our little one

Willa Marie

December 21, 2019

 2:45am

8 lb. 4 oz. 21.5 in.

The best gift of all.

things i love thursday

I haven't done one of these in awhile, and it just seemed like it was time. I truly want to post more, but there isn't always a lot to say. There are always plenty of blessings to count though, and I need to do that more often than I do.

Evenings.

I've always liked the day's end - especially in the summer. It's still warm enough to meander outside barefoot, still light enough to sit on the porch and see who you're talking to, and with the dishes drying in the rack and the to-do list cleared, it's finally a time to truly relax. I appreciate the evenings even more since getting married, because with Brandon heading out at 5:30am our time together in the morning is very short and sleepy!

4th of July.

I don't know if I've ever mentioned it on here, but the 4th of July is right up there with my favorite holidays - Thanksgiving, Christmas, and July 4th. This year it fell on a Wednesday and our church had hotdogs and watermelon and a really nice fireworks show. We celebrated with my family the Saturday before and everyone was able to make in to my parents' house for a big cookout! It's just such a nice, pressure-free holiday and I love it!

You can tell Douglas wasn't the biggest fan of the fireworks ;)

Babysitting.

We got to keep Lena Rae and Dougy at our house for a few evenings in July and it was a lot of fun. They aren't a bit shy (they were for a little while right after the wedding) and we really enjoyed our time with them. Between the two of us we have 3 nieces and 4 nephews so we're getting lots of aunt and uncle practice! One of the evenings we had Lena Rae and Dougy my aunt brought her little girl Sophie to play and that was just extra fun - she and Lena Rae are the best of friends!

Uncle Brandon scoring all kinds of points reading books when he was already hoarse from working in the heat :)

We can walk to the river from our house so we took them for an after supper "adventure".

Dougy, Lena Rae, & Sophie

Heirlooms.

My grandma lets each of her granddaughters pick out one of her crystal bowls when they get married or to a certain age, and I finally picked mine out a few weeks ago! The first thing I put in it was a bright pretty salad.

I also have this pitcher that belonged to my great-grandmother who I'm named after. I absolutely LOVE this one!

Engagements.

My little sister, y'all. Amie's boyfriend (now fiance) Isaac proposed last Saturday night and it's still a little weird to me! I'm so excited for them, but now I kind of know how my big brothers felt when I got married. They don't have a wedding date yet, but already this year there are 5 weddings of people at Cornerstone, so if they decide on 2018 they'll make number 6!

He was texting me about rings Saturday morning - I had no idea it would all happen in one day!

I could go on and on about this summer because it's been a full one, but we've got fun plans this weekend so I'll just save all of that for another post next week. I hope you all have a lovely day - just one more work day to go then we've made it to the weekend!!

Christmas to Me

One of my favorite Christmas songs is by a group I really cannot recommend, but it played on Pandora last year and I really liked it. It's called "That's Christmas to Me", and it just reminded me that while there are so many holiday traditions, the special ones are the ones that each family has for themselves.

Christmas can be a bit of a touchy subject in Christian groups. Celebrate or don't celebrate? Tree or no tree? Christmas music or no?

While my family does celebrate Christmas, and we do set up a tree, and I've had my Christmas cd's playing on repeat, I have several friends who don't, and that's ok. We don't try to shove our beliefs on each other, and we respect the differences in opinion.

But do you know what Christmas is to me?

It's not about unwrapping presents, it's about spending the time picking out those perfect gifts that let the other person know you've been listening, that you truly do know them - likes, dislikes, wants, and needs. You heard, and wanted to do something special for those special people. This year, I'm most excited to give my mom her gift. In one way I want her to open it right now, but in another way, I want to put it off as long as possible because once everything's been given, the excitement of anticipation is over.

Anticipation. That's my most favorite part. The weeks leading up to the 25th. For us, it starts on Thanksgiving Day putting up the tree and the lights and all the decorations. In the following weeks we go shopping, we bake, we stay up late watching Christmas movies. I wish it lasted 2 months, if I'm being honest - it goes by way too fast!

Christmas is about family and friends, and spending quality with those you love the most. It's helping others who are maybe a little lonely or have a little less. 

It's telling the story of Christ's birth over and over while Lena Rae moves our nativity magnets where they go. Mary and "Jophus" making the trip to Bethlehem to have baby Jesus, the angel telling the shepherds who were watching their sheep to find the sleeping baby, and the wise men from the east following the star that pointed to Jesus. Then we move it to the other side of the fridge as we tell it again.

It's our quiet Christmas Day (which we spend as Christmas Eve), playing games, eating good food, and ending with "It's a Wonderful Life". I cannot tell you how much I love this movie, I truly look forward to watching it every year and I don't think Christmas would be the same to me without it.  "Remember, no man is a failure who has friends."

cousins! matching was a BIG deal :)

It's making Stromboli with the kids and buying them pajamas to wear while we drive around town with our hot chocolate looking at Christmas lights. They're old enough now to remember and realize that it's an annual tradition, and their excitement makes me even more excited. Just the aunts and our nephews and niece! 

I always try to take some extra time to contemplate (and usually write) about Mary and Joseph and what the birth of Jesus must have been like for them. There's no way to even come close to imagining carrying the maker of your own body inside of that body. To nourish and clothe and raise the One who gave you life. If I had the chance to sit down and talk to Mary and ask her questions and hear her stories, I would never stop listening. I would always want to know more. 

Christmas doesn't have to look the same for everyone - indeed, I hope it doesn't! But I do hope you don't get caught up in the commercialism of it. The stress and worry of trying to get everyone you know a present. My friends and I try to get together for coffee or just a talk, but we made a "no gift" rule several years ago because that's just not what it's all about. 

Anyway, I just wanted to tell you a bit of what Christmas is to me and I hope you have a very merry one. I will be spending it in church with my very large "extended" family! Thank you for reading, and I'll "see" you in 2017.

december

This might be my last post for 2016. It's been a busy month, but the next two weeks are relatively empty, and even though that's (usually) when I post more, I think I want to focus 100% on family time and Christmas baking. 

So far December has been a busy month, and for me, that's made it even happier. I can tend to be a slightly obsessive person, especially when it comes to over thinking, so when I'm busy and focused on something else, that's when I'm happiest. If my brain isn't occupied with things in my control, it's way too occupied with things that are out of my control!

We started the month off with a bang during Missions Conference. I feel like I probably say it every year, but this year was my favorite. It was our 25th Conference, every single missionary was friendly, sweet, and really bared their hearts to us during their presentations. It doesn't always happen that way, but I just fell in love with all of them. The countries represented were New Zealand, Botswana, Papua New Guinea, the Republic of Georgia, Trinidad, and from our own missionaries, Ethiopia, Fiji, Indonesia, and Belize (our missionaries to Australia came last year!) 

As I type this, I'm halfway curled up around the space heater in my office. Monday night of the Conference (it goes Sun.- Wed.), we had a rather big *ahem* leak in the basement where all of our offices are. It didn't affect the meeting in the slightest, but it ruined the flooring in 3 offices and the entire lobby. We're nearly done replacing it all but mine will be last and I've gone from carpet to bare concrete and it's currently 26°! I'm upgrading from carpet to tile and a nice rug though, so I can't complain. :)

Jace turned 8 on the 5th, and I might have been a little tiny bit emotional about it. He's up to my shoulder now, and he's reading chapter books and looks a little snaggle-toothed.

a seven year difference

Lena Rae's best friend, her cousin Sophie, came a couple of nights to the conference. They're 11 months apart in age (Sophie's older) and such happy little girls together. Sophie has six brothers, Lena Rae has four, so they just love being around each other (they've managed to be the girliest of girls despite - actually, because of - being surrounded by boys).

 

Sophie on the left, LR on the right

 

To "wrap it up", here's a summary of Christmas parties this month:

Saturday (10th) - my Sunday School class took a trip to Bellbuckle, TN. 

That was a morning/afternoon event, and that night at 5:00 I headed two minutes down the road to help my friends get ready for their Christmas party  - ugly sweaters, gag gifts, and a waffle bar with all kinds of holiday beverages!

of course I had to buy her baby Klay an ugly Christmas sleeper!

Last night in my Wednesday night class (I'm the "helper" for the 8 & 9 year olds), we had a fun party - I provided snacks and made my own favorites, cookies & milk and apple pie apples. No pics because they all have the kids in them, but the teacher had the cutest games and it was a lot of fun!

Friday (16) - my next door neighbor is "hosting" a Christmas party - he's single, so a bunch of the girls in our group are kind of taking over and making a bunch of soup and we're going to just hang out and play games. It's also my parents 38th anniversary! (but they've been together for 40 years. that's a really long time)

Saturday (17) - Christmas at my grandparents! This takes most of the day and is so relaxing and fun. We play white elephant and the little ones get stockings. We eat a big breakfast, then after playing the game have a "snack extravaganza" for lunch - we all bring finger foods and it's chaotic madness but great fun. (4 kids = 17 grandkids =  = 8 great grandkids + a slew of in-laws and a great aunt = lots of people)

Sunday (18) - we have our annual Open House for the members of our church after the evening service. That's a lot of people in our home, but it's a lot of fun! It is slightly overwhelming, but our church family is very sweet and no one really stays overly late so while a lot goes into preparing and it's a little loud, it's also a lot of fun.

Monday (19) - Amie and I will have our "Christmas Party with the Aunts" with the kids. Now THAT'S a lot of fun! Strombolli and pj's and games and a Christmas movie and snacks! 

And THEN we can sleep until Christmas! (just kidding ;) ) We will be having church on Christmas Day, so everyone is coming over on the 26th for our family celebration. I can wait. My favorite part is the build up, the anticipation, the whole atmosphere of this time of year. I hope you've had a lovely December, it truly is a wonderful life! 

 

a new year

As the end of a year approaches, I always get very nostalgic, a bit nervous, and mildly anxious. There's just something about endings that are sad - the ending of a book, the ending of a trip, the ending of a year. It's momentous, and we somehow feel as though while some things were already in the past anyway, changing the last number on the date really makes it in the past.

But as soon as the page turns and we go from December 31 to January 1, everything somehow switches from melancholic to exciting and new. A clean slate, a fresh start. A chance to get everything you messed up last year right this time.

Christmas Eve!

I've never been really big on New Year's Resolutions. Last year I made a long list, called them "goals" instead of resolutions, and I still didn't complete a single one of them. This year I haven't written anything down, I haven't made any promises. I've just committed to myself to make some life and heart changes - and in a tiny way, I already have. This year is wide open, but we already know how quickly it will go by. I'm determined it's going to be wonderful. A year of feeling things deeply, choosing to be content in whatever state I'm in, and being at peace with where God wants me to be.

Mine and Jacob's birthdays are 6 days apart so we shared a birthday dinner, and then my parents and A took me out on the actual day.

Have you made any new year's resolutions? What are some things you hope to see happen in 2016? I hope you've had a wonderful start to this year, I'm excited to see what it holds!

happenings

"Do you ever wonder if you'll ever know what it's like to not even be a little tired?"

"And to think you don't even have a baby waking up at night..."

So went my silly question and sarcastic response from one of our assistant pastors (who just so happens to have a newborn!). Ah, the different stages of life and the things that accompany them!

Just getting out of missions conference and feeling like we're barreling through the Christmas season, it's hard to find time to sit and enjoy everything that comes with this time of the year. Something as simple as letting things go can make such a huge difference, but it's amazing how difficult that can be.

I normally write a poem for our Christmas cards, but this year I had to let that go. We mailed them about a week ago, and I'm still feeling bad about it. My brother did it for years, and then when he went off to med school, that Christmas tradition was handed down to me to carry out. This year my mom wrote a quick update on our year and we got those pictures in the mail. I love that tradition, and I'm planning on starting next year's in July. ;) 

So far we have only watched one Christmas film. Usually Thanksgiving night we begin with Holiday Inn with Bing Crosby and Fred Astaire and watch one nearly every weekend leading up to Christmas Eve where we'll end with It's A Wonderful Life (my all time favorite movie anytime of the year). This year we watched the shortest one I could find and squeezed it in while we were all thinking about the huge lists we each had to get done. 

Amie and I make our teachers' gifts together - she makes a few things, and I do too. Several years we've been in the kitchen together preparing them, but between her piano students and me painting the hallway, well, hers are done and mine are not. (Her cookies and cheese logs are quite good, though!)

This week though, we're going to really enjoy Christmas and I can't wait! It actually started last Friday night when our Sunday School went out to eat and then to Opryland Hotel to walk around. I'll insert the big group picture when I get it, but here's a "group selfie" of the people I walked around with all night.

Saturday night I helped my friend throw her first Christmas party at her and her husband's new home. They live just five minutes down the road and we had finger foods and tacky sweaters and gag gifts and games and a houseful of happy people!

 

Monday morning we had Lena Rae and Dougy for a bit, and I decided I would go in late to work so I could make pancakes and sausage because I was missing breakfasts. (When you go to bed at 1am, you tend to oversleep and grab a granola bar on your way out!) I made a big ol' stack and Lena Rae had 3 and I had 3 and we were so full and it was delightful.

My dad has been preaching away since Monday, and he'll get back this morning. Our annual open house for our church is Sunday night, so we've been painting and cleaning and to be honest, doing a few manly things (like hanging mini blinds. I'm so impressed with myself). When he gets back, the house will be clean and shiny and sparkling with lights. We will have cookies and caramel apples and probably iced tea since it's been 70 - 75 degrees here (Tender Tennessee Christmas! haha). I'll put on Holiday Inn and guess what? We're going to sit down...together. 

All that to say, I know it's been quiet on here. I know that I never finished my Thanksgiving week and there probably won't be a Christmas story this year. Just go back and read last year's or the one I wrote when I was nineteen.

I hope everyone is having a good Christmas! Whether you're with family or not, remember that it's all about your perspective. So many times over the past few weeks I've wanted to sit down and have a little cry because it didn't feel like Christmas. We weren't all together and the house was in chaos and it was 9 at night and I was still painting. But a few deep breaths, a few looks around at all the blessings, and you can make any situation a little bit brighter by changing your outlook. Whether you think you can or you think you can't, you're right. Even if you don't celebrate Christmas traditionally, do what we do and celebrate family, the gifts of God, and Christ lowering himself to meet us on our level as the most innocent and vulnerable of all human beings. 

Thank you for still reading this blog. Sometimes it's just a simple documentation of my days, but I put it up for me to go back and remember. Please make the most of the last few weeks we have left in 2015! It really is a wonderful life, and it really does pass all too quickly!

thanksgiving week | wednesday

After church tonight we had a "pie potluck" (which we actually called a Pie Social). All the ladies brought a pie or two or five and I had a little of four! We love pie.

With Missions Conference two weeks away, guess which group thought it would be a good idea to learn a new song or two without sheet music? Two and a half hours later...I'm hoarse, but it was so much fun.

Tomorrow's Thanksgiving Day!!!

thanksgiving week | monday

 

Making cupcakes AND frosting from scratch isn't always my idea of a good time, but during the holidays it's my favorite thing ever. I started Thanksgiving week early this morning by mixing these up at 7am. I did not have one for breakfast, but the finished product this afternoon was well worth the wait. Try them out! 

An annual party that kick starts the holiday season around here! There were 53 ladies that participated in the White Elephant style ornament swap. It took awhile, but it was so much fun. I'm so grateful for sweet church members and friends willing to host that many people for so many years in a row!

3. beholden

be·hold·en bəˈhōld(ə)n/ adjective 

adjective: beholden owing thanks or having a duty to someone in return for help or a service.

Thanksgiving is next week and although we have a lot to do to prepare I am SO excited! Here are a few of my semi-recent pictures!

We had a beautiful fall. It was short as always, but every now and then I'll spot a bright orange, red, or yellow tree that hasn't lost all their leaves yet. This was taken in our neighbor's yard, and I love Lena Rae's panic stricken expression!

At a Missions Conference earlier this week I was able to spend some time with my friend and her beautiful little girl. I'm missing so very much of her growing up years, and the time there was sweet.

I'm not a fan orange, but I'm less of a fan of being sick. My mom has us stocked on all these things this time of the year!


That's all for this week! Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday, and I hope you all have a wonderful one!

2. appreciative

Y'all. I love Fridays. Like, seriously love Fridays. I think one of the things I miss most about being a kid - or even a teenager - were those endless days in summer when I would wake up, and after falling back asleep and waking up again, get out of bed and think "Hm, wonder what I'll do today?" Now it's more like I roll out of bed at the first alarm because I can't trust myself to go back to sleep, and think, "Hm, wonder how I'm going to get all this done today?" And I know, I know - it'll only get worse the older I get.

But Fridays. Y'all, Fridays! I still have to get up early, but somehow it's easier on Fridays because the sooner I get to work, the sooner I can come home, and as soon as I do, it's "Weekend Chores in Fast Time." Which means: do my laundry, vacuum, dust, and mop my room, clean my bathroom and shower, wash my makeup brushes, tidy my bookshelves, take out my trash, tidy my drawers, and then during the in-between stage of clothes drying and clothes folding/ironing, I plan what I'll do next. (Yes, I do all this weekly because I'm just that way.)

Today, I think I'll bake cupcakes if we have the ingredients and do a small re-purging of my closet. I like to do this every few weeks after the "main purge" because I still keep a few things I'm just not sure about yet. Re-purging is done with a better idea of what I need or use, and keeps my life (and closet) in a more simplified state. I'd also like to wrap up a couple gifts I'm taking with me on a quick trip next week, and order something with my $20 ThredUp credit!

And all this means I have Saturday morning to sleep in, wake up, and think "Hm, wonder what I'll do today?" Because I did all the "need to"'s the day before! I just love Friday because when I'm done, I'm really done, and somehow the anticipation of Friday afternoon and Saturday is almost better than the actual day. I don't know. Wow, this introduction got rambly. Happy Friday!

This makes me so happy. I love pulling all this stuff out of my closet and then giving it away, donating it (the Yard Sale had already ended when I did this), or just plain trashing it. And now I can buy more stuff and do it and again in the spring! This is what I call the Main Purge. The purge I'll do today will have a small stack of things I don't wear anymore. This picture is all the junk that had gotten shoved to the back of my closet during the hectic weeks of summer.

These donuts are everything. As if Friday wasn't already good enough, we've got a whole bunch of these sitting around and they're dwindling quickly. They're dipped in butter and coated in cinnamon sugar. 'nuff said.

I love being an aunt so much. I tend to have more pictures of Lena Rae because she's a girl and she's always ready for the camera, but a sweet lady snapped this picture during our church picnic back in September and I love it. I love that Jace is in the background because he was willing to go down the slide slowly to help his little sister and stop halfway down when she wanted off. He's nearly seven and he'd prefer going down it 100 mph on his head, but for Lena Rae, he'll do pretty much whatever she wants.

Have a wonderful weekend and everyone stay warm! What are you appreciative for today?

february 2015 recap

February was here and gone in the blink of an eye. It was fairly uneventful considering all the other months in the year, but having a bit of a break was really nice. Maybe next month there'll be more pictures, but there just wasn't as much to document this month!

valentine's day
I got to spend the evening with the four cutest sweethearts ever. We made lasagna together, crafted a heart banner that now hangs over my bed, and made chocolate covered popcorn with heart sprinkles. Sometimes being single on Valentine's Day isn't so bad...especially when you're an aunt!

snow
The South finally got her snow! First there was ice...so much ice. Then it began to snow. We got maybe 4 inches, which I realize isn't that much - but it was a big deal around here! I was stuck at home for an entire week because I was too scared my dad didn't want me to drive on the ice covered roads. It lasted from Monday morning until Saturday afternoon. It was beautiful and cold and relaxing and cold and quiet and COLD.

calligraphy
My latest obsession. I started a 30 day calligraphy class and it's much harder than it looks! Two days in and my fingers are permanently stained and my right arm is sore from the elbow down. It's so much fun though, and I'm so excited to learn more!

FROM THE BLOG...

updates and changes - just a little information on what I hope to do with the blog in 2015!
and ice world | picture post - I shared some of my favorite pictures from the day we got iced in. 
gritty details -  simple obedience in everyday life.
break the fast | recipe - eating breakfast can sometimes be a struggle, here's how I deal with that!


Have a lovely March, dear readers!

What were some your favorite moments from February?

moments like these

Is anyone else as blown away as I am that this is our last day of 2014? I feel like I should have done something significant or monumental today to bid this incredible year farewell, but alas, it's been just like any other day, almost. Kind of. Is any day exactly like another?

It's moments like these that we all look ahead and make goals and resolutions while at the same time reflecting on the past year. And somehow, year after year, we forget the bad and highlight the happy things that happened and say "It's been a good year!"

But really, it has been, because it's a wonderful life! As a Christian, I have no reason to be depressed or anxious. It doesn't mean that I never feel those emotions, but that those emotions don't gain control over me because there's Someone bigger that already has control.

So as we look ahead and behind, I want to reflect on some of my favorite moments from 2014. Moments like these make life the incredible thing that it is.

no captions, just pictures capturing a moment in 2014 that I loved

Happy 2015, everyone!

DIY Christmas | brunch + 2 recipes

Welcome to DIY Christmas, Sincerely, Kelley style! (where "this is how I did it" would be more accurate!)

It's been busy, busy around here! So busy in fact, that this brunch almost didn't happen. But when my nurse friend is off work and my Kentucky friend is in town on the same day some getting together must happen, whether it's in the middle of Missions Conference or not! :)

We planned a brunch at my house for 9:00am, perfect time to sleep in a little extra, but still get home with plenty of time to spare. Here's what we had!

Pumpkin cream cheese muffins, eggs, sausage balls, and apple pie apples. And of course, plenty of hot tea and coffee!

Writing this post is making me hungry!

Now, for the recipes...

 

 

My cousin made these for Thanksgiving, and our entire family absolutely loved them! I've made them twice since then, and I'm going out today to buy the stuff to make them again! They're super easy, and once you slice them up, they won't last long!

You will need...
Granny Smith Apples
Caramel Apple Wrap (cheat and use these instead of dipping, it's so much easier!)
Vanilla or White Chocolate Almond Bark
Cinnamon Sugar

• Wrap your apples with the caramel and put them in the oven on 200 for 5 minutes.
• Let them cool while you melt the almond bark
• Once they've cooled off, dip them in the almond bark and immediately sprinkle cinnamon sugar on them.
• Let them harden, then slice and serve! SO YUMMY!

 

I got this one straight from Pinterest, and I'm just going to copy and paste the recipe, because I just exactly follow it when I make these!

Ingredients

For the filling:
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 cup confectioners’ sugar

For the muffins:
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. ground nutmeg
1 tsp. ground cloves
1 tbsp. plus 1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
4 large eggs
2 cups sugar
2 cups pumpkin puree
1¼ cups vegetable oil

For the topping:
½ cup sugar
5 tbsp. flour
1½ tsp. ground cinnamon
4 tbsp. cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces

Directions

• To prepare the filling, combine the cream cheese and confectioners’ sugar in a medium bowl and mix well until blended and smooth. Transfer the mixture to a piece of plastic wrap and shape into a log about 1½-inches in diameter. Smooth the plastic wrap tightly around the log, and reinforce with a piece of foil. Transfer to the freezer and chill until at least slightly firm, at least 2 hours.
• To make the muffins, preheat the oven to 350˚ F. Line muffin pans with paper liners. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, pumpkin pie spice, salt and baking soda; whisk to blend. In the bowl of an electric mixer combine the eggs, sugar, pumpkin puree and oil. Mix on medium-low speed until blended. With the mixer on low speed, add in the dry ingredients, mixing just until incorporated.
• To make the topping, combine the sugar, flour and cinnamon in a small bowl; whisk to blend. Add in the butter pieces and cut into the dry ingredients with a pastry blender or two forks until the mixture is coarse and crumbly. Transfer to the refrigerator until ready to use.
• To assemble the muffins, fill each muffin well with a small amount of batter, just enough to cover the bottom of the liner (1-2 tablespoons). Slice the log of cream cheese filling into 24 equal pieces. Place a slice of the cream cheese mixture into each muffin well. Divide the remaining batter among the muffin cups, placing on top of the cream cheese to cover completely. Sprinkle a small amount of the topping mixture over each of the muffin wells.
• Bake for 20-25 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool completely before serving. (It may be hard to resist immediate consumption, but the cream cheese filling gets very hot!)

 I hope you try these recipes out, and let me know if you do! They have become favorites at my house!

I hope everyone is having a very merry holiday season!

Our Fourth of July

"Remember the days of old, consider the years of many generations: ask thy father, and he will shew thee; thy elders, and they will tell thee." -Deuteronomy 32:7

After Christmas, I think the Fourth of July is my favorite holiday. It's about celebrating our freedom and it's cost and our American history, spending time with family, and relaxing. 

This year for Independence Day we celebrated on the fourth in Kentucky with our church family and other people at a tent meeting my dad preached. We took around 150 people from our church, and all combined there were about 500 people there! Our choir sang, my dad preached, a lady got saved, they served pizza and ice cream, and had fireworks! So much fun. :)

 

On the fifth, we had our big family celebration. Stephen and Tara are finally back in our state for good! They came over, and of course Jacob and his family did too. I'll caption some of the pictures, but you can see what we did fairly well without me writing a lot about it! (A picture is worth a thousand words...) We sat outside and ate and hung out for about five hours and had so much fun.

corn on the cob, baked beans, hamburgers and hotdogs, and chips

smoked jalapeno poppers

 

"Wheelie Poppin' Contest" - perfectly timed photo!

homemade butterfingers ice cream

What did you do for the Fourth of July? I hope everyone had a great day!