Let's Skate on Eight.....

Presley turned 8 on December 1st.

I still can hardly believe that my baby girl is 8.

Here are some things about my Presley:

finished first grade
learned to roller skate
lost more teeth
took gymnastics
cheered for the first time
still loves to cook
learned to ice skate
she loves writing notes (just like her momma!)
her favorite thing to do is play school after school!
she loves make-up (not sure where she gets that from) ;)
she loves camping
she is my side kick in life!
she can braid her own hair. really, she can.
she has the cutest feet ever. like, ever ever.
her hair is so thick. i am so envious. :)
she loves Jesus!


Okay, I could go on...

Like, forever.

Presley has been wanting to have a roller skating party since her cousin Anna-Joy had her party back in July. So, our town just got a new skating rink several months ago, and we had the party there! Yay!

Here are some pics from her fun party!

having some snacks

melissa and her sweet james 

playing some roller skating games!

Artazia and I 

Jenny and Tyler so sweet!

The birthday star!

Anna-Joy, Presley, Cali, and Karoline

Graham

favorite friends: Karoline, Presley, Andrea, Annabel

Danny and Rob

sweet Thomas

Maw Maw & Presley

can you believe Wal-Mart did this cute cake? less than $30 bucks!

beautiful Anna-Joy

presley and andrea held hands almost the entire time! so cute!

annabel, karoline, anna-joy, cali, presley, andrea, and ashley

good friends, ava & presley

my favorite girl!

i love her face!

make a wish!

Happy Birthday, my sweet Princess Presley!

You are the most thoughtful, sweet, kind, compassionate, loving and BEAUTIFUL girl in the whole  world! 

I love you always and forever,

Mommy

Give it away....

I met a lady while our church fed a local homeless shelter. She is precious. She has 8 children. All boys.

She told me bits and pieces of her story, which were laced with Joy, Hope, and Faith.

I told Lem that I would be curled up in a ball on the floor sucking my thumb if I had been through what she has been through.

Long story short, she is now my friend. My SHINE friends donated over 100 bottles of laundry detergent to her shelter after she expressed that her children's clothes often could not be washed. (heart breaking.)

A couple of friends and I took the detergent to the shelter and we got to speak to my new friend again.

I left the shelter and the song, "Give this Christmas Away" by Matthew West came on.

My eyes spilled over with tears and i could feel my heart melting. I felt the Lord tell me to help my new friend this Christmas. Not just me, but to ask my friends to help her as well.

I envisioned my cozy, wonderful Christmas and Christmas eve with my family. Then, I envisioned her and her boys at that shelter on Christmas day.

On Thursday, I sent an email to some friends asking for small donations to help my friend this Christmas. I prayed all day that God would just rain in the blessings on her family.

It's Sunday, and already, the donations have been pouring in. I am literally in awe. I had NO idea that God had THIS kind of outpouring in mind.

There's more to this story, but I cannot share at this time. I will just say that truly the Lord loves my new friend. He loves her ABUNDANTLY.

If you are reading my blog, and you would like to Give some of Your Christmas Away, contact me. If you feel led to donate even a few dollars to my new friend, it would be much appreciated. My email is lemandjill@gmail.com

I asked my new friend what she wanted for Christmas. She told me all that she ever wanted was a picture of she and her boys to frame for their OWN place one day. She said she wanted them to see how they ALWAYS were together. No matter what.

A friend of mine, whom I JUST met last Tuesday, has offered to take their pictures for this family.

What!!?? Really, God?? This SAME friend has a clothing donation center and said this family could come and get whatever they needed.

I am still in SHOCK at God's timing and His people working hand in hand to help others. He sends just the right people at just the right time.

My heart is so changed and so raw. My eyes have been peeled open in a whole new way this year.

I never want to be blind again. I never want to "not see" again.

Will you take this challenge with me? The challenge to give this Christmas away?

You will be so glad you did. YOU will be the one blessed. Guaranteed.

eyes wide open,

jill

What if I told you?

You have the power

To give someone hope

Far beyond their wildest dreams

What if I told you it's right there in your hands?

In your hands

It's hard to imagine

How something so small

Can make all the difference

Tear down the tallest wall

What if December looked different this year?

What if we all just

Give this Christmas away

If there's love in your heart

Don't let it stay there

Give this Christmas away

And your life will be changed

By the gift you receive

When you give this Christmas away

It's feeding the hungry

It's serving the poor

It's telling the orphan

You're not forgotten anymore

It's doing what love does

Even when no one's watching you

Give this Christmas away

If there's love in your heart

Don't let it stay there

Give this Christmas away

And your life will be changed

By the gift you receive

When you give this Christmas away

For God so loved the world, He gave His only son

So we could be His hands, His feet, His love

His love

From us to you.....

Getting by with a little help from my friends....

Wow. Is all I can say.

I am lying in my bed next to my Presley girl literally worn out and exhausted.

This past Sunday we had our first SHINE Mission Project. It was a big success!

Many, many donations later, my garage was filled to the rim! I am not exaggerating.

I was thrilled! But, I have to admit a little overwhelmed by the monstrosity of it all. If you know me at all, you know that I do not like clutter if I can help it. In fact, I tend to "throw things away" just because I get tired of looking at it.

My garage being so full with stuff would have made me go crazy a year ago. I mean CRAZY.

It's truly amazing how the Lord changes our hearts!

Seriously, I never ever would have taken on such an endeavor even a year ago. If you know me, you know this is true.

Today, I had three incredible friends come over and help me to sort out the donations. We thought it would be very helpful to organize the items for the shelters. Little did we know what we were signed up for! Oh my!

Mary arrived first. Her face said it all when she saw my garage.

Tiffany arrived next and walked in and smiled her big beautiful smile and started laughing. It was a sweet laugh mixed with "oh my heavens".

Danielle arrived last. She turned the corner into our garage and gasped. Seriously she did.

At this point, my heart started racing and I could feel panic and nausea coming on.

How in the world were we going to organize all this stuff?? 

I wanted to RUN. FAR FAR AWAY. I wish I was kidding. 

How could we ever make sense of it? My mind was racing, my heart was pounding. I prayed right then and there that God would give me peace.

I knew this is exactly what He had called SHINE to do as a group. I knew it was of His leading, so I knew He would get us through this day.

And, He did.

My eyes are spilling over with tears as I think of my precious three friends. They stayed for 3 hours and we finished.

Kids were running around everywhere. We were tripping over bags. But, we did it.

The Lord somehow enabled us to finish this project within a decent time frame.

I am not kidding when I say this, but during the whole 3 hours I asked myself if i would have helped my friends out in this way?? Would I have spent 3 hours doing this for someone else??

Yikes.

Today, I can happily say I would. I am so indebted to these girls and their sacrifices of their time, their gas money, their energy...everything.

To say that I am grateful is a complete and utter understatement.

Words cannot describe my gratitude.


Proverbs 20:6 
Many will say they are loyal friends, but who can find one who is truly reliable?


Proverbs 17:17 
A friend is always loyal, and a brother is born to help in time of need.

Not just for these precious three, but for all the families that donated, prayed, and encouraged this
whole Mission Project.

Thank you.

The SHINE donations before our organizing :)

God bless these little working hands

DONE!

really DONE. 

hitting my pillow,

jill

Serve with us....

If you read my blog and you want to serve this November...go to my SHINE website and see how you can help us!

I would LOVE for you and your sweet families to participate in such an incredible way!

Let's be the hands and feet of Jesus, friends.

A little on our part, can make a HUGE impact in the lives of many others!

Bag up some clothes, clean out your pantry...and come see us on November 18th!

Details on the SHINE blog.

love your hearts,

jill

Yes, I'm serious.....

So, this week a few friends and I have started a cross fit body over haul.

Yes, I'm serious.

see, I am real serious. Look at my face in this picture. all business
yes, that's a big log. we found it on side of the road.
we are some tough girls.
my  rock star friends:  Erin, Amy, Melissa, Me, Ashley, and Jennifer

My body feels like it's been run over by a semi about 8 times.

Yes, I'm serious.

Here's the plan:

Running 5 miles a day--or something else cardio.
4x a day reps of: 50 jumping jacks, 50 squats, 50 crunches, and 50 second planks.

Yes, I'm serious.

As I type, I still have on more rep to go for the day. My body is screaming NOOOOOOO.

My butt is screaming--do this for MEEEEEE!!

I think my butt will win today. (can't speak for tomorrow though)

So, if you see me and I look tired, worn out and.....tired. Now you know why.

Isn't it funny how you have to will yourself into change? Like, seriously. It's all about the mind. I have to talk to myself over and over and convince myself that I need to keep pushing, keep going.

Yes, I'm serious.

back to the floor,

jill

People change.....

It's funny how you change--the older you get.

For example:

i used to stress about my house being messy. (what a JOKE! now, i am thankful if i get to bed without tripping over Lem's shoes on the way)

i used to be SO OCD about the kids having a bath before bed every night. Even if we got home at 11:00 pm, I made sure they woke up and bathed. (now, they are lucky if I am able to change them into their p.j's without waking them up)

my car used to be spotless. (now, my car is SPOTTY! stains everywhere. they all have a memory attached though. so now i cherish them)

i used to throw everything away. everything. (i am so much more sentimental now. how long will her handwriting be like this? how long will he write little fiction stories for me to read--i will keep them forever!)

my toes used to always be perfectly polished. (i am still pretty good about keeping my feet groomed, but i am okay with a few toenails having chipped polish)

i used to get manicures. (ha!!! what is a manicure????!!) :)

i used to think that i was "just a stay at home momma"--nothing special. (now, i cherish this job description and realize how truly blessed I am to be able to live out my childhood dream of doing this job.)

i used to think that i needed to make everyone happy. i thought they needed me for this. (this has been a huge change. probably the biggest. now, i am okay if not everyone agrees with me, or what i choose to do. it's so fine. we are all different. and different is good.)

i used to think that if i weren't busy--i wasn't important. (busy is not a good thing for me. it keeps peace far, far away. it also keeps me from focusing on what i need to be honed in on...God, hubby, family. all else is just a big ol' fat bonus from the Lord.)

How have you changed?

Catching Up....

So, here's what's been going on in our lives these days:

• I gave up coffee. For real, I did. I didn't want to tell y'all too soon because I was scared that I couldn't make it ONE day without it. Well, I did! I gave it up Sept. 23rd--yes, I know the date! Let me just say that by day 3 of my detox, I woke up with night sweats. Not kidding. Serious caffeine head, I was.
• I switched to red tea. Oh yummy. If you haven't heard of this delicious herbal drink, google it. Trust me, you need to know about it. The good news: I can drink it all day long and no jittery body parts, flipping out heart beats, losing my temper (caffeine gives me an edge apparently), and no freak-out moments in the morning when we are out of coffee. 
• Lem still drinks coffee. I tried to get him to sway to my red tea side of the fence. He refuses. Oh well. Let him dehydrate. ;)
• We are on Fall Break this week. Yep. Fun times!
• Joseph has 2 more football games. I'm gonna miss this team. They are kinda like the Bad News Bears. Just adorable little fellas. Kind of all misfits. My favorite type of folks--as you all know. ;)
• Presley is growing like a little weed. So is Joseph. I'll stop there. Tears may come and I don't have Kleenex nearby.
• My favorite season is approaching! Thanksgiving and Christmas! 
• My house looks like Halloween--in every room. My kids LOVE coming home to the house being decorated. It never, ever gets old.
• Lem is reading Hunger Games. He is begging me to read it too. He just doesn't understand my "cannot read fiction" thing. He thinks I'm weird. Perhaps I am. Oh well.
• I've been doing 200 jumping jacks a day thanks to my friend, Erin, and my running girls. The only draw back--my boobs are really sore. I am NOT kidding. Not even an ounce. (i think a new sports bra is in order--do they come in steel?)
• We celebrated a friend's 40th birthday last weekend. Yep, we are all creeping into 40. Ready or not. 

Okay, enough rambles. Want some pictures? Okay, here goes. 

Paw Paw, Joseph and Royce at Christian's 40th!

Amber-doodle and Me

Kim and the b-day boy
oops, his eyes are closed.
maybe he is wishing he wasn't 40? 

Amberlee and Anna-Joy <3 font="font">

Is your mouth watering? Mine too.

Glenn's BBQ catered the party--my fave!

The girls show off their moves

Guess who's related and who's not? :)

It tasted good--real good. Promise.

I found this hottie at the party

The old school boys club

our newest hobby-skating!

yep, Danny too.

Lem has his work cut out for him.
(i was too busy taking pictures, people)

Oh, good times. good times.

I love Joseph's bootie. Could not resist this pic. 

Housework blues...

So, this is where I am at. Just in case you were wondering. This weekend we had 5 kids in our house. Yes, 5.

My house looks like a tornado went through it and then decided to stop and birth twin tornado-ettes.

Relate?










Happy week, y'all!

needing a maid,

jill

Desires and such....

So, I don't write on here as much as I used to because I write on SHINE every day. I am so grateful that the Lord has given me a place to write my heart! Never in a million years did I imagine this opportunity.

I remember several years ago longing to do a bible study with my friends. A study that we could all do together. Of course, my friends lived in different places, had different schedules, and it just was not possible to meet to study the Bible.

Desire after desire, longing after longing, my heart ached for something MORE. I remember telling Lem all year last year that something was coming. I felt it in my soul. I felt God had something for us.

Lem would always smile and appease me. Truth be told he probably thought I was going crazy.

I remember pouring through the Bible looking for answers to what this burning in my heart was about. I was desperate to fast forward to where God wanted me to be.

Hope was my theme for last year. Everywhere I turned, everywhere I looked I saw the word Hope.

It was God's way of telling me to keep the Hope in my heart, something was coming, I just had to trust Him.

I did trust Him. However, I was impatient. I wanted to know what this burning and anticipation was.

He was not ready to show me.

Last Fall was one of the hardest times of my life. I fell into a deep dark place. Anxiety, depression, all that fun stuff. I could literally feel the enemy trying to smother me. It felt like he was sitting on my chest.

I didn't understand what was happening. I felt so close to the Lord. I felt so in tune with Him. Why was I feeling this way?

Looking back, I see that God was growing my dependence on Him. I think He wanted to see if I was truly ready for what He had in store for my life. I think in a way, He was burning off a lot of flesh and a lot of "Jill-ish" ways that needed to be done with.

It was so painful. It felt like that season lasted forever.

Until one day, the clouds cleared. The sun came out and I literally felt warmth fill my body.

God had never left me, but He wanted me to trust Him even when I couldn't feel Him. Oh, so hard. So hard.

Now, I find myself putting on His armor daily. Even days when I don't "feel" like I need it. On days when things seem fine, I sit down and go to His Word anyway. I cannot ever take it off. The enemy gets a foothold quickly as soon as we drop our guard. Trust me on this one.

I have a lot more to say, but my daughter is beckoning me to watch her dance. So, I will stop. :)

grateful for His love,

jill