Today and tomorrow only! You can visit John Piper's website by clicking on the link below and check out all his books. Every book is $5 for this crazy 2 day sale! Anything you read by John Piper will be excellent!!!
Click here: Store :: Desiring God
Wednesday, June 27, 2007
Sunday, June 24, 2007
My Brother
This is my brother Howard Smith Jr. (aka: Buddy) and his wife Leanne.
Buddy with his girls, Christina (aka: Chrissie) and Cassie.
Christina Marie
Cassie Lynn
Chrissie and Cassie
Saturday, June 23, 2007
Tuesday, June 19, 2007
Saturday, June 16, 2007
Inexpressible Joy!
What an awesome ladies retreat this was! I will write more about it in a future post but I wanted to thank the Lord for his kindness to us, in allowing 30 ladies from New Life Community Church in Niceville, FL to attend such a life changing retreat! I thank God! Here is a group picture of our ladies! I am so blessed!
Okay, if you know me, you know I like to be a little crazy . . . . SO, this is our funny pose. You girls did well!!! I thought you all would remain serious and I would look like a big goof ball all by myself! Thank you for expressing yourselves and being so JOYFUL! I love you all!
Of course I got to see Lynette and my neices Chrissie and Cassie while I was there! The countdown is on!!! Only 2 more weeks until they will be Crestuckians! I know they will love it here as much as our family does! God is blessing them so much. GOD IS SO GOOD! Wednesday, June 13, 2007
Joy Inexpressible!
I am off to Orlando to the statewide Ladies Retreat, Joy Inexpressible! I am so excited! I can't wait to see old friends and make new ones. Please pray for safe travels and that God will pour out his amazing grace on this retreat. Hopefully I will have pictures to post when I return. The conference is from Thursday to Saturday afternoon. Love to all . . . .:o)
Tuesday, June 12, 2007
In Days Of Trials
“Some of you are enduring deep affliction. In your extraordinary trial, remember the depth of divine faithfulness. You may be unable to comprehend why, but I urge you to believe in the firmness and stability of divine affection. You will have comfort in proportion to your trials. If you have shallow sorrows you will receive shallow graces. If you have deep afflictions you will obtain deeper proof of God's faithfulness.I could lay down and die when I think of life’s trials, but like Sarah (Genesis 21:6) I recover and laugh when I remember that the eternal God is our refuge and that underneath are the everlasting arms (Deut. 33:27). God will not fail. God will not take away His hand until He has finished His purpose concerning us.
Great trials bring great promises. Much afflicted one, there are great and mighty words that are not meant for saints of easier experiences. You will drink from the deep golden goblets reserved for those giants who can drink a great portion of wormwood, but God will also supply deep drinks of the well-refined wines on the lees (Is. 25:6).
Trials greatly enlarge the soul. Thus I do not want, in my better mind, to escape great trials, since they involve great graces. If my strength shall be as my days (Deut. 33:25), then let my days be long and dark, for my strength will be mighty, God will be glorified, and I will be blessed. I earnestly urge every tested Christian to dwell on this truth, for it may be a great comfort.
There is love, immortal and unchanging love, in heaven toward you, which will never grow cold. You will be helped. God would sooner cease to be than cease to be faithful. Be of good courage, for today He will strengthen your heart.”
-Charles Spurgeon, Beside Still Waters
Great trials bring great promises. Much afflicted one, there are great and mighty words that are not meant for saints of easier experiences. You will drink from the deep golden goblets reserved for those giants who can drink a great portion of wormwood, but God will also supply deep drinks of the well-refined wines on the lees (Is. 25:6).
Trials greatly enlarge the soul. Thus I do not want, in my better mind, to escape great trials, since they involve great graces. If my strength shall be as my days (Deut. 33:25), then let my days be long and dark, for my strength will be mighty, God will be glorified, and I will be blessed. I earnestly urge every tested Christian to dwell on this truth, for it may be a great comfort.
There is love, immortal and unchanging love, in heaven toward you, which will never grow cold. You will be helped. God would sooner cease to be than cease to be faithful. Be of good courage, for today He will strengthen your heart.”
-Charles Spurgeon, Beside Still Waters
Friday, June 8, 2007
And the mothering begins . . .
Kristen has already made her little Lindsay a purse. She crocheted it.
Too cute!!
Had to share!
The Beautiful Girlhood Collection by Vision Forum
Okay, I just have to tell you about The Beautiful Girlhood Collection by Vision Forum. We have ordered from Vision Forum for a few years now. You can check out their website from my links.
Anyway, I just love the book series they are doing with the little girls and their dolls. You can purchase a book with a doll dress to go along with the story. For instance, we are currently reading, Alone, Yet Not Alone, by Tracy Craven. We plan on doing a study along with it about the Colonial Frontier. Here is what it is about.
The Leininger family settled deep within America’s new frontier in the Blue Mountains of Pennsylvania. A sudden Indian raid changed their lives forever. This story retells the heroic and daring escape of Barbara Leininger, and the touching reunion with her sister, Regina, after nine years. It also gives us an endearing portrayal of the love between family members and the strength of childhood memories. Father and Mother Leininger’s commitment to “hide” God’s Word in the hearts of their children yielded the fruit of an enduring faith in their Savior. Barbara and Regina held firmly to the belief that they were never alone, even in their darkest hour.
This book is a hardback book with 200 pages in it.
Kristen and I are enjoying this book so much. But what makes it even more enjoyable is that we purchased the dress that goes with the story for Kristen's doll. They have several books that you can purchase historical costumes for the doll to go along with the stories. You can dress them up to brave the voyage to New England as Priscilla Mullins, help Lewis and Clark find the Northwest passage as Sacagawea, serve tea at the White House as Dolley Madison, stroll the deck of the Titanic as Nan Harper, or climb the Alps as Maria von Trapp. True "little girl" dolls are rare in our age of fashion models and rushed childhood. When a girl plays with a doll, she is preparing to be a mommy someday. Her first role model is her own mother, and her first opportunity at role-playing is with her dolls.
Here is the cradle John bought for Kristen a few years ago from Vision Forum. It was made for the 18" dolls that they sell for $89 each. Of course we cannot spend that kind of money on a doll so she has used it for her bears and other little baby dolls she has. The quilt is something I wanted to do with Kristen. Again, this came from Vision Forum in a kit to help train girls to be busy at home. It was a fun project to do and I learned so much from this little kit myself!
Okay, here it the really exciting part for me to share. I have always wanted to do something like this with Kristen since I do need to read with her more and she needs more visual stimulization to remember what she is reading. But when I have looked for an inexpensive 18"doll, my hopes were dashed. Dolls were $40, $50, even up to $100 each! And the cheap ones were just that . . . . cheap! SO, I did some research on dolls and found that Target has the American Girl look alike doll with their brand Our Generation Doll. They are adorable and very affordable! They range in the $20-$30 price range. Yesterday, we went to Fort Walton Beach to the Target there to buy one for Kristen since her daddy already purchased a book and dress for her. Well, when we got there they only had one doll and it wasn't the one Kristen wanted. She wanted a doll with brown hair. So we went on with our day and our errands and thought we may just go home and order the one she liked off of Target.com. Once we got home, I again was looking up dolls and came across a doll collection called Springfield Collection. People had them on Ebay for like $30 and they were really cute and looked a lot like the American Girl doll and the Target doll that we liked. So, I thought about buying it on Ebay but then decided to do a search on the brand. And that is when I got excited!!! The Springfield Collection is sold at craft stores like Hobby Lobby, and Michaels for only $15! They come naked - but we already had a dress. So after John got home last night, Kristen and I took off for the nearest Michaels which is in Destin, and sure enough, they had the dolls there and carry six different dolls. Plus they carry inexpensive doll clothes so we were able to pick up tights, and shoes for a total of $4. Oh and the best part is, they had a flyer in the store with a coupon on it for 40% off one item so we got the doll for $9 and some change!
Kristen is very happy with her new doll and the clothes fit her beautifully! I was concerned maybe the clothes wouldn't fit right but they fit perfectly. To see the other dolls at Michaels, you can go to their website at www.michaels.com and enter Springfield Collection in the search box.
Thanks for reading and hope this helps anyone else who is looking for a nice 18" doll but doesn't want to pay $100 for one. There is nothing wrong with being cheap . . . .as my cousin would say, she doesn't look at it as being cheap but being smart! I agree!
Anyway, I just love the book series they are doing with the little girls and their dolls. You can purchase a book with a doll dress to go along with the story. For instance, we are currently reading, Alone, Yet Not Alone, by Tracy Craven. We plan on doing a study along with it about the Colonial Frontier. Here is what it is about.
The Leininger family settled deep within America’s new frontier in the Blue Mountains of Pennsylvania. A sudden Indian raid changed their lives forever. This story retells the heroic and daring escape of Barbara Leininger, and the touching reunion with her sister, Regina, after nine years. It also gives us an endearing portrayal of the love between family members and the strength of childhood memories. Father and Mother Leininger’s commitment to “hide” God’s Word in the hearts of their children yielded the fruit of an enduring faith in their Savior. Barbara and Regina held firmly to the belief that they were never alone, even in their darkest hour. This book is a hardback book with 200 pages in it.
Kristen and I are enjoying this book so much. But what makes it even more enjoyable is that we purchased the dress that goes with the story for Kristen's doll. They have several books that you can purchase historical costumes for the doll to go along with the stories. You can dress them up to brave the voyage to New England as Priscilla Mullins, help Lewis and Clark find the Northwest passage as Sacagawea, serve tea at the White House as Dolley Madison, stroll the deck of the Titanic as Nan Harper, or climb the Alps as Maria von Trapp. True "little girl" dolls are rare in our age of fashion models and rushed childhood. When a girl plays with a doll, she is preparing to be a mommy someday. Her first role model is her own mother, and her first opportunity at role-playing is with her dolls.
Here is the cradle John bought for Kristen a few years ago from Vision Forum. It was made for the 18" dolls that they sell for $89 each. Of course we cannot spend that kind of money on a doll so she has used it for her bears and other little baby dolls she has. The quilt is something I wanted to do with Kristen. Again, this came from Vision Forum in a kit to help train girls to be busy at home. It was a fun project to do and I learned so much from this little kit myself!
Okay, here it the really exciting part for me to share. I have always wanted to do something like this with Kristen since I do need to read with her more and she needs more visual stimulization to remember what she is reading. But when I have looked for an inexpensive 18"doll, my hopes were dashed. Dolls were $40, $50, even up to $100 each! And the cheap ones were just that . . . . cheap! SO, I did some research on dolls and found that Target has the American Girl look alike doll with their brand Our Generation Doll. They are adorable and very affordable! They range in the $20-$30 price range. Yesterday, we went to Fort Walton Beach to the Target there to buy one for Kristen since her daddy already purchased a book and dress for her. Well, when we got there they only had one doll and it wasn't the one Kristen wanted. She wanted a doll with brown hair. So we went on with our day and our errands and thought we may just go home and order the one she liked off of Target.com. Once we got home, I again was looking up dolls and came across a doll collection called Springfield Collection. People had them on Ebay for like $30 and they were really cute and looked a lot like the American Girl doll and the Target doll that we liked. So, I thought about buying it on Ebay but then decided to do a search on the brand. And that is when I got excited!!! The Springfield Collection is sold at craft stores like Hobby Lobby, and Michaels for only $15! They come naked - but we already had a dress. So after John got home last night, Kristen and I took off for the nearest Michaels which is in Destin, and sure enough, they had the dolls there and carry six different dolls. Plus they carry inexpensive doll clothes so we were able to pick up tights, and shoes for a total of $4. Oh and the best part is, they had a flyer in the store with a coupon on it for 40% off one item so we got the doll for $9 and some change!
Kristen is very happy with her new doll and the clothes fit her beautifully! I was concerned maybe the clothes wouldn't fit right but they fit perfectly. To see the other dolls at Michaels, you can go to their website at www.michaels.com and enter Springfield Collection in the search box. Thanks for reading and hope this helps anyone else who is looking for a nice 18" doll but doesn't want to pay $100 for one. There is nothing wrong with being cheap . . . .as my cousin would say, she doesn't look at it as being cheap but being smart! I agree!
Thursday, June 7, 2007
Exciting News!
As you see below, the Smith's are relocating from Orlando (Metro Life Church) to Crestview and will be attending New Life Community Church with us! Please be in prayer for Lynette and her girls Chrissie and Cassie (my neices) as they prepare and get everything worked out to actually get here. Pray with us that God will work out all the details of housing for them. Lynette has a job at the Crestview hospital and her start date is July 9th. They plan on moving here a week before she has to start her job. Thank you all for your prayers concerning this. We are very excited that they will be here with us.
And for those of you in Orlando who think this is all my fault . . . .well maybe it is! HA! Just kidding! God is so good to keep families together and we are looking forward to having our girls with us again. This is totally God . . . .totally blessing us all!
And for those of you in Orlando who think this is all my fault . . . .well maybe it is! HA! Just kidding! God is so good to keep families together and we are looking forward to having our girls with us again. This is totally God . . . .totally blessing us all!
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