A walk in the park...

One of our favorite places to go for walks is Joiner Park. It is just a few minutes from where we live and is a great place for Dallas to run. The other evening we got there right as the sun started to set and it was so pretty!

Doug and Dallas, ready to go!

setting sun...

Us.

We can't seem to get enough time outside these days. The leaves have been beautiful this fall and sunsets like these are so fun to enjoy! We sure are enjoying fall in North Carolina...now we are hoping for some snow this winter to top it off!

Fall...

We have especially enjoyed fall here in NC. We loved the fall in Washington but somehow we enjoy it more here. I think part of it is that it isn't too cold to enjoy so while we walk the dog, we aren't freezing cold the whole time! Today I got some shots of our walk to share. The leaves are beautiful!

Dallas

so many leaves and the cat in attack mode

I love scarf weather!

Waiting patiently to get walking again...puppy dog eyes!

Christmas decorating...

We already got a head start in decorating for Christmas this year, so today we finished up by putting up our tree! Yet again, we say kudos to whoever thought of pre-lit Christmas trees! It makes the whole decorating (and take down) so much easier!

Our Christmas town set up under the tree...what building will we add this year???

Doug, putting the star on top!

Decorating the tree.

Someone thinks we have provided him with a nice place to sleep.

Happy Birthday to Doug...

Doug's birthday was last month but we managed to stretch out the celebrations until last weekend! 

Cupcakes for his actual birthday...

 Last weekend we went to the fair for the afternoon...it was a beautiful day!

 Doug loves this ride! It is SO high up and then drops you in a free fall.  I will not ride it but Doug did twice!

 And of course, we had our fill of some yummy fair food! We enjoyed seeing all of the many, many choices and finally deciding on this place. That polish sausage was huge!

 We spotted this jerky stand, it made it into our pictures because it is Heidi Joe's Jerky, we didn't buy any though, it wasn't the best.

 Doug getting ready for a free-fall!

 We also had tickets to the Michael W. Smith concert that evening that was at the fair. We were ready to sit and relax a bit by the time the doors opened! Here we are waiting for the concert to start.

 The first few songs were a bunch of 'the oldies', we loved it because we knew them all!

 As the night went on, he got more and more energetic, he has lots of fun at his job! 

We had a great time too!

 After the concert, the sun had gone down so all the lights were on and the fair felt like a whole new place. It was so neat. Then the fireworks started and we watched them over the lights of the Midway. The pictures all came out kind of blurry but you get the idea.

Happy Birthday to Doug! We always love reasons to celebrate and this was a great year!

Visitors...

A few weeks ago, we enjoyed a visit from David, Kara and Laleh...We had so much fun getting to know the  newest addition to the family.

She enjoyed Dallas!

I went to pick them all up from Virginia and got to spend the afternoon with Laleh while the adults were all still in classes. We enjoyed a nice day outside!

 Sweet Laleh, we had so much fun seeing you!  Oh, and David and Kara, it was great to see you both too!! Too bad I didn't get pictures of you guys! :)

This is the way...

I don't know how exegetically sound my interpretation of these passages are or what kind of red marks I would receive from any one of my professors...but here's what I get from it:

In the middle of a passage describing God's stubborn and (from our hindsight prospective) stupid people, the justice and grace of God's character is most stunning and encouraging.

"Therefore the LORD waits to be gracious to you,
and therefore he exalts himself to show mercy to you.
For the LORD is a God of justice;
blessed are all those who wait for him."
(Isaiah 30:18 ESV)

Not only is God gracious and patient, He shows Himself and His plan to us at the perfect time. He does not promise an easy road, but He absolutely is there to declare flawless GPS directions for each of our lives.

"For a people shall dwell in Zion, in Jerusalem; you shall weep no more. He will surely be gracious to you at the sound of your cry. As soon as he hears it, he answers you. And though the Lord give you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction, yet your Teacher will not hide himself anymore, but your eyes shall see your Teacher. And your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, “This is the way, walk in it,” when you turn to the right or when you turn to the left."
(Isaiah 30:19-21 ESV)

"This is the way, walk in it."

Seems pretty clear to me.

Lord keep us willing, let our quietness and trust be our strength. Keep us from stubborn idolatry, don't let us be worthless and empty! We desire to serve you with gladness of heart and unselfish abandon. Help us to wait for your direction and be faithful to walk in the way that you show us.

We're not sure yet...

At the moment, we aren't sure about much.

I'm not sure how well I did on my final exam in Theology.
We're not sure what to do with the ever increasing stack of books in our living room.

I'm not sure what to make for dinner. (although I AM sure Doug will be ready for dinner when he gets home)
I'm not sure what the cat is thinking when he comes inside to throw up on the carpet.

We're not sure if we should stay in school.
We're not sure where we are supposed to go from here. (although there are some prospects)

I'm not sure which job I should commit to.
I'm not sure where I left my watch.

We're not sure about lots of things.
But what we ARE sure of makes all the other uncertainties A-OK.

We are sure that we worship the God who created the universe.
We are sure that we trust Him for all we need.
We are sure in His promises to save us.
We are sure that in Him, our future is secure.


For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you, declares the LORD, and I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and all the places where I have driven you, declares the LORD, and I will bring you back to the place from which I sent you into exile.

Jeremiah 29:11-14