Mother's Day

As a mommy, I love this holiday. I love, love, LOVE that I have these 4 sweet children who look at me with happy wishes and smiling faces. I am overwhelmed at God's goodness in letting me be their mommy.

As a daughter, this holiday makes me a little sad. I miss my Mom and my Grandmother. What incredible ladies I had in my life!

To all the mommies in my life...Happy Mother's Day.

To those who long to be a mommy, God is Able...Ps 37:4

And to my Mother in law...thank you for being a wonderful mom to your 4 children...the middle one is quite the husband and father!

National Day of Prayer

“In the beginning of the contest with Britain, when we were sensible of danger, we had daily prayers in this room for Divine protection. Our prayers, Sir, were heard, and they were graciously answered… do we imagine we no longer need His assistance?”

[Benjamin Franklin, Constitutional Convention, Thursday June 28, 1787

More than 200 years ago these words rang out as a group of courageous men met in secret. Their dedication and labors produced what we now know as the United States of America. Ben Franklin was insisting to these founding fathers that prayer must be a part of every step in forming our country and writing our constitution.

At the Constitutional Convention of 1787, James Madison proposed the plan to divide the central government into three branches. He discovered this model of government from the Perfect Governor, as he read Isaiah 33:22; “For the LORD is our judge, the LORD is our lawgiver, the LORD is our king; He will save us.”

The National Day of Prayer began in 1775 when the Continentenal Congress called on a day of prayer for forming a new nation. Abraham Lincoln called for a national day of prayer during the Civil War. In 1952 President Truman signed a law requiring all future presidents to declare a national day of prayer each year. In 1988, President Ronald Reagan signed a bill proclaiming the first Thursday of May as our National Day of Prayer. He commented, "On our National Day of Prayer, then, we join together as people of many faiths to petition God to show us His mercy and His love, to heal our weariness and uphold our hope, that we might live ever mindful of His justice and thankful for His blessing." The celebration has continued since then, with every President observing and issuing a Presidential Proclamation of the day. President George W. Bush hosted a National Day of Prayer gathering every May for his entire 8 years in office. "I am sustained by the prayers of the people in this country. I guess an appropriate way to say this, it's one of the beautiful things about America and Americans from all walks of life is that they're willing to pray for the President and his family. And that's powerful."

We celebrated today on the courthouse steps with many others from our community. As I stood there pledging allegiance and listening to our national anthem, tears filled my eyes. The legacy of our great nation stands above any other nation on the face of this earth. I passionately love this country. As I sang America the Beautiful..."God shed His grace on thee" my heart was full of just how true this is. God laid His hand on the men who founded our country and led them in their divine task of creating this country. I stood beside my treasured friend Mindy, a Candadian citizen who has lived here for a year and half now. I heard her beautiful voice singing those words with all her heart. It was the first time she could sing those words as a resident of the USA. She and I cried as we realized how truly blessed we are to live here where we can gather on the steps of a courthouse and pray to God and worship Him in freedom. In times of prayer when the adults were quiet, my children were playing. There were some who probably thought they were irreverant. To me their laughter was such a sweet sound to me. My children were singing and laughing in complete freedom. I pray the freedom they know as children will still be in place when they are parents. How many children have no freedom to laugh and play while their parents openly worship God??

Prayer lifted up for our community, our state and our nation.

Freedom to wear a t-shirt advertising a Christian band.

“It cannot be emphasized too clearly and too often that this nation was founded, not by religionists, but by Christians; not on religion, but on the gospel of Jesus Christ. For this very reason, peoples of other faiths have been afforded asylum, prosperity, and freedom of worship here.”

[Patick Henry, May 1765 Speech to the House of Burgesses]

“God who gave us life gave us liberty. And can the liberties of a nation be thought secure when we have removed their only firm basis, a conviction in the minds of the people that these liberties are a gift from God? That they are not to be violated but with His wrath? Indeed I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just, and that His justice cannot sleep forever.”(excerpts are inscribed on the walls of the Jefferson Memorial in the nations capital) [Source: Merrill . D. Peterson, ed., Jefferson Writings, (New York: Literary Classics of the United States, Inc., 1984), Vol. IV, p. 289. From Jefferson’s Notes on the State of Virginia, Query XVIII, 1781.]


"My faith plays a big part in my life... And my faith is a very, it's very personal. I pray for strength. I pray for wisdom. I pray for our troops in harm's way. I pray for my family. I pray for my little girls." George W. Bush

Family and a milestone

We spent a great weekend in Pigeon Forge with David's extended family. As most of you know, David's grandfather Howard was a Pentecostal Holiness preacher. The legacy he left is tremendous. His children and his grandchildren are all amazing people who love the Lord and follow their grandfather in their devotion to family. David and 2 of his cousins followed Grandpa Howard into the ministry. The three of them turn 40 this year. To celebrate their birthdays and to get the family together again, Kelly planned a family reunion. (Thanks Kelly, you did a great job!) It was so nice to see everyone again and to meet some new members of the family. It has been a long time since we were all together, there were a lot of kids there who met for the first time.

The first cousins...Jason, David, Mary Nell, Beth, Amy,

Joel, Andrew, Steve, Chris, John and Scott

The birthday boys...Chris, David and John

(one of them is still 39...my husband is the baby of the crew :)
As a special surprise, all three of them were given a framed copy of their

grandfathers ordination certificate (dated 1935) and a picture of him.

I know this meant a great deal to all of them.

This is the paparazzi trying to get pics of the presents being opened.

I thought this was a funny scene and had to take a pic of them.

These are the second cousins (all except Rachel who was greatly missed)

Jordan, Alex,Landon, Lauren, Amanda Olivia, Thomas
Avery, Joshua, Lucas, Avery, Joanna, Jackson, Leah, Taylor

Joshua and Olivia were a little more excited about having their picture taken than Lucas and Joanna.

On Friday night I decided to paint the little girls' nails. After an afternoon of nonstop playing, they were kind of messy. So we put three of them in the tub to soak their feet. This is Olivia, Avery and Joanna getting ready to have their nails painted.

It was a great weekend that served as a reminder of how important family is to each of us. It also impressed on me the importance of legacy to our children.

We hit a milestone this week...Olivia registered for Kindergarten. I can't believe that my sweet little baby with huge cheeks and black hair is ready to start school...but she is. I am a little prejudice but...she is beautiful!

When we first arrived at school she was a little intimidated.

She held onto David and hid behind him.Eventually she warmed up to the situation and showed off her smile.

She was most excited about meeting up with Piper.

Olivia and Piper (or Shawn Johnson and Nastia Luikin as I call them :)

are great friends and will start school together.

It was a milestone day for my baby girl. I pray her journey through school is blessed and full of happiness and learning.

Make a Joyful Noise...

On Easter I recorded the kids singing some of their favorite songs...

Joshua's is one of our favorite songs...

Olivia's is a new favorite worship song...

Lucas' is an Easter song he learned in Sunday School.

I wish I a video of Alex singing, but no such video exists. He is not the maker of joyful noises that his little sibs are. He however, is quite the bible scholar (in a 12 yr old sort of way). Alex is participating in Bible Drill at church. He completed the church drill on Wednesday with enough points to move on to the Associational drill next week. I am so proud of him! I don't think I could memorize the material that he has memorized. I am sure I couldn't stand in front of a packed hall and remember all the verses and passages. Way to go Alex!

Easter Sunday

What a great day it has been! It was a little rocky in the beginning...5:30 am...but a glorious Easter it turned out to be.

Olivia has been begging for High School Musical 3 for months. Everytime we see saw an ad for it or a product with Troy and Gabriella on it, she would scream and beg for the movie. A few days ago, she was tired of asking and said "Oh, I give up, I don't even want it any more. It's not like I am ever going to get it." I was secretly laughing, knowing her basket was waiting for her.

*** note... turn off the music (on the right side of the blog under feedjit) before you start the video.


It was a rough morning getting everyone ready. David left at 6:35 am. By 6:45 everyone was up and we were already running late. I was short patiented and the kids were beyond whiny. As my frustration grew, their crying grew. The scene was ugly and getting uglier. I tried to get a picture...

I gave up and herded everyone into the van. David met me in the parking lot at church, parked the van, fixed the kids a plate for breakfast and checked them into Sunday School. I ran into the sanctuary in time to find a seat and take a deep breath before the service started. It was a great service filled with music, worship and a salvation message. We are so blessed to be a part of this church family!

After the first service, I went to the preschool wing and apologized to my kids for being short tempered and impatient.

The second service was as powerful as the first. I was overwhelmed with God's goodness and blessings. After this service I grabbed a chance to get a pic of our family...

Then the kids and I headed home to get ready for our guests. The Henrys came over last night and helped set up tables and decorate.

Our church staff family (with the exception of a few who were very much missed) came to our house for Easter dinner. There was a lot of yummy food, stories of God's goodness in today's services and yes, some lame jokes. The 30+ people who blessed our home made this a special day indeed.
After lunch, David and Pastor Joey took charge of the egg hunt. They hid well over 200 eggs in our yard and the field behind our house. At the sound of "go" the big kids headed to the field and little kids headed for the yard. Lots of kids and lots of candy filled eggs...happiness!

After everyone left, I asked Olivia to tell me about Easter. This was the first take...






Take 2 with the boys in another room...



Happy Easter from our blessed home to yours!

Easter eggs and Resurrection buns

As a child I remember coloring easter eggs with my grandma. Sometimes I had cousins there and sometimes it was just Grandma and me. Though they might deny it, my uncles got in on the fun many times. I loved coloring eggs with them! Egg coloring was a big production. We colored dozens and dozens of eggs. We had to have a lot of eggs because the next day, Easter Sunday, there was to be a HUGE egg hunt.
After a large Easter dinner for what seemed like hundreds of Stouts, the hiding began. The older kids and the adults hid eggs while the younger kids stayed inside where they couldn't see the hiding places. The best hunts were when the eggs were hidden in fields of my grandmothers farm. It was acres of colored eggs peeking out of grass mounds and well, other "mounds" of farm-stuff (I think the older kids just like to see who would actually "dig" around for an egg). There was always a prize egg. The prize egg was hidden very well and had money in it. As I recall, I never found the prize egg.
My Stout family still has an Easter Sunday egg hunt. My cousin has already stuffed 500+ eggs. I so wish my kids could be there for all of the fun. But being in ministry, our Easter Sundays are spent with our church family.
So, I made up my mind several years ago that my kids would have great Easter memories and egg hunts. We colored eggs last night. I am sure that my grandmother had an easier time of coloring eggs with just me. The sheer amount of little hands and egg dye on our kitchen table was a little nerve racking. But we managed to color the eggs with lots of "oo"s and "ah"s as each egg came out of the dye.


Today we made resurrection buns. It is a great way to tell the story of Jesus' resurrection with children.
You need cresent rolls, marshmallows, melted butter and cinnamon sugar.
First, I talk about Jesus and how he was killed by people who didn't believe he was the Son of God. We talk about the cross and how sad his followers must have been. Then I introduce the marshmallow as our Jesus. I let each child roll their marshmallow in the butter and then the cinnamon sugar. We talk about the oils and spices they would have used on Jesus' body. Then "Jesus" is wrapped in a blanket (the cresent roll). We make sure the marshmallow is completely tucked into the crecent and sealed. Next we put "Jesus" in the oven (the tomb). We set the timer for 3 days (12 minutes). After a couple of minutes of cooling, we go look for Jesus, just like Mary Magdalene. But when we look into the blankets, Jesus is gone...


The marshmallow completely disolves, leaving an empty shell.
My kids loved seeing the empty shell of a bun. We talked about how Jesus did not stay in the tomb and how he lives in Heaven with God, his father. A great time with my blessings and a time that made me even more thankful to my Savior.

As a side note...Olivia loved this! She was so into every step of the story. She was the first to open the tomb and shouted "He is risen"!!!
Lucas made me open his tomb because it was too sticky for his fingers.
Joshua open his and then cried because he could never eat Jesus' towel and he "weawy missed my mushmell Jesus".

I pray you all have a wonderful Easter filled with family memories and happy times. But more than anything, I hope you will be in church and worshipping the living Savior. This Son of God became man and died a horrible death just for you. He rose again and sits on the right hand of God waiting for you to ask Him into your heart. Make this Easter the most blessed ever, accept Him, worship Him.

Mule Day and the Sweetest Picture

I grew up on a farm. I had an uncle who was very proud of his team of mules. I even accompanied him on a wagon train or two. Then I grew up and wanted nothing to do with farming or mules or anything of the sort.
Today, I, well, I stepped back in time... Today was Mule Day. The day began with David and the twins running in the Mule Day Kick (a 5K race). Yes, running is relative. David did the running, the boys rode in the double jogging stroller. As a "treat" for getting up at 6am, David gave them squirt guns to use during the race. I think they would have done most anything for those guns.

David wasn't thrilled with his running time...his comment was "that 60 extra pounds I was pushing really made a difference" He didn't win the "stroller" catagory but since he was the only double entry, I think he should have been given the "bronze mule" for effort :)

After the race we met up with most of the other staff members and their families for the annual Mule Day parade. The parade route was packed 1 1/2 hours before the parade even started. We all set up camp (so to speak) with camping chairs and blankets (side note...for those who know how much I love my neat sheet...it once again made an appearance). There were balloons and hotdogs and french fries and funnel cakes, everything you need for a southern festival.

Now, having grown up with the annual Jonesborough Days Parade and lived for years in Pleasant View, which has more than it's share of parades, I know about parades in small towns... lots of candy, lots of high school bands and lots of clowns. None of the above made an appearance today. Today was solely about the "True hybrid, the American Mule". No candy...the mules might eat it. No bands, the horns might scare the mules. No clowns, I don't why there were no clowns...maybe the mules eat those as well. For nearly 2 hours we watched mule and mule after wagon after wagon. There were a few highlights...

Phil Fulmer was the grand marshall. I took the opportunity to yell to him... "not all Tennesseeans are fickle, you are still loved". I think already knew that as applause sprang up as his wagon was pulled along the route.

The sheep being herded down the street by a dog.

The State Trooper VW bug. Is it a treat or a punishment to drive this "official vehicle"? I thought it was too cute, but then again that is probably not what a law enforcement officer wants said about their car.

It was really neat to sit and be a part of this event. I don't ever desire to own a mule but there are people who love these animals and value the way of life that once was the backbone of our country. I am sure they were thrilled to have this day and the opportunity to show off.

Yes, before you ask there is a Mule Day Queen.

No, I don't plan on Olivia competing for that title.

After the parade we all went back to Mrs. Debbie's house for a yummy meal. There were lots of people there but I had to post this pic. This is John David and Rachel. Just to show how God knits our lives into His plan... John David was one was of our ring bearers in our wedding. I still tease him about the little white shorts and socks we made him wear. David was honored to perform the ceremony when JD married beautiful Rachel. Last year we received a call from them saying they were in town. You may have guessed...they moved here and in January, JD joined our church staff as media director. Our God works in amazing ways!

The kids were exhausted and after baths went to bed with no fuss. I heard a cough that sounded, well, like it was accompanying something else. When we went to check on the boys, this is what we found...

Is this not the sweetest thing ever!!! Everyday I try to get my mind around the fact that they were once the same human being and God saw fit to make them two. Tonight I find them holding hands as they sleep. Thank you God for letting me be their mommy!