What we've been up to. . .

I know it's been awhile since I have posted anything from the Busti Bunch. We started our school year 2 weeks ago. We have all been getting used to a new year and how Caleb works in with that year. So far, things are going well. I just seem to have no extra time to e-mail or blog! So, I'll just have to post when I can.

Other than school, here are a few things that we've done over the last 3 weeks:

We had a visit from our dear friends, the Woffords (Clint, Kelly, Cade & Maddie). Here they are on our front porch: Kelly loved holding Caleb, and so did Maddie!

A week or so ago, we headed up to Dallas for a doctor's appointment. We stopped off in Midlothian for lunch at the Zipp's house. I forgot to take pics! Ugh! Then, I had my last visit with Dr. Blair, post c-section. I am healing well! Here is Dr. Blair with Caleb. Dr. Blair prayed for us to have another child for a few years before he delivered Caleb. He is such a sweet part of the story of Caleb's life!

After our visit with Dr. Blair, we went back to Midlothian and hung out with the Browne family. Here are the girls in their matching swimsuits:



Philip and Kara took us along with their family to Medieval Times:

During our quick trip to Midlothian, we also went to see the Kit Kittredge movie with the Wilhelms and Brownes. WE LOVED IT!!! Eliana and Ally Beth were so cute to watch during the movie. Wish I had some pics of them together. But, for some reason, they don't like it when you take pictures during a movie :-) We sure had fun. Go see that movie if you haven't already!

Then, a week later, the Brownes came down to Inner Space Caverns (20 minutes from us) for Wesley's birthday. They came to our house afterwards and the boys shot BB guns and bows and arrows in our front yard (something we couldn't do in Midlothian! Life outside the city limits sure is fun!)

Other than that, we've been just enjoying our little man! He is growing SOOOO fast! Here he is in his "DUDE" hat, as the kids call it. Not sure why they named it that. They just say Caleb looks like a dude when he wears it.
Sometimes, we just sit around and watch him sleep. We are so thankful for him! The kids are GREAT with him. We are so blessed.

A Gentle and Quiet Spirit

The Lord has really been dealing with me lately on how I interact with my children. It seems that more times than not, I am frustrated or agitated in my dealings with them. I am starting to see my behavior mirrored back to me in my children's actions and it is not pretty!

I have been challenged by I Peter 3:3,4, "Your beauty should not come from mere outward adornment, such as braided hair and the wearing of gold jewelry (or silver James Avery jewelry) and fine clothes. Instead, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God's sight."

Okay, so I added the part about James Avery. You know how much I love James Avery Jewelry!!! Although an interesting side note to this would be that God only addresses gold jewelry in the original text, which says to me that silver James Avery is okay with Him.

Now, before you label me a heretic, I AM KIDDING!!!

Seriously, though..... God puts great worth on women having gentle and quiet spirits. Often, my interactions with my children are far from gentle. No, I am not abusive, but I am often not very gentle and kind.


I used to think this verse from I Peter meant that I had to change my personality. I am realizing that this verse has nothing to do with a woman's personality and everything to do with the status of her heart. God made our personalities very different. This brings Him glory. What I am talking about here is the state of heart He wants us all to have, regardless of our individual personalities.

An angry, frustrated mom will not hold the hearts of her children.

My sweet friend, Shelley, gave me a book as a baby gift. I already had the book, but when she gave it to me, it prompted me to reread it. I could say after the first page that God definitely had a message He wanted me to hear. The book is Teri Maxwell's, "Home Schooling with a Meek and Quiet Spirit." Now, this book is not just for home schooling moms, even though it addresses this. It is really about mothers and the ways they interact with their children.

The first chapter referenced a verse from Matthew that I have read a jillion times, but this time it hit me square between the eyes. Jesus says, "Take my yoke upon you and learn from Me, FOR I AM GENTLE and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls." (Matthew 11:29)
We all like the verse previous to this one, where Jesus calls all the weary and burdened to come to Him for rest. And we all like the end of this passage, promising rest for our souls. But do we pay attention to the middle of this famous passage? Do we come to Him and learn His gentle ways?

I want to learn His gentleness.

To further drive the point home, I was led to I Corinthians 13, the Love Chapter. Verses 4 and 5 say, "Love is patient, love is kind.....it is not easily angered." Does this describe the love I have for my children?

In my quiet time, I looked up the words meek, quiet and gentle online in several dictionaries. Here are the notes I took :

Meek: humbly patient or docile under provocation from others, showing patience and humility; gentle, soft, very docile, not likely to complain, not likely to argue, not likely to react strongly, not wild, not turbulent, a spirit which has been schooled to mildness by discipline or suffering

Quiet: free from disturbance or tumult, tranquil, peaceful, being at rest, free from disturbing thoughts or emotions, calm and unmoving, still, characterized by an absence or near absence of agitation or activity, a disposition free from stress

Gentle: not severe, not rough, not violent, to tame or render tractable, considerate or kindly in disposition; amiable and tender, not harsh, mild, soft, to make less severe or intense, not stern or severe, behaving and talking in a mild, kindly, pleasant way

Needless to say, the words in bold above are things I need to work on, especially as we begin our school year! Not by might, not by power, but by the Spirit of the Lord!

May His Word and His Spirit lead and guide us as mothers and may we be well pleasing to Him.

"I thank my God every time I remember you.... being confident of this, that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus." Philippians 1:2-6

Our Fourth of July Weekend

Boy, did we have a great Fourth! We spent it in Killeen at Tony's parent's house. Tony's sister, Jenny, and her family came up. Here are some pics of our fireworks viewing (the kids all have the same T-shirt on, just different colors):

Our nephews, John Thomas and Nathan (Nathan was afraid of the sound!) and Grandma:

Then, on Saturday, our dear friends, the Wilhelms, came for a visit. Here are some pics:

Caleb smiles at Moni. He knows that she prayed for him before we even knew he was coming!

Judge Wilhelm loves babies!The kids had a blast swimming in the back yard:

I sure enjoyed getting to visit with Moni!

Trip to Huntsville

Last week, we got to spend some time at Grammy and Big Daddy's house (my parents) in Huntsville. We had a GREAT time! The kids said the highlights of the trip were getting to see Wall-E and getting to ride Big Daddy's camo golf cart that goes. Here's a video from our trip, followed by several pics:

Here's my brother, Joel (or as he is called by his other niece, Umple Jole) holding our little guy:

Aunt April worked her magic and got Caleb to snooze.

My Dad (as the kids call him, Big Daddy) held and talked to Caleb lots and was very helpful!

The brothers love to hang out and talk!
Grammy and Ally Beth love to read "Fancy Nancy" books (I swear these books were written about Ally Beth!!!)

Caleb screams, "Big sister, I HATE PLAYING PRINCESS!!!!"

Corrected Link to Caleb's Newborn Pics

Hi, friends! I have just received Caleb's newborn pics from our FABULOUS photographer friend, Hannah Lewiston, owner of Cracker Jack Art. I wanted to share my favs with you all.

The first link didn't work, so here is the updated link. Please let me know if it doesn't work!

http://share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=0AZsmbZw4ZN2LDng

P/S: IF YOU HAVEN'T USED HANNAH LEWISTON, PLEASE GIVE HER A TRY!!! She is great! She is a godly woman, stay at home mom, and a wonderful photographer. Check her out at: http://www.crackerjack-art.com/