Thoughts from a Church Kid

The church I grew up in was a beautiful group of people. They raised me. They loved me and taught me and watched me grow. Besides the wonderful memories of the people there, that church building felt like a 2nd home. 

My mom was the secretary and my dad was the "youth director." We were very "involved" as some would say. We were at the building when the doors were open, and we were at the building when the doors were closed(my parents would be up there working on something, filling communion trays, making copies for classes or other random "church duties). So we kids would sneak to the auditorium for a game of hide & seek. Or we'd sneak into the kitchen and eat the communion crackers & drink the grape juice. I think we really thought we owned the place.

While there are good memories from there, there are some negative as well. Being a family that was so involved, people came to my parents a lot to complain about things. Of course, they, thinking kids aren't paying attention, would start ranting and I would overhear.  Songs are too fast. Songs are too slow. Preaching is boring. Preaching is too charismatic.  Someone said one wrong word. 

I heard gossiping. I heard people that I looked up to talking badly about CHURCH LEADERS. Gossip!! And it was about ministers and elders. Those who have been CALLED by Christ to serve were being talked badly about. Don't get me wrong...I dearly LOVE the church family that raised me. But they were imperfect people, as we all are. I often wondered, if all they do is complain about our church, why are they here? 

James 1:26: Those who consider themselves religious and yet do not keep a tight rein on their tongues deceive themselves, and their religion is worthless.

I think too often we "rate" scripture just as we do sins. The scripture in James says their religion is WORTHLESS because they can't keep a rein on their tongues. "But I don't steal...but I don't lie...but I don't murder..." But even still...not controlling our tongues makes our religion worthless. Do we really think so?

Maybe it is time we really put some value on that verse. And we really think about the importance and impact our words have. Are you complaining? Do people know you as someone who just sits around and complains?  Do they know you as someone who belittles the people who pour themselves into the lives of others so they will come to know Jesus or know Him better? Do you pick apart every detail of what happens within the 4 walls of your church building? Do you constantly criticize the way things go or don't go? 

Proverbs 16:28

A perverse person stirs up conflict, and a gossip separates close friends.

Proverbs 26:20

Without wood a fire goes out; without a gossip a quarrel dies down.

2 Corinthians 12:20

For I am afraid that when I come I may not find you as I want you to be, and you may not find me as you want me to be. I fear that there may be discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, slander, gossip, arrogance and disorder. 

Or do you encourage those around you? Do you try to build others up and love those who need it? Are you SO busy with spreading Jesus' love to your brothers and sisters as well as your community that you don't even have TIME to pay attention to what others are doing, much less spread gossip about them? I know many will say we need to rebuke our brother when they are sinning. But that is not what I am talking about. I am talking about complaining about things that are not even IN scripture. Instead, read these:

Ephesians 4:29
Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. 

1 Thessalonians 5:10-11

¹⁰ He died for us so that, whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with him. ¹¹ Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.                                                      

In 2 Corinthians, gossip is on the same list as many traits that we would be embarrassed to be labeled with. But why do we feel that gossip is just not as bad?

We can't keep rating sin. We can't keep kidding ourselves to think that gossip is not bad for us, for those who hear it, or the church. Maybe it is time we take a long hard look in the mirror and decide to change today? In the wise words of Ice Cube...maybe it's time to "Check yo'self before you wreck yo'self."

Christmas time!

Christmas time is here! It truly is the most wonderful time of the year. We have busted out the Christmas PJs...decor is up, gifts have been bought...now it is just time to enjoy the season! 

We are really intentional with trying to be more Jesus, less Santa with Christmas. But, just in our daily life, we try to be about more Jesus, less world. But at Christmas time, I don't want the kids to get wrapped up in "me me me!" I want them to be servants of Christ every day, all year long. But Christmas time is a GREAT time to really focus on being servants. There are SO many opportunities to serve at Christmas, because EVERYONE is all about helping others at this time of year. And I LOVE that. 

With the gift giving that comes at Christmas- I just want them to know that Jesus truly is a gift to us. The grace He offers is a precious, perfect gift. It is far better than any gift we could ever get. And so far, Owen gets it! He summed it up perfectly while decorating the tree. He was putting an ornament on that looks like a wrapped gift and he said "Mommy, Jesus is the REAL gift and the best gift there ever will be." My heart about exploded. I was so thankful that he's listening and understanding. I hope he is falling in love with our Savior! 

We've started our 25 day Christmas devotional and I absolutely love it. Each night we have a family devo then we get to hang an ornament on the tree that corresponds with the scripture that was read in the devo. It is such a sweet, spirit filled time with my little family and I treasure it! 

Christmas PJs!! Sweetest brothers.

The boys got to meet Santa! :)

I am looking forward to more meaningful time with my family over the holidays!

Fall Shenanigans!

We had a great Fall around the Kelly house! Owen's soccer season ended right around the time it started to get chilly out, so that was perfect timing. He wants to play again in the spring and I can't wait! I love watching him play, and of course I liked the social hour with the other moms at practices. :)

The first fun thing that *I* did this fall was go to Dallas with some gal pals for a girls weekend & a JEN HATMAKER conference!!! And we got to meet her!! Oh my word. Ok, let me just say this...she is a person that God has used as a tool to reach me to change my life. I could go into so many other details, but I won't. Basically my entire mindset about some things has changed and things have been revealed to me and my life has been turned upside down. No big deal or anything... ;) But in amazing ways, and I am so grateful and so humbled.

Here I am with her crying like an idiot! And blubbering ridiculousness about my love for her and her writing. Seriously. #lame #fail   THANKFULLY, she was all, "awww!! I love you!! Gimme a hug!!" Ummm..you don't have to ask me twice!

I was finally able to get it together and just smile for a picture. She is a PEACH! She really is my new BFF but she's just kinda busy right now...its just hard to stay in touch & stuff...

So after being uplifted, staying in a hotel with friends, staying up late, nice dinner out to eat, shopping & strolling with gal pals, it was back to reality. Whomp whomp. ;) 

So our family kicked off Fall pretty much with Halloween. We had our annual Halloween party at our house and invited our friends over to eat, play and then go trick or treating. It was a blast as usual!

Sweet friends!

Davis, Reed & Owen were Jase, Si & Willie from Duck Dynasty!

Here is the crew with their little duck, Beau :)

Beau sporting his little punkin shirt!

So my iPhone flew off the roof of my car. Lovely. Thankfully this fall 

my hubby gave me a new one for my bday! 

We took advantage of the great fall weather & pretty colors for family pictures! I love them and am so blessed and thankful for my sweet family!

We finally had a free weekend so we loaded up with Michael & Bekah and all the kids and headed to the deer lease! It wasn't quite what we had envisioned. Bekah & I were dreaming about sitting outside in our camp chairs reading books while the kids played. Yeah. Not so much. The weather was LITERALLY freezing. And it was raining all day so we pretty much sat around inside. However, it was still a very relaxing trip and was fun to get away!

 We got a pet! John Louis Kelly. Owen named him. :) 

 

 My cousins have started coming to our house to celebrate Thanksgiving. One family lives in Oklahoma and another lives south of Houston, so our house is about half way. It allows them to see each other and not have to drive so far. And it allows them to see all of us! So I hope it is a tradition that will continue! We had a small Thanksgiving at Michael & Bekah's house. We celebrated with them, her  parents and her grandparents. It was a relaxing day! Mom & Dad drove in late that afternoon from their trip to Disney World with Matt & Jen. So we were glad to get to be with them on Thanksgiving as well.

Cooking with my cousin Carrie!

Beau turned 5 months old on Thanksgiving Day!

After stuffing ourselves, we went on a little hike 

through the back of our neighborhood.

Carrie & Rhonda made Owen the cutest felt tree with ornaments! 

He can decorate it however he wants. He loves it! 

On Thanksgiving night, Bekah & I surprised the kids 

and took them to Santa Land! Beau stayed home with Daddy & Uncle Michael. 

 One Sunday afternoon, our family and many others from our church went to Boles Children's Home to help decorate their campus for Christmas. It was a great day of service! We decorated the front fence & entry gate, several cottages, a Christmas tree in the Admin building and the entire rec center. We had fun while doing it!

Little guys working together to help serve others!

Of course I had to snap a quick pic of Owen in the sled. :)

Spending time serving at Boles Home was a GREAT way to wrap up Fall and an even better way to kick off the Christmas season by serving others! We are so blessed!

The Right Time! A 4 year old & 3 month old!

Wow! Already a month since I last blogged. Welcome to life with 1 hubby, 2 kids, soccer practice, family obligations, work, church, pre-school events, social life.....

Our Beau boy is 3 months old! He's sweet as can be. He is really a perfect baby. He rarely fusses and is SOOO easy to make smile. Most everyone we know can get him to smile. It is so sweet. He loves to be talked to and he really loves his big brother. Its so sweet to see him watch Owen and smile at O's silly antics. 

Our precious little blue-eyed Beau

In other news...Owen has started soccer and LOVES it! It is so fun to watch him at practice and at games. He does great in practice, but does not have much "hustle" in him! It's so funny to me to watch because he's just enjoying himself, not too concerned with being better than anyone. In the games so far,  he is not very aggressive with "getting in there", but when the ball gets close to him, he always gives it a good, strong kick! He smiles most of the game, and to us, that is all that matters!

Owen & Reed are both on the Strikers! So fun that they are on the same team!

Owen also tried karate, and he liked it, but not as much as soccer, he says. So we are taking a break from karate but may go back to it during the winter months when soccer ends. 

Loving this time with my sweet boys. This moment in life right now is PERFECT. We have the "big" kid who does activities like soccer and karate that are fun to be a part of and we still have the little baby to snuggle and love on. This is the moment that I wish life had a pause button!

Beau is 2 months old!

Beau boy is 2 months old and is just the sweetest little thing. He was 14 pounds & 25 inches long at his 2 month check up. So he is in the 79th percentile for weight and 100th for height. Big boy! Right now he is drinking 6 oz of formula every 4 hours. Then at night, he will usually have a bottle at 8pm, go to sleep, and wake up at 6am or sometimes even 8am! He fits in perfectly with the Kelly fam who LOVES to sleep in! I guess it is in our genes because Owen did the same thing. He is also rarely fussy. He is very easy to make smile and LOVES bath time. He kicks and smiles the entire time. He also likes being talked to when on his changing table. He will just lay there forever and smile and coo at me. His little coos & goos are the best sound. He loves sitting in a swing and will usually fall asleep there if it is his nap time. His typical routine is to drink a bottle, "play" for a little bit, then fall asleep. He is just sweet as can be!

I tried to take a pic of the boys after church one Sunday...Owen gives me the glazed eyes and fake smile look and Beau gives me the "I can't support my head yet" look. ;) But I'm so proud of both my handsome boys and so thankful God gave them to us!

Owen turns 4!

Our big boy is 4! Time has gone by so fast. It seems like just yesterday that he was being born and now he is 4 and has a baby brother! I am LOVING 4. He can be very ornery, but he is becoming a little person and it is so fun. I can have actual conversations with him now and he gets it. It is so neat to watch his little personality grow.

Big boy!

Some things about Owen:

• He loves anything having to do with hunting...guns, bows & arrows, riding the rhino & camouflage! 
• He is HILARIOUS. I have sooo many stories of funny things he says & does. 
• He wants to be a pediatrician or a fireman when he grows up.
• His favorite color is usually blue. 
• His favorite thing to eat is pizza.
• He loves music and singing and he loves going to the movies.
• He loves to swim and do jumps & dives into the pool.
• He loves his baby brother and loves to love on Beau.
• He can be a pest. He loves to play tricks on people and sometimes he irritates his cousins with his pesky ways!
• He loves knock knock jokes and is really good at telling them!
• He is starting to say "I was just kidding" when he says something that is ugly in hopes of getting out of trouble!
• His cousins are his best friends!

For his 4th birthday, (since I was off on maternity leave), we went to Shreveport to do some fun things and see Daddy since he was working there that week. We went to Sci-Port which is a super cool science discovery museum for kids. He loved it! Then, that evening, we shopped at Bass Pro for his bday and he picked out a Wii hunting game. We met Super Aunt Mandi, Tim, Michael & 2 of Mandi's nieces at Joe's Crab Shack for dinner. It was a great time celebrating our sweet boy with friends!

After we got home, we got the house ready for his big party! It was a "Finding Bigfoot" party. We had family & friends over for cake and then swimming & snow cones. It was a great day! 

(more pictures to come when I get them uploaded)...

Beau Landon Kelly

Obviously by my lack of recent posts, Beau Landon is here! He is perfect in every way and we are so thrilled that we've finally met him! (and I am soooooo glad to NOT be pregnant anymore!) ;)

He was born June 28 at 2:28 p.m. and was 8 lbs, 13 oz & 21 inches long!

The labor & delivery was pretty uneventful & smooth. (PTL!) The only minor hiccup was the anesthesiologist came in to give me my epidural, then suddenly had to leave. I got a little upset because I was thinking, "RELIEF is here!" then..JUST KIDDING! But once I just started focusing and breathing some more (and a little bit of "happy juice" in my IV line helped too!) I was better. Then shortly after that, got the epidural, progressed more and started pushing! One hour later, our sweet angel boy was here!

Skin to skin with Mommy for 1 hour after birth

Proud Big Brother!

We had to stay an extra night because his bili rubin level was too high. So he had to sleep on the bili bed and he HATED it! As long as he was wrapped up in a blanket, he slept great, but on the bili bed he couldn't be because the light had to get to his skin. It was the worst night of sleep of my life! Thankfully Nelda stayed that night and Matt was able to be at home with Owen and get good rest. I will forever be grateful to Nelda for that night! She was such a huge help just being there so I wasn't doing that alone. Sleep deprivation + screaming baby + crazy hormones = frazzled momma! But thankfully the bed helped and we were able to go home on Sunday!

This hospital business is for the birds! Let's get outta here!

Finally home! Both boys with their GiGi & Nonna

Introducing:

 

We are so thankful to God for a smooth delivery of another healthy, precious baby boy!