A year gone....A new one begins...

It only seems like yesterday that I gave birth to my sweet baby boy, Chase. It is hard to believe that Saturday, Feb 21st, He will be a year old. We have had so much joy in the passing of the first year and we look forward to many more joyful years. I have watched him grow and change. I have watched him triumph in rolling over, sitting up, crawling and now walking. He has learned several words, mimicks peoples faces and is ready to give kisses. It is amazing to me how I already miss his babyness(if that is a word). I have seen him change also in appetite. He loves his food. He isn't afraid to eat new things at all. I am so very proud. How dearly I love him.

Another year has passed for my daughter, Ashley, who will be 17 years in April. It is so very hard to believe that my beautiful daughter has become a beautiful young woman. She is so amazing. She has an amazing voice and sings wonderfully. She has made great strides in her school work and is doing well. She is triumphing over emotions and feelings that can so easily take over. I see her learning to deal with life and learning to make mature decisions. The future for her holds no bounds. What excellent opportunities await her. The hardest part for me will be letting go slowly. She has always been my angel baby. She and I have been through a lot together. She has been a sweet gift in helping me through! I love her so dearly and am very proud of her. I am proud of her every accomplishment. I am just proud.

Another year has passed for Chad and I. We have been married going on 16 years. It seems like only yesterday that we were married. I love him with all my heart. He has been a strength to me that only God himself has placed in my life for me. He has been and is an encourager to me. He supports me and makes me feel safe. He gives me comfort and tries to understand me. He shows me his love in so many simple ways that never go unnoticed. We have had such wonderful times. We have also had such hard trials and yet through God's grace, we have made it through. We love each other more and stronger. I am so very proud of Chad and I dearly love him. I thank God for him.

I trust God with my family. He has carried us through this past year. I trust that He will carry us through many more years to come. I will stand in awe of the Lord and give Him thanks and praise. Blessed be your name!

James 1:17 King James Version
Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.

In Memory of Arthur Franklin Amick Jr.

Saturday I picked up the paper and read that Mr. Frank Amick Jr. passed away. To me, Mr. Amick was a very admirable man. He was a Godly man and he left a remarkable impact on my life. Who is he to me? He was my 7th grade History teacher from G.L. Wiley Middle School. I remember going to him on some hard days and he would pep talk me and remind me that God was in control. He was very compassionate and cared about all the other students. He tried to instill good values into students who otherwise may not have had a model adult at home. I thank God for the opportunity to have known Mr. Amick. I thank God for the opportunity to have had his class. Although, History to me was not very interesting at the time, it was the man who left the mark in my life. He challenged us to stand up and do what was right and not to do the cowardly thing and follow the crowd. He was true to heart and lived the life. I know that he is in the arms of Jesus rejoicing. Some day, we will meet again!!

Obituary:

Arthur Amick Jr.
"Frank" Amick Jr. Arthur Franklin "Frank" Amick Jr. passed away Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2009, at Scott & White Hospital in Temple, and went to rest in the arms of the Lord and Master he had served so faithfully. Funeral services will be 2 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 14, at the First United Methodist Church with the Rev. Steve Ramsdell officiating. Frank was born Feb. 21, 1922, in Burlington, N.C., the first of seven children born to Arthur Franklin and Elsie Moser Amick. When Frank was 15, the family moved to High Point, N.C., and he became an athlete and student at High Point High School. He graduated in 1941. On Dec. 8, 1941, Frank enlisted in the Navy and was very proud of the time he served his country. He was a crew member on the aircraft carriers, Ranger and Wasp in the Atlantic Theater, and served on the Currituck, a seaplane tender, in the Pacific. He had many stories from those days and they served him well when he became a history teacher. He not only taught history, he lived it. When he returned to High Point, he became reacquainted with the girl he had first met when he was 15 and she was 12. They fell in love and were married on June 1, 1946. Frank became a student at High Point College and joined the football squad. His love of the sport determined his future career. After graduating from HPC, he became the coach of all sports at Randleman, N.C., and introduced football into their lives. He shared his love of sports and history with these students and they made an indelible mark in their lives. When Frank decided he wanted to get a master's degree, he and his wife agreed that Baylor and Waco would be the right place. They came prepared to stay one year, but they never left Texas. His coaching and teaching years in Texas were spent at schools in Marlin, Crosby, Teague, Victoria and Waco, where he shared his great enthusiasm for history, fair play, love of God and good sportsmanship. Frank was a member of the First United Methodist Church, the Wesley Workers Sunday School Class and Gideons International. He was preceded in death by his parents; a sister and brother-in-law, Elise Victoria and Russell Hunt; and a brother, the Rev. Alvin Amick. He is survived by his wife of 62 years, Frances Coppridge Amick; two sons, Richard "Rick" and wife JoAnn of Richmond and Michael "Mike" of Lewisville; two daughters, Patricia "Pat" and husband, Andrew Waden of Austin, and Nancy and husband Brad Lamb of Richardson; 10 grandchildren, Eric and wife, Amy Amick of San Antonio, Nick Amick of New York City, Wesley and wife, Lizzie Amick of Keller, Brett and wife, Nicole Amick, Sean Amick and Jordan Amick, all of Lewisville, Laura and husband, Benito Hipolito of Round Rock, Kevin and wife Laura Waden of Killeen, Scott Lamb of Richardson and Jason Lamb of Waco; seven great-grandchildren, Catherine Hipolito, Joshua and Conner Amick, Marshall Amick, Brycen Amick and Mikaela and Keira Waden; two brothers, Hervey Amick of Morrow, Ga., and Bobbie and wife Martha Amick of Greensboro, N.C.; two sisters, Polly Yow of Jamestown, N.C., and Helen Stutts of High Point, N.C.; and many nieces and nephews in Virginia, Georgia and North Carolina. Pallbearers will be the grandsons. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations to the
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Alzheimer's Association, the Salvation Army or the charity of your choice. February 21, 1922 - February 11, 2009 Sign the Guest Book at http://www.wacotrib.com/

...Ducks Ducks and more ducks

I have passed by the lake almost every day, twice on my way to and from work for about 8 years! I look at the water and in passing and to me, it seems peaceful. I long to stop my car and take pictures. The two places on the lake in passing are to dangerous to stop to do that. Yesterday, on the way home, I looked across the lake as usual. I never noticed before, but there were HUNDREDS of black specks in the far middle of the lake. Then I realized they were ducks...LOTS OF DUCKS...
I wished at that moment to have been in a row boat with my camera. It was so neat to see them. In all the 8 years I have passed the lake, I have never noticed the ducks in winter time! I thank God for the opportunity to see them!

Baby Bargain toys...

I meant to write about this awhile back and forgot. When Chase was about 6 months old and starting to sit up by himself, He hardly had any toys. One morning I made it my mission to go garage saling for toys. To my surprise, I found a fantastic garage sale...a ONE stop shop for all the baby toys I could want! I ended spending about $10 bucks in toys. I had a couple of bag fulls of toys. They were not just dinky toys but GOOD solid quality toys. They were clean and looked like new! I paid .25 to $1.00 for each item. Well, time passed a bit and right before Christmas, you receive those toy catelogs,advertisements, plus I get an online catelog from ABC Dist in the mail. To my surprise, I found several of the toys I purchased from the garge sale in the Walmart advertisement and ABC Dist catelog. They ranged from $10 to near $20 dollars. I was so proud of myself!!! I love garage sales. I don't know that I am a thrifty buyer really but on this occassion it worked out perfectly. Now, when Chase outgrows the toys, I can turn around and have a garage sale and help someone else out too!

New Year and January half gone!

It is hard to believe that a whole year has already come and gone. It seems to have flown by so quickly! My teenager will be 17 this year and my new baby will be 1. Such a BROAD range! I guess I closed my eyes for a second and then BOOM...January of 2009 appeared. I am amazed. I still write down 2008 on most things I sign and date! Oh, it will take me time. I say to till the end of February before I habit the new year in writing! I didn't make any new years resolutions. I guess I still have time to do that as the year has just begun. The most important resolution for me is to talk more to others about Jesus and what He has done for me and them. To share salvation and pray others will accept. I guess also to take a closer look at myself and dedicate those things I hold away from God to Him with not strings attached! I want to speak softer and kinder to pe0ple. I want to listen to my daughter more. I want be kinder and more loving to others. I know these seem like such simple things...but..I often find that I don't do a lot of these.

Bubbles in the tub chair...

Chase was taking a bath the other night. He is beginning to realize when he burps or toots. During this bath time, he passed a little gas and made bubbles sound off the tub seat. He looked up at me to see if I noticed. He smiled real big like it was the funniest thing! (Dad makes a big deal when Chase burps or toots...so it is a fun game now!)

Macaroni...

Chase is now 10 months old and is starting to eat more from the table food than jar food. One evening Chad and I had grilled pork chops, macaroni and green beans for dinner. We decided to give Chase some. He loved the pork chop, macaroni and greenbeans very much. During the feeding, he somehow managed to get a peice of macaroni stuck to his finger. Concentrating very hard, he pulled it off with the other hand only to realize it was now stuck to that hand. Again, he removed it with the other hand. You can see whats coming. For about 5 minutes, back and forth, back and forth, Chase concentrated so hard on removing the macaroni from his little hands. He finally ended up squashing it down to goo and had to have it wiped off. Chad and I were laughing so hard at him. It was a joy to watch!!!