Church Picnic!

Yesterday, the weather was gorgeous and quite perfect for a picnic! Mr. and Mrs. Shy did a fabulous job of planning all the food and games. The park was really pretty and we had lots of fun playing games and eating good food! This picnic had a twist-it was mostly done(planning, cooking, cleaning) by the men! They did a wonderful job and the ladies had a nice time not worrying about the usual tasks that are involved with a picnic.
Here are some pictures!!






















Love, Adrienne Renea

California Fires

Keep the people of California in your prayers. Many have had to evacuate, unsure if their house will be standing when they return. Also pray for the safety of those fighting the fires. Praise God for those who are willing to risk their lives to save others. I pray that God will bless the people of California and that in all of it, God would be glorified.

Praying without ceasing,

Adrienne Renea

Pictures!!!

Last Saturday:
We had just come from worship practice and dad decided to go visit the office of a potential new job position, so Allyson and I decided to have a little fun with the camera and check things out!

Checking out Dad's new office:





Our cool clip/rubberband face:


Checking out the computer!!


The view outside the office window:


ooooo....


Fun! A big book of police procedures..



Umm...I'm not sure why this is one of the labels on the file inbox!


Allyson, ready to work??


da-dum...dancing with the coat stand


FOOD!!!!


I hope ya'll had a great weekend!!!

Love, Adrienne

Coming back....(part 2)

Ok, I'm not really sure why I named this series of post "Coming back"....
Anyway..
I have been looking for a job and had applied to several places, one place being
Kumon.
Kumon is

an after-school math and reading program that employs a unique learning method designed to help each child develop the skills needed to perform to his or her full potential. It is also the largest and most established program of its kind in the world.

After about a month of going through their applying procedure, I was officially hired last Thursday! As of right now my main responsibilities are grading homework. Today was my first day! Ah, there were zillions of papers, but it was all good. The environment is very stress-less and the my co-workers are friendly helpful people. Kumon has a unique grading system and I spent the day getting the hang of it. The center is open to the public on Tuesdays and Thursdays, my main working days. Normally kids come after school around 4pm and stay for 30 min. to an hour, the last kid leaves around 7 pm.
Well I'm bushed and my night is not over, on Thursday, I have a Spanish oral mid-term! Please pray for me, I hope between tonight and tomorrow night I will get an sufficient amount of studying in!
Love to you all!
Adrienne Renea

Coming back....

Wow, it's been awhile, so I'm going to go as far back as I can remember....

Last Saturday(10/6) I took the SAT, it being my third time. It was OK, no confusing rooms, weird proctors or annoying sounds. I get my scores back next week so.....
Anyway on to better things...
For like EVER my friend Sarah and I have been trying to see
Phil Wickham in concert, so last Saturday( it's still 10/6!) we and a bunch of our good friends went to see the
David Crowder Band, Phil Wickham, and The Myriad in concert.
We had a blast!!! The coolest part was Sarah and I getting to meet Phil Wickam outside the arena while David Crowder's set playing. I would recommend Phil Wickham's Cannons and the DCB's Remedy.

I was blessed by the songs in their sets and I really was impressed by Phil Wickham's obvious passion for God, it's neat to see a music artist that truly lives what he sings....
It was extra special 'cause my Dad let me take the car that night!!! YEA!

AHH... I want to post more, but I need to get ready for school in the morning!!!

So I'll post another entry tomorrow-
Coming back: The Job
Love,
Adrienne Renea

A must see Gospel skit!

New Look?

The changes I made to my blog's template may not stick around for long, but I needed some new colors!!!

Love, Adrienne Renea

Will Rodgers

I was flipping through an American Literature textbook and found these great quotes from Will Rodgers:

"Politics has got so expensive that it takes lots of money to even get beat with nowadays"

"Everybody is ignorant, only on different subjects"

"We have eleven million unemployed, counting the four million that do nothing but keep statistics on the things that we would be better off if we didn't know."

And my favorite:

" Every time we have an election we get in worse men and the country keeps right on going. Times have only proven one thing, and that is that you can't ruin this country, even with politics"

The '08 Election is coming hard and fast. I've been trying to find an unbiased( yeah, good luck on that!) blog or news source that can keep me updated on the different issues, candidates, and debates.
Here's one great blog that seems to cover a lot of bases:
Oval Office 2008

Love, Adrienne Renea

Smile, you're on camera!

I've been experimenting with my Dad's ancient 35mm Canon. I'm not exactly sure about the model or year. It's definitely a Canon EOS Rebel, but I'm not sure the model and it was bought sometime before I was born, meaning it's at least 18-20 years old. Despite it's inconveniences, it's a lot more fun to take pictures with. My flash is out of commission right now, so I can only take pictures with natural light. I took some pictures around here and then some at church. Now I've got to get them developed. If any look ok, I'll post them here.

I've always like photography, but unfortunately I'm not good at it. Maybe I can get some books from the library and read up on it.

Some great quotes about photography:

“There are no rules for good photographs, there are only good photographs.”

-Ansel Adams (American Photographer)

“Buying a Nikon doesn't make you a photographer. It makes you a Nikon owner.”

-Author Unknown

Love, Adrienne Renea

Pizzzaa!!

Yum!

Allyson made "Yummy Vegetable Pizza" today for dinner and it DID live up to it's name!




The toppings consisted of broccoli, onions, green bell pepper,pizza sauce, and cheese.

Great Job, Allyson!

Tennis Anyone?

We are big tennis fans! Can't really play the game, but we own several rackets and we have a multitude of tennis balls that prefer rolling down the street drain to sitting in our garage.

Right now we are into the
U.S. Open.
We usually follow the Women's tour, specifically Venus and Serena Williams and Maria Sharapova. When we were younger Allyson and I use to get out our rackets to take a hit at the tennis balls Dad threw our way. We dreamed of being like the William sisters-their tennis side mind you!
Tennis isn't exactly prime time TV, so we only watch big tournaments like Wimbledon and the U.S. Open.
Tonight the younger William sister, Serena, was beaten by number one ranked Justin Henin, so we're now rooting for Venus to make it to finals.
We also keep up with ATP players like Andy Roddick, James Blake and Rodger Federer. I'm rooting for Andy to make it to finals in the men's bracket.
We always have a lot of fun watching the matches, it's one of the things we do as a family.
A fun note: My parent's first date was a tennis game. Well, Dad says it was more like a lesson. :c)

Love, Adrienne Renea

It Is Well With My Soul....

The other day I heard some one express their well being by saying:
"It is well with my soul"

Later thinking about it, that is a perfect way for Christians to respond to situations both good and bad. As long as we have peace with God, everything is well!

Right now, Mom is in Little Rock with her mom. Grandma Medley was taken to the hospital( in ICU) last Wednesday after having problems with her dialysis, this included trouble breathing and vomiting. For a few days things weren't going so well, her lungs were filled with fluid, but they were able to clear that out. Mom went up to Arkansas on Tuesday and will be coming back on Saturday. Grandma is doing better, but will continue to be in the hospital. Please pray for healing for grandma and strength for my grandpa, mother, and Aunt Cheryl.

Also please lift up my friend Kari's great-grandmother, she is having trouble with her heart and is in ICU right now. Please pray for healing for her great-grandmother and strength for her family, especially her mom, Mrs. Perez.

I started my classes this week! It's been different( in a good way!), waking up and heading off to school....of course its only twice a week, but it's still a big change. This morning was really weird. I drove myself to school and so far I haven't really driven by myself that far( 30 minutes). It was nice just being in the suburban alone with my choice of music! :c)
Cy-Fair is a really pretty campus and they have an awesome coffee shop!
I think I'm enjoying Spanish the most, the teacher is awesome. Although she gives lots of work, she makes it interesting. In English, we're now working through an essay about the politics of "Red" and "Blue" States, I'm really enjoying the passage! We have a paper coming up in a couple of weeks, so I think I'll end up writing my paper on that essay.

I've been on an Jane Austen kick lately, reading through Persuasion, Emma, Northanger Abbey, and some various Jane Austen era Fan-Fiction, this past week. :c) I watched Sense and Sensibility last week and this week Persuasion! And it's been decided Mr. Knightly is my favorite Austen Hero and Elizabeth Bennet and Anne Eliot, my favorite Heroines.

It's almost Friday! Have a fabulous weekend!

Love, Adrienne Renea


Submit to God and be at peace with him;
in this way prosperity will come to you.

-Job 22:21


When peace, like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll;
Whatever my lot, Thou has taught me to say,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.

My sin, oh, the bliss of this glorious thought!
My sin, not in part but the whole,
Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more,
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!

Signs of Summer

Because I need to update soo bad..here are some pictures until my next "real" update!

Sarah and I in San Antonio

The Alamo!

Party at my house!!!

Games and Food!!

Slip 'n Slide at Jessica's Party!

continues in the next post...

Signs of Summer....Part 2

More Pictures....

Jessica's Par-Tay

Dance, Dance Revolution!!

Now..Leslie's 18th Birthday!!!!

At the movies to see "Becoming Jane"

Leslie and Leah!

Jessica(smile!) and Kari!


Fun..Fun summer!

Fusion '07 Photos!!

Fusion '07!

It was Amazzzzing!! With a capital "A"!!

We( Pam, Melissa, Kamyl, Kiana, Allyson, and I) drove up to Waco in a cool white van that we nickname "Gertie". It was a quick drive considering the vastness of Texas!

We reached Baylor and as soon as we walk into the door we are greeted with smiling faces, introductions, and offers of help with luggage. Speaking of luggage...there was lots! :c)

The first night, we heard a wonderful message from Mr. Steve Shank on the unfathomable love of God. Wow, that message was amazing! Definitely my favorite, I look forward to listening to it again!

The next morning we heard again from Mr. Shank on The "Agape" Love that believers show to each other. I was especially convicted about my relationships with my siblings.

Uh, then there was lunch....*gulp*...lunch...let's say the food wasn't much to talk about. I did enjoy their french fries and coffee!

After lunch we ventured across campus, ok maybe not all the way across, but it sure felt like it......anyway, we walked across the pretty Baylor campus to watch the 3-on-3 basketball tournament.

Our team placed second! Woot!

Saturday night we heard a message from Mr. Cabiness about thirsting for God. Every sermon, God was showing me some sin or revealing more of His greatness to me!

The next morning, I got to work in the children's ministry. I was surprised how much fun it was hanging out with those kids! I always had fun in the children's ministry and there are some awesome adults who plan everything! We had lunch and sadly had to gather all our belongs from the dorm, then it was back on the road.........

I was so blessed by every session and every friendship I made. Thank you Pam and Melissa for getting us there!! And to the Van Essens for letting us borrow their van!

Love, Adrienne Renea


Oh happy day, happy day
You washed my sin away
Oh happy day, happy day
I'll never be the same
Forever I am changed

-Tim Hughes

My Goodness!!

Yes, that was my reaction to the realization of my total and utter neglect of my blog!
So here it goes my first post since, like forever!

I've been have a sorta leisurely summer. There were a couple of courses that didn't get finished this spring and I'm finally taking finals for them this week. Schoolwork in the summer is no fun and my motivation to get them done is quite pathetic!
*makes note to self: 'don't do that again next year!'*

Allyson, Chris, Taylor and Michael also had some school to finish, Chris is now done, but Allyson, Taylor and Michael still are finishing up.

I've registered to take two dual-credit courses at Cy-Fair College , English and Spanish. I'm looking forward to the different atmosphere and I hope to get involved with some of the campus activities. At home I'll be taking Anatomy and Consumer Math(blech!).

I'm still not sure about my speech and debate plans this year. I know Allyson and Chris still want to continue, but I'm not sure if I'll have time. This year Team Policy is debating Illegal Immigration and Lincoln-Douglas, Isolationism. The presidential primaries are coming up and I hope to get involved in some way, I'm still researching my candidates,, but I hope to help some way politically this fall. I know I probably won't have time for that and debate. We will see!!


I'm really looking forward to this weekend!!!! I am headed to Fusion '07.
Fusion '07 is a Regional meeting of 4 Sovereign Grace churches in Texas. There will be awesome worship, instructional teaching, and wonderful fellowship with other Sovereign Grace churches!! We arrive on Friday at Baylor University and the conference continues 'til Sunday afternoon. We get to stay on campus in the dorms and eat cafeteria food! I can't wait! I've been preparing my heart for this time by reading my favorite( after the Bible!) about the Gospel:The Cross-Centered Life by C.J. Mahaney

I know God will bless our time there and I pray that I come back with a greater understanding of the Gospel and a greater passion for Christ!


Dad went out of town and brought Taylor back a Lamb Chops Doll.

Isn't it cute??!! Growing up, I watched Lamb Chops Play Along all the time!

And this song was a classic:

I'll be posting pictures and an update on my trip when I get back I hope I can get back into the groove of consistent blogging!

I pray you have a blessed rest of the week!

Love, Adrienne Renea

Come, Thou Fount of every blessing,
Tune my heart to sing Thy grace;
Streams of mercy, never ceasing,
Call for songs of loudest praise.
Teach me some melodious sonnet,
Sung by flaming tongues above.
Praise the mount! I’m fixed upon it,
Mount of Thy redeeming love.

Keep my eyes fixed on you, Lord!

Photo Fun!

Click to play Make your own Smilebox

I love playing with Smilebox!

Normalcy?

OK, maybe normalcy is not the appropriate word for the occasion....but my blog is returned to familiar state. I've change colors, but everything looks OK...until my next escapade with the beloved blogger templates!!!

Love, Adrienne Renea

AAAHHH!!!

Blogger ruined my template!!!!!

Oh well......I'll be working this week on re-adding all my links and widgets!

Love to all!
Adrienne Renea

Beautiful Saviour, Wonderful Counselor, clothed in majesty, Lord of history,

You're the Way the Truth, the Life, Star of the Morning.

Glorious holiness, You're the Risen One, Heaven's Champion,

and You reign, You reign, over all.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The LORD reigns forever,
your God, O Zion, for all generations.
Praise the LORD.
-Psalm 146:10


Love, Adrienne Renea

Happy Fathers Day!

Dads are cool :c)

With Time.....

....Comes Change
This weekend, I'm going to be playing around with the layout of my blog......if things start to look a little quirky, that's why!

Congrats to all the people who competed in the NCFCA National Championship Tournament. I pray that y'all were blessed by your time there.

Summer is here.......how do you plan to spend yours?


Psalm 19:14
Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart
Be acceptable in Your sight,
O LORD, my strength and my Redeemer

Love, Adrienne Renea

New Attitude Messages

From the lack of information, I guess you could deduce that I didn't make it to the New Attitude Conference this year! I'm already starting to plan for next year. Timing and cost prevented me from attending this awesome conference.

But.....

You can download all the Na conference messages!!

Joshua Harris – Discernment

Mark Dever – Discern Your Doctrine

Albert Mohler – Discern Your Culture

C.J. Mahaney – Discern Your Heart

Eric Simmons – Discern the Graymatters

John Piper – Discern What Pleases God: Himself

John Piper – Discern What Pleases God: Personal Obedience

C.J. Mahaney – Discern How to Apply

Download them here!
Na Messages

Enjoy!

Love, Adrienne Renea

guest post (!!!)

This [hijacking blogs] is definitely one of my hobbies. Ok, not really.



In case you hadn't already guessed, this is NOT Adrienne. She might have trouble hijacking her own blog.... maybe. I don't know. Maybe it's easier to do your own. I haven't tried.



Note: This post was composed after high levels of sugar cookie were consumed. The author(s) [ooo, cryptic] of this post should not be held responsible for any weirdness. Or stuff like that.



Ok, so, guess I should let you know who I am.



So I'll sign it.



Sincerely,
-Sarah







ORANGE!!!!!!!!!!

Headline Homeschoolers

A California Homeschooler, Evan O'Dorney, 13, won the 2007 Scripps National Spelling Bee. This lover of music and math won the bee by spelling "serrefine". He is also a 8Th grade math whiz who plans on taking Calculus this fall.

Read a full account of his win here:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070601/ap_on_re_us/spelling_bee

Congratulations, Evan!

When we turn it on last night, they were down to the final two spellers. These guys were amazing! They knew their stuff! It got really tense when the last two were going back and forth.... everytime someone got up there, I was rooting for them! I didn't want either one to miss. Props to all the particpants of the bee. It's no small feat to memorize all those words! Especially the ones you can't pronounce!

I had a few experiences with spelling bees back in elementary school, they didn't turn out so well. My best placing was 2ND out of three!! Usually, they were pretty fun. :c)

Love, Adrienne Renea