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!

A poem at 31 days.

Some days it's been a trick

Some days a treat

31 days of posting

Has been an undeniable feat!

But it's done and it's over

a month of wracking my brain in the past

Thanks for reading, thanks for encouraging

and thanks for making it pass so fast!

Still under the weather

Man. It's been a long time since I've felt as bad as I have these last few days. I won't go into all the details here because it's boring if you aren't living it, but I know I mentioned that I went to the doctor last Friday and got two prescriptions. She told me then that if I wasn't much better by Monday to call her and they'd call in an antibiotic. Well, I think it was Sunday, the swollen sinus stuff started and hurt so much that I could hardly sleep Sunday night. I called the doctor on Monday about 9:15 and told them about the anitbiotic the doctor had promised. They normally don't call their prescriptions in until the end of the day, but they promised me more than once (because I called several times when nothing was getting done!), that they would get it called in before 5:00. Making a long story short, they never did call anything in, even after 5:00 and I had to go through another night without any antibiotic. I just sat here and cried when I realized what had happened because I just felt SOOOOOO bad, I was frustrated and there was nothing I could do about it. I called the 'on call' doctor and wouldn't you know, it is the same doctor I see! I left a message explaining what happened in my dealing with her office earlier in the day. She called me back through her answering service, a recorded message, stating that they didn't have the phone number for the pharmacy I use. Well, they certainly did because it's in my file there AND I had given it to two people in her office yesterday. So I called the 'on call' line back and left another message telling her this. She called me back and I told her that I wanted to come by and pick up that prescription this morning instead of waiting for it to be called in. She said that would be fine, so I had myself there first thing this morning. They actually did call it in and I have spent the day here at home sleeping, laying around and not doing much more. I just pray that this is all over soon. As soon as it is, I'm changing doctors....I just need to be sure all this is covered first!

Hope all is well with you!

The long awaited picture....

How cute is this? Grace as a bag of JELLYBEANS! :-) The only problem she found was that she couldn't sit down and her arms would hardly reach for her to eat the hot dog she had for dinner tonight! Sweet baby though, huh?

Peace

My favorite furniture

Just got home from staying with Kate and Grace tonight and wanted to get my post in for today. I should have done it earlier, I just didn't know I would be so late getting home.

I spent part of the day cleaning today....and as I was dusting, I thought, "I need to share what a cool piece of furniture I have!" This radio used to be my great-uncle's. It's a Philco 41-280 and from what I've found online, dates back to 1941. He'd had it as long as I can remember and I mentioned when I was a teenager that I would love to have this some day. I don't think I ever told him that though because my mom said he didn't like people saying, "Can I have that when you die?" He said he'd rather hear, "When you don't need that anymore, can I have it?" :-) So, after he died, my mom inherited everything he had since his wife had died and they had no children. Once I bought my house and had a place for it, my mom passed it on to me. It actually only needs one tube or something and it would still work. It really is the coolest piece of furniture I own, for sentimental reasons and just because it's not something that everyone has.

Kinda unique anyway, isn't it?

Oops!

I want to apologize for the ending of my last post. I didn't really mean that I haven't enjoyed blogging every day, just that it's been such a change from the 5 or 8 or so times a month that I've been used to that it has been a stretch. My problem is that I have unrealistic expectations of myself. I feel like every post needs to be something fabulous....something enriching....something that makes time spent here worthwhile....and that's a hard thing to live up to! Thanks for being so sweet about it though....I didn't mean I haven't enjoyed it, it's just been different. Actually, at 12 days away, I had intended to come up with a '12 days left of blogging,' thing sorta like the '12 days of Christmas,' but that never materialized. It was a cute idea though!

I woke up this morning knowing that I needed to go to the doctor before I was stuck over the weekend unable to get in touch with anyone, so I called and made an appointment for 1:15 today. After waiting 2 hours for them to take me back, she said I have an upper respiratory infection and gave me a nasal spray and some cough syrup with codine and said if I wasn't feeling much better by Monday, to give her a call and she'd see about putting me on an antibiotic. Hopefully this will take care of it. My boss changed our insurance company last year and I was reassigned to this new doctor because they went by home addresses and she's about a minute and a half from my house. I'm not really happy with her though because I've been about 4 times (because of other prescriptions: blood pressure, thyroid and cholesterol) and have never gotten out of there in less that about 2.5 hours...and I have had an appointment every time! I can understand running late every once in a while, but that is ridiculous! I think I am going to call Blue Cross Blue Shield tomorrow and see if I can't get reassigned somewhere else. For now though, I am glad to have drugs and am glad today is over!

I went for a little while to Grace's 'Trunk & Treat' thing at her school, all ready to get a picture of her to post here....and can you believe that little stinker would not wear her adorable costume??? She said she was embarassed and too many people knew her! (Of course, she is right about everyone knowing her....I can walk down the hall with her at school and everyone's like, "Hey Grace...," "Grace...hey!," Even parents of kids know who she is...it's CRAZY!) She assured me though that she would wear it at Kate's school on Monday night, so for now, that's the plan and I'll post a picture then. If she doesn't do it then, I'll tell you what it is....no sense in letting a good costume idea go to waste!

That's about all from here for now. I'm off to either watch "Days of Our Lives" that I've recorded this week or a movie titled, "Guess Who" that Jean recommended when I joined Netflix a few months ago.

Hope you've had a great day!

Another early night

I'm about to make this another early to bed night! :-) I just can't shake whatever it is that is trying to set in and all I want to do is find the closest bed with cool sheets and a cold pillow! Although I was careful not to get too 'in their face,' I did go to my sister's tonight for dinner and got to spend some time with my precious nieces. We watched 'The Haunted Mansion' and I got to see the pumpkins that they carved last night. Too bad I didn't think to take my camera. Perhaps I'll do that tomorrow. Grace has 'Trunk or Treat' at her school tomorrow night and I can't wait to show you her costume. It's both original and adorable....of course.....and I think she actually thought of it herself. Kate has 'Trunk or Treat' at her school on Monday night, so Grace will be getting some mileage out of this idea. I think Kate and a friend of hers are dressing up like characters from 'The Breakfast Club,' one of her favorite movies, for Monday night at her school, but being 13, she's still in the decision mode about whether to dress up or not. We'll see...and if she does, I'll get pictures of her too.

Six days of posting left.....and counting (!!)

What's YOUR story??

Well, sweet Kat gave me this award today and I must say I am grateful and feel exactly the same way. I don't really know how or when it happened, but somehow along this road of blogging, we've developed a friendship that has a real heart to it and is a sweet addition to any day. I would list the same people she did to pass it on to and am just thankful that she thought of me to begin with! This award is "Presented to awesome BLOG owners who keep their readers excited about their posts. Their blog posts are interesting (NOT spammy) and worth reading and keep their subscribers looking forward to each and every post." Funny thing is that I don't know what keeps anyone coming back except commeraderie, friendship and care, but really, those things are hard to find in todays world sometimes, so I am grateful to know they are there! Thanks Kat, it means a lot, and to you other 'B Club charter members,' thanks for all YOU to do enrich my life. Although Kat did it too, I pass this on to you as well.

On another note, I slept great last night and woke up some better this morning. Except for a nagging cough, I was fine for most of the day until I was at children's choir tonight and felt the achiness coming back, so I quickly took some asprin and it went away for now! Lucky for me because we are working on Christmas music in adult choir and I needed to be there for that. Hard to believe that program is only a little over a month away! UGH! Lots to learn before then!

Okay, now.....the BFF Award got me to thinking about the blogging world in general....about how it all just evolves into these great relationships and it got me to thinking about how I started blogging. My friend Tracey started her blog back last summer and sent me a link to it. Next thing you know, we were chatting about me starting one myself....lots of people here were blogging at the time and it was just a fun way to keep up with everyone...with their lives and their humor (and you have to admit Tracey, there were some funny posts in the early days!)....so I fretted over a name and Tracey and I bounced around blog names for me for about a week or two and finally came up with 'Glasses of Grace.' Since then, it's all been history, but I have LOVED the new relationships, the new insight, and the new world that this has been. It's been a fun outlet and I've really loved every minute of it, so thanks to you, Tracey, for getting me started.

So now, that's my story.....how did YOU get into blogging??

Short and sweet

Tonight's post is short and sweet. My Sunday school class went to serve dinner at the homeless shelter. We do it twice a year and it is always a humbling experience.

After that, we all went to dinner and I just got home.

When Gina and I were at the Concord Jubilee over the weekend, on the way down, she said she wasn't feeling so great. She was better during the day, but that night, Sunday and Monday, she said she was achy, etc. Luckily no one else in her family has gotten it yet. She went to the doctor today and they gave her a shot....but guess who's had a lingering headache for two days and started feeling achy with chills tonight herself....UGH! I knew I had a headache while we were at the shelter tonight, but when I went to get in my car and sat down, I was like....'oh man!'

So I am off to take something, get a bath and get in bed early. I really RARELY get sick, so hopefully it's a passing thing.....

...and I have to be better tomorrow....I have an appointment to get my hair cut and that is like my birthday! I LOVE my friend that cuts my hair and I LOVE getting it cut!

I Stand Amazed.

I stand amazed at the way God works,

at His lessons and His plans;

I don't have a clue how anyone could doubt

that His ways are higher than man's.

I stand amazed at His sovereignty

at His ability to give and withhold.

He gives us things to strengthen our walk --

To go into the world and be bold.

I stand amazed at the way he discerns

What truly is best for us--

The fact of the matter: We may not always agree...

but to live in His will, we must!

I stand amazed at the gifts He gives

of people, places and things.

They all can be forms of encouragement

no matter what each day brings.

I stand amazed at how He speaks to others,

like when we need a hug or word from friend...

Yet He also leads us and helps us to know

When there are needs to which we should tend.

While I stand amazed at all these things....

which are gifts from God above

My prayer is that I never take them for granted

Because they are tangible gifts of His love!

The silly poem I posted the other day has gotten more comments than anything else this month. I started this one a while back, probably a month or so ago, and never finished it, so I thought I'd do so tonight. You didn't know what you were signing up for when you commented on the other one, did you??? :-)

What's yours?

Our Minister of Music preached our sermon tonight. It was titled, 'A SINGING Sermon.' He touched on points of 'The GREATNESS of God,' 'The LOVE of Jesus,' 'The POWER of His Spirit,' 'The PROMISES of God's Word,' 'The PRIVILEGE of Prayer,' 'The GLORY of Worship,' and 'The JOY of His Presence.' With each, he gave scripture then he had us sing choruses or parts of hymns that went along with each point. I don't know that I have ever heard or taken part in a sermon like that before, but it was absolutely fabulous. I was thinking on the way home about it all and got to thinking about my favorite scriptures...I have several, but here are a few:

Psalm 19:14
"Let the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, my Strength and my Redeemer."

Psalm 51:9-12
"Hide your face from my sins and blot out all my iniquity. Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me."

Romans 12:1-2
"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 no 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."

and Hebrews 3:13
"But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin's deceitfulness."

Scripture can be so personal, yet at times so general. Certain passages can mean so much at one point in life where we've never experienced a particular need before, then some scripture just transcends all life events and time. I was thinking that I don't think we've ever 'chatted' on our blogs about our favorite scriptures, so that leads me to the question....

'What's yours?'

The Concord Jubilee

Not much to report for today, but a fun day nonetheless. My friend Gina's husband is from Concord (a small town south of where I live) and they have the 'Concord Jubilee' down there during the third weekend in October every year. It's one of those small town fall craft fairs with lots of booths, lots of good food, and lots of nice people. I went with them for several years, then didn't go for several years just because it seemed like I was always busy during this weekend. Last year she mentioned they were going, so since she's one of those friends that I can just invite myself along to go with and no one minds, I did! It was a lot of fun, kinda like 'old times' or something; I kept pushing and asking if they were going back this year, so we did. Granted I could go by myself, but it's always more fun to go with someone else, plus I just love her in-laws and it's always nice to see them.

Tomorrow is a Pampered Chef party at my sister's at 2:00, so I'll miss out on my dearly loved Sunday afternoon nap since I'll have to be back at church at 5:00. It seems like the weekends just fly by!

I wish we could come up with a way to have a five day weekend and a two day work week, you know? :-)

More wise words...

"Be generous and understanding. Let no one come to you without feeling better and happier when they leave. Be the living expression of God's kindness: with kindness on your face...in your eyes...in your smile...in your warm greeting."

--Mother Teresa