Your People Will be My People

Ruth replied, "Don't urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God. (Ruth 1:16).

While it may seem odd to be thinking of this nearly 5 months before our anniversary, it is often present in my mind due to the interesting lifestyle we have set-up for ourselves; and because I read a devotion today in regards to this very verse. Here is my adaptation of the author's thoughts (some lines are used verbatim).


It's been almost 7 years since my grand-mother stood before a crowded chapel of witnesses and read those words (Ruth 1:16), as I promised to love and honor my husband no matter what. When I made this promise, I meant it. I just didn't realize what it meant at the time. I wasn't thinking deployments, multiple careers (of mine), 7 moves in half as many years, and holidays trying to split time equally. But I would learn.
I have been learning through doing. What I promised then, I am living out now. Nearly a decade, various cities, and a child later I am learning that marriage is a committment of super glue proportions. And it's the committment that sticks even when the feelings ebb and flow. That's the beauty and courage of marriage.

Penny-pinching so you can accompany on an un-accompanied assignment. Going to family events (weddings, birthdays, graduations...) alone?
Your people will be my people.
Strange accents, foods, politics and television preferences?
Your people will be my people.
Death, divorce, and adoption?
Your people will be my people.
Trying to understand the purpose of sitting silently in the woods with a gun for an entire day?
Your people will be my people.

Because, after all, marriage is the ultimate parable, isn't it? It's the living picture of a God who looked at us in all our silly, selfish ways and then loved on us regardless, so that he could make US - His People. Amazing, crazy love. And all we have to say is, "I do."

So, now and forever, to both men in my life (God and my husband, to avoid confusion) - I DO!

(post adapted from (in)courage - http://www.incourageme.com/)

Chugga, Chugga, Choo-Choo

For those of you who do not have little boys you can't fully appreciate their fascination with trains. They love them, everything about them. They love the speed, the noise, the movement, the horns, the bells, the tracks, everything. Collin is no different.
We are very fortunate to have a train museum in Wilmington. As we embarked this morning with some friends to see the train museum I was a little nervous. It's one of those places that you know could be overrun with older folks who don't appreciate a child's energy. My fears were quickly assuaged when we got there.

It's kid friendly! There was even a play-room just for children. There was a model train that the boys could control, a wooden caboose in which they could play and toy trains galore. Then, there was an entire room of model trains set up for the boys to watch. It was wonderful. Collin and his friend had no interest in the museum part, but were quite excited when they realize there were also "real" trains on which they could play.

So, we ended our outing playing on the real trains. The boys were happy and tired as we headed to lunch. It was a good day.

Take Me Out to the Ball Game

Collin watched his first, live baseball game this weekend. He got to see The Citadel (my dad's alma mater) play Elon in the Southern Conference Tournament. It turned out to be a great day. Collin was much more immune to the elements than the adults were, but inspite of the sweat and exhausting heat we made it through almost the entire game.

Collin thoroughly enjoyed his hotdog and french fries. He's not 100% sure about boiled peanuts, since he thinks you are supposed to eat the whole thing :) He watched a few minutes of the game at a time, every few plays. he was much more interested in the food. He also was not very interested in having his picture taken, hence just one for this post.

The Citadel was not playing well and we were all roasting. Not to mention our sleepy 2 year old had had enough. So, bottom of the 9th with 2 outs we left. As we exited the stadium the place erupts with cheers. We made a mad dash to the car to find out what happened. Sure enough, with 2 outs an error by Elon's pitcher allows 3 runs, ties the game and sends it to a 10th inning and The Citadel pulls out the win. GO BULLDOGS!!!!

As a Carolina fan I should know NEVER to leave early :)

Cute Cousins

It was fun in the sun this weekend for these cute cousins.

Collin and I were so excited to have his Aunt Erika and Stella come to visit. They got in Friday and were able to stay with us until Sunday afternoon. It was a great weekend. We didn't rush to do anything. We had time to just visit and play outside - yes, the mommies went too :)
The kiddos enjoyed digging in the sand box and playing in the water.





















And posing for pictures. Ok, they didn't really enjoy posing for pictures. We had to take 10 just to get one to turn out. But they humored us every now and then. In the end they just had a great time running around and playing together.
It must have been tiring work, because at the end of the day they were exhausted.
We can't wait to see Aunt Erika and Stella again in June. We're hoping that Uncle Brian, Nana and Grandaddy will be there too. I think we'll even get to go to the zoo :)

Fun with Friends

It is definitely summer time! The temperature is rising and the water activities have started.
In a rare moment at my home it was 4 against one (God Bless you all who have more than one child). Collin was in 7th heaven. He had 3 friends spend the day with us and we all had a blast. The slip n' slide island was running, along with the plastic pool. Don't forget about the sand box and pirate fort if fingers were too pruned. The kids enjoyed diving straight into the ground in an attempt to slide through the water.
Then it was to the pool! They would kick water, dump water, put sand in the water, try to put Zach (the dog) in the water. It was great fun to watch. They definitely ran/swam off all of their energy.











Because once inside they were quiet and zoned out. It made for a wonderful day!!

Time with Papa

Collin has spent a lot of time with his Papa since we got to Florida, however this was the first trip girls were allowed to follow. So, this is the first trip that has photographs :)
Our last Saturday here we spent at the aquarium. We have visited so many times because we have a year pass. Collin loves it too :) He really enjoyed showing my dad around, since Collin is now a regular there. He pointed out all of the big fish, turtles and eels swimming in a coral reef.
Then, it was off to try to find the "hidden" fish in the tank. We saw sharks, crabs, jellyfish, Dory, Nemo and lots of other fish from the sea.










We even watched a scuba diver swim in the one of the tanks. Ok, so that show was a little disappointing and Collin could not have been less interested. It was a great day though! Collin even wore his Tampa Bay Rays hat. This is a big deal for two reasons. 1 - the Rays have the best record in franchise history, and the best record in the league, 2 - Collin never wears a hat. He always takes them right off. He is really weird about things on his head, but he loves this hat.

So, he and his Papa have matching baseball hats.

Sunset and Snow

Yes, the title says snow. There wasn't really any snow in Florida. However, when we went to the beach to watch the sun set Collin grabbed handfuls of sand, threw it in the air, and yelled, "snow!" I guess the last time he saw everything covered in white it was snowing. Just funny that this little boy from coastal Carolina, who only sees snow once a year and sees sand way more, thought the beach was snow. I'm sure everyone standing around thought this little boy was from way up north and seeing a sand covered beach for the first time. Too funny.

It was, however, a great end to a wonderful day. We concluded our fun-filled day of shopping with dinner at sunset on the beach. It was beautiful and good for the soul.