Girls Just Want to Have Fun!

I have been working in the yard off and on all week - weather permitting. Helena has been my shadow - can't move without her. I've been digging weeds and crab grass along the fence so I can plant a flower bed. Since it rained some - the ground was damp - which made for easy pulling and a treasure trove of earthworms! I didn't draw attention to them - not my cup of tea. But of course, Helena's sharp eye found them. Had to put some dirt in a bucket so she could carry her new found "pets" around. When Rease got home from school, she joined the "search".

Rules though - couldn't dig the "babies" - only the "mommies" and they had to let them go at the end of the day. Now, just knowing those worms were in the bucket wasn't enough -nope. They just had to take them out, check on them, pet them and of course an occasional tug of war - which would end with someone's worm getting "teared apart"! Whoever said girls were afraid of worms - hasn't met these two!

Malachi 3:3

My entire family has been going thru many different and difficult challanges for quite some time.
Heidi Gore, a most dear friend, emailed me the following - and I must say - it hit the nail on the head. It truly gives me hope for those days when I feel there is none. I just remember - God will NOT leave me in the fire too long!
Such encouragments will undoubtedly find thier way into my blog from time to time.
I thank the Lord for my wonderful friends!


Malachi 3:3 says: "He sits as a refiner and purifier of silver."

This verse puzzled some women in a Bible study and they wondered what this statement meant about the character and nature of God. One of the women offered to find out the process of refining silver and get back to the group at their next Bible Study. That week, the woman called a silversmith and made an appointment to watch him at work. She didn't mention anything about the reason for her interest beyond her curiosity about the process of refining silver. As she watched the silversmith, he held a piece of silver over the fire and let it heat up. He explained that in refining silver, one needed to hold the silver in the middle of the fire where the flames were hottest as to burn away all the impurities.
The woman thought about God holding us in such a hot spot; then she thought again about the verse that says:

"He sits as a refiner and purifier of silver." She asked the silversmith if it was true that he had to sit there in front of the fire the whole time the silver was being refined. The man answered that yes, he not only had to sit there holding the silver, but he had to keep his eyes on the silver the entire time it was in the fire. If the silver was left a moment too long in the flames, it would be destroyed. The woman was silent for a moment. Then she asked the silversmith, "How do you know when the silver is fully refined?" He smiled at her and answered, "Oh, that's easy -- when I see my image in it."


If today you are feeling the heat of the fire, remember that God has His eye on you and will keep watching you until He sees His image in you.

"Life is a coin. You can spend it anyway you wish, but you can only spend it once.”

Unexpected Blessing

I was in WM last night to pick up creamer for my coffee. The thought of waking up w/o it was more than I could take at that moment! lol Anyway, I DON'T care much for WM. I usually get overcharged, end up with a cashier that is non-talk-a-tive, very, very slow or very unhappy looking. Well, last night I had a girl that was a gem. She saw us coming, smiled immediately, initiated conversation right away and was just plain happy. She was telling me about her day - day off from one job (for Good Friday, I assume) - she managed to get most of her food prepared for Easter, came to work at WM, and still had a smile on her face! She had worked at WM the night before, as well, and after getting off - she went shopping for the "goodies" that the kids would enjoy hunting for on Easter. She really made me ashamed of myself. She really made me think about how I spend my day. Kudos to this wonderful lady and the encouragement she gave me (although she may never know that)! ! ! God truly does send someone into your life at just the right moment. AMEN, AMEN, & AMEN.

The Perfect Pitch

In the game of life you get a lot of "pitches". Sometimes life throws you that "curve ball" that you arent' quite ready for and you swing too early, or too late, or not at all. Sometimes you get the unexpected "strike" - one of two options - it blows past you and you are just standing there watching it, or you are swinging like crazy to make contact. Sometimes you get the justified "ball" and you need to let it go. To swing at that would be futile and frustrating. And then there is what is affectionately called the "lollipop" - the perfect pitch that leaves the field when you make contact. Sometimes you know its the pitch right away, and sometimes you know it the moment contact is made. Aren't our decisions about the things the Lord puts in front of us the same? I think, more often than not, we get more "balls" than "perfect pitches". We just have to be aware of what to let go and what to "swing" at. I am thankful that I don't always have to make that decision while at the plate, that I can think about it in some cases and that I have wonderful Christian friends that can give me that "pep" talk when I need it and when I want it. Life is like that - so enjoy the "game" and listen to the "umpire"! ! ! !

Sunday Stroll

Today was a good day! Kelly and the girls, and Ben were here for dinner (and laundry)! The weather was great. The girls played outside a lot and Kelly and I got to take a walk around the block (good mom and daughter time). You could smell the cherry blosssoms on the trees. The only problem is - Sundays go by so fast.