2 Boys Build a Table

We've been thinking about Philippians 4:8 
Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.

We have another list of good things that we can think about. These are traits that naturally come upon us as our spirits mature in Christ. 

Galatians 5:22-23

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.

Recently while their daddy was away in Brazil, these 2 boys stepped up, not to the plate, but to the table.  Actually, It wasn't a table yet, but pieces and parts, which when put together would become a table. The two working together delivered. All they needed was a screw driver, a wrench and patience. Fine work boys. Congratulations on a job well done. We are proud of both of you.

The spiritual trait I want to call attention to this time is forbearance, or the more familiar word, patience. It is such a wonderful quality in other people. But in reality, it will bring peace to you and your home if you can manage to develop it.  

It does not come upon you over night. It generally takes a lot of planning and concentration...but it can be learned. You and your associates at home and away will be blessed by it.

Beth, the mother of these boys, has the job of raising them and daddy is not always there. It really requires a lot of patience, especially when one of the children is 2 years old.

When you are keeping yourself busy thinking of good things, focus on patience. It will do you good.

Worn Out

Well, I still have pictures from Vail and I'm enjoying making layouts for a book to record memories for the boys.  At two, Oliver may be too young to remember a lot. However, he could be like my dad and I who recollect things from that age.

This picture really tells it all. I love it.

I had an exciting thing happen to me today. A lady whom I had run into at a thrift shop in another town (both of us had stopped in on a whim without planning ahead) sat directly in front of me at  church this morning. Doesn't sound like a story to you? Well it will in a second. The church is not in the same town as either of us live...and these are not small towns.

At the store sometime earlier this year, I believe I complimented her on something she was eyeing and we just started a conversation. It became a long talk covering several topics. When we finally broke it off, I felt like we had been old friends. We exchanged names and I went home and told my husband about her and how much I had enjoyed that exchange.

He shamed me for not getting her address. I didn't think anything more about it. Then this morning when church was over, she and I realized we had met at the shop some weeks before.  Now this church is not in my hometown or hers. It is not a large church. I go there all the time, but she had not been there before. She was visiting with her daughter, whom had made the decision to find a church. She had chosen that one today because she had been there with a friend when, I believe she said, she was a little girl.

I have to admit I got a little teary thinking that the chances were so slim of us meeting twice like that. I felt like it was what I call, a God thing. And I still do after thinking it through.

I'm looking forward to getting to know her better...and maybe making some memories.

Perfectly Framed

I don't know whether or not this pipe was placed at this location in Vail for the purpose of taking pictures. But I do know it made a great photo. One couldn't direct the eye to the subject any better. I love the texture mix of the snow and the corrugated pipe. And of course, you would have a hard time finding a cuter little boy than Oliver, to stand there perfectly framed.

And in this layout, he is a perfect 10.

As you can tell. Since I'm trying to think of good things instead of bad, I've been spending lots of time thinking of my grandchildren.

World Cube Competition

Around  the first of the year, I mentioned Aussie's last World Cube Competition, which he sponsored in Nashville.   Here is a layout  to help us remember what a success it was. 

I'm glad to see him take an interest in so many things...things that are not that common. Proud of you Aussie.

I slept through a movie this evening and now I'm wide awake, while hubby is sleeping. For some reason, I've had enough computerized entertainment today, so I'll say so long and go work on a jigsaw puzzle that I started on Monday. Need to finish it soon, to free up the table I'm using.

Little Firemen

I have pictures over the years of Caleb and firetrucks. There's been one, I believe before this of Oliver as well. So, it has become a tradition...or a real love. I'm not sure about the location of these pictures. I'll find out tomorrow, perhaps. But I just finished the layout and decided to throw it on the blog. They are such cute boys!

Thinking about how wonderful it is to have these two little ones and pleasantly looking forward to baby sister. I'm very happy with them and appreciative. Thank you, Lord.

Thank you, John and Beth.

Skiing? Not Yet

While Oliver doesn't ski, he still enjoyed his trip to Vail.  

Skiing Vail

This is Caleb's second skiing trip to Vail, and he's doing quite well. Wish I had some close up pictures, but I don't, so we'll just enjoy what we have. I did have a lot of fun working on this layout.
All I had was a video, so I grabbed some stills and framed them.  It was time consuming copying the snowflakes to another layer, but I like the special touch.

Thank you, God, for the beautiful mountainside and the lovely snow.  Thank you for the time I was able to spend on this layout.

Maggie Has the Key

Maggie has us wrapped around her paws; she has the key to our hearts. Sorry kids, but she is here with us all the  time and she just wiggled herself into our emotions. She is such a joy to us each day...just like you 'kids' were when you were little. 

Even though we had to punish you when you were wrong, so that you would grow up to be healthy, law abiding citizens, we thought  the little mischievous things you did were at times cute. That is the way we feel about her now. Of course it isn't even close to the same thing, but she is pure pleasure to us in our old age.

She is one of the things we should think about. Created by God to be a companion, a watch dog, a stress reliever. 

Thank you Lord for dogs.

Christmas Peak

It is really difficult to buy a present for someone who buys what he wants for himself, if he can afford it. Naturally I can't buy what he can't afford. So it is tricky. As it says on the layout itself. I figured I needed to find something he didn't know about yet. I needed to do something techy. I think I managed to meet those two objectives.

Actually, I was pretty impressed, but was also overwhelmed when it came to knowing how to operate the 'magic' watch.

He did seem to enjoy it for a short while, but it finally found it's place in his top drawer. Not really, but figuratively.

His dad used to buy lots of things on a whim and they would shortly find themselves among his other purchases...in his top drawer, never to be seen again.  lol

2 Minutes Blond

Although as her grandmother, I really liked this picture and Ashley's blond hair, it was only temporary. It was a step between her natural brunette and blue.

I chose her picture to make this layout after having picked up this free floral Cartabella paper at JessicaSprague.com.  On her blog there today she gave this paper as a freebie to use with her short lesson called, How to extract from patterned paper. Even though I've been using Photoshop Elements for several years, I still learned a bit by her tutorial. I love the way I was able to 'cut' these flowers from the paper and enlarge them to decorate the page.

Watch for her blog tutorials on Fridays.

The circle matt can be found on Scrapgirls.com. It is by Brandy Murray.

Reviewing New Year's Eve

Naturally our young teenaged triplets are wide awake...and their mother, the night owl. However Dad here has been burning the candle on both ends. The play he has produced is opening this weekend in Nashville.  It is The Crucible.  Wish I could drive down there and see it. 

Can't believe it is nearly March...

One Present

While I'm still thinking of Christmas, I need to show you a layout I just finished of Maggie and her one gift. She seems to enjoy the season, from the tree to people dropping in...whom she thinks come only to see her.

I had a hard time finding a present for her that was well made. There weren't as many options this year for some reason. I finally found a little plush duck. She had a great time just unwrapping it.  It was a good thing that she got $6 worth of fun with it, because when she finally got it free from the paper, she didn't seem to like the feel of it in her mouth.

This is a lot like people. We set our minds on something we just must have...maybe a friend has one, or we've seen it advertised...but when we finally save the money or buy it on credit, it really doesn't give us the pleasure we thought we'd get...so we are on to getting something else.  Some of us are never satisfied. We really don't know what we are looking for to make us happy.

All I know is, whatever it is that you really want/need is not something physical you can hold in your hands. It is nothing you can touch.  What you really honestly need is a relationship. A true, loving, satisfying relationship.

And when you have that relationship with a person, you will still yearn for something else.

That is the time you need to explore. You need to find God. For he is the only one who can bring you real satisfaction in this life. He is the one who made you and he is the only one who knows exactly what you need.

Could it really be mid February?

 The cliche 'seems like it was only yesterday' is something in my thoughts often now. That's the case with Christmas. We started decorating the day after Thanksgiving and it was only a couple of days until we  took it down, January first. I miss the look. I could keep it up all year and probably would still think it was just yesterday that we put it all out.

I left the snowman cup set out and a few other snowmen on the kitchen window sill, but the rest has been packed away for the summer...I suppose we'll be getting it out again next week...or at least it will feel that way. Valentine's Day has come and gone and now Easter is upon us, but first we have a few more birthdays this month. It will be Happy Birthday to our son-in-law Greg, our son Tim and then our son-in-law who is Tim as well.

March this year brings a celebration of birthdays that we didn't have time to celebrate the first two months. Everyone has been too busy. Then we are anxious for the birth of another granddaughter. I know it will seem like I just wrote this, when she is born.  I feel like I get up in the morning and in just a few minutes, it is time to bed down again, even though I don't get much done. They tell me it gets worse as you age, and I know that is true. But how can it get worse than now?  Maybe that is why some people get Alzheimers and other dementias or at least it seems they do. The words come after them so quickly that  they whiz right on through, past the eardrums and into tomorrow...

Love These Cookies

Oliver may as well get used to little girls, since he will soon have a baby sister. She is due in March.

This is Cora, a friend who goes to story time with him. They made a stop at the Little Bird Bake Shop on the way. Cora seems enamored by him, but I think he is more interested in the cookies.

Today has been a lovely, sunny, but snowy day. It was 1 degree when we left for church this morning and was up to 15 by the time we had finished lunch and headed home. 

Still thinking of good, admirable, positive things. Our youth minister spoke today. He is honorable. His sermon was truth. The singing was beautiful. The Lord's Supper (communion) was an excellent connection with Christ our savior, and God, who was there among us, is worthy of praise.  

We were all happy to touch base. And we had an opportunity we don't often have...the teens had a bake sale to earn money for their activities together. I bought some yummy cupcakes for our Life Group. All good!

Valentine Day Here

I was browsing through some of the church website that I hadn't bothered with before and found this picture that was taken months ago. One of the young women at church, who is very good at photography, had taken pictures of all the life group leaders.  At once, I wanted to use it in a layout. Then it hit me. I would use it for Valentine Day. So here it is.  We are a few months older now and we are looking older every day, but I like the layout.

We had a pleasant celebration Friday night, tried to beat the crowd.  I think others may have had the same thought.

Dreaming

Ava leads a busy life. Up in the morning. It's a bad hair day...but she doesn't leave it that way.
All ready and out to the mall with a shopping bag. Go girl. She doesn't make it home. She's sound asleep in her carseat. Another day, another dollar... spent.

I love all the sweet pictures of this little great grand daughter.  It's easy to keep thinking of pleasant and good things with her  around.

There is another debate Saturday night.  I'll be walking a tight rope trying to think positively...of good things to come. Hopefully, God will take mercy on us sinners and give us a president who will make the changes that are really needed now, to help families stay together and those who need work to find a decent wage.  Someone who will lower taxes on businesses and lure them back to this country. Someone who will bring us together instead of dividing at all times.


Philippians 4:8 Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.

Sledding

Admirable...that's one thing I'm trying to think about. It is admirable for a father to take his sons sledding , being a good example and having fun with them. Mother was there as well, taking pictures. That is admirable as well.  And snow...that is beautiful.  

I can also count as good...doing this layout with my God given creative talent. The Lord is worthy of praise.

There was more good in my day...Ladies' Bible class. The teacher who has taught our class for many years is commendable for sharing her time, studying the word, teaching truth, being there for us. 

Those  who have attended the class for many years could be commended for studying God's word and holding it in their hearts.

Another thing  I did today was meet with some of my classmates from high school. Friendship is good, for God admonished us to love others as we do ourselves.

It has been a lovely day here with sunshine on the snow.

Philippians 4:8 Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.

Groomer and Pretty Girl

Although I don't always tell her, Maggie knows we are going to our local pet store when we get within 1/2 mile of it.  It is and it is not her favorite experience.  She loves to visit everyone there, workers and customers as well. But, she tugs at her leash like crazy when she suspects she is going to be groomed. It has not always been that way. She has not been hurt by the groomers, but she remembers the last time she was at the vet in the room next to the groomer. A cat was ahead of her and scared her badly. Actually, it scared everyone there. One would have thought that cat was dying and being dragged into hell by it's tail. It screamed bloody murder. It was LOUD! It even made cold chills run up my spine.

When Maggie figures out she is just getting groomed, she settles a bit.  This time, she was just getting her nails clipped, but she  wouldn't take her eyes off me. You can see that even when her back was turned, she watched me in the mirror as I took pictures.  

This is April, the lady who usually grooms her. She is very nice. We appreciate her kindness and attention to detail.

Still concentrating on the good things in my life,  namely: Maggie, the pet store, and the groomer, April. 

Our Beautiful Leah

Leah's post on FaceBook, led me to check out Justin Bieber.  There are many definitions of good in the world today.

We've hit another snare in our discussion on 'good'. Even though I did not watch the Super Bowl last night, I was interested in who won, since our granddaughter here, lives in North Carolina and we have grandsons in Colorado.

I understand it was a 'good' game. Congratulations to the better team, the Denver Broncos.

Before the game, I watched a few of the commercials made just for the big game. Some fit the 'think of good things' bent of my blog. Some did not.  

The half  time show, part of which I saw on the internet, reminded me of what the people may have been doing when Moses descended the mountain with the 10 commandments in hand. Enough said.

Now I'm back to searching out the things of beauty, the things admirable in this world. 

By the way, one of the things of beauty is pictured above...Leah.

Thinking of Good Things

Chelle took Mason and Ashley for lunch at Las Palmas Mexican Restaurant on a Saturday afternoon, while Aussie was with Greg at Chinese school.

It is good to enjoy family and healthy food. Selfies can even be good.


Philippians 4:8 "...whatever is true, whatever is honorable whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things." And reading further, verse 9 "The things you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you."

From Morning To Night

Ava is a beautiful little girl...a busy, beautiful little girl. She leads a busy life. 

Now here is something good to think about on a regular basis. Great grandchildren are a gift from heaven.

When God told us to love others better than self, he didn't have to do a sales job when he is talking about sweet, innocent little children. Ava, as one of those sweet ones, is sooo easy to love. 

Think about this, God cherishes  us as much and much more than we can love these tiny little humans.   

If you are looking for love you can't find, look toward God and know you are truly loved. He will accept you where you are and teach you his precious ways, so that you can live forever in heaven with him and all those who love him.

Sending Anime Hugs

Ashley loves anime. This was her chance, wearing her characters shirt, to send love and hugs our way.

There is a challenge at Digital Scrapper. It is to use their new kit for February, A Love Story, and to do something creative with a title.

I decided to copy a type of 'font' used in anime publication. I used a red paper from the kit, layered a black paper from the kit over it, then divided it into squares and deleted black squares leaving only ones that  spell out the title Anime. It was a little tedious, but fun and I love the resulting title.


Continuing my February theme for this blog , I'm sticking with Philippians  and practicing the Habit of Happiness...as in Rick Warren's current teaching series.

What better thing to think about than this truth? 
“For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him.” (Philippians 2:13 NLT)

False Alarm

Yes, I am hard up for layouts!  I had planned to do a lot of layouts today, but I got myself side-tracked organizing my files. I do love to be organized., but it's a losing battle around here. However, it should be easy to organize my files, because I'm the only one who uses them. I decided this morning that the way I had some of my things arranged was not right. But after fiddling with them all day, I've decided they would have been better left alone. 

Because of that endeavor, I didn't do any layouts all day. So here is what I have for my next book. It happened in November.  Imagine this, we were sound asleep around 3:00 AM. The alarm sounded and we  got a phone call. It is really funny what adrenaline will do for a person at a time like that. We sprung from our bed at full attention. We were able to see by checking the system that it was the high water alarm.  It wasn't raining. There really wasn't any reason for high water, so we went back to sleep knowing it had been a false alarm. 

The next day, Ron had to pull the sensor out of the septic well, and replace it when he was not able to fix it.  Boy, the things he has learned since he retired.

Maggie watched him from the screened porch, since we cannot allow her to go free while he is working. She is a roamer and we are too close to the road and the lake.

Interesting results in Iowa tonight.  I would have liked to see Dr. Ben Carson come out on top, but didn't expect that to happen. Am happy that Cruz and Marco Rubio did as well as they did.

Really can't get excited about Hillary or Bernie. One is as bad as the other.