Monday, November 30, 2009

Stupid things to ponder...


1. If corn oil is made from corn, and vegetable oil is made from vegetables, what is baby oil made from?

2. Can you cry under water?

3. How important does a person have to be before they are considered assassinated
instead of just murdered?

4. Why do you have to 'put your two cents in'... but it's only a 'penny for your
thoughts'? Where's that extra penny going to?

5. Once you're in heaven, do you get stuck wearing the clothes you were buried in for eternity?

6. What disease did cured ham actually have?

7. If Jimmy cracks corn and no one cares, why is there a stupid song about him?

8. If the professor on Gilligan's Island can make a radio out of a coconut, why can't he fix a hole in a boat?

9. Why does Goofy stand erect while Pluto remains on all fours? They're both dogs!

10. If Wile E. Coyote had enough money to buy all that ACME stuff, why didn't he just buy dinner?

11. Do the Alphabet song and Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star have the same tune?

12. Why did you just try singing the two songs above?

13. Did you ever notice that when you blow in a dog's face, he gets mad at you, but when you take him for a car ride, he sticks his head out the window?

14. Why do banks charge a fee on 'insufficient funds' when they know there is not enough money?

15. Why do they use sterilized needles for death by lethal injection?

16. Why doesn't Tarzan have a beard?

17. Why do Kamikaze pilots wear helmets?

18. In winter why do we try to keep the house as warm as it was in the summer when we complained about the heat?

19. How come you never hear father-in-law jokes?

20. The statistics on sanity is that one out of every four persons are suffering from some sort of mental illness. Think of your three best friends -- if they're
okay, then it's YOU.

My First Black Friday

Hi everyone,

Hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving. I haven't been blogging lately because we were out of town. Five days at the beach with my family, it was wonderful. None of us wanted to come home.

Before I talk about my "First Black Friday" experience, I wanted to let you know that the turkey breast I made turned out great.
I cooked it in the crock pot, and it was tender & juicy - I was so proud. I wish I could say the same about my sweet potato casserole, which came out looking like mud and tasted like it too. I ended up throwing it away. I will have to figure out where I went wrong???

Okay, so I had decided to venture out on "Black Friday" for the first time, early in the morning to catch some of those "early bird" specials I'd been reading about for weeks leading up to Thanksgiving. I had my eye on a vacuum cleaner at one of the major stores that was marked down to $9.00. I must confess, it was a Christmas present to ME, I needed a vacuum cleaner.

So, I went to bed early on Thanksgiving night and my husband and I set the alarm clock for 3:00 a.m. Let me just point out that I am NOT a good shopper. I must have stepped out of line when God was handing out the Shopping DNA to most women. I go in the store, get what I want, and leave. I don't browse because it's depressing looking at stuff I can't afford, I don't like digging through baskets of stuff to see what treasure I can find, and MOST importantly, I don't like crowds! I know what you're thinking...what is she doing going to Black Friday? Good question.

The alarm went off at that ungodly hour...I got ready, and we were out the door. It was of course, still dark outside. I decided to take a short cut to the mall, so I went on the new bridge that opened up this past summer. My husband asks if I know where I'm going, and I am insulted at the very thought that I don't know my way around. Yes, I took a wrong turn and we ended up on a dead end road under the bridge where they were doing construction. I tried to play it off like I meant to turn down that road and asked him if he wanted to go "parking". Of course he said YES!...to which I replied, "I changed my mind, I'm not in the mood", so we hurried on toward the store.

We got to the first store on my stop, marveled at the amount of cars in the parking lot, but pressed on to find a parking space. We stepped into the store and I already knew it was going to be tough. People everywhere I turned, bumping into one another. I almost got my head knocked off by some old lady as I was headed to the children's department. I got an elbow to the side as I was making my way down an aisle...I
would have worn a helmet & padding had I known that Black Friday was such a contact sport. Then, it happened, my husband looked at the prices and said "I don't think these are marked down enough". But I have his number, I knew what that was code for...it had much more to do with the number of people standing in line to pay. No joke, the line for the register wrapped all the way around the building. In other words, he wasn't about to stand in that long line to save a couple of bucks. So we decided to leave and go to our next stop.

On the bright side, as we left the store, we were handed a coupon for a
FREE Chick-fil-a biscuit at a particular Chick-fil-a. We had no idea where this Chick-fil-a was, and as my husband pointed out, it was probably not open that early in the morning (it was now about 4:45 a.m.) But wouldn't you know it, as soon as we were headed toward the ramp to get on the highway, my husband saw it...the light on the sign shining like a beacon on this dark morning...Chick-fil-a, and yes, it was open!!! We went through the line and got our two FREE biscuits and were on our way.

We were just about to pull into our second stop when my husband said "look at the line of people waiting to get into Ross" (which was closed & dark). To which I jokingly replied...that's probably the line waiting to get into Target." Sadly...it WAS the line to get into Target. It went from the entrance to Target, all the way down the strip mall, to the end of the sidewalk in front of Ross. The other entrance had people wrapped all the way around the building. We drove by in total amazement as I saw people with their shopping carts & bags all ready for the door to open. Some had blankets and coffee mugs. We saw kids & teenagers sleeping inside the baskets. We looked at the line and I heard my husband say "there is no deal in that building that would make me stand in that line! I would rather pay FULL price!" So we kept on driving, right passed the line of people, back onto the highway, and all the way home.

It's now about 5:30 a.m., we pull in the driveway. All I have to get in the house is the garage door opener, no key. We get into the garage, only to find that my dad had locked the door from the garage to the house. We're locked out! Unfortunately my dad had to unlock the door and let us in at 5:30 in the morning. I went back to bed and tried to act like the entire "Black Friday" events were nothing more than a bad dream. Right before I laid down...I said to my husband, "we're probably the only people in the world who got up this early to shop and came home with nothing to show for it but a FREE biscuit!"

Monday, November 23, 2009

Check out my post below called "Let It Rain" and then listen to this song by Hillsong "Holy Spirit Rain Down"

Let It Rain


It's a grey, rainy day here where I live. The air is damp & cold, and before I prayed this morning my mood matched it. Even after praying, my heart is still somewhat heavy with the cares of this life. It seems like when it comes to trouble, "when it rains, it pours" as well.

So, I was reading some of my blogging friends' wonderful posts, and starting to feel encouraged. I glanced out my window, and I could see the creek that runs through the back of our property. I started thinking about the rain a little differently...I love it when the creek gets up high and the water starts to run quickly. I love the way the rushing water sounds. It gets so powerful at times that it carries all the branches & debris right along with it. The creek looks and sounds alive again, not like when the water's low and it looks more like a ditch.

I was reminded of John 7:38 where Jesus said "He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, 'From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.'" This is my prayer. That I will flow, and overflow, with the Holy Spirit and the life giving power of God, to glorify Him, and to help those in need. What I've noticed about my spiritual life, is that just like the creek when the water is low, obviously it doesn't flow! I must be filled up daily with God's presence, so I won't be dry and live in the flesh.

Another point comes to mind when comparing my spiritual life with the creek is the debris. Life's troubles are like the debris that come along, and when you're at the lowest point, it causes a damn and the water can't flow. When the sticks & debris build up in the creek (like they were a few weeks ago) the only thing that can get the water flowing again, is if we have a nice steady rain, that causes the creek to rise again. I don't know about you, but I NEED to get rid of some of this debris in my life. I NEED to soak in God's presence until I can rise up again from the mud & mire of life.

So now, instead of the gloomy day that I started out with, I say "Let it Rain!"

You HAVE to check this out


There are some things in life that are just too good to keep to yourself. You know how we women are, if we find something we like/love, we have to share it with EVERYONE, right? So, I have a couple of endorsements that I wanted to let you know about because I highly recommend them.

First of all, I went to see the movie "The Blind Side".
It's based on a true story of Michael Oher, who was homeless, and how a generous family took him in and they changed each other's lives. Michael is now a professional football player for the Ravens. I can't tell you how inspiring this movie is, you just need to see it.


Next, our Pastor's son, Andrew, started an awesome company called Mixbook.com that allows you to create really cool books that you can have published. You upload your pictures and then drag them to the ready made templates, or you can make your own pages. There is NO limit to the creative possibilities. The best part is, you can share and even invite others to contribute to your photo book online, AND when it's all done, you can order a printed copy that you can get in either paperback or hard back. It's easy, it's fun and it's addictive. Andrew is a great guy, very talented and innovative, constantly improving on the mixbook website, and best of all, he's a Christian. He doesn't even know I'm doing this endorsement, but I wanted to let you know, because for the month of November, he's offering FREE shipping.

If you hurry and create a book (which I've done in 2 days before), you can have great, unique Christmas presents for your loved ones. I've done over 13 books in the past 2 years - I've mixbooked everything from Christmas's past, a tribute to my mother after she passed away, a book of poems that I've written over the years, all the boys birthday parties, to a book on my favorite pet, my old Boxer dog, Roxy who passed away. Go to the website and check out the "gallery" and get inspired!

And lastly, before I sound like an "infomerical", or maybe I already do...I want to tell you about some crackers (yes, you heard me right, crackers). Sam's Club (if you're a member, if you're not, then I highly recommend Sam's Club to you as well), but Sam's Club has the BEST multi-grain crackers I've ever had! I tasted them just last night, and honestly, I thought I was going to eat the whole box! Okay, for some of you fancy people who probably get the expensive stuff at places like "Southern Season", go ahead with your bad self. But for people on a budget like myself, I would rather have the less expensive GIANT box of Sam's Club crackers any day. Why am I telling you this? Because it's almost Thanksgiving and I figured you might want to give your family something to snack on (crackers & cheese) while they're waiting on the turkey to cook through so they don't get salmonella.

There you have it - my 3 recommendations to make your life more enjoyable. I am satisfied I've done my part in helping make your Thanksgiving week a success.

Saturday, November 21, 2009

Jive Turkey

Just Say Thanks (by Mark Lowry)


A few years ago I'd just finished a concert and was standing at the back of the auditorium when a little old lady walked up to me. "That sure was pretty singing," she chirped. I said, "Thank you, ma'am." Suddenly, the woman's beauty-shop-blue hair was wiggling, her head was shaking so hard. "Oh, no, son," she corrected me, "don't thank me. Just say, 'Praise the Lord.' It wasn't you singing; it was God." "Oh, no ma'am, it was me." I said. "God can sing a lot better than that."

When I traveled in college with the evangelistic team, every now and then a weightlifter would travel with us. He was one of these big, brawny, bold characters. He used to tell the audience that he wasn't the one lifting weights, but Jesus in his tennis shoes. Some nights he couldn't get the weights up off the ground, and I'd lean over to our piano player and say, "Isn't that something? Jesus can't lift five hundred pounds!"

Another time, I was standing with a friend of mine at Estes Park, Colorado, during the Christian Artists Association's "Singing in the Rockies." My friend was complimenting a very well-known Christian artist about a song he'd sung that week. This person said, "Oh, it wasn't me; it was the Lord." I thought to myself, "Friend, it wasn't THAT good!"

You see, God, who one morning before breakfast, spoke the Word and previously nonexistent worlds began to spin, CAN lift five hundred pounds off the ground.

The Lord, who invented music, surely can out sing the angels and knows notes Beethoven never heard.

And so, no matter how good we are, we would be absolutely flawless if it were totally God doing it through us. Seems to me, then, it's senseless to say, "It wasn't me, it was God."

God gives talents. But just like the parable of the talents says, what we do with them is up to us. God may have given you a beautiful voice, but if it is going to improve, it's up to you.

And have you ever noticed that most successful people are not always the most talented? Talents aren't worth much unless the owner of them keeps plugging.

And then, when you get those compliments, chuck the false humility and shock that person. When folks tell you they enjoyed your singing or your sermon, your weightlifting ability, or whatever, a simple thank you is what that person deserves.

Friday, November 20, 2009

Rescue

Where Else Would I Go?

When Jesus gave his sermon about "eating his flesh & drinking his blood", can you imagine what must have been going through those people's minds? (John 6:48-68) I mean sure, we have hindsight to understand what he was talking about. But many of the "would be" disciples turned away explaining "this is a hard saying; who can understand it?"

Even the twelve disciples were complaining amongst themselves. Jesus, knowing their thoughts, asked "Does this offend you?" In vs. 63, Jesus says "It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words I speak to you are spirit and they are life." Simply put - you can't understand the Word except through your spirit. The words themselves make no sense unless you are receiving them not only through your mind, but in your spirit.

This was Jesus weeding out stage, in vs. 65, He says "therefore, I have said to you that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted to him by My Father." In vs. 66 the Bible explains "From that time many of His disciples went back and walked with Him no more." But I LOVE this, in vs. 67, Jesus looks at the 12 disciples left and asks this ALL important question "Do you also want to go away?"

When we hear a hard saying, or God asks something difficult of us, or we just find that this walk with Jesus is harder than we anticipated...between the dying of our flesh to follow Him, and the attacks of the enemy to try to convince us to "go back and follow Him no more"...this Christian life can be a hard road to travel. In these situations, we must answer the question Jesus asked His twelve disciples "Do you also want to go away?" - or maybe we wouldn't think of going away, maybe it would be more like settling, compromising, or becoming complacent. The Bible is clear about this point, "many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers you out of them all". (Psalm 34:19)

So, here's Peter's answer to Jesus question: vs. 68 "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life". I've invested many years to my relationship with Jesus. Over the past several years, the spiritual battles my family & I have fought numerous battles and they do NOT appear to be slowing down. In fact, they seem to be getting more intense. At times we may feel like giving up, slowing down, or going backwards...but in the end, we always come to the same conclusion as Peter "where else would we go?". A few months ago, when I was praying and seeking God, I felt a quiet voice in my spirit say to me "we're in it for the long haul". I was so encouraged to know that was God telling me, we're a team, and we're going the distance. Some days that means I feel like I can storm the gates of Hell with all the power & authority that Jesus has given to me...and other days, it's all I can do to say "Lord help ME, I feel overwhelmed". I know many of you can relate to this, and all of our troubles are different, some big, some small, but none impossible with God.

Check out the video on my blog of the song "Rescue". It really blessed me this morning, hope it blesses you as well.

Wednesday, November 18, 2009

Crazy Weather!


Okay, is anyone else feeling confused about the weather or is it just ME? Yesterday I was wearing flip flops & short sleeves, today it's cloudy and cold. I can't keep up with things and the Meteorologists aren't helping. I wake up in the morning, turn on the tv to see what the weather will be so I can appropriately dress the kids. All they want to do is tell me what the weather was yesterday...what the record high and record low was for this day back in 1982, or what it will be 5 or 7 days from now...I don't have all morning to cypher through all that mess to find out WHAT THE TEMP WILL BE TODAY!

I don't know if my kids should wear long sleeves, short sleeves, take a coat, dress in layers & then peel them off as the day goes on...uuuggghh! The problem with the boys dressing in layers is, I'll NEVER get them back once they come off. I can't tell you how many times I've had to say "go to the lost & found at school and get that jacket back!"

Plus, I keep changing my closet around based on the season, only to bring back out the summer clothes. Not to mention (well, I guess I am going to mention it), I have to keep "tan in a bottle" on my otherwise pasty white legs, and make sure my toes are painted, because I can't put away the flip flops. Two days ago, I had the heat on to "knock the chill off". Yesterday it was so warm outside, I was burning up in the house and had to briefly turn the air conditioner on. Today, my house is cold enough to hang meat. Seriously, the windows are frosting over.

Honestly, I live in a state that has seasons, so I expect cooler weather in the Fall, cold weather in the Winter, mild weather in the Spring, and hot weather in the Summer. Is that too much to ask?

Thanks for listening to me vent...I feel better now. I'm going to pull out the Christmas decorations while it's still cool outside.

Tuesday, November 17, 2009

Hosting the Presence of God (by Pastor Bill Johnson)

In an interview with Bill Johnson, Pastor of Bethel Church in Redding, CA, the young man interviewee asked him about the revivals that are going on in other countries and that have begun in America; he said in all these revivals, there is a strong emphasis placed on worship. These are some key points (from this interview) that Bill Johnson made about worship. He called it “Hosting the Presence of God”

1. Revival is an invasion of God’s presence on earth – it is most clear when people have a heart for worship

2. King David discovered that God showed up when he worshiped Him, this is where we get the psalm “God inhabits the praise of His people”

3. Hosting God’s presence through praise & worship means to welcome Him into an atmosphere where anything can happen, anything God chooses, we don’t manipulate His presence.

4. Host a guest, they stay as long as they’re honored. It has to be heartfelt. Pay attention to your guest, don’t ignore them. Everything you do revolves around that guest. The Holy Spirit is our guest in our hearts, who takes up residency as long as we honor Him.

5. We can’t use the anointing for personal gain – we don’t do things that draw attention to ourselves.

6. He (the Holy Spirit) comes to rest in a heart that is at rest, a surrendered and yielding heart. Jesus had the Holy Spirit come in the form of a dove and REMAIN on Him.

7. 75% or more, prayer time is strictly worship – stay connected throughout the day through praise & worship. Then at night when you lie down, just worship and give thanks to God. There is a time for petition & requests & intercession, but worship and ministering to Him is the majority of quiet time (it’s all about Him)

8. Acts 13 – fasting & ministering to the Lord…and the Lord said – you can only release & pour into Heaven for so long before God responds! He wants to and yearns to respond to us. Expect to hear from God!

9. Don’t worship “worship” itself – Nehemiah 9 “be exalted above all blessing & praise” – Don’t fall in love with the music & the feeling that comes when we worship and forget about the one we’re actually worshiping. You still have to connect intimately with God during worship.

10. Despise routine without purpose. Live intentionally, not routinely! Even while doing routine things, still activate your faith in communion, tithing, worshipping, praying. If you are doing these things without seeing any benefit, you might have fallen into a routine.

11. Live mighty in private in your alone time with God, and it will be easier to display His might in public. Win battles in private where nobody’s watching and you will display them in public.

12. The harder the attack or trial against you, the more exuberant the praise to battle it! When the enemy brings something that he thinks will shut you down, don’t go in that direction, instead, go the opposite way and give it that much more to praise God and live with a thankful heart! Amplify worship in hard times!

Bill Johnson’s prayer:

Father, I pray that everyone who hears this message (no exceptions) will experience Your power and Your love. I’m asking for the fire of Heaven to settle on people, the fire of Heaven to burn in the souls of people, that the generation of worshippers will rise up and they’ll go places now that have never been gone before. And that you would allow the fire in the soul of people to blaze a trail into the presence of the Almighty God, and to impact nations. And that you would cause our countenance to change because we’ve beheld You, we’ve looked in Your direction and we were changed, Father I’m asking for this revolution to come just like David, a worshiper who was a warrior, I’m asking for that reality to be released all throughout the land. Thanks.

Friday, November 13, 2009

Calling All Cooks


I must admit, before I was married, I didn't even know how to boil water! I have learned over the 13 years of marriage, to cook SOME dishes very well, some things so/so, and other meats and things from cookbooks that I can't pronounce or have NO idea what they are, I stay away from. I'm not very adventurous in the kitchen. Honestly, I could write a cookbook on 101 ways to make chicken, because that seems to be all we ever eat.

The first year I was married, and every year after that, up until my mother passed away, I have spent Thanksgiving with my husband's family. Between his Mother, sisters, aunt, and his grandmother while she was alive, I had no need, nor did they expect or want me to come in the kitchen on Thanksgiving! They had everything under control and I was out of my element. I never knew what to do with myself because all the women were cooking and all the men were watching football, and then there was ME...I did manage to help clean up and do dishes after we ate, so at least I felt a little bit useful.

Now that my mom has gone to be with Jesus, I want to spend Thanksgiving with my dad and brother. Last year, it was me and all the guys and we went to my dad's new beach house. I didn't know how to cook a turkey, or make dressing, I ended up making...you guessed it...a CHICKEN casserole! I went to K&W cafeteria and bought the dressing & gravy. Yes, I was in a long line of men waiting for Thanksgiving take out - it was like taking the walk of shame all the way back to my car. I could just feel the eyes of people glaring at me, surely in their minds they were thinking...why is that WOMEN buying take out on Thanksgiving? Doesn't she know how to cook?

In my defense, I did try to get my sister-in-law to show me how to make the dressing (at my husband's request). Which she did, and I came home and made it just like she taught me. I thought it was good and I was proud of myself, only my husband commented that it was good, but not like his sister or grandma used to make. How many of you know that I NEVER attempted to make the dressing again? I know, I can still be slightly rebellious...I might have even uttered something like "if you want your family's dressing, go see if they'll make dinner for you from now on!!!" I might have said something like that, it's all really a blur now...

So, this year, we're headed to the beach again - my husband, my dad, my brother, my two boys - me & the guys again. My sister-in-law, taking pity on me, has agreed to make some extra dressing and send it with me to the beach, Thank you Lord! Now my husband won't miss out completely on his favorite Thanksgiving meal.

Here's where I need help...can any of you wonderful, new blogging friends of mine, send me some easy recipes of your Thanksgiving favorites, including how to best marinate & cook a turkey breast? I was told it would be easier to cook in a slow cooker...has anyone done this before? Please, I need your help!

I would be very "thankful" for any help with preparing the food this Thanksgiving!

Thursday, November 12, 2009

Rules of Marriage (as described by kids)

1. HOW DO YOU DECIDE WHO TO MARRY?

-You got to find somebody who likes the same stuff. Like, if you like sports, she should like it that you like sports, and she should keep the chips and dip coming.
- - Alan, age 10

-No person really decides before they grow up who they're going to marry. God decides it all way before, and you get to find out later who you're stuck with.
-- Kristen, age 10


2. WHAT IS THE RIGHT AGE TO GET MARRIED?

Twenty-three is the best age because you know the person FOREVER by then.
-- Camille, age 10


3. HOW CAN A STRANGER TELL IF 2 PEOPLE ARE MARRIED?

You might have to guess, based on whether they seem to be yelling at the same kids.
-- Derrick, age 8


4. WHAT DO YOU THINK YOUR MOM AND DAD HAVE IN COMMON?
Both don't want any more kids.
-- Lori, age 8


5. WHAT DO MOST PEOPLE DO ON A DATE?

-Dates are for having fun, and people should use them to get to know each other. Even boys have something to say if you listen long enough.
-- Lynnette, age 8 (isn't she a treasure)

-On the first date, they just tell each other lies and that usually gets them interested enough to go for a second date.
-- Martin, age 10

6. WHEN IS IT OKAY TO KISS SOMEONE?

-When they're rich.
-- Pam, age 7

-The law says you have to be eighteen, so I wouldn't want to mess with that.
- - Curt, age 7

-The rule goes like this: If you kiss someone, then you should marry them and have kids with them. It's the right thing to do.
- - Howard, age 8


7. IS IT BETTER TO BE SINGLE OR MARRIED?

It's better for girls to be single but not for boys. Boys need someone to clean up after them.
-- Anita, age 9


8. HOW WOULD THE WORLD BE DIFFERENT IF PEOPLE DIDN'T GET MARRIED?

There sure would be a lot of kids to explain, wouldn't there?
-- Kelvin, age 8

And the #1 Favorite is .......

9. HOW WOULD YOU MAKE A MARRIAGE WORK?

Tell your wife that she looks pretty, even if she looks like a dump truck .
-- Ricky , age 10

Wednesday, November 11, 2009

I thought this blessing over your food was hilarious. I've actually prayed similar blessings over junk food!

True Story of a Teacher who inspired kids to be grateful


Back in September of 2005, on the first day of school, Martha Cothren, a social studies school teacher at Robinson High School in Little Rock, did something not to be forgotten. On the first day of school, with the permission of the school superintendent, the principal and the building supervisor, she removed all of the desks out of her classroom.

When the first period kids entered the room they discovered that there were no desks.

'Ms. Cothren, where're our desks?'

She replied, 'You can't have a desk until you tell me how you earn the right to sit at a desk.'

They thought, 'Well, maybe it's our grades.'

'No,' she said.

'Maybe it's our behavior.'

She told them, 'No, it's not even your behavior.'

And so, they came and went, the first period, second period, third period. Still no desks in the classroom.

By early afternoon television news crews had started gathering in Ms.Cothren's classroom to report about this crazy teacher who had taken all the desks out of her room.

The final period of the day came and as the puzzled students found seats on the floor of the deskless classroom, Martha Cothren said, 'Throughout the day no one has been able to tell me just what he/she has done to earn the right to sit at the desks that are ordinarily found in this classroom. Now I am going to tell you.'

At this point, Martha Cothren went over to the door of her classroom and opened it.

Twenty-seven (27) U.S. Veterans, all in uniforms, walked into that classroom, each one carrying a school desk. The Vets began placing the school desks in rows, and then they would walk over and stand alongside the wall. By the time the last soldier had set the final desk in place those kids started to understand, perhaps for the first time in their lives, just how the right to sit at those desks had been earned..

Martha said, 'You didn't earn the right to sit at these desks. These heroes did it for you. They placed the desks here for you.. Now, it's up to you to sit in them. It is your responsibility to learn, to be good students, to be good citizens. They paid the price so that you could have the freedom to get an education. Don't ever forget it.'

By the way, this is a true story.

This is a great reminder on this Veteran's Day, that the freedoms we have in this great country were earned by U.S. Veterans.

Monday, November 9, 2009

Can You Help Us? (a joke from the book "Laugh Out Loud" by Women of Faith

First of all, has anyone missed me? Life has been super busy and I haven't posted anything in awhile. I had the privilege of going to the "Women of Faith" Conference this past weekend and it was awesome! My sister-in-law bought a book at the book table called "Laugh Out Loud - stories that touch your heart & tickle your funny bone". She gave it to me and told me I could read through it and give it back whenever. She thought I might enjoy it because of the title of my blog. How great is that? I'm so blessed. So, I thought I would share a joke with you all.

"Can You Help Us?"
Unknown Author

A man and his wife approach their pastor and ask for his help. "Our boys are always in trouble", they tell him. "We have tried everything, but they continue to break things, steal, lie, and generally cause trouble. Can you help us?"

The pastor agrees to talk to the boys. "Drop them off one at a time," he instructs the parents. The parents drop off the youngest, promising to return to get him soon. The pastor asks the boy to sit in a chair across from his desk.

After staring back and forth at each other for a few minutes, the pastor finally says "Can you tell me where God is?"

The boy just sits there and doesn't answer.

The pastor, annoyed by the boy's refusal to respond, looks at him sternly and repeats the question louder this time. "Come on, son...answer my question. Where is God?" The little boy shifts in his seat, but still doesn't answer.

Losing patience, the pastor practically shouts, "I asked you a question, boy! Where is God?"

To the pastor's surprise, the little boy jumps out of his chair and runs all the way home, up the stairs, and into his brother's room. He shuts the door and pants, "We're in BIG TROUBLE. God's missing, and they think we did it!"

Thursday, November 5, 2009

Pray for those at Ft. Hood, TX


My heart is heavy today, for several reasons, but then I turned on the tv and saw the tragedy happening at Ft. Hood, TX military base. 7 known dead soldiers, 30 wounded, just as they were getting ready to deploy to fight in Iraq and Afghanistan. They were already under pressure, having to deal with saying goodbye to their families, and then this kind of useless violence attacks them on their own soil! Please pray for our troops, for their protection, for their families protection, for wisdom from our government to make good decisions, for the American people to support the troops regardless of their opinion of war, and for peace in our nation.

This is the kind of thing that puts my problems in perspective. I still have to deal with them, but I know that it could always be worse, and once again we are faced with something that causes me to get my eyes off of myself, and focus on praying for others.

This is also one of those days when I don't have much to laugh about, but I still desperately NEED the joy of the Lord. So I will leave you now and go spend some time in praise to my Heavenly Father, who is the "lifter of my head" (Psalm 3:1-4)

"Lord, how they have increased who trouble me! Many are they who rise up against me. Many are they who say of me, 'there is no help for him in God' But You, O Lord, are a shield for me, my glory and the One who lifts up my head".

Tuesday, November 3, 2009

Watch this funny video by Michael Jr. about not being religious (over-saved)

Check out my new blog makeover!


Can you believe the difference in my blog? I am blown away with how cool it is (thank you Tara at "Blog makeovers by Tara" for designing this awesome new look, and Nan at "Moms The Word" for hosting a FREE blog makeover).

I was telling my husband the day before the contest came out that I really wanted a nice looking blog like so many of the other blogs I've seen. Don't get me wrong, I was grateful for my FREE blogger layout, we had some good times. But now...wow, I feel so official! haha I didn't really have any extra $$$ to pay for someone to fix my blog, and then, along comes a FREE blog makeover. Of course I entered right away and was sure I'd win, because I NEEDED it the most! You can imagine my shock when I was NOT selected for the FREE makeover. So, I did the right thing, I congratulated the winner, and went back to dreaming of the day I'd have a nice blog of my very own.

Low & behold (I don't even know what that saying means...but I've heard it all my life), I get a call from my friend Beth at "I'm Heading Towards My Destiny" telling me that Nan was trying to contact me. It turns out, the winner didn't accept the blog makeover because she wanted to stay with Wordpress or something along those lines. Guess who was runner up? That's right, Yours truly. I have absolutely no problem at all coming in 2nd place in this case.

I went back to my husband, all excited, and told him that I'd won the FREE blog makeover. You know why he was excited? Because it wasn't going to cost him anything. Do you know why I'm really excited? Two reasons: 1) I NEVER win anything, which I think I've already mentioned...I'm mean never. So this was a real first for me. 2) I believe that just like you & I every now & then enjoy blessing our children with something they want just for the fun of it, so my Heavenly Father, wanted to bless ME, His daughter, with something that was my heart's desire. For no other reason than to surprise me and make me happy. The Bible says, "every good and perfect gift comes from above." I would be amiss if I didn't say a BIG thank you to my Heavenly Father for blessing me.

I hope you all enjoy navigating through my NEW blog.

Please Pray for Aaron


Hello dear bloggers,


I was reading some blogs this morning and I noticed one by my new blogging friend, Debby. She was asking for prayer for her son, Aaron. He was attacked by some people and badly injured. I don't know any of the circumstances, but I know as a mother, I couldn't imagine my children being hurt like that! If you'd like to go to Debby's blog and leave an encouraging word, or a promise to pray, please go to http://heavenlyhumor.blogspot.com/. There is great power in agreeing together in prayer. Thank you so much & have a blessed day!

Monday, November 2, 2009

I'm NOT smarter than a 5th grader!


Yes, I have to admit, I am NOT smarter than a 5th grader. Apparently, I'm not smarter than a 4th grader! Which is why I am no longer homeschooling my children, even though they ask me to almost every Monday morning when they don't want to go to school. I want to give a shout out to all the homeschool moms out there, you gals rock!


Okay, here's how I know that I'm not smarter than a 4th grader. My oldest son has always been so smart in almost every subject. My husband and I both admit we have NO idea where he gets it. One of his interests has always been geography. He has such a heart to travel. Unfortunately, our budget doesn't allow for much of that. I keep telling him that someday, maybe God will bless him to be able to go all over the world like he wants to.


In the meantime, he has been accepted to participate in a Geobee at school in December. This is how bad I was in school...I've never even HEARD of a Geobee. I've heard of a spelling bee (I never got to be in one of those either). A GeoBee is a geography bee that tests kids on their knowledge of continents, countries, capitals, topography, crops & industries, and so much more. I was very impressed. I told him, you are already a winner in my eyes for just being able to be a part of something like this.


The school sent home a list of websites that would be helpful in preparing for the GeoBee. This is where I found out my son is smarter than me. I decided to go to the website with him and check it out. (Go to http://nationalgeographic.com/geobee/ and test your knowledge of geography.) We sat there answering the questions on the test (multiple choice answers, so at least I had a little help). My son was getting almost all of the answers correct, while I was blown away with how much I don't know.


Of course if I want to feel better about myself (haha), I can always watch re-runs of the Tonight Show with Jay Leno when he used to do those "Jay Walk" episodes. Have you seen them? It's where he goes out on the streets and randomly picks people to answer some basic questions about politics, pop culture, American history, etc... It's really scary how little these people know! In this case, it's not about your I.Q., it's about being informed.


Never the less, I have a lot of work to do to keep up with my kids. I don't want them to think they know more than their mom...I heard that comes automatically when they are teenagers. (lol) Just kidding. I am very proud of my boys and I'll let you know how the GeoBee turns out in December.