We Are Getting Old!!

I got a puzzle for Christmas because I thought it would be a great family thing to do. 

Sadly I woke up with a a terrible ear ache on Christmas day, so we waited until Monday to start working on it!  I don’t think the kids were impressed.  They put in a couple of pieces and made fun of us cause we were kinda of excited about it.  After a while I got a great idea and turned on some 80’s music!  Of course, me and the hubby started singing along to the songs…together….That’s when our middle son rolled his eyes and called us old.  Bradley and Joey quickly left for town to spend Christmas money.

We could not help but to laugh ourselves silly!!     NOW, we know how to get rid of the teenagers for a few hours….break out a puzzle and turn the 80’s music up loud!  We listen to 4 hours of different songs from the 80’s and it was fantastic!!  HA!

I guess we have officially made it to “that” stage of life….OLD!!!  {{{SIGH}}} 

Merry Christmas, A Day Late

This has been the first chance that I have had to get on my blog to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas!  Yesterday I woke up with a terrible ear ache and after getting home from church I spent most of the afternoon on the couch.  Not the way I planned on spending the day, but I was thankful I pushed through and was able to go to church!  I love it when Christmas falls on a Sunday!!

I did get to start on antibiotics yesterday and I am able to report that even though my ear is still throbbing, I was able to come to church tonight and spend it with some special ladies!  Tonight is our night to host homeless women at our church!  My special friend greeted me as soon as I walked off the bus with a big hug!!  We have two new ladies that joined the group tonight along with our regulars.  I am happy that they feel comfortable enough to join us because as I type this, the rain is hitting the windows and it would be a cold, hard night.  I really enjoy being here and have looked forward to it all day!

I guess that is all that I have to report.  I am turning in and fingers crossed with get some much needed rest tonight!  Merry Christmas, a day late!!  :o)

It Begins & Ends Today

Today I begin my Christmas shopping. UGH! Me and my cousin Annette are leaving in a few minutes and both of us have yet start the blessed event of buying Christmas presents. So, today we leave with the intent of fullfilling the job of getting all the things on our lists in one day. We'll see! Hopefully we won't kill anyone!! Wish us luck!! :o)

It’s Sad…

It’s sad when my dog has more to blog about than I do.

He is full of fun…

He is full of life…

He is full of mischief…

He has four legs…

Which makes blogging easy for him.  The topics are endless.

AND, he has made blogging friends with many other dog bloggers….REALLY!!  Can you believe it?? 

I can, because he is so manstastic!

Check his blog…by click here or the link below.

http://theadventuresofhiggins.blogspot.com/

Almost Thirty Decades Coming To End!

My hubby celebrated a birthday today!  He turned 39 so of course we teased!  LOTS!

It has been a cold and dreary day that has been filled with lots of birthday love for him.  After sleeping in this morning, our middle son treated him to lunch at a new BBQ place in town.  I’ll have to say it was rather yummy!!!  I love trying new places and this one did not disappoint!  Then there were all the cards and phone calls!!  I love celebrating with my hubby!!  I made him pose for a picture with Higgins, which is always the highlight of any birthday celebration!  HA!

The hubster requested clam chowder for supper, so I made him yummy homemade clam chowder with basil grilled cheese sandwiches…can I say yummy?????  YUM-MY!  I even went a step further and made our youngest son some milk free chowder and milk free grilled cheese!  He loved it by the way!!

As the day is coming to a close, we are watching  The Polar Express…ahhhh, what a great way to celebrate his last year of thirty decades!!  You’re welcome hunny!  HA!

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Please check out Pangeocoffee.com for more information on the coffee and Pangeo’s story!

A Hug

It’s a little after 11pm and I am sitting on a blown up mattress in a room full of strangers.  Well, not all are strangers, one of the ladies that is opposite the room of me is a friend that I met 2 weeks ago in the same room.   Tonight I am with homeless women that have no other place to go.  What an honor and privilege that I have to be here.

A new program has started in Murfreesboro called The Way of Hope.  It give homeless women and their children a place to stay every night during the cold winter months.  Our church along with other churches in our area have agreed to open their doors and offer a safe, warm place to stay.  When I was approached about this opportunity and asked if I would be willing to help out, there was not much hesitation on my part of if I wanted to help, but when, where and I needed details!  I remember going home and talking with my husband about this program and I knew that it was something that God was calling me too.

Two weeks ago the program kicked off and the first two night only one lady showed up.  My heart broke hearing the news that two other were on the fence about staying and I knew that we had bad weather moving in during the evening hours.  They chose not to come.  The lady that did come shared her story with us and I was drawn to her in amazement of her story.  I asked her if she would be back in two weeks, and she felt that she would be moving on.  I was saddened, and when we parted I hug her bye and told her I would be praying for her.

Tonight when I showed up at the shelter where we would be picking up those who wanted to stay at the church,   I seen her in the parking lot!  I was so excited and ran to her and hugged her.  A couple hours later I told her to plop down on my mattress so we could chat.  We talked about things that were going on in her life the past two weeks.  I told her I was thrilled that she was still here.  She told me that it was people like me that made her feel welcome and when I hugged her neck she said it was things like that made her want to stay.  I told her I had been praying for her and she said she knew.

Something so insignificant as a hug.  A hug that I take for granted.

Tonight the group grew from one to six.  One part of me is so happy that the word is out and more women feel safe enough to stay with us.  Another part of me is sad that is the group has grown.  That is six more homeless women. 

Pray for this new mission, pray that more women that are homeless would feel safe enough to come out of the cold.  Pray for their situations, their stories.  Everyone has a past and we are I was so quick to judge them.  I am so guilty of that.  I have judged so many people that are on the street, with signs, wrapped up in blankets under an overpass or pushing a grocery cart down the street.  Maybe if I were not so quick to judge and took a moment to listen to their story I would have understood a little more.

I have more I would love to share about some of these women, and in time, I will.  Our room is quite, women are sleeping and it’s time I joined them!  Goodnight!

I Have Been Baking

It’s not what you think…

it is not yummy Christmas cookies…

or fudge….

or seasonal fruit cakes…

I baked a batch of pumpkin dog treats for Higgins!!!

He is such a loved doggie…or as my husband likes to say, spoiled rotten dog.

Nah, I like loved better than spoiled!!

Anyways, head over to Higgins blog to read more about these scrumptious dog biscuits!

Also, find out how you can score your doggie some treats!!!

The Difference A Day Makes

Yesterday, the fog rolled in.

Today, snow is falling.

I Have Been Scolded

Every once in a while I will get a Facebook message  alert on my phone that someone posted a message on my wall.  I’ll be honest when I say I get a little giddy. Someone actually has something to say to me, little ‘ol me!  Yeah, my life can seem like a pathetic existence at times.  Just keeping it real folks….sigh.

When I checked to see what profound words were waiting for me to read, it was my SIL getting on to me for not blogging.  Grr.  Not the juicy yumminess that I was all hyped up to read.  I almost took a shower and got dressed before reading that comment.  Thank goodness I came to my senses and left my hair in a tangled mess and my PJ’s on.

I have not blogged in awhile and was shocked to see that it has been over a week since my last post!  Where has that week flown off too??  How could a whole week pass by me and I have not one thing to show for it or at least blog a little snippet about.  Oh my, has my life came to this???

Just to lay it out there, I got a little frustrated and there were a few things I wanted to blog about, but didn’t.  As all bloggers know, we put our inner feeling out there at times and speak from the heart, type our true feelings and can be a little naive as to who is reading our blogs...well not naive, our blogs are out there for all to see (I know that).  I find comfort in my blog, comfort in knowing that it is mine, my online diary to talk (or type) myself silly, if I please.  I found through the years I have gained friendships with some great people that I have never met in person with common interests that we share.  I treasure those friendships! :o)

When I told my sis-in-law that I allowed some folks to steal my joy and it frustrated me, she told me to blog anyways.  So Jenny….here I am!!  You are right, today I blog.

For those that like to judge me and you know who I am talking too, if my blog steps on your toes, do not read it.  Plain and simple.  This blog is me and for all my imperfectness that will never fit into your world.  I will talk about things that you may not agree with, but OH WELL.  Don’t judge me unless you have walked in my shoes or lived a day in my life.

Now with great apologies for all the others that read my blog, that actually come here to find out what kind of craziness my family is up too.  Please forgive the rant. 

How dare I allow someone to steal my joy of something I enjoy so much!!!  Thanks Jenny for the scolding…I love ya!

A Change Of Scenery

      

Yesterday was an absolutely beautiful day and it was decided that we needed a much deserving break from the house!  I packed a lunch of ham sandwiches, granola bars, some Pringles and ice tea in mason jars.  Threw all of that into a cooler and grabbed a couple of quilts and we headed put to parts we have never seen before.

First stop was Foster Falls.  BEAUTIFUL! 

         

After Foster Falls we jumped back into the Jeep for our next destination, Stone Door.

   

The wind was horrendous!!  We stepped out onto this cliff for an amazing view but never really could get to close to the edge because we I was so fearful that we would be blown off.  I have never been so scared and aww-struck at the same time!  Looking out at God’s amazing handiwork with the wind whipping around us was well worth the trek up!

 

I carefully inched my way to the cliff edge to snap this picture.  The first picture was with my camera, then I snapped the second one with my phone. 

When we were getting off the ledge, my hubby had to point out that where we were just standing seconds ago, was a little cliff all by itself…can you see the mountains in the distance through the crack?  In the second picture, at the bottom of the picture can you see the rock I was standing on??

   

Right in the middle of this picture is a rock that is jammed in between the two that we walked across…yikes!  Just a little scary to think of it!

The next few pictures is the real reason we came to this area, Stone Door, the above pictures was the cherry on top of the hike!

The Stone Door was used for centuries by the Indians as a passage way from the top of the escarpment into the gorge below.  It’s about 10 feet wide and 100 feet deep.

   

When you are at the bottom, the very old curved tree makes it look like a door handle, so the name Stone Door was born.

Today we all feel the burn from our great adventures yesterday.  We were bummed because there was more that we wanted to hike to, but the late start and quickly approaching end of the day determined our exit of our adventure, so we had to call it quits.  Can’t wait to go back!

QR Code

I found this on another blog today and thought it was pretty neat!  For all of y’all that have fancy smancy smart phones, lookie here…

I made a QR code for my ETSY site!!  How cool is that??

For those that do not have a fancy smancy smart phone, you can also click here to check out  my site and look at some Christmas cards that I made!!!

I think QR codes are so neat and they are popping up all over the place, I saw one the other day plastered on a gas pump to a restaurant and if you scanned it it gave for a coupon for a meal!  How cool is that?

If you want to make a code for your site, check out this website!!

A Letter To My Mother-In-Law

Today I am thankful for my mother-in-law! 

The best way to tell you why I am so thankful for her, is in a letter to her…

Dear Mom,

Many years ago you gave birth to a wonderful little bundle of joy, you named him Jeremy.  I can imagine when you first held him in your arms the overflowing of emotions that you had looking down at a beautiful little life that was just born.  I know that feeling.

You raised this little boy up in love, in a family that he shared with a brother and two sisters and two loving parents.  I can only imagine the energy that flowed through your house raising four kids!!  Have I ever told you I think you are super woman for raising four kids??  If I have not told you, well I am telling you now, you are super woman!  HA! 

I wanted to tell you thank you.  Thank you for a being the kind of mom that her children still run to when they need too.  You are there for you babies (now grown adults) when they are sick, for celebrations or even when there is no need at all, they just want you there. 

Thank you for showing me love.  There were times when you have shown me more love than I deserve.  You have been there to keep me calm in some not calm moments!   You run to my aid when my procrastination gets the best of me and help me pack crazy amounts of women ministry bags  (in crazy amounts of suit cases not big enough) for my mission trips in the wee hours before leaving!!  Thank you for being there for me to take care of my boys and your son when I leave the country for said mission trips.  I always get so nervous to leave, but when you show up, I feel the biggest relief knowing that they will be well taken care of!

There is no way I can ever thank you enough for your son.  You raised him to love me with all that he has, because he is loved with unconditional love from a wonderful mother.

Thanks mom!  I love you!

Sunday Morning Ramblings

This Sunday morning it is very quite in my kitchen.  The hubby has to work today so he left early just as the dark outside was showing a little bit of light.  I am sitting here at my kitchen table drinking coffee and looking out the window at all the bare trees.  Just a few weeks ago they were bursting with color and this morning as the sun is beginning to light the day, only a few brown leaves hold on for dear life.

This seems to be a hard time of the year for me and the past week I have struggled with many different things.  As this week progresses it will only get harder for me and I ask for your prayers to get me through.  I usually start perking up after Thanksgiving is over, but getting there and past that day is the hardest.  It’s also very hard not being able to be with Jeremy’s family this year.  They are stinking awesome and love me as their own.  When I was no longer important enough for my family, my in-laws, lost the laws, and became my complete family.  With what I not longer have, I gained sisters, brother and parents, which I always had, just did not realize it.  Thanks guys!  I just hate not being together this year.  Oh well, I guess I need to pull those big girl panties up high, and move on!  Funny side note on that…I found this saying on Pintrest the other day…

Anyhoos….enough of that depressing garbage!  It is November and I have taken part of  this:

which I have fallen behind on.  I plan today when I get home from church to add my thankful list to my sidebar to fill in for the days I did not post.  Despite my glooming days as of late, my life is full of things I am so blessed with!

Today, I am thankful for these folks…

This is a picture of my FIL and SIL’s.  I have searched my computer over my a picture of my MIL and I could not find one of her easily, so I guess she will get a post all of her own!!  ;o)

Listed in order, this is a picture of Amy, Arthur and Jenny!  Amy is Jeremy younger sister and Jenny is the baby of the family…I love my sisters!!  Arthur, or as he is commonly referred to around these parts as Pap, is cheesin it up with his baby girls!!  This picture always makes me laugh…looks like the girls are trying hard not to throw up a couple of bunny ears!!

Jeremy is so blessed with a loving family and I am equally blessed to call them my own as well! 

Blah…

I woke up this morning in the wee hours to the pounding of rain outside.  I really love these kind of days, but today, not much is making me happy.  Maybe I am overly tired from a busy day yesterday or just plain bummed out and can not seem to locate the joy in the simple things.  I have been struggling and this time I am not seeing the end in sight.  I am a little embarrassed to admit that because my life is such a blessing and I have those in my life that really love and support me, but it is the ones that do not that make days like this hard.  Shame on me.

I need to focus on the happy and the small things that make me smile.  For example, my son shot the first deer of the season, so yesterday we spent the day cutting it up and getting it into the freezer.  One of the most favorite parts of deer season is the making of deer jerky.  This morning not only were we awoken to the pounding rain, but to the smell of dehydrating jerky!  We are like kids that keep getting our hands caught in the candy jar, because each time one of us walks into the kitchen we are sneaking some…and it is quite yummy! 

So today I am thankful for the deer that my son shot.  For the time we spent together getting it ready for the freezer and for the silly giggles of sneaking jerky and getting caught.  These are the things that make the blah’s bearable.

Banquet Of The Tables

Each year our church hold a women's banquet where 57 tables are decorated in different themes.  Each and every year, this event is sold out…so it is kind of a big deal!  I have decorated a table each year and I have so much fun!!  This year I wanted to go with a “Sophisticated Redneck” theme, but everyone said that it was more woodland country….nah, I’ll stick with sophisticated redneck!  HA!

Here is a picture of my table….

     

I got alot of inspiration from Pintrest for my table and also used many things I had around the house!  I cut up Levi jeans to hold the silverware and used bandanas for napkins.  I also used mason jars that I glued to glass candle sticks for fancy smancy drink ware!!  But I think my favorite things of the table were my barn mice, the reclaimed barn wood used for chargers and the floral moss!  I think it really made my table!! 

I was very pleased with how it turned out and the ladies at my table seemed to love it as well!

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Our speaker this year was Tammie Head and she was A-mazing!  If you have not had the opportunity to hear her speak or do her Bible study, I would encourage you to do so!

Here are a few of the many beautiful tables decorated this year…

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I am very thankful for my church and this wonderful ministry that they do each and every year!  It takes many, very talented women to pull this off and I am thankful for the hard work and many hours that make this event so special!

Running Behind

After the last post, things got a little crazy.  Carol went home to be with Jesus.  The family has done so well through the hard decision making that had to be made and Carol entered the Kingdom of Heaven with her family surrounding her, singing Amazing Grace.  I tell you, I could not imagine any other way I would want to leave earth!  Today she is walking the streets of  Heaven with Jesus!

Just wanted to do a quick update on my blog to let everyone know that I am still around!  I’ll be back tomorrow with a few thankfuls and some pictures of our church’s annual Banquet of the Tables!  Until then, have a blessed evening!

Surreal

Tonight I am sitting in a trauma waiting room with my cousin.  Her MIL was in a car accident on Saturday and has not been doing very well.   I came up to visit on Wednesday and again today.  I hate hospitals and the unknowns that come along with a tragic accident and felt that someone needed to be with my ‘cuz  during the evening hours so she would not have to be by herself in case anything happened. 

It’s a sad place to be.  I have never seen the inside workings of a trauma area…the machines, the patients and the sounds can be overwhelming.   I think the most unsettling thing to wrap my brain around is the unknown.  This place makes it so surreal how fragile life is….how temporary our time on earth can be.   I take life for granted.

I need to start living for the day, the moment.  Life can throw curve balls and over the past months and even longer I have not been handing those curve balls to well.  I have been letting situations get to me and actually get the better of me and have way to much control over my life.  I sit here typing this telling myself that I am going to not let situations control my life and I laugh, because I know I will let them get the better of me.  Then I look around at loved ones sitting in a waiting room holding vigil over loved ones who life hang in balance.  They are not sitting here worrying about silly situations in their day to day life.  They are sitting here praying for their loved ones to come through the ordeal that has brought them to this waiting room. 

I should be living as each day could be my last…

Tonight I was walking out of the house with my bag in hand, I called out to the boys and told them I loved them, I am thankful that I got to hear my kids tell me they loved me back.  My husband walked me out to the Jeep…I loved that tender moment when he kissed me goodbye, because you never know.   Sitting here I realize those moments are so precious and should not be taken for granted….ever.  Tonight I am thankful for life, and I am thankful for the reminder to love my hubby and boys like there is no tomorrow.

What Memories Are Made Of

The  event of the year…or at least in my teenagers eyes!  It was the midnight release of a new video game, Modern Warfare 3 and with pure excitement the line started early in the evening for the ones that preordered and prepaid for this new game!

Here is Game Stop where the game would be available at 12:01 am on 11/8/11.

Here are DJ & Joey waiting in line.  We were a couple of stores down from game stop waiting in front of the Dollar Tree!  Prime location!

The shopping center is set up in a L shape…after the Dollar Store there is a Laundry Mat and then it makes a turn.  There are a few other stores then two restaurants.  After that you have a little bit of an open area, a liquor store and then the road.  As the night wore on and closer to midnight we got, the line grew!  It’s hard to tell by this picture, but the line is nearing the liquor store by midnight….INSANE!

At Midnight cheers erupted and the line started moving!  I am thinking of calling GameStop to tell them they did a  great job, because the line moved so quickly that we had our game in hand by 5 minutes after midnight!!  I was laughing so hard because no one waited around…as soon as they had their game, they peeled out of the parking lot for a quick retreat home to start the all night battle!

This morning I was woken up by gun shots and explosions.  The battle started in our household around 12:30am last night and is still going strong.  They did take a quick break for some homemade bread I made this morning, but are back at it!!

Today, I am thankful for the little things in life, like a standing in line with your kids at midnight, waiting for one of the highly anticipated events in Xbox’s gaming world…MW3!

The Loves Of My Life

I have been up for most of the morning.  I got excited Saturday night when we had the honor of setting our clocks back one hour for that glorious extra hour of sleep!  That was until this morning…I am a creature of habit, so that means that I still get up at my body's time…I guess that will mean early mornings for me.

I don’t mind getting up early, especially now.  We have been a family of a second shift work schedule for nearly 12 years, so that is a hard thing to break.  My hubby’s shift was recently moved to a first shift schedule for the next six months, so it has been a hard couple of weeks adjusting to it.  At first we were excited about it, but then it started and both of us are really not sure if this is for us.  Oh well, 5 months and 1 more week to figure it out!  ha!

Today, I am listing three thankfuls…one for Saturday, Sunday and today since I slacked this weekend. So, since there are three things and I have three sons, might as well take this opportunity to talk about the loves of my live…My Boys!

I look at the above picture and I CAN NOT BELIEVE THAT MY BABIES ARE SO GROWN!

When I look at my boys I still see them as this…

and this….

and this….

and this…

     

   and this…

     

The honor that I have of being their mother is beyond any words I could ever type here.  I thank God every day for allowing me to be a part of their lives.  When I first held DJ, our oldest I thought I could never love anything as much as him…ever!  When I was pregnant with out second son, I fretted if I could love him as much as our first and my fears were at rest when I held him, because my heart was so full of love.  Then the moment our third son arrived and our family was complete, I realized how moms could love their children so much and so equally!  Each one of our boys are so different, but my love for them is so special!!!

When I look at the first picture, I can only imagine that in a few years that picture will have additions of a wife, or even two….YIKES, maybe just one…I am not ready for my boys to be that grown up!! 

I am so thankful for my children, for the love my hearts holds for them today and tomorrow and always!