Endless blessings; Endless Thanks!

July 15, 2014July 16, 2014 The Not-So Newlywed LefebvresLeave a comment

OK so today will not have any fancy editing and pictures all around as I am not nearly as talented as my wife in this area! I am lucky to have figured out the banner at the top and I am definitely thanking Jesus that I got it to work so that the day can be known to all. When Pier asked me to do a blog post for today I was delighted to say yes and help in anyway that I could (it is rare that she ever asks for my help no matter how busy she is!). Then came the thought of what can I write about. Then realizing that it was Thank You Jesus Tuesday I knew that this would be an easy topic because what is there that we can not thank Him for? Every thing, big or small is given to us by Him! The first thought that popped into my head was I need to thank Jesus for my wonderful wife. I feel that I can never thank Him enough for who He has blessed me with.

Thank You Jesus for my wonderful wife Pier!!!!

This is a little more about the amazing girl that selflessly sits down and writes this blog day in and day out. When I read the inspiring posts that she writes it is only a mere fraction of the inspiration she brings to my life! Pier truly has a heart for our Lord and nothing excites her more than to be able to share His love in this world. She is blessed with the gift of being able to help others to understand Christ’s love on a deeper level and when I see the people and hear the stories of people she has touched I can relate to exactly how they feel because I have experienced the very same feeling. Pier’s heart is always open to God. Not only is her heart open but when she feels called by the Holy Spirit to do something she does not let that go idle. She will put in action what ever it is that she was called to do. Some people would get discouraged by the constant calling of doing things that sometimes seem impossible but she is always energized. This is because she has 100% faith in God and she knows that He would never call her to do something that she could not obtain. She knows that with God anything is possible! Not only can Pier inspire us with written word, ability to help others and her determined mindset but also in her God given voice to sing. Her voice is able to touch many in many different ways. I love every moment that I get to hear her sing praises to God. Now I know that Pier’s ultimate desire for this blog is to reach the hearts of people and to draw them closer to God and so I want to close out with a little piece of Scripture. What does the Bible say about giving thanks?

Paul says in 1 Thessalonians 5:18 “In everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus”

Pier and I start off every prayer time with a time of giving thanks. We feel that is important to always thank Him for what he has given us. It could be something as small as thanking Him for the peaceful moment in your day or something much larger. No matter how big or small giving thanks to God is what we are called to do.

What is one thing today you can sit down and say thank you to God for? How about two things? There are endless opportunities to thank God for blessings in our lives.

What's Up Wednesday

Pier the Patient

February 27, 2014February 28, 2014 The Not-So Newlywed Lefebvres4 Comments

Today was a big day at the Lefebvre household. Pier had her surgery today.

We thank everyone for their continued prayers. Everything went well. My patient is recovering comfortably at home.

My wife is such an amazing wife. She will endure the most difficult of challenges with a smile on her face. We are both putting faith forward in that the Lord will bless us very soon. I can not ask for a more devoted and loving wife! I thank God for her each and every day.

Until Tomorrow,
Craig

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Thirsty For Christ Thursday

Christ: The Ultimate Bridegroom

December 19, 2013December 19, 2013 The Not-So Newlywed Lefebvres3 Comments

Greetings Y’all!

Yesterday, a friend and I were discussing weddings – believe it or not, right? Two women discussing WEDDINGS?!?! Never! 😉 And, in true wedding talk fashion, everything (flowers, venue, cake, dress, etc) was mentioned but the groom. Why is that the norm?

Today, I want to share with you a song I found by searching for “wedding” online – just because that conversation yesterday had me all reminiscent about a certain September 15, 2012… and God intervened. He led me to this:

Wow.

Talk about a conversation involving a wedding day that is centered on the most amazing groom, Jesus. Isaiah 54:4-8 (ESV) says:

4 Fear not, for you will not be ashamed;
be not confounded, for you will not be disgraced;
for you will forget the shame of your youth,
and the reproach of your widowhood you will remember no more.
5 For your Maker is your husband,
the Lord of hosts is his name;
and the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer,
the God of the whole earth he is called.
6 For the Lord has called you
like a wife deserted and grieved in spirit,
like a wife of youth when she is cast off,
says your God.
7 For a brief moment I deserted you,
but with great compassion I will gather you.
8 In overflowing anger for a moment
I hid my face from you,
but with everlasting love I will have compassion on you,”
says the Lord, your Redeemer.

“The icon of Christ the Bridegroom portrays the selfless love of Christ for His Bride, the Church (Isaiah 54). He is dressed in royal colors as the betrothed King, corresponding with Sacred Scripture’s account of His mockery by the Roman guards before His crucifixion. The crown is a symbol of His marriage to the Church; the rope, a symbol of the bondage to sin, death and corruption which Jesus untied by His death on the Cross; the reed, a symbol of His humility.” (Borrowed from the Christ The Bridegroom Monastery)

What an amazing God we have who takes us just as we are, cleanses us from our sin, and pledges Himself to us – all the while, not just forgiving but forgetting our past and our wrongs. Christ: The Ultimate Bridegroom.

Until tomorrow….

Blessings To You All,

What's Up Wednesday

An Early Christmas At Our House

December 18, 2013December 18, 2013 The Not-So Newlywed LefebvresLeave a comment

Hello everyone!

It has been a little while since I have written anything on the blog, so I decided that I would sit down and take some time on ‘What’s Up Wednesday’ to give a little bit of info on what has been going on.

Usually you see some pictures of the latest project I have been working on (for quite some time) and that being the cheval mirror for my wife. I am glad to say that the mirror part is finished so we have at least a full length mirror available!

It may sound silly to take on another project while I am finishing this one, but I find that working on another gets me motivated to work on the other, because I always reach a point where glue or a finish needs to dry, and then I can switch to the other one and keep going.

I decided to build a jewelry box for my wife, which I thought would be a pleasant surprise for her. I have no clue what I said that clued her in, though, because she straight out asked if I was building one! I could not keep it from her because I was so shocked that she guessed, that I knew I could not hide it in my expression!

Sunday we celebrated a little bit of Christmas early, and exchanged our “big gifts” with each other. This is only the start of our Christmas celebrating, as we have our stocking stuffers and Christmas dinner on Friday, and then we will celebrate with family after that! It will definitely be busy next week!

Pier picked out the perfect gifts for me! I will share a couple of them! I received a red and green plaid flannel shirt, which will be the perfect and warm shirt to wear on Christmas! After opening that, she gave me this HUGE box. Although it was not heavy for its size, I began to open it and I soon realized that there was another box inside wrapped up… and I opened that to find another and another and another and another and another! I never thought it would be 7 boxes to open!! Just for her to find 7 boxes to fit perfectly inside one another must of taken months!

Once I finally got down to the actual gift box I opened it and found a Citizen Eco-Drive Skyhawk Blue Angels edition watch! I was fascinated by the fact that it set itself to the correct time with radio waves right then and there and later I read the “mini book” called an instruction manual and found out the many other features of this watch including the E6-B computer on the face dial of the watch! Pilots will know exactly what I am talking about! Also, no batteries to replace as it is charged by any light source and will run 6 months in complete darkness with a full battery!

I loved watching Pier open her gifts. As some of you know, my wife has an amazing voice and I love to hear her sing. The best thing is she loves to sing, so I get to hear her often! I decided to get her a whole home recording and vocal system. I watched her smile as she opened the boxes containing the pro grade speaker, song database of 17,000 songs, 2 pro microphones (one for me so we can sing together!) and a mixing board and cables! It is unfair if only I get to hear her, so I also included a special recording mic and audio interface so we can record her singing!! I am sure that she will have some songs on the blog in the future! We have already used both systems and I will say she sounds amazing on them!

Well, I need to get back down to the workshop and finish Pier’s jewelry box! We hope you all have a wonderful day, and join us again tomorrow for Thirsty For Christ Thursday!

Love,

TTC Tuesday

Trying To Conceive Tuesday

December 10, 2013December 10, 2013 The Not-So Newlywed Lefebvres3 Comments

Welcome Back!

It’s TTC (Trying To Conceive) Tuesday here at The Newlywed Lefebvres blog, where we will limit ourselves to one day per week of discussing our (trying) journey of infertility. For the purposes of future posts, maybe today I should tell you a little bit about our unique situation.

For the past year and 3 months, Craig and I have been trying to have a baby, and thus far, we have been unsuccessful. After complaining to my doctor the entire time of issues I was experiencing, after almost a year, he finally referred us to have some testing completed. Long story short, they found a polyp blocking my right fallopian tube. This was surgically removed in October.

Further testing (which is an entire novel of a story in itself) confirmed I have Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) – Click here to find out more.

We began treating this condition in the past month with Metformin and Letrazole, as well as vitamin and mineral based supplements. In addition, I am using a progesterone cream, as well, and (as I have for years) am following a extremely low-GI, gluten-free diet. Yay.

Last Wednesday, I went in for my first sonogram to monitor the medication’s effectiveness…If you have gotten a frustrated call or e-mail from me, you know we are struggling with the most inept medical practice in Northwest Georgia, and to put the cherry on top, they had no idea why I was there when I arrived at the doctor’s office last week…So, that being said, who KNOWS if they were able to obtain any worthwhile results from our first sonogram or not. This Friday, they will have another shot, so we will have to let you know next week if they redeemed themselves or not. Pray for us and my patience with these people. Seriously.

On a positive note, the Metformin has been wonderful at treating all sorts of things I have struggled with for years. Insulin-resistance can affect alot of things, and finally finding an answer and a treatment is priceless, albeit a little bit maddening that it took so long for the doctors to diagnose and to grab their attention. If you want that saga, send me an e-mail. It’s quite the tale…

The bottom line is that YOU know your body. If YOU think something is off, don’t stop until the doctor LISTENS and DOES something!

The anagram is PUSH – Pray Until Something Happens. I say: SPADS – Start Praying And Don’t Stop.

Until Tomorrow…

Much Love,

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St. Barnabas The Encourager… Ephesians 4:29 No foul language should come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for needed edification, that it may impart grace to those who hear.

June 26, 2013 The Not-So Newlywed Lefebvres1 Comment

Hello all!

It has been awhile since I have taken time to sit down and write a little something on the blog. Now this entry will not be like my other entries, in fact, it will be much better! Instead of my usual update on the current project for my wife I am going to focus this on my wife and what she has done! She knows I am writing a little something but she has no idea the subject at least I don’t think she does, she can be hard to keep a secret from. I wanted to keep the entry a complete surprise but I leaked out that I was going to write an entry just because I love to see her smile and excitement when I tell her I am going to write. I told her ~~a week~~, probably more like 3 weeks ago that I was going to write and I know how she loves it when I “dangle the carrot”. So today the carrot will dangle no more;)

A little while back we started reading a Bible study together. This study has helped us to experience God around us in so many ways. One of the best moments is that this book has helped me to see God at work around me everyday. More like I see God at work right next to me each and everyday through my wife. I have the most encouraging wife who encourages me to do so many things. In this book it mentions that when God calls us to do something it may not seem right for you because you believe that you are not able to do it or it is not your style but in fact God will give you everything that you need to complete His task. I noticed this exact feeling when asked to sing in the choir by the choir director. With encouragement from my wife I joined and now together we sing in the choir. This is only one example of her encouragement. Encouragement can come in many forms.

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But grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory now and to the day of eternity. 2 Peter 3:18

My wife and I like to write little notes back and forth to each other and one morning I woke up to find a little hand written note with a brief encouraging message and a Bible verse that related to the message. Now one or two of these little notes would have been wonderful but I was fortunate enough to receive them for a whole month! They encouraged me on everything from family and spiritual life, goals, work ethic, and character. I am grateful that she has encouraged me to get involved in areas that I would not usually get involved in because I was able to join in in something she is passionate about and it created one of many opportunities for me to see what a caring person she is towards children. Together we led the music for the high school summer retreat session. It was great to join her in some of her passions, those being music and kids. The next week was the VBS for the younger children and that added dancing. I loved watching her prepare and practice the dancing and songs for the little kids. Even more enjoyable was when she would come home and she would talk about all the little kids and I could tell just how excited she was to be sharing God with these kids.

So keep in mind that if you hear God speaking to you, through a wife, husband, sibling, parent, friend, or a complete stranger make sure that you act on that encouragement and it may take you places and show you something that you would have not seen before. In fact encouragement helped to make this entry as my wife always encourages my writing and how she enjoys reading the entries I make. Simple words or actions of encouragement mean so much and I thank you, Pier, for them!

~Craig and Pier

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So Much To Say, So Little Time…

June 2, 2013June 2, 2013 The Not-So Newlywed Lefebvres4 Comments

Well Happy Sunday Afternoon To All Of You!

Craig and Lucy are out in the front yard playing fetch, so I was able stay inside with the air conditioning and have a little peace and quiet – and jump free time, to write the blog we promised for this weekend! 🙂 As usual, things have been hectic around here. We went to Minnesota over Mother’s Day weekend and thoroughly enjoyed spending time with our Midwestern family. We were able to spend time with so many people I felt like we hadn’t had any quality time with since the wedding, including the other Newlywed Lefebvres – Dani & Marty! It was a great, relaxing and much needed trip! Unfortunately, so relaxed we even forgot to capture the memories with pictures. I guess there’s always next time. 😉

Over Memorial Day, the Southern Lefebvres went camping. It was quite the innovative compromise, I must say. Craig wasn’t back in town until Saturday, and I had to work on Monday, so we couldn’t go very far…BUT we did enjoy some fun in the sun at the neighborhood pool:

And then after I got home from work on Monday, Craig and I (and Lucy) headed out on the long hike to our camping spot…Our backyard! 🙂 We had such a good time! We made hot dogs, and played games indoors in the A/C… and when it was time to go to bed, we headed out the back door and slept under the stars…Well, except for Lucy, who heard all the nature sounds but couldn’t SEE what was going on and freaked out, pacing back and forth in the tent anxiously all night…Until my husband decided to turn on the radio from his phone to calm her down…and it worked like a charm. She actually shared a pillow with Craig that night. 😉 The best part of our little “camping trip” was being able to wake up, and walk inside to take a shower right away, with immediate afterward access to coffee, tea and a hot breakfast. Camping perfection. 😉

This week we have both been working up a storm. Here’s a glimpse:

Oh…and another little thing…

For the moment, I have bangs…Craig wanted me to try it out, since I haven’t had them since 7th grade, but I’m not sure how I feel about them yet. They will either take some getting used to, I’ll like them better as my hair gets longer, or they will be grown out pronto. We shall see. For the moment, they’re pinned to the side. Therein lies the beauty of making a hair change like bangs – it’s easily undone. 🙂

In other news, I am working with one other member from our church choir to lead the music for Vacation Bible School at church the week of June 10th. If you have young children in need of summer fun in the Cartersville vicinity, VBS will be at St. Francis of Assisi from 6-8pm, Monday through Friday. I’ll be heading over that week after nannying. We’ve been going over the music and choreography and it’s really going to be a lot of fun. For a sneak peek, you can take a look at www.cokesburyvbs.com. It’s the program about being a good neighbor (rather than the one entitled “Hip Hop…”)…

Craig and I have been praying and have been felt led to help out in some way with the youth at our parish. The VBS program literally fell into my lap, when I was asked to help, and then the Youth Director called and asked if I would lead the music for daily Mass this week at the Youth Camp at our parish for middle/high-school students. Interestingly enough, Craig is off work all this week, so we will be leading music together starting tomorrow morning at 8am, before I head off to work…Speaking of which, I guess we better get to learning said music…Eeek! 🙂 We want to glorify the Lord, after all, not make the Youth Program wonder whose bright idea it was to bring US into the game! 😉

More To Come Very Soon!

Much Love,

Pier & Craig

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Experiencing God

February 21, 2013 The Not-So Newlywed Lefebvres2 Comments

Good Afternoon Everyone!

This has been just a whirlwind of a week thus far! I can’t believe it’s only Thursday – Feels like it should already be Monday again…But we can’t skip over the weekend, can we? 🙂

Sunday morning both Craig and I sang with the choir at Mass! Yes! My husband surprised me and absolutely made my YEAR by telling me he wanted to serve God in song with me!

My Awesome Husband In The Vest I Bought Him For Valentine's — My Awesome Husband In The Vest I Bought Him For Valentine’s

Tuesday afternoon I gave notice at my current office job, and my last day is March 5th! Craig and I aren’t positive what the next step will be, but we both know we made the right decision together when we chose for me to leave my high stress job. As with everything, we are praying for God’s Will to guide us in the right direction. He brought Craig and I together; He led us to an amazing new church parish; and He will lead us in the perfect path for what I’ll do next. Keep us in your prayers that we will have the strength to listen to Him for His guidance.

We also began our Lenten Bible Study (via the phone) last night! We chose “Experiencing God” by Henry Blackaby. Just in going over the Preface and Introduction together, I feel like we really got something out of it. There are many opportunities to refer back to the Bible and we had some wonderful discussions over what was said. You’ll have to check it out for yourself. I know God is leading us on the right path and you can never have TOO strong a relationship with Christ. The study is all about that relationship, and being more of a Christian than just attending church on Sunday mornings. I can’t wait to go over the first part of Chapter 1 this evening! Hopefully, our little ~~devil dog~~ angel puppy doesn’t make that too difficult. 🙂

Last Saturday night, Craig and I attended one of the FINAL showers for our dear friends Ashley and JW….It was a great get together, and I just can’t tell them enough how HAPPY we are for them! Ashley and I are lucky girls for sure! 🙂

Their wedding is just over a month away! Eeeek!!! Such an exciting time!! I remember it well…It was just over 5 months ago for Craig and I!!! As we pulled out of the driveway after the shower, we both looked at each other and said, “SO GLAD WE ARE MARRIED NOW and are done with the planning and parties!!!” You’re almost there, Ash and JW!!! You can finally just relax and enjoy being husband and wife…and making grocery lists, and paying bills, and taking out the trash, and doing laundry… 🙂 LOL – Seriously, it is all AMAZING when you marry your soulmate and best friend! I speak from experience.