Thank you all so much for praying for Johnny! We found out today he got back home at 3am last night. His sister texted me an update later and I thought I would share it with all of you:

"Update oh Johnny: The doctors took two more echo tests and ruled out the possibility of him having a ruptured tendon (which is a very good thing I guess).
Now they believe he has a small hold in his heart, but that is much less dangerous and urgent. He may possibly still need surgery, but for now things are more stable. Thank you for praying!"

Please continue to keep him in your prayers in the upcoming weeks as they decide what to do now.

Thank you all so much!

(Source)

Tonight I would ask you to pray for one of our youth boys. He is 15 years old and has been having trouble with his heart since around Christmas time.

Over the past few weeks it has been getting worse just the limitations physically but he has been so patient and really grown spiritually and in maturity. It has been amazing to watch!

Today the doctor called with the results from a test they had done on his heart and they learned that he has a ruptured tendon/valve in his heart. They went immediately to the hospital where the doctor was waiting for them.

Please pray for peace for Johnny and wisdom for the doctors to know what to do.

Please pray that it will be easy to fix and that it would end up not being as dangerous as it could be.

Please pray for his parents and family.

Thank you all so much!

I will keep you updated when we find out more.

And the winner to the first give away ever on Tales From the Little White House is:

Please pray for this precious family. My friend Rebecca over at Butterfly days did a post on them and I figured I would do one as well just so we can get more people praying for this precious family.

The Cretzman's had been traveling around the US doing deputation in preparation to go to Cuba as foreign missionaries. There was a car accident on Monday, February 20, 2012 and their little three year old girl Azlynn did not survive.

Right now their needs are:

1. PRAYER
2. Medical Expenses
3. Bereavement Costs
4. Vehicle needed

Please visit their website  http://cretzmanstocuba.com/.

Please also remember them in prayer. I can not imagine what they are going through right now. Also, if you have a blog please consider reposting this, and spread the word and the support and the prayer needs for this family.

And I thought I had a baby bump...HAH! Excuse the messy hair please! :)

(taken by my amazing friend Darla)

(taken by my amazing friend Darla)

1. I love thrift store shopping and am starting to really love garage sales! Here in Florida we have garage sales all year which is awesome! I am absolutely amazed at the deals that you can get. It is totally amazing :)

2. I have realized that I have a huge addiction to love for hummus and tortilla chips. Yumminess! I have also realized that I need to start making my own hummus because it is an expensive addiction love.

3. I love watching Food Network shows on the internet (because we do not have a tv).

4. I am have been convicted about the way we eat (because of my diet a few years ago I was sick for over a year you can read some of that journey by clicking HERE)  and am attempting to switch over to a more healthy/natural life style. I have found some amazing blogs about more natural living and have them listed to your left on my side bar. They are pretty inspiring! :)

5. My amazing husband and I got married EXACTLY one year and two months to the day that we met. I absolutely adore him. He truly is the greatest gift God ever gave me! The funny thing is that we have not even known each other two years yet (it will be two years March 28,2012 a day before his 22nd birthday)! It is amazing to me how so much can change in so short a time and I am SO THANKFUL it did!

1. When did you become a believer? I became a believer when I was very young at six years old. I didn't understand what it meant to build my life around Jesus until a few years later. To read my salvation story in more detail click HERE. 
2. What has been a very influential book in your spiritual walk? How? I would have to say a book called "Sacred Singleness" by Leslie Ludy. It really challenged me to be content and complete in Jesus Christ instead of constantly looking to fill that void with other things or people.
3. What is your favourite store to shop at? Grocery store is definitely Aldi's. Any other regular store is definitely thrift stores!
4. Do you wear your hair up or down in general? Mostly down because my love likes it like that :) His favorite is when I pull back the top part of my hair in somewhat of a poof.  Example:

5. What city would you like to live in? Honestly, I would never want to live in a city. I am a country girl at heart and LOVE having space!! :)
6. Who is one of your spiritual mentors? I would have to say here in Florida a lady from our church named Darla. She has just taken me under her wing and has shared so much wisdom with me. It is such a blessing to have someone like her here!
7. If someone gave you a large sum of money, what would you do with it? Give some of it away then go shopping for bargains and do some landscape work around our little white house :)
8. Are you a night person or a morning person? Well, I would tend to be more of a night person but then it depends on why I would have to wake up early cause if it is worth it then I am a morning person.
9. Starbucks or Caribou Coffee? Why? I do not like coffee. There, I said it. Please don't shoot me. I love tea instead :)
10. Do you enjoy long trips or dread them, whether in a car or a plane? Well, long trips are a whole lot easier to enjoy in a plane time-wise but driving in a car is a lot of fun too because you can stop and see places and people a long the way :)
11. What's your favourite genre of music? I absolutely LOVE sound tracks and instrumental scores. Maybe it is because I have played piano since I was six but yeah so inspiring! :)

1. Do you like salty or sweet better?
2. What are three words you would use to descibe yourself?
3. What is the neatest things that ever happened to you in your life?
4. What is your favorite Bible verse? Why.
5. Would you rather read a good book or watch a movie to relax?
6. What is your favorite color?
7. Who is the person who inspires you the most?
8. What is one thing about you that people don't usually know?
9. Would you rather be hot or cold?
10. What is your favorite type of food?
11. What is your favorite classic old movie?

Julia at- Julia's Journal
Rebecca at- Butterfly Days
Christiana at- My Life For Christ
 Lauren at- Lauren Rae Photography

Hey all!

I am so excited for my first give away ever! Notice I said my first give away ever! A few months ago I was contacted by a lady from  My Memories digital scrapbooking software about doing a review on my blog. I downloaded the software and started to play around with it.

There are so many things that you can do with it that honestly it was a little bit overwhelming to me at first! I did get a chance to make a new blog banner and I was really happy with how it turned out!
My friend Callie over at Through Clouded Glass did a giveaway last month and she used it to re-do her blog design! I am excited to play around with that and remaking my banner was the first step towards that goal!

The neat thing about my memories is that that really are ENDLESS options for designs! And the neat thing is that their store carries a lot of free packages as well as other packages that, while they are not free, are at a reasonable price.

I am really excited to continue to experiment with blog design as well as things like cards and photo arrangements especially after Elijah is born! :)

And one of you will be able to experiment with the same things because I get to give away a my memories suite to one of you!
To enter, please use the rafflecopter form below. It is super easy! Just make sure to push the green enter button when you have finished each requirement :)

This giveaway will end next Friday, Febuary 17th, and I’ll announce the winner the next day Febuary 18th!

(Source)

Pondering this: How can I make much of my Savior in every part of my life today?

It is easy to think "I am not making a difference anyway I am just at home while Jason is at work." But that is not right. But it is how the subtle mindset I have had these last few weeks which in turn has resulted in wasting time and energy on things that do not matter.

"God created us to live with a single passion...: to joyfully display HIS supreme excellence in all the spheres of life. The wasted life is the life without this passion. God calls us to pray and think and dream and plan and work not to be made much of, but to make much of HIM in every part of our life." -John Piper

It is so so easy for me to waste time at home. When I do not have someone behind me pushing me or motivating me I tend to have a hard time actually doing what I need to do and not wasting time doing things that have no lasting value.

The last few days I have really been convicted on how easy it is for me to not accomplish what I know I need to at home and the Lord has been helping me. To-do lists are absolutely amazing and
have really helped me prioritize my day and yet-I still stumble. And then I think "Wow, If I can not get a handle on this now what about when Elijah gets here?"

I so desire to live for my Savior and to be the wife and Mama that God calls me to be in His Word. Sometimes it just is easy to wonder does it matter? I am not a nurse or a missionary or a lawyer. I am just a stay at home wife and mama-to-be. But can I bring glory to my Savior in that? Yes! I can! A friend told me about this song by Steven Curtis Chapman and wow did it speak to me! I included it below but I wanted to focus on the first verse and chorus (granted I am not quite there yet but I will be soon with the baby):

"you’re picking up toys on the living room floor
for the 15th time today
Matching up socks and sweeping up lost
Cheerios that got away
You put a baby on your hip and color on your lips
and head out the door
And while I may not know you I bet I know you
Wonder sometimes does it matter at all
We’ll let me remind you it all matters just as long as you
Do everything you do to the glory of the One who made you
Cause He made you to do
Every little thing that you do to bring a smile to His face
And tell the story of grace
With every move that you make
And every little thing you do"


Wow! I hope that encouraged you the way it encouraged me! What a reminder that WHATEVER we do it does matter as long as we are doing it for the right reason-bringing honor and glory to our Lord Jesus Christ!
Any thoughts on this stay at home wives and Mama's or anyone else for that matter? :)