To GOD Be The Glory

The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases,
His mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning;
great is Thy faithfulness.
"The LORD is my portion," says my soul,
"therefore I will hope in Him."
Lamentations 3:22-24



I have been blessed beyond comprehension! I was just thinking today that all I ever wanted for my life once I realized where my priorities were was to be a godly wife and a godly mother - and I am living my dream! I'm attempting to at least! I am so blessed, so entirely happy! My life isn't perfect and it isn't without it's troubles. There are things that I wish we had or could do but we are just waiting for God's good timing - because His way is always the perfect way. How relieving it is to know that I'm not in control! God is my pilot!

To GOD be the glory, great things HE has done! I have been blessed with a wonderful, loving family and I couldn't be happier tonight! God is so good!

Potty Talk

About a month ago I wrote that we had bought Benjamin a potty. Well that didn't go so well last month. In fact I am pretty sure he hated it. So we stopped making him sit on it after a while and just let it sit in the bathroom.

Apparently a lot changes within a month because today we tried again and we had a lot more success! Benjamin went successfully 4 times! It was so funny because the last 3 times he clapped for himself, and the last 2 times, he clapped before he even went.

The really good thing is that his diaper has been less wet in between changes too! So it looks like we are really doing it. We are really getting into this potty training!

It is so exciting and I am very proud of my boy! But I'm also sad that he's getting so big. I can't say I'll miss changing all the diapers, though!

Anyway, I just wanted to give a quick update because I'm just so excited about it!

Millions of Peaches, again!

Well, I'm back! And I am so sorry that I don't have a "Far Above Rubies" post for today - I was desperately tired last night so I decided I'd let those of you who haven't gotten up-to-date on the study to catch up! Next week we will resume! If we don't, you can pop me over the head!

We had a good week last week, in spite of a somehow injured shoulder that only got worse all week. I managed! Hubby finally came to my rescue and we had a really good time visiting family and friends. We even went to Starbucks with my brother and his wife, and two very good friends. Notice I didn't say Benjamin! He went home with my parents and they took care of putting him to bed and everything! It was so nice!

We had a really good VBS too! I'll tell you more about that some other time. I wanted to tell you about the Saturday before this past one. {Which was when Benjamin turned 17 months old - I can't believe I didnt take his pictures or post a thing about him! I'm sorry! I'll make up for it in July!}

My parents came down that Saturday {the 19th} and we went to the Peach Festival. We went last year as well. I thought it was pretty neat that I was able to get a picture of Benjamin a complete year later. Check it out:


One year ago


and this year.

Big difference!

We did more of the same though this year we took containers for our Peach Cobbler instead of just getting small bowls. We stood in line in the heat for some of the World's Largest Peach Cobbler:




Mom felt silly with her container but I told her it was fine.


Can you tell Dad wasn't too impressed?


Hubby standing in line..


The kiddos could cool off with a water slide or the foam jump thing... whatever it's called...


Benjamin cooled off with some lemonade


He did NOT want to go into the foam!



It was fun, but it was really hot, and I'm not sure it was totally worth it. Especially since apparently the peach cobbler wasn't very good in the first place. {What do you expect - it was mixed in trashcans...}

Interested in making a gigantic peach cobbler? Here you go...

WORLD'S LARGEST PEACH COBBLER
75 Gallons slice fresh Georgia Peaches
150 pounds of self-rising flour
150 pounds of sugar
32 gallons of milk
90 pounds of butter
Divide self-rising flour, sugar and milk into six equal parts and pour into six clean trashcans. Mix thoroughly with clean boat paddle. Sizzle 90 pounds of butter in a 5 ft. x 11 ft. baking pan six inches deep. Pour in batter then add 75 gallons of sliced peaches. Bake at 350 degrees for about four hours until golden brown. If you can't get fresh or fresh frozen peaches, you better be prepared to open a lot of giant cans of peaches.


Enjoy.... ha!

in which I do not hold back.

I am not going to lie to you. I hate being a single parent this week.

I don't care how many people are surrounding me: Papaw, Nana, Uncle Steven, and Aunt Melanie. It makes a difference - but not a big one. Because I am always the parent. They can walk away and leave him to his devices if they want, and I will always be the parent. And this week I am it. I am THE parent. I am the Spankin' Giver {because yes, we spank, and no, they won't do it!}. I am the Time-Outer. I am the Napper, the Changer {most of the time}, the Almighty Mommy Voice. All by myself.

I am so tired. I feel like my stress levels are way up. If you've seen Benjamin at all this week you know that he's energetic. All of the time. You've probably noticed the bruises he's been collecting on his face and the scrapes on his knees from where he fell in the parking lot. He's been getting hurt a lot because he's been getting all this energy out and he's doing everything he's ever wanted to do {or that is how it seems}.

I feel like the constant words coming out of my mouth are "Benjamin put that back." "No Sir, Benjamin." "Come here, please." "I said COME here, please..." "Benjamin do not touch Bailey [the dog] on the hiney, that is yucky!" {Yes, I have had to say that one a LOT}.

I'm being up tight, I know I am. I know I should just relax, and usually I am really laid back. But without Hubby here, I feel fifteen THOUSAND times more stressed out and I really don't enjoy it. I'm mean mommy this week. I'm grouchy. I'm really not wanting to blow bubbles all day long but I'm doing it, like it or not, because Benjamin's new favorite toy is his non-spilling bubble toy. That and ohh, everything he is not supposed to play with. He's already broken some glass thing that held a candle here.

All I want to do is to relax. I don't think I will ever relax as long as I am on Vacation with Benjamin. It's not really vacation. Like, at all. While I am here to spend time with family and help out with my mom's VBS class - it's hard to feel like I'm on vacation when I'm doing the same thing here as I do at home: chase Benjamin, discipline, play, love.

Deeeeep breath.

Lots, and lots of prayer.

I am so not perfect. I wish I could be! I can't count all the mistakes I've made just the past few days not only as a mommy but as a sister, a friend, a daughter, even a wife!

Like I said, Lots and Lots of Prayer.

I'm probably making it out harder than it actually is. So far I have left out all the high points, like Benjamin being able to see his Aunt and Uncle, who he never gets to see as they live in Memphis. He's being able to play with Papaw as much as he can and get lovin's from Nana who dotes on him every moment of the day. I'm learning so much from my mom who is a wonderful Bible Class teacher. I'm taking Benjamin to his very first VBS, after which tonight he carried around a Popsicle stick person singing, "Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus..."

My sweet, sweet baby singing the precious name of Jesus over and over, what a beautiful thing to hear!

Oh, how I love Jesus! I can do all things through Him - even being a single parent for as long as I have to this week...

Which should hopefully be until tomorrow sometime... I cannot WAIT to see my Hubby and to be like HERE! TAKE YOUR CHILD!

I feel better. Thanks for letting me vent. You're a good friend!

Wordless Wednesday: Welcome Summer!

For more WW, visit 5 Minutes for Mom.

my heart.

Happy Fathers Day to the best father I could have ever hoped for my child and future children {if the Lord so chooses to bless us}!




I can't say enough of how great a father you are, how loving and kind and thoughtful and playful and also firm and grounded you are. How you are a wonderful spiritual leader for this household, and how very thankful I am for that! You are amazing! I love you!

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I've spent the last 10 or so minutes crying after my dad showed me a particular YouTube video... and then I remembered how we spent Father's Day 2007 with my Papaw, and 2 weeks later he passed away. It's almost been 3 years. It still hurts as though it happened yesterday.

I still don't feel like talking about it. So I'll just say, I miss my Papaw.

Ben and Ella

I know I have been absent most of this week, and I am so sorry! To make up for it, I'd like to share about a thousand {okay 12} of my favorite pictures from this week. They were all taken on the same day - when my friend Jessica and I took our kiddos out to the park and did a shoot of them in their 4th of July outfits. It was a TON of fun! The kiddos are so sweet together!





there were TONS of geese!!!


how precious are they?!

YITTAAAHHH!






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Well this next week is going to be busy! I don't know how often I'll be able to post, but I'll do my best. Benjamin and I are going to be out of town. Because of this, I am going to postpone the next Far Above Rubies study until the 28th!

I hope you all have a great weekend and week!

Dear Across-The-Street-Neighbors,

I'mtiredofit!

I am tired of your late-night, bumpin' dance parties. I'm tired of your bass-blasting, thuggin' cars that go BOOM-BOOM BOOM-BOOM in the dead of night. I'm tired of not being able to step outside with you all out their without hearing every known cuss word to the English language.

There is absolutely no reason for you to have your music up THAT LOUD in the middle of the night, in the middle of a NEIGHBORHOOD where BABIES live. I honestly have never known such self-centered, inconsiderate, rude, arrogant people in my entire life. We have asked you to stop, time and time again. The cops have been called on numerous occasions. Why do you keep doing this??

Tonight, your bass-blasting car woke my son up, thankyouverymuch.

It is so hard for me to control my temper every time I hear that rap music blasting out for the entire neighborhood to hear, shaking and rattling our windows. I am tired of having to practice patience this often! Give me a break, please!

Hey remember that sound ordinance my husband brought over to you back in November? It's still in affect. Please observe. You are breaking the law past a certain point.

Please, if you could, try to think of anyone other than yourselves for once. Try and think of the 17 month old baby across the street, or the 15 month old on the other side of us. Think about the other children around us who need their sleep as well. How about the working parents who need a good night's sleep so they can get up and provide for their families?

If all else fails, think about your own children and what sort of unruly, uncaring, inconsiderate examples you are being to them.

Very Sincerely,
Your Across-the-Street Neighbors

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I Heart Faces: All About Babies

Okay so in the last week Stacia had her baby, and my cousin Brittany had her baby. By the end of the month my other cousin will have had her baby... Hello Baby Fever! I have a SLEW of adorably pregnant friends who are due all throughout the rest of the year... HELLO BABY FEVER!

And the iheartfaces theme for this week, "All About Babies"? Do I even have to say it?

Seriously.

I chose a picture from Benjamin's first week of life. We were still in the hospital {as we had an extended stay due to massive complications}. My precious perfect baby newborn... why can't I go back to those days?





By the way, you need to head over to Stacia's blog and look at her new baby. He is precious and perfect and beautiful!

Far Above Rubies: Proverbs 31:20

We are going to be looking at Proverbs 31:20 for our study this week. I am so glad those of you who are joining have decided to join, especially for those of you who keep coming back - I appreciate that! For all newcomers, I am SO glad you decided to pop over and I really hope you benefit from this study! I know it has been such a blessing to me. Not only have I learned a lot and learned what I need to change in myself, I have met a lot of new friends this way! I encourage you all to visit each other if possible!

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"She stretcheth out her hand to the poor; yea, she reacheth forth her hands to the needy." Proverbs 31:20

This verse alone provokes so many thoughts for me! First of all, what a compassionate woman! She stretches out her hands to those who are less fortunate, who are in need, who really need her help! It doesn't say that they ask for it, perhaps they do, or perhaps she does it on her own accord because that's what a compassionate woman does!

It also made me think of this verse:

"As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith." Galatians 6:10

A virtuous woman seems to fit this bill as well. It makes me wonder how many people out there have been in need and yet I haven't been willing to stretch out my hand to them for whatever reason. I need to be more aware of the people around me and be willing and eager to help them.

If you are faced with the opportunity to help someone - whether it be by giving them a hot meal, a ride to wherever they are going, carrying their groceries for them, or even holding the door for someone going into a place after you, better yet, before you! - do you take those opportunities? Do you look for those opportunities? I think about Christ, who wasn't the richest man by far, and yet He still reached His own hand out to others. He even washed His disciples feet!

My lovely friend Stephanie has a blog that I thought about here as well, The 100 Days of Kindness Project. I love the idea of going out of your way to do something kind for someone - but how often do I live that idea?

I have come to realize this: there is always someone in need. There will always be someone in need. And if I want to be that virtuous woman, I need to be eager to stretch out my hand to those in need!

I am eager to hear your thoughts on this verse! I really enjoyed it - and I look forward to reading your comments or your posts! What a great thought to start out the week, right? Maybe this week we should make it a goal to look for those opportunities to help!

Up A Tree

Days like today make you really thankful for a nice, cushy couch to lounge on, running water to shower in, and a warm bed to curl up on at the end of the day! We had such a busy day! We got up early and set out to take our stuff to a 3 family yard sale with some friends. It was hot, even in the morning. It was humid and even the shade was hot! But it was a lot of fun and we got rid of a few things that have been giving us grief, like the giant {okay not THAT giant} TV that had been just sitting in the middle of our guest room. I was hoping to sell a lot of Benjamin's clothing but only ended up selling one piece. So since I did not want to take all 4 boxes of clothes, plus a box of toys he almost never played with, we went by the Goodwill donation center on the way home {and picked up some half price drinks at Sonic!}.

In the middle of all that I also had to go to the Ladies' Bible Class and I am sure I smelled AWFUL.

Benjamin had a really good time. That boy was sweaty! But he was a sweaty, happy boy! He played and played and played! And Daddy showed him a brand new trick! Daddy was calling down to him and Benjamin was running around the tree yelling, "Dadda! Dadda! Dadda!" trying to find him! Finally, though, he was able to spot him, and he thought it was the best thing ever.





Until he tried it... he wasn't so sure about that!





I hope you all had a good Saturday too! I am looking forward to the Lord's Day and Bible Class and worship with the Saints! This week is going to be a good one, I just know it!

Oh, and you may have noticed the new look here at Bringing Up Benjamin! I felt it needed a summer face lift! If you refresh the page a new header will come up, so feel free to check those out. There are 8.

And thank you once again for your support on my one post the other day. You all are wonderful friends!

Y'all take care!

JUMP! for joy! {and peaches!}

Benjamin had a great time yesterday at Lane's Southern Orchards with Grandmommy and Uncle Preston. Uncle Preston is such a great Uncle. He was teaching Benjamin how to jump, and they had so much fun!

Here are a few different shots from the day:


Lane's has some of the best peaches in Georgia, I'd reckon!



The playground was hot, but so much fun!






The best homemade peach ice cream I have ever had - and believe me I've had a lot, living in Georgia nearly all my life!!



Sneak Attack on the Ducks...



We had such a great time, and we'll probably be back next weekend too!

Do you have any special places that you like to go to in your town? I hope you're all having a great weekend! Tomorrow is going to be busy for us as we're participating in a yard sale {we need to get rid of a lot!}, and I have Ladies Bible class, and THEN - the Annual Peach Festival! I am really excited for all three events! You'll be seeing more peaches in the near future, y'all!