Monday, December 31, 2007

Christmas 07










You have to remember these pics are taken early in the morning, so excuse our appearance! lol!! We had a good Christmas. We made homemade cookies the night before and went to look at lights. We also opened our PJ's which is a new tradition we started last year. We had a beautiful, worshipful candle light service at the church plant the Sunday before....even Tayler sang and said it was very meaningful!!

Christmas morning, we woke up and ate Brian's mom's recipe that I began to cook last year. (see first pic) This will be a continued tradition. Christmas day was mostly relaxing, Tayler playing with gifts, and us as well (thank you Melody for the physical perfection books! and Laurie for the expresso cups! now, I need a machine and I will be in heaven!) Of course, Brian's favorite gifts were all Star Wars characters-although Hereoes came close. I was able to get him 33 original characters (from the 70's)from a neighbor and a case they came in. He had no idea!!! We also loved our gift cards. I especially love the one from my step mom to Pottery Barn (thank you Sharon!!)We then went to see National Treasure.(and I was able to look so chic due to Rachel's beautiful gifts!) Because we don't have family here, we do this every year as well. Enjoy the pics and a year in review to be coming up soon.

ps Yes, that is Chewbaca in the background with a Santa hat! Gotta love it!!

Saturday, December 22, 2007

Merry Christmas!



We would like to wish everyone a merry Christmas!

Tuesday, December 18, 2007

FitnessbyKarin


Check out Karin's new blogspot!! She is starting her own business, which she has done before and did fabulous, so we will see.

wwww.fitnessbykarin.blogspot.com

Sunday, December 16, 2007

Graduation Day





Yes, it snowed and yes, it could have been treacherous. However, after two years of work and sacrifice I just could not pass up the graduation ceremony. I wanted to go for the official recognition and closure of the completion of this degree. It turns out that the storm was not as bad as predicted and we made it with relative ease. I'm glad because it was a once in a lifetime opportunity.

It was really exciting being there with so many others and celebrating this accomplishment. There were only three guys (including myself) that graduated from my cohort. But, there were about 1,800 that graduated yesterday. Thankfully they had three graduations and many people chose not to come to ours so it went by relatively quick.

We had a good time even though it was a little sad to say good-bye to guys that had challenged and encouraged me over the past couple of years. Also, it was surprisingly sad to leave IWU even though I was only on campus a few times. I'm not sure if I'll pursue a doctorate or possibly a second Masters but I will enjoy this degree for now.

Friday, December 14, 2007

Our first snow (older post)


Should've done this a few weeks ago. But, anyway, this was our first snow of this year-for all of our Southern friends and family

Happy 13th birthday Tay!





It has become a tradition that we wake Tayler up at his actual birth time (5:00 am) with the house decorated for him. We then cook his favorite breakfast and sing to him. Here are a few pics of that. Can you tell he was tired?

We also took him to a movie and dinner with his best friend, Jake. They are silly!

Tayler's surprise 13th B-day party!










We had a surprise birthday party for Tayler last Saturday. He thought his party was next weekend as his birthday is today. We invited all of his friends and his little girlfriend via their parents. Brian took Tayler shopping that day and he came home to us all shouting "Surprise" It was a lot of fun and Tayler was truly surprised. Enjoy the pics! Some are blurry as I was too excited and they didn't turn out well.

Monday, December 10, 2007

Catharsis

I know Brian has used this blog for cathartic purposes in the past, so I think I will and actually need to as well. For a while now, I can point back to six months ago but probably longer, I have had so much anger in my heart. I actually told Brian in June that it was so strong, it scared me. I had a picture in my head of black weeds, more like thorns, wrapping around my heart and closing in on me. I was totally afraid. I had never been this angry or aware of my anger anyway. I am so disillusioned with the church; in fact I hate it....not the church as the people, but the institution. I am not saying this is the right attitude to have. I am just telling how I truly feel. I know some of you may be gasping.... as some have said, how can you hate the church and plant a church? How can you love Jesus and hate the church? In fact, I have a book in my house titled that- I should probably read it.

Just like I should read my bible.....I have been praying....but, not reading. In my defense, I have been praying for God to bring me back and I feel Him bringing me back. Thank God for that. There are many issues here that go deeper than just this, but this is what I choose to talk about tonight. Maybe my anger is with God as well for reasons that are too deep to go into tonight...I don't want to scare my Christian friends.:) ....more than I already have. Don't worry, just pray for my heart.

I hope this is making sense as my thoughts are all jumbled and I have been holding it in for many months and probably years. Maybe my anger is just my defense mechanism against the messiness of the church.....including my own messiness. I am just glad I am aware of this anger now so that I can deal with it. This is the first step in healing. I am broken, it is heavy, scary, and very emotional. But, I feel His presence and I feel His healing....the comfort is there.


To understand better if I didn't make sense, go to this

Saturday, December 01, 2007

Our one year blogiversary...

Well, we started this blog as a way to let people know what was going on in our lives and to see the progress of our house. However, it has turned into much more than that for us. Some of our relatives have joked that we should just put on our answering machine "Hi. This is the Hume's. We're too busy to take or return your call. If you would like to know what's going on in our lives then check our blog". It's true- we love using our blog for updates, devotionals, random thoughts and pictures. But, this post happens to be about our past year and all the things you all have been through with us on this blog.

It started with us writing about our house and all of the things that went with it including not knowing if we would get approved for financing to having to move-in in just one day.We moved in the cold and rain with little help (Thank you again Tom Toussant!). We have discussed adoption and foster parenting. I resigned from the Methodist Church and started Restoration Church. Karin had a job advancement and began working at Pure Weightloss. My mother passed away and my father has been in the hospital several times this year. I finished my Masters degree.

Many people have come to our aid in prayers, friendships, finances and their presence this year and we could not have made it without those things. Our life has been anything but boring! We hope you will continue to journey with us as we enter another year. Tayler turns 13, Restoration will continue growing (or God will open a new opportunity for us), promotions, vacations and hopefully many more things to write about here.

Thursday, November 22, 2007

Happy Thanksgiving!!

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving..........I cooked, we put up our tree, and watched good ol' Colt's football....

Thursday, November 15, 2007

Graduation Announcement




I have officially completed all requirements to graduate from Indiana Wesleyan with a Master of Arts in Ministry degree. The graduation will be on Saturday, December 15th at the Indiana Wesleyan University campus in Marion, IN. The time is 6 p.m. We will try and have a reception at our house later in the week. This has been an exciting and life-changing journey. I have learned a lot about myself and God's call on my life. I am grateful for the time that I had at IWU, the friends I've made, the professors who challenged me and how I have been stretched to grow. It was well worth the investment and I look forward to what the future holds for us as a family. If you would like to attend my graduation please let me know soon. We will not be spending the night in Marion and it is about a two hour drive back to Pittsboro. I have a hooding ceremony at 3 p.m. that is just for immediate family. I will be sending out more formal invitations soon. Surprisingly (and I write that sarcastically!) there are no graduation invitations out this time of year. I guess if you graduate in the winter it's not as important as if you graduate in the spring.

Monday, November 12, 2007

Mama Mia!....it has been 7 years!!




We went to see the broadway production of Mama Mia for our 7 year anniversary! Just like the last seven years, the play was absolutely wonderful...(aw, how sweet:) It was so upbeat and uplifting! I definitely recommend seeing it.

I won't post too many pics b/c I look so chubby, but I have lost 8.6 pounds since I started my new job, the old one had me gainin'....Enjoy the pics!!

ps I know I can't blame the old job, but pretty convenient, right?
pss-This was by far one of the most fun anniversaries we have ever had in my opinion. The musical was a blast and we hope to see more in the future- Brian

Saturday, November 10, 2007

Cookie's new outfit!!



Isn't Tay's dog sooooo cute? In buying Tay's winter clothes, he bought his dog this outfit. So so cute!! Where are his eyes? We cut his hair all the time and did this just recently but it grows so fast! Cookie is due for another trimming!!

Thursday, November 08, 2007

Not the best pics!!






Tayler's first game but not so great pics.......the camera died........I (Karin) missed the game due to work, but Brian tried his hardest to get good pics..Tay is so excited and is working so very hard...he practices every day and is so persistent......He is number 13...if you can find him in the pics...we are so proud no him, of course!!

ps that is him shooting and pointing in most of the pics!

Wednesday, November 07, 2007

Promotions!

Brian and I both got HUGE promotions this week!!! God is sooooooo good.......we will write about it this weekend.......but it is so much more than expected!!! Wow, we are so excited!!

Saturday, November 03, 2007

You Might Have Noticed...

That I have not updated our church website in a while. That has not been intentional it has just been a very difficult month for me. If you have not been reading our blog you might not know that my mother passed away. This has left me drained and empty. I have been experiencing an emptiness and a sense of abandonment like never before. It feels as though I have lost heart for a lot of things. Some would label it as "depression" but I do not think that is the case. I am reevaluating many things in my life. I am realizing that we are all trying to be validated. My mothers death helped me to think deeply about why I am doing ministry. I know I wanted my parents to be proud of what I do and who I am. I believe they are. But, the real question that has been rattling in my head is "what is my motivation for being in ministry?" I want to believe that for the most part it is for pure reasons- to glorify the Lord, to see people come to faith, to build an authentic community. The honest truth is that a part of it is that I like the sense of validation I sometimes receive (though not nearly as often as people think). I like telling people I do ministry for a living. I feel I am doing something worthwhile. However, when the trials of ministry come (controlling people, ungratefulness, apathy, financial difficulties, doubt, etc...) what keeps me going? I have been told that outside of a sense of calling many people will leave ministry due to these factors. It plagues marriages where it's easier to just quit and get a regular job rather than put your family through the heartache of seeing a church tear you apart emotionally, physically, mentally and financially.

I believe I had a genuine call to ministry. There is nothing else I have ever wanted to do with my life. I often imagined ministry being a particular way- people celebrating the love of God and making a difference in this world. During an evaluation I had at a previous ministry I made the statement that ministry was not how I imagined it would be as a student. I want to believe that I do not have to sell out who I am as a person in order to minister effectively. If I could unleash the full vision and passion that is inside me I know we would see God's glory. But, I am held back by excuses and legitimate restraints. Karin and I were talking the other day about Restoration and wondering if we have taken a misstep. I named all the reasons why this would not work but then looked at all of the ministry that has already occured in just a few months. Ironically, most of the ministry has taken place through the church website and our blog. In the past few weeks people have asked about us starting an internet church. I think that is kind of strange but I have thought about building an on-line community where honest discussions and Bible studies could occur. But, I also like having a community near us that we can worship with "live" people. So, we are continuing this journey. It might take some redirecting but I believe we will discover together what God is doing.

One thing that I have not done is to ask for financial support through our church website. It is not for me and Karin personally but for Restoration to continue doing ministry. If you enjoy what is happening here and would like to see it continue beyond December and are able to help us then please send a check to our address found on the homepage. You can make the checks out to Restoration Church. I am uncomfortable even doing this but believe that people are being ministered to through our website and our blog and they understand that there are legitimate costs to ministry (even making flyers or maintaining the website costs money). I have shared that I am not taking a salary right now and believe that money should be used for ministry and many churches will be judged harshly for their use (and misuse) of people's money.

Thank you all for your continued encouragement, support and prayers. It is not an easy thing to lose someone so close and at the same time be questioning everything you believed about your life. It is definitely a crisis of belief- which some say is necessary for further growth. I have been at the point where I believed God abandoned us- even quoting Psalm 22:1 on our blog before taking it off due to the deeply personal nature of that blog. I enjoy sharing our pain and joys but that was even too personal for me to share. I know all the footstep poem things but going through it you just don't believe it. I couldn't find encouragement anywhere or with anyone. Slowly God is showing that He has most definitely not left us and so I know that He still has a plan of some sort. It might not be what I thought but it will be something good. We are about to celebrate our seventh anniversary next week and right before we got married I told Karin "We don't know what the future holds but we know Who holds the future". It was true then and it is true now. I just thought we would know a little more of what the future held by now. I sure could not have foreseen being where we are now so who knows where we will be in another seven years.

Friday, November 02, 2007

God is so faithful to provide.......

As you know, we are in the midst of many trials...one of which.... and possibly the least important when all is said and done, is financial, but God has continued to provide for us. This is so encouraging to our faith and we sincerely need encouragement right now. This has been a very difficult few months, but God has continued to show us His kindness and love. We received a beautiful card today from a dear friend with a monetary gift. This was soooooooo not expected and we are so grateful! We just wanted to give a shout out declaring His love for us and all of you.....even when we are faithless and oh so undeserving! This is what the Cross is all about, but sometimes as "seasoned" Christians, we forget this on a daily basis. We can't only praise Him in good times, but difficult times as well, so please don't think I write this b/c something came our way; rather, this is action in the faith we so desperately hold to. Keep believing, He is so real, even when all around you wants to scream differently!!

We all need these reminders of His sufficiency and they are so refreshing when they come. Thank you Lord for reminders that draw us closer to you in intimacy. Forgive us when we forget....

Tuesday, October 30, 2007

It's time for B-A-S-K-E-T-B-A-L-L!!


Tayler made Basketball!! What a relief!! As Brian watched kids come out of tryouts (week long) who have played since kingergarten and scored average of 20 pts per game NOT make it, his hopes were beginning to go on the on the "dark side" .........but, Tayler made it!!! He is good and is very determined/persistent, worked hard, and in my opinion, deserves to make it (I AM his mom-ya know!), but believe me this is God's grace!! Obviously, God saw it fit in His plan for Tayler's life to be part of this team. Because the coaches grade on height, teacher comments, grades, skill, we were worried he wouldn't make it b/c of height.......and.....we were on pins and needles all day....to say the least......)more like all year for his momma!) We knew Tay had excellent grades, teacher comments, and skill but as a parent, you still worry!! Although, Tay knows EVERYTHING about football and coaches the coaches on the game when he plays (lol), basketball is his favorite sport to play!! I have been worried since last year about try-outs!! Of course, we will post pics of his playing!! Thanks for your investment in his life and ours as well! We love you all!!

Saturday, October 27, 2007

Girly time! and fourth visit!

We played make up and top model-Makaylyn's favorite-her poses are so funny!! Enjoy!

ps Although they had make up on, Karin did not!:)





Tayler cut his hair!!



Yes, this is worth posting about because his locks have been long for about two years now. He finally cut it...I think he was ready but he had to cut them for basketball. He looks taller to me, but maybe he just looks more grown up with his hair shorter! He's my cutie!

It's Pumpkin time! (and some girl time too)








These are pics of last weekend...I know I am very behind on blogs but been very busy. Enjoy the pics!

ps That intricate detail on the pumpkin was not easy!