we've moved :: a much needed blog update

I don't know how much of a "much needed blog update" this will really be as it is a dairy entry for me... a place where I can just write out what has happened and express the feelings that have come with it. 

Let me preface by saying no one has died, no one seriously injured, Henry is healthy and I'm still pregnant. For that, we are very blessed and fortunate! 

Two weeks ago I was so happy after my doctors appointment. I had boosted my amniotic fluid up to over a 12 after being at an 8. Plus, my blood sugar levels were way down and in a totally normal range and I got a glowing report from my OB. Henry could stay put, no need for an early delivery. I was relieved and felt like I could relax and really enjoy the last few weeks at home with my girls before Henry arrived.

That afternoon our landlord called. We rent because we just don't know how long Daniel will be at MDUMC as a pastor. It doesn't make sense for us to buy a home when Daniel is up for reappointment each year and there is no guarantee how long he will be there. I thought she was calling to finally take care of the things we had been asking her to do for months... but instead she told us she needed to sell our house for personal and financial reasons... and we had 30 days to get out. (She was totally in her legal bounds because we had switched to a month to month contract with the intent of renewing a year once Daniel's appointment was made official.) Yep, cue the freak out. Of course I was cool and collected when talking to her but as soon as I called Daniel to tell him the news, I think that started five straight hours of crying. 

I couldn't stop thinking about not having a home... I had finally finished the nursery. The girls (and Daniel and me) loved that house. It had been our home for two years. Plus the thought of moving with a newborn was daunting and the fact I am having a c-section made me realize I'd be totally useless when it came to packing, lifting and moving. It was too overwhelming. Too big for me. I felt like I had been kicked in the gut. I was scared and felt helpless. Daniel was away at a conference and at 10pm finally told him he needed to come home. I think I was having a full on panic attack. He got home by 12:30am and I think we both were awake until 2:30am, heads spinning and trying to process what was to come. 

I think when something major like this gets thrown at you, you quickly go into survivor mode. By that morning (and I mean 7am!) we were looking up rentals in the area, in talks with a realtor, calling church members, emailing friends... any sort of help or connection we could find to get a plan in place. The really unfortunate thing right now is that the Houston housing market right now is insane. Rent is super high, home prices are high... especially in the area we live in and want to stay in. Again, overwhelming, scary, sad... Daniel was really the rock throughout all of it. He was calm and made a ton of phone calls. Over the course of that day and the next, we looked at a handful of homes and town homes. Some were expensive, some were gross, all were meh. I started to realize I needed to lower my expectations and that maybe this next year we'd live in a place that just had to provide a roof over our heads. But God heard everyones prayers because a precious gift just fell into our lap. 

A church family we know well called Daniel to say that they had a spare home right by the church that was vacant because they had plans to tear it down in September and rebuild. They graciously offered it to us until September 1st. Cue the tears again. This is exactly what we needed. Time to think clearly about where we want to move, time for me to have Henry, time for me to recover from surgery... a safe neighborhood, wonderful neighbors, lots of space. Daniel made the call pretty quickly - yes, it meant moving twice but it provided our family breathing room and a plan. 

This is where my faith is so crucial to who I am. We had prayed so much that God would provide and protect our family. And He did. When there have been things in my life that seem to big, God shows me that He is bigger. We have amazing friends and family. Our prayer network is amazing. I could literally feel the prayers wrapped around us. 

By Friday we started packing. We decided to get out of that house as soon as possible and move in case Henry came early. I had girlfriends over packing up my entire house. We had church friends coming over to do whatever we needed. That weekend we had a ton of guys show up and move our entire house - yes, entire house! - in two days. All the furniture, toys, boxes everything. Church members provided enough boxes for us that we didn't have to spend any money on moving at all. Totally blown away. And then, to make it even more incredible, I had more girl friends come and help me clear and clean out the old house and unpack the new house since I can't really lift anything. What a gift. I have like 25 thank you notes to write. Daniel's parents kept the girls, Joe and Sandra took the girls on an outing, we had people bring us food. Really, the church took care of us and we feel so blessed. 

It has all been a whirlwind and there have still been a lot of tears. It's kind of like the grieving process - shock, sadness, anger... it's been hard on the girls. I think they were both adjusting to the fact that I'm about to have a baby so to totally remove their home, their safe place, was a total blow. Emma cried that Sunday and said "I just want to go home" when I was packing her suitcase to stay at the Irvings house. It broke my heart because I felt the same way. 

It's still hard to believe we are in this new house for the summer and we will have to pack and move again come September. Daniel and I were going over our calendar last week and realized our anniversary is tomorrow - we'd been so busy with moving we had totally forgot! My OB couldn't believe I didn't put myself into labor. Me, too sister. 

Overall, we feel very blessed and fortunate to have this home right now. It's a beautiful home in a beautiful neighborhood. We are surrounded by church members and have been gifted with the sweetest hospitality. Plus, this house has a nice pool so we've been swimming every day - a total gift! 

Please keep us in your prayers. Prayers that the girls adjust well to being here, that the hot water/gas line gets turned on this week (oh yea, we've been living sans hot water for a week), that I stay healthy and rested this last week before Henry is set to arrive on the 16th and that Daniel and I find the perfect home for our family. 

easter recap

We had a wonderful Easter this past weekend. Easter is a little crazy around here - being married to a preacher in the Methodist church requires a lot of planning, preparing and time at church. We had a Wednesday night service, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, Easter egg hunt on Saturday and Daniel preached three times Sunday morning (sunrise, 9:30 and 11). We had about 800 people in worship at The Journey for Easter and that was such an overwhelming blessing. It's really incredible to think how much that service has grown in just five years. We ate lots of yummy food, enjoyed watching the girls soak in everything Easter means and worshipped our Lord and Savior. The beautiful weather was definitely an added bonus! 

Something I wasn't prepared for was how inquisitive Miss Emma was going to be this year. Let me tell you, nothing prepares you for the hard questions from a three year old about death, crucifixion, resurrection, etc... I was getting choked up talking to her about it! She was very sad about Jesus being taken from the soldiers, being nailed on the cross and had a host of questions about death and heaven. This was hard - it's hard for adults to grasp, how do you explain it to a three year old who does not put up with sugar coating and wants the straight facts? We worked through it, found a great book for children to help explain and are still talking about it. It really has been good for Emma's faith development and for mine! Even Claire has started to ask more questions. What special girls we have!

Here are some pics from the week:

after church on Easter at the Irving's house - love these girls (and their new shorts from Boden!)

Irving families on Easter Sunday

Claire finding eggs at MDUMC

Emma was very excited about her loot!

Claire's basket (left), Shared basket (center), Emma's basket (right)
no candy. empty egg (symbolizing an empty tomb). sunflower seeds (new life). 

Good Friday service for families and kids... if you live in our area, make plans to come next year - this is an incredible service for kiddos to learn about Good Friday and Easter on their level. Such a sweet time together in worship!

american idol :: one to watch

Last night was one of those moments where you just feel the upmost joy for someone you've known... Daniel and I are huge American Idol fans (love this season so far - Harry Connick, Jr. is everything! - you must watch!!) and while watching with the girls we see Bryan Watt on the television!! Daniel screams "It's Bryan Watt!" - and I, in a fit of pregnant hormonal emotion, just began to cry.

I knew Bryan from SMU - Daniel, Bryan and I led worship together with others for the Wesley Foundation every Wednesday night. He was only at SMU his freshman year before transferring to Baylor. Bryan actually won SMU's American Idol competition! He had a great audition last night, but let me tell you - this guy can sing... he held back last night but he has a booming voice. The best part?! He is the kindest, gentle, sweetest person you will ever meet. Daniel and I loved working with him... he loves the Lord so much and will be such a great witness on Idol (I hope he goes far!). Even though I only knew Bryan for that one year, he left an impression on us - clearly by the way we freaked out when we saw him last night on TV. I can't think of anyone more deserving. Tune in and watch Bryan on Idol - and if he makes it to the top 12 then you better vote for him! :)

workcamp 2013

This week we went up to Fairfield, Texas to see our youth group in action. Over 200 staff, high school youth and volunteers headed out to serve others by painting houses, churches, building fences and handicap ramps... as well as building an entire fellowship hall at a baptist church (picture below). It was so amazing to see our kids at work and to see how they can selflessly give of themselves this summer. Workcamp is what every youth looks forward to - they have to earn service points throughout the year to go... because not only is workcamp a lot of work, it is so much fun! They have silly skits, worship, great food and fellowship all week. Daniel was preaching Wednesday night so we all went up so the girls could experience it for the first time. They loved it. Even though it was blasted hot, the girls were such troopers and even helped with a few projects. They stayed up really late at worship and even joined Steve on stage a few times (last pic). Once again, we are blessed by our church!

prayers, miracles and God's plan

This is Chelsey with her daughter, London, born June 5th. Isn't this picture precious? Before we get to this moment, we need to travel back more than a year ago...

So there is this thing called Pinterest (duh). Obviously, I'm obsessed and if you read this blog frequently enough, you know that to be true. There was a girl from Oklahoma City who was also obsessed with Pinterest. Enter Chelsey. I kept noticing on my emails that every day I was getting several likes and repins from Chelsey and she had started to follow my boards. Well, I did a little Pinterest stalking and realized I like everything on her board, so I started to follow her and repinned everything she had. Eventually, Chelsey found me on Facebook and messaged me. She had found my blog, read about my fertility struggle, wanted to reach out... and we became, what I like to call instant internet friends.

Chelsey and I shared over Facebook together God's plan and her desire to get pregnant. We both felt it was so amazing that God could use something as silly and superficial as Pinterest to bring two women together like He did with us. I offered encouragement and she helped remind me how God can use everything for His glory. After months of praying, God blessed Chelsey with a baby. I was so happy! Another miracle baby!

When Chelsey found out she was having a sweet baby girl, London Claire, she received news that London had a very serious heart condition: Tricuspid Artresia, Hypoplastic Right Heart, and a coarctation of the aorta. I can't imagine being pregnant, nesting and doing all of the wonderful things that come with it while trying to process such devastating news. So, our Facebook messages went back to prayers. Prayers that God would bless Chelsey and her husband Trey with wisdom and peace and strength. Prayers that London would grow and thrive and make it to 40 weeks. London continued to grow beautifully in the womb and Chelsey and Trey made arrangements to relocate to Dallas where London would receive the best care once she was born. You can find more information on Facebook under the group name of London's Heart.

Chelsey had a great pregnancy and gathered as much information as possible for London. Trey and Chelsey had a plan and all of the details worked out to a T... the week of London's birth, Chelsey sent out a message with specific prayer requests. My MOPS group had been praying for Chelsey for many months as had my church and church staff... And guess what? God answered them just as Chelsey had asked. It was amazing. London came into the world just as perfect as she could. Chelsey was able to hold her and I cried, okay - boo-hoo'd, when I saw the picture above.

The next morning we had a terrible update. Two doctors came in and told Trey that her pulmonary veins were too small to be life sustaining. She would look at needing a heart and lung transplant and they didn't do that. However, her stats were good and she wasn't going into any sort of heart failure. So two options were in front of us: Chelsey and Trey would be looking at end of life care for London or we were all witnessing a miracle of no explanation but healing. I was devastated. I can't imagine how Trey and Chelsey were feeling. I called Daniel sobbing, asked for prayer and then sent a plea via Facebook to my friends and prayer warriors.

And a miracle happened.

People always ask why God doesn't send a burning bush anymore. But that's not the case. God sent us London Claire - burning bush masked as a newborn baby.

The doctors found no evidence of heart or lung failure and she was no worse than when Chelsey was pregnant with her. The open heart surgery was back on and everything was back on track. I was stunned, shocked and absolutely overcome with tears. Our God is good!

London still needs your prayers. Her open heart surgery is set for Wednesday next week. Please pray for London - that she would have a really good next five days, that her surgery would go smoothly - that she would handle everything well, that the doctors would have steady hands and blessed with wisdom, and that she would receive nothing but the best care possible. Pray for Chelsey and Trey - for sleep, for strength and peace, for wisdom. And most of all, let us thank God for His grace, mercy and goodness. For revealing Himself in mighty ways through this precious family. Thank God for his miracles and help us to continue to trust in His plan.

I go to Dallas in a couple of weeks... I cannot wait to get up there, hug and meet Chelsey, and pray over sweet London.

ARTreach :: Houston

Yesterday I had the privilege of going to ARTreach in downtown Houston with my MOPS group. I am blessed to work and attend a church that supports several nonprofits/ministries both financially and with volunteers... ARTreach is one of those partnerships. ARTreach is a ministry that takes teenagers off the streets who have been involved with graffiti and teaches them how to use their artistic talent for good. MOPS (since we are in charge of decorations for VBS) and our VBS coordinators decided to commission these young men to do our backdrops for our main VBS stage. Well, they were so excited about the task that they invited us to come and help! 

So, about 20 of us went to ARTreach, shared our vision for the backdrops and Mark went to drawing. Using a fat, black marker, he drew each of the backdrops in about 10 minutes. It was amazing to watch. We basically did a paint by number - ha! The entire project took about 1.5 hours and was so much fun.  I love painting so this was a great project for me. I am so proud we (MDUMC) work with ARTreach - what an amazing ministry! They have church on Sundays, Bible studies during the week, art lessons and a street-dance performance group. The street-dance performers are going to come to our VBS and teach our older kids some dance moves as a break-out session. I may or may not be joining in on that!

getting to work - that's me in the bottom right working on the tree trunk - very proud of our finished product!

confession session: prayer is the answer

image via pinterest

Last week was big. Like one of the biggest weeks of my working career at MDUMC. Yes, I had the Kendra Scott party but that isn't what made it a big week - it was my Saturday event. I helped facilitate an Open Space event for the women in my church to really revision Women's Ministry. It's something I had been working so hard on the past year. I was anxious the weeks leading up to it. I was excited about what the outcomes could be. I talked about it nonstop... I talked to my consultant, to Daniel, to friends who cared to listen, to my MOPS group, to my task force, to the woman in the grocery store... okay that was a joke, but really anyone who would listen I would verbal vomit all over them. I think it was a way for me to just air out my insecurities and anxieties about the process. 

And then I got sick. Like fever-chills-sore-throat sick for the fourth time in 12 weeks. And I lost my voice. Gone. Nothing coming out but squeaks and Daniel basically telling me not to talk at all. And when did this happen? Wednesday! Just a few days before my event! I was in bed, praying for God to heal my voice when I remembered a quote I had seen on Pinterest some time ago: Have you prayed about it as much as you've talked about it? Guilty. 

It was that night that I realized I had been asking everyone to cover the event in prayer but I had not. Instead of seeking out God first I was talking to anyone who gave me a minute of their time. Doesn't 1 Thessalonians 5:17 tell us to "pray without ceasing"  and Philippians 4:6 say "Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God." Yes it does, Jean. And it didn't even register for me. 

Now, I don't believe that God struck my vocal chords and silenced me on purpose. It was definitely a coincidence. But I do believe that God spoke to me in the prayer when I was asking him to heal my voice. I changed my prayers from healing my voice to healing the brokenness some women in our church feel. I prayed that women would show up feeling open and honest. I prayed for wisdom and a sweet spirit to fill the meeting room. I prayed that barriers would come down and through that the love of Christ would shine through. 

Saturday came and it was better than I could have ever imagined. My consultant kept telling me to "trust the process" (meaning, trust Open Space Technology)... for me it should have been "trust God"... because He really did bless the event. God's spirit and wisdom filled our meeting place and I am amazed at what these women in my church came up with. It makes me so excited to be a part of MDUMC and head of women's ministry. 

I don't know what you are going through right now - maybe it's financial stress, trying to get pregnant, feeling overwhelmed with children or work, grieving the loss of a loved one or angry about a certain diagnosis. I hope that this post can speak to you and encourage you to give that over to God. God may not answer it the way you want Him to but He will bless you for it. He is over everything. He is good and just. He is the light in our darkness. Our strength and redeemer. And I can guarantee you can talk His ear off!

prayers for boston. prayers for west.

Today instead of blogging I am praying for Boston and West, Texas.

I ask that you do the same.

Friends in Waco, if able, please go give blood.

In the hearts of those who are hurting...
may God's peace be felt, may His grace be seen, may His love be known.

emma and claire do easter

Emma & Claire at Good Friday service

*just because people ask: Target dresses and Saltwater Shoes

We had a very blessed Easter weekend. Friday afternoon we went to the Good Friday service for families and it was awesome - it was such a "kid-friendly" way of talking about Christ's death. Emma and Claire loved it and were so excited to see the donkey (the service actually covered Palm Sunday - Good Friday so the kids could see how the story unfolds). After the service, the girls went home with the Irvings and Daniel and I went to the traditional Good Friday service. Our orchestra and choir performed Dubois' Seven Last Words - I felt like I was at the Orchestra. It was amazing. Afterward we cheered our Blue Devils with our Duke friends. So fun!

Saturday morning was the Easter egg hunt up at church. Emma and Claire dominated the preschool playground... well actually, Emma took most of the pink eggs (she had told me that's all she wanted) and Claire just ran around like a crazy person (aka her dad!) picking up as many eggs as possible. We also dyed eggs that afternoon which is crazy with toddlers. Thank goodness I made them wear old tshirts!

Today was just a beautiful Easter day. We had record numbers at The Journey and Daniel did an awesome job preaching four different services. We feel beyond blessed to have such a great worship community. Emma and Claire looked like little angel dolls in their white dresses and we had a delicious brunch here at the house after the third service. While Duke didn't win the game today, we had fun all cheering on the couch together and stuffing ourselves with leftovers and candy. I hope you had a wonderful Easter and that we can all live in the truth that God has the final word above pain, death, hurt and disappointment! He is Risen!

Claire & Emma at the Egg Hunt - wearing Orient Expressed

Today after church: Claire wanted to pick flowers and Emma told me
that I "hurt her feelings" - this is real life with twins, people!! Ha!

easter

Easter is one of my favorite holidays. I have fond memories of going to the farm every year, taking pictures in front of the beautiful azaleas and spending some good time with my Nana. I remember relaxing days, singing at the Baptist church there and eating lots of delicious pie. Easter is a little different for me now... Daniel will be preaching four times(!!) on Sunday and we will be going back and forth to the church. It's crazy, but a good type of crazy. I'm slowly decorating the house for Spring/Easter... and trying to focus on Jesus and our faith rather than eggs and bunnies. It's hard explaining what the core of Easter is to Emma and Claire - they get the Easter bunny (which we've brought up maybe twice) but it's hard explaining death and resurrection to two year olds! I know it will just take time... it took nearly 20 years for me to understand the gravity of Jesus dying on the cross for me. I pray God blesses you richly this weekend and hope these pictures help to put you in the Easter spirit!

all images via pinterest 

change // women's ministry & umw

image via Pinterest

Okay y'all... I need your prayers. I'm giving a very big presentation today up at my church on change within Women's Ministry and more specifically, UMW (United Methodist Women). I know for most of you (especially if you are under 45), you have no idea what UMW is... but for those of you who are both Methodist and over 45 (or work with the UMC), hopefully you understand.

Basically, when I came on staff at MDUMC more than a year ago, I thought UMW was an organization within the church for the old ladies... the average age of our UMW unit is about 65. The average age of our new member is 45. As the year went on, I realized that I actually loved UMW... I loved the women in there - they are so kind, generous and wise. They raise over $60,000 for missions through their Hearts and Hands holiday market each year and do so much for our church. I felt God nudging me to do something to move UMW forward... and of course, just like that, things began to fall into place that made me realize I needed to change UMW... and I needed to change Women's Ministry. 

Church of the Resurrection up in Kansas has made all of Women's Ministry UMW - which has solved a lot of problems with member numbers and age. At first, my Task Force and I thought we would do this... but we soon realized (through surveys and a lot of research) that maybe what our church needs is an entirely new model of ministry. So, that's what I'm presenting today. I'll be sharing what my Task Force has done, the results from the survey (which some of it may be hard to hear for the UMW ladies - but hopefully it's stuff they already know) and how we plan to move forward. 

Rather than set a vision myself, I will be holding an event called "Open Space" (very well known across Europe) where all the women in the church can come together and co-create a new Women's Ministry... a ministry that is for ALL women in ALL stages of life. UMW hasn't really evolved with "today's" woman and quite frankly, neither has Women's Ministry as a whole.  

Please pray for my nerves and please pray for a sweet spirit to be at the meeting this afternoon. I'm moving forward blinding, fully giving this process over to God... allowing faith to be my guide. Pray that the women are open to change and open to allowing God help shape what our ministry can be. 

my heart is full.

Sunday afternoon I told Daniel that I was on a spiritual-high... if you've ever gone to church camp or on a mission trip, you know what I'm talking about. You feel "on-fire" for God and everything is just perfect. I am always so blessed when I have those moments, because they do come and go. So this weekend, I held onto that feeling of being so close to God and was thankful for all of His blessings. 

Friday night Daniel and I went to Brio for a rehearsal dinner. Daniel was officiating the wedding and we were invited to join them for dinner. As clergy know, rehearsal dinners and weddings for people you don't really know are always interesting because you never know who you are going to be seated with. Thankfully for us, it wasn't assigned seating and we asked the two photographers if they would like to sit with us. Within five minutes, I knew that Chris and Autumn (of La Brisa Photography) would be instant friends. We laughed constantly. We told stories. We shared about our lives. It was like we had been friends for ten years! It was such a fun dinner that I forgot that I was at a rehearsal dinner. When Daniel and I left, our hearts were full. I love great conversation. 

Saturday morning I got up super early to prepare and get ready for my Women's Retreat. I was out the door by 6:45am to get coffee and last minute items from the church. I carpooled with a friend from church that I rarely get to hang out with - we laughed, talked and caught up on each other on our way out to Brookwood. The retreat itself was amazing. Really. Nothing went wrong. Everything was so smooth. Everything went better than I could have imagined. If you need a retreat speaker, I highly recommend Rev. Jessica LaGrone - she has such a sweet spirit and her teaching was so powerful. She talked a lot about how God has called us by name and has given each of us a story. I was drawn to her Biblical illustrations and stories from her own life. I was so richly blessed by my time with her and the 65 women from my church. I was proud of my planning committee and, I'll admit it, I was proud of myself. Brookwood was a perfect setting for our retreat and I cannot wait to have another retreat there. As the retreat came to a close, my heart was more than full... it was about to burst! I was so happy.

Sunday morning was like any other church morning. The girls and I lounged in pjs and slowly got ready for church. When we got to church, I saw Chris and Autumn - the photographers from Friday night - walking up to the entrance. I was so excited! I was so surprised! They got to meet Emma and Claire... I thought it was so sweet they came to church after photography a wedding the night before and being up so late. Worship was great - we sang three of my favorite songs and had a new worship leader for the day. And then Daniel preached one of the best sermons I have ever heard him preach. It was raw. It was honest. It was vulnerable. I was a crying-mess. I was so proud of what he had to say and you could feel it in the room. It was powerful. 

After church, Chris came up to me to say goodbye... and then he said, "I just really love what you and Daniel are doing here at The Journey and it would be my privilege to gift you guys a family photo session for free." You see - on Friday, I had asked for his card because I told him we had never had professional pictures taken and I had always wanted to. He told me he was so moved by the sermon and the service that he knew he had to gift us the package. Cue crying-mess again. I was so excited and so humbled. What an incredible gift. 

I'm not given such "perfect" weekends often... but I am so glad I had this one. God was so present in all of it... actually, God is always present. Maybe it was me who was present and able to accept the small gifts of the weekend. My heart is full. And thankful. 

Women's Retreat

After hours and hours of planning, my women's retreat is tomorrow. I really have three big events each year: holiday market, women's dinner and the women's retreat. I think the women's retreat is the most difficult to plan as you have to find something that will 1) draw in a lot of women, 2) meet the needs of the women in your congregation and 3) a place that can accommodate everyone.

This year's retreat just kind of came together pretty easily. Before I came on staff, the women's retreats were always a two day/overnight thing, costing over well over $100... I couldn't really do that with my time and money so I changed things up a bit last year... we did it locally and had the overnight optional. The retreat went from the normal 20 person group to over 50. This year, we changed it to a one-day retreat and sold out our 65 spots in two weeks... I wish I could have had more spots but Brookwood didn't have enough in the cafe to give out!

We are having our retreat at The Brookwood Community, which is a community where people with disabilities (physical and/or mental) live together... they have classes, they work there and they live there full time. My uncle Allen, who had Downs Syndrome, lived at a similar place in Mississippi. Brookwood is famous in Houston because of their cafe and shop. The residents at Brookwood make the most beautiful gifts (crosses, candles, food items, dishes, etc...) and the garden center is incredible. Having my retreat at Brookwood was a win-win because it's a beautiful facility and several of the women have never been.

What I am most excited about is having Rev. Jessica LaGrone be our leader. Jessica is a pastor at The Woodlands UMC and has just released her first book, Namesake, which is what our retreat is revolving around. Jessica is a friend of Daniel's and is a mom to two young children. I love her blog and she's so relatable. I know all of us are in for a treat tomorrow! I am looking forward to finally have the retreat here, but also - hopefully! - catch a little bit of a break.

Please pray that these 65 women who are coming find what they are looking for - that they grow to know and love God more. Pray for Jessica, that she would be anointed with authority and wisdom... that we would all be richly blessed with what she has to teach us.

Merry Christmas!!

What an amazing Christmas. We had a beautiful church service last night and even though Daniel worked about 11 hours yesterday, he made time to sneak home, eat dinner and read The Polar Express to the girls between services. The girls loved singing Silent Night at church... such great worship! At dinner, we lit our advent candles, sang Happy Birthday to Jesus and feasted on delicious meat, twice baked sweet potatoes and spinach madeline. The girls loved their Christmas pajamas, too! Emma had a meltdown before bedtime because she thought when we said Santa Claus is coming that meant he was actually going to come see them. She didn't understand he came at night when we are sleeping. She was so sad! It took about 15 minutes to calm her down. She really wanted to see Santa and his reindeer. Poor girl! As sad as it was, it was so cute and sweet... I'll never forget that!

We woke up fully expecting it to be severe thunderstorms as the forecast predicted. Well, there wasn't a drop outside so Daniel got up before the girls woke and fixed up their big gift: a bounce house. We got them up, kissed and said Merry Christmas and then let them look at their Santa gifts. They got dress up clothes, a doctor kit, balls for the bounce house, underwear and socks, Brave and Cinderella and princess drinking cups. They were so excited!! When they realized something was outside (per a note from Santa), they sprinted to the backdoor. Claire screamed "Oh. My. Goodness!" and Emma just took off toward the bounce house as fast as she could. I think the jumped for a solid 20 minutes and then it started to sprinkle. The look on their faces was priceless! 

The Irvings came over around 10ish and we finished opening the gifts under the tree. What amazing stuff we all got! I got basically everything on my wishlist and Daniel got a WiiU just like he had wished for. The girls were showered with toys, books, clothes, stickers and the best gift ever - a hair kit from Aunt Laura... I mean really... they have played with that thing for an hour straight! So fun!! 

I hope you have had a blessed Christmas and that your day has been filled with joy. I'll be back blogging after the new year. Taking a break to be with family. Blessings to you and yours this holiday season! 

santa and newtown

Emma and Claire got dressed up in their Christmas dresses on Friday. They spun around and kept telling us that they were princesses... they sure did look like it! They are the sweetest little dresses and they just look so big in them. 

Before we left for the mall, Emma was holding a little red purse. I asked her, "Emma, are you taking a purse?" and she replied, "Yes, Mommy. It's for Santa!" Tickled, I asked, "Can I see what's in the purse?" in which Emma replied, "No, Mommy. It's a surprise." The entire way to the mall, Emma held onto the purse in her seat. The entire way through the mall, Emma held her purse. It was so cute. Whatever was packed inside she made put together just for Santa. It was their first meeting, so I understand why it was such a big deal.

We didn't have to wait long in line (about 10 minutes) and it was our turn. Claire, of course, immediately ran up to Santa and said hi. Emma stayed back, taking it all in... she had her little purse and held it up to him. I explained that Emma had packed a special bag for him. She showed him what was in it - Mary from the nativity, her favorite toy cell phone and camera, and a rattle. Santa was so thrilled to have a gift presented to him! I will remember that forever! The girls climbed up in their seat and wouldn't look at the camera at all... I tried to get them to do funny faces, but Claire was fascinated with the line of people and I think Emma was in Santa-shock. 

...

It was when we were at lunch after our Santa visit that Daniel got an update on his phone that there had been another school shooting - this time at an elementary school. I was sick immediately. Once we were home I was glued to the television. I couldn't stop watching. I even felt guilty that I had had this perfect day with my children and others had theirs taken away from them forever. I really was torn up. It made me think of all of my former students... how much they meant to me and still do to this day. 

I still am really torn up... just when I thought I wouldn't cry anymore, this morning as I gave my testimony, I cried again when speaking of my students. I talked about how Githens was really one of the only safe places for many of them... 

I pray for those families every time I think of it. I'm hugging and kissing my girls every chance I get, too. 

I don't know how to really end this blogpost except that I am thankful Christmas is coming. It's an amazing reminder of how much we need Jesus. "O come, O come Emmanuel" is repeating in my head...

slowing down this christmas

I sent an email out this morning to over 2000 women (I always get nervous when I hit the 'send' button!) talking about all of the opportunities and programs our church offers during Advent. I always add a quick letter at the beginning of each email and I thought I would share it here! Again, my computer is acting up when it comes to pictures... I can't even upload a picture right now. Oh, technical difficulties!!

...

Merry Christmas!

Christmastime has arrived at the Irving house. Now that the girls, Claire and Emma, are 2.5 years old, they finally "get" Christmas. I love the twinkle in their eyes when we talk about Santa. They get so excited when "Frosty the Snowman" comes on the radio (I think they just like singing "thumpety thump thump"). We had fun as a family decorating the tree and setting up the different nativities around our house. My most favorite activity this year has been the advent calendar we do as a family each night at bedtime. The girls love hearing the story each night of Mary, Joseph, the angels, the shepherds and wise men... all building the anticipation for the birth of Jesus. We've already been told that we HAVE to have a birthday cake on Christmas morning and we HAVE to sing Happy Birthday to Jesus when we put him on our Advent Calendar.

It's moments like these that help me to really take in the season. I'm busy, overcommitted and easily distracted. It would be very easy to breeze through December and let the spirit and true meaning of Christmas slip by - and I am a preacher's wife! I'm thankful for the gift of my girls this season... for forcing me to very slowly decorate the Christmas tree... to place the wise men there, there, no there!... to spend time each night talking about the night of Jesus' birth and what that means for all of us.

I pray that you are able to slow down this Christmas and take note of the little things that make this time so special and dear. I am keenly aware that Christmas is a hard time for some and you are held close to my heart in prayer.

Peace and blessings to you and yours this Christmas. Here's to Christmas trees, nativities and singing "thumpety thump thump" over and over again!

In Him,

Jean Irving

Director of Women's Ministry

Memorial Drive UMC

confession session :: who you calling holy?

Here we are walking into Daniel's ordination this summer.

Daniel and I were at a "gathering" earlier in the summer (don't want to give away where we were!) and had fun catching up with old friends from college. After what seemed to be great conversation, we overheard someone say to the rest of the group, "Did you hear what Jean and Daniel are doing now? They must be really holy people." What?!? At first, I was kind of offended, but I guess if you want someone to talk behind your back you want it to be about something good, right? And then we just laughed and laughed... we've been called lots of things before, but holy?

I can see it though - Daniel is a pastor at a very large Methodist church. He's helped grow a dying contemporary service into a vibrant worshipping community. I'm now the Director of Women's Ministry. We do things like Bible study, community groups... we don't go to bars - I don't drink regularly... I can see from the outside how some would assume we are holy, do-no-evil, praise Jesus-all-the-time type people.  

But can I be honest here... can I confess something? When I describe myself to people I don't include the word holy. If someone were to look into my life or in my mind, holy probably wouldn't pop up as much as other words. For instance:

1. About six-eight months ago when I couldn't lose these few pounds I had gained out of nowhere, I had a "genius" idea. I decided that I could start smoking. Seriously. I thought, 'smokers are thin and I wouldn't be inclined to snack as much'... Done. Doing it. Problem: I hate smoking. I hate smoke. I gag when I'm around it and get pissy when I walk into a place where I smell it. Oh, and I have children at home! You can obviously tell how wrong this is on so many levels.... needless to say, I didn't start smoking. 

2. My normal tone/attitude at work is usually sweet, chipper and funny. My normal tone/attitude at home is usually a mix of whiny meets bossy. 

3. I let my two year olds dance to booty music. I know it's horrible, but you can't really have a dance-off to Chris Tomlin. Yes, Claire knows how to dance to Gangnam Style and even tries to sing the Korean along with it.

4. I am really bad about quiet time/prayer time. Like embarrassingly bad. 

5. There are days when I forget to feed my dog.

6. I struggle with envy, jealousy and worry. 

7. I have issues with cursing. I am good at hiding it from most people, but put me in the right setting or give me a glass of wine and it starts to come out. It was so bad my freshman year of college that my roommate, Jordan, actually instituted a cuss-cup for me. 

Here's the good news in all of this.  I'm striving to be better. I am working on being holy and Godly and blameless. I'm not perfect - I'm human. And God loves that... He loves all of my quirks - from idiotic ideas on how to lose weight to all the bad stuff that comes out of my mouth.

Maybe when we were called holy it felt more of a conviction than anything... it really has taken me several months to reflect on it and finally feel like I could write about it on here. I felt like as a pastor's wife maybe I should share my shortcomings to those who are in the church (and aren't!) to give hope and encouragement. So I'll leave you with this:

I'm not holy 100% of the time. But I sure am trying. 

confessions of a struggling parent

Daniel is doing an awesome series called "Biblical Family"... so far he has preached on "The Myth of the Perfect Family" and "Confessions of a Struggling Parent." Both sermons have been so encouraging. One of our other ministers, Suzy, will be preaching this week on Singleness (Daniel and I will be gone that morning). Daniel will finish the series (on his birthday!) by preaching about Marriage. 

What I loved most about Daniel's sermon this past week was the take-away statement he had us write down and remember: God calls us to be faithful, not successful. What a graceful way to look at parenting. In the moments I feel like a complete failure as a parent, knowing that I am faithfully serving God gives me great hope for my girls... and my parenting skills. 

Check out Daniel's sermons HERE. Or, you can download The Journey App on your smartphone and watch/listen his sermons on the go!

hello my name is jean and i feel overwhelmed... part 2

Sitting in the chancel area behind Epiphanie as she got up to speak.
Full house in our sanctuary - incredible!

Thank you, thank you from the bottom of my blogging heart for all of the emails, texts, calls and blog-world/facebook-world support after my last post. Your prayers really were the rock to my sanity this past weekend. And guess what? I still feel overwhelmed! However, like I said in my last post, I am in total awe of how smooth the event went, how well the women received Epiphanie and the best news... we raised over $10,000 for ZOE Ministry. I had a few more checks come in today so when it is all said and done, I think we will be pretty close to $11,000. Amazing!!

From the second I picked Epiphanie up at the airport, I started to feel at peace. She is a beautiful person and she exudes joy. She spoke at The Journey on Sunday morning and Emma kept holding her hand and calling her "Mommy's friend" throughout lunch that afternoon. I worked like a mad-woman all weekend finalizing details, making phone calls, etc... I only had to deal with one mean lady on Sunday during the set-up. I was very happy it was only just ONE! 

The night of the event was perfect. It really was. All of the tables were decorated so beautifully and everyone - even the men who were are waiters! - were on time. Grayson, our chef at church, made an amazing meal and the women kept complimenting the timing, service, the food and atmosphere. I thought I would be a rambling mess (I can talk very fast) but God's peace reigned over me and I really felt comfortable and confident. 

God really amazed me during the second half of the event. All 340 of the women walked over to the sanctuary to hear Greg Jenks - founder and director of ZOE - introduce Epiphanie and then Epiphanie shared her testimony and talked about ZOE. As she shared her story, I could tell she had every person in there fully captivated. It was amazing. At the end, I urged the women if they haven't made a donation, to please consider it... and they did. 340 women came together to donate $10,000. I still get goosebumps thinking about it. 

I'm so thankful the event was a success and I'm so thankful the 60 something orphans we support in Kenya will have animals supplied to them for the next 2-3 years. Incredible! Here are some pictures of the event so you can an idea of what we did:

all the women at this table wore pink boas 

this was Sandra's table - she sold her pumpkin centerpiece for $100 which went to ZOE

I thought this was the cutest idea - how fun would this be for a children's birthday party?

"Etch a Sketch" place cards - LOVE IT

this table had gone to Kenya to work with the orphans and made a
mini-replica of what one of the "stores" looked like

some of my MOPS girls with Mahan who is our nursery worker
and keeps our kids when we meet on Tuesdays!

our MOPS table - we did a baby safari theme

Dr. Simmons speaking before he prayed over the meal...
and me watching the waiters to make sure things were running smoothly, ha!

One last thing, Claire does NOT have scabies... which I figured she didn't, but we did the treatment on her anyway... Claire actually has what I thought all along - a horrible eczema flare-up, cough probably caused by asthma/allergies. She spiked fever on Sunday night and has been going up and down between 102-104. We finally went to the doctor for a third time today and on top of her crazy eczema rash and cough she also has Hand, Foot and Mouth. Awesome. More poor, sweet baby girl. At least Dr. Emma Irving is able to take care of her! It does look like we are on the up and up. Claire is now on Claritin, Rx strength eczema cream, inhaler, Motrin and we've switched her bath soap and lotions. Emma started to get fever today and has a runny nose. With twins, it never ends. But, hopefully everyone will be sick-free by church on Sunday!