Sunday Review

On Friday, the girl at the deli counter probably gave me a funny look.

While she was slicing my mesquite turkey, I was checking Instagram. I follow a comedian named John Crist, and one of his pictures made me laugh out loud. I immediately looked around - not because I was wondering who saw me laughing - but because I wanted to see somebody I knew so I could show them why I was laughing.

I wanted to share it.

I like how good things are not diminished when we share them. They are multiplied. (Conversely, hard things - sad things - are not multiplied when we share them. They are eased, but I'll save that discussion for another post).

Sharing some of my good things (hoping that in sharing mine, you'll think back on your week and remember yours) is one of the reasons I blog. My weeks certainly aren't all smiles and roses, and I share that part of my life here, too. But I rarely need help remembering what's hard about my life. That usually screams pretty loud and clear. Because it's so loud, it can drown out the melody of all that has brought me joy during a week. I'm typically surprised when I look back over my pictures on my cell phone at a week's end. I see a snapshot and go, "Oh yes! That was this week! That was fun...or good, delightful, hilarious, nice, happy, etc..."

And delightful is the word I'd use to describe our night at Morsel's Java Jam Celebration. Unlimited desserts and good music? Uhmmm... yes, please.

Grace and Mary Grace - lifelong friends enjoying the festivities

Issak and Faith were part of the musical entertainment

This chalkboard is near the java area in our house, and I caught myself glancing at it more these past few days.

I first read this quote on my niece, Angela's,  Instagram - it was one of her "take-aways" from her week at family camp.  It spoke to me, so I had my Elizabeth work a little chalk magic before she left for school in Fayetteville. Looking at it actually served two purposes. It reminded me of good truth and my good, off-at-college Elizabeth, who we kind of, really miss - a lot and a bunch.

As I write this post on an 83 degree Sunday afternoon at the end of October, it's hard to believe we've had cool enough weather for this:

Actually, I think it was only in the low 60's when we did this, but our Mary Grace pleaded for it, and we caved to the begging of the baby of the family like all parents tend to do.

This week also brought some much needed cleaning out of some cracks and crevices. I found a couple of treasures.

First, this school picture of David.

Poor, adorable guy.

I'm glad he grew into those teeth:)

Second, I found the invitation to an Open House my parents had when they built their new house back in 1969. I don't remember seeing this before, and I really liked the peek-a-boo action they employed on the invite.

"WynRea" (pronounced Win Ray), was the name of our home and land in Munford, TN.  I always thought how they came up with the name and how they decided to write it was so clever. Dad's full name was Hugh Wynn Vaughan. Mom's full name was Violet Marea Petty. They took the first three letters of Dad's middle name, and the last three letters of Mom's middle name and combined them.

WynRea

When my man and I built our house, I tried to do just the same with our names.

Louis Blan Harris

Shelley Marea Vaughan

"BlaRea" 

"Blah Ray,"    "Blay Ray,"    "Blah Ree ah,"    "Blah Ray,"    "Blay Ree"

Oh, dear. No matter how we accented and pronounced that syllable combination, it just did not work. Like, seriously, did not work. So, we say something that is not original, but more pleasing to the ears. We call our home and land, "Home."

Ignore the scribbled "Z" at the top

A couple of other treasures were shown to me by my cousin, who my sister and I enjoyed visiting this month. She showed us this quilt block my grandmother had made and signed.

And she gave us these pictures of my mother which I'd never seen before. Treasures, indeed.

One of her engagement poses

Mom, her brother, Elvis, and sister, Ruth

A week is always better when I get to take walks with my favorite guy. We were on the tail end of a 5 mile loop when he graciously agreed to sit down on the sidewalk to get just the angle I wanted for this picture.

I like this picture of us

We also sat down at a really fun wedding that showcased a couple of ideas I had not seen before. The guestbook consisted of a bench and a Bible!

I underlined Romans 8:38-39, which is the reference we had engraved on the inside of Lou's wedding ring.

Speaking of rings, do they give those out to the winners of The World Series? Can you tell who I'm rooting for?

And, speaking of the end,  I can think of no better way to do that than with some pictures of the fall beauty we've been enjoying here. It has been breathtaking and stunning and I'm grateful for eyes to see it.

Thanks so much for stopping by.

Many blessings to you as you begin a new week!

Flashback Friday

My high school daughter came home from school yesterday saying tonight was "Senior Night" at the football game. At the last regular season game of the year, the seniors and their parents are recognized.

It's one of the many little "good-byes" you experience when you've got a senior.

My very first senior night was at a football game - a very similar Friday night back in 2007.

A couple of fellow senior moms: Peggy Curts, [me], Kim Stanek

Luke and Lou

Those were some fun and nerve-wracking days. Luke, among other things, was kickoff and punt returner. My stomach would be in knots every time those plays had to happen. Talk about a praying woman! First it was, "Catch the ball. Catch the ball. Catch the ball." That morphed to "Hold on to the ball. Hold on to the ball. Hold on to the ball." By this time my body is contorting as he was weaving and bobbing his way down the field and I was screaming, "Go Luke, Go!!!"

I was completely annoying to sit by, I'm sure.

But I still have no apologies  - I am my kids' biggest fan.

I'm also Lou's biggest fan, and he - much more recently - turned 55.

Birthday dinner with dear friends

We were in Minneapolis, MN, for a conference on his festive day. Being in a big city means you get to see some new and different things - like a building with music notes all over it and a wedding party getting their picture taken in front of it. 

and a very sweet lab - like a yogurt lab. Something tells me if the Periodic table was all about frozen yogurt, people would take a little more interest in it.

So clever.

We celebrated another birthday this month - a big one. Miss Mary Grace turned 16.

And while part of me still may want her to be putzing around in a Cozy Coupe, time and trucks wait for no mama, and she is doing her thing in her Papa Hugh's 87 Dodge Dakota.

She's also been doing her thing on the tennis court. She and her fellow Lady Liberators had a great season. A good group of young ladies led by a couple of good coaches.

If you put that 55 year old and that 16 year old together in a garage with an old Mazda that has a bad stereo, it will soon be fixed. Music is muy importante to those two.

Speaking of a very important thing - a bike ride comes to mind. A bike ride on a very beautiful fall day. A bike ride on a very beautiful fall day with very dear friends.

Very important, indeed.

Also important and completely delightful is seeing this girl around.

I loved the way her hair looked here and made her  "hold still" for a pic.
She humored me.

 Our Faith is attending Southwest Baptist University so we see her every once in a while.











She made our night by asking if her fellow "jumpers" from the track team could come over for dinner. A full table with good conversation and laughter was a highlight of our week.

It's been good to sit down - slow down - and remember the joys I've documented here.

I hope you take the time to do the same in your world. Look back through the pictures you've taken on your phone this past month. You have some things to smile about. To thank God for.

Thanks for smiling along with me as I "flashbacked."

Blessings to you and yours!

Flying, Growing, Helping

When I was younger, I had some thoughts about how I would act and what I would say when I got older. One thing I used to get tired of was "old" people talking about was how fast time flies. Another  popular topic with the "elderly" was how much a child had grown. I felt if you talked about those topics with some frequency, you were officially old.

I am officially old. Time is flying. I mean, really flying. How is it possible that it is April already! And when I see young people that I haven't seen in a while,  I can't help but remark about how much they've grown.

Somebody help me!!!

I also annoy myself when I talk about how old I'm getting. Why do any of us do that? If we can talk about that, we're alive, for crying out loud. God has given your heart another day to beat. Quit commenting about how old you're getting - like that is some terrible thing - and live the moments you have to the glory of God and do something good in this world!!

I'm wondering if you can tell I'm preaching to myself today!

Today - which is a gift from God intended for His glory and our good. And He's given us all kinds of interesting things to fill those days. No day is ever the same, is it? God knew that would drive us all crazy. So, we have this rhythm of daily highs and lows juxtaposed to a relationship with a faithful unchanging God, who loves us and gave himself for us.

He so knows what we daily need and promises to help.

He's helped me this past month.

He's helped through the highs and the lows. Sometimes I wonder about when you look at my InstaFridays (or in this case, InstaSunday) that it mostly looks like I live in the "highs," but you know I have my share of "lows," right? I just typically don't feel like taking a picture of those. Who does?

God sees them, though and helps me with them. I'm very real with God - a "no holds barred" kind of pray-er. Believe me, he hears about my lows. I also have a kind husband and dear friends who often see and often hear about my lows too, and they help me with them. I know God helps you, too.

On the good note of God's help, I'll move on into my InstaFriSatSun pics. Even though it's been about a month (again!) since I last posted, I'll spare you a month's worth of pictures, and just hit the last week or so.

A dear sister-in-law, niece, great niece and great nephew came for a brief visit. I happened upon this snuggle time between 2 year old Naomi and our Elizabeth.

Want to know a delightful way to spend 24 hours? Head to a weekend retreat with 4 people you love dearly. Like 4 amazing daughters.

Mary Grace, Hannah, me, Elizabeth, Faith

At our Measureless Love retreat, we were encouraged to write verses on this strip of black paper that covered one wall. Elizabeth wrote this, which I immediately recognized as one of Lou's favorite verses. She didn't know it was a favorite of her dad's when she wrote it, but she does now.

We've started the beginning of the end with my senior, Elizabeth. The annual Rotary dinner where seniors who have excelled academically are recognized was Monday. She smiled purty when I told her to.  :)

Tuesday was "get the dog bathed" day. I love our dog, Kiowa, everyday, but I love, love, love her when she is fresh from the groomers.

At the beginning of soccer season, I had what I thought was such a school spirit filled idea. I was gonna post a clever picture every game day on Instagram that was a "Go Liberators! Beat (insert opponent here)!" kind of deal. I was hoping to have a little fun and elicit an eye roll or two from my kiddos. I posted this one on Monday:

I liked it ok, mainly because not too much of me was showing and it was funny and fierce. Such a deadly combination.

On Tuesday, we were scheduled to play Logan-Rogersville, which is usually abbreviated  LogRog. This was all I could come up with on Tuesday.

It seemed a bit lame instead of clever, and the whole vibe was not as fierce looking as the above eye picture. And I could not come up with a catchy caption! So, I'm saving the school spirit for the game and sparing the Instagram world of my lameness...

Speaking of Instagram, I hoped I helped everybody who follows me avoid the little phone adventure we had at our house this week. Our Faith took a fun bike ride to the park.  She went there with her phone, but unbeknownst to her,  she didn't leave there with it. Thankfully, she didn't have her phone on silent, but on a loud obnoxious ring, which, when we heard it right before we found it, was not loud and obnoxious, but music to our ears!

And now,  her "Find my iPhone" is on instead of off.

Our family enjoyed a walk down memory lane this week when my sister-in-law, Dona, brought home a bunch of vintage pictures she came across while visiting other family in Tulsa. The kids' main comment was how weird it was to think that their dad was ever really that little. Here he is in the early '60's with his older brother.

So adorable.

Mike and Lou

Those pictures sparked a bit of a kick to look at other old pics, and Dona and I ran across this from September 1994.

Me and Dona Ann

Here, I'm 6 1/2 months pregnant with Faith, and my sister-in-law, Dona,  is 8 months pregnant with her second son. To this day, I have yet to see anyone who was bigger than her at term.

This past Thursday was National Sibling Day, and since we were in old picture mode, I used my phone to take another picture of an old picture and posted this of me and my siblings.

I told my girls it's the only belly shirt they'd ever see me wear.

Keith, Hugh, Andy
Me, Kathy

Thursday was also "eat out at The Tea Garden Cafe and be served by the best waitress around" day. Well, it was that day in our family, at least.

Mom, Faith, Dona

We ended the week with how we spent most of this week - at soccer. The Lady Liberators played 6 soccer games in 7 days - which means I watched 6 soccer games in 7 days. I know they are tired because I am tired. We've had a great start to the year, and are having a blast. I'm especially proud (and sentimental) about the senior girls. They are a tight group and are leading well.

Elizabeth, Emma, Shelby, Jessica

I think those girls would say these last couple of months are flying by, but they are squeezing all the joy they can out of them.

Let's do the same this week. Time is flying. Kids are looking older, but there's lots of joy to be squeezed.

And a great big, loving God to help.

Blessings to you and yours!

InstaFriday. Ok, InstaSaturday. Ok, InstaMonth.

Lawzee! It's been a month of Sundays since I last posted.

I'm catching up and catching my breath!

What did the last month look like through the lens of my cell phone (and, I must confess a few pics from my real camera)? Well, appropriately enough, it's mostly full of sweet and sassy females, since those are who live in our house right now.  Makes you want to say, "Lord, give Lou strength," doesn't it?

I think we keep him smiling most of the time. Hope a pic or two to follow brings a smile to your face!

As is her custom, our Elizabeth is snapping pics left and right and often grabs somebody to join her. I found this on my phone's lock screen one day.

I love her - and I think she has pretty eyes.

These next couple of months will probably be "Elizabeth heavy." She's my senior, so we're in last hurrah mode. This was our last time to play in one of my favorite venues in Springfield, MO. Central High School's "The Pit" is definitely from the old days, but aside from the really uncomfortable bleachers, I love it.

The girls in green were there to cheer our favorite Lady Liberator on.

Dona (Lou's sister),  Erin (good friend), and yours truly

Our last regular season home game is "Senior Night." The seniors are escorted by their parents as a brief bio is read about them and their future plans. All the girls, including Elizabeth, ended theirs with words about "marrying the man of my dreams and living happily ever after."

After the introductions, we got to watch a little basketball. Nobody is more pesky on defense than our girl.

Ok. This next picture is hilarious.

Did somebody throw frowning powder over the crowd?

Even Hannah and Alex, the happy newlyweds, aren't smiling

Our local radio station interviews each of the senior girls after the game. A fun little perk of a small town and a locally owned radio station.

I have no words for that bun...

Come Sundays, words that remind me of life giving truth get flashed before my eyes. So very, very grateful for that weekly reminder.

Good thing He doesn't, because I sure do.

Sunday nights this winter, Elizabeth, Mary Grace and teammates have been kicking around the soccer ball.

Indoors.

Mercifully, comfortably, indoors during this long arctic winter we've had.

Hannah, Elizabeth, Grace, Brionna, Mary Grace, Julianne

With Luke living in LA now, I totally rely on my phone for glimpses of him. The couple I've gotten this month are just a tad different. An aspiring actor needs to rock completely different looks, right? Love, love that boy either way.

Via text 

Sweet words from sister to brother are pretty precious, too.

One of the highlights of late February was heading to Colorado Springs to attend the graduation of our Faith from Discipleship Training School with YWAM (Youth With a Mission). We had to wait till 5 pm to see her the day we arrived, so we enjoyed a hike at the beautiful Garden of the Gods.

We weren't the only ones enjoying the banner weather in the Garden. This is just a little too ambitious for my blood.

The YWAM graduation was a worship experience - encouraging and convicting. To observe the passion of young people on fire for God and to hear their testimonies is powerful. God is alive and at work!

Faith made lifelong friends

While in The Springs (do I sound like a native?), we stay with some lifelong friends of our own. And boy, do they know how to spoil ya. Nothing like a little Ghiradelli chocolate on your pillow. Thanks, Don and Naomi, and Darrell and Denise!

Once home, Faith shared some Lebanese coffee with us. A little thicker than I typically like, but good in a different, I'm-gonna-try-to-like-it kind of way.

Grandma is very glad Faith's home

I have to include this next picture because it is so, so typical - especially on Sunday afternoons. Sunday afternoons were created for guilt free napping. Add the warm sum streaming in on a cold winter day, and oh my. Heaven on earth.

And I'm not the only one who thinks so.

Sneaky Mary Grace snapped this;)

This past month Lent began, which means one of my favorite decorations came out. I need the reminder that all the joy and grace on this earth and all that is promised me forever came at a very, very high price.

Got this from Ann Voskamp. See "A Holy Experience." 

And as we approach Easter, we are finally starting to see this! Spring has sprung!

Doing a little spring cleaning this past week, I found this. How I thank God for Elisabeth Elliot. She is one of my spiritual mothers. I wrote her once, and she wrote me back and included her autograph and her prayer. These are at least 20 years old. I treasure them.

My man and I had a date this past Wednesday and hit Zio's Italian Kitchen. You get crayons there so you can put important stuff on the paper that covers their tables.

I follow Jon Acuff on twitter and Instagram (and you should too…so funny and motivating). He instagrammed this new Legacy app. It's a countdown to important events and its goal is to remind you to make the most of your limited time with the ones you love. I like it.

At this point, if you're familiar with my family, you might have noticed that one kid is missing from this little "catch up" post. I noticed, so I texted our David and said, "Hey! I've forgotten what you look like! Send me a pic!

Here's what I got.

What a completely adorable goofball. Love him and miss him.

Whew! I'm done, and I feel slightly caught up. Thanks for coming along for my Instamonth. Hope you smiled a little and were encouraged. Encouraged to stop, and remember the ones in your life that you'd fill your InstaFridays with.

Let's thank God for the incredible gifts they are. None of the people who God has us traveling this earth with are always easy or convenient, but then, neither are we. We're all beautiful messes, so let's give each other a lot of grace!

Blessings to you!