Enjoying God's Creation

As I have stated earlier, I love fall. It is my most favorite time of the year! Yesterday, Trevor and I were able to get to experience the beautiful mountains and the gorgeous colors of fall. We had been wanting to do this for awhile and I'm so glad we didn't let time pass by and miss it. Here in Virginia we are experiencing such a beautiful fall. Living near the Blue Ridge Parkway, we are just minutes away from some of the most gorgeous views in the country! So let me share a few of them with you.

                                           

                                             The tree across the street from our house.

                                                  On our way to the Parkway.

                                    Our view to the right as we first get on the Parkway.

                      As we were driving, a song that we sang in church on Sunday,
                      Indescribable by Chris Tomlin, came to mind.
                                  Here are some of the lyrics...

                                 From the highest of heights to depths of the sea
                                 
                                 Creation's revealing Your majesty
                            

                                From the colors Fall to the fragrance of Spring
 
                                Every creature unique in the song that it sings

                                     All exclaiming.....

Indescribable, uncontainable

You placed the stars in the  sky

and You know them by name

                                                  You are amazing, God

                                                  All powerful, untamable

                             Awestruck we fall to our knees as we humbly proclaim...


                                                 You are amazing, God!

                                       As you can tell, the sun was setting and it was starting to get dark on us.
                                     We went around 4:00, after I got home from work, but with the time change it gets
                                     dark now around 5:00pm.

                                                                                 

My favorite pic! Thank you Trevor for working so hard to get this

picture! It was starting to get cold and of course I told him before we went home

I had to have a picture of the two of us! With no one else around, he managed to turn the truck around,

fix the camera on the back and get this great shot! I have an amazing husband!! Eventhough my picture

taking gets on his nerves... he still is patient with me and works hard to get great pics!

Ok, now it's getting dark, last picture before we eat!

Well, we had a great time. I SO enjoyed the time to be alone with my baby and to capture the beauty of God's creation. I hope you'll find the time to slow down and and take time to be in awe of God's greatness and his beautiful creation.

Have a blessed week!

Entering a New Phase of Life

Well, it seems a lot has taken place since my last post. I must admit I knew the month of September was going to be busy but I had no idea how exhausted I would be by the end. September was the start of several things for me . Let's see, the first week of the month the new school year started, children's choir at church began (I assist my husband), we began Financial Peace University at church on Thursday nights, and on Saturdays we began Foster/Parenting training classes from 8-4pm. Now with keeping that consistent schedule each week with school meetings and appointments thrown into the mix... WHEWW... that's a lot to do (especially for me). So, now I'm trying to get back to my "normal" life!

I guess as this month has brought many new exciting things, I wanted to write about the excitment my husband and I have about becoming foster parents. Let me say, first of all, this was not something I nor my husband had origninally planned for our lives. My husband and I have been married for ten and years and have been trying to have children for the past five . As we have dealt with infertility and have heard what the doctors have said, we began to seek God for wisdom and guidance. As I look back, God was always leading and He was always guiding... I just couldn't see it. Over the past several years, God had placed many different people into my life with different stories of being foster parents or foster/ adoptive children. As those seeds were planted, God began to speak to my heart about fostering and adoption. I have always had a love for children and I can look back over my life and see how God had been preparing me for this all along. Although  this may not have been the plan I would have originally chosen, there is nothing else I'd rather do! You see, I believe this is part of God's plan for my life... His purpose for me and I put my faith, hope, and trust in Him.  "For it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose." Philippians 2:13. 

Well, it's been a year now since my husband I officially decided that was the direction God was taking us. It has been an exciting journey, one that we're still on. We are looking forward to seeing what God's going to do and excited about meeting that hand-picked child He has for us. We just completed our first step which is attending the six training sessions. It will still be another six months before we are able to get a child. Please pray for us.. we are excited but nervous as well. Pray that God will give us wisdom as we prepare are heart and home for this child.

Blessings,

Mary Ann

Back to School

So, it's back to school time around here and that means I've gone back to work! As a teacher, back to school is something you dread at the beginning of summer and actually remove it from your mind. But as the summer goes by and the end of August aprroaches, you begin to feel a bit of excitement and anticipation stirring within. Well, at least that's the way it is for me. I get excited about planning for my next group of students and all of the fun learning we'll be doing throughout the year.

Well, along with all the excitement also comes a lot of work, especially the week before school begins. There are meetings, classroom decorating, cleaning, organizing, paperwork, lesson plans, and so on. The days are long and exhausting. With long days, it seems my home becomes the last thing on my to-do list. So this year I decided everything would be different. I would plan ahead and make sure my home was not neglected. So I did the "big" things that I thought would take me the longest. I went to the school last week and arranged my room, decorated and even did some paperwork. I thought I was doing great! I felt like I was being prepared and getting ahead of the game... ya know that makes me feel good!

Well, looking back, now that I'm halfway through my first work week I can say that somehow the work always keeps coming. As I spend time in my classroom, I realize that I forgot to do something or take care of an important task, or another teacher needs help. So, here I am, a little stressed, tired, and excited from yet again long days and nights. As I look back, I realize that there is a place for preparation. But maybe what I forgot, which is most important, is that God is in control. As I trust in Him and put Him first, He is always there.. sustainning me and giving me the strength I need and even helping fit in a little bit of time to take care of my home. Everything may not work out in my timing but somehow it all works out in the end. How awesome He is!

A New Beginning!

Well, after much thought I have finally entered the blogging world. I never thought that this would be something I would do. After all, I am a private person. I've always kept to "my business". I've not been one too "let the whole world know" what's going on in my life. But in the past few months, I have found and followed different blogs that have been encouraging, inspiring, and uplifting. And as a result, here I am. After reading several blogs, I felt the need to document my story. As uncomfortable as it may be at times, I am willing to to share in hopes of encouraging someone else and to share the joy that God has given me through this journey.