Bless their hearts

Our boys had a moment in the car tonight that really broke our hearts. People say that children are resilliant, and while that is true, it doesn't mean that they don't have feelings. This move is hard on all of us, and while the boys were so excited about the "trip" and a new place to live, tonight they had a rush of emotions that hit. Jeff's friends Woody and Kelly invited us over for dinner. They all went to school at ACU and were so kind to have us over. Neither Mason nor Cooper really wanted to go... nerves I guess, even though they had not been out of the apt all day. Fear of the unknown was at the center I am sure and with Monday and new school, new teachers, etc, they were feeling emotional. All the kids did pretty well for the first little while. Cooper found lots of new stuff to play with and towards the end or our visit he got frustrated because he wanted to play with a particualr toy (a noisy one) and it was disrupting the movie that the others were watching. On the way home, Cooper said that he just wanted to go back to San Antonio and see his friend Eli. Mason said he just wanted to go home (SA) and see his school friends. Ouch!! I know they will be ok but in the meantime, I did explain that Mommy knows exactly how they feel. It is hard to start in a new place and put yourself out there. We are comfortable where we are. The same is true for The Church these days. The attempt to deepen our worship and develop a true relationship with God is a foreign concept to some. We are comfortable with the people we know on our side of the building. We are comfortable with the friends that we have and are not always willing to step out into the aisle- or across it and introduce ourselves. It is hard to walk down the hallway and look at someone we don't know and introduce ourselves and get to know them. We really must allow God to use us in areas of our lives even the ones that take us out of our comfort zone. That is what this move is for us. All of us! I pray that God will help us find peace in this move and help us as parents to use this as an enormous teachable moment for our kids. Until next time I pray that each of your will find a way to step out of your comfort zone and find someway to glorify God and bless someone else's life this week!

Stacia Crafton this one's for you

So I have this friend - many of you might know her and she says to me on a regular basis, "update your blog!" I think she might be a stalker- LOL- kidding friend. Lots and lots have happened over the last few weeks and it is time I used this blog for recording what is going on with our family. To begin, roughly 8-9 weeks ago Jeff interviewed for a postition with USAA (whom he has worked for for the last 12 years), he got the position and it came with a move to Dallas. So, here we are, ready for our house to be put on the market, an enormous amount of stuff in storage and living in a 3 bedroom apt in the Carrollton area. It has been emotional on all of us to say the least but making the decision to come here instead of being a family divided with Jeff working here during the week and us in SA without him was indeed a good one. Last night we actually sat down at the table together to eat dinner and shared great stories and laughter and such! It was fantastic! By the way if you know anyone looking to buy a house in a quiet neighborhood, in a cul-de-sac (gated community by the way), new paint in and out, new carpet, new sod in front yard, 1800 sq feet for a fantastic price... let me know! Moving allows for a fresh start for us. It allows us to see both our strengths and weaknesses. It helps us to remember to rely on the Almighty One to have control and show His direction for us! There have been some crazy amazing God stories that have revealed themselves to us over the last 8-9 weeks but I will save those for another post. Until then I thought I would share some funnies we have heard from the mouths of our babes.

Cooper: President George Bush Turnpike? I didn't know his last name was Turnpike!?

Jaxon: Yay this is the day we move to Dallas! That is just perfect!

Cooper: Mom, are you lost again?

I know there are others but I can't remember any more. In the meantime, I ask for your prayers as this move is a difficult one and the kids have been struggling for sure... just ask Mr. Chris downstairs- bless his heart. He has been in his apt for the last 3 mos with no one above him and suddenly 4 emotional kids move into the above apt (and they have never been in one so don't know how to walk around and such)... Sorry Mr. Chris- I promise we are trying! Until next time... Love to all of you!

2010 wrap up (sort of)

Whew it has been a while... for my 3 readers- sorry! Ok so 2010 is over and I have to say it was one of the hardest yet one of the best years in my life! I will be doing a detailed year in review when I am finished wrapping my brain all around my thoughts. But for now I wanted to share with my readers that what got me through was the decision to wash my mind and soul with all things God-like. I started with something simple... I tuned the radio in my car to the local Christian station (K-LOV) and never took it off. There were no other stations tuned in to anything. As long as I was in my car and my kids were not with me (as we have kids CD's) I was listening to the songs, stories, prayers etc... it really really really made a big difference. That was just one of the steps I took. It was a good one- I will share more as I wrap up 2010 and let you know that I plan on doing more of that in 2011. Until then- God Bless!

Terrific Tuesday

On this terrific Tuesday I have the opportunity to serve yummy treats to my friends at Ladies Bible Class. I love that God has allowed me the time to be able to go to spend time in study and fellowship with these women. My life is richly blessed because of them. On the days that we have Ladies Bible Class I am convinced that it will always be a terrific Tuesday!

It's more than that...

Many of you know I walk in the Susan G Komen Breast Cancer 3 - Day. This is an event put on by the Komen for The Cure in an effort to find a cure for breast cancer. In this event we (my team... Team Tiara) spend 3 days walking, a total of 60 miles, in an effort to show our support for the "Pink Warriors" past and present. We dream of a day that there will be no need to call them "Pink Warriors" for we dream together of a day where there will be an end to breast cancer. Each of us is responsible for raising $2300.00 per year for the privilege to walk those 60 miles. It is an honor for me to do so. My Grandmother was a "Pink Warrior" as was my aunt. Sadly, my aunt lost her battle just 2 months ago. Someone asked me today, why? Why do I choose this whole fight against breast cancer? Why do I choose to walk 60 miles in 3 days? I pray constantly that God will allow me under any and all circumstances to minister to whomever might come into my life. I pray that even if I am going about the "mundane" errands of life (like the grocery store) that I can minister to anyone who might need me for whatever. So I consider this whole 3 -Day thing as a ministry. It isn't just a walk... it is more than that... it is a way for God to use me for whatever He sees fit in whatever capacity when it comes to finding a cure. It is a cause that has now become a passion. I see daily opportunities that God is presenting to me (to the team) where I am asked to serve. My friend D'Lyn recognized that our team could do more than just walk to honor the "pink warriors". In this 5th year of our team being together we have now gained non-profit status and God is using us like crazy to minister in so many ways to people who need us. Just this afternoon I had the wonderful opportunity to sit with a new sweet friend who just had a mastectomy on Friday. Team Tiara has had several opportunities to minister in several ways to women who are going through chemo (currently). We have also ministered to families who have lost their "Pink Warriors". So why do I walk... because I believe we will find a cure but more than that because I know that God is using me for a higher calling. If you are reading this and you are interested in anything that Team Tiara does please feel free to email me @ kayrenbabcock@yahoo.com. If you feel compelled to help out financially, I am still trying to raise my required $2300.00 for this year and would love to receive any donation at all. I thank God for each of you who have chosen to read this post and will say feel free to share it with anyone you think might be interested! God Bless!

Above Reproach

This morning the phrase "above reproach" has been on my mind. Growing up it was not something that I heard from my parents, but something I often heard from coaches. They would tell us to remember that we are a team and to function with the spirit of a team and be above reproach in order to have success. They would say it before a game, before we got off the bus, before we were in some sort of competition. It was spoken of often at sporting camps that I attended. The coaches that said it knew that there were always people out there who were full of jealousy, people who were mean spirited, people who cared more for themselves than for others. As a representative of a team I never wanted the team to do poorly so I tried my best and I supported the others on the team and encouraged them to do their best. As a team we presented a united front of positive, encouraging energy! It made for amazing moments when we won of course but it also made for the whole "lean on me" thing when we lost. As a team we won together and we lost together and because we behaved in a way that was "above reproach", the wins and losses were that much sweeter - they brought us closer together as a team. Getting involved with the Breast Cancer 3-Day for me was a no brainer. The idea of team spirit was one that I grew up drawn to because of the wisdom of the coaches that I had with their above reproach attitude. It meant that I was really a part of something that I could be proud of while I voiced my opinion of how much I hate (yes, hate is a strong word and I choose to use it here) Breast Cancer. I loved that first year standing in the midst of all the pink fighting/walking/protesting Cancer. Together daring to imagine a world without Breast Cancer. We stood all 3300 of us together above reproach knowing that each and every one of us from the crew to the safety people to the walkers all worked together and did our best. We were able to hold our heads up high. I don't know what it felt like to be an onlooker in the crowd, because I was in the middle of the pink- in the middle of the team of 3300 people dreaming of that world without Breast Cancer. Being a part of a team means you can't look inward... that is why the power of "The Pink" (another way to refer to the seas of people protesting Breast Cancer) is so amazing. It is an insane number of people thinking about the men and women who have had to suffer from this disease bonding together to do something about it. There is no "I" in Breast Cancer because those who are suffering don't have to suffer alone thanks to "Breast Cancer 3-Day. And friends there is no "I" in TEAM. Are you a part of a team? Are you a part of something that makes you think about being above reproach? Are you behaving in a way that will build others up the way Teams do? I am challenging you today just to think. In 47 days the team of walkers in the Breast Cancer 3 Day will be walking in DFW. I pray that we will all gather strength from each other and that those who are suffering will not feel alone because we will be supporting them!

What season is it again?!

I realize that there are 4 seasons per year that are marked by the changing of the trees/temp/weather for most of us. But, I think I have sort of added a season- or should I say renamed a season. I almost feel like instead of being excited about it changing from Summer to Fall that I get excited because the beginning of Fall is really for me the beginning of Fundraising for the Susan G Komen Breast Cancer 3 Day. Sure there are people out there that fundraise all year and on my team there are many who have already reached their goal. I applaud them! I guess I just feel like having a "season" to fundraise works well for me. So, beginning Sept 1st, my wardrobe changes dramatically... you will be hard pressed to find me not wearing something related to breast cancer. I am almost always wearing some sort of tee-shirt that advertises the 3 Day or Team Tiara (I am a walking advertisement) and if I am not - I am usually wearing a pink ribbon somewhere on my clothes. I use my wardrobe as a conversation starter... an avenue of breast cancer awareness if you will. This year 50 days out of the 3 Day walk I will be doing a Fabulous Fundraising Friday. I would love to be able to have 50 friends donate 50 dollars 50 days out - of the event in order to reach my goal- I am excited about the opportunity to try this. Be watching for an update!

by Kayren Babcock on Wed, Sep 15, 2010 @ 10:51 AM CT