" JAKE's Frown Turned UPSIDE :) DOWN

But he said to me,"My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me" 2Corinthians 12:9

My grandmother is living with us now and she has planted numerous flowers in my yard. Never really been a yard worker - but im starting to like the flowers

When I got home yesterday afternoon Jake met me at the car with the saddest face. He had been playing and had gotten his clothes wet when he picked up one of the toys in the sandbox. He was so sad looking. He is all boy and full of dirt - I think he has dirt coming up out of his skin sometimes but if he even thinks his clothes are dirty then he thinks he must go change into clean clothes. He was upset that I wouldnt let him change. Look at his sad little face

So Gracie was gone to a swim party with the church last night so to make his sad face happy after supper I let him go swimming and have the pool all to himself (no Gracie bossing him around) and I sat outside (in the heat) and watched him. He is doing really good about going under but he just does not have any interest at all in swimming. He just likes to have the pool all to himself and go under. He is such a sweety. He would make me count how long he stayed under and made sure that I was watching him. Hope everyone is enjoying there summer - inspite of the heat, and being pregnant and its this hot - I dont know that I will survive.

From sad face to happy face

Just about to go under

I have to count every time he goes under

"GRACIE's WORK"

" Jesus said to them, 'Because of your unbelief; for assuredly, I say to you, If you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you." (Matthew 17:20)

I got home yesterday day and found this sweet little picture laying on the counter where I keep my purse. Gracie had drawn these pictures and left them there for me to find. One of them had the words "Faith" and "LOVE" on it with some things that looked like roses. It got me to thinking about how something some little as those words have such a huge meaning. The bible says that all we need is Hope Faith and Love.

Gracie can be such a handful at times and there are days that I am sure that I as her mother and God himself are the only ones that can love her. She is just like me is probably the reason why. We want what we want and our way is the only way we want it. But then if I look behind all the attitude and look deep into this precious little girl that God has blessed me with and see the heart of a child that is bigger than any moon that has ever graced the sky, then all I see is someone who is full of love and has an unbelievable amount of Faith. The one thing that I count on every day is that God will be there for me and my family and the faith that I have, though sometimes, especially here lately, is sometimes hard for even me to see, that all it takes is just a little bit of Faith to get me through even the roughest days.

I have been so blessed in my life, two beautiful children and one on the way, a husband who through struggles and hard times still stands with me and I love more today than the nearly 11 years ago when I thought I loved him then. God has held this family together through the roughest times in our lives and has in turn blessed us unbelief, just a little faith.

"PAWPAW"

"Be still, and know that I am God! I will be honored by every nation. I will be honored throughout the world" (Psalm 46:10 NLT).

Just another Tuesday and man is it a scorcher. I do not know how my husband can work out in this heat. I found myself praying for him this morning and that the Lord will protect him from the dangers of the summer heat that we are in right now.

My father-in-law has gone to Jackson today for his check-up since have heart surgery back in May. He is doing really good - PRAISE THE LORD. He is walking nearly and hour every morning, way ahead of what he is suppose to be doing. The Lord has been so gracious to my husbands family during this timeSam and his dad (Hop) summer 2008

"ANIMAL"

"I know that Your love will last for all time, that Your faithfulness is as permanent as the sky" (Psalm 89:2 TEV).

We have a new family member. "Animal". We were told about this sweet little dog that had appeared at a friends house. Seems like someone just dropped it off at their driveway. We went and picked him up Friday afternoon, and he is already spoiled rotten. He follows Gracie everywhere. He is really well behaved. Seems like he is going to make a nice place in our growing family.

This week will cross the first trimester hurdle. I will be 13 weeks pregnant this week and have started feeling alot better. With an 8 1/2 year old, a 5 year old, a baby on the way, two cats, a dog, I think I finally have my hands full. I am so thankful that my grandmother is living with me and my family. She has been such a great help since I have been pregnant and not feeling so well, some days a little to much of a help but I am truly thankful for her.

You can see our newest addition below and also why we call him "Animal" a name given to him by some really sweet people who wanted nothing more than to find a good home for him. Thanks Hollie and John for allowing Animal to come live with us.

Pictures by Hollie Long