It's another adventure!

Ok, yes! We are embarking on another fun adventure. What would life be like with out something to work toward. Where would we be, if we didn't have a VISION? Ok, I know that is something spiritual, but you have to admit, it is truth. Now, we are getting ready to move. We have been working out at our new place and preparing it for our family to move into. It is a lovely brick home that needs some TLC. I just love doing this sort of thing...but I will have to admit, it has been harder this time. Selling my home has been an adjustment, but with the economy like it is and the Lord blessing my husband with a job in the restaurant industry, we are choosing the path God has set out for us. You know, it is A choice, after all. We do have the choice to choose which path we take. God has given us a free will and has allowed us to make choices and then, of course, live with the blessings or the consequences of the choices we make. Here is part of what we've been doing in regards to moving forward into what and where God is leading. I used to think that not everything is spiritual. I used to think that. Not any more. My view has been in the mode of change for a long, long time now. I'm glad it is. Something as simple as painting a house, among other things, (ha-ha) can be used to bring God glory, and bring people together.(once again) I'm so thankful for what God is doing in a very special family's life! Bob, Christy and all your kids...we just love you guys! You have been a wonderful blessing to us and we are so glad that we are all getting to know each other and become friends. Getting together with you all and getting to know your children has been wonderful! Each of them are very unique and special, with their own talents and gifts to bring and share. I'm so excited to see what all God has laid out for your family. It's only the beginning and it's wonderful how God does things...we think you all are great! Below are some photos of the effort and the beginning of the 'transformation' that is taking place out in our little part of the country. We started with the girls room. It's pink and brown and we are going to use polkas and geometrics. Wheewwww! What next?

Missy painting their door! It will be pink on the inside and rice paper on the side.

Painting their wall! A lovely pink and chocolate brown. Looks real nice!

Michael is shopvac'n the remnants of wall repair.

 working on the pink walls. Austin is getting the door way.

Austin and Jesse gett'n R done! Yes, the boys did help in a pink room. What troopers!

Christy working on the pink room. See the brown. It really looks nice. Thanks Christy!

Ashley is repairing the walls. Jeff and Grant ended up taking down the chair rail and then Ashley came in and repaired the aftermath. She did a super-dee-dooper job! Guys, you have a rival in workmanship here!

Missy is getting every last bit. Great job Micaylah!

Bob and Grant have taken out some cabinets in one of the rooms so we could paint and make room for the boys. Wow! What a nice size room. Too bad we had to lose these cabinets, but with 2 boys in there, it will make for more room.

We are choosing to follow after God things and create an Apostolic culture for our heritage. This is where we are living. In that Apostolic culture. It's great! Not only are we out in the country, but we are bringing our lifestyle with us out there! Country never seemed so good! More coming soon and updates on the redecorating of our new home. Much love! Kimi

We are moving out to the country!

We are preparing to move. We are believing for our house to sell quickly. Although, we are NOT moving quite yet, we have found a home out in the country and are beginning to paint it and get it ready for us to move into.

Last week, we went out and walked the land and had such a nice afternoon. Here are some photos:

This is what it looks like out the back door.

There is lots of room to run and play. The kids will have a place to hunt and fish. There is even a pond and we can move our horses there.My husband is so excited and is looking forward to having time with the boys to fish, hunt a little(I don't know what they'll hunt...rabbits? maybe! Ha!)and riding horses with them. I'll post some pics of the before and after of the inside of the house. That's something to see. I guess I always have some kind of project going. I hope that ends soon...much love, Kimi

What a way to start the new year!!

I believe these photos will speak for themselves. Micaylah was baptized! She had received the Holy Ghost 2 1/2 years ago at ARC. She was younger then and she wanted to wait to be baptized, since being baptized is a very important and serious step in her walk with God. Last week though, she decided she was ready and she wanted to be baptized in the precious name of Jesus and that is just what she did.

Bro Jeremy Wilbanks is giving her some information about the actual baptism.

Bro Jeremy and Sis Tiffany Wells are helping Micaylah as she gets ready.

Micaylah has just gone down in the Wonderful name of Jesus Christ! How exciting!

Micaylah, praying as she has just been baptized. What a wonderful beginning!

HAPPY NEW YEAR TO YOU ALL!! THE WISENER FAMILY

Good Morning!

God is doing something very powerful for this family! I just have to tell it. We are selling our home! We put our home on the market to sell, several months ago and now have someone interested...I believe they will be making an offer. PRAY THEY MAKE AN OFFER. We have a great place to move into and are already packed and ready to go. I haven't mentioned it on any posts because of it being Christmas, but we have been in the middle of it all this time and decided to just 'move forward' anyway. The children need to see that no matter what, God is always in control and HE will provide for his people in a perfect way...His timing is perfect, isn't it! So that is what we are doing...but I am asking for your prayers on this. For our family. For our situation. Thank you so, so much! I hope you have a great day and I will keep you all posted on the progress. Much love to you! Kimi

Little Somethings! (DPP- Day 15)

The children like to countdown to Christmas using this little snowman chalk board. We have had it for a while-I think we got it for $1 at the $ Tree. It just goes to show, you don't have to spend lots of $$$ to do a little something special. Florence Littauer says, "It takes so little to be ABOVE average." That dollar bought a whole lotta of smiles!

How 'bout that! :)

This year we are doing something new with our kids. Every day they will get to open a very special little present. Grant & I have placed a 'little something' in 48 tiny, colorful boxes. They will each have one for the **12 Days of Christmas**. There may be a Bible scripture, a note from Mom or Dad, an IOU (eg: "I will take you to the ice cream shop"), or a fun size piece of candy. I stacked the cute packages (2"x2") on my 3-tiered server. They can choose any one they may want. After that, we open a little window on our scenic advent calendar. Each day builds up to the birth of Jesus with a note or verse printed on the numbered, little window.

I just love Tea and Coffee! A few years ago, my husband and I found this little antique cabinet at a local shop and I thought it would be perfect to house all my different teas and coffees. It's been fun decorating it for the seasons and I keep it filled and ready for friends to share. I like to use a peppermint stick in my tea,so nearby I keep a few on hand. My Mother gave me the Christmas sugar and creamer china set-many, many years ago. She included the pretty, dainty plates and cups with it. I especially love my scented Christmas mat from Tammy.

photo project-day 14

Wow!! Has this been an exciting day! A great day that started at chuch this morning with a powerful message about "Change". Then this evening's events were superb! We actually have our OWN TSO--Transiberian Orchestra that is. Did they ever out do themselves tonight. Here is Bro I with some of the members...Bro Greg is in the drum booth.(not :( pictured) Camille is playing next to Bro I. They gave praises to God in a special way with those instruments!

Anthony & Austin were the king and drummer boy.

This was the manger scene. Donte', Hunter and James were the wisemen. Makenzie was Mary and Adam was Joseph. See Austin grinning-isn't he cute!

Drake and Garrett are singing in the kids choral. Drake and Garrett are good buds! How cool is that!

Micaylah is singing her verse as the 'nightwind'. This was the best part of all! Here is a picture of Bridget's sister-in-law getting baptized in Jesus Name! The only name given among men where by we must be saved. She was so excited and she came out so happy! WE all are! That's what Christmas is all about! New life in Jesus! Afterall, that's why He came.

Seize the Moment!

>>...these boys are learning how to take aim and hit the target. They really like to practice shooting. Check out the 'authentic' looking attire..whew-hoo! These two are pretty much inseparable. You won't usually find one brother without the other. Unless they are cleaning their rooms. >>Garrett has just moved into his own room. This was a big thing for us. And for him. Now, he has his very own room and has to take good care of it and show that he is a 'good steward' of what God has given him. Austin is learning the same since he now has no one to share his room with. They both have to keep it clean and tidy. They're learning that, it wasn't the other one who made all the mess in there. Ha Ha! >>These boys really like to go outside. I think it is their favorite thing to do. Especially when it's time to do school. (not really all the time) They like to build things with wood and hammer anything they can get their hands on. They are also very good helpers around the house. They help with yard work, take out the trash, clean their own bathroom, help with laundry and the dishes too. It really doesn't take that long to help them learn to be responsible around our house. I try to motivate them by giving them opportunities to do all the fun things they like to do. That usually works good for us all, doesn't it! >>The other day when their Daddy came home, the first thing they wanted was to go outdoors and do some target practice. Here is a couple of photos of them... Since our yard is fenced, they can practice shooting toward the fence where the target is posted. They have a jug and some bull's eyes to shoot at. They can really hit that target!! I'm impressed because that target is pretty far away from them. Maybe one day they could learn archery too. I think that's a great skill for a boy to have. How 'bout that jin-ew-wine coon skin hat?! While they were practicing, they were talking. Their Daddy was telling them about how important it is to have a target to shoot at. He said it was important to have that target in your focus. And that the main target that we should have is Jesus Christ. The boys learned more than shooting practice that afternoon. They learned that they have an awesome Lord and Savior! And that they have THEE most wonderful Daddy ever!! He looked at me and said, "This is why we're doing what we're doing!" >>Carpe' Diem<<

Our 4th of July Family Fun!!

Ok, I sure do hope your 4th of July celebration was fun! Ours was absolutely great! We took a short trip to the mountains nearby and did some camping. It was semi-primitive camping. We put up our tent and got the cooking area settled. You know I have to have a cooking area and it must be orderly. I like it all laid out and a nice pretty table cloth over the cooking table. We then hung lights all around (we brought an extension cord to run some electric for the lights). You know the white Christmas lights? We hung them from the trees and it looked so nice. Everything was lit up softly so that we could see where we were walking. We got all settled in and made a fire. Of course, we brought marshmallows, Hershey's chocolate and graham crackers...for s'mores!! Yea!! We love those. We had roasted hotdogs, pasta salad, and grilled chicken too. We brought lots of veggies and even cereal for breakfast. We had a cooler packed full of yummies! We brought sparklers for the kids to play with and they loved that. Even the 'BIG' kids had fun. They ran around with them and chased the lights that it made. Since it was a state park, no fire works were aloud. But that was ok. We don't usually use loud firecrackers anyway. Since we stayed several days we had the time to do some hiking. We packed a lunch in the cooler and made sure we had lots of drinks for everyone. We went into the mountains. We found a river bed that was dried out and the kids decided to go down into it. It really looked rocky to me. They went so far ahead that we (Grant and I) couldn't find them. We looked and looked and finally we saw them on top of this HUGE rock! Sitting on the top of it--with Autumn, our little Miniature Pinscher. She was a whiz at climbing all those rocks and finding things in there. More coming shortly about our little trip...

Ending our 4th week @ the Deli!

Greetings! Well, we are nearing the end of our 4th week here at the deli. We have met some of the most precious people in our community. So many of them are repeat customers and we are beginning to feel a special closeness to them. We want to make them all feel comfortable here. I think we are starting to get the 'hang' of it. I wasn't sure how long it would take for all of us to become accustomed to our new pace, but as the days go by we are working it out together. We are thankful for all the help that we have been given from some very special people. They have come and given of their time and efforts to assist us in daily routines and general running of a growing business. Everyday we are growing more and more and it seems that as we trust in the Lord he continues to show us the way in which we should go. We honestly don't know from one day to the next how it will be, but remember..we didn't start this whole thing out by what WE knew anyway. We can not live by OUR eyesight, can we? We must walk the walk of faith, for that is what faith is...'the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not yet seen.' We are ever in his PRESENCE and know that so many of our patrons are also. I believe that is what is bonding us together with our community. If you haven't been to see us at the deli, and you live close, we would really like to see you and serve you a great meal and spend a little time with you. Hoping to see you...by faith of course! Kimi

Our Second week here @ the Deli!

This week has just flown by! It's been a whirl-wind of people, conversations and food. We have had a blast as we plan, prepare and serve to our customers! Here are the girls as they helped us in some of the tasks we do. Dish washing hasn't been a favorite task with any of us, so we have been taking turns at it. Sometimes we even take turns at other things like, baking the desserts, preparing the salad bar and portioning the meats. Thanks girls for a job well done! You have been so much help to us and I just know that God will bless you abundantly for your sacrifice of giving. You can not ever 'OUT-GIVE' God. We love you!

Our First Week of Business!

Our first week of business has been great! We started out on Monday opening the doors at 10:30 am and at 10:40 am the phone began to ring. Earlier that morning we faxed out some menus to the local businesses. They didn't waste any time making their calls to place orders. Yippee!! Bring it on!! The first day was a success! We took so many call-in orders I can't remember them all and we didn't even look at the big clock that's up on the wall until late that afternoon. The whole day went by so fast. It was great. Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday were even better and we spent the days very busy completing orders, talking with the people, making connections and serving meals to our customers. It's been absolutely amazing!! I've made copies of some very old photos to use for decorations. Like I shared before, I went to the Historical Society and Mrs. Ila Ruth Cooley has helped me so much. She gave me so much information and insight to Arab's past. I've enjoyed spending time with her and getting to know more about my town. I love that! On Tuesday, a couple came in and as we began to talk, the lady says, "That's my grandfather! Right there in that photo of the old mercantile!" She was excited about that and had to tell me all about it. I want everyone who comes in this place to feel some sort of 'connection'. Pretty soon they'll want to know more about us and what makes us different. I know they're coming. If we build it, they will come!! Remember that saying? I know it's happening...this is just the beginning! BRING IT ON!!! Here is our starting crew. Michelle, Rhonda, Savannah, Jade, Jessica, Camille, Garrett, Micaylah, and Austin. Not pictured:Kendra Garrett bussed the tables and made sure they were sanitized properly for the next customers. Micaylah vacuumed around each table and straightened the chairs, while Austin held the door open and helped bring plates to customers when their order was ready. They all earned tips and got to go to the $Tree this week. Rhonda, Savannah, Kendra & Michelle worked with Grant in the kitchen to prepare the various sandwiches and baskets of food. Every sandwich comes with a side and little something extra. There was much preparation to do in the kitchen before opening time. Potato salad, pasta salad, chicken salad and slicing of meats must be done before opening. We take time to prepare the sliced meats so portions are all the same and correct in the midst of the hullaballoo of lunch time hours. This assures us (& our customers) that we are giving out proper portions. Camille, Jordan, Jessica and I took food out to the seated customers and refilled drinks while we talked with them and got their opinion of our new place. We didn't have one negative comment. Not even one. Everyone was so glad to have a nice little place where they could come in and sit a while, listen to good music, read while they ate and chat with someone who cared. They have had nothing but wonderful things to say about the Cornerstone Deli! I'm so glad. I actually don't have anything but good to say about our customers. We've already had repeat customers this week too! That's what we want. We even had the local radio personality stop in and eat with us. He told his friend and they came in and she told her friend and this afternoon (Sat) the retired Fire Chief and his wife, who is running for mayor and sits on the city council, came in and we enjoyed a nice time of reminiscing. They ended up knowing Grant from a long time ago. Like I said before, everyone knows Grant from some way or another from some time ago. (remember the carpet deal???) He's just that kind of person and has a very special way about him. Right before closing today, another nice lady came by to get dinner for her husband. She wants to have her Red Hat Society Club meet at our restaurant! How fun does that sound?? I'm sure that will prove to be a hoot! They've asked to schedule it for the first Friday in August. Sounds great with us. They'll have about 16-24 in their party. Ok, I'm not sure where this may be going, but like we shared before, we'll go where God wants to take us. We've already come this far. Catering? Mmmm...party of 24? God has his own plan and I know we will be going there. Thank you for your prayers and support. Let's go!! Living in His Blessed Graces...Grant and Kimi