Life at the Parsonage

Scripture Memorization #13

2011-07-13T11:42:00.003-05:00

Oh my goodness! Isn't life flying by at a rapid pace? It seems like these scripture posts are due about every 3 days . (Actually, the next one is due in 2 days :-/ ) I've talked with a dear friend of mine who is doing this, too, and she is feeling the same way. Satan has a way of making Spiritual growth more challenging and difficult than need be. However, we are Conquerors and Victors, not in ourselves, but through Christ who gives us the strength to keep moving forward to our goal. "Thank you Lord for knowing our hearts and keep our good intentions moving in the right direction at a steady pace."

Here is the next verse as I memorize the 13th chapter of I Corinthians:

SSMT # 13:
"Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude."

I Corinthians 13:4 NLT

♥

2 in 1

2011-06-15T16:23:00.006-05:00

This post is a 2 in 1. I forgot to post verse # 11 (June 1 - 14) so here it is along with #12 (June 15 - 30).

Now through November I will be memorizing I Corinthians 13 - the love chapter. What a chapter for all of us to put to practice! What a wonderful world it would be if everyone would follow God's guidelines, precepts and laws! I believe the word is pronounced "Heaven". ☺ Someday, we who do love Him and do our best to follow His ways and have made Him Lord in our lives, will live in such an environment filled with love, no strife, no jealousy, no hate -- no sin! We have so much to look forward to don't we? Now, for the first two verses of this beautiful chapter:

SSMT #11

"If I could speak all the languages of earth and of angels, but didn't love others, I would only be a nosiy gong or a clanging cymbal."

I Cor. 13:1 NLT

SSMT#12

"If I had the gift of prophecy, and if I understood all of God's secret plans and possessed all knowlege, and if I hd such faith that I could move mountains, but didn't love others, I would be nothing."

I Cor. 13:2 NLT

♥♥♥♥

Scripture #10

2011-05-23T22:39:00.005-05:00

#10
I Corinthians 13:1 - NLT

"1 If I could speak all the languages of earth and of angels, but didn’t love others, I would only be a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal."

I will be memorizing the entire chapter which will pretty much fill up my total for the year (24 verses). I really like the way the NLT words this chapter and look forward to committing it to memory.

♥

Scripture Memory Challenge

2011-05-03T16:55:00.007-05:00

This year is passing so swiftly. April was a blurrrrr. . . . and now May is in
full swing! I ♥ God's word and I find it to always be so timely -- it fits just where I am. With the hectic lifestyles we live today, peace can be hard to come by, but we can have peace by not allowing our thinking go in the wrong direction. Keeping our minds on the Lord and fellowshipping with Him brings promised peace!
It's time for another scripture verse to memorize for 2011.

#9

"Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee; because he trusteth in thee."

Isaiah 26:3 KVV
♥♥♥
Sherry

2011-04-15T06:00:00.006-05:00

It's time for verse #8: ".....neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." Romans 8:39 NIV ♥

Scripture Memorization

2011-04-11T23:49:00.003-05:00

Continuing on with my scripture verses:

#6: Eph. 6:12 NIV "For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms."

#7: Romans 8:38 NIV "For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future nor any powers,...."

♥

Scripture Memorization

2011-03-02T20:36:00.003-06:00

SSMT #5:

". . . in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us."

♥ Romans 8:37 NIV

Scripture Memorization

2011-02-16T11:38:00.004-06:00

SSMT# 4 - Hebrews 4:12

"For the Word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the ♥heart♥.

I've put this one to the test in recent days and let me assure you that it is true! Every word of it! Also, Ephesians 6:10-18 (NIV) says this:

The Armor of God

10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.

14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.

If you will look closely, you will see that the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, is the ONLY offensive weapon listed here. The only one!! Without the word we are only dodging, ducking and shielding ourselves from the enemy, but with the sword of the Spirit - the word - we can move forward and march an attach the forces of hell. And may I add, I want Satan to be VERY sorry he EVER messed with me! (I believe he is -- and I'm not through with him yet).

♥

Scripture Memorization

2011-02-02T12:17:00.000-06:00

Another scripture on the journey of faith in 2011!

February 1 - 14:

"Jesus looked at them and said, 'With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God."

Mark 10:27

. . . all things ARE possible with God!!!'

♥

Scripture Memorization

2011-01-15T17:52:00.006-06:00

Once again I am participating in the SSM - Siesta Scripture Memorization - through the LPM blog (Beth Moore's Living Proof Ministries). We are to post our scriptures on the 1st and 15th of each month. We will be memorizing at least 24 verses over the course of the year.

Due to traveling and just being busy, I have not yet posted the first verse so I will post both of January's in this post.

The theme of my verses this year I feel will be primarily to do with Faith - taking God at his Word and believing what he has for me can be my reality. So my first two verses are:

"Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see."

Hebrews 11:1 -NIV

"And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exsists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him."

Hebrews 11:6 - NIV

God began dealing with me about this last winter. I wrote a post about it here. More than anything, I want to please God, therefore, I must have faith in him and take he literally at his Word. God cannot lie, so. . . what he says is true and he will keep his promises. Now, it's my move.

Love,

Happy Birthday -- to me!

2010-12-02T07:50:00.006-06:00

Yesterday was my birthday. It was a nice day of relaxing in the morning, lunch with my husband, then some Christmas shopping. That evening our son and his sweet family came by to wish me a Happy Birthday! At church last night my husband had a birthday cake waiting for me that we shared with the Bible study group. :) Thanks Babe!

Tonight, as part of my birthday celebration, we are going to dinner, shopping for new chairs for our living room and then to hear the Trans-Siberian Orchestra in concert. I am really looking forward to this. The Christmas season has begun. I pray that you have a blessed one!

Love,

Surprise at the bottom!!

2010-11-17T11:35:00.003-06:00

We've had such a busy summer and then a 3 week vacation. We were blessed to be in Virginia, Vermont and then Florida before returning home from a super nice trip. By the time we arrived in Florida I was craving fresh fruit and that's definitely a great place to get fresh fruit! After we arrived home I made up a fresh fruit bowl that we enjoyed so much.

All good things do eventually come to an end and so did the beautiful fruit. Last week I was cleaning out the fruit bowl and when I lifted out the bunch of grapes, this is what I saw at the bottom:

M-I-C-K-E-Y M-O-U-S-E grapes! I was totally surprised and grabbed my phone to get a pic of this cute little thing staring up at me :) A surprise at the bottom of the bowl!

Hope your day has a very pleasant surprise in it -- and much better than Mickey Mouse grapes :) Have a wonderful autumn day!

Love,

.

Fun Reading

2010-09-02T16:49:00.002-05:00

I ran across some articles that have mis-prints or strangely worded titles and some that are just simply fun reading. Enjoy.

Now, doesn't this sound like something we might hear in the news?

Sadly all 10 of them have been banned from so many public places!

Ya think?

Brilliant!

Good job!

Innovative little fella :)

Have a great day!

Three Showers and a Wedding

2010-08-29T16:49:00.017-05:00

In September I am scheduled to attend three baby showers and a wedding. Thank goodness there are NO funerals included in my schedule. It seems as though we were plagued with funerals this summer. We attended 7 thoughout the month of June and July! We made a trip to Texas (just south of Dallas), two trips to Louisiana and various other cities at least an hour away to attend some of the funerals. The last one was at our church. I pray we are through with funerals for a while. It's always sad to lose a loved one.

Now, the three baby showers and a wedding are joyous occassions! Two of the baby showers are schedule to take place on the same exact day at the same time. One begins 30 minutes earlier that the other and they are about 12 miles apart. However, I do believe I will be able to attend both for a short period of time. That should be interesting! The third baby shower is on a date to itself. I will be making the cake for this one. I have decided to do a baby buggy on the cake.

The wedding should be interesting for hubs and me. My son and daughter-in-law will both we in the wedding along with her family (her brother is getting married). Our two grandchildren ages 6 and 2 are also in the wedding. Our job is to try to encourage the two-year-old to go down the isle with his sister. From there, they have it all planned out. (We will have reserved seats on the front row -- just in case it doesn't go as planned.) :-/ Fortunately, our little darling boy has a great tempermant and will be adorable no matter :)

Here are a few pics his daddy took of him after they tried on his wedding attire. What you can't see is that this little suit has nicker pants. He's such a sweetheart!

Precious boy!

Love his smile!

"Ta Dah!"

Sherry

See Box?

2010-08-28T08:42:00.014-05:00

See box?

See box empty.

See box?

See box full!!

YAH!!!!

(Yes, I know this sounds elementary, but I can't help myself because lately I have been listening to my little granddaughter read. Actually, it sounds more like the readers back in my day than hers today.)

Okay, back to the boxes. Today I am cleaning out the garage. One side of the garage is full of items that need to be stored away or given away. I recently took down the baby crib (sniff) that is not longer needed by our grandson (sniff, sniff). I will wrap it up and store it away. I have scrapbooking items that need to be put back in the cabinet, a pre-lite Christmas tree that was left in one of our houses that needs to go somewhere, and shelves that need organizing -- again! The best part about cleaning and organizing the garage? When is it finished!!

Off to the garage! Have a wonderful weekend.

Sherry

40 Years and still counting . . . .

2010-08-07T15:07:00.013-05:00

Today is our 40th Wedding Anniversary. Goodness, how time

has raced to this point in our lives! We have been so blessed

and are so grateful to God for His grace and goodness.

For the past two days we have been reminiscing our rehearsal and wedding day. We have laughed and talked of things that had almost been forgotten.

One of the desires of our hearts has been to travel, and we have been priviledge to travel in many parts of the world -- together. Through the joy, tears, laughter, memories good and bad and all the experiences of life that have helped to mold us into the people we are today -- the same, yet so different -- each step has been exciting and worth every inch of the way.

Over the last 40 years we have be blessed with an innumerous amount friends. I see each one as a beautiful flower that together, make a prodigious "boquet". However, God's most extravagant gift to us (besides His own Son) is our precious son. He has been an absolute blessing to us through the years and he now has a sweet family of his own. His beautiful wife of ten years and two darling children are the crowning touch!

I just finished a summer Bible study entitled "Ruth - Loss, Love and Legacy" by Kelly Minter. It has given me a greater desire to leave a legacy of my Christian faith and love for God to my family and those who will come after me. My legacy may not be as profound as that of Ruth and Boaz who are in the lintage of Christ, but as long as I do my best, that's all that really counts.

Happy Anniversary to my sweet Husband of 40 years. May the Lord grant us many more happy and healthy years together. I love you!!

Love,

Sherry

Treasure Hunt

2010-06-17T16:52:00.012-05:00

During the summer months I am keeping the grandchildren on Thursdays. Today we went on a "Treasure Hunt". Breanna loves to do this so first thing this morning, before the temp began to soar, we left on the Hunt.

What I didn't get a picture of was our journey through a tree row and some tall grass. Here we stopped for a picture. I put Bryce in the wagon so he would not get so tired --'cause you know Grammie would end up carrying him after a while. :/

Bryce didn't want his picture taken.

We had drinks and snacks in the blue bag.

After about 30 minutes, Breanna was ready to ride in the wagon, too!

Grammie got her workout for the day!

All rested up and ready to hop out of the wagon and walk.

My son does photography and I found this awesome background

so I snapped a picture of the kids to show him.

We found this written in the cement.

We think "Kekaw" must have been another name for someone's "Grandpa".

We found cactus growing in some tall grass.

Here are some baby pears growing on a tree.

I told Brea that this was treasure that God left for us to find.

Apples, too!

Breanna found some leaves -- more treasures from God.

Oops, evidence of a mole!

. . . and an armadillo had been digging here!

Another leaf.

Then . . . .

we went into Breanna's "tree house". It's not up in a tree

it's in the trees.

Look what we found!!!!

TREASURE!

This "treasure" was left for us by someone with the initials PAPA. :)

Breanna was so surprise and couldn't figure out why it was there or

who would have left it in her tree house.

I told her that we had just found some treasure!!!!

She's only found pretend treasure in the past so this was special.

What a special time it was with these two little sweethearts. They are so much fun. I wonder what adventure awaits us next week?

Happy Birthday!

2010-06-16T17:47:00.005-05:00

Happy Birthday precious little boy!

Today you are 2!

Choo Choo . . . Two Two

2010-06-15T19:48:00.014-05:00

Our little grandson had his 2nd birthday party Saturday. He will actually be 2 tomorrow. His mother does an awesome job with parties as you will see in the following pictures.

This is his banner and theme. His great grandfather worked on the railroad.

Bryce wore an engineer's cap and overall shorts -- so cute.

Here's the cake I made for him.

The table. The cupcake tree is in the foreground.

Look at these adorable caboose cups!!
The kids loved them.
She also had bandannas, hats and train whistles for each child to take home.

We got him this little train for Christmas and his Mommy
used it as part of the table decor.

The little engineer hang'n out with great grandpa known as "Pa".

Then it was outside to play on the waterslide -- a gift
from his materal grandparents.
This is his sister's best friend.

SPLASSSSSH!!!

His Mommy took him down a few times.

His sister loved it!

FUN!! FUN!! FUN!!

Then it was Daddy's turn to take the birthday boy down the slide

while Mommy was helping a little friend enjoy the slide, too.

AGAIN!!!

Brent is protecting Bryce's ears from excess water.

Daddy loves his boy!

It's time to open gifts!
Something for the new sandbox!

I don't know if you can see his mouth or not,

but he is making the sound of the truck.
Typical boy!

Tools like Daddy's and PaPa's!

A fire truck!!

This little boy's father is a fireman so he was telling Bryce all about the truck.

Back to the water.
Playing with the water gun.

The slide all to themselves!

It was a wonderful day with family and friends.

All kids had a fun time together.

God has blessed us with two precious and healthy grandchidren.

God is so good!

Love,

Sherry

What???

2010-06-06T21:52:00.004-05:00

I am the "lucky" one who produces the newsletter for our church. Whenever I have some extra space and need something to fill that space, I look on the internet for some interesting items that just might work. Last week I ran across this picture:

Ummmm . . . . I DID NOT put this is the newsletter!!!

Love,
Sherry

2010-06-03T21:22:00.015-05:00

Last Monday, May 31 - Memorial Day, a dear friend and ex-boss when home to be with the Lord. This man exemplified, love, faith, dignity and grace. He was a loving husband, father, grandfather and friend. When in conversation with him, he had of a way of making you feel as though you were the only person in the world. His precious wife does the same.

His death came sudden and as a shock. He had not been feeling too well and had an upper respiratory infection and wasn't progressing as he should. Tuesday, June 1, the doctors at Baylor Hospital in Dallas drew blood and found that he had acute Leukemia. The doctor delivered a shocking message that there was nothing that could be done, and at his age, he could not withstand the chemo treatments. He was given 3 days to live. He made it to 6 days. Early Monday morning while sleeping, he passed from this life into the next. He spent his last 6 days with family close by. They have some wonderful and precious memories of his last days with them. James was an encourager to others and he continued this until the end. The days ahead will be long and lonely without him, but the family has the Comforter to help them through the rough times ahead.

It can be said that his was a live well lived! He accomplished much in his lifetime, but he would tell you that his greatest accomplishment was his family. Never let us find ourselves taking each other for granted because life is too short and each day with our loved ones and friends is a treasure and gift from God.

Love,

Sherry

"You get a line and I'll get a pole . . . . "

2010-05-24T21:45:00.019-05:00

"Hey, all my Grammie's bloggy friends, we're going fishin'.

Wanna come?"

" Yeah, we're goin' fish'n! Come with us!"

"Let's go, brother. "

"First thing . . . we need bait . . . how about some worms?""I need just a few more. . . . I've got big plans!"

"Next, a quick lesson on how to get this thing ready for fish'n!
Thanks Dad!"
"That dern tree!! @#%#!!"

"PaPa, watch me cast! "

"How'd ya like that cast?
All set! Come oooon fish! "

"I gotta be patient."

"Did I get something?"

"Nope, you didn't.

I'm getting tired of this so I'm gonna try something else."

"Net fishing! What fun!"

"Yuck! Pond scum!"

"A reading break. I've had a great time.

If you don't believe me, just take a look at my 'clean' legs!!!!! "

It was a beautiful evening.

A view across the pond -- so peaceful.

Love,

Sherry

The Marketplace

2010-05-22T22:37:00.012-05:00

This morning Hubs suggested that we have brunch at a newly opened restaurant in our tiny little town. They serve breakfast/brunch only and the hours of operation are 6:30 - 11:00 a.m. This place is very unique. As you walk up to the front door, it's your first clue that this is going to be a different experience -- again, considering we are in such a small town.

The restaurant used to be a warehouse and boasts a series of rooms. Each one has it's one style and personality. As you enter, you step into what feels like a coffee/soda shop in colors of red, black and white. It's very quaint and inviting. Walking through we found 3 more large rooms to explore. Along the way you can shop for decor items, baby items and other miscellaneous items.

I took some pictures to put on my blog to share this experience with you. The first one is the entrance. There's more to see than is in the picture. There's a ledge up at the top of the porch and there's decor with lights that look really cool.

This is the room where we ate. I'm standing beside a fountain which gives you an idea of how large everything is.

Here's close up of the fountain. It's made from a large stock tank with a smaller one inside.

A shot even a little closer. The sound of the trinkling water is so calming and restful.

Another shot of the room. There's actually two of the column units.

Here's another room. I took a quite picture on the way out. There were people eating nearby and so I didn't take very much time to get everything in the pic.

Many of the rooms have scripture verses on the them.
Here is an example of them.

Oh, yes. The food is absolutely great and inexpensive! I can definitely recommend The Marketplace! Hope you've had a wondeful evening!

Love,

Sherry

Scripture Memorization

2010-05-21T18:33:00.004-05:00

I'm late in posting the scriptures that I am memorizing for the month of May. As I have shared before, I am memorizing the first chapter of the book of James. Here are the verses for May:

"And hose who are rich should boast that

God has humbled them.

They will fade away like a little

flower in the field.

The hot sun rises and and grass withers;

the little flower droops and falls

and it's beauty fades away.

In the same way, the rich will fade away

with all of their achievements.

God blesses those who

patiently endure testing and temptation.

Afterward they will rceive a crown of life

that God promised to those who love him."

James 1:10 - 12 NLT

I love the promises of God! I so enjoy memorizing scripture. God is so faithful to bring the memorized verses to mind when I need them. Last year I memorized Psalm 139, and I have been greatly surprized at how many times I have used it in sharing with others, in Bible study and in teaching my Sunday School class. God's Word never gets old, is never out-of-date and has the answers to life's questions. All we have to do is utilize it!

Love,

Sherry

Memorable Days

2010-05-17T15:28:00.015-05:00

Last week was special for our family. Hubs and I spent a wonderful week in the Ozark mountains. We left Sunday afternoon. However . . . it was also the week that our precious granddaughter graduated from Kindergarten. We certainly would not miss that, so, we made the 5 hour trip back home just for this major event in her little life.

The night before had been full of storms, tornadoes and power loss. Fortunately, the power was still on at our house. Since my son and DIL's house was without power, the graduation party was moved to our house. We arrived early in the afternoon to help wherever needed. About 4:30 p.m. my son arrived with the little ones so that they could be bathed and get ready for the big night of graduation. My DIL followed close behind carrying bags of decorations and drinks and supplies. I got out a tablecloth and she knew where everything else was and we began getting the table ready. My son dressed our grandson and I was privilege to dress my granddaughter and do her hair while my DIL took her shower and got dressed, too. Before long we were all set to go

Here's our little graduate after she was all ready to go.

♥ She is a sweetheart! ♥

Receiving her diploma!

Another pic of her receiving her diploma.

With her teacher.

Another pic with her teacher. It was her teacher's first year of teaching.

Her cake.
I did not make the cake because we were out of town.This is not the cake that was ordered. The store that was to make her cake lost power and a cake sale due to the storms. She was very fortunate to even have a cake. It was a last hour attempt -- but it worked out!!

Her "fun" pose with the cake.

With one of her classmates.

Her best "bud".

It was a wonderful evening, She does have girlfriends but she also has NO problem with the boys. :)

At 8:00 p.m. we turned the house over to our kids (they stayed there until their electricity came back on). We went back to Ozarks and finished out the week with friends.

On Friday, our friends had to leave to go to their grandson's high school graduation, so the cabin had an empty bedroom. We called our son and DIL and invited them to come and stay until Sunday. So, Friday night they arrived. I don't know who was more excited -- all of them or us!!

We spent Saturday at Silver Dollar City. Everyone had a great time. The little ones were absolutely awesome! They were so good and cooperative -- even our little guy that's almost two :) Hubs and I left late Saturday evening to be back in time for church. The kids stayed until Sunday morning and had a nice time. It was the first time they had been able to come to the cabin. They really enjoyed their time away -- even if it was kind of short. It was spur-of-the-moment plans, but sometimes the unexpected can be the most fun!

We are thanking the Lord that all of our church members, friends and family's homes were unharmed in the many storms that came through here last week and over the weekend. Many homes, cars and properties were damaged. Hailstones were anywhere from baseball size to dime size!!! God is good -- always!

Love,
Sherry

P.S . Blogger has gone looney so . . I apologize for the crazy font size! I tried to edit the Html but it didn't work as it should have.

What ? ? ?

2010-04-28T12:11:00.007-05:00

I was opening mail at the office this morning and ran across this envelope in the stack . . . . .

Uhh . . . were they practicing thriftiness -- cleaning out their desk -- out of money --- What ???

(Note: I folded back the sending organization's address to hide it and torn the address label off as well.)

Have a wonderful Wednesday!

Love,

Sherry

LPM Simulcast

2010-04-24T23:19:00.004-05:00

Today began very early at my house. It all started at 5:00 a.m. in order to get ready for Beth Moore's Simulcast "So Long Insecurity". My friend Allison came to my house at 7:00 a.m. and we left to meet Valerie and Beverly. We all hopped into Valerie's car and headed to the Journey Church at Norman. We arrived at around 8:30 a.m. The church served breakfast, lunch and snacks! They were so hospitable!

We met up with Jesse and Carol after we arrived. Here's a pic of us:

Valerie, Jessie, Carol, Me, Allison & Beverly

Oh, yes! I won a door prize - a pedicure. Valerie received one, too. Beverly won an awesome prize -- a personal consultation from an interior designer! Isn't that awesome? The Journey church out did themselves in putting this together!

It was reported that there were 300,000 in attendance in 869 locations! Praise and worship was brought by the local church so we didn't get to join in with Travis :( Beth did a tremendous job as usual. She shared from Ephesians 4. She gave us an acronym for "secure".

A secure woman is:

1. Saved from herself

2. Entitled to truth

3. Clothed with intention

4. Upended by Grace

5. Rebounded by love

6. Expectional in life

We learned that grace turns everything upside down:

Broken becomes whole
The leper becomes clean
The weak become strong
The pauper becomes rich
Insecurity becomes security
Impossible becomes possible.

Beth nearly always has a commissioning for us to say to each other. Here is the one from today:

My Dear Sister
If Christ is Your Savior
You are the dwelling place
Of His own Spirit
You have it IN YOU
to be secure.
Every day of your life
You have a choice to make
You can live in your old defeat
Or you can turn from your unbelief
And choose life
Make up your mind
To put off the old you
And put on the new you.
Never, ever, ever forget
That the Lord is your security.
He will keep your foot
From being caught in a trap.
He will take care of you
To your very last breath.
Now, leave this place
And go out into the world
And act like a person
Who knows she’s dearly loved.
You were born to be exceptional.
So, Girlfriend, go forth
And walk worthy of your calling.
You are clothed in strength and dignity!
Now unto Him
Who can keep you from falling
Be glory and majesty
Power and authority
Through Jesus Christ our Lord
Now and forever more
Amen.
So Long, Insecurity!

After I arrived home, I hurried off to catch the end of baby shower at the church. As soon as I returned back home we were off to take our guest for Sunday morning out to eat. It was a full and busy day but -- what a wonderful Saturday it was!

Love,

Sherry

6th Birthday -- Oh My!

2010-04-11T16:45:00.014-05:00

Today was our granddaughter's 6th birthday party. Her birthday was April 5th and she had a small, short party at school, but today was the BIG party. She has been so excited and has taken an active part in the planning of this party. Here are some pictures from the celebration.

There first thing on the kids' agenda was to go outside

and have some fun in the backyard.

Every Princess must have her own banner.

Here's our little princess.

She had a crown, scepter and sash that said "Birthday Princess".

There were crowns for all the guest. The little princes had manly crowns. :)

I have been honored to make all the birthday cakes for her and her little brother. You can see the "line up" if you go here and here. Since this year was a princess theme, a castle cake was a must. Here's the cake.

She asked for blueberry cake.

This was a french vanilla cake with blueberry cheesecake filling.

These were blueberry cupcakes.

I revamped the strawberry cake recipe that's made with strawberry jello

and frozen strawberries and used berry blue jello and blueberries.

It was blue and tasted great.

I used egg whites instead of the whole egg

because blue and yellow (egg yokes) make green

-- I didn't want green cake batter.

She's a blessed little girl. She has family and friends that love her dearly, a beautiful home and an over abundance of toys. But the most important thing is this; she is being taught the Truth of God's Word. We are praying that someday soon, she will accept Christ as her personal Savior.

Have a blessed evening,
Sherry

Easter Sunday Pics

2010-04-08T15:51:00.021-05:00

My son bought a new camera and he is having a hay day taking pics of his little ones. I am so glad that I don't have to worry about getting pictures myself because he is doing it -- with gusto!

Here are a few pictures he took of the kids Easter Sunday morning.

The first two were taken after the church Easter egg hunt.

Look . . . his little hands are in his pockets.

(That's Grammie's little man!)

He was facinated with the flowers -- ahem . . . weeds.

At home before church -- and the arrival of the Oklahoma wind!

She got a hair cut for Easter.

It's the first time she has had her hair flipped.

After it was cut and styled, she kept trying to straighten it out.

This was the day before her 6th birthday. She's a sweetie Pie!!

My two favorite girls!

She looks so big in this cute outfit.

This was his first Easter egg hunt.

He wasn't yet one last year and was sick and did not get to go to church,

but this year was a difficult story. :)

She's such a sweet big sister.

She was giving him some of her eggs for his basket.

I know they are my grandchildren, but . . . . I think they are the cutest ever! :0)

Kudos to the photographer! I proud of you son!

I hope that you had a glorious Easter as you celebrated the resurrection of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ!!

Love,

Sherry

April's Scripture Memorization

2010-04-03T15:13:00.004-05:00

April is here and it's time to post the verses that I will be memorizing this month. This year I am memorizing the first chapter of James. Here are the 3 verses for April:

7"Such people should not expect to receive

anything from the Lord.

8"Their loyalty is divided between God and the

world, and they are unstable in everything they do.

9"Believers who are poor have something to

boast about, for God has honored them."

James 1:7 - 9

I've always considered the book of James to be spiritual "vitamins". With that in mind, I fully intended to be spiritually stonger by the end of this year! :)

Love,

Sherry

Good Friday ??

2010-04-02T15:26:00.007-05:00

Today is Good Friday -- a very special day to Christians. It marks the day that the plan of Salvation for our sins was completed! Christ himself said from the cross, "It is finished!" Well, this was a very unusual Good Friday for me.

Yesterday I had lunch with my dear friend Valerie. We had a nice visit and finalized plans to go visit another bloggy friend, Carol, later this month. I ran some errands and went back to the office. I finished and left about 6:00 P.M.

The next morning I returned to work to find that thieves had broken in to the church. One of the things they took was the money from the children's "Buddy Barrels". The money was being collected for missionaries. There was several things taken from our youth center as well. It wasn't a large sum monetarily, but the fact that someone would be brazen enough to do this is sickening.

I snapped some pictures of the little table of barrels before I checked touched anything. Here are the sad little barrels stripped of their money:

A few minutes later two men from the high school across the street came by to told me that the school had been robbed as well and that the thieves had been caught and confessed breaking in at the church, too. Thanks to the schools surveillance cameras and the police piecing information together, they were arrested.

Now for the really sad part, the thieves: one eighth grader and two sixth graders! Babies with felonies on their records. They would have been locked up in Juvenal hall except it was only able to take those who had committed violent crimes.

These boys need our prayers. Without Divine intervention, they don't stand a chance for a happy life -- they desparately need a relationship with God.

I hope your Good Friday was . . . good!

Love,

Sherry

Out of the box

2010-03-08T23:08:00.005-06:00

Our Bible study group is currently doing "Here and Now - Then and There: A Study of Revelation" by Beth Moore. Each day we are to ask God to reveal himself to us, and then we are to briefly journal telling how God has done just that throughout the week.

For quite sometime, God has been revealing bits and pieces of his greatness to me. Last week I had a dream (I will not share the details) but the message he was reinforcing to me was that I am to let him "out of the box". My faith is too structured, too "in the box", too ordinary. He can be anything he needs to be, do anything he needs to do, go anywhere he needs to go in order to reveal himself to us, to reach us, to work miracles on our behalf. We have a tendency to wrap the Almighty in flawed flesh -- just like us. He, however, is far greater than our minds can comprehend. He has been gracious enough to give us small glimpses of his greatness, his power and his brilliance via his creation all around us, under our feet and above our heads.

Chris Tomlin wrote a song a few years ago that addresses God's greatness. Our God IS indescribable! Enjoy.

Love,
Sherry

Fill'n up

2010-03-05T18:00:00.001-06:00

Last year the Siestas on the Living Proof Blog were challenged to memorize 24 verses of scripture. In January we met in Houston to celebrate our year in scripture and to say our verses. I memorized Psalm 139 and Philippians 3:10a (25 verses). The Siestas will not be doing this through LPM, however, several of us are continuing to memorize scripture on our own in 2010.

Personally, I have enjoyed putting scripture to memory and find that it becomes easier the more I do it.

This year I have memorized Revelation 17:14 (part of the "Here and Now, Then and There - Study of Revelation" by Beth Moore. Also I have begun memorizing James 1. This is what I have put to memory so far this year:

"They will make war against the Lamb, but the Lamb will overcome them,

because He is Lord of lords and King of kings -- and with Him will be His

called, chosen and faithful followers."

Rev. 17:14 (NIV)

"This letter is from James, a slave of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ.

I am writing to the 'twelve tribes' -- Jewish believers scattered abroad.

Greetings!

Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles come your way,

consider it an opportunity for great joy.

For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow."

James 1: 1-3 (NLT)

My verses for March are:

"So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed,

you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.

If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you.

He will not rebuke you for asking.

But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone.

Do not waiver for a person with divided loyalty is unsettled

as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind."

James 1:4-6 (NLT)

I will be memorizing 28 verses this year; 1 out of Revelation and 27 out of James. What a privilege it is to be free to have numerous Bibles -- in various transaltions! However, if I do not use them or put the Word in my heart and mind, they profit me little. I hunger and thrist for more of my Lord, so I choose to fill up! :)

Love,

Sherry

Rock'n and a roll'n

2010-03-04T14:00:00.010-06:00

I live in a very small town that's near a larger city and a short distance from our state capitol. In our little town the newspaper is published weekly -- yes, I said weekly. This was the headlines of our little paper this week:

You read it right! We had a 4.4 earthquake last Saturday! No damage was done, thank the Lord. It has been so interesting to hear the various stories of those who experienced it. Some people only experienced the shaking, some felt the shaking and heard rumbling sounds simultaneously.

In our case it was a bit different. Hubs and I were at home: I was in the living room and he was on the patio enjoying some sun. All of a sudden I heard "thunder", except this "thunder" was underground. I could hear it swiftly moving toward the house and my first thought was "Is this an earthquake?", then I braced myself for the possibility of shaking earth. After about 3 or 4 seconds of rumbling, the shaking began and lasted only 2 or 3 seconds, then it was over! I remember a sensation of warmth which in all probability was the warm air in the house shifting as well.

Hubs said he could hear the thunderous sound waves coming toward him, then popping sounds. Following the sounds he saw the fence moving and shaking and the floor beneath his chair began shaking. It was over in a matter of seconds, however, time seemed to slow down and everything was in slow motion - except for the shaking.

Haiti had experienced a terrible earthquake days before. Chile had just had an 8.8 earthquake the very same day! One of many numerous thoughts that flooded my mind was "What is happening to our world? Is it trying to come apart!" Then as quickly as that thought passed, the Lord reminded me that He has it all under control!

What a blessed peace only He can give in the middle of our shaking worlds! We can experience "earthquake" moments that can change our lives forever. Satan desires to shatter and destroy us. God, on the other hand, tells us in Jeremiah 29:11 (NIV) "'For I know the plans I have for you' says the Lord. 'They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.'" God brings restoration and hope in the middle of our life-quakes in place of destruction and despair.

As children of the Most High God we have the assurance that he will never leave us or forsake us. His plan for our lives is perfect and good. When challenges come our way, we can ". . know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to his purpose." (Romans 8:28 KJV)

So whenever you are faced with a trial, think of it as a test not a tribulation. Tests are given to assess how much a student has learned. Tests are give for the student to pass -- not pass out!

Love,
Sherry

A masterpiece ???!@#@#!!

2010-02-24T19:28:00.002-06:00

Wow! I cannot believe that my last post was on February 1! Quite a bit has "passed under the bridge" over that past 23 days. I will spare you the details but I have been so busy and it has kept me away from my computer.

As I have shared with you before, I teach a young adult Sunday School class. Most weeks I try to prepare a morning snack type food to go along with our every-Sunday-morning -cup-of-coffee. Well, last Sunday morning I prepared a "Sock It To Me" cake. It is a sour cream cake with brown sugar, cinnamon and pecans in the center. I planned it to come out of the oven just before I left for class so that it would be nice and warm.

Everything seemed to be going well. . . however, I should have got a clue when the top of the cake began to brown extra quickly. This cake bakes for 1 hour -- so after 15 - 20 minutes had passed, I went to check on it and a bit of smoke was coming from the oven door -- just a little -- and it had the smell of almost burnt . . I opened the oven door and was shocked to see a dark, dark brown color on top of the cake! I placed aluminum foil over it to prevent it from browning any further - which didn't work this time :)

Finally, the 1 hour baking time was complete and the timer went off. I checked the cake for doneness and it seemed fine -- maybe a little moist, but it looked fully cooked. Since this was in a bundt pan, the blackened top would become the bottom, so I decided to cut off the burnt part before turning the cake out of the pan.

Here is the beautiful browned/blackened part I cut off.

YUCK!

And now the beautiful masterpiece I had to offer my class!

This was supposed to be a beautifully formed bundt shaped cake! I normally consider myself a fairly good cook -- so how in the world did this not test out as RAW BATTER?@#@!! The dark stuff is the pecans, cinnamon and brown sugar mixed with cake batter.

I quickly grabbed my phone to take pictures so the class would know that I tried to bring them something good to eat. Also -- I just happened . . to run into a few church board members on the way to class . . . with proof of the need for a new oven. :)

Guess what! We will be getting a NEW OVEN! The oven at the parsonage (church owned) has been there since the 1980's when the house was built! We have repaired it twice so we are not going to mess with it any more.

I would love to hear your recommedations as to brand, type, etc and your experience with ovens. I am going to measure and see if we can put in double ovens -- badly needed in a parsonage! I look forward to hearing your comments -- that is -- if you are still out there reading this blog :)

Love, Sherry

Chocolate and Starbucks . . .

2010-02-01T09:07:00.008-06:00

Fresh Oil Today is having a Valentine's give-way and invites you to participate. Just look at what she has for the Girly Girl!

Here is the basket of goodies.

What a generous array of awesome gifts.

There's a Starbucks card in there too!

Some lucky Girly Girl will be one happy gal!

Who can resist a CHOCOLATE SHOE!

Most girls love shoes -- but when it's chocolate -- Oh. My. Word!

Isn't this the cutest collection? Visit her blog to enter this give-way. Good luck!

♥
Sherry

Winter Storm January 2010

2010-01-31T19:43:00.002-06:00

7 inches of snow

2010-01-31T10:00:00.002-06:00

Oklahoma experienced another winter storm last Thursday and Friday. Thursday was the dreaded ice storm (1/2 - 1") which caused our power to go out for about 12 short hours -- not days. It went off around 9 PM was back on around 9 AM. Since was was primarily while we were sleeping, it wasn't a big issue.

Without electricity, we did got a little board so, I enterained us by playing the piano. Candlelight wasn't bright enough so hubs sat in his easy chair and shined a flashlight on my music. Before long, he begain saying that his arm was getting tired -- pitiful , pitiful-- a very small price to pay for such great entertainment =)

Friday, I shot the above picture of the pond by our house. The snow was only about 1 1/2 inches in this shot. About 5 hours later, there was 7 inches on the ground.

We went to a friend's house to play some games and enjoy the snow. The snow was deep and as we began to drive off, hubs totally missed the driveway and we got stuck in the deep snow. We tried several things to get it out but in the end called our son who has 4-wheel drive to pick us up. They went back today to try to pull it out but could not find a safe place to hook up to the car, so it is still there. A man in our church had a car dealership and he knows where to hook to it so they will go Monday to get the car. We have another vehicle so it's not a big deal to be short one for a couple days.

I drove to our friend's house, and am I ever GLAD that I was not driving when we left! =) He would have teased me unmercifully and the whole church would have heard about it! I thinking . . . I'm thinking . . . do I want to exercise the golden rule here? What would you do?

♥
Sherry

Siesta Scripture Memory Team Celebration Part 2

2010-01-30T18:15:00.007-06:00

Day two began with the alarms on our phones going off early! We had an exciting day ahead of us and we didn't want to miss one minute of it!

Having some fun with the camera while getting ready for our big day!

We met Beth from Louisiana (next to me) and Yolanda from Kansas for breakfast then we were off to the church again for an awesome morning of praise, teaching and saying our scriptures that we had been working so hard to memorize over the last 12 months!

Self portrait.

I decided that I would try to take a picture of my tee-shirt. Obviously my arm was not quite long enough to get very much of it but I did get the emblem in the picture. =)

We met "Snowgirl" (Cheryl) from Austin the first night and she sat with us. She traveled alone to the celebration so we saved her a seat for Saturday morning's service. She said her scriptures to us and did very well. We enjoyed meeting her!

Beth finished her teaching on Psalm 119, which has 176 verses!!! (I remembered, Beth.)

Then it was time to separate into pairs or groups to say our verses.

In this picture I am saying my chapter, Psalm 139.

Valerie followed my progress in my spiral and monitored my accuracy.

I did the same for her.

We did it!

We said all 24 verses . . . . perfectly!

We both memorized Psalm 139 but in different translations.

HIGH 5 TO US!

My goal was to say it word-for-word and smoothly.

God so graciously honored my request!

A quick snapshot in front of the SSMTC banner.

After the final session was over, we went into the sanctuary and took pictures on the platform where so many of Beth's Bible studies have been videoed. We were told that the wood in the cross behind us is believed to be over 200 years old!

As we were leaving, we walked into the foyer and found that Beth was taking pictures with the
Siestas (bless her sweet ♥). We were fortunate to get in line and get a picture with her.
(What I have in my hand is a door prize that I won -- "Wising Up - Set 1". )

When we walked back into the hotel, we stopped to get a cup of coffee. A friendly voice said hello to us from the breakfast room. We walked over and greeted two sweet ladies and had a nice conversation with Margie and Karina whom we had never met before. We ended up going to lunch with them and Margie's husband, Larry, willing became our driver. We became fast friends and so enjoyed our time together. We made arrangements to meet for church the next morning. They are three people that I will not forget.

We attended the early service at Houston's First Baptist church with Margie and Larry.

It's always a special treat for me to visit another church since my honey is a Senior Pastor :)

After service we drove back to the hotel where Joaquin, our driver, was waiting to take us to the airport. Our entire schedule went smoothly. What a beautiful day it was to fly! We arrived at the airport in plenty of time, checked in, bought a Houston Starbucks mug, had lunch and then only had to wait about 15 -20 minutes until it was time to board the plane. The flight was smooth and quick.

I am so thankful that I was able to attend this awesome event! Valerie was the best travel friend ever! What fun we had talking, laughing, reciting our chapter to each to each other -- over and over, taking pictures, just hang'n out and getting to know each other better. Thanks for asking me to travel with you! Love you sweet friend. :)

Beth, Travis and the Living Proof Staff did an excellent job of making us feel welcome and so loved. They went out of their way to provide this free event for the Siestas! "Thank you" doesn't really cover it. God bless you all!

Thanks to my sweet hubs for allowing me to skip out from teaching my Sunday School class and our own church services to experience this awesome weekend! You're the best and I love you, too!

Mostly, thank you for my heavenly Father for all His provisions in making this possible -- and for meeting with us and watching over us each step of the way!

♥
Sherry

Siesta Memory Team Celebration

2010-01-28T16:15:00.006-06:00

Hey bloggy friends and Siestas!

I am going to try to get this post up before we lose electricity. Oklahoma is in a state of emergency and it is icing up as I type. Please pray that people we will safe and no lives will be lost due to this storm.

I didn't get all my picture together until yesterday so now I will try to recap the trip.

I was so blessed to have been able to be a part of the original Scripture Memory Team through the Living Proof Ministries Blog and attend the SMT Celebration in Houston. My sweet friend, Valerie, that I met through blogging invited me to travel with her to the event. What a fun and wonderful time we had!

I arrived at Valerie's house around 6:20 a.m. She was ready so we loaded the luggage in the car and was off by 6:25 a.m. Our plane was scheduled to depart at 9:25 a.m. and since the airport is about 45 minutes away, we leisurely went through security, took pictures and had a nice breakfast. Before we knew it we were seated in the airplane and on our way to Houston!

Valerie -- almost through security (I wonder if it was against the rules to take this picture in this area of security??!! ) Oh well, no one confiscated my phone. =)

All set and ready go!

After we landed in Houston, we made our way to baggage claim, made verbal contact with Laura and headed outside to wait for her to pick us up.

Look who we found waiting for a ride, too.!!

Tavis Cottrell, worship leader for all of Beth Moore's Living Proof events,-- a brave man to allow a pink boa to be draped around his neck. (The pink boas were a means of identifying Siestas in airports, hotels, etc. We carried our in our purses . . until . . we saw poor Travis! What a good sport.)

One of Valerie's blogging friends, Laura, was so gracious to offer to pick us up at the airport, take us to lunch at Pappasito's and then to the LPM offices all before taking us to our hotel near the church! We had never met her in person -- or any of the other girls we met for lunch! Just the very thing we tell our children NOT to do :) However, meeting these Christian women for the first time face-to-face was wonderful.

From left to right: Laura, me, Annette (from Houston), Angie (from Michigan) and Valerie.

Pappasito's is a great place to eat Mexican food!

We took this picture just before we left. We would be meeting up again that night.

After lunch at Pappasito's, we headed for LPM offices and took a few pictures. Nancy, head of correspondence at LPM, had stepped out to the mailbox and saw us taking pictures so she came over and asked us if we were "Siestas". She took a picture of the three of us then we got a picture with her.

Laura, Valerie and me in front of the Living Proof Ministries sign.

Me, Nancy and Valerie

Next we went to our hotel. It was time to say "thank you" again and "goodbye" to Laura. What a kind hearted person she is. Thanks Laura!

Here we are at the church sporting our very pink boas!

The event was held in the room where Beth taught her Sunday School class. She was a Sunday School teacher for 22 years. Travis led us into worship with beautiful music and Beth taught on Psalm 119. What an awesome study. She made sure we remembered that there are 176 verses in this chapter!

After service, Beth greeted and took pictures with as many as she could.

LPM served huge pieces of Texas sheet cake and coffee to everyone. (There were 508 ladies in attendance -- that's a lot of cake and coffee.)

It was a wonderful evening. We went back to the hotel -- following the pink feather trail along the way :)

To be continued . . . .

Me and Gov. Sarah Palin

2010-01-20T14:20:00.000-06:00

On December 3, 2009, I attended Govenor Sarah Palin's book signing in Norman, OK. Shealah Craighead Photography was there to take pictures of everyone that had a book signed. Because of the copywrite laws and licenses, I cannot place a picture on my blog . . . . but. . . . . if you would like to see my picture with Govenor Palin, just click on the link below.

http://www.photoshelter.com/c/shealahcraighead/gallery-img-show/2009-12-03-OK-Norman/G0000.bIvgNFpX60/?P_ID=P0000lMKdCzN08e8&_bqG=1604&_bqH=eJxL9wtIt0zJcssryi918_SzSKoKSErycY_PSvO0MjQzMbcyNbCyco_3dLF1NwACvSTPsnQ_t4IIMwO1AJBoAEg0x9c7xbnKz8Ai1ULN3TPe3dHHxzUoEpsmAFmxIJA-&I_ID=I0000uihA6ny.Ec0

Thanks for looking.

♥
Sherry

"Don't send a man to the grocery store."

2010-01-12T13:48:00.003-06:00

Enjoy a good laugh today!

Have a wonderful day!

♥
Sherry

Our own kind of party

2010-01-03T08:00:00.001-06:00

On New Year's Eve, my son and DIL decided to go out for the evening an see the New Year in as a couple. Part of their plans was to go see a movie. So. . . . hubs and I kept the kids overnight. Our granddaughter came up with the good idea . . . for us to watch movie like her mom and dad were doing and to have popcorn, too :) She picked "Mary Poppins".

I popped some popcorn, fixed something for us to drink and got everyone seated and then started the movie. The little mister sat by me on a little stool with a little bowl of popcorn and his drink. I was so surprised at his participation in our movie event. He enjoyed his popcorn and as you can see, he was really into "Mary Poppins". He made it all the way to the end of the movie!

I had so much fun with these little munchkins . . . I think it might have been my best New Year's Eve . . . ever!

Blessings,
Sherry

PS Oh, yes, we did see the old year out and the new year in -- barely.

Abundant Blessings

2010-01-02T10:00:00.001-06:00

As an old year melts away and a new one is stretched out before us, we have a tendancy to reflect on the year passed. Some years are filled with troubles and heartache and we are more than glad to see them fade away. Other years are filled with great accomplishments, good times, overflowing with blessings and peace. Even in the years that will not make our most cherished list, we can always find things worthy of thanksgiving. Actually, the Bible instructs us give thanks in all things. Some days that can be difficult, but if we do it, we will begin to see our attitude shift and our spirit life.

2009 - a wonderful year for me and my family. Yes, there have been negative things, a few miner health issues, some set-backs, but overall, there have been so many things to be thankful for. Family is always at the top of my list.

Here are few pictures of some of my blessings:

My son, daughter-in-law, granddaughter, grandson

and new granddog.

So precious!

These two are gifts from heaven!

And of course, the wonderful man in my header picture.

Family and friends are gifts that money cannot buy. I am "blessed with love".

Blessings,

Sherry

2010-01-01T10:00:00.000-06:00

New year blessings to all my bloggy friends!

Love,
Sherry

Scripture Memory Challenge

2009-12-31T06:00:00.000-06:00

The following is the final verse of 2009 in the LPM Scripture Memory

Challenge. We were to memorize it between December 15 - 31. I've had a busy Christmas season but didn't want to let this completely slip by without making my postings of the scriptures 100%. Here is my final verse for this year.

"Point out anything in me that offends you, and lead

me along the path of everlasting life."

Psalm 139:24 (NLT)

This verse should be the sentiment of all our hearts. I do not want anything in my life that offends my Lord and Savior.

Blessings,

Sherry

....and after the presents have been opened.....

2009-12-26T19:26:00.009-06:00

I hope you had a wonderful Christmas. We were extremely blessed this Christmas, but our blessings go far beyond the holiday.

After all the presents have been opened and the mess has been cleaned, we are left with the most precious gift; family, friends and our precious Savior. Things are nice but when it is all said and done, the love we share is what will last.

Here are pics of two of my precious jewels:

She's so interested in words and trying to read.
If you look carefully out the patio door in the upper right of the pic
you can see the white of a blizzard blowing snow.
It was reported that we received 14" of snow.

The wind was so bad that I had to put an old bedspread at the door to prevent

snow from coming in -- yeah right! I was shocked a short while after when Iopened the front door to see so much snow INSIDE the foyer!

Yummy suckers from their stockings.

And here is our sucker-eating-expert. I took this pic with my phone and he was hopping around so it's a little blurry, but notice the chunk of candy on his nose and on the front on his sweater. How he managed the candy on the nose, I'll never know! He's a never ending source of entertainment and sweeter than the sucker he was eating!

I am so thankful for the love that God gave us through the gift of his Son. Because Him, I have life -- abundantly!

Blessings to you,

Sherry

Circle of Friends Award

2009-12-08T06:00:00.001-06:00

Cathy passed this award to her readers. What a blessing! I hope each of you will check out her blog.

I am suppose to tell 5 things I love to do:

1) Spend time with my family and friends.
2) Read a good book.
3) Scrapbook.
4) Traveling -- worldwide.

5) Spend quality time in God's Word.

I am passing this award to each of you, because indeed you have become a Great Circle Of Friends!

"A friend loves at all times." Proverbs 17:17

Blessed to be a friend,

Sherry

Sarah Palin Book Signing

2009-12-05T16:08:00.003-06:00

Last Thursday night the temperature in central Oklahoma was below freezing. But . . despite the frigid weather, I and our youth pastor's wife, Sasha, headed to Norman for Sarah Palin's book signing. The event was held at the Hastings store. In order to obtain a signature, the books had to be purchased from Hastings. Also, they gave out wristbands to guarantee you a signature. By 7:00 a.m. all the wristbands (500) were given out. However, they did allow others to line up behind the fortunate 500. We had purchased our books two days before so, without wristbands, we began what turned out to be real adventure.

Sasha wasn't able to leave work early so we didn't arrive in Norman until around 6:15 p.m. We found a parking place very quickly across the street from the event. We crossed the 4 lanes of traffic and the first thing we saw was a few protesters with their signs and posters. The crowd was large. Due to many spectators, it was not apparent just where the line began so I asked a security guard for assistance. We got to the back of the l-o-n-g l-i-n-e and patiently waited. We were standing in the parking lot and it was s-o-o-o cold (in the mid to lower 20's).

After a few short minutes, Palin's beautiful bus arrived. Because there were so many people, we were unable to see her, Trigg and her parents exit the bus. It had been reported that she would be giving a short speech outside the store, but just before she arrived they removed the platform.

We continued to wait . . . . and wait. . . and watched the first lucky 500 march in to have their books signed. The comments of those leaving with signed books in hand was very interesting. One guy (mid 20's) commented how beautiful she was and also said "I'll never wash my eyes again" :)

Finally, our line began to move, but in spite of the movement, the hope for a signature was growing dim, however, we continued to wait . . . and wait. . . all the while our toes were growing numb, and our legs, fingers (even with gloves) were steadily growing colder.

After standing in line for almost 2 hours, beginning to feel pain in our feet from the numbing cold, we decided to leave and go to Olive Garden for dinner . . . and warm up. We decided to be grateful to have been able to see the bus and experience the excitement of the crowd, and we still had a book to enjoy reading. Also, it gave us an opportunity to spend some time together, which is very rare because of busy schedules and she's the mother of three darling little girls, ages 4, 3 & 1.

We had a nice dinner and talked. Around 9:30 we decided that we have better head home. I suggested that we not go back via I-35 because of the construction, but instead go another route. Also, this route would take us back by the Hastings store and we could check and see if the signing was over . . . or not. We felt pretty sure Sarah would be gone. But . . . to our surprise, the protesters were still there and there was a short line just outside the store. We whipped into the parking lot and were able to park very near the store. Just as we got to the second entrance where they were filing in, the guards said they were having to lock up. I told Sasha, "Come, on. Let's go in the other door." She followed me and the automatic doors swung open wide and we walked in.

Now we are in! We stood around for a short moment assessing the situation. I saw the end of the line and quickly joined the ranks of those who were still seeking a signature. An official looking gentleman asked us if we had just purchased our books. Sasha told him that we had purchased them a few days ago and that she had the receipt in her book. He looked at us for a brief moment, then said "You two will be the last."

! ! ! ! ! ! ! We made it ! ! ! ! ! About that time a lady walked up to me a put a wristband on my arm and told me that it was good for a signature in two books. One of the employees asked her where she got the wristband and she replied that she had just found it and there was only one!

So now, we are in THE line inside where it was warm. They had Sarah positioned in the back of the store. Before we were allowed to approach her table, we had to take off our coats, check in our purses, relinquish our ! ! cameras! ! ! open our books to a certain page and then . . . wait. . . again.

The line continued to slowly move then . . . finally, there she was - - dressed in black with her hair down and styled straight. She IS beautiful -- flawless skin. She must have been exhausted from signing, smiling, greeting and shaking hands for 3 hours. Her lipstick had worn away but she was still stunning. She is much smaller than I expected -- very petite. She has a small bone structure that I especially noticed when she shook my hand. As far as her height, I would say that she is about 5'6".

After the signing, greeting and receiving my book, I walked a few steps away to wait for Sasha. Suddenly, I felt a tap on my shoulder. When I turned around, there was an elderly gentleman smiling at me who said "You can't greet Sarah without meeting her father, too." It was Mr. Heath, Sarah's Dad. He was greeting everyone as they left. We shook hands and I told him how nice it was to meet him. He thanked us for supporting Sarah.

We stopped in the in-store coffee shop to see if the Palin group would exit the building through the coffee shop. (While we were waiting, we noticed Mrs. Heath getting a baby bottle warmed. ) Instead of through the front, Sarah, her family and assistants were ushered out the back to the bus. Sarah was taken to the airport to fly to Dallas and the bus caught up with her the next day.

We were so amazed and yet felt kind of bad for all the others who had to continue to stand in the cold for a signature. And us . . we waited in a warm Olive Garden restaurant, eating and chatting and enjoying ourselves. To be perfectly honest, we both feel that we had been shown favor from our God. After all, he knows the desires of our hearts, -- carnal and spiritual. I was excited to get a signature, but this adventure was really for Sasha to get a signature and I was there to be a companion.

Here are a few pics.

This is my book.

The coveted wristband.

and . . the long awaited signature.

Due to schedule conflicts (keeping little people over the weekend) I was unable to go to "Deeper Still" in OKC. Several of my friends are at DS as I type this so I will get try to experience it through them -- not the same, I know. However, the book signing did fit into my schedule and made my week special!

Thanks for reading my babblings of this unlikely adventure. :)

Love,

Sherry

Christmas Tea

2009-12-03T16:17:00.001-06:00

On December 1, we had our Annual Ladies Christmas Tea at church. This is my "baby" so I am the responsible for getting it together. It's my gift to the ladies of our church. We had 57 reservations and 53 were actually there.

I invited three guests; Cinda from Wichita, KS and my sweet blogging friend, Valerie, and her mother, Lenore, from Shaweee, OK. We had a Christmas piano concert this year. Since I was extremely busy that night, I took very few pictures. If you would like to see more, check out Valeries blog. She did an excellent job of recapping the evening.

Love,

Sherry

Scripture Memory Challenge

2009-12-01T22:52:00.005-06:00

Wow! This is the next to the last verse of our year-long, 24-verse scripture memorization for 2009! I have really enjoyed doing this. The summer was the hardest time to stay on track, but with God's help, I managed to succeed. I finished memorizing all the verses a month ago and have been working on "polishing" them.

Here is verse 23:

"Search me O God and know my heart, test me and know my anxious thoughts."

Psalms 139:23

In January I will be off to Houston to say the verses I have learned this year. I added one extra so that brings my total to 25 this year. I do plan on doing this again in 2010! How about you? Are you willing to put God's Word to memory in the coming New Year?

Love,

Sherry

Psst . . . today is my birthday :)

Getting ready for the holidays

2009-11-27T23:42:00.006-06:00

I just love Christmas! I wish that the decorations could stay up as long as autumn does. I try to decorate as early as I dare so I can enjoy them as long as possible.

I have two tree themes (I only put up one tree -- I rotate from year to year). The themes are "Toys" and "Victorian" -- one for children and the other more for grown-ups. However, I haven't used the Victorian theme since my granddaughter's first Christmas. Children love the "Toy" tree because of all the toy ornaments. Also, I have some old fashioned toys under the tree and kids ARE allowed to play with them. The airplanes, a set of red bicycles, a red wagon, a train, nutcrackers and a train are among our granddaughter's favorite. My grandchildren will have fond memories of Christmas at Grammie and Pa Pa's house.

Last Wednesday, B stayed overnight at our house. Earlier that day I had cleaned the patio (which is made like a walled courtyard) and decorated it for Christmas. That evening she and her Pa Pa snuggled on the loveseat in front of the fireplace, drinking hot chocolate and watching "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" while the Christmas lights sparkled in the darkness. And me? I was in the kitchen preparing our Thanksgiving desserts -- and serving hot chocolate. Next time I want to snuggle with her on the love seat -- and be served hot chocolate! ;)

I have almost finished my Christmas decorating. I only lack the tree and dining room table. The front door (inside and out), piano, mirror, coffee table and end tables, grandfather clock, pation and kitchen are finished. I may decide to sit out a few things in the bedrooms and bathrooms. As I said, I love Christmas!

Simple things can make the best memories. We are blessed with some wonderful memories. Some that have been captured on film, but many more that live only in the realms of our minds.

Love,

Sherry

A time of thanksgiving

2009-11-21T09:12:00.008-06:00

Yesterday at our granddaughter's elementary school, parents and grandparents were invited to eat a Thanksgiving lunch with the students. Our son and daughter-in-law were not able to attend so we were asked if we would like to be B's guests. OF COURSE we accepted!

We arrived a little early to check in and receive our name tags. We made our way to the cafeteria and popped in to see the head cook who is part of our church family. We had a short visit with her. Then before too long, our sweet girl came in with her class. It's hard to believe that she is growing up so fast. She is almost half way through Kindergarten!

Here are a few pictures from our time with her.

The 1st Kindergarten class coming in for lunch.

B and her classmates.

Lunching with PaPa . . . .

. . . and with Grammie

Her teacher took this one of the three of us.

After lunch we were invited to walk with her to the library so we could see her picture on the library doors. To encourage reading, the students to read during each month. The goal is 80 books. Since she is learning to read, she is allowed to have books read to her. Only one student per class can be the winner and they get their picture up on the library doors, their name anounced over the intercom system and and be a part of an ice cream party. She was the only one in Kindergarten that made it to 80 books. (Last year she won in Pre-K too.)

Here a not-so-good picture of the library display.

Her picture is in the "October" window top row, just left of the camera flash.

Close up of her picture.

I am one blessed chick that thanks God every day for His grace, love, blessings, and unmerited favor! Are you counting your blessings? What has God done for you?

Love,

Sherry

Getting into the spirit . . .

2009-11-19T18:00:00.001-06:00

Last week we took off a couple days and headed to Branson, MO. We wanted to see the Christmas decorations and shows because after Thanksgiving we will barely have time to come up for air -- the calendar is full.

We had such a great time. We spent one day at Silver Dollar City. One of the shows wet saw was Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol", a live production that was amazing! It far exceeded our expectations. They did a phenomenal job. For example, when Mr. Scrooge went to his front door the night of his visits from the spirits of Christmas, the carving on the door spoke to him and "stretched" outward toward him. Also, the Spirit of the Present flew out over the audience and there were many more surprises. At the end, the actors were singing and the snow was falling. All of a sudden, it began snowing over the entire audience! And, in case you've never been to Silver Dollar City, the shows are all included in the price of admission to the park.

Since we were going to be there while it was all decorated for Christmas, we decided to come prepared to have some pictures taken that could be used for our Christmas card. We had a few taken professionally that will used for the card, but here is one that a stranger took of us -- and we returned the favor.

You might think that I'm rushing it a little since Thanksgiving is still a week away, but let me say that I am thankful for our country and all of God's blessings -- I thank Him everyday. However, I am even more thankful for the birth of His Son and what that represents -- the plan of salvation! So, I'm ready to begin the Christmas season now.

Love, Sherry

First Haircut !@#

2009-11-18T17:55:00.014-06:00

Sunday night my 5-year-old granddaughter proudly announced that she had just given her little brother a haircut! Her shocked parents asked her "WHY!" She told them that everyone had been saying he needed a haircut, but no one had taken him to the beauty shop so she thought she would help out and do it herself. (Her stunned father instructed her that boys go to a barber shop :) She was very proud of herself for being so helpful. She said that he sat . . .v -e- r- y still during his "makeover".

She had cut the front - bangs. Fortunately, she used her little scissors and not some dangerous pointy ones that could have poked his eye out. Her mom told her that he had only needed the back cut because his hair was starting to curl. No matter, the job was done!

They have since laughed about it saying that she gave him a cut like Jim Carrey's character in the movie "Dumb and Dumber". See for yourself, whatcha think?

This first view is not too bad.

This one shows where she cut -- pretty much straight across.

It could be MUCH worse, but Grammie thinks he's still so cute. Big sister just may have cosmetology in her future :) I love those little munchkins!

Love,
Sherry

Header picture

2009-11-17T09:51:00.004-06:00

I just love the picture in the header of this blog. I took this picture in Reykyavik, Iceland. The rolling hills, majestic mountains and -- oh my word -- the cloud formations are just beautiful! There were little churches like this one dotted all throughout the countryside.

I wonder if the house on the right could be the parsonage? If so, I wonder how the life in that parsonage compares to the life in the one where I live. Hummm.

Have a wonderful Tuesday!

Love,
Sherry

Scripture Memory Challenge

2009-11-15T22:02:00.010-06:00

"Yes I hate them with a total hatred, for your enemies are my enemies."
Psalm 139:22 (NLT)

This is my scripture for the next two weeks -- not exactly one I would necessarily hang out there all by itself, but it's part of the chapter I'm memorizing. I'm so happy to say that I've already memorized this verse. In fact, as I stated in a previous post, I have completed memorizing the entire chapter - PTL!

I have begun searching for what I will be memorizing next year. There's nothing quite like the peace and satisfaction that come from hiding God's Word in our hearts. I love the Word!

Love,

Sherry

Get in the Game

2009-11-11T14:41:00.009-06:00

During the month of October we recognized all the volunteers and volunteer teams in our church. Each Sunday spotlighted a different group. The entire 4 weeks of appreciation was paralleled to a football team. The last Sunday everyone was asked to wear their favorite team colors whether it be professional, college, high school.

We live almost equal distance between two rival state colleges; Oklahoma University and Oklahoma State University. It was surprising that there were much more OU fans than OSU. Some were teachers and wore the local school colors. (I called them the peacemakers :)

Here's a few pics from the day.

Me in my Southwestern Oklahoma State University sweatshirt - my alma mater.

Isn't that a tiny little emblem?

Tennis shoes are so much more comfortable to teach Sunday School in than dress shoes.

I was so thankful that the weather turned very cool or I would have been one hot mama!

My granddaughter and her best friend sport'n their Kindergarten and Pre-K tee shirts.

I swear, these two are joined at the hip. They are such close friends.

They say that they will marry some day.

Too young! Too young!

Not only the young, but the older ones participated, too!

Isn't she darling?

This couple is wearing the church basketball league jerseys.

Some serious OU fans.

"Train up a child. . . .and when he is old he will not depart . . ."
Starting early here. This is my son and grandson.

A few of the "peacemakers". She's a coach at our local school.
Here we have Meeker jerseys and church league jerseys.

Our inspiration for the whole thing. I couldn't get my camera out fast enough to get a picture of her wearing her helmet . The OU song was played as she came through the doors and ran down the isle and encouraged everyone to "Get In The Game" and volunteer to help in some area.

Pamphlets and volunteer cards were given to each person as they entered the sanctuary.

It was a fun day. I really enjoyed wearing extra comfortable clothes -- I think I could get used to that ;)

Love,

Sherry

I'm Finished!!

2009-11-10T20:30:00.002-06:00

I am so excited! I have been doing the scripture memorization with the Living Proof Siestas. We have been memorizing two verses per month for an annual total of 24 verses. I chose to memorize the 139th Psalm with has exactly 24 verses. Well . . . . . I have completely memorized it -- ahead of schedule!!!!!

Putting this chapter to memory has been an awesome journey. I am one of many who has been doing this all year long.

Actually, I have memorized 25 verses. I included my "motto" verse into mix. Now I am "polishing" and working to make my recitation smooth and expressive.

I am fortunate to be able to go to Houston in January to say my verses! What a reward for the work over the passed 10 1/2 months.

I encourage you to do this next year. Hiding God's Word in our hearts is a wise thing.

Love,

Sherry

Feeding the "flock"

2009-11-09T22:41:00.008-06:00

I have an awesome Sunday School class. Every week we have a treat of some sort and coffee. This week I made them an apple tart. They really liked it -- in fact, it's all gone! I took a picture of it to share with you.

This one is apple pecan but my favorite is strawberry/cherry. The class likes that one, too. That group of awesome people are so worth any effort I put forth to feed them -- spiritually or physically! I am truely blessed to share in their lives.

Love,
Sherry

Skywatch

2009-11-03T23:25:00.007-06:00

I'm not a member of Skywatch, but I love looking at the sky and cloud formations. Cathy is a member of skywatch and post pictures of the sky almost every week. While I was on vacation I saw some beautiful cloud formations, the moon, sunsets, sunrises (there were few of these - 'cause I was on vacation).

Here are two pictures that I took while on vacation.

This was taken in Cherbourg, France.

This was taken while driving out in the countryside near Reykjavik, Iceland.

No matter where we are in this world, we have an enormous God who is always present.

"I can never escape from your Spirit!

I can never get away from you Presense!

If I go up to heaven you are there.

If I go down to the grave you are there.

If I ride the wings of the morning;

If I dwell by the farthest oceans,

Even there your hand will guide me

and your strength will support me.

I could ask the darkness to hide me

and the light around me to become night --

but even in darkness I cannot hide from you.

To you, the night shines and bright as the day.

Darkness and light are the same to you."

Psalm 139:7-12

Isn't He just marvelous?

Love,
Sherry

Scripture Memorization Challenge

2009-11-02T16:40:00.007-06:00

We are already memorizing verse 21 out of 24 in the LPM Scripture Memorization Challenge! It's hard to believe that this year is passing so quickly! This is my verse as I continue memorizing Psalm 139:

"O Lord, shouldn't I hate those who hate you? Shouldn't I despise those who oppose you?

Psalm 139:21

I just love this chapter. It keeps reminding me how personable our Shepherd is. I am teaching on Psalm 23 in Sunday School and yesterday I went through Psalm 139 to emphasis this fact. If you have not taken the time to read this chapter in a while, I highly recommend that you do. You will feel loved and very special!

Love,

Sherry

It's so fun . . .

2009-10-22T22:15:00.006-05:00

. . . . being a grandparent!

Last week we took our granddaughter to Silver Dollar City in Branson, MO. She loves rides and trips with Grammie and PaPa. Here are a few pictures of our trip. She rode many more rides than I have shown below. She's such a good little girl which makes it a pleasure to take her places.

She's had the flu this week but is much better and getting back to normal.

The autumn decorations and fall colors were so pretty while we were there. It was cool but still very pleasant.

Our little "snow bunny" and scarecrows.

On the swing ride. She said that this was her favorite ride.

The elephant ride.

Taking a lunch break.

A huge cornucopia and our little doll.

Look at the smile on her face!

If it's fast and slings her around, she loves it.

A happy girl!

Playing her piano horn -- one of her souvenirs .

And a Happy Boo to you, little sweetheart!

I am so blessed to have such a wonderful and loving family. To me, this is the true wealth in life! I hope that you, too, are blessed with this treaure called a loving family!

Love,

Sherry

Little Mister

2009-10-20T15:28:00.004-05:00

This picture was taken before Sunday School 10-11-09. He was not familiar with the lady who was behind the camera so he was not willing to share a smile. Normally, there's a smile on that little face all the time! I love my little man!

His sister was diagnosed with the flu today so please pray that Little Mister doesn't come down with it too. Fortunately, the only symptom she had was high fever -- nothing else. The doctor really thought it might be her ears since they were not normal looking, but it was more than that. There were 6 total out sick today in her Kindergarten class. The cases here have been mostly mild, PTL!

Have a blessed Tuesday!

Love,

Sherry

Hiding God's Word

2009-10-19T21:56:00.014-05:00

I have been spending extra time with on my verses. I am doing well and have been working on polishing them. Here is my next verse:

"They blaspheme you; your enemies misuse your name."

Psalm 139:20

Are you memorizing scripture, too? If so, I would love to know what verse(s) you are working on and how it's coming.

I like to compare memorizing God's Word as loading a computer. There has to be "input" before we can get "output". I want to be sure I have somethng to draw from in the times of life I need His strength and comfort. I find strength and comfort from the Word!

Love,

Sherry

Just got off the Ark . . .

2009-10-15T22:22:00.006-05:00

Hi everyone! We are in Branson, MO with our Grand daughter on our "Annual Grandchild/Grandparent Trip". We just returned from the Noah production. If you have not been priviledged to see this, you're missing out on an awesome message.

Our little 5-year-old grand daughter was greatly impacted by the message. She was full of questions allllllll the way through the play. She came away realizing that we must all make choices for ourselves and that our choices are very important.

The productions ends with an awesome Salvation message with an invitation for Salvation or prayer for any need you may have! It's that awesome?

I have started working our another vacation post, but let me confess that I dislike uploading multiple pictures. Does anyone have any tips (besides a slide show) on how to do it quickly?

Tomorrow we are off to Silver Dollar City for some fun!

Til later,

Sherry

God had a better plan

2009-10-12T20:15:00.004-05:00

I haven't been posting very much lately. It's partly because I'm having trouble with the wireless feature on my laptop. Right now I'm using Hub's laptop which is a little older than mine. I'm trying to convince Him to update but that can be like trying to move a parked car :)

We had a fabulous vacation which I will begin to tell you about in this post. If you read the pre-vacation posts, you may remember that I stated that we were traveling with airline employees using Buddy passes -- which is basically standby with Business Class options. This is a very adventurous way to travel because you never know where you will have to go to get to your final destination. Our final destination in this case was Harwich, England.

Since the airlines have cut back the number of flights and are notorious for over-booking, it is a little more difficult to fly this way. We were scheduled to fly out of OKC on Monday, August 31 around 6 A.M. We also prepared with plan B and C just in case. Sure enough, leaving OKC for Minneapolis was a "go" but getting to Detroit from Minneapolis was not possible. Plan B was to drive to Memphis on Sunday and then fly to Detroit or possibly Atlanta (plan C).

Sunday afternoon we devised plan D. We drove to Dallas and spent the night. We rescheduled our flights to leave from Dallas to Detroit to London. Our friends' son lives close to the DFW airport so he came and picked up the car and kept it at his house. The next morning we left Dallas for Detroit around 7 am and then had to wait for a 5:30 pm flight to London.

As time drew closer to leave we realized that London was NOT going to happen. Just in case, we had already done some extra planning and now Amsterdam was the next option for us. We needed to get to Europe in order to make it to the ship on Wednesday. (We were losing 7 hours as we traveled -- basically a day).

There were two flights scheduled to leave for Amsterdam around 6:30 & 7:30 pm. The first flight didn't look too promising but the agent was working on it. At the last minute, all four of us were able to get on -- and -- in Business Class (we were praying for that). We realized that getting on this flight a miracle from Jehovah Jireh (our provider).

Note: We always make our travels a matter of prayer and trust God for safety and guidance. We were certainly blessed by His hand of guidance and provision throughout this entire vacation.

Bright and early Monday morning we landed in Amsterdam. We have been in this awesome city countless times and are fairly familiar with the airport and train system. We made our way to baggage claim only to discover our luggage was not on the plane! We are now in Amsterdam and our luggage is possibly in London (it was checked through to London at the DFW airport)! We checked with the agent and they could not locate the luggage at that time. We knew that was another flight coming in in less than an hour so we waited.

It is now Tuesday morning and the ship sails at 5:00 pm Wednesday with or without us. We have to find our luggage and find a way to England. I began to pray. I thanked the Lord for providing the miracle of getting us on our flight and for allowing us to be in Business Class where we could actually stretch out (almost lay down) and get some sleep. I told Him I knew that I believed that He could and would take care of the luggage problem and asked that it be on the next flight from Detroit. No more had I said "Amen" than the conveyer belt started and the first piece of luggage out was ours! God is so mindful of His children!

Now . . . we were all together, us and our luggage, but in the wrong country! We now needed to get to London (so we thought -- God had other plans -- better plans).

First we checked with the local & international airlines and since we needed on right away, nothing was available. Next we checks on trains. There was one and it cost about $600 per couple (better than missing the ship). It would be an 8 hour trip to London and then we would have another 2 hour train and taxi ride to the ship. Time was running out on this option and our friend was checking on something else. We were really feeling the pressure.

Our friend discovered that there was a ferry that acrossed the English Channel straight to Harwich -- our final destination. The trouble was, no one could give us a time schedule, price or exactly where we had to go to catch the ferry. We bought tickets to Central Station and was able to find out the city was Hoek Van Holland Haven, 1.5 hours away by train. (This city is also called the Hook of Holland . "Hoek" is pronounced like "hook".) They printed out the schedule -- in Dutch so I studied it for a while then double checked with a ticket agent to be sure I understood the schedule. I could only understand one of the column headings, "spoor" which means platform -- the rest might as well have been Greek b/c I don't understand Dutch. But . . I actually did make sense of it and had it right!

The scheduled was printed out 5 minutes before the train was due to leave so when we arrived on spoor 2, the train was gone. Fortunately, these trains are a part of their public metro system so it was possible to catch another one. I showed our schedule to an agent and he directed us to spoor 1 and said it was leaving in 10 minutes. We hopped on the train -- well. . . . . with each of us handling 1 large suitcase and one carry-on size, we didn't exactly hop. We had done this before so we knew what we needed to do to get it on and where we needed to be to ride.

We sunk down in our seats while keeping an eye on our luggage. Shortly the train began to move and we were off to find a ferry -- still not sure what it's schedule was. We were told that it may leave at 5:30 pm but that was not definite. We were schedule to arrive around 5 pm.

The Dutch countryside was gorgeous. We saw farms, small towns, old windmills -- such beauty! My camera was buried in carry-on luggage and pictures were not a priority. We had to carefully watch the map and station signs b/c we were to make one train change. There was no room for a mistake.

A young couple got on the train and sat down on the steps near us. Hubs began talking with him and asked about the ferry. He was not sure but he said he would check for us on his telephone.

Wonderful news! There definitely was a ferry leaving at 10:00 pm arriving in Harwich, England at 6:00 am. He told us the cost and that there were cabins to rent it we would like to rent one.

Everything was working out perfectly.

After making one train change, we arrived in Hoek Van Holland. (I even got a Dutch lesson from a college student on how to properly pronounce "Hoek Van Holland".) :)

We found the terminal and bought our tickets w/cabins. It's now around 5:30 pm but we found out that they begin boarding the ferry at 7 pm, so the wait will be short. We had a nice dinner out on the front "porch" area on the old train depot. We always travel with games, so we had time to play some cards and relax.

The ferry was so nice. Nothing like any ferry I had ridden before. It was almost as nice as the cruise ships! We had nice showers and comfortable beds. The next morning we awoke, dressed and headed to the elevators to disembark the ferry. As we were walking off, I looked up and there was our SHIP! God had delivered us 100 yards from the cruise ship -- no trains -- no taxis!

After clearing customs, we got some breakfast and went to the ship terminal, around 9 am. We found a table and played some games to pass the time (normally they do not begin embarkation until at least 12 noon). They were right on scheduled with the disembarkation and said it wouldn't be long before we could board! As we sat there, the luggage handlers came to us, asked to see our tickets and tagged our luggage with our stateroom numbers and headed to the ship with them! Before long, we checked in and got on the ship. We went directly to our staterooms to get rid of our carry-ons (we always keep them with us). When we arrived in our rooms -- OUR LUGGAGE WAS WAITING! It usually doesn't arrive until after 5 pm!

If we had to do this all over again, we would take the same route. It was the most logical, direct and restful. It just would have been nice to know it all in advance, but isn't that how faith works -- sometimes blindly?

Below are pictures of the ferry and a picture of the cabins. We chose inside since it was a night crossing. The ferry's name was "Britannica". Later I discovered that the Stena Line has many ferrys from Denmark to Ireland. Who know? God did!

Love,

Sherry

Scripture Memory Challenge

2009-10-01T15:41:00.003-05:00

I can hardly believe that we are now in October and this is verse 19 of 24! How swiftly this year is passing.

19 O God, if only you would destroy the wicked!
Get out of my life, you murderers!

Psalm 139:19(NLT)

I haven't had the to opportunity to post about our vacation. Hopefully I will be able to get it together this weekend.

Have an awesome Thursday!

Love,
Sherry

Offering Linebacker

2009-09-27T17:34:00.003-05:00

Hopefully we haven't come to this!

Enjoy.

Love,
Sherry

Scripture put to heart

2009-09-15T05:00:00.005-05:00

"I can't even count them; they outnumber the grains of sand! And when I wake up, you are still with me!"

Psalm 139:18 (NLT)

Not only is He with us -- at all times -- our God sings over us. As Zephaniah 3:17 says, ". . He will rejoice over you with singing."

He is such an awesome God!

Love,
Sherry

Change of posting plans

2009-09-03T06:00:00.001-05:00

On this trip, we are flying on passes with an airline employee. That means you never know exactly when you are flying or to where you will fly. So, we had to leave unexpectedly, therefore, I am not be able to finish the day-by-day posting as I planned.

I will be posting again after we get back with pictures ;)

Love,
Sherry

Bon Voyage!

2009-09-02T06:00:00.015-05:00

We are going on a cruise! Are you ready to come along?

Today we are in Harwich, England. As soon as we get to the dock we will tag our luggage and go check in. Once we get on board we go to our rooms to get rid of our carry-on luggage (the ones we have been physically attached to since Monday!).

Now it's time to look around the ship and get our bearings (port, starboard, aft, forward, elevators, etc.). We are on "Jewell of the Seas", a mega ship in the Royal Caribbean fleet.

Let's go look around the ship, shall we?

First stop, our room. No matter the size, they are quite comfortable.

This is the theater. It has a least one balcony and can be accessed from two different floors. The entertainment on Royal Caribbean is awesome. There are numerous guest entertainers in the line-up, plus RC has their own dancers and amazing band aboard all the ships.

This is the centrum. It is the business hub of the ship. There's customer service, and shopping, tour information, booking, and shopping, the daily newspapers, and shopping, photography, and shopping. I think you get the idea. The voyager fleets have shopping malls with sidewalk cafes! Centrums are usually open for 3 - 4 stories with glass elevators, and beautiful.

Another view of the centrum.

This is the formal dining room where we will eat each evening. This one is two stories (voyage fleets are three stories).

The indoor pool or solarium. Gorgeous, isn't it?

The outdoor pool. There are hot tubs near the outdoor and indoor pool.

Basketball court and/or tennis.
This ship also has golf and rock climbing.

And for the kids and kids-at-heart, there's a waterslide!

This is an interesting feature in one of the lounges -- a car. Depending upon their size, the lounges are used for entertainment, small shows and contests, classes and seminars, church services -- not just for drinking.

Well, did you like your tour? It's hard to believe how huge these vessels are. They are actually floating cities. There is many things to do. The spa are wonderful. The exercise gyms are awesome.

Thanks for joining me on today's tour. Come back tomorrow because there will be more to share.

Love,

Sherry

Good Morning, London!

2009-09-01T06:00:00.003-05:00

That's right, we're in London, England today!

We landed at Heathrow Airport this morning. Now it's time to catch a train then make a transfer by taxi to catch another train. Then another taxi to our hotel.

We are not staying in London. We are forturnate enough to have been there before. It's a facinating city -- and huge! Instead, we are traveling to our hotel near Harwich. So let's keep up with our luggage begin today's short journey (about 2 hours).

See you there!

Love,

Sherry

Scripture put to heart

2009-09-01T05:00:00.004-05:00

This is verse 17 of our LPM (Living Proof Ministries - Beth Moore)
scripture challenge:

"How precious are your thoughts about me, O God.

They cannot be numbered!"

Psalm 139:17 (NLT)

This verse certainly speaks for itself. To know that the God of this universe thinks about me and you -- takes my breath away and causes me to be speechless . . . .

for a while :)

Love,

Sherry

Come fly with me . . .

2009-08-31T05:00:00.005-05:00

Today we leave on vacation. So grab a seat and come along as we start our journey that will take us -- quite a while.

Everything is packed. We rise before sunrise, meet up with our friends and head to the airport.

After arriving at the airport, we unload the luggaae and head to the ticket counter to check in and have our luggage weighed.

Whew . . . . it passed.

Our luggage is now on its way. Too bad if I've forgotten anything. The next time we meet up with our luggage, there won't be a Wal-Mart handy!

Next we head to security check; wait in line; take off our shoes; get out our little bags with liquids. We've made it through security and now it's time for breakfast. We usually get something at Sonic. After breakfast, we walk to our gate -- and wait.

Our first flight leaves at 6:40 a.m. and lands in Memphis, TN. From there we head to Detroit, MI. Our next flight leaves at 6:00 p.m. and it's an overnight flight to a destination that I will reveal -- in tomorrow's post.

Get some rest because tomorrow we will be busy. We will have some traveling to do by train and taxi, then train, then taxi again -- all with our luggage in tow. (I really don't like that part.)

Till tomorrow,
Sherry

Only in America . . . .

2009-08-27T15:13:00.007-05:00

Only in America . . .

Can a pizza get to your house faster than an ambulance.

Are there handicap parking places in front of a skating rink.

Do people order double cheeseburgers, large fries and a Diet Coke.

Do banks leave both doors to the vault open and then chain the pens to the counters.

Do we leave cars worth thousands of dollars in the driveway and put our useless junk in the garage.

Do we use answering machines to so we won't miss a call from someone we didn't want to talk to in the first place.

And it's all because we can -- and I pray we can continue to have this freedom to do dumb things if we want to. :)

Have a great evening!

Love,

Sherry

Just to think . . .

2009-08-26T06:00:00.007-05:00

. . . Just to think,

only last week

. . . . he couldn't drive!

Don't they grow up at the speed of lightening?!!!

Love,

Sherry

Scripture Memorization

2009-08-25T06:00:00.008-05:00

I didn't get this scripture posted on the 15th, so here is my verse for this two-week period:

"You saw me before I was born.

Every day my life was recorded in your book.

Every moment was laid out before a

single day had passed."

Psalm 139:16 (NLT)

What a personal God we have!

I noticed something in this verse that I appreciate -- God approves of lists! He made "notes" while we were being formed :) He's the Master Planner and Extraordinaire at executing His Plan. What that says to me is that He is trustworthy! There is nothing or no one that cannot be placed in His hands for safekeeping.

If you struggle with trusting God, let me encourage you to practice trusting Him. Start with today and go from there. He really wants you to fully trust Him! He is a friend who can be trusted.

Love,

Sherry

First day

2009-08-24T06:00:00.002-05:00

B started Kindergarten this year. It is so hard to believe that she's 5 years old!

Her mom was so sweet to stop by on the way to school so that we could see her and -- of course -- take some pics. But . . . she had already had so many pictures taken of her that she really wasn't interested in posing -- a-g-a-i-n!

" Okay, Grammie, I'll pose again."

"But . . . one's enough!"

Little girls; don't cha just love 'em?

Love,

Sherry

Don't give up!

2009-08-23T20:45:00.005-05:00

Hi there!

For the three or four of you who have been visiting my blog this summer -- don't give up on me. I'm still around. This has been such an unusual summer and blogging has had to be put on the back burner.

We are preparing to go on vacation and I plan on leaving posts so that you can "come along" with me again this year. I have one week to do this so . . . I'd better "light a fire" under me and get it done :) I just about have everything at the office completed. My house looks like an explosion in a chinese laundry -- no joke -- however the clothing (Hub's) is folded -- for the most part.

These pictures show what I mean:

I am doing hubs first, then I will work on mine. We will be in a cool climate so we will need to layer clothing and still keep it all within the airline's weight limit -- that's difficult for me.

I even have some of his clothing hanging on the kitchen cabinets!

You may be wondering why the clothes are all over the house and not just in the bedroom -- well the parsonage is small and the bedroom is covered with partially packed suitcases, too.

Traveling is fun, but I am always so releaved whenever the packing is complete and the suitcases are closed!

How has your summer been? I hope that the majority of you have had a restful and fun summer. Did you get to take a vacation yet? If so, where did you go?

Till later,

Sherry

Will it be like this ?

2009-08-10T22:27:00.007-05:00

This is what the eastern sky looked like today.

I couldn't help but wonder if the clouds might look something like this . . . on a day like this . . .

when Jesus steps out to gather us home!

As I was driving home from shopping in OKC today and noticed that the cloud formation was extraordinary. By the time I arrived home and got the camera out, it wasn't quite as beautiful but still worthy of photographing it.

I do not know when Christ will come, but He has promised to return for us. One thing I do know . . . how and when He comes will be perfectly done and perfect timing. It will be an awesome celebration -- done as only He could do it!

Oh, and these beautiful clouds? They are giving us rain as I type. I love to sleep to the rhythm of the rain. So . . I'm off to bed. Good Night!

Love,

Sherry

Scripture Memory Challenge

2009-08-06T19:18:00.007-05:00

This is about 5 days late but my verse for August 1 - 14 is:

"You watched me as I was being formed in

utter seclusion, as I was woven together in the

dark of the womb.

Psalm 139:15 (NLT)

I remember my mom reading this verse to me when I was a child. I tried to picture what this verse was portraying; I was being created in dark seclusion! I didn't quite got the picture then, but as an adult learning more about the creation and birth of a child and all the technology we now have to be able to see a child in utero, it's much more possible to picture what the Psalmist was saying.

When we took the Lamaze classes preparing for the birth of our son, I was so amazed to learn that every cell must reach it's exact destination at the exact time or, to put it very simply, things can get messed up and chances are, it will naturally abort.

I remember reading a joke about God and a scientist talking. The scientist proudly told God that creating a man was no big deal -- he could do that.

God says, "Oh really? Show me."

The scientist then reaches down to pick up a handful of dirt and God says, "No, No! Get you own dirt!"

Our brilliant scientists today may be able to clone an animal or person, they still have to start with God's "dirt".

What a Creator we have! And, He desires for us to get to know Him intimately! That means you, too! Do you have a close and personal relationship with your Creator - the almighty God of heaven and earth? If not, He's waiting. He won't turn you away -- I promise!

Love,

Sherry

A Medical Nightmare

2009-07-27T20:00:00.003-05:00

I am checking in with my sweet bloggy friends. Sorry that I have been missing from the blogging scene for the past few weeks. This has been such a busy summer. Hubs and I and our kids and grandkids are doing fine. However . . . I do have a prayer request.

My brother had a hip re-do surgery on June 23. Something went wrong with the hardware from the first surgery. The 2nd surgery went well and then he was moved for physical therapy. He went through PH very well . . . .until the last few days; he began feeling very week. My SIL said that he became unable to hold a conversation; it was hard for him to finish a thought; he developed a bad jerking; and his blood pressure was very low. She mentioned all of this to the doctor in charge but he didn't seem to be concerned. After 13 days of PH, his incision was still draining (he diabetic but it should have been better).

The day he came home from the PH hospital (a Friday) hubs and I went to see him and my SIL she told us "we're in trouble". After listening to her we felt that part of the problem was that he may be anemic.

She took him back to the the surgeon the following Monday for a post-op check up and insisted they run some lab work. Sure enough, he was anemic. When the got the results on Wednesday they called her and told her to admit him into the hospital through the emergency room that his blood count was 8.6 (it should be around 15 -- anything below 10 is a concern). She did exactly that. He was given 2 units of blood but it only brought the count to 9.9. (Still under 10.)

So now, he's still weak, unable to hold a decent conversation, his jerking is so bad (at times) that he can't brush his own teeth or feed himself. My SIL was not going to let them send him home this time. She pointed out the low blood count, low blood pressure and the other problems. The doctor in charge was very sarcastic with her and asked her what she wanted him to do -- give him more blood -- have a neurological evaluation -- what? She kept telling him she just wanted him to find out what was wrong and try to correct it.

They sent her the head of Patient Care, head of Nursing, etc. all to no avail. She could not get them to do anything until . . . . . she said she felt like they needed another doctor.

FYI: My SIL is a diplomatic person, very intelligent, possesses common sense and wisdom -- Gody wisdom. She is the chief executive officer (the head person) of a governmental agency. Part of what she does is to hire and fire doctors.)

A battery of tests were taken and 1 more unit of blood was given which brought the count up to and 11. (The doctor is still fired.) An Infectious Disease doctor shows up in his room because my poor brother has a staff infection . . . all the way to the hip joint (they think).

So now he is transported back to the hospital where he had the surgery. Since it has been less than 30 days since surgery, they decide to flush and scrape the incision and hope they got it all. A pic line was put in his arm so that he can receive 6 weeks of antibiotics by IV!

Two days later, they feel that they did not get it all so . . . back to surgery. They take out the new hip replacement and put in an extender that has antibiotics in it. Now they say he has is MRSA staff infection, better known as the "super bug". It can be deadly!

He began to complain about difficulty in breathing and they discovered that he has a small blood clot in his lung. They took him to another hospital across the street and admitted him into ICU for several days. Everyone must wear gowns and gloves to be in his room. The jerking, the low blood pressure, the inability to hold a conversation, need to sleep, all of it, was due to the staff infection. He is able to breath without difficulty now and they are continuing to treat and monitor the blood clot.

He is now back at the hospital where he had the surgery and is preparing to go through a short period of PH to help him walk with a walker (he cannot put much weight on the extender in his hip.)

Later, he will go back to surgery, have the extender removed and another hip replacement hardware put in! After all this is completed, that hip will have been opened 5 times!

Oh, and the sarcastic doctor? He never showed his face again. He's probably waiting for a law suit over this. We would have been attending a funeral if my SIL hadn't stood her ground. What she is going to do is report him to the Medical Board and the hospital Administrator and ask him if he really wants a doctor like this on his staff.

My brother still has so much yet ahead of him. Please add him to your prayer list. Also, pray for my SIL - she is exhausted.

God is mighty and powerful and is our Healer and Provider. I pray that He (God) will do what He does best and touch my brother with His mighty hand of healing!

Love,

Sherry

Scripture Memory Challenge

2009-07-15T14:25:00.006-05:00

This summer is passing so swiftly! Each two-week segment of our scripture memorization seems to pass like hours instead of days!

Meditating on God's goodness and His wonders renews the strength of my faith. There is no one like Him -- not even close! I'm so thankful that when I am frustrated with me; when life gets complex; when I seem to be running in circles; when priorities have gone awry, He understands and desires calm the storms in my life -- I just need to let Him. He wants for me to consciously include Him in every part of my life and each new day. The more I get to know Him, the more I realize how crucial this is.

My verse for this segment of study is:

"Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex!

Your workmanship is marvelous -- how well I know it."

Psalm 139:14 (NLT)

Some days I seem to be more complex than others, how about you? :) But . . since He made us, He knows just how to fix us! :) I am so thankful for the healing power of the Word, and or the new life it offers in Christ!

Love,

Sherry

Some Awesome News!

2009-07-12T18:28:00.006-05:00

I am so thrilled to tell you that I received the results of the MRI on my knee. I do not need to have surgery! There is damage to the cartilage on the inside of the meniscus (the cartilage under the knee cap). He said that it did not merit surgery and if I keep on taking care of it as I have, the need of arthroscopic surgery could be as far out at 10 years! (Sorry, this next stuff if kind of gross.) He drain a lot of fluid off the knee and put in another cortisone shot in it and I don't need to return until January 2010!

God is so good to allow all the events that led of up this so that I would not damage my knee any further. I am not allowed to kneel or squat (ever again), but I can live with that!

I am in the projectionist booth at church right now and service as begun . . so. . . I need to stop for now.

Have a wonderful Sunday evening!

Love,
Sherry

. . but have you ever . . .?

2009-07-06T14:59:00.010-05:00

July the 4th -- family -- friends -- food -- fun -- fireworks -- thunder storms ? ? ? You read right -- thunder storms -- severe thunder storms and wind!

Our small town has a city-wide celebration complete with fireworks. The day began with overcast skies that lasted the entire day. As darkness began to set it, we heard the fireworks begin. The festivities were across the street from us, so we stepped out on our front porch to watch the show. Very shortly after the display started, it began to rain. Did you know that a fireworks display can be quite beautiful even in the pelting rain and wind? Here are a few pictures. (For all you Photoshop gurus, sorry, but they are unedited.)

The raindrops were falling and the fireworks continued.

The rain began coming down much harder.
I turned on my camera's flash and it captured the rain drops.
The red spots in the center are the fireworks. The white spots are the rain.

Then . . the wind began blowing.
You can see the fireworks slanted to the right (east).
The wind was coming from the west.

This picture is very blurry in part due to the pelting rain but you can see
what the wind was doing to them.

Notice the how the top of the tree on the right is bent.
We were surprised that they kept setting them off.

This was near the end.

I'm not sure if this was their planned finale
or they were just trying to complete the job.

Fire drifting in the wind.

After the storm.
The sky was so mysterious and beautiful. The camera fails to capture the beauty.

This sunset reminds me that we may go through storms in our lives, but God has a golden "sky" waiting for us in the end. He has new mercies for us each and every day.

Love,

Happy Birthday, America!

2009-07-04T13:10:00.007-05:00

Happy 233rd Birthday, America!

Love,

Scripture Memory Challenge

2009-07-03T18:34:00.004-05:00

"You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body

and knit me together in my mother's womb."

Psalm 139:13

I can remember reading this particular verse when I was a young girl. I marvelled at the thought of God being so personable! How well He knows us, dear ones! There's never anything that we cannot share with Him. He knows! He wants us to tell Him of our concerns, hurts and joys. Let's make Him a vital part of our lives each and every day!

Love,

Smooth as a baby's . . .

2009-06-29T19:11:00.007-05:00

When I was a little girl (around first grade), we had a sweet Cocker Spaniel. She was so black that in the sunlight you could see a hint of blue. She had big, loving brown eyes and was the absolute best pet ever. In fact, she looked very much like the dog in the picture on the right.

She had one very unique feature -- she had NO tail -- not even a stub! Her backside was as smooth as a baby's behind -- with hair, -- lots of hair. When she was happy or got excited, she wiggled her backside. Poor thing, she didn't have a tail or even a stub to wag, all she could do was wiggle. So we named her Wiggles. (I sure hope that didn't annihilate her self-esteem. If so, she never let on.)

One day, when she was curled up napping, I sat down beside her and gave her a big hug . . . only to realize that I was at the wrong end! Oooops! No tail to identify which end was which!

Wiggles lived for several years. It was a sad day when she went to meet her Maker. My Dad buried her in a special place on our farm. We still remember sweet Wiggles. Somehow , through all these years, she has continued to stand out as an especially beloved pet.

A boy + dog just seems natural. My son loves dogs and has had a number of them through the years. Pets are a lot of work for Mama's but they sure bring warmth to a home. Not only warmth, but countless hours of joy. (They never tell your secrets!) They are always so excited to see you and love unconditionally. Actually, they are great examples for us. We should show excitement around our family and friends when we are in their presence, and we should love them unconditionally. We could learn some things from our pets - don'tcha think?

Did you or do you have a special pet(s) that are a part of your family? Maybe there was a special pet in your childhood. I would love to hear your story!

Love,

Saturday Cartoons

2009-06-27T08:15:00.005-05:00

Isn't interesting how our senses stir up memories? I grew up on a peanut farm in Caddo County, Oklahoma. I remember beautiful, cool summer mornings with birds chirping outside my bedroom window. Fast forward ?? years, and I still love hearing the birds sing in the morning. Most any day I can step out on our patio and hear their arias and sometimes just simple morning chatter.

Last week I heard a woodpecker trying it's best to bore a hole in the metal gutters on the parsonage. Loony bird! His beak must have been "Z" shaped by the time he gave up. I could just imagine how his poor little head must have been buzzing! I wonder if he saw stars!

Anyway, the woodpecker brought back memories of another woodpecker from my childhood -- the famous "Woody Woodpecker"! Remember him?

He was such a feisty little character!

When Mr. Lantz was looking for the right voice for the Woody Woodpecker cartoon show, his wife auditioned without revealing who she was. When her husband heard her interpretation of what a woodpecker might sound like, he loved it and hired the voice -- not know it was his wife! Isn't that a hoot?!!

Saturday morning cartoons -- being a carefree kid -- lovin' life! Remember?

Have a wonderful Saturday!

Love,

Not a good idea

2009-06-25T18:17:00.012-05:00

It never pays to get in a hurry, does it? And . . most certainly, it's never a good idea to try to do something when one really DOESN'T have the time to do the job -- correctly -- or -- even at all.

Here's what happened last night:

All week I had been trying to polish my fingernails. So last night I had two or three extra minutes (that alone should have sent off some alarms) before leaving for church, so I thought I would get the job done. (The stirring wheel is a great place to let nail polish dry.) Anyway, . . . . . . the polish bottle slipped out of my hand and polish went all over the bathroom floor, the wall, the leg of my jeans, my shoe and on the bathmat! My NEW bathmat!

I quickly grabbed the polish remover and began cleaning the floor and wall. Next was my shoe then my jeans (which still bore hint of polish). Now, I'm standing there looking at white polish on my blue bathmat. (White because I was going to do a a quick french tip.) I didn't have time to clean the bathmat so I grabbed the mat and put it in the sink to soaked in water, which turned out to be overnight.

This morning I put the mat in the washing machine to spin out the excess water so I could see what was left to clean. Some of the polish actually did come out but I still had more to clean. You can still see some of the polish in the picture. It looked much worse last night.

I'm to say proud that I did get all of the polish out of the rug, off the floor, off the baseboard , off my shoe, and out of my jeans! No evidence of the incident visible. Whew!!

I am very tempted to call myself stupid - - however, I've started the Bible study, "Me, Myself, & Lies" by Jennifer Rothchild. (It's about self talk.) So I guess I'd better restrain myself and not give in to the temptation!

Note to self: Sweet thing, don't do that again!

Love,

1st Birtday Party

2009-06-24T21:20:00.002-05:00

Sunday was the day of the big birthday party! Yes, it was on Father's Day, but it worked well for us and the guests. Here are some pictures from his special day:

"Hi! I'm the guest of honor.
I am 1 year old."

"This was my Daddy's hat! How do I look!"

"This is how the big boys wear it, Mom."

"Uh . . hey buddy, I think you've got yours on backwards!"

"Oh Dawlin! That looks simply smashing on you!"

The candles are lit.

Take a B-I-G breath! Now . . . BLOW!

"
What?!!! Another smash cake?!!"

"You've got to admit -- I've conquered this thing!"

The loot!

"Oh, boy! Presents!"

"Now, is there a crib in the house? I'm ready for a nap!"

This little darling is walking and tries so hard to hold a conversation with whomever will listen ;) He has an outgoing personality and loves people -- especially little people! We are so blessed to have him in our life.

Thanks for stopping by and taking the time to share in Grammy's brag-post . . . . . .again! :)

Love,

The tenth picture . . .

2009-06-23T07:19:00.002-05:00

I was tagged by Cathy at Tales of the TCKK Family I am supposed to post the 10th picture in the 1st folder in my picture files. There wasn't 10 pictures so I posted the 9th.

This is a picture of my mother (2nd from the left) and her friends on a toboggan. This was before she married my father. She lived in Southern California and they went to mountains to "play".

I couldn't resist adding a couple more of her on that day. In the next picture, her friend is trying to put a snowball down her back

In this next picture, mom is on the right. She was so fun. We had so many laughs and fun times together. I miss her and dad. (I don't have any pictures of dad on my computer.)

I'm in the process (it's turning into a loooooog one) of working on some genealogy scrapbooks. I want to record what I remember and what I've learned through research to put in these scrapbooks so that my grandchildren will know about their ancestors. If I don't, I fear that many facts and stories will be lost forever. It may seem a little strange to say this, but preserving their memories in these books feels like a way of loving them. And . . . I do love them!

Love,

Revealed by popular demand!

2009-06-22T12:01:00.002-05:00

Due to an overwhelming number of requests, ( all 4 or 5 of you) *insert applause* (lol) here are the results of the birthday cakes. Yes, I said cakes.

This is Little Slugger's cake.

There wasn't a pan available for the glove. So I bought a 16" round pan,
Googled a suitable picture, zoomed it to size, transferred it to waxed paper,
cut the cake in the shape of the glove, crumb coated the cake

and then transferred the details to the cake.
After that it was time to outline all the details then fill in with "stars".

I purchased the largest cake board I could find but as you can see,
it barely fit in the board.

I carved a little ball and placed it in the glove.
The cake was milk chocolate with chocolate buttercream frosting (so yuumy).
Here's a side view.

This ball cake was the original plan, but when the pan arrived
it was obvious that it would not yield enough servings for the number of guests
invited (mostly adults -- how many little friends can the average
one-year-old have anyway!) :)
The ball cake was coconut.
(If you like Mounds candy bars, this cake with the chocolate buttercream
could seriously send you over the edge!)

And . . . of course we needed another smash cake.

My DIL did a superb job of putting the party together.
Since the part began at 1:00 p.m, she served a pizza lunch
with salads and fruit tray (all homemade).

Here's Little Slugger's table.
My DIL make white chocolate baseball suckers for the kids.
They are on the right end of the table.

I have some cute pics from the party that I'll post tomorrow.

Thanks for stopping by today. Have an awesome Monday!

Love,

Need some boredom? Read this.

2009-06-19T06:00:00.001-05:00

You are about to embark upon the most boring post out in bloggyland! Ready? Here goes.

Among other happenings this past week, we have been in Vacation Bible School at church. I really have an easy job; I'm the computer operator/projectionist. The theme this year is "Studio Go". It is all centered around a game show. If you go to the link you can hear some of the music. In fact, we just love their music every year!

This afternoon I will be going to Michael's or Hobby Lobby to see if I can find a cake pan that will be the right size for B's baseball glove cake. My DIL bought a baseball cake pan but it 's not big enough to several the number of guests for the party. So, I will be making a baseball glove to sit the ball on. (Ooops, I ended the sentence with a preposition -- sorry.) In proportion, I'm hoping for it to look something like this. (They used a molded pan for this cake, but mine will be larger and there is not a pan that size I will have to cut the cake in the shape of the glove. Wish me luck!)

See, I told you it would be boring but thanks for reading anyway! :) Now you may get back to your exciting life!

Love,

Worship

2009-06-18T08:03:00.018-05:00

Worship is such a vital part of my life. I am so thank for music and recognize it as a gift from God!

I recently purchased Kari Jobe's newest cd (pictured on the right). For those who have not heard of her yet, she is one of the worship leaders at the Gateway church near Dallas, TX. There are several songs that have become some new favorites. She has a very quiet restful style. If you go to her website, you'll be able to listen to clips of the songs on her albums.

One song that I really like is "Revelation Song". I have included a video of her singing it on Gateway's worship DVD entitled "Wake Up". If you like worship DVDs, I can highly recommend this one. I have the cd for my car but the DVD is much better.

I encourage you to take a few moments to join her in worship as you watch this video.

Have a blessed Thursday and may you feel the God of wonder walking close by your side today!

Love,

It's a smash!!!

2009-06-17T11:10:00.001-05:00

Yesterday was our little grandson's 1st birthday! His big party will be Sunday afternoon but I just couldn't let his BIG DAY go by without a cake. So I made him a smash cake.

I got home from work at 4:30 pm and had to be at Vacation Bible School at 7:00 pm so the race with the clock was on. I quickly made the cake batter and popped it in the oven. While it was baking I made the buttercream frosting, colored part of it red and then waited for the cake to cool in the fridge.

I spent approximately 15 - 20 minutes TOTAL decorating the little thing. The "stars" are uneven in size, but it didn't really matter for this one. The cakes for the party will need to be better. I finshined, put the dishes in the sink, and ran out the door with 2 minutes to spare!

After VBS we met back at our house for cake and ice cream. Here are a few pictures of B with his cake. He wasn't sure if it was okay to touch it or not (normally it would be a "no no").

Anyway, here are several pics from last night.

The finished cake.
"Little Slugger" is the party theme. Thus, a baseball.

Cake with a candle.

Let's begin.
Oooo!

Ooops, I have something on my finger!

Let me try that again.

Hmmm.
(Notice his other arm hanging down off the highchair.)

Nobody has stopped me yet!

Fancy hand work.
The secret is in the twist of the wrist.

Hey, there's something inside!

Gett'n a good grip.

Big sister can't resist either.

Smoooooth!

Yummm! I think I like it!

The end result!
A job well done!

He was sitting in his Daddy's old highchair and had one of his bibs on, too.
We also added a fancy plastic "trash bag smock" to protect his clothes.
He's a fun boy and we enjoy him so much.

Have a wonderful Wednesday.

Love,