The Christmas road trip

Round two of "girl trips" came this afternoon as me and my younger sisters piled in my car and headed off to our grandparent's house. We were driving right along when several trucks decided to splatter the windows with mud. Snow was piled along the side of the road. I went to turn on my wind shield wipers and discovered that I was out of windshield wiper fluid. So the dirt spots soon turned to dirt lines and smudges. Then the sun began to shine- more like blare- right through the windshield.

I felt like I was driving like a blind person. We finally found a stopping point where we could wash off the window. However, the gash station did not have liquid in the window washer bucket, and to make it worse, there were no paper towels.
Here I was in my boots, slipping around on the ice, and battling the wind. Then out of the blue (truck), a man came over to where I was. He was looking for the same items to wash his truck window. I decided to give the brush a chance even if it had little liquid. Then I turned around and saw that this gentleman had walked across the ice to another pump to gather some paper towels. He came and offered me some before heading back to his truck.

Who says angels cannot drive trucks!! :)
Be safe traveling out their y'all!

Christmas means?

So you know how Christmas is such a calming, thoughtful time of year... 

Well, right now I am more like....

http://studysuccessful.com/have-a-nice-christmas-break/

Schools out!!!!!

So I survived another semester. This one was super exciting since I got to be fingerprinted at the police station and have a background check. Today, I finished up with a class in first aid and CPR. So I spent much of the day dealing with dummies and pretend emergencies. But now it is time for a little freedom and fun with the Christmas season. :) I have some Christmas gifts to get finished- well more like started. We finally got our tree up an decorated so it is time to get this thing started.

Do y'all have any big plans for this season?

The big picture for you

  For thanksgiving this year, my sisters and I were able to spend the week with my grandparents. In between all the games, cooking, eating, shopping, and talking, I was able to spend time down memory lane. My grandparents house has rarely changed over the years, and the comfort of knowing that it never changes has been amazing to me ( the one who rearranges the house at least once a month).
My favorite room in my grandparent's house is my granny's Victorian room. One wall length window overlooks a beautiful yard and river. Yesterday morning I was startled awake for some reason and was greeted by the most beautiful sunrise. The dark pink and orange colors reflected in the gently moving river. I just lay there watching God's beautiful creation.

I was reminded that God is working on a beautiful picture for each of our lives. We may be in the dark where nothing looks promising, and where the shadows cast fear in our hearts. We may be entering the dawn where the picture looks uncertain and unclear, but we just need to wait on God and his timing. When things are just right, He will reveal the big picture so that we can see that he has been in control the entire time.

I hope that each of you have had a wonderful thanksgiving! Christmas is coming up all too fast :) 

Thankful for family !

You just had to be in our house this week!

 For several months now our washer sounds like it will rock right out the door whenever it reached the spin cycle. Well, two days ago, our washer and dryer decided to expire together. So we had to find a new pair in a hurry. In a large family, you can't wait too long before the mountains of clothes pile up. Now we didn't just get ANY washer or dryer; we bought one of those fancy front-loaders. I don't know if your family is like mine when it comes to new things ( whether it be a box, a container of tennis balls, or front load washers and dryers), but it was such an excitement!
Mom and dad came home for lunch just to see the new appliances. I probably shouldn't say it, but we all spent an ample amount of time sitting in front of the door watching the laundry go round and round.

Today was the family fall cleaning day. Dad and mom did the yard work while the rest of us worked on the inside. I think I discovered some new species in the refrigerated. I do know that we found a more than decapitated mouse under the bathroom cabinet. We were wondering where that smell was coming from! :)

Anyway, with all of the many crazy things we do around our place, I am more than thankful for my awesome family.   

It's a dog's world

A not so flattering picture of Rex :) 

Early this morning my dad was all dressed up to go hunting. He said that he was planning to take our dog out for his first hunt. Rex is a chocolate Labrador/ German Short hair who was bred for bird hunting. He is now about 5 years old and this was his first time out. 

My neighbors and visitors to our house can probably agree that this dog has so much energy! "

He needs to do what he was born to do"

Dad was all ready but there was no sign of Rex. I told dad that he may be in for quite a training session because Rex was currently sleeping under my blankets on my bed. You have to understand that our dog does not general get up before 10am. It took dad several minutes to convince Rex to even get out of bed. However, as soon as he realized that he was going somewhere, he was off and running. 

Well, a few minutes ago dad came walking in the door with a very sleepy looking dog dragging in behind him. I am not joking when I say that his eyes were practically closed from exhaustion. It didn't take him long to find warm spot at my feet where he has fallen asleep. I cannot say that I have ever seen him this calm. 

But he did bring home at least one bird from all that time out there... so maybe there is hope!! 

Such a time as this

A few nights ago an "invisible" spider, as my sister calls it, decided to take a chomp into Anna's leg. The bite itself didn't look too bad but some of her skin became extremely red. The doctor prescribed an antibiotic and a pain reliever, and told us to keep an eye on it. It wasn't even a day later and Anna's entire body from the neck down became inflamed and extremely itchy. Dad finally decided to take her in to the emergency room two nights ago. Mom and dad came home at about 12:30 am. to tell us that Anna was staying at the hospital for observation.

The doctor was concerned because her blood test was showing that her kidneys may not be functioning correctly. Spider bites, red skin, itchiness seemed manageable; but the idea of  kidney failure suddenly brought  a much greater level of concern. My mind began to real with all the possibilities of this news, fear gripped all of our hearts, and we began to pray. 

No matter how much you think you are prepared for the worst situation, you will still struggle. 

For a couple weeks God has been working on my heart concerning the thought that " There is a time for everything". Every Bible verse I read, every lesson I teach, and every song I listen to seems to talk about a time for everything. 

Ecclesiastes was the book I was teaching from on Sunday, and guess what lesson I chose? Yep! Ecclesiastes 3 which  discusses the different seasons that we go through in life. We have a time to cry, a time to laugh, a time to labor, and a time to rest... 

Saturday morning, I heard a song. Honestly, I did not like it at first but stopped to listen to the words. After everything I had heard and read during the past couple weeks, this song really hit home with me. I began to wonder... " Is God trying to prepare me for something or to help someone?" 

I prayed for the strength to handle whatever may come. Saturday night came around and we have been in the hospital for the remainder of the weekend. 

Am I saying that this was what God was preparing me for? 

It could be! Nevertheless, I have been able to see that the fear and pain others feel can be understood so much better after you have been through something a little scarier,and  a little more fearful. As I sat here watching Anna sleep and waiting for the doctor to show up to give us a verdict, I began to think about how we can only see the now but God sees the bigger picture. 

Last night the preacher preached on how there is a time to step out by faith and there is a time to stand  still and wait. God's working at us little by little to prepare us for what He wants us to do. 

For a while now I have been at a major cross road in my life. The decisions get pretty scary when I think about all the possibilities. I feel that at this point God wants me to stand still and wait. He is working on something, just like he is working on healing Anna's body. I don't know what that something is or how long it will take, but God will let me know when it is time to step forward in faith. 

Pain is hard, fear is awful, and waiting seems to take forever, BUT there is a reason and we must stand still and let God move at times. 

Fantasy games

              After all this rain we have been getting it is certainly nice to see the sun shining so brightly this morning!  I know how desperately we needed the rain though!!

Did you know that working with kids not only can be rewarding, but it can also be super exciting. Yesterday, school was running along quite smoothly. Of course we had the usual preschool drama and catastrophes. :)
It was looking a little like rain so we decided to head out to recess early. After a while of playing, it began to drizzle so we headed back inside; however, when we reached the door we discovered that it was locked. I had a moment of panic when I remembered that the keys were still inside.
Nevertheless, we did not give up hope as we headed toward the back door which I was positive that we had left unlocked. Sadly though, I was very mistaken.
It was at this point that I remembered my keys AND hone were locked securely inside the school. You know we often look at situations as hopeless, but from the eyes of a child this was a great adventure! So we filed in a nice little line, in the drizzling rain over to the church to see if anyone was there. There was a car... but all the doors were locked. Now I began to panic! I could just see us all sitting outside of the school in the rain when all the parents showed up.
It was at this point that the pastor came walking to the door with a puzzled look on his face. Needless to say, we were finally able to get back into the school.

Once we got in the school this was how the conversation went.
"It is pretty funny how ALL the doors got locked on us" one kid said.
We all agreed with that.
"I bet it was the silly leprechaun who did it!" another kid said. I watched as all of their eyes went wide open at this possibility.
"I bet he is in the bathroom because the door is shut!" another kid said.
The room got really quiet while they all walked over to the closed door. One brave kid opened the door and said " Come out wherever you are! We know you're in there!"
When nothing happened, school went on as normal, but the students left school that day determined that leprechauns were in the school somewhere.

When I was little, I had no idea about fairies or leprechauns, but I did know FOR A FACT that my toys came alive in the middle of the night. Dad would come in and see a messy room.
"I cleaned it last night. My toys got up in the middle of the night and moved around." I was not just saying that either. I really believed that I was living a "toy story" world. It was even so bad that I would not even wash my stuffed animals for fear that they would drown. :)

So you may be wondering what deep meaning I gained from this experience.... I don't have one! I just love how our imaginations are so alive as children.  

Fall back in time

I am not a pack rat by nature; in fact, I could almost be considered a little OCD in organization. When washing laundry and dishes, I have to have each item in a certain spot. My closet is color coded and organized by seasons.

On the other hand, I could be TAF ( Toss and forget). My granny, mom, and younger sister all believe in keeping everything just in case it comes in handy 20 yrs from now. My philosophy has always been: "If I don't have a place for it and I don't see a need it goes."
Have I regretted some of that... well, yeah! :)

As fall came around, my sisters and I decided to reorganize our room and go through stuff . I have my great grandma's trunk that I keep all my special memories, journals, and cards in. You see... it is with history that I am a pack rat. For example, I pulled out my backpack from under my bed. My sisters rolled their eyes because I had just been telling them that they needed to get rid of some stuff. 

It's easy to watch  someone else to get rid of something  but not when it comes to "your" special junk. This back pack and I went way back... I started and finished school with that back pack. Of course, I am sure it's life span had NOTHING to do with the fact that I was home schooled for most of those years. :)

It still had a pretty good color, still held stuff, but it was well worn and had some holes. So I took one last look and tossed it in the trash.

As I sit here drinking a warm cup of English Toffee Cappuccino, I started thinking... There are some things we should keep from our past and some baggage we should toss out.
You may have memories with that baggage, but is it taking up a place where something new and better can sit?
How about a memory, a relationship, a failure?

History is something special special. We can learn from it, we can cherish it, and we can keep it in our memory; but some old baggage needs to get a taste of TAF!

So as fall settles in, remember to look back and see what you should toss and what you should treasure.

Where were you?

Whenever tragedy strikes, the biggest question everyone asks is " what were you doing when...?"

I remember my principal coming into the classroom and taking us to his  office to watch the video. As a nine year old, I couldn't believe what the tv was telling me. Dooms day was here and we all knew it!
After that event, school was let out and our parents came rushing in to take families home to safety. For the longest time, I remember being afraid every time an airplane would fly close enough to hear that it was going to crash into our house.

 I was close to all my family, miles from the events of 9/11; however, when those planes crashed into those buildings, they shook the security and lives of America. I have heard enough sermons preached on the topic so I will not try to be a preacher today  I just want to say that I am thinking of those who are crying tears and remembering those they have lost.

A perfect Saturday!

I have the computer set up in the kitchen while cooking up some supper. I decided on a favorite family recipe of Sunny side egg sandwiches ( with ketchup and miracle whip) and ramen noodles. I got so caught up in writing that I greased the pan, racked the eggs, and came back to writing. When I went back to check on the eggs, they were doing nothing. I had a blank moment before I realized I forgot to turn on the stove!!
  Fall weather came zooming in on us with that crazy storm we had last night. We were literally facebook deprived for about two hours due to a power outage!!
However, today brought a beautiful day and I could not bring myself to stay inside.

I had a thrill today equal to a day at an amusement park . Was I jumping off planes? was I diving off a cliff? No and no! I was learning to  ride a horse.
 You know all those movies where the city slicker goes to a farm and tries to fit in? That was me there :)

My trainer was amazing as she explained step by step what to do. First of all we had to brush Rusty down. I was a little nervous standing that close to him as he stomped at the flies around him. He did manage to stand on my foot, but thankfully it was a gentle stand, and he did not determine to smash my toe like it was a fly. :)

I then watched as my trainer gracefully mounted the horse and guided him around. It was a very awesome thing to watch.
But the most amazing part was when I was allowed to mount, and take the reins.  We never went very fast but the thrill of riding a horse on my own was enough for one day. I look forward to being able to know how to ride at a fast speed across an open field.

My Barney Fife moment!

Andy was always after Barney to keep is one bullet in the front pocket of his shirt. 
Well, if any of you are like me you like to think that you are so much better with guns. Grant it I have had some interesting experiences with shooting them; I couldn't tell you the difference between a 22 or 44; and I wouldn't know what ammunition to put in which gun even when I found out which gun I was shooting; but I can shoot them. Hey,appearance is everything, right? 

The other day, a guy came into the store to return a BB pistol.
 " It does not have the magazine"  he explained
I was impressed with myself for knowing what the magazine was,and I looked thoughtfully at the empty place where the magazine should be. 
In all my intelligence I replied "Yep, it's not there." 

Before returning the product, he told me that the gun still had a c02 cartridge in it. "I got this" I thought to myself and began unscrewing the little screw holding the cartridge in place. 
" They said it might hiss a little." The customer told me. 
No sooner had the words escaped his mouth when the cartridge practically exploded in my hands.... At least it felt that way to me. Air came rushing out burning my fingers and filling my nose with a foul smell. 

My appearance at that point was probably shot out the window because I had this terrified, shocked look on my face and quickly handed it to the guy. " ok you do it." 

The poor guy was shocked himself and continually apologized to me. I made one last "Barney" attempt to recover my appearance. 
" It's ok, guns don't really scare me." 
As soon as the words were out, I realized how ridiculous they sounded after that episode. :) 

I realized that sometimes it is better for your health and well being to just admit that you don't know something rather than having things explode in your hand. It also gave me a good laugh for the day! 

Cake FLop

http://www.hersheys.com/recipes/recipe-details.aspx?utm_source=redirect&utm_medium=redirect&utm_campaign=Redirect-recipes%20%28asp%29&id=184

Have you ever started to bake something like this? The perfect swirl, triple chocolate,beautiful color accent. Well, with all this cool weather we have had I have been in the baking spirit. So while I watched a lecture for my final week in class I began to bake, and this is what happened:

 So the Cake started to bake ... I smelt something burning and opened the door to see that the cake had overflown in a huge mound on the oven floor!! I grabbed a spatula and dished it out in a hurry. By this point it was a mini, burnt, chocolate thing that looked like a cow pie!

                                                Then the chocolate fudge I was using overflowed in the microwave.....




 But I keep smiling... at least for now :) Because we are going to do this thing. It has been an entire year since I have eaten cake so I have to try it!

Then I found this little sneaks trying to steal the cake pieces that fell out of the cake pan, and successfully eating up all the frosting.




And.... after that entire crazy idea! I was able to sue enough frosting to make the cake look presentable lol!! What a GREAT baking day ;)

Even when the sparrow falls

Yesterday, a young girl brought a baby sparrow up to me and said that she found it in the store. Her mom would not let her keep the bird so I offered to take care of it. I am a bird person- not a bird watcher- just a bird lover :)
Anyhow, this little guy stole my heart right away as he realized that I would take care of him and keep him safe.Birds and me go back quite a ways.
One of my best friends through  the traumatic time of teen life was a bird. We ate together, talked together, sang together, went on bike rides together, and developed our own language. One day I realized he was sick... My vet bill ended up being more than $200 which was a fortune for me; but I had to do everything I could to save my little friend. We became even closer over the next couple years until his age caught up with him and he became deathly ill.
It was a horrible experience watching him suffer when I could do nothing. I remember holding him for hours, talking to him, singing to him, and praying that he would get better. All this time I did not realize that he was dying in my hands.
With his final breath, my little friend reached up and gave me a kiss on the nose before sinking into his final sleep. You can ask anyone in my family and they will tell you that I succumbed to a complete mourning experience. I did not eat, get out of bed, or move any of my bird's belongings.
It was a long time before I recovered from this loss and allowed another pet in my life :)
But I have learned that it is better to have loved and lost than not to have loved at all.

So as you may or may not have guessed, the little sparrow did not make it through the night, but he did leave me with a very important lesson. Have you thought how amazing our God is?
He knows each and every sparrow that falls. He cares for each of his creation, and yet we are more precious  to him than these.
God does not see us as just another person, another item on his art shelf; He sees us as the individual we are, and he loves us like we were his only child. So no matter where you are right now, no matter what you are going through, no matter what you believe, know that God sees YOU and cares for YOU. Learn to trust and love him back!

a house and a home

A slow moving porch swing, a tree fort, a secret hiding spot in the wall. This song reminded me of the memories I locked into the walls of the many houses I have lived. I was a child with a crazy imagination!

I remember writing a note on my closet wall for whoever would use it next. I have also buried special things in the ground or left notes in secret hiding places I had found. I was always afraid to leave a place without leaving something that would identify that I had been there.

Of course we know that home is where the heart is, but the home is where the memories live. 

A picture view: Florida

My travel partners on the 60+ bus trip

The Florida look

           Florida 

Vitality

Life changing

The view from my hotel room. That pool was amazing!

This was the snack and youtube video night.

Kansas could use the rain they had!

 Anyone who knows me know that I like small town and country, but there was something amazing about this experience!!

 

Vitality

$25,000 bonus checks

The camera was on that thing

Literally thousands of people crowded into the American Airlines Arena where the recent Miami heat just took place. Emotions were high as tears fell and laughter rang through the room. This product has helped so many people!

 These are the current champions whose lives have been changed!

My new friend and roommate! 

 Just because we are all shake fans does not mean that we gave up food :) Every time we stopped the bus for a meal you could almost see the look of horror on the faces of those working the restaurants. 56+ hungry people all at one time could be a little overwhelming.
> This particular menu shows my interesting meal of clams, mussels, and squid. MOST of us at our table tried something we never had before or something we could not pronounce and then we shared. lol!   

 This room was part of a rest stop. Not sure how Mississippi decided to turn such a beautiful place into a rest stop on the side of the road but I think Kansas needs to think about it. 

 We visited the beach at night, but had a short stop on the way home so we could get some pictures.

I just had to add this of James because it makes me laugh every time!!

Check out the body by vi link at the top of this page if you don't know what visalus is!

Father's day

   

 I love my dad!!

 Blessed with Two

I have not one father but two
Both are gentle
Both are true

I can bring my sorrows to them and know they'll not reprimand
I can tell them my hopes and dreams and know they'll understand

One thing I must say is that they are different in a couple of ways
One father I can see with my eyes
The other my heart lets me know

I can gain comfort by a hug from one
While at the the same time the other father fills me with joy
I cannot see or hear him
But I know he is near

I must say that I am blessed
With two fathers that are the very best
I cannot express the love I have for both
So I will just finish with, I am blessed 

By Valencia Shove 

 

Family and Fish

Fishing With The family!Well at least part of the family... 

James was off somewhere falling in the water and Sarah was taking pictures. Anna was a good girl and stayed home to do school.

Dad was doing so well tonight that it seemed he caught a fish every time he tossed the line in!

Mom is enjoying something inside her fishes mouth I think! She did a great job of teaching me how to put a minnow on the hook after I ran out of dehydrated worms.

And this is me with one of the biggest fish I have ever caught!!

Every time I caught a big fish my dad would catch one that was just a little bigger. We were in competition all night but he was the best :) But then again how can you beat someone so great as your dad, right ?

Everything is better with turkey!

Turkey season has arrived and with full force! There are turkey all over our hunting spot and my dad has already brought one home for dinner! Sadly,I will have to miss out this season because I have this crazy idea that I would rather sit at a desk and study about our wonderful government or learn how to properly use the APA formatting. My first college course just about killed me because I thought APA was something like NAPA and it took me forever to figure out that it was the way to write a proper paper. At work I get to sell hunting and fishing licenses while getting some pretty interesting conversations. I just love telling someone that I hunt and fish... the common response is a slightly opened mouth, bulging eyes, and a pause before they say, "really?!"

Kansas is also known for some good hunting spots and so we get a lot of hunters from other states. I remember the one hunter with a fascinating southern accent who I got in this conversation about hunting. He came in the next day asking my boss when I worked next. No way would my boss give out that information but the guy was persistent that he would keep coming to the store to hope that he would find me on a day I was working. Then there was the couple who fought practically the entire time I was printing their licenses. Then there was this older man who responding with exact description above, and then said there just aren't many girls who do that. He said that he should know because he has been looking for one for twenty years and I was his kind of girl. Those are just a few of the many. The moral of this story is that you can have a good time and get a good laugh from just about anything, anybody, or any awkward situation if turkey hunting is involved!

A green day!

With this beautiful spring weather we are having in Kansas I think the spring cleaning bug has attacked me.  I have spent much of my spring break cleaning or organizing something   :)  It reminds me of the time when we moved into our first house with a dish washer. I was in one of those “cleaning moods” and decided to wash a load of dishes on my own.

Now you have to understand that my parents always said that they had free dish washers. We would each have a job and sing while we were working.  We always used the good old fashioned dish soap and so when I put all the dishes in the dish washer I also put in the good old dish soap. I was so proud of myself as I pushed the start button and headed off to the next project. It was not long after this that I entered the kitchen again and discovered that someone had poured bubbles all over the floor!!  “what??” Just then I noticed bubbles spewing out of the dish washer. I felt like Cinderella with bubbles all over the floor and room ;P To say the least it took me a while to clean up my mess! 

It took a while before I even dared to use the crazy machine again :)   

I hope each of you are having a wonderful Saint Patrick's day!!! Go green today and wash your dishes with your own two hands ;)