Post-Wreck

Many of you have called, sent texts and emails to check in on me and see how I'm recovering. This has been much more difficult than I thought it would be. Monday I was sore, and yesterday I was a little more bruised, but today, I'm in a lot of pain. I didn't get much sleep last night-- I just couldn't get comfortable.

There have been many moments throughout the past few days when I just stop and think about how grateful I am to be alive. I really shouldn't have been able to walk away from my wreck-- especially with only bruises and burns. However, I am thankful that God was with me before and during the wreck and continues to walk by my side while I'm recovering.

Last night at Bible study, we had a big discussion about how God uses different situations in life to grab your attention. There have been many times in my life when things have happened and I didn't understand the reasoning behind it, but was able to find peace in the fact that the God I serve knows! I know that God will use this accident to get me WHERE He wants me to be and to become WHO He wants me to be and that I'll see the big picture soon.

"The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in Him, and I am helped. Therefore my heart rejoices, and I praise Him with my song." Psalm 28:7

Always wear your seatbelt!

I'm sure that by now, most of you have heard about my wreck yesterday. I was on my way to Jackson to head to Memphis for the American Idol concert. Somewhere in between Pelahatchie and Brandon, I hydroplaned and began spinning in the middle of the interstate. As I was spinning around, I knew that there was nothing I could do to make the situation any better. I remember watching everything around me and wondering when it would end, closing my eyes, and knowing that my life was about to end. After I heard and felt the airbag, I opened my eyes, and heard 4 men yelling at me to get out of the car. They helped me gather the important things and said that their girlfriends were calling 911 for me-- then they left.

As I was standing on the interstate, white dressy long linen pants on (covered in mud to my knees, mind you), no shoes, and rain blowing from every direction, I frantically made a few phone calls and help arrived soon after. I went on to the hospital in Brandon and had x-rays made on my arm, chest and foot. I left the hospital around 5:00 and headed home to rest and get pampered, of course!

I'm taking the day today to rest and clean out the items from my car. I've had so many phone calls, texts and emails and am so very thankful that I've been able to talk to each one of you. I have several big burns and scratches from the seatbelt and airbag and something is wrong with my foot, but that's all minor. The policeman said that I should be thankful that I was wearing my seatbelt because I really shouldn't have survived.

Thanks so much for all of the prayers so far, keep them coming! I'm pretty sure that I have a few long days ahead! Seatbelts really do save lives... I'm a living testimony!!

A look into my week...

I have a BUSY week planned, but before I can tell you about it, I need to show you a "happy" that my mom bought me...... some really cute Dr. Seuss notepads and stickers!!! I LOVE Dr. Seuss and I started collecting books about a year ago and I get one for pretty much every occasion. She found these at the dollar spot at Target on Thursday. Thanks mom!!

On another note... I have a NEW RIDE!!!

Haha!! I'll be driving this van for the next week transporting 4 of the Mississippi Junior Miss candidates. I love Junior Miss and have been attending for years. This year, I'll be taking the girls to and from practice each day, and to several of the night time parties. This week is going to be a lot of fun!!

They say it's your birthday!!!

Today is KELLY'S birthday!! Happy birthday girl! I hope you have had a wonderful day. I miss you and your cute little family! Give MK kisses for me!!

Pray for our campers!

We have arrived at Shocco Springs in Talladega, AL and we are experiencing our first full day of camp! Please keep us in your prayers this week. There are 29 of us from FBC but over 800 kids are participating in camp this week. Pray for strength and safety for the hot days ahead and pray for our kids-- pray that they will dive into God's word in a way they've never done before. Pray that they'll open their ears and hearts to hear and recieve what God has in store for them this week!!

Serious little campers!
Wild Little Monkeys!

Travel on over...

Travel on over to Erin's blog and get updates on our Harper girl! She's doing great!!

Harper Anne

I had no clue that my blog updates were in such high demand. Ha :) I've been updating my facebook status all day long but haven't really sat down to write on the blog.

Harper girls surgery went very smooth this morning. They called to let Erin know that they had started around 8:30. Things went very well and Erin & Chad were pleased with the updates they recieved along the way. Aside from one set back in surgery, the doctor was very pleased with the outcome.

Our whole family got to go in ICU and see Harper Anne for just a few minutes around 1:30 this afternoon. She looked just as beautiful as ever and so peaceful. They are continuing to watch her blood pressure levels and hope that they can get her off the ventilator during the early hours of tomorrow morning.

Keep praying for our Harper girl. She needs to get off the vent, her blood pressure needs to come down and she does not need any complications at this point-- so far, so good!!

Our family thanks you for your prayers. We are grateful to God for what he has already done in Harper's life and what He'll continue to do. Our lives have definitely been blessed by her!! We'll continue to keep you updated!

P.S. Keep checking Erin's blog for more updates-- her updates are more accurate than mine, for sure!

Playing Catch-up!

As I type, sweet Harper Anne is being prepped for surgery. They took her back at 5:30 this morning and now we are just waiting. So... since there's a long day ahead, I decided that I would blog about everything that's been going on in my busy life!!

Amber and her bridesmaids at the rehearsal dinner.

Me & the bride

Blake and Amber

THE EXACT SAME DAY... I sang at Hailey and Brandon's wedding. This was a beautiful wedding and I was so grateful that Hailey asked me to be a part of her big day.

Hailey, Me, Anna and Lindsey

A few weeks passed and it was time to go to my 6th wedding of the spring so far. Jessica and Heath tied the not a few weeks ago and my cousin Erin was there. We had to get a picture of her and her new haircut. PRECIOUS!! It's kind of ironic that we pretty much matched that night.

I also have had some time to catch up with my friends Brittany and Briana. I ate lunch with Brittany a lot during my year at MC and I don't get to see her as often as I wish I could. We always have so much time together.

Briana, me and Brittany

Prayers for Harper

Hey faithful prayer warriors. Harper girl is having her open heart surgery on Monday at UAB in Birmingham. I know that all of you will want Erin, Chad and Harper to know that you're thinking about them and praying for them, so why don't you travel on over to Erin's blog and send her a little note of encouragement?!

Happy Birthday!

Today is a special day! My mom turns the big 44 today!! I'm at FUGE in Jackson and hate that I can't be at home to celebrate, but I hope that you're having and WONDERFUL day!! You are such a special woman to me (even if I don't fully express that all of the time) and I appreciate your love and support more than you'll ever know!!

Today is also my cousin Emily's birthday. I hope that this is the BEST BIRTHDAY yet for you!! I am looking forward to seeing you on Monday in Birmingham! Love you Em!!

On a side note, there's SO MUCH that I need to fill you in on...MORE weddings, Vacation Bible School, church camps...the list goes on and on! When I get a little more time in my schedule, I'll definitely be blogging more.

I'm back and there's a new addition...

There's been a work in progress in our backyard for the past few weeks. We've been in the construction zone getting a brand new deck. This is something my mom has been wanting for forever. It's absolutely wonderful! We've been wanting to have a deck party, but couldn't find any furniture that mom really wanted. When I returned back from the Dominican, I walked outside to see a new table and chairs. The deck is officially complete my friends. Take a look!I've been on a blog hiatus for a while, but I'm playing catch up today! I'm in 2 weddings this weekend and I'm sure that I'll have more pictures to share from those events!! Keep scrolling down... there are more new posts below!!

Harper Girl

We have some good news!! While I was out of the country, cute little cousin Harper girl's open heart surgery was scheduled. The family will be going over to UAB on June 22nd for her big surgery. Hopefully, once she has the surgery, she'll be completely healed. Praise God for her sweet little life! She's such a trooper and I can't wait for her to get well so that I can take her places... I think I'm gearing up for babysitting services once again! I can't wait! Pray for her in the days ahead!

The Dominican Republic

Many of you have been praying for me over the last few weeks leading up to my mission trip and so many more prayed last week while I was in the Dominican Republic. I can't even begin to tell you everything I saw and got to experience but I can tell you that God is in the midst of the people of the Dominican. I've never been around people with such big hearts that are thirsty to know the word of God.

Physically and spiritually I was prepared for a fabulous week. However, mentally, I was broken once I reached Sabaneta. In my simple mind, I guess, I thought that there atleast would be a big group of Dominicans that could communicate with us in English-- but I was so wrong. We had to rely on Miguel, a new believer who is learning English, to try and help us understand the needs of the people.

Jose and Yoannia (the missionaries in Sabaneta) are great people who have devoted themselves to spreading the word of God and getting house churches up and running in the area. They are so sincere and we had the best time with them all week. They just welcomed a new baby, Isai, into the world and he's definitely a cutie pie!!

There were many, many "firsts" for me on the trip. My first time to fly, first time to be on a "real deal" mission trip, first time to eat goat, first time to eat chicken tacos with mayo and ketchup (they were prepared that way?!?!), first time to have to brush my teeth with bottled water because we couldn't use the water there... I can go on and on. I had a great experience and absolutely loved being in the Dominican. However, when we passed through Passport control and customs in the Miami airport coming back into the states, the words "welcome home" never sounded so good!

I pray that God will continue to work in the hearts of the people in Santiago and Sabaneta and that He will continue the good work He is doing through Miguel, Jose and Yoannia so that they can help bring more people to Christ.

My Best Friend got Hitched!

The month of May has proven itself to be one of the busiest months of my entire life. There have been so many events to attend and things to get done that I haven't had a lot of extra time to blog. I'll try and do a better job of that. I have so much to share with all of you!!

First things first though, my best friend got married two weeks ago and I had the honor of being one of her bridesmaids. Lauren and I met at Highland Baptist Church when I was a senior in High School and have been close ever since. She moved to Clinton to attend college while I stayed in Meridian. She spent her summers in Canada and traveling the East Coast working for Mission Teams and now she's in Tuscaloosa finishing her Master's degree. Even though she hasn't lived in Meridian in several years, we're closer than ever!

Lauren and Alan met in Tuscaloosa and are a perfect match for each other. I couldn't have picked anyone else for Lauren. Their love for God and for each other are so sincere and I am extrememly happy that they are spending the rest of their life together.

me and Becca before the rehearsal

bridesmaids brunch at FIG

front row: Becca, Amy, Lauren, Kristen, Beth

back row: MaryKendall, Lindsey, me, Jessica, Jama
*Lindsey O. was a bridesmaid too, but she graduated from college that morning so she couldn't attend all of the festivities

a few of the bridesmaids

Bride & Groom

Friends for a lifetime!