Me and My House

Doing a Little Blog Hopping

2009-07-06T22:26:00.002-05:00

I decided I would join in on a little blog hopping this week. Especially because this week was favorite photos and I love this photo that I took of my munchkins feet. Crazy thing is I really dislike feet, but I think this is precious just the same. Hope you enjoy it as well and hop on over to some other blogs and see what their favorite pictures are.

From "Just Give Me Jesus" by Anne Graham Lotz

2009-06-26T08:49:00.002-05:00

I heard this poem many years ago as a very new mother. I don't even think I had Mason yet. It spoke to me powerfully back then and I have wondered where to find it for years since. I'm not sure these are the exact words as I copied and pasted them from another blog/forum. I hope it speaks to you as deeply as it does to me.

JESUS MAKES GOD VISIBLE

He is enduringly strong.
He is entirely sincere.
He is eternally steadfast.
He is immortally gracious.
He is imperially powerful.
He is impartially merciful.
He is the greatest phenomenon that has ever crossed the horizons of the globe.
He is God's Son.
He is the sinner's Savior.
He is the captive's Ransom.
He is the Breath of Life.
He is the centerpiece of civilization.
He stands in the solitude of Himself.
He is august and He is unique.
He is unparalleled and He is unprecedented.
He is undisputed and He is undefiled.
He is unsurpassed and He is unshakable.
He is the lofty idea in philosophy.
He is the highest personality in psychology.
He is the supreme subject in literature.
He is the unavoidable problem in higher criticism.
He is the fundamental doctrine of theology.
He is the Cornerstone, the Capstone, and the stumblingStone of all religion.
He is the miracle of the ages.
Just give me Jesus! He makes God visible!

Easy Greek Style Green Beans and Tomatoes

2009-06-21T19:45:00.004-05:00

****ADDED NOTE: I made these for a side dish with supper and all three of my kids LOVED them. Keeli even asked if we could have them for lunch one day. They were a HUGE hit!****

My brother-in-law calls these Greek Green Beans, but if you look up a recipe they would actually have more ingredients. They are great as a side dish, but I love to eat them for lunch and they are super healthy. I had actually forgotten about them. I ate them a lot when I did weight watchers several years ago. They sound a little odd, but you should try them. They're yummy.

1 can green beans
1 can diced tomatoes
1 or 2 cloves of garlic (I used minced garlic in a jar that I keep in the fridge, probably a teaspoon)
Salt and pepper to taste

That's it. Put it all in a pot on the stove or in the microwave and heat. I let mine cook for ten minutes or so. That way the garlic has time to permeate the tomatoes and green beans.

Passport2Purity

2009-06-19T08:03:00.002-05:00

As many of you probably know I have "preteen" daughters. They are 11 1/2 and of course puberty has begun. I've had a couple of conversations with them about what to expect and let me just say I am so glad it was me that they got their information from. I have great memories from those times. Our first conversation was very basic and kind of funny and the second was in more detail and really a sweet time for us, as I was able to make the connection that as their bodies are being prepared to be mothers, God also wants to prepare their hearts. It was such a sweet time and we all cried. What a treasured memory.

That being said I have yet to tell them all about the "birds and the bees" and have really been struggling with the decision of when and how. It's been on my mind a lot lately, especially since I realized that they will move into our churches youth group next year. The youth group is from 7th through 12th grades and I feel like maybe they need to know and understand as much as possible before they are hanging out with much older children. Especially because youth groups often are a fun place to hang out, so you have a lot of children come only to youth group and not church on Sunday.

Wednesday I received a phone call from a friend that has a daughter a couple of years older than my girls. She told me about the Passport2Purity curriculum and her weekend away with her daughter. I think it sounds great and I'm pretty sure that at the end of this school year I will be having a weekend getaway with my girls.

I know many of you have girls and may have been wondering how to go about this conversation as well, so I wanted to pass the info along. I do want to caution you that this is the real deal, with the graphic info and all. If you don't want to tell your daughter all of that you can have her listen to that portion of the cd or dvd (not sure which it is), but it is a man describing what occurs. My friend said that she listened to it herself and then explained it to her daughter in her own words and that is probably what I will do as well.

You can learn more about it HERE .

Pray for the Petries

2009-05-29T11:38:00.002-05:00

Please pray for our friends the Petries. Mr. Petrie is having a pretty big health crisis. He was bitten by a spider and developed a staph infection. He had to have 2 surgeries and will have to have dressing changes twice daily at home. This is also affecting an impending military transfer for their family. Please read their blog for more information.

Troop Petrie

Great Resource for Printables

2009-05-16T07:05:00.003-05:00

I just found this fabulous website. I printed out some planner pages, but there are tons of other cool printables for budgetting, menus, chores, student planners and all kinds of other useful stuff and they are all free. Just thought some of you might be interested.

Consistency

2009-05-11T08:15:00.003-05:00

"...Noah was a righteous man, the only blameless man living on earth at the time. He consistently followed God's will and enjoyed a close relationship with Him." Genesis 6:9 (NLT)

I read this yesterday for the first time in this translation and it really convicted me. I really thought about how much I try to follow God's will in all the big things, but I don't do such a great job with the little ones. I don't keep my thoughts as in check as I should, I snap at my family too much, get too iritated with rude drivers, etc. You know day to day life all the little things that we struggle with. Patrick and I were talking about it on the way to church yesterday and he was saying that he really thought if we would work on all the little things, the big ones would fall into place and I really believe that is right. Consistency in anything is not one of my strong points, but I am going to really work on that. Noah and his family were chosen to be saved from God's wrath because he was righteous, consistent in obedience and walked with the Lord. I know that as the Lord looks upon me now, He does not find all of those things in me, but I know I'm going to really work on it.

I pray you all have a very blessed day!

Mother's Day Weekend

2009-05-11T08:00:00.002-05:00

It doesn't usually happen this way, but this year I basically had a full weekend of Mother's Day. It was probably the best Mother's Day that I have ever had.

Friday night Patrick came home from work and they took me out to eat. We went to Santa Fe. Before we got there Mason reminded his Daddy to open my door for me. While we were there Mason gave me a tile trivet he had painted at co-op. It has his handprint on it. He was so excited to give it to me. He also tried to make sure I had everything I needed and wanted during the meal and kept leaning over to snuggle with me. I am blessed with such a sweet boy!

Saturday the girls had their first dance recital. We had to go for dress rehearsal early that morning. While we were gone Patrick and Mason went to Huntsville and bought my Mother's Day present and when I got home they were on the carport putting it together. They gave me a "conversation set" for my front porch. It has a loveseat, 2 chairs and coffee table and I love it. It's very comfy. I spent a good while out there yesterday morning, drinking my coffee and reading the Word. I imgine I will be doing that very often and I'm sure we'll sit out there a good bit in the evenings as well. Then Saturday evening we headed out to the girls recital. They looked so beautiful and did such a great job. It was very emotional, even Mason said he almost cried. I was so proud of them. My parents, brothers, sister-in-law and niece also came and we all went out to eat afterwards. We got almost halfway home and I realized that I had left something at the restaraunt, so Patrick turned around to go get it. It was still there thankfully. It was so sweet of him to go all the way back even though it was so late and we were all so tired.

Sunday, I spent some time outside on my new furniture and then we headed to church. I'm not in the service a lot because we are working in our Preschool ministry a good bit. Yesterday, we didn't have any other commitments, so we got to be in the service. It was amazing. Our Pastor's wife spoke to use on Nurturing with your words, actions and relationship and it was such a needed word. I can't say enough about it. It was soooooo good. Then we went to my Mom's for lunch. My brother's cooked so that we Mom's didn't have to. Afterwards we came home and I had a short nap and talked to a friend on the phone for a bit. Then Patrick and Kelsi went to the grocery store and when they got back the girls and Mason made supper and a cake for us. They set up a table in the living room so Patrick and I could eat alone. They also brought us their baby books, so we could reminisce. It was so sweet and Patrick and I had some good conversation.

All in all it was just an amazing weekend. I definitely feel loved by my family and honored to call them my family. I am a truly blessed woman!

Complaining

2009-04-27T06:31:00.003-05:00

I am not what I would call a "complainer". I've been through some pretty rough stuff in my life and have just rarely complained or whined about it. I am for the most part a very positive person. When I was growing up there was a VERY negative person in our home and honestly having lived with that for the time that I did made me very intolerant of it. I have found myself really not wanting to be around people that constantly complain about their situation. Especially when their situation is just every day life with all of it's normal ups and downs. That is something that I've really been working on lately. I don't want to judge people based on that. I need to realize that maybe it's just a maturity thing. I think we all mature spiritually in different ways at different time. Those that complain, may be more mature than me in other areas. I do have a point here. Even though I am not by nature a "complainer", there is a situation that we have been dealing with for quite some time that really has me frustrated and for a good while now, I have done a lot of complaining about it. It really is kind of a big deal, but honestly, how is complaining helping anything? Well, I got up early this morning and began flipping through my notes from church and a while back our Pastor had a lot to say about complaining. It was very relevant to my situation. In reality God has already begun working on me in this area, but I think this morning just verified all that I was feeling. I thought I would share my notes from that sermon with all of you. Keep in mind these are notes and my Pastor has a lot to say that I want to write down, so they may seem kind of choppy.

Complain-express dissatisfaction or annoyance about a state of affairs or an event.

-Dwelling on the negative simply multiplies it's effect.

-When you respond to life that's positive, when you react to life, that's negative.
Numbers 11:1-4

-Being negative causes us to be unpleasant and unwelcome to others, even the Lord. (and causes you to be ineffective)

-Phillipians 2:14? Do all things without complaining and disputing

-vs. 15 (being free from complaining makes you blameless, from disputing makes you harmless)

- If you can gripe and complain, then you can pray and intercede.

-There should not be blessings and curses from the same mouth (paraphrased from the book of James).

-Instead of always looking at how to change the situation, look at how the situation can change you.

Those are my notes as written.
I just want to add a couple of things.
-If you are constantly complaining about things, you are not showing the world the joy filled life of a Christian. The word tells us to rejoice in ALL things.
-Instead of trying to change other people or the situation you are in, ask the Lord what He has for you to learn from the situation and what He wants you to do about the situation.

Hope that helps someone else.
Be Blessed!

Another Mason Funny

2009-04-22T08:12:00.000-05:00

.....Mason relaying a story about himself and a little boy on his baseball team, "Dad, Tate got his finger stuck in the mask on my helmet and I pulled really hard and got him unstuck, and his finger DID NOT COME OFF!!!" That kid is soooo funny!!!

He's Alive!!!!

2009-04-12T21:51:00.001-05:00

Worthy Is The Lamb!

2009-04-11T22:30:00.000-05:00

Bite Kissing

2009-04-06T19:24:00.002-05:00

My day has been so busy and mostly serious since I've worked the entire day. So, I wanted to share a funny story to lighten my mood. A long time ago Mason saw someone on television kissing in a way that he decided to call it "bite kissing". You know back it was the kind of kissing that back in the day we called "french kissing". I haven't thought of him saying that in a very long time. Yesterday I leaned over and gave him a hug and he acted kind of silly about me giving him a kiss. So, I told him that since I'm his Mom he has to always give me hugs and kisses. He said, "Well I am a boy you know and boys kiss girls". I said, "I know and that means you can always kiss your Mom". Then he said, "Well, even when I grow up and God shows me the right one we're not gonna bite kiss." I told him he could just smooch, but I wanted to know why he didn't want to "bite kiss". He said, "Because it's dumb. Why would we wanna bite each other?". Too, funny! Who would have thought that at almost 7 years old he really thinks that people bite each other when they kiss. That boy is something else!

More Fabric

2009-04-02T18:34:00.001-05:00

I have added more fabric options to the slideshow. There are now some for children. I should be adding more product pictures in the next day or two. I've had a few orders already. I'm excited! I do have my prices worked out. Send me a comment and leave your email address if you want me to email you a price list.

Raising Funds

2009-03-31T10:19:00.008-05:00

I'm trying my hand at doing something new in order to raise funds for my kids to go to church camp this year. Last year it was $350 total for the girls to go and this year they will have a day camp for Mason. I also went last year so that was another $50. I'm hoping to go this year as well and Patrick is praying about whether or not he will go. So, that means, camp is a really big expense. We have some major projects on our house that we need to get done this year, so I decided to make an effort to raise the funds myself.

Since I got a really nice new embroidery machine, thanks to my hubby and my new job, I thought I could raise a little dough using it. There are pics in the slideshow at the top of my blog. I'm still a little unsure about my pricing (although I think I've got it set, just need to run it by a couple of people) I will be making checkbook covers, business card holders (also good for holding debit cards and licenses, etc.), bookmarks and keychains. I would love some input, let me know what you think. I don't have pics of the bookmarks or debit holders, they will be similar to the checkbook holders. I will add more pics as I have them, so check back often.

I will be adding more fabrics later (there will be some boy fabrics for bookmarks), but please let me know if you are interested in item, but would want another fabric and I will do my best to accomodate you.

Be blessed!

Yummy New Lunch Ideas

2009-03-30T11:32:00.002-05:00

My friend Cindy gave me an idea for some new things to try for lunches and it has worked wonderfully. We love it and if I'm busy the kids can make them for themselves.

It's nothing more than using flour tortillas to make pizza, mexican pizza or quessadilla's. The kids have been making pizza with pizza sauce, shredded cheese and pepperoni. They are also going to try refried beans, salsa and cheese. Today I had a pepperoni quessadilla. I put shredded cheese, pepperoni, parmesan cheese and Italian seasoning between the two tortillas and baked until the cheese was melted and it was GOOD. They are really simple to put together and cook very quickly. I think I want to try mozzarella cheese, parmesan cheese, garlic powder, italian seasoning and spinach. The possibilites are endless and if you are like me and have been a stay at home mom for 11 years, you are sick of sandwiches and soups. It's nice to have a quick and easy change of pace.

Thanks for the idea Cindy!

Another Yummy Experiment

2009-03-28T19:13:00.003-05:00

****Edited to add: We decided after eating these leftovers that it really reminds us of stuffed bell peppers. It was really good!

I tried something new again tonight and it's another hit.

Patrick said it reminds him of Spanish Rice. As usual I just added stuff until it tasted good, so I really can't give you the measurements. I'll just have to give you the ingredients.

1 lb. lean ground beef
1 onion diced
1 bell pepper diced
2 cans diced tomatoes
2 cups rice
4 cups water
chili powder
cumin
dry mustard
paprika
red pepper
garlic powder
black pepper
salt
Worcestershire sauce

I combined the rice with the water and cooked in the microwave on high for 5 minutes, then on medium for 15 minutes. Let stand in the microwave for 5 minutes. Brown ground beef in skillet with onion and bell pepper. When browned add 2 tomatoes. Then add seasonings to taste. I used a good bit of chili powder and garlic powder. I'm going to guess at the amounts of seasoning. 1 Tbsp. chili powder, 1 tsp. garlic powder, 1 tsp. Worcestershire, pinch of ground red pepper, 1/4 each of cumin, paprika and dry mustard. Salt and pepper to taste. Of course you can add spices as needed for taste. When rice was done, I combined the tomato beef mixture with the rice and served. It was another hit.

Studying the Word

2009-03-27T22:03:00.002-05:00

Patrick and I have really been seeking the Lord about His will for our lives and we feel that He is going to be asking us to do some things that are outside of our comfort zones and beyond our areas of knowledge. So, to prepare for whatever it is He's sending us into, we feel the need more than ever to really know His Word in an in depth way. While we've been trying to figure out the best way to attain that knowledge and cement it in, I've been doing a bit of searching on the internet. I've come across some helpful sites and wanted to share them with all of you. Maybe you'll find some or all of them helpful as well.

Click HERE for online audio of bible teaching through the bible book by book. These are about 45 minutes in length (or at least what I have listened to so far, was) and he was pretty interesting to listen to. I enjoyed it. It will be nice to have some teaching to go along with reading the word.

Click HERE for free a free New Testament Bible study. This site also has good information on Christian Parenting and many other very good topics.

We've also been considering some different Bible reading plans. Patrick can really just read without a plan and glean lots of good info. He's a major history and geography buff, which we all know is what the Word is made up of. So, he gobbles it all up anyway. I however struggle with what to read next and staying focused (seems I've had more trouble with that since becoming a mom). We've come across many different options and plans, but have decided to start with a couple. Our first plan will be a 61 day chronological reading plan that you can find HERE. Here is the websites description of this plan:

Chronological Bible Reading Plan (61 Days)
Would you like to read through the key stories of the Bible in chronological order, tracing the development of God's plan from Adam and Eve to the church of the New Testament? This reading plan introduces you to the major people and events of the Bible in chronological order, beginning with Creation, moving through the birth and history of the Israel nation, and ending with Revelation's prophetic words. It's all broken down into 61 easily-readable segments.

When we are finished with the above reading plan we will start another plan that combines reading the Old and New testament at the same time. If I understand this plan correctly, we will read through the entire Bible in a year. This site has several different plans and even has the option of clicking to read the scripture online. HERE is the combined plan that we will be using.

I'm excited about what God is doing in our lives. Even if there proves not to be something new and profound on our horizon, what is happening in our lives right now is pretty amazing and can't do anything but grow us even more. That's what I want is maturity and a closer and closer walk with Him. I want to look more like Him daily and to be more like Him I need to know all I can about Him. I'm excited to be studying the Word and praying with my husband, that in itself is such a HUGE answer to prayer. God is so faithful and if we will just trust Him and pour out our hearts to Him and be patient to allow things to happen in His time instead of our own, He will give us the desires of our heart. My family is living proof of that.

Be Blessed!

Mason has......

2009-03-27T08:29:00.002-05:00

the FLU!

I never ever would have guessed that was the diagnosis we would get from the doctor. His only symptoms were a headache and fever. I'm so thankful I took him in so quickly. We did have the flu shot (all of us except Patrick, who rarely gets sick, but please pray that he won't get this), so she doesn't really expect any of the rest of us to catch it and she thinks he will only have a mild case. I tend to agree, considering he started regainning his energy last night and woke up this morning with no fever and says he feels pretty good. She did put him on Tamiflu.

I appreciate all of your prayers for him yesterday.

Hope you all have a great day!

Say a prayer for Mason please

2009-03-26T04:36:00.002-05:00

As most of you know Mason had several ticks on him after he was thrown off the horse a few weeks ago. We were told to watch for certain symptoms that would be an indication of Lyme disease. We have not seen the bullseye rash that they speak of. However, yesterday he began having headaches. I gave him tylenol around 9am and then again at 4 pm. While we were in church at about 7 pm he felt feverish and he was pretty laid back most of yesterday. Which is totally not his personality. That boy is busy all the time. When we got home from church around 9 pm I gave him Ibuprofen and Benadryl. Around 3 am he woke me with another headache. By the time he woke me his head was hurting pretty badly, so I had him take a hot shower and gave him Tylenol and a decongestant (just in case this is a sinus issue). He has also been coughing a little. This very well could be nothing more than allergies, but because we were told to watch for flu like symptoms I be calling the Dr. and probably taking him in today. Mason does have a history of headaches. He had severe headaches often before we had his tonsils and adenoids removed. It would not be at all unusual for him to have a headache with sinus issues. So, it's probably nothing out of the norm, but because of the tick bites I have to have him checked. Just wanted to ask you all to offer up a prayer for him. Please pray for the doctor to have wisdom, Mason to feel better and this to be a simple issue and pray that he and I will have enough energy for the day.

I'll let you know what I find out.
Have a great day!

Santa Fe Rice and Beans

2009-03-24T12:47:00.003-05:00

I told you I was tired of the same old stuff, couple that with the fact that I haven't been to the grocery store lately and I'm turning out some interesting meals. I made this for lunch today. It was pretty quick and the kids really liked it.

1 can kidney beans
1 can rotel (mild or original it's your preferance)
1 can corn (I used frozen so that will work as well)
ground cumin
chili powder
salt
pepper
1 1/2 c. rice
3 c. water
shredded cheddar cheese

Put rice and water in a microwave safe dish with a lid. Microwave on high for 5 minutes. Then microwave on medium for 10 minutes and let stand in the microwave for another 5 minutes.

In a pot place beans, rotel, corn and sprinkle in cumin, chili powder, salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a boil then turn on low until rice is ready. When rice is done add mixture to rice and add more seasoning to taste. Serve in bowls and sprinkle with cheddar cheese. This one is pretty healthy and yummy.

Last Nights Supper

2009-03-24T12:44:00.003-05:00

I haven't come up with a snappy name for this meal. It was one of those things, where I just kind of put together some things I had on hand.

1 lb. smoked sausage
1 onion
1 bell pepper
4 roma tomatoes
9 eggs
salt and pepper to taste

I diced the smoked sausage, onion, bell pepper and tomato and put them in a greased skillet to cook (Medium heat worked well). When they were finished cooking I added the eggs and scrambled them, then added salt and peper to taste. I served with biscuits. Next time I will add diced potatoes to the meat and veggie mixture and serve over scrambled eggs or use as a filling in omeletes. It was really good though.

Salmon Croquettes

2009-03-24T12:31:00.002-05:00

I've been really tired of eating the same stuff lately. So, I've been trying to make some different things. As a child I loved to go to my Grandmother's and have salmon patties for supper. I tried a recipe a while back and didn't love it. So, the other night I just made it up and it turned out so well it will be what I do from now on.

2 cans salmon
3 eggs
one onion (diced)
garlic powder
milk
salt
pepper
cornmeal mix
canola oil

I put the salmon, eggs and onion in a bowl. Then I sprinkled with garlic powder, salt and pepper (I just eyeballed this but 1/2 tsp of each would probably work). Then I added a splash of milk (probably 1/4 to 1/3 cup) and stirred it all up. Finally I poured cornmeal mix in ( I guess I used around a cup) I mixed this in. I wanted it to look a little dry, but still feel a little wet. I heated canola oil in a skillet on medium and fried them. You just brown on one side then turn and brown on the other. I made mine about the size of a hamburger patty. Raw they just barely held together, which is how you want them if you still want them to be moist after cooking. They were a huge hit and I will definitely make them again. However, next time I will probably make a half batch. This recipe was enough for two meals for my family of five.

Electrical Issues & Thankfulness in Spite of Them

2009-03-23T18:18:00.003-05:00

I have had a fabulous day today. I intended to get much accomplished. I got a couple of things done this morning then was thinking that I really needed some quality time with my kiddos. So, we played a game of Phase 10 dice. It's really fun and a very good game for the kids. They have to keep track of what they need to roll, do a little strategizing, and work on multiplication and addition. We had a good time then we ate some lunch. After lunch I got work caught up and did some extra stuff that I've been needing to do for work. When I got finished working I headed outside to help Patrick in the yard. He was almost finished so I came in to work on supper. Not long after I came in he asked me to flip a breaker for him. He had lost power to an outlet on the carport. When I went to flip it I realized it had not been flipped. I turned it off and when I turned it back on it made a sizzling sort of sound, so I turned it right back off. He came into look at it and decided it was a bad breaker. He quickly solved the problem and we are back up and running. I was thinking about how easy it would be to be frustrated about a problem like that, but instead how we should be giving thanks. I am thankful that we have electricity, that I wasn't home alone with the children or that we weren't all away from home and I am especially thankful that God has given my husband the knowledge to take care of problems like that. I have had a pretty ordinary day today, but in the midst of the ordinary there is much to be thankful for.

What do you have to thank the Father for today?

Still Here.....

2009-03-21T09:04:00.002-05:00

just been REALLY busy!

I have been so busy with work this week and I also was not feeling well at the beginning of the week. I just haven't had time to blog. I do want to get out all of my notes and blog about my retreat. It was AMAZING as usual.

Here's my week in a nutshell, so you can all pray for my sanity ;)

Monday - Worked for a little bit then went to Huntsville with my cousin and her kids to look for supplies for a project for school that her daughter needed my help with. I hit Kids Market while I was there and then came home to do more work.

Tuesday - I'm pretty sure I stayed home most of the day because I was feeling so bad. I did take the dog to the vet to get her stitches out, went to the grocery store and got some more work done.

Wednesday - I worked most of the morning, then my cousin and her kids came over so we could work on the school project (It was a victorian era skirt). Then of course we went to church and afterward I had to run to the store.

Thursday - I had a horrible headache and I worked and that was about it.

Friday - I worked for about 3 1/2 hours. Left and took my kids to stay with my brother (so the girls could help him with the baby while he worked in the yard. They are such good helpers) and my sister in law headed out for a day of fun. We went to Kids Market, Jason's Deli (YUM!), Shoe Carnival (I finally got some new athletic shoes, on sale of course), Babies R Us, Lifeway, Family Christian Book Store, the NEACA craft show and Hobby Lobby. Then I took her back home and picked up my kids, came home and did some more work. Crazy but fun day. I really enjoyed spending time with my sister in law all day and as rare as an all day shopping outting is for me that was fun too.

Today I'm hoping to get a lot of work done. I have 2 things I have to do to be caught up this week. Then I hope to tackle my list of pending things, so that maybe I can get completely caught up in the next few day. With all of our recent traveling and illnesses, I have gotten so behind with my work and house work. It feels like this place is falling apart and I'm not spending near as much quality time with my family as I would like to. So, please pray that I can accomplish much in the next few days (I don't work on Sunday's if I can help it, so today and probably Monday and Tuesday), so that I can get back into a regular schedule with the house and my work and things won't feel so chaotic.

Hope you all are having much less frazzled lives than mine is at the moment.

Many blessings!!!