House in the Woods

These colors always amaze me. We’ve traveled to the mountains in the Fall to “see the colors”, and yet it seems most of the time the colors are just as vibrant here. Thanksgiving takes on a whole new feeling this year in the quiet of the woods, and I have so many things to be grateful for… A community of believers who want to impact Brantley County for Christ. My husband who loves me (spoils me rotten) and shares my dreams. Our children who are creating the lives they dream of one day at a time. Our grandchildren who bring joy and laughter to our lives. My brother and his beautiful family who understands his importance in my life. Cousins who are always there when I need them. Aunts and Uncles who are so much a part of who I am today. Friends who are my chosen family who have loved me through the hard times, and celebrated the good times.  The job I dreamed of and a team that makes the hard days easier.  A legacy that taught me the importance of loving and caring for others, o...

We put up a mailbox yesterday. Actually, Mike put up the mailbox and I admired it. It’s been a very long time since my home address was in Georgia. I was born in Decatur, and lived as a very young child near Atlanta and for a little while in Brunswick. I spent part of my summers at my Aunt Berlene and Uncle Brigham’s home in Waynesville, and part of my summers in Coffee County at my Grandma and Grandpa Smith’s farm. I even went to college in Georgia at Valdosta State, but now we are officially here and it’s good to be home. Moving to Waynesville was a dream that began taking shape many years ago. There were times it didn’t seem it would ever happen. Now I realize it just wasn’t time yet. Mike and I were blessed to have mom with us in our home for five years, and our home worked well for her and her needs at the time. Amanda and Steve were in town and we soaked up time with them and the littles before they headed out to make their home in Texas. Our daughter Katie and the kids were also...

I left my house in Fleming Island for the last time this morning. It was bittersweet and I felt like crying and celebrating at the same time. That house was a place of much joy and much pain. When I moved into the house it was the perfect place for three little boys. We had a big back yard for them to play in with our dog Maverick. The neighborhood was new and full of young families like ours with lots of kids their age and a new elementary school within walking distance. Their were other “stay at home” moms to have play dates with and special friendships were made. I weathered a very hard divorce and was alone for the first in my life in that house. It was comforting and familiar in a time when my world was falling apart. That house was the place a new family was created and two broken hearts were pieced back together in a new beautiful way. As the years passed we watched our children grow into young adults and it was from that house we watched them leave and chase their own dreams se...