Birthday Joy!

I had a wonderful birthday yesterday!  A Barbie cake (I suspect Alaina had something to do with this choice, but I  loved it), a movie with my family, lunch out with a good friend.  Lots of birthday wishes over Facebook.  Love it!

Ballet Recital

Alaina had her first "in costume" dance recital Sunday!  She was great!  Isn't she adorable in these little outfits!

To Be A Girl Again

Today, for the first time, I understood why some adults tell kids, "These are the best years of your life".  They aren't of course, but today I just want to laze around and curl up with a good book.  I want my mom to  call me for lunch that's already prepared and then I don't have to clean up the dishes.  Read all afternoon until I go in for supper and then spend the evening watching TV.  I don't want to do the laundry that needs to get done or we wont have enough clean clothes to wear this week.  I don't want to load up Alaina into the car and go run errands.  I don't want to go grocery shopping or do the dishes that are piled up by the sink or sweep the floor... yadda, yadda, yadda you get the picture.  Just for today, I'd like to be a girl again with little to no responsibility.

I Am The Mother Of A Pre-School Graduate!!!

Alaina graduated from preschool this month and will start Kindergarten in the fall.  How is that possible?

What Have You Done?

It has been several years since I posted this and I thought it would be fun to see how things have changed.  Please feel free to copy and paste and personalized it on your blog!

1. Started your own blog?
2. Slept under the stars?
3. Played in a band?
4. Visited Hawaii?
5. Watched a meteor shower?
6. Been arrested?
7. Been to Disneyland/world?
8. Climbed a mountain?
9. Held a praying mantis?
10. Sang/played a solo?
11. Bungee jumped?
12. Visited Paris?
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea?
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch?
15. Adopted a child?
16. Had food poisoning?
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty?
18. Grown your own vegetables?
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France?
20. Slept on an overnight train?
21. Had a pillow fight?
22. Hitch hiked?
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill? They're called mental health days.
24. Built a snow fort?
25. Held a lamb?
26. Gone skinny dipping?
27. Run a Marathon?
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice?
29. Seen a total eclipse?
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset?
31. Hit a home run?
32. Been on a cruise? Around Manhattan.
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person?
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors?
35. Seen an Amish community?
36. Taught yourself a new language?
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied?
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person?
39. Gone rock climbing?
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David in person?
41. Sung karaoke?
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt?
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant?
44. Visited Africa?
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight?
46. Been transported in an ambulance?
47. Had your portrait painted?
48. Gone deep sea fishing?
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person?
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris?
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling?
52. Kissed in the rain?
53. Played in the mud?
54. Gone to a drive-in theater?
55. Been in a movie?
56. Visited the Great Wall of China?
57. Started a business? Does a babysitting business count? or how about the time I sold candy bars in highschool for profit. My profit. Does that count?
58. Taken a martial arts class?
59. Visited Russia?
60. Served at a soup kitchen?
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies?
62. Gone whale watching?
63. Gotten flowers for no reason?
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma? Well, I tried. They wont take mine.
65. Gone sky diving?
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp?
67. Bounced a check?
68. Flown in a helicopter?
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy?
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial? No, but I visited his tomb and home in Sprigfield, IL.
71. Eaten Caviar?
72. Pieced a quilt?
73. Stood in Times Square?
74. Toured the Everglades?
75. Been fired from a job? Yep. Caught the boss skimming money from the register. Somehow I got fired.
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London?
77. Broken a bone?
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle?
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person?
80. Published a book?
81. Visited the Vatican?
82. Bought a brand new car?
83. Walked in Jerusalem?
84. Had your picture in the newspaper?
85. Read the entire Bible?
86. Visited the White House?
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating?
88. Had chickenpox?
89. Saved someone’s life?
90. Sat on a jury?
91. Met someone famous?
92. Joined a book club?
93. Lost a loved one?
94. Made a baby? I made a baby cat out of plaster once does that count?
95. Seen the Alamo in person?
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake?
97. Been involved in a law suit? I testified in one once. Does that count?
98. Owned a cell phone?
99. Been stung by a bee?

Polishing The Silver

Today as I was cleaning out the laundry room/pantry/butler's pantry I came across an old silver platter of my mother's.  As we were unpacking a few months ago, a lot of things got put in there that we weren't sure where to put.  This platter had been put with a metal one and was severely tarnished.  So much so that I had to search carefully for the mark on the back indicating it really is silver.   As I began to polish it, I worked on one section at a time.  I'd spread polish on all of it to soften it, but I could only work on one part at a time.  As I polished the beauty of the platter began to show.  In the heart of the platter were carvings that required more diligent work.  Just as I thought I was done, I realized the other side was just as tarnished and so I started again.  When I was finished I took it to the sink and washed it in hot, soapy water and the shine was brilliant!  It was so beautiful!  How proud I was of it!  How excited I am to use it!  How serviceable it will be!  No doubt there will be times I will have to polish tarnish off that starts to come back on, but I love that platter and will keep after it.

As I pulled out the polish and began to work on it I was reminded again of our Father's work with us.  I had already redeemed the platter, but it was ugly and couldn't be used in the condition I'd found it. So it is with us. He has already redeemed us, but He must polish us one section at a time.  At our heart there are scars that require extra time and attention to make them beautiful, but as He is polishing us, our worth and beauty become apparent.  What was once considered ugly and of little value is now shining like the Son!  And when He is finished!  What beauty!  What usefulness!  How He must love us to take the time to polish us so He can use us!  I just love that he looks at us and sees through the dross of our souls to the potential we have in Him!  A person the world thinks is worthless, useless, ugly, disgusting, smelly...He loves and sees the value!

UNWORTHY!!!

Unworthy! Unworthy! I am so unworthy to love God! I Love God! He is so personal and loves us so much. This morning before I woke up I was having a dream. I've dreamed this particular one many times. It's about something so private and close to my heart that only my husband knows about it. As I was coming closer to wakefulness I realized it was only a dream and cried out (still in the dream) "will this ever happen!?" As I was beginning to wake up He sang right into my heart part of a verse from a hymn, "...fear not I am with thee. Peace be still..." Just the fact that He knows my heart and lovingly speaks comfort to me even before I'm awake is amazing to me. Two more things about this. 1. As I was formulating this post in my mind, as I was formulating the part about 'only my husband knows" I got to the word husband the Lord spoke the letter "s" into my mind. Husbands. The word came out in my mind husbands, Reminding me again that I have two. One here on earth and a fiance' in heaven. A husband-to-be who knows me better than mine ever can! 2. That song goes, "There's within my heart a melody. Jesus whispers sweet and low. Fear not I am with thee. Peace be still. In all of life's ebb and flow.
(chorus) Jesus Jesus Jesus, sweetest name I know. Fills my every longing. Keeps me singing as I go.
Is it any wonder I love the hymns and want the children of today to learn them too!