What a CRAZY Weekend!!

Great time at Maniac Madness with India and Nonna! They did a spectacular job! Seen old friends, made new ones, got some scrappin done. Here are a few pictures!

Maniac Madness is in 24 hours!

Can't wait! Maniac Madness a retreat sponsored by Scrapbook Mania is tomorrow! It starts at 9:30 Friday and goes until 7:00 pm Saturday. I hope to get so much done in my scrapbook, meet new friends, see old ones and just fellowship! I will post pictures on Monday!

Also on Sunday night will be the 1st Priority Praise at Bethel, our youth group is so pumped for this. It is always such a blessing to see the youth come together from different area churches and just praise our wonderful Lord and Savior. Our Praise band "The Other Side of Grace" will be playing as well as Reflections will have two human videos "Shout to the Lord" and "Call out to Jesus" it will be an awesome time in the Lord! Will post some pictures Monday!

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

Vikki

Great weekend!

Wow! The Valentine's Banquet was such a huge success! In part to the wonderful youth council and parents we have on board. We started out at around 10 that morning with cooking and decorating. The youth did an awesome job with the human video "When I think about the Lord", special thanks to Shelia Tucker for singing at the last minute! The Newly Wed game was a hit as always! We prepared food for 125 people and only 3 couple did not show that had reservations. We had child care this time and our youth parents, council and youth that helped did a great job. A special thanks to Emily for taking charge of the older group of kids and creating fun for them! I had several parents that said their children had a blast! It was a long and exhausting day, but so worth it!

Sunday was a great day to be in the Lord's house. I love my church!! We had an awesome Sunday School lesson on the sanctity of marriage, wonderful worship service both morning and night. Bro. John just brings the scriptures to life! We started a Beth Moore study last Sunday afternoon, Jesus the One and Only, and it has just totally changed the way I look at the birth of our Lord and Savior. She has just made me think about it in so many different ways. I will be honest I have not been faithful to my daily devotions and Bible study. But this study is making me realize what I have been missing on a daily basis, it is good to dig in the word!

May everyone have a blessed week! ;)

I love my Joseph!!

I love my Joseph! He is my Heart Beat!!!

A Valentine from God

My Child-

Not only can I hear you, but I know everything about you. (Psalm139:1) I know when you sit down and when you rise up. (Psalm 139:2) I am familiar with all your ways. (Psalm 139:3) Even the very hairs on your head are numbered. (Matthew 10:29-31) For you were made in my image. (Genesis 1:27) In me, you live and move and have your being. (Acts 17:27-28) For you are my offspring. (Acts 17:28) I knew you even before you were conceived. (Jeremiah 1:4-5) I chose you, when I planned creation. (Ephesians 1:11-12)
You were not a mistake, for all your days are written in my book. (Psalm 139:15-16) I determined the exact time of your birth, and where you would live. (Acts 17:26) You are fearfully and wonderfully made. (Psalm 139:14) I knit you together in your mother's womb. (Psalm 13:13) And brought you forth on the day you were born. (Psalm 71:6) I have been misrepresented by those who don't know me. (John 8:41, 42, 44) I am not distant and angry, but am the complete expression of love. (1 John 4:16) And it is my desire to lavish my love on you. (1John 3:1) Simply because you are my child, and I am your Father. (1 John 3:1) I offer you more than your earthly father ever could. (Matthew 7:11) For I am the perfect Father. (Matthew 5:48)

Every good gift that you receive comes from my hand. (James 1:17) For I am your provider and I meet all your needs. (Matthew 6:31-33) My plan for your future has always been filled with hope. (Jeremiah 29:11) Because I love you with an everlasting love. (Jeremiah 31:3) My thoughts toward you are countless as the sand on the seashore. (Psalm 139:17-18) And I rejoice over you with singing. (Zephaniah 3:17) I will never stop doing good to you. (Jeremiah 32:40) For you are my treasured possession. (Exodus 19:5) I desire to establish you with all my heart, and all my soul. (Jeremiah 32:41)

And I want to show you great and marvelous things. (Jeremiah 33:3) If you seek me with all your heart, you will find me. (Deuteronomy 4:29) Delight in me, and I will give you the desires of your heart. (Psalm 37:4) For it is I, who gave you those desires. (Philippians 2:13) I am able to do more for you than you could possibly imagine. (Ephesians 3:20-21) For I am your greatest encourager. (2 Thessalonians 2:16-17) And nothing will ever separate you from My love again. (Romans 8:39-39) I have always been your Father, and will always be your Father. (Ephesians 3:14-15)

Love,

Your Heavenly Father

A few fun pictures taken a couple of weekends ago...

Friday Night was AWESOME!!!

Rod Stewart was just fantastic! He was just amazing and looks better now than ever! He is 62! He was all over that stage, dancing, running, jumping and shaking his little booty! (I do mean little!) Debra and I met up with a few co-workers of mine and we just had a great time...so wish I would have carried my camera! It said that was a no-no on the ticket, but there were camera's everywhere! oh well, it will be in my memory and on a scrapbook page!!

Time to catch up!

Sorry about being MIA...but it has been a busy few weeks...We had Christmas at GiGi's with all of the family! Got to see Mark get Santa...he got a basket ball goal, a dancing elmo (which he did not like...it freaked him out), lots of other goodies. Chuck, Chelle, Grace and Brock arrived later in the evening on Christmas day...Gracie was excited because she got a Tenn. purse...which killed her daddy and GiGi! Brock like his gifts as well...he played with his Spiderman motorcycle. It was really nice having everyone home together...since Jen and Jack are in Atlanta and Chuck and Chelle in Tuscumbia it is hard to have everyone together since they have others to "share"it with. But GiGi was happy that all of her kids were home this year.

We left on 12/27 for a ski trip in West Virginia with the youth...what a blast! We had a great time on the slopes skiing, snowboarding and tubing. The worship services at night were just awesome...if you ever can hear John Evans take my advice and go! It was a very good time of fun, fellowship and worship. And we got to know each other better!

On New Year's Eve I had to take my kitty Tigger of 18 years to the Emergency Vet and have him put to sleep. He had cystitis and had slowly been getting worse over the last few months and while we were gone just really took a turn for the worse. It was very hard to do but he is much better off.

I took lots of pictures and will post some later of Christmas and the ski trip. I pray all of you had a wonderful Christmas holiday and will be blessed beyond measure in the new year!

;) Vikki

Last Night's Youth Christmas Party

Last night was the Youth's Christmas Party at church...we ate finger foods and dessert and played Dirty Santa...we had 32 participants! It was fun, the kids did great...we had a little stealing going on related to Bath and Body stuff, a monkey, Rue 21 gift card...here are a few pictures!

The rush of the season

Well, I have not posted in a couple of weeks so I thought I would do a quick catch up...Last Friday night we had Christmas with Donald's side, it was very nice and we had a great time. Tanner was able to come up and of course I was all over that baby!! I snuggled, smelled and kissed that sweet head and neck! I also got to feed him and took lots of pictures!! He is now up to almost 7 lbs and just the cutest little man!

On Saturday we drove up to Huntsville to spend the day with the Bakers, Josh is home from Basic Training and we celebrated his birthday and we also exchanged Christmas gifts. The kids (Joseph, Josh and Hannah) are all getting so big that we just usually do gift cards or cash...I really miss them tearing into those presents! Josh looked great and "none the worse for wear" after going through "boot camp"...working out, gas chamber, obstacle course, shooting targets etc...he leaves 1/2 heading to El Paso Texas for his MOS. Hannah is having a great time at her new school, Bob Jones HS. She will be the catcher and cover 3rd base this softball season. She also went with a friend of hers and caught while she pitched for the scouts at Alabama a few weeks ago. Luckily we will get to see her play some this season, she has several games in Vestavia and Hoover that we will be able to make. Natalie also had some professional pictures done of Hannah and all I can say is WOW! She has always been gorgeous but these pictures are amazing!



This week has been just hectic with work, parties and MD appointments...I am ready for this Friday to get here because I am off work until January 2nd!! Whoo-hoo!!

Merry CHRISTmas to you all and a very Blessed New Year!!!

Jerri's Christmas Jubilee

Janeen and I are off to Cleveland, Alabama on Saturday for a Christmas Jubliee hosted by Jerri Wood. Some of you may remember her from Scrapbook Heaven, she did all of the shabby shiek layouts. I am excited about making the 10 projects and can't wait to see what they are. It is also nice to get to spend the day with Janeen, it has been a while since we have done a scrapbooking adventure together.

Tanner comes home!

Thank you all for your prayers!! Tanner is coming home today!!! He is 5lbs 18 1/2 inches long and taking around 3 ounces of breastmilk. I hope to post a new picture later today!!

I just love the group Casting Crowns...all of their songs are heartfelt and really have a message. This is one of my favorites...watch, listen to the words...

False Advertisement

Last night in youth we had a great message from James...it was on false advertisement.

He first asked us if we had ever fallen for some false advertisements...the kids mentioned a few that they were aware of. Then he went on to say that Christians are the leaders in false advertisement.

This is how he explained this: He said that many of us act as Christians Sunday and Wednesday but live like the rest of the world the other 5 days. He said this could come from two angles...1. maybe you were saved at a young age and as you get older you realise that maybe you are not saved but are embarrassed to walk the isle again. You have lived as a Christian for a long time and you are worried what others think so you continue to play out the role of the Christian. If this is you make it right! No one will think anything about it other than you were bold and made it right with God. 2. You have been in church all of your life but are not saved...you just play the role, know all the answers to Bible questions, active in the youth, sing in the choir but you don't have the personal relationship with him. Again everyone thinks you are already saved but you are not...get it right. Asking Jesus in your heart will be the best and most important decision you ever make!

He pulled scripture from Acts 5...this couple had property and they sold it and were to turn the money over as an offering to God. But they kept part of the money and lied about. When Peter ask the man if this was all of the money he said yes...he dropped dead at Peters feet. Approx. 3 hours later the wife comes in (not knowing her husbands fate) Peter ask her the same question and she replies yes...Peter then tells her she has not lied to man but to God and she falls dead at his feet. False advertisement!

Just thought I would share! :)

What are you THANKFUL for?

I am thankful for my wonderful husband and son they are my heartbeat! I am thankful for my family and my husband's family, friends, my church, Jesus, my jobs, our freedom...there is so much to be thankful for in our lives I hope you took the time yesterday to be thankful!

New Pictures of Tanner!

New pictures of Tanner! He had lost wt but
he is back up to 4lbs 1 oz. Taking 35cc of
breast milk.

Pictures from the retreat

we always have a picture made
on the tire swing!



we had an acution and I won this
cute cricut bag (I am using it for
my quickutz stuff!) and this other
tote. Amie won some neat markers.

This is one of the projects we made: it is
a chipboard album that we decorated
Christmas, the other project was a
two page layout that was pink and
brown.





Amie is my partner in crime at the retreats!


The gang!

Satan does not want you to read this letter....

Dear Holy Spirit,

Wow - that sounds kinda weird - 'Dear Holy Spirit'. I mean, saying (or writing) 'Dear Jesus' or 'Dear Father' feels normal, but I guess that's the point - right? Because last week I learned about You - that you are God, a real Person, and a real Friend that lives inside my soul.
I guess it's that last part that really got through to me - the fact that you live inside me and want to be my friend. That totally makes sense - because as God you know everything about me - more than my family - more than my other friends - even more than I know about myself! And as a real Person, you know everything I'm going through - the good, the bad, and yes, even the ugly. You feel joy when I feel joy. Pain when I feel pain. You even know when I'm lonely and feel like I don't have a friend in the world.
But I do - and it's you.

So here's my question. How do I get this whole friendship thing going? After all, you are invisible, you don't speak to me out loud - and I'm pretty sure you don't even have a myspace page! So how do I 'connect' with Someone who I can't see or hear???

Help - and thanks -
(insert your name here)

Dear (insert your name here),

Wow! Thank you so much for writing! Yeah, I know it might feel strange calling me 'Holy Spirit', but the more you talk to me, the more comfortable it will feel. Or - if you didn't know this, I have other names you could use like Helper and Counselor - or just call me Friend!
Speaking of being your Friend, I can't wait to grow deeper in our friendship! I know it's a little different than other relationships in some ways since (like you said) I'm invisible and don't speak to you out loud - but I think you'll find that since I live inside you and 'speak' directly to your soul, those issues won't get in the way of our friendship.
So here's my answer. To get our relationship going, you need to practice three things that I'll call the ABC's to connecting with God. If you add these three habits to your life on a regular basis, your life will be anything but regular. In fact, I think you'll find that a friendship with me will take you places you never thought probable, and give you peace that you never believed possible.


Ready? OK - The ABC's are: Ask, Breathe, and Communicate

First let's talk about ask. Basically, even though I am God and I am all powerful, I will not *make you* have a friendship with me. You are free to choose to let me fill you and control you, and you are free to simply be satisfied with your salvation and leave it at that. I have to tell you, though, that going through life without Me is the worst choice you could make. I've been around long enough (forever actually) to see that you humans simply don't do well all by yourselves. As well, it's impossible to live the Christian life without me. So that's why I wrote this in my Book:

Don't be drunk with wine, because that will ruin your life. Instead, be filled with the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 5:18)

What I'm saying here is ask me to fill and control your life. Ask me to guide and direct you...shield and protect you. Ask me to deepen our friendship. Ask. Ask. Ask...then ask again. Keep on asking, because every time you sin, you make a choice to 'unplug' from my power and presence...which leads me to the next step:

Breathe

I know you don't need to be reminded to breathe - that sort of comes naturally for air breathing people. What I'm talking about is spiritual breathing. Here's how it works -
When you know you've messed up, exhale what you've done by confessing (admitting) it -
Again - from my Book:

But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us and to cleanse us from every wrong. (I John 1:9)

The moment you realize that you have sinned, simply tell the Father about it and admit that you were wrong. It's not like He (and me too) don't know about it already, and the longer you wait to exhale, the less you'll be living in my power.
After you exhale, it's time to...you guessed it...inhale! Ask me to fill you again, and be on your way living in my power and deepening our friendship.
That is until you sin again. Then you need to breathe again. Breathe in. Breathe out. Lather. Rinse. Repeat.

One more letter - and this is key:

Communicate

Just like like any other friendship - we need to talk. So talk to me early and often. Tell me what's good, what's bad, what's confusing you. I'm never too busy to listen, and I'll never grow tired of your voice...I made you - remember?
Oh yeah - and let me talk to you through the Bible. The words of the Bible are not the words of men...they are mine. They are living and active, and I will make them come alive and active in your life.
I hope this helps - and I look forward to deepening our friendship. In fact, I'm going to stop writing so we can start living the awesome life God the Father designed for you, Jesus purchased for you, and I guide for you!
Love,
Your Friend - The Holy Spirit.

Head: What you need to know about this truth
Developing a friendship with the Holy Spirit is easy! Just ask Him to fill and control you, breathe out (admit) your sin, breathe His power back in, and communicate with Him.

Heart: What you need to feel about this truth
You've been given an incredible gift and an amazing opportunity. Think about it - God lives inside you! And *as if* that weren't enough - He desires a deep, authentic, and forever friendship with you! How should you feel about this fact? Exactly - how should you feel? You should feel honored, privileged, special, lucky, fortunate, and highly motivated to get this party started!

Hands: What you need to do about this truth
Take some time right now and go through the ABC's of connecting with God. Ask the Holy Spirit to fill and control you, try breathing (spiritually) - and start communicating with the best Friend you'll ever have!

This is Gracie, my niece. She wanted a
hula skirt as a souvenir from our beach
trip. They went to Hawaii in Oct.

Here are my nephews...Brock and Mark...Auburn fans
from birth!

A Family Divided....

A family divided means... we have Alabama and Auburn fans in our family. My brother Chuck his wife Chelle and my sister Jennifer and her husband Jack all are Auburn Alumni. I on the other hand am a UAB Alumn, but if I had my choice I pull for Alabama over Auburn and Joseph and Donald are Alabama fans. I believe this is the first year ever that we have all watched the game together at GiGi and Joe-Joe's house. We also had our Thanksgiving dinner with Jen, Jack and Mark. Chuck, Chelle, Gracie and Brock are coming tomorrow to hang out for a while. I so wanted to get a picture of us in our team shirts but it never happened!

Matthew's Photo shoot

Here are a few pictures from the photo shoot I did back in October of Matthew. Matthew is James and Emily's (our youth minister and his wife) sweet baby boy!

Isn't he just adorable!!!

45 hours of nothing but...scrapbooking!!!

Off from work tomorrow and heading to a Scrapbooking Retreat sponsored by Scrapbook Stuff located in Jasper. (if you have not been there check it out Charlotte is wonderful!) The retreat is at the Springville Convention Center, and my partner in crime is Amie Ballenger. This will be my 4th retreat and her 3rd. Lots of pages planned! I hope to finish my nephew's 1st year book so I can give it to my sister next weekend and get some pages done in my album. I will post some pictures on Monday of some of the things we did....until then have a blessed weekend :)

So EXCITED!!! I just can't hide it!!!

I am so excited about today! I am doing another photo shoot of a Christian Rapper on Morris Ave. today by the name of Sedeq. I did a photo shoot back in October of the rest of the crew and the pictures turned out awesome! Here are a few from that shoot! The 1st picture is of Aneaes Koresh and his crew, (2) Constatine, (3) Aneases. I'm working on a portfolio and a website with prices etc. I am really excited that God has opened this door to be able to really do something with this hobby of mine!

Buck turns "2"...

Here are some pictures of Buckie with his birthday "frog"... last year he wore a party hat ( I will post a picture of that later it was very cute!) He is such a good dog, he is smart and just a sweet part of our family. By the way he had the "frog" for about 2 days and we had to start patching it up...because he runs and shakes his head and rips the seams. Joseph named his "frog" ..."Frank'n Frog" because of all of the patches!! LOL

Brand new "frog"

"FRANK'N FROG"
Buck is not so sure about the sewing job!!

We have a Great Nephew!!

Our nephew John and his wife Jessica just gave birth to our 2nd great nephew!! He was born early at 32 weeks and weighed in at 4lbs. His name is William Tanner!

Exhausting Weekend!

What a weekend! Friday was just crazy! The youth worked the concession stand at the Corner/Hayden game, The Other Side of Grace (our youth band) played at the 5th quarter held at Mt. Zion Baptist, Joseph got home around 1 am or so. He said it was fun but hectic. Saturday was our next to last crop at church, I was able to finish our Disney album that I started in April!! I still have 8x8 album I am decorating for a graduation present to finish this week, plus my nephew's first year album! I hope to get Mark's album along with some pages for my album completed at a crop retreat I am going to this weekend that is sponsored by Scrapbook Stuff in Jasper. We are going to be at the Springville Retreat center for 45 hours of scrapbooking, eating and fellowship (and sleep for me!) I can't hold out like some of these other ladies! Sunday was a great day! I just totally love my church! It just Rocks! Bro. John always has great sermons! The music is always uplifting and worshipful, Steve G. is just a wonderful Minister of Music.

Jess and me

Jess and Me at Amie's Pageant back in the Spring.

Harvest Festival at BBC

What a great evening we had at our church for the Harvest Festival! We had "trunk or treat", hay rides, games and plenty of soup, chili and desserts! I will post some pictures later, I used my SLR and will need to get them developed. I am not sure of the exact turn out but 490 people signed in and we had some many that did not. Bro. John is estimating around 700! I believe that is our best yet!