Painting

Well, as of today, I have only 11 days left in NC.  That means only 11 days to pack up my house, stage it, and make it look like new!  Needless to say, it is taking a lot of  effort to not panic and stress.  Today I was painting all day.  The kitchen looks amazing, my bathroom is looking good too.  I have a little to do in my room, and Ashley's but the rest of the house is coming together nicely!  The only room not really looking that great is the kids room.  About 3 months ago, I had this brilliant idea to let the kids pick out the paint for their room.  What color did they pick?  Orange.  Not just any orange, Tigger orange!!  So, now that we are up and moving, I have to re-paint their room a neutral color.  Can you believe not everyone in the world wants an orange bedroom?!  I was shocked ;)  Oh well, I like change, and now I can go shopping for new paint.  I guess there is a silver lining here!  Now, off to paint some more!!  I hope the house sells quickly, that is my motivation!!

All about Katie

By Suwanee Lennon

I figure if you are reading my blog, you may be interested in knowing about me.  I was born in Minnesota, and lived there until just before I turned 14.  I grew up in a godly home, and have 3 sisters.  I was saved when I was 7 years old, in my living room with my mom.  I don't remember the date, but I remember that I felt so happy after I prayed and asked Jesus to come into my life.  Getting saved did not make me perfect, but it did make me forgiven.  I have made many mistakes, but God has forgiven me for all of them.  That is why I try not to regret anything that has happened.   I don't dwell on the past and I look forward to taking what I have learned, and using it to help others not make the same mistakes.  When I was 11 years old, I got hit by a car.  I was riding a bike with a friend through a parking lot at the police station (to get to the sidewalk), and a car hit me (that was before helmets were required!).  It triggered seizures, which I was told I would grow out of, but I still get them when I'm stressed/tired.  It messed with my memory too, and I don't remember a lot of my childhood.  I remember some things, mostly from seeing pictures.  I was hit, I think, the same day we got our first foster kids.  My poor mom!!  She is superwoman though and was able to get the babies and still take care of me after my concussion!!  We moved to Florida right before my 14th birthday.  My parents were the best and bought us a house with not only a swimming pool, but a water slide as well.  I loved that house and have fond memories of spending our summer vacations swimming with our friends!  I got pregnant with Ashley right before finishing high school.  I never should have been alone with a guy, and I am proof that some guys don’t take “no” for an answer.  Getting pregnant changed my college plans.  I never was going to have an abortion, so I had to not go to TN where I planned to go to college, but stay close to home and go to the community college nearby my parents house, since they just moved to a different part of FL and I needed their support.  That was the best college.  No cliques, no stress :)  I loved it.  I got my 2 year A.A. degree.  My focus was criminal justice.  I wanted to work for the FBI, but God wanted me to have a harder job, and let me be a mom!!  I love it and I wouldn't change it for anything!  When Ashley was 3, my parents moved back to where we used to live, and I decided I was ready to move out on my own.  It was scary being a single mom, living alone, but God allowed me to live in an apartment near a friend from high school, who I knew would look out for me and help me if I needed anything.  That was a blessing to me!!  I soon tired of the apartment life and decided to buy a townhouse.  God gave me the perfect place to live.  I loved that townhouse!  It was the best, and I did it myself with God's help.  I was a single mom that wasn't on welfare and wasn't poor.  That really was a huge accomplishment for me.  It may sound like nothing, but it really was important for me to provide for my daughter.  While I was buying the townhouse was when I met Nathan.  He helped me fix it up and paint it, not knowing we were going to get married and live there together.  I think it helped make it feel like his home too, since he was involved in all the work from the beginning.  We got married 11 months after we met.  He had some rough times getting Ashley to accept him, and to not feel like he was taking me from her.  But they really bonded the more time they spent together.  We got pregnant a month after we married, with Marissa.  When she was 6 months, we took the leap and up and moved to NC.  It was scary but also an adventure!  Nathan was able to adopt Ashley before we moved, the courthouse was so sweet and helpful it getting it finalized before we left FL.  Her adoption day was on Nathan’s birthday, so his birthday is extra special now!!  After we moved, we were having a lot of trouble finding a good church.  I had Dylan and we really didn't have any close friends or feel at home at a church.  I decided to put Ashley in girl scouts, and we met the best family there!  We are still as close as can be to this day!!  What a blessing God has brought us!!  We soon found Emmanuel Baptist, and met some more amazing friends.  God has truly blessed our lives.  God has now directed our path back to FL, which is bittersweet.  We are happy to be living near family, but sad to leave our friends.  Nathan will be home more and that is more important than anything!!  I look back on my life and I don't see the bad choices I made, or the stupid things I did.  I see God's hand in everything, and even when I was stubborn, I see God redirecting me, teaching me, and helping me grow.  I am God's child, and that is the most important thing in my life!!

Being a good steward

Right now the economy is in really bad shape.  REALLY bad shape.  I am so thankful to say that we have not been seriously effected by it.  About 2 years ago, we heard about a guy named Dave Ramsey.  My mom came to our house to help us paint our kitchen cabinets and she brought the whole CD series of Financial Peace University.  We listened to the whole set while painting, and it really got us thinking.   The stuff he teaches is basic common sense, that noone seems to realize until someone flat out says it.  Something clicked and we got right to paying off our debt, living below our means and saving up for a rainy day.  It hasn't been easy, and we've had some setbacks.  Nathan got a huge pay cut, we have had unexpected expenses, but we have been committed to "live like noone else, so later, we can live like noone else".  Basically that means saving up so when (not if, but WHEN) an emergency happens, we will be ready, saving for retirement so you don't depend on the government, and taking control of what God has blessed us with.  I cannot tell you how freeing it is to not have financial stress in our marriage.  We are by no means rich, but we don't have the stress of someone that is drowning in debt.  So many marriages fail because of finances.  What Dave teaches is also what the Bible teaches.  It may sound silly, but it never clicked before.  I am so thankful that God teaches us to be good stewards, and to not be slave to the lender.  What a freeing though!!  Our Bible teaches us everything we need to know that pertains to life.  It teaches us about marriage, parenting, witnessing and even finances.  I am so thankful to be married to a man that is on the same page with me and is determined to not have debt, to pay off our mortgage quickly, and to save up for retirement.  What a relief, as a woman, to know my family is well taken care of, and that we are following God's plan. 

Married life

By Suwanee Lennon

What do you call someone that has been married 7 years?  Not newly weds, and not yet "seasoned", I guess the mid-marriage mark is labeled the "troubled years".  Once you throw in a few kids, and the income stays the same, things can get tough financially, emotionally you get into a lull where you go on with life in a robotic state.  Nathan and I hit this lull about a year ago.  Things were not good for us, in fact for awhile there we could barely stand each other.  I guess this is the point where most people look towards divorce instead of reconciliation.  Well, Nathan and I made a covenant when we got married.  A promise not only to each other, but to God, to work out our problems, to put each other first, and to love God more than anything.  So what did we do?  We went on a cruise.  Not for a vacation, but to save our marriage.  Did we have fun, of course!  But that was not the main purpose of the trip.  The point was to spend time alone without the kids, and to work out our problems.  We took with us the book Love & Respect.  Now anyone with children will know that this book is not "quick", it's not easy, and it definitely is not easy to do being interrupted by children.  So what better time to do it, than on a boat with nothing else we needed to do, and noone to interrupt us.  I won't go into details, but seriously, this book saved our marriage.  It made us put each other first, evaluate our walk with God, and taught us to reconnect and open up to each other.  We are determined to, once a year, go over this study and reconnect.  We made a promise for better OR worse.  We won't give up when things get tough, we have committed to work harder.  We are not perfect people, we all make mistakes, but with God's example we give forgiveness freely.  We don't look back on the past, but we are determined to make plans and set goals for the future.  Our kids WILL be raised in a loving, godly home.  It takes 2 people working together to make it work.  If we both do our part, we will be successful.  "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me" Phillipians 4:13  I am so thankful that we didn't give up on our marriage, on each other, and on God.  We made it through our trials stronger, wiser, and more aware of each others needs.  I am so thankful for my husband and for God.  Both have shown me what unconditional love is all about.  I love Nathan more today than when we first got married.  I love how God's hand is in everything, and how our trials teach us lessons.  Thank you God for showing us how to love like you love!!  Keep your marriage strong by putting the other person first and by keeping God the center of your life!

Moving to Florida

Since I am toying around with the blog, I guess I will post what is going on with our family.  Nathan has been wanting to change jobs for about 2 years now with no success.  He finally applied at TSA to get a job.  Well, when you apply with TSA, you interview wherever you live, but if you are accepted, you can get a job anywhere with no further interviews.  Well, a job opened at the airport near my parents house, so about 3 weeks ago we found out we are moving to another state. . . next month . . . which means packing up the house, homeschooling 3 children, training a puppy, and having my husband gone.  This is going to be one long month!!  Well, I guess it's only 2 1/2 weeks left now!!  I have so much work to do, but I know God has His hand in all of this and that it is His will for us to move.  He has closed so many doors, we know that this open door is from Him.  So I have to do my best to get ready, and leave the rest to Him.  There is NOTHING too big for God.  I have to keep reminding myself that when I grow weary.  Now to get the house finished so it sells quickly . . .

New to blogging

By Suwanee Lennon

I have never blogged before, but I figure it's like journaling, only everyone in the world can read it.  I was using Facebook to talk to people, however, it has gotten very invasive lately, and I think I feel more comfortable blogging.  We'll see how it goes!!