Coffee Talk

So next month I am speaking for the ladies at our church's monthly meeting of Coffee Talk. It's a fun group of women gathering to hear a spiritual speaker and spend time growing together in Christ. I was so honored to have been asked in November and then disappointed when I had to cancel due to Bug's death. However, Lorraine called me to re-schedule! What a huge compliment....she thought I was worth re-scheduling!

I am used to speaking in front of MOPS, but strangers will be different. I will be baring my soul to people who don't know me! Just a little scary.

My "talk" is about finding the Unexpected (or hidden) blessings in life. I find it ironic that I actually wrote on this subject BEFORE V.T.'s death, BEFORE Bug's death, BEFORE the year 2007. However, when I go back to re-evaluate it, I still maintain that for each circumstance in life, God will reveal a blessing. He doesn't always do it right away, but eventually I find that He does show me that each occurring moment in my life has been a stepping stone for the next and how he fits each stone so perfectly into the path that is my life. I love "aha" moments when I finally put a piece of the puzzle together and see why God has allowed a circumstance to happen in my life. It just reaffirms that He has a good and perfect plan for my life. That He is paving my way and all I have to do is follow Him.

My "talk" is a lot of my story, my testimony. Looking back, the first half of my life was rough. But, if God asked me if I wanted a different childhood given what I know today, I would have to say "no". Because it is in looking back at the stepping stones of my younger years, that I begin to see that those stones have been arranged into a beautiful pathway. My pathway may get cracks in it sometimes, and it might at times be an uphill path, but it always has beautiful scenery along the way and the promise of a rainbow at the end.

I pray for God to use my story to help the ladies find some of the blessings they were looking for. I pray for Him to give me the perfect words to speak. I am so honored to be his vessel and I ask that you would all pray for me to make a difference and an impact for Jesus because after all, THAT would be one BIG blessing to add to my path!

Sports fan?

So, I have never been a sports fan. Really, in the early years of our marriage (when I was SO young and immature) I absolutely hated the fact that my husband would spend ALL day on Saturday watching college football and then Sunday watching NFL Football. He left me basically to fend for myself each and every weekend. Oh, then there was Monday Night Football too. I started to think I didn't stand a fighting chance when all of a sudden I found out that basketball season was next! UGH!

I can't tell you how many years I fought my sports fan for his time and for his attention. I must have spent the first 3 years of our marriage bucking all sporting events. It was actually beginning to tick me off that every weekend I would have to fight for my husbands attention because he watched sports. I went to school all day and all night 4 nights a week and the weekends he was supposed to dote on me. Isn't that the way it works? Yes, there were a few good fights over football.

When Jayson was between 1-3 we had the opportunity to have season tickets to the Carolina Panthers for 2 seasons. We all 3 went to every home game together as a family in a limo (yep, it was the life). I still didn't like football, but I liked the stadium, music and atmosphere. And I loved seeing Jayson dress up in his Carolina gear and get so excited about the games. I still maintain at that point, I was not a football fan, I just liked the social aspect of going to the games, tailgating, riding in the limo and of course,not being a "football widow". (Side note: Jayson is still a Carolina fan which really bothers Jay).

I guess that must have put football into Jayson's blood too, because when he turned 8 guess what sport he chose to play....yep, football! So, this anti-sports gal suddenly became the biggest fan of little league football you ever did see. When Jayson caught his first 2 point conversion (Mama had to learn what that was and what it meant), you would have thought he had just taken his first steps. I clapped so hard my hand was bruised and I screamed so hard, my throat was sore. And when he scored that touchdown and got hit so hard he couldn't get up, Mama was ready to kick some butt. I was fired up!

I think back over that time and how my father in law sat patiently by my side and told me what was happening, what it all meant and if it was a good thing or bad thing. My father in law LOVED watching Jayson play. It was the one of the things he specifically prayed for, that he would live to watch Jayson play football. He did for 3 years! He went in a wheelchair with his oxygen, but by golly, he went to the games! He even let me put a stripe in his snow white hair with purple hairspray! This year, I sure did miss him when Jayson played for Middle school. Jay just isn't quite as patient with me as his dad used to be. He tries, but still, it's not quite the same.

Isn't if funny that I fought sports for so long and now that I think about it, some of my most bonding moments with my father in law came during football games. No, not NFL games, but VT and I just happened to think we were watching games way better than the NFL could produce. After all, we were watching OUR boy.

Today, I try to bond with my son and my husband by watching the Cowboys or the Mountaineers, but I still can't figure out why I should become a fan just to have the sorrow of watching them lose. Why waste my precious time? Oh yeah, because in those few short hours my son may lay beside me or let me scratch his back. He may joke around with me and I can pretend like he isn't growing up too fast. Football, of all things, brings me close to the boys I love (and that isn't the Cowboys!).

Happy Birthday Jay

Tomorrow (Jan 4th) is Jay's birthday. It always sneaks up on me since it's so close to Christmas. We try to make it a special day for him, but it still doesn't seem to get the "hoopla" I think birthdays deserve. I do birthdays big in this house. After all, the birth of my husband and my children are MY most precious gifts.

Isn't it ironic that it's Jay's birthday and I am the one who gets the gift? I get the gift of Jay's love, respect, kindness, stability, never ending support......yes, I could go on and on but you get the picture. So, I was thinking that since it's proper etiquette to write a thank you note for a gift, I think I might just do that:

Dear God,
Thank you so much for the gift of my husband. As I celebrate the day of his birth, I praise you for the man you have given to me and our children. You knew before Jay was born that he would be the perfect husband for me and the perfect father to our children. I thank you so much for giving me a husband who loves not only us, but YOU first and foremost. I thank You for his heart, his spirit, his mind, and his health. I stand back and marvel at the plan You have laid out for my family and I sometimes can't grasp the favor you have shown me by giving me this man to walk my journey of life with.
With all my heart, thank you!
Kristy

Welcome 2008!

Is it 2008 already? Well, you won't hear from me that old saying "WOW! Time flies" or "Where did the time go?". Nope, you won't because I think my family was ready to be rid of 2007! Wow, that year won't go down in our family memory books as a favorite. So, bring on the New Year, it can only be better than last year. Right?

As we found the funk descending over our home after my Aunt and Grandmother left yesterday, we tried to come up with good things that happened in 2007. We tried to find some light in our dark year. We saw Katie go to Kindergarten (WAS that a good thing?), we saw Jayson score his first touchdown in football (THAT was a good thing), we had an awesome family vacation in Disney, Jay was blessed with a wonderful opportunity in a new job, and (most importantly) we were overwhelmed by the love and support of our church family and dearest of friends. Yes, there were glimpses of light in our 2007.

Still, we are ready to kiss it goodbye and move on to 2008. I am not one for resolutions, I would prefer to wait and see what God has in store for me. I have found that often, my plans are so very different from His and also, that His are so much better than I could have ever imagined. So, instead of resolving about anything, I think I will wait and see what God has in store.

So,as we go into 2008 (still in a bit of a funk) I will choose to wait for God's plans for me and my family and believe that when the darkness comes, God will send the light for us again. He doesn't promise us that this year will be easy, but he has worked on our hearts enough to let us know we will be okay. Because no matter what, He will bring the light.

What it's all about

So, I wasn't going to post anything else until after Christmas so everyone would have a chance to see our Christmas letter when they read my blog, but something took place yesterday that I just have to write about....you know, it's my therapy!


Yesterday my family and I (along with 2 other amazing women) met at our church to distribute gifts to the single moms at our church. These 2 women are on my branch of the Care Team at church and in less than 2 weeks have pulled off what I would call a Christmas miracle. They found out needs of the single moms in our church and their families, they organized the needs, distributed them out (to our amazingly loving church) and then organized the gifts again to pass out to the moms. Here are the statistics: 13 families touched, over 170 gifts bought and given, $150 cash donation, over $500 in gift cards! Does our church rock or what?

So, yesterday morning we all met at the church to distribute the gifts. We were a shop ready for business and all the moms had to do was show up and get blessed! I took my kids so they could also be a part of blessing others. They got to play "elf" and carry the gifts to the cars for the moms.

It was an amazing morning. I heard "this is the best Christmas my children have ever had" and "this is enough to make us believe". My prayer is that their belief is placed in Jesus, who without HIM, we would never have had the opportunity to bless the mothers.

I have spent 24 hours thinking about how much this mission has blessed me. In my family's time of grieving, it is soothing (can that be the right word?) to help others in need.

I also remembered something about my father in law. Around 14 years ago, there was a young man that VT had come to know. He had only his mother and they were very poor. VT took him under his wing and organized getting their needs met several times over the years. VT treated him like one of his own children and was devastated to learn that this young man had Lou Gerrigs disease. Over the time this young man deteriorated, VT still took care of him and his mother. He took him to the doctor, made sure they had food, and even fed the boy when he no longer could do that for himself.

As VT lay dying in his hospital bed, of all the things he could have been telling us (about his successful business, his home, his cars, his money) he CHOSE to talk about that young man. You see, VT believed this man knew Jesus before he passed away from that horrible disease. And VT was HONORED that he had played a key role in helping him find salvation.

So, my prayer is that these mothers saw Jesus through us yesterday. What an honor I would consider it if Jesus used me in even the smallest of ways to show his love.

Merry Christmas everyone! Let someone meet Jesus through you this season!

Merry Christmas

Most of you know by now, I do not send Christmas cards. Long story, but Jay and I decided with the modern invention of email (and now blogging!) that we would save our picture and postage money and he would allow me to have the money to buy pictures for US! So, I thought I would use the blog to share with you all our family photo and to let you all know what has been going on in our lives this year.

2007 has been a rough ride for us. There is no other way to say it other than it's been a long year. In February we lost VT. He had a long fight with emphysema and he was tired. He was just ready to go meet his Lord and Saviour. His death was hard for us, but we were blessed to watch the miracle that comes when a soul like his is headed to Heaven.

In April, Jay's mom decided to move to Florida to spend time with Jack, Jon and Sherri. It was a good decision for her as she wanted to get to know her 4th grandchild like she knew her other 3. I am glad she took that opportunity because in November of this year, very unexpectedly we lost her too. It was a shock to us all and we are still mourning her now. Just as we were thinking how we would survive this Holiday season without VT, we now have to do it without Bug too.

So, this year has been a sad one. But it wouldn't be fair to tell you that we didn't have some great times. We took the kids to Disneyworld this year and it was such a blast. I think it was our best vacation ever. When your children are all out the stroller and independent, it makes for a much more relaxing, peaceful vacation. The girls loved meeting the princesses, and eating with Cinderella and Jayson loved riding the coasters. Jay and I just loved watching them! After Disney, we spent some time with Jon, Sherri, Jack and Bug in Jacksonville. They are wonderful hosts and we just had so much fun being with them.

Jayson entered 7th grade this year and played his first year of Middle School Football. It wasn't the glorious season he is used to from his little league team, but it was a lot of fun. He got to play starting tight end and he played defensive end (Mom is not good with football lingo) and he also played kick off return. He made some great blocks and scored his first touchdown ever. Of course, they racked him after the catch and Mom was ready to rumble, but Daddy held me back as not to embarrass the boy. Jayson also took a big role in Midsummer Night's Dream and had us all in tears from laughing when we watched his play. We have always called him dramatic. He also joined a "practice" band and is learning to play his guitar with a band! He still loves playing it, but to tell you the truth I think there is nothing that beats spending time with his guitar teacher Scott. There is just no one cooler than Scott.

Hunter is in 3rd grade and just as smart as a tack. She is the love of her teacher and is an excellent student and a girl of terrific character. She is as sassy as she can be and has tons of spunk, but we love it! She is still tumbling and working on perfecting her backhandspring. She has expressed interest in starting dance again, but that will wait until the Holidays have past. She has become our expert roller blader in the house (literally) and skates around our house all the time. Hunter started a class at church this year called The Princess and the Kiss and is learning all about purity and making good choices as a young woman of God. The teachers of her class are doing an excellent job and have lots of hands on teaching to make it a concrete learning experience and she is really getting it. Actually she explained to Katie (who is boy crazy already) that she (Katie) is too young to have a boyfriend and should never kiss a boy until she was sure she was going to marry him. THAT works for me. I always knew Hunter was smart!

Our little Katie Kate started Kindergarten this year and I am still trying to figure out how to survive without her at home with me! She LOVES her teacher and her friends at school. She is our social butterfly. She just loves people. On a recent field trip I saw her hug just about every kid in her class at one time or another. Yes, the boys too! ha ha She loves tumbling and she is learning quite fast. She has perfected her cartwheel and moved to a roundoff. She tries to convince the teacher to let her do a backhandspring, but we are waiting just a bit on that. She terrifies me on the trampoline because she is just not afraid to flip, flop or fall at all. Katie is always going to be our baby and she just really works us with her bubbly personality. We know it, but we can't stop ourselves!

Jay, with all his grief, also ended up taking a new job this year. The good news was WE DIDN'T move! Jay is busy trying to acclimate to his new job and all the technology toys that came with it, but I think he will be fine. He always gives a 100% and has never had an employer be sorry they hired him. He is also leading the coaches of Liberty High School in a Friday morning Bible study. He loves it! The coaches are awesome and they have supported him through his loss like they have known him forever. It's a God thing and I know his Dad would be proud of him.

I am blessed to call this man of God my husband and my children are blessed to call him Dad. He is always present running the clock for Jayson's games, jumping on the tramp with the girls and riding bikes with us. He is the fun parent! ha ha ha

I, of course, have had to adjust to having no kids in my nest during the day. I started subbing in the classroom to be near the kids and earn some extra money. I like it because I say yes when I want to and no when I don't. I have joined a Discipleship Bible study and convinced Tara to join with me. It sure is nice having my sister so close! It is a real blessing. I am no longer the MOPS Coordinator since Katie went to Kindergarten. But, it didn't take me long to find another place to volunteer. I am serving under Holly at our church. She has me shepharding leaders in our care ministry. I am not leading, just taking care of the leaders. 2 ministries under my care are Single Mom Support and Marriage. It's very heart filling work for me.

I can't believe this is going to be 6 years we have lived in Texas. I am thankful for our church family and I am thankful for all our family and friends. I am thankful for the gift of the Baby Jesus and the salvation that that gift has brought to us. Without Jesus in our lives, this year wouldn't have had any of the joy that it did. Joy that comes from knowing God and resting in His plan. Yes, this year at Christmas, we will be thankful for our salvation because through it we will see our loved ones again in Heaven some day.

So, that's a very condensed version of our year. I know, I know, it's still long! The truth is, I can't tell anything without doing it the long way around.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you all! We love you!