So here we are in Florida again. Fun, fun.

Actually, Hubby is here on business and I’ve just tagged along with the family. We’re having a great time on the weekends though.

We’re spending a lot of time at the beaches. Last weekend we drove from Pensacola to Mobile, AL and took Nyomi and Zoe to the Exploreum. Now that was a lot of fun. We’ll have to get pictures of that soon.

On a personal note, I have quite a few things going on.

First of all, I’m going through some metamorphosis. My body is changing, or attempting to get back to normal (that’s the “body after baby” syndrome) and I’m not liking the amount of time it’s taking to get back to the way it was…and I wonder if it ever will. So there’s a little insecurity there, but I’m working through it.

Secondly, my hormones must be going mad because I keep tearing up over nothing. It’s just one of those things I suppose that we women have to deal with in life. I certainly don’t want it to affect my family, though…so that’s another thing in my life I’m having to keep in check.

Thirdly, I’m going through a business transition. I have part of hte answer already about what I am to do with Faith Media, and it may take some time to get things settled, so I took down the website. I’m putting a hold on all techie coaching and product info. Everything WAHM University related is also on hold.

Fourthly, I’m finally doing something I ALWAYS wanted to do. I’m writing my 1st book!

Well, it’s not my first book in actuality. I’ve written several manuscripts and novels since I was a kid until now. Many of them I’ve lost over the course of moving and what not. I’m finally writing a non-fiction book which I intend to have published.

I can’t say much more about it right now, but I will in due time.

Okay, off to bed.

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Wow…I’m 31 today.

Thank you, Jesus for giving me life, health, strength and a beautiful family.

I am grateful to all that You’ve done for me.

Thank you, family, for being my backbone, my support, my joy and my reason for keeping on every day of my life.  To my husband, for being my best friend and loving me for all that I am and despite all that I am not.  To my daughter Nyomi for bearing with me as I strive daily to be a godly momma, teach her, and love her.  To my baby girl, Zoe, for giving me many moments of joy and contentment as I watch her blossom and grow.

Thank you, friends, for being my prayer partners, my confidantes…

Thank you, partners in the ministry, for being ready and available to serve God with me and support other Christian women around the globe.

Heading out to Red Lobster in a bit…

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Notice anything different?

Yep, I’ve changed the look of my blog yet again.

The older template just wasn’t working for INternet Explorer, and of course I never test it in Explorer because I’m a Firefox user.

Well someone (actually my husband) pointed out to me recently that one had to scroll midway down the page to begin reading my posts and I had no clue how to fix that in the old template…

so here we are. On to new and better things.

I hope it proves more organized and easier to navigate too…

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Our trip to Orlando was crazy and fun!

I can’t even believe we went to Disney World, after so many years of talking about it..but we finally did it.

So we arrived on Sunday, April 27th by plane…and Delta lost my luggage at the airport. Don’t know what happened and we’re going through the claims process even now…but I had packed away our whole life just about in that one suitcase (my stuff, and the kids’). All of our summer/spring stuff was in there - shorts, shirts, designer dresses, perfume, hats, shoes, bathing suits, underwear and socks — EVERYTHING… not to mention some other pretty important items like cameras, a Video Now Jr., my daughter’s special Strawberry Shortcake doll that she’s slept with every night since she was 2, and my most favorite study bible of all time.

All gone, just like that.

What’s up, Delta?

But moving on…

We had a great time that week regardless of the setback. We ended up at Walmart for a good bit of that Sunday after arriving to get more clothes, camera, shoes, and basic necessities that were in the bag which was lost.

Well we slept on it…it was going to be okay. We stayed at the Shades of Green resort , which was relaxing…so I got better quickly.

Monday morning we got up, boarded our rental SUV and set toward Sea World after eating at Olive Garden. We spent the whole day there and got to see Shamu!

 And here we are with little Zoe fast asleep…

A little water fun…

Sea World was a ton of walking. Walk, walk, walk. With no shuttles or lifts to transport you around the huge campgrounds you’re really glad to have strollers for the kids and wish you had one for yourself.

Day 2 we set out for Magic Kingdom at Disney World. This is where Nyomi had her most fun. she enjoyed dressing up like Aurora and getting a princess makeover at the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique. (Pictures coming soon).

She also got to take pictures with Belle at storytime by the castle. (picture coming soon).

There were so many attractions there. She loves the Merry go Round, visiting Minnie’s house and hanging out in Pooh’s playground.

We also hung around a bit at Epcott Center where she rode on a spaceship thingie with Fabien. Zoe and I just strolled around in the sun and I grabbed cheese filled pretzel. Fattening but good.

AFter her makeover we attended the big show (I can’t remember what it’s called) but it’s the main attraction of Magic Kingdom.

The next day (Day 3), we missed breakfast for sleeping in too late, but drove out toward Tampa to Busch Gardens.

Now THAT was my favorite place. There, we got to see attractions like Jungala, wild animals, the African “safari”, a cool show with African dancers…and we even rode the cable cars high above so we could see the view below. It was breathtaking!

There were face paintings, drummers, and lots of cultural sites to behold. Not to mention the variety of artistic shops set up to sell native African garb.

Nyomi rode on the bumper cars there with Fabien, but she didn’t like that her car was actually being “bumped”

Not to worry, her daddy made sure little Princess stayed clear of all mean little drivers.

We cut our time at Busch Gardens in half so that we could make it out to Adventure Island before it closed (and boy did they close early at about 5 or 6). I didn’t much there since it’s a water park and I don’t swim. Fabien went on just about every water ride while I stayed with the girls in a cozy beach like area near the sand and shallow water to splash our feet in. I took some vidoe footage of this and lots of pics. I’ll be sure to add pics when I can.

That night we took a detour by the airport to see if we might find our luggage (still no success), got sidetracked on the side of the highway while we waited on our GPS system to boot up so we wouldn’t get lost, then found our way to Cici’s Pizza for a late (and I mean really late) dinner.

That was our last full day in Orlando. The next morning we awoke to a beautiful breakfast at our resort’s restaurant in the downstairs lobby.

 Meanwhile my husband was secretly rushing me around so he could get me to some surprise that I had no clue about.  Before I know it we’re roaming around the golf course of the resort, circle the swimming pool, and end up right in front of a massage table!  So that was my surprise — my 1st professional massage.  Thanks, Hubby!  (and thanks Angela from upstate New York!)

we then rush upstairs to get our stuff out of the room and check out before 11 a.m.

Next was lunch, a quick stop at Disney Downtown for the last time (and while there we caught a movie - College Road- and ate a jumbo popcorn) and ate at Haggen Dazs from which I fell sick the next day by the way.

Then to Walmart to return some items, to the gas station to fill her up, to the airport, boarding the plane and off in the late evening sky back toward Birmingham, Alabama.  Through all of this, Zoe was AMAZING!  She wasn’t fussy at all on the plane rides and pretty much enjoyed being strolled around during the whole trip.  Nyomi, as usual, was eager to ride the plane for the first time and she just totally dove into all the new sights, sounds, and experiences.

We drove home from Birmingham that night and the kids fell asleep, exhausted from such a long trip.  We arrived home an hour later (around midnight) and tucked Nyomi in her princess bed with Disney ears on and fully clothed (except the shoes).  She was knocked out for the night.  Zoe went to her crib and it wasn’t until an hour later that Hubby and I finally got settled in for sleep.

What a trip!!!  Oh, but it was so much fun!

Exhausting, but fun.

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In a few days we’ll be heading for Orlando and I cannot wait.

We haven’t been on a ‘real’ family trip in ages and this will be absolutely fun!  Finally Nyomi’s at an age where it will matter, although Zoe won’t remember a thing.

We’ll take lots of pictures for her, though.

As for homeschool, I need to sit down this weekend and add up the remaining days we have left.  I think we’re actually done already but I just want to make sure.  I plan on having about a month long break with some intermittent 2’s facts practices, but just taking a good, long break from it all so I can regroup and get back organized for our new semester.  My plan is to make some major changes in the way we do school next quarter - adding some classes to the mix and reevaluating whether I should drop some.  I’ll sit down with Nyomi and get her opinion.

Today was fantastic!  We are finally doing some home renovations.  We bricked in the bottom half of our home, and spent the evening at Lowes hardware picking up lumber, cement, and paint for our big renovating project this week.  It was a blast walking around lowes with Hubby and kids while we made plans about how to increase the value of our home.  However, the thought of the clean-up efforts we had back home waiting for us was a bit of a downer… there’s so much debris (mixing sand/mortar, blocks, bricks, plastic wrap, bags, wood) lying around the yard from this morning’s team of 15+ workers who came to lay blocks on our home.  We’ll have to double up our efforts to just to clean up…but I think it’s all worth it.

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Wow, what a week.

Life is definitely different now that Hubby is back home.  different but good.

Zoe is still growing up.  Here’s my little angel:

Then there’s my Nyomi who is growing by leaps and bounds and just hit another growth spurt not too long ago:

(I was playing around with my digital camera, attempting to take a good closeup in front of our house near a small tree):

I have lots going on in my personal life.

1.)  Our homeschool year is nearing completion.  Our community co-op meets only three more times before Summer Break…so we’re winding down a bit.  I’m going to begin the process of planning out our new school year for the upcoming year, which I’m contemplating it being year round with small 2-3 week breaks in between.  I just don’t like the idea of taking off a whole summer (3 months).

2.) I officially accepted the call into the ministry to teach the Word of God, as of April 2nd.  Ministry opportunities have been increasing for me immediately after I accepted this holy  charge.  I’ve been blessed with the opportunity to head up a bible study group at the Pink Collar Club.

I’ve always known God had called me to teach the Bible, but for some reason ran away from the stigma of “minister” because of the mode people place tend to pigeon-hole you in when you say that are called into the ministry.  So in the past I never wanted to portray myself as a minister…but that is exactly what each Christian is in a sense.  I no longer run away from this.  I embrace it because it is what God wants for me and for the world.  He has a purpose.  I was already doing the work, but just running away from the idea of the traditional sense of it.  But it is what it is.  God will use me in my own personality to deliver His message His way and I’m open to that. In fact, it’s such a strong calling that if I ran away from it ever again I’d be going against His will. I have to give an account for how I lived my life on this earth, and answering HIm when He calls is part of my accountability.

During this process of accepting the Call, I also discovered how to help others accept their call.  At ChristianLadies.net, I’ve invited several godly women to come on board with me and share their experiences as Christian women and special topics of expertise that God has gifted them to share with others.  So far the Lord has brought people from as far away as Nigeria to be a part of this and I am honored beyond measure.  Read more about our resident experts here:  http://christianladies.net/resident-experts/

3.)  I began a few more social networking groups as add-ons or sister sites to WAHM University and Christian Ladies Connect.  They are:

 http://wahmuniversity.ning.com

http://christianladies.ning.com

Piece by piece, it’s all coming together.  From the outside looking in it may seem confusing to some, but there really is a method to the madness.  There is a plan to all the projects that I’ve begun.  Sometimes it feels like it doesn’t make any sense to me, but I know the urgent call and the shift in seasons and the times to pick up a brick and begin building, or the seasons to put down the bricks and stop building.  I’ve had to submit to both.  Even though I don’t clearly see the whole picture, the vision is becoming clearer with time.  Meanwhile, I walk in faith and I don’t answer questions liek “WHY?”  or “WHAT ARE YOU DOING?”

I get the raised eyebrows, the questioning looks of wonder when people see the degree M.S. next to my name but notice that I’m home all the time.  I simply smile to myself.  It’s different indeed.  I homeschool a 1st grader, care for an infant, manage my home, run a home based business designing websites and podcasting, run an online women’s ministry, plus manage over 15 domain names/websites, and still have time for my husband at the end of the day…hmmm…

And what’s more is, I ENJOY it!

So I might be a little on the odd side.  But I love my life!

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My hubby came back home last night after a 2 week departure with the navy…

I’m so glad to have him back.  Especially Nyomi.  She missed him a great deal while he was away.

One thing’s for certain: you really appreciate what you have all the more when it’s gone.

Tonight I’m just happy and blessed that we’re together as a unit again.  Amazing…only 2 weeks and I’ve felt like it was an eternity.

The one thing I am finding that really helps to keep things in order while my husband is away is developing routines for my children.  It really helps to take some of the edge off of the difference in atmosphere.  When we have routines to look forward to everyday is not as challenging to look forward to each day with anticipation of what’s new.

Well…

We’re at a sigh of relief right now, with our missing piece of the puzzle back in place.

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I spent the entire day putting together Nyomi’s history spine.

Where exactly did the day go?  I stepped out for one minute to run an errand and the hours just flew!

Well… I finally decided to adapt some of the methods used by HOW (Heart of Wisdom) into my own homeschool.  I won’t be purchasing the $100-something kit nor $65 ebook at the moment…maybe later in the future.  But the research I did on their methods was worth the time.  I got a few ideas by searching the site and realized what I could do differently to help Nyomi learn history systematically this year.  We’re going to have a blast learning together.   Our first unit will be on ancient Egypt (that is, after this week’s theme on the Resurrection).

Zoe’s fast asleep now…so I guess I should be in bed too huh?

Ok…to bed I go.

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Another weekend, another day…

My bible studies– they’re going okay, but nothing like the euphoric world of intense, quiet bible study that I dream of.

Nope, nothing like that.

It’s more like I’m jogging and jogging and jogging to catch up and I never do.

I SO want to really get in tune with God’s Word in a whole different way this year.  I mean, REALLY study.  But (and there’s that “but” again)…I seem to find time for everything else and struggle to find the time to truly do in depth study.  Oh, I read my daily readings, but I want to be more intensely focused on learning the Word of God as I go along…

So, as I know , anything that’s important to us in life, we’ll make time for.  I’m just going to have to make it a priority, because it is my heart’s desire, and it is God’s will.  If I have to put study materials along with my bible, pens, notebook, and everything at hand on my desk so that each time I pass by my desk all day long I’ll be reminded of my studies, then I just have to do that.  Whatever it takes.

Family Updates:  Nyomi is doing much better.  The cold is gone, praise the Lord! :-)   Also, I’m feeling the pressure of getting back in shape.  Baby is now 3 months old and it’s time to start hitting the treadmill.  I’m feeling frumpy and saggy, and pretty much like a milk machine all day.  These days the self esteem has taken a slide downhill, and I know it’s because I don’t feel my best.  I mostly want to feel better about myself.  I did lose a lot of weight but fail to see it because, again…I’m too hard on myself.  (I’ve always been inclined to set extremely high standards for myself).  So…I have to keep telling myself “you just had a baby!  Chill out!”  Great thing Hubby continues to keep me uplifted.  He has nothing but good to say about my body.  He’s the one grounding force to keep me sane (he and my mom).  I’ve been readint this book by Jackie Keller “Body After Baby”, and hoping that some of the tips may help me.  I mean even completely try out the program with the menu and exercise suggestions.  Or I may just begin walking to my Leslie Sansone’s Walk Away The Pounds DVD’s again.

Business updates:  I have a new client.  I’m finishing up some updates on WAHM University - my site for professional work at home moms.

Okay- off to spend time with my husband now that the kids are in bed.

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We had a great time Sunday, taking family photos.

Here they are:

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