Mandy and Jace » News

Africa Here I Come!!!!

Mandy — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 13:00:55 +0000

By the time you are reading this I will be making my way to Kenya. Scary huh? I think I have everything I could ever need packed. I keep reminding myself that there is no Wal-Mart that I can run to and pick up the things I need.
I’m not going to get all preachy or mushy here, but I would like to ask for your thoughts as prayers as we are traveling and ministering. Pray for our mental health and physical health as well as for the ministry we will be doing. I probably won’t be able to keep in contact very much but I will post as I can. Thank you all in advance for your thoughts and prayers.

Christmas time is here

Mandy — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 19:33:30 +0000

So apparently Christmas is SUNDAY! I guess I’ve been hiding under a rock for the past few weeks. My to do list just tripled in the past hour and now I hear the only day I have to get things done is Friday and the weather is supposed to suck. Strange enough though it hasn’t dampened my excitement for Christmas. This has always been and always will be my favorite time of year. I love all the lights and decorations. I love any excuse to sit by the pretty tree and drink hot chocolate AND THE FOOD!!! I decided a long time ago that Christmas food has no calories. It just can’t, it’s magical like that.
I am also reminded that Christmas time is why I am actually here. I’m finding as I’m get (ahem) older that the lights and gifts are moving farther behind the true meaning of Christmas. I am so thankful that God sent his Son for me so that I can live this wonderful life that I do. I am blessed beyond what I could have ever imagined and I know that it is all God. Everything I have from my amazing husband to my adorable house and all my stuff that I don’t need but love having is a gift from Him. I take no credit for it.

Speaking of blessings, I want to thank everyone who gave money to help me get to Africa next month. You guys have blown me away with your amazing, giving spirits. I never dreamed I would even be going much less have so much love and support behind me. I have all the money I need plus more that I’m going to use to buy gifts to take to the sweet women we are going to be ministering to. Thank you, thank you, thank you! It is sneaking up on me. After the first of the year I’m going to get my to do and to get list together and get moving. New experiences are so much fun! I can’t wait to finally be able to feed my wonderlust and see parts of God’s creation that I have never seen and also most importantly to tell these wonderful women about HIM. It’s going to be amazing!

Thanksgiving photos

Mandy — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 13:00:31 +0000

Just some photos from our awesome thanksgiving meal.

Thankful

Mandy — Fri, 25 Nov 2011 22:26:08 +0000

source

I am thankful for my amazing husband. He is my everything and I am so happy to spend the rest of our lives together.
I am so thankful for my amazing family. Not only do I have the best parents I could ever ask for and an amazing brother, but I was blessed with wonderful in-laws.
I am thankful that the family is almost all in one town. Getting ready for lots of family dinners!
I am thankful that I am a Child of God and the reassuring knowledge that he always has me in the palm of his hand even when I feel lost. Also, His surprise blessings. Those are the best!
I am thankful for my adorable little house that amazes me every time I walk into it. I can’t believe it’s mine!
I am thankful for small blessings. My favorite coffee, rain on a lazy day, midnight snuggles and leftovers.
I am thankful for the passion God has placed in my heart for the lovely people I am going to meet in Africa. I haven’t even met them yet and I love them!
I am thankful for my church. I want to thank everyone so much for helping me finish off the money I need to get to Africa. I am blown away at your faithfulness to give.
I am thankful for my best friend Jamie. Even though her and her husband are moving away I know our friendship is too strong to fall apart. Love ya girl!

Happy day after Thanksgiving!

Back

Mandy — Wed, 05 Oct 2011 13:00:09 +0000

After a much needed break I am back to posting pretty regularly here. Over the past few months I have really began to re-evaluate the things in my life and have taken a sort of inventory of what is necessary in my life and what I can do without. At the beginning of this evaluation process I was really getting bogged down with people and things that were coming at me on a daily basis, means of which I chose to let in my life, that were not edifying my life but actually clouding it. Things like social media and constant television can distract us from the things in life that are beautiful. Don’t get me wrong, I love Facebook and Twitter for many reasons including promoting this website, but both outlets have become a place for people to constantly tear other people down or complain. So, I have done some cleaning of my Facebook account and twitter account and made it to where I only see the things I want to (the hide feature is great for this). Also, I have learned that it is OK to keep the TV off sometimes and listen to music (or nothing for that matter) unless there is something I actually want to watch. Also, now that the weather is getting better I have been spending a lot of time out on our patio reading. I have been inside surrounding myself with nonsense for so long I have missed the beautiful creation God has given us.

I want to begin to focus on the things that I love like design, cooking, music and just overall expressing my creativity. Also, I want to make sure I never lose sight of my marriage, family or myself for that matter. I think there are a lot of things that can fog up your clarity in life and get in the way of being the people God wants us to be. My goal in all this is to remove that fog and be sure that clarity is always there. If I have to give up something like Facebook that might be fun for a while but in the end isn’t beneficial to me, that’s fine. I have been leaning on Philippians 4:8 (particularly The Message version) for the past couple of weeks and will continue to be my guide to live by.

Philippians 4:8-9
The Message (MSG)
Summing it all up, friends, I’d say you’ll do best by filling your minds and meditating on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious—the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly; things to praise, not things to curse. Put into practice what you learned from me, what you heard and saw and realized. Do that, and God, who makes everything work together, will work you into his most excellent harmonies.

So, what does this have to do with mandyandjace.com? Not much. I will still continue to do my meal plans but they might be a little more minimal. To be honest our lives are just not that interesting every week. So I’m going to cut some of the “fluff” and meaningless chatter but still keep you up to date on the fun stuff that we do. Also, I will continue to post all of the new yummy recipes that I come across. My big Africa trip is coming closer and closer and I’ll be giving you the play by play on that too. So stay tuned great things are to come!