weekend update, wedding edition

Good morning!  It was heavenly being at home and sleeping in my own bed last night.  I was so glad to see my people.  They came to the airport and picked me up, and my heart skipped a beat as I saw them.  I had a great time in Colorado, but it is always so sweet to be home.

There's no place quite like it.

This post will be full of pictures.  Consider that your warning.

On Wednesday afternoon, after a yummy lunch that I made for my family, I packed and was ready by three.  My step-dad came to pick me up at four thirty and we went to grab a bite to eat at Chick Fil A.  We knew we would be hungry if we didn't eat first.  Then we headed to the airport.

My excited face.  Though, truthfully, it was more of my terrified face.  I hate flying.  I have anxiety over flying and could probably use a nerve pill of some sort.  We ended up changing seats after I took this.  The flight wasn't full at all, so my sister that you see in the background and I moved to the row behind where I originally sat and spaced out a little.  We landed at around eight thirty, Memphis time.  It was so good seeing everyone!  My sister Debi was the first one to greet us as we walked to the baggage claim area, then we saw my niece Erika and then my other sister Lisa and my nephew Jaret.  Erika cried when she hugged all of us.  I think things got real at that moment, hence the emotion.  After we got our bags, we all went to Erika's house for pizza.

We got back to Debi's kinda late, so we went to bed soon after arriving.  My niece Nicole was so gracious in giving Trish and I her room.  Mom and Bill were on the other side of our jack-and-jill bathroom in the guest room downstairs.  In Colorado, the main floor is the upstairs.  I wish I could say that I slept great that first night, but that would be a lie.  It wasn't anything but me~Nicole's bed is so comfy.

The next morning, Thursday, I enjoyed my quiet time on Debi's back porch.  The view from that spot is amazing.  Practically right at their backyard is a field with a barn and horse stable in the background.  That is where Nicole takes riding lessons and works.  Every morning, I would see deer, rabbits and birds.  Also from her porch, you can see Pike's Peak.

We got dressed and were ready to go by ten.  Erika was having a bridesmaids luncheon at noon, at a beautiful Italian restaurant called Maggiano's.  I sat by Nicole.  Isn't she pretty?  She found out while we were there that she was nominated for the homecoming court!

My mom and my sisters and me outside the restaurant.

Below is Erika and her best friend and maid of honor, Morgan.  These girls are precious.  The first time I got to know Morgan was on a trip to the beach when Graham was four and Drew was three.  She won my heart then and my boys won hers.  And now, she is a wife and mommy to a precious son.

They're so beautiful!  We went back to Debi's house after lunch and rested for a bit before the rehearsal and dinner that night.  Debi and Mike live in Parker, Colorado, about forty minutes outside of Denver.  Erika got married near downtown Denver, so it took us a little over an hour to get there because of traffic.

The venue was called Baldoria on the Water, and while it looks like it's in the middle of nowhere, it's in a bustling area.  It was beautiful, though, and the inside looked like a winery.  The wedding and reception were here, with the wedding outdoors and the reception indoors.

Sweet KK and me.  She is stunning and it seems like she should still be five.  She was so sentimental in the moments leading up to her wedding, and every time her eyes filled with tears, my eyes filled with tears.  I absolutely adore her.

The rehearsal dinner was at a hotel across the street, in the restaurant in the downstairs area.  The food was good and the company was fun.  I might have embarrassed Erika a tiny bit as I relived some of my favorite memories with her in them, but she didn't seem to mind too much.  After the dinner, we got home late and all pretty much went straight to bed.

The next morning we got up early and got dressed so we could drive into the city to help my sister decorate for the reception.  It was a bit chaotic and it was a very long day, but everything went off without a hitch, and it was one of the most beautiful weddings I have ever been to.  My brother in law, Mike, married them.

We're seesters!  This was us right before we sang "Goin' to the Chapel" to Erika before she walked down the aisle.  She cried, then I cried.  #storyofmylife

She was such a gorgeous bride.  They left for their honeymoon under a canopy of sparklers, driven away by a friend of Erika's in a Bentley.  My boys might have died a bit when I told them that.

We were exhausted when we got back to Debi's and we all slept late the next morning.  And by late, I mean eight thirty.  We went to Breckenridge for the day, after a long ride in the car that made me minimally ill.  The weather was perfect and the view was spectacular.  We stopped in a little town called Idaho Springs and ate a yummy lunch at a place called Beaux Jo's.  From Idaho Springs, we still had an hour long ride to Breckenridge.

We window shopped in some really cute little shops.  I bought Graham and Drew their favorite brand of tee shirt.  They say Breckenridge on them, and they're Comfort Colors brand.  They loved them.  Jonah and Noah each got a bag they'd been wanting from Cabella's.

I found my dream store in the heart of downtown Breckenridge.  It was an adorable little used bookstore that had mountains of books everywhere I looked.  I didn't go in, though that was a sacrifice on my part, because I had people waiting on me.  I could have gotten lost in there for hours.

Sigh.

And I didn't even know Patagonia had a shop.  Maybe that's naive of me, but I had no idea.  My boys would have loved seeing this store in person.  We also stopped in the Columbia store.  My nephews and step-dad all bought jackets.  I helped.  :)

Our last stop there was at the Starbucks.  We were all really tired and left for home.  Debi had a delicious lasagna made for us that was in her freezer, so she had Nicole heat it up in the oven for us while we drove home.  Debi is an amazing cook and hostess.  I have never felt so much at home at someone's house.  I loved staying there and I loved being with her so much.

Sunday morning we got up early again and got dressed for our day.  Everyone stayed home except for Debi, Mom and me.  We went to Castle Rock, which was about fifteen minutes away.  We shopped and had lunch that made us all sick and then we went back to Debi's.  Later that afternoon, Nicole had a riding lesson, so Mom, Bill and I went and watched.

She is so graceful on this horse.  We loved watching her in her element and she impressed me very much with her talent.  I was so proud of her in the moments watching her that I had tears in my eyes.  I love seeing my nieces, nephews and kids doing something they love so much.

Everyone from out of town came to Debi's that night for dinner, but I was seriously sick.  I went to bed early and even woke up yesterday still feeling horrible.  I was praying I would feel better by the time we had to board the plane and my friend Missy was praying as well.  It worked, because after lunch, I felt totally normal.  I was so thankful!  I cannot imagine flying sick.

After a very tearful goodbye, we went through security and the airport and boarded our plane home.

It was an amazing few days.  I am so thankful to God and to my step-dad for the opportunity that I was given to be able to go.  I hated leaving my family at home, but they were fine without me, though they did tell me repeatedly how much they missed me.  While I was gone, my car was fixed and a new puppy was added to our family.  Her name is Callie.  The jury is still out on how much I like her.  She's adorable and all, don't get me wrong, but she has made me miss Andy the Wonder Dog so much it hurts.  There will never be another dog on this earth that could replace him.  The boys, however, are enamored by her.  She really is cute, and so far, she has been a great puppy.

Well, you made it through the duration of this blog post!  Thanks for reading.  Love to all!

What's Up Wednesday

This week is flying by!  Probably because I'm leaving town today for five nights, and I feel like my clock is running out.  My giant to-do list has been my BFF all week.  One of the things on my to-do list was to pull out my fall and Halloween decorations.  I forgot about this last year and didn't pull any of it out.  And my mom gave me some really cute little people to decorate with when I was at her house on Saturday.

Aren't they adorable?  Now, I did manage to pull the stuff out of the attic, but then it just all got left on my dining room table.  So today I will finish putting them out.

I love decorating.  Because we are always at home, I love for my house to look cute.

For a while now, I've had the app Snap Chat.  My kids have it, so I have it.  But that's where it ends.  I haven't understood it, but I think I am finally coming around.  There was an update on the app, and last night I took a picture of myself that cracked me up, so I sent it out to some people.  Toddley got this app too, and yesterday, he and Jonah took a selfie.  Never mind that I always ask Jonah to do this with me and he never does.

They had to run to the bank and look at the goodies they got while there!  They made out big time.  And no, Jonah is not drinking beer, but it is root beer.  ;)

We all had dental appointments for teeth cleaning yesterday, but Jonah has had a sinus infection all week, so I let him stay home with Todd.  None of us had cavities!  I thought for sure that I did.  My heart did a little happy dance at those words.  And though I hate going to the dentist for anything, I do love our dentist so much!  His name is Floyd Garrett, and he's in Cordova.  Toddley has known him forever, and he is always so good to us.

At our church, once a month we have something called Impact.  It's a dinner that's free and it's a set time to reach out to those who have visited our Bible fellowship classes, either by letter, phone call or visit.  I always take that time to write letters to my girls.  I love encouraging them, and I love seeing a lot of our youth there.  Last night, they were singing show tunes very loudly.  Very loudly.

We were dying.  Not really.  Truth be told, I love these girls so much!  They can sing me anything they want and at any volume, and I would love them.  They are precious and wonderful, and I am so honored to be even a small part of their lives.  These are two of the Katie's.  There is a third.  She wasn't there.  I love when they text me, I love that they ask me for rides, I love that they always seem to be excited to be invited to my house for anything.  And I love that over fall break, we are taking them on a camping trip!  Should be fun.  Should be interesting.  Should be full of laughter.

When I came home last night, I cleaned in the kitchen and put some things away and did some laundry.  Then I sat down to make my to-do list for today and my packing list.  I am such a list maker, people.  I particularly love making lists with my fun pens.

I have a million things to do before leaving for Colorado tonight.  Did I mention why I'm going?  My beautiful niece Erika is getting married.  She has lived in Colorado for several years now, and has made a life for herself there.  I have so many memories with her in them as a little girl.  So many.  She was tiny and fierce and terrified of dogs.  She had the sweetest little voice in all of the world, and she had most people wrapped around her little finger.  She was always KK.  I think her brothers gave her the nickname.  I cannot believe that she is about to be a Mrs.

This was one of her engagement photos.  Isn't she beautiful?  She always has been.

Last on my list o' things of random is this picture.

I changed my Instagram username and info this morning, per the request of my bonus son, Alex.  I love this kid so much.  When he asks me to do something like this, how can I not?  He gets irritated when I refer to him as my son's friend.  He considers himself a part of our family, and we do too.  So, I am no longer all4boys.  I am now allfiveboys.  (all5boys was taken.)  My heart is full.

Well, my list isn't going to get finished on its own, so I had better run.  I won't update the blog again until Tuesday, most likely.

Love to all!

the weekend

We had an amazing weekend!  Part of the reason because of the amazing weather.  I love, love, love fall weather.  It's not officially here yet, and I know it'll get hot again but, for now, we are enjoying the cooler temperatures.

I took a screenshot of the weather on my phone, and this was around noon.  This is perfect camping weather.

On Friday, Graham filled out an application to be a summer missionary for Street Reach, the outreach and school that our church is involved in.  He's been praying about this for a while now, but it all started two years ago.  Next summer, he will finally be old enough to be considered, and it's a day he's been waiting for.  First he has to apply through Street Reach, then he will have to apply with the North American Mission Board (NAMB).  It's exciting times for him!  He would be gone all summer, from the end of May until the first part of August.  Gulp.

I'd asked my small group ladies at bible study to pray for Graham, as he prayed and considered going through with this application process.  I know that if this is what God's will is for Graham's life next summer, that He will open the doors for him to be accepted.  If not, then He will shut those doors.

We ate lunch with my mom on Friday afternoon.  We went to her house and hung out for a bit, then came back home.  We had an easy dinner that night, then we all ended up at a friend's house, where the boys had been tie-dying tee shirts for the next day.

On Saturday, we stayed home most of the day, then Graham and Drew left for the Relay For Life, here in The Ville.  They helped work the kid zone area and didn't get home until ten thirty.  While they were there, the rest of us went to my mom's house for dinner.  Afterward, the boys played outside and my step-dad and I sat on the backporch and talked.

We had friends with us.  Thankfully, all the grandparents are okay with them always having friends with them!

I had to be at church super early Sunday morning for choir, and missed out on Sunday school, but it was a wonderful morning.  After church, Graham went and picked up a bunch of tacos for us to just eat at home, and then all the boys went to the park across from the street from our neighborhood, to help set up for our church's annual picnic.  I love this time of fellowship that we have as a church family!  The weather was perfect, again, and the food was plentiful.

It was a really fun night.  To top it all off, we cheered on our teenage girls while they played a very competitive game of soccer.  Some of them played soccer, and some of them danced.

It was another beautiful night, and it's always fun being with friends.  I don't even want to think about how boring my life would be without these friends God has given me!  It was an amazing weekend, and we are ready to tackle this week.  We've got lots going on, but I'm ready for that, too.

Happy Monday to you and love to all.

Friday Favorites

Happy Friday!  I'm linking up with Momfessionals for this post.

Before I get started, this is a sad day in history.  I will never forget where I was on this day in history, when I watched the horror that was happening in New York City from my television screen.  I'm pretty sure I was getting ready to go to work at our church's mother's day out, and all I could do was sit and stare in awe at what was happening before my eyes.  I remember watching when the second plane hit the tower, and then a while later, as both towers fell.  I've spent time this morning, in prayer not only for those who lost loved ones on that day, but for the guys who are out there every single day protecting us~firefighters, policeman, our military.  I also prayed for our country and our government.

Moving on to a much lighter note, now.

It's been a week!  It seems like four day weeks usually are.  We didn't do any school on Monday, but we hit the books hard on Tuesday.  It was a day of math and tests.

Math is not Noah's favorite subject.  None of us love that subject, but he persevered and got it done for the day.  I shared the table with him while he worked.  This was my view.

Actually, that wasn't quite my view, but it was similar.  While they do school work, I do my bible study homework.  I also use that time to do laundry, straighten up and do light cleaning.  I don't vacuum, because it's a huge distraction.

On Wednesday it rained and rained and rained here.  When Todd got home that afternoon, I told him about finding water on our laundry room floor.  I assumed it was the washing machine again, that it had gotten off balance during a big load, but he actually found water on the walls and in the cabinets above the washer and dryer.  Turns out, we have a major leak in our roof.  And in the siding along the back of our house.  So after having the insurance adjuster and a contractor out here this morning, we learned that we'll be getting a new roof, some siding replaced and a laundry room re-do.  It will be an interesting few weeks.

I'm pretty sure that these next few weeks will not be among the list of Friday Favorites.

Lastly, this is my favorite picture and story of this week.

After completing their school work on Tuesday, Graham, Drew and Jonah went to work at Todd's shop.  While there, Jonah was in the bathroom, wiggling a pesky loose tooth that has been quite painful.  Underneath the hand dryer in the bathroom at the shop is a little mirror, and Jonah had bent down to try and see what he was doing.  When he bent down, his head triggered the blower to start, and he jumped, because it scared him.  When he bent back down to find the tooth again, he found blood and a hole where the tooth had been.  When he jumped, he accidentally yanked the tooth out and threw it across the room!

I laughed and laughed and laughed when he told me this story, because I can just picture it.

Well.  Happy Friday to you and love to all.

a list of random things

I love Wednesday!  Church and choir practice are among my list of things that I love.  Makes me somewhat sad that I waited so long to get back in choir, but I know that God's timing is perfect.  And, my public service announcement is this: consider going to Wednesday night church!  If you don't already, I mean.  I love this laid back night of church and most churches have Bible studies galore to choose from.  Jump in and get involved.  You will never regret it.

And so begins my list o' random things.

I love waking up really early.  This morning I woke up at 5:30, because Graham and Drew were supposed to leave at six to go help a friend's parents move some things out of their attic, but because of possible rain, they canceled.  So instead, they went and got breakfast at Chik Fil A.  I love getting up this early!  I can get so many things accomplished while the rest of the house sleeps.  I also have better quiet time this early in the morning.

The Today Show is a show that I used to love watching, but that is becoming less and less true.  Thanks to the day and time we live in, they push my buttons more and more.  I am tired of media making a big deal of what is wrong morally and leaving out what is most important spiritually.  I know it's just a sign of the times we live in, and it does not surprise me, but I that doesn't mean I have to like it and continue to watch.

Crash hogs the bed.  Somehow he ended up sleeping between Todd and me last night, and it disturbed most of my night of sleep.  #Grumpy

Or, perhaps I am grumpy because I can't seem to sleep anymore.  Every year, at least twice, I develop insomnia for a short while.  I think this is that time.  Or because of the Netflix.  Who knows.

I love finishing one journal and starting a new one.  This happened on Monday.  I am loving a turquoise one my sister bought me last year.  :)

I love the small group of ladies that I've been doing a Bible study with since July.  We have one last week of homework, and then we'll be starting a new one.  I finished that homework today, and as usual, I shed tears on the last page.  There is something so touching and emotional about finishing up a good Bible study.

It stormed here today.  Due to the statement above about Crash hogging the bed and my temporary (hopefully) insomnia, I took a delicious nap on my couch.  :)

I've been cooking our heavy snack/light dinner since 3:30 this afternoon.  It smells heavenly in my house right now, but more about what I made on tomorrow's blog post.

Well.  I have to finish getting dinner ready.  I hope your day has been great!

Love to all.

weekend recap/last official weekend of Summer

Happy Tuesday morning to you!  This long weekend was full of glorious moments.  We got ours started off with a bang, and on Friday morning, we went to my mom-in-love's house to swim one last time this year.  We had lunch, then went and swam in the neighborhood pool, which we had all to ourselves.  The boys got tired of swimming after about an hour and a half, and they all left us.  We proceeded to swim until almost 4:00!  This was my excited face.  Seriously, I love swimming, and could do so every single day of my life.

It was nice getting caught up with one another.  We hadn't seen them in a couple weeks, so we had lots to talk about.

That afternoon we came home and I showered while Graham and Drew went and got pizza.  Todd worked all weekend, at our state fair, and on Friday night after dinner, all the boys went to the local high school's football game.  I stayed home and painted all my nails, drank half a pot of coffee and binge watched Gilmore Girls.

The quiet was nice.  Because the next night was so not quiet.  After a day spent at home doing laundry and doing Bible study homework on Saturday, I made dinner for all these lovelies, and my friend Missy.

I made lasagna, Caesar salad, we had garlic bread and the girls brought dessert.  When I found out Todd was working all weekend, I thought it would be fun to have a girls night with our junior girls.  This is only about half of our class, but it was a fun night.  After dinner we watched Enchanted, pretty much the greatest movie ever, and we even watched the good scene twice.  (When he and she dance at the Kings and Queens ball.)

In fact, here are two of them watching that scene for the second time.

These two crack me up.  Notice them clenching hands.  So sweet!

Sunday was an awesome morning at church, and then there was nothing that night because of Labor Day.  Graham's community group went to dinner and a movie, but the rest of us stayed home.  I don't even remember what we did.  I know that Drew didn't feel that great.

Yesterday was spent doing more laundry, reading, watching television and seeing family.  I started a new book, and have high hopes for this one.  I've been stuck in a rut with reading lately.

Drew spent all day yesterday with his friend girl, Emma, and after an early dinner at my mom's, we left and came and picked them up, then went to see my dad.  We came here for a little bit after getting home from my dad's, then they made a Kroger run and took her home.

They came home because Graham needed to put some flowers in a vase, and he made a poster to ask his friend Nicole to her homecoming.  They have been friends since their kindergarten year, and they remain friends today.  He was waiting on her to get finished with babysitting, then he and Drew went over to her house so he could ask her.

The poster says, "If I promise not to drive my (picture of his Bronco), can I take you to Homecoming?"  She hates his Bronco, so he will be borrowing his Mimi's Avalon the night of homecoming.  :)  She said yes.

I am so proud of my boys!  They each live a life full of integrity, they love Jesus and honor Him by the way they live, and they are who they appear to be~meaning that they're the same whether they're at church, at home, or in public.  They are not girl crazy, though they do think girls are pretty, but their main priority is to be friends with them all.  Like with Graham and Nicole.  He asked her to homecoming as friends.  I always hesitate to brag on them, because I don't want to seem boastful, but every once in a while doesn't hurt.  I realize that my kids are the way they are because of God's hand upon their lives.  God is good.  He is faithful, and He hears our prayers for our kids.  I cannot brag on my kids without first bragging on my Jesus.

In reading His word this morning, I was reminded of some words that He keeps highlighting in my life right now.

Proverbs 3:5 and 6.  "Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding.  In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make straight your paths."

It seems so simple, but often, I get sidetracked.  Or off course, however you want to word it.  The enemy is crafty that way~he causes distractions or busyness or something else to divert our attention and before we know it, our eyes are off of Him.  Beware of the enemy!  He is smart and God's word calls him the prince of this world.  He is prowling the earth like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.  So many things in life that we view as problems or stress are his schemes.  Spiritual warfare.  One way to fight back with him is by praying on your spiritual armor~the helmet of salvation, the shield of faith, the sword of the Spirit, the breastplate of righteousness, the belt of truth and our feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.  (All that is found in Ephesians 6.)  I try to pray on that every single day so that I am protected from the evil one.

Might sound crazy, I know, but if you don't believe me, try it for yourself.  I know that it works.

Well, now that this has gone completely off course, I must get off here and get my second cup of coffee and get started on the laundry.  Thanks for reading.  Love to all.

Friday Favorites

I am linking up with Momfessionals for this post.

Happy, happy Friday!  And, happy three day weekend!  Two of my favorite things.  This has been a great week.  A busy week, but a great week.  It's been good, as far as school work goes, and the boys have all been productive.  I love it when this happens.  

On Monday, three of my boys went to Todd's shop to help him out for a bit, so Noah and I ended up alone.  I was watching The Pioneer Woman and was inspired to make cookies from scratch.  And Noah has been asking forever, and I thought I was out of flour, but I found some!  So he and I got busy and whipped up a batch of homemade chocolate chip cookies.  On the first pan that came out of the oven, I sprinkled sea salt on top of them.  Later that night when all the kids were somewhere else in the house, I enjoyed a plate of them while watching Gilmore Girls.

Don't they look yummy?  

Also on the list of favorites for this week is the show Gilmore Girls.  Where have I been, that I always seem to miss out on all these amazing shows?!  Oh, wait.  I've been raising a house full of boys.  Nevermind.  

Thank you, creators of Netflix.  And thank you, Todd, for the subscription to Netflix that we pretty much made you buy for us.  :)

This might be the reason I can't sleep at night.  

On Tuesday and Wednesday mornings, I sat and caught up on Bible study homework.  I am in two different Bible studies right now, and they're really different, but equally as wonderful.  My favorite way to study the Bible is Precept Upon Precept, that I do at Renewed Moms every Thursday.  We are currently studying First Peter.  

There are a lot of favorites in this picture.  The coffee mug, the Stabilo pens that I am about to need more of, the Bible study.  This picture is a lot of happy for me.  I love being a student of the word of God.  I am never done with learning, and verses that I have read so many times seem to jump out at me when I study His word intently.  If you ever get the chance to do a Precept Bible study, do it!  It is hard, and there are no fill in the blank answers, but I have never learned more.  I am blown away by God, and I love studying His word.

It's my favorite thing to do.

Last night, our Tuesday night Bible study group went out for dinner and a movie.  We are missing a few people in this photo, but this was us after we went and saw a movie.  These women are some of my favorites!

I thank God for them.  

Also on the list of favorites is this movie!

Last night was the second time I saw it.  It is amazing!  I am not a movie goer, but any time a Christian movie like this comes out, I try to go and support it.  If you have the opportunity and haven't seen this yet, go see it this weekend.  It's worth it!  Just don't forget your tissue.  I cried every bit as hard in this the second time, as I did the first time.  This movie will challenge you in your prayer life.  I promise.  GO!

While I was out with my girlfriends last night, this happened.

He asked to take her to her homecoming!  Since he's homeschooled, the plan was that she was going to ask him, but this girl has had a horrible week.  I told Drew that it's really always the guy's place to do the asking out, and when I reminded him of her horrible week, he was really excited to do this and to surprise her.  He came up with the poster and the saying all on his own.  In case you can't read it, it says, "I know I was a Dum Dum for asking you out over text, but I won't be a Dum Dum this time!  Can I take you to Homecoming?!"  

So, yes.  He asked her to be his girlfriend on text.  He is shy and he didn't know better, and he wasn't at home when it happened.  But can I just say that I am OVER kids being mean to him about this?  Several of his "friends" have been mean to him and she has had "friends" be mean to her about it, as well, talking badly about my Drew.  I am sick and tired of meanness and bullying.  Because that is all that they're doing.  I put the word friends in quotations, because friends are not mean to one another.  Friends are supposed to love and support and encourage and strengthen one another.  Unfortunately, these two are learning a really hard lesson at a really young age.  It will make them better people in the end, but I am just done.  So not only are these two going to homecoming together, but their friendship is growing more.  

It's no surprise that these two kiddos are a couple of my very favorites.  I am thankful for the fact that they each have a great family life.  Not only with their own families, but both of our families are friends as well.  

God has been faithful in answering my prayers for my kids to have good and Godly friends in their lives.  Not only have I prayed for that, I have also been praying for their future spouses since they were born.  I still am praying that, and my prayers for Godly friends is never ending.  They've gone through some rough patches with the friends in their lives, but they all know what it means to be a good friend, and they all know what a good friend looks like.  He is good to always give them at least ONE good friend, which is what I pray.  And sometimes, that one good friend is a guy and sometimes it's a girl.  

So that's my list of Friday Favorites.  I kinda went off subject for a bit, but I hope it encourages you and how you pray for your kids.  

I hope your weekend is wonderful!  Love to all.