My Challenge......

As a preview for Sunday School in the month of May - Earl is going to be teaching from a book entitled, "Lies Women Believe." Today in staff meeting he was previewing how the book could really be for men as well as women and that is the basis of his class. (So my plug is, beginning in one week, try to attend!!)

Lisa was talking about the website and how awesome the book is. There is now a book entitled, "Lies Young Women Believe." This book contains info pertaining to younger girls.

Now on to my challenge. Tonight I was looking at the website. (Ihave a feed on our blog!) I came across a 30 day challenge - the husband encouragement challenge. I am now enrolled!!

So for my first "assignment",I can't say anything negative to or about Wade for 30 days.(Pray for me....LOL) And, I have to say nice encouragements to Wade as well to others. What an opportunity I have!

Wade is truly a great husband & dad. He is my protector and my safe place. I can be exactly what I am (which isn't always so great) and he loves me unconditionally. I am so thankful for the man God has put into my life. I know God gave me the desires of my heart when He gave me Wade.
Wade - I love you more every day. "You complete me!" (How cheezie..lol) Words can't begin to describe how much I love and appreciate you and all you do!!

OK - to all.....If you feel brave you can join me. Otherwise, I may need some cheerleaders (j/k).

Love to my wonderful, amazing husband!!

Art or..............

This is another one of my "So what do you think about this?"
There is no right or wrong......so please share!!

So by now you have probably heard of or seen the pics of Miley Cyrus in this month's Vanity Fair. If you haven't you may check it out here:

http://www.vanityfair.com/ontheweb/blogs/daily/2008/04/miley-knows-bes.html


I didn't want to put the pics on the blog......

"So - What do you think?"
Is it just art or is this a scary wake up call for people?

I surely don't have a correct answer but I will tell you my thoughts:

I really don't know. The first initial reaction was that of a not so good feeling. People have said, "I hope she doesn't turn into the next Brittney Spears." I thought about it but totally dismissed it. It's Disney......but now I am rethinking. Should Abs be so enthralled with all things Hannah Montana? I didn't put the pics on here because I know she looks at the blog and I don't want her to see them. And I was happy that she slept late this morning and didn't see it as one of the first stories on the news. I even kept Fox News off for most of the day (which is unusual b/c I keep it on one tv).

I am more than happy to see photography as art but I just can't buy into it this time. Someone has a underlying reason for such a picture. Either the photographer (who is quite famous) is very good at manipulation. One lady on the Today show did mention this as it had happened to her. Or the Cyrus folks want to move her image to look older (for future purposes). Either one is not a great scenario. I was also a little disappointed in her performance on American Idol a couple of weeks ago. I thought the dancing was a little too mature for young girls. But that is another one of my random thoughts. However one thing of a positive note was the Disney Channel's response as being very unhappy about the situation.

So I will be watching a little more closely. Not necessarily the show but the outside things. I believe it is my job to keep up with the role models for my girls.

Those are my thoughts and I would love to hear yours!!!

Friends......

To all of you who were able to go this past weekend -

I am truly blessed to have you all in my life. Each one of you bring such a joy (in all your different ways). I am especially enjoying getting to know new friends better!! There is nothing better than shopping with the girls, laughing over small mischief, being pampered, and talking!!

To everyone-
As Cyndi noted in her post - isn't it amazing how God can take everything in our lives to prepare us for the awesome things He wants for us. I am personally so thankful for our church, all my peeps, and my most wonderful family. God has richly blessed me more than I could have ever imagined.

So as I have no pics to share......I will just leave you all with my great words of (well, something, I just don't know....LOL)...........I love you all!!

First T-ball Game (Abs the Runaway!!)

Abs was the only girl on her team last night. (There is one other but she wasn't there.) So the coach let Abs bat first. She hit it off the tee the first time and made it to first base!! She made it all the way home !!
Nana & Papa made it to the game! Also a shout out to Uncle Erik & Aunt Angie for supporting Abs too!!
Playin' the outfield. She played 3rd base......the pic is on 2nd......and she finished playing infield close to 1st!!
The second time Abs batted, she hit and made it 1st and then on to 2nd. As the next batter came up, this kid hit it hard into the outfield close to 3rd.......Abs starts running and kinda makes a detour out to outfield with the opposing team to chase the ball. It was so funny......but finally she made it to 3rd (with a little help from the other coach)!!

At the end of the game........

Spring Break

Spring Break in the Jones family........

I hope each of you had a great break!

Spring Cleaning

Spring Cleaning....sounds like fun doesn't it?

We are currently undertaking some spring cleaning of the house during Spring Break. I must admit Wade is the leader of our spring cleaning. He hands out the tasks which is great for me....I seem to have good intentions but get distracted along the way. (It's my ADD....lol)


So as we are cleaning our house I thought, "Hey what about spring cleaning for our souls?"


Many of us have felt like we have been in a season of winter (as described by some of you). Well.....Hear Ye! Hear Ye! Spring is a-comin'!!!! What a sight....when we see the blooms beginning to bud and the sun shining with its warm rays. Even though the signs of spring can be all round we still may need to dig in for some deep spring cleaning. You know the kind.......under the beds and sofas, cleaning out those cluttered closets that we keep hidden from people when they stop by for a visit. Let's take this new season and really deep clean. I know when we deep clean our house....we find treasures (such as Lily's coins for her piggy bank!!) we had completely lost and forgotten about. Think about finding some of the lost treasures in our lives....the ones God started and we just kinda lost along the way. I know I definitely want all God has for the Jones family!!


So in closing, I leave us with the thought of spring cleaning....It's not much fun but the rewards of a clean house in combination with the new warmth of spring is a pretty amazing new season!!

I love you all and hope you have a great spring!!!

American Idol (a review & a serious thought)......

As many of you know, the Jones family are AI junkies. We watch from the beginning (the pitiful and crazy) to the final 2. The only season I (Jenn) did not watch was season 3 & only because Wade and I were courting...(lol)

SO........................

One word to describe last night's elimination.........WHAT????

They (the judges) keep saying this is the best season ever.......not really.....but still we are devoted and we watch. Last night they eliminated Michael Johns. No, I didn't think he would win but still there are some girls that should have seriously been gone before him. However, in my vent about pitiful eliminations, I would like to say "kudos" to the AI staff. They actually picked a Christian song, "Shout to the Lord", as one of the theme songs for Idols Give Back I don't know if you watched or not but it was quite moving. (I have included it below...courtesy of YouTube)

While we were watching Wednesday evening, we were playing the Mad, Sad, Glad game. When it was Abs turn she said one thing that makes her sad is to see all of those sick children. I can barely watch without just bawling. I am SSSOOO thankful that I am blessed to live in the USA and have healthy babies.

I have been quite stressed with my kids lately (especially Abs). I put too much pressure on her to be "perfect". Now don't even ask me what "perfect" means...becuase I really don't think I could define it. But watching those moms who have very little hope for their sick (& dying babies) and hearing how it affected Abs really made me want to thank God for his abundant blessings for my family.

This spring break, I am going to try to concentrate more on the joys of my children! I encourage each of us to take time just to play....laugh......and love this coming week!!

Where have all the baby dolls gone?

An ongoing discussion between my mother-in-law and me is the fact of our children growing up too fast. She asks me frequently..."Where have all the baby dolls gone?" As I began preparing for Ab's Spa Party, I thought about this. Are we growing little girls up too soon?

I must admit....I want Abs (& Lily) to be girly girls. It broke my heart when I finally admitted to myself that dance was a losing battle for Abs. I was the only one stressed about the entire adventure. She didn't want to wear the leotards or anything!! She just kept asking, "When does t-ball start?" At least I came to my senses in late September thus sparing us all the costs for yet another year.

So the spa party has came and gone and much fun was had by all. However this morning, this was one of the first stories on the Today show. I thought I would share it with you in hopes of getting new perspectives on the topic. If you can spare a few minutes, please watch the video (its around 4.5 minutes) and post a comment.

And the question I leave you all with for the day is......"Where have all the baby dolls gone?"

Weekend Update

Weekends in the Jones family are usually always busy! This weekend was no exception.

Many weeks ago I signed us up to walk with the Rogers family in the March of Dimes walk. I thought, "Hey! What a great way to encourage me to get in the habit of walking!" I knew I would have to "train" for the event for you see it was a 4.2 mile walk. Now referring to the previous post, I am the most nonathletic person you all know. So weeks have gone by and only a walk (or 2) and here we are on Saturday at 7:30 a.m. It was raining. (A sign from God as I take it!) But Joe had a feeling the rain clouds would break and he must have had more faith than me (or just a glutten for punishment!) It did stop about 20 minutes before the walk began. So we walked (well the kids rode in the double strollers!!!) and we walked, and we walked some more. Never in my life have I been so proud of a little purple sticker -

On Sunday, Abs got baptized! We really tried to make it an exciting time for her. What a special day, Papa was the one actually doing the dunkin' and I got to help. Abs was excited because she was the only girl (what a funny thing to think about!!) All the kids did an excellent job! I think it speaks volumes of the parents of our church to think about all the children who have come to salvation with their parents at home. It makes me feel like we are doing something right! Here are some pics (courtsey of Tammy How.)
I hope your weekends are also filled with family fun and exciting times!!

Abs is traded........

Well it's official we are sports parents. I somehow never thought this would be me. I am the most nonathletic person you all know, (it's true...you don't have to pretend otherwise). So last night we were at practice with our little girl's softball league and it was not so good (this is as nice as I can say it). In 45 minutes the coach let three little girls bat. He stood there and threw balls at them....no explanation of what to do, not a thing. (Remember these kids have never played ball before.)

SSSSOOO, Wade asked why we had a phone call on Sunday evening from a guy about another team. I said I had no clue that I told him we were already playing and thus ended the conversation. I thought last night (at this pitiful practice) that my loving husband was going to take Abs bat and hit me with it!

Well long story shortened, Abs is now on a new team. We are now proud parents of the Peanut - Dalton Little League. Our team is the Storm and there are 5 of Abs friends from our preschool class last year.

I learned something about myself through all of this. T-ball is not just a fun game (kinda sad isn't it??)Abs really wants to play ball and I found myself telling Wade "This is not just a fun activity....we are looking for good foundations for the long haul....!!!" I am now an official sports parent. You know the kind, the one's that push for their kid at all costs!

Abs has been (in the words of my avid baseball fan brother-in-law, Erik, "moved up from the farm team to the majors!"

Our first practice was supposed to be this evening but they have canceled due to the weather, so stay tuned later in the week for pics of our new team!!!