Congratulations Drew Brees

Congratulations to AdvoCare National Spokesperson, Drew Brees who was just name Sports Illustrated Sportsman of the Year!

New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees was named Sports Illustrated's 2010 Sportsman of the Year on Tuesday, by virtue of his Super Bowl MVP performance and the good works he and his charity have done for the people of the city.  (for the full article, click here)

That's a wrap

Today ends our NaBloPoMo journey friends.  Having pre-written some posts, I didn't find this year's adventure to be as hard.  I must admit, I woke up this morning in a near panic because I did not remember posting yesterday.  As soon as my computer was on, I checked, and "whew" there was a post.  That would have been so like me, forget to post the day before it all ends.  Zoiks. 

We are still trying to throw the colds that have invaded our house back out the door, we are all decorated for Christmas, and I still have that marathon to continue training for (yes, one more reason this cold needs to get up and go!), and our child claps with delight everytime she wakes up in the morning when she sees the Christmas tree. 

To those of you who successfully made it through NaBloPoMo, I applaud you, and may even be sending you a prize I signed up to do.  For those who didn't quite make it, oh well, sometimes other elements in life are much more important (always are really).  Off to tackle the day, which will involve an afternoon with a friend's little girl.  Pray for me, two young children and one will just be getting back into town from her Thanksgiving vacation, and will be dropped off here without Mom or Dad.  Blessings friends.

Diving In

The book I am currently diving into:

Read more about it, and the author here.



She discusses so much of what I believe to be true about health.  It is good!  Last night I completed Lesson 1, wow-za-roo.  Good stuff, great rather and so revealing.  As a personal trainer, I know that even trainers have areas they need to work on.  It is refreshing to be on the learning end for a change.  But alas, I will have to divulge more later, for now, I must get back to being on the teaching end of fitness.

Advent Conspiracy

The Christmas season is upon us, which for all too many means overspending and trying to fill life with "stuff".  Advent Conspiracy is trying to change that, or at least getting people to think about their actions surrounding Christmas.  What if we spent less time at stores and more time together?  What if we took the money we would spend on the things that do not really matter, and sent it to those needing food, shelter or water?  What if we, as believers, actually did things differently than the world did?  What if Christmas, once again, changed the world?

For more about Advent Conspiracy and what you can do to make a difference, click here.

Commence with Christmas

Now that Thanksgiving has come and gone, I can now begin decorating for Christmas.  A few of our neighbors already have lights up, and have for a week or two.  I however do not believe in decorating for Christmas until after Thanksgiving.  I want to enjoy each holiday on its own, without rushing to the next.  It is a silly little thing, but it's my silly little thing.  And, hearing my child say on Thursday night, "Mommy, that was a good Thanksgiving.  I had fun!" followed by Friday's post nap comment of , "Mommy, oh look it's a Chirstmas tree, with lights!" makes it worth it.  Let the decorating begin.

A look in the rearview mirror

One year.  It has been one year since God said "yes" to a prayer I had for six years: to move closer to family.  Wow.  A year ago (yesterday) we were closing on our house and Andy was finishing up his drive here.  My child and I had already arrived and spent our time playing and trying to prepare for life to change, completely.  We were busy cleaning the house and preparing for our stuff to arrive, watching the answer to prayer unfold.  It was exciting, nerve racking, and a time filled with an array of emotions.  I was happy to be back here, but neither of us knew what lied ahead.  We had to find a church home, had to find our place here, had to find our fit, apart from family.  Andy would be working from home, we discussed my returning to work part time.  There were a lot of unknowns, but we did know one thing: God as the one who orchestarted it all.

Here we are, a year later.  In the same house, falling into the routine of life, and settling in.  We have a church home and an incredible small group as a result.  We are still in the process of setting roots here and really connecting with others.  I am back in a gym, part time, working as a personal trainer, and our AdvoCare business has seen an increase (still have a lot of work to do there however).  We have figured out how to make working at home work for Andy, and our child is now going to a wonderful PDO program two days a week.  Holidays no longer involve traveling, and we see our child developing tight bonds with her Papa and Mamo, cousins, aunt and uncle.  Talk about a gift. 

I look back over the past year and see the hand of God in every moment.  Andy and I are still growing individually, and as a married couple.  Sometimes we do it well, sometimes, well, prayer is welcome.  Our child is growing and developing into an extraordinary young girl.  We spend time with family as often as we like, and have been blessed with friendships outside of that family.  We do not yet have the connections we did in Nashville, but I have to remind myself that those took time too.  We are finding our groove and figuring out what works for us.  I remember the prayers asking God to open the doors needed in order for us to move, I remember the shout of joy my niece let out when I told her we would be selling our house in order to move here.  I remember unloading our stuff into this house, our new dwelling. 

At a time when so many people told us it probably would not happen, that the market was crashing, everyone was scared and that it would probably take a long time, we prayed and believed God would answer.  And He did.  I asked him to show himself off, and he did.  It took three months to sell our house, and one day to find the house we are in now.  Everything fit into place, perfectly.  Yes, we miss our Tennessee friends and church family quite a bit, in fact, more than we ever actually voice.  But here I sit, a year later, marveling in how God answered our prayer.  Am I thankful?  Oh yes, very.  It is not just about the move though, it is that God allowed me to see him work, to answer our prayer and to take care of every little detail.  It is that he cares enough about us, loves us to eternity and brought us here.  It is God's goodness and mercy I am most thankful for, and the evidence of his care for us I see manifested in our family every single day.

Happy Thanksgiving Friends

Picture found here.

I am thankful, oh so thankful for:

• a loving, living God
• family
• the laughter of my child
• the love of my husband
• the church home we have found, and the small group it brought us to
• a warm house and clean clothes
• food on the table
• AdvoCare
• pictures that capture amazing moments
• incredible moments not caught on film
• this family and their newest addition, Joshua
• the fact David and Lisa will be celebrating at home, with their son, Jaden
• the two friends I will get to see in January
• our friends and church family in Tennessee
• music, dancing, and the ability to be active
• hugs from friends, and sweet comments from blog buddies
• my work as a personal trainer
• clients who become friends
• forgiveness, grace, and mercy
• that I am not who I was, and am still learning

WFW - John7:38

John7:38
Originally uploaded by chelled.

John 7:38 (New International Version, ©2010)
"Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.”

Not just any water, but living water. Water that does not leave us thirsty an hour later, but that flows from within. A living water, a life giving water, an eternal life giving water. This is what Jesus came for, what he was born and died and raised for. To give us the choice to run to his well for living water. I am thankful He came, thankful for the cross, thankful for the living water he freely offered then just as He does now.

To enjoy more Word Filled Wednesday posts click here..

It's time for a list

I have not done a list in a while, so, why not?  Besides, I currently cannot remember the blog post I was pondering on writing for today.  Maybe it wasn't that good to begin with, who knows.  I am praying a cold away, and heavily medicating in hopes of being well enough to do a 12k Thursday morning with a friend of mine.  We shall see.  But alas, time for a list:

1. Due to our travels at the beginning of the month, the training sessions have been sparse.  Not good for the income, but it was time well spent.
2. I have been informed I am hard to buy gifts for.  What?  All I want is everything, what is so hard about that?
3. Training for a marathon is fun, for the first two months.  Now?  I am ready for the race to be done.  It will be fun to see my friend, who's the reason I am doing this, and a few other folks, but otherwise, bring on the ibuprofen, the AdvoCare Post Workout Recovery, and the AdvoCare Nighttime Recovery because Mama's gonna need them.
4. Shin splints stink.  Feeling like the lower half of my left leg may explode is not very fun.  I think it's because I'm not taking enough time to warm-up before runs.  Yes, I am a personal trainer, and yes, I know better.
5. When I am not feeling well, I am not a good mom because I just want to sleep.  My poor child.
6. My mom, sister, and I went to an event called "Holiday Happenings" this past weekend.  Lots of vendors, lots of stuff, lots of laughter.  I had so much fun, and was reminded of how silly and ornery my sister can be.  Those places are wonderful yet I become overwhelmed and end up not buying anything.  Oh wait, I have already finished my Christmas shopping so I didn't need to. 
7. I lied, I did buy some spa products to make my hands nice and soft and some products from Homemade Gourmet (one of which I'll be making for Thanksgiving).
8. I also bought an Elf on the Shelf.  My joke became that I had just purchased a stand-offish, tattle tail elf for our home -- it's like my child now has an older sibling!  HA!  We are also breaking the rules because I'm letting her play with him.  Whatever, she's only 2.
9. Four or five houses on our block have Christmas lights up, and it makes me feel like a Scrooge.  One house paid FOUR HUNDRED dollars to have a company put up their lights!!  INSANE!  No thank you.  There should be a law against decorating until the day after Thanksgiving.  Poor Thanksgiving.
10. I am looking forward to Thanksgiving festivities with my family, and this year, Andy won't be driving into town! 

Crazy Love

Here's the book I am finally reading:

Click here to order from amazon, or here from the Crazy Love website.

I know, I am a little late to this party in comparison to most.  A vast majority of the people I know have already dived into this book and walked away change.  Better late than never, right?  I am only 57 pages into the book and I already love it!  His personal story is incredible, and I appreciate his honesty in this book.  We miss the mark, more often than not, and we rarely sit back to ponder just how big and how amazing God is.  We certainly don't live in that knowledge.  I am confident that as I read through this book I will be confronted with my own reality and be forced to ask myself whether I honestly fathom how deeply and completely God loves me.  Do I walk in that truth?  Do I serve in it?  There will probably be bruising of toes, a momentary hanging of the head, and above all else, a girl completely in awe of God.

Sister Strikes Again

My father sent me the following video and I could not stop laughing. I was raised in the Catholic church, so I was laughing rather hard. Enjoy.

When Methods Don't Matter

Early this morning I set out for my required 10 mile run (oh the joys of marathon training).  I have been enduring severe shin splints and muscle cramping the last few weeks, so to say I was a little less than excited about this morning's run is a bit of an understatement.  Did I mention it was also cold?  I have exercise induced asthma.  My lungs do not really like the cold.  But, alas, if I want to cross the finish line in the required time in January, I must do the training, so, off I went.

I had only been jogging for a few minutes when my left shin started feeling like it might explode.  Great.  That's what every runner wants, pain shortly after starting.  I kept going (because I'm stubborn like that) and started praying the pain away.  With pains shooting throughout my leg, I decided to walk for a bit.  Do not misunderstand here.  When I walk while out jogging, it is not a "stroll in the park" type or walk, it is sometimes faster than my jog.  From that point on I alternated between jogging and walking and there was a brief moment I became annoyed that I was having to walk. 

And then I had to ask myself one little question, "Why?"  Who says I have to jog every single step of every single mile?  What is it that drives me to believe I am failing if I do not jog every step?  If jogging the entire course is going to leave my body broken, hurting, and in worse shape than when I started, what is the point?  My goal is to finish the marathon because let's face it, I'm not from Kenya or Brazil, and those seem to be the ones who are always winning these things (and might I add, they are incredible to watch).  By nature and genetics, I am not even built like most long distance runners.  And then I decided something, that was OK.  If I am going to feel better and do better by changing my method to jogging for 10 minutes followed by walking for 2 minutes, that is what I will do.  Seriously, how many people even think of doing a full marathon?  Not many friends.  Of those who choose to do one, not everyone will finish.  So as I was finishing the second half of my ten mile run this morning, alternating between jogging and walking, I made the decision to simply do what my body needed to do, which will result in crossing the finish line 70 days from today.

Bullies beware

What an interesting little day today has been.  Actually, it's been rather good, with one minor glitch.  We met my sister and niece for lunch at Chik-Fil-A.  Of course, following the insanely fast eating of their food, my kiddo and her cousin wanted to go play.  Her cousin climbs and slides and runs and laughs.  My child?  She watches and smiles and claps.  So, she's not the one most likely to just into the middle of a group, and that's ok.  Andy came out to ask me what time it was since he did have to get back to work, and during that time, something went down that just irks me more and more as I think about it. 

An older boy decided to pretend he was a monster and scare my child.  She's all of 2 and a half, he, at least 4 years older.  The more frightened she became, the more he did it.  I know my child is going to come across jerks throughout life who are jerks simply because they can be.  Fine, she will have to learn to deal with conflict and maintain her integrity while doing so.  I have a huge problem however with an older child picking on a younger one.  That my friends just disgusts me.  We went back into the play area to accompany my niece in putting on her shoes.  As we walked back in, the "monster's" mom pulled him over and said, "look, she's back in here, you need to apologize."  He said he was sorry, while looking and laughing at his friends and trying to get back to them.  Hmmm.  Sincere?  I think not.  I looked at my child and asked, "Can you say I forgive you?"  She looked him square in the eye and very clearly said, "I forgive you," and smiled at him. 

I was rather proud of my child, yet part of me wanted to knock him upside the head and suggest maybe the mom should pull her son from the area and actually administer some kind of punishment.  I don't know, I just think that's a part of parenting (as embarrassing as it can be when your child is the one is misbehaving).  As we walked out, my girl was telling me about the boy who scared her, repeatedly.  My final statement was something to the effect of, "When bigger kids won't stop picking on you, do what your Mommy used to and just kick them in the shins."  My sister laughed and told Andy he may want to step in on those cases.  I was thankful my niece was in there and protected her as best as a 5 year old girl could.  Let me be honest, if my child chooses to strike the shins of an older bully at some point in her life, I am not sure there will be any consequences for it. 

But, I also take comfort that a friend is dealing with bullies too (and I applaud how they are dealing with it).

Uncertain Heart

Buy book here.

My Thoughts:

This book reminded me, a bit, of The Sound of Music.  The introduction of characters and scenarios were reminiscent of the movie, and that is not necessarily a bad thing.  I completely enjoyed this book and following Sarah's journey from leaving her family's farm to venturing out on her own in the city.  She dreams of living in the city and living a city life, but as well all know, God's script for our lives is not always the same as what we would write.  This book is endearing on many levels, especially when it comes to Richard Navis.  You will fall in love with him, immediately, and your affections will only grow as you read.  Cozy up by a fire, wrap yourself in a blanket, and lose yourself in this story.  You will not be disappointed, and it is the perfect book for such a night.

About the Book:

"It's just as easy to love a rich man as a poor man," the adage goes. But is the dream of fancy clothes, mansions, and fine dining worth compromising your morals and faith? Sarah McCabe must find her answer in Andrea Boeshaar's Uncertain Heart, book two in the Seasons of Redemption series.

The Civil War is over. Sarah longs to escape the country and experience the finer things in life, so she leaves her home in Jericho Junction, Missouri, to become a governess in Milwaukee. Her rich and dashing employer, Brian Sinclair, shows an attraction to Sarah but doesn't share her beliefs.


Richard, however, does. Richard Navis is Mr. Sinclair's steward. He is kind, thoughtful, handsome...and harbors an unfortunate desire to leave his city job to be a farmer. Sarah has no interest in a rural farm life, even while her interest in Richard grows.


Does she sacrifice love to get the lifestyle she wants? Or will love be enough?

About the Author:

Andrea Kuhn Boeshaar has been married for more than 30 years. She and her husband, Daniel, have three adult sons, daughters-in-law, and two precious grandchildren. Andrea's educational background includes the University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee, where she studied in English, and Alverno College where she studied in Professional Communications and Business Management.



Andrea has been writing stories and poems since she was a little girl; however, it wasn't until 1984 that she started submitting her work for publication. Eight years after that, she was convicted about writing for the Christian market. She read books in her genre (Inspirational Romance & Women's Fiction), studied the market, and worked hard to hone her craft.
Finally her first novel was published in 1994. Since then she's written numerous articles and devotionals. Andrea has also published inspiration romance novels, women's fiction, and novellas.


In 2003, Andrea joined the Hartline Literary Agency and worked for Joyce Hart as a literary agent. She saw much success. But then in 2007, Andrea realized she was more of a teacher/encourager than a sales person. She left the agency and became a certified Christian life coach. Now, in addition to her writing, Andrea enjoys encouraging others to use their God-given talents and gifts to their fullest.


Andrea has taught workshops at such writers conferences as: Write-To-Publish; American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW); Oregon Christian Writers Conference; Mount Hermon Writers Conference and many local writers conferences. She also speaks at various churches and women's groups.


Another of Andrea's accomplishments is co-founder of the American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW) organization. For many years she served on both its Advisory Board and as its CEO.

All I Need to Know

Exodus 3:14

God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I AM has sent me to you.’”

Exodus 16:12

“I have heard the grumbling of the Israelites. Tell them, ‘At twilight you will eat meat, and in the morning you will be filled with bread. Then you will know that I am the LORD your God.’”

Leviticus 19:4

“‘Do not turn to idols or make metal gods for yourselves. I am the LORD your God.

Psalm 46:10

He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.”

Jeremiah 1:8

Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you and will rescue you,” declares the LORD.

John 6:48

I am the bread of life.

John 15:5

“I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.

Revelation 1:8

“I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.”

Quite easily, that is all I need to know to walk through this life.  All I need to know is that God was, he is, and will be.  He is the I AM.  He is the one who created me and designed me in my mother's womb.  He is the one who has gone before me to prepare a place for me.  He is the one who directs all my steps and knows that way that I should go.  He is my provider, protector, defender, father, lover, friend, healer and God.  He is the great I AM.  He is not man that he should lie, and he cannot break that which he promises.  He is above all else, and has been before all else.  He is the one who beckons calls and draws me in.  He is the one, the only one.  I AM is the one true God, the living, everlasting God.  Regardless of what is happening to me, around me or in me, the I AM is here, ever present and ever knowing.  That is all I really need to know.

WFW - Psalm28:7

Psalm28:7
Originally uploaded by chelled.

Psalm 28:7 (New International Version)The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and he helps me. My heart leaps for joy, and with my song I praise him.
Walking down the streets of Disney World last week, Tigger came bounding at as. Every single one of us just smiled and laughed. There are few things on Earth that can make people smile like Tigger. Come on, his happy, silly, bouncning self brings makes people smile.

And even more than Tigger, inifintely more, God brings joy. He is the giver the provider and the creator of it. He hems us in from all sides and protects us, He delights in us, and He fights for us. That my friends is something to leap for joy over. Everything in this life has a purpose, and you can be sure that there will be a day that every tear is wiped away and the hope of eternity comes to pass. Yes, that is definitely worth leaping for joy about.

To enjoy more Word Filled Wednesday posts click here..

Double Delight

If you have not yet read any books by Andy Andrews, friend, you are missing out. Seriously, your life, your well being needs his books. Andy has been gifted with an incredible story of his own, which he writes about in his book The Noticer, and the lessons he learns are beautiful, and wonderful, and life changing. This past weekend, I read two more books by Andrews, first up The Butterfly Effect:

This book will take you all of about 10 minutes to read, but it is a 10 minutes that will rock your world. In a few short pages, this book speaks volumes, and speaks life into its reader. Here's more on the book:

Secondly, you need to go out and get a copy of his book, The Heart Mender:

In life, we each walk through trials, circumstances that will break us or change us, or maybe both.  When life seems to be going completely against us, we choose how we react, respond, and even if we forgive those who have caused us pain.  This book, which is based on actual events, is so intriguing and so beautiful.  Forgiveness, restoration, adventure, it's all in this book.  You will find yourself saddled up with at least one of the characters and journeying with them.  And you will not, by any means, want to put this book down until you have reached its final page.


Do yourself a favor, do those you love a favor, purchase these books, read them and then apply them.  Enjoy!

More from the Lovely Nest

My dear friend, and refashion extraordinare, Jamie made this amazing shirt for my girl.  To say I love it is a vast understatement.  Seriously, check out her blog and her etsy site.  You will not be disappointed!

I Must Confess

My dear bloggy friends and fellow NaBloPoMo participants, I have a confession to make.  I pray you forgive me for what I am about to say:

Every single post thus far has been scheduled in advance. 

That's right, from the post you saw on November 1 and all the ones in between including this one, were done in advance.  It's true.  I wanted to participate, but with a family trip the first week and a half of the month, it was my only option.  But come on, all these posts done in one day and set to post on various days, that is pretty impressive....right?

Best face forward

Have any of you ever had microdermabrasion done?  After my trip to the not so helpful dermatologist, I sought an alternative treatment to help my skin a little bit.  I spoke to some women I know whose skin literally glows, and asked what their secret was.  They both led me to one woman who does microdermabrasion.  So, I decided to give it a go.

I must tell you, I do not like people touching my face so I had a hard time relaxing during the process.  It had nothing to do with the one doing the procedure or the procedure itself, it was the fact that someone had their hands, albeit gloved hands, on my face.  My face was scrubbed, sucked, shocked (ok, not really, but it is some high voltage something or other), and polished.  Aside from sun damage, and the fact I pick at my face (yes, I know that's gross, nervous habit), there is nothing that can't be fixed.  Whew.  I will go back every 4-5 weeks for a bit to have it redone, and will be adding it some killer face products (gotta save up for them).  Right now it feels like I have a light sunburn or windburn, which will subside.  My face is also peeling, which is a good thing I was told.  Bye bye dead cells, hello pretty vibrant ones.  Maybe next time I will be able to enjoy the whole thing more, and I will know when to and not to talk (example: not when the acid stuff is being applied).

I did like the lady and my face felt refreshed afterwards.  She did tell me, at one point, that she felt like she had known me for a very long time.  I choose to take that as a good sign.  I did like her, but we shall see how well this works.  At least I don't have to wait 45 minutes for an obnoxious doctor to walk in the room and not listen to a word I say.  I believe I will be staying on my current path.  I'll keep you posted on my progress.  Although, I'm sure you will be able to see my skin's glow wherever you are.
 

As Long

I take no credit for this, found it here.

It's ok if you hate me

I did my Christmas shopping online, on October 31st.  Hate me?  That's ok, I will allow your feelings without allowing them to bother me.  We like to keep things simple, stay within a set budget and not have gifts flowing out of every available space.  Therefore, it's not that hard to accomplish this task.  Besides, I enjoy the time with our family together more than any presents.  As long as my mom makes the ranch rolls, all will be well in the world.  Well, my world anyway.  And though we do not buy much, I think the wee one will love what does show up on Christmas morning.

Get ready to cheer

The SAC volleyball tournament begins tomorrow.  Which means, I am busy preparing all my cheers to help LCU bring home some wins!  Ok, they don't really need me at all because they are rididculously talented and just all around extraordinary human beings.  But still, my sister is the coach, and a chance to have others tell her about her crazy sister shouting like a crazy woman in the stands is one I will not pass up.

Tim Hawkins anyone

Again, I just want to make sure you are getting your daily recommended value of laughter...

Almost Heaven

Buy it here

My personal opinion:

I could have read this in one sitting, had my family allowed it. I instantly fell in love with this book, with Billy. I cheered for him, I routed for him, I wanted to see him succeed. His story will move you, sometimes to tears sometimes to laughter. But you will be moved. The element I truly loved about this book is the presence of Billy's guardian angel, Malachi. What I believe Fabry does so well is to allow his readers we are being fought for in the spiritual realm, that there is more going on that we can see, but he does not try to explain the inner workings of the divine. I was delighted with this because he does not risk twisting scriptures, but only paints a beautiful picture of God's love and protection of us. This book is a beautiful story of how God uses "the least of these" for incredible things. Not one of us should ever doubt that we are capable of ever being used for a heavenly purpose, if only we will believe and persist without exception, as Andy Andrews says. Fabry's Almost Heaven is one of the most astouding books I have ever read, and I do not say that lightly.

From Chris Fabry:

My new novel is the third book set in Dogwood, West Virginia. There are some characters from both Dogwood and June Bug, but you’ll meet Billy Allman, the central character. This is probably my most difficult novel to write thus far because of thematic issues. It’s also probably my most “Christian” novel, though there are some rough patches throughout. Put on a bluegrass album in the background as you read because there are many tunes that run through the pages. I think you’ll enjoy meeting Billy and his friends.

About the Book:
Some people say Billy Allman has a heart of gold. Others say he's a bit odd. The truth is, they're all right. He's a hillbilly genius—a collector, a radio whiz—and he can make the mandolin sing. Though he dreams of making an impact on the world beyond the hills and hollers of Dogwood, West Virginia, things just always seem to go wrong.


But however insignificant Billy's life seems, it has not gone unnoticed. Malachi is an angel sent to observe and protect Billy. Though it's not his dream assignment, Malachi always follows orders. And as Billy's story unfolds, Malachi slowly begins to see the bigger picture—that each step Billy takes is a note added to a beautiful song that will forever change the lives of those who hear it.

To read the first chapter of Almost Heaven, click here.

To hear the segment of Chris Fabry Live! that inspired the story, click here.
Thank you Glass Road Public Relations for supplying me with this book to review. 

Laugh a little

There are few things that make me laugh as hard as Madea. Enjoy...

What to buy what to buy

Don't know what to buy your kid, niece, granddaughter for Christmas?  Do not fear, I am here to solve all your problems.  Buy that special one something creative, original, and handmade.  Like what?  Might I suggest a creation by Lovely Nest Designs, found here on etsy, or check out her website.  You can thank me later.

And if you needed further proof, check out this amazing skirt that I got for our girl: