Happy New Year to everyone!

You know when I was younger and I heard someone say that time had flown by too quickly, I thought they were insane.  When you're younger, it seems as though time stands still in some moments. I have reached that "older" stage where I look around and think.. It was just the beginning of a new year not too long ago.  Where has time gone?

I'm happy to say that I've picked back up on my morning text message devotion that I was sending out.  You know how Satan works and he didn't have to do much to discourage me when I was sending them out before.  One or two snide comments and I was doubting myself about the text message.  Well, I started sending them back out and am happy to say the response has been great.  Some things just need to be taken with baby steps and it all works out.  So far so good for now.

Only two New Year's resolutions have been made so far.. 1) Get better organized with my life.. All of it.. Not just work but home life as well.  I am the Queen of Procrastinating things so this should be interesting.. 2) start back with my Weight Watchers.. another area I've been neglecting is ME! 

My relationship with the Lord will not be a resolution though.  This is something that will not be broken or forgotten about within a short amount of time.  I took the step away when He waited for me to return back to Him.  Thank you God for second chances.  There's just something about trying to fill that hole in your heart and soul with other things when God is the only thing that fits.  After awhile, it's just apparent what fits.  God fits in my life perfectly.  I pray for forgiveness where I've failed Him on a daily basis.  The thing is that I don't have to keep bringing up what I did yesterday or the day before.  Once forgiven always forgiven.

Headed to Cleveland to spend New Years with family and friends this evening.  Nothing like the company of wonderful friends and family to know how blessed I am.
Peace and love to you all... and Happy New Year.. 2011 will be a great year I pray~..

New photo scrapbook of my family

Create a scrapbooking design

Hope you enjoy my latest creation.

Jenna's Senior Year Scrapbook so far

Photo album customized with Smilebox

I found this program and absolutely love this! It's real easy to use.  Look forward to more pages like this to show up soon.  We've had exciting news with our family and loving the direction our family is moving in.  Thanks be to God for blessing us daily with His love and grace.

Childhood friends are amazing friends!

I have been blessed with knowing an incredible family of ladies for almost 30+ years.  It's hard to imagine that it's been that long but it really has.  We moved to Leland in 1978 and lived on Third Street right behind Joe Turner Hardware.  I think Ms. Sue and the girls moved in after we did.  That began our family friendship with the Fullertons.  As my Mama has said.. It didn't matter whose house all of us were in at the time but we were gonna clean both if we wanted to go somewhere.  We lived beside each other two different times in our lives and each time added more memories.  My fondest memories were coming home from Lillo's swimming pool and Miss Sue would have cooked for us.  Her Apple cake was the BOMB!  It's so hard to see how devastating Alzheimer's can be on a wonderful woman. My Mama was 2nd Mama to Jerrita, Anna, Brandy, and Michelle and Miss Sue was that way with me and JoBeth too.  I pray that we have many more get togethers and share those memories with each other.  I have problems remembering a good deal of stuff from my later teen years from the chemo and radiation.  I guess you combine the lupus/fibro "Fog" and I need JoBeth sitting there nudging me along.  Thank you God for blessing me with the friendships of these incredible women!
I love you all so much!!!!

Survived the weekend!

Normally, my weekend would have been a great time to relax and do housework.  My first indication that the weekend was headed for a downturn was that I slept the majority of Saturday.  I don't normally sleep that much in one day much less for the day and that night too.  Sunday brought me around to going to spend time with Cindy and Timmy.  I had been invited up to view Dow's "new" truck and eat fish later that afternoon.  Well, we helped Doris move into her condoo (yes, I know it's misspelled). That's what she calls her place now. Later that day, we watched movies and the killer headache hit.  I thought I'd wait it out before taking the strong medicine.  Turns out that wasn't a smart move of mine.  I was sick from Sunday afternoon through early this morning.  I couldn't keep anything down including any fluids.  I am so sore today that it feels like I've been run over several times by a truck.  Thankfully, today I've been ok to keep all the food down.  I'm pretty weak but do feel like I'm gonna make it.  Hopefully, tomorrow at work will go smoothly.   Thank God for increased strength and comfort to get over this round of sickness.  I also thank my sweet husband, who stuck close to me the last two days because of the headache and sickness.  He was worried about me.  I have to admit I had started to become worried about myself.
I took a moment this afternoon to go outside and take a few photos of the sunset from my backyard.

Depression

Amazingly today, I saw not one but three different instances where depression had driven someone to take their own life.  Most people seem to have the attitude that there would never be a point in their life when THEY would be in that state of mind.  I'm not saying that I am in that state of mind now but I have experienced it before.  One thing that keeps resounding in my head is that question.. Who would I be to judge someone else?  I don't want anyone judging me.  From what I understand, God has the final judgement on that.  You don't and neither do I.  I think I bit a hole in my jaw today from wanting to just go off on the judgemental person.  Ever heard of judge not lest you be judged.  Sorta like take the plank out of your eye before you tell me about the speck in mine.

Unfortuately,  I think lack of sleep and stress have me in one of those funky moods.  I can take care of both pretty quickly tonight though.  God always has a way of reminding me when I've done way too much and need the rest.  He's been nudging me for several days with achy and sadness.  I'm gonna listen for a change. 

I am so thankful that God is a God of love and peace.  I know that turning over these mundane things that absolutely drive me nuts is the way to go.  May God's love and peace surround you also.

Seasons of life

I've mentioned before about the seasons of life and how quickly they change. I was reminded again tonight watching the news. I don't know all the details but that a MSU football player died today from a very brief battle with cancer. I can't begin to imagine the pain that his family is going thru much less the tremendous loss that his friends, etc. will continue to feel for days, years to come.

How is it that the majority of us take our days for granted? How can you blindly assume that you have tomorrow when we're not guaranteed a minute from now? I do have the incredible blind faith that no matter what God is taking care of me. However, I also assume that my tomorrow will come. I'm guilty of saying.. I'll do that later.. I'll tell them later how I feel. What happens if my tomorrow doesn't come? Will everyone I truly love know without a shadow of a doubt that I loved them? I can say that if I call you my friend then I truly have a love for you. I believe that everyone you come into contact with has been placed in your life for a reason. God doesn't make mistakes where He places people. We may sometimes wish that but it will never happen.

To my family and friends, God placed you in my life and I pray that if I was to be an influence on your life that I have done my job. I pray that it hasn't made you think badly of me. I can only pray that whoever I've met and shown God's love to has known it was a true agape love. I don't believe in being fake with my feelings. Love is a word that I don't mind using at all. If each one of us quit trying to determine our version of love and just used God's love as an example, we would all be in a better state of mind.

A friend of mine posted something earlier about after losing both parents recently she has now found out that her brother has brain cancer. I lift this dear lady up to our Father for the strength and peace that only He can give her. I pray that I can be the type of friend she needs during this journey.

Forgive my ramblings on and on... I guess when I'm faced with a life shortened before what we consider to be time then I examine my own mortality. God has granted me an extraordinary amout of time that I didn't deserve. I won't ever be good enough to deserve the time but I can make sure that I've made the most of it. I can also be sure that I show His love on a daily basis in whatever ministry He sees fit.

Peace and love to all...until we meet again..