Everything listed under: Family

As a 42-year-old man, I’ve discovered that a Dad’s job is never finished.  By now, I would think I wouldn’t STILL hunger to hear my Dad say, “You did good, son,” nor long for the approval and wisdom that ONLY a father can give.  By now, I'd also think that when I don’t know what to do, the phone would ring and he would be on the other end of the line.  I'm amazed that many of my vivid childhood memories are of my Dad standing just outside the basketball court bounds, cheering for ME and yelling at the referee on MY behalf.  My Dad is still alive but he grew up in an era where fathers didn’t hug their sons. He was raised by a code that taught: once you reach a certain age, it's time for you to tackle the world on your own.  My Dad has never heard me teach at Flamingo, seen our campuses, read my blog or really been interested in what God has called me to do.  But he is still MY DAD.  He is still the strongest man in the world who can hit a baseball further than Babe Ruth, build anything with his two hands and protect me from the boogieman! "I love you, Dad! Happy Father’s Day."

Yes, we have another bday at the Gramling house…our third in the last few weeks. All of our kids bdays are right around the same time.  So, today we celebrate the last one…our oldest, Tyler, turns 17 today!!!  WOW, I can’t believe that!  It seems like just yesterday I was holding his tiny little 5lb. 8oz. body in my arms… he was so tiny cause he was about 6 weeks early.  However, today he “towers” over me.

We are so proud of Tyler!  He is such a wonderful young man.  From the time he was a little bitty guy, he has had such strong morals & convictions.  And he always stands firm for what he believes in.  He has such a servant’s heart…and serves all weekend, every weekend, in the student ministry at Flamingo.  

Ok, just for fun, let me tell you a little bit about Tyler’s personality… in case you don’t know this. Tyler is one of the biggest irritators I have ever met in my life… no kidding! He absolutely LOVES to irritate, esp. his brother & sister.  We thought he would outgrow it, but don’t think that’s gonna happen. He can get them so fired up in just a split second… he’s just gifted in that way.  And another of his personality traits is… he LOVES to argue! He will argue with anyone, about anything. Just for the sake of arguing. Hmmm, wonder where he gets that??? But really, Tyler is a pro at pleading his case.  Maybe he’s gonna be a lawyer?  

Tyler, we love you very much… even when you are irritating or arguing. We know God has BIG plans for you, and have no doubt that you will reach your God potential. We are so proud of you! Hope your 17th bday is the best yet!

Dad & Mom

Today, our little princess turns 9 years old. Wow! Where does the time go? Although her actual birthday is today, we have been celebrating it for several days now. We started on Friday with a party at Spa-la-dida with 7 of her friends. The girls were so cute…they got a total pampering (manicure, pedicure & hair up-do). They looked absolutely gorgeous! Then, we went to the party lounge there and had cake & sparkling water…. and ended the night with the girls getting to create their own scented bath gel… which was a big hit! If you have a daughter, I would definitely recommend Spa-la-dida for birthday parties. It was truly a memorable experience.

We are so proud of  Baylee, and the beautiful young lady that she is. She loves life & loves celebrating! She is very stubborn & definitely has a mind of her own . One instance that comes to my mind immediately that kinda showcases her stubbornness is this…when she was just a toddler, probably around 3 years old, we were in the car and she decided that she wasn’t in the mood to hear music from the radio… so she “demanded” that Troy turn off the radio. After throwing a fit in her car seat because he refused to, Troy pulled over to the side of the road & spanked her.  Not just one time, but he had to stop the car 3 times in that short (but seemed like L-O-N-G) ride home to spank her.  She was relentless! And determined that she was gonna get her way.  She has come a long way since those days :)  

Just a few fun facts about Baylee…
    *favorite foods – mac & cheese, grilled cheese (pretty much anything with cheese)
    *favorite color – blue (she hates pink now:)
    *favorite thing to do – talk on phone, gymnastics, play drums, fight with brothers          
    *favorite TV show – Wizards of Waverly Place & Jonas (she loves the Jonas Bros.!)
    *person she would most like to meet – Nick Jonas :)

Baylee, we love you so much and are so glad that God chose us to be your parents.  Keep dreaming BIG and always, always keep God first in your life. We are so proud of you! HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!

Dad & Mom

have to join Steph in wishing our middle son a Happy Birthday…We Love you CARSON!  Happy14^th!!!   All three of our kids were born C-section.  Carson was our biggest baby @ 8lbs 12oz, and of late he has really started to get tall.  His older brother, Tyler, used to tower over him but not anymore J

When I think of Carson’s 14 years, here are a few of the things that come to my mind…

·     He is curious… when he was a baby he was always climbing up on things to get a better view.   When he was a toddler, he was always turning things upside down to see what was in them… like the time he poured gasoline in his eyes in the garage (There have been more emergency calls to the doctor over Carson than any of our other kids).   As a teenager, Carson is always asking, “Why does it have to be done that way?  Is there a better way Dad? Can we try a different way?”

·     His smile… even in the transformation from child to teenager, he has not been able to wipe the smile off of his face the majority of the time. 

·     He loves to party…Anytime we get ready to go somewhere, he NEVER asks where are we going, but who is going with us.

·     His faith…Carson has had a spiritual bent from the time his was very young.  There have been numerous Saturday nights when just he and I would be driving home from services, he was probably in 3^rd or 4^th grade, and he would tell me about the children’s service….How many people he thought were there… What he thought was good about the teaching and what  he thought could use a little help.   He even wrote a two page essay on things that he thought would help the church to grow.

Carson, we are so Proud of the way you have lived your life these last 14 years. DON’T GET LAZY! Love God and use the gifts that HE has given you to CHANGE the world!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BRO! 

Today is Carson's 14th birthday!  Man, they grow up so quick!  It seems like just yesterday we were bringing him home from the hospital :)  One of the things I love most about Carson is his beautiful smile...from the time he was a little bitty thing, he has always had a smile on his face.  He has always been our mischievous, curious one :)  Always exploring & asking questions.  When he was little, I couldn't take my eyes off him for one second cause he would be into something he wasn't suppose to.  Now, another of his character traits is his charming personality, so he was usually able to "charm" his way out of trouble...which doesn't work quite so well now that he's a teenager :)  

Here's a few "fun" facts about Carson...

• favorite color:  green
• favorite food:  pizza & vermicelli with pet milk (he gets that from me :)
• favorite drink:  Dr. Pepper
• favorite things to do:  skateboarding, playing guitar, playing xbox 360
• what profession he wants to go into:  lawyer (although it changes often :)

While in Pensacola, I got to ride in a really cool funny car with my beloved and my princess.

What do you think? Captions?

Troy & I have been in the Dominican Republic (thanks Randy & Wendy!) for the last 6 days, and it has been INCREDIBLE!  We have enjoyed doing absolutely “nothing”…still recuperating from the 11 services Troy taught Live on Easter weekend.  As I sit here and type this, I am sitting on the balcony…watching the waves crash against the rocks.  There is nothing like the sound & beauty of the ocean . 

It has totally relaxed & refreshed us both.  God knew exactly what we needed & He provided it!  (The only downside to this whole trip, other than missing my kids horribly,  was not being able to speak Spanish…I have made a commitment to myself that I am going to work on that)

Today we head home to get ready for the weekend…week 3 of “Missed” series.  It’s gonna be a great weekend as we talk about Marriage.  Hope to see you there!

Steph

After speaking at 11 services live this weekend, my voice is tired but not my fingers… so while I can’t shout with Joy with my lips, I will let my fingers do the shouting!
Wow, what a great weekend!  I’m so proud of our Flamingo family.  It was an amazing Easter weekend!  Just a few of the things God did this weekend…And remember it was a SPRING BREAK weekend!

32 Services
18,700 people attended
632 folks were baptized
955 people walked an isle to Trust CHRIST
Still waiting on the total giving but somewhere around $300,000

For those of us who call Flamingo home, you know exactly how important each one of those numbers are. Each number represents a life. A life that we have prayed for, a life that we have fasted for, and NOW a life that we can CELEBRATE!

We launched a brand new campus this weekend in Pensacola. So cool to have you guys in the north as part of the family.

P’cola this weekend:
Around 5000 @ the egg hunt
370 people attended
17 Baptized
15 trusted Christ

A special shout out to Cooper City campus for hosting 10 services this weekend.  We had people that served from 8 AM until 7 PM and then went to work on Monday morning. That is INSPIRING!

Hallandale Campus had its first Good Friday service with a packed house and broke through 1000 for the first time!  So proud of how God is using Flamingo in this part of town.

Doral campus launched a Spanish speaking service on Easter, and is the campus we will launch other campuses from to impact all of Dade County. There are some church leaders who have given up on South Florida and especially Dade county, but NOT FRC… we will share the good news!

Sawgrass Campus broke through 400 and had an amazing egg hunt right there in the Regal Cinema on Saturday morning. Great creativity, which is part of our Ethos. All of this, and Matt & Jenn ( our campus pastors) are expecting twins this week. Proud of you guys!

Lima Campus is exploding and taking it to a brand new level. Easter may well be what helps them break through 600 on a weekly basis. If you haven’t been on a mission trip you need to visit Peru this summer. What a beautiful country filled with opportunity to share the love of Christ

Internet Campus had a break through weekend and more than doubled its attendance from last year… and we count very conservative when it comes to this campus. People from around the world not only worshiped with us, but also some jumped on planes or in their cars and were a part of the beach baptism.

I’m so thankful for all that God is doing in our midst. Today is a day of CELEBRATION! Tomorrow, the work continues.  There is still so much to do, so many hurting people who have never experienced the Good News!  There are some important decisions ahead, and I would appreciate your prayers as we run after the vision that God has given us!

Steph and I love you guys and are so proud to be doing life with you. Thank you for loving your family and friends enough to invite them to Easter services. Thank you for serving. At every campus we had people step up and HELP in so many different and important ways.

You are our family, and Flamingo is our home. Let’s change the world… really, lets run after something so BIG that will NOT be accomplished without the intervention of GOD.

Love You guys,

Troy, Steph, Tyler, Carson, Baylee & our little dog “Toby”