Home Sweet Home....

Well, today started with a BANG! Presley woke up at 1:15 a.m screaming with leg pain, and then proceeded to crawl into our bed to try and go back to sleep. Grinding her little teeth and kicking the whole night, I got little to zero sleep.

Later that morning, she cried that her leg hurt really bad and she was limping. She couldn't get off of the couch without assistance, and even assisted, she screamed bloody murder when I turned her a certain way. I immediately called Dr. Doud, Presley's pediatrician, and soon had an appointment.

Lem had to come home from work to help me get her in the car and into the doctor's office. She was dead weight and in excruciating pain. I am so thankful that he has a job that he can run home at the drop of a hat. Praise Jesus.

The doctor took one look at her and sent us straight to Children's Healthcare at Emory. I was a bit worried to say the least. We quickly arrived and checked in. An x-ray, several blood tests, and 5 hours later, we were on our way home. Halleluliah!

She is okay and already feeling better. The Doctor thinks she pulled a muscle in her soft tissue near her hip, or that it may be a joint infection from bronchitis she had 2 weeks ago. If that is the case, it would be viral, and untreatable with antibiotics. He said to give her Ibuprofen for a few days and see how she does. He assured us that it wasn't anything to worry about.

Talk about praising the Lord. Is there anything scarier than when your child is sick? Oh my goodness..today was one of those "putting things into perspective" days. I am so thankful for healthy children. I feel so blessed to have her home with me tonight. As I was parking when we first arrived, I heard the very loud sound of a medical helicopter landing on the building. I shuddered as I imagined the child being transported. I tried not to go there in my mind, and instead said a prayer for that child and his or her family.

 This was our very first visit to a children's hospital, thankfully...and hopefully our last. However, we were very impressed by Children's Healthcare and had a seamless, despite long, experience at their hospital.

As I sit here typing, I am overwhelmed at the love and support of our friends and family that called and sent messages to check on our baby girl today. My heart swells with love for all of the kindness shown to us today. We truly have the greatest support system a family could possibly have. Not to mention that Dr. Doud called us this evening as soon as we got home to check on Presley. I love a doctor that makes house calls. He is so great. Thanks to my friend Mary for referring such an awesome pediatrician.

My little princess is sleeping right next to me, and I am without words to describe I feel to have her safe at home in my arms. God is so good to me. God is just plain good.

cherishing the gift of health,

Jill

Funky stuff....

~Lem took this picture in Yosemite this past May. It sums up how I feel right now...I feel like the little river in the middle.

Here comes the journal/therapy part of my blogging world. Okay, I have been in a funk for about 2 weeks now. Not sure why, well, I have a few ideas, but in a definite funk none the less.

We had a blast at St. Simon's last week, but the day before we left I got a phone call. The call was from my friend Kim,telling me that Chris Honeycutt, my friend from high school, had suddenly died. What? Huh?? Like hearing any bad news, my first reaction was that I thought she was joking. I quickly called Lem and asked him to confirm the news for me. After about 5 minutes he called me back with the affirmation of the news.

Chris left behind his beautiful wife, Nicole, who was also his high school sweet heart, and left 3 little boys behind. Too much to fathom, right? My stomach is still knotted up and distorted from this tragedy.

The very next day my friend Heather called me to tell me that the cancer had spread to her stomach and the prognosis was not good. The doctors do not expect her to live very much longer. In fact, she has already lived way beyond their expectations. Heather has been the subject of several of my earlier blogs, she just amazes and inspires me. She has a son, Scotty, who just happens to be spending the night here tonight. He is a precious boy, who will soon be left mother-less. His father lives in Virginia and is an alcoholic. He has no rights to Scotty. A lot of other sad factors play into this story, I will spare you the details. However, sadness consumes my every thought regarding this matter.

The very next day I found out that a very close friend's husband was let go of his job. This was very unexpected and disheartening. However, I know this family is being led to greener pastures. They love God and are faithful that He is leading them to another door.

Lastly, the day we came home from vacation, I took a walk in my neighborhood and spoke with 2 ladies that live down the street from us. They informed me that my next door neighbor, Jessica, had a double mastectomy over the weekend, she was now home recovering. What?? When did all of this happen? I had no idea she was even sick. What in the world??

Again, this just reaffirms my belief that we are so "connected" with people across the world from us, via facebook, or twitter, or whatever, but have no idea the needs of the people in our own backyards...literally. I want to change this in my life. God has put me in this area, in this town, in this very neighborhood for a reason. My location is a part of my ministry to others. Talking to people across a computer screen, is not my idea of a connection....on any level.

Perhaps all of this is the cause of the funk? I know God is in control, I know this with all of my heart. I just can't seem to shake the heaviness of it all. My personality is very sanguine, usually. However, I have found myself not exactly chirping in the morning and ready for whatever comes my way. I find myself wanting to sleep a little longer, and groggier than usual when I do get up. This is not like me. I know it is temporary, I know I am just grieving for these loved ones. These people that didn't ask for what has been dealt to them. They are people just like you and me. Living their lives, loving God.

So, if you are reading this post, please lift up a prayer for these grieving hearts. Hearts that need peace, comfort, healing, and maybe just a little connection. Some real connection from us.

trying to de-funk,

Jill

Hill/Greene Vacation Memoirs....

our cutie pie nephew...Graham

Presley being her silly, silly self

Love the action shot....one, two, three, JUMP!

Riley, Presley, Joseph and Reagan

Reagan, Joseph, Presley and Riley~

Joseph and Reagan take a break and chill in the ocean

Presley turns into a sand mermaid

yes, I love feet pictures..these are mine and my lovey's.

toes! lem and me flirt in the sand with our feet~

Mommy Jane, Graham, and Danny

Danny gives us a smile!

Joseph plays in the ocean...big waves this week at the beach!

Darren and Lem make a toast to the beach

Riley, Ashley, and Presley playing in the sand The Hill's~

The Greene's~

Presley, Riley, Reagan, and Joseph...best friends.

Love these kids!

Date night at the beach~

Presley working on her suntan

Presley's feet...irresistible!

Ashley and Danny love to play with each other...so cute.

Danny gets a little sandy~

Lem carrying Presley out to the waves...just precious.

This year we carried on the Hill/Greene beach vacation tradition. We started going to St. Simon's together a few years back and it has become a much anticipated event...for us and our children. Our children all get along so wonderfully, it really makes it easy breezy for the adults.

Just like in the previous years, there was no shortage of laughter and fun on this trip. We are so thankful to have the Greene's along with us on our vacation each year. I am really not sure anyone else could put up with us that long. God bless them. :)

This year Lem's brother, Jason, and his children were also at St. Simon's the same time we were there. Mommy Jane accompanied Jason on this trip, so we were all able to frolic at the beach together for a few days. It was so much fun getting to play with my nieces and nephews at the beach, priceless memories. Is there any place happier than the beach, really? I think not.

missing those Greene's,

Jill

Birthday girl....

~lunch at American Girl Cafe~

~the birthday girl...Anna-Joy Avis Crowe~~

~Royce~

~Joseph~

~Royce and Joseph dressed up as chic-fil-a cows~

~Presley and Anna-Joy~

~Maddie, Presley and Anna-Joy~

Happy, Happy 7th Birthday to my sweet niece Anna-Joy Avis Crowe! We celebrated by going to the American Girl Cafe. The girls had so much fun and they all took their dolls to lunch with them. The dolls were pampered at the doll hair salon. After eating lunch at the cafe, we headed to Anna-Joy's favorite store, Justice, and shopped around.

The very next day, which was her actual birthday, we all headed to Chic-Fil-A dressed as cows. We were able to eat a free lunch for dressing up! The children were so excited to participate in dressing up as cows! The adults were thrilled to have a free lunch. :)

We love celebrating birthdays in this family, and we have a lot of fun doing it!

Happy Birthday, beautiful girl.

Big birthday hugs,

Aunt Jilly

92 and counting...

Happy 92nd Birthday Granny! We love you so much! You are absolutely the sweetest, kindest woman that we have ever known. Thank you for your influence and your wisdom. We hope to have you many, many more years.

All our love,

Lem, Jill, Joseph and Presley Jane

Happy 4th Fun.....

~posing in their $3.00 Walmart shirts~
~my very own sparkler...~

~Sparklers are fun!~
~Happy 4th!!~

After a fun weekend in the mountains with my family, we came home and celebrated the 4th in our driveway with sparklers. We were all road weary and tired from a fun-packed weekend in Blairsville, Ga. Mom and Dad rented a beautiful house for all of us, and we had a great time!

God bless America and you!

thankful for our freedom,

Jill

The stuff.....

I just have to recognize my son for a minute. Can I just tell you how proud that I am of this boy? If I had a dollar for every time I asked God..."What did I ever do to deserve this child??"...I would be filthy rich. The answer is crystal clear....NOTHING. I have done nothing to deserve this child, but for some unexplained reason, God had blessed me with him to raise. I feel this about both of my children, of course...this just happens to be a story about my Joseph. :)

Such a daunting task it is to raise children. I mean, seriously. These precious little beings are in our physical, emotional, and spiritual care....for a very long time. I had this conversation with my friend Lisa about the huge responsibility of raising children. Forget about potty training, teaching them to ride a bike, reading to them nightly....I am talking about the other stuff. The stuff that shapes them into a Godly adult. Faith, Character, Patience, Love, Forgiveness....the BIG things in life. The virtues that will define them as adults. SHEW. A lot to ponder, huh?

EVERYDAY is a struggle for me to maintain an example to them worthy of reciprocating. It takes me "on purpose" trying, and trying really, really, really hard. You know? It is not a walk in the park, not even a jog in the park. There is nothing easy about this. Plain and simple. My flesh gets the best of me time and time again. However, those little runny nosed, sticky fingered, milk moustached little babies are worth every ounce of effort for me.

With that said, I could not be more proud of my son. He has decided, on his own accord to read the bible...the whole bible. Ummmm, I haven't even attempted to do this in my 35 years of life. Not that I haven't wanted to, just haven't quite gotten around to committing to such a task. He carries that big blue bible everywhere these days. He even took it to the gym today and read it aloud to some other kids in the nursery. I know those little ladies that babysit that gym nursery are wondering what planet this kid just fell from. Whatever the case, it just makes this little momma smile. :)

He may not last another cotton-picking chapter, but I am proud none the least. His heart is in the right place, and that my friends, is more than I could ever ask for. Joseph loves Jesus. What more could a momma want for her child?

Unfortunately I cannot take the credit for anything except loving the stew out of that child. God gets all the glory and credit for my two babies. He created them and is molding their hearts for Himself. Praise the Lord! I will continue to say until I draw my last breath that my children are teaching me more than I could ever teach them. Life is funny that way, I guess.

trying to see through the eyes of a child,

Jill

For the girls....

I finished the book I was reading..."So long Insecurity, you have been a bad friend to us". Oh my gosh. The last sentence of the book was this..."Now get out there and show some wide-eyed little girls what a secure woman looks like". Wow. All I could think about was my daughter, my nieces, my young babysitter girls. All of their beautiful faces came flooding to my mind. My eyes brimmed over with tears as I pictured each of them.

What kind of example have I been setting thus far? I shudder to imagine. However, with God's unending grace, I have another chance at this thing. He is definitely not finished with me yet. He has just opened my eyes to some deep, dark, and ugly parts that I thought I had hidden even out of His sight. Ha! Was I wrong!

Self-evaluation is tough, but God evaluation is even tougher. He puts that great big spotlight on areas you thought for sure had been buried longer than George Washington himself. Nothing compares to God showing you some things that need attention. It is painful, but OHHHH so worth the suffering.

Girlfriends, I am imploring you to read this book. Just indulge me, please. I say this because I love you. Even if you don't need it for yourself, read it anyway. You know someone who will need the wisdom found in these pages, and you can minister to them.

I feel as if Beth Moore has written my autobiography so to speak with this book. I felt vulnerable and exposed at times because the words that spoke to my heart were so raw and true. Insecurity has been my middle name for the past 35 years, but no more. True security is found in our Lord and Savior, and nothing else. Nothing but Jesus can fill this heart of mine that was so full of self-loathing and self-absorption oddly at the same time. Jesus is the only lasting security. Nothing can hold up to Him.

Now, don't get me wrong...i will still struggle with insecurity. Oh yes. I will just be much more equipped when it rears it's ugly little head. I will know the name, and not mask it as something else. No more silly head games on my part, No more reasoning my behavior with excuses and blame. Pure and simple it is i.n.s.e.c.u.r.i.t.y.

I am thankful that my Mom lent me this book...the book that I actually gave HER for Mother's Day. I guess I subconsciously knew I needed it more and couldn't wait to get my anxious little hands on it. I am so glad that God was able to provide me the time to read it from cover to cover. He knew I needed every ounce of this Truth. Thank you, Lord.

clothing myself with strength and dignity,

Jill

"The Lord is your security. He will keep your foot from being caught in a trap." Proverbs 3:26