Smoky Mountain High!

I know, I know... the title of the song is really Rocky Mountain High, but with what God blessed us with this past weekend, I had to change the title.

For those of you that don't know, the weather in the last few weeks has left a lot to be desired. Monday and Tuesday before we left, the saint louis area and the midwest got about 8 inches of rain in a 36 hour period. Looking at the forecast they were calling for snow on the Sunday of our return. But God worked his miracle and on Thursday-Saturday, the weather broke for amazing weather for our trip. It was a sunny and warm drive, we had clear blue skies with highs near 70 both Friday and Saturday. When we got home on Sunday evening, we drove in a blizzard. We had prayed for amazing weather and God delivered.

With that said, here is a run down of our trip.

Angie, Cathy, Brad and I left Saint Louis Thursday morning at 7am. We were all excited.


We arrived at our cabin... it was called "Awesome Views". I would say it's name is fitting.



We met up with our friends James and Amber who now live in Atlanta. The next day we went on a pretty intense hike up the Chimney Top Trail. Here is a group picture of us on our way up.



The next day we drove up to the Newfound Gap. This is where the Tennessee Mountains meet the North Carolina Mountains.



The next day we packed a picnic lunch and went rock hopping in one of the rivers in Smoky Mountain National Park



Overall the trip couldn't have been any better!

Walking in Memphis

This past weekend, I FINALLY had the chance to go see my sister and her growing family in Memphis. I hadn't been down since Thanksgiving. When you have a 4 year old and a 14 month old nephew, 3 months is an eternity. During those 3 months my sister also had her 3rd child, Leah Grace (Love) Johnson. The Love was given to her by Noah. When you would ask him the babies name, he would say, Leah Grace Love Johnson. He says Love is in there because he loves her. Leah is a beautiful baby and I am sure she will as big a blessing to my sister and her husband as the two boys have been.

I had a great weekend. Not only were my nephews happy, fun, and running all over the place, but the weather was amazing! I love visiting and really hope that someday the move closer to the Saint Louis area so I can see them more.

I don't know how my sister and her husband have the energy to keep up with Noah and Elijah.

So Saturday and Sunday the temps were in the mid 70's. Monday night in Saint Louis we get sleet, freezing rain and on Tuesday 7 inches of snow. Yet another snow day. It was the hardest I have seen it snow in my life. I am ready for spring. At least this weekend is daylight savings time. That puts spring right around the corner!

Monday night I started my small group with a group of about 6 guys. It's all about being and doing manly things, oh and also about the secrets that men keep. The first day went really well and I am looking forward to getting to know the guys better.

Finally, before I show off some new photos, I want to ask prayers for a friend of mine from college. He has had some pain in his groin area and after going to the doctor, he is going in for a biopsy in a week or so. Please pray that it's not Cancer.

Here are a few new photos, they weren't really planned, so they aren't great, but I love to photo that amazing artwork that God paints daily.