" For God himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything." Acts 17:25

About Me

About Me

About Me

Welcome...I'm delighted that you chose to visit! I started this blog in March 2010 and I am so happy that I did. It has made me more aware of the many ways that God is blessing my life. I have made some special friends who bless,teach,encourage,and entertain me! My desire is to be an encouragement to you. I hope you will tarry for a while and that you will come back to visit often.

Wednesday, August 27, 2014

bon voyage



google image

Well, if all goes according to plan.....we should be here in a few days!
We are flying out tomorrow for a couple of days of sight-seeing
before boarding the ship on Saturday.
So, this is my last post for a while...unless I decide to pay 
for internet on the boat. :-)
I am expecting it to be a great adventure.
I'll tell you all about it when we return! :-)

Monday, August 25, 2014

jars of good things


When Hubby planted his little garden, he talked of canning 
the produce he was expecting to harvest.
Last year, he did have an abundance of cayenne peppers
and he canned about 15 pints of those.
But I'm afraid I was a "wife of little faith"
and didn't expect there to be much preserving 
(of the canning variety) going on in our kitchen.
Well, he proved me wrong!
 
So far, we have 11 quarts of tomatoes...


10 quarts of beans...
 

and 3 pints of peppers!
 

Not bad for a tiny little plot. He has planted 6 more bean plants
in hopes of a fall harvest.
I've learned my lesson...I'm expecting him to do just that!! :-)


Saturday, August 23, 2014

movie time!




I went to see this movie yesterday and it was very good.
It's about a family who loses home and family restaurant
 in a fire and moves to another country to start over.
It's not easy...there is some prejudice and ill-will,
but with some determination and ingenuity
they establish another successful restaurant.
There's more to the story, but I won't spoil it for you!
It is a wholesome movie...no bad language
or sexual content, the acting is terrific
and it has a very happy ending!
I recommend it!

Thanks for all your visits and comments this week.
Each one of you is an encouragement and a blessing to me!
I hope you have a happy weekend!



Friday, August 22, 2014

a bucket of eggs




When I was 13, my niece was born.
I adored her and she was the apple of my mom's eye.
When my brother's family came to visit or when we visited them,
it was all about her.
It had been a long time since there was a little one in our family
and we loved every minute we had with her.
When she was about 4, she loved putting little things in baggies...
you know the kind with the twist ties.
There was no such thing as "zip locs" back then! :-)
So, every visit, my mom would buy a new box and she could 
use as many as she liked...pretty cheap entertainment, really!
 
For days after the visit (sometimes weeks), my mom would
find those bags in drawers, under pillows, in closets.
Each one containing some special treasure...bobby pins
from my mom's dresser, a few marbles from the toy box,
a spool of thread from the drawer in the sewing cabinet,
a card or two from a deck, a piece of paper she had colored on.
With each discovery, my mom would laugh or sometimes cry...
if it had been a while since the last time she had held her in her arms.
 
On Wed afternoons, I keep Little E and Little C so my daughter
can work for our boss, the doctor .
This Wed, before nap time, Little E found the bucket 
of plastic Easter eggs in the closet and wanted to hide them.
It was too hot to do it outside, so I told her to hide them in the house.
When she finished hiding them, she became interested in something else
and then it was time for her nap.
After my daughter picked the children up, I saw the bucket and
remembered there were eggs hidden that needed to be found.
I found a few in the family room that were in plain sight, 
picked up the other toys and got busy with dinner.
Later that evening, I went into the rooms where they slept
and found an egg in each pak 'n play. 
Then Hubby found one under the bottom edge of the dishwasher
which made us both laugh. 
There was one under the recliner and the sofa table.
I found another one in the middle of my bed and when I went into
our hall bathroom and look down at the stepstool that the 
little ones use to reach the sink, there was another one.
I laughed again and got a little teary...remembering 
my mom's reaction to those little baggies!

I always thought it was sweet, but now that I am a Gran,
I understand the joy and delight finding those little gifts
left by little hands brought her as she remembered the time
she had spent with her little granddaughter.
I think I still have some eggs to find, but just in case she hid
them really well, I left the one on the stepstool.
It makes me smile every time I see it and I remember....


Tuesday, August 19, 2014

storms



google image


When we went to church Sunday night, it was hot
and the sky was clear.
About an hour later, we heard a roar...
it was a downpour of rain that came hard and loud
and out of the blue!
It lasted about 5 minutes and, as quickly as it had begun,
it was over!
When we left church a little while later,
it was much cooler, the air smelled fresh and clean,
and the sky was as a beautiful blue!

Made me think about the storms of life.
Sometimes they "come out of the blue"...
they are unexpected and they hit hard.
They may be short-lived, but they may be a lot longer.

I am grateful for a God who is there to see me through the storm.
He offers comfort and direction and assurance
that there is a purpose that, ultimately,
will be for my good.

That doesn't mean I always know what the purpose is.
Last August, after months of anticipation and weeks of
preparation, we had to cancel a trip to Alaska because
a delayed flight made it impossible for us to arrive in time
for the cruise ship's departure.
Now, a year later, we are preparing to try the trip again!
I still don't know why things happened the way they did,
and honestly, it took me a while to get over the disappointment.
I kept thinking I was going to wake up from a very bad dream!
But, I knew God loved me and that I could trust Him, so
eventually, I moved on and started making other plans.

We have planned a little better this year, so I am confident
things will go well. But if the clouds start to gather...
I know God will be there to see me through! :-)

Sunday, August 17, 2014

compassion


Our pastor's message today was on compassion.
He read the story of The Good Samaritan in Matthew 10
which is a perfect illustration of compassion.
These are the notes I took from his sermon...
so these are not my thoughts or words, but his.

The story illustrates two truths...
we must have compassion and
our compassion must traverse all bounds.
 
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           
True love is shown by true compassion...
a stirring of our heart which shows we care.


 Saying we care is meaningless if we are not willing to 
help to meet a need.
Love equals compassion--compassion equals care.


Compassion is love in action.
True love says I am here for the long haul.
 

And as long as there is a need, I will help to meet that need.
 

Is that what love demands ?


Yes!

I pray that I will have a compassionate heart!

Friday, August 15, 2014

after the "I do's"


The wedding reception was held in the Old City Hall
in Brunswick. It is a beautiful old building
inside and out... a nice venue for special events.

Here's our daughter with her two little ones
waiting their turn to visit the buffet line.


Our oldest son, DIL, and their girls along with
Hubby getting settled at our table.


The tablescapes were lovely...mason jars with
flowers and candles, old books, and burlap
and lace runners. 
The tables were numbered and named for literary
couples...
like Elizabeth Bennett and Mr Darcy
 from "Pride and Prejudice".


Our favors were bags of Charleston Chews candy...
the newlyweds wlil be living in Charleston!



Our Chan...
 

Little H with his mom and dad...


our dear friends, the Coffeys...


Little E...
 

the wedding cake...simply lovely...


the groom's "rice krispie" cake.
He made the treats and his best man and mom
 helped him assemble it .
Notice the yellow jackets surrounding the base...
the groom is a graduate of Ga Tech..."the yellow jackets."


Little C...


Doesn't the mother of the groom look lovely?


Rile and Little H...


Groom's mom and dad taking a spin on the dance floor .


The happy couple!
 
 

 It was a wonderful day celebrating
these two!
We are looking forward to seeing what their future holds. 
We already know Who holds their future! :-)