Debbie & Anita's Excellent Adventure

Here we are, just minutes after meeting. Our families met in the lobby of the hotel we were staying in. I first saw little Nathan come through the door and I recognized that little guy immediately. Then Caleb and Debbie and her husband came in and I just jumped up and I barely knew where to look first. I had been waiting nervously and then all of a sudden everybody was there! Then Debbie and I headed straight for each other and a looooong hug ensued. I think I had tears in my eyes a little bit and I just remember thinking, "Thank you Lord for blessing me with Debbie's friendship" and being very excited and happy.

Then we made introductions all around. Our husbands hit it off immediately - can you tell? That was something I was hoping for - Debbie was too - but the way they took to each other so quickly, and so firmly, was just amazing to see.

Next we had a little gift exchange! What do you think we exchanged?

This is a pretty Scripture cup that Debbie gave me with a passage from Psalm 90 on it: "Let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us..." It is my new coffee cup. I used it this morning and just looking at it reminds me of our time together.


I had a miniature tea set for Debbie that I bought for her almost a year ago. I found it last spring and bought it with her in mind. There were so many times that I was dying to put a picture of it up on my blog, lol, but I knew that one day the Lord would bring us together so I saved it for that day.

When I say that the Lord brought us together, I mean it. The Lord's hand was clearly in this meeting. He turned our hearts toward one another and a genuine bond has been formed between our families. I am still in awe and thanksgiving at His loving kindness towards us.

Now, after our initial meeting we headed over to Debbie's church where we were treated to Christmas dinner! Debbie's daughter Amanda had gone on to the church ahead of us and when we got there she welcomed all of us with big hugs. That girl is the sweetest little thing! (And very pretty too; I noticed my boys blushing as they were introduced to her, *smile*) Our kids hit it off right away too (are you noticing a pattern here?) and after dinner they all headed off to do some shopping at Wal-Mart leaving me and Debbie and our men to our own devices.

Since it was well into the evening and most things were closed, we went on a drive around town. First we checked out the historic downtown area and our host an hostess pointed out the sights. Then we went "on post", that is we went on to the Ft. Bragg army base and toured around a bit. Debbie's husband Graham knew his way around pretty well and we saw quite a bit even though it was dark. It was pretty neat to see, like a little community all it's own. It was quite a bit larger than I thought it would be too.

After we left the base, we stopped for what was a first for me:




That's right, my first hot-out-of-the-oven Krispy Kreme! That was the best donut I ever ate, mmmmmm...... Debbie and I took pictures of each other biting into them, but we promised each other we would not post them. You know, in the interest of propriety. But feel free to imagine.

That was the end of the night for us because we were kind of pooped out from driving all day and we wanted to get a good nights sleep for church the next day.

We got to church a bit early and while we were waiting for Debbie and her family we got a chance to meet and talk with some of the brothers and sisters at Vander Church of God. Everybody was so friendly and welcoming and we felt right at home. We ended up going into the sanctuary before Debbie got there because it was filling up and we wanted to sit close to the front.

Now I have to tell you, that was about as different a worship service as I have ever been to! It was very lively...or at least I thought it was lively, but Debbie said it was kind of subdued! My son Brent, who sat beside me, commented how much he enjoyed the preacher. He was very dynamic, encouraging the congregation to interact with him. Now, I know that for many of you this is old hat, but this was a new experience for me. And I have to tell you, a couple of years ago my eyes probably would have bugged out at the sight of the preacher jumping up and down with excitement, but God has been working on my heart for a while now, convicting me that I should not presume to judge how others express their joy in the Lord. So I just kinda rolled with it - I clapped along and sang loudly and swayed back and gave the preacher an "Amen!" when he called for it. I though I might be self-conscious doing so, but it came quite naturally.

Oh, and Amanda has a lovely singing voice and is a talented worship leader! I couldn't help singing along loudly with her. I was so glad that they picked hymns that I knew so that I could sing along and participate. And that was a real highlight for me, worshipping with Debbie. You guys probably don't know, but it is something I've longed for - to worship beside each of you, my friends. One day, I know...

After church we went to Cracker Barrel for lunch. There was a bit of a wait to get in so we all sat outside on rocking chairs and enjoyed some fellowship together.











We had fun at lunch, laughing and telling stories and jokes, but before we knew it, it was 3 o'clock and time for us to get back on the road. I kept saying, "but I don't want to go home!". It was just such a lovely day it was hard to leave.


Debbie had one last parting gift for me:




She presented me with a beautiful teacup - my first - and she has an identical one.


Now we can go online and "have tea" together! Isn't that sweet?

The last two pictures that we took were of Debbie's family - and they didn't turn out!! I was so upset when I saw that, because they were the only pictures I had of them all together.

So there's nothing else to do, of course, but to begin planning our next get together so I can get more pictures, *wink*! But seriously though, I think Debbie said it best: "We can't believe the bond that was formed from this! It is amazing what God has done! Just think, this is just the beginning of something wonderful!!" I have no doubt that there will be more visits in the future.

So at last we said our goodbyes and exchanged hugs (and a few tears) and Debbie and Graham prayed over us for safe travels...and then we parted. But even though we are separated by 1000 or so miles, we are united in heart and in Spirit. God is so good.

Wow! It's taken me almost two hours to post all this and I haven't even touched on our Florida vacation yet. Suffice it to say that we had a nice, relaxing holiday. We agree that it was our best vacation ever. I feel very blessed to have had the time away with my family but I am glad to be back home too. I am still catching up on all of your blogs, so if I haven't stopped by yet to say hello, I will soon, I promise!