"My faith is my life - it defines me.

My faith doesn't influence my decisions, it drives them."

- Governor Mike Huckabee

I love that quote. If everyone lived their lives that way, think how much better this world could be. I strive to live my life that way. My faith is definitely my life and it drives all of my decisions.

I hope your faith is strong. I hope you believe that God is in control of our country and our 2008 Presidential election. I hope that you'll pray for God's will to be done in this election. Regardless of who you end up voting for, please pray for our country to turn to God. Please pray for a God fearing President who puts all of his decisions in the Lord's hands.

We've got spirit yes we do,

we've got spirit how about you!?!?!?!

You'll notice at the top of our blog I am now a Huckabee Ranger. I have pledged to raise $500 for Mike Huckabee's campaign. If we could personally give Mike Huckabee $1,000,000 for his campaign, we would. We back him 100%. I realize that not all of you are going to agree with all of his views. Though if you're a Christian, you probably agree with many of them. I've certainly made no secret of the fact that we support Mike Huckabee for President. Our country was based on Christian values and we believe Mike Huckabee can, with God's help and the help of the Christians in this nation, turn our country back toward God!

Mike and I are not wealthy people. We're not even middle class, but we know Mike Huckabee can't get to the White House without our help and your help. We have already made a $100 donation to Huckabee's campaign and will donate more as the Lord allows us. Would you be willing to do the same? I ask only that you pray for God's leading and give to Huckabee's campaign as you feel led. Donate as much as you can, but remember that you can make a difference in the outcome of this election even if you can only donate $5.

Please keep this incredibly important election in your prayers and donate as you can. Help me reach my fundraising goal!!!

365 days~12 months~52 weeks~8760 hours~525,600 minutes

Anyway that you look at it, it's a year.
A year of seemingly endless tears.
A year of trying to make sense of God's will.
A year of getting out of bed in the morning,
even when you don't want to.
A year of being as angry as you've ever been.
A year of wanting to crawl into a cave and hide.
A year of trying to put it out of your mind.
A year of making sure you remember even when it's hard.
A year - an entire year.

I know from the experience of losing my Mama that it's the hardest day there will be. It makes it permanent. For the first 364 days you somehow rationalize that it's not real - that you're having a nightmare and you'll eventually wake up. When it becomes a YEAR, there's no pretending anymore. It's life as you know it and there isn't anything you can do to change it. Life goes on whether you want it to or not. God wills it to go on and it does.

After a year passes you catch yourself before you grab the phone to call him. You catch yourself before you look in the direction of where he should be. That awful pain in your heart catches you before you move.

It's been a year and although a year is a long time, for us surely it's only been a few short hours. The pain is still so fresh and our wounds are still open. Why is it harder today? We have gone on breathing everyday just as God willed and then today we awaken and it's January 10, 2007 all over again and we don't understand how it's been a year when he was JUST HERE. He was just here. It hurts - it hurts as if it were that day again. You relive the day just as it was all day long. Where you were, where he was. What you did, what he did. You remember the minutes, the words spoken, the smell of his shirt. Surely it hasn't been a year, and yet it has.

Jesus himself spoke the words, "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." We have made it through the last year simply resting on Jesus Christ. If the Lord wills it, we will make it another year and then another... and the wounds will remain but God will comfort us and PRAISE GOD - WE WILL SEE HIM AGAIN ONE DAY!

A year has passed and we mourn him still. We love him still. Today even more than yesterday, we remember this man whom we loved so much. Because it's been a year today since he met his Savior face to face and at least today, a year later, we can say thank you God for taking him home to be with You in heaven.

I took this video just a few hours before Daddy Don died. Jake was spraying him with Silly String in our living room and they had so much fun. It's been too hard to post it until now, but this is how we want to remember him. Laughing and playing with his grandchildren - that's what his life was all about.

We love you Daddy Don and we miss you.

Who do YOU want to be your next President???

Someone located my blog via Mike Huckabee's blogroll and left a comment so I went and checked out her site as well. She had a link to a really cool site where you can do a quick survey about how you feel on certain issues and it will give you the name of the candidate who most matches your beliefs. Not surprisingly, I was most in line with MIKE HUCKABEE!!!!!! Anyway, check out this site:

http://www.vajoe.com/candidate_calculator.html

and see who you're most in line with. I hope that it's Mike Huckabee, and if it's not... well, perhaps you should pray about it :<)