Florida baby!

headed to florida tomorrow!!

bye!!!

Faith & Expectation

In the morning, O Lord, you hear my voice;

in the morning I lay my requests before you

and wait in expectation.

But let all who take refuge in you be glad;

let them ever sing for joy.

Spread your protection over them

that those who love your name

may rejoice in you.

For surely, O Lord, you bless the righteous;

you surround them with your favor as with a shield.

Psalm 5:3,11-12

I was talking with Ray last night about faith. How much faith do I have? Do I ask God for things in faith... do I truly wait in expectation each morning for what he wants to accomplish in my life? Do I have the kind of faith that would do anything that God asks of me... giving up the comforts of this life to serve Him?

As you love Me, you accept My will as your own, and the

caliber and extent of your love for Me may be accurately

measured to the degree that you accept My will with a peaceful heart.

You can best sing "My Jesus, I Love You"

when you can truly sing "Where He leads Me, I Will Follow."

For whoever does not take up his cross daily to follow Me cannot be My disciple.

(Come Away My Beloved pg 222)

"I have been crucified with Christ;

it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me;

and the life which I now live in the flesh

I live by faith in the Son of God,

who loved me and gave himself for me."

Galations 2:20

Summer Update :)

These past few weeks have been wonderful... hanging out with my little guy, enjoying my home, loving not working, spending extra time with friends and family, basking in the sunshine by the pool, early morning walks with Ray and Barrett, taking naps, making dinner, and just having a blast!

The first few weeks after Barrett was born I was filled with much anxiety, especially at night. I would have trouble sleeping because I was so worried that something might happen to him while I was asleep. Ray had to pray for me several times one night. As I have been reading through the Psalms... Psalm 3 and 4 both have a verse about sleep that is such a good reminder!

I lie down and sleep;
I wake again, because the LORD sustains me. Psalm 3:5

I will lie down and sleep in peace,
for you alone, O LORD,
make me dwell in safety. Psalm 4:8

I am confident that the Lord will continue to grant sleep to both Barrett and I. I feel encouraged to be reminded of the Lord's promise to sustain my son while we're asleep... that God is a covering and shield for Barrett in the wee hours of the night. And... matter of fact, he has been sleeping around 4-6 hours a night! I am thankful that he is learning how to put himself to sleep without screaming. It was hard the first few nights to let him cry for a bit, but he quickly learned that crying didn't do any good... so now he just sucks on his little fingers or pacifier and coos and grunts until he falls asleep. The Lord is good... though not every night is full of lots of sleep, the Lord is kind to refresh me each morning for another day with my baby!

This week I am cleaning, packing, and preparing for our trip to Florida for the big Hunt family reunion next week! I have never been to Florida so I am excited! We are flying... thankfully! I am excited to meet the rest of Ray's family... and to just relax with fam! I know that Ray is totally looking forward to a vacation too! So, Yesterday was full of errands... today... is full of cleaning and laundry!

Oh, and I started working out this morning! Yikes... is all I have to say! I bought some Jullian Michaels videos! She will kick your butt! I thought I was going to die! I guess I stopped working out a little too soon in my pregnancy.. ha! So... it will probably be a hard road back to my old body, but the time has come :) One day at a time is what I tell myself.

One thing I have been enjoying is working on Barrett's baby book... I really need to go back and finish our honeymoon album and start a wedding album. Oh boy :) And, I just finished his birth announcement; gotta get them in the mail!

All in all, life is good. After Florida, the countdown to go back to work starts. I have always been the kind of person that needs to pump myself up for things :) So... as much as I have loved being off work... I actually miss my friends, the kids, and nursing! I am trying to mediate on the positive aspects of me going back to work part-time....and there actually are quite a few! One being, that Barrett will have at least one day a week with his GiGi (Sharay, Ray's mom) and one night with his daddy! I am glad that he will have special one on one time with them!

Now, off to shower while the baby is asleep! It is amazing how fast you learn to do things once your a mom! :) I think my record for the shower is 1 minute!! :)

My Journey Through the Psalms

This season of my life has already shown itself to be quite busy... but very rewarding! Waking up through the night and early in the morning and continuing throughout the day to care for my little guy is a full time job! :) I am LOVING every second of it! But I have seen that it has been quite hard to stay in the Word. Things are finally settling down and we have somewhat of a schedule now. I am feeling my heart drawing back to the Word, my first Love. I am sensing that deep need to be in His Word... allowing my heart to be filled to overflowing with Jesus! I know that God is breathing His refreshing wind into me! I have felt so much grace and love from Him during these past 6 weeks!

All that to say, I am going to try to read just one Psalm a day. The psalms are so full of encouragement and honesty! So... here I go... on my journey through the Psalms :) I am waiting in expectation for what the Lord wants to pour into me during this time!

This morning I read Psalm 1, which ironically, starts off talking about the Word being our DELIGHT. I had to ask myself... what do I DELIGHT in?? Oh, to my shame, so many things filled my mind.. all earthly things that will not last of coarse. I want to truly delight in His Word... just as much as I DELIGHT in a wonderful date with Ray or waking up to my little guy smiling at me! I want to "mediate on it day and night." The Scripture says that if we do this, we will yield much fruit, never wither, and everything we do will prosper! Wow! I desire to be that "tree planted by streams of living waters!" Lord, give me a heart that DELIGHTS in your Word and waits in eager expectation for what it will accomplish in my life!

Can't wait for Psalm 2 tomorrow! :)

Song For My Sons

by Sara Groves

(first song on cd)

This is a song for my sons for when they understand it

You know how life is full you know we couldn't plan it

your dad and I prayed for strength and understanding

for things we couldn't see or comprehend

This is a song for you, to carry in your pocket

take all our love with you in all the paths you walk in

I can't say your life will always go like it should

but I can say that God is always good

and when the cold wind blows like I know it will

and when you feel alone like I know you will

and when the cold wind blows like we know it will

Don't let your love grow

Don't let your love grow

Don't let your love grow cold

This is a song for my sons for when they understand it

You know how life is full you know we couldn't plan it

your dad and I prayed for strength and understanding

for things we couldn't see or comprehend

This is a song from my heart a small refrain to hold you

for times when we're apart and I cannot console you

Be honest with yourself and don't forget to pray

and read your bible everyday

and when the cold wind blows like I know it will

and when you feel alone like I know you will

and when the cold wind blows like I know it will

Don't let your love grow

Don't let your love grow

Don't let your love grow cold

L O V E

After hearing the message from church today... I was challenged in the area of LOVE...

How many messages have I heard, books have I read, conversations have I had regarding LOVING OTHERS?!?...Alot! I am asking the Lord to work in my heart in this specific area. How can I LOVE others... my husband, my son, our families, friends, church, and work friends? Chris (one of our pastors) said that LOVING God and LOVING others cannot be separated!! This is so true... This is where the rubber meets the road...

I know that I was immediately reminded during todays message of a beautiful example of LOVING OTHERS...

My caregroup... The Carey caregroup lavished LOVE on Ray and I right after Barrett was born. It was amazing to see a such a small group of people pour out so much sweet LOVE on us! And, the thing that mostly blew me away was that most of the people in the group didn't know us well at all. I received calls everyday from someone from the group asking if they could bring dinner, come visit, do laundry, hold the baby while I got a shower, keep me company once my mom left, etc, etc. I was so humbled by their beautiful example of pouring out the LOVE of Jesus on us! I know that the desire of my heart is to be like this!

We were also challenged this week as an unexpected guest showed up at our house... The Lord worked in all (our whole family) hearts to LOVE and accept this person, knowing that God is sovereign and faithful to His children. Ray even had the opportunity to share his testimony! God is always at work in our hearts to sanctify us and bring us into a deeper relationship with Him. So thankful for His constant patience with us we walk this journey... learning to LOVE unconditionally as "Christ LOVED us and gave Himself up for us."

God is love. When we take up permanent residence in a life of love, we live in God and God lives in us. This way, love has the run of the house, becomes at home and mature in us, so that we're free of worry on Judgment Day—our standing in the world is identical with Christ's. There is no room in love for fear. Well-formed love banishes fear. Since fear is crippling, a fearful life—fear of death, fear of judgment—is one not yet fully formed in love.

We, though, are going to love—love and be loved. First we were loved, now we love. He loved us first.

If anyone boasts, "I love God," and goes right on hating his brother or sister, thinking nothing of it, he is a liar. If he won't love the person he can see, how can he love the God he can't see? The command we have from Christ is blunt: Loving God includes loving people. You've got to love both.

1 john 4:16-21 (message)

Look Mom No Hands!!!

First time in my Bumbo seat :)

(still a little wobbly)

Things I'm learning as a MOMMY...

* LOVIN PAMPERS... baby boy was peeing out of Huggies and we couldn't figure out why... well, it was the diaper. So, mystery solved, no more peeing or pooping out of diapers!

* DON'T BATHE ALONE... Barrett is not too fond of swallow gulps of soapy water. Oops!

* DRINK LOTS AND LOTS AND LOTS OF WATER... or you'll end up in the ER for dehydration. Yeah, I'll never do that again!

* COVER BOY PARTS DURING DIAPER CHANGES... after getting peed on several nights in a row, I think I finally got it! Yes!

* WATCH THE GASSY FOODS... or poor baby will get a belly ache! It is heart breaking to watch his little hands bawl up in agony! Sorry son... mommy is trying! :)

* MOVE THE LITTLE LEGS... to pass the gas! One of our pastors wives told me that trick... it really works! Thanks Sabrina!

* JUST EMBRACE THE NURSING MOMS ROOM... baby might scream or have trouble latching on... oh well.. we've all got the same thing, right?? :) oh, yeah, and forget the little cover ups... me and baby just get tangled in it! ha!

* ATTACH THE PACIFIER TO THE SHIRT... or it will continue to fall on the ground... how many times do I need to learn this one!??!

* GIVE LOTS AND LOTS OF KISSES! My boy is the BEST cuddler in the world... and I'm soaking up every minute of it! Barrett just seems to roll with the flow... He is pretty patient as his mom learns to me a MOMMY! Its AWESOME!!!

My favorite 4th of July!

Oh.... I forgot... This is where I was last 4th of JULY!!

KONA HAWAII ON MY HONEYMOON!!

And.. a few more pics from a beautiful week together :)

WOw! Alot happens in a Year!