God’s blessings | Beneath My Heart

Our Trip to Florida and Georgia

April 10, 2012 AT 11:16 am 10 Comments

April 10, 2012 By traci 10 Comments

Spring Break was last week, and we headed down to Destin, Florida with my sister, Cyndi, and my brother, Blake, and his family.

It was the first time that Eli had been to Florida, and he thoroughly enjoyed playing in the sand.

Jonathan got to spend time with his cousin, Kinsey. They are only six months apart. Smile

The boys also got to spend time with their cousins, Ryan (far left) and Drew (far right).

Eli pretended he was surfing in the shoreline…

My sister, “Aunt CeCe” covered Eli up with sand….

Luke had fun on the boogey boards…

We stayed in some villas at Baytown Wharf. It is the coolest place to hang out with your family!

The boys couldn’t help but climb on this giant chair!

Here is a shot of all the cousins…Kinsey, Luke, Drew, Eli, Adam, Ryan, and Jonathan.

destin 044

The Wharf was absolutely gorgeous!

Just like something out of a movie!

The boys loved checking out the fish in the bay.

There are all kinds of fun activities for the children.

Jonathan and Adam took their turn at the ropes course…

Luke jumped on the trampoline-thingy…

So did Eli! Smile

He put on quite a show! He was jumping so high and was doing flips. He even got an applause from the crowd when he did a DOUBLE FLIP! I was laughing out loud!

He gave the bungee thingy “two thumbs up!”

Jonathan, Luke, and Adam all took their turn on the zipline. Here is Luke in action…

Of course we made room for food! There are many delicious restaurants around the wharf. We ate at Poppy’s one night.

Here are my sister and brother getting ready to chow down on some snow crab!

Here is Cyndi soaking up some time with her niece and nephews. They love hanging out with her!

Off to Georgia…

We left Florida in the middle of the week and headed to Georgia to spend time with my husband’s side of the family.

My boys loved hanging out with their cousins. All grandsons (10 in all) on this side of the family, NO granddaughters! Can you believe that?!

They had a great time riding around in the “gator.”

Watching tv together at Pop and Grandma’s pool house…

We love spending time at Pop and Grandma’s farm.

Getting ready for meal time!…

We enjoyed a beautiful afternoon swimming at the Reynold’s Plantation swimming pool. Cy and I loved spending time with his sister, Sarah and her husband, Tim. Though I didn’t dare get pictures of us in our swimming suits. Smile

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We got home from Georgia Saturday night, and headed to our church on Sunday morning to celebrate Easter.

Our church always has an Easter egg hunt after church for the little children. Here is big brother, Jonathan, trying to help Eli find the eggs…

I think there is nothing much more precious than a field full of children hunting Easter eggs. So sweet and innocent. I know God smiles down on such a scene. Smile

Eli and his best bud, Jacob were excited about the hunt! Could the weather be any more gorgeous?!

To top off a wonderful week, we headed to my Aunt Tassy’s house Sunday afternoon for our annual Easter egg hunt on my mom’s side of the family. I wish I could take each of you to my Aunt Tassy’s house. She and my precious Uncle Tommy have lived here every since I can remember. It is the most gorgeous piece of property.

The picture perfect place for an Easter Egg Hunt!

Eli is ready to roll, again!…

The kids hunt extra hard for these eggs because many of them are filled with money!

(I teased my Aunt Tassy that we didn’t have money in our eggs when I was a little girl! We just hunted a bunch of hard boiled eggs! Boy have the times changed.) Smile

Then we sat around, ate the loot, and enjoyed the sunshine.

Precious and priceless memories.

My husband and I have been so blessed with such wonderful families!

Did you have a good Easter? What was your favorite memory?

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The Story I Shared with Layla in Nashville

January 13, 2012 AT 11:14 pm 71 Comments

January 13, 2012 By traci 71 Comments

Last month, I had the honor of spending the day with one of my favorite people in the world!

This beautiful lady and I did a little Christmas shopping together.

And if that wasn’t enough of a treat, Layla and I got to spend 4 hours chatting it up at Starbucks with the fabulous Angie Smith!

I know! Pinch me!!!!

It was such a special day, and I didn’t want it to end.

While at Starbucks, I shared a story with Layla and Angie about my oldest son, Jonathan.

It was the story that Layla was referring to in this post.

I shared with them the day that I found out how my oldest son, Jonathan, only 3 years old at the time, had moderate to severe hearing loss in both his ears.

I was pregnant with Luke at the time, and I had taken Jonathan to the doctor because he wasn’t hearing well. I thought he might have fluid on his ears. When the nurse told me that he didn’t have any fluid on his ears, I was confused and worried. They took that sweet little 3 year old in a sound proof room and did more testing on his hearing. The nurse informed me after the testing was complete that Jonathan had a hearing loss and would probably need to wear a “device.” (aka: hearing aid)

My thoughts ran wild.

Would he lose all of his hearing someday?

Would he not be able to talk well?

Would he not be able to hear me say “I love you.”

My thoughts immediately went to the worse case scenario. It was a very emotional day.

I went home that night and wrote in a journal that I keep for Jonathan. It is full of little notes that I write to him every once in a while. (I have a journal for each of my boys.)

I’m sorry my handwriting is so sloppy and my spelling isn’t the best. (I must have been in a hurry or really tired.) But I don’t care. I am so glad that I have this day documented in writing for Jonathan to see. And for me to look back on and see how God’s hand has worked in Jonathan’s life over the past 10 years.

I wanted to share with you what I wrote that day. I hope you are able to read it.

God is so good!

Jonathan is still full of personality and a definite “people person.”

And he still loves to sing more than anything!

He was so excited when Layla asked him to sing on her blog today.

And it was so perfect for him to sing the song he sang.

If you missed Jonathan singing, click HERE to view it on Layla’s blog.

Jonathan has worn hearing aids for the past 10 years, and for the most part, he has not lost anymore of his hearing.

Singing is his passion! We thank God everyday for the God-given gift of his voice!

I want to say a special thank you to Layla (and Kevin!).

They have blessed our family in so many ways, and we are so

thankful to have them in our lives!

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Wednesdays with Wanda

April 20, 2010 AT 11:30 pm 17 Comments

April 20, 2010 By traci 17 Comments

This post will not be a tear-jerker…I promise.

I know my Wednesday with Wanda post last week was an emotional one. Thank you for all of your sweet comments and emails. You have no idea how much they mean to me.

Thank you for celebrating my son getting his new hearing aids with me. It was such a bittersweet day. If you missed last week’s post, which for me was one of the most special ones I have ever written, you can read about it HERE.

Since I made so many of you cry last week, I decided to share something not as emotional. :)

This week, I wanted to share with you something Mom had written in the front of her Bible.

It is a list of scriptures to “call upon” when needed. I have found it very helpful to me. I thought maybe you would too. If you find yourself today in any of the situations listed below, I want to encourage you to take a few minutes today to read the corresponding scripture that goes with it. I pray you would find comfort in God’s living word.

When there is sorrow…Call John 14

When men fail you…Call Psalm 27

If you want to be fruitful…Call John 14

When you have sinned…Call Psalm 51

When you worry…Call Matthew 6:19-34

When you are in danger…Call Psalm 91

When God seems far away…Call Psalm 139

When your faith needs stirring…Call Hebrews 11

When you are lonely or fearful…Call Psalm 23

When you grow bitter or critical…Call 1 Corinthians 13

For Paul’s secret of happiness…Call Colossians 3:12-17

When you feel down and out…Call Romans 8:31-39

When you want rest and peace…Call Matthew 11:25-30

When the world seems bigger than God…Call Psalm 90

When you want Christian assurance…Call Romans 8:1-30

When you leave home for labor or travel…Call Psalm 121

When you prayers grow narrow and selfish…Call Psalm 67

For a great invitation and opportunity…Call Isaiah 55

When you want courage for a task…Call Joshua 1

How to get along with fellow men…Call Romans 12

When you think of investments and returns…Call Mark 10

If you are depressed…Call Psalm 27

If your pocketbook is empty…Call Psalm 37

If you are losing your confidence in people…Call 1 Corinthians 13

If people seem unkind…Call John 15

If you are discouraged about your work…Call Psalm 126

If you find the world growing small and yourself great…Psalm 19

While writing this post, I have been reading through some of the scriptures written above and listening to Amy Grant’s newest CD, Somewhere down the Road, which I love.

And my heart is filled to overflowing…

May you feel God’s presence in your life today.

Blessings,

Traci

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This Little Light of Mine!

July 6, 2009 AT 12:01 am 21 Comments

July 6, 2009 By traci 21 Comments

I have two little “lights” to share with you for Metamorphosis Monday.

The first “light” is a chandelier for our guest house bedroom.

I needed a light, but couldn’t afford the one I was dreaming of.

So when I had a yard sale with my mom, we worked out a little trade. She traded me a light she had hanging in her basement with a Tiffany lamp I had in a bedroom.

This is the only “before” picture I had of the chandelier when it was at mom’s.

It was definitely beautiful as it was, but I was wanting to add some “black” touches to our guest house bedroom.

So, my sweet hubby spray painted it black and here it is…

I think the black shows off the curves of the chandelier, don’t you?

This is a picture of the guest house MONTHS ago, when we were just getting started. Now there is furniture in there and everything! Many of the furniture pieces I have posted on previous Met Monday’s. But if you would like to see more of my guest house, click on the label in my side bar.

NOW, that light is pretty… but it can never compare to the “light of my life”!

Here he is…my baby who turned 10 years old today! And he is very excited about reaching the “double digits”. I was a little sentimental about this metamorphosis in my life!

Where did the time go?

He is one amazing kid! (Hey, I’m his mama, so I can say that!)

When he was three years old, we took him to the doctor, and we learned that he had a 50% hearing loss in both his ears.

I keep a journal for each of my boys with little notes to them, and this is the entry on that day:

9-16-02

Dear Sweet Jonathan,

You are mommy and daddy’s pride and joy! You are three years and 2 months old. Today we took you to Dr. Speech, an ear, nose, and throat specialist, to check your hearing. I thought you had fluid on your ears from your allergies. You had fluid on your ears earlier this year (May).

However, the news was surprising and disappointing. We found out today you have nerve damage in each ear causing hearing loss in each. I was shocked and saddened. Your daddy wasn’t with me, so I had to be strong.

You were so cute when they tested your ears. You were so quiet and good. (You wanted a sucker!) We haven’t met with an ear specialist yet, so we don’t know the severity of the loss or how to help you. Most likely you will need a hearing device and it will affect the rest of your life.

But I’m not going to worry. God has His hand all over you. I know He has great plans for you. He has gifted you with an amazing personality. You’re a definite “people person”. He’s gifted you with musical talents. Use them to sing His praises.

Jonathan, when we got in the car after your appointment, we headed to McDonald’s to eat because I promised you we would. I immediately began to cry as I was driving. You noticed and said, “Why are you crying mommy?”

I said, “Because I love you so much!”

“You love me so much?” you said.

“I do!”

“You need me mama?”

“I do, baby, I do.”

A few moments later you began to sing (as you always do in the car).

“This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine,

This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine, let it shine, let it shine, let it shine!”

Your voice was so precious to me. You continued…

“Let it shine til Jesus comes, I’m gonna let it shine…”

Jonathan-I know in my heart that no matter how this hearing loss affects your life, I have no doubt your “light” will shine so bright for Jesus. It will.

Shine, baby, shine!

You’re my boy!

Love,

Mommy

When I look back at this note, I am amazed at how much of it is true.

*God still has His hand ALL over him.

*His hearing loss has affected his life in many ways.

*Jonathan is still a “people person” and has
developed the most beautiful singing voice…a true GIFT from God.

*We still eat lunch at McDonald’s a lot. :)

*And Jonathan’s “light” is still burning bright! He has certainly “brightened” my life these past ten years!

I tell him often, “I am proud of the boy that you are, and the man that you are becoming.”

I can’t wait to see what God has in store for the next 10 years!

Happy Birthday, sweet Jonathan!

Now be sure to stop by Between Naps on the Porch, hosted by Susan, for more wonderful Met. Monday posts!

AND, there are four more weeks of my “Christmas in July” giveaways.

I am giving away personalized gingerbread family ornaments.

(Handmade by me!)

Click here to find out how to enter. Or click my “Christmas in July” button in my side bar.

Many blessings to you all!

Traci

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For My Dad—–”Happy Father’s Day”

June 21, 2009 AT 9:17 am Leave a Comment

June 21, 2009 By traci Leave a Comment

Dad,

Thanks for giving me the best life a little girl could ever dream of.

I’ll forever be “daddy’s little girl”….

Traci

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The View

June 5, 2009 AT 4:01 pm 4 Comments

June 5, 2009 By traci 4 Comments

If you clicked on this post to read about the t.v. show “The View”, you will be disappointed. (Personally, I think that show is trashy and too liberal. Nothing more disgusting that a bunch of foul-mouthed women sitting around a table discussing inappropriate topics. What ever happened to ladies acting like “ladies”?)

Ooops, I just gave “my view” about The View.

This post is about “the views” from my windows.

We’ve had nothing but clouds and rain for two straight days, and it was making me a little depressed.

But today, it is sunny, mild, and in the mid 70’s. Gorgeous!

I was resting on my bed with the windows up, and the cool breeze was blowing through my room…heavenly! I looked out my window and just soaked in the view.

That’s my favorite oak tree in my front yard. We have two HUGE oak trees in our yard, and honestly, it’s my favorite part of our house. They are probably over 100 years old, and to me…simply majestic.

Here’s my favorite oak tree from the view of my front porch.

It’s a little closer to our house than the other one, so I like to lay on a blanket under this tree and nap or read magazines.

And when I lay on my back and look up through the tree, I stand amazed at the handiwork of God!

What a view!

Many of you have been reading about the progress we have been making on our guest house. I just have to share with you the view from the window there. (Remember, the guest house is above our detached garage, so the window is pretty high up!)

Spectacular!

Do you think our “guests” will like it?

Well, those are some of the views I have been enjoying today. I hope you take time today to catch “the view” that God has sent your way.

“The earth is filled with the Lord’s glory.” Habakkuk 2:14

Blessings,

Traci

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Not a Coincidence!

May 20, 2009 AT 10:19 pm 3 Comments

May 20, 2009 By traci 3 Comments

“Every good and perfect gift comes from the Father above.”

James 1:17

I have to share a story of PRAISE with you.

I have been wanting a laptop (in particular, an Hp) for over a year now. And I have wanted it even more since I have been blogging the past few months.

I have a computer in my upstairs office that is extremely slow and so old that I cannot even use my new camera software on it or charge an ipod on it. We do most of our “living” downstairs, but I don’t really have a good place to put my computer. It’s hard to watch the kids (downstairs) and be on the computer (upstairs) at the same time. I also don’t like the boys doing homework or playing on the computer if I am not upstairs to supervise. Thus, the dilema…I NEED, I mean, I WANT a laptop!

So I have been asking my hubby for one for quite some time, but we have never had the extra funds for it. It was a want, not a necessity.

Well, on Sunday, my hubby told me we had some extra money from a bonus he got at work, and said that we had $350.00 that we could use for a laptop, IF I could find one for that amount. Yippee! Of course I can find one, I thought…

So I skipped off to Best Buy with a smile on my face, looked at laptops for a bit, stood in shock at the prices of these small little machines, and then sadly went back home with the realization that $350.00 wasn’t that much after all.

I searched the internet that night for deals on laptops, and even looked on ebay…but the prices were way too high. Then I looked on Craigslist in our area, and the first post read “Hp laptop for $350.00”! I couldn’t believe it!

The info and the picture looked great, so I emailed him. He said it was still for sale. I had him contact my husband since dealing with people on Craigslist makes me a little nervous. And they met at Starbucks the next day, Monday.

I was still thinking this was too good to be true, and we were going to get scammed somehow. But that wasn’t the case at all.

Here’s the cool part…

The guy was selling it for his girlfriend and they were both students at a small bible college. I think he is going into music ministry. The computer was only 3 months old and they had paid $600.00 for it. He had driven the day before to meet someone to sell it and they didn’t show up. (Thank heavens! Literally!) When he opened up the laptop to show my husband, this was his screensaver…

The password was “live4him”, and the media player was filled with contemporary Christian music!

When my husband told me all of this, I knew that God was telling me that this laptop was a gift from Him. Honestly, I hadn’t even prayed for a laptop, because I knew that we couldn’t really afford one.

But I know that my God is a God that knows the desires of our hearts without us saying a word! And he takes pleasure in giving us unexpected blessings!

Now I’m not saying that if you believe in God that he will bless you with material things. On the contrary, most of the time our lives as Christians are marked by trials and suffering. But through those times, God still blesses us with spiritual gifts, PEACE, JOY, PATIENCE, STRENGTH, WISDOM, HOPE, and many more.

God shows me his blessings every day…

*the faces of my four sweet little boys singing his praises in the back of the car

*a loving husband who provides for our family

*warm sunshine on my face

*cokes in the McDonald’s drive-thru :)

*soft pillows to lay my head on at night

*popcorn and movies

*baseball season

*FORGIVENESS OF MY SINS!

I know you all could make your own list of the blessings you have received. I could go on forever!

But I especially thank God today for my laptop. Would I still love Him if I was still looking for a laptop? Absolutely. Would I still love Him if I never found one at all…you better believe it!

This was just the cherry on top of the beautiful life he has already given me.

Some people would say this was just a coincidence, but I know better.

“Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen!” Ephesians 3:20

In Awe of His Goodness,

Traci

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“I think his tractor’s sexy…”

May 5, 2009 AT 10:24 pm 1 Comment

May 5, 2009 By traci 1 Comment

I just had to share a picture of my crazy husband! He fills my days with so many smiles.

Monday morning, before heading to work, he needed to take his new (old) tractor up to Tractor Supply to get the blades sharpened. The store is about a mile up our road. It is 8:00 am, and I go to get something out of the car, and I hear the roar of a tractor engine down the road. I look and see my husband plowing down the road on his tractor, in his shirt and tie, talking on the cell phone. I laughed out loud!!!

He passed several cars on the way there and waved to them. Sitting tall on his new tractor!

The following pictures are when he came home at lunch to mow.

I love this man!