We have a foundation!

It looks like we may be on our way to having the house done by July 4th. We rode up today to see the progress and the brick masons were there finishing up the foundation. Hopefully the framing will happen next week. Who knows...maybe we will be done sometime in June!!!! It was really great to see the excitement on Kelley's face watching the progress of the house. I sometimes think he might miss the construction industry...OH! and to see him in his overhauls again! Our long awaited dream is now moving along at energizer bunny speed. Our kids are so excited to see that we have finally started and not just talking about building. I can't wait to see the huge screen porch! I can just imagine all the hours we'll spend relaxing with friends and family. Relaxing! Did I say that? Oh! the thought of that sounds so glorious! More photos next week...I think we will be making day trips once a week here on out!

Cold and stormy week...at the lake.

Wooo! What a week! Our Spring break at the lake was a cold...wet...and a stormy one. We went up on Wednesday...Lindsey's birthday... only to find our screen room had blown across the yard. There must have been a Strong wind blow through to pick up this metal frame and toss it across the yard. It was windy and cold, so we didn't think we would get the boat in the water. But the crazy people that we are, zipped up our jackets, grabbed a few blankets and took a stroll around the lake. We were the only boat on the lake that afternoon. It was nice to see what changes some homeowners have made this winter to their properties. Kelley likes to drool over the floating docks and I drool over their yards and homes.
Thursday was better weather...the sun was out but still a little cool. After breakfast we took a trip into Abbeville, for ice cream at this cute little Christian owned ice cream parlor. I think I have started a tradition with my girls. The first thing out of their mouths when we tell them we are going to the lake is " Can we go to Abbeville for ice cream?" As you can see in my photos Mackenzie really enjoyed the superman ice cream. We then headed back to the lake for more boating and staking out the layout of our house. Hopefully next week the builders can start grading and maybe by August we can begin using our little retreat home. We had the younger six girls with us for the first couple of days and then Sarah left Thursday night.
Friday Emily drove up for a little fun with all the girls. Friday morning we had rain ...but that afternoon was really nice. We had a fun filled day of boating and rope swing making. Leave it to Emily to be creative. Watching her try and get the rope over the tree branch was the best entertainment. I think tying a rock to the end of the rope was what finally achieved the end result. They first tried a chair...then a branch and finally a 2x4. Genius! A perfect afternoon of entertainment!
Friday evening proved to end the day not so good. About 8 O'clock we received a phone call that a storm was headed our way. Tornado warnings from Tennessee to South Carolina were issued. Well, chilling in a camper during a bad storm is not where you want to be! I am so thankful for our good friends who have a house next door. We gathered up the kids and a pillow or two, and headed to their house for a couple of hours. The winds blew hard and the rain...let's just say it was blowing sideways. We weren't sure how the camper or the screen room would fair this storm. Finally about 10 o'clock the warnings were over and we headed back to our camper for sleep.
Saturday we spent the the morning cleaning and moving the camper closer to the lake. The fiasco of the morning was Jessica stepping on a rake and having the prongs go through her flip flops, one of which went into her foot! Oh! that swing...the rope broke and Megan did a face plant on the ground.Jessica is still limping and Megan is fine.We took one more boat ride before taking it out of the water. The storm from the night before...rose the lake a half a foot. We do have plenty of water on this lake!
I will be so glad to have more room for everyone when this house is finished. I am really looking forward to sharing this retreat with others. Hopefully it will be a place of rest and great memories!

Lake Retreat...Let the building begin!

*Click on each picture to get a better peek!






About one year ago we began looking at purchasing a lot next door to our good friend's Lake house. Our children have grown up together and have fond memories of summer days at the lake...with the exception of my para sail accident 25 years ago! Now Kelley and I are stepping out of our little box and hopefully investing in years of family retreats and tons of fun with our kids,family and friends. This past Friday we closed on the construction loan to start building our little retreat. Hopefully by August the house will be finished and we can finally have a larger place to relax...although the camper has worked OK, just a little cramped when you put 7-8 kids plus 2 adults in there.
Lake Secession is a beautiful lake with long time homeowners, many who have lived in Gwinnett. While all the surrounding lakes have been down,Secession has stayed full. This has allowed for a full summer of boating and fun. This week we are starting off our second season at the lake...and it's cold! There will be no swimming, but most defiantly some boating trips around the lake. Maybe we'll even take a trip to the ice cream parlor in Abbeville...the highlight of our time at the lake. More than anything taking the time to just be still and quiet...if that's possible with all these girls!

This is so amazing ! Keep watching the best part is at the end!

Don't forget to scroll down and pause the music at the bottom of my blog.

FACEinHOLE

Create your own FACEinHOLE

Here is three of my precious girls. They have had a great time using this website!

Please Pray!

This little guy needs all the prayer he can get. The very thing the doctors said he would die with before he was born has returned.
His mom's blog is http://www.mycharmingkids.net/

Green Grass..

Do you often look at people you envy (I know God says not to do this) and say "I wish I could be them". Well... I'm beginning to see the grass is not always greener on the other side. As a Christian, walking this road of faith can be a real hard road to haul. Sometimes keeping the faith can be a real battle with the world pulling and tugging at you everywhere you go. No matter how great you see that person or family you would like to be...they too have battles and struggles they go through. We are all on a different part in this road of life and faith. It's how we react to the road blocks that come up from time to time, that allow us to continue to move forward or reverse. I prefer moving forward, but that is not always the case. I realise my God is right there with me during those times of idling and even the times of reverse. Jeremiah 29:11 says "For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." When I placed my life in God's hands, I made a choice to follow Him no matter where that road leads. It's the tough times that mold us and allow us to someday minister to someone else who may be going down that same road we have traveled. I know for me, I would rather have counsel from someone who has "been there and done that".


Malachi 3:3 says: "He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver."
This verse puzzled some women in a Bible study and they wondered what this
statement meant about the character and nature of God. One of the women offered
to find out the process of refining silver and get back to the group at their
next Bible Study.
That week, the woman called a silversmith and made an appointment to watch
him at work. She didn't mention anything about the reason for her interest
beyond her curiosity about the process of refining Silver. As she watched the
silversmith, he held a piece of silver over the fire and let it heat up. He
explained that in refining silver, one needed to hold the silver in the middle
of the fire where the flames were hottest as to burn away all the impurities.
The woman thought about God holding us in such a hot spot; then she thought
again about the verse that says:

"He sits as a refiner and purifier of silver."
She asked the silversmith if it was true that he had to sit there in front
of the fire the whole time the silver was being refined. The man answered that
yes, he not only had to sit there holding the silver, but he had to keep his
eyes on the silver the entire time it was in the fire. If the silver was left a
moment too long in the flames, it would be destroyed.
The woman was silent for a moment. Then she asked the silversmith, "How do
you know when the silver is fully refined?"
He smiled at her and answered, "Oh, that's easy -- when I see my image in
it."

If today you are feeling the heat of the fire, remember that God has his eye
on you and will keep watching you until He sees His image in you.