It's Friday! A Week Review In Pictures

I'll start this post off by telling you that I've met an AMAZING friend this week.

Her name is Kylee....which confuses me every time I say it because it's like meshing my 2 brothers names together... Kyle and Lee...but not really... but I keep wanting to say it that way. I'm sure she hates this! ha! :)

ANYWAYS, She really is amazing and I am so glad my friend Holleigh introduced us.

She is originally from Ohio and moved out with her husband this past Summer.

It's nice to have another friend here who understands how hard it can be to live so far away from family.

So.... Here's Her Blog: Ramblings of a heart learning to love and how to blossom 

Go, NOW, and check out her really cute Clutch she just made! (I saw it in person and it really is as cute as it is in the pictures!)

Now, on to my very CRAZY week:

Sunday night we had our very first meeting about the Beautiful Mess in the basement we will be meeting at to do outreach...did that sentence even make since?   This whole Beautiful Mess stuff should have had it's own post but man when do I have the time...something HUGE is going on this week...

 Do you know what happens if you leave a one-year-old alone in a room with baby wipes??

Well, this is what mine does:

 Every. Single. Time. Why do I keep leaving them where she can get them??

 So, This HUGE thing that's been going on this week...and the surprise I talked about last Friday, HERE is that we are MOVING!!  Just to another place in the same area...it just has a back yard, dishwasher, bonus room (for the girls toys and guest to stay), and two bathrooms!!!! Which we don't have ANY of those things in the house we are living in now....well, I mean, we have a bathroom, just not 2. ;) So, this week every day I've been loading up my car with boxes and taking them to the new house.  I'll do a moving post soon and post more pictures.

Box tunnels are the best!

Brooke, Breanna, and Maribel

Look! Our closet is CLEAN!

 Seriously, I LOVE these pictures! I love these girls so much.

 (Don't let all these pictures fool you, they do fight a lot too!)

Yesterday morning we met one of Deci's friends from school at a local indoor gym to play.

Since Brooke is here visiting us in Oregon at the Moment, I'll leave you with a post (click HERE) from the past about the one and only Brooke and I'm thinking maybe I should get her to potty train Journey while she's here. 

And, I'll leave you with this picture.  I've never been a fan of BIG sunglasses but there is just something about Oregon that makes me feel like I can branch out...what do ya think?

Haha! These are Breanna's that she got at Forever 21 for like $2.  I think I need some! Kerrie would be proud!

Wow, That was packed FULL! Happy Friday Everyone!

The start of Q and A

When I think back to when I met Q it's hard for me to remember all the details.  Our lives over the years have meshed so well together into one life.  I honestly can't remember when we first met.  Oh, I remember when I first had feelings for him...  I just don't remember meeting Q. It's probably because we went to school together in this small town in Alabama.  One of my best friends at the time went to Church with Q and so there is a chance I met him there.  One thing I know for sure, the first time I wrote about Q in my journal was 

April 17th, 1997.

It's just a sentence with his name in it about this friend of mine going to his car to eat because her brother and Q were best friends.

  

Q's not mentioned again in my Journal until July 9, 1997 we were at the same house swimming.  I wrote: "I would like Quinton except _______ and him are kind of going out."  He called me Lee's little sister and I joked with him about being Wades big brother.  

On July 21, 1997 we went on the same church beach retreat.  When I think back in my memory of when I had a crush on Q it was this trip.  He mentioned one day about liking bell bottoms and I just so happened to have some on the trip.  So of course I wore my bell bottom pants that night! Why in the world did I own a pair of bell bottoms in 1997?

Church beach retreat. My friend Joseph, Q, Mandy and Me.

Aug 9th, 1997 I wrote in my Journal about how a bunch of us girls got together and called a bunch of guys to ask them to the movies...not really as a date...just a bunch of friends.

I called Q and he said yes but I don't believe he had any idea that I liked him.

The next few months we became best friends.  He would come pick me up and we would meet a group of friends over at the First Baptist Church to play basketball.  He would talk to me about his girl problems.

Sometime early 1998 he asked me to go to prom with him as friends and I said yes but shortly after he started dating one of my friends.  I thought it was only fair that they go to prom together.

Are you wondering where this is going?? Well...

March 8th, 1998... 14 years ago

Q asked me if I would go with him to help plan a date for him and his girlfriend to go ride horses in Mentone, AL.  I know, I know, dumb idea.  Keep in mind that I was 15 at this point and he was 17.

I had no idea if he liked me or not so I figured if I couldn't date him than at least I could be his best friend...so not fair to the other girl.  I was immature, okay!

ANYWAYS, so we ended up driving out to Mentone, AL.

We went to see waterfalls, we found a Frisbee on a roof and Q held me up to get it so we could throw the frisbee around.  We went hiking in the woods and stopped to sit on some rocks and talked about life.

We didn't hold hands or kiss or anything...we just got to know each other better.

He told me later that is when he knew he loved me.  He ended up breaking up with his girlfriend.

Ohhh, horrible, I know!  Geez, Audrey!  

(For some reason I don't have anything recorded for the month of March 1998 in my journal. It would have been nice to have more details but I do remember it well.)

So he ended up asking me out...I'm not sure if it was this night or not but it seems like when we talked about when we started dating, we always said this date.  I did end up going to prom with him.

And that, my friends, is just the beginning! 

It would take WAY too long to explain the next 7 years that we dated...

We got married 2005, had Deci 2007, Journey 2010, and here we are in Oregon 2012! :)

The whole point of this post was to celebrate today. March 8th, 2012.

It's been 14 wonderful years. Almost 1/2 my life I've been with this man and he's made my life SO much better! Go check his blog out! :)

It's FRIDAY: A Week Review in Pictures

and something NEW....

Today, along with the picture review for the week,

I'm going to introduce you to one of the blogs that I follow:

My friend, Bryan over at:

bryan-bigdreams.blogspot.com/

If you are into photography or writing, you will LOVE his blog. 

Last Friday Deci decided to take her Bike out for a spin around the block.  I can't wait until the weather gets better and we can do this more.  She's getting really good...maybe this Summer we can even try without training wheels.

 Saturday morning we went to an indoor yard sale at a local church.  All proceeds went to help the high school group go on a mission trip over spring break.  I found this pillow! $1

 Saturday afternoon Q took Deci out to Chuck E Cheese while Journey and I napped. He called at 3:30pm saying she threw up all over the mall floor.  He brought her home and it got bad.  She was throwing up every 10 minutes the first 2 hours so we decided to take her to Urgent Care.  As we got in the car I got sick...in the car.  I know, YUCK! They ended up giving us both medicine.  Q took this picture below:

LOVELY. :) We got home at 8 and went straight to bed waking up off and on all night.  At 3am Q comes in saying that Journey is throwing up.  I was so weak at this point I could hardly move.  Q seriously was SUPER Dad and SUPER Husband. Breanna ended up getting it also but we are all feeling better now! :) We ended up spending the whole week inside though and it was quite a Looooooong week.

Deci wanted to make blanket forts.

Painting!

Below: Pond and the Sun, Apple Tree with Pink Latter, A Monster.

We got this book below in the mail this week from Uncle Wade and Aunt Kerrie!

Deci loves it and I think there is one for Journey on it's way.

We woke up to SNOW one morning!

Deci was so excited.  For some reason she thinks it's Christmas every time it snows. :)

Outtakes from A Photo (or two) an Hour:

This little girl has been working on 4 teeth coming in at once for about 2 weeks now! Yes 4! I think 2 of them are completely in now but 2 are still barely showing through. She has been really fussy lately...especially on this day.  She also decided to draw on the floor...and her foot.

Also, on Fridays, I'm going to start adding A Post From my Past link since I went almost 2 years of not posting on my blog I thought I would give you a chance to read some of my favorite blogs from my past. :) Here's the first one: What to do with a toddler on a Cold or Rainy Day.  This post was over 2 years ago and it reminded me of this past week. Being Sick, Snow, and finding creative things to do inside.  This week (not pictured) we also got out shaving cream to play with on the table. 

 I would love to hear from you what you do with your kids inside when you can't get out.

One Year Ago

Where do I start... I've been excited about writing this post for some time now...we've made it a year away from Alabama.  I don't guess I ever doubted that we wouldn't but all the same it feels like a huge accomplishment just to survive here so far away from our friends and family. January 9, 2011 my husband drove me, the girls and my mom to a hotel close to the Birmingham airport to spend the night.  The next morning we got on a plane and flew to California to stay with my cousin for a few nights. Q and the rest of the crew didn't leave for a few more days but they eventually met up with us in California.  On January 15th, we made it to Oregon. 

I'm not even sure how to recap a year of living here.  It's not always easy but it's not always been hard either.  We've each had our own struggles to overcome but in the process we are learning to seek God's guidance.  It's been really neat watching God place everyone in Jobs and in communities where they can minister to people.  My husband got a job in June working with the homeless.  We are also getting involved in different churches in the community.  We aren't a part of starting a church plant yet but I feel (pray, hope, believe) that it's going to be soon.  That process has been slow here and sometimes it can make us feel like failures. I have not once doubted whether we are suppose to be here.  I honestly have a peace about it and with that peace I know that God has a plan.  Our friends told us that it would take us a year just to get to know the culture here. So we now have a years worth of knowledge about this culture.  We have lived this year just loving on people...loving on our neighbors. 

Below is a picture of our Crash Team from Alabama.

 

from left to right: Luis, Q, Journey, Me, Deci, Derrick, Breanna, Holleigh, and Alec. Photo by: Alec Woodward 

Not in the picture: Jeff, Richie, Sharee, and Zach.

These guys really are like family now.  Most...well all of them but Richie and Sharee, have lived with us at one point. We are so blessed to have a team here.  It would have been so much harder to live here without them.  We meet every Monday night at our house for Bible Study. It's so encouraging to hear their stories each week of what God is doing in their lives.

Last night we had the team over to celebrate Breanna coming back!

I want to thank all of you back in Alabama. Our friends and family. People who support us financially and by praying. We are so Thankful for you!! Living here would be so much harder if we had family that didn't support us. It would be so much harder if we didn't have the extra financial support because I wouldn't get to stay at home with my girls or Q would be spending less time with us and have to work a second job. It would be hard if we didn't have people praying and sending us encouraging text, emails and phone calls just to say they are thinking of us. I can't say it enough but THANK YOU!! We miss all of you in Alabama! That is the biggest sacrifice for me...to be away from you all.  But I know it is worth it. I'm living in the most un-churched area in the united states. I know God has called us here to love on people and show them His love. 

Flashback...

All of these pictures, except the last one, are from last year in October....2008 Flashback...

This first one is when Deci got her Cow for her birthday from Josh and Marcie. She was so excited!

Riding in her "Big Girl" car seat for the first time!

She was a cat...it's kinda hard to tell from this picture.

Our one year old...Wow, time flies!

Happy Halloween!!!!