Thieves!!!

Okay, I had to post this!!! And even though it says from Florida, somebody is a thief cause this is definitely GA!!!!! I received it from a friend who currently lives in Florida but is originally from GA and knows the truth!!!

THINGS I HAVE LEARNED FROM LIVING IN FLORIDA
*Possums sleep in the middle of the road with their feet in the air.
*There are 5,000 types of snakes on earth and 4,998 live in Florida .
*There are 10,000 types of spiders. All 10,000 live in Florida, plus a couple no one's seen before.
*If it grows, it sticks; if it crawls, it bites.
*Onced and Twiced are words.
*It is not a shopping cart; it is a buggy.
*People actually grow and eat okra.
*'Fixinto' is one word.
*There is no such thing as 'lunch.' There is only dinner and then supper.
*Iced tea is appropriate for all meals and you start drinking it when you're two. *We do like a little tea with our sugar!
*Backwards and forwards means 'I know everything about you.'
*DJeet is actually a phrase meaning 'Did you eat?'
*You don't have to wear a watch because it doesn't matter what time it is. You work until you're done or it's too dark to see.
*You don't PUSH buttons, you MASH them.
*You measure distance in minutes.
*You'll probably have to switch from 'heat' to 'A/C' in the same day.
*'Fixin' is a verb. Example: 'I'm fixing to go to the store.'
*All the festivals across the state are named after a fruit, vegetable, grain, insect or animal.
*You install security lights on your house and garage and leave both unlocked.
*You carry jumper cables in your car . . . for your OWN car.
*There are only own four spices: salt, pepper, Tabasco and ketchup.
*The local papers cover national and international news on one page, but require 6 pages for local gossip and sports.
*The first day of deer season is a state holiday.
*100 degrees Fahrenheit is 'a little warm.'
*We have four seasons: Almost Summer, Summer, still Summer and Christmas. *Going to Wal-mart is a favorite past time known as 'goin' Wal-martin' or off to 'Wally World.'
*A cool snap (below 70 degrees) is good pinto-bean weather.
*A carbonated soft drink isn't a soda, cola or pop. . . it's a Coke, regardless of brand or flavor. Example: 'What kinda coke you want?'
*Fried catfish is the other white meat.

EVERYONE CAN'T BE A (Georgian); IT TAKES TALENT. YOU MIGHT SAY IT'S AN ART FORM OR A GIFT FROM GOD!

It's ok to laugh - you know it's true!!!

Checkin in.....

Yep, we are still here! We had our God Encounter weekend this past weekend, so it's been crazy!!! As always, it was amazing!!!! God always moves mightily during those weekends and we come home feeling joyful, exuberant, encouraged and exhausted!!! This weekend was different because I came home feeling all of those except exhausted. I actually feel more energized and like I could conquer the whole world. I needed that and I just wanted to share that with all of you! God is so good and He always comes through for us just when we need it. We are getting our vision back, the devil has been trying to steal it from us, but God is restoring it. We are dreaming again, like we haven't done in a while and we are dreaming BIG!!!! I cannot wait to see what God has in store for us over the next few weeks, cause satan has fought us so strongly over the past few weeks. He has stolen from us and he has tried to destroy us, but no more. God is restoring us.

Some praise reports: A friend of mine had a tumor that the doctors wanted to biopsy b/c they were concerned about it. She asked me to stand in prayer that it would shrink or go away so that she wouldn't have to have a biopsy. We did and the tumor shrunk down to a tiny nodule and she doesn't have to have the biopsy done!!!

Second, some of you already know, my best friend since childhood has a four year old daughter named Maddie who has been diagnosed with neuroblastoma. This is a type of cancer and when they started, she had tumors in her chest and covering her abdomen. They were HUGE tumors, the doctor said she was a stage four, which is NOT good. Maddie has had four treatments of chemo and the doctors are absolutely amazed at her response to the treatments. The tumors in her chest are completely gone and the one in her abdomen has had "marked" change. They have been astounded by her progress and we all know that it is only the Hand of God that does this. We have been standing in prayer with Angela and her family since July 23, when this all began. Maddie has been through a lot, but she continues to amaze and astound the medical community, even setting records on things such as her bone marrow harvest (the doctors harvested enough cells to do FOUR bone marrow transplants and they've never done that before in one bone marrow harvest)!!!!! Angela continues to report to me how good God has been to them through all of junk the devil is bringing against them. The greatest thing that has come from all of this is that God has come into their lives in a BIG way! He is doing signs, wonders and miracles through them!

Last praise report that I will share (there are SO many): Another friend of mine had her car stolen. She stood in prayer that her car would be returned, that the person would just abandon it and that it would be evidence that God was strong and big in her life. She got a call exactly one month and one week after it had been stolen saying that her car had been found and was at a tow company and that she could pick it up. When she went to pick up the car, the attendant said that they had never had a stolen car returned in the condition that her car was in: absolutely nothing was missing from her car, even a purse in the back seat that had $6 in it. Nothing was damaged or broken in the car and the gas tank had a full tank of gas!!!!! The only thing that the car needed was to be washed cause it was dusty like it had been abandoned!!!! How awesome is our God!!!!! He answered her prayer and He showed Himself strong in her life!!!

Just wanted to share some encouraging news in the midst of all the bad news we hear each day. Our God is El Shaddai, the God of more than enough and He is still supplying all of our needs in this day. He is still a Healer and He still loves us. I give Him praise for all of this and so much more. I have so many more things that I could share, but not enough time or space here.

Love you all! Be encouraged!!!

Mmmm Mmmm Good!!!

Tonight, Shawn grilled tri-tip and asparagus. Out here, they call it BBQ, but down South we believe that anything called BBQ should have some kind of BBQ sauce involved in the cooking. That was very confusing when we first moved out here - we kept getting invited to BBQ's at people's houses and couldn't figure out why people kept changing the menu. Finally we figured out that they never changed the menu - they just have a different definition for the word!!!

Colten begged his daddy to let him do some of the grilling (nope, I still can't call it BBQ), so Shawn handed him the tongs and let him turn the asparagus. He only lost a couple! ;0) I was proud of him!!

Of course, if Bubba was gonna get to help, little Miss Mahala had to help, too. Look at those little hands beneath Daddy's hands. So sweet....

And here is the almost finished product. And let me tell you, it was just as good as it looks! My husband knows how to do some tri-tip!!!

CONGRATULATIONS TARA!!!!

I just found out (a couple of days ago) that my sister-in-law, Tara, is pregnant. I had to wait to post cause I wasn't sure if she was ready to make it public. She's just like me, though, she can't keep it inside for long!!! It's too exciting! This will be her second baby - her first is 2 1/2 years old and needs a playmate! I miss that little booger and I can't wait to see the new little one!

Here's her a couple of weeks ago (hmmm....wonder if she was pregnant???).
Tara, you are an amazing woman of God and I am so thankful to have you in my life. Even though we are miles apart, our hearts are knitted together. We have been through so many ups and downs, but we have come out on top!!! I love you with all of my heart and I am so proud to call you sister and so thankful that you are my friend. You are a great mama to Bethany and I know that you will become stronger and more blessed with this next little one.

Proverbs 31 says "She is clothed with strength and dignity; she can laugh at the days to come. She speaks with wisdom, and faithful instruction is on her tongue. She watches over the affairs of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness. Her children arise and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her."

I think this is a good description of your life! You are so blessed! I love you and CONGRATULATIONS!!!!