Lord have mercy

Last night I met up with the girls for the Mercy Me concert. What do you get when you mix 3 art directors with a mom from Montrose?

you get a group that forgot to go to the concert on time, and completely missed the first act .... :) however, i got to see the full-out Rani show, girl, you are hilarious.

but that's 2 strikes for Aaron Shust. darn it. oh well, i guess that means we get to try again and have another girls' night when he comes back to town!

it was a good concert anyway. i have come to the conclusion that ANY concert that worships the Lord is a good concert. bart millard (mercy me) talked quite a bit about worship. and i think he's onto something. it IS kinda weird going to a christian concert, where you are half worshipping and half sitting in your seat and clapping politely at the "songs." God must smile at arenas full of people who aren't quite sure what to do. ha.

anyway, it was fun. audio adrenaline was great, they came out into the audience, and called young people up on stage and made me wonder why God wouldn't just heal this guy's voice so he could keep doing what is obviously a gift. but alas, it looks like my first time seeing them will also be my last...for awhile, anyway.

so, thanks for the date girls! see you the next time a great christian band comes to town!

cool pic of the day

her stuff is amazing ...

http://www.jengarrido.com/

for karen

hang on ... that juice will be pretty tasty stuff.

unexpected places

i did not really expect to wake up joyful today. after all, the weather has been dreadfully cold and yucky, and my life hasn't been a whole lot warmer.

phillip has been having some stress too, so a week ago i decided to get him his birthday present early. he does not have a bike and wants one. unlike me, he actually rides a bike - mine, since i've known him - so i decided to go for it and get him his own, winter or not.

i have purchased a bike before from a local specialty shop. i feel silly in those places, like a middle-aged lady who gardens (hmmm. wonder why i would feel like that?!) anyway, this time was no different, when i went in there last weekend to order the bike. i knew what i wanted, had already done my homework on the internet.

so, i stood there, watching all the cool biker types standing around. some of them had winter gear on and obviously bike in FEBRUARY. in south dakota. wow.

finally, a guy waited on me. he seemed pleasant enough, was young, cute and also looked alot more "hip" than me. he didn't openly acknowledge that i was a fish out of water, so i was thankful for that ... he sold me the bike, and called yesterday and to tell me the bike was in.

so, i jumped in the truck this morning when it looked like the sun was going to peek out today, because i want to surprise phillip this weekend. the bike LOOKS really good. i laughed and told the sales guy that looks were my biggest concern ;)

anyway, long story short, when he loaded it up in the back of my car, he saw my book from bible group called "the prayer that changes everything" - and said to me, "hey, what do you think of that book?"

for a minute, i had no idea what he was talking about. did i have a hip young guy book in my back seat that i didn't know about? when i saw it was THAT book, i said "oh, yes! that's a great book, primarily it's about worship."

and he looked at me and said "cool. well, that is what it's really all about, right?"

oh man. my spirit just soared. a brother in Christ. right there i found him, in the parking lot in the middle of February in the snow and slush and a place i hadn't anticipated he would be. we smiled at each other, and the young hip guy gave me that "i know what you know and it is GOOD" look that the Lord has shown me before with unexpected people.

and you know what? it IS about Him, and i DO worship Him for that!!!!! heck, who knows - maybe He is even saying i will be a hip biker type in His place for me someday!!

forecast for today.

snow and blowing snow advisory for SF today.

shoot.

tell me i shouldn't...

arrrgghh. i FOUND THE CAR I WANT. i had decided to put some $$ in savings, and start shopping next fall. but of course, i shop on the internet all the time.

so, i find this GREAT jeep! i see on the window that it started out in the low 20s, it is marked down to 16,900...AND the dealer will pay for tax and license! book value = over $20,000.

what to do, what to do....

note to self

do not make up a new game called "kill the hand" with wicked cat who has a killer instinct and nothing to use it on.

to my credit, i am usually wearing my long sleeve sweatshirt when this game begins, but apparently more protection would not be a bad idea.

close up view

sometimes, when i wake up in the morning, i kind of scare myself.

i don't think i ever thought about getting older til it happened. and i kind of understand those 90 year olds you see in the news every once in awhile who say "i still feel young inside."

it's true. i don't feel like a 44 year old, heck, sometimes i don't even feel like a grown up. carey and i joke that when we sit in meetings with actual ADULTS and business people, we still feel like children. what is funny is that many of my clients are younger than me now! not to mention my 20 something peers.

but even though it snuck up on me, i think i am dealing pretty well. i still like to "dress up cute." and i still like to feel like i look good. it's just a different kind of good, it's something that comes from the inside. it's the ability to laugh at myself and not take the surface too seriously. it's facing the fact that no amount of eye cream, no matter how much it costs, is gonna erase this proof that i have lived :)

still, i might want to avoid the mirror first thing in the morning if possible!

keeping score

not that i am keeping track, but here's the tally for me on v-day so far:

* woke up to kisses from an extraordinarily affectionate "princess of the household"
* got a rose and 4 tickets to the cheap theatre from the Spicy Pickle when carey and i stopped there for lunch
* got a vday card from little j, with PADMA someone?! on it :)
* got a very neat drawing/poem from my sweetie exclaiming his love for me (without mention of jean buying catastrophe)
* got a cup of chocolates in my door left from friend sher, who is a dear to me

* gave my little jade a big giant red dog, and her class strawberry cupcakes yesterday on my mentor visit

i think next year i better give a little bit more, looks like i am getting WAY MORE than i deserve...

happy day everyone!

break time

back when i worked at an ad agency, i almost always took afternoon breaks, even tho the pace was "accelerated" most days. i think most creative people do this, the trick is just not to flaunt it in front of the account staff.

anyway, my breaks usually consisted of standing on the outside of the building facing the parking lot, while a "fellow" coworker smoked. sometimes, there were multiple smokers. and me. even though i am not nor have i ever been a smoker, i was there for the complaining. because that is what we did. smoked and complained. how relaxing. or not.

nowadays, my breaks are different. for the first few years i did not really TAKE one, because i was not that busy, so all day long kind of seemed breakish. then, when it started to seem like i worked more 8 to 5ish, i brought back the "break." i like them better now, mostly because i am not smoking probably :)) he.

today on break i assembled one of my new trellises (i got two) in the living room. they are for the beans and beans and beans that i am planning on growing. i assembled one because i wanted to get a sense for how large it would be. it's not TOO big, but neither is my garden. two of these should be JUST right.

ahhh. one step closer to spring now. my neighbor and i actually stood out in the alley and chit chatted for a bit today. have not seen him since october, so it was nice. i told him that my beans were going to kick his beans' butts!!!

tuesday in the snow belt

ah, waking up to fresh snow again. thankfully, it was not the jingle of the snow plow cause ernie was parked in the street again (gotta get that garage cleaned out!)

i kind of like days like today, even though we've seen plenty of snow lately - today it's not just snow, it's sparkly white fluffy CLEAN snow...with a good dose of sunshine to boot.

it must be the Holy Spirit, because i cannot for the life of me figure out why it looks so pretty :))

falling apart together

i had a "meltdown" day this weekend, based on a few unsettling things going on in life, and a yucky feeling inside of me that i just could not shake.

when this happens, i usually START the meltdown with one particular event. this time, it was all about the levis.

phillip is getting ready to get a new job (construction) and is going out on interviews...he asked me to pick up a pair of levis for him when i was out and about and i gladly obliged. see, you guys all know about the spending fast, but it doesn't count when i am spending for somebody else :))

so, to the mall i went. i admit i went a little nuts - but i could tell SOMETHING was up the minute i walked into JC Penney. it was crazy nuts busy. there was a sale in the air. as i walked PAST the shoes, i saw that women had boxes of shoes on the floor and were frantically trying on shoes in the aisle. i stopped, and saw that EVERYTHING was 75% off. omg. i actually tried on a pair of suede brown slouch boots that looked like the movie footloose. then i remembered that i'm not in the 80s anymore, and also remembered my mission.

so, onto jeans. the mens jean department is a vast vast area in JC Penney. they have alot of clothes there. phillip and i have shopped there before, even though he steadfastly believes that "walmart has everything you could ever possibly need." right away, i found the levis. luckily, he likes levis or i would probably not date him. and since he said he was needing these for work, i figured levis 501s would be good. lucky for me, they were on sale. $32.99 a pair. i noticed that the "prewashed" pair was especially nice. the bottoms were slightly worn, but otherwise they had a nice overall softness, and broken in feel. good to go.

by the time i got out of the store, i had purchased 2 dress shirts ($6 each), a couple long sleeve waffle knit shirts ($5 each), a pair of "questionable" black jeans with stitching on the pockets - cute but perhaps men would find them weird ($7), and some new gloves for him. i felt like a good wife-to-be. all was well.

um, until he saw them. he didn't say anything, and of course the first words out of my mouth were "do you like those levis?" i asked, not IMAGINING there would be any problem. and here is what he said....

"babe, i thought you were just going to get a pair of NORMAL jeans..."

that was it. camel's back broken. what followed was crying, semi-yelling, the "you always do this" talk and hours in the bathtub soaking and praying :) oh Lord. finally yesterday, i started to come out of it. and last night when we talked, phillip spoke out all of the things that we both know are true about our relationship, and also "thank you for buying me the levis, i will wear them proudly."

whew. i'd almost rather go shopping with carey.

oh. ps. went to the jcpenney website, and i believe the correct jeans for this occasion would have been the 505 "workwear" line. sheesh.

clique here

recently a good friend asked me how she should go about getting more readers for her blog. she has been blogging for awhile, and must have noticed that usually there are a few comments on my musings.

it got me thinking about this blog circle thing. in some ways, it reminds me of grade school when you spent your time on the playground with those people you had the most "in common" with...but as we get older, hopefully, those circles tend to overlap a bit.

i have more circles of friends now, mostly because i have learned that one size does not fit all with friends. what is important is just to connect on some level, not every single level in your life. so i'm taking stock of THIS group, the blogging friends, and thinking about where they come from.

first off, there are old friends who come to my blog. like my friend kirsten. i wish all of you guys would read her blog, it is so great! it's unique, like her. kirst and i have been friends since about 1988, when i worked at sdsu and she came to apply for a job in my dept. she was fresh off the bus with a transfer from the u. of minn, having followed her boyfriend (now husband) who was getting his masters degree in brookeville. we became friends pretty quickly, as i recall. she was "cooler" than i and had that city vibe that a small-town girl like me never did really master. we both liked alot of the same things then that we do now, even though our lives are very different. i stayed single and had a business instead of babies, and she has long since left the work world for the valiant task of staying home with her 3 great kids (and um, 44 pets :)) - and a husband! - and we still like to garden, crochet, eat, gab and lounge together. her blog comments remind me of how much i love her, and how much she knows about me, and i about her. it's good.

then, there are a couple other old friends, some comment and some don't. that's okay, i am glad you guys are here too :)

then, there are the "design girls" - the women who like me, have careers as art directors. i LOVE having these women in my life. they are the ones that i can spend hours and hours and hours talking about what is pretty and why. i cannot imagine these girls not being in my life. my friend c. calls it "playing barbies" when we get together and that is just what it is...!

then, there is one boy - that i know of - who reads. he is a former co-worker and has pretty much heard about all of the dramatic stuff in my life. and i in his. he also fixes my web and email problems and helps me move :)) he is great.

then, there are one or two "clients" - i use the parenthesis, because these are specifically the kind of clients that i might share more in common with than most clients. these are the clients that i kind of would rather have as friends. the other ones do not know i have a blog :)

then, there are carey's friends. well, i should rephrase that. there is carey. she has been my "husband" for the last 10 or 11 years, and she is very popular it seems. we joke that in any other part of our lives, we probably would not have been friends. she is tall and beautiful and athletic and nice. i am short and quirky looking and artsy and kind of bossy :)) ha ha. but lucky for me, she writes words and i make pictures, and somebody paid us both money a long time ago to forge a wonderful friendship while we worked.

and as for her friends, they are awesome too! i have heard about all of them for years, the sdsu days, the chick reunions, the stories. lots and lots of stories, and even itty bitty pictures in my head of who these women are. oh, and there is even a new friend or two that she has picked up SINCE sdsu. all of them seem to blog, which is GREAT for me. it's like i went back to school and all of a sudden got to sit at the popular girls table :)) at least that is what these women are to me. they are funny, smart, kind, vulnerable, good people. and i like getting to be a part of their day thru this silly blog.

then, of course, there is the Lord! He blogs, you know. not always, but quite often. i see that He frequents many of the other blogs i read too, in the stories and the kids and the husbands and the love and concern and support that pours out onto the posts.

and that is it, i think. all i know is, if blogging is cliquish, i think we are all in the "in" crowd :))

smell the coffee

today i'm going to try to get my groove back. i've been feeling yucky, and that is not good. so, after the "inspirational spurt" last night (spurt is a funny word- see below) - i am good to go.

i need to quit being a baby about it being winter!! yeah, it's cold out - SO WHAT?! i need to buck up. i need to embrace the cold. i need to get knitting. ha.

i have not picked up my knitting needles OR crochet hooks since before christmas. i really want to make a couple of pretty things yet. and once gardening season hits, i'm done with other crafts for awhile.

so today, i get back on the horse and get back to knitting/crocheting/yarning or at least reading my new catalogue from Lion Brand yarn - probably the latter ;)

good day

today i was kind of struggling to have a good day...first off, i have a killer toothache, have been avoiding the dentist and now it looks like i waited too long.

then, it's not been a real good week with clients, lots of silly stuff, but it's been bothering me none the less.

this afternoon, i had a meeting scheduled with my church, because they wanted to talk about some items they "needed designed." i know from past experiences, they are always super nice, but usually super disorganized too and not really too visionary. i have always seemed to work with OTHER churches better than my own (actually, that's good, cause i don't go there to work :))

so, we met, and i got as much info as they had. which wasn't a whole lot. but something in me really really clicked on the way home from the meeting. i got a vision almost immediately of what i should do for them! so here it is, 9:30 and i have created a whole new campaign in the last 5 hours. it's basically "stuff" to raise awareness of and funds for a new endowment fund, so that underpriviledged kids can go to our Christian Center School. i'm calling it the Strong Roots Foundation.

and suddenly, even with the throbbing tooth, i feel good. deep down good, like i helped God make something just now. man, i am so blessed that He lets me do that!!! oh, it's based on Ezekiel 31:7

It was majestic in beauty,
with its spreading boughs,
for its roots went down
to abundant waters.

now i just hope the humans like it :)

Thought for today

We are never more alive than when we are dealing with God. And there’s a sense in which we aren’t alive at all until we are dealing with God.” ~ Eugene Peterson

give em what they want

i haven't exactly been "batting 1000" in the client service division of my company this week.

perhaps this book would help.

baby of the week

look at my friend rhonda with her new little bug!!!!

oh, he makes me happy ;)

worms anyone?

i've been doing some reading lately about composting. i guess i want to feel like the investment i am making into plants and seeds and stuff has the best start possible. which leads me to the next fantasy purchase...a worm house.

yikes. i know. i'm not sure where i would put it, and no one seems to mention if you actually have to TOUCH the worms, or if that is avoidable. eeeeeeewwww.

the thing is, they are great tho. they eat and eat and eat and eat your yucky stuff, and make and make and make and make great compost for your garden. let's face it, almost all the really good compost is made out of some kind of doo doo. i would think worm doo doo would be about as pleasant as any other kind, don't you?!

thought for today

Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.
Proverbs 3:5

I'm a thinker...by that i mean that i love to intellectualize as much as i can, as i go through my day. i think about my breakfast cereal and why i love it. i think about my cats and what they are thinking. i think about how phillip and i will grow old, and will it be a life pleasing to God. i think about my job, and what colors, and fonts and imagery i will use on my next project.

i'm pretty sure i am even thinking in my dreams. that being said, i think i think too much.

it's good to be discerning, to take pause before doing (something i NEVER did in my old life!), and to use the head you have been gifted with. but it's also good to remember that every thought should be held against the Word, and much of what we think makes sense is either NOT TRUE or has not yet been revealed to us clearly. We need to weigh our thoughts against the Word of God, and only the Word of God.

Personally, i'm glad for that. i am sick of thinking i know what to think :))

wow, neat.

i got an email yesterday with these images attached...i like them.

(RED)

okay, since my shopping partner has talked about our mall trip friday nite, i have to put in my two cents worth.

i did kind of like going to the Gap. i really really like that new ad campaign called (RED) that bono has come up with to raise money to fight aids in africa.

what happens is, the participating company can put their OWN logo in between the parentheses of the "red logo" and then it's their brand. it's an advertising thing, but it works. other participating companies are motorola, apple and more.

gap has done a fine job with their end and come up with good words like INSPI(RED) and TREASU(RED) as well as some not-so-good words like HAMME(RED) to put on clothing.

i really really really want one, but they don't have the word that i think would be just perfect: (RED)EEMED.

:)

not...quite...there...yet

i just googled Maya Angelou because i was wondering if she is a Christian (i saw a disturbing video of Oprah Winfrey this weekend, and i am bothered now that i ever watched her - even though it's been awhile) and here is what Maya Angelou is quoted as saying, it's pretty true...

I'm grateful to be a practicing Christian. I'm always amazed when people say, "I'm a Christian." I think, "Already?" It's an ongoing process. You know, you keep trying. And blowing it and trying and blowing it ...

at any rate, i think i like Maya enough to read some of her stuff. anyone have any suggestions?

euell gibbons, here i come!

my latest food obsession is GRANOLA, i have made 2 batches so far, it goes wonderfully with my homemade yougurt for breakfast!!

i know what you are thinking, the long hair AND the granola are pointing to a certain "h" word already discussed previously :))

but seriously, this stuff is AMAZING!

my favorite day

i'm not quite ready to join the workforce today. i overslept, and now i'm looking at my to do list and not to doing...

i started to fantasize about my "favorite day" and wondered if everybody would want to play!

i'll get it going, here is one of the "favorite days" that i look forward to living:

* early June, when the garden is just new, and the greenhouses are still open.

* wake up early, have coffee on the back forty porch with phillip and beener and discuss the day (now modified to include siesta)

* go to farmers market for MORE coffee, and shopping for fresh veggies

* errands to home improvement stores, flea marketing etc to follow the market

* come home to "projects" like gardening, house stuff, making stuff look better in our own little creative ways!

* shower, phil makes great dinner for us to eat and maybe we try a different kind of wine that we've never had before

* walk around the neighborhood, then a movie and falling asleep most certainly before midnight :)

ahhh. it helps just to write it out. anybody else care to offer up THEIR fave?

i'm a yippee!!

my hair is driving me nuts. i keep calling myself a "hippie" because it's getting longer and longer and now i'm in a quandry because cutting it will involve some emotional "letting go" - plus, naturally, phillip likes it.

anyway, last night in the course of conversation phil said to me "i'm glad you are not a yuppie, babe" (conversation concerning what kind of vehicle to buy, btw)...

WHICH leads me to a funny definition i read of what a hippie is: someone with long hair who is having more fun than you.

ha. maybe i do know what i am :)

put up a good fight

oh, i have had a great couple of "girl" days!

yesterday my friend (and mentor!) kit and i went to a movie, then had a quick cup of soup and a motivating talk!

it brought me back to my "old life" a bit. see, when i became a christian, i was a pretty tough broad on the outside. i had made my way thru the work world (which was where i got my primary identity, cause the relationship thing had never quite taken hold) by not taking any crap, by beating up those who were quieter than me, and by standing on my "smarts," my pride and my supposedly secure position of power in my workplace and therefore my life...sure, i was kind to a select, chosen few because they offered up something in return, but on the whole, i actually was living a complete and total LIE. and i didn't even know it.

i was really, really a mess. i WAS doing what i thought was necessary to "make it" and to be a successful woman. but i think i made the mistake of alot of women in the work world by falling for the lie that you have to act "tough" to get somewhere. oh, i could go on and on about the flawed thinking that got me to my sorry state at that time, but that's not really the point of this post.

long story short, kit recommended a book for me i am just dying to read. it's called "Fight like a girl" and amazon describes it's author like this: (Bevere) lays down the gauntlet again as she calls Christian women to cease trying to emulate men and embrace their feminine, strong nature. Bevere (Kissed the Girls and Made Them Cry) offers women a clear alternative to society's take on the definition of true strength.

which brings me back to kit. kit is a motivational speaker for the Lord. she is also a successful stock broker, single mother, red-haired actress, 59 and almost 60 year old KICK BUTT testimony for the Light. she's great. she scares me sometimes, but i believe she and i have some similarities. and what excites me most is that i believe she is ON TO something when she preaches to women concerning their hurts, and the lies they believed, and their TRUE nature and purpose.

anyhoo, i ordered the book as soon as i hit the computer last night! so look out world, i'm going to learn to fight like the GIRL i was meant to be :)

give us this day ....

well, the shopping trip was SO fun last night! we ate at "the spicy pickle" and then headed for the mall. c. was having her usual struggle with herself to find the perfect thing, and i was just "along for the ride" - i neither saw nor really "needed" anything! so, the spending freeze is safe for this weekend i believe.

what is extraordinary is the way God spoke to me yesterday about this offering. i think it's fairly obvious to those that have been reading that i have been struggling with thinking of a month of no "extra" purchases as a difficult thing to do. but the Lord seemed to be telling me something else when i turned to His Word yesterday.

i have a daily Bible, so each day there is a part of the old testament, new testament, a psalm and a proverb. the old testament story for yesterday was from Exodus 15, right after the israelites crossed the red sea. of course, this was the story about the manna that God supplied and the instructions He gave concerning it. it was pretty simple really. they were to look for it each day, not save a bunch of it so it would rot, not complain (!) and on saturday there would be a double portion so that they could rest on sunday. the exercise was described by the Father as a "test of their obedience." hmmmm.

then, i turned to the new testament story. this one came from matthew 22. The Lord described a parable concerning the wedding feast. in this story a king invited a chosen few to a wedding feast for his son, and when they "paid no attention" to the invitation, he ordered his servants to go out to the street and invite as many as they could, both bad and good. yep, there was a feast going on, and it was clear that missing the invitation was a classic error. because he was a KING and it was a really good party and you had an INVITATION. hmmmmm.

well, one thing is clear to me today. i am most certainly NOT missing out on anything! i have every single thing a human could ever want and need from the Lord today, as well as an invitation to a banquet too :) i'm sure He'll dress me well, sit me next to my most treasured friends, feed me a most fabulous meal, and lavish His love on me the whole time!

who could ask for more than that?

prayer request

well, pray for my spending freeze tonite. not that i have any money anyway, but carey and i are planning on a shopping "date." i am committed to watching HER buy things, but anybody who knows her well, knows THAT doesn't happen except for in a blue moon :)

so, i am going to tempt myself, even though i admit it's a dumb idea. i haven't been to the mall in AGES, hopefully i'm so out of practice i will not be able to open my checkbook up. what i DO KNOW is that i'll do about anything for a night with one of my best buddies!

in other news, i got asked to go see "The Queen" this weekend too. hmmmm. this is one of those movies i'd never see unless somebody (esp. my friend kit, who knows people in the "business") dragged me there. consider myself dragged, i'm going to a matinee tomorrow. looks kind of good, though, if you remember that princess di thing at all.

then, sunday of course is a day of rest, and the superbowl - for some, this would be an impossible combination, but since football doesn't really get me too excited, it will be fine. i know enough to say "go colts" and that is about it :))

nuff said

other people's flowers

g
awhile back, i happened onto this blog from a collage artist that seemed to just have a beautiful spirit. haven't "visited" her in awhile, but her post for today was so dang profound and true. i am amazed at the unique ways that God speaks to His children...!

check it out:
http://otherpeoplesflowers.blogspot.com/

clean

one more day til the "deep freeze" that is coming!

i am thankful that my little plants all have a nice snow blanket around them. i am praying for the bunnies too, and the other wildlife that are around, like my mom and dad's deer. i am like my friend kristie, and i think about our cities homeless people too, esp. when i drive downtown and see somebody walking with a pitifully thin coat, and no hat or gloves.

i want for everything to be warm and loved, all the time. but i know there is value in the frost. in the cold, we can still find warmth from an extended hand when we need it, from prayers or a kind word from people we don't even know, and from the Lord Himself when others cannot fill our need. in the cold, we HUNGER for safety and protection. we admit our vulnerability. we recognize our desire for the Lord more. and when we see His beauty (like this very pretty blue and brown photo i saw today on a gardening blog) we just sit in amazement of Creation, of perfection in the oddest places.

blessings today for everyone :)

no kidding

yesterday my fellow blogger K. poured her heart out concerning adoption on her blog. strangely enough, i too have been in "kid" mode for awhile. for me it probably started with the mentoring program that i began before christmas, seeing j. every week makes my heart think about having a child of my "own"...

http://www.albertmohler.com/commentary_read.php?cdate=2005-06-07

and then, one of the blogs i read regularly linked to the above story, about christian couples choosing not to have kids...the blogger suggested the story was absurd, and non-biblical (based on the fact that many couples cannot have children due to medical or financial issues, and that Paul himself said that marriage wasn't all that important in 1 Cor 7).

i guess i'm wondering what others think about this subject. i'm not sure what my own future holds concerning kids. it will probably be about a year and a half before i get married, and by then i'll be in my late 40s. i guess i have just decided that the Lord knows about whether or not i'm supposed to "have" kids, so i am leaving it to Him. i DO know i don't want it to be because of my own selfish plans and desires that i miss out on raising a child. but i also think there are other ways to "parent" children (and sometimes adults) than actually raising them in your own home.

for instance, a good friend of mine just got married last summer, for the first time, at age 50+. she and her husband love the Lord, but naturally they felt it might not be meant for them to have kids of their own. it's now less than a year later, and they have been blessed with "adopting" a woman from Africa and HER kids, who have been brought into their lives. my friend told me the other day "THIS is my daughter, i know that for sure."

so i kind of think that article is onto something, it's just that it might be kind of limiting in describing how to GET those kids that our hearts long for!

cozy and warm

ah...it's cold outside again today, word on the street is that it could hit 20 below by the weekend.

one more reason why i am not leaving the house again til late march or april.

but i had to smile when i saw (ie, stole) this pic from my friend kirsten's blog. puff, her bearded dragon, is fine with being a cold blooded creature, he likes his fuzzy blanket, just like me!

happy dreams, Puff... ;)

taxing poetic

today is "freak out" and do your taxes day at my house ... once a year, whether i need to or not, i stare at the big accordian folder, feel the big cringe inside, and dig in.

i would NOT be doing it, if i didn't have to file some forms by january 31st.

sadly enough, every year i have to call and ask my lucky co-workers what the heck to do. fortunately for me, i only work with "friends" who probably are also saints. this year, carey even had jamie hand-deliver the forms to me that i need to fill out! i am spoiled.

but dang it, before i die and go to Heaven, i want God to make me into a person who can add, so i will keep on trying to learn about this stuff!!

not my fault

but i accidentally "won" this on ebay this morning. to be totally honest, i bid on it BEFORE we started the spending fast :)

to be even more honest, i think i've spent more SINCE the spending fast began than i was spending before...

doh.

spend free

day two of the "no thrill spending" spree. i bought gas, and a car wash (very necessary, ernie was grey-not red and at 10 years old, he is prone to rusting) and some groceries and cleaning supplies.

no extra stops along the way, though all the cute little saturday shops were calling.

came home and looked downstairs for a few new decor items, put a "new" shelf on the wall and moved some of my chickens over there, a "new" tablecloth from world market (summer clearance, but winter cheer!) and moved grandma's cookie jar to a "new" spot...

made chicken noodle soup and homemade yogurt, read my bible study, cleaned and relaxed.

well, if every day goes like THIS, i just might be able to do a whole month.

Bring Me To Life

Written by Bebo Norman and Jason Ingram

I am a barren land And it’s all I can do to stand I am thirsty, I am thirsty

Father, reach out Your hand I have given all that I can Still I’m sinking, I’m still sinking

I want to run into the deep And let the deep call out to me I want to lose myself in Your love

So let it rain down over me As I fall down to my knees Let the ocean rise to meet me I need You to bring me to life

Well of eternal things Endless is all the life You bring Be the water that I long for

And show me Your Kingdom Come Father and let Your will be done Here in me as it is in Heaven

no esty for ME today

ah. saturday morning, coffee and a new computer monitor, new stereo speakers and itunes playing, reading blogs and easing into the day and ....

NO ETSY, no shopping. i will not shop to fill myself up. even though the cover page is all kimono stuff. i love kimonos. i want a kimono.

arrrrrrrggggh.

keep em coming

oh the email box is just brimming with cute things to buy today ...i am NOT looking, i am NOT looking, i am NOT LOOKING.

wow.

this new apple monitor is HUGE.

it's really pretty too :)
see, and i bought it last YEAR, so i did not even break my spending fast :))

waiting, waiting

i am so glad it's friday! it's also the first real official day of my 30 day "spending fast" as it was initiated by K. earlier in the week in her blog.

i have been spending like crazy lately. whatever i want, i buy. i just WANT right now. for instance, i got a $100 gift certificate for christmas, and WANT to buy a $200 item with it, that kind of thing.

i think there is alot to be said for being appreciative of what one HAS.

anyway, so it's a good time to practice moderation. for one month, i'll not buy anything that doesn't constitute a "necessity" for my home. for k., that includes fancy coffee drinks and clothing, etc.

for me, well, it appears that even though the new gardener's supply email sitting in my "inbox" this morning has JUST WHAT I WANT - a heat mat for all the little seeds i ordered last week - it will have to wait a bit.

funny how the Lord makes all the heat in the world required to grow plants, but i just need to HURRY HIM UP a bit :))

happy friday all!

thank you :)

thanks for the support and prayers girls! we'll do fine, matching or not :)))

ps, photo has been blurred to protect client confidentiality ! ha.

trickery

i admit i am more than just a bit nervous today. if it was summer, i'd just go outside and look at some flowers or pull some weeds...but since it's winter, i'm stuck.

see, my partner and i have been working ALOT on a presentation for some new biz tomorrow. it's always a bit scary, hoping you read somebody right and are giving them both what they want, and what is right for them.

at this point, less than 24 hours before the pitch, i start to lose confidence.

so here is my plan...i just went over to my favorite shop in town (i had a good excuse, to talk to the owner who is also a client) and bought a scarf.

not just any scarf, but a scarf that looks alot like the art i made for the pitch! yes, that is my trick. i am going to dress to match the presentation.

they do that alot on hgtv, if you've been watching. when candice olsen is standing in her lovely designed room, waiting for the owners to walk in, she matches the drapes :))

i'll let you know how it works for me.

stealing

is it legal to do this, or did i just steal a fellow blogmate's property?!

ummm, that photo sure looks good big :) thanks D!

i am bonding with my old monitor that i have had since i got my first home computer back in the 90s, because on friday it gets replaced by a big fancy apple flatscreen. i am having some probs seeing the details on some of my projects,

but still, i'll miss ya viewsonic...

fancy schmancy thing

i'm starting to think i'm pretty cool. late last year, a fellow freelancer told me about this cool software that "tracks" your time spent on a project and even makes invoices! you have to understand that this january marks the 5th year of my "stay at home" business, and i still do all of my bookwork "by hand"...meaning, it's not real organized. sure, i have a big ole folder that i throw stuff in, and even a rough system for sending out invoices...but nothing too consistent - generally when the cupboard is bare, i send somebody an invoice! it's crazy, but it has worked.

until today. today i decided to change all of that! i had to go backwards and redo a few invoices i already had going from 2007, but from now on, i am tracking away my day on this software program that cost 24.99. i like how the invoices are clean and simple and use a good type font.

you other girls who freelance and want this software too, just email me for the goods :)) it's fun to play with, if nothing else.

betcha anything that "blogging" racks up more hours per day than most of my client work, tho!