Wow! I just found 5.00$!

Thursday, April 30, 2009

What's in your pocket????

Today is National Poem in your Pocket Day l  How fun is that

I sent out a text today that said-  Today is National Poem in your Pocket Day, I know that you are thinking' no way', you should send a text to Ellen, to keep her day a jellin' or just to day Hey!  I'll post some of the fantastic results soon.  If you and I don't text and you want to send me a poem- email me- I'd love that!

Here are two of my favorites.  Enjoy

My Sister Ate an Orange

by Jack Prelutsky

My sister ate an orange,
I'm astonished that she did,
she swallowed it completely,
she's a disconcerting kid.

My sister ate an orange,
first she chewed it for awhile,
then digested it entirely
with a silly sort of smile.

My sister ate an orange,
it's a novel thing to do,
then she also ate a yellow
and a purple and a blue.

The Little Orphan Annie

by

James Whitcomb Riley

Little Orphan Annie's come to my house to stay. 
To wash the cups and saucers up and brush the crumbs away. 
To shoo the chickens from the porch and dust the hearth and sweep, 
and make the fire and bake the bread to earn her board and keep. 
While all us other children, when the supper things is done, 
we sit around the kitchen fire and has the mostest fun, 
a listening to the witch tales that Annie tells about 
and the goblins will get ya if ya don't watch out!


Once there was a little boy who wouldn't say his prayers, 
and when he went to bed at night away up stairs, 
his mammy heard him holler and his daddy heard him bawl, 
and when they turned the covers down, 
he wasn't there at all! 
They searched him in the attic room 
and cubby hole and press 
and even up the chimney flu and every wheres, I guess,
but all they ever found of him was just his pants and round-abouts
and the goblins will get ya if ya don't watch out!!

 


Once there was a little girl who always laughed and grinned 
and made fun of everyone, of all her blood and kin, 
and once when there was company and old folks was there, 
she mocked them and she shocked them and said, she didn't care. 
And just as she turned on her heels and to go and run and hide, 
there was two great big black things a standing by her side. 
They snatched her through the ceiling fore she knew what shes about, 
and the goblins will get ya if ya don't watch out!!

 


When the night is dark and scary, 
and the moon is full and creatures are a flying and the wind goes Whoooooooooo, 
you better mind your parents and your teachers fond and dear, 
and cherish them that loves ya, and dry the orphans tears 
and help the poor and needy ones that cluster all about, 
or the goblins will get ya if ya don't watch out!!!

Wednesday, April 29, 2009

Immeasurably More

Pastor Del has been teaching Sunday School on Ephesians.  It is fantastic.  These are my favorite gleanings from his teaching the last two Sundays.

First Thought-

Ephesians 3:14-19  Paul shares a prayer that he prays 

For this reason I kneel before the Father from whom his whole family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you , being rooted and established in love, may have power together with all the saints , to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge- that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

Del shared that after Paul wrote the above, he then wrote a doxology and it is not at the end of the letter.  Del shared that it is as if Paul was so overwhelmed by the power of God , he couldn't help but bust out a Doxology

vs 20-21 Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen. 

I thought that was so cool.  Those are some of my favorite verses and now I understand them even more.  Sometimes when I are so overwhelmed by God and things HE does for me, I do go to this doxology and it speaks things my heart can't even begin to describe.

Second thought

In Ephesians 4:2  Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.  Del shared that as Christians we must do something more than the 'right' thing.  We need to take care of others before we take care of ourselves.  

He shared a story- I believe he said it was from Watchman Nee
   A Christian Chinese man shared with his Christian friends that his neighbor was stealing water from the Christian man to water his field.  The group prayed and they came up with the answer- water your neighbor fields first and then your own.  The man who was stealing the water finally asked why this was being done and the Christian man shared why.

Wow, I  was blown away. 

I am going to get on my knees and pray that I'll be able to water my neighbors field before mine.

Monday, April 27, 2009

Who were you watching?

I am sure most of you spent your Saturday afternoon like I did- watching the NFL draft. In years past I have watched to see where former AUBURN players have gone but this year I was watching an Ole Miss player. Michael Oher- pronounced oar. Andrew had me read The Blind Side by Michael Lewis. It tells the story of Michael Oher and the evolution of the left tackle in football. Micheal Oher was a homeless child that by God's grace was brought into a wonderful family by amazing means. The left tackle is the player the protects the quarterbacks 'blind side' if you have a right handed quarterback.

Michael Oher went to the Baltimore Ravens as the 23rd pick.

For those of you who think sports is not a wonderful teaching tool...why is the Baltimore team called the Ravens? Edgar Allen Poe died in Baltimore so to honor him and his poem The Raven the football team was named the Ravens. Cool huh?

If you have a sports fan and you need to be able to talk more to them I highly recommend The Blind Side.

Monday, April 20, 2009

I need to read this every day.

I often read what Nancy Wilson has to say on her blog www.femina.reformedblogs.com. 



How To Be Free From Bitterness 
by Jim Wilson

"Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God" (Eph. 4:31-5:2).

In our text we are instructed to get rid of all bitterness. Before we begin discussing how and why this must be done, it is crucial to realize that the basis for all our actions in this regard must be what Jesus Christ has done for us on the cross. In all our actions, we are to be imitators of God.

In the Old Testament, there was a woman whose name meant Pleasant. Her name was Naomi and she had moved from Israel to another land with her husband and sons. But her husband had died and within the next ten years both of her sons died. She made some comments to her recently widowed daughters-in-law about it.

Ruth 1:13b: "... it grieves me very much for your sakes that the hand of the Lord has gone out against me!" She was comparing in order to determine who had the right to be more bitter.

And in Ruth 1:20-21: "So she said to them, 'Do not call me Naomi; call me Mara, for the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me. I went out full, and the Lord has brought me home again empty. Why do you call me Naomi, since the Lord has testified against me, and the Almighty has afflicted me?' ''

Her bitterness was toward God. It was God who had taken away her husband; it was God who had taken away her sons, and she held it against Him. Five times in these three verses she held God accountable for her bitterness.

There are many people like this today. Not only are they bitter, they enjoy being bitter. They somehow like it, and they feed on it. They wouldn't know what to do if they got rid of it; they wouldn't have a purpose for living. They like being bitter.

We know people like that in the world, and we know people like that in the church. It is easy to recognize when somebody is bitter. You can see it in the eyes and in the lines of the face -- even if the person is young. You can see it in their mouth, you can see it when they're smiling or laughing. They are bitter and you can see it. You can hear it in the tone of their voices. You can hear it when they protest that they are not bitter. The bitterness is central and pervades everything.

There are bitter people in the Bible besides Naomi. In fact, there are quite a few. For example, Jonah was a bitter man. The Lord said to him, "Do you have a right to be angry about the vine?"

"I do," he said. "I am angry enough to die" (Jon. 4:9).

He thought he had a right to his anger. I like being angry. God, you are wrong to forgive people. I don't want you to forgive people.

People enjoy holding things against other people. But our text requires us to remove all bitterness and to maintain a tender heart. Here's the question: Is it possible to be kind, compassionate, tenderhearted and yet bitter at the same time? These are all interior attitudes. Tenderheartedness, by definition, involves a tender heart. Bitterness is also on the inside. But it is not possible to have two different, contradictory attitudes on the inside.

Paul says to get rid of all bitterness and to be kind and compassionate one to another. Therefore, the bitterness must go. But before it can be removed, it is necessary to know what it is -- and that it is there.

It is relatively easy to see when other people are bitter. But it's not so easy to see it in ourselves. It is therefore important to have a good understanding of the Bible's definition of the problem.

Let us suppose that a Christian commits a sin. He tells a lie, for instance. Now when he tells this lie, does he feel guilty or does he feel bitter? The answer is guilty. When we sin, we feel guilty. It is straightforward. Now let us suppose that someone told a lie about this same Christian and spread it all over town. What does he feel now -- guilt or bitterness?

Guilt is what we feel when we sin, and bitterness is what we feel when others sin against us. The very definition of bitterness points to the action of another. If we had committed the offense, we would feel guilty and would know that we had to confess and forsake our sin.

We might not confess the sin, but not because we did not know what to do. But what do we do with the guilt of others? Bitterness is always based upon someone else's sin -- whether real or imagined.

Consider the imaginary sin first. Many times we can be bitter toward someone for what he said, when in reality he did not say it. We heard a false report, and now we are bitter. We wait for an apology which he cannot offer. Shall we remain in bitterness the rest of our lives because he never says he is sorry for something he did not do?

Incidentally, many bitter people cannot imagine the possibility that they are bitter over imaginary sins. As far as bitterness is concerned, the other person's guilt is always real. For such a person trying to be free from bitterness, it is acceptable for them to assume the real guilt of the other person, so long as they get rid of their own bitterness.

But what about genuine sin? There are many bitter people who really were mistreated by the offender. So how do we deal with a genuine offense?

Bitterness is based on sin that somehow relates to you. It is not concerned with how big the sin is; it is based upon how close it is. For instance, if some great and gross immorality occurs in Iran, Iraq, El Salvador, or Columbia, what do we do? We read about it, but we will not feel guilty. We read about it, but we will not feel bitter. We might be appalled or amazed, but we do not feel guilty, and we do not feel bitter. Nevertheless, it was an awful sin, and someone actually committed it. So it does not depend on how great the evil is, it depends on how close the other person is to me. Bitterness is related to those people who are close.

Who are likely candidates? The answer is simple: fathers, mothers, brothers, sisters, husbands, wives, children, boyfriends, girlfriends, roommates, immediate superiors, immediate subordinates, co-workers, business partners, and maybe some other relatives -- grandparents, uncles, and others. There are even many people who are bitter against God.

We do not get bitter towards evil outside of our own immediate contact. Bitterness is based upon somebody else's sin who is close to us, and who did something to us. It might be minor. It does not have to be great, it just has to be close . Does he pick up his socks? No? Can you get bitter over that? Well, no, but what if he does it 5,000 times?

You may think you have a right to be bitter. But the Bible does not grant anyone the right to be bitter. The text says to get rid of all bitterness .

See to it that no one misses the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many (Heb. 12:15).

Here it describes bitterness as if it were a root. A root is something that is underground and cannot be seen. But there can be visible evidence of its presence, as when sidewalks are lifted.

Roots do other things. The fact that you cannot see roots does not mean they are not there. Neither does it mean you will never see them. They drink in nourishment, and they do not stay roots. Eventually they come up.

The fruit that is born bears a direct relation to the root producing it. The roots of an apple tree provide us with apples. If there is a bitter root, it will bear bitter fruit.

That is what this verse is saying. Beware lest any root of bitterness spring up, cause trouble, and defile many people, which means to make many people filthy. Have you ever seen bitterness go through a church? Bitterness can go through a congregation like a prairie fire. It can go through the work place or a dormitory. Why is this? Somebody decided to share. He was bitter, let the root come to the surface and bear fruit. He shared it and many people became bitter. The author of Hebrews warns us about this. He says beware of missing the grace of God. When you allow it, bitterness comes up and defiles many people. It makes many people filthy.

What happens to a person if he keeps bitterness on the inside for many years? What happens to him physically? Can he get physically sick? Suppose it is bitterness toward some member of the family. He's kept it inside, he has not shared it. He has not defiled many people -- he has kept it down inside. When he keeps it inside for some years, he finally begins to hurt. He goes to the doctor and the doctor says, "You are right, you are sick. But your sickness is not the kind I deal with. I am going to send you to the other kind of doctor."

So he sends him to the psychiatrist, and the psychiatrist agrees. "Yes, you are sick all right. And I know why you are sick. You are sick because of 20 years of bitterness towards your father. You have kept it suppressed all these years and it's just rotted out your insides. You have kept this poison within and this acid on the inside has made you just physically ill. So what I want you to do is I want you to go home and share it with your father. Why keep it in and get sick? Let it out. Get everybody else sick."

So the world has two solutions. Keep the bitterness in, and make yourself sick, or let it out and spread the sickness around. God's solution is to dig up the root. Get rid of it. But this takes the grace of God . A man must know the Lord Jesus Christ to be able to do this. He is the source of grace.

The world's solutions for bitterness shouldn't be used by Christians. When Christians copy the world, they have two poor choices. The Bible says to get rid of all bitterness. You must not keep it in and you must not share it. Surrender it to the Father, through the Son.

But if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth. Such 'wisdom' does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, of the devil. For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice (James 3:14,15).

When I was a young midshipman at the Naval Academy, I thought that the pettiness and jealousy I observed would give way to maturity. I thought the higher you got in rank, the more mature you became, the less this sort of thing occurred. But as I grew older I found out that the jealousy just got more intense. Bitterness accumulates . Unless there's a solution to it, people do not get less bitter with maturity. They get more bitter over the years. It gets worse and worse.

And if you harbor bitter envy, evil practice will result. It does not come from heaven. It is straight from the pit and is of the devil. Every evil practice results from this attitude. As should be obvious, we have a real problem. How do we get rid of bitterness?

Before we can get rid of bitterness, we have to realize that we are bitter. How can we tell if we are bitter?

One good rule of thumb is this: Bitterness remembers details . You have had thousands of conversations in your life, most of which you have forgotten. But this one took place five years ago, and you remember every single word, his intonation and the inflection of every part of his voice. You know exactly what happened -- which means you are bitter.

Someone might object and say that it is also possible to have a good memory of a wonderful conversation. Is this possible? Yes, but not likely. Why is this? Because memory is helped by review, review, and more review . People do not usually mull over the wonderful things as much. But they do go over and over and over the bad things. I have done quite a bit of counseling with people who are in the process of getting divorced. I have known some since the time they were married, at a happier time in their life. But at the time of the divorce they cannot remember a single happy time. All they can remember is that which they have gone over and over. They are bitter.

This doesn't mean there were not happy times. It just means that they have concentrated on how right they were and how wrong the other person was. If someone has a sharp, detailed memory for things which happened years ago when he was a child, or a young man or woman, and that memory is at all accusative of anyone else, then it is an indication of bitterness. And the solution for bitterness is to get rid of it.

I had a wonderful experience one time in Dallas, Texas. I was speaking on a Saturday night at the home of an old friend. Because I was going to be in Dallas, I wrote notes to several people that I'd known from different parts of the country at other times, and they showed up at this home.

My host asked me to speak on bitterness, which I did. Afterwards, a couple came up to see me. I had known them eight years before in Pullman, Washington. The wife came up to me and said, "We have been married for eight years. The first year of marriage I was so bitter toward my mother that I laid it on my husband every single day. Our first year of marriage was just awful because I kept sharing this bitterness toward my mother with my husband."

She then told me that seven years ago I had spoken on bitterness and she had gotten rid of hers. One day she saw another woman who was really bitter towards her mother. She thought, "I can help that woman. I can share all the common experiences. I went to her to share this, and I couldn't remember any of the details. My detailed memory had gone. All I could tell her was I used to remember things, and I do not remember them anymore." The Lord had really taken care of her bitterness.

Another time I was teaching a four-week course on marriage. I had put a notice in the paper and did not know who would show up. A woman came who had been referred to the class by a doctor. She came in and I can honestly say that I have never seen anybody more bitter in appearance in my life. She had forty years of accumulated bitterness. She got rid of it that night and made an appointment to see me the next day at the bookstore where I worked. She came in the store, and I did not know who she was. She looked so different . I had just met her the night before, but she was clean inside now.

What is the problem? Why is it we do not get rid of bitterness? If I tell a lie, I can confess it and be forgiven. In order to get rid of it I have to bring it back to my own heart. We need to bring the realization of bitterness back to our own hearts. Instead, the temptation is to look at the offender. Look what he did. That is the nature of bitterness. In order to get rid of it, I need to recognize it is my problem before I can confess and forsake it.

But you say, "I am not bitter. I just get hurt easily." But the symptoms of getting hurt are very close to the symptoms of resentment. Do you know what instant resentment is? You might say. "It is not bitterness -- it is just hurt feelings." But there is a close relationship between being hurt and being resentful. Someone gets hurt and he gets resentful. There is another very close connection between resentment and bitterness. Resentment turns into a deep bitterness.

Bitterness is just resentment that has been held on to. It has become rancid and rotten. It is kept in and it gets worse. The links in the chain continue. There is a connection between bitterness and hatred, and a very clear biblical identification between hatred and murder. What I am saying is that hurt can lead to murder. Some might object that this teaching is too strong. But the strength of it is from the Bible.

What we want to do is make it apparent how sinful bitterness is . The bitter person must first recognize that he is bitter, and secondly, that it is a gross evil. Again, the reason people do not deal with this sin is that they think it is the other person's sin. The devil says, "Well, when he quits lying, or he quits doing this or that, or when he says he's sorry, then you will feel better."

But suppose he does not quit? Suppose he never quits? Are you going to be bitter the rest of your life because someone else insists on being in sin? That does not make any sense at all. You may say, "I will forgive him when he says he is sorry, but not until then. I have a right to my bitterness until then. When he says he is sorry, I will forgive him and everything will be fine." You keep this wall of bitterness up, and one day he comes to you and he says, "I'm sorry." Can you now forgive him? No, because bitterness doesn't forgive. In order to forgive this person when he says he is sorry you have to be ready before he says he is sorry. And if you are ready to forgive him before he says he is sorry, then it doesn't depend on whether he says he is sorry or not. In other words, you get rid of bitterness unilaterally. It does not matter what the other person does.

Earlier the point was made that bitterness seems to stem from the other person's sin -- real or imagined. That is only how it appears. In reality bitterness is a sin that stands alone. The bitter person decides to be bitter independently of the offender.

But you say, "No, he sinned against me, and when he says he is sorry everything will be fine." But this is not true.

I've known situations where an apology was offered and the person is still bitter. Suppose the offender is dead and cannot apologize. I know people who are extremely bitter and the bitterness is toward their parents who died years ago. But the bitterness has not died. Bitterness is the sin of the bitter person alone, unrelated to anybody else.

One time I went to the Walla Walla State Penitentiary to spend the day with the inmates. It was around Christmas. I spent about six hours there. During the afternoon, I was in maximum security, talking about and teaching evangelism.

This one fellow asked about reaching the really hard-core criminals. I thought he was really interested in such evangelism and talked to him about it. Then I spent time in minimum security, protective custody and other places. In the evening I was back in maximum security, and thought I'd talk on this subject of bitterness. I figured there were probably some bitter people there.

This same fellow who asked about evangelism in the afternoon asked me another question. He said, "How can you get rid of bitterness towards somebody who beat up your three-year-old son unmercifully?" So I told him how, and then I said, "You know, when you get rid of your bitterness you can help this person so that he won't beat up other little kids."

He said, "No, this guy cannot be helped."

I said, "Sure, he can."

"No, no."

"Why not?"

"He is not with us any more."

This inmate had murdered him. He had murdered him because of what he had done to his three-year-old son -- that's why he was in prison. But even though he had killed the man, he was still bitter . In other words, expressing it did not get rid of it.

When somebody else says he is sorry, it does not get rid of our bitterness. The only thing that gets rid of it is confession before God because of the Lord Jesus Christ's death and resurrection. This is the only solution .

We must not keep it and we must not share it with others. There is only one thing to do and that is to confess it as a great and evil sin. We must be as persistent in the confession as necessary.

Once I was speaking at Monterey, California, at the U.S. Naval Post-Graduate School. There was a man there who had a great reputation as a Bible teacher. He was a line officer in the Navy, but he had been passed over for the command of a submarine. He did not have command of a submarine and he was bitter. I spoke on confession of sin and bitterness, and he was really wiped out. He came and saw me and got rid of this bitterness. The next morning, his wife said to me, "I've got a new husband." He had been bitter toward the Navy. But it was his sin, not the Navy's.

Amy Carmichael has a note in her little book If . "For a cup brimful of sweet water cannot spill even one drop of bitter water, however suddenly jolted. " If it is full of sweet water and is jolted, what will come out of the cup? Sweet water. If you gave it a harder jolt, what's going to happen? More sweet water. If someone is filled with sweet water and someone else gives him a jolt, what will come out? Sweet water. Jolts do not turn sweet water into bitter water. That is done by something else.

Jolts only bring out of the container what's already in the container. If you're filled with sweetness and light, and you get jolted, you're going to spill sweetness and light. If you're filled with honey, the honey will come out. If vinegar comes out, what does that prove? It shows what was already in the container. In other words, much bitterness is not based upon what the other person did at all. It is the result of what we do and are.

Many years ago, I was working in our bedroom at my desk. My wife, Bessie, was reading in bed. Whatever I was doing wasn't going well. Bessie said something to me and I turned around and let her have it. It was something unChristian. She looked at me in amazement and got up and left the room. I sat there thinking, "She should not have said it. Look what she said. Look, look, look." I did that for around 10 minutes, maybe longer. I was bitter toward Bessie, but all she did was jolt the cup. What was in the cup came out of the cup.

If I had been filled with sweetness and light, it would not have made any difference. I sat there and thought about what she did. I knew better, because I had already learned this truth about bitterness. Still, I thought about her "sin" because there is enjoyment in accusing the other person. Some people do this for years.

I sat there for a while and then got up and went over to my side of the bed, got on my knees and said, "Lord, I was the only one at fault. It was my bitterness and my sin. I am confessing it, forsaking it, and please forgive me."

I got up off my knees and said, "But look what she said." I got back on my knees.

"God, I'm sorry for what I did. I accept the responsibility. It was my sin and mine only."

I got up off my knees and said, "God, you and I know who is really at fault." I knelt back down. I stayed on my knees for 45 minutes until I could get up and not say, "Look what she said."

I do not remember now what she said, and I do not remember what I was doing at the desk. I do not remember the details. The only thing I remember now is getting up. But I also know that if I had not taken care of the bitterness I would know to this day exactly what she had said . That is the nature of bitterness.

In order to get rid of it, I have to see that it is evil and that it is my sin and my sin only. I do not get rid of it through the other person saying he is sorry. I do not get rid of it if the other person quits or dies. I do not get rid of it any other way except calling it sin against the holy God, confessing it and receiving forgiveness.

The difficulty is in getting my eyes off the other person's sin. But just the fact that I think it is his problem shows that it is not. If it were his problem, and I was filled with sweetness and light, and not bitter, then I would be concerned about the other person.

I could say, "That poor guy! Look what he did. If I did something like that, I would feel awful. He must really feel awful. I think I will go help him." But if that is not my response then I am bitter, and it is my sin, not his.

I believe that this sin is a major hindrance to revival in this country. When Christians start confessing their sins, they will be able to forgive the sins of others.

Kaitlin's favorite cake recipe

I got this recipe before I was married from a friend of my mama's, Dottie.  She invited me to her house and gave me several of her favorite recipes. 

 I made it on Saturday.  There's not much left...

Cream Cheese Pound Cake
preheat oven 325
 
8 oz cream cheese
3 sticks of butter
3 cups of sugar
6 eggs
3 cups plain flour
2t vanilla

I mix all the wet ingredients and then add the dry. bake for an hour.  This is a large cake.  It makes two large loaf pans and one small one. 

Enjoy!

Saturday, April 18, 2009

Something to think about

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iG9CE55wbtY  

Andrew sent this link to me to watch.  This is for all those who have anything to do with anyone's education.  It was great encouragement to me and my out of the box thinking.  Enjoy

Monday, April 13, 2009

I say, We need to let them go

We got the camera out for Easter.
John brought his friend, Daniel, home. Daniel couldn't make it to his home so he celebrated with us.

Marisa got a new dress for Easter and I have on a new sweater I got for my birthday.


You really need to make this picture bigger so you can really a greater appreciation for these socks. They are day-glow blue. Carl wore them a few weeks ago to church, to my horror. When I tried to bless someone else with them, Carl protested and said that they belonged to his dad, who is now dead. I relented only to see them reappear on John. A man at church saw them and asked about them. When I said that they were Carl's dads and Carl wanted to keep them, the man patted me on the arm and told me to put up more pictures of Carl's dad around the house and throw those socks away! What do you think? Anyone need some BLUE socks?



Saturday, April 11, 2009

Don't start this book unless you can read it and not put it down.

The next book that our book club is reading is Some Wildflower In My Heart by Jamie Langston Turner.  I just reread it so I would be ready.  It was even better the second time through. 

The story is told by Margaret about her friend Birdie or so Margaret thinks.  It is really the story of Margaret.  To say the author is well read is such an understatement.  This time as I read I wrote down all the books, poems and music she references.  I didn't stop to count but my guess-ta-mation is  75 titles.  Often Margaret would come into a situation and it would remind her of one she had read in a book.  There are several twists and turns and I don't think you will be able to predict the ending.

I love reading a book that expands my vocabulary.  I learned raconteur, inchoate, and perambulations to name a few.

Ms. Turner has written several books.  All are good.  This is my favorite.  




Thursday, April 9, 2009

I am 21, so to speak

Tuesday was the 30th anniversary of my 21st birthday! I like month long celebrations well at least week long ones. Because of class and work , my family birthday party was Wednesday night. John came home from UCA, Kaitlin cooked supper with help from Brandon and Carl, Jeanie, Brittnay, Marisa and Jennifer rounded out our fun group.
These pictures are in a random order. This one was taken later in the evening. Kaitlin looks like she has a hat with a light on it and Jennifer is working her pose.

Here is my wonderful supper. I asked for swiss steak, mashed potatoes, broccoli, green salad and sister shubert rolls- Can we all say YUM YUM????


My girls



Artistic picture of cooking supper by KPM




The giving of the gifts. I got lotion, a sweater, itunes gift card, magnets for the fridge plus a whole lot more.





My cookie cake said "1 Hot Mama"






more posing




My balloons



one can never tell when these artsy types get the camera what you'll end up with. Here is Roxanne, oh I mean Britt and Kaitlin, looking all big and bad, I think.
Fun Fun Fun. I am blest to have such wonderful family and friends that are like family to me. Today I plan to party at lunch with two friends and tomorrow I plan to party with my friend, Katy, who has the same birthday as I do!!!!!!! She is probably on her 5th anniversay of her 21st birthday.
Here is a poem that my brother Charles wrote on my wall on facebook on the 7th
My Sister Ellen by CHP
For a sister I could have done worse.Listen close and I’ll give you a verse.
She shares joys and troubles,with a pen name of “Bubbles”
She raises big smiles with tales of bath tiles
She reads lots of books and she even cooks!
She goes on and on about Andrew, Kaitlin and John
But the wreath of laurel goes to some guy name Carl
(When the star of the show should be her brother, you know)
So please excuse the too much sappiness Wishing her much birthday happiness!
I got this poem from my brother John in a text
Hope you have a HAPPY BIRTHDAY, may good things come your way.Your present is going to be one day late, but it will be worth the wait.
I just love birthdays!!!!!!







Monday, April 6, 2009

Student Competition

Today I went to UALR to see the student completion. If I remember correctly 90 students entered and 50 got art in. Over 300 pieces were entered and 71 were chosen.




KimT, Marisa, Clare and Carl were able to join the fun. Carl is talking to one of Kaitlin's photography teachers. His name is Gary and he graduated from AUBURN!



Dan and Nancy joined us too. Dan is an artist. He looked at every piece and enjoyed talking to the students about their work.




Brina won an award today for her work. We clapped so loud for her.





Brittnay got her sculpture of Amelia Earhart in.

Ross got a scratch board in. Marisa loves this piece.


Kaitlin and Britt with Kaitlin's picture in the background.



Kaitlin and her picture. click on the pictures to get a better view.


Marisa was a model for one of Kaitlin's friends, Sara. The picture got in so we got to see the picture of Marisa hanging in the gallery. Yes, she is in water. Sara had just watched an episode of America's Next Top Model and wanted to take pictures like she had seen them do. This picture was taken in February and Marisa was freezing but she still looks beautiful. I am blessed with wonderful friends. They dropped what they were doing today and came with me to UALR. Notice the winter coats. It was about 40 degrees and windy.










Saturday, April 4, 2009

A Favorite Childhood Memory

We dyed Easter eggs today. It was a blast. Here is the set up.
Jeanie and Robert were with us too.

We got these new painting things from pas. Here is my attempt at an artsy picture. This is Kaitlin's polka dot egg.











these next pictures are everyone with their favorite eggs.






I used the artistic picture for Kaitlin.










Jeanie had two favorites. I love dyeing eggs or rather watching those I love dye eggs. I like to document the event. I like the smell of the egg dye and and the Easter lily. That smell takes me back to my childhood home. If I could bottle it and have a smell on here I would!










Thursday, April 2, 2009

What do you see as you drive?

We live out from the city and have a beautiful drive every time we go into the city. I love seeing the redbuds (which for some reason are purple) and the dogwoods off in the woods that we drive through.

Once my friend, KathyB, said that she saw a dogwood surrounded by several flowering trees. She said that it looked to her like a bride with her bridesmaids. Can't you just picture that?

Enjoy the spring

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