Hellums Family News Update

Kari, Landon and I went to the doctor on February 3rd and learned she is 12 weeks along (as previously posted). The heart rate was averaging about 160 and from the picture everything seems to be doing fine.

Kari is experiencing the same type of sickness she had with Landon. This includes: vomiting several times a day, nausea and sometimes a headache. She didn't try during the last pregency, but she is taking Zofran, which is used to prevent nausea and vomiting. It works every other day, but she is very thankful for the good days.

In addition to moving very fast on all fours, Landon is now pulling up on anything he can get his hands on. His favorite "toy" now is an empty diaper box. He will pull himself up to his feet and than push his entire body on top of the box and lay there like a seal. He does fall off on occasion, but Kari or myself is usually there to catch him.

I am continuing to love where God has allowed me to serve. I enjoy everyday at Highland Lakes Camp. Ira, Brandon and I are always working hard, but laughing almost all day long. We are currently pulling a daily prank on Mr. Clyde and Mr. Bill; everytime they go on break at the dining hall they leave the windows down on the truck. We roll up and lock the doors to the truck; easy to get back into, but their reactions are priceless (shhh, they don't know we are doing this).

This month we are hosting the annual Highland Lakes Women's Conference. Called to A New Day will be February 26-27 and it looks to be a wonderful event. On March 12-13, Highland Lakes is hosting the Texas Hill Country Hot Hearts Student Conference. The featured guest are: Afshin Ziafat, Aaron Ivey, and Remedy Drive. You can register online this year, so sign up today.

I hope everyone is doing well. God Bless and have a great week.

Love Never Fails by Brandon Heath

"Love is not proud
Love does not boast
Love after all
Matters the most

Love does not run
Love does not hide
Love does not keep
Locked inside

Love is the river that flows through
Love never fails you

Love will sustain
Love will provide
Love will not cease
At the end of time

Love will protect
Love always hopes
Love still believes
When you don’t

Love is the arms that are holding you
Love never fails you

When my heart won’t make a sound
When I can’t turn back around
When the sky is falling down
Nothing is greater than this
Greater than this

Love is right here
Love is alive
Love is the way
The truth the life

Love is the river than flows through
Love is the arms that are holding you
Love is the place you will fly to
Love never fails you"

"Franklin is Takin' it With Him"

Rev. Joe Dan Franklin, Kari's Pepapa (grandpa), passed away on February 5, 2010, at the age of 80.

One of his many statements concerning death was "Franklin is takin' it with him." He would joke that at his funeral he wanted a u-haul truck to follow the hearse with a sign on it that said, "Franklin is takin' it with him," and than he would laugh a great big laugh. He was a man who loved to joke, give people a hard time, loved people and the Lord passionately.

Rev. Joe Dan served as pastor at several churches in Central and East Texas and Louisiana. One of my favorite sermons he shared with me was simply, "Love." He described to me that the Lord had laid on his heart to get up and just say, "love," to the congregation. What a powerful message; one that I will never forget.

Rev. Joe Dan was married to Mary Lou and had five wonderful children: Martha, Danny, Becky, Ruth and John; many many grandchildren and great grandchildren.

Visitation will be from 1 to 5 p.m., Sunday, February 7, at Memorial Funeral Chapel in College Station. A funeral service is set for 10:30 a.m. Monday, February 8, at First Baptist Church of College Station.

Thanks for all your prayers. God Bless.

Angels

Angels: Who They Are and How They Help--What the Bible Reveals by Dr. David Jeremiah is a look into angels. Dr. Jeremiah uses scripture to reveal to the reader his points. Its not a quick read, because it makes you want to pick up your bible and read many of the accounts in the bible the author refers to.

It is an interesting and intriguing topic. I would recommend checking out Dr. David Jeremiah Angels.

This book was provided for review by WaterBrook Multnomah.

Baby Hellums Number Two News

Baby Hellums Number Two is scheduled, which we all know is subject to change, is due August 15, 2010.

More to come.

God bless and please keep us in your prayers.

Do You Ever Google Your Name?

I do often.

For several reasons, but now Insert Title Here is the first hit when you google Jeremy Hellums. This evening I typed in Kari Hellums and found the following article in the Rockdale Reporter:

"Congratulations to Ronald and Ruth Davenport of Milano on the birth of their new grandson. Daughter Kari Hellums and husband Jeremy welcomed their first child, Landon Jeremy, at 9:30 a.m. Saturday, July 4. Landon weighed six pounds 14 ounces and was 18 inches long.

Other grandparents are Denis and Donna Hellums of Cedar Creek and Debbie Lueders of Smithville. Great grandparents are Joe Dan and Mary Lou Franklin of College Station and Granny Lueders of Bastrop."

I had no clue this was in a newspaper. Gotta love Google!

I hope everyone has had a great week. God Bless.

Attack of Mommy

Attack of Landon

Prayerfully Consider Friends of Highland Lakes Camp

As most of you know, I currently serve at Highland Lakes Camp in Spicewood, TX. Highland Lakes has been a very special place for me for more than eleven years. In the Summer of 1998, I accepted the Lord as my Saviour. This instilled within me a passion to serve others in the name of the Lord. Another amazing divine appointment at Highland Lakes was the Summer of 2005, when I met my wife Kari in Miles Auditorium and most recently the Lord called Kari and I to live and work at Highland Lakes in April of 2009.

Highland Lakes Camp is a place for ANYONE to come: to find the Lord, meet with God here in worship and prayer, enjoy Christian fellowship and SO many other ways. I was just one of the 16,700+ who have commited their lives to Christ over the last 50 years at Highland Lakes Camp. That is an average of 334 people annually who come to know the Lord. Isn't that an amazing thing to praise the Lord for?

Our new Director of Development and Church Relations, Rod Cordsen, has put together a monthly giving program designed to invite every person who is connected to Highland Lakes Camp either from coming to camp here, participating in a retreat, being a member of a local church connected to the work of the camp and our 12 associational Baptist churches and their members to join together in reaching our communities for Christ. Our staff and board are already the largest financial supporters of the camp and that is due to first God's call on their lives and second their understanding of what God is doing here and finally their belief that it is important in the kingdom.

What does all that mean for the readers of Insert Title Here?

I am asking for your help and join Kari and I in becoming a Friend of Highland Lakes Camp. We have submitted our paper work and our asking you to join us in supporting Friends of Highland Lakes Camp.

It is easy. You can follow the link and set up your monthly donation online, call the camp (1-888-222-3482) and talk to Rod Cordsen or download the form from the website and mail it in. If you have any questions email me.

God Bless.

Coming Soon in 2010: Hellums Baby Number Two

FAQ:

How far along is she? We are not for certain as of yet; we will be going to the doctor sometime in the next couple of weeks. (I am sure I will post more details after that appointment.)

Were you planning this? No. Too many times Kari and I make plans, but God has a completely different plan. I said this a few times, "I am not sure if we would have planned Baby Number Two, so this works."

Was Kari taking birth control? Yes and as my boss likes to say, "That baby is going to come out with its fist clinched around a little pill."

Are you excited? I am very excited, but shocked. Who wouldn't want three more little "Landon" babies! :) It has been a wonderful first six months and I am looking forward to having another baby.

Is Kari sick again? Yes. She has already started throwing up and snacking all day long. I guess we should have realized something was up when she started snacking again at weird hours.

Do you have a name picked out? We do have a girl name picked out, but not a boy name. Upon birth we will announce the name of Baby Number Two.

Do you want a boy or a girl? Yes. We are praying for a healthy and strong baby. I think Kari would like a girl, but I want another boy.

If I missed anything, please feel free to ask. We would ask that you pray for Kari, Landon and I as we travel down another year of pregnancy.

Batterson's Primal Worth the Read

Mark Batterson's latest book is an encouragement to myself and the church of one of Jesus' teaching, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind..." (Luke 10:27). Primal: A Quest for the Lost Soul of Christianity is broken into four sections and Batterson focuses on the ways we can love God: our heart, soul, strength, and our minds. This happens to be one of my "cornerstone verses" that I often read and re-read.

Batterson uses easy to read applicable stories from his own life and others to help the reader understand his points. I would highly recommend anyone reading this book. The author never writes over your head and his books ooze with his own personal relationship with Christ; it is easy to allow God to change your heart after reading a Mark Batterson book.

Check out Primal: A Quest for the Lost Soul of Christianity, you won't be disappointed.

God Bless.

This book was provided for review by WaterBrook Multnomah.

A Few Quick Points

Landon had his first cold; 101 temp and all...he is getting better, still a little congested.

Today began Christmas break @ HLCCC; ready for a little rest and relaxation. Family Christmas' here we come!

We recently found out we will be moving from the north side of camp to what I call the east side of camp. We will be moving from our 1 bedroom duplex to a 3 bedroom house. It will be more space and crawling room for Landon.

Kari hurt her back some how and was in extreme pain last night; please keep her in your prayers and Landon too as he is fighting this cold (and we are loosing sleep).

I plan to write a Christmas blog...so stay tuned. God bless.

Hey Cupcake! Review

We have driven by the new Hey Cupcake! stand in Oak Hill and finally dropped by to see what it was all about. I have heard several people say they were amazing cupcakes, so we had to check it out.

With one store front and four other location "on wheels" in and around Austin; business does not seem to be too bad. I think the idea is cleaver, especially in a town like Austin. If you haven't seen one of these stands, basically the menu consists of 7 cupcakes, drinks and other gift items (shirt, hat, gift card).

Kari ordered The Standard and Red Velvet. We tried both and to be honest weren't very impressed. The Standard left a funny after taste in my mouth, none that I desire in a cupcake. The price seems a little high as well. Coming in at $2.50, that will be the last $5.00 I will spent at Hey Cupcake!.

With a little quality improvement in the flavor of the cupcakes, this little business would be smokin', but until than, it is just and average, quirky desert joint in Austin.

Have a great day.

A Few New Photos by Rod

Landon Laughs Some More

It All Boils Down to Love

One of the teachers of the law came and heard them debating. Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him, "Of all the commandments, which is the most important?"

"The most important one," answered Jesus, "is this: 'Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.' The second is this: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no commandment greater than these." Mark 12:28-31

Will and I have talked about the "most important" passage in all of scripture and the above is in my opinion one of those critical passages we need to grasp. In addition to making Jesus Christ our Lord, we need to love above all else. When we are loving God and our neighbors, as the passage states, how can anyone walk around NOT excited about life.

"Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth." Psalm 100:1

First and foremost we should love God. I think if many of us lived this on a daily basis, our world would look a lot different. Jesus' love should be pouring out of us to God, praising Him for our lives, creation and all the many blessings He showers down upon us. Each day is a day granted by God and rightly so, we should shout for joy to the Lord. Colossians 3:17 states, "And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him."

What does this look like? I think if and when we are loving the Lord are God and our neighbors: someone is excited about life with a smile on their face and encouraging one another; lending a helping hand to those in need; someone who looks past: race, creeds and economic status, but sees another creation by God; talking and praise the Lord throughout the day. These are just a few ways I think the world would look if we allowed God's love to flow in and through us on a daily, minute by minute basis.

God love you. In Psalm 66:20, the writer gives praise to God, "...who has not rejected my prayer or withheld his love from me!" God's love is indesirably huge and amazing and yet, we are loved by God. ("We love because he first loved us," 1 John 4:19.)

Be encouraged today to let love in, as the Goo Goo Dolls song goes, it all boils down to God's love. God loves you. Spread and share His love today with someone you know; a friend, neighbor, a stranger or anyone I might not have mentioned; just take the many opportunities God has ordained for you and love on someone.

God Bless.

Landon Eats His Toes

Landon's great-Mama (pronounced Maw maw) was putting his toes in his mouth for the first time and laughing so hard about it. Kari filmed this in Bastrop earlier this afternoon and uploaded it. Enjoy.

Landon has a Giggling Fit

I am pretty sure this was filmed @ 7:20pm, but I could not figure out how to change the time...I really did try. Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this little clip.

He sure is a happy little baby.

God Bless.

Memories to Share

Recent family moments that will be hard to forget:

Feeding Landon at 4am. He closes his eyes to fall asleep, but giggles and than smiles. It was such a precious moment.

The first time he giggled. We went over to my Mama's house (pronounced Maw maw) and my mother (Landon's Big Momma) was showing him a new toy. He threw himself back in my mom's arms and started giggling, to the point he choked himself up.

Running to H.E.B. with just my wife. My Mama insisted she take care of him. Kari and I strolled around H.E.B. getting a few items, but rushed back to see our son. It is one of the first and few times we have left him alone.

Sleeping away from Mom & Dad. Landon currently shares a room with us. We went to visit Grammy, Kari's mom, and we put him down in his baby bed in a completely different room. He slept almost 9 hours each night over the weekend. Kari thinks my snoring is keeping him up, but we can't prove it yet (I don't think I snore).

There are so many more, but these are just a few that I thought I would share. I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend. God Bless.

Quoteable Moment

Ira: "I took you some work."

Mr. Clyde: "What did you bring me?"

Ira: "A piano bench."

Mr. Clyde: "A can of beer?"

Mr. Clyde is one of our resident volunteers who is 86. He is a cabinet builder and does amazing work. He is a little hard of hearing, hence the hilarious reply...I thought I would share.

God Bless.