Dad of 3 daughters

"You know you live in a house full of women when you find yourself referring your 'boxers' to 'panties' "

-Ken Posey

Happy Father's Day to the best dad of 3 daughters!!

We love you

Don't mind me while I brag.. Part 2

As I mentioned last week, my youngest sister was on Fayetteville High School's Colors Day court last Friday night. Here are a few pictures Kirsten took of my gorgeous sister Alex and my family..

We are so proud of you AlPal and love you so much!!!

 As for this weekend.. I had a great one! I spent the weekend with great friends, my family, lots of little kids, and had a the best Valentines Day I have had in about 4 years!! 

I hope you had a wonderful weekend and a very special Valentines Day! 

God is good.. all the time!

the mayonnaise jar

A professor stood before his philosophy class
and had some items in front of him.
When the class began, wordlessly,
He picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar
And proceeded to fill it with golf balls.

He then asked the students, if the jar was full.
They agreed that it was.

The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured
them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly.
The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls.

He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.

The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar.
Of course, the sand filled up everything else.
He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with a unanimous 'yes.'

The professor then produced two cups of coffee from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar, effectively
filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed.

'Now,' said the professor, as the laughter subsided,
'I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life.
The golf balls are the important things - family,
children, health, friends, and favorite passions –
Things that if everything else was lost and only they remained, Your life would still be full.

The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, house, and car.

The sand is everything else --The small stuff.

'If you put the sand into the jar first,' He continued,
there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls.
The same goes for life.

If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff,
You will never have room for the things that are important to you.

So...

Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness.
Play with your children.
Take time to get medical checkups.
Take your partner out to dinner.

There will always be time to clean the house and fix the disposal.

'Take care of the golf balls first --
The things that really matter.
Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.'

One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the coffee represented.

The professor smiled.
'I'm glad you asked'.

'It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem,
there's always room for a couple of cups of coffee with a friend.'

I got this from an email I just received.

I hope you had a wonderful weekend!

Don't mind me while I brag.. Part 1

My youngest sister, Alex, is on Fayetteville High School's Colors Day court!!!!!!! They announced this today at the pep rally and I could not be more proud of my little AlPal!!

Colors Day is like the basketball homecoming for those of you that don't know. I will follow up with part 2 after next Friday (week from today) basketball game when she walks the court looking beautiful!

I love you Peter, and SO proud of you!!!!!!!

(Alex answers to about 15 different nick names, "Peter" and "AlPal" are the two I go with, never just "Alex".. Just a little FYI)

beginning to get restless

Above was my entertainment for the day. Lazy? I would think so too if my car didn't have about a foot of snow on it and was frozen shut. Awesome, I know. So needless to say the most productive part of my day was taking a shower and finding a clean pair of new sweatpants to put on.

Last night was an exciting night.. about 6:30 my parents decided to get us all out of the house and go grab a pizza. I felt like this was such a treat, having been stuck inside all day. And it was a special outing, it isn't often we all get to go out to dinner together with everyone's different schedules, so it was lovely. The roads were covered in ice and snow and my Dad's huge truck slid quite a bit, but it was so nice to have a change of scenery.

This snow storm has been very relaxing. It is nice to not hear trees snapping and falling every five minutes. I'm very thankful the firemen didn't have to come rescue our home like last year. Very fortunate to have the power on the whole time. And it is very peaceful feeling to look out the windows to tons and tons of snow. Even the ugliest things are always so pretty covered in snow; at least I think so!

I do believe the chance for more snow is unlikely, and that is pretty much fine with me. I'm beginning to get pretty restless around here.

Hallie Mae's day was just as hard as mine..

I hope you've had a blessed weekend yourself!

He listens

Its funny how God works. How He speaks to us. What he teaches us, and how. Sometimes in my daily walk with Him I try too hard to figure out my assignment for the day. Try to hard to listen to my direction. When really, I just need to be still. Just listen. I find that normally when I receive a "clear" teaching is when I usually have my mind on a different track then the one I was originally focused on. Its not that I think He doesn't listen, nor that I am suppose to know just everything He has planned. That is the wonderful thing about having faith in Him. He surprises us constantly. With the most perfect plan. At the most perfect time. He does listen. Constantly.

Lately my heart has been heavy. It seems that there is so much going on in my little world with those around me. My thoughts seem so caught up about those close to me, those I don't even know, and those so far away. My heart is heavy to help. Heavy to pray for each and every soul on my list. I find myself questioning "Why," "Why now," Why to them?" I can't help it. I can't help but tear up. I can't help but get frustrated with the "whys." Hard times like these make moments of blessings and thanksgiving seem foggy. How selfish is that? I'll admit it. That is just selfish of me.

I am quickly reminded how truly blessed I am. I think about how selfish I have been this past year. How selfish my thoughts and writings have come across. I may have had a total broken heart, but I'm alive. I lost a lot in a house fire, but I have a family that survived. I questioned everything. Prayed constantly. My timing and God's timing were far from the same path. I contemplate my feelings from this past year and all that has happened, and I never thought a year later I would truly thank my perfect Lord for all he has done. He has blessed me with a wonderful understanding of His love, of the true meaning of love in general, the value of a strong family, and poured blessings upon me through wonderful people and friends. He has taught me the total power of prayer, and the strength behind it. The undying love that he has for me. He has never once left me, nor forsaken me, just as he has promised. He is a God of Grace and Mercy. A God of patients and justice. I can't even begin to explain the countless lessons and the strength He has provided my heart. He has PROMISED to make my path, to plan MY life, and for me to NOT worry, to only trust. He yanked precious things from my life to straighten me out, to draw me nearer and closer to Him. I see that. I see how all the bricks fit so closely together. I am truly thankful.

I've climbed mountains this year. I have witnessed God's mighty power work over my heart. I truly believe he can do anything. No prayer is ever too big, or too long. He hears them all. But the key we fight is the response. It might not always meet ours, in fact it usually doesn't. Sometimes our desires and His are really quite different. But isn't it funny how everything works out perfectly? Isn't it funny how when we look back and we are able to see how all the pieces fit perfectly together, how that one thing makes perfect sense to lead to the next? He's a perfect God. With a perfect plan for each of us. He loves us.

Tonight I remind myself of His love. I've spent the day with a confused heart. I feel like anymore I am constantly adding something to my prayer list. I pray constantly for those I know in the hospital. For Mary Drake, a 16 year old beautiful girl, that was in a horrible car wreck, and by God's grace alone, with no medical reasoning at all, she is alive and currently recovering in Little Rock. I pray for a very special person's grandmother that is very ill in the hospital and is just waiting for Jesus to take her home. I pray for God to provide him strength, for clear understanding and comfort to him and his family. I am thankful for the doctor's knowledge and their hands that are constantly trying to physically heal her. I constantly think and pray for the children in orphanages around the world. For the precious faces that are without families, those on the streets without food and shelter. Lately my heart has been heavy around the holiday for those families that celebrated without loved ones near. Holidays are so special and so traditional, therefore not having those special people around makes it so much harder. My heart goes to those people; my heart is weak for them. I pray for the men and women fighting for my life around the world right now. That God will put each under his wing, and if it is in His will, and His will alone, they will return safely to their families. I pray for my best friend, that God will pour out crystal clear direction and amazing strength. I praise Him for her talent and faithful friendship. I pray for the little kids I keep, that God will work wonders in their little hearts and lives. I am truly thankful for how he uses each little child to touch my life. The list goes on and on... With knowing the ability behind the power of prayer now makes my heart so heavy to not forget a situation. Not to forget others.

In the midst of dwelling on this today, I was at the point of finally being distracted by something else, by His word. In Bible Study, He taught me. Crystal clear. Our memory verse for this week was Philippians 4:6 "Be anxious for nothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your request be made known unto God." Just what I needed to hear. Be anxious in NOTHING but in EVERYTHING by prayer.

I just smiled. Thank you Jesus. Thank you for speaking to me. Thank you for all your blessings, for all your teachings. Thank you for your love that endures forever.

I am truly thankful. So thankful that He listens to little old me.

Christmas 2009

It's been awhile since you last heard from me. I decided explaining all these events would be easier with a few props.

Our first Kappa Alumni Christmas party!

Since our freshman year of college a group of guys I went to high school with have thrown an ugly Christmas sweater party. Seems every year it gets bigger and bigger. Its always a great time to catch up with those that we graduated with. Here are a few pictures from it.

And the big event..

On December 22 my family and my Mom's side of the family packed it up and went to Telluride, Colorado for Christmas. I think I already told you this. I am pretty big on traditions when it comes to the holiday season. This year was a little easier than I thought it would be. Although, I have to say there were a lot of "firsts" that I never thought would happen on Christmas day! Ha, prepare yourself... And might I mention, the condo we all stayed in was rather "Calico Country," if you will.. which makes it even more of a laugh.

Our lovely stockings hanging from the mantel..

A few first were..

Going to a Catholic Mass on Christmas Eve (NOTHING at ALL wrong with this, it was just a first)

Crying through the entire Christmas service. Typically just during Silent Night. Not this year!

Not being at my church on Christmas Eve for the first time in my life.

Not having one present to open.

Not waking up in Fayetteville Christmas morning.

Waking up with all my cousins on Christmas morning under the same roof.

Not having a Christmas tree. Rather, a floor lamp that my Mom decorated. Ha! It worked.

I skied on Christmas Eve and day. Never have done that on Christmas.

Whenever I talk about Telluride to someone I always describe it as "Dickson St surrounded by mountains." Literally. Telluride is a very very small ski town in the very southwest corner of Colorado. There is one main street. One way in town and one way out. A very local and "hippie" town. So laid back. I love it.

This is looking down on Telluride from the ski lift.

Downtown..

The town is so laid back that there are several famous people that either do, or have, owned houses there. For instance, here is Oprah's..

One day on the slopes Clare and I met a little friend. Pete. Pete the Porcupine.

He was pretty cute. Ski Patrol was standing around him. Apparently their spikes aren't the problem, but rather their bites. And no, that is not neither Clare or I next to him, that is some lady.

My love for little kids grew even more when I saw this little tike on the slopes. He came up MAYBE to my knee. Precious. Hopefully I'll have a little one to do this with some day.

And yes, that is yours truly in the black night get up, posing so it wouldn't be obvious Clare was taking this kids pic!

We got back in town yesterday. It was a great trip! We had so much fun and had lots of laughs. I hope your Christmas was just as delightful!

2009, don't let the door hit ya from behind!! I will not miss you!!!!!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!

And as said back when I thought I was cool in 2nd grade..

"SEE YA NEXT YEAR GUYS!!!"

A Saturday with the BFF and Thankfulness

Saturdays with the best friend might just be one of the greatest things two can do. Kirsten and I met up about 11 yesterday and tried out the new cupcake place on the square. Our expectations of this place were different than it actually was. I think we had in mind cupcakes galore, any and every kind of cupcake combination. Nope. There were about 7 to choose from. Still great though. And their size was a little smaller than other cupcake places we have been to. Don't get me wrong they were still very yummy. And gourmet also. Second on the list was to go to all these little stores that we have been hearing so much about, but have both been a little too busy to visit. Of course our adventures made their way to our favorite antique shops and we found some new ones too! A love for vintage jewelry was found yesterday. You should see all these fabulous finds we found. We got all kinds of neat things and did not pay over $10 for anything! A new obsession for sure.

In addition to all this, Kirsten has been eyeing the side of this liquor store for quite some time now. It has a great saying, "Some things never change, And shouldn't.." painted on the side of it. So she pulled over and we took a few snapshots in front of it. It was a great day yesterday, so why not?

We finished the day off with a fiesta party at my parents house to watch the Hogs play LSU. Poor little piggies.

Yesterday was a great day! I'm so excited about my vintage finds!

Lastly, I don't even know where to begin with my Thankful list. I have attempted it a few times and deleted it. Because honestly, I truly don't know where to start. This year has over flowed with life changing events and in return has totally been conquered with blessing and happiness. I know without a doubt I am thankful for safety through the fire, for a wonderful and close family, for friends and a support group I couldn't go without, for God's grace and the power of prayer, and for the realization that life's "traumatic times" are unexpectedly followed by the most wonderful and unimaginable situations. I am thankful that with time the "traumatic times" eventually end up on the Thankful list.

I hope you had a blessed Thanksgiving and a wonderful weekend.

I stand corrected!

I got an email from my blog this morning not too long after I posted it. With a comment from my sister reading:

"Thanks for leaving me out on the shout out for Luke and Kirsten... I sat with ya'll too! Rude!"

1. I did not realize I was making a shout out. I thought I was telling a story.

2. She is correct. Blake did sit with us during the Razorback game on Saturday. Right next to me in fact. How I forgot to include her? I have no idea!! I think it is safe to say Kirsten,Luke and I had a great time with Blaker P there!!!

3. Blake, I am truly sorry for the hurt feelings. I do sense your humor in the "Rude!" comment and can just hear you saying it, and it makes me laugh. It will never happen again. Please forgive me.

4. Because of my "rudeness" this is the least I can do..

(I owe you a shrine of photos, my uploading isn't working)

So sorry again! I love you B!

(This post is sincere, with a twist of sarcasm for those of you that are unaware of our relationship)

Cold AR game

This weekend was a great one! Full of great friends and family.

Saturday the Posey's woke up at the crack of dawn to head to Donald W. Reynolds stadium to watch Arkansas play. I quickly learned my lesson this season. It is only October and my little cold weathered self is already freezing. Thankfully Steven left his jacket in his Dad's car, or who knows what my status would have been. Note to self: BUNDLE UP! Here are the 2 pictures I took at the game:

AlPal and me on the deck after breakfast

Steven with his favorite brown headed Posey sisters.

After this large win I hung out with a special friend and did absolutely nothing yesterday.

Yes, my projects I posted about the other day are complete. So that is super exciting. Tonight is Wine Night, one of the greatest times of the month. This week is going to be beyond productive and a huge possibility of posting to you out of state! So exciting!!

"Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; His love endures forever."

Psalm 118:1

Have a blessed day. Be Thankful!

Happy October Monday

Oh the Duck Club Pics

As follows are the promised pictures from the "Family Redneck Weekend" in celebration of Uncle Stephen's 60th Birthday at the Duck Club...

The Birthday Boy Himself.

Please take this picture with a grain of salt and with a good laugh. In my 23 years of loving this man I will say this is one of the very few times I have seen him in jeans. He is usually always found in khaki pants and a blue button up shirt of some sort. Enjoy this one, its in very rare form. Love it!

Some of us..

Clare, Andrew, Matt, and Jessica

Elizabeth and Blake going for a little drive in the woods.

Dad and Alex testing out the "bug zapper"

Clare is quite the fisherman. Caught all by herself. So proud!

The two pictures above are Clare & Andrew and Clare & me. These two were taken one night when we went on a little adventure ride in the dark and needless to say, we ran out of gas. Luckily we were with my parents and some other family members were on another ride as well. We got home safely, but had to spend our time doing something, so there ya go!

Hope you enjoyed! I'm sure you want to go to the Duck Club now.

This week has flown by!! I can't believe tomorrow is Friday.. crazy. But I hope it has been just fabulous!!

Yours Truly,

Kenlie

Just another weekend

This weekend was an eventful one to say the least! I have pictures to share but they are on my camera and in my car, so I'm going to do a two day post!

Friday

Nothing too exciting happened Friday night. I ordered two new awesome articles of clothing for fall. But... YEP!.. that was my Friday night!

Saturday

Alex and I drove to Little Rock around 9.

Arrived to an empty house with no key to be found.

Found key. Unset alarm.

Opened garage and got things out of car. Closed garage. Went upstairs.

Got in shower.

Was disrupted in shower by voice of "LR POLICE"

Got out and was told apparently I don't know how to turn alarm off.

Alarm was off. Was making no sound.

Was greeted by several police MEN in my towel in living room.

Police left. Alarm messed up.

Crazy game day traffic.

Parking pass with cousin, who wasn't with us. Cell phone service horrible.

Begged to wait in parking lot for her. Second encounter with police.

Found cousin. Parked car.

HOGS WON!!!!!!!

Sunday & Monday

We left Little Rock early Sunday morning to go meet the rest of our large family at the duck club which is about an hour outside of Little Rock. A large family gathering took place in the honor and celebration of my Uncle's 60th Birthday!! One of his most favorite things to do is to duck hunt, so what is more appropriate? Even though I didn't duck hunt.. or hunt anything for that matter. I did get to know a side of myself that has never come out before, in fact, I think all the women in our family can now say that. Pictures tomorrow will do much more justice. Lets just say that I didn't know we could represent Arkansas as well as we did. Man, did we ever live up to every comment ever made about Arkansans.

Its good every once in a while to do something not normally done. Explore yourself and abilities a bit. It was fun I'll have to admit, but I do think I'll stick with my paint brushes, purses, and high heels.

Its not often we are all under the same roof. We had great laughs and made many memories. Even though Saturday was a bit on the crazy side.. oh my.. it was a great labor day weekend!! I hope yours was too.

Today was full of work awesomeness, and the first night of Bible Study. My Dad and I took a class together last year, and started our second one tonight. This one is called the "Second Coming" which is the study of the book of Revelation and the second coming of Jesus Christ. I'm really excited and can't wait to break this particular book apart. I look forward between now and April in sharing things with you that we learn.

Have a wonderful day tomorrow and an awesome week!

Don't forget the pictures tomorrow!! They'll be a hoot!

Always,

Kenlie

"Blessed is the one who reads the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take it to heart what is written in it, because the time is near."

Revelation 1: 3

To keep you in the know

With nothing else to say, here is what I've been up to lately....

** Wednesday I was driving to work in the "first day of school traffic" and had several thoughts:

1. I'm completely thankful for my college degree. And the simple fact school is no longer in my everyday schedule.

2. I'm totally loving what I do. And 100% content with it having absolutely nothing to do with my degree. And I have completely excepted that. It makes me happy, keeps the bills paid, and allows me to be me and also use a talent I was blessed with. And that is all that matters to me.

3. I am so glad I didn't spend the end of my summer worried about decorating a classroom, learning names of students, writing lesson plans, and trying to figure out the easiest way to germ-x a classroom.

** I have officially finished season 1 of GossipGirl and can not wait until tomorrow so I can mark "Target- GG S2" off my ToDo list

** Sorority Recruitment is taking place this week. Kind of a weird feeling to not have work week for the first time in 3 summers. Not complaining though.

** My youngest sister started her SR year of high school. Talk about making you feel old. I'm still not over the fact she started driving 2 years ago.

** Clare moved to Dallas. Kind of a weird feeling to not be in the same state. But she is down there for grad school, so I guess that is ok.

** I recently took someone's last name out of my contacts in my phone. Now identified on a first name bases. That's a big step.

** I am sick of summer and ready for a change of season. I'm looking totally forward to seeing what the "real world" is like without balancing a class schedule. I'm ready for football season. Wearing fall clothes and all my boots.

** I've had many laughs lately and lots of classic quotes. A few involving:

1. Account Kirsten's accent and completely unaware until I called it out by laughing "We can just tie the candy onto the "ada badle." AKA WATER BOTTLE. We still laugh 4 days later and convinced that we will never use "water bottle" in our vocabulary.

2. For those of you that know me, know a third grader could beat me in a spelling contest. Spell check, dear friends, and this lovely red line the MacBook offers are all true blessings to me. I wrote "diamods" in a quote on a canvas to sell in the store. Suppose to be "diamonds." Classic Kenlie.

3. Blake informed Alex and me that "she knows all the juicy gossip up and down Maple St because she is a gamma chi!" Anyone that knows Blake, knows she is a mess and this quote fits her to a T. HAHA!! Alex and I probably wont ever let her live that down.

** Starbuck's shaken green tea with lemon aid is what I now crave on a regular basis.

** "Fabulous" has been a word I have been using day to day for about a month now in my vocabulary.

With the busy days I've had, I thought I would share with you my thoughts, changes, and obsessions. I guess everyone is entitled to a pointless blog, here is mine. : ) I hope you had a wonderful week. Happy Friday!!!!

**And Remember: If you know anyone going through rush or moving into a dorm room, don't forget us at Riffraff!!! We will be open on Sunday due to Bid Day being moved to 9AM Sunday morning. Good luck to all the girls out there turning in a pref card as well!!!

Always,

Kenlie