a man after God's heart

in christian circles such as the one i'm in, you often hear of the scandalous lives of this big minister and that big minister and many make jokes about the plastic-faced men who color their hair to preach on tbn. i admit that my experiences in such circles have left me slightly jaded when it comes to "big" ministries, "pastors" spending more time on jets than in their churches, and prosperity as a theme of a message preached on sunday morning.

in the time i spent living in tulsa, ok, and in the years since, there have been countless stories of men and women that i heard speak as celebrity ministers or even knew personally that have been caught living a lie in one way or another. but through the years there was one man who i was honored to have as my pastor for two years that as far as i know has lived a life above reproach and has walked in as much humility and integrity as any minister i have known.

pastor billy joe daugherty.

in recent months pastor billy joe fought against cancer in his body and died last week. i was shocked. pastor billy joe preached multiple messages a week to thousands, traveled all over the world, reached out to the most down-trodden in his city, sat on boards of universities and some of the largest churches in the world, and yet still he knew my name in the hallway at church. he took time at school to ask questions about my life, my family, my dreams, and on more than one occasion prayed specifically for the issues most important in my life. before i ever had children, i remember him talking with me after class one day and praying that my children and my children's children would be lovers and followers of God. as far as i could tell this man loved God, loved his family, loved his church, and loved the people of his city and of the world.

as a minister in a "word of faith" church, pastor billy joe believed for the healing of his body. i can only imagine what kind of wholeness that death brought to him. as i watched his memorial service for three hours today, i was reminded of hebrews 11 that all those mentioned having faith "all died in faith, not having received the promises but having seen them afar off" and "were assured of them and embraced them". pastor billy joe may not have experienced the healing of his natural body here in this lifetime, but he died in faith, assured of God's promises and embracing them.

his life is a picture to me of integrity, humility, the hand of God reaching out to the hurting and unlovely, and authentic faith. i am thankful that i had the opportunity to learn from him.

thanksgiving break

its been a strange week here at the turners. due to thanksgiving break, we're all out of whack with our schedules, and this poor blog suffers. i haven't had a cup of coffee all week either. and no school for the kids. i've basically just enjoyed time at home with dustin and have taken the opportunity to do little things here and there with each of the kids individually. hunter dougie has taken up residence in the guest room for this week of hunting season, but so far there are no deer hanging in the garage.

today i helped ma ruth and pa prepare for our big dillaman thanksgiving tomorrow. i honestly have no idea how they have done it basically by themselves all these years. what a lot of thought and preparation. i had no clue. but, i am so happy that i was able to help out today and get some cooking lessons as a bonus. i now know the secret to ma's delicious chocolate pie! after being there today, i am a million times more thankful for my grandparents and what they do to make these big events happen every year. i can't wait for us all to have dinner together tomorrow!

besides having doug around all week, virginia and lily were also here for an evening. and luke, rachel, and the kids arrived today. my mom has officially moved, and tonight we all had our first dinner at "ma barbie's". i am just beside myself in excitment and thankfulness for all of my family.

hopefully next week, i can get back to my routine and will have more to say here and maybe some pictures to share.

happy thanksgiving.

Dog Show

Today Judah wrote his first "full length" story. I was soooo proud of him. One of my basic homeschool philosophies is to focus a lot on what the kids are naturally GOOD at. I just figure there will always be weaknesses, and it seems like too many people spend too much time trying to make weaknesses stronger. I'm sure that has its place as well, and I DO cover weak areas, but I have really tried to focus on each kid's individual strengths. Judah's strength is logic and math. We have skipped a grade in math, and he amazes me at his ability to understand and remember mathematical concepts. It just comes easy to him, which in turn, makes it easy for me to teach math to him. However, last year I began to dread teaching him language and writing. He just couldn't wrap his logical mind around the meaning of being CREATIVE when it came to writing sentences. We struggled and struggled. Then once he mastered the art of writing a sentence, he had difficulty expanding on an idea or making it more descriptive. So, we have practiced a lot, and today he wrote his very first story. I just figured any story would be some sort of progress, so I was taken aback at what he wrote. It is a fun, interesting story, and he thought of it and wrote it all by himself!!!! I am just so proud of him that I must share it with everyone. The story below is "as is" with no corrections made by me. I like that "Joe" is very logically spelled as "Joa"...like boat, coat, soak, etc.

Title: The Greatest Dog Show

On November twenty eighth a boy named Joa went to a dog show. It was in Califoria. When they got to the dog show it was his turn. He was very nervous when he got up on stage. Finily he and his dog started doing tricks. The best trick of all was when the dog rode a bike. After all the tricks all judges judged all the people in the show. They annouced that Joa won first prize of all the people in the show. The End. To Mom and Dad.



And while I'm bragging on Judah, let me just say that I LOVE how this boy cleans his room. Its a little different every time, but it makes me smile no matter what he does to organize things. Here is today:

soon enough

four people this week have asked me about when my baby is due. one asked if i am having a thanksgiving baby, another asked if it is a christmas baby, and the other two were just general due date questions. i can not imagine having a baby within a month or even two months. time is just moving too quickly. it seems like i *just* had a positive pregnancy test. i still have a test in my drawer, and i'm waiting for just the right moment to do and see my last positive pregnancy test ever. there's just nothing quite like seeing the pink dye move across the little window and leave TWO lines in its track. ahhhh... so, time...please just slow down. i'm not having a thanksgiving baby or even a christmas baby. i'm having a february/march baby, but even those months are coming too quickly! i wish there was something i could do to get ready for baby. but at this point, there is nothing i need or want. i figure at about 36 weeks, i'll just set the bassinet up in my room, wash the carseat cover, and get some little newborn clothes and diapers ready. i've been trying and trying to think of things that i need to buy...just something that i could put down on a "what to get for baby" list, and there's just not much. thankfully, because there is no need to make many physical preparations, i can just sit back and enjoy this time of "expecting". i want to remember the kicks and the rolls and to make as many memories as i possibly can as this season of my child-bearing years comes to an end.

11.12

when coherent thoughts and paragraphs fail me, thankfully i can fall back on list-making

--gorgeous day
--homeschool art gathering this morning
--sick baby
--fruit flies freak me out
--i'm way behind on pictures in albums
--my mom's house looks great. i've been visiting while its cat-free.
--simone is so cute when she wakes up
--i don't feel like cooking supper
--must do laundry
--25 week pregnant. wow.
--i need more hours in a day to knit
--can't wait till thanksgiving week
--too many options for tomorrow night. must decide what to do.
--simone says "ants live in little holes up there" (while looking at the textured ceiling)
--should drink some water
--and get off the computer
--and do somthing productive
--like laundry
--or shower
--laundry made the list twice
--speaking of, nadia finally needs new diapers
--oh...and i love my new purse (virginia). a lady at oglebay complemented me on it.

christmas list '09

i have received the annual "christmas list" requests and have no clue what to reply. i can't think of a darn thing that i need. the few things i want include big ticket items like a flatter yard, a new room off the back of the house, a new roof, and a garage door. so i don't think i'll be putting those things on the list. and as far as the kids go...there is nothing they need, and they're having a hard time thinking of things they even WANT! well...except cana, who wants a cell phone. you know...because its not quite the same to call friends on a regular old house phone. how boring is that! judah has only mentioned legos, but how many legos does a boy need? they all look the same to me. plus he has his birthday december 2nd. eden has requested fake nails and lip gloss so that she may use them at her birthday party. (her birthday is in MAY) simone says she would like a pink beaver and some makeup, but i am pretty sure that she is just listening to her older sisters talk. she has no clue what making a christmas list is all about. and nadia says she wants some bigger cloth diapers, which is a very practical, legitimate request in my opinion. its just so hard to think of items to put on a list when there is nothing at all that we really need. so, if you have any good ideas of what i might want to ask for for christmas this year, feel free to let me know!

Sweet Pea

Sweet Pea Turner

May 5, 2009-November 8, 2009

Our Beloved Kitten

"Follow" (mama kitty) went into labor early in the day on monday, may 4, but there were still no kittens by the end o the day. it must have been a difficult labor. on tuesday morning, around 8:30 am, Sweet Pea was born. in the hours following, four more kittens were born but never took their first breath. eden sat and prayed that they would live, but sweet pea was the lone survivor of what could have possibly been a difficult pregnancy and labor for this first-time mama kitty. until about a month ago, the kids were sure sweet pea was a girl. but as it turns out, "she" was a "HE". nevertheless, eden carried sweet pea around endlessly...dressing her/him in clothes, taking her/him on stroller rides, and most definitely overfeeding her/him. his wish was her command! first thing in the morning, eden went out to find sweet pea to hold him and love him. ironically, she is the one who found that he had been hit on the road last night. she said something just told her to look outside, and although it was nearly dark, she saw his still body lying on the road. dustin said she screamed like she was being murdered, "SWEET PEA'S DEAD...SWEET PEA IS DEAD..." over and over. it seems quite possible that he did die suddenly as he was hit by a car. a house too close to the road, drivers who drive too fast, and a black cat at dusk...a deadly mix. the kids spent the next hours drawing memorial pictures and writing notes to sweet pea. eden sealed hers in a plastic box with packing tape around it so that it could be buried with him. she went to sleep hugging titus, claiming that he would have to be her "new best friend".

Last words to Sweet Pea

"you were the best kitty in the world and always will be. i will miss playing with you. you always made me laugh when you and titus wrestled. everyone loved you..." cana

"i'm sorry you died sweet pea. i will always remember you. and i will always love you and you will always make me happy." judah

"we love you sweet pea and i will always remember you and i will miss you and never forget you." eden

"sweet pea you should go to the animal doctor." simone