For Your Reading Pleasure

Some random thoughts, mixed with tons of photos for your reading pleasure!

I finished reading through the entire "Hunger Games" series with my gals LeAnna and Kendra this week.  Wow.  One of the most thought-provoking and emotional series of books I have read in a looong time!  Wish you girls lived closer so we could have seen the movie together!

My darling Sweet Pea is staying with Hubby and me tonight.  I'm super excited!  She's such a precious little lady!  Her auntie and uncle enjoy her so much.

Here she is, with Hubby, aka Uncle A.  (Ignore all the yuckiness on the bib.  She's a messy eater!)

And, again.  Such a happy little Sweet Pea.

We are in love with this precious face, for sure.

And this cute face too...

My sweet niece, M

And we musn't forget these two darlings...

Lil Man & E

Why yes, that IS a rubber snake behind them on the church pew!  Boys are so much fun, aren't they?

And now, in other exciting news...

We set a date for vacation and I am making our reservations THIS WEEKEND!  I can hardly wait!  There is nothing more relaxing that the mountains of East Tennessee on a lazy June day.  And Hubby and I are so ready for some relaxation!

We actually went to the Smoky Mountains for our honeymoon and we are excited about going back this summer.

As a matter of fact, here we are on our honeymoon.

What a gorgeous view!  I love that man of mine.  Oh, wait, you thought I meant the mountain scenery, didn't you?  

Just kidding!

*smiles*

Another beautiful mountain scene...

Vacation countdown has begun!

And, in case you didn't know, the BIG GAME is tomorrow!  The University of Kentucky Wildcats meet the University of Louisville Cardinals in the Final Four for a spot in the NCAA Championship game.

For those of you who aren't from Kentucky, basketball is BIG.  This game is even BIGGER.  I am eagerly anticipating a big win for my Wildcats.  Go Big Blue!

Source: Card Chronicle

Y'all have a great weekend, friends!

Marriage Is Hard Work

Tonight, I feel almost compelled to write about marriage.  Being married just shy of two years, I hardly feel qualified to offer any insight into it at all.  But I'm going to anyway. 


*Smiles*


So, here goes...


Being married is hard work, folks.  Yep, that starry-eyed, mushy, married-life-is-the-best-thing-ever feeling...it's just not there every day.  Life happens, and those "just starting out" feelings fade.

Before we go on, let me insert here that I am madly in love with my husband.  God has blessed me so much by putting us together and I can not imagine my life without him.  


Do I love him more every day?  Most definitely.  


Do I feel absolutely giddy every day?  Nope.


Marriage takes work.  You have to adapt, grow, and mature as you go along.  You have to pray, trust and believe.  And you have to make a conscious effort to do this every.single.day.


Building a Godly marriage is not easy.  It takes commitment.  And grace.  A whole lot of grace.

It takes submission to your husband.  This is sometimes a hard one for me, as I am sure it is for some of you ladies.  But the Bible tells us to submit to our husbands.

Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord.  For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body. (Ephesians 5:22-23)

Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it. (Ephesians 5:25)

Wow...that kind of love sure makes it much easier to be submissive.  Praise the Lord for a husband who loves me as close as he can to the way that Christ loves the church.


Isn't it wonderful, the way that God designed marriage?  Each spouse gives to the other what the one lacks.  In this way, they complete each other and the two become united as one.

...For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife: and they twain shall be one flesh (Matthew 19:5)

God's design for marriage is perfect.  However, we have a sinful nature.  And sin separates us from God's perfect plan.  Because of this, being married takes a daily determination to give of yourself for the good of your husband.


God created man and woman for each other.  Marriage was planned for the good of man.

And the LORD God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him. (Genesis 2:18)

It's hard work.


It's a day-to-day intentional effort to be the wife that your husband deserves, to put his needs above your own, and to honor God in your marriage.


But it's rewarding.  A happy marriage is a true blessing.  And I am blessed.

Kristy Ketterman Photography

Thanks for listening, friends.  Much love to you all!

Thinking and Reflecting

Boy, oh boy, has it been HOT outside this past week!  Today is the official first day of spring but it feels more like the middle of July.

Hubby and I went for a nice little drive after church on Sunday, just enjoying the afternoon together.  Everything is so pretty this time of the year.  The trees and flowers are blooming so beautifully!  God has brought the earth to life one more time.  He is good.

And blessed be his glorious name for ever: and let the whole earth be filled with his glory; Amen, and Amen. (Psalm 72:19)

I started reading The Hunger Games series this week.  Wow!  I am surprised by how good the first book was.  I'm over halfway through the second book (Catching Fire) and it's just as good as the first book was.  Definitely a recommended read.  Hubby is even enjoying them, too!

:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:

:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:

And now, we must insert some photos because after all, what kind of blog post would this be without pictures?

*Smiles*

This photo is so serene.  When I look at it, I see just a small portion of how big God really is.

For every beast of the forest is mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills. (Psalm 50:10)

 

Cherry trees are in full bloom in the Bluegrass state.  Beautiful, aren't they?

The dogwood tree is one of my favorite trees.  This bloom is still green, but it's beautiful, just the same.  When I see it, I am always reminded of the story about the legend of the Dogwood tree.  If you've never read it, you can do so here.  The flower in the shape of a cross is a reminder of the sacrifice Christ made for us.

But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. (Romans 5:8)

And here's a picture of Hubby, just because I love him.  And because he's so cute!

Isn't God good, y'all?  He's blessed me so much more than I deserve.  I am so thankful that, even when I mess up, He still loves me and His grace is sufficient.

For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace. (Romans 6:14)

Happy Spring, my friends!

Spring Is In The Air

Spring has sprung!  It is a pleasant 70 degrees this morning and we're well on the way to a high of 80!  Wow, is it really March?  It feels more like May!


The warm weather and sunny skies have me pining for vacation!  I'm not a beach kinda gal at all, so this year, we are planning a trip to the beautiful Smoky Mountains.  I can.not.wait!!  It's just a few hours away and there is so much to do there.  Hubby and I love it!

~*~*~*~*~

~*~*~*~*~

I was glancing through some photos of our vacation to Lancaster, PA last summer...awesome place to visit, by the way...and I decided to share a few with you.

Enjoy!

Lancaster County in Pennsylvania is home to the world's oldest and largest Amish community.  This is a beautiful Amish farm:

Gorgeous, right?

Lancaster also has around 25 covered bridges.  They are charming!  Here's one for your viewing pleasure:

Hershey, PA is a short drive from Lancaster, so of course, we had to visit Hershey's Chocolate World.  We toured the chocolate factory and made our own Hershey bar!  

And, no visit to Pennsylvania would be complete without a stop at Gettysburg.  Of course, the area is rich with Civil War history...perfect for my history-buff Hubby.

Here we are at the Gettysburg National Park.  In the background is the area that would have been the battlefield.

And here are the remnants of a rock wall fort built by Civil War soldiers:

Hubby and I had an amazing time, but there's nothing like comin' home!

What about you guys?  Any vacation plans in the works?  

Have a blessed week, friends.

Please Read!

If you have watched television any at all over the past week, you know about the devastating tornadoes that struck our beloved Bluegrass state.

So many people lost loved ones, homes, jobs, and their sense of security and stability.  It is tragic and sad and my heart breaks for them.  I can't begin to imagine what they are going through.

As followers of Christ, we are commanded to love each other and to help in times of need.  Stephanie at A Blue-Eyed Boy Met a Brown-Eyed Girl is heading a relief effort to help a specific family who lost everything in the storm.  Please visit her blog and check it out!  She has also listed several other ways to donate to the relief efforts.

We don't always understand why things happen the way that they do.  We sometimes have to look hard to see God in the midst of a tragedy.  But He is there.  If you can't donate, please pray.  Those who are hurting need your prayers.

God bless you all, friends.

Tornadoes, Books & Nephews...Oh My!

This week brought along with it an education in meteorological lingo that does not typically equate with life in the Bluegrass state.

EF4.  Tornadic supercell.  Low-level jet stream.

Tor:Con.  Wall cloud.  Rare white zone.

And to make things even more ominous, Reed Timmer from The Discovery Channel's Storm Chasers was here.  So was Jim Cantore from The Weather Channel.  In Kentucky.  In early March.

Thankfully, we were spared from any tornadic weather here in Central Kentucky.  Our neighbors in Northeastern Kentucky were not as fortunate.

West Liberty, KY

West Liberty, KY

I'm beginning to feel like a resident of a Plains state, displaced in the hills of Kentucky.  This weather is just not typical for the Mid-Eastern United States in March.  Our storm season usually starts around the middle of April and is over by late May or early June.

If this is a precursor to the spring storm season, it's shaping up to be a doozy!

I was finally able to start reading The Vow on Saturday.  And I finished it this afternoon!  Wow!  What a story of love, faith, courage and inspiration!

I definitely recommend it.  I can't wait to see the movie!  I just hope that I'm not sorely disappointed.  Very rarely does a movie turn out to be as good as the book.  We shall see!

Hubby and I also did some flea market and thrift store shopping on Saturday.  Fun!  During our little excursion, I happened upon this book for $2.00!

I have heard great things about this book and I'm excited to read it.  Have any of you read it?  What'd you think?

And, because no blog post would be complete without a kid picture, here's one for your viewing pleasure!

My youngest nephew, E

Peace y'all.