mommy issues and have been unable to go back so sleep as a result! Yeah, can’t wait to see how I feel tomorrow.

We have been on summer activity overload this past week. Both girls are in swim lessons so that is always fun with a 2 year old. Our lessons are at a person’s house and parents wait in the front. They are learning all the “proper” swim strokes and lingo. It is cool, except for the waiting, since the girls are in back to back classes.

We have also been to the library, the zoo, made Jason a birthday cake after a trip to the grocery store, swimming and I am one tired gal. But, it is fun and we are enjoying the last few weeks of our summer. The girls start back in 3 weeks and it has flown.

Now not all the togetherness has been fabulous. For some crazy reason, the girls have started hitting and pushing each other. Not really sure why, since this has not been an issue, ever, with them. I think it is because B will randomly come up and do a “drive by” hit or kick and run off. We have also required a lot of sassy spray, aka, vinegar and water, for some attitude and sassiness. I have also had to lock myself in the bathroom a few times, just for a few minutes to take some deep breaths (not actually use the facilities!) and calm down. Who knew that having kids could bring out the best in you and at times, the worst!!

I was reading in Proverbs 3 today and I was reminded of this: discipline is a sign of love and honor. It is essential to raising up children. Yet, my desire is to truly, reach their hearts, and not just bring about right behavior. I pray that they will love doing good because they want to please the Lord, not men. I pray that they learn that obedience brings blessing and true freedom. Tonight, as I read the Word, I was reminded of how much I long for their souls to love Jesus. I was reminded of how much I need Him and His discipline at times.
But, for now, it means a lot of time outs, sassy sprays, grounding, sentence writing, time alone and maybe a few other techniques….

So, what creative discipline techniques do you use??

Proverbs 3

Trusting in the Lord

1 My child,^[a] never forget the things I have taught you.
Store my commands in your heart.
2 If you do this, you will live many years,
and your life will be satisfying.
3 Never let loyalty and kindness leave you!
Tie them around your neck as a reminder.
Write them deep within your heart.
4 Then you will find favor with both God and people,
and you will earn a good reputation.

5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart;
do not depend on your own understanding.
6 Seek his will in all you do,
and he will show you which path to take.

7 Don’t be impressed with your own wisdom.
Instead, fear the Lord and turn away from evil.
8 Then you will have healing for your body
and strength for your bones.

9 Honor the Lord with your wealth
and with the best part of everything you produce.
10 Then he will fill your barns with grain,
and your vats will overflow with good wine.

11 My child, don’t reject the Lord’s discipline,
and don’t be upset when he corrects you.
12 For the Lord corrects those he loves,
just as a father corrects a child in whom he delights.^[b]

Check out the highlight videos from camp last week, here.

I have heard amazing things!

You can also read what kids are saying about their week, here. It is a joyful read to see what teenagers are saying about how God changed them.

400 kids, 40+ salvations, close to 100 amazing adults, an extremely dedicated staff….One Glorious God!!

GP camp ended well, I must say! The kiddos had a great time with Grandad, playing putt-putt, bumper boats, video games and a few kiddie rides. He managed all three kids, all by himself, which is not an easy thing to do! The kids loved it!

Yesterday, we finished our week in Knoxville with a visit to our dear friends, the Swaffords. They are planting a church in Kingston, which is outside of Knoxville. They are living on the lake for now, so the kids had their first chance to tube behind o boat! I had no idea how they would respond, but they climb on without hesitation and had a blast! It is so fun to watch my kids be adventurous and unafraid on new things. I was a daredevil as a kid, but as I got older, I lost some of it! I liked to do adventurous things, but I would not take a chance, very often. I am praying that our kids are unafraid to venture out into the unknown, being willing to follow His lead, wherever it may lead them.
We love time with our friends, and yesterday was an amazing blessing.

We are settling in back at home. Jason has been at camp with our students all week! I love hearing the stories from camp and seeing how God changes lives through an intentional week, set aside to hear from Him. Camp sharing service is always one of the highlights of our year, for me. I was really bummed not to go, but I am realizing that with the 2 year old boy factor, it is harder to leave all three with the grandparents! He is a hand full and requires all of your attention! I was reminded that I have many years ahead of me for camp!