Free Christmas Cards!!

Hey Bloggers!!

This is a great opportunity to get some free Christmas/Holiday Cards from Shutterfly!

Shutterfly has some incredible products for Christmas and I can't wait to order our Christmas cards this year! :)

Click here for more info about shutterfly's holiday card collection and happy shopping!!


Here are some of my favorites...maybe you'll see one in your mailbox soon :)

Mom's Story...she's a serious champ!

Well, I promised I'd write about mom's story so here it goes...(it's going to be lengthy!)

Well, first off, let me just say that mom doesn't like to write! So, when she had committed to give her testimony during the month of November at their Sunday School class monthly fellowship dinner, all the way back in May, she started thinking of what to write around that time! Fast forward to last weekend. Cody and I had a quick trip (less than 48 hours!) to Ohio for a wedding and I was just getting over bronchitis.

Mom and I had talked about her testimony earlier that week and I was so excited with her story and how she was sharing it! Well, we tried to connect on a few occasions during Thursday, Friday and Saturday, but with both of our schedules, it was hard to get to talk. But, email was our best friend and we talked more and more via the web. She emailed me a final copy and it was amazing! It was so cool to read my parents story and see how God had, had such an evident hand in their lives and the working of our little family. But, it seemed that Satan was really attacking my mom. She was just going through a hard time and it was pretty evident that it was major spiritual warfare!

Ok, so last Saturday, mom and dad were having dinner with friends and had a great evening. Simultaneously, Cody and I were driving back to Virginia from Ohio after Cody sang at the wedding reception (side note: Congrats Chad & Heidi!!) Mom wanted us to text her when we got in, so around 12:30 I sent her a text that we were home. Around 1:15 she woke up and saw the text, but she also had a horrible stomach ache! She thought it was probably food poisoning or something like that. She tried to go back to sleep, but was in and out of a deep sleep. I woke up around 6am and called her to talk about her testimony. She mentioned she wasn't feeling well, but she thought it was something she ate last night, but strangely dad was feeling fine and they had the same thing to eat! We kinda blew it off and got to work on the final details of her testimony. (Side note: her Sunday School class dinners are at a family's house and this month, it was at my parents!)

Her and I talked more about her testimony and the poor thing kept saying how bad her stomach hurt! I said it might be spiritual warfare and it would probably go away after she spoke, or maybe it's nerves! She wasn't sure, but thought it'd go away as the day went on. Her and dad went to Sunday School that morning and the pain got worse. She went home afterward and laid down. She had some crackers and ginger ale, but that' didn't help too much. Since everyone was coming over she also had some cooking and cleaning to do, so she was busy do that, as well. This stomach ache was not going to get in the way of Traci Lee! :)

Well, dinner was at 6:00 and she said she'd be speaking around 7:30, I called her around 5:45 and she sounded horrible! She said "the pain had gotten worse, but [she] was determined to give her testimony!" My mom is seriously a champ! I got off the phone and started praying for her. praying that God would either heal her completely or take away the pain just for the few minutes she was speaking. At 7:30, she gave her testimony and she had no pain. She said she was calm and not nervous at all!

Well, after that, she went in her room and laid down. The pain was back and with a vengeance! Around this time, everyone was leaving and I was texting her symptoms of either appendicitis or kidney stones (that's what we'd narrowed it down to!) Thankfully, God placed friends in my families lives that are doctors (gastronurologit, to be exact) and she got in touch with him. Dr. Bays told my mom to go straight to the ER and he would meet them there. She met Dr. Bays and the Nash's (friends of my parents) at the hospital and they immediately took her back to get an MRI and ultrasound. They said it was for sure her appendix and they would need to do surgery immediately. Unfortunately, the surgeon on call was in a nearby town (Cape Coral) doing surgery, so they didn't have a surgeon available. Dr. Bays called a friend, Dr. Kowalski (just happens to be the top surgeon in the area) and he said he'll be there in 15 mins!

The rest of the story is from an email my mom sent out....

"First of all thank you for all the help, it was so much appreciated. At the time I didn't know how serious I was but I was not going to miss a party for those of you that know me.
I wanted to tell you how amazing my hospital stay has been. First of all up till now I've not ever had surgery. So I can now join that club.
From the moment we arrived at the hospital the Lord has orchestrated the whole thing. We had friends that insisted on being here when we arrived. How sweet, it sure did calm both our nerves. They also called a Dr friend to oversee everything. So that Dr came to the hospital as well. Within a few hours they had determined that my appendix needed to be removed and soon. So the surgeon on call was at Cape Coral hospital with a very complicated matter and our Dr friend that was here called an associate of the Dr on call his name is dr kowalski. Dr Kowalski used to be our neighbor a few years ago, he also has treated other family members. Dr kowalski was here at the hospital within 15 mins. He began setting everything up. The ER staff were very compassionate people. As I arrived in waiting area of surgery the nurse there had told mitchell she attended Mcgregor and had been for several years. Her granddaughter and our granddaughter go to school together. Well all went well.
I have been placed on the heart floor for lack of space at hospital. The nurses here are amazing. I have been sharing" my story" with everyone. A few nurses have ask me about church. You know we live out our testimony in our everyday life not only at home and work but even in the unexpected moments. Mitchell brought my bible study here, I read this morning in Matthew 5:16. No one lights a lamp and hides it in a jar or puts it under a bed (or desk). Instead, she puts it on a stand, so that those who come in can SEE the light. Because who is the light? (One of my questions in bible study) JESUS. John 8:12 I am the light of the world!
Well hopefully I will go home today.
Love you all,
Traci"


Honored to call her my mom :) Hope you're encouraged, today!

Love ya'll,

LaRae

New Opportunity!!

Well, you may already know, but I have joined the Thirty-One organization! For those of you who do not know what Thirty-One is, let me have the pleasure of explaining!

Thirty-One is a direct sales company (think: Pampered Chef, Scentsy, etc.). They sell a wide variety of items (bags, cards, luggage, etc.) but they are specifically known for their fabulous purses and bags, with the option to monogram! They are also known for being a Christian company and firmly stand on business principles grounded in the faith.


Their name, thirty-one, is derived from Proverbs 31.

Epilogue: The Wife of Noble Character

¹⁰ ^b]">A wife of noble character who can find?
She is worth far more than rubies.
¹¹ Her husband has full confidence in her
and lacks nothing of value.
¹² She brings him good, not harm,
all the days of her life.
¹³ She selects wool and flax
and works with eager hands.
¹⁴ She is like the merchant ships,
bringing her food from afar.
¹⁵ She gets up while it is still night;
she provides food for her family
and portions for her female servants.
¹⁶ She considers a field and buys it;
out of her earnings she plants a vineyard.
¹⁷ She sets about her work vigorously;
her arms are strong for her tasks.
¹⁸ She sees that her trading is profitable,
and her lamp does not go out at night.
¹⁹ In her hand she holds the distaff
and grasps the spindle with her fingers.
²⁰ She opens her arms to the poor
and extends her hands to the needy.
²¹ When it snows, she has no fear for her household;
for all of them are clothed in scarlet.
²² She makes coverings for her bed;
she is clothed in fine linen and purple.
²³ Her husband is respected at the city gate,
where he takes his seat among the elders of the land.
²⁴ She makes linen garments and sells them,
and supplies the merchants with sashes.
²⁵ She is clothed with strength and dignity;
she can laugh at the days to come.
²⁶ She speaks with wisdom,
and faithful instruction is on her tongue.
²⁷ She watches over the affairs of her household
and does not eat the bread of idleness.
²⁸ Her children arise and call her blessed;
her husband also, and he praises her:
²⁹ “Many women do noble things,
but you surpass them all.”
³⁰ Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting;
but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised.
³¹ Honor her for all that her hands have done,
and let her works bring her praise at the city gate.

I'll be honest, I rarely, if ever, fit this mold! But, it's great to work with a company that has this passage of scripture in the fabric of it's foundation.

Well, just thought I'd share the news....and if you ever want anything, don't hesitate to ask!!

Striving to be more like Him,
LaRae

Giveaway--check it out!

Hey everyone! The fabulous Mrs. Devore is having a giveaway on her blog--check it out and enter to win here!!

~LaRae