Celebrating 1

It's so hard to believe that one year has come and gone....52 complete weeks. 365 days. They have flown by, right before my face and I really feel like I barely had time to blink. When I reflect on the years that it took to get our precious Channing, QUICK would not be an adjective that I would use to describe the grueling time of waiting. But, once he arrived it's as if the hands on the clock started moving at a ridiculous speed. How I wish that I could slow them down.

On Friday, we woke our sweet birthday boy with singing and celebrating and took him out to breakfast. Our boy likes LOVES to eat! I went to lead the ladies Bible study that I recently started and my boys headed over to walmart to play in the toy aisle and find exactly what Channing wanted. I thought it was precious that Daddy did this.

On Saturday, we had a big party planned so Friday was pretty low key. But all the fun was just around the corner. As the year came to a close, I told John that I wanted to celebrate Channing, of course, but I also wanted to celebrate those that had poured into us this past year. The ones that I had called for advice, gotten hand-me-downs from (thank you Lord for hand-me-downs...my kid would seriously be naked most of the time if it wasn't for them), those I called when he was sick & I had no idea what to do. You know, those that had really been through this year with us. I wanted them to know how grateful we were for their investment into our first year of parenting. So we made a list and invited 35 people with adults and kids all together and we were so grateful that they all came! I wrote each family a thank you card and attached it to some yummy homemade caramel corn. I wanted them to know how they had specifically touched our lives throughout that year. And then of course we fed them & entertained their kiddos for a few hours. It was a blast and such a blessing to have all of our "FAMILY", both blood & God given, together in one place to celebrate Channing's year. If there is one thing we have learned, it's that it truly does take a 'village'.

It was great day of celebration. We are so thankful to the Lord for all he has provided us with. Especially this little fella that we love so much!

After a little hiatus.....

By looks of this blog, the Berry's have dropped off the face of the Earth. But, we haven't. We've just been so stinkin' busy with all that God has blessed us with! Since my last post in August we've.....

been smiling & growing....

 eating new foods & becoming much more independent with meal time. He loves using a spoon & a fork.

 climbing the steps & inviting everyone else to join in the fun....

 getting the first haircut....

 visiting the zoo for the first time...

 he loved looking at the animals.

 loving on daddy at a family reunion.

 learning to play on his own in the backyard. He loves when the doors are open & he can go in & out.

visiting the pumpkin patch to celebrate FALL with friends!

practicing walking & walking & walking... he's taken a few steps on his own, 8-10 at a time, but he's not in the full swing of walking yet. So hard to believe he'll be ONE next week!

 playing & canning with friends...

 playing with cousins and grandparents...

and visiting the beach one. last. time.

Along with all of these fun adventures, we've started back student ministry for the fall in a new facility with almost 30 leaders & 100+ students. It's been really exciting to see God grow the student ministry at Liberty. John is continuing to lead the worship each week too and has 3 interns. I've started  teaching the highschool girls Sunday school with friends & I'm leading a Women's bible study on Friday mornings. On Sunday nights, we LOVE our small group family time! It's one of the highlights of our week where we actually get to go to church together and we love the people we are "doing life with".

Oh, yeah.....In my spare time I've been growing this sweet thing...

despite how many times I tried & that it's not saved this way, the picture refused to turn.

So, as you can see, we've been quite busy! We're so grateful for all the Lord has blessed us with! Baby Berry 2 will be joining us in April! I will try to keep up better with things! Thanks to all my sweet friends who have been writing me to be sure we are ok and to check up on me due to my hiatus from here!

FUEL beach retreat

I'm not gonna lie....we are still recuperating from all of our travels. On the 17th of July we loaded up 6 vehicles with teenagers, leaders & lots of food, luggage and plans and headed to the beach for a week long retreat. I cannot even begin to tell you how incredible the week was! God showed up and changed many of these kids lives. Our week revolved around FIGHTING THE TIDE. Each day we spent 3 hours in worship and prayer and had a different topic to discuss with the kids! Fighting the current of the world with our hearts, minds, mouths and our eyes & ears. On Wednesday when talking about our mouths, the Spirit really came and touched the hearts of our kids. It was incredible. The kids response was amazing. The reconciliation, the chains were being broken within the heart and mind, the life giving words that they were speaking to one another and that the leaders were able to share with the kids....it left us speechless. The kids were just as speechless. You could feel the Spirit of God in that place and you could see the change that occurred in our kids. 

Personally, the week was one that was so very different for me. I have been a pastor's wife for 8 years now. I know how camp goes, the expectations for me, how to fill in the gaps..the list goes on. BUT this was the first year that I balanced being a momma and a pastor's wife and it was a bit TOUGH! Hope you can handle a little transparency.  I struggled with how to maintain all that I have done in previous years, knowing that through serving those students, I was serving Christ. I had such a hard time not being able to do all that I knew I had done years before. BUT, the Lord revealed to me that I was doing EXACTLY what I was supposed to do. By serving my son and loving him, I was and continue to serve Christ by prioritizing time and energy for him, and sometimes that means things in my life change. It was so nice to make it through the week. It was hard, but God showed up and it was an amazing week with incredible students.

Group at the PUTT PUTT

We started the week out watching the miracle of the sun and being reminded of God's mercies that are new each and every day!

our sweet family

our little sailor

today..

he...

 is....

 NiNe ...

mOnThS...

old!

AMAZING. ABSOLUTELY. AMAZING.

Monkey See...Monkey do

We all know that children mimic what they see. It's so evident all over the place. I see it all the time in youth ministry. Kids whose parents have deep meaningful relationships with Christ also have more spirit led attitudes. Kids whose parents seem to be "Sunday Christians" also seem to have little desire to grow in God's word independent of force or manipulation.

I was slammed in the face with the fact that Channing already is a part of this "monkey see, monkey do" society. We were at my Aunt's house the other day (another event in June that I actually forgot) & she offered him a little play guitar that was in her building. His reaction was similar to that of a kid who loves lollipops! He reached for it & held on & wouldn't let go.

He sees his daddy with one all the time. Literally, one sits in the living room everyday & not many days go by that John isn't playing a guitar. He's sees him with it and wants to mimic that behavior.

Daily I am blessed with the sounds of a little 9 month old following in his daddy's footsteps with songs and praises! What a joy it is. I wish I could freeze time sometimes as he "sings" and plays.

It also brings you to a place of reflection....what do I need to remove that Channing or others might be imitating because they see it in me? Makes Ephesians 5:1 more real......"Imitate God, therefore, in everything you do, because you are his dear children."

Where did it go???

June came and went before I feel like I was even able to blink my eyes. In reality, we were so stinkin' busy that I'm not sure I had time to blink very much. We started out June at the beach with the Berry family & our sweet friends the Hardins. Those were the only pics I got posted during the month of June. One thing I didn't get to include was our ride on the ferry from Southport to Fort Fisher. It was such a fun little adventure for us & Channing loved being on the ferry.

 This was the beginning of crawling at the beach, which he would master before too long. My sweet little 8 month old is crawling like crazy now & can go anywhere & everywhere!

 Riding the ferry! He loved watching the water move & the birds fly.

We came home for two days and had our last FUEL with the student ministry before the summer started.

We had to say goodbye to sweet Kathy & Teresa, who have been such faithful volunteers in FUEL! They will definitely be MISSED!

Channing & Daddy enjoyed the water slide!

The next morning we headed back down to Carolina Beach with our SENIORS. We wanted to do something that they would remember. Usually John would buy the students a really nice study bible that can range from $80-100, but all these kids had been with us the entire time we have been here and we knew that they had a WORD that they use & really didn't need another one, so we loaded them up & took them on a trip to invest some time into them as they embark on a new adventure! It's been such a privilege to see these young people grow & mature in their faith! So glad some of them will be sticking around!

Such an amazing group of students who we know God is going to use. So thankful that at least three of these guys will be around next year to SERVE in FUEL!

After we returned with the Seniors we had a day to recoup & go to church to worship & then headed out with the 6th & 7th graders for their annual retreat to Boone, NC! We enjoyed a couple days of cool mountain air, hiking (some of them had NEVER done this before) & some great Bible study about loving God with all our heart, soul, mind & strength! Luke 10:27

They loved the big hike of 6 miles to Hunt Fish Falls!

Channing loved the hiking too!

Daddy's day was in there, too! We celebrated with John. What an awesome dad he is to Channing!

This is a picture of my sweet boys & VBS! Yes, we threw VBS into JUNE too!!!!  Last count was 184 kids & 80+ volunteers! It was an awesome week of learning that NOTHING IS IMPOSSIBLE with GOD!!!

 

Channing already follows in daddy's footsteps in his love for music. This little guitar is his absolute favorite toy! One day we were leaving for VBS & he was terribly upset. The only thing that made him stop was the guitar! It came along with us & he played it during the music....just like daddy! Kids really do mimic what they see!

Our FUEL band, led worship for VBS & gave us an amazing night of worship during June!I love these kids & that they use their gifts & talents for the Lord. Their commitment & dedication exceeds that of many adults. It's amazing to see how enthusiastic they are about worshiping their God & King!

 During June our sweet 22 pound little boy moved to his BIG BOY car seat!

So, as you can see, we had AN UNBELIEVABLE month of JUNE! We're so blessed to be apart of all God has us doing right now! It's amazing what all you can accomplish when you are walking with him! Though we stumble, fall & fail at times, his GRACE is definitely sufficient for all we need.