A Life of Gratitude

A couple of mornings ago, before the kids got up, I was sitting outside on our new deck just listening to worship music and praying. As I sat there, I noticed several leaves falling from the huge tree right behind our fence. They fell one at a time, sporadically, and just seemed to dance gracefully through the air. They were really beautiful. Then I realized, it's July. Leaves aren't supposed to be falling in July. As a few more floated to the ground, I couldn't help but wonder why. The huge tree behind the deck was the one losing leaves. It's hard to see them in this picture but there were at least 15 leaves that fell in front of our fence, many more behind it. They were beautiful, but why are they falling in July? I decided to look it up. I mean, Google has to know the answer, right? It took a few minutes but I soon found the reasons why this very healthy tree was losing leaves in the summer. One reason is due to a crowded canopy. Trees grow...

Today was the last session of the post-abortive Bible study I've been leading since the end of March. This study was different because it had to be done via Zoom. I never imagined leading a post-abortive Bible study through video conferencing but it ended up being a wonderful experience. The five of us had so many meaningful conversations. There were many tears shed but also lots of laughter. Last Sunday we all met in person at the Not Forgotten Ministries' office so we could make memorials in honor of our preborn babies. It was a very special time. Even though the Bible study focuses on a very deep, tough topic, the time we've spent together has been beautiful. As our video call came to an end today, each person in the group shared what they've gotten out of our time together over the past few months. I was absolutely blown away by their heartfelt words. One lady shared that something I said is what finally encouraged her to open herself up to the idea of true hea...

A couple of weeks ago I observed the most incredible sunrise while sitting on the beach. It was truly stunning. The photos don't even begin to do it justice. As I was sitting in the sand, watching sun take its place in the sky, I noticed a man standing nearby with his back turned toward the rising sun. I watched him for a while and then saw him start taking photos of whatever he was looking at. It just struck me as so odd.  What in the world was he looking at? This was truly the most beautiful sunrise I've ever laid eyes on and this man was choosing to turn his back to it and set his gaze upon the hotels and condos. It was very early in the morning so other than some folks walking on the beach and the occasional trash collecting vehicle driving by, it was very quiet and uneventful. I could not figure out what he was looking at or what he could possibly be taking photos of.  Over the past 2 weeks I have continuously thought about that man.  I haven't bee...

For the first time in many weeks we were able to spend the day with friends at Zootastic Park! It was a very hot, July day but none of us even cared! It was so nice to be out and about, spending time with another family!     Zootastic Park is a hidden gem in Troutman, NC We've waited forever to get our kids together for a play date!! We got to feed the giraffes. They came right up to us! It was so much fun! The kids loved petting the giraffes! So did the mommas! Each kid got to feed the tigers meat, too! This was Tyson's turn.  Dylan's turn Evan's turn I helped Allison with her turn. The turtles were a huge hit with all the kids! We had to pull them away from the turtles! My kiddos adored the baby goats! The Zoo had lots of baby animals. This one was a baby camel. Allison and Scarlett loved feeding the ducks together. Allison actually LOVED every animal she got close to! Their w...