May is Full!

The month of May is full .... or so it seems! Lots of good things! First we get to celebrate the end of school! Well, CPCC is all done, and homeschool is almost done.

THEN....we get to celebrate this:

Chelsey's birthday is next week! What a blessing and what a joy she has been! And my niece's b-day is two days later.

Then we celebrate Mother's Day....that's always a fun day. (And we get to hear CJ speak at church again!)

Next, my Dad has to undergo his 14th eye surgery! Pray that the skin graft for his cornea takes and heals completely without any complications (his only other option is to lose that eye).
Then we get to enjoy having Bob Kauflin at church for a visit and speaking to us.

On the 22nd we will celebrate my Mom & Dad's 65th wedding anniversary. (I won't add their picture again.) That is so amazing that they have been married for so long! What an example!

Then there is the Memorial Day holiday.

And then Gene & I celebrate our 21st wedding anniversary.....it sure doesn't seem like it has been that long but I am so blessed! (well, I think we both are) -- not sure when we will celebrate though since graduation rehearsal is that evening!

And then Chelsey graduates from high school......followed by the closing of our home school. And she will be off to CPCC.

Many celebrations and also many changes! So much to be grateful for! God is very kind and gracious to allow us to experience all of this! What a month! I'm excited to see it all unfold because I know there are many things yet to be discovered!

Isn't She Lovely?

There is a lot of hustle and bustle around here.....finishing up CPCC for the semester, finishing up high school forever, starting a new job (Chelsey), getting graduation "stuff" done -- on time!!! One of the most pleasurable things of late has been Chelsey's senior pics.....they are wonderful and so many to choose from. Chelsey really enjoy this time and is thrilled with the outcome. Her life is getting so busy. It is so fun to watch all of the things that are happening in her life. And yes, it does bring a tear to Mom's eye knowing how sweet it is and sad that my "little girl" is quickly maturing into a beautiful, passionate and godly young woman. We have been so blessed to be chosen as her parents!!! Chelsey and I have definitely had our trials as we battled the sinful character in both of our lives, but I don't think I would ever ask to change anything....even the times that I sinned against her -- ways too numerous to count -- and I say that because, the Lord has used these times to humble me and bring me to repentance before Him and before Chelsey and Gene. If those times had not occurred, my life would probably not have changed as it has and I would not have grown in grace. God is kind!!!

So yes, homeschooling is coming to an end for me. That is odd to think about since I've been doing it for a long time now....I know, not as long as some, but still..... Homeschooling has been a mixed bag of emotions for me and it, too, has proved to be a tool to work on my character. Gene and I were both in agreement that we desired and wanted to home school Chelsey. But I tell you what....there were times when we went so far as to get an application to private school. It was tough. We were not sure if the battles were worth it. And as most, there were so many times when I felt so inadequate in teaching her. I really had to trust the Lord with that because there was no other way to walk it out. There is a lot about homeschooling that I just didn't like at all. And there are things that Chelsey probably would have learned more about in another classroom, but there is one thing that I am confident in......she would not have learned as much about the Lord or about grace as she did right here at The Oaks (our homeschool). I am also confident that she has learned by God's grace and that she has taken in all that she needs during this time. Oh, I can think of plenty of areas that she can still learn in and will continue to grow in over the next few years. Praise God! He has seen us through and Chelsey will graduate on May 31st! What a blessing and a testimony of God's grace in all of our lives.

LOOK!!! A new post =)

Well.....life is certainly busy! My days are filled with what has become "normal" for me. I have to be careful not to be lulled into complacency or driven into complaining. It is a season of change I think.....Chelsey is getting ready to graduate next month, so there are lots of things to do to finish up our homeschool in order to close it down....lots of things to do to prepare her for officially entering college.....graduation pictures....announcements.....preparing for the actual graduation at church on May 31st.....keeping up with her schedule, my parents schedule and my schedule and Gene's too. So it is also a time to really press into the Lord to see what He has for me next. I have plenty of ideas of my own, and it would be easy to run ahead, but I don't think that would be too wise! So I just want to be prayerful and diligent in seeking His will in this season.

Last weekend we went to The Rebelution conference in Hickory. It was a good time. I think it was really great for lots of the kids and many have changed lives because of the Lord working through this event. But I believe, there were a lot of adults who were also impacted by what was taught and what the Lord was doing in their hearts as well. I know that for me, there was one short phrase that brought clarity to an issue that I had been struggling over. I didn't think that it really had anything to do with "Do Hard Things", but as I spend more time thinking about it and searching Scripture and digging into my heart, I believe it is a hard thing for me. And soon, I think it is something the Lord will have me share with a few other specific people. It will be really interesting to see how it all works out.

Grace Community Church has started, and it is the kindness of God that He would send people to a new place to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It has been a great process. It is amazing how my sinful heart and mind can lead me places that I do not want to go and think things that are really untrue. I'm really excited for both churches because I know the Lord has great things to do in us and through us. I think one of the first things is experiencing His grace and growing in faith to trust that He knows our direction.

Last week Gene got an unusual phone call. When he was in the Marines and down at Goose Creek (SC), one of his buddies and his girl decided to get married on the spur of the moment, and he was the best man. Doug & Sandy were only married a short time before he was sent to Vietnam. She was pregnant, and from ultrasound/amnio process, they learned the baby had a heart defect. Doug was trying to get home before the baby was born, but was killed. Anyway, after 43 years, Sandy had searched and found him. Gene had been named the god father of the baby girl. So he finally got to see her through pictures at the age of 42. It was a good phone call for both Sandy and Gene. So we've shared some pictures and Gene has had quite a story to share with people. He has often wondered what had happened to Sandy and the baby and it is nice to now know.

Well...I guess you are all caught up for now. Maybe I'll try not to wait another month before I post again. I always have something to say it seems, but sitting down here and actually doing it is another thing......I just don't want to keep repeating myself.

I hope you are all experiencing God's grace in your lives in many ways.

Oh....one more thing.....we did find out that grandson #2 will arrive in late August. Can't wait! Check out the baby blues on Carter.