Elise's Perspective

Have you ever heard the phrase, " what if the only things you had tomorrow are the things you thank God for today"?  Think about that for a minute...how much would you have?  Occasionally, I would have a fair amount, but most of the time, I would have very little- maybe only the food I ate yesterday. I was thinking about this thought lately and I realized how much I have to be thankful but rarely express my graditude to the Lord. What about salvation? (No, I'm not going to get into a debate on whether or not you can loose your salvation), but what if you didn't have it tomorrow because you didn't thank God for it? What about your family? What about God's grace, mercy, love, His faithfulness, His word...all these things.... I often take these things for granted. That is such a powerful thought! It's not like we ever deserved these things...in fact we deserve nothing but death me separation from God.  You know, as I was thinking about this, one thought led t

I remember being told when I was young that time passes quickly. Of course, I didn't really believe it.  But as I have gotten older, I realize how true it is. I feel like I only lived a day or two of October! I don't know how many people read my blog, so I don't know if anyone has been wondering why I have been so silent, but if by any chance, you were, this post is to you :) I have really enjoyed the past 2-3 months; God has been teaching me a lot. I have been seeking direction on certain areas in life, and it is not always easy to wait on God. But waiting is sometimes the very best thing- it requires trust...trust in the Lord, that He knows what He is doing, and has not forgotten you. Remembering that He loves you so much and has only the very best planned for you. And as I can only see to the next bend in the road, He can see the whole picture.  This is one of the things I have been reminded of these past few months. And I have also learned that waiting on the Lord

Autumn....it's my favorite season of the year! Colors changing, weather cooling, my birthday, apple cider, pumpkin and apple pies, leaves falling, crisp air, camping, apple butter...so many things I love about Autumn! I love to go walking outside when the leaves are changing colors...when the air is getting crisper. And then, God knew I would love Autumn so much, he gave me a birthday in my favorite season:) So that's a big plus too:) Thank you Lord for such a wonderful season! And also, thinking about my birthday- thank you so much for giving me life! And another day to live. Thank you for Your love and mercy! You are so precious! Teach me to love You more! And that is what Virginia looks like in Autumn...but not until October;) I found these pictures online;) So enjoy your Autumn!  Until next time, Elise

I'm thankful for all we got accomplished today, as a family:)  - house thoroughly cleaned - outside area all cleaned up - trashed dumped - littles had their baths - driving with Dad - cow milked~twice - all three meals made and cleaned up - grain shed cleaned out (and mice caught)  - time to play with neighbor children - time with Jesus  - ricotta cheese made... And I got the stuffed shells in the oven for tomorrow:) And tomorrow- I start a new list of tasks...but I'm so thankful for my family; we live each day together, working through the problems, rejoicing in our blessings, and enjoying each ones company- together.  And as the stuffed shells are cooking, I have my a couple more things to do before bed:)  I know I usually try to share pictures with you, but recently, while at work, my iPod was waterlogged, and so I don't have it to take pictures anymore. But you'll be happy to know I have one for you:)  The stuffed shells baking:)  Oh, I do have this one too:) Little

This past Sunday our family decided to take advantage of the free afternoon we had after church, and headed out to the Katowba area to hike Tinker Cliffs. Dad thought it was going to be a four mile round trip hike, but it ended up being a eight mile round trip hike, and the whole way up was pretty steep! But I really enjoyed the hike, despite the fact that each person only brought a 16oz. water bottle with them, for a eight mile hike and it was hot and humid- though I must say, it could have been hotter! (Sorry for the run-on sentence;) Of course, Elijah was not with us, he was in Texas;)  The view from the top was gorgeous and I can only imagine the view if I had hiked it when the colors of the leaves were changing!! But anyway, I will share some pictures with you guys:) Just starting out:) Resting a spell The view from the top was gorgeous!  Someone thought they needed to be just a little closer to the sky;)  Found

Okay, so you guys might be wondering why I haven't posted in a while- unless you follow me on social media;) But if you don't, I have been silent because I have been busy with...  My brother Elijah and his new fiancé! He got engaged this past Sunday to Faith Grubb and we are all thrilled for him!! I will share a few pictures like normal. But you may be wondering how they met and where and such. I will provide you with a few details.  He met her this past March (2015) at a get together he and my other brother attended. Over the spring and summer they got to know each other long distance and after praying about it, they felt the Lord leading them to marriage. Faith is from the big state Texas, and so it is a ways from where we live, but Elijah doesn't mind the drive to see her, and makes the trip when time allows. Hopefully we will get to see their family this fall and have some good fellowship time with them:) We look forward to seeing them, and helping Elijah and Faith as t

When I stop to look at the beauty all around, I am amazed that God loves me as much as He does! His creation is so much prettier than I am... It does not sin!  But God wants a relationship with me and because He wants that, He sent His Son to die- for me. I hope you enjoy the pictures as much as I enjoyed taking them:) Let us not forget why we are here.  Until next time,  Elise

I've always enjoyed drawing and recently I started drawing again. I drew my friend and tried a self portrait.  And there are the two I did this past week.  Until next time,  Elise

Happy birthday kristen! I pray that one day you will be a lovely servant for God!  I love you very much:)  You are growing up so fast- what am I going to do with ya?  I hope you had a great birthday!  Love your big(gest) sister, Elise

Nan has been down for a week, just visiting and helping out. She took all us children out for lunch a few at a time:). Yesterday, she took me, Olivia, Lydia, and Sophia out for lunch, and it was decided that we would go to Five Guys since we had never been:) After eating a good lunch, we went shopping with Nan for some clothes she wanted. We had a great time, and like usual, I have some pictures to share:)  Yes, they were trying on hats and being weirdo for the camera- hams!! Haha:) Olivia and I were matching too😉  Enjoy the pictures y'all!  Until next time, Elise

Happy birthday, Micah! I love you very much and pray that you will one day be a man after God's own heart!  Hope you had a special birthday!  Love your sister, Elise It if not the most flattering picture of me, but what is most important is that it's a nice picture of him😊

I love little Buddies=) It so happens that most of my friends I see quite often, are littles and their mommies:)  I got to spend a little time with one of my little buddies and her mommy last night:)  I have one really cute picture to share with ya too😉😍  That's my little peacie:)  I'm so grateful for little people- they make my life- especially when I don't get to see my "big girl friends" very often, because they live so far away:(   Someday, I want to have a lot of little people☺️  Until next time,  Elise 

I was so excited to see some dear, dear friends of ours at my graduation party. They came down from Delaware to surprise Olivia and I, but sadly, I was not as surprised as Olivia was. I had seen a message  go through on the iPad to our friend that contained a link for the local hotel. And being the person I am, I put things together right away... They were probably coming for my party as a surprise. Bummer, I had ruined my surprise! I also took note of the fact that they never answered yes or no to the evite we sent out through email, and of the fact that when they sent me a card, it did not say, " wish we could be there with you", but "we will be thinking of you" or something of that sort. I was not 100% sure they were coming, but I was 90% sure😉 but thankfully I had forgotten about all this, since it had occurred about two weeks prior to the party. Note: I am known for accidentally ruining my own surprises. I don't mean to, I just hear something, or see somet

Olivia and I are so excited to be finished with high school! We were able to attend the Richmond HEAV homeschool graduation ceremony and we enjoyed it very much.  We are also very grateful for our parents and family who helped us host a party to celebrate this mile stone for us!  The forecast was calling for rain and although we prayed that the rain would hold off, it rained anyway. But God knew we needed the rain to cool off our 95 degree day!  A big storm rolled in around 2:30 just as we were getting ready to eat lunch, but thankfully the downpour did not last more than 10 minutes. After lunch, it continued to rain a steady rain with little breaks now and then. But who says you can't play volley ball in the rain?  So we played anyway. We had a lot of fun- I hope everyone else did as well.  Thank you to everyone who came out and helped make our day such a special one.  After volley ball had been exhausted, we jammed on the porch/patio for a while and that was so much fun. When eve