Overwhelming Love During Fleeting Times

When you hold your baby for the first time, it’s an overwhelmingly feeling. The weight of responsibility sits right there on your chest in need of your love & protection as you begin to raise them. You blink, dress her in pink & live a little & before you know it, you have that overwhelming feeling again. Except this time she isn’t resting on your chest. She is caught from a distance looking more beautiful every second. She doesn’t even know it but you are dying inside of her inches of growth & years of life just flying by. She turns 14!! She still comes & rests her head on your chest & you soak up the newborn changed scent that now smells like some sweet shampoo she has just used. Even though the weight of responsibility still sits on your shoulder… well actually both shoulders now…You are just happy to have her that close to you,  just like the day she was born. 

Emmie had a fun bday getting to go shopping with her mom to her favorite place…. Target! This called for a fun theme to surprise her! I love birthdays & making them special. Time is certainly overwhelmingly fleeting & I don’t want to lose my sense of smell. They grow up so fast! Happy Birthday to our Emmie Lou. 

Unforgettable Love

If anyone knows about unforgettable fathers love… it’s me. My heart will never forget his love. He is in Heaven but his love is in my heart. Even when he was here he always told me he loved me and always told me he was proud of me. There is something strong & powerful when a man, a father, a husband says loving & complimentary words….They run deep & stay strong in your heart. 

I am overjoyed that our children have that kind of father too. Every day he is on this earth I will be grateful. I will be grateful for him as my husband & our children’s father. He has an undeniable amazing example to follow in his father’s steps. A long line of love creates a full family that sticks together through this life. 

More pictures of summer saving us with time to be together. The last few pics are at Fort Campbell where Tai is stationed finally!!!! It was an air show and he was flying the chinook. So neat to be there with his family that we have missed being here & they get to make some TN memories now. 

Another Orange boy that is an example for his children especially with his sacrifice for our country. God Bless our military. 

Piles Of Rocks

Can you see my piles of rocks? 👀 These are a few of many I have made. We built a house out in the country & with that comes the challenge of getting grass to grow. 💚 The past few months have been lots of pickin up rocks from the soil so we can have a pretty yard. It’s been a great chore & punishment 😏 for our kids. Today as I was pulling them up & making piles (for the kids to wheelbarrow out)... it was so much easier because it has rained a lot. It got me thinking about the Lord & us. 💗 If you know me, you know where this is going & hard for me not to share. 😘

These ROCKS are kind of like the “sin” in our lives. The more you get up & out, the more your life & yard will blossom with growth. 🌼 Godly growth. It doesn’t mean there still won’t be sin there... because We Are All Sinners. It just opens up little holes where something good can take it’s place. I stood and looked at all the imprints in the dirt where the rocks once were & thought about how God isn’t throwing those rocks back at us. He is providing us softer soil & hearts to help us remove our sin. He is showing us what He can do with our lives if we make the choice to let go of our sins. It doesn’t matter how big or little the rock is... God can fill it with a life that is greener & greater! 💚🙌🏼💚  I really enjoyed pulling up the rocks because they were all mostly easy, but some were harder than others & took me a few tries. I am not going to give up trying because I know our yard will be even more beautiful with less rocks. God will never give up on me & you either. He will continue to provide a way out for you. Softer ground. Getting rid of the rocks & ruts & sin & filling it with fruits of “His Spirit”. 

Dear Lord, thank you for this time of picking up rocks & thinking of you. Will you continue to keep my heart soft so you can work on it? Help us all to let you have our wheelbarrow of rocks. Let our lives be filled with your blessings & love. 🙏🏻Amen 🙏🏻

P.S. and maybe a little more green grass in my backyard 🥰

Summer Is A Fest Of F-U-N

Summer is a festival of fun!? Why?! Well for starters the funnest person in the world has a birthday!!! Nate turned 44 & gives us at least another 44 reasons to love him this past year! He is the laughter in all our hearts & we wouldn’t be The Orange Family without this man! 

Summer starts off right with small town country festival. It was a mud pit but people don’t care. Give us fireworks & a Ferris wheel and we can have some fun! We gotta Keep the creek time coming to stay cool with this Tennessee humidity. 

The kids love it & Mama don’t mind it one bit! I can flip a magazine & sip my ice water while they stack rocks & fish for crawfish. We love Summer festivities & All Things Summer!!!