You'd think there was a hurricane or something

I am not the most prepared kind of person when it comes to planning ahead... Like buying groceries for a party the day of the party.. Like going on vacation and not booking a hotel... Just hoping there's one available when I get there...
Like filling my gas tank up when I know I have to go to Ruston tomorrow AND there's a hurricane headed our way.
UGH!!!
I had to wait in a LONG line of vehicles in order to get a rationed amount of gas and pay WAY too much for it this evening when I got off work. I don't fear the hurricane itself, I just don't like to be inconvenienced. I pretty much like to plan to do nothing on the weekend because really, it doesn't take any thought...
But that's not the case today. I still have to pack all of Ragan's dorm stuff and wash the last few loads of clothes and half-way clean the house up, just in case it doesn't get blown away and I can come home to it clean. All this to do and I'm on the computer checking in with you guys.
I feel safe knowing Albert is in the vacinity, though. (Thanks again to all of you soldier guys, & Girls)
I just wanted to log on and see if there was anything new on the posts... And there wasn't much new... I want to hear from you all...
I guess I'd better quit procrastinating and go finish my to-do things... Until the next time... Stay safe.
Lea Anne

PHOTO BOOTH Opportunity

I really do have the best job in the world and I work with the greatest group of people. We put on a Health Fair at the Lake Charles Civic Center last week and we had a photo booth available for the community to take pictures with the news anchors or whoever else they wanted to take a picture with and some of the sales people took advantage of having our group picture taken. Have you ever taken a picture in a photo booth? It's only about 3 ft square and we were all on top of each other. It was fun. I wanted to share it with you all.

Enjoy.

Lea Anne

A Friend in Need

However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come.
John 16:13


Last week a friend came to my mind that I hadn't seen since January and I didn't stop and make contact with them but I did comment to Dana that I hadn't seen them and was wondering about them... Yesterday, I got a call from that family and I could not believe what had been happening in their lives...

Their 3 year old daughter was diagnosed with stage 5 Melanoma... She has had 7 surgeries since January to remove her saliva glands and lymph nodes as well as a portion of her cheek... She is now taking 3 shots of interferon (Chemo) every week and only has a 39% survival rate... We just need to pray for that family, for endurance and financial assistance... Her husband was hurt at work a month ago and hasn't been able to work since then... they hope he can go back to work in 3 weeks... Lord, help them. Just remember the Royer family in your prayers...

I guess what I'm trying to relate to in this blog is that when the Lord lays someone on your heart, we shouldn't waste the opportunity to contact them. The Lord sees all and knows all and we have a living breathing spirit within us that guides us in the way we should go and the things we should pray... That spirit even prays on behalf of us when we don't know what to pray... We may not know what they may be going through but the Lord knows what they need and we should be sensitive to the voice of the spirit in those situations where someone is placed on our hearts.

I did have a chance to pray with her on the phone, and I will be sure to contact her and make sure she has all she needs, but I did want to pass along this impression I received and hope that it helps you as others are brought to your mind...

I love you all and will remember you in my prayers,
Lea Anne

The Building of 4109 Woodside

I've kept a few of you up on the progress of the house we're building and I thought it would be fun to share it with all of you. It is truly a blessing by God how this house came to be and if you have a few minutes I'll do a quick rundown of the events leading up to it.
In September 2007, Dana and I felt a calling of the Lord to put our old house up for sale. We loved the house and it was a gift by God in 2004 so we didn't understand why we were suppose to sell it. But we followed the prompting of the spirit and put it up for sale...
THEN... Silence... for 6 months... nothing happened and during that time we thought we might have missed God's intention, but we started reading the Bible more deeply and God began to reveal more of himself to us...
One day in February, I was driving through a neighborhood that I loved and wanted to live in, never in a million years thinking I could afford to... and as I was driving down this road, there was a FOR SALE sign in one of the lots. Of course I called him and of course I thought I could never afford it...

I had been studying in Jeremiah and I read in chapter 32 where Jeremiah's nephew asked him to buy a piece of property from him... This got me thinking that maybe I should buy the property....

Then the next week I read in Isaiah 61:3 They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the LORD for the display of his splendor.

The name of the subdivision I was looking at was called "The Oaks"
Now that was 2 affirmations in my prayers to God... but still no sale of my house. We stepped out in faith and put a contract on the lot...

Then on Good Friday, we had a contract on our house and they wanted to move in within the month... and we decided to try to go ahead and build a house on the lot that we wanted to buy and the next thing that happened was amazing...

We were looking for a ready-made house plan to fit the dimensions of the lot and we found a design that we liked and the name of it was "Chateau de la Barre" which translated in English means, "House of Witness"... Number 3 of the affirmations to proceed with the plan to buy the lot and build the house...

"....a planting of the Lord for the DISPLAY of HIS SPLENDOR."

The house broke ground on May 22nd and we are at the trimming and cabinet making stage... We should be able to move in by the end of September or so... Exactly one year from when we felt the call by God to move from the other house... He has promoted us so much in this one year that I can't wait to see what happens next year. As I pray this prayer of thanksgiving to God, I also humble myself in response to HIS goodness and pray for the ability to stay faithful....

I will close with this verse that spoke so loudly to me in 2004 when our breakthough happened...
It's Luke 16:10
"Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much.

The Lord spoke to me that I had to start with what I had and be faithful with that and then he would give me more... But we have to start being faithful with the small things before he can trust us with anything more... If you are struggling with where you are in life, especially if it has to do with finances, I would recommend you start with where you are and be faithful... Start by tithing a full 10 percent, and your obedience will be noticed by the Lord.. Your heart will change and your desires will change to go in the direction that the Lord is leading you... Give him your all and surrender the control of your life and money and family and everything to the Lord...

Okay, enough preaching for one post... I hope you enjoy the pictures.
I love you all,
Lea Anne

Greetings to fellow Bloggers

James 1:5 If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him.


Hey everyone out there in blog land. I originally set this blog page up to keep up with my high school friends, but I've extended the invitation to all of my current friends to log onto as well... It's a great way to keep in touch with those that we really love but don't always tell about the things we go through on a day to day basis and I've found that blogging is a great way to vent as well as update. If someone isn't interested in the post, they can just exit out... But if they are interested, it's just one more way to stay connected.

Finally, after 14 years of driving to 3 different schools every morning,Ashton and Keelea are both at the same Middle School and I dropped them off this morning for their first full day of the school year. I love it when the kids are in school because they get so bored staying at home during the summer. They usually sleep late and I really don't mind because that means they skip breakfast and lunch... That just leaves a snack and supper to have to feed them. School is good for them. However, even though it's public school it cost a bundle to get all their registration fees, class fees, french fees, and school supplies... We may need to take out a loan to get started. Oh wait, then there's Ragan going to LA Tech, which costs an arm and a leg... I must work harder to pay for all these expenditures. But I do love my job, so that's not a problem...

I wanted to send out an encouraging word to all of you moms (and Dad's, if it's the case) who get up and get their kids ready for school everyday. I'm right there with you and feel your pain. Let's just rejoice that they can go to school. I just wanted to inspire you with a quick word today. Have a great day and a good work week.
Until next time.
Lea Anne

Answered prayer

Romans 12:18 (NIV)

If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.

Today is a good day. I have to comment on the last blog I posted. That very afternoon after I prayed about giving my attitude to God in relation to my friend at work, she called me to talk and we worked things out... I know that God's timing is perfect in that if I would have talked to her before I went to the Word, I would have been full of retaliation and would have been on the defensive... But because I asked specifically for God to change my attitude first, (not only did he change my attitude, He revealed to me HIS attitude about the matter) and through that prayer I asked for God to soften her heart to receive my words... He did exactly as I asked... Now we have a restored friendship... This means I have to be intentional in the way I relate to her and after a week of self-reflection, I realize I don't get a second chance to make a first impression... Be intentional and at peace in your relationships as much as it depends on you...
Until the next thought... Go in Peace...

I just want to say how good our God is... Since I've been back from Ukraine, I have been under a lot of spiritual attack... I recognized it instantly and have sought out how I should battle it... The first thing that came to mind, in my humaness, was retaliation and defending my position... but I then immediately turned to God's word to see what He wanted me to do and I have to share with you the revelation I received...
The battle I faced was with not feeling important by one of my friends.. I always feel as though I don't matter to this individual I work with... and I've heard it said before that we judge others by their actions, but we judge ourselves by our intentions... So with that thought in my mind, I felt justified by the way I was thinking... Something like, God, help me to always show in my actions that other people are important... Then as I was studying in the book of 1 Samuel this word by God just jumped out at me...

1 Sam 16:7 The LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at a person's thoughts and intentions."(NIV)

It was like God said to me, Lea Anne, I know you may think this person doesn't show you she cares about you, but I see her heart and she does.... so let it go.
That is what I chose to do. I refuse to let Satan have a hand in breaking up a friendship because of attitude issues... I want to encourage you to be on the lookout for Spiritual warfare in your lives.. The devil comes to steal, kill and destroy any way he can and he tries to tear apart relationships... We can choose to not let the attitudes of others stand in the way of us expressing our love and appreciation of them through actions... Don't just think of things to do for others... DO THEM!
Have a great day.
Lea Anne

Relationships need kindling

I'm sitting at my desk and thinking about so many things this morning and I felt the need to put some thoughts on paper.... I am at a point in my life where my oldest child is about to go away to college and what I feel most for her is excitement at the opportunity... I don't so much feel any sadness that she will be leaving home, because I can remember how it felt when I went away to school and I want to invoke that same feeling into her. It does bring me to the topic of my blog today about relationships needing to be kindled... We have to invest ourselves in other people around us and prop them up when they need it or, stand back when they need that too. I am always grateful for friends and family that I can depend on but I also know that I have to be dependable as well... I want to challenge you to be intentional in the lives of those around you... Be an encouragement to someone who needs a little boost. Be thoughtful to someone who may feel neglected or lonely and don't take for granted that the other people in your life know how you feel... Show them every day in some little or big way that they are important to you.. When life circumstances changes our paths, we can look back on the past and feel confident that someone somewhere loves us...
I just wanted to share with you the thoughts as they were going through my mind this morning...
Take a moment and notice someone today.
Lea Anne

A look into what I do on TV

Hey there,
This is truly the best job in the world... I'm going to post a few videos of some of the segments I've done on TV... I will hawk anything an advertiser wants to sell, (Within reason, of course:-) I do have scruples.... Anyway, if they get too boring feel free to close it out... I hope you enjoy.

This is a segment I did for a local Retirement center that will be built shortly...

This is me filling in for the Midday Show.. When one of the co-host can't be here, they always ask the sales people to fill in and I drew the short straw this past Monday... There was also a tropical storm in the gulf and I didn't even know it until I got to work that morning... I don't always WATCH the news...

Here's one more salutes I did for a Mortgage company... If you've lasted this long, I hope you've enjoyed it..

Picasa Web Albums - Lea Anne - Ukraine trip

Picasa Web Albums - Lea Anne - Ukraine trip

50's Dinner Theater

Ashton and Ragan were involved in a 50's Dinner Theater at our church to raise money for the Ukraine trip and Student Life summer camp... Here are some clips of that event.

Ragan's Graduation

Ragan graduated Barbe High School on May 25th... Here are some of the pictures from her graduation as well as some of her senior pictures

My Ukraine Trip

I had the privilege of going to Kiev, Ukraine on a mission trip this summer... I'm attaching some photos of the trip... You wouldn't believe the architecture from the 11th century... America is SO young when compared to other countries... I hope you enjoy the pictures