Drumroll please...

I'm getting married!!! Jeff and I got engaged last Friday and are getting married December 28. Here are some pics of the events...


This is the proposal location... the church playground - we spent a lot of time here growing up


This is the scrapbook he made to propose to me - isn't it beautiful?!


And this is my beautiful, non-conflict diamond ring


This is the hilarious poster that our friends made for us. We decided we would hang it in our apartment after we're married and whenever we get mad at each other we will just go stand in front of it for a few seconds until we can laugh again.

Front Porch Swing

I was sitting on the swing at the Addison's house the other night just praying and listening and this is what I wrote...


The temperature outside is perfect, there is just barely a breeze and the air smells like freshly cut grass. The gentle rumble of thunder sounds in the distance along with flashes of lightning illuminated behind the setting sun. The frogs, crickets, cicadas and the fluttering of wings form their own chorus around me. The pond ripples in the distance and the faint quacking of ducks rises above the water. And here I sit, just an audience to this perfect July evening. Only, there is a heaviness weighing around me that makes every noise seem louder and a little bit threatening. This phrase keeps orbiting around in my brain reverberating off of my heart and not finding its home in my soul … ‘To live is Christ and to die is gain.’ The weight it carries with it makes the insect chorus around me seem like a chanting to some unknown climax. I came out here to sit on this swing and find a refuge in this wilderness and now I’m wondering if we are friends or foes. Afraid – that is what I feel, grasping – like I’m reaching for something I am not sure I could hold on to even if I could touch it. I can’t be in control, I don’t get to direct the choir around me and I won’t know ultimately if we can be friends. Lord, I don’t know what else to say except it is YOURS. The Earth is your footstool and yet you count the hairs on my head. There is pain, confusion, uncertainty, some fear, and lots of faith and hope in Your Supreme goodness.
I am inspired by the lives of the Saints, saints like Paul – Paul Saxon and Paul formerly known as Saul. They both endured pain and suffering I can’t even wrap my mind around and yet there was a simple trust in Your provision for them and the ultimate goodness of Your love towards your children that spurred them onward. I am in awe of the way their lives and their deaths point toward the indescribable worth of Jesus Christ in all things.
Is there a storm coming? Is that the tension that hangs in the air? I don’t know … and that is okay because right now all that matters is joining in the chorus around me to worship the Creator of the Universe.

Babies cont.

As promised here is Hannah Whitlark... she's grown a lot since these were taken, but my computer ate these files for a while


you wouldn't guess from this picture that Jeff is actually afraid of small babies


The beautiful Whitlarks... and Jason - just kidding, much love for the beard =o)


This is Elyse and Caden, he's going to be walking soon!!! I can't believe it!

Isn't he adorable?

Jeff is heading to South Asia for a couple weeks on Monday. It is going to be a great time for him and his team of 2 other guys to do lots of male bonding as they bike through the Hindu Kush mountains for 12 days. Be praying for endurance and wisdom for them as they spend time in villages with locals and are able to share stories about Jesus with them. I'm sure he would appreciate your prayers as they are traveling and biking. Look at these funny pictures I took of Jeff recently...


This is Jeff on the 4th of July making hamburgers for everyone. They were grill-tastic ummmm.... never mind.



This is Jeff and his cookie - he loves cookie cake. In high school I used to give him a hard time about saying 'supposedly' correctly because he would always say 'supposably' so I made some kind of deal with him where if he said it right so many times I would make him a cake. And when he did I made him a big cookie cake that said 'supposedly' on it. Isn't that stupid? I was such a dork - sure glad I grew out of that... I'm sure he is too.


This adorable one is Caden my nephew. He multiplied in size since the last time I saw him a couple months ago! He's sooooooo cute!

Babies!!!

Here's to you Brett, my faithful blog checker...

Aren't they beautiful! Meet Ellia May Gibson




She is SO beautiful!


Aren't they cute?!

I had some pictures of Hannah Whitlark I wanted to put up here too... but they have temporarily disappeared? I'll work on finding those...

OKLAHOMA...

where the wind comes sweeping o'er the plains? Is that it? I've actually never seen that musical or even heard the whole song. But here are some pictures from Oklahoma a couple weeks ago:


This is in the grandparent's backyard. My parents wedding reception was back here.


well... this would have been a good one. This is at Murphy's home of the hot hamburger!


This is at the Kiddie Park - where the last train ride is always free (instead of 50 cents)


This was at the OK Mozart concert - Stephen used to play one of those horns and Elyse... well there's just no good reason for that.


Bartlesville night life errrr - or something like that.

I'm back...

Hello Friends! Well, I'm back at work and in America ... I thought I was really ready to come home but the more time that passes the more I look forward to the future and what God has called me to. Don't get me wrong, I love having endless amounts of electricity whenever I want it and eating good food and drinking non-parasitic water, these are all good things, not to mention my family and loved ones that are here. So, I'm glad that I have some more months here before I move to the Middle East. However, what I find myself missing is the urgency, the power, the purpose, the sense that life isn't all about me and doing whatever I want. The more time I spend overseas the more I am convinced that God is the hardest to find in America - at least for me. Life is HARD over there. Not in a complaining, pitying kind of way, but in a way I had never experienced first hand before it is just difficult and undesirable - speaking from the flesh. I was reading the other night and God gave me something to hold on to about what life will be like to live there every day:
'Count it joy, Erin, when you encounter trials of various kinds for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect that you may be perfect and complete lacking in nothing.' James 1:2-4

I really think that at the end of my time in Iraq I will have found that I am more complete than I would have been if I had not chosen to go there. All that to say that as I've struggled with what to tell people about my experiences there this is the conclusion I've come to. It won't be easy, it will be pretty hard, but Jesus us undoubtedly worth it and has promised his perfect provision in the midst of hardships. That's all I got... and here are some more pictures from the trip:


this is a picture of statue in the city that I think is such a picture of what Jesus wants to do there.


It was GREAT getting to spend time with my team. I am very thankful for them and their commitment to me and for their own personal devotion to Jesus that has changed me.

That's all I got for now. Thanks for your prayers and let me know if you want to see more pictures - I got em.