My Ebenezer

Just wanted to show my "face" around here so you all wouldn't think I forgot about this blog. I've been so busy lately with the move and the renovation at the other house....but I didn't stop in to talk about that! I wanted to talk about the importance of staying focused on the Lord in the middle of a huge upheaval like the one we're going through right now. One of my regular readers, Jenny, commented on one of my posts not long ago reminding me to stay in God's Word through this whole process and not neglect my time with the Lord. Jenny, I stopped in to say You're RIGHT!! I did end up neglecting (short-changing would be a better way to describe it) my time with the Lord, because I didn't think I had time. And I suffered. My fuse was short, and I was becoming snappy and selfish. Those aren't good character qualities in anyone, but especially not in someone who has so much going on and needs to be Spirit-filled! It's in times like the...

Life has been BUSY these days. If I'm not packing up our house, I'm over at Cellar Circle helping out, and if I'm not doing either of those things, I'm fixing dinner or cleaning it up. That's pretty much the sum of my life these days! Sleep, eat, work at Cellar, eat, pack, eat, work at Cellar, repeat. But you know what? It's exciting! Today it was especially thrilling to see some color go up on the walls for the first time. Here's a pic of the kitchen and the living room so far (haven't cut in yet): Josh is unsure about the kitchen color because he's "never seen a blue kitchen." He thinks it will be too much, but I'm telling him that once all the cabinets, backsplashes, and appliances go in, there won't be much blue wall space showing and I think it will be charming. We'll see! I told him if he still doesn't like it after he sees the finished product, I will repaint it for him. This is the fun part of rehabbing! You can hav...

Josh and I got to go out on our monthly date night last night, thanks to Matt and Jen. We went to Ruby Tuesday and then to Lowes to pick out some light fixtures, vanities, and toilets! Can you stand the romance?? :) Seriously though, these are decisions that are so much easier to make when you don't have to tell a third of your party to stop touching things in the store! The picture is of us enjoying a few quiet minutes in the parking lot of Lowes. Hopefully there will be other date opportunities for more romantic outings!!

Dusty is the best word to describe our jobsite over at Cellar right now, though that simple word doesn't quite convey the full scope of what Cellar looks like right now. We're in the final stages of sanding the walls, and planning to start painting on Monday. Have you ever sanded sheetrock? No, I'm not talking about that time you had to fix a nail hole in the wall with some putty and you sanded that down. No. This is like nothing I've ever done before. Sanding an entire house creates a layer of fine dust about an inch deep that penetrates everything. Everything. Think baby-powder fine. I thought I'd show you some pictures just for effect: Dusty me. It's a good look, don't you think? No, that's not fog, that's dust. Josh might be in there somewhere! :) Let it snow! Even Noah felt compelled to help clean it up. Well, either that or he just loves machinery. You decide. Stay tuned for more pics from the jobsite coming this week! Hopefully it will sta...

What we thought would be a move to our new house on Cellar Circle "sooner or later" turned quickly into "sooner" yesterday. It turns out we need to be out of our current house by November 19, so we are shooting for November 17th as Moving Day. I don't know if you've seen the recent pictures of Cellar Cir, but this is about what the house looks like at the present time. EEEEEEKKK!!! We have a LOT of work to do, not to mention an entire house to sort and pack up. I better get busy!!!

Okay, so this is not the pumpkin picture I promised you. So what? I'll get on that as soon as I can. For now, this is one of the best sights in all the world to me: A sleeping Noah and his new best friend, "Curry George" patiently waiting for Noah to wake up.

We went pumpkin "picking" on Saturday to celebrate the first Fall-like day we've had! The closest pumpkin farm is over an hour away, so we ditched that idea and went to a church that offers loads of pumpkins to choose from. So no, we didn't pick our own pumpkin this year, but we did get to choose it! Can I just say how weird it is that last Saturday was 92 degrees and this past Saturday was about 62 degrees? But it is so wonderful to finally get out our sweaters and feel some cool air on our faces again! Jeans and long pants are a novelty to Noah these days since he can only remember wearing shorts and tee shirts. I went in to his room wearing jeans the other morning, and he said, "Mommy, what you wearing?" I don't think he remembers seeing me in pants all the way to my ankles. :) So Fall has finally come to Florida! I thought I better write that down. Pictures of our pumpkins to follow.

Awhile ago my friend Ruth asked me for my banana bread recipe, and I'm just now remembering and taking time to do so! If you like banana bread, this one's worth a try. Banana Bread 3/4 C sugar 3 large ripe bananas, mashed 3/4 C oil OR applesauce 2 eggs 2 C flour 1/2 C nuts OR craisins 1 tsp. baking soda 2 tsp. vanilla 1/2 tsp baking powder 1/2 tsp salt 1 tsp cinnamon 1/2 tsp nutmeg Heat oven to 325. Mix sugar, bananas, oil (or applesauce), and eggs in a large bowl with a wooden spoon. Stir in remaining ingredients. Pour into greased loaf pan. Bake 60-70 mins or til toothpick comes out clean (during the last 15 mins you may need to cover the edges with foil to prevent over-browning). Let cool 10 mins, then remove from pan to wire rack. Enjoy! **Quick note: You will get slightly differing results depending on whether you use oil or applesauce. Oil gives the bread a richer texture (more cake-y) but increases fat in the recipe. The applesauce gives the bread a spongier texture, b...

We were making biscuits last night for dinner, and Noah was helping. He got a little dough on his hands and said, "Mommy, I need to wash my hands. I have biscuit juice on them!" Love it!!!

It has recently dawned on Jen and I that we should trade babysitting more often! After all, it's not much harder to take care of two kids (especially if they will play together), but it's TONS easier to get things done with no kids at all! The day after we got home from our trip to D.C., Jen took Noah for me all morning so I could "get my life back". I can't express in words how much more I got done without distractions! Today I decided to take Brianne so Jen could accomplish something. Here are some pictures of our fun: After folding a load of laundry, both kids decided to hop in the laundry basket! Quick clarification: I folded the laundry, not the kids. It will make headlines when the day comes that Noah can fold laundry by himself. :) He's almost too big for the "baby" swing. **Sniff** She looks tired. Happy, but tired! (Jen, did she take a good nap?) The Tube Slide. I never realized how orange this looks from inside. Both kids love it! Have I...

Last night we had our second Ladies' Fellowship meeting at our house. Again, the Lord brought us 7 ladies, though 5 had been to the last one and 2 were new this time (2 from the previous meeting didn't come). We discussed the first two chapters of God's Portrait of a Beautiful Woman by Dorothy Davis, which is really a great study so far. The chapter on trials (chapter 2) was a real blessing to me, reminding me once again that the Lord's plan is best. It seems I need that truth hammered into me at least once a week! I am very "prone to wander! Lord, I feel it!" After our discussion, we enjoyed some refreshments that various ladies had brought, and then we made our first craft together: a magnet for our refrigerators. Go to Jen's blog here if you want to see a finished picture of that. I find I just really enjoy ladies' fellowships. There's such a different dynamic that I notice when it's just ladies together. Of course, having my husband take N...

I have always loved bedtime, even as a child. My mom likes to tell stories of me when I was younger; how I'd just go off and get into my bed if I was tired. This is true! I have never had a set bedtime because I always got tired on my own at a reasonable hour (8:30) and just went to bed. To this day, I just about follow Noah to bed! As soon as he's down for the night, I'm not far behind him. Though bedtime is great, what I'm beginning to appreciate even more is the routine before bedtime. We read a Bible story, pray, sing, and cuddle our otherwise un-cuddly little boy. Here is a video of Josh and Noah enjoying the bedtime routine. Rocking Chair. Pajamas. Laughing. It doesn't get any better!

Please note that the word "Fall" in the title is simply referring to the time of year, and in no way represents the weather of the day. It. Was. Hot. However, the Lord blessed us with a nice breeze so that, once we were under the pavilion it actually wasn't so bad, and turned out to be more pleasant than anyone would have thought for a 90+ degree day. :) It was supposed to be a Family Bike Ride followed by the picnic, but it turns out most people didn't have bikes, so the bike ride only included Matt, Jen, and Brianne, and Josh, me, and Noah. We rode toward the beach and rode along looking at all the beautiful homes. Afterward, we went back to the picnic grounds and started up the grill. We all had a great time fellowshiping and eating, eating and fellowshiping. And eating. We did plenty of eating. :) Here are some photos of the day: Pastor Rowley getting the grill started Getting ready to slam dunk Good thing the net was low! All slam dunks should be this easy! Bev...

**I have to warn any of you who think you may want to get started with couponing and/or yard sales that they are highly addicting! You will fall in love with the adrenaline rush of knowing you are paying pennies on the dollar when you used to pay dollars. Proceed with caution!** I have been itching to sit down and post this blog ALL WEEKEND!!! Friday I went to Publix on a couponing run and got (I think) some GREAT deals, and then I went to some yard sales on Saturday and again found bargains. This was a rather busy weekend; we had a church picnic on Saturday (post about that to follow), and then on Sunday afternoon I went to Victory to see Pastor Masitto be installed as their new pastor, so I was in church almost the whole day. But now Noah is taking a nap and it's finally time to share my deals with you!! Half the fun is telling people. :) Here's what I found at Publix on Friday: And I got all this for $21.54!!! In case you can't see the photo well, this includes: 6 boxes...

Autumn officially began at the end of September, but it's still very much summer here. I was hoping last week's low humidity was the start of Fall, but no. Hot seems to be on the menu for this whole week. Somewhere, someone must be picking a pumpkin and enjoying fall colors, right? A few of us ladies from church went shopping together yesterday, just to get out and show the town to a new lady that has been coming recently. We had a great time unveiling to her the joys of Ross (have you ever been to a Ross store?) and then going to a Christian book store for a while. The photo above is of Noah and Brianne in the bookstore as we were trying to keep them occupied and their hands off of all the breakables in the store. This week I have lost my motivation somehow. I had been keeping up with my house and other projects so well and then this week all I have wanted to do is sit in front of the computer or lay down and take a nap! I've given in to these temptations more than I care ...

It seems we usually have a couple of over-ripe bananas on the countertop, so today I let Noah help me make banana bread out of them. I don't often let him help me in the kitchen for one basic reason; Things Always Take Longer With A Two-Year-Old Helping. I so rarely have extra time to spend in the kitchen, but today I was feeling a little like having some help. I let Noah break the eggs, smash the graham crackers (his FAVORITE part!) dump in the dry ingredients, and even do a little mixing. He had fun. I had fun. Maybe I'll have to let him help me more often!

They sure do grow 'em big down here, don't they?

Yesterday all of us Playpals went to a carnival at a local elementary school! The kids had so much fun playing the games and watching the shows. Off we go! Kelly with Brooke, Deann and Jen Alissa and Noah; future Fire Chiefs Frisbee Dog Show Most of us Playpals Deann and Sidne Noah hammin' it up Bowling! Jen and Brianne ready to tackle the Bean Bag Toss Noah's favorite game; the fishing pond!

Wouldn't it be nice if the Christian life were a constant upward climb; if every lesson we learned never had to be repeated? If we never doubted for a moment that God's plan is best? Maybe some people enjoy lives like this, but mine tends to resemble more of a roller coaster of faith and doubt, of highs and lows. Here are some verses from the Bible study that the ladies of Truth Baptist Church are going through. I happened to read them today while I was working through the book God's Portrait of a Beautiful Woman. They are EXACTLY what I've been needing this week!! I had to laugh and cry at the same time as I said, "I'm getting it, Lord!" Psalm 139:16 "Your eyes have seen my unformed substance; and in Your book were all written the days that were ordained for me, when as yet there was not one of them." Exodus 4:11 "The Lord said to him, 'Who has made man's mouth? Or who makes him mute or deaf, or seeing or blind? Is it not I, the Lor...

I wanted to document the fact that I completely forgot to put a Pull-Up on Noah before he went to bed last night..... (surely you can imagine this means a wet bed for sure) BUT NO!!! Noah woke up completely dry this morning!!! This is the second time he has made it through the night dry. Maybe we're on our last package of Pull-Ups??? Wouldn't that be terrific!!

We have had two houses on the market for what seems like an eternity. The Lord allowed one of them to be sold yesterday!!! What is so remarkable about this particular one, is that the buyer went through 3 lenders prior to his loan being approved. This may not mean much to you, but to us, that fact usually means the loan will "die" as we call it. But for whatever reason, the Lord allowed the sale to go forward and He helped the buyer's loan to go through. Practically speaking, this means that the Lord has once again provided for our needs financially. This was such a blessing I had to write it down.