Praise In The Park

Last Friday I packed up and we headed to the airport to pick up Jase then drove to Mississippi for a 33Miles show.  The show was Saturday night, and it was amazing!  They opened for Casting Crowns, and there were over 10,000 people packed into this small outdoor arena in the precious town of Lucedale, MS.  My parents, my sister and her 2 kids, and Jason's parents decided to come join in the fun!  Jake and Jonah were able to go up on stage during the last song.  Jake got to play his electric guitar ("just like uncle chris", he says), and Jonah had his little microphone with him.  The crowd went nuts when they came out so Jake was a little freaked out, but Jonah just walked right up to the front of the stage and soaked it all in!  They were precious! On Sunday, we headed to Louisiana to visit with family for a few days.  We are definitely enjoying some time with daddy too!  I am amazed at the favor of God!  He is blessing 33Miles and their ministry more than we ever could have imagined, and we are thankful to be given the opportunity to serve Him in this capacity!  Yes, it stinks that Jason is gone so much, and yes we miss him terribly when he is away, but it helps to go out on the road with him sometimes and see the the impact that they are making!  God is good, and we are BLESSED!!!

The Barton Clan!

While Jason has been gone this week, I decided to brave a trip to Chattanooga with the boys for a couple of days to see his brother's family.  They just moved to the Chattanooga area a few months ago from Missouri so you can imagine how excited we are to have family so close by!  We have waited a long time!!!  Mimi (jason's mom) was babysitting the kids for the week so I guess we only saw half of the family.  Anyway, we left after school on Thursday and came back on Friday evening so that we wouldn't miss Jake's soccer game on Saturday.  The boys had a blast playing with their cousins...Hayden (almost 8yrs), Britt (5yrs.), and Brock (2 yrs.), and I enjoyed having a little break.  The highlight of the trip, well what was suppose to be the highlight, was fishing in their pond.  The boys loved the fishing part, but were not so keen on Hoops (the dog).  For those of you who don't know us, Jake is TERRIFIED of animals!  It is the craziest thing that you have ever seen.  You would think that we threw him in to a bull pen when he was a baby or something.  This will explain the funny look on his face in the pic with the fishing pole in his hand.  He is trying to watch Hoops out of the corner of his teary eye!  You just want to laugh, cry, and scream all at the same time when he freaks out around animals!  I keep telling Jase that we are going to end up in a counselors office by the end of all of it! HA!  We did have a great trip though.  They absolutely LOVE their Mimi and their cousins so it was well worth "the experience"!  

The Ham Festival

Yes folks, there is such a thing called The Ham Festival!  It happens every October here in Spring Hill, TN.  I decided to brave it alone with the boys today after Jake's soccer game.  If you know me, you know that I am not always up for braving these types of things without Jason along for the ride.  The memory of last years Ham Festival alone is reason enough not to want to go!  Jonah was a little over one year, and when he was not fussing to get in or out of the stroller he was fussing at everyone who looked his way!  He was quite a frustrated child a year ago.  I don't know where he would get that from!?!  Anyway, today we needed a change of pace so "Ham Festival" it was!  We actually had a ton of fun!  The boys loved riding the little train, jumping in the bounce house, playing games, and of course getting candy!  Jake especially enjoyed batting some (Jase just taught him how not too long ago), and I have to brag a little and say that he hit every single ball!  Maybe soccer is not the sport for him, but that is for another post!  Jonah loved feeding the puppet cow.  They both thought it was hilarious, and talked about it the rest of the day.  All in all it was a fun time with the kiddos even though daddy was not there.  We miss him a lot though.  We are heading into day 5 without him tomorrow so we are definitely looking forward to his return!  So, if you ever happen to be in the area the first weekend in October The Ham Festival may be for you!

My birthday week!

Ok, so I haven't blogged in quite some time...so sorry.  I have a good excuse.  It was my birthday week!  Around our house we celebrate birthdays for the week not just the day!  My week this year was awesome.  My amazing hubby planned to have my mom come up for a few days to keep the boys while we had a little getaway.  I went on the road with Jase for a show in Ohio, then we drove over to Indianapolis to see my best friend Shelley from childhood.  Shelley has been my best friend since birth literally (we were born two days apart)!  Our mom's were great friends so our friendship was inevitable!  She is the most loyal, caring, giving person that I know.  She has taught me so much about being a great friend not only to her but to many others in my life.  We have a blast together, and always tend to eat lots of Mexican food and laugh until our stomach hurts when we are together.  Our husbands just sit back, watch, and get a good laugh.  I love, love, love her and her precious family!  She has passed me up and has three kiddos now.  I'm not jealous at this point...just happy that I got to hold baby Maggie quite a bit while I was there!  

Not to leave Jason out of this picture.  We had a blast together too!  We ate out, saw a movie, shopped (I haven't shopped that much since I had Jonah), and had a couple of hours at the spa.  It was wonderful to have some great alone time with him, and we didn't even talk about the kids the whole time!  I am truly amazed more and more every day by how much he loves me and truly desires to take care of me!

When we got back home we were greeted with two very happy boys.  They had a blast with their Nana!  The next morning was my actual birthday.  I got to sleep in, and wake up to a beautifully painted picture from the boys and a cake with candles ready to blow out.  It was great, and so much fun to see the boys excited about my birthday!  Later that evening we had cake with some of our best friends in town, the Lentz's and the Anderson's.  It is so great having us all back together again (the Lentz's moved away for a couple of years).  The kids had a blast!  All in all it was such a great week!!!  Thanks to my wonderful man for making this birthday and every birthday so special!  I love you!!!

Only 3 days left!

Our home is full of excitement these days.  We are thrilled that 33Miles (my hubby's band) is releasing it's 2nd album "One Life" this Tues. Sept. 16th!  Yes we all know that I am a little biased, but I think this album is amazing!  There is something for everyone on it, and I am so proud of Jason for pouring his heart into it.  If you are interested but not sure about buying an album without hearing it first, they are having a listening party on their website that will allow you to stream the entire album.  Check it out... I know you won't be disappointed! www.33milesonline.com/listeningparty.

Iveycake

Iveycake is a cake/cupcake store that has just opened in downtown Franklin.  Ivey, the owner, is one of our friends and she is one talented girl!  My friend Meredith and I went to the opening party the other night and tasted on some very yummy cupcakes!  She has great names for each of them that all have a special meaning to her, and that everyone can relate to.  I have not tasted her cakes yet, but I know that they have to be amazing!  The decorations alone make me want to try them.  So, if you ever are in need of a cake or just have a sweet tooth while strolling downtown Franklin try Iveycake!  

Located in the back of Franklin Mercantile

Phone #

615-714-0421 

www.iveycake.com

(here is Ivey-isn't she precious!)

The Velvet Ant

No, The Velvet Ant is not a children's book...it is very real!!!  If you have never seen one in person, this is what it looks like.  What???  Doesn't it look like something out of an African rain forest or something!  I saw one a few weeks ago at a friends pool, and was so thankful that I didn't have any at my house.  Well, I do now!  After seeing one yesterday, I immediately called the people that spray our home for bugs to ask them about it.  Apparently these scary looking things can pack quite a punch.  They are known as the "cow killer".  Now they don't really kill cows, it just hurts really bad if you get stung by one.  They are part of the bee/wasp family, but only the male flies and only the female stings.  They also live in the ground so they are hard to get rid of.  Just great!!!  Why find out so much about these huge red ants?  Because I don't want one getting on my kids while they are playing in the yard!  I can only imagine the drama that would surround that!  So, be careful out there.  If you get close enough to one, you can hear a weird hissing noise. Strange, very strange!