Cheryl's Treehouse

SchoolTube - Home of the Brave!

2011-07-05T09:08:00.000-04:00

This is awesome! Hope your 4th was great!

SchoolTube - Home of the Brave!

This moment...the house of God.

2011-05-13T13:29:00.001-04:00

Written by a friend of mine but a perfect prayer for me.....

Lord, I really don't want more time; I just want enough time. Time to breathe deep and to see real and time to laugh long, time to give You glory and rest deep and sing joy, and just enough time in a day not to feel hounded, pressed, driven, or wild to get it all done - yesterday.

I have discovered that I slow the torrent of time by being all here and giving thanks. I only live the full life when I live fully in the moment (which is You). And when I'm always looking for the next glimpse of glory, I slow and enter, and time slows. I weigh down this moment in time with attention full, and the whole of time's river slows, slows, slows. And blind eyes see. It's this sleuthing for the glory that slows a life gloriously. In this space of time I am attentive, aware, accepting the whole of the moment, weighing it down with me all here. Full attention fills the empty ache.

Is this thanksgiving the way to that elusive fullest life, the one that lives in the moment?

This is where God is. In the present. I AM - His very name. I want to take my shoes off. I AM, so full of the weight of the present, that time's river slows to a still... and God Himself is timeless. I hardly breathe and I may never wear shoes again. Make every moment a cathedral giving glory... I am Jacob and the Lord is in this place and I was not aware of it (Gen28:16).

Thanks makes a place for God. I take my vows: I will not desecrate this moment with ignorant hurry or sordid ingratitude. I will be Jacob, and I will name this moment the "house of God" (Gen 28:19).

When I am present, I meet I AM, the very presence of a present God. In His embrace, time loses all sense of speed and stress and space and stands so still and... holy. Here is the place I can love Him. This moment. I have time for God.

I hunger to taste the full life.

God.

Jbear says....

2011-04-24T19:52:00.001-04:00

"So Easter is what makes Christmas important." Out of the mouth of babes.....
Happy Resurrection Day!!

Shoes

2011-04-04T21:52:00.001-04:00

Thought some of you could appreciate my latest purchase/s.....LOL

Things I love....

2011-01-11T15:53:00.007-05:00

I have been thinking of this for a long time and today I think I will begin...I want to do blog posts on "things I love" or things that make me smile or make life easier or what ever...you get the idea....maybe I will be able to keep up with it and maybe not..but today...on this long snow day in January..I am going to begin.
Today will include a couple of things....

1st...this girl...and her Great love for her "children"
this is a picture of her with her handicapped American Girl Doll, Emily. she has no arms, no legs and needed glasses desperately (which she received for Christmas). JBear is so accepting and loving of all of her "babies" and especially the handicapped ones...it just makes me smile. Soon Emily will travel to the American Girl hospital for an arm and leg transplant and return home to be almost as good as new...I can't wait!

2nd...Veggie Chili! My mom has discovered a recipe for Vegetable Chili which I Love! It is so easy and so healthy...I want her to make it every week! Of course we don't always get it made weekly, but today...on this cold and snowy day...Vegetable Chili is perfect!

Becky Kelley - Where's the Line to See Jesus - OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO

2010-12-08T10:50:00.001-05:00

Traveling....

2010-11-05T17:56:00.006-04:00

I've been gallivanting around these last few weeks and have barely stopped to smell the roses...or fallen leaves ...or ocean spray....Its been quite the jaunt and
I'm tired! Can't believe how tiring having fun can be...or maybe I picked up a bug...regardless..I've spent the last few evenings on the couch in front of the TV.
Tonight I have the Girl with me for a sleepover...SO I may not get fully rested up. :)
Thought I'd post a few picks of the other gorgeous places I've see since Idaho.

The gorgeous fall foilage is at Cloudland Canyon State Park. my hubby and I celebrated our anniversary there with a 5 mile hike...it was a perfect day!

The beach pics are at St. Augustine, FL. Spent a few days there with our daughter and SIL on his pre-deployment leave. Please keep them in your prayers as he will be deployed in Nov. Again...perfect days and our son came to join us...what could be better?? Sun, food and famiily!
And Yes, I realize the pics are backwards...you would think blogger would make it easier to upload pis by now, wouldn't you?? It seems to have gotten harder since I've been on a blogging break...or I'm to lazy to fix it...Enjoy!

My Idaho Experience!

2010-10-27T19:09:00.007-04:00

So long since I've done any real blogging! I may have forgotten how!

Last weekend I was privileged to travel to Idaho...where I have never been...to meet sisters I had never seen... and the promise of the Lord "But he shall receive an hundredfold now in this time, houses, and brethren, and sisters, and mothers, and children, and lands," Mar 10:30 has never been so true, as I discovered sisters every where I turned. It was amazing!

My first stop was Boise where I was thrilled to spend almost 24 hours with my dear dear blog friend, Z. She picked me up at the airport and the conversation was ON. We talked and talked and ate and talked some more. She introduced me to her lovely family, gave me a tour of the city and treated me like family. It was wonderful! She was exactly as I had imagined her and my heart was enlarged by getting an inside peek at her everyday life. Now to get her and her hubby down my way for a visit!

My second stop landed me in the beautiful city of Coeur d'Alene, ID. There I connected with Ms Mac, Ms Patty and Deb for a weekend of sightseeing, eating and fellowship.

Ms. Mac was the perfect hostess, driving us, taking us to all the fun places to see and eat and even welcoming us into her own home and introducing us to her lovely family.

As some of you may know...the Mangy Moose lodge is internationally famous and the clawfoot tub especially so. Of sourse we had to see that! It is a tourist destination after all. :)
Over the course of the weekend we laughed, ate, prayed, ate, shopped, ate...are you noticing a pattern here??? Ms. Mac knew all the good eating places and shopping spots too so we all were very happy campers.

At the end of our time together we shared a beautiful bonfire with hot cocoa and popcorn in the gorgeous ID evening. What a grand weekend it was! There is nothing at all like sisters spending time together.
What a beautiful place Idaho is but even with all its beauty, none of it compares to the rarity of sharing heart to heart with sisters in the Lord. I look forward to any opportunity to do it again!

Three Things About Islam

2010-09-26T13:00:00.001-04:00

Very eye-opening but not terribly surprising.

What can possibly go wrong??

2010-08-06T21:58:00.011-04:00

Order of business for having a wedding:

1. Couple gets engaged but want to get married right away!
2. There is only one suitable venue for miles that is available in on short notice...its available on a Sunday..July 11th..so the date is set..July 11th it is.
3. Guests are invited.

4. Bride is notified that original dress ordered for Bride is out of stock and discontinued.
5. Bride finds second dress. It is the only one in her size in the Continental United States and the zipper is broken
6. Zipper is repaired but fabric is gathered on the side seams of the dress and will not lie flat.
7. Dress finally altered and repaired 4 days before the wedding...Whew!

8. Bridesmaid's dresses are a completely different color than they appeared online....(this seemed to bother no one but the mother of the Bride) and it turned out fine..lovely actually.

9. Guests begin arriving ( happy day!)

10. Mother of the Groom loses her ID at the airport, never to be seen again.

11. Tree falls on house of Bride's parents. At least that cuts down on the squirrels in their yard. No one is hurt, thank goodness!

12. Wedding must go on so everyone climbs over tree, cuts car out from under the branches and carries on.

13. Mother of the Bride carts everything over to the venue for decor, food etc., stopping several times along the way for pickups only to have the car die at the venue not to be started again without a tow and a mechanic.

14. Wedding goes off without a hitch

15. Enough food is left over to feed the neighborhood...literally...several are called in to take leftovers home.

And they lived happily ever after...The End!

(at least that's how we do weddings in our family)

wedding stuff

2010-07-15T14:37:00.004-04:00

Well...its over and done! Seriously...one of the most eventful weekends of my life! Can't talk now but I'll try to post as I process...til then...the first of the fabulous pics are starting to come in....Gina over at Spicy,Savvy & Sane, did an awesome job! Can't wait to see them all.

Engagement pics and more....

2010-06-16T10:37:00.009-04:00

Engagement pics are done and all I can say is "Wow"! RSVPs are coming in....We are getting down to the wire now...only 3.5 weeks to go. I am providing the food so I am busy trying out recipes on my co-workers. haha

But they aren't complaining! So far everything I have made has been a hit. I think things are going to be just fine. I still have to collect some serving pieces and recruit some helpers but it is shaping up nicely....

Dress was purchased just yesterday...It is gorgeous, of course and she will look stunning in it...but after those engagement pics, I think she would look stunning in a potato sack. I will post my latest recipe on the Scarf Sisters Cooking Blog so those of you who don't Facebook can try it out...and guess who's coming over to do the wedding photography?? Gina ...it will be our first time to meet in real life! I am so excited!

I need some prayer

2010-05-05T21:48:00.004-04:00

As you can imagine, we are very busy around here, getting ready for this wedding. My lovely daughter and I often do not see eye to eye(imagine that!) and I'm afraid that I am often the meddling parent trying to guide my sometimes less than mature offspring in more than just flowers or wedding food. Please pray for me...for her... for my husband, my Jbear, for all of us involved as these changes come about in our lives...good ones...but difficult none the less.

My baby's getting married!!

2010-04-26T09:19:00.005-04:00

Congratulations to my youngest and her fiance! The date is set for July 11th and we are so very happy for them both!

The Bread of Life

2010-04-02T09:17:00.004-04:00

A beautiful illustration on a beautiful Good Friday. He IS the Bread of Life, He IS the Cup of Life...
Eat Him, Drink Him!

The Bread of Life

Place I think of in the Springtime

2010-03-31T11:30:00.004-04:00

Seems like we tend to do a lot of traveling in the springtime....not sure why that is because summer seems like a more likely time...still there are some the places I've been in the spring that have made an impression on me...

Paris....
Philly...
Brussels...
London....

...they drift back to me across the years whenever I smell lilacs or see pink tulips and hyacinths...whenever I feel the new warm sun and see the fuzzy green billowing on the tress like smoke...or when ever I hear certain songs from Frank Sinatra for that matter...:) for me he is The Soundtrack of Spring.

Ahhh.... so many beautiful places in this world....so many springs!

Rascal Flatts - The Day Before You

2010-03-12T11:46:00.001-05:00

How bout some LIF!
Lyrics I'm feeling today. So thankful I never have to go back to the day before HE changed everything!

The year of ME

2010-03-05T19:15:00.005-05:00

I am like most of you....I wear many hats. I am a daughter and a sister...biologically and spiritually. I am a wife, a mother and a grandmother. I am intermittently a friend, lover, playmate, accountant, chef, mystery shopper, housekeeper, landscaper, home interior designer & repairman, counselor, organizer, & veterinarian. My life, for years, has been full, full, full of figuring and planning and working out details so that everyone in it has what they need, when they need it,.... gets where they need to go...on time...and is generally well loved and cared for. Its what we women do...often at our own expense. You know its true, ladies!
So has been the case for me. Over these many years that I have been wearing so many hats I must confess that my own needs, wants, and whatevers, have fallen perilously close to the bottom of the list in priority.
WELL....
2010 is the year that all ends...or at least takes a break.
I made a decision in 2009 that it was high time I took care of me...my hubby has been pushing it for years so he is my biggest cheerleader...here's what I'm doing about it.

1. Surgery on my toe....I will no longer put up with daily pain and ugly shoes!
2. Join the gym.... I refuse to feel and move like a 70 yr old when I can feel, move, AND look like a 35 yr old! 1 month in and so far its really fun and I'm feeling good!
3. Eat well ..... I have been improving in this area over the last 5 yrs since my hubby has been ill so I will continue eating moderate serving of food in a diet that includes lots of fresh veggies and fruit...more organics, more natural stuff in everything..less processed, less fast food (no longer tastes good anyway :))
4. Cut my caffeine intake and up my water intake....this decision was incorporated in the fall of '09 and I am happy to announce that I have reduced my soda intake to 1-12 oz can per day and upped my water intake to approx 64+ oz per day..about 1/2 a gallon. (really helps my skin)
5. Remove as much artificial sweeteners as possible from my diet.....I have switched over to Stevia use in all my drinks; soda, tea and coffee...huge for me. I have done this for about 4 months now.
6. Include good vitimins, calcium, probiotis and other supplements I feel are important in my daily routine.
7. Deal with my dental and oral health ( today with surgery, next a bridge)
8. Eye exam and new contact lenses AND new glasses that mirror my new prescription.
9. Sleep more! (with lower caffeine intake this is mandatory...and happening regularly since I can't hold my eyes open after 10pm)
10. Exercise my brain. I have consciously returned to my love of reading, making appointments with myself to relax and spend time on the weekend reading novels....also forcing my self to memorize and remember details...(I had been letting those kinds of things slide over the last few years)
11. Focus some loving time and thought on my husband....not illness related! Him and me...I want to stay in love forever!
12. Find Creative outlets....I have made time for scrapbooking and begun a quilting project with my mom and I am actively researching some avenues for singing in the area. My mom and I are having a blast doing something together we have never done before, its awesome! The singing thing may not happen this spring or even this year but I am working toward it. I refuse to lose my voice because of lack of opportunity, even if I have to take voice lessons again, and I love public performance too much to never do it again!
13.... and last but not least... Nurture my spirit, ...by incorporating small bits of quiet Time, Reading and Meditation...daily... and participating in More conversation with others about His Life.... a natural part of my life for years, this area has fallen dormant over the past few years but I am making a conscious effort to not allow that to happen. He IS my Life and I intend to live Him more fully every day, breathing in His goodness and mercy that is surely following me every step of my way.

WOW! Just writing all that down makes me pretty proud of myself. I knew I had made a 360 degree turn in my life but seeing it in black and white...well it really is a LOT of stuff! I must say...I ROCK! :)

I challenge you to take stock of your life and see if you are letting some important things fall by the way side..then take a good look at the big picture and say with all your heart "I'm worth the effort!" I did and I am SO glad!

Here's to "The Year of ME!"

Hi ya'll

2010-01-27T19:53:00.003-05:00

Its already the end of January and I find I haven't posted here in weeks. Here's a little update for those of you who don't get out to Facebook to see me. :)
I am up on my feet again and back at work although I am still wearing a small boot on my foot. It has been rather bothersome these last two days but is healing well.
Jbear is back in school and already eager for her next holiday off....she is doing second grade work and still getting into some trouble now and then from distraction and boredom....she is also excited about the arrival of her new baby brother, due in Feb.(on her daddy's side).
My daughter K is thinking of expanding her education and trying to decide which way to go with that. She isn't too thrilled with her job and would like to someday move out of her parents house.
My hubby is exploring new business opportunities and still battling health issues...some of which have resurfaced in the last month. Please keep him in your prayers...we/he needs them!

I have recently been made aware of Ps. 103:4-5
He redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's.

I don't think anyone under the age of 50 can really appreciate this, do you?
By this age you can recognize the pits you have been redeemed from...you can experience more love and compassion than you ever imagined and realize, with a much different perspective, all the blessings God has bestowed on you...plus...
....you can only have youth renewed if it has been lost already...just think,
....You can soar...again...and this time..really appreciate it!

There are blessings to be had for those of us who have been around for a while.

Happy New Year, everyone...especially all you Eagles!

My big Boo boo and Christmas cheer!

2009-12-20T11:05:00.005-05:00

Hi all
For those of you who don't already know, I am temporarily crippled by foot surgery and I have been in my jammies for 4 days now. Christmas has begun early this year as I had to get on with it to get things done before my surgery. Now most everything is in order and I am enjoying lying around playing on the computer, reading and watching movies...today its cold and the fire is going...hot chocolate is on my mind. :)

And what blog of mine would be complete without a pic of my sweet little Jbear at her Christmas best...
I hope your holidays are full of joy this year and that Christ is more real to you than ever before.
Merry Christmas my blog friends!

LIF

2009-12-08T15:02:00.003-05:00

A quote from my dear friend "Z"....
"the sound of what cannot be seen sings within everything that can & there is nothing more to it than that."
That woman is always speaking life to my spirit!

Fall at home

2009-11-10T13:12:00.004-05:00

In between the rain we have had some glorious weather in the deep South this year and some lovely foliage. Its about to be gone but here are a couple of pics from Shoals Creek in my home town. No wonder I love the Fall so much if this is what I grew up on!

Now on to Thanksgiving and Christmas......

The Muscle Shoals Sound

2009-10-17T10:28:00.001-04:00

this video only tells part of the story...much more from many recording studios and talent in the area and those who moved on and have drawn on their Bama roots. Actually just this past year several musicians won national awards including the Swampers...The Muscle Shoals Sound band, who were inducted into the Hall of Fame. Proud to be from Flo Town!

Hawaii 3

2009-09-21T16:57:00.007-04:00

Maunawili Falls Hike

Hiking in the rain forest...in the rain

The falls at the end of the rainbow....:) I mean hike

Canoe Parade at the Polynesian Cultural Center representing the various Pacific Islands and cultures...the Hawaiian Isles are in blue

...the Isle of Fiji

Samoa...yes, he climbed it with his bare feet...all the way to the top.

Tribal shuffleboard

The guys getting spear lessons

A Hawaiian Catamaran used to navigate the oceans...using only the stars to guide them...wow, I'm impressed!

THE LUAU..that's a roasted pig making its entrance.

A plate full of Luau food including taro rolls...that would be the purple thing at the top. Yes, they are very purple!

Hawaii Part 2

2009-09-19T10:01:00.005-04:00

More of our adventures in Hawaii. We really had a great time and squeezed a lot in.

This me getting washed up on shore from snorkeling. I was a little scared but it turned out to be loads of fun and very easy to do. We spent the day at a beach on the North Shore, known for good snorkeling and got to see lots of brightly colored fish who seemed completely unaware or afraid of us. (no, we didn't see any sharks and I'm very happy about that!) My daughter and I used the float to lay across so we didn't have to think about swimming and looking at the same time, neither of us are strong swimmers. This place is called 3 Tables because there are 3 coral reef/rocky type barriers there between the shore and the open sea. That made for fairly safe swimming and really good snorkeling.

Here we are at the famous Masumoto's eating Shave Ice. They line up at this place for a concoction very similar to a snow cone only the ice is REALLY just like snow...and the flavors are largely tropical...mango, papaya, watermelon, banana, etc. Yum! Very refreshing on a hot day...which they all are. :)
Near sunset and while waiting for our table at Jameson's for dinner,(hey their sunset photo looks just like mine...I took my own I promise!) we spotted several sea turtles off the jetty. Very Cool! They would pop their heads up and look at us as if to say hello. Unfortunately none of my shots of their heads turned out.

Paddle boarding...the latest in surf riding...easier than surfing, I'm told and very serene at sundown.
Gorgeous sunsets nightly. Note the couple in the foreground who pulled up their beach chairs just for the occasion.

And the morning and the evening...were the second day.

Hawaii...part 1

2009-09-16T21:27:00.003-04:00

Very first sight we saw after getting off the plane. We actually saw four rainbows that day.

Hubby couldn't get over the mountains...neither could I really. They were so dramatic and beautiful! Every bit as dramatic as the Rockies...only green!

Proof we were actually there! The island in the background is called The Chinaman's Hat.

Every where you looked there were spectacular beaches...and multicolored water.

Its hot but very breezy..the meaning of the word "balmy".

Would you do it again?

2009-09-03T09:15:00.004-04:00

I ran across this article and thought it made for very good reading. I can truthfully say "Absolutely" to the question posed. How about you?

Bye now...I'm off to Hawaii for 9 days with that guy I married...:)

End of Summer?

2009-08-29T09:07:00.006-04:00

Goodness its nice here lately! What marvelous weather for August. The dog days have passed and though the calendar still says "summer" there is a twing of fall in the air. Plenty of rain this summer so all is green and flourishing with blooms...my impatiens are huge, still, soon they will need to be replaced with mums and a more fallish look. School has begun...although everything in my being shouts "too early!!"..no one listened to me. Summer is ending in spite of all I can do. :)

However August coming to an end does mean one really exciting thing....

WE ARE GOING TO HAWAII!!!

In only 6 short days we will be on our way.
My hubby and I will be taking a strictly vacation, vacation. No little kids to bundle and chase after....no planning for something "everyone" can do, no "church" stuff on the side...or church work with a little vacation on the side either....just play and relaxation for 9 days in paradise with our sweet daughter and SIL hosting us. I can hardly believe it! We did spend 5 days in San Antonio a few years ago so we are starting to get the hang of it. Who knows...maybe I'll get inspired and have a deep thought like I did at The Alamo...after all we will be touring Pearl Harbor with my SIL.
BTW...his grandfather was actually there at Pearl Harbor that fateful day...in the Navy, just like his grandson...spared because he forgot his rosary on the way to mass and returned to barricks to retrieve it. God always has a plan doesn't He?

So look for some awesome photos in the near future of us being lazy and having a good time...

Please....

2009-08-24T20:35:00.001-04:00

Today I played dress up, frisbee, jumped rope, danced a recital AND shared kisses with the most adorable 6 yr old on the planet! Just someone please remind me to take OFF the feather boa on my head before taking out the trash next time.

that Grand of mine!

2009-08-18T21:50:00.001-04:00

School has been in session one week and one day....today her teacher called...
she wants to give her 2nd grade work...
Yes, she is smart
Yes, she is bored
Yes, she is already getting into trouble...:)

How?

2009-08-11T10:58:00.002-04:00

How do you convey to someone who has only ever known you as you are...that HE changed everything??

Disney-ness

2009-08-06T20:58:00.005-04:00

Doesn't this just say it all??

These three are mine!

Thsi girl loves Buzz :)

Everyone's a kid at Disney.

Aren't they cute? Isn't Disney magic??

Classic Disney

Revelation Song (with lyrics)

2009-07-27T10:13:00.001-04:00

Oh My God..What an awesome song! Singing it loud in the car this morning...I sound good! He Is Glorious!

This is way to funny not to share!

2009-07-23T09:06:00.002-04:00

This came in my email this week. I was laughing out loud in no time at all!
********************************************************************

BANNED FROM WAL-MART...

This is why women should not take men shopping against their will.

After I retired, my wife insisted that I accompany her on her trips to Wal-Mart. Unfortunately, like most men, I found shopping boring and preferred to get in and get out. Equally unfortunately, my wife is like most women - she loved to browse.

Yesterday my dear wife received the following letter from the local Wal-Mart:

Dear Mrs. Adams
Over the past six months, your husband has been causing quite a commotion in our store. We cannot tolerate this behavior and have been forced to ban both of you from the store. Our complaints against Mr. Adams are listed below and are documented by our video surveillance cameras.

1. June 15: Took 24 boxes of condoms and randomly put them in people's carts when they weren't looking.

2. July 2: Set all the alarm clocks in Housewares to go off at 5-minute intervals.

3. July 7: Made a trail of tomato juice on the floor leading to the women's restroom.

4 July 19: Walked up to an employee and told her in an official voice, 'Code 3 in Housewares. Get on it right away.'

5. August 4: Went to the Service Desk and tried to put a bag of M&M's on layaway.

6. August 14: Moved a 'CAUTION - WET FLOOR' sign to a carpeted area.

7. August 15: Set up a tent in the camping department and told other shoppers he'd invite them in if they would bring pillows and blankets from the bedding department.

8. August 23: When a clerk asked if they could help him he began crying and screamed, 'Why can't you people just leave me alone?'

9. September 4: Looked right into the security camera and used it as a mirror while he picked his nose.

10.. September 10: While handling guns in the hunting department, he asked the clerk where the antidepressants were.

11. October 3: Darted around the store suspiciously while loudly humming the ' Mission Impossible' theme.

12. October 6: In the auto department, he practiced his 'Madonna look' by using different sizes of funnels.

13. October 18: Hid in a clothing rack and when people browsed through yelled, 'PICK ME! PICK ME!'

14. October 21: When an announcement came over the loud speaker, he assumed a fetal position and screamed, 'OH NO! IT'S THOSE VOICES AGAIN!'

And last, but not least...
15. October 23: Went into a fitting room, shut the door, waited awhile, then yelled very loudly, 'Hey! There's no toilet paper in here!'

Sincerely,
Wal-Mart

Grace

2009-07-17T09:48:00.005-04:00

Before There Was Time
Caedmon's Call
"The night couldn't keep me from grace"

Wow and amen!
A powerful force, grace. So thankful that before there was time...there was GRACE...and nothing can keep me from it. Grace is eternal and supersedes time and space.....and all manner of darkness.

He did it!

2009-07-09T09:19:00.004-04:00

My wonderful nephew enlisted in the US Marines yesterday! We are So proud of him!
Please keep him...and his mommy and daddy.... in your prayers. And don't worry....this is an old pic...that surfer hair went away a long time ago so it won't be too much of a shock when its time for that buzz cut. :)

You're a Grand Ole Flag...

2009-07-05T13:07:00.004-04:00

What a great 4th of July weekend we are having! Our son and his girl are in, J is experiencing her first "real" 4th..one that she will remember anyway...the weather has been perfect...its awesome.

Here comes the parade!

Cooling off in the city fountain...:)

Ringing the Liberty Bell

It is for freedom that we have been made free...in Christ and in country...we are free... and it is a powerful thing to see that freedom recognized and celebrated where ever you may find it.
This weekend we see our national freedom celebrated...and for one day of the year...every American comes together and says..."I love my country, with all her flaws and I am proud to be citizen of such a great land". So however you celebrated...let freedom ring!

Prayer please

2009-07-01T20:39:00.001-04:00

We, my husband and I, are facing some very important decisions in the immediate future. your prayers for wisdom and discernment would be greatly appreciated.

Congratulations!

2009-06-22T21:19:00.004-04:00

Hooray for K! She's all done dental assisting school and has a great job already in this difficult economy. Way to go girl!
J wanted to have a Diploma Party so that's what we did. Complete with cake and presents!

The Letter

2009-06-18T08:47:00.001-04:00

I received this in my inbox this morning....

************************************************
Some of you may not appreciate it, but I have no way to know who leans in this direction and who doesn't.

To those that are offended, I apologize up front.

THE LETTER June 17, 2009 - 10:36 ET

GLENN: I got a letter from a woman in Arizona. She writes an open letter to our nation's leadership: I'm a home grown American citizen, 53, registered Democrat all my life. Before the last presidential election I registered as a Republican because I no longer felt the Democratic Party represents my views or works to pursue issues important to me. Now I no longer feel the Republican Party represents my views or works to pursue issues important to me. The fact is I no longer feel any political party or representative in Washington represents my views or works to pursue the issues important to me. There must be someone. Please tell me who you are. Please stand up and tell me that you are there and that you're willing to fight for our Constitution as it was written. Please stand up now. You might ask yourself what my views and issues are that I would horribly feel so disenfranchised by both major political parties. What kind of nut job am I? Will you please tell me?

Well, these are briefly my views and issues for which I seek representation:

One, illegal immigration. I want you to stop coddling illegal immigrants and secure our borders. Close the underground tunnels. Stop the violence and the trafficking in drugs and people. No amnesty, not again. Been there, done that, no resolution. P.S., I'm not a racist. This isn't to be confused with legal immigration.

Glenn Beck's Common Sense
Now available in book stores nationwide...

Two, the TARP bill, I want it repealed and I want no further funding supplied to it. We told you no, but you did it anyway. I want the remaining unfunded 95% repealed. Freeze, repeal.

Three: Czars, I want the circumvention of our checks and balances stopped immediately. Fire the czars. No more czars. Government officials answer to the process, not to the president. Stop trampling on our Constitution and honor it.

Four, cap and trade. The debate on global warming is not over. There is more to say.

Five, universal healthcare. I will not be rushed into another expensive decision. Don't you dare try to pass this in the middle of the night and then go on break. Slow down!

Six, growing government control. I want states rights and sovereignty fully restored. I want less government in my life, not more. Shrink it down. Mind your own business. You have enough to take care of with your real obligations. Why don't you start there.

Seven, ACORN. I do not want ACORN and its affiliates in charge of our 2010 census. I want them investigated. I also do not want mandatory escrow fees contributed to them every time on every real estate deal that closes. Stop the funding to ACORN and its affiliates pending impartial audits and investigations. I do not trust them with taking the census over with our taxpayer money. I don't trust them with our taxpayer money. Face up to the allegations against them and get it resolved before taxpayers get any more involved with them. If it walks like a duck and talks like a duck, hello. Stop protecting your political buddies. You work for us, the people. Investigate.

Eight, redistribution of wealth. No, no, no. I work for my money. It is mine. I have always worked for people with more money than I have because they gave me jobs. That is the only redistribution of wealth that I will support. I never got a job from a poor person. Why do you want me to hate my employers? Why ‑‑ what do you have against shareholders making a profit?

Nine, charitable contributions. Although I never got a job from a poor person, I have helped many in need. Charity belongs in our local communities, where we know our needs best and can use our local talent and our local resources. Butt out, please. We want to do it ourselves.

Ten, corporate bailouts. Knock it off. Sink or swim like the rest of us. If there are hard times ahead, we'll be better off just getting into it and letting the strong survive. Quick and painful. Have you ever ripped off a Band‑Aid? We will pull together. Great things happen in America under great hardship. Give us the chance to innovate. We cannot disappoint you more than you have disappointed us.

Eleven, transparency and accountability. How about it? No, really, how about it? Let's have it. Let's say we give the buzzwords a rest and have some straight honest talk. Please try ‑‑ please stop manipulating and trying to appease me with clever wording. I am not the idiot you obviously take me for. Stop sneaking around and meeting in back rooms making deals with your friends. It will only be a prelude to your criminal investigation. Stop hiding things from me.

Twelve, unprecedented quick spending. Stop it now.

Take a breath. Listen to the people. Let's just slow down and get some input from some nonpoliticians on the subject. Stop making everything an emergency. Stop speed reading our bills into law. I am not an activist. I am not a community organizer. Nor am I a terrorist, a militant or a violent person. I am a parent and a grandparent. I work. I'm busy. I'm busy. I am busy, and I am tired. I thought we elected competent people to take care of the business of government so that we could work, raise our families, pay our bills, have a little recreation, complain about taxes, endure our hardships, pursue our personal goals, cut our lawn, wash our cars on the weekends and be responsible contributing members of society and teach our children to be the same all while living in the home of the free and land of the brave.

I entrusted you with upholding the Constitution. I believed in the checks and balances to keep from getting far off course. What happened? You are very far off course. Do you really think I find humor in the hiring of a speed reader to unintelligently ramble all through a bill that you signed into law without knowing what it contained? I do not. It is a mockery of the responsibility I have entrusted to you. It is a slap in the face. I am not laughing at your arrogance. Why is it that I feel as if you would not trust me to make a single decision about my own life and how I would live it but you should expect that I should trust you with the debt that you have laid on all of us and our children. We did not want the TARP bill. We said no. We would repeal it if we could. I am sure that we still cannot. There is such urgency and recklessness in all of the recent spending.

From my perspective, it seems that all of you have gone insane. I also know that I am far from alone in these feelings. Do you honestly feel that your current pursuits have merit to patriotic Americans? We want it to stop. We want to put the brakes on everything that is being rushed by us and forced upon us. We want our voice back. You have forced us to put our lives on hold to straighten out the mess that you are making. We will have to give up our vacations, our time spent with our children, any relaxation time we may have had and money we cannot afford to spend on you to bring our concerns to Washington. Our president often knows all the right buzzword is unsustainable. Well, no kidding. How many tens of thousands of dollars did the focus group cost to come up with that word? We don't want your overpriced words. Stop treating us like we're morons.

We want all of you to stop focusing on your reelection and do the job we want done, not the job you want done or the job your party wants done. You work for us and at this rate I guarantee you not for long because we are coming. We will be heard and we will be represented. You think we're so busy with our lives that we will never come for you? We are the formerly silent majority, all of us who quietly work , pay taxes, obey the law, vote, save money, keep our noses to the grindstone and we are now looking up at you. You have awakened us, the patriotic spirit so strong and so powerful that it had been sleeping too long. You have pushed us too far. Our numbers are great. They may surprise you. For every one of us who will be there, there will be hundreds more that could not come. Unlike you, we have their trust. We will represent them honestly, rest assured. They will be at the polls on voting day to usher you out of office. We have cancelled vacations. We will use our last few dollars saved. We will find the representation among us and a grassroots campaign will flourish. We didn't ask for this fight. But the gloves are coming off. We do not come in violence, but we are angry. You will represent us or you will be replaced with someone who will. There are candidates among us when he will rise like a Phoenix from the ashes that you have made of our constitution.

Democrat, Republican, independent, libertarian. Understand this. We don't care. Political parties are meaningless to us. Patriotic Americans are willing to do right by us and our Constitution and that is all that matters to us now. We are going to fire all of you who abuse power and seek more. It is not your power. It is ours and we want it back. We entrusted you with it and you abused it. You are dishonorable. You are dishonest. As Americans we are ashamed of you. You have brought shame to us. If you are not representing the wants and needs of your constituency loudly and consistently, in spite of the objections of your party, you will be fired. Did you hear? We no longer care about your political parties. You need to be loyal to us, not to them. Because we will get you fired and they will not save you. If you do or can represent me, my issues, my views, please stand up. Make your identity known. You need to make some noise about it. Speak up. I need to know who you are. If you do not speak up, you will be herded out with the rest of the sheep and we will replace the whole damn congress if need be one by one. We are coming. Are we coming for you? Who do you represent? What do you represent? Listen. Because we are coming. We the people are coming.

Birthdays

2009-06-15T09:26:00.003-04:00

Here's what we're doing tomorrow night for my birthday. :)

AND tomorrow is also....my son's birthday.
Happy Birthday Son! We love you So much!!

Blessed be the name of the Lord!

2009-06-12T13:23:00.001-04:00

Blessed Be Your Name
In the land that is plentiful 
Where Your streams of abundance flow
Blessed be Your name

Blessed Be Your name
When I'm found in the desert place
Though I walk through the wilderness
Blessed Be Your name

Feeling abundant today

He's back!

2009-06-08T10:07:00.002-04:00

He's home(in Hawaii at anyway) from Iraq!!!! Hooray!
Thanks so much for all your prayers!

Photos and Stories

2009-06-05T22:24:00.004-04:00

Photo's and Stories

I've seen this meme on a couple of blogs and thought it sounded fun so here goes.
1.) Find my 6th photo file;
2.) Choose the 6th photo in the file;
3.) Post and tell story and
4.) Tag 6 friends to carry meme forward

This is a photo of my son's girlfriend, Irene, my granddaughter, Jada and my daughter, Katy. this picture was taken a couple of years ago when my son and Irene came up from Orlando to visit us. We went out to Kennesaw Mountain which is one of the higher points around Atlanta and the scene of the historic last stand defense of Atlanta during the Civil War, the one in the movie Gone With the Wind. Its a beautiful place and from the top of the mountain you can see all the way to downtown Atlanta even though its about 20+ miles as the crow flies...the perfect place for a last defense. We rode an old school bus to the top to check out the view, climbed around on boulders and witnessed a Civil War cannon demonstration, not to mention tried on some Union and Confederate hats. Everyone had a nice day and Irene loved it. Jada also loved hanging out with her mom, uncle and Irene.

I won't be tagging anyone but if you'd like to participate...go ahead...:)

Shade

2009-06-02T13:18:00.003-04:00

I love the shade on a very hot day...flowers swaying and scenting the air....cool breezes...green grass....low hanging branches...birds twittering.....I love it...

I love the shade...
* on my deck before 10 am and after 4pm with its pots of impatiens overflowing and gardenia bush blooming
* on my front porch after 4pm...with the wind chimes tinkling...and rocker rocking
* in the park outside my office...any time...quiet, breezy, flowers, trees, water flowing(sometimes when there is no drought in GA)...

Its 88 degrees today...a good day for shade....

This spoke to me today

2009-05-28T11:59:00.001-04:00

HOLY LOVE
Andy Park

Holy love, flow in me, fill me up like the deepest sea
Like a crashing wave pouring over me, holy love flow in me

Many sorrows cannot quench your love,
darkness cannot overwhelm it

When I find you I find healing
When I find you I find peace
And I know that there's no river so wide
No mountain so high, no ocean so deep
That you can't part the sea

She was a Dancin' Queen

2009-05-22T18:08:00.005-04:00

Ain't nothing like it....that very first dance recital...
The music
The excitement
The costumes
....the make up!

When we All get to Heaven

2009-05-12T22:31:00.002-04:00

The past is washing over me just now…it has been for a few weeks now. Is it a cleansing flow? I’m not sure but the pain isn’t as acute as it has been. Reaching out to brothers and sisters who I love dearly and have been missing for what seems like an eternity, I have recently been made aware of just how wonderful heaven must be.

My son in law made a statement at his and my daughter’s wedding that bears repeating…he said

“having all the people I love in the same place at the same time…that’s heaven to me”

I think I can see it…through a glass darkly, I can possibly see just what heaven might be like….It is a place where all my brothers and sisters and I can be together…with no miles, no differences of opinion, no walls, without any of this life’s pain or the smell of flesh between us…all is truly peace and light and the purest of joy, fellowship complete…

I can almost see it…through the veil…and it is a place I long for...a place I miss though I can’t actually say I’ve ever being there…or perhaps I have been… in my spirit and maybe even a few times in my body too. :)…some gatherings of the saints are beyond words, you know.

I have never been one for pie in the sky religion and “when we all get to heaven” sentimentality…. I firmly believe that eternity, for us, begins right here and now the moment we meet Jesus, we step into what has been ever ongoing between the Father and the Son, and we begin partaking of what our spirits have always known and sought to partake of… a life meant to be lived out from eternity past into eternity future…inside of Him. This has been my experience in Christ...to live in the eternal Now.

Yet today…this week…these touches from the hearts and spirits of my brothers and sisters tell me that one day…in the sweet bye and bye…there is more, more than we can currently manage in our frail humanity…One Glad Day we will truly know as we are known and dwell in a place of oneness we can only dream of and our flesh prevents us from just now. Something in my heart is longing for that day today….as tears fall…. tears of pain and of joy, all at the same time…but greater still.....tears of longing.

The little black dress

2009-05-09T18:05:00.003-04:00

Update: :) thank you all for your kind words. As Trish was inquiring, I was on my way to a fund raiser/party with my hubby for his work. Unfortunately I had laryngitis and couldn't talk to anyone..:( lol...He's been bugging me for weeks to get a dress and come with him...it was actually fun... He does lots of this stuff but I rarely go...I'm thinking of making it more of a priority. :)

Things to do...

2009-05-03T11:00:00.001-04:00

1. Help with the neighborhood Yard Sale (huge traffic yesterday!)
2. Shop for a little black dress...party on Thurs...MUST find something!!
3. Grocery Store run
4. Pick up Mom at the airport
5. Check out a great chair I found on Craigslist (well that may have to wait) but its a really great chair!

Stories

2009-04-19T11:33:00.003-04:00

I should preface this by saying that we have never been rich...hardly even middle class by most standards, though rich in life...therefore every purchase, every possession must serve its purpose, even dual purposes, well. When we were young and starting out each acquisition was of significant importance....many possessions were gifts or hand me downs from family or friends. The art work and knick knacks, mementos, books, photos...everything, even the frames for the photos had significance...even sentimental attachment. I loved living in a house full of stories. On any given day...a guest in our home, and there were many, could point to an object or pick up an item of interest and there would be a story to tell, a history that was inexplicably interwoven with ours, with the church, with the people we loved. Glorious stories...stories of miracles and Life, laughter, hope and Love...lots of love.
Upon moving to Atlanta we packed everything up and loaded our truck. All our possessions...all our history, all our stories,...were boxed away into storage while we lived an aesthetically clean life for some months in an apartment. Needing only the bare necessities, we lived a sterile kind of existence with few mementos around us.
Sometime later we purchased our home and began the lengthy process of unpacking, determining the new "look" for our new surroundings and settling in. At first only the basics went into the house..sofas and beds, tables and chairs...no pictures on the walls, no artwork or mementos in place. All those boxes...and there were lots of them, went into the garage to be sorted through at a later date. All those memories and treasures were there awaiting our new "look", our new life...
But during that interval,...
some things happened, big things that changed everything....and by the time we discovered that our new "look" wasn't going to be anything like our past life...it was decided that all that history would be better left in those boxes in the garage.

These days my home is a work in progress...we still aren't rich...we can't just go get a new whatever when ever we think about it...we have to plan and shop and save..and because our history is boxed up in the garage we have lots of empty places in our home and our hearts...places waiting for replacements...waiting for a new persona...we are reinventing ourselves I suppose, or being reinvented by the Lord who is ultimately in charge and the possessions we currently own and display are much more recent...our history is, in some ways...very short. Almost nothing in my house has a story now...everything is straight off the shelves at TJ MAxx or Craigslist and the only story associated with it is how much of a bargain we got it for or how well it matches our decor.

Our community is planning a neighborhood yard sale in May. I knew I really needed to clean out and get rid of some things, though I wasn't exactly sure what, So......

Yesterday I opened those boxes in the garage.....
30 years of stories came rushing out... all with voices clamoring...
Some gently and sweetly,
Some with stabbing pain and grief...
and I have to say, I'm getting rid of a lot of stuff...history...baggage...stories....its almost all going.
Someone else will use these things and never know...the love, the joy,... the grief, they have meant.

It was a hard day yesterday...I felt emotionally wrung out....but today is a new day...new stories waiting to be written..I have drawn a deep breath and put many a piece of history into the Yard Sale pile...cried over a few, smiled over a few...kept a few...to be boxed away again...stories to be kept in the dark...yet in my heart...waiting for a day when it might not be impossible to bring them to the light again.
Stories worth the telling....

OH MY GOODNESS!!!

2009-04-16T21:54:00.003-04:00

Did you see this?
Youtube won't allow me to upload the video but you must check out this link

Christian Music Video Body Worship Dance - Worthy Is The Lamb

2009-04-14T13:15:00.001-04:00

Isn't this beautiful? I should have posted it for Easter...but then He is Worthy and Risen every day ...so every day is Easter...right? :)

Let's have a Tea Party!

2009-04-09T13:17:00.002-04:00

On April 15th this is happening all across the country. There will be a massive one held right here in Atlanta. What do you think?... are ya feelin' patriotic...or just plain fed up?

You've got to read this!

2009-03-28T08:32:00.001-04:00

This post, by my dear friend, Vicki, is absolutely wonderful. I've been thinking about this topic myself a lot lately. Please go and check this one out. Have a great weekend!

Upside Down

2009-03-26T08:33:00.005-04:00

I've been thinking lately...with the recession, mortgage crisis, financial crisis, new currency standard, world unrest etc. etc....ever feel like we are spinning round and round and may very well have fallen down a well...we may very well be on a road going nowhere as a nation, as a people..as a world? I think perhaps we have been in this state for quite sometime but haven't realized it...it reminded me of these lyrics...or I should say, these lyrics reminded me of this upside down state we find ourselves in today in our world. Nothing is as it appears, right becomes wrong and wrong becomes right. All I can think to say is "Lord, Help!"

“LIVING LIFE UPSIDE DOWN” lyrics by Russ Lee

Chorus:
What if we’ve fallen to the bottom of a well
Thinking we’ve risen to the top of a mountain
What if we’re knocking at the gates of hell
Thinking we’re heaven bound
What if we spend our lives thinking of ourselves
When we should have been thinking of each other
What if we reach up and touch the ground
To find we’re living life upside down.

The Very First

2009-03-22T13:15:00.003-04:00

Jada's very first test...ever. :)

My daughter...the model

2009-03-12T16:59:00.002-04:00

My lovely daughter is appearing as a model in an ad for an upscale hair salon in the Atlantan magazine. The ads will run every edition for the entire year. How cool is that?? Check it out.

Urgent message

2009-03-09T08:55:00.003-04:00

UPDATE 03/10/09

I ran this by my hubby last night and he pointed out to me that prophesy in the NT...is always about Christ...hardly ever about "what's going to happen", and never about the end times etc. He also pointed out that Christians in scripture and the early church were usually taken by surprise when calamity came and forced to rely on the Lord for help. Only the book of Revelation deals with the future in any real meaningful way and there are 2 ways to look at it...one is that its about the end times...the other...that its the Revelation of Christ and His Church...I go with that one personally...SOOOO...then he pointed out that David Wilkerson has been saying such things for years(Constance you aren't that off:))...and that Americans tend to get all into the "calamity" "end times" mode whenever the stock market in this country goes down...totally ignoring the persecution of Christians in Darfur or China, who I'm sure think its the end of the world on a regular basis with far more reason.
He was not impressed...consequently...as well as following my own gut...I will say as I noted below, like the 5 virgins with their laps filled with oil, I intend to practice common sense and stock my pantry...on the other hand I'm not going to get too bent out of shape over things like this.
***************************************
Have any of you seen this?
I have great respect for David Wilkerson so I'm listening up. It won't hurt me to have some extra supplies on hand either.

The hook takes you back....

2009-03-04T15:51:00.008-05:00

Ever notice how a song can take you back?
Lately I've been listening to an online praise radio station while I'm at work (I can plug in my earphones and no one knows...:)) Its called Praise on Fire Radio and I get them here. They play really awesome praise songs one after another with no commercial interruption...you should try it. Anyway...the music is mostly wonderful with very little of the Top 40 kind of thing, although in the middle of the day it can get kind of weird with music that sounds like it was written and recorded by someone sort of wandering with nothing to say.
but MOSTLY...its really really good!

ANYWAY...I sometimes hear the song "This is the air I breathe" Not the commercial version but a very "living" kind of version.

With those earphones in....

.... I am instantly transported back in time to the first time I ever heard it...ever have that happen?

Try filing mindlessly for hours with your earphones plugged in...its like being in another realm...and when this happens...that "other realm" becomes amazingly real.

***************************************************

Suddenly I am standing in a large living room with about 40-50 people...yeah, I mean large, but the room is full...there are a few chairs, a love seat and one sofa but everything else has been moved out of the room and everyone is standing in a large circle. When we stop singing everyone will sit down right where they are now standing its so packed. Three fourths of the people there are under 30 (not me, but almost everyone else)..and boy can they sing! There is no music but as they raise their voices in this song, every harmony imaginable rises toward heaven...it is trapped between the walls and bodies all around and it seems to reverberate off the surroundings, penetrating your very being til you can't tell if its on the inside or outside of you.

I am standing with hands raised, in direct contact with brothers and sisters on either side of me,... and its incredible!... Since I am usually singing at the top of my voice but don't yet know this song...I am quiet....enjoying the priviledge of being washed...being poured into...being ministered to in a deep way...

and they sang it like this:

"This is the air I breathe, this is the air I breathe your Holy Presence, living in me.
This is my daily bread, this is my daily bread, your very Word, spoken IN me.

And I , I'm desperate for You, desperate for You....

She is the air You breathe, She is the air You breathe. Your holy presence, living in Her.
She is Your daily bread, She is Your daily bread, Your very Word spoken in Her.

And She, She's desperate for You, desperate for You....

And we, we're desperate for You...desperate for You

And I, I'm desperate for You...."

Times like these...the veil of flesh gets mighty thin, people....

*********************************

Then, all the sudden..my boss rings me to ask how my project is coming along.....

Deep...or not...

2009-02-15T15:12:00.005-05:00

Well its Sunday afternoon and I'm sitting at the computer licking peanut butter off my fingers to try and type something. Today I have bought groceries and cleaned a little, I have wondered if my brakes need work and if my husband is feeling ok. I have conversed with my mom, my daughter, the auntie who had J overnight and the aforementioned hubby who answers in monosyllables...which makes me wonder if he feels ok. I have a pain in my cheek which makes me wonder if I have a sinus infection and I have appreciated, for the umteenth time, the gorgeous paintings I found and hung over my bed...ok, so all this sounds rather humdrum and boring...not terribly deep nor interesting...and that, my friends, is the point...I am ordinary, humdrum and even dare I say it,... boring. I haven't had a deep thought in ages...I can't actually remember when the last time I did have a deep thought... well maybe a few weeks ago when I read The Shack...but certainly that didn't last long nor has one crossed my mind since.
Apparently I don't think very deeply anymore...which means I have nothing to say...nothing worth writing about in cyberspace anyway...so if you used to come here for inspiration or something I suppose you'd better just give up on that...I'm a pretty shallow pond these days and not likely to bring forth any timely wisdom any time soon. I have become my worst fear...ordinary.
Will I one day again sip from the deep inner wells of the spirit and have life to share?....maybe...but for now...I'm just one of those completely surface kinda folks I usually can't bear to be around.

Lists

2009-02-01T14:25:00.004-05:00

I am a list person..
at least I always have been in the past.
These days I'm flyin more by the seat of my pants
less gets done...
but more fun is had by all. :)
This weekend the agenda includes( and notice that I am including the entire weekend in the general scope of things as opposed to specific lists for specific days)

1. Shop for household decor(I am still trying to get decorated after living here 4 yrs)
2. Shop for sales on slacks and any remaining sweater that may still be on the shelf somewhere (they are just about replaced with t-shirts down here)
3. Shop for shower gift (baby is a girl)
3. Shop for groceries(Snyder's has out a new chocolate covered, peanut butter filled, pretzel..OMGosh!)
Are you noticing a trend here??

5. Church attendance
6. Hiking
7. Jada time
8. Pay bills
9. Eat out
10. Super Bowl! (We are a house divide on teams this year:))

What are you doing this weekend?

Alive

2009-01-23T22:26:00.003-05:00

It's amazing how His Spirit works...don't you agree?
I'm not sure what it is...but I can go for a period of time without feeling His presence, without sensing Him...without having that quickening....sort of missing it, sort of feeling overwhelmed with the busyness of life and not really remembering what it is I am missing...then something small...ever so small, will spark in me...usually brought on by an inner urging, turning me to focus on Him for a time...paying attention to His Word or some book about Him or turning the words of a song into a prayer or a conversation with another believer, one of those kind where your spirits do more talking that your mouths...and suddenly...almost without noticing, with little effort on my part...I feel alive.

Do you know what I mean by alive?

That sudden burst of creative energy that causes you to have incredible ideas and thoughts and to know that anything is possible or that awe filled inspiration of looking at nature and sensing something so much greater...in the very same landscape you took for granted only yesterday. Its like looking through His eyes...I think it IS looking through His eyes and sensing by His Spirit and knowing with His confidence that you have power inside and can accomplish anything or that there is a high purpose to this walk and life has real meaning... thinking thoughts outside of your own depth...that come from God knows where...literally...

And when I slip away from this incredible Aliveness...usually without even noticing how the cares of my life are taking me away or how I haven't connected with Him lately... for a time I don't even notice that my life has become dead and boring and dreary...so monotonous and colorless...I only know that something is wrong...terribly wrong...and I think " it can't have always been like this....surely it won't always be this way"...then I remember that I used to feel alive...and I miss it so...but most of the time I can't seem to remember how to get back there...and Christian music or Sunday sermons or daily devotional do little to help.

Then after a while...sometimes after I have given up on ever sensing that Aliveness again...His Spirit is gracious to prompt me and draw me...and I turn again into Him...and Life is there. Sometimes only a tiny spark...but enough to remind me...and quicken me,...a glimpse into what is and what can be that causes me to hunger for more.

Crashing

2009-01-18T21:26:00.004-05:00

Well, its Sunday night...the Eagles have lost the NFC championship game to the Cardinals...the ribs are gone...
and my son and his girlfriend, who have been visiting for a couple of days are preparing to head back to FL tomorrow. Sigh...I suppose all good things must come to an end.

At least I have one more day off to look forward to...thank you Martin Luther King Jr! :)

Jack is Back!

2009-01-13T17:54:00.002-05:00

Yeah!
In case you missed the 4 hour premier Sun. and Mon. you can catch up here.

A miracle in my heart

2009-01-07T21:08:00.000-05:00

01/10/09 - 11:04AM
(A bit of a disclaimer if you will;
I removed this post earlier because I was afraid it might embarrass my husband, might be misunderstood, might sound...a little over the top. Upon several requests, I am re-posting it. Those of you who know him know that I am understating if anything....)

We have a tradition in our house...it is this:

On Christmas morning when everyone is first up and before we go down to the living room, we stop on the stairs...the landing, just out of sight of the tree...(when we had no stairs, all the kids came in and sat on our bed)...and my husband...the gentle, and wise man of God and father that he is, tells the story of Christmas...the real story of Who He is and why He came...and how that impacts our world, our family...how it makes all the difference.

He has done this for some 25+ years...for as long as we have had children of any age to understand at all. Always done with their age level in mind...thoughtfully and spirit filled....one of the many ways he has changed lives...our lives...the lives of myself, my mom and each of my kids, everyone who really hears him....and now its time for another generation.
This is the first year that Jada has been old enough to know what awaits downstairs and at the same time old enough to wait and to listen...and to understand that this day... Christmas Day and what it represents...is bigger than her, bigger than us...it is bigger than the whole world.

This man.... that God has given me as a husband, my children as a father and now my granddaughter as a grandfather....has the uncanny ability...the anointing if you will...to speak Life...literally, into the lives of those he comes in contact with...be it at work, in the grocery store, at the hair salon, on the bike trail, where ever he spends any time...and you know what...people long to hear Life...they crave food for their spirits and don't even know what it is...or why the sound of his words help them.
He is real and amazing and filled with God...and overflowing with a God given ability to deposit Christ into hearts and spirits. There are so few who can do this...it stuns me...literally stuns me to hear what is perpetrated as Life to those who are so desperate for it, by those who have NO idea whatsoever how to impart Christ. .....yet my household is incredibly blessed, this man, this gifted man, this master of impartation, sits today...in suburbia USA, on the stairs on Christmas morning...imparting Life into those around him who at this moment happen to be his family...a gift hidden from the world...yet oh so powerful.

I came to know the Lord through this voice, I mean really know the Lord. I came to know His house and His purpose through words spoken from this Christ filled heart,... as have many many others. I love to hear it still, Life that is, I need to hear it always...Life never grows old and never ceases to be birthed in us if we have opportunity to hear and receive.
... and now he begins again...with a new little heart....

This quote from the latest Thoene book "The Eighth Shepherd" really said it for me....

"I can hear his voice creating a miracle in my heart..."
Bodie & Brock Thoene- The Eighth Shepherd

Roms. 10:14 How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?

Happy New Year!

2009-01-01T21:49:00.003-05:00

I pray this new year brings you all the colors of Joy and the ability to find it in the most unusual places.

The blue in the flames of your fireplace, the blue in the eyes of someone you love, the blue in the sky on a cold winter's day.
The red in your grandchild's cheeks and lips, or a crisp apple or juicy tomato.
The green of new leaves, or fresh paint, a tennis ball or an old green comfy sweatshirt.
The yellow of the sun on a bright summer's day or daffodils in spring or squash in summer.
The purple of twilight, eggplant parmigiana from your favorite cook, your son's faded purple favorite ball cap or the birthday card your little one makes for you.
The orange of sunset, a leaf in the fall...or your favorite sales catalog.

...and though every day in the coming year will not seem glorious....and some days will even seem dark and difficult....may each of us feel the arms of our Savior around us and His perfect Joy in our hearts.

Happy New Year!

Christmas Stuff

2008-12-20T12:50:00.003-05:00

I guess you can tell I'm a pretty busy girl. :) So forgive me if I combine several good post ideas into one.

Jada and her caroling friends at our neighborhood caroling night.

Waiting for the caroling wagon with Aunt Bekah, just in from Hawaii.

Too much Christmas fun and a late night with "Chronicles of Narnia"

The local Candy Cane Hunt with new friends.

Building gingerbread houses at the local Candy Cane Hunt. It was about 30 degrees that day with a stiff breeze making gingerbread house building a chilling event. :) Of course the Caroling night it was about 55....Thats the South for you. Up and down like a yoyo this time of year.

So...there's some of what we've been up to. The Christmas Program at church is tomorrow night and J is excited that her mommy, daddy, auntie Bekak and Papi will be present..I only get a slight nod along with her Granny. :)

Hope you're having fun along the way this holiday season too!

Stethoscope

2008-12-19T08:29:00.003-05:00

The Amazing Scarf

2008-12-06T08:50:00.007-05:00

I promised I'd let you know how the scarf adventures turned out so here it is....

After Thanksgiving stroll
Making holiday goodies

shopping on Black Friday

I kept the scarf for 10 days...which fell over Thanksgiving and Black Friday. The scarf accompanied me for our holiday celebrating, family time and afterward for shopping on Black Friday and Christmas cooking on the weekend. To my thinking, the entire time was just a little piece of Americana...things almost every American was doing in their on way at about the same time, individually, yet the same. This is the thing, maybe more than any other, that makes America great, the bonds of sameness that we all enjoy...or suffer for that matter...our commonality.

What a great picture of our lives in Christ...different and certainly individual, yet connected by the sameness that makes it all something deeper, powerful and infinitely worthwhile.

....Funny how something like a winter scarf could do something amazing....

The Scarf

2008-11-22T09:35:00.009-05:00

I am a part of a sisterhood....
so big and so diverse that I cannot fully comprehend it. The faces and lives of my sisters reflect that of Christ to me if I will only stop to notice. Everyone of them different yet the same..in Him. I am so blessed to be a part of His great family in the earth and to share that in a micro way with 11 other beautiful sisters through the magic of the traveling scarf....it is a link to these eleven sisters scattered around the country even the world. Through the travels of our scarf we are connected, a picture of our true reality. Because though separated by miles and timezones, cultures and continents we actually stand outside of time and space, hand in hand together with our Lord. Our traveling scarf denotes this, a cord that binds us together. It is a tangible representation of what is true, the invisible made visible. Its a magical bond that reflects His binding of us together. I'm up for an adventure...with the scarf...with my sisters! I'll let you know how it turns out. :)

James

2008-11-09T09:45:00.007-05:00

Tomorrow my wonderful son in law will leave on his deployment to Iraq. Please keep him and my daughter in your prayers. This will be a long separation for them and she will be alone in a strange place while he serves his country in a dangerous foreign land. Pray God's keeping and blessing on them both and may the time fly. He is truly a second son to us and we are so blessed to have him in our family! We love you James!

A couple of weeks ago we traveled to Jacksonville, FL to see them before his deployment. My son and his girlfriend and my daughter and granddaughter joined us for a great family time together. Here are some pics from the weekend.

James, Bek, Irene, and Jeff

Me and my daughters

Poppi and his Jada

My sweet girls

I Voted!

2008-10-29T20:31:00.003-04:00

Hooray! I did it! I stood in line for one and one half hours in the cold (GA cold that is) and voted my conscience. The lines here in Atlanta are long and I believe that on Nov. 4th they will be extraordinarily so....I didn't want to miss out on this opportunity. It is SO important, especially this year and we see it here in our state clearly. Please pray...please vote.

Pour My Love On You (worship video w/ lyrics)

2008-10-26T14:09:00.001-04:00

Just heard this song for the first time this morning in a worship service. Amazing chorus! I immediately thought of my husband whose entire life consists of pouring out himself on his Lord. Those of you who know him can agree I'm sure. He is continuing to do so even as our lives are so very different these days...he has always maintained that His Lord was, is, and always will be ENOUGH....and so He is proving Himself to be. God what a song! God, what a heart to be able to pour yourself out on HIm no matter what!

32 years

2008-10-18T11:50:00.004-04:00

Tomorrow it will be 32 years since I walked down the aisle and pledged my self, my life, my love to this man.

Did I know what I was getting into? Absolutely not!

Have there been hardtimes? yes

Times I thought we wouldn't make it? yes, those too

Would I do it all over again? Absolutely, yes!

It has been the adventure of a lifetime and I would love doing it all again!

He is my life, my love, and my salvation. He has shown me the world in ways I would never have known and shown me the Lord in ways I could never explain nor can hardly comprehend even now. Without him I would be one of the many lost sheep wandering in the wilderness not only of this life but of the spirit. With his gentle guidance I have found great joy in this earthly existence and incredible freedom and purpose in the kingdom of God. I thank my God daily for this man He has given me to walk with me, to be my friend and lover, and to show me the way home.

The journey thus far has been amazing...not stoppin now.

Happy anniversary, baby, I love you.

This moment

2008-10-14T19:45:00.001-04:00

I have a friend who often speaks of living IN the moment....I look at the world of finance...of life as we, my generation, have known it and see clearly that what has always been will not necessarily always be and I am reminded to see...really see the moment I am in. Yes, there is eternity...but when does that actually begin?

This moment....that truly is what our lives should and must consist of isn't it...this moment in Him, this moment of turning to Him...the NOW...this is where eternity and time intersect, where spirit and body connect...this moment.

Progressive Party

2008-10-04T14:30:00.002-04:00

My neighborhood association is planning a Progressive Dinner Party for the holidays. Won't that be fun?!?
...and in case you don't know what that is, here is a description I found on line.

"If you're looking for a way to socialize that requires little work or expense and that keeps the party moving all night, then a Progressive Dinner Party may hold the answer for you. At a Progressive Dinner a group of friends plan a meal together where each course is served at a different participant's home, so that the party literally moves from place to place throughout the evening.
This party style works especially well for friends who live close to one another either in a neighborhood, an apartment building or a condo complex. Then everyone can walk from home to home without worrying about organizing cars and designated drivers. It also facilitates digesting between courses!"

Count me in!

Reading....or trying to

2008-09-14T22:14:00.003-04:00

I don't usually have a reading list one but just now I do have a few things lined up.

1. A.D. Chronicles #8 (I don't know the name yet but I know I have to read it)
2. Millionaire Women Next Door
3. Duct Tape Marketing
4. Book Yourself Solid
5. The Secret to the Christian Life (again)

Can you tell I'm trying to focus on business?

What's on your list?

What Big Bang?

2008-09-09T20:54:00.005-04:00

Have you heard what's happening tomorrow..Wednesday, Sept. 10th our time ?
This is what's happening...scary isn't it? and the Grid that they are using is what is supposed to replace the internet in time...
I emailed this story to my children and here is the response I received back from my daughter, Bekah,the science girl...

"I've heard rumor and mention of some project to attempt to simulate the Big Bang. Scientists kind of baffle me with this one. If you think about it, there are very few laws in science. Lots of theory, little law. One is the Law of Conservation of Matter, another Conservation of Energy. Neither can be created nor destroyed. Matter can be reconfigured. Blocks can build new things, and large things can be broken down into pieces. Energy can be used or produced or converted. When you burn a log, the matter doesn't go away, it just changes form. Its energy changes from a measurable potential energy into heat that is dissipated in the air. Going with these 2 laws, how do you come up with a "big bang theory?" Where did this matter come from? Where did this unfathomable amount of energy to cause the combustion come from? Think about all the matter and energy, just on earth. Spontanaity doesn't explain it to me adequately. Faith and creationism allow me to accept and explains what science cannot. I don't think science and faith are competing schools of thought. I think the only way science makes any sense at all is through the prism of faith."

I'm So proud!

I agree with Mrs. Mac

2008-09-04T22:00:00.005-04:00

My friend Mrs Mac says it nicely so let me just agree..."Way to go, Sarah!" ...."She makes McCain shine."

and now..a Jadaism

2008-08-26T21:05:00.002-04:00

Jada (a new kindergardener): "We have a new girl in our class, she's blind and uses a white cane."

My Mom: "How can the teacher teach her anything since she can't see?"

Jada: "Well she doesn't have an ear infection."

Duh :)

LIF

2008-08-21T18:13:00.008-04:00

Having a LIF moment(see this post for reference).....I'm liking the words to this song....

I can't remember the last time I heard a contemporary Christian song that spoke so much Truth. I hope Christians are listening..., anything else really is NOT us.

Identity
John Waller

You are love

So I am love

You are joy

And so I am, joy

You are peace

So I am peace

Lord everything you are

Now becomes me

The line between

Where you begin

And where I end

Is gone, now I'm in… YOU,

(Chorus)

I know who I am

You're my true, born identity

I'm not the one I used to be

For now there is no separating You…from who I am

You are strong

So I am strong

You are power

And so I am…powerful

You are mercy

So I am mercy

Cause everything you are

Has now become me

Anything less is not us

Anything less is not us

Anything else is not who we are

Islam vs Christianity

2008-08-13T15:17:00.001-04:00

Wow...did you see this?

Pink and Blue Chairs

2008-07-28T19:57:00.004-04:00

Pink and blue camp chairs changed my life......

I know...very strange you say, well, if you've got a minute, here's the story...or at least part of it.

Some years ago, not too long after we had departed from the traditional church world, we stumbled upon a lovely group of people who amazingly enough, all wanted the same thing we did in our Christian experience...reality in Jesus Christ.
God led us to them and that is a story for another day...but today I will tell you a bit about how we achieved the impossible...we explored and experienced real church life, just as you imagine it to be from reading the book of Acts and we did it together with this group of people.

We did it from those pink and blue chairs...

The very first corporate thing we did together was to throw out the Sunday church service...we moved the meetings to Sat. and Tues nights...then we added different kinds of meetings...song meetings..picnic meetings...brothers meetings, sisters meetings...business meetings (yuck!)
We went along like this for a while and God said it was good.
Then one day we decided that this wasn't enough...we could hear our Lord calling us onward, we couldn't really get to know Him sitting in a pew...so what could we do next to make our relationships with Him and within the body more real?
We felt we should erase the line between clergy and laity and become simply brothers and sisters....so we decided to push back all the pews and sit on the floor...except that didn't go over so well for very long with the, shall I say, grownups in the group...that's when we decided to purchase the chairs. They would be low enough to the ground to keep the playing field leveled yet comfortable and portable for the variery of meetings we were enjoying.

And so the pink and blue camp chairs came into our lives...
and God said it was good!

And boy did they change things too!

Suddenly people spoke up in meetings, those who had never done so before started songs or prayed aloud. People asked questions and answered them, they laughed outloud in meetings, some took off their shoes while others told them to put them on again. The casualness of life invaded our church and we became family.
Everywhere we went as a church, those chairs went with us. To conferences and potlucks, to campouts and bible study, to backyard barbecues and baptisms, literally everywhere.
When the pushed back pew set up was no longer cutting it we discussed moving together into a neighborhood so we could spend more time together loving our Lord in daily life...eventually some moved...some didn't...but one weekend we planned an experiment...we held an entire weekend of meetings, meals and fun in the neighborhood some had moved to...and eveyone else was to come for the weekend, to stay and eat and sleep over. It was an experiment in community. How would this lifestyle work? could it work? Would we love it? or hate it? did we need it or could we live without it? That weekend everyone came...we all piled into the few homes already available in the neighborhood, kids, bibles, casseroles and all. Then we walked between the homes for every meal, meeting and event. Everywhere we traveled during the weekend...we brought our bibles, our song books and our chairs. We set up shop wherever we happend to be and church life sprang up among us. Then we knew it...this was no longer optional, we needed this kind of church and each other, daily, to see our Lord more fully. This became our lifestyle...brothers and sisters living and loving Him together and God said it was very good.
For the next several years we grew up there in the church and in the Lord and some of the dearest saints in this world sat next to me in those pink and blue camp chairs. ..

A few years ago, and many miles down the road, with our own two chairs in tatters, I was forced to make the very difficult decision to throw them out. It was in effect the end of an era, the end of innocence perhaps, the end of so much.
And though time marches on and I no longer have the luxury of seeing saints outside my door on a daily basis...I will never regret nor forget, nor recover and I do not wish to. In this environment our lives were turned upside down and melted together in ways beyond imagining, not just for this lifetime but for all eternity.

Who would have ever thought it could all begin with pink and blue camp chairs?

Life and Death

2008-07-20T12:54:00.002-04:00

I read an interview this week with actor Kirk Cameron..you know the kid from the television show Growing Pains? Well he's all grown up and a serious Christian now with a new movie coming out by the same producers as Facing the Giants. Its called FireProof. While I know nothing about the movie I other than it will be glorifying to the Lord (that's what these people do) I was taken with something Kirk said in his interview...
He said " You wouldn't walk through an Aids hospital with the cure for Aids in your pocket and never get it out or mention it...well we have the cure for death."
Wow...I was really taken by that...we Do indeed have the cure for death...that cure is Life...Jesus Christ conquered Death...He IS the cure our world needs.
Have a Living, Breathing, Glorious Sunday.

More of our summer

2008-07-17T19:25:00.006-04:00

Jada and her daddy..she was so excited to see him.

4th of July in the Georgia mountains

My most favorite picture of all time I think

My kids who are headed off to Hawaii to serve our country... on the beach of course

They did help me paint before they left...what do you think of my red wall? We're not done yet.....:) What are you up to?

Tony Snow

2008-07-12T08:55:00.004-04:00

I'm shedding tears this morning for Tony Snow. America has lost a friend.

Summer so far...

2008-07-08T21:40:00.002-04:00

Here are some of the things we have been up to this summer so far:

The Renaissance Fair
Jada's Pre-K graduatioin
Going to the park
Enjoying cousins ....
Watching them hit home runs and hanging with the family.

It takes a champion to give himself a chance when nothing's going his way.

2008-07-07T20:53:00.000-04:00

Did you see this? Wow!

Why do I need the Church?

2008-07-02T21:41:00.005-04:00

Now take this in context...if you know me you know I DO NOT mean "why do I Go to church?" Going to church and living the Church are completely different things to me....:)
I can think of a zillion reasons why I need the church but I recently heard a beautiful prioritizing of why I need the Church. Here are the top 5 reasons that were given, I even like the order.

1. The Church helps me focus on Christ = Worship
2. The Church helps me face life = Fellowship
3. The Church helps my faith to develop = Maturity
4. The Church helps me find my purpose = Purpose in His house
5. The Church helps me fulfil life's mission = Purpose in the earth

Oh my goodness, it actually...

2008-06-30T21:10:00.001-04:00

Oh my goodness, it actually works. The voice you hear when you click on listen is me is that cool or what. listen

Powered by Jott

Hey, hope you are having...

2008-06-30T21:06:00.002-04:00

Hey, hope you are having a great night. I am just checking out my new Jott Program. Give it a trial. listen

Powered by Jott

LIF

2008-06-26T20:42:00.005-04:00

I heard this song today for the first time. I don't know if its new or old.

It touched me....I love these words for they express where I am just now.

"Come and fill my soul with who you are
In my silence, You still hear me"

Wow. Thank you, Lord that you hear even when I don't/can't speak, when I am at a loss for words.

You DO fill me up with WHO you are.

- A Loss For Words -

Charles Billingsley
I've prayed in the silence

And felt your presence near

I've walked in the garden

And found you waiting there

I have stood with the masses

To lift my hands in praise

I've knelt there all alone and called your name

Yet today I'm just not sure

Of what I should say

I am empty, You are holy

Come and fill my soul with who you are

In my silence, You still hear me

CHORUS

You are holy, you are worthy

The blessed Son of God, the morning star

You are glorious, you are marvelous

But there's so much more, to who you really are

To who you really

Absolutely Beautiful

2008-06-19T21:15:00.002-04:00

I'm so distant from His "breath", His "ways" my true "habitation" these days that this is almost over my head. But I still hear enough of His voice to recognize Life when I hear it. Oh my goodness!! Doesn't it just take your breath away??

Birthday Girl!

2008-06-11T22:22:00.003-04:00

What an exciting weekend I have just lived through! As long as 6 months ago my hubby began getting things, including me, ready...In Feb. he insisted we get tanning packages (remember Valentines Day??), he encouraged me to get my highlights done...we mapped out our vacations for the year( I complained they were all biking trips!)but he trudged ahead anyway...he arranged all our lodgings and even when our vacation dates changed from Memorial Day weekend to the weekend before my birthday(his sister was supposedly going to be out of town on the holiday) I wasn't too suspicious...though of course I figured he'd do something for me, he's not the type to forget and after all.... I was turning 50!

Come the weekend we loaded up and traveled to our hometown in Alabama to just chill out, lie in the sun and visit relatives. Sounds exciting, right?? He asked me to bring a nice outfit for Saturday night cause he was taking me out to a new restaurant for my birthday. Okay...so I was a little bummed that he wasn't doing much...but then I figured I'd get a great present instead. :) Friday we basically lazed around, meeting in-laws for a T-ball game and dinner out. (Little did I know that my sisters and friends were eating out just across the highway and hubby was on the phone periodically to amke sure our paths didn't cross! Had we run in to any one of them I would have caught on right away). On Saturday we dropped Jada off at the cousins and then spent the day across the river in a neighboring town just tooling around eating lunch and ice cream and just hanging out. Hubby wanted us to get home and get ready for our dinner out at a rather early time I thought but hey, if we were driving any distance I could understand that. So we headed home to get dressed about 3pm with plans to leave the house around 4:30..on the way his mom called and asked if we could run her out to a local restaurant where she was supposed to meet her Sunday School class for dinner. I was just a tiny bit irritated that now we would have to be on a schedule..her schedule and I did inquire as to who would have taken her out there if we hadn't been in town...since we're never in town....but he pointed out that he never gets to do things for her and it was right on our way...How could I argue??

As we arrived at her destination...a cool little country barbecue type place with a logcabin feel and red checkered table cloths...she mentioned that my hubby's aunt and uncle would be there and we should come in and see them for a minute. I truly never thought a thing about it. It was so completely something she/we would do that I never gave it a thought, of course we would run in and say hi. Upon on entering the restaurant we headed upstairs to the loft which is an area you can reserve for groups with my mother-in-law leading the way and my husband in the rear. When we reached the top of the stairs my mother in law stepped aside and 50+ guests, who had all been squatting so as not to be seen from the first floor, jumped up and shouted surprise! I about fell over! I was completely in shock! At first I wasn't registering what was happening,,,,then I saw my son (who lives in Orlando),then my daughter and her hubby(who live in Jacksonville)...then my cousin whom I haven't seen in at least 10 years! then an old old friend and another and another...it began to dawn on me! They were all here for me! To see me! I couldn't decide whether to laugh or to cry so I did some of each! I hugged every single person and exclaimed over them and how they had managed to get there or to keep the secret. Unbeknownest to me, my sisters and cousins had spent the two days before hanging out and scrapbooking a memory book for me. I think they had as much fun doing that as they did surprising me. :) My kids had jumped through numerous hoops to make it happen and to get themselves there without me knowing, wisely keeping Jada out of the loop, :) and several people had come from afar. It was wonderful seeing them all again and so much fun having everyone there at the same time!

Its really kind of weird being on the receiving end when you are the one who usually does the planning for such events but it was done very well and I had a wonderful time!

The food was good, I blew out all the candles and opened lots of gifts. I also got to sing (not happy birthday either) with my extended family for the first time in probably 30 years. It was so awesome!...and we still sound pretty good together too!

With so many cameras on hand, I felt like a victim of the paparazzi the entire night. I'm looking forward to getting all those pictures back...but here are a few I already have....

Here they are lying in wait for me...

The look on my face!

Here's my gang, minus Jada but then she was busy with her cousins running wild. :)

My lovely sisters!

Happy Birthday to ME! Loved it!

Check this out!

2008-06-10T22:02:00.002-04:00

What a blast I had this past weekend! My hubby, along with some helpers pulled off a surprise, 6 months in the planning...and I was truly clueless! Go here to read about it!

Yard Sales and such

2008-05-31T21:59:00.004-04:00

I've lived in the same neighborhood for 3 yrs. In that time no one has befriended me...no one has welcomed me, no one has hardly even spoken to me. I find that appalling, don't you? Neighbors should be...well... neighborly.

A few months ago some things began to change. A new president was elected to the homeowners association...new committees were formed by newer more enthusiastic neighbors. Before I knew it I was on a committee...before I knew it I was head of one....now things are different...much different. We have had meetings and made plans...we have officially welcomed 4 new families to our "hood". People greet one another on the street and stop their vehicles to say hello to neighbors working in their yards. They meet for barbecue at the pool or offer assistance in times of need.

This weekend we had our first big "neighborhood" event. We had a HUGE community yard sale...and it was a huge success! 24 families participating! Loads of fun and loads of customers! Tomorrow we will compile all our leftover stuff and sell it on the cheap down by the entrance, with proceeds going to the association, all the while hanging out together...tonight we had an impromptu neighborhood party. It was well attended and a blast! People feel like they are a part of something, people feel welcome...people like our neighborhood...I like our neighborhood.

In a few weeks we'll be having a movie night, an ice cream social, a 4th of July Parade...all kinds of things planned and who knows what unplanned....yeah...its nice to have good neighbors...its nice to have fun neighbors...its nice to have neighbors who know your name.

Quote of the day...maybe the month

2008-05-25T19:51:00.002-04:00

"You never know where Wonderful may come from...."
Zalaine

Graduation

2008-05-21T22:26:00.005-04:00

Jadabear is graduating...from Pre-K. Apparently its a big deal...who knew?? lol

I'll be hosting lunch with family coming in especially for the occasion. I'm sure there will be cake and balloons...and probably gifts and cards....surely not...Oh my goodness!

Well it is a special day...at least school's out for the summer afterward...and we get a 3 day weekend! :) Gotta love America!

Congratulations to all you graduates out there...whatever the level! :)

Whose fault is it anyway?

2008-05-15T21:26:00.006-04:00

How do you handle problems, difficulties, barriers? Ignore them? Work harder? Separate yourself from the instigators? Blame someone? Persevere?

You know...there is a lot of mess in this world...a lot of very, very difficult stuff. Mountains we can't seem to get over...ever...and you know...when there is someone to blame it all seems easier...ah yes, I can deal with such problems so much better if someone is to blame. Whether its someone else's fault we have this trouble we are in...or whether its our own fault...and we deal with it...we have the capacity to deal with it. Actually we love it when its someone's fault...blame is easy...and when we ourselves are responsible...well we can either easily forgive or we can beat ourselves down and promise to try harder...either one works. Somehow we work through or around these kinds of situations.

In the face of obstacles and problems we are taught all our lives to hang in, work harder, to persevere.

But what about when all our blame or hard work or perseverance does nothing...makes not one little dent....what about when the problem we are experiencing, the difficulty we find ourselves in, the situation that won't budge...what about when its God's fault? What then?

I have found myself in just such a scenario. I have found myself in a place I don't want to be, in a situation I am ill equipped to handle. I have found that all my begging and pleading is to no avail...all my hard work has been in vain...

for God will be God and He will have exactly what He wants and He will have me exactly where He wants me to be. Wriggle and struggle though I may...He has placed me in just this spot and there is no escape...no answer that I can see...no way out...and no end in sight....except He create a door out of thin air...which of course He could...but somehow i don't think He is going to ...not for a while anyway...I think this is of His making...its not my fault...not anyone elses fault...only His. Remember when He shut up the womb of Hannah, Samuel's mother...for years...God did it...it was His fault and Hannah had no recourse, no explanation. He is God..He doesn't owe us an explanation after all.

I was thinking about this recently and in the eyes of my spirit I saw a small stream trickling over rocks in my being, flowing downward from a mountain...this is common for me, as i sense His spirit in me, I often sense water...what was uncommon was this...my spirits eye followed the stream backwards uphill to a large dam built away up the mountain...and behind the dam...a huge reservoir....I have a reservoir within me..I know it...I smell it...I saw it....but He has built a dam, a big white dam to block all that water from flowing out... He is in control of all that I am, all that I have inside...of where I am and who I am...and right now...there is only a trickle of water flowing down.....its His fault.

Sometimes being exactly where God wants you...isn't where or what you thought it was going to be.