His name and the Hurricane

its lunchtime for me while my little post-sickness boy is napping... AND i'm eating my dessert first :) i love doing that!

just made some monster cookies to prepare for the hurricane that is headed directly for us! yikes!! my cookie is melting in my mouth, its peaceful outside, and its hard to believe that a hurricane is coming right for us! everything seems to like normal.... other than...

my little guy got the stomach virus (or so i think...

after 6 episodes of cleaning up throw up and

changing pj's multiple times). he is so

pitiful when he feels bad... he wouldn't even lift his precious little

head off my shoulder... all night! therefore, mommy got

no sleep last night either and ended up calling out of work...

my sweet friends at work were all so gracious and said...

family first! what a gift to have

friends that understand how important family is... i'm grateful that i

have been able to be with him today... lots of snuggling, naps,

crackers, and pedialyte....

oh that brings me to another thought...

ray left to go out of town yesterday... not a good

weekend to leave,

yeah...so sitting in the rocker with my

puking baby and my

thoughts, i decided i needed help.. and so my sweet friends

came to my rescue with pedialyte

and a surprise visit from another

couple just to check on my boy and i.

man, i was really overwhelmed that my friends

were so willing to help

and just be there for me... i even woke up

to numerous texts to check

on barrett... thats jesus... thats his heart

and i am so grateful to

have friends like that... thanks guys!! xoxo

anyway, back to the original post... :)

so... hurricane irene... pretty scary from the looks of it, but we are all just sitting here anticipating what's to come. i've been watching the news, listening to all the changes, and just waiting! i think my heart has been beating a little faster the past 24 hours... with ray leaving (which he did come home late last night.. thank you lord!), barrett sick, having to work, and a hurricane coming.... i was starting to get anxious!

one word has been on repeat in my mind...

JESUS

i can call his name out when i feel alone,

i can call his name out in the middle of the night

i can call his name when my son is sick

i can call his name for protection

i can call his name for wisdom

i can call his name when i'm scared

there is power in the name of JESUS...

"Your name is a strong and mighty tower,

Your name, let the nations sing it louder,

Nothing has the power to save,

But your name!"

(from a favorite song by Paul Baloche)

cookies made, candles ready, flashlight in every room, food prepared, cars gassed up, water stored... but the most important thing... HIS NAME... i can call on Him at anytime, no matter what is headed my way... hurricane irene, sickness, fear, loneliness... JESUS... JESUS... JESUS...

What "name" has you terrified for your life?

Whisper "Jesus."

Jesus. What a beautiful, powerful Name.

oh, and more to come on my amazing time with my sis...

she just celebrated her birthday and is heading into

her senior year at Lee University...

i'm so proud of her...

she's an awesome girl and i love our times together!

Question...

one question i have been asking myself lately...

WHAT AM I LIVING FOR?

(before my dear friends jonathan and sharon left for china, they shared this video with

me... and it has radically changed ray and my perspective on what we are living life for.)

DON'T FORGET TO TURN OFF THE MUSIC AT THE BOTTOM...

psalm 27:4

one thing i ask of the Lord, this is what i seek;

that i may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life,

to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to seek Him in his temple.

asking the Lord to blow us Away by His glory...

to sweep us of our feet in love with Him...

and to shatter our dreams of living a nice pretty life...

whatever the cost.

busy with my boys

been busy chasing my little guy around, cheering him on as he learns to walk (still hilariously wobbly!), going to my big guys softball games, late night chats together, and just living life!

my dear family arrives on saturday to OBX... i am eagerly awaiting some SERIOUS SISTER time! there are so many things i want to share with her... and the phone just doesn't cut it sometimes... so we have LOTS to talk about, laugh about, and who knows what else! oh, and i can't wait for her to get some time lovin on her nephew too!

more pics to come of our laundry mat fun!! :)

the WoRd

"be still before the Lord and wait patiently for Him; do not fret when men succeed in their ways..." Psalm 37:7

"but the plans of the Lord stand firm forever, the purposes of His heart through all generations." Psalm 33:11

"surely goodness and mercy will follow you all the days if your life." Psalm 23:6

"for the Lord your God is bringing you into a good land - a land with streams and pools of water, with springs flowing in the valleys and hills... you will lack nothing!" Deut 8:10

"and in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purposes... no, in all these things we are more than conquerers through Him who loved us. nothing can seperate us from the love of Christ!" Romans 8:28, 37-38

thankful for His promises

thankful for His Word

thankful that He is alive

thankful that He is at work in us!

now to Him who is able to do IMMEASUREABLY more than all we could ASK or IMAGINE,

according to His power that is at work in US,

to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus

throughout ALL generations

forever and ever AMEN!

NYC just us :)

decided to share a few pics from our Anniversary trip to NYC...

our hotel... called yotel

Dates!

dinner out with my raybo

ferry ride :)

2 peas in a pod

statue of liberty!

mine :)

Mary Poppins!!

Saw Mary Poppins on Broadway! loved it!

Yankees Game with my boy :)

yanks hall of players

met up with jon murray (ha... ray looks so serious!)

entering the stadium!

the field

all things nyc!

loved come back to our room... little bed... and everything nice and clean!

ready to hit the town every night!

the rush of times square... ah, i love it!

taxi taxi taxi

we made precious memories together on our trip :) just being together was very refreshing! we are both up for adventures and this sure was a fun adventure! making marriage a priority, especially after having a child, is so important! it felt like a second honeymoon... and there is no one else i would have rather spent it with! here's to many more years, by God's grace!!

but there was no denying...

both of us were so excited to get to our little munchkin... who was a very good boy for grammy and gdaddy!! my mom had prepared so much to make it special for barrett... she called her house, "Grammy's Resort"! though barrett couldn't say thank you with his words, i saw how close he had gotten to them in just a few short days! it was hard for my parents to say goodbye, but we were so grateful that they were able to care for him while we were away! but we couldn't wait to get our hands on him and make up for all the days we missed with him!!

and now its back to real life...

but i love real life...

HEADING TO NYC WITH MY LOVE FOR OUR 2 YEAR ANNIVERSARY!!




can't wait to spend time with my boy... just us!




making memories, cuddling time, and lots of laughing...




can't wait to be in one of my favorite places with one of my favorite people!




ready to feel the rush of the city!!



i love you ray hunt!

so excited...

my dad & my boy's dad

got off the phone with my dad yesterday morning... so thankful for him. thankful for every moment we have shared... i'm sure he could fill ya in on the ups and downs of raising daughters and all that entails, but i'm sure he would also tell you that there were alot more ups than downs. my sis and i have always been "daddy's girls." i'm so glad i was and still am his girl.

one of my first memories as a little girl was standing at the front door waiting for my dad to come home from work. my dad had many difficulties with jobs for several years when i was young and i know that just seeing my face at the door every evening made every second of it worth it... i'm pretty sure he would tell you that too :) my dad and i would get very silly sometimes... laughing our heads off downstairs... my dad taking a joke and running it into the ground, but i was his little giggle box... i seriously thought he was the funniest person in the world! i still do. :) my dad would announce his plans for his day off, and they were always my plans too. i wanted to go wherever he went... guitar store, tennis shops, church music practice, walking the park, and taking drives to harrisonburg to just be together. when my heart was crushed... by boys, school, friendships, disappointments, and the many emotions that girls have... he was always there for me. i would just sit in his lap and cry... sometimes i never even had to say anything. he was always gentle, kind, caring, and i knew his love for me was strong... nothing in the world could take it away. he walked life right by my side. we hiked up a mountain one saturday, just me and my dad, we talked about the Lord, things i was struggling with... he was there, he was present, he knew what was going on in my life. that is a dad. that is a father. that is a strong man. that is my dad.

sweet sweet memories, precious times... i will never forget growing up in a home where my dad was there... to love us, cheer us on, and hold my hand every step of the way. even today, a married woman now, i call my dad... we laugh, i cry sometimes, he listens, prays, gives wisdom and encouragement, and he always tells me before he hangs up... "you can always call me, ash, if you need anything. i love you." and i will always call him. i will always look at him as the first man in my life. the man that showed me what love was... and loved me as my Father loves me. i know His love for me, because i experienced dad's love for me. that is an inheritance that can never be replaced.

thank you dad for being the man that you are. father's day is just one day out of the year to honor father's, but not a day goes by that i don't think of you and thank God for the amazing gift that you have been to me. i love you, dad.

happy father's day, dad

______________________________________________________

i have another "father" that i get to see everyday. the father of our son. watching my ray be a dad is one of the coolest things i have ever seen. :) sometimes i smile so big when i see those 2 boys together it makes my face hurt! i love watching ray's reaction to barrett... if barrett falls, ray is right there to pick him up and dust him off, if barrett is in a silly mood, ray is right there to make him laugh so hard he can hardly breathe, if barrett is tired, ray scoops him up in his strong arms and carries him up to bed, praying for him faithfully each night before bed, if barrett learns something new, ray is right there to clap his hands and say "good job dada boy!"

from the moment barrett was born, ray held him close and i knew that they would be forever friends... i know that as the years pass they will only grow closer. barrett can't thank his dad right now for all the times he has watched him while mommy works night shifts, changed his diapers, dresses him cool, takes him to see the dogs at the pet shop, plays fun games with him, teaches him new things, reads to him, prays for him, feeds him, gives him baths at night when mommy is tired, and loves on him! but if barrett could thank him, i know he would... because he has a pretty cool dad. a dad that has constantly loved and cared for him for his first year of life. there will ups and downs, but barrett is ray's boy and i see that faithful love everyday.

i don't want to forget the analogy our pastor used last week at church when he spoke on Psalm 121: he saw ray holding barrett on his lap, ray was holding his feet and barrett was swaying all around... he just learning to balance. but ray was holding his feet so tight, barrett wasn't going anywhere! that is such a precious picture of Jesus holding us. when we are swaying all around, our Father is there to hold us tight, secure, unmoveable... what a picture of our Father's care for us... and what a blessing to know that i have a dad like that and so does Barrett.

thank you, love, for being an amazing "dada" to our little guy. he is blessed more than he knows to have you in his life. and one day he will thank you. :)

Happy father's day, babe