02/29/12

When you look at this picture, what do you see?  If you think you know what it is, leave it in the comments.  :)  I will post what it is tomorrow.  (Not sure why the picture wouldn't go back in the middle!)

As I was wandering around photographing that day a couple of weeks ago, I realized there are quite interesting things out there in the winter to which normally I would not give much thought.  I was fascinated by the above object and photographed it at length.  

I was thinking about this object, pictured above, the other day on one of my walks.  Wesley was with me and he pointed out two robins that were bathing themselves in a rain puddle.  What song came on my MP3 player at that time?  This one, by Keith and Kristyn Getty.  I think it fits what the Lord continues to teach me about His Creation and my life.  I should be filled with wonder over the biggest and smallest of things He puts before me each day.  I tried to find it on YouTube for you to hear, but couldn't find it.  The next best thing right now are the words.

Don't Let Me Lost My Wonder

I've seen days melt into nights in circles of lights,
I've watched a spider spin a star between the window box flowers,
I've heard you laugh and cry in a single sigh,
And a story form within.

(Chorus)
Don't let me lose my wonder,
Don't let me lose my wonder.

I saw her broken dreams inside but helping others fly,
I saw his eyes without a doubt though other lights faded out,
And though her calling roared,such graciousness poured
From the vision of her soul.

A baby cried through the dark beneath a jeweled spark,
I knew Your voice upon the hill and heard my lostness still,
I found my home in the light where wrong was made right
And You rose as the morning star.

02/28/12

 

Here is your next "Mrs. Fowler Story."  I told this one to my students yesterday as we learned about an Oceanographer... something I shall never be.  :)

Please ignore/excuse the strange sound that happens to my voice at the end.  Sometimes I am just not sure what is up with my webcam.  It doesn't last long.

Enjoy!

02/27/12

 

Thought this quote was rather insightful.  "Chew" on this today:

When one door of happiness closes, another opens; But often we look so long at the closed door that we do not see the one that has been opened for us.

Helen Keller

02/26/12

 

Psalm 126:3-6

The Lord hath done great things for us; whereof we are glad. 

Turn again our captivity, O Lord, as the streams in the south.

They that sow in tears shall reap in joy.

He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him.

02/25/12

I have no idea what this weed is but it was surely interesting.

 

Today I want to explore WHY I blog.

I love sharing what the Lord is teaching me.

I find that there are many interesting things that are in this world that make me "chew" on them, and therefore, I write about them.

I like to talk but sometimes after teaching all day I don't feel I can say another word... so I type them.

I love to show my pictures.  Most people would never see what I photograph if I didn't.  (Case in point.. the above photo of a weed.)

I love to see what other people are thinking.

I enjoy sharing about my family.

I'll be honest... as I have several times... I do feel that a lot of times I am talking to myself on here.

However, I do enjoy posting my thoughts.

I have found that a lot of people read my blog, but do not comment.  Many have told me in person that they read it.  I have wondered about that recently... especially when I read other people's blogs and see they have a zillion comments within minutes of posting their blog.  I am having to chalk it up to the fact that a lot of people who read my blog have kids and are just plain tired to write when they read.  I also think many are just busy and want to read but do not care to write back.  

Whatever the reason, this is a "shout out" to all of my silent readers.  Thank you for reading and for telling me in person that you enjoy my thoughts.  It means more than you will ever know.

I truly do hope my blog is a blessing.  

So... blessings on you all today!

02/24/12

Who knew that something so small could intrigue me so much.  I have no idea what this "weed" is, either, but on my walk a couple of weeks ago I couldn't stop photographing it.  The "hairs" on it were so captivating.

 

I haven't done one of these in a long time so I thought it would be fun to do another one.  :)

WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE?

 No.  I was told that I should have been named Hazel after my grandmother because I look a lot like she did.  Not sure Hazel quite fits me, but I like that I look like her. 

WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU CRIED AND WHY?  

I know it was recently but can't remember the exact time.  I would say it was either from frustration or from the Lord showing me something I needed to see.  I choose the latter.  :)

 YOU LIKE YOUR HANDWRITING? 

 Yes.  I do find that when I rush it isn't as neatly done as I would have liked, but I am learning to move past that.

 WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE LUNCH MEAT? 

 Oven-roasted turkey

 DO YOU HAVE KIDS? 

Yes, Wes and Mikayla - both 11

 

 IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOU?

Yes, I would think so.

 DO YOU USE SARCASM ALOT?

Yes and No

 DO YOU STILL HAVE YOUR TONSILS? 

Yes

WOULD YOU BUNGEE JUMP?

I will not say "never" but more like "I would rather not."

WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CEREAL?

Fiber One Honey Clusters (I am such an old fogy)

DO YOU UNTIE YOUR SHOES WHEN YOU TAKE THEM OFF?

 Of course!

DO YOU THINK YOU ARE STRONG?

 With the Lord's help

WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE ICE CREAM?

Mint Chocolate Chip - the green kind

 

WHAT IS THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE ABOUT PEOPLE ?

Their face - and whether they are smiling or sad

RED OR PINK?

 Could purple and green be counted in that?

WHAT IS THE LEAST FAVORITE  THING   About yourself ?

 I am fearfully and wonderfully made and know that I am still becoming a new creation in Christ so I should be thankful for what I am instead of wishing I was something else.

WHO DO YOU MISS THE MOST  ? 

Steve, when I am not with him.

    

WHAT WAS THE LAST THING YOU ATE?

two Ho-Ho's 

(refer back to Tuesday's post..lol)

 
 

IF YOU WHERE A CRAYON, WHAT COLOR WOULD YOU BE?

Purple or Green :)

FAVORITE SMELLS?

 My children after a bath

My son after he has played outside

My daughter after she has sprayed on her perfume

Sweet Man after he has put on aftershave

Chocolate

Flowers

this list could go on and on....

WHO WAS THE LAST PERSON YOU TALKED TO ON THE PHONE?

 My Mom

FAVORITE SPORTS TO WATCH?

Sports?  Is Photography a sport?  If not, it should be... at least that is what I tell my students! 

 

HAIR COLOR? 

Dark brown - with gray appearing more and more underneath, but we won't talk about that, now, will we? 

EYE COLOR?

 Dark Brown

DO YOU WEAR CONTACTS?

Oh, goodness, yes.  If I didn't you all would be a blur right now!

FAVORITE FOOD?

Chocolate, chocolate, chocolate, Ho-Ho's, chocolate... and a lot of other very good things to eat that are more healthy but I just can't list them all right now.

SCARY MOVIES OR HAPPY ENDINGS? 

Happy Endings 

LAST MOVIE YOU WATCHED?

 Nanny McPhee

SUMMER OR WINTER?

I love them both for different reasons.

HUGS OR KISSES?

 Both

FAVORITE DESSERT? 

If you don't know that by now you haven't read too carefully.  lol

WHAT BOOK ARE YOU READING NOW? 

 Hidden in Time by Michael Phillips

FAVORITE SOUND?

My kids laughing

My husband talking to me

My kitties meowing

Molly whimpering

My students cheering over something I taught them

SILENCE

ROLLING STONES OR BEATLES? 

Not really fond of either

WHAT IS THE FURTHEST YOU HAVE BEEN FROM HOME?

Kevin would be able to tell me exactly but it is either Canada or Cayman Islands.  Not sure which is further.

DO YOU HAVE A SPECIAL TALENT?

Teaching and Photography

WHERE WERE YOU BORN?

Raleigh, NC

02/23/12

 

I will be the first to say that today's post may get a little lengthy... but I just had to share what the Lord showed me today.

Today was a half day at school.

I will admit that I was not excited about going to school today.

I am tired.

I am worn out.

I am BURNT out.

I am just plain weary.

Those were my thoughts as I began my morning trying to wake up in the shower.

At breakfast I have begun reading to the kids out of my Jesus Calling devotional.  I still find that it impacts me more than them some days because I feel like it is exactly what I need.  I realize they get something from it, too, but today's kind of "slapped me in the face" as Mikayla would say.

Here is the devotional:

"Be on guard against the pit of self-pity.  When you are weary or unwell, this demonic trap is the greatest danger you face.  Don't even go near the edge of the pit.  Its edges crumble easily, and before you know it, you are on the way down.  It is ever so much harder to get out of the pit than to keep a safe distance from it.  That is why I tell you to be on guard.

There are several ways to protect yourself from self-pity.  When you are occupied with praising and thanking Me, it is impossible to feel sorry for yourself.  Also, the closer you live to Me, the more distance there is between you and the pit.  Live in the Light of My Presence by fixing your eyes up on Me.  Then you will be able to run with endurance the race that is set before you, without stumbling or falling."

Can you see why that just "slapped me in the face?"  

I chewed on that all morning.  I continued to ask the Lord to help me through this day as I began it.  I look back and can see how Satan wanted to foil so many attempts of my joy from the Lord today.  He didn't have victory.

My morning started out running late and me getting on Wesley and Mikayla for playing around instead of doing what was expected of them in the morning.  It was a quiet ride to school.  It was frustrating.

I had to open the back gate to school.  I have done that for years, but in the past couple of years the men who arrive early to school try to get there before me and open it.  Today.... I was the one with that responsibility... and it just added to my already frustrated mind.

I got into school and kept looking at all I needed to accomplish today.  

I went to devotions at our teacher's meeting and was reminded that I am just looking at the small puzzle piece of my life and God sees the whole picture.  I just didn't realize at that moment that God was seeing the whole picture of my day right then when I was only seeing the rough edges of those puzzle pieces.

I began to take my eyes off of me and began asking others how they were doing.  I talked with a fellow teacher who has been having a hard time with bone spurs in her foot.

That was the beginning of me taking my eyes off of ME and putting them on someone else.

Half days usually about drive me crazy because I still have so much to teach in half the time.  This morning, I decided to just do work with my students and have them check it as we go.  Those are rare days when that happens.  I also decided to do that because I thought I would fit some History in to our day that normally I would not have a chance to do on a half day.  My kids were really bummed yesterday when we didn't do History so I thought they would enjoy that little "surprise."  Again, this was something I decided to do this morning.  Little did I realize how much God was putting my puzzle together for today.

Fast forward through daily work, checking it, stapling it, doing our country for today and getting ready for History.

I am still teaching Colonial days, but will be moving into Revolutionary times soon.  I needed to catch up because my Science unit took up more time than I had originally planned.

Today I began to teach the kids about Colonial laws and the laws they had about Sunday.  I had no clue that what would begin to proceed from my mouth next would be part of God's puzzle for today.

I began to share how it was a law in Colonial times that people had to go to church.  They didn't always go for the relationship with the Lord, they went because it was LAW.  Men also went because they could vote only if they went to church and owned land.

I began to expound on this a bit more with my students...  It caused me to remember what a wise, dear man at church just shared with me about a lesson I taught last week in our Kids 4 Truth:  "Your lesson was awesome, but I noticed you didn't share the Gospel at the end."  You know why I didn't.... because I feel like I "preach" that all of the time.  I had the wrong thought that they hear it all of the time, too.  You don't know how many times I have thought of that since last week.

Today, the Holy Spirit just kept giving me the words to say to help the children understand that works do not save you.  Only by the shedding of Jesus' blood and our acceptance of His gift of salvation would we be able to have eternal life with Him.  My "talk" with them went on for a while and then I closed it off by telling my students to really think about whether they have asked Jesus in their heart or not.  I told them that if they hadn't and wanted to know how then they could talk with me and I would be more than happy to show them how they can know Christ.  I then moved into the next part of my Colonial teaching.

Shortly thereafter, I looked up to find one of my students crying.... sobbing is actually more like it.  She was one that has had anxiety in certain areas this year so I wasn't sure if it was that or if she was bothered by what I had just taught.  The parent volunteer, who is also a dear friend, was able to take her out to calm her down while I finished teaching the kids.  After I allowed her enough time to calm down, I went out to talk with her.  She said she wasn't sure if she had Jesus in her heart and she was scared of dying without Him.

I told her we could definitely go talk.  I took my Bible and a little tract with me to share with her.  I wanted to make sure she understood first that it is her sin that separates her from God.  We talked for a long time and I began to see a "lightbulb" come on in her eyes.  As I showed her Scriptures and spoke to her about what Christ had done, she made it very plain for me to see she was ready to ask Jesus into her heart.  When I asked her if she was she said "YES!"  with no hesitation.

She prayed a simple but broken prayer letting the Lord know she was sorry for her sins and wanted Him to come into her heart and save her.

It was a joy to be there at that moment.... and it gave me chills.  (Still does, actually!)

All of the things of my day fell into place.  Because of what the Lord taught me this morning to not dwell in the pit of weariness, but run with endurance the race He set before me today, He showed me a much nicer picture from the puzzle He created for my day.

It gave me a new perspective into the fact that THIS is why I am where I am.

The Lord knew today was her day to get saved.

He knew I was going to be there to lead her.

He knew I needed to get my mind straight and focused on Him and off of myself.

I did nothing today.

I give all of the praise to the Lord.  It was HE Who made all of the "puzzle pieces" come together to make a beautiful picture of a child now being in eternity with Him.

For that picture I will forever be grateful.

02/22/12

I realize that most people see this as a weed.

In fact, Steve hates it with all his yard-working heart.  He will do whatever is needed soon to get rid of this weed in our yard.

I, however, always find it beautiful.

I love to photograph the small details of this "weed."

Today's picture continues to show that detail that I so love in hinbit... did you know it is related to mint and has a square stem?

Today I am doing another "VLOG" on my blog.

I have been telling my students "Mrs. Fowler stories" for as long as I can remember.  There are many that I tell every year and my kids ask me year to year whether I told "that" story yet.  I decided I needed to record them for posterity sake.  I am going to do a series of "Mrs. Fowler story" vlogs after I have told them to my students this year.  I have learned to tell them when I teach certain things so I do not forget to tell them.  Of course, there are always times I am still having things happen to me so I am sure the "Mrs. Fowler stories" will continue in my life.  

Here is your first "Mrs. Fowler story".... hope you enjoy.  I usually teach this one when I teach how to make a cursive lowercase "x" because it is like skiing down a hill and the ski pole gets stuck in the mountain.  I think you'll understand why after you hear "the rest of the story."

My Skiing Adventure

02/21/12

 

I recently found out that the company of one of my favorite sweets of all time is going out of business.  That company would be Hostess.... and the favorite sweet of all time that I absolutely, positively adore is:

My best friend gave me two boxes of these for Valentine's Day because of the above mentioned predicament.  I was ecstatic and sad all at the same time.

I have eaten Ho-Ho's since I was a wee one.  

In fact, I could have eaten a whole box at one sitting when I was younger.  Of course, who am I kidding... if I had no self-control now I would do the same.  

Little Debbie Swiss Cake Rolls are NOT the same.

Therefore, I have been thoroughly enjoying each and every bite of the precious Ho-Ho's that were gifted to me just a week ago.  

Upon further investigation I have found that apparently, while the Hostess company has filed for bankruptcy, they are going to continue making their most famous cakes - and Ho-Ho's are included in that grand list.

My heart soared as I read those words.

However, I am not sure how long this will last.  Just in case, I think each time I go shopping I will see if I can find a box or two to have for "old times sake."

2/20/12

I have no idea what this "weed" is, but it was growing in our yard the other week.  It kind of looks like a dandelion, but not really.  It could be a variety type.  Either way, I really loved it and so I photographed it.  Weeds can be beautiful, too, in my opinion.

 

I have been teaching about our body systems in Science since January.  I love, love, love this time of year helping the kids understand how their bodies work.  Of course, it can be quite comical learning as well.  You just never know what kids are going to say... or do.

Since I am now moving on to our next unit in Science, I thought I would share a few tidbits I keep learning each year in the "body" world.  These facts continue to amaze me year after year.  It goes to show how complex our bodies are and how awesome our CREATOR is!  I just don't understand anyone who thinks we came about just by "chance."

Hope you learn much from these insights I am about to share!  I got them from my Human Body books I use in class.  They are in no specific order. :)

You have six small muscles to move your eyeball in every direction.

Your eyeballs move about 100,000 times a day - mostly while you are asleep.

One tiny drop of blood the size of a pinhead contains about 5 million red blood cells, 9,000 white cells, and about 250,000 fragments of cells called platelets.

Your heart beats more than two billion times during the average life span of a person and pumps about 360 quarts of blood every hour - enough to fill a car's gas tank every seven minutes!

Altogether your blood vessels are about 60,000 miles long - more than twice the distance around the world!

The skin is the largest organ.  Laid flat, it would cover over 20 square feet.

When you were a baby you had 300 bones.  As you grew, the smaller bones fused together.  When you reach adulthood you will only have 206 bones.

Every minute, on average, your heart beats 72 times and you blink 12 times.

You use 200 muscles every time you take a single step!

You breathe about 20,000 times a day.

An American man called Charles Osborne had the longest attack of hiccups on record - they lasted for 68 years.  During this time, he hiccuped about 430 million times!

Do you know why people yawn?  Some scientists think that you yawn when you have too much carbon dioxide in your body because you have been taking slow, shallow breaths.  When you yawn, your lungs replace this carbon dioxide with oxygen.  A yawn is really one long breath.

Over two million red blood cells are made every second - while the same number die.

By the time you are 70 you will have some interesting facts:

• 23 years sleeping
• nearly 4.5 years eating
• a year on the toilet
• over 2 years blinking
• over a year washing
• 70 days brushing your teeth
• 9 days burping and passing gas

Your sense of smell is 10,000 times stronger than your sense of taste.

Your eyes are squishy balls full of clear jelly.  You blink to spread tears over your eyeballs to keep them clean.  Each blink takes about 0.3 seconds, so that is over half an hour a day spent blinking!

Your stomach churns and turns your food into a creamy liquid called chyme (kime).

Your stomach also works as a storage bag - holding up to 2 pints and releasing chyme a bit at a time.  Without this, we would have to eat every 20 minutes!

Borborygmus (BOR-bu-RIG-mus) is the name of the rumbling sound your stomach makes when you are hungry.

Now that you know all of these facts, let's not forget the vital truth from God's Word: 

 Psalm 139:14 - I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made:

02/19/12

 

Psalm 130:5

I wait for the Lord, my soul doth wait, and in His word do I hope.

02/18/12

 

Since I have gone back in time all week, I figured I would end my week that way.

Here is another song from "way back when" in the old times as my daughter would say.  I loved (and still do) the band Chicago.  Here is one I sang a lot... and think of my Sweet Man now when I hear it.

02/17/12

Here are more figurines of Care Bears and Belle (Snoopy's girlfriend) that I collected as a child.

Yes, my room was a mess.  I was a pack rat and collected anything small.  I even kept wrappers of candy bars under my bed because I never knew when I would need them for something.

 

I definitely had an imagination as a child.  I used to play with the Styrofoam pieces that came out of boxes.  I pretended they were boats for my Barbie dolls.

I can remember playing on the swings at school, swinging on my belly (which is a no-no now) and my friend and I were riding high in outer space.

I made mud pies (kind of like Mikayla does but not as pretty as hers) and played for hours by myself with my cooking set. 

I pretended I was a teacher.  (Not pretending now, huh?)

I pretended I was a business woman and my phone was my owl calculator.  (Anyone else have one of those?)

I am finding that the longer I teach, and the more technology invades our lives, that kids have less and less imagination.  Instead, they want to be entertained and not use their own brains to do the entertaining.
 
It did my heart good to see some boys playing "Star Wars" on the playground the other day.  When I showed The Sound of Music to my class the other Friday, some of the girls in my class pretended to be the kids of the Von Trap Family.  I want to see more of that in kids.

I see it in Wesley and Mikayla but even they have more of the technology stuff than I ever did so they get caught up in that sometimes, too.  However, they know how to go outside and enjoy the time pretending without demanding something entertain them.

What about you?

What is something you remember doing as a child where you used your imagination to the fullest?

02/16/12

Does anyone remember THESE?  (Yes, I am going back in time this week, it seems...) I loved the Smurfs growing up....I was all about Smurfette!

Papa Smurf

I was a collector of these as you can tell.  These came with the California Raisins Kevin brought me.  Mikayla loves these, too.  lol

 

The Smurfs were one of my favorite cartoons growing up.  I still remember the line "Are we there yet, Papa Smurf?"  When I was in sixth grade I won a huge Smurf for selling candy bars or something like that.  I was special.

I find it humorous what entertained me as a child.  Here is a short clip of their theme song:

02/15/12

Anyone remember these guys?

These are the California Raisins who were the hit of the 1980's.

Kevin brought these down the other week from Mom and Dad's... they had cleaned out some of my stuff from years gone by.

 

They brought back memories.  I used to play with these... and now, Mikayla began to play with them.  They were such a novelty for her to see.  ha!

Here are some of their commercials from the late 80's.  :)

02/14/12

 

Happy Valentine's Day!

I am remembering a Valentine's Day 17 years ago today.

Sweet Man and I had been married about a year and a half.  We still had a lot to learn about love.  Well, I still had a lot to learn about love!

We didn't have a lot of money in our early years.  (Not that we are overflowing now, but we are quite blessed by the Lord!)  Steve wanted to get me something for Valentine's Day but didn't get it.  He made the mistake of telling me that.

I say mistake because I still had a lot to learn.

When he told me, I began to get angry.  I just couldn't believe he didn't buy me what he had said he wanted to get me.  I should get something special because it was Valentine's Day!  That was the day to show love and spoil your significant other - aka ME.

I made my Sweet Man feel so badly that he went out and bought me a heart ring.  It is a ring I still wear to this day and I love it.  However, it also reminds me of how I treated him when he was doing the best he could do.  He sacrificed a lot to get something "blingy" for his spoiled Valentine that year.

Through the years I have learned that how I felt that Valentine's Day was so wrong.  I have learned that love isn't just to be shown on Valentine's Day or other special holidays.

Real love is shown daily.

It isn't about something given or expected.

Sweet Man gives of himself to me daily.  Here are just a few ways I have learned he does that.... he is my daily Valentine:

He is always there.  I never have to worry that he is thinking about someone else.

He loves me even when I fall asleep on the couch.... most every night.

He accepts me for who I am and encourages me.

He fights for me... sometimes when I am not aware.

He wants to protect me and take away any pain I may be feeling.

He has been there with me through some hard times.

He cooks us supper.

He doesn't mind helping out with the cleaning.

He is an excellent Father.

He has a huge heart.

He is a hard worker for us.

He sacrifices things he wants for things for us.

I could go on bragging about Sweet Man.  He has taught me that love is not what you get but what you give to others.  

He knows he doesn't need to get me anything today.  I am long past the spoiled one that had to get something on this day.  Just having him is present enough.

He is my Valentine every day.

As I said yesterday, here is the song by Whitney Houston that Steve kept singing.  I will always love him. <3

02/13/12

 

This past weekend a music legend died - Whitney Houston.  I grew up hearing her and even went to one of her concerts when I was 16.  She had a beautiful voice and began her singing in her church choir.  She went downhill when she married someone who led her into the wrong parts of life.  She was caught up in that web of the world just like so many others.

I saw where some people posted that another angel was in heaven.  I honestly don't know.  I do not know where she was spiritually.  Viewing her fruits, I would say she was not a believer, however, I also know many people who fall from their roots in Christ.  I pray that she did come to accept Jesus as her Savior as a young child while singing in the choir.  Just singing in the choir does not make someone have Jesus in his/her heart.

Her death impacted me a lot yesterday.  It was such a sad loss of someone so young.  I am sure that what caused her death will come out soon.

Here is the video of the first song I remember her singing.  It is definitely a flashback to the 80's!  She had many wonderful hits over the years.  Steve kept singing one today that I will post tomorrow.  Let's go back and remember Whitney in her early years.

02/12/12

II Peter 3:18

But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen.

02/11/12

I must admit that these "pods" were very neat to me when I photographed them the other day.  They are on our crepe myrtle tree.  I enjoyed walking around photographing ordinary things... did my mental health some good.  I will share in the next few weeks what I found that day.  With no snow this year I have had a hard time photographing winter.  These pictures I captured will show a different side of winter.  I found it rather interesting.

I am reminded daily how quickly my babies are growing up.  This is a song written by Todd Smith, one of the singers in Selah.  It describes his children, except for his newest addition which was not born when he wrote it.  It is such a sweet song to help remember that each moment with my children is a gift.  Enjoy:

02/10/12

Here are some pictures of the bull Sledgehammer that I talked about earlier this week.  He has been at the clinic where my Daddy works for a few months now.    He has the third longest horns in the nation in this breed of cattle.  I believe Daddy said that Sledgehammer's brother has the longest.  These horns are 7 feet from one end to the other.  Daddy has been very careful as he has taken care of him over these last few months!!  I don't think I would want to be alone in a pasture with him.  :)  I highly respect bulls anyway, but he gains even more respect from me!

 

 You know he must get headaches from those heavy horns.  :)

 He would turn his head this a way.....

 .... and that a way..... to get through the shoot.

 

Here he is with both horns through the fencing of the shoot.  Daddy was not so happy when he would do this.  lol

  

After the "show" he was put back in his pen.  I think he will be at the clinic until the 19th so he has a little longer.  He's a pretty amazing animal.  Just make sure you stay out of his way!

02/09/12

 

I have permission from Steve to share this story.  I do not want you to read this as I am making fun of him.  I just saw a lot of spiritual applications in what happened to Wesley and him this past weekend.

On Saturday, Steve and Wesley went hunting for squirrels just as they have done every weekend this year.  Steve told me that he had told Wesley earlier that day that "he never gets lost in the woods."  Oh, how he wished he had not said that!

If you remember from my post on Monday, I was not feeling the best this past Saturday so I was home sleeping.  Mikayla had decided to go up to my Mom's to give me some rest time.  I was home alone.  I got a call around 6:15 and I was still a bit "out of it."  It was Steve.  He told me something I had never thought I would hear:  "I need you to come get us, we got lost."  I wanted to chuckle, but didn't want to hurt his feelings.  I wanted to be concerned, but I knew God was with them and he was calling me so they were OK.  He told me where to come and get them so I got in the van and left.

It was so dark that he was concerned I would not see them so he called me shortly after I left home to make sure I found them.  Thankfully, I found them with no problem and was able to take them back to their original starting point to get the truck.  

While Steve was getting his coat out of the woods, Wesley shared with me that he was pretty scared.  It had been cloudy around here on Saturday and he said the woods seemed to get dark FAST.  As they were wandering around they had to walk through a creek.  Wesley told me that as he was walking in the middle he got scared because he could feel the force of the water against him.  He said he kept saying a verse over and over... 

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 will direct they paths.  

He said he knew that the Holy Spirit gave him that verse to help him.  I told him I was also reminded of Isaiah 43 where it talks about how God is with you when you pass through the waters, they will not overflow you.

Steve got home and looked on the map of the area where they were hunting and said the tree he uses to get him back on the main trail was probably just within reach but because it was so dark, he and Wes seemed to keep moving to the right.  They circled around an area and didn't get to the tree to the path.  He said as they were walking around and realized they were lost,they stopped and prayed.  I was so thankful for this moment where Steve showed Wesley he didn't know the way but He knew the One Who would lead them.

Soon after their prayer is when they saw the road but had to cross the creek to get to it.  Soon they were calling me and soon I was able to come to get them.

This whole story reminded me of how the Lord wants to direct our paths.  Sometimes we get lost in the darkness of this world.  We are trying to follow Him, but we can't find the "tree" that will lead us back.  We circle around trying to make our own paths in life but soon realize we are getting nowhere.  Once we finally surrender that to the Lord He is able to show us how to get back on the right path.  We may have to cross a few "creeks of trials" to get back there, but He is there.  We also may have to call on others to help, but that is why the Lord gives us other people in our lives.

The Lord is always leading.

I am blessed by the fact that Steve used this as a teaching moment with Wesley.  I am thankful that my Mother's Heart did not get overwhelmed by all of the "What ifs" but trusted that the Lord had them in the palm of His hand the entire time.

I know it is something that Steve and Wesley will always remember.  I know it will be something I will remember, too.  I love how the Lord can bring good out of any situation to help us learn more about Him and His loving character.

02/08/12

 

I am not a person who likes people to be mad at me or say things against me.

However, I have learned that I cannot always make people happy.

In saying this, I know that if I am doing my best for the Lord, that is all that matters.  The Lord has reminded me recently that I am to pray for those who do not care for me.  I must say that is hard.  I have struggled with this at times in my teaching career or personal life.  It has taken me many years and many reminders from the Lord to release some of this.  How thankful I am that the Lord doesn't give up on me but gives me those gentle reminders that He wants me to change my viewpoint on those people instead of trying to have them change their viewpoint of me.

I have to remind myself that Jesus was not liked by everyone.. and still isn't today!  How do I think I am to be different?  He tells us that in His Word.

I have learned to pray for those people.  It has actually been amazing to feel the transformation in my heart.  I cannot say it is perfect.... there is still anger or hurt that rears its ugly head at times.  God knows we are human and I believe He understands.  What He wants is for us to stop being so consumed with who doesn't like us and pray for them instead.  That is one reason I posted the verse on Sunday from Matthew 5.  This is a verse the Lord has put before me a lot lately.

Is there someone in your life that is giving you a hard time?  Are there hurts and anger you are feeling?  Give it to the Lord.  He has been there.  He understands.

Only He can give you the right heart attitude towards others.  

Only He can free you from the captivity of bitterness that can come from conflict.

02/07/12

 

Last week in chapel our speaker was sharing about how we need to wait on the Lord.  He gave this illustration and I thought it was great so I wanted to share.

He said there were 100 kids in a "testing" situation.  These kids were given instructions that if they could wait until the people giving the "test" would come back in the room then they could have two jellybeans.  If they could not wait, there was a button for them to press and the people would come back in and they could get one jellybean.  He said that 78% of the children could not wait.  They pressed the button pretty quickly just to get one jellybean, when they could have waited and gotten double the amount.

Today we are an "instant" society.  We don't know how to wait anymore.  It is now being passed down to our children.  We can get information right at our fingertips and do not like it when we have to wait for something to upload/download/appear, etc.  

I am talking to myself here, too.  I have been having to learn that sometimes I really do need to wait for what I want instead of going out and getting it immediately.  I am learning that it is important to be careful and show more patience when I am around Wesley and Mikayla so they will know how to wait.  

I could tell that Wesley was listening at chapel because last Thursday he said he was really wanting to know how he had done on some tests.  He said he had been praying about them and hadn't gotten an answer yet.  Then he said, "OH, the Lord must be telling me to wait, then!"

When we wait on the Lord we are able to wait for the blessings He wants to give us instead of what we think we want.  Two jellybeans are more flavorful than one.  God's blessings are much better than anything we can imagine.

Find ways this week that you can learn to wait.  We really do need to show patience to our kids or they will never learn to wait on the Lord.

02/06/12

 

This weekend I learned....

.... that I am not very good at Just Dance 2 for the Wii.  I fell, ran into my girlfriends, hit my ankle, and realized just how out of shape I am.  This white girl can't dance.

....that I felt like a truck had run over me Saturday morning.  It wasn't all from the aforementioned statement on the Wii game.  I think my body was telling me it was not feeling very well.  I slept more of the day than I have in a long time.  I felt much better on Sunday.

.... that I continue to hate balancing the checkbook. 

..... that because of the aforementioned statement I am thankful for the Lord's provisions.

....that I am really into the word "aforementioned."

.... that there are some loooonnnnggggg horns on a bull at the clinic where Daddy works.  I took pictures.  We'll see those later in the week once I have had time to work on them. 

.... that I have still not had a lot of time to photograph everyday stuff.  I need a day where I am not doing school stuff or just recovering from school stuff.  lol

.... that I am apparently not as into Pinterest as others.  I am not having a lot of time to get on there.  Don't get me wrong... I really love it.  I guess I just don't want to get so sucked in that I forget about the home in which I live. ha!

.... that many of the Super Bowl commercials were dumb or inappropriate.  I miss the old days of the good commercials.  I will say I saw a few that made me laugh.  I think I liked the baby grabbing the Doritos from his mean brother the best.  :)

..... that I watched the Super Bowl for one of my students.  I honestly could have cared less who won because I don't really care about who played, but one of my little guys wanted me to so we could chat about it today.  If that made him happy, then it was worth it.

.... that I am not sure what this winter has been.  One day it is hot and the next we are quite cold.  I will be perfectly honest and say I have missed the coldness.  I realize this is NC and we have these types of winters from time to time.  I am just thankful it is still cold enough to have a fire most nights.  I love me a fire in the woodstove... and so do the kitties.

.... that I think it is time for me to close this post.  :)

02/05/12

 

Matthew 5:43, 44

Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbor, and hate thine enemy.

But I say unto you, love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;