Mitch and I had an awesome weekend. I think it was the first weekend in a long time that Mitch was home. We had Friday Night Live here with over 10 Jr. High kids (craziness) and enjoyed the fellowship. The past few days we had been painting stripes in the youth room, so we continued on Saturday morning. Mitch, by interior designer, has done a great job at decorating the youth room so far. We're trying to create a "coffee shop" feel, with mood lighting, comfy seats, etc. That evening we enjoyed going out looking for cool decor and eating at Red Robin. (Burgers are alway awesome in my family). Sunday was full of more craziness, and included church, class, fellowship lunch, parent meeting, church, dinner and girls' devo. Needless to say I was wiped out.

Random things that I've learned this week:

1. Off-brand cream of mushroom soup is not the same.
2. Jacey loves meatloaf.
3. I need girlfriends, and desperately miss all of you who fulfill that for me!
4. Where the disposable tablecloths are at Walmart. This took me 6 months. They just aren't where they're supposed to be.
5. It's ok to discover different possibilities that life may hold.
6. The Olympics are truly fun to watch...with DVR.
7. I'm so glad school has started!

Commitment

Mitch and I have worked this summer on creating an exciting environment for the teens in the youth group, mainly to encourage them to grow in their desire and commitment to the Lord. So often we get in the habit of going through motions and thinking that church is boring. It's just another place to go, something to take up our precious time. We have a small handful of teens who have realized they want to be a church. They aren't there because their parents made them, or because they just want to socialize. They want to worship. Honestly though, that's rare, for the teens and even in my own life. We have graduated more than a few teens who've grown up in the church but haven't commited their lives to Christ. They know all the songs, some memory verses, and have done all the "big" things, like mission trips and such. They're the really "good" people and nothing bad should happen to them. Right? I wonder about their parents. Mitch and I can tell when parents truly emphasize Christianity. They have talked about God frequently at different times and value attending church. I know growing up that skipping church just wasn't a option. It wasn't even discussed. Were there times when my parents were tired and barely had time to get dinner on the table before we had to leave? Yep. I know how easy it is to make excuses and not show up. I'm the one who makes sure Jacey is fed, bathed, and ready to go. Due to the nature of Mitch's job, he isn't always able to help. I can't help but wonder sometimes is the reason our teens don't see the need to commit fully to God is because they saw the lack off desire in their own parents. The excuses of being tired, busy, having family time, etc. probably taught them that God can be put off until we feel like we're ready. I'm truly frustrated at times when we have twice the number of people on Sunday morning as we do on Sunday nights. Who cares if it's the same thing we've already done that day? We get to worship God. We are now making sure there are planned activities on Sunday nights after church every week so that the teens might be interested in coming. It's sad to me that we have to resort to that. As a parent know I am amazed by my responsibility. This rather lengthy post is for me as much as anyone else. I just hope Jacey can see my desire and commitment, even when I'm tired from everything life holds.

Birthdays and Anniversaries

This has been a very crazy, very busy week. Monday Mitch and I headed to Amarillo to do some birthday shopping for Jacey. We went to Toys R Us and were promptly overwhelmed by the huge selection. (I can't imagine what we would've done in a bigger city.) After an hour and a half, we left with a good selection. We decided that Christmas will come soon and we didn't have to buy everything on this trip.

Tuesday was filled with cooking, cleaning, and a fabulous party. Mitch's parents came in early and helped us get ready. We were fortunate enough to be able to celebrate with friends who have loved on Jacey so much this past year. The whole evening just went smoothly. The food turned out good, the cake looked and tasted great, and everyone seemed to enjoy each other's company. We host so many youth get-togethers that I forget what an party with maturity is like. The evening was very special to me, and I'll remember it forever. I think Jacey had a great time too.

Here are a few pictures of the evening:

It's had to believe that it's been a year since Jacey came into our lives. She's grown so much (and we have too!) I can't wait to see what our future holds.

Here are a few of my favorite things about Jacey:

1. Her quick smile.

2. The way she dances to any type of music. It's definitely in her genes.

3. Her expressiveness. If the house is too quiet she'll fix the problem.

4. The way she eats anything put in front of her.

5. Her wet kisses.

6. The look on her face when she's proud of herself.

7. Her giggle. She's not easy to get ot laugh, but when she does, it's priceless.

Yesterday Mitch and I enjoyed a quiet evening. We were thinking about getting out of town and heading to Lubbock just for the fun of it, but after everything we had done this past week we changed out minds. We watched August Rush and the Olympics. The Olympics are special to us because on our honeymoon we watched them a lot. I ended up with a bad cold on our wedding and didn't feel like doing much sight-seeing. Mitch told me he wants to hide out for a week or so every 4 years during the Olympics for our anniversary. We'll see. :)

Changes

Recently I've realized just how much my little girl has grown. She's wearing clothing that actually matches her age (a first), forgoing her morning nap, eating like crazy, and generally acting more independent. She loves whole milk and doesn't mind the weaning process. In less than a week she'll be able to ride in a new car seat. There are lots of changes happening, and I'm both excited and sad.

We've had a very busy, yet fun, week. Since this is Adam's (our intern) last week, we decided to paint the youth room. Finally! It took most of the day Tuesday to get the the base coat on. We still have the stripes and a 2nd coat to do in the hallway. So far I think it looks fantastic. It's much better than the awful beat-up white. Wednesday we had a funeral, church, and volleyball. Today we bought more paint, took Adam for awesome pizza at Basil Doc's, and got supplies for the camp-out retreat this weekend. Mitch and the youth group are going to camp out in the canyon on one of our elder's land. 3 days and 2 nights without bathrooms. Jacey and I have decided to stay home and watch the Olympics. I'm sure everyone will have fun though.