A Thanksgiving and Christmas Story in One

This little boy.............

.....is now this young man!

I am so thankful for the wonderful children that God has given me. They are as different as night and day, and have their own unique and special talents. I am thankful for the adults that they are becoming, and their desire to walk with the Lord in all they do.

Now for my story. My boy came in last night and we were talking, and out of the blue he says." I was thinking about giving away the sofa and chair at my house." To which I replied, "what are you thinking, absolutely not!" Now keep in mind we have gone to great lengths to furnish his place on a budget, but these are two nice pieces that were given to us in like new condition, from friends. We won't happen upon a bargain like this again. Then I asked,"What would possess you to just give away your sofa and chair leaving you with no furniture in your living room?" Then he says,"Our church is getting together things to help a family this Christmas. A grandmother raising four grandchildren and they have nothing. They need my sofa and chair much worse than I do." Still thinking there are surely other things we can give besides the sofa and chair, I said we needed to think about this a while. I had definitely burst his bubble. After I settled down and went to read a while before going to bed, the Lord quietly spoke to me and said do you think it is too hard for me to provide you with another sofa and chair? I am then thinking to myself, O ME of little faith! I have been blessed to raise a child with a heart to give to others and I am discouraging this opportunity. When my husband came in this AM and I told him about it, he said " let him give it". He reminded me, that we have plenty of other things that we can give too. Would I dare miss this opportunity to truly be a blessing to someone else? I think not.

We will be calling this afternoon to see what items on the list we can provide, and I am excited about being able to have this opportunity to bless someone this Christmas season. After all God gave His most precious possession for me, His Son. I do not deserve to be so blessed with a wonderful son, material possessions, good health and so much more!!!!! A chair and a sofa is a small thing to give!

"But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you."

Matthew 6:33

Just a note.. I had things underlined in my Bible and the note I had written was ...things we need to live.

Have a wonderful, safe and blessed Thanksgiving. Jackie

GOOD NEWS!!........

.....in more ways than one. My mammogram was fine this time, so now I am on the yearly rotation again. Thanks for all of your prayers. My husband was wanting to go with me, but he has been on night shift unexpectedly, so I told him I actually had a real peace this time, and whatever the outcome, we would cross that bridge when we came to it. I know many were praying. Both of my appointments were actually the quickest they have ever been. Which meant I would spend the remainder of the day shopping. Actually I bought very little. Sams club groceries was my largest purchase. OK That was my first good news.

Here goes for the second. When I talked to my husband as he was on his way to work, I was going over things with him, when I said," and you put Chloe in her kennel?" and his reply, "Oh nooooh, I left her out. She was just laying on the back of the sofa when I left, I forgot all about that." to which I replied,"Oh noooooooh! I hope everything will be OK." Remember Chloe is my daughter's puppy, and hasn't done ALONE very well in the past. My next good news, I arrived home 2 hours later, and everything was in order! A major accomplishment for her!

Third, my boy will be home some time tomorrow, and we will be headed to my daughter's for Thanksgiving. It will be a different Thanksgiving, but we will all be together, and for that I am very thankful. Again thanks so much for all of your prayers! Sorry no pictures 2 days in a row. I'll try to do better. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving! Jackie

Prayer Request

I know many of you are willing to pray , so I am asking for your prayers as I go to the Dr. Monday. This is that yearly check-up, YUK! But also, I am scheduled for a mammogram. I have no reason to worry, but it has been 2 years since I got word that I would need to have some biopsies. I was not in the least prepared for what this would be like, and needless to say was a nervous wreck afterward. The biopsies came back fine, and then I was scheduled for a routine yearly mammogram. I was sure there would be nothing out of the ordinary, until I received notice, that I needed to come back in 6 months for an area that needed to be watched. I went back for the 6 mo. app and it too was fine. I have some microcalcifications that I would never even know were there, and this makes me a little nervous still. Please pray that I will have a perfect peace as I go for what I am looking at as a routine mammogram. I know God is in control. Also please pray that I will take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ, as I wait for the results. I have often battled with fear, and the enemy would like nothing more than to see me full of fear once again, and with God's strength I will not give in. Thanks so much for all of your prayers. Have a blessed week! Jackie

A Little Show and Tell

Just a little show and tell for today. These are a couple of the items that my husband and I found at an estate sale last weekend. The basket is old,again reminding me of days on my grandparents farm. I am thinking of lining it with something pretty to hold some of my small crafting projects. I love the old Bingo game with wooden pieces. Again some nostalgic purchases. Reminders of a simpler time.


Look what I found at TJMaxx half price!! These acorns are huge! I actually bought 3 of them and I am thinking they will possibly be added to my mantel for Christmas decorations. I have nothing silver in my house, and I am thinking about spray painting them. What do you think?

Made a stop at Hobby Lobby also and they had some deals! All of their fall decorations were 90% off!!!! I purchased two ceramic pumpkins at 1.29 ea. Fall treat bags @.19 for a pack of 20. Two large ceramic leaves .79 each, scrapbook paper and stamps were 50% off. If I had arrived just a little bit earlier I probably would have had a better selection, but I was excited about the bargains I stumbled upon. Needless to say the ladies were excited and were piling up the buggies. I tried to only choose things that I knew I would use. Remember it's not a bargain just because it's on sale. Have a wonderful evening. Jackie

More of a Homemade Christmas

For all of you that are having a Handmade Christmas, I would like to share a wonderful blogger that I have found who will definitely have some creative ideas for you. Simply Vintage Girl is sharing a new project every Thursday, and they are unique and different from many of the other projects I have seen.

Also be sure to go HERE and vote for her in the Homeschool Blog Awards. She is great and second place so lets all help her out today. Voting ends today at 12:00 midnight. Hurry! I know she would be blessed! I am a former homeschool Mom, and I know from experience that this would encourage her. I think I am off to Hobby Lobby, so have a wonderful weekend! Jackie

Goodbye and Getting Busy

My daughter came for a visit on Monday. It was much too quick, but still ,we had a good time together. I had to work Tuesday, but she did some visiting while I was subbing, we then fixed a great dinner, and watched as she puts it, "some cheesy, but good movies". It is very easy for me to get the doldrums when my kids leave, but hey I still have Chloe(my daughters dog) and she left me with some projects to get busy on for Christmas. I am trying to help her with handmade gifts for Christmas, as they are still very busy, trying to get the house finished, and moved in before Christmas. If possible we will try to go down to help over Thanksgiving. Thought I would leave you with a little peek at what this amateur seamstress will be working on.Hopefully some soon to be beautiful little aprons!

How do you like these Amy Butler prints?

Another Combination.


This is a pretty pink and brown, that did not take such a good picture.
Now I am off to try to make some rice Krispie treats for church tonight.
Jackie

Gratitude

I have actually had this post prepared for several days, and intended to post last week, but lets just say life happened. I subbed every day except Wednesday, which is church night. I got busy trying to get everything caught up, and in order for my sweet husband's return home. Remember he has been gone for a month!! He is back now, and I am resting better. As you can see from the picture, this was an occasion for me to buy some fresh flowers. Nothing really feels totally normal when he is gone. This is the first time I have been without at least one of my kids while he is gone, so it was just me and the dogs.

I may be away for a couple of days this week because my sweet daughter will be here tonight or in the morning. I have not seen her for about a month and a half, and that was just briefly to pick up the dog(we met half way). I had already committed to sub on Tuesday, but we have plans to get some Christmas gifts in the works. Hopefully I will be posting some of those pictures. Now on to what I had prepared earlier.

I have been thinking and wanted to share some thoughts on "An Attitude of Gratitude". A couple of weeks ago I received a Gratitude journal from my Thanksgiving swap partner. This challenged me to really begin focusing on all that I have to be thankful for. I have begun to make a conscious effort to remember these things daily, and what I have found is that I am sensing a change in my attitude daily.

One night I was walking the dog, there was a slight breeze blowing, stars shining, and almost full moon. I suddenly found myself thinking how blessed I am to even be out walking around my neighborhood, I have good health, a loving family and an amazing and awesome God who love ME! This is a season for Thanksgiving and I am feeling truly overcome by "An Attitude of Gratitude". I encourage you to give it a try. Start that journal , focus those thoughts on how blessed you are and see what happens. Have a blessed evening. Jackie

"The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in Him, and I am helped; therefore my heart exults, and with my song I shall thank Him." Psalm 28:7

Thoughts and a Recipe

I have been in a blog block lately. So I figured it would be best for all that I take a little break, rather than rambling on about nothing. Today is the only day I am not subbing this week, so I plan to spend the day doing some intense cleaning, rearranging fall decorations and getting everything prettied up for my sweet husband to return home. I will share several random thoughts I have been having, and then a recipe favorite of my family. It will be time to start some cooking here again, as I have to confess that I hardly cook at all when my husband is away. Sadly enough I think my body is beginning to feel the effects of that.

~My first thought to share is, in spite of the way the election turned out, bad economy, high gas prices, and the list could go on,I am feeling so thankful! I am blessed to live in a country where I can go vote, I can share my views with the students I have come in contact with, and in general, God has blessed me with so much more than I ever deserve! I encourage you to take some time to be truly thankful today.

~My next thought is a convicting one. How many times have I prayed specifically for our President, our President elect, and our country since the election. The answer sadly is not nearly enough! We are to pray for those in authority, so I want to encourage you,beginning today, to choose something specific each day to begin praying for our President elect and newly elected officials. Remember God hears the cries of His people.

Now here's a quick and easy recipe, that I usually double, and it also freezes well.

ENCHILADA PIE

1 lb. lean ground beef

1 onion,chopped

1 env. taco season

1 (8oz) can tomato sauce

6 to 8 flour tortillas

Green or black olives, chopped

1 1/2 c. shredded, sharp cheddar

1/4 to 1/2 c. water

Sour Cream

Taco Sauce

Brown hamburger and onion. Add taco season package and tomato sauce; simmer together 5 minutes. In a 2 quart casserole, layer alternate tortillas, meat sauce, olives, and cheese. Add water around outer edge. Cover tightly and bake in a 400 degree oven for 20 minutes. Top with sour cream and taco sauce. Makes 4 to 6 servings.

Enjoy! Jackie

Thoughts for Sunday

"For the beauty of the earth, For the glory of the skies,

For the love which from our birth, Over and around us lies;

Christ our God, to Thee we raise, This our hymn of grateful praise.

Folliott S. Pierpont

Dinner Conversations

This will be a different post for you today. I actually didn't have a post until a little while ago. I have been a little busy this week subbing. I have ended up subbing at least 2-3 days almost every week. This week I am realizing more and more, that if I can make even the tiniest difference it is worth it. I did not realize how attached I would become to the children almost instantly, but I have. I want to be available for God to use me there, even in small ways.

Now on to the subject of "Dinner Conversations". This has made me very mindful of the conversations that I might have in public, that can be easily overheard, and be aware, because you never know who might be listening.( I might add, that it was definitely not my intent to listen, but it was unavoidable to say the least).Hopefully this will be the last weekend of eating alone. For one thing when you are in a restaurant, and you are alone, it is way too easy to hear conversations at the other table. I decided that tonight would be Chinese night, so out I went. I really thought it would be fairly quiet, because most folks would be at the football games, but I was mistaken. That was OK until I was seated in a quiet little booth(so I thought), next to a table of about 8. That was fine too, until everyone at the table decided to see how unpleasant the dinner conversation could be. It went a little like this...........

As soon as I sat down, a girl jumped up, holding her mouth as if she were going to throw up, over a plate of frog legs that someone had brought to the table. I listened to the drama over this for several minutes, and then it worsened. Several started talking about the emergency room visits they had experienced. It went from that subject to discussing someone they knew that ate raw hamburger meat, and how you could get tapeworms from eating raw hamburger. I could see that it wasn't getting better, and being the person that stops anyone at our table engaging in a conversation that might make my stomach feel a little queasy, I was desperately trying to figure out what to do without causing a scene.

Seeing the opportunity at an empty table at the other end of the room, I quietly picked up my plate, drink , silverware and pocketbook and headed to the other table. Thankfully the conversations around me were much quieter, and seemingly more pleasant. Have you ever experienced something similar? It was definitely a reminder to me to make sure that my conversations are pleasant and not disturbing to those around me.

I stopped to get a couple of girly movies to watch, took the dogs for a walk, fell flat out in the road while walking the dogs and quite sure I will be sore tomorrow. It is finally time for a movie, and I am headed to the big church yard sale tomorrow, and maybe a couple of smaller ones. Have an absolutely wonderful weekend! Jackie

Thrifty Finds for Tuesday

This post was intended for this morning, but I was called to go in to substitute. God knew I did not need to sit pondering over this election all day. He is in control, so I am choosing not to even check CNN. I have about had enough of biased news reporting anyway. I know that is my opinion, but it has seemed blatant in this election. Enough political stuff.

Look at the cute rug I won from Victoria and Christina at As Time Goes By. A cute and welcoming addition for my porch. They are two sweet sisters, so head on over for a visit if you haven't already.

Now for some great yard sale finds from Saturday. This past Saturday one of the local churches had a yard sale for missions. Many of these finds were from that sale.

Liz Claiborne Bag, like new $5.00, also had a Vera Bradley bag to show you that I got for $1.00 also like new, but it got lost in my re-arranging the pictures, and I am just too lazy right now to load it again. But trust me it is black, and cute!

Set of alphabet stamps $1.00, and this is a great brand.

This cute little lamp was from an individual, and it will go in my bathroom, 75 cents.

Assorted frames, all 50 cents and 10 cents each.

This weekend the Methodist Church is have a huge sale, or at least it used to be in one of the warehouses here, so that will be fun to check out. Several of these things will be used to make Christmas gifts. Have a wonderful evening. Jackie

Whose Side is God On?

Today I wanted to share some points from our message Sunday. We received a letter from our Pastor earlier in the week letting us know this would be the message Sunday morning taken from Joshua 5:13-15.
"Now it came about when Joshua was by Jericho, that he lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold , a man was standing opposite him with his sword drawn in his hand, and Joshua went to him and said to him,"Are you for us or for our adversaries?" He said "NO; rather I indeed come now as captain of the host of the LORD." And Joshua fell on his face to the earth, and bowed down, and said to him,"What has my lord to say to his servant?" The captain of the LORD's host said to Joshua,"Remove your sandals from you feet, for the place where you are standing is holy." And Joshua did so.

Now after I read the scripture, I wondered how he was going to share that God was for us, because this scripture says nothing about it, and I was sure that must be the answer. Surprisingly enough, that was not the answer. He pointed out when Joshua asked the reply was NO, strange seeming answer to what seemed like a multiple choice question, and that wasn't one of the choices. Us or Them? To try to keep this a little shorter, I will share some of the points.
*God is a side in and of Himself. He is the sovereign Lord over all. He is in control of everything.
*God is not a part of the plan. He has the plan, He is sovereign.
* Our hearts must be anchored in God's sovereignty to keep us in place, otherwise we will be tossed around by every wind of doctrine.
*God is not America's mascot. He is not a symbol to bring us good luck, prosperity, etc (part of the definition of a mascot)
*We cannot wait until times of calamity to call on God.
*God is more concerned with his holiness than our comfort and ease.
*God will allow enemies victory to discipline nations that have forgotten him. Think of where we are as a nation.................we kill unborn children by the thousand, sexual immorality is rampant, we no longer hold fast to the belief that God meant for marriage to be between one woman and one man for life, we have become very materialistic..drawn to things and money more than God.
*God is preparing a Bride not a government.
*The power of the church does not rest in the presidency of the United States, it rests in the power of the Holy Spirit. We are to be the church regardless of our circumstance. God is sovereign and can change the heart of those in authority. We are called to faithful obedience.

Sunday evening we were called to come to pray for our nation. We confessed personal sins, and sins of our church and nation and asked for mercy and that we as a people would have a heart of repentance. It was truly a humbling and blessed time. I hope some of this has spoken to you, and that you would diligently seek much time in prayer for our nation as we elect new leadership tomorrow. I know this has been long, but it was pressing on my heart to share. Have a wonderful, blessed week. Jackie