Church Shopping.

Well so far the move to Ohio has gone pretty smooth. I am learning my job. The kids like their school. Dan seems to be figuring his job out.  The animals seem to be adjusting. We are running non-stop all week. The 8th graders are in the High School band here and the band plays at the home basketball games so we have been enjoying some Piketon Redstreaks basketball (what exactly is a red streak anyway?)


The one area we haven't quite figured out is a church. How do you choose a church in an area where you don't know anyone.  There are so many to visit. So much to consider. This is a small community but I think there are as many churches as there are people. Small churches. Large churches. Non-denominational churches. Denominational churches of all kinds. Churches with contemporary worship. Churches with traditional worship. To make matters more complicated we are out in the country (actually around here we are "in the Hollow") and that puts us between two small towns. It is actually 6.2 miles to one town and 6.4 to another so that makes two small towns worth of churches to choose from. Now just 10 miles to the North there is a larger town (still pretty small) that has even more churches to choose from.  Soooo, how do you decide. I like small churches like the one we visited on mission trip this summer but they don't have very large youth groups. I like the crazy more contemporary ones in Waverly but while that is close it isn't the town where the kids go to school.


I wanted to visit some of the smaller nondenominational churches but to be honest I am a little afraid. One of the ladies I work with said she stumbled on to a "snake handling" church a couple hours from here. I am a little hesitant to just show up at some of these little churches not knowing anything about them.

So do we stick with what we know? There is a church here that reminded me so much of Newington that I felt like I was home the first day we visited. I feel like we should visit some other places but truth be told I think I just answered my own question. Funny how sometimes all you really need is to lay it all out there and then you wonder what you were struggling with in the first place.


Shell

Ohio

We are moving to Ohio!

There I said it. That is why I haven't been blogging much. We thought we were moving. We were pretty sure we were moving. Buuuuutt... just in case I didn't want to say anything. I also couldn't think of much else so if I couldn't talk about moving I couldn't think of what else to say. Now it is official. I am packing. So I have plenty to say.

This is going to be very different from what we are used to. I am going to have a full time job. I haven't done that since the kids were born. Now this one still has a fair amount of flexibility as far as where I work from so that is good but it has very little flexibilty as far as when things get done so that will be different.

We are renting out our house here and then we are renting a house there so that will be a big change for us. I am excited about the house we are renting though (I can bring my chickens) and the location is good.

We have to go look at schools. They have something called open enrollment so if you don't want your kids to go to the school in your town you just take them to a different one. It is weird to get to choose which school your kids attend. Personally I think I am going with the one with bus service :)

The biggest thing for us will be finding a church. We have a few lined up to visit and I am very excited about going and seeing what they are like.

Over the next couple of weeks I am sure I will be very very busy but it is exciting.

Shell

Blogging about a Blog

Okay so today all I am blogging about is a blog. I haven't forgotten about my random topic series but our weekend trip to Ohio threw me off. I will get back to that later today. But for now I want to share a blog I found with everyone.

100 Days of Real Food

Now she is pretty hardcore and I really doubt most of us could have the self dicipline she had to make it through the whole 100 days but regardless there are some great tips, stories, and tons of information about what the food we eat is doing to our bodies.

I am pretty sure that with everything we have going on right this minute now is not the time for me to be trying a new way of eating but it was still very very interesting to read and I am going to try the Pumpkin Spice hot Chocolate recipe.

So anyway here is a blog I have been reading and thought others might want to check it out.

Shell

30 Days of Random Topics: Five things you would bring to a deserted island.

Day 4 of 30 Days of Random Topics: Five things you would bring to a deserted island.



So if I were going to be stranded on a deserted island what would I want with me? Well here is my list:

1. Matches
2. A Deck of Cards
3. My Bible
4. Sunscreen
5. My toothbrush

What about you?

Shell

30 Days of Random Topics: Music

Day 3 of 30 Days of Random Topics: Make a list of music you like that isn't mainstream.

Okay anyone who knows me or reads this blog knows I LOVE music.  This one is a little different because it isn't just a list of mainstream music but the stuff that is a little bit more unusual. So here is my list:

I don't know if this counts as mainstream or not since it has been on a commercial but I LOVE Sean Hayes' music so here is the first one on my list:

Powerful Stuff

One of my favorite all time bands is the Asylum Street Spankers. They had their farewell tour this year which makes me so so sad. So here is one of my favorite Spankers songs:

T'Aint Nobody's Business

One of my new favorites is Jon Schmidt. They guy has talent out the wazoo.

Michael Meets Mozart

Now it is true that in some circle I guess Lyle Lovett is kinda mainstream but not around here really. I love him and his music. Here is one of my all time favorites:

If I had a Boat

On the same note if it was mainstream at one time but isn't anymore does it still qualify? One of my favorite all time songs and one that is on all my playlists is by Eddy Rabbit:

I Love a Rainy Night

Most of the music I listen to is considered contemporary Christian so it isn't mainstream to most but it is to most of my friends so I haven't included any Sanctus Real, Toby Mac, Switchfoot, Chris Tomlin, ect. but this one isn't what I would consider mainstream for Christian music and I love it:

Weary

Here is the last one for today. I love Ray LaMontagne.

Beg, Steal or Borrow



Shell

30 Days of Random Topics: Conspiracies

Day 2 of 30 Days of Random Blog Topics: Talk about a Conspiracy.

Man could this topic be any better for me? Well maybe if it was about the Space Time Continuum, cults, or serial killers but otherwise conspiracies are about as good as it gets.

Now it doesn't say talk about conspiracy theories in general like black helicopters, FEMA, reeducation camps, assassination plots, and Area 51. It says to talk about A conspiracy so I have to pick one. So I will talk about my most favorite conspiracy theory EVER.

Up until a few years ago if I said Illuminati most people would have no idea what I was talking about. The move "The Davinci Code" came out a few years ago and now people think they know what the Illuminati are about. I personally have never seen the movie but I keep meaning to just so I can see what it says about the Illuminati.

My interest in the Illuminati started in the early 90's. A friend of mine gave me to book "The Illuminati Trilogy" and I was hooked.

Basically the book is a satirical science fiction book that covers the gambit of conspiracy theories and ties them all together by blaming them all on the Illuminati.

That got me interested in them and so I did a little research. What I found was very interesting and also very involved. But here for your reading pleasure is a short version.

The Illuminate are a secret society that was originally started in the 1700's. It was comprised of the riches, most powerful, and brightest individuals of the time. Together they have conspired to  control all the world governments  since that time.

They most recently have been tied to an American Secret society located in Northern California called the Bohemian Club.   They meet on a 2700 acre camp that is heavily guarded. Some of the most powerful people in the world meet there together every summer for "rest and recreation".

There are many rituals and bizarre practices that go on there. Seems like the perfect set up for a secret organization like the Illuminati to me.



This is a photo of the owl statue where one of their most bizarre and documented rituals takes place.

Anyway I love the idea behind these "One World Nation" secret society groups. The idea that there is one group behind all the conspiracies is so cool!

Shell

30 Days of Random Topics: The Ocean

Last year at this time I did a series called 30 days of Thankfulness. I wanted to do something like that again this year but I couldn't decide what I wanted my 30 days to be about. I have so much on my mind right now that I am having a hard time blogging. When you have 80 thoughts it can be hard to narrow it down and write about one thing. Anyway I came across this site that generates daily blog topics for you. Every time you go to the site it gives you 8 topics to choose from. So I am going to do 30 days of random topic generation LOL. Lets see how it goes. Here is a link to the Topics page if anyone is interested.

So here the topic for Day 1: Write about the first time you saw the ocean.

That one is easy for me. I grew up in West Texas. West Texas is not only are very far from the nearest ocean it is very far from ... well any kind of water.  We were near a river (stream) and there is a lake near by (pond) but that is about it. When you grow up in a place like that the ocean isn't something you can quite grasp. I mean sure you see it on movies and read about it in books and you understand what it is. But it is kind of like trying to explain the color blue to a blind person. No matter how well you get it intellectually you don't really understand what it is like until you experience it.

So anyway when I joined the Navy I moved to San Diego, Ca. Once I got there I was hanging out with a couple of the guys and I mentioned that I had never seen the ocean. (I loved the guys I went to Sonar School with by the way) So the very first day we were authorized to leave the base they loaded me up in a taxi (first time I had ever been in one of those too) and we headed to the beach.

WOW! What else is there to say? If you have never seen the ocean you can't imagine how huge it is. How vast. How endless. How beautiful. I fell in love with the Pacific Ocean that day. I spent endless hours on the beach watching it. I love the Tide Pools in San Diego. I love the cliffs in San Diego. I admit the Atlantic Ocean, while just as endless, doesn't do it for me.  So anyway here are some pictures of the ocean the way I remember it.

Ocean Beach is the first place I went. It is the one beach in San Diego I would have loved to live near. It is known as the "hippie" beach in San Diego. It isn't as touristy and it is where a lot of the native San Diegans (is that a word?) live.

Ocean Beach in San Diego at Sunset

Ocean Beach Pier



My favorite place to go in San Diego was Sunset Cliffs. That is where we went and hung out with Jennifer and Paul when they flew in for our wedding. There are a lot of surfers there and it was so much fun to go sit up on the cliffs and watch them.

There was a nude beach in San Diego called Blacks Beach but it was "off limits" for those of us at the ASW base so I wouldn't know anything about it ;)

Here was one of my favorites:

Dog Beach in San Diego

But of all the things to do at the ocean front the #1 thing I miss and hate that my kids haven't experienced are the tide pools. High tide comes in and fills all these amazing little pools on the rocky shore line. Then when the tide goes out you can walk around and see all kinds of cool stuff. The pools are full of all kinds of neat ocean  life. Each time the tide comes in it washes out the old and brings in new so everyday it is something different.

Tide Pools



Shell

Goodbye Babcha

Dan's grandmother passed away yesterday. She was 101 years old. This picture above is one I took of her and Timothy when he was about 18 months old. I have other pictures that were taken of her but this is the way she looked when I met her a couple years before this so this is the way she looks always in my mind.

She was something else.  I must say the one thing I enjoyed the most about her is you always knew where you stood with her. She told you exactly what she thought. I always figured when you got to be 88 (the age she was when I met her) you had earned the right.

Goodbye Babcha.

2 Timothy 4:7-8
I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that Day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing.

Shell

Planned Spontaneity

A book I read recently said certain personality types don't "transition well" and I thought that fit me pretty good. See I love the idea of something new. Once I get something new, I love trying something new. What I don't like is that in between place. That place where you know things are going to be different but for now they are the same.

I don't want to say I worry because worry isn't really the right word for it. I am not sure how to explain it. I have said a million times how much I love a plan. Well in this place of transition there are too many unknowns to make a plan. With out a plan I feel like I am drifting and that makes me feel anxious.

I told a friend the other day that "Planned Spontaneity" is my motto!  If the plan is to not have a plan then I am okay with that LOL.

Timothy says I need to "go with the flow". I told him I am fine with that as long as I know where the "flow" is headed.

I am pretty sure that this is all my friend Heather's fault. When we were doing out last bible study Heather suggested we pick a verse a week to commit to memory. The first week I chose:

Philippians 4:6
Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.

Well to quote Morgan Freeman from Evan Almighty

"Sounds like an opportunity.
Let me ask you something.
If someone prays for patience, you think God gives them patience?
Or does he give them the opportunity to be patient?
If they pray for courage, does God give them courage,
or does he give them opportunities to be courageous?"

So if someone say ... was working not being anxious about things and on trusting God would God give them smooth sailing or something to be anxious about. See Heather. All your fault LOL.

I know everyone is wondering what we are going to do. Believe me I am too. I will let you know as soon as we know. For right now all I can say is I love Gloucester. Ohio is beautiful. We have no plan. Yet.

Shell

When towns die.

We went to visit some friends this weekend in Ohio. I have to tell you the drive up there was amazing. Through the mountains Virginia, then the mountains of West Virginia and then on through Ohio it was just plain pretty. I hope we can go back and see the leaves in a few weeks. I love the idea of living in the mountains. I think I always have. Not that there were any mountains in West Texas but I watched the Waltons on TV like everybody else. Then once I actually set foot in the real mountains for the first time I was hooked. Maybe some day I will actually get to live in the mountains who knows maybe someday soon but that is a whole 'nother blog :)

While we were up visiting our friends we went and looked at the town of Portsmouth, Ohio. You can tell it was once a busy busy town. It is right on the Ohio River. You have trains and barges readily available for transport of goods. It is easy to see that the town took advantage of that in its heyday. But like so many other towns that depended on manufacturing the factories are closed now. The town is no longer the place to be. There are huge once beautiful brick buildings that are empty and close to falling down. Row houses that were built to house workers sit empty or have people in them who just don't care.

This isn't the first time I have seen this. I saw it in the North East as well. Mill towns with empty textile factories are scattered all through the North East. I have seen it in Texas where oil boom towns have dried up along with the oil. It always makes me kinda sad to see a town where the schools are closing, the stores are closing, and houses are just left abandoned. I hope Portsmouth is able to find a way to rebound. They know how to do that there. The Ohio River flooded there in many times and they had to rebuild. In 1937 there was a flood that was marked at 19 feet high on some of the buildings. After that flood they built a flood wall to protect the town.

One of my favorite things we saw was on that flood wall. They decided to have a mural painted on the wall and it is amazing. The mural shows the town from the beginning to current day.  The mural project was completed in October of 2002 with 2,200 feet of art along the Ohio River. The project has become the largest known work of art by a single artist. These are not small little pictures painted on the flood wall. The longest one is 20 feet high and 160 feet long.

Here is a picture of the wall to give you an idea of the size.



Here are some pictures from the mural.

















I truly hope that they are able to find away to revitalize the town because it is a place worth saving.


Shell

A blog a day keeps the rambling away

I haven't blogged in ages. I haven't been on Facebook much either. Truth is I haven't been on the computer. I haven't had time to get on. We had clean up from the storm, the my mom came, then school started, then my job started. So I have had so much going on I haven't had time to do anything much less had time to blog.

I don't have time today either. My mom is still here. We are dyeing the cover that goes on my couch today. I also need to get laundry done and the house ready for another school/woprk week. Truth is if I even tried to begin to catch up on everthing this blog would be 10 miles long so instead I will just say hi.

Shell

The calm before the storm.

I am just sitting here listening to the rain trying to enjoy the beginnings of the storm without worrying about what comes later. It is so wonderful right now. The rain is falling. I hear it tapping on my tin roof. I don't know that I ever saw a tin roof growing up (other than on a trailer) but they are the most wonderful things ever!

There are crickets outside chirping like crazy. You would think I would find that annoying since it is the reason I am up so early but I don't. I love the sound of crickets! I just can't sleep through them. If the chirping was constant I would be okay but that occasional chirp is what wakes me up.

I know I have said this before but this is my most favoritest time of day. When I am the only one up. My house is quiet except for natural sounds like rain, crickets, and my fingers on the keyboard (LOL) and everyone else is sound asleep. All the people I love most in this world are right here where they are supposed to be.

Sitting here right now it is hard to believe that in just a few hours we will be leaving this house and praying it is still here tomorrow.  I am okay either way. The one thing I learned from having the fire in the house is that I can build a new house with a red tin roof. I can replace almost every material thing I own. My family and I will be safe and snug in town and whatever happens to the house happens.

I knew that the kids were worried. Before this storm started to weaken yesterday they were predicting a Cat 2 hurricane blowing right over the top of my house. I told each of them to pack up a small bag of things they they would truly be sad over if they were destroyed. Each kid picked a few things. Caitie her figurine collections and her piggy bank collection, Timothy his Xbox and his knife collection (what can I say he is a 13 year old boy),  Dan had already decided what to do with his guns (what can I say he is a 42 year old redneck LOL) and I wandered through looking at everything; wondering what I would miss if Irene took it all with her.

In the end all I want are my pictures. The visual reminders of the life we have created for ourselves here. Reminders of birthday parties, school assemblies, church plays, and growing up. Growing up for Timothy and Caitie, growing up for me and Dan. I love this life we have created here. This family we have created here. None of it is connected to the house or the stuff.

Knowing that. Realizing what is important. That is why I can enjoy this morning. Why I can feel such peace in the calm before the storm.

Shell

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.  Philippians 4:6

Waiting on Irene

Well here we are ... waiting on Irene.

These are some pictures my friend Autumn took over the York River. You would never know something so dangerous could create such a beautiful sky.

We have spent the day strapping stuff down, putting stuff away, hauling stuff to the dump and borrowing cages for chickens. Tomorrow we will move things upstairs just in case water comes in the house and then head up to our church to wait out the storm.

So all there is left to do is wait... and pray.

Shell



You're So Vain

I feel like someone should be playing that song for me this weekend. I know that Hurricane Irene is not about me but boy oh boy I feel like it is. She took a shift to the west last night and that was not a good thing.

Of all the possible weekends for a visit from a hurricane it had to be this weekend. Normally it wouldn't be a big deal. Secure the stuff in the yard, load up most of the animals, turn the chickens loose (not my preference but I have no way to transport 30 chickens) so they can get to higher ground if they need to, pack and hook up the camper, load up the kids and head inland. Sounds simple enough isn't it? But with me is anything ever just simple? Nope with me it has to be complicated.

Not this weekend. We are supposed to be headed to DC for the Women of Faith conference. Okay no problem I just won't go. Ummm I am driving the minibus and I am the only person on the church insurance to drive it so if I don't go that means a complete reorganization of the trip. We can come back early hoping to miss most of the storm but that leaves Dan to get everything ready. So guilty for making everyone change plans or guilty for leaving Dan to handle everything. What a choice. Okay well even if we could just pack up and leave no schedules to deal with my mom is supposed to fly in on Sunday. Will her flight be delayed? Should she change it? I have no idea.

I know hurricane Irene isn't about me but I can't help thinking of all the weekends why does it have to be on the one weekend this summer that messes with my life the most?

Yep I'm that vain.

Shell

A Tornado, An Earthquake, and now Irene.

This has been the weirdest weather year. Blame it on global warming, the end times, or plain old weather cycles either way it has been flat out bizarre.

It wasn't but a few months ago I was saying we don't have tornadoes here. You couldn't tell that by looking at all the damage caused by the one that touched down less than a mile from my house. The one that destroyed entire neighborhoods here in the town where I live. You know the town where we don't have tornadoes.  I remember saying afterwards I grew up in tornado alley and never saw damage like this.

Now yesterday we had an earthquake. We don't have earthquakes here. My whole house shook or shimmied or wiggled or something. It was crazy. An Earthquake here! Dan and I were talking and he said all those years in California and we never felt one and now we have one here. It is crazy.

And now we have a category 4 Hurricane headed our way. It looks like it is going to skirt the coast and we will get tons of rain but little else. I pray that is what happens anyway. The last time we had one come this close it was down graded to a tropical storm by the time it got here and it still did a far amount of damage.  I am thinking it is going to be like all the others. The stores will be emptied of water, bread, and batteries. Some people will leave, some will stay, and when it is all said and done we will have a little wind and a lot of rain. But then again what do I know? I said we don't have tornadoes or earthquakes.

Shell

So here I am again.

So here I am again. This term in school I started my education classes. I am having a hard time completing them. Up until now school this way has been wonderful for me. Self paced has been such a blessing. I can work on it when I have time. Then when I realize I am in a crunch I catch up. Not a big deal really. I haven't been accelerating my classes. I could have. I could easily have done probably 2 classes per month if I really focused. I have been moving at a comfortable pace with little to no pressure.

Until this term. This term if I finish these classes I am pretty much locked in to this major or the classes will be wasted. This isn't the first time I have been here. I have officially changed my major 8 times. In my head I have changed it at least 8 more. Each and every single time I get close to being done I either quit or change majors. I have even been known to take drastic steps like joining the military to keep from finishing.  I always go back though. I have enough classes under my belt to have a degree in ...well, in taking classes.

But every time I get close to finishing I panic. I think what if this is the wrong choice? What if I really want to do x instead of z? And then I just can't seem to finish.  I am at the same place again. So what is in my future? Is it college major number 9? No. I am not going to change. I am going to muddle through this time. I am not going switch. I may never use it. That is fine. I have decided that it is okay. I may eventually decide to do something else but even if I do I am finishing this.

I think I can. I think I can. I think I can.

Shell

Music sooths the soul.

“Words make you think a thought. Music makes you feel a feeling. A song makes you feel a thought.”
E.Y. Harburg

“Music is the shorthand of emotion”
Leo Tolstoy

“Music has the power to move a person between different realities: from a broken body into a soaring spirit, from a broken heart into the connection of shared love, from death into the memory and movement of life. Music has the power to touch the heart of a child with God."
Dr. Deforia Lane

I know I have posted about how much music means to me before. There is something about it that just lifts my mood in a way nothing else does. When I get in one of my funks (and this is pretty heavy one) I have learned there are certain things I can do to help myself out of it. For that I am grateful to the one doctor I saw whom I didn't like. That is kind of ironic really. He is the only doctor have seen that I wouldn't go back to but in reality he probably gave me the best advice. 

He told me read a book. "Yes," he said "You suffer from a type of depression called Dysthymic Disorder. It doesn't go away. It is chemical not situational. That is why you can think your life is great and still feel this way. Now go read this book. Oh and take these pills. You are dismissed."  Okay maybe it wasn't exactly like that but it felt that way at the time. Anyway the book he told me to get is called Feeling Good: The New Mood Therapy by Dr.David Burns.  So I went and bought the book and put it on a shelf. I had it for about 3 years before I read it. I wish I hadn't of waited.

I knew some of what he said. When you have that feeling that you just can't. Can't get up and get dressed. Can't get anything done. Can't solve your problems. Can't take even one more thing. Can't be around people. You do. You get up, get dressed, and go meet a friend for lunch, go to the store, go walk around the mall, go do something. The one thing you DON"T do is stay at home in your pjs all day. Good solid common sense advice that is easier said then done. But then he gives you the key. Find that thing that gives you joy. Whatever it is and do it FIRST. For along time I would have told you for me that was reading. I was wrong. Oh man I was so so wrong. I love books. I truly do. Just like I love my bed and my pillow and my blankets. Books are my way of withdrawing from the world around me. They don't bring me joy. They bring me escape. Important distinction don't you think?

So I searched. I tried shopping (at thrift stores cause there is no cure for being cheap LOL), I tried various crafts, I tried exercise (NO joy there), I tried chickens, I bought a fish tank, I set up a space that was just for me, I did all kinds of things and nothing seemed like the thing. Until I realized I felt the best when I was driving around in the car. Is it driving around? Nope I hate to drive. Then I realized it was the music. I play wonderful, fun, blaringly loud music in the car when I am driving.

I realized I was on to something. I searched for funny songs, uplifting songs, soothing songs, and created a wonderful playlist. Then Apple made my day and released the Beatles songs. WOO HOO.

Here are some of the songs in my playlist:

Funky Jesus Music by TobyMac

Your Love is a Song by Switchfoot

Powerful Stuff by Sean Hayes

It's Good to Be Alive by Babbie Mason

Come Together by The Beatles

The Bob Song by Big and Rich

Amazing Grace by Chris Tomlin

Fast as you by Dwight Yoakam

I Love Rainy Night by Eddie Rabbit

Be Still, My Soul by Ginny Owens

Forgiven and Loved by Jummy Needham

I Play Chicken with the Train by Cowboy Troy

Trading My Sorrows by Jubilee Christian Center

I am the Walrus by The Beatles

I Feel Lucky by Mary Chapin Carpenter

Trying to Love Two Women by The Oak Ridge Boys

A Testimony by Rodnie Bryant

Revolution by The Beatles

In My Own Mind by Lyle Lovett

My Baby Don't Tolerate by Lyle Lovett

If I Had Boat by Lyle Lovett

She's No Lady by Lyle Lovett

There is a Way by NewWorldSon

Big Time by Big and Rich

Flowers on the Wall by The Statler Brothers

I Won't Back Down by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers

Weird mix huh? I love them all though. And yes I especially love Lyle Lovett. Other songs have been on there and some of these come and go but what a crazy bunch of songs.  I have a list of songs I want to buy and a list of songs to add a lot of them are ones I have on disk and I just haven't had time to transfer them to my ipod. A buck a song is pretty cheap therapy in my opinion.

I love sad wallowy type songs as well but I had to put them in a special playlist on my ipod. They can make things worse if I am not careful.

I tell you music is truly powerful stuff.

Shell

My mom is coming time to dig out my sewing machine.

My mom will be here Sunday night. She will be here for almost 2 weeks.  I already have a ton of plans for us. What are we going to do you might ask. Head to Busch Gardens, Go shopping at the Outlet Mall? Take a trip up to DC? Nope none of that. I have sewing to do... well sewing to be done anyway. My mom will be the one who actually sews. I even have a machine. I bought just for occasions such as this. That is right. I own a sewing machine for my mom to use when she comes to visit.

She has made curtains, hemmed drapes, made clothes and all kinds of stuff when she comes here.  I dug out my machine to get it ready for her visit and it still has the thread in it from that last time she was here. Who knows maybe this time I will take the time to actually learn to use the machine myself.


By the way my machine doesn't look like the one pictured but I wish it did :) My great grandmother had one like this in her bedroom and I loved to play with the pedal.

Shell  

Deep as the Dark Blue Sea

I often joke about being such an optimistic person. I have often said that I am not just a glass half full person I am a glass half full and the half I drank was wonderful. But that is me on a normal day. A good day. A I have been remembering to take my medication day. But ever so often I go through periods where I forget. I am not sure what happens. It isn't intentional. I don't mean to not take them I just forget.

Now I have three medication I take. (See what happens when you get old) I have ADD meds that I take in kinda a spotty when I think I need it kinda way. I have blood pressure medication that I need to take everyday and I have my depression meds. You would think that not taking the blood pressure medication would be the one that would affect me but it isn't. They don't call High Blood Pressure the silent killer for nothing. I can barely even tell a difference. Now that I have been taking them for a while I can tell the difference but not until after I realize I haven't taken them. Nope the Wellbutrin is the one that sets my world off kilter.

But here is the kicker. I don't realize I haven't taken it right away. It takes days. Sometimes weeks. Occasionally months. But little at a time it creeps up on me. Then one day I wake up and I realize that I am miserable. I am sad for no reason. Small little things set me off. Seems like I can't cope with the everyday little things that are usually no big deal. Sometimes it feels like I can't breath. A strange feeling that is something like drowning. It is like a mood as deep as the dark blue sea.

Then it hits me ... I haven't been taking my medication.  So back on the meds I go. I doesn't work right away. It takes a couple weeks. But the good news is that it didn't take me as long this time to realize what my problem is. I have learned to spot the warning signs sooner. At some point I am hoping that I will manage to remember to take the meds everyday but so is life I guess.

Shell 

Sometimes you hit the jackpot.

Last night we had a ladies night out at Salsa's. Technically it was the dinner for us to get together and plan our up coming trip to the Women of Faith conference in DC. But we didn't just have women who were going on the trip we called it an Ladies Night Out and invited everyone. I am not sure how many came I am going to take a guess and say 15 or so. It was a fun night with great conversation, much laughter, and good food.

One of the ladies who was sitting at the far end of the table kept coming and going. She would sit there for 10 or 15 minutes then I would see her hop up and go to another section but I couldn't see what she was doing. Then a few minutes later she would come back.  I leaned over and asked my friend "What is Rachel doing?" (Cause yeah I am nosey like that) Come to find out her little boy (who just happens to be the sweetest thing ever!) is having separation anxiety issues so... are you ready for this... her sweet husband came with her to sit with the baby in the restaurant so she could come have dinner with us.

Yep, Dan would have done that. Since my kids are 11 and 13 we don't have any separation anxiety to deal with. We had Karate for one and needing to be dropped off for a sleepover for the other one. No problem Dan handled it. Like always. Notice the like always on there. This isn't an isolated thing. This is Dan being Dan.

I hear enough from other women to know not everyone is so blessed. There aren't that many Dan's out there.

I have chosen the difficult path out of shear stubbornness in many areas of my life. Sometimes things just flat out don't go my way. I am not the "luckiest" person. I never win door prizes. My number is never the one chosen. If there is a drawing it is running joke that some else needs to pick the tickets. But in this one area, when it comes to Dan, I hit the jackpot and I thank God every single day.

Shell

Why blog?

Something someone said the other day made me stop and think.

Why Blog?

I know there are all different reasons.

Some people blog so they can promote their business. I know when I sold Real Estate they recommended that you have a blog to talk about Real Estate to establish yourself as the "go to" person if people had Real Estate questions. I never really was able to get into that idea and didn't start blogging until I stopped selling Real Estate. Not that there is anything wrong with that as an idea. I enjoy reading peoples business blogs.

Some people blog as a way to keep in touch with family members telling stories and posting pictures to keep everyone updated about what is going on. I like to read those as well. It is so much fun to see what everyone is up to.

Some people blog about things they feel strongly about. There are environmental blogs, political blogs, religious blogs, and tons of homeschooling blogs. I like to read those too. I like the ones whose view points are like mine and ones that aren't. It is fun to read all different points of view.

I have also read blogs that people write as a way to work through problems or issues they are dealing with. Illnesses often top the list of this type of blog. Some of these I have read some I just can't because they are too emotional for me.

There are also many artists who have blogs. I really like these blogs. They use them to share their work. Poetry, short stories, paintings, music, jewlery and on and on. These talented people are able to use blogging as a way to show people thier creations.

Then there are people like me. I just have a lot to say. I have tried to journal because I always thought it would help me to dump all the junk that was in my mind on to paper. I always have so many ideas and thoughts swirling around in there it is no wonder that I can't focus any one. I have read so many books that talk about journaling as a way to clear you  mind. For some reason or another I have never been able to keep up with a journal but blogging seems to work for me.

I try to just be me and that means I talk about all different things. Politics, my kids, my dogs, my chickens, my faith, my depression, and sometimes about nothing at all.  As I told someone the other day whether anyone reads my blog or not blogging gives me just what I needed ... a place where I can talk as much as I want too.

Shell

Man am I crafty!

So this week I am trying to learn something new. This all started back when I was looking for a picture of the saying in one of my old blogs Use It Up Wear It Out Make It Do Or Do Without.

That got me to thinking that I want to learn to embroidery.  I tried crosstitching a while back but when I was little years ago my grandmother taught me to embroidery. I don't remember much that she showed me but I think maybe it will come back to me. I have watched a couple videos on youtube and those stitches came back to me pretty fast. I have a friend here who embroiders and she has offered to help if I need it.

I am going to try small projects to see if that works. Who knows maybe I will actually finish something.

I have so many things I want to try to do. I want to learn to knit, I want the relearn to crochet, I want to try making cards with stamps. I want to pick scrapbooking back up. I would love to take painting lessons again. I really wish there was a place to do ceramics around here. Truth is I just love crafts! Or is it the stuff to do crafts I love? As Patsy Clairmont said at a Women of Faith conference years ago "I am not a crafter, I am a collector of crafting supplies."

Shell

Would you like some cheese with that whine?

I feel a bit like complaining today. So you my most wonderful friends get to read about it. I didn't wake up in a complaining mood. I really didn't I woke up in a happy mood. But you know how sometimes you think maybe you should have just stayed in bed? Well that would be today.

My allergies are acting up and my nose is running like crazy. So the natural result of that is that I had to blow my nose. What isn't normal about the situation? I just blew my nose in a coffee filter.  That is right you heard me. I was desperate I tell you, absolutely desperate. So how did this absolute craziness come about?

Let me ask you a question. Do you have kids in your house? If so, do you go through a TON of toilet paper?  If so, do they tell you when they grab the last roll? Because mine don't.  So let me back up and start with climbing out of bed.

I get out of bed and first thing I do is head to the bathroom. Thank you God I noticed before I sat down there was no TP. So I go to the laundry closet where I keep it. I know I just bought a new pack a few days ago. I am mumbling to myself about how no one ever replaces the roll when it is empty and how rude that is. I open the closet door and right were the TP should be is an empty Charmin wrapper. Not only did who ever took the last roll not tell me but they left the packaging behind and didn't even bother to throw it away.  Okay I am annoyed but I know I have tissues so it isn't the end of the world.  So I go grab the tissues. 3. I count them 1. 2. 3. Three tissues left in the box. *Sigh* Okay I do what I need to and now there are 2. The general store doesn't open till 8 am so I have an hour until I can go buy tissues and TP. Surely we can make it an hour I mean the kids are still asleep right now.

So I go in the kitchen to make coffee. I get everything out. I start the coffee. And as I start to put the coffee and filters away I have a sneezing fit. And then I need a tissue. 2. There are two left. I don't want to use them what if someone needs them before 8. My nose is running. I turn around and reach for a paper towel. None. Who used the last of the paper towels? And left the paper towel roller instead of throwing it away I might ad. But anyway I go to the pantry (nose running) to get another roll of paper towels. No paper towels.

So I do the only thing I can do. I grab a coffee filter and blow. So now I am sitting here waiting for 8 am so I can go get TP, tissues, and paper towels. But here is the my complaint. I was at Walmart last night! I could have  bought all of this last night! If only, if only people would tell me when we are ALMOST out of shampoo, toothpaste, deodorant, TP, tissues, paper towels, water filters, water softener salt,  and about 100 other consumables around here I wouldn't have to make 40 trips to the store each week and blast it all I wouldn't have to blow my nose on coffee filters just in case someone wakes up to go potty before the store opens at 8.

Shell

Shall We Gather at the River

Yesterday August 14, 2011 (take note of the date by the way) both Timothy and Caitie were baptized in our church's annual river baptism service. Both had asked to baptized before then but I was a bit hesitant. As I told our youth pastor... I don't think you should go baptizing people all willy-nilly you need to make sure it means something first. So finally I decided they really got what it meant. We reached this place with Caitie almost a year ago but she wanted to wait for the river baptism. Timothy was a bit more hesitant. He attended a friends river baptism last year and right before he was baptized he was bit by a crab. but in the end he decided the river would be okay.

Here are Timothy and Pastor Mike right before he goes under.

Here he is going under.

Here are Caitie and Pastor Mike right before.

And here she is on the way under. I love this shot!

But here is something you may not know. A few days before Jennifer called me and pointed something out to me I didn't realize:

On August 14, 2001 (yes that is exactly 10 years to the day ) here Dan and I are at the river baptism.

There are me and Dan and Pastor Mike in the same river 10 years earlier.

Here we are afterwards with the Deathridge's who moved shortly after this.

I think that is really neat. I really had no idea when we set this up that it was going to work out like that but I think it is awesome.

Shell

Summer summer where have you gone? Come on Fall!

I can't believe how fast this summer has flown by. It has been the fastest summer yet I think. Seems like just yesterday I was trying to decide if I should quit my job and stay home with the kids all summer. Now here it is almost time for school to start and me to go back to work. Time does indeed fly.

I have some really mixed feelings about it. Part of me hates to see the summer end and the kids go back to school. Part of me is so ready for the sense of order and schedule that comes with school and work. Plus I am so so tired of being hot. I am ready for it to cool off and for the leaves to change.

But I am always ready for fall. I so wish I could find a place where it is Fall all year. Not possible I  know. You can't get the beautiful colorful leaves of the fall with out the dead of winter or the buds of spring.... and the heat of summer.

Okay truth is I love Fall and I like Winter and I like Spring so truth is what I would really like is a year with 3 seasons. Just no summer. That would work. I bet I can even find a place like that.

But for right now it is still summer. I have two weeks then it will be back to the real world for all of us.

Shell

Buying puzzles at yard sales, yep I'm a risk taker!

I stopped by a yard sale today and they had a whole stack of puzzles for 25¢ each. I always said I would never buy an open puzzle at a yard sale or a thrift store. Can you imagine if you put the whole puzzle together and were missing like 1 or 2 pieces.

I love puzzles but have you priced them lately? It is crazy how much a puzzle costs even at Walmart. So I evaluated the situation. It was an old lady having the yard sale. A sweet little old grandma looking lady. Surely she wouldn't cheat me by selling me a puzzle that didn't have all the pieces. I also have two kids who know how to count. They could make sure each 500 piece puzzle had all 500 pieces before we do the puzzles. I decided the benefits outweighed the risk!

Yep $1 for four puzzles that may or may not have all the pieces. I am a mad woman. Risk taking is my middle name. Somebody better hold me back! Why tomorrow I might even go play Bingo!

Shell

Angus and His Abs for Daaays

aaa

When the kids were small I used to love to watch kids shows with them.

I loved Blue's Clues. (with Steve of course)

We watched Stanley's Great Big Book of Everything.

I have mentioned my very favorite that I still watch on occasion called Peep and the Big Wide World.

As the kids have grown older there have been a a few shows that I have enjoyed but for the most part I miss the days when we watched cartoons.

I have enjoyed I-Carly and Good Luck Charly is pretty funny.

I do like Phineas and Ferb but that is a cartoon.

But the other day I watched something that just flat out cracked me up. I am going to link to it. So far no one but Timothy seems to think it is as funny as I do but everytime I watch this I laugh so for your viewing pleasure I introduce to you..... Angus and his Abs for Daaaayss.

Shell