It's A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

"It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood, a beautiful day for a neighbor...."

Oh how I miss hearing Mr. Roger's singing that song, coming in the door wearing his suit jacket and then changing into those different sweaters. (And let's just be honest, who didn't want to have one of his sweaters?? I personally think they were awesome.)

That song always reminds me of a bright sunny day where you open your windows and feel the nice summer breeze blow across your face, you wave and say high to your neighbor as they pick up the daily newspaper and they give you a friendly greeting in return. I know times have changed and things are not the same now as they once were. This day and age no one knows their neighbors. We are all so busy that we don't take the time and effort to get to know one another as we should. I, myself, am at fault with this. It is so easy to get caught up in the busyness of life and the thinking only of ourselves. "Me,My,Mine" is the way society has taught us to believe is the correct and right way of thinking. I think it's time for us to take a little bit of advice from Mr. Rogers and going back to knowing your neighbors, helping them in a time of need, and becoming friends with them.

I look forward to the day where I am married and have kids. And when those days come, I want to be able to know my neighbors and let my kids go play with their kids and vice versa. I want to exchange conversation over a morning cup of joe with my next door neighbors wife and if she needs to borrow a cup of milk or sugar that I can give it to her.

Although right now I haven't done these things, I know I have the ability to and should. It's hard to work up the courage to go across the yard and knock on your neighbors door, to expose yourself to vulnerability and being shut down, on their front steps nonetheless! But it doesn't mean it isn't worth trying. Just think of all the things God has done for you by blessing you with food, shelter, and if your like me, a wonderful family who loves and encourages me. Don't you think you should be able to share your blessings with someone who may be having a rough day or just recently went through a hard time? You may never know how just asking someone over for a cup of coffee or to do something sometime could be just the encouragement or answer to a prayer they had been looking for.

"Love your neighbor as yourself. There is no other command greater than these." Mark 12:31

Life as We Know It

As I sit down to write this, I can't help but think-"Wow, time has flown by." I can't believe it's been two years since I have written on this blog. I know I had promised to get on here daily, (hence the name "Day by Day") but I got swept up in the everyday tasks, chores, and activities we like to call life. So this post will be a catcher upper if you will. (And a long one at that, I apologize in advance!)

A LOT of things have changed since I have last been on here. For one, I now have four beautiful blessings in my life and I am SO incredibly thankful them. They are my niece and nephews! My way of viewing life has since changed since they have been born. Liam, is the oldest of the four by a couple of weeks and turned 21 months old yesterday. His desire to learn and to study how things work is amazing to me. He is constantly "studying" and loves to ask you questions about whatever it is that has fascinated him. He makes you work for a smile, but once you break him down and he smiles that sweet innocent smile, it melts your whole heart and makes you forget about any worries you may have had. Clay, is the second oldest and will be 21 months old on the 19th of this month. How to even get started with Clay! He is the most sweetest, most caring and sensitive toddler I have EVER met. His smile can light up a room and he melts my heart every second of every day. His ability to make each and every person he meets feel loved and cared for is beyond me. I have loved getting to see these two little toddlers grow and watch their personalities grow! Isabel, who was born on June 29th of this year, is the only niece I have so far. Who knew having a niece would be so different from having a nephew! There is just something different about that kind of love. That little girl has already grown so much. Since the day she has been brought home from the hospital she has been nothing but alert and wanting to learn everything just like her older brother. Her smiles are so sweet and so innocent it could make your heart stop! She has been trying to pick her head up since day one and I can only imagine here shortly she will be running around with Liam and being a little bundle of joy. Gabe, was born August 27th of this year and oh my goodness he resembles his older brother Clay so much! Gabe is only a few weeks old but I can already tell my sister Amanda is gonna have her hands full with him. He is quite the little wiggler and is constantly trying to pick his head up. He is perfect for sweet snuggles and cradling. I love my nephews and niece more than life itself! I can say I am truly enjoying life as an Aunt because of these sweet babies. :)

In speaking of adding new members to the family, my sister Gracie got married to Jacob in May of this year!! I am so happy and thankful she has found such a fun, adventurous, and sweet Godly man. I was more than happy to be her Maid of Honor and stand by her side on that special day. These two are very special to me. They have included me in all of their fun little activities and we would always have our fun laughs and inside jokes.. Because of these two, I got out of the house and didn't stay in my little cave. (Sometimes I like to be a homebody haha) Needless to say, I am glad I have another brother that is awesome as Jacob!!

My only brother, Nate, is out fighting for our country. Well, right now he is stationed in Savannah, GA but things could be changed at any moment. While that be a frightening thought, I know this is where God wants him to be. I am so proud of my brother for following God's will and keeping his faith strong as he gets faced with many and new trials daily. I know God has him shining as a light to the other soldiers in his company and to the others around him. I simply couldn't be prouder of my John Wayne loving, army fighting, head strong of a brother. :)

The grandparent life has hit full swing here at the Peck household for my parents. And they are LOVING it!!! They are living and loving their dream and I think it is so sweet. They have been together 28 years now and they have such a strong bond between one another. Mom and Dad are such a good example of a Godly marriage looks like and I look up to them so much!! My sister, Mary, is the last one of the siblings and is in college pursuing a career in nursing. She is so smart and I am so proud of her!! My two older sisters are a constant example for me and will always be somebody I look up to and my two older brother-in-laws treat my sisters with such love and respect it has shown me what to look for in my future husband. I love my family.

As for me, I have had one roller coaster of a ride! From going back to school, to changing jobs, from still not knowing what I want to do with my life, to moving to South Carolina for a year, I have had an interesting couple of years. I still am not sure what I want to do with my life but I know it's all in God's timing and He will reveal it to me in His on time. Last year, I moved to South Carolina and I am so thankful that I did. I am not going to go into the logistics of things but going to Greenville was the best thing I could've done. I am so thankful that God gave me the opportunity to move there, to not only live in a different state and learn new things, but MOST IMPORTANTLY, to have met my current boyfriend, Jordan. I am the luckiest girl in the world and I am so thankful for him! He is such a Godly man who lives for the Lord and strives to help others. He is always putting others before him and treats me with the upmost respect and kindness. Guys like him come far and few between nowadays. This day and age it's hard to find a humble, sweet and hard workin' southern Godly gentlemen like Jordan. And I thank God everyday for bringing him into my life. I love the turns and curves God throws into my life and that it doesn't go the way I planned. God's way has and will always be better than anything I could ever think up much less live out. Without Him, I would not be where I am today.

I AM BLESSED.

Wowzzza!!

Okay so much for doing a post everyday right? ;) Haha Sorry for the delay! But I am going to try to keep this updated.

Alright here goes! :) I have a new addition to my family. HE is black, grey, and brown.... he is 3 months olddddd.... He's an Australian Shepherd!!! :) We have had him, Timber, two weeks and he has kept us BUSY. We love him so much already and I can't wait to see him grow up even more. :)

This is the first picture I have gotten of Timber. He was very timid that first night. :) But now he has got his own little sense of humor and sweet as can be!! I am absolutely in love with Timber. :) More pictures to come!!!

From Last Night

Here is a picture from last night! If I can figure it out correctly that is haha.

From Bottom Left to Top Corner Right: Hannah, Naomi, Ali, Tori, Lexi, Gracie, Nicole, Me, and Olivia. I love these Girls! :) I Feel bad, but I have terrible memory and can't remember any of the sweet ladies' names. Oh, but Ms. Charlotte she is directly below my sister Gracie. :)

All to Him I Owe

Hi everybody! This is my very first post in the blog world!! I am very excited to see what the next 6 months has planned out for me. :)

Well this morning I woke up, and was like, hey, I should start a blog. So after running some errands with my Mom and doing some daily chores around the house, I decided to go through with my actions and make one. Of course, this is about 30 minutes before we were to have company over and I didn't realize setting everything up would take so long. So I did the best I could with what I had and TAH DAH!! Here you have it, my blog :)

Now the sole purpose of my blog is for me to help keep track of what I do day to day and just kinda see what's out there in the world. I have no clue what God wants me to do with my life or what my Passion is. You know, that thing that gets you up bright and early every morning and looking forward to what the day has for you. :)

Anywho, back to today haha! After mostly finishing my blog, my awesome sister Gracie had a few friends over from church. Gracie has been feeling led to go to nursing homes and wanted a group to start going with her. And of course, being the big sis that I am, I supported her 100% full on! I was actually very excited about spending my Friday night with friends at the nursing home. After eating hot dogs, which I am pretty sure I overcooked, and having some good laughs, we headed on over to Dogwood Forest nursing home.

When we got there, we had planned on seeing a lot of people out and about. But unfortunately, the lady that Gracie had called, neglected to tell us everybody would be back in their rooms after supper. Us girls were starting to feel a little down but the manager of Dogwood said, "wait there are still some ladies at dinner if you want to talk to them!" Well of course we did! So she pointed us in the right direction and we went down the hall. Little did we know, these ladies were a hoot! They all had us laughing so hard especially a very sweet lady named Ms. Charlotte. We talked for a while, laughed, sang Jesus Paid it All and Amazing Grace, and talked and laughed some more. Needless to say, I wouldn't have wanted to spend my night anywhere else other than with them. :)

In 1 Timothy 5:3, it says that we need to help out any widow who is in need. My father is a very wise men and came to the realization that, widows doesn't have to necessarily be someone who has lost their husband. It can be anyone from the poor who are in need, to the wealthy showing them true love you can't buy with money. And with these ladies tonight, I know we made them feel happy, warm, and loved. We talked to them about God and His love for us. They aren't necessarily widows, but they are someone in need. And I am very happy that Gracie is taking her time out if her busy schedule to make someone else's day. :)