Jesse learns to swim…

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I mentioned a while back that on the very first day of summer vacation Jesse decided that he didn’t want to wear his swimmies (wings) to swim anymore. He could touch the bottom of the shallow end on tippy-toes and he was doing pretty good with jumping in and swimming to the steps, but he was making me a nervous wreck! I couldn’t relax at all when we were at the pool & you could forget about him going swimming without me there! Plus, he was terrified of the deep end. ABSOLUTELY. TERRIFIED. So we decided that it would give us all more peace of mind if he took swim lessons. He began swim lessons with Ms. Ellen on June 7th and for the next two weeks he went every afternoon and swam.

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By that first Friday, Jesse and his classmates were ready to give us a sneak peek at what they had been learning. Jesse showed off how to make superman arms, put his face in the water, and kick, kick, kick to get to where he wanted to go.

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Finally Jesse’s final day of swim lessons arrived and it was time to show off everything he and his classmates had learned to all the parents.

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Jesse was jumping into the deep end, swimming to the side, and then swimming all the way across the deep end to the ladder! He even went all the way to the bottom of the deep end with Ms. Ellen to get a ring off the bottom of the pool! Yea Jesse! We were so proud of him.

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Jesse was so proud of himself! As a graduation present Ms. Ellen let him pick out a blow up beach ball—he chose Nemo!

My Cousin, My Friend

  Once we picked Trey up from camp we didn’t go straight home.  No, first we had to go to Papa & Ah-ee’s.  Why?  Because Hinson was there of course.

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It does this Mama’s heart good to see how much Trey & Jesse love and dote on their baby cousin!  Hinson is so precious to us all & my boys can’t get enough of him.  They always want to play with, talk to, dance for, sing to, and hold Hinson.  And they get just as excited over his milestones as anyone else in the family…maybe even more so.

Both boys have told me that they want a baby brother.  Since, for now at least, that’s not happening, they get to enjoy being big cousins to Hinson.  In fact, when Hinson was born, Jesse told me that he wanted to be Hinson’s big brother that just didn’t live with him.

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The week before school started, the night of our open house, Trey and Jesse got to spend the night with Aunt Lindsey, Uncle Chris, and Hinson.  Usually, we have a hard time getting the boys to leave open house.  They are so excited to see their friends again and to run around and play with them that we have to pull them away kicking and screaming.  This year though, they couldn’t wait to leave and get to Hinson’s house.  They had a ball baking and eating brownies, playing video games, watching t.v. and of course playing with Hinson.  I was surprised that Jesse actually stayed the whole night.  He’s not one to get too far from Mama at night time.  However, he did tell Aunt Lindsey that if Hinson hadn’t been there then he would NOT have spent the night.

Let me give you a new command: Love one another. In the same way I loved you, you love one another. This is how everyone will recognize that you are my disciples—when they see the love you have for each other.
John 13:34-35 The Message

No Fear

The second week in June (the 14th-18th) Trey headed to church camp and it was no easier to watch him go this year than it was last year!  However, I knew he was in good hands.  And I must say that I am very thankful for the three men that have taken our Pine Level bunch to camp the past two years.  It takes someone very special to spend this week with our kids and we are blessed to have these three in our community and our church.

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We all gathered at the church to see them off & before I was ready for it they were on their way!

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I missed Trey something terrible all week and couldn’t wait to pick him up on Friday!  He was so excited when he got off the van.  He couldn’t wait to show off his new camp shirt and tell us all about it his camp adventures!

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Trey managed to keep up with his camera this year although his photo taking skills aren’t completely developed yet.  However, through the technology that is facebook, I met a couple of women who were counselors at camp and they took photos!   So between my three sources, I was able to see some of what my boy was up to during the week! (And I even managed to find a couple of photos from last year’s camp but those will wait for another time:-)

There were a lot of fun & silly times…

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But also some serious times…

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Okay, maybe the serious times were fun times too…

The speakers during chapel time were Dale & Sandra Bishop who have served as missionaries in Japan since 1975!  And the kids had a ball playing the Japanese games that the Bishop’s brought and learning more about the Japanese culture.  (BTW, Trey says he’s not upset in the photo above, but that the gnats were driving him crazy!)
                                                                                                                                        

 

 

 

 

Needless to say, my Trey had a great time while he was gone whether he was participating in Bible time, playing with his best bud Mason, playing the silly games, or meeting new friends.  He even met another Trey, which was the first thing he told me when I asked him about camp!  No matter how hard it was for me to let him go & grow, I am so very thankful that he was blessed with this opportunity for a second year!

For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.
2 Timothy 1:7

Please Pray

Most days I listen to American Family Radio in the car. That is when I'm not listening to books on cd or the "fun" bible songs as Jesse calls his music. And one of my new favorite groups is Sanctus Real. I just love their song "Lead Me" and would happily listen to it each time I am in the car. Last Thursday, September 9th, the lead singer Matt and his wife welcomed their third child, Bowen Matthew. Bowen was born with the heart defect HLHS. This is the same defect that my niece Lila Rae was born with which makes it something that is very near to my heart. The fact that Bowen was born so close to Lila Rae's birthday makes him even near and dearer to me. Please pray for the Hammitt family and especially for little Bowen. They are taking him off of life support today to see if his heart can sustain him. You can follow Bowen's journey at http://www.bowensheart.com/


Here Matt & his wife Sarah discuss the true story behind the song "Lead Me". It is an amazing testimony and a wonderful song.

The Story Behind "Lead Me" - Sanctus Real from BrightBulb Entertainment on Vimeo.

EGYPT: Joseph’s Journey from Prison to Palace

As soon as we got home from camping it was time to dive into VBS!  Our theme this year was all things Egypt and our teachers & planners had lots of fun things in store for all the kiddos.  They made bricks from mud, wrapped each other up like mummies, got to play lots of water games, dressed up like Joseph, and more all while learning about Joseph’s incredible journey!  I was blessed to lead the 3 & 4 year olds (a.k.a. Jesse’s class) this year and enjoyed every minute with them.  It also gave me the opportunity to get loads of photos, especially of Jesse & his friends.  Since I took so very many photos (so unlike me I know:-) most of the photo albums have lots more photos to view if you’ll click on the “view full album” link!  So sit back, take your time, and enjoy our journey through Egypt.

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Jesse’s Class

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The boys led the girls in giving this year right up until the last night!  However, the girls were amazingly generous on that last night giving them a major win!  And that means that Bro. Eric got the pie in the face again!  Although he did manage to get some on Mrs. Lora too!

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Joseph replied, "Don't be afraid. Do I act for God? Don't you see, you planned evil against me but God used those same plans for my good, as you see all around you right now—life for many people. Easy now, you have nothing to fear; I'll take care of you and your children." He reassured them, speaking with them heart-to-heart.  Genesis 50:19-21, The Message

Because HE Lives

I attempt to listen to Turning Point with Dr. David Jeremiah each morning while driving to school. I say attempt simply because with two boys in the car with me I cannot always hear the radio. However a couple of weeks ago, they were occupied with other things and I was able to hear his message. He'd been doing a series on hope, and he began telling a story about Gloria Gaither (A Living Hope Part 2, aired on Wednesday, August 25, 2010, at 17mins & 30 secs). She was pregnant during the tumultuous times of the sixties and had become very depressed about what kind of world she was bringing her child in to. She prayed and prayed, and then one day her veil of depression began to lift as the Lord moved upon her heart with the central message of the hope in the risen Christ. She was so overcome with the principle of life conquering death not someday but today. She expressed her feelings and emotions by writing the song, Because He Lives. Dr. Jeremiah commented on how the second verse to the song now makes so much more sense:

How sweet to hold a newborn baby,

And feel the pride and joy he gives;

But greater still the calm assurance:

This child can face uncertain days because HE lives!

I've now heard the sermon several times, and each time I hear it I have tears running down my face. You see, I've been where Gloria Gaither was...on this day nine years ago. I was four months pregnant with my precious Trey and I was teaching 1st grade just south of Atlanta. One of the teachers came in to tell me what had happened. I busied my students and went across the hall to a second grade classroom (second grade was at activity) and watched on the television. Shortly after it was time for my students to go to activity. While they were gone I sat in my classroom, eyes glued to the television, tears streaming down my face, wondering what kind of world I was bringing my baby in to. It was a very helpless and hopeless feeling. But, our God is a God of hope & because He lives we can face tomorrow.

Heading Home

Amazingly enough we only spent one night at Vogel State Park!!!  I know it’s hard to believe from my many, many photos but it’s true.  We crammed a massive amount of exploring into our two day adventure and we had a great time!  Phil was a groomsman in his cousin’s wedding on Saturday, so we headed towards home late Friday night and got in around 3AM.  The boys fell asleep almost immediately and slept almost the whole way.  And my poor Jesse kept talking in his sleep, saying that he was tired of walking.  Bless his little heart, he’d played hard all day & was just exhausted!  But he just couldn’t get comfortable.  He was snoozing, but he kept moving around and complaining about his legs hurting.  So when we stopped in Dublin for some caffeine for Daddy, I did something I NEVER do.  I let him out of his booster seat and let him lay down.  Mind you, he was still buckled in, but he was so much more comfortable laying in the seat under his towel and he snoozed soundly the rest of the way.

   

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My sweet angels

 

 

 

 

 

We made it to the wedding Saturday with little sleep, but it was well worth it.  Even in his sleep deprived state, my hubby was still very handsome in his tux and made me very proud!  In fact, all of us Tyre’s looked so snazzy all dressed up that we decided it was a great opportunity for a family photo.

Around the Park

I must admit I wasn’t quite sure what to expect from our camping trip.  And.  I wasn’t entirely looking forward to it.  I am the first to admit that I am not the outdoorsy type.  In fact, I don’t think I had ever slept in a tent before.  But you do things for your kids that take you out of your comfort zone.  And I am happy to admit that our camping trip was much better than I could have ever imagined.  Vogel State Park is amazing!  There was so much to see and do and it was so beautiful!  The kids were completely entertained.  They had plenty of kids to play with.  And we got to spend time with some good friends.  In the end, I wish we could have stayed longer.  Well, there is one change I would make…I don’t mind sleeping in a tent but if there had been a hotel bathroom, I would have willingly stayed a week!

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What a way to spend a weekend, enjoying God’s beautiful creation!  I can’t wait to do it again.

And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good.  Genesis 1:31a