A new baby...the best Christmas present of all!

Ben and Brandy had their 3rd girl last night, on Christmas Day, at 9:02pm! Joy Noel is an absolutely beautiful little girl, 6 lbs 14 oz. Here are a few pictures right after she was born.

Good to know!

Thanks ladies for responding, now I don't feel like I am just writing an online journal for myself :)
So since you are reading...get this: Rat in our wall! I KNOW!!!!!
Last week, at 5:00am I wake up to "CRUNCH CRUNCH CRUNCH" in our wall. I shot straight up because it was so loud, I thought it was in our room. I woke Braden up (I don't know how he slept through it) and we had to endure this loud rodent in our wall for 20 MINUTES!
Braden went outside to see if there was a hole in our wall outside the bedroom, but didn't see anything. The sound went away and we fell back asleep, however, slightly more paranoid now.
When I woke up I e-mailed our community manager and let him know how unacceptable it was that we pay a ridiculous amount (seriously, you don't want to know) for our apartment and this company is known for their standards.
The next night, the same sound woke us up!!
I did not hear from our manager until 2 days later and he said "they would take car of it."
Fast forward one week (aka 2 days ago) and the sound was back!!!!! Obviously not taken care of!
Long story short...we are trying to get out of our lease and leave this rat-hole, literally. The rat was just the needle that broke our backs. The apartment is 30 years old, had mold on bathroom ceiling, stained carpet when we moved in, rotting fence, no washer or dryer and we we pay the price of a mortgage in Oregon. We found an apartment built in 2005, washer, dryer, garage, fan in the bathroom for ventilation, fitness center, game room and it is 300 dollars less!
Keep us in your prayers as we are trying to find a loop-hole since we don't have a lease break option.

On another note, we are driving up to Oregon on Dec. 22nd, please pray for safe travels and we are soooooooooooo excited to see you all!

Does anyone read this?

Just wondering if anyone reads my blog or if it is just space that I go to in order to connect to other blogs. I fully understand that you all could be reading my blog and not posting anything if you don't have anything to say, but just wondering if anyone if out there would wants me to keep posting updates about us? Write a little, "Yes, I'm here" Just so I know...thanks!

It's the most wonderful time of the year!!!!

That is really all I have to say! I love Christmas time, although it feels a bit different down here without the chilly weather. But I am doing my best with baking, decorations, movies and music to make up for the warm weather. Merry Christmas month everybody!!! Do something awesome for someone, make someone smile, experience giving and joy this Christmas. And remember that little baby who made this joy all possible, our Lord Jesus Christ.

Chirpy

I have an illistration for you...
A woman was vacuuming in her house and decided that use the hose on her vacuum for clean her bird's cage. His name is Chirpy. While carefully vacuuming his cage the phone rang and distracted her, she turned around and all of the sudden she heard the vacuum suck up something larger than feathers and food, she had vacuumed up Chirpy. She quickly opened the vacuum and found Chirpy still alive but very dusty and dirty so she started batting the dirt and fuzz off of him. Finding that hitting him was not very successful, she ran him under the water faucet to scrub him. Finally getting the dirt off the wanted to dry him and put him under the blow dryer. Sufficiently clean and dry, she put Chirpy back his cage.
She says "Chirpy is alive, she just doesn't sing much anymore"
Is this the story of your life, have you been so battered and run through the ringer lately that you don't sing much anymore...don't feel a reason to praise?
This was an illistration that our pastor gave us when going through Philipians. We know the story of Paul being beaten, but in jail and tortured, yet he still had reason to sing because he had Christ. This ties into Philipians 1:21, "For me, to live is Christ and to die is much better"
If we live fore Christ, our lives revolve on his greatness and when we die, however it may be, it much better because we are going to His kingdom.
Our Pastor said something that really helped me to put this verse into a perspective so that I was able to understand it more than I have ever before. I have heard this verse numerous times but what he said made so much sense.
Kenton said that if we replace "Christ" in that verse with any other word, than it means we lose. If we put "For me, to live is money" then "to die" means we lose. If we say "For me, to live is my job" then "to die" means we lose again. The only way that dying, not worrying about death, is better is by living for Christ. It was an amazing sermon.
Just remember "Chirpy is alive, but he doesn't sing much anymore" Don't let life steal your song!

Oh Christmas...more ode's to thee will come

Ok, so I love Thanksgiving...don't get me wrong, but there is only so much you can do for Thanksgiving. But Christmas....oh Christmas. I start in the beginning of November (Okay, may the middle of October) thinking about Christmas. Themed parties with lots and lots of cooking and baking for me to do. Creative invitations to send out and decorations to get. But what I love the most is giving...Operation Christmas Child, Angel Tree, giving goats and chickens to our little boy in Zambia and I love, love, love finding personal items and gifts for each individual in my family. I find great joy in searching for a gift that makes their eyes light up, a huge smile across their face and they get giddy! Anyway, this just me babbling but I am going to start decorating next weekend and I am sooooooo excited!

Too hot...

Can I just say that Southern California is not all that it is cracked up to be. This morning I had to go help with a Prospective Student Fair at Concordia and I put on my Leadership shirt and it looked chilly outside so I put a long sleeve shirt on underneath at 7:30am. 30 minutes later I am outside at my table, setting up for the students and it was 85 degrees...at 8:00am! It is November people and I need some cool, crisp weather here! I guess I signed up for it and all but everyone is saying that it is hotter than normal right now. Hopefully it will cool down soon and things will seem normal again because right now it is hotter than it was in June!!! Just a rant...more to come later

Have hope in times of disappointment

I am probably one of the millions dedicating their blog to what happened last night. The new president of our country is Obama and all we can do is pray. As shocked as we all are, God knew what was going to happen and he has master plan for is going to happen. Although McCain did not win, we should still get behind the new president so that our country can be unified. It doesn't do any good for us to get all upset and bash "those liberals" (even though it is the first thing comes to mind). It is tempting and I will be honest in saying that we had a few jokes ourselves. However, the underlying tone is somber for us...we really wanted a conservative president: someone who would keep Bush's tax plan and work with our troops over seas (not just take them out). Let us, as believers, notice an opportunity to pray and come to Christ on our knees for the future of our country. Let us not let the disappointment that we feel now lead us to sinful acts of aggression and hateful words...but let us have faith in God's plan and hope that maybe Obama can do some good if we ask our Lord to direct him. It is never too late for our new leader's heart to be changed and come to God...let us hope...

Coming home for a visit

I am in my good friend Mandy's wedding this next Saturday so I am coming into town on Wednesday! I am so excited to be able to see family and friends, that is the main thing I miss down here. On top of that, I will get to experience true fall weather!!!! It has still been in the 80's down here and as I write this I am wearing shorts and a tank top. I miss my scarves, boots and jackets!!! So I may be bring a big suitcase just so I can bust out my favorite fall clothes that I don't get to wear down here. I am looking forward to seeing all of you!!!

To be or not to be...a graduate student?

Hmmm... so this has been on my mind a lot lately, this being my last year as an undergraduate student. I see many possibilites and options for my future career. I can graduate down here and when we move back to Oregon, complete my graduate degree at Western Oregon University to get my MAT (Master of Arts in Teaching). From there I would try to get a job teaching public speaking and communication classes at the high school level and also apply to be an Activities Director at the same school. Seems like a great plan right? However....

I can graduate in the next year, and when we move back put my BA in communications to work (with the intern experience that I have) to be an activity and event coordinator at a school, church, wherever. And that is what I have always wanted to do, not necessarily teach (although I think it to be one of the most rewarding careers). By taking this route I can save the time that I would spend in school another year and half, gain working experience and save $20k.

I have no idea where the thought of grad school entered my head! Maybe it is just a phase that I need to go through, just to think about. Because the more I think about it, the more I think that my job is to graduate, move home and work. This may just seem like trival school decisions but for those of you who know my health situation, you know that I don't want to wait 3 years to graduate, work for a 3 more years and then start a family (for 2 reasons).

1) I have always felt the calling to be a mother, take care and teach children and my family. It is a longing, passion and desire that I have and if I go to grad school just because I can, I am putting off what I have always dreamed of.
2) With my health, the best recommendation for being healed is actually having a baby. Now I am not saying that I am considering having a baby now or even in the next 2 years, but I don't want to know that is has to be 6 years.

Those of you who are mothers understand my #1, those of you have Endometriosis understand my #2 and those of you who know me probably understand all of this babbling the best. So thanks for reading and being a part of this while Braden and I figure it all out. Leave comments if you have them!

29 Big Ones....

I just wanted to say Happy Birthday today to my sister Ranae! Love you Nae

Having fun in Oregon!!

It has been a couple of weeks since I have blogged, but that is only because we have been busy having a wonderful time here in Oregon! The past 2 weeks have been a blur of family, friends, weddings, birthday parties, camping and the sort. We went to our friends Amy and Mike's wedding last weekend (picture of me and Amy), Braden's kiteboarding tournament (picture) and a car show where Braden's dad was showing his old Chevelle. The weather is up and down, but we can't expect any different from good ol' Oregon (after all, the rain is what keeps it so beautiful up here). We are blessed to have this time with our family and friends.

Being here sure makes it difficult to return "home" to Cali and school, but that is where we are in this stage of life. Time flies so quickly and in the long run, a couple of years is nothing compared to the rest of lives. We are enjoying the adventures of a new place, new culture and new friends that we know we will stay in contact with for the rest of our lives.

While in Oregon Braden competed in a kiteboarding competition up at Bridge of the Gods in Stevenson, WA. There were a couple hundred competitors and it was so much fun watching all of the guys and gals compete and seeing my husband out there with them! It was his first tournament (after only kiteboarding for a few months) and I am very proud of how he did. We were able to camp up there with our cousin Trevor, and Braden's dad and step-mom.

I am switching jobs (and it is a very good thing). The day after we return home I will start training at the school for my new position. I was asked by our student life director to be a "LEAD" Scholar on a committe of five people. We will be planning school events, coordinating events and publicity with the community, organizing student activities, new student week, working hard to get students to vote and everything else that goes along with being a "Student Life Coordinator". This a big opportunity for me as I aspire to be an event coordinator. Not too many people actually get job experience and training during school so that when they graduate they aren't going into the field empty handed. I feel so blessed to be asked to do this job! AND I receive a scholarship towards my tuiton as well. EVEN MORE.... no commute since I will already be at the school 5 days a week for my classes, I get to work between my classes and put in time when I can! It is amazing!!!!

Please be praying for this upcoming year as Braden and I are now starting our senior level classes....eek! Exciting and hard. We feel so blessed and life is wonderful, praises to our wonderful Lord who continues to shower us with grace and mercy every single day.

T minus 24 hours...

In less than 24 hours we will be on a plane headed for our beloved Oregon!!! We are so excited to be able to visit our friends, family and beautiful home state for 3 WEEKS!!! We are so incredibly blessed to be able to come home for such an extended time. YAY!

YAY for family

I love having family come visit here! Laura and Sam were in town this last weekend for a wedding that Sam was in. We were able to get together with them on Saturday and spend a large portion of the day hanging out, catching up and talking about the wedding. We had a blast and one day was just not enough :(. Then on Tuesday we were able to get together with Braden's aunt Shelly who was in town for a wedding as well.

Although we love it down here and are so blessed with opportunity to go to a wonderful school, we sure miss family and look forward to being back in Oregon so that we don't miss out on anything. Here are a couple of pics from breakfast with Sam and Laura (Oh and me with my short hair).

The Happenings and Prayer

Hey all! Well I have not posted much since we do not have too much going on. Work for me, work and school for Braden...that is pretty much the jist. We do have some fun things coming up though! Laura and Sam (the newly engaged couple) will be here this Saturday to visit. Friday is my friend Tracy's big 25 and we are spending the afternoon/evening at the beach for some volleyball and bonfire fun. Working those days too though :(. We are leaving for Oregon July 23rd through August 13th and we are pretty stoked! Our friends Emily and Gavin are getting married the 20th (which we have to miss...so bummed), Amy and Mike the first weekend in August, and Jenna and Ryan the weekend after that! Wow, a lot to keep us busy.

Please pray.... for Tonya and baby Natalie. Pray for their health (emotional and physical) and also for a safe birth. Pray for all of the summer teams that are out right now and that will be going out this summer to witness to our depraved world. Pray for finances, I know most of you feel the belt tightening as well with gas and food prices going up, being a student is not easy. Pray for safe travels as we head to Oregon. And pray for health as I have been having increasing endometriosis pain.

We love you all and miss you! We are so excited to be able to see you face to face! Please call and we can plan a time to hang out and grab coffee or something!

Quick note

I just had to post a short one today to say...I am so excited about coming home for a long visit in less than 2 months!!! YAY! Anyway, have a great day!

I'm It!

Four jobs I've had:
1. Club Attendant at Cascade Athletic Club
2. Nanny
3. Food Server at Outlaw BBQ
4. Personal Care Assistant

Four movies I've watched more than once:
1. Newsies
2. Little Women
3. Sweet Home Alabama
4. Seven Brides for Seven Brothers

Four TV shows I watch:
1. CSI: Miami
2. Shark
3. The Hills
4. Ugly Betty!

Four places I've been:
1. England
2. France
3. Scotland
4. Oaxaxa, Mexico

Four people who email me regularly
1. My parents
2. My teachers
3. Myself (sending citations from EBSCOhost)
4. Concordia

Four of my favorite foods:
1. Tomato soup
2. Crab
3. Pizza
4. Coconut

Four places I would like to visit:
1. Greece
2. Australia
3. Israel
4. Carribean

Four things I'm looking forward to in the coming year:
1. Going to Oregon in July
2. Friends weddings
3. A new little Maddox for Ben and Brandy
4. Christmas!

Four Friends I'm tagging:
1. Heather Overby
2. Ranae
3. Cherianne
4. Ashley Hynes

Happy Mothers Day!

I just wanted to say Happy Mothers Day out there to every mom. I especially want to say I love you to my mother. She is the most amazing woman! Seriously she is the smartest person I know, makes a mean peanut butter pie, can find any missing thing in the world, has this way about tucking you in just right, cries when she laughs, is full of wisdom and is the best example of a godly woman. I love you mom!

And here are the other wonderful moms in my life.....

(Grandma Kennedy, Jacobson and Andersen too but I didn't have pictures with me and them).

Alot to say...

Life has been very busy lately so I feel like I haven't posted in a long, long time. Anyway...life has been going on as usual. School is almost done for this semester and we are finishing up papers, speeches, projects and tests (OH MY!) Braden and I both have been looking for internships/jobs and thinking alot about life (more on that later). Ranae came to visit last week for a couple of days on her way down to San Diego for a CCC trip and we had a blast showing her around. Mom and Dad Maddox have been here the past couple of days and we so enjoy spending time with them. We have missed family tremendously and it has been so great to have them here. Keeping the house together is a constant chore with our busy schedule and on top of it we are trying to exercise more and eat better. We are not pulling our hair out yet, but life has been crazy. However, I wouldn't have it any other way. I have nothing to complain about.

Other notes: Since we have been in Cali, my Fibromylgia has been doing much better. My doctors told me that Fibro patients usually do better when they have more Vitamin D (aka sun).
Braden went in for 2 interviews for internships and has decided to stay at Claim Jumper for now.
I got a job (Praise the Lord) at a Pet Boutique at Fashion Island in Newport, Beach. Sounds all frilly and fluff but I really like the owner and I will get my fix on little dogs so I will stop bugging Braden to get me one :). It is a really nice area and the hours are perfect for school, it is a big blessing. My best friend Shana was accepted to nursing school at Linfield College and I am so proud of her and excited for the next couple of years for her. My little sister Emilie was accepted to Internation Beauty School in Downtown Portland and will be starting in 2 weeks! So proud of her as well, she has an amazing talent (see my wedding photos and Ranae's as well). Tyler (our brother in-law) graduates from boot camp (National Guard) this next Thursday and will return home after being gone for 4 months. He has very well at training and we are really proud of him. Mom and Dad continue to speak for Family Life and are doing great as well. After finals we are flying to Maryland to spend some time with Mom and Mark (Bradens mom and her husband). We will spend 2 days in New York and then the rest of the time in Maryland with them. I am so excited since I have hardly spent any time on the East Coast.

So there is an update, wow there is alot going on. So about life...with college and career choices coming up and meeting new people and groups down here, Braden and I have been pondering life and about our influences. You know: how do we live in this world and not of it? It is really difficult to succeed by societal terms but flourish in our Christian walk as well. We want to live where God wants us to, to work where we will have the most influence and also associate with people who will not bring us down. We want to live our lives pleasing to God without material things and for people to see Christ shining through us. So the question on our minds is: how do we live a comfortable life (give to the church, provide for ourselves and future children) without going overboard. And how should our attitudes be toward to sinful things of this culture when it is so easy to be entrapped by them (i.e. television shows, clothes, cars). It is something we talk about alot as we are making many big decisions in life and it is something that we don't have any concrete answers to. All we have come with is: live for today and stop stressing about tomorrow, glorify the Lord in each moment and don't look to others to confirm your success.

Angry...

So there I am sitting in my criminology class tonight when I became very angry. We are going over Violent Crime right now (murder, rape, robbery, assault). So my prof is going through the power point and giving definitions with statistics when he comes to Infanticide (the killing of infants) and this is when I got really angry. The number he has on the screen was 500 each year. Now if you know me and you share my passions then you are angry right now too. 500?!?!? What about the other 1.5 million babies that killed each year through abortion?! Where are they on this violent crime graph? First of all abortion is not seen as violent or a crime (which it should be), that is a big problem I have with this. What will it take for everyone to realize this? It just gets me so heated that our country can research every little thing to death and put the numbers out there for everyone to see but when it comes to abortion, no one talks about how these children are being killed and their statistics are taboo. How do you feel?

I love my nieces! (And Braden and Brandy...also here)

You know you are from the NW if....

** Feel guilty about throwing aluminum cans or paper in the trash
** Use the expression "sun break" and know what it means
** Know more than 10 ways to order coffee
** Know more people who own more boats than air conditioners
** Feel overdressed wearing a suit to a nice restaurant
** Stand on a deserted corner in the rain waiting for the "WALK" signal
** Are amazed by accurate forecasts
** Consider that if it has no snow or has not recently erupted, it's not a real mountain
** Complain about Californians, as you sell your house for twice its value to one
** Know the difference between Chinook, Coho, and Sockeye Salmon
** Know how to pronounce Sequim, Puyallup, Issaquah, and Oregon
** Consider swimming an indoor sport
** See your golf ball bounce, you know immediately that you've hit the cart path and not the fairway
** Can tell the difference between Japanese, Chinese and Thai food
** In winter, go to work in the dark and come home in the dark -- while only working an eight hour day
** Obey all traffic laws except "Keep right except to pass"
** Never go camping without waterproof matches and a poncho
** Are not fazed by "Today's forecast: showers followed by rain" or "Tomorrow's forecast: rain followed by showers"
** Can't wait for a day with "Showers and sun-breaks"
** Have no concept of humidity without precipitation
** Can taste the difference between Starbuck's, Seattle's Best Coffee and Veneto's
** Know that Boring is a town in Oregon and not just a state of mind
** Can point to atleast two volcanoes, even if you can't see through the cloud cover
** Say "The mountain is out" when it's a pretty day and can actually see it
** Have more rain gear in your golf bag than golf balls
** Put on your shorts when the temperature gets above 50, but still wear your hiking boots and parka
** Switch to your sandals when it gets above 60, but keep the socks on
** Have actually used your mountain bike on a mountain
** Have a heater in your golf cart
** Think people who use umbrellas are either wimps or tourists
** Knew immediately that the view outside of Frasier's window was fake
** You know you're from the NW if you buy new sunglasses every year because you can't find the old ones after not needing them for such a long time...

Happy Easter!

Hi all! We wanted to say Happy Easter to everyone and that we wish we could be up in Oregon to celebrate. It is just not the same celebrating down here. Every year my parents have Easter baskets for us kids (even the married ones :) and we have a wonderful dinner, read through the resurrection eggs and sometimes watch The Passion of Christ. Anyway, we will have to find something to do but it just won't be the same.

But I should not complain about trivial things when this day is about so much more. Realizing that because of what Christ did on that cross, there is nothing that we can do or have to do for our salvation: it was all on HIM and what He did that day for us. I don't know about you but that is the most loving, most warming feeling I could ever experience. Because in no way could I ever measure up to or be in close to pleasing God on my own with my life. Thank you Jesus!

Not in hibernation....

Okay, so it has been a really long time since I have posted anything. Life has been pretty busy (when is it not?) Spring break came and left, I accomplished most everything I wished to. San Francisco was great, I planted some flowers and bought a new book. The next week I was able to go to Disneyland with Michelle Ziegler and my friend Tracy. Then yesterday Tracy and I drove up to L.A., put our names in the "Wicked Lottery" and MY NAME was called for front row seats to the Wicked show at the Pantageas Theatre on Hollywood Blvd! It was an amazing show. So in between all of that, school...blah blah...homework...blah blah....housework....

On another note, Braden and I will be coming home to Oregon this week although we wish it were under much different circumstances. Braden's aunt (the most wonderful, loving, caring, sweetest woman) passed away this last friday night after a long fight with cancer. It has been a very difficult time for us and the whole family. Please pray for her family in this time and for our trip. We look forward to seeing our family on both sides and celebrating what a wonderful life his aunt lived. We will miss her so much!

Spring Break?...In February?

Yep that is right, our spring break has officially begun (today February 22nd at 12:55pm)! I am not going to complain that it is still winter and we are calling it "Spring" break, after all we have one week off of school. Plans for this week?

- Deep clean apartment (since we have been here we do the norm: vacuum, dust, sweep, clean the counters, take out trash, laundry and do the dishes, but we all know--at least Brandy and Tonya agree with me--that there are just some things that should be deep cleaned. For instance: I bleached the tub today and got in there with my little scrubber and went to work. I love having a clean place to live!)
- Buy some flowers, potting soil, some pots and get dirty! Our patio area is pretty blah right now (we did buy pea gravel and 4 stepping stones to cover the "dirt patch", so that looks nice now) but I want some life and color! So I plan to do some gardening, yeah!
- RELAX! and not feel guilty about it :)
- Ride my brand new bike that my loving husband surprised me with for Valentines day!!!!
- Go to San Francisco Feb. 29- March 2nd.
- Read the Word for long periods of time
- Start (and finish) a new book (I just finished a Karen Kingsbury novel).

I am very excited for this week and hope to get everything done that I want to. Love you all and miss you all too! Brandy, tell the girls hi and we love them soooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo much! I miss my little munchkins...:(

"Island Time"

I have to agree with my wonderful sister Brandy! Why does our society make us feel like we have to always be on the run? For example, Braden and I have very long, very full weeks and at the end of the week all I want to do is relax. I want to enjoy a nice evening on Friday with my husband, sleep in on Saturday, lounge around, maybe read a good book and be lazy by the pool, do a few house chores here and there, cook a good meal and just take it easy. But while I am trying to do all of this...I feel guilty! Why? I think I am going to take a chapter from the Hawaiians and change weekend time into "Island time"...anyone else with me? I know you can't all say..."weekend time, that is my time off" because you have kids and stuff but it doesn't have to necessarily be a weekend, maybe a few mornings or evenings. Anyway, lets not get bogged down with what our "society" says we "need" to be doing. Take time to smell the roses and enjoy all of God's other creations. Love you all!

Don't be so ignorant

In the United States, a baby is aborted every 20 seconds. In Oregon alone, 34 babies die every day. Oregon does not have any laws that restrict abortions. AND did you know that 1 out of 3 abortions in Oregon is paid for by your tax dollars? Last year $1, 656, 323.00 of our tax dollars funded the murdering of innocent lives. Next time someone tells you that abortion is private matter, don't let them be so ignorant.

Glorious Weather!

Yesterday and today have been absolutely beautiful in our neck of the woods. 75 and sunny! We went to the beach yesterday after a long school week and being sick with the flu. To say the least, we needed the fresh air! We took Batchler to the "dog beach" (The only beach around here where your dogs can freely run without getting into trouble). I am not kidding when I say that there were probably one hundred dogs running around. You would think that this situation would be chaotic, noisy and unpleasant but the dogs all just played together near the water and some owners threw balls and toys and all the dogs chased after them as a group. It was actually alot of fun! We were able to sit and relax while Batchler released his pent-up energy. Here are some pictures from the day.

Hope is 4!!!

I cannot believe that my beautiful, little niece is 4 years old today! I remember going to the hospital right after she was born and holding this tiny little baby. And now she talks all the time, is very smart and plays so well with her little sister. She is a special little girl (not a baby any more, but a little girl!). I was so sad when we left Oregon because she holds a piece of my heart and I am not able to watch her grow while we are gone. I miss that munchkin! She is wonderful. Happy Birthday Hope! We love you!

SUPER Bowl

The Giants won! Normally I would not care about the Super Bowl but I learned alot this year. Usually Jenna throws a party and us girls eat and hang out while the guys watch the game. But this year I decided that I better learn how the game is played since it is Sam's career and he is pretty much a part of the family.

Our small group bible study had a Super Bowl party at Kevin and Tracy's apartment and I WATCHED THE WHOLE GAME! and I enjoyed it! We really got into to and I learned alot (mostly because I asked alot of questions). Anyway...I really feel like I am growing :)

Do You Have a Cause?

I want to challenge you...

In your life, what is it that you live for? Do you live day to day just waking up, going to work, coming home, eating dinner and going to bed? This is a lifestyle that I believe is easy to become accustomed to. However, where is the purpose?

I believe that we should all think about our purpose...to serve the Lord our Savior. Are you doing that is your day to day routine? I have been thinking about this for sometime and although many of us say that we are believers and that we are living for the purpose of serving our King, we are not involved in a cause in our lives as an outlet for that servitude.

Let's all be challenged and find a cause. You do not have to look very far...does your neighbor need meals throughout the week? Can you donate your time to homeless shelters and pregnancy resource centers? Why not lead a bible study at a high school or junior high school in your area to reach our youth?

I come to you all with these insights only because it has been on my heart lately to share more of my faith through a cause that I can serve. As you may know, last week marked a fairly important and devastating anniversary, that of Roe v. Wade. 35 years ago, our country decided to make abortions legal, thus killing (to date) 50 million babies, human lives! As part of my servitude, I want to inform people of the devastation that is abortion. So to start....

The populations of South Carolina, Louisiana, Kentucky, Oregon, Oklahoma, Connecticut, Iowa, Mississippi, Arkansas, Kansas, Utah, Nevada, New Mexico, West Virgina, Nebraska, Idaho, Maine, New Hampshire, Hawaii, Rhode Island and Montana...are the equivalent to the number of lives that have been taken through abortion. Think about all of those people, the families, the connections, the places that they serve! And now think of all the connections, the families, and the places that those lives which were taken could have served. If this has an impact on you, please research the live damaging effects (on the baby and those involved) and share your findings with others.
- May I suggest 2 books:
Pro-Life Answers to Pro-Choice Questions (Randy Alcorn)
Why Pro-Life? (Randy Alcorn)
- And also the National Right to Life website: http://www.nrlc.org/

Our Place...

I finally have pictures for everyone!

Here is the dining room. It is the only place left that is not completely unpacked and organized as you can see by the boxes in the corners. Sorry the lighting in this room is not the best for pictures.

Here is my kitchen! Already it is my favorite place. It is all nice and white and clean. New appliances and new cabinets! For an apartment it has quite a bit of storage space as well.

Our bathroom...the shower and toilet area are to the right of this picture with a door separating the two areas. It is really nice to have the two area disconnected because someone can have the privacy of a shower even if someone else needs to get ready (especially when we have guests over). You can see the reflection of the door in the mirror (as well as my reflection)

Bad lighting, sorry. (There isn't any overhead lighting, just the lamp in the corner that we brought. Notice Batchlers bed (blanket) in the corner. The poor dog has been kind of lonely and at night wants to be in with us while we are doing our homework.

Here is our living room. Notice it has yet to be decorated. At least it is clean, that is all that matters! Right Brandy?!

Our bedroom and our closet. We do not anything up on the walls yet, but that is a new memory foam mattress topper on that bed...soooo comfortable. And the bottom picture is our "walk in" closet. It is acutally decent size and hold all our cloths and extra boxes.

Well, I hope you enjoy the pictures and that they give you an idea of our humble abode. Once we make it more "home-y" we may post more pictures. For now you get to see the post-moving stage. We love you all!

Common Sense

Today we mourn the passing of a beloved old friend, Common Sense, who has been with us for many years. No one knows for sure how old he was,since his birth records were long ago lost in bureaucratic red tape.

He will be remembered as having cultivated such valuable lessons as:Knowing when to come in out of the rain; Why the early bird gets the worm; Life isn't always fair; and Maybe it was my fault.

Common Sense lived by simple, sound financial policies (don't spendmore than you can earn) and reliable strategies (adults, not children,are in charge).

His health began to deteriorate rapidly when well-intentioned but overbearing regulations were set in place. Reports of a 6-year-old boy charged with sexual harassment for kissing a classmate; teens suspended from school for using mouthwash after lunch; and a teacher fired for reprimanding an unruly student, only worsened his condition.

Common Sense lost ground when parents attacked teachers for doing the job that they themselves had failed to do in disciplining their unruly children. It declined even further when schools were required to get parental consent to administer Calpol, sun lotion or a band-aid to astudent; but could not inform parents when a student became pregnant and wanted to have an abortion.

Common Sense lost the will to live as the Ten Commandments became contraband; churches became businesses; and criminals received better treatment than their victims.

Common Sense took a beating when you couldn't defend yourself from aburglar in your own home and the burglar could sue you for assault.Common Sense finally gave up the will to live, after a woman failed to realize that a steaming cup of coffee was hot. She spilled a little in her lap, and was promptly awarded a huge settlement.

Common Sense was preceded in death by his parents, Truth and Trust; his wife, Discretion; his daughter, Responsibility; and his son, Reason.

He is survived by his 3 stepbrothers; I Know My Rights, Someone Else Is To Blame, and I'm A Victim.

Not many attended his funeral because so few realized he was gone.If you still remember him, pass this on. If not, join the majority and do nothing.

Updates...

I am so excited, we went out today and bought a memory foam 4 inch mattress topper for our bed! After many nights of not sleeping well and waking up with my back stiff and joints hurting, we decided it was time to upgrade. Unfortunately we could not afford a full mattress, but Ben and Brandy were kind enough to give us their mattress so we bought the topper for it. I cannot wait to sleep on it!

Still no pictures, sorry. That darn camera, we think it might be a problem with the card so we are going to go get a new one but we hate to spend the money on it :(

Yesterday we had out orientation for school with a tour, filling out all of our info for our accounts and health insurance. We had a nig buffet dinner with all of the other new students (which wasn't alot...about 200) and before dinner we had a prayer all together!!! That is so exciting, I have gone to public school so besides FCA in the mornings at Barlow, I never had a group prayer in a school! It was so refreshing and encouraging...I really think that we are going to like it there. OH! And for one of my classes, we are reading The Case for Christ, how cool is that? I am getting college credit to learn about my Lord and Savior!

Miss you all, and we will update again soon.

We're Alive

Hi everyone! Yes we are alive, just pretty busy. We arrived down here last Thursday night. Currently we are unpacking and finding a place for everything, we are going through all the steps for school, Braden started his job the day after got here and we are dealing with a very home-sick dog. We are having camera problems so we have not been able to post pictures of our new place yet, but they will be up soon!