03/27/08

PARTY anyone???? Here is the party set up ready and waiting for people to arrive. :)

Oh my.... the past two days have been B-U-S-Y!!!! Friday night my best friend and I cleaned this house. It was interesting since I haven't had time to do a lot of fine tuning. My friend is quite OCD when it comes to cleaning so she was cracking me up. I appreciated that, though, because we got this house clean!

Saturday was crazy from the time we got up till the time we went to bed. I finished up their scrapbooks that morning and then began decorating and setting things up. We put up the tent so I could put the tablecloths on, and once that was done, Steve and I got to mowing the yard. I was thankful I had the opportunity to help him with that. My Mom came down and helped make fresh-squeezed lemonade, tea, and cook the potatoes for us. I am so thankful that she is always here to help us. I am so blessed to have Mom and Dad!

The cake was from my favorite bakery, Once In A Blue Moon... AWESOME as always. They made the sand out of brown sugar!! How neat is that???

Steve had put the pig on early that morning. He bought a HUGE pig because we had planned for a lot of people, but many of them seemed to have to cancel at the last minute. We were having to give away pork at the end of the night. ha!! You can see in the grill pic just how big that HALF a pig was!!

The party was a success and we are now tired! lol I thought I'd share some pics from the party. We had a "luau" theme this year and it was a fun one for decorating and such. We asked a lot of people to just COME to the party and not bring a gift. Their presence is all we needed. People and memories are what make life special and we are trying to teach that to Wesley and Mikayla. They were very blessed, though, by people who loved them and chose to bring a gift anyway. It was definitely not expected. Here are a couple of pictures of things they received. Wesley got a lot of John Deere "stuff" which made him quite happy, and Mikayla got her some more American Girl Doll books and other stuffed animals/ play things which made her quite excited. They just don't realize how blessed they are....

Steve and I have decided that this year was the last for a big party for a few years. We have done one like this since their first birthday and they have been great. Now we'll do them when they are 12 and then 16. We will probably do a combination party when they graduate from highschool. There is a lot of work that goes into planning one of these events so we are ready to scale back a bit.

Some of you left comments and asked about the "Grand Prix" car race at church the other night. Well, it went along great. I don't remember if I mentioned that Mikayla had never won anything in this and Wesley has won 2 trophies before. Mikayla has been wanting to win for some time now and last Wednesday night was no different. They both had some pretty fast cars, but Mikayla's wasn't as fast as others unfortunately. Wesley actually won first in the speed race!! He was quite tickled. Mikayla was so "pitiful" on the bleachers when they were calling out those that won... I could see her saying "Please be me, please be me..." and then when they called out Wesley's name her little face showed all of that disappointment. She tried very hard to be proud for Wesley, though. On the way home we had to explain to her that truly, she gets "trophies" every day when she can read a chapter book and understand it, take a test on it and do great or learn her verses for AWANA in no time and "rattle" them off. Wesley struggles in that area in some ways right now. Once we explained it to her in that way she understood a bit better. She hasn't really said anything about it since. These are areas in which Mikayla needs to learn and grow and I know the Lord is teaching her these things. Wesley needs those boosts in confidence every now and then whereas she does not.

Speaking of a "boost".... At this point in the year sometimes I can get discouraged with everything going on around me and wondering if I am where I need to be doing what I need to be doing. I give all I can each day to my students, with the Lord's help, but some days I walk away from school questioning whether I am making a difference. I know sometimes that is the Devil trying to bring me down as well as just from being plain tired.

Well, this past week, and then again tonight, the Lord showed me to keep on keeping on... I read in the kids devotions tonight from Matthew. When I read this part of this verse, it all came back to me: Matthew 6:8b - for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him. WOW... yes, He did that for me this past week. I had two or three separate instances this past week that "lifted me up" so to speak. Those people had no idea that what they said would be exactly what I needed, but the Lord did and He used them to help me through some discouraging moments. I wasn't in the depths of despair by any means, but still a bit discouraged and stressed. God is so good to know what I need even before I know I need it. He is always there ever watching over us and guiding us through trials or happy moments of life. He is always there!

Tomorrow is a day off for me. I am going to be just a MOMMY and not the teacher! We are going on Wesley and Mikayla's field trip to the museum. I went to school this afternoon to finish up some loose ends to be prepared for tomorrow, simply so I wouldn't have to go in at all tomorrow. Usually, I take off and still go work on stuff in the early morning and get last minute stuff finished. After the busyness of this weekend, I thought a little extra sleep was in order. lol I am looking forward to just being with Wesley and Mikayla and enjoying the day as a family.

Speaking of family... I changed my family picture above on the right. We took this after the party was over last night. It was the only picture I have of all four of us from the whole day. Kind of a shame.... we were so busy I didn't get a lot of pictures I had wanted.

Well, I am going to go crash for a bit before heading off to bed. I hope you have a wonderful evening.

04/24/08

My pictures today are of cherry blooms from a few weeks ago and a tree frog. The cherry blooms looked so pretty to me hanging in contrast to the green grass. It has been nice to see such green grass around.... green everything for that matter.

The tree frog is one that is at school with one of my student's projects. She brought it in on Monday with her Zoo project and we've been "enjoying" it ever since. lol Wesley has thoroughly enjoyed it and this morning accidentally knocked over its container and the frog came out. That was all Wesley needed. He began to walk around with it in his hands. He is SUCH a boy. lol I didn't realize how long the back legs of a tree frog are! The frog even scared the mess out of me and jumped on my desk. Wesley thought that was hysterical... I am not so sure I felt the same way. lol I took more pictures of him and the frog this afternoon. I think I am going to do do a "critter" page in our scrapbook. I have pictures of the caterpillars from last week I still haven't shown... that was comical, too. I'll have to show them when I load that card of pics onto the computer.

Not going to say much today, shocking, I know.... I have to finish getting things ready for the party Saturday. Tonight my plan is to finish grading papers and then get their scrapbooks completed and all together so I can "check that off." Cleaning will be priority tomorrow so don't be surprised if you don't see me in the next couple of days. It is going to be crazy busy.

Have a wonderful evening!

04/23/08

My pictures today are from our clematis growing on our windmill. You really need to click on that last one to make it larger. I was ecstatic to see how sharp it is and all of the details you can see! I'm still working on my handholding so that made me excited.

Well, today is Wednesday-
the middle of the week.
Only two more days till Friday.
Only three more days till the kids birthday party.
Are we ready?
Not really.
Am I stressed?
A bit.

On a good note, though, I have finished journaling all scrapbook pages and only have left the finishing touches before putting the page protectors on it and in the albums. I'll do that tomorrow night since we are off to church tonight. Thankfully, I don't have my meeting after school tomorrow and will be able to get home right after school. I'll work on finishing all of that up tomorrow so I can clean the dining room again. Our garage is still a disaster and we have lots to do in there before Saturday. My best friend is coming over Friday night to help me clean. She is so awesome to do that for me. I can always count on her.

Tonight is the "Grand Prix" car race at AWANA. The kids we work with, Kindergarten through second graders, race matchbox cars. A lot of them are clueless because they are so little, but overall they have a blast with it. We shall see how tonight goes. Steve has been in there trying to find the fastest two cars Wesley owns. lol

Off to go get ready for church. Hope you all have a wonderful evening. :)

04/22/08

Today is "Earth Day" so in "honor" of that, I am selecting a couple of different kinds of pictures. They are not in honor of Earth Day the way the world thinks. :) These are a couple of reflections of God's Creation. I choose to serve and praise the CREATOR rather than the earth around. The top one is of one of our oak trees in the yard sprouting its new leaves. I have never paid attention to them at this stage before. I think they are so cute!! The other, of course, was taken at the Zoo Friday. I haven't been to South America lately. Those flamingos were so beautiful. I'll have more pics of them on the way.

In thinking of Earth Day, I think of what the Bible commands us - - to be good stewards of the earth in which we live. In Genesis 1:28 God told Adam and Eve that they had "dominion" over all animals and plants. That means we are to be taking care of God's Creation. Now, I know "Earth Day" is a day the world sets aside to remember how to care for "Mother Earth." I am all for taking care of the earth, but she "ain't my Mama!" All of the things they promote with recycling and using our natural resources wisely are wonderful. I agree with that whole heartedly but not from the viewpoint that I am "saving the earth." God is in control and knows our every need. I am here to take care of what I have and not abuse it, but I am not here to worship the earth.

In our meeting before school this morning, our principal read this passage from Romans 1. I thought I'd post it here. I have been adding a lot of Scripture lately, but that is a good thing. :) We all talked about "Earth Day." Do you see what "Earth Day" promotes in this Scripture? I do!!! They want to worship the creature more than the CREATOR.

Romans 1: 20-23, 25

For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:

Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.

Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools,

And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things.

Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator,

All day I thought of how every part of this earth has been designed and created by my loving, all powerful, all knowing God. I have been seeing so many things of His Creation in a new light with my photography, as you all know. These are just a few samples of things I have photographed recently that show God's beauty as well as details and designs. The proof is everywhere that you look to show this world did not evolve. If you re-read the first verse above, it is a powerful witness that this earth and all that is in it has been designed by God.

I will get off of my soap box now. :)

I will be journaling on scrapbook pages tonight. I also will probably have some more coffee and chocolate. That surely was goooooood last night. :)

Enjoy your evening and find some details in God's Creation... and PRAISE HIM for it.

04/21/08

I see that yesterday I put today's date!! Where is a calendar when you need one????

I thought I would post some pictures I took the other day at Wesley's practice. He seems to be liking it alright... not sure if he is really "with it" but time will tell. This is a trial run to see how it goes. I liked that first picture. He was practicing having the ball pitched at him to hit and I like how I was able to capture all of that in the picture. The next three pictures show in succession how he went after a ground ball. He hustled pretty well when he paid attention. lol The sun was right in our eyes so it caused that lovely sun glow in the picture but it makes for a nice affect. For his first time, I think he is doing really well.

It stormed today! I love thunderstorms as long as they aren't severe. It makes me want to huddle up the kids together with me and just watch and listen. Mom and Dad used to do that with us when there were storms. We were taught to respect them and watch them yet not to be afraid. Of course, that didn't stop me from freaking out several times, but I had good reasons. lol We are continuing to get much needed rain and I am continuing to be thankful. As I watched the rain coming down while we ate supper a little bit ago, it was almost like the trees got greener right in front of our eyes. Wesley said "There are a whole lot of plants around here that are happy right now!" Too funny...

The Lord allowed me to use those verses I posted yesterday to help someone else who was feeling overwhelmed right now. Actually... He used them with two people! God has been so good to give me Scripture that I needed and then the next day I have found out someone else needed that same Scripture. God knows our needs even before we know them.

My Zoo picture for today is of the giraffe and zebra together. I got a lot of the giraffes separate but this is the only one I got with both of them in it. I still have to work on those pictures but it may be a few days before I get to it. Too many other things that HAVE to be done. :)

Today I was able to help a stranger and turn away a stranger. Sound strange???

We had to run to Walmart after school to pick up a few things and while we were there an older woman, having to be on oxygen, was needing to find the type of shampoo that would help her hair. She had been in the hospital on three different occasions since December with Congestive Heart Failure and it had caused her other physical issues. I helped her find the right one she needed. My heart went out to her because I could understand certain things she may have been feeling or going through after what happened with Mom three years ago. I asked her if I could help her further because I knew she was struggling a bit, but she said she was fine, and thank you.

My second stranger wasn't so needy, but tried to give the appearance. She approached me in the parking lot and claimed she was out of gas, had no money or ID and needed some money to get home. I knew she was pulling a scam or either homeless. I had to tell her no. I truly could not trust that she would use the money as she said she would. It was an interesting conversation that took place right after that with the kids. I explained to them I wasn't sure if she really needed the money for gas or just wanted it to buy something else. They wanted to know why someone would say they needed gas money if they didn't really need it. I just explained that some people only want the money to go get other things and they don't always use it for what they say they might. It truly is sad to not know whether the lady was on the "up and up" but from past experiences, I had a feeling the way she acted that it was not. My heart went out to her as well... just in a different way.

I prayed for both of those women this afternoon. I know I will most likely never see them again, but I can still pray for them. Will they come to my mind often or will I think to pray for them as I do those around me who are on my prayer list? Probably not, but I know of many times where the Lord just lays someone on my heart and I say a prayer for them. I am confident the Lord will do that for me with these two women as well.

I thought I would share Psalm 100 tonight. I truly was going to share that last night but the Lord took me to Isaiah instead. This was the theme for our Auction on Saturday and one part that stuck in my mind that our administrator talked about was how it says "it is He that hath made us." Now, I have heard this Psalm and quoted it millions of times, but that phrase just stuck in my mind. It is HE Who has given me the ability to do what I do each day. It is HE Who has given me my family, home, vehicles, etc.. It is nothing I have done but it is the Lord. This is the Psalm we oftentimes think of and say at Thanksgiving, but every day should be a day to praise what the Lord has given to us.

I'll close with the Psalm so enjoy your evening. I have papers to grade and scrapbook pages to continue journaling. I may enjoy a bit of coffee as well. :) Drinking coffee in one hand and eating some dark chocolate in the other hand surely is an awesome combination and a great treat. :)

Enjoy the Psalm and take time to soak in what God's Word is saying:

Psalm 100

Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all ye lands.

Serve the Lord with gladness: come before his presence with singing.

Know ye that the Lord he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people and the sheep of his pasture.

Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name.

For the Lord is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations.

04/21/08

I realize it has basically been a week since I was on here... believe me, my friend Karen has reminded me of that each time I have seen her! ha!! SO.... Karen, my friend, this post is my promise kept to you today at church!!

My pictures for today are the "life cycle" of candied tuft. I took these right after I got my new lens! It is quite neat to see how they begin and how they bloom. We have had this planted in our front bed for a few years but, to me, this was the first year they really became pretty.

It has been a crazy past week and this coming week proves to be even crazier as we are getting ready for the kids birthday party on Saturday. I have so many things to do I am a bit overwhelmed.

I still have to finish journaling on their scrapbook pages and get the finishing touches on them before I get them in the album. Yesterday morning I saw that Mikayla had one of hers out on her bed. When I started looking through it, it reminded me again why I scrapbook. My children's lives are right there before me in pictures and words. Things they did and said as well as how they USED TO LOOK showed me what a precious keepsake they are. Do I always have the time to do them??? NO. The older they get the more that time is becoming less and less but I am determined to keep going. Mikayla and I thoroughly enjoyed looking through hers together yesterday morning and it brought back so many great memories.

I went and bought the decorations, cups and plates for the party today. I didn't want to do that on a Sunday afternoon but every other day has been so busy I haven't had a chance!! Our "luau" theme should be quite colorful and a blast!

Yesterday I went to the NC Arboretum and took the kids eight year pics. I want to get them back to give to everyone at the party Saturday. I didn't get as many good ones as I wanted because I was using my new lens to try it out as a portrait lens. While it did great at times, it wasn't "spot on" in many others. That frustrated me when I got home and saw that. I also didn't take as many as I had originally thought. I think the day seemed long because the kids were being QUITE goofy. Wesley had a hard time staying serious yet sweet for me. You can tell by the one of them together I have put on here that I had issues... lol I will need to practice more with the new lens before I use it on other people. (Everyone remember that I truly overanalyze every shot I take and can get quite frustrated with myself if they aren't perfect...)

Friday was a field trip to the NC Zoo. Oh my, it was a beautiful day but EXHAUSTING. On a good note I took around 200 pictures of animals. ha! Of course, some of those are repeats of the same animal but I'll share those in future posts. (I truly hope for Karen's sake that I can post each night this week... ha!) The students seemed to have a blast and the Lord gave us a wonderful day to see more of His Creation.

Last Tuesday my students celebrated my birthday a couple of months early. They surprised me with cards and a wonderful cake. I had two mothers... whom I love dearly and they read this blog and know who they are.... who decorated my desk, my pens and pencils, and above my desk area with streamers. I actually still have them hanging and am not looking forward to taking them down. They actually add a "spark of life" to my room at the end of the year. :) It was very thoughtful of them to remember me in such a great way.

OH... and last Tuesday I got my new washer and dryer!! I took pictures of them and will have to show them later because I just realized I forgot to load them off my card onto the computer. They are great and I am really enjoying them! Never thought I'd get that excited over a durable good. lol

Last night we had our school's auction. The theme was "Celebrating His Goodness" and revolved around Psalm 100. It was quite wonderful and we had a blast. I had a lot more people bid on my photography session this year. I was excited about that as well. God blessed in so many ways last night and many people gave so we could have needed improvements and additions to the school. Steve bid on and actually won a fountain in the silent auction!! :) It was a great evening and I got to spend it with my wonderful husband.

As I am sitting here typing this I am thinking of all of the things I need to go and do. As I stated above, I am so overwhelmed with everything that needs to be done this week between school, the extra things I have with a commitment at school as well as getting ready for the party. I was reading Isaiah 40 in the kids devotions tonight and they spoke to me, actually, more than the kids, I think! I thought I would close with these verses. Truly, I am typing them out to help me, but if they help some of you as well, then, once again, God's Word does not return void!!!

Isaiah 40:28-31

Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of his understanding.

He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength.

Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall:

But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

04/14/08

I have been busy today on this day off of mine. :) It was great, though, to sleep in a bit and be on a less hectic schedule than I have had the past two weeks! I worked on my stuff for school most of the morning and got a majority of it accomplished. That is a relief.

Now I am working on getting the albums caught up on journaling for the kids birthday party in just a couple of weeks... I am in a bit of a panic that it is that close and I have really done nothing to prepare for it! Of course, it isn't like I have been sitting around twiddling my thumbs, either! I know it will get done. :)

The kids have spent all day with Mom. I think they have gone to my aunt's house, to the grocery store and a few other errands. I am glad they have had that time. It was also nice to have that time for me to concentrate on my school stuff.

Tomorrow is the day for the new washer/dryer! I am quite excited to do laundry tomorrow! ha! It is amazing what thrills us as we get older. lol

Since I have posted more dogwood pictures I wanted to also post the story of the Dogwood. My friend Morgan found it for me.... THANKS, Morgan!!! :) I have still had a great desire to continue to photograph the dogwood trees in our yard but have resisted since I took so many the other day. lol It is sad, I know...

Here is the story... hope you enjoy it. I am off to go journal some more.

It is said that at the time of the
crucifixion of Christ, the Dogwood
was a very large tree, big as an oak.
The Dogwood was so even-textured,
firm and strong that it was chosen
as the timber for the cross.
Thus to be used for such a cruel
purpose greatly distressed
the tree. Jesus sensed this.
He--who noted even the sparrow's fall--
whose last compassion was for
a repentant thief--
similarly forgave the repentant
Dogwood Tree for its unfortunate fate.

As he was nailed upon it,
he sensed the painful
remorse of the tree.
In gentle pity for all the sorrow
and suffering of every living thing,
he said to the tree,
"Because of your share of my suffering,
never again shall
the Dogwood Tree grow large enough
and strong enough to
be put to such a purpose as this."
He said, "Henceforth,
the Dogwood shall be slender
and bent and twisted,
that it might forever remain
unmolested by the tools of cruel men.
And the blossoms shall be
in the form of a cross.
Two long petals and two short.
And in the center of each petal
there will be nail prints,
Crown with rust and stained with red.
And in the center of the flower
will be a crown--of thorns.
And all who pass and see
the Dogwood tree.
Will remember me."

Author Unknown

04/13/08

It has been a few days! Sorry about that... it has been so busy this past week. With doing Achievement Testing and marblizing at school, along with my extra school responsibilities I have been working on, my week has been a bit different. I have also been trying to still re-coup from last weekend's busyness.

Warning... lots of thoughts are fit into this post so it is kind of long!!! ha!

My pictures for today I took on Friday at school. My students were in their special class and I wandered around campus. I saw these pansies and I knew they would be pulled up soon. I figured I would take a few of them because my other ones didn't turn out as well because of the wind. Let's just say with this new lens I am so noticing the wind more! ha!! Anyway, when I got close to them I noticed the dew was still on them! I was tickled because these are smaller drops than the rain. I love them all, some look a bit alike, but the yellow ones were my absolute favorite for this set.

As I got closer to them to photograph them, I was taken aback, once again, by their detailed beauty. Parts of this flower, it seems, I have always taken for granted and never fully appreciated the intricate designs. I am not a botanist by any means, but to look inside the middle of the flower and see those white "hair" like parts near the center were amazing. Upon further inspection on the computer they look like little tubes more than hairs. They are a bit clear but also white. Click on any picture to see that a bit larger. To think, my God made all of this as He spoke. All of the things we see in our world are all different but they were nothing too big for God. If for nothing else, this new lens was worth it just so I could appreciate what God has done for me more.

Friday night Steve worked late so I went over to one of my student's homes and photographed her Mom's wysteria tree. (Hey Sherry!) I also photographed a few of their bushes. Our stay became quite long, unintentionally, because Wesley and Mikayla had the BEST time playing with their two girls. We actually stayed so long they asked us to eat with them!! lol (Which was not my intention, but it was surely nice!) It really was great to spend time with them and have something done a bit spur of the moment. It seems I plan so much that it is nice to "wing" it once in a while. It was also nice since Steve worked late to let the kids enjoy a fun night and me have some "grown up" talk. The kids were outside finding all kinds of critters (Wesley really enjoyed that) and then they just plain old PLAYED. It is such fun watching my kids play and get dirty. That is when you know they have had a blast. Wesley was having so much fun, though, that when he was running inside to show us something, he ran right smack dab into their front glass door!! He hadn't even paid attention that it was the glass door and not that the door was open!! Thankfully, he was fine and the door was fine. We had a good laugh once we knew he was alright. We left there late and the kids were asleep by the time got to the main highway. That is when you know they had a blast.

Steve had to work at some music festival. I had fallen asleep right before he got home so I didn't get to talk to him until morning. Apparently, they had to move a grand piano off a stage. The people who brought it didn't leave the lift so nine of the guys worked together to get it off the stage. Unfortunately for Steve, he was on the wrong end at the wrong time. When he tried to work his end, the guy helping him shifted over too far and the piano came down on Steve's right shoulder/arm!! He said he felt much of the weight of the piano and even felt it in his back. He truly was concerned he would have to go to Urgent Care or something! Once he slept on it he said it was feeling better but terribly sore. When he showed it to me yesterday it was already turning black. Today it is black, yellow, green, purple... you get the picture. I am just thankful he wasn't seriously hurt because he truly could have. God was good and protected him.

Yesterday we cleaned this bomb explosion looking house. Of course, it is cleaner but the areas still aren't picked up like I would like. That will come in summer. LOL Mikayla was in charge of the office this week and she cleaned off my desk. I'll be the first to admit my desk is the catch all so it has its moments. Well, this is what she wrote after she cleaned it (spelling and all): Mom, I cleaned this cus I love you and It needed It Rember I wil allwais love you Is that not too sweet!?? Too funny about it needing it....

I also helped out with the yard yesterday. I know that is shocking seeing as most of you know I am SUCH an inside person. I do cut the grass, though, so that is what I did. It allowed Steve more time to work on the beds and stuff to get ready for the kid's birthday party in a couple of weeks. I mowed our front forty. Those of you that have been here know how big it is. I had to dodge the fire ant hills. I accidentally ran over a few of them and you could tell I had made them quite mad. I was tickled with myself that I drove that zero turn mower with ease. I guess it is kind of like riding a bike. The weather was not cooperating, though. I did manage to finish the front yard and started the side yard before it began raining. I had hoped it was just a passing shower but the more I continued to mow, the more rain began to fall. Finally, when the bottom fell out, I decided it was time to quit. lol I was soaked. It was pretty.

Wesley finally had a baseball practice on Saturday. This was his first one since all of his others had been rained out. This one was almost rained out, too, because it was at the same time as my mowing adventure I just wrote about. He is really enjoying it and that makes me smile. I'm moving past my anxiety over it. lol He always wants to tell me about it before and after he gets home. He made a point to walk out to me in the middle of the front yard just to tell me he was leaving. That boy melts my heart so much.

Mikayla went to his practice but, I believe, she was a bit bored. lol She wants to cheer him on and I think that is so sweet. She lets people know that Wesley plays baseball but she has "nothing." I have something in my mind I think she'll do well with... piano. I just have to figure out how we're going to fit a piano in this house. Maybe she could use my Mom and Dad's until we know for sure she would love it. I have been trying to hint around and ask questions before I tell her. We'll see what happens with that, though. She is definitely gifted in the music area. She loves it and wants to hear music as much as possible. She has a gift that I never had. People have always thought since the day she was born that she had piano fingers. :) We'll see...

Last night we went out and bought a new washer and dryer. Ours are 14 years old and I am finding the clothes just aren't getting as clean and they aren't as fresh as they once were. I have been thinking about it for a year but in the last few months I have been thinking on it more. Y'all know I usually don't do things without thinking on them a while. I talked to Steve about it and we decided to go look. We were only going to get a new washer since our dryer still worked normally. Once we got to Lowe's, though, we saw "last years" dryer model on sale and it would match the washer we wanted. Steve suggested we go ahead and buy both together so we can keep up with the years more easily. We got the Whirlpool Cabrio set. The one we got is a "front loading" machine but I load it from the top. Our laundry room has a mud sink in it so it would not work for me to have the front loading kind. I am excited, though, because I have heard so many good things about the kinds without the agitator in the middle. (Sal and I even had a lovely phone conversation about them a few months back!! lol) We will get them on Tuesday. After I washed the kids clothes today we went ahead and took them out. Let's just say I was glad to be able to clean underneath them before the new ones arrive! I'll be so excited to do laundry... at least until the "new" wears off, huh? lol Laundry just never ends...

Today at church and in my devotions, it seems the Lord has driven home the fact of trusting in Him. All that I read or heard were different but yet the same. Our Sunday School teacher asked us this question: "If you could change something in your life, what would it be?" Then, he went on to say that he hoped it would be to trust God more with your life and everything else falls into place. Then, during church my pastor spoke on the nobleman in John that went to Jesus for Him to heal his son. He wanted Jesus to come to his home to heal his son. Jesus had just been to Galilee where the people SAW what He did and then believed so Jesus told him that unless he saw signs and wonders the nobleman wouldn't believe. When the nobleman continued to beg Him, Jesus said to go back home because the man's son lived. The man had a choice right there, TRUST God that his son was healed or keep doubting and begging. The man chose to trust God and on his way home his servants met him and told him his son was fine! When asked what time the son began to improve, the servants said it was at the hour that the man knew he had been speaking to Jesus. It wasn't a gradual change, either, it was instant that the little boy went from being near death to being whole again. Jesus wanted to show that He didn't have to BE there for the healing to occur. All He had to do was speak. He is the Creator, is He not? It put a new perspective on a story I have often heard. Again, God's Word, although read or heard many times, will never return void. There is always something new to learn.

We were reading out of Psalm 91 in Sunday School and that is such a wonderful Psalm. I thought I would share a few verses from it as I close tonight. Tomorrow is a day off of school and the kids are spending the night with Mom and Dad. Enjoy your evening and these verses. God is Who gives us the protection and safety. We just have to continue to TRUST in HIM. This trust does not mean difficult things will not come in our lives. It just means that He is there to lift us up and shelter us as we go through them. The more we trust Him, the more we become LIKE Him.

Psalm 91: 1-4

He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust.
Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the flower, and from the noisome pestilence.
He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler.

04/09/08

Here are some dogwood pics... more to come. I aimlessly walked around the yard yesterday afternoon capturing these. The wind was still a blowing and so it was still challenging to get great focus, but I did alright on these. :) Today, I look outside and the sun is shining and I truly can't see any movement on plants! I should have waited a day!!! The two that look like the same picture basically are, but they have different f/stops. One makes the petals more soft and out of focus and the other has most everything in focus.

As I look at these and continue to see detail in the beauty of God's Creation, I am still in awe. There are more things I am seeing through this new lens when I photograph them than I ever have in my life. I am loving looking at the "drops" of pollen or other things that appear on a flower or anything else! I was actually a bit surprised at that "starburst" area of the middle of the dogwood. I never knew that happened nor have I ever taken the time to really look before. It is like I have out my magnifying glass and am seeing things for the first time.

As I was driving home today from school I kind of thought about that a lot in the context of God's Word. How many times have I read a verse or read parts of Scripture and "skimmed" it to say that I had read it? In my Bible reading right now I have just finished the book of John and the Lord has now led me to go through the book of Luke. I am reading it a chapter at a time and reading my study notes that go along with it. It is like I am seeing God's Words through my macro lens and I am "seeing" things in a different way that for so long I have just taken for granted. That is the beauty of God's Word... it will never return void and we can always learn something new no matter how many times we read the same parts of Scripture. I am thankful for the continual molding and changing He does in my life.

The dogwood is a picture of Christ. I wish I had the story about that, but don't have it at the moment. I am sure my online friend Amy could find it!!! :) She is so good about finding stuff like that!

I hope you enjoy these dogwood pictures. We have the white ones and pink ones in our yard. I am loving the differences in both!

This week has been Achievement Testing at school. It has gone well, overall, and I have been doing my annual art project of marblizing with my students. (No, it does not involve marbles!) For those of you that have had students in my class, this is one of those "Mrs. Fowler Memory Moments"... for those of you that haven't experienced my teaching, maybe I'll show ya one day. :) Tomorrow is the last day we are doing it. Funny thing, usually by this time of the week I am about to go crazy with the "mess" that accompanies this large art project, but this year I am taking it in stride. My desk at school is a mess along with my room but I am just "letting go" right now. I can't divide myself but so many ways so I am continuing to learn to release. I know by Friday it will be more back to normal. It is just for a season.

The kids had a birthday party right after school today so they have just gotten home from that. We have church in a bit so I need to close.

Hope everyone has had a wonderful day. Try to take time to see the details in something in your life. It may be through your Bible reading or something you have in your life. Whatever it is, be thankful for the details and small things in life. Without them we wouldn't have the big picture. :)

04/06/08

I decided I had better post these camellia pictures because they are fading fast around here. I took these the other week as I walked aimlessly around the yard. I love camellias since they bloom in the winter and give splashes of color all around. On this day I was able to notice all of the pollen on the pistil and stamen area. I am just amazed with and LOVE details. :) I know that is a shock to all of you.

Let's just say I woke up this morning feeling as if I had been run over by a truck!! I believe because I was so busy and active yesterday it didn't give my muscles enough time to realize they should be in shock. Believe me, all day long they have shared that with me. lol It killed me to wear heels to church but I had no choice with that for various reasons today. Steve enjoyed the moments of my walking a bit awkward because he "told me so" Friday night. lol I'll let him get his laughing in...

Church was wonderful again today. I learned much in both services. Sunday School discussed more about the brevity of life and how we need the Lord to help us "number our days" so that we can use them for His glory. Just continues to give me things on which to "chew."

Today was another cool and cloudy day. We found out today that one of our local lakes, responsible for giving water to most of Raleigh, is full again! I am so thankful for the rain we have had this past week. God has shown His continued goodness to us.

I have much to do since I have been at school all weekend, basically. I still have papers from Friday to grade and some other "chores" to do that haven't gotten done so I need to cut this short. Enjoy your evening and your sweet times with family. :)

04/05/08

This first picture today is "The Little Insect That Could." I photographed it the other day as I was taking pics of the tulips. It isn't as sharp as I wanted because he was moving and the leaf was moving, but you can get the point. He had this huge raindrop on his back and kept trying to get over the "lip" of the leaf. I don't know whether he fully made it because I went to other tulips, but it was surely neat to watch for a bit.

That is how I felt last night as I was walking the 5K walk at school. Now, I didn't run over 3 miles like many of the parents did...(Go Kelly and Sherry!!!), which was a HUGE accomplishment, but I was proud of myself for the walk I was able to do. I have not exercised in a couple of years. I have always been a fast walker but to do it non-stop for a certain time period is different from "sprinting" here and there. At first I was going to walk at a steady little leisurely pace, but right before the race something came over me that I needed to prove that I could walk that thing as fast as I could. I wanted to see my time.

Foolish? Maybe.

Accomplished? Yes. :)

I was told we walked between 1.5 and 2 miles. I got on a roll and kept "trucking." Steve walked with me and chuckled when he saw me going and I pretty much left him "behind." He said I was going to be feeling it today, and I did, but not as badly as I had thought. I finished in 30 minutes or so. I wasn't quite sure what time we started but I believe that is about right. It made me feel good to know I could keep a movin' and pass a few people along the way. hee hee

Last night was crazy after the race. I set up my coffee booth for Super Saturday and then helped out with general things to get ready for the day. My friend and I didn't leave until after midnight. We then got back up and were back at school this morning at 6:30 ready to start the day.

We were concerned about the rain, as I mentioned in my post last night. Everything had to be moved inside. I chose to post my second picture since rain is something we knew we'd see today. :) Well, we kept praying, and the Lord definitely answered our prayer. He held off the heavy rain most of the day. We had a few periods of it, but nothing major where people couldn't be outside. I saw lots of people wet but they all still seemed to be having a great time. From what I understand we accomplished just about as much as we did last year. God is good. I knew He had the power to hold off the heavy rain and bad storms from our area and He chose to do so. It was all in His will. He truly receives all of the glory because it was out of our hands. We so desperately need the rain so we didn't want to complain, but we also knew a lot of time and energy went into planning this day. We wanted the entire day to be for God's glory.

I am exhausted and know I will sleep quite well tonight. I am off to spend some time with my family since I really haven't seen them much today. May you have a blessed evening. Coffee anyone?

04/04/08

Quick post today. Lots of things going on with school this weekend. We have a 5K walk/run this evening that Steve and I are doing and then tomorrow is Super Saturday which is a big carnival type day for our school! I'll be out there bright and early (5:30 am) until it quits and we clean everything up! It is going to be a long day but I believe it will be quite fun. :)

Here are some more tulip pictures. I have fallen in love with tulips this year!

Enjoy your evening. Pray for the Lord to hold off the rain tomorrow. We are not complaining about the rain at all, but a lot of time and preparation has gone into our Super Saturday at school. A lot of our games and things are outside so we have had to make adjustments today. He has already proven Himself faithful for today and I know He can show His power with that tomorrow. It is truly in the Lord's Hands and whatever He chooses to do is His will!

04/03/08

Don't have a lot of time to post much today. It has been crazy and the next few days are going to be even crazier. I have to go work on homework, fix "something" for supper and get kids to bed so I can work on some stuff for school... woohoo!

I did have something wonderful to happen, though. I found out this afternoon that one of my students went home and accepted Christ as her Savior! I am so thankful the Holy Spirit pricked her heart and made her see she needed Him. The Mom called me and said she had cried for joy all afternoon. That made my day and I feel very blessed. :)

Thought I'd just share this quote and some tulip pictures.

"Art does not reproduce what we see; rather, it makes us see." Paul Klee - German Expressionist

This quote reminds me of how I photograph. I love details and trying to capture things that we see but we don't really take the time to "see." Enjoy these pics today. Remember you can click on them to see them larger.