Sunday, December 30, 2007

Wonderful News

Oh, my heart is so full. God is so faithful and precious. He gives so much even though we do not deserve it. We have prayed for years about Joshua's wife. We prayed for her and her upbringing, we prayed that God would be preparing both their hearts for each other. God has answered in a big way!!

Last April, Joshua and Michael and I began to pray in earnest for a wife for Joshua. We turned 23 and felt it was time to settle down. He felt that God layed Brittany on his heart as the one God had for him. We prayed and felt this as well. We also felt God leading us to walk the path of Betrothal. Michael called and approached Brittany's Dad about this possibility. He and Terri, his wife began to pray. Jeff, Brittany's Dad began to start a process of questioning, etc. After about eight months questions, counsel, grilling, and a few more questions he and Terri felt it was God's providential work in the lives of both families. About half way through this process Brittany, who knew nothing about this, came to her Dad and let him know that she thought God had put Joshua on her heart as the one He had picked for her. He agreed to seek the Lord's counsel and would strive to hear His voice in this most important matter. Both sets of parents feel certain that this is the Lord's blessing in our lives.

In early December Joshua was given their blessing and we all planned "the asking" to take place during a previously scheduled vacation to our home. The two families met in 1996 and we were in the same home church together. We all loved each other very much from the very beginning, A few years later we moved back to Ohio, but we still remained great friends. Time and distance are no obstacles to the Lord who brought about His will in His time.

On December 29, 2007 Joshua asked Brittany to marry him. She said yes. He presented her with my Mom's engagement ring.

Terri and I (Michael also helped) prepare a special meal in which we passed the betrothal cup from the brides father to the groom's father and then to the groom as each accepts the covenant and then Josh passed the cup to Brittany. She accepted it and drank from the cup which made the Betrothal legally binding in the eyes of both families and God.

We are very pleased and excited. There are no dates or plans set yet since we wanted to wait until after "the asking" so Brittany would be included. We thought that would be nice! =)

Here is a picture of the happy couple!!

Joshua is an only child and Brittany is one of 8. Her little brother wanted to be in on the pictures.


Wednesday, December 26, 2007

Clearance Liquidation at Vision Forum

For six days, Vision Forum is offering big discounts on more than 200 items. Discounts range from 25%-50%. If you are the kind of person who likes to plan ahead for birthdays and special occasions, this would be a wonderful time to take advantage of this once-a-year sale which ends at midnight (CST) on December 31, 2007. Prices are only good on new online orders. This is also a great opportunity to build a library for each of your children at a dramatically reduced cost.

Remember, by taking advantage of this sale, you are doing more than getting a great deal, you are helping to support the work and ministry of Vision Forum. See below for a partial listing of our sale items and current discounted prices. Consult our catalog or visit us online for more information on each item.

Just click on this link and I will get credit for your sales. Vision Forum Liquidation Sale.

Family

Christmas morning is not what it used to be like. For one thing, we are very low keyed about it now and don't do near as many gifts as we used to. For another thing, with only one older son, we sleep in. =) Here is Joshua on Christmas morning opening his gifts. Yes, it is Ohio in the winter, and yes it is cold. He is sitting directly in front of our woodstove.

On Christmas Eve we went ot Michael's parents house. We only got to see part of the family though. Here is Ella helping Uncle Steve put his tie on.
Uncle Jim was doing his fair share in keeping the wee one happy.
We had to take this one quick before he turned away. We totally missed getting pictures of his brother and sister.
Here is big cousin holding little cousin. It just amazes me at how fast these children grow up.
Here is Dad and Daughter. Jim always has an unusual T-shirt on.
Here is one of the young ladies all dressed up for church.
Here is the baby who stayed home with the rest of us.
Here is the other young lady all ready for church. This one kept jumping on Michael and I and she even tackled her sister. I kept trying to tell her that she was dressed like a lady and she needed to be sweet and refined. =)
Here are the 3 sisters together!!
Christmas evening, we went over to my brother Scott's house. They live maybe 20 mins. from us and we never see each other. Lives are too busy these days. Here we are watching a video of Big Matt & Carli's wedding. There is Anne, Brett, Scott and Kati better known as Tater Bug.
I was so glad that Carli was there. Here she is with her brother Scott.
Here is little Matt flashing Aunt Marci a smile.
Here is Big Matt watching himself get hitched in the video.

Tuesday, December 25, 2007

Happy Birthday Jesus!!

We wish you a Merry CHRISTmas!!! We hope and pray that each of you gets to spend your day tomorrow with family and friends and that you will spend part of that day thanking the One who came. God Incarnate came as that tiny baby so long ago. He came to be the perfect sacrifice for my sins and yours. He was born to die. We pray that each of you will have a year that draws you closer to the Lord. May He bless each of you in new ways!!

Sunday, December 23, 2007

What Would Jesus Do?

Have you ever read the book "In His Steps"? I have read it many times. It tells the story of a small group of people who are going to ask "What would Jesus do?" before they do anything. It changed their lives and the lives in their community. There is a verse in the Bible that says,

"For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to shew himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him. 2 Chron 16:9"

One person can be the vessel for change for a large area or group if they are willing to be used by God.

Thinking about the above, I have been pondering some things. I have been to a couple baby christenings. This is not something we practice, but we went to one about 25 years ago and another a few years ago. I really don't remember much about the one a long time ago. I was asked to be the godmother, but I told the Mom, I wasn't sure what that even meant, so she just asked me to stand with them. The one I went to a few years ago has left some questions in my mind. I heard the parents of the child and both godparents make a vow before the church, us and God that they would do everything in their power to make sure this little one was raised to love, serve and fear God. That is an awesome responsibility. I do believe it is always the responsibility of the parents to do this, but to vow that for a child not your own is a huge responsibility. Now fast forward through the recent years. We have seen the lives of those who made those vows. Have they even thought about their lifestyle or their words or the movies they watch while these children are present? Do they think, "What would Jesus do?" Do they wonder if the Lord is pleased with their choices?

I also hear people who claim they are Christians openly, go to church, etc. yet live with someone outside of marriage. Honestly when I see this situation, my heart goes out to the girl. I want to pull them to me and say, "Do you not realize that you are throwing yourself away?" The boy/man is reaping all the benefits with no responsibility or commitment. Why should they ever choose marriage? God gave you a precious gift in yourself. It is to be saved for marriage. Do these people ever wonder "What would Jesus do?"

Is it outdated to be concerned what sort of witness you are? Where do you go?, what do you wear?, what do you say?, what do you watch?, what do you listen to?. I heard a message one time that says modesty was to be properly dressed for who you were. For instance if you were working on street repair with a jackhammer, to be dressed in a tuxedo would not be modest. That made a lot of sense to me. I am not telling anyone how to dress, what to say or where they are allowed to go. What I am saying is do you ever ask yourself, "What would Jesus do in this instance?" Are all of those areas pointing people to Him? We worked with the college age youth for awhile. We had many discussions about these areas. At the time, there was a popular brand of jeans for women. They fly on the jeans was tapestry or had embroidery on it. Why do you think it was there? To draw men's eyes to areas they should not be looking at.

There is a lot more I could say, but I am not trying to be on a tangent. I just wondered, does anybody out there ever ask themselves if Jesus would be please with them in the different areas. Do they ever make choices that would not be their first choice if Jesus was not inside of them. Maybe it is a gift we can give to Him this CHRISTmas season. I would love to hear what you all think!!!

Saturday, December 22, 2007

From Jack Frost To Mr. Golden Sun

The other morning, Jack Frost had been out and about doing his artistic designs. It was a heavy frost that morning. This first picture is the glass on our back door.
These next couple of pictures are hard to see unless you click on them and make them bigger. The frost was so thick that it was almost like there was snow.

Since then we have had a warming trend and here is what it looks like out in our area.

We are still praying for a big snow after our friends from Florida get here. I remember what it was like to come to Ohio from Florida hoping to get a good taste of the winter. My friend in NH was sending me pictures of her snow. They got WAY more than their fair share. She told me to bring a dump truck and I could have all the snow that I wanted. =) Wasn't that nice of her?

Thursday, December 20, 2007

The Contest Winner Is...

Well, I typed out all the names and printed them. I cut them up and folded each one over. I put them in a handy dandy bucket I have and shook it. I held the bucket up above my line of vision. I put my hand up and over into the bucket and grabbed a paper and drew out the name of the winner. =) I know, I know... get on with it. The winner is... Drum roll please... Patricia!!! Patricia, I need your address and email address to give to Vision Forum so they can send you the DVD. Congratulations to Patricia and thanks to all who participated.

An Award

Pat from Morning Ramble gave me this award. Pat thank you for your kind words. I am also very grateful that the wee Mei Ling is home and going to be OK. Here is a brief explanation of this award from the one who created it.

"Now the explanation. When the girls and I want to express our mutual admiration in public we say ‘Less than Three’. If you look at it sideways: <3 It looks like a heart. So I heart you."

I am going to pass this award on to the following:

Melanie over at Candle By Night. She has just blossomed as a wife and Mom. She also shares her babies with me. This will always keep you tops in my book!! =)

Peggy over at Hidden Haven Homestead. She is always looking out for others. She is such a good friend to Mrs. Frannie and she shares her animals and home with others.

Patricia over at Little Cabin In The Woods. She has opened her heart and home to her dear little girls from China. She has been a big help to me.

Sharri over at Sharri's Snapzshotz. She is always looking for ways to encourage or help someone.

Clara over at Clara's Corner. She is truly an angel in disguise. She has helped so many people and reaches out in love to many. She has helped me a lot and I really love her!!

I would give one to Ginny at R and V Farmstead, but she told me she doesn't do awards. She is a sweetheart too. We have been friends a long time.

There are others I could name. I am thankful for friends whether in my real world or cyber. I have actually met (in the real world) several people I from online and we are now friends.

Exciting Giveaway from Vision Forum

This post will remain at the top until the 20th. Please scroll down below to see newer posts.
As an affiliate of Vision Forum, they are giving me the chance to host a Give Away of one of their products. We have always appreciated everything we have ordered through them. If you would like a chance to receive the following product, here is what you need to do. You can be entered Twice by posting a link on your blog to this post. Then please leave your name in the comments, letting me know you have done that. You can be entered one time by simply leaving your name in the comments section. The Give Away will close at midnight on the 19th of December. If you have any questions, feel free to email me.



What is the godly legacy of the fathers of World War II? Their story has not been told — until now!

More than 406,000 American soldiers died during the Second World War, leaving an estimated 183,000 children fatherless. Hundreds of thousands of other U.S. troops did return, but many never connected with their children. However, within the ranks of these survivors was a remarkable collection of men who made it their life mission to speak the providences of God and the meaning of manhood to the boys who would one day fill their shoes. Through wartime letters and present-day pilgrimages to the bloody battlefields of their youth, the ancient warriors have spoken. Their thankful children rise to honor and surpass their legacy. They are “The League of Grateful Sons.”

Marine “Colonel” Bill HendersonMeet tough-as-nails Marine “Colonel” Bill Henderson. He survived thirty-six days of brutal fighting on Iwo Jima and maintained moral purity, while in the midst of immoral wartime circumstances, because of the influence of his manly Christian father. Meet P-51 Mustang flyboy Bill Brown. He was shot down over Japan, but survived to train generations to sing praises to God. Now in their eighties, these ancient warriors return to the black sand of Iwo Jima to disciple a new generation in the art of Christian manhood.

Leonard and Fletcher IsacksJoining them are sons whose fathers never returned — the Isacks brothers and “Johnny Boy” Butler — all heirs to a treasure trove of fatherly wisdom penned from the battlefield.

Shot on location on Iwo Jima, Guam, Hawaii, and in Texas, and directed by veteran filmmaker, Geoff Botkin, The League of Grateful Sons will leave you grateful for America’s heroic fathers and motivated to surpass their legacy.


Bonus Features:

“This is Guadalcanal” — a victorious War Department message of thanks to the home-front (playing time 20 mins.)
“Target: Invisible” — a dramatized bombing mission over Japan explaining the use of radar (playing time 7 mins.)
“War Time Memories” — historic photos from the Pacific and home-fronts
“Trip of a Lifetime” — photos hightlighting the sixtieth anniversary journey to Iwo Jima

Don't forget to leave your name in the comments and then check back on the 20th for the winner. I have to send the name and address of the winner no later than the 24th to Vision Forum. Thanks to everyone who has ordered through my affiliate link.

Wednesday, December 19, 2007

Another Impromptu Poll!!

Tonight for supper we are having hot cheesy potato soup and crackers. We have a friend who insists that soup (especially meatless soup) is NOT a meal. He feels it is only a side dish. This friend is coming to visit and I keep telling him that we are having meatless soup each night they are here. So far I have come up with potato, tomato, and split pea w/out ham. =) I will serve them meat while they are here, but don't tell them.

Anyway, here is the poll. Again, please respond in the comments section. Is hot cheesy potato soup and crackers a good supper, or is soup (especially meatless soup) a side dish. Let's hear from all of you!!

**After reading BellaMama's comments, I feel I must add this. We do eat meat. We raise our own meats and have lots of it. This soup as a meal has been a running joke between me and our friend. We stayed with them once and I took my turns cooking. Every once in awhile, I would make soup or chili. He would always make a comment. Then if I made one without meat, there were big comments... all done in fun and love. We will most certainly be serving them meat and good meals while they are here. This is just a fun poll, that I am going to show him. =)

Co-ops

I had a couple of people make a comment on my pantry blog wanting to know about co-ops in their area. I put out a call for help. So far, this is what I have been told.

For Alabama: Here is what someone wrote - "I live in northern Alabama (Madison County area) and have two resources - one is through Bread Beckers (I notified them and they sent me the number and e-mail of their contact here) and the other group orders through Wheat Montana. Both of them order approximately 2 - 3 times per year, not monthly. There are a few health food stores in the area, but they didn't sell wheat in bulk, which is what I was interested in at the time. I do know the
Kroger's in the area carry quite a large stock of "natural" and organic products."


Ginny wrote: http://www.somethingbetternaturalfoods.com has information on their co-ops. I know there are several in Huntsville. You can look up your area of the country on their site.

I know that when I lived in Florida, I would order from Something Better also. If you get a large enough order they will send it freight which is cheaper than UPS.

Karen wrote: I don't have any help except my co-op ships there (www.morningsidefarm.com) Mary might help, but I don't remember her addy right now but I know her web site is www.crookedpinespublishing.com . Also Angelia may know at http://pgburrell.home.mindspring.com/


For Arkansas I received this - "I am Tongua (pronounced "Tonja") from Little Rock, Arkansas. I used to be in a co-op that ordered from Ozark Cooperative Warehouse in Fayetteville, but that company went out of business last year. I do have a few organic egg and vegetable connections here with local farmers."

Redeeming the Time

Today's Moms seem to spend a lot of time running around. My Mom was home most of the time. Michael's Mom did not even get her drivers license until after he and I were married. I always wondered how she did that since his Dad was out of town a lot. I cut way back on my running around and now that we are down to one vehicle I am home most all the time. I sometimes get made fun of because I am such a home body. =)

We live in a very fast paced world. We are told we can have it all... but are we supposed to? I knew one family in Florida. They had 4 children. Each child was encouraged to follow their interests. There were different sports that they played, different musical instruments, etc. They were always going to a music lesson, a game or a practice. Their house and lives were chaos. They wanted to be part of all the extra curricular homeschool things, and they did a lot at church. The Mom was always complaining about being behind and never getting anything done. She said the little time she spent at home was spent fussing at the children to hurry up and grab their stuff because they had to go somewhere. They out junk food a lot and lots of fast food. It cut into their budget. I know another family that has their children involved in a lot of musical interests. It seems to work out for their family and there is never any complaining. We all have to decide what is right for our family. If it comes to the place where we feel like tearing our hair out, we might want to step back and ask God what He thinks we should be doing or not doing.

I was reading in the Proverbs one day and came across these verses.

Prov 7:10-12 Then out came a woman to meet him, dressed like a prostitute and with crafty intent. (She is loud and defiant, her feet never stay at home; now in the street, now in the squares, at every corner she lurks.)

The thing that struck me that day was "her feet never stay at home." It was listed as a negative quality. Now, I have had this backfire on me. I was accused of calling someone a harlot. That is not my point at all. If you are not being able to do the basic things you are responsible for and you run around a lot, maybe you need to re-evaluate what all you are involved with.

I know that running around always costs us more money. It can cost gas money, but it costs in other ways as well. I LOVE garage sales. I usually do not go to them though because I find something that I can't live without and I really NEED it, but I did not know I needed it before I saw it. Plus, it is really cheap.... I need to HAVE a garage sale, not shop at them. If you have specific needs and keep a list going or if you have lots of children and that is where you get their clothes, etc. then garage saling can be a good thing... IF you stick to your needs. Thrift stores are another way you can spend money. The same rule applies... if you have needs and know what they are and can stick to them, a thrift store is a wonderful place to go. I find all sorts of little things that I pick up. Books seem to be my biggest downfall. I end up with tons of books because they looked good or I thought I might use them to make something, etc. However, many of them go right back to the thrift store because I found they were not so NEEDED after all. So, even though they only cost me a quarter, how many quarters have I wasted. My husband told me that I shop like a man. I go in, get what I want and come out. I do not like to dawdle and look at everything. Even shopping like that you can spend more than you intended. This can happen every time you go to the store. You run in for some apples and cheese. Then you see the breads and oh look at those oranges they have and oh look over there.... You come out with 3 bags full.

If you make a regular errand day each week, and purpose to stick to it, you will be surprised at how flexible you can be. If I go to make something for supper and realize I do not have an ingredient, I can't just run to the store since I don't have a vehicle. So, I come up with plan B. That might be using a substitute for that ingredient, or making the same thing and leaving it out, or changing what I make or even asking Mrs. Wonderful Neighbor is she has any I can borrow. Life just seems to flow a lot better when are home and have a routine. It is easier for peace to reign. What are your thoughts on this?

Tuesday, December 18, 2007

What's In Your Pantry?

How many of you keep a pantry? How long do you think you could go without going to the grocery store? Do you write a menu? Do you have a plan to help you with meals?

I am not exactly sure how long I have bought in bulk and kept a pantry, but it is sure a life saver at times. I have had different people ask me about bulk buying and how to keep a pantry, that I thought I would write out some ideas. Everyone's situation is different, so you will have to tailor it to meet your needs and fit your space available. I will also share with you some things I do that help me out in the planning area (when I make myself actually do them) =)

First of all a menu is a wonderful tool for me. I print out a monthly calendar page for our menu. If you have a large family and children at home, you might need something a bit larger, since you probably make breakfast and lunch every day as well. This menu is just a guideline for me. If I can't think of anything to make that night, there is something there for me to fall back on. When I am faithful to make a monthy menu, we usually follow it pretty closely. I also have tried to divide my week up into different types of meals. Monday night is breakfast night. We usually have a breakfast type meal (pancakes, eggs, bacon & taters, etc). Tuesday night is pasta night. Wednesday night is soup night in the cooler months and salad night on the warmer months. Thursday night is Mexican night. Friday night is either pizza or chili. Saturday is Dad's night. He likes to cook too, especially on the grill, so he chooses what gets fixed that night. Sunday's we usually have a pot blessing with our fellowship, so I make something big to share. This sort of planning helps me even when I forget to make my menu. For instance tonight, I know it's pasta night, so I will plan accordingly since I have not made a December menu up.

Now, sit down and make a list of meals you make on a regular basis. It is actually very handy to have this list for a couple of reasons. It is going to help you make out your pantry list, but it also helps you to make a menu and to plan ahead.

After you make a list of all the meals you can think of, then start making a list of the ingredients that you would use for those meals. You can write out all the ingredients or just the ones that are storable. For instance if you are having tacos, you might have the seasonings in storage, but the sour cream is probably going to need to be purchased the week you make it. I like to go one step further and break those ingredients down into categories. Herbs and spices, canned goods, pastas, etc.

Now determine how much do you buy of these items. If you have a large family, you can purchase pasta of sll sorts in 10# boxes from most any co-op. I have purchased pastas we us a lot of in a 10# box before, but it takes our small family a while to go through them. Here are some things that we buy in bulk. I buy the 50# bag of dehyrdrated cane crystals (sugar). It lasts us well over a year though since we make very few sweet things. I wait till it is on sale and then purchase it. I buy the organic tortilla chips we use by the case as well. We use them for snacks and also for Mexican night. I am also usually able to get them on sale. I buy pasta in bulk when it is on sale through the co-op as well. I try to keep at least 2 3-liter bottles of olive oil on the shelf. We like fresh made salsa in the summer, but we buy Frog Ranch salsa for other times. I keep 6 to 10 jars of it on the shelf at all times. I have shelves for my home canned goods and the smaller stuff I buy. I keep the sugar, wheat, sucanat, rice, oats, etc on buckets with screw on lids. Determine how much room you have to store things. Then decide how much you want to have on hand at all times. Lets say you go through ketchup quickly. You may want to keep 5 bottles or more on the shelf. This will insure that you always have ketchup and may allow you to wait until there is a sale to buy it. This would be a great project for a daughter to undertake for you.

Now make a list of your items, what quantity you would buy them in, how many you like on the shelf and what is the lowest amount you can have on hand and not run out. Obviously, most of us can not go out and buy all of this at once. Find a co-op. Start watching for sales and as you are able bring an item or 2 up to where you would like them to be. Then maintain those items while adding one or 2 more. You will have a pantry stocked before you know it. If you have helpers in the kitchen, teach them about rotating things so that you use the oldest first. I have an order things go in. You always use the front one closest to the pantry door first. Then teach them that as you use an item up, to mark it on a list of things to buy or watch for sales on. It is really not complicated. The hardest part is writing all the meals and ingredients down to begin with. After that it is just maintenance. Then when you are cooking or baking and you run out of something, you are not running to the store which causes you to waste time, gas and money (because you usually buy more than you went for). You simply go and shop in your pantry.

Don't forget their are items you can store in your freezer as well. We have a bulk food store that allows a better price on butter if you buy it by the case. Butter freezes well. I buy huge loafs of cheese at a discount. Then you can grate it and freeze it for use later.

If you have other ideas, comments or suggestions, please leave them in the comments section so we can all learn from one another.

*Ginny brought up a good point in the comments. Toilet paper. I try to buy enough so that I only have to buy it when it is on sale. There are all sorts of things we can stock up on.

Monday, December 17, 2007

Count Your Blessings Monday


I am giving us an opportunity every Monday to not only count our blessings, but to share them with others. This is a way that we can encourage one another. Make a post on your blog telling us about your blessing. Please put a link back to this post. You can add the URL of your blog post on Mr. Linky below. If you don't have a blog, then just leave a comment and share your blessing. Many of our blessings we will have pictures of and we can share those as well. I think that many times we forget that it is a blessing to be able to breath, to get out of bed, to hold a baby... Share your blessings with us. They encourage others. We can share so many other things.... special gifts, recipes, let's take the time to share how God has blessed us!!



We got a real blessing that I am thankful for. We bought a table from an Amish neighbor a couple of years ago. It is a beautiful oak table. It got some sort of mark on it and we had no idea what it was or when it happened. You can see the mark in this picture. Over all it was probably 2.5 inches in length.


We printed the above picture out and took it up there to ask our friend what we could do to get rid of it. We tried everything. It seemed to be below the finish. They looked at the picture and said that maybe there were minerals in the wood and they had risen to the surface. They told us to bring our table top up and they would fix it. They planed or sanded it down and refinished it. We got it back on Saturday and it is beautiful. Not too many places will do something like that. They also told us it was probably not minerals, but they had no idea what it was.

Sunday, December 16, 2007

Winter Storm

The forecast called for a winter storm. It was going to hit around noon on Saturday. We had several things we were supposed to do Saturday. We were going to take some animals to the auction, we were going to pick up our table top that was refinished and we were going to deliver something for someone. To go and take animals to the auction and get the table top were in the same general direction. THe delivery was in the opposite direction. The only problem with the animal part is we are still praying for a truck and our son was working so we had no way to pull our trailer. We decided to skip taking the animals this weekend and get up early and go get our table top. We headed up north got the table top and hit a couple of stores that we like in that area. Then we headed home. We got about 12 miles from home and stopped in a little local grocery store to get something. We were in there a very short time. When we came out it looked like a blizzard. =) We headed for home and about 6 miles down the road, the snow quit. =( We were hoping for BIG snow!! After unloading the table top we decided to go ahead and make our delivery to the city south of us in case the snow would start again. We got about six miles from home and were in blizzard type conditions again and there was already snow on the roads and fields. The driving was not wonderful. This is our second winter storm of the year, both being expected and they did nothing with the roads. By the time we got back home there was about 2 inches of snow on the ground. Then we started hearing it hit the house. You do not hear snow hit the house. It was turning into freezing rain and then just plain rain. When I got up this morning, the ground was snowless. =( Then about 30 mins. later, I looked out and it was snowing. Here is what it looks like right now.




Thursday, December 13, 2007

My Birthday Re-visited!!

Today, the Fed Ex man arrived at my door with 2 boxes. I thought they were something that I had ordered. They were both from a friend of mine. She had sent me something for my birthday. Here is what she sent me!!! A snowman teapot, creamer and sugar bowl, coffee, tea, and peppermint (my favorite candy).


I love the tea pot. That big snowman is holding a snowman mug with hot chocolate or coffee in it. Here is a closer picture of the snowmen. Thank you my friend!!!


We are having a little bit of freezing rain here today. Here are some pictures.


Banana Poll Results

My Grandma used to say, "Takes all kinds to make a world." The longer I live, the more I agree with her.

I am the one who peels a small bit and eats down to that point and then peels some more, etc. My friend (Who I am really surprised did not comment) completely peels her and eats it that way. That is how she was raised and my way is the way I was raised. Neither one is wrong, they are just different!!

Wednesday, December 12, 2007

Very Important Poll!!

I was having a discussion with a friend who shall remain nameless. =) We were talking about a very important subject. We both approached this subject from 2 different angles. So, we want to see what others do. The important topic was bananas. =) When you eat a banana, do you take the peel off the entire banana and eat it like that and then wash your hands, or do you just pull the peel down part way and hold onto the rest of the peel while eating. Then you don't need to clean your hands.

PLEASE if you read this leave a comment and let us know how YOU eat a banana. You don't have to have a blog to leave a comment. You can put in a nickname or even remain anonymous. We want to see what others do!!!

I will let you know how my nameless friend and I each handle banana etiquette.

Tuesday, December 11, 2007

It is REALLY Warm Outside!!

The weather this time of year can be pretty tricky. We had all that snow and today it is 63 degrees. By Saturday they say we will have a high of 30 and a low of 16. Here is what is left of my snowmen!!


I made some Christmas bears for my Mom awhile ago. My Dad gave them back to me. This year, they are on the couch. The puppy chews on things when you are not looking. The second one is normally on the floor leaning up like it is trying to get on the couch. This year it is on the couch trying to climb the back of the couch. =)



Whenever I get a camera out, Dixie comes to investigate. Here she is looking up at me while Star watches.


Most of the time when they are inside this is how they can be found. Sleeping by the fire!!!

Monday, December 10, 2007

Count Your Blessings Monday


I am giving us an opportunity every Monday to not only count our blessings, but to share them with others. This is a way that we can encourage one another. Make a post on your blog telling us about your blessing. Please put a link back to this post. You can add the URL of your blog post on Mr. Linky below. If you don't have a blog, then just leave a comment and share your blessing. Many of our blessings we will have pictures of and we can share those as well. I think that many times we forget that it is a blessing to be able to breath, to get out of bed, to hold a baby... Share your blessings with us. They encourage others. We can share so many other things.... special gifts, recipes, let's take the time to share how God has blessed us!!







I was totally blessed by family and friends. I was queen for a day!! My birthday was a very good one. I was made to feel like a queen. It also ended up being a snowman birthday!! You saw the snowman family the neighbor children made for me and the beautiful snowman cake that they made. Plus, they got me a gift card to CHIPOTLE!!! (with a note for me to do unto others as I would have them do unto me). My son got me darling sterling silver snowman earrings and a candle that smells OH SO GOOD!!!! Another friend brought over a gift. It is the 2 snowmen you see above. I love the one holding the candy dish. He is so cute. The second one is a box that had peppermint candies (one of my favorite candy) and a cute little snowman on a stick. I put him in the plant in my living room. I guess people know I like snowmen. =) I got lots of phone calls and cards and ecards. I got taken out to dinner. It was a great day.

Sunday, December 09, 2007

Old is Relevant!!

I am a firm believer that you are really as old as you feel, not how many years you have been on the earth. In earth years, today I am OLD!! I turned 49 today. However, some days I do not feel old. Other days I feel like I am 80!! =) Today I feel around maybe.... 35. =)

Last night the Wonderful Neighbors came over to surprise me. I did not know they were coming. Their dear sweet daughter wanted to bless me and so she made a cake for me. And, did she make just any old cake? No, she made a beautiful snowman cake of her own design. She knows me well. Not only was my cake a snowman, but his hat and scarf were blue!!! =) Here is my snowman cake.


Now,while we were having cake, coffee and milk inside, I am not sure what the snowmen outside were imbibing. Whatever it was, it must have been powerful. They were a mess this morning. They were hanging and leaning all over each other and they lost their noses while they were partying. Look at them. They should be ashamed.