mind your manners

I had the idea a while back that my Acteens would enjoy attending an etiquette class to learn the basics of etiquette....or brush up on what they already knew.  So I asked Mrs. Sandra (our pastor's wife) if she would help out with this endeavor.  Not only did she teach Home Economics in school, but she used to have her own catering business.  She has been in charge of some of the most beautifully decorated events at our church....like our yearly ladies conference.  I'm so glad she so willingly agreed to help.

She decided she'd like to do the class in two parts.....one class at our regular meeting, and one in an actual restaurant. 



discussing the proper way to place your napkin in your lap

 She also had handouts for the girls to look at while she explained the purpose for certain place settings.

The girls were put into groups and each group was given a sample menu.  They were to look at the menu and put together a place setting that would be appropriate for that particular meal. 

Mrs. Sandra went around to each group and made suggestions if needed and answered questions.

As you can see from the pictures, we didn't use real china for this!  We even had some paper cups on hand.

To allow the girls to put their knowledge to work, she treated us all to a special dinner a couple of nights later at Daphne Lodge....a local favorite near our community. 


my beautiful niece, Autumn is one of the Acteens



A couple of the girls couldn't attend the dinner, but the rest of us met at the church to head out to our special dinner with Mrs. Sandra.  Of course, we had to have a few pictures made for the parents dropping them off!  It's Prom season now, so getting dressed up in semi-formal attire was alot of fun for them :)

My sister, Suzanne (far left), myself, and Melanie (our youth pastor's wife on the far right) joined them for a picture too.

Here we are at the restaurant just before going in. 

Daphne is a family owned business that has been in existence since 1952.  It's located near Veteran's Memorial State Park near Lake Blackshear.  They have been featured in Southern Living magazine as well as papers like The New York Times and The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.  Check our their website here.

our table

our menu

Here's another group picture.  The second person from the front, on the left is Mrs. Sandra.  I wish I had taken the time to get a really good picture of just her.  She's a beautiful lady - on the inside and out!

It was a fantastic evening and I am so glad that it was well attended.  I believe the girls really enjoyed their special night out...maybe we should make it a yearly  affair? :)

this one's for the girls

I was going through the pictures on my phone the other day and realized I never posted photos of the Women's Conference at our church this year.  The pictures are too pretty not to share!

The theme for the conference this year was "The Rooms of Our Heart" and Mrs. Phillis Foy once again was our guest speaker. 

We did something a little different this year and also had small group time.  I was honored to lead one of the discussion groups.....my group was in room 3 and we had such a great discussion about our homes and how the rooms of our home can be so much like the rooms of our hearts.

We were once again treated to a delicious lunch.  The social hall is always decorated beautifully for these events, but they outdid themselves this year!  Since the conference was close to Valentine's Day, red and pink were the chosen colors.

Refreshing pink lemonade or water

Delectable desserts!

Beautiful red roses on each table

My lunch :) I'll have to share the recipes.

They gave them to us in our goody bags.

a room full of women

pink and red bows on the chairs 

and of course...handsome waiters ;)

It was a beautiful day and I was so thankful to be a part of it.  Mrs. Foy always does a good job, but this was her best yet!

Acteens thankful for teachers

I have the privilege of leading our Acteens group at FBC Rochelle.  This mission organization is made up of teenage girls, 7th - 12th grades. 

I shared with you earlier about our first project during the month of October, Care vs. Cardboard.  In November, we decided to show our appreciation and thanks to their school teachers.

A couple of weeks before Thanksgiving, we met at the church and baked some delicious cookies for their grade teachers.  I found a picture of some apple cookies online (so perfect for teachers, no?) and recruited the help of our friend, Toria Brown to create these sweet treats :)

Toria has her own baking business and shares her talents by baking sweet treats for many of our church occasions.  We couldn't have completed this task without her!

rolling out the dough

Thankfully, we have two of everything in our kitchen at the church, so it was easy and convenient for the girls to spread out.

They were so easy to cut out!



apple cookie cutters

Having fun in the flour!

Toria made these cute little mice and acorns for the girls to enjoy. 

She also made cake balls on sticks!  I brought what we needed to make our own cappuccinos for them to enjoy in their spare time while waiting on the cookies to finish baking.



Lots of laughs :)

mixing up the icing

Now the detailed work begins!

Aren't they adorable?!

We packaged them up in clear bags so the cookies could be the main decoration.  I made cute little tags for each one that said: "Thanks to you, I feel like one smart cookie"

Cute....even if I do say so myself!

I'm looking forward to other fun projects with this special group of young ladies :)

Prayer Empowerment Weekend

There's nothing like the power of prayer.  First Baptist Church Rochelle held our first Prayer Empowerment Weekend recently.  Beginning on a Friday night with supper and large and small group time, we spent the entire weekend learning more about how to have an effective prayer life.

Bob and Phyllis Foy spear-headed the event.  They brought in a team of individuals to teach us and lead us throughout the weekend.  Mr. Lowell Snow was the featured speaker and he did an outstanding job!

We were led in traditional hymns to open up each session.

church pianist: Norma Jean Wilkerson

Pastor: Jim Wiley

Scott and Argent always do a great job with video/audio.

Our church is blessed to have them!

On Saturday morning, we held prayer meetings in the homes of different church members.  Scott and I were honored to host one of these at our home.

After the prayer meeting, our group headed back to town to "Prayer Walk" one of the neighborhoods.

Here we are organizing ourselves

Even the children participated with their parents

I love this view we had when we first started down the street!  How encouraging!

We prayed for the school bus drivers in our county...

...and the students in our schools...

...for those living in the neighborhood where we walked...

and were thankful for the reminders to pray for our country.

We even walked by my childhood home.  Here I stopped and prayed specifically for my sweet mama.

We prayed for the college students at this technical school as well.

After the walk, we headed back to the church for lunch. 

You know us Baptists love to eat!

Then the women and men split up and had our own group time.



our pastor's wife: Sandra Wiley



Our speaker for the ladies group did a great job as well!

(a view from the balcony of one of the sessions)

This young lady shared her powerful testimony Saturday night. 

She was also one of the leaders for our home prayer meting.

(my sister and one of her daughters enjoying the event)

It was a very special weekend....one I will not soon forget.  I'm very thankful that we took this opportunity to focus on the importance of prayer.  Our churches need to be in constant prayer for our families, our communities, and for our country.  With the upcoming elections, the timing could not have been more appropriate.  I'm so thankful that we, as Christians, can go to our Heavenly Father at any moment and speak directly to Him.  Jesus is there at His side, constantly interceding for us. 

There is Power in PRAYER!