Spring!

Nancy, Lauren and I went shopping at The Biltmore a few days ago. It's an outdoor shopping center in the heart of Phoenix with great stores and great grounds keepers. :) Wouldn't you agree?

It was so nice to visit with Nancy again. I hadn't seen her since November. We shopped a little and had a delicious lunch at Houston's. I had the most wonderful Thai dish with grilled steak. It had fresh avocado and mango too. I loved it. Janice, are you proud of me for making that choice. tee hee.





















Spring is definitely here.

I wish Donna was there to properly photograph the flowers. She would have been in her glory!

I check my stats every once in a while.

I find some very interesting Google searches.

I'm glad I could be of some assistance.

Google — funny throw up stories

You're welcome, by the way.

Help!

Here's the scoop:

May 3rd wedding (brother-in-law)
5:00 outside garden wedding
6:00 inside dinner reception

Bride wearing ivory and champagne
MOB wearing lavender tea length
MIL wearing pink tea length
Husband is best man in a black tux

That leaves me with...green?

I'm 41, is this a little oldish?

Is black out of the question for a Spring wedding?

I want your honest opinions.





















UPDATE

I don't know if this is appropriate either but it sure it CUTE!

Shepherds' Conference

My dear hubby is enjoying rich fellowship and excellent teaching at the Shepherds' Conference in California.

The conference is a ministry of Grace Community Church.

Their mission is:

to provide the opportunity for men in church leadership to be challenged in their commitment to biblical ministry and to find encouragement as together we seek to become more effective servants of our Chief Shepherd.

Dave went with three great friends and they are having a wonderful time! They left at 3:30 AM so they wouldn't miss the first session.

Already Dave has run in to two men that we knew when we lived in Dallas. Not just any old "men". These are dear friends who we have lost track of over the years. We haven't seen Scott and Heather in probably 13 years. We saw Dan and Jane about 3 years ago when Dave and I made a trip to Long Beach. (that was the trip I got a migraine headache and all I could do was lie on the couch with my eyes closed and try not to throw up while the three of them visited). I digress. Dave hopes to have time to catch up with these great friends. Funny story...Scott and Dan were poor seminary students at Criswell College living in Dallas and doing a wonderful work in the inner city. Neither of them had a vehicle so Dave and I bought them a car. Before you think we were sooo incredibly generous I should tell you that is was a BEATER. A black, low riding, ugly beater. And the heat stayed on full time, full blast, in the summer. They would come over to our house for a visit and be beat red in the face and sweating profusely. :)

OK, back to the conference.

Here are a few links:

The not too shabby Keynote Speakers. All I can say is WOW.

The Live Stream!! How cool is that?

I told Dave that if he runs in to Phil Johnson he has to tell him that "Janet from Just Janet" says hello. I'm just sure he'll know exactly who I am. What? You're laughing.....

**********

PS. Sarah has Mono. This is unbelievable. She is not uncomfortable but she has many swollen lymph nodes and the blood test came back positive. I came home from the doctor's office and checked Lauren's lymph nodes and guess what?? They too are a little swollen but not nearly as bad as Sarah's.

BBQ!

Here are a few shots of our Sunday afternoon BBQ. My brother-in-law, 'Binky' and his daughter, Lindsay were in town and we hadn't seen either of them in a long time. It was a real treat to spend the afternoon with them. Of course, it was also fun to have Ashley and Janice here (they both live in town). The weather has been beautiful and sunny and our yard is beginning to make it's comeback. My allergies are in full gear. Ah choo.

















Here are the cousins! James is a little out numbered, eh?



















The girls got comfortable and sunned their bods and visited for a little while. Hmmm, what is it about that Vitamin D?! It feels sooooo good to soak up the sun the first few days of Spring. It's therapeutic.

Is it Spring in your neck of the woods?

What's New!?

My hubby went and bought himself (and the family) a new toy.

It really should be called the iMiracle.

iMac just doesn't do it justice.

We owned an Apple computer back in the early 90's but have been PC users until this beauty entered our lives.





















In true Geeky fashion, Dave ordered the blue tooth keyboard and mouse. And would you please look at that cord.

One cord.

Can I get an Amen!

















See that box next to the One Cord? That's Dave's sub woofer. Like I said. GEEK.

Donna, Dave said you and I can video chat for FREE on a mac dot com site. I'll get right on that. Better yet, I let Dave figure it out. tee hee.

A Must See

Baby Emery Kate.

I hope you'll follow the link to my friend and neighbor's web page.

She just posted a slide show of her new baby girl.

The photographs are absolutely amazing.

I dare you NOT to cry when you see this slide presentation.

Enjoy.

It's Over

He's the next American Idol.

And rightly so. He's absolutely amazing.

Wow.

In The Crock-pot

I have a busy afternoon so I have "Chicken in a Pot" in the Crock-pot this morning.

It's from one of my favorite cookbooks, Fix It and Forget It.

Here's the recipe:

2 carrots, sliced
2 onions, sliced
2 celery ribs, cut in to pieces
3 lbs. chicken
2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp dried basil
1/2 C. water or chicken broth

Place vegetables in bottom of slow cooker. Place chicken on top of vegetables. Add seasoning and broth. Cover. Cook on low 8-10 hours or high 4-5 hours.

I cut/shred the chicken and usually serve this with Wide Egg Noodles. Sometimes I add extra broth to make it more like soup. Some of us eat it with Tabasco. Yum!

I should have made this when my kiddies were sick but I never have celery in da house.

What are you fixing for dinner?

A New Day

Outside: High of 72






Inside (foreheads): 98.7!

Ephesians 5:19-20

Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Have a blessed day!

For Some Strange Reason.....

I can't get this song out of my head.




The fifth person in our family just came down with THE FLU! This is a long, slow, painful process.

I hope and pray your family is well!

Tell me a joke or a funny story. I dare you to make me laugh. :)

PS. speaking of painful....watch that entire video. LOL

Apparently

These make everything all better.



















Well, almost.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

His grace is great enough to meet the great things-
The crashing waves that overwhelm the soul,
The roaring winds that leave us stunned and breathless,
The sudden storms beyond our life's control

His grace is great enough to meet the small things-
The little pin-prick troubles that annoy,
The insect worries, buzzing and persistent,
The squeaking wheels that grate upon our joy

Annie Johnson Flint

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Phil. 4:13 "I can do all things through Him who strengthens me."

Christ empowers you, through His grace, to handle every crisis, adversity, blessing and eventuality. (Called to Obedience)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I appreciate that the authors of Called to Obedience included blessing when they considered this passage.

Praising Him and thanking Him for all things!

Guess what we're watching?

I can't stop smiling.







Gene Kelly is the most beautiful, athletic dancer, EVER.

Donald O'Connor, charming and talented.

Hello!

First things first.

Go see the darling little bundle that just arrived next door.

And I'm being tortured by not being able to properly congratulate them and meet their newest little blessing.

I think I am well enough, but to be safe I will wait until tomorrow to officially meet Emery Kate. Isn't that a great name!

In case you don't know, Jen is my neighbor and is the photographer who took our "New Years Card". (in the side bar) We have become fast friends and our kids have a blast playing together.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Here's the SICKO rundown:

Lauren: improving!!

Me: improving!!

Hannah: slowly improving

Sarah: fever and headache today

And here's the bad news....Dave left this morning for Dallas and *might* be coming down with it. He had a headache and some muscle soreness. Uh oh!

I decided on Friday night that I shouldn't go and it is a very good thing! I'll be nursing Miss Sarah along this weekend. I will also be praying for my dear husband. Can you imagine having this flu while travelling and during business meetings?!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Are you doing anything fun this weekend?

Yuck

Apparently when a 5 year old with the flu sneezes on your face on Monday morning, you will get the flu by Tuesday evening.

I'm just sayin'

See how smart I am.

My flu is mild but my little Lauren is still running a high fever. We are starting our 4th day. It was 102.4 this morning. Any thoughts?

Busy!

My plate is full and my cup runneth over ;-). I am blessed, indeed, but I will not be able to blog much this week.

Lauren is very sick with the flu. Her fever last night at 12:30 am was a whopping 104.5. Poor baby.

I am waiting for the next child to bite it and my throat feels weird, if you know what I mean.

We are supposed to have international students from the U of A spend the night on Friday....we shall see.....

Dave and I are supposed to travel to Dallas on Sunday....we shall see....

Prayers very much appreciated.

Nice.

I took this photograph just a few minutes ago as we were cleaning the TP out of our trees and off the lawn.

Oh, the joys of having a household of teenagers.

It kinda reminds me of this shot.

Only not nearly as good.

Or as professional.

And of course hers doesn't have a roll of toilet paper dangling on a branch.

Follow the links and print Ree's photo for free.

Unless, of course, you prefer mine.

You can stop laughing now.

160 New Looks?

And I like two of them.

I usually love Coldwater Creek clothing!

But I'm afraid someone there had a brain freeze with the early Spring line.

The colors? Yuck.

The skirts? Frumpy


Here are the two things I think are adorable:









































No worries. Once their brains thaw-out I'll be back shopping happily and spending a lot of money at Coldwater. I just hope it warms up quickly.

Question

Have you ever considered NOT VOTING in a presidential election?

I have always cast my vote.

This year, I'm not so sure. I'm not sure I can vote for either (apparent) candidate with a clear conscience.

I trust my husband and will definitely follow his lead. He has a much better grasp on politics than I and I would never vote opposite of him.

**I don't want to get in to the nitty gritty of who's who etc., I'm just curious if you've ever considered this.

Giggle

This just cracks me up!




"How are youuuuuu?"

"Why am I talking so loud?"

Salsa dancer? ROTF LMBO!!!!!!

~~~~~~~~~~

This commercial caught my attention during the Superbowl because of the jumper cables and battery. (hey, it's my life, ok) I, of course, think it should have been an Interstate. I laughed til I cried over this one and watched it several more times on YouTube. I also sent it to my husband to share with our employees in case they didn't see it. Just think if it was powered by an Interstate!

Shameless plug over.

Warning: Very stupid humor, hopefully not too offensive.

O Praise Him!

Picture: Tucson, December 2006

Psalm 69:34

"Let Heaven and earth praise Him, the seas and all that move in them."


All Creatures of our God and King
Words: Fran­cis of Assi­si
Music: Lasst Uns Er­freu­en


All creatures of our God and King
Lift up your voice and with us sing,
Alleluia! Alleluia!
Thou burning sun with golden beam,
Thou silver moon with softer gleam!

Refrain

O praise Him! O praise Him!
Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!

Thou rushing wind that art so strong
Ye clouds that sail in Heaven along,
O praise Him! Alleluia!
Thou rising moon, in praise rejoice,
Ye lights of evening, find a voice!

Refrain

Thou flowing water, pure and clear,
Make music for thy Lord to hear,
O praise Him! Alleluia!
Thou fire so masterful and bright,
That givest man both warmth and light.

Refrain

And all ye men of tender heart,
Forgiving others, take your part,
O sing ye! Alleluia!
Ye who long pain and sorrow bear,
Praise God and on Him cast your care!

Refrain

And thou most kind and gentle Death,
Waiting to hush our latest breath,
O praise Him! Alleluia!
Thou leadest home the child of God,
And Christ our Lord the way hath trod.

Refrain

Let all things their Creator bless,
And worship Him in humbleness,
O praise Him! Alleluia!
Praise, praise the Father, praise the Son,
And praise the Spirit, Three in One!

Refrain

Listen and sing along here.

And may I encourage you to praise Him!

Speaking of 80's Music

Here are the top 25 songs from 1983:

1. Every Breath You Take, Police
2. Billie Jean, Michael Jackson
3. Flashdance... What A Feelin, Irene Cara
4. Down Under, Men At Work
5. Beat It, Michael Jackson
6. Total Eclipse Of The Heart, Bonnie Tyler
7. Maneater, Daryl Hall and John Oates
8. Baby Come To Me, Patti Austin and James Ingram
9. Maniac, Michael Sembello
10. Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of This), Eurythmics
11. Do You Really Want To Hurt Me, Culture Club
12. You And I, Eddie Rabbitt and Crystal Gayle
13. Come On Eileen, Dexy's Midnight Runners
14. Shame On The Moon, Bob Seger and The Silver Bullet Band
15. She Works Hard For The Money, Donna Summer
16. Never Gonna Let You Go, Sergio Mendes
17. Hungry Like The Wolf, Duran Duran
18. Let's Dance, David Bowie
19. Twilight Zone, Golden Earring
20. I Know There's Something Going On, Frida
21. Jeopardy, Greg Kihn Band
22. Electric Avenue, Eddy Grant
23. She Blinded Me With Science, Thomas Dolby
24. Africa, Toto
25. Little Red Corvette, Prince

Now that you've reviewed the list and no doubt sung many of these tunes, tell me a few things....

How many do you know? By heart?

Are there any songs you have never heard of?

Which one is your all time 1983 favorite?

How old were you in 1983? :-)

My answers in the comments.

And one last thing.....after watching many of the videos on YouTube, I have come to the conclusion that THE EIGHTIES WERE VERY, VERY WEIRD. lol.

I Almost Won!

If there is such a thing. :)

My cell phone started ringing and texts started coming in from all over the country. *

What is going on I asked myself?

Big exciting news for this stay at home mom of five.

Yup.

I got mentioned at Ree's blog. I almost won her contest.

I'll take a mention, it's the closest I've ever been to actually winning something.

Donna says: "Janet, I'm so proud of you. You've done what we've all been trying to do for months!" hehehe. (I'm the baby in the family and she's the best cheerleader and encourager EVER.)

Janice's text read: go to p-dub asap.

* One call, one text. And Donna lives in Wisconsin. K?

Just Bored

I saw this first over at Junebug's blog.

Of course hers is from Oklahoma! (I can't really say or type that word without busting in to the Broadway musical song. That would explain the exclamation point at the end.)

You can have your own fun at ImageChef.

I adore the flowers below. Cute, eh?

Fun at ImageChef

Helen Keller

Sarah is finishing up a biography book report and this is what she chose to read.

"Helen Keller: A photographic story of a life". It is published by DK Publishing, Inc.

I have enjoyed being reminded of this remarkable woman and her accomplishments, not to mention her teacher and mentor Annie Sullivan. Annie was only 20 years old when she began educating Helen.


"Obedience is the gateway through which knowledge and love enter the mind of a child."
Annie Sullivan


"Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, ambition inspire, and success achieved."
Helen Keller


"While they were saying among themselves it cannot be done, it was done."
Helen Keller


These are wise words.

Think about the determination and perseverance these two women had. Oh, to have a fraction of that in my soul.

I am reminded of this verse.

Hebrews 12:1-2

Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Please Read

This is very touching story about a young mother willing to give her life for her baby.

May the Lord bless her husband and their children.

I hope you will follow the link.

J Cubed

Janet, Janice and Jimmy

I think we all agreed that this shot was taken in 1979 at his house on Martha's Vineyard. It looks better in black and white but I think the funky colors give it age and well, funkiness.

Thank you, Janice, for finding it and scanning it and emailing it so I could post it.

Now, can we talk about 'her' glasses? Mercy! What on earth? How could we have 4 other sisters and not one of them say "hmmmm, maybe those are a little too big for your face hunny, maybe you shouldn't wear those cuz someday just maybe this will come back to haunt you?"

What? You don't like my orange terry cloth outfit? Well! Trust me, it was cool. The shorts were very orange and they had white stripes going down the side and were trimmed in white around the legs. Fashion slave, yes, that was me back in the day.

All joking aside, we are having a delightful time with Jim! We're taking him to an 8th grade basketball game and then out for German food.

A Munchkin

Sarah tried out for and earned a spot in our school's spring performance of The Wizard of Oz. It is being preformed by the high school kids but they needed 3rd graders to be the munchkins. We are so excited for Sarah. Even if she just skips around the stage singing silly munchkin songs we'll be thrilled. Of all of us in this family Sarah is the one who can sing and dance. I've actually thought seriously about getting her into voice lessons, cuz this momma here can't teach no one to sing. :) I'd love it if her costume looked like the munchkin behind the guy in green and to the left. Isn't it cute?

Do you remember waiting every year for the annual showing of The Wizard of Oz? I do. My friend, Stacey, thinks it came on every spring here in Arizona. Those were the days...no TiVo, good old fashioned waiting. Hmmmm, seems like my kids could use a little of that good old fashioned waiting once in a while.

Donna is a HUGE, GIANT, ENORMOUS, CRAZY fan of The Wizard of Oz. I'm sure the reason I know every song by heart is because of her influence. She probably MADE us sing along and then after it was over I'm sure we had to ACT it out and sing some more. LOL.

Here is another picture, just for Donna.



















Enjoy this!

The Eagle Has Landed

Translation: Jimmy's here ya'll!!


















We had a wonderful evening visiting with Jim.

I asked him about The Stunts. I was panicked. He said he hasn't done them in years. Thank heavens.

We reminisced about old times. Like the time his friend flew Janice and I to Martha's Vineyard from Osh Gosh, Wisconsin. And we both threw up in that man's airplane. Were we only 10 or so?

We remembered the fun we had flying over the Atlantic ocean with Jim, looking at sea turtles sunning themselves and humpback whales playing in the water with their babies. And how the next day he had to "crash" land his plane in the ocean. He floated in his raft and watched his plane sink. He was quickly rescued by a helicopter. He reminded me that he was home safe and sound for dinner. We ate crabs that night.

I asked him if he flies famous people around and he said yes but I couldn't blog about it.

That's all for now.

Sister Tour 2008, last leg.

On Prayer

This is from the Valley of Vision.

Found at this web site.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

O Lord, in prayer I launch far out into the eternal world, and on that broad ocean my soul triumphs over all evils on the shores of mortality. Time, with its gay amusements and cruel disappointments never appears so inconsiderate as then.

In prayer I see myself as nothing; I find my heart going after Thee with intensity, and long with vehement thirst to live to Thee. Blessed be the strong gales of the Spirit that speed me on my way to the New Jerusalem.

In prayer all things here below vanish, and nothing seems important but holiness of heart and the salvation of others.

In prayer all my worldly cares, fears, anxieties disappear, and are of as little significance as a puff of wind.

In prayer my soul inwardly exults with lively thoughts at what Thou art doing for Thy church, and I long that Thou shouldest get Thyself a great name from sinners returning to Zion.

In prayer I am lifted above the frowns and flatteries of life, and taste heavenly joys; entering into the eternal world I can give myself to Thee with all my heart, to be Thine for ever.

In prayer I can place all my concerns in Thy hands, to be entirely at Thy disposal, having no will or interest of my own.

In prayer I can intercede for my friends, ministers, sinners, the church, Thy kingdom to come, with greatest freedom, ardent hopes, as a son to his father, as a lover to the beloved.

Help me to be all prayer and never to cease praying.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Amen

Great Find

Some day we will update our kitchen and add major square footage. Until then, I need to find creative ways to store and organize the stuff we have.

I found this attractive cabinet at JCPenney.com.






















Good news! It is sturdy and level and it only took hubby an hour or so to assemble. Another "plus" is that all the parts and pieces and screws and hinges and blah blah blah were all in the box. I like it when that happens.

Lauren was eager to help me wipe it down and start filling it with the overflowing mixing bowls and other kitchen goodies. I grabbed a few items from around the house to finish off the look.

And so did Lauren.

















***********

Kari & Kijsa is a new favorite blog of mine.

They are decorators extraordinaire!

And they like Diet Coke.

Nuff said.

And There It Will Stay

Dave and I were cleaning out our bedroom a few weeks ago and right in the middle of it I had to leave to pick up a child from a friend's house. When I came home this is what I found....


















hanging on my wall.

And there it will stay.

I believe it was taken the summer after our parent's passed away. Summer of 1974. Girls, please correct me if I'm wrong.

Nancy became an instant Mom to five girls at the young age of 20. She did what Mom's do, they photograph their family. Here we are in Minocqua at our cottage on the lake.

I do wish Nancy was in the photo but I also understand what she was doing. She was taking care of us girls. Making memories, happy ones.























I see this picture on and off all day long and most certainly before I go to bed every single night. I'm so glad it's there.

I remember the good times and the joy and the blessings of sisters.

Dave, thank you for hanging it on the wall.

Hello Out There

I am high tech now.

I have a counter.

I already have 25 unique visitors today.

No one comments.










People. I live for comments.

Now that I have that off my chest I will go check my stats again.

What? I'm not OCD. Really.

Speaking of Cheesecake

Donna made her first cheesecake last weekend. It turned out well and was photographed beautifully, of course.

She's such a cheese head.













Anyway, I thought I'd share a cheesecake recipe that will knock your socks off and make you gain 10 pounds immediately. Just Kidding. Moderation ladies, moderation.

You can thank my friend Diana for this recipe. Hi Diana!

Fudge Truffle Cheesecake

1 1/2 C. vanilla wafer crumbs
1/2 C. powdered sugar
1/3 C. unsweetened cocoa
1/3 C. melted butter

Mix and press in to the bottom of a 9 inch spring form pan.

Beat:

3 (8oz) packages cream cheese
1 (14oz) can sweetened condensed milk
2 C. semi sweet chocolate chips (melted)
4 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla

Pour into pan. Bake at 300 degrees for 1 hour 5 minutes or until set.

Let cool completely and refrigerate.


Does a typical cheesecake serve 8-10? Well, this baby will easily serve 16. I kid you not. It is so rich and heavenly you can really only have a thin slice.

While I agree this is a delicious cheesecake, I have to share with you my all time favorite......























This is White Chocolate Raspberry Truffle Cheesecake from The Cheesecake Factory. It is the best!!

My friend Kelli made me a homemade version a few years ago. Hi Kelli! It was scrumptious. Yoohoo, Kelli. Will you share the recipe so I can share it with my vast audience of internet readers? :)

Now go, and eat some cheesecake.

This and That

Hello! It's been a while so I thought I'd let you know what's going on here.

~~~~~~~~~~

Hannah's recovery has been slow and even the doctor was surprised. The swelling is just now going away on her left side. Thankfully, she did not have dry sockets, abscesses or infection but it was a very complicated case as the top left tooth was very high. At least seven people told me their horror stories relating to wisdom teeth and I tried very hard to protect Hannah from hearing those stories. She has missed a lot of volleyball and is looking forward to getting back to that! Oh, and her good looks. teehee

~~~~~~~~~~

I have been doing a low carb/Atkins diet for nine days and working out 3X/week. It is going very well. I am not obsessing about the scale. I'm just doing what I set out to do. I know I should think of this as a life-time change and I'm trying....but frankly we have a family wedding (Dave's bro!) on May 3rd and an Interstate convention in D.C. in June....so there. :P My husband drives me nuts....just now we were on the phone and he was trying to convince me to "get some protein" because I had just returned from my workout. He enjoys using words like intracellular triglycerides and such. Blah. Blah. I told him I was getting me some nice, cold, icy, carbonated Diet Coke. Woot!!

~~~~~~~~~~

Very exciting news over at Quiet Life! Donna has launched her new photography business website! She is so gifted and I am so excited for her. Now if I could just get her to come to AZ for a little visit. Plenty of subjects and natural light here. Sheesh.

~~~~~~~~~~

GO PACK!









~~~~~~~~~~

Need a little theology fix? Go visit one of my favorite sites, Pyromaniacs. This is an incredible post by Phil Johnson with great video. And let me tell ya, if he was in Phoenix and on our church property on Tuesday and didn't call me I'm going to be really mad. :-)

~~~~~~~~~~~

Have a great weekend!

Chippie

Someone in our house had her wisdom teeth pulled.

I won't say who.

This is what she looks like.

Poor dear.

Happy New Year!

Once Sarah's broken nose healed it was time to set out and get a "Christmas" photo. Well, Christmas was one week away and you know, a gal can't get a photo taken, pictures ordered, envelopes addressed, stamps purchased and mail dropped when she has 1000 other things to do before Christmas. So our Christmas card turned in to a New Years card and here it is.

My new neighbor (as of July) is a very sweet and fun and talented photographer. She runs a very successful business from her home so she can stay home with her young family.

Her web page is HERE.

And this is where she blogs about life and photography.

Jennifer is her name and PhotoJenic is the name of her business! Isn't that clever?

I would have preferred this to be all about the kids but my husband insisted this be all about all of us. I begged to take out at least the small picture and he said NO. I 'gave' because, you know, I am the most submissive wife around. ha.

Jen is going to help me do a wall collage for my home. You should see the beautiful pictures she has of her family in her home. She says that is her favorite part of her business. Seeing them huge and on the walls.

Keep Jen in your prayers. She is about to deliver baby #3 and is busy with 2 young boys.

Just for reference and for my sisters....Hannah 15, James 14, Dani 12, Sarah 9 and Lauren 5. Dave and Janet. Never mind.

Here's to a blessed 2008!!

Merry Christmas!

"And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, 'Fear not: for behold, I bring unto you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the City of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.' And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God, and saying, 'Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.'"

Luke 2:8-14

From our home to yours.

May it be blessed.

Santa and Sledding

We were getting ready to go up north last Friday and there was a knock at the door. Look who showed up for a special visit! Lauren was jumping and squirming and giggling and Sarah was quiet but pleased. Santa was visiting the little school in our neighborhood and my neighbor thought that my girls would like to say hi. So there he was, full of life and very real. I, of course, asked him for something from Tiffany's and offered him a cookie. He declined. The cookie, that is. We'll see about Tiffany's. I have not been naughty this year. Really. What?


















Here is a shot of the sledding area. You can see the San Francisco Peaks in the distance. Brrrr. See the wind blowing the snow off the mountain?!


















Lauren Paige. Happy to roll around in the snow and talk to herself.






















I absolutely LOVE this picture of Sarah because it shows in her face and stance how tough she is. Doesn't she look kewl, broken nose and all. At the end of the day she took a jump that scared me half to death and I went running toward her to make sure she was OK. All of the other people sledding actually applauded her jump. Isn't that funny? They were watching her.



















Love this photo.

Go! Now!

I hope you enjoy this.

I think it's a great rendition.

Never a Dull Moment

Sarah broke her nose last Wednesday.

She was jumping from a trampoline to a blow-up bouncer. She had jumped several times without incident but one time her knee met her nose and that was it!

I have never seen my little Sarah in such pain and cry for so long. It was pathetic. But she was very brave and not hysterical, just in lots of pain. The next few days involved doctors appointments, x-rays and a visit to an ENT! Thankfully, the nose was broken but not displaced. No further treatment was necessary.



"Mom, don't put this on your blog"
Day 2



















"Why are you taking so many pictures?"
Day 4


















Sarah's nose is healing nicely and she is back to her regularly scheduled activities.

She has, however, stayed away from THAT trampoline.

PS. Dear Family and Friends, my annual Christmas card/photo will be late for obvious reasons. :)

Lookie What I Found!

I purchased a few magazines for my flight to San Diego on Sunday.























Boy was I surprised when I saw this.....








































Isn't that cool?!

So in true stalker fashion, I emailed her on Tuesday night when I got home. I told her I spotted the article and was surprised and delighted to see her story in Good Housekeeping. Because, you know, she is my pretend, internet bff.

Now That T-Giving is Over....

I'll listen to Christmas music.

This is beautiful.




Just wait till you hear Christmas Day. Mandisa's voice is amazing and Michael's is the same; soothing and beautiful. You'll get the shivers. (Mandisa was on American Idol a few years ago.) She is a lovely Christian lady and can belt it out, I tell ya.

Michael W. Smith has always been one of my favorite Christan singers. Not only has he produced beautiful music, he has remained faithful to the Lord and to his wife and family.

We were privileged to hear him perform at an Interstate Battery brunch a few years ago. Michael and a grand piano.

JOY!

As a side, he said the song "Friends" was the song that would never go away. :)

That's interesting....my daughter's 6th grade class just sang it for their Fall Music Program. hehehe

Follow the link and you can hear several of his songs off the new album.

Go! Buy it. You'll love it.

Give Thanks

Psalm 100

Shout joyfully to the LORD, all the earth.

Serve the LORD with gladness;
Come before Him with joyful singing.

Know that the LORD Himself is God;
It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves;
We are His people and the sheep of His pasture.

Enter His gates with thanksgiving
And His courts with praise
Give thanks to Him, bless His name.

For the LORD is good;
His lovingkindness is everlasting
And His faithfulness to all generations.



For The Beauty Of The Earth
Folliot Sandford Pierpoint


For the beauty of the earth,
For the beauty of the skies,
For the love which from our birth
Over and around us lies,
Lord of all, to thee we raise
This our grateful hymn of praise.

For the beauty of each hour
Of the day and of the night,
Hill and vale, and tree and flower,
Sun and moon and stars of light,
Lord of all, to thee we raise
This our grateful hymn of praise.

For the joy of human love,
Brother, sister, parent, child,
Friends on earth, and friends above,
Pleasures pure and undefiled,
Lord of all, to thee we raise
This our grateful hymn of praise.

For each perfect gift of thine,
To our race so freely given,
Graces human and divine,
Flowers of earth and buds of heaven,
Lord of all, to thee we raise
This our grateful hymn of praise.

For thy Church which evermore
Lifteth holy hands above,
Offering up on every shore
Her pure sacrifice of love,
Lord of all, to thee we raise
This our grateful hymn of praise.

Listen here.


Happy Thanksgiving to my family and friends.

Have a blessed day.

Give thanks.

Mackie

May He Rest In Peace


















Our (and Nancy's) precious golden retriever had to be put down this morning. His hip and shoulder joints finally gave out. He was 14 years old. He was a gentle old soul and perfect in every way. We will miss him dearly.

For the first time in my life I think I believe in doggie heaven. ;-) Stacey will be glad to hear I finally have my theology right.

When Hannah and I were saying goodbye to Mack I told the vet I thought Mack was the most beautiful and precious and perfect dog in the world. He agreed (nice man) and gave credit to the breed. That made me feel good.

Some day I will own another Golden.....

We love you Mack.
You brought joy in to our lives.

For now, we are grieving.