A prayer for 2009

My 2009 New Year's Prayer....resolutions don't work but prayers DO.

Father,

First and foremost, thank you. For giving me Your strength when I am weak, Your patience when I am anxious, Your understanding when I am confused. Thank you for loving me JUST AS I AM. I ask that You shine Your light in the yet dark places of my heart...help me sort it all out. You have my permission to squeeze out every last bit of yuckiness left in me.

I ask You to show me 2008 with Your eyes....show me my failures and successes as You see them, not as I see them. I pray that you reveal the things I need to correct and the things I need to protect in 2009.

Because You have taken up full residence in my heart, I am able to endure the painful heartache and complete joy that is sure to come as You mold me into Your perfect image. I know that Your plans for me are good. I know that You have a purpose for me and that Your hand will shape me into what You desire me to be....and at Your hand I surrender.

Thank You for a new year. A new year to seek You, seek my heart and seek LIFE....the life that only comes from knowing You. Thank You for my beautiful girls, my family, my sweet friends. Please keep them all happy and healthy and safe and I pray that they seek You has much as You are seeking them.

I thank You for all that You have done, all that You are doing and all that You are going to do. I look forward to my "breathing" time with You in 2009.

I love You with all my heart. In Jesus' precious name I pray....

Amen....and Amen.

JC is my BFF!!!

Breathe in. Breathe out. Move on.

I read something the other day....something that has just stuck with me and I can't seem to shake.

Breathe in. Breathe out. Move on.

It came from an unlikely source...a fellow blogger that I have never met but has changed me just by having read his blog. He posted about a person who left an anonymous comment to something else he had written. His response to this anonymous comment was many things including 1) insightful, 2) God-driven and 3) touching. Anyway, I thanked him for his insight and wanted him to know that his blog was a blessing to me. His words a God send. He said those words to me in response.

Breathe in. Breathe out. Move on.

I'm not sure how God does it....uses perfectly good strangers to tell you what He wants you to know. Someone I would never cross paths with has spoken 6 words to me that God has been telling me for sometime....I just wasn't hearing Him so He found someone else to say them. A God-sized QTip to clean out my ears and HEAR Him.

I just looked up the meaning of breathe in the dictionary. I get the move on part. I'm pretty good at that. But breathing? I think I forget to do that most days (not literally....you know what I mean). It means all the obvious things like inhale, exhale, etc. But then this....

Breathe: to pause and rest before continuing.

Huh. Have I paused lately? Have I rested? Napped, yes, but rested? Rested in God's Word or paused to listen to His direction? I tell myself I have. I pray and ask God for guidance as I drive 80 miles an hour down the interstate. I read my Bible and search for answers to questions I have. I listen to the pastor at church and vow to have a good week seeking Him first. But....but. There is always a but. That's not what He wants from me. I can see that He is telling me to really pause. Take a breather. Certainly keep praying while driving and any other time of the day I feel the need but take special time with Him in the quiet and pray and listen. Really listen. THEN move on. Make good choices and decisions based on those intimate conversations when I am truly breathing.

So my new years resolution (I know, they rarely stick but this one will be different) will be to carve out some alone time with God.

Pause.

Rest.

....And move on.

JC is my BFF....

So full....

My heart is just so full. For the first time in a really long time....maybe ever.

I've been thinking a lot about the last year and finally just feel at rest. God has been working on my heart for so long and while it will always be a work in progress, I finally understand what it means to be head over heals in love.

With Jesus.

An unconditional love. One where you will follow someone off the ends of the earth. Do things you never thought you'd do just to please Him. I've never felt like this before....you can't with a hardened, dark heart. It's just not possible. Each of us has a God-sized hole and there is absolutely nothing that can fill that hole except God Himself. My hole is now filled and the hard part is keeping it filled to the top and overflowing with Him. I don't mean that He will come and go as He pleases...'cuz He won't. Says so right in the Bible. He will never leave me or forsake me. He is always constantly pursuing ME. Yep...ME (and you by the way). Pursuing my heart, my thoughts, my desires, my everything. The trick to keeping Him in that hole is ME. I have to keep my eyes on Him. Keep my "God goggles" on and see others as He sees them too. And that ain't easy.

So on this Christmas Eve as the girls and I sit down to dinner we are going to share what we are thankful for. At the top of my list will be Jesus. What an awesome, wonderful gift that God gave us. I guarantee there is NOTHING wrapped under my tree that is quite as good a gift.

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY 8LB., 6OZ. BABY JESUS...OR AS OUR FRIENDS IN THE SOUTH CALL YOU...JESUS." -- Talladega Nights.... :)

JC IS MY TRULY BFF....

I take it back.....

All of it. All of the parts that I gave up on. All of the parts that I let go of because of someone elses opinion. All of the posts I "hid" because someone else thought differently about my opinion, my life, my words than I did. Well....I take it back. This is MY blog. My life. My head. My heart. ME.

Funny how quickly you learn things about other people....and how sometimes you ignore it because you just don't want to believe they are who they really are. Then WHAM. God won't let you stop looking anymore and for me it's a big fat YANK of my head out of the sand.

All of my posts since I started this blog are back up....because I can express myself any way I wish. God has a plan for each of us....to use us in the way He sees fit. I can either follow Him and His direction or worry about the opinions of those that don't matter.

I choose God. Every day. All the time. In all situations. I choose God.

JC IS MY BFF....

Collages....

If you'll remember back to earlier this fall, I blogged about the cheerleader action photos. I was schooled on how hard cheerleaders work and came to the conclusion that I had not given them a fair assessment most of my life. :/

As part of the package I sell for action shots, I make collages of the favorites. The two below are the cheerleader and her younger sister who is a soccer player (obviously). I guess the plan is to give to the grands as Christmas presents. I think they turned out pretty cool. Wish I was a forward thinker enough to do these types of things for myself! Next year....there is always next year. :)

JC is my BFF....

The song to be played....

So these last few years (all my life, really) music has been a big deal. I've laughed to it, cried to it, danced to it. I've listened to almost anything you can think of...especially these last few weeks. Just in the mood for some loud music to stir up my soul.

The other day at work, my friend Patti sends an email about the song that she would like to be played at her funeral and sends a video link so we can watch the video. I know. I was thinking the same thing you are....WHO THINKS ABOUT THIS STUFF? How morbid and sad and just weird to think about. BUT....her song was great. It was "Amazing Grace" played by bagpipes. Gave me goosebumps listening to it.

So since the seed was planted, I thought to myself, "Self....what would you want played at your funeral?" I laughed at some of the possibilities I came up with but I decided on this song. "I wanna go home" by Michael Buble.



I know....this song is about love and missing someone here on Earth, but it fits. It just does. When I die I will go back Home....and why not celebrate that fact? Because I have accepted Jesus as my Savior, I have my very own room in God's house waiting just for me. So....no worries....I'm fairly confident I have a few good years left but since none of us are guaranteed tomorrow, you all know what you'll hear when you walk in to say goodbye. :)

JC is my BFF....

What I learned today....

God led me to this blog.....not one doubt in my mind. I needed to hear some of these things and sure enough, there they were. Please go check out this blog.....Trust me. You'll be glad you did.

http://billycoffey.blogspot.com/

Oh.....and listen to this song. I'm quitting caffeine and TODAY is day one. I think the lack of caffeine is making me sappy and soft.

** Sigh **

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pR_NncIZo9s

JC is my BFF....

Wittle peeps....

Thanksgiving 2008. I love the wittle peeps in my life.....mostly cuz I wish I still was one. :)

JC is my BFF....

Revelation....

Worth the listen.....

It's what I'm thankful for....

With Turkey Day being tomorrow and all, I figured it was time to dust off my two Thank You God Lists (here and here) and add a few more to it. In going back and reading them....its been a long few months. So...without further delay....

16) Thank you, God, for reminding me that it is You that is in charge. No matter how hard I try, I cannot change Your plan for me. And in the end....Your plan is always better anyway.

17) Thank you for the roof over our head, the car that gets us all over the place, the warm in the winter and the cool in the summer, the clothes on our backs and the food that keeps our tummys full. Your provision, IN ALL THINGS, is more than enough. Thank you.

18) Thank you for my family. And my girls. And my friends. All of them are a gift and I work hard everyday to remember that life is short and I should not take anyone for granted. I'm still workin' on that one....

19) THANK YOU for your Word. I need to spend more time with it but have found a new and lasting desire to be in Your Word more often and rely on it to guide me.

20) Thank you for grandma's stuffing. And angel food cake. And strawberry pretzel dessert. And turkey. Oh...and GRAVY. You know what? Thank you, God, for my grandma.

and finally....

21) THANK YOU for HOPE. Hope in You. Hope in things to come. Hope in the restoration of my heart and others around me. Hope that comes only from knowing You.

Happy Turkey Day everyone. GOBBLE, GOBBLE.

JC is my BFF...

Oh NO she dint....

MOVE OVER BOBBY....WE'RE HAVIN' A THROWDOWN.

So the girls and I were chattin' the other night....talking about Christmas and their wish lists and that kind of stuff. I was trying to get them to tell me what they HAD to have versus the junk that they never use and I waste my money on. I'm just saying....stretchin' a dollar these days isn't so easy. They get that....all three of them are smart girls. We decided that we would give one extra present each to Toys for Tots or the family that my work is sponsoring and they would make their wish lists a little smaller this year. Whew....teaching kids about giving and sacrificing so that others can have something too is not always fun but it went really well. They all have HUGE hearts. In fact, Taylor wanted to not buy any presents at all and give all that money to charity (she still believes that Santa is NOT her momma!). Needless to say she was out voted. :)

Then, Alli asks what we will be doing for our Christmas dinner. At Christmas we don't travel anywhere and we just love to stay home and cook some yummy viddles together. All my girls love to cook...what a blessing that is. :) Alli then started getting all cocky and said "You don't know how to cook a turkey, mom."

SAY WHAT??? Oh no she dint....Seriously.

A momma of three (me) can do ANYTHING and she's telling ME I can't cook a turkey? GAME ON, SISTA. So....we decided on a food challenge. Her and Taylor v. me and Carli. Ha. She forgot about the time my sister-in-law Tina and I cooked the Thanksgiving dinner for my ex-husband's entire extended family. It was good too. Or how about the last two Christmases when I made a huge dinner! She is just too young to have lost her mind....but it appears that she has. Sad....so sad. I'll show her though. Little squirt challenging her momma to a cook off. Humpf.....she'll PAY. :)

** DON'T ANYONE FREAK OUT....any extra food we have we'll give to the shelter.... might be a little be crazy here but we are not wasteful! **

BRING IT ON.....wahahahaha {EVIL LAUGH}

JC is my BFF!

So I was thinkin....

I know. Dangerous. Stick with me though....

I was thinking about how God works. How He answers prayers and opens doors. Then how He sometimes closes doors and chooses not to answer a prayer. I have often struggled with this....knowing if a door is really closed or if I should keep praying that same unanswered prayer. I wonder if He ever gets TIRED of hearing me ask for something He knows I don't need or isn't in line with His plan. It would be like a nagging child asking for candy every time you go to the grocery store:

Kiddo: "Candy, momma?"
Momma: "No."
Kiddo: "Why?"
Momma: "'Cuz I said so." (my favorite line, by the way)
Kiddo: "BUT WHY?"
Momma: "Argh...."

Repeat. Repeat. Repeat again.

Now I don't know about you but it makes me NUTS when my kids ask for things over and over again and never hear me say no. I suppose that's how it is for God. I ask over and over and He just keeps closing the door. Just keeps listening and being patient with me....I guess if I knew what He knows about my life ahead of me, I might be patient too! :)

I guess what I have been thinking about really is how when one is mature (or more mature) in their relationship with Him they somehow recognize when a door is closing. Instead of banging their head against that door (or in my case breaking the window and reaching in to unlock from the inside) they recognize it's closed and instead of standing there staring at it, they keep moving, keep walking and trying other doors. Man, that's hard.

"I want THIS door God. Don't you see? Don't you hear my prayers? Don't you WANT me to have this? WHY?" and so the conversation goes. I sound like a child. BUT there is hope for me. I'm learning. With this last door that just SLAMMED (like a mad teenager!), I've learned. God is telling me to keep walking.

Then it hit me. God knows the desires of my heart....even when I truly don't. He knows my deepest desperate need...even when I don't. It is not my job to question Him about why certain doors are open and others are closed. My job is to praise Him at all times, in all things. NOT just when things are good. God showed me this today....."I call on the LORD in my distress, and he answers me." ~ Psalm 120:1. Then He showed me this...."In everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus." ~ 1 Thessalonians 5:18.

So....I will stop whining and stomping my feet to get that darn door back open. I will trust that God knows what He's doing and keep walking. Walking and learning. Praising Him all the way.

GOD IS GOOD!

JC is my BFF....

Then here it is. The door to NOWHERE....the one I keep trying to open goes nowhere.

** UPDATE ** One of the SMARTEST ladies I know just made a comment about this post on my FaceBook and I absolutely have to share. She said this "......then you close your eyes and see if you feel the breeze.......of another opened window or door..........." I LOVE IT. With patience and some practice I bet I'll be able to feel that breeze. THANKS, MY FRIEND. THANKS.

PRAYERS NEEDED....

Can't give out too much info but a friend of mine, my new prayer warrior partner(!), just told me she is 5-6 weeks pregnant and her "levels" are not ok. No heartbeat was heard today. She is a great lady....deserves all the happiness in the world and really wants this baby (her second).

So...pray for my friend and her baby; that God gives her peace as she waits for her next appointment on Thursday; that she feels His presence as she cries; that her husband can be understanding of her worry and comfort her as she needs it and that God's will be done.

THANK YOU. Just....thank you.

Visit me on Esty.com!

I found a new way to display and sell my photos! OutOfTheAshesPhoto.Etsy.com!!! Check it out....Only have three photos out there right now but I will be adding more soon. Great Christmas presents!!!! hint, hint ;)

Thanks for your support!

Just braggin' about my kiddo....

Last Thursday was a crazy night. Carli had her first indoor soccer game, I had a meeting at church to wrap up our "Whyi Art Fair" and then Carli had her 3rd grade music concert. Just figures that I was to be in three places at the same time....thank God Alli can drive. (I CANNOT BELIEVE I JUST SAID THAT!) She took Carli to her indoor game while I went to church then we all met at the school for the concert. I was tired before the day even began. Typically have a day like this once a week and I while I wouldn't trade it for the world, it wears me out!

Anyway, Carli's concert was titled "Shhhh...we're writing the Constitution". Can you guess what it was about? :) It was really more of a play! Kids with tons of lines and actions moves and about 8 songs to sing...and it all took only 45 minutes! It was very good too.

SIDE NOTE: Carli....being the youngest....has been blessed with many talents. The kid can do anything with just a few quick trys. Makes Taylor nuts....since she's like me and we need to try and try again and even then we still don't always know how to do things. Anyway, on top of Carli being a pretty good soccer player, smarter than the average 4th grader (yes....she's in 3rd grade), the little stinker can sing. And I mean sing. She can dance and sing at the same time even (although most of you will never see that side of her....she's just goofy like that at home). Where she got it? Musta been the mailman. :)

So....she had a signing part....second verse of "America the Beautiful" with 3 other girls. It was awesome. Goose bumps awesome.

Here are some pics of Carli at the concert. I was quite a ways away from the stage so lots of "red eyes". They look like evil possessed children....probably the ones that live in the corn across the road from my house. Ugh. Why do I do that to myself! Now I'm not gonna sleep tonight! :) Oh well. Enjoy!

Carli is the middle kiddo....you know. The good lookin' one. ;)

This one shows that she has on her soccer "slick" pants, soccer socks and tennis shoes. We did a good job pulling this together with what we had!

Shhhh...they are writing the Constitution!

Solo (with three others so what is that a quartet???)...she is stinkin' NERVOUS. And she is NEVER nervous!!!

Up close....she made a comment about the house lights....up too high so she could see the parents. She did NOT like that.

Thought the flags a flyin' was pretty cool....

After the concert posin'....she loves to have her picture taken.





Ok...I do have other children and I will post about them soon if they get off the couch and DO SOMETHING. hint, hint. ;)


JC is my BFF....

WHAT THE ??????

WOW. Not sure what is happening but I have had more hits on my blog in the last 3 hours than I have in the last 2 months! If you are new to my blog, please leave a comment and tell me how you found me! It's crazy....countries I have never heard of, states I've never been to and people I don't know checking out my blog. Cool....and weird. Leave me a note please! I'd love to find out what is going on (and do more of it :0)....

JC is my BFF!

Hope floats.....

Click here to read my latest blog posting on the Christian Woman Blog.....

:)

Praying for our children....

** UPDATE ** See the picture of the pretty little girl praying on the right of my blog? If you click on that it will take you to Angie's blog and you can get the 7x7 prayers. Enjoy!**

I clicked on one of my favorite blogs this morning and what I read was awesome. The blog is "Bring the Rain". For a little background, Angie is the wife of Todd (leader singer in the Christian group Selah). Their family has been through the loss of their youngest baby at birth and Angie has opened her heart to share her experience. She is an excellent writer....who has a direct line to God, I swear. She is AMAZING. Today, she is sharing her plan to pray over her three girls 7 times a day for 7 days. Check it out. It's a wonderful idea. I've also attached a link from someone who commented on her post....it's a calendar for us to use to pray over our kids a difference scripture each day of the month.

I'm new enough to my walk that it is hard for me to find the "right" words to pray with my girls. We do it sometimes...and they really do love it...but I need to be better about it. You know...not allow my insecurities about praying out loud with them stop me from doing it. They learn by example so if I keep my mouth shut, so will they.

So...to all you moms reading this, good luck. We have our work cut out for us in raising good children and now more than ever we need God to do it right.

JC is my BFF!!!

Silver lining....it's there.

I'm not a big fan of Obama. I'm just not. Don't get the "share the wealth" thing and quite frankly he scares me. Not convinced that he isn't the anti-christ either. BUT...he was just elected president and made history. I am proud to be an American....that our country has come so far from slavery and segregation. I am scared for the what next but I will pray for our country's new leaders to get on a knee and ask God for guidance....in all things. He is the same as He was before this election and He is the same today. Got this in an email today and it is right on...."We will move forward as a Nation into the history that God has preordained. These events and all events are only God’s hand at work and we have the privilege to witness it." Amen.

I will always remember where I was when the space shuttle exploded. I will always remember where I was on 9/11. And now....I will always remember where I was when history was made and America elected it's first black president.

On my way to work this morning....had to pull over to take some pictures of the beautiful sunrise. God was showing us all that He has a silver lining. These pictures do not do justice to the beauty this morning.

JC is my BFF....

Meet Sierra....

Sierra is a senior at ADM and the captain of Alli's high school soccer team. I absolutely love taking senior photos. It amazes me what these kids know and to watch them transition from being in high school to getting ready for college is pretty cool to see. Sierra is a smart kid, a great soccer player and you can just see the potential this kid oozes. Her world is just coming to life and with so many choices and things up ahead of her its very exciting! And....she takes great photos. She knows how to pose....I barely asked her to do anything. So....check out my favorites from our shoot and watch out world...HERE SHE COMES!!!

JC is my BFF!!!

In His image....#2

So here is my latest attempt to show the reflection in the water. Last night before my photography class I was very early (don't ask) and decided to take advantage of the great light and time. Here is my favorite of the ones I took. It turned out ok and it was a great reminder for me again that God is there always....even when the water isn't smooth and everything isn't as clear as I'd like it. In fact, He is there even more during those times. Right there with me....me and my hom' boy workin' it all out. :)

JC is my BFF....

OH...P.S. I received an email today from a fellow blogger. Went and read that blog and here is the gem that I took away. What an awesome little prayer. I wrote it down to carry with me....my memory stinks and I know me. I'll be praying and say something like "Yada yada God. You know the prayer I'm talking about." Unfortunately, that doesn't quite cut it. :)

"Lord, take me where you want me to go

Let me meet who you want me to meet

Tell me what you want me to say and

Help me stay out of Your way."

~ Fr. Mychal Judge - priest who died in the

World Trade Center, 9/11/01

I KNOW WHO I AM....

TURN YOUR SPEAKERS UP (and turn off my music at the bottom of my post before you listen to this)!

My new favorite song....we sing this at church and our band is such an awesome, rockin' band. I love it. It makes me want to dance RIGHT NOW. :) Why do I love it? Because I DO KNOW WHO I AM. People may not know me, but I DO...and so does God. He knows my heart and He knows my deepest desperate need. THAT makes my day. Enjoy!

JC is my BFF!!!!!

I AM A MARILYN..... :)

I really have a lot of work to do. A lot. But my ADD kicked in and I got sucked into this silly little quiz....try it. Only two questions and it pegged me almost exactly. :) Here is the link to the quiz...


You are a Marilyn -- "I am affectionate and skeptical."

Marilyns are responsible, trustworthy, and value loyalty to family, friends, groups, and causes. Their personalities range broadly from reserved and timid to outspoken and confrontative.

How to Get Along with Me
* Be direct and clear
* Listen to me carefully
* Don't judge me for my anxiety
* Work things through with me
* Reassure me that everything is OK between us
* Laugh and make jokes with me
* Gently push me toward new experiences
* Try not to overreact to my overreacting.

What I Like About Being a Marilyn
* being committed and faithful to family and friends
* being responsible and hardworking
* being compassionate toward others
* having intellect and wit
* being a nonconformist
* confronting danger bravely
* being direct and assertive

What's Hard About Being a Marilyn
* the constant push and pull involved in trying to make up my mind
* procrastinating because of fear of failure; having little confidence in myself
* fearing being abandoned or taken advantage of
* exhausting myself by worrying and scanning for danger
* wishing I had a rule book at work so I could do everything right (unless that rule book says I actually have to WORK and not follow my wild ADD trails :) )
* being too critical of myself when I haven't lived up to my expectations

Marilyns as Children Often
* are friendly, likable, and dependable, and/or sarcastic, bossy, and stubborn
* are anxious and hypervigilant; anticipate danger
* form a team of "us against them" with a best friend or parent
* look to groups or authorities to protect them and/or question authority and rebel
* are neglected or abused, come from unpredictable or alcoholic families, and/or take on the fearfulness of an overly anxious parent

Marilyns as Parents
* are often loving, nurturing, and have a strong sense of duty
* are sometimes reluctant to give their children independence
* worry more than most that their children will get hurt
* sometimes have trouble saying no and setting boundaries

JC is my BFF....

Sneak peek....

Yesterday. Was. Windy.

For whatever reason it's nearly impossible to get all three of my girls in one place, clean and presentable at the same stinkin' time. One is always dirty from soccer or just in general not clean. Or, one is away with friends, with their dad or sleeping and grumpy. So...yesterday was the day. I didn't care that it was cold and we were experiencing winds in excess of 70 mph. OUR CHRISTMAS CARD PICTURE WAS GOING TO BE TAKEN. Alli wasn't feeling well and missed a soccer game but oh well....I was on a mission. :)

We went to Hanging Rock Park in Redfield just down the road from my house. Nothing spectacular until you get to the back of the tiny park and see the river and the "hanging rocks". Made them sit, smile and snap. Only Taylor was crying....she really is not a fan of cold....and Carli and Alli were yelling at her 'cuz she was "making it take longer"! Oh the joy of taking a Christmas picture...all so other people can see how wonderful your children are all the time. HA.

Anyway, finally Carli got Taylor laughing by trying to poke me with a stick behind my back. She actually got me once on accident and it HURT. Needless to say she put the stick down. Their individual pictures turned out great. Our group shot....not so wonderful, but I'm ok with that. I secretly didn't want in it anyway. :) After only 15 minutes at the park, here is our Christmas card. Please act shocked when you get it in the mail.

JC is my BFF....

Breast cancer, presidential election and Psalm 27...

Random thoughts on a few things I just feel like talkin' about:

Breast Cancer

Tomorrow is the Susan G. Komen "Race for the Cure" here in Des Moines. With my crazy busy schedule I won't be running this year....wish I had thought in advance to put that on the calendar....next year maybe. And I probably should start training again. I don't know if I could even run three miles these days! :) Anyway, today at work we are celebrating Breast Cancer Awareness Month with a pink food contest, best decorated office contest, etc. I wore my pink shirt and brought my pink almond bark pretzels in to share with my co-workers. It has been one of those weird months....two people in my office have or are recovering from breast cancer. I really should pull my head out of the sand and go get that baseline mamo that is two years over due. Chill. Don't send me any "OMG, YOU NEED TO GO TODAY" emails. I know, I know.

Presidential Election

I read a blog today that I follow regularly (See "Zawisza Tribune" on my blog list on the right) and here is what it said about our upcoming presidential election. If you know me at all you know that I am N.O.T. into politics and as you read above I have a "head in the sand" mentality about things. This was AWESOME....

TOP 10 PREDICTIONS NO MATTER WHO WINS THE ELECTION

1. The Bible will still have all the answers.
2. Prayer will still work.
3. The Holy Spirit will still move.
4. God will still inhabit the praises of His people.
5. There will still be God-anointed teaching and healing.
6. There will still be singing of praise to God.
7. God will still pour out blessings upon His people.
8. There will still be room at the Cross.
9. Jesus will still love you.
10. Jesus will still save the lost.

Amen to that....

Psalm 27

So....as I think about breast cancer and our upcoming election (they really have nothing to do with each other but that's how my mind works), I am reminded of one of my favorite scriptures....Psalm 27. God placed this scripture on my heart not long ago when I was struggling with a lot of things...my past, my future, my heart and my purpose. I will never forget the relief I felt when I read this for the first time. It was God reminding me that He is in control and He will protect me always if I just put my faith in Him. These words remind me that no matter the economy, no matter who is choosen to run our country and no matter if our bodies are filled with illness, pain or otherwise, He is my protector and my shield.

"The LORD is my light and my salvation - whom shall I fear?

The LORD is the stronghold of my life - of whom shall I be afraid?

When evil men advance against me to devour my flesh,

when my enemies and my foes attack me, they will stumble and fall.

Though an army besiege me, my heart will not fear;

though war break out against me, even then will I be confident.

One thing I ask of the LORD, this is what I seek:

that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life,

to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD and to seek Him in His temple.

For in the day of trouble He will keep me safe in His dwelling;

He will hide me in the shelter of His tabernacle and set me high upon a rock.

Then my head will be exalted above the enemies who surround me;

at His tabernacle will I sacrafice with shouts of joy;

I will sing and make music to the LORD.

Hear my voice when I call, O LORD;

be mericful to me and answer me.

My heart says of you, "See His face!"

Your face, LORD, I will seek.

Do not hide your face from me,

do not turn your servant away in anger;

You have been my helper.

Do not reject me or forsake me, O God my Savior.

Though my father and mother forsake me,

The LORD will receive me.

Teach me your way, O LORD;

lead me in a straight path because of my oppressors.

Do not turn me over to the desire of my foes,

for false witnesses rise up against me, breathing out violence.

I am still confident of this:

I will see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living.

WAIT FOR THE LORD;

BE STRONG AND TAKE HEART

AND WAIT FOR THE LORD."

JC is my BFF....is He yours???

Light and corn....

I bought my Nikon D80 last October and had no clue how to really use it. If you know me at all I am absolutely, positively a person who learns by watching and doing versus reading so I rarely open the owner's manual. Wade bought me a DVD about my camera to watch, and I have watched it, but I really think my mind is kinda weird that way. I gotta want to learn before my mind fully opens up enough to let what I am learning soak in. I have a way of, on the surface at least, getting what I am learning but it doesn't sink in initially. I know that is very much my ADD and while it is frustrating to me that I am that way, I know it is equally as frustrating to others at the same time.

So, after having my camera for a year now, I finally signed up for an 8 week class on how to USE my camera. I bought the darn thing, put it on "Auto" setting and off I went. I have had good success in that mode but that's like having a manual transmission car and never getting out of 1st gear. The car can do so many more things, go way faster and get you to your destination quicker and easier if you drive in the right gear. Seriously, I am a slow learner!!!

Tonight is week 4 of class. We had an assignment to take actions shots so that we freeze the action and then caught the action blurred (you do this by adjusting the shutter speed and f stop in case you felt like that was important to know). All this is to be done in MANUAL mode....which means I (yes, me, myself and I) control all the functions of the camera. I had no problem with freezing the action. That setting and control actually makes sense to me and as a sports action photographer I GET that. I did, however, have a problem with the blurred action. But, have no fear, FINALLY, I figured it out. The light bulb came on! I have to say though, I am my biggest critic and my own worst enemy. I was really down about how I wasn't figuring it out and how the heck could I be a professional if I didn't even know how to do something soooo simple! Then WHAM. Something I did worked, I tried it again and it worked again. WHEW...world crisis averted.

Anyway, all of that to just show off a few pictures I took Sunday on my way to church. Nothing fancy, but something I figured out (and none of them have anything to do with the action shots of my assignment! I will post them later). I'm excited!!! The two of the twinkle of light through the tree in my front yard are pretty cool. Made me smile so that makes them worth the post, I think. :) The first one of the corn is just to show you all where the little demon children live ready to prance out and kill all the adults ("Children of the Corn" movie, in case you didn't know)...I so hate that movie! The other one of the corn tassles is to show all you city folk what the corn looks like when it's ready to harvest. See my post of the tassles from earlier this summer. :0

JC is my BFF!!!

Taylor, Sponge Bob and photography....

IT WAS SO FUNNY....I walked in the house Tuesday night after writing my bog about getting Taylor watching Sponge Bob and possibly putting her in a Memory mate. You know what the first thing that kid said to me was? "HEY MOM! GUESS WHAT!?!? Sponge Bob is on and it's a TOTALLY NEW EPISODE!!' I almost peed my pants. Went and got my camera and here is my baby watching Sponge Bob. No Memory Mate....sorry.

NO....she does not normally sit next to the TV like this....I made her move there so YOU could see SPONGE BOB!!!

Playing the clarinet....this is a rare sighting of a clarinet playing little girl!

Then, I saw a blog a few days ago about handing your camera to someone and having them take a few pictures to see the world from their viewpoint. All my girls love to take picture with my camera so last night I let Taylor have a go of it. Here is what she took. She is actually a pretty good photographer!

I guess the guys head is not important. Hey....it's what see shes in the world, remember?!

Pretty trees and leaves. She gets art, I think.

Happy Friday everyone!!!

JC is my BFF....

In His image....

Every morning on my way to work I go by these beautiful ponds (one lower, one upper smaller one). It happens to be in the backyard of some farmer person and I am sooo jealous that they get to see this every day. Most mornings, especially now that it is getting colder outside, there is a fog coming off the water. Absolutely beautiful. I took the picture above late last month (and it is NOT my best....fundamental issues with exposure, etc. but it serves the point I'm trying to make here) and I was mesmerized by what I was seeing as I sat along side the road. It occurred to me that the trees next to the pond are a perfect reflection in the water. Then, as if God took His large hand and smacked me upside the head, I totally got the comparison between the perfect reflection of the trees in the pond and how God created us all in His perfect image.

I love it when He smacks me upside the head. Really, I do.

I wish I had some great insight on how to better live to "reflect" God within us or what it really means to be created in God's image....I don't. What I do know is that God created us for His pleasure, with a plan and a purpose to serve and love Him and to love one another as ourselves. I wish I had great words of wisdom on how to love the person sitting next to you in that cubicle carrying on like an idiot about the happenings in your office, or how to love your neighbor who keeps raking their leaves in your yard and thinking you don't notice, or how to love that spouse who keeps hurting you with words of unkindness or insensitivity....but I don't. All I know....and I know that I know that I know....that God is working ahead of each of us paving the way, making crooked paths straight and preparing to reward us for our faithfulness. If we place all our cares and worries with Him at the foot of the cross, our "reflection" gets more perfect every day.

JC is my BFF....

One more then that is it for the day....

Lots to say today! Just wanted to post two more new "Memory Mates" that I created over the weekend....giving teams more options. Red one is Alli....yes that is my kid in the YELLOW with the rest of her team in their proper uniform. She is the goalie and I guess she thinks she can wear whatever she wants.


Carli being all Carli-like.

And FYI all you people wondering where the heck a picture of Taylor is on this blog....well, she dislikes soccer very much and just isn't on a team to partake in the cool Memory Mates. As soon as I get a good picture of her watching Sponge Bob or reading or practicing her clarinet (which she RARELY does), I will create a cool Memory Mate for her too. :)

JC is my BFF!

Stacie & Brad....

Meet Stacie and Brad. Stacie is my cousin and I begged them to let me take some engagement shots of them. One because I need the experience and two because I was pretty confident I could get some cool pictures they would like.

Stacie and Brad met 5 years ago while working together at Farm & Fleet. This was the first time I had ever met Brad as during the holidays when my family gets together, Brad is always with his family. He's a good guy and they are very happy together. They are getting married in Hawaii next May. I know....how cool is that! It's pretty obvious to me that these two are very much in love and belong together.

Anyway, I have learned a few new tricks in PhotoShop and used these shots to see what could be done. I really like all of their pictures and am happy with how they turned out! THANKS Stacie and Brad for letting me into your little circle for a brief time to show the world the two of you. I'm very happy for you and excited to see the Hawaii wedding pictures!

Two Twins fans on the baseball field.... :)

I L.O.V.E. Stacie's face in this one....super cute!

My absolute fav....what girl doesn't want a shoulder to lean on. **sigh**

JC is my BFF!!!