Has it really been 6 months???

Wow...I can't believe it's been almost 6 months since I last posted! I guess life has been busy and I just haven't made the time to blog. I really need to make it more of a priority. I really enjoy reading other blogs...and it's not like there hasn't been stuff going on around here to blog about, I just need to sit down and do it!

So...let's see if I can catch up with the Lindley happenings......

In February, David and I spent Valentine's weekend at our favorite marriage conference, Weekend to Remember, by FamilyLife. We went to Hilton Head, SC and had a wonderful time focusing on our marriage and refocusing on each other. After that, we attended the annual Chick-fil-A operator's seminar in Washington, D.C. We were able to do some sight seeing; we went to George Washington's home and got to spend a few hours at the National Mall going to museums and visiting monuments.

In April, Audrey turned 7 and had a Pig party. She loves pigs! Emma turned the big 1-0 in May right at the end of the school year. She had another luau party with a bit of a monkey theme. The girls finished out the school year strong!! They all received some great awards at the end of the school year and Emma was invited to join the Jr. Beta Club! We are so proud of them. Audrey and Emma both took the CRCT this year and did great by exceeding all the standards.

David and I went on a cruise at the beginning of June with the Chick-fil-A Dwarf House group. We spent a day in Key West and also a day in Cozumel where we got the opportunity to swim with dolphins! It was incredible! We got to do a dorsal tow -- we held on to the dorsal fins of two dolphins and they pulled us through the water. They also did a foot push where each dolphin pushed us by our feet up and out of the water!! It was SO much fun. We also were lucky enough to get to spend some time with a manatee. It was a blast! The weekend after our cruise we went on our family vacation to Panama City Beach! Mom and Dad went with us and we stayed the week at Splash Resort. We celebrated both Father's Day and David's birthday at the beach! We had a great time even though we had a couple of injuries. Audrey was the first one to fall at the water park that is on sight. She slipped on a slide and bumped her head and ended up with a nice goose egg over her left eye. Not to be outdone, Amy developed yet another abscessed tooth the next day so we had to call the dentist and have a prescription called in....then, the next day, Amy fell at the water park and busted her top lip!! She ended up with a scrape on the cheek and a nice cut on the inside of her lip.

We started of July with the Peachtree Road Race on the 4th. This year, Emma decided to join David and I at the race! She did great! The Peachtree is a 10k which translates to 6.2 miles. We ran the first 4 miles and then had to walk the last 2 miles because Emma and David were beginning to show signs of heat exhaustion. We had a late start time (almost 9:00) and it was HOT out there! We still managed to finish in about an hour and 25 minutes.

Now we are just chilling out for the rest of the summer....Amy will turn 6 (where has the time gone??) in a little over a week. She is having yet another Dora birthday party. This will be her 5th Dora party. I told her yesterday she should be the president of the Dora fan club because she has to be Dora's biggest fan!! We are also getting ready to start our back to school supply shopping. Emma is about to enter the 5th grade, Audrey will be in 2nd and Amy will be a 1st grader. The girls really enjoy school so although they are sad their summer is coming to an end, they are looking forward to being back with their friends.

I plan to go to work with David a couple of days a week and I will also be doing Mom to Mom again. I really enjoyed it last year and look forward to it again this year.

I think that has me caught up!!! I'm hoping to set aside time each week to update...but I'm not making any promises. I know the school year will be busy with lots of homework and projects...but maybe I can find a window of opportunity every now and then to update.

Until next time......Angie

At a loss....

Well, it's hard to believe that January is almost over. Time is a precious thing. It always seems to go by way too fast. Recently (the 17th of this month) we celebrated the 10th anniversary of Robby's homegoing. Celebrate seems to be a strange word, but, in all honesty, it is something to celebrate. He has been with Jesus for 10 years now. I can honestly say that not one day in these last ten years has gone by without him coming to my mind. I think of him every day. There are things that make me sad, I do miss him. I wish that he would have been able to experience being an uncle. Emma was born just months after he died. However, I don't know that I would have wanted my girls to experience losing him....but I would have liked for them to have known him.

The past few weeks have been rough, emotionally speaking. There have been so many deaths. Right after the New year, one of David's old employee's passed away. Then, days later, the associate pastor of my church died. That same day, a friend of mine lost her boyfriend. And then, just this past Friday, one of the sweetest ladies I've ever known, Karen Means, died of brain cancer. She leaves behind her husband of 21 years, her 14 year old son, and her 10 year old daughter. I can't honestly say I know how these people feel...while I've suffered a great loss losing my brother, I know it's different to lose a parent, a child, or a spouse. I do know that they have a tough road ahead. My prayers are with them. I know that most of them know the Lord...and for that I am thankful. The Bible says in Psalm 34:18 The LORD is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit. I hope that these suffering families can find hope in these words. Each day that goes by is but another day closer to reuniting with our loved ones.

I'm attending the funeral of my sweet friend Karen today. My heart is broken, but I know that Karen is no longer suffering from the beast that invaded her body. She is greatly missed, but will not be forgotten. Please join me in praying for these precious families as they adjust to life without their loved ones presence.