Shark Week all Year Long

Last night our friends Matthew and Elizabeth came over for our regular Wednesday night get together. Elizabeth has quickly picked up on my obsession with wildlife, especially SHARKS..She gave my one of, if not my most favorite birthday gifts EVER! It was the complete 20th Anniversary SHARK WEEK DVD set! I am so excited because my favorite TV week of the year is Shark Week. My husband picks on me because sharks are so exciting to me and yet they are the biggest fear that I have in life. Truly, no joking. I am from Wilmington, NC so I grew up on the coast, LOVE the water, but am terrified of sharks. I have been blessed to have only seen a very small once while I was in the water. Ok, off to watch some more SHARK WEEK! Thanks Elizabeth...

Cool Photos

I am sure you have all figured out my obsession with wildlife...love these pics..

Turning 31......UGHHH

SO... I am not loving getting older. I still feel like I am 21, so it is a bit odd to me to actually be 31 years old. Thank you for all the birthday wishes! Mark and I spent the weekend in Myrtle Beach at South Beach Resort to celebrate and it was GREAT! My sister bought a time share there so we got to stay as her referral in a 2 bedroom condo at the resort. We watched movies, ate at Planet Hollywood and an ocean front restaurant called Damon's and relaxed by the pool. It was our first weekend away from our son who is 18 months (which is good for all married couples to do with children), but we were more than ready to see him again on Sunday. GREAT BIRTHDAY WEEKEND!

HALLELUJAH

So, I am sitting here to watch the American Idol results show and I have the chills! They just opened the show the same way they closed it out last night. That is right, the contestants sang "Shout to the Lord"and they included JESUS in the lyrics this time! WOW!!! It reminds me that one day EVERY tongue will confess and every knee will bow to JESUS CHRIST! Whether the contestants singing it are believers or not, they just confessed who Jesus is..AMEN once again..

Idol Gives Back...Shout to the Lord

I do not know if you had the chance to watch it last night, but Idol Gives Back was a great show! The show is used to raise money to help AIDS victims, especially orphans in Africa whose parent have died from the disease. The money is also raised to help those in poverty in the USA. There were guest appearances by SEVERAL celebrities who shared their stories about traveling to Africa and places in America to experience firsthand the horrific situations of poverty and need for medical attention. Among the celebrities were Brad Pitt, Carrie Underwood, Robin Williams, and many more. The biggest shocker for me was when Ryan Seacrest announced at the very end that the Idol contestants would be singing "Shout to the Lord" which is one of my favorite praise songs about who Jesus Christ is. Even though they edited out the name of "Jesus" in the beginning of the song, it was powerful just the same. I love how God uses even American Idol to get the praise that He deserves! AMEN!! On that note, it was just 2 weeks ago that Dolly Parton was on the show and sang "Jesus and Gravity" also giving a great testimony to who Jesus Christ is. AWESOME STUFF!! ²⁷"Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world." James 1:27 NIV

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Sorrow to Joy

Yesterday I spoke with one my dear friends whom I grew up with. Over the past several years her mother has been battling ovarian cancer. Mark and I were also quite close to her mother and used to clean her home when we owned a cleaning business in Wilmington, NC. Emily ( my friend) shared with me yesterday that her mother went on to be with her Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ on Monday. It was such a testimony of God's love to hear the peace in Emily's voice while dealing with such a hard thing. Such peace comes from knowing that her Mother had accepted the forgiveness that God offers us through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. We can rest knowing that Janine is in heaven with God where she has no more cancer, no pain, and a brand new body. HALLELUJAH....I want to share Emily's blog with you and I promise you will be more than blessed as you take part in her journey from SORROW TO JOY. RAINBOW HEART (Emily's Blog)