The Oakes Family Fall Festival

For those of you that know me, you know that I come from a pretty big family. My mom is one of 6 kids and all of them, with the exception of my Aunt Bobbie, live within about 30 minutes of each other. So, needless to say, our family is very close. Over the last 4 or 5 years all of my cousins have gotten married and started having children, so our family has expanded significantly. When we all get together, we have about 40 adults and about 15 kids, so we have alot of fun!! About 4 years ago my Mom started a tradition of having a fall festival for the whole family and over the years it has grown into quite the event.

This year it was held at my Uncle Jesse and Aunt Deb's house in Snow Hill. We cooked hotdogs and hamburgers on the grill and had all sorts of games ~ pony rides, hay rides, doughnut eating contest, pumpkin carving contest, apple bobbing, etc. I don't know who has more fun ~ the kids or the adults.

Corey and Riley carved her pumpkin before we went, because we learned the first year that it takes way too much time to do it at the party! We were so proud ~ Riley's pumpkin won first prize!!

Riley also decided to try the doughnut eating contest and the sack race for the first time! The doughnuts are tied to a string and you have to eat it without using your hands. Riley tried about two times to do without her hands, got frustrated and just grabbed a hold and started eating! It was hilarious! So, she unfortunately didn't win, but I think she still enjoyed the doughnut!! Then when it was time for the sack race, she had the jumping part down, but couldn't figure out how to move forward, so she just stayed in place!! She got the hang of it though after we showed her what to do!


By far the most fun Riley had was the pony rides! She loves horses, so she was super excited to get to ride one! We had a lot of great pictures, but I think the one below is the best. This is Riley with her cousin Hailey, my brother's daughter that is only 3 weeks younger than her!

To finish off the day, my brother took everyone for a hay ride around my Uncle Jesse's farm - it was a great way to end an awesome party!!

3-D Vision

No matter how many times he does it, I am always amazed at how the Lord knows exactly what we need to hear and when we need it. As I have shared before, I have had a challenging couple of months adjusting to life as a Mommy of two. While Georgia has been a great night sleeper, she just can't quite get the hang of napping, which throws a major kink in my seriously Type A lifestyle!! So, week after week I tried everything I could think of to help her nap - put her down earlier, put her down later, CIO, etc. - all to no avail. I finally gave up and just decided to stick to a eat, awake, sleep cycle, no matter how short it was. And instead of reading any of my "sleep" books, I just laid it all at the Lord's feet. But, then I began to get frustrated because I felt like he wasn't answering my prayers. Day after day I would come before him, crying out for help, and yet there was no answer and no reprieve.

So, the Sunday before last, we were in church, and Pastor Mike spoke about 3-D vision, and boy was it what I needed to hear. He spoke about Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead and how when Jesus arrived, Martha said to him, "if you had been here, my brother would not have died," as if he had arrived too late. This is where the first D comes in - Delay. The Lord often delays answering our prayers because he wants to lead us to a place of Development (the 2nd D). He is not denying our request, however, he wants to increase our ability to trust in him - can we wait or are we going to try to take matters into our own hands. And lastly, the 3rd D, is Deliverance. The Lord will deliver us from whatever it is we are walking through, but it will be on his timing. In the case of Lazarus, it appeared to Mary that Jesus was too late, because her brother had been dead for 4 days when he arrived. But, that wasn't the case, he delayed coming to develop a greater trust in Mary, and then ultimately his deliverance comes when Lazarus is raised from the dead.

Each day presents new challenges, but I know that the Lord is doing a great work in me and that my deliverance is ahead!!