Callaghan Corner

YAY! We're back up and running!

2011-12-08T22:33:00.001-08:00

Hello to all!

FINALLY! My blog is back up and running! I have been unable to post anything for several months. We finally resolved the problem, so...Let the POSTING begin! :)

I will be posting some pictures and videos soon!

We love you all!

I LOVE AMERICA!!

2011-06-30T11:23:00.000-07:00

In honor of the Fourth of July and the celebration of our nation's independence, I would like to say THANK YOU to our military personnel for their dedicated service to our country! I have the utmost respect for those who give a portion of their lives to serve and protect our country.

Here is a recent picture of our family with Mr. and Mrs. Vernon Johnson who attend our church. Mr. Johnson is a WWII veteran who was aboard a battleship that was sunk during a naval battle. He has an amazing story.

I think it is SO special that my son and daughter had the privilege of being in a picture with a WWII veteran! Not many kids his age will have that privilege! I admire this man so very much. It is a privilege to know him and his sweet wife.

I LOVE AMERICA!!

The Little Peanut...

2011-04-28T09:39:00.000-07:00

Our little cutie is getting big! She was enjoying her new bouncy seat this morning! She still has to have a blanket tucked around her in order to stay upright :).

She has just started sticking her tongue out. Ha! Then she sucks on her bottom lip. Wondering if she is getting a tooth. She slides her tongue along her gums. She is starting to make lots of new little noises and she loves to scream like a little girlie girl when she talks! :)

Anyways, she is so sweet! We love our little peanut! (and we love Darren too!)

Sorry that the blog looks a little "rough." I am working on a new format.

Darren loves to sing!

2011-04-26T11:26:00.000-07:00

Darren is learning a song. Here is the first verse and chorus. He is my cute man! Enjoy!

-Helen

Pictures because they are just TOO Cute!

2011-02-25T12:43:00.000-08:00

I LOVE my little people! Thank you, Babe, for working so hard and allowing me to stay at home and be mommy. These young years to teach, train and share only come once in a lifetime. Enjoy...

Darren's air-freshener rights have been revoked...

2011-02-21T10:30:00.000-08:00

Let me explain....

Thursday evening we found a puddle in the bathroom and a little on the edge of the bathroom sink. It had been POURING rain for the past several days in succession. We were afraid the roof had begun leaking at some point. We looked all over, but saw no sign of water leakage in the bathroom.

The next evening I found a puddle in the same place again but found that the bathroom mats were also slightly damp all over. Hmmm...This took place shortly after Darren had made a bathroom visit. As I was cleaning the puddle, I smelled an "apple cinnamon" smell. As I smelled the rag I was cleaning with, I discovered that the puddle I was cleaning was an incredible amount of our bathroom AIR FRESHENER that had been sprayed QUITE excessively! Nice!

I had given Darren permission to spray one quick spray of air freshener after his bathroom visits. However, he must have sprayed for MUCH longer than one quick spray. So, thus, his "air freshening rights" have been revoked! Gotta love 3 year olds!

AND...yes, Ashlyn has found her thumb!

2011-02-08T15:52:00.000-08:00

Our Sweet Little Blue Eyes...(Picture...Courtesy of Aunt Karen!)

Hello everyone! We are doing great and BUSY!

Our teen snow trip was this past Saturday. I stayed home with our little lady this year, but Darren got to be a BIG boy and go with Daddy and the teens for the first time this year. He was scared to go down the hill (which is pretty steep and fast for a 3 1/2 year old. Some of our teens were even scared the first time!), but had a good time anyways!

We also have our Annual Teen Winter Revival coming up in a week and a half. We are excited and so are the teens! Looks like we will also have several visiting teen groups as well. We are excited to hear Bro. Bob Gray II preach, he is so great at preaching to teens. Our ensemble sang this past Sunday morning in church as a "practice run" for Teen Revival. The teens did great! Please pray for lives to be touched and life-changing decisions to be made.

We also had all the teens over to our house last Sunday night for pizza and a crazy game of Cranium. Love our teens!

If you want to try a yummy low-fat pancake and syrup recipe, click on the link on the top right of my blog. It will take you to the recipe on my Youth Pastor's Wife blog.

The kids are growing, changing and doing new things ALL the time. My days at home are ever busy! Here are a few pictures of our fun little people. Enjoy and have a wonderful week!

Hmmm...Guess that flash was kind of bright, huh, Ashlyn?!!

Always Looking around and studying; afraid she might miss something!

My two little "Jammie Kids"...Darren and Ashlyn. Love how she is looking at him!

Little 30 second video of Ashlyn just being cute!

Yes, I have the CUTEST kids ever!

2011-01-27T09:21:00.000-08:00

Sorry, people, it's true! Here are a couple recent pictures of my two CUTE little peoples! Love, Love, Love them! Thanks, God!

Cool man, showing off his "tattoo" sent in a belated Christmas package from my family. He was quite proud of his "full steam ahead" from the Thomas stickers!

An "itty bitty smile" from an "itty bitty girl!" She is SO precious!!

2011-01-18T08:03:00.000-08:00

A beautiful sunny morning, a steamy cup of Decaff Coffee and quiet time to pray for the 2 sweet little people that God has entrusted to our care. Psalms 127:3 "Lo. children are an heritage of the Lord: and the fruit of the womb is His reward."

Praying also for the mates that God is preparing for them some day and for the parents raising those children as well.

What a huge responsibility as well as a GREAT privilege to be a parent. God please grant me your wisdom every step of the way.

Our sweet Ashlyn Rose

Our handsome Darren Paul

2011-01-14T15:07:00.000-08:00

Just thinking about you...!

Life has been quite bust adjusting to 2 little people. We love our sweet new addition to the Callaghan Clan! How fun to have a girl and a boy! Can't believe our little Ashlyn Rose was one month old this past Monday. She is changing so much already. She studies everything and everybody. Always looks serious like she is deep in thought.

Darren is so much fun. He always has something hilarious to say (hmmm...like someone else that I know around this house!) He loves to fix things, tell stories that never end, unless you stop him and ask a minimum of 5,000 questions a day. (This may be a low estimate!) He is a fun and learning 3 year old.

Dan loves his new job which is such a blessing. We are SO thankful he does not have to walk out the door every night to go to work. We absolutely LOVE having evenings together as a family; something we took for granted before night shifts.

We have our 4th Annual Teen Revival coming up in just a couple weeks! Dr. Bob Gray II is flying out to preach for us again this year. We are excited! So are our teens. Pray all will go well and smoothly and that many hearts will be changed and stirred to serve the Lord. What a privilege to work with teens.

Thanks, God, for allowing me to serve you!

Our Daughter is Here!

2010-12-17T17:02:00.000-08:00

Ashlyn Rose Callaghan was born was on December 10, 2010 at 10:12 pm. Weighing 7 lbs 13 oz / 21 1/2 inches long. We love our sweet girl and Darren is loving his little sister! I am posting a few pictures for you all. They are kind of mixed up, but enjoy! More later!

After bath time...

Darren and his little sister...

Our little peanut in her car-seat...

All 'bundled' at the hospital...

Big brother right after Ashlyn was born...

Daddy and sweet Ashlyn right after birth...

Darren watching the first real bath...

She LOVED the warm water!

Mommy and her little Ashlyn angel!

A couple pictures...

2010-11-09T09:59:00.000-08:00

Had a good weekend! I took a couple random pictures. Thought I would share.

My two favorite people!!

Darren enjoying his book that Nana Shepherd sent him in the mail!

October Fun!

2010-11-03T12:19:00.000-07:00

Here are some pictures from our trip to Dell Osso Farms on Saturday the 23rd and a couple from Halloween.

Darren was so excited about being a cowboy for Halloween!

With his "spoils" of the day! Oh Joy! Now where can Mom get rid of all this??!

It was rainy and muddy at the farm, but we still had a good time!

Daddy and Darren with the Llamas. They were very uninterested in everything going on around them...sleeping away!

Ever heard of a "Zonkey?" Yup, seriously! A cross between a zebra and a donkey...

Dan feeding the Zonkey. Darren wasn't quite brave enough to get near their mouths!

Darren by one of the horses...whom he begged to ride. We paid for a ride and then he screamed like a wild man when we went to put him on! Good thing they gave a refund! Ha!

In the pumpkin patch! Umm, yeah, it was REALLY muddy!

Our little pumpkin head!

Had a great time! Love being with the wonderful family has given me!

Happy Birthday, Dan!

2010-10-16T21:25:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday to the World's Greatest Husband! Today was Dan's birthday. We were actually able to take a whole day just for family! It was Great! I made a big breakfast this morning, then off to the Pumpkin Festival in Half Moon Bay, after that, Seafood "to go" from Barbara's Fish Trap, then home to carve our little pumpkin to end the day!

Had a great time! Thank You, God, for family!!

Here are a few pictures; sorry they are in reverse order of our day! Enjoy!

Short video clips of Darren...

2010-10-07T11:54:00.001-07:00

Here are some short 30 second video clips I took during devotion time this morning. Darren is learning a few Bible verses and Bible songs. Enjoy!

Some recent pictures...

2010-08-30T11:53:00.000-07:00

Sorry that I haven't posted on my blog lately! Things are going well for us. Dan is still looking for a second job, but the flip side to the coin is we have enjoyed LOTS of fun family time this summer! We have gotten to do SO many fun things together as a family.

Trips to the park, picnics, visiting the Jelly Belly Factory, sharing ice cream cones and just being home together!

We are planning to go to the apple orchard and pick some fresh apples soon! Can't wait to make some fresh apple butter and apple pies!! Mmmm!! Puts me in the mood for fall and Christmas and BAKING! I love to bake!

I am excited to be getting closer to the arrival of our little girl! We are excited about this new coming addition to our family. Darren is excited about having a baby sister come near Christmas time!

I am posting a few miscellaneous pictures from the last few weeks. Enjoy!

We enjoyed dinner at Cioppino's on the wharf in San Francisco with My Aunt Priscilla, Uncle Jerry and cousin Kristi from Florida! They were on a road trip and stopped in the city overnight. We got to meet them for dinner and had SO much fun! They are sweet people! They even treated us to dinner which was a thoughtful surprise.

Kristi sat across from Darren and played trains with him. He found a new friend!!

Aunt Pris and Jerry!

The three Callaghan's at dinner...

Angie's parents, Mr. and Mrs. Williams, came out in August for the birth of their new grandson, Andrew David. We all went to downtown Emeryville and ate at Fuddrucker's Hamburgers. We had a great time with them. They are WONDERFUL people! I think Angie and I grew up in very similar homes!

Mommy and my favorite Darren man!!

Daddy gives GOOD smooches!

Aunt Karen brought Darren back a Mickey Mouse marshmallow sucker from Disneyland! Mmmm...he enjoyed EVERY bite. His mouth, teeth and lips were all black from Mickey's ears when he was done eating them!

We have enjoyed a GREAT family summer! We love you all!

Teen Ladies Mother / Daughter Tea...

2010-08-10T22:40:00.001-07:00

Really had a great time with some of the ladies from our church at the Camellia Tea Room in Benicia today! Some of our teens and their moms came. Lots of fun! God has given us some wonderful ladies! Here are a few pictures...

Some Miscellaneous Pictures...

2010-08-02T12:02:00.000-07:00

Here are a few pictures from Dan's phone from the last week or so. Enjoy!

Darren holding his new cousin, Baby Andrew David Callaghan! He LOVES Baby Andrew! Andrew was born to Dave and Angie Callaghan at 4:23 pm on Sunday, July 25th. He is a cutie pie and a GOOD baby!!

Here is the Wild Turkey that flew into our backyard and wandered up by our barbeque grill about 2 days ago! After flying in, it took her quite a while to figure out how to fly back over that fence! Ha!

On the Tiburon Ferry Boat on our way to Angel Island for an awesome teen activity. Always enjoy spending time with my handsome Dan the Man! Our other "son" Anthony in the background! Ha!

Some of our teens on the ferry boat. We had a picnic and a day of fun games on the island. We have such GREAT kids! We always love spending time with the teens God has given us to work with. A great bunch of young people!!

This past Sunday evening we had all the teens over to our house to eat brownie sundaes and had a rousing game of Mad Gab and Mafia. We all had a great time!

It's going to be...

2010-07-20T22:31:00.000-07:00

Well, we had our ultrasound yesterday and it is going to be...a GIRL!! YAY!!! Can't wait to buy some girly girly things!! Dan and I are excited. Now we will have our little "rough and tumble" boy and our little girlie girl!! How fun!

Darren is proudly telling all he sees that he is going to have a little sister. (Actually he has already been telling everyone he was going to have a little sister even though we did not know yet. I guess he knew!)

We are also moving Darren out of the crib which he still sleeps in! Time to move on to bigger and better things. He is SOOOO excited because now he has a...BONK Bed, as he calls it! Ha! it is actually just a twin size bed that sits up off the ground so you can use the underneath for storage. This will be great for his toys and make his room bigger. Plus, he gets to climb a LADDER for bed! This is a HUGE highlight in his life!

Dan got it assembled right before bed time so he could sleep in it tonight! His room is rather disheveled as we haven't dismantled the crib, but Darren was pumped that his Bonk Bed was ready!

Darren is always so enthusiastic. I call him my living "exclamation point!"

Here is a "not so great" picture of him and his BONK Bed! He was already tucked in so the lights were out, but Daddy had to sneak in and get a picture! Enjoy!

Miscellaneous...

2010-07-15T13:06:00.001-07:00

Whew! It's going to be hot here in the Bay Area today! We don't have too many hot days around here, but when no one has air-conditioning a high of 86 degrees with no breeze off the Bay feels pretty warm!

Here are a few miscellaneous photos I took on Dan's iPhone the last couple of days. Our camera is still broken so here are a few odds and ends. Family is a WONDERFUL thing. Thank You, God!

Darren is a true Bay Area kid. He LOVES Clam Chowder and sourdough bread!!

Darren LOVES to help Daddy! Dan was blowing off the lawn after mowing so Darren wanted to "look like" Daddy! Hee Hee!!

Mommy and her favorite bud just chillin' on the couch.

Haven't felt up to baking in a while. So, Monday I made some Yummy Apple Crisp (and, of course, vanilla ice cream!)! EASY EASY recipe!! Look below the picture for the easy recipe...

Easy Apple Crisp

(Just makes a small recipe. You might want to double if cooking for more. I bake this recipe in a pie pan)

3 large apples, peeled and sliced

1/8 lb. butter (1/2 stick)

1/2 c. brown sugar

1/2 c. flour

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 cup of water

Grease cake or pie pan. Peel, core and slice apples into pan. Pour 1/4 c. water over the apples. Work dry ingredients and butter together with a fork till crumbly. Pour over apples immediately. Bake at 400 degrees for about 35 minutes. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream!

Easy and...Mmmmmm!

Have a Great day!

Decorating Fun...

2010-07-07T11:02:00.000-07:00

On Monday evening we watched Dave and Angie's girls, Faith and Liberty, at our house while Dave and Angie went on a date for their 8th wedding anniversary.

I baked cupcakes in ice cream cones and let the kids decorate their own. Here are a few pictures from our decorating fun...

Darren loving the icing part!

Liberty is proud of her creation...

Faith's cone all decorated...

Yum Yum!

I LOVE Independence Day!

2010-07-05T12:41:00.000-07:00

Sorry it has been a LONG time since my last post. I have had some health and chiropractic issues with my pregnancy.

I am a VERY patriotic person! I LOVE the celebration of our nation's independence on July 4th! One of my favorite holidays!!

We had a wonderful patriotic service on Sunday morning, then a sweet time of testimony during our evening service. We were celebrating not only Independence Day, but our church's 63rd anniversary Sunday.

After the evening service we had a fellowship at the church with grilled hot dogs, corn on the cob, chips pasta salad, watermelon and desserts. Mmmm! Then we loaded up as a church family to watch the fireworks show about 20 minutes away from the church. It was a GREAT time of fun and fellowship with sweet Christian friends.

Isn't it great to be a Christian?!

Our camera is broken at the present. I will try to get some pictures today as we grill out with some of Dan's family so I can post them soon!

Busy Days...

2010-04-19T22:36:00.000-07:00

Sorry! No pictures to post! We are in the midst of packing so our house is not the most scenic picture spot right now!

We are doing good! Darren is lots of fun and endless entertainment as usual!

Today, I confess, I have felt very pregnant! I didn't have morning sickness, I had ALL-DAY sickness! Such perfect timing too since I am supposed to be packing everything we own to move in less than 2 weeks! Oh well, we will get it done somehow. And I am VERY HAPPY to be expecting, nausea or not!

Dan is SUPER busy too. He is always super busy, but now adding the overseeing of a remodeled house in just 2 1/2 weeks makes life very hectic for him. Please pray he will still manage to get enough sleep to function!

We are thankful to God for the opportunity of the house He has provided us with!

More later. If you want to see a quick video of the house we are fixing up, I can't seem to post a youtube link on here, but the name of the video is "video of inside of house" under helencallaghan1.

Mommy and Darren's Bible time...

2010-04-13T10:05:00.000-07:00

Reading the Bible is the GREATEST way to start any day!

I want Darren to learn to LOVE that time as a young boy. We got him a little Bible this past Christmas. Most mornings when I read, I ask him to go get his little Bible from his church bag.

We sit at the table and I read a few verses for him, with great drama! I want him to ENJOY Bible time! We always sing a couple verses in Psalms. He likes it when Mommy "sings" the Bible!

I also write about what I read. So I got him a little notebook to "write with Mommy."

That is always a special time for me. LOVE to see my son gain a respect for a time with God and His Word!

It's Been a While!

2010-04-12T21:59:00.000-07:00

WOW! It's been a while since I posted! We have a LOT going on for us right now.

We were just given 30 days to move out of our apartment, our landlords want it back! ...BUT, God had better plans. He is giving us a HOUSE to rent!!!

It's a "fixer-upper" but we are going to be able to use some of our rent to fix it up! Dan knows the owners and God just really opened up the door for us. We are SOOOOO happy to be done "apartment shopping." That was getting depressing! God just spoils us!

Another BIG blessing for our family is that we are expecting our 2nd child at the first of December! We are SOOO happy about another little one on the way!!

Anyways, I am in the midst of packing but I will try to post as frequently as possible and get a few new pictures soon!

More pictures...

2010-04-05T16:05:00.000-07:00

Here are some more pictures.

Here are a couple of Darren on Easter Sunday.

He got a little plastic magnetic fishing pole set from "The Easter Bunny" (aka-Dad and Mom). He thought that was the GREATEST thing ever. He also got a nice little Easter basket from church!

Darren is just TOO cute these days!

As I was doing my devotions this morning, I looked over by the couch, (Because Darren was quiet!) and saw that he had gotten his Bible out of his Sunday bag and was "reading" too!! Sweet!

Darren's cousin, Liberty, also came over to play with him this morning. They had SO much fun. He loves "ity," as he calls her.

He was pretending to ride a bike, I looked over...and this video will show you how creative he got with his headgear...

We only have a few pull-ups left in the house. I only put them on him at night time, since he still has a hard time remembering that sometimes. Anyways, he is TOO Funny!

YAY!!

2010-03-31T23:26:00.000-07:00

Got it to work! Not quite sure what the problem was...Maybe just being away and using Wi Fi changed my security settings. I just reset them all to default and restarted.

I don't have many other pictures of our trip. Most of them are on Dad Callaghan's camera and he is not back yet. Here are just a couple more from our AL trip to post. I will put up some more when he gets home and I am able to get those.

Daddy and Darren...Darren did NOT love the waves, as you can tell! TOO funny!

He did, however, want to LIVE on the beach so he could play in the sand!

The beautiful sunrise...

Dan enjoying the waves!

Darren and Grandpa, "Chillin' and watching Franklin the Turtle!"

The absolutely AMAZING view from our condo balcony!! See those blue umbrella chairs? That is where Dan and I had our devotions in the morning. Took our cups of coffee down, let Darren play in the sand while we read. Talk about AWESOME!!!

Had an AMAZING time. BIG thanks to Dad Callaghan for bringing us!!

Hmmmm....

2010-03-31T23:18:00.001-07:00

Sorry, I haven't posted in a while. I cannot upload pictures to my blog or see any that I have already posted, including my header picture?!

Not sure what that's about. It seems like a security setting that got messed up, but I really have NO IDEA where to start in finding the problem!

Hopefully I will have it all back up and running soon!

Can anyone else see all the pictures? If so, then it is probably a security setting on my computer. That will be LOTS of fun to figure out!

Having fun!!

2010-03-25T12:50:00.000-07:00

Here are just a few pictures from our trip so far. We are having a blast! I will post more later.

The view from our balcony...

Daddy and Darren taking a nap...

The kids on the first day, anxious to get to the beach...(on our balcony)

Lots of fun...

2010-03-19T22:19:00.000-07:00

Exciting day today!

Darren was playing swords and jumping on the couch. He misjudged his distance as he jumped and hit the coffee table, full-force right above his eye! POOR BABY!! It is really swollen and looks terrible, but doesn't seem to be too bad. I did email his doctor and received some advice. It is such a wonderful thing to have access to his doctor via email! We will see how he is tomorrow. Looks like he is going to have a nice "shiner" for our Alabama trip!

We had fun playing with our camera, once again something digital! Darren LOVES messing with digital gadgets. he actually took this picture of me. Pretty good for a 2 year old! He is fun!

Poor Dan has Strep Throat! We are pitiful aren't we? He was able to go ahead and get a prescription since we are leaving out of town on Sunday evening, we figured that was something he better not play around with. Hopefully he will be feeling a bit better by then and no one else will catch it!

We are looking forward to our family vacation in just a few days! Darren keeps talking about AlaVama! Hee Hee! He is excited even though he really doesn't know what's going on. But he does know we get to fly on an airplane!

That's all for today.

Our wonderful little man...

2010-03-16T22:30:00.000-07:00

Here are a few pictures and a little video clip of our little cute man. He has such a "Bright" and enthusiastic spirit!

Enjoy...

Grandma Callaghan found him this Hulk boxing gloves. They make noise when you swing and he LOVES them!

A picture of the Callaghan cousins! They have so much fun together.

Ah! yet another example of Darren's seemingly inevitable development into a perfectionist!

Hand, Foot and Mouth Disease...

2010-03-14T22:28:00.000-07:00

Yup, Darren's got it! Oh, joy! He doesn't have sores too bad in his mouth yet. I am hoping he may avoid those. He hasn't had much of an appetite this evening, though, so I am wondering if they are on the way. He has the little red bumps all over his hands, arms, feet and legs. Poor baby! He doesn't seem to uncomfortable with it yet since the rash is not itchy. Thank goodness!

Praying my little man will feel better soon. We stayed home from church tonight although he was there this morning before I realized he had it. Hoping it won't spread through the church kiddos! We were able to watch the online service for First Baptist. That's wonderful; we enjoyed that!!

We are having a bit of the "up close and personal" look at the "terrible twos" right now, but he is still lots of fun in between times!

I do love being a wife and mommy!!

AMAZING Day Off...

2010-03-11T22:20:00.000-08:00

A TOTALLY AWESOME Day off with my wonderful Babe and my cute little Bud. Dan arranged for someone to teach his class for him and spent the WHOLE DAY just having fun with Darren and I..."Just Because!"

Our view from the hill where we were flying our kites...

We have been super busy lately so this special day meant the world to me! What a wonderful man!

He worked last night, of course, so he slept in a bit. We ate breakfast then left to go to the city. We flew kites by the water and ate a picnic lunch.

Mommy and Darren flying kites near Ghirardelli Square...

Spiderman!

Darren flying both kites by himself...

Daddy and Darren...

Then we were able to tour the sailing ship, Balclutha of 1886. WOW! That was by far THE coolest thing I have ever done in San Francisco! I love links to the past and seeing how they operated. We were just going to walk by it, but found out it was FREE DAY! We didn't even know they had one! A big HUG from God!! (We also found FREE PARKING!! Another BIG hug from God!)

The Balclutha of 1886...

SMOOOches for Daddy, as Darren calls them!

The ship is amazing as it still has almost all things original including much of the original flooring. There are 3 decks. The very bottom deck is currently under preservation construction but we were allowed on all other levels. WOW!! I know my Dad would have LOVED that, the Navy man! Darren loved it because it was just like "Taptain Hook's Pirate Ship!"

Some of the bunks below deck...

Part of the Captain's Quarters...

A Crew member aloft in the rigging!

Daddy and Darren up by the bow of the ship...

The VERY small Galley!

Hugs for mommy on deck!

A clear day to see Alcatraz too!

After our family fun. We took Darren home and laid him down for a nap. Grandma watched him and Dan and I took off for a "just us" date!! I requested a trip to the Pacific. One of my VERY favorite things to do. The weather today was AMAZING and it was very clear tonight as you will see in the pictures.

We enjoyed a little hike down to the water and then just enjoyed the beautiful surf until sunset. Then what could better finish off the evening? SEAFOOD! We split an amazing bowl of clam chowder and an order of fresh fish and chips at Barbara's Fish Trap in Half Moon Bay. One of our absolute FAVORITES!

This day is at the top of the charts as one of my very favorites!!! Thank you, God, for spoiling us today, and thank you for family...especially the sweetness of a family centered around You!

Happy Wednesday!

2010-03-10T22:53:00.000-08:00

Great time out soul-winning with our kids today! Had just about half an hour out, but the 16 teenagers that went out still managed to see 5 people saved! I just LOVE the zeal of our teenagers! If you are ever in need of a soul-winning challenge, I challenge you to go with a teenager.

Dan and I didn't get to personally lead anyone to the lead, but did have the opportunity to pass out many tracts and invite several people to church.

Pastor taught a good lesson on the life of Solomon tonight. Good group at church.

Darren always has something new every day to make me chuckle! Today we were playing the "Memory Game" (or the Memorio Game as he calls it.) This is the game where you match the picture cards of animal babies to their mothers.

We got to the frogs and I said, "Good! You found the mommy frog, now where are the babies?" He promptly found the card with the tadpoles. Then I asked, "What are the baby frogs called?" He thought for a moment then said, "Hmmm...Mommy, I know! Tadifrogs!!" I had a good chuckle over the tadifrogs! He is TOO cute!

Cowboy or Pirate?

2010-03-08T21:55:00.000-08:00

What do you think?

Darren says he is pirate Like "Taptain Hook!" If we ever watch Peter Pan, I have to pause the sword fight until he can go get his "pirate gear" on. He has to feel as if he is joining in on the "swashbuckling adventure!" Ain't he a cutie pie?! Love my little man!

He has a yucky cold. I hate it when he is sick. Hoping he will be on the mend soon.

This picture I am posting was taken when Grandma and Grandpa Callaghan took him out to breakfast a few weeks back. Grandpa took this picture on his phone! Darren looks pretty happy about his pancakes, huh?!

Yay for the Library!

2010-03-05T23:03:00.000-08:00

I love the Library! I think I have as much fun picking out all the old books from my childhood to read to my son as he has in hearing them! Frog and Toad, Curious George, Blueberries for Sal, Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel, etc. etc.!!

Darren and I are going to make Thursday morning our Library date! He was jumping up and down with excitement about ALL the books we were bring home and the special "Thomas the Train" video we were going to watch!

We had so much fun wandering through the few small shelves of our little Kensington Library. I think the smaller ones are nicer. They feel like an extension of your home; our little library in Griffith, IN always felt that way to me. I knew every little corner and turn as a child and can still see it in my mind.

I am not quite the avid reader that I wish I was. However, I feel it was in those VERY frequent Library trips that I developed my love for the English language. A love that led me to major in English for my college education.

I am saddened by the decline of knowledge most young people have today of our beautiful language. I certainly hope to help my son learn as many words as possible a young child. I feel quite certain this will help him when he reaches the Junior High and High school years of his education even if English isn't his favorite subject!

God is Good!

2010-03-01T23:19:00.001-08:00

We had a GREAT night tonight at our 3rd annual Teen Winter Revival! Great group of kids, great, fellowship, fun games and video skits, Great preaching! We ended it all with some pizza, pop, games and fellowship.

I'll post more later but here are a few pictures for now...

Pastor Callaghan and our guest speaker, Pastor Mark Lewis of Vacaville, CA...

Some ladies from one of the visiting youth groups...

The GREATEST Youth Pastor in the world, Bro. Dan Callaghan!

Our Quartet singing "If We Don't Pray (Angie singing from the piano)...

Two of our teen guys...

Pastor Mark Lewis preached a great message on Prayer from the book of Daniel...

A couple of our ladies...

Nothing quite as rewarding as an auditorium full of Christian teenagers!

Some of our teen guys...

Some of our young ladies...

Some of our lovely hostesses...

Some of the guys from Bro. Lewis church...

The platform...

A GREAT evening! We also had 2 saved and baptized!!

Teen Revival Tomorrow Night!

2010-02-28T23:18:00.001-08:00

Our 3rd Annual Teen Winter Revival begins tomorrow, Monday evening, March 1st at 6:30 pm..."Teenagers of Prayer."

The teens are excited and so are we! We covet your prayers that all goes well and that the Holy Spirit will speak to the heart of every teen in attendance about the importance of learning to communicate with God.

More updates to follow. Busy Busy!

We also had a great day at church with over 25 teens in attendance on Sunday morning and about 20 back tonight. Dan and I are really proud of our kids! They all pitched in and did their assigned duties after church tonight to clean up the whole church. All the decor is up and the church is cleaned and ready for lots of teenagers!

Darren LOVES his train!

2010-02-23T11:10:00.000-08:00

Here is a short video clip of Darren singing Casey Jr. with his Thomas train set! He will literally play with this train set and all his animals on and off ALL DAY long! He loves it. He also sings the song "Casey Jr." many many times a day. I DEFINITELY have it memorized! He's a cutie pie!

It is Good to Be in the House of the Lord!

2010-02-21T20:29:00.000-08:00

Enjoyed a great Sunday at church! We had several kids out of town this weekend, but still had a good group with a good spirit.

We had a good time practicing after the service tonight with our teen ensemble singing in Teen Revival. What great kids we have!! Such sweet and willing hearts. There is nothing quite as sweet as watching young people sing about the things of God and knowing that they mean those words from their hearts.

Afterwards, shared some chocolate cake and some laughs with a few of our teens. Isn't it fun to serve God?!

Teen Winter Revival is ONE WEEK FROM TOMORROW! Woo Hoo! We are excited and so are our kids. Dan and I watched the clips recorded for the skit video last night and had MANY laughs! Crazy kids! Excited about a revival night just for teens to have a good time of fellowship with each other, but MAINLY to be challenged in the area of prayer! Pastor also preached a GREAT message about prayer tonight.

Thanks, God, for Family!

2010-02-18T23:33:00.001-08:00

Fun day playing with my bud! He LOVES his train track right now; calls it Casey Jr.!

We also played the game "Come When You Are Called!" Not an idea original to me. Darren would go and hide anywhere he wanted. I would call his name in a normal tone, and if he wanted to "win" he had to come running as fast as he could when he heard his name and say "Yes ma'am!" He loves doing this and it is a great way for him to learn to come the first time he is called. He is such a good little man!

Had a fun date with my Babe! I love Thursday date nights! We had a delicious meal at the salad bar and then finished a few finalizing plans for Teen Winter Revival which is only a week and a half away! Hard to believe. We are excited!

Thank you, God for the AMAZING family you have given me!

Great Time Today!

2010-02-17T22:38:00.000-08:00

Dan and I enjoyed spending the day at Golden State Baptist College with Karen and Jezzel! What a great place! We enjoyed being a part of the classes and chapel and seeing the great spirit of the young people. Darren enjoyed playing with Jason and Mary Azzarello's boys!

Fun Valentine's Weekend and day off for Presidents' Day!

2010-02-15T12:21:00.000-08:00

We had a nice weekend! Dan and I went out for a Valentine date on Saturday. Darren stayed here with a sitter while Dan and I went to the city to a VERY nice restaurant called Joe Dimaggio's! What an amazing man God has given me!! He knows how to make so many "memorable moments!"

This picture is of Darren and Faith on Sunday. They are such good buddies!

These pictures are from our nice "family date" this morning! Dan did not have to teach school today so we slept in and then went for a late brunch at Denny's! We got a coupon for 25% off of our entire breakfast! What a treat to get to go out as a family in the middle of the day!! Looking forward to the rest of the day just being lazy together!

Ladies Winter Banquet Pictures...

2010-02-13T22:38:00.000-08:00

Here are a few photos from our Ladies' Winter Banquet. We really had a great time!
The theme was "Polished As a Palace" - Psalms 144:12 "That our daughters may be as corner stones, polished after the similitude of a palace:

Hmmm...

2010-02-09T22:41:00.000-08:00

Do you think Darren shows any signs of becoming a perfectionist like his mother?

You judge...

This is what I found when straightening up before bed. I had asked him earlier just to put his toys on one of the tables. I was CRACKING UP when I saw them all standing erect and perfectly aligned! Too funny! He's a cutie!

2010-02-08T22:35:00.000-08:00

Mmmmmm.....!

Ever had a chopped salad? It is simply called a chopped salad because all the ingredients are chopped to roughly the same size. (Which makes it much easier to eat in my opinion; plus you get a little taste of every flavor in each bite.) It is a yummy way to have lunch!

You can be creative, add whatever you like!

Here is my creation from lunchtime today...

Blue Cheese Chopped Salad

The following items chopped and tossed with Raspberry Olive Oil Vinaigrette Dressing...

Iceberg lettuce

Red cabbage

Pecans

Blue cheese

Craisins

Cucumber

Mmmmmmm!

A YUMMY way to be healthy!

(I also added a turkey burger. I bought some of the already frozen patties and just cooked one up with the same dressing as my salad plus a bit of salt and pepper. No bun, just enjoyed it's flavors.)

BaDoons!!

2010-02-05T23:05:00.000-08:00

That's what he calls 'em!

There is a lady in our church who brings balloons for the kids every Sunday morning. Darren just LOVES that! When he was little, before he learned her name he called her "BaDoon!" Just thought you might enjoy a fun picture of our very fun little man!

Who says serving God isn't fun?!

2010-02-03T22:57:00.000-08:00

Great evening with the teens, as always!

We had 16 go out soul-winning and over 20 teens in church! We didn't have much time actually out soul-winning, but still saw 4 saved! Praise the Lord!

Gearing up for our 3rd Annual Winter Teen Revival on Monday, March 1st, 7:00 pm! Going to be some great singing, skits, preaching by Pastor Mark Lewis of Vacaville and of course...pizza and pop! The kids are getting excited and so are we! So great for teenagers to get together with other Christian teens for a fun time of fellowship and great preaching.

Also, really excited about our first Teen Ladies Winter Banquet. All the girls are buying their formal dresses and getting excited. So am I!

Thanks, God! Serving You is so much fun!

"Gore!"...

2010-02-02T22:21:00.000-08:00

What? Perhaps you don't know what that means? Here, Darren will explain...

Darren was playing golf this evening with his sword! I was showing him how to hit the ball (sort of!) and I would say..."Fore!"

So he started playing. He would hit the ball and say..."Gore!" Dan and I had a good laugh over that one!

He is so much fun!

Fun With the Family...

2010-01-31T15:24:00.000-08:00

All Dan's family came over to our house to eat today. We took a couple pictures of the kids. Darren loves his cousins. He also LOVES to have people over to the house! We enjoyed a nice time of family fellowship! We take turns eating at different houses each Sunday afternoon. Here are a few pictures.

Liberty Nicole...

Faith and Darren...

I hadn't seen Darren for a little while...I looked in his bedroom and there he was...hiding in his toy box...doing "his business!" Luckily I had a pull-up on him at the moment. Potty-training is SUCH a joy! (nice hair, huh?!)

Great Sunday in our teen department today...over 25 teens. Great morning service with an excellent message from pastor about keeping the Christian life fresh or "sweet and new" every day. Great truth.

Tip for the Day...

2010-01-27T22:54:00.001-08:00

Cooking Tip of the Day...Do NOT substitute brown rice for white rice in a crock-pot recipe unless you like meals with the texture of glue! Even with added liquids, the texture and flavor was...not very desirable!

I think this is the 2nd time in my married life that I have thrown away a meal. Want to know what a penny pincher I am? I picked out all the chicken pieces before I threw it away so I could make something else and not waste my expensive meat! HA!

Ah well! Good day today. Darren and I are on the mend from our "delightful" cold. I had a fun meeting with my teen girls, LOVE them! Pastor preached a GREAT message tonight derived from the Life of Saul and what we can learn from the mistakes at the end of his life. Good truths! It truly is GREAT to be in the house of the Lord!

Fun in the snow!

2010-01-25T11:56:00.000-08:00

We had a great time with the teens in the snow in South Lake Tahoe on Saturday. There was LOTS of snow this weekend, great for sledding. I got some beautiful pictures of the snow.

One of the girls took some pictures of the teens sledding for me. We had 20 of us all together. We had a great time and no one broke any bones, which is a great thing!

In one of the vans ready to go....

Snowboarding on a sled?!

Jack Frost...

Whew! Not easy getting back up that hill...

Ready for the snow...

Dan's brother came along to drive the other vehicle...

Our youth department dare-devil...having fun...

Helen and one of the teen girls covered in snow after a trip down the hill...

Somebody get me out of here...

Newsy bits...

2010-01-21T23:12:00.000-08:00

Well, lots going on this week, mainly preparation work! I feel I haven't had a chance to post much news.

Our guys did a good job at the basketball tournament on Monday. They battled hard for the championship game, but barely missed it! They took 3rd out of 7 teams, I think? So did good!

I am posting a picture of the 2010 League All-Star Team. 3 of our guys are on the team.

Our league is made up of several other Baptist churches with smaller Christian schools. Makes for a good evenly matched season. Our guys did really well this season. We have an advantage, none of our basketball team members are graduating this year. Hopefully we will have a great team next year!

2010 All-Star Team (A few members were missing!)

Dan and I enjoyed a nice meal and stroll around IKEA tonight looking for kitchen table ideas. Nice and relaxing. That is a really neat place! If you have never been there, check it out! Even if you don't buy a thing you can get some GREAT home decor ideas! There items are very reasonably priced, I might add!! Love date night with my Babe!

Darren enjoyed an evening with Grandma and his girl cousins. Poor kid, whenever they watch a princess movie, he inevitably becomes the prince in all their "pretends!" He has SO much fun playing with his cousins! Thank God for wonderful Christian family!

That's all the newsy tidbits for tonight!

...Oh, and I only have 7 more pounds to go till my wedding weight! YAY!! Then I think Dan said something about buying me a new wardrobe...right, Babe?!

SNOW!!!!!!!

2010-01-20T23:07:00.000-08:00

We are off to Lake Tahoe for our annual teen snow trip on Saturday. The kids are so excited and SO AM I!! Since I am an Indiana girl, I have to get my "snow fix" at least once a year!

I posted a picture of Beautiful Lake Tahoe in the winter where we are headed. It has been raining ALL WEEK here, so you know what that means...SNOW in Lake Tahoe! We are going to have some serious sledding this year!

Pray for good driving weather. Pray our ol' bus will make it fine in the snow. Pray for safety for all the kids.

I was just thinking as we went visiting in the nursing home with the teens today... I LOVE our teens! They are a great group. What a privilege to serve together with them for the Lord. Why do we need rewards? Looking at the changed lives and sweet spirits of our young people is enough for me!!

THANK YOU, God, for using me to help others. As my preacher, Bro. Hyles, used to say, "Isn't it great to be used?"

Great Sunday!

2010-01-17T21:39:00.000-08:00

"The Bible is the WordaGod!"...Darren's interpretation! He was proud of himself for having his little new testament in Sunday School. He even got a dollar for bringing it to Sunday school today so he is proudly displaying his Bible and prize!

I am glad my son looks forward to going to church!

We had a great Sunday at church. Good crowd this morning and tonight. We had 18 of our teens back at church tonight and in SNAC played a game of "C'Mon Fill the Bowl!" Teens had to pass a spoonful of cheerios from spoon to spoon from a full bowl to the empty bowl at the other end of the table. Whichever side of the table had the most Cheerios in their bowl by the end of 3 minutes won. Very entertaining since they ALWAYS cheat! Ha! Then we all sat around the table and ate cereal and milk. Fun! LOVE our kids!

Excited about our snow trip to Lake Tahoe this coming Saturday! Teens are excited too.

God's house is a great place to be!

Creative Minds...

2010-01-14T23:15:00.000-08:00

Isn't he cute? Little people have such creative minds! I finished folding my laundry and went to put it away. When I came back out from the bedroom and walked into the living room this is what I found in my laundry basket (He LOVES our little mini yorkie named Belle)...

HOME! What a great word!

2010-01-12T22:55:00.000-08:00

The soft pitter-patter of the rain outside is such a nice background for a comfy evening at home! I LOVE rainy evenings; they make home such a snug and cozy place.

I just wanted to stop and make note of the wonderful, relaxing, comfortable haven a home can be when Christ is the center! How I thank God for the wonderful godly husband He has given me.

The standards and guidelines Christ has set up for us are not to hinder our happiness, but rather to further it! Just as disciplinary rules that are set up for a child will give him security in knowing his boundaries, so guidelines from our Heavenly Father will give us security in our daily lives. Following God's Word will keep us from ways of life that could lead us to wrong and dangerous decisions.

Thank you, God, for one of my favorite words and favorite places...HOME!

Great Sunday and...VICTORY today!

2010-01-11T12:45:00.001-08:00

(You can see the link for my Youth Pastor's Wife blog post towards the bottom of right column)

Good number of teens in Sunday school with a good spirit. Had a group of our young people sing on Sunday evening!

As for...VICTORY today...that would be concerning potty training! Darren has been potty trained for months in every area except, #2! He finally went to the potty and did this all by himself today. Which is, of course, a HUGE victory for mommy!

Need a funny today? One of the areas I am working on this year is my organization in all areas and planning ahead for everything. Here is a cute "Garfield Funny" along those lines that I enjoyed! have a great day!

Family is FABULOUS!

2010-01-08T23:37:00.000-08:00

Fun family night...Nice dinner at home (grilled chicken breast, mashed potatoes and green beans, Mmmmm!) went to Target for a few items, then Ice Cream Cones at McDonald's! (Hey only 150 calories and it's SO good! C'mon now! We have been real good this week!)

I took several little video clips yesterday of Darren playing his new guitar and singing. They take a little longer to post, so I am just going to upload one right now.

This one is Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star. He is just TOO CUTE!! No, you can't have him; he's ours!! Enjoy...

Also, praying for the Kalapp family as they said their final goodbyes to Husband and Dad today. What a sweet service and a great tribute to a great and godly man!

A Good Wednesday...

2010-01-06T22:43:00.000-08:00

Great time out Teen soul-winning today! I went with Dan today. (my favorite soul-winning partner!) Our last house was a young man named Eric. Seemed he had just been sitting there waiting for us to come...SO open and receptive to the Gospel. Dan sweetly led him to the Lord. It NEVER ceases to amaze me when I see someone bow their head and hear the words from their lips! Isn't God good to use us like that?!! I just love it! Good church service tonight, good number of teens in attendance.

Our snow trip to Lake Tahoe is in 3 weeks. We are excited! So are the teens! Looks like we will have a good group. 2 snow "first-timers" this year! That is always so much fun, and beyond my comprehension! I cannot imagine NEVER seeing snow until I was a teenager?!! Weird!

Quick funny from today...

2010-01-04T22:59:00.000-08:00

OK, so here is another little funny from today...

We were taking down the Christmas tree. I gave Darren the job of taking all the plastic candy cane ornaments off the tree and putting them in a box. He did a great job taking them off of the tree. He was quiet so I looked behind me and there he was putting them on my little decorative pine tree by the piano! This tree stays up all year and is part of my living room wilderness decor, but it looked the same to him!

Cutie pie! He was SO proud of himself! I snapped this cute picture. Enjoy!

Back to Schedule...

2010-01-04T16:13:00.000-08:00

I LOVE the holidays, but I am also happy to return to normal schedule. (I do hate to see Dan begin his "Lack of sleep" marathon at UPS again, though!)

We had lots of fun on New Year's Day. Darren and I had a pretty yucky cold the days before, but felt better by New Year's Day. Dan's family all came over to our house for a late lunch and we played a bunch of games and watched the Bowl Games. We love to watch football, even though there was no team we were particularly interested in this year. Dan and his sister, Karen were fooling around, celebrating a New Year's touchdown. Their personalities are so much alike! Thought you might enjoy this fun little video clip...

Also, taking down and putting away the Christmas things today. Darren was helping me with a few things, so we were talking about Christmas. Took a picture and little video clip of our chat. He enjoyed this Christmas SO much.

Here is a short little video clip. Sorry it is kind of sideways and up and down. I was taking the video and couldn't really tell what I was getting!

Have a Great Day!

Miscellaneous Christmas Pictures...

2010-01-02T22:16:00.000-08:00

I am taking a while to sort through all of our pictures from the week of Christmas. Here are just a couple from our family Christmas on Monday, December 21st, the day before we left for Disneyland.

(Sorry if you see lots of "stuff" in the background! Trying to separate presents for 3 different families in one room is challenging! Especially with 3 active children running around and playing in the midst!)

Our "meager fare!" Ha! We are spoiled...(Grandma finds all the good bargains for the kiddos!)

Darren likes his new 'Niners shirt!

Helen got a new cookbook! Woo Hoo!

Darren Paul the Fireman! It lights up too!

Darren LOVES his new guitar!

Dan got what he ALWAYS wanted!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

2010-01-01T00:05:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year, Everyone!! Hard to believe it is 2010, the start of a new decade!

Enjoyed a nice cozy family evening for this New Year's Eve.

We are Back!

2009-12-29T19:18:00.000-08:00

...We have been out of town if you have wondered why there were no new posts or pictures this week. We spent the past week in the Los Angeles area at Disneyland! Had a GREAT time with Dan's family.

Had our family Christmas on Monday, December 21st here at home. Left Tuesday morning to drive to Disneyland. Spent Wednesday, Thursday and Friday there.

Saturday, Dan's family drove back home taking Darren and leaving Dan and I to enjoy a few days to celebrate our 6 year wedding anniversary! It was nice to have a few extra days to relax. We spent our Saturday shopping in the Disneyland area and a nice dinner at the Old Spaghetti Factory.

Enjoyed attending church at Lancaster Baptist Church on Sunday. Dan and I enjoyed a brunch in Newport Beach area on Monday morning and then headed home. Arrived home Monday evening. Happy to give our little man hugs again!

Great vacation time and now we are happy to be all snug in our very own home again! Home is a wonderful place.

Here are some misc. pictures of our vacation. Enjoy! We love you all!

Darren and Mommy with Mickey (Darren's a bit apprehensive! But he begged to go see Mickey!)

Darren and Lightening McQueen...

With Tigger...

Dan and Helen in Santa's Sleigh, Disneyland...

By Mickey Mouse outside of California Adventure park...

Dan and Darren in Bug's Land (Where everything looks huge as it would to a bug!)

Darren and Daddy bein' silly!

Hooray for Bug's Land...

All wearing our 3D "Bug Glasses" before the Bug's Life show...

By the beautiful tree in the Grand California Hotel lobby (We ate there at Storyteller's Cafe for Christmas dinner. Saw Jennifer Lopez the actor, Ha!)

The three cousins...Faith, Liberty (Dave and Angie's girls) and Darren

Dan and I stayed at the beautiful Hyatt Regency Hotel in Newport Beach, CA...

The beautiful lobby fireplace...

Dan and Helen, still very much in love after 6 wonderful years of marriage and looking forward to many more!

Great Play!

2009-12-18T23:29:00.000-08:00

Our Christian school held its annual Christmas Extravaganza tonight. We held the dessert auction fundraiser first and made some good money for the school. My Chocolate Chip Cheesecake sold for $80!!

Then the kids put on a great Christmas play. Lots of good talent amongst our kids!

I will post pictures tomorrow from our Teen Christmas Party. We are taking our kids to Panera Bread, going to see Christmas lights with our hot chocolate and candy canes, and then finish off with an hour or so of games in the gym. Love time spent with the kids! Teens are a blast!

Rainy and Chilly...

2009-12-16T10:13:00.000-08:00

Rainy and chilly outside. Makes me appreciate the nice, warm, cozy home God has given us! We have some presents under the tree now from Nana and Papaw Shepherd!

Had a fun time singing with my Mom-in-law and Sis-in-law at Victory Baptist Church in Brentwood last night. They had a ladies' Christmas party and asked us to sing. We had a good time together! Dan's sis, Karen and her friend came with us as well. It is wonderful to have fun fellowship with other Christian ladies. And the food...AMAZING! A sweet lady in their church made all the food, home-style southern cooking...Pot Roast (Fall apart tender, I might add!), peas and greens, mashed potatoes and gravy, homemade biscuits and homemade apple butter, homemade hot apple cider and an apple-pear-cranberry crisp! WOW!! It was such a treat. I LOVE to cook everything homemade also, so it made me feel I should go home and cook! Mmmmm!!

Darren was being cute, as usual; so here are a couple cuties of him. Enjoy!

Reading his Winnie the Pooh Books...

Reading one of his Franklin books. Those are his FAVORITES!

Isn't God Good?!

2009-12-14T15:17:00.000-08:00

WOW! Great weekend! God is good!

One of our teenagers, who has been involved in our ministries for 7 years and is currently a senior in our Christian school, finally got his mom to attend our church service for the first time 2 weeks ago. Yesterday, she accepted Christ as her Saviour, walked the aisle and got baptized! How exciting! Gives us the reassurance and reminder that we should never stop praying. We never know how long an answer to prayer may take. What a privilege to pray! May we never lose sight of this privilege and daily take advantage of the gift of prayer.

We also had our church-wide adult Christmas party this past Saturday evening. We had a great group of people there and LOTS of food! It was potluck, so we had a very yummy variety of foods and a fun time of games and fellowship. "Church Family" is a wonderful extension of our own family.

Here is a picture of Darren "deep in thought" yesterday. he is just the cutest thing! Enjoy!

SHOPPING!

2009-12-10T23:11:00.000-08:00

YAY! Dan and I had a "Christmas shopping date" tonight and we were able to purchase a few goodies for my family!! How fun! We will be putting out little box in the mail on Monday. For my family reading...wish we could see you all, but we are already looking forward to next Christmas!

It is very chilly and rainy here tonight. I am enjoying the sound of the rain outside the window. We are now entering the Bay area rainy season, but I don't mind it since we don't hardly get rain at all the rest of the year. Too bad it isn't a few degrees cooler, we might get SNOW! It snowed in the hills of Santa Clara and Napa, I believe! I am pining for a snow trip! We will be taking our teens next month to Tahoe as usual, so I will get my "snow fix" then.

Darren and I had a fun morning, just some good fun. He will let me take a video of him as long as he gets to watch it on my camera afterwards! I tried to post a couple little clips, but couldn't tonight?! Oh well. Here is one little picture of Darren...alias the villainous Captain Hook! He LOVES to play swords.

Can't wait!

2009-12-08T23:08:00.000-08:00

To mail out our Christmas cards! I am hoping to get those in the mail in the next couple of days. Once I mail them, then I will post our new pictures on here. Just hated to post them here before anyone even got the Christmas cards!

We had a "stay around the house" day, which I enjoy! I am a homebody!

Here is a Darren funny for the day...

Dan always takes a nap from about 4:00 - 6:30 pm each afternoon, since he only gets somewhere between 2 hours to 3 1/2 hours of sleep at night. I wake Dan up when supper is almost on the table. I always let Darren go with me to wake him up. That is one of his highlights of the day, snuggling in the bed with Daddy! Today, I had supper almost on the table at 6:30 as usual, but I needed to take something out of the oven. I told Darren it was time to wake Daddy up, but today Mommy would let him do it all by himself! He was excited, so off to the bedroom he went to wake up Daddy.

I heard..."Daddy...Daddy...Time to wake up, Daddy." No movement from the bed.

Once again I heard..."Daddy...Daddy...Time to get up, Daddy. Supper's ready!" Still no movement from the bed, so Darren tried another tactic.

Next I heard..."Babe...Babe...Get up, Babe!"

Oh, how I roared with laughter!! I guess he figured "Babe" was the magic word! Ain't he the cutest thing?!

I will try to remember to take a new picture to post here tomorrow.

Nice family evening!

2009-12-04T22:52:00.001-08:00

Nice evening! We ate supper and then headed over to the Patriots last home basketball game. The guys tried hard, but Heritage really has a LOT more players; plus one of our best players was fouled out on a REALLY bad call! Ahhh well, such is life, huh? Guess we will take 3rd place instead of second. He was a pretty good Christian about keeping his mouth shut on the call though, so that's good! Also had a good group of fans to support!

Then it was home for a few rounds of basketball on Darren's hoop and an old goofy cartoon with a snack. Milk and a Franklin book and off to bed for Darren. Dan and I were able to enjoy a nice cozy fire in the fireplace by the Christmas tree! Home is a WONDERFUL place!! Thanks, God, for the founding of the home and the amazing husband and son you have given me!

Darren LOVES to play his guitar and sing along with CDs. He AMAZES me by knowing the words to almost every song on my CDs! Today the Hooker Family's CD "Through the Storm"
was playing. He loves the songs "Glory, Glory (he calls it Cory, Cory!) and "God Give Me Faith" (since that is his cousin's name!). He began strumming along with "God Give Me Faith" and singing so I recorded him. You can't hear him too loud but he was singing almost every word of the chorus! Cutie pie. He melts me when he says "Fweeze, Mommy?!!!" (being interpreted... Please!) It's only about 45 seconds long. Enjoy!

A Sweet Service...

2009-12-04T12:02:00.000-08:00

I just finished watching online the "Heavenly Graduation" service for Dr. Don Boyd, my high school principal. It was a very sweet tribute to the life of a truly amazing and exemplary Christian. There were some tears, some laughter over sweet and fond memories, and a time to give God solemn thanks for the time we were privileged to spend under the influence of Mr. Boyd's life. The music, as always at First Baptist, was sweet and appropriate.

I tearfully watched as his family said their last goodbyes to Daddy, Sweetheart, Grandpa and beloved relative. Mrs. Boyd left her husband with a sweet kiss and a long hug. The actions and composure of the family were a wonderful testimony of their trust in God . There was not a spirit of despair; sadness, yes, but an obvious faith and trust in a God whose strength is bigger than our hurts. Even in death, Mr. Boyd's unwavering faith in God was evidenced by the sweet testimony of his family.

I wish I could have been there to stand as an alumni who was privileged to be under the leadership of Mr. Boyd while in my high school years. But, as stated in my last post in tribute, I will strive to say my thanks by serving God with my life and pass on the legacy of Christianity Mr. Boyd handed down to us. he was truly a friend to all he met!

Thanks, Mr. Boyd! I have so many precious memories from my high school years! Your life will not be forgotten. We love you!

2009-12-02T19:26:00.000-08:00

Darren and I are home from church tonight staying out of the nurseries since he still has "the yuckies." We are watching church online at North Valley (nvbc.org). Always enjoy hearing and seeing their church services; they are always very upbeat and encouraging. Bro. Trieber is a very uplifting person and I love all the music they include in every service!

Here are a few pictures we took of Darren for fun. He LOVES to get his picture taken, except when I WANT him to!

Enjoy...

Notice the shoes...

Our pretty Christmas tree..

We watched Polar Express (only the parts that didn't scare him!) So he came out of his room with his Santa hat and his "robe" and sat in his "sleigh" He said "Ho, Ho, Mar Chrismess!" He is the cutest!!

A Tribute...

2009-12-01T10:57:00.000-08:00

Visit my Youth Pastor's Wife Blog for a tribute to a great man...Dr. Don Boyd, late principal of Hammond Baptist High School, who went to Heaven this past Sunday evening after a battle with cancer. He is an amazing man who will be sorely missed. Just click on the link below...

http://helenscallaghan.blogspot.com/

Sorry...

2009-11-30T22:42:00.000-08:00

I haven't been to consistent on posting lately. Dan has had 4 nights off in a row! (if you count his Saturday and Sunday) What a treat! We have been busy taking full advantage of some wonderful family time.

Dan is back to work tonight to a VERY busy and crazy night at UPS, I fear! Volume should be astronomical tonight since they were closed for 2 extra days! Please pray for him this week!

We had a great Sunday. I had another large Sunday school class of 14 girls, I think; and the program is over! God is good! Several of the visitors from the program have been coming back consistently.

One of our faithful young men, who graduated from our teen dept. 2 years ago, has since become a faithful and active adult member of our church. He has been praying hard for some of his family to be saved. He has invited his niece, who is a teenage young lady, to church several times. She came yesterday and I had the privilege of leading her to the Lord during the invitation!! I just LOVE IT when God gives me such opportunities and special soul-winning experiences! It challenges me and stirs me up to be a more zealous witness.

Please be in prayer for our Darren man. I believe he is starting with the nasty stomach flu that his poor cousin Faith started with the day before Thanksgiving. Uuuuggh! I am not looking forward to that! If I end up dealing with a stomach flu I may not be back here for a few days. Anyways, here is a picture of him tonight. He is just a cutie!

A WONDERUL Family Day!

2009-11-27T23:20:00.001-08:00

What a fun day!! I LOVE Thanksgiving, but I think the day after Thanksgiving has always been one of my favorite days of the year ever since I was little! Dan and I LOVE carrying on the Shepherd family tradition of going to the tree farm to cut down a Christmas tree.

We had a yummy mid-morning breakfast at home and then off to Half Moon Bay to Santa's Tree Farm (our new favorite by the way!). It was a BEAUTIFUL drive! We got our tree, ate at McDonald's and then headed home. After a naptime for Darren, we decorated the tree this evening. What a fun day! I LOVE spending time with my 2 men, Dan and little Darren man!

Enjoy a few pictures...

Dan and Helen...

Daddy and Darren ready to cut down the tree. Darren insisted upon bringing his saw to help Daddy out!...

Mommy and The Darren Man...

With Mrs. Claus. Darren just couldn't quite get brave enough to go see Santa!...

The scenic little "Gumdrop Bridge" you drive over to see the Noble Fir lot...

The BEAUTIFUL view on our way back...

Into the Christmas spirit as we unpack all our Christmas decorations...

I am SO Thankful...

2009-11-26T21:36:00.000-08:00

Happy Thanksgiving!!

I am so thankful to God for the many blessings he has bestowed upon our family this year. I am far away from my family this holiday season and missing all the Shepherd clan "hubub," but thankful to God for a second Christian family to be a part of! Dan's family is so wonderful!

We ate at Dave and Angie's house (Dan's brother). Mom Callaghan, Angie and I split up the cooking. We had a FEAST with plenty of yummy leftovers. We set some aside for Sunday dinner and split up the rest. We enjoyed time to sit around and chat, watched a few funny videos then headed home. I had the JOY of cleaning up and putting away food when I got home, but it sure is rewarding to be sitting here looking at a CLEAN KITCHEN! Aaaahhhh!

We watched "Pluto's Christmas Tree" an wonderful old Mickey Mouse cartoon, enjoyed a nice cozy fire together and a snack. Then Darren was off to bed. I think "family" and "home" are 2 of my very favorite words!

Tomorrow...one of my FAVORITE days of the year! We are going to cut down our Christmas tree, then come home and pull out all the Christmas decorations! Darren is pumped! So am I! We love carrying on the Shepherd family tradition!

Here is a picture of our cozy fire. We are thankful for all our friends and family and hope your day was special too!!

Update...

2009-11-23T23:16:00.000-08:00

We had a great weekend!!! Saturday was normal schedule except we had our quarterly mission's meeting. It was a Christmas theme as we were collecting a love offering to send to our missionaries. We had a good turn-out with 25 or 26 people there. We enjoyed a nice spaghetti dinner, played one short game, collected an offering, prayed for our missionaries and dismissed. I always enjoy getting together with others in our church!

Sunday was the last day of the fall program. We had a big push for visitors and, as is our custom, gave away a free turkey to all bus parents who came and any visiting adults. We had LOTS of visitors! We had 7 visitors in the teen department alone, and about 19 adult visitors! WOW! Great to see God's house packed out on a Sunday morning! I had 17 ladies in my teen class! AWESOME! 5 of these were visitors. Dan had I believe 13 guys in his class as well! Our teens worked SO hard to bring visitors this program. We are SUPER proud of our kids for their hard work and also in going out of their way to be friendly to all the new teens.

Today Darren and I got to go grocery shopping for all our Thanksgiving food supplies. Our cupboards are bursting with holiday goodies waiting to be baked! Can't wait to start baking all my pies and goodies!! Aahhh...I LOVE Thanksgiving and the coming holiday season! What a wonderful thing to have a day dedicated to giving thanks and enjoying the fellowship of family...and food!! We all have SO much to be thankful for!

By the way, if you read my blog and have an extra 30 seconds, please post me a note in the box to the right. I LOVE knowing what people visit my blog and stay up-to-date with our family! It is just as simple as sending a text...type your name...a few words...and your done! (You do not have to enter your email if you do not wish to.) Hope you enjoy reading; I LOVE hearing from you!

A Nice Normal Week...

2009-11-20T16:14:00.000-08:00

Sorry I haven't posted much this week. We have a bit of an Internet connection problem, but Dan has showed me how to reset it when it cuts off.

We have had a pretty routine week. Great Wednesday out teen soul-winning! I didn't get to go with the teens this Wednesday because I didn't have a babysitter. There were 17 teens out soul-winning and 16 saved, though! Hooray! I love the zeal our teens have for souls.

Darren has had a rather "2-year-old" week, but we still have lots of fun. Here are a few of his "funnies" from the week. Being a mommy is never ending entertainment!

Daddy leaves for bus route early every Sunday morning, so Darren and I have a special treat for breakfast...we have cinnamon toast instead of toast with honey! A little thing, I know, but we enjoy making the little things fun. I want him to learn in every possible way to look forward to Sundays. I LOVE Sundays!

Anyways, Monday morning rolled around and we had our "regular toast." While we were sitting at the table eating breakfast he said, "Mommy, can we please have "SIN" toast?!" OH, how I LAUGHED over that one!! He thought we were having "SIN" toast on Sundays! How ironic is that??!

Also, while driving in the car this week. We were talking about eating dinner. I asked Darren what he liked to eat. He thought for a moment and said..."Sgabetti!" Which, I believe interpreted would be...spaghetti! Hee Hee!

And the last Darren funny...I love keeping whole nuts in the shell around the holidays. We enjoy cracking and eating them whenever we are sitting down to watch something or just relaxing in the evenings. (Plus I don't eat as many when I have to crack open the shell first!) Tuesday evening Dan, Darren and I were just relaxing after dinner and Darren began asking for some notes? He kept asking and asking..."Mommy, can we have notes? Mommy, can we have notes?" I was quite puzzled till I asked him to show Mommy. He promptly walked to the glass jar filled with hazelnuts and said..."Notes, Mommy!"

Here are a few pictures of our cute man from this week. Enjoy!

Darren "the cool dude" Callaghan.

Darren LOVES to help build a fire...

A nice normal week!

2009-11-20T15:45:00.000-08:00

Sorry I haven't posted much this week. We have a bit of an Internet connection problem, but Dan has showed me how to reset it when it cuts off.

Darren has had a rather "2-year-old" week, but we still have lots of fun. Here are a few of his "funnies" from the week. Being a mommy is never ending entertainment!

Here are a few pictures of our cute man from this week. Enjoy!

Darren "the cool dude" Callaghan.

He LOVES helping Daddy build a fire!

Thanks, God!!

2009-11-16T22:05:00.000-08:00

I just had to pause and thank God for a wonderful Christian home! What a privilege!!

We had such a wonderful happy family night. A warm yummy pot of homemade soup at the kitchen table...the sounds of a "Daddy and Darren" basketball game while I cleaned the kitchen...a few rousing games of "Hungry Hippo"...a few good "oldie" cartoons, 1937 Mickey Mouse and another old Chip and Dale...tucking my sweet Darren man into bed...enjoying a fire in the fireplace and a hot cup of tea with my Babe...The hardest working husband around heading off to work to provide for our family...and now the last bit of our nice fire with the end of an old faithful Hallmark movie and another bit of hot tea!

Ahhhh, why wouldn't ANYONE want to invite God into their homes?! We are so privileged to follow the sweet and happy will of God! What a wonderful, wonderful place to be! During every moment of our lives, good or bad, home with Christ as the center is a sweet haven!

Sunday...

2009-11-16T10:21:00.000-08:00

We had a great service with many adult visitors again his week! We have one more week of our program left. We had 2 saved and 1 baptized in the morning service, which is always exciting!

Also, our nursery superintendent asked Pastor a few weeks ago if she could honor Mrs. Callaghan at Thanksgiving time for all she does for our church. She wanted to make it a surprise and mom was surprised, which is amazing! During the morning service she honored Mrs. Callaghan with a few special things, a gift and a short picture slide-show. Then Angie, Karen, Jezzel and I sang "Thank You for Giving to the Lord." Our Nursery superintendent also payed for a nice meal reception for the entire church after the service in the Fellowship Hall! Wow! What a treat! We had a nice time and were glad for the chance to honor a well-deserving Pastor's wife!

Here are those who fit in the Fellowship Hall! Had a good crowd so some were eating elsewhere.

A few pictures...

Mom and Dad Callaghan, nice smile, Dad!

Our nursery superintendent on the left who made this possible!

Mom's beautiful cake!

Everyone "digging-in" to the yummy Filipino food!

Darren sitting in his chair serenading everyone on Anthony's guitar! Notice his bright blue band-aid! He got an "owie" in the nursery and was SO proud of his big blue band-aid!

Saturday...

2009-11-16T09:55:00.000-08:00

We had an exciting weekend!

Saturday first...
We had a Pizza and Game night at the church with the teens. We had several that were unable to make it but still had 15, which is a good group! We ate then played some wild and wacky games.

One of the games we played was human Foosball (the players stand lined up just like a Foosball table and cannot move off of their taped line. They have to kick the SOFT kids soccer ball into their goal past the goalie!) Lots of fun! We played some other crazy games too.

The kids had a lot of fun and so did Dan and I! We always enjoy spending time with our teenagers!

Here's a little 30 second human Foosball video...

Here is a "Darren Funny"...

2009-11-13T23:07:00.000-08:00

I am was teaching Darren to ask to be excused from the table. I gave him a little jelly belly candy when he remembered to ask. He had finished his lunch and started saying, "Please have some 'scuse, Mommy? Please have some 'scuse?!"

I said, "Good! Yes, you can be excused!" But he kept saying, "Please have some, Mommy? Please have some 'scuse?" He proceeded to explain that he thought this "excused" stuff is something he should get after he ate...like a dessert!

I had a good laugh over that one! Now we have established that it isn't something to eat, it means "get down;" we are making better progress! Hee Hee!

Me and my cute lil' man. This is his new "smile?!" Ha!

Cheesecake Factory! Mmmm....

2009-11-12T22:37:00.000-08:00

Tonight Dan and I took four teens, who brought visitors on our big day a few weeks ago, to the Cheesecake Factory in SF for dessert. We had a lot of fun and the cheesecake was AMAZING! Dan got Snickers Chunk cheesecake and I got Red Velvet Cheesecake! (Layers of Red Velvet cake and cheesecake. WOW!) Our winners were a brother and sister and two other young ladies; they all brought visitors with them on Friend Day. Nice night with some great teens and a handsome hubby! ALWAYS love a trip to the City! San Francisco is beautiful at night!

Love my handsome man!

Our contest winners...

With some of my girls!

A Thanksgiving Funny...

2009-11-10T22:29:00.000-08:00

Here is a little laugh for you all.

Things NOT to say at the Thanksgiving Table…

- Turn to your mom and say, “See, I told you they wouldn’t

notice that the turkey was past the expiration date!”
- “Did you cook this yourself or did you just thaw it out?”
- “My, aren’t you full yet?”
- “Did we ever figure out which of you stole Grandma’s jewelry?”
- “Why didn’t you try some of Aunt Martha’s pecan surprise jello?”

This isn't Thanksgiving, but it IS funny! If you don't get it, you probably shouldn't apply at a school for the gifted!...

Monday update...

2009-11-09T16:05:00.000-08:00

We had a nice relaxing Monday morning since there was no school for teacher's work day. Dan was able to sleep in and we ate a nice breakfast together this morning. What a treat! Here are a couple pictures from today. Nothing spectacular, just our very cute little Darren man and Belle, our little dog.

Darren and Belle...Don't her eyes look evil?!

Darren enjoying his animal crackers...

Daddy and Darren playing with "snakes!"

I also have a GREAT report to post about our Sunday! One of our teen girls has been praying for, I think, about 2 years for her mom to come to church and to be saved. She and her cousins convinced her mom to come with some family yesterday to church for the first time! We were SO excited.

During invitation time I slipped to the back of the auditorium where she was sitting and asked her if I could show her some verses from the Bible to help her in her life. She agreed and sat down with me there in the back (She has been rather hesitant about church and God, etc, so I thought asking her to come to the altar might be a mistake).

I was able to open the Word of God and show her the only way to Heaven. She listened, bowed her head, and sweetly asked the Lord to take her to Heaven. I was moved to tears as we prayed thinking that God would use ME to do such an amazing work in someone's life! WOW! Serving the Lord is an awesome thing to do with your life! The Lord's work is the greatest work in the world! Thank you, God, for working through ME!

We also had a great number of teens there on Sunday morning, about 26, I think!

Darren vs. the iPhone...

2009-11-05T22:26:00.000-08:00

How can a two-year-old figure out an iPhone? We have never showed Darren how to work anything on Dan's iPhone, but somehow from just watching Dan he has figured out how to do almost anything! It seems he certainly has an aptitude for picking up the operations of ANYTHING digital?! Whiz kid!

Here is a 30 second video clip we took tonight as Dan let him play with his phone for 5 minutes. He has figured out how to slide to open...select the icon of the weapon game (if you don't know what this is, you can select a weapon, sword, whip, etc. And then swing the iPhone like that weapon and it makes the noise!)...and change from one weapon to another?!! Exceptionally smart child, of course! Enjoy...

Fun Afternoon with the Teens...

2009-11-04T22:39:00.000-08:00

Had a great day out Teen Soul-winning today. 17 teens in attendance and 7 people saved! Very good in view of the fact that we have very little time now that daylight savings is over. It is practically dark as soon as we start! We don't like for the kids to stay out too long so we only had about half an hour. I was going to take some more pictures, but I forgot I had my camera till the last group of kids was getting off the bus! Anyways, here are a couple of our kids; we have such a GREAT group...

3 of our guys...Totally PUMPED...or something like that?!...

2 of our young ladies ready to go win some souls! However, they went with Dan and I; and, I am afraid to say, we picked the GRUMPY Street! A bunch of people who thought they didn't need God! Oh well, can't say we didn't try today!

Great Weekend...

2009-11-02T22:12:00.000-08:00

Our Sunday school crowds have been up this program. We had 23 teens there Sunday morning and one visitor! We have had a teen visitor in Sunday school every week of the program! One of them has come back for every Sunday morning and Sunday evening service since the first week! God is good. We also saw 2 saved and one baptized in the morning service.

Sunday night I had the privilege of playing the piano for one of our teen young men to sing a solo. He did such a GREAT job and it is so rewarding to see your young people choose to live their lives for God. I tell my teen girls often that I don't want to MAKE them become good Christians. I want them to have their own desire and make the choice.

I LOVE church, and I am SO glad my son is already excited about going to church every week! Every Sunday morning on the way to church we sing..."Every Sunday I Love to Go to Sunday School" and "This is the Day That the Lord Hath Made." Then we talk about who will see when we get there. By the time we arrive he is ready to run in the door! (Well, MOST Sundays!! Ha!) Being a mommy is a great privilege.

Fun on Halloween!

2009-10-31T22:59:00.000-07:00

We had a FUN time out trick-or-treating tonight! Darren was a Pirate and the cutest one I have ever seen, I might add! We went out with Dave and Angie and their girls, Faith and Liberty. The kids got TONS of candy, we found a great neighborhood to go to. Here are a few pictures of our fun evening. (We planned to bring Belle with us, but when I put on her pumpkin costume, she wouldn't walk! Ha!) Enjoy...

Here is our brave pirate..Aaaarrrgh! He walked right up to every door and said "Trick or Treat" real loud and then "Thank You!" Every time he got candy. What an exceptional child! Mommy had fun putting together his costume...

Darren the Pirate and Belle the Pumpkin (Forlorn though she may be!)...

The 3 cousins at Grandma's house,

Darren, a Pirate...Liberty, Little Bo Peep...Faith, Snow White! They had fun!

Go PATRIOTS!!!!!!!!

2009-10-30T21:55:00.000-07:00

Woo Hoo!! We won tonight! Clobbered the other team! I can't remember the final score but we had 50 something to their 18 points, I think! Our guys played very well tonight...actually making most of their shots. Usually we have SO many attempts missed in comparison to points made. We only have one home game left. Sad! I LOVE basketball season. Definitely my favorite sport to watch. Praying for a good weekend on the bus route. Since Angie babysits so I can go on Wednesday soul-winning with the teens, I babysit so she can go out on Saturdays. I do have a sign-up from soul-winning for Dan and the teens to visit so I might have a visitor in church Sunday morning anyways!

Mmm...Rollers...

2009-10-29T14:29:00.000-07:00

Grandpa Callaghan has his candy jar in his office full of "rollers" for the grand-kids! I shall interpret...tootsie rolls! Ha! Faith so named them when she was little and couldn't figure out how to say Tootsie Rolls and so now the grand-kids LOVE to visit Grandpa's office and get some "rollers!" However, we have to watch out...Grandpa Callaghan would probably let them eat the whole jar at once if they wanted!

Thanks, God!!

2009-10-29T14:20:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, we took the teens out as usual. Dan was pretty tired as he usually is on Wednesdays due to lack of sleep! I was pretty wiped out too since Darren has NOT been sleeping much due to molars and a few bad dreams. We got everyone picked up and then dropped off in groups to go door to door. Then Dan and I went together yesterday.

The first door we went to was opened by a lady who just stared at us and did not say a word! So I handed her a tract and invited her to come and visit us at church sometime. She closed the door and we started to the next door.

Just then the door the lady had just closed swung open again. A young adult man come dashing out and said, "Wait! Can I have one of those papers? (our tracts) I am really having a hard time in my life right now." WOW! Talk about God opening up an opportunity!!

Of course, we came back and Dan encouraged him for a bit. He told us how he and his girlfriend were really going through some trials. He had moved here from Louisiana about 5 years ago and just now was able to get a job...guess where?...UPS! So he and Dan certainly had some common ground to chat about!

Dan then opened the Bible and showed him what things could be "For Sure" in his life...knowing he was a child of God! He sweetly bowed his head, prayed and accepted Christ as his Saviour!! I was moved to tears during their prayer.

Here is the amazing part...He did not live at that house and he had only walked in the door 5 minutes before we knocked! Also, he said he had been praying every night for 4 or 5 days for God to give him a sign and show him that He was really there!! Coincidence? Hmmm...I THINK NOT! Talk about making your day, huh?!

Always heard these types of soul-winning stories, God showed us if we are faithful for Him, He will give us these special moments of our own! Ones we will NEVER forget! Isn't it GREAT to be used by God?!!!

Great Weekend!

2009-10-26T23:05:00.001-07:00

Just because he is CUTE!!

Great weekend at Arlington Baptist Church! Had a GOOD group of teens, I had 15 in my Sunday school class and Dan had 12 or 13, I think! We had lots of folks saved and several baptisms! Not quite sure of the number. I am glad to be part of a church where hardly a Sunday goes by that we do not see souls saved in the morning service and the baptismal waters stirred! I know God is happy when the Great Commission is being fulfilled!

We also had a Haunted Bus for all those who "DARED" to walk through! A few teens and a couple men from the church "haunted" the bus and did a good job. Most kids enjoy getting scared! I'm afraid I NEVER enjoyed that sort of thing when I was younger! But it was a good promotion and brought in a lot of people on the buses. I went through too; it was scary! They did a good job!

My sister-in-law and another lady from our church recently started a Patch the Pirate Club for the younger kids. This past Sunday night was their first Sunday to sing. They did a good job and were so cute! Tried to post a video clip, but it didn't upload after about 15 MINUTES?! So, I will have to try that one again later!

2009-10-24T22:19:00.000-07:00

We had fun carving our family pumpkin tonight! Darren was SO excited! Dan made a nice "friendly face" this year so Darren wouldn't be scared his first year carving a pumpkin! He wasn't TOO sure about all that nasty stuff coming out of the middle but then Daddy made it fun, so it was ok! Here is a 30 second video clip and a few pictures. Enjoy!

Video clip...Watching Daddy carve the face...He did a great job!

Ooooo...YUMMY!

Showing the chewed up candy in his mouth! Excited about "making a face on the pumpkin!"

What'sis, Mommy, What'sis? Darren's all too familiar question that I hear MANY times a day!

Our finished Jack-o-Lantern!

Daddy and the bud!

Darren and the pumpkin!

Mommy and our Darren man

What a cutie pie!

2009-10-23T14:16:00.000-07:00

Honestly, could he get any cuter? i think he gets cuter every day! Sure, we have our "2-year-old" moments, but he is a good boy and he is so much fun! I love being a mommy. Here is a real short video clip and a few pictures I took of our cute man yesterday. He is our joy! I tried to post last night, but there was some systematic error on Blogger?!

Enjoy! Thanks, God, for our Darren man!

If you can't read his shirt it says, "Dad's Tough Guy!"

I walked in a few minutes later and he was sitting on the couch reading his books while wearing his beanie hat! Ha! Gotta love kids!!

Great Wednesday!

2009-10-21T23:20:00.000-07:00

Good day today. I taught Dan's class this afternoon so he could get some sleep. I DREAD UPS peak season for him. With this new position of being in charge of his own belt, he may end up spending some extra hours which ultimately means, no sleep before he heads straight in to teach school in the mornings. Please pray for strength as he heads into this super busy season at UPS.

Of course, we had teen soul-winning today at 4:00 as usual. ALWAYS enjoy getting to go out and spend some time with our teens. I always benefit from watching their dedication and zeal for leading a lost soul to Christ. One young man who just led his first soul to the Lord about 3 weeks ago has really gotten excited about this thing of soul-winning. He personally led 8 PEOPLE to Christ this afternoon!! WOW!! Makes me stop and consider just how important it is to keep our zeal for leading a lost soul to Christ. Oh how IMPORTANT it is for every Christian!

We had 14 teens go out and...drum roll...20 PEOPLE SAVED!! WOW!! What a privilege it is to work with teens; we have such a GREAT group!!

Of course, there is the usual hilarity in the church van (we probably should have had the bus with 16 people crammed in that van!). Dan and I just laugh as we listen to the never ending interesting topics of conversation...Today, Hmmmm?!...The extra skin on your elbow, and how far you can stretch it...why some earlobes are attached to your head and some aren't...and the fun goes on and on!! Dan said we need to have a camera attached to the dashboard and just film some of the hilarious topics of discussion! Gotta love it!

Great day...Thanks, God! I will try to post a picture and video clip tomorrow.

Good job, Patriots...

2009-10-20T20:39:00.000-07:00

No, they didn't win their basketball game, but they only lost by 3 points and they played a great game! Even some of those who weren't starters played a really great game. Always enjoy getting to take stats and watch our boys play basketball, my favorite sport to watch!

Darren and I enjoyed going to Foster Freeze for some ice cream and fun with Dave, Angie, their girls and some of the basketball team and fans. Nice evening!

A Couple Pictures...

2009-10-19T22:31:00.000-07:00

Here are a couple pictures from Friday when we took a drive down Highway 1 (The BEAUTIFUL Pacific at sunset) and ate at Barbara's Fishtrap for Dan's birthday (which I already posted about)...

Daddy and his bud, watching the water and the sunset. Darren LOVES the waves!!

The breathtaking Pacific coastline NEVER gets old!!

Mommy and The Bud!

Lots of "Surfer Dudes" out to catch the Totally Awesome waves! Righteous...

Us three...