Not much going on still...

Things are about the same for the Fairchild Family. Nothing much exciting going on. The puppy and Zeke are still getting along fine. She is potty training well and we are accident free for about 4 weeks or so now. She is still expendable in Zeke's eyes and when we leave for a night and take her with us I believe he is hoping she will not be with us when we come back. Nate's job continues to keep him busy. One of the managers at Lilly is pregnant and due in March and so she keeps him busy trying to get all her stuff caught up before she takes maternity leave.
We are pretty well ready for Christmas; most shopping is done. Since we don't have a good place to put a tree and for the fact we are not home and also that we detest our current tree we are not putting up a big tree this year. I know it sounds grinchy but I have opted for a tiny (we're talking 1 1/2 foot or so) tree in the living room on a table with lights. The only place in our house to put up a tree is in the dining room. We never go in there and I don't feel like spending 2 hours putting up a tree that we won't even get to enjoy. I am thinking about buying one of those pencil trees, that is tall and skinny for the next years to come in this house since we don't have much room in the living room where we are most of the time.
Our church recently did Tables of Christmas. This is a HUGE to do at our church and is a beautiful event where you purchase a table to decorate and invite christian/non-Christians to the event. My friend Epha and I did a table. I will have to download pictures. She decided on the theme, it was peacock feathers and gold with brown. She found a tree and put some feathers with gold ornaments and other miscellaneous things in the tree. We went shopping together at Joann fabrics for other details for the table. We found some gorgeous fabric in green or teal with gold beading on it. I chose the teal thinking it would look better. I made a large 42" square out of it and sewed gold ribbon on it for a table runner and used the extra fabric to make napkins and a garland for the tree. It was beautiful! Some of the other tables had pink and brown themes. My favorite was the Charlie Brown table. Someone had old plastic figurines and made a Charlie Brown Christmas table...complete with wilted tree. She made chair covers out of yellow fabric and put a black rickrack around it to look like his shirt. I did take a picture of it and will post them when I hook up my camera to the home laptop. It is a lot of fun and normally there is about 250 tables or so and over a thousand women in attendance. * more on it later with pics*
Nate got his Christmas present early...yes Santa Clause was good to him this year. He got a 42" 1080P LCD TV. He found a deal the day after Thanksgiving and it was a great one; so he got it for his birthday and Christmas combined, throw in Hanukkah and several other holidays to boot! Also he turned the big 30 this year! I cannot believe it is here already! I know its just a number but really? WE ARE 30??? When did this happen? We've been together 10 years and married for 6 of it so it seems logical but so strange to not be in my 20's soon. I put together a small get together for him of some guys he plays poker with and had pizza and chocolate cake. Nothing big because he didn't want anything big...so I listened (for once).
That's about it. No great and exciting things, just normal life. But I'm happy with it.
I do promise to post pics soon!

Newest Fairchild

Meet Maggie Mae Fairchild. She is a Maltese-Shitzu mix and is about 6 mo old. My mom's friend raises them and she had been asking us to take her for a few months. We finally relented on Saturday. She was a dirty mess and had mats and so we had to cut her hair really short. But she is still really cute and very very very sweet. Nate is completely smitten and Zeke has been tolerant (we are praying he continues). He ran up to her to sniff her today and thought she wasn't paying attention and she rolled over and just showed her belly to him. She wants to play but knows better so far...She is almost house trained and is very smart. She quickly realized if she goes potty outside she gets a treat and fly's for the backdoor and straight into where we keep the treats. She has picked her favorite spot right next to Nate on his couch and will jump up there thinking it is time for her to get loved on, rotten already. So if you would please pray that she continues to train well and that Zeke does not completely freak out!

It's Fall!

I love fall. I wrote about it just about this time last year...I LOVE IT! We had a fall cookout on Saturday night and invited 11 friends and their kiddos and had a bonfire. We roasted hot dogs and had a pot luck (a ton of food) and smores. We had a great time! The weather was around 70 degrees and when the sun went down it was perfect for the fire. The kids wore themselves out running in our back yard and all played so well together. I will send pictures once we get a computer at home again. We had to send Nate's computer back to his company since he won't be working there for much longer...

We are starting to get some chilly weather at night and I am loving having my windows open. And it is the time of year you go to Brown County and walk around the shops. There are hills all around and the leaves turn beautiful colors. It is crazy down there with all the people but definately worth the trip! I went a few weekends ago with a friend and had a great time shopping and just gawking at all the leaves & people. The leaves hadn't turned all the way yet, but if the weather stays chilly in the evenings, it will be a beautiful fall soon enough!

Nate's New Job

Well it is official. We got the news on Wednesday. He will be working for Lilly! WOO HOO! It is a huge answer to prayer. A little testing of our nerves and trust, but it is all better than we expected. He will begin as soon as his current company's contract ends in October so there should be no lag time between jobs. They will keep him busy at Lilly since his department is being audited. He gets great benefits and a better salary than we were anticipating so that is WONDERFUL! He is very happy and relieved with everything settled. Thanks for the prayers! God is Good!

Month in overview

Well August flew by!!! We had our 6 year anniversary on August 24th. We stayed at home and had a nice dinner. When everything settles down with the job changeover we will be going to eat at Palomino's a nice restaurant in down-town Indy.
As for the job front, we are awaiting the answer from Lilly. He had two interviews last week and has a phone interview tomorrow. He IS the ONLY person they are interviewing so it is just a matter of finalizing things now...and the waiting game.
I have read a whole series of books in a week, the Twilight series by Stephenie Meyer. I loved them and am waiting for the movie to come out on Nov 21! I have changed genres now to Beverly Lewis and the Abraham's Daughters books.
Other than that, nothing major...another back-up of the lovely sewers in our house and we got a hand-me-down fridge from Nate's dad; a really nice BIG one! Painted the bathroom and put up new lights and we are getting ready to start Totally Fit for Life through our church. I am going to the seminar on Saturday. Like I said nothing exciting other than the anniversary. Hope all are well and we'll update when the time comes about the job.

Updates

Update for the Fairchild’s. We are doing alright. Nate’s meeting with the boss went well. There is no non-compete clause that he signed. Now we are just waiting on Lilly to give him the interview. Please pray for God’s will still. I know what I want to happen but I want God’s will above it. He is nervous and I am anxious so we have it covered, but are trying to keep it in perspective. So all hopefully will be sorted out soon. The contract is ending soon, like 3 more weeks I believe…
As for the other situation…Nate & I have always had a heart for adoption. We are starting to pursue this. We have been looking at our options and think we have decided on one. I am excited about it and we had decided a while ago but other things happened and we put it off. Please pray we make the right decision. This is a big one! Please pray it goes smoothly and that this is what we are supposed to be doing. After 2 years of trials, I am ready to have a smooth process. Nothing ever seems easy but as long as it is God’s will I am fine with it.
I know many people have gong through this situation and genuinely feel for them and understand. I am trying to keep a good perspective on everything and not get caught up in the time. I feel like I am getting old and don’t want to be 40 with a 5 year old. I know I am not old per se but feel like it when everyone else I know is several kids into the mix. We are the lone rangers on the two person family front. In Bible Study and with our friends. We love Zeke but he doesn’t count on that…
Please pray for both situations, I don’t want to be anxious about either but it is hard not to.

Nervous

I am very nervous today. Nate has a meeting with his boss and he is going to discuss Lilly wanting to give him a contract. This is great news except there is like the 1% chance he is not sure if he signed a Do not compete clause. If he did we are in trouble. Lilly really wants to hire him and his contract is ending with them in 5 weeks, if he cannot take the job with Lilly, he will be in the outside office with some not so happy bosses and he will have to start traveling heavily, which he is not happy about. I have been praying all day so far and feel nervous still.

I keep repeating "Do not be anxious about anything but in everything, by prayer & petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to the Lord." Philippians 4:6

This is my mantra lately anyways. I think I dream it too. I just had to unload my nervousness. Nate is going in after work to talk to them, so hopefully they will let him just move directly over to Lilly. They have been making cutbacks at his current job anyways, so this may be a load off. Either way they are losing the contract for Lilly, which means mega bucks gone for his current company and they would have to probably lay off two people or so it is in their best interest to let him go too. I will be nervous till I hear from him tonight. Nate is asking for prayer in this matter and that God's will is done and that it goes smoothly.

Prayer & Endurance

Prayer is easy. Patience comes with time and enduring through trials. I prayed for patience in college and have never prayed for it since. I have learned that praying for it once was sufficent for me. Because God has been instilling it in me since them. The past 10 years have been me praying to not be patient anymore. (I say this in jest, kinda) I have always had to wait a long time (to me) for what I would like. I pray and pray and pray, then pray some more. I have been praying lately for guidence, clarity and strength to endure. There are things in my life I wish for, pray for constantly. One which comes seemingly very easy to everyone else, but not me. I struggle with this very much, especially since it is something I want soooooooo very badly. I want a baby. I am just fine with adoption but I would love to experence this myself. Either way it is not a "quick" thing. In birth there is the gestation period of course that I would have to wait through, or with adoption there is the year or maybe even longer that you have to wait. When you have been trying for two years, either feels like an eternity, as have the past two years.
We had decided on adoption but then other things happen that make me think that God is blessing us with a child of our own, but that is still not so...my body is just messing with my emotions. I have not been praying for patience but lately for endurance; that I may endure with grace the trials God is allowing in my life. I know God will never test us beyond what we can handle, but I feel as if he is really pushing me to my limit. I also know every seeming verse about prayer and patience which everyone is very quick to point out to me. I pray them often...and still do not feel content.
We are the only people of all our groups without children. I think that is the hardest. Everyone has fun kid stories to tell, we have cat stories or house stories. It is hard to find people without children our age to hang out with and if we were to find them they wouldn't be doing what we would want to do. This is a hard age pushing 30 without children. Most friends are at least on their second and even some on their third. Even our new Bible Study is filled with parents. We again are the only ones...
I guess I just need to vent, it was a rough week and sad things happened and for friends that read this please just pray for endurance and clarity for me. Please don't pray for patience, that is the last prayer I want prayed because everytime it is prayed, it leads to something for me to be patient for.

Earthly Belongings

“A certain ruler asked him, "Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?"
"Why do you call me good?" Jesus answered. "No one is good—except God alone. You know the commandments: 'Do not commit adultery, do not murder, do not steal, do not give false testimony, honor your father and mother."
"All these I have kept since I was a boy," he said.
When Jesus heard this, he said to him, "You still lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me."
When he heard this, he became very sad, because he was a man of great wealth. Jesus looked at him and said, "How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God! Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God."
-Luke 18:18-25

These are hard words to swallow. “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of God.” Rich or poor we seemingly cling to what we have here on earth to keep us safe. The US is a very “stuff” minded society, the more we have the better house we have the better we feel. Personally the thought of a house bigger than the one I have now is daunting since I hate to dust and vacuum... My husband & I have always strived to live within our means and not put ourselves into dept, however we do have several friends who have. The trouble it causes them is very sad; but they did choose to do this. In this passage Jesus is reminding us it is only “STUFF”, insignificant in the scheme of things. Some days I do wish I could just leave and go live with the Amish. I think they have the right view on how possessions are to be used. They share…could you imagine a community coming together for dinner or sharing their possessions? They hold loosely to the things of this earth and really only have what they need. We get caught up in mortgages, car payments, credit card dept, cell phones and I-pods.
We recently went to see Wall-E. I always love going to see Disney movies. It was depressing though if you really think about it. The only reason he exists is to clean up after the mess we have left on earth so we can come back to a “clean” planet. This is a big bold statement by Disney I think. But it is true...we do use things up, discard them and get the bigger better version of it. While the poor little robots on the screen clean up after us, we are getting lazier and lazier on this ship that was supposed to be temporary. They float about instead of walking while drinking food from a cup because they have become to lazy to eat and all the while they have a computer screen in front of them to talk to the person who is actually right next to them. It was sad. The cute part between the two robots is only for the kids I think…the bigger picture is that this could be us if we continue to keep holding on to possessions and not taking care of our environment. I am by no means one to talk, I am trying to be better; but there is a lot to do. I am drifting today from one thing to the next but all in all it just reminds me of this passage. Its all stuff, it is nothing compared to Jesus and the place he has prepared for us in heaven.

In Struggles continued apparently...

Okay, so I was reading my book, Light From Heaven by Jan Karon today and came across a quote about suffering & struggles. I think God is telling me something huh?

If the trials of many years were gathered into one, they would overwhelm us; therefore in pity to our little strength, He sends first one, and then another, then removes both, and lays on a third, heavier, perhaps, the either; but all is so wisely measured to our strength that the bruised reed is never broken. We do not enough look at our trials in the continuous and successive view. Each one is sent to teach us something, and altogether they have a lesson which is beyond the power of any to teach alone. – H.E. Manning

I think I am going to have to take my trials to heart and go back and remember how God had pulled me through previous trials and remember exactly how trustworthy our GOD has been with all my other trials and tribulations. He is orchestrating my life according to His will and when I accepted Jesus I agreed to let Him have control.

So even as I was writing, (it takes a while since I am at work) I was reading in a daily devotional a friend and I are going through; I posted about it yesterday; it was also about trials. As if I didn’t think the Lord wanted me to consider these things more he gave me even more about it in today’s reading. I am getting hammered with this! This part of the book said “Once the lord has given us great faith, He has been know to test us with long delays” by John C Shairp. It goes on to quote from Alexander Maclaren, “Christ sometimes delays His help so He may test our faith and energize our prayers. Our boat may be tossed about by the waves while He continues to sleep, but He will awake before it sinks. He sleeps by the never oversleeps, for He is never too late.” I really think I need to listen since he is really speaking loudly to me about this. I feel like He had been silent for so long about so many things that now that I am finally hearing something, it is really loud and clear. Now comes the hard part of submitting…

In Struggles

“The burden of suffering seems to be a tombstone hung around our necks. Yet in reality it is simply the weight necessary to hold the diver down while he is searching for the pearls.”

– Julius Richter

I really have related with this quote lately. It was in my daily devotional Streams in the Desert. In my struggles and suffering I need to remember that I have to stay down and submit to God and I will find the blessing at the end of it all. It may seem dark along the way but if I relay on Jesus, he will keep my path straight and guide me. If he feels distant I have to also remember it is not he who is distant but me pulling away. He might not speak much along the way but if I draw close to him I will fell his company along the way.

Micah James Turk is HERE!!!

Born via C-section 2:30 on July 1, 2008

Weighing in at 7lbs 13oz 21in long

Welcome to the world little one. We are excited to be God Parents!

Baby Micah's Room

It is finished. The room was complete finally on Friday. Here are the pictures:

Alison's Baby Quilt

I have known Alison since we were about 6 years old. She and her boyfriend Logan had a baby boy, Leland, in January...yes, I know this is really a late gift but hey I have been working on a whole baby room for my other friend at the same time. Zeke of course had to help with the quilt and I don't think I am allowed to lay anything on the ground without him to help. He is always such a big help... I was really pleased with this quilt. It is my fifth quilt. I am almost finished with the sixth and will add it soon. I have to finish it by Friday because the baby shower I am throwing is on Saturday. I will add pics of the whole room though since I made the curtains, dust ruffle, crib bumper and the quilt too.

Cabinets and Dressers

We bought some dressers several years ago when we first got married from my old boss in Albuquerque. We loved the nice wood but like a darker wood. There was potential so we just dealt with it for a while.We finally decided that our bathroom needed updated so instead of painting the cabinets white we decided to try to stain them. We were very happy with the result. They were a oak color and it was pretty dried out looking. We sanded them and re-stained them a mahogany color. There was plenty of stain left over so we started on the dressers. I wanted a before and after picture of the dressers since it was such a big difference. We bought new hardware and really like the way it looks now. It was a lot of work but very worth it. As for the bathroom we are re-staining the medicine cabinet too and painting the walls soon. We also bought new lights for the bathroom and are excited to get them up soon too.

NEW CAR

I will post a pic soon...we just bought a PRIUS! It's really neat! It is used and they just got it on the lot yesterday along with three others and they sold two yesterday and the other two today; one of course ours. It is exciting to have a hybrid. It will be nice to see the savings in gas!

Home Projects

Well we are at it again. We have a home project. Last weekend we painted the small area on the back of our house that is wood. Just painted it about the same color it was previously. This weekend it is the bathroom. We are painting the cabinets white/cream and going to peel off the wallpaper border and I am so excited! In the next few weeks/months we will replace the countertop, medicine cabinet and the lights. It will be a brand new bathroom by the time we are done. Ultimately we are replacing the tile in there too...but that will be a little while. We want to do the kitchen tile too. It will be another busy weekend at the Fairchild house!

Heaven

I have started reading the Heaven book by Randy Alcorn. It has been very interesting so far. I am meeting with a friend every two weeks to do a review of the book. I will be writing more about it soon I am sure. So far I highly recomend this book and think it helps give us a renewed interest in our eternal home.

Labor Day Weekend

I am so excited about a long weekend. I have no new news to post so I am just stating that I am happy that this is a three day weekend! I have kept praying that today would magically turn into Friday, but that hasn't happened. God has moved time twice but I don't believe he will move it for this; unfortunately. Hope everyone has a great long weekend planned. We have plans with friends and a Indianapolis 500 party on Saturday night. Other than that it is supposed to be a beautiful weekend and I plan on taking a nap at some point. Hope eveyrone else has a good time too!

Plumbing Fixed

After many issues...the plumbing was fixed. Nate did a GREAT job on getting it finished! I was so proud of him! We had two days no water but some friends of ours were kind and shared their shower so we could go to work on Monday. Nate finished it up on Monday night. We went out for Ice Cream to celebrate!

Plumbing Woes!!!

Yesterday I walked out into the garage and I heard a pssssssss noise. I thought it was the heater. I was wrong. I heard it again later that evening and noticed there was water leaking. We pulled out our car and noticed there was alot more water. We thought it was the water heater at first but that was wrong too. It was actually the mainline pipe coming into the garage. We did without water for the night and today Nate started working on it. He had to shut off the water from the main water line in the front and it won't fully shut off! He is trying to sauter it wet. So we talked to my dad and got some other ideas. I am praying it works! I don't want to have to call a plumber and spend all that money! Plus I really just want a shower! I was working in the yard today with my dad. My parents came up today with a garden till so we didn't have to rent one; so we could save money that we apparently were supposed to spend at Lowe's & Menard's. We have made 6 trips to Lowe's and 2 trips for me to Menard's & 1 for Nate. So now he has a special coupler that clamps the pipes that he can sauter to the valve and get the water to stop flowing up as he is trying to sauter the pipes together. AHHHH!!!! PLEASE LORD LET IT WORK!!!

My Garden

I have been reading a lot lately. I have been working on a book that is really difficult for me to digest. It is “The Problem of Pain” by C.S. Lewis. He is great but you have to really reflect on what he says and not read straight through. I am still reading the Mitford Series by Jan Karon which I love. The person in the book Father Tim always quotes scripture and poets. He said something that really made me think a few days ago. He stated that in life when changes come, “first comes the wilt, then the settling and then the growth spurt.” I am starting a garden and he is a gardener and that is true of plants. But it is true for us too! I have inevitably understood this and realize as I look back at our move back to Indiana I wilted at first. I was used to good friends and a great church and when uprooted you have to re-grow some roots. Then you go through the settling period. You have some good roots growing deep and are making friends and getting adjusted. The growth spurt is now what I am waiting on. I knew there would be adjustment and have even wondered at times if we did the right thing…but we know we did we just had to wilt a little before we grow again.

9 Years

Today Nathan & I have been together for 9 years! Here's to 90 more!

Still learning about patience

I am still learning a ton about patience! I really am trying to be patient, but it is so hard because in my timing, almost two years is forever! To God that's another story. I have no other reason to not have what I want other than it is not God's timing and that is really hard too! I love God and want to patiently wait on Him and His timing but I am really bad at it after a while. I have still given my delima up to Him and have not taken it back, just questioning His timing? Asking things like "Are you sure? Still not yet?" But why can others have what I want & I cannot and they may not deserve it as much as me? To which he answered with verses in Job. How can you compete with Job? (my daily reading was in Job.) Plus who am I really that I deserve it any more than anyone else? God has a way of taking you off your high horse when you are in the wrong. I am not the only one with this struggle and just keep praying He will show me His way and I am sure His plan is perfect and will all make sense when it comes to pass, but the waiting is the most difficult part. He knows this is my struggle. I prayed for patience when I first came to God in college and He has been instilling it in me ever since. (*note to self: watch what you ask for God to show, because you will surely receive it)

The Trap

Okay. I went to Target this week on Thursday to get general household goods. Cleaning supplies, laundry soap, the usual once every other month kind of supplies then tossed in a few groceries. I SPENT $100! Then I had to go back again on Saturday for groceries that Nate wanted me to get and some personal hygiene supplies, deodorant, shampoo, etc. That was almost another $100! It is a trap. Even if you buy what you need there are miscelaneousI HAVE TO STAY OUT OF TARGET!!! The other dangerous store right now is LOWES. We have spent over $300 in the last three weeks. Of course we had a leak in our ceiling that we had to get supplies for and then there is the fertilizer, grass seed and gardening supplies we need. We are going to plant a veggie garden this spring. I really don’t know how well it will go, but we are giving it our best. I really do not have a green thumb. All I know is it is not cheap to start. We have bunnies in our yard and I really want us to eat our green beans and other veggies and not have them as a buffet for the bunnies! So we had to get chicken wire & stakes as well. But I keep thinking I WILL HAVE FRESH VEGGIES!
All in all and a ton of money later, I have decided I am going to buy stock in Target & Lowes!

Our Disney Vacation!

We just got back from our "grown-up" vacation to Disney World. We had a great time. We stayed on site and that was great. It let us into some parks early and we got to stay late at others, depending on the Magic Hours that were available. But this is the time to go...there was no wait on any of the rides. Our longest wait was 25 minutes! It was great!

The above picture is at Liberty Square around 10 am on Wednesday morning. The park did get busier but I thought this was great. We had the whole street to ourselves! The only glitch in the whole trip was my bout with food poisoning on Wednesday night from eating at Animal Kingdom. But even with the food poisoning, Animal Kingdom was still our favorite!

On Tuesday we went first to Hollywood Studios (formerly MGM) and did the rides we wanted to from there and then planned on going on to the Magic Kingdom, but when we saw the lines for the monorail to MK and the one to Epcot, we went to Epcot. We did EVERYTHING there and our longest line was for Soaring and that was only about 20 minutes. When we were done there, we headed over to Magic Kingdom and did four rides before it started pouring down rain. We stayed in the Haunted Mansion for four rides till it was not pouring then braved it to purchase our lovely $7 each ponchos. So after that we called it a day, our feet were so happy! The next day we visited Magic Kingdom and did almost everything there within about 3 hours and then went to Animal Kingdom for the rest of the day and we rode everything there at least twice. The only disappointing thing was the hotel. It was loud and of all the hotels ours had the least amount of buses. We stayed at the Pop Century. It was cheap and easy but the next time we will stay at one with a boat or monorail to the park. The other thing was the food. I was expecting better food. We did the meal plan and there was plenty of food, but the quality was not good at all...Monday night we went to Downtown Disney and that had good food, so we will try eating there for our large meals next time. It would be worth the small trip on the bus. Just some hints if you ever plan to go. If you have kids, get the Unofficial Guide to Disney, it had great hints and do make reservations for dinner if you go during a busy time. If you think you want to do without the all inclusive food package, think again. It is so worth getting it. One of our dinners for just dinner, soda & dessert was over $60. Also, if you can, go in February, just not the week of Presidents Day, but it was slow. Maybe a little chilly, but that makes it less busy. Also you can honestly skip going to Epcot and to Hollywood Studios if you have small children, but if you have time and a park hopper pass, go ahead. There is just less there for kids, but fun for adults. I look for Disney to really change Hollywood Studios alot in the next years to come. It seems outdated to me. I wonder (hope) they may make it into more of a thrill junkie kind of place with more coasters and such. But it was a ton of fun whether you are 2 or 80. Well worth the trip and it was surprisingly not a budget breaker, just know how much you are going to spend, use your food pass and stick to it and you will have a great time!!!

Freezing

Okay this is short. I am sitting here at work and the last few days we have had horribly cold weather and freezing rain. I scraped 1/2 inch of ICE off of my car yesterday and it leaves me wondering...."WHY did we move back to INDIANA?" *of course the answer is it is home and our family is here, but still.* I am looking forward to visiting Micky Mouse on the 25th when we head to SUNNY, WARM, Florida for a week!!!

Feels Like a Breakup

How do you breakup with "friends"? We have a Bible Study we have been part of for a little over a year. We made a few friends out of it, but never quite fit in the group. We are the blacksheep of the group, since all most all of them have grown up in very, very conservative homes and mostly Baptist roots. (Not that there is anything wrong with that) But we have very different views. We have decided not to continue on with the group. It was not too hard of a decision for us. There were many reasons to name other than our schedules and the time of the study, but we just stated that it was our schedules. We still will see these people at church. I am sure it will be ackward for some time when we see them. We kinda did the "post it note" break up with them; it was via e-mail to the leaders. Kinda schmucky I know but we dread even going to this study we didn't even want to go to tell them in person...Sad but true. That brings me to what a Bible study is normally about...


I am used to a group where people openly share their prayer requests, questions and discuss the Bible. I am definately not the most perfect person and people who do not have personal prayer requests make me very nervous. Plus, I feel like they are not honest. Not that they have to lay out all their personal laundry, but they cannot have that perfect of a life that they do not need prayer! We all need prayer. I always need it. If you are not willing to open up to a group of people who like you are Christians and are supposed to be there for you, something is wrong. You meet with these people every week and never open up? Also there needs to be open discussion about the Bible. I am not a brick and morter type person. I am used to discussing and having different takes on the Bible. I believe it helps us learn and who knows, maybe someone else has something you need to hear that may be different from what you believe.

I have been reading a book that has changed alot of things for me. It is called Velvet Elvis by Rob Bell. I love this book. It really has brought up some good points about being legalistic and just how much of it there is. I feel and know it inhibits growth within our church community. I have felt this personally when I was in this group. They do not facilitate discussion. There is one way and only one way to interpret the text and I believe that is wrong. If it were true, that is sad. The Bible is a living book and it can have different meanings for you depending on your circumstances. In his book Rob Bell talks about having more of a non-brick & morter type faith. It is more of a tramopoline, the basics of Christianity are the inner bouncy part and everything else is the springs attached to it. They bend and move. But the core is still the same even if you remove a spring. That is more what I feel like. I believe Jesus is God, that He died for us and our sins before we were born or first sinned. We must accept him to be "saved" from our sins and the punishment of eternity without God. We can accept this or not, no amount of works will substitue for this. Other than that, there are many grey areas in which things fall, and can be looked at in different ways. This is why we really left the group, they hold that everything must be their way, so guess what...We took the highway.

Crazy Holiday

We are still celebrating Christmas...With my family we do Christmas Eve & Day then the following weekend we go to Nate's dad's family and then this weekend we have Nate's mother. Not complaining, just getting worn down.
This week we are housing a 13 year old boy. That is MAJOR work. Plus oh how he can eat. It is a great time having Nate's younger brother though. Although our cat, Zeke, really dislikes Chris. He has pestered our cat forever and now the cat is retaliating...He chased Chris around the house yesterday trying to attack him. Our normally docile cat hates this kid...But we warned him not to mess with Zeke or else he would not like him so we were right. We locked poor Zeke in our bedroom today for safe keeping so he doesn't beat up on Chris. (I am still kinda chuckling about this.) So the activities for this weekend are looming. Nate's brother, wife and two kids are being added to the mix on Friday - Sunday and we are going to the Children's Museum on Saturday. Sunday his mother is coming over for our Christmas with her. I am cooking lasagne and all the trimmings since we are turkey'd out...
We hope everyone has had a blessed Christmas and has had some down time. We are looking forward to the "downtime" next weekend. I might get out of my pj's on Saturday....Maybe.