Thankful Thursday

Today Iris at Grace Alone has chosen Joy for our topic this week.

When I think of joy, I think of this song. It's one of my favorites.



The bible is full of passages about joy.

Galatians 5:22
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness

Psalm 126:5
Those who sow in tears shall reap in joy.

RIP Michael Speicher.............

I am so sad, yet relieved there is finally an answer. I have followed this story and what happened to Michael Speicher for years.
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http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/iraq/article6736482.ece

The remains of the first American lost in the Gulf War have been found in Iraq, solving a mystery that has bedevilled the US military since his jet was shot down on the first night of the 1991 conflict.

The Pentagon announced yesterday that the remains of Navy Captain Michael “Scott” Speicher had been identified from bone fragments unearthed in the desert after two Iraqi civilians contacted Marines to say that they knew where he had been buried.

The discovery ends 18 years of uncertainty about the fate of Captain Speicher, who left behind a wife and two young children. The Pentagon initially declared him killed, but the lack of remains, and claims by some Iraqis to have seen him in captivity, led officials to change his status to “missing in action” and later “missing-captured”.

After the 2003 invasion of Iraq an entire military unit devoted its time to searching for the missing pilot. A series of false leads followed, including the discovery of what some believed were the initials “MSS” scratched into the wall of an Iraqi prison.
Related Links

* War on terror: Mystery grows over fate of lost Gulf war pilot

* Family racked by riddle of lost US pilot

* Initial clue to fate of missing pilot


It now appears that Captain Speicher was buried by nomadic Bedouin tribesmen close to where his F/A-18 Hornet fighter jet was shot down during a combat mission on January 17, 1991, the first night of Operation Desert Storm.

His aircraft crashed in a remote, uninhabited wasteland. It is believed that he was shot down by a missile fired from an Iraqi aircraft, most likely a MiG-25.

The Pentagon said that last month an Iraqi civilian provided new information, prompting US Marines stationed in the western province of Anbar to visit a location in the desert believed to be the crash site. He said that he knew of two other Iraqis who recalled a US jet crashing and the remains of the pilot being buried in the desert.

“One of these Iraqi citizens stated that they were present when Captain Speicher was found dead at the crash site by Bedouin and his remains buried,” the US Defense Department said in a statement. The military recovered bones and multiple skeletal fragments, which were flown back to the US. Captain Speicher was positively identified by matching a jawbone and dental records at the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology.

Cindy Laquidara, a spokeswoman for the Speicher family in Florida, said: “The family’s proud of the way the Defense Department continued on with our request to not abandon the search. We will be bringing him home.” The Navy’s top uniformed officer praised the effort to determine Captain Speicher’s fate.

“Our Navy will never give up looking for a shipmate, regardless of how long or how difficult that search may be,” said Admiral Gary Roughead.

“We owe a tremendous debt of gratitude to Captain Speicher and his family for the sacrifice they have made for our nation and the example of strength they have set for all of us.”

Hours after his plane went down Dick Cheney, the Defense Secretary, went on television and announced that the US had suffered its first casualty of the war. But doubts grew over the years that he had actually died. When his crashed jet was found, his empty flight suit was still largely intact.

In 2005 the US military excavated a potential grave site in Baghdad, while several Iraqis said that they had seen a prisoner who looked like Captain Speicher in custody. Saddam Hussein and his Iraqi officials always denied any knowledge of what had happened to the pilot.

Memory Verse Week 31

Proverbs 16:32 (New Living Translation)

32 Better to be patient than powerful;
better to have self-control than to conquer a city.

Thankful Thursday

Today Lynn has chosen "Summer Fun" for todays theme.

Thinking back on summers when I was young, we would be outdoors almost all day everyday. Summers meant family vacations. One particular summer we packed up a huge station wagon and a huge Air Stream RV. We drove out west, through the mountains, to the ocean. We went to California and Wyoming, Washington, Montana, North and South Dakota. My sweet Grandma came with us. That made eight people on vacation!!
It was a fun fun trip.

I wonder how I will feel next summer, after the little guy has been in school all year?? Will he be bored? Will we find enough for him to keep busy??

I am thankful for the veggies my garden produces in the summer. Especially the tomatoes. My favorite. I am looking forward to BLT's and Bruchetta. And I will freeze tomatoes again this year.

When my daughter was young, she went to camp for a week each summer. I looked forward to that week. I missed her but it was fun for me not to have another person to be responsible for!

This week I am thankful for:
*my beginning to ripen tomatoes--we should have a huge bounty this year!
*my husband working DAYS next week
*my daughter coming to visit several times
*the grace of God

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Proverbs 12:11
He that tilleth his land shall be satisfied with bread: but he that followeth vain persons is void of understanding.


2 Corinthians 5:17
Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.

Matthew 7:1
"Judge not, that ye be not judged. For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again."

Kung Fu Panda

We went to see Kung Fu Panda today. It is a good movie.

The little guy was upset at one tiny spot in the movie but quickly felt better about it all.

Summer is just going by so quickly and yet it hardly feels like summer because it is so cool this year.

I think there are only two more cheap movies to see and then that will be done for the summer but it sure has been fun seeing these movies with the little guy.

Pretty soon school will be starting!!

An update on an old post

This is the post I want to update. I was reading through my blog and thought I would let you all know what happened to her.

She passed away in 2008. She fought a good battle and lost, sadly.

I recently found out a classmates of mines daughter is also battling cancer. It is going well for her in her battle and there is a light at the end of the tunnel for her soon.

I also know of another woman with two very young children that is also battling cancer and her fight is not going so well.

Please pray for these two women.

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John 17:26
And I have declared unto them thy name, and will declare it:
that the love wherewith thou hast loved me may be in them, and I in them.

Hebrew 13:2
Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.

Memory Verse Week 30

Proverbs 16:20 (New King James Version)

20 He who heeds the word wisely will find good,
And whoever trusts in the LORD, happy is he.

First tomatoes!!

It isn't much but it is our very first tomatoes from the garden this year.

Earlier today, we had a storm. Lots of rain in a short amount of time, heavy winds, and HAIL. I almost cried but it was thankfully small hail and it did not damage our gardens.

Some of the tomato plants got blown over but no casualties there, again thankfully.

My husband and the little guy went out this afternoon to set the plants straight and there were these three ripe (sort of) tomatoes!!

I can't wait for them to start getting ripe.

If you have any good tomato ideas and recipes, please share!!! We love to eat BLT's and this year we have some yummy lettuce. I also love bruschetta, and my husband makes a lot of salsa!!

Today Lynn has chosen Victory!! for her theme.

We all have victory in Jesus if we choose to have Jesus in our lives. I have had victory in my life over many things and I know it would not be possible without Jesus in my life.

1 Corinthians 15:57 (New King James Version)

57 But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.


1 John 5:4 (New King James Version)

4 For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith.


Today I am thankful for:
*the rain
*sunny summer days
*the veggie garden and fresh tomatoes soon!!
*shopping
*my husband being home
*my little guy for making me laugh!!

Bird nest

The top picture is a picture of the side of our house. Up in the upper corner you can see a nest.

The second picture is of the nest, if you look closely in the corner you can see a nest.

We have a lot of birds in the yard and area and we feed them. There are no baby birds in the nest though. That would have been fun to see.

Memory Verse Week 29

Proverbs 15:29 (New King James Version)

29 The LORD is far from the wicked,
But He hears the prayer of the righteous.

Flowers and stuff...

These are Beebalm. They grow each year too. Our beebalm garden is about 12x12 and the Hummingbirds and butterflies and bees like them. Behind the beebalm, on the fence is my Trumpet vine. You can see the orange buds. This doesn't bloom until the end of July and into August and September. It's a favorite of the hummers!


These are Honeysuckle vines, they come back each year. They smell wonderful.




These are Hollyhocks. They grow each year and they are beautiful too!!


This beautiful flower is my one and only blooming (so far) Morning Glory. It is a beautiful shade of blue/violet. I love morning glories and my husband and boy planted this for me this year.

Happy Birthday!!!

It's my daughters birthday today. At 5:20 in the afternoon to be exact. She came six weeks early.

Happy birthday today Daughter!! I hope you have a wonderful day.

I love you!!

Needlepoint

This is a needlepoint seat cover. It's about 19x21--just the needlepoint part.

It is the third one finished of four.

I started this one before my little guy was born and just now am finishing it. The last seat cover will be prepped and started probably Friday.

These are for my mom. I think she will be glad to have them all finished. It is a very labor intensive project but once I get started I really enjoy my needlepoint!!

Thankful Thursday

Another Thursday already!

Today Lynn has chosen bloggers as her theme. Specifically Christian blogs.

I love to read pretty much any blog but the Christian bloggers are very uplifting. There really is no competition--it's just mostly blogging from the heart and from God experiences.

I read a lot of blogs and I try to look at them daily but that doesn't always happen. I do look at a few of them daily.

Today I am thankful for:
*my hardworking husband.
*beautiful yet cool summer days
*my garden!! Can't wait for fresh tomatoes!
*my children
*my mom

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Hebrews 11:1
Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

Psalm 119:2
Blessed are they that keep his testimonies, and that seek him with the whole heart.

Budget movies

Today we saw Surfs Up.

It was a fun movie and the little guy enjoyed it. So did I!!

The theater wasn't as crowded this week though.

Movie info here

I would recommend this film to anyone with children.

Visitors

These are unwanted visitors. The squirrels--they are cute, my husband calls them rats with tails. But they are so very annoying. The little red squirrels are squeaky and they yell all the time.

The big squirrels have made a home in our roof, which is not a good thing at all. My husband has to try to figure out when they are not up there and seal the hole off.

The skunk was a huge surprise last night. It was cool enough to sleep with the windows and doors open. Just before bedtime he opened the sliding door in our room and happened to look out on the deck and there was a skunk not 3 feet away looking at him!!! Thankfully it didn't spray. Can you imagine the stink from that???

The skunk won't be an issue but the squirrels will be an issue til husband takes care of the hole.

Memory Verse Week 28

Proverbs 15:4 (New Living Translation)

4 Gentle words are a tree of life;
a deceitful tongue crushes the spirit.


And the whole chapter, because I like it!!

Proverbs 15

1 A gentle answer deflects anger,
but harsh words make tempers flare.

2 The tongue of the wise makes knowledge appealing,
but the mouth of a fool belches out foolishness.

3 The Lord is watching everywhere,
keeping his eye on both the evil and the good.

4 Gentle words are a tree of life;
a deceitful tongue crushes the spirit.

5 Only a fool despises a parent’s discipline;
whoever learns from correction is wise.

6 There is treasure in the house of the godly,
but the earnings of the wicked bring trouble.

7 The lips of the wise give good advice;
the heart of a fool has none to give.

8 The Lord detests the sacrifice of the wicked,
but he delights in the prayers of the upright.

9 The Lord detests the way of the wicked,
but he loves those who pursue godliness.

10 Whoever abandons the right path will be severely disciplined;
whoever hates correction will die.

11 Even Death and Destruction hold no secrets from the Lord.
How much more does he know the human heart!

12 Mockers hate to be corrected,
so they stay away from the wise.

13 A glad heart makes a happy face;
a broken heart crushes the spirit.

14 A wise person is hungry for knowledge,
while the fool feeds on trash.

15 For the despondent, every day brings trouble;
for the happy heart, life is a continual feast.

16 Better to have little, with fear for the Lord,
than to have great treasure and inner turmoil.

17 A bowl of vegetables with someone you love
is better than steak with someone you hate.

18 A hot-tempered person starts fights;
a cool-tempered person stops them.

19 A lazy person’s way is blocked with briers,
but the path of the upright is an open highway.

20 Sensible children bring joy to their father;
foolish children despise their mother.

21 Foolishness brings joy to those with no sense;
a sensible person stays on the right path.

22 Plans go wrong for lack of advice;
many advisers bring success.

23 Everyone enjoys a fitting reply;
it is wonderful to say the right thing at the right time!

24 The path of life leads upward for the wise;
they leave the grave behind.

25 The Lord tears down the house of the proud,
but he protects the property of widows.

26 The Lord detests evil plans,
but he delights in pure words.

27 Greed brings grief to the whole family,
but those who hate bribes will live.

28 The heart of the godly thinks carefully before speaking;
the mouth of the wicked overflows with evil words.

29 The Lord is far from the wicked,
but he hears the prayers of the righteous.

30 A cheerful look brings joy to the heart;
good news makes for good health.

31 If you listen to constructive criticism,
you will be at home among the wise.

32 If you reject discipline, you only harm yourself;
but if you listen to correction, you grow in understanding.

33 Fear of the Lord teaches wisdom;
humility precedes honor.

Word Cloud 7

Thankful Thursday

Today Lynn at Spiritually Unequal Marriage has chosen simple things for the theme today.

Sometimes it is just the simple things that make a difference. I walk out my door and see the beautiful flowers. They are simple, yet complex. Just looking at them brings a sense of joy.

My daughter was here about a week ago and she commented that " it's so green here"!
Sometimes we need to just stop and think of the simple things in life.

Today I am thankful for:
*simple things in life, a beautiful day, the sun shining, the green in the yard
*when my husband grills dinner outside
*an impromtu hug from the little guy

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Proverbs 2:6
For the LORD giveth wisdom: out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding.

Budget movies....

Our theater has budget movies all summer for the kids. It costs 3 dollars per ticket and you get free popcorn!! It's quite a bit of popcorn too.

It's on Wednesdays and Thursdays all summer.

Today we saw Monsters vs Aliens. Cute movie.

The theater runs two screens and it's at 10:00 am--a perfect time.

The theater was FULL with little kids and surprisingly it was pretty quiet too.

There is a city nearby that shows FREE movies but I would use the gas to get there for the free movie so I am happy to pay the three dollars to see the movie in my own town.

Little guy enjoyed it too. It was nice for him because he could talk and not get shhhsss'd throughout the whole movie because there were other kids talking too.

We will definitely be going again!

Memory Verse Week 27

Proverbs 14:29 (New King James Version)

29 He who is slow to wrath has great understanding,
But he who is impulsive exalts folly.


This is a great verse!

Happy fourth of July!!

Happy fourth of July.

I hope everyone had a wonderful day!

We went to a Baseball game and had fun!!

I am thankful for this day and that I live here.

God Bless America~!!

Thankful Thursday

Today, Lynn is our host and her topic is Freedom.


I am thankful for the freedoms I enjoy today. I am free to make choices, and mistakes. I am free to have Jesus in my life and to not be afraid of telling people that openly. I am thankful I am free to pray for other, and that I can pray openly if I want. I am thankful for the freedom I have in Christ.

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1 Thessalonians 5:14, King James Version
Now we exhort you, brethren, warn them that are unruly, comfort the feebleminded, support the weak, be patient toward all men.

John 17:1
These words spake Jesus, and lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee...

The Garden

Here is the Garden today. The left back is all the tomatoes, and the right back.

The front left are mostly all the peppers.

The front right are herbs, and cukes and lettuce. The lettuce is good!!

July 1

Today is my Mom's 81st birthday. She is in good health. I am thankful for that. She is hard to buy for, I mean, what do you buy for an 81 yr old? we generally give her a gift card to a restaurant, since she goes out to eat often. I can't buy clothes for her either, I have never been able to do that. So it's gift cards, and we usually take her out to eat!

July is a busy birthday month for me. It is also my brothers birthday, a nephew, a brother in law, a cousin and my daughter and I share a birthday!

The little guy is doing well this summer. He loves swimming and he also loves playing t ball. I think next year he can play baseball! And he will also have more swim lessons next year as well. He is also excited to start kindergarten and is reading!!! He can also do some addition and subtraction in math.

The husband is working a lot.

I am not doing much. Needlepointing mostly and some small crochet projects.

The garden is doing very well! I'll get a picture up soon. Lots of tomatoes, a variety of peppers, cukes, herbs and carrots. Oh and lettuce too, that we have eaten.

It's been a somewhat cool June and beginning of July. Cloudy and cool.

Started a savings account at the bank for the little guy--he is excited about that too.

I have a high school reunion in July. Last one I went to my little guy was just 6 months old and daddy stayed home with him while I went to the reunion. This time my husband is coming with. It should be fun.

Still liking the Star Wars thing. What can I say?? LOL

Killing Fields

I just finished reading this book yesterday and watched this movie last night.

Both were wonderful and I recommend watching the movie and reading the book.

Haing S. Ngor played Dith Pran in the movie. They had similar experiences in Cambodia during this time. They became close friends after they made it to the US.

Both the movie and the book made me sad and I cried. What a horrible experience for them both and all of their countrymen.

Memory Verse Week 26

Halfway through the year already!!

Proverbs 14:26 (New King James Version)

26 In the fear of the LORD there is strong confidence,
And His children will have a place of refuge.

Squares

These are two 10 inch Granny squares made for a charity for an afghan. They get squares from many people then put together a blanket for charity or someone special.

It's one great thing about my crochet board. If I want to do something easy in between projects, I can just look under the charity section and see what's there.

These squares are made with Red Heart and the color is Cafe.

These squares are going to a members brother in law who is very ill.

It's out of control...

I can't help it.

I bought more yarn. It was on sale for a good price. I don't need more yarn. I was finally getting my stock worked down a bit.

But lately I haven't been crocheting as much. I've been needle pointing and doing small crochet projects for charity.

The yarn pile has taken over the extra room now. There's yarn piled everywhere with a narrow path between colors. It's bordering on obnoxious. My husband was looking for some headphones and thought maybe they were buried up there somewhere. If it gets any worse, I could be trapped when the yarn pile collapses and the fire department will be digging me out.

It will all be used, no doubt about that. Eventually.

In a recent conversation with the hubby, I told him I didn't need to buy any more yarn for a while.

I even admitted I had a LOT of yarn....

And another one........

RIP Michael Jackson. Only 50 years old!

RIP Farrah

Farrah Fawcet died today. She battled cancer for three long years.

I used to watch Charlies Angels. And she was wonderful in Burning bed.



Wiki

Thankful Thursday

Today Laurie has chosen deserved rewards as our theme.

I'm not really sure what to say about this subject other than God knows what we deserve and what we don't deserve and he never gets it wrong!

Today I am thankful for:
*warm weather
*swim lessons
*my two children
*reconnecting with long ago friends
*my husband for working so hard for us

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Colossians 3:15, King James Version
And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful.

Butterflies.....

These are butterflies I made for the Holocaust Museum Houston.

There are eleven altogether and they are made with Red Heart scrap yarn. They are super easy to make too. They measure about 5 inches across and 4 inches tall.

More info about the project here.

RIP

RIP Ed McMahon.

I always enjoyed the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson and Ed McMahon. He was a wonderful sidekick to Johnny.

I have vivid memories, of when I was young in the 70's, of watching The Tonight Show with my Grandma when we went to visit. We laughed a lot and at a young age, some of the more racy jokes went over my head.

More Ed info

First day of Summer!

This is the first whole day of summer. It's hot and humid here and my husband put in the air conditioners yesterday!! I am so glad.

We don't have many plans for the summer. We are not taking a vacation this year.

The little guy has swim lessons through out the summer and T ball will last til mid August probably.

There are some birthdays in July too.

I'll be driving my mom down to Illinois again this summer. She wants to visit some more places.

Other than that not too much happening.

A quote

Don't let the past be a hitching post--but rather, let it be a guidepost!!

Memory Verse Week 25

Proverbs 13:20 (New International Version)

He who walks with the wise grows wise,
but a companion of fools suffers harm.


Wow, I like this verse a lot!!!

Happy Fathers day!

For my husband and the daddy to my children. Happy Fathers Day!!!

What Makes a Dad
God took the strength of a mountain,
The majesty of a tree,
The warmth of a summer sun,
The calm of a quiet sea,
The generous soul of nature,
The comforting arm of night,
The wisdom of the ages,
The power of the eagle's flight,
The joy of a morning in spring,
The faith of a mustard seed,
The patience of eternity,
The depth of a family need,
Then God combined these qualities,
When there was nothing more to add,
He knew His masterpiece was complete,
And so, He called it ... Dad
Author Unknown

Summer solstice 2009

Tomorrow is the Summer solstice. It arrives at 12:45 CDT am Sunday morning marking the beginning of Summer int he Northern Hemisphere. It is the longest day of sunlight in the whole year!

More info here from last year.

Finally finished!!!!

I finally finished the Leprosy bandage I started so long ago. WOW, I can hardly believe it was over a YEAR ago that I thought of starting this project.

It ended up being about 4 inches wide and 42 inches long. I used a D hook and #10 cotton thread. This is also the first time I have ever worked with thread.

I have to admit, it seemed more like a chore to finish this bandage. The hook is small and the cotton thread is even smaller. My eyes aren't what they used to be either so it was a difficult task. I want to make another one since I have the thread for it but I will use an E hook next time.

Read the three posts below for more background info on this project.


Read thispost

And this thread.

I used the Ecru on the right hand side.

And finally, this one.

Thankful Thursday

Today we have had some strange weather. I am thankful for the sun and warmer weather. I was getting tired of the rain.

Today our host Laurie chosen "Your fathers eyes" for our theme today.

I actually have my fathers eyes!!! My four brothers have blue eyes and I have my fathers brown eyes. My little guy has my brown eyes too.

My dad is no longer here but I wish he was since I have a ton of questions for him, things I didn't think to ask when he was alive.

Today I am thankful for Gods eyes that are on all of us all the time. I am thankful for such a father to look out for me.

I am also thankful for:
*hot sunny days and air conditioning
*my husband who is the best husband and daddy!!
*fresh food
*fresh air

God loves fathers. He is one.

-- Dr. James I. Lamb

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Ephesians 1:17
That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him:

Happy 234th Birthday!!

Today the United States Army celebrates its 234 th Birthday!

Army info

Two hundred and thirty-four years ago, the United States Army was established to defend our Nation. From the Revolutionary War to the Global War on Terror, our Soldiers remain Army Strong with a deep commitment to our core values and beliefs. This 234th birthday commemorates America’s Army – Soldiers, Families and Civilians – who are achieving a level of excellence that is truly Army Strong both here and abroad. Their willingness to sacrifice to build a better future for others and to preserve our way of life is without a doubt, the Strength of our Nation.

Carl

I bought some Carl books when I first got married in anticipation of more children. My daughter was sort of too big for them at the time, but I feel in love with these books.

I have recently been reading them with the little guy. They have very few words, so each time the story is just a little different!! And the little guy has started adding his thoughts on the stories as we tell them.

There have been some new Carl books written since I bought the other ones and I have ordered them since they are so fun to read with the little guy.

I would definitely recommend these books to anyone with smaller children. They are fun to read, and make up parts of the story!!

Just look at any book seller under Alexandra Day. They are truly wonderful books!

Memory Verse Week 24

Proverbs 13:10 (New International Version)

10 Pride only breeds quarrels,
but wisdom is found in those who take advice.

Flag day

Happy Flag day!!

I posted about Flag day last year too. You can read that post here
Look here for more info

When : Always June 14th

Flag Day, is a day for all Americans to celebrate and show respect for our flag, its designers and makers. Our flag is representative of our independence and our unity as a nation.....one nation, under God, indivisible. Our flag has a proud and glorious history. It was at the lead of every battle fought by Americans. Many people have died protecting it. It even stands proudly on the surface of the moon.

As Americans, we have every right to be proud of our culture, our nation, and our flag. So raise the flag today and every day with pride!

Properly Display Our Flag

There is a right way and a wrong way to display the flag. The American flag should be held in the highest of regards. It represents our nation and the many people who gave their lives for our country and our flag. Here are the basics on displaying the American flag:

* The flag is normally flown from sunrise to sunset.
* In the morning, raise the flag briskly. At sunset, lower it slowly. Always, raise and lower it ceremoniously.
* The flag should not be flown at night without a light on it.
* The flag should not be flown in the rain or inclement weather.
* After a tragedy or death, the flag is flown at half staff for 30 days. It's called "half staff" on land ,and "half mast" on a ship.
* When flown vertically on a pole, the stars and blue field , or "union", is at the top and at the end of the pole (away from your house).
* The American flag is always flown at the top of the pole. Your state flag and other flags fly below it.
* The union is always on top. When displayed in print, the stars and blue field are always on the left.
* Never let your flag touch the ground, never...period.
* Fold your flag when storing. Don't just stuff it in a drawer or box.
* When your flag is old and has seen better days, it is time to retire it. Old flags should be burned or buried. Please do not throw it in the trash.

Did you Know? There is a very special ceremony for retiring the flag by burning it. It is a ceremony everyone should see.Your local Boy Scout group knows the proper ceremony and performs it on a regular basis. If you have an old flag, give it to them. And, attend the ceremony.

Famous Flag People:

Betsy Ross was a seamstress who made clothes for George Washington. In June, 1776, Washington approached her to make the country's first flag and the rest is history.

Francis Scott Key Inspired by the British bombardment of Fort McHenry, Francis Scott Key penned the lyrics to our national anthem as he witnessed the event as British rockets whizzed in the air while our American Flag flew in the breeze

Farmers Market today

Today I woke up early and me and the little guy went to the Farmers Market in the big city.

First we picked up daughter and two of her friends.

I haven't been to this farmers market in many many years. We have a tiny tiny farmers marker two days a week in my little town.

The big city farmers market was gorgeous. It was beautiful. It was full of yummy smells and beautiful colors.

I smelled cilantro throughout the whole market. There were tons of flowers and plants too. Herbs and other miscellaneous stuff. We didn't look at all the miscellaneous stuff but I bought some yummy produce and fruit!! I thought the prices were pretty good too! Better than the supermarket prices.

I bought:
*three different lettuces (split with daughter)
*a huge bag of spinach
*tiny new red potatoes
*grapes (dirt cheap)
*tomatoes
*green beans (dirt cheap for a ton of them)
*broccoli
*onions (split between all of us--dirt cheap)
*BISON roast!! ( I had told my husband that they have them there and he told me to get one!)
*strawberries (again they were dirt cheap for the amount we got)

I would like to go again but not with the little guy. I would like to look at everything they have there again. I have to admit that the little guy was wonderful though. He held my hand or daughters hand the whole time. And he got a balloon sword made for him!

Disco baby, Disco....

Yes, disco. I liked disco music. Or most of it.

One of our high school dance themes was disco.

What brought this up you might ask??

Well, I recently got an invite to my high school class reunion. And during my high school years, disco was popular.

My favorite group was the Bee Gees, I still like them.

KC and the Sunshine band? Yep. The Hustle? Yes. A hometown favorite--Funkytown--yep!
Gloria Gaynor--I will Survive was also another favorite. Donna Summer. I could go on and on but I won't, you get the idea.

Who could ever forget Saturday Night Fever?? A young John Travolta??!!!

I wasn't much of a dancer at all but I sure liked the music, or most of it. I still do. I have lots of it on my iPod too.

Thankful Thursday

This week Laurie has chosen true beauty for our theme.

Everywhere we look, there is Gods beauty all around us.

You only have to step outside and look around. At the flowers, the trees, the animals and the vivid colors all around.

I can only imagine the real beauty God has for us.

Laurie referenced the Sistine Chapel. I would love to see the beauty of that.

Today I am thankful for:
*the beauty I see each day outside my front door
*my hardworking husband
*being able to stay home with my children
*my friends

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Psalm 96:9 (New King James Version)

9 Oh, worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness!
Tremble before Him, all the earth.

Proverbs 31:30 (New King James Version)

30 Charm is deceitful and beauty is passing,
But a woman who fears the LORD, she shall be praised.

1 Peter 3:3-5 (New King James Version)

3 Do not let your adornment be merely outward—arranging the hair, wearing gold, or putting on fine apparel—
4 rather let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the incorruptible beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very precious in the sight of God.

The other dog

This is my other dog. She is a Jack Russell too. I inherited her from my aunt who got her from the neighbor when she was about seven months old.

Neither of us named her either. Her name is Sophie and she is seven years old. We have had her for almost five years now.

She really didn't want her picture taken so it took about eight shots to get this one.

June Blankets

These are 12 Granny Squares I have made over the last few days for a charity project from my Crochet board.

These are easy to make and it's a great stash buster too!!

The Lou

This is my dog Louie. He wanted his picture taken too. He is my Jack Russell and he is seven years old. He's a good little dog!

June Blankets

More NICU blankets.

From the top down:

Pink 15X18
Blue 16x19
Wh/Black 16x16
Blue 18x22
Wh/Purple 21x20

The pink one is made with Homespun. The two light blue ones are made with Joann's Rainbow Boucle. I am not sure I like this yarn and I have more of it left to crochet with. It may or may not have been a poor choice for yarn. The white/black and white/purple blankets are made with Red Heart.

All these blankets are made with leftover yarn I have. It's been a great project for getting rid of those scraps of yarn! And the preemie blankets are fun and quick to make.

I joined in this project last year too. My daughter was a preemie and it's nice to give back a little.

Memory Verse Week 23

Proverbs 12:25 (New King James Version)

25 Anxiety in the heart of man causes depression,
But a good word makes it glad.

Arranged marriage??

Yesterday as we were driving, my little guy asked why I cried at my wedding!


Let me back up a bit. We were talking about sister, when the little guy was in my womb, how me and daddy met, where we lived before we met, all about the house and where we live now etc. Innocent little guy questions.

About a month or so ago, we all watched our wedding video. I cried through most of my wedding and of course they were happy tears!! I explained that to the little guy while we were watching the video.

So today as we were driving around he started asking if Mommy and Daddy knew each other in school. We explained we grew up in different towns and didn't meet until later. He then asked if Mommy knew Daddy when we got married! When we said yes, he asked if that was why I was crying at my wedding!!!! We told him that it wasn't an arranged marriage!

My husband and I burst out laughing!!! It was such an innocent question but it was how the little guy said it!!! We told him that it wasn't an arranged marriage!

So we had a good laugh yesterday afternoon.

D-Day

The Normandy Landings were the first operations of the Allied invasion of Normandy, also known as Operation Neptune and Operation Overlord, during World War II. The landings commenced on June 6, 1944 (D-Day), beginning at 6:30 British Double Summer Time (H-Hour). In planning, D-Day was the term used for the day of actual landing, which was dependent on final approval.

The assault was conducted in two phases: an air assault landing of American, British and Canadian airborne troops shortly after midnight, and an amphibious landing of Allied infantry and armoured divisions on the coast of France commencing at 6:30. There were also subsidiary 'attacks' mounted under the codenames Operation Glimmer and Operation Taxable to distract the Kriegsmarine and the German army from the real landing areas.[3]

The operation was the largest single-day amphibious invasion of all time, with 160,000[4] troops landing on June 6, 1944. 195,700[5] Allied naval and merchant navy personnel in over 5,000[4] ships were involved. The invasion required the transport of soldiers and materiel from the United Kingdom by troop-laden aircraft and ships, the assault landings, air support, naval interdiction of the English Channel and naval fire-support. The landings took place along a 50-mile (80 km) stretch of the Normandy coast divided into five sectors: Utah, Omaha, Gold, Juno and Sword.


This site has a lot of D day info.

This is another good site.

Lego Jackpot!!

Today we hit the Lego jackpot!!!

About a week or so ago, I told my dh that we need to get some legos for the little guy.

We ordered one thousand miscellaneous specialty pieces off Ebay for 49.99, free shipping and the seller added 100 extra pieces.

Then we went out and bought a basic set.

Then today, we all went to my mom's for cleaning day. I was telling my mom about our lego adventure and she told me that she has a container of legos up in her storage area in her garage. So, I go up there to look and lo and behold there are THREE containers of Legos!!! As seen in the picture here.

These are the same legos that my daughter and her cousins played with years and years ago at Grandma and Granpa's house and my mom was happy to pass them along to the little guy!!!

So we are all in lego heaven here.

Thankful Thursday

Today Laurie is our host for Thankful Thursday. Today she is talking about a spiritual sweet tooth.

To me that means someone hungering after the word of God. Through the bible, devotional or whatever they choose.

I go through phases of having a spiritual sweet tooth and admittedly, my sweet tooth for the Lord should be all the time.

Today I am thankful for:
*having enough food, this is something I often take for granted
*beautiful spring weather
*my husbands days off work
*my little guy who makes me laugh every day with what he says
*a good day at practice kindergarten!

Galatians 2:20
I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.

Seven Things

Two more items for my seven things project. Even though I don't do it weekly, I still find items to recycle and rehome.

I really think it is an ongoing lifetime project.

These two items I rarely used.

The Gizmo can opener ( remember that?) was just ok, I never really used it much at all.

The blender is like new it was so rarely used. Just no need for it really. And it takes so much space when space is at a premium.

So, these two items will go to a friend having a garage sale for the breast cancer walk. She generally does very well with her garage sales!!

June Blanket

Not exactly a blanket but close enough!

This is another prayer shawl.

Made with Homespun Plum.

It measures 86 inches wide by 42 inches tall.

It is for a young woman I know that is battling cancer. She is a classmates daughter.

Memory Verse Week 22

Proverbs 12:22 (New King James Version)

22 Lying lips are an abomination to the LORD,
But those who deal truthfully are His delight.

May 30

Today marks five long years since my aunt died unexpectedly. I actually thought my cousin was calling about my Grandma since we all expected my grandma, at age 96, to die first.

My cousin called me at 6 am and I was just shocked by what she told me. Then I had to call my mom and tell her. That was very difficult. It was horrible.

I still miss my dear aunt. I miss sharing a whole lot of stuff with her. I just miss talking to her too. We were always very close.

As the years go by, I have less and less bad days, but I still ocassionally have those bad days.

Oddly, one year ago my dog died on this day too. I posted about Otis here. He's the one right in front. I still miss him a lot too. He was my special dog. He loved my aunt too. I brought Otis out on a plane to visit my aunt and her dogs.
I know I will never have another Otis in my life, he was that special.....

Seven Things

I have a seven things project today!!

My daughter came over and she needed some containers and I had some for her!! I haven't used them and they were just sitting dusty on my shelf, so she took them with her.

And I cleaned out the little guys winter stuff and these things don't fit him anymore.

*four storage jars
*two winter hats
*six pair mittens/gloves

Thankful Thursday

Today Lynn has chosen The voice of God and Obedience for our topic.

Often times, I think that being able to be obedient is tied in with listening to God. Though I know in my life I often don't take the time to actually listen for Gods voice.

I try to be obedient to His voice when I do hear it.

I have audibly heard God speak to me and each time I was obedient to His call. I had to be, I had no choice. When God tells you to do something, you must obey.

Jesus heard the Voice of God and was obedient!!


Today I am thankful for:
*beautiful spring days
*the smell of flowers and blooming trees in the yard
*the beautiful spring colors
*my family
*de-cluttering!!

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Psalm 100:4
Enter into His gates with thanksgiving,And into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name.

Romans 5:19
For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so also by one Man’s obedience many will be made righteous.

May blankets

Six more blankets for the NICU babies.

The top three are made with Lion Brand Pound of Love.

The purple one is made with Lion Brand Chunky.

The pink one and the brown one are made with leftover Lion Brand Homespun.

I added the side view to show the different colors in those two. I thought they turned out kind of pretty!!

Starting from the top blue blanket, here are the sizes:

Blue----12x14
Pink----14x15
blue----14.5x17
Purple--17x18
Pink----18x17
brown---17x15.5