Labor of Love

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He's Here!

Isaiah Hutton Ferrell
December 8, 2009
12:28am
9 lbs 1 1/2 oz
21 1/2 inches

Still waiting!

Isaiah is either quite stubborn or just laid back and comfortable! Either way, no baby here yet. Just waiting! We will induce on Monday morning the 7th if he doesn't decide to show up on his own. We would covet your prayers at that time.

Please pray:

• that things will go as naturally as possible (induction is hard on baby and Mom)
• that he will be healthy and hearty (I think he's probably about 9 lbs!)
• that we will heal well and that the gestational diabetes will disappear with that annoying placenta!

Thanks, and we will keep you updated!

Song for Isaiah

Emmie wrote this song for her baby brother:

My baby brother will be here soon
Maybe he'll come at 12 o'clock, you know that's noon
Or maybe he'll come by the light of the moon
My baby will be here soon

My wish has finally come true
When you come home I'll brew some tea
Especially for you and me
Just for you and me
And I'll be so happy that I have a little brother

Life in Southern Illinois- Deer Day

There are some new and interesting things to life here in Southern Illinois. Here's a few observations:

• It really is Southern! Today for lunch, I had country fried steak, fried okra and sweet tea!! (Don't worry, I only indulge in that once a month or so!)
• It's so Southern that I sometimes have a hard time understanding the accents!
• You have to use your high beams on your headlights at night! (I haven't lived anywhere that dark since going off to the big city for college!)
• Camoflague is in high season right now. I actually saw camo pjs for babies at a store the other day!
• Now, here's the kicker! This weekend and next are the only days you can deer hunt with a rifle (you can hunt all of fall with bows) SO this past Friday was called "Deer Day"!! Kids who miss school get an excused absence because not enough kids show up for school for the district to be able to count it as a day! People either have the day off or take the day off! I was in the hospital being monitored the other day, and the nurse in the next cubicle told the patient, "Well, it's good that tomorrow is deer day, so you won't have to go back to work until Monday!" WOW! That's how serious it is around here! I am just hoping that someone took several deer and will have too much to eat themselves- and think or our freezer!!

Random Illinois Photos

The Capitol building in Springfield, MO
We went to Springfield to the Illinois Baptist State Association annual meeting.

Following our 14 year old tradition, decorating
pumpkin shaped cookies with lots of candy!

Sunset at the top of our hill.

Sam's most awesome strawberry pancake feast at IHOP in Springfield!

Misty, Ginger, and Dusty our inherited little kitties!

We just had to visit Metropolis, where the only interesting
feature if a GIANT statue of Superman!



The Ferrell's with the Mighty Mississippi behind us.

Fast Forward

There's just too much to tell about the last two months to be able to do it justice, so I have decided to fast forward here so I can get started back with blogging! Here's the bullet points:

• Roger accepted a new job. He is a Director of Missions (his actual title is Executive Director!)
• That job is in Illinois! So, we moved there!
• Our house in Georgia is under contract and should close the middle of December.
• Baby Isaiah is due anytime- I'm betting around Thanksgiving.
• We all love it here. When I asked the kids this morning something they were thankful for during devotions, Bennett said that he is thankful that we get to live here! I asked him why- and he said because it is so awesome!

So, there it is in a nutshell. It has been a crazy couple of months, but God is completely faithful and He knows what He is doing. We are in a great place, with wonderful people, the kids love it, Roger loves his job, and we are so thankful to have such a wonderful job in this economy. God is good!

Now on to the rest of our life!!

All I Have Is Christ

All I Have Is Christ from Sovereign Grace Ministries on Vimeo.

Out of pocket

Sorry to be out of pocket for so long! Things are moving pretty fast over here- I'll be back to post later on certain developments. In the meantime, baby is growing and taking up lots of room! We decided on the name Isaiah for him- it means "God is my salvation". He is Isaiah Hutton Ferrell (the Hutton is an old Scottish family name.)
See you soon!

My debt is paid, my chains are gone! Praise You Lord!

Difficulty

We have certainly had some difficulty lately. Our oldest has suffered some fainting episodes which has put us in the emergency room, the pediatrician's office, the neurolgist's office, the EEG lab, and finally the MRI lab. Now we wait. We won't have the results of the tests until sometime next week, however, the Neurologist was very positive and not especially concerned. I have felt peace about the entire ordeal, not really believing that something may be wrong, but when the Dr tells you they have found "spots" on your baby's brain, you can't help but feel a little tingle up the spine. Yesterday, when we were at the Children's Hospital, Roger and I kept looking at each other and whispering how thankful we are to have healthy children. Watching your child laying still on a table with his head wrapped in gauze really gives you something to think about.
On the one hand, I am so thankful that our kids are healthy and with us, but on the other, I would rejoice in their homecoming to their Lord and Savior. Kind of a weird place to be! Not that I wouldn't grieve them, but I am so thankful that they have a relationship with Jesus and that even if earthly healing didn't occur, heavenly healing would.
My favorite verse (this week!) is Isaiah 26:3 "You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in You".

Believing God

I have absolutely no problem believing IN God. I know that He's real. I don't have a problem with that. Now, BELIEVING Him is a completely different story.
I am so grateful that He has accepted me, that I am saved, that I will be with Him in eternity, but I have always had this picture in my mind that He just tolerates me. I think of Him saying "Okay, I'll take that one, she seems sincere in her desire to want to follow me, hopefully one day she will stop messing up. But, I'll take her." Lately, I have been trying to wrap my wee little brain around the fact that He doesn't just tolerate me- He desires me, He loves me, He delights in me! WOW!!

He wants to comfort me:
For I, the LORD your God,
hold your right hand;
it is I who say to you, "Fear not,
I am the one who helps you."
Isaiah 41:13 ESV

He watches over me:
The LORD will keep
your going out and your coming in
from this time forth and forevermore.
Psalm 121:8 ESV

His love for me is incomprehensible:
so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, ¹⁸may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, ¹⁹and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.
Ephesians 3:17-19

He delights in me and even SINGS over me!: (not just any singing- LOUD singing!)
The LORD your God is in your midst,
a mighty one who will save;
he will rejoice over you with gladness;
he will quiet you by his love;
he will exult over you with loud singing.
ESV Zephaniah 3:17

The LORD your God is with you,
he is mighty to save.
He will take great delight in you,
he will quiet you with his love,
he will rejoice over you with singing."
NIV Zephaniah 3:17


I am choosing to believe God. These truths will take root in my heart as I choose over and over again to simply believe! I pray that you feel His love and you choose to believe Him too!

IT'S A .....

Look real close...closer... closer... Now see the leg bone on the bottom of the picture? See that round thing marked by 4 little dots? Connect the dots.... Now you have an itty bitty.....BOY!!!!

It's Cow Appreciation Day at Chick Fil A!

This will be our 4th year for Cow Appreciation Day! All you have to do is make yourself look like a cow, and you will receive a free combo at Chick Fil A! We usually just tape black construction paper spots all over us, but you can download free cow costume stuff at www.chickfila.com
See you there!!

Still celebrating!

The fourth is just the beginning of the celebrations at our house. The fifth of July is my birthday, and the sixth is our anniversery! We have been married 18 years! (I won't tell you how old I am, you'll have to do the math!)

Sometimes I can't believe that it has been that long. Roger told the kids yesterday that he and I have been together for half our lives! It has flown by- at least the yearlys! The dailies have been a little more leisurely.

It's amazing how much God has allowed us to be a part of his work, it's also amazing how much He has changed us through it. When we got married, I thought I was marrying a Youth Pastor. What a surprise to end up with a husband who is a Pastor and Church Planter. Not exactly what I had expected though God's ways almost never are.

We have been on an incredible journey these years- by golly- we've moved 18 times!!! I am so thankful for the things that I have been learning just in the past couple of years. God is showing me a better way than before, when I was trying to do marriage my way. I am not sure that I can even articulate what I have learned- I think that both Roger and I have grown into it. He becoming even more Godly and strongly taking the leadership reins in our family. Me becoming a little more Godly and giving those reins away.

I am so truly blessed to be married to my best friend. I know it sound cheesy, but I really do love him more today than yesterday!

Thanks be to Jesus, who saw fit to give me the incredible gift of this man!!!

'

The Fourth...

...or rather, the third! Since July 4 landed on a Saturday this year, we decided to celebrate on Friday the third. It's really difficult for us to stay out late on a Saturday night with our responsibilities at church. So, this year, we packed up a picnic and headed to Stone Mountain Park with some very fun friends and about 30,000 others! We had a great time. The weather was beautiful and dry. The fireworks were fabulous!

Feminine Appeal

I am getting ready to lead a study for women on the book Feminine Appeal: 7 Virtues of a Godly Wife and Mother by Carolyn Mahaney. I am so excited about this. When I first read this book, I found so many new ideas about biblical femininity- well, they were new to me! My idea of femininity was based sorely and wrongly on what I had learned from the world. These new ideas were so freeing!! Some were thoughts that I had on my own but didn't know anyone else felt that way- to have them validated by the Bible! Wow! Now that is freedom. If you are a lady at Harbins, I would love you to join us on this 9 week journey (Thursdays at 10am at my house). I think you will be challenged, but I also know that you will be affirmed as we learn God's design for us!

I copied this from another blog. I thought that the writer, Carrie, said it so perfectly:

"True femininity comes from within... a peace that passes understanding, joy abundantly, a light in our eyes, a smile on our lips, kindness on our tongue... it is embracing who God made us to be... confident yet humble, strong yet full of gentleness. She'll be serving those around her, pouring out her life with joy, she'll be on her knees in the presence of her King, she'll be speaking life to those around her bringing them encouragement, hands ready to help, feet ready to go... all done whether in the heart of her home or on the other side of the world serving the least. You can have someone dressed modest and feminine full of worldly beauty and yet missing the the core of femininity, the core of who she was created to be, and you will find an empty woman, empty of life. It all starts from within, yet I think you will see it expressed in every aspect of her life. You will also find women that are not full of natural beauty but somehow they become the most beautiful woman you have seen all because she knows who she is and why she was created, full of joy and gentleness... full of life... a truly beautiful woman."

Are You Kidding Me?

Another rat snake in the barn!! UGH! This one wasn't as big. Roger is changing his name to "Snake Slayer"!!!

Memorial Day

We celebrated Memorial Day on Sunday so that everyone could stay late and play hard! No one had to go to work on Monday! We put out an invite to the whole church asking them to come and celebrate and to help dedicate our new house (We had 47 people!!) We had so much fun, we forgot to stop and pray to dedicate the house!!! Guess that calls for another party!!!

Daisies and cupcakes

The Grill Action





Girls playing dress up


Game Time




Baby Fun

Country Living Update

Living in the country is an adventure!! Yesterday, on my "way to town", I passed a blue jay, a cardinal, a turtle, two cats playing, umpteen horses, cows, and of course my goat neighbors! That's right- loving the drive! However, we are just learning how to cope with predators out here! Not the scary alien kind from the movies, but the creepy crawly kind like foxes, racoons, and SNAKES!!!!! UGH!! Just to set the story- I am nature woman! I love all things nature. We keep an aquarium in our school room just in case we find something interesting that we want to "observe". We were thrilled to come out this morning to "Lance", our new turtle friend in our garden. BUT, all that said, I ABHOR SNAKES!!!!!!! During chore time this afternoon, I sent Bennett out to gather the eggs. He went into the chicken house looked all around for eggs, and found a few WITH A SNAKE COILED UP ON TOP OF THEM!!!!! I am so glad he didn't reach down for them without looking more closely. Turns out it was just a black Rat snake (4 ft long!!)- a good snake to have unless it is EATING your chicken eggs!!! So, goodbye snake! I think I will start notching the hoe for every snake that Roger has to kill- a trophy of sorts!!! Oh yeah, and did I mention that we have lost 10 chickens to a fox! Oh, the joy of country living!!! BEWARE- THERE IS A PICTURE BELOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Dew Droplets

Look at the dew droplets at the point of each leaf! Beautiful!

Chicken Heaven!

Our chickens LOVE their new home! Now that we are away from the road and have plenty of room, they have been free ranging all over the property! They love it! If we don't let them out of their coop early enough in the morning, the make such a ruckus as to wake the dead! Plenty of bugs and worms for everyone! Good Eats!

Still here!

I can't believe it has been 3 weeks since I posted! WHO BOY what a 3 weeks it has been! We are finally moved- that took around 2 weeks. I still have organizing to do, but it's all here in one place, so that is a relief. The morning sickness is ongoing, though I have a little miracle pill that helps alot. Still some days, it takes me over and I spend the day on the couch! Only a couple of weeks left of that though! I am determined NOT to complain about any of this- so if you catch me at it, call me on it! The circumstances that cause me discomfort at present are caused by God's blessings!

I read a blog post the other day that talked about how we really can't appreciate Him until we realize that our devotion to Him and love for Him are not and can not be tied to our comfort and happiness! Sometimes we aren't going to be comfortable, and even sometimes He causes us not to be comfortable- so praise Him through it all. That is especially true for me right now. I feel sick- because I have a new baby growing within me- remarkable!! I feel tired- because we are moving into a beautiful house that can only be from the hand of God- unbelievable! I am grumpy- because my life is chaotic because of the move- inexcusable!! So, it's time for me to buck-up!

"Count your many blessings, name them one by one, count your many blessings see what God has done!!"

Morning sickness?

Week 6

Whoever called it morning sickness must have been a man!! Try- all day sickness! I find myself wondering how something as small as a grain of rice can make me feel so terrible?!? True to form, I began feeling bad on the first day of week 6, and if it happens just like the other three, it will end on the first day of week 12! I must be getting old- 6 weeks of this seems to be more than I can handle. I am of Advanced Maternal Age, as my MIL so lovingly pointed out!! Maybe that's it! Of course, moving could have something to do with the overwhelmingness of it all (is that a word? well it is now!) I promise not to whine- I am thrilled with God's graceful gift of this new baby! So suck it up- Ferrell! But- I digress with this last question- how can something that cute make me want to puke?!?!

FREE ICE CREAM!!!!!!!

Ben and Jerry's: Free Cone Day--Tuesday, April 21, 2009

Ben & Jerry's is hosting their annual Free Cone Day tomorrow (Tuesday, April 21, 2009). From noon to 8 p.m., all Scoop Shops across the nation will offer a free scoop of any ice cream of your choice to every customer.

As always, I recommend you call your local store before heading there to confirm they are participating in this promotion.

Still moving!

With our closing date still a week away, I feel like we are over taken with boxes, boxes, boxes! Traditionally, (did you catch that this is our 18th move) I pack the kitchen at the first of the last week before the move. Pretty clever- that way on top of all of the thing that I need to take care of, I DON'T have to worry about cooking! Praise be that a Little Caesar's has just opened on our corner- $5 pizzas! Can I get an amen!! On the other side of the cooking issue, I have to be very careful with my weight and pizza every night is probably not what the baby would like!
So, pity me- packing, moving, growing a baby, AND cooking!!!!

Another arrow for our quiver!

Announcing the newest blessing in our life! We are expecting our fourth child in December! We are very excited, and to answer your question-no, we are not "surprised"! We have been hoping that God would bless us with another baby. We are humbled by his gift of another arrow for our quiver- and hope for more!


Psalm 127 ³Behold, children are a heritage from the LORD, the fruit of the womb a reward. ⁴Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are the children of one’s youth. ⁵Blessed is the man who fills his quiver with them! He shall not be put to shame when he speaks with his enemies in the gate.

He Is Risen...

He Is Risen Indeed!!!!!

18 ~ ten and eight ~ eighteen

18 seems to be our magic number this year! We will have been married for 18 years in July- YAY! And- drum roll please- we are moving for the 18th time!! NO YAY!!!

Due to the wondrous and exciting merger of our church with Harbins Church, the Ferrells need to find a new place to live. We have lived on the 13 acre church property for almost 4 years now- that's the longest we have lived anywhere. We have so much more stuff than we ever had- the kids are bigger, we have all of our school stuff, and Roger's office is in our home. We used to be able to move with a 27 ft truck- NO MORE!!

I am completely bowled over by the amount of packing I need to do. Larry, a friend of ours, brought me 66 boxes the other day-add another 6 and you see how I feel about packing! Larry so sweetly brought me the boxes, tape and two markers. He kindly said "I am sure this will be enough!" I also sweetly just smiled at him! It was so hard not to laugh in his face, but that would not have been sweet- so I said "we'll see!" and can you get more?!

Next week, our church is traveling to New Orleans to help rebuild a church. Em and I are going to stay home and you guessed it- pack!! (AT least I won't have to fix meals and teach school- that should give us a lot more time!)

God is Faithful!

Thanks to everyone who made the Yard Sale for Adoption a success!! It was such a wondrous thing to watch the outpouring of love from our church and homeschool community! God's love had hands and feet this weekend through Woodland Creek Church, Harbins Church, and the CMers of Georgia homeschool group. The Webb's needed $2833 to make their requirement for their homestudy on Tuesday, and the Yard Sale made $3200. You can read all about it at their blog!

Here are some pictures of the sale:

Marietta- a.k.a the Bookworm!

(this girl can work!!)

Natalie and Liz
(organizers extraordinaire)

Cindy- a.k.a the "Barter Queen"
(Thanks to Cindy for sticking to it!
"No- we won't take $20-
it's to rescue an orphan!
$25 or bust!)

David - a.k.a the "Enforcer"
(David was our policeman, and I asked him for his best "po po" look!)

Dana and Reneyda

The Junk

More Junk!

Ethiopian Orphan Rescue a.k.a. Adoption

Our good friends the Webbs are called by God to rescue an orphan from Ethiopia! This has been a very exciting for us (and exhausting and exciting for them). They are about to complete their home study, and we are having a HUGE yard sale at our church on Saturday. Come by if you can- if you can't, go to their blog and contribute $ on PayPal. They are a wonderful Godly couple giving everything that they have and more to make this happen- won't you help?

Reasons To Adopt From Ethiopia

• One in six children die before their fifth birthday
• 44% of the population of Ethiopia is under 15 years old
• 60% of children in Ethiopia are stunted because of malnutrition
• The median age in Ethiopia is 17.8 years
• 1.5 million people are infected with AIDS (6th highest in the world)
• 720,000 children have been orphaned by AIDS alone, and there are 4.6 million orphans in Ethiopia.
• Per capita, Ethiopia receives less aid than any country in Africa
• In the 90s the population (3%) grew faster than food production (2.2%)
• Drought struck the country from 2000-2002 (first year no crops, second year no seeds, third year no animals)
• Half the children in Ethiopia will never attend school. 88% will never attend secondary school.
• Coffee prices (Ethiopia’s only major export) fell 40-60% from 1998-2002.
• Ethiopia’s doctor to children ratio is 1 to 24,000.
• In 1993, after 30 long years of war, Eritrea broke from Ethiopia and became an independent nation leaving Ethiopia landlocked without any major seafaring ports.

Blog Award!

I received a blog award from my friend the Bookworm!!! Thanks so much! Your blog rocks too!

Wow! It's so hard to decide who to pass the award to! There are so many great blogs out there! Here are a few of my favorite!

1. Our All in All
2. A Season for Everything
3. Higher Up and Further In
4. The Homespun Heart
5. Ponderings from a Picket Fence Cottage
6. Renaissance
7. Pleasant View Schoolhouse
8. Lazy D Ranch
9. Be Bold Jen
10. Inside SCM-Simply Charlotte Mason

Here are the Rules:
1. Add the award logo to your blog.
2. Add a link to the person who awarded it to you. (That's me!;-)
3. Give the award to other blogs. (However many you choose!)
4. Add links to those blogs on your blog.
5. Leave a message (in the form of a comment) for your award recipients on their blogs.

Thanks so much Bookworm!!!

Lifelong Learner

What better way to enjoy a book than sitting on a "big wheel" in the Spring sunshine!

Brussels Sprouts

Okay- I know that the very mention of brussels sprout causes you to scrunch up your face! BUT- you haven't had them like I make them! They taste great and are so good for you! Try them this way some time.

Yummy Brussel Sprouts
1. Cut off the ends and slice in two.
2. Steam in basket until bright green (around 3-5 minutes)
3. Run cold water over them in a colander (to stop them from cooking)
3. Chop a medium onion ( I like sweet onions- I'm Southern!)
4. Melt 1/2 stick butter and saute onions until tender.
5. Put drained BS in pan and stir until coated with butter and onions
6. Toss in 1/4-1/4 cup sliced almonds.
7. Watch carefully and stir occasionally until BS are beginning to brown.
8. ENJOY!

Check out the BS that we grew in our garden!

God's School of Faith

I read this excerpt on another blog that I like to read. Boy, if I could just get this through my thick skull, I would be so much better off!!

From the March 7 entry in Streams in the Desert by L.B. Cowman:

"There is no way to learn of faith except through trials. They are God's school of faith, and it is much better for us to learn to trust Him than to live a life of enjoyment. And once the lesson of faith has been learned, it is an everlasting possession and an eternal fortune gained. Yet without trust in God, even great riches will leave us in poverty."

Ansel Adams

Ansel Adams

We are having a great time with our new Artist/Picture Study of Ansel Adams. We read about Mr. Adams each day from a biography and we take a look at his photographs along the way. Today we went to our wonderful and favorite park (Lil' Mulberry) for nature study and to do a little of our own photography. I think the results are fabulous. But, I'll let you judge for yourselves.

Meet Sam. Photographer extraordinaire:


Here's my favorite Sam "Adamnesque" photo:



Next comes Bennett:



Cool.....



Then there's me:




My favorite...






Others that we like:






by Sam














by Bennett














by Caroline