Why We Love Our Whitey Titey

We've had our dog Titan now for 3 years. Those first few months were pretty rough, but he has turned out to be a pretty great dog. Here are 15 reasons why we love Titan so much:

1. Intelligent expression - we can tell what he's thinking

2. His big brown eyes will melt your heart

3. He knows the names of all of his toys and can bring them to you on command

4. He's a great cuddler and he sleeps right in the middle

5. Titan never gives up with bringing you his toys - even when told "no play" over and over again

6. He's a great walking partner and can even make it 3 miles on a cool day

7. He does a great impression of Billy Idol

8. He always wants to be with people and he loves to give kisses

9. Titan can chase ducks like a pro, right up until they hit the water - then he runs away

10. He cleans the kitchen floor better than a mop

11. He can balance a treat on his nose until given permission to eat it

12. Titan loves to "go on a trip" and is a great traveler

13. He's had as many surgeries as Jeremy and Hannah put together

14. His black and white coat makes him the perfect gentlemen

15. Titan's gas can clear a room quicker than a fire drill

Last but not least, he's going to be a great big brother to our new baby - due June 21st!

A Tribute to the Swellest of Sweaters

Today I pulled a long-lost friend out of my closet - a sweater that I bought when I was a junior in high school. This year, my sweater is celebrating its tenth birthday. I've gone through a lot of sweaters over the years, but this is one that I just haven't been able to part with.  (I'm wearing it today so that I can rationalize keeping it yet another year).  Call it nostalgia, call it pride, but I hope to hold on to this sweater for many more years to come.  I remember buying it with my own money at the West Town Mall Abercrombie (before Abercrombie was associated with nude models).  I remember loaning it to friends because they too thought it was a cool sweater.  I remember wearing it to class at Lipscomb.  I have a distinct memory of my friend Laura wearing it at Winterfest.  It still carries the faint scent of Country Apple body splash from Bath & Body Works.  Sadly, I don't get to wear many sweaters in Montgomery, AL.  Our winters are very short here.  But on this day, I will wear my sweater and smile at the memories.  

Bitter into Sweet

I'm in a Bible study that meets on Wednesday mornings.  This year, we are studying the Life of Moses.  At first I wasn't too thrilled with this topic, seeing that the study lasts 32 weeks.  But I have been amazed at how much God is teaching me through a man that was born almost 3500 years ago.  This week, our study had the neatest application.  

After 430 years of slavery in Egypt, the Israelites have just escaped and crossed through the Red Sea.  They celebrate God's miracles and praise Him with song and dance.  But just three days after these events, they have already forgotten God's amazing provision and deliverance!  As they begin their journey through the desert, the drinking water they find is bitter and the grumbling and complaining begins (only forty years to go!)  And then . . . God works the most perfect miracle.  He took the bitter water and turned it in to something sweet - a water so sweet that two million people and their animals could have their fill!

Isn't that just like God?  He can take the most bitter of circumstances and transform them to something beautiful and sweet.  Of course this story reminded me our our miscarriage last March.  We had every reason to feel bitter and angry.  But instead, He worked a miracle in our hearts and lives.  He turned the bitter into sweet!

Right after working this miracle, God tells the Israelites that He is Jehovah-Ropheka, "I am the LORD who heals you."  What a gift of grace that we have a God who heals us!  He restores beauty for ashes, gladness for mourning, and praise for despair.  Jeremy and I have experienced this healing in our hearts, and we are so thankful for His gracious care of us.  He has led us through green pastures and beside quiet waters.  Not because we deserve it, but because that's who He is - Jehovah-Ropheka! It's not always easy to be joyful in difficult circumstances, but His track record of faithfulness is 100%.  It's pretty hard for me to doubt when I remember that!

Nashville and a New Hair Cut

Jeremy and I had a great time in Nashville this past weekend with his family. We arrived just in time to see our 9-month-old nephew, Jon Harper, in the neighborhood Halloween parade. On Saturday, we had a family breakfast and I later helped Nola make pumpkin pies. Nola also took me to see Becca Bean. Becca is a friend of the Vest family who cuts hair on the side. She's given me my last two hair cuts. I was grateful to get some thinning action going on - Thanks Becca Bean :) On Saturday evening, we ate at the Germantown Cafe in downtown Nashville to celebrate Johnathan finishing his doctorate. While leaving the restaurant, both Jeremy and his brother made eye contact with Sheryl Crow! We enjoyed the worship service at Harpeth Hills and then posed in front of the Vest house for a family picture. I am very thankful to be apart of the Vest Family!