Advent Day 3

Advent day 3 - Matthew 1:20-23

...you shall call him Jesus for he will save his people from their sins

Reminds me of 2 years ago teaching this lesson to my students. Edward asked me -
"Mrs Thomas do you really believe Jesus can save the world"
Me -"sure do"
Edward - "I want to get to know more about this Jesus."
6 months later - Edward became a brother!!

Love these sweet memories and praying that God will send me people here in America that I can share of His great love with.

Remember to prepare your heart for celebration of Christmas. Don't miss out on what the Lord has for you because of what the world says it has. Seek Him above all else and you will find Him.

Thanksgiving 2012

Thanksgiving
On Thursday we went to spend the day with Wes family for a wonderful Thanksgiving lunch and time together. Unfortunately no pics were taken but we had a great time eating and laughing with each other!!

On Saturday we went to see my family. Here is a summary if our day in photos. It was fantastic!!

So blessed

Can't hardly believe someone graciously donated these to us!! So excited about using our new washer and dryer. No more laundry mat :)

Good morning

Peppermint Mocha
So happy to see you again!!

Celebrating the Life of ...

My Grandpa - Charles Joseph Marks

He went to be with the Lord on- yesterday
October 31, 2012

He was always supportive and liked to pull you close into a side hug and talk.
I like to make him chuckle.  

Wes asked me my favorite memory I had with my grandpa--
Even though we have shared many things- Christmas', Graduations, parties, summers etc...
My favorite thing is a name that he had for me
"Little One"

He was the only person that called me this...
and I loved it!!

I LOVED introducing him to my little one.
And I think his heart was captured.  

I will miss you Grandpa...
but I will see you again!

~~ Your Little One

Just wanted to share... Many times our American friends will say "Do you still talk to your friends in China?" 

Occasionally is the proper answer. 

E-mail is easy... but hard at the same time... 

But this morning I got an e-mail from my good friend Terence :) 

With pictures included-- I LOVE that he included one of him diligently studying :) 

I imagine the kind person that took this for him :) 

 Here is his e-mail... just because it is special

 My dear friend Avery
I am so happy to receive your letter and to know you are living a so wonderful life! I want to say you are the best mother and the best wife I have ever seen among my friends. Nowadays, in Chinese opinion, if you have a house, a car and a happy family, you are a successful person. So God really really loves you! :)
No doubt, Parker is so cute, he is a consummate charmer, the proverbial Sunday's child. I still keep the pictures you have sent to me which we took at the photo studio. But, is he still makes you restless? I hope he is doing well, now. lol~
And how about Wes? Does he find a new job? I know the situation of employment is not as good as people expected, but such a diligent man like him deserve a nice job. And I have a long time no hear the news of him. Please give my regards to him. I appreciate you invited me to your home. Actually, go to America is a dream of mine, I do really hope to visit you at your hometown, too! I wish it won't be a long time if it possible.
Now, how about me? I am living a simple but busy life. I go to the library to study from Monday to Friday, and I go to the Haidian Church to learn B on Sunday. I join in a brother group which lead by a priest whom comes from America. Last Sunday, we studied John 1. But I will take some lessons about postgraduate entrance exam at the weekends in the future, so I maybe couldn't go to the Church every week. The time is more and more less, it's only 82 days left for me to prepare. So I should be more diligent and be more care about my health situation. Some times I will do some running, I noticed that it's very important to my healthy.

And, I have to say the girl I have ever mentioned is not my girlfriend, I had met her just once, and she didn't come to Haidian Church often as she told me, but she is a nice and kindhearted girl. Haidian Church is so big and there are so many people in it, so it's hard for you to recognize people you have ever met.
Well, I attached some pictures about my study and living environment to you, my friend. If you will please pray for me to pass the exam. :)

 Terence
 OH I hope he can come to America so all of you can meet him. He is an incredible friend. Will you pray with me that Terence will pass this exam? It is very important for his future.

New Home

Many of you know we moved :)
We moved to Old Raleigh area... and we LOVE our new place. We live in a 3 bedroom apartment and it is home!  I thought I would make a list of some the things that we love about our new place...
So here goes- Top 10
1. Convenient to everything!!
2. Wooded areas and trees-- the complex backs up to a huge park in Raleigh... these pictures are from P and my morning run... right outside our door-- beautiful sky on fire in places and baby soft colors in others.  Fall leaves changing... the beauty of God's creations make me want to SHOUT :) -- good thing the rocks aren't crying out.

3. Regular running grounds-- about 5 mornings a week I load P in the jogging stroller and we head out for a run.  I love not having to get in the car to drive to somewhere to run.
4. Close to our church- Capital Community Church
5. A space of our own to decorate :) My fall decor is a work in progress... but currently I have "Thanks" on the mantel and a "T" pumpkin. (recently added but no picture-- a beautiful Mum that Wes brought home for me.)

6. Huge covered porch on the back.  We don't have porch furniture yet... but oh I look forward to sitting out there with a cup of coffee and my Bible.

7. My office/P's play room :)  Everybody says "what do you need an office for?"  I guess nothing super important expect-- Bible study, paying bills, meal planning, blogging, reflecting, reading... it is a well used space!!

8. A ministry opportunity with neighbors.  I am excited about building a relationship with my downstairs neighbor (a mom with two kiddos)

9. Nice kitchen for all that cooking I love to do... overlooking the dining and living room.

10. A wood burning fire place (haven't used it yet... but oh I look forward to it :)

Books

Don't you hate it when a good book/author goes bad?
I do!!  I have been reading these mystery/thriller books by Vince Flynn and really enjoyed book 1 and 2 of his Mitch Rapp series... but then book 3 starts to get too political... making historical good guys (Ronald Reagan) bad and bashing parties... come on!!!  I am not a huge political girl-- in the fact that I don't like to talk about politics (most people just argue their own point)
I am torn between overlooking it and chucking it up to his own personal beliefs and tossing the book in the recycle.

So blessed

Have you ever felt... 

So blessed that the words "thank you" don't feel appropriate ... like it doesn't quite express what your heart feels?

Our church has blessed us beyond measure!!  They are hosting a "pounding" for us.  Nope-- they aren't beating us to a pulp literally but rather they are pounding us with blessings.  Actually a "pounding" is stocking cabinets with foods and such.  It isn't easy moving back and having to repurchase everything ( I mean EVERYTHING) Here is some of the items we have received...

And - Renee (CCC's amazing Pastor's wife) came over for tea last week and noticed we only had two mugs-- a CCA mug and a Christmas mug.  She came back the next day and blessed me with 8 new coffee mugs and a set of ice tea glasses.  WOW... 

Like I said-- the words "thank you" feel lame compared to the amount of blessing we feel.

Fall

I adore fall!!  I love the temperature change, football, leave colors changing, the fall smell in the air, the State Fair, Pumpkins, lattes... literally the list could go on and on.

Wes, P and I had a fabulous weekend-- get this -- relaxing :)  Saturday we went for a walk around the Art Museum trails and Sunday we enjoyed church with friends at Capital Community and a lazy day around the house.

Here are some of my fall favorites in picture format :)

This beautiful tree is just outside our new home.  So beautiful... although it didn't last long-- I'm glad I got a picture because most of the leaves are now scattered among the pavement.

 Here is my little Wolfpack cutie!!  Cheering us onto victory against FSU :) Woot Woot!!

 And just a delightful treat-- homemade Pumpkin Spice latte and pumpkin bread.  I simply adore pinterest... although I do have to confess-- I don't go searching for my own "pins"  I simply repin what everybody else has already pinned :)  Thank you "hard searchers" for all those WONDERFUL pins!!  Recently, I have been cooking dinners from my pins and trying some of my crafty skills.  This pumpkin spice latte was a success.  (If you check out my boards-- another one that was FABULOUS - Baked Pasta with Spinach and Sausage.  I made some small changes like- chicken sausage instead of the fatty stuff and cottage cheese instead of ricotta-- but I would HIGHLY recommend this dish.  

Cousins

And BFF :)

Go Wolfpack

Me and P say "go Pack" :)

Our dinner after the race

Pizza. Wings. Ranch. The veggies were for looks only :)

Saturday

On Saturday morning my running bud-Nicole, Wes and I ran a 5k up a mountain (well it felt that way :)
It was in the ADORABLE town of Oxford and supported the hospital. We had a great time. It was harder than I was anticipating because of the hills.
This was a practice run- our real race is at the end of October. I feel like I have a lot of work to do in prep but we are getting there :)

The Attack

If you read my Facebook status you know that I was on the brink of my second trip to the laundry mat this morning. Thanks to my great neighbors, I didn't have to go all the way to the mat ... just across the lawn :)
Wes had an unfortunate incident with a cup of coffee and a sharpie marker (permanent) - two different pairs of pants in desperate need of my services. The coffee - no problem. The sharpie - another story.
I did my research and headed to Walmart. I bought a cheap travel size hair spray, Oxy Clean and Shout gel stain remover and headed to battle. I forgot to take a picture of the before- but it was bad. First, the hairspray and Dawn- Saturate with hairspray then add a little Dawn and scrub with toothbrush... rinse and repeat. Once this is finished- follow with Oxy Clean, rinse and repeat. Finally follow with Shout gel stain remover and put in wash. I am very happy with the results. There are two little black dots that you may not even notice.

I would say I won this war :)

Confessions of an Anxious Heart

I have decided to participate in a ladies Bible study at my church that meets on Tuesday mornings. Yesterday was our first day. As I sat there waiting for things to start- I was reminded of the first day of school. So many people you don't know, so many anxieties- will I make any friends, do I have anything in teeth, what of nobody "likes" me... Likely you remember all of these too. Why were they coming to mind after years and years of being out of school- I was feeling them all over again. The first day is always so awkward and I always feel like I don't quite fit in. Everybody seemed to know each other and have a "buddy."
Regardless- I have made a commitment to go and prepare to hear from the Lord. I know He is going to do amazing things through the study- why else would Satan be trying so hard to get me not to go back?

Running buddy

Some of you know that I am not a runner. I love swimming but running is not my thing :) but... one of my fiends asked of I wanted to train for a 5k with her. My response - sure :). I have always wanted to run a 5k. So we are in week 4. I am proud of our progress. I love the time to chat about mothering, life and the Word. If you don't have one- find a running buddy and train - it will be fun - I almost promise :)

I pinned it... I did it... Does it work ?

I really love pinterest.com :) you can learn a lot of cool thing, see a lot of cool projects and recipes and DIY everything :)
This morning I tried one of my pins
- getting white toenails
You put a mixture of baking soda and peroxide on your nails for 5 mins then rinse off
I put a picture of my toes with the paste sitting- I even left it on longer for good measure.
Did it work??
NO- there is no "after" picture because I don't want to post an ugly picture of my feet but my nails look exactly the same as before I put the paste on
This is a project I think you can skip :)

Next book off the nightstand and in my hands...

Bring up Boys
Already in love with this book. I have already laughed out loud and said "oh boy!!" love the quote I highlighted - keep them alive :) can I get an Amen from other moms of boys!!

12 month visit

4 immunizations, toe prick, blood drawn from arm and one TB test ... a 12 month visit for little man after living in China = tears, Tylenol and lots of loving from Mommy!! But after it all he still had some goofiness :)

He is doing great in height, weight and growth.
Words he can say - mama, dada, bear bear and no no :)
I asked the doctor "is there anything I can do to help him have some 'still' time ... I mean he is go go all the time"
Much to my delight she said "nope - he's a boy. It's normal."

Love him more and more. So thankful for his energy, smiles and pure silliness :)

Brisk morning

Love love love the fall weather this morning!!
We left all of our cool weather clothes in China mostly because they were stretched and "China-fide"
So I'm keeping warm this morning with a cup of Good Earth :)

Ready for Fall

About this time of year I start longing for fall- cooler weather, leaves changing colors, pumpkins, the State Fair etc... The list literally could go on and on!
This morning, I am enhancing my longing by burning a "sugar pumpkin" candle and drinking a homemade vanilla cinnamon latte (really its just coffee with vanilla creamer and cinnamon sprinkled on top but I am using my imagination ;)

What is your favorite part of fall?

Newest Thomas

Meet Barker :)
We don't want a real live puppy but we LOVE this stuffed one that we made for P at Build a Bear. We let him pick out his own animal. It was immediate fascination between this little chocolate lab and P. He grabbed it and bit the nose (we knew he was a winner)
Inside Barker's stuffed body is two little hearts- one from Wes and one from me - we both "wished" (rather prayed) separately. Later I asked Wes what he "wished" for ... it was the same as me- that little Parker to have a heart that serves the Lord :)
Welcome Barker!!

Family night Friday

Tonight we had the honor of eating dinner with our good friends - the Walters. It was so much fun to catch up, see how big the kids are and watch them play after dinner! P was right in the mix of playing- trying to keep up with the big kiddos :)

Book worm

Does your nightstand look like mine? I went down to my crate of books yesterday (yes I am in serious need of a bookshelf) and picked out a handful ... or two handfuls of books to read. Notice all the nonfiction :)
First up - Elizabeth George's "Beautiful in God's Eyes"

What's on the menu this week?

I'll let you know if they are good - you let me know if you want recipes :)

Book reading

I haven't forgotten about my goals for the year... I just have been great about monthly update. Coming home did throw me a curve ball for time. ie my reading time practically amounted to nothing for the month of June- but I am just going to press forward and continue to read. By the end of the year - my goal is 12 nonfiction 12 fiction. (it's getting harder and harder with to read with a one year old... my time is now early morning or after bed time for the little man)
This is a book I just finished reading did a nonfiction count -
Holiness by Nancy Leigh DeMoss
It is very challenging thought provoking (life changing- if you allow it)

I am posting this from my phone and I haven't figured out the blog app completely ... so all the picture appear at the end of the post... But one displays the front cover and the other a verse that was meaningful to me.

Overall review-
I highly recommend this book. It will draw you closer to the Lord and guide you to a more holy life. Prepare your heart to be challenged :)

Fun little One

Little facts about our little guy
1. When we go out, his goal is to gets others attention and get them to smile.
2. Everyone comments on his "beautiful" eyes
3. He will eat anything for a Cheerio
4. Cuddling is not his thing until bedtime
5. Makes me give bear bear a night night kiss too
6. Loves loves loves books
7. The wind and birds fascinate him
8. Likes our neighbors dog Bella. The feeling is not mutual :) bella will come only do close (sometimes a kiss on P's ear before she is off )
9. He gives great kisses
10. He can turn this tongue in crazy ways- I think he will be able to touch his tongue to his nose :)

Where have I been??

Well... life is life right... the days pass slow... years fly by :)
Of course as you know we are back in America.  We have bought one car, rent an apartment and best of all... Wes has a great job!!  He got a job working for Coca-Cola Consolidated!!  He is an Account Developer and we are SUPER excited about this long-term career opportunity!

I haven't forgotten about the blog... in fact- daily I think "I must do a blog post"  but our internet only works from the porch outside... and I probably have a ton of other excuses I could come up with... but really I just haven't been disciplined.

I am trying to decide
If I should keep writing the blog.
Should I make a new blog address since we are no longer on an "Adventure in China"

What should I blog about? - Mothering, Staying at home, Daily life, books ...

What is your input?

Music at the Factory

Friday night we went to the Factory for live music and some family time :) the group was a rising country band... They were pretty good- I think there big hit will be "country side"
Here are some pictures of us :)