Christmas Eve Service

This year our church will (for the first time in a long time) have a Christmas Eve Candlelight Service. It will be a time to reflect on the true meaning of Christmas through song and scripture.

If you are looking for a place to celebrate Christmas with your family, please stop by. The time is 6:00 - 7:00 pm so you'll still have time to open presents afterwards:).

Let me know if you have any questions.

What Kind of Mommy Am I?

This past few days have been catch up for me. With all of the family in for the holiday, I was behind on some of my everyday housework tasks such as washing whites. Some of the other items were washed, but whites are always my least favorite because they take much longer to fold than others. Yesterday I focused on laundry, the guest room, Mindy's room, and upstairs bathrooms before heading to work. Last night I washed the whites, but I guess didn't get them in the dryer fast enough for Michael.

I can't even believe I'm posting this, but someone else needs a laugh today besides me. I got everything finished upstairs this morning from rearranging the living room and kitchen to wiping everything down to vacuuming. Since I'm running out of time before heading to work I decided to go and look in the boys' room to see what my task is tonight or tomorrow and this is what I found in Michael's room.....

YES, it is a clothes line made out of a blind string and YES those are his underwear hanging....

I know....it's hilarious!!! He never ceases to crack me up!

I am happy to say that the rest of the whites are dry now and folded ready to be put in drawers. I wonder what I'll find tomorrow.

So Much to Post....Never the Time

It's been an eventful few weeks around the Whidden home which means I have little to no time to blog. While I love blogging, I love the holiday excitement more. Today my brother and his family left and I asked Mitch if I had left the kitchen the entire week. His response: Yes, to go to the mall. Honestly, I wouldn't have it any other way...at all. We picked my mom up at the airport in Indy last Saturday and then the rest of the crew came in on Tuesday night. It seemed like they were all only here for a few days though. We just don't get together nearly enough. What did we do?

Let's make a list:

• Saw Mindy's school choir perform


• Had a HUGE pizza from JJ's Pizza in town


• Went to the mall


• Took a train to Chicago (it was my first REAL train ride AND my first time in Chicago)


• Enjoyed Thanksgiving together (lots and lots of food)


• I took my sister-in-law Jenny on her very first Black Friday shopping trip. We started at 3:45 a.m. and ended at 7:00 p.m.


• Celebrated Christmas with everyone. Since we had Thanksgiving together we won't see each other for Christmas so Friday evening was dedicated to that.


• The boys and memaw went to the movies and candy factory


• We took memaw to the Chicago airport (well, Mitch and John did)


• We went to the mall:) again


• We played lots of Boggle


• We ended today with church and then lunch at our house


• We ate and ate and ate and ate and ate......

I was so sad to watch everyone leave the driveway. The house is quiet and ready to be cleaned, but there is an emptiness. Those of you who have family close, don't ever take it for granted. My kids are lucky to see their cousins once a year. They always pick up right where they left off just as though they've lived together forever, but I know they'd love being together all of the time.

While I'm exhausted, I can't wait to do it again soon. It's been a GREAT Thanksgiving!!

What's Wrong with Tradition?

My aunt Jenny sent me this cute little chicken last Christmas as a reminder of the Bunn family tradition. WELL....tonight it came out of the box and made it's way to the top of my beautiful tree. Here's the proof:

What is wrong with my family:)?

Oh, and the reason my tree is up so early is because I have family coming in for Thanksgiving and we're celebrating both holidays all wrapped up into one.

2 Vans + 12 Females = Roadtrip!

There is nothing better than a road trip and I cannot think of any eleven people I'd rather travel with (other than my own fam) than the young ladies I hit the road with this past weekend for YWER.
Never in my life have I seen so many girls pack a small Sunday school class to sleep, ride in a van for three hours each way, and not sleep much behave so well. Our retreat was all about the Fruit of the Spirit and I saw it each and every one of these girls all weekend long. From patience for my slow driving:) to love for people they did not even know.

And just so I don't forget: Way to go Waynedale Baptist in Fort Wayne for being an amazing church host for this event. The church was decked out in fruit all over the place, they had GREAT food, great attitudes, and the men even joined in on the fun (as you can see below). They even had a security trailer parked in the church lot all night to ensure our safety. This church gets five stars all the way!
These were what my girls called the "fruit people":

Friday (or should I say Saturday morning) concluded with a pajama party. Here are a few of my girls on the giant Twister game. Mary and I wanted to bring our blankets in and sleep right there on that giant air mattress.

Here they are in front of the fruit basket. This was after a LONG night of fun.

The worship experience was SO good. My girls LOVED Natalie Noblitt. She did a great job connecting with all of them.

And this was what the ride home was like. I kind of expected them to sleep, but NO WAY....they were saving sleep for when they were home alone with no one to talk to. Mindy looks like she could use a little sleep in this pic....zzzzzz!!!

At the close of the weekend they all said, "I can't wait to go next year!" Now that's what I'm talking about!

Galatians 5:22-26 "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another."

I am Blessed

In this one week I will:

• Go to YWER in Fort Wayne
• Have some more work done to my not quite complete house
• Pray for my oldest son as he's at a lock-in at school
• Go to church at least three times
• Get a new middle school computer class (good-bye sixth graders, hello eighth graders)
• Visit with Mitch's family in Paoli
• Go to YWER in Clarksville with some friends and teens from Paoli
• See lots of friends that I don't see nearly enough from all over the state
• Have an early Thanksgiving dinner at church and lunch at the in-laws
• Pick my mom up at the airport (she's coming in from Florida for a whole week!!)

I am so looking forward to this week!

Psalm 34:8 "Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good; Blessed is the man (woman) who trusts in Him!"

YWER (Ft. Wayne) Tomorrow!

I am pumped up about YWER this year. We are actually having two in the state instead of one and I'm attending both. (I'm leaping as I type this). Last year was my first to lead a break-out session for YWER and when asked my thought was, "I don't normally speak (well, at least not in front of a crowd...other than my daily class:)), Mitch does that." But then as I prayed I realized that my calling had shifted and God was opening a whole new door of opportunity for me. This year when asked I had two thoughts: Number one, let me pray. Just based on the fact that I did it last year did not mean God was leading me again. And number two: I must not have messed up too bad since I'm being asked again:). After confirmation from the Lord I began to pray about what would benefit these young ladies the most. Last year I led on "The Five Love Languages for Teens" which is a book commonly used at Disciple Now weekends. It was rather funny because I had never even gone through that popular study years ago so I really enjoyed learning my own (and Mitch's) love language.

This year I'm taking a different approach and it has taken a lot of study and even more prayer. I'm leading a break-out on living a godly life in the world of technology. As I look at some of the Myspace, Facebook, and Youtubes that our teens are putting out today, I'm shocked and heart-broken. Do they not have a godly example? Where are their parents? I think some of us believe that as long as our kids are home online and not out on the streets, everything is okay. That could not be farther from the truth. As I read up on statistics and did some other research I was shocked at the danger our children are facing with some of these sites. Enough said.

Do I have a Facebook? Absolutely (look me up and add me as a friend). Why? Because I want to be informed about what my kids are into. Oh, and I also like reconnecting with people I went to school with and people I meet around the state. The students at school add me as a friend. The friends of my teens add me as a friend. Other teachers add me as a friend. I love it! I also love the fact that I am right there protecting them in this small aspect. I could go on and on about this....I've studied a lot this past month.....but I just want to close with this one Scripture:

Romans 12:2 “Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will know what God wants you to do and you will know how good and pleasing and perfect his will really is.”

Well, maybe I won't close with that. I have to add a few more things for you ladies since I'm not really sure how many teens actually read this.

And those of you moms who are planning on being at WER this year (we have two of those too), stop by my conference. I'm leading on 'Logged on OR Tuned Out' based on Vicki Courtney's book for non-techies. It's going to be fun! And while I'm advertising:), pastor's wives, don't forget to sign up for the Pastor's Wives breakfast. Diana Davis and I are working on a special start to your day.

MINISTERS’ WIVES BREAKFAST
The complimentary breakfast exclusively for the wives of pastors and other vocational ministers will take place on Saturday from 8:00 - 9:30 a.m. at each location. This line was inadvertently left off the schedule portion of our brochure.
Although there is no charge for this breakfast you must register to attend by indicating your attendance when you register for WER.

I really think I'm finished now:).

Amy's the Girl on The Biggest Loser!

There are not too many shows that my family watches together except for Tuesday night when we gather around the TV for The Biggest Loser.

This season has just been okay for me because I'm sick and tired of the Heba - Vicky group that is hateful to everyone. They seemed to have an alliance and arrogance that made it not too much fun to watch.

For those of you who didn't see it last night, the voted off contestants were back and one of them made their way back into the competition by winning a challenge. My family was personally rooting for Phillip because he's been treated so mean. When he was falling behind we started rooting for Stacey because she and Ed (Heba's husbands) were close.

Needless to say Ed won which meant the "blue" team was really ruling the roost. When it came time for elimination, everyone voted. The two up.....Vicky's (the meanest women I've ever seen) husband, Brady and Michelle (from the black team). At the scale when Brady fell below, Heba winked at Vicky just to let her know that it was okay and she and the blue team had his back.

That's when sweet Amy comes into the picture. I've felt bad for her the past few weeks because she's caught in the middle of this nastiness and she is just a kind person. Heba thought that she had her voting like her little puppet, but when it came down to it there were four votes for Michelle and three votes for Brady with Amy left to show who she voted for. My family was at the edge of the couch as she lifted the cover and as soon as we saw Brady we leaped and screamed!!!

That was so bold, but so so appropriate. Amy is my girl this week. I know it sounds crazy, but I'm praying for her because even though I know the show is taped, she still has a lot on her. Those two ladies (Vicky and Heba) are mean....I mean to tell ya....MEAN and they are the bullying type.

It leaves me with this thought of scripture: Galatians 6:7 "Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows."

Sometimes we think that we can just go on our way doing whatever pleases us and never thinking about others and what they mean to God. People often think that they are not going to hit bottom and that they can live as they want and do as they please. Galatians 6:7 tells us different. If you've been sowing seeds of hatefulness and lies, you will reap in due time. If you have been sowing seeds of the Spirit, you will also reap those in due time. Sometimes you have to wait a season or so to reap, but trust me....whatever you plant you will reap.

Go AMY!!!

Common IMing Abbreviations

Let's see how technical some of my blog readers are. I'm working on my break-out for YWER and one of the books I've been reading had this list of IM abbreviations. Post your comment to the answers....if you dare:).

1. lol
2. brb
3. btw
4. sup
5. idk (my son's favorite)
6. ltr
7. otp
8. yw
9. np
10. jk
11. omg
12. ttyl
13. thx
14. w/e
15. np
16. lylas (which has been around since I was in high school)
17. gtg
18. rents
19. sys
20. zzz

I'm looking forward to hearing from all of you.

Talent, talent, talent of all kind...

Not only is she extremely cute, but she can run faster than all the kids in seventh grade, play awesome volleyball, do all kinds of gymnastics, play the bass, and play the keyboard.

Here she is.....THE MINDY...

Candid Moment

This shot was taken by Melissa at Trunk or Treat. I found it on Facebook and just loved it.

How many pieces of popcorn can you catch. Go Mindy, Janis, and Drea.

My Hubby is the Best!

Mitch and I used to write daily thoughts to each other....well, daily. Today I opened my email and found this daily word from him. I haven't bragged on him in awhile so here you go. It even moved me to tears.

The Artist (by Mitch Whidden)
If you look around and see all of creation in its times and seasons, its hard to miss the fact that God is an artist. When we were at the concert the other day Danny noticed that Steven Curtis Chapman was switching guitars every couple of songs. He pointed it out and asked why. I said "Because he is an artist and those are his expensive paint brushes." I never considered myself to have any artistic ability whatsoever till the next day when I thought about it and realized that my art is found in preaching and my Bible is a paint brush and every message a canvas. As I watched you teach yesterday I watched an artist at work in front of the classroom. It seemed to me that every gesture, every word, every sticker handed out to dirty little hands of bright eyed children was like a stroke of color, leaving its irremovable mark on a small mind. You are an artist from the way you teach, to the way you prepare a meal and make us hot cookies afterword. God has an artist heart and I can see it in creation and in how he carefully designed you.
(and I am not just saying that because I want some of your cookies)

...he spent a little time in my classroom yesterday (for my birthday):o) I guess I'll invite him back more often.