Kate and her dad.

This may not be the height of interest to anyone but me, but the picture above is of Kate and her dad this past weekend when they were in St Mary's. It looks like they will not be moving totally to Florida after all, just to the last place they can get before the state line. In my mind, every little bit of space closer to 'home' is fine with me. They were out of town last week at my mom's condo on vacation, but made a couple of trips back up to St Mary's to look around and see if that's where they want to settle. They've talked about St Mary's and Brunswick, but for now, St Mary's is what seems to be on their mind. I have to admit, from the pictures, it looks like a nice little town.

I know I have said over and over that I am not moving, and I still have no intention of it at this point, but here's something weird: For those of you who read Tonja's blog, Gatherings, she had a post back on July 13 titled, 'Name Your Spot.' This was a quiz to find out where you would be most suited to live in the United States. I took that quiz and two of the places on the list of about 20 that it gave me were Brunswick and St Mary's! I thought that was really weird. I told my sister about it and she wanted the link, so I asked her last night if she had taken this quiz....she said that she had but neither of these places were on her list. Isn't that just weird that of everywhere in the US, for me, it has to pick two places they are thinking about? The others were mostly in Tennessee and Kentucky, but I just thought that was weird. In hopes that Tonja won't mind me sharing this on my blog as well, you can go here to take the quiz yourself. It's pretty interesting.

Anyway, mostly I wanted to post a picture of Kate. I've posted so many pictures of Grace over time and this picture was so good of my sweet Kate that I thought she deserved fair time too. :-)

Psalm 1

I have no idea why this Psalm has been on my mind and come across my path so much lately, but it has. It was on my mind about two weeks ago, then again yesterday as I was puttering around the house. I remembered that Kim Hill sang it when I was at AtlantaFest back in the late 80's-early 90's (did I admit that??? It seems like an eternity ago!), so I looked to see if it was on YouTube in case I had any huge realizations that I needed to post about. Imagine my surprise to hear our pastor refer to it this morning in his sermon....

His sermon was titled, "The Power of God's Word," and the part that he used referencing this is that the Word of God is like WATER......cleansing, refreshing, life-giving, and encouraging.



To be honest, I've been in a bit of a funk recently for some reason, but now that I'm putting two and two together, I'm guessing this Psalm, song and message is my clue to get busy studying and trusting God bit more, because after all, Psalm 62:1 is true as well: "My soul finds rest in God alone; my salvation comes from him."

It's pretty cool that I already had the answer I need, even if I didn't realize it.

Sweet mail.

My sister, nieces and brother-in-law are out of town this week, so it thrilled my soul to get this in the mail yesterday:

It doesn't get much sweeter than that, but isn't it funny that Grace would think to say that she can't 'wate' to spend her money rather than that she can't wait to see me again? I LOVE stuff like this. She's so funny. And Kate, she's just so sweet.

This is a 'keeper' though, no doubt.

Who would have guessed??

About a week ago, I was totally blown away to have Jill at Who Could Ask For Anything More leave a comment on one of my posts to say that she had nominated me for an award and that I needed to go to her blog to pick it up. Of course, my curiosity was piqued, so I padded right over there to find out what it was. Imagine my surprise to find that it was this award. WOW....I just stared at my computer and shook my head, because if there is anything I feel I am NOT, it is what this award entails. I am grateful and humbled though Jill, so thanks for thinking of me!

I came across Jill's blog a few months ago as I was hitting the 'random' choice on the Christian Women Online Blog Roll. I was first drawn in by her adorably cute blog design, but it took only one post that I really identified with to know that this was one that I needed to add to my own blogroll. I have enjoyed my visits to her blog immensely. To you Jill, I appreciate the time and effort you put into making your posts both thought provoking and fun. I know that is a real feat at times because I know I have trouble with what to say sometimes, but you do a great job and I am thankful for your openness and all you put into it.

Now, about this award, it was started by a teenage girl named Jocelyn and you can go here to read more about her. Below is the background behind this award in Jocelyn's own words:

As for my award, it is called The Blogger Reflection Award. Why? The reason for the title is because this award should make you reflect on five bloggers who have been an encouragement, a source of love, impacted you in some way, and have been a Godly example to you. Five Bloggers who, when you reflect on them, you get a sense of pride and joy... of knowing them and being blessed by them. This award is for the best-of-the-best so consider who you pick, carefully. This award should not be given to just anyone. If you're going to do the award don't just write a few words and slap it on your blog. Write real thoughts about these bloggers and what they've been to you, and if the bloggers you pick have already been given the award, don't be afraid to give to them again. They deserve it as many times as it's given.

So here goes.....I nominate the following people, for the way they inspire me:

Jess at Bittersweet: Another random find, besides Jill, that I just love. She finds great lessons in the ordinary things and right now has a great post about the change dishes you find beside registers in stores. I'll never see one of those again without thinking of her post on this....WOW!

Kat at Justabeachkat: Found through a link on another friend's blog, she has a great life and posts sweet things about her family, friends and God's blessings. Always lots of fun and interesting things here.

Jean at MusicalJean: Also found through a link on another friend's blog, she has a heart of gold and has shared it with with numerous foster children and seemingly, anyone else who crosses her path that just needs to know someone cares. It's been heartwarming and astonishing to see how God used her in the lives of so many people and how He has used them in her life as well.

Tonja at Gatherings: EEK! Dare I say, another link from a friend. Tonja has a huge zest for life, fun, and all that is good. Life has dealt her several things that would be too much for so many of us, but she has turned them all into blessings and no doubt encourages everyone she comes into contact with.

And last but not least,

Tracey at Show Me State...of Mind. She's the friend who three of the links above came from and the friend that started me on this blogging journey to begin with. We've been friends for more years than I can remember now, but it was an instant connection whenever it was, so it seems like I've known her forever. Her blog gives a great glimpse into her life and on many counts, her humor is not to be missed.

So there you are, my nominations. If you not one of these girls, give them a visit....if you ARE one of these girls, pass it on, sisters! :-)

My cool day.

I love when stuff like this happens:

My sister told me earlier in the week that she was having their friend Edith down to dinner tonight. Edith lives in their old neighborhood and is about 90 years old, no kidding. She's as spry as they come and has an adorable personality. It's a real hike for my sister to drive up to where Edith lives to pick her up, go back home, cook dinner, spend time chatting, then take Edith back home and drive home herself, so I offered to get off work early this afternoon, pick Edith up and get her to my sister's since I work only about 10 minutes from Edith's house and would be heading toward my sister's anyway.....besides the fact that I stayed for dinner too!

Anyway, my friend Gina is out of town again, so I went to let her dog out before I went to Edith's. I was running a little ahead of schedule and needed to stop at the drug store, so I used that time wisely and got that errand out of the way. When I went to pay, the cashier kept talking to this man (who had already paid) for a couple of minutes (which seems like an eternity when you're the one waiting to check out!). You know how it is....to be totally honest, in my mind, I was thinking....."Yooohooo! Quit talking! I need to go get Edith and I'm going to be late!" When it was my turn, she asked how I was, I said "Fine" and asked about her,not expecting much of an answer. Her response surprised me though....She said, "Not too good right now." Well, normally, cashiers don't say things like that, so WE started chatting and she started telling me how she has recently moved here from another state for a fresh start and just can't find a job in the field where she has a degree....Criminal Justice! Well, HELLO! I would think around here these days there would be NO trouble finding a job in that field (!!), but evidently she hasn't had any luck. I told her I would pray that she would find something soon. She said she appreciated that and she told me her name. We chatted another minute or so and I asked her if she attended church anywhere. She named a church and said she'd only been a few times because she's had to work, then she went on to say that she told her boss she would like to be off on Wednesdays and Sundays because she would like to attend church, but he keeps scheduling her because there aren't enough employees to cover the shifts. I could just see the disappointment and sadness in her eyes that things aren't working out for her like she had envisioned they would when she moved here. I didn't really know what to say to all that, but then it popped into my mind to tell her about this new women's ministry at my church that I mentioned here on my blog a couple of weeks ago. It came to mind, I know, because there are so many things to take advantage of on days of the week besides Wednesday and Sunday and possibly some things she can attend to meet people and get some sort of encouragement. I didn't have any with me right then, but in my car, I had some Women of Purpose brochures, so I left to get one of those to leave with her. I also left my name and phone number and the church's address because she asked. She sounded pretty interested, so who knows what may happen. I am going to keep my eyes and ears open though because I did get an honest sense that she would like to be involved somewhere.

The thing is that I NEVER go to that drug store I went to today. It's probably been a year or more since I've been in there, but when I left, I knew why I had stopped there. It was such a cool feeling. It felt good to know that I had offered her a positive opportunity for involvement and it felt good to know that I belong to a church that wants to reach out to our community. It felt good to let her know we have a women's ministry that offers more than Wednesday and Sunday involvement. I felt lucky that I had a brochure to share....AND it let me know that I always need to have a few of those brochures with me! You just never know.

Before I left, she mentioned that the guy in front of me had some connections with the police, court and legal system here and said he would see about helping her get in touch with some people who could maybe help her find a job in her field. She told him she didn't get off work until 10:00 and asked if that was too late to call. He said he needed to talk to her tonight because he's leaving in the morning to go out of town, so I'm going to be praying that they have a positive chat tonight and that he can help her get her foot in the door somewhere. I just can't help but to feel like something is going to work out for her.

And who knows, I may even see her at church or one of our women's ministry events one day...wouldn't that be cool?

Her name is Cheryl Bush and if you'd like to pray for her too, that would be super!

Flat as a fritter!

Here's how my cat has spent her evening as I've been perusing blogs (like I don't have anything else to do!):

While perusing, I followed a link from a comment on our friend Kathy's blog and found a hilarious story tonight that is worth reading. I'm not much of a camper, but did have to do it when I was a child and we were on vacation. If you've ever been camping, you will identify with SOMETHING in this story.....Go HERE for a laugh! Hope you find it as funny as I did.

What color are you?

I saw this on Lynne's blog and decided to try it for myself. (If you do this, I want to know how yours turns out too....)

You Are A Blue Girl

Relationships and feelings are the most important things to you. You are empathetic and accepting - and good at avoiding conflict. If someone close to you is in pain, it makes you hurt as well. You try to heal the ones you love with your kind and open heart.

What Color Girl Are You?

Catchin' up

Nothing new to post, but I just thought I'd check in...

My week has been fine and yesterday was a nice holiday. I went to my friend Gina's and had late lunch/early dinner there. Not the traditional cookout stuff, but salmon and talapia! YUM! I took a black-eyed pea salsa recipe that we all love (and it's easy as all get-out to make....just my kind of recipe!). Speaking of....I went to Target yesterday morning to get the things to make that and for about $10 of stuff....and left....$62 later! I hate when that happens, but unfortunately after I got home and looked it all over, there was nothing that I wanted to return! I obviously need a list and I need to stick to it! I did not have that much money to just blow, but I guess I did it anyway. It certainly goes out much quicker than it comes in!

Saturday morning, my sister, nieces and I are having breakfast with my step-mom (who we LOVE!) to work on plans for a surprise party for my Dad in a couple of months. He turns 70 on August 27. It's so hard to believe he's going to be 70! WOW. He still works circles around people half his age and works sun-up to sun-down and beyond most days. He has a tree farm that is about 87 acres (my sister works for him and they both have houses on that land) and until recently, was partners in a landscaping company for about 20 years. He amazes me. He could definitely work circles around me as well! UGH! He was raised on a farm working like that and it is obviously still in his blood. Anyway, I'm sort of excited about this party thing and I'm sure I'll be even more excited after we talk about it on Saturday. I just hope we'll be able to pull it off and have it be a true surprise. We'll see.

Anyway, like I said, not much happening this week, but it's sort of nice. Sometimes there is too much going on, but this week has been a good balance. I've decided I really could get used to working two days, being off one, working two days, being of two, etc. Wouldn't that be the life?

Wet night, rich worship

Well, as a follow-up to my last post, Celebrate America got rained out last night, so we had to move it indoors. I know that God's ways are higher and better than ours, but it is SO beyond me how it cannot rain for WEEKS, then the one time you plan something big outside, there it is! Last night was no exception to this rule.

We were supposed to be at the courthouse on risers at 5:30 for a soundcheck. My understanding is that some company who does outside concerts was handling the sound and everything that goes along with that. We just barely got started with that and it started rumbling thunder, then a few little blinks of lightening. The thunder was okay, but the lightening made everyone a little skittish and we were all ready to head inside. We no more than got across the street to The Cafe where we'd left our sack dinners and it started pouring rain. I mean it was coming down in sheets...SHEETS.....so much so that at several points, there was no visibility to even see outside. After a while, they did a little 'raise your hand thing' to see if we moved it to tonight how many people could have been there. It looked like a good number to me, but about 6:30, the decision was made for us to move it all indoors. As much work as I know it was for such a last minute change of plans, it went off like clockwork. I was somewhat disappointed as were a few friends I was sitting with, but in true 'God' fashion, it wound up being one of our best programs ever...and this year was the 20th year we've done this program! Our Worship Center was absolutely packed, front to back, wall to wall, main floor and balcony. Absolutely amazing.

There was a bluegrass band that played for about 30 minutes. They were absolutely fabulous, talented and so incredibly funny. A true crowd pleaser. After that, our orchestra played two or three songs, then we joined them for the remainder of the program. We had the pledges to the flags, the Bible, and the presentation of the flags for the different branches of the service, the Memorial Flag, lots of patriotic songs, etc. Below are a few pics that Gina took from the balcony. Some are blurry, but I'll post the best ones.

Fireworks were planned to close the program. The company that was doing them is the one that does them for the Braves, Atlanta's baseball team. They are evidently used to all sorts of weather and wanted to do them anyway, so they did! Fireworks were a first for our program and they set them off from the roof of the Worship Center! They were very good, even in the drizzly rain. The good thing is that all the rain set to rest any worries about fallout catching anything on fire.

Rick, our Minister of Music, said it best....'God must have felt that Jonesboro needed a good rain more than we needed an outdoor concert.' It's just cool that the rain and a last minute change of plans couldn't dampen the spirit of about 2000 people ready to show their thanks to God and patriotism for our country. It was a fabulous night after all. We are lucky indeed.

Imagine my happiness...

...that I would get home yesterday afternoon and find that my power and water had been cut off for non payment! :-) I had only come home to get my card reader and kind of 'regroup' before I went to meet my friend, Terri, for dinner before heading to Terri's to show her how to download pictures from her camera to her computer. Needless to say, that little 'no power, no water' notice forced me into a major change in plans. I KNEW I had paid it, but came in and looked and there it sat on my counter, under some other bills that I need to pay.....needless to say, an oversight! About the time I was standing here wondering what I was going to do, Terri called to tell me that our friend Connie's husband was out of town and that she and her sons would be joining us for dinner. I told her that I'd had a little change myself and that I was still planning to meet her, but that I was going to have to find somewhere to spend the night since there would be no 'necessities' here to come home to when we got through with all our computer stuff. I had already called Gina and left her a message telling her to call me ASAP because I had an emergency, but as it turned out, Terri's husband was out of town and I wound up spending the night at her house. It actually all turned out fine because after we had dinner, Terri and I went to her house, fed their horses, she did a couple of other things, then we hooked up with Connie again (she lives in Terri's cul-de-sac too) and went for a walk....about a mile from what Terri said. When we got back, we got to work on computer stuff and did that until almost midnight, so that worked out pretty well all the way around.

I told Terri this morning before I left that I was bound and determined to find some sort of 'silver lining' in that little episode with my bill and had determined that it was much better that it had happened yesterday than today or tomorrow because I would have been so late getting home from choir practices that it would have been really inconvenient to find somewhere else to go at that later time. Plus, with Terri's husband being gone, it gave us some great one-on-one time to spend just doing whatever. One-on-one time is really my favorite kind with friends just because the conversation tends to be so good, so I really think it all worked out like it was supposed to.

Except for the $50 reconnect fee I had to pay when I went to get all this settled this morning! :-)

Here's the other thing...I was on my treadmill Monday night and was deciding that I needed to start doing that everyday and use it as my 'prayer walk' time. Romans 12:1-2 kept coming to mind:

"I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing unto God - this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is - his good, pleasing and perfect will."

I thought it was cool that after I'd made that determination of walking on Monday night, even without the power of a treadmill, God knew I was serious and gave me the opportunity to do it again last night with Terri and Connie. Even if the 'prayer' part wasn't there so much, the exercise part of it was and it was really cool to me when I realized that.

After I got through on Monday night though, although I knew what it said, I went to Romans 12:1-2 in my Bible and read the rest of the book. It wasn't that much more, just a few chapters, but there were a few verses in Romans 14 that got my attention too. I've been dealing with some things internally that these verses spoke directly to and when I read them, I was just like, "Wow." I could not have known when I started recalling Romans 12 that Romans 14 would have such words that I needed to heed as well. I am always amazed when God works like that.

We have practice tonight and tomorrow night for our 'God and Country' program on Sunday night. It is going to be on the lawn of the old courthouse in town and hopefully there will be a great community turnout. They're telling everyone to bring blankets and lawn chairs and flyers are out around town. We're all hoping for a great ministry opportunity for the community and a great chance to reflect on what we believe about our God and our country....'the land of the free....and the home of the brave.'

Lastly, below is the picture from Carabba's that I promised a few weeks ago. Our children's choir group had gone to dinner with gift cards we had all gotten for Christmas. Terri's camera was the one that had the picture in it, so when I was over there last night, I e-mailed it to myself so I could get a copy printed and post it here as well. Just to give you faces to go with names, since I've mentioned them here, Terri is the third one from the left on the back row...Connie is the first one on the first row on the right, next to me.


Hope you're having a great week!

No words necessary

Catching up....

I don't know what my deal has been this week, but I have had such a range of emotions and it has all just flown by....I can hardly believe the end of the week is already here!

My Dad called me Tuesday night and said that he had heard that the son of some family friends had committed suicide. He was only 30. After some internet search, I found the info I was hoping to find, but had unfortuately missed the funeral since it was that same day in Alabama. I definitely would have gone if I had known. I've just been filled with a sadness for that family because I can only imagine what a huge thing that is going to be to deal with. They moved in next door to us when I was in my mid-teens and lived there until after I moved out of my parents house, so I'm not sure how long they lived there, but I babysat them several times and saw them all the time when I would go back home to visit my parents. They eventually moved to Alabama and I've only seen them a very few times in the last several years, but I can't help but to remember that sweet little boy that used to play on his Big Wheel or tricycle in the driveway next to ours. He and his older brother were alway so shy...SO shy....but they were such sweet children....I just keep playing those pictures of him and his siblings (all 5 of them, 6 total!) over and over in my mind and just hate so bad that anything in his life made him feel he had to do such a thing. The obituary said he'd had two tours of duty in Iraq and he was evidently quite an accomplished young man. It just makes me sad, both for him and for his mom because I know she is going to have a real struggle with all this. They all will, but I feel particularly sad for the mom. I need to get a card in the mail soon....I need to decide exactly what I want to say. I am one of those that will NOT send a card if I don't have the words just right. That is going to be high on my list of things to get done this weekend. I think I know most of what I am going to say, I just need to get it down on paper.

Then last night before choir, since children's choir is out for the summer and I had some time before my choir practice, I went to my friend Gina's house to hang out until I had to leave for choir. This is so NOT a big deal, but Gina had made this big pile of stuff for tacos, etc, and had a house full of people there....her, her husband, her son Chris (who's 8th grade graduation I posted about back in May...that handsome thing!), 3 friends of Chris', me, and then Gina's in-law's stopped by. Long story short, there was a lot of confusion, but after Chris got his food, he went and sat down over where his grandfather was and said, "Hey Grandaddy...we're glad you could join us." That comment in and of itself is no big deal and I know that, but Chris is just such a thoughtful young man and when he said that to his grandfather, I just got all teary! I looked at Gina, she started giggling, then said if I didn't quit, she was going to start too.....Well....I just couldn't help it! Chris looked up, saw me wiping my eyes and biting my lip and wanted to know why I was crying. Of course, I wasn't about to tell him it was because he's so sweet and thoughtful, but that's exactly what it was! I may tell him when there aren't so many people around, but I didn't feel the need to do it right then! Sweet stuff just wipes me out, there is no doubt about it.

Tonight I went to my sister's for dinner. They got back from the beach on Monday night, were busy Tuesday night, I had church last night, so tonight was the first time I've been able to see them since they've been home. I had fun just hanging out with them. Before I left, Grace wanted to do my make-up....you can just imagine what that looked like (!!!), so I let her. It was fun and I meant to get my sister to take a picture and e-mail it to me so I could post it here, but they have a new vehicle and we were all outside looking at it before I left and it was getting late. I'll get Grace to do it again sometime soon and hopefully get a picture then. My sister did look up at me while we were outside though and say, "Nice blue eye shadow..." Grace was sitting there just a-smilin' so I said, "Yeah, I thought so too....thanks!", and winked at Grace. Kate was busy stretching out showing us how the back of one seat folded down could be her footrest, but I'd had to remind her earlier when she was giggling that there was a day she used to always try to make me up like 'Sporty Spice.' (Remember the Spice Girls??) Those days are precious and gone all too quickly....I've made it my mission to savor them all!

Anyway, this has been the week in a nutshell, emotions and all. Sometimes I hate that my heart gets touched so easily, but in all honesty, I know I would want it no other way.

The best kind of garden

Christians are like the flowers in a garden, that have each of them the dew of Heaven, which, being shaken with the wind, they let fall at each other's roots, whereby they are jointly nourished, and become nourishers of each other.

-- John Bunyan

This is the Heartlight quote to the left here on my blog today and I thought it to be particularly poignant in regard to the relationships around us on a daily basis. I am fully convinced that we, as a whole, don't realize the power we have to 'nourish' another person in the simple course of daily life. I need these reminders every now and again!

Just because she's sweet!

`
Who would believe such pleasure from a wee ball o' fur?

(~Irish saying)

(This is such a nothing post, but my Sweet Kitty was outside tonight basking in the sunlight and I couldn't resist. What a sweet baby!)

Old Farmer's Advice

(I got this in an e-mail today and a lot of it sounds like good advice!)

* Your fences need to be horse-high, pig-tight and bull-strong.

* Keep skunks and bankers at a distance.

* Life is simpler when you plow around the stump.

* A bumble bee is considerably faster than a John Deere tractor.

* Words that soak into your ears are whispered...not yelled.

* Meanness don't jes' happen overnight.

* Forgive your enemies. It messes up their heads.

* Do not corner something that you know is meaner than you.

* It don't take a very big person to carry a grudge.

* You cannot unsay a cruel word.

* Every path has a few puddles.

* When you wallow with pigs, expect to get dirty.

* The best sermons are lived, not preached.

* Most of the stuff people worry about ain't never gonna happen anyway.

* Don't judge folks by their relatives.

* Remember that silence is sometimes the best answer.

* Live a good, honorable life. Then when you get older and think back, you'll enjoy it a second time.

* Don't interfere with somethin' that ain't botherin' you none.

* If you find yourself in a hole, the first thing to do is stop diggin'.

* Sometimes you get, and sometimes you get got.

* The biggest troublemaker you'll probably ever have to deal with, watches you from the mirror every mornin'.

* Always drink upstream from the herd.

* Good judgment comes from experience, and a lotta that comes from bad judgment.

* Lettin' the cat outta the bag is a whole lot easier than puttin' it back in.

* If you get to thinkin' you're a person of some influence, try orderin' somebody else's dog around.

* Live simply.
* Love generously.
* Care deeply.
* Speak kindly.
* Leave the rest to God.

Women of Purpose

At the beginning of this year, our church kicked off a new Women's Ministry entitled 'Women of Purpose.' You can follow this link to read more about it, but it's a great new ministry that reaches out to women in many different areas through various venues of interest. There are events planned every month and undoubtedly, there is something that will include practically everyone:

Bible Study
Blessings of the Cross - ministry for crocheters
Book Club
Brown Bag Dinners - first Tuesday of each month there are designated homes in surrounding counties to just take your dinner and fellowship with other women
firstmonday.prayer - a ministry to pray for spiritual renewal and needs of the church body
Fitness/Wellness - high and low impact aerobics
Intercessory Prayer Room
Next Chapter - for those who have lost loved ones and are indeed facing a 'new chapter' in their lives
Scrappers for Christ - a time of fellowship and scrapbooking
Sewing Ministry Group
Prayer Shawl Ministry
Retreats - offers both on campus day retreats and off campus weekend retreats. Loads of good things here!
Tapestry - women mentoring women
WMU - ongoing missions for girls, women and groups at all age levels

...and last but not least, Luncheons and dinners. One of these was this past Tuesday night and it was entitled "Flip flops-n-fun." It was complete with a beach scene, speaker, fun, food and obviously, a photographer. :-) (Thanks Michelle!) The attendance was great and a fun time was had by all. The picture below was from that night and, except for one person, all these people are in my Sunday school class! I think our class had the best attendance of anyone and I was thrilled.

Here's the acrostic (um...yes, I did have to research what it's called!)....may we all be Women of Purpose:

P -- Persevering
U -- Understanding
R -- Restoring
P -- Praying
O -- Out Reaching
S -- Serving
E -- Encouraging

Clever, huh?

Family can say things others can't! :-)

I've had some great time with my nieces these last couple of days...well...Thursday and Friday anyway. My sister called me at work on Thursday morning in a panic. Kate, my oldest niece, had something loose with her braces in the back of her mouth and Patty, my sis, had called to make an appointment since they will be at the beach next week for vacation. The only time they could see her was at the end of the day, even working her in at that, and they were going to be closed on Friday, so that was all that was available. My sister had a scheduled PTO meeting (she's PTO president, so she had to be there) at 4:00 and they'd said to have Kate there around 4:30. Needless to say, her call was to see if I could possibly take Kate to that appointment. Of course I could, so I picked both Kate and Grace up that afternoon and off we went to the orthodontist office.

While Kate was in the back getting her problem taken care of, Grace was in the lobby with me making me look (but not look) at a big guy who was sitting behind us with a partially shaved head and a ponytail. He also had tatoos. She kept grinning and snickering and couldn't help but to watch him. After that, she decided she needed to practice juggling with two balls she had in her purse, then we had to do those hand things to rhymes like we did when I was a kid. She had taught me two or three of them the weekend before when she spent the night. Grace is just hilarious to me and her interests right now are exactly the same as mine were at that age. It's just fun to try seeing things through her eyes.

Anyway, in the course of all this, I finally hugged her and told her, 'Grace, you remind me so much of me when I was a little girl. I liked to do all the same things you do and you just are a fun kid to me. And you know what....even some of the people who read my blog think we look alike.' She looked at me kind of puzzled, so I continued, 'I guess because we have brown hair and brown eyes and all that kind of stuff.' Here was her reply, with a grin, '...and we're both kinda chubby!' Well, hello!! :-) It was all I could do not to lay my head back right there and just roar with laughter...that absolutely cracked me up!

Kate came out a few minutes later and they decided they needed a snack, so off we went to Dairy Queen, their choice. We had so much fun just sitting there talking and goofing off. When we got home, Kate went in and turned on the TV and Grace and I went outside to play a little bit. It got to be a little late and I kept trying to get away, but I just couldn't. We were having so much fun and Grace kept saying, '...but I don't want you to go.' I kept staying, but finally it started raining a little and it was time, so Grace went slinking off toward the house. I called after her and told her I loved her, then she came back over to my car and said, 'Aunt Dianne, don't you ever sometimes just feel like crying??' My reply, 'Yeah Grace, I do....come here and let me hug you.' So she let me hug her for a few minutes and we talked a few more minutes, but by the time I was finally pulling out of their driveway, I was a mess...all the way home!

How is it that kids can have you roaring with laughter one minute and bawling your eyes out the next?

I picked them up yesterday about 1:30 and brought them over here to swim again. It was a fun afternoon. When I took them home, I stayed there for dinner...just pizza...then I left. It was much easier to leave that time and I was glad!

Whatever am I going to do when they move??

Isn't that Grace hilarious though '...and we're both kinda chubby!' I don't think that would have been quite as cute coming from anyone else!

Free hugs...

I posted this here the other night because I saw it earlier in the week and thought it was cool, but then I took it off before anyone saw it, I think. For some reason, it is still on my mind...I just think it's a cool thing and something that isn't done enough sometimes even with people we know, so here it is again:

Sister, Sister!

There aren't many of these. This is a picture of me and my sister at the dinner party thing we went to Saturday night. See how much we DON'T look alike? She's skinny, blonde and green eyed, and I'm...well...not! :-) Not the best pose of me either...I was actually sitting in the chair to the side behind me when I saw Bill's camera pointing in our direction, so I had to jump up and get in the picture real quick. We're not only different in looks though, our personalities are rather different as well.

I once heard someone ask James Dobson how kids can grow up in the same family and be so very different sometimes. His answer intrigued me...."No two kids grow up in the same family." How? The answer made sense. He said that when the first child is born, the parents are elated at this new birth..amazed at all their child does..etc, then the second child comes along and the first one, although still special, is no longer the center of attention, no longer the only child for the parents to tend to and love, etc. The whole family dynamic changes from one child to two, then for each child after that. It kinda makes sense that no two kids grow up in exactly the same family.

About my sister and me though, she is four years younger than me and much more stong-willed. She is THE boss...and I guess I let her be! (Here's an example: For Mother's day, we were going to my dad's and I was going to take a dish. I mentioned something that I thought sounded good, then my sister says, 'Nah...I think 'xxx' sounds better. I have some of the stuff here, but I'll get the rest at the store and you can come make it over here.' So guess what I took to my dad's....what SHE wanted me to take! haha! I didn't think about this being what really happened until I was driving home from my dad's and told my mom about it later in the day. I just don't know how it happens...I guess it's a good thing I'm passive, huh? Anyway, she is the boss! :-)) Our recollections of our childhoods are very different and things that stand out in her mind are not even on my radar, and vice versa. We weren't always so close as kids -- I was the tomboy and she was the one who played with dolls -- but as adults, we've formed a pretty strong bond. My nieces have been a huge part of that, but the other part, I think, just comes from growing up and knowing that we're simply sisters....for good and bad, no matter what. We have different views on some things and our personalities are so very different at times. She's much more cut and dried about things, I'm more 'gray area,' and I am definitely more sentimental. She will even agree to that. We are both pretty compassionate, but still sometimes, when things tug at my heart she's like, 'Yeah, right!' :-)

I guess it's a good thing we aren't all alike after all, huh?

A weekend of Grace :-)

What a fast weekend...It went quick, but I had some great quality time with Grace...time that I wouldn't trade for anything!

I checked her out of school on Friday, we did some errands, then we came home, goofed around here, then went to her house to get clothes, pj's and her bathing suit. The pool and playground for my subdivision are just behind my house. This is my backyard, looking up to the pool and clubhouse....first standing at my back door, then a zoomed in view.

Rest assured my back yard doesn't look this big unless I am mowing it! :-)

I only post these so you can see why Grace couldn't get swimming off her mind...every time she looked out the window, there it was! I took her for about an hour and a half on Friday night, then Saturday morning, she woke me up at 7:30 informing me that she was ready to go swimming again! :-) Needless to say...we didn't! :-)

After going to Chick-Fil-A for breakfast, counting PTO money and hanging around here until it got a little warmer, we went back to the pool for about 2.5 hours. Other kids were there, so she played with them for a while which was fine with me. She and Kate both have taken swimming lessons for years, so they are like fish in the water, but I didn't get in this time because it is still too cold for me. I need it MUCH warmer! How is it that kids can just jump in water like that and take off? WOW. Anyway, after all that, we came back home, I fixed her lunch, we played games and watched TV, then I took her home about 4:30. When I got back, I took myself a little nap! :-)

Last night, some friends of my sister's hosted a murder mystery dinner party for her birthday which was a couple of weeks ago. I went because it was for my sister's birthday, but I am not much of a gamer for stuff like that, so I had a non-suspect role. It was pretty fun, but I was GLAD I wasn't one of the main characters. I don't know what my deal is, but I do NOT like being the center of attention....which is probably why I don't always understand why people want to read about my personal stuff on this blog, but if I don't post....well....hmmmmm......

Anyway, today has just been a great day. A great sermon this morning about selfishness and self-centernedness and how damaging it can be to a marriage and family. That's what our sermon series is about at church right now. Being single, I don't always like these kinds of sermons, but this one today could apply to any relationship.....just don't be self-centered and selfish and all our relationships will work:

"Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also so the interest of others." (Phil 2:3-4)

Another thing he said that I thought was noteworthy, the definition of EGO...Edging God Out. WOW.

One of our ensembles sang one of the best songs I have ever heard..."The Great I Am Still Is," then our choir did a song titled, "I Will Trust in Thee." FABULOUS. I am just SO blessed to be a part of my church!

I thought I'd wait until the end of my post for these, so at the risk of 'Grace overload,' here are pictures of her at the pool.

The fun continues...

You know, I am just lovin' life this week. Monday was a holiday, Tuesday I got to be there for a friend, Wednesday was Grace's awards day, and tonight, I went to dinner with friends.

I know I've mentioned that I work with the Kindergarten children's choir at church. Last Wednesday night we had our end of the year program. The parents of a set of twins that we had this year gave us all gift cards to Carraba's at Christmas ($$$$...WOW!), so we decided to find a night after the choir year was over to all go to dinner together, just to spend time together and to spend time with a friend who works in choir with us that will probably be moving sometime in the next few months because of her husband's job. What a fun night it turned out to be! It's funny how you can work with people week after week and not really get time to talk to them! We all just talked, laughed and genuinely enjoyed our time together. It really was a very fun night....but shame on me....I forgot to take my camera! Terri, the teacher of our class, took hers though and we did get a group shot, but she doesn't know how to e-mail it to me, so I am going to work on somehow getting that done so I can post it. From what I saw, it looked like a good picture of everyone, and when you have 11 people, that isn't always an easy task! Hopefully I can get that done soon. It was definitely a fun night though.

Another great thing today...I have decided I am going to try to work in to my budget every couple of weeks to have someone cut my grass and, when it needs it, do the edging and weedeating, etc. He came today for the first time and although it was dark when I got home, from what I can tell, it looks FABULOUS! I walked down my driveway and around the sidewalk all bent over so I could see how neat the edging is.....I have been here about 2.5 years and have never edged! EEK! My yard looks all neat and 'kept' looking...much better than it has when I've done it myself. I can't WAIT for the sun to come up in the morning so I can see it in the sunlight. Right now, I am pretty determined to get it worked into my budget....even if I have to cut a social activity or two to get it done. There are some HOT days here in the summer and cutting grass with a push mower is NOT one of my favorite activities! :-)

I believe I am picking Grace up at school tomorrow, but she is definitely spending the night with me. Kate is having 3 friends spend the night with her tomorrow night, so I am having Grace over here so the 'big girls' can have time for themselves. Actually, I have Kate and Grace over to spend the night periodically, always separately though because I love my time with each of them so much. I always prefer to do it when the other is busy because I feel guilty and it makes me sad leaving with one of them when the other is sitting there longing to go too! (I'm acting like I'm some kind of prize, aren't I???? haha!) I know Grace and I have some running around to do...and she wants to get a new toothbrush to have here....she believes she's outgrown the one she has here now! :-)

I'll keep you posted on what we do. I'm eager to see what she has in mind myself...I am SURE there will not be a dull moment!

Awards Day

Well, I went to my sister's for dinner last night and to drop off two weeks of PTO money I had counted over the weekend. After I had been there a little while, Grace looks at me and says, "Aunt Dianne, can you come to my Awards Day tomorrow? I really, really, REALLY want you to! Call your boss!" (Sounds like she's my boss, doesn't it??) Anyway, when I got home, I called the girl I work under and left her a voicemail for this morning saying that I was going to be late. The awards were only for their classroom and given by the teacher. Most kids got awards for the A-B honor roll, etc...one or two had perfect attendance, then it got down to the fun ones.

Here's Grace in all her anticipation of the moment....

Here's Grace laughing at what her teacher was saying...
can't you just see her excitement?

...and here it is.....her award.....
for MOST HUMOROUS! ha! I could have told you that!

Ms Thompson told everyone that Grace always has something to make her smile or laugh and that Grace had told her that every time you laugh, it adds 5 seconds to you life, so Grace thinks she's going to live forever! Everyone giggled, but she was so excited and so sweet up there...just her anticipation....that child is all about awards, what she can do, and encouragement! :-)

THIS is one proud aunt and her sweet niece before the

proud aunt had to go to work.

What can I say....another good day....I am blessed!

God at work

When I first got to work this morning, a client called to tell me about how they'd had to let an employee go on Friday and all that ensued with that. While I was on the phone, my sister radioed me (Nextel) and said that she and my step-mom were going to Kate's Awards Day this morning. Well, let me suffice it to say that I have NEVER missed anything those girls have been in unless it has been absolutely necessary...and that has only been about twice in their whole lives. I have been at my job 22 years and have plenty of vacation, so once tax season is over, I can be off to do pretty much whatever I want to do unless there are deadlines looming or something. My sister hadn't told me about Kate's Awards Day, so I had no plans to go and it was starting in about 30 minutes. There was just no way. I sarcastically told my sister to tell Kate that I didn't know about her Awards Day today or I would have been there. She said she would, but I told her, 'Good, because if you don't, I will!' :-) We both laughed because my sister and I are pretty close....she knew I wasn't being ugly, simply that I didn't want Kate to think I had just skipped it.

The other side of the story is that I had plans to attend a funeral this morning, and that wound up being where I needed to be for a couple of reasons. As I sat there listening to the words of my friend who spoke, the two preachers that spoke, etc, I just thought about how much THAT was right where I needed to be at that moment in time, for my friend and for myself. Although I had no intention of changing my plans of attending this funeral, I had been a little disheartened that my sister hadn't told me about Kate's thing, but really, God knew what He was doing in not having my sister tell me about it. Everything worked out just like is was supposed to and I had to admit that to my sister tonight. Kate will have other things for me to attend over time, but this was the one time my friend would experience this loss and the one time I could be there for her, to support her, for that reason.

I LOVE when I can see where God has worked when I may not have realized it at the time.

Today was one of those days. I am thankful.

Encouragement

I have a friend who is going through a difficult time. Nothing really new, but troubling nonetheless. We had dinner with some other friends tonight, but as I was driving home, I felt compelled to give her a call even though I’d just seen her. I didn’t say much, just that I was sorry she was having to deal with all she’s dealing with, etc. She talked some, but she also just broke down into tears. I have learned over time that there isn’t always anything that can be done except to just ‘be there’ for others, but sometimes that is the most and the best that can be done. Although this topic of ‘encouragement’ is frequently on my mind, it did get me to thinking about ways to encourage others again. I found the following on the internet tonight and thought it had some good suggestions. I would imagine we all have probably thought of or done a number of these for others from time to time, but some were things that I know I need to ‘fine tune,’ so I thought I’d post them here in hopes that maybe someone else can use them to encourage others as well.

19 Ways to Encourage Others
by Stacy Wiebe

Encouragement goes straight to the heart. In fact, the word itself comes from a combination of the prefix "en" which means "to put into" and the Latin word "cor" which means heart. Knowing what a big difference encouragement makes in your own life, what can you do to help others "to take heart" when the going gets tough and way feels long?

Become aware of what encourages you, and do those same things for others.

Learn individuals' "love language"-the special way in which they feel most valued. In his book, The Five Languages of Love, Gary Chapman explains that not everyone's emotional needs are met in the same way, and that it's important to learn to speak others' love language. The five love languages are: words of affirmation, spending quality time, receiving gifts, acts of service and physical touch.

If an encouraging thought comes to mind, share it! It may not have the same effect if you wait. Don't let shyness hold you back. Instead, form a new habit: "Encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today…" (Hebrews 3:13).

When you introduce someone, add a few words of praise for the person's abilities, accomplishments, about how they've helped you or about the nature of your relationship. It's encouraging to be praised in front of others.*

When someone is discouraged or hurting, offer specific, practical help. If you ask, "How can I help?" the person might be at a loss to answer. It's better to ask, "Would it help if I…(specific action) or say, "I would like to…(specific action)?*

Remind fellow Christians of the specific promises of God and characteristics of God. We may know something with our mind, but need to be reminded in our heart. The Apostle Peter wrote, "I will always remind you of these things, even though you know them and are firmly established in the truth you now have" (2 Peter 1:12).

Write someone a note to tell them that you're praying for them. Tell them what you're praying. You can pray specific Scriptures for individuals such as Romans 15:13, "[I pray that] the God of hope [will] fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit."

Make celebration a more regular part of your relationships. Celebrate others' victories, large and small-with a note, with coffee together, with a special meal, a congratulatory phone call or just a high-five!

Be specific when you offer words of praise; it makes your encouragement more credible and concrete "You did a great job at…" "I really appreciate that you…" "I was really impressed that you…"

Encourage other believers with a reminder of Christ's coming. It redirects our thinking to an eternal perspective and ultimate deliverance from the sin and death. "We who are still alive and are left will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. Therefore encourage each other with these words" (1 Thessalonians 5:17b-18).

Realize the power of presence. Just being there is encouraging! When you're with others, you're telling them that they're important. The Apostle Paul closed his letter to the church at Colosse promising to send his friend Tychius "that he may encourage your hearts" (Colossians 4:8b).

If you're part of a church, Bible study or fellowship, be committed to showing up. Your simple presence encourages others that they are part of a community of faith and that they are not alone. That's why the writer of Hebrews says, "Let us not give up the habit of meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another-and all the more as we see the Day approaching" (Hebrews 10:25).

If someone you know is working on a large project, send her a single flower to encourage her at the beginning of the project, and a full bouquet when it's done.*

Use encouragement as an outreach. If anyone should be known for being an encourager, it should be the Christian. Write a letter of appreciation to people at work, your apartment manager, your child's teacher or your doctor. Often when we interact with these people, we are asking for their services. Take time just to say thank you!*

If you really want to encourage someone who gives you excellent service, write a letter of commendation to the person's boss.*

We could learn something from the way team athletes freely pat, touch and high-five each other in competition. Touch is a powerful encouragement. Be sure to be sensitive in this area, though. Ask someone if you can hug her first.

When you see someone making positive changes in their lives, affirm them. "You seem to have a really great attitude about…" "It may be that I'm just starting to take notice, but I see that you're…" "Do you think that you are becoming more…?"

Tell people how they've encouraged you!

Walk daily in the power of the Holy Spirit, asking Him to give you what you need to encourage others. Just as it is impossible to live the Christian life in one's own strength, it's also impossible to freely, unselfishly pour out encouragement without the help of the Holy Spirit who is our Encourager.

I would be curious if you have any other suggestions or ways that others have encouraged you. It is certainly something we all need from time to time!

Finally!

Wow. What a week! I hope all these pictures post like I want them to....

My sweet 7th grade niece, Kate, had a chorus concert Tuesday night. We were too far away to get any good pictures, but I did zoom in and got this one that I've worked on to hopefully get decent enough to see. She was an adorable little girl that captured my heart from the start, but now she's growing into a precious young woman as well. They sang a couple of songs that they'd done at a competition earlier this year on which they received superior ratings, a medly of some Disney songs, then they combined with the band and sang 'America the Beautiful.' By the end of that, many of us in the audience were singing along. It was a sweet way to end the concert, especially in light of all that is going on in the world right now. Of course, they were very good and I was as proud as I could be, but I sat there part of the time with tears in my eyes thinking that this time next year, they will be moving. I am going to HAVE to get a grip on myself, but right now, I just don't see it happening.

Wednesday night, we had our preschool children's choir program at church. I work with the Kindergarten class and it went very well. I thought about trying to get a picture of them in their cute little outfits, but as busy as that night was and as active and excited as they were, I was glad just to emerge with breath in my body! :-) I'll suffice it to say they did a great job.


Yesterday, I took a vacation day from work and went to my friend Chris' graduation. (He's the son of my friend Gina, but he's a friend of mine in his own right.) He goes to a Christian school that only goes thru 8th grade, so this was his last year there. He'd been attending there for 10 years....since 4 year Pre-K or something and there was only one other person in his class that had been there longer!

I just couldn't get enough of his handsome face!

There were only about 12 - 14 people in his class and Chris and his
friend Lance were the only 2 boys!

This is me and Chris at his house after we'd gone to lunch to
celebrate with his parents, grandparents and his aunt that
is here from out of town. Cracker Barrel...YUM! :-)
We had fun. He's a great young man.
I just can't believe how much he towers over me now!
I'm proud of him and proud to call him my friend. I can't wait to
see what God has in store for his life.

Lastly, I don't have any pictures from this, but I went to a high school graduation last night for my friend Joan's daughter, Brittany. She also attended a Christian school and I think that was probably the sweetest high school graduation ceremony I have ever attended. Joan and her husband were clients where I work for years and we struck up a great friendship that continues to this day. When they came to our firm, Brittany was just a little, little girl and it's wonderful to see what a great young woman she has become. I was very proud of her last night too!

So that has been my week in a nutshell...just running, running, running. It hasn't beeen my intent not to blog, it just takes me SO long to gather my thoughts, even for a quick post....what can I say?

I'll do better....and thanks for missing me (those of you who did anyway)! :-)

Yard sales

Here's something I've realized as an adult: As a kid, I never knew what deals you could get at yard sales. We never went to any. Occasionally my mom would have one and we got rid of some stuff, but I always thought that people who went to them were poor and didn't have the money to pay full price for what they wanted like we did. (AAAwwwww....they can't be lucky and pay full price like us! 'Poor' them! Yeah, right!) I assumed that those poor people had to go perusing through someone else's used goods to try to find items they wanted. I don't know where I got this impression, but it was there. Boy, was I wrong!

Well, here's another thing I've realized as an adult: I was not a smart kid! :-) People who go to them are NOT always as 'poor' as I thought....and it is not always a great, fun thing to pay full price for something I want! NOW, I pride myself when I can get a real deal on something I can't wait to call my own! :-) Funny how times change!

Long story short....the neighborhood my friend Gina's sister-in-law, Wendy, lives in had a neighborhood yard sale today. Anyone who wanted to participate could and it was at each person's house throughout the neighborhood. Wendy had to leave to go to her son's baseball banquet this morning, so Gina took some stuff over and was going to watch things for Wendy while she was gone. I had told Gina I'd come over and keep her company while Wendy was gone, so I got there about 10:00. There were LOADS of people there. Gina's son, Chris, was also there selling some old guns and toys that he's outgrown. Gina had clothes, some household goods, things she'd cleaned out of a camper they just bought, etc. As I was sitting there watching Gina and Chris make money hand over fist, I remembered that I had some things in my trunk that my sister had given me months ago to take to Goodwill.....so Chris helped me get those things out and I sold some of them myself!! Some of the clothes my sister had given me still had the tags on them and I sold them for .50 each! I had clothes and books mostly that sold, but when I got ready to leave, I had made about $13 - $14 off my sister's stuff! :-) I had bought some of the kids books that I sold to have at my house when my nieces were younger and they were still just like brand new, but those were the only things that I had paid for myself. I know for a fact that some deals were gotten today from Gina, Chris, Wendy and me....and Wendy's neighborhood is having another one on October 14! My mind is already thinking about what I can take over there then. I'd better start getting my stuff together now!

Seriously, before it was over, my friend Gina and I were planning to pick a weekend in the next month or so to go 'yard sale-ing' ourselves....after all, 'One man's junk is another man's treasure,' huh? Who knows what we'll find! :-)

(And for those of you who may ask, I am not going to tell my sister that I sold her stuff and made money unless it comes up. They are in Florida this weekend looking at land to build their house on so they can move in a year or so and I'm dreading that, so the way I figure it, that's what they get!) :-) (just kidding of course, but I'm probably really NOT going to mention it!)

Lucky me -- for real

Here's my dilemma:

Nothing much has been going on this week, but my friends RealEstateGirl and NspiredbyFaith still want me to blog!

So what's a girl to do?

Monday night I did nothing, Tuesday night, I went with my friend Gina and her son, Chris, to do some running around, last night, I had church stuff, but today....

I went to Field Day at Grace's school. In all truth, my thoughts are that I am sure you get tired of reading about my nieces, so I wasn't really going to blog about that either...BUT, it was a pretty fun day. I had intended to only go for part of it after lunch, but Grace called on Tuesday night and begged me with this message...."Aunt Dianne....pllleeeaaassseeee, ppllleeeaaasseeee!!!! Ask your boss if you can be off the WHOLE day.....No one has EVER come for ALL of Field Day for me!!!! PPPPLLLLLEEEAAASSSEEE!!!!" There was more to the message, but that was the jest of it. She just cracks me up with that beggin'.....SO unnecessary because all she had to do was ask to begin with! Anyway, being the aunt that I am, of course, I took the whole day off to spend the day at her school. It was fun, but I got sunburned! I always seem to forget how easily I burn and today was no exception. Field Day was fun though....I just don't know how the PE teacher comes up with all the activities that were there!

Here are a few pictures:

Grace and the 'kangaroo relay'

Grace and classmates...

Grace and her 'best teacher ever'...Ms Thompson. (I love her too...she's GREAT! Lots of working as a 'team' in her class and Grace told me today that she likes Ms Thompson because she makes her work hard on her schoolwork! Go figure!)

Bein' sweet with her friend, Kara.

I love that little hand over Kara's....Grace is ever the caretaker!

There are days that I am especially lucky be an aunt....today was one of them.

More plant pics...

Since that post about my house and plants last week or whenever it was, I know you have just been sittin' on the edge of your seat waitin' to see my Daisy Gardenias in bloom! :-) (yeah, right!) Anyway, I thought I'd post a new picture...or two...or three. They just started blooming over the weekend and when I left for work this morning, this one had practically expoded overnight. I was running late though, so had to wait until I got home to take any pictures. There are lots more buds still to open, but I didn't know how many would be open at one time if I waited, so this kinda shows what they look like....too bad you can't smell them though...there are three planted there together along the front walkway and when they bloom, they smell GREAT! I'm glad my sister knows about plants because I am DEFINITELY lacking in that department!

The Cost of Kids

A little goodie I found while perusing the internet:

I have seen repeatedly the breakdown of the cost of raising a child, but this is the first time I have seen the rewards listed this way. It's nice, really nice!

The government recently calculated the cost of raising a child from birth to 18 years old, and came up $160,140! That doesn't even touch college tuition. For those with kids, that figure leads to wild fantasies about all the money we could have banked if not for (insert your child's name here). For others, that number might confirm the decision to remain childless.

But $160,140 isn't so bad if you break it down. It translates into $8,896.66a year, $741.38 a month, or $171.08 a week. That's a mere $24.44 a day! Just over a dollar an hour. Still, you might think the best financial advice saysdon't have children if you want to be "rich".

It is just the opposite. What do your get for your $160,140? Naming rights. First, middle, and last. Glimpses of God every day. Giggles under the covers every night. More love than your heart can hold. Butterfly kisses and Velcro hugs. Endless wonder over rocks, ants, clouds, and warm cookies. A hand to hold, usually covered with jam. A partner for blowing bubbles, flying kites, building sand castles, and skipping down the sidewalk in the pouring rain. Someone to laugh yourself silly with no matter what the boss said or how your stocks performed that day.

For $160,140, you never have to grow up. You get to finger-paint, carve pumpkins, play hide-and-seek, catch lightningbugs, and never stop believing in Santa Claus. You have an excuse to keep: reading the Adventures of Piglet and Pooh, watching Saturday morning cartoons, going to Disney movies, and wishing on stars. You get to frame rainbows, hearts, and flowers under refrigerator magnets and collect spray painted noodle wreaths for Christmas, hand prints set in clay for Mother's Day, and cards with backward letters for Father's Day.

For $160,140, there is no greater bang for your buck. You get to be a hero just for retrieving a Frisbee off the garage roof, taking the training wheels off the bike, removing a splinter, filling the wading pool, coaxing a wad of gum out of bangs, and coaching a baseball team that never wins but always gets treated to ice cream regardless. You get a front row seat to history to witness the first step, first word, first bra, first date, and first time behind the wheel. You get to be immortal.You get another branch added to your family tree, and if you're lucky, a long list of limbs in your obituary called grandchildren. You get an education in psychology, nursing, criminal justice and communications that no college can match.

In the eyes of a child, you rank right up there with God. You have all the power to heal a boo-boo, scare away the monsters under the bed, patch a broken heart, police a slumber party, ground them forever, and love them without limits, so one day they will, like you, love without counting the cost.

Author Unknown

Birthday update --

Well, the birthday surprise was a hit! I think she was a little thrown as to what it was at first and I think she thought I'd put that shoe picture on front of the card just to be mean (!!), but once she clued in, she was happy! She asked how I knew what to order and I told her, "I'm just smart!" :-) She thinks I saw the chewed up box in their garage or something and I didn't tell her HOW I knew because I wanted to save that little Amazon.com trick for future use if I need it for anything again. No sense in giving away all my tricks! Good thing she doesn't read my blog, huh? She knows I have one and she knows the name has to do with Grace, but she has never even asked about it. None of my family reads any of this, so I am especially grateful for my little 'blogger family' because it gives me a little safe place to share and get feedback on things I might not share otherwise.

On that note, I was driving home on Tuesday night this week, after I'd been to Grace's 'spirit night' at Chick-Fil-A, thinking about how excited I was to get home and check everyone's blog for the evening. I think I realized then, maybe for the first time, how connected I'm beginning to feel to my blogger friends. It's kinda weird because Tracey is the only one I personally know who reads any of this on a regular basis and I'd tell her most anything anyway, but I've really come to look forward to knowing what is going on, the struggles and the good times, in the lives of so many people that I've never even met! Isn't that funny? I just like reading peoples' thoughts, 'real life' stories, and the things God is teaching so many people. They are encouraging, thought provoking, inspiring and funny. As for me, somehow it is easier for me to get my thoughts out in writing than it is in speech sometimes, and I have a feeling that my nieces' moving next year will definitely fall into that category....I am sure there will be MANY posts about that! I mean, a friend of mine just mentioned, MENTIONED, to me at church Sunday night that they'd heard my sister talking about moving next year at the school last week and I burst into tears right there on the spot! I mean, it is a year away and I'm already messed up about it sometimes, so I have NO idea what I will be like when it actually happens! I can see already that writing is going to be great therapy.....

I guess, after sharing all that, what I most want to say is thanks to all of you who make this such a fun experience. I'm most grateful for the things in your life that you've shared with me...but for the encouragement, camera, CD and Netflix recommendations, etc, that you've given me, I am also thankful. I really do feel like I've gained, and am gaining, new friends...and I know that is no accident.

'He's and On-Time God,

Yes He is!'

I'm so excited!

My sister's birthday is tomorrow and I've been wracking my brain about what to get her. She's getting an ipod from her husband and my nieces, then I took my nieces Saturday night to let them pick out cards for her and get her a little something they had picked out themselves. Of course, they wanted ipod accessories, but settled on a $25 iTunes card. She'll be happy with that, and I was happy because it was like they'd only spent $12.50 each! :-)

BUT....that left the big question...what would I get her?? Usually, she will tell me an idea of something she wants, or I've heard her mention something that I've kept in my memory bank over time, but this year, there has just not been anything.

So I was sitting at my desk today and it hit me....the PERFECT gift! I did a little super sleuth research and found a pair of shoes that she wants. Here's the story: She ordered these shoes from some retailer on Amazon.com and had them delivered to their house. They have two chocolate labs who are quite active (!!), so there are notes on the front door and the door to the garage for any deliveries to be left inside the garage door...obviously out of reach of the dogs. Well, you can guess that the delivery person left the shoes on the front porch, despite the notes, and the dogs got my sister's shoes and chewed through two boxes to to get to them! Needless to say, they were destroyed before she ever saw them....and they were Clark's, so they were not cheap! Not only was she mad at the dogs, but she was mad at the delivery person when her note was posted as plain as day...and I can't say that I blame her for that. She never spends money like that on herself, so she was really disappointed when all that happened.

I decided the best thing I could get for her was to reorder those shoes as her present. I went to Amazon.com, typed in what I thought would be her password, (it was!), and looked at her recently ordered items! YEA! I thought I'd hit the jackpot....Shoe style, color, size and everything! (I'll probably have some 'splainin' to do tomorrow!) But anyway, since I only came up with that idea today, there is no way for them to be here tomorrow, so I brought my crafty self home from church tonight and made a card for her! I printed a picture of the shoes from the website and made a card from some stuff I have here! YEA! (The cards are cute....they are like old library pockets where you'd check out books...the note on the right slips into the pocket on the left.) I'll put the receipt and confirmation in there with the card, but I thought it turned out cute! I don't often come up with ideas on my own for her that I am SO excited about, but I did this time!

I hope she's as thrilled with me as I am! :-)