Brandon and Brittany's Wedding

Yesterday, my family and I went to the wedding of Brandon Lewis and Brittany Loftis!It was at "The Loom at Cotton Mill Place." It was beautiful! The place itself is pretty and the colors and decorations they used were beautiful!
Brandon and Shane have been best friends since childhood. I remember Brandon back when Shane and I were going to Busy Bee nursery. So Brandon has been apart of our lives for a long time. He is an awesome guy and has been such a good friend to Shane! We were thrilled to be there for his special day!
And Brittany is a sweetheart! She is as pretty on the inside as she is on the out. They are a sweet couple!

The Happy Couple

My Dad and Judy hanging out as we wait for the reception.

Me and my handsome hubby!

My Mom and me, getting ready to go get some grub. Brandon is a chef and prepared most of the food for the reception himself. And it was delicious!

Josh, Shane and my Dad

Shane and "my mom"

Congratulations Brandon and Brittany! We are so happy for you. May God pour our His richest blessings upon you as you begin your new life together!

We Love You!

~"And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love." 1 Corinthians 13:13~

Cherokee Cove 2011

Friday Oct. 21st through Sunday Oct. 23rd, our College and Career Sunday School Class took our 2nd annual trip to Cherokee Cove. Cherokee Cove is a family camp, conference and retreat center that is nestled in mountains of Tennessee. It is absolutely beautiful, quite breathtaking actually. And the weekend we went was right smack in the middle of fall, so the colors just added to the beauty.This picture doesn't really do it justice, but you get the idea! Last year, we went for a weekend getaway and retreat. This year was quite different. We went to volunteer at their camp. Our mission since taking over the C&C has been to get our class out into the community and serve Him by serving others! So we left on Friday evening, stopped by our favorite little eating place in Rutherfordton, Gregory's, and arrived at Cherokee Cove around 11pm. We got settled in our cold, but comfy bunk houses, had a small devo and then called it a night.
We woke up Saturday morning prepared to work. Paula and Anna got up before the rest of us to help prepare and serve breakfast to the other retreats going on that weekend. The rest of us had our morning devo time and then headed down to have our breakfast in the camping pavilion by the fire. It was quite cold, but the breakfast was yummy!
After breakfast, the guys and girls separated and got our jobs for the day! Here was Paula, Brooklyn and Stu working in the kitchen. The girls had to take down all of the tents in the campground and package them up. Then we had to load up the wood that the guys chopped so that Stu could later deliver it to some shut-ins. We then loaded and unloaded some stone for the camp.
Unfortunately, I wasn't able to snap any pics of the guys actually working, but I assure you they did. They had to chop wood, remove shrubbery and load, then unload sheet metal (to build a shed in the future).

After all of that we were exhausted, so we had a little down time to rest and nap before supper! We had an amazing supper filled with salmon and pork roast, just to name a few (Stu is an amazing chef). After supper, Paula and Robbie had a bible study for the class. After our bible study time, we had a little fun with the class and played some minute to win it. (as you can see from the pic above-Josh is playing the famous junk in the trunk game)

Brittney playing the chocolate unicorn...

And I couldn't not post about Katie and Tanna's little friend they ran across. They found this "little" guy while taking down the tents. He was quite scary.

We had an wonderful trip serving and worshiping the Lord! Thanks to Cherokee Cove for another amazing weekend! We will see you next year!!

~"Be still and know that I am God." Psalm 16:10

Dad's Home

My Dad is HOME! He came home this past Wed. 10/12. His double knee replacement was on Tues. 9/27, so he was in the hospital for 2 weeks. I know there is nothing like being at home, in your own bed, and he was so glad to get there. It has been a tough 2 weeks for him, but he is doing great. He will still have to go to therapy a couple of times per week for a while and do some at home therapy. But he is well on his way to recovery! He is up and about using a walker and can stand unassisted too. He is going to be as good as new soon. The picture above was while he was still in rehab. Josh and I took him for a little stroll and he was trying to pop wheelie's. :) We are proud of the progress you have made Dad. Keep up the good work and keep pressing on! We are praying for you and your continued healing! We love you!!
~"If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer." Matthew 21:22

Farewell Preacher Bill

Sunday October 2nd, our church had a Farewell Luncheon for Preacher Bill. To say that Preacher Bill is an amazing man of God is an understatement. He is truly like no other. The Lord shines through him in all the he does and says! He shows the love of Christ to all that he meets. What an example he sets, because whether he is at the waffle house, or stopping at a gas station, he is spreading God's word. Josh and I have only been apart of Tucapau Baptist Church for about 2 years, and oh what a blessing it is. And what an impact Preacher Bill has had on us in such a short time!

Precher Bill walking out to get his...... NEW CAR!!! You deserve it!!

(Our College and Career Class with the Preacher)

We had an amazing service honoring our pastor and ended it with some yummy food!

Preacher Bill, we are going to miss you so much. Thank you for answering God's calling on your life, and for being obedient to Him. You have blessed so many, and I know you are going to continue to be a blessing. Praying the Lord blesses you in return for all the hope you've given, all the wisdom you've shared, and all the love you've shown His people! We know the Lord is looking down on you, smiling, and saying "Well done, good and faithful servant."

WE LOVE YOU and will continue to pray for you as you seek to serve Him!

TBC is looking forward to what God has in store for us. Welcome Pastor Eric Nixon and Family!

~"I will give you shepherds after My own heart, who will lead you with knowledge and understanding." Jeremiah 3:15 NIV

Walk to Remember

I work in Labor in Delivery, and I love my job and what I do. I get to be apart of one of the most special times in people's lives, the birth of their child. And while it is mostly a joyous occasion, sometimes it's not. Sometimes, complications arise or babies don't develop correctly or sometimes, we don't know why, but babies pass away. And though I've never experienced a loss of my own, I have grieved over many precious little ones. As a nurse, we create such a bond with our patients and families, so when things like this happen, our hearts hurt too. I've cried, prayed and grieved for so many of these families.

October is National Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness month. And this past Sunday, we had our Walk to Remember. We have this every year honoring and remembering all the precious little Angel Babies!
God provided us with a beautiful day and we had an amazing turnout. It was such a special time.

The families write their baby's name on a sign and we place them all around so they pass it while they are walking.

My dear friend Terri, her husband Tyler, and their family came out to walk in memory of their precious Baby White. It was so good to see her and share this special time with them. Praying for you my sweet friend!

Everyone walking

At the end of the ceremony, we have a balloon release. The families write a message to their little one and tie it to the end of the balloon.

It was beautiful

I snapped this picture as the balloons continued to fly away, and it gave me chills. The way the sun was shining down was incredible. It was like the Lord was reminding everyone not worry because He had their precious one wrapped up in His arms and that His plans are bigger than we could ever imagine!

"Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us" Ephesians 3:20

Terri and Tyler

This is the Fowler Family: Anna, Joseph and little Davis. Josh and I went to highschool with Anna. She and her husband spoke at the ceremony. They have an amazing story and give hope to many other families that have gone through the same thing. They were Remembering their sweet Ellison (hope I spelled that right Anna)

Paige and Trey, another one of the sweet families at the Walk.

I thought this tree was absolutely beautiful, so I had to grab a pic.

Cassie, Manya, Cheryl, Me, Debbie, Luanne, Sherry

All of the workers that helped to make this Walk happen, particularly Debbie, who did a great job directing and organizing everything!

We also have an Open Arms Support group. We meet the third Thursday of every month at 7:15pm on the 4th floor of the hospital. Email me if you would like more details: brandiern@charter.net

"Little Footprints"

How very softly

you tiptoed into my world.

Almost silently,

only a moment you stayed.

But what an imprint

your footsteps have left

upon my heart.

~Dorothy Ferguson

~"...God has said, "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you." Hebrews 13:5

Dinner and a Movie

Last weekend we went out to celebrate my father-in-law's birthday! We headed to Red Lobster for supper. The food was yummy and the fellowship was even better. They even came out and sang Happy Birthday to Wick! Haha...I thought this pic was funny! I rarely have my mouth open for pictures..so not too sure what happened here. We couldn't get Gracie to open her eyes for the pics...and we tried multiple times as you'll see below :)
But she's still as cute as ever...even with her eyes closed!!

Wick and Patti, just after finishing up a great meal. Happy Birthday Wick...we love YOU!

Missy and Josh...they always take such great pics together! After we ate, Missy, Josh, Gracie and myself, went to see "The Lion King" in 3D. It was a lot of fun, although after this movie, I'm not a big fan of 3D.

Gracie and Me in our cool shades, right before the movie started. She loved the movie. And it brought back good memories for the rest of us. I can't wait to buy it when it comes out on DVD, and add to our Disney collection! And would love to see it on broadway when it comes next year..hint hint :) (We saw it on broadway in NY about 10yrs ago and it was amazing) "Hakuna Matata!"

"A cheerful heart doeth good like medicine.." Proverbs 17:22

It's Bunko Time

Guess what time it is....that's right. It's Bunko time. But not just regular Bunko, it's Couples Bunko! I'm part of a group of ladies from my church-12 to be exact-that get together once a month and play a game called Bunko. (side note: Bunko is not a church related function :)

Bunko is a dice rolling, fast paced, sometimes loud, kind of game. And I love it! It was my turn to host it this month. And it happened to be the once a year we do couples. You bring your spouse or a friend and we have twice the people, twice the food and twice the fun!!

This was my partner for the night. We had someone from the group that couldn't come so Steven and Kristen said they would play with us. Steven was Josh's partner (and they won, might I add) and Kristen was mine!

Steven practicing up

The ladies waiting for the food

The GrillMaster preparing our lovely steaks and chicken

Some of the men hanging out by the grill

April and Tanna

Katie getting ready to get her grub on!

Waiting for the games to begin!

Our table snacks while we play.

Table #1: Dexter & Tammy, Kristen and Me

Table #2: Eddie & Pam, Josh & Steven

Table #3: Crystal & Hannah, Craig & Jeana

Table #4: Kim & Ashley, Bambi & Jennifer

Table #5: Brandon & April, Booklyn & Rebecca

Table #6: Cindy & Katie B., Tanna & Katie G.

We had a lot of fun and and great fellowship!! Can't wait for next year!

~"A cheerful heart is good medicine...." Proverbs 17:22~