A Big Thank You . . .

to all who are serving  in the armed branches of the U.S. military. 

And we remember those who gave their lives for our freedoms.  May we never forget them or the freedoms we have.

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Dear God, please keep our soldiers safe and bless them and their families for all that they do!

Have a wonderful Memorial Day!!

Stormy Skies

This past week we have had storm after storm.  And my, so much rain!  On Wednesday, we took cover in our basement several times as we heard the sirens go off.  My boys ended up sleeping down there one night.  For them it is an adventure.  Except for my youngest who is easily frightened by the thunder and sirens.  He asked me why God made the thunder.  I admit it's a side of God I don't often think about.  Too often I think about His caring, gentle and loving nature.  But, He is also strong and powerful, evident in the thunder we were hearing.

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The next morning I read this scripture,

"At this also my heart trembles,

And leaps from its place.

Hear attentively the thunder of His voice,

And the rumbling that comes from His mouth.

He sends it forth under the whole heaven,

His lightning to the ends of the earth.

After it a voice roars;

He thunders with His majestic voice,

And He does not restrain them 

when His voice is heard.
God thunders marvelously with His voice;

He does great things which we cannot comprehend.

Listen to this, O Job;

Stand still and consider the wondrous works of God."

Job 37 : 1-5, 14

The elements of the storm did pass and all is relatively calm again.

Looking forward to lots of sunshine this week!

Last Day of School!!

I don't know whose happier, my kids or myself that today is the last day of school!  This means more sleep and freedom!  Yay!!!   With kids in 4 different schools (high, middle, elementary and preschool) all at different times, it has been nothing short of busy.  Between volunteering, parties, plays, concerts, field trips, awards and on and on it goes our schedule has been hectic.

Now, we are looking forward to doing lots of this.

My boys - Summer 2010

Now, we just need the weather to cooperate!!


Blessings on your day!

What's For Dinner?

Angel Hair Pasta w/ Fried Chili Flakes, Lemon and Arugula

I wanted to share a really nice recipe by Tyler from Food Network.  It is simple to put together and with our crazy, zany sport schedule 6 days a week it's a nice meal to prepare when we get home late in the evening.  It's too late to make anything really heavy because we'll be going to bed soon plus this dish is refreshing after being outside in the sun.



Isn't it fun to watch a chef cook? 

Blackberry Dessert

We ended our meal with a simple dessert.  Blackberries were $1 for a half pint at my grocery store.  Score!!  Plus delicious.  I just cut up an angel food cake from the bakery, sprinkled some berries and added whipped cream.

Dinner and dessert in about 35 minutes.

What's cooking at your house?

Anointing at Bethany

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"Then, six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany, 

where Lazarus was who had been dead, whom He had raised from the dead.  

There they made Him a supper; and Martha served, 

but Lazarus was one of those who sat at the table with Him.  

Then Mary took a pound of very costly oil of spikenard, 

anointed the feet of Jesus, 

and wiped His feet with her hair.  

And the house was filled with the fragrance of the oil."

John 12:1-3

This is such an incredible story of a woman, Mary, who bestowed upon Jesus a very precious gift.  By anointing Him with the expensive oil she foreshadowed his death and burial.   What an incredible dinner it must have been!  Just think it was just after Lazarus' resurrection.  To be together again must have been pure joy.  We see Martha served the meal.  Does that mean service is her love language?  I wonder.  Lazarus sat at the table with Him it says.  Perhaps time was his love language?  And then Mary enters without any shame or hesitation to demonstrate her love for Jesus.  Would gifts be her love language?  Others as we read on ridiculed her for her extravagance but Jesus said "she has done a good work for Me."  And then in Mark 14:9, Jesus says where the gospel is preached her act will be as a memorial to her.  Wow!  Can you imagine the scent of the oil filling their home?  A scent that represented love, selfless giving and peace?

Thank you Lord for Mary and the example she is to us.  Help us to give ourselves completely to You.  Let it be a sweet fragrance to You and be present in our own homes!

Have a happy Sunday!

A Housewarming Gift

This pretty purse caught my eye from the book "Quilting in No Time."

I thought it would make a nice housewarming gift for my husband's coworker.  She is having a party and will be serving us Chinese for dinner. 

I choose the lighter peachy fabric (flowers and fans) from my stash and stood in front of the calico's at Joann's for too long trying to find 2 coordinating prints.  I instinctively gravitated towards complimentary colors but for this I figured I needed to stay within the peachy orange tones and go analogous instead.  I'm not sure I got it right as it was outside of my familiarity.  After making my decision, then I debated which stabilizer to use:  lightweight or shirt-weight???    I guessed the latter and I am glad I did as it gives the bag more structure without being overly stiff. 

There are any number of possibilities for prints and colors with this bag and it could easily be made to match any outfit for that special occasion. 

You can never have too many purses, right????

Enjoy your day!!

Out of the mouths of babes

This is the last week of pre-K for my youngest son.  He filled in the blanks of this sweet little book (okay so his teacher wrote what he said and he colored the pictures!)

The purity of his words are so touching.  I can't believe he will "graduate" in just a few days.  It is a closing of a chapter in his life and he's eager for the next one, Kindegarten.  I, on the other hand, am struggling with it!  With every step my children take towards more independence it tears at my heart, the first time being away from my baby, their first day of preschool, their first day of  kindegarten, their first sleepover with a friend, first day of high school, first date, etc.  God give me the grace to accept it and to be their biggest cheerleader, watching them every step of the way, praying they will be successful and fulfill God's calling in their lives.

May there always be sunshine!

Taking the time . . .

to bake some cinnamon bread for a women's brunch at my church.

It was the perfect day to make bread in my kitchen. It was a balmy 80degrees and humid. So the bread rose to a beautiful rounded height in no time! The recipe made 2 loaves which my family was happy about!! I am challenging myself to do this more often, sure it takes some time but the results are totally worth it!! Homemade just tastes better!

Blessings to you today!

Bummer . . .

another 3 weeks of the cast (sigh.) But, this time my little monkey picked out red, just like a cardinal he said! He was really quite cheery about it and this will allow his arm more time to heal up safely. What a trooper he has been :)

Summer Already?

Pretty in Pink

I decided to go "summery" awhile ago on my doll.  Turns out she's appropriately dressed for the summer- like weather we've had the last couple of days.  It's so funny how fast weather can change.  One minute it's cold and your running the furnace and the next minute it's hot and the air conditioner goes on.

Brownie Pizza

In celebration of the warmer weather I tried Paula Deen's recipe for Brownie Pizza.  It has a brownie crust with a cream cheese layer and topped with fresh fruit.  Then chocolate syrup is drizzled on top.  Yum!

I haven't done a lot of sewing lately as I've been mesmerized by all the flowers in the nurseries.  I've been picking out pots and annuals to put on our deck.  I'll share some pictures once I get them together.  It's been a whole lotta fun!

Beauty of Spring

Phil Hilton

Today I am glowing in the beauty of spring.  The birds are singing their hearts out and the new flowers in my garden bed make my heart skip a beat.   Sitting on my porch I can see the birds hopping about, pecking in between the sharp blades of grass for a meal. If the Lord takes care of the birds and flowers of the field then as His child I place my trust in Him to care for me.

Rejoicing today in God's handiwork.

Fun Stuff and Happy Mother's Day!

Today I thought it would be fun to show you some photos of several beautiful creations my mom-in-love, Joy for Jesus, made for me.   These are just a few examples of what she sewed.  For many years she sewed clothing and things for the home.  She also made beautiful soft sculptures with so much attention to detail.  When her son proposed to me he gave me (besides a diamond ring!) this adorable bunny she made.

Engagement Bunny

She made a lot of these bunnies and personalized them for the person she was making them for. Each bunny had it's name written on it's rump!  Included on mine was our engagement date and do you see the engagement ring on the bunnies paw?!

This is the wedding bear she gave us.

Wedding Bear

Do you see the wedding date on the paw?  (My youngest son put the cast on her left arm!  This explains it.  He he!)

Years later I received this mommy bunny who has her 3 little bunnies in the pocket of her dress!
 

Mommy Bunny

I marvel at how much time and thought she put into each one.  They are certainly treasures made for special times in my life and they really mean a lot to me.

I am so thankful for her and my mom who taught me to sew.  I remember going to her with numerous questions as I was working my way through a pattern as a girl.  She always stopped what she was doing to teach me, to her I am so indebted!  Both of these women have sowed into my life in ways they may never know, but I give them honor, my love and many thanks to God for them!

My prayer is for all Mom's to have a very special Mother's Day!  Through the course of a day you do countless deeds for your family that oftentimes go unnoticed or unthanked.  But, God sees and knows and cares! 

"She watches over the ways of her household, 

And does not eat the bread of idlesness.  

Her children rise up and call her blessed.  

Her husband also, and he praises her:  

"Many daughters have done well, But you excel them all."  

Charm is deceitful and beauty is passing, 

but a woman who fears the Lord, 

she shall be praised."

Proverbs 31:27

Memory Bear

I had the privilege of making a memory bear for a dear relative. A memory bear is simply made out of a favorite article of clothing too precious to part with after someone's passing.  By creating the bear the memories of that person can be cherished in the form of a cuddly bear.  See here for some really phenomenal bears.

The bear I made was from a wool coat Genie Lowe wore a lot.  It was unnerving for me to cut into a perfectly good coat and it caused a bit of anxiety because I knew I wasn't able to get more fabric if I made a mistake! 

Genie's Coat

  
It turns out I had enough fabric with a little left over and this was the end result.

Memory Bear for her son, Tom.

Genie Lowe was a precious lady who dedicated the last 30 years of her life to handing out New Testaments to the Jewish people.  She had such a heart for sharing the good news with them.  Many years ago Genie prayed for her niece, Joy,  to receive Christ, which she did at 13 years of age.  Years later Joy then prayed with her son to receive Christ when he was only 5 years old.  Then, her son led me to Christ when we were dating in college.  I was 20 years old and we were married a year later!  Can you see the impact of one person praying?  I thank God for Genie, and the life she lived serving the Lord.  She is such an inspiration.  To learn more about her life please watch the video  . . .

I have a problem . . .

I went into the fabric store for just 2 things:  thread and buttons.  Seems reasonable right?

But, I couldn't resist this . . .

 .   .  .  remnants.  Not just any remnant, these are soft and pink and would make into a really cute baby gift and well, they were calling my name. And did I mention they were 50% off?  A true bargain, I say!!!

Sigh, it's a weakness I guess. 

What can I say, having more lovely fabric to sew simply makes me happy! 

Praying God's blessings on you today!

Cause for Celebration

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I am so excited to share with you our first born (who just turned 16) got baptized this Sunday!!  It was a spontaneous baptism and HE DID IT!!  Yay!!   I am so thankful to the Lord for what He is doing in him.  And so happy my son submitted himself to Christ; to be cleansed in Him!  God is so good!  I remember laying in bed when I was several months pregnant with him, my heart so full and happy because he was "mine" ; but, the Lord just impressed upon me that he belonged to Him not me.  It was such a strong feeling and it really corrected my wrong thinking.  I am so glad He shared that revelation with me otherwise I would have been REALLY selfish with him!  

I have discovered with my son that navigating the waters of adolescence can be rough.  Can anyone relate?   I've had to learn to hold my tongue and instead do more praying and give him love even when he isn't exactly lovable.  We are still on this parenting journey and we need God's grace to see us through, to press on and finish the race set before us.   But with God on our side and yours, too we can do it!

"If God is for us, who can be against us?"  Romans 8:31

A Rite of Passage?

I'm not sure starting to mow the yard is a really a rite of passage in my son's life but I'd kind of like to think so.  My 3rd born (whose 10)  has suddenly shown an interest in it.  Insert happy dance from mom!  My first born has ZERO motivation to mow anymore (actually it's more in the negative area!)   My new "landscaper" is a keeper. He's ambitious and determined (and perhaps motivated by some extra cash!!!)  Gotta love it :)

Blessings!

Sunday Scripture

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"I will worship toward Your holy temple, 

And praise Your name

For Your lovingkindesss and Your truth;

For You have magnified Your word above all Your name.

In the day when I cried out, You answered me,

And made me bold with strength in my soul."

Psalm 138: 2, 3