Day 1: Excellence Playa Mujeres

We are having tons of fun!

Peanut Butter Cookies... Mmm!

Do you look at an object that seems to be very ordinary on most days, and that one thing on a certain day might just take you down Memory Lane? That's what happened to me when I saw this recipe on the back of the JIF peanut butter jar. I hadn't paid attention to it, but when I opened the pantry and saw the recipe for peanut butter cookies my mind jogged back in time to our babysitter's kitchen. Her name was Mrs. Jennae, and she made the best peanut butter cookies. I remember asking her how she got those squares in the middle of the cookies, and she said that she would have to show me sometime. Needless to say, Karey and I couldn't wait for the day that she made those cookies while we were there!... and to think, a simple little fork made those interesting little squares in the middle of those cookies!

So, today Memory Lane is a neat place where peanut butter cookies and Mrs. Jannae live!

If you have kids, this is a great recipe to try with them. After you make the batter, they can make the squares! Here's the recipe; it's great because you most likely already have all of the ingredients in your pantry.

Irresistible JIF Peanut Butter Cookies

(Makes about 3 Dozen)

Ingredients:
3/4 Cup Jif Creamy Peanut Butter
1/2 Cup Crisco All Vegetable Shortening
1-1/4 Cups Firmly Packed Light Brown Sugar
3 T. Milk
1 T. Vanilla
1 Egg
1-3/4 Cups Pillsbury All Purpose Flour
3/4 t. Salt.
3/4 t. Baking Soda

Directions:
1. Heat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Place sheets of foil on countertop for cooling cookies.
2. Combine Jif peanut butter, Crisco shortening, light brown sugar, milk, and vanilla in large bowl. Beat at medium speed of electric mixer until well blended. Add egg. Beat just until blended.
3. Combine Pillsbury All-Purpose Flour, salt, and baking soda. Add to creamed mixture at low speed. Mix just until blended. Drop by heaping teaspoonfuls 2 inches apart onto un-greased baking sheet. Flatten slightly in crisscross pattern with the tines of fork.
4. Bake at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for 7-8 minutes, or until set and just beginning to brown. Cool for 2 minutes on baking sheet. Remove cookies to foil to cool completely.

(Note: My fork kept getting stuck in the batter when I was trying to make the crisscross marks, so I filled my big measuring cup with warm water and dipped the fork's tines in it before pressing into the batter. The tiny bit of water on the fork helped the batter to release the fork for neat lattices on the cookie.)

Graduation 2010

Wow! This degree is finally complete! There is not a doubt in my mind that most of the credit is due to Jeremy. It seems like every time I was deeply buried in textbooks and research, he buried himself in the duties of laundry and house chores. He took over and made life easier during the toughest times of graduate school. It is a miracle that he is my husband; he sacrifices his time, his priorities, and himself for the well being of our family. You know, the Lord really does know what we need even before we know that we need it. So, it can be said with all honesty that Jeremy deserves credit for this master's degree!

I LOVE Being an Aunt!!!

Wow! This is Fantastic!

Hey Friends and Family,
You are going to love the video on the right-hand side of the screen called "Jesus Saves." Its original version is sung by Travis Cotrell, but this is a portion of Northland Church's version of it. All Jeremy could say was, "Man, I wish I could sing like that!" It is pretty amazing, and we think that you'll enjoy it too! (Just a little note: If you would like to actually look at the whole screen, I think that you are going to need to double-click on it; it's worth watching if you have the time!)

Love you all,
Jeremy and Kristen

New Year, New Baby...

Hey Family and Friends,

I hope that all is well with everyone. As a update, regarding our last post... I did successfully finish that class!!! Yipee! It did seem like an eternity, but I made it through. I could not have done it without Jeremy. He morphed into a laundry, dusting, bed-making, and microwave KING!

Things have settled down a bit since the quarter has ended, and my last two classes in this program have begun. They are not quite as demanding... thank goodness. It gives me time to be Aunt Kristen! I have never quite been this close to someone having a baby, and I am completely exstatic about it all! I am overflowing with questions! How does this work, and how does that work, and when does he do this, and is that normal?

We are so excited for Karey and Clay; their baby is absolutely beautiful. It reminded me all over again just how wonderful our God really is. Little John Clay started as something smaller than a grain of sand and became a 6 pound, 6 ounce miracle. And to think that our God willingly gave his son to the world to grow in a womb just like John Clay. What agony, to give your son away...and love for us, to let your only son endure everything that Jesus had to ...just for sinners like us.

So, this baby AND the baby Jesus are altogether miracles that the Lord let me get a glimpse of! Better than that, I get to know them both. I think that all of that is pretty amazing. Wow! God really is good.

We love you all,
Jeremy & Kristen

Hey Family and Friends,
I know that it's been a while since I posted anything on the blog, but please know that we love you all. Both Jeremy and I are looking forward to life slowing down, but we just need to get through the next 5 weeks. My graduate research class ends right before Thanksgiving! Among all of the other things that we both have to be thankful for...ending that class will be one of them! Please keep Jeremy in your prayers too; he is and will be having to make some important decisions regarding the Smokehouse in the weeks and months to come. We would appreciate any and all prayers!

In the middle of all of the chaos, we were able to get away to one of Lifeway's marriage conferences. It was called Festival of Marriage and was held in Santa Fe, New Mexico at the Glorietta Conference Center. We met and made many new friends, learned fun and practical ways to make our marriage even better, and caught up with some of Mom and Dad's earliest couple friends, Steve and Debbie Wilson. They were the keynote speakers and were phenomenal. You know that you have a wonderful husband, when he's the one that says, "Hey weren't you wanting to go to a marriage conference, Kris?...Well, I thought that it would be fun too, so we're going! Pack your bags!" I didn't drag him, and he didn't going unwillingly....WE HAD A BLAST and QT-quality time-... is wonderful without work, dogs, or house chores to get in the way!!!







On another note, Jeremy ran across this video and forwarded it on to me, and it just gripped my heart. The words that were shared are so true, and I thought that you might like it as well. The video is/should be on the right side of the screen; it's entitled "Logan, the Sky Angel Cowboy." Enjoy.

Please know that we love you all.
Jeremy and Kristen

Okay...So music just speaks to me!!!

Hey Friends and Family,
I just heard this song on American Family Radio, and it is FABULOUS. Tremendous...doesn't even describe how amazing God is... in every season of life. He doesn't forget us. Sometimes you just understand why God named himself I AM. He is everything we need today and everything we will need tomorrow. I hope that you love the song as much as we do. Just hit the play button on the right side of the screen. (Reminder: Hit the PAUSE button on the playlist further down so that you aren't listening to two songs at once!)

Here are the lyrics:
I have walked a thousand miles
Through all my tests and all my trials
And yet You still love me for me
In the refuge of Your wings I can rest in You safely
Oh Lord You've covered me
Now I can finally see
It was Your love changing me

Its Your mercy that draws me near
By Your grace I'm standing here
No matter the road I've walked
Loves covered my wrong
I realize its true
There's none like You

I will run this race of life
Pressing on toward the prize
Its You my reward is You
And I will live because You died
And as You rose Lord I will rise
In You victoriously
Now I can finally see
It was Your hand guiding me

Its Your mercy that draws me near
By Your grace I'm standing here
No matter the road I've walked
Loves covered my wrong
Now I can finally see
How Your love has guided me
There's one thing Ive found to be true
There's none like You
There's none like You Jesus oh no

There's one thing I've found to be true
There's none like You
There's none like You Jesus oh no

Now I can finally see
I can finally see
How Your love has guided me
There's one thing I've found to be true

There's none like You
There's none like You Jesus oh no

I can finally see
How Your love has guided me
There's one thing I've found to be true

I have walked a thousand miles
Through all my tests and all my trials
And yet You still love me for me

Always know that we love ya'll,
Jeremy & Kristen

Do Lyrics Ever Just....GET YOU???

Hello Family and Friends,
I know that it's been a while since I've posted. The end of the school year was crazy (to say the least), summer school has come and gone, and I began a new class at Tech today. Jeremy is going non-stop at the Smokehouse and still looking for that new location (that God knows about...but we're still trying to find it!).

Among the chaos that all of our lives see and feel, I just have to know that God knows what he's doing. It would be so easy to question him or do what we think is best or right, but he's the one that we belong to...and that's what I have to remember. He is not going to let us go.

So...all that to say... Yesterday, I was driving and this song came onto the American Family Radio Station, and it just fit the day... The chorus is filled with my heart's cry. No matter what, I believe that God will not fail us... no matter what. The song is entitled "Always" by Building 429; it's number 27 on the playlist to the right. You just have to hear it for yourself.

All I can really say... is, "Thank you God for knowing us, hearing us, and being everything that we need... ALWAYS!"

We love you all,
Jeremy & Kristen

WOW!!! Check This Out!!!

Hello Family and Friends,
My cousin, Julie, e-mailed me the YouTube video that's in the right panel, and I couldn't believe it. Number 1) The kids are so passionate about God and what He has done for them and who He is. 2) Their voices are individually incredible. 3) They are able to harmonize on a perfection level....Folks, you just can't get any better than this. All I can say is....God is so good to create children that love Him and want nothing more than to point others toward Him! Check it out; it's directly to the right.

I hope that you enjoy it too!
I love you all,
Kristen

Happy Easter!

Hey Everyone,
I can't help but know that God is good....ALL THE TIME; sometimes when I don't understand His plans or His ways, I still know with everything that is inside of me that HE IS GOOD. Last week, during our Easter musical at church, I found myself singing and thinking about the gravity of the sacrifice that God made when He gave us His son and the depth of love that Jesus must have had for us to really follow through with the sacrifice.

All this week, I have found myself again thinking that I don't deserve His grace, His forgiveness, or His sacrifice. After all, I can't repay Him adequately or on any level to really speak of. The only thing that I have for Him is all of me. Maybe that's what the Bible means when it says poor in spirit; walking knowing that all of me isn't quite good enough without Him...But all of me is enough when it belongs to Him.

God is good...ALL THE TIME.

Happy Easter! (I found this E-Card that put my thoughts into words much better than I and thought that you would like it too! Just click on the video to play it.)


We love you all.
Jeremy & Kristen

Our Dog Reminds Me of God...

YOU ARE PROBABLY GOING TO THINK THAT THIS IS SILLY, but I can distinctly remember praying that we would not have a horrible dog; I prayed that he would be gentle, kind, friendly, welcoming, the snuggling type, and so on! (....and isn't it kind of weird that the Lord even heard me (and was interested) during the prayers for our future dog even though they were somewhat selfish and, many times, silly prayers. I do have to say that Wilson, our miniature Dachshund, is pretty fabulous, but I know with everything inside of me that it's only because he heard my prayers!

Without a doubt...we might love Wilson too much. But...can you really blame us? I think that most dogs are like this. You know... jump a bit when you come in the door, can't wait to greet you and cover you with kisses, comes to look for you if he hasn't seen you in a while, doesn't hold grudges and forgets our wrongs as easily as he forgives them, and just loves, loves, loves to just be with you.

I can't help but think that God can even use dogs to show us a little bit more about himself. If you think about it, God is the same way. He gets excited when we come to Him, He can't wait to meet us and cover us with all of His love, He comes to look for us if He hasn't heard from us in a while, He doesn't hold grudges and forgets our sins with as much ease as He forgives them, and absolutely loves, loves, loves it when we spend time with Him.

It leads me to a bit of...well, a lot of conviction. Is my walk with the Lord as faithful and committed as my responsibility to Wilson?...Shouldn't it be greater? All I can say is that God is good...even when he shows us our faults.

Chillbumps vs. the Fish Finder!

Today was my first day as a real angler! It began at 3:05 this afternoon (minutes after I had put the children on the bus) when Ms. Walker, the principal of Ruston Elementary, announced over the intercom that Mr. Telford was on the phone. I had a hunch as to the topic of the phone call, but I rushed just in case it was an emergency.... No need to worry...as it turns out, Jeremy was offering two options for our evening entertainment 1) Go support the Lady Techsters at the Thomas Assembly Center or 2) Go watch as he fished.... Well, I chose option 3: I wanted to go fishing too!

I rushed home to find an eager husband and dog waiting for me to quickly change clothes and hop into the truck. I put a snack in the microwave and rushed to change before the timer beeped to tell me that my grits were ready to devour. All the while, I was listening to Jeremy yell, "You might want to pack some warmer clothes just in case it gets cool!" After that, we went straight to Woods-N-Water to get my first fishing license and a shiny Zebco rod and reel!

All I can say is, "Thank goodness I took a hooded sweatchirt and pants to go on top of my tank top and cotton shorts!" I had goosebumps everywhere, and Wilson was shivering with his whole little body. Soon enough, Jeremy sympathized with us, took us back to the landing, immediately turned on the truck's heater, and let us thaw! That was a small piece of Heaven!

Wilson and I agreed that we would definitely like to go fishing again, but we will let Jeremy go by himself until it gets a bit warmer! We had a shivering blast!

How Can You Pull a New Boat in a Camry?

Well...needless to say...one cannot pull a boat with a Toyota Camry...no matter how wonderful a car it is!!!

Saturday morning we slept in just a bit, tussled and played with Wilson, got ready, and drove to Shreveport with a mission in mind: Find a used Tundra in excellent condition at a great price! (By the way, we did look in Ruston first!)

We did find ourselves a bit off of our mark when we sat down to the aroma of warm flour toritillas and honey at Posada's in Shreveport, but we refocused and began the search after we filled our bellies! We began somewhat haphazardly; we were looking at every dealership that we could find. Thanks to our friends Tara and Trey Smith we found the dealership and the salesman that could help us! His name was Matt, and he was extremely helpful and really...just a likable guy! We went on to test drive the truck and even went to other dealerships to see what they had to offer, but at the end of the day we made a bee line straight back to Matt! After Jeremy signed a tree's worth of forms from Toyota, we gently pulled out of the parking lot in a 2006 Silver Toyota Tundra with 29,000 miles on it.

All Jeremy said was, "Ah...it feels good to be in a truck again!"

Bring on the FISH!

After much E-Baying Jeremy found just the right boat, and Wilson wants to go too!

So...Here's the story...He left at 3:30 a.m. on Wednesday morning and steadily drove until he reached the town in Georgia around 1:30 in the afternoon. Once he arrived, he met the whole family. Jeremy came to love the boat seller, his mom, and sister after hearing about a recent rough patch in their lives. He was able to spend a good amount of time with them that afternoon while they took the boat to a marine specialist to get it inspected; he, later, found out that the boat was in great condition, but that wasn't the best part! During that time, Jeremy and the seller had time to talk and it's as if God opened this man's ears to hear that He really does love him and has a great plan for him. We still don't know what kind of long-term impact their visit will have; we might never know. Jeremy was even able to share his testimony and pray with the family before he left that evening.

After all of that excitement, he left to try to get back on the other side of Atlanta to find a bite to eat (Outback Steakhouse...of course...I told him that he should splurge!) and find a place to spend the night. He finally rested his weary head on a puffy pillow at 8:00 Wednesday evening, slept for a few hours, and hit the road again at 3:30 a.m. the next morning. (His goal was to get through Birmingham before the morning traffic; he said that we wouldn't believe the number of vehicles on the road at 5:30 in the morning there!)

He finally drove back into our driveway at 1:30 in the afternoon on Thursday. I returned home from a long day at school, but I couldn't help but grin from ear to ear when I saw him in that red, sparkling boat! I was glad to see him and have him home safely....even though I have to share the carport with a boat now!!!

Despite the fact that Jeremy was insanely exhausted, he got a boat and got to see God work in a really unexpected way. The plans are to stay in touch with this family, and our prayer has been and will be that the lines of communication will stay open. The seller asked if it would be okay if he called Jeremy sometime to talk!

All I can say is, "God is so good." Who would have thought that God would have used an eager boat buyer? God is so good; I think I limit Him too much....but it's good to know that He has His own agenda!

Happy 80th B-Day Nana!

This past Saturday Nana celebrated her 80th B-Day at First Baptist Church in Jena. All of her friends and family came. She was even given a key to the town by the mayor. She felt so special.

Happy New Year!

Hey Everyone,
We recently went on a short trip to Dulac, Louisiana so that Jeremy could try his hand a red fishing. Though the first day was quite frustrating; he got the hang of it on the second day and had much better luck. It is a unique place to visit, and the landscapes, as you can see, are unmatched!

We wish you a Happy New Year and many blessings!

Love,
The Telford Triple

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We are excited that you are here! We will periodically update the blog so that you'll know what's going on in our little world and we can know what's going on in yours. We love you all!