Gertie

Gertie is our new family mascot.  I posted on her a while back, and DD has come up with a blog dedicated to Gertie. Isn't that silly? Yes, but we have loved having Gertie as part of our family. We acquired her at the Creation Museum late last fall. The Creation Museum is one of my favorite places in the Universe --the Lord is truly honored there.  Gertie is a little reminder of that trip and that place. Now, here's the really funny thing:  DH loves Gertie. She goes with us on any major road trip, and she went with us to Church tonight (top photo). Like the rest of us, she was happy to be going  back to God's house.  The bottom picture was taken a few weeks back when we took what we thought would be an uneventful drive to NC.  We were caught in a little snow storm on the way back. It was beautiful, but  scary.  We saw lots of cars sliding on the snowy roads.  As you can see, Gertie helped Dad keep his eye on the road!I think it's pretty wonderful when we're getting in the van and Dad says, "who's got Gertie?"

Four Legged Friends

Many of us are concerned with the economy, the price of gas and groceries, the looming  "Sequestration 2013" --but Ginger has it all under control. This is the latest picture of our relaxed orange cat. Just looking at her makes me feel better. To the right,you can see Mamie, the Wonder Dachshund --she is always in the mood for a long nap, preferably on the bed with someone. She snores louder than almost anyone I have ever heard (I think my Granny may have been able to outdo her), but I guess it is that nose!

Sunday Afternoon Zzzzz

Sunday afternoon is a good day for a nap! I don't know who was the most content in the photograph. DD loves to sleep, and Mamie the Wonder Dachshund loves to be warm.  As I type this, DD is still asleep. She came home after Church and went right to sleep on the couch. We didn't even wake her up for lunch. I'll have to call her in a minute or two as we get ready for the evening services.  When she was a baby, she slept all the time. She would take a nap right before bedtime, then sleep all night long!  Mamie loves to sleep too. And can she snore! Look at those nose--how could she help it?

Matchmaker, Matchmaker. Make Me a Match!

My husband loves to read and  collect books. Over our married life, I have enjoyed watching him immerse himself in various authors--Warren Wiersbe, Billy Graham, Charles Stanley, Fulton J. Sheen and most recently, Oliver B. Greene and G. Campbell Morgan. Although some have gone on to be with the Lord  they loved and served, they live on here as well as in heaven, but through their written works. The outpouring of their faith continues to inspire.

We have a family friend who delights in finding homes for books where they will be cherished.In fact, she thinks of herself as a bit of a "matchmaker."  She has blessed us over the years with these treasures, always finding the perfect book.   This past week, she gave Hubby a lovely early-20th Century collection of G. Campbell Morgan's works. He is so happy! I hear the voices of these great men of God in my husband's sermons. 

Happy Valentine's Day

No More Chaos!

Years ago, my sister-in-law introduced me to Marla Cilley, better known as FlyLady. Mrs. Cilley is a Christian wife and mother who has felt the strain of working and keeping the home. She has developed for us a true system to avoid CHAOS (Can't Have Anyone Over Syndrome) and it begins with a clean sink--yes, a clean sink. At the heart of her successful plan is the development of good habits. We all have habits--why not replace the bad ones with the good?  I stuck with the plan for a time, and then the bad habits took over again. When we start cleaning our homes, we can so easily become overwhelmed. Focusing on one small task provides a place to start (often what we are missing).  She also reminds us, "You are not behind; jump in where you are." Those are wonderful words, believe me!

Through some difficulties faced by our family recently, I have felt the Lord tugging at my heart, telling me to draw closer to Him.  Last weekend, my thoughts turned to the best way to do this in the form a morning quiet time. I had maintained this for many years, but I allowed those bad habits to take over again (sleeping for those 30 more minutes, and the thought, "oh, I will do that tonight").  Anyway, as He said, "draw nigh to Me" He also planted that little purple seed in my mind, "why not try FlyLady again?"  I really do believe this came from the Lord.

I began Sunday night with the sink cleaning, and Monday morning with the easy and productive "Kelly's Mission."  My house is not perfect, but it is SOOOOOOOOOO much better. I am not in the midst of CHAOS.  In fact, we had a guest over for some sewing fun on Friday afternoon, and things were pretty much ready for her visit without a frantic attempt to make things presentable.

The Lord knows the desires of our heart. I want our house to be a home that is not "show room ready" but inviting and comfortable for guests and the family living here!  So, thank you, Lord. You are so good to provide this encouragement for me and to draw me closer to Yourself.

Thanks too, to FlyLady. I am really FLY -ing this morning!

Coloring with Marlin

Oh my goodness! This was a  Christmas present to myself this year--please don't think that selfish. I found this on Amazon, kind of by accident. I ordered it for Christmas, wrapped it, and put it under the tree! Haha! The Wild Kingdom coloring book was in new condition with no pages  colored. It sold originally for 49 cents, and has some information about Mutual of Omaha's insurance. We copied some of the pages from the coloring book --I probably won't color in the book itself, at least for a while. We all had a coloring party the other night, and I took out my Reader's Digest Wildlife guide so I could find the right colors for the animals. The pages I colored were from the Florida everglades--I just loved that!