The Meling Mailer

FINISHED: Year One Down

2010-05-22T16:10:00.011-05:00

Have you ever had that feeling like a burden has been lifted off your shoulders? Well, that's exactly how I feel now that I'm finished with school for the semester. I don't know what to do with myself. This is the reason why I'm blogging.

I have officially completed 24 hours of doctoral courses after taking 9 credit hours this spring semester. There were days this past semester that I didn't think I was going to survive, but I persevered. Working a full time job, going to school part time, trying to maintain a healthy marriage, serving at our church, keeping up with household duties, keeping up with family, and trying to be a good friend is a hard balance. God is my strength; without Him I am nothing.

Shane finished strong with his very busy job. One trip remains. He will be traveling with the track team to Nationals and then he'll have a slow summer. We do have lots of trips planned including vacation with the Meling side of the family. We can't wait to get away, even though some of our trips are work-related.

The last two months have been eventful with family visits, concerts, road races, birthdays, and much more. Despite my lack of writing, life has not slowed down. We took a few pictures along the way of our very busy, but full and abundant lives. Here we go....

At the Switchfoot Concert in Corpus with a friend.

I made a chocolate cake from scratch for my friend E's birthday. It was delicious!

My Marth Stewart skills in action

At the Kingsville Airshow with J during her visit

"Fat Albert" at the Airshow

Shane, J, & little brother at the airshow

Easter Day at our friends house about to crack confetti eggs on each other

Shane chasing K in the backyard

Cracking eggs

Easter candy galore

Mis padres at South Padre Island

Me and my daddy at the lighthouse on South Padre Island

Our Pirate Cruise Ship...sooo much fun!

South Padre Island from our Ship

Officially a pirate, aarrhhh!

Carrie Underwood in concert

Shane and I at Carrie Underwood's concert

Carrie on a truck in the air...so awesome!

After the Beach to Bay Relay Marathon Race with our team & the Coaches team

Some of our team members after our run

#1 Stunnah & Boom Shaka Laka

2010-03-18T21:22:00.016-05:00

March Madness update
We have not posted in awhile so Vanessa will be posting a lot of pictures. I set up a Shane's Friends bracket on ESPN.com and the title are the names of our picks. Vanessa was very nervous today when Robert Morris almost beat Villanova. I thought it would have been awesome even though I picked Villanova. Of course we both would like to thank Georgetown for sucking it up against Ohio. I always get suckered in by those teams that play well in their conference tournaments and then choke in the first round of the NCAA's. This year I am fully behind the NIT, Illinois picked up a win in the first round against a JUCO I think. Anyways, hope you enjoy the pictures. (p.s. Vanessa's bracket is going to kick butt!!!! - at least Vanessa thinks so)

Meling Madness update
The last few months have been crazy, hence the lack of blogging. Basketball, baseball, softball, and track have kept Shane extremely busy in the month of February. Now that basketball is over (after the women went to the playoffs), work has slowed down a bit for him. It's easier to manage being at home games for three sports instead of five. All in all, Shane is ready for summer....I may be more ready for him than he is. He deserves having weekends all to himself, rather than working.

Taking 9 credit hours and working full-time is no easy task, but that has been the story of my life this semester. I'm currently taking Advanced Statistics, Qualitative Research, and Curriculum Programming for Adults. I'm trying very diligently to manage work with my new position as a grant coordinator, classes and schoolwork, church involvement, and attempting to have a LIFE with my husband and friends. It's been a challenge, but you know me I'm always up for a challenge. I really do love my job and love learning. I couldn't imagine doing anything else....I love being in education!

One of my new year's resolution was to start weight training (since I've never done it), so I began working out with a personal trainer. A co-worker, Dina, invited me to join her and her personal trainer at TAMUK to train twice a week. We wake up to work out at 5:45 am and yes we are insane. It has been great so far. Believe it or not, we have a great time laughing and sweating our way to great shape. My goal is to run on my off days in order to train for the Beach to Bay Relay Marathon coming up in May. Now, to work on eating right.......nah, I'll just work out so that I can eat what I want. :) Shane has also been running lots and will begin doing the P90X with one of his co-workers soon. I'm very proud of them for doing this.

Well, like I promised I will be adding a gallery of pictures of what we've been up to. Enjoy a sneak preview of our lives the last few months.

10-4 over and out!

At an EverClear concert with Meisha

EverClear playing oldschool songs

Switchfoot concert, my fellow SanDiegoans

Jon Foreman out in the crowd

A special Valentine's surprise from the hubby

My valentine's flowers delivered

The Kingsville Livestock Fair

Martinez kiddos

Our pseudo son, Kayden

Our other favorite, Keeston

The Livestock Show

Laura, my dear friend's pre-wedding lunch

Roller Derby bachelorette event

Two of my favorite people

The Maksim wedding

The Redmon girls + Archie

Laura + Vanessa

A Year of Harvest

2010-02-20T16:14:00.003-06:00

A few months ago, Shane and I heard a sermon based on Psalm 65:11-13, "You crown the year with your bounty, and your carts overflow with abundance. The grasslands of the desert overflow; the hills are clothed with gladness. The meadows are covered with gladness. The meadows are covered with flocks and the valleys are mantled with grain; they shout for JOY and SING."

We have the promise of God for a year of harvest. I am encouraged to be reminded that last year is over and this year is a new one. The hard soil is gone, a new harvest is to come. He has a great future in mind for me. Psalms 91:1-2, "He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the LORD, "He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust."

God will lead and protect if we stay in His presence. We must stand and listen. Wait for Him. In His presence comes His power, in His Power comes His permission. Do I dare to dream big enough? II Chronicles 7:14, "If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land."

Pray for the Favor of God to open doors for us. Ephesians 3:20-21, "Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever. Amen."

These verses have been a good reminder that he is for us, not against us. What a great promise we have as children of God.

A gallery of pictures coming soon.

Happy 31st Birthday!

2010-01-12T19:58:00.003-06:00

My favorite person is turning 31! For Shane's birthday I planned a Birthday Extravaganza this past weekend. It involved a scavenger hunt with clues to his most favorite places around Corpus. The first clue took us to a hotel overseeing the Marina and the Bay dowtown Corpus where we stayed overnight. Throughout the day he had to guess where the next locations were that we would go to. There were many clues and many locations. We went to his favorite restaurant, watched the movie Avatar in 3D, listened to a live band at the executive surf club, and then I topped it off with giving him the Wii (and Wii Fit)! Boy, was he surprised with that. We also went to church and lunch the next day. All the planning was well worth every minute to see how much fun Shane had. It was so much fun to see how much he was enjoying guessing each location. I had a blast!

There are many things to be thankful for with a husband like Shane. After reflecting on this, I wrote down a few reasons (31 to be exact) on why I'm thankful for him. Here are 31 reasons why I love you, Shane:

31. I love your height...I always wanted a tall husband. :)

30. Your blond hair and blue eyes

29. your quirky "Dad jokes"

28. the ways you make me laugh

27. how you help me around the house (washing dishes, clothes, & picking up after yourself)

26. your way with numbers.....always crunching my numbers

25. your patience

24. the way you create a relaxed environment around you

23. your humility

22. your trust in our heavenly Father and the plan that He has for us

21. your sports knowledge...its always astounds everyone around you, especially me

20. for your basketball, softball, running, and golf skills

19. when you randomly break out in song (especially the solo parts)

18. your athleticism

17. your hard work ethic

16. always putting others before yourself - selflessness

15. your smarts (you did only need to take the SAT once!)

14. being a loyal friend

13. your way of making family a priority

12. the gift of giving that your possess

11. your desire to be fit and healthy

10. your passion for the church - the body of Christ

9. for your fascinating writing skills - a lifetime of press releases

8. your frugal way of life

7. your servant's heart

6. being a good role model for kids. You're great with kids!

5. for loving me well

4. for your fantastic comforting skills

3. for being an excellent listener

2. for choosing ME to spend the rest of your life with

1. your love for Jesus and the work he has done in you

I would like to also send a birthday shout out to my little nephew, Alex. He's turning 4 years old today! Feliz Cumpleanos, sobrino!

A White Christmas & A Happy New Year

2010-01-10T19:21:00.006-06:00

Since we've been married, we have alternated Christmases between Shane's family and my family. This year was Christmas with the Meling clan! We went to PA this year and had a white Christmas. We hung out with parents, sisters, and baby niece. It was a joy being with them. It's always good to spend time although when we leave it's hard to say goodbye. When we spend a lot of time together, you just don't want it to stop.

The highlight of the week was starting our first annual Gingerbread House decorating contest. We had 5 teams that competed and the results were inconclusive because of a faulty judge selection. Nonetheless, we had a blast doing it! We were all winners. Dawn (my sister-in-law) and I were on the same team......we were Team Diversity. Our red & white cobble stone cottage was fabulous, certainly should've placed second or at least given honorable mention.

We enjoyed every minute of our week and love our time with family! A few pictures of our PA adventure are below:

our niece in her Christmas outfit

The home Shane grew up in...lots of snow

Christmas morning

Team Diversity's Gingerbread house

During our Christmas vacation we also were able to spend New Year's in Longview with my parents. It was good to see them and see all of our Longview friends, even though it was for just a few days. Here are a few pics of our time with the Bogran's:

Shane, the Giant. My dad cheesing it up!

My mom and I on New Year's Eve

My dad and mom welcoming the New Year

brrr....it's cold in East Texas

What a great Christmas vacation! It sure was hard to go back to work and soon school. We are expecting good things for 2010, we are ready for what God has in store.

Christmas parties, exams, marathons, and goodbyes

2009-12-16T21:08:00.006-06:00

The last few weeks have been a whirlwind en las casa de Meling.

Shane has had an eventful semester with volleyball, football, and now basketball. The volleyball & football teams made it to the playoffs. The football team were conference champions. Shane is pretty excited about getting a conference championship ring! He can't wait for it to come in. This is the first time that he has had winning teams and been able to celebrate in the success. It's pretty cool to see him so happy.

Last week was exam week for me. I had a final research paper, presentation, and 10 page Statistics exam all in one day! It was out of control. But I am proud to say that I have 15 doctoral credits and a 4.0 gpa. Let's hope I can keep it that way, the gpa that is.

We've had a lot of Christmas parties the last few weeks. I hosted my very last meeting and Christmas party for my student workers, the Supplemental Instruction leaders. There were 33 SI Leaders (not all shown above) this semester that have a special place in my heart because I was involved in the selection, training, and evaluation of each of them. They are model students that are paid to attend a course and help facilitate tutoring sessions for those students. My "kids," as I like to call them have done an excellent job in helping students succeed and have made my job and life extremely fulfilling.

Anyways, we had a fabulous Christmas party with breakfast and a hilarious white elephant gift exchange. I had mixed emotions as I celebrated our successes and said goodbye to the group and my job. I've been promoted to a new job and someone new will be taking my position. This is a good thing, but always sad. My students gave me a beautiful bouquet and a card to say farewell.

I actually did it! Last February, on the girlfriend cruise to Cozumel we made a pact to run the half marathon in Dallas. Archie and I actually did it. We ran the half 10 months later, on Dec 13th. The White Rock Marathon was awesome. There were 20,000 runners that ran all around me. I ran 13.1 miles in 2 hours and 6 mins, slow but I finished it. Lately, people have been referring to me as a "runner"......I like to correct them and tell them that I'm not a runner, I'm a person that runs! That best describes me. :)

We made a weekend out of our Dallas half by touring the new Cowboy's Football Arena and visiting friends Archie, Amber, Laura, and Jessi. It was great to meet up with old friends. I am blessed to have a such great girlfriends.

From the Cowboys press box

Shane and I are looking forward to going to visit his family for Christmas. Can't wait to visit, read lots of books, and SLEEP. The best vacation ever.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

with much love,
the melings

Quotes from Vanessa

2009-12-01T22:17:00.005-06:00

It has been awhile since I have written on Vanessa's blog, but I have been keeping track of a few of her funnier quotes. All three deal with work related issues...

1. "It's so frustrating because I can't do any homework while I'm at work." - this was said after Vanessa was unable to do the homework she had specifically set aside to accomplish during work hours. These are your tax dollars at work!

2. "Shane, you need to leave your work at home." - Freud might have something to say about this one, but she was really trying to tell me to not bring my work home with me.... fortunately I'm very good at translation.

3. "I have an 8-to-5 job and I'm there by 8:30 every morning." - This was Vanessa explaining her work ethic to my sister Dawn when we lived in Longview.

So hopefully those make you laugh a little bit. Vanessa and I spent Thanksgiving with the VanBrocklin's for the second straight year in Houston and had a fun time. Although, it would have been nicer to be able to stay a little bit longer. It was the first time we had seen Kym pregnant. While we had fun in Houston we did miss out on Vanessa's parents spending the weekend with us because her dad's mom (Vanessa's grandmother) passed away on Wednesday morning so they had to go to Florida. She was in her 90's. We are really looking forward (at least I am) to going back to Slippery Rock for Christmas this year. We leave on the 20th and get back on the 29th. Love you all.

Shane

Your Hands

2009-11-23T11:49:00.002-06:00

This weekend was just tough....dealing with my emotions and wrestling with God's plan for my life. Although painful I'm always reminded of God sweetness during times like this. Everytime I turned on the radio in the car or at home, there were songs that lifted my spirits or a Scripture verse that comforted me. There is one song in particular that has resonated with me because it's where my heart is right now. Despite the pain I feel in my heart I am reminded of the hope I have. He has me in his hands.

You've probably heard of it - Your Hands by JJ Heller:

I have unanswered prayers
I have trouble I wish wasn't there
And I have asked a thousand ways
That You would take my pain away
That You would take my pain away
I am trying to understand
How to walk this weary land
Make straight the paths that crookedly lie
Oh Lord, before these feet of mine
Oh Lord, before these feet of mine

When my world is shaking
Heaven stands
When my heart is breaking
I never leave Your hands

When You walked upon the Earth
You healed the broken, lost, and hurt
I know You hate to see me cry
One day You will set all things right
Yea, one day You will set all things right

When my world is shaking
Heaven stands
When my heart is breaking
I never leave Your hands
Your hands
Your hands that shape the world
Are holding me, they hold me still
Your hands that shape the world
Are holding me, they hold me still
When my world is shaking
Heaven stands
When my heart is breaking
I never leave You when...

When my world is shaking
Heaven stands
When my heart is breaking
I never leave...I never leave Your hands

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FlL8LayF0uw

The 3rd annual Texas Visit

2009-11-22T21:14:00.008-06:00

Kathe and Tom (Shane's parents) came to visit us on their 3rd annual Texas visit. We had a great time as usual, despite our busyness and Tom being sick. Tom had the flu part of the visit and Shane had to work quite a bit because of our football team making the playoffs and hosting the first round.

It's alwasy nice to have family come and visit and see what life is like for us. It's always interesting. They got to go to the game at the end of the week which was cool. I do have a few pics of the game.

Shane and I are so very thankful to God for Tom and Kathe. We are truly blessed to have their loving support and faithful prayers. I am forever grateful for the Godly son they raised and the investment they made in his life. He is an incredible husband and I know a lot of it has to do with the family he comes from. I am a blessed person because of it. Thank you for giving of yourselves.

The Traveling Pants

2009-11-22T20:13:00.004-06:00

The months of October and November have been full of travel for Shane and I. At the end of October we drove to Abilene for the weekend to watch the football team play Abilene Christian. It was a great weekend, although our team lost. Shane and I enjoyed driving around Abilene, trying out new restaurants, and checking out the other college campuses (Hardin Simmons & McMurry).

I flew out of Abilene on Sunday morning to Kansas City, MO for a work conference. It was great to be in KC in the fall. The weather and the trees were absolutely gorgeous. I met up with another co-worker and we had fun again trying out new restaurants that we had not been to such as, The Melting Pot and Fogo de Chao. Highly recommend both if you haven't been there. The Melting Pot was worth the experience one time, probably won't return. Fogo De Chao....is worth going back to. It was the best Brazilian Steak House restaurant I have ever gone to. I was excited to hear that they opened one in San Antonio! Oh, the conference was excellent as well. :)

Here are a few pictures of where the traveling pants have visited.

At Fogo de Chao in Kansas City

Our hotel in Kansas City - The Intercontinental

The park I ran at every morning one block from my hotel

Absolutely beautiful neighborhoods in KC
...I wouldn't mind living here.

at Abilene....our Javelina Band

TAMUK vs. Abilene football game

A Treasure

2009-10-27T21:22:00.009-05:00

Since we've moved away from family and friends, we sure do consider all visitors a treasure. This last weekend, my best friend in the whole world came to visit us for the first time since we moved. It was great timing since this past weekend was Homecoming. We had a blast being part of the downtown parade and waving like homecoming queens! The best was going to the homecoming football game. Homecoming is not complete without football. She also experienced tailgating South Texas style and the after parties. We sure were busy. It was great to give her a sneak preview of our lives. Here are a few photos of what we did:

Archie waving like the Homecoming Queen

One of my co-workers and her family

Football game

In Corpus Christi

And I will leave you with a glimpse of what I'm going through in my doctoral classes. I'm currently taking Statistics and enjoying it a lot. Here is a snapshot of some of the things I'm learning:

One-Sample Test
Test Value = 32
t df Sig. (2-tailed) Mean Difference 95% Confidence Interval of the Difference
Lower Upper
Reading .645 11 .532 .750 -1.81 3.31

Please pray for us that we will be salt and light in the midst of darkness in our jobs, our community, and in my classes. Come and Visit!

Until later....

We are ALIVE!

2009-09-25T21:50:00.005-05:00

It's been awhile since I've written on this thing. I don't know if people are still checking it anymore. But here it goes....

August 2009 - Shane and I had the priviledge of celebrating our 4 year anniversary on August 13th in the Bahamas. My parents were there and my best friend was able to come too. The beaches were absolutely beautiful. It was a very relaxing week and we would love to go back. I must say that God has truly blessed me with such an amazing man for a husband. The more I get to know him everyday, the more I fall in love with his heart, his sincerity, his sense of humor, his kindness and so much more. I thank God for thinking of me when he provided my husband.....He does care for us afterall better than "the birds in the air and clothe us better than the lillies of the valley." Thank you, Father, for the gift of marriage.

Septemeber 2009 - With both of us being in the education environment, the beginning of the school year is always hectic. After our little vacay at the Bahamas, we came back and jumped into all of the crazy trainings, football practices, first day of classes and so much more. I also started up my own doctoral classes. Balancing all of this has been quite a challenge, but very rewarding. We are blessed to have so many opportunities. I love what I do, love being in school, and love the opportunity of getting to know people at church and at work.

If you're reading this, we do ask for your prayers about the following:

My testimony in my doctoral classes. I pray for boldness and truth to cover me as the class is exposed to many philosophies such as postmodernism, humanism, and many more. I need articulation to present Truth in the midst of darkness.

Shane's travel with the football team. They are 4-0 right now and enjoying it! His witness to those around him.

We found a church that we like and have become members. We need direction on where to serve and minister.

Decisions that we must make in the near future. We need wisdom, discernment, and listening ears to His word and voice. We need healing and guidance.

For God to provide us friends. There are times that we are just lonely and we yearn for good Christian friends.

If you're reading this, we consider you a friend. We covet your prayers and thank you for your friendship.

Until later.

A sweet, familial visit

2009-08-07T09:39:00.012-05:00

The week we were doing our bible club, my brother David flew into the states with the entire fam. We weren't sure if they were going to drive 7-8 hours from Dallas/Longview to visit us, so we were surprised that they did! David, Fernanda, Abigail, Emily, & Alex all came down to visit their Tio Shane & Tia Vanessa!! We had a wonderful time with them. They were able to spend 4 days with us and we packed lots of FUN into their visit.

We went out to eat and shopped in Corpus, the kiddos got to experience the bible club the last two days, we went to the beach, went toy shopping :), dressed up and had a fashion show with the girls (check out the video), played board games, went swimming in our pool, went to church, and watched the movie "Toy Story" a lot with Alex, although he prefers the movie "Cars"!

I must admit, it was hard to say goodbye to them after having spending so much quality time with them. We couldn't believe how much they had grown since the last time we saw them in March. Unfortunately, since they are missionaries we don't have the pleasure to just go over to their house and visit with them. It was a sweet time. We did savor every moment of it with the entire family and were wishing to hold the hands of time so that our time would not end.

Oh, how I wish I could see those kids grow up and be a part of their daily lives. But I know that God has them in Honduras sharing Christ and serving others. They are my real-life heroes.

Father, I pray for my bro and family that you will protect them and keep them safe in a country that is experiencing political unrest and instability. Bless them for giving of themselves and sacrificing their lives for you. I will alwasy love them and miss them.

Abigail

Emily

All 3 kiddos with tio Shane

David & Fernanda at the bible club

The boys washing dishes after lunch

Bath time

Emily loves to take pictures!

Our fashion Show begins.....

Modeling Vanessa's summer dress line

notice the shoes. :)

Abbie almost fits in my clothes!

Alex won a soccer ball

Emily with a Javelina

Abbie was scared of it!

The fashion show again

Emily LOVES to dress up and wear Big jewelry

Alex & Shane

Playing Life agian

Alex was obsessed with his "Mack" from CARS

Emily with her baby & stroller

Emily loved her Tinkerbell dress!

Digging for God's Truth - A backyard bible club

2009-08-07T08:51:00.007-05:00

Several months ago, I felt God pressing on my heart to do something for all of the kids in our apartment complex. Everytime we left our apartment, I saw groups of kids playing on the basketball court or around the apartments. I wasn't sure what God meant for me to do, but I knew there was a stirring in my heart that these kids needed to hear about Jesus.

As I prayed about it, I couldn't help but remember how I came to know Christ at the age of 6. I heard about the gospel through another little girl who was 6 as well and a daughter of missionaries to Latin America. Growing up, I had the opportunity to help with backyard Bible clubs in poverty-stricken neighborhoods in San Diego, New Orleans, Chicago, and Mexico and spread the good news of Jesus Christ to so many children. Heck, if a 6 year old told me about eternal life, why don't I do it more often as a 30-year old!

After sharing this with Shane, we knew that we needed to do this for the children. I shared our simple vision with our children's ministry leader at our church and she loved the idea! God opened doors with the apt complex where they allowed us to reserve the community center, since it's too darn hot in South Texas to have a Bible club outside! They also were very open with advertising the Bible club to all residents and allowed us to post flyers. We knew God was orchestrating all of this because we learned later that our church had been trying to do functions at our apt complex and they never allowed it. God's timing is perfect.

Needless to say, God brought the ones he wanted to hear about his word. Throughout the week we had a total of 28 kids come to the Bible club and they heard a Bible story, did fun activities, made a craft, played "games with Shane - rec time," and ate yummy snacks. Our theme was "An Archeological Dig - Digging in God's Word." We had several from our Sunday School class volunteer and help make this bible club run smoothly. We really had a great time and I know that kids had a great time.

I know that the mere fact that these children came and heard about Jesus made God's heart happy! It did ours. Although by the end of the week, all of the adults were exhausted we knew that it was well worth it for just one to hear the good news....our work was not in vain.

Father, keep those children in your hands and protect their hearts so that they will grow to become men & women who honor you.

"Jesus said, Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these." Matthew 19:14

Singing our theme song

Some of the kids waiting their turn to dig treasures

Some of the boys

Digging in the sand for Bible verses

Digging for words

She found the word respect!

She found love!

Snack time!

Listening to Ms. Debbie during Bible Story

Debbie & Robin helping out

Big Brother, Little Brother

2009-07-19T00:08:00.003-05:00

Shane has decided to be a part of the Big Brother program here in K-ville. He was assigned his little brother not too long ago. Part of his duties are to spend time with little brother once a week, find fun activities that both of them enjoy doing, get to know little brother, be a positive influence for this young boy, and make a difference in his life.

Shane's little brother's name is Tony. He is 8 years old and likes to play sports, has a mom, dad, and three sisters. He is a good student and is pretty shy. He's a great kid.

So far, Shane and Tony have played catch, played board games, and gone swimming. The other day, I just giggled when Shane decided to play the game of "Life" with Tony. Kinda ironic, huh?!! He proceeded to explain the game by giving him the choice between going to college or going straight into the work force, and explained why car insurance and life insurance were important. Of course, Tony took his advice and decided to attend college and purchase the car & life insurace. The results turned out pretty well for Tony, he ended up very wealthy, healthy, and retired a very happy person. He smoked Shane in the game. He was happy he beat Shane and was ready to go swimming! Let's just hope that Tony makes good choices in his "real life."

After overhearing the conversation between Shane and Tony, my heart melted. Have I told you how much I love my husband. He is a good man. My prayer is that Tony will see the same thing. I pray that Tony will come to know the same God that Shane knows and serves. My hope is that he will grow up honoring and pleasing the Lord. Will you join us in praying for Tony?

Thank you Lord for opportunities to invest in people's lives. May you use us as "living sacrafices, holy and pleasing to you - this is our spiritual act of worship." Rom. 12:1

Delightful Flowers

2009-07-15T21:31:00.002-05:00

We invited our Sunday School teachers, Debbie & Mike, over for dinner the other night. They brought beautiful flowers to give us. We had a great time eating, fellowshipping, and playing a mean game of scrabble, although Mike cleaned house with his high-scoring words!

I just had to take pictures of the flowers since they brightened my day. Here they are on my dining room table.

An unexpected Ferry Ride

2009-07-15T21:17:00.005-05:00

For the 4th of July weekend Shane and I decided to go to a small town near Corpus to go to the beach and watch the fireworks. We had a little trouble getting to the town....we kinda took a round-about way in getting there. As we drove around aimlessly we finally realized that in order to get to where we were going we were going to have to cross the bay. Some how we ended up driving our car on a ferry that took us across the bay to the town we needed to find. It was an unexpected surprise to just drive our car on this ferry and go across the water. We didn't have to pay a dime, which was awesome!

The pictures below were taken while we were in our vehicle on the ferry going across the water. The experience was a surprise that made the day that more special.

Shane in our car while we were on the ferry

The other vehicles on the ferry....check out the cool water!

Vaction #1: OuterBanks, NC

2009-07-10T10:42:00.013-05:00

We had such a good time vacationing in the OuterBanks in North Carolina. We met up with 10 other friends, lived in a beach house for a week, and rode a lot of waves on our boogie boards! That's life to the fullest. We are blessed.

The Kitty Hawk Orville Brothers Museum

Hanging out around the House

The Decathalon

Sightseeing - A Light House

The Finale

The Adventure Continues

2009-07-10T08:57:00.009-05:00

This is what we've been up to lately:

Memorial Day Weekend with the VanBrocklins

The Texas Ranger was hungry!

Joe (Shane's High School friend)

Another Year, Another Birthday

My special birthday guest, Benjamin Dyer (he was hungry!)

My First Day of School

A Reflective Verse

2009-05-31T20:31:00.007-05:00

"The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit." Psalm 34:18

Beach to Bay Relay

2009-05-26T15:29:00.013-05:00

We did it! We ran the Beach to Bay Relay Marathon in Corpus two weekends ago to celebrate Armed Forces Day. This race was one of the best I've run. It did help that the run was in Corpus Christi near the ocean. :0)

Our team of 6 did better than we ever imagined. We all ran approximately 4.4 miles, some running more than others. All of our training paid off because Team TAMUK ranked 187th overall out of 1,850 teams....yes that is top 10%. In our category, the mixed category (3 women & 3 men), we ranked 27th out of 307 mixed teams.

Runners came to run from all over the world, literally there were soldiers in Iraq that were running a 10K on the same day to celebrate Armed Forces. I thought this article in the Caller Times was great: http://www.caller.com/news/2009/may/13/runners-together-in-spirit-a-world-apart/.

Although it was an early morning for all of us, we couldn't have asked for a better day, it was cloudy and cool for South Texas. The sun came out for a little bit during my leg, but it was not so bad. The breeze from the ocean felt refreshing.

I am so proud of Shane for running the hardest leg, the daunting Padre Island bridge. He did it in great time....way to go honey! I will also brag a little here and say that I ran my leg under my personal record time and I continued to run through the next leg to get to the end of the race. It was beautiful running on Ocean Dr. I am proud of all of our team - Erin, Crystal, Jordan, & Clay did a great job. I had a great time.

So, what's next?.....we continue to train. We are on week 5 of our 10K training schedule. Today we do our interval workouts. yuck! I guess it's true.... no pain, no gain.

The course map for Beach to Bay

The start of the race

People preparing for the first leg

the crazy hula & coconut bra team

The causeway bridge that Shane ran

The military men we were celebrating

Padre Island

The overall first place team.....notice the time 2:18:54

The first place team in our mixed (3 men & 3 women) category

Another take of Team TAMUK

10K Race Training

2009-05-09T12:54:00.003-05:00

I am training for a 10K. A friend of mine gave me an 8-week training schedule from Runners.com that is great. I am now in week 3 and running through it with all of the aches and pains that come with training.

The reason for starting this is not only to run a 10K this summer, but also to run the Beach to Bay Relay Marathon next Saturday (a week from today). The Beach to Bay Relay Marathon is an annual six person relay running event held in Corpus Christi. The race is a 26.2 point-to-point relay route beginning on North Padre Island, winding through Naval Air Station Corpus Christi and ending at Cole Park along Corpus Christi’s scenic downtown. The course is divided into six legs of approximately 4.4 miles. From what we hear, this year will be the largest they have ever had. There are 2000 teams registered to run. Yes, that is 12,000 runners! It should be fun.

The Meling team (Team 1774) consists of Shane, Jordan (Volleyball Asst Coach), Crystal (Asst Women's Basketball Coach), Clay (Asst. Football Coach), Erin (wife of Asst Men's Basketball Coach) and myself. We'll represent the athletic department. We've all been training and running a lot, so I'll have to post to let you know how we do.

In the meantime, Shane has joined me in training and you would be so proud of me. My training includes tempo runs, interval workouts, long runs, and EZ runs. I have never trained this hard for anything. The Interval workouts are a killer. This week we ran 6x400. I thought I was going to pass out afterwards. (Archie, if I can do intervals you can do fartliks)! We did it......we completed the task. Shane has been a good coach.

I can't wait to tell you more about the relay marathon next week. Until then.......see ya later, gotta RUN! :)

The Fullness of Time

2009-05-06T09:07:00.003-05:00

The timing of God has been on my mind a lot lately. This morning in my devotions I read Galatians chap 4 and the verse that caught my eye was the following, "When the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son." Galatians 4:4

I don't know if this is the case for you, but being on time is a challenge for me. Even when I start early, something inevitably gets in my way to make me late. But this is the good news I was reminded of this morning: God is always on time! The long-awaited promised Savior came at just the right time.

I read the historical background of Jesus' arrival and it was interesting to read that he arrived during the Roman Empire's "Pax Romana" (the Peace of Rome). I learned that the known world was united by one language of commerce and a network of global trade routes provided open access to the whole world. This is fascinating to me since I teach globalization in my International Business courses. We're talking globalization to it's finest here. All of this guaranteed that the gospel could move rapidly in one tongue. No visas. No borders. The news of the Savior could be spread and unhindered. All of this in God's perfect timing.

This reminds me that the Lord knows what time is best for me as well. Many times I feel as if he has forgotten me. Why would a God in all of his glory, think of me in all of my smallness? I wait for answered prayer. I doubt. I wait for His promise. I don't trust. I wait.........

and then I am sweetly reminded of His son, His plan of salvation from the beginning of time. God's timing is always perfect. When the fullness of time is right for me, He'll show up and I'll be amazed by His brilliant timing. Won't you trust along with me that it is not ours to know the reason why our prayers go unanswered, but ours to wait for God's own time?

May we trust that his is the full and perfect timing.

A Spontaneous Visit and More

2009-05-03T13:42:00.015-05:00

Busyness has taken over and blogging unfortunately takes the back burner. But I'm back on with all of the exciting happenings en la casa de Meling.

Primero - Shane and I took a spontaneous trip to Longview about two weeks ago and we were so refreshed visiting our friends and family. David happened to be in town from Honduras the same weekend. We got to spend most of the weekend with him and one of his staff missionaries, Samuel. I hadn't seen Samuel for about 4 years since he and his wife went to Argentina for Bible school. It was so good to hang out with David. He is so much fun and God is doing amazing things through him. He is truly an inspiration to me. I was so grateful to see him although we didn't get to see Fernanda and the kiddos.

We also got to attend a good friend's birthday party while in Longview. We had so much fun. Great food, fun games, and good people made the party a success! Shane and I had such a good time with our friends, we later talked about how much we missed that kind of fellowship. We don't have the pleasure of such fine company in K-ville. :)

Segundo - I would like to announce that after a very drawn out and grueling admissions process, I have officially been admitted into the Doctoral program in Educational Leadership at Texas A&M Kingsville. I am very excited about beginning this new adventure. At the same time I'm very fearful of the future. I don't know what to expect. My first day of school will be June 8th. Shane can't wait to take me to my class on the first day of school.

Tercero - Summer is here and we're feeling it! School is almost over and our schedules are dying down. Shane and I get to hang out on weekends and there is no traveling in buses with sports teams, instead their are nice long vacations on the beach. I love to va-cay.

Well, that's all the news from the homefront for now.......Hasta luego!

Birthday cup cakes

Our amigos

If only I was shorter

Me and my bro

My admittance letter

Easter Pictures Continued....

2009-04-21T10:04:00.005-05:00

I failed to post all the pictures of Shane's visit to PA. Here are some cool pictures!

little Becca

The Mommy and baby

The Meling siblings + 1

The fabulous sisters

Shane looking good with a baby in his arms

An Easter Visit

2009-04-14T10:33:00.003-05:00

Shane was able to go visit his family this past weekend for Easter, prmiarily for little baby Becca's dedication. I wasn't able to go due to a lack of vacation days and starting a new job. My bosses were kind enough to give me a few days for the cruise back in February.

It sure was a bummer to spend Easter alone in a new town. My padres were out of town visiting my little brother in NY dropping off his car. I am grateful that friends did watch out for me and made sure I was busy all weekend. That was nice of them. I was also busy with church services. I attended Maundy Thursday service, Good Friday service, and Easter service. I love going to church and celebrating that Christ is no longer on the cross or in the grave....He is ALIVE!

Shane had a great time meeting Becca and hanging out with his family. He even took a few pictures...believe it or not! Dawn helped out a little. Thanks Dawn. Isn't the picture above the most precious thing ever?

Winning Events

2009-04-02T16:43:00.011-05:00

The last few days have been exhausting but rewarding. We have accomplished many things, so because of limited time I thought I would list these events in bullet format (I'm lazy):

Roberto Garza, a TAMUK alum and Chicago Bears NFL player, came to campus to speak to our football team and coaching staff. Shane got to meet him and get his autograph. He was pretty stoked since the 'Bears' are his team.

For Spring Break week, we had Friday off so I went to the BEACH to celebrate Erin's 30th birthday. There was a group of girls that went and we had a great time hanging out. Happy 30th, Erin!

Shane and I ran another 5K this last Saturday and we placed. I know what you're thinking...unbelivable, how could Vanessa win anything with how slow she runs? I'll tell you the secret...just sign up for a race with 20 people in it. You are bound to win something. :) Shane once again placed 1st overall and I got 1st place in my age bracket, which is sadly the 30-34 age bracket. Shane's time was impressive, but I met my PR (personal record) at this race. I'm just proud of both of us for running at 8:00 am on a Saturday morning. Check out the cool pics.

Our mamas would be so proud

Cowgirls & Bball

2009-03-18T11:33:00.007-05:00

Shane has been out of town a lot with the Men's Basketball team going to the Regional's and the NCAA Tournament (Shane's first tournament ever)! So, during one of his trips, the Athletic Director's wife asked me to be her date to a school auction. The event was Western-wear themed and it was a live & silent auction to raise money for one of the private schools in town. The funny part was that Ginger and I ended up dressing alike without even planning it! We have great taste.

We had so much fun. I won a bid for a haircut, pedicure, and manicure plus Kenra hairproducts. I ended up getting a great deal from my bid. Who new?!!

Although the guys lost in the first round of the NCAA tournament, they had a great experience just being a part of it.

Here are a few pics from the last few weeks.

The Bball team after they heard their NCAA qualifier announcement

The team

The twins at the auction. Don't be jealous about my boots.

Our table name - Bold Venture

The centerpiece

Our friend, JoBob, and his missing tooth

Shane getting on the bus - goodbye

The team

Men's Basketball coach and his wife

Springirth’s Sign New Family Member

2009-03-09T21:18:00.003-05:00

March 1, 2009

BUTLER, PENNSYLVANIA – Phil and Robin Springirth welcomed a new addition to the family at 1:45 in the morning on Saturday. Rookie free agent Rebecca Michelle signed a long term deal with the Springirth’s that unfortunately included an addendum saying that she would have to cheer for any baseball team that has no chance to win the World Series.

Becca, at 7 pounds, 11 ounces and 20 inches tall, is a five-tool prospect that has been touted in all the national baby magazines as having what it takes to become a star. Father Phil had this to say about her prospects, “I was very excited when I found out that she would be on our team starting at birth. If she was 10 or 11 years old right now we probably wouldn’t have signed her, but she fits our family perfectly and her mom and I look forward to having her around for a long time.”

Becca’s grandparents Tom and Kathe Meling are already looking into a way to trade for her although Tom has concerns about her ability to use her left hand. Rumors have been floating around Slippery Rock that Payton, Sidney Bristow and a future #1 draft pick have been offered for Becca. Phil and Robin have been mulling the offer over, but appear unlikely to cooperate.

Becca’s aunt Vanessa added, “I just hope she understands what it means to become a part of this family, I really think she should have thought a little longer before signing that contract.”

Becca currently resides in Slippery Rock and is the proud owner of a cocker spaniel named Libby.

Famous Encounters and First Experiences

2009-02-28T14:07:00.009-06:00

This week Shane and I had the priviledge to go to a regional FCA dinner in Corpus. To our surprise the guest speaker for the event was Bruce Matthews, a Pro-Football Hall of Famer. He played for the Oilers and the Titans. He has an incredible testimony and encouraged us in the faith. It's so exciting to see professional athletes that love God and seek His Kingdom first, even above the game of football. He spoke on how all of his acccomplishments, including being chosen as part of the NFL Hall of Fame, means nothing without having a relationship with Jesus Christ and loving Him. It was great to hear this message.

I would also like to announce that at 30 years old I finally attended my very first Track & Field meet today. And yes......I am a Meling! It was fun to watch all of the teams. The funniest part was when I asked Shane, "Who are our hurdle jumpers?" Needless to say, I don't know the correct term for track and field competitors. I did learn today that they are called "hurdlers." I learn something new everyday being married to a Meling. :)

Bruce Matthews signing autographs

Bruce speaking to FCA leaders

Women's Basketball game this week

My first Track & Field Meet

In the press box watching the Track meet

Isn't he a cute announcer?

Cozumel Cruise 2009

2009-02-22T17:24:00.015-06:00

Last week three girlfriends boarded a ship for Cozumel, Mexico and had the time of their lives.

We didn't know what to anticipate as we began to board the cruiseship, but we had a great time. It was all of our first to go on a cruise. It was a bit rocky at the beginning as we weren't sure what to do other than to explore the ship.

We were able to dress up in formals for Archie's birthday and eat a lot of food on the cruise. Her birthday was so much fun. We celebrated her 30th in style and had lots of fun.

In Cozumel, we only had about 8 hours to enjoy the sand and water. We decided to snorkel and see the beautiful fish and reefs of Cozumel. It was gorgeous! Of course, I had to eat athentic Mexican tacos so we found a place where we enjoyed tacos and margaritas. mmmm! Later, we took a taxi to the beach and just layed out on the beach and enjoyed more sun. We didn't want to leave Cozumel. It was difficult getting back on the cruiseship.

The last day we spent on the cruise ship out at sea again. We enjoyed all of the shows, new friends, and food.

We had a great time together as girlfriends. We talked until the wee hours of the night, we laughed hysterically, we met new and different people (you meet interesting people on a cruise), we ate, we obsessed about our weight and bodies (c'mon women....you know we all do it), we talked about God and our lives, etc, etc. We left with many fun memories.

Although, I don't think I'll go on another cruise, we all took a pinky vow that we would try to have a girls trip every few years to hang out and just be girls! It was worth it.

Here's to Cozumel Cruise 2009. Thank you ladies for making this trip a memorable one!

Valentine Ice sculpture

Breakfast on the deck of the ship

Our table mates and new friends

Our table mates and servers

Delicious Valentine dessert

The Valentine carnation

Our pinky vow for more girl trips

Cozumel beach

Downtown Cozumel

all dressed up on formal night

The three amigas!

Prepared to sail off to Cozumel

Happy Birthday, Archie

The Update

2009-02-07T14:27:00.005-06:00

Here is a much needed update and reasons why I haven't been able to post.

New Job: Monday was my first day in a new position at TAMUK and I'm loving it. I am now the new Supplemental Instruction Coordinator. I will hire, train, and assign undergraduate students to lead SI sessions (review sessions) for students in historically difficult courses on campus. It's very similar to what I was doing at LeTourneau......it's even funded by a grant given to us by the government. I am very grateful for my new job and new boss. I no longer have to deal with a job that I don't like. It has been a burden taken off my shoulders. Shane is glad too. :)

Update on 5 by 13: I have exceeded the weight goal so far! It's amazing how refreshing it feels when one focuses on mind, body and soul. Investing 3o minutes every day on these areas has changed my perspective on my time and life. Believe it or not, my time has multiplied and I feel energized going through my day. God does bless when we prioritize Him in our lives.

5K News: Shane and I ran the 5K in Corpus last Saturday. It was so much fun! We had to leave our house by 6am and we did it. Not only that, we finished the 5K. Shane not only finished but he got first place overall!! It was a small church-sponsored 2 mile run, 5k, and 10K. He ran it in 20 minutes or so. I was so proud of him. We have been running everyday and it feels great.

Church: We have been attending a new church and it has been really good. In just a month we have met many couples and people that love God and love people. We even met a couple that is in our Sunday School class that lives across the street from our apt. What a surprise! I've been able to hang out with her a few times. I see her being a really good friend in the near future.

Valentine's: I'm not a big fan of this commercialized love day, however I do feel a tid bit gulity that I won't be with my man on this day. I'll be on a cruise ship instead. We did go on a date last night as a pre-Valentine's date. Shane planned it and it was very nice. He's a good man.

Well, until we meet again. Take care.

Shane and I at the Corpus Christi Art Museum

Shane in the waterfall

Drowning in the waterfall

Refine Me

2009-01-23T20:31:00.006-06:00

I was working out this week, when a song by Jennifer Knapp began to play on my Ipod that I had forgotten about. This song brought me to tears. These words have been my prayer this week.

I come into this place
Burning to receive your peace
I come with my own chains
From wars I've fought for my own selfish gain
You're my God and my Father
I've accepted your Son
But my soul feels so empty now
What have I become?

Lord, come with your fire,
Burn my desires; refine me
Lord, my will has deceived me
Please come and free me
Refine me

My heart can't see
When I only look at me
My soul can't hear
When I only think of my own fears
They are gone in a moment
You're forever the same
Why did I look away from You
How can I speak Your name?

Lord, come with Your fire,
burn my desires; refine me
Lord, my will has deceived me
Please come and free me
Come rescue this child
For I long to be reconciled to You
It's all I can do
To give my heart and soul to You
And pray, and pray, oh I will pray

Lord, come with Your fire,
burn my desires; refine me
Lord, my will has deceived me
Please come and free me
Come rescue this child
For I long to be reconciled to You
Refine me, refine me
Refine me, refine me

The Cactus Bowl and more

2009-01-18T22:58:00.012-06:00

Last weekend was busy. We returned to work, we hosted the Cactus Bowl a D2 all-star football game, we attended many football events, we met a lot of NFL scouts, and my boss got married. whew! It's tiring just writing everything down. Although busy, the week was eventful which is good for us since we don't have much to do otherwise. It has been a good start to the new school year.

Shane and two of our all-star football players. Possible future NFL players?

Erin and Renee at the "Taste of South Texas" before the All-Star Game

the All-Star game

Keasten and Erin - our friends

Johnny and Breanne - the married couple

the reception hall before everyone arrived

Our baseball coach & his wife - great people

Welcome to the 30's Club!

2009-01-13T22:21:00.005-06:00

I'm a little under the weather, so I wasn't able to post this yesterday, but here I am to say "Happy Birthday, Shane!" Welcome to the 30's club, babe.

If I was a singer I would sing a song much like Steven Curtis Chapman did to his wife for her birthday. It goes something like this (with adaptations):

"1-12-79 the sun shone a whole lot brighter than ever it had before smiling down on me. At 3:00 am both hands of time stopped turning and you came waltzing in to change my world for good. I was only 7 months old so really I don't know exactly what was going on, but I bet I laughed and played harder on that day 'cause my whole world was changing on 1-12-79 you breathed your first breath. Suddenly living life meant so much more on the day that you were born. And I, well I was only 7 months old so I didn't have a clue of all that was transpiring but I, I bet the sky was blue and all the world looked new 'cause everything was changing on 1-12-79."

Thanks for joining me in the 30 something club, hon. I no longer have to circle "30 or above" on all those little questionaires alone! I am blessed to have you as my husband and my best friend! :) lol

Tim Tebow: The Chosen One

2009-01-09T21:44:00.010-06:00

Have I told you that I "heart" Tim Tebow from the University Florida Gators??!! He is incredible!

You ask why? Let me count the ways:

Believe it or not, he was Home Schooled. I have worked with hundreds of home schoolers as a college recruiter and for the most part they usually ranged from total social outcasts to being somewhat well-rounded boys and girls. Boy, do I have stories! I would like to thank Tebow for shattering the home schooler stereo type. Thank you for showing us some normalcy.
He's an M.K. (aka...Missionary Kid) from the Philippines. I have a special place in my heart for mk's. My brother is a missionary and my nieces and nephew are m.k.'s. They have that whole dual citizenship going for them.
He loves Jesus. He thanks his Lord and Savior on national television after winning his 2nd National Championship. It's always encouraging to see committed Christians that are student-athlete leaders making a difference.
He goes on mission trips! I love this kid.
Did you know that while Tim's mom was pregnant with him, she suffered an infection with an amoeba, and an abortion was recommended by her doctors? I guess God had other plans.
I don't consider myself a stat guru, like my husband, but there is no denying it TEBOW is an extraordinary ATHLETE. All the things listed above did not keep him from using his God-given talents, they are simply add-ons to what he brings to the game of football. We need more college players like him.

I would like to thank Tebow for making me fall in love with the game of football. Go Gators! Go Javalinas! Go Football!

p.s. Faydra, if you are reading this...I want you to know that there was a fan rooting for the Gators in the championship all the way down in South Texas. :)

Comments from Shane

2009-01-08T22:44:00.002-06:00

Well, I must admit it has been very interesting moving to Kingsville and being part of the whole Javelina scene. I do really enjoy football even though it's a lot of work. I'm already excited about next season. The toughest part about moving down here is being away from good friends and a church we love. We are still struggling to find the right church for us and haven't really found any friends outside of those in the athletic department. I have to say that we had a great Thanksgiving in Houston with the Van Brocklin's. It was nice to get away for a couple of days. Christmas was also great. It was fun to be back in Longview and to be able to relax for a little bit.

The Christmas break was good for me because I was able to get back in the habit of exercising. I know most of you probably think I exercise all the time, but I didn't do much at all for about three months. I think I gained about 10 pounds, but now I'm back on the right track. I've been running and got the Pushup Pro for Christmas so I've been doing that as well. Vanessa and I are even going to run a 5K in Corpus on Jan. 31st, I'm hoping to just break 20 minutes.

Keep reading....more to come from Shane.

The 5 by 13 Challenge

2009-01-08T21:35:00.006-06:00

We'll be celebrating my best friend's 30th on a cruise trip in February. We're going big, baby!! Cozumel, Mexico here we come.

Our Challenge: lose 5 lbs by February 13th.

Our Focus: Body, Mind, and Soul.

Our Execution: Work out 30 minutes everyday, eat healthy, and spend time with God every morning for 30 minutes or more.

We are 4 days in and it has been absolutely amazing. We can't wait to board the ship next month.

Interested in joining the 5 by 13 challenge? Just leave me a comment and we can keep each other accountable. Let's unite for the 5 by 13 challenge.

Goodbye Bob, Hello Fran!

2009-01-04T15:50:00.009-06:00

There have been a lot of goodbyes the Meling's have had to say in the last few months of 2008. Let me share with you a few:

Goodbye Longview
Goodbye LeTourneau

Goodbye LifePoint Church

Goodbye living near the Bogran family
Goodbye to many, many friends

Goodbye to great jobs
Goodbye......to our Volkswagon Passat

What??!!......you ask, surprisingly. Yes, you read it correctly. Shane and I sold my cute Volkswagon Passat during the Christmas break. It was a sad day, but I'm glad that it went to a great owner. Maverick is now in good hands, in Archie's hands. She now owns my cool car Maverick and what she now calls Fran. I wasn't sure about the name when she first told me, but now I think its funny!

Archie donated her electric blue volkswagon to my brother, David, and the ministry in Honduras! I know this was a huge sacrafice to give "Bob" away, I'm so proud of Archie in doing this. God will surely bless her tenfold! It was time to say goodbye to good 'ole Bob, he really was struggling. Bob was a good car and took Archie & friends all over the country. Now he will continue to bless others in Honduras. Goodbye Bob... you will be missed.

Although, there have been many goodbyes for us in 2008 there will be a lot of new beginnings for the year 2009. One of them has been a challenge that Shane and I have been presented with lately. It has to do with managing our finances in a Godly manner. Our pastor spoke about this last month and we were challenged to make wiser decisions. So, we sold my car. I know this sounds extreme, but we've been thinking about it for awhile. We will survive with one car and pay off our debt. It's not much, but we need to rid ourselves of it.

Here are a few new beginnings we can praise our Father for:

Hello to a new town

Hello to new jobs, a very new one for me this semester :)

Hello to new church and new friends

Hello to a new season in our lives

Hello to debt free lives!

Father, remind us each day who we belong to and that everything we have belongs to you. We want to honor you with who we are and with what we have.

Archie and "Bob"

Bob, Archie, and Fran

Handing off the key and shaking on it

La Navidad Bograann

2009-01-02T21:16:00.007-06:00

Christmas 2008 was rockin'! I couldn't have asked for more......my parents, my brother Stevie, my BFF Archie, and my gorgeous hubby all celebrated Christmas with me under the same roof! Well, it would've been perfect if my brother David and his family and Shane's family could've been there too. I guess we can't have it all.

Rather than boring you with details, I'll share our Christmas celebration through photos. Enjoy!

My BFF - Archie

My madre and Archie

Our dinner

Stevie, Mom, and me

Archie and me holding up Shane's new pants

Shane sporting his aviator sun glasses (notice in the background the yard long licorice that I gave Shane for Christmas - his favorite Christmas gift!)

My dad opening his Christmas gift

The wannabe soccer players

The Unforgettable Christmas Gift

2009-01-02T20:17:00.008-06:00

Shane and I went to our very first work Christmas party while at Texas A&M Kingsville. There we had King Ranch Casserole for the first time, which by the way is legendary. Our boss, Scott, hosted the party and had us bring a gift for White Elephant gift exchange.

Shane and I decided that we were going to be different with our white elephant gifts. And boy, was Shane's gift different and unforgettable. My gift, although I thought would be unique, was one of many just like it.

Let me back up by telling you how Shane's gift came about. About a month ago or so, Shane was sick with the flu and didn't have the energy to shave. So he didn't. Instead he let his mustache & gotee grow, as much as it could grow. If you know Shane, then you know that his facial hair does not really grow in as steady as many other's do. It kinda grows in patches, if you know what I mean. I don't mind since I don't really care for facial hair. I like Shane nice and clean faced! :)

So back to my story, he was so excited about having facial hair or partial hair on his face that he wanted me to take a picture so he can send it to his buddies in Baltimore. They have a thing with sending each other funny e-mail's. After seeing how funny the picture turned out, we joked about blowing it up and hanging it on our wall. Then suddenly, Shane had a better idea! He said, "Why don't we blow it up, make it black & white, autograph it "To my Biggest Fan - Shane Meling" and give it away as a white elephant gift at the Christmas party." Excellent idea, honey, excellent idea.

Well, must I say more?!! The framed, autographed glamour shot of Shane was a hit at the party. Our Assistant Athletic Director's wife (Reilli) chose it...opened it....and the roars of laughter began! In the middle of everyone laughing the former Sports Information Director (Fred Nuesch) proposed to switch gifts with Reilli because he wanted Shane's picture to hang up in his office!! Everyone just laughed even more hysterically. Fred was serious...he wanted it. Fred's got what I like to call a "Man crush" on Shane. Fred just loves Shane because Shane is just like him! :)

Needless to say, the framed photo of Shane was a success! Here are a few pictures to prove it. Hope it makes you laugh.

Shane's very sad patch work

The original Photo

The proud recipient of the unforgettable gift

Shane and his biggest fan - Fred Nuesch

A bad picture of our work party

The Chrismakkah Party

2008-12-26T21:47:00.014-06:00

We had a Christmas party at our place while Dawn was in town and it was a hit! When Dawn brought up the idea, we laughed about it since we didn't know who we would invite to our party. We did come up with a list of people to invite - a short one!

I'm so happy we did host a Christmas party because it was so much fun. I made chili and cornbread. Dawn made christmas cookies and delicious artichoke dip. The food was great. We also played trivial pursuit - boys against girls. Good times!

We had a very good time, it was a great chrismakkah party!

Our delicious Chrismakkah desserts

The Christmas Cookie cake

Dawn (D-uu-a-nn's) Visit to Texas

2008-12-22T19:20:00.009-06:00

We were so excited about hosting Dawn, my lovely sister-in-law, from Pittsburgh, PA in December. I didn't realize that she hadn't been in Texas since she lived with me that summer before Shane and I got married. What a summer!!

Needless to say, we had a great time with Dawn. I must say she is my kindred spirit. As she put it...."Vanessa's personality is half her and half Kathe (mom). Shane married half his sister and half his mom!" I do see the similarities when I'm around them. :)

Dawn was in Kingsville for about 4 days and we sure did fill them with many activities. We picked her up in San Antonio and spent the entire day there shopping, seeing the Alamo, and walking on the river walk. We met up with Randi & Jeremy from Austin and ate at a restaurant on the river walk. It was a beautiful day, so beautiful that Dawn changed into flip-flops and wore a summer shirt all day. :) She did put her fleece jacket on later that night.

While Dawn was here we also hosted a Christmas party at our place and it was a HIT! We had a few friends (the only friends we have) over and ate and played trivial pursuit. We just hung out and had a good time. I made chili and corn break and we made lots of desserts. Props go to Dawn for coming up with the idea and making delicious Christmas cookies. It was well worth it.

We also had a crazy idea and decided to drive to a town near San Antonio on Monday night to watch the LeTourneau basketball team play against Texas Lutheran. It was a fantastic game and so much fun. We weren't looking forward to being in a car for 5 hours, but after the game we were glad we went. After watching them, I realized how much I miss watching out men's basketball team. I miss that. I really haven't gotten into basketball at TAMUK, since I really don't know the guys yet. I love the TAMUK basketball girls, they are my favorite team!

Thanks Dawn for such a good time together. You're so much fun! We love you and miss you. Peace Out!

"La Posada" in Kingsville

2008-12-11T23:45:00.007-06:00

Kingsville has an annual Christmas tradition called "La Posada" which includes many events for the community and a Christmas parade through the town. We had a home game, so unfortunately Shane wasn't able to enjoy the parade. It was about 40 degrees outside as we were watching the parade - that's cold for South Texas!

La Posada is a Catholic tradition that is very popular in Mexico. I'm really not sure what it's all about, but it's fun!

Me with Blake, Renee, Erin, Erin's dad, Kayden & Keesten.

The parade

The parade through down town.

Thanksgiving at the VanBrocklin's

2008-12-11T22:35:00.006-06:00

I haven't been able to blog in awhile because there have been a few things going on with my job and life in general. More on this another day.

Shane and I were a little bummed before Thanksgiving because all along we were planning on my parents and my little brother, Stevie to come down to K-town and be with us for the weekend. However, my parents called the week before Thanksgiving to tell us that they were NOT coming down because of an emergency with one of their rent houses. They had to stay and work on the house. I was sad. Although, our plan B was still very amazing.

We were invited by our very good friends, the VanBrocklin's (Kym & Mike) to spend Thanksgiving in Houston with Mike's family, which is only 3 hours away from K-town and gave us enough time to get back for Basketball games on Friday & Saturday. We are so thankful for friends in Houston!

We had such a good time catching up with our friends Mike and Kym, playing pin ball with Carl's pin ball machines, watchinig tv, watching all the dogs play or snap at each other, the hot tub, eating lots of food, and shopping at Garden Ridge. We had a great time. We hope we can do it again.

In the kitchen, preparing Thanksgiving meal.

Shane and Mike after taking a dip in the pool....in Nov!

The kids

Mrs. VanBrocklin, Kym, and Mr. VanBrocklin

Kym tryin to rest

The new addition to the VanBrocklin family - Zeus

King Ranch Annual Ranch Hand Breakfast

2008-11-30T20:15:00.008-06:00

Every year the King Ranch serves a hearty cowboy breakfast served outside on the premises of the historic ranch. Shane and I decided to go and experience what we had heard so much about around town. It was one of the neatest things we have done in awhile.

Once we arrived we realized that we were joining a crowd of 2000 others who were there to experience the cowboy breakfast. We noticed that local volunteers were serving our breakfast plates of eggs, refried beans, biscuits n' gravy, sausage, coffee, and juice. It was more like South Texas style, than cowboy style. It was delicious.

We enjoyed our breakfast in the arena as we watched the cattle roping. Team roping, horseshoeing, rawhide braiding were all a part of the activities, along with live musical entertainment - country music of course. I must say this experience was well worth the $6 we paid. Here are a few pictures of our cowboy experience.

Shane eating his King breakfast

Chili Cook-Off at Bay Area Fellowship

2008-11-25T21:52:00.002-06:00

Our church had a Chili cook-off the other weekend in order to invite people from the community and also spend time with our small groups. Shane and I have been going to a small group through church and we really like it. We are starting to get to know people and that's always good. Our small group decided to have each couple/family make their own pot of chili and so we could serve different types of chili at our table.

My mother-in-law and I found a recipe postcard at the King Ranch with a Chili recipe that I decided to buy. I made it and it was delicious! Although, our small group did not win the chili cook-off, everyone loved my chili. I personally think I should have won the best chili award, but receiving all of the compliments was much better. :)

For those who would like to make Chili during this winter season, I recommend the King Ranch Chili.

3 lbs lean Ground Beef
1 1/2 cups chopped Onions
1 cup chopped Green Pepper
3 cloves Garlic chopped
2 (28 oz) cans chopped Tomotoes (undrained)
2 cups Water
1 (6 oz) can Tomato Paste
8 beef flavored Bouillon Cubes
2 tbsp Chili Powder
1 tbsp Ground Cumin
2 tsp Oregano leaves
2 tsp Brown Sugar

In large kettle or Dutch oven, brown Beef and pour off fat. Add onion, green pepper, and garlic; cook and stir until tender. Add remaining ingredients. Cover; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer 1 hr. Serve with Corn Chips, Corn Muffins, or shredded Cheese if desired. Makes about 4 qts.

Our Praise Band

Our small group table with lots of Chili

Family Visitors

2008-11-15T14:47:00.005-06:00

I can't believe it's been a month since I've written! There's a lot to catch up on. We have been trying to keep up with all of our visitors in Kingsille, so its been extremely busy and difficult to blog. That also means that there is a lot to blog about.

On November 10th, we had the fine privilege of having Kathe & Tom (Shane's mom & dad) come and visit for 8 days! It was nice to have family stay with us and see where we live. For the most part we kept busy. We ate lots of food, watched movies together, watched ESPN, went to TAMUK symphony, went to a basketball game, went to the beach, talked and talked, and visited the King Ranch. The time did fly by.

Kathe and I were able to visit the King Ranch while the boys went golfing. We took the bus tour that took us around the ranch and showed us the cool buildings and amazing horses & cattle. Although, it was raining we were able to take a few photos. If you don't know much about the King Ranch, I encourage you to learn more about it. It's fascinating how much history we have just in our backyard! Did you know that the King Ranch is the largest family-owned ranch in the world? Did you know that the King Ranch is home of the Santa Gretrudis breed of cattle? The King family was a pretty amazing family.

Since we're new to Kingsville, we don't have many established friends or busy lives, which helped in really being able to relax and hang out with Tom & Kathe. I think mom and dad enjoyed us a lot more too.

Longview life had us going in so many directions that we never stopped, even when people came to visit. I must admit, our life in Kingsville has made us SLOW down. Shane and I have been able to spend a lot more time together. As most of you have gathered, there is not much to do here other than eat and uhh..uhh..uhh. :) We are learning to just "BE" and enjoy one another. I think we needed to relax and spend more time at home together. I love spending time with my husband and family of course.

"Be still and Know that I am God." Psalm 46:10

Tom, Kathe, me, and Shane at the Corpus beach

Kathe and me

Kathe and Tom

At the River walk, the day we picked up Tom & Kathe

Remembering the Alamo

All Hallow's Eve

2008-11-08T22:23:00.009-06:00

Shane and I went to a Halloween party that one of our Basketball coaches threw at his place. It was a blast. They had peanut butter "eye balls" and pretzel fingers! We got to see our co-workers all dressed up. Shane and I were pirates for Halloween this
year. I must say that I'm proud of my husband wearing his costume in front of our co-workers. He was an adorable pirate!

It was a good night. :)

Fred & Joan Nuesch ( the former SID & wife) - great friends

oohh..laa...laa - trying to be a sexy pirate

My pirate playing his X-Box

Me sitting on Ronald McDonald's lap

Some of the girls

Shane and Fred - the two SID's

Our hosts for the party

Crystal as Judy the booty-licious

That's Renee as Ronald McDonald!

We went to McDonald's after the party to visit the "real" Ronald

Beach Camp

2008-11-05T21:34:00.007-06:00

Two weekends ago, Shane and I went camping on the beach in Padre Island with some new friends of ours Renee, Blake, Erin, Kent, and the kiddos. It was nice to be able to have a Saturday with Shane. He didn't have to travel with football since he had to work the cross country meet here. WE also had a volleyball game at home. We drove to Corpus Christi and did some shopping and went to Starbucks so that Shane could write his story for football. Shane and I got to the beach pretty late on Saturday night, but it was just on time to get warm near the fire. We roasted marshmallows and had s'mores. It was great. I must say that it made me nostalgic as I remembered my growing up years in San Diego. I used to go to the beach and camp out quite a bit. It was nice to do it again.

The next day, we woke up and Blake started the fire again and cooked breakfast for all of us. It was so cool. Shane and I cleaned up and went to Bay Area Church in Corpus. It was fabulous! It was great to worship with hundreds of people around you. It was also nice to see our pastor in person instead of on a screen. I kinda wish we could go to that church body, but I know that God has great things for us in Bay Area Kingsville.

After church, we ate out in Corpus and drove home. Overall, it was a good weekend of relaxation and fun. Here are some pics to prove it!

This is what I saw when I got out of our tent in the morning

Shane & Tacoma

Blake building the fire

Shane in the morning...Renee & Tacoma in the background

The sun rising - what a beautiful sight!

Our campground

My wonderful husband

Homesick

2008-10-27T12:17:00.006-05:00

Last week was a hard week. I know it's sad that I'm 30 years old and I'm about to say this, but I'm a little homesick for my family, friends, and my old job. It's been a hard week of wrestling with God in my mind and my heart. I'm tired of fighting with him. By the end of the week I did the inevitable - I surrendered. I can't do this life of obedience and continue to serve my ego and my selfishness. Something must give. I choose my God and his will over myself and my plans for my life. I was reminded that He is Good and He is taking care of me even in the midst of struggling with my job, living here and not getting everything I desire. He loves me the same today as he did yesterday. Why is this so hard for me to grasp?

The rest of the week was full of freedom. He does promise that when we yield to him, he brings freedom. That's what I want to live in everyday. Lord, this homesickness I feel may I feel that everyday for heaven.

Although, its been a hard week, we have done a lot to help in getting our minds off of so many transitions. I have been studying for the GRE, since its required for my doctoral admissions. I took the GMAT for Business school. ugh! Please pray for me on Nov 7th, I'll be taking the GRE. I've also been working on the admissions paperwork for my program and it looks like I will be taking a class next semester to ease into being a student again! I think once I begin taking classes and doing what I love to do which is learning, things will be better.

Shane has been busy with work. He has a lot more than I do. He works more than full-time but is learning a lot about football and working for a Div II school. I must admit I can't wait for football to be over, so that we can have somewhat of a normal life again. It will come in time.

Church as been awesome. We love Bay Area Fellowship and are looking at getting plugged in by serving. We are meeting people slowly, but surely.

I leave you with a song by Mercy Me called "Homesick" that describes where I'm at right now and also gives me hope:

"You're in a better place, I've heard a thousand times And at least a thousand times I've rejoiced for you But the reason why I'm broken, the reason why I cry Is how long must I wait to be with you I close my eyes and I see your face If home's where my heart is then I'm out of place. Lord, won't you give me strength to make it through somehow I've never been more homesick than now Help me Lord cause I don't understand your ways The reason why I wonder if I'll ever know But, even if you showed me, the hurt would be the same Cause I'm still here so far away from home I close my eyes and I see your face If home's where my heart is then I'm out of place Lord, won't you give me strength to make it through somehow I've never been more homesick than now In Christ, there are no goodbye And in Christ, there is no end So I'll hold onto Jesus with all that I have To see you again To see you again And I close my eyes and I see your faceIf home's where my heart is then I'm out of place Lord, won't you give me strength to make it through somehow Won't you give me strength to make it through somehow Won't you give me strength to make it through somehowI've never been more homesick than now."

These pictures have made me smile...check them out:

Renee flirting with a stuffed bear at one of our after parties

mmmm! Young's Pizza makes me smile!

Shane being goofy before his radio show

Supreme Nachos made by me are always a comfort food

Renee and I with our mega nachos at the Boosters half-time meal

This is what I saw when I checked my mail at the Post office

Friends Visit K-town

2008-10-21T13:08:00.005-05:00

My dear friend Laura Eaton and her boyfriend Joey came to visit us last weekend. We had a blast with them here. We were touched that they would drive 7 hours from Longview and come and see what life is like for us in Kingsville, Texas!

They drove down last Friday and we hung out all evening. They came down on Homecoming weekend and we got to see the TAMUK bonfire, Hog call (pep rally), and hear the band play. We also played the Pirates of the Carribean dice game that Shane and I love so much! "arrhhh...never trust a pirate!" We had fun.

Saturday was a little more hectic for us. Shane had to work all day since there was a game at home and we had a lot of events before the game. Laura, Joey and I went to the King Ranch Museum and watched a video about the history of the King Ranch. It was fascinating. I learned so much about this area and the ranch that is so close to us. I was so proud of myself learning about Texas history!

Afterwards, we went to the volleyball game, tailgate party, and then the game. I think we tired Laura and Joey out. It was pretty hot outside!

On Sunday, we went to church together and then drove to Corpus for lunch. We went to North Padre Island and hung out at the beach. Malaquite Beach is pretty cool. Sunday night we chilled and played some more games together. I had so much fun with friends!

Shane and I enjoyed our time with Laura and Joey. We love those kids! :) Thank you Laura and Joey for taking the time to come down and be with us. We were honored to have you in our home and show you our lives here in South Texas. We miss you!

Visitors in Mexas

2008-10-21T12:45:00.006-05:00

It's been awhile since I've blogged because we have had a lot of visitors the last few weekends. Mis padres came to visit Mexas (that's what Archie my friend likes to call Kingsville)! They drove down on a Thursday and were here until Sunday morning. The weekend they came down, Shane had an away football game, so he only spent Thursday evening with them. They planned on doing this to spend time with me while my hubby was gone.

We were busy alright. My mom and I made draperies for all of our windows in our little apartment. My dad helped with putting the last few things up on the walls that needed to go up. They helped make our place look complete.

It wasn't all work, we played and had a good time visiting Corpus & Padre. On Friday afternoon, we drove to Corpus to go shopping and we ate at a Seafood restaurant right on the water. It was so cool. We also visited the Selena statue on Ocean Dr. On Saturday, we drove to Mustang Island on Padre Island and we walked on the beach and again ate at a Seafood restaurant....this time it was a Mexican seafood place. It was so yummy!

It was great having my parents here. I didn't realize how home sick I really am. I love just hanging out with my Mom & Dad. They are amazing people that love us and do everything possible to share that love. I couldn't have asked for more godly parents. I thank God everyday for their faithfulness and their loving hearts toward me. They are absolutely amazing.

Thank you mom & dad for being YOU. I love you guys.

Our humble abode - The Meling apt

Mom and Dad

Parents near Columbus' "Nina" replica

Me and Dad next to the Selena statue

Tailgate Extravaganza

2008-10-13T12:21:00.007-05:00

Here are more pictures of our first tailgate par-tay & new friends. Enjoy!

The little "flocorico" dancers. Aren't they adorable?!!

The TAMUK band

The Mariachi band

The mascot and a random person

Marcia, the Athletic secretary & my new friend Renee, the Asst. Softball Coach

The HEB marketing crew

A baseball alum, about to grill his ribs at the tailgate party

Football, like no other

2008-10-09T21:45:00.006-05:00

I haven't been able to blog in awhile because our lives have been a little hectic with new jobs, new city, new life, etc. So I have a little catch up to do. Here we go....

We had our first TAMUK home game finally on Satuday, September 27th. Because of IKE we weren't able to have our first game scheduled earlier in Sept.

What an experience it was! Shane and I had heard there was a lot of community support with athletics, but we never imagined it would be like this! It was Family Fiesta weekend and did they celebrate it - South Texas style! Before each home football game there is a huge tailgate party near the stadium where people from Kingsville, Corpus and the surrounding area come and hang out for hours. These people don't bring a few sandwiches or just a small grill...NO they bring grills as big as my car, dinosaur ribs, ribeye steaks, fajitas and lots and lots of beer! People hand out food and beer for FREE. I ate and ate without having to pay a dime.

The entertainment is incredible and so much fun. There was a mariachi band, flocorico dancers, singers, and so much more. I helped Breanne (the compliance officer) take the HEB grocery store head honchos walk around to pick the HEB tailgater of the game! They chose two winners that won a $100 shopping spree at HEB, which by the way is my new favorite grocery store! If you don't have an HEB near you, you must petition your city to get one. It's fab. :)

After hours of tailgating, people begin to file into the football game at 7 pm. I had forgotten how much fun football games are. Our band came in playing the alma mater which is called "Jalisco" here at TAMUK. I sat with all of the coaches wives and we watched the game together. Although, we lost....the game was interesting and our boys played hard and had a chance to comeback and tie the game. I had a great time.

My description doesn't do it justice, so here are some pictures. GO HOGS!!

one of our fraternities

TAMUK cheerleaders

Our Softball team

What TV Show is your Life?

2008-10-07T17:19:00.009-05:00

If you were to pick any TV show or movie to compare your life to, what would it be? Right now for the Meling's it would be....drumroll please....FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS! Yes, ladies & gentlemen, I'm living that life!

Moving to South Texas and working in the athletic office at TAMUK has opened my eyes to many things, one being the Texas craze over Football. I knew it always existed, but never knew how real it was.

Although, we do not live in Dillon (instead its Kingsville) there are many similarities. One being that its a small town with nothing to do, but for students and their families to put their hopes and dreams on their football team (the Javelinas) to go all the way. Our games are not on Fridays but they are on Saturday nights. I guess you could call our life "Saturday Night Lights." The show focuses on the football players lives and shows many issues facing Middle America and how teenagers are dealing with it.

I like to tell Shane that although he's not the football coach (he's the Sports Information Director) he resembles coach Erik Taylor (who is a hunk) always striving to balance his family, confrontations with the community, and his own life values and ambitions. I of course like to compare myself with the character who plays his wife, Tami Taylor....who I love! Tami plays a guidance counselor at Dillon High School, I am the Academic Advisor for athletes. Tami plays a critical role as she counsels Dillon students as they confront real life issues such as staying in school, sex, drugs, family issues, money, pregnancies, etc. I have done all of the above so far in my job and we're only in October! Of course we would have to subtract the daughter Julie Taylor, who attends Dillon High and dates one of the football players. Do you see the similarities already??

There is even a Buddy Garrity here...he's the owner of Kingsville's Ford/Nissan/GM car dealership and donates a lot of mula to our booster club! His name is Yaklin and he practically owns Kingsville and is one of our head boosters. For those that don't watch the show, you'll have to watch it to understand how weird this is!

So, get a hold of that remote because this show is not only being shown on DirecTV 101, soon we will be bringing you more episodes of "Saturday Night Lights" directly from the Meling blog.....to be continued.

The Javelina being auctioned off at the Football Barbeque auction

Our annual Community Bar-b-que where we raised $15,000

This ones for you VanBrocklins...a signed Astro baseball being auctioned off

Shane interviewing the head football coach on his Wed night ESPN Javalina radio show

Shane's press box for football

Our first home football game

The Meling Update.....

2008-09-22T12:07:00.004-05:00

It's been awhile since I last posted on the happenings of the Melings in South Texas. Let me tell you, a lot has happened. Let me try to recap the last few weeks:

Shane left for Kingsville the first week of August to begin working permanently for TAMUK. I stayed in Lgv for two weeks finishing up my work at LETU. I drove down to Kingsville worked for a week and then Shane and I drove back to Longview to finalize a few things with our house and say goodbye officially to our friends, church, and family. Shane left, I stayed one more week to train the new person & rent our house. Praise the Lord for renters! I then drove back to Kingsville for good. whew!
God's provision.

The last three weeks have been more of an adventure. I received training for my new job and have had a couple of bumps here and there with adapting to a new environment. I don't think I've seen Shane as stressed as I have the last month. He's much better now. I've realized how special working in a Christian environment really is and I do miss so many positive things about that, but there have been good challenges for us to be the Light of the World that our Father calls us to be here at TAMUK. Shane and I are beginning to feel a lot more comfortable with our work, this town, and the people. God's calling.

We stayed with the Asst. AD and his wife until our apartment was available. They were so sweet to keep us. Shane stayed with them an entire month! We had a moving company(who turned out to be somewhat of con-artists) move our things to K-town and our renters moved into our little house in Longview. We had a little bit of a problem with the company of movers we used, but it is all good. Everything worked out. The first week of September was wild with moving into our apartment and working. God's faithfulness.

Two weeks ago, we had a little bit of a scare. Hurricane Ike was headed towards the Corpus Christi area. We had hurricane warnings in the entire Southeastern area of Texas. Optional evacuations were being held in Corpus & Kingsville and beyond, the university had a mandatory evacuation for all students & staff. Wednesday before Ike was to hit, TAMUK began to evacuate all students busing them to another campus about an hour away. It was crazy. The Football game was canceled for that weekend and it was decided to relocate the game to Oklahoma. This meant Shane was going and I was staying. What to do? Where to go? I had the option to drive to Longview or stay alone in our apartment in Kingsville. After much prayer, we decided I was to stay in Kingsville with the option of going to some (new) friends house during the weekend. Boy am I glad I stayed. Houston & East Texas got hit by Ike and we did not. It was sunny and beautiful that weekend while I was alone. Houston - you're in my prayers. God's protection.

Shane has been gone every weekend since I moved down to Kingsville. For the most part it has been good because I've been able to completely unpack our things and settle into our apt. But on the other hand I hate being away from Shane. I didn't really feel it as much when we lived in Longview since I had established friends, family, work, and church. Now, I don't have those things...so it can be sad and lonely at times. It sure has been good for us to lean on each other during this lonely time.In the midst of the loneliness, God has shown his love towards us. God's love.

I think we have found a church. It's a lot like LifePoint. Boy do we miss our church back in Longview. We miss our community group, Sunday services, and our friends there. The church here is a satellite church of Bay Area Fellowship in Corpus Christi which is a church of 5,000, but our church in Kingsville only has 250 people. The pastor was in Kingsville this last weekend and we got to talk to him. Bil Cornelius and his wife are SFA grads and lived in East Texas. It was exciting to talk to him and hear about his vision for the church. More on the church later. God's blessings.

Although it was difficult at the beginning, God has been present with us. His promise stands true....He will never leave us or forsake us. More pics to come...

The Office @ LETU

2008-09-01T17:17:00.008-05:00

This last week I worked training the new person taking my position and got to say goodbye to my friends at the LETU Office.

It was fun to hang out with different groups of people every night. My Cornerstones class had a farewell party for me at one of my student's apt. They ordered pizza and we hung out. It was nice to catch up and be able to say goodbye to my students. I also had lunch with a lot of staff peeps that I worked with. And my department threw a campus-wide farewell reception for me.

I'm going to miss a lot of people from my office. I did tell my boss, Brent Ellis and one of my co-workers, Carlton Mitchell that I was going to miss them and I hope that I will find another Brent & Carlton at TAMUK. They were quick to tell me that it will be hard to find someone like them!

There are some people that I will miss tremendously and helped make my experience at LETU very special. Others I may not miss as much. oh well. There are the Michael Scott's or Jim or Dwight's in the office that you can't help but love and then you have the Angela's or Toby's of the office that you can do without. I will miss those friends and will take them in my heart forever.

Thank you LETU OFFICE for shaping me and loving me to make me who I am today. I couldn't have done it without you. You will be missed.

Ms. Wanda - the "Pam" of the office

Brent, Linda, & Carlton - my "Michael & Dwight" of the office

The ladies of the office

My assistant, Kacie

My fav - Michael Scott

My office at LETU

My new office at TAMUK

Old friends, Good times, the Redmon Ladies

2008-08-29T17:32:00.011-05:00

"Once upon a time, many, many years ago there were 4 beautiful, young girls (Andrea, Beth, Laura, and Vanessa) that lived in a big, old house (the Redmon house) in the middle of a scary, swampy forest (the trailer park). Every day they would get up to work the fields surrounding the forest (go to work or school) because the Evil Stepmother (the government) would force them to work for their living (pay the bills & taxes). Everyday they would go out through the forest, to the fields hoping that one day they would be rescued from the evil stepmother in the scary forest. They did what they knew to do by bringing the grain from the fields (groceries and mula to pay the bills) so that the evil stepmother and they could survive. Day after day, they waited and waited for....." (to be continued)

Before I left for my week of work in Kingsville I had the pleasure of spending some time with some old friends & the most fabulous roommates or housemates I have ever had. OK, maybe the only ones I ever had! Nevertheless, they were the BEST housemates. I must insert a shout-out to Dawn (my sister-in-law) here.......who not only was a fantastic housemate for one summer, but we were also roommates. Thanks for putting up with me Dawn and preparing me to live with a Meling the rest of my life!

The Redmon girls took me out to my favorite place in Longview, Gz's of course! We ate fabulous sushi rolls and had great conversation. There's nothing like being with a group of friends that you have history with and that you lived with! They know you better than most people do. They saw me when I woke up (not a pretty sight) and when I would shut off, too tired to even respond. They saw me at my best and at my worst. They experienced my obsession of cleanliness and put up with my organizational freak outs. They saw me heartbroken over a boy and heart mended because of a boy....ugh boys! They learned what made me laugh and what made me stressed. They knew what made me scream like a maniac (roaches & snakes). They taught me about Texas culture and southern belle etiquette...thank goodness! They encouraged me and taught me to be more like Jesus. Overall, they were more than just roommates, they were my friends and my sisters. I will forever treasure this time and your lives. Farewell for now, Redmon ladies.

beth & dre

laura & me

may our fortunes come true

laura reading her promising fortune

beth, getting into hers

andrea, photogenic as always

Three years, Tres Anos!

2008-08-15T16:32:00.004-05:00

Shane and I celebrated 3 years of marriage on August 13th. Unfortunately, we were not together on the 13th. Shane was in Kingsville and I was in Longview for that week. However, we were able to see each other that weekend since I had to start my first week as an Academic Advisor at TAMUK. I drove to Kingsville on Saturday and met up with Shane and then we drove to Corpus Christi for the weekend. I'm glad its only 30 minutes away.

I must insert a "thank you" here to LETU Admissions because after five years of recruiting and traveling to many cities and staying in many Marriott hotels in foreign cities & states, I was able to get a free hotel night at the Fairfield Inn in Corpus Christi to celebrate my 3rd anniversary. I must say it felt good to get something tangible out of all of those years of hard work. Thank you LeTourneau Admissions!

Shane and I had a great time exploring the city of Corpus Christi. I never knew that Corpus had a population of 275,000 and there was so much fun things to do. Although it rained all weekend while we were there, we were able to do quite a bit. We ate at Macaroni Grill which we were really excited about since we don't have one of those in Longview. Thanks Tom & Kathe for the gift card! Then we went to Barnes & Noble to read and hang out for awhile. We later went to visit the Corpus beaches...they weren't much to talk about. I guess I'm a little spoiled going to the Carribean and growing up in Cali. But it was fun to be close to the water. We drove around to see all the cool places like the Texas State Aquarium, the USS Lexington, the CC Botanical Garden, etc. It was cool to check out all the place that I can take visitors to when they come to Kingsville. Unfortunately, there's not much to see in Kingsville. :( Unless you would like to learn more about Kings Ranch...there is a museum!

All in all, we had a great time celebrating our anniversary and spending time together. This time of being away from Shane has made me thank God everyday for the husband He has given me. While I was single, I would ask God over and over again when he would bring me the person that I was to live the rest of my life with. It felt like an eternity before it was my time. I have a difficult time waiting on the Lord and trusting in His perfect timing. He is faithful. Now as I look at my husband and my marriage, I must say it was worth the wait.

Thank you Shane for 3 wonderful years. I am blessed to have you in my life as my husband. Thank you for challenging me to live well everyday, but above all thank you for loving me well. I love you.

my hubby

It was a rainy day

Good Friends

2008-08-14T23:01:00.005-05:00

This last weekend I drove to Dallas to visit my good friend Amber and Archie. Since I've been a single woman for the last two weeks I have been able to spend a lot of time with good friends and family. I guess that is one good thing about being apart from my husband...maybe the only good thing.

I drove to Dallas on Friday evening and spent the day on Saturday and drove back on Sunday. It was great because Amber, Archie and I just talked all day on Saturday and caught up. It was so relaxing. I'm blessed with such good friends. It was great to meet up with my friends before we move to Kingsville and before little "Charlie Dyer" comes into the world! Can't wait to see him.

We took a few pictures. Enjoy!

Vanessa , Archie, and Amber

Archie & Amber....relaxing

Archie and me looking really tired

The Battlewings ROCK!

2008-08-13T15:26:00.005-05:00

Before Shane left for Kingsville, we were able to go to our last Shreveport/Bossier Battlewings game. The Battlewings are an arena football team in Shreveport. Shane has been doing the stats for this team for the past four years...unbelievable.

Their record has not been good over the last few years, but in the last two years they have done pretty well. The last game we went to was a playoff game and they won!!

We are going to miss doing this in the summers, so of course I had to take pictures of our last game. We're going to miss going to games with the VanBrocklin's and working for Sam (Shane's boss).

Good Times...Good times. We will miss the Battlewings.

at the game

Shane & Mike doing the stats

Shane, Mike, & good 'ole Sam

This is Not my Home

2008-08-10T19:14:00.008-05:00

Last week I was talking to Shane on the phone and I told him that it was amusing that we owned two homes, but as of then we were "homeless" in Kingsville. This conversation and our move to a new town has made me reflect on my perspective on life and on all of the things I own. I have been reminded that this world is not my home, but yet my grip on the things of this world is so strong, I can't let go.

This move to Kingsville has shaken my world of comfort and my need for stability & security as we have to leave behind long-time friendships, great jobs, our house, our amazing church, and my beautiful family and enter into a foreign place (just like Abram) with no idea about work, no friends, no church, and no home. In the midst of all of the questions and the unknown in the last few weeks, God has not forgotten us and we have experienced the 'peace that transcends all understanding'....He is faithful and has supplied our needs like He does with the birds of the air and lilies of the field.

Why is it that I allow the temporary to consume me so easily? I let the things I own to own me instead of remembering that my stuff is temporary. Am I willing to give it all up to follow Christ? Again, this world is not my home. My house, my cars, my education, my money are not my own, they are a gift from my Creator here on earth. Why is it that I put my security in things that are the here & now and I forget that they could be gone in a minute. I deceive myself in thinking that these comforts will bring me peace and security, instead of trusting in the almighty God.

My deepest desire is to live life everyday with a Matthew 6 perspective:

"Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven....For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also....therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear....look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your Heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?....For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well."

May our lives be lived out with a Kingdom perspective, knowing that the things of this world are not ours. May we live our lives everyday as if this world is not our home.

This made our move official.

There is no Good in Goodbye

2008-08-05T19:07:00.006-05:00

A friend gave me a funny card the other day and when I opened it I read "There is no Good in Goodbye," hence the title to my blog. I really feel like this is true for me right now, especially today.

This past weekend Shane and I had to say goodbye to a lot of close and dear friends. It's never easy to say goodbye, but we have been so thankful and blessed in having such amazing people as our friends and love on us! We are humbled and will carry these friendships in our heart as we move on. We will miss you.

Prayer: Father, bless us with friends in Kingsville. Friends that love you and will love us as you've called us to love.

Shane's work friends

The Thomaston's

The Rowland's

Our Pastor, Brian Shobert

This ones for the GIRLS!

2008-08-04T11:37:00.008-05:00

This last week has been an emotional rollercoaster. We have had to say goodbye to a lot of people. Shane left for Kingsville yesterday and it was a sad day in the Meling home. I'm still in Longview and plan to be until the end of August. There are a lot of decisions to make and things to do. I'm confident that its all going to get done in the next few weeks. We have been so blessed in having a moving company move us from Longview to Kingsville, so that we can focus on everything else that involves moving cities and jobs.

Last Thursday "the girls" from my small group took me out for a late birthday dinner and a farewell. It was great to catch up with each one of them and share this time together. It's been more than 2 years of getting to know these girls and sharing life with one another. Even though these are young friendships, I feel as if we've known each other for years. It's funny how God brings certain people into my life to share His love and goodness with me . Sometimes I don't realize I even need them! But my father does.

I remember it started with Nicole calling and sharing her desire to meet and share life with other women. So, I thought.....what the heck....why not?!! Little did I know at the time that I would develop some sweet friendships that would impact my life. God was at work in each of our hearts even then. Thanks Nicole for being so intentional.

I will never forget our Monday night meetings (and then Thursday nights) at our little table at Books-A-Million. We've been through a lot together. That table has heard a lot of crazy conversations! We've talked, processed, and cried over ....in-law tensions, marriage, pregnancies, holidays, personal or family illnesses, our dreams, our fears, having babies (a lot of them!), job struggles, staying home vs. working, our wonderful husbands, moving away, our bodies changing, getting older, "super man" birthdays, anniversaries, and the list goes on and on. We have created a lot of memories together that I will treasure in my heart. Above all, I know that through this time I have been able to count on these friends to pray on my behalf. They have been friends and prayer warriors that have encouraged me to fight the good fight. I am a better person because of it.

I am forever grateful to God for bringing these Godly ladies into my life to not only pour into me but also for me to learn to do the same with them. There are no words to express how I appreciate each one of you and who you have been to me. You will be deeply missed. Thank you.......I am eternally grateful.

This ones for the girls:
"I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, 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." Phil 1:3-6

Stay Strong.

Dinner at GZ's

Kingsville, Texas....where's that??

2008-08-02T14:31:00.008-05:00

On June 16th, Shane received an unexpected e-mail from a current Sports Information Director (SID) at Texas A&M Kingsville telling him about the SID position that was going to be vacant because he was moving into another position. He had been referred to Shane by other SID's from other universities. Shane inquired about the position and after doing some research found out that its 30 minutes away from Corpus Christi, it was a Division II college, they offer good athletics, they have a football team, and they offer the doctorate program in Educational Leadership which is the program I have been looking into for some time now. When I came home that day, Shane told me about it and this was just the beginning to our worlds being shaken and turned around.

This was just the beginning of the major whirlwind that our lives have been caught in. In a matter of a month we visited and were both offered positions to work at Texas A&M Kingsvile(TAMUK). Shane will be working as the Sports Information Director and I will work part-time as an Academic Advisor for athletes and I will go back to school. Needless to say, out faith has been tested and our trust in our God has been our rock during this time. It's incredible to experience the peace of God in the midst of so much chaos. It is amazing to see how God has answered our prayers specifically. We prayed that God would line things up clearly for us if he were to move us and he has in so many ways. We know that he is before us and we are called to follow.

There are so many hopes and dreams that we have for this new place we will call home. Our desire is to be salt & light to a world that desperately needs Christ. The past 8 years that I have been at LeTourneau (5 for Shane) have been a time where we have been invested in and discipled to be followers of Christ. Now, we feel it is time for us to 'shine like stars in the heaven' and hopefully bring light to those in the dark. We know there will be challenges and difficult transitions, but we trust that our Father will not leave us nor forsake us.

So, KINGSVILLE.....here come the Meling's....ready or not!!

"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.....What then shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us?" Romans 8:28, 31

Texas A&M Kingsville campus

We are here... where is that?

Going from being the LETU yellowjackets to the TAMUK "javalinas"

The football field...where Shane will be putting a lot of hours

Near Kingsville

Vanessa's classes will be held in the college of Education

This ones for the Meling's....was there any doubt in your mind?

Wichita Visit

2008-07-31T12:29:00.004-05:00

Here are a few pictures of the craziness we had in Wichita, Kansas with my dearest friend Elisabeth "Archie" Archibald. Great times....great times!!

July Update....

2008-07-30T21:58:00.006-05:00

It's been awhile since I've updated our blog. A lot has happened since the last time I visited the Meling blog. So here is an update for the month of July:

For the 4th of July.....Shane and I went to Shreveport, LA to go shopping at the board walk all afternoon. We went with the VanBrocklins and Mike's mom & sister. After shopping we went to the Battlewings (Arena football) game. Shane does the stats for them. After the game, there was a Jeremy Camp concert. It was fantastic!
We had Robin (Shane's sister) stay with us a few weeks later. It was great to have her hang out a few days. We went to the hot air balloon glow, swimming at my parents, and putt-putt golfing. We had a great time catching up with Robin and hearing about her new upcoming baby!
Shane and I went our seperate ways. He went to Austin to drop off Robin and then to Houston.....I went to Wichita, KS to visit my BFF - Archie. Laura E accompanied me to Wichita and we had a blast. We spent three days visiting LETU friends in Wichita and just hanging with Archie. I love the long, meaningful talks and the crazy "dancing queen" lip syncs we do when we're together. We were inspired after seeing "Mama Mia" in theaters to dance around in stilettos using our hairdryers as our microphones. We captured this scene on video! What can I say??!!!....we know how to have fun!
Shane went to Houston and got to see the Cubs play against the Astros at MinuteMaid Park. He hung out with the VanBrocklin's parents in Houston while I was in Wichita. He had a great time.
Oh....did I mention that we also visited Kingsville this month and made the decision to get new jobs and move away! more on this later....

Needless to say, July was a busy month wtih many exciting and unexpected things for the Melings. I will leave you with a verse that has been my rock the last few weeks...this is the promise I am holding on to -

"For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart." Jer 29:11-13

me, Shane, & Robin eating delicious Tex-Mex!

at the balloon glow

at the Bogran pool

putt-putt golf

ACSD in Ohio

2008-06-13T13:59:00.004-05:00

In the first week of June, 22 Student Affairs staff traveled to a professional development conference called ACSD. The confernce was hosted by Cedarville in Ohio. We had a great time. It was a busy couple of days, but it was great fun. On Wednesday, June 4th, my 30th birthday, we had the afternoon off and went to this cool shopping plaza called "The Greene." We did some shopping and we happened to bump into Jon McLaughlin! Not really. He was practicing for his concert that night and we sat to listen to him. Awesome! Not only is he pretty to look at, he also has an amazing voice and mad skills on the piano. One of my new favorites is "beautiful disaster." [click here to watch the video]. I later find out that he is in the movie Enchanted and although he's not on a Christian label...he's a Christian and an Anderson College grad! yay. That evening the entire staff went to dinner at the Cheescake factory. yummy. They made me wear a Happy Birthday hat and the servers sung to me. fun. It was a good day.

On Thursday, Dawn and Shane kidnapped me up from Cedarville (in the middle of nowhere) and drove me to PA! I spent 4 days with the Meling clan. It was fab. It's always good to spend some quality time with the in-laws and sisters. :) I wish we could do more of it. We did a lot of fun things including going to a Pirates game. I had yet another birthday celebration with the family. It was great to have cake and open up gifts.

Now I'm back at work for the summer until our NY city trip in August. Talk to you soon.

PNC Park

Me & The Pirate

The Philly Cheese Steak Sandwhich at PNC Park

A Surprise Birthday

2008-05-30T22:42:00.016-05:00

I have to admit ....... my husband is awesome! He not only planned and organized the best 30th birthday party ever, the execution was a success. I was completely surprised. Shane has been planning my birthday gathering since February with some help from my best friend, Archie and other good friends. Without me knowing any details, Shane shopped with my mom for food, picked up tables, helped set up, and invited very special friends. He organized for my best friend, Archie and my former college roommate, Rachelle, to drive down from Wichita, KS. I hadn't seen Rachelle in 4 years. Amber and John Dyer drove over from Dallas to surprise me. We also had friends from Longview celebrate with us. Needless to say, I was completely blown away when I saw these dear people at my parents house on Sunday afternoon. What was supposed to be a simple lunch with my parents turned out to be an early 30th birthday party for ME! My birthday is June 4th, so I never expected this. We had a great pool party and grilled chicken kabobs and corn on the cob. mmmm.....yummy. All of the out-of-towners, spent the night at our house. We stayed up late and slept in and then went to IHOP for breakfast. It was a special time to be with such great friends and catch up.

My sweet husband deserves an applause for a job well done. He is a fabulous husband and cares for me so much. I am blessed to have him in my life.

Thank you Father for showing me your favor through my husband's love.

Shane and I

Relaxing near the pool

Kaden and Blue

swimming with Elizabeth

me and Laura

Archie and Rachelle

My birthday gift from Shane - a new IPOD!!!!

The Dyer's

"Cleans the Warehouse" tank - an inside joke

Playing a game of Bocce Ball!

IHOP breakfast the next morning

wedding showers.....baby showers...and other showers

2008-05-17T22:22:00.004-05:00

Lately I've attended many showers - bridal, baby, and I've taken a few in between. I'm showered out! The last one was my favorite because it was for a dear friend - Beth Rountree. She's the 3rd Redmon lady to get married in the last 3 years. 3 down.....1 to go! :) It's great to see how far we all have come. I cherish the moments that we now have together, since its harder to spend time with each other now. It's always a lot more convenient to live with someone and see them all the time. When we are all together it's always....good times! I'm so thankful for friends.

The Original Redmon Ladies

Service

2008-05-13T13:07:00.005-05:00

Yesterday, the Student Affairs staff at LETU put on their construction hats and turned into construction workers for the day. We got to help build a house for a man in our surrounding community. It was a great experience to come together and serve a disabled man that many of us haven't even met!

I was reminded of the verse in I Peter that says, "Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms." As I saw my co-workers using their gifts as we helped build a house for a brother in our community, I couldn't help but praise our Father for the grace he has poured on us. This beautiful grace.......was represented in all forms through the lives of people that I work with everyday. Thank you Father for sharing this grace with me through the people I call my friends.

Belize baby travels to East Texas for a cure

2008-04-28T15:59:00.007-05:00

I had the opportunity to translate for a mom and her baby from Belize. It's a heart-breaking story, but it has a great ending. Check out the news coverage on their arrival and help from so many giving Longview medical doctors & friends. I was humbled by so many people who have poured out their love and given to this family in need.

I got to see little Emily and her mom this morning. Emily is doing so much better, after just 4 days! The results say that she has an extreme case of eczema that can be treated with medication & special diet. What a story!

Click on this link:
http://www.kltv.com/global/video/popup/pop_playerLaunch.asp?vt1=v&clipFormat=flv&clipId1=2419940&at1=News&h1=Belize

Fear Factor Family Olympics

2008-04-28T15:42:00.010-05:00

Yesterday, our church, LifePoint, had their annual Family Fear Factor event! Although, we don't have kiddos...we went anyways. Hey, Shane & I are defined as a family unit, right?!! We had a blast! Shane and I weren't sure if we were going to participate, but we were asked to join a team later on. I'm glad we did. We had soooo much fun. The obstacles were pretty cool.

It was like being a kid all over again. We got to play in muddy water, run like crazy, and be outside all afternoon. This is one of the only programs or events Life Point organizes yearly and it is well worth it. And I must add, our team - The Astros - took first place! Check out our pictures:

Micah's shaved head

The muddy tires

The trenches

Our Pastor - Brian Shobert

We survived!

MAVS Fan for Life

2008-04-10T15:22:00.001-05:00

A few weeks ago, Shane and I spontaneously drove to Dallas to watch a MAVS game. We were blessed by a friend who has season tickets and gave us 4 freet tickets! They were some sweet tickets that included FREE food at the platinum level! We invited our friends Laura & Joey who are major MAVS fans. It was the best pro game I've been too. Mavs beat the Jazz and it was an incredible game! We took a few pics:

Etched into my mind

2008-03-28T16:44:00.004-05:00

This is Roberto (most people call him Dennis). He's from Honduras. He is currently studying the Bible and works with Word of Life in Honduras. I can't get his story out of my mind....it's etched in.

When asked how his mother died, Dennis responds, "My mother died of hunger."

Honduras - Day 14 (Final Day)

2008-03-14T22:00:00.009-05:00

Today we left Honduras after a week of ministry and fun. Shane and I spent the night at my brother's house to spend a few hours with my family on Thursday night. We got to stay up late with them and video the kids doing funny things. We kept them up too late.....but my parents will enjoy the video.

We had breakfast with David, Fernanda, Emily, & Alex at McDonald's. Abigail couldn't come because she had school. She would've missed school if she hadn't had several exams scheduled that day. She has the whole week off for Easter break, so she had to go to school. I did get to say goodbye to her at 6:00 am before the bus picked her up for school. It was crazy waking up that early!! I got to take some pics of Abby.

We met the rest of the group at the Tegu's airport. It was very sad to say goodbye to my family and all of our Honduras friends. I wanted to cry. We will miss this place.

The flight to the US was uneventful, except for one thing. Our plane was about 30 minutes late arriving into Miami. We only had a 1 1/2 hour layover in Miami...that was the time we had to go through customs, pick up our luggage, recheck our luggage, go through the security scanners once again, and get to our gate to board our flight to DFW. whew! It's exhausting just thinking about it. Needless to say, it was a bit tight in order to get onto our connecting flight. Thank God for gracious people that helped our group of 16 to get through all of these hurdles and make our flight. One thing is for sure, we wouldn't have made it if we hadn't left our luggage at the check point (conveyor belt) and if people hadn't let us cut in line at the security scanners. After security, all of us RAN like mad to our connecting gate. It was the funniest sight ever! I had flip-flops on...that was bright of me! Anyways, we made it right when they were boarding. It was a sight to see all of the soccer players soaked in sweat because of the running work out we had just had.

On our flight to DFW, we made bets on getting our luggage or not. To our surprise, half of the group got their bags and the other half did not. Shane and I got part of our luggage and our big one did not show up. oh well..at least we go to Longview safely.

I must say...this was a week to remember. We will miss the camp and miss Honduras. Our group had the time of their lives. We pray that one day we may return to see our Honduran friends again. Good bye Honduras....for now.

Prayer: I am humbled, Father, that you allowed us to see so many be part of your kingdom. We pray for the ongoing ministry in Honduras....may you be honored with it, Lord.

Our nieces, Emily & Abigail

Our nephew, Alex, and Shane

David, my brother, and the kids

Tegucigalpa, Honduras

Auditorium at WOL camp

Word of Life Honduras Camp

Honduras - Juan Carlos Story continued

2008-03-14T10:00:00.010-05:00

continued.....

So, the relationship blossomed even more between Juan Carlos & Sarah. They fell in love and Juan Carlos asked Sarah to marry him and she said YES. The year 2004 was the most beautiful year for Juan Carlos......but little did he know that it would also be the most devastating year.

In 2004, Sarah & Juan Carlos were married. They decided to live in a rural town in Honduras. She worked as a teacher and he as a bus driver. Four 1/2 months after their wedding, tragedy hit. Sarah was killed in a car accident in Honduras. A semi truck hit the vehicle she was in and she was killed instantly. Four months after celebrating unity and oneness, Juan Carlos had to make arrangements for his wife's funeral. It was heart-wrenching.

After Sarah died, Juan Carlos found her Bible and opened it up to find some verses that were Sarah's life verses. It was as if God was sending him confirmation that Sarah was home with her Father. He opened it to a verse that Sarah had highlighted. It was Galatians 2:20, " I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me." It was at that moment that Juan Carlos understood the ultimate sacrafice that God provided for him, for Sarah, for this world. He gave his Son, Jesus Christ, so that he and Sarah may live eternally - that is his hope.

Today, Juan Carlos lives by faith. He works as part of the Word of Life staff as project manager at the campsite in Honduras. He left his job to work alongside my brother for a year and oversee all of the construction on site at the WOL camp. He is now going on 2 years with this job. He also helps out in many other ways, such as bus driver, security guard, maintenance man, and anything else he can serve in. He is truly a servant of God.

Juan Carlos' story is one of redemption. Through his relationship with Sarah, Juan Carlos came to know his Savior.....his Redeemer. She shared the hope that was within her and not only did she share her love with Juan Carlos, but she shared the eternal love of her Heavenly Father. This LOVE is everlasting and continues to live on.....in Juan Carlos.

Prayer: Thank you Lord for Juan Carlos. His life is a testimony to all that you still pursue us with your love.......and your plan, although not always understood, is always perfect.

Honduras - Meet Juan Carlos

2008-03-14T08:00:00.002-05:00

I want to introduce you to Juan Carlos. Juan Carlos has a story that will make you cry and rejoice all at once. It is evident that God is present in his life and has done & will do a work in him and through him.

Juan Carlos is Honduran. He grew up not very far from the capital. He grew up in a poor family. His relationship with his father was a strained one. His father was extremely strict and very harsh with him. This strained relationship caused Juan Carlos to leave his home and travel to the United Stated illegally at a very young age. He crossed the border and went to New Jersey first. While in NJ, he met other Hondurans that were not a very good influence in his life. He began to drink a lot and this began to interfere in his work life. He was leading a life that he knew was not the best for him.

One day, Juan Carlos called his brother, who lives in Pennsylvania, and asked if he could move there to find a job and get away from his life in NJ. His brother told him that he lived in a small town, but that he could help him find a job. So, Juan Carlos moved to this small town near Scranton, PA. There God provided him a job working at a horse stable, God's plan was secretly being put to action without him even knowing it. At this job site, he met a young lady who was hired on to work with horses as well. Her name is Sarah. Sarah was studying at a Bible College in PA and was praying to go as a missionary to a foreign country.

So, little by little Sarah and Juan Carlos got to know each other. They made a plan that Sarah would help Juan Carlos learn English and Juan Carlos would teach her how to speak Spanish. So twice a week they met outside of work to learn each other's language. They began to get to know each other little by little. As they talked, Sarah knew that Juan Carlos was not a believer, so she began to pray for his salvation. One day, Sarah invited him to a basketball game and there she introduced him to a Puerto Rican lady. After the game, they hung out and it was then that they shared the gospel message with Juan Carlos. They asked him if he wanted to make a decision to invite Christ into his life. Juan Carlos said yes. Although, he prayed that night, he still hadn't grasped the depth of that decision of giving his life to the Lord.

Although, Juan Carlos was a baby Christian, the Holy Spirit was doing a work in his life. He began to feel convicted for living in the US illegally. So, he decided that it was time to move back to Honduras because it was the right thing to do. At that point, Juan Carlos & Sarah expressed something more than a friendship with one another. However, Sarah told Juan Carlos that she had promised her parents that she would not marry until after she finished college. Juan Carlos respected that and told her that he would wait for her.

When Sarah graduated from Bible College, she knew that God was calling her to something more than what was comfortable, so she decided to contact missionaries that were in Honduras to work alongside of them and be with Juan Carlos at the same time. The only missionary to respond back to her e-mails was my brother, David with Word of Life. They made arrangements for her to come and work with the WOL ministry. She moved down to Honduras to be close to Juan Carlos and help out with the ministry with my brother. This is how Juan Carlos and my brother got to know each other. Juan Carlos was introduced to WOL ministries for the first time. Little did he know at the time that he would be part of the WOL staff.

To be continued........

Honduras - Day 7

2008-03-13T22:00:00.012-05:00

This morning we were able to sleep in and had breakfast at 8:30 am. We were excited about that!! We spent the morning working at the WOL camp and helping out with whatever we could.

A few of the guys, spent the morning working on the go-karts that were broken. There were 4 that weren't working. Some of the guys worked moving concrete and wood to a certain area of the camp. The girls spent the morning cleaning windows & screens from the house that we stayed in. We all worked very hard. After lunch, some of us just rested a bit and got ready for our 3 pm game we had against a military team.

I was able to spend an hour or so talking to Pablo & Veronica. I don't know if I've shared about them or not. Pablo & Vero are WOL missionaries working under my brother. They have been living in Honduras just a few months (since December) and have only been married for 5 months. They are both from Argentina and have left their country, friends, and family to be missionaries in Honduras. Pablo shared with me that he has been praying for Honduras and the possibility of serving here for 7 years now. Veronica has been praying for this country for over 2 years now. They are very special people. They were in charge of staying at the camp with us all week and planning this week for us. They have been with us every day. Poor kids! :)

Pablo & Veronica have huge hearts and truly love people. They have a desire to work with the sports ministry and activities area in Honduras. Pablo loves soccer and all sports and sees how through playing sports we can reach many people for Christ. He has been able to share with Coach Wait and us how he would like to raise up this ministry in that country and would love for us to get involved. Needless to say, they have been in their element this week.....sharing the gospel through soccer. They have been praying that God would do a work through this ministry and they have been overwhelmed to see how God has worked this week so far.He has opened the doors through Coach Wait's connections and to bring down more teams to do ministry in Honduras.

Last night, they told me that they cried and prayed and cried some more because they were so overtaken by God's goodness. Before they went to bed, Coach Wait was able to give them an offering that was very generous and very timely. They shared with me that this morning (Thursday) they had an appointment to apply for their residency here in Hond, and they knew that in order to do all their paperwork they were going to have to pay something like $300-$400. Well, they didn't have the complete amount until Wait gave them an offering that evening which was the exact amount that they needed to extend their stay in Honduras and apply for their residency. WOW....God is good! Also, Wait offered to pay for their visa application and their flights for them to come to the US to share about this sports ministry and recruit more soccer players to come and play! They are overwhelmed with Joy! Shane and I offered for them to come and stay with us while they are visiting. I hope everything works out. Lord, bless Pablo & Veronica's lives for their complete sacrafice in serving you in Honduras.

By the way, we played the Zambrano Military soccer team this afternoon and we beat them 4-2. Most importantly, we were able to usher about a dozen soldiers from death to life.......seeing them go from simply being Honduran soldiers to becoming Christ's soldiers! All the glory goes to God.

About to play the Military team

Our friend, Pablo

Me and Veronica

Shane, the "Beckham" look-alike!

The Zambrano military praying after hearing the gospel

Honduras - Day 5 (revisited)

2008-03-12T16:07:00.017-05:00

I forgot to mention that we did go to the professional club soccer game last night. It was awesome! Our entire team and a few of the missionaries like Pablo, Veronica, David, Juan Carlos, & Dennis came with.

The game ended 0-0, but Motagua had about 3 to 4 shots on goal. They should've have beat Pachuca (the Mexican team). Our team had a blast and almost couldn't believe we were at a pro game in another country. The fans were unreal! We must have bought a dozen Motagua jerseys just in our group! The guys selling them made money off of our group...that's for sure!

Coach Wait, Daniel Armas, and Jeff Weatherspoon knew one of the players on the Mexican Pachuca team, Jose Torres. Jose is from Longview and grew up here until he was 16 or so. At that age, he made the Pachuca team and moved to Mexico to live and play soccer. His parents still live in Longview and told him we were going to the game in Honduras! We got to see him warm up and called his name out and he saw us from the field! He waved. After the game, he ran towards us and took off his jersey and gave it to Daniel Armas. Of course, Daniel had to hide it under his shirt because all of the Honduran fans were booing him and yelling not very nice things. Those are soccer fans! Most of us walked to the vans after the game, but those who knew Jose waited for him and got to talk to him for a few minutes. It was such a great experience for all of us.

Afterwards, we went to a cool restaurant to eat Pupusas (a El Salvadoran meal). These are like quesadillas but are made with two tortillas and grilled like a pancake. It had been awhile since I had eaten some. They were delicious!

This was definetely a highlight event on the trip. I'm glad David thought of it.

Prayer: Lord, may you be glorified by the small things (like soccer) and the big things (sharing your Truth) in our lives.

Honduras - Day 6

2008-03-12T15:18:00.016-05:00

On Wednesday, we left the camp at 7:00 am in order to travel to Tatumbla, a small town outside of the city. The team had an outdoor game against a school there and in the afternoon they had 2 games with La Central High School once again.

I decided to spend the day with my sister-in-law, nieces, and nephew. So, I didn't get to watch the soccer games, but had a wonderful day with my family. I went over to the house and got to practice volleyball with Abigail, played barbies with Emily, and got to chase the dog, Sasha, with little Alex. Later that afternoon, we went to the mall and ate at Burger King with the kids. They got to play in the indoor jungle gym. I had a great time with all of them! I'm glad I was able to spend some time with them. Although, Shane had to go with the soccer team because they needed him for the outdoor game.

That evening we went to the WOL campground to have some sharing time & have a farewell party for Tim Woodring (Dr. Andy Woodring works at LeTourneau and that's his son), who has been helping the staff out for the last 3 months. He has been living with David & Fer since the end of December and has been working on their very first WOL Honduras website. He has done an amazing job!

The sharing time was powerful. Each WOL missionary was able to share their testimony and how they came to know Christ and be a missionary. We laughed, cried, and were overwhelmed by their stories. It is convicting to see each one of them leave their homes, their careers, their families for the sake of sharing this precious message of the gospel of Jesus Christ. It was very apparent that our group was just floored by their sacrafice. They are simply living by faith. Coach Tom Wait shared his testimony also. It was powerful! We all cried to hear how God moved in his life and hear about his experience with WOL in Schroon Lake, NY. I couldn't help but cry my eyes out. If you know Coach Wait, I encourage you to ask him to share his story and you will be blessed.

After the testimonies, each person on the WOL team stood up and thanked Tim Woodring for his life and his service for the last three months. It is apparent that his work was of great help and will continue being so once the website is up and running. We got to pray for Tim since he flew out on Thursday morning. Afterwards, we had cake and ice cream to celebrate! yummy.

All in all, we had an impactful night with sharing and fellowshipping with one another. It's a beautiful picture of what the church is supposed to do. Sharing what God has done and praising him is such an encouragement! I know that on that night, God looked down upon us and smiled. I know his heart was pleased to hear the obedience and praises of his people.

Lord, may we learn to seek your will in our lives and may we take obedient steps towards it.

Honduras Day 5

2008-03-11T14:25:00.011-05:00

This morning we had a later breakfast and were able to hear Pablo share a devotional and David shared his testimony and showed the group how to share the gospel with the Evangecube. It was good for us to hear how to do it in English so that we can share it and then have it translated. The devo was very encouraging.

Today we played Colegio Tecnico. They are a high school that specializes in technical areas such as engineering, regrigeration, air conditioning, etc. They are like a high school & vocational school combined. Their field was in a small stadium. The field was rough. No grass at all. There were rocks and just dirt on the field. The team was not used to playing under conditions like this. The first half ended 1-0. At half time we went to the stands with the other team and a few fans that were there. Barret shared his testimony and then we had Daniel share the gospel with paints again. We got to split up in small groups and share with individuals. There were a few girls we got to share with. I think there were about 3 soccer players that accepted Christ during half time and few others of the fans. Wow! This is amazing stuff.

We finished the game 2-0. The other team gave us a trophy and we gave away another one of our soccer balls. We got to look around their campus a little before lunch.

This afternoon we have one more game at La Central and then we are going to a professional soccer game in the National stadium. We are going to watch a professional club champions game. Pachuca vs. Motagua tonight at 7:00 pm. It´s going to be a blast. Can´t wait! Well be going back to the campground tonight.

Prayer: Today, may I learn to fear you, O Lord, to live a holy life, and live in obedience to your Word.

Honduras Day 4

2008-03-10T14:46:00.007-05:00

Last night was good. We are staying at the Word of Life campground and its absolutely beautiful! We ate spaghetti for dinner last night and it was amazing. It amazes me how much these guys on our team eat! I guess they are running a lot playing soccer. After dinner, some of the guys went to ride go-carts and some others played FIFA on the X-box 360 they set up for us. They are using the projector to put it against the wall. They are loving it!

Today we woke up and got ready to go to La Central school. La Central school has about 12,000 students attending. We got to the school and played indoor soccer with one of the schools varsity team. The indoor court was pretty small and slick. Our guys had to get used to the floor. The honduran team was very quick. At the first half of the game, we were down 6 to 4. At half time, we had the teams sit down on the court and had Dillon share his testimony. Daniel (one of our missionaries) shared the gospel message with a painting ministry. WOL uses this method of evangelism a lot. After he shared we all spread out and shared with individuals. It was great to see our team share their stories and the gospel with others.

We started the second half and I got to see Shane play a little bit. He almost scored! The game ended up being 8-5, but all was good. I think our guys knew what they needed to do after the first game. They played hard and well. I forgot to mention that during the entire first game, we had David (my bro) commentating. It was hilarious!

We played a second game and ended up 7-4. The seoncd game was good as well. We didn´t have a full presentation, but went ahead and shared one on one with the students. They were very responsive to us. We had 42 decisions for Christ just this morning!! Praise the Lord! It´s amazing to be used by God in this way.

We just had lunch. We will be playing 2 more games this afternoon at the same school. Here we go again.

Prayer today: Lord, humble us so that people will see less of us and more of you.

Sunday in Honduras

2008-03-09T19:00:00.003-05:00

Today is Sunday and we had a busy day. We were able to wake up a little later. Breakfast was at 8:00 am. yay! The group was really excited about this. We went to church this morning, Sunday School first and then big church. It was great. The preaching was very convicting. We went to luunch at Pizza Hut and then went shopping to Valle de Angeles. It was fun. We´re now at the WOL office sending e-mails and catching up with the WOL staff.

The team is very excited about playing this coming week. Can´t wait for tomorrow, we´ll be going to the biggest school in the country - La Central. We´ll be playing 4 games, 2 in the morning and 2 in the afternoon. Please pray for us, that we may have the strength to keep up with everything here. We are having the time of our lives and loving it!

Prayer: That we may represent Christ well tomorrow at the school and soccer games.

David and the kids at church

Lunch at Pizza Hut with the team

Our Team

Coach Wait driving a taxi skooter in Valle de Angeles!

Our niece Abigail

Veronica, Pablo, and Tim Woodring

We arrived

2008-03-08T09:36:00.005-06:00

We are here in Honduras. Arrived at 2 yesterday. It was a long trip, but we arrived safely. The WOL camp is beautiful and we are loving staying there. All is well.

Got to go sightseeing today. It was great!

Arriving at the Tegucigalpa airport...like celebrities!

Waiting for David to pick us up at the airport

Word of Life Camp

Me, my nieces, and Sasha (the dog)

"The Christ" - sightseeing

Our team

Honduras...mi patria!

2008-03-05T17:31:00.006-06:00

Where has the time gone? It feels like yesterday that we were discussing the idea of taking the LETU men's soccer team to Honduras on a mission trip and now we're leaving in two days! There are 16 students, staff & friend flying down to Tegucigalpa to sponsor/ organize soccer clinics & games as a means to share the gospel with those in Honduras. I'm particularly excited because we will be working with my brother David and Word of Life ministries. I can't wait to see my sister-in-law, nieces, and nephew while we are down there! I want to hug and love on those kids so much. I wish I could do that more often.........if only they lived closer to us. This will be Shane's first trip to Honduras, so it will be an experience. We fly out Friday at 6:00 am - JOY!

Although, I nor my siblings were born in Honduras, our roots come from my parents being born and growing up there. It's amazing how God prepared David and his family to go back and do ministry there. God, you are sovereign.

My desire next week is not only to show my husband and friends my country - "mi patria" -Honduras.....but also to see God work in my heart and the hearts of those that will be hearing the message of Jesus Christ.

My Prayer Today: Father, give me a heart of compassion for the lost......just like yours.

Sucked In!

2008-02-26T11:36:00.000-06:00

So, I never thought I would do it.....but I got sucked in. We now have a Meling blog! After keeping up with friends through their blog, I saw how a blog has its perks. We'll see how often I will keep up with this thing. I thought it would be a good way to have family read about what's going on with their sweet kids S & V in Texas. So here it goes, Once upon a time.......