Ouch!

Last night was my first visit with a personal trainer.

It was good.

I think.

There was a moment where I was very sick to my 

stomach but she was good to let me rest it away and 

then popped me onto the treadmill to keep moving

until I could get back on the circuit.

I don't know if this is something I'll do for 

a long time or if it is a jumping off point.

Only time will tell

but

I need to do something.

My temple is just way too

fluffy.

I feel like this today....

I have no idea why I am so tired....

but if I could just sleep, 

even on my head, 

I would.

LOL

The Voice that Sent The Beast Away

I keep rereading this blog post

written by Chelsea.

It is so well written that even if 

she wasn't my daughter it would 

move me to the core.

Part of me wants to just copy and paste.

However, 

I think that it is worth the extra effort for 

you to click and go there.

That way if you feel led to leave her 

a note you'll already be in the right spot.

As an active participant and observer

in Chelsea's life over the past couple 

of years I can tell you that the 

evidence proves out this 

tale she tells.

God saved Chelsea's life.

For real.

A Mom's Happy Heart and Success in the Kitchen

It isn't often that I get to spend time 

with Mikey these days.

He pops in to hang out with Jonathan 

here and there and will come and chat with us

for a few minutes but it isn't like it was when 

he lived here...naturally.

Yesterday he came by to pick up his 

skateboarding gear.

He's going back to his original favorite sport.

It is really good for you.

As long as you don't break anything, that is.

He realizes how out of shape he is,

 for this particular sport anyway.

One really couldn't call Michael out of shape

in a general way.

He's fit and works at moving heavy sets so he'll 

likely stay fit.

While it was bitterly cold here with wind

that cut through you

he went to a local skate park.

I popped by as I was on my way to pick 

up Jonathan from physical therapy

and took a couple of photos.

I'm a wimp and got cold before I got many shots.

I was hoping to capture some air.

 Good save or he would have hit me....

But, alas, no air.  

Not that he didn't get it.  

I just didn't catch it.

We had enjoyed lunch together just before 

these photos were taken.

A blessing to this mama's heart...for sure.

I'm so thankful for our children and their 

respect and love for us.

Speaking of children.

The one you hear most about was the 

motivating factor in our dinner last evening.

She loves stir fry.

I happen to enjoy it quite a bit too.

Warren is not a huge fan.....

but with the correct rice he is ok.

So, I decided that I wanted to make stir fry

but with my own Teriyaki sauce.

Turns out it is very easy to make and you can 

control so much about it.

.....soy sauce, brown sugar, water, rice wine, ginger.....

These form the base.

Add other seasonings as you like them.

I didn't have rice wine or the substitute dry sherry

so I pulled out a bottle of sparkling grape juice.

It worked great!

....garlic, orange zest, pineapple.....

These would be great additions, as well.

Although I didn't use them last evening.

There are many recipes available on 

"the internets".

It turned out so well.

I'll do that again....for sure.

Funny thing, though.

I forgot to make the chicken for the stir-fry.

So, ours was just veggie laden.

And delicious.

Even Warren liked it!

I tried to get him to say it was too sweet...

he just wouldn't go there. 

He really liked it.

February Note Card Party with Vee

Sometimes it's the simple things in our 

lives that bring us the biggest joy.

My theme for this note card party is

comfort and happy things.

In this case

a tiny white pitcher brought to me 

by a candle customer.

She wanted it filled.

It came out so cute.

It is not intrusive.

It is delicate.

Just a little feminine touch.

The white kitty was a gift from a neighbor

lady when I was just a girl.

Somehow it has survived 

nine moves.

This neighbor has been gone for 

quite some time but the lessons about 

art learned in her home have stayed with me.

The time she took out of her day for two 

ragamuffin preacher's kids from down the road

have never ceased to be appreciated.

Here we have the simplicity of the white serving platter

and the delicious comfort of vanilla yogurt drizzled with honey.

This totally made me happy.

This came from a post called

Local Cafe Does it Right

Even though this is one of my creations it is one of my favorites.

It speaks to upcoming Spring while having the deep brown 

base to allow us to acknowledge that we have not yet 

crossed over to that reality yet.

I look forward every year to the dogwood blooms

on the tree just outside our window.

I will enjoy this piece in my living room until someone 

purchases it from my Etsy shop.

And then....perhaps I shall make another?

Another nostalgic item.

These are actually soy wax melters

but don't they look like 

old fashioned

soaps?

My friend the soapmaker got excited when I told

him that we could have sold these several times

at one of my shows

if they had been soaps.

Takes one back to grandma's house.

The powder room seemed to 

always have some kind of shaped soaps.

So, if you pay attention you will have learned

much about me in this post.

I have shared the things that I find 

to be beautiful and that represent or 

bring happiness into my life.

And....at the same time

I would totally make

note cards out of these photos.

Taking part in Vee's February Note Card Party.

I hope you'll stop by and check out 

the different entries.

If you are visiting from the party, 

welcome!

I do hope you'll stop in again.

Worship the One with the Power to Clean

I'm still not feeling great so I'm home from church.

However, this is what is on the front of the 

church bulletin today.  

Isn't it the best news?

I went over to the church building

and spent some time at the piano 

while the bulletins printed 

a little bit earlier.

Today's worship looks a bit different

for me today.

I'll miss the service

and all that is happening there....

but I've been with the Lord.

And He with me.

Just Ducky

Today does not promise to be fun.

I'm having some minor surgery to remove

a birthmark gone rogue.

I have a cold that has me coughing like a crazy

person and so I tried to get out of it 

with Warren and my friend, Melissa

by insisting that I'm going to cough

at the wrong time and the scalpel is going 

to go where it should not go 

and pierce my lung.

They are not buying it.

Blah!

What do they know?

I'm doomed.

Oh well.

It really is a minor procedure and I'll 

be just fine.

A couple of minutes and a couple of stitches

and I'll be just ducky.

Kind of like these sweethearts captured

at the Virginia Living Museum.

Out in the bird sanctuary we found lots of 

other interesting creatures...

 So majestic even though it is captivity due to an injury and cannot fly.

We assume this one was drying its feathers.

It held this pose for more than 15 minutes

while gently waving his wings in the breeze.

Either that or it has an issue with fear and was 

attempting to intimidate us all of the time.

I choose to believe the prior theory.

The air was her blow dryer.

I do hope your day is good.

Just Ducky, even.

Photographic Timing....It's Just Not That Easy

While on vacation in Virginia

we went to Buckroe Beach in Hampton.

If you've been reading here very long

you know that we love this beach in February.

It is a great time to visit the beach if you are just about 

the ocean views and you are not wanting to 

go into the water or enjoy views of the bikini clad body type.

We prefer to avoid bikinis....

on us or on anyone else.

So, this makes February a great time for a visit.

Chelsea and her friend Kim love to 

clown for the camera.

I told them to jump.

I would get an action shot.

Sure sounded easy enough.

Here's the photo evidence that it is not 

as simple as clicking the perfect shot.

With the point and shoot you just get one click

per effort. 

Not the repeat clickage those with more advanced

cameras can enjoy.

So, there was take number one.

I don't know if I was too early or too late....



Take Two.

Nope, not that time either.

Take Three.

Too soon.

I was beginning to think it was never going to happen.

Finally, jump number four captured what we were going for....

One happy click.

Two jumping young ladies.

So much fun.

The girls just happened to wear the same color
that day...
which of course we noticed right away.
But as it looked so nice on each of them we
decided it was fun.

Just before we left the beach I noticed a couple
out for a stroll.
She had on this exact shade as well.
So, not being the shy type I asked her if she
would be willing to have her photo taken with the girls.
She was so sweet and agreed immediately.

So random, but so cool.
Thanks Shawn!
You rock!!

Great Day!

We began our day here.....

 

 

With our friends from church who are in Virginia with us.

We convinced their young men and our young man and ladies

to pose in the turtle shell.

We found them to be quite precious even at their advanced

ages and larger physiques.

 

Nick is such a great sport and getting more handsome all of the time.

 

How does Anthony manage to look thoughtful even here?

Chelsea probably gets the award for the "best fit".

 Jonathan impressed us with his willingness to play along and his ability to

get into that turtle shell.

 

Kim may think twice about vacationing with us again...(smile).

 

 It is great to have a friend along for Chelsea

on this vacation.

Not that we aren't fun...of course.

My connection here seems to dislike my
large photos and so while I have much to show you
it might have to be just a few at a time
until we get home.

So...
I'll finish up with this cutie pie pair of photos.

I asked Chelsea to "kiss" the frog and see if
she found a "prince".

Here's what happened.

 

I didn't think the prince would be so young...

but he is a handsome one, isn't he?

 

More to follow in the days to come.

This was a many battery kind of a day as I

snapped many, many photos. 

On The Road Again.....

 

Having a little fun with the locals.

 

We found this one to be pleasant of face

but relatively quiet.

Definitely a Girly Candle

This adorable little pitcher is a custom order for a friend.

The kitty is mine.

There isn't a lot to chat about here at the moment 

so I thought I'd share.

My friend gave me the pitcher some time ago and 

said that I should fill it sometime later.

It's later.

I've been enjoying its cuteness in my kitchen 

and decided that I should not get too attached.
So she'll get it back this Sunday if I remember
to take it with me.

Do you love it?

The scent is fresh citrus infusion.

Sigh.....

so fresh and delightful.

Local Cafe Does It Right

I probably don't have to say anything here, do I?  YUM!  You may not figure out that the cup holds vanilla yogurt and honey.  Delish! 

A young couple has taken a bold step.

They have opened a cafe in the city of Lancaster.

Running a cafe is not an easy thing

nor is it guaranteed success.

However, 

word of mouth is working well

in this case because this place is sweet.

They call it 

Cafe One Eight.

The home page of  their website

says

Christ. Compassion. Coffee.

The name is taken from both the address

at 18 W. Orange Street

and 

Acts 1:8

We discovered Cafe One Eight when our friends at 

Fab Fashion just around the corner recommended it 

to Georgia and I one day when we were out to market

and made a candle delivery to the shop.

We enjoyed our visit so much that I knew I had 

to introduce Chelsea to Cafe One Eight.

She LOVES it and so wishes we had something 

like it closer to home.

Matt and Kathleen....

I'm hinting here!

I'm sure there is a cute little spot 

that would be just perfect somewhere 

near Quarryville.

It Could be 

Cafe One Nine or something....

Then it wasn't too long until one of 

Chelsea's former co-workers was hired to 

work at Cafe One Eight.

Then he was singing for First Friday at the cafe.

We were out and about that night because of the van.

You may have read this post about the early part 

of that evening.

Amazing!

But even though Chelsea wasn't feeling all that well

she agreed that she really did want to stop by 

and hear Sheldon sing.

We all know Sheldon and his girlfriend from 

the theatre too so we were very happy to see 

him and hear his talent at work.

While the morning that I took these photos was relatively quiet

in Cafe One Eight, I can tell you that First Friday was not.

Wow.  I was a bit concerned for the antique floors.

It was so full.

What a sense of community.

I was impressed to see many of my 

former co-op students ...

of course they are quite grown up now.

How does this happen?

We also ran into a friend from our

co-op days.

She got an earful about the events from 

earlier in the evening.

Donna, it was so neat to be able

to testify to God's goodness.

Thanks!

The music was fantastic.

Sheldon and his friends did a great job.

If you love cafes

this is one you need to put on your 

list to visit while in Lancaster County.

And then pop around the corner on Market Street 

and visit our friends

at Fab Fashion.

It is just the perfect way to enjoy Lancaster City.

Of course if you happen to hit Market Day 

you'll have to check out Central Market just a few steps away

from Fab Fashion.

Limes, Limes and More Limes

I have a lot of limes.

Purchased in bulk to take a photo for 

a candle label.

The ginger lime candle 

needed a face lift.

Ahhh.....

I like this.

Then the question came up....

What are we going to do with all of 

these limes?

My Facebook friends gave 

a bunch of 

suggestions.

So far from that long list we have 

used two.

I used the juice of a lime in the 

cooking of chicken for 

enchiladas.

Chelsea used the juice of three 

limes in the making of an amazing 

lime pie thanks to my friend, Nelly.

Our friend, Johnny, ate one 

lime by juicing it, 

I think,

He was surprised at the intensity.

We still have a lot of limes.

We still have a lot of suggestions to work through.

I think its all good!

And I love the look of these fresh limes 

on the candle label which was my goal 

in the first place.

So the rest is a bonus, right?

Edited to add:
Speaking of bonus...
After posting this I found that my
friend Vee wrote an entire post about
some candles I asked her to test.
A.whole.post!
Wow...
that was so generous.
I hope you'll stop by and say hello.
Vee is a breath of fresh air.

Unexpected Blessings

I couldn't decide what to title this post....

God Moment or Unexpected Blessings.

It is truly heartwarming to see God do things that 

build faith in your children.

Last night was one of those times.

You see, this week Chelsea calculated what 

she needs yet to get to her YWAM mission

and BACK.

That being the more important part to me.

She already has her ticket to go, 

the down payment has been made

and money is in the bank for the majority of the 

curriculum.

Still, her outstanding amounts involve

the return flight and the outreach to Thailand.

It looks a bit daunting when you see the number

but knowing that she has already earned that much

through her job and gifts 

you just know that if it is meant to be....

it will be.

So, back to the story.

Last evening we went to the far end of Lancaster County 

to pick up our van which had been held hostage

THE ENTIRE MONTH OF JANUARY

for emissions problems.

I.miss.my.van.

Hopefully this week it will be mine once again.

It now has to go back to the original garage

but that is another story.

You see, the first time we took the van to this 

distant town they were supposed to replace two parts.

They, in their infinite wisdom, simply replaced one 

and said to bring it back if the other one was bad.

The other one was bad.

However, perhaps it wasn't "their" infinite wisdom

at work after all.

For because we needed to come back events took

place that led us to the right place at the right time.

Dinner.

We needed it.

Hungry people like to eat dinner.

Hungry people who enjoy seafood 

(not me and not Chelsea)

enjoy buffets for $14.99 where you can 

eat all of the little (and big) shrimpies,

stuffed clams

 and crab salad

one wants.

So we stopped.

In the same building there is a Christian book store.

Chelsea loves, loves, loves 

Christian book stores.

They hold music.

Lots and lots of music.

So, of course, after dinner we browsed the bookstore.

Chelsea saw much that she would like to own.

She was reluctant to spend a penny.

After our date with the garage for the second time

we weren't exactly in a good place to feed her need for music.

We did get her dinner however.

Because we are nice like that.  

Warren and I told her that she should go ahead

and get something.

Music is so vital to her happiness.

It literally was one of the healers while she struggled 

with the depths of anorexia.

So, she reluctantly went back to that section of the store 

to see if she could decide on something.

While she was there I chatted with the young woman 

at the register.

I explained that Chelsea was saving for her mission

trip to Australia and Thailand and that she was 

hesitant to spend even for something she loved.

Turns out this young lady has a brother serving

as a missionary in Thailand and that she, herself, has

visited a home for women in that very country 

run by YWAM.

Coincidence?

So, Chelsea finally made the hard decision on an album

and came to the front of the store.

When it was rung up and the total given

it was less than half of what Chelsea was expecting.

$5.30.

She questioned the cashier who said it was "on sale".

Wow.  Cool.

Then as the bag was on its way to Chelsea's hands

this young woman slipped a white envelope into 

it and said that she felt led to give it to her.

Now, as far as I knew this young woman had only

talked to us and dealt with a very cranky lady

in the time we had stood there.

I was feeling badly that she had to deal with that 

other woman....

but apparently she had found the time to 

slip some bills from her purse into this envelope.

We thanked her with tears in our eyes

and headed to the car.

When we got there I asked Chelsea to look and see 

what was in that envelope.

$170!!

Really?  

From a stranger?

Who just felt led?

So far from our home?

On a trip I was grumbling about?

Yep!

In God's appointed time and place

HE used this complete stranger to build 

Chelsea's faith and allow her to say,

"I think I am supposed to go on this trip!"

Chelsea ran back in and gave her new friend

a big hug and then we both shed 

tears of thanksgiving as we drove from this place.

A God Moment.

Indeed.

Custom Baby Shower Order

Orders continue to keep me hopping.

There's this one....

The customer sent me the poem

and a request for something Hello Kitty.

Another order involves a special 

scent blend to commemorate 

a mother lost.

Yet another is to a dear friend

who I have gotten to know

through my Etsy CAST team.

AND....

it is time to take my 

February Featured 

Fragrances

to my shops and salons.

This month the featured fragrances

are 

Cinnamon Hearts

and

Clean Breezes.

Fun new labels which a bright and colorful.

Most importantly the labels are waterproof under

normal circumstances.

I must get back to work.

Thanks for stopping in.

Hugs.