Plans for You

I know, I know….it’s about time.  I’m going to get right to it because I have a LOT to update everyone on. So here goes……

First of all, for those of you who don’t know yet, we have moved…..again. We are praying that God will allow us to stay here for a while. We are now living in Troy, Alabama and serving at First Baptist Church of Troy. The church’s website is http://troyfbc.org if anyone is interested. How did we end up in Troy, you ask? Well, I’m going to tell you. It all started when my grandma passed away in January of 2007. What does that have to do with our moving? Luke and I began talking about growing up close to grandparents and wanting the same thing for our kids. Of course, at the time, we only had Ashleigh, so we thought. I was actually pregnant with the twins and didn’t know it. Anyway, we prayed and decided to put Luke’s resume out in Texas to try to get closer to my family, but after almost a year and a half and no serious contact with any churches, we figured God just wanted us to stay where we were in Newton. We were fine with that. The people in Newton loved us and we loved them dearly, but God had other plans.

A retired pastor friend from Cartersville, Georgia knew that Luke had his resume out in Texas, but contacted him about a church in Troy, Alabama where he had served as pastor many years ago. At first, we, mostly me, said, “Nope. Not interested. It’s farther from my family, not closer. Why would I want to move my children from a place they know and love AND be further away from their grandparents. Sorry.” Well, God began working. We did some research and found out about Troy University which is in Troy. They have a great international program on campus with about 700 or so students from all over the world. About 300 of those are from China which is a country that has been on our hearts for some time. We had even considered going to China as international missionaries but never felt a peace about it. God was opening a door for us to minister to Chinese students without even leaving the southeast! So, Luke filled out the questionnaire from the church and sent it in. Almost immediately they responded and asked to meet us. We met with them a few times, and we were more and more excited each time we met about the ministry opportunities at the church and in the community. On July 27 Luke preached in view of a call. The church voted that day with an overwhelming vote to call us to FBC Troy.

The next week was not fun. We had to begin telling the church in Newton that after less than two and a half years, God was calling us elsewhere. Although we were dreading telling the news, it went so smoothly. Everyone was so supportive and loving. We have been extremely blessed with wonderful church families in our years of ministry, and Newton was no different. We made some lifelong friends there, and we are so grateful to them all for their love, prayer and support. We miss them already!

Fast forward two months……here we are. We moved to Troy at the end of August and are really enjoying it. We are currently renting a HUGE house but have just signed a contract on a lot to begin the building process. We are excited and nervous at the same time about building a house. We’ve never built before but are looking forward to it. When you think of us, please be in prayer for us that everything will go smoothly with our house closing in Mississippi, the building process in Troy and that our kids will continue to transition well.

And speaking of the kids, they are doing great! They have done so well with the move, and I know it’s because of all the prayers from family and friends lifted up over the last few months. We have definitely felt your prayers and appreciate them so very much.

Ashleigh turned two on August 11, and she is definitely two. She is testing her boundaries everyday and exploring her personality. She amazes us everyday with her memory and cognition. I know I’m supposed to think this, but she is so smart. Too smart. She: can count to ten (with a little help), knows most of her colors, loves to dance, talks all the time, likes to sing with Mommy, still loves blueberries, knows a lot of shapes, recognizes several letters and numbers (especially 8), likes to clean and be Mommy’s helper, loves her Sunday School class and church, loves to watch her University of Georgia DVD (Go Dawgs!), loves to go outside, likes to read her books and Bible (especially Jonah), and I could go on……but I won’t bore you. Most of the time she is an extremely happy and friendly child and an absolute joy. We are blessed.

Riley and Kyleigh turned a year old on September 20. They are very happy babies as well. They: eat table food, drink whole milk, cruise everywhere, walk around furniture, have two teeth each, are growing so fast, say mama and dada, wave and say hey and bye bye, clap and dance to music, and say “Yaaaaay!” when a song finishes. Kyleigh can stand by herself a couple of seconds and walks really well holding our hands, but Riley is just not that interested yet. He’s too busy playing or eating. Such a boy. They had their one year well check on Thursday, and everything is perfect. Riley weighs just over 25 lbs and Kyleigh weighs just over 22 lbs. which means they are in the 90th percentile or higher on almost everything. Big babies!! They really are good babies and happy most of the time. We are truly blessed beyond measure.

As far as pets…..we are petless. We gave Molly (the cat) away about a year and a half ago when Ashleigh started getting mobile. I just couldn’t handle all the fur and cat litter. Yuk. She is in a good home in Georgia which is where she was born. Then, back in April, we had to have Bo (male clocolate Lab) put to sleep because he had cancer. It was very sad. He was such a sweet dog. And finally, the weekend before we moved to Troy we had a yard sale and found a great home for Coco (female chocolate Lab) in the process. One of our church members came to the yard sale and ended up taking home some yard sale items AND Coco. It was a blessing. They have several acres of land for Coco to run around which is just what she needs. It was great for all of us! We have been joking that we moved to Newton with 3 pets and no kids and left Newton with 3 kids and no pets. What a difference two years makes!!

So, that’s about it. I’m sure I left out something, but I think that’s plenty for you to read and digest for now. I promise I will try to update more regularly. I will try to upload some pictures soon as well.

We love you all and can’t wait to see you again soon!!!