I'm Thinking - Week Four

A host of thoughts...
and shots from my garden...

~ The camera card must be in the camera if you want it to remember the pictures of your friends at dinner.

~ It is nice and cool outside but our house won't accept the cool air. It is still hot in the kitchen and living room.

~ I am glad my friends in the New England area finally got some sunshine!

~ My photos arrived from Snapfish. They look great!!! Thanks, Melissa, for the tip. I will gladly use them again.

~ It is a relief that our Moms will not be going to Honduras next week. Too much unrest at the moment. The State Department said, "No"...

~ It is fun to help Mom get ready for a trip to El Salvador in September instead.

~ My friend, Shelley, will be visiting soon! I can't wait!

~ I can't wait to share our adventure from yesterday on Outdoor Wednesday. So fun! Unexpected fun!!

~ I wonder if Mom will let me take photos of all of her pretty blues for Blue Monday...I'll ask nicely.

~ I am so glad you stopped by today. You are the best!








~ Finally, I am thinking...Lookout weeds...here I come!


Happy day!


♥♥Becky K.♥♥

Good Friends and Huge Blessings!

Mr. and Mrs. Rabe of Creekside
Cottage surprised me ...big time...
last night.

You see, today there will be some
required end of the year testing
at our church for several students.

Chelsea is one of these students.

Our evaluator is conducting this
testing and I will be the hostess
at the church for the visiting
student families.

Sunday, I had mentioned to Pastor Mike
that I would make sure that things
were vacuumed and in order for this
and all I can figure is that the
Rabes were paying attention and
heard me say this.

Whatever the case, last night Mrs. Rabe
called and said that they had taken care
of it. All was clean and ready.

With the events of yesterday, See prior post,
and the shock to our emotions
and schedule I was planning to
get up early and do it all
this morning.

I am so thankful for these dear friends
who not only figured out a way to get
our children to bowling yesterday
when I couldn't,
but thought about another practical way
to show their love and concern.

Happy sigh...

So, I sit here this morning tapping away
at the keyboard rather than rushing around
and then wrestling with an aging vacuum cleaner
and a toilet brush!

There is great news from Georgia, as well.
She has not needed the NG Tube that she so
dreads...so far. We pray this remains the
case. We saw her last evening and she looks
wonderful. The pain is gone. Now all she has
to do is be able to eat and drink normally.
This is usually a process. Usually they
introduce food slowly so she could
be in the hospital for another one to
three days.
We will see.

Thank you so much for your calls and prayers.
They mean so very much to us.

While you are at it, I just heard that my
dear Grandmother is very ill. I would
love prayer for her too. She lives several
hours away from us and it is bugging me that
I can't go help. My Aunt is taking great care
of her. Grandma is in very good hands.

Life...interesting!
Makes one very needy in just
moments...
♥♥Becky K.♥♥

Sight and Sound Company Christmas Party

Last night was the big party.
This was us just before we ran
out the door.

Chelsea took our picture.
The battery light was flashing
on the camera so she took it
without the flash.
Kind of cool how you can't
see us that well....((grin))

The party was a lot of fun.

I am so thankful that Warren
works for a company that is
Christ Centered. We did not
have to worry about what we might
encounter as far as embarrassing
moments at his Christmas Party.

We are friends with several couples
that work there. It makes for an
enjoyable evening out.

The Theatre employs so many people that
the only place in Lancaster County that
could comfortably host us is Shady Maple.

The food last night was incredible!

A very nice salad and bread bar...
A hot Food bar...
Roast Beef, Turkey, Cheesy Potatoes, and
Green Beans with Carrot sticks cooked in.

The desserts...sigh...lets just say that I
had raspberry swirl cheesecake and chocolate
cake with mint icing. I took only a small
piece of the cheesecake. Melt in your mouth good,
let me tell you!

The program opened with the owner of the Theatre
giving a brief message about the true meaning of
Christmas. It was very good. This man has the
determination to spread the "Good News" like few
on this planet. Glenn Eshelman is a man with
a calling!

Then his two sons-in-law, Matt and Josh took over.
It was funny and crazy. There were videos produced
in Branson, the new theatre, and here in Strasburg.
Our cheeks hurt from laughing.
They gave a lot of gifts away...we didn't get any
but that is fine. We didn't need more "stuff" anyway.

These are some of our friends...

Chris and Kandi rode along with us...see those happy faces? They are about to become parents of two additional children! They have two biological children and just received word that soon they will adopt two more! They are beside themselves with joy! We are soooo happy for them!

Melissa just returned nice and tanned from a cruise.


She is a fav with our kids.
Lots of fun... this one!

It was a great evening. One we look
forward to each year!

♥♥Becky K.♥♥

Fun, Fun, Fun!

Mrs Rabe and I met at the church
yesterday to do some decoratin'!

What fun that was. I was on a ladder
reaching into the ceiling to place the
greens, ribbon and sparkly ribbon.

It was good that Miss Emily found the
ladder because just before that I was
on a little bench and had just about
decided to put a step stool on top of
that to be able to reach. Ahem...I think
that would have been a very bad idea.
Thank you Emily!

Deanna, (Mrs Rabe), brought her bow maker
and made beautiful bows for the huge wreaths
that are now hanging on the stone columns
outside. We were going to hang the wreaths
on the doors but we could not easily do that.
I noticed big nails in the columns and we chose
to go the easy way there.

We got the Advent wreath all set up...I just
need to remember to buy the candles. The base
of the table that the Advent wreath is on was
bright red. The cloth for that table is now
a burgundy...we used to have a red one...I spray
painted the base a pretty bronze color. Less than
five minutes and it looked sooooooo much better!

I did not have my camera with me...silly me. But,
I am going back over today to clean, practice my
music and all of that jazz...so I will take some
pictures.

There is a pretty basket on the welcome table that
is filled with pretty ornaments, apples, lights,
and greens. Deanna made a bow for this basket, as
well. It might be my favorite in the whole place.
So it was there that I placed Mary, Joseph and
Baby Jesus made of leaded crystal. Gorgeous!

We also wrapped greens and ribbon around the stair
rail in the area where we set up our breakfast. It
looks so pretty. I love a decorated stairway!

I know we will decorate more...in preparation for the
ladies tea on the 15th. But this was a great start.
I welcome any time to fellowship with friends!

How are you doing with decorating this year?
Are you "into" it or just getting it done?

Maybe if you are struggling with it you could invite
a friend over and share the task. Suddenly it is
enjoyable!

Blessings!

Becky K.

Breakfast, Yummy for Dinner!

With the snow and the ice yesterday
it seemed a good day for comfort
food.

I had found a huge bag of Johnsonville
sausage crumbles at our local Amish grocery.

They are flash frozen, precooked pieces of
sausage. Just wonderful for stuffing, omelets
or, in my case, a huge egg casserole.

I did that old recipe of bread on the bottom,
layered with nearly two dozen scrambled eggs and
milk, the sausage and cheddar cheese layered on top.

I had added some salt and freshly ground pepper to
the egg mixture before pouring it on.

This combination was a hit.

Then...served with this casserole:

Pillsbury chocolate twists,
Orange sweet rolls,
homefries,
sauteed onions in butter,
Georgia's Canned Peaches,
Chelsea's Still-warm applesauce,
and toast.

Orange Juice and Coffee to drink.

It was a wonderful meal that hit
the spot on an evening where the
roads were impossible because of
the ice.

Poor Pastor Mike, who intended to
be with us just for dinner and then
all of us off to Small Group, stumbled
in late and declared the roads terrible.

He had passed accidents and slid all
around. No Small Group.

Finally, hours later a cinder truck went up
our hill and we knew the main roads had to be
better. We are always last for the road treatment.

So...last evening at 9:15pm we began watching
We are Marshall. I love that movie. It was by
my request. So, why was it then that by 10:15 I
could not keep my eyes open and had to just give
up and go to bed?

I'm blaming breakfast for dinner!
Just too comforting.

No Photo Card! Plenty of Fun!

O.k. it was like this.

There was a beautiful cardinal just
begging to have his picture taken.
Handsome devil in a pine tree...
so cliche.
But beautiful.
I pulled out the camera...no card.

This is where I sighed a sigh of relief.
I would be enjoying the gardens without
thought of getting just the right photos.

So, I apologize, my freedom may be your loss...
unless Mrs. Rabe, (Creekside Cottage)
or Miss Paula, (Gathering of Friends) happen to post
pics that they took.

It was so much fun to walk through the gardens.
The day was so delightful.
There were about a billion butterflies sipping
nectar from the various sources at their disposal.

The picture above is the one taken at
Mrs. Rabe's home a few weeks ago.
So we really did not have to go to Kennett Square
for Beauty...but it sure was fun.

Longwood is not as colorful, for the most part, at
this time of the year. There was a lot of monochromatic
white and green beds. Very pretty.

One exception to the lack of color came in the huge
outdoor beds next to the concert shell. There were
purples, reds, oranges and yellows. We saw many
varieties that were new to us and uses for some
plants that we had not thought of before. I guess
that is one of the reasons you visit a garden such
as this.

The lily pads and large "platters" are absolutely amazing
right now. We spent a very long time just staring and asking
questions of one of the employees. Wow!!

Miss Paula, Mrs. Rabe and I made time for some heart to hearts
about various things in our lives. It is so very good to
have friends to share our hearts with.
I hope you have someone like that in your life.

Somehow, as you see the things that God has created you just
know that HE is able to provide for our every need. To glimpse
that little piece of HIM. To see HIM as Creator God, artist,
all powerful...amazing!

Please take a break from the busyness of your day today to spend
a bit of time with our Creator God. Wander through a garden or
search out photos of His Creation and look at the creativity and
attention to detail that our Heavenly Father used in speaking His
creation into being.

Blessings on this day!

Becky K.

Tech-knowl-oh-gee!

We were invited to a picnic at the home of some long time friends.
Since it was very hot and humid we ate inside...our food was
cooked outdoors on a grill, so I will continue to refer to it
as a picnic.

It was great too....hot dogs, hamburgers, grilled zuchinni, bean salad, carrot and raisin salad, cole slaw, tossed salad, chips and salsa, and fabulous shoo fly pie or pumpkin pie....YUM!

The reason for this event was to celebrate the visit of another
couple who were passing through the area after having moved away.

As all of the people who were in attendance currently have, or have had, at least one
spouse who works in technology with Sight and Sound Theatre
something very strange occurred...

As the ladies were chatting about things such as quilting, blogging,
children's education...great stuff, suddenly across the table we
noticed a laptop appear. Shortly thereafter came another laptop.
Finally there were three laptops in a row on the table with men,
mostly in plaid shirts lined up and typing away.



This caused a giggle and some talk about the proximity of that many
"geeks" in a room.

Pretty soon there came the ring of a cell phone.

Tom took the call from his wife, Starla.

Then, as he remained on the phone, and had even put her on
speaker phone for us to say hello, Luke's cell phone rang.



This sent us over the edge into actual giggles.

This is what we learned about computer geeks last evening:

1. They will bring their laptops to dinner.

2. Three out of five will wear plaid shirts that are nearly identical.

3. Four out of five have beards.

4. Their children also become geeks. (i.e. a 9 year old can use excel better than any of us...even to the point of making a spreadsheet schedule for feeding the fish. He also made a Powerpoint presentation with animation...all on his own).

5. They (the geeks) are funny...but they don't mean to be.

It was fun!
If you ever find my blog, Pat, thanks for a great evening!

Painting 101

Do not ever, ever, ever open up the opportunity to paint your church fellowship hall to the entire congregation!!!!

You cannot control who shows up.

This is especially important if you are painting over a white carpet
with a color that is called Frank's Fire!

There were really very few drips but having everyone want their own roller, a teenager who apparently has never had training with a paint brush and not enough
drop cloths I nearly lost my mind.

The room is not finished but it is coming along nicely.

There is much conversation about my color choices. I can only hope that when the room is finished it makes as much sense to everyone else as it does in my mind's eye.

The rest of the church is sedate in Kindred Spirit, malt, garden green, etc. This is a bit stronger. Gotta have some fun somewhere. I am taking the heat for it, though. And I have been in serious pain since Monday...that did not help my mood either.

Oh well...Frank's Fire is a deep orange. That is the color on the bottom half of the room. The color for the top is called Maple Leaf. It is a very pretty yellow.

The room is about 70 feet long and is narrow. There is white carpet three quarters of the way down the room and then a very nice tiled floor. We are treating the two flooring areas as separate rooms and will paint the bottom of that back area a navy blue. The Maple Leaf will still be on the upper half but back there we will put up a border that is very Americana and I will put up the flag plaque I showed you last week.

It will be fine...eventually. I just wish I had painted it myself, or handpicked a couple of helpers who are a bit more visionary....and experienced.

I will take pictures. It was just a tad too stressful last evening.

Oh, if you could have seen it when this dear teen girl stuck her entire brush into the paint, up over the bristles, and then was freaking out because it was running and dripping. She wanted to help so badly. We taught her and she was open to learn so it all worked out in the end. (Except for that time that she stepped in wet paint and tracked it across the room. At least it was the yellow and not Frank's Fire!)

Really, it is fine now...my blood pressure will settle back to normal any day now...

Have an awesome day!

Now I can Tell You....

Since Miss Chelsea reads her Momma's Blog I had
to keep a secret. Four of our dear young girl
friends kidnapped Chelsea last evening for a
surprise 13th Birthday Sleepover after work!

They were picked up by my bowling friends,
Bob and Phyllis, who happen to be Grandparents
to two of the girls and parents in law to Miss
Paula at Gathering of Friends. These generous
people have a pool and were willing to lose some
sleep to have the girls over.
Wasn't that sweet??

This is us packed into the car on the way to
work...Me,(See my $5 shirt from K-mart? It is new!)
and the two rather large boys in front,
Three happy and very loud girls in the back seat
are taking these pictures...Look for the thing that
appears in the last one...





Silly Emily, Lindsay and Chelsea. They took these and many more with their Moms' cameras until I gently reminded them not to use up all of their Moms' batteries....I knew we wanted them to get pictures of Chelsea being surprised.

Chelsea is nearly impossible to surprise. She is "in the know" about everything. She reads me like a book. I had to send her on an errand to Grandma's just to be able to pack her clothes and get them stashed in the car. Even then, I figured she would question the bag in the trunk that wasn't there before. But we pulled it off! Yippee.

Warren took a call from her while we were in our Board Meeting last evening which he said was very loud and her first words were, "Did you know about this?!?!?!"

Cool, huh?

The best friends ever!!!

Happy 13th Birthday...on Sunday...Chelsea!

Your family is very proud of you.

You are growing into such a nice Young Lady!

I have to tell you readers, that Chelsea and I were
discussing the fact that she would be a teenager. I
was looking at her and she said. "I'm going to be a
good teenager." I know she means it,
and I pray that she can stick to it. Knowing that she
loves Jesus gives me hope that even as the hormones kick
in she'll stand strong and not do those things that give
teenagers such a bad reputation sometimes.

I think she
will be just fine!

Friends and Family = Wealth

I am a rich, rich woman.

Not in the sense of money...
I am ok with that.

I have the best friends and family
one could ask for. Last evening was
the second Sunday in a row spent with
two other families and our parents.
This time we were at Creekside Cottage.
Last week we were right here at Hospitality Lane.

Three generations talking, laughing
and sharing a meal. Bliss!!!

Our oldest son, Jonathan, always loved
to get our entire family together when
he was young. The Grandparents, the Aunts,
Uncles and cousins.
It was comforting to him when we were
all in the same place. That is kind of how
I felt last evening. As if this is how it was
meant to be. Family and friends together...


Grandpa Bob



Miss Becca


The younger children enjoyed playing in the creek...



Chelsea riding Lindsay's horse, Sandy, while Grandma Ruth watches. Grandma Ruth should have ridden the horse. She needs to prepare for her mule ride into the Grand Canyon this fall. I would never even think of riding a mule down a steep narrow path to the floor of the canyon....but my Mom is going to do it!



Mikey rides Sandy...Do you think we could convince him this would be better than a motorcycle? Mommy does not like the idea of a motorcycle!


Sneaky shot of Warren through the deck


As if it is part of the strategy the kids waited until after we had eaten our fill of Yummy grilled meats and potato salad, chicken noodle soup and brownies then agreed to a re-match of the Ultimate Frisbee game from last week at our place. The Dad's were ready! There was talk at church yesterday morning from Carl about his excitement to get back to the game. I think in this picture, taken earlier in the evening, you can see him plotting his moves and strategy. Can't you see it?


They played until it was too dark to see the neon pink frisbee. We, in the cheering section, were being chewed on by the many mosquitos. It was time to call it a night.

Thank you to our friends at Creekside Cottage for your hospitality and friendship. To the others who joined us...you are very special to us and we are glad to get to know you better.

Dear Reader, I truly hope that your family has opportunities to fellowship in such a rich and meaningful way.

Making do When the Money Gets Tight

It has been well documented that the price of just about everything is going up. We can see, plain as day, the prices at the gas pump tipping the $4.00 per gallon mark.
I was extremely pleased to fill up for a mere $3.89 per gallon yesterday. Why, it only cost $52. to fill the tank! All of the other stations in our area are in the $3.95 - $3.99 range so this one will likely get there soon.

This has to translate to the stores. It is translating to many things we purchase regularly. We, in the States, do not yet have it as rough as the Europeans who are running out of meat and fish while the truck drivers protest the exceedingly high costs of fuel. Who can blame them, really. It would be frustrating to see your paycheck cut in half through no fault of your own. However, I was very saddened to read that there have been two deaths in this protest.

So, what can we do to protect our families from the rising costs?
First, it helps to know what you normally spend so that you can document your savings. Take a look back through the checkbook at your last few moths regular expenditures. Now, you'll be able to plan a cut-back in spending...not a cut-back in fun!

Get your whole family involved and plan ahead:


Do you have young children that love McDonalds or Burger King? Make a chart with them that shows what you usually spend on fast food...Make a game out of marking on the chart each time you don't stop when normally you would have and plan a
one-on-one time with them reward for a certain dollar amount saved. They will jump at the chance to do something special with just you!

Our other money saver is to skip the fries and just use the dollar menu. We can feed five of us very inexpensively if we do this. McDonalds even has sweet tea on the dollar menu. Three dollars/items per person. It is plenty!

What are the pantry items that you cannot live without?

Make a list. Watch the sale flyers. These items will likely be that thing that the store uses to get you in the door at some point. When this happens make the most of it. I will often pick up several of something on sale to tuck away for future use. It has long been a habit at Hospitality Lane. Better yet, if I can get my coupons and sales prices to match I am as excited as that Lancaster County hunter who just bagged a 10 point buck! I love to bargain hunt!

This is the time to save more money! I know you are thinking I am nuts! How? Pay yourself first! Every time a paycheck comes through your door or into your account, immediately take as much as you reasonably can and mark it for savings. Incomes are not likely to go up much in these slow times, but costs will. You'll be able to ride through it with relative ease if you have a buffer.

Plan your trips around town well. If I have to drive up to Lancaster, I am now thinking ahead of things to do while I am there to save myself another trip. Yesterday we did six separate errands all in one trip and because we had done some research before we left actually saved $30 on something we needed. It is not hard but it will require some of your time. The time that you are not spending in the car on multiple trips.

Now that you have higher expenses and less disposable income, what will you do for fun? Visit a National Park. Almost everyone has a free National Park within easy driving distance. Pull out the Frisbee, play some boccie ball, read a great book.

Or, you could have some friends over and enjoy a spirited conversation on the economy or the political climate. This is an excellent time for us to return to a time that we often wish aloud we had lived in. It is simpler...less stressful...a time to sit on a porch...to get to know the neighbors. A time to pick up a baseball and a bat. A time to dust off that old video cassette of ET and invite some friends for a movie night at your house with buttery popcorn fresh from your own stove or microwave. Maybe you love Laurel and Hardy?

A time to hang our clothes on the line. A time to be quaint and carry our own grocery bags to the store...or...I love the thought of taking my market basket to the Farmer's Market this weekend. Lets turn it into an adventure and an opportunity to teach our young about a simpler time.

For clothes, don't be afraid to shop the consignment stores or Goodwill. We have excellent success at yard sales. Just make sure you set a budget for yourself before you go. These things can really get expensive if you do not have a pre-set limit.

I believe that we can cut our spending by 20 - 25% if we make a conscious effort.
How about you?
What are you doing to beat the rising costs?

I got Nothing! But You Tube had these...

Make sure you turn off my Sonific Music before you listen to these.



Well, I don't have pictures for you. I wanted "perfect" pictures...hence, I got none! Well, we did get a shot of the bus as we left the parking lot. Let me know
if you want to see it and I'll post it...just a generic white bus...nothing special.
That is all I got...really! I took the camera out a couple of times but we were just too far away. I think I was one of the five people under the age of 60 there yesterday. Crazy! With the talent these guys have there should be a larger blend of ages! Hmmm...I told Mom that I need to come to these more often because 40 felt mighty young there!

We were in the 2nd to last pew in the church so I figured I'd go talk to the guys afterwards and get good shots...they headed out straight away to get back to Nashville for a recording session. Oh well!

Oh, this was too easy! Here is another one!


And just one more:


Well, much to do today. Finishing up tax details, finding out some info for a client, packing the hubby onto a plane for more time away. I need to visit the post office, bank, local dry goods store.

Then I can begin preparing for a visit from my friend, Shelley! Yee-haw! That will make Warren's time out of town go faster!

Like I said, much to do!

Hope your day is wonderful.

Post #199 - The Giveaway Begins on Monday

Hi All!

What a weekend!
It was full.
It was good.

Chelsea and I spent Saturday
out together shopping.
I was looking for goodies
for the Giveaway that begins tomorrow.

We happened to go to El Rodeo while
we were out and I had some awesome
fajitas!
I'm good now...
for a while.

Mark Lowry was great!
He is effortless in his ability
to be funny.
At the same time he really ministered
as he spoke about his motorcycle accident
and the resulting severely shattered leg.

He related that the things that happen to
us in life may not be what we want,
but they are what we need...
from the Heavenly Father's
perspective.
So true!

Lord Song performed The Lord's Prayer acapella
and I nearly died from happiness at the harmonies
and clarity of thier tone.
Momma Mia! They are awesome!

Things are brewing on the church front.
If anything becomes definite I'll
let you know.
I am excited about the possibilities.

Well, I am so tired but I wanted to get on
here and say hello.

I'll be posting the giveaway tomorrow and then
on Tuesday I plan to show you some goodies
I received from a very dear bloggy friend.

This is serious now, I am planning my posts in
advance.
Scary!

Blessings!

Oh Be Careful Little Tongue

I have two neighbors that read this blog.

Every now and then one of them will comment on
something I have written.
Usually it is to share how it effected them.

Yesterday, one called in concern about something
I had written and could she have somehow offended
me?
Bless her heart! No!!!!

I appreciate her tender spirit and loving gesture
of wanting to make sure that all was well
between us.

Our conversation, however, did make me think.

This gift of blogging is really
the same as talking.

My fingers act as my tongue.

Most of you do not know me personally
and so are not in a position to call me
up and clarify what I meant, nor will you
be as likely to think it is about you.

However, I am made freshly aware that as
I should be careful what I say in "Real
life" so should I watch what my fingers
are posting here.

Keep the comments coming that is the only
way I have to know if you are "getting" me
or not.

Feel free to email me if you want something
clarified further or simply want to chat.
I love getting your emails.
My address is on the sidebar.

I'd appreciate your continued prayers for the
pain. It has not stopped and is getting to
the point that I will likely be calling the
doctor next week to see what the next step
should be. I don't think that I should wait
until the end of the month for my next
appointment.

Sigh...

Counting my Blessings!

I am overwhelmed by all of the blessings
in my life.
A husband who really loves me...
for me...in spite of me...

Three children who are very
good...most of the time.
I love spending time with
these guys!

A home that is comfortable
and more than sufficient
for our needs.
Even if I do complain about
sharing that one teeny tiny
closet! Ok so sometimes I miss
the major blessing focusing on
the minor irritations.
Yep, I can do that!

Many friends! My lifeblood!
I love my bloggy friends!
To talk through words to
new friends all around the world!
Ah...a dream come true!
From Norway to Croatia
this is a true delight!
I love you, friends in Missouri,
California, here in PA, Georgia,
Canada, Tennessee, the big midwest
...all over!
What a blessing you are
TO ME!!!

I love my real life friends!
To be able to share an afternoon
while the children play
chatting about the things
we care most about.
These opportunities I find
get less frequent as the children
get older and there are fewer
playdates...at least so closely
supervised.

I love my Lord!
He is oh so
PATIENT
with me!

So many, many blessings...

I could go on and on...

Are you counting yours today?

Changes are happening...

Sometime, long ago, I mentioned that when my
husband goes out of town on business I get
inspired to get as much done as possible.

"Little" projects that I may otherwise
put on hold for fear of his
"gentle guidance" during the process.
Our work styles are different.
Once completed, however,
he is fine with most of my projects.

I find, therefore, that we are both
much more satisfied
if these projects happen
from start to finish
in his absence.

For example,
one time while he was gone
for a week,
I took down every last window shutter
and painted them.
Oh, was I sorry about halfway through that project
but they were back on the house
a good hour
before he arrived home.
LOL

This serves a few purposes:
I am occupied and not as lonely,
Things get done that normally would not
and... he doesn't really like to go away
for fear of what I may do
while he is gone!
See the logic?
You'll only get that
if you are as crazy as I am!

As he is more than likely checking this
blog to see what I am up to,
I will have to be a bit sneaky in the
progress you get to see, as well...
but the boys were put to good use yesterday...



Today, I hope to patch the damage
to the drywall that happened because of
the type of border the previous owners had used.
It was a self-stick and while most of it
just pulled right off there were a few
spots that held on to the paper layer of the drywall.

Dear Mrs. Rabe of Creekside Cottage,
is planning to come
and help me with this
project later today.
We have shelves to paint and
design to consider.



I'll take pictures...
we'll see when I post them.
If they reveal too much of the
project they may have to wait.

Hope you'll check back and let me know what
you think as this project rolls along.

Here is an idea of the color palette:

I will be using these things
in the freshly painted room,
along with others of similar hue.
The wallcolor is the taupe of the
Williamsburg Pottery seen here.
I have a small collection of these little guys
and will be displaying them
on a freshly painted shelf...
We will see.
I am sure some of my ideas won't
work out exactly as
I picture them so I will be flexible.

Have a great day!
I am off to teach the children!

A Week of Many Projects....

This is an incredibly full week that follows a very full weekend. Here are, in no particular order, the things that need to be accomplished this week:

1. Make Valentine Candles for two fundraisers.Done for One!
2. Paint the bathroom. This is started!
3. Clean out our Master Bedroom of the accumulated papers and "stuff" that just
keeps finding its way into the room. Make room for the Scrapbook Organizer.
4. Teach 5, Now 4,Now 3, days of school to my favorite kids on the planet.
5. Be at the hospital with a friend while her husband undergoes a medical procedure.Done! Joe made out just fine...
6. Take two dogs to the vet...one of which gets extremely car sick. Done!
7. Go Bowling with the co-op friends.Done
8. A shopping trip to Reading with my Mom - because we want to!
9. Co-op afternoon - teach 4-6th grade music.
10. A Co-op planning meeting.Done!
11. Prepare bulletins for Church on Sunday.
12. Host the Youth Group to dinner on Friday.
13. Dogsit for our neighbor friends one more day. Done!
14. Blog for the fun of it!I must! I am addicted!
15. Catsit for my Mother-in-law.Currently...
16. Work in my part time job and see to client needs there.Daily
We will see what else comes up. There will be very little down time...but if all of these things get done, I will be doing a "happy dance" and relaxing next week.

IF I happen to be a little bit scarce this week...this would be why!

Have a wonderful day today!

Your Friend,

Greetings!

Just checking in before I go back to watch more South Carolina GOP Primary results. This presidential election is the closest I've ever seen to a sports event. The pundits are calling the plays...the voters are "running the ball"...back and forth... back and forth. Who will win? We may not know that answer until the "fourth quarter".

I don't know if I'll be able to keep these eyelids open. After a late night last night with Small Group here and enjoying the company of our friends, I was out the door by 7 am with Mom to go to State College on business. We also got to see my Brother and Sister-in-law. We had a lovely lunch at a local restaurant called Prospectors. It was a favorite of ours when we lived there.

It was a lovely day. I enjoyed the 6 hours in the car with Mom all to myself! I also enjoyed the time spent with clients and family. I loved how it worked out at the last minute to see a client who had called me during the week but I had not been able to reach today. She called as we were about to pass her home on our way through her small town. How cool was that! Considering I live 3 hours away from her home I was pleased to have that detail work out!

Hope your Sunday is great and that you are able to Celebrate the Lord Jesus. He deserves our praise!

Praise Report

Admittedly, I whined in yesterday's post.
I did! I confess!
I do want a building of our own for our
church to meet in.
A place to have our fellowship meals.

However, yesterday rocked!

I took a couple of pictures of our meeting room,
at Willow Valley, for you to see.

Can you see in this picture that the piano is on a raised metal frame with rollers? Well, this makes playing it a little interesting. If you happen to "get into" your music, you could get a little seasick as the piano begins to move to the rhythm. I guess I am getting the hang of it but I love our own Church piano and cannot wait to play it again! It is in storage right now.

The staff that we deal with at Willow Valley has been very thoughtful and put us in a room that connects with another. This is the other room, which can be used for Sunday School and Nursery. However, it also holds the coffee. You don't want to know how much that costs. A couple of coffee addicts are supporting their habit. The rest of us get to benefit.

It has been so interesting meeting in a public place...there has been the loud vacuum running in the hall right outside our door, the different layout of the chairs each time we come. We sing a song about shouting to the North, South, East and West. We laugh because if we were set up in just two more directions we would have literally done that. This is a real learning and growing experience. I know there are many churches who set up and tear down each week. We used to attend one. We did the setting up and tearing down. So it is ok with me that Willow Valley does this for us! We just miss the "control" that comes with your own space.

In case you are new here...our church formerly rented space in a building that was sold recently. That space was exclusive to us and we had decorated and made it a true home for the five years prior to now. We are praying that the Lord will lead us to another suitable space. In the meantime HE has blessed us with this room and it is beautiful...just different.

Finally, about yesterday...

Sunday School: Totally awesome! Mike is teaching from the Minor Prophets. Not someplace that I have spent a lot of time studying. Oh, this should be a whole post of its own...lets just say that if you had to defend your faith you could do it from the book of Habakkuk. That poor prophet had serious concerns and yet he knew that God was just and faithful. The end of chapter three is awesome!
It reads:
Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines,
though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food,
though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls...
Yet I will rejoice in the Lord.
I will be joyful in God my Savior.
The sovereign Lord is my strength;
He makes my feet like the feet of a deer,
He enables me to go on the heights.
I challenge you to read that out loud, right now.
See if you can get a sense of praise in times of struggle.
It is not a matter of praising when all is well...it is praising the Lord anyway! It is a matter of the will.
I love this!!!!

Worship Service: The music, the sermon, communion. So special! There is no way I can describe to you how God met us in that room. It was sweet! Pastor Mike was on fire in his preaching and Pastor Jack led us in communion that was so meaningful! Did you think I was going to say I was in tears? Well, you would be right! I laughed and I cried. I just had to laugh when Pastor Mike used the term, "Well, Duh!" with all of the emotion and tone of Patrick(SpongeBob)in the middle of his sermon. Let me just say that every young person in the room was at full attention and totally involved. He spoke directly to them and challenged them to know the Bible so that they could test the input from the world against it and see what is truth. This, obviously, is the short, short version of that but let it be enough to let you know that God met us in a very special way.
It has been sooooo hard.
But God is Faithful!!!!

Fellowship Meal: I came home to find the chili, cooking on low, in the crockpot, had boiled over and was all over the counter, cupboards and floor. It made me so glad that the tables were up and set so that I did not have to stress over the time spent cleaning up that mess. Then Warren came in and started the coffee which overflowed and made a mess in the very same spot. That part of our kitchen is now very clean.

The seating arrangement worked out very well. I used the gateleg table that you see in my header, moved it to the center of the living room and seated eight there. The dining room table had at least that many at it. A couple of kids were eating downstairs so it all worked out.

After that somehow the ladies found themselves playing the Wii as the guys talked about building electric cars, at least that is what they said they talked about, in the living room.

The day ended late, after watching very good movie, The Sin Eater. The title sounds strange but this movie is based on a novel by Francine Rivers by the same name. It is very good. If you haven't seen it, I think you would appreciate it. It is not a comedy, but it ends well.

Bless your heart if you are still reading this horrifically long post!
I could have just said that yesterday was great...but that just didn't have that blog feeling that I was going for. Really, this is my journal and I am looking forward to remembering this day...I will re-read this many times, in the years to come and remember the day that started out with a whine and ended up so blessed!

Thanks for visiting!

Your friend,

Human Contact!

What would we do in life without good friends?
I am so thankful for mine.
Just in the course of the day yesterday
I heard from or talked to:
Deanna, Dawn, Marla, Nora, Susan, Belinda, Jill...Homeschool meeting
Jon, Mike, Steve, ....church business
Shelley...by phone
Mom, Georgia....my advisors and mentors
Judy, Amanda......neighbors
Paula, KJ, Tracy...my blog friends
Marie, Beth Ann, Tracey...CHALC Business
Warren, Jonathan, Mikey, Chelsea...my family
Several familiar faces at the doctor's office after I did a very stupid thing and got a terrible cat scratch, well, several cat scratches.

I am sure that I am forgetting some phone call or someone. These are just the contacts from yesterday...really, isn't that cool? Human contact is vital to my survival.

Do you feel the same? Are you a friend gatherer? How important are friendships to you? I'm amazed and curious about those who don't seem to need people. Where does their energy come from? Obviously we are all different...

Once, many moons ago, I was an Avon Rep. I delighted in welcoming new reps and encouraging them in their new endeavor. Our manager at the time was so funny as she said one day, "Becky, your title should be, Friendship Ambassador to the World".
I am claiming that title. I would truly love to be that and hear peoples' stories. I love to watch people and learn about them. If I am in a hospital cafeteria or waiting room, I wonder, what it is that those around me are going through.
Everyone has a story.

My husband finds it both amusing and frustrating.
We cannot go anywhere that if I don't see someone I
already know, I'm chatting with strangers.
It is just me!
I love people!

SO, bring on the stories, tell me about your life...
I am, after all,
Friendship Ambassador to the World!