We Prayed For This..

I said this to Pete the other day and then I found myself requoting it again and again. It all started a few months ago when Cael started acting a bit more..well..dramatic.

Even though a majority of the time we see this....


We have been seeing a lot more of this lately......





But you know what we tell ourselves..."WE PRAYED FOR THIS"! Well, I guess I don't remember specifically praying for a screaming, upset baby!! This is just a part of his age right now and I'm perfectly okay with that. He gets frustrated, often and feels this is the only way to portray to us just how frustrated he is. He is a determined, persistent, strong-willed little boy..already!! But you know what, I LOVE THAT, I really do! Someone once told me "We are rasing WARRIORS" and I remind myself of this often. Thank you God for this sweet blessing!

CHURCH
Over the past 2 years, our church has been in pursuit of a new pastor. Our pastor of 10 years just really felt the LORD calling him to a different area to minister. This was a sad time for us because we really enjoyed him and his wife. We go to a very small rural church with a lot of God-fearing, Bible believing people. Pete offered to be on the Pulpit Commitee along with four other members. This has been a roller coaster of a process but yet a very refining time for us personally and as a church. We believe that this process has really shown, once again, that God's timing is PERFECT!! After nearly 24 months of going through resumes, listening to sermons, driving distances to meet potential candidates, and MUCH prayer...we have finally found the man that has been called to serve as our church's pastor!! So yes...WE PRAYED FOR THIS....and God was faithful! We are SO SO excited for him and his family to come and lead our church. We have already spent quite a bit of time with him and just feel a deep connection already. Pete loves it because he is an outdoorsmen and loves nature..which is something that my husband is quite passionate about! THANK YOU LORD JESUS FOR THIS ANSWER TO OUR PRAYERS!!

Our dog Brody AKA BroBro
Our dog Brody has been a part of our family for the past 10 1/2 years. Shortly after we got married in 2001, we decided to get a dog, more specifically a purebred Golden Retriever. We both have always loved the demeanor of Goldens and knew that they would be great with kids. We couldn't have been more spot on with that idea as we were with this dog.
About 18 months ago, which was right around the time that Cael was born, we noticed that his mobility had really decreased. He laid around most of the days and wasn't as active as he once was. He gained a lot of weight and became even less active. After our life settled with the arrival and transition of bringing Cael home, we decided to take him to the vet to see what the problem was. At that time, the vet shared that he had torn his ACL in his left leg. He offered a surgery but it was clearly something that we could not afford. So we opted to treat it with pain medication. Also at that time, the vet shared that it would probably about 18 months or so before the other knee would go due to his size and weight distribution.
About 3 weeks ago, we noticed that Brody had stopped eating his food. He even began to refuse his pain meds. We took him to the vet three different times; trying to find answers of why he wasn't eating. We found nothing. They gave us some different kinds of meds and some appetite inducers to see if that would help.. to no avail. Last weekend we knew that things did not look good for him. He couldn't stand up on his own, he couldn't get up the step into the house, and he hadn't eaten in over 2 weeks. He was weak and was clearly giving up on fighting the pain. We had to pretty much carry him (100lbs of him) out into the yard to go the bathroom.
We woke up Sunday morning and just knew that he wasn't going to last much longer. This was a really sad day for us. We brought him into the basement because it was cold and snowing. We placed a space heater near him and made him as comfortable as possible. This was one of the most heart wrenching things we have ever had to do. Pete and I didn't want this to go on forever. We knew he was in a lot of pain and that he was giving up. Dying is not an enjoyable expereinece. However...WE PRAYED FOR THIS. All day Sunday, Pete and I both found ourselves just praying that he would just go peacefully. As much as it tore our hearts out, we knew that in the end, he wouldn't be in any more pain. Pete slept in the basement with him and checked on him nearly every hour. It was early Monday morning when Brody finally passed. Again, this was a super sad experience for us. Some people say "its JUST a dog"..but it was OUR dog and he was special to us and by far the best dog any family could ask for.

This is him when he was less than a year old. Shortly after we brough him home.

From Collages

I would say he is around 2 years old here.

From Collages

This was taken a few years ago.


*sorry this blog post is lengthy, I don't get on here as often as I want so have to cram it all in one post*
One more thing...

A few months ago I began praying that God would provide an opportunity for my husband to leave his job. There are many reasons, so I won't get into them at length. Mostly, it was because he was just so stressed and bogged down with things at his job and bringing it home most nights. This just really began to wear on him and I hated seeing him like this. He is a very patient, slow to speak, wise man and this job was turning him into someone he was not. So, I began to pray, not specifially, just asking for doors to be opened. He was not out looking for opportunities but yet was open to pursuing them if they arised.
About a month ago, he was at a wrestling tournament and a random person approached him and told him of an opening at the school district that we live near. He came home that night and began the process of pursuing this oppurtunity.
So I am very pleased to share that my hubby has a new job for the 2012-2013 school year. Yep...WE PRAYED FOR THAT!! Praise God!!
He is turning in his BOBCAT gear for our home town MUSTANG gear!! He has accepted a job at the Middle School as the School Counselor and as the Assistant Football Coach at the high school.
We'll share more later, but for now we'll close up this mile long post!



Psalm 111:2
Great are the works of the LORD they are pondered by all who delight in them.