Sunday, November 23, 2014

There is no heartache that Heaven can't cure...

What a week...
We learned Tuesday morning that our pastor, Bro. David had gone to be with the Lord. Apparently it happened in the early hours of the morning. We didn't receive much more information than that, and although we had all speculated that the time was near, I know I'm not only speaking for myself when I say that we were still holding out so much hope that his earthly body would be completely healed. We learned the night of his funeral that he was ready to meet Jesus, which led me to believe that he must've gotten pretty miserable. For that reason, I am thankful that he got what he wished for. Although I was devastated by the news, and our whole church family grieves the loss of our fearless leader, I also know that he is exactly where he wants to be and he is happier than he has ever been in his life! Dennis told the kids about his passing on the way to school that morning and sweet Sadie leaned her head on the window and started to cry. That broke my heart. I know that she felt a sense of disappointment in her 7 year old mind. She has prayed for him every day for the past 20 months and she has watched me hit my knees by her bedside every night to lift him up as well. I think it was just hard for her to believe that he didn't make it.
That night, me, mom, and Rachel went to a benefit concert at Crosspoint Church for a 20-something year old girl that is battling Stage 4 Colon cancer. It was led by Natalie Grant. Other performers were Mandisa, Plumb, Building 429, lead singer of Casting Crowns, Danny Gokey, and Dave Barnes. It was so, so good. I left there that night feeling restored from the brokenness of learning about Bro. David's passing. I felt hopeful again and my eyes were reopened to what life is all about.
To make a long story short, as soon as I got back to my car, I noticed that I had missed several calls from a friend of mine. I called her back, and she said that she thought I needed to head to Skyline and see what was going on with a friend of ours' husband. She lives across the street from our friend and had seen through her window what looked like him being carried out on a stretcher and put into an ambulance. I decided to turn around and head to Skyline since I was already out. I get to the ER and quickly find out that he had died from a massive heart attack. I was in shock. I couldn't believe it. He was only 44 years old. Their daughter is Sadie's very best friend. They've been in school together since pre-school. Over the next couple of days, I watched my friend go from literally being in total shock at the hospital to having to deal with the grief, to planning the love of her life's funeral, to barely being able to walk, to saying goodbye to him as we buried him yesterday. Those poor, poor kids. They have a set of twin 7 year olds. The same age as Sadie Jane. How will they learn to live without their daddy? How will they be able to deal with watching their momma grieve day in and day out? How will she learn to become a single mom overnight?
So, on the exact same day, November 18th, we lost 2 men from 2 completely different walks of life, from 2 completely different causes. That will definitely cause you to do a quick reality check.
Bro. David's funeral was Friday night at church. It was precious. So many men got up and spoke so incredibly about him and told wonderful stories and truly honored him in every way. Brad's funeral was on Saturday. Completely heartbreaking to watch Cristi and the kids having to tell him good-bye.
I don't know what tomorrow holds...for our church family or for my friend. But, I DO know that "there is no heartache that Heaven can't cure". I heard those words today in a song, and I hope to one day share them with my friend. Right now, she needs to mourn her loss.
During this week of Thanksgiving, I will most definitely have a heart full of gratitude, but at the same time, I will be heartbroken for my friend and the whole Landrith family who will all be having to already learn how to adjust to their "new normal". Jesus be near. Jesus come quick.

Thursday, August 14, 2014

Back to School...blah, blah, blah

Summer came and went...and went WAY too fast. We had a GREAT, great, great Summer, but oh how it hurts my heart when it is time for the kids to go back to school. A lot of people go through a sort of depression after Christmas, a big vacation, or after the wedding is over, etc.
Me? I go through mine when school starts. My sweet little kiddos that I've gotten to spend time with, love on, hug on, make memories with and take care of all Summer long, I now only get to see in the morning (when everyone is ill), and in the late afternoon (when everyone is exhausted). It bothers me! Sadie and I literally sat in her bed in the dark tonight and cried. How sad is that?? I think she was just crying because I was crying, but good grief! I couldn't stop! And it's only the 2nd full day of school! I will be fine in a few days...maybe.
They both LOVE their new teachers and their classes, which helps my heart...a little. I was (and still am) a little worried about Sawyer being in Pre-1st, but he has handled it like a champ. He doesn't seem affected by it at all. His teacher does a fantastic job of making those kids feel extra special and I am so thankful for that! I know they will both have a great year and hopefully I can get excited about it soon.
Here are a few pics from the first day of school.

Tuesday, June 10, 2014

Lots to Update!

I have been worse than HORRIBLE at updating this blog. Honestly, since I've gotten out of the habit, I forget its even here!
I'm not even sure when my last update was, so for now, I will just start with the highlights over the last few months.
Sawyer graduated from Kindergarten! Woo Hoo! He far exceeded our expectations on how we thought he would do being so young in Kindergarten. He did so amazing! He left Kindergarten reading far above what he should be. We are putting him in Pre-1st since he is the youngest boy in his class. I want to give him an extra year to grow, mature, age, etc. He could do 1st Grade with no worries! But, I don't want him to be the young kid for the rest of his years in school. He had several kids in his class who turned 7 during their Kindergarten year. Um...Sawyer is still only 5!!!!!! So, it only makes sense to give him an extra year. He is super smart, and I know he will have no problem when it comes to schoolwork.
Sadie Jane left 1st grade with all A's (and a few B's) for the whole year. I'm a proud mom! She had some moments at the beginning of the year when she struggled a little bit, but after Christmas, she took of and soared her way through the end of the year. She's reading at a high 2nd grade level already! So, so proud of her! Especially since she is also considered "young" for her grade. She was very, very, very, VERY sad to leave 1st Grade, especially Mrs. Wolfe, but I know that she will love going on to 2nd.
Our little man got baptized this past Sunday. There is NO greater joy as parent than when your kids get saved. To know now, that no matter what happens, I will spend ETERNITY with my WHOLE family, brings me more joy than I could ever imagine! He has been asking lots of questions for the past several months and so we went to Bro. Jason at church and he gave us the books to let Sawyer go through. One night in his bed, he prayed that special prayer, and from there, we set up his baptism. We wanted to do it on Father's Day, but due to some circumstances, it was changed to this past Sunday, June 8th. Dennis was able to baptize him and it was so sweet. Such a special moment! My heart is full!!!
We leave in less than 2 weeks for the Atlantis. We are so busy right now, so it's almost hard to even get excited, but I really cannot wait. I just want to be there! Mom was in the hospital for a few days last week, and we had a scare that almost made me fear that the trip might be cancelled, but thankfully, she is home and doing well! Praise the Lord!
Lastly, Dennis and I (and Travis/Anita, Sean/Kennedy) completed the Tough Mudder Nashville this past Saturday. We signed up for it just for "fun". We didn't really train; just did our normal exercising that we had been doing. It was so awesome! What a sense of accomplishment we felt when we finished. (after almost 5 hour) Holy cow! It was by far the hardest "race" I've ever done. There were many times when we came to an obstacle, and I said "no way!" Thanks to my sweet husband, and his encouragement, I attempted every single obstacle on the course. The very last one was the only one that I couldn't do, but I still attempted it! Basically I got to the top of the wall to climb over, and both of my calves cramped up, so I couldn't push off to get over the wall. Whatever. We pushed through lots of mud, scary obstacles, lots of fear, calf cramps, more mud, exhaustion, side cramps, nausea, muddy creeks, near dehydration, extreme heat, muddy walls (did I mention MUD), zero degree plunge pool, electro shock, disgusting port-a-johns, horrible smells, rope climbing, pyramid building, mud from HEAD to TOE (literally), and lots of laughter!!!! We also barely escaped a tornado! Apparently right after the race, a horrible storm passed through Spring Hill and took down half the tents, obstacles, etc. and they had to cancel the whole thing for Sunday. I would've been SO disappointed! I'm glad we were all safe! It was amazing in every good and bad way that you can imagine. I will never forget that day! There were definitely times that I had to quote Philippians 4:13, and there were definitely times that I was not quoting scripture. LOL Either way, we made lots of memories and we all walked away with only minor scrapes, bruises, and maybe a broke toe! Oh, and my hair may never be the same. Yikes! Not to mention, its been 4 days since the race, and I am STILL digging brown stuff out of my ears. Lovely, yes, I know.
So, that's what has been going on for the last little bit.
Sadie completed Volleyball Camp last week and loved it! Sawyer is in Football Camp this week, Sadie starts Cheer Camp tomorrow, and then Sawyer has Basketball Camp next week. Then, it's ALL ATLANTIS from there!!!!

Wednesday, February 26, 2014

What's up?

I have been unable to blog for the past couple of months because I could not log on to my blogger account! Ugh! I've been so sad because there have been several times I have wanted to blog, but haven't been able to. So, today I gave it one last try, and BAM! Here I am! Yay!!!
The Phillips family has had a very low key winter. We haven't been too busy, which is very nice. Lots of laid back weekends, recovering from school each week.
Sawyer is doing fabulous in Kindergarten. He is the youngest boy in his class, yet he is already reading on the same level as all of his other classmates. He is actually doing better than some as well. We are so proud of him! We are trying to get fired up about him going to Pre-First next year and praying daily for good classmates to hang back with him! He is wise beyond his years and we have to hold him back from trying to be older than he is!
Sadie loves first grade. It's not quite as laid back as Kindergarten, so she has to work VERY hard on a daily basis, but she has improved by leaps and bounds and is now reading on a 2nd grade level. That comes from lots of hard work, practice, and dedication. She is determined to get things right, and is sometimes hesitant to do certain things, in fear that she might get it wrong. We are trying to embrace that, while also gently pushing her to try things no matter what! She turns 7 years old in just a few days, which I can't believe! She is having a painting party, which is right up her alley!
Dennis and I are pushing right along. He is pretty busy with work and is about to get even busier as Spring football practice begins. I feel like football just ended! I have stayed busy cleaning the cabin and spending lots of time at school.
We try to spend as much time together as a family as we possibly can. We know that with children, LOVE = TIME, so we want them to feel lots of love. This time in their lives is critical. We can never get it back. It is gone in a flash, and they will be older so soon...wanting to hang out with friends on the weekends, instead of spending time hanging out with us! I feel like because of the time we spend with them, our kids feel extremely loved by us. That is more important to me than anything else.