August BLESSINGS! =D

Spent an incredible night out at camp early this month with wonderful girls!!! Such a great time to try new things, be goofy, stay up super late, eat too much junk food, and sleep on a table. =)

Yep. I looked like a unicorn. It was a fun night!

Seriously, it's almost infuriating that there is no such thing as a BAD pic of my cousin!!

Making super awesome braclets~ Thanks, Aunt Chas and Tina!!!

The girls who were there~ Brandy, Candice, Kara, Courtney, Alyssa...

And Katie, Tina, and Aunt Chas! What a FUN group!!

A sweet day at the park before everyone started back to school. Driving 9 kiddos around in a HUGE van. I LOVE Higginsville. =)

Reading books with my sweethearts, my JoshMan, and my Hallie Girl.

Is there anything than just chillin' with your buds?!

Or being totally gooooooooofy with someone who's equally gooooooooofy?!?!?

Or having a niece that is THAT cute?!?!?!

Or hearing super sweet music played by two very talented players?!?!

Or having lunch with 9 sweethearts who are totally happy and loud 100% of the time I'm there with them... until I have lunch ready, hands washed, everyone circles the table, joins hands, and I nod at Andrew, then we all go silent, and we pray to our Father. It is a wonderful moment. So very preciously sweet. I am thankful that HE is the center of all of our lives!!

Take the time to just PLAY with your babies. You'll never be sorry that you did. 

~Time goes by too quickly!!~

Tired from a great day, though this was my "I'm NOT tired, please do not make me lay down for a nap, Kawa. The chair is too hard for my little body. I can't fit in it. I won't be able to be comfortable..." 2 minutes later... =)

"Count Your Many Blessings~ Name Them One By One!~

School and Birthdays and Family!

First day of Preschool/Kindergarten for Carter Man, First day of 1st Grade for Kenna Girl!!

Sweet Princess at age 6

Superhero Dude at age 4

Aunt Shauna, it's like you're looking at me every single day. I love sharing these moments with your babies, what blessings they are to me... how much I hate that I have this time and not you. How much I love that we'll all come home to be together one day with our Creator. We love you always!

I would never trade getting to be a "Stay-At-Home-Kara" for anything. I was blessed to have a stay-at-home Mommy who is incredible. I have many adopted moms who get to stay home with their darlings. I thank God every day for the good job that "Daddy" has that lets us stay home and have everything we need. We are truly blessed. It would kill me to send my sweethearts away for the day...

Happpppppy Birthday to my beautiful Missouri Mom, my MM, my Miss Debbie, my incredible example of a wonderful Christian woman, wife, mom, grandma, sister, aunt, friend, teacher!!! 

And Happppppppy Birthday to my brothers, Robert and Dustin! 18 and 16?!? NO WAY!!

We had a wonderful night at Coldstone and the park. The world is beautiful when you're with friends...

My Lys. <3

hee hee This says it all. Cousins are totally crazy, totally adorable, totally blessings is in my life!!!

Beautiful~ inside, out. Some of my very favorite people to be with!

My Aunt Tammy! =) Oh, yeah. She's amazing.

Every day goes by and I'm just overwhelmed by the fact that GOD is SO good to me, to my family, to my kiddos, to this world that is totally imperfect compared to HIS wonderfulness. 

Praying every day to follow HIS path for me more completely. 

Giving HIM all the glory. 

I love you all! <3 Prayers always!

Polishing the Pulpit 2012

Polishing the Pulpit is the most incredible way to spend a weekend EVER! 

I have never been filled with the richness of the scripture, beautiful singing, and incredible fellowship so quickly. I feel so happy and so excited about Heaven when I'm there. I LOVE that feeling!!

Truth for the World!! I love this work!! Check us out!!:) 

httw://tftw.org

LOOK! PEOPLE!!!!!! AND THEY'RE ALL CHRISTIANS!!!

:D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D

I loved walking through the hallways, watching kiddos, seeing old friends hugging, listening to the buzz of voices, smiling at everyone, becoming friends with bunches of new people, all encouraging each other to make it on this pathway to HEAVEN!

  This was one of my very favorite hours, and it flew by too quickly. Watching all the teens singing their hearts out to our KING is beautiful. I love how when you've been singing for your whole life, you learn songs quickly, how when you care about the words you're singing, you can see the intent on someone's face, and when you're doing what makes GOD happy, how it makes you happy, too! It was beautiful... cannot wait to hear what we will sound like when we all go home together forever.

My Miss Cindy Colley. <3

Her lessons, and every other lesson at PTP, were so encouraging, so rich, so meaningful. I'm so thankful for the men and women who are willing to spend time studying to then teach us clearly on the gospel. God gave us a wonderful ability to learn, let's use it!

Sister, cute kid, sunshine, Zaxby's, a couple thousand friends... 

UM, YEAH! An awesome weekend!

I LOVED getting to be with Alyssa again. We drove up there together and talked away the entire time. I love, adore, and miss my fantastically smart and talented sis. She helps me on my road to the goal.

My sweet, sweet Skylar girl! <3 I LOVED my ice cream outing with them. Needs to be an annual thing for sure! Thankful for good friends who you can just pick right back up with after even a year or two apart. (NOT that I enjoy the being apart for a couple years thing!!!!)

Sunday morning worship is out of this world. Thankful beyond words to be a Christian and have such a BIG family!! 

On my way home to Missouri, I was able to be home in GA for a night. Christina played the piano, we had such a good supper and visiting time, and all of these cuties were there to watch, smile with, cuddle, be sat on by, and dance through the hallway.  No matter where I go, these kiddos will always hold part of HOME in my heart.

What an INCREDIBLE weekend... 
worth every, and sooo many more, penny!!

Augustness!

What could be better than having friends?!

 

Being a friend!!!

And seeing friends you've not seen in almost 2 years!! 

 

I LOVE THE PURDOMS!!!!

 

These two couples are so incredible~ they work so hard for the LORD and they are such wonderful examples of how GOD wants husbands and wives to love each other. They make me feel happy and safe. 

 

Boys...

 

Girls... =) =D =)

That day we spent together was wonderful. They are friends who we've never seen in almost 2 years, and yet I felt like I'd never been apart from them. We just picked right back up and had the best time together. Very thankful for the work that they are doing in the mission field in Trinidad. Hearing their mission report was so encouraging and exciting. I miss them, but am looking forward to the day when I'll never again tell them goodbye. Because the time we had with them singing, playing games, laughing, talking, making bracelets, playing music and singing... went by tooooo fast!

 

During VBS at Chipman, my kiddos and I were able to spend several days with friends from Higginsville. We are so blessed to have such incredible friends to spend time together doing "nothing" and remembering it with such precious thoughts!  

 

Playing with our Calvin!!!

 

Bowling with my cousins and my Adelin and Calvin! :)

I love how we're able to share our house, our fun times, our laughs and even our food. God is sooooo good to us all! We had a super wonderful week of VBS. I love my Chipman Road!!

My sweet Madison, during a night at FVBS, lost her first tooth! She was sooo excited about that and showed it/showed it to everyone! She got a BUNCH of quarters or coins

  The beautiful aunt and niece and nephew relationship. =) The Heck family has this DOWN! 

Spoil rotten, while totally supporting parents/Kara's. Everyone on the same page, totally happy. 

Life. Is. GOOD!

Aunt Shauna's 31st Birthday!

How has it been a year since we celebrated our sweet Aunt Shauna's first birthday in Heaven/her 30th birthday?!

My Kenna Girl remembers it. She was so excited. We spent the morning cuddling on the couch looking at pictures from Mommy's FB. Talking about so many memories, Carter didn't even recognize himself as a baby. Carter didn't remember last year's birthday party day... but he will this time.

My Princess just doesn't get any cuter! She is pure sugar-- sweetest thing in the whole world! I thank GOD for the shining example that she is in my life, how she shows through her eyes her love of life, the way her Mommy does to me every day!

TOO fast to get a good pic, but too cute not to share. 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MOMMY!!!

Adorable, precious cousins!

This was a very sweet moment. We all wrote notes to Aunt Shauna and put them on 31 balloons to send way, way up into the sky. Madison drew a flower on her note. She did that because Aunt Shauna was the one to show her how to draw flowers. She will always remember that. Aunt Chas is so sweet to share stories with, to say what you're thinking and she gets it. She, as Aunt Shauna, is a wonderful blessing!

Three of the very prettiest, sweetest, 

best girls in the WHOLE WORLD! R, M, and A!

Cutest by in world. Yellow balloon for Mommy from me. Perfect sunshiney day!!!

Up, up, and away...

There they go...

31 balloons headed towards the sun.... 

One day we'll be with Aunt Shauna again, with the SON!

If we do what is pleasing to HIM. 

Praying for us all every day to put the focus on GOD and keep it there. 

xoxoxoxo