Old TESTICLES...New TESTICLES?????

I haven't blogged in FOREVER.  Things are on the up swing (for a change) and I think I have found my sense of humor once again!  Last week commenced the first of two weeks teaching VBS...for those of you who don't know what that is, it stands for Vacation Bible School (or camp).  So we get kids ranging from born and raised in strong Christian homes to completely have never even heard of Jesus.  It is a full day camp for two weeks (costs next to nothing) and Grace Bible Chapel (in Chester, NJ) is the ONLY church who does two weeks of 9-3 camp...it's awesome.

Well, a friend and I were teaching how we really know Jesus is who He said He was...old testament prophecy and new testament fullfillment of those prophecies.  Well, my friend, Patty was starting from scratch and talking about the Bible.  She said that the Bible is split in two major sections and proceeded to ask if anyone knew what those two major parts of the Bible were.  A very precious little 7 year old GIRL eagerly started waiving her hand (Pick Me!  Pick Me!).  Patty pointed to her and said, "Do you know what those two parts are called?"  This little girl beamed as she said, "The Old TESTICLE and the New TESTICLE"  Patty couldn't even look at me and THANK GOD SHE DIDN'T!!!  I would have come unglued on the spot.  Patty, in her quick wit and attempt to hold the class together shouted, "That's RIGHT!  The Old TESTAMENT and the New TESTAMENT!" 

Just a side note...that night Patty was cooking baked potatoes and taking the quick route out by cooking them in the microwave oven.  She overcooked them and when they came out they were shriveled and sagging and she looked at her husband and said, "Honey, looks like the old Testicles!" 

Love you Patty!  We had a blast.  I think even God chuckled at her zeal!  We are moving forward to week two.  I am wondering what God has in store for us this week....only He knows.  Just wanted to share that with you all.

Until next time...

Times have changed....

OK...so it isn't like it was when I was 13. When I was 13 my dad taught me how to drive. He used to take me to abandoned parking lots (oh....maybe that is where I went wrong....) and let me sit behind the wheel, with him in the passenger seat, and taught me how to drive. By the time I was 17 and going for my drivers license, it was no big deal. Passed the first time around. Even passed parrallel parking. Now, my neighbor (sorry Karen) never drove prior to her permit and truth be told, she probable shouldn't drive now. I remember her hitting everything when she got her license...curbs....garbage cans and the like. I drove for years before I had an accident, and the first one was not my fault. Now, before I tell my story remember my truck is about 2 months old. And we moved into our house 9 months ago, and it is pretty new, too. Well, when we lived at our old house, our driveway was 1/2 mile long and I used to let the kids sit on my lap and steer the car down the driveway. They thought it was fun and I was in control of the car (oh, maybe THAT is where I went wrong....) So, when we moved here I thought, with two driveways and a path around the house all the way to the barn, what better place to teach Rae how to drive (see a pattern of "wrong" thinking here yet?!) I would let her sit behind the wheel and I would sit in the passenger seat, just like when I was 13. I would direct and she would drive. We have done this several times with no problems. Well, needless to say, that WASN'T the case on Sunday, November 7, 2010. We drove around the house and she wanted to pull into the garage. While my truck is huge, our garage is WAY oversized so getting the truck in should be no problem....and in fact, it wasn't. The problem was not stopping. We were "rolling" in and she was not stopping. I say (not panicked, but a little alarmed), "Rae, brake" and she hit the gas and that is when panicked. RAECHYL........BRAKE........STOP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" and that is when "it" happened. Yup, she hit the gas harder and drove THRU the house. Yes, you read that correctly....thru the house....and Matt Marcus, you thought YOU had the record for car stories.

Well, suffice it to say the rest of the night (and the next day or two) were NOT pretty.

Praise be to God, no one was hurt. I have learned many lessons here. God is unbelievably gracious. My car made it with almost no damage (honest...even the guy at the dealer, when he had it on a lift the next day looking for damage, said there was NO evidence that the car was hung up on the concrete foundation of our home). The damage to the house was under $1000 and is being fixed this coming week. As for Rae....I'm pretty sure she won't be driving until she is 30, but certainly not until 17 as far as I am concerned....I totally understand now why God tells us to obey ALL the law (not just part of it). No tickets cuz the damage was on private property. I have been chewed up and spit out by my counselor, and rightfully so. I have learned much, but my greatest lesson was how precious the lives of my two babies are and how amazing my husband and God are. I'm not quite sure how Eric didn't blow a gasket (ha! no pun intended) but I am pretty sure....no, in fact I KNOW it is the grace of our unbelievable God. I can't put all that God did in this blog, it would take two days to cronicle. But just know one thing...our God is bigger than our biggest problem and that He ALWAYS blesses obedience. Eric and I came together in prayer and thanksgiving and our God blessed us. Thank you Father for your amazing grace....and each day I realize more and more that I am the wretch that the song wrote about~

Until next time.....(no, there is NEVER a dull moment with me....always in some sort of trouble or doing something unbelievable, but like I keep saying, you can't make this stuff up~)

Our Father....

A week or so ago, I was out and had asked my sister to "tuck the kids in" at bedtime. No Problem, right.....

WRONG. Not that it turned into a problem, however....my sister had a story for me when I got home. 7:30....bedtime for Adam. He got his jammies on, brushed his teeth (I hope) and got into bed and asked Aunt Terri to tuck him in and pray. This is a kid who CANNOT go to sleep without someone praying over him. If we ever forget, he is sure to remind us. Even if we are out, the phone rings and I have to pray over him on the phone, but this night Aunt Terri was sufficient. "OK, Adam, (and her prayer was the usual....) Now I lay me down to sleep, I pray the Lord my soul to keep. If I should die before I wake, I pray the Lord my soul to take. Adam, now I want you to pray". When I say that, he always says no, he doesn't want to. He only wants ME to. But apparently Aunt Terri has a little more pull than I do. So he starts, (and I will do this phoenitically) "Pa-Tare No Stare, Que-ess in Kalees san-tifica-Tor no men tuem. Advintiat regnum tuem fiat wolen-tas tua sea cut in kalo et in terra. Panum nostrum quo dede ah-newm da nobees ho de A et de-me-tay nobees debee-tah nostrah seacut et nose de-me-tee-moose debbie torey boose nostrease en ay nose. Into Kahs in tay tah-tay onem said lee-ber-ah nose (a) mah-lo. Amen"

Terri...."WHAT WAS THAT!" Adam...."The Lord's prayer in Latin" Terri....."What about english?!" Adam...."I don't know it in english"

until next time....