Update: The BIG one

     Today, Jeremy started a new job!  It has been a grueling 5 weeks as we have prayed and questioned and Jeremy has worked from noon till night trying to find the right job for our family.  Unbelievably, he had tons of interviews and four job offers. We couldn't be more humbled by God's kindness and I couldn't be more proud of Jeremy's hard work and diligence.  Looking for a job is much harder than having one.  I mean that!  It's an all day, non stop event:)

    I really had one major prayer request for the Lord after facing our second job loss in two years.  Lord, please, please make it clear where we are to go this time.  And He did.  All of the job offers were in Charlotte.  Each and every door here in Wilmington was closed for interviews.  At one point we thought there was a possibility we would be staying because one of the companies (that's based in Charlotte) wanted him to work here, but they ended up changing their plan. So it ended up that all four offers were in Charlotte. He is faithful.

    So we will be moving back home.  Charlotte has always been home to me.  And I am pretty sure that won't change. We are all happy to go back to our family and friends there. But, we have enjoyed Wilmington. We especially cherish our friends here.  To say we are sad to leave them is an understatement.

   Someone said to me the other day, "Are you excited?  You look like you're not too sure."  Ha! I am excited, but I feel like I just got whiplash.  It's hard not to question what tha heck just happened:)  I do know some of the lessons God has taught us through this, and I am sure there are more to come.

  Could you pray for us?  This is three moves in two years. And we have a house to sell (we just bought it 1 year ago). I won't be able to move until it sells.  So we will be apart until then. And these girls LOVE their Daddy.

  So, above all, We have a job, we get to move home, and we are so so grateful that the Lord answered our very specific prayers!

Joy in the Morning

There's really no easy way to write this one, and no, this is not an April Fool's joke. I wish it were:)  On Friday, Jeremy was laid off. Again. It's comes as a bit of a surprise with the timing. He thought he had at least until summer. He was finishing up some jobs now and he knew if they didn't get more work by summer he would be in trouble.  But not yet.

None of this is a surprise to God.  That we do know. Yes, we moved here for this job.  But we have gotten so much more.  We have dear friends that we love, a beloved church family, and we have had great family time together. God is always faithful to bless us beyond what we ask for or imagine.

This is one of those times where I am really thankful for modern technology. The internet, texting, calls. Immediately our dearest friends and family were praying for us and caring for us. The verses started coming in.  Some of my favorites...

  Psalm 34:1,4,8,17,19 "I will bless the Lord at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth. I sought the Lord, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears. O taste and see that the Lord is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him. The righteous cry and the Lord heareth and delivereth them out of all their troubles. Many are the afflictions of the righteous: but the Lord delivereth him out of them all."

  Matthew 10:29-31 "Are not 2 sparrows sold for a farthing? and one of them shall not fall to the ground without your father. But the very hairs on your head are numbered.  Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows."

  Psalm 73: 23-26 "Nevertheless I am continually with you; you have taken hold of my right hand. With your counsel you guide me, to glory. Whom have I in heaven but you and there is none upon earth that I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart fails; but God is the strength of my heart, and my portion forever."


  Just this past week as I was struggling with the possibility of his job loss (you know how us women just sometimes know these things), God was urging me to trust him for each day.  To be thankful for each day that He has a job.  Now I will be trusting Him to provide for each day, our daily bread.  Just as He always has, He will continue to be faithful.

  March 30th from Jesus Calling, my friend Julie gave to me, "I am taking care of you. Trust me at all times. Trust me in all circumstances. Trust me with all your heart. When you are weary and everything seems to be going wrong, you can still utter these four words: "I trust you, Jesus." "

  I am sure you are wondering if we will move back to Charlotte.  We have no idea.  We are looking everywhere.  We are trusting God to lead us where he wants us to go.  We bought a house here friends.  We've only been in it a year.  So the short answer is, we just don't know what God is going to do.

  Will you pray with us?  We can't thank you enough for that. There will be joy in the morning.

NINE

Not sure how but she's nine.  Time has flown.

Favorite Color:Blue

Favorite Toy: The play set

Favorite Fruit: Oranges

Favorite TV show: True Jackson VP

Favorite outfit: Jean and a T

Fave animal: dogs

Favorite songs: Chris Tomlin

Fave friends: Abby and Lily

Fave cereal: Cornflakes

Favorite thing to do outside: play on the playset

Favorite Drink: Dr. Pepper

Fave Holiday: Easter

What do you take to bed at night: Lamby and mini lamb

What is your favorite breakfast food: donuts

What do you want for dinner on your birthday: Macaroni Grille

What do you want to be when you grow up: A teacher, a nurse, or a babysitter

Advent Wreath

For Christmas this year we really wanted to reach out to our neighbors.  So we made advent calendars for them and took delivered them door to door.  It was quite the undertaking but it was fun to do!  We got the idea from our friend Denise, and she got it from the Happy Home Fairy.  

Gracie::Nine

We had our first sleepover birthday party for Gracie's birthday this year. The girls did great.

We decorated gingerbread houses and cupcakes....

But the girls were so full from eating candy from the houses that they ate their cupcakes for breakfast the next morning!

Happy Birthday Gracie!!

Hands Free

Life is about balance...and here is the other side of the post I wrote the other day on guilt...

There is guilt, which is not of the Lord and then there is godly conviction.  Like when God lays on your heart that you need to change in an area. He does this to me all the time. And this area of cell phone/computer use is definitely an area where I need to keep a check.  I am running two businesses and of course love staying in touch with friends and family throughout the day so these things can consume all my time if I let them.  It is a struggle to keep the Gibson girls and my man my priority.

About a year ago, a friend posted a link on facebook to a blog called Hands Free Mama. Boy, her motto is "Letting go...to grasp what really matters."  It is such a good reminder to put my phone down and engage my children on a regular basis. They are what matters most.  I do have to be careful reading her stuff, balancing Godly conviction with ungodly guilt, but I love her Hands Free Pledge.  And over the past few months I have tried to practice this list.  Just to be honest...I still have a long ways to go in accomplishing it.

I’m going Hands Free. I want to make memories, not to-do-lists. I want to feel the squeeze of my daughter's arms, not the pressure of over-commitment. I want to get lost in conversation with my spouse, not consumed by a sea of unimportant emails. I want to be overwhelmed by sunsets that give me hope, not by extracurricular commitments that steal my joy. I want the noise of my life to be a mixture of laughter and gratitude, not the intrusive buzz of cell phones and text messages. I am letting go of distraction, disconnection, and perfection to live a life that simply, so very simply, consists of what really matters. I’m going Hands Free. And if this sounds like a life you want to start living, come along.


I can't find the list on her site:(  I will keep looking but here is the gist of it...

It involves not being on your phone when there are connection times with your kids that 

are big. Like, on the way to school, when you pick them up in the afternoons, dinner time.  

Seize those times to be with your kids and engage them.



I did find this:

For those who are new to this journey, I provide some clarification about living “Hands Free.”

Living “Hands Free” does not mean:

-Giving up your electronic devices/technology 

-Giving up your work time, job responsibilities, and home duties

-Giving up “me” time or much needed adult alone time

-And it does not mean staring at your children 24 hours a day and never leaving their sides.

Living “Hands Free” means temporarily letting go of external or internal distraction (i.e.; phone, computer, unrealistic standards, perfection) to be fully present with someone or something meaningful in one’s life.

All day long, we have choices on how we spend our time. When you begin to develop a “Hands Free” mentality, you become mindful of these choices.

For example, you might find yourself asking:

Could this (phone call, work assignment, Facebook status update) be done later?

Could this (laundry folding, car washing, house cleaning, dinner preparation) be done as a family?

Sometimes the answer will be NO. That is life. As adults, sometimes we must do what we need to do.

But other times, you will find yourself saying, “Right now, I see an opportunity to connect with my child/loved one and that is the most important thing I must do right now.”

Whether you are able to let go of distraction for 10 minutes, two hours, or an entire day, meaningful connection can occur in that precious time.

And for the record, I have never regretted the choice to let of distraction and go “Hands Free.” In fact, I am always grateful I made the choice to connect to what really matters.

For me, here's what I've sought to do:

-Have my quiet time in the mornings before my kids are awake so that once they are up I 

am more available for them.

-Not be on my phone while dropping off or picking the girls up from school

-Watch more Dora and Nick Jr and play outside with Reese

-Work more at night than during the day

-Stop obsessing over my need to have every email, fb status, and blog post read before I can 

go to bed.  (I know, that's completely ridiculous.  But for this type A girl, I like it to be 

complete. all.the.way.)

-read more books with the girls

-start preschool fun with Reese (she is hilarious with this of course)



You can pray for me in this area if you think about it.  It's such an area for satan to use 

guilt.  But I want to be able to hear my Heavenly Father's voice when He is bringing Godly 

conviction.

Guilt

A week ago I started writing out a post that is raw for me and involves what God has been teaching me this year.  It includes the word that I believe the Lord gave me for this year and how he has already been calling me to exercise that word.  But I can't seem to finish it.  Then today, I read a FB post by my friend Carrie.  And oh it was on this topic...

Guilt

That word. It plagues me. This is the definition from wikipedia: Guilt is a cognitive or an emotional experience that occurs when a person realizes or believes—accurately or not—that he or she has compromised his or her own standards of conduct or has violated a moral standard, and bears significant responsibility for that violation.^[1] It is closely related to the concept of remorse.

Does anyone hear me?  Mom guilt. I don't live up to this person's standard, that persons idea of the mom I should be, I am not a good enough wife, I don't cook enough, I just spent too much money, I travel too much...the list goes on and on.  Well it's SIN and it needs to STOP. The guilt needs to stop.  WHY do we do this to ourselves? Why do I do this to myself?  I am here to please One and One only,My FATHER GOD.  He loves me and sees me as perfect.  Whew!! Why do I feel guilty then?  Because I lose sight of the ONE I am supposed to please. 

For far too long I have been so entrenched in guilt that I haven't been able to see the cross. The see my Lord's finished work for me.  I cannot serve two masters! "No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and man." Matthew 6:24

I am totally convinced that guilt is one of satan's most powerful tools to keep us from our heavenly father who loves us and accepts us just as we are. Do you see the, "or not" part of the definition?  A lot of the time, satan makes me feel guilty for stuff where there is no foundation! I am going to stop giving him this power.  

Today was a rough day. I was giving into guilt a lot. Thankfully, God has provided friends here to encourage me in the truth and to pray with me.  Friends are such a means of grace.  And so is God's Word.  

I want you to go and read this post http://tinyurl.com/bd3ga7b

AND THEN BE FREE!!!!