Doug & Jennifer Gross

Update!

2009-03-26T11:43:00.003-04:00

Hello! It's been 4 months since I have updated! Yikes! The real reason I am now is because my dear friend Joy has guilted me into with her last post! So this is just for you Joy!

Lots of things have happened lately. Denton is growing like a weed and itching to crawl! He loves to chew on everything! He has two teeth so far and loves anything that has music.

We are doing well, busy as usual. We have been thinking very hard about redoing our bathroom. The only problem is that it is our ONLY bathroom and it would not be a one day job! Oh the joys of being a homeowner!

My mom was here to visit a few weeks ago and Doug's parents just left yesterday. Company is nice but so is routine! Have a great day!

4 Months Old Already!

2008-12-23T20:16:00.003-05:00

Merry Christmas to everyone! We hope you all are doing well! Denton is already 4 months old! I can't believe it! We are excited for his first Christmas even though he doesn't have a clue! He is talking so much now and is so much fun to play with. He is quite the character! He seems to be getting much fatter, but a lady at church told me "It's the only time in life when it's cute to be fat!" Too true! He has to go for his 4 month checkup next week so we'll see how much he weighs. Hope everyone has a Merry Christmas!

Christmas Cantata Sunday

Hugging his puppy in his Bumbo chair

Giggling away

What a sweetie!

First Giggles!

2008-12-09T23:18:00.002-05:00

Christmas Parade!

2008-12-08T21:51:00.002-05:00

Saturday was the Roanoke Rapids Christmas Parade. It was a little different this year. Instead of having it in the afternoon, it didn't start until 4 pm. That was both good and bad. Good because since it was dark all the floats had lights. Bad because it was so cold!!! It was in the 30's the whole time! Denton did very well but he fell asleep before the end. Doug only took videos of the parade so I only have pictures of Denton!

It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas!

2008-12-03T15:24:00.002-05:00

December is already here! I can't believe it! We have had a busy few weeks around here. Doug helped me put out all our decorations before Thanksgiving. That way when we came back from Bristol everything would be done. Denton loves to look at the Christmas tree with all the lights. Last night we finally got a family picture made. We met the photographer and hoped that Denton would at least be in a decent mood. He was and we even got a few smiles out of him! Tomorrow I am taking him for his 3 month pictures. Hopefully they will be even better!

Yesterday I decided to be a little festive and bake some cookies. Well, I didn't have any baking soda so I searched my cookbook for any cookie recipe that didn't require it. I finally found one for sugar cookies! Well, needless to say, they were a little bland and boring. Doug said they tasted like raw dough. At least I tried! I guess I'll just have to go back to sipping hot chocolate!

2008-11-17T21:39:00.000-05:00

Make a Smilebox slideshow

This and That

2008-11-14T08:55:00.003-05:00

John Deere hat

Standing against Daddy

Things are going well here in North Carolina. Except for lingering colds we are all doing great. Doug is busy as always designing flyers for our revival, the new church calendar along with all the normal stuff. I am just trying to keep my head above water cleaning the house and doing laundry! Denton is doing great! He is always smiling and is starting to talk more. He is also rolling over both ways and trying oh so hard to sit up.

It's hard to believe that Thanksgiving is only a few weeks away. The time has flown by! I can't wait for Christmas. I keep trying to talk Doug into getting out the decorations early but I don't think he's going to give in!

I am also very excited that our good friends Phil and Michelle Gage only live 2 hours away now! Yeah!! Can't wait to spend some time with them! Doug and I are so happy that the Lord has led them to serve at a good church (and that they are so close!). Michelle, if you read this, you really need to call me!

Eating Cereal, Rolling Over and Sitting Up!

2008-11-08T19:48:00.000-05:00

Make a Smilebox postcard

2008-11-06T15:42:00.000-05:00

Make a Smilebox postcard

Denton's Surgery

2008-10-24T15:10:00.002-04:00

Today was Denton's hernia surgery. Doug and I had to have him in Chapel Hill by 6:30 so we left around 4 am. Which of course means that I only got about 2 hours of sleep thanks to my beloved son's unpredictable sleeping habits. After checking in at the Children's Hospital the nurse came to prep him. They took him back about 7:30 and to my surprise I did pretty well. I think it was because he wasn't crying or screaming. That would have made it much harder. Doug and I went downstairs and grabbed some breakfast to make the time pass quicker. He got out of surgery about 9am and went to recovery. Then the nurse came and got me (only one of us could go back there) and took me back to see him. Of course he was starving, having not eaten since 1:30 and crying very groggily. It took him a while to come around but he's doing very well and hopefully not having much pain thanks to some liquid Tylenol. We have a follow up visit in two weeks to make sure everything is healing correctly. Thank you for your prayers and thoughts!

2008-10-17T19:46:00.002-04:00

This is just a little note to let you know what is going on with Denton. Doug and I found a swollen spot in his groin last Tuesday. After going to the doctor, we found out that he has a hernia that will need surgery to correct. We will be going to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill on Monday to meet with a pediatric surgeon. Even though this is a fairly common thing, when it is your baby it is very daunting. He had also all of a sudden started screaming in pain and stiffening his stomach. While we were at the doctor I asked about this as well. He said he has acid reflux and gave us some medication for it. Please pray that all goes well at the consultation on Monday and that the coming surgery will be uneventful.

Trip to Missouri

2008-10-17T19:17:00.004-04:00

Last weekend, Doug, Denton, and I made the trip to Missouri for my grandparent's 50th wedding anniversary. This was also the first time they had seen Denton. We had a really good time and enjoyed seeing everyone! Denton did pretty well on the airplanes. He slept through most of them.Waiting in the St. Louis airport
Notice anything strange?
At the gate in Chicago
Chicago
My mom, my sister Anya, and me (Don't we look thrilled?)
Pop and Denton
Waiting for the party to start
My grandma had a fall theme. They decorated all over outside. Very fitting for my family!
Our rental car (Boy did it go fast!)

Denton's first plane ride
Zach and Emma with Denton
Love this onesie!
Anniversary Cake
Mako and Pop

More Pictures of Denton

2008-10-04T16:50:00.003-04:00

Here are some new pictures of Denton! We are gearing up for our visit to Missouri next week for my grandparent's 50th wedding anniversary. Denton's first plane ride! I'm sure we'll take pictures!

Denton's First Smile- On Camera

2008-09-24T11:22:00.001-04:00

Make a Smilebox greeting

Denton's First Playdate

2008-09-19T22:13:00.002-04:00

Today Denton had his first official playdate. I went walking with my friend Kelly, who had her baby two days before I had Denton. Her little girl is named Jacki and weighed 5 pounds, 4 ounces. So, of course, Denton looks huge compared to her! Enjoy the pictures!

Richmond Canal Trail

2008-09-16T21:07:00.006-04:00

Big yawn!

Today was Denton's first out of state trip(We only live 5 minutes from the Virginia border!) Doug is taking the seniors in our church on a canal cruise next week in downtown Richmond. Because he was unfamiliar with Richmond we decided to take a trip to scope it out. It was a rainy day, but the pictures turned out pretty good. We couldn't get Denton to wake up so he's sleeping in most of them!

Busy Week of Revival!

2008-09-10T22:40:00.004-04:00

This has been a very busy week! We are in the middle of a week long revival with Bro. Sam Davison and Bro. R.B. Ouellette. Revival weeks were busy before but with a newborn they are extremely busy! Denton is doing great and his breakout is starting to clear up. He is becoming more alert and spends less time during the day sleeping. Thanks for stopping by!

Denton with Bro. Sam Davison

Not wanting to go to bed!

Two Weeks and Counting...

2008-09-06T18:09:00.003-04:00

Two weeks down, only 50 more till Denton's first birthday! Yikes! Well, this has been an interesting week. It started with a fever, no big deal, and it turned into a urinary tract infection and probably more where that came from. After a LONG doctor's visit, and a very strong antibiotic, I am feeling much better. Two exciting things happened to Denton this week. Well, maybe they're exciting! 1. His nice, clear, clean complexion is long gone. He has officially aquired the newborn rash. I told Doug he looks like his mom now! 2. Today he lost his umbilical cord! Yeah!! Not exciting to most, but it was to me. Now I can give him a real bath!

Bright eyesGone are the peaches and cream complexion
Watching me check everyone's blog

One Week Old

2008-09-01T21:47:00.005-04:00

Denton is doing great! And aside from shorter nights, so are Doug and I. His blood work came back much better on Thursday so he doesn't have to wear the bili blanket anymore. I took him to the hospital for the bloodwork by myself on Thursday, and after a rather long wait, walked out to the car. Much to my surprise (and dismay) the car wouldn't start. So there I was, stuck at the hospital with a 5 day old baby. Doug was on soul-winning so it took about 45 minutes for him to rescue me. Luckily, it wasn't too hot and Denton slept the entire time. Also, it was nothing major with my car. They fixed it that afternoon! What a blessing!

On Friday my mom came to visit for the weekend. She was such a help to me and did anything that needed to be done. I got to turn off the baby monitor and sleep longer than usual. She would come wake me up when it was time for him to eat. Thanks mom! And of course, I didn't take any pictures while she was here! Maybe I can get some from her!

Tomorrow is a weight check at the doctor. Hopefully he will be close to his birth weight! I'm sure there will be more pictures to come!

First Sunday at church (his tie wouldn't fit)

Denton's First Andy Griffith episode

("Goober Takes A Car Apart")

Watching Andy Griffith with Daddy

More Pictures of Denton

2008-08-27T09:39:00.004-04:00

Finally some new pictures! We have had them on the camera but just hadn't found time to post. Yesterday, we took Denton to the doctor for his first checkup. Then we had to get a blood test done to see if his billirubin levels were too high and see if he had jaundice. They turned out to be pretty high so Doug and I took him to get a billi blanket. He has to wear it all the time, 24 hours a day until his levels come down. Hopefully, they will come way down today. I have to take him for another blood test tomorrow morning so I'm praying they will be low enough to get rid of his machine. He is finally starting to open his eyes more and looking oh so handsome. It amuses me every time I see Doug holding him and talking in that "baby" voice. But, he does like Doug to sing to him! Have a great day!

Big dark eyes
Trying so hard to focus
It looks like a smile but I think he was going for his hand
Crazy blue light baby
Taking it easy
His Billi-Blanket machine

Denton Isaac Gross Enters The World!

2008-08-23T14:41:00.007-04:00

At long last, Denton Isaac Gross entered the world at 1:50 a.m. on August 23rd, 2008. After 19 hours of intense, and at times painful, labor; little Denton discovered America weighing in at 8 pounds - 3 ounces and measuring at 19 3/4 inches long. Mom and Baby are both doing fine and are scheduled to be released from the Nash Community Hospital in Rocky Mount, NC on Sunday, August 24th. Thanks for all the prayers, thoughts, and well wishes from our family and friends. We will post updates really soon, but until then, enjoy these 'first' of many pictures of our new baby boy!

The Home Stretch

2008-08-15T14:05:00.002-04:00

Well, I went to the doctor today! He basically told me that Denton is going to be HUGE! Well ok, not in those words. He did say that he will be 8 1/2 pounds plus! Yikes! I'm sure he'll have a huge head as well! He also said that unless I go before he wants to induce me next Friday, August 22. That's a whole 3 days early! Better than three days late! Needless to say, I'm excited and yet scared to death at the same time! Only one more week!

Two Weeks To Go!

2008-08-09T16:15:00.002-04:00

Only 2 more weeks to go! Doug helped me pack my hospital bag today so we are ready anytime! I just thought I would post a few new pictures. I can't believe my stomach is that BIG! We picked up our highchair last week and I put it together all by myself. I thought I did a pretty good job.

Denton's highchair

My massive swollen feet. Those of you who know me well also know that I usually have very skinny feet!

It looks like I have a basketball in my shirt!

No Sleep!

2008-07-30T06:38:00.003-04:00

So, there is absolutely no reason why I shouldn't be in bed right now, sleeping the morning away(At least until Doug gets ready for work!) but here I am at 6:30 am wondering if I should just go ahead and get ready for the day! Now believe me, I am not a proponent of being a lazy sleepyhead but I figure in a few weeks my sleeping in till 7:30 or 8 days will be over. Why shouldn't I take a advantage of them? All of you mothers out there know what I'm talking about. You wear yourself out during the day, hoping that you might actually get to sleep all night! Even a few restroom breaks at 2 am and 4am don't deter your hopes of getting more than 5 hours of sleep. That's just the way it goes! I really haven't felt too bad during pregnancy but man I sure do miss that 8 hours of sleep every night! Am I the only one who knows what I'm saying?

Tomorrow, Doug and I will be heading for Walkertown for the National Sword of the Lord Conference till Friday. I'm sure we will run into some people we know. It's always fun to see old friends! If any of you will be there be sure to let me know! Have a wonderful day!

Vacation!

2008-07-01T14:41:00.004-04:00

Last week, Doug and I took our much awaited vacation. We usually like to go somewhere new but since I'm a little large we decided to spend the week around Knoxville. First, we stopped by Bristol for a baby shower at Doug's parents. Then we spend the rest of the week in Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg. Friday, we drove to Knoxville to see some of our old friends! We had a great time but it's always good to be home!

Cutting the cake at the baby shower
Baby Shower
Quick pic before leaving Bristol
My crazy husband at the Davy Crockett Putt Putt
Doug was so mad that I made the last hole and got a free game!
Ripley's Aquarium

Our good friends, Joy and Jamin Boyer drove down from Ohio to eat lunch with us. This was the 1st time I had seen Jackson! What a cutie!

After lunch with Joy and Jamin we drove to Lenoir City to see Brice and Kelly Chapman and their new baby boy, Bradley. It's amazing he's not crying in this picture!

It rained the entire trip back home, but we saw the most beautiful rainbow ever!

Trip to Missouri

2008-06-21T18:56:00.003-04:00

Lucky for me, Jessica's wedding was at my home church. This gave me a good reason to visit my family. I flew in for a week and got to spend some time with them. Unfortunately, I didn't think to take many pictures! We went to Hillbilly Days over the weekend and listened to bluegrass music and ate funnel cakes!

My sister Anya and her husband Jamie at Hillbilly Days
My nephew Zachary with his hillbilly rubberband gun

Jessica's Wedding

2008-06-21T18:48:00.004-04:00

I traveled to Missouri last week for my good friend Jessica Smothers' wedding. I was supposed to be a bridesmaid but since I'm a little too big for the dresses she asked me to sing during the wedding. It was a beautiful wedding and she was a beautiful bride! Jessica is now Mrs. Carey Hendricks!

Jess and her bridesmaids
Jessica and I
My neice Emma and my sister Anya at the wedding

Denton's Crib

2008-06-21T18:35:00.003-04:00

It's been a long time since I've posted so I thought I would put a few pictures of Denton's crib on here. His room isn't close to being finished yet but I'll post more when it is!

Kicks and Wiggles

2008-05-15T15:00:00.003-04:00

This time of the year is so busy that I feel like I can't get anything done! I have been feeling Denton (that's the baby) kick pretty good for the past few weeks but last Sunday during Doug's Sunday school class, I looked down and could see my belly pulsating! All of you mothers out there know what a crazy feeling it is to watch your stomach move like that! The lady sittin next to me even saw it. That evening in church, after I sang the special and sat down, I could see it again! And Doug even saw it this time! I guess he already likes being in church! So now our favorite pasttime is to sit and watch little Denton squirm and wiggle! Can't wait for those kicks to start digging in my ribs or worse!

Sunday School Campaign, Minature Golf and Bowling

2008-04-22T14:18:00.007-04:00

The past week sure has been busy! Last weekend the couple's class from our church went putt-putt golfing. Doug and I had a great time with all of the young couples from our church. We aren't in thier Sunday School class since Doug teaches a 40's and 50's class. So it was good to spend some time with people our own age.

Doug and I also teach a Junior Church class on Sunday mornings. We call it the Cactus Kids Club(the room is painted in a western theme). We have points for different things every week: memorizing thier weekly verse, bringing their Bible, bringing friends, and every week they have a take home assignment. It might be to write a letter to one of our missionaries, get the Pastor to sign thier Bible, or just to make thier bed every day that week. Anyway, at the end of three months, the kids with the most points get to go on a special activity with Doug and I. For our first activity we took them out for pizza and bowling. Boy, that was an eye opener! The kids are great and worked really hard to earn this special treat.

Last but not least, we have been having a Sunday School campaign over the last three weeks called "The Greatest Show on Earth." You guessed it, everything has to do with the circus! Well, as a special treat, each Sunday morning during the opening, we had two clowns come and entertain us! (My crazy husband and our Youth Pastor Gary Moore) They did tricks and all kinds of funny things! The kids just loved them! Meanwhile, Pastor's class and the teens had a contest going on too! The stakes were high too! If Preacher's class lost, he had to preach in a pink shirt and tie! This may not sound like a big deal, but if you knew him you would understand! But if Bro. Gary and the teens lost, Bro. Gary had to shave his head bald. Well, of coarse, Gary lost so Preacher delighted in shaving his head right after the morning service! The really great thing was that our attendance grew so much over the past few weeks!

Next Sunday is Old-Fashioned Day with meetings under the tent, dinner on the grounds, chicken chases, pony rides, and of course lots of old time costumes! Stay tuned for pictures!

Doug and I at putt-putt

I'm almost the size of a bowling ball!

Doug, Molly, Ivey, Kara, Laura, Sam and Jordan

Doug with the rubber chicken, Chico!

Gary trying to walk the tight rope!

The before( more like the middle)...

Preacher was really gloating!

...and after.

Isn't this a beautiful picture Doug took of our church? It almost looks like a postcard.

School Baby Shower

2008-04-18T14:15:00.004-04:00

On Thursday, the school I work at decided to have a baby shower for me and also another lady that is having a baby next month. She is having a girl and I am having a boy so they had a great time using pink and blue! It was very sweet of them to put a lot of time and effort in to make it special for us both! It was also very exciting because it was my first shower! Yea!! Now I just need to get his room ready!

The dual purpose table!
Lots of cake!

Opening my gifts!

Mrs. Corum, the kindergarten teacher. She is due in May!

It's A Boy!

2008-04-02T14:45:00.002-04:00

It's official! It's a boy! Doug and I went to the doctor yesterday for the ultrasound. It took the technician about 3 seconds to tell us it was a boy! We are very excited and can't wait to really 'see' this little boy! Here are a few pics, I hope they are clear enough!

Is that an arm or a leg?

Cute little feet kicking!

I hope that's a Street nose!

Here and There!

2008-03-31T15:24:00.002-04:00

Last week was Spring Break at school! Yeah! I didn't really get much accomplished, you know how that goes! But, on Thursday, I drove the 2 1/2 hours to Southern Pines to visit my good buddy Heather Marks (Thompson). We were roommates my sophmore year of college and we hadn't seen each other since I graduated. It was really nice to see her. We had a great time reliving memories. And, can you believe it... I left the camera in the car the whole time and didn't take one picture!

Tomorrow is the big day!!! Doug and I are going to the doctor for the ultrasound! Of course he wants a boy, all men do! It doesn't matter to me as long as everything is as it should be. I promise I will post and let everyone know the news!

2008-02-25T11:05:00.003-05:00

Not really sure why this picture is sideways!
A lot has been going on lately, mostly I have been sick! I feel like that is the story of my life lately. The flu is going around like crazy, at school, at church, everywhere! I was going through a bunch of old photos and found all of these crazy pics! Hope you enjoy!

Catching Up

2008-01-30T14:41:00.000-05:00

This has been a busy few weeks. Doug got his wisdom teeth cut out last week so between that and feeling a little quesy myself, we were a rather sorry sight! Luckily the doctor gave me some pills for my sickness and they seem to be helping. My birthday was last Saturday so Doug took me to eat in Raleigh and we went and looked at lots of baby stuff. That's what I wanted to do! it has been rather crazy lately but I would rather be busy than bored!

Big News!!

2008-01-08T14:14:00.000-05:00

So the big news is... I'm going to have a baby! Doug and I are really excited and can't wait for August to get here! The even crazier thing is that my sister Anya is also going to have a baby and she is due two weeks after me! I thought my mom was going to have a heart attack!

On New Year's Eve we always have a special service to ring in the new year. First we ate a big meal and then had a service in the auditorium with special singing and preaching. After that we played games, ate more, or just watched Andy Griffith on the big screen in the Auditorium. At midnight we all met back in the Auditorium to pray together and sing "Amazing Grace." We had such a great time. Here are few of the pics.

A Trip to Williamsburg

2007-12-22T10:46:00.000-05:00

My mom came in to visit Doug and I this week. This was her first visit to North Carolina. While she was here we took her to Nags Head and also Colonial Williamsburg. Williamsburg was so beautiful all decked out in it's Christmas decor. Every historic house there has to make wreaths and decorations that are all natural. They used the most interesting things to make these masterpieces. All kinds of dried fruits and vegetables -chilli peppers, okra, lemons, apples, nut shells- and they all looked so beautiful! They all gave me wonderful ideas for my window boxes at my house. They need some work! Hope you enjoy!

Finishing School

2007-12-11T14:34:00.000-05:00

Today is a day for catching up. I feel like I finally have time to do that! This is the last full week of school and next week is exams. Because of that, most of this week will be spent reviewing. Yeah!! This week also marks the more than halfway done with the yearbook deadline. Any of you that have ever been a yearbook advisor know exactly what I'm talking about. A big sigh of relief that the book will be done on time! For those of you who haven't had the joy of making a yearbook, you just wouldn't understand! Because my students have worked so diligently all semester to meet their deadlines and have even been early on a few of them, I decided to let them have a Christmas party. Most of the time these are forbidden on high school campuses, but my yearbook staff is the exception to the rule! So while every other class was sitting half asleep in exam reviews, my 15 hard working kids were cramming down cake, no bake cookies, chips and salsa, and cheesecake. Mmmm, there's nothing like chips and salsa at 10 o'clock in the morning! One of the girls even made Doug his favorite kind of cake, red velvet as a thank you for designing our cover and end sheets for free. I have a great group of kids who listen and work very hard, most of the time! I thought I would share a few pictures of them with you all, so enjoy!

Long Time, No Post

2007-11-24T12:30:00.001-05:00

Sorry it's been so long since I have posted. I hate posting without pictures so I don't post at all! We have been very busy this last few weeks. On Veteran's Day, Doug made a video honoring all of the veterans in our church. He also made two displays with all of their service pictures and a few uniforms. He did a great job and everyone enjoyed it.

Doug's grandfather passed away last Friday morning from bone cancer. So Friday we ran around like crazy trying to get everything done so we could leave Friday night for Bristol, Tennessee. Doug's grandfather (who he is named after) wanted Doug to preach the funeral, so he wanted to make sure that we got to TN soon. He did a great job and kept himself composed even though I know it was hard on him.

On Tuesday night, we went Ice Skating with Doug's brother and his family. I have to say that my husband did NOT want to go! He only went because I wanted to. He was afraid of falling and looking dumb. His brother and I finally coaxed him away from the rail, but whenever he felt shaky, he would grab hold of my coat for dear life! By the end of the night he was doing pretty well and even had a little bit of fun!

We spent Thanksgiving day with Doug's family enjoying a big meal. That night, we went to the Bristol Motor Speedway to see their light show. They have lights for something like 4.5 miles. At the end of the lights you can drive your car around the track in the speedway. Talk about an incline! We had a lot of fun and saw a lot of lights.

Now we are finally back home in good old North Carolina! Although, I did really enjoy being in Tennessee again! Nothing like being in the mountains! Maybe now I will keep up on my posting! Hope everyone had a blessed Thanksgiving!

Doug standing at his grandfather's grave

This is the last picture Doug has with his grandfather. It was taken in October.

Doug and I with Brittany and Brandon

Doug and I ice-skating, kind of
Watch out, he's gonna fall!

Veteran's Displays

My Tramatic Visit To The Dentist

2007-11-01T15:21:00.000-04:00

First of all, I have to tell you how much I hate the dentist! I have avoided going like the plague since I was in high school but it finally caught up with me. I have a tooth that has been Killing me for about a month now. I finally made an appointment with the dentist for this past Monday. I was scared to death! Everything was fine until my annoying cavity turned into a major problem! The dentist proceeded to tell me that I needed a root canal on my precious tooth! Of course my reaction was one of shock, I started sobbing uncontrollably! The dentist even got a little teary! So, not only was my cavity not filled, now it hurt even worse! So, I very tearfully scheduled my root canal for Wednesday, expecting the worst. But, surprise, surprise! The root canal was a piece of cake! No problem whatsoever! There wasn't even any crying! So for all of you who would rather go the doctor 10 times over one visit to the dentist, there is hope for all of you too!

Teen Spectacular II

2007-10-26T20:22:00.000-04:00

The Lord really blessed our Teen Spectacular this week! On Wednesday, we had 467 teenagers and 43 saved! It really was an exciting week. It was amazing to see teenagers from all walks of life there to hear the gospel. Bro. Reno did an outstanding job and the kids had a great time! On Wednesday night we gave away a '97 Chevy Cavalier along with tons of other prizes. Our church members worked so hard to prepare for this week so it was great to see the Lord bless it.

What a crowd!

Bro. Reno Likens and Pastor Jones

Slam dunk competition

Praise the Lord, 179 souls saved!!!

Teen Spectacular

2007-10-24T14:24:00.000-04:00

On Monday, Tuesday and tonight we are having our 1st Teen Spectacular! So far it's going great. We had Bro. Reno Likens here to preach all week. He has done a great job! On Monday we had 288 teenagers and 89 salvations! On Tuesday, there were 415 teens and 47 salvations! Isn't the Lord good! Having over 400 public school teens hear the gospel was amazing! I helped Doug on his bus this week. We had 65 last night just on our bus! I just wanted to give an update, I'll post some pictures tomorrow after it's over! Pray for tonight, we are giving away a car so we expect over 500!

Catching Up

2007-10-15T18:21:00.001-04:00

This weekend has been very busy! First of all, on Saturday, we had our Annual Couple's Class Harvest Party. It was a good time of food and fellowship with our church family. We had sack races, bobbing for apples, an egg toss, a corn pit, hayrides and a jumping hut. The kids really enjoyed it. Doug managed to smash the egg all over me so I caught up with him and gave him some back!

On Sunday we had Tug-A-Bus Sunday with our bus kids. I didn't think they would get into it much, but I was VERY wrong! They pulled the buses so quick it was over in less than a minute! My bus lost because our rope broke! It was a lot of fun and the kids had a great time. We had 50 on our bus but 25 of them were teens!

Aren't they cute?

Getting ready to pull with all their might!

This is little Jackson Elliott

Merry having fun in the corn pit!

Look at all that food!

That sack is bigger than Macy!
My husband with some other crazy church members!

A Week Alone

2007-10-11T14:49:00.000-04:00

This week Doug has been gone to Lexington, Kentucky to the National Bus Conference. Usually, I am the one going somewhere but this time I had to stay home. I had high hopes of getting caught up on my house work but the week sort of got away from me. I have missed my husband so much, I'm just not sure how to act when he's not around! He thought about staying an extra day, but I convinced him that I needed him home more.

Last night, he started back and went to church at Temple in Powell. He hadn't originally planned it that way in the beginning but it worked out. I was so jealous because I knew he would get to see some of my college buddies! I miss you Sarah, Cathy, and Charity! But he had a great time getting to see some of his old friends too.

My friend Jessica had her baby on Monday. I went to the hospital on Tuesday to see how she was doing and of course hold Baby Jackson. He was a big boy! He weighed 8 pounds and 14 ounces. Both are doing well and are at home now. As soon as I can I'll post a picture of him.

Sorry there are no pictures, my beloved husband took the camera to Kentucky all this week!

Babies

2007-10-04T13:09:00.000-04:00

This post is all about babies! Aren't they cute! It seems like everyone I know is having a baby or just had a baby. My friend Joy is having a boy named Jackson in December, my good friend from church Jessica is having a baby any day now and she is naming him Jackson as well. Mrs. Mindy, my pastor's wife is having a boy in February. I think they are going to name him Micah. So it seemed appropriate to show some pictures of some sweet babies! And maybe someday I'll have one of my own.

This is Tyler Pearce. Isn't he a cutie?
This is Macy, my preacher's middle girl. She is almost three and crazy! She keeps telling me that she wants to go home and stay with me and Bro. Doug.

This is Merry, preacher's youngest daughter. She is such a ham. She is 15 months old and has NO desire to walk on her own. Why should she, she knows someone will carry her!

Pictures, Pictures, Pictures!

2007-10-03T15:24:00.000-04:00

No, not the pictures you're thinking of. Today at school we got the school pictures in. YEAH! This soiunds like a breeze, but since I'm in charge of the yearbook that also means I'm in charge of the school pictures. So now I have tons of questions that I can't answer about retakes and prices and mistakes and anything else they can think of! It will all be over soon! Well, I need to go, I have a hair appointment. I need a good trim!

Busy, Busy, Busy

2007-09-26T14:30:00.000-04:00

Hey everyone! I know it's been a while since I posted but nothing too exciting has been going on. Our Pastor has been preaching a revival in Ohio this week so Doug has been very busy. He preached all day on Sunday and Bro. Gary is preaching tonight. I found some very random pictures and thought I would post them. They are all somehow related to our church. The best church in the whole world!

I have been busy at school as well. Trying to teach 5 classes and do a 250 page yearbook is quite a handful! This week we had to give out progress reports and like a dummy I had book reports due Monday and a vocabulary test on Tuesday! All of this had to be graded and in the computer for 75 kids by Wednesday! Whew, I finally got it done! Anyway, enjoy the pictures!

Doug and Bro. Gary (Captain America and Kid Krusader) at Kid Krusade this summer. Who knew those tacky American flag jackets would be useful someday?!

Bro. Bobby Roberson and Preacher

Doug in his office

The Blue Bus

Our church during an Oliver B. Green revival

Crazy Weekend!

2007-09-17T15:42:00.000-04:00

Hey everyone! Yesterday was a great day at church! We had 540 in attendance Sunday morning and over 200 back on Sunday night! God is so good!

Yesterday was "The World's Largest Banana Split Sunday" on our buses. Doug had a man in our church make these six foot long troughs to put the ice cream in. Each bus had their own and filled it with bananas, cherries, brownies, anything they wanted. It was a great turnout. We had 211 just on our three buses.

Our church is really growing! It's so exciting to be here and see God do such great things! Check out our church website at http://www.vbcrr.org/ .

Labor Day Trip

2007-09-14T13:01:00.000-04:00

On Labor day, Doug and I decided to go visit our good friends Luke and Becky Shope. They just moved to Winchester, VA which makes them pretty close to us. We had a great time with them and their son, Jack. We hadn't seen them in about 2 years, since their wedding, I think. Anyway, here are a few shots of our mini-trip!

Here is Luke and Becky's house (and our new Pacifica!)

This is Luke and Jack (isn't Jack cute?)

Doug and Luke

More Vacation Pics

2007-09-14T12:48:00.000-04:00

Hey everyone! I thought I would post some more pictures of our vacation to Norfolk and Virginia Beach. I am just hanging out on my lunch break. It's nice to not have any kids around for a while. Hope you enjoy!

Jenn

Getting drenched at Virginia Beach

Doug acting crazy (as usual) at the Virginia Aquarium

Standing in front of the U.S.S. Indianapolis in Norfolk

The Beginning!

2007-09-13T14:32:00.000-04:00

Ok, here goes! One of my best friends in the whole world (Joy) has now inspired me to begin this blog. We'll see how it goes. I love keeping up with everyone!

Here are a few pics of us on vacation in D.C.

Jenn