09/30/08

Just some sea grass blowing in the wind. (And what a wind it was... lol) I thought it was neat the way it was blowing and the "angle" it had.


Another crazy, busy day. I was reminded again of my verse from Philippians 4:13 from yesterday. I even talked to my students about it a lot today. I am thankful for the little "nuggets" I get each day from the Lord.

Learned Powerpoint more today. Let me just say that can be overwhelming to learn, but I think I "have" it now for the most part. (Basics, anyway) I've got to work on a few things in it so that is always good to learn something new.

Another late night tonight... helping my best friend with some stuff. I need to go grade papers. Off to use red ink. :)

09/29/08

Another picture from what we did on that Thursday it rained so much. You'll never guess where we had to go!!! LOL He later wanted to go there again when we went back to actually shop without being blown all over the place.


Not much time tonight. It is almost 9:30... we helped some friends of ours move into their new home this afternoon/evening. The kids are getting in the bed and I have two sets of papers to grade. I am thankful we helped them because I remember the feeling all too well. Never fun to move with just a few. Many hands make light work!!

I'll leave you with this verse I had to keep telling myself today because, let's just say, I have a WHOLE lot going on at school in the next two -three months and I was feeling a bit overwhelmed with it all today. Little by little... inch by inch, right?

Philippians 4:13 - I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.

Y'all keep reminding me of that, OK? :)

09/28/08

Just a few different pics of our crazy Thursday with all of the bad weather. We went to the Ripley's Aquarium. Let's just say that if I didn't get in free and my family at a discount because of the convention, we would not have gone there. It is nice, but not worth all of that money. We went 4 years ago so the kids enjoyed it with "new eyes" but other than that, it was the same as it was before. I will admit that this time I had a bit more fun taking pictures. lol

The aquarium had a Pirate exhibit so I thought this picture was pretty cool. Not bad for a quick shot before people kept crowding in again. lol

One of the fish tanks that I thought was so pretty.

Mikayla touched this horseshoe crab.... just this once. lol

Wesley enjoyed touching it a little more than Mikayla. :) Steve helped, of course.

The kids got "inside" one of the aquarium areas. Too funny pic...

This was the tunnel of the aquarium that was my favorite part. I liked how you could walk underneath all of those fishies... and such. I must say, though... I looked hard at the thickness of that glass. A lot of water pressure on that glass. It was VERY difficult to get lighting right in this area. The water/lights made it hard to get the right color for the picture. This is pretty much what it looked like with the eyes, though.

I also realized I have never shown a picture of my niece from her Senior pics I took last weekend. I thought I'd share one today. :)


I wanted to post the words to this song that is one of my favorite hymns. We actually sung it at one of our general sessions at convention and it was fitting for the weather as well as what we may or may not have in our own lives!!

I decided I'd post the story behind it before the hymn "It is Well With My Soul." I thought it would be interesting to see the background of it.

When the great Chicago fire consumed the Windy City in 1871, Horatio G. Spafford, an attorney heavily invested in real estate, lost a fortune. About that time, his only son, age 4, succumbed to scarlet fever. Horatio drowned his grief in work, pouring himself into rebuilding the city and assisting the 100,000 who had been left homeless.

In November of 1873, he decided to take his wife and daughters to Europe. Horatio was close to D. L. Moody and Ira Sankey, and he wanted to visit their evangelistic meetings in England, then enjoy a vacation.

When an urgent matter detained Horatio in New York, he decided to send his wife, Anna, and their four daughters, Maggie, Tanetta, Annie, and Bessie, on ahead. As he saw them settled into a cabin aboard the luxurious French liner Ville du Havre, an unease filled his mind, and he moved them to a room closer to the bow of the ship. Then he said good-bye, promising to join them soon.

During the small hours of November 22, 1873, as the Ville du Havre glided over smooth seas, the passengers were jolted from their bunks. The ship had collided with an iron sailing vessel, and water poured in like Niagara. The Ville du Havre tilted dangerously. Screams, prayers, and oaths merged into a nightmare of unmeasured terror. Passengers clung to posts, tumbled through darkness, and were swept away by powerful currents of icy ocean. Loved ones fell from eath other's grasp and disappeared into foaming blackness. Within two hours, the mighty ship vanished beneath the waters. The 226 fatalities included Maggie, Tanetta, Annie, and Bessie. Mrs. Spafford was found nearly unconscious, clinging to a piece of the wreckage. When the 47 survivors landed in Cardiff, Wales, she cabled her husband: "Saved Alone."

Horatio immediately booked passage to join his wife. En route, on a cold December night, the captain called him aside and said, "I believe we are now passing over the place where the Ville du Havre went down." Spafford went to his cabin but found it hard to sleep. He said to himself, "It is well; the will of God be done."

He later wrote his famous hymn based on those words.

When peace, like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows, like sea billows roll;
Whatever my lot, Thou has taught me to say,
"It is well, it is well, with my soul."

My sin, O the bliss of this glorious thought,
My sin not in part but the whole
Is nailed to the cross And I bear it no more.
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!

O, Lord haste the day when my faith shall be sight,
The clouds be rolled back as a scroll;
The trump shall resound and the Lord shall descend
"Even so" it is well with my soul.

It is well, it is well, with my soul, with my soul, It is well, It is well, with my soul.

09/27/08

HOME.... we are glad to be here.

I can now say I have been through a "tropical storm" at the beach. Did I enjoy that experience?

NO. It made me greatly understand the need for people to evacuate when a hurricane is coming. lol

Here are some pictures of the beach from our hotel balcony. (The first one is actually "on the beach area because we were pressed for time before we went to our first session that night after we arrived... you can enjoy a pic of Wesley and Mikayla with the beach.. lol) I took them everyday to show you the progression and look of the beach. Let's just say I THINK you can pick out which day was the best.... and it wasn't when we got there. lol

Wednesday

Thursday morning... the clouds were bluish that morning. Not sure why it looks so differently from the next one.

Friday morning... the waves were worse this morning because it had stormed all Thursday late morning/early afternoon and into the night. We didn't sleep well that night!

This is the beautiful scene we awoke to today. Beyond words how pretty.... would have loved to have had another walk on that beach.

We had a good trip overall, though. Other than Thursday which was really bad... high winds and rain pelting you from all directions... the trip went great. The convention was good. I only had a couple of classes that weren't as good as I had hoped. The preaching was wonderful and I learned much from those. Don't be surprised if I share some of that on here!

Thursday we went to the Ripley's aquarium because we surely couldn't do anything outside! We normally wouldn't have gone there but we had no choice this trip. lol The kids loved it... they hadn't seen it since they were four so they saw it "afresh" this trip. When we left that night to go to eat, to Krispy Kreme and back to the hotel there was serious rain and wind. It was hard to drive in it all. These next two pics show what it looked like while we were driving and then at the hotel that night. Those poor palm trees were doing more than "blowing in the wind!" You'll have to click on that one to see it better. I was having a hard time even being on the balcony to get that shot. I felt like one of those TV reporters that always stand in the mess trying to report on how bad the weather is at the moment. lol

Driving to where we ate that night.

Poor Palm tree....

When we got out of convention yesterday, the sun was out, the wind had died down and it was a glorious day. The kids got to go swimming, the adults relaxed outside by the pool and we also got to walk on the beach. That water was COLD, though!! We didn't venture in it. lol It was interesting to watch the waves, though. They were pretty high even yesterday afternoon. There was also a lot of foam/suds in them, I guess from where the storm had churned the water so much.

Last night we ate out with our friends again and went putt-putting. Steve and I tied with the best score. I should have beat him. lol We then went "shopping" at one of the many places to shop at Myrtle Beach.

Today we left and we traveled up to Wilmington and to go to Orton Plantation and the USS North Carolina. I hadn't been to those since I was probably Wesley and Mikayla's age!!! It was a GREAT side trip to our Myrtle Beach trip. I was really glad to show Wesley and Mikayla these areas. We saw lots of wildlife at Orton Plantation... some of which I photographed. I'll be showing those, and lots others of our adventures.... in later posts.

We have been back a couple of hours now. Had to figure out what was wrong with my computer before I could load all of my pictures. Apparently while we were gone our electricity went off, and even though I had shut down my computer, it still affected it somehow. Thankfully, the Dell people "walked" me through the process to get it working correctly and we're doing great... as you can tell or you wouldn't be reading this. lol

I thank the Lord for a safe trip to and from the beach... as well as during the storm. He is the "Peace in the midst of the storm", you know... and I was reminded of that while we were there.

Glad to be back. Can't wait to show more pics. :)

09/24/08

I took this picture at Farm Days a month ago. (Hard to believe it has already been a month!) It goes along with what we are doing today... we are "on the road again....." to Myrtle Beach for Teacher's Convention! (Can't you just hear Willy Nelson singing that song from long ago???)

We have been looking forward to getting to the beach since we haven't gone as a family in a couple of years. Wouldn't you know it, though... a "Noreaster" is going to be down there the entire time of our stay. We're going to have 40mph winds and rain. Guess there won't be any time on the beach unless its OK when we get there today!!! We'll be finding lots to do inside. We'll make the best of it. Of course, I'll be in class a majority of the morning and early afternoon on Thursday and Friday. I know you will miss me while I am gone (hee hee) but I'll be back on Saturday!

Doom and gloom seems to be all we hear about on the news these days. If it isn't economic woes, it is something else bad that has happened. It can get overwhelming and cause fear, but the Lord wants us to keep our eyes on Him through it all.

I am reminded of these verses I found this morning and wanted to share.

Psalm 62:5-8
My soul, wait thou only upon God; for my expectation is from him.
He only is my rock and my salvation: he is my defense; I shall not be moved.
In God is my salvation and my glory: the rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God.
Trust in him at all times; ye people, pour out your heart before him: God is a refuge for us.

Believe me, I don't know any answers to the economic woes. The Lord has not gifted me in those areas. I do know what God's Word tells me and I am trying to keep my eyes focused on Him instead of what is all around me. Remember when Peter got out of the boat to walk on the water with Jesus? The waves were all around him, but when he had his eyes on Jesus he was walking on water, too! Once he took his eyes off of Jesus, and began to look at the rolling waves around him, he began to sink! We don't want to follow Peter's lead on this in our world today.

I am reminded of the song I posted not long ago... may we all be reminded of this wonderful truth:

O soul, are you weary and troubled?
No light in the darkness you see?
There's light for a look at the Savior,
And life more abundant and free!

Turn your eyes upon Jesus,
Look full in His wonderful face,
And the things of earth
Will go strangely dim....
In the light of His glory and grace.

09/22/08

FALL has arrived!!! And with fall comes a painful reality....

I have an addiction.

It is really bad this time of year.

It is called candy corn.



I blame this addiction on my best friend.

I can do that, right?

She's the one who "forced" me to eat it all of those lovely fall evenings in her home. Yeah, that's what I'll say. It is ridiculous how one little candy corn can make you want another one. They are so small that you keep thinking, "OH, just ONE more..." and pretty soon you have eaten a hundred. Those in that picture above... most of them are gone now because as I was photographing them, I was eating them, too. I need to buy some for my students. We need to "learn 1/3" and eat each section at a time. Great math skills learned there, you know. Especially when the different sections are NOT equal parts, but, hey... it's for fun. lol


FALL... has arrived.... I am so glad. I love fall.

Why, you ask, do I love fall?

I love the fact that pretty soon I'll be drinking coffee again at night. (We just don't drink it around here when it is 80 degrees)

I'll get to feel heat from our wood stove pretty soon. (OK... around here we're lucky if it gets really cold at night by November, but as soon as it dips below 50 at night, I'm telling Steve we're wearing shorts and t-shirts just so I can hang out by the wood stove!)

I love the beautiful colors that show God's faithfulness in the changing of the seasons.

I love the crispness of the air.

I love the bright blue skies that come with the crisp air.

I love the NC STATE FAIR!

I love pumpkins and getting our outdoor fall stuff out.

I love painting pumpkins with Wesley and Mikayla.

I love the smell of cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice.

I love teaching my students during fall time... there are so many things we learn!

I love being with my family for many occasions.

And, finally, I LOVE CANDY CORN. :)

Ecclesiastes 3:1
To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:

09/21/08

Another unusual flower from the aviary at the zoo. :)

I'm working on my niece's photos tonight so not a lot of time to write. Thought I'd share something that was a part of our teacher's devotions last Thursday.

Many of us have heard and read the 23rd Psalm many times. Usually we hear it when we are at funerals it seems. Here is a way to reflect on that wonderful Psalm in our everyday life. This gave me a new perspective on it and I hope it does for you as well!!

PSALM 23

The Lord is my shepherd
That's Relationship

I shall not want
That's Supply

He maketh me to lie down in green pastures
That's Rest

He leadeth me beside the still waters
That's Refreshment

He restoreth my soul
That's Healing

He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness
That's Guidance

For His name sake
That's Purpose

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death
That's Testing

I will fear no evil
That's Protection

For Thou art with me
That's Faithfulness

Thy rod and Thy staff they comfort me
That's Discipline

Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies
That's Hope

Thou anointest my head with oil
That's Consecration

My cup runneth over
That's Abundance

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life
That's Blessing

And I will dwell in the house of the Lord
That's Security

Forever
That's Eternity

09/20/08

This was taken at the aviary at the NC Zoo this past spring. I don't believe I ever showed this one.

Today was a wonderful day. I got to sleep in a little bit, washed some clothes, graded some papers, and journaled some scrapbook pages. I also got to see a bit on Egyptian history. Gotta love that. :) Steve and the kids went to his dad's today. I couldn't go since I was taking my niece's senior pics. It was nice to have the house to myself and have some quiet time. I missed my family, but enjoyed the moment.

I also enjoyed those sweet kittens of ours. Today was the first day I was truly home most of the day with them since we got them two weeks ago. I cannot begin to tell you how sweet both of them are. We thought Ashes was a sweet, special cat that there could be no other like, but the Lord has shown that these two are going to be the same. I am so thankful! They both love to get in your lap... at the same time. It is working now since they are kittens, but not sure how that is going to work if they continue to want to do that when they are bigger! Speaking of bigger... they have really grown in the past two weeks. I'll have to take some new pics this week. :)

I took my niece's Senior pics this evening. We had an awesome time together! I am glad I had the opportunity to do that... and that she chose me to do them! :) If I get some worked on I'll share one or two.

Well, my precious family just got home so I am going to go be with them. :)

09/19/08

Another morning glory pic. These are a periwinkle blue color. :)

Busy week, busy day. My students were told to "fasten their seat belts" yesterday because we had a lot going on today. Not only did we get it all done, but there was time to spare!! lol Whew... just glad it is Friday. We have just finished cleaning the house quickly and are going to go grab something to eat.

Tomorrow I will be taking my niece's senior pictures. I am looking forward to enjoying that time with her.

I found this little "devotion" that sums up my week. Now, my week wasn't horrible, but there were times that I found myself taking my eyes off the Lord and looking to my own path. In learning to trust more in the Lord and less in my own thoughts, this spoke volumes. Enjoy... and have a great evening!!

His Joy Refreshes
Susan Alexander Yates

"Neither be ye sorry; for the joy of the Lord is your strength."
Nehemiah 8:10

Happiness is usually caused by circumstances. When things are going great, we feel happy; when life is unpleasant, we are depressed. Supernatural joy, however, enables us to experience a deeper joy that is not so dependent on our circumstances. As we live by correct priorities, cultivating our relationship with Christ on a daily basis, we will begin to experience a quiet joy resulting from a sense of security that we belong to God, and He is indeed in control of our lives. When we focus on this security, we will be free to relax and trust Him in whatever situation we find ourselves. We will not always feel happy, but we will have a deeper sense of joy that we belong to Christ and that His plans for us are good. God's joy is supernatural. His joy is also refreshing.

09/18/08

This is what Steve and I walked into the other night after our children had been "put to bed" and were supposed to be asleep. I was grading papers (shock... I know) and I kept hearing someone chatting. I knew who it was. My daughter is definitely female. I think some days she talks more than I do. When I had Steve investigate he opened the door to find this. So check her out. She's the cool kid with the glasses:


My Dad gave her and Wesley these shirts that say "YES, I was raised in a barn" last year from the NC State Fair. She looks a bit like she was raised in a Zoo with those glasses. lol Apparently, my "teacher wanna be" was "reading to her class" and needed "FIVE MORE MINUTES." What a hoot.

Wesley got a tree frog from one of my best friends the other day. He was beyond excited and we told him he could keep him for a couple of days. We knew the poor thing would do well to survive. He was taken to church on Sunday (Wesley even had to go to the van between Sunday School and church in order to check on him), then to school on Monday. The little guy was the hit of the day! Steve even went "cricket hunting" just so he could feed the little fella. Well, alas, last night when Wesley went to let him go, we found out he had been LOVED TO DEATH. Yes, that is right... the frog was dead. Not surprising considering how many times Wesley handled him. He was well fed.. and well loved. I hope he had a happy ending. Wesley was quite disturbed today when he went to check on his dead friend and found out ants were eating it. I told him that is the "circle of life"... "food chain"... etc. We need a science lesson. Can everyone get their lighters out? Can you hear "Circle of Life" from The Lion King?

No papers to grade tonight. I have traded papers for a weeks worth of laundry that needs folding. UGH. :)

09/17/08

I don't believe I have shared these morning glories... and if I have, forgive me. I truly don't know whether I am coming or going with my photographs lately.

I love morning glories. Now, I realize most people consider them a nuisance, but I see them as a beautiful display of early morning color. These were wrapped around one of our poles at the barn. There were others underneath these pink ones that were dark purple but they were hard to photograph. What beauty the Lord gives us in small ways each day.


Today seemed to be a better day with my topic of yesterday. It really is hard to separate the teacher from the mother.

You know, I forgot to share about what my sweet little guy did last week. At AWANA last Wednesday night we had a new little boy come to our club. Wesley took him "under his wings" and befriended him immediately. Pretty soon Wesley comes up to me and asks me how to find John 3:16 in his Bible because he was having some difficulty. I showed him where it was, looked to where he went with his Bible, and saw that he was showing the new little boy how he could know if he had Jesus in his heart or not. My little guy was witnessing and boldly telling another about the love of Jesus.

I continue to learn that I have to be quiet and let the Lord do the work and not me control the circumstances. When Wesley was talking about sharing the Lord with that little boy again tonight, because we are about to go to church again, it made me realize that my anxiety over yesterday needs to be put in perspective. He has a heart as big as Texas... or even Alaska.... and he reminded me of that tonight with being excited to see that little boy again.

Patience. Patience. Patience.

God's still workin' on me. :)

09/16/08

This picture goes along with what I am thinking today.



LOVE... we do things for love sometimes that aren't always necessarily good. They aren't bad, per say, but they aren't really great, either.

I am still finding with my children that my LOVE for them can also cause stress. My love for them to do well in school... at all times. My love for them to follow all directions that are thrown at them. My love sometimes fails to remember that one of them is a boy. A boy who isn't like our girl. I never want to compare my children, but I still find sometimes it is hard to NOT compare them... especially since they are the same age. The Lord is still working on me to realize some things will not "click" until later. My LOVE is needing to calm down at times and remember that Rome wasn't built in a day, an acorn does not turn into an oak tree in a week, and God's still working on me at 37. My LOVE needs some patience, I am finding.

LOVE sometimes wants to protect you and "take care" of things when LOVE just needs to step aside and not worry so much.

That truly is hard, you know.

My words are not coming out as easily tonight. I know it is because this is something I struggle with and can't find exactly what my heart is feeling.

OK, I'll be blunt... sometimes it is hard to be a teacher and a mother.

It is at this time that I continually see I need to keep giving this over to the Lord.

I learned something today that I had never really thought of before. I was teaching on Abram and how God called him out of the land of Ur to go to Canaan where God promised Abram would become a great nation. I taught today on Abram taking matters into his own hands when he got into Canaan and realized there was a famine and decided to go to Egypt. Once in Egypt he chose to lie and say Sarai was his sister and not his wife. That, along with the fact that he was not told to go to Egypt, got him in a "peck of trouble." He was sent from Egypt after causing much pain to Pharoah's house as well as his own family because of a choice he made.

I realized today for the first time (and how many times have I read this passage and taught it to my students??!) that Abram (Abraham) had to learn to trust God just like us. I guess I had always thought of Abraham being up on a "pedestal" and began to trust God in all things always like a super human as soon as he was told to leave Ur. Abraham made this choice to go into Egypt without God's leading just like we go into our daily lives (or LOVE moments) without really thinking on what God wants us to do. Abraham was so full of faith as his life went on, but it was a process for him just like it is for us.

I needed that this morning to be a reminder for me this afternoon.

Abraham did what he did for the LOVE of his family and the LOVE of his wife. He didn't want anyone starving and he didn't want anyone killing him to take his wife. He acted on his LOVE without trusting.

I learned that myself today. Mine wasn't nearly so "bad" but I still find that sometimes my LOVE is too strong to think for itself and needs the Lord's guidance so I don't crush someone in its path. Lord, help me to step back and trust that You are going to do a great work in all parts of my family...especially in a little male whom I LOVE very much.

09/15/08

Some cactus for you today. I took these this past summer at my Mom's. The first few are with my macro lens... the last two are with my wide angle. I was up at Mom's the other week and it had just rained (or maybe she had just watered them... can't remember) and the water droplets on it drew me back to it. Also... notice the "babies" that have come up on it.

I have an older version photograph of this plant in my kitchen collage of photos. There is just something about this plant I love. Maybe it is all of the textures and points with color.







I want to say that I am thankful for some stuff tonight... felt the need to share. lol

1. Hair color... if it were not for hair color I believe I would look like a skunk. I shouldn't be this gray at 37....

2. My dishwasher.... goodness... I used to hand wash everything when the kids were babies. I used to think I could get them cleaner than my dishwasher. Of course, at the time our dishwasher was horrible, so I could. Right before Mom got sick three years ago we had to get a new one and I haven't looked back since. I filled it full tonight... and am thankful it will wash them so that my lovely hands can grade papers.

3. My washer/dryer... yes, I am still harping on them. I love them.... L-O-V-E them. Does that meant that everything washed in them gets folded immediately and put away? NO. BUT... it does mean that I have wonderfully CLEAN and clean-smelling clothes that didn't use to happen with our old one.

I would come up with a fourth thing, but right now I have to go read to my kiddos. Maybe I'll think of more "mundane" things for which I am thankful for in another post. lol

09/14/08

Trumpet vine from Yates Mill Pond this summer. Loved the color contrast between the orange and green. :) (You should click on this one to see it a bit larger... hard to tell since it is smaller in the pic. :) )


In studying Ecclesiastes with our Sunday School at church and listening to our pastor today I continue to see that we can't be fully satisfied without the Lord. He alone is what gives us joy. This verse was read today and went right along with all I am learning/studying as well.

John 6:35 - And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst.

If only our world could see that more clearly. It is not what we have, but WHO we have.

09/13/08

I took this last spring at the arboretum. I don't know the kind of flower it is but it is purple and that is all that mattered at the moment. lol

We are off to a birthday party this afternoon and then friends over tonight. Here are a couple of thoughts for today that I have found since we are now studying in Ecclesiastes in Sunday School:

Ecclesiastes 3:11 - He hath made everything beautiful in his time: also he hath set the world in their heart, so that no man can find out the work that God maketh from the beginning to the end.

Here is a quote I found long ago. I still have it on my bulletin board in the office:

I make all things beautiful. Put your faith in Me, not in a timetable. Wait on Me and wait for Me. When I am ready, you will be ready. In My perfect way I will put everything together... see to every detail... arrange every circumstance.... change every heart... order every step to bring to pass what I have for you.

09/12/08

May I just say I am thankful for the weekend? The kids and I just finished cleaning the house so that we can do some other things this weekend. We are planning on having a movie night tonight and I am excited because we're watching Narnia with the kids. I just finished reading The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe to the kids last night. Now I feel they will understand the movie better... they have never seen it. It has been a while since I have seen it as well. I hope I stay awake!

Check out these pictures of Mikayla with Sampson. We are finding he is the ultra laid back kitty. He allowed her to "dress him up" and stroll him around the house in her stroller. lol He just laid there so sweetly and the last picture of him looking up at me doesn't even look like he's distressed at all! lol Isabelle, on the other hand, is a bit more spastic. lol!! I don't think she would ever allow Mikayla to do that to her. We'll see as time goes on. (I used to do these types of things to my kitty, Sabrina, growing up... she died of a nervous disorder in her "later" years!!!!! )


The following pictures are of the mushrooms that have popped up in our yard overnight. We have had so much rain lately and the ground doesn't know what to do with itself. These were not in our yard two days ago. When I got home yesterday they were so interesting looking that I decided I just HAD to photograph them. The first picture shows where they were in the yard. They were only in that spot, too. I am used to seeing the types of mushrooms that are in the next couple of pictures which have the flat heads, but these were reminding me of marshmallows on a stick that had been roasted over the fire! You may need to click on a few to see more detail. :) (You may think I am a bit crazy for photographing these mushrooms so many different ways, but there I was crouched down low in our yard, with my school clothes on, trying to think outside of my box. lol)

09/11/08

Seven years ago today.

I am sure you all can recall where you were. I am sure you all have thought of it as the day progressed.

I was teaching my second graders in my old room, which used to be downstairs in the building where I now teach upstairs.

I remember so well one of the staff members coming in telling me a plane had flown into one of the World Trade Center towers. At first we thought it was a weird thing and sad but nothing more. Nothing like we would in our world today.

It seemed like just a moment later and she was back again, telling me another plane had hit the other tower. We knew then this was no accident.

By this time I am a bit panicked, but didn't want to show the kids so I kept teaching my Bible lesson. A bit later she came in to tell me another plane had hit the Pentagon. By this point, my knees became weak and I began to realize this was something so serious and totally beyond anyone's control. Shortly thereafter we found out about the fourth plane that went down in Pennsylvania.

I stopped class and told them that some bad things had happened and we just needed to pray. I honestly didn't know WHAT to pray!!

I remember watching the TV as the towers began to fall. I remember calling Steve and thanking the Lord He was on the other line because I knew so many people wouldn't get that ever again.

What did I feel that day? Like anyone I felt shock, horror, unbelief, anger, sadness... I can remember coming home that day and turning on the television to see what had happened.... to see the carnage of terror.

I had always felt safe, but now I felt so vulnerable. I can remember when airplanes were allowed to fly again after the attacks that I would always wonder if one was going to crash on us. You know, that thought still crosses my mind even today.

Our world changed forever that day.

Many people questioned God during those dark days. WHY would He allow something like this to happen to us? WHY would all of those innocent people be killed over such a senseless act?

That began many months of learning to CLING to the Lord and hang on for dear life. We had no net... how was the Lord going to take care of us when our whole world, literally, was falling to pieces?!

We held on.

He never failed because He was always there.

I was reading in my devotions this morning and read this verse:
Psalm 91:4-5
He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler. Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night: nor the arrow that flieth by day.

Do I look back on the last seven years and still wonder why God allowed this terrible tragedy to happen? Yes, and I think God understands that, but it is a time to remember that God is in control and allows things to happen to cause us to draw nearer to Him.

Isaiah 55:8
For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord.

Seven years later we remembered those that gave their lives that fateful day in September, 2001. We had moments of remembrances at school today at the times when each of the planes struck. We prayed for the families of those left behind. We prayed for our nation.

I looked out on a sea of faces who had just recently been born when these attacks happened. They don't really know the pain of that day. May we always strive to teach them to never forget the lives that were given that day, and since, for their freedom.

I had tears in my eyes today.

I remember. I will not forget.

09/10/08

OK... It seems I have caused some of you great trouble by my post yesterday with the pictures of the Writing Spider. (Casey... this blog's for you... and Morgan... and anyone else who commented... or even those that didn't comment but really wanted to do so. lol)

Oh, my dear friends that read my daily life.... the scaring and creeping out of all of you was not intentional!! Now, I can totally understand having the creeps over a spider. I can also understand how a closeup of the spider would cause one to not be able to sleep at night. I am right there with you... was there the moment I photographed that creature because I was so afraid it would jump off its web and jump on my lens. LOL Please accept my humble apology for causing anyone to hate my blog yesterday.... :)

Here are some pretty pictures. :) This is a vase of hydrangeas at my Mom's this summer. I took different views. The last picture is basically of the stems in the vase... just thought that was neat.

Finally, let me encourage you today with some thoughts I heard at my faculty meeting this afternoon. When life comes at you hard and you don't know which end is up, what is a verse that the Lord brings to your mind? I'd really like to know so put them in my comment section, please! :)

You all know one of mine is Isaiah 40:31. Our administrator shared in the meeting today, after he asked us that question, that his was Proverbs 3:5-6 ~ Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy paths.

That is a verse I have quoted so many times in my life, but it hasn't been until the last few years that I have begun to fully understand it. When times seem uncertain, when you don't know how something is going to work or happen, when you get frustrated over personal or work related issues, TRUST in the Lord with all of your heart. I have found that when I put my trust in myself I always make a mess of things, but when I finally give it over to the Lord He makes my path so clear. I keep learning life isn't about me, it is about what the Lord wants for me. Every minute of every day is a time to keep putting the trust and faith back where it belongs... on the Lord.

09/09/08

Today has been just plain crazy. I got up late this morning because our dear, sweet kittens decided at 2:00 am that it was playtime again. lol I went back to bed shortly after allowing them to go find another joyful area of our home in which to sleep the remainder of the night, but apparently didn't hear my alarm when I should have!! lol I still got to school on time, though. :)

Today my students made beaver lodges (homes) out of chocolate and pretzels. What a hardship to eat those chocolate/pretzel creations. lol They loved it. I am always excited when I do things like that with them.

I figured since I am talking about animals, and since I am in the middle of teaching a unit on the different animals in God's Creation, I thought I would show you these pics of a "Writing Spider" I captured at Farm Days. These would have turned out better if I had had my tripod, but I thought they turned out quite great considering I had to get THAT close to a spider THAT big. lol

I am creeped out by spiders, but these always amaze me. If you have never seen one of these "Writing Spiders" in real life, they make a zig-zag pattern on their web and sit behind it waiting for their prey. I photographed another one at a friend's house the other day that we had hoped would have had the zig-zag, but he had wrapped up a large grasshopper in that pattern!! We'll see if I can ever get a picture of that. Again, notice the detail of this spider. It continues to amaze me that our great God made all of the animals so differently.

This is the backside of the spider. You can see where his thread for his web comes out of the brown spot on his abdomen. Check out his tasty meal.

From what I understand, spiders have eight eyes. (I am sure my brother will correct me if I am wrong!) You can see his eyes on the "underside" of the white head area.

09/08/08

Here is the tailgate of a Chevrolet from Farm Days. :) I often wonder if in 50 years people will be taking pictures of our vehicles like we do of these old ones now. I often look at ours and think they won't, but who knows!!! lol


Let me just tell you that those kittens of ours continue to grab my heart. They are SO much fun and it is so nice to have something run up to you when you get home from work/school. Steve is loving it, too, although he tries to act like he doesn't have to have a cat. lol He said when he walked in the door tonight (he got home a bit before we did) that they both ran to greet him. I think it made his day! I am just loving these sweet gifts. I am hoping tonight while I grade papers that they will hop in my lap and fall asleep like they did last night when I was doing a bit of Bible study. Talk about stinkin' sweet!

Today something pretty neat happened at school. One of my students had brought in a chrysalis early last week. We had talked about it some and all of the kids had been looking at it. I truly didn't know if it would live, though, because I have had many in my teaching years that "died" because they were "watched" and loved so much!!

Late last week this one began to move back and forth. The kids were all excited so I moved it to my desk so it wouldn't get bumped around on the science table. When I left Friday it was still green and looked like the caterpillar yet had a bit of a different shape.

This morning when I got to school I looked in on it and saw that the chrysalis had turned more transparent!!!! I have only seen that in books!!! I was beyond excited to show my kids. Well, right before all of my kids began arriving for school, Mikayla came over to my desk before she went to her classroom and said "MOM!! The butterfly has hatched!!" I looked over at it and sure enough that butterfly had hatched out of the chrysalis! It was beautiful. I can't remember the exact name of the butterfly but it was mostly black and had some orange markings.

I propped up the blade of grass it had been on because it couldn't pump up and dry its wings in the bottom of the container. It hung onto that blade of grass for a better part of the morning. I was about to start reading groups when one of my students noticed it wasn't hanging upside down anymore and had spread its wings! We took a mini field trip outside to let it go. (I asked Mikayla's teacher if she could come with me to do this because she loves butterflies so much. She was so excited to see this, too.) The butterfly hung on to the grass until we got to the flower bed where we were going to place it and then off it went!! I got a bit teary-eyed when I saw it take flight. To think we watched it all of that time and now it was off flying and beautiful.

I told my students that is what new life in Christ does for you. The old things are passed away... behold all things become new! We are changed into a new creature when we accept Christ as our Savior.

That was the biggest bright spot in my day today. I can't tell you what that did to my heartstrings. I have never had that experience with a butterfly before and hope it won't be the last. This will be something I will always remember. I hope my students will, too.