THE BROWNS

Thursday, October 15, 2009

FALL is Here!

With the Fall season here come feelings of excitement AND some feelings of sadness. I LOVE Summer time and Spring time when it starts to warm up outside. I LOVE being outside and we had A LOT of fun playing with Grace outside this past Summer. It felt like this year was her first Summer since she was such a little baby during her first Summer. We didn't really go out with her near as much because she couldn't 'play' or walk around and explore, etc. Also, this year our Summer was pretty mild for a Summer. The temperature stayed just perfect throughout the majority of the Summer.... not many unbearably hot days! Plus, I am just the type of person that would take Summer over Winter ANY day! You all that know me know that I would MUCH rather be hot than cold!!:) So... as Fall is here I am not real excited about it getting colder AND having to be indoors more. Thankfully, Fall here is REALLY nice and there are some very mild, and pleasant days. After all, FALL in Louisville is one of the reasons why we fell in LOVE with Louisville! :) When we came to look at the Seminary here while still living in Memphis.. we came in the Fall. Louisville is just GORGEOUS in the FALL. Just go into the St. Matthew's area around the Seminary or to local area parks and you will see it is just BEAUTIFUL! I wish I had some pictures to post on my computer from our visit and all the beauty we saw while visiting for the first time. The Seminary is a beautiful campus anyway and is beautiful in EVERY season but it is great in the Fall! We also loved the rolling hills and all the trees that we saw. It felt more like 'home'. :)

With this said, Fall brings excitement too because of football season! :) It also brings anticipation of all the Holiday's and memories with Grace and our family and what the future holds. So with that.. it is ALL GOOD!:)

This past weekend sure felt like Fall and we did some Fall type activities!:) Grace wore her Halloween shirt and colors and we went out and bought a pumpkin! We brought it home and drew a face on it just so Grace could take some part in the pumpkin. All we had was markers so I drew the face :) and Grace and Daddy took part in coloring it in, Grace had our help, of course! :) Then we all signed our names to the back including Grace!:-)

On Sunday night, our Mission groups at church were combined and we had a bonfire at someone's house and the guys played Cornhole, threw football, etc. etc. We had grilled out hot dogs and chips and dessert. We had stuff to roast marshmallows and to make smores. It was pretty cool so us women hung out around the fire for the most part!:) The locations was really nice because it was a flat open field behind this house that allowed the kids to walk around too and not really worry about them. (Except keeping them away from the fire:) It was a lot of fun and we even had some visitors. I got some pictures later in the night and there are some that are blurry because it was in night time mode and it wasn't quiet dark.. Grace was very cute in her hat and then we pulled her hood over her head also to keep her ears warm!

Maybe she was saying 'BOO' just like her shirt!:)

First time Grace takes part in decorating a pumpkin!:)

Fun times with friends from Highview at Valley Station....

Monday, October 12, 2009

Grace putting on a Show

Thursday, October 8, 2009

OUR MISSION

I got a very encouraging reminder the other day of this promise in God's Word:

“For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven,

And do not return there without watering the earth

And making it bear and sprout,

And furnishing seed to the sower and bread to the eater;

So will My word be which goes forth from My mouth;

It will not return to Me empty,

Without accomplishing what I desire,

And without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it.

Isaiah 55:10-11

I got a message the other day from a coworker to call a prior patient's son's girlfriend. Apparently she had come up to my work the other day looking for me and asked for me. She had gotten word that I had a talk with the patient before his discharge about salvation. I had a really good talk with him that night at almost midnight. You see, he has a 'past' as the world would see. He has a history of drug and alcohol abuse and he is about a 50 year old man. He had also not been the most 'ideal' patient. He had been 'agitated' and 'non-cooperative' at times, etc. He had come a long way in his recovery and the Lord laid it on my heart to talk with him that night. I pretty much knew that he needed a SAVIOR! He told me that he grew up in a pretty strict Catholic family and didn't agree with the Catholic faith but it was kind of 'forced' on him. Since then, he has spent his whole life kind of 'running' from faith in the Lord. He actually has been kind of angry and closed off in the past! But this night I could tell he was earnestly listening yet still kind of 'thinking' about every thing. After my talk, I didn't know where this would go. He was discharged home the next day.

When I got the message to call this girl.. she had put on the card 'in regards to the church you attend'... I knew he must have been talking! He had told me that one of his son's has been going to a baptist church and his son's girlfriend has been trying to get him to go, etc. I had told the patient that night that he ought to come to my church too.

I called her yesterday and she first thanked me for talking to him that night. She said she has been trying for a while but was he was 'very closed off'. She said he told her the story of a nurse talking to him and some of the things I said to him. Every since then he has told her the story multiple times and kept saying 'I wonder what church that was that she goes to because I bet it is a good church..' She said that it seems the Lord is really working on His heart and drawing him! I told her where our church is and she tells me they are going to come!!! She also said that she doesn't know of any one in there family that is saved so this could be a life-changing for the whole family!! So PRAY!!!

The reason why I tell you this is because some times we don't see the effects of our witness EVER and some times we do but the Lord reminds me that we MUST fulfill our Great Commission to spread the Word because as He said ' My Word will not return void!!!

On how we must press on and do that which He has called us to do..

Good Spoiling!!:)

My mother (Nana) and Paw Paw came last weekend for a long visit to Louisville. Mother was very gracious to get us AL and KY football tickets since they were playing in Lexington, KY this year. She knew that we would LOVE to go but couldn't afford them our selves! :) They flew up here on Thursday and spent some quality time with all of us and then on Saturday the plan was for Adam and I to leave for the game and they watched Grace at home. Of course, Grace just 'soaked up' all of the attention that she got! Adam and I really enjoyed the time too and was VERY thankful for everything they did for us!

I worked on Thursday night 11-7 but on Friday Mom and I went to the mall and a consignment shop while Gary stayed home and looked after Grace while she napped. After Adam got off from work that night we all went to Texas Roadhouse and Grace was SUCH a trooper. She did really good! We also got Grace's Halloween costume--- she is going to be a LADYBUG! :) More on that later! On Saturday, when we had returned from the game Mom had made us all a big 'country' dinner with roast and fresh cooked garden veggies and so on! YUM!! Sunday was church day and lounging!! :) There plane left for AL on Monday morning. ..