It's a Mess, I'm a Mess and I'm Running Behind

Greetings!

I am swamped.

Its official.

Not unexpectedly 

or in an unwelcome way....

Just a fact.

I'll be back with you as soon

as possible.

But for now I am having trouble

with concentrating on anything

that doesn't help me get my work

done....so......blogs kind of fall

into that category.

I just burned my finger pretty

badly on the hot glue I use

to secure the candle wicks.

It is killing me and already has

a nasty blister.

Did it have to be

my index finger?

Really?  

Ouch!!

Later Gators!

You are loved!!

The Blessing of a Child Named Katie

It was an evening that 

Warren, Mike, Jenny and I 

will never forget.

It was the night we met 

Katerina Hope Musser.

All 10 pounds of her.

Perhaps she is up to 

eleven pounds by now.

The feeding tube is firmly 

in place and is feeding this 

precious 9 year old girl....
so recently come

from an orphanage in 

Europe.

But Katie no longer lives

there...She no longer suffers

the indignities of neglect.

That is in the past.

Katerina is now embraced by the 

love of parents, 

called by God, 

from a world away.

Parents who obeyed His voice

and went through 

impossible situations in order

to bring her home to a place

of safety.

When we walked into her room

tonight I was holding my breath.  

How would I respond to this 

child whom I had seen so many photos of

and yet had not seen in person?

Well, it took about a second to figure 

that out.  The response was pure love.

It took no time at all for this little one to 

respond to her Mamma's voice and touch 

with a smile that lit the room like a million

watt lightbulb.

Then came the giggle.

Oh.my.goodness.

We were all totally taken with Katie

in no time at all.

It has to be said that 

there are no words to 

describe the delicacy of this 

girl's condition.

To explain how small she is.

It truly is shocking.

Your brain works and works

to comprehend what it is seeing.

It does not compute.

The abuse this child suffered is

unbelievable.

Inexcusable.

There are many stories to be told

when the time is right.

Those stories need to come from 

Joe and Susanna,

but suffice it to say that God not only wanted

this little girl to know what it is to be loved

but He is doing more.....

much more.

Before leaving Susanna and Katie this 

evening Pastor Mike and Warren took 

turns praying and then we all joined in singing

The Doxology.

Picture if you will 

a tiny face with 

big brown eyes 

chattering away

as we began to sing

and then she grows silent.

Those big brown eyes with the 

long, long lashes growing bigger

and more intent if that is possible.

Then imagine that she leaned out

just a bit and studied us as we sang....

watching and listening to the 

music.

Enjoying it.

As if for the first time

in her nine years.

Now that is an audience that 

would encourage one to 

continue to sing.

The time had come for 

us to leave.

I reached my finger out to this 

beautiful girl.

She did me the honor of grasping 

it briefly.

Softly.

So softly....and gently.

The human touch.

It means so much!

We left the room with tears in 

our eyes.  

In wonder at the workings of 

God in the life of this child.

Praising Him for the privilege 

of bearing witness.

Of course we would covet your 

continued prayers for Katerina, Susanna

and Joe.  

It is not easy for Susanna to be away from 

her other ten children, waiting at home.

It is necessary for now as bonding takes 

place and Katie's health is stabilized.

Susanna wrote a post

after Thanksgiving that shows the 

children meeting their new sister for the first time.

You'll find it here....enjoy!!

Look at how she remembers 

and already loves her new Daddy.

Katie is one smart cookie!!

It Is the First Sunday of Advent

They were 

looking forward to a 

coming King.

But what the people didn't know

was that this king wouldn't 

inhabit an earthly throne that 

could be taken away

as they had seen so many times.

Oh no.

This Kingdom would last forever.

In fact it has existed forever in 

our Lord and King who is 

eternal.

This Kingdom is the only

everlasting power over 

sin and death.

Accomplished through the 

sacrifice of death.

Once.

For all 

who believe in His name.

So excited to begin the countdown to 

the visible story of our salvation.

Jesus.....

the babe lying in a manger.

Man.

God.

With a very important purpose.

That is what it is 

ALL 

about.

Now

and for 

eternity.

Enjoy this first Sunday 

of Advent.

O Come, O Come Emmanuel

and ransom captive Israel!

Good Times!

This morning I took off

with my Mom, Sister-in-Law (Bev)

and Mother-in-Law (Georgia)

to the Brandywine River Museum.

Warren and I had been there in 

August.  I am smitten.

Such a lovely place.

I hoped that the others 

would love it too.

They did.

It is all decked out for Christmas 

with a special room filled with trains

and another with dollhouses and 

beautiful dolls.

Of course there are plenty of 

Galleries of amazing artwork

and then there are all of the little

critter ornaments and decor made

from all natural goodies.

So much to see.

We had a very delightful time.

I felt as if I were playing 

hookey from all of my work.

But it was good!

Tonight we will have music 

practice and then over to 

Creekside Cottage to share in 

blessing a friend from church on his

birthday.  It is a very full day.

But a lovely one.

Very, very sweet.

The Time Has Come For.......

A

new

hot

water 

heater.

Bummer!

Thanks to Mikey and Warren

who did not wake me 

very early this morning

as they cleaned up the 

mess of the former

hot water heater.

Now to see if we can find 

the paperwork 

and claim the 

warranty.

Didn't see this one 

coming.

Such a Beautiful Thanksgiving Day

From the mums that are still

looking great

to 

green grass striped by 

shadows from the tall 

trees that are plentiful in 

our back yard

it is simply gorgeous 

out there.

I love the asparagus fern

that I thought had 

lost the battle in the heat

of the Summer.

 

But it is back with vigor and 

will likely stay green until 

it totally freezes through.

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving.

From our home....

to yours.

I Was Hungry For It

The "it" I was hungry for was 

something I've never 

seen anywhere 

or had in my life.

I wasn't even sure if "it" was 

possible but I 

determined to give it 

a try.

First I made chicken.

Just cooked it off on the top of 

my stove in my new and 

MUCH LOVED

cookware.

Warren is so relieved that I 

am still smitten.

It was not a phase.

Anyway...

first the chicken.

Then I mixed up a light

bread dough.

I love to make bread.

And I'm actually good at it.

Surprisingly.

Finally, 

I stuffed the bread dough,
in individual sized portions,

as you would a pasty or stromboli.

My stuffing ingredients were:

Cubed chicken breast

Farmers Cheese

Sliced ham luncheon meat

Cream cheese

Grated Romano Cheese

Onion (for Warren and Myself)

Ranch Dressing

Baked it.....

and Yummo!

Absolutely Delicious!!

Next time I make it 

I think I will add a dipping 

sauce that has just a bit of kick 

to it.  

That will take it from delicious to 

heavenly!!

So Excited!!

It is the week of
Thanksgiving!!

Allan and Bev

are coming!

My brother and sister-in-law.

It has been too long since

we have been together.

The turkey will be great.

Love those mashed potatoes.

But most of all....

I love a day dedicated to 

time with family
and Praise to our
Loving Heavenly Father
for His provision in our lives
over the past year.

Advice Please.....

As you know I'm kind of at a cross roads 

as to where to go with my candle company.

I'm waffling back and forth between a desire 

to move to another location for manufacturing

or to find a location in a high traffic area

to open a shop.

Now, my vision cuts two ways.

If I go purely into manufacturing I would

basically get a hole in the wall functional

place and just make and sell as many candles

as I possibly can to build the resources to 

either grow the business to a point of 

selling it as a proven, profitable business

or to then expand it into the 

gift shop/art studio of my dreams.

If I were to really stick my neck out

now I would find some investors

and open that gift shop/art studio now.

I happen to be very close to some 

amazing artisans who would likely

be willing to supply my shop for a 

generous cut of the profits.

Exciting news either way
is that it looks like
my oldest son,
Jonathan, will come into
the business with me.
He has expressed willingness
and I think there are many ways
his artistic talents will
be a blessing.

He will grow in business
and learn much about
the creative, business and
sales processes.

As readers, who have been observing 

this whole thing for the past several

years, would you be honest with me

about what you think is the 

better way to go?

I've got tons of ideas either way.

But, until I know which way I should

go I don't know what I am looking for 

and what I can afford.

That kind of stinks.

Good thing I'm too busy to really 

get it accomplished right now 

anyway, isn't it?

Edited to Add:

Speaking of busy...
I must have been tired when I
answered the questions on
this interview 
because I think I
compared myself to a pig....
Hop on over and visit Taylor.
There is a coupon code to save
20% there, as well.

Apple Candle Trio

I listed these this morning.

They make me happy.

So simple.

So Country.

The flame's glow through the quilted glass is 

going to be awesome!!

Pray for Katerina!

The time has come for Katerina

to come home with our friends

Joe and Susanna.

They retrieved her from the 

orphanage on Monday.

This is a photo they put on 

their blog from that day.

Now as we had feared

Katie is having a difficult time 

medically.

She is a nine year old girl 

who is in deep starvation.

She has refused to eat more
than a couple of swallows

from her last few bottles

and was showing signs of

dehydration.

An intensive care nurse from 

Philadelphia will be with them 

shortly but at the time of their latest

posting had not yet arrived.

At the recommendation of the attorney

in their case they have taken 

Katie to a hospital.

Much prayer is needed!!

UPDATE:

From Katerina's New Daddy...

Praising God for His mysterious ways.

Our Sunday was Blessed

Yesterday was special.

Our service was unique and wonderful.

It opened with a couple of people from

the congregation sharing from their hearts.

One, a mom, whose 20-something daughter
is on the mission field

and desiring to continue in a very dangerous

situation.  An email from the daughter was read

and it was impressive in its statements of faith

and passion for the work she is doing.

Understandably the parents would love

to see their daughter back home safe and 

sound but are seeking God's will in 

giving their advice.

Secondly, a 16 year old young man

got up to share a message that was 

bubbling up out of his heart.

A message of a discovery.

He is studying excellence.

His study has led him to the conclusion

that all who have excelled in their lives

were immersed in the Word of God.

Whether they actually had relationships 

with the Lord, or not, he is not making

a judgement...but they all knew and quoted

the Bible.

He has challenged our congregation to a 

deeper study of the Word.

So, make that two young people who have 

challenged my faith so far...in one day.

Then there is Chelsea,

who totally has me beat in the category

of daily devotions.

Add to this the fact that most weeks that 

we have fellowship meals there is a 

teen led Bible study....

instigated and carried out by them.

Shaking my head at the work of God

in the hearts of the youth!

The wisdom and faith displayed.

Gotta love it!!

Pastor Mike preached a wonderful 

sermon about Jonah.

Now this was the beginning of a short

series of sermons from this book.

Should be really good, if yesterday's 

was any indication.

Our friends at Creekside Cottage invited

us back to their place for a special 

meal of Mafe.

Mafe is a dish that originates in Senegal.

It is chicken, rice, peanut butter and curry.

Very different than I am used to 

but it was fun to try it.

I happen to love rice and chicken...

the peanut butter 

was an interesting 

addition.

It was such a blessing to get to sit 

and chat with my dear friends

Deanna and Kelly.

We live such busy lives during the 

week that taking a day to rest

and visit is truly a gift.

So glad God thought of it!

LOL

So often when we were kids 

it was easy to look at the 

"rules" given in the Bible 

and think that they were harsh

and unnecessary.

But age, experience and time has

taught me that when God tells us 

to do something a certain way it is because

it is good for us.

We benefit every time.

Such a wonderful realization 

to come to.

And Then They Prayed

Did you see it?

Penn State Players

and

Nebraska Players.

Kneeling .

On the field 

in 

Beaver Stadium.

Both before and after today's game.

We had a report this week from 

a friend in ministry on the 

Penn State Campus that this past 

week's events are drawing 

people to prayer.

I never expected to see it 

so publicly.

During this week

Students have been listening to 

an acquaintance of ours who

preaches daily on campus.

The "same students" who have tormented

and laughed at him every day 

for more than twenty years

are now gathering to hear 

his message.

This also according to 

our friend, Bob, who is on the 

front lines.

All I can say is....

this day gave me hope for 

the future of our country.

If our young people know

that prayer changes things

and have chosen God over 

rioting and anger.....

there is hope.

Prayer changes things.

***********

An excellent article
about that moment:

I Miss You!

I am well.

I am busy.

I miss You!

There is so much going on that 

I rarely get to bed before 1:00am.

We added three more fundraising groups

this week.  The first round of the first 

group's orders are due to be delivered on 

Monday so I am surrounded completely

by candles in boxes and bags here.

Thankfully the rest of the family has plans

for the day that are outside of the house.

Mikey and Chelsea are working....

Warren and Jonathan are off to a 

Father/Son church event.

So....I can work!

Yesterday I started writing a post 

about Chelsea because she is just too 

cute....

and then the phone rang with that 

last fund raiser and I could get them

started right then so the post 

got dropped.

For the sake of adding photos to 

this post and for expressing the 

sentiments I wanted to I'll close

this post with the photos I was going 

to share yesterday.

Chelsea and her friend, Emma just being silly.

She's a very good artist!

So pretty.

She disappears with the camera looking for creative shots.

My girl is a great person to hang 

around with.

She has a great sense of humor,

much compassion

and 

is so wise.

I love her.

Thanks for bearing with me during these

interesting times in my world.

I'll be back more regularly as soon as

possible, because you are all a huge

part of my life.

Who Knew What?

If my Dad hadn't passed away
six years ago yesterday we would 

have been on the phone in disbelief
at the news coming from Penn State

this week. 
Frankly, his heart would
have been broken....

at how far a man can fall.

It is beyond my comprehension
that crimes as grievous

as this man is accused of could go on for so 

many years with no deeper investigation

to the whispers and pleading accusations

of a few young men over the years.

To know that a student employee observed a

crime in process and for whatever reason was

not able to gain the attention
of his superiors takes me 

back to a time I was witness to a crime.

It was a patient in the
dental office where I worked.

As I passed by the room in which my patient

sat I saw him tucking
a prescription pad into his 

pants pocket.

It happened so fast that
I had to wonder if I had

actually seen what I thought I had seen.

I could have talked myself out of it if it 

weren't that the moment was
so etched into my brain.

The end result was that I
went to the doctors I 

worked for, 

who did the right thing by
confronting the 

patient and calling the police.

That was over a pad of 

paper which only would have 

hurt the one who took it.

Oh, for the sake of the children....

the many, many children
I wish the authorities that 

this grad student had gone to 

would have been so proactive.  

I can only imagine the images 

that must flash through this man's head...

the images that he knows he saw.

The guilt he must live with

each and every day.

I actually feel sorry for him.

Students are trained to leave it 

to the University officials.

Could and should he have done more?

I think so.

But, I understand the environment that 

caused him to remain quiet.

Who would have believed him?

He was likely assured it had been 

dealt with.

The ripple effect of one man's personal

demons.  It goes far and wide.

From the pain of those he has allegedly 

offended to the mighty at the top of a

famous institution.

So.very.sad.

Because of our connections to the

area and so many years lived there

we know people directly impacted by the 

media circus.... and by these actions.

Our thoughts and prayers are with them

as they deal with the pain and disappointment

so recently brought their way.

(((((hugs)))))

Last Night's Open House...

Now that was a treat!

My friend, Angel, made it worth the 

two hour drive!

She had more than 20 people come through

in our four hour time frame.

This meant that we only had about five

minutes when no one was there.

Pretty amazing!!

I was proud of myself for hanging in 

there with all of the big semi's on Interstate 81.

Talk about a small fish in a big sea!!

Wow!

Chelsea's little Mazda Protege is itty 

bitty next to those big boys!

I'm also pretty happy to have ended up back

in Lancaster on my first try

rather than Allentown or some other 

distant place that those roads

also go to.

Being pretty much a homebody I don't usually

wander too far without Warren.

But this was fun and having Chelsea 

along was great.

She loves to go, go, go!!

I have to say that this is one good thing

about our trips to Hershey over this past year.

I was totally comfortable getting that far.

Back to the Open House...

I wish you could have seen all of the 

adorable toddlers and kids that came along.

So precious.

I accidentally left my camera there last night

so I can't show you the pictures.

Bummer!!

Well, I have orders to fill and boxes to 

unpack so I'd better get to work!

I'm also hoping to get outside for a while today.

Just unpacking the car this morning

was very pleasant.  

The smell of Fall is in the air.

For.sure!

Is It Monday Already?

It is so interesting to have a cold at the 

same time as my friend, Melissa.

Facebook makes real time complaints

possible and ours are nearly 

identical.

No, I'm not going to share them 

here but I have definitely lost some

work time and church time thanks to

this pesky virus.

Uggh.

Yesterday I showed up at church,

against my better judgement, 

made the bulletins and began practicing

music with the teens and Mike and came to

the realization

that I really shouldn't be there.

So...I left.

Yep, let those impacted know

and came back home where

I slept off and on all day.

The rest of the family had a normal 

day at Sonrise Christian Fellowship.

A fellowship meal, 

A slide presentation by our Moms
about their 

mission trip to Guatemala,

a hike for some and rocket

launches for others..

They all came back happy as could

be and I was so thankful for 

a church that enjoys its fellowship 

so much.

Today, I am headed about two hours

west to hold an Open House 

with my friend Angel.

She is a fellow Etsian...

as we call ourselves.

If there was a way to push this 

until later in the week I would do 

it for everyone's sake...

however, Angel has done so 

much work and has invited so many 

people that 40 have said they are coming.

She has worked on her house, making it 

look like a boutique.

Me and my Robitussin are going.

We are taking Chelsea along

as muscle...lol.

I am very, very excited about this 

event and am so grateful to Angel for 

all she has done to make it a success.

I'll be refilling this for Angel on the spot this evening. 

That girl rocks!!

How Much Chocolate is Too Much Chocolate?

To say that my kitchen is not 

exactly functional for normal use 

right now would

be an understatement.

It is much more like a factory.

The boys come in and put their 

Hot Pockets in the microwave

or frozen pizzas in the oven

but regular cooking is rare

at this time of the year.

Sad.

But true.

So, the other evening 

Mom, Chelsea and I met Warren

at the Olive Garden.

Not our usual place to grab a bite

but it just sounded sooooo good.

Our server was one who seemed to 

be going through the motions 

enthusiastically.

What do I mean by that?

Well, she was very animated but you 

could tell that it was all canned, 

so to speak.

Very been there, done that.

I wasn't overly impressed but 

we weren't there to be entertained

so it really didn't matter.

However, as time went on 

there was a thaw in her personality.

She began doing special favors.

We began chatting and her sense of 

humor became evident.

Finally she left the bill and a huge

handful of mints.

Our eyes got big and we each had

a "few".  Then she came back and 

dropped another huge handful on the table

declaring that she couldn't remember if 

she had given us our mints yet.

We laughed and I showed her my 

empty wrapper and asked if 

we made those disappear if we would 

get more.

Well, that was all of the encouragement

this lady needed.

Next thing we knew there was a goblet

full of Olive Garden mints in the center

of the table.

So, we ate some.

Then she asked if we wanted 

any dessert?

I pointed out that I thought we 

had kind of "done that".

She put her head back and 

roared.  She also agreed.

We prepared to leave with goody bag

in hand when didn't that silly lady 

bring another goblet full to dump 

in our bag.

Sheesh!

Chocolate mint overload.

So....if only the story ended here it would

have been more chocolate than this family 

needed, but alas, it does not.

You know by now that our Chelsea

is just a bit of a Starbucks fan.

So, our next stop before heading home 

was our favorite Starbucks store.

One of our favorite barrista's was there for 

the first time in a while.

He said he was happy to see us since it 

had been a while and we told him that he

was the one who had been missing.

He agreed.

He'd been on his honeymoon.

We were so happy for him!!

So...

I'm standing there waiting 

for for our drinks to be prepared 

when this young man

walks over with two very 

chocolaty desserts and says

"Shhh....don't tell anyone, 

but these are for you."

Did I mention....

they were very rich and very 

chocolatey and we had just eaten

about a ton of Olive Garden mints??

Oh. Dear.

But what was I to do?

I thanked him enthusiastically

and took the chocolate.

We shared it.

It was delicious.

No mint.

Just caramel and pretzels.

I so appreciate the servers of this

world.  Their jobs are not easy.

Recognizing that they are humans

with families, lives and struggles

is a good thing.

It makes our interactions with them

so much sweeter.

"Hug" a server today....

they will be shocked!

O.k. so not literally.

But just try asking them about 

their day...and smile!!

Not everyone they deal with 

is as nice as you are.

Who knows,
if they happen to be cleaning
out the dessert case at the end
of the night they may choose
to offer something to you
instead of putting it in the trash.
LOL

Tea Light All Dressed Up!

So precious....

Each one burns 4-6 hours 

depending on conditions and whether 

it is a continuous burn.

I would covet your prayers this week.
I have some major decisions to make
regarding the candle company.

It is growing so quickly that I have
to make some major changes.
It would appear that God is
leading in a couple of areas of
growth but they are scary as can be!!

I need wisdom.
Doors to open and close
as He would will it.

Peace to be totally content
in His will.

Thanks!!

This Passage Fits

In what is a very busy and stressful time

of my year, one in which I delight

as well as struggle,

these verses put into words

what my heart has been feeling.

Psalm 28:6-8

Praise be to the LORD,
   for he has heard my cry for mercy.
 The LORD is my strength and my shield;
   my heart trusts in him, and he helps me.
My heart leaps for joy,
   and with my song I praise him.

 The LORD is the strength of his people,
   a fortress of salvation for his anointed one. 

I am so thankful for His leading.

The way He makes Himself evident.

His love and discipline.

He.is.good.

Is That a Frog?

Every time I open my mouth to speak

a funny croaking sound comes out.

Bummer.

Oh well.

Much to do.

I'll be in the kitchen if anyone needs me.

Hope you aren't dealing with 

frogs in your throat.

Seriously.