A great holiday

Thanksgiving was fabulous. I went to my Dad's for a few hours then came back here and spent the rest of the day by myself putting together a desk that I'm going to be using for a little craft area. I had been gone from home Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday nights, so to have some time at home on Thursday was nice.

I had asked Grace earlier in the week about spending the night with me on Friday night and she just jumped at the chance. No other way to say it. So, with that being said, I actually went and bought a pre-lit 6-foot little tree, a skinny one, and we decorated it with snowman ornaments. She loved it and I have to admit, as one who has not had a tree since I moved from my parents house many years ago, it is nice to sit here as I type and see it out of the corner of my eye. Just kind of a cozy feeling. I'm posting a picture, but I'm not totally happy with it yet...I need to re-work the lights and space them better, plus some of them don't work, but Grace wouldn't slow down enough to let me do that, so I just let her decorate knowing I'd go back an fix it later. It was less stress that way for both of us! I have some snowflake garland to add too. Since Grace knew she was going to be spending the night with me, she started calling around 9:30 on Friday morning wondering when I was going to come get her! :-) I had planned to get her in the afternoon sometime, but wound up getting her about 11:30. We really had a busy day and were both tired by the time bedtime rolled around.

After we got the tree done, I had to spend a little time on Friday afternoon finishing putting together the parts to the desk I mentioned above, so after I got that done, Grace helped me sort through all the craft stuff I have around here. It was all just EVERYWHERE, no organization at all, so it's nice now to have all the blank cards in one place, the stickers in one place, the markers in one place, etc. Grace loved that too, then of course she had to sit her sweet self down and do some artwork. I liked having here here.

On Saturday, I took her home about 2:00, then met some friends to see August Rush later in the day, followed by dinner. There are four of us who go out and celebrate each other's birthdays, and Saturday's movie and dinner were for that. The birthday person gets to pick the movie and I wasn't sure about August Rush when I read about it, but I have to admit that I really liked it a lot. I love when that happens!

Sunday was church, a trip to IKEA with my friend Gina, back to church for a bonus rehearsal for our Christmas program, a quick run through of a song we were singing in church, then back downstairs for the service. Just a busy day. I was asleep on the couch an hour after I got home!

It was rainy and dark this morning when my alarm went off and I hated to get out of bed. It's always hard to get back to normal after having a few days off, but especially with the weather like it was today. Rainy and overcast is my very favorite kind of weather, but I LOVE it when I can stay home. It always seems like the holidays go so fast. It seems like I look so foward to being off for a few days, then "BOOM," it's gone!

I'm going to close here with a couple of pictures. The first one is the desk that Grace and I worked on this weekend, and the second is a precious picture she handed me before we left to take her home on Saturday. I am SO emotional when it comes to both her and Kate, especially when the do such sweet things, so when Grace gave me this precious picure she'd drawn, I couldn't even speak. My eyes just filled with tears and all I could do was hug her. She hated to leave and I hated to take her home. Good grief. What would I have done if God had given me children of my own?

Who could possibly not love that????

An attitude of gratitude...all year long!

One of my favorite quotes:

"Thanksgiving Day comes, by statute, once a year; to the honest man it comes as frequently as the heart of gratitude will allow." ~Edward Sandford Martin

May we stay mindful to count our blessings not only at Thanksgiving, but every day of the year!

Hope you and yours have a great Thanksgiving.

7 random facts.

These kinds of posts are hard for me, but I was tagged the other day by Cheryl to post 7 random facts about myself. I've been trying to think about this and what might be of interest. I am having a hard time coming up with anything....but here are the rules:

Link to the person who tagged you and post the rules on your blog. Share 7 random/weird facts about yourself. Tag 7 random people at the end of your post, include links to their blogs. Let each person know by leaving a comment on their blog.

So here goes:

1. I can play the trumpet.

2. Bad grammar in writing and in speech drives me NUTS.

3. I don't care what movie I am watching, I ALWAYS fall asleep....even at a theatre! :-)

4. I've only had two jobs in my whole life. I worked at Chick-Fil-A in our local mall as a teenager and into my college years, then left there for my current job.

5. I failed the test for my learner's license AND my driver's license the first time I took them! :-)

6. I never put up a Christmas tree or decorate for Christmas. I may sit out a few snowmen since I collect them (!!), but that's about the extent of my Christmas decorations! (Should I admit that??)

7. I hate housework....but I do LOVE the feeling of accomplishment when I am motivated to get it done!

I am choosing not to tag anyone, but if you read this and want to play along, please do, just let me know so I can read yours too!

Two fabulous days

I just got through a little earlier today with two great days at church. We had our annual Ladies Luncheon this morning and into the early afternoon and it was just fabulous. I took yesterday off to help get ready for it, then today was the luncheon. A lot of work, planning and prayer has gone into it for months. God was faithful and everything went off perfectly. There were 400 women there and I don't think anyone could have been more pleased.

Our guest speaker was Erin Smalley who co-wrote the book 'Grown Up Girlfriends' with her friend, Carrie Oliver. Unfortunately, Carrie died earlier this year, but Erin did a fabulous job in her speech and it is a blessing that Carrie's insight and part in this book is still blessing others. Actually, another touching thing is that my friends Bev and Cindy were supposed to be part of today's program too, but as many of you know, Bev passed away in September, so it really left Erin and Cindy to kind of carry on the message that the four of them were supposed to share. It was a heartfelt day for many of us in our church who knew Bev and we were fortunate enough to honor her a bit as well.

When I learned that Erin was going to be coming to speak back in July, I bought her book and poured over it. Being single, if there is one topic I am interested in and committed to, it is friendship because those relationships are what I rely on in everyday life. It really is a very good book and if any of you need a good book on this topic, this is it. Here's a description from Amazon.com:

Book Description
Even when life is hectic and harried, every woman has a God-given longing for relationship, and her female friends play an important role in filling that. Oliver and Smalley help women distinguish between self-centered, insecure, childish relationships and other-centered, healthy, "grown-up" relationships. Using personal anecdotes and scriptural principles, they explain ten characteristics of a grown-up friend and offer ideas on how readers can develop these attributes in themselves. Finally, they tackle the tough issues of friendships, such as how to support a friend in crisis, how to work toward forgiveness when a friend has injured you, and how to determine when it is best to let a friendship go.

Below are a few pictures from the day:

Me and friends that I invited, Joan, Christy and Gwen (they're sisters).

My table was hosted my my friend Rosemary. Her husband, Rick,

is our Minister of Music and this is him being our waiter for the day.

Our table decoration. Each hostess was in charge of decorating their

table and Rosemary did a great job with ours.

A shot from the back corner of 400 women, literally,

having a great time of food and fellowship.

This is my friend Cindy, introducing our

guest speaker, Erin Smalley.

Cindy and Erin.

Erin sharing wise insights on friendship.

One great book.

As an added bonus, I was fortunate enough to meet a fellow blogger, Angela, aka 'Terrible Speller' on my sidebar, (I couldn't get the link to work), and had a great time talking with her today as well. I saw her a little earlier this year but I was hurried and didn't have a chance to speak, so I was thrilled to see her at our luncheon today. I'm not always one to just jump into chatting with someone I don't know, but it really was like running into an old friend and I was thrilled to have that time to chat and laugh together. That time with her was a blessing to me today as well, so if you read this, thanks Angela! :-) I'm already looking forward to running into you again!

And just for the record, I am about 95% well, so a couple of more days should do it. YEA!

This really has been a great couple of days. I am SO blessed!

A must read...

I was checking blogs tonight and found that Jill has written and posted a must read poem.

Well worth your time.

Make a difference!

Today I Will Make a Difference
by Max Lucado

Today I will make a difference.

I will begin by controlling my thoughts. A person is the product of his thoughts. I want to be happy and hopeful. Therefore, I will have thoughts that are happy and hopeful. I refuse to be victimized by my circumstances. I will not let petty inconveniences such as stoplights, long lines, and traffic jams be my masters. I will avoid negativism and gossip. Optimism will be my companion, and victory will be my hallmark.

Today I will make a difference.

I will be grateful for the twenty-four hours that are before me. Time is a precious commodity. I refuse to allow what little time I have to be contaminated by self-pity, anxiety, or boredom. I will face this day with the joy of a child and the courage of a giant. I will drink each minute as though it is my last. When tomorrow comes, today will be gone forever. While it is here, I will use it for loving and giving.

Today I will make a difference.

I will not let past failures haunt me. Even though my life is scarred with mistakes, I refuse to rummage through my trash heap of failures. I will admit them. I will correct them. I will press on. Victoriously. No failure is fatal. It’s OK to stumble… . I will get up. It’s OK to fail… . I will rise again.

Today I will make a difference.

I will spend time with those I love. My spouse, my children, my family. A man can own the world but be poor for the lack of love. A man can own nothing and yet be wealthy in relationships. Today I will spend at least five minutes with the significant people in my world. Five quality minutes of talking or hugging or thanking or listening. Five undiluted minutes with my mate, children, and friends.

Today I will make a difference.

From Shaped by God
Copyright (Tyndale House, 2002)
Max Lucado

Finally.

Well, I'm not going to post about all this forever, but I am finally back among the land of the living. I can't believe I haven't posted anything since Wednesday! After 31 days, that surprises even me! :-)

I am finally beginning to get over whatever this is that I have had for two weeks. I was somewhat better on Friday and really thought things were on the upswing, but yesterday I woke up with a headache and sinus stuff again that just hung on all day. I also woke with a headache this morning, but after a sweet morning at church, it went away for the most part and only hurts when I cough. Hopefully it's really on the way out. I've had sinus issues before, but this has by far been the worst....two weeks! I also got a doctor recommendation from a friend on Friday when I was at the church (you know who you are, my secret reader friend (!!), and thank you!), so I went online yesterday and figured out how to change my PCP. I spoke with another friend who also uses this doctor and she highly recommended him as well, so I decided to go with him. I'll need to follow up with a phone call tomorrow to be sure all that went through, then my doctor issues should be over for a while. I am thankful.

I haven't mentioned this, but our pastor announced last Sunday night that he's leaving at the end of the month for another church, so we are going to be in a state of transition for a while until we get someone else. I really like our pastor A LOT and hate like everything that he's leaving, but I am also eager to see what God has in store for us. I hate to use the word 'but' in a sentence because I've always heard that saying that negates what was just said prior to the 'but.' While that may be true in some instances, that is not how it is intended here. I would have been happy to have him remain our pastor forever, yet since he feels God is leading him somewhere else, we have to accept that and with that acceptance comes an eagerness to see who God will bring us next. We have great leadership and a great staff and I am sure things will be fine, it's just going to be a period of transition for us. Today he preached about 'Responding to God's Will,' and tonight about the passage from John 15 about the vine and the branches. I really am going to miss his preaching...he's just awesome.

With all that said, there's not much more from here for now I suppose. Thanks for all the well-wishes these last couple of weeks. I'm finally on the upswing and that alone is enough to make me very thankful tonight!