A Little Bit Of This And A Little Bit Of That

I found it! Remember the lost cord that connects my camera to my computer? It has been found. I knew what my dear dad would have said if he were here – his advice would have been right. He would have told me that I would find it right where left it! And that’s exactly what happened but I don’t have a clue how it ended up where I found it! I have been sorting and organizing things over the past few weeks and never in my wildest imagination would I have looked for it there. Not in a million years. As I was repacking a box of indoor Christmas lights I found it intertwined with one of the strings of twinkle lights. I think I know what happened. About the time we unpacked the Christmas decorations and lights we were putting things back in place after the installation of our new carpet. Somewhere in the middle of it all that silly cord must have joined the lights that I wasn’t using this year. I replaced the cord with a card reader but I’m glad that the mystery has been solved. I can rest peacefully and sleep now that I’ve checked that one off my list of things to think about in the middle of the night!

On another note, I’m really busy around my house. I’m puttering and fluffing and foofifying things - getting ready for a special friend to visit in a week. I’m having fun doing things done that need to be done – singing while I work. My friend won’t be here long. It’s going to be a short – but fun – visit and I can’t wait to share it with you. I’ll tell you more soon.

Today I’m getting a haircut. What’s so special about that? Well, you may remember what I shared here about the big changes in my life. I told you about my weight loss and more about the plan I’m following here. I’ve lost more weight since then and now it’s time for another big change. My hair is being ‘made over’ today – I’m going from the longer length I’ve been wearing for the last months to a new, shorter ‘do’. I’ll have my sweetheart take a new photo to share with you soon.

Change seems to be in the air around here. Signs of Spring are all around us. Flowers and plants are peeking up through the ground and, if we look closely, we can see the promise of the coming season. The sun peeked through the other day and I worked in my garden for the first time since last fall. And I found myself singing a song that I love.

Thank God for the promise of Springtime
Once again my heart will sing
There's a brand new day that is dawning
Thank God for the promise of spring

Song: ‘Thank God For The Promise Of Springtime’
Words and music by Bill and Gloria Gaither

I Will Praise You In This Storm

I was sure by now God
that You would have reached down
and wiped our tears away
stepped in and saved the day
But once again I say ‘amen’
and it's still raining
as the thunder rolls
I barely hear You whisper
through the rain
‘I'm with you’
and as Your mercy falls
I raise my hands and praise
the God who gives
and takes away

And I'll praise you in this storm
and I will lift my hands
for You are who You are
no matter where I am
and every tear I've cried
You hold in your hand
You never left my side
and though my heart is torn
I will praise You in this storm

I remember when
I stumbled in the wind
You heard my cry to You
and raised me up again
my strength is almost gone
how can I carry on
if I can't find You
and as the thunder rolls
I barely hear You whisper
through the rain
‘I'm with you’
and as Your mercy falls
I raise my hands and praise
the God who gives
and takes away

And I'll praise you in this storm
and I will lift my hands
for You are who You are
no matter where I am
and every tear I've cried
You hold in your hand
You never left my side
and though my heart is torn
I will praise You in this storm

I lift my eyes onto the hills
where does my help come from
My help comes from the Lord,
the maker of heaven and earth
I lift my eyes onto the hills
where does my help come from
My help comes from the Lord,
the maker of heaven and earth

Song: ‘Praise You in This Storm’
words by Mark Hall
Music by Mark Hall and Bernie Herms
Recorded by Casting Crowns

Little House On Wheels

While looking back through photos that I need to edit and organize I came across some ‘unpublished’ photos from our vacation in Eastern Oregon last Spring. I thought you would enjoy seeing this little, old home on wheels that was in a small town we visited.

This little ‘mobile home’ was the forerunner of our modern-day camp trailers, I’m sure. This was home to a sheepherder and his dogs. I can’t imagine living here through the icy cold winters of that part of the country. Or any other time, for that matter.

Looking inside, it’s hard for me to imagine spending much time here but I’m sure it was a refuge from the long days of hard work and weather conditions that went from below zero to well above one hundred degrees in the summertime.

As I stood there and looked at everything inside, I wondered how safe this little place was when the fire was stoked and the lantern was lit. No windows, a single door, no modern comforts at all – but it was home!

I wondered if the little table became a writing desk – for a letter to a sweetheart, or a journal of adventures or a business ledger of some kind.

And I appreciated the hard work, the long hours and the sacrifice someone had made to make a living and to provide wool and meat and all kinds of things unknown for himself and others. As I left that day and headed back to my nice, comfortable, little cabin-on-wheels I had a new appreciation for the things I have that make life so much easier and fun and comfortable. I am blessed with more than many others have had in the past. And now. I am blessed! And I am grateful.

With A Grateful Heart,

~Adrienne~

Finds and Treasures

It's a foggy, gray day here in my part of Oregon and thoughts of Spring keep running around in my head. Today I'm been working on some home tasks with an occasional break in there somewhere. During one of my morning breaks, while in a cleaning mood, I decided to 'clean' up my blog business a bit. I was aware that I had started a post or two, saved them as a draft and never gotten back to them. So I took advantage of the January urge to clean and purge and reorganize - and I went back through the list of blogs by date until I found all of those silly drafts that were intermingled with real, published posts. A few were immediately deleted because there was nothing there. Not even a title or a thought to help me know what I must have been thinking at the time! A few others made it to the top of my list to consider and share from time to time. One will have to wait until next Christmas! It's too good to delete and it wouldn't make sense right now so it can just wait.

Here's a draft I found from May, 2009 - and I wanted you to see what I found while out garaging and thrifting with my dear, little mother. I think you will enjoy my pretties as much as I enjoyed reading about them again today. Here's what I wrote.

It's been awhile since I've shared some of my 'finds' with you. Believe me - I've been finding some wonderful things. Garage and yard sale season has begun in earnest here in our area. Each Friday my dear little mother and I do something together. Spring and Summer Fridays usually find us on the thrifting circuit. I thought I would share my finds with you each Friday (unless there is something special to share on that day). To start, here are two cute planters. One for Spring (and summer) - one for Thanksgiving.

Yellow finds - a yellow glass bowl with a unique shape, a yellow pottery planter, a yellow glass baking dish and a sweet little creamy yellow pitcher.On a recent trip to a nearby Goodwill store this treasure found its way into my shopping bag. I love this cake stand. It's smaller than some and so pretty.The top. . .And bottom details are so pretty.A few days ago I had just a few minutes to stop in at the Goodwill near where my care center ministry takes me each week. I was running a bit late and didn't have much time. After a quick look at a few favorite places in the store I came around the corner and found this plate. When I saw it I knew exactly what it was - the work of one of my favorite artists, Sandy Clough. I haven't decided where to hang it yet but you can be sure I will find a place. Just the right place.I love teacups! Recently I opened a pretty little container that had been stored away and 'found' this one inside. I forgot I had it and I can't remember where or when I first got it. Blown glass and yellow trim. It's tiny and cute.Next to my new yellow teapot you can see how small it is. Isn't it sweet?There are more finds to show you. I'll share them soon. And in the meantime I'm sure I'll find more.

Iron

There’s something special about old irons and my dear, little mother. It seems she has gathered quite a collection of them over the past few years.

Quite a while ago I shared my dear mother’s laundry room with you here. She has added more irons to her collection since then – children’s irons, heavy irons, shiny silver irons, brightly colored irons and irons with strange-looking parts attached. Just before Christmas a long-time friend gave my dear mother some money to buy something special for herself. She carefully put the money in a little pocket of her purse and waited to find just the right thing! A few days later we visited an antique store – and there it was. A pretty blue iron that captured her heart must have been waiting for her to come along. Soon it was in her arms and then in her home. This beauty was right at home in my dear mother’s laundry room!

Does your iron have a name? My dear mother’s new iron does. It has a ‘fun’ name – Fairy Prince!

When I was a little girl we lived in a small town in Central Oregon where my father was the minister of a church. I walked to school every morning with a group of kids from the neighborhood. In the afternoon we walked home from school together. As we passed each friend’s home along the way we said goodbye and continued on until I was the last only one left. I didn’t have far to go – just a house or two – and then I was home! My mother was there when I opened the door of our home and at times she was still working on something that needed to be completed that day. Monday was washing and ironing day and I will never forget how carefully she ironed my father’s white shirts. They were washed and starched and carefully ironed so no wrinkle would have the nerve to try to stay! When she began to teach me how to iron – she started me out on my dad’s hankies – she instilled in me the importance of carefully pressing out every single wrinkle. She taught me that it was important for him to have carefully ironed shirts and hankies so people wouldn’t be a distracted from his words when he stood to preach. Or when he talked and prayed with people. I learned so much from her. I learned to do a job well and to take pride in what I had done. More than that – whenever my mother stood over the ironing board for several hours, carefully ironing my father’s shirts and my little dresses and the pillowcases and tablecloths and much more – she prayed. Oh, how she prayed! Her example taught me more than words that I could pray anywhere, at any time, while doing anything. What a heritage she gave me!

I read this poem recently and it reminded me of those days long ago.

Ironing

I have ironed my husband's shirts, oh, very smoothly;
I wish I could as easily erase
His frowning, worried look of inattention
I cannot read the new lines in his face.

Mary lets me iron her crepes and laces;
I wonder if she thinks that Mother's hands
Would tear the fine-meshed fabric of her love dream?
I wish she knew that Mother understands.

Jack likes the finest nainsook, trim, athletic,
Next to his skin. Most finical of men,
How can he bear to waste his time on Gladys?
I wish he were a little boy again.

Oh, well! My task today is just the ironing;
But while I iron, I cannot help but pray
Dear Lord, please let me smooth my loved ones' pathways;
Please do not let them drift too far away!
^__May Williams Ward.

With a grateful heart,
~Adrienne~

Spur-Of-The-Moment Decision

Have you ever done anything impulsive, spur-of-the-moment, all-of-a-sudden? And not regretted it? And afterwards you knew you had done the right thing? That’s exactly what my sweetheart and I did a week ago. As I shared with you here, it was our anniversary weekend and we decided at the last minute to change the plans we had made for the weekend and do something we wished we had planned all along. That’s right – we did what we really wanted to do. And it was such fun! Saturday morning as we prepared for a couple of day trips that day and the next we talked about what we wished we had planned instead. We wished we had gone to the Oregon Coast for a night or two. All of a sudden our decision was very clear – ‘Let’s do it!’ After a quick call to find an available room for the night and quickly ‘throwing’ things into an overnight bag and packing a bag of snacks and doggie food and supplies and we were gone! On the road! Out of town!

If you heard any national weather news that weekend you probably heard that Oregon had a record-breaking storm that hit the coast just about the time we headed in that direction. Where we went had four inches of rain in twenty-four hours – and we were there during those twenty-four hours! We rented a quaint, cozy, little cottage above the waves – a little place that was built in the late forties or early fifties. It had such character and had been modernized with new windows and insulation that kept us snug and warm. Comfy, new mattresses made for good sleep. The only cottage available when we called was a two bedroom unit. We felt as if we had moved into a little apartment and it was such a wonderful place to be on a stormy beach weekend.

The little kitchen was convenient for fixing snacks and I loved the style of the cabinets and the little table in the bay window overlooking the beach below. The dining area near the bay window was a wonderful place to sit and enjoy the view.

The little, pink and black bathroom was such fun.

I loved the little window in the bathroom. I just had to lift the blinds and take a picture to show you!

We sat near a warm fire in the fireplace and enjoyed the view out the big wall of windows at the end of the living room.

Joey went with us. This little cottage was pet-friendly and we were thrilled that it was. He thought it was wonderful. He loved spending time at the big window that went almost to the floor. I think he thought it was put there just for him. Occasionally he saw someone braving the storm on the beach below. If they had a dog with them it was all the incentive he needed to bark!

Since the weekend was so stormy we spent most of our time inside. (We did get to the outlet mall before we left town!) We went out for meals and we had some delicious food at our favorite places to eat when we go to the coast. I enjoyed standing at the windows to watch the waves below. If the weather hadn’t been so bad we would have walked down the trail to the beach.

Even though the weather was bad we loved having time away from the routines and responsibilities of everyday life. Time together has become a precious treasure since my sweetheart’s job requires many long hours apart during the week. We will return to the beach another time and we will walk on the beach again but this was the right time to go - no matter what. It was a spur-of-the-moment decision. Sometimes that’s the best way to do it. No time to worry about reasons it won’t work or be influenced by all of the reasons not to go. No reason to think about it twice. Out the door – on our way – out of town. It was wonderful! You should try it sometime – just put a few things in a bag, get in your car and take off. You won’t be sorry!

Experience His Joy

Yet I will rejoice in the Lord,
I will joy in the God of my salvation.
Habakkuk 3:18

God created us with the ability to laugh, so we must need to laugh. The Word says, ‘A happy heart is good medicine and a cheerful mind works healing.’ (Proverbs 17:22) Jesus said that His joy would be in us so that we may experience His delight; He wants to fill our hearts with His gladness. (Jesus prayed to the Father: ‘I am coming to you now, but I say these things while I am still in the world, so that they may have the full measure of my joy within them.’ John 17:13) Jesus wants us to experience His joy; but not preach about it, or read books about it. He wants us to experience His joy.

Joy greatly depends on how you view life, so if you need help getting your sense of humor back, ask God to show you the lighter side of life today. Don’t hesitate to laugh when you suddenly feel joyful; you will quickly find that joy is very contagious.

From: ‘Start Your Day Right’ by Joyce Meyer

An Unfailing Promise

"You crown the year with a
bountiful harvest;
even the hard pathways
overflow with abundance."

Psalm 65:11

True Love

Thirty-nine years ago today I walked down the aisle of my church and pledged my life and my love to the man of my dreams. My sweetheart and I are enjoying time away together today to celebrate the blessings of each other! God is so good and we are so blessed.

I give to you
And you give to me
True love
True love
So on and on it will always be
Love
Forever
True

For you and I have a
Loving Father
Who cares for me and for you
And He gives to you
And He gives to me
Love
Forever
True

adapted from ‘True Love’
written by Cole Porter

Just Hanging Out

Today is a wonderful day – my sweetheart took the day off from work, the sun just came out and is filling the house and we are doing some business we have waited to do for a long time. Later today my sweetheart and I will take off and go do something fun together – will tell more later! Tomorrow is our wedding anniversary and we are just hanging out together today. And doing things we want to do! He is away taking care of some business that we will be glad to have done and I hope the sun decides to hang out with us! We haven’t had time to do this for a long time and we are so happy this day has finally arrived.

We decided not to go away for the weekend – as we usually do for our anniversary. We wanted to be a bit closer to home this year so a day trip or two is in the works! My dear, little mother is improving slowly every day. A trip to her primary care doctor this week found that she has a sinus infection. Antibiotics are doing their job and we hope she will soon be back to normal! Thanks for your comments and emails of support and prayers for her recovery.

I’d better scoot – need to make the most of the time with my sweetheart! Be back soon!!

Gratefully,

~Adrienne~

Bits and Pieces

Today was one of those days – a day that led me in several directions before the sun set this evening. I haven’t posted much over the past few days and I want to share bits and pieces of my ‘doings’ with you. It has been a very busy weekend that included a ministry commitment and involvement with my church family for Sunday morning service and some social gatherings. My sweetheart is a member of our church board and dear friends opened their home for a gathering of the board members and their wives. We had such a wonderful time together as a group, sharing and talking and getting better acquainted. The graciousness of our host and hostess touched my heart as they shared the blessing of their lovely home with us. When it was time for us to say goodbye and head home last evening I’m sure we all felt we had spent time together that we wouldn’t soon forget.

My dear, little mother has been very ill through this last week. Her cataract surgery was successful and her eye is healing well but within a few days of the surgery she became more ill as the days went by. I began to suspect she was having a reaction to one of the eye medications needed after surgery. A Google search confirmed my suspicion as I recognized an ingredient she has reacted to in the past. I took her to see her eye doctor who agreed with me. He immediately told her to stop taking the medication and assured us that she had gained some benefit from it and he was comfortable with this decision. She has improved a bit every day. Today she told me she was feeling much better but she is still a bit weak. I have appreciate your notes and comments of support and prayer for her.

I am thrilled that God has opened a new door of ministry for me. Today I joined two very special ladies to talk and pray and set the direction of my involvement with them in a ministry that reaches women far beyond where we live. I can’t wait to share more with you. There’s no way to know what this ministry will bring to my life. I pray that my life will bring blessing to this ministry and the women I will work with – and that He will use me in ways unimagined.

On another family note, our dear Miss H. will be nine months old this week. She is discovering new things every day – and doing the most amazing things when we least expect it. She is trying to walk on her own (her mommy walked when she was nine months old!) and she wants to experience the world she sees just beyond her reach. She has begun to speak a language none of us has ever heard and her little jabbers bring smiles to our faces, especially when she leans near and whispers. No matter how often I spend time with the precious little people in our lives I’m always amazed how God puts all the bits and pieces together to make each child unique – and special.

I hope your days are filled with special people – and a bit of sunshine. We had the most gorgeous day in our part of Oregon today - there were blue skies and sunshine. Whether the sun shines or not, each day can bring sunshine somewhere along the way. Of that I’m sure.

Wherever you go,
no matter what the weather,
always bring your own sunshine.
Anthony J. D'Angelo

Assurance

If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.
If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
if I settle on the far side of the sea,
even there your hand will guide me,
your right hand will hold me fast.
Psalm 139:8-10

Resolved

 

Resolution One: I will live for God.
Resolution Two: If no one else does, I still will.

Jonathan Edwards

His Unfailing Presence

Another year I enter
Its history unknown;
Oh, how my feet would tremble
To tread its paths alone!
But I have heard a whisper,
I know I shall be blest;
"My presence shall go with thee,
And I will give thee rest."

What will the New Year bring me?
I may not, must not know;
Will it be love and rapture,
Or loneliness and woe?
Hush! Hush! I hear His whisper;
I surely shall be blest;
"My presence shall go with thee,
And I will give thee rest."
- Unknown Author

‘If you are pleased with me, teach me your ways so I may know you and continue to find favor with you. Remember that this nation is your people.’ The LORD replied, ‘My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.’ Then Moses said to him, ‘If your Presence does not go with us, do not send us up from here.’ Exodus 33:13-15 (NIV)