July: A Month for Patriotism, Romancing and Such

Click Here! For the Photo Gallery:

July: Patriotism to Romancing

Needless to say, we have been busy as usual! Isn't July a wonderful month? It's almost always beautiful, sunny, warm and all the other great things that make a perfect Summer...
Whitley was home for the past week and 'us' girls had a ball together! From hanging just out, to shopping, eating at our favorite local spots, playing at BouncerTown or even the Playroom, right here at home! What a grand time...

On Friday evening, (the 3rd), we ate with the family at Edwards Drive In and spent time at the Rehab Center with Mamaw "Who". Later that night, Greg, Aly and I drove over to ("Unky") Mark and ("Aunt-Nita") Anita's for the town's Firework show. Aly wasn't too sure about the noise at first, but the bright colors and flashing lights finally won her over! She has turned into quite the 'Firecracker' girl! On the 4th, it rained ALL day, so we just hung out at home and enjoyed lots of quality time together. That night, the 'Media' guys said the Downtown Fireworks were to be a 'go', come rain or shine. SO! We jumped in the car, (in our 'Jammies') and headed down to see "Freedom Blast 2009"! WELL! We were very disappointed an hour later, to find out the Grand Fire Marshall would not allow the show to go on! There were many tears on the way home, that night...

I woke up on Sunday, under the weather and not feeling well, so Greg left us girls home and headed out to Church alone. By that evening, I was well on the mend, so I stopped by to check in on Mamaw S. When Greg and Aly picked me up, we made a last second decision and drove back downtown for the postponed "Freedom Blast". We had an excellent parking spot for ourselves and our lawn chairs. It was a gorgeous night and once again, Aly loved those fireworks to pieces...
For the Show, we were parked near a place called, "Peewinkles Puppet Studio" and it sparked my interest, I wondered what it could be and why I'd never heard of it. When we arrived back home, I 'Googled' it and found it to be a charming old world style, 50 seat puppet theatre (only a few blocks south of Circle Center in downtown). Ideal for school groups, scouts, birthday parties and reserved parties. Peggy Melchior, Debbi Stutzman and Heidi Shackleford, of MMHP Puppet Productions Inc., present captivating and creative puppet shows for children (incl. puppet making day camps and workshops). "Peewinkles" specialize in a variety of creative puppet shows year round, while using marionettes and special effects. Their shows are sure to delight those of all ages! We look forward to taking Aly for a Birthday Party in her very near future...

On a bit of a side-note, Greg and I will be celebrating our Anniversary toward the end of the month, so be on the look out for a Wedding Photo Album, coming very soon!!! Also, we have been anxiously awaiting the return of Mama and Daddy, from their General Assembly trip, for what seems to be an 'eon' and they WILL be back tonight... We, (especially Aly) can hardly wait, either! We've missed them something terrible, but pray they enjoyed their LITTLE time away! Well, it's on into the rest of another busy week for us, now. We trust each of you will have a marvelous one...

A Wee Break Before V.B.S. and More Company...

Greg, Aly and I enjoyed another of his 3-day weekends together! Friday evening, we were invited to 'Cuz' Cassie's "Fancy Nancy" Birthday Party and boy did Aly ever have fun... with all that girly stuff to look at and play with! So much pink and purple, lots of balloons, delicious food, a darling cake with decorative purses and rhinestone encrusted eyeglasses on it, etc. On Saturday, we 'hung out' at home for most of the day before hitting Wal-Mart for groceries. Sunday Morning and Evening were both spent at Church - with an 'Ice Cream Social' following the Evening service. YUM! We slept in a little on Monday morning, stopped in at "Charlie Brown's" for a late breakfast and then 'hit' the town for a little shopping. All in all, it was one great and relaxing weekend... perfect for just a wee break before V.B.S. week and upcoming company that will be visiting us over the next few weeks. While working at the church this week, I stumbled along the lyrics to a song by "The Steele's" and even though July 4th is over... our Country is in 'Patriotic Limbo', so I wanted to share these with you!

Something is wrong with America.
She once held the Bible as her conscience and guide.
But we’ve allowed those who hold nothing to be sacred,
Like Sodom of old, to push morals aside.
Where are the men who once stood for right?
And the women who championed their cause?
We must return to the values we lost,
Before this country we love is totally lost.

(Recitation:)I love America. But I do not love what she has become.Our children are asked to attend public schools that in many cases resemble war zones,without even the most basic right of any soldier…the right to pray to the God of heaven.Many times a wild-eyed, drug-addicted, gun-carrying teenager is allowed to stay in school,while our Supreme Court decided to expel God from the classroom over thirty years ago.Something is wrong. Television daily bombards the senses of our nation with the idea that wrong is right,that the abnormal is normal, that the abhorrent is acceptable, and that what God calls an abomination is nothing more than an alternate life-style...and it’s had an effect. Thirty years ago, the number one television program in America was “The Andy Griffith Show.” Look what we have today. Something is wrong.When our government can pass out contraceptives to children is school with out parental consent,and yet the Gideons can no longer pass out the Bible on campus…something is wrong.When our leaders can tell your children and mine that premarital sex is alright as long as it’s safe…yes…something is wrong.
And I for one am ready for a change. I will say to my government, “I’m not raising dogs at my house; I’m raising children…created in the image and likeness of almighty God.And I’m going to teach them the Bible. If the Bible says it’s right…it’s right.And if the Bible says it’s wrong…it’s wrong.”The only hope that America has is that Godly men and women will stand together as one might army and declare to the immoral, the impure, the obscene and the foul,“Your days of unlimited access the minds of America are over.The army of God, that has been silent for too long, is taking America back!”

We want America back.
We want America back,
From those who have no self-control,
We want America back.
This nation is like a runaway train,
Headed down the wrong track,
It’s time for the army of God to arise,
And say we want America back.
It’s time for the army of God to arise,
And say we want America back!!

MAY GOD HELP US AND BRING AMERICA "BACK"... We are having a special service THIS Sunday Morning at our Church called, "God and Country" with Andrew Phipps, You're all invited for more information, please refer to the Southside Kidz Link below.


Being as this was our weekend to do pretty much 'nothin', we'll look forward to posting a much more 'news-worthy' blog next time around... this should be a fabulous week coming up (even if we're in the middle of V.B.S. on our Wedding Anniversary Day)!!! Trust all is well with you and yours, bye for now.

NOTE: We didn't once have our camera with us over the weekend, thus the picture I've posted at the top of this blog, was taken just after I gave birth to our little Alyson Dawn. However, it's one I'm rather certain I've never posted on a previous blog... we WILL post current photos again, next week!

May the Summer Fun Continue!

July 4th weekend was a very exciting time around our part of the fair city...
Greg's parents arrived on Thursday evening (the 3rd), just in time to head to "Chicago's", for a little of their tasty pizza!
We spent the morning of the 4th relaxing with the 'in-laws', Wes and (friend) Devin. This, after a week in our wild, wooly, wonderful "Boys Dorm" and what fun that has been!!! It's always great to have the chance to spend time with Greg's family!
Around 1:30 p.m., on the 4th, we drove to (our Church's) "The Hope Shelter" to meet the rest of the family for an afternoon Picnic... everyone pitched in on the menu and it was to DIE FOR!!! Pork Chops on the grill, Corn on the Cob, Italian Bread, Ceasar Salad, 5-Cheese (homemade) Macaroni Casserole, Multi-Bean-Baked-Beans, Homemade Cheeseball-n-Crackers, Watermelon, Cantaloupe, Strawberry Cake, Texas Sheet Cake, and SOOOO much more!!! There were even Hot Dogs on the grill, Chips-n-Dip, P.B. Brownies and other snacks... just for THE KIDS!!!
Speaking of kids, here is a photo of our Alyson with her Mamaw "Who" (S.) taken at our 4th Family Picnic. The two of them always have a great time together! We've been too busy with company to try and keep up with picture taking... (guess we need to take a lesson from dear Ronda and Danny, huh?) Maybe it'll get better when we're out of the 'baby stages' and there's not so much to remember every time we walk out the door? (Like 'Did we bring the camera?!?!? LOL)
Due to little rain and clouds, we had our meal in "The Dwelling" (the Church Youth Center) and when the sun came out a bit, we headed out to the Shelter for even more fun!
That evening, we drove downtown for the blast of Indy's famous Fireworks, they were great BUT the Finale' was AWESOME! Once again, (much like our day at the Zoo), Aly wasn't all that interested in the fireworks, but she enjoyed looking at all the people! LOL
Our guests went to Church with us on Sunday morning, then for the evening service, "The Perry's" were in Concert (also at our Church) and God came in a very special way.
As you can tell, we had a wonderful weekend, trust ya'll did as well and we just want to say how thankful we are for the family God has granted us! "Thank You, Jesus... You've been better to us than we ever deserved!!!"
We'd also request special prayer for our Nation, not only during this Patriotic season but for the upcoming Election season, as well?!?! Without the much needed prayer of Christians around the Country, there is NO hope!!! Our plea is that God will continue to BLESS America!!!

Summer Company Abounds and It All Begins in A "Boys Dorm"...

WOW!!!


Camp is over and the Company has begun to roll in...



Wes and his friend, Devin are in for the week. Greg and Cuz Nate went to pick them up over the weekend. Nate spent last night with us, so they've been having a ball together for 3+ days now. G'Ma and G'Pa Penn will be coming in this Thursday evening, staying with us over the 4th weekend and Whitley will be coming in at the end of the month, for a week. We also plan to have part of the Louisiana clan with us for a week and that's coming up right away!!! YAY! Having company really is a BLAST!!!
Busy times for sure, but are we ever having fun... I'll add a little Photo Album of our week so far, (the first 1 1/2 to 2 days of it, anyway!) at the bottom of the BLOG for your viewing pleasure, K? Please please please remember NONE of these pix were 'posed' and also remember our house has literally turned into a BOYS DORM this week! (Aly and I actually need 'back-up'... a Boys Dorm is NO place for little angels like us! LOL)
Well, last week was a little interesting to say the least! Camp was interesting in and of itself (we won't even go there) and then, I had a bit of a scare on Wednesday spending 12 hours in the ER, on top everything else! They took several tests, I'll go to my regular Doctor tomorrow for a follow-up, but all is well at the moment... PTL for His watchful look over us all, especially in our time of need! He's a good God and we'd never make it without Him!!!
One things for sure, with all of the busy days that seem to be flying by, Summer will be over LONG before I'm ready for it to be! I trust you are all having a splendid Summer and I'd LOVE to hear from some of you... especially those that I haven't heard from lately - HINT HINT (lol)!!! XO

Boys Will Be Boys!!! An UN-POSED look into the real deal...