Weekend of Wonder

We had a wonderful,relaxing weekend. I kinda took a break from working on both my UM and BibbCo school work. I have papers due in both of my classes over the next few weeks so I have been reading my hiney off! This weekend I spent a lot of time in prayer and Bible Study and just thinking.

I have so much too do! Our house looks like a tornado came through, I need to make good grades in my last remaining classes at UM, I must make decisions and preprations for graduate school. There is a sense of accomplishment in knowing that I will soon have my college degree after MANY years of effort, but it is bitter sweet to think about starting Graduate School. I love my job and I believe that this is a special niche of education that God has used my whole life to prepare me for. But that is not enough for the State Department of Education! So, if I am to see this plan come to fruition, more school is necessary. I just spent a lot of time praying about it. In some ways I have so much to prove, and in others I just want school to be over so that I can spend time watching my children grow!

I also want to make sure I devote enough time to God's work as possible. After all, my life is NOT all about work, school, or even hobbies. Yes, God wants me to do my best at everything and honor Him in all I do, but these "things" are NOT what it is all about! God has a plan for us all. No matter what this life sends my way I MUST find a way to focus on God's work.

We are starting a new young people/young couples Sunday School class at our church beginning April. I am going to devote a lot of my prayer time and "spare-time" to the success of this class. Our church is not the biggest, but it is FULL of people who love GOD and love eachother! If you are in our age group (married OR single) and have been looking for somewhere to go or a group to fellowship with I would encourage you to come worship and learn with us. Just email me or call me if you have any questions.

This weekend I was reminded of God's Wonder. How vast His love and power. I did some reflecting on Carys' journey. How closely He held us during those storms. Time seems to have moved so quickly beacuse we felt safe in His arms. We got our first set of chickens in November. We have cared for those chicks and I must say they have grown in to beautiful testaments of God's ability. Anyway, we have anxiously awaited several milestones along the way. It has been 20 LONG weeks as we have awaited two major things (1) our rooster to begin crowing (2) our hens to start laying eggs. Yesterday as we returned home from church our other rooster crowed to welcome us home. As I opened the back door I heard a deep crow. I froze in my tracks! It was Big Daddy Crowing Away! He still needs a little pratice but boy, were we excited!

I say that to say this...Carys was in treatment for about 11 months. That time seems like such a distant memory to me. It seems like no time at all! It has only been 2.5 months since her last scan but it seems like ages ago! Time flies! God has designated times for EVERYTHING! Sometimes it helps me to just take some time and look at what all God has done to remind me that just like He was our ROCK during that time. I will begin to pray for me to recognize Him in ALL that goes on with me...sickness, grief, pain, work, hobbies, happiness, peace, joy contentment, or anything else!

Science Lesson

Okay, so everyone knows I minored in Biology! So, I decided I was brave enough to teach 3rd and 4th graders about the invisible world that could be discoverd though microscopes. At Woodstock Elementary they have a really neat program that allows us to view what we see through the microscope on the computer and project it on the the SmartBoard. As they were completing thier drawings of plant/animal cells, we decided to play around with the software. Here is what we created. They said it could be a poster for don't do drugs or this will happen to you! BTW...this is a picture of ME!

Reelin' In A Cure...Cottingham Style

Okay, if these pictures do not make you want to join in the fun for Relay for Life nothing will!
Just take a look at how good God is and where is had brought our family in the last year!

Here is that link one more time!
http://main.acsevents.org/site/TR/RelayForLife/RFLFY09MS?team_id=360307&pg=team&fr_id=15763

T-Shirt Time

Okay people!

It is time to get going. If you have not already done so, PLEASE sign up for our Realy For Life team the Wilms Warriors. Click the following link to sign-up on line or PLEASE email me and I can help you get started.

http://main.acsevents.org/site/TR/RelayForLife/RFLFY09MS?team_id=360307&pg=team&fr_id=15763

I hope that most of you realize that I would not continue to bug you about this if it were not IMPORTANT! You may not think that you "small" donation can make a difference, but it CAN if we al work together! If you are planning to be at the event (May 1, 2009) or if you live far away but want to help stand up with Carys and all the many other Cancer survivors, please donate!

We currently have TWO fundraisers taking place.

(1) Krispy Kreme doughnut sales end TUESDAY! Please call or email me if you want a box or think you could sell a few boxes.

(2) Our T-shirt sale kicks off today~The First Day of Spring~ The shirts will be black this year with this design on the back. They will also include a small print on the front with the "Reelin" fish. If you plan to attend the event you NEED one of these so that everyone can tell you are part of The Wilms Warriors!

As we have found, they also make a GREAT witnessing tool. Many people will ask about Carys or Wilms and it gives you the PERFECT opportunity to share what God has done for us and what He CAN do for them!

We will ONLY be taking orders through April 1st to allow processing time to get the shirts back for the event.

We will need to collect the money upfront $12.00 per shirt. I have made up order forms to help you take orders. Many people will take a shirt if you just ask! Please e-mail me and I will send you the order form via email or I can get it to you in person.

Please send me individual orders or request to help in the sale via email (au386@att.net) or call!

The fact that Carys is labled a SUVIVOR is a an honor that so many kids and adults do not receive. If you want to help change that, PLEASE SUPPORT RELAY FOR LIFE!

Misc Pics

Just a few recent pics of interest.

~Pagent Brooke ~

I tried to play around with this pic with some online software. It messed up the resolution so I will post the "real" thing later.

This picture proves that I will shoot ANYTHING!

Saturday, March 7th, 2009

Just about the time of his birth 8:15 am

Cupcakes from Bailey's party. They were as delicious as they look! Summer hid some coconut flavor in the icing. YUM-YUM!

Sawyer is THREE!

I know I am over a week late in this post but better late than never!

From my perspective, Sawyer had a great birthday. His party was well attended by family and friends. It was a AUBURN themed party and he loved it. My grandparents (Mike and Pauline) provided the cake. A big "Thank You" is in order for them and everyone else who helped me put the party on.

So I cannot believe that he is 3! Seems like only yesterday we were finding out about his arrival. We were so excited! I knew I was expecting even before I "found out!" Then, finding out he was to be a boy was another exciting day. He came into the world 4 weeks early. He spent his first 4 days in NICU. He was a fighter from the beginning. He fought through reflux, allgeries, and being separated from us during Carys' illness. And through it all, he is a pretty well-adjusted 3-year-old. He now likes to tell people that when he gets finished being 3 he will be four. He is trying his best to understand that no matter how much he grows or learns he will never be the same AGE as Carys!

I know I say it all the time but he is the perfect combonation of silly and serious. He LOVES to make rhymes. The funnier the better. At the moment, he sings "Sawyer Burt "Cottonham", comming down from Birmingham riding on a opossum! But, he is also the kid that cries because we burned the front yard for new grass to grow. Or still asks occasionally when we are going to get our old car back. "But I liked that car so much...it was my favorite!" he will say with tears in his eyes.

To my Little Man > I love you more than words. I pray that you learn to take life as it comes and always rely on God to see you through!!!

Relay 4 Life!

It occured to me that some of you may read the blog, but not the caringbridge site. I wanted to give everyone the opportunity to donate or join our Relay For Life team. You can check out our Team Page to join our team or dontate on-line.

This year our team goal is $5000.00! This is totally do-able; WITH YOUR HELP! If you would like to join our team, but are not sure how or do not want to do so on-line, please let me know via e-mail au386@att.net and I will get you all set up. Also, if you want to help with our current doughnut sale, let me know. Even if you can sell just a few, IT WILL HELP!!

Upon further discussion with Justin, we have decided to change the theme to "Reelin' in a Cure" We have some friends that are doing a benifit fishing tournment with this title and I LOVED it! We want to win as many awards as possible at Relay this year. Best Theme & Best t-shirt - here we come. We hope to have the camp-site all decked out in fishing gear! I should have a t-shirt design by the end of the week. Please ask everyone you know to buy one. I promise it will be cute and all the proceeds go to Relay!!!

We also are working on getting together a benifit singing sometime in April. All other ideas are welcome!

Remember, mark your calanders for May 1, 2009 - Bibb County's Relay for Life!

God is All-knowing...

Sunday mornings are hectic to say the least! We sleep late (after all it IS a day of rest!) and spend the rest of the morning hunting shoes, socks, brushing teeth and combing hair. Often, by the time we walk through the doors of church, I have to PUT a smile on my face. God never fails to find some way of making the morning better before church is over.

This Sunday was NO different. When we came in I was a little uneasy because I was putting on my make-up in the car and dropped the mascara on my pants! So, I went straight into the bathroom while Justin and the kids went into the sanctuary. When I came in, I notice my mom and Carys talking to a man who I assumed to be the Gideon speaker for the day. He was! But boy, did God know what he was doing.

You see, this speaker was very special. He was from Mississippi. When Carys entered the building, he commented to my mom how cute her hair style was. Mother replied, "It is just growing back, she had to take chemo for Wilms Tumor and it all fell out." The Gideon placed his arm around mother. She assumed he was telling her he was sorry and she replied, "It is okay! God has healed her and all is well." To which he relpiled, "You don't understand. My granddaughter was just diagnosed with Wilms Tumor last month!"

You talk about the POWER of God comming down! It was nothing short of a miracle. God had arranged this day so that the Gideon speaker, while out preforming his "duty" could be touched. It sheds a whole new light on the verse "Delight yourself in the Lord, and he shall give you the desires of your heart!" I know that man had NO intention of having his desires met by comming to Pondville on March 8, 2009...But God did!

Please stop by her site Anna Beth Aldridge and leave her parents a message of HOPE!

Justin and I felt so blessed to be able to share Carys' experienecs and help others see light at the end of the tunnell! God ALWAYS knows how to bless us when were are Living4Him!!!

Year-End-Review

So I know it is not the end of the year per-say, but tomorrow is SAWYER'S 3rd Birthday. I will post a HAPPY BIRTHDAY post later. For now, here was Sawyer this time last year!

Sawyer 2008

Sawyer 2009

I hope you never have to know...

What a lot of the things I have experienced over the past 18 months are like. Carys' diagnosis is a fragment of eternity, a tiny moment, that is forever etched on my heart. Seeing what the "cure" to her illness did to her body in the process is much harder to think about it retrospect that is was in real-time.

We are so blessed by each day that we experience with our daughter. We watched so many friends and aquantinces lose their hard-fought battles. It makes us thankful for EVERY moment. There are times when we just cannot bring ourselves to fuss with her. There are other times that we worry about the effects of treament.

I pray that you NEVER have to experience the pain of lying awake a night wondering if that cough is OK, or if she is not pooping becuase she ate too much cheese or if it is due to some problem from radiation or tumors!

In all that I face, and there is MUCH MORE good that bad, I look for ways that you might hear what God tells me without having to experience it for yourself. So, here is the verse HE gave me...

Isaiah 14:3 In that wonderful day when the Lord gives his people rest from sorrow and fear, from slavery and chains,

4 you will taunt the king of Babylon. You will say, “The mighty man has been destroyed. Yes, your insolence is ended.

5 For the Lord has crushed your wicked power and broken your evil rule.

6 You struck the people with endless blows of rageand held the nations in your angry grip with unrelenting tyranny.

7 But finally the earth is at rest and quiet. Now it can sing again! 8 Even the trees of the forest— the cypress trees and the cedars of Lebanon— sing out this joyous song: ‘Since you have been cut down, no one will come now to cut us down!’

So I understand this passage was not written ABOUT me, I am assured it was written FOR me! God has given me rest. Things will not always be easy. But, He has crushed the wicked power and evil rule of cancer in Carys' life. Our home is now at rest and quite. We refuse to allow the tyranny of cancer, sin, finances, or ANYTHING stand in the way of our PRAISING the Lord of heaven and earth! My dear friend Marci (Hannah Grace's Mom) said something that I have experienced but not sure I have ever written about. When things are going on beyond by control, if I just stop thinking about that, and focus on my TRUE purpose (praising and worshiping GOD for what HE is and what He has already done) those issues seem to melt away.

It is not that they melt away, but GOD takes care of my every need.

Although there are many things I hope you NEVER have to know what they feel like, I PRAY you are able to know the love of the Almight God who created the universe, healed my daughter, and gave me a good nights sleep last night!

I would just like to say...

How very thankful I am for my life, my family, and my GOD!

There was a guy on Rick and Bubba this morning who is scheduled to debate Dr. Lennox at Sanford Univ. sometime this week. He considers himself and evangelistic atheists. This means that not only does he believe there is no God, he is on a mission to get others to follow his "beliefs." I don't have a problem with him doing this. after all, that is exactly what I try and do, get others to share my beliefs. And, I believe God's Word when it says that it will not return void, and this debate creates an opportunity for Dr. Lennox to share the TRUTH of God's Word with others.

Some of the things that he proposed about religion in general and Christanity specifically made me so sad. The reality is, even if he does not believe it, that he is doomed if he does not change his way of thinking. And, there are so many like him. He stated that religion did not serve to free people, but bound them to traditions in hope that they MIGHT please their "maker." Well, although my writing skills are not able to express the FREEDOM that come from knowing Christ, my heart feels it! How I wish this man could see that God's Word expressly states HOW to please HIM! If I follow those commandment God provides I can KNOW that HE is pleased with me, and that give me strength to face ANYTHING life may bring!

To him I would say, "Job 27:8 For what hope has the godless when he is cut off, when God takes away his life?" and "Psalm 25:3No one whose hope is in you will ever be put to shame, but they will be put to shame who are treacherous without excuse" Chirst is my EXCUSE! I, all alone, can do nothing! But HE (Chirst) made a way for me to know truth, mercy, and GRACE!!!

I want to take the time to PRAISE GOD for existing and choosing to CREATE mankind and ALLOW us to fellowship with him. The blessings he has poured on me are unspeakable and I am so thankful for each of them.

Philippians 4:6
"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God."

Today, along with thanksgiving, I would like to pray for the man on Rick and Bubba, that he might learn of Christ's unchanging LOVE before it is too late!

I pray that God might give me one chance today to make a difference in someone's life; for His glory!

Snow Days!!!

Here are just a FEW of our snow pictures. We were up around 5:30 and the kids (particularly the big ones:) could not wait. Personally, I was afraid that it was going to stop and they would not get to play in it. These pics are all from the early morning. I took about 150 shots total. By the way, I did take lots of pics of Sawyer but he is NOT a morning person! We tried to wake him. He did get out of bed to potty and take a glance at the snow, but right back to bed he went. I will post more later.

Sawyer left his boots out by his tractor Saturday night. Good thing they are too small. It made a good picture anyway!

I was amazed at how quickly the snow was accumilating. I do not think I have seen it snow so much and so hard since the 1993 storm!
Justin with his snowball. Very impressive!

I am very glad I got out before daylight. I was able to capture the snowfall in action.

Carys on her first excursion. We kept going out to play, in to warm-up, out to play...you get the idea!

You might be in Pondville if you see this sign!

Our area is also dealing with the flooding from all the rain. You all know how obsessed we are with the Cahaba. I just could not resist documenting the water level.

The Grand Cahaba - Well beyond her banks. This shot taken from the Harrisburg Bridge.The Cahaba from the HWY 82 overpass, looking south.