...Adventures with The Peters...

Remember!

2011-12-23T09:38:00.000-06:00

So I've come to the conclusion that I'm not a good blogger! I have so many pictures and thoughts that get lost in translation and never make it to be posted. But this morning I had something laid on my heart, so I wanted to post it today so I could share what I am learning. If you didn't know already, I love to write. I've been journaling since I was in middle school and sometimes it comes out in poems and such. I'm not the best writer but it really isn't for anyone else anyways. Normally I just share pictures and updates but I decided to share a little more this morning. I've recently been wrestling with doubt or really just a lack of faith. I think it is a nature response that every Christian battles with through seasons and then we get a fresh breath of faith from the Word and a renewal of our spirit. That was this morning and this is what flowed out that I want to share.

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Remember, soul remember the darkness. Look back to the height which you fell. Open the eyes of your heart and remember the brokenness. For in the broken darkness you can see the light, the love, the mystery of Christ. The one who stepped out of glory into utter meakness of flesh, took on the brutal weight of your sin, and wrapped you in righteousness.

Oh soul, remember!

There is nothing good in you but Christ, who redeemed your life from the pit. He breathed life into your lifeless body. He filled your fragile body of clay with the precious treasure of the Holy Spirit. And allows His very righteousness to shine out of you for the glory of God!

Oh soul, don't your remember?

Worship Him, the only One who is worthy! Set your heart on heaven. For what does this world have to offer but the grave? Live for the One who resurrects from the grave. Who loved you in your sin so you wouldn't stay there.

Oh soul, remember! Oh soul, worship! Oh soul, love!

For He is worthy! For He came & redeemed you!

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"When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with the immortal, then the saying that was written will come true:

"Death has been swallowed up in victory."

"He gives us victory through our Lord Jesus Christ."

Therefore, stand firm...let nothing move you...always give yourself fully to the work of the Lord...

because your labor is not in vain when you labor for the Lord!

1 Cor 15:51-58

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This scripture in 1 Corinthians really stood out to me this morning and the scriptures again strengthened my faith and my spirit! It is crazy that the Lord can do so much in my heart and yet I have seasons of little faith. I felt like the Lord was speaking to my heart this morning to call me to "remember." Because it is in remembering where I have been and what he has done that causes me to worship and praise the One who is worthy! That is what this season is for...right? Remembering what Jesus did when he came to the earth and celebrating not only his life but his death and resurrection! I'm so grateful! So honored to be apart of his family and given the privilege to love and serve him with my life. Now I just need his grace and mercy to teach me what that is to look like every day! :) And we have the Word and the Holy Spirit to teach us...our part is to take time to listen.

Love you all and Merry Christmas!

I feel like I'm losing it...

2011-11-15T20:47:00.001-06:00

SOO...I've been trying to update my blog for awhile and I have been so frustrated because I would log on and my blog wasn't on my dashboard. I was so confused on why this was happening and I almost emailed google to complain about this 'problem' but Garrison started waking from his nap so I never sent them a message. Tonight Garrett asked me to show him what the problem was and as I started to type in the email I naturally typed the RIGHT email!!! I immediately knew what I had done...for some reason I kept typing in a very old email address and was getting so frustrated when it wasn't displaying my blog!

Well, this isn't the first time I've felt like I was losing it! I have called my mom several times crying for her to come and help, which she has been so great about coming to help so I can sleep a little. But now I'm finally feeling like things are becoming normal and I'm figuring Garrison out. People kept telling me that things would start to get a lot better around week 5 and 6, and Garrison is 5 weeks and 5 days today. The last couple days I've been knowing what the day is going to look like. We are finally starting to get on some sort of schedule, and it is so much easier to get out and about with him. I know that new things will continue throw me for a loop, but it is nice to feel like things are coming together at least for a little bit!

I have LOTS to post about and have been really wanting to post all kinds of mom thoughts, things I've been learning, and cute new pictures of Garrison! So get ready, it is coming very soon!! For now, here is a picture of Garrison from this week...He started smiling this week!!! STEAL MY HEART!!!!

5 weeks! First play time with LOTS of smiles...

We were both so tired this day...I'm feel accomplished that this pic got taken!

Garrison's Birth Story

2011-10-18T20:15:00.003-05:00

Garrison’s ‘Birth Story’

Garrison Luke Peters was born on October 6, 2011 at 8:22pm weighing 7 pounds 3 ounces and 21 inches long. I’ve officially been a mom now for a little over a week and it didn’t take long to realize that ‘my plans’ aren’t always best nor will it always work out the way I plan. From the very beginning of my pregnancy I set three things in my mind; 1) I will not have a C-Section 2) Garrison won’t sleep in the bed with me 3) My living room won’t be cluttered with baby items. After one week I have broke all three.

After Garrison was almost a week past his due date, Garrett and I set an induction date of October 6^th and arrived at the hospital at 5:30am that morning planning on being home by Saturday afternoon. As my labor progressed we ran into a problem, Garrison's left hand was directly on top of his head and it was stuck, which apparently is VERY uncommon. My doctor tried to have him move it down but it wasn’t budging. Obviously there is not enough room for his head and arm to be delivered together, so after tears, 14 hours of labor and my doctor highly suggesting it we gave the go ahead for the c-section. Garrett and I made this decision around 7:30pm and Garrison was born within the hour. After the c-section my doctor came to me and said that the end result of my delivery would have been in an emergency c-section anyways because his umbilical cord was wrapped around his neck and his foot. We had been praying for months that he and I would be healthy after delivery and for the right medical staff to be on duty during the process. I have to say that God has a great way of taking care of the details; I just didn’t think it would be such a small detail of hand placement that protected us both.

Because of the c-section I was in a good deal of pain and was very limited in how mobile I could be around the room and with Garrison. The 3^rd night in the hospital Garrison got very fussy around 1am-4am and the nursery nurse was new and struggling with him. So I did what I said I wouldn’t do, I had Garrett swaddle him and put him on my chest to sleep with me. We both passed out quickly and cuddled the rest of the night! I have to say it was WONDERFUL to have that time with him, but I understand why people say don’t start that habit; it is a hard one to break for mom!

As we are about to leave the hospital we are getting debriefed my limits after the c-section. 1) Don’t climb stairs more than 3xs a day 2) Don’t lift anything heavier than Garrison 3) Limit yourself and rest 4) I learned on my own that I shouldn’t ride in a car unless it’s a MUST because it is painful; for how much I love to go and do this has really made me slow down to a completely different pace of life. I have been learning how to ask for help and allow people to serve me instead of being up and going. Because I can’t climb stairs often I’ve had to set up shop downstairs so Garrison’s stuff and my stuff were all over the living room! So much for no clutter in the house!!

Needless to say things turned out very different than I had planned, but the end result was priceless!! I have a beautiful healthy little boy because things didn’t go my way! Praise God for His provision and detail!

-PS: we have internet now so let see how good I can be at updating our blog now!

Look at those feet...

Daddy lovin' on his lil boy!

His eye was swollen from his hand being in his face in the womb

Nesting and Updates

2011-10-01T20:27:00.000-05:00

Well, we are working on setting up internet this week and once that happens I'm planning on really writing and being a better 'blogger.' Here are a couple of updates that I've worked on over the past couple of weeks....

Mom came in town...we found a GREAT deal on book case at Big Lots and redecorated!

Here is a picture from the front door...

We had a couple people over last Saturday for an early birthday for Garrett, so I made a cookie cake!

Garrison's Room!

The hat for Garrison's newborn pictures! Love Etsy!

We set up a tripod and took some maternity pics....

I had a gift card and got some canvas at hobby lobby! I've missed painting!

It's Saturday night and I'm just waiting on a baby! Got my phone out timing my contractions hoping that they get close enough to go to the hospital!! It won't be long and I'll be giving updates on baby Garrison!!! That will give me good reason to blog more...

An Article for Moms & Future Moms

2011-08-02T16:04:00.001-05:00

"Motherhood is a Calling" Article:
http://www.desiringgod.org/blog/posts/motherhood-is-a-calling-and-where-your-children-rank

Recently Garrett forwarded me this article from desiringgod.org called "Motherhood is a Calling." I'm obviously not a mother yet (8 or so more weeks), but I feel that I should reread this article daily and every day after Garrison is born!

I remember my attitude before we decided that we were "ready" to have kids and the list of what I wanted to do before we started a family (And to say that I still don't have an 'I want' list would be a lie). I can give you a mile long list of things I desire to do, but ultimately when it comes down to it 'selfishness' is the centerpiece of that list.

The article states that "Our culture is simply afraid of death. Laying down your own life, in any way, is terrifying." I see this on a weekly basis meeting with girls in crisis pregnancies. I hear the reasons of why they don't want to be pregnant. I hear the obstacles that they feel stand in their way. The basics of what normally stands in their way is their own life. The thought of losing their life for another is terrifying.

"Motherhood is a Calling" makes a wonderful point that "Christians should have a different paradigm. We should run to to the cross. To death." "We, of all people, ought to know what follows death. The Christian life is resurrection life, life that cannot be contained by death, the kind of life that is only possible when you have been to the cross and back."

It's going to be hard, yet a good transition into motherhood. Even so, the thought of laying down the list of things that I want is going to be stretching. I still complain about it to Garrett on occassion, but above all else I desire for my son to love the Lord! So learning to be more like Jesus in his life and his death is something that is a must for Garrison to see who Jesus is through me. So for the sake of Garrison, those who don't know Jesus around me and ultimately for the glory of God, I'm starting to pray for the Lord to teach me what it means to die to the things 'I want' for another as He did for me! And I think that motherhood is going to be the perfect way for this to happen...ready or not...it is coming!

Tons of Projects Completed!!

2011-07-28T22:21:00.000-05:00

Over the past couple of months I have been buying random furniture at flee markets and it has been piling in our garage! Most of it is for Garrison's nursery but a couple of piece were for around the house. My sweet parents came up on Tuesday night and we have been working for the past two days to get these projects completed. LOTS of hard work and it happens to be during the hottest part of the summer, but at least our garage is cooled. But we pushed through and ALL the furniture in the garage has been sanded, painted and placed were it goes!

Praise the Lord! Because I'm whooped!

Here are a couple of the things we did...

This was just a couple of the pieces in the garage. We painted the crib from dark brown to white.
I love it!

This was my inspiration picture for the headboard in Garrison's room.

I found this door for $10 at a flea market in Huntsville.

After it was painted, sanded, and mounted...all it needs now is bedding! I wanted it to look more like a day bed.

While mom and I were out I went into a resale shop to look at a rocker, which I needed buying for $60, and I saw this awesome piece! After a lot of sanding and priming....

It looks great and is in our dining room!!!

These were just a several of the projects we did over the past couple of days. Tomorrow we'll be shopping for little things for the nursery! I'll post a pic when it is together. I'm so glad that is almost finished!!!

New Chairs and Table!

2011-06-25T14:27:00.000-05:00

I've been searching for a good deal on a dining room table. My sweet mother-in-law had 6 chairs that she had been saving for us, so a table is all we needed! I found this table at Potter's House for $70. With coaching from my friend Marietta and lots of help from my wonderful parents, I almost have my dining room table and chairs finished! Here is a sneak peak....

Table--Before

The table is in process...it still needs to have a smooth coat on the top and to be sealed.

Chairs--Before

Chairs--After
I found the fabric at Interior Fabrics in Fayetteville. Thanks Sarah Autry for that suggestion!

I'll post an after picture once it is all together in the dining room!!!

Garrison Luke Peters

2011-06-14T12:40:00.000-05:00

Meaning of our son’s name...

Soon after we found out for sure we were having a son, we began to talk about our hopes and dreams for him. Here are some things that we began to think about and pray for:

What are our hopes for our son?
What will he be like?
How do we want him to carry himself?
What will he stand for?
What will his personality be like?

As we were thinking about these things, similar things began to come up over and over again. Here are a few qualities that continued to surface:

Strong and steadfast in the Lord (praying that God would save him first!)
Upright and noble character
Protector of truth and a strong personality

At the same time we were discussing possible names for our first son. We knew that his initials were going to be G.L. because this has been a generational thing for the first male on the Peters’ side. Because of that we narrowed the options down to just a few. Garrison was at the top of the list. As we considered different names, we researched the specific meaning of our options. It became very clear that Garrison would be the exact name that the Lord was putting on our heart. Here is what we found out about the meaning of “Garrison”…

Protection
Strong Hold
Guard
Defend
Occupy

What a powerful and strong name! Garrison literally means to guard, defend and protect something (in the past it was used to describe cities that were protected by military force). And of course, Luke is a reference to the man who wrote the Gospel of Luke and Acts, which are both New Testament books in the Bible. Luke is just a great name!

So I'm 24 weeks and counting and Garrison Luke will be here in about 16 weeks!!! We are soo ready to meet this guy! :)

20 weeks and counting!

2011-05-12T12:05:00.000-05:00

Baby G at 20 weeks!

Here is our little man! We are still working on a name for him. Garrett is the 3rd generation of G.L.Peters, which is carried on by the first born son. So we know he will be a G.L.Peters, but we are working on finding the right name to fit! We have limited it down to 2-3 options and are limiting them down every week.

Mom, DJ, and Nancy came up for the ultrasound yesterday! It was so fun to have them in town!! Mom and I spent the late part of the afternoon shopping for maternity clothes since my belly is growing at rapid speed! I obviously don't mind my belly growing, but my arms and my legs are not suppose to, too! My new goal is to start toning workouts this week...

I'll let you know how this actually goes! :) "If I follow through with it!!"

Gettin' Back on My Game!

2011-05-10T13:05:00.008-05:00

Well, for multiple reasons I've decided to get back on my blogging game!!!

Here is an update in picture form and then get ready for REGULAR updates!

May 5th = 19 Weeks!

Flooding at Dad's! The barn and trees to the right of this picture is my dad's house and the water in this picture is the White River! Huge blessing that it isn't suppose to come up any more than this!

This past Friday I had a relaxing afternoon planting my garden! It has become one of my new favorite hobbies!

This past Saturday we took Muli to the Farmer's Market! She loves getting out and seeing all the people, plus the kids flock to her!

Last weekend Garrett and I went to Conway for a wedding and to celebrate Arabella's 3rd Birthday! For her birthday she wanted to ride a pony...if you can only imagine how many times she went round and round on that thing!

Exhausted!

2011-03-10T15:30:00.004-06:00

Well, I wish we would have continually updated everyone on the last 3 weeks, but we have had little time to post updates. Three weeks ago we closed on a house and have been working and remodeling after work and on our days off. It has been very crazy to say the least and we are ready for a full day of rest on the couch! Here are a couple of pictures....

BEFORE:

AFTER: (Still have a couple things to do)

And on top of everything else, during the remodel time was my first trimester of exhaustion and sickness. But now I am 10 weeks 6 days and feeling much better! Here is our first picture of baby from our ultrasound yesterday!

We almost have the house finished and we'll be moving this Saturday! With help from friends and family this move shouldn't be very difficult compared to the remodel we have been doing.

SNOWMAGEDDON!

2011-02-09T08:58:00.003-06:00

Just a few shots from the craziness that is happening in NWA.....

Alright.... Seriously. Here is a legitimate shot from outside our house:

been a while.

2011-02-06T16:26:00.003-06:00

Oh, Snowy Days....

So, it has been exactly 36 days [seriously.] since we have updated this thing.....

Just wanted to let everyone know that the Peters are still kickin' it. Lots of crazy stuff going on for us that we will updating everyone about soon enough.

Felt it was right to at least post something on here...

You'll hear from us soon!

::Annual Peters' Christmas Contest::

2011-01-01T09:22:00.018-06:00

Second Annual Gingerbread House Competition! For the past two years we have each built our own gingerbread house around the Christmas holiday. We decided to incorporate our families a little this year and have them vote on the winner - results in soon!

So, we decided to make our own gingerbread this year - which was actually pretty tough.

The process of making the gingerbread...

The house decorations...

And here are the creations we came up with this year - Who do you think the winner should be?

House #1

House #2

2010...Coming to a close.

2010-12-31T17:30:00.003-06:00

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

As 2010 comes to a close and we step into 2011, we are struck with gratitude toward the Lord about what has happened over this last year - the ups and the downs.

He has been faithful.

He is good.

His grace has been sufficient.

Here are a few challenging and encouraging excerpts from John Piper's book "The Purifying Power of Living by Faith in Future Grace" to reflect on as we enter into a new year...

Past grace is glorified by intense and joyful gratitude.

Future grace is glorified by intense and joyful confidence.

This faith is what empowers us for venturesome obedience in the cause of Christ.

May we live in God's future grace in 2011! God Bless!

On the Road like ALWAYS!!

2010-12-26T10:33:00.011-06:00

Christmas Update!

Wednesday- Friday was spent with my family in Conway playing settlers, watching football, cooking, and opening gifts! Mom doesn't care what day we have "Christmas" on as long as she gets all the kids in the house for 24 hours! We had a blast with the family, but we some how didn't get any pictures. We took a lot of video though! Hopefully we can get some videos uploaded or find a picture or two somewhere.

Friday-Sunday was spent at Garrett's parents in Fort Smith! We went to their Christmas Eve church service and opened presents that night. And we loaded up and all went to Russeville Christmas day with Garrett's mom's side of the family! We played dirty santa and ate a lot of good food! It was a lot of fun...Here are a couple of photos from Christmas Day!

TONIGHT--ANNUAL PETERS' CHRISTMAS CONTEST (APCC)!!!
We are making gingerbread houses and having the family vote on who's is the best...we may post them for blog followers to vote! You'll see soon! STAY TUNED!

updates on life.

2010-12-16T10:06:00.012-06:00

It has been quite some time since The Peters have updated the blog! Just been an extremely busy season, which isn't bad, just haven't had a lot of time to do this...

Here are a few pictures and happenings with us over the past few weeks:

December 11th - The Peters family got together in Little Rock to have an early Christmas get together. We also attended a concert to support a family friend who was recently diagnosed with Lou Gehrig's Disease. Saturday was also our Grandmother's Birthday!

Here is Skeet and I with our Grandmother on her 85th Birthday - WOW!

December 10th - A good friend, Jay McAllister, got married in Little Rock. We had a blast hanging out with friends we rarely see on Friday night!

This is a picture from the reception!

December 15th - THREE YEARS SINCE OUR FIRST DATE! This day has become very significant to us both. We went to P.F. Chang's at the Promenade in Rogers, which happened to be the very first restaurant we ever sat down together for dinner (in Little Rock)!

It was great to reflect over the last three years and to thank the Lord for all He has done!

December 12th - Very relaxing day in Conway with Stephanie's parents before we headed back to Fayetteville. My grandmother made Arabella (our 2 1/2 year old niece) a cloth flip book, which she loved!

Here is Stephanie reading this book to Arabella on Sunday.

This weekend we are on the road again - heading down to southern Arkansas to spend some time with Stephanie's dad. We are also doing Christmas with Stephanie's mom's side on Sunday! Should be a fun weekend, and we are looking forward to getting down there!

Pictures from last weekend!

2010-11-21T21:30:00.006-06:00

We were so excited to see Wicked last weekend in Little Rock! It was such a fun night in Little Rock and a great show!

Here are a few pre-show pictures at the Peabody...

Also, this is a picture of our niece Arabella and our 11-month old puppy Muli on Saturday morning. Such a great shot! (sorry for the poor quality...)

Pumpkin Carving Challenge 2010

2010-11-04T13:57:00.003-05:00

How amazing is this Pumpking Carving???

GO HOGS!

trials to treasure timeline

2010-10-27T14:56:00.004-05:00

I recently read this timeline that maps out a "Trials" to "Treasure" in a great way! Wanted to share this. After reading through this, it just struck me with how accurate this is.

Trials to Treasure – God’s Plan to Bless

A trial to test provides stretching… and…

§ The stretching provides a new capacity to receive.

§ The greater capacity to receive provides a fresh hunger to fill.

§ The fresh hunger to fill provides a new pursuit to find.

§ The new pursuit to find provides new discoveries to seek.

§ The new discoveries found provide a greater knowledge of God.

§ A greater knowledge of God awakens the heart to the Person of God.

§ A heart awakened to God provides the greater desire for a deeper intimacy with God.

A deeper intimacy with God is the blessing that can come from a trial or test.

What's New?

2010-10-20T11:33:00.009-05:00

Garrett's New Job...

Over the last month and a half I have been working at Northstar as a part-time contracted labor position helping out with some big projects they had going.

On Friday October 15th, the partners of the company offered me a full-time position! I happily accepted and start "officially" on Monday the 18th. It was such a blessing for us and I am excited to jump on board with such a great family here at work!

I will be working specifically with the IDEOS Business Development Team. There isn't a straight-forward job description, which is great because there is always so many different things going on here! I have mostly been doing analytical work with the Core4 Research Team.

The company as a whole has many branches under the umbrella of Northstar... Sales and marketing, research, analytics, logistics and business development are a few to name off hand. I am excited about committing to this company and growing the business!

The thing that I have been most impressed with is how evident faith and work are integrated here. This is a place that cultivates relationships, ministry and life around Northwest Arkansas and beyond. There are numerous missionaries and ministries that are supported by Northstar and it is a huge part of the company. It is so encouraging to be around other believers in Christ who desire to live differently - the way that business is done and against the cultural norms...

Just a huge blessing for us and we praise God for this opportunity!

Road Trip Pictures

2010-10-15T14:34:00.008-05:00

.:: Check out our Pictures here on this link ::.

http://picasaweb.google.com/GarrettLPeters/RoadTrip#

Here's a couple highlights!

Rocky Mountain National Park...

Bryce Canyon National Park...

Zion National Park...

Grand Canyon National Park...

Road. Trip.

2010-10-12T15:34:00.006-05:00

Here is the exact road that we traveled this past week... 8 states in 8 days. Pictures to come later this week!

Miles Traveled - 3,100

Nights in a tent - 4 nights

Total miles hiked at parks - 21 miles

Hogs vs. Alabama Weekend

2010-09-29T09:59:00.010-05:00

This past weekend was such a great time seeing family in friends! Both our parents came up to Fayetteville on Friday to eat and hangout. Lucinda and DJ (Stephanie's parents) stayed the night, but Gary and Nancy (Garrett's parents) had to head back to Fort Smith to get ready for a busy Saturday!

Everything was set up and ready to go on Friday night so we could just hang-out all day on Saturday! Friends starting coming in around 11:00 to begin the extravaganza. Some very close friends from Conway came in that day - Adam, Erika, Erin, and Garrett & Megan - and ended up staying the night!

We had some friends from Fayetteville come over to watch the game as well, which was so fun!

Here are some highlight pictures:

.:Huge Game:.

2010-09-24T09:27:00.005-05:00

This is the biggest game for the Razorbacks this year - so far... So excited that we are getting to play Alabama at home! It's gonna be fun!

VS.

By mid-afternoon on Saturday we'll see how the Hogs managed against the #1 team in College Footall!

Weekend Recap.

2010-09-22T08:38:00.007-05:00

This past weekend was packed with traveling, friends, family and fellowship!

Here are a couple good shots from Mammaw Davis' birthday party in Roe, AR...

And, of course, a shot from the ride home...

Here are some pictures taken on Garrett's trip to OKC, Tulsa and Dallas...

This is a great shot of the entire group Saturday night at the banquet:

Logos Bible Software

2010-09-17T10:55:00.000-05:00

Logos Bible Software is giving away thousands of dollars of prizes to celebrate the launch of Logos Bible Software 4 Mac on October 1. Prizes include an iMac, a MacBook Pro, an iPad, an iPod Touch, and more than 100 other prizes!

They’re also having a special limited-time sale on their Mac and PC base packages and upgrades. Check it out!

| Busy Weekend Ahead |

2010-09-16T16:18:00.005-05:00

This weekend will be quite busy for both of us!

Stephanie...

Heading to Conway Friday afternoon for a conference
Women's Conference Friday night and Saturday in Little Rock
Heading to Grandma's birthday party in the Roe, AR Saturday night
Catching a ride with a friend from Little Rock to Fayetteville on Sunday

Garrett...

Hanging out with his parents on Friday afternoon/early evening
Driving to Oklahoma City to stay with the Utz Family (family we met in Zambia)
Going to Tulsa Saturday morning to watch some field hockey
Driving to Dallas that afternoon for a Family Legacy Missions Banquet that night
Heading from Dallas to OKC then back to Fayetteville on Sunday

It should be fun! We will have some updates after the weekend is over and we have recovered a little...

time to return.

2010-09-09T10:51:00.004-05:00

This Sunday Josh Foliart brought an incredible message to church! He preached out of Luke 15 - the lost sheep, the lost coin and the prodigal son - stories of crisis.

http://www.christianlifecathedral.com/index.php/sermons

I would highly recommend taking an hour or so and listen to this message! Clearly lines out the gospel of Jesus Christ. Very encouraging and applicable for the body of Christ today.

Weekend in Hot Springs!

2010-09-02T18:54:00.009-05:00

We headed to Hot Springs Friday morning to spend some time with family and relax! The "Beard" Crew (most of them) were all enjoying good food, company and laughs. It was nice to get away and enjoy some time with them!

Here are a few choice pictures from our trip:

And last but not least - a few pictures of Don (Stephanie's dad), Aaron and us playing an intense game of Baggo...

Personality Differences.

2010-08-25T16:25:00.003-05:00

How awesome is this. So, last night we took a Performance Style/Spiritual Gifts questionnaire at a meeting. Here is where we landed for our individual performance styles…

Stephanie – LET’S GO: In charge, a pioneer, always moving the group ahead with new visions and new insights. Leads most effectively from the FRONT.

Potential Spiritual Gifts: Leadership, exhortation, faith

Potential Liabilities: May not listen well, challenges others, and challenges other without all the facts.

Garrett – LET’S STAY TOGETHER: team-oriented. Tries to draw the group together and help it stay that way. Leads best from ALONGSIDE or FRONT.

Potential Spiritual Gifts: Pastoring, exhortation, wisdom

Potential Liabilities: Fearful of making decisions for the group (leading) and too careful of being firm or rigid.

This was not surprising for us. After taking the test and seeing where we landed on the scale, we just looked at each other and said – “of course.” It is quite funny for us to be honest. This has created issues for us in our marriage; however, by the grace of God he has done a huge work in our hearts and relationship.

Just thought this was pretty funny.

2010-08-23T10:18:00.006-05:00

Fun, Relaxing weekend!

This was a pretty chill weekend in Fayetteville. A good friend of ours - Erin Bezet - from Conway came in Saturday morning to spend the weekend with us!

Saturday around 11:00, I (Garrett) went to a wedding in Springdale. It was an old college roommate who got married. How awesome is an outside wedding in August in the middle of the day right?!

Stephanie and Erin did a little painting on Saturday then we all just hung around the house that afternoon!

That evening we got the privilege of having two international students come over and eat with us! We were expecting a few Muslim students; however, some things got mixed up and we ended up with some Europeans. We picked up Hannes (Austria) and Paul (Ireland) from campus around 5:30 and came back to the house!

*Hannes on the left and Paul in the middle*

We just talked and got to know their story while at the house, then of course we wanted to play Settlers of Catan! The game originated in Germany, and Hannes had played plenty of times. Apparently it is pretty big in Austria as well! He was pumped to play! We had a blast hanging out with them and look forward to continuing the relationship. Hannes won the game if anyone was wondering...

Here is the two red velvet cakes we made on Friday night for the dinner! They absolutely loved the cakes - and took plenty home too!

Exploring My Artistic Side!

2010-08-16T14:55:00.006-05:00

I've always loved HGTV and have loved doing projects, but over the past couple of months it has increased! I'm not sure when I'll reach a point that I won't want to do a project!

Recently, I've really enjoyed watching Color Splash on HGTV and the more I watch the more inspired I've been to step out and try it myself! If you ask Garrett he will tell you that everything I've tried hasn't helped my design tick. I'll briefly explain...

1) We re-did Nancy and Gary's deck. Garrett had hopes that this would subdue my need to paint but obviously it didn't!

2) We've been helping at a 20-30s ministry here and I got to rearrange furniture and think of ideas to make a space a more inviting environment. That didn't do it either...

3) The space needed art but had $0 for a budget! Now I was getting somewhere! I went on a mission to find wood pallets in trash piles for a free frame! Garrett helped me!! (He's a great husband to put up with my crazy ideas!) Then I got out an old sheet, cut it, stapled it down to the frame we built, got out my paints, and went to town!!! It was so fun!

Here is the outcome of my painted sheet! I think it looks brighter in person but that's just me being a bit of a perfectionist.

4) I decided the frame was so heavy using wood pallets and I knew I'd run out of sheets pretty fast, so I needed a new plan! Plan B! I got basic wood frames from Hobby Lobby. They sell them for a couple of dollars and you put the frame together in the size you want! Then I got a drop cloth canvas from Lowe's for $11, cut it to size, and wrapped my canvas! I'll be able to paint several large paintings with it! The trick with the drop cloth is using a paste of some sort to make the painting area smooth.

I've been wanting to do a painting to go in the living room so I looked up on youtube "how to paint clouds." I would watch the video, pause, and paint! Here it is in process...

Finished product!

5) So after a day of the tree/cloud picture hanging in the living room I decided it didn't match. I pulled back out my art supplies, looked up some more youtube videos, and got to painting. This painting was done on an old flat canvas I have had under my bed in Conway for...well a long time. I took two light weight boards and stapled them to the top and bottom to keep it from warping and it makes it easy to hang.

After a little frustration with this painting I took it outside and tossed some yellow paint on it and decided it would work! It does the job to add color in the living room and it matches!

I'm not sure what I'll do next. I have a huge canvas waiting for some inspiration! I'll let you know when I paint it, if I had to guess it won't be too long from now!

encouraged.

2010-08-09T10:07:00.006-05:00

Getaneh M. Getaneh

“I was hung upside down for hours…then they poured boiling oil on my feet…the pain was unbearable…I prayed to God that He would take me home…suddenly a cloud seemed to come into the room…His presence surrounded me…the pain was taken away…I begin to witness to my persecutors of the love of Jesus…”

This is part of the testimony of Getaneh Getaneh from the country of Ethiopia. Getaneh, an evangelical Christian, was arrested and imprisoned four times, interrogated and repeatedly tortured in Ethiopia because of his evangelistic activities. In 1985 God provided a way for Getaneh to flee from Ethiopia to Djibouti. After the fall of Ethiopia’s communist regime, he returned to his homeland in May 1994, having been assured by officials at the Ethiopian Embassy in Djibouti that things had changed. However, he was arrested and detained at the airport in Addis Ababa soon after his flight landed. After friends helped secure his release, he again fled to the U.S. seeking asylum.

Getaneh has spoken at various Voice of the Martyrs conferences around the U.S. and has been very instrumental in raising awareness in the U.S of Christians suffering for their faith around the world. Today Getaneh resides with his wife in the Washington DC area. He continues working in Ethiopia through his ministry – “Watch and Pray.”

We had the privilege of hearing many stories of brothers and sisters around the world who are currently standing for their faith in Christ amidst persecution and trouble. It was such an encouragement and perspective change as our eyes were opened to the fact that Christians still suffer in many ways.

Additional resources for anyone who is interested in learning or reading more...

The Voice of the Martyrs - www.persecution.com
Request a speaker - www.vommeetings.com
Support a Christian worker in a restricted nation - www.pastorsupport.com
VOM resources - books, cds, dvds, etc. - www.vombooks.com

A few of the speakers from the conference and their websites...

Pastor Steven Khoury (Israel) - www.holylandmissions.org
Pastor Mujahid El Masih (Pakistan) - www.fortheloveofmuslims.org
Pastor Bob Fu (President of China Aid) - www.chinaaid.org

Arabella and Mulenga

2010-08-08T10:31:00.006-05:00

Video of Arabella and Muli playing this weekend in Conway!

Jeremiah 17

2010-08-04T10:01:00.006-05:00

Our tendency is to depend on everything but God… That is a heart issue. Rooted in idolatry and pride. How often do we find ourselves trying to hide in “things” and “stuff” around us? Rather than running to the Creator of the Universe – our God.

This is such a clear picture from the prophet Jeremiah concerning the two ways to deal with our weaknesses. One trusts in man/flesh (verses 5 and 6) and the other trusts in the Lord (verses 7 and 8). The contrast in these two scenarios is so drastic – one is dry and parched, while the other filled and satisfied.

Jeremiah 17: 5-6

Thus says the Lord:
“Cursed is the man who trusts in man
and makes flesh his strength,
whose heart turns away from the Lord.
He is like a shrub in the desert,
and shall not see any good come.
He shall dwell in the parched places of the wilderness,
in an uninhabited salt land.”

Jeremiah 17: 7-8

“Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord,
whose trust is the Lord.
He is like a tree planted by water,
that sends out its roots by the stream,
and does not fear when heat comes,
for its leaves remain green,
and is not anxious in the year of drought,
for it does not cease to bear fruit.”

May God – through his Spirit – reveal to us our wicked hearts. And from that may we repent and turn to Him, not what he has created. If you are a believer in Christ this should bring you much encouragement, knowing that He gives us all we need to accomplish this.

Great visit from Nancy!

2010-07-28T12:45:00.006-05:00

This pretty much sums up our trip to Conway this past weekend! Traveling and non-stop action...

*The crew after a day in the sun!*

This Tuesday our Fort Smith mom came up to spend some quality time with us!

A quick recap of her visit -- Italian lunch, art gallery full of East Africa pictures at U of A, strolling around the square, exploring Mt. Sequoyah with our puppy, picking some peaches, Mexican food for dinner and a game of Phase 10!

*Great picture of my mom*

*Muli is almost 8 months old and stinkin' weighs 50 lbs!!*

*Enjoying the night at Mount Sequoyah*

*Taking it easy after a walk*

*We literally drove up on a deer and it's baby, it was wild!*

We were so glad to get to spend a day with Nancy! We always have so much fun hanging out with her, and seem to always get into something crazy as well.

The Header is in Process!!

2010-07-22T17:00:00.002-05:00

It'll be up on Monday! I know...you can't even wait!!!

Wow.

2010-07-21T14:56:00.004-05:00

A book written by Dr. David Platt. Please consider getting this and reading it as soon as you can.

http://www.radicalthebook.com/

A Little Over Our Heads...

2010-07-20T16:20:00.015-05:00

Last Saturday Garrett's parents left to go to Houston to see Skeet for his birthday and Garrett and I got to brainstorming on what we could do for them while they were out of town. We looked around the house and decided that it would be the biggest help to re-due their deck. So like any amateurs we looked up "how to" videos online to know what we should do and took off to Lowe's with enthusiasm not knowing what was ahead!

Before:

After we stripped the deck, which took two days!!

After:

This was for sure a learning experience for us! We were so glad to get the opportunity to do something for Garrett's parents though - and they really liked the results!

our "little" brother.

2010-07-12T11:17:00.008-05:00

Well, I guess he isn't so little anymore... This past Saturday on July 10th - Skeet Watson Peters turned 21 years old!

Wish we could have been in Houston with the family to celebrate this day with him! Skeet is an incredible young man, and has grown so much over this last year... He is one of the brightest, yet goofiest people I know. And I love that about him! Skeet always makes things more fun for sure!

*Skeet and his girlfriend Jordan Spring of 2010*

*Easter 2010*

*I'm pretty sure this was Kaleo 2009* (goofball.)

*Skeet at what he does best - talk...*

We love you brother! Look forward to what the Lord has planned for you!

Fireworks on the 4th of July!

2010-07-08T13:38:00.008-05:00

We headed to Clarendon Thursday afternoon to spend an extended amount of time with our dad! It is so refreshing for us to get out in the country - to relax, eat horribly, laugh, play and disconnect. Our brother Aaron and our cool 2 year old niece Arabella came down for a few days as well, which was great!

Here are some highlights in no particular order...

*This is a bonus... Stephanie occasionally has amazing outbursts of writing flow through her! I think Lecrae could really use this on some of his next tracks! Here is the first paragraph, and more to come soon!*

Surrounded by apathy,

every replacement for intimacy

instantly gratifying

every desire that intensifies

Using people and places, new engagements, new arrangements

to replace a God that can only satisfy

Heading to the Country!

2010-07-01T11:05:00.005-05:00

We are packing up and going down to the Delta country to visit with Stephanie's dad in Clarendon! Excited to be able to spend an extended amount of time with Don over this 4th of July weekend.

The next four days will most likely be full of the following: 4-wheeler riding, fishing, eating great food, bowling in Stuttgart, playing with all the dogs, watching DVDs, camping and more fishing...

Our dog Mulenga has grown SO MUCH since we were there last! It will be cool to see if she can stand her ground against the rough crew that Don has on the farm.

Recent picture of Muli...

Some past pictures from Clarendon...

Our "watering-hole" if you will. Can't get much more white trash than that...

Kicking it outside - it's just what we do down there!

We are planning on taking plenty of pictures and hopefully some secret videos of Don in his prime! Tune in sometime next week for those clips!

Epic Fall

2010-06-19T16:35:00.003-05:00

Lucky I'm still alive... Just a fun video that has been long overdue!

HAPPY FATHERS DAY DADS!!

Missing Zambia!

2010-06-17T15:09:00.005-05:00

There's just something about looking through pictures of the kids in Zambia that does something good for the soul. How often it is that I forget about them, along with so many other amazing people who are laboring for the kingdom over there!

I love to reflect on what the Lord did there last year and also what he did in us! I pray for everyone there and I am confident that He will continue to comfort and supply them!

Goodness, those faces!

Here is a picture from a couple kids taken this summer! I have no idea who these kids are but I could probably just take that lil' dude on the left home...

I believe that we will be back there sometime -- when that will be I don't know. The Lord is in control of that; however, I hope that we will be obedient to his leading! Until then we got some funny pictures and videos to watch, and of course fancy technology to stay connected with some of them!

Christ is All.

2010-06-09T12:07:00.003-05:00

There are definitely times in my walk with the Lord that this chilling question hits my heart – “Is Jesus really enough?” I feel as if God has been showing me over the past few months that He is all that I have on this Earth (and in the ages to come). And I praise him for that. As I read the gospels and through the New Testament I continue to see Jesus calling people to follow Him and forsake all. Here are just a few…

“If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take us his cross daily and follow me.” -- Luke 9
Jesus sending out the twelve apostles in Matthew 10 – telling them to take nothing.
“For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” – Matthew 16
“I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me.” –Galatians 2:20

As I think about my life in Christ I can’t help but wonder whether or not I have truly believed His word. All too often do I run to God in times of desperation pleading for Him to move miraculously. However, I pray that I would not run to Him just to receive something that he could give me…

I want to run to Him to simply know Christ! May that be our desire as followers of Christ, to be with God. THAT is the gospel. The good news of Jesus Christ is that our life of sin/darkness/rebellion/offense against the God of the universe has been paid in full by Jesus on the cross – and we have been given a new life in him. (See Ephesians 2, II Corinthians 5 and pretty much the entire book of Romans) It isn’t “Jesus and…” – it is simply Jesus.

All of this to say – we are stepping into a difficult season of our lives. On Monday afternoon I was let go from my job. Didn’t necessarily come like a monumental shock – however, not something I think anyone prepares for in full…

What does this mean for us? Definitely don’t have that answer. What I do know is that God is continuing to be God. He is sovereign over all. He isn’t surprised by anything. We will stand on his Word like always. And pray. Pray that he will be enough for us. I believe he is doing something really powerful in our lives and honestly preparing us for something more!

That’s that. If anyone wants to know how to help I’d say this – Pray that God would detach our hands from the things of this world and place them on Himself – for everyone! Also, that Psalm 73 would resonate in our lives today, “Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.”

Memorial Day 2010

2010-06-03T10:06:00.006-05:00

This past Friday one of our best friends - THE Joy Janszen - came in town. Stephanie and her hung out most of Friday night while I read. They cooked some amazing food and then we got after some Settlers of Catan, of course!

Saturday.... We went to the Farmers' Market that morning, got some plants and sat outside and enjoyed some breakfast.

Here are Joy and Stephanie planting - strawberries, tomatoes, squash, bell peppers, and all kinds of herbs!

That afternoon we headed to Natural Falls State Park outside of Siloam Springs! It was a nice day to get out in the sun and enjoy nature.

Sunday.... This was a very chill day for us. We went to church that morning and hung out at Panera for a bit! We got back to the house and hung out with Arabella (she was in town visiting some of her grandparents) and then grilled out with Gary and Nancy. So glad the Peters made a trip up from Fort Smith!

Monday.... Stephanie and I packed up that morning and headed to the Buffalo River! We made it by 12:00 and then started floating around 12:30. Our dog LOVED IT! Such a nice day to be on the water and just hang, so fun!

Loving Choices Walk--Consider sponsoring an ultrasound!

2010-05-27T11:50:00.005-05:00

Hi Friends/Family!

As most of you know, I've been working at Loving Choices Pregnancy Center since December. We are a non-profit organization that serves women in crisis pregnancies. We provide pregnancy tests, limited ultrasounds, STD testing, options counseling, and post-abortion counseling, as well as a care ministry that allows expecting mothers to learn and earn baby supplies. To keep our services free for our clients we have 3 major fundraisers during the year, "Walk" being one of them.

You can come out and walk on June 12th OR you could sponsor an ultrasound for $25 dollars by sponsoring me in the walk!

Statistically it is 90% more likely that a woman will choose 'Life' for her child after viewing an ultrasound!!

Be a walker on June 12th: http://support.lovingchoices.org/lifewalkl.html
Sponsor me for an ultrasound ($25): http://www.ministrysync.com/event/website/?m=364048
Read more information about Loving Choices: http://support.lovingchoices.org

CLICK HERE to watch what KNWA aired about Loving Choices:
http://nwahomepage.com/doinggood-fulltext/?nxd_id=165666

Thanks for taking the time to read this message and for your support!!

Steph

Cruise Pictures!

2010-05-26T13:22:00.012-05:00

*Chillin in Pregreso!*

*Aaron and Stephanie after dinner*

*One night at dinner!*
*Getting off the ship in Progreso*
*DJ and Lucinda at dinner*
*Stephanie's new boyfriend Sergio...*
*Sergio was our dive master and also our chauffeur for the day in Cozumel!*

*Our waiter the entire week, he was from Indonesia!*

*Steph dominating roulette!*

*Eating lunch one day. Arabella LOVES ketchup... haha!*

Quick run-down of our trip and highlights...

-Got to spend a night with Skeet in Houston on our way to the cruise and also on the way back. So glad to see him and also check out BP Corporate office down there.

-Rode jet skis in the ocean at Progreso. Awesome.

-Bought 3 boot-leg DVDs from a Mexican dude. Horrible quality.

-Two tank dive in the most beautiful waters in Cozumel!

-Island outing with Sergio after our dive and then lunch at a restaurant right off the water. Great margaritas and food!

-Big money won by Stephanie (a.ka. Roulette Queen) at the casino. What up!

-Lots of eating, chillin and reading...

Cruise!!!

2010-05-12T16:10:00.004-05:00

T minus 3 days we will be getting on a big ship in Galveston, TX! I am so pumped about this experience, and look forward to making a complete fool of myself at least 4 times...

Hanging out in Progresso and scuba diving in Cozumel! Going to be a great trip, and we are so thankful for our parents for inviting us!

We are heading to Houston Friday to stay with Skeet, then we will be getting on the ship Saturday morning!

HAPPY BIRTHIDAY STEPHANIE!!

2010-05-09T10:11:00.004-05:00

Today is Stephanie's 25th Birthday! Praise God for bringing her into this world 25 years ago!

Steph last Thursday at dinner... Lovin that sangria margarita!

Mexican Dinner celebration!

Just a fun bonus picture of Stephanie this Spring!

I definitely out punted my coverage with this woman... I Love you Stephanie and praying for an incredible year!

Surprise visit from Skeet this week!

2010-05-06T09:03:00.001-05:00

So pumped to see my little brother this past Tuesday! My parents came up from Ft. Smith for some quality time with us - dinner, Stephanie's early birthday celebration, and of course, some Orange Mango self-serve goodness!

Just a glimpse of what happens when we are together...

Skeet. Watson. Peters. The dude is great - I love my little bro! We will be seeing him in a few weeks when we pass through Houston. By the way - we're going on a cruise! We head out May 16th from Galveston, I'm excited about this trip! (my first cruise!)

Boasting about Tomorrow

2010-05-04T13:34:00.004-05:00

There are so many things that we dream about doing. Too many to name. And honestly I stay in a state of perpetual thinking/wondering/planning [etc...] about what could come or what we should be doing... It is ridiculous.

This doesn't always go well for me - as I often get overwhelmed with thoughts of how our lives should go (instead of seeking the Lord and lining up my life with His.) However, it is quite fun to dream about the limitless possibilities of where we might end up.

All that being said I have recently been reading through the book of James and came across an incredible passage that many people will know. Goodness, I love this. Wanted to share...

"Come now, you who say, 'Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit' - yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. Instead you ought to say, 'If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.' As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil. So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin."

James 4:13-17 esv

So - this is an encouragement to me and a challenge as well. Praying that I will focus my time, energy and heart to following Christ TODAY instead of always looking to the future and possibly losing what the Lord wants to reveal right now.

Also... How difficult is verse 17 in this passage. If I know the right thing to do and fail to do it... that is sin. How often does that happen, it's out of control.

-GP-

The past 10 days!

2010-05-02T13:22:00.005-05:00

Last weekend Garrett and I loaded up and headed south to Clarendon to my dad's house! We stopped in Conway and picked up Arabella and took on a weekend with puppy and baby solo! I have to say that it is hard work and was exhausted after a couple of days, but it was really fun! Here are some pics from last weekend:

The trip from Conway to Clarendon! Muli and Arabella rode side by side! The only problem was Muli wanting Arabella's pizza...Arabella's response: "No Muli, my pizza!!!"

Once the food debate was over they passed out together!

Saturday afternoon Garrett and Arabella kicked the ball around the yard for several hours!! I'm not sure who was having more fun!!

We went bowling in Stuttgart! Arabella was enjoying her chicken fingers!

Passed out after bowling!

Our puppy is obsessed with water. She doesn't just walk through it, but she rolls in it!!!

At my grandparents on Sunday afternoon! Bubba made it late Saturday night...I was glad to have reinforcements! He's such a good dad!!!

This weekend has been a little more relaxin'! Adam Funmaker (one of Garrett's good guy friends from Conway) and his girlfriend Erika came up for the weekend! On Friday we went out to eat, got ice cream, and played settlers on Friday night! Saturday we went to the Razorback baseball game with a group of friends and relaxed around the house! Today I woke up bright and early (5:30am) to come down to Conway for a wedding shower for my friend Ali's wedding shower!

That Time of Year!

2010-04-19T15:41:00.008-05:00

We absolutely love spring time… Getting outside is very healthy for us – individually and also for our marriage as well. There is just something about sitting in God’s creation, relaxing, reflecting and dreaming about life.

We spent the weekend of April 9th and 10th out in Elkins, AR with some new friends of ours who have land out there! Friday night we ate dinner, caught up and then stayed the night at the house. Saturday was packed with outdoors activities! We set up our camping spot on a section of the 36 acres that they have, hiked Muli around, built a monster fire and enjoyed a gorgeous night. Our dog LOVES running around in the woods, which is a blessing for us. (also, she is a true water-loving dog… videos to come.)

Here are a few pictures taken on Saturday…

This past weekend was a “man trip” for me and some buddies! We hiked Section 3 of the Ozark Highlands Trail. We got out there late Friday night and came home Sunday morning. It was good to get out once again in the woods and explore a bit. Stephanie went down to Conway to see our family and some friends!

Check out this rugged crew I was with…

A couple good shots from the weekend – a few around the campsite and also atop Hare Mountain...

We left a little early Sunday morning so we could make it to Pinnacle Hills Church in Rogers to hear Dr. David Platt speak! This guy brought it… We have been very challenged and encouraged by this pastor over the past few months. It would be very worth it to take some time to listen to his Radical series… Check out the following link to The Church at Brook Hills or check it out on iTunes! Either way, you will not regret this.

http://www.brookhills.org/media/series/radical/

Late Pictures from Easter Weekend!

2010-04-13T11:29:00.006-05:00

Better late than never I guess... Here are some pictures we took on Easter! Skeet and his girlfriend Jordan came in from Tulsa and spent Saturday and some of Sunday with us. They are so fun, and we had a blast playing some Settlers!

*Christmas card type pic or what?!*

Also.... we spent some time in the woods this past weekend, which was great! The weather was perfect and Muli thoroughly enjoyed being out in the country!

There will be some pictures and possibly some video footage to come later in the week....

Easter Weekend!

2010-04-02T10:35:00.004-05:00

I stumbled onto this painting today at work and was just stunned by the detail of the scene of Jesus being arrested. It is Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio and titled The Taking of Christ. I really don’t know anything about painting at all; however, I do feel touched by this work! Seeing the willingness of Christ to be arrested, go through the beatings and mocking, suffer a most horrible death on a cross while doing it all for the “joy set before him” (Hebrews 12) blows me away…

“For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father.”

John 10:17-18

May we take time this Easter to reflect on the goodness of Jesus Christ. I just ask myself how often I “look to Jesus”, how often I think about His suffering for me and what He did that day over 2,000 years ago… This has to change the way we live as followers of Christ!

Bonus from my LAST DAY at J. B. Hunt……

So, a good friend of mine Billy McEntire wrote me a beautiful “Ode” this morning at work. From permission from Billy I would love to share this with everyone, enjoy!

An Ode to Moody and Garrett

Through this door they come and go
Their destination, no one knows.
Plannin loads and makin calls
In time makes the best men fall.
The burden understood by his poor dear wife
The weight of stress begins to drain his life
But he's a man and he cannot pout
There's only one solution, he must get out.
He walks these halls feelin like a phony
But a single phrase temporarily fills him:
"I'll take a coke and roni"
Thank God for good ole Jim

Moody was another former J. B. Hunt employee who left this past year. It has been a long running tradition for Jim’s Razorback Pizza on Fridays, and oh how I pray I can continue to make it for lunch… Thank you Billy for your artistic insight, we all were moved!

Updates from Garrett!

2010-03-25T09:17:00.003-05:00

Well, this next week will be my last week here at J.B. Hunt! Starting April 5th I will be starting a new position with Silex Interiors in Springdale. Silex is an expanding wholesale granite company here in the Northwest Arkansas area. I am truly looking forward to this opportunity and also just getting to do something new!

http://silexinteriors.com/

*Check out the website!*

This will be a huge learning process for me and I am excited about that! My main role will be building relationships with builders, contractors and anyone in the residential housing market here in NWA. I will be working around half the time in the office in Springdale assisting retail clients and helping anyone who comes in to see our products. The other half I will be out building relationships, learning the housing market, etc…

Silex Interiors sells pre-fabricated granite that comes out of the supplier in China. It is a really cool deal that they have set-up, and it has done extremely well in Tulsa and Oklahoma City! I met with the president of the company last week, and really hit it off with him. He is a believer, solid-guy who has a heart to serve the Lord. It will be some great experience and should be a lot more fun than “The Hunt.”

During my time at J.B. Hunt I was able to connect with some really awesome guys! There are three guys in particular I have really grown close to, and I will definitely miss. I will be staying in touch with them – and hope to make Friday lunch at Jim’s as often as I can to hang with these dudes!

I am thankful for what the Lord has shown me and done in me over the last 3 and a half months. It has been a challenge and test, but I know that I have grown during this time!

We’ll keep you all updated on how things turn out with this new job!

More Wedding Fun!

2010-03-21T10:46:00.008-05:00

Once again, we headed to Central Arkansas for another friend's wedding! Thankfully we like driving together, so it makes the trip very smooth. Also, Muli is getting used to the car and doesn't freak out as much, which is great!

Stopped in to see Granda Leila before the reception in North Little Rock... Isn't she cute?!

Congratulations, Daniel and Anne McPherson!!!

*Great picture of the girls!*

*Garrett and I at the wedding!*

*Dancing the night away!*

*Erin and I at the wedding! She is so great!*

Pics from last week!

2010-03-18T22:34:00.006-05:00

This is a little late, but wanted to post some pictures from this last weekend! We had a great time in Conway - Seth and Rachel Latture's wedding, visiting our amazing grandmother Jean (Garrett's grandma) in Little Rock, and of course hanging and relaxing with our family!

Here are a couple pictures representing just how much fun we had...

*Stephanie passed out on the way home! Worn out.*

*Our cute puppy, also passed out on the way home!!*

This Weekend.... We are once again heading South to Conway/Little Rock. Going to another wedding in North Little Rock and then having some friends over to hang out on Saturday!

We are looking forward to getting down there and enjoying some time with good people!

Look out for pictures and stories to come!

One Year Anniversary!!!

2010-03-09T13:49:00.006-06:00

We've made it ONE year!!! :)

Because Garrett planned our honeymoon and surprised me at the airport, I planned and surprised him with weekend plans for our one year anniversary!

I made him an itinerary book with details of the weekend! He got to read Friday when we were halfway to our location on Friday afternoon!

First stop - Beaver Lakefront Cabins!!

This was the PERFECT getaway location!! I highly recommend it!

Thanks to mom for getting the top of my cake made!!! So sweet...

Friday - We hiked down to the lake, fished off the dock (bait and poles are included in the room), and grilled steak on the deck! It was an awesome night! Besides me over flowing the jacuzzi with bubbles...ooppss! Haha!

Saturday - We ventured out into Eureka Springs on the trolly! We rode around town, explored the Crescent Hotel, ate lunch at a cool restaurant, got snow cones, and enjoyed the weather walking in and out of shops!

Sunday - We packed a picnic and went to Turpentine Park (cat rescue)! We ate a picnic, napped out in the sun, toured the park, and watch the cats feed at 4pm!! It was such a beautiful and fun day! It's amazing what a weekend away can do!

That bird DIDN'T like me...

Are We Even Ready for This?!

2010-02-27T08:59:00.006-06:00

*I mean, how Cute is this puppy??!!*

So, last Friday our simple lives as we knew it completely changed. We got a puppy.... We have talked about getting a dog for quite some time, and the opportunity came up last week - and we decided to do it! This is just another thing for me that reveals how selfish I really am, haha!

This past week has been full of ups and downs. It has been so great having a puppy, playing, training, everything like that; however, she is so dependent on us, it's crazy! Maybe I just didn't have a grasp on what this was going to be like... We decided to name this beautiful half Border Collie half Golden Retriever "Mulenga". We typically just call her Muli, which is easy and fun to say! Mulenga is a Nyanja (Zambian) word that has significance for our lives. It is an every day reminder of some kids we know in Zambia, Mulenga is a very common last name over there.

Here are just a few shots taken over the last couple days...

Stephanie went down to Conway Friday morning to spend some time with her mom! It is my wonderful mother-in-law Lucinda Waller's Birthday this SUNDAY! Happy Birthday Lucinda, see you soon!

*Picture of our niece Arabella at the store on Friday!*

Learning, Doing, and Challenges

2010-02-19T15:50:00.006-06:00

Well, I had all the hopes to be a good and consistent blogger. But it isn't working out like I had liked. Not to make excuses, but it is hard when we don't have internet at home.

ANYWAYS!

Every week seems to come with its challenges, struggles, smiles, and growth! I'll give the highlights of what we have been learning, doing, and challenged with!

1) LEARNING - Last Monday, I was in a funk. I came home from work with this feeling of defeat and acted like a solid 5 year old! I literally laid in the floor after dinner and kicked and complained for about an hour. I felt this overwhelming weight of toiling. Working, going, doing with no since of purpose. After my sweet husband got over the shock of never seeing that side of me, he sat and listened! I praise the Lord he doesn't try to fix me but listens to try to understand. I am learning that I need more patience, specifically how to wait on the Lord. Patience for the Lord to move our hearts, open doors, and have the faith to step out and try new things. We are learning that trying and failing is the way we will learn, grow, and will find success. Now, where to step next? We aren't sure...we are waiting, listening, and watching with expectation.

2) DOING - We've been all over the place in the last couple of weeks. We went to my dad's house a couple of weeks ago. It's so good for my heart to see him! That same weekend we went to Memphis for my cousins wedding and stopped in Conway for a bit on the way home. On Valentine's day weekend we went to Scarpinno's on Friday to listen to a live band, eat out, and enjoyed some quality time together. Our friend Erin came up that Saturday to cook and play games with a group of friends of ours from Fayetteville. And Sunday, we were lazy bums!!

TODAY - I'm sitting at the Starbucks in Rogers waiting for Garrett to get off work. We are planning on driving to Springfield, MO to pick up a puppy!! We honestly don't know what we are getting into, but we've decided that dogs are like kids, when are you actually ready for them??

3) CHALLENGING - While I have been sitting at Starbucks I have been reading through blogs. PLEASE go to the link on the side of our blog and ready Katie's blog. It is amazing, challenging, and stirs my heart. She is a girl who moved to Uganda when she was 19 years old, has taken on 13 street kids, and has given her life to these 13 girls. She has an amazing story and is a great writer.

She challenged me today. How easy it is to get fixed on this world, get a quick reminder on how big our God is and what He has called us to do, and then go right back to comfort and forget that God has much bigger plans. This ties back into my episode I had a couple of Monday's ago. I threw this little fit because I didn't know what to do. I still don't. Garrett and I have these dreams in mind of different ways that we can reach out to the hurting and actively live out what God calls us to. But which one of the handful does He want us to take steps towards, how do we practically do that, and how long will we have to wait to see it happen? It can be frustrating to have such a passion and not see any movement toward an outcome. This is where the Lord told me to be patient and wait on Him!! I am still learning, still trying to be patient, and needing more of His strength and point of view to wait in true patience. When I read Katie's blog I can feel her frustration, and in a way I can relate to it. I can't fully relate, but I can feel her holy passion that flows out in her blog! It challenges me, and I hope you read it and it does the same for you!

Day of playing in the Snow!

2010-01-31T14:06:00.005-06:00

Once again, we had another big wave of snow/ice come through Northwest Arkansas! Although we didn't do any sledding, ice sculptures or igloos, we did get out and run around like 8 year old kids... (We like to think we're still pre-teens at times, haha!)

Here are a few pics of the snow/day of fun...

*Snow fell all day Friday!!*

*Right outside the house*

*Just being goofy, not really sure what is going on here...*

Additional thoughts from Garrett...

The past couple weeks have been such a time of growth and learning for me personally. Perspectives has really been challenging my thoughts on who God is, what His heart is and also WHY I even say I have a heart for the Nations. For so long, it's been this thought of "I say yes, Jesus come into my heart and be with me", where it really is Jesus calling me to follow Him and be with Him. I have begun to ask myself many questions about the state of my heart and the view I have of God.

Whose story is this anyway? I am selfish at the core, and most the time I have a false view of how I should live my life... I am only a part (small part) of God's redemptive narrative of Him rescuing the earth to Himself. It is no longer about me; however, I pray that I could live as Paul - "For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain."

Isaiah 49:6 is such a powerful call to have a bigger view of God's purposes on the Earth...

"He says: 'It is too light a thing that you should be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob and to bring back the preserved of Israel; I will make you as a light for the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth."

May we as the Body of Christ let the Lord transform our hearts. This is nothing that we conjure up, but we surrender and let the Spirit reveal the deep things of who He is. God in His grace and mercy giving His son as a sacrifice to restore us to Himself should move us to worship. Worship is rightly responding to God's glory! What a marvelous picture of God's love for his people.

Romans 1:5-6 lays it out for us. "...through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the nations, including you who are called to belong to Jesus Christ."

Praise the Lord for his goodness! Love you all!

Date Night Last Night!

2010-01-23T20:58:00.006-06:00

Dinner at the Pesto Cafe!!!

Garrett planned for us to go to a cool coffee shop but it was closed and we're an old married couple and 10pm is late for us...so we just took funny pictures and laughed!!!

Our one sweet picture from our crazy pictures!

The best pic of the night is now our new main photo up top!

It was a WONDERFUL date night!!!

Surprises...

2010-01-22T14:24:00.005-06:00

1) Date night tonight!!
This week has flown by!! I seriously can't believe it is Friday! But I am looking forward to this weekend. We are going on a date tonight, and as normal I don't know what we are doing on our date! I love it!!! Garrett loves the idea of me not knowing and him being in control of the night. I have to say it is refreshing to just show up ready to go and he takes care of it!!

2) Ideas for our 1 year in March?
For our year anniversary I get to surprise him! He planned our honeymoon and I didn't find out where we were going until I was at the airport, so for our one year...IT IS MY TURN!! He gets to plan the even years and I get the odd years for our anniversary!

If anyone wants to post some fun ideas I am up for suggestions! I have some ideas, but I wanted to see what kinds of responses I would get from our friends!

3) I'm not pregnant, but scares are always a surprise!!
As most of you know I work at Loving Choices Pregnancy Center where we talk about pregnancies and STDs like it's common topic like cooking or tv shows! haha! So on Thursday a couple of staff girls were testing our new pregnancy tests so we know how they work to train our peer counselors. Well, one lady was pregnant so her's turned out with 2 solid red lines, another girl was negative with one red line, and then mine was one red line and one white!! Slightly shocking when you are taking the test for fun just testing it out!!! haha!
When I called our nurse to ask about the white line she said that we need to have that client come and retest next week because she could be pregnant. I said, "the client is me!!!" She busted out laughing, "I'm guessing you weren't planning on that!" Needless to say it made for an interesting day at work and a fun explanation to Garrett when he asked, "How was your day today?" He walked around outside for alittle while after that explanation of my day! I think it is a funny story and overall it was a good surprise/scare for us to mentally and emotionally process! The end of the story is that my test was negative this morning! Praise the Lord!!

I think the Lord wanted us to do a heart check on "our plans" and for Him to remind us that in reality we are in "His plans!!!" The Lord has a very good sense of humor!!! :)

*I'll post pictures soon from our date tonight and we are going to Fort Smith to hangout with Pete and Nancy on Saturday morning! I am excited to see them, watch the Razorback bball game together and to catch up with them! Again, pictures will follow soon!!

Fishing on the White River

2010-01-17T10:44:00.007-06:00

This weekend was spent at a beautiful cabin near Flippin, AR on the White River! Stephanie's parents have some friends who own CedarWood lodge right on the river, it is great.

Saturday was a brisk 50 degrees - which worked out nice for a day on the river Trout Fishing!

*Here we are before heading out! Ken Green leading the way in the back.*

*Aaron and I enjoying the day!*

*Stephanie and I - don't let the picture fool you, we were all business out there!*

*A successful day with 12 succulent Rainbow Trout...*

The fish were cleaned and prepared that afternoon, and smoked for dinner! There is just something about catching and eating your own food. Love that! We had a blast this weekend just getting out of Fayetteville for a bit and being outdoors...

Fishing on the White River

2010-01-17T10:44:00.000-06:00

This weekend was spent at a beautiful cabin near Flippin, AR on the White River!

Thoughts from last night!

2010-01-12T16:38:00.006-06:00

Last night Garrett and I laid out our finances and then read through a large part of Ecclesiastes. What a good book of the Bible to make you think and put life into a better perspective! It has been a challenge/struggle for us recently to not look around and see what is around us and strive for it! I know this is something that everyone deals with at different levels at different periods of their life, and for us it is no different. It is easy to look around at new cars, houses, clothes, workout plans, compare salaries and think, "I want that." I want to preface that not all of these things are bad, but if it becomes your main focus or takes your focus off what God wants to do in your life then an issue arises. God wants ALL of our hearts! Not some of our hearts and not 99.9% of our hearts, but every single portion.

"Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and GREATEST commandment."

Matthew 22:37-38

God gives us this command because He knows us better than we know ourselves. He knows the finished product of striving and focusing on worldly things leaves us empty. We can look around at celebrities to see this...divorce, addictions, depression. They seem to have everything on a material level, but yet empty.

As King Solomon says in Ecclesiastes after asking God for wisdom and the gaining that wisdom and unprecedented processions he stated this...

"I denied myself nothing my eyes desired; I refused my heart no pleasure. My heart took delight in all my work, and this was the reward for all my labor. Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun." Ecc 2:10-11

"Whoever loves money never has money enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income. This too is meaningless. As goods increase, so do those who consume them."

Ecc 5:10-11

Does that sound familiar? Ha! YES!!! This is an endless striving, is it not? Never satisfying, leaving us sleepless at night, and always incising us for more! This is why God said,

"No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money."

Matthew 6:24

I need to remind myself of this a lot! To look back on the days when we had even less than we do now and how happy, peaceful, and free I felt! The more things that pile on, the more I want, yet the less at peace and rest I feel! GOD IS GOOD though! He corrects us as a loving Father! He doesn't let us be comfortable seeking things that He knows will take our eyes off of Him, steal our joy, and make us unsettled. As believers in Christ, our treasure is in heaven NOT on this earth, so lets encourage each other while it is still today to live this way!

"You say, "I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.' But you do not realize you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness..." Revelation 3:17-18

BUYING GOLD = SEEKING OUT WHO GOD IS THROUGH HIS WORD!

It's about time to keep this updated! (by request)

2010-01-10T16:30:00.003-06:00

IT'S AMAZING HOW FAST LIFE FLYS BY!

Within the last year...

-Finished planning a wedding

-Got married

-Had a blast in Maumelle

-Put our apartment in storage & headed to Africa

-Loved on a lot of kids & saw part of the world

-Got home in August & saw family

-Stayed on the Buffalo River before deciding to move to Fayetteville

-Moved within the week

-Went on the job hunt for a couple of months

-God blessed us with jobs

- We have been in Fayetteville for 4 months

& are still making adjustments!

THE LAST COUPLE OF WEEKS!

-New Year's Eve: We were in Kansas City for a conference!

-This past week we started adjusting back to work after the holidays and everyday seemed to be filled with company! Wednesday-Aaron and Arabella were in town. Thursday-Skeet and some friends came over for the National Championship!

SAD THAT COLLEGE FOOTBALL HAS ENEDED...

WHERE WE ARE...WHERE WE ARE HEADING...

I am not sure how long we will be in Fayetteville, but only time will tell. We have hearts that desire to serve the Lord wherever He calls us, for the time being we feel that place is Fayetteville. This season's theme seems to be "Setting a Foundation!"

-Growing in our marriage

-Finding community

-Seeking out more of who God is

-Pouring into those around us

PRACTICALLY:

-We're starting Perspectives Class this coming Thursday!! (www.perspectives.org)

-Connecting to a church through a community group

-There are a couple of college girls I'll begin meeting with this week.

-Garrett has guys he is building relationships with through JB Hunt.

Now that I have blogged and caught everyone up...I can updated now like normal people do and let you know what is actually goin on from a day-to-day basis!!!!

(Marietta requested that I become a better blogger, so this is the beginnings of my attempt!)

Merry Christmas All!

2009-12-26T12:24:00.012-06:00

Our First Christmas being married has been so fun!!!

We started a couple new traditions this year. It began with some construction on homemade ginger bread houses! We gathered all the essentials the day before: graham crackers, tons of icing, M & M's, gummy bears, dots, and plenty of other fruit things. It was great to just throw on some Christmas music and build away! Stephanie's turned out a little better than mine; however, I was going for the most like the "Griswolds" haha! That night we cooked dinner, enjoyed some wine, and just layed around!

We decided to sleep in the living room that night, so we set up an amazing pallet by the Christmas tree! We made some hot chocolate and watched A Christmas Story. That next morning we woke up to a winter-wonderland! After exchanging gifts and just laying around, we ventured out into the snow!! (See pics below...)

Since then we have been traveling and seeing family. We were in Russellville Christmas day, Conway for one night, and heading to Fort Smith for the rest of the weekend! It has been such a great Christmas holiday. We are so thankful for everything the Lord has done in our life thus far and continues to do for us! He has blessed us with everything we have, especially calling us to Himself thru his son Jesus.

"For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever."

-Romans 11:36-

*New Tradition for us.... Building a ginger bread house!

*Stephanie intently building her castle! It blew mine away, surprised anyone? haha!

Christmas Eve Dinner!

*Blessed with a White Christmas in Fayetteville!

*Photo shoot in Clarendon...

*Great pic of Dad and Arabella! He was so excited to see her!

Christmas Time is Here!

2009-12-05T12:17:00.006-06:00

Hello all! Hope that everyone is doing very well during this time, even though the weather outside has become especially chilly. This past week was our first "official" week of work! It has been such a transition time for us, but has been really good. It makes the time that we get to spend at night SO much more "quality", which is awesome! J. B. Hunt is a corporate office setting, and I am praying that I can start adjusting to that a little more... Just never been in that situation. However, knowing that it is only going to be a season that I am there I just fine with that. Stephanie has been excited about the women involved at Loving Choices and she is beginning to understand some of the roles she will have there! We are blessed by the Lord and want be ministers of Reconciliation wherever we are at... (See II Corinthians Chapter 5)

We love this time of year honestly... A time to enjoy family, remembering what God has done for us in his provision, and above all else to celebrate the true meaning of Christmas, which is the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ. More than just little baby Jesus's in mangers all over the place, but remembering that Jesus was a Man (God-man at that.) and that He truly saves, heals, redeems, and reconciles this broken world! Let's please not lose our minds during this season can we? And by that, I mean completely go nuts with all this season brings - culturally, spending craziness, worldly stuff, etc...

*Our authentic tree!*

*After our date this Friday night!*

Last night was a fun night for us! We don't go out to eat that often, especially recently, so we wanted to sit down somewhere for a nice mean. We tried some new sushi rolls at Kobe's and loved it! Stopped in at Arsaga's coffee shop and grabbed a drink and chatted... After all that we went home to do an exciting photo shoot, haha! Managing to take at least 25 pictures, a couple turned out not bad at all! One of our good friends Erin Bezet came in late last night and she will be hanging out with us all weekend, whoo-hoo!

One thing that has really been heavy on our hearts is the situation with Matt Chandler - Lead pastor of The Village Church in the Dallas area. He collapsed the day of Thanksgiving last week with a seizure. After some tests at the hospital, the doctors found that he had a "small mass on his frontal lobe" of his brain...

Gosh, crazy news to the Chandler family, the Village community, and people all over the world. His teaching of the Scriptures has been so challenging to many believers around the world! Personally, Matt has encouraged me in so many ways and has taught me so much about the gospel of Christ.

Update on Matt: he had surgery yesterday (Friday the 4th) and is recovering. The doctors are saying that he is good condition and responding very well! Praise God

Here is a passage from Isaiah that really spoke to me today...

"You will keep in perfect peace

him whose mind is steadfast,

because he trusts in You [God].

Trust in the Lord forever,

for the Lord, the Lord, is the Rock eternal."

Isaiah 26: 3-4

That is all currently happening with the Peters. Loving where we are at and thanking God for his love! By the way, Stephanie chopped off her hair. Looks really hot, just saying...

Love you all!

Thanksgiving Festivities!

2009-11-27T12:03:00.004-06:00

Day after Thanksgiving!!

So, this was our first holiday season being married. It was a trip as always! We drove to Pine Bluff Tuesday to spend some time with my dad's side of our family (the Beards), which was so fun!!

We stayed the night Tuesday and spent Wednesday eating, playing outside, resting, and eating... Wednesday night we left for Little Rock and stayed with Grandma Jean - Garrett's sweet grandmother! Garrett's family came in Thursday and we spent half the day with her then spent the afternoon in Benton at Garrett's mom's family.

As usual, we were on the go... Nothing new! Haha!!

*My little brother Skeet and I hanging out on Thanksgiving! He sure is looking older!

*This crazy squirrel right outside of Grams' house...

*Arabella the day after Thanksgiving! HAHA! We were lovin' the fro she had going...

Hope everyone had a great time with family this Holiday!

On the Go!

2009-11-22T17:18:00.007-06:00

This past week...

We have been looking forward to seeing the Watoto Children's Choir for quite some time! This past Thursday we went to a concert held in Bentonville featuring the choir from Uganda. The ministry in that country is so powerful and the orphans are truly being restored by the Lord! We had the opportunity to house 2 boys and one of the adult leaders!! Godfrey and Andrew, both 10, and 23 year old Frank spent the night with us Thursday and stayed with us half the day on Friday. IT WAS SUCH A BLAST!!! We grabbed a pizza on Thursday after the concert, went back to the house and played for a solid 2 hours. Learning about where these kids came from and also what is going on in Uganda really impacted our hearts... Africa is a place that we have really been broken for and having them stay with us was "much needed"! In the midst of job searching and transitioning to Fayetteville it helped us re-adjust our perspective by reminding us about what is important in our life, the need to help the poor and orphaned in the world, and that we are truly blessed beyond the majority of the world's greatest imagination.

Here are a few pictures from the visit...

Please Check out www.watoto.com

-To learn more about Watoto & read stories

-Watch the video about Godfrey (one of the boys that stayed with us). His story is in the bottom left of the home page.

A Weekend with the Family...

Friday afternoon we met our Conway parents at a cabin near the Buffalo River! DJ, Lucinda and our beautiful niece Arabella were chillin' at the cabin ready for us to arrive on Friday. Aaron got there later that night, which allowed us to squeeze in a very competitive game of Phase 10!

Saturday was a day of relaxation. It was rainy outside all day, which kept us inside most the day, good thing that we love to sit around and hang-out together! This weekend was really good to just get away and enjoy nature (maybe a "5-star" weekend in the woods, haha!)

Here are a few shots from the weekend...

*Checking-out the herd of Elk!

*Teaching Arabella Settlers of Catan at an early age... haha!

*Beautiful Sunday morning as the sun is rising!

Also, this past week I (Garrett) decided to take a position at J.B. Hunt Transportation. It is in the ICS Department of the company, which in simple terms is like the brokerage section of the company... We'll see how that works out, haha! Stephanie is looking forward to hearing from Loving Choices probably early this next week. She had a second interview there this past Wednesday for the "Site-Director" of the Fayetteville site. It would be such a great opportunity for her to minister to woman of all ages and be in a setting that she would definitely enjoy! We are praising God that He has opened up a door for employment at J.B. Hunt, and I am looking forward to starting. I start on the 30th of this month, which is great because it gives us this next week to travel and see family during the Thanksgiving holiday! Thank you all for praying for us during this time and all the encouragement, we love ya'll!

Thoughts from Garrett

2009-11-05T13:26:00.003-06:00

Well, this is yet another strictly autonomous post coming from the man. It has been something that I have longed to do recently; however, now is the time. This period for The Peters family has been, in one word, difficult. Not bad, just new and difficult. I am learning so much about myself, being a husband (Biblically), about Stephanie and overall life...

I had a great meeting with a friend named Andrew Brill (check out LightBearers, awesome ministry) this past Monday to chat about life, and this guy really encouraged/challenged me. After rambling about what I've been going through, he looked me in the eyes and said "It sounds like you are struggling with Waiting on the Lord..." The dude caught me off guard 'cause he hit me with that heavy stuff right off the bat, and I barely know the guy! Loved it. So, since then I have been thinking about what that even looks like...

Let's get started in Psalm 33.

"Our soul waits for the LORD;
he is our help and our shield.
For our heart is glad in him,
because we trust in his holy name.
Let your steadfast love, O LORD, be upon us,
even as we hope in you." (ESV)

This is such a great passage of scripture, and Psalm 27 is as well. I have been examining my own heart to see if I truly put all my trust in God, if I really believe His promises, if I feel purpose from Him.

What does "waiting" even mean? - To be silent; be still; tarry; long for. And from there, what does "tarry" mean, honestly. Well, I have found that it means to linger in expectation or to abide (stay) at a place. WOW!

So, I must linger in expectation for God. Everything that I do right now should be focused on the God of the Universe, waiting expectantly for His Presence. Not just that I would get a job (although that is very necessary for me right now - so please pray!), but that my life would be consumed with Jesus. When I began to surrender everything to Him and let my life be defined by Him then I began to feel actual rest. Rest that I do not feel when I frantically go about my days and weeks, trying to search for employment and purpose in different things. My desire is that God would break me of my selfish, prideful ways and that I could start living a life that mirrors Jesus Christ. Which, by the way, is extremely difficult.... So, it will most certainly require extensive work of the Holy Spirit!

Well, that is what I'm learning right now. It feels really nice to get some of those things out, wow. Also, have been reading an amazing book called Sacred Marriage by Gary Thomas. This is a wonderful book for anyone, not just married peeps! It's about God designing marriage to make us Holy not Happy... This process of Sanctification is not a very happy experience. God stripping us of ourselves and making us more like Him is never a pretty picture - note the experience of the Cross (Luke 9:23).

Job stuff is going alright. Up and down. I have gone in for a couple interviews with J.B. Hunt in Rogers, and also talking with a lot of people within the company who are trying to get me on there. We will see what happens... The Lord is in control!

2009-10-31T19:35:00.002-05:00

Our one year anniversary since our engagement!!! We like to celebrate any and every anniversary! HaHa!

We went to a trail in Bentonville and then got Sonic ice cream!!!! Which I was so excited about!!

Right along the trail we came across the new art museum It's going to be unbelievable!!!

Garrett found a vine and he had a blast swinging on it!

Senior Pic!! We took several of these...

So BEAUTIFUL!!!!!

What's Been Happening

2009-10-26T16:08:00.006-05:00

We have a lot I could post about...but here it is in a short version!

1) We had several guest at the house this weekend! Some of my sorority sisters invade the house and it was so fun to see them all! I use the word 'invade' because Garrett didn't grow up with sisters, so to have 4 girls in the house with all the straighteners, make-up, perfume, and girl conversations it seemed more like an invasion for him!

2) We celebrated our 1 YEAR yesterday since he proposed! We went out to this awesome garden in Bentonville and took pictures and then got some ice cream! It was a blast to spend the day with him!!! (Pictures will be uploaded from that soon!)

3) I've been working on the beginning stages of my photography business!! I have always loved taking pictures, as most of you know, and I am going to see how it goes as a side business!

I created a blog and I have designed/ordered some business cards! P.S. the blog is on the beginning stages, but it is up and running! :)

My blog is www.stephaniepetersphotography.blogspot.com.

Here is a picture of the front of my business card!!!

It looks better in person, but this gives you an idea of what they look like!

Fall Is Here!!!

2009-10-16T23:30:00.008-05:00

This past Wednesday Hillsong played at New Life Church in Little Rock so we took a trip down to see my side of the family and some of our friends!!

Hillsong! They are an amazing worship band!!!

While we were there I got to take some cute pictures of my niece Arabella. She has grown and its fun to come home and see all the new things she has learned!

She loves adventure and anything she can get a rush from...sounds a little like her aunt!! haha! This is one of her favorite games to play with her dad!

We took the Pig Trail back to Fayetteville on Thursday which gave me a chance to ride out the sunroof and take pictures!! It was so much fun, and I have to say Garrett had a blast too!!!

Here are some of the fall pictures I took!

The barn one is my favorite because I think it looks like a painting!

It's going up in our house soon!!!

There were about 15 motorcycles together and I didn't think to snap a pic until the end so there are only 3 of them in the pic. :-/ oh well!

Life Update:

Things in Fayetteville are going well! As you all know we have been on the job hunt for a while. The nanny deal didn't workout and Garrett decided not to take the job at Lewis and Clark because of the hours. But on a positive note we have been trusting and believing that God is closing and opening doors for us in Fayetteville. We know He wants us here for a reason, so doors will open when they are suppose to!

Garrett has had several people pointing him in directions of promising job options, and today (Friday) he met with a cardiology clinic in Fayetteville that wants him to come on part time. He felt good after meeting with them today and thinks it is a possibility he could get on there full time! I have been checking out subbing in the Springdale area and I have meeting with them on Monday morning! It will be good if I could sub because it is so flexible, the hours are great, and the pay up here is awesome as well! All positives!!!! God does close and open doors, so we are trusting that He will take care of the details for today and looking forward to His promises for tomorrow!

What has been challenging lately:

I find it really easy to think, "I'll start doing ____ when ____ happens." It leaves me waiting to really step out and help people in need "tomorrow." Or it keeps me thinking I'll challenge/be challenged in the word with others "next week." The problem with this mentality is that I know I'm here on earth to love God and love people in my day-to-day life. So living in this mindset keeps me from actively living to love and serve today, it always puts it off til tomorrow!

It's easy to get caught up putting things off until tomorrow or justify not doing great things because of good things. Example: There is a homeless person on the side of the road, but your on your way to church. In my head it's easy to justify not stopping to actively show love to this man as Christ would because of the good action of being on my way to church.

The most challenging thing right now is answering this question:

"What does it look like to actively/practically love God and love people around me TODAY?"

This hasn't been answered yet, but it is a question that needs to be answered soon! I know every season of life can give a different answer to this question, but now we need to search and find what it practically looks like here in Fayetteville?

Better late than never

2009-10-07T14:00:00.018-05:00

I am more than a little late posting, but here it is!

Since the last post...

My WONDERFUL HUSBAND TURNED 24 on October 2nd!!!

Do you think he looks any older???

Last Year:

This Year:

For Garrett's Birthday I reserved a campsite at Devil's Den on Friday for us and some friends to go camp out, we hiked on Saturday, and came back to our house and watched the Razorback game!!! It was such a fun weekend and enjoyed the company of friends we haven't got to see in a long time!

One of Garrett's birthday presents was a hammock from my parents that he was excited about sleeping in on Friday night! He was a trooper and decided to try to 'man the cold' even though it was going to get down to 37 degrees that night (I think it got colder than that). At 2:30 am he came into Erin and I's tent to sleep and he was like an ice cube!!! But he stayed out there longer than any of us would've!

His hammock...

Our campsite!

Garrett and his buddy Derek!

Me, Erin, and Amanda!

Things up here are going pretty good! We are both such active/social people that it is a trying time for us to not have something to do everyday. I had an interview to be a full time nanny on Monday and I'll find out by Friday if I got it or not. There were 5 other people that they interviewed, so it isn't a given. If that doesn't work out then I am thinking I'll go to subbing at Fayetteville for a while and that is a good way to get my foot in the door around here to teach. Garrett has been looking into doing nuclear medicine, but it is a little harder for him because there aren't very many hospitals/clinics up here that do imaging and the ones that do only have 2-3 on staff. So the need is low, but I think he will end up taking call for the hospital in Springdale. Again, this isn't a given either. Until then he is searching out other options and may work at Lewis and Clark for a little while. I think he would really enjoy doing something that involved being around outdoor stuff for a little while. It would be a job at least for the time being! We aren't super picky people, but active is a must for us! Actively doing something...we for sure don't like to sit around! If you have any ideas for us we are open to suggestions!!! haha!

We are looking forward to this weekend though! Garrett and Megan Matsuyama are staying with us on Friday night and Christy Dean (one of my good friends) is staying with us on Saturday!! We do LOVE company!!! If you are ever in the area a want a place to stay...call us!! :)

P.S. He cut his hair off and shaved!!!!

Requested House Pics!!!

2009-09-30T14:55:00.009-05:00

By request I'm posting pictures of our house in Fayetteville!!

*The wall of picture frames I just put up in our hallway to the bedrooms! I haven't ordered prints to put in them yet, but I'll do it soon!!

*The getaway room!

*Our bedroom! I didn't take a picture of the other bedroom bc it isn't finished just yet!

Adjusting to a New Place!

2009-09-25T10:52:00.012-05:00

Hello All! A message from Garrett...

First off, its about time that the Peters updated to the world... We have currently been in our new place here in Fayetteville for 10 DAYS! It has been such a whirl-wind.... Packing, moving, decorating, adjusting and everything else involved with being somewhere new! It has been another adventure for us, but the Lord has been guiding and leading us this far so we are going to continue to seek our direction from Him.

This past weekend was full of visitors! Our Conway family (Lucinda, DJ, Aaron and our cute niece Arabella) came in on Friday night. It was so great to start off our time here with people staying with us! Our heart for the home we have is that it would be a place open to people, whether that is family, friends, college students, homeless people, whoever.

Saturday morning my mother came up to help Stephanie and her mom find some deals around Fayetteville! My brother, Skeet, and his girlfriend came down from Tulsa to tailgate with us before heading to the game. We visited my dad and some friends before we headed to see the Hogs play! It was so great to see Skeet! I always love laughing and hanging around such a fun kid! Although the weather was pretty gross out all day, the hype for the Georgia game was unreal... We had seats right behind the Georgia bench for the game, which made it so fun to see the guys at eye-level!

*Skeet, Steph and I during the tailgating extravaganza on Saturday afternoon*

This past week has been full of "research"... We are both looking for opportunities, a.k.a. jobs, to pursue here in the Fayetteville area. I believe that the Lord has us here for a number of reasons, and that He is going to provide for us! This is a season to strengthen our marriage, grow in our understanding of what His long-term goals are for us and to continue to live out the gospel of Christ to others! Paul tells us in Acts 17 that God places us where we should live so that we would seek Him... So, we believe that we are here by God's providence and that we can be used here as well!

We are excited about this new season and pray that it will push us closer to Christ! Everyday is fun for us... Stephanie amazes me everyday, and there isn't anything that is more challenging than trying to be a Biblical example of a man for her. It is tough, but God is strong enough for me.

Hope that everyone reading is doing well! We are blessed by everyone around us, far or near. If there is anything we can do for you or your family (physically or just prayer), please let us know. Love you all!

Big Decisions have been made...

2009-09-12T22:11:00.010-05:00

WOW!!!! Well, this past week has been FULL of decisions for the next season of our lives.

While spending time at the Buffalo River and Fayetteville, we began to really talk about what would be the best thing for us right now.

After praying about it and discussing the possibilities....

We have decided to relocate to Northwest Arkansas!!!

...If you are just hearing about the idea to move to Fayetteville don't feel left out! We didn't want to talk about it much until a decision was made!...

This last Tuesday - Thursday we stayed up in Fayetteville to look for a place to stay. After looking at about 30 places, we found the perfect place for us and we now have a 6 month lease! Here is our new place in Fayetteville and we will be moving in this Tuesday!!!!!!

This past week was also our BIG 6 MONTH mark!!!!

September 7, 2009...My wonderful husband took me on a date and bought me High School Musical! :) I loved it!!!