The Bright Eyed Brunette

 I mentioned a few weeks ago that we were having family pictures taken by Carl's niece, Leslie. We just got them back, so I thought I would share them with you. Brother Bear was zonked out, so all eyes were on Miss Wren! Trey Landon Makena Faith Carlie and her family BeBe, Pappy, and the grandkids :) My girls My three babies 💓 My favorite picture of all💗 If you are in Arkansas and need a good photographer, I would recommend Leslie! Her handle on Instagram is @leslie_kerby_photography. Thanks, Les for the great pictures!

  Happy Monday, friends! Well, here we are again. Another Monday morning, another fresh week, and another cup of coffee that I'm hoping will magically give me the energy to accomplish all the things on my to-do list. Spoiler alert: It probably won't. But I'm going to drink it anyway. I thought we would start this week with a little old-fashioned chit-chat. Nothing too serious, nothing life changing. Just a little catching up on life lately, a few random thoughts, and whatever else happens to pop into my head. you know, the kind of conversation we'd have if you stopped by my house, pulled up a chair, and stayed a while. So grab your coffee (or whatever gets you going in the morning), and let's visit. First things first...it's October! This year is absolutely flying by. I love this time of year. The cozy evenings, the fall decorations, the soups and comfort foods, and the excuse to stay home in my pajamas a little longer. Now if Arkansas could just get the memo t...

 Have you ever been so focused on what was bothering you that you completely missed what God was trying to show you? I have. And apparently Jonah did too. Most of us know Jonah as the man who ran from God, got swallowed by a great fish, finally obeyed, and went to Nineveh. But sometimes I think the most convicting part of Jonah's story comes after all of that. Because Jonah finally did what God told him to do-- and then got upset when God showed mercy. Nineveh repented. God spared the city. And instead of celebrating, Jonah was angry. Then God caused a plant to grow and give Jonah shade. Jonah was pretty happy about that plant. But the next day, God allowed a worm to destroy it. And Jonah was miserable. He was so upset over that plant that he said he would rather die than live without it.  That's when God asked him question that gets right to the heart of the matter. Jonah cared deeply about a plant he hadn't planted, grown, or really done anything for. Yet he was angry wit...

 This weekend definitely didn't go the way I would have liked. Instead of getting out and enjoying the first weekend in October, I spend most of the weekend feeling under the weather. It started on Wednesday with keeping my grandson because he wasn't feeling well. And, of course, when that sweet baby needs his grandma, I'm going to be there. There was plenty of holding and cuddling and trying to make a sick little one as comfortable as possible. Unfortunately, somewhere in the middle of all those cuddles, he decided to share more than his sweetness with me. By the time Saturday rolled around I wasn't feeling so great myself. And honestly the weather couldn't have matched the mood any better. It was the kind of weather that makes you want to stay in your pajamas, curl up under a blanket, and forget there is an entire world outside your front door. So that's pretty much what we did. I guess if I'm going to be stuck inside feeling crummy, at least the sunshine ...

 Happy What's Up Wednesday! Today I am linking up with  Shay  and  Sheaffer  for another "What's Up Wednesday" Let's do this! What we're eating this week... So far this week we have made: Wings on the Pit Boss Slow Cooker Pineapple Pork Chops You can't get any easier than wings and chops! Especially when they are on the grill and slow cooker!! What I'm Reminiscing About... Septembers past: September is Trey's birth month. It is also the month that my grandpa died four years ago. This is the year that Papa gave Trey a gun for his birthday. He was so proud to give it to Trey and you can tell by the look on Trey's face how happy he was. Such a sweet moment to remember. Our county fair is also in September. My kids used to love it when they were younger. They still love rides, just not the traveling kind :) This was Wrenley's school picture last year. She has grown so much in one year :) What I'm Loving... Makena and my mom have started mak...

 Ella Langley's "Be Her" got me thinking about something I think a lot of women struggle with- the woman we think we should be.  You know her. She's more disciplined. More confident. More put together. She exercises, keeps the house clean, reads her Bible every morning, never loses her patience, and somehow always has good hair. We tell ourselves, If I could just be her..... And there's nothing wrong with wanting to grow. But what happens when the woman we want to become turns into an idol? Sometimes we become so focused on our ideal self that we forget to ask God who He wants us to become. There's a subtle difference between praying, "Lord, make me more like Christ," and saying, "Lord, help me to become the woman I've decided I need to be." One is surrender. The other can easily become control.  Philippians 1:6 reminds us that He which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ. God isn't waiting fo...