Noteworthy-A little bump in the road!

Here's a note to record the Lord's faithfulness throughout our life's journey. This is an email Mommy sent to friends and family after the contract on our house fell through... Hello friends and family! We just got news today that the "solid" : ) contract on our home is a 'no-go'. Although we were initially inclined to feel diappointed by this news, we'll leave it just as it is.... 'a bump in the road'. As we've been working our way through 1 Peter at church, I'm reminded that these circumstance happen to build our faith in a good God. So we are not losing heart, and still trust there to be a buyer who will find our home to be a perfect fit for their family, all in due time. Would you be praying with us for the sale of our home and that we would behave as His children during this time of waiting? Please pray that we would be able to move to KC together as a family, that our house would sell before our temp housing allowance runs out, and that I would stay encouraged while showing a house with two little rascals around! May our faith be proven genuine for His glory.... We're grateful for each of you! Blessings, Belinda (for my fellas too!) "I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me and 90% how I react to it." -Charles Swindoll

Hakuna Matata!!!!

The 'Theme Song' in the McCulley household over the past couple of months has been Hakuna Matata, which means "no worries" in Swahili!!! Wyatt loves the movie Lion King and he couldn't have learned this song at a more perfect time in life... He sings it to me and it instantly reminds me to have more FAITH, like that of a child!!!! Wyatt has such a great perspective on everything in life (excpet when I say no to say, candy!)... Like when we walk outside on a 100 degree day with no air moving at all and he says, "It's a really nice day out, isn't it Mommy? Sky is blue! No clouds!" Everything in me wants to say, "No, Wyatt... It's too HOT!" but his sweet spirit is a humble reminder to be content and thankful for all things!

So life isn't going exaclty as I had planned right now... I'm not really in favor of uprooting already and making another move across the country, but it is the decision that has been made... So I'm doing my best to find rest in the sovereign One who's got the 'worries' all under control! Hukana Matata for the rest of our days...

Noteworthy-Another move in progress...

Here's an email that Daddy sent to our friends and family letting everyone know of our upcoming move from Clarksburg, MD to Kansas City, just 9 months after making a move from Northwest Indiana to the east coast! Dear friends and family- Belinda and I wanted to let you know we have another move in progress! I have recently accepted a position with the FDA-OCI (Office of Criminal Investigations) in Kansas City. We will be moving to the Kansas City area at the end of August when I begin my new job. Leaving the Service has not been an easy decision nor has leaving our new friends, church & home here in Maryland. We are however, excited for this next season in our lives. God has reassured us that this is the right move for our family in many ways; not the least of which was finding a buyer for our house within 48 hours of listing it! We look forward to catching up with many of you soon but didn't want this news to reach you through the "grapevine". God Bless- The McCulleys

Happy Birthday Tunes!

A Birthday Weekend...

We had a very fun-filled weekend celebrating Joe's 32nd Birthday! We started of the weekend with a 'date night' on Friday while our sweet babysitter watched the boys. Joe and I headed to our favorite Mexican spot, Guapo's, where we sat on the patio for dinner and listened to a live Jimmy Buffet style band play! It was a great night OUT!

Saturday morning we headed to a man-made beach in our area with our care group from church. It was HOT but still tons of fun to hang out and relax in the sand. Thanks for out cute, coordinating outfits, Gamma!

This is a photo of Joe, Bryan (Wyatt's buddy!) and Wy guy splashing in the water!

Then Saturday night, I spotaneously decided at 6pm to run an 8K twilight race that started at 9pm. So it was a late night for everyone but it was loads of fun to run in the dark with my boys cheering me on from the sidestreets! : ) Afterwards, there was a festival and live music so we partied for a while then my little guys crashed hard on the ride home! Monday, we made a trip to see Daddy at work! This was one of Wyatt's favorite days EVER, I think. He got to sit int he BIG diesel truck with lights and sirens blaring... He thought he was pretty cool!

And he even got to step foot into the ambulance and sit on some motorcycles!

And finally, today we had a big birthday for all of our Maryland fam who have birthdays in the summertime. We had a pool party followed by movie night!!! We love to party so we're sad the weekend is over, but we'll make more excuses soon... : )

NoteWorthy... Earthquake!

We experienced our first (and hopefully LAST) earthquake this morning in Maryland. You heard me right, there was an EARTHQUAKE in Maryland of all places! We awoke to a violent shaking very early this morning.... There was a huge grumbling noise and it sounded like a jet was hovering over our roof, causing the ground to rumble beneath us. It only lasted a few seconds but left us very perplexed. Joe said, "That was an earthquake!" and I said, "No it wasn't. There aren't earthquakes in MD!" Well we were both a little groggy and fell back to sleep. But sure enough, as soon as we turned on The Today Show at 7am they were reporting the strange event that took place to be an earthquake. My man was right! And the epicenter was about 3 miles from our house! Here's a short article from the Washington Times... Earthquake in Maryland: D.C. area rocked Michael Blanpied Earthquake Expert, U.S. Geological Survey(USGS) Friday, July 16, 2010; 11:00 AM The U.S. Geological Survey reported a 3.6 magnitude earthquake centered in Montgomery County at 5:04 a.m. Friday. The epicenter was in Gaithersburg near I-270 and Route 124 (39.145 degrees N, 77.222 degrees W), USGS reported in a preliminary finding. Its depth was 3.1 miles

Wy Update!

It has been too long since I last posted an update on my Wy Guy. So here he is at two years and four months. And as you can see, Wyatt is not lacking in personality...

Wy is still quite the little chef, except this time he cracked the egg on the chair instead of in the pan. "Oopsies!" he said. Wyatt loves snacktime and often browses through the pantry all on his own. This is the 'I'm caught!' look! But he does always comes to me with snack in hand, before opening the wrapper and says, "Want this, please!" As if PLEASE always gains Mommy's blessing! : ) Like mother, like son! OK, so let me explain... I included this photo to remind us of Wyatt's need for things to be straight, in-line, and orderly! I love it--let's hope it sticks! Ahhhhh! Is he the cutest little cowboy you've ever seen ? Wyatt LOVES Buzz Light Year and all of the characters from Toy Story 2 (Toy Story 1 was too scary so he'll only watch the second one!) Wy loves to build towers and then knock them down! Mr. C-O-P in the making, writing some tickets... Wy feeling very remorseful for coloring all over his arms and legs. Wyatt does NOT like to be in trouble, but it certainly does not stop him from testing the waters to see what happens... Wy LOVES the pool... We make it there several evening a week!

This was the first time Wyatt has EVER fallen asleep on the couch! My buddy had his first fever in well over a year just a couple of weeks ago. : ( But one day of good rest and he was back to normal. Wyatt says, "God gave Wyatt a brother... Buddies forever!" I do think they will be very good buddies and friends forever.

Fun Facts and Cute Quirks about our little man: WYATT...

• Has very sophisticated taste buds! He loves mint, white chocolate, and lemon flavors!
• Likes for doors to be closed! There are no open doors or drawers in our house, that's for sure.
• Is totally fascinated with juggling! Joe and I have both learned to be pretty good at it because Wyatt thinks it's hysterical...It all started after he met his first clown! : )
• Loves to get a laugh and is very FUNNY. It's sometimes hard for me to keep his sinfulness in appropriate perspective and to discipline him accordingly when he's saying, "Wy, funny!" with the biggest cheesy grin after he's been naughty. Wyatt is funny but I always have to remember that sin is never funny to God and will not go well with my son if it takes root in his heart.
• Loves PLAY-DOH
• Is all about BASEBALL...We normally stop at the baseball fields on the way back from our morning run for Wy guy to feel like he's in the major leagues playing ball on the field!
• Cute Quirk: Wyatt is always touching his eyelashes...and normally with his middle finger! He falls asleep touching his eyelashes and wakes up doing the same. Don't know how this started but it's pretty cute and very quirky! : )
• has a very SWEET SPIRIT... When we're walking home from the park he often grabs my hand to hold and kisses it!
• loves to tell STORIES... He always wants a story (normally about Uncle Jay playing football) right before going to sleep
• is still the BEST big bro in the whole wide world. Isaac gets about 100 kisses (literally!) a day along with a few 'fives' and some 'knuckles'.
• Favorite Bible story: Definitely David and Goliath... One of the most violent ones, of course! He's all boy! So Wyatt has about 7 different Bibles and he knows exactly where the story about David is at in each Bible
• Favorite movies: Toy Story 2 and Lion King!
• Favorite Book: Its STILL Richard Scarry's Cars and Trucks and Things that Go! And this would be Mommy's least favorite book... but it doesn't matter where I hide it, Wyatt always seems to find it! It's the never-ending book with no story line at all that my little boy just LOVES--it's a boy thing, I guess!
• Favorite Song: I'm in the Lord's Army! He loves the 'Yes, sir!' part the most!! : )
• Still loves the BOB (jogging stroller)! We started this morning routine when Wyatt was about 3 months old and it's still one of our favorite activities each morning. Wyatt TALKS ALL DAY, except while he's in the BOB... There's just something about strolling outside that does something for my kiddos. So we all enjoy a little bit of 'quiet time'...