D-Day

D-Day: The day one receives the express writen authority to DRIVE.



Yes. It is true. Tiffani now has her driving permit. After giving the usual fair warning to everyone we know locally that the sidewalks are no longer safe, we made our way to the DPS and successfully brought home that little slip of paper that makes her driving legal.

It was indeed an exciting day. After a few sudden stops at intersections, a few rolling stops, practice with the turn signals (engaged after making the stop before turning) and a scary experience that we won't discuss but involved a fire hydrant between 2 brick mailboxes, I declared Tiffani to be a good driving student!

Next time we are going to actually venture out of our neighborhood.

Mother/Daughter Date

What a joy it was today to connect with my oldest daughter/clone Tiffani. (People claim that we look just alike. I don't see the resemblance, but so many people say it, I have come to believe them.)

After Sunday School, Tiffani chose a Thai restaurant in Plano. We ordered Pad Thai and Tamarind something or other. It was all very good, and WE ATE IT ALL! Then we spent the afternoon shopping before it was time to head back for ensemble practice and then church. It was a great Girls Day Out!

Teen Saturday

Our Saturday morning started out verrrrryyyyy slooooowwwww, just like all Saturdays should. You know, no scurrying around to get to school. Just nice and easy. We managed to make and eat our traditional banana pancakes by 11:00, and then headed out to the DPS to get Tiffani's driving permit. How disappointing to get there only to find out that they don't have Saturday hours. We decided at that point to go shopping at Old Navy to soften the blow.

On the way home we took a poll for lunch. We decided on sushi at home. Lex got a crash course in rolling his own, and now he claims that he will be hitting his mom up to buy the paraphanalia to do it at his house.

I took them all to Bro. Dyral's house later that evening for a youth party, and then headed out to Firewheel for some shopping of my own. Jeremi is going home with Lex, so it will be just us two girls getting ready for church in the morning.

Teen Week

Well, we have just returned from the airport after dropping of Craig and our youngest, Bethani. They are headed for California to spend a week with Grammy and Grandpa. They are quite excited. They have many fun things planned.

So do we.

I have dubbed this week "Teen Week" I am left with our two oldest, and we are going to make the most of it. Already, we have taken on one more teen: Lex. On our way home, we picked him up to have a sleep over with Jeremi.

I will keep you updated as to the happenings around here.

The Altar Call

I would venture to say that there are few things that grab at a mother's heart than to see two of her offspring genuinely loving and helping each other in need.

This picture was taken last Sunday at our church. We were having a great service when one of the young people went up to the front to pray with her brother. Then two sisters walked forward hand in hand to pray with each other. The next thing we knew, the altar was filled with young people praying for each other. I motioned to Tiffani that Jeremi was praying, and immediately she came to pray with him. Within a few minutes, both of them were crying and pouring their heart out to God. Sis. Kathy, the principal of the Christian school came down, took Jeremi's hand, and led him and Tiffani to the front of the church--right in front of the pulpit. He continued praying fervently, speaking fluently in that Heavenly language for a very long time. When Bethani spied what was going on, she made a beeline for her siblings, and joined in the combined effort. Together, they were a picture of unity. Bro. Murell said to Craig and I (who were standing a comfortable distance nearby) "You must be one proud daddy!"

Now, before you get any lofty 'Little House on the Prairie' ideas, let me assure you that they are normal siblings, complete with rivalry. That particular day had been an especially rough one around our house. It can be rough getting through adolescence. When I told one of my friends that Jeremi was definitely 12, she responded, "And he is good at it?" Well said.

Wow, God knows just when to show up. This was exactly what our home needed, and I thank God for stepping in and helping us along the way. Things have been better since then. I know there are more rough roads ahead, but the same God who has seen us through to this point will be the same God who sees us all the way to the end. I know that God has a very special plan for Jeremi. His sweet, sensitive personality just lends itself to ministry. I can't wait to see what God molds him to be.