We'll change the way you think about church

I spent the past weekend in Columbus GA with a World Care team from Mountain Lake Church. It was a neat opportunity to help Jeff and his new church plant, MyChurch. It was hard to leave Ryan, but I'm glad I went and I was also glad when we got back. It was an awesome experience to see a brand new church - the excitement and anticipation and potential was super cool. I enjoyed being a part of something bigger than me. It was great to see God working in Jeff and Christy's lives and to allow Him to use us to help them and their community.

We helped put on a fall festival in Jeff's apt complex. We grilled out, had a cotton candy machine, lots of inflatables and games, Georgia football on TV, facepainting and tattoos, and all sorts of other fun! Quite a few people turned out and I think it went very well.

Marie and I in the future home of MyChurch. They launch January 25th and we're hoping to make it back!

Our doorhanger team - Marie, Amy, Stephanie, and Mike - with Jeff outside of his new church. 4500 doorhangers between about 2o people in less than 48 hours!

What a week

This has been a crazy, but fun, week. We had a group portrait made, yep that's right, 5 babies under 15 months! It was a mess, but we have fun memories, and hey, one of the pictures came out! :) And then Ryan and I took a great trip with Nana to see Auntie Sarah, Uncle Christian, and Uncle Tyler in Greenville. We've also watched babies, helped Marie at church, and battled the winter time gunk.

And now I'm off to Columbus, GA. We'll be helping MLC's church planter, Jeff, prepare for his new church. I'm excited, but a little scared too about leaving Coleson and Ryan (not for them, but for me!). It's my first night away from Ryan.

Anyways, we've been busy so that's why there haven't been any updates this week, but I'm really hoping things will slow down a bit when I get back from Columbus!

Birthdays and Grandparents

Happy 1st Birthday Asher!! Thanks for inviting us to your party; we had a great time celebrating your special day!!

And thanks to Grandpa and Grandma for driving up to spend the morning with us. We had lots of fun at the park, as well as at brunch and the outlets!

So very close

Ryan can just about walk. For a couple of weeks now he's been steady enough to walk, he just wouldn't. Occasionally we could bribe him (he loves popcorn!) and he would take a step or two and then plop down when he realized what he was doing. But the last two or three days he's been letting go by himself. Not all the time, but several times. And he'll go four, five, eight steps, and controlled steps at that, before he sits down. So I'm really thinking he's going to take off in the next few days and my whole world will change. I know something's going to click in his head anytime now and he'll be running all over the place and then he'll really be a big boy. How exciting and sad at the same time!

What the?!

I'm not registered to vote! I'm quite confused and upset by this. I know it's my fault, but still. I voted four years ago, so it never even crossed my mind that I couldn't vote this year. But according to the Secretary of State's website, you have to have contact with them at least every three years. This can be by voting, changing an address, whatever. So, yes, I'm a bad American and I only vote in the biggies, but I moved two years ago. I changed my address with the DMV when I moved from Mountain Ridge to Canton. I have no idea why that didn't change my address with the voter registration peoples. It changed Coleson's and he is registered to vote this year, but I'm not. And I can't register today either, I had to register by October 6th to vote today. So please, everyone go out and vote in my honor. I actually woke up this morning convicted and excited to vote. It's an important election and my first as a mother; I care about the future a lot more now!

Happy Halloween!

The Chase family had a very nice Halloween. We took the long way to my mom and dad's house on Friday afternoon so we could check out the mountains and the changing leaves. We stopped at the river and enjoyed walking around and taking in the beautiful fall scenery. Coleson and Ryan had fun down by the water; Coleson threw sticks into the water and they would watch them float down stream. Ryan tried to throw a few too, but he just doesn't have the strength yet. It was a perfect afternoon to get outside and be together. Then we spent a nice evening with my parents and Ryan wore his super cool alligator costume; we're hoping no one is superstitious and blames us for the Bulldawgs' big loss. It's just an alligator, not a Florida Gator. And I know it doesn't take much, but yes, Ryan was the cutest gator you've ever seen! Happy Halloween, Happy Fall, and go Dawgs to everyone!




I wish I hadn't...

... but it's too late now. I accidentally cut Ryan's hair. I was hoping for a short little trim that no one would even really notice, but somehow that's not quite how it worked out. He looks like a toddler with a bowl cut. He aged about six months in ten minutes and I miss my baby!! Here are a few action shots, and yes, I even saved some hair in a little bag for his babybook.

autumn awareness

Ryan and his friend Peyton playing in the grass and leaves

Ryan drinking his milk and flirting with the girls standing behind me! :)

pumpkin party

Friday night we had our annual pumpkin carving contest. Every year we get together with our old Mountain Ridge neighbors and have fun hanging out, eating chili, and carving pumpkins. And this year we actually won the contest, yay! I think it had something to do with our pumpkin involving four live goldfish...

Seaturtle Joe, the winner, laying a nest of pumpkin seed eggs while overlooking the ocean filled with four goldfish

The Andersons, Harpers, Chases, Grahams, & Lovoys

having a GOOD day!

Do you ever have those days were you just feel good? I'm having one today. Nothing huge happened, just lots of little things that have made me smile throughout the day and the more I smile the better everything else seems. Two of the several highlights of the day:

*Today I babysat kids at church and two moms came in to pick up their kids at the same time. This conversation happened as they were walking away with the kids, but still close enough that I could easily hear. To use Crystal's easy to read dialogue format:

Mom 1: Hey have you been to the Wow dinner yet. We went on Friday and I was hoping Amy would be doing childcare and she was and I was so happy!
Mom 2: No, we go on Saturday. Hopefully she'll be there then.
Mom 2 then comes back down the hallway to ask me if I'll be there.
Me: No sorry, I'm not doing Saturday night
Mom 2: Aww, man.

Maybe not those exact words because I have a terrible memory, but pretty close. Anyways, it made me feel good that moms like me and trust me with their kids. That's a big deal to me and I'm honored!

*I'm going to Columbus Georgia in November with Mountain Lake. Our church planting intern is launching his new church in December and we'll be there helping promote it. While I'm a little sad and nervous since I'm leaving Coleson and Ryan (not nervous that they won't be okay, nervous that I won't be!), I'm excited because it's my first world care trip. So anyways, I got my first support check in the mail today with a wonderful and encouraging note! Thank you God for this opportunity not only to help out in Columbus, but to grow and stretch myself and get out of my comfort zone even if only for two days. Baby steps!