Agogo and her singing bday card!
Abbie, Nate, Tina, Ed, Nanny and Pop!



Pop and the kids
Nanny and Caedmon
Nanny and Athan
Nanny and Holland
Grandma and her grand's and great grand's!
Miracles still happen!!
Athan and Aunt Nancy watching all the presents being opened!
Grandma... enjoying and just a little overwhelmed with everything!

Tyler playing "Happy Birthday" on his trumpet... It was wonderful

Grandma and her J's... Jennie, Joel, Joye, Jim, Janice, & Judy
Caedmon enjoying Food Network!!
Holland "reading" her bible to her baby!
Athan Mae & Beary Pink resting and getting better!
Dinner with our Neighbor Nick!
Oma and the kids!!


These are some of our students... we have bible study at our house on Tuesday nights!

It has been WAY too LONG!!

Well, The Russell's have had an interesting month! Here are some pictures of all our adventures... First, Athan was very sick and Oma came to help out with everyone. Ryan and I have traveled to Richmond several times for appointments meeting doctors for Athan's upcoming surgery on November 11th. Her GI doctor is doing lots of blood work and is having another surgeon come and do a rectal biopsy during her reflux surgery. The surgery is outpatient and the hardest part is going to be the anesthesia. So please pray for her and her doctors!!

Then we headed to NC for Grandma Crissman's birthday party! And just for the record... MIRACLES STILL HAPPEN! Holland took a picture with Grandma and the other kids and DIDN'T CRY!! We had a nice time... it was wonderful to celebrate this time with Grandma, but I can't imagine how her heart felt celebrating her first birthday without Grandpa. It was an emotional day... for her! We are so thankful to have Grandma and pray that God will continue to comfort her heart. Jim, asked us to go around and say "Grandma is..." It was so wonderful to hear all that Grandma means to each of us and how one person can have such a profound effect on all our lives.

We had a very nice visit with Nanny and Pop! Rebecca and Mary Elizabeth joined in on all the fun. Then dinner with GoGo, Ed, Abbie, Nate and Aunt Tina! YUMMY! Happy Birthday GoGo on October 12th! Athan picked out a Little Mermaid card that sang to her...

Then the kids and packed up and headed to Lynchburg for a few days of rest and fun with Oma and Opa! After a few wrong turns we finally reached our destination! Caedmon was very energetic... a little too much for his VERY tired mother... so I called my dad and he took Caedmon to the stock market & he spent the night with him for the rest of the week. Oh Yeah... did I mention that he was already energetic... and my dad got him at least one Mountain Dew! But they had fun together!! Caedmon was so excited to tell me that he ate at McDonald's FOUR times while he was with PaPa Garrett!!
I am thinking of renaming my mom's house to "Anytime Ice Cream" Let's see... after breakfast... 10:30 a.m. after lunch 1:30, after nap 4:30, before dinner 5:30, and before bed time 7:30! YUMMY homemade ice cream is good all day long.
Then we came home to spend some time with Kelli and Emma... it really was a great visit, we had a Jane Austin marathon... Sense and Sensibility... and the A&E Pride and Prejudice! MARVELOUS... well, until I fell out on the floor while making dinner... so then started the BAD Week :(
My friend Rachael and Bethany came to visit on Friday - Sunday... It was a visit more of presence than anything else... What is 8 hours to a wonderful friend? A hug and some stick drawings later, it was time for doctor's appointment for Athan and then later in the week me!

Rest assured... I am well, just some bad side effects to my medication, which I no longer take. So, it is good to be able to think and live life again! And Thanks to Kelli, Rachael, and Bethany for taking care of me... God knew I would need you while Ryan was in Mexico!

So now life is getting back in the swing of things... School, Church and the fun of three kids!

Last week the kids spent the day with Grandaddy, while mommie, daddie, and Athan went to an appointment. When GoGo got home they all went to Toys'RUs and registered for Christmas!! What fun!! Then we ate at Cheeburger Cheeburger... YUMMY!

Caedmon during dinner came over to me and asked "Mommie when did you meet and fall in love with Daddie?" It was so precious!

Today, Ryan is having going to the Rival football game between Park View and Bluestone! Him and Caedmon will meet the other youth guys at Wendy's for dinner and hang out at the game! The girls and I are having a girl party at the house... so Athan has been walking around all day with a "list" of things to check off... "Okay, Mommie; will our guest be eating waffles with us?" "Lunch... "Check", "Don't forget about the cake, Mom!" She is my best side kick!!

Okay... well I am sure that I am forgetting something (feel free to comment with a forgotten memory)... but as mentioned above, I am having a girl party tonight... the vacuum cleaner is calling my name and the cake needs to be iced! Enjoy the pictures...

So we pray...

As Ryan and I ate dinner tonight our conversation consisted of "the plan"... it went something like this... "if she throws up again, we are going to the ER... but which one?"... "But what if she doesn't throw up but is still in pain, do we get blood work?"... "Does she just need to poop?"... then Holland adds "Buty (Bucky our cat) true up in the toy room on a PIECE OF PUPUR!" translation... Bucky threw up in the toy room on a piece of paper! REALLY!!!

Athan has been sick this week that is true and we have visited the doctor several times this week and we are unsure still what is going on. So we pray. Herman is in the hospital with an infection in his arm unsure of what is going. So we pray. A family in our congregation was in very serious car accident with two members in very serious conditions. So we pray. Tracy Gould's mother fell and hurt her head. So we pray. Brad and Jo's congregation has lost a man of faith whose family is grieving. So we pray. Sherry's husband Bobby's dad had a stroke and is still in the hospital. So we pray. This is just to name those who are hurting that are touching our lives, there are so many more. So many more dinner conversations that are so much more serious, concerning, overwhelming, heartbreaking, and our dear Precious Sweet, Caring, Compassionate Savior Hears them all.

This afternoon in school God allowed Caedmon and I to talk about the silliness of "things" and Caedmon looked at me and said in complete frustration... "But mom I CAN'T SEE GOD." I took a breath not wanting my words to come out but God's and His Holy Spirit guided me to say, Yes you can, He has given you a daddy you loves you and tells you every day, God is in him, a mommie who is here for you and with you and reminds you to seek after Christ; God is in her, sisters who love to trust you and play with you and hug you God is in them and in your class that is teaching you the names of God... learn them so you can see God in the Sovereign acts of power and life, in His provision of shelter, food, clothing and protection, in the wisdom He gives to you through His word and others... God is all around you... and He has promised if you will draw near to Him He will draw near to you. Because even though you can't "see" Him is EVERYWHERE... So we pray.

Happy Birthday Gerard!

September 24th was my God Father's Birthday! Happy 60th! I love you~

What a Week!

What a wonderfully exciting week...

Saturday, we headed to Camp Kerr Lake for their Annual Harvest Party, they had a 20 foot slide that Caedmon went down at least 40 times. Athan and Holland loved the bouncy castle. Our church praise band (WEPT) played and had a great time. After wards Ryan treated our family to a special surprise... dinner at Chic-fil-a. It was a wonderful moment in our family as I looked around... no diaper bag, no diapers, no sippy cups, no high chairs... it was priceless! We have come through a full stage of life with all three kids and it is good! Caedmon, FINALLY let me pull his front tooth! So cute! Athan wanted to be the tooth fairy, so I tried to wake her up to put the candy bar under his pillow but she wouldn't wake up... she was so upset that she couldn't be the tooth fairy! But not to worry...

Sunday was a wonderful day of worship! The children are learning to worship with us as a family and doing a wonderful job, sitting, drawing pictures of what our pastor is teaching, and singing the songs of worship to our Savior. On Sunday night they stay with a sweet couple from our church Opal and Terry Freeman, they are truly a blessing from God who feel called to care for our children so we can minister to the teenagers! God uses the whole body to glorify Himself!
When we got home Caedmon said "Mom, I'm ready for you to pull my other tooth!" so I laid him on the couch and pulled his other tooth! Caedmon was really happy to have no teeth in the front! Athan was so excited too! She went to bed determined to stay awake... "Don't worry mommie, I am going to stay awake until you go to bed!" Well she didn't, but she did wake up this time to put the dollar under his pillow!

Monday, something wonderful happened... I went to the grocery store ALL BY MYSELF! We shop at Aldi in Danville; 45 minutes away, normally Ryan and I have a date day on grocery day but that wasn't going to work this time! So Ryan worked and watched the kids while I went to the chiropractor and the grocery store! We buy a month at a time! Ryan and kissed at the back door and he headed to South Boston to visit a dear sweet lady in our church who broke her hip, little did he know that he would drive through a TORNADO! Limbs flying everywhere, hail, lighting hitting right in front of him... We were so Thankful that God provided a shelter for him and brought him home safely.

Tuesday, it was school for the kids. After school was done Ryan and I started making dinner for our new students! They came over around 5 to eat spaghetti and meatballs and get "the talk" from Ryan! We also have our new students over to talk with them about what we expect from them as they enter youth group and what they can expect from us! We had a lot of fun... and the Bible study on systematic theology and bed time!

Wednesday~ Everyday at the Russell house begins with chocolate chip pancakes so Wednesday was no different! Then school... lunch, and BINGO! Caedmon, Athan and Myself headed off to the nursing home down the street to play bingo! Caedmon & Charlie (his nursing home buddy) won three times! We took our friend Tonya home, went to the library, post office, Food Lion for bread flour, CVS for Athan's meds, and then back home, I got on the phone with a friend, had a student come over to borrow the car, got marvelous news that my sister Martha is CANCER FREE!!!! praise the LORD, made dinner (Teriyaki chicken, rice and green beans) and headed off to church. After teaching Holland's class (which I don't normally do) one of my teenage student's walked in and light bulbs went off everywhere in my head... I HAD FORGOTTEN TO PICK HER UP AT 4!! OH MY... I felt terrible! We rescheduled for Thursday and everyone went home. At bed time the kids and I are reading "The Little House on the Prairie Series" it is wonderful.

Thursday ~ Story Time at the Library begins again... and in our little town, the Russell's are the only ones to attend! But the Librarian loves my children and always has fun stories and activities to do! Today's theme! TURTLES! Patches and Swirly came home with us but belong to the Librarian, Sleepy and Rainbow are Athan's, Scaredy and Crazy are Caedmon's, Doze and Sleepy 2 are Holland's! They had a GREAT time! I met with my student at 4 and we had good time together! Ryan made chicken fried pork and I made mashed potatoes as a side!

Friday~ School & outside play! Dinner was wonderful we made hamburger packets... seasoned hamburgers with potatoes and carrots wrapped with aluminum foil cooked in the oven for 30 minutes... easy and yummy! Then Ryan and I made pizza dough to freeze, sour dough bread dough, and bagels. Ryan made brownies for a "fresh made treat" We watch Horton Hears a Who! What a GREAT movie! "Every life is life no matter how small!" SAVE YOUR PENNIES & SAVE A "LITTLE" LIFE.

Saturday~ Today... Ryan is going to take some of the kids to the boat races at the lake... it looks like a bomb has gone off in our house and the same dishes that got washed everyday this week need washing again, the same clothes that got put away a few days ago need to be put away again and I think the smell in the house is ME! We love you all~