Tuesday, August 31, 2010

Redeeming The Time.

My husband and I, along with two friends, made a trip down to Frederick, Maryland on Monday to attend a memorial/funeral service for a pastor we had known for several years. My friends Rachel and Pastor Shorter both wrote about this man - Pastor Purks - who stepped out into eternity suddenly last Monday morning.

There were many tears shed at the funeral, but in stark contrast there was much laughter heard. A saint of the Lord's had gone home to be with his Saviour. After the service was over, my husband and I were quietly talking about the various people we had seen, how we were challenged by the speakers, and obviously about Pastors Purks. One thing that struck both of us was the fact that Pastor Purks was known as a man with a passion for souls. Nat made the comment that this was the most convicting funeral he had ever attended.

Pastor Purks was only 59 - quite young, really. One never knows when it's time to go home, and the reminder from Scripture is so necessary: "Walk in wisdom toward them that are without, redeeming the time." (Colossians 4:5)

Monday, August 23, 2010

1,000 Words... Plus A Few More!

While we were on our honeymoon to Boston and Maine, we decided rather than picking up the obligatory mug or magnet commemorating our trip, we would pick up t-shirts instead, since that was something I never got to do when I was younger. Hey, when you have 5 kids in the family, you're just trying to find food for everyone:o).

Anyway, we did that very thing, although it was easier for Nat to pick up t-shirts because he's not as picky as I am. I don't like having my shirt too long and apparently all the styles today give the option of t-shirt or mini-skirt ~ your choice! ~ and so I only came home with one shirt I really liked.

Last Saturday we had what we called a "honeymoon day" which is an opportunity for us to get away alone and spend time together. We chose to go to the city of Brotherly Love and do the touristy thing of acting like it was our first time in a city that's less than an hour away:o).

We had a lot of fun together and saw things like Independence Hall, walked by the Liberty Bell (the line was waaaay too long!), went to the Powell House (Mr. Powell happened to be the last governor of Philadelphia under British rule and the first governor of Philadelphia in the newly formed country), walked the oldest alley in the United States, and went to Reading Terminal Market where we had the best chocolate-covered pretzel!

Since it was a honeymoon day, we chose to stick with our tradition of buying a t-shirt. My mind raced ahead to the cooler days coming so I picked out a sweatshirt and for the first time ever, we decided to get matching ones:

(In our kitchen)

Green is not usually my first choice; in fact my default is pink, but my husband encouraged me to go with the green and I'm glad I did because it finally adds some variety to my normal blue/pink/pink/blue/blue/blue/pink..... :o).

Now that I've given a peek at our kitchen, I'll have to dig out the camera and take some more pictures of our snug, little apartment!

Tuesday, August 17, 2010

*The* Offering.

So without going into the whens and whys and all such nonsense like that, I've decided confession is good for the soul: I've given to my dear, sweet, kind, doesn't-deserve-this-at-all husband an offering.

Oh yes.

That kind of offering.

I'm sure you all know what I'm talking about. But, oh is it awkward to actually come out and say it. Or spell it. Whichever the case may be (which in this case, it would be spelling it).

I won't even try to offer one of those "in my defense..." statements because it would be totally worthless. But, and this is to brag on the man God has given to me, Nat was gracious and kind and still thanks God every night for a wife who can cook.

Ha! Well, except for that night when I couldn't, you know, cook the main dish.

I think next time I'll just use the grill.... :o).

Tuesday, August 10, 2010

One Month = Pure Happiness!

It's not exactly down to the minute, although I suppose I could wait the extra 52 minutes, but it's been one month of wonderful, sweet marriage! God has richly blessed me with a compassionate, considerate, fun-loving, sensitive husband who is simply the best! He is my best friend in the world, and I would rather know every little detail about him than anyone else.

Someone asked me the other day if the wait was worth it.......... ABSOLUTELY!!!!






"Grow old along with me... the best is yet to be."
~Robert Browning~

Sunday, August 8, 2010

Hi, I'm Still Here:).

Hubby is currently sleeping (as are most of the people on the East Coast at this time of the night!), but I kick in with my second wind right about now and thought a blog post just might be in order.

But first, I realized I only posted one wedding picture soooo.... here are a couple more:


After the ceremony was over, Nat and I headed out to a local park and had some pictures taken. Our photographer did an amazing job and we like the fact that this park is close enough for us to visit often.... like we did tonight when we had a little picnic:).


Hmm, methinks that last picture needs a tad bit of explaining. I find it extremely ironic and humorous that the only time I cried on my wedding day was right here (or is it right there since it's not here anymore? Anyway.) This lady is such a dear friend of mine and not only drove the 13 hours from Muddy Pond, Tennessee (yes that's the name!), but also agreed to greet people on our wedding day. As soon as I came up from downstairs and saw her, I just lost it.... as did she. We're both crying while we wonder why we always cry when we see each other. It's hard to explain, but 'tis true!

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Life has been wonderfully busy... setting up our new apartment; packing up stuff from my parents house (Goodwill is going to benefit!); working busy hours; having my first visitor over for lunch; spending time with the dearest man on earth; writing thank you notes....

Oh the thank you notes. I feel as if paper and pen fail in verbalizing our thanks. I suppose if I really considered it, it's not the paper or pen expressing our thanks, it's our words. But how do you squeeze into one note the fact that you really do appreciate the gift of ________ and are thankful time was spent in coming to the wedding?

Or to my wonderful co-workers who not only gave me the time off of work (3 weeks), but also provided pies, a large cookie tray, and chafing pans/dishes to hold our reception food. In addition to that, the were so gracious to give four large gifts, including a beautiful red Kitchen Aid mixer.

What about the dear, dear church family we are so blessed with who jumped in with both feet and enthusiastically and cheerfully helped out where needed? I've come to the conclusion that it is impossible to say "thank you" on paper only; it must be lived out and in some cases paid forward, so to speak.

Simply put, we've been blessed.

A few people asked after we returned from our honeymoon if we still needed anything. Need? In a word, no.

We've been blessed.