CHRISTmas

I don't get it. How can someone who doesn't believe in Christ celebrate CHRISTmas?? I think of alot of people who neither acknowledge Him nor believe in Him, and yet they celebrate His birth. Do they not realize that without Christ, there would BE no CHRISTmas?

What they DON'T know, is if they DO celebrate CHRISTmas, they DO acknowledge Christ.....yep, that works. Whatever it takes to make Him the One that we ultimately point to as our Creator and Saviour.

Blessings~

'Tis The Season

I love, love, LOVE this time of year!

But I am SO having trouble with the layout on my page! There should be a FULL view of my snowman, not HALF! Grrr! If anyone knows how to fix this, PLEASE let me know!

Kicking off the Christmas Season 'to do' list is, of course, getting my family newsletter and Christmas cards ready to mail. Took a family pic from our trip to Bates Nut Farm in Oct., and had it made into Christmas cards-turned out really good, and the price at Costco was right too! Got the family newsletter done and printed up last night, then spent some time addressing envelopes. Will mail them off tomorrow.

Jim has started hanging lights outside. For those of you who don't know, we have, for several years now, had a huge Christmas display outside for all to enjoy. Each year we add a little something more, and it really is quite a show! The park that we live in has an annual Christmas decorating contest, and never have we won any lower than 2nd place. Usually it's 1st place, but hey, winning is just the icing on the cake. We do this not only for ourselves, because it's something we enjoy looking at, but the community enjoys it too. Our neighbor directly across from us took 1st place last year, but he deserved it. He worked really hard on his display, and it was beautiful. I'm sure most of you have seen 'National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation'? How about 'Deck The Halls'? I think those stories are about US, except that we don't steal electricity or anything else from Gary (the neighbor affectionately known as 'the competition'). I told Jim maybe we should change our name to Griswold...

Our kids get involved too. If they see something that they think would look cool, they buy it and bring it over. We have a 5ft singing/dancing Santa, a snowboarding Santa, slide-loving penguins, watchful snowmen, gentle deer, and all sorts of cool things. And of course HUNDREDS of beautiful lights.

We're at the entrance to the park, so our place can be seen from 2 different streets. It's not at all uncommon for cars to literally park in front of our place, let their little kids out to enjoy the display, and even take pictures! For those of you who can't be here to see our display, I'll post some pics after we're all set up.

We still have Christmas shopping to do-nope, I haven't started yet. I'll get there....eventually.

There are just so many plans to make, and this is the ONE time of the year that I actually enjoy making them with the help of my family. It's Peyton's first Christmas too-and boy is she gonna be FUN! I can't wait to see her face when she sees the pretty display outside at Grandma & Grandpa's, and when she sees the pretty Christmas tree inside.

It's the most wonderful time of the year.....it truly IS.

Blessings~

Blessed

This is the time of year that I start compiling my family newsletter to send out with Christmas cards. In doing so, it causes me to pause, reflect, and give thanks to the Lord for His provision, sustenance, and blessings over the past year. I should be giving thanks EVERY day, and I do, most of the time, but there are days when I just don't. That being said, I'm going to list some of the many things that I am most thankful for:

My salvation through Jesus Christ-I am guaranteed eternity with Him....

My husband-who has defined 'for better or for worse' so well, and has loved me even at my most unlovable, and 'in sickness and in health', which again he's defined well, mostly in the 'sickness' part.

My kids Jim, Brian & Shannon-I love them more than life itself. I have been SO blessed by them. They are always just so there for their dad and me. I am blessed because they all live nearby, and I hear so many people say they wished their kids/grandkids lived closer...I am blessed because not only are these people our kids, but they're our friends as well...and we get together often.

Our 2 beautiful daughters-in-law Katie & Jessica. We are SO blessed to have them as members of our family. They are genuine, caring, family-oriented women who have made our sons so incredibly happy. I'm not sure that these 2 ladies know just how much Jim & I love them.

Our precious-beyond-words grandbabies. How we are blessed by them! They have caused us to see life through their eyes, and gives us a whole new respect for children. And best of all....they LOVE Grandma & Grandpa! :)

Our kid's friends, who are more like family to us. They too, are SO there if we need them...awesome people our kids have chosen as friends!

We have jobs. Even in today's scary world of employment, or lack of, Jim & I are both in the kind of jobs that would be hard to eliminate.

We have a roof over our heads, heat in the winter, a/c in the summer. Our little mobile home isn't much to look at, but it's HOME, and we love it here. It's our little sanctuary that we can 'escape' to amid all the unrest, and feel safe and secure.

Food in the cupboard, clothes on our backs, and of course, our beloved kitties, who help to make our world a nicer place.

The list goes on, but suffice to say, I feel SO blessed, despite everything. I will NOT complain.

I am blessed....beyond measure.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! God Bless~

Dead Bugs!

Catchy title, huh?

XTermite was here today....exterminated all those nasty little termites! The wonderful thing about it is that we didn't have to pack up & move out for several days. No risk of anyone falling through our roof while trying to tent, no risk of any damage to my outdoor plants, and no risk of residual odor/chemicals when we moved back in. XTermite uses all natural ingredients, the main ingredient being orange oil.
The only residual anything is the aroma of orange throughout the house, and I can live with that. They say the smell could hang around for a few days but will eventually fade away. Works for me!
No more bugs-YIPPEE!!

Last Yard Sale

I just finished helping to close up what is my final yard sale. I'm done with them, period.

Nope, I'm not throwing a fit, or ticked off, or anything like that. It just is what it is-too much work, and too time consuming for what I ended up with. Oh, I'm grateful that I now have a little more cash than I started with at 0700 yesterday morning.

All but a couple of my 'bigger' ticket items sold. I still have the monitor left, as well as the printer, a night stand, and a computer chair. Guess people weren't in the market for those particular things. But boy did my piddly little junky things sell like hotcakes-I was amazed!

Alissa & Justen set up their own cookie/lemonade stand, and in 2 days made around $22....not bad, and they really worked for it. It was THEIR responsibility to man their 'station' and serve customers, and they did an awesome job! Of course, Grandma and Grandpa, and Aunties Shannon & Katie all bought goodies from them, as did their dad & stepmom. Hey, gotta give the kids some encouragement to keep going, right? They will split the money 50/50 and each gets to spend their share as they choose. Good lesson for them-money isn't free, you have to WORK for it-and they did.

Money aside, I really DID get alot accomplished over the past 2 weeks, the biggest and proudest accomplishment for me being that my guest room actually LOOKS like a guest room now. No more clutter-yippee! I have a few things to transfer from that closet into the shed outside, but for now it's out of sight-and that works for me....for the moment.

Tomorrow Jim & I will go back over to Jimmy & Jess' and load up the boxes of leftovers that they have, and on Tuesday we'll take them to the thrift store and donate everything.

But we did have a good time visiting with Jimmy, Jess and the grandkids, as well as Shannon & Katie, who stopped in to visit, and chatting with the nice people that came and either browsed or bought something. There are alot of real nice folks in Ramona.

Jim & I are exhausted. We're SO glad to be done.

Yard Sale

We're having a big multi-family yard sale at Jimmy & Jessica's house next weekend, so I bet you can guess what I'VE been up to! You got it-going through all kinds of 'stuff that I've had-probably for YEARS-and downsizing big time. Geez, I didn't realize how much I've accumulated over the past few years!

Vases that I've had for I-don't-know-HOW-long, a like-new computer monitor, golf clubs that we 'inherited' after Jim's dad passed away, and all sorts of little what-nots. File cabinets (3 at last count), and a few end tables. Shannon will be happy to hear that-she says we're overkill on tables...LOL...

So far today I've spent about 4 hours going through, marking, loading into boxes and stacking those boxes in our guest room. Looks like the room blew up...LOL...and that's not counting the OODLES of Jim's union 'stuff' (I'm being nice here) that he never uses, but insists on keeping, 'just in case'....UGH. So I boxed all of his 'stuff' up, and put it in the closet-for now. Once the shed outside is emptied of yard sale stuff, his union 'stuff' will go into the shed, thus emptying the guest bedroom closet for GUESTS.

I'm totally excited that the guest room will finally LOOK like one, and I feel such a sense of accomplishment today, especially since I've been on the sick side for the past week between allergies and yet another sinus infection.

Ok, break time over-back to work!

Rainy Day Projects

Wow-this rain is just something else! We need it SO badly, and I just know that our desertly-dry and parched ground is drinking deeply. And of course, I forgot to turn off the timer to my lawn sprinklers, so they got an extra 20 minute drink at 5:30 this morning....oops!

I've been battling 'the blues' today. Over the course of the last week, several people I care about and love have hurt my feelings by comments and actions. Then to add insult to injury, I awoke with a nasty sinus headache this morning. It happens when the barometric pressure changes so rapidly. After a good cry over my morning coffee, I decided that today would be the perfect day for a few indoor projects. I fixed Jim & I breakfast, then got down to bedrock.

There are alot of things in my closet that I can no longer wear, or just plain don't wear, so I weeded them out, got them bagged up & ready for the thrift store drop-off, and started on my dresser drawers. Jammies I don't wear, sweat pants, and a couple of sweatshirts. I'm sure someone will get good use out of them. It makes me feel good to give.

Good time to do laundry too-especially if your W/D is inside, like mine is. Helps heat up the house!

Did a few things on my computer that I haven't taken time to do lately...added a program and deleted alot of stuff out of folders....and don't forget-disk cleanup and defrag!

It's cold & windy outside-what better time than NOW to bake something! I went to Costco last weekend and got, among alot of things, a box of the Krusteaz Pumpkin/Spice Bread Mix...YUMM-O!
Ahhh....there's just nothing like something baking in the oven to give your home more of a 'homey' feel, huh? Especially on a cold/rainy/gray day. I cheated and didn't make stuff from scratch, but considering the fact that my head is still pounding, I consider it quite an accomplishment that ANYTHING got done today :0)

Tomorrow will be a better day.

TGIF

Yeah, I know....I wrote a TGIF blog awhile back, but EVERY Friday is TGIF to me. Especially THIS week.

I feel like I've been beaten up spiritually, emotionally, and physically. It was NOT a good week for the elderly couple that I care for. Can you say cranky? LOL...'nuff said...

The presidential election (see previous blog) did a number on me spiritually and emotionally...

And the physical? Well, every day is a physical challenge.

I think God uses times like these to remind me to think not of how 'bad' things are, but how BLESSED I am.

So, I sucked it up and trudged forward. And I'm thankful for all that I DO have.

A few years ago I was in 'wallpaper' mode...can you say SOOO 70's?? LOL...we wallpapered one wall in our family room, top half only. Pretty floral print, but now I am SO over it, so early this morning I pulled things off the wall and painted over the wallpaper. Jim thought I was crazy....I reminded him of how horrific it was trying to get the wallpaper off the bathroom wall that had been there for literally decades before we moved in. Shannon can attest.

It was a perfect day for painting! Winds out of the east (yep, a santa ana) at about 20mph....84 degrees, just absolutely perfect, and my wall dried in no time flat. I feel such a sense of accomplishment! Looks kinda bare with nothing on it right now, but Christmas is coming up, and shelves are on my list.

Jim has the next four days off, which means I get to sleep in! Whoo-hoo! I still have to work on Mon/Tue, but at least I can wake up gently without that *@%$(# alarm clock blaring in my ear! Well.....maybe.....IF Casey allows me to sleep in. She's a little over a year old now and has adapted to our sleep schedule, so things are better.

I haven't seen my family in a week-I'm having withdrawls, but not to worry. Jessica's birthday party is tomorrow, and all will be there but Brian :(

I can't wait. After a week like this one, I feel the need to be around my family, where I can let my hair down, relax, enjoy good food, and fabulous company.

Have a good weekend! I know I will!

More Faith, More Prayer

Good Morning Everyone~

By now all of us know who won the presidential election. I have a few thoughts, and I'd like to share them with you.

Last night I was NOT a happy camper. I wasn't really surprised, but I guess I just needed to see the 'official' word before I accepted it. At first I just got this heaviness in my spirit, and I broke down and wept, because this man doesn't share the same moral and scriptural values that I have, and I worry about where this will take us as a nation.

Please don't misunderstand. I'm not saying that Obama is a 'bad' man. I vote for candidates that share my spiritual beliefs and convictions. Obama did not get my vote, for those very reasons.

Anyway, I immediately went to prayer, and what I came away from prayer with was this: that we, as Christians, need to have MORE faith, and we need to pray MORE than ever before. We need to pray for this new president, that he will seek the will of God, and that those beliefs of his that do not line up with scripture will change by the power of the Holy Spirit.

I myself am done whining. I am going to pray, and I hope you'll join me. 'The prayer of a righteous man availeth much'.

P.S....And just for the record, McCain didn't get my vote either-I abstained from voting for president, being unable to choose 'the lesser of the two evils'.

God Bless~

Random Thoughts....

Just a few thoughts on this beautiful Sunday morning...random thoughts, in random order...I'm assuming that's okay in a blog. But hey wait....this is MY blog, so anything goes, right? LOL...

Jim's 55th birthday was Friday. Yeah, yeah, halloween. I don't celebrate halloween at all, but I also don't criticize those who do. It's an individual choice. I have to follow my own personal convictions, and hopefully I won't be criticized for that either, but oh well.

It was a good day in general. Did errands and such, then went over to Jimmy & Jessica's for dinner. After dinner, Jimmy & Jess waited eagerly for their trick-or-treaters, with a big bowl of candy ready to be passed out. So they waited....and waited....and waited. Finally, 2 showed up...and that was IT until quite awhile later, when a group of 5 or 6 kiddos showed up...you should have seen Jimmy & Shannon (who had brought HER candy over to pass out too, since she'd only had a handful at her place) race each other to the door to pass out THEIR candy...LOL...then it was over. No more trick-or-treaters. Shannon said the same thing happened at her place-very few trick-or-treaters. Weird, because they all live in a very populated area of town, and yet still got no more than about 10 kids altogether. Jess had even decorated the porch outside with cute orange lights and 'cobwebs', and the decor was complete with a halloween cd going in the cd player. After Brian, Katie & Shannon got there, we even joked about how maybe we should all dress up, go door to door, and pass out candy instead of asking for it...no one had costumes, sooo....just strange since it was a Friday night...

I don't know about you, but I have had it up to HERE with politics this year. Unending phone calls by candidates asking for your vote, endless flyers in the mail by said candidates, and flyers in the mail from various groups suggesting how you should vote. Then there's the news....UGH. Ok so I know it's an important election, and I'm not minimizing that, but give us a break already! I do take my obligation to vote very seriously, and I do pray about just how I should vote. I read the proposed propositions, and I read about each candidate, then I vote my conscience. Jim & I vote by absentee ballot, and our votes have been decided, and our ballots mailed, so I've done my job. I'm just thankful that there's only 2 more days until maybe we can get a break from all this political stuff. Elections are an evil necessity in life I suppose, and I'm just glad it doesn't happen every year!

The weather....wow...we are SO blessed to have the weather that we have, but in all honesty, I'm looking forward to some RAIN. I am NOT a 'rain' person. But geez louise, we need it desperately. We need it for SO many reasons, one being to clear the air of pollutants and allergens. My allergies have been running amok for weeks now, as I'm sure everyone else's has too. Just a nice, slow, gentle rain, to soak into the ground, that's all. We've been hearing all week on the news about how there's a shot at rain this weekend. We're still waiting. But then, if you look at the percentage chance (30% at last report) you should know that the odds are NOT in favor of rain. Ah well, our rainy season is just beginning. Maybe we'll get lucky later on.

The time change had me up before 5am this morning. Well, before 5am AFTER I'd already set the clock back last night before bed. I guess that means I was up before 4am. No wonder I'm already ready for a nap! I wish it would stay daylight savings time year-round. I don't like it when it starts getting dark at 4pm during the winter months. It just doesn't seem 'right'...

November is here, and with it comes Jessica's birthday (on the 10th), Jessica LaTour's baby shower on the 15th, and of course Thanksgiving. We'll be having our Thanksgiving feast the day after Thanksgiving so that eveyone can be here. We'll do the same for Christmas. It's actually better for us, because no one has to rush through a meal or opening presents because they have go somewhere else. The day is relaxing, and full of fun, laughter, and love. It's all about family, the thing nearest and dearest to our hearts. I can't wait!

Well, time to get my day started. After breakfast I'm off to Poway to treat myself and get my van washed/cleaned at Body Beautiful, then a couple of other stops before my final stop at Costco-one of my favorite places!

Have a good week....