Joyfull Living

I found this today and thought it was cute enough to share: These are real examples from real resumes: * Reasons For Leaving Last Job* - Responsibility makes me nervous. - They insisted that all employees get to work by 8:45 every morning. Couldn't work under those conditions. - Was met with a string of broken promises and lies, as well as cockroaches.. - I was working for my mom until she decided to move. - The company made me a scapegoat - just like my three previous employers. *Job Responsibilities* - While I am open to the initial nature of an assignment, I am decidedly disposed that it be so oriented as to at least partially incorporate the experience enjoyed heretofore and that it be configured so as to ultimately lead to the application of more rarefied facets of financial management as the major sphere of responsibility. - I was proud to win the Gregg Typting Award. *Special Requests and Job Objectives* - Please call me after 5:30 because I am self-employed and my employer ...

Yesterday my six year old and I went on a school field trip. We went to a natural history museum and they featured a special butterfly exhibit. That was the best part of all and it was beautiful. Of course I brought my camera and took so many pictures, they had to go into the slide show above. I love to watch butterflies and see how different and unique each one is. Of course it is fascinating to remember how they came to be a new creation. Whenever I see a butterfly it reminds me of this verse in the Bible: II Corinthians 5:17 Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold all things have become new. This verse came alive in my life - as a teenager, my ways were not very good. I was hanging around with the wrong kind of friends, doing the wrong kind of things and headed in a bad direction. In the midst of this I met my future husband. As we began spending time together, my ways got better. But, it wasn't until we ...

Warning - if you are under 35, this post probably will not interest you at all! But if you are over 35 and your taste buds have matured and you like collard greens - you'll love this! Here is a garden of greens I was able to go and pick from: You pick the biggest leaves off of the plant. First they need to be washed - thoroughly, then sliced up. Then they go into a big pot and seasoned (salt, pepper, vinegar, ham etc.) and simmer for a few hours. Here is the finished product! A delicious bowl of greens. Of course my pot made a lot of greens, so I put them into various freezer containers and froze them. As a side note, greens are so good for you! They are packed with nutrition. They are also sold already cut up, ready to cook for your convenience - if you don't have a garden close by!

As you may have gathered, I am a morning person. I have tons of energy in the morning and like things to go on schedule. However, we all have those days when even the best laid plans...fail! Today was such a day. On Fridays, one of my sons likes to attend FCA (Fellowship of Christian Athletes ). That means we must leave 15-20 minutes earlier than usual. That was in my plan! Bear with me here...I have been craving a banana,orange, pineapple smoothie for breakfast. Yesterday, I shopped for all the ingredients, last night put them in the freezer so they would be ready for the blender this morning. Time came to leave the house, everyone was ready...but me! I still had to make my smoothie (that I have been dreaming about by the way!). Son was getting panicky about the time, so I told him to load the car and I would be right there. As I stood at the blender putting the ingredients in, the frozen chunks were too big and wouldn't blend. Whatever I tried, just wouldn't work....

Today was one of those wonderful days when I leisurely did my errands all by myself. I had made my rounds and was at the last store... Wal Mart for just a few things. By then, I was a bit anxious to get home and was walking towards the entrance of the store. There was a procession of three of us. First was a couple of sweet, s l o w, older ladies. Instead of rushing by them, I stayed behind them, then there was a couple behind me. As we entered the door, I went to go around the sweet grandmas to check in my return to the store greeter. Would you believe that the couple behind me swung right around in front of me and went to MY store clerk to show their returns! Cut right in front of me! As I was waiting for them, I kept trying to make eye contact with the woman who cut in front of me to give her "the look". You know...the look that says " excuse me, I was ahead of you...and you JUMPED right in front of me " Do you know "the look"? Well, she...

Like all families, ours was designed by God. We had our firstborn son and less than three years later, had our second son. We wanted more children, but after suffering three miscarriages, decided that we were done. But God wasn't! After "our" decision not to have any more children, we gave everything away that pertained to a baby. Clothes, crib, 'stuff", etc. Then, God blessed us one more time with a son. In His time. And boy does that add some character to our home. Third son was born much later than the other two. Through the years we have found ourselves in humorous situations. Entering high school with one son, while entertaining a toddler at the same time. Juggling teenage boy subjects with a kindergartner. These have been a source of fun and make our family make up unique. Saturday was one of those days where we bounced through the ages and age related activities. We began the morning with the youngest at his t-ball game. Here he is throwing t...

Since you have recently been bombarded with family events and pictures lately, and the prom pictures are not posted yet(!!!), I thought I would try to share something inspirational. Galatians 5:22 describes the fruit of the Spirit which is an overflow of God in our hearts and brings about these qualities: "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering , kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control..." Most people identify or are attracted to one or two fruits listed above and desire and cultivate this particular quality. I pick JOY! This does not mean that I am always a joyful person, but I want to be, I want to exhibit joy in all circumstances. When I read something about "joy", I perk up and pay attention. This happened when I recently read this: Joy is a by-product of a life of service to God and others. When we serve God and others, joy is a blessing of this. The joyful Christian faces life without fear or complaint. Each new day ...

Well, this is the big weekend for my oldest son - Prom! We are a pretty modest family who strive to live within our means and live as simple as possible. Our vehicles are dependable, but not "prom vehicles" according to our teenage son. But...we have this aunt - Aunt Ro - and she is awesome! She is hip, mod and loads of fun. All my boys love her and love spending time with her. She relates well to each son and shows them attention and love. And guess what??? She drives this awesome car: And in typical Aunt Ro style - when she heard about the prom plans, she volunteered the use of her cool car. My son was on cloud nine - wouldn't you be??? So, we had some fun when we traded vehicles, posing with "the car". Here is my son and his friend who will be going to the prom also. They will be double dating. Have you ever seen a teenage boy so happy to pose with his mother???? Have you ever seen a mother so happy to pose in a car???!!!

This post was written over at Blessed, but it is too good not to share. If you have kids, you will certainly be able to identify with a couple of these! Today I am struggling with children. The only thing that is giving me peace is knowing that some day both my husband and I will be guests in their home. We have created this fantasy evening that we speak of more and more. The anticipated joy of this time with our adult children is building. Would you like to know what we are looking so forward to? My husband and I have decided that when our children grow up we are going to have one glorious visit to their homes for dinner. On our special visit we are going to have our list in hand. What list, you ask? The list of things that have so highly annoyed us through the years. When we arrive at their home we will do the following: * When we walk in their front door we will throw our coats, purses or jackets on the floor. * Preferrably in an area where everyone can trip over them. * We will c...

Today is Friday and over at Kelli's House, it is Show and Tell. I want to share my fantastic shopping bargains I found yesterday! Consignment Shop shopping is one of my favorite pastimes . As I was browsing through my favorite shop yesterday, I found some great things. Here is the lot of them together. These corning wear dishes were $4.00 for the set. I love this design. I am such a book fan, these great book for $.50 each could not be passed by! Here is my favorite...a flower vase with beautiful flowers for $7.00. Goes perfect on my dining room table. Go check out K elli's House for lots of other fun Show and Tell. And have a great Friday!

We as mothers say this phrase so much "where did the time go?", but it is so true, time flies by. Here is my oldest son Here is what he does best...get ready to go somewhere! He has some big moments this week. We had some out of town family come in and do some camping. Both my boys got in on that action and loved it! It was a camping trip with one uncle and six boys, filled with fishing, camping, campfire cooking - the whole roughing it scenario. (So not me by the way)! A big THANK YOU goes out to Uncle W!! You are the MAN! These are the moments that make forever memories and we appreciate him taking the time with the boys and just having fun. Then on Saturday this young man will experience his first prom. Don't worry, lots of pictures will come up here on the blog!!! Through these big moments, it is so easy to lament on how fast he has grown up and thought like things I wish I had done different, where did my little boy go, etc. But in every situation of life...

Since our family has two teenagers - attitudes have become a fairly hot topic at our home. As a mom, it takes some adjusting to see boys who were once so sweet and lovable , transforming into young men, embracing their own way into life's journey, not needing the nurturing aspect of a mommy, as much as they need encouragement, guidance and godly direction. Trouble is...something about the teenage brain, hormones, testosterone etc, they think they have it figured out already! So, since this is a fairly new path for me, I have discovered so far the following do NOT work: nagging, arguing or criticizing! And I have also learned that attitudes are contagious in a home. And...sometimes we must choose a good attitude over a not so good attitude. I found this quote that described it so well... “Words can never adequately convey the incredible impact of our attitude toward life. The longer I live the more convinced I become that life is 10 percent what happens to us and 90 percen...

What a SMILE Creates! It costs nothing, but creates much. It enriches those who receive it, without impoverishing those who give it. It happens in a flash and the memory of it sometimes lasts forever. None are so rich that they can get along without it, and none so poor but are richer for its benefits. It fosters good will in a business, It creates happiness in the home, and is the countersign of friends. It is rest to the weary, Daylight to the discouraged, sunshine to the sad, and nature's best antidote for trouble. Try it out today as you go about your day! SMILE - Jesus loves you!

Today is Word Filled Wednesday over at 160 AcreWoods . Word Filled Wednesday gives an opportunity to enjoy a beautiful picture coupled with God's Word to bless our day. The verse below is from Proverbs and that is one of my favorite books of the Bible to find wisdom and encouragement. It is simple reading, but chock full of wisdom which can be applied to every day life. Drop by 160 AcreWoods to see more Word Filled Wednesday. Be blessed!

Not with a morning groan, but make your morning hum like a well oiled machine! It CAN be done! For a quick background...I was always a night owl. My parents were also and we didn't go to bed until after Johnny Carson's monologue . (Does that give my age??) After I married, still the late nights/late mornings were the best. It just didn't make sense to me why people chose to get up early. When our first son came along, I was blessed to be a stay at home mom. His nighttime routine began at 9:00 PM - with bath, feeding etc., just so he wouldn't wake up too early in the morning! Then school started....it was mandatory to get up early, but I didn't actually enjoy it, just went through the motions and got it done. After several years of waking up early for school, again we were blessed with a new little one and I could again stay at home. The difference was, when this little angel was awake, I could not get anything done! The older boys would catch the school...

Today is Show and Tell Friday over at Kelli's House It is so much fun visiting other blogs and checking out their show and tell items. Today I am sharing some outdoor pictures from around my home. Here is the south spring is in full bloom! Here is an amaryllis in full bloom I have had these yellow snapdragons for months, They are just now blooming, but WOW, they were worth the wait. Another pot with snapdragons. Here are some dianthis ( sp ?), they too have waited a long time to bloom, but are doing great! I've been waiting to catch this guy feeding. This picture is not the best, but I'm going to keep trying! Isn't he beautiful? Spring is such a beautiful time of the year! Hope you enjoy these shots. Don't forget to check out the other show and tells over at Kelli's.

This week is spring break for the kids. Daddy and I had to work, so we didn't get much of a break! But today my neighbor and I took our kids to a park and let them enjoy the day. Here is putt-putt golf Eyeing the shot! Getting it in!